Donald Trump Jr., World-Renowned Moron, Urges Vaccine Protests as Omicron Poses “Very High Risk”

If there’s one important lesson people should have learned over the last five years, it’s to never listen to a Trump ever again. Probably the best example of this lesson can be found in Donald Trump and company’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic which, as a reminder, included lying to the public about how serious the virus was, putting the president’s son-in-law in charge of the government’s response, politicizing mask-wearing, and regularly holding super-spreader events. To listen to anything a Trump has to say about the disease at this point would be like listening to a proctologist’s advice after they were found to have performed a series of simple surgeries that left patients shitting out of their mouths. And yet, for some reason, people with the last name Trump still think they’re eminently qualified to make medical recommendations on the matter.

Speaking to Fox News on Saturday, Donald Trump Jr. took a break from taunting NBA players behind his computer screen to rage against vaccine mandates. Praising protests in Europe, the ex-president’s namesake said Americans should be fighting back against the one thing giving us a chance of ever ending the pandemic his father so royally botched. “You don’t hear about what’s going on as it relates to the riots in Europe on a daily basis now against the vaccine mandates, because our media wants to block that out,” Trump Jr. claimed falsely. (In fact, European protests have been extensively covered by, among others, The New York Times, ABC News, and The Washington Post.) “They’re going to make sure that you never hear about it because they don’t want you getting these kind of ideas that freedom may actually still exist in some parts of the world. Europe is pushing back and America’s sitting there like sheep like, ‘Oh this is great we’ll just go along with’ what these guys who have gotten nothing right in the last two years tell us. It’s absolute insanity.”

Does Junior realize that two years ago his father was president? Sadly, the jury is out there. Where the jury isn’t out is on the matter of the effectiveness of vaccine mandates, which are very much working, both in the U.S. and in Europe, and on the effectiveness of the vaccines when it comes to preventing seriousness illness and death; as of September, unvaccinated people were 11 times more likely to die from COVID-19 than their fully vaccinated counterparts.

Don Jr.’s call for people to rise up against one of the most important tools we have to fight COVID-19 comes amid the threat of the new omicron variant, which the World Health Organization has labeled a variant “of concern” and said poses a “very high global risk.” In the last few days, the U.S., Britain, the European Union and other nations imposed travel restrictions on flights from southern Africa, but experts believe they may be too late. (On Sunday, Canadian officials announced that two cases of the variant had already been detected in Ontario.)

Saturday, of course, wasn’t the first time Don Jr. had something uniquely stupid to say about vaccine mandates. In August, he lashed out at the Biden administration for its vaccine push, writing, “Next they’re going to waterboard you till you get vaccinated.” His online store, the shopping destination of choice for assholes, is currently selling apparel that read, “Powered by Natural Immunity” and “My Science Is Better Than Yours.”

In the same Fox interview, Jr. criticized Biden for…not curing cancer. “He was also going to cure cancer, if I remember correctly, Dan,” Trump Jr. told Dan Bongino. “Remember that? Everyone was, ‘Oh, that’s great, we should definitely elect him.’ I haven’t seen much movement on that.”

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Kyle Rittenhouse’s classmates want him shown the door

As a reminder, Rittenhouse is the guy who was recently acquitted despite shooting and killing two people, so it’s hard to blame them:

Four groups led by [Arizona State University’s] Students for Socialism are behind a rally planned for Wednesday to boot Rittenhouse, 18, who revealed that he was an online student at the Tempe school and would like to live a quiet life on campus. “KILLER OFF CAMPUS,” reads the flyer, calling for the university to “protect students from a violent, blood-thirsty murderer.”

The groups concede that Rittenhouse…was cleared of all charges over the triple shooting during riots last year in Kenosha, Wisconsin…. But the groups dismiss that as proof of a “flawed ‘justice’ system”—insisting, “Kyle Rittenhouse is still guilty to his victims and the families of those victims.”

A spokesperson for ASU’s Students for Socialism told Fox News that they do not feel safe with a “mass shooter” being “so carelessly allowed” at the school, even if he appears to be just online.

The jury’s decision to acquit Rittenhouse “effectively gives right-winged individuals the license to kill other individuals who protest for human rights,” the group claimed. “Rittenhouse took the lives of innocent people with the intent to do so—by strapping an assault rifle to himself in a crowd of unarmed citizens. That is the textbook definition of intention,” the spokesperson claimed. “The decision made by the court is one of thousands of cases that have been influenced by biased judges, predominantly white juries, and mistakes inherent in a judicial system founded off of injustice to begin with,” the spokesperson said. Should Rittenhouse be asked to leave the school, he still has a number of professional prospects. More than one GOP lawmaker has said he should be given a job as a congressional intern, and Tucker Carlson would undoubtedly put Rittenhouse on his payroll in a heartbeat.

Lauren Boebert continues to gun for most loathsome member of the House of Representatives

It’s a tough competition, but the rampant Islamophobia is giving her a crucial edge.

Anthony Fauci: If anyone’s ass belongs in jail, it’s the one that has the misfortune of being attached to Ted Cruz

Jack Dorsey decides to only be the CEO of one company moving forward

The Twitter founder is bidding the company adieu, per CNBC:

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey is stepping down as chief of the social media company, effective immediately. Parag Agrawal, Twitter’s chief technology officer, will take over the helm, the company said Monday…. Dorsey, 45, was serving as both the CEO of Twitter and Square, his digital payments company. Dorsey will remain a member of the board until his term expires at the 2022 meeting of stockholders, the company said.

“I’ve decided to leave Twitter because I believe the company is ready to move on from its founders,” Dorsey said in a statement, adding “I’m really sad…yet really happy.”

Trump remains a major threat to democracy, part XVIII

His allies are already laying the groundwork to steal the next election and the one after that. Per The Washington Post:

A year after local and state election officials came under immense pressure from Trump to subvert the results of the 2020 White House race, he and his supporters are pushing an ambitious plan to place Trump loyalists in key positions across the administration of U.S. elections.

Citing the need to make elections more secure, Trump allies are also seeking to replace officials across the nation, including volunteer poll watchers, paid precinct judges, elected county clerks and state attorneys general, according to state and local officials, as well as rally speeches, social media posts and campaign appearances by those seeking the positions. If they succeed, Trump and his allies could pull down some of the guardrails that prevented him from overturning Biden’s win by creating openings to challenge the results next time, election officials and watchdog groups say.

“The attacks right now are no longer about 2020,” Colorado secretary of state Jena Griswold told the Post. “They’re about 2022 and 2024. It’s about chipping away at confidence and chipping away at the reality of safe and secure elections. And the next time there’s a close election, it will be easier to achieve their goals. That’s what this is all about.”

Elsewhere!

COVID vaccine makers race to address variant (The Washington Post)

FDA advisory group to review safety and efficacy of Merck’s COVID pill (CNBC)

Ghislaine Maxwell’s Trial Begins in the Shadow of Jeffrey Epstein (NYT)

Matthew McConaughey Says He Won’t Run for Texas Governor in 2022 (Bloomberg)

Jesus Christ Superstar actor, an accused Capitol rioter, claims “divine” authority in court hearing (CNN)

Defense Department wants former Sec. Esper to take out parts about Trump from forthcoming book, suit says (CNN)

Which birds are the biggest jerks at the feeder? A massive data analysis reveals the answer. (The Washington Post)

More than 60 stranded for three nights in British pub due to snow (UPI)

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