Resistance HQ Bulletin 12, Weekend Edition

… One thing that nobody has paid much attention to, but they should, is the fact that Trump and the people close to him have called for Capitol Police Officer Michael Byrd to be prosecuted for murder in the shooting death of Ashli Babbitt on J6. Trump could very easily have his DOJ open up an investigation and charge Byrd, and I would not be shocked if that happens.

… Along those lines, some have called on Trump to appoint Matt Gaetz as a Special Counsel. This could be exactly the kind of thing that would be right up Gaetz’s alley. Gaetz responded to the idea by pointing out that the Biden Admin took the position with the Jack Smith appointment that Special Counsels do not require Senate confirmation.

… George Santos said he wants Gaetz appointed as special counsel to investigate members of Congress for insider trading. Most of the people Santos has accused of this in the past are Republicans though.

… Adam Schiff said he still wants to see the House Ethics Report on Gaetz: “The taxpayers paid for that analysis and that report. And they have a right to see it.”

… Denver Mayor Mike Johnston was asked about Trump Deportation Czar Tom Homan’s comments that they will arrest and imprison local elected officials who attempt to oppose their efforts to round people up for mass deportations. He said he is prepared to go: “Ralph Carr has always been one of my heroes. He was the governor who in the middle of internment of Japanese-Americans said, ‘this is the wrong thing to do.’ People were mad at him, it was unpopular, it was in the middle of WW2. If Trump or any of his actors are going to do things that we think are illegal, or immoral or un-American, we will stand up against them.

… Lauren Boebert responded to Johnston’s statement: “There is nothing valiant about protecting criminals.”

… Trump reportedly wants to name Ric Grenell as his Special Envoy to negotiate an end to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Grenell reportedly wanted Sec of State or something much higher on the food chain than this, and is rumored to not want the Russia-Ukraine job. Trump also promised he could easily end the conflict in 24 hours, so it seems kind of a no-win situation for anyone who takes the job and has to try and cash the checks Trump’s big mouth writes.

… Meanwhile, Grenell was on Newsmax yesterday saying that Biden is not competent to finish his term, Harris has supposedly checked out, so he says Biden should bring in Trump right now to take over unofficially: “Why not call upon Trump to start advising and beginning to take some of these issues from Biden immediately? I think it would send a strong message to the world.” This guy is consistently dopey and delusional.

… Former boxing Heavyweight Champion of the World (and brother to Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko) Wladimir Klitschko responds to Joe Rogan saying “F-U” to Zelensky and Ukraine for trying to start WW3: “You are repeating Russian propaganda. Putin’s Russia is in trouble so he wants to scare you and people like you. This war was supposed to last 3 days. It has lasted 3 years. So you are using the only weapon that Putin really intends to use - propaganda.”

… Bluesky is now over 22 million users as people continue to flee Elon Musk’s sewer.

… Free speech absolutist Glenn Greenwald expressed shock and dismay that Trump’s AG pick Pam Bondi threatened to jail/deport students on college campuses protesting Israel and denouncing US aid to Israel. Greenwald suggested someone at MAL explain to her that would violate the First Amendment. Except Bondi is only repeating word for word something that Trump promised in a policy video he posted on his website in 2023 that nobody except me paid any attention to.

… Updated popular vote is Trump 49.86%, Harris 48.26%.

… Trump is refusing to disclose the names of donors who are funding his transition. All past incoming presidents have disclosed this so the public can see who is providing funding to them as they are about to take office. Another law/norm/rule/tradition that Trump just set on fire as he takes a wrecking ball to the rule of law and institutions. I wish Merrick Garland was still alive to see this.

… Qatar was paying Trump’s AG nominee Pam Bondi $115,000 a month to lobby on their behalf. She had to register as a foreign agent and was hired to whitewash that country’s abysmal record on human trafficking.

… An old controversy has resurfaced regarding Bondi stealing a couple’s dog. The dog was lost during Hurricane Katrina from it’s owner and Bondi adopted it from a shelter. When the couple discovered that their dog had been found and adopted by Bondi, they asked for it back and she refused. Bondi finally agreed to return the dog after a year-long legal battle.

… With Susan Collins facing a potentially tough reelection, she has been named Chair of the Appropriations Committee. Thune and Mitch are doing this so she can throw gobs of pork at Maine to help make her case, but not sure how that is going to work with Musk saying he is going to cut the budget by 33%.

… Nancy Mace is continuing her bizarre obsession with bathrooms. Reasonable people can have varying opinions on this issue, that isn’t the point here. Mace is an angertainment specialist constantly seeking the next culture war issue to get herself on regular rotation at Fox. That is what she has done with over 500 social media posts in a few days and dozens of videos, all over an issue that really never was an issue since Rep. Sarah McBride said that she only intended to use private bathrooms in the Capitol.

… Most of Mace’s posts lately have revolved around how much of a “real woman” she is. She posted a photo of herself on Friday going out for a night on the town with the caption: “Wore pink tonight to celebrate all my real womanhood.” Then she posted a morning after makeup-free post on Saturday morning where she denounced the Left as “lunatics” for being mean to her. She creates a controversy, gets the backlash she craves, gets on Fox, then cries that she is victim because of the backlash. Just a vile person.

… In 2022, Trump’s nominee as Director of Counterterrorism Seb Gorka called DNI nominee Tulsi Gabbard “a whack job conspiracy theorist who sides with killers like Assad.” But she’s friends with Lara Trump, so she’s the pick.

… Sen Tammy Duckworth on Gabbard: “I think she’s compromised. Russian controlled media called her a Russian asset.”

… Republican Sen James Lankford said he is very concerned about some of the things Gabbard has said, especially about Assad, and wants to hear her explanation for some of these things. Lankford did negotiate the bipartisan border deal and took a lot of heat from Trump and MAGA over it, so he can do the right thing on very rare occasions.

… MAGA Pastor Jackson Lahmeyer, who ran against Lankford in the Republican primary and lost: “UNACCEPTABLE from James Lankford, who voted to confirm Merrick Garland but has questions about Gabbard. OK Republicans need to send a message to Lankford - if you don’t vote to confirm Gabbard I will NEVER vote for you again.”

… Laura Ingraham: “Why does OK have a Senator like Lankford who hates Trump? Strange given that OK voters overwhelmingly support Trump.”

… Dem Sen-elect Andy Kim has introduced a bill that would require the DNI to disclose details of any financial dealings or compensation they have received from foreign governments.

… Gorka is also very pro-Ukraine which puts him clearly out of step with the rest of the incoming Admin. He actually said that the best way to end the war would be to increase aid to Ukraine, while Trump plans to cut all aid off immediately.

… Trump fan and activist Ann Vandersteel: “Seb Gorka is not who he portrays himself to be. He’s a shill for the military industrial complex. A war monger that makes John Bolton look like a wall flower. This is a serious disappointment by Trump. Perhaps RFK Jr or Elon Musk can weigh in?”

… Sherrod Brown, who just lost his Senate seat narrowly to Republican Bernie Moreno, says he is looking at running either for the seat just vacated by JD Vance in a special election, or run for Governor of Ohio in 2026. Current governor Mike DeWine is term-limited.

… Trump supporters are fuming over his Surgeon General pick Janette Nesheiwat. They have been circulating videos on social media of Nesheiwat during covid, including one on Fox where she said, “vaccines, tests, and masks are all beneficial in combatting covid. It’s not just one or the other.” One influencer said, “Nesheiwat should withdraw. She’s not a leader. She’s a sheep.”

… Nesheiwat was widely viewed as the doctor who was specifically brought on Fox to convince people in their audience to comply with protective measures and get vaccinated.

…. Nesheiwat is also very pro-vaccine - all kinds of vaccines. Which puts her clearly way out of step with HHS nominee RFK Jr.

… Prominent right-wingers who fought against covid mandates, restrictions and vaccines continue to express disgust with Trump’s picks. Comments include “this is a slap in the face to the doctors who sacrificed everything to speak up.” Dr. Naomi Wolf: “Trump should bear in mind that MAGA won with the alliance of MAHA and that MAHA can walk away again in 2026. Don’t take it for granted. Deliver on implied and overt promises.”

… Trump’s previous Surgeon General Jerome Adams posted that whooping cough cases are rising, as are measles and bird flu, and “the new Administration had better have a strong infectious disease response plan, and better ensure public health and vaccine confidence remains high or they’ll be distracted with outbreaks for 4 years instead of 1.” He knows they have no intention of doing any of that. In fact, they plan to do the opposite.

… MAGA is also not happy with Trump’s pick of Scott Bessent for Treasury Secretary, who Musk called an establishment “business-as-usual” guy, not the fiscal revolutionary they hoped for. Except most of MAGA is really upset that he is openly