A Word About the Future
FDR, 1944. Swap out Germany with “MAGA cult”…
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With Republicans having gone full fascist, all I can say is, gird thy loins and hold the line.
And now, our feature presentation...
Cheers and Jeers for Monday, November 17, 2025
Note: For those of you cooking Thanksgiving turkeys weighing over 250 pounds, today's the day to pop 'em in the oven. And also the day to realize you're going to need a bigger oven.
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By the Numbers:
5 days!!!
Days 'til the start of Hanukkah: 27
Days 'til the Holiday Light Parade in Baraboo, Wisconsin: 5
Number of Epstein-related documents among the 20,000 released by Congress that include Trump, whose name appears more than any others: 1,628
Points by which voters polled by Cygnal whose top issues are inflation and the economy prefer Democrats over Republicans to lead Congress: 13
Percent chance there will be an exodus of businesses from New York City in the wake of Zohran Mamdani's election, according to top real estate executives: 0%
Percent chance that, instead, New York City will continue growing its business base for the foreseeable future: 100%
Date on which Portland (Maine) Harbor got its first public electric boat charger: 11/13/25
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Puppy Pic of the Day: But I contend it's a gremlin…
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JEERS to the Magical Misery Tour. They terrorized Portland, Oregon. They invaded Los Angeles. They attacked Chicago. They, um, raked leaves and picked up litter in Washington, D.C. And now the masked thugs of ICE—many of them lily-livered cowards hiding behind scaaary masks, afraid that their neighbors will find out what a sadistic shitbag they are—are invading Charlotte, North Carolina (on your dime) to round up brown people regardless of their citizenship status. And they're playing their greatest hits:
Eyewitnesses filmed and photographed several incidents where masked agents arrested residents. Paula Walker Coleman filmed one of the incidents at a parking lot and told ABC News she witnessed agents arrest another woman who was filming.
Sign time, Charlotte.
Willy Aceituno, a naturalized U.S. citizen who was born in Honduras, told The Associated Press he was forcibly taken into a Border Patrol vehicle and only released after showing his citizenship documents. Aceituno, who works in the Charlotte area, said he had been stopped twice by Border Patrol on Saturday, and agents smashed one of his car windows.
Attention inflatable frogs in the greater Charlotte area: stand back and stand by.
CHEERS to previews of coming attractions. Epstein Trump, Epstein Trump, Epstein Trump. Where have I heard those names before? Oh, that's right—the Epstein files, documenting the hideous sex-trafficking ring that threatens to sweep up a gaggle of hoity-toity muckety mucks (including the sitting president) in a net of depravity and illegality. As legal experts pore over the trove of emails released last week by the House Oversight Committee, all eyes are on Reps. Thomas Massie (R-KY) and Ro Khanna (D-CA), who have the votes to force a bill onto the floor tomorrow mandating the release of the files:
Under the current GOP plan, the House Rules Committee would approve a procedural measure Monday night to advance eight bills for floor consideration, including language to tee up the Epstein legislation. If that measure is approved on the floor, likely early Tuesday afternoon, debate and a final vote on the Epstein bill could immediately follow. […]
Big day here tomorrow.
Scores of Republicans are expected to break ranks and support the bill, which would then have to be approved by the Senate and signed by Trump to take effect. Neither is likely, but the process could drag out for weeks, extending the controversy over Trump’s ties to Epstein.
Given the seriousness of the subject matter: in lieu of popcorn, stock up on scowls.
JEERS to the hunchback of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Speaking of Republican shits, 52 years ago today, in 1973, floundering President Richard Nixon uttered his immortal words: "People have got to know whether or not their president is a crook. Well, I'm not a crook."
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And to prove he wasn't a crook, Gerald Ford shielded him with a "full and unconditional pardon" after Nixon resigned rather than face impeachment for crooky things like high crimes and misdemeanors. Trust me: the less you think about it, the more it makes sense.
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BRIEF SANITY BREAK
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END BRIEF SANITY BREAK
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CHEERS to today's international roundup. This is Bill in Portland Maine at the local desk and now let's toss it over to my colleague Bill in Portland Maine at the international desk. Thanks, Bill. In Gaza, thinks are pretty shitty. Syria remains shitty, as does Russia, Ukraine, and the now apocalyptic, battle-scarred wasteland known as Sudan. Germany's doing okay, I guess. Iceland is a giant volcano waiting to erupt. Britain is having a bit of trouble drowning their economy in the bathtub. Hungary? Shitty. Chechnya? Shitty. North Korea? Shitty shit shit. France is…France. South America has too many people running around topless, and Argentina still has a chainsaw-wielding Elon Musk clone as president. Australia is traveling in a fried-out Kombi. But New Zealand is running on all cylinders and shaking their heads as they watch the rest of us circle the drain. Back to you, Bill. Thanks Bill. We'll be right back with Bill in Portland Maine at the sports desk after this pause to sell you Medicare Advantage plans, reverse mortgages, happy focus-group-tested PR messages from Big Oil, and a gizmo that has no practical function but you can get two for only ten bucks at Walgreens for a limited time only.
CHEERS to that people-powered dude. Since I know you appreciate being made to feel old, here's a fun fact: when Howard Dean's 2004 presidential campaign—the catalyst for bringing so many of us here to Daily Kos—was shifting into high gear, he was but a lad of 56. Today he finds 77 candles on his birthday cake.
Happy Birthday, big guy.
The former Vermont governor (first in the nation to sign same-sex civil unions into law—a quaint milestone, but groundbreaking at the time) became the loudest 2004 candidate to rail against the warmongering Bush II regime at a time when too many Democratic leaders were still searching for their spines. (His 2003 speech in Sacramento remains one of the most influential barn burners in modern political history.)
Of course, we all know Governor Dean met his Waterloo after he uttered "Yeah" in Iowa at a higher volume than is allowed in polite political society. He then went on to become the chairman of the DNC, unleashing a radical strategy that would give the Democratic party a robust presence in all 50 states, and remains forever a card-carrying Kossack. So when you're pouring out a drinky tonight (may we recommend a cocktail made with pure Vermont maple syrup?), hoist it and send a happy birthday toast to ol’ Doc Dean. And you should also get together and bake him a cake. After all, YOU have the flour and YOU have the flour and YOU have the flour...!!!
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Fifteen years ago in C&J: November 17, 2010
CHEERS to Great Breakthroughs in Me"duh"cine. Astounding new revelation! Just as young'uns shouldn’t guzzle booze or smoke cigarettes, a group of people in white lab coats says that kids 16 and under also shouldn’t smoke pot because it causes brain damage. Tune in tomorrow when we'll cite the other obvious things kids under 16 shouldn’t do, including operate steamrollers, steal candy and short-sheet the beds at Grandma's nursing home.-
And just one more…
CHEERS to sweet sounds. The 68th annual Grammy nominations were announced last week and you can check out the nominees here. I always go to the spoken category first, because there's always been a good chance it'll have an Obama or a Carter or a Maddow on it. Sadly, not this year. But, hey looka that! There’s a Jackson...
Best Audio Book, Narration, and Storytelling Recording
One of Jimmy Carter’s Grammy Awards resides at the Carter Center in Atlanta.
Elvis, Rocky & Me: The Carol Connors Story
Kathy Garver
Into The Uncut Grass
Trevor Noah
Lovely One: A Memoir
Ketanji Brown Jackson
Meditations: The Reflections Of His Holiness The Dalai Lama
Dalai Lama
You Know It’s True: The Real Story Of Milli Vanilli
Fab Morvan
What’s A Magnet? What Does It Do? Nobody Knows!
Donald Trump
That last one isn’t officially on the ballot yet, but Pam Bondi is suing in all 50 states to get it added, and when has she ever lost?
Lady Gaga, Kendrick Lamar, Bad Bunny, and Pharrell Williams got their usual 150 nominations each. Other notables on the Grammy list: Bela Fleck, Chick Corea, Elton John, The Count Basie Orchestra, Jennifer Hudson, Randy Newman, and John Williams nabbed his 77th at age 93. The awards get handed out on February 1st. And those kids better keep the noise down or I'm calling the police.
Have a tolerable Monday. Floor's open...What are you cheering and jeering about today?
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Today's Shameless C&J Testimonial
"When I’m in these hotels, I’ve got Cheers and Jeers in the bedroom. I can roll out of bed into the kiddie pool."
—Cynthia Erivo
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