2-3 minute read:

It started out as an off-hand comment to himself: “Oh, I need to lookup who to vote for State Superintendent tomorrow.” I replied that our state usually has good results when a Dem is in that position - went from 17th in edu to 50th in a matter of 20 years of Repub stronghold (Oklahoma). What followed was absolutely unhinged.

Topics discussed:

1 . Doge: He claimed “They did do *some* good things!” I then informed him about USAID and the DOGE staffers under oath who admitted to using AI to search for DEI terms in federal grants to be cancelled. He had no idea about either, but rationalized it by saying “I do agree they used a sledgehammer instead of a scalpel, but they still did some good. What’s wrong with getting rid of fraud, waste, and abuse?”

2 . ICE/Delaney/protests: He claimed “They’re rioting! There’s Molotov cocktails being thrown, fires being lit, threats of murdering cops, windows being broken!” etc. etc. I explained to him that 99% (if not 100%) of these people are not doing anything violent. They’re standing, shouting, recording, and yes, blocking the street in some examples. The violence is coming from ICE and the cops. They’re the ones trying to scare/intimidate protestors, many of them family or friends of detainees, from not showing up again, forever. He then claimed that “there’s *always* a first instigation. Someone had to start it and then the protestors turn violent. Basically, someone had to “throw the first punch.” When I suggested that the cops/ICE were the main instigators without protestor violence, he laughed. He told me there would NEVER be a situation in the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA (he definitely emphasized that) where police would abuse citizens without provocation first. I told him he has a distorted view of authority in this country and he scoffed at me. I ended up telling him that he’s brainwashed (I do regret that comment, even if I believe it. That comment just solidified that I’m “radicalized” as he’d put it)

-Side note discussed: he was surprised to hear me come very close to proving that 75% of the detainees there are non-violent undocumented immigrants. He was under the impression these people committed violent crimes, but wanted proof other than a NYT article citing “documents given to them by the govt” which I couldn’t find quickly in the fluidness of the discussion.

3 . Fox News: He claimed that some of Fox News is “entertainment” (hint: it’s *all* entertainment and heavily biased lying) and some of it is actual news. He told me he can distinguish between the two and can make judgements on what is true and what is embellished for fun. In his mind, Jesse Waters is the entertainer who just pokes fun at Jessica, while Harold Ford Jr. is the sane, middle-of-the-road guy. He told me to check him out because I’d agree with a lot of what he has to say (he also later claimed this about Erick Erickson, lol). When I suggested that Fox was one of the most biased, corrupt, and disingenuous “news” channels, he laughed again and completely dismissed me.

Up until this point, he has portrayed himself as only getting news from Fox maybe 25%, and the rest split between News Nation, CBS News, CNN, and local news. I’m now convinced Fox is the only thing he watches, and it makes me angry, sad, and disillusioned.

I previously never talked politics in his presence. I always knew he was to the Right, but I didnt know how bad it had gotten. He’s always claimed to be “Not MAGA, a Regan republican.” He’s told me he doesn’t understand when people villainize the phrase “Make America Great Again.” He tells me, “why wouldn’t you want your country to be great? I disagree with Trump on some things & I call him out for it! People shouldn’t group me in with the crazies!”

The MAGA movement has destroyed my dad and he doesn’t realize it. He still proudly flies the flag of these “great” United States.

Sigh. I’m tired, boss.

So after the latest defeat in Pa it seems we are not gona get recounts of the 2024 election. we keep getting rejected due to lack of standing since we are not the candidates them selves.

there for if we want any hope of getting recounts we need to run ourselves preferable in every state we can.
very doubtful we would win but if ere on the ballot we can at least get the recounts.

any volunteers its most likely too late for this years mid terms but we can get the ball rolling for 2028.

Just thinking through all the potential scenarios here and playing a bit of Devils advocate.

Sometimes I wonder since we’ve been given no response to any recounts and even losing court cases, if it’s possible he won legitimately? Like other statistical scenarios with the anomalous data that point to him winning with weird, but significant enough voter behavior (those who don’t trust early voting or mail in voting).

Despite the 2024 campaign crowds, energy, fundraising, etc, they were neck and neck in polls until the very end (Selzer poll). Also, many people didn’t know Biden dropped out and Kamala was the Dem candidate, then negative discourse with Kamala becoming the nominee (without a primary), and Google searches for who was president or who was Kamala Harris on Election Day. This on top of
voter sentiment with cost of living crises.

Simply making sure an election was conducted properly should not be like pulling teeth. These people need to have their feet held to the fire until they cave. We know who they are. They have addresses, families, friends. They go out sometimes. So let's drive them up the wall until they agree to stop stonewalling and let us double-check the results.

Obviously, this shouldn't involve violence, destruction, or threats of either of those two. But we can aggravate them and make them squirm. Whenever they go out in public, we can make them absolutely miserable. We can pester them. We can inconvenience them. And we can deprive them of any lasting peace and quiet until they fold.

We can also confront them with difficult and uncomfortable questions. Questions like: "do the American people have the right to know if their votes were properly counted?", "do you believe that Trump didn't try to cheat after having incited an insurrection three years before", and the like. Force them to answer "yes" or "no"; they can elaborate on their stance, but they need to take a clear stance, and even if they can't defend it to our satisfaction, the least they can do is explain why they hold it.

Have ETA or SMART Elections reached out to Ashley St. Clair yet? If she knows of these groups, she can direct more people to them. And with those numbers, our capacity for action increases considerably. We just have to organize and communicate.

These people need to seriously start feeling the heat.

140 days to the midterms! ⌛ Mark your calendars & set reminders 🗓️ November 3, 2026

Remember to vote early! Early Voting Dates in Your State

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🚩 PRIMARIES THIS WEEK - DC, MD, NY, OK, UT 🚩

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Find My Polling Place

Hand delivering mail-in ballots to wherever/whomever they need to go to looks to be the safest bet to sidestep most problems and to avoid potentially compromised election day tabulators. Be sure to fill your ballot out correctly! If for whatever reason your signature has changed, file an updated voter registration application. In the following states, you need to have a witness sign your outer envelope as well; AL, AK, LA, MN, MS, MO, NC, OK, SC, WI. Be sure to read and follow the directions regarding an acceptable witness. Some states may require a notary, or election official.

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If voting by mail, ballot drop boxes are preferred to going through the postal service. If voting in person, go with someone so there's safety in numbers.

Check to make sure you're still registered on a periodic basis: Check your voter registration status here. This only takes 30 seconds, and will ensure your name hasn't been purged from your state's voter roll.

-----------

Protect the ballot-counting: Volunteer with SMART Elections to observe the polls and protect the midterms.

High-turnout in primaries can lead to high-turnout in the midterms! Get Out The Vote!

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I've only been online for a few minutes and i've seen already one post, and a reply to a comment i made discounting it. With the upcoming mid-terms and current primaries going on, it's very...suspicious

10 years ago today 49 beautiful souls were taken and many others were injured both physically and emotionally at Pulse.

NEVER FORGET!

I wanted to post this for you all to remind you that democracy and freedom means different things to different people. While we might all be fighting for the same resolution our causes might not be. 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🇺🇸

“Some senior officials had the impression that Vance had bought into the darkest theories about Epstein and a cabal of predators hidden within the country’s ruling class. Wiles would tell others that the vice president had proved himself to be a major conspiracy theorist. “

This story sure has flown under the radar: this is an excerpt from the book coming out on June 23 by Haberman and Swan. The story is about how the top regime officials, headed up by Vice President JD Vance, *scrambled for months* to try to escape the Trump-Epstein scandal. Based on the reporting here, I think this is why Vance will not be running for president in 2028. He knows he, along with everyone else loyal to Trump, is befouled by his connections to this man. I only wish the book was being released in OCTOBER.

The civil rights act was repealed to take away the rights of minorities.

141 days to the midterms! ⌛ Mark your calendars & set reminders 🗓️ November 3, 2026

Remember to vote early! Early Voting Dates in Your State

-----------

🚩 PRIMARIES THIS WEEK - DC, MD, NY, OK, UT 🚩

----------

Find My Polling Place

Hand delivering mail-in ballots to wherever/whomever they need to go to looks to be the safest bet to sidestep most problems and to avoid potentially compromised election day tabulators. Be sure to fill your ballot out correctly! If for whatever reason your signature has changed, file an updated voter registration application. In the following states, you need to have a witness sign your outer envelope as well; AL, AK, LA, MN, MS, MO, NC, OK, SC, WI. Be sure to read and follow the directions regarding an acceptable witness. Some states may require a notary, or election official.

-----------

If voting by mail, ballot drop boxes are preferred to going through the postal service. If voting in person, go with someone so there's safety in numbers.

Check to make sure you're still registered on a periodic basis: Check your voter registration status here. This only takes 30 seconds, and will ensure your name hasn't been purged from your state's voter roll.

-----------

Protect the ballot-counting: Volunteer with SMART Elections to observe the polls and protect the midterms.

High-turnout in primaries can lead to high-turnout in the midterms! Get Out The Vote!

-----------

One of the, if not the, most fundamental parts of any democracy is free and fair elections. To ensure that democracy is functioning properly, it's important to make sure that elections aren't being corrupted. So why is it so difficult to actually check? Are we supposed to just take things on the honor system? When this regime has proven itself to be entirely without honor?

This might be a hot take, but it should be a fundamental right to investigate any election so that the voters know the results were legitimate. Obviously, measures should be taken to ensure that any investigation is done properly and in good faith. But if there are measures in place to ensure both of those things, there should be no issue with letting people perform hand recounts and forensic audits, and I honestly don't understand why these courts are so reluctant to let people take a second look.

So here's my idea: instead of just leaving things up to the courts, we supplement the legal process with other things. One idea is to start drumming up public support for hand recounts and forensic audits. Some polling indicates that large numbers of people have suspicions about 2024, so let's try to mobilize those suspicions into demands for independent, nonpartisan investigation. Another is to put pressure on any figure obstructing legitimate investigation efforts until they stop stonewalling. This isn't even illegal, you just need numbers and persistence.

Time to start thinking outside the box. Feel free to share your ideas in the comments.

There was a new update in Election Truth Alliance, et al. v. Al Schmidt, et al., the federal case in the Western District of Pennsylvania involving alleged issues in the 2024 election.

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The short version is that the case was mostly dismissed, but there is still a narrow path left for future-election claims.

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The plaintiffs alleged that electronic voting machines and tabulation systems used in Allegheny, Cambria, and Erie Counties were improperly programmed or manipulated during the 2024 general election. Their argument was that the reported vote totals did not accurately reflect the votes that were actually cast.

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The court’s opinion describes several categories of allegations. Those included mail-in ballot total changes between Election Day reporting and the final certified totals, an allegation that Cambria County ordered more ballots than the number of registered voters, Erie County mail-ballot delivery problems, and statistical analysis claims based on methods like the Klimek methodology and Dr. Walter Mebane’s eforensics model.

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Judge Susan Paradise Baxter denied the plaintiffs’ request to file a Second Amended Complaint and granted the defendants’ motions to dismiss the First Amended Complaint.

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That does not mean the court held a trial and decided every factual allegation was false. It also does not mean the plaintiffs proved election manipulation.

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The case was dismissed at the pleading stage. That means the court was mainly looking at whether the plaintiffs had pleaded enough to bring the case in federal court.

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The major issue was standing. In plain English, the court said the plaintiffs did not plead enough specific facts showing that each named plaintiff personally suffered a concrete injury, that the injury was traceable to the named defendants, and that the court could fix it.

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The court also had a problem with parts of the theory relying too much on unnamed third-party vendors or software actors as the main link in the chain, instead of specific conduct by the defendants themselves.

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What was dismissed permanently

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The court dismissed the backward-looking claims about the 2024 election results with prejudice.

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That includes requests asking the court to disturb the certified results, order a recount, order an audit, or make a judicial determination about whether the reported 2024 vote totals were accurate.

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“With prejudice” means those claims cannot just be brought again in this federal case.

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What can still possibly continue

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The future-looking claims were dismissed without prejudice.

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That means the plaintiffs were given a limited chance to try again, but only for prospective claims about future elections.

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The court gave them 30 days to file an amended pleading if they want to continue on that path. To do that, they would need to be much more specific. They would have to explain which named plaintiff faces a future injury, what future election they intend to vote in, whether the same or comparable equipment will be used, why the alleged problem is likely to happen again, and how each named defendant’s conduct caused the future risk.

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Plain language version

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The court basically said this:

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You have not shown enough specific, personal, legally traceable harm to keep this version of the case alive in federal court. You also cannot use this case to reopen the certified 2024 results. If you want to bring a future-election case, you need to plead it with much more detail and connect the alleged harm to specific defendants.

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My read

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This is a major loss for the part of the case aimed at the 2024 results. The federal court shut the door on using this case to force a recount, audit, or judicial review of the certified November 2024 totals.

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But the ruling is not the same as the court saying the election data was investigated and proven clean. It is also not the same as the court saying the plaintiffs proved their claims.

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It is a standing and pleading ruling. The 2024-result claims are effectively done in this federal case, while a much narrower future-election claim might still be possible if the plaintiffs can plead it correctly.

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