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@AmicusOpus

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شامل ہوئے Ocak 2011
577 فالونگ118 فالوورز
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Full Name@AmicusOpus·
@bpmckeon64 [Any reason you haven't made the transition to bluesky? Just trying to shore-up my old follows from here.]
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Brian P. McKeon
Brian P. McKeon@bpmckeon64·
If Waltz decides to have 0 detailees from USG agencies, he will have a very tiny policy staff. In FY 2024, the budget for the NSC was $19 million. It funds circa 70-75 people, many of whom are the permanent backbone (administrative, records, etc) of the NSC.
Alex Vindman 🇺🇸@AVindman

Statement on National Security Staff Firings Yesterday, President Trump’s National Security Advisor, Mike Waltz @michaelgwaltz , announced a sweeping directive to terminate all national security staffers loaned from other departments and agencies who serve in apolitical, non-partisan senior staff roles. Waltz framed this decision as a means to eliminate Biden-era appointees and enforce absolute alignment with Trump’s policy agenda. Notably, Waltz justified this move by referencing my role in exposing Trump’s abuse of power, which led to his first impeachment. Using my actions as a rationale, Waltz aims to purge scores of professionals from the Department of Defense, Department of State, CIA, and other agencies—not because of their conduct, but due to a demand for blind allegiance to Trump. This approach sends a stark and troubling message: in a second Trump administration, only political loyalists will be permitted to serve on the NSC. To set the record straight, I served as an apolitical detailee and a faithful Army officer implementing President Trump’s national security agenda, as outlined in the National Security Strategy he approved. My actions did not conflict with Trump’s stated national security policy. My reporting of corruption—my refusal to remain silent as Trump engaged in criminal activity, undermined free and fair elections by pressuring Ukraine to investigate his political rival, Joe Biden, to steal the 2020 election—and my refusal to betray my oath to the U.S. Constitution are why I was fired. These are the same reasons professional staff are about to be purged, and apolitical staff will be barred from the NSC. On the surface, it is reasonable for a president to seek a loyal and trusted teams faithful to their agenda. However, absolute loyalty should not be the exclusive qualification, overriding competence, experience, and fidelity to a constitutional oath. An NSC staffed with “team members who are 100% aligned with the president’s agenda” will not only diminish the NSC’s capabilities but also erode continuity in policy. Worse, it will create an environment where dissenting views, even those grounded in experience and ethical responsibility, are stifled. The so-called “Vindman Rule” sets a dangerous precedent by ensuring that only political loyalists can serve on the NSC, advise the president, and interact with the president and top decision-makers. Such an approach will have a chilling effect on senior policy staff across the government. Talented professionals, wary of being dismissed for principled stances or offering objective advice, will either self-censor or forgo service altogether. This undermines the very purpose of the NSC: to provide the president with the best possible advice as well as the coordinating team to advance U.S. national security interests. The implications of this loyalty-above-competence model are dire. By purging the NSC of apolitical, experienced professionals, Trump and Waltz are hollowing out the institutional expertise required to navigate complex global challenges. This will create a policy apparatus incapable of discerning sound policies from reckless impulses—or worse, one that actively disregards legal and ethical obligations to implement Trump’s personal whims. Consider the implications: Would Department of Defense detailees still counsel against invading Greenland or Canada or feed those foolhardy thoughts to curry favor? Would FBI detailees agree to engage in political reprisals against Trump’s enemies to serve in the NSC? These are not far-fetched concerns but real dangers inherent in the precedent Waltz establishes. This announcement also presages broader plans by the Trump administration to fire tens of thousands of senior apolitical government officials and replace them with Trump loyalists. By prioritizing loyalty above all else, the Trump administration will significantly undermine the foundations of good governance, jeopardize U.S. national security, and weaken U.S. democracy.

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@itsCrab Are you reading this? !!! # tight ends of yore
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@SenWhitehouse does it feel a little awkward to post this on X? why is that? The Cielo Azule awaits.
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Sheldon Whitehouse
Sheldon Whitehouse@SenWhitehouse·
House Republican Caucus in action.
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@NTarnopolsky Please. Little is more threatening to Likud politically than peace, yes?
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Noga Tarnopolsky נגה טרנופולסקי نوغا ترنوبولسكي
💥Netanyahu, who is "too busy" to testify at his trial, stopped to film an English-language statement on the Syrian border. The order of communities to which he extends Israel's hand: "The Druze, the Kurds, the Christians– and to the Muslims who want to live in peace with Israel"
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@ERDocBrown [high thee to bluesky, then, wherst thou will find all the complete people dwelleth these days]
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Full Name@AmicusOpus·
"Injury" does not include property damage. If you want to include property damage, triple it (3.5x). /3
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Full Name@AmicusOpus·
Not sure if Paul has his finger *clearly* on the cognitive errors behind the worst of "anti-vax". But perhaps we should just talk about getting vx'd like daily risks: do you know what the injury rate per mile driven is compared to vx-injury rate? /2 pauloffit.substack.com/p/restoring-fa…
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Full Name@AmicusOpus·
Luckily, you don't have to bleach your hair to know that if her big, tall man is afraid of a sore arm, something is wrong, especially if he had an ear infection, a cut, a bee/wasp sting, and/or got bitten by a tick or took too much aspirin - potentially all more dangerous!
𝙲𝚘𝚗𝚜𝚎𝚛𝚟𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚟𝚎 👑 𝙳𝚒𝚟𝚊™@1776Diva

This is straight up craziness. The husband of @Riley_Gaines_ is 𝘪𝘯 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢 𝙇𝙀𝙂𝘼𝙇𝙇𝙔, yet has faced over 𝙩𝙬𝙤 𝙮𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙙𝙚𝙡𝙖𝙮𝙨 in the process to become an American citizen. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐲 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐜𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐠𝐢𝐳𝐳𝐚𝐫𝐝!😡 Listen. 🎧

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@F1 [update: so far, Ferrari and McClaren on Bluesky...]
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Formula 1
Formula 1@F1·
And it's Pierre Gasly who leads... but here comes George Russell! 😁 #F1 #LasVegasGP
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As a 'concerned father of two daughters', the best way to prevent assault and rape culture is to turn a blind eye to it...by putting the Holy Toilets of Antioch first. / New Right models of Christian irresponsibility
Armand Domalewski@ArmandDoma

Look, I genuinely don’t care who is in the bathroom with me, but the law you’re proposing says the person on the left should use the women’s bathroom and the person on the right should use the men’s bathroom

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@TomDreisbach There is no such thing as "a Hammer or Justice", let alone "our Hammer of Justice". Justice is dry, dispassionate, and fair/impartial. #OurGreatSophomore
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Tom Dreisbach
Tom Dreisbach@TomDreisbach·
Elon Musk says AG nominee Matt Gaetz has “an axe to grind” and should “put powerful bad actors in prison.” Trump himself has already called for multiple investigations since his election, including for a pollster whose poll he didn’t like.
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@TradeandMoney The problem with Nate's assessment is that he thinks/assumes/assesses this is done innocently. We can bet confidently that RFJ, Jr. was not put in place to purvey "weird" or "half-truths" for innocent purpose (whatever his own motives/bents are).
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@NTarnopolsky "Thanks, Elon." *chuckle* [Also, this 'never would have happened' if lowlife Donald Trump was President. # all the things that never would have happened]
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Full Name@AmicusOpus·
Uh... Who decided that "I'm Christian" should mean "let's act idiotically"? "Women's Sports" is not God-given. LOL. No. Who is going to tell 'The Media' (tm) that it was the invention of... those g-d "atheist" libruls? Who? / Make Christians Caring Again
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NYTPitchbot
NYTPitchbot@DougJBalloon·
Whether it's Democrats nominating Black people to be president or Republicans choosing sex offenders to be Attorney General and Secretary of Defense, both parties have made some controversial nominations .
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