October 3, 2026 (Vol.20 No. 36) - The junior U.S. Senator from the state of Kansas is in a heap of trouble. After serving as Donald Trump's lapdog for the past six years, he now finds himself in a fight for his political life and, like a lot of other Trump toadies this fall, he is losing.

Quack Marshall has more luggage than your typical Samsonite store. First, there's the question of his residency. He'd have you believe that he lives in a small, three-bedroom cabin near St. John in south-central Kansas. But there's a paper trail that suggests his $1.2 million Sarasota, Florida, home is where he spends most of his time. And the more he denies it, the less credible he becomes. Then there's the question of his support for Trump's Big Beautiful Bill, which has had a devastating impact on Kansans. It's hard to tout tax relief for billionaires while cutting SNAP benefits and healthcare for thousands of his constituents. Then there is Marshall's support for Trump's costly and mismanaged war against Iran. On several occasions, Marshall could have been the deciding vote to force Trump to follow the War Powers Act. Instead, he has blindly followed Trump, Hegseth & Company down an inflationary rabbit hole with no end in sight. And one should never forget that Marshall's first act as a U.S. Senator was to try to overturn the election of Joe Biden as president. Of course, the biggest albatross around Quack Marshall's neck is Donald Trump, who is historically unpopular. Trump wants this election to be a referendum on his presidency. Democrats could not agree more.

But there's more. Roger the Dodger - he's avoided town halls with his constituents for the past 19 months - has come under scrutiny for his business practices as a doctor. He's been suing his patients for past-due bills and having some arrested while charging exorbitant interest rates. All of this is going on as he has repeatedly voted against expanding Medicare for Kansans in need. No, this guy ain't no Dr. Marcus Welby. He's also noted for having a bad temper. He used his influence to get out of a legal jam prior to joining the Senate. He also famously told voters hurt by the war-driven rapid rise of gas and diesel prices to suck it up. In short, Roger Marshall is not a very nice man.

Contrast and compare Marshall with his opponent, Adam Hamilton, who most pundits say has a real shot of winning Marshall's seat for the Democrats. By all accounts, Hamilton, pastor of the largest Methodist congregation in the country, is a nice and compassionate man. He is also one who says he is willing to reach across the aisle and work with Republicans to solve problems important to Kansans. Hamilton dominated Marshall during their recent debate at the Kansas State Fair. After running away from his Democrat challenger, Marshall is now open to a second debate on live television October 21. That and the knowledge that the Republicans have decided to start pouring millions of dollars into the Kansas senate race is a sure sign that Quack Marshall, politically speaking, may soon be a dead duck. That's it for now. Fear the Turtle.

September 24, 2026 (Vol.20 No. 35) - It was predictable. A federal judge reaffirmed the right of a free press to cover the President of the United States early today. Judge Timothy Kelly ordered the President to reinstate CNN’s, MS NOW’s and Politico’s access to the White House. In his order, Judge Kelly wrote the that the President’s abrupt ban last week of these three media outlets was done without “constitutionally adequate due process.”

As we have seen this week, the President’s media tizzy-fit backfired. When these three media outlets were banned from the press room, other news organizations - including Fox News - refused to participate in the White House press pool. That denied Donald Trump access to the position he most cherishes, being in front of cameras. Since Judge Kelly’s rule was a temporary restraining order, it will be interesting to see whether the Trump White House wants to push this matter farther. Not only would he be likely to lose on appeal, but the move would be just one more false step that will hurt Republicans in the midterm elections. I’m sure beleaguered Republican candidates wish he would quit while he is “ahead.”
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I know that many Americans are viewing this media-government tussle with some amusement. But this is not someone else’s fight. It is your fight, too. A healthy democracy cannot operate without a free and unfettered press. You have a right to know what the government is doing in your name. That right is enshrined in the First Amendment of the Constitution. Anything that weakens the First Amendment of some weakens it for all.

We have already seen this Administration treat the Constitution as a doormat. The President has engaged in an unconstitutional war against Iran without Congressional approval. He had made tremendous budgetary commitments for his vanity projects in Washington without congressional approval. He has enriched himself by $2 billion in violation of the Constitution’s emoluments clause. Let’s not forget that the bastard engaged in sedition by trying to overthrow the 2020 election by sending a mob to the Capitol on January 6, 2021. God knows what he is planning to overturn what is expected to be a resounding rebuke at the hands of voters this November. He’s already promised $5,000 to every American should the GOP win - an idea that is not only ludicrous and inflationary. It is also illegal. And speaking of illegal, our President - in your name - announced to the United Nations that he is pondering the commission of war crimes by committing genocide in Iran.

And you wouldn't know about any of this without a free press acting as a check and balance against this tyranny.

This is your fight. And you have the ability to let the White House and his synchophantic Republican minions know that you do not approval of this oligarchical approach to governance. Vote blue this November as if your life depends on it. Because it does. That's it for now. Fear the Turtle.

September 1, 2026 (Vol.20 No. 32) - I have been very fortunate to have been able to call communities steeped in history as my home. I grew up in Talbot County, Maryland, in the heart of the Delmarva Peninsula. Some of its communities predate the Declaration of Independence by more than a century. The white, wood-frame building with the uneven roof pictured above is the Third Haven Friends Meeting House in Easton Maryland. It is the oldest house of worship in the United States that has been in continuous use since its construction in 1684. It is so old, in fact, that there were no nails used in its construction. It was, and for the most part still is, held together by wooden pegs.

Next to it is a red brick building where the Meeting gathers during the winter months. It is known as the "new church" because it was built in 1880. My grandmother's funeral service was conducted there. The Meeting House is a source of great pride for its worshipers, as well as the people of the town, county and state. It connects the present with an exciting past, reminding us how we came to be the people we are today. And, of yes, it attracts tourist dollars that help drive the local economy. These are just some of the reasons why it is worth preserving.

Just a few miles down the road, the road stops and the ferry begins! That's the Oxford-Bellevue Ferry, America's oldest continuous privately operated ferry. It began operations in 1682 - that's right, one year before the Quaker Meeting House was completed. It shortens an otherwise a 30-minute drive from Oxford to St.Michaels. Frankly, more cars take the ferry for the experience of doing it than to save on gas. It's an opportunity to cross the historic Tred Avon River and see Oxford, one of the state's oldest points-of-entry, in much the same manner as our ancestors.

Speaking of St. Michaels, it's a veritable history lesson unto its own. Founded in 1677, St. Michaels is a community that embraces its rich history. One way it does that is through the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum, which celebrates three and one-half centuries of the region's sea-faring and maritime agricultural heritage. I was actually there when the museum was dedicated in 1965 as a Boy Scout on flag-raising duty. I have also been honored to make two book talks at the museum. It's an impressive institution that I am proud to have been associated with.

So, you may be asking, "What's your point?" It is not about being proud of my hometown, which I am. The point is this: Our past is worth preserving. As one who went to college just outside of the District of Columbia, it breaks my heart to see the reckless damage that is being done at the behest of an aging pedophile's warped vision of aesthetics. Just yesterday, we saw images of bulldozers mowing down a historic grove of Cherry Blossom trees to make way for a golf course. His love of bright, shiny gold objects has transformed the Oval Office into something akin of a French brothel. And don't get me started on that $400+ billion ballroom, the greatest rape of history in the name of building something nobody - and I mean nobody - wants. Worse, was the U.S. Supreme Court's cowardly ruling yesterday to suggest that the American people do not have legal standing to stop what even Chief Justice Roberts says is a "likely unlawful" construction project.

This administration has not limited its lilly-white warped view of history to the Nation's Capital. From Independence Hall, to our national parks and America's schools, Diaper Don has placed his tiny thumb on the scales in favor of a sanitized and, in some cases, just plain false view of our history. If it hasn't already, this "ethnic cleansing" of American history may soon reach your own town. This is being done in an effort to "restore truth and sanity" to American history - neither quality readily apparent in this administration's push.

At a time we find ourselves having to defend our rights on so many fronts, we need to also resist efforts to erase and modify our history in favor of an incompetent and incontinent oligarch's vanilla view of the world. Donald Trump will not live forever. But the damage he is doing will outlast him for many generations. Our history is worth preserving. However, the time for doing so is running out. That's it for now. Fear the Turtle.