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BUCKNACKT'S SORDID TAWDRY BLOG We should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive & well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, chocolate, bier or wein in hand, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming "WHOO-HOO, WHAT A RIDE!!!!!!"
04 April 2026
MOTHER JONES DAILY: King Charles or King Trump?, A MAGA Crack-up?, Meet the Moms Fighting Toxic Air Pollution (You Could Be Next), Pam Bondi traded her department’s independence for loyalty to Trump, Texas leads the nation in wind energy, so why are there no turbines offshore?, The political world of caregiving, What being a billionaire scion taught JB Pritzker about standing up to one 3APR26
Fighting for future generations of kids born in the U.S.A. 14TH Amendment, Birthright Citizenship 4APR26
HERE'S an update from the ACLU on their argument to scotus in defense of the 14th Amendment, the Birthright Citizenship law, on 1APR26. A decision is expected in late June or early July.
"President Trump was sitting six feet away from me in the courtroom... and I dare say he got a good lesson in American constitutional law." |
 ACLU National Legal Director Cecillia Wang and ACLU Executive Director Anthony D. Romero exit the Supreme Court. On Wednesday, the ACLU went to the Supreme Court to defend babies born in the U.S.A. in our landmark case, Trump v. Barbara – challenging President Trump's attempt to overturn birthright citizenship. Outside the courtroom that day, our ACLU community showed up with us in force. Hundreds rallied at the Supreme Court steps in D.C. in person – while the names of over 315,000 people who signed our petition in support of birthright citizenship were proudly displayed in D.C. Lawyers, advocates, and impacted families spoke about the chaos and harm that this executive order would cause – and how critical it is that we all fight back. Together, we sent a message: the Constitution, not the president, decides who an American is. President Trump has targeted birthright citizenship from Day One – signing an executive order that threatens to create a permanent subclass of U.S.-born people with no legal status. Within two hours, the ACLU sued the Trump administration. Since then, we've won preliminary relief from the courts, blocking this illegal executive order from taking effect. The 14th Amendment is not up for debate, and we, the people, will not allow our constitutional rights to be stripped away.  Hundreds rallied outside the Supreme Court with signs in support, saying 'Protect birthright citizenship' and 'The 14th amendment speaks for itself.' This Wednesday made one thing certain: If President Trump wants to come for our fundamental rights, then supporters will turn out in waves to protect our Constitution and its core promise of birthright citizenship. Always, the ACLU will show up when our rights are threatened. We're glad we can count on you to fight alongside us. Together, The ACLU Team |
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SEN BERNIE SANDERS I-VT SPEECH AT NO KINGS 3 IN ST PAUL, MN & A Show of Defiance Across the Nation 28MAR26
I went to DC for NO KINGS 3 on 28MAR26, it is estimated 8,000,000 attended peaceful rallies across the country! The days of a fascist gop / greed over people-republican controlled congress are numbered!!! Sen Sanders spoke at a huge rally in St Paul, MN, he is what he had to say followed by coverage of NO KINGS 3 from the New York Times.....
UPDATED 28OKT25: VIDEOS & PICTURES: Scenes From a Day of Mass Protests 18OKT25
I was proud to speak today to 100,000 people at the No King’s rally in St. Paul, Minnesota. Here’s what I said. - Bernie
Thank you, Minnesota.
And let me thank Indivisible, MoveOn, 50501 and all of the organizations who have made this event possible.
And thank you to the millions of Americans, from our smallest towns to our largest cities, in every state in our country, who are gathering today at thousands of rallies.
It is absolutely appropriate that we hold a major “No Kings Rally” right here in the St. Paul/Minneapolis area.
When historians write about this dangerous moment in American history, when they write about courage and sacrifice, the people of Minnesota will deserve a special chapter for themselves.
In the face of the unprecedented occupation of this city by ICE, Trump’s domestic army, this community stood up and, with extraordinary solidarity, fought back. Minnesota showed the American people and the world what democracy is about, what grassroots activism is about, and what standing up for the American ideals of freedom and justice is about.
And I want to thank my colleagues, Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith, for their leadership in the Senate on this issue.
And today, we remember and honor the two brave Americans, Renee Good and Alex Pretti – who lost their lives in the struggle — and we promise their family and friends that these two heroes will not have died in vain. Their sacrifice has inspired, and will continue to inspire, the American people in the never-ending fight for justice.
As all of you know, we are living in an unprecedented and dangerous moment in American history. In many ways the future of our country and the entire world is hanging in the balance – and the actions that we take now will determine what that future looks like.
The choices that we face are clear. In the wealthiest country in the history of the world, and at a time of massive breakthroughs in technology, we now have the opportunity to create a nation in which ALL people can enjoy a dignified standard of living, where we wipe out bigotry and hatred, and where all of us can live in peace and participate in a vibrant democracy. Where the foundation of our nation is built on love, compassion, human solidarity and an understanding, as former Minnesota Senator Paul Wellstone said, that we all do better when we all do better. That is one vision for the future — a vision that the vast majority of Americans share.
But there is another vision out there as well – a darker vision. It is a vision which says that we must give up on democracy, that we are too stupid and inept to govern ourselves, and that we must put more and more power into the hands of one man. It is a vision that says we should accept an economy in which a handful of Oligarchs have unbelievable wealth, while the vast majority struggle to put food on the table. It is a vision that says that the only thing that matters in life is the accumulation of money and power – and that it is okay if we lie, cheat and steal to achieve those goals. It is a vision which says that we must hate each other because of where we were born, the language we speak, the color of our skin, our religion or our sexual orientation. It is a vision that foments hatred and hatred. Division, division and division.
It is an Orwellian vision which says that we must live in a constant state of fear, that we must always have an enemy and that we must always be at war. It is a vision which says that we have unlimited amounts of money for bombs and guns and for killing, but never enough money to feed our children, provide affordable housing or enable our parents to retire with dignity.
Today, here in Minnesota, in Vermont and in every state in the country we say loudly and proudly that as Americans we will never forsake our heritage. We will never accept authoritarianism, we will never accept oligarchy, and we will never accept a president who is a pathological liar, a kleptocrat, and a narcissist who is undermining the Constitution of the United States and the rule of law every day.
We will never accept government policy that gives massive tax breaks to the billionaires, throws 15 million Americans off the healthcare they have, breaks unions, denies women the right to control their own bodies, and is pushing the planet closer and closer to a climate crisis.
In the last year, I must confess, I have been thinking a lot about American history: about the men and women in 1776 who, with unbelievable courage, announced to the world that they would no longer be ruled by the king of England, who had absolute power over their lives. These patriots demanded freedom, and they fought a bloody revolutionary war against the most powerful military in the world to achieve that freedom. And they won.
And after their military victory, they established the first democratic form of government in modern history. In 1789, they said loudly and boldly to the entire world: here in America we don’t want kings.
And let’s never forget the extraordinary words they left us: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
And today, in 2026, our message is exactly the same: No more kings. We will not allow this country to descend into authoritarianism or oligarchy. In America, We the People will rule.
But let’s be clear: This moment is not just about one man’s greed, one man’s corruption or one man’s contempt for our Constitution. This is about a handful of the wealthiest people on Earth, who, in their insatiable greed, have taken over our economy, have taken over our political system, have taken over our media in order to enrich themselves at the expense of the working families of our country.
Never before in American history have so few had so much wealth and power.
Never before in American history has there been such extreme levels of income and wealth inequality, with the top 1% now owning more wealth than the bottom 93%.
Never before in American history have we seen the super-rich expand their wealth so rapidly. Last year alone, after receiving the largest tax break in history, 938 billionaires in America became $1.5 trillion richer. Trump, himself, became over a billion dollars richer.
Never before in American history have we seen a ruling class, within a corrupt campaign finance system, spend so much money to buy politicians. In the coming mid-term elections, the billionaires will spend many, many hundreds of millions of dollars to make sure that government continues to work for them, and not working families.
Meanwhile, while the richest people become much richer, 60% of our people are living paycheck to paycheck, struggling to put food on the table, struggling to pay their rent and mortgage, struggling to pay for child care and education, and struggling to put a few bucks aside for a decent retirement. Tens of thousands of Americans die unnecessarily every year because they can’t afford to go to a doctor.
And, unless we change how our economy works, our younger generation, for the first time in modern history, will have a lower standard of living than their parents.
So today, we not only say NO to Trump’s authoritarianism, we say NO to Mr. Musk, Mr. Bezos, Mr. Zuckerberg, Mr. Ellison and all the other multibillionaires. You cannot have it all. We WILL create an economy that works for ALL Americans, not just the 1%.
My friends. It’s not just the authoritarianism of the Trump administration that we must combat.
It’s not just the Oligarchs and their insatiable greed that we must combat.
Now, as the news of today reminds us, we have got to stop the out-of-control militarism of the Trump administration – here at home, in cities like Minneapolis-St. Paul – and abroad.
Let’s be honest. The American people were lied to about the war in Vietnam. We were lied to about the war in Iraq. And we are being lied to today about the war in Iran. This war must end immediately.
In the last election Donald Trump pointed out, correctly, the huge amounts of money that had been wasted in wars that should have been spent rebuilding America. He campaigned as a “peace candidate,” and he promised no more “forever wars.” Well, he lied.
One month ago Trump and his partner, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, started a war with Iran. This war is unconstitutional. Trump did not seek or receive authorization from Congress. This war is in violation of international law. One sovereign nation cannot simply go about attacking another sovereign nation for any reason it chooses.
Since this war began 13 American soldiers have been killed and hundreds have been wounded — including another 12 yesterday. In Iran, nearly 2,000 civilians have been killed and many more wounded, and 498 schools have been attacked by American and Israeli missiles.
In Lebanon, more than 1,000 people are dead and more than one million Lebanese people — 15% of their population — have been displaced from their homes. In Israel, 20 people have been killed and over 5,000 have been wounded.
In the West Bank, Israeli vigilantes are burning down homes and killing Palestinians.
At a time when gas prices are soaring, when many Americans cannot afford the basic necessities of life, it is estimated that this war has already cost us a trillion dollars.
At a time when the American people are politically divided, there is one issue that is bringing us together. Conservatives, moderates and progressives are speaking out in unison: NO MORE WAR.
And as a U.S. Senator, I want to say a few words to you about what I intend to do about that.
First, we’ve got to make sure that Congress does not send another $200 billion to fight this war. That supplemental appropriation for the war in Iran must be defeated.
Secondly, I will be forcing a vote on legislation to block the sale of nearly a billion dollars in weapons to the Israeli military for bombs and bulldozers.
A nation that has committed genocide in Gaza does not need more military support from American taxpayers.
We must block the bombs and block the bulldozers.
My fellow Americans: We are all proud to live in a country which, throughout our history, has inspired people around the world to struggle for freedom, democracy and justice. And we understand that when we stand together, and don’t let demagogues divide us up, we can continue to inspire the world to believe in a brighter future.
Yes, we can create a vibrant democracy by ending Citizens United and not allowing billionaires to buy elections.
Yes, we can create an economy that works for every man, woman and child in our country and not just a handful of billionaires.
Yes, we can make certain that the revolutionary technologies of artificial intelligence and robotics are used to improve life for all of us, not just the wealthy owners of that technology.
Yes, we join the rest of the industrialized world and guarantee health care to all people as a human right.
Yes, instead of spending a trillion dollars a year on the military, we can wipe out homelessness and build millions of units of low-income and affordable housing.
Yes, in the richest country on Earth, we can have the best public educational system in the world, with tuition-free schooling, from child care through higher education.
Yes, we can expand Social Security and radically improve our pension system so that every senior in this country can retire with dignity.
Yes, we can raise the minimum wage to a living wage and guarantee every worker the right to join a union.
Yes, we can guarantee that every woman in this country has the right to control her own body.
Yes, at a time when billionaires are paying an effective tax rate lower than a truck driver or nurse, we can make certain that the top 1% and large profitable corporations start paying their fair share in taxes.
My fellow Americans: The establishment, including the corporate media and many of my colleagues in Congress, want you to believe that you are powerless. They want you to believe that you cannot change the status quo. But that’s a lie.
Throughout the history of our country, when Americans have stood up and fought for justice, they have prevailed.
The founders did it when they stood up to King George.
The abolitionists did it when they ended slavery.
The working class did it when they stood up to their bosses and formed unions.
The suffragettes did it when they demanded that women have the right to vote.
The LGBT community did it when they demanded basic human rights.
Time and time again, in difficult moments in American history, our people stood up, fought back and won.
They did it then. We can do it now.
Today, March 28, 2026, millions of Americans are out on the streets demanding freedom, democracy and justice. But we must make certain: Today is not the end of our struggle. It is just the beginning.
Together, when we stand united, we will create the kind of nation that you and I know we can become.
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A Show of Defiance Across the Nation
In big cities and small towns across the world, protesters gathered for thousands of rallies against President Trump and his policies and actions, with the self-stated goal of fighting dictatorship.
Demonstrators, including elected officials and community leaders, chanted defiant messages and carried homemade signs that condemned the war in Iran, threats against voting rights and the White House’s mass deportation push, among other topics. Organized by a coalition of activist groups under the banner “No Kings,” it was the third such countrywide protest in the past 10 months.
No Kings organizers said eight million people took part, one of the largest protests in recent history. Their estimates in some cities were higher than those of local public safety officials. The New York Times is doing its own reporting on some of the turnout, but has not independently confirmed the numbers from the thousands of protest sites.
One of the largest rallies took place outside the Minnesota Capitol, where the singer Bruce Springsteen performed “Streets of Minneapolis,” which he wrote to protest the immigration crackdown that led to the fatal shootings of two American citizens by federal agents in January.
“They picked the wrong city,” Mr. Springsteen told the large crowd, adding that “these invasions of American cities will not stand.”
In Washington, D.C., some protesters marched to the military base where Stephen Miller, the White House official overseeing the mass deportation push, has been residing. Some chanted, “Stephen Miller’s got to go,” and “We’ve got the people outside your door.”
Protesters marched down small town main streets and thoroughfares, many bundled up to withstand chilly temperatures. Attendees at small gatherings, including one in Richmond, Ky., waved American flags as drivers signaled support by honking. In Atlanta, protesters chanted for an end to immigration raids.
Demonstrators seized upon topics where they said there was overreach by the Trump administration, including health care and the environment.
A White House spokeswoman, Abigail Jackson, called the protests “Trump derangement therapy sessions” in a statement on Thursday.
The protests, organizers have said, intentionally lack a single, specific demand but rather seek to harness energy on a wide variety of grievances regarding Mr. Trump and his policies.
Here are a selection of scenes.
Austin, Texas
Like many silver-haired protesters gathered at Auditorium Shores, a riverside park in Austin, Texas, Gilbert Martinez, a 93-year-old Korean War veteran, sees Mr. Trump as reckless and rebellious. And that’s not aligned with the values Mr. Martinez has spent his life preaching.
He called the attack on Iran a “diversion.”
“That idiot is going to cause a lot of good military people to lose their lives,” he said.
A longtime local business leader, Mr. Martinez is from the Texas Panhandle and says he can trace his family lineage to El Paso. He started Austin’s Hispanic Chamber of Commerce in 1973, he said, because in those days, downtown was a “backwater” devoid of Hispanic-owned businesses.
“I’m an American,” Mr. Martinez said. “We didn’t just get here.”
Chicago
Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton of Illinois, who is also the Democratic nominee for a Senate seat, told a crowd, “We all know the power of turning our anger into action.”
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
St. Paul, Minn.
Many who gathered outside the Minnesota State Capitol said they had been driven to protest by the tumultuous monthslong presence of federal immigration officers in the Twin Cities region.
“We don’t want to walk out our door in fear,” said Chas Jensen, 68, who has lived in St. Paul his entire life and marched with his wife, Kitty Warner. “I’ve seen a lot over the years, but nothing like this.”
“It’s been hell, the last few months,” added Sadikshya Aryal, who came from South Minneapolis with her husband and two friends. Ms. Aryal, 32, still carries her passport whenever she leaves her house, she said.
Attendees said they felt the area had not returned to normal since the immigration operation but were comforted by how many people showed up Saturday.
“As much as it can feel helpless, this shows it’s not,” said Ms. Warner, 80.
The Minnesota governor, Tim Walz, gave a fiery address from behind a row of bulletproof glass panels, which underscored fears of political violence. Referring to the president’s oft-stated disdain for Somali immigrants, Mr. Walz said that their grandchildren would remain in the United States long after “the orange clown is in the dustbin of history.”
New York City
Atlanta
Atlanta
Atlanta
While immigration policy was the focus of past No Kings protests in Atlanta, demonstrators on Saturday drew attention to the war in Iran, the toll the partial government shutdown is taking on air travel and a bill Republicans are championing to tighten voting rules.
“They just keep pushing the limits every day to see how far they can take their regime,” said Alan Reed, 72, who attended the protest using a walker and had a rainbow flag draped over his back. “To see how much authority they can grab, until they can cancel our elections.”
Los Angeles
Los Angeles
Los Angeles
Nicholas Phillips, 34, of Long Beach, Calif., cooled himself outside Los Angeles City Hall with a rainbow fan, joined by friends.
Mr. Phillips, who is gay, said he came to protest the Trump administration’s anti-transgender policies and the potential for the Supreme Court to reverse the country’s marriage equality laws.
“It’s important to show up,” he said.
Later in the day, tensions escalated toward a separate group of protesters who had gathered outside of the Metropolitan Detention Center. Tear gas was deployed, and rubber bullets were shot into the crowd. The police declared an unlawful assembly, formed a line, and made several arrests.
In statements on social media, the Los Angeles Police Department said that federal authorities had used nonlethal measures to move the crowd back after protesters were warned not to throw items or try to tear down the gate.
Amid the chaos, a bagpipe sounded above the din. Jack Duffy, a fourth-year computer science student at Chapman University, said he has been bringing his pipes to marches and protests in Los Angeles since last summer.
“The bagpipes have been taken into battle for hundreds of years,” he said.
Denver
Portland, Ore.
A city councilor, Sameer Kanal, described “a sea of Portlanders” in a park near downtown. Many were wearing the inflatable animal costumes that have made the city’s anti-immigration rallies a viral sensation.
Deana Fredericks, 65, was among a group of women wearing outfits inspired by “The Handmaid’s Tale,” a show drawn from the Margaret Atwood novel that depicts a totalitarian society in which women are treated as property. “We’re concerned about women’s rights, but it’s also gone beyond that,” she said, citing the Iran war and voting rights.
Later, outside an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Portland, hundreds of protesters gathered, with some breaking open a gate at the entrance of the building. The authorities pushed them back. State and city police officers arrived to further break up the crowd.
Friction escalated overnight. After protesters broke open the gate a second time, federal agents responded. They detained two protesters, pulling them roughly from the crowd and taking them into the building. One protester climbed onto the roof and broke security cameras, and others set U.S. flags on fire.
Jersey City, N.J.
Anchorage
Protesters with signs slung over their shoulders streamed into Anchorage’s Town Square Park, as temperatures hovered around 20.
Lynette Moreno-Hinz, a 67-year-old cabdriver from Anchorage, played a skin drum for the crowd. Ms. Moreno-Hinz, who is Tlingit, said she was protesting because Alaska Natives are concerned about federal support for myriad tribal programs. “He’s taking away the money for our Native people,” she said, referring to Mr. Trump.
West Bloomfield, Mich.
London
An earlier version of this article included a photograph with the incorrect location. It was in Juneau, Alaska, not Anchorage.
Ernesto Londoño is a Times reporter based in Minnesota, covering news in the Midwest and drug use and counternarcotics policy. He welcomes tips and can be reached at elondono.81 on Signal.
Sonia A. Rao reports on disability issues as a member of the 2025-26 Times Fellowship class, a program for early-career journalists.
More on the Fighting in the Middle East
Missing U.S. Airman: The downing of a U.S. fighter jet over Iran and the intense search for one of its crew members has raised concerns that the airman could be captured and used as leverage, raising the specter of a replay of the 1979 Iran hostage crisis.
Iran’s Military Strength: Iranian operatives have been digging out underground missile bunkers and silos struck by bombs, returning them to operation hours after an attack, according to U.S. intelligence reports. And the news that Iran had shot down a U.S. jet showed that Iran has retained the ability to strike back, however degraded.
Strait of Hormuz: European leaders and other officials have ideas for bringing shipping back to the strait once the war in Iran war ends. But the few options they have carry risks.
Attacks on Infrastructure: In Kuwait, an attack damaged a power and water desalination plant. Kuwait blamed Iran, which denied carrying out the attack.
Iranian Citizens: Families gathered for picnics and games to mark the end of Nowruz, the Iranian new year holiday, seizing a brief chance to celebrate amid the war. In interviews, fifteen residents of Tehran spoke of their fear as the capital weathered heavy bombardment.