V-Log: Blue Check Nattering Nabobs Can Just Shut Up — Trump Declaring A Fake National Emergency IS A BIG DEAL

by Shelton Bumgarner
@bumgarls

As of this writing, he hasn’t done it yet, but he may very well.

I think despite all the Blue Check Twitter people telling the great unwashed masses to cool it, if Trump declares a fake National Emergency, a lot of average people could very well get very, very upset.

Silliness: What Will Trump’s Nickname For AOC Be?

by Shelton Bumgarner
@bumgarls

Obvious: Sexy Sandy
Trump is such a fucking misogynist and such a base human being that something like “Sexy Sandy” would see pretty obvious for him. The thing about Trump is he is — apparently — completely obvious to how he helps people’s careers by simply mentioning them, so it seems pretty inevitable that he’ll go after AOC in a direct way sooner rather than later.
Dumb: Silly Sandy
This is dumb, but because it’s dumb it seems like something Trump would come up with. But Sexy Sandy seems like a two-fer for him: he gets to deride her having been called Sandy at one point in her life and he gets to remind his base not to take her seriously because….she’s hot?
Weirdly Pop Music Aware: Sexy Sadie
I really don’t expect this one, but Trump’s of the right age to make a Beatles reference without realizing it and making AOC much, much, much more popular with a single tweet.

While it would be cool, really cool, if Trump and AOC went at it on Twitter for a few hours in 2019…I think it’s just a liberal fever dream at this point. I doubt seriously anything like that would happen. Right? Right?

A Political No-Win Situation

by Shelton Bumgarner
@bumgarls

Let me be completely clear — the only reason why I keep talking about this is it’s a minor mystery and it’s…fun. It’s fun to talk about not only why I don’t know who — if anyone AOC is dating as well as what the consequences of her dating anyone would be. So it’s something that fun and doesn’t make me mad or upset, so I keep finding different angles to write about.

The reason why the far Left (I consider myself center-Left) thinks it’s “sad” to even broach this subject is a combination of things. One, they think its sexist that we might be talking about something we wouldn’t talk about when it came to a man — which is true. It is sexist. And, yet, politics for a woman is different than for a man as Hillary Clinton can attest.

Also, they don’t want to talk about the whole situation because they don’t want people thinking about it in the first place because once her romantic status becomes an issue, it’s a no-win for her. Let’s go through why it’s a no-win situation

If she’s single: if she’s single, then there’s a real chance everyone starts to talk about why is she single? Is she gay? Bi? Undatable? Does this mean something broader about her psychology? What’s worse, the moment we know she’s single, then more than a few Mr. Bigs are going to start circling her, hoping to use her as high-powered arm candy. Then the issue is, what’s her type? Does she date a Pete Davidson, or does she date some rando from The Bronx?

If she’s dating someone: if she’s dating someone, then who is she dating? How did they meet? Are they going to get married? Does she plan to have children? Is she going to pause her political career if she does?

So, I totally get why the far Left would poo-poo the idea that someone like me would randomly start to talk about this issue on a blog that about five people reach on any one day.

I feel that feel that what seems “sad” right now could very well become a minor political kerfuffle the longer AOC is in the public spotlight. My view is she should get ahead of this and get ahead of it quick. I am very empathetic to her views and wish her the best. The longer randos like me notice this mystery, the likelihood that MAGA assholes will strike and frame the debate in a manner that is the most damaging for her politically long term.

V-Log: Mulling The Black Box That Is AOC’s Romantic Status

By Shelton Bumgarner
@bumgarls

I am well aware of how sensitive and delicate this issue is and I am well aware that the Left would prefer if we don’t talk about this at all for as long as possible. But I’m a jerk and I find this fun-interesting to mull for no other reason than I suspect it’s going to be a minor kerfuffle going forward.

Ross Douthat, You Got Some Splain’ To Do

by Shelton Bumgarner
@bumgarls

Ross Douthat said on the NYT’s podcast, “The Argument” that the only way people like him would start to think collusion was real was if material data was proved to be sent between the Russians and the 2016 Trump campaign.

As I understand it, that was proved to have happened today in court documents.

Your move, Mr. Douthat.

V-Log: Using The Term ‘Radical Resistors’ For The Left’s Answer To The Tea Party

by Shelton Bumgarner
@bumgarls

Meh. No one listens to me. But this is watchable.

‘Shut Down’ — #Lyrics To A Rock Song

I have no idea what I’m doing and I only write song lyrics to let off some steam. That’s it. So, it’s not like I expect anything to come of writing this. Just like to tell stories in verse.

Shut Down
lyrics by Shelton Bumgarner
@bumgarls
please give credit if you produce or perform


the sun is setting
we’re all betting on our next paycheck
if we don’t get it we’ll be a wreck
but don’t you fret
not one bit
the shut down will be over just yet

the shut down is causing waves
the shut down may last until our graves
our leaders are shut down from our cries
how long until our demise?

I’m not ready to swim into the blue
people know the truth
the devil’s in the details isn’t it
don’t you think we’re too old
to squabble over something so bold

the shut down is causing waves
the shut down may last until our graves
our leaders are shut down from our cries
how long until our demise?

[Bridge]
open up the government
I demand it I say
why is it so difficult for something to easy
to be made is my refrain

now is the time for the powers to greet
maybe let a few people make ends meet
when will this shut down end
don’t know my friend
don’t know my friend
don’t know my friend

Back To Work

by Shelton Bumgarner
@bumgarls

I have to take a deep breath and get back to developing the novel I’ve been working on for some time now. I honestly have no excuse.

The conceit is really strong, it’s just a matter of doing the work to flesh it out. Then of course, doing the REAL hard work of actually writing something interesting and cogent.

Wish me luck.

The Paradox Of Impeachment Politics

by Shelton Bumgarner
@bumgarls

Honestly, the issue of impeaching Trump is so conflated and muddled at this point that it’s difficult for me to see anything happening on that front for the foreseeable future.

In fact, it’s something of a taboo among the Democratic Powers That Be because they’re “waiting for the Mueller Report.” And, as best I can tell, there aren’t any bombshell hearings planning anytime soon.

So, as of right now, the logic being bombarded on the Democrats in the House goes something like this, “You can’t impeach Trump until you have him dead-to-rights in a bipartisan manner on a crime that would pass muster with 67 Senators.”

And, so, in essence, we wait.

We wait for one of two things to happen — Mueller releases a report that is such a devastating bombshell we have a Goldwater-meets-Nixon in August 1974 type event (in other words, Senate Republicans buckle and tell Trump he doesn’t have the votes survive…and he ignores them) OR something ELSE happens while we wait for Mueller that is so jaw dropping in magnitude that the House says fuck it and impeaches Trump on strictly partisan lines and we have some serious high drama as Senate Republicans begin to weigh exactly how much they’re interested in not having Pence as president going into 2020.

In the immediate future, the thing I could see really, really getting people blood thirsty politically against Trump would be he declare a national emergency and build enough of a wall on the border using already approved DOD funds to give him cover during his 2020 re-election bid.

Such a draconian move on his part might make a lot of people who are otherwise raising their kids, enjoying the humming economy and thinking about their wedding anniversary to sit up and take notice.

Even that isn’t assured.

So the paradox is, we can’t talk about impeachment unless the people who absolutely, under no circumstances, will ever agree to it, agree to it. That’s it. That’s where we are.

Not until the more die hard MAGA deplorable starts to do the Pence Pivot. Otherwise, the people who Make Conventional Wisdom will scream at the top of their lungs that any effort to impeach Trump only makes him stronger.

If you can think of an answer to that riddle, I’m all ears.

Trump Endgame: State Of Play

by Shelton Bumgarner
@bumgarls

It seems to me that a lot of political observers mistake the near-constant state of chaos during the Trump Administration as a sign that THE crisis we’ve all been hoping for and expecting is just around the corner.

I’m of a mixed opinion on that.

My back-of-the-envelope speculation is we’re going to know pretty soon if they’re right or not. Either this all ends by the end of 2019, or the talk about his political demise will simply bleed into the eventual and inevitable discussion about him grooming a younger, more focused protege who will guide his “legacy” for the next four to eight years after 2025.

At this point, I honestly don’t know which direction it’s going.

Right now, I’m tentatively in the latter camp. Trump is the avatar for some pretty significant demographic and economic macro trends in America society and while he’s an incompetent, deranged president, there simply isn’t the political will to unite to get rid of him in any manner other than simply waiting for him to end his second term.

So, what I’m saying is, we’re hurdling towards a point where our desire to get rid of Trump is equal to our inability to unite the political world enough to actually do it. He has a nice economy, a sold 40% of the population is pleased with this performance and, well, there you go.

There’s always the chance that the economy might falter, but there’s also the chance of a major terrorist attack of war that would make Trump a “hero” enough to stick around for as long as he possibly can. Add to this that the Democrats are playing by the “old rules” that are, like, fact based and stuff, while MAGA is playing by the “new rules” that are based on avarice for power.

So, we wait. We wait for Mueller to release his report, Trump to fight its release, it go to SCOTUS…and….I don’t know. It could be blocked 5-4 and we simply suffer for the next six years, or it’s released and…away we go.

But we honestly don’t know what will be in the report or if he’ll even file a formal one.

The point is — unless something jaw dropping happens pretty soon, Trump ain’t goin nowhere.