Reporter's Notebook:...Dark Republicans And The Big Tease...

 

By EDUARDO PAZ-MARTINEZ

McALLEN, Texas | Dark Republicans. Smart, smiling party members like young presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy. Like Mauro Garza, the congressional aspirant. Like Tim Scott, the U.S. Senator from South Carolina. Like former South Carolina Gov. Nimarata "Nikki" Randhawa Haley. Like Mayra Flores, the 34th Congressional District candidate.

To real, down-to-the-core MAGA Republicans, those people are NOT Republicans.

Their skin is too dark. Their names are too-foreign.

You're fooling yourself if you think the Republican Party in the full-grasp of MAGA would ever accept them. Not in any office wielding any sort of real power, like the presidency. They may run, but they can't hide.

It is The Great Unwritten.

The U.S. may be a country with the richest immigrant history on the face of the planet, only don't make too much out of that in front of a MAGA type. Vivek Ramaswamy (shown in photo atop this story) is an Indian-American, like Haley. That is just, uh, totally unacceptable in an American president, the boys in MagaLand will tell you in no uncertain terms.

Josh at me all you want. America today is as segmented as a table puzzle. You people over there stay to your side of town, ya hear me? That stuff is alive and living well across the land. Believe it. Vivek and Nikki are getting lip service; that's all it is. Traditional Republicans may argue that the assessment is not true, but traditional Republicans are house pets for MAGA troops.

Tim Scott is simply too-Black, much blacker than Barack Obama, whose mom was White. His skin color is more along the lines of Al Sharpton, the activist MAGA loves to hate. Locally, chipper Hispanic congressional candidates Mauro Garza and Mayra Flores may as well be farmworkers to MAGA, and it doesn't matter how MAGA they wish to come across themselves. Acceptance is not coming for those two. They may be tolerated, especially if they win. But there's no invitation to Mar-a-Lago in the mail, Baby.

Suffer again.

At least, when Garza and Flores were Democrats, the Democrats acknowledged their biology - they are humans! MAGA could give a flip about them. Yeah, go ahead and ask them (but in private) if they'd like to see Ramaswamy or Haley as president. Make me laugh, Sarah Huckabee Sanders.

We could dig into our files to get info about the lack of Blacks and Browns in Donald J. Trump's administration. Or in Greg Abbott's, the Republican Texas governor. Don't look for any big numbers in either case. They're not there.

Actually, nationally, Democrats fare only slightly better.

The U.S. still retains a Whites-dominated hierarchy in Congress, the courts, the Supreme Court, the military and its ambassador corps.

I know. So, why are Whites - and MAGA whites especially, forever bitching?

The Blacks and Browns and the Indians are playing the game.

It's a major cruel tease, but the game is being played.

Pity...

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Once Upon A Loser: Trump Hangers-On Face Defeat...

 

By EDUARDO PAZ-MARTINEZ

McALLEN, Texas | She wants sooo-oh desperately to belong. We speak of newfangled Republican Mayra Flores, the naturalized American who much desires the 34th Congressional District seat currently held by Democrat Vicente Gonzalez.

Not happening, says fellow Republican Carlos Cascos, the former Texas Secretary of State.

Mr. Cascos, who may yet enter the same contest, believes the man Mayra Flores says won the 2020 presidential election - one Donald J, Trump - is a certain Election Day flop quite ready to doom her and other South Texas Republican candidates. Listening Mauro Garza, the other declared candidate for the same post? You, astronomical longshot candidate Laura E. Cisneros? You, as well.

About Republican chances if Trump is the party's 2024 presidential nominee, Cascos said, in so many words, "Good luck with that, but it ain't happenin'."

Or, well, in his words, "down ballot" candidates (all of these locals) would stand no chance of winning. I know. You can almost hear Mayra Flores grabbing that old chips & salsa tray and flinging it across the dining room floor. Mauro Garza, shown in photo at right, would likely stand up and say, no, scream, that he didn't launch his campaign to lose, and that, heck, he won't lose. But he will. Mauro Garza, like Mayra Flores and Laura E. Cisneros, is a Johnny-come-lately Republican - in our eyes, these three are a trio of posers. Hopeless laments.

I mean, Mauro Garza looks like the quintessential JC Penney's men's clothing department salesman. If I see it, well, voters will see it too. Rural child Mayra Flores needs polish, a "looks & moves" makeover. She's wanting to play a Big Time political game living in a bucolic metropolis she calls Los Indios - not quite Big D. But that 6-months-long taste she got as a Congresswoman, after she won the Special Election to fill resigned Congressman Fil Vela's seat last summer, not only emboldened her but it also got her thinking she was something special.

She lost to current Democrat Vicente Gonzalez in the November General election by some 10,000 votes. It didn't take her long to blast Republicans who she believed had not turned out to vote. It was bad form and likely something district votes have not forgotten.

Laura E. Cisneros, an oncologist shown in photo at left, is, frankly, apparently out for a good time and nothing more. She was a voting Democrat only a few days ago, fer chrissakes! Political grasshopper? Well, we fully expect to see her in the Libertarian Party after this election, yes.

It did cross our mind that what Mr. Cascos was saying about down-ballot Republicans faring badly in South Texas might also be speaking to his potential run. Has he decided against challenging his party colleagues for the right to take on well-entrenched Vicente Gonzalez?

Well, yeah, you could read that into his words. He is a South Texas Republican and he said South Texas Republicans would not do well if Donald J. Trump is the Republican nominee in the 2024 presidential election.

Well, being eternal fight fans, we would wish Mr. Cascos in the Main Event. Him and incumbent Gonzalez. That's the attraction in the 34th Congressional District outdoor ring. . . .Pay Per View, baby. Let's get rrrrrrrrrrready to rummmmmmmmble...15 rounds of boxing in the cruiserweight division...

And, yes, we do ask ourselves if Mr. Cascos is also writing himself off. It's a legit question based on what he has said. 

Carlos Cascos fully believes Trump would lose (again) to Democrat incumbent Joe Biden...

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Carlos Cascos: "Trump 2024 Would Be A Disaster For The Republican Party"...

 

By EDUARDO PAZ-MARTINEZ

BROWNSVILLE, Texas | It's pretty much what we expected from him. Republican Carlos Cascos simply does not fit the vacuous individual mold quick to hand over his or her brain to Donald J. Trump. Indeed, the former Cameron County Judge and ex-Texas Secretary of State says Trump 2024 would be a "disaster" for his party.

We had earlier written about perhaps this being a good time for Mr. Cascos to make his feelings known on where he stands with the thrice-indicted Trump, our push coming only because we have been led to believe that he is considering a run at Democrat Vicente Gonzalez's 34th Congressional District seat.

In any case, here is what Mr. Cascos fired-off in our direction after we published our story: [ "Let me say this now. I believe Trump would be a disaster for the Republican Party & would all but guarantee a Biden victory. Coupled with that, I believe Trump as the nominee will, at least in purple counties, such as Cameron, would be a detriment to all down ballot candidates.

Until facts surface that proves rampant voter fraud, Trump lost the 2020 election.

Although Trump is ahead in the polls, I don't believe he's the best candidate, but then again, that's my unsolicited opinion. Trump may win Texas, but he will not win the RGV. Does that matter? No.

But what does matter is the impact he will have on down ballot candidates, & it won't be positive. I'm sure I will get criticism for my comments, but so be it. I believe them to be true. As far as the indictments, we should trust our Justice system. I am angered by the DOJ's failure to hold others to the same level of scrutiny...Clinton, Hunter Biden & many others, but that is beyond our control. The biggest challenge will be finding a jury of Trump's peers to judge him. I have stated before, we must wait and let the Justice system process take its course." ]

Good to see him on the record on certain points. It's what the voters want and will need in 2024 - honesty.

We're not going to play Devil's Advocate on the points Mr. Cascos makes here.

Well, except on this one: Donald J. Trump has let it be known that he can't get a fair trial in Washington, D.C., where he has called the federal judge a "nightmare". Jury members, he cried would be coming from a collection of liberals. Trump wants the judge to recuse herself (leave the case to another judge) and he wants a change of venue, like, his lawyer said, to the Virginias, where the jury pool would be more conservative.

Yet, Trump and his lawyers said nothing about the case he faces in Miami, where the jury pool will draw from mostly conservatives and from a voter sector he won convincingly in 2016 and in 2020.

Trump should fight in the courtroom. If he's not guilty of the charges, you'd think he would want the trials to come around quickly and see him defend himself as vigorously as he complains. As to a jury of his "peers," as Mr. Cascos states, well, theoretically, every and any American is his peer.

Trump is not questioning the Miami federal judge (one he appointed) and he has said nothing about a potential jury make-up there...

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[EDITOR'S NOTE:...We thank Carlos Cascos for his prompt reply. It can't be easy being a Republican these days, even in an out-of-the-way region like the Rio Grande Valley...]     

U.S. Women's National Team Knocked Out At World Cup. ...They'll Be Back...

 

By EDUARDO PAZ-MARTINEZ

McALLEN, Texas | Winners of four out of the first eight World Cups. That's how dominant the US Womens National Team had been in international soccer. Until today, Sunday. They fought to the wire, their match with Sweden in a tie at the end of regulation play. It was the Extra Time penalty kicks that failed the Americans, as Sweden won that shootout.

The Americans were going home in an unfamiliar manner - as losers.

Those who follow the sport know that much had been said and written about the lackluster play of the Americans, with sportscasters pretty much saying things would end badly this time around. It did.

The United States had won the last two Women's World Cups and four of the eight tournaments held before this year. They had never gone out before the semi-final stage. This time they have been sent packing in the last 16 having won just one game in Australia and New Zealand, an unconvincing 3-0 defeat of Vietnam.

Fans of the sport could see unfamiliar play on the part of the USNWT from the very beginning, as things seem to not be as sharp as in earlier tourneys. The two-time defending champs had trouble scoring. Action that had seemed choreographed and successful had yielded to visible insecurity on the pitch (the field of play). Star Megan Rapinoe missed the Extra Time shot at goal that sealed the victory for Sweden. How many times in previous play had she been the hero? Too many to count.

But that was earlier. This tournament was a new day in the sport we see every four years (the calendar year after the men's World Cup, btw). Criticism of the readiness could be found in the days and weeks before the World Cup began. The U.S. wasn't ready. The squad was not clicking. Something was up. News reports covered it all.

Then, in the midst of the World Cup, came the silliness.

The American team was not singing the National Anthem at the games. A few players could be seen lip-synching, but not all. Observers noted other nation's squads were singing loud and proud, the Americans not even putting their hands to their hearts.

That had nothing to do with the games at hand, with the play.

But it was yet some more negativity thrown at a national team that had been criticized for something or another all year long.

They go there to play, not sing.

The USNWT will be back..

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Will He Ever Say A Critical Word About Trump?...

 

By EDUARDO PAZ-MARTINEZ

BROWNSVILLE, Texas | Accountant Carlos Cascos is a well-respected resident of this luckless border town. Most everybody who is anybody knows him, from his days as Cameron County Judge and his two years as Texas Secretary of State.

Mr. Cascos is a throwback Republican. Don't expect crazy, wild-eyed political rhetoric from him. He's too-grounded in the Rio Grande Valley culture to act-out some fake persona. Think bygone and mostly boring Texas Gov. Bill Clements and that's the sort of calm & collected politician you'll find in Carlos Cascos.

Still, what with the avalanche of strange and high school-silly stuff coming from the leader of his party - one Donald J. Trump - you'd think that Mr. Cascos would at some point venture a public comment on the mess that is his party and his party's racism and bigotry ahead of the 2024 presidential election.

He's not an announced candidate for anything yet, although he's on record as saying Labor Day (Sept. 4th) will be the day he decides on a run for the 34th Congressional District seat held presently by well-funded Democrat Vicente Gonzalez.

Would a candidacy force Mr. Cascos into the public debate stage?

Yes, it would. And really only because his party opponents would never let him skate to the primary next Spring. Overly-vocal declared candidate Mayra Flores certainly would charge after him. She's deeply invested in winning the shot at Gonzalez, who beat her by almost 10,000 votes in the last election. Mauro Garza, another announced candidate, isn't as boisterous as Miss Flores, but you never know if things get tight. He's from Raymondville, with ties in San Antonio - sort of a bit away from the district's territory, which runs mainly up the Texas coast north of Brownsville.

Mr. Garza was beaten by Congresswoman Monica De La Cruz of McAllen in the last election.

It says here that much will change in the Republican Party's primary if Mr. Cascos enters the race. Like from the moment he says he's in the contest. The dynamic would be the equal of a semi-cloudy sky going full high and bright, not a cloud in sight.

In earlier comments, Mr. Cascos has said he wonders about Miss Flores ability to articulate her candidacy away from Trumpspeak, a language she is quite adept at spewing. A debate would be in order, he went on, adding that he was unaware of Miss Flores debating anyone since she began her political career from a life of respiratory therapy, her earlier profession.

A public debate would test Miss Flores (and Mr. Garza) in a very different manner. Carlos Cascos has much more political experience and, as a graduate of the University of Texas, is better-spoken. About that, there is no doubt.

Still, he has to address the Trump foibles.

What does Mr. Cascos think of all these indictments (three, so far) hanging off Trump's neck? We know Mr. Cascos to be a level-headed man, so would he be with former Vice President Mike Pence on whether Trump is stomping on the U.S. Constitution, or is he fully, 100% behind the former president?

Bet this: Mayra Flores would ask him directly in a debate.

Mr. Cascos prides himself in being a conservative. Is Trump flashing his brand of conservatism? Does Mr. Cascos endorse Trump's penchant for making threats against those not sold on his cult-like ways? Does "revenge" belong in our national political discourse?

It's a cruel, heartless, winner-take-all world, politics. We do wonder why Mr. Cascos, who is almost 70 years old, would bother.

Yet, as mad as politics have become in this country, he may be of a mind to go at it one last time.

Look for this: Should Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott offer his blessings publicly, Carlos Cascos will climb into the ring...

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Time To Wonder: Who Will Calm The Country?...

 

By EDUARDO PAZ-MARTINEZ

McALLEN, Texas | A long time ago, CBS newscaster Walter Cronkite was often described as the conscience of the country. Cronkite was there when President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas on November 22, 1963. The calming effect of his reassuring words is still remembered and often noted by historians writing of our past.

There is no Walter Cronkite today, no one individual the U.S. can point to as someone who can keep the national heart rate in place, even when disaster or worrying movements spread across the so-called fruited plains.

A very good case can be made that Donald J. Trump is doing his damndest to turn this country upside down, to empower racism to the max, bigotry in church even and deliverer of a mood the country can only endure for so long.

Where's the president?

Why isn't Joe Biden speaking out about any of this? I neglect to assign him his proud Democrat badge because this writing is about being an American leader first and foremost. We all know that Trump is NOT a Republican; he merely plays at one for his advantage.

Should Biden go on national TV and say something about this whole Trump mess? I mean, it stinks full across the world. What do foreign leaders (and people) think of the United States now? When Biden won the 2020 election, a sentient writer in France wrote: "Welcome back, America. That was weird." You think Trump hasn't devalued the American brand? He has.

Thursday, after Trump's appearance in court for his third indictment, reporters caught up with Biden while he was riding his bike (see photo atop this story) around his neighborhood in Delaware. They kept asking him about Trump's court appearance, asking if he would take questions.

"Probably not," the president told them.

Biden is not talking. Perhaps he feels it would only incite Trump's noisy, always-threatening supporters. But he should take into account the entire population, not just fear a certain group going all-political at the mention of the name Trump.

It's a cop-out on the part of the president. He is the nation's leader. He has the only megaphone that counts during emergencies, and this Trump insurrection is an emergency. Things can devolve into street warfare with only a few words. Someone needs to tamp down wild emotions. But there seems to be no one around to do that. Even hardly-glib Gerald Ford said a few words after he pardoned President Richard M. Nixon on September 8, 1974 to bring an end to the Watergate break-in mess.

There is quite a bit of writing out there on where this Trump stuff will end up, whether resolved peacefully and legally or whether Trump will fuel an armed revolution in the streets. And don't think that he can't do it. His words after every court appearance are always about revenge if he wins the 2024 presidential election. Trump does not want to go to prison; that's also clear. He is the one dangerous wildcat with his back to the wall, and he does not want to be there.

The well-known historian Douglas Brinkley had this to say about the country needing a calming voice: "There’s nobody that the public at large is willing to listen to, because the trust in government has corroded to such a low degree. And the polling on journalists, the Supreme Court, Congress, the presidency - they’re all low. People aren’t admiring our public servants."

That's both cold and damning.

Where is America these days? Are we more North Korea and South Korea than a Star-Spangled union?...

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The Trump Cult: Republican Can Do No Wrong...

 

By EDUARDO PAZ-MARTINEZ

McALLEN, Texas | Reporters asked Lindsey Graham, the U.S. Senator from South Carolina, if he felt siding by troubled Donald J. Trump so often meant that he was in a cult. "No, I'm not in a cult," Graham said in quick reply.

When they asked former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin the same question, she said: "The response that we've seen in polling from Republicans suggests that they're going to stick with him, that it's more of a cult than a political party at this point."

The press had asked her bout rabid MAGA supporters of the thrice-indicted Trump.

Well, he doesn't seem to lose ground no matter what ridiculous thing he says or does. Trump at times even gains in polls undertaken to see where 2024 presidential candidates are in relation to one another on the campaign trails.

Much sense has been said about the seemingly glued connection between MAGA fans and the former president. There are similarities to actual cults, but most who look into it come away with a variety of reasons for such strong attractions to Trump. One is racism, which Trump pushes. Bigotry, too. A crazed disdain for the federal government. A wild desire to blame Democrats for the nation's ills. And, more recently, a burning belief on the part of some Americans that the country's Department of Justice has been weaponized against Republicans.

All of that is in the mix. And, yes, Donald Trump is the common bond, the one who brings them all together. Mostly, this brawling Republican Party (and we differentiate it from the one that counts more-sensible members, such as traditional Republicans Mitch McConnell and Mitt Romney) is a symbiotic collection of whiners, losers and people who fell between the economic cracks. All you have to do is scan one of Trump's rally crowds to get that impression. InstaPoll: 86% of MAGA is comprised of food stamps recipients.

When they speak, what you hear is low-rent English and a distinctly rural vocabulary.

Maria, these are not our best citizens.

But they do vote. And that's the challenge for Democrats and for America.

Cultists will go to the end of the road with their leader, as David Koresh found out in Waco back in February of 1993. Jonestown, Guyana back in November 1978 ring a bell? Some 900 cult followers of Jim Jones were commanded to drink cyanide-laced drinks. They all died. Jones was found with a gunshot wound to the head, quite dead.

Those are typical endings to these things. We don't believe Trump would ever kill himself (too vain), but we do wonder about his die-hard followers. The idea of a horrible ending for MAGA types is premature. MAGA is hot right now.

What would happen if Trump lost the 2024 presidential election and found himself convicted of the felony charges he now faces, prison being front-center in the world of news photos?

That's the Great Unknown.

It's a long way to the end of 2024, to political resolution (the vote) and to the loss of any sort of redemption (the jury's verdict).

Cult leader or mere celebrity of the moment, Donald Trump himself can only wish the worst does not come to pass...

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SUN RECORDS: Newsroom Bar - "Return To The Wild"...

Yes, By All Means, Televise Donald Trump's Trials...

 

By EDUARDO PAZ-MARTINEZ

McALLEN, Texas | Well, can you imagine no cameras at the O.J. Simpson Trial? Yes, that one was about murders, but the national curiosity was there from Day One. Such, we say, is the American public's thirst for televising Donald J. Trump's upcoming trials.

We want to see it all. We want to see the opposing lawyers sparring, the proper, no-nonsense judge admonishing the gallery, the sitting jury's reactions, antsy Trump's not-so-idle fidgeting. Everything. All of it. Bring it.

Simpson's trial captivated the entire country for 11 months, from November, 1994 to October 3, 1995. It was high-drama every day in Judge Lance Ito's televised court on that one. Many Americans can still recite key aspects of the case (the glove that wouldn't fit), names of witnesses (Kato Kaelin) and, of course, the controversial outcome (OJ found "Not Guilty").

Info-starved Americans will want the same from any trial featuring recalcitrant Trump, the disgraced former president indicted three times as of today. A few more indictments may come down before he walks into his first trial. He's the story of the day, the Story of the Year.

This from vanityfair.com: [ Dozens of Democratic lawmakers have called on the Judicial Conference - the policy-setting body of the federal judiciary - to allow cameras into the courtroom for Donald Trump’s criminal trials.

"Given the historic nature of the charges brought forth in these cases, it is hard to imagine a more powerful circumstance for televised proceedings," the lawmakers, led by Rep. Adam Schiff, wrote in a letter to Judge Roslynn Mauskopf, who oversees the administration of federal courts. "If the public is to fully accept the outcome, it will be vitally important for it to witness, as directly as possible, how the trials are conducted, the strength of the evidence adduced and the credibility of witnesses."

Cameras are currently banned in federal criminal trial courts, where Trump faces charges both for his alleged mishandling of classified documents and his efforts to overturn the 2020 election. Some legal experts - and Trump’s own lawyer - have called for a change to the camera policy, given the immense national interest in cases against the former president. Without cameras, some have noted, the public would also be at greater risk of consuming deceptive or misleading information about the proceedings.

"The idea that there is no visual primary source available to the larger public is unjustifiable in general, but especially when you know there will be so many competing narratives and so much misinformation about what’s happening in the courtroom," said Gabe Roth, executive director of Fix the Court, a judicial reform advocacy group. ]

It's hard to say what the judges will decide on this. Federal courts are famous for insisting on quiet, ever-respectful decorum. Broadcasting a federal trial would be a stretch, it says here, although maybe the nation's appetite for resolution of all this Trump stuff will mandate it.

To not broadcast Trump's trials is to leave reporting of the unfurling proceedings to partisan media, which would give Americans a skewed impression of, say, the day's doings.

But we'll see.

I mean, hopefully we'll see it all unfold on live television.

The ratings would be of astral proportions...

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Where Will They Go When The Trump Shine Fades?...

 

By EDUARDO PAZ-MARTINEZ

McALLEN, Texas | Hungry for something and looking to quickly melt in by way of a well-known celebrity, most nouveau, wildly-inexperienced politicians willingly turned their fortunes to sucking up to Donald J. Trump. This happened kinda fast from coast to coast, with new names hitting the national news cycle almost daily once the smell of success took over their brains.

South Texan Mayra Flores was one such star-blinded groupie. Those who knew her knew that she had talked of walking into the booth and voted Democrat in the 2008 presidential election, for Barack Obama even. Gladly, we presume.

But that was then. Today, the 37-year-old Miss Flores is still gung-ho for Trump, framing her campaign for the 34th Congressional District seat in the image of her political hero. For now, it's all Trump. She's still a fan of the thrice-indicted Mar-a-Lago resident.

And who knows if she is a forward-thinker, but one wonders what Mayra Flores will do once her political God - Trump - is no longer the shining knight in American politics. Will she weep and quit politics altogether, or will she sit down and think things out in a more personal way? Something happens to a budding star when the spotlight finally shines on him or her alone. Could Mayra Flores, holder of barely a 2-year college (associate's) degree, reinvent herself.

She's a Mexican in heavily Hispanic Country. Most of her neighbors share her brownish skin coloring, unlike all of Trump's neighbors in ritzy Palm Beach, Florida, where Hispanics mostly work as maids, groundskeepers or cooks.

What is Mayra Flores without the Trump veneer?

Good question.

It would be interesting to hear her answer. Not that she's there, there being the possibility that her political career may fritter away. Would she look at her adopted Republican Party differently? Someone hard at work on a case study of her ascent could ask: Is there anything lasting in her politics or in her current campaign?

No, not really. Mayra Flores is the quintessential Donald J. Trump devotee.

Not that she's alone. A slew of Rio Grande Valley residents bolted into local politics armed with the acquired Trump flag. To date, they seem proud of the affiliation. The gent in the photo above is Republican Mauro Garza, another candidate for the 34th Congressional District seat held by Democrat Vicente Gonzalez.

We'll see where they are a year or two from now. A Mexican Republican is an oxymoron. But they know it. They have to if they have half a brain. 

I expect a slow but certain retreat from these fakers...

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For Troubled Trump, Foreign Connections Will Do...

 

By EDUARDO PAZ-MARTINEZ

McALLEN, Texas | Well, they are Americans, but not quite the usual Americans legally-strapped Republican Donald J. Trump tends to push in his racist/bigoted ways. The trio above is not named Abbott, McCarthy or Graham. They are his close advisors. The woman is his lawyer.

Names?

Her name is Alina Habba, a 39-year-old immigrant from Iraq with a law practice in New Jersey.

The chubby guy deplaning behind her is spokesman Stephen Cheung, a Chinese-American who worked for - egads! - the late John McCain's presidential campaign in 2008. Yes, the same Vietnam POW John McCain Trump often disrespected while the U.S. Senator from Arizona was alive. Cheung is 41 years old.

The third man in the photo above is one Boris Epshteyn, a 40-year-old Russian immigrant who has been in this country only since 1993. Rio Grande Valley residents may remember Big Mouth Boris as a Right-wing commentator of a few years ago on Channel 4 in Harlingen. He also serves Trump as spokesman.

Not to simply dump on their ethnic backgrounds, but Trump does play the "Full-Anglo" card often enough to be seen as a segregationist. As far as we know, he has never had a Mexican (Hispanic) on any of his political endeavors. No Hispanic served on his White House Cabinet while he was president from 2016 to 2020.

Blacks also rarely make it to photo ops with Trump. His only Black in the Cabinet was Dr. Ben Carson, who was shuffled off to run the Dept. of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and was never heard from again.

But, okay, who knows? His lady lawyer seems too young for the fight against the Department of Justice on these latest indictments. It could be that the country's best lawyers no longer want anything to do with Trump.

Cheung and Epshteyn are minor leaguers in national politics. Whatever happened to former spokespersons Anthony Scaramucci or Kayleigh McAnany or Kellyanne Conway?

The people he has now may be the best he can do.

Lord knows Trump has burned more than his share of professionals.

It's just interesting that these defenders he now postures before the country all seem to have distinctive connections to countries we do not see as friendly.

His indicted bodyguard, Waltine "Walt" Nauta, 41 or 42, according to Wikipedia, is a native of Guam. Groundskeeper defendant Carlos De Oliveira is a Portuguese immigrant.

Perhaps they're okay.

It just looks weird. The optics, I mean...

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Two Bodies Found Near Abbott's Buoys Wall...

 

By EDUARDO PAZ-MARTINEZ

McALLEN, Texas | Well, it was a story on the hoof. Coming. Now, the Texas Department of Public Safety is reporting two drownings near a string of buoys set in the middle of the Rio Grande near Eagle Pass on orders of Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott.

One was said to be a child from Honduras.

The bulbous, orange-colored buoys, characterized as impenetrable by the governor (shown in photo below) when he announced their deployment a month ago, claimed the lives within the last 24 hours, said a spokesperson for the state.

This from usatoday.com: [ Officials in Mexico are investigating after two bodies were found in the Rio Grande along the U.S-Mexican border - one of them spotted this week along a floating border barrier installed by Texas authorities.

Officers with the Texas Department of Public Safety notified the Mexican consulate about a dead person caught in the southern part of the buoys in the Rio Grande spotted on Wednesday afternoon, according to the Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The incident marked the first time a body had been found along the floating barrier.

Members of the Mexican National Institute of Migration's assistance unit, Grupos Beta, led efforts to recover the body, the agency reported. As of Thursday that person's cause of death and nationality were not known.

Texas Department of Safety spokesperson Ericka Miller told USA TODAY Thursday DPS received a report of a possible drowning victim floating upstream from the marine barrier on Wednesday. ]

The Eagle Pass stretch of the Rio Grande is a popular "crossing point" for migrants headed north from Mexico. Agents of the U.S. Border Patrol, DPS troopers and members of the Texas National Guard have been keeping migrants at bay, although information released this past week indicated the number of migrants attempting to cross into Texas has dropped dramatically.

There was no comment from Gov. Abbott about the drownings...

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Congressman Gonzalez Comes Through For Harlingen...

 

By EDUARDO PAZ-MARTINEZ

HARLINGEN, Texas | You could say that if any Rio Grande Valley city is chasing McAllen in the world of economics, well, it's Harlingen. Big doings in The City of Palms with its new Mayor Javier Villalobos has to inspire his area colleagues.

Harlingen's new Mayor Normal Sepulveda is aboard the train to a better destination.

This from her this morning: [ Good morning, Harlingenites! I’m excited to share that the Harlingen Economic Development Corporation has been awarded a $1.6 million grant to help develop our industrial park to ensure businesses CHOOSE Harlingen!

This grant will help create jobs, generate property taxes and add green spaces which aligns with our mission of taking a holistic approach to economic development in our community.

A special thanks to Congressman Vicente Gonzalez for his assistance in securing this grant.  A City on the rise must work in collaboration with our state and federal partners to reach our potential growth! ]

That's the spirit. Progress needs to be chased. McAllen and Harlingen seem to be doing things, trying to get ahead and stay ahead.

Yeah, where's Brownsville?...

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Indicted Trump To Be Arraigned Today...

 

By EDUARDO PAZ-MARTINEZ

McALLEN, Texas | Here we go a third time. All aboard the Donald J. Trump merry-go-round to legal hell and back. Yes, Maria, the former Republican president will be arraigned today on the latest federal charges lodged against him in connection with his alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.

Trump has been ordered to appear in federal court in Washington, D.C., this afternoon, at 4 p.m.

The ever-electric Republican Party's leading candidate in next year's election is said to be pleading "Not Guilty" to the four charges, all of which carry prison sentences.

As always in our star-crossed national politics, the action by the Feds has yielded two disparate reactions to the ongoing problems facing Trump. Republicans whole hog agree with him that the two-year-long investigation has been a government over-reach, while Democrats (and now a majority of Americans) say it is merely the wheels of justice at work.

So, when will the trial take place?

This from themessenger.com: [ That's a bid TBD that will be up to U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan.

She'll be looking at a jam-packed calendar for 2024 that for Trump already includes two criminal trials: one set for March in New York Supreme Court on state charges tied to hush money payments during the 2016 campaign and another in May in Fort Pierce, Fla., federal court on charges connected to mishandling documents after leaving the White House.

Alvin Bragg, the Manhattan district attorney, is signaling he’d be willing to make way for Special Counsel Jack Smith if he wants to try calling dibs on the springtime trial date.

In public remarks, Smith said this week that while his investigation continues, he'll be looking to get a speedy trial.

The start date for Trump in the Mar-a-Lago documents federal case has already been a point of contention between prosecutors and Trump’s legal team, and indicates that a similar legal struggle may take place over the scheduling of a trial on the latest charges.

While prosecutors first sought a December 2023 trial date in the documents case, Trump’s attorneys argued no trial should occur while Trump’s 2024 campaign is ongoing. U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon ultimately scheduled the trial to begin on May 20, 2024.

A source close to Trump’s legal team already signaled in an interview with The Messenger that they intend to once again seek a post-election trial on any Jan. 6 charges, arguing that this one is "probably 10 to 20 times larger than the documents case."

Unlike the documents case in Florida, the federal judicial district that’s home to the latest Trump docket - E. Barrett Prettyman U.S. Courthouse (see photo above, at right) hosting it - is better equipped for accommodating and reviewing the expansive and historic case. ]

Interestingly, one of the alleged six co-conspirators in this latest indictment is former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, a former hard-ass federal prosecutor. He is alleged to have helped feed The Big Lie and steered a "fake elector" plot to change voting in some half-dozen states. Giuliani has yet to be charged, but experts say that's just a matter of time.

Just a matter of time, as with everything to do with Donald J. Trump...

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Right-Wingers Say Biden Too Old...Fear Michelle Obama...

 

By EDUARDO PAZ-MARTINEZ

McAllen, Texas | To watch and listen to Right-Wing Media is to get a certain angst moving across the country. Yeah, from sea to shining sea, that maudlin crap. Blokes such as Bill O'Reilly and pretty much every FOX News pundit do not believe President Joe Biden will actually post for the 2024 presidential election.

Age, they say. His age, which is 80 this year.

And, yes, they're also writing-off Vice President Kamala Harris. She's not well-liked, Republicans will insist. Plus, she's Black.

But wait! Aren't they predicting Democrats will recruit and run former First Lady Michelle Obama? Yes, boys. Yes, they are. Saying it and writing it every which way they can. It's Biden they don't want to face next year, so Biden will be discarded. "Why, Melania, he'd be almost 85 by the time his next term ended! No, Democrats cannot be that dumb."

It'll be Mrs. Obama. She's intelligent, an attorney and, well, only 59 years old!

Much hay is being made by right-wingers about recent sojourns by the Obamas to lovely Martha's Vineyard off the Massachusetts coast. These loser, always nosey Republicans fully believe that it's not the Obamas on vacation, but the Obamas at strategic gatherings organized by the national Democratic Party. Could it be? Not that we'd oppose it in the least, but this is playing only on right-wing radio and in the pages of right-wing publications.

Who knows?

Maybe there's just a thin thread of possibility there. Afterall, anything is possible in politics. And re-arranging the deck chairs on the ship is always part of the presidential campaign season. Uh, the thought is intriguing. Likely Republican nominee (thrice-indicted) Donald J. Trump would love it. Running against a Black woman for The White House?

For the racist in him, Heaven-sent!

It's still early. And, yeah, we're also hearing that Mrs. Obama is not interested in signaling anything against the president, which is smart. Plots and subplots live in politics. It all depends on how far you wish to stick your head in the massive Black hole, one that allows for intelligent angling and dumbass, illegal activity.

Plus, who knows where 77-year-old Donald Trump will be a year from now? Oh, and if not Michelle Obama, say the right-wingers, then it'll be California Gov. Gavin Newsom. He's only 55. See photo of him above, at left.

It's still a long, long way to November 2024...

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Dog Days Of August: Drink Your Water, Lose The Booze...

 

STAFF REPORT

McALLEN, Texas | It's  still hot. Scorching, hundred-degree days for the next 10 days, with highs of 104 on both Monday and Tuesday. That's the temperature reading. Feels-like will be roughly 10 degrees hotter, depending on the humidity of the day.

Stay cool.

Drink your water, not your Coca-Cola. Watch your liquor. Heat and booze make for even weirder driving. Jails are not air-conditioned. Some are, but the settings are not what you'd have at home.

August is here. You know August. Cruel and heartless bastard. We'll likely see 100-degree days for the freakin' entire month, is what the weatherboys are saying. There are, as you may know, 31 days in August.

There is a reason why these are called the Dog Days of August...

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Sex And The A.G.:...Ken Paxton's Other Woman...

 

By EDUARDO PAZ-MARTINEZ

AUSTIN, Texas | He's scheduled to go to trial no later than August 28th, and, already, suspended Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is seeing evidence flash before his eyes - like photos in the press of the woman he is alleged to have had an affair with while married.

That's her in photo above. Her name is Laura Olson, a four-times divorcee.

The 50-year-old, San Antonio-based business manager is said to be "always very pleasant."

Blond Miss Olson is familiar in Texas political circles for a very current reason: She is the woman tied romantically to very-married state Attorney General Ken Paxton. And, indeed, she is central to the reason why Paxton is facing removal as Texas AG.

Prosecutors say Paxton has been in trouble for years. But this particular case upset Texas legislators enough that they now seek to oust him from office.

Earlier this year, Paxton boldly asked state budget writers to spend public money on a proposed $3.3 million settlement to end a lawsuit by former staffers who accused him of on-the-job retaliation. It was then that the Texas House General Investigating Committee launched a secret probe into the attorney general’s behavior. In a stunning public hearing on May 24, House investigators publicly detailed allegations of a yearslong pattern of misconduct and questionable actions by Paxton.

On May 25, the committee unanimously recommended that Paxton be impeached and removed from office.

Miss Olson, only recently identified by name in the news media, has been connected to a former San Antonio city councilman...and a few other men, according to news reports. As we noted above, she has been married four times...and divorced four times.

Paxton's day-to-day wife is Angela Paxton, a Republican state senator representing suburban Dallas.

It is unclear if she'll be able to vote on her husband's removal...

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Republican Pence:..Lawless Trump Should Never Be President...

 

By EDUARDO PAZ-MARTINEZ

McALLEN, Texas | He's polling in the 3% range, hopelessly out of the 2024 presidential race, but former vice president Mike Pence finally let go a broadside at his ex-boss Donald J. Trump. Minutes after news broke of the most-recent indictments filed by the feds against Trump, Pence fired his biting salvo.

"Today’s indictment serves as an important reminder: anyone who puts himself over the Constitution should never be President of the United States," the stoic Pence said in a statement.

This report from politico.com: [ . . .The indictment unveiled by the Justice Department earlier Tuesday details the ways in which Trump leaned on his former vice president in the days leading up to the Jan. 6 capitol riots, encouraging Pence to refuse to certify the results of the election, which Trump lost to Joe Biden.

According to the indictment, Trump told Pence that "you’re too honest" when his vice president balked at the idea that he could block Biden’s win. Pence, who was called to testify in front of the grand jury that delivered the indictment, mentioned the episode in his book "So Help Me God."

The indictment also alleges that Trump pressed Pence on the scheme to overturn the election when Pence called him on Dec. 25, 2020 to wish him a "Merry Christmas." Pence responded by telling Trump, “I don’t think I have the authority to change the outcome,” according to the indictment.

In his statement, Pence came out hard against Trump, saying that although the former president is "entitled to the presumption of innocence," our country "is more important than one man."

"Our constitution is more important than any one man’s career," Pence said. ]

Trump has as of this morning not fired back at his former vice president.

But he will.

He always does...

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Republican Donald J. Trump Indicted A Third Time...

 

By EDUARDO PAZ-MARTINEZ

McALLEN, Texas | Four counts this time. In a federal indictment, we should add. Things get rougher for Donald J. Trump after this one. It goes to his many attempts to overturn the 2020 election, to negate the voters' choice for president, as it turned out that being Democrat Joe Biden.

This from axios.com: [ Trump was indicted on four counts Tuesday by special counsel Jack Smith over alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election. The indictment, unsealed Tuesday, is the latest legal peril faced by Trump, the Republican Party's frontrunner in the 2024 contest, and forces Republicans to reengage with Jan. 6.

Trump was charged with conspiracy to defraud the U.S., conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding and conspiracy against rights.

"Despite having lost, the Defendant was determined to remain in power," the indictment reads.

The indictment said that Trump had co-conspirators to "assist him in his criminal efforts to overturn" the election. It goes on to reference six co-conspirators - including four attorneys, a former Department of Justice official and a political consultant - but did not name them.

Prosecutors had been investigating Trump's efforts to undermine President Biden's 2020 election victory and the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.

What he's (laughably) saying: "I hear that Deranged Jack Smith, in order to interfere with the Presidential Election of 2024, will be putting out yet another Fake Indictment of your favorite President, me, at 5:00 P.M.," Trump wrote on Truth Social, before the indictment was made public.

The indictment is the second set of federal charges lodged against the former president, who was last indicted over his handling of classified documents.

Good luck, Donnie. Could it be that no one is above the law, buddy?...

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McAllen Courting Mexico: Mayor Still At It...

 

STAFF REPORT

McALLEN, Texas | The ties that bind. How often have you heard that around here? Culturally, yes. But also in business. The economy, Baby. That's how we roll.

McAllen Mayor Javier Villalobos (shown in photo above) is doing his damndest to make the connections needed to help The City of Palms achieve its Big Sky economic goals. Prosperity today and prosperity in the future, is the word at City Hall.

What other Rio Grande Valley mayor is doing as much?

None.

Not one.

Harlingen's impressive Mayor Norma Sepulveda is all-in on a myriad of hometown improvement projects, but she's not looked outside the city. Brownsville Mayor John Cowen can only dream of steering a city population with McAllen's drive...

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So, What Do You Think Of Ben Neece Now?...

 

By EDUARDO PAZ-MARTINEZ

BROWNSVILLE, Texas | The chirpy dude's been gone from City Hall long enough for local residents to frame his public service in some sort of historical way. Do they do that here, here in the warm crotch of the mighty Rio Grande as it finishes its piss into the Gulf of Mexico?

I say they do.

Brownsville's people are critics at heart. All of them. Yes, every single one of them. You can spot them a drink at a bar and what you'll hear next is, ". . . .Can I keep the change, too?" They're nasty and they're annoying and they're often wrong, but they're entertaining.

The city's politicians take that topical characterization and magnify it tenfold. You ever see a Brownsville public servant with his hands in his pockets? Uh, no. They're there at the end of the outstretched arms. Gimme some, man. Gimme some more.

We come to one Ben Neece, shown in dusty, file photo above.

Old Ben served this community as a smart municipal judge for more years than even he would claim on a glossy Xerox paper resume. Judging losers takes a toll, Baby. Neece handled it. Neece even took cases involving his good friends. The swift justice he dispensed, he will tell you, was by the book. Well, even Judge Roy Bean would say that out in scurrilous West Texas. You take things with a grain of salt here, however. Little is as it seems, goes the line at the fabled Palm Lounge downtown. When a local asks you about the weather, well, what he wants is a few bucks, for a few beers.

Neece is now being mentioned as a possible candidate for the Texas Southmost College's Board of Trustees, an entity where public servants go to fade away. Like really fast. Does the name Ruben Herrera strike fear or respect in you students? Or, how about Eva Alejandro, who may be 80 by the time she leaves her trustee seat. And don't even ask about Adela Garza and Tony Zavaleta. They may as well be the Cleopatra and Ptolemy XIII of junior college policy.

TSC is nowheresville. It should be shut down by Brownsville and tax monies returned to the property owners. Why offer a school for those who can't make it over at the local UT-RGV campus? Its history! Oh, history is soooooooo-oh yesterday. Sell the real estate. Leave college for the brainy kids. Someone's gotta do the oil changes, the dry-cleaning, the car washing.

Neece is perhaps spent as a politician. His time as a city commissioner was hardly memorable. Hey, Rube, name one major accomplishment on Ben Neece's City Hall resume. Take your time, lad. Think it over. Settle it well in your brain. Hey, hey...why are you running away?!

One thing Neece could show college kids is where the African country of Togo is located. Oh, and Lome is its capital.

Neece no doubt recalls his tourist adventure in that northwestern part of Dark Africa. He went there before he became a city commissioner, was allegedly kidnapped by some mean Black Cats, managed to fire off messages back home for help, was released, and then flew home, totally relieved.

As we recall, Neece balked at talking specifics about the abduction, telling us at the time that he was talking with the FBI and that the case was an open investigation prohibiting him from talking. Okay. Sure.

But he hasn't ever talked about it now going on - what - six, seven, eight years.

What happened over there, Ben? It sounds like a great "Survival-Under-Great-Pressure" story, a certain winner for HBO, if written properly by a pro, not a local blogger.

As for Neece seeking that TSC trustee seat, we say, "Why bother, Ben?"

Enjoy your current stage in life. Stay with the electric guitar and the occasional downtown gigs. Play for the piggies, as Lennon might say about here. We can almost hear your usual stock answer: "Solid!"

Hey, blogger, find someone else for that TSC trustee seat.

Ever cross your mind to one day do what you always want others to do?...

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Democrats Eyeing Ailing McConnell's Senate Post...

 

By EDUARDO PAZ-MARTINEZ

McALLEN, Texas | The White House is said to be keeping a close eye on Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell's looming bad health. The Republican suffered through a bizarre moment during a press conference in Washington, D.C. last week.

McConnell (shown at left in photo above) appeared to freeze at the microphone for a few long seconds, leading fellow Republicans to approach him and grab him ahead of a fall.

Democrats know that if McConnell dies or is incapacitated to the point of being unable to serve in the senate that Kentucky's governor, Andy Beshear, will likely name a Democrat to fill McConnell's post. Beshear is a Democrat.

McConnell has been in the senate since 1985. He is 81 years old.

No prominent names have surfaced in connection with a potential McConnell departure.

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Brownsville Mayor Cowen Lags Far Behind McAllen, Harlingen Counterparts...

 

By EDUARDO PAZ-MARTINEZ

BROWNSVILLE, Texas | What's he done, other than pose for a few hundred post-election photos? Not much, would be the immediate answer. And nothing like what new mayors Norma Sepulveda of Harlingen and Javier Villalobos of McAllen are busy doing for their communities.

John Cowen, shown at left in photo above, seems inclined to mosey into the job like a house wren squeezing into a home under the roof overhang. Quietly. Ruffling few feathers. Why wake up the town?

McAllen's Villalobos has been out mining Mexico for business he wants to bring to The City of Palms, an already prosperous constituency. In Harlingen, Mayor Sepulveda left the Election Night victory podium and began ordering infrastructure projects, such as street paving, a general clean-up of the city's parks and looksees for more work here and there. Like Villalobos, she also has been out and about, seeing and being seen, taking in local festivals.

Cowen?

Who knows what he's up to?

There's nothing to find when you go looking for something positive you can paste to his unassuming face and name. Brownsville is a sleepy town, but it currently seems eerily comatose under new Mayor Cowen.

There's been a nasty and continuing kerfuffle over at the BCIC, where cash monies dispensed for enterprising businessmen has drawn the ire of some in the community. Especially rankling, they say, has been an $85,000 grant awarded by the entity's board to former Mayor Juan "Trey" Mendez, who just recently left office. Not that Mendez wouldn't normally qualify. He's a well-known local businessman, what with his law practice and an excitable pizza eatery smack downtown. 

The critics, however, note in loud crowing that ex-city commissioners and the mayor are prohibited from lipping up to the supple BCIC tit for one whole year after leaving office. Not for Mendez. He'd just left a few weeks earlier!

Not a peep about that has come from Mayor Cowen, who just happens to be a good friend of the former mayor and, Brownsville being the chummy, Eh-vato-come-here-ese sort of political town, well, Cowen was never going to intervene.

But that's just politics. And some of the monies being dispensed by the Brownsville Community Improvement Corporation (BCIC) are said to have come from SpaceX billionaire Elon Musk back when he was courting local elected officials. Buying his ass in, in other words. Why, Maria, wasn't that the aforementioned Mendez out & about in town with Musk while Musk was here all through the SpaceX discussion and construction?

Yes, yes it was.

Cowen doesn't seem as inclined to be a very public mayor, not like Mendez was or like previous Mayor Tony Martinez, as public a dude as ever lived here. The new mayor always appears reserved, as if he's the mayor of, say, Republican Victoria or Karnes City up South Texas a bit. Almost too rural, I'd say, even as I know he is a graduate of elite Notre Dame and has tasted the best of Life.

A polished politician Cowen is not.

He's a smiler and a go-along, sure (see photo at right). And his personality is one a troubled city can appreciate, as Cowen will not raise his voice or fist...and never in public. He's from an Old Line Brownsville family. Public displays of anger? Not from this guy.

But what has he done?

And, or what is he doing? Is there a plan in there somewhere, Johnny?

Nothing comes back. We're not hearing it.

We're left with this: John Cowen has won the mayor's job and he has it in his pocket.

That's him over there, the quiet guy looking happy as a caged lark...

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