What’s up with his old pals in Russia?


Democratic Congressman Eric Swalwell has launched a website to document the personal, social and business connections between the Russian government and members of the Trump administration — and the threats of such links to U.S. interests.

In an interview Thursday, the East Bay congressman called it a “living, breathing guide to what is happening” and noted that the site is evolving along with the story.

Swalwell, ranking member of the CIA Subcommittee of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, also is calling for an independent, bipartisan commission to probe the extent and nature of ties between the Trump administration and Russia.

 -The Mercury News


 

Well, Putin is licking his chops,
delighted with all the fine props
trump’s throwing his way…
a full on display
of ignorant, mendacious sops.

© Susan E. Eckenrode, 2017

Yes, ole Putin is locked on his mark,
and for him our fiasco’s a lark.
He’ll call it a win
by creating a din
that could snuff out democracy’s spark.

© Lily Beth Baker, 2017


 

That ole slavery myth was conceived

Ben Carson appeared to liken slaves to immigrants who choose to come to the United States while addressing employees at the Department of Housing and Urban Development Monday.

Carson, who was confirmed to lead the department earlier this month, heralded the work ethic of immigrants before implying slaves who came to the United States worked harder than others.

-Carson: ‘There were other immigrants who came in the bottom of slave ships, who worked even longer, even harder, for less’, CNN


 

That ole slavery myth was conceived
’cause alternative facts got believed.
They were immigrants all,
simply heeding the call
for those African poor and aggrieved.

© Lily Beth Baker, 2017

Yes, those African poor and aggrieved
disembarked from the ships so relieved,
that with no need to vet them,
how kindly folks met them.
Soon they prospered and proudly achieved.

© Susan E. Eckenrode, 2017

 


 

When you’re charting the course you command


Feldstein thought there was reason for Trump to reconsider his strategy, too. To explain, he cited the old adage :  “Never pick a fight with people who buy ink by the barrel.”

“Ultimately the media does have the last word,” Feldstein said, “including literally writing his obituary when he dies. So there are long-term costs he will face for his approach.”

-Shooting the messenger: how Trump’s media vitriol could ultimately backfire
T
he Guardian

 


 

When you’re charting the course you command
ascertain that its premise will stand
on a solid rock base,
’cause the wind will erase
all the lines that are drawn in the sand.

© Lily Beth Baker, 2017

All the lines that are drawn in the sand,
irregardless how perfectly planned,
will soon disappear
if an ocean of fear
is allowed to submerge our great land.

© Susan E. Eckenrode, 2017

 


 

Now our country’s adrift and divided

While we were distracted by Trump, Republicans advanced these 9 terrifying bills
“With both houses of Congress solidly under Republican control, there’s little in the way to stop House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wisconsin) and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) from sending bills to President Trump’s desk that embody the most dangerous aspects of radical right-wing ideology.” -Resistance Report

 


 

Now our country’s adrift and divided
with its POTUS unfit and misguided.
Deconstruction’s the goal;
kill America’s soul!
with the vision that Bannon provided.

© Lily Beth Baker, 2017

With the vision that Bannon provided,
the pretending Decider decided
that the tantrums he tweets
are the media’s treats
until they’re completely blindsided.

© Susan E. Eckenrode, 2017

 


 

Russian Ballet (4-link limerick chain)




“The latest disclosures — and the Trump administration’s contradictory accounts of them — have deepened the questions about Russia’s role in the election and its aftermath. The affair has fueled calls for congressional and independent investigations, and toppled another close Trump aide, Michael T. Flynn, who resigned as national security adviser last month after admitting he had misled the administration over his contacts with Mr. Kislyak.”

Jeff Sessions Recuses Himself from Russia InquiryThe New York Times

“The National Security Agency risks a brain-drain of hackers and cyber spies due to a tumultuous reorganization and worries about the acrimonious relationship between the intelligence community and President Donald Trump, according to current and former NSA officials and cybersecurity industry sources.”

NSA Risks Talent Exodus Amid Morale Slump: Trump Fears
Slashdot

 


 

With Flynn off the stage and away,
Now Sessions leaps into this play.
Just watching them dance
In their bright, flaming pants—
It’s a virtual Russian ballet!

© Colleen Anderson, 2017

It’s a virtual Russian ballet
as the chorus jumps into the fray,
and their pants are on fire,
with flames leaping higher.
Begin the impeachment today!

© Mary Boren, 2017

Begin the impeachment today.
Let truthfulness now have a say
by shining its light
on all that’s not right
while keeping the Russians at bay.

© Susan E. Eckenrode, 2017

While keeping the Russians at bay
requires a commitment to stay
restrained but alert,
we all could get hurt
if intelligence analysts stray.

© Lily Beth Baker, 2017

 


 

On the Congressional Address

“It was a restrained performance, which means the media once again salivated over the possibility of a more presidential Trump,” -Seth Meyers

Seth takes a closer look at Donald Trump’s restrained first speech to Congress

 


His momentary presidential air,
enabled by the writers’ hackneyed fare,
has earned him cautious kudos all around.
Until his tweets on twitter feed confound
and leave us wondering if he understood
a single phrase he uttered for the good.
P.S.
We’d understand it for him if we could.

© Lily Beth Baker, 2017


 

On the White House Correspondents Dinner

“The black-tie dinner, which raises money for journalism scholarships, takes place every spring and is usually attended by the president, journalists, celebrities and Washington insiders. The last president to miss the dinner was Ronald Reagan, who sat out because he was he recovering from an assassination attempt in 1981, although he still delivered remarks by phone.

Several news organizations had already withdrawn from the April 29 event in protest of Trump’s treatment of the media.”

 


 

Most presidents agree to join the roasting
but Forty-five won’t have his ego bashed
by journalists dissecting all his boasting
and fabricated facts that Spicer stashed
to cover any questions thrown his way–
A bully dishes dirt but will not play.

© Lily Beth Baker, 2017

 


 

I vow to always dress in black

“For more than half the nation and much of the world, we are in a period of mourning. After waking up to President-elect Donald J. Trump ― what many can only describe as a nightmare ― Americans face emotionally charged weeks and months ahead.

For those wondering how to face the oncoming days, it’s important to stop and acknowledge that this is an event that signifies a monumental loss. That post-election grief you’re feeling is real, and it’s every bit as legitimate as the pain that stems from a difficult breakup or the loss of a loved one.”

Your Post-Election Pain is Real Grief
The Huffington Post

 


I vow to always dress in black
until we get our country back
but if I die before we do,
then this is what I ask of you:
Wrap body up in black and burn;
store ashes in a tall black urn;
place urn into a big black sack
until we get our country back.

© Lily Beth Baker, 2017


 

Though he ran on a platform of hate

“‘This thing’ is more than disappointment by the defeat of Hillary Clinton, arguably the most qualified person to seek the office in recent memory who happens to be a woman.

After a campaign that mainstreamed white supremacy, xenophobia and misogyny, ‘this thing’ is palpable fear.”

Commentary: Why millions of Americans fear the looming Donald Trump presidency
Chicago Tribune

 


 

Though he ran on a platform of hate,
still he surged on ahead out the gate.
So what does that say
’bout the US of A
that a man such as he is our fate.

With limericks readied to rock,
their humor may soften the shock
of troubles ahead that many now dread.
It’s Liberty’s head on the block.

When Kellyanne Conjob recites
alternative facts she ignites
a searing hot fire of Liberty’s ire
that burns for humanity’s rights.

© Lily Beth Baker, 2017

 


 

He complains there’s a media plot (3-link limerick chain)

 

“Donald Trump has sarcastically dismissed women accusing him of sexual misconduct — even as two more came forward with lurid accounts — and denounced ‘an international political and media plot against me’.”

Trump dismisses sex assault claims and slams ‘global plot’
Daily Nation

 


 

He complains there’s a media plot
undermining the greatness he’s wrought,
so he tweets on a whim
boundless praises of him.
He’s America’s dictator-tot!*

© 2017 Susan E. Eckenrode

*Dictator- tot, compliments of Steven Colbert

He’s America’s Dictator-tot
Who will never accomplish a lot
Cause he’s mostly all talk
And will jolly well walk
When he reckons his con has been caught.

© 2017 Lily Beth Baker

When he reckons his con has been caught
he won’t bother addressing the blot
left on history’s page
because naught could assuage
the relentless destruction he wrought.

© 2017 Mary Boren