Charles P. Pierce

New York

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Articles

Everybody Should Celebrate Juneteenth

1 week ago | esquire.com | Charles P. Pierce

Happy Juneteenth to all who celebrate, which god damn well should be all of us, damn it. Sing it, Mr. Hurt. By the President of the United States of America:A Proclamation.
Trump Only Wants to Go to War for the Ego Boost

1 week ago | esquire.com | Charles P. Pierce

Being the sole occupant of his idiomatic, dark, personal universe, the president conforms his actions to its idiomatic, dark, personal laws and according to its idiomatic, dark, personal logic. Given that he has managed to make too much of the government conform to his actions, and too many of us to conform to that logic, it should come as no surprise that he is talking openly about taking the country down the entirely unnecessary and perilous course of joining Israel’s attack on Iran.
Anti-Government Lunatics Used to Be on the Fringe. Trump Has Allowed Them to Operate in the Open.

1 week ago | esquire.com | Charles P. Pierce

Sometimes, there is nothing like having cops who listen to bystanders and quickly act on their observations. In other words, cops who act like servants of a grateful public. From The New York Times:The man, Kevin Krebs, 31, of Malvern, Pennsylvania, first caused alarm among people in the crowd at the protest in West Chester, Pennsylvania, when he tried to hide a Sig Sauer P320 handgun under his raincoat and another layer of clothing, the authorities said.
Trump Is Working with Exactly the Wrong Person to Stop Gang Violence

1 week ago | esquire.com | Charles P. Pierce

The good people at ProPublica have taken a close look at the relationship forged between El Caudillo del Mar-A-Lago and President Nayib Bukele, the actual jefe in El Salvador. Our president has found a partner in despotism and Bukele has found a prime sucker.
No Carcinogen Left Behind! Trump's EPA Wants to Reverse the Ban on Asbestos

1 week ago | esquire.com | Charles P. Pierce

The inexorable march of American public health forward into the past goes merrily onward. From The New York Times: Known as “white” asbestos, chrysotile asbestos is banned in more than 50 countries for its link to lung cancer and mesothelioma, a cancer that forms in the lining of internal organs. White asbestos, however, has been imported for use in the United States for roofing materials, textiles and cement as well as gaskets, clutches, brake pads and other automotive parts.
Republicans Just Dropped a Major Bomb Into the Big, Beautiful Tax Bill That Would Blow a Hole in Medicaid

1 week ago | esquire.com | Charles P. Pierce

WASHINGTON—Early Monday afternoon, the Republicans on the Senate Finance Committee dropped a major bomb regarding the tax bill that the majority is trying to slip through the Senate in a fashion that denies the Democratic minority the opportunity to filibuster it. From Politico: The Senate Finance Committee’s newly released draft would incrementally lower the allowable provider tax in Medicaid expansion states starting in 2027 from the current 6 percent until it hits 3.5 percent in 2031.
An Executive Order from Trump Now Allows V.A. Doctors to Refuse Care to Democrats

1 week ago | esquire.com | Charles P. Pierce

Okay, so what the hell is going on here? From The Guardian: Doctors at Department of Veterans Affairs (V.A.) hospitals nationwide could refuse to treat unmarried veterans and Democrats under new hospital guidelines imposed following an executive order by Donald Trump. The new rules, obtained by The Guardian, also apply to psychologists, dentists, and a host of other occupations. They have already gone into effect in at least some V.A. medical centers.
Utah Senator Mike Lee Needs to Learn to Shut Up

1 week ago | esquire.com | Charles P. Pierce

The shebeen always has kept an eye out for Senator Mike Lee, the famous ‘konztitooshunal skolar’ from the state of Utah, who has gone from a radical fan of the Tenth Amendment to a radical fan of whatever popped out of Donald Trump’s comb-over today. Anyway, back in Salt Lake City on Saturday, there was gunfire that left one dead at a ‘No Kings’ rally.
I Went to Trump’s Military Parade. Everything About It Was Wrong.

1 week ago | esquire.com | Charles P. Pierce

In May 1865, the national government threw itself a parade. It had been more than a month since the rebellion in defense of slavery was finally put down. It had been more than a month since the assassination of Abraham Lincoln shook the feeling of triumph. The national government wanted that feeling back. Each day of the so-called Grand Review was designated to honor the different Union armies who had won the war.
Trump Wants Us to Believe He Tried to Cut a Deal with Iran Before Israel Dropped Bombs

2 weeks ago | esquire.com | Charles P. Pierce

WASHINGTON, D.C. — All is subtropical and appears fairly normal in anticipation of the March of the Metal Penises Saturday night here in Pyongyang on the Potomac.