The Frankish Reich

https://www.wsj.com/economy/u-s-consumer-confidence-falls-back-on-fears-of-tariff-induced-price-increases-3ba5693d?mod=economy_lead_pos1 Inflation expectations jumped to 4.3% this month from 3.3% in January, the highest reading since 2023 https://www.cnbc.com/2025/02/22/resilient-stock-market-finally-succumbs-to-pressure-from-economic-worries-and-trump-policy-flux.html https://stevenrattner.com/2025/02/msnbcs-morning-joe-the-houses-big-budget-bill/ The additions to the deficit would bring the gap in 2033 almost back to where it was during Covid. (Note that the deficit would likely not go down in 2034 – this is an accounting gimmick.) Expect to see some Republicans argue that these numbers are too pessimistic, that the tax cuts will pay for themselves. They promised that in 2017 and it never came to pass

Well he did promise he'd be a dictator on Day One. Why not price ceilings on eggs, accompanied by Egg Ration Cards? At least that would fulfill the promise.

As you once scolded me (see, I can play these memory games too, even at our respective ages): so how much did you pay for gas and groceries this week? Hey, Almond Boy ... I think it spell corrected Almond Milk. [better late than never]

Agreed. A while back I looked at all "running QBs" - which I defined as guys who've rushed for 400+ yards/season - and longevity. The results were not promising, as most broke down by about age 32. And yes, I got a ton of comments pointing out that there was an explanation for all of those. But a pattern is a pattern. I think this is the best case scenario for Josh. Let's call it the John Elway Aging Curve. If anyone can do it, he can. But its no sure thing.

The term - "malicious incompetence" - was coined in Trump's first administration. The Trump Administration in Exile had four years to at least take the incompetence out of the malice. It's obvious now that they didn't. For starters: 1. Pete Hegseth and JD Vance Go to Europe. The worst buddy movie since Dumb and Dumberer. They contradict each other, and Hegseth gives away key bargaining positions even before any bargaining has begun. https://www.foxnews.com/world/hegseth-says-he-vance-on-same-page-despite-vps-remark-us-troops-ukraine 2. Turns out we might actually need someone to make sure our nukes are safe! Oops. https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/national-security/trump-administration-wants-un-fire-nuclear-safety-workers-cant-figure-rcna192345

So ... still no motion to dismiss the Adams indictment. Pam Bondi may need to sign it herself. Whoever signs it is gonna face an interesting set of questions from the judge.... It'll be dismissed, but not before a hearing where some "fool or coward" (the language used in the resignation letter from a different AUSA) falls on his/her sword for Donnie.

And you hit the nail on the head. A lot of these firings aren't about reducing the size of the government. There's a formal way to do that; it's what Bill Clinton did in his first term. What you'll see instead is the opening up of positions for Trumpies. Oh, there's the true believers, the "intellectual" MAGAs. We've seen them slotted into policy jobs. But what about all the mediocre or worse campaign people? The guy who rang doorbells for Trump when Ron DeSantis looked like a frontrunner. What about jobs for them? Coming soon to a depleted agency near you.

Oh, but what about trading up for Sammy Watkins? Drafting Cyrus Koundjio with a 2nd? And who can forget that Shaq Lawson-Reggie Ragland-Adolphus Washington trio that formed the core of our defensive front for the next decade? And that flyer on Cardale Jones wasn't so bad either. Everyone makes a mistake every now and then. Give the guy a break.

Oh, but what about trading up for Sammy Watkins? Drafting Cyrus Koundjio with a 2nd? And who can forget that Shaq Lawson-Reggie Ragland-Adolphus Washington trio that formed the core of our defensive front for the next decade? Everyone makes a mistake every now and then. Give the guy a break. Oh, but what about trading up for Sammy Watkins? Drafting Cyrus Koundjio with a 2nd? And who can forget that Shaq Lawson-Reggie Ragland-Adolphus Washington trio that formed the core of our defensive front for the next decade? Everyone makes a mistake every now and then. Give the guy a break.

And while we're talking about government employees, take a look at the Eric Adams case. A career prosecutor, Danielle Sassoon, was fired/resigned for refusing to dismiss a righteous indictment. What's this government loser's history? - Harvard A.B., Yale law - clerked for leading Republican appellate judge J. Harvie Wilkinson, then (on his recommendation) for Justice Scalia - worked at big private firm for a couple years, then joined the government as an Assistant U.S. Attorney - convicted, among many others, Sam Bankman-Fried. Do you have any idea how many unpaid "overtime" hours a case of that magnitude involves? Superb lawyer, superb litigator. She could've made partner at a big firm years ago. Could've made millions per year without working anywhere near as hard. You know what an Assistant U.S. Attorney makes (and in Manhattan)? Maybe $200k a year. She did it out of a sense of service to the American people.

Too soon.

I just checked in on the NTSB briefing on the crash. These investigators are superb. Excellent, comprehensive briefing on the investigation so far, avoiding anything speculative. Just the facts. Guess what? They're government employees too.

Come on. This is the Mayor of the largest city in the country. It is an extremely well documented indictment in a public corruption case. As everyone knows, Adams is a Democrat (maybe not anymore, but that's for purely selfish reasons). The prosecution was set up by a Democratic administration. Trump could've just preemptively pardoned him, but then he'd have no leverage over him. So he did what prosecutors do when they want to have leverage over, say, a "cooperating witness"/informant - he directed the Acting US Attorney to dismiss "without prejudice," meaning they could fire up the charges again if Adams doesn't play ball with them. I've largely avoided the so-called discussion of most of Trump's law-stretching/law-breaking actions over these first few weeks. But he always comes up with a new and even more outrageous one. This one is it. Disgusting.

True. There are what's called federal "record retention schedules" that require these retired (haha) files to be maintained ... somewhere. So that's where they put them when the paperwork is done. So fine, change the record retention laws. Appropriate more money to digitize things (they already do this, but as you can imagine it's a huge task). There are people who work at the caves - Lee's Summit, MO is another one - but they're not actually processing the retirement paperwork. They're just filing it away. Yes, they will believe anything.

Understatement of the millennium. I'm sure there are thousands of bureaucrats with such net worths. Why do people listen to this crap?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Report_from_Iron_Mountain

I suppose you could start trading away draft picks willy-nilly to go "all in" for 2025, but what you get back for those draft picks is usually a veteran player with a big salary. Which only makes you move on from some other good established player. I guess I'd be willing to trade multiple picks to move up in the draft to get a true playmaker at a rookie salary, but we haven't gone that route since Josh.

Would this help? https://www.buffalobills.com/video/buffalo-bills-wr-keon-coleman-2024-nfl-season-highlights Thought not.

Broncos-Packers? Why would you remember that? Party city. Lots of hotel rooms. Popular place to visit. Reliably ok (no snowstorms) weather. It's a city that I feel I should love, but I'm kinda ... meh

Last time we called him Diggs. Last time he answered to Von. Worth a try, since Rasul Douglas doesn't really count.

The plan: tune in just in time for the kickoff. Watch one drive from each team. Come back in two hours. Fast forward thru halftime show to see if Kendrick Lamar does Not Like Us. Go away again. Check score at the end of 3. Watch if it's close. Get on with life.

I'm pretty sure the over/under on Bills wins back in his 3 years was something like 5.5. And he delivered those thrilling 7-9s. Three in a row! If the Bills were going to sneak into the playoffs with that roster it was probably by playing the exact type of boring football he specialized in, and getting a few lucky bounces to steal another win or two. In retrospect, I'd take Jauronball over Chan, Marrone, and Rex any day.

I feel like we've been all-in every since we traded for Diggs and followed it up with Von. Not sure how much more all-in we can get.

A strange mix of "he was better than I thought he'd be" yet the Jets were far worse than I thought they'd be. Maybe that says it all.

As Brady says, it's what made him, Peyton Manning, and Drew Brees HOFers. I heard a similar interview with DT Gerald McCoy (Bucs). They asked him, "Which QB was toughest to play against?" His answer: Peyton Manning. He said one week vs. the Colts they tried a brand new stunt they'd never run before. He was lined up over center. Peyton comes up to the line yelling "93 (McCoy) has the B gap." McCoy couldn't believe he knew it was coming. They'd never, ever run that stunt before. But somehow Peyton just ... knew.