The LuLac Edition #5, 715, July 16th, 2026

EDITOR'S NOTE:   The stories highlighted in white background are the most trending on LuLac this week.  

 

TRUMP’S POLICE FORCE

ICE STILL KILLING PEOPLE

Not content to continue an unwanted war that will pretty much last forever, the Trump administration’s storm troopers have killed another person. This is a chilling story of American ICE thugs running wild. A federal immigration officer fatally shot a motorist in Maine on Monday, the second time in a week that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents have used deadly force and at least the ninth time since President Donald Trump began his immigration crackdown.

Immigrant rights groups identified the man who was killed as a 26-year-old native of Colombia.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said in a post on the social platform X that ICE was surveilling an address for a person with a final order of removal.

When ICE tried to stop a vehicle driven by someone coming from that address, "The vehicle attempted to flee the scene and, fearing for public safety, an officer discharged his weapon," the department said.

U.S. Sen. Angus King previously said Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin told him the officer opened fire after the man tried to use his vehicle as a weapon against ICE agents in Biddeford, a coastal city roughly 15 miles (24 kilometers) southwest of Portland.

"He was in a vehicle — pulled out in the vehicle, and the term the secretary used was 'weaponized' the vehicle and was shot by an ICE agent," King said.

King, a Maine independent, said Mullin also told him the officers were in Biddeford to serve an arrest warrant but that it was for not for the person who was shot.

King said Mullin told him that earlier information that the man was the target of an enforcement action was incorrect. He said Mullin "got new information, and when he got it he called me to tell me."

Sen. Susan Collins, a Maine Republican, said Mullin told her the Homeland Security Department's Office of Inspector General is investigating in cooperation with the FBI.

Messages seeking comment were left for the inspector general's office and the Maine Department of Public Safety.

The Maine attorney general's office, which is also investigating, said initial statements suggest the motorist was trying to flee in the direction of the agent. The office said the agent who killed him has been placed on leave.

Witness says he heard driver say, 'I tried to stop'

Daniel Boucher said he looked out his third-floor window after hearing a "pop, pop, pop" sound and saw a small car "turned 90 degrees to the curb" with an SUV behind it. The driver was wounded and the car started moving down the street until the SUV hit it again, Boucher said.

"His face was bloody. His head was bloody," Boucher said, getting choked up. "I clearly heard the victim say, 'I tried to stop' — clearly heard him say that."

Boucher said he saw an ICE officer bring a medical bag to where the man was lying before an ambulance and fire truck arrived. At one point, Boucher said, the agent who shot the man walked close to him.

"I was emotional and I just let him have it, and he looked at me and said, 'He tried to run me over,' or something to that effect," Boucher said. "I don't remember his exact words."

The agents involved in the shooting didn't have body-worn cameras, King said.

"The question is: What did he do with his vehicle?" King said. "Were officers threatened? Were the threats rising to the level that justified deadly force?"

The man was authorized to work in the US, advocates say

Two advocacy groups — the Maine Immigrants' Rights Coalition and Presente! — said the man who was killed was authorized to work in the U.S.

After the shooting, his family contacted the Immigrants' Rights Coalition, but they aren't ready to speak publicly about the shooting, said the group's executive director, Mufalo Chitam.

Mary Hayes, who lives close to where the shooting happened, said the man lived nearby with his wife and daughter.

HIS THREE YEAR OLD DAUGHTER!  (MSN, Yahoo News, LuLac) 

 

TOO LITTLE TOO LATE

Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents have reportedly been instructed to no longer perform traffic stops after officers fatally shot two drivers in Texas and Maine within a week.

The guidance marks a major policy shift in the Trump administration’s sweeping efforts to swiftly arrest and deport tens of thousands of people under a government-wide mass deportation campaign.

New guidance for ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations officers reportedly instructs agents to work with partner agencies to perform the stops if executing a criminal warrant, according to sources speaking to CNN and CBS.

Homeland Security has routinely justified shootings with claims that an arrest target has tried to run over agents only for evidence to emerge that contradicts the government’s statements. The administration’s initial statements in the wake of Salgado Araujo’s shooting have also come under intense scrutiny after witnesses disputed the government’s official narrative.

Agents have shot at least 20 people within the last year, and nearly all of them were in their cars.

More than 11 hours after an officer fatally shot Guerrero on Monday morning, a spokesperson for ICE said officers “attempted to conduct a vehicle stop” when “the vehicle attempted to flee the scene.” An officer who was “fearing for public safety” then fired his weapon, according to the spokesperson.

I guess the itty bitty ICE pigs are scared of vehicles with moms, dads, working people who are just trying to LIVE THEIR LIVES. ( NBC, LuLac)  

 

LUZERNE COUNTY

GOP  

 LOVE ICE

The Republicans in Luzerne County put up this sign saying that the Luzerne County Council members are anti ICE. Well if that’s the case, that means the Democrats on Council mean they are for life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

By declaring they are PRO ICE, the REPUBLICAN PARTY IN LUZERNE COUNTY IS FOR KILLING PEOPLE!

 

TRUMP DROPS PLAN TO CHARGE SHIPS IN STRAIT OF HORMUZ AHEAD OF DEADLINE FOR US BLOCKADE

The U.S. military said it will resume its blockade of Iranian ports in the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET after U.S. President Donald Trump vowed to reinstate it. The president, however, reversed his plan to charge a 20% toll on cargo traveling through the strait. Instead, Middle Eastern countries will make investment and trade deals with the U.S., Trump said on social media.

Yeah, we’ll wait to see how that will last.

 

PETITION ADVOCATES TOLD “NOT HERE”

It appears the triad of crazy, chaos, and crass has been championed by those Republicans who are doing a petition drive. My sources tell me they want to show up at county wide places of worship to get petitions signed for a place on the ballot to repeal the Anti-discrimination ordinance passed by the duly elected County Council last November. Like spoiled children certain right-wing groups of the Republicans are trying to undermine the government that booted them out.

Normal Republicans who are friends of mine say these extreme groups are the reason why the County now has a Democratic majority on Council. That majority won with a Republican registration lead.

Gee. Wonder why.

Anyway this Republican petition group showed up at the Back Mountain Library Auction last week without notice I’m told and were asked to leave because they thought the library  was a going to welcome them with open arms., THEY DIDN’T.

Meanwhile they decided to go to church bazaars. While attending an event is one thing, advocating a government function masquerading its political implications may not be a good idea either. We made a call to the Scranton Diocese and their position on this is that anything to do with a political issue at a church or the church grounds is frowned upon. In other words, OFF LIMITS. 

These Convenient  Constitutionlists only follow the document when it suits their purposes. 

 

 

GOVERNOR SHAPIRO SIGNS $50.8B BIPARTISAN PENNSYLVANIA BUDGET

Governor Josh Shapiro signed Pennsylvania’s 2026–27 state budget into law on July 12, 2026, after both chambers of the legislature passed a $50.8 billion spending plan with bipartisan support.

Key Facts

Size & Composition: Smaller than Shapiro’s original $53.3 billion proposal but larger than last year’s $50.1 billion budget.

Fiscal Approach: No new broad-based tax increases; does not draw from the state’s $8 billion Rainy Day Fund.

Omitted Priorities: No legalization/taxation of recreational marijuana, no minimum wage increase (federal $7.25)

Bipartisan Outcome: Passed Senate 44–6 and House 167–35.

Major Investments

Education: Over $900 million in new funding, including:

$565M for adequacy and property tax equity (structural $50K increase per district)

$100M for public school safety and mental health grants, plus $20.7M for nonpublic schools.

$58M Basic Education Funding and $55M Special Education Funding.

$41M for early intervention services

Workforce Development: Expanded Vo-Tech and other training initiatives.

Public safety: Nearly 400 more state troopers, expanded mental health services.

Economy: Support for startups via a new Innovate in PA 2.0 tax credit program City & State Pennsylvania.

Infrastructure: Funding for road repairs and farmer relief.

Social Programs: Cost-of-living adjustment for public worker pensions (retirees before 2002)

SNAP Security: $7M to replace magnetic-stripe SNAP cards with chip-enabled ones to combat fraud.

Compromises & Highlights

Avoided Medicaid cuts and maintained all adequacy funding.

Relied on reallocating unused executive branch funds rather than emergency reserves.

Included new data center utility reporting requirements.

Shapiro emphasized avoiding cuts to core priorities like schools, safety, and economic growth.

 

SCRANTON MAYOR AND CANDIDATE FOR CONGRESS IN PENNSYLVANIA’S 8TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT PAIGE COGNETTI  UNVEILED HER ANTI-CORRUPTION AGENDA TO CLEAN UP WASHINGTON. AT A PRESS CONFERENCE THIS AFTERNOON IN SCRANTON, PAIGE DETAILED HER PLAN TO FIGHT FOR REFORM, TRANSPARENCY, AND ACCOUNTABILITY IN CONGRESS.

“People want a government that works. They know the system is rigged against them and they’re sick of it. I first ran for public office to take on a corrupt Democratic establishment that was using local government to enrich themselves. Now, I’m running for Congress with that same mission to take on corruption wherever we see it,” said Mayor Paige. “We are tired of Washington politicians enriching themselves while selling us out. Members of Congress have created a system where the rules apply to the rest of us, but not to them. We all know that’s wrong and I’m running to change it.”

Ban Congressional Stock Trading: Corrupt politicians in both parties have been taking advantage of their constituents’ trust for too long and Congressman Rob Bresnahan is only the newest offender.  Members of Congress consistently trade stocks in companies that directly intersect with their work on congressional committees. They sit in classified briefings, hear economic forecasts before the public does, and vote on legislation that can make or break entire industries. This is the definition of public corruption. I don’t own any individual stocks, and if elected, I won’t buy or trade them, period. I will fight to pass a ban on members of Congress trading stocks so that the people of Northeastern Pennsylvania and Americans everywhere don’t have to wonder if their representative is working to serve their community, or to enrich themselves.

Ban Corporate PAC Donations: Big corporations have too much influence on our politics. They buy our elected leaders, shape our policy, and use our federal government as a tool to protect their interests and push the priorities of working families to the sidelines. Congressman Bresnahan, has taken over $267,000 from these corporate PACs. As a candidate for Congress, I don’t take a dime from corporate PACs. As a member of Congress, I will propose legislation to ban corporate PAC donations to federal campaigns. The meetings our Representatives take and the priorities they fight for should be dictated by what is best for their districts, not a corporate lobbyist coming with a check.

No Budget, No Pay: Just last year, we had the longest government shutdown in history, lasting 43 days. Hundreds of thousands of federal workers went without paychecks and veterans’ services were delayed. Yet through it all, Congress members continued to collect their salaries without interruption. No ordinary American gets paid when they fail to do their job, and neither should Congress. I will fight to pass a No Budget, No Pay bill to withhold members’ pay until a budget is passed, ensuring that members of Congress feel the consequences of their failures like everyone else does. Northeastern Pennsylvanians work hard and punch the clock to earn their paychecks. Washington shouldn’t be any different.

Term Limits: Our elected officials are supposed to work for the people they were elected to serve. But too many Washington politicians have forgotten who they work for. There are members of Congress who have gotten too comfortable and have stayed too long. I will fight to pass a constitutional amendment establishing term limits: 18 years for members of the House of Representatives, 18 years for Senators. We should also apply the 18 year standard to Supreme Court justices so that the structure no longer incentivizes Justices to serve well past their ability to do so and the Court ceases to become a place of constant gamesmanship.

Audit the Government: The federal government spends trillions of our tax dollars every year. The American people are owed a full accounting of every dollar spent in their name. It’s the bare minimum needed to restore trust in our federal government.  In Congress, I will fight for a comprehensive, mandatory, independent audit of every federal agency. In Scranton, we made tough decisions with a red pen to turn our city’s finances around. We balanced the budget for the first time in decades and brought our city back from junk bond status to A- credit rating. We need more fiscal responsibility in Washington, and I’ll bring my red pen with me to Congress. A person that can’t account for their spending gets their credit card cut off. Congress should face the same consequences. The federal government audits agencies year after year, but there aren’t meaningful enforcement mechanisms to address findings. I will fight to make sure agencies that fail their audits are legally required to address every finding before Congress approves their next budget.

Ban Members of Congress from Becoming Lobbyists: Under current law, former members of Congress must wait just one year before lobbying their former colleagues; Senators must wait two. After that, there are virtually no restrictions. Corporations pay a premium for former members of Congress precisely because of their access to and relationships with their former colleagues. After being elected to serve their constituents, these members cash in, further stacking the deck against regular Americans in corporations’ favor. Enough is enough. I will push to permanently ban members of Congress from becoming lobbyists.

Ban members of Congress from Serving on Corporate Boards: Current rules technically bar members from being paid for this service, but sitting on a board builds the relationships, loyalties, and goodwill that translate into a lucrative payday the moment they leave office. Former members who land corporate board seats average over $350,000 a year, twice their congressional salary. In Congress, I will fight to pass legislation banning members from serving on corporate boards while in office. Congressional members are elected to serve the people. You cannot do that job while answering to a corporate boardroom. 

Ban Prediction Market Gambling on War, Elections, and Government Activity: Prediction markets have exploded in the past year, offering the wealthy and well-connected a chance to cash in on their insider knowledge of elections, acts of war, and government decisions. As the war in Iran sent financial markets into chaos, insiders were making millions on prediction markets, placing suspiciously-timed bets on military strikes before they happened. Ordinary Americans were watching their retirement accounts take a hit while the well-connected cashed in. It needs to be banned for Members of Congress and their staff.

Paige is a reformer who’s proven she will challenge the system, root out waste, fraud, and abuse, and deliver results for the people of Northeastern Pennsylvania. This policy agenda is just step one.

 

BRESNAHAN LEADS PUSH WITH TROOPERS, TRUCKERS TO CLOSE DANGEROUS CDL LOOPHOLES

U.S. Representative Rob Bresnahan, Jr. held a press conference with the Pennsylvania State Troopers Association and the Pennsylvania Motor Truck Association calling for reforms to current Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) regulations.

“When individual states fail to enforce the rules for CDLs, citizens and law enforcement in every state pay the price,” said Rep. Bresnahan. “With five major interstates running through our district, Northeastern Pennsylvania sits at the crossroads of our nation’s supply chain, which means thousands of trucks are on our roads every day. That’s a tremendous economic asset, but it also means we have an obligation to make sure the people behind the wheel are properly qualified.”

The press conference paused for a moment of silence to remember PA State Trooper Michael Pahira, who was killed in the line of duty by an illegal immigrant operating a tractor-trailer just two weeks before.

“I want to take a moment to remember Pennsylvania State Trooper Michael Pahira, who was killed in the line of duty earlier this month,” said Rep. Bresnahan. “Our thoughts and prayers remain with his family, fellow troopers, and all who knew and loved him. Trooper Pahira made the ultimate sacrifice protecting the people of Pennsylvania.”

Rep. Bresnahan was joined by Pennsylvania State Troopers Association (PSTA) President Stephen Polishan, Pennsylvania Motor Truck Association (PMTA) President and CEO Rebecca Oyler, Calex Logistics COO Tommy Grimes, PSTA Vice President Mike Kozma, and Paul Bickelman Memorial Lodge #46 President Greg Emiliani.

Press conference participants spoke in support of Dalilah’s Law, legislation that would ensure all CDL holders in the United States understand English and requires states to verify they are not issuing CDLs to illegal immigrants.

“Handing out CDLs to illegal immigrants is not a safe policy, for any state, and that’s exactly why Dalilah’s Law was introduced,” continued Rep. Bresnahan. “At a minimum, anyone entrusted with operating an 80,000-pound commercial vehicle should be legally authorized to hold a CDL and be able to communicate in English. I was proud to cosponsor Dalilah’s Law and support it in the House T&I Committee, and I will continue to push adamantly to get this to the President’s desk.”

The legislation is named in honor of Dalilah Coleman, who was only five years old when she was struck by an illegal alien driving a semi-truck, resulting in permanent injuries.

Specifically, Dalilah’s Law:

•        Ensures all CDL holders understand English, roads signs, and law enforcement officers;

•        Places drivers who fail to meet the Law’s requirements and safety standards out-of-service;

•        Requires states to verify that they are not issuing CDLs to illegal immigrants;

•        Significantly increases penalties for states failing to comply with the Law, by withholding of Federal funds;

•        Bans shady foreign dispatch services and brokers, who have fueled a surge in freight fraud and cargo theft; and

•        Cracks down on “CDL mills” to ensure drivers entering the industry are receiving adequate training.

 

 

'A TENACIOUS COMMITMENT TO STRENGTHENING PROTECTIVE SERVICES': SHAPIRO ADMINISTRATION LAUNCHES STATEWIDE TOUR HIGHLIGHTING MODERNIZED TOOL KEEPING OLDER ADULTS SAFE AND BOOSTING OVERSIGHT, ACCOUNTABILITY OF LOCAL AGING AGENCIES

The Shapiro administration launches a statewide tour highlighting a modernized tool aimed at keeping older adults safe and boosting oversight of local aging agencies, in Eddystone, PA this past Monday.

One day after Governor Josh Shapiro signed the 2026-27 budget into law, the Pennsylvania Department of Aging (PDA)  kicked off a statewide tour highlighting how the Department's new approach to evaluating the performance of older adult protective services is delivering better results in keeping older adults safe, leaving behind a prior ineffective pass/fail system that did not provide adequate oversight of local aging agencies.

That tool, the Comprehensive Aging Performance Evaluation (CAPE), is also providing historic levels of transparency and accountability of the Area Agency on Aging (AAA) network that provides an array of services to support older adults, including protective services. In the 26-27 budget, Governor Shapiro secured a $1 million increase for CAPE so the Department can continue to improve AAA oversight and accountability.

"Older adults in Pennsylvania deserve a modernized system that helps them stay safe and supported, healthy and thriving, but our infrastructure had not kept pace with the growing and changing needs of older adults," said Secretary of Aging Jason Kavulich. "Our administration took this challenge head on and is making overdue system improvements. CAPEallows the Department to do away with a simple pass/fail scoring system, and instead comprehensively ask, 'what does this local agency specifically need to improve?'"

 

MEDIA MATTERS

WVIA NEWS

THE LATE BILL KELLY HONORED AT DEDICATION CEREMONY

We were very happy and honored to attend the ceremony for the invite to celebrate the dedication of WVIA's Bill Kelly Center for Local Content & Storytelling. It was a memorable day honoring Bill Kelly's enduring legacy and celebrating the lasting impact his work continues to have on our station and the communities WVIA serves. Kelly was the driving force for years at WVIA and melded his broadcast expertise along with fundraising ability and advocacy. Current GM Kala McCabe said that “Bill would have been proud to see our newly renovated headquarters, the launch of WVIA News, and the reimagining of the WVIA Business Journal—initiatives that reflect his unwavering belief in the power of local journalism and public media. Bill was dedicated to ensuring WVIA would remain a strong and trusted resource for our community. We are honored to carry that legacy forward as we continue to steward WVIA's mission and serve everyone who calls our region home for generations to come.” As for me, it was a tribute to a man who gave me the best advice any person could ever get from their boss. “I hired you, don’t make me look bad”. For me was a recipe of success. But along with that, he inspired confidence in me and business life lessons that have served me well. When we met up after he retired from WVIA, Bill was under the impression that LuLac was my main job. He mentioned that the site was synonymous with what he called “my brand”. I never thought of it that way and it made me do better with this project. Bill passed away way too young but his legacy is permanent in local broadcast history. I was honored to have my picture taken with his “corner” of the WVIA facility and say  few words.

 

WALN

BOLD GOLD COMMUNITY FORUM

You'll hear the program Sunday at 6 on 94.3 The Talker; 6:30 on 1400 am The Mothership and 7:30 am on 105 The River.

 

THE LAURIE CADDEN SHOW

Tune in every Saturday morning at 9am for The Laurie Cadden Show on WILK FM 103.1 and AM 980 and 910. Laurie’s program has been a northeastern Pennsylvania mainstay every Saturday. Tune in to hear her insights and take on local issues as well as entertaining and informative interviews.

 

BOBBY V’S DOO WOP SUNDAY NIGHT SOCK HOP

 

BEATLE EDD’S FAB FOUR MUSIC HOUR

Tune in every week to the Home of Rock and Roll for a jam packed, unpredictable hour starting at 9am Sundays. Host Edd Raineri gives you facts and great music from the immortal Fab Four on ROCK 107.

 

THE LULAC TIME MACHINE

ALL STAR GAME

July 1964

The 1964 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was the 35th midseason exhibition between the all-stars of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL), the two leagues comprising Major League Baseball. The game was played on July 7, 1964, at Shea Stadium in Queens, New York City, home of the New York Mets of the National League. The game was a 7–4 victory for the NL. Johnny Callison hit a walk-off home run, the most recent MLB All-Star game to end in such a fashion.

National League starter Don Drysdale gave up a leadoff single to Jim Fregosi, who scored on a passed ball and single by Harmon Killebrew.

The NL took the lead in the fourth on a pair of home runs by Billy Williams and Ken Boyer off AL reliever John Wyatt, then made it 3–1 in the fifth on a Roberto Clemente single and Dick Groat double off Camilo Pascual.

The score was tied in the sixth when Mickey Mantle and Killebrew singled and scored on a Brooks Robinson triple to right-center. The AL regained the lead 4–3 in the seventh. Elston Howard was hit by a pitch by Turk Farrell, took third on a Rocky Colavito double and scored on Fregosi's sacrifice fly.

It remained 4–3 until the bottom of the ninth. Dick Radatz issued a leadoff walk to Willie Mays, who stole second. Orlando Cepeda singled him home with the tying run and took second on an error. With Curt Flood pinch-running for Cepeda and Johnny Edwards on first with an intentional walk, Johnny Callison's three-run homer to deep right field ended the game. It was an exciting day time game and that week in 1964 the number one song in LuLac land and America was “I Get Around” by the Beach Boys.

The LuLac Edition #5, 714, July 15th, 2026

 WRITE ON WEDNESDAY 

Our "Write on Wednesday" logo 

This week we loom at a recap of the Trump 4th of July celebration and how it went over with his MAGA followers. Did they get treated right or like cattle? You be the judge.  

 

AUTOPSY ON TRUMP'S 250th PARTY  

Hours before Donald Trump addressed the nation on its 250th anniversary, the National Mall was in chaos. A storm was on the way, and law enforcement had ordered the MAGA faithful to evacuate — a process that did not go smoothly. People had waited in the extreme heat for hours to celebrate Trump and America; now they argued with the Secret Service and chanted “USA, USA” out of fury. As the lightning descended, the New York Times liveblog began to sound a little incredulous. A Times reporter heard a man blame the order on “liberals in the weather service.” Crowds seeking shelter found nearby buildings locked up for the holiday. An officer in front of the Commerce Department “shrugged” when someone asked him how to get inside, the liveblog noted. Others huddled inside the National Museum of African American History and Culture. Although Trump eventually appeared on the Mall for his speech, the spectacle had grown damp and strange, a fitting conclusion to months of disorder.

By now the mess is familiar. The Great American State Fair attracted small crowds; some states even declined to participate. Bret Michaels backed out, and so did Martina McBride. The Real Milli Vanilli said they would not perform. When a Washingtonian reporter visited the scene, an Evangelical preacher was holding forth from the main stage without an introduction; “the handful of other spectators” said they don’t know who he is. A mock-up of Trump’s triumphal arch oozed a puslike substance, and a robot dog danced alone in the mud. Nearby, the reflecting pool sat green and full of algae, lethal to ducklings and irresistible to protesters, who demonstrated next to it in costume. A grand jury indicted an Olympic canoe racer for touching a piece of the pool’s disintegrating bottom liner. Two days before the storm, a portion of the stage broke off and nearly struck dancers who were in the middle of a rehearsal.

Trump’s tastes have always been entertaining, if garish. Lately, though, the seams are fraying. Last weekend’s semiquincentennial shitshow is almost the least of it: The White House is now a construction site, and the entrance of the Kennedy Center is covered by scaffolds and wrapping. A spokesperson for the center told The Atlantic that the tarps are there for a maintenance project, but they also hide the building’s name, which, because of a recent court order, is no longer Trump’s. The landscape is ugly. Worse, it’s dull. If Trump can’t throw a good party or make everything golden, what’s left? Loyalists have leaned on MAGA for glitz and a little excitement. Without spectacle, the future of the movement is in jeopardy.

In 2015 and 2016, Trump’s rallies were notoriously extravagant. The crowds grew, inexorably; they fawned, as no one has ever fawned over Ted Cruz. Against a star-spangled backdrop in state after state, Trump made the mob laugh and channeled its libidinal hatred. He returned to the same lines, played the same songs, and it generated a kind of emotional bond among the crowd. People wept. At times, the frenzy spilled into violence. Trump said he’d like to punch a protester in the face, and some events broke out into brawls. Protesters “walk in and they put their hand up and they put the wrong finger in the air … and they get away with murder. Because we’ve become weak,” he said at one event in Fayetteville, North Carolina. As the election approached and stories of Trump’s sexual misconduct went public, rallygoers started booing the press at his urging. “For them, it’s a war,” he said of the media. The crowd cheered.

, The vibe reminded me of worship services I’ve attended, but there are other, secular antecedents for the role of spectacle in the MAGA world. The tea party has always known how to make itself the center of our attention. People dressed up as various Founding Fathers and warned of death panels. In college, I attended one rally in Springfield, Ohio, and observed a middle-aged white man wearing heavy chains, which he would rattle to make a point about the injustice of taxation. A report in The New Yorker described the feeling as one of “festive despair,” fed by grievance. Texas Monthly saw George Washington on horseback, leading rallygoers in “a rag-tag march” around the state capitol before asking them to “swear an oath of enlistment” to his cause. Participants thought D.C. could not hear them so they made themselves obnoxious — so successfully they and their moneyed patrons reshaped the Republican Party. The tea party was not a cult of personality, like MAGA, but theatricality was key to the movement. It sparked interest.

Before the tea party, there was George Wallace and his third-party run for president in 1968. A vicious segregationist, Wallace ran on racial hierarchy — or law and order, as his modern-day compatriots like to call it. Wallace had flair, if nothing else; a country-boy affect and slapstick grin helped him sell the poison. In Alabama, a rioter “gets a bullet in the brain, that’s all,” he said that year. He kept his fans laughing and worked them into ecstasy. The writer Garry Wills described a Wallace rally in Nixon Agonistes: The Crisis of the Self-Made Man, in grotesque terms. “This middle-aged group, so critical of the hippies’ four-letter words and ‘immorality,’ had already, at eight o’clock, donned the ten-o’clock faces of an all-night party at the Elks Club,” he wrote. Wallace radiated “a gritty nimbus of piety, violence, sex.” He railed against communists and journalists and the ungrateful youth of America while supporters honked their air horns and shook their fists at hecklers in their midst. “Their happiness is enough to break the heart,” Wills wrote. Wallace lost, but the Equal Justice Initiative says he is still “the most successful and popular independent candidate in modern presidential election history,” having won 10,000,000 votes during the general election and the electoral votes of five southern states.

As with Trump, hate was as much a part of Wallace’s campaign as the spectacle. To his followers, he pledged counterrevolution, the revival of their power over Black Americans. The tea party began, arguably, with Rick Santelli’s rant against foreclosure aid to struggling homeowners. From there, it absorbed various outrages — over big government and health-care reform and taxes — represented by the nation’s first Black president. MAGA combines the same counterrevolutionary fervor and racial prejudice with standard conservative policies and the father worship of Donald Trump, plus a kind of joie de vivre that anticipates better days ahead. If Trump can’t sustain that energy through rallies and fun and whatever else he dreams up, he looks less like an idol and more like a man. For now, grocery prices are high, people are losing their health care, and the job market looks weak. Deportations are up, congratulations to all, but wailing children and dead protesters leave an impression.

There won’t be a mass epiphany within MAGA. Online, the most conspiratorial Trump supporters blamed sabotage for the Fourth of July weather; there are traces of Jade Helm to be seen. But others may experience something more subtle, like the sense of being had. Trump understands his vulnerability, on some level, which is why he is obsessed with the size of his crowds. Without them, he’s just another president. In the absence of spectacle, corruption and cruelty are more difficult to ignore.  MSN NEWS, LuLac) 

 

,

The LuLac Political Letter #5, 713, July 14th, 2026

 

 

FETTERMAN’S COMMENTS ON GRAHAM’S DEATH

In the wake of Lindsey Graham's death, fellow U.S. Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pennsylvania, joined numerous politicians from both sides of the aisle in fondly remembering the U.S. senator from South Carolina.

Early in the morning on July 12, 2026, Graham's office said in a statement that he had died the previous evening from a tear in his main artery caused by hardened arteries. He was 71.

Graham was a staunch ally of President Donald Trump and became one of Washington's most influential Republicans, championing foreign American military power and playing a key role as conservatives reshaped the federal judiciary.

This is what Fetterman said in the wake of his death.

Fetterman took to X on July 12 just after 7:45 a.m. to issue a statement on Graham's death.

"Sudden and awful news about Senator Lindsey Graham," Fetterman said. "The United States Senate lost a foreign policy giant. On a personal level, he had always been kind, gracious, and thoughtful. Gisele and I extend our deepest condolences to his family, friends, and staff."

Trump, Biden, global politicians react to Lindsey Graham's death

Immediately following the announcement of Graham's death, leaders from around the globe expressed their shock at the news and remembered Graham fondly.

Trump told Reuters he spoke to Graham minutes before Graham because ill. He ordered flags to be lowered in Graham's honor.

 

AND FROM SENATOR McCORMICK

Dina and I are deeply saddened by the sudden loss of our friend, Lindsey Graham. South Carolina and our nation have lost a devoted public servant, patriot, and good man. Lindsey poured his heart into fighting for the people of South Carolina, for a strong U.S. military in which he served, and for keeping the American people safe and free.

We will miss Lindsey’s legendary wit and his infectious passion for causes greater than himself.

We are praying for his family, staff, and friends.

 

DAN MEUSER WEIGHS IN

Pennsylvania Congressman Dan Meuser (R-Luzerne), representing the 9th congressional district, publicly expressed his condolences to the late Sen. Lindsey Graham (R‑South Carolina) following Graham’s sudden death at age 71. Graham’s office confirmed he passed away from a “brief and sudden illness” shortly after returning from a trip to Kyiv, Ukraine, where he met with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy WPMT FOX43+1.

In a Facebook post, Meuser described Graham as “tough, hard‑working, and dedicated”, noting that he was “never afraid to fight for what was right.” Meuser said he had known Graham both professionally and personally over the years, including a recent lunch where Graham gave him a hat reading “Make Iran Great Again.” Meuser explained Graham’s stated goal was to free the Iranian people from what he called a “terrorist regime” and allow them “lives of opportunity and freedom, not fear” 

Meuser also emphasized Graham’s influence in Washington, calling him “a force in Washington” and saying he would be “truly missed.” He and his wife, Shelley, are keeping Graham’s family, loved ones, and the people of South Carolina in their thoughts and prayers.