Just because I’m not blogging every day about politics, don’t assume I’m no longer paying attention to current events and government actions in the United States. I suppose my post last Thursday night proved that, though. I can only hold it in for so long, folks!
After spending an inordinate amount of time taking notes, checking sources, and writing blog posts for the last six months, I have now made time for what I prefer to do with my time: getting my devotional book published and marketed, and getting my historical novel and historical short stories written so they can be published. Those works in progress are near and dear to my heart.
For what it’s worth, I continue to let my US Senators and US Representative know where I stand on the issues. Sometimes they respond. I almost wish they wouldn’t, because their responses just make me angrier.
I wrote about politics in my July 3 blog post, but I did not address specific Congressional votes, US Supreme Court rulings, or Presidential Executive Orders. Here are a few of the matters that have been on my radar lately. One or two of them might be news to you because, other than Alligator Alcatraz, they did not get a lot of press coverage.
Teaching reading: “radical left agenda”
This news came to light last Thursday: The White House wants to slash funding to states for literacy programs, English language instruction, and after-school programs because “they promote a radical left agenda”. If that is approved, it will cost North Carolina $168 million in lost funds.
This “radical left agenda” broken record is wearing thin with me. If teaching someone to read or teaching an immigrant English is “radical left agenda,” then call me a radical leftist! I’ll wear that badge proudly! Since when is teaching someone to read a radical idea? If it is, I guess I was radicalized in Mrs. Caldwell’s first grade classroom in 1959.
When did reading become “radical left agenda?” One of my college friends in the early 1970s had a 30-year career as a reading teacher. I don’t know where she stands politically now, but in the 1970s she supported Jesse Helms. You couldn’t get any more “right” on the political spectrum than that!
I’m glad I learned to read when I did, before teaching reading was outlawed.
Trump v. Casa
I am terribly upset by the US Supreme Court 6-3 decision in Trump v. Casa on June 27, 2025. It gives President Trump the freedom to issue thousands more Executive Orders without having to worry that a US District Court judge will issue any injunctions. It is an alarming green light for Presidential power and abuse of power.
Job Corps
There are at least 21,000 students currently doing coursework and hands-on training through Job Corps. It was started as part of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s War on Poverty in the 1960s as a career training program for low-income and at-risk youth.
Everyone does not need a college degree to prepare for a chosen job. Job Corps is a program that helps fill in the gap so low-income youth can get the training they need to get a better job.
Even though Job Corps directly puts young people on track to qualify for manufacturing and other jobs, the Trump Administration has “paused” the program because somebody up there thinks the program’s results are poor and we need to do something about budget deficits. (After all, Congress just added $3 trillion to our national debt last week and cuts have to be made somewhere. We certainly can’t make billionaires pay their fair share in taxes!)
The Job Corps program was abruptly stopped, as is typical of the Trump Administration. They didn’t take time to assess the program and to look at changes that could enhance it. And all this was done while the same Trump Administration is crying for trained workers to work all the “beautiful” factories the Trump Administration says it is bringing back to America.
Common sense would tell me as a former public administrator that if a program isn’t showing positive results, you need to look at it and see what needs to be fixed. Make those changes and try to get the program back on a positive note. If all that fails, then scrap the program.
It feels like we’re returning to “the good old days” of the 1950s and 1960s when in the southern piedmont of North Carolina, 16-year-old couldn’t wait to quit high school and go to work for Cannon Mills for minimum wage. With Trump attacking every level of education, is this the deja vu we have to look forward to?
Natasha Bertrand of CNN
A few days ago White House Press Secretary launched a barrage of verbal attacks on CNN reporter Natasha Bertrand. Criticizing reporters for reporting the “facts” manufactured by the Trump Administration which she represents was not becoming or professional.
But the Trump Administration is like a dog with a bone. Once they latch onto a person or a group of people to attack, they just can’t help themselves. They continue to go for the jugular.
Trump went off the rails in his Cabinet meeting on Monday as he, unprompted, dragged Natasha Bertrand’s name through the mud. As with Karoline Leavitt’s unprofessional and purely political attacks on the reporter last week, Trump followed suit in his Cabinet meeting and said Bertrand should be fired. It is beside the point that she reported an assessment made by the Trump Administration. He went on to attack the media in general and threatened that “I think changes are gonna be made to the media.” Since he oversees the Federal Communications Commission – which grants and renews (or does not renew) broadcast TV licenses, I think we can safely see that his words qualify as a threat to TV networks that do not report the news with the slant he wants.
Trump especially delights in criticizing intelligent and professional women. They intimidate him because he can’t do what they do. For one thing, they speak in complete sentences.
“Alligator Alcatraz”
The development of the so-called Alligator Alcatraz Detention Center in the Everglades would have been bad enough without President Trump and Secretary of Defense Hegseth joking about the detainees needing to learn how to run in a zipzag motion while being chased by alligators. Not to mention the pythons.
These are human beings, and I don’t see anything funny about the entire immigration situation.
Over the last two or three days there have been reports of inhumane conditions at the facility, but I will withhold details until they are substantiated.
(A piece of advice for Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem: Women who refuse to dress in proper business attire will never be taken seriously by their male colleagues. Just sayin’.)
Jackie Kennedy’s White House Rose Garden is Gone
The iconic White House Rose Garden established in 1961 by First Lady Jacquelyn Kennedy is no more. Trump said the grass was always wet and wreaked havoc with high-heel shoes. (Don’t you just hate it when nature does that to you!)
Trump had the entire rose garden and that stretch of lush, green lawn at the White House dug up and paved over.
For someone who calls random things like legislation “beautiful,” the man clearly doesn’t know beauty when he sees it. To him, only money, oil rigs, military tanks, detention centers, other man-made things, masked ICE agents, and an occasional nude model or porn star is beautiful.
Chickens in California
Since Trump puts no value on life – human, animal, or plant – on Wednesday his administration sued California over its regulation of eggs and chicken farms. The reason? According to Reuters, because “the state’s anti-animal cruelty laws created ‘unnecessary red tape’ that had raised egg prices throughout the U.S.”
Let’s just blackmail another country
President Trump is clamping tariffs on Brazil, although Brazilians purchased $3 billion more in goods from the US in the first five months of 2025 than Americans bought from Brazil. There’s that, so we must look deeper into Trump’s “reasoning” for issuing this tariff. And, if you haven’t heard about it, you’re not going to believe it.
Instead of sending Brazil his usual tariff form letter, Trump sent a letter explaining that he is placing a 50% tariff on imported Brazilian goods because he thinks former president, Jair Bolsonaro, is being treated unfairly. Bolsonaro has been indicted for trying to overturn the 2022 election in Brazil.
I guess for Trump it just felt like “déjà vu all over again” and he feels compelled to come to his friend’s aid. In his tariff letter, Trump stated, “This Trial should not be taking place. It is a Witch Hunt that should end IMMEDIATELY!”
One headline I saw said that the letter looked like it was written by a fifth grader, but I think that’s unfair to fifth graders.
By the way, they speak English in Liberia
In one of a long line of embarrassing things Donald Trump has said, yesterday he put on his condescending voice and complimented President Joseph Boakai of Liberia for speaking such beautiful English. He asked President Boakai if he was educated. He asked him where he learned to speak such beautiful English. He told President Boakai that he spoke better English than some of the people around the table where they were sitting.
That last sentence was definitely true, for President Boakai speaks in complete sentences and President Trump does not.
By the way, President Trump, English is the official language of Liberia.
You can’t make this stuff up.
Ridiculous distractions in June
With the Sean “Diddy” Combs trial and the Jeff Bezos wedding over with, maybe journalists can get back to real life and reporting the news we need.
Until my next rant blog post
I’m glad I have more years behind me than I have in front of me.
I hope you have a good book to read.
Don’t take freedom for granted.
Remember the people of Ukraine and western North Carolina.
(I have not forgotten and I’m not ignoring the flood victims in Texas; however, I will leave it to bloggers in that state to blog about the recovery in the coming months. Since I live in North Carolina, I will continue to give updates on the recovery in my state.)
Janet
Janet's Writing Blog 
Your words tell this tale of horror with such elegance. Too bad it is not all a fiction novel, but sadly we know it is quite the truth. Wonderful work Janet and a happy Friday to you!
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Is it a coincidence that Dumb, Damnation, Dictator, and Donald all start with D? Duh…. Love your comment about ICE Barbie. Why would a grown woman want to parade around like a Pop Tart?
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Second verse same as the first, a little bit louder and a little bit worse. Will this insanity never end?
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When I read this, I was shocked. This used to be my job: teaching young people how to read and write. In recent years, I taught asylum seekers. These days, that almost feels like an act of resistance.
Here in the Netherlands, I see the same hardening attitude toward refugees. There’s even a proposed law that would make it a criminal offense to help them. Offering support — punishable by law. It sounds unimaginable, but it’s becoming a harsh reality. Things are not heading in the right direction here either.
And then that blunder by Trump on TV… The president of Liberia remained calm and composed, didn’t even call him out. But Trump once again revealed a shocking lack of knowledge and diplomacy. The fact that he makes such remarks without shame says it all.
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Thank you so much, Francis. Like you, I wish it were fiction. These things are gut-wrenching to write, and there is no end in sight. I wish you a happy weekend enjoying the views of and the breeze coming off the Aegean Sea. I’m more than a bit jealous!
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Pat, I don’t know what we’re to do. The very sight of ICE Barbie makes me gag. The icing on my cake today was that I received an email from Arcadia Publishing asking me to turn over the contents of my book, The Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, for them to give “a trusted company” — which apparently has no name — for said un-named company to use my copyrighted words “for AI training.” I could use the $205 they’re offering me, but my soul is worth more than that. The perfect ending to a roller-coaster week! By the way, yesterday turned out to be a good day because IngramSpark has checked out the manuscript of my book, I Need The Light! 26 Weekly Devotionals to Help You Through Winter, and it is ready for publication! Earlier in the week they had a problem with the book cover I created on Bookbrush although Bookbrush’s analysis said it was perfectly designed to be published on Amazon and by IngramSpark. Caused me 48 hours of angst! Anyway, the cover was approved yesterday and I ordered my paperback galley copy. On Monday I’ll send out my newsletter seeking readers for an Advanced Review Copy. It has been a busy week, and I resent Arcadia Publishing’s email today and Donald’s daily attempts to ruin it for me! Forgive my rant. Let’s both find a way to have a nice weekend.
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I fear it will not end. My brain keeps reminding me that even when we are rid of Dear Leader, we will forever be surrounded by his ilk. I would hate for the U.S. to be bombed into oblivion to come to its senses like had to happen in Germany in the 1940s.
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It sounds like I need to give you encouragement as much as you are giving me words of encouragement. I am appalled that there is a law under consideration in The Netherlands to punish anyone who lends aid to a refugee! I am appalled! We are counting on Europe to be the shining light on the hill for America now. With both houses of Congress and increasingly the Supreme Court falling in line behind Trump, we don’t show any signs of being able to save ourselves. During the first Trump administration, I was confident that if things really got bad we could count on the US military to step in and do the unthinkable — remove him from office. I no longer have that confidence because of the people Trump has placed in The Pentagon. Although every soldier, marine, and sailor take a vow to protect the U.S. “from enemies foreign and domestic” I don’t know how many of them as individuals would defy orders and actually protect us from enemies from within our own government. That stark shift in my confidence is a blatant difference in how I felt during Trump’s first term in office and how I feel today. Everything about “Alligator Alcatraz” is chilling me to the core. I can’t help but fear whatever is coming next. And yet, people go about their lives. They shop, they go out to restaurants, they go on vacation, they go to work, they watch the news — or they don’t watch the news — just like they did in 2024, as if nothing has changed. As if their daily lives have not been impacted by any of the Executive Orders, the Big Beautiful Bill, or by any of the Supreme Court rulings. Part of me is continuing to try to function as if nothing has happened. For instance, this summer I finished writing my book, I Need The Light! 26 Weekly Devotionals to Help You Through Winter, and it will be released by IngramSpark and Amazon early in September. However, I hope I got across in the book that everything is not okay. I’m not okay. And having chronic illnesses just make it all the more challenging. If I didn’t have my faith in God, I don’t know how I would cope. When I’m not watching and reading the news and ranting on my blog, I’m trying to find my way through the marketing of the book. I’m way out of my comfort zone, Matroos!….. And that Trump blunder with the President of Liberia? What comes to mind is something I often thought particularly in the early days of Trump’s first regime was “He doesn’t know what he doesn’t know.” There is a level of ignorance, incompetence, and lack of caring there which makes him absolutely not realize the massive amount of information and history that he is not even aware of. He does not know what he does not know. Thank you for listening to me vent a little of my outrage.
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A Happy Weekend to you Janet and quite a beautiful moon rising tonight.
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Ah… I can just imagine it.
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We already saw it here, you will see it in a few hours…
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I was referring to Maga madness in general. I agree that getting rid of the orange abomination would not fix the mess we’re in right now.
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Oh, I’m sorry I misinterpreted. If they were honest — which they aren’t — they would call it MAWA for Make America White Again. Skin color is the root of their hate. Second to that, they hate everyone who disagrees with them (i.e., anyone with half a brain.)
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It’s insane how many ongoing issues there are under this administration. I bet the people working in government agencies (the civil servants, not the political appointees) especially in the Justice Department, are exhausted. What happened with the Liberian president was a major embarrassment, at least for the Americans who know the history of that country.
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Absolutely, Edward. I feel sorry for the dedicated professional civil servants in every department. It has to be a nightmare to go to work every day. The blunder he made with the Liberian president was outrageous. He still often refers to Africa as a country. How can anyone live to be 79 years old and be so ignorant of history, geography,…. Thank you for following my blog and taking the time to leave a comment this evening. I appreciate it.
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You’re very welcome, Janet. Well, great point about his ignorance, but then again, he claims he’s a genius who doesn’t need to read because he knows everything and always follows his gut. 😂
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Yes, Edward, a “stable genius.”
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I guess they don’t understand that America has never been 100% white. Far from it.
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In their warped minds….
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It’s certainly a week of mixed blessings Janet. Good for you to turn down the payment to have your work used to train AI. What is surprising to hear is that they asked first and were willing to pay, I have read several cases in some of my library groups where authors are having their work used for AI training without permission or any compensation. Congratulations on getting your manuscript accepted for publication. That is so cool. News from TACOland is getting worse and worse–he did not know that English is the official language of Liberia, Hegseth allegedly unilaterally halted weapons to Ukraine, ICE Barbie is trying to redirect the blame on why her rule of having to approve all expenses above a certain level was not the reason that emergency warnings did not go out in a timely manner in Texas, there is internal turmoil and lies about what they do or do not know about Epstein’s secret files (which supposedly may have incriminating info about Trump and underage girls–lot of circumstantial evidence that he would walk into the dressing rooms unannounced when running the Miss Teen USA pageant and how healthy was his interest in his own daughter.) Now they are going after NPS bookstores which are usually run by a park association group or volunteers as a fund raiser for the parks to make sure the bookstores do not carry offensive books–OMG! There is nothing this group will not do to make sure this country is unrecognizable or reliable or trusted.
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I saw one positive news item today. In NH, a federal judge has ruled that children born on US soil are US citizens, as guaranteed in the Constitution. The added injury about Liberia is that free Blacks and formerly enslaved people from the US settled there, 12,000 people starting before the Civil War.. They helped form Liberia in 1847.
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Thank you, Pat. I got one monkey off my back when I submitted my book to IngramSpark. Can’t wait to hold the book in my hands in a few days! In did a masterful job of summing up just the last week in TACOland. If any other administration did that much damage in a year, there would be Congressional investigations. Just goes to show how much Congress (and half the population) are willing to put up with now. If the MAGAs keep screaming for the Epstein secret files to be released… I hope they get what they’re asking for. Do they not understand that if the lists were just full of Democrats they would have been released on January 20th? Duh! The files obviously incriminate Trump and his buds. Otherwise, they would be released. I hadn’t heard about them trying to control the books available at the NPS bookstores. Holey Moley. These people will stop at nothing. I don’t recall ever being offended by a book at a National Park, but then I’m fairly open-minded. I am offended that they refuse to have my book, The Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, but I’ve given up fighting that battle after ten years. They carry other Arcadia Publishing postcard history series books, but they won’t carry mine. Sorry for my rant, but it continues to be a sore spot since 2014. Back to TACO… a shudder to think what this week will bring. I feel like we’re being hit in the stomach with a fire hose every single day. Glad you and I can commiserate.
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Yea for the federal judge in NH! Thank you for that bit of news, Rebecca. That amendment seems straightforward to me, so why is it so confusing to TACO? TACO can scream as many times as he wants that the 14th Amendment only applies to the children of slaves, but I’ve read it several times and cannot find the word “slave” in the text. And why was it impossible for Trump to know prior to the meeting that the president of Liberia would be speaking English? He knows so little about the world and history! He went to all the “best” schools and never had a history or geography lesson in his life. No wonder he said, “I love the uneducated.” He is one of them. Those are his people.
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It would be so righteous if a dead Pedophile’s notebook incriminated TACO. If they still thought Bill Clinton were in it, but not TACO, it would already be released. They are shameless but never blameless in their Three Stooges version of Divine Intervention Theocracy. If the stakes weren’t so high, this would fall into you can’t make this sh*t up.
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You got that right, Pat! Sorry I’m slow getting to your message. I’ve been in over my head tonight figuring out some things about Advanced Review Copies of my devotional book and some marketing things, settling (I think!) on the price of the book, and too many things to go into. I’m slow and I seem to have to do everything twice. The memory problems caused by Chronic Fatigue Syndrome are maddening. I have to read things 100 times and I still can’t retain them. Ugh! I don’t want to lose my religion trying to get this devotional book published! Anyway… yes, when they thought Bill Clinton’s name was in there they were like wolves going for red meat. They still think Clinton is in there, so they’re mad Pam Bondi had it on her desk until a few hours later when she said it didn’t exist. Give me a break! It would be poetic justice for the MAGA’s King to be brought down by those files… but I suppose if his name is in there it will just be “fake news” and another “witch hunt.” Geez! Speaking of TACO. I just checked my inbox and at 9:55 tonight I received an email from TACO welcoming me into the MAGA Movement and thanking me for joining! Holey Moley! Not what I wanted to see at 12:30 a.m. Who in the heck gave them my email address? I swear. If I start getting a flood of emails from those jokers, I don’t know what I’ll do. Now, I need to calm down and go to bed. Fat chance of going to sleep. Now that Donnie and I are buds, do you want me to send him your email address? I wonder if members get a discount on one of those lovely red baseball caps… of the perfume… or the bitcoins… or the steaks… or the university entrance fees… or …. I saw he got booed tonight at the soccer game. He’ll probably have ICE agents track down every spectator.
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Dang, Janet you just won the You got to be kidding (sh**ing) me award but I know you aren’t. Some inbred probably did it as a sick joke. I got a snail mail postal request from a state politician and had no trouble recycling it without open.
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LOL! I was almost afraid to open my inbox this morning for fear there would be more TACO mail. Whew! So far, that’s the only one. He hasn’t subscribed to my blog… yet. Oh — forgot to tell you. In typical TACO fashion, the email said, “the President joins me in welcoming you…” but then it is signed by TACO. These people have a wonderful command of the English language.
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Glad you did not get more evil unwanted solicitations or stupidity, they prove you wrong.
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Has he paved the rose garden in gold? I still can’t get over what he’s done to the Oval Office with all that gold leaf all over everything. It’ll cost another $3 trillion to get rid of his bad taste once he’s gone. May it be soon!
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I think the rose garden is being covered in concrete, but what do you bet there will be gold. No way is he going to be happy with gray concrete. Can’t believe that clown demolished the White House Rose Garden started by Jackie Kennedy in 1961! There have been so many special events and ceremonies held there for more than 60 years and he has it dug up! It’s sort of symbolic of what he is doing to our democracy. The Oval Office is hideous looking! Here in the South, we would call it tacky. A frame shop doesn’t have that many picture frames! I heard a clip of him saying he loves frames, even if they don’t have anything in them. You’re right… it will take $3 trillion to undo the damage he has done to the White House. Not to mention the Kennedy Center for the Arts. He’s not finished with the White House. He wants to build a new ballroom. I haven’t heard if he is remodeling the one there or if he is adding a new wing to the White House. I shudder to think how gaudy/tacky it will be. Just goes to show that just because you’re rich, you don’t necessarily have any taste. It just gets worse by the day. A judge gave him the go-ahead today to proceed with dismantling the Department of Education. He said, “I love the uneducated,” and he is proving it every day. They are his people.
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Thank you for your words.
Imperfect as it is, this was a great country. It has been disturbing to see daily violations of the Great Leader’s oath. Part of what separates the U.S. from less successful nation states is regulatory law and the rule of law. They mean you can safely drink tap water in most parts of the U.S. They mean electricity is available 24 hours per day. Road signs look similar in Michigan and Hawaii. When you destroy standards and quality, what’s the likely result? Imagine DOGE in charge of a new air traffic control system. I’ve worked on high reliability stuff. You don’t get high reliability with slogans and yes men. You don’t get it by pouring money on a problem. You don’t get it from organizations with zero accountability.
I apologize, in advance, for my English. It doesn’t match up to your talent.
With best regards, Pseudoprecision
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Thank you for your words, Pseudoprecision. They were perfect and insightful. Thank you for reading my blog. I thought several weeks ago that I needed to back off on blogging four or five times a week about politics, but that didn’t last long. There’s too much going on for me to ignore it. I thought maybe I could blog about politics once-a-week and about other things once or twice, but with horrific things coming at us out of a fire hose every day… I can’t seem to find a happy medium. I’ve already written what I want to blog tomorrow and Tuesday and I’m sitting here looking at my notes about things I still need to say. Your points about reliability and precision are so true! I immediately thought about NASA. Are we going to turn the space program over to Musk? He can’t seem to launch a rocket without it blowing up. It was always my impression that the people who worked at NASA were professional and safety was their Number One concern. Musk and the Trumpers only think about how to make a profit. I guess that’s why they want to destroy public education… it’s not a profit-making proposition. Our country was great until Trump came along. We’ve lost our standing in the world. We will not be able to get it back in my lifetime. Thank you again for taking time to leave a comment. I appreciate it.
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