Science fiction, fantasy, mystery and what-not
First, let’s review the Oath of Office for the Presidency.
ArtII.S1.C8.1.1 Oath of Office for the Presidency Generally
Article II, Section 1, Clause 8:
Before he enter on the Execution of his Office, he shall take the following Oath or Affirmation:– I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.
Article II, Section 1, Clause 8 provides that the President must swear or affirm to “faithfully execute the Office of President” and “preserve, protect and defend the Constitution” to the best of the President’s ability. Presidents since George Washington have reflected on the oath’s significance and the burden it places on the President. In his second inaugural address, Washington declared that a violation of the presidential oath would occasion not only “constitutional punishment,” but “the upbraidings of all who are now witnesses of the present solemn ceremony.” Of the oath, Justice Joseph Story wrote: “[t]here is little need of commentary . . . . No man can well doubt the propriety of placing a president of the United States under the most solemn obligations to preserve, protect, and defend the constitution.”
Back on January 20, 2017, Donald J. Trump swore this oath of office. Despite winning the popular vote by a narrow margin, 49.8% to 48.3%, and almost 90,000,000 registered voters not voting, Trump was elected and swore this oath of office a second time on January 20, 2025.
Now Trump claims that he doesn’t know if he needs to uphold the Constitution?
Yep, that’s what PINO Trump said in an interview with Kristen Welker on NBC’s Meet the Press this week.
“Your Secretary of State says everyone who’s here, citizens and non-citizens, deserve due process. Do you agree, Mr. President?” Welker asked Trump.
“I don’t know. I’m not, I’m not a lawyer. I don’t know,” he said.
To summarize, this self-professed “really smart”, “very stable genius”, doesn’t trust or believe his Secretary of State’s assertion?
Trump also seems to believe he has a ‘mandate’. He won by less than two percent of the popular vote. Moreover, Trump believes that his campaign promises to deport undocumented immigrants — or this one, at least, because he already blew off several others, like ending the wars in Ukraine and Gaza and lowering inflation — carries more weight than his sworn oath to uphold the Constitution?
The United States of America really elected a duplicitous jackass in 2024. But he’s a useful jackass for those who aren’t interested in maintaining the United States as a democratic republic, entities such as the Heritage Foundation and Project 2025. We’re traversing deep wormholes of twisted logic these days. Tariffs will lower prices. The POTUS doesn’t need to support or defend the Constitution. Agencies can be ended by Executive Order regardless of Congress’s role in creating the agencies. Insider trading is now okay. Greed is good. Due process is not necessarily due process. Next thing that you know, Trump and his minions will be claiming that Christianity will be the official religion, despite the separation of church and state wall.
Oh, wait.
Trump, brushing aside separation of church and state, establishes religious liberty commission
Trump, who just reminded us that he’s not a lawyer, so he doesn’t know if he’s required to uphold the Constitution and due process as described in the Fifth Amendment of the Bill of Rights, has demonstrated he doesn’t care about the Constitution. He’ll just dance around it and drag the rest of us with him, regardless of the law.
So many of us saw it coming. It makes us increasingly angry and bitter.
The United States is not a monarchy. Trump’s election to the office of the presidency does not give him the right to overthrow or ignore the Constitution. In just 100 days of Trump’s second term, we are deep into a crisis.
Take it to the streets on June 14, 2025. Trump is not a king. See fiftyfifty.one for more.
May 4, 2025, broke as a Sunda. Rain falling off in the night, blue sky and clouds mix it up in a friendly competition. Sunshine comes and goes with the clouds’ permission. The weather ‘they’ is hyping a high of 65 F, part of a warming trend for the week.
Dreams delivered today’s song. The dreams didn’t include the song. Disturbing as a loud animal roar in a coal-black night, the dreams had me scribbling details for well over an hour. Part of that was the phrase, “I’ve been thinking.” More usually followed. Now, though, The Neurons picked up the phrase, found where it belonged in a song, and rolled it for me. The result in the morning mental music stream was 1990’s song by Londonbeat, “I’ve Been Thinking About You”.
I’ve also been thinking about Mom. Her house is a mess without electricity. Day 5. She was convinced yesterday to go to my sister’s house and stay the night. Mom’s live-in boyfriend stayed at his daughter’s house. Taking care of her has been increasingly difficult for him. Her drugs and illnesses dull her mind and make her moody. She snaps at him. That’s worn thin. With her mobility lessening, he’s forced to carry her. She’s lost weight and doesn’t weigh more than a few birds these days. Still, weight is weight. Repetitive bending, lifting, and twisting is wearing out his 95-year-old body. Both have refused to leave her house and move into assisted living. But with her energy diminishing, his strength dropping, her senses dulling, and his eyesight and hearing worsening, will this be the straw that changes their mind?
We don’t know. More than anything, they’re independent and stubborn. I see so much of her in myself in these matters. Intellectually, I understand. Emotionally, it’s a far more complicated path.
My coffee is half gone. The cat has completed a few laps around the inside of the house. Now he’s gone to find sunshine. I want to do the same but I’ve planned a full agenda for myself. Who knows if I’ll stay with it.
I hope the best for you and your day, and us and our days. Deep breath; here we go. Cheers
Michael Seidel, writer 