THE BERNHARD PERSPECTIVE

The next two federal elections will be neither free nor fair. In fact, they may never even happen at all. This is because Donald T**** has made the subversion of the electoral process essential to his political career and his lust for power.

He began in 2016 by lying about whether Barak Obama was even eligible to be president. He has claimed without evidence that every election since 2012 that Republican’s lost was rigged. He even insisted, again without a shred of evidence that that his 2016 margin of victory would have been bigger if not for alleged fraud.

This campaign of lies culminated after his 2020 loss when he illegally attempted to remain in power and sparked an insurrection aimed at stopping the certification of President Joe Biden’s victory on Jan. 6, 2021.

Since taking office, T**** has installed loyalists into key positions at all levels of government. He has MAGA operatives in virtually all federal election offices in the country. In the twenty-three states with both Republican-controlled legislatures and governors, these reach down even to the precinct level, where MAGAs will be counting the votes. Their role, up to and including the state’s highest election officials, is to challenge and/or simply refuse to certify results which favor Democratic candidates in close elections.

On March 25, T**** issued a sweeping executive order aiming to allow the president to directly override state state election laws. And this despite the fact that presidents have almost no Constitutional role or legal power in the administration of elections. For T****, however, the law has never been an impediment.

The order directed that states require voters to show proof of citizenship in order to vote. On the alleged grounds of identifying fraud, it ordered the Department of Homeland Security to obtain full voter files from every state, including names, addresses, party affiliation and Social Security numbers. Ostensibly, this is so that the Federal government can scour the voting rolls and eliminate fraudulent voters. Concurrently, it will allow the government to open files on all registered voters in the country. The order also aims to eliminate mail-in voting altogether and attempts to forbid the use of voting machines.

These actions are being used to set the stage for future lies about election integrity and attempts by the White House to control or to change the outcome of upcoming elections. Judicial rulings in lower courts have temporarily halted some of these actions. However, there is no reason to assume that the Supreme Court will reject his plans to subvert the voting process.

And should the Court rule against him, T**** has not shied away from breaking the law to do what he wants. There are a number of instances where federal courts, up to and including the including the Supreme Court, have found his administration’s actions have been in violation of court orders.

Even more sinister is the connection between the elections and Donald T****’s instance on deploying soldiers on the streets of so-called “blue”cities. In furtherance of his plans, he ordered the extension of the deployment in Los Angeles until November. That order was later vacated by a Federal judge.

He has told a meeting of the military bass that they should consider American cities “training grounds” for military operations. The election scenario has been understood for quite some time. T**** will create an “emergency.” The uprising in Minneapolis over ICE occupation was an indication of what he is prepared to do. This, then, will give him the excuse to invoke the Insurrection Act, declare martial law, order regular Army into the cities with the goal of subduing the population.

The fact of having soldiers in camouflage, standing with weapons at port arms, lined up in front of a polling place, will have a major intimidating factor on civilian voters waiting to cast their ballots. The tension alone could lead to violence, which is what T**** is hoping for in order to validate their deployment in the first place.

There will also be squadrons of unidentifiable ICE agents on the streets as well. Hispanic voters will not be comfortable going to the polls and likely stay home now that the Supreme Court has allowed ICE to profile and arrest suspected illegal immigrants based solely on racial characteristics and the language they speak.

Now. Whether or not the military brass will comply with this order is open to question. But no matter how events unflod, it could easily mean the upending of the democratic process that has sustained this country for two and a half centuries.

What Donald T**** wants is perfectly clear: the autocratic power to suppress and corrupt the election process to the point where he controls the winners and losers from his desk in the oval office. And if the Republicans lose the 2028 election, does anyone honestly believe that Vice-President Vance will certify electoral votes that will allow the Democrats to win? Or, for that matter, that T**** will deign to leave office on January 21, 2029? He already talks openly, and is raising funds, for an illegal third term.

Much as contemporary dictators leaders like Putin, Jung Un, Erdoğan and Bukele, T**** aims to stay in power by controlling national election results. And it is important to remember that all of these contemporary dictator/tyrants were originally legally elected to office. For that matter, so was Adolph Hitler.

Much of the power Donald T*** needs to accomplish this perversion of the electoral process is already in his hands. The rest is in the works. He will have it all if he is not stopped. There is only one path forward: Resistance.

And there is not much time left.

THE BERNHARD PERSPECTIVBE

Last April, faculty and staff members at Barnard College were asked to respond to a list of 10 questions in an email from the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). The Commission is the federal civil rights agency responsible for enforcing laws that make it illegal to discriminate against employees because of the person’s race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability or genetic information.

The questions specifically asked if respondents “practice Judaism, have Jewish ancestry, are Israeli, and/or are associated with an individual(s) who is Jewish and/or Israeli?” And if so, had they been subject to “unwelcome comments, jokes or discussions” or “antisemitic or anti-Israeli protests.”

Many people, Jews and Gentiles, found it more than a little scary that the federal government wanted to find out who the Jews are on the faculty as well as those who associate with and/or are sympathize with Jews.

One Barnard professor said it reminded her of the 1930s Italy, when lists of Jews were put together by the government. “We’ve seen this movie before, and it ends with yellow stars,” she said.

Nor is this an isolated incident. Just recently, a similar demand was sent to University of Pennsylvania. Again, the T**** administration requested the names and contact information for Jewish faculty and staff, and again as part of an alleged EEOC antisemitism investigation.

The university’s response was that it does not collect that information.

There are a number of interpretations besides an EEOC investigation as to what T****’s real motivation for these demands are. The most obvious is that this is little more than an attempt to ferret out information that could be used to advance President T****’s political agenda. And just exactly what is that agenda? There are several possibilities of note.

One is that this allows T**** to frame himself as aggressively fighting antisemitism. The belief is that this would appeal to some Jewish voters and broader MAGA conservatives who want universities pressured on campus politics.

Another is to use an antisemitism investigation as broad leverage against “elite” universities. The administration has previously pursued investigations, funding threats and settlements against numerous universities. Such perceived schools are frequent and popular targets in T****-era culture-war messaging about DEI, progressivism, protest, and free speech.

Still another interpretation involves identifying communities connected to politically sensitive activism. The intent is to build cases that equate certain protest activity with discrimination. These actions are also designed to deter future protests through intimidation, close scrutiny, active surveillance, and even legal action.

Furthermore, these “investigations” turn alleged antisemitism on campuses into a major national political issue with the Administration framing universities as failing to protect Jewish students and faculty. This allows the Administration to position itself as being strongly pro–Jewish safety and pro-civil rights, as opposed to the universities. As such, it appeals to specific voter coalitions and donors.

These actions by T**** also fit into a broader shift in how civil rights law is being used. Specifically, this includes expanding federal investigative power in novel ways, testing how far anti-discrimination law can go in practice, and potentially reshaping precedent for future administrations.

Many critics note the chilling effect on recipients of these requests. Faculty at both universities have reported the outreach felt “incredibly sinister” or invasive. Some comparisons (controversial, but widely voiced) invoke historical fears about lists of Jews.

Such fears can be politically useful to T**** by discouraging participation in controversial speech or activism which T**** disapproves of, and increasing self-censorship in academic settings and among faculty communities. These deterrent effects align with T****’s broader political goals around campus activism.

And because these investigations have explicitly referenced campus incidents tied to Israel/Gaza tensions, these requests also serve to identify networks around those conflicts, not just victims of discrimination. Thus, some faculty have described the effort as fishing expeditions rather than narrowly tailored civil-rights probes.

And then there is the obvious fact that the tactic functions as crass political theater, which T**** revels in. It creates a tough-on-campus-activism image his followers will cheer even as critics argue it does little to protect Jewish faculty and can clearly intimidate them.

It is abundantly clear that the Administration’s assertion it is simply undertaking an innocuous investigation into possible campus anti-semitism is at least disingenuous, and beyond that, wholly dishonest.

But the exact reasons for these intrusive demands, including the Administrations official version, are ultimately of secondary consequence. After all, this is still America; a person’s faith is their own business and none of the government’s concern.

For in truth, this version of a midnight knock on the door from the government trolling to find out who is a Jew is un-nerving at best for those who still believe in basic America civil liberties. And for Jews, it has historically deep and terrifying implications. as well.

“Hello? Hello? We’re just here to ask, are you a Jew? You can tell us. We’re from the government, so it’s OK.”

For the record: Yes, I am. And also for the record, the hell it is.

And I don’t give a damn who you are.

THE BERNHARD PERSPECTIVE

“If you import The Third World, you become The Third World! — AND THAT’S NOT GOING TO HAPPEN TO THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AS LONG AS I AM PRESIDENT.” Donald T**** posted this bit of racist crap to his web page on 4/4.

Donald, of course, is not smart enough to think up something like this on his own. This brand of race-hatred mongering was initially expressed by Stephen Miller, the White House deputy chief of staff, in a 2024 appearance on Fox News. 

In that interview, Miller said  “Speaking tonight as private citizen Miller, this is your choice America. If you import the Third World, you become the Third World, simple as that. Elect Joe Biden and America becomes the Third World. Elect Donald Trump and America remains America. That’s it. Two paths America, two choices, choose your future. Third World or an American century.” 

Translating this into standard English is not rocket science. Substitute the wordS “Black or Brown” for Miller’s ‘Third World’ and “White” for his second use of ‘American,’ and Stephen’s meaning is perfectly clear: 

“Elect Joe Biden and America becomes Brown. Elect Donald T**** and America remains White.” And then, “Two paths, America…[a] Black and Brown or White American century.” It’s pretty obvious which path Stephen is on. 

Since the days of Jim Crow and the KKK, people in public office would never have thought to speak openly like this. Until T****. Today, this is the voice of the bigoted scum who are running our country. Running it and ruining. 

They have to go. 

THE BERNHARD PERSPECTIVE

Soon enough it will be time to pay the Butcher’s Bill, over billion more every day, to pay for T****s war for which the raison d’étre changes almost every day, There will be no clear-cut defining moment to show when it’s over any more than there was for it’s inception.

At his whim it was begun,
At his whim it will be won.

It most certainly won’t make us any safer or the world better off.

Boots on the ground? A mealy-mouth euphemism to obscure a bloody, dirty reality: dead and maimed Americans. There are some 50.000 of them deployed in the Middle East already: soldiers loaded up as cannon fodder to feed T****s fragile ego. And he’s already set his unhinged mind on Cuba.

Another war just 90 miles away? Or perhaps only an “incursion”? T**** says he doesn’t want to call them wars so he doesn’t have to go through Congress. Stupid idiot. It doesn’t matter what it’s called, a turd by any other name is still a turd. But for him it’s all just a word game. None of it touches him.

Somebody else’s children will have go.
Somebody else’s children will have to die.

Cuba as another “war of choice”? This is certainly not something America wants or needs. But T**** does. He needs war to satiate his ghoulish lust for power, his twisted desire to kill. Sad that the lives of our soldiers who proudly volunteered to defend our democracy are treated like so many cheap pawns by someone who sees them as suckers and losers.

It all feels like a distraction, a brutal and corrupted version of “bread and circuses,” courtesy of Donald T****. And so it is. We are enjoined to ignore the economy, ignore the Epstein files, ignore his lies, ignore his stupidity and ignorance, his painted red face, his insanity and dementia, and absolutely ignore the war on our own streets created by T****’s private army of ICE brownshirts.

Ignore it all while he attempt to prove his fading manhood by dropping bombs on people halfway around the world. Ignore it all.

Watch him kill.

THE BERNHARD PERSPECTIVE

The Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025 explicitly calls for TSA to be privatized. However, this cannot happen until unionized TSA agents are eliminated and their unions abolished. This plan is already in the works.

Here’s the play…

First, defund DHS. TSA agents without pay will, in larger and larger numbers, call in sick; ultimately they will begin to quit. The result: Airport security breaks down resulting in thousands of people standing for hours in lines stretching out the doors. There is chaos and massive delays, which is the intent.

T****’s countermove: Send in ICE, his private army of Brownshirts, to “help.” Then begin pushing the narrative that the crisis can be permanently resolved only through privatization, framed as the no-cost solution to taxpayers.

And because those who give can also take away, T****’s offer to pay the TSA agents with an executive order simply means that whether or not they get paid depends, not on the strength and promise of a union contract, but on the whims of Donald T****.

Enter the private contractors, offering a permanent fix. And because for T**** it’s all about corruption and graft, there will be winners and losers in his contest to see which one can funnel the most cash into T****’s private PACs and businesses. Then they set up shop and take orders from T**** on how to run airport security. ICE is there to enforce the regime’s new rules.

The result: The Project 2025 pledge is redeemed. TSA unions are eliminated. Airport security is now a function of the wishes and whims of T****’s demented mind. And ICE is a permanent presence in American airports.

Welcome to the happy skies, America.

THE BERNHARD PERSPECTIVE

3/27/26. “WASHINGTON (AP)—President Donald T**** on Friday signed a promised executive action that will pay Transportation Security Administration employees after a bid to end the shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security abruptly fell apart in Congress.”

Did I read this right? T**** is going to sign an order to pay the furloughed TSA workers? The story says this will include all their back pay and future salaries. This means that he has had the power to pay these people for the last seven week and did NOTHING?

Un Freaking Believable.

All this time, tens of thousands of TSA workers have faced horrendous consequences for the DHS shutdown and T****’s studied inaction. We hear stories of evictions, repossessions, lost medical care, savings wiped out, lives upended and families choosing between food and virtually everything else.

And now we find out that Donald could have stopped it anytime he wanted to with the stroke of a pen. Apparently he just didn’t want to.

I suspect this has something to do with T****’s demonic lust for power. Clearly, he enjoys tightening the noose and watching people twist in the wind. Perhaps he just likes creating pain and chaos for its own sake.

Question is, what kind of sick, twisted, demented, soulless SOB pulls this kind of crap? And of course, we have that answer: Donald T****.

That’s what kind.

t

THE BERNHARD PERSPECTIVE

During the current DHS shutdown fight, Democrats have repeatedly tried to pass bills that would fund most of the Department of Homeland Security (TSA, FEMA, Coast guard, etc.) while excluding or separating funding for ICE and Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

Senate and House Republicans have consistently opposed these “partial” DHS funding efforts, insisting instead on a single bill that includes full funding for immigration enforcement agencies.

Fact is that this whole TSA catastrophe could be avoided if the Republicans simply agreed to let the rest of DHS function normally while they ironed out the problems with a pair of rogue agencies.
It’s really simple.

The Democrats want crazy things like following 4th Amendment, visible ID’s on ICE officers’ uniforms, no masks on Federal enforcement officers, adequate training in the use of firearms, crowd control, the use of force, and the law. These are things virtually all other law enforcement officers across the country are abundantly trained in and adhere to as a matter of principle. But not ICE and CBP.

Meanwhile, Republicans continue to bend their knees to T**** and his insistence on an all-or-nothing vote so that the DHS be allowed to field his private army of loyal Brownshirts. There can be no other reason.

So. If you are blaming the Democrats for the current national emergency being created by the lack of TSA agents, and you are still in favor of the rule of law, just listen to the Republicans mealy-mouthing their way around this one.

Truth is, you are blaming the wrong people.

THE BERNHARD PERSPECTIVE

The American air attack on Iran’s Kharg Island oil facilities is the only strategic move that makes any sense. Cutting off 90% of Iran’s oil exports should effectively strangle the country’s economy and force it to submit. No other scenario comes close to achieving any realistic military objective that looks like victory.

But bombing the island is not the same as controlling it, nor would it serve any rational purpose to simply blast it all to hell. That is most likely why we see Marine divisions moving into the theater of war. The Marines are America’s assault forces. And the euphemism “boots on the ground” is an obfuscation of the reality: combat forces going into battle. 

I would seem evident that T****, Hegseth and the Joint Chiefs are preparing for a ground assault on Kharg Island. And once they point the gun at Kharg, they pretty much have to pull the trigger. Otherwise, America will be seen as a paper tiger: all talk, no action. Iran does not respond to idle threats.

If T**** invades Kharg Island, Iran will fight back with everything it’s got. There will be major American casualties. Hellfire will rain down on the Middle East. However, in the eyes of the world, T**** will not be held to blame. 

The American people will be. 

Donald T**** is the 34-count convicted felon, bigot, racist, xenophobic, Islamophobic, narcissistic, ignorant, depraved, anti-semitic, mush-for-brains pedophile we as a nation knowingly elected president. This is the truth that most of the rest of the world cannot comprehend.

The assault on Kharg island is in the planning stages and there is no clear path forward to stop it. It is T****’s last gasp at a conventional victory. After that, all that’s left is nukes. 

We are so screwed. 

THE BERNHARD PERSPECTIVE

Time to wake up, people. Those of you who are still just siting there, those who are still just watching. After everything he’s said and done, are you just too blind to see what’s coming? Are you afraid to say it out loud? Domestic chaos? The travesty in Minneapolis? This stupid war? They aren’t accidental. They’re fuel. It’s a setup.

This Iran thing is a farce. He had a “feeling,” so he threw the world into chaos? Don’t believe a word of it. He doesn’t know what he’s doing and he doesn’t care. His horrid little war super-charges his sick lust to kill, that’s about all. Otherwise, it’s all part of the plan. 

Iran is just a side hustle. The people he’s really got his eyes on are us. Massive demonstrations? Civil disorder? Violence in the streets? It’s what he wants and needs. When streets burn and institutions crack, that’s when dangerous men make their move. 

And Donald T**** is all kinds of dangerous. He doesn’t fear domestic disorder. He needs emergency powers, martial law, suspended rights. Because suddenly, no midterms, or at least  no fair elections. He seizes power. That’s the plan. Because then, the 2028 election is in the bag. 

Think this is extreme? So is canceling democracy to save yourself from prison. You think a man staring down impeachment and handcuffs, who is willing to bomb the crap out of a country that has done us no harm is going to play fair? Just watch. T****’s not trying to win elections, he probably can’t, anyway. He’s trying to save is sorry ass. 

And do not believe for a cold minute that he will voluntary leave office in 2029 if his MAGA candidate loses. He already tried that once and we got the January 6 Insurrection. But even that pales compared to his real more insidious plan and it’s 100%, iron-clad legal. It’s the 12th Amendment. 

Suppose the Republican candidate for president, probably Vice President JD Vance, loses in 2028. Don’t forget, as vice president, Vance ratifies the electoral ballots. Does anyone honestly believe he will do what Mike Pence did? Remember: Pence is a patriot. Vance does what he’s told, especially if it means he gets to be president. 

All he has to do is shank enough electoral votes to throw the election into House. And with 28 state delegations under Republican control, the Democrats can win the election by a huge margin; the Republicans take the election. And it’s all legal. That’s why T**** needs the midterms. Without a majority in the House in 2028, he’s toast. 

People. If you just keep watching, if you just keep pretending that what you’re seeing isn’t really happening or that what he wants cannot come to pass, get your heads out of the sand. Because if you don’t, pretty soon you’re going to wake up one morning with soldiers in the streets and no ballots, no freedom and no democracy.

The threat is real and the stakes are high. We have no choice but to fight back. To take back our streets. To take back our future. We have no choice. It’s time. 

RESIST 

THE BERNHARD PERSPECTIVE

Terrible polling numbers? Losing all but MAGA support? Rising prices across the board? Tanking economy? Blue wave approaching in November? Declining mental capacity?

All of this and more is threatening to bring Donald T****’s presidency to ruin within the next several months. But is the Tdrumpfenfùhrer worried about any of this? Will it have any effect on what he wants to do? The answer is most likely “no.” And here’s why:

First and foremost, he still has his Republican House and Senate majorities. And up to now, members of his party haven’t shown any backbone or sense of shame; they’re not prepared to vote against him. That’s because his hardcore MAGAs are still with him and he still controls the party apparatus. He also controls hundreds of millions of dollars with which to “primary” those who exhibit any opposition.

Hopefully, that will change after the November mid-terms. But of course, that’s the problem. If it looks like he’s going under, there most likely will not be free and fair mid-terms. Or presidential election in 2028, for that matter. And T**** has already made that clear.

In a January 11 interview with the New York Times, T**** said he regrets not seizing voting machines after his 2020 election defeat. He said he “should have” used the National Guard to seize machines in support of his false claim that the election was rigged.

The American people, along with the U.S. Congress, need to understand this means that T**** will seize voting machines in the next two elections if Republicans lose. He will alter the vote totals and he will claim victory.

And in 2028, does anyone honestly believe that JD Vance will do his constitutional duty to ratify all the Electoral College votes if it means the Republicans lose the presidential election? Remember: Mike Pence acted as the Constitution requires. He is a patriot. But JD Vance?

Vance will refuse to ratify the electoral votes that defeat his party. Instead, by refusing to accept the results from just a few states, he can insure that there is no winning majority of electoral votes. That will throw the election into the House, where each state gets one vote and there are 28 Republican-majority state delegations. Democrats win the votes. Republicans win the election. Plain and simple.

Nor can we forget that T**** has his own private army of over 20,000 ICE agents as well as the National Guard and the 82nd Airborne he can call into the streets after declaring a National Emergency and Martial Law. We can assume he believes he has the power to subdue the population in the same way the Iranian Republican Guards did just last month.

And since there’s a good chance he will be going to jail if the nation elects a Democratic Congress and president, we cannot believe for a moment that he won’t try.

There is no reason to assume that this is not precisely what he has in mind because the plan is already in the works. That is why bad polling, a bad economy, and everything else doesn’t matter. When T**** assumes dictatorial power, the great American experiment in democracy dies a cold, hard death.

On one side of this tragedy in the making is Donald T****. On the other side is us: the people. And it is only We the People who are sovereign in this land. So the question is,

What are we going to do about it?