Bring In The Clowns, Part 2a

In our former post we presented a roster of individuals who Donald Trump has presented as candidates for the Cabinet and other high offices.

Here they are again, in order of their departments' seniority:

• State: Marco Rubio
• Treasury: Scott Bessent
• Defense: Pete Hegseth
• Attorney General: Pam Bondi
• Interior: Doug Burgum
• Agriculture: Brooke Rollins
• Commerce: Howard Lutnick
• Labor: Lori Chavez-DeRemer
• Health & Human Services: Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
• Housing & Urban Development: Scott Turner
• Transportation: Sean Duffy
• Energy: Chris Wright
• Education: Linda McMahon
• Veterans' Affairs: Doug Collins
• Homeland Security: Kristi Noem

I'll remind you, loyal readers, that we here at Vox Veritatis are not news reporters. We report and opine on the news post facto. You can find lengthy bios of all these people all over the Internet. We are simply reporting on their Clown Quotient. Were we too severe in calling them clowns? Are they just simple minions? Let's see:

Marco Rubio: First-generation American born in Miami to Cuban immigrants; has been taken to court at least once for not being a natural-born American; the case was dismissed. Since at least 2010 he has waffled on immigration policy; misstated the circumstances of his immigration to the U.S.; and not mentioned that his grandfather worked in the Treasury ministry during Castro's reign. Clown Quotient 60%.

Scott Bessant: Billionaire, hedge fund manager, long-time Trump friend and supporter, openly gay and married. DEI pick? CQ 50%.

Pete Hegseth: Former Fox News personality. Automatic CQ 100%.

Pam Bondi: Former Florida AG who has promised to go after other prosecutors who have brought Trump up on charges. Election denier, deep state believer. CQ 90%.

Doug Burgum: ND governor. Successful as an honest businessman with solid high-tech cred. Supports CO₂ sequestration. Anti-choice, anti-trans, pro-gun, co-creator of American Governors' Border Strike Force--has deployed ND National Guard to Texas to bolster wall "defense." CQ 85%.

Brooke Rollins: A Texas attorney who seems to have her heart in the right place, but who has been associated with questionable enterprises like Trump's United States Domestic Policy Council, a major player in Project 2025.  CQ 75%.

Howard Lutnick: Billionaire who has survived a tough life, being orphaned, losing virtually his entire company in 9/11. Despite being a strong Trump follower he financially supports several good works and institutions. Also believes in cryptocurrency and supports tariffs, which he doesn't seem to understand any better than Trump. CQ 65%.

Lori Chavez-DeRemer: Lives in Happy Valley, OR. (Irrelevant, but I couldn't resist). A U.S. representative from Oregon since 2022, Chavez-DeRemer bills herself as an independent thinker and may actually have some knowledge of her Cabinet post, unlike most of her colleagues. CQ 40%.

I do hope you'll forgive me, but I have to be elsewhere soon, so I'll need to complete the CQ list on Friday. I dislike leaving things half done, but needs must.

-- Diogenes, 11/27/24

 

To anyone who has been receiving these posts via email, I am sorry, but Blogger no longer has a means of sending batched emails. You can find posts on Facebook and X.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bring In The Clowns, Part 1

 It may be a generational thing, but I cannot understand anyone being scared of a clown. 

What is it exactly that triggers panic in coulrophobes? Is it the makeup that turns faces into oversize parodies of the human visage? Or the strange costumes, sometimes mimicking everyday clothing, sometimes so strangely organized as to seem otherworldly?

Assuredly one could see far more shocking scenes in any number of motion pictures and television shows. Consider any film or program about zombies: there we have grotesque makeup and ragged clothing, yet no one runs screaming from the theater or dives behind the couch when they come on the screen.

Is it the matter of perceived violence in the slapstick, the pratfall, or the pistol that shoots out a "Bang!" flag? Again, what of the material that has entertained generations? The Three Stooges, perhaps, or the venerable Road Runner,  developed in 1948 and still going strong. The image of Wile E. Coyote meeting disaster never fails to draw a laugh from audiences, even though in reality the gags would result in severe injuries or death.

Or is it simply the matter that real clowns, from their ridiculous wigs right down to their outsize shoes, are in the same space we inhabit? Depending on our seat in the auditorium or tent we might be able to reach out and touch them--or more terrible for the clown-fearing members of the audience, they could reach out and touch us.

I will probably never understand coulrophobia, but there are some clowns I do fear: the despicable band of fools that Trump claims to want in his cabinet and other high offices.

In his own twisted notion of government there may be a weird logic to Trump's selections. As a transactional, lucre-driven being he of course puts great store in the long-discredited spoils system, whereby government offices are awarded on the basis of party--or in this case cult--loyalty, rather than on merit, talent, or experience.

We all know that Trump craves approval and fawning praise, and the individuals he has selected for the highest offices in government are among the most shameless toadies, stooges, and sycophants in his orbit.

The current roster of clowns is: Scott Bessent, Pam Bondi, Doug Burgum, Lori Chavez-DeRemer, Doug Collins, Sean Duffy, Tulsi Gabbard, Pete Hegseth,  Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Howard Lutnick, Linda McMahon, Kristi Noem, John Ratcliffe, Brooke Rollins, Marco Rubio, Scott Turner, Chris Wright, Lee Zeldin.

And who are they?

Stay tuned.

--Diogenes, 11/26/24

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Welcome, again

 Because we've been mostly silent for the last four years, it occurred to me that reposting the original welcome message might be helpful:

 "This is the inaugural post of Vox Populi. It's rather a trite name--there are other blogs and sites with the same name. Still, I've chosen the name not because of the classical aphorism "Vox populi vox dei" ("The voice of the people is the voice of God"), but for the two words alone. 

I hope to offer a voice, even if it's one crying in the wilderness, for people who feel the outcome of the 2016 election, while it may have been legal and proper, was wrong. I have an image of the U. S. Constitution here because it is the true voice of the people of this country. No one should ever forget or overlook that point.

My choice of the blog name Diogenes--the legendary seeker of truth--is likewise not particularly original. But I'm not trying to be cute or original here. I believe deeply that the election of Donald Trump as president has brought this country to a dangerous juncture. The old advice to never trust a politician now extends to the highest level; and where and what the truth is and from whom it comes are open questions. Welcome, seekers of truth."

And truth, as it turns out, is where we begin again. In fact we've changed our name, from Vox Popoli to Vox Veritatis because we think the truth needs us more than the people do. 

We learned during Trump's first term that Donald Trump has no use for the truth. So we shall be its voice.

As he has aged and as his mental state has apparently started to decay, Trump's core has begun to show; it is ugly and rotten and putrid and corrupt and putrescent,  feculent, and noisome.

And dangerous.

Dangerous because somewhere in that addled brain he surely knows that he is old and that death is stalking him, and that he can't outrun, outbluff, or flimflam the Grim Reaper. And he hates it.

So welcome then again my friends, to the show that never ends . . . come and see the show . . . see the show . . . see the show.

--Diogenes, 11/22/24