Echoes of Watergate: Part Two - Today Is The 50th Anniversary Of The Watergate Break-In

 June 17th, 2022

My Dear America:

It doesn't seem like 50 Years have gone by since the break in at the D.C. Watergate Complex but the calendar doesn't lie, although I wish it would sometimes.

Although I was more than halfway through writing about the start of the July 6th Hearings I could not ignore the significance of todays date, June 17th.  

It was 50 years ago today on June 17th of 1972 when 5 men were arrested in the Democratic Party headquarters in the Watergate Hotel, Office and Apartment Complex in Washington, D.C..

Luckily for Bob Woodward, a reporter for the Washington Post, he was given the assignment of going to check on the court appearance for the burglars who were arrested at the Watergate Complex.  While at the court appearance Woodward found out that one of the burglars, James McCord, had worked at the CIA and was now working with (CREEP) The Committee To Re Elect The President (Nixon)

What the hell was this guy and four Cubans, who he would find out later were also CIA, doing in Democratic Headquarters. 

Well, Unlucky for Richard Nixon and Company, Bob Woodward and his Reporting Partner, Carl Bernstein, were now on the job of uncovering what was at that period of time the most incredible political scandal that anyone could conceive of, never mind remember.

Woodward and Bernstein were guests on the Late Show with Stephen Colbert this week celebrating their their Seminal book on Watergate, "All The Presidents Men" 50th Anniversary Edition.  

Speaking of celebrating books on Watergate my first Published book was "Letters To A Lost Nation: A Watergate Chronicle".  Like "All The President's Men" my book is also available in Paperback and E Book Format on Amazon.com. It is also available in several E Book Formats on Smashwords.com.

Quite Frankly anyone who is not familiar with Watergate may find tons of books available on Amazon on the subject.  Almost every one of the President's men who went to jail wrote a book about Watergate.  Judges and Prosecutors also wrote books on the subject.

Many of those individuals who were locked up as a result of the Watergate Scandal ended up doing OK later on in their lives.  I have already written about G. Gordon Liddy in a Previous Blog Post and Podcast.  Liddy has passed on but not without an odd but interesting and successful career as an Actor and Radio Host, among other things.

John Dean, the Young White House Counsel who Richard Nixon and his advisors, John Ehrlichman and H.R. Haldeman clearly tried to set up as the Watergate Patsy turned the tables on Nixon, Ehrlichman and Haldeman and testified truthfully to the Senate Select Watergate Committee and to Federal Prosecutions of others involved in the scandal.  Although Dean still went to jail his sentence was much briefer than it would have been had he not cooperated with the Justice Department's prosecutions of many of the President's men.  

As I have said before The CNN Series on Watergate  featuring John Dean as the Narrator and Producer is excellent.  The Paramount Plus Series "Gaslit" also gives an interesting perspective on Watergate through the Nixon connected couple, John Mitchell and his Wife, Martha Mitchell.  John Mitchell was a Law Partner of Richard Nixon, who became United States Attorney General and the 1972 Campaign Manager of the Committee To Re Elect The President.  Mitchell went to jail while Richard Nixon went to his home in California after his resignation.  Martha Mitchell was known to cooperate with journalists including Woodward and Bernstein and apparently revealed to those Journalists quite a lot about what she knew about Watergate.

The History Channel is also featuring their 6 part Watergate Series today starting at 6:00 PM.  One more perspective on Watergate has been featured prominently on the excellent Showtime Series, "The First Lady".

As we watch the shocking revelations regarding Donald Trump during the January Sixth Committee Hearings Richard Nixon seems to be a bit more palatable in comparison.

Neither of these two bastards should have ever seen the inside of the White House, never mind been elected.  But they were elected and as Republicans seem to be hell bent on altering the political playing field all over the country it is time to remember the lessons of both Watergate and Treasongate.

Nixon is gone.  He will never be back in the White House again.

Trump is still around and he is poisoning the political system and getting ready to re enter the White House again in 2024.  

It is time to learn the lessons from the January Sixth Committee Hearings, as well as the Senate Watergate Hearings and keep the Monster From Mara Lago from rising again. 

Sincerely Yours

Jerry Gallagher

Echoes Of Watergate As The January 6th Committee Hearings Prepare To Begin

 Wednesday June 8th, 2022

My Dear America:

This Thursday Night at 8:00 PM The January Sixth Committee will begin a Prime Time Review of what they have uncovered through over a years worth of investigating what in the hell happened in and around The Capitol Building in Washington on January 6th, 2021.  Unless you have been living under a rock for the past year and a half it is likely that much of what the Committee has to say will be old news to most of us.  The Committee has promised, however, some breakthrough, bombshell revelations and I, like most of us in the world of reality, look forward to finding out what went on and why.  

Clearly Donald Trump and his Republican Allies, including Fox News are not nearly as anxious to have Trump's Dirty Laundry aired in Prime Time or in any time period on Television.

As we prepare to watch the January Sixth Hearings I am having some feelings of Deja Vu as I think back to what I felt was the most exciting Television Spectacular Series that I ever saw during the 1970's, The Senate Watergate Hearings.

I wrote a lot at the time during the Watergate Hearings, which I was lucky Enough or unlucky enough, depending on how you looked at it, to get to watch nearly every day.  I was recovering from surgery at the time and the Watergate Hearings were pretty much the only Television Programming on during the day for a lengthy period of time.  I became hooked quickly and the more that was revealed during the Watergate Hearings the more horrified I became.

I began reacting to the Watergate Hearings by copying a technique that I had learned from a book by Albert Camus'.  I began writing letters addressed to "My Dear America" commenting on what I was seeing, hearing and feeling during the daily hearings.  

(Let me stop here and advise the readers of this Blog that I turned my largely emotional reactions to the Senate Watergate Hearings into a book titled "Letters To A Lost Nation: A Watergate Chronicle".  My book is probably not the most comprehensive book on Watergate.  Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein's Books, "All The President's Men" and "The Final Days" would probably fit the bill on that score.  My book does, however, give a fairly sincere reaction of an average American to the Incredible scandal that was Watergate.  For anyone interested in buying my book it is available in Paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and in several other E Book Formats on Smashwords.com)

I do recommend my book for anyone who wants to read  the details of "A Brief History Of Watergate" and a comprehensive listing of Major Figures involved in the Watergate Scandal, as well as my reactions to the testimony of many Watergate Figures and an effort to follow up on what happened years later to those Major Watergate Figures.

To make a long story very short "Watergate" was essentially the following:

A Security Guard at the upscale Washington D.C. Apartment, Hotel and Office Complex called the "Watergate" discovered during the morning of June 17th, 1972 that one of the doors to the Watergate had tape on the lock and he called the D.C. Police who while checking the Watergate Complex discovered 5 Individuals in the offices of the Democratic Party.  One of the individuals arrested was James McCord, who was a retired CIA Officer.  The other 4 individuals arrested were Cubans who also had ties to the CIA.  Through dogged investigation by Woodward and Bernstein and other Journalists, the D.C. Police and the FBI the Watergate "Burglars" were tied to E. Howard Hunt (Another Former CIA Officer) and G. Gordon Liddy (A Former FBI Agent).  Both Hunt and Liddy had connections to the White House and also connections to the Committee To Elect The President (CREEP).  What followed the Watergate Break in was a shit show of epic proportions which led to numerous individuals connected to the White House and the Committee To Re Elect the President, not only getting fired, but also going to jail.

The Watergate Hearings were televised on every Network live for a good length of time.  The Senate Watergate Committee was made up of some of the most interesting individuals in the United States Senate on both the Republican And Democratic sides.  The hearings became a national obsession and were almost addictive to me.

During a discussion with Lawrence O Donnell following her MSNBC Program on Monday Night Rachel Maddow discussed the fact that she was an infant during the Watergate Hearings.  Listening to her discuss this with Lawrence O Donnell made me realize that many people might never have seen or even heard of The Senate Watergate Hearings that consumed much of my life during the Seventies.  

I don't know how addictive the January Sixth Committee Hearings will be.  It seems to me that many people in the United States have already made up their minds about Donald Trump and his Republican Supporters and, quite Frankly, if they haven't seen the light about Trump by now I don't think that they are going to pay much attention to what is coming in the Hearings.

I think that Watergate was a lesson for many and should have been a lesson to us all but obviously wasn't.  

Watergate was, for the most part, a corruption of the Nixon White House that spread from the top into various Government Agencies.  At the end of it Richard Nixon finally had the decency to resign.

Donald Trump also corrupted every Government agency he touched but even though he was impeached Twice he still attempted to hold onto power by means of a violent insurrection and an attempted Coup. We should have learned our lesson long ago from Watergate but apparently the lesson didn't take.

I would like to advise Anyone interested in watching some interesting Television and learning about Watergate at the same time to check out two very interesting Television Series.  

CNN has just begun broadcasting a Series on Watergate on Sunday Nights that is being produced and hosted by John Dean, who those who remember Watergate will recall was the man who was targeted by the powers that be in the Nixon White House to be the Patsy for Watergate but instead turned the tables on Richard Nixon and Company.  In the Watergate hearings Dean blew the doors off the White House.  Dean has been a contributor to CNN for years now.  It is about time that he got around to telling the Watergate Story.  So far it looks as though Dean and CNN are doing a good credible job in telling the true Watergate story.

Another take on Watergate is currently being presented on the Paramount Plus streaming Network.  The Show is called "Gaslit" and tells the story of Watergate and the Nixon White House from the perspective of Martha Mitchell, who was the wife of Attorney General and Committee To Elect the President Leader, John Mitchell, who was in the end also sacrificed by the White House in order to save Richard Nixon's Ass. This series stars Julia Roberts as Martha Michell and Sean Penn as John Mitchell.  I have to say that Sean Penn's makeup is incredible and so is that of Julia Roberts.  They both do an awesome acting job in addition to looking so much like the characters they portray.

It is interesting to me to watch these Television Series just as the shit is ready to hit the fan on Thursday night.  

It drives me crazy to see so many Republicans continue to stand with Donald Trump as he lies his ass off about how he was shafted out of his "Landslide Victory" in 2020.  Clearly no Republican in their right mind still believes this Bullshit Story.  But they continue to parrot Trump.  

I have a dream today that after watching the January Sixth Committee Hearings that Republicans everywhere will come to their senses and stop lying about Donald Trump's Landslide election victory.

I will continue to have this dream but I don't really have much faith that this dream will come true.

What I hope will come true is that every Democrat watching the January Sixth Hearings will get motivated enough to get ready to vote in the November Election for the Democrats who are running and telling the truth about January Sixth, 2020.

That Dream has a better chance of coming true.

Sincerely Yours

Jerry Gallagher

The Lone Gunmen's Club - How Many Deaths Will It take Till We Know That Too Many People Have Died

May 27th, 2022

My Dear America:

It has happened once again.

A Lone Gunman in Texas walked into Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas this week after shooting his Grandmother and crashing a truck he had stolen.  When the tragic standoff with police was over The Gunman, Salvador Ramos, as well as two teachers and 19 Angelic looking Elementary Students were dead.

There are a number of Red Flags with regard to how this incident was handled by Law Enforcement Authorities, but the truth is that regardless of how you look at this situation, it is clear that if the young man who brought this Tragedy on Uvalde was not able to easily buy 2 Automatic Rifles and Ammunition legally it is doubtful that he would have been able to kill over 20 people.

Unfortunately in Texas it was all too easy for Salvador Ramos to buy his Automatic Rifles and carry out his desperate and Cruel last act.  The Governor of Texas, Greg Abbott has done all he can to make Texas a place where Gun Enthusiasts can live their dreams of buying guns at Young Ages and carrying guns anywhere and any time they please.  

Abbott (A Republican) was furious this week when Beto O'Rourke (A Democrat who is running against Abbott for Governor) interrupted Abbott's Press Conference regarding the shooting.  Before Abbott had O'Rourke rudely hauled out of the Press Conference, Beto loudly confronted Abbott regarding his Right Wing Gun Policies.  Although O'Rourke was not able to get much of his point across at the Press Conference clearly O'Rourke will be having much more to say on the subject in the near future  

This may, in fact, be the straw that breaks Greg Abbott's back in the Gubernatorial Election.  

When it comes to the Issue of Gun Safety and Gun Violence in Texas it appears to me as though the wind is at Beto O'Rourke's back at the present time.

But getting back to Salvador Ramos.

He appears to be one more member of "The Lone Gunmen's Club", along with countless other Disturbed Loners, who have sought to give their lives meaning by taking the lives of others.  

It's a Club that began with Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris, The Shooters at Columbine High School, who reacted to their classmates who bullied them with Gunfire.  The "Lone Gunmen's Club has continued to add members exponentially and almost uninterrupted since then.  Many of the hundreds of Columbine Copycats seem to point to the Columbine Killers as their inspiration to mow down their classmates or others Human Beings who they might encounter in Schools, Churches, Grocery Stores, Movie Theaters or elsewhere in the United States where people might gather in groups.

Clearly Republicans are correct when they point out that Mental Health is certainly an issue when it comes to mass shootings.  There is no doubt about that.  Clearly the Lone Gunmen are almost always, like Salvador Ramos and others, Young People that are outsiders who are picked on and bullied by others.

Ramos, for instance was picked on by some of his classmates because he had a stutter and a strong lisp and his Family had little money.  Some of his classmates made fun of his clothing.  In some cases some of his tormentors called him "School Shooter" as a term or derision.   He had few or no friends and as time went on and he was the target of his classmates beating him up he began to lash out violently against strangers, friends and Family.  some of his peers saw him as Weird, Rude and Scruffy.  He was known to like playing violent video games such as Fortnite and Call of Duty.  Once he showed up to play basketball with a friend with cuts on his face and told his friend that he cut himself for fun.

After continued problems at school Ramos dropped out of school and got a job working at a local Wendy's.  His manager noticed that he rarely interacted with other workers at the Fast Food Restaurant.  Ramos told some people that he wanted to go into the Marines just so he could kill people.  

He had no criminal history but he may possibly have had a Juvenile Record.  He had a history of physically fighting with others.

One thing was for sure, like many other members of "The Lone Gunmen's Club" this young man was clearly disturbed and should never have been able to buy a gun or in any way get his hands on a gun.

It is easy to look at what happened in Uvalde and hate this young man for what he did.  But it is time that all of us look at this and other situations like this and realize that our culture needs to wake up to reality.  It is probably not possible to prevent every Lone Gunman from carrying out what they might feel is their deadly destiny but some Sensible Gun Legislation is needed badly to stem the tide in which Disturbed People can easily get their hands on Weapons of Mass Destruction.

Certainly Congress can finally pass Gun Legislation demanding Sensible Background Checks for anyone purchasing a gun.

And Lets wake up to reality and return to doing  what we did in the Nineties when we passed an Assault Weapons Ban which we allowed to lapse.  

These could be two sensible pieces of legislation which might do something to prevent some murders.  

Certainly, what voters in Texas can do is get behind Democrat Beto O'Rourke and help him to defeat Republican, Greg Abbott in the race for Texas Governor.

And Democrats around the country can and should unite around candidates in their states who stand for sensible gun legislation.  

Enough of this Republican Bullshit that Okay's AR 15's for everyone and open carry guns for everyone.  

No Democrats are trying to keep Responsible Guns from Responsible People.

Hunters don't need to worry about Democrats taking their guns away.  Democrats are not looking to take guns from Hunters.  They never were.  That is simply NRA Bullshit Nonsense.  Many Democrats are Hunters also.

And if Republicans are concerned about increasing funds for Mental Health that's Great.  Lets see you start voting to put your money where your Mouths Are.

It is time for Republicans to stop standing in the way of progress and it is time for Voters to recognize that watching Fox News and that voting for Republicans is only going to continue to erode Democracy in America.  

Sincerely Yours

Jerry Gallagher

Big John And Little Josh - The Dynamic Duo Trying To Keep Democracy Alive In Pennsylvania

 May 14th, 2022

My Dear America:

Sections of the following Blog Post are copied from Candidates Website Biographies and Wikipedia and will be Identified using Bold Print.

First of all Little Josh Shapiro, who is running for Governor in Pennsylvania is not all that small.  Its just that standing next to Big John Fetterman, who stands over 6 feet, anyone under 6 feet looks Tiny.

Although both Josh Shapiro and John Fetterman are running two completely different and separate Election Campaigns in 2022 They are both Democrats running to keep Sanity and Democracy alive in Pennsylvania where they have both carved out successful Democratic Political Reputations in a state in which the state legislature contains some of the rightest of right wing nuts.

I feel sorry for my State Representative, Pete Schweyer, a Great Democrat who unfortunately has to put up with these Republican Screwballs every day in the Pennsylvania State Legislature.

But although Pete, Josh and John might be swimming against the tide in Pennsylvania the past state races indicate that there are still pockets of Sanity And Democratic Support in our state and my guess is that there always will be. 

Anyone checking out John Fetterman for the first time would almost certainly be tempted to bet that he is a Trump Supporter.  John is tall, tattooed, almost always dressed in a black tee shirt and looks as though he is ready for trouble.  

He is indeed ready for trouble and will undoubtedly be getting his share of trouble after he beats out his opponents in the Democratic Primary and moves on to face whichever Trump Ass Kissing Gun Toting Whack Job who ends up surviving the Republican Shark Attack Frenzy that is this year's Republican Primary for Senator and Governor. 

Regardless of the fact that Donald Trump disregarded his oath to protect  the Constitution for four years and ended his Presidency by staging a failed coup, The Monster from Mara Lago is still unbelievably and incredibly still a hero to many Republicans in the Keystone state.  Some of the Candidates on the Republican side of the Primary are some of the same people who tried to stage that Republican Coup, especially Doug Mastriano, a State Senator running for Governor, who masterminded a plot to bring the ridiculous Cyber Ninja "Audit" to Pennsylvania.  In so doing Mastriano was willing to release so much voter information that Democratic Legislators like Pete Schweyer blew the whistle on the fact that Mastriano's "Audit" could unleash epic  problems with regard to potential Identity theft.  Now that Mastriano is running for Governor his information about the "Audit" and his other shady and possibly illegal activities involving Trump have mysteriously disappeared from his website.

Getting back to John Fetterman.  Much of what I am going to include in the following paragraphs is quoted from John Fetterman's Campaign Website.

"A Pennsylvania native, John Fetterman was born to teenage parents just starting out on their own.  At the time his father worked nights to put himself through College.  John grew up in York, PA and followed in his fathers footsteps to Albright College (in Reading, Pennsylvania) where he played offensive tackle for the Lions.

At 23 John joined up with Big Brothers/Big Sisters and his life has never been the same.  

John Threw himself into the program mentoring his "little" - an 8 year old boy who had recently lost his father to AIDS and whose mother was also battling the disease.  Before she passed away, John promised her that he would continue to look out for her son and make sure that he graduated from College.  Fifteen years later, John and his "little" had both held up their ends of the bargain, with his little's graduation from Washington and Jefferson College in Washington, PA.

But John wanted to do more.  He joined AmeriCorps and served in Pittsburgh's historic Hill District, where he helped set up the first computer labs in the neighborhood and taught GED classes to young mothers and fathers.

He went on to earn a Masters in Public Policy from Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government.

John returned to Pennsylvania to start a GED program in the town of Braddock, one of the poorest and most challenged communities in the commonwealth.  In 2005, encouraged by his students, John ran for Mayor.  He managed to win the crowded primary by a single vote.  In his 13 years as Mayor, John worked to rebuild his community. In his 13 years as Mayor, John worked to rebuild his community, creating jobs, getting youth engaged and bringing creative urban policy solutions to Braddock.  The town now has a community center, urban gardens and a free store run by John's Wife, Gisele. 

Together John and Gisele have fought for causes they believe in, from immigration reform to LGBTQ + rights. When Pennsylvania lawmakers continued to push outdated discriminatory policies banning marriage equality, John stood up and officiated one of the first same sex marriages in Pennsylvania.  

And when they wanted to build a four lane interstate highway through Braddock, a town that's more than 80 percent Black and already suffered historically high asthma rates, John was the only elected official in western Pennsylvania who opposed it on the grounds that it was environmental racism.  

In 2016, John decided to run for U.S. Senate to confront the inequality crisis at the highest levels of government.  Although John lost the Democratic Primary, John confounded expectations, earning 20 percent of the vote as a relatively unknown candidate in a four way race.

Two years later, in 2018, John ran to be Pennsylvania's Lieutenant Governor, and this time dominated across the commonwealth, winning a five way Democratic Primary and a commanding victory in the general election.

As Lieutenant Governor, John has transformed the position and made a bully pulpit of the office, advocating for economic justice and criminal justice reform.  

Weeks after taking office, John embarked on a listening tour of all 67 counties, something no sitting Lt. Governor has ever done, to engage with Pennsylvanians about legalizing marijuana.  In three months the historic tour saw over 10,000 people turn out in person and tens of thousands more engage online.  Following John's final report and recommendations, the Governor announced his support for legalization of marijuana for the first time.

As the chair of Pennsylvania's Board of Pardons, John has led the fight to give second chances to non-violent longtime inmates and free those who have been wrongfully convicted.

He has taken numerous steps to overhaul the clemency process in Pennsylvania, including eliminating all fees associated with applying for a pardon, making the pardons application more user-friendly and working to move the application process online.  Under John's tenure, the Board has recommended more applicants for commutation of sentences than any Lieutenant Governor in decades.

While Lieutenant Governor, John and Gisele have chosen not to settle in the Lt. Governor's Mansion, instead opening up the pool in the official residence to children who typically wouldn't have access to one.  They live with their three children, Karl, 12, Gracie, 10 and August, 7 in a restored car dealership in Braddock with the family dog, Levi."

Clearly there is a huge difference between John Fetterman and his mainly Rich, mainly MAGA, Mainly Right Wing Republican Opponents.  John's background is a background of Community Service and concern about his Fellow Pennsylvania Citizens.  

Although Pennsylvania's Candidate for Governor, Josh Shapiro's background is quite different from that of John Fetterman's, his concern for improving the lives of his fellow Pennsylvanians is quite similar to that of John Fetterman. 

"Josh Shapiro was born in Kansas City, Missouri and was raised in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania.  At a young age Shapiro started a worldwide letter writing program on behalf of Russian Jewish Refuseniks.  Following his graduation from High School in Pennsylvania Shapiro attended the University of Rochester, where he majored in Political Science and in 1992 he became the first Freshman to win election as the University of Rochester's Student body President.  In 1995 he graduated magna cum laude from the University of Rochester.

While working as a Legislative Assistant on Capitol Hill in Washington during the day Shapiro enrolled at the Georgetown Law Center as an evening student and earned his Juris Doctor Law Degree in 2002.  In 2004 Shapiro ran for the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in the 153rd District.  He won that election and won re Election in 2006, 2008 and 20010

Shapiro won election to the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners in 2011.  The election marked the first time in history that the Republican Party lost control of the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners.  Shapiro became chairman of the Board of Commissioners.  In April 2015 Pennsylvania Democratic Governor named Shapiro Chair of The Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency.

Shapiro announced his intention to run for Pennsylvania Attorney General in January 2016.  Shapiro won election as Attorney General in November of 2016 and has done an outstanding job as Attorney General of Pennsylvania although some of his efforts as Attorney General have sometimes been controversial.

Shapiro joined with several other State Attorney's General opposing Donald Trump's travel ban.  He also filed a lawsuit to block the implementation of a rule that would have made it easier for employers to deny health insurance coverage of contraceptives.  He also joined a lawsuit against ITT Technical Institute, a for profit educational institute that resulted in a 168 million dollar settlement (with about 5 million Dollars of thre settlement going to Pennsylvania students).  In 2018 he reached an agreement with federal officials to prevent the distribution of blueprints for 3D Printed firearms.  In 2019 he came out in support of the legalization of marijuana for recreational use by adults, joining Governor Tom Wolfe and other leading Pennsylvanians, including John Fetterman.

Prior to his election as Attorney General his predecessor had initiated an investigation of sexual abuse perpetrated by members of the Catholic Church. Following his election Shapiro chose to move forward with the investigation and in August, 2018 he released the results of an extensive Grand Jury Report alleging more than a thousand children having been abused at the hands of 300 Catholic Priests."

Following the 2020 Election Josh Shapiro's office was consistently involved in fighting against ridiculous lawsuits filed in Pennsylvania alleging Voter Irregularities.  Shapiro was successful in fighting the Election lawsuits and was front and center on MSNBC and CNN protecting Election responsibility in Pennsylvania.

Clearly Big John Fetterman and Little Josh Shapiro are already on the job protecting Pennsylvania from MAGA Madness in the 2020 Election and determined to keep Democracy alive in Pennsylvania.

Both of the Democratic Candidates for Governor and United States Senator have an extensive and impressive track record which lays out what they stand for.  

Both Candidates are Progressive Democrats who support protecting Voting Rights, Reproductive Rights and Civil Rights.

They may differ in some areas but overall in what is increasingly becoming a dangerous and destructive MAGA world Big John and Little Josh stand out as the kind of Candidates that we could always count on to show up in important elections before Donald Trump and his Fake News Friends on Fox News, Newsmax and OAN showed up to put the screws to the important issues on which we have always depended Democratic Support.  

Somewhere along the line we have lost our bearings and being a "Democrat" or a "Liberal" was somehow turned into terms of degradation.  Somewhere along the line it became Okay to consistently lie over and over to the public and somehow people became convinced that Lies were the truth and the Truth were lies.

Luckily for me I live in Pennsylvania where at least for now we still have some fine Democrats who are on the right track and I certainly hope continue to care enough to seek high office in my state.

Thank you Josh Shapiro and John Fetterman for caring enough about our state and our people to put yourself out there as Candidates in 2022 for Governor and Senator.  I wish you both well and will certainly be voting for both of you in the upcoming elections.

We genuinely need you in Pennsylvania and Washington D.C..

Sincerely Yours

Jerry Gallagher

   

Back To The Back Alley Again - Abortion Restrictions Are Returning - Or Are They

 Sunday, May 8th, 2022

My Dear America:

Abortion has not always been legal in the United States of America.

It has been legal for the last Fifty Years, though.  But it certainly seems as though that long time Legal Precedent is about to change radically according to the lengthy Supreme Court Document written by Justice Samuel Alito that has somehow oddly surfaced recently and has set off a firestorm of controversy in our country.  

Much of the Controversy on the Republican side has been Extreme Concern with Who released the Alito document.  Little has been said on the Republican side regarding the bombshell Alito opinion that may be about to return American Women back to the Back Alleys and Dark Ages of Women's Reproductive Rights in America.  

Women who I care about very deeply have sometimes been in situations in which after careful consideration they decided that for various reasons they needed to terminate a pregnancy.  These people were not criminals.  They were women who were faced with extremely hard choices as to whether or not have an abortion.  The decision to have an abortion is in all cases a heartbreaking one and one that is never easy to make.  

Clearly no woman choosing to have an abortion does it gleefully.  It is a painful decision in all cases.  There are many reasons for a woman to choose to have an abortion but in the last Fifty years since the Supreme Court decided the legal Precedent regarding  Roe V Wade at least Women who needed an abortion were safe from Dangerous Back Alley Butchers.

Women have always found ways to have abortions when they needed them.  At least Rich Women have found the resources necessary when they felt they needed to have an abortion.

Poor Women, on the other hand, were not always able to make the same choices regarding abortion. That is certainly the case now in Texas and other Abortion Restrictive States.  

What we are seeing at the present time is the result of many years of the Republican Party members lying about pretty much everything in this country and ending up controlling many State Legislatures and Governor's offices as a result. On the Federal level we have seen Mitch McConnell steal what should have rightfully been a Barack Obama Supreme Court Nomination and jam through Amy Coney Barrett's nomination, which rightfully should have been another Joe Biden pick.

I am lucky enough to live in Pennsylvania, a state with a Democratic Governor and Attorney General but unfortunately a Republican Controlled Legislature.

Our Attorney General, Josh Shapiro has helped, along with Democratic Governor, Tom Wolfe, to keep the Republican Madmen and Madwomen of the PA State Legislature from totally corrupting our state with Screwball Trumpian inspired Laws.  I only hope that Attorney General Shapiro wins the Governor's race in Pennsylvania and that Democrat, John Fetterman wins the U.S. Senate Race in an ongoing march toward Sanity in Pennsylvania Government.

If any of the Trump Ass Kissing Gun Toting Republican Candidates running for Governor or Senate win it is likely that Legal Abortion Rights in Pennsylvania, like those in many other states will be a thing of the past.

In his never ending quest for devotion and love from some of the worst elements of American Society Donald Trump was willing to make and keep a pact with the Devil (Namely, Mitch McConnell) and steal three Supreme Court Nominees that were approved by the Rightest of Right Wing organizations, the Heritage Foundation.

Although all three of Trump's Supreme Court Nominees (Brett Kavanaugh, Neil Gorsuch and Amy Coney Barrett) stated emphatically that Roe V Wade was "Established Precedent" what seems clear at the present time is that these Right Wing Nominated Judges may have been lying to the Senators who interviewed them in their Judiciary Committee Hearings and also in individual meetings with Senators not on the judiciary Committee. 

To be honest I am hopeful that the Leaked Alito Document is not the last word we will hear from the Supreme Court on Roe Versus Wade.  If it is then clearly we are up Shits Creek.  But so far the Alito Document is to my mind simply Judge Alito's Opinion and hopefully when the Supreme Court Members see the hornets nest that is about to erupt if and when Roe is overturned in such a cruel manner (No consideration for Rape or incest - Are You kidding me) perhaps the Court will come to its senses.

What is evident at this point in time is that we are seeing hard evidence that Elections Matter.  Clearly the Election of Donald Trump in 2016 has had devastating consequences in so many ways but if things stand the way they are now the Three Trump Appointees will be stripping us of our Rights for Many Decades to come.

When Joe Biden was inaugurated one of the first things that he did was to set in motion a study of what to do about the Supreme Court that was scheduled at some point to come up with ideas about what to do about the court.  I think the time has come for the Biden Administration to look at the Supreme Court Situation and take drastic action.  That drastic action could include nominating  as many as three more Supreme Court Judges.  

Yes, that drastic action will undoubtedly set off a firestorm in the Republican Party and it may lead to terrible consequences for Democrats but if it sets things right for the court it could be worth the sacrifices.

For as long as I can remember it seemed to me as though The Supreme Court was one of the most Capable and Respected aspects of the United States Government.  It seemed to me as though the kinds of people who were on the court were the best people that could be found.  When one or another individual was nominated who was not up to par the Senate would do their Advice and Consent duties.  Judge Bork, for example, didn't make it on the court.  The end result was the fact that in nearly all cases good respected capable people were nominated and approved for the Supreme Court.  Clearly that high standard is no longer applicable for Supreme Court Nominees.  

Brett Kavanaugh and Clarence Thomas have been accused of Sexual Misconduct.  Other Individuals may have good qualifications but have shown by their rulings that they are Right Wingers who should not be on the Supreme Court.

Finally, when it comes to Abortion and a Woman's Right to choose and in particular the Supreme Court Roe Versus Wade Decision We should realize that whatever the Supreme Court decides there will be serious consequences in the United States of America.  There have indeed already been serious consequences for Women in Texas, where anyone assisting a woman to  get an abortion faces the consequence of being sued by anyone in the state who wants to bankrupt the abortion assister.  One can only hope that Beto O'Rourke might be elected Governor of Texas and in so doing remove the Neanderthals from Government in Texas like Governor Greg Abbott.

One of my daughters who is very concerned about what happens with Roe V Wade sent me a recent Facebook post that she stated was something sent to her and apparently is going around Facebook right now.  I feel that this posting is much more powerful than anything I could write  presently to express my feelings about Judge Alito's disturbing document.  I appreciate and agree with the following statement that my daughter sent to me on Facebook and I hope that I am not infringing on anybody by using this powerful message in my Blog Post and Podcast.  I thank the writer of this incredibly powerful message and fully acknowledge that I didn't write this message although I wish I did and thank the writer for doing so.

Here goes:

"I'm not pro-murdering babies.

I'm Pro Becky who found out at her 20 week anatomy scan that the infant she had been so excited to bring into this world had developed without sustaining organs.

I'm Pro Susan who was sexually assaulted on her way home from work, only to come to the horrific realization that her assailant planted his seed in her when she got a positive pregnancy test result a month later.

I'm Pro Theresa who hemorrhaged due to a placental abruption causing her parents, spouse, and children to have to make the impossible decision on whether to save her or her unborn child.

I'm Pro little Cathy who had her innocence ripped away from her by someone she should have been able to trust and her 11 year old body isn't mature enough to bear the consequence of that betrayal.

I'm Pro Melissa who's working two jobs just to make ends meet and has to choose between bringing another child into poverty or feeding the children she already has because her spouse walked out on her

I'm Pro Brittany who realizes that she is in no way financially, emotionally or physically able to raise a child.

I'm Pro Emily who went through IVF, ending up with SIX viable implanted eggs requiring a selective reduction in order to insure the safety of her and a SAFE amount of fetuses.

I'm Pro Christina who doesn't want to be a mother, but birth control methods sometimes fail.  

I'm Pro Jessica who is FINALLY getting the strength to get away from her physically abusive spouse only to find that she is carrying the monster's child.

I'm Pro Vanessa who went into her confirmation appointment after YEARS of trying to conceive only to hear silence where there should be a heartbeat.

I'm Pro Lindsay who lost her virginity in her sophomore year with a broken condom and now has to choose whether to be a teenage mom or just a teenager.

I'm Pro Courtney who just found out that she's already 13 weeks along, but the egg never made it out of her fallopian tube so either she terminates the pregnancy or risks dying from internal bleeding.

You can argue and say that I'm pro-choice all you want but the truth is:

I'm pro-life

Their lives

Women's lives

You don't get to pick and choose which scenarios should be accepted

Women's rights are meant to protect ALL women, regardless of their situation."

My guess is that this powerful statement was written by someone working with women in situations like those listed in the statement, Possibly a Doctor or Nurse. The statement makes it clear that that there is far more to pregnancy and abortions than simply forcing women to have babies, regardless of their circumstances.

Women deserve to make their own choices regarding what does or does not happen with their pregnancies.  Women deserve the respect of knowing that what happens with their bodies is their choice along with their doctor and no Doctor, Nurse, Secretary or Uber Driver should ever be threatened with jail or being sued because they helped a woman get an abortion.  

We are getting closer and closer to living in a Handmaids Tale existence and no one in their right mind wants that.

I would suggest that anyone who has had to deal with some of the horror stories listed in the previously quoted Facebook Statement on abortion put their stories on You Tube similarly to what was done in the "Me Too" movement.

I would also like to suggest that those of us who are unwilling to live in a real life "Handmaid's Tale" get on the phone to their Senators, especially their Republican Senators and demand that they get busy and codify reasonable Women's Reproductive Rights Legislation now before Samuel Alito's dream becomes a reality.

We should also advise our Reproductive Concerned friends in Congress that instead of only being concerned about keeping a fetus alive that they should give some concern to what happens after a child is born.  Republicans seem to give little or no thought to what happens after a child is born. 

And while we are at it lets let our Senators know that they should wise up when it comes to Advising and Consenting regarding Supreme Court Judges.  

The Rude and Abusive Treatment by some Republican Senators of Judge Katanji Brown in the Judiciary Committee Hearings was disgusting.  

The Republicans should have been thrilled that Joe Biden had nominated a highly qualified and distinguished jurist like Judge Jackson for the Supreme Court.  Instead they treated her Horribly.  She weathered the storm , however, and will soon be joining the court but not in time to prevent this disaster.  

Hopefully Joe Biden might consider putting some additional members on the Supreme Court.

I hear that Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton might be available.

I certainly hope that the Justices of the Supreme Court realize what an awesome responsibility they have and follow through on their pledges not to overturn the "Established Precedent" that they vowed never to alter in their Judiciary Hearings and meetings with Senators and Members of Congress.

Roe Versus Wade is clearly a Fifty Year Established Precedent and should not be overturned, Ever.

Sincerely Yours

Jerry Gallagher

   

    

Happy Easter In Pennsylvania

 Friday, April 22, 2022

My Dear America:

Easter Sunday has always been one of my favorite holidays.  

This year was no exception.

I got up early enough to take a shower and get ready to hit the road to Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, outside of Philadelphia, where my wife and I were invited to visit two of our daughters, along with our youngest Granddaughter and my Temple University Sophomore student older Granddaughter.  Also in attendance at our Easter Dinner was My Son In Law, who cooked a fabulous meal and my future Son In Law who is also a Great Cook.

My Two Philly Area Daughters have been smart enough to recognize that although they have many other fine talents and interests, cooking has never been something that they were very much interested in.  So in their search for soul mates they have chosen wisely.

Both their Guys are Great Cooks.

The weather was cool but sunny on the way down and when we left to come back home we were on the road early enough to catch the last rays of a Beautiful Red  Easter Sundown.

It had been a Great Easter Day for us, we realized.

Early in the morning before we hit the road to Bryn Mawr, I had gotten a chance to watch a program on one of the Philly Stations about the upcoming Primary Elections in Pennsylvania.

Clearly the Republican Primary already had been and was going to continue to be a Shit Show (My Term, not that of the Philly Newsman)  

Donald Trump had just endorsed Mehmet Oz (Doctor Oz, to most of us) and all of the other Trump Ass kissing Senate Candidates in the Primary were pissed off and calling OZ a RINO (A Republican In Name Only)

OZ was not only a RINO but was also a Carpetbagger, who everyone knew lived in New Jersey and had not even had the decency to actually move to Pennsylvania to qualify to run for the Senate in our state. Doctor Oz's rather disgusting efforts to kiss up to Trump had worked.  He had received the much desired endorsement from the Monster From Mara Lago.

Trump had not endorsed anyone for Governor yet but Bill McSwain, who had worked for Trump as a U.S. Attorney in Pennsylvania had received an Unendorsement from Trump because McSwain had apparently had the good sense to tell the truth about Trump's "Big Lie" that he had won the 2020 Election "By A Landslide."  McSwain had angered Trump because he had refused to spend money and time investigating the Voter Fraud that Never Was in Pennsylvania.

McSwain had called Trump's "Big Lie" a Lie and Trump didn't like it one bit.  Trump made it known to Pennsylvania Republicans that he would "NEVER, NEVER, NEVER' Support McSwain.

So far Democrats seemed to be faring better than Republicans in Pennsylvania.  At least Two Were.  

Those two were John Fetterman who was running for Senate 

and

Josh Shapiro who was running for Governor.

Fetterman and Shapiro seemed to be miles ahead of any other Democratic Candidates in their respective Primary Races.  

United States Congressman, Connor Lamb, had been moving up in the Senate race but his Campaign's blatant attempt in their TV Ads to tarnish Fetterman as a "Socialist" seemed to have backfired according to the talking heads on Philly's ABC Station. Although Republicans seemed to be Okay with ripping their opponents apart shark attack style Democrats did not care for Connor Lamb's unfairly trashing Fetterman and Fetterman, to his credit, did not trash talk Connor Lamb or any other Democratic Candidate. That appeared to be a wise move on Fetterman's part.

Although I was very pleased with how Easter had gone, so far, I was surprised and pleased to find out later in the evening that the Showtime TV Network was presenting the first episode of a Television Series that my wife and I had been looking forward to watching.

"The First Lady" was so outstanding that we watched it three times, back to back.

It was a First Class Production starring three well known Actresses playing three well known First Ladies.  

Eleanor Roosevelt was portrayed by Gillian Anderson

Betty Ford was portrayed by Michelle Pfeiffer

And 

Michelle Obama was Portrayed by Viola Davis

The constant switching from one time period to another was a bit annoying at first but I have to admit that the Producers and Director made what could have been distracting and hard to follow into plot lines that were a little hard to follow but in the end made sense. 

Although Keifer Sutherland does not sound like the best choice to portray Franklin Roosevelt, I have to admit that he did an incredible job playing Roosevelt.

Aaron Eckhart again does not at first seem to be the right guy to play Gerald Ford but like his castmate, Keifer Sutherland, he pulled it off with style and authenticity.

The gentleman who played Barack Obama was someone who was unknown to me and just as Sutherland and Eckhart didn't quite look the part this guy didn't look so much like Barack but his speech pattern stunningly was exactly like Obama's.  

The Actresses portraying the First Ladies played their respective First Ladies with skill and obvious empathy for their particular First Ladies.  They did an Awesome job.

Watching "The First Lady" was the perfect way to end a very special Easter Day.

I can't wait to see the next episode this coming Sunday.

If you follow Politics I can't see how you will be disappointed by "The First Lady"

Sincerely Yours

Jerry Gallagher

Living In A World With Monsters In The Backyard

 Saturday, April 16th, 2022

My Dear America:

There was a long gone Racist Governor of Alabama and sometime Presidential Candidate named George Wallace who often used to say the following catch phrase:

"These are the kind of people that I'm Sick and Tired Of"

Suffice it to say that there were a lot of people on that list of individuals who George Wallace was sick and tired of.

These days I find myself with a long list of people who I am sick and tired of also.

First up on my list of people who I am sick and tired of is Vladimir Putin. 

What we are observing daily on Non Traitorous Television these days is the constant Senseless Torturing, Raping and Murdering of innocent Civilian Ukrainians who have unfortunately not been able to get out of their country in time to save their lives. 

Why the hell has Putin the Audacity to feel as though he has the right to send Russian Troops, Tanks and Missles across the Russian border into Ukraine in the first place to destroy what had been up to this point a rather settled Democratic Society where, unlike Russia, most Ukrainian Citizens seemed to be content with their Lives and their Government.   

Putin just couldn't stand the fact that Ukraine was doing well on their own without Russian interference and in his sick despicable mind he thought that the only response that he felt was right about Ukraine was to bomb that country back into the Stone Age.  While the world looks on in disbelief Putin's army has shown itself to be as Monstrous as its leader.  While innocent people are destroyed in mass numbers Russian Television personalities boldly threaten to have their country once again interfere with American Elections and back Putin's American Puppet, Donald Trump, if he runs again in 2024

Putin is the Worst of the Worst but Putin is not the only Heartless Monster running Amok on Planet Earth these days.  He is only the most visible Monster we can see senselessly killing his fellow human beings indiscriminately at the present time.

Today on April 12th, 2022 a train car full of New Yorkers on their way to work or school or somewhere else in their City were surprised to find out that they were unlucky enough to be traveling in a Subway Car with a Monster.  This Monster who was traveling with them on the New York Subway System was carrying a bag that contained a cannister and a Glock Pistol.  The Monster set off the cannister which quickly filled the train car with smoke choking the passengers and then the Monster started firing the Glock Pistol at his fellow passengers.  Luckily for most of the passengers the gun jammed and only 10 people were shot and as of my writing this none of the 10 have died but some are in critical condition.

Unfortunately, the Subway Monster escaped but he was caught soon after his shootout on the New York City Subway System.

Another Monster of Epic Proportions that deserves some mention when we are discussing Monsters is The Monster From Mara Lago.  His name is Donald Trump and one of his most Monstrous Acts is his continuing lying insistence that he won the 2020 Election for President of the United States.  There is no evidence, whatsoever that there is any truth to Trump's Claim but despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary he continues to rake in money from unsuspecting supporters who unfortunately believe his false claims.

Certainly there are no shortage of Monsters living inside the Republican Party these days.  I would certainly put Mitch McConnell and Kevin McCarthy on the list, along with Madison Cawthorn, Matt Gaetz, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Lauren Boebert and Paul Gosar.

There are quite a few Monsters on Television at Fox News these days, not the least of which is Tucker Carlson.  OAN and NEWSMAX have their share of TV Monsters, as well.

But by far Vladimir Putin is in a class by himself when it comes to being a Monster.  Ukraine is not the first country he has devastated with little or no concern about recklessly destroying the lives of human beings.  Like the Psychopath that he is he is he seems to genuinely relish destroying human lives.

He has had plenty of practice killing people in Chechnya and Syria, as well as elsewhere.

To say that Vladimir Putin is Evil is too light a term to describe his reprehensible nature and what he is capable of.  

It is a shame that we are living in a world where someone like Vladimir Putin can move up the ladder in his country by destroying everything and everyone in his path and by so doing not only destroy his own country and that of his neighbors but he seems to be hellbent on destroying democracies everywhere.

Putin's clearly defined interference in the 2016 Election certainly helped to put Donald Trump into the American White House and Donald Trump, Putin's American Patsy and Puppet did the rest to weaken and corrupt our American Democracy and in particular the Republican Party.  

The fact is that the Republican Party seems to have at least some of its leaders if not on Putin's side at least not criticizing Putin for his dreadful senselessly brutal Invasion of his Ukrainian Neighbors.

Unfortunately, since we really don't want to give Putin a reason to launch a Nuclear attack on the United States, we can't really do much to rid the world of Putin.  We are helping Ukraine in its fight for its Democratic Life in those ways that we can but it is tremendously depressing to watch the Country of Ukraine viciously destroyed by the terrible Monster who lives in Ukraine's backyard.

Sincerely Yours

Jerry Gallagher