Jon Thompson
@jfthompson.bsky.social
Retired journalist, erstwhile fly fisherman, dedicated folkie.
Heather: “The warning Kelly and the other five Democratic lawmakers offered to military personnel that they must refuse illegal orders took on renewed meaning this evening.”
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January 12, 2026
Today, Democratic senator Mark Kelly of Arizona sued Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, the Defense Department, Navy Secretary John Phelan, and the Navy Department for violating his First Amendment right...
open.substack.com
January 13, 2026 at 3:19 PM
Heather: “The warning Kelly and the other five Democratic lawmakers offered to military personnel that they must refuse illegal orders took on renewed meaning this evening.”
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Heather: “With pressure building over the Epstein files and Jack Smith’s testimony, and with the Supreme Court having taken away Trump’s ability to use troops within the United States, the administration went on the offensive.”
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January 11, 2026
The news has seemed to move more and more quickly in the last week.
open.substack.com
January 12, 2026 at 3:51 PM
Heather: “With pressure building over the Epstein files and Jack Smith’s testimony, and with the Supreme Court having taken away Trump’s ability to use troops within the United States, the administration went on the offensive.”
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Heather: “The thread that runs through both is the assumption that an American exercising their constitutional rights must submit, without question, to a white man holding a gun.”
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January 10, 2026
Yesterday, in an apparent attempt to regain control of the national narrative surrounding the deadly shooting of Renee Good in Minneapolis, Vice President J.D.
open.substack.com
January 11, 2026 at 3:11 PM
Heather: “The thread that runs through both is the assumption that an American exercising their constitutional rights must submit, without question, to a white man holding a gun.”
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Heather: “Today Trump appeared to settle into his new role as an American dictator.”
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January 8, 2026
On MS NOW today, columnist Philip Bump broke down when talking about the shooting of Renee Nicole Good yesterday in Minneapolis.
open.substack.com
January 9, 2026 at 3:08 PM
Heather: “Today Trump appeared to settle into his new role as an American dictator.”
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Heather: “In reality, modern Republican policies have rarely served everyday people, while the policies enacted by Democratic president Joe Biden demonstrably did.”
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January 6, 2026
“They say that when you win the presidency you lose the midterm,” President Donald J.
open.substack.com
January 7, 2026 at 3:42 PM
Heather: “In reality, modern Republican policies have rarely served everyday people, while the policies enacted by Democratic president Joe Biden demonstrably did.”
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Heather: “And so, five years after the events of January 6, 2021, we are learning what it means to have a president who has demonstrated his determination to overthrow our democracy and who does not have to answer to the law.”
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January 5, 2026 (Monday)
Five years ago, on January 6, 2021, more than 2,000 rioters stormed the U.S.
open.substack.com
January 6, 2026 at 3:44 PM
Heather: “And so, five years after the events of January 6, 2021, we are learning what it means to have a president who has demonstrated his determination to overthrow our democracy and who does not have to answer to the law.”
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Reposted by Jon Thompson
I'm not going to do a "things I'm proud of from 2025" thread because there isn't very much and most of it was bad. But this piece from January, about the perils facing political cartoonists staring at the oncoming train of authoritarianism, still rings true.
Political cartoonists on facing Donald Trump, again: 'There is no consensus reality anymore' - The Comics Journal
Shrinking newspaper circulations. Social media morass. First amendment rights. Zach Rabiroff talks to a variety of cartoonists about all that and more as we head into a second Donald Trump administrat...
www.tcj.com
December 31, 2025 at 4:48 PM
I'm not going to do a "things I'm proud of from 2025" thread because there isn't very much and most of it was bad. But this piece from January, about the perils facing political cartoonists staring at the oncoming train of authoritarianism, still rings true.
Heather: “Nast’s 1863 Santa told a specific story about America in that terrible moment.”
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December 25, 2025
The modern version of Santa Claus arrived in the United States in 1863, when he stopped at an army camp of Union soldiers in the January 3 issue of Harper’s Weekly. Cartoonist Thomas Nast drew Santa w...
open.substack.com
December 26, 2025 at 2:36 PM
Heather: “Nast’s 1863 Santa told a specific story about America in that terrible moment.”
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Heather: “Trump seems to be focusing on creating a golden legacy for himself as the MAGA movement falters.”
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December 22, 2025
This afternoon, President Donald J.
open.substack.com
December 23, 2025 at 3:30 PM
Heather: “Trump seems to be focusing on creating a golden legacy for himself as the MAGA movement falters.”
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Heather: “James Madison of Virginia, the key thinker behind the Constitution, had quite a lot to say about why it was fundamentally important to make sure the government kept away from religion.”
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December 21, 2025
Speaking today at Turning Point USA’s annual “AmericaFest” conference, Vice President J.D.
open.substack.com
December 22, 2025 at 4:00 PM
Heather: “James Madison of Virginia, the key thinker behind the Constitution, had quite a lot to say about why it was fundamentally important to make sure the government kept away from religion.”
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Heather: “The second Trump administration has exposed the lie of Reaganomics, as well as the rot at the heart of an administration dedicated to the idea that some people are better than others.”
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December 19, 2025
This past week feels like the final, chaotic days of a political era.
open.substack.com
December 20, 2025 at 3:59 PM
Heather: “The second Trump administration has exposed the lie of Reaganomics, as well as the rot at the heart of an administration dedicated to the idea that some people are better than others.”
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Heather: “But while Trump focuses on his architectural projects, the administration seems unable to meet other obligations.”
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December 16, 2025
While President Donald J.
open.substack.com
December 17, 2025 at 3:11 PM
Heather: “But while Trump focuses on his architectural projects, the administration seems unable to meet other obligations.”
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Heather: “In The Guardian last week, Judith Levine noted that Trump is erasing the face of a federal government that served the American people, replacing it with his own.”
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December 14, 2025
Last Sunday, on December 7, Mydelle Wright, a well-regarded preservationist, filed a declaration before a court, saying that President Donald J.
open.substack.com
December 15, 2025 at 4:16 PM
Heather: “In The Guardian last week, Judith Levine noted that Trump is erasing the face of a federal government that served the American people, replacing it with his own.”
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Heather: “Trump’s performance seems unlikely to reassure Americans that he is prioritizing their economic concerns. Congressional Republicans are not helping.”
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December 11, 2025
On Tuesday, President Donald J.
open.substack.com
December 12, 2025 at 3:43 PM
Heather: “Trump’s performance seems unlikely to reassure Americans that he is prioritizing their economic concerns. Congressional Republicans are not helping.”
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Heather: “Trump has tried to regain control of the narrative by diving into the orchestra pit. He has turned to an extreme version of the racism, sexism, and attacks on Americans who use the social safety net that have been part of Republican rhetoric for decades.”
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December 9, 2025
When G.
open.substack.com
December 10, 2025 at 3:21 PM
Heather: “Trump has tried to regain control of the narrative by diving into the orchestra pit. He has turned to an extreme version of the racism, sexism, and attacks on Americans who use the social safety net that have been part of Republican rhetoric for decades.”
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Heather: “But there are signs that Republican lawmakers are finally joining the Democrats to push back against Trump’s quest for power.”
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December 8, 2025
Last Wednesday, December 3, a reporter asked President Donald J.
open.substack.com
December 9, 2025 at 2:13 PM
Heather: “But there are signs that Republican lawmakers are finally joining the Democrats to push back against Trump’s quest for power.”
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Heather: “The document reorients the U.S. away from traditional European allies toward Russia.”
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December 5, 2025
Late last night, the Trump administration released the 2025 National Security Strategy (NSS) of the United States of America.
open.substack.com
December 6, 2025 at 3:23 PM
Heather: “The document reorients the U.S. away from traditional European allies toward Russia.”
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Heather: “As Charlie Savage explained today in the New York Times, legal experts say this operation is not lawful. Civilians engaged in trade—even illicit trade—are not enemy combatants.”
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December 4, 2025
“What I saw in that room was one of the most troubling things I’ve seen in my time in public service,” Representative Jim Himes (D-CT), the top Democrat on the House Intelligence committee, said.
open.substack.com
December 5, 2025 at 3:53 PM
Heather: “As Charlie Savage explained today in the New York Times, legal experts say this operation is not lawful. Civilians engaged in trade—even illicit trade—are not enemy combatants.”
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Heather: “That bill is now coming due, trapping Republicans between their ideology, which calls for slashing all government programs, and voters, who overwhelmingly want the credits extended.”
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December 3, 2025
Republican Matt Van Epps won yesterday’s special election in Tennessee’s seventh congressional district, but Republicans aren’t celebrating triumphantly.
open.substack.com
December 4, 2025 at 2:56 PM
Heather: “That bill is now coming due, trapping Republicans between their ideology, which calls for slashing all government programs, and voters, who overwhelmingly want the credits extended.”
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Heather: “The Cabinet appeared to applaud, although it is not clear whether they were agreeing or hoping to stop him from talking like a Nazi.”
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December 2, 2025
The news of last Friday, November 28, that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told a Joint Special Operations commander overseeing an attack on a small vessel carrying 11 people on September 2 to “kill ev...
open.substack.com
December 3, 2025 at 3:23 PM
Heather: “The Cabinet appeared to applaud, although it is not clear whether they were agreeing or hoping to stop him from talking like a Nazi.”
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Heather: “The Trump administration is replacing American democracy with a kleptocracy, a system of corruption in which a network of ruling elites use the institutions of government to steal public assets for their own private gain.”
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November 30, 2025
On Friday evening, the Wall Street Journal published an article about the Trump administration’s negotiations with Russia over Ukraine that illuminated the administration’s approach to the world at ho...
open.substack.com
December 1, 2025 at 2:43 PM
Heather: “The Trump administration is replacing American democracy with a kleptocracy, a system of corruption in which a network of ruling elites use the institutions of government to steal public assets for their own private gain.”
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Heather: “Putin told reporters in Kyrgyzstan that Russia will continue to attack Ukraine ‘until the last Ukrainian dies’ in order to gain control of Ukraine’s industrial east.”
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November 28, 2025
As Trump’s popularity continues to drop, the MAGA coalition shows signs of cracking, and Trump’s mental acuity slips, there is a frantic feel to the administration, as if Trump’s people are trying to ...
open.substack.com
November 29, 2025 at 3:35 PM
Heather: “Putin told reporters in Kyrgyzstan that Russia will continue to attack Ukraine ‘until the last Ukrainian dies’ in order to gain control of Ukraine’s industrial east.”
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Heather: “And then, on April 12, 1861, southern soldiers fired on Fort Sumter, a federal fort in Charleston Harbor, and the meaning of a holiday for giving thanks changed.”
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November 26, 2025
Thanksgiving is the quintessential American holiday…but not for the reasons we generally remember.
open.substack.com
November 27, 2025 at 2:29 PM
Heather: “And then, on April 12, 1861, southern soldiers fired on Fort Sumter, a federal fort in Charleston Harbor, and the meaning of a holiday for giving thanks changed.”
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Reposted by Jon Thompson
Political cartoonists also draw his cankles. LOL
Marian Kamensky.
Marian Kamensky.
November 26, 2025 at 7:27 PM
Political cartoonists also draw his cankles. LOL
Marian Kamensky.
Marian Kamensky.