TOM rallies hand-picked troops to his political cause at Ft Bragg

 

June 11, 2025 (142/1461)

Here’s a first (and you’d think we’d had all of those possible). All 12 members of the Fulbright scholarship board have resigned. Not been fired by TOM. Resigned. “All 12 members of the board overseeing the prestigious Fulbright scholarships on Wednesday resigned in protest of what they call the Trump administration’s meddling with the selection of award recipients, according to a statement. A statement published online by the board members said the administration usurped the board’s authority by denying awards to “a substantial number of people” who already had been chosen. Another 1,200 award recipients who were already approved to come to the U.S. are undergoing an unauthorized review process that could lead to their rejection, the board members said. Congress established the Fulbright program nearly 80 years ago to promote international exchange and American diplomacy. The highly selective program awards about 9,000 scholarships annually in the U.S. and in more than 160 other countries to students, scholars, and professionals in a range of fields.”

The cage fight continues with Newsom. I think we are up to about Round 6 now. The back and forth – via the press and social media – is good entertainment but horrible for actually moving forward to a resolution (I know, TOM doesn’t want a resolution).

As we march ever closer to the Big Birthday Bash and the 250th anniversary of the Army, TOM was in Fort Bragg to give a routine speech to boost morale and rally the troops. But of course he can’t help himself and launched down the political road instead of the high road.  “What unfolded Tuesday at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, bore little resemblance to the customary visit from a president and defense secretary. There, President Donald Trump unleashed a speech laced with partisan invective, goading jeers from a crowd of soldiers positioned behind his podium -- blurring the long-standing and sacrosanct line between the military and partisan politics. For this story, Military.com reached out to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's office as well as the Army and the 82nd Airborne Division directly with a series of questions that ranged from the optics of the event to social media posts showing the sale of Trump campaign merchandise on the base, to the apparent violation of Pentagon policies on political activity in uniform. "This has been a bad week for the Army for anyone who cares about us being a neutral institution," one commander at Fort Bragg told Military.com on the condition of anonymity to avoid retaliation. "This was shameful. I don't expect anything to come out of it, but I hope maybe we can learn from it long term."

No kidding it’s bad optics. And just one more reason why TOMs attempt at becoming an autocrat is getting easier and easier. The lines blur, the stage is artificially set with TOM supporters from the military. What could be more dangerous and terrifying all at once?