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Trump says he's considering rebate checks for Americans based on tariff revenue

By now people should be used to his hyperbole.

Tell that to a the local coffee shop owner who imports coffee from her dad's coffee plantation in Brazil. Over the last decade, she's built a successful business, fufilling a vision to directly market her families product here in Arizona. Now her dream has become a nightmere....all because one man is using tariffs to satisfy his need to exerscise power.
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WHY DID TONGUES STOP ?

I am glad I believe the gifts of the Holy Ghost are still in effect today.
I am glad to have been given some of those gifts.
And always amazed by many that God did GIFT US and many that read Paul has written. about them , and here there ARE !!

# 1 And He gave , indeed the the apostles which means Messenger !!

# 2 Gave Prophet. , just means one speaks that the message of Grace , as Paul is the apostle to the Gentiles

# 3. And Evangbvelist , someone that a the message of Grace

# 4 And Pastors , but good ones is what I say

# 5 And Teachers and good ones

And all gifts were given to. the. equipping of the saints for the work of the ministry , for building up the BODY

of Christ !!

dan p
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Ghislaine Maxwell’s move to ‘country club’ prison smacks of special treatment, experts say

Trump's name was never ever in the Epstein files. THAT is the truth and the facts.
When did you get to read them all? Well, you obviously haven't. But, as I've said, Trump was such a close friend, they had common acquaintances, Epstein was a regular at Mar A Lago, he actively persuaded some young women working for Trump to work for him and (was this from your post?) he hit on the young daughter of a member of Trump's club.

Why on earth would you think he wouldn't be mentioned in a detailed dossier of Epstein?
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Trump Foster’s yet another peace deal

Wow. Bullying and threats don't assure peace.
Not one was bullied not one
Those countries are as we speak making other economic alliances.
Already demonstrated that they in fact are not.
Isolationism has its consequences.
How does an isolationist broker seven peace deals or cease fires in 7 months?
You're shunned and the aggregate power of other alliances diminishes his.
And diminishes him
Even CNN has admitted that President Trump is the most influential President in recent history.

Don’t believe me? Listen to their own words


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How should have Christians historically addressed Islam?

I thought we had already established that ?
I will depend on God for my protection.
You depend on yourself.

No sinner ever established anything in Christ, as there is no sin in Christ.

Not by a long shot.

Plenty have worshipped God in Spirit and truth before I ever heard of perfect obedience to God.

My faith will die with me, but the faith of God will exist until the Lord returns to take vengeance on the disobedient.
No your faith will literally die with you. There is no one else who believes in your Gospel. There was no one historically who you can point to as a brother or sister in faith. The bible was written solely for you and no one else. Only you have discovered biblical truth, everyone else being wicked and flesh driven failed in this.

Hiatoric Christians, all of them, were all false because they were not pacifists and relied on each other for help, love and security.

Other Churches will exist but yours is only composed of yourself so true faith dies with you. How does it feel to be the last believer of your God?
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Ghislaine Maxwell’s move to ‘country club’ prison smacks of special treatment, experts say

Respectfully, I shall move on from the weaponized lawfare claim believing that Trump is a rapist as soon as the liberals stop pushing that narrative.
Let's put this to bed. Do you agree that a jury of his peers, after hearing prosecution and defence evidence in a court of law in a civil case over many days found that Trump had sexually assaulted a woman by digitally penetrating her.

Those are indisputable facts, so I'm expecting only one possible answer. Please don't reword the question or dance around it. Just anwer it as it was asked.

I wonder how many little rainbows the post will get...
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Why Is “Christian” Music So Awful?

I don't know about this. I've heard, and still hear, some Good Christian music---it may not be the majority of it, obviously, but it's there; I also have heard, and still often hear, some terribly written and composed secular music.
I usually listen to Contemporary Christian music in the car when I’m driving.
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How should have Christians historically addressed Islam?

See my edit of my original post. If you consider it a sin to defend fellow Christians, brothers and sisters in the faith and secure the future of the faithful then we have no common faith.
I thought we had already established that ?
I will depend on God for my protection.
You depend on yourself.
You have departed from those in the past who laid the foundation and maintained it. You can stand alone because you have nothing else, no communion or community to which you belong.
No sinner ever established anything in Christ, as there is no sin in Christ.
Your faith is yours alone
Not by a long shot.
and no Christian has existed before you.
Plenty have worshipped God in Spirit and truth before I ever heard of perfect obedience to God.
I am glad your faith dies with you.
My faith will die with me, but the faith of God will exist until the Lord returns to take vengeance on the disobedient.
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Trump Threatens Federal Takeover of Washington After Member of DOGE Is Assaulted

...excerpts from the press conference earlier today.


I'm announcing a historic action to rescue our nation's capital from crime, bloodshed, bedlam and squalor and worse.

This is Liberation Day in DC, and we're gonna take our capital back. We're taking it back.

From who? Juveniles?

Under the authorities vested in me as the president of the United States, I'm officially invoking Section 740 of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, you know what that is, and placing the DC Metropolitan Police Department under direct federal control.

And you'll be meeting the people that will be directly involved with that, very good people, but they're tough and they know what's happening and they've done it before.


Who is he referring to and when did this happen before?

In addition, I'm deploying the National Guard to help reestablish law, order and public safety in Washington DC, and they're going to be allowed to do their job properly.

What does that mean? Use of force by the National Guard?
Later he provides some hints....
.....

We're not looking to take years because a lot of people die in years. And we've got incredible people in this country, except we have to allow them to do their job and that, we will deliver like nobody's ever delivered before. I actually think it's easy. You know, if you're competent, it's easy. If you're incompetent, it's impossible.

But I'm very competent. Last week, my administration surged 500 federal agents into the district, including from the FBI, ATF, DEA, Park Police, the US Marshals Service, the Secret Service and the Department of Homeland Security. You know, a lot of nations, they don't have anything like that. They got some, some police and their rough police.

They don't have DEA ATF, FBI Park police, US Marshals Service, Secret Service, Department of Homeland Security. They got some police, but they're rough police and they do their job. They don't have crime. We're not going to have crime either. They made dozens of arrests and that's what starts to happen. Again, cashless bail, watch what we do with that.


I'll venture to guess that most countries don't pull their security resources off their primary missions.....

.......

"beautification"

It's another part of it, by the way, because we're talking about safety, but we're also talking about beautification. We have the most beautiful potentially capital in the world. We always had. But people come from Iowa, they come from Indiana, they come and then they get mugged, not going to happen. Keep coming because by the time you get your trip set, it's going to be safe again and it's going to be clean very quickly.


We're going to replace the medians that are falling down all over the roads. We're going to replace the potholes. We're going to put a nice new coat of asphalt over the top, knowing we don't have to rip the road out and spend seven years building a new road because they cut everything -- because some designers said well, we need a quarter of an inch more turn for safety reasons.

(?)

No, we're going to do it right. We're going to get it done quickly. So today, we're declaring public safety emergency in the District of Columbia and Attorney General Pam Bondi, who is fantastic, is taking command of the Metropolitan Police Department as of this moment. And I'll be making the appropriate notifications to Congress and to the mayor, our new DEA administrator who's one of the top in the country.
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'No MR. NICE GUY': Trump spills details of D.C. cleanup as 'American Public is not going to put up with it any longer'

"We are not going to allow people to spend $3.1 Billion Dollars on fixing up a building, like the Federal Reserve, which could have been done in a far more elegant and time sensitive manner for $50 to $100 Million Dollars. The Renovation would have actually been better, and we would have saved $3 Billion Dollars, Traffic Jams, and never-ending Construction.
"The Mayor of D.C., Muriel Bowser, is a good person who has tried, but she has been given many chances, and the Crime Numbers get worse, and the City only gets dirtier and less attractive.

I hope this will be a blueprint for other cities.
D C. is much better than many large cities. Calling in the Guard usually isn't the answer. Money spent helping high crime areas with better lighting, cleaning up empty lots and abandoned buildings, providing medical needs , helping community groups etc...works better.
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What is Trump doing in Washington? Isn't crime at 30 year low?

From ChatGPT (emphasis mine):

If Washington, D.C. were considered a state, it would rank #1 in violent crime rate among all U.S. states. In 2023, D.C.'s violent crime rate was approximately 1,151 per 100,000 residents, significantly higher than New Mexico (#2 at 749.3), Alaska (#3 at 726.3), and all other states Beautify DataUSAFacts.
To give you context, the next highest rates among states were:
  • New Mexico: ~749 per 100,000
  • Alaska: ~726 per 100,000
  • Tennessee: ~628 per 100,000
  • Others trailing behind Beautify Data.
So, ranking-wise, D.C. would top the list—making it the "most violent" if it were a state, based purely on FBI-reported violent crime rates.
Here’s how Washington, D.C. compares to U.S. states in terms of homicide rate:

D.C. Homicide Rate (2023)

  • 2023 homicide rate: approximately 39–41 homicides per 100,000 residents.
  • Ranking: This would place D.C. 4th highest among U.S. states, behind only:
    1. New Orleans (53.8 per 100K)
    2. St. Louis (53.7 per 100K)
    3. Detroit (40.9 per 100K)The Heritage Foundation.

National Comparison

  • U.S. average homicide rate (2023): approximately 5.9 per 100,000Bureau of Justice Statistics.
  • D.C.’s rate (~39–41) is thus roughly 7 to 7 times higher than the national average.

To. be clear, I don't support the deployment of the National Guard in Washington DC, but the mayor pretending like everything is peachy-keen in DC is demonstrably false.
I also asked ChatGPT - and but I asked why and got it to compare to the crime rate now. Did you do that? Did you check why the rates escalated - and then what happened under Biden's watch to already manage this?

Trump is just using this to have another 'military parade' and distract from Epstein.
Anything but Epstein!

Over to ChatGPT.

The Crime Spike of 2023: What Happened?​


  • A dramatic surge: From 2022 to 2023, violent crime in DC jumped by over 33%, according to MPD data (2,021 incidents in 2022 vs. 2,689 in 2023) Check Your Fact. Nationwide, DC had the largest spike in violent crime among similarly sized cities WUSA9.
  • Homicide statistics: There were 274 murders in 2023—the highest since 1997—marking a 35% increase over the prior year Axiosissues4life.org.
  • Drivers behind the increase:
    • Juvenile involvement: A large portion of 2023's surge, especially in carjackings, was attributed to youth offenders. TikTok and other social media platforms were noted for sharing tactics, influencing the surge in juvenile-perpetrated vehicle thefts Deseret NewsCU Blog Service.
    • Institutional complexities: DC's status as a federal district creates overlapping jurisdictions and complicated prosecution structures—law enforcement challenges that may have reduced the deterrent effect of legal consequences Vox.
    • Socioeconomic inequality and gentrification: Academics have linked rising violent crime—especially homicides—to inequality in gentrifying neighborhoods. Flashpoints arise where long-standing communities face displacement amid economic disparities dc.localnews.comAl Jazeera.

What’s Changed Since Then?​

  • Violent crime dropped 35% in 2024, reaching the lowest level in over 30 years, according to MPD and the U.S. Attorney's Office Department of Justice+1The Washington Informer.
  • Homicides fell 32% in 2024, from 274 to around 187, followed by another estimated 12% decline in 2025, with about 99 homicides as of early August NewsweekKTVZ.
  • First half of 2025 data: Compared to the same period in 2024, violent crime continued to decline:
    • Robberies down 26%
    • Sex abuse cases nearly 50% lower
    • Overall violent crime down approximately 7% WJLA.
  • 2025 year-to-date comparisons show a roughly 26% reduction in violent crime, with a 7% overall crime drop relative to 2024 Reuters+1AP News.

Why the Big Drop?​

Several factors likely contributed:
  1. Targeted policing strategies: Efforts like Project Safe Neighborhoods, enhanced prosecutions, and focused deterrence tactics helped disrupt criminal networks The Washington InformerDepartment of Justice.
  2. Increased federal and local collaboration: The Justice Department invested more resources—FBI, ATF, DEA, and U.S. Attorneys ramped up prosecution of gun and carjacking crimes Axios.
  3. Policy responses gaining traction: Emergency legislation granting greater authority to law enforcement, alongside ongoing public safety bills by the city council, provided new tools to address violent crime Vox.
  4. Shift in offender deterrence: Improved certainty of arrest and prosecution—as opposed to heavier sentencing—likely played a crucial role Vox.
  5. Addressing youth involvement: Early efforts to curb juvenile-related crimes like carjacking may have helped slow that particular segment of crime substantially Deseret News.
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El Salvador Ends Term Limits, Letting President Bukele Seek Re-Election Indefinitely

You truly expect all of that will be lost between now and 2029?

I answered the question of what freedoms I would expect to lose under an authoritarian. I suppose the added condition is: to what degree the authoritarian is successful in being an authoritarian. At the moment I remain optimistic in a Judiciary that is willing to fight on behalf of the People; and there is a major election coming in 2026 that will be incredibly decisive. But simply voting the boot-lickers out of Congress is insufficient, a strong Legislative with an actual spine is needed--and the current bag of mixed nuts of Republicans and Democrats are, on the whole, pretty spineless.

I haven't given up faith in American democracy just yet. I think there is still time and opportunity to save the Republic. But it's going to a steep uphill climb with a lot of sweat, tears, and prayer. The fight against fascism and for the soul of America is very much alive right now.

-CryptoLutheran
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strong prayers please

Please strong prayers for my son Jakeb. Please pray that he is happy and healthy and that nothing is seriously wrong and that he is at a safe weight. Please pray that he lives a long happy thriving life and that I can please hear him talk to friends or laugh or even see him smile. Please ask Jesus to hear a mother's prayer. I ask in the name of Jesus. Thank you and God bless you. Carmen

I believe that ALL who ever lived will be in God’s Kingdom

I believe these scriptures are clear about that. Am I misunderstanding?

1 John 4:14 14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.

1 Timothy 4:10 For to this end we toil and strive, because we have our hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe.

Lamentations 3:31 For the Lord will not cast off forever

Romans 5:18 Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men.

1 Corinthians 15:22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.

Romans 11:32 For God has consigned all to disobedience, that he may have mercy on all.

John 12:32 And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw ALL people to myself.”

Revelation 21:5 And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”

2 Corinthians 5:19 that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.

John 6:51
I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

2 Corinthians 5:14-15 For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; 15 and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.

Colossians 1:20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.

John 3:17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.

Luke 3:6 and all flesh shall see the salvation of God

Philippians 2:10-11 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Romans 10:9 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

2 Samuel 14:14 We must all die; we are like water spilled on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again. But God will not take away life, and he devises means so that the banished one will not remain an outcast.

Ephesians 1:10 As a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in Him, things in heaven and things on earth.

John 1:29 The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!"

1 Corinthians 15:22-28
22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. 23 But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ. 24 Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. 25 For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy to be destroyed is death. 27 For “God[c] has put all things in subjection under his feet.” But when it says, “all things are put in subjection,” it is plain that he is excepted who put all things in subjection under him. 28 When all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to him who put all things in subjection under him, that God may be all in all.

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Dear Beth77,
I most certainly agree that Jesus Christ will save every person who has ever lived. He established a plan to accomplish it before the ages began. Nothing has been left to chance or to mankind's "will".

What most people don't understand is that God's purpose for this creation is to produce His offspring. What mankind is going through is the birth process of becoming a child of God. This is the meaning of life that eludes most people.

In this present age, Christ is only converting the people who were chosen for an early salvation. They are the Elect. Christ will not convert anyone else during this age.

In the next and final age, the balance of mankind will be judged in the Lake of Fire. However, before any of them perish (the true penalty of sin), Christ will have mercy upon them. His mercy will come to them as the Early and Latter Rains of the Spirit which will give them their faith and their new birth. The newly born child of God will then be gathered to heaven just as the Elect were and the child of the Devil (who they used to be) will remain in the Lake of Fire to perish. This death will satisfy justice.

This verse below applies to Christ's judgment of the balance of mankind in the Lake of Fire:

Mat 23:23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law: justice, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.

Joe
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Darwinian evolution - still a theory in crisis.

I'm always the one who is confused. Maybe it is all you science oriented posters out there who can't calmly express what the heck you are talking about. As I said to one of the other posters, theory and hypothesis are the same in "common man tongue"; they are an idea.
It's been explained to you what a theory is. More than once. If you admit to some confusion then it would benefit you to listen to the explanations of what common scientific terms mean.

You obviously don't understand the evolutionary process - which is no big deal. Some people are interested in biology and some aren't. You might be interested in 16th century Indian architecture, something I know nothing about. Why would I join in a thread about it? Except to learn something about it from those who were posting on the subject. So if you've got a question, then ask it and someone might have the answer for you.
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How should have Christians historically addressed Islam?

Yes, and even today their sufferings glorifies God.

I will keep obeying the God and the Savior who said to love my neighbors as I love myself.
If you think you can get away with disobeying them, your fate is sealed.

Who knows, our sufferings today might secure the future of the church of the future ?
History does have a habit of repeating itself.

Sin has no profit to anyone.

God's people obey God.
Those who depend on their own strength, are without God.
See my edit of my original post. If you consider it a sin to defend fellow Christians, brothers and sisters in the faith and secure the future of the faithful then we have no common faith.

You have departed from those in the past who laid the foundation and maintained it. You can stand alone because you have nothing else, no communion or community to which you belong.

Your faith is yours alone and no Christian has existed before you. I am glad your faith dies with you. If you believe in this Gospel of yours and you die being the only one to believe it, belief in your God dies with you. A false Church remains where Christians consider it just to defend one another and so I would ask what glory does this bring about to God? To see his last believer die leaving nothing behind?
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Trump Threatens Federal Takeover of Washington After Member of DOGE Is Assaulted

There most definitely are much worse cities, which begs the question:

Do we need even MORE federal intervention?

That depends on whether one likes having a Constitutional Republic with a functioning democracy or if one prefers a Militarized Police State ruled by a de facto despot.

As someone who prefers the former, as I believe it is--in theory--a system of governance that has the greatest potential for human thriving and flourishing that human beings have come up with. I don't think we need the occupant of the White House waging a war against the Republic and the People of these United States.

The question, as I see it, is if there sufficient public will to defend the Republic. I'm not talking about 2nd Amendment, I'm talking 1st Amendment here.

2026 will be one of the most important years in modern American history.

-CryptoLutheran
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How should have Christians historically addressed Islam?

Many of the Christians throughout history that experienced such horrors also prayed to be spared from them. God allowed them to suffer such deprivation and molestations.
Yes, and even today their sufferings glorifies God.
This is why your high minded pacifism from a position of comfort and security in your armchair comes off as arrogant.
I will keep obeying the God and the Savior who said to love my neighbors as I love myself.
If you think you can get away with disobeying them, your fate is sealed.
At least to me, that you do away with the sacrifices made by past Christians to secure the future for us and denigrate them in the same breath despite you being the end product.
Who knows, our sufferings today might secure the future of the church of the future ?
History does have a habit of repeating itself.
It's insulting and no I am not suggesting that we cannot criticize past Christians but when they defended their nations from Islamic Raiders and conquerors we should acknowledge the good it did.
Sin has no profit to anyone.
You won't do that do out of some misguided belief that Christ called us to be murdered and never defend anyone.
God's people obey God.
Those who depend on their own strength, are without God.
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What is Trump doing in Washington? Isn't crime at 30 year low?

From ChatGPT (emphasis mine):

If Washington, D.C. were considered a state, it would rank #1 in violent crime rate among all U.S. states. In 2023, D.C.'s violent crime rate was approximately 1,151 per 100,000 residents, significantly higher than New Mexico (#2 at 749.3), Alaska (#3 at 726.3), and all other states Beautify DataUSAFacts.
That's from 2023. The violent crime rate in D.C. is 228 per 100,000 residents for the year to date.

D.C. Homicide Rate (2023)

  • 2023 homicide rate: approximately 39–41 homicides per 100,000 residents.
  • Ranking: This would place D.C. 4th highest among U.S. states, behind only:
    1. New Orleans (53.8 per 100K)
    2. St. Louis (53.7 per 100K)
    3. Detroit (40.9 per 100K)The Heritage Foundation.
The homicide rate is down to 14.3 per 100,000 residents for the year to date.
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How should christians must be like

Should modern churches look and feel like the early church in Acts, or is it right for them to adapt to culture and technology?
Hi, and welcome to the site.
The modern church should look and feel like the original church.
Holy, and without stain.
Growing daily in the grace and the knowledge of our Lord and Savior.
Taking care of each other as a family does.
I'm not sure what you mean by adapting to local culture.
If that culture is rife with wickedness, the people would have just repented of, (turned from), that sort of thing...don't you think ?

Technology is just a tool, and can be used efficiently for the kingdom of God.

Are you from the Blantyre in Scotland ?
Or the one in Malawi ?
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Hegseth Boosts Video of Pastors Saying Women Shouldn't Vote, Advocating Repeal of 19th Amendment

I answered the question.
No, you didn't. And you know you didn't. And anyone reading this thread knows that you didn't. You just said that your wife stayed at home to look after your kids. Again, well done to her. But you avoided the question. Which was to ask you how she'd feel about losing the vote. And instead of saying what any reasonable person would say, that the idea that Hegseth re-posted is outrageous, you avoid answering because it seems that you are incapable of criticising anyone in this Administration.

I'll give you a heads up on what that actually means. If a politician says something remarkably stupid and a supporter of that person refuses to acknowledge how absolutely bat guano crazy it is, then they, by doing so, have destroyed their own credibility.
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