Ballroom blitz: American politics April 2026

On we go.

He's lost Alex Jones: https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/us-politics/alex-jones-trump-health-dementia-b2949803.html

Right-wing conspiracy theorist Alex Jones tore into his one-time political hero, President Trump, yesterday, claiming that the commander-in-chief was in “free fall.”

... On Tuesday’s episode of The Alex Jones Show, the host took aim at Trump’s health, comparing the president’s current state to his late grandfather’s decline due to dementia.

I watched some of his weirdass speech last night, he sounds like he's 150 years old

idk why jd vance hasnt killed him yet

Because then JD can only run for one more term. If he waits until just past the halfway point of the term to kill him (or have some Peter Thiel lethal nanobot do it), then Vance could theoretically be president for nearly 10 years. This has been my personal pet conspiracy theory since day 1, and I'm sticking to it until proven otherwise.

oh ok that makes sense i didnt know that rule

if JD Vance ran for President he'd probably lose all 50 states

yeah but jd vance doesnt know that

I believe that too. But hear me out, in my conspiracy theory, they make it look like an assassination by trans-antifa-Muslim-Mexican drug cartels, declare emergency martial law because the U.S. is under terrorist attack, deploy the military in every major city, and arrest anyone caught celebrating Trump's death on social media or otherwise. Hegseth would have to be on board with this obviously, but of course he would be. The social media/tech oligarchs all cooperate and shut down dissent. The Democratic Party is declared a terrorist organization and barred from participating in elections. And off we go.

There are some weaknesses to this plan! But if I were Peter Thiel, I don't know why I wouldn't try it. The upside is you get control of the country. The downside is you go into exile somewhere and let Vance and Hegseth take the fall.

speaking of JD, did you all already see this on Tressie McMillan Cottom's bluesky?

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:fjiupdolgwv45olxgrqgfhjk/bafkreiggnzigq2niw7f7uj422ahe6bmys3crfid7cp4o2owye77s74dnre

He's the Pat Boone of confessional right-wing memoirs.

I know you’re just describing a tinfoil-hat conspiracy theory but it would be hard to deploy the military all over the US when they are dying in Iran

that's what ICE is for

Yes, like I said, some weaknesses.

But you have to remember, Thiel is running around giving weirdo lectures about the coming of the Antichrist.

the way aliens and UFOs keep coming up, I'm starting to wonder if they're working on the dumbest possible version of the Watchmen ploy

Oh yeah Stephen Miller is obviously part of the plot too, right. He oversees ICE and the massive gulag of detention centers (that they are in real life currently building).

arrest anyone caught celebrating Trump's death on social media or otherwise

would be hard to arrest everyone

You start with the big social media accounts, don't bother with anyone under 10k followers at first.

i dont think a big speech crack down is the way to go better to frame the security measures as a defense against foreign enemies

the whole ICE at the polls thing seems incredibly naive. the explosion on social media of photos and video of masked thugs with machine guns at polling stations... they want to turn voting from a tedious chore into a thrilling act of rebellion against Trump? great strategy guys.

xp Well I'm just blueskying, you know. We can get Sam Altman to run some scenarios for us.

lol

And yeah in real world USA the enthusiasm of the average person for having armed thugs popping up at airports and polling places and Home Depot and Target was vastly overestimated by Miller and Noem.

no one is saying theyre the smartest

I think the overall threat of ICE at polls is exaggerated, but I could see some US citizens, who are nonetheless at risk of being Kavanaugh-detained by ICE, being intimidated away. maybe not enough to do affect any elections, but also not something to just shrug at.

I feel like in the win-lose dynamic of American Politics, the less conspicuous corrosion and degradation of daily life gets overlooked at times

like ICE-at-polls sucks real real bad even if it doesn't "work"

voters should carry ice-picks with them to vote in case there's any trouble

I guess I'm going to continue to be baffled by how sanguine so many otherwise smart people are choosing to be about the rapid descent of US into fascism

elections are already not free and fair ... any pressure that's exerted will not be felt evenly everywhere, but small margins can produce big results in our system.

feel like most people are not too sanguine about it

threat is exaggerated, maybe won't affect elections

?

It could definitely have an intimidating effect. But a big challenge is the current nature of voting, where so much of it is done early and/or by mail. Which I think is one reason why there's enthusiasm on the right for clamping down on those, trying to force everything into Election Day voting where you have maximum chance for intimidation at scale. The problem they're having with that even in red states, though, is that Republicans vote early just as much as Democrats, and nearly as much by mail (used to be more by mail until Trump made a big thing of it). There was a proposal here in Tennessee the other year to cut back on early voting, and most of the Republican legislators didn't want anything to do with it because their voters like early voting.

maybe won't affect elections

I just don't like making predictions / claiming certainty about future events is extremely tiresome poster behaviour imho

which equally applies to "there's nothing to worry about" tbc

I mean the carnival of horrors won't leave town until the GOP are no longer controlling Congress so given awful shit like ICE agents skulking around polling locations is a fait accompli, it's worth noting that for as many vulnerable people who it keeps away from the polls it's got a very good chance of driving a lot more people to them. these are after all the same geniuses who woke up and decided to start a war with Iran before lunchtime.

hell even if they kept the polls whites-only Trump
and the Republicans are underwater now with them and gas prices aren’t getting cheaper (the only thing white people care about)

They also care about the price of eggs!

I get that winning is important but to Cattedrale's point, it is kinda wild to posit "if they kept the polls whites-only" as an obstacle that can be overcome

Shelby Talcott @ShelbyTalcott

News: The president has informed Pam Bondi that her time as AG is nearing an end, multiple sources tell me.

Formal announcement hasn’t yet come aka all the normal caveats that he could change his mind apply; he’s been speaking with advisors on a possible replacement in recent days (as others have reported this week) and Bondi is aware of that as well.

x.com/ShelbyTalcott/status/2039710898621669569

The military just walked back (sort of) "ICE will be at Marine Corps graduations," saying it was all a misunderstanding. DO invite your abuela.

Which of course may itself be exactly what you would say if you wanted to deport the relatives of Marines.

But at least it shows some dim glimmer of awareness of public opinion?

wonder if this administration has a history of saying they're not gonna do things and then doing them anyway

If Trump really wanted a slam dunk, he would send ICE - the best of the best, true heroes - to Iran to seize their uranium and secure the oil.

News: The president has informed Pam Bondi that her time as AG is nearing an end, multiple sources tell me.

Must have been tough on him, you know he hates to have to fire somebody

So surprised that his first high-profile firings are both women.

psh, probably DEI hires

Do they get their old faces back or

oof

outside of pure misogyny, what is the reason for firing Pam Bondi? Do they think Lee Zeldin will be able to bring even more vindictive prosecutions?

Will he be able to hold back the Epstein files even more?

I think it's more that she broke the cardinal rule of "never make Trump look bad"

yeah and pro-gun in Maine probably means something different than Texas

like can y'all not envision why a rural trans person might not want to go through a background check (sorry for light trolling/hypotheticals but I do actually know people like that)

― Serfin' USA (sleeve), Thursday, April 30, 2026 3:28 PM (ten minutes ago)

(I know you aren't being serious but I just looked at the suicide stats so I'm feeling humourless)

I can envision this but who cares? this doesn't even remotely convince me it's a good idea to let people buy guns who are subject to a restraining order or have a DV charge, sorry

well to be fair that's why I then said it was still a net negative, for exactly those reasons

that is totally fair, we're cool :)

since all this does is let people who can't pass a background check buy a gun, I'm not sure I get what the positive reverso scenario we're meant to imagine is?

I'm anti-gun and pro-gun-regulation-to-the-hilt, but ... to unspool the issue a little, a lot of people blocked from having guns are people convicted of felonies, and those of course tend to be disproportionately poor and nonwhite. So there is an arguable anti-carceral-state position there for background check loopholes. I personally would make it harder for everyone to get guns, to be clear.

I'm kind of 180 degrees from tipsy.

I have no plans to buy a gun, at a gun show or anywhere else. But this is already a country awash in firearms. So at this point, given that there is no going back (being "anti-gun" in America is like being "anti-gravity"), if you want a gun, I think you should be able to get one as easily as possible. And if bad people benefit from that, well, bad people benefit from all kinds of things that also benefit good people.

Meanwhile in Tennessee we now have this insane and probably illegal "interpretation" by the Secretary of State that people convicted of felonies can't get their voting rights restored until they have all of their other rights restored, including gun ownership. And it's even harder to get that restored than voting rights. So basically, if your prison record keeps you from owning a gun, the state won't consider a petition to restore your voting rights. But sadly there's no gun-show loophole for voting rights.

xp so.. thoughts & prayers

tipsy: yeah the anti-carceral position occurred to me, but ultimately I do not actually believe there is a universal right to own guns so arguments about discrimination fail for me. And putting aside the rights issue, I don't see what practical problem making sure the formerly incarcerated can own guns is solving

Yeah I agree. It's just that voting issue highlighted to me how conservatives are using locking-up-nonwhite-people as a manner of de facto gun control for segments of the population. In a way that even the NRA approves of.

yeah I hadn't read your second post when I posted that, wtf

that does make me feel even more strongly that one particularly long game that the left should consider investing in (like the right & abortion) is fighting back against the idea of gun ownership being a fundamental right and interpreting the 2A in a normal manner

I'm kinda with unperson on this, I do believe regulation could help a lot over time but not if Republicans just undo everything whenever they get to be in power. The only way we can get meaningful reform is if Republicans are scared too.

shoot the Second Amendment imo

yeah I wanna go back in time: "Hey before you guys break for tea... I'm from the future and we have some questions about the 2nd one.. can you make that a little more clear, and specify that only flintlock rifles apply."

LOOOOL just abandoned a post that said ‘2A? Here’s your musket and fuck off.’

like you know that thing whenever there's a shooting where both sides seem to be praying it's someone from the other side, I don't think GOP voters actually want mass shooters to be liberals. they're fine with it as long as they're targeting gay nightclubs they'll never step foot in or schools they're not allowed to be within 500 feet of, to them there actually isn't a gun problem in this country

I don't think GOP voters actually want mass shooters to be liberals. they're fine with it as long as they're targeting gay nightclubs they'll never step foot in or schools they're not allowed to be within 500 feet of, to them there actually isn't a gun problem in this country

Yeah, the one that seemed to shock them the most was when that guy booked a hotel room and opened fire on a country music concert in Vegas.

they were also really hoping that the dude who shot Charlie Kirk was a nonbinary drag story hour vegan but he was one of them in a Bass Pro camo cap

yeah publicly they were but privately the idea of nonbinary drag story hour vegans with guns scares the shit out of them, need I remind you the things they publicly admit to being terrified of

The gunshow loophole rollback is meaningless - it was a symbolic move for Biden's base and this is a symbolic move for Trump's. If you are a licensed firearms dealer, you've had to run a background check on every buyer, whether you were doing so at a store or a gun show. If you are not a firearms dealer - ie person to person sales - you've never had (in terms of federal law) to run background checks on buyers wherever the sale happened. The Biden DOJ's ruling made a minor change to who they could term an an unlicensed dealer.

There was never a point at which Jim "Big Time Felon" Strummer couldn't (by federal law) go to a gun show and buy a gun from a non-dealer or just go on a classifieds site and meet up with a person to buy a gun outside of a show. Federal law would need to be changed such that any person to person transaction occurs with a FFL middleman to run a background check - which they should love because they can charge $40 for 10 minutes of paperwork but you don't really go into the gun dealing business because you're motivated by profits (they suck!) more than ideology IME.

consider the fact that conservatives will literally paint "BLACKS RULE" on their driveway to try to make it look like they're the victim of a hate crime but when a cop gets a cup of coffee with a pig drawn on it they'll open up a federal investigation into the Starbucks

thanks milo, that's helpful

LOOOOL just abandoned a post that said ‘2A? Here’s your musket and fuck off.’

― einstürzende louboutin (suzy), Thursday, April 30, 2026 9:18 PM (twenty-three minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

this is how i feel too tbh. "oh, you're an 'originalist'? okay, here's your 1787 flintlock, have fun."

milo otm - when I did it (27 years ago) I had to join a club and pay a membership fee, which allowed access to the gun show. all bets were off after that, because it was all private sales.

now I'm wondering where & how the alleged WHCD suspect purchased his alleged firearm

also ftr I would be fine with a musket, for real. yes I understand it needs dry powder and tamping.

in other news, thanks to the Supreme Court decision Tuesday gutting the Voting Rights Act, right-wing Louisiana governor Landry has plans (and Alito will tell you its not intentionally racist so its fine)

WaPo reports Louisiana’s governor will announce on Friday that he is suspending the House primaries where people have already started voting and redraw the map; I’d expect them to go for an all-Republican map and eliminate both majority-Black districts, not just one.

Bolt Mag editor post on Bluesky about Washington Post article

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2026/04/29/louisiana-house-primaries-suspend-jeff-landry/

thisisfine.jpeg

yeah I mentioned this upthread and its so fucked up

the right man at the right time... who said we don't need another hero

A man accused of targeting federal immigration agents and pretending to be one of them is now facing serious prison time after prosecutors say his stunt put law enforcement in danger.

Jaime Ernesto Alvarez-Gonzalez, 53, an undocumented immigrant who overstayed a tourist visa decades ago, pleaded guilty Tuesday after admitting he impersonated a U.S. Border Patrol agent to interfere with deportation operations.

The truck appeared convincing at a glance, outfitted with a Border Patrol sticker, fake radio antennas, a dashboard light bar and handcuffs hanging from the mirror despite a license plate frame that misspelled Federal as "Ferderal."

Prosecutors say Alvarez-Gonzalez, wearing a face mask and a "thin green line" hat, was actively searching for federal agents involved in ICE and Border Patrol operations.

When agents confronted him, the situation escalated quickly.

Authorities say he shouted obscenities, ordered agents out of the Linda Vista neighborhood and then called in what he described as his "reinforcements." Multiple vehicles soon arrived, and people began harassing and chasing federal agents onto the highway, an encounter Alvarez-Gonzalez filmed himself.

hero!

lol, i should say, i don't know all the facts, but on the face of it, i'm down with anybody who has a posse to kick out ICE and BP

I've just been compiling a roundup of Southern states' reactions to the Callais ruling. Mississippi is going to redraw its map and likely eliminate its 1 Democratic/Black majority seat (out of 4 congressional seats total). Mississippi is 38 percent Black.

Looks possible Tennessee Legislature will come back into session to slice and dice Memphis the way they did Nashville a few years ago, also eliminating the only Democratic/Black majority seat. Texas can't do more this year because they're out of session until '27, but they definitely will. Florida just passed new maps adding 4 more Republican seats, and that may be as far as they can really go. Georgia definitely can slice up some of its five Black-majority districts, but the gov so far is keeping mum about whether he wants to call a special session or let it go until '28.

Basically looks like about half the Black representation across the South could go.

GOP caves:

U.S. President Donald Trump ​on Thursday signed into law legislation funding Department of Homeland Security agencies including the Secret Service and Transportation Security Administration, ending a ‌partial shutdown that has gripped DHS operations for nearly 11 weeks.

The logjam was broken when the Republican-controlled House of Representatives unanimously passed a Senate-approved bill that conservatives had refused to consider over the past month.

The House signed off on the legislation as officials warned that current funding was about to run dry, threatening chaos at airports and posing potential vulnerabilities to national security. It ​represented a victory for Trump [sure, Jan] and Senate Majority Leader John Thune, who had pressed House Republicans to pass the bill without modifications.

Trump also blasted Bill Cassidy for refusing outright to confirm his bullshit surgeon general nominee.

Authorities say he shouted obscenities, ordered agents out of the Linda Vista neighborhood and then called in what he described as his "reinforcements." Multiple vehicles soon arrived, and people began harassing and chasing federal agents onto the highway, an encounter Alvarez-Gonzalez filmed himself.

good job USA

I've just been compiling a roundup of Southern states' reactions to the Callais ruling.

Thank you for this and please keep us updated!

good job USA

I feel like there's a promising screenplay in there somewhere

drudge siren

Political polls
‪politicalpolls.bsky.social‬

🔵 Democrats take the lead among white voters for the 2026 midterms for the first time (Big Data)

Whiting past wrongs?
Whiting the ship?
White flight?

Georgia definitely can slice up some of its five Black-majority districts, but the gov so far is keeping mum about whether he wants to call a special session or let it go until '28.

Kemp just announced they are not redistricting this cycle since primary votes have already been cast.

GOP's tiring of Johnson, I guess:

“I think this guy has divided us with a smile,” said Rep. Max Miller (R-Ohio), a longtime Johnson skeptic who has grown more vocal with his criticism and now says “without question” he will vote against keeping Johnson as top GOP leader in the next Congress.

This week’s chaos came to a head late Wednesday, with multiple members of key Republican factions yelling and swearing at Johnson on the House floor and in closed-door meetings.

Johnson tried to quell a rebellion among conservative hard-liners by privately reneging on an agreement with a group of midwestern Republicans that would have tied legislation allowing year-round sales of an ethanol fuel blend to the must-pass farm bill.

When some of the ethanol provision’s backers ran back to the floor to try to figure out what happened, they were too late. Some later confronted Johnson, who is now promising a future vote on the matter.

“Bullshit,” Rep. Ann Wagner (R-Mo.) yelled at the speaker as he tried to explain what happened later in the day, according to three people who participated in the huddle and spoke on the condition of anonymity.

This week’s floor chaos was just the latest example of Johnson leading crisis by crisis, ultimately pulling off GOP priorities but leaving a trail of disgruntled members and staffers in his wake, according to more than a dozen Republicans interviewed for this story.

It all comes as rank-and-file lawmakers grow increasingly worried about their ability to govern over the coming months and retain their majority in November — and amid quiet conversations about who else might be capable of leading the House GOP. While Johnson successfully managed this week to end the record shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security and fend off the lapse of a key surveillance program, more challenges loom.

love to mix some useless corn into my gasoline

I did this morning before my shower.

saluting you fellow patriot

It's time to bid a fond farewell to the April 2026 US Politics thread. Any takers for starting the May thread?

I got nothin'

To close out this month's ballroom theme:

incredible new stan kelly comic today pic.twitter.com/6g9dj6PZwo

— onion person (@CantEverDie) April 30, 2026

“No, I’m not a king,” our president said. “I-- I get-- I-- I don’t laugh": American Politics, May 2026