The Road of #47:The Cost of a Vanity Handicap v D.O.G.E.

Date line: 2/22/25: THE WHITE HOUSE

   According to DOGE their combined efforts to date saved the USA 55 billion. That is an amazing and tremendous amount of moolah. But is it actual cash? Well, NO, on paper it is an estimated amount of previously earmarked monies not being distributed as planned.

   I have a plan to save some more cash and mine does not fire any one person. It just asks #47 to refrain from playing golf every weekend, nine times since January 20th on the company dime at one of his resorts, at the cost to date of $10.7 million. Disregarding a “conflict of interest” by the president’s entourage staying at Mar a Largo, a for profit enterprise, I offer these statistics from when #47 was #45.

   By the end of his first reign, January 20, 2021,#45, had visited one of HIS golf courses (AKA “adult day care center”) 308 times and has recorded playing at least 150 rounds of golf for a total of 2655:47 hours spent hitting the little ball or at least time spent in his resort. Twenty-two (22) percent of his days in office were spent at ONE OF HIS RESORTS.

   I beg you to cut the man some slack, he donates his $400,000.00 salary to charity, and I’m sure his retirement stipend of $219,000.00 a year for life will be donated as well. The GOLFER IN CHIEF is not the first president to “donate” his salary. Washington was forced by Congress to take a salary after George asked not to have one, and HERBERT HOOVER and JFK both donated their’s. According to that leftist rag HUFF POST, as of November 29, 2019, the US government spent $115 million dollars ($115,000,000.00) on 226 trips to Mar A Largo for 108 rounds of golf. THE (I’m sure it’s another leftist fake news organization) GOLF NEWS reported $550,000.00 was spent on third party golf cart rentals and at least $500,000.00 in overnight stays at TRUMP OWNED PROPERTIES for the Secret Service members protecting #45 while he bested (he has a vanity handicap of 5…NFW) his opponents. The COAST GUARD cutter stationed off the shore in Florida is probably gratis. Overall, the cost totals well over 287 years of his donated PRESIDENTIAL SALARY. FORBES, another Commie pinko rag, suggested the totals were even higher, coming in at $142 MILLION with $59 MILLION spent on trips to MAR-A-LARGO via Air Force One.

   Costs include prep, fuel, salaries for staff and trip on Air Force One, three squares for all, golf carts for Secret Service, room and board at resort (no discounted prices) for all, golf green fees, presidential limos/motorcade to and from, Coast Guard cutter off shore, helicopter and drones for surveillance, pre-visit scouting (that’s how they found the rifle), post visit clean up, etc, etc. So, at 2017 prices (GAO estimate) of $3,383,250 a weekend, let’s have Elon Musk actually look at the books to start the savings this weekend.

Oh, Ye, gentle mistresses and most distinguished gentlemen, and others… The opinions and observations are solely my own views, and I take full responsibility for any errors of fact, not to mention any predictions that prove to be wildly inaccurate.

 The Road of #47: "Bye Mitch.”

Date line: 2/21/25: THE WHITE HOUSE

   After seven terms in the Senate MITCH McCONNELL of Kentucky announced he will not seek re-election. Our illustrious leader dismissively responded, "Bye Mitch.” There was friction between the former majority leader and #45 aka # 47… but one would think a word of congratulations would be noted to the long serving senator…or maybe not…

   Last night the Senate worked a “vote-a rama” 52-48 to adopt a  33 amendment $340 billion budget blueprint. As the voting began (10 hours worth) #47 said on Trurh Social, “Thank you to Majority Leader John Thune, and the Republican Senate, for working so hard on funding the Trump Border Agenda, Your work on funding this effort is greatly appreciated!” The one GOP who voted no was Sen. Rand Paul ( R-Ky).

   “If we were fiscally conservative, why wouldn’t we take the savings from Elon Musk and DOGE  and move it over here and help with the border?” Paul said on the Senate floor before voting began. “Why would we be doing a brand new bill to increase spending by $340 billion?”

Oh, Ye, gentle mistresses and most distinguished gentlemen, and others… The opinions and observations are solely my own views, and I take full responsibility for any errors of fact, not to mention any predictions that prove to be wildly inaccurate.

 The Road of #47: Polite Dinner Conversation

Date line: 2/21/25: THE WHITE HOUSE

   Yesterday I wrote “The insulting, condescending bully has returned”when in fact he never left the arena. For ten years since he was first nominated as the GOP candidate for president, beating out sixteen other potential candidates, and for a few decades before, #47 has been a “news worthy” item, in fact many times controlling the news cycle. Besides being condescending and insulting, his words can endanger the safety of not only ourselves, citizens of the US, but other nations as well. 

   Usually speaking (posting) in the third person, all in caps, one wonders about how egotistical this person is. An example:"Think of it, a modestly successful comedian, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, talked the United States of America into spending $350 Billion Dollars, to go into a War that couldn't be won, that never had to start, but a War that he, without the U.S. and 'TRUMP,' will never be able to settle.”

   Braggadocio aside his approval rating in the first 30 days has taken a slight turn to the negative side, at less than 49% and dropping. Yet, I try to avoid polls because tomorrow never knows. Never the shy boy, our fearless leader in his attempt to consolidate power in to his own hands has issued 73 executive orders.Afterwards, he posted, "THREE GREAT WEEKS, PERHAPS THE BEST EVER.” Most (75%) folks believe that #47 is handling the presidency just as he stated he would on the campaign trail.

   Meanwhile, I ponder the thought that most of these DOGE cuts of staff and the “savings” of billions of dollars might be a Ponzi scheme to hide the impact of the reduced taxes on big businesses and of course #47’s favorite oligarchs, Musk, Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg. Only time will tell.

   But I ask, as promised for DAY ONE…Price of eggs and gas would be drastically reduced, no tax on tips, no tax on Social Security, no tax on overtime…where is it????

Oh, Ye, gentle mistresses and most distinguished gentlemen, and others… The opinions and observations are solely my own views, and I take full responsibility for any errors of fact, not to mention any predictions that prove to be wildly inaccurate.

 The Road of #47: UKRAINE: Talking Points

Date line: 2/20/25: THE WHITE HOUSE

   The insulting, condescending bully has returned…#47 has directed Secretary of State Marco Rubio, you remember him aka “Little Marco”, to initiate “peace” talks for the Ukraine with Russia… without any representation from Kiev or any nation from Europe. Our fearless leader has stated that not only did Ukraine start (provoke) the war but the Ukrainian president “is very low in Ukrainian Polls” and is “a Dictator without Elections”. All mistruths or as my Mama would say, “out and out lies”.

   Facts are Ukraine did not provoke the attacks of February 2022, nor is Zelensky a “dictator”. He is a duly elected official who in a state of martial law (caused by the invasion) has not faced re-election.  His approval rating is at 57% far superior than our guy. Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) after visiting Kyiv with Democrat counterparts stated “Zelensky is frustrated, but he’s also been the right head of state for the time. He’s kept a nation together focused on Russian occupiers, and I think we should give them a fair amount of credit for that work.”

  For the past eight years #47’s idol Russian Czar Putin has shown aggression toward the Ukraine. Putin has denied UKRAINE’s sovereignty, stated Ukrainians were Russians who needed to be brought back. Since the ouster of President Viktor Yanukovych (2014), an ally of Russia, Putin claimed the government of Ukraine was “illegitimate” and that  Ukraine was poised “to join NATO and have NATO missiles placed in Ukraine and aimed at Russia”.In 2023, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev echoed Putin’s stance, saying Ukraine is a part of Russia, but “we live in different apartments”.

   So where do we, The USA stand today. #47 offered a deal to “share (half) in the rare earths” found in Ukrainian soils with no security guarantees. That was not even a good starting point toward peace.

   Then last week (2/12) Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth suggested to other international leaders that Ukraine could not hope to regain the territory Russia had illegally occupied since 2014, nor join Nato.To hit the note harder good old Pete said the US would not contribute to any peacekeeping force in Ukraine in the event of a peace deal.

   Meanwhile today, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy met the U.S. envoy for the war in Ukraine Keith Kellogg, but their following joint news conference was cancelled at the U.S.'s request. My guess it didn’t go to well for us.

   Mike Pence posted on February 19 on X, “Mr President, Ukraine did not ‘start’ this war. Russia launched an unprovoked and brutal invasion claiming hundreds of thousands of lives. The Road to Peace must be built on the Truth.”

   Nikki Haley commented about #47 remarks as “classic Russian talking points” and “exactly what Putin wants.” 

  Where do we go from here? #47 vowed to “end the war Day one” or before…yet here it is…

Oh, Ye, gentle mistresses and most distinguished gentlemen, and others… The opinions and observations are solely my own views, and I take full responsibility for any errors of fact, not to mention any predictions that prove to be wildly inaccurate.

 The Road of #47: “Long Live The King” (Part II)

Date line: 2/20/25: New York Times (Re-cap)

   On February 17, I wrote a piece entitled “Long Live The King”. Today, February 20, The New York Times had a piece entitled “Long Live The King”… I’ll paraphrase the NYT piece.

   #47 is “is famous for his love of everything gold and other trappings that connote royalty…”

   On the 19th, #47 on his TRUTH SOCIAL bullshit wrote, “CONGESTION PRICING IS DEAD. Manhattan, and all of New York, is SAVED, LONG LIVE THE KING!”. Then, The White House reinforced that statement on other social media platforms with an illustration of #47 wearing a crown. WTF???

  “The King”, a man saved from an assassin’s bullet by The Lord himself has a strange view of what is tolerable. So far the DEMS are still without any leadership and in general are walking around with their fingers up their asses. Not one has vehemently opposed him. Remember the soon to be self-appointed “King” said, “He who saves his Country does not violate any Law,”…

   #47 has fired officials, froze funds which have already been allocated, gutted departments all in an attempt to “reshape the government”(NYT) aka Project 2025.

Coming Soon: “no tax on tips, no tax on SS, no tax on overtime…on day one”…where is it????

Oh, Ye, gentle mistresses and most distinguished gentlemen, and others… The opinions and observations are solely my own views, and I take full responsibility for any errors of fact, not to mention any predictions that prove to be wildly inaccurate.

 Tickets Torn In Half: FACES @ Fillmore East 2/17/71

"Days and Nights of My Misspent Youth" AKA "Tickets Torn In Half” with a cast of knuckleheads, vagabonds, cronies, sidekicks, and compatriots…

February 17, 1971 @ Fillmore East: A mid week show on a very snowy Manhattan night for FACES (listed as SMALL FACES) /SAVOY BROWN/ THE GREASE BAND. The Grease Band was a disaster without Joe Cocker, Savoy Brown, the same without Chris Youlden and the gang which will soon become FOGHAT, so we had only one hope left , THE FACES. And, THE FACES did not disappoint, as a matter of fact they were one of the best, most fun, bands I had ever seen. Ronnie Wood kicked it off on pedal steel with SWEET LADY MARY, the band cranked it up with I DON’T WANT TO DISCUSS IT, Rod Stewart out did Paul McCartney on Paul’s new tune, MAYBE I’M AMAZED, followed by Ian McLagen, Ronnie Lane, and Kenny Jones playing their roles in AN OLD RAINCOAT NEVER LET’S YOU DOWN, GASOLINE ALLEY, THREE BUTTON HAND ME DOWN and an encore of Elton John’s COUNTRY COMFORT. All while we were seated in the second row center. T’was was a wonderful night, and we lucked out in catching the midnight train back home. Unfortunately it was still snowing and the drive to get my date home took longer than I had hoped, and then I still had to travel one hour back to my house in a heavy snow. Got home after 3 AM with snow piling up all around me. School in the morning. But on we go…

Next up: Mushrooms and Ozzy…

 The Road of #47: “Long Live The King”

 Date line: 2/17/25: The White House

   “He who saves his Country does not violate any Law,” imagine having the audacity to make that statement. One must not fear the wrath of the judicial system, and/or Congress, unless of course you have each branch under your thumb. 

   That boast reminds me of the lion in the Wizard Of Oz…”if I was king of the forest, not queen, not duke, not prince. My regal robes of the forest would be satin, not cotton, not chintz. I'd command each thing, be it fish or fowl, with a woof and a woof, and a royal

growl. As I'd click my heel all the trees would kneel and the mountains bow and the bulls kowtow And the sparrows would take wing, if I were king.”

   Invincible, having survived not one but two assassination attempts, well, actually one where shots were fired, the other was planned(?). He, #47, a newly religious man feels he had divine intervention and support from above. Also, the highest court in the land has offered him presumptive immunity from prosecution so why not make the statement. Let’s take the words of another president the legendary Richard Milhous Nixon, “When the president does it, that means it’s not illegal.” 

Coming Soon: Mitch McConnell, Kentucky, and F.E.M.A.

Oh, Ye, gentle mistresses and most distinguished gentlemen, and others… The opinions and observations are solely my own views, and I take full responsibility for any errors of fact, not to mention any predictions that prove to be wildly inaccurate.

 The Democrats Need An Autopsy:

 Date line: 2/17/25:

    

   It’s only 30 days in, aka the days of “shock and awe” as #47 bulldozes the government while what’s left of the Democratic party sit around with their fingers up their asses. My question to the party is and might even be the answer, “Who or what are you afraid of?” Basically, you got your proverbial asses kicked by the bully and now you are kowtowering in the corner, awaiting a man/woman in a cape to save you. Wake up, there is no superhero in the wings. Oops, maybe I should have avoided wake, as wokeness helped to beat you.

   Where’s Chuck, where Hakeem, where in the news cycle is any Democrats response to anything???

   For the last ten years, a full decade The Dems have based their entire political strategies in opposing one man. He, that man, aka #45 and now #47 is no longer an aberration, he is the real deal. He is the one who helped the GOP win in nearly every single demographic group. To make matters more dire the GOP have “the trifecta”,the control of the presidency, the House, and the Senate. 

   For the lackluster DEMS two fronts must be confronted at one time, First, #47. If the party line is in opposition of any thing #47 is doing, stand up and confront it. Secondly, and more importantly, what the fuck is the party line? The DEMS need someone to figure out what went wrong  and then normalize, modernize, adapt their policies to the needs of the people, all the people.

   The ELECTION of 2024 is over and the “autopsy” of the Dems should be focused on the midterm election (2026). Now is the time when past mistakes or misdeeds must be punished or paid for; a testing time when the degree of one's success or failure will be revealed.

   The question is “Are the Democrats finally waking up and realizing that woke is broke?” The party needs to find a policy, a platform which will normalize and be more relatable to the Democratic Party faithful, to modernize the party for a new era. Facts are that the GOP won a majority of white women, young men, and remarkable numbers of Black and Latino voters. More people ended up voting for #47, even though many didn’t like him, because they liked the Democratic Party less. Wokeness hurt. Democrats learned the hard way that mothers care both about abortion rights and having their daughters compete fairly and safely on the playing field. The DEMS hyper-political correctness alienated half the country.

   White progressives hold views to the far left such as “racism is built into our society” while many Blacks and Hispanics Americans don’t feel that way as the exit polls showed, believing that “America is the greatest country in the world.” They don’t care about DOGE.

   College kids trashed campuses. Rather than stating that this is unacceptable DEMS worried about alienating one or another cohort in their coalition. So they let it continue and worse, spread.

   Biden aka Milk Toast Joe was a disaster. And to chose Harris as his running mate left little path for any resurrection when it was discovered that Joe had no chance of winning in 2024. Harris was considered as extreme and out of touch. The 2022 midterms should have given a hint that Joe was “one and done”. He should have been given his walking papers at that time, then there would have been time for “a primary campaign that could have produced a different nominee”, a different hopefully more successful path.

   That time has again come today…There will be a tomorrow…

Oh, Ye, gentle mistresses and most distinguished gentlemen, and others… The opinions and observations are solely my own views, and I take full responsibility for any errors of fact, not to mention any predictions that prove to be wildly inaccurate.

 The Road of #47: ARTS and LEISURE

 Date line: 2/15/25: The White House

    Imagine some guy, 78 almost 79 years of age, up on a stage dancing (if that’s what those moves are called) to “Y.M.C.A” by the Village People, shaking his “booty” to the rhythmic sounds. Imagine that same guy as head of The Kennedy Center for The Performing Arts. I can’t but t’is true my friends. #47 purged the Board of Directors, installed himself as their newest leader, and watched as other Board members resigned and artists cancel scheduled shows.

   When the president was asked about his takeover, he said: "We took over the Kennedy Center. We didn't like what they were showing and various other things."I'm going to be chairman of it, and we're going to make sure that it's good and it's not going to be woke.”

    I’m again at a crossroads of confusion and shock about this presidential move. Honestly, I think it borders on a freedom of speech/ censorship issue. A better approach might have been to “defund” the center. Let ‘em fend for themselves.

   “FINN” was a musical written for children about a young shark who "wants to let out his inner fish.”…Hmmmm…Cancelled…

   “The boss of everyone and everything” only 30 days in has called himself, “an amazing Chairman, DONALD J. TRUMP!” His compatriot, Richard Grenell installed as the Center’s interim president boldly proclaimed  there would be no more “ANTI-AMERICAN PROPAGANDA” shown, no more “drag queen show” no more “woke” stuff. But to top it all off, #47 posted an image of himself waving his arms like a conductor in a music hall.

   I propose that in 4 years time the Kennedy Center will be renamed, The Donald J. Trump Center of The Performing Arts…and “Y.M.C.A” will be our anthem…

   Coming Soon: What will happen to the playing of the “Black” National anthem???

Oh, Ye, gentle mistresses and most distinguished gentlemen, and others… The opinions and observations are solely my own views, and I take full responsibility for any errors of fact, not to mention any predictions that prove to be wildly inaccurate.

 The Road of #47:CONFLICT OF INTEREST, Hmmm

 Date line: 2/15/25: The White House

   When one thinks of TESLA what comes to mind, besides that ugly truck is a just as ugly guy, one ELON MUSK aka “the world’s richest person @US$ 397 billion. He owns SPACE X and X(Twitter). Quite the character he is as he with his mass fortune finagled his way in to the heart and soul of our beloved president #47. So much so that Musk can be found most days in the Oval Office (wearing what I consider disrespectful: a baseball cap and tee shirt) talking to the press in an “official manner”, or in The Blair House. This non-elected appointee of #47 is the leader of the DOGE pack.

   According to a piece from last year’s State Department website, in September of 2025 it, the State Department will award a lucrative contract to spend $400 million over five years for TESLA (CEO Elon Musk) to build armored electric vehicles.  Wednesday of this week the site removed TESLA’s name as the manufacturer.

   In a letter to Secretary of State MARCO RUBIO The senator from Connecticut, Rich Blumenthal(D) is questioning if the TESLA plans which are now on hold, would bring to mind any “profound conflicts of interest issues”. Hmmmm…

Coming Soon: Arts and Leisure

Oh, Ye, gentle mistresses and most distinguished gentlemen, and others… The opinions and observations are solely my own views, and I take full responsibility for any errors of fact, not to mention any predictions that prove to be wildly inaccurate.

 The Road of #47: THE DREADED PINK SLIP

 Date line: 2/14/25: The White House

   #47 and his posse in its efforts to reduce the size/cost of the fed workforce, last night laid off over 1000 employees of Veterans Affairs saving the department more than $98 million a year. Those “pink slipped” included non-bargaining unit probationary employees who have been employed less than a year in a competitive service appointment or less than two years in an expected service appointment. 

   OPM (Office of Personnel Management) an independent agency of the United States government that manages the United States federal civil service itself was not immune as some workers received their walking papers via a group call. They were “dismissed” and told to leave the building within the “half-hour”. WOW…

  Some union leaders representing those let go are calling these moves “a politically driven mass firing spree, targeting employees not because of performance, but because they were hired before Trump took office.” This is very similar to the Kennedy Center dismantling. Once again, new broom sweeps clean…

PINK SLIPS FOR:

• Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
• Department of Education
• Department of Energy
• Department of Veteran Affairs
• General Services Administration
• National Nuclear Security Administration
• Office of Personnel Management
• Small Business Administration
• US Forest Service
• United States Department of Agriculture

Coming Soon: Conflict of Interest

Oh, Ye, gentle mistresses and most distinguished gentlemen, and others… The opinions and observations are solely my own views, and I take full responsibility for any errors of fact, not to mention any predictions that prove to be wildly inaccurate.

 The Road of #47: A PENNY FOR YOUR THOUGHTS

 Date line: 2/14/25: The White House

    Happy Valentine’s Day to all.

    I’m not sure if #47 can do this but why not try. He instructed the Treasury Department to stop minting pennies because each one cent cost more than 2 cents to make. The minting of coins is the responsibility of Congress, not the president.  But, the man is right and the littlest coin should be put out to pasture. Each penny costs 3.69 cents to make. Its value lost is 2.69 cents.That’s not a reasonable endeavor.

   According to economists (aka penny proponents) prices based on 99 cents when rounded off to $1.00 will impose a one-cent sales tax.

   Another fun fact is the nickel will become the lowest denomination in use. The old buffalo head/Liberty/Jefferson “half-dime” made from cupronickel cost 13.78 cents per coin to manufacture. The dime is the smallest coin whose face value is greater than what it costs to produce.So, what’s this all have to do with crypto currency? We will see. 

  But wait, there’s more…The Paper Straw Controversy begins. This is heavy Politics 101 for sure…enjoy your news cycle…

Oh, Ye, gentle mistresses and most distinguished gentlemen, and others… The opinions and observations are solely my own views, and I take full responsibility for any errors of fact, not to mention any predictions that prove to be wildly inaccurate.