From the GREAT STATE OF MAINE…
Late Night Comedians Will Continue Landing Blows
"Donald Trump’s inauguration is expected to be the most costly in U.S. history. And that’s not even factoring in the money."
---Conan O'Brien
“He’s got the lowest approval rating of any incoming president in modern history. But, hey, it’s not a popularity contest. And neither was the election."
---Stephen Colbert
“Donald Trump will be sworn in as president this Friday at 12 noon. That’s when the big hand is on the 12 and the little hand is on the Bible.”
---Seth Meyers
"The B Street Band decided to cancel out of respect for Springsteen’s opposition to Donald Trump. Maybe a Springsteen cover band canceling is all for the best. Born in the USA would have been an insensitive song to play at a party celebrating a campaign that was actually born in Russia."
---James Corden
"You want to know why so many celebrities died in 2016? It was to get out of playing the goddamn inauguration!"
---Lewis Black
"Donald Trump’s inaugural committee is actually encouraging protesters to show up on Friday, saying, quote, 'We’ll give you cookies and Kool-Aid.' Then Republicans in Congress were like: 'Actually, we drank all the Kool-Aid.'”
---Jimmy Fallon
No formal cheers and jeers below the fold tonight, just a little mish-mash of pish-posh. And, yeah, there's a 'Who on the Week' poll, full of heroes, rebels, and other assorted good people. We look forward to filling up future polls with members of the resistance fighting the orcs who were given the keys to the jalopy today. Gonna be ugly, but we’ll win our share of rounds.
C’mon down. Open bar. No grizzly bears.
Puppy Pic of the Day: One more look around with the woozles...
And bonus FLOTUS…
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Here’s a list of the sister marches taking place tomorrow.
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TV Alert:
HBO's Real Time with Bill Maher returns for a new season tonight at 10. Guests include Keith Olbermann, jane Fonda, Jon Meacham, now-former Secretary of Labor Tom Perez, and Demos president Heather McGhee.
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Handy Links:
The Obama White House web site is archived here.
President Obama’s twitter feed archive is @POTUS44
Michelle Obama’s twitter feed archive is @FLOTUS44
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A Special Comment
Goes without saying that I'm bummed---okay, and a bit horrified---that the Obama (D) presidency has come to an abrupt end in favor of the new Lunatic (R) administration. But tonight I'm taking a break from the outrage and disgust (including at the mass of Americans who voted for Captain Deplorable, many of whom are just now waking up from their "crooked Hillary/lock her up" trance and begging for takesie backsies) to feel something a little more positive: gratitude.
When Barack Obama burst on the scene by giving his "red states-blue states-United-States" speech at the 2004 convention in Boston, I really hoped he would run for president one day. I also thought it wouldn’t happen for one reason or another---life rarely pans out the way you want it to.
Happy to be wrong! He ran, won the primary, won the general in 2008, won reelection in 2012, and left office hugely popular. Politics is so fraught with pitfalls, setbacks and disappointments that Obama's trajectory felt so perfect it was like he'd been dealt a royal flush (or, if you’re a cribbage player, a 29 hand). And taking into consideration the official Republican policy of 100 percent obstruction (caving only when they felt the reelection sands shifting beneath their feet) and reticence on the part of some squishy-headed Democrats, he accomplished a helluva lot---a record of achievement and exquisite rhetoric that will age like a fine wine. (Or, more like a fine Twinkie, since those things last forever.)
I'll especially appreciate what he did to advance LGBT equality, having endured the cruelty of the Reagan-through-Dumbya years. Seeing the White House bathed in rainbow colors was a "where were you when…" moment. Actually, there were a lot of those moments circa 2009-2017. (Oh, the inmates at whatever nursing home I decide to park my carcass in are going to beg me to shut up about that damn Obama already, and Biden too.)
We got to spend eight years with a scandal-free president and First Lady (and vice president and Second Lady, lucky us) who felt like the perfect next-door neighbors. They may be pulling up their stakes and moving across town, but we'll stay in touch and do cookouts and sit together at little league games and still run into each other at the IGA. That's how it'll feel, anyway. And that’s today’s silver lining.
Anyone born after 12:01 today won’t be able to say they lived during the Obama years. Oh, kid, what you missed. Lemme tell ya the whooole story. August 1961...Honolulu...out pops this baby with big ears, see, and… Pull up a chair.
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And just one more…
To be continued…………………..
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