True Blue Progress

Back in July 1976, we had a lot to celebrate. We had pulled out of Vietnam. Nixon had resigned. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 was at last turning the US into a truly democratic republic. The second wave of feminism was in full swing. Stonewall had happened and there was hope in the LGBTQ community. Medicaid and Medicare had been in existence for 11 years. It looked like the US was becoming a truly diverse, democratic nation, with a growing number of prominent politicians who seemed to care about the welfare of "We the People."

Consequently, July 4, 1976 was a true celebration of "We the People."

⏩Fast forward to 2026.

Trump, his Project 2025 administrators, the MAGA GOP, and the Federalist Society SCOTUS justices have been working hard to undo all the progress we made in the last 60 years, including neutering the Voting Rights Act

Trump and company appear to be trying to turn the U.S. into a far-right, white nationalist, "Christian" autocratic state that will impose the kind of "tyranny" on Americans that "We the People" rebelled against in 1776.

Given that. It's not exactly clear what we will be celebrating.

BTW, the stark changes in American leadership from 1976 to 2026 are shown in the three photos in this post. The first photo [old photo frame added], shows that at the July 1976 Bicentennial, President Gerald Ford traveled to the birthplace of our nation, to stand before a crowd of "We the People" at Independence Hall, Philadelphia.

The second photo shows the construction of both Trump's UFC arena and Trump's golden ballroom, both of which will eventually dwarf the White House. Clearly, Trump doesn't care about "the People's House" (i.e., our republic) but only cares about fulfilling his and his wealthy donors' wishes at the expense of the American taxpayer.

On July 4, 2026, rather than travel to Philadelphia to be with "We the People" in the birthplace of our nation, Trump expects the people to come to him as he holds court in Washington, DC, where he is trying to amass near-kingly power, surrounded by tacky gold ornaments (shown in the photo below).

This weekend, Donald Trump appeared on NBC's Meet the Press for an exclusive interview that got cut short, and that awkward moment is going massively viral.

During the interview, Trump claimed that the current California elections are being rigged similarly to the 2020 election that he lost. "It was a dirty election, and it's happening again right now in California," Trump said.

PARIS (AP) — U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth used a D-Day anniversary speech on Saturday to appear to link immigration by sea to the wartime liberation of Europe, warning that the freedom won by Allied troops could prove temporary if leaders failed to defend it.

Hegseth, speaking at the Normandy American Cemetery in Colleville-sur-Mer in northwestern France during commemorations for the 82nd anniversary of the June 6, 1944, landings, said that today, “different European beaches are stormed by different dangerous ideologies.”

“Beaches in Spain and Italy and Greece and Bulgaria. Boats and men arrive,” he said.

“When will European capitals do something about that invasion? Or is it too late?” he added. “I pray not, and I believe not.”

Hegseth did not use the word immigration, but his remarks echoed broader Trump administration criticism of Europe over migration, borders and what U.S. officials have described as censorship of nationalist and far-right voices.

On Saturday, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s office condemned U.S. Vice President JD Vance for blaming immigration for the killing of Henry Nowak, an 18-year-old British student stabbed to death in Southampton, even though both Nowak and his killer were British.

At the Normandy American Cemetery?

At a ceremony commemorating the 82nd anniversary of D-Day?

When over 10,000 Allied troops were killed, injured or MIA during the invasion in Normandy, which changed the course of the war against the fascist Axis nations.

How far we have fallen as a nation.

CBS's axing of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert has provided a ratings boon to its rival networks, new data suggests.

On Monday, the first night that ABC's Jimmy Kimmel Live! and NBC's The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon returned with new episodes since Colbert signed off, Kimmel's show dominated the competitive 11:35 p.m. time slot, according to numbers from Nielsen.

Kimmel was watched by 2.185 million total viewers on June 1, a 53 percent year-on-year increase. Data also reveals that the program attracted 295,000 viewers in the 18 to 49 demographic, which marks a significant 178 percent increase from the same night last year.

Fallon came in second with 1.301 million viewers on Monday — a 10 percent increase year-over-year. The 18 to 24 demographic viewership increased by 14 percent from last year, with 194,000 viewers.

‘I’ve Had Enough!’ Trump Storms Out of Meet the Press Interview in Wild Fashion — Explodes On NBC’s Kristen Welker After She Hits Him With Fact Checks

President Donald Trump stormed out of a Meet the Press interview Sunday — after moderator Kristen Welker repeatedly fact-checked his claims on a variety of topics including; Jan. 6, his “anti-weaponization” fund, and election fraud.

The heated six-minute final block of the interview began with Welker pressing Trump about the $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund he continues to promote — despite his administration officially abandoning its efforts to launch the fund. Welker pressed — attempting to confirm that Trump is indeed throwing in the towel.

PRES. DONALD TRUMP: You play right into their hands with this stuff. You know that these elections are rigged. Your network knows that they’re rigged. Do you know that I won an election in a landslide and I got 94% bad press. KRISTEN WELKER: But Mr. President – PRES. DONALD TRUMP: You know why I got that? KRISTEN WELKER: – you’ve never presented – PRES. DONALD TRUMP: Because you have no credibility. KRISTEN WELKER: -evidence. But you’ve never presented evidence it was rigged. Let’s keep talking about, I want to talk about Todd Blanche. PRES. DONALD TRUMP: You have more evidence, there’s more evidence than ever presented. KRISTEN WELKER: Let’s talk about– PRES. DONALD TRUMP: Your elections in this country – KRISTEN WELKER: – you went to court. PRES. DONALD TRUMP: We’re like a third world country. KRISTEN WELKER: But sir – PRES. DONALD TRUMP: Your elections are crooked and you’re crooked, and Meet the Press is crooked. KRISTEN WELKER: But Mr. President– PRES. DONALD TRUMP: And so is ABC and CBS and CNN. KRISTEN WELKER: But Mr. President– PRES. DONALD TRUMP: You’re a one-sided crooked network. Sorry. Let’s call it quits because I’ve had enough. Thank you, darling. Have a good time. KRISTEN WELKER: Mr. President, let’s – please, I traveled all the way to Wisconsin. PRES. DONALD TRUMP: I’ve sat in the rain with you– KRISTEN WELKER: I traveled all – I know. I traveled all the way– PRES. DONALD TRUMP: I sat in the rain with you for an hour. KRISTEN WELKER: –to Wisconsin. PRES. DONALD TRUMP: On and off in the rain, and I’ve given you enough time. You ought to straighten out your press, because you know what? KRISTEN WELKER: Mr. President– PRES. DONALD TRUMP: A country can never be great with a dishonest press. KRISTEN WELKER: – we traveled all – listen. We traveled all the way to Wisconsin for this interview.