Sorry if I missed it but has Kash Patel’s jetscapades been mentioned?
For background, Patel is the Director of the FBI. Trump appointed him to the post earlier this year.
Patel is 45. He has a 26 year old girlfriend, Alexis Wilkins, who wants a career as a country singer.
Last week, Patel and Wilkins flew a government jet from Washington to Nashville. This was so Wilkins could sing at a wrestling match. There was no official business in Nashville. This was just a recreational trip. At government expense. During a government shutdown.
This made news today. Patel has fired Steven Palmer, who has been working at the FBI for twenty-seven years. Palmer is the head of the FBI’s critical incident response group. But he also is in charge of the FBI’s jet fleet. Not sure why Patel is blaming Palmer for a flight that Patel took. But Patel has fired several other high-ranking FBI officials, so maybe it’s just a coincidence.
Patel also issued a public statement: “I am proud of the work of this FBI. We’re taking violent criminals off the streets in record numbers, crushing the fentanyl crisis, dismantling cartels, saving children, hunting down terrorists - and so much more. Let me be clear: we will not be distracted by baseless rumors or the noise from uninformed internet anarchists and the fake news. I’ve always said - criticize me all you want. But going after the people doing great work, my personal life, or those around me is a total disgrace. The disgustingly baseless attacks against Alexis - a true patriot and the woman I’m proud to call my partner in life - are beyond pathetic. She is a rock-solid conservative and a country music sensation who has done more for this nation than most will in ten lifetimes. I’m so blessed she’s in my life. Attacking her isn’t just wrong - it’s cowardly and jeopardizes our safety. My love of family will always be my cornerstone, and you will never tear that down or keep me from them. I and this FBI will stay laser-focused on our mission and continue the reform we promised - rebuilding this Bureau from the ground up. And to our supposed allies staying silent - your silence is louder than the clickbait haters.”
Patel did not elaborate on how taking his much younger girlfriend out on a government-expensed date night to further her country music career was part of the FBI’s laser-focused mission against violent criminals.
Lots of angst over at Heritage Foundation, the right-wing think tank, after its president defended Tucker Carlson for interviewing flaming bigot and Holocaust denier Nick Fuentes. “Playing footsie with literal Nazis” is my new favorite tag line.
Beyond the spectacle of Heritage Foundation employees reaching their gag limit and resigning, you wonder if this fracture line will break up MAGA into warring factions in the future.
On the one hand, there’s the evangelical wing, which supports Israel unreservedly because the Bible told them to. They’re now facing off against anti-Semitic bigots who’ve gleefully seized on the Gaza war as an excuse to denounce U.S. support of Israel and promote their Jews-control-everything hatemongering.
ANY critique of this administration is a terrorist attack. Questioning Dear Leader or one of his minions in any way is an attack. We now have de facto Lèse-majesté.
The mere act of peacefully protesting is now being painted as “terrorism”. This is where we are now.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott says that in response to Zohran Mamdani’s election he’s going to impose a tariff on people moving to Texas from New York City.
What exactly does Abbott think he’s going to do? Has he given any details on how he thinks this is going to work?
But aren’t these people fleeing the Islamic Socialist hellhole of NYC and escaping to the Utopia of Texas? I guess it’s typical GOP logic to tax these folks.
I think he’s just posturing. He knows there’s no way to do this, and that it wouldn’t hold up in court if he tried. He’s trying to sound like Trump, and he’s succeeding (in the worst way).
I’m sure he’s just posturing. But there must be some people in Texas asking him for details on how exactly he thinks he can put a tariff on a person. And how he thinks he would collect this.
Abbott said he’s imposing a 100% tariff on people moving from New York City. Which I guess means every person moving to Texas from New York City has to bring a second person along.
Maybe we need a new thread titled “The Republican Party is the Party of Stupid”.