Except for timely election info, the extensive list of voting resources will now be at the end.

“There’s a reason why you separate military and police. One fights the enemy of the State. The other serves and protects the People. When the military becomes both, then the enemies of the State tend to become the People.” ~ Commander Adama, “Battlestar Galactica” (“WATER”, Season 1 episode 2, at the 28 minute mark.)

INTRO FOR ELECTIONS [Audio]: “Let me warn you and let me warn the Nation against the smooth evasion which says, “Of course we believe all these things; we believe in social security; we believe in work for the unemployed; we believe in saving homes. Cross our hearts and hope to die, we believe in all these things; but we do not like the way the present Administration is doing them. Just turn them over to us. We will do all of them- we will do more of them; we will do them better; and, most important of all, the doing of them will not cost anybody anything.”~ From  Franklin D Roosevelt speech to the 1936 Democratic NY State Convention – 1936

Welcome to Thinkwing Radio with Mike Honig on KPFT Houston at 90.1-HD2, Galveston 89.5-HD2, and Huntsville 91.9-HD2. KPFT is Houston’s Community radio

On this show, we discuss local, state, national, and international stories that may have slipped under your radar. At my website, THINKWINGRADIO-dot-COM, I link to all the articles I read and cite, as well as other relevant sources. Articles and commentaries often include lots of internet links for those of you who want to dig deeper.

This begins the 20th week of Trump’s National Guard troops in Los Angeles; the 11th week of Trump’s military occupation of Washington DC; A federal law enforcement occupation in Chicago; and National Guard troops started arriving in Memphis, Tennessee on October 10^th.

What makes the Memphis occupation unusual is that Tennessee Governor Bill Lee is cool with this federal incursion, but seven local and state lawmakers are not and have sued.

1. Starting with some local and regional news and information — The Joint General & Special Election is November 4.
   1. Early Voting begins on Monday, October 20.
   2. The deadline to apply for a mail-in ballot for Harris County is Friday October 24, and it must be received by close of business on that day. If you haven’t already applied, you’re cutting it very close, and should probably plan on going to one of the early voting polling locations.
   3. HarrisVotes-dot-com has a “What’s On My Ballot” link, which you can access from this show post at ThinkwingRadio-dot-com. You can fill in your name and address and see your particular ballot.
   4. If you’re voting in person, you can print your ballot and mark it with your choices. You are permitted to bring that paperwork to the polling place as a reference, but you must take it with you when you leave.
   5. Other counties should have similar links, as well as the Texas Secretary of State at VoteTexas-dot-gov.
2. Houston voters can get free rides to and from the polls; By Adam Zuvanich | HOUSTONPUBLICMEDIA.ORG | Posted on October 17, 2025, 12:21 PM (Last Updated: October 17, 2025, 12:44 PM). TAGS: Elections, Harris County, Houston Local News, Transportation, Voting2025, Election, Early Voting, Election Day, Harris County Election Day, Metro, METRO Free Transportation,
   1. Houston-area residents who plan to vote in the upcoming election can again get free rides to and from the polls from the region’s public transit provider.
   2. The Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County (METRO) is continuing an election-season tradition by offering free rides to voters during Election Day on Nov. 4 as well as during the early voting period, which spans from Oct. 20-31. The promotion applies to METRO’s buses and light rail lines, along with its curb2curb microtransit service and METROLift program, an ADA-accessible paratransit service.
   3. The agency said in a Friday news release that in order to take advantage of the free rides, passengers need to show their voter identification or “other approved documentation” to the operator or fare inspector. METRO did not immediately respond to a request for clarification about other acceptable forms of documentation.
   4. The free round-trip rides will be offered from 7 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon-7 p.m. Sunday during early voting, and from 7 a.m.-7 p.m. on Election Day.
   5. Ballots in Harris County include a special election to fill the U.S. House of Representatives seat in Texas’ 18^th Congressional District, which has been vacant since the March death of U.S. Rep. Sylvester Turner. There is also a special election for an at-large position on the Houston City Council, as Letitia Plummer is vacating her seat to run for Harris County judge next year.
   6. There are also several school board elections in the Houston area, including for Houston ISD and Cy-Fair ISD, along with bond elections for some local municipalities and utility districts.
   7. Voters across the state will weigh in on 17 proposed amendments to the Texas Constitution. The propositions are related to issues such as property taxes, bail practices and the establishment of a statewide water fund.
   8. Harris County will operate 70 polling locations during early voting and about 600 on Election Day.
   9. METRO passengers can plan their trips to the polls by using the RideMETRO app or by visiting org.
   10. MIKE: There are several helpful links I’m providing in this show post at ThinkwingRadio-dot-com.
   11. MIKE: The specific instructions for how to ride METRO for free to vote can be found at the link I’m providing. According to the Voting web page at RideMetro-dot-org: “METRO is committed to helping you exercise your right to vote. As part of our civic engagement, METRO will provide free rides to and from polling locations during early voting from Monday, Oct. 20 to Friday, Oct. 31, and on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 4. Upon request, show your voter ID or other approved documentation to ride free.”
   12. MIKE: So I called 713-635-4000. Press 3 for customer service. Hours: 8am-5pm. Customer service MON-FRI 5am-10pm. SAT/SUN: 8am-5pm
   13. MIKE: The customer service representative had no information on how this works beyond what is on the voting ride page, and to find the voting ride page, you have to search the word “voting” to find the information at all.
   14. MIKE: As the article mentions, precise instructions of what kind of documentation to show are absent. I also don’t know how they can limit citizens to free rides to the polls just once.
   15. MIKE: I asked the following questions on their comment page: Do you need a voter registration card”? (Which is no longer adequate to vote)? Do you show a drivers license, passport, or other state approved document for voting? Exactly which documents will qualify? Do you mark the document shown so that a person only gets a free ride to vote once? If not, how do you know that they only use the “going to vote” line once? Is this on the honor system?
   16. MIKE: I then commented: Your website not only needs much more information on how this works. You also need a link on the home page — preferably at the top of the page — for voting information, because if it’s there, I didn’t see it.
   17. MIKE: So it appears that METRO itself isn’t yet clear on how this works. I must expect that drivers will also be vague on how the free ride to a polling place works, so if you try it, be prepared for a little confusion, and as of Sunday morning, nothing on the Metro web site appears to have changed.
   18. MIKE: In the process of trying to clarify the voter ride question, I did discover some other perks you might qualify for on metro.
   19. MIKE: METRO has a number of Discounted and Free Programs. The different kinds and categories are too numerous to properly list here, but you can find them at the link I’m providing in this show post at ThinkwingRadio-dot-com.
   20. MIKE: Aside from student ride discounts, two particular discounts are noteworthy. Seniors 65-69 can get a heavily discounter fare, and seniors 70 years and older can ride METRO for free. You can apply with this form that I’m also linking to in this show post at ThinkwingRadio-dot-com.
   21. MIKE: I hope I’ll be able to get further information to clarify this METRO voting program by next week’s show.
3. Next, I’m going to give you my thoughts on the elections generally and the 17 Proposed Amendments to the Texas State Constitution
   1. Doing a show for KPFT, I can’t specifically endorse candidates on the air. Regular listeners probably know how I lean.
   2. In terms of the general election, if you’re unsure who you should vote for and don’t know how to decide, consider looking for endorsements from groups that you know from experience tend to align with your values and beliefs. In non-partisan elections, it might help to know who the party of your choice endorses.
   3. The Constitution of the State of Texas has been amended 530 times as of 2023. That tells me that either the Texas Constitution was written very badly, or that the constitutional amendment process has been terribly abused for partisan political ends. Or maybe, both.
   4. I’m copying the proposition languages from an article in the Texas Tribune, which is one of the reference links I cite at the bottom of this topic in the Thinkwing Radio show post. It goes into much more detail on each proposition than I can here, but does not recommend how to vote on the various propositions.
   5. In terms of how I lean on propositions, as a general rule, I don’t support proposed changes to the Texas Constitution that enshrine what should be simple legislation into the constitution.
   6. I do sometimes support propositions that authorize the legislature to legislate on a subject, but sometimes that can be a bad idea. An extreme example might be a change to the Constitution that allowed the legislature to ban free speech.
   7. For what it’s worth , I’ll offer you my recommendation on each of the proposed Constitutional Amendments.
   8. PROP 1: “The constitutional amendment providing for the creation of the permanent technical institution infrastructure fund and the available workforce education fund to support the capital needs of educational programs offered by the Texas State Technical College System.” I vote YES. Generally speaking, I support funding for education. My preference is that this should be done as an act of the legislature. I don’t see why it has to be put into a Constitutional Amendment except that Republicans want to make sure it can’t easily be overturned in the way that legislation can be. Nonetheless, I reluctantly vote YES on Proposition 1.
   9. PROP 2: “The constitutional amendment prohibiting the imposition of a tax on the realized or unrealized capital gains of an individual, family, estate, or trust.” I vote NO on this proposition. Tax law should absolutely not be in the Constitution just to make it hard to overturn. This is a Conservative Republican effort to eliminate taxes on the capital gains realized on the assets of very large estates. It will only benefit the very rich. For 2025, the US IRS exemption on inheritance (estate) taxes is $13.99 million per individual. For a married couple, this combined exemption is $27.98 million. I suspect that 99% of American individual estates fall under that number. So I vote NO on PROP 2.
   10. PROP 3: This is a bail reform Constitutional Amendment. It says, “The constitutional amendment requiring the denial of bail under certain circumstances to persons accused of certain offenses punishable as a felony.” I interpret this as being an effort to punish poor people who cannot make bail after arrest. Regardless of your views on this subject, it has no business being a Constitutional Amendment. I vote NO on Prop 3.
   11. PROP 4: “The constitutional amendment to dedicate a portion of the revenue derived from state sales and use taxes to the Texas water fund and to provide for the allocation and use of that revenue.” As a tax matter, this has no business being a Constitutional Amendment. It should be strictly a legislative matter, but the intent is worthwhile, even critically necessary. I reluctantly vote YES on Prop 4.
   12. PROP 5: “The constitutional amendment authorizing the legislature to exempt from ad valorem taxation tangible personal property consisting of animal feed held by the owner of the property for sale at retail.” This amendment simply allows the Lege to pass a tax law. On this basis I vote YES on Prop 5.
   13. PROP 6: “The constitutional amendment prohibiting the legislature from enacting a law imposing an occupation tax on certain entities that enter into transactions conveying securities or imposing a tax on certain securities transactions.” Again, this is the Republican government of Texas trying to Constitutionally prevent a tax law of some kind from ever being passed. I vote NO on Prop 6.
   14. PROP 7: “The constitutional amendment authorizing the legislature to provide for an exemption from ad valorem taxation of all or part of the market value of the residence homestead of the surviving spouse of a veteran who died as a result of a condition or disease that is presumed under federal law to have been service-connected.” This is a constitutional amendment allowing the Legislature to pass a tax law. On this basis I vote YES on Prop 7.
   15. PROP 8: “The constitutional amendment to prohibit the legislature from imposing death taxes applicable to a decedent’s property or the transfer of an estate, inheritance, legacy, succession, or gift.” This is another effort by anti-tax Republicans to permanently ban any future legislature from passing an inheritance tax on very large estates. I vote NO on Prop 8 for the same reason I vote no on Prop 2. This is intended to benefit the richest 1% of Texans.
   16. PROP 9: “The constitutional amendment to authorize the legislature to exempt from ad valorem taxation a portion of the market value of tangible personal property a person owns that is held or used for the production of income.” As an amendment that simply allows tax legislation, I vote YES on Prop 9.
   17. PROP 10: “The constitutional amendment to authorize the legislature to provide for a temporary exemption from ad valorem taxation of the appraised value of an improvement to a residence homestead that is completely destroyed by a fire.” As an amendment that simply allows tax legislation, I vote YES on Prop 10.
   18. PROP 11: “The constitutional amendment authorizing the legislature to increase the amount of the exemption from ad valorem taxation by a school district of the market value of the residence homestead of a person who is elderly or disabled.” As an amendment that simply allows tax legislation, I vote YES on Prop 11.
   19. PROP 12: “The constitutional amendment regarding the membership of the State Commission on Judicial Conduct, the membership of the tribunal to review the commission’s recommendations, and the authority of the commission, the tribunal, and the Texas Supreme Court to more effectively sanction judges and justices for judicial misconduct.” I assume that this amendment will allow Governor Abbott to stack this tribunal with more loyalists who will interpret “judicial misconduct” in the current Trumpian way. Further, I see no reason to set something like this in constitutional stone. I vote NO on Prop 12.
   20. PROP 13: “The constitutional amendment to increase the amount of the exemption of residence homesteads from ad valorem taxation by a school district from $100,000 to $140,000.” I’m sure that Prop 13 will pass no matter what I say, just because. But on principle, routine tax matters should not be constitutionally unchangeable. I suggest voting NO on Prop 13.
   21. PROP 14: “The constitutional amendment providing for the establishment of the Dementia Prevention and Research Institute of Texas, establishing the Dementia Prevention and Research Fund to provide money for research on and prevention and treatment of dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and related disorders in this state, and transferring to that fund $3 billion from state general revenue.” This is certainly a worthy cause. I don’t know of any reason why this has to be established as a constitutional amendment, so on principle I should be against it, but I’ll reluctantly vote YES on Prop 14.
   22. PROP 15: “The constitutional amendment affirming that parents are the primary decision makers for their children.” I vote NO on Prop 15. This proposition is explained in much more detail in the Texas Tribune story. Whatever your position on legal parental rights, assume that under a Rightwing Republican Texas regime, this amendment will be legally and legislatively abused in all the worst possible ways. Further, if the Texas legislature wants this to be law, this language should be legislated, and not added as an immutable amendment to the Texas Constitution. So, I vote NO on Prop 15.
   23. PROP 16: “The constitutional amendment clarifying that a voter must be a United States citizen.” This is already law at the federal level. It’s another effort to intimidate voters who fear harassment at the polls. I vote NO on Prop 16.
   24. PROP 17: “The constitutional amendment to authorize the legislature to provide for an exemption from ad valorem taxation of the amount of the market value of real property located in a county that borders the United Mexican States that arises from the installation or construction on the property of border security infrastructure and related improvements.” This is another example of the State attempting to dictate tax policy at the local level. I vote NO on Prop 17.
   25. REFERENCES: Blue Voter Guide —BLUEVOTERGUIDE.ORG
   26. REFERENCES: Texas 2025 ballot measures — BALLOTPEDIA.ORG
   27. REFERENCES: 17 statewide propositions will appear on the November ballot. Here’s what Texas voters need to know. —TEXASTRIBUNE.ORG
   28. REFERENCES: League of Women Voters: Details 17 propositions on the midterm election ballot — LWVTEXAS.ORG
   29. REFERENCES: Texas 2025 Constitutional Amendments Explained: Ballot Guide & Vote Recommendations — TEXASPOLICYRESEARCH.COM
4. MIKE: You might recall that there is a petition campaign to recall John Whitmire as Houston Mayor. They need thousands of signatures. They have a linked calendar, but for your convenience and as a public service, I’m listing the locations, dates and times that they will have tables where you can sign up.
   1. Tuesday, October 21 · 2:00 – 3:00pm – City Council Meetings – Public Comments, Houston City Hall, 901 Bagby St, Houston, TX 77002, USA.
   2. Saturday, October 25 from 8:00am – 12:00pm ·Urban Harvest Farmers Market, 2752 Buffalo Speedway, Houston, TX 77027, USA.
   3. Saturday, October 25 ·11:00am – 3:00pm, Bike Party, Saint Arnold Brewing Company, 2000 Lyons Ave, Houston, TX 77020, USA.
   4. Saturday, October 25 · 6:00 – 8:00pm ,Fiel – Trunk or Treat, 6300 Irvington Blvd, Houston, TX 77022, USA.
   5. Saturday, October 25 6:00 – 7:00pm, Queens of Houston – Main Meetup, 715 Fairview St, Houston, TX 77006, USA.
   6. Saturday, October 258:00 – 9:00pm, Pride Vibes Happy Hour. 711 Milby St, Houston, TX 77023, USA.
   7. For further Information, you can visit their web site at org or email to: recallhouston@gmail.com.
5. Texas Democrat stands on criticism of Young Republicans’ ‘Nazi’ group chat; By Faith Bugenhagen, Trending News Reporter | CHRON.COM | Oct 17, 2025. TAGS: Young Republicans, Democratic Texas House candidate Sara McGee, Nazis, Texas House District 132,
   1. A Democratic Texas House candidate is defending herself against conservative backlash after sharing viral posts that referred to Young Republicans in a viral group chat as “Nazis.”
   2. Sara McGee, running to represent Texas House District 132, posted on X:  “Call them what they are.”
   3. She added, “Masks are off, so the gloves are off. My grandfather fought you in 1943, and I will fight you now. Pull up.”
   4. McGee’s remarks accompanied a separate X post from Jon Stewart’s, “The Daily Show,” that read, “When the Nazi group chat ruins your talking points.”
   5. The group chat in question reportedly featured leaders of Young Republican groups across the U.S. Leaked messages reported by POLITICO displayed group members engaging in antisemitic, racist and misogynistic rhetoric.
   6. Members called Black people monkeys and “the watermelon people” and fantasized about putting their political opponents in gas chambers or sexually abusing their enemies.
   7. However, no Texas Young Republican leader was named in the report. Attempts by Chron to reach Texas Young Republicans for comment were unsuccessful.
   8. McGee’s post caught waves on X after Libs of TikTok, a known far-right and anti-LBGTQ social media page, reposted the Texas House candidate’s comments.
   9. [Libs of TikTok’s post read,] “Democrat candidate for Texas House calls Republicans nazis and says she will ‘fight’ Republicans like an actual war. They want to kill us and they’re open about it.”
   10. [That] post has since amassed 139.3K views, 1.9K reposts and 5K likes.
   11. McGee took to the comment section of the post, lightly responding, “So anyway…help me buy some yard signs,” and included a link to her donation site in the post.
   12. Doubling down on her seemingly unbothered approach, McGee reposted Libs of TikTok’s post, writing, “Free block list in the comment section!”
   13. McGee told Chron on Friday that her original post was not a “call to actual violence,” instead, it was a call to political action. 
   14. [McGee said to Chron,] “A political fight. Not an actual fist fight. In the doxxing age, it’s actually pretty frightening being highlighted by that account.” 
   15. Her remarks took a more serious note when responding to individual comments, as she stood by her description of the group chat members.
   16. [One user wrote,] “So you actually think the people that don’t believe what you do are Nazi’s?” To which McGee said, “No, I think people who say things like, ‘I love Hitler,’ are Nazis.” 
   17. MIKE: For maybe 40+ years, Democrats have suspected that Klan and fascist types have been gravitating to the Republican Party, and Democrats have been saying as much. With this Young Republicans chat having been revealed, the masks are off.
   18. And the name, “Young Republicans” is really a misnomer. To the uninitiated, the name implies ‘young’ like high school- or college-aged people, or perhaps recent grads under 25-years-old.
   19. In actuality, according to the Young Republican National Federation (to which I’ve provided a link in this show post at ThinkwingRadio-dot-com), the age group for the YRNF is 18-40.
   20. Maybe 40 is young in a gerontocracy. I’m 74, and to me, I might jokingly refer to a 40-year-old as a ‘kid’. But to the average person, I think “young” might be 18-25. “Adult” might be 25-40-ish. Older than 40 is definitely middle-aged, and by some measures, over 35 is technically middle-aged.
   21. According to The Hill, Vice President JD Vance calls the people on this chat “kids”, and from that story, “Vance said he will encourage his kids, “especially my boys,” to be careful of what they post in group chats and on the internet, saying they should assume “some scumbag is going to leak it in an effort to try to cause you harm or cause your family harm.”
   22. “But, [he continued,] the reality is that kids do stupid things. Especially young boys, they tell edgy, offensive jokes. Like, that’s what kids do … And I really don’t want us to grow up in a country where a kid telling a stupid joke — telling a very offensive, stupid joke — is cause to ruin their lives.”
   23. Well, J.D., my opinion is that yes, you should always be careful what you put in writing, whether it’s a text, email, or handwritten notes. But if your “kids” are spewing racist and Nazi comments, your parental problem is much bigger than what they’re putting in writing. It’s the stuff they have circulating in their heads.
   24. And if you think that someone who reveals that is a “scumbag”, then you think your problem is that your Nazi kids were ‘outed’, when your much bigger problem is that you have Nazi kids. And your actual personal problem is that you’re cool with having Nazi kids.
   25. And now let’s talk about “that’s what kids do.”
   26. Firstly, JD, no. That is not what kids should be doing. If your kids are doing that, red flags should be waving, and alarm bells should be going off. What has your parenting wrought?
   27. And secondly, that same story from The Hill noted that there were 11 people in that chat, and 8 of them were between 24 and 35 years old. It should have been up to the 8 older individuals to pull the young folks up short when they started using that sort of language and expressing those sort of ideas, even in a private chat.
   28. And while that sort of talk should maybe not ruin a young person’s life — and young might be 18-25 — that person should absolutely not be a shining light or a rising star in a mainstream American political party. And that person absolutely should not be endorsed by that party to run for future political office. And that person absolutely should not ever be in leadership in that party.
   29. And I think that the older so-called “Young Republicans” in that group should absolutely have their future political lives ruined.
   30. And the fact that JD Vance seems to consider this kind of talk just the kind of stuff ‘kids do’ — in my mind — makes JD Vance a philosophical Nazi if not an actual one.
   31. The broad silence from, and the failure of the vast majority of Republicans to, disown this group and these views is itself revealing. It reveals a strong and wide strain of racists and ideological Nazis in the Republican Party, as well as cowardly enablers and passive actors that are willingly going along with it for the sake of being “Republicans”.
   32. The Republican Party has now fully revealed itself as a fundamentally un-American party, and media should cover and report it as such unless it changes its current ideological tilt toward fascism, racism and misogyny.
   33. Are Republicans no longer even pretending to themselves that they are pro-Democracy?
   34. MIKE: On Sunday morning, I was reminded of an old lawyer joke: What do you have when you dump 400 lawyers into the middle of the ocean.
   35. Answer: A good start.
   36. Once you’ve heard that, the Republican jokes kind of write themselves, don’t they?
6. And for a bit more along the lines of that last story, from DEADLINE-DOT-COM — Gavin Newsom Seeks Congressional Probe Of GOP “I Love Hitler” Texts, Slams VP Vance’s “Kids Do Stupid Things” Response And Says DOJ “Cannot Be Trusted”; By Dominic Patten | DEADLINE.COM | October 15, 2025 2:56pm. TAGS: Gavin Newsom, JD Vance , Republican Party (GOP), Young Republicans, House Committee on Oversight,
   1. The governor of California is daring the GOP-controlled Congress to open an investigation into “the vile and offensive” pro-Nazis, pro-rape and racist text messages recently revealed from Young Republican leaders across America.
   2. [Gavin Newsom said Wednesday in a one-page letter sent to House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform chair James Comer,] “Those text chats invoked sending people who disagree with the group ‘to the gas chamber,’ expressed ‘love [for] Hitler,’ and contained other overtly antisemitic exchanges. They expressly endorse rape and other violence against women and use patently racist phrases for racial minorities.”
   3. [The two-term Golden State governor added,] “This is the definition of conduct that can create a hostile and discriminatory environment that violates civil rights laws,” also pointing out the GOP hypocrisy in going after Ivy League schools like “Harvard University for its allegedly inadequate response to campus antisemitism” but seeking to swipe the Young Republicans’ hateful talk and texts under the rug.
   4. Then there’s the politics of it all, past, present and future.
   5. Yes, the national Young Republicans board has insisted everyone on the chats, first revealed by Politico, “must immediately resign” from their state groups. Many have, many have been pink-slipped, and some like Vermont state Sen. Sam Douglass are digging their heels in.
   6. [MIKE: Or were, at the time this article was written. Continuing …]
   7. Knowing perfectly well there will almost certainly be little or no positive response from Comer or other Republicans in the shut-down Congress, the timing-sensitive Newsom today made his demand not long after Vice President JD Vance dismissively said again without any sense of irony that those offended should “grow up” and “focus on the real issues, don’t focus on what kids say in group chats.”
   8. On Tuesday, Vance took to social media and tried to flip the script on the topic with a dig at Virginia Democrats.
   9. Last month, as the tightly contested Old Dominion election comes down to the final weeks, text messages from 2022 were made public that had Democratic attorney general nominee Jay Jones shooting his digital mouth off about shooting then Virginia House Speaker Todd Gilbert and saying vile things about the Republican’s children. Democrats like poll-leading gubernatorial candidate Abigail Spanberger have condemned Jones’ comments, but Jones remains in the race.
   10. Today, Vance was back on The Charlie Kirk Show podcast to take another kick at dampening the outrage and calls for consequences for the Young Republicans’ pro-Nazis, pro-rape and racist statements.
   11. [Veep, the self-admitted “old guy”, said Wednesday,] “The reality is that kids do stupid things, especially young boys. They tell edgy, offensive jokes. That’s what kids do.”
   12. Rarely missing an opportunity to call out or mock the Trump administration or the increasingly far-right GOP, Newsom made sure to put the Hillbilly Elegy author and potential 2028 rival in a leg-hold trap of his own making.
   13. [Newsom wrote,] “Vice President Vance’s refusal to unequivocally condemn the invocation of gas chambers and rape underscores that the United States Department of Justice and other agencies with potential jurisdiction, such as the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, that have aggressively investigated alleged antisemitism and unlawful gender ideology by the other institutions and organizations cannot be trusted to do so here. Congressional oversight is therefore essential.”
   14. There has been no reaction so far from the committee or its GOP members, though Newsom’s active social media team made sure to turn up the spotlight a bit more today:
   15. FROM GOV. NEWSOM PRESS OFFICE — “Good to see Gov. Scott, State Rep. Michael Reilly, and others condemn this vile, antisemitic speech, but where is the rest of the Republican Party? It’s truly disgusting to see the Vice President’s implicit endorsement of Nazism and the Speaker of the House’s silence. @CAGovernor
   16. MIKE: First, before saying anything else, I’ll note that not all fascists are Nazis, but all Nazis are fascists, while also noting that for many, that may be a distinction without a difference.
   17. MIKE: Now I’m going to go a step further than Newsom here.
   18. MIKE: In the 1950s, the House Un-American Activities Committee was set up to investigate Communists in the US government and around the country. That turned out to be mostly witch hunts against people who posed no threat to the country or the US government.
   19. MIKE: The real threat to this country and government now is, neo-Nazis, fascists, White Supremacists, and Christian Nationalists, with the intent to effectively overthrow the Constitution, if not the government.
   20. MIKE: In our country, people have a constitutional right to believe what they want to believe, no matter how repugnant. There is no such thing as a “Thought Crime” in the United States.
   21. MIKE: But I think it’s past time to investigate and “out” the people who are the stealth neo-Nazis, White Supremacists, Christian Nationalists, and fascists in our government and our dominant political parties.
   22. MIKE: I can’t say for sure where these people are most likely to be found within our government, but I have my suspicions. That being the case, it’s unlikely that this current government and Congress are likely to conduct such investigations, but a new Congress after the 2026 elections just might be able to do so.
7. I waited until 5 AM on Sunday morning to find a wrap-up story about Saturday’s No Kings Day protests. Here it is, from NPR — 3 takeaways from the second No Kings day of nationwide protests; By Alana Wise, Chandelis Duster, Emma Bowman | NPR.ORG | October 19, 2025@5:00 AM ET. TAGS: Trump Administration’s Policies, No Kings Day, Protest Marches,
   1. One of the biggest days of protest against the Trump administration’s policies happened on Saturday in cities around the U.S. The overriding theme of the marches was the accusation that President Trump is behaving more like a monarch than an elected official.
   2. It marked the second massive wave of protests organized by No Kings — a network of progressive organizations fighting against Trump’s agenda.
   3. Organizers said about 2,600 No Kings events were planned across nearly every state, and that it projected a bigger turnout than the 5 million it said attended its previous nationwide action in June.
   4. [MIKE: According to a CNN story from 3 hours earlier, organizers claimed that “nearly 7 million people [attended] more than 2,700 events in all 50 states…” Continuing …]
   5. Energized by a slew of actions taken by the administration since the summer protests, the group cited widespread immigration detentions carried out by often-masked Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, the administration’s aggressive slashing of federal education resources and environmental protections, gerrymandering, and other concerns.
   6. Here’s a recap of how the protests unfolded.
   7. United in protests to ‘protect America’
   8. Protesters showed up to oppose a wide range of issues, including the administration’s immigration tactics and its push for federal and military intervention in Democratic-led states as a way to tackle crime. The diversity of concerns was strung together by the broader messaging of democracy, constitutional rights, and the freedom the U.S. was founded on.
   9. In Washington, D.C., demonstrators filled Pennsylvania Avenue near the U.S. Capitol, many holding signs that read “No Kings, No Tyrants.” Many people wore yellow, a color organizers said is to show unity.
   10. Uriah Kitchen of Delaware, who attended the protest with his son Elijah, told NPR, “we made a pledge of allegiance when we were in school and this is what it’s all about.”
   11. [Kitchen added,] “This is why we’re here; we’re here to protect America,”
   12. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, an Independent who caucuses with Democrats, addressed D.C. protesters in remarks slamming tech billionaires who he said have become richer and more powerful since Trump became president. Sanders singled out Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg “and the other multibillionaires who were sitting right behind Trump when he was inaugurated.”
   13. On the West Coast in San Pablo, Calif., Maria Floriano attended a No Kings event with immigration on her mind. Wearing a hat and shirt decorated with butterflies, she compared immigration to butterflies and said “migration is beautiful” and “an act of courage.”
   14. [Said Floriano, noting the protest was held in a Bay Area community home to a large population of immigrants,] “We want them to know that there are people fighting for them, that not everyone feels that they’re not welcome here.”
   15. The Trump administration and Republican lawmakers weighed in
   16. House Speaker Mike Johnson slammed Saturday’s protests as a “hate America rally,” and other Republicans have derided the event as anti-American.
   17. Responding to NPR’s questions about the protests, White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said: “Who cares?”
   18. Trump was not at the White House during the protests but on a visit to his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.
   19. Connecticut House Republican Leader Vincent Candelora told Connecticut Public that he considered the “No Kings” messaging of the protests “divisive.” He also doesn’t share protesters’ concerns, but supports their right to exercise their First Amendment rights.
   20. [Candelora said,] “I think our democracy is still strong as ever — but, you know, they’re free to express themselves.”
   21. Peaceful protesting with song and dance
   22. Despite the many criticisms that anti-Trump protesters came to preach, there were displays of optimism, hope, and whimsy in several cities.
   23. Inspired by protesters in Portland, Ore., people in Los Angeles, Hartford, Conn., and elsewhere showed up to march in inflatable animal costumes. Song and dance broke out in Salt Lake City and other cities.
   24. As with the previous mass No Kings protests, revolutionary messaging showed up in demonstrators’ clothing, chants, and signs as protesters sought to remind people that America was founded in opposition to monarchy.
   25. In Macon, Ga., protesters belted [out] “The Story of Tonight” from the musical Hamilton — a song about the importance of sacrifice and solidarity today for the sake of freedom tomorrow.
   26. The protests were largely peaceful. Police in New York City and Washington, D.C., where rallies drew some of the day’s biggest crowds, said no protest-related arrests were made.
   27. Republican Govs. Glenn Youngkin of Virginia and Greg Abbott of Texas mobilized their states’ National Guards in preparation for the protests.
   28. [Youngkin spokesman Peter Finocchio wrote in a statement to VPM,] “The Governor has authorized state active duty for training to help ensure the Guard will be ready to respond if needed to help keep people safe.”
   29. The Texas Newsroom reported that Abbott said in a statement of sending the Guards to Austin: “Violence and destruction will never be tolerated in Texas.” The newsroom also reported that state troopers were stationed at entrances to the Capitol grounds inspecting bags, but protesters said the law enforcement presence felt smaller than the previous “No Kings” event in June.
   30. Saturday’s rally was peaceful and there were no arrests, according to the Austin Police Department.
   31. MIKE: Looking at this objectively, I can certainly understand why local and state governments would want to be prepared in case dozens or hundreds or thousands of street protesters might get rowdy, or even destructive.
   32. MIKE: On the other hand, regular law enforcement is usually more than able to manage those situations. Mobilizing National Guard troops in advance, as Texas Governor Abbott and Virginia Governor Youngkin did, might have some merit, but in my opinion, the Guard should be kept off the streets, out of sight, and unused unless there is actual violence that is beyond the control of regular law enforcement.
   33. MIKE: And remember, National Guard soldiers have active and engaged civilian lives that they are being pulled away from, and mobilizing them in advance might not just be inconsiderate. It might also actually might show that some in government fear their own citizens.
   34. MIKE: In the news I’ve been reading over the past few years, that is usually the response of authoritarians fearing for their job security.
8. Meanwhile, in a judicial push against fascistic government brutality, there’s this — Judge tells Homeland Security that Chicago agents wearing body cameras was “not a suggestion”; By Sabrina Franza | CBSNEWS.COM | Updated on: October 17, 2025 / 4:27 PM CDT / CBS Chicago. TAGS: S. District Judge Sara Ellis, Operation Midway Blitz, Body Cameras, Chicago, Customs and Border Protection (CBP), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE),
   1. A federal judge again Friday ordered agents in Chicago for immigration operations to wear and turn on their body cameras, telling them “that was not a suggestion.”
   2. S. District Judge Sara Ellis issued the order Thursday, citing concerns about increasingly violent clashes between federal agents deployed in Operation Midway Blitz and the public, and their use of tear gas against protesters.
   3. Ellis said her order requires any federal agents working under Operation Midway Blitz to wear body cameras and keep them on during all “law enforcement activities.”
   4. In a follow up hearing Friday, as Judge Ellis prepares to hear testimony from Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Monday about their use of tear gas and other deterrents in Chicago’s East Side neighborhood earlier this week, she reiterated her requirement for body cameras.
   5. [She told lawyers for the Trump administration,] “Maybe I wasn’t clear yesterday; that wasn’t a suggestion. I am modifying the temporary restraining order to include body-worn cameras.”
   6. [She added,] “It’s not up for debate.”
   7. Federal agents at large wear body cameras but federal agents in Chicago have not been.
   8. [Ellis said in court,] “This was not a suggestion. It wasn’t a hint. It wasn’t a topic of discussion or conversation. It was an order. So, I will enter it today and then I will expect that it will be followed.” 
   9. A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security called the ruling an “extreme act of judicial activism.”
   10. MIKE: As long as I can remember, any judicial ruling that expanded school desegregation, voting rights, personal freedom, or aided the average American was called “judicial activism” by the Republican Party. Now, the Trump regime and the Republican Party love their rogue Supreme Court, but still hate judges that rule against them in ways that are not just sour grapes, but are downright insulting to the rule of law.
   11. MIKE: The next several elections will unquestionably be crucial to the future of this country.
9. Now, from October 8, ways that Trump and his sycophantic Republicans are screwing up our relationships with our closest allies, from POLITICO — Carney calls out new normal between old friends; By Zi-Ann Lum | POLITICO.COM | 10/08/2025 06:36 PM EDT. TAGS: Canada, Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister Mark Carney, Canada-United States trade relationship, President Donald Trump,
   1. Prime Minister Mark Carney says he’s surprised the once rock-steady Canada-United States trade relationship has irrevocably become a mostly transactional one.
   2. [Carney said of ongoing trade negotiations a day after meeting with President Donald Trump,] “It’s not totally that way, but it’s moved on that — and we’re in the process of finding the right balance”
   3. [Carney added in a virtual address to a Toronto business audience,] “We also understand it’s ‘America first,’ not ‘America alone.’ ”
   4. The prime minister said the trade war has created new caution and skepticism around deeper integration with the U.S. “because that could lead to similar issues down the road.”
   5. Carney brought up China as a potential partner for growth in certain sectors. He called competition against Beijing “a choice.”
   6. Good sentiments around the Trump-Carney meeting slightly soured after Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick advised the same audience in a virtual appearance earlier in the day that Canada should expect concessions in the auto sector if it wants to close a deal.
   7. Lutnick made the comments in a Wednesday morning session that was closed to the media.
   8. Trump’s meeting with Carney has sparked renewed urgency in closing trade deals with Canada soon. Carney’s Cabinet ministers and Trump’s secretaries have been tasked to find paths to make deals on steel, aluminum and energy.
   9. Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc, who remained in Washington after Carney’s departure, said Tuesday’s meeting added fuel to negotiations in key sectors, noting both sides aim “to quickly arrive at a deal.” Concurrent with those talks is the trilateral North American free-trade deal renewal process now underway ahead of negotiations next year.
   10. Carney did his homework and brought some financial points to use as leverage during his White House meeting with Trump, continuing high-level trade talks to deescalate a trade war.
   11. [The prime minister said in the Oval Office, revealing the outline of an impending deal,] “We are the largest foreign investor in the United States — half a trillion dollars in the last five years alone — probably a trillion dollars in the next five years, if we get the agreement that we expect to get.”
   12. The congenial meeting saw both leaders flatter each other in front of cameras — a marked difference from Trump’s open derision for Carney’s predecessor, Justin Trudeau.
   13. One auspicious sign for a new chapter in Canada-U.S. relations was Carney’s invitation to stay in Blair House, the [Trump’s] official guest pad.
   14. Vice President JD Vance and his wife, Usha, also invited Carney to dinner. According to a readout from the prime minister’s office, they discussed “common priorities and the broader work to build a new economic and security relationship” between the U.S. and Canada.
   15. Dinner ended with a “miramisu” made by the Vances’ daughter, Mirabel.
   16. Carney, a former central banker in two G7 countries, is under pressure to follow through on an election promise to stand up to Trump’s annexation threats and bellicose tariff policy that has damaged Canada’s steel, aluminum, automotive and forestry sectors.
   17. The rookie prime minister has defended the protracted trade negotiations, arguing he was elected to achieve not just any deal for Canada, but the best deal possible.
   18. But Trump’s former chief of staff said Wednesday that Carney’s initial “tough” anti-Trump language wasn’t a smart strategy.
   19. Trump is “totally and completely accessible” to the prime minister, Reince Priebus told the same business audience Carney addressed in Toronto, calling his former boss a one-on-one guy.
   20. [Priebus said,] “He’s personable. And I think Carney figured that out.”
   21. When asked what advice he’d give Carney amid negotiations, Priebus suggested getting more in the president’s face.
   22. [Priebus said,] “I would go play golf with the president. I would do whatever you could to strike up a personal relationship with the president and talk about other things. Talk about Wayne Gretzky — the president loves talking about sports and golf.”
   23. MIKE: I’ve been doing movie references these days, so I thought I’d add a TV reference.
   24. MIKE: This story, and others in the same vein of world leaders having to flatter and manipulate Trump like a spoiled child reminds of the famous Twilight Zone episode, “It’s a Good Life”, except in this case the spoiled and very dangerous child isn’t played by Billy Mumy, but by Donald Trump.
   25. MIKE: The next time you see a video of Trump talking to a world leader, remember what they’re dealing with by remembering this audio clip (INSERT AUDIO, 37s): (EDITED VERSION – “It’s a Good Life” (A very bad man) from THE TWILIGHT ZONE, NOV 1961)
   26. MIKE: Be afraid.
10. Now, a story about the strategic revolution taking place in the Ukraine-Russia War, from BUSINESSINSIDER — Ukraine’s cheap interceptor drones are rewriting the air war playbook; By Matthew Loh and Jake Epstein | BUSINESSINSIDER.COM | Oct 18, 2025, 3:10 AM CT. TAGS: Ukraine War, Ukrainian drones, Russia,
    1. About a year into Russia’s war, a Ukrainian drone instructor pitched what sounded to troops like science fiction: flying quadcopters into Moscow’s [drone scouts in] midair.
    2. [Recalled Yeti, the co-owner of Drone Fight Club, a privately run combat drone school in Kyiv,] The soldiers thought it was impossible. It would be too difficult to maneuver a quadcopter, or small drone, into another fast-moving target, they said. They joked that he’d been watching too much “Star Wars.”
    3. What once seemed laughable has since become a low-cost and critical pillar of Ukraine’s defense. While Russia hurls growing waves of explosive drones at its cities, Ukraine is increasingly flying cheap interceptor drones to stop them. These weapons downed 150 attack drones in one recent bombardment. Ukraine is now aiming to manufacture 1,000 interceptors a day.
    4. The ripples of this technological breakthrough extend beyond Ukraine, showing how future wars involving mass drone attacks can be fought with cheap defenses.
    5. NATO is taking note. “Hit-to-kill” interceptor drones are one of the most “promising” solutions for European allies to defend against Russian drones, said Adm. Pierre Vandier, NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Transformation, who oversees modernization.
    6. Business Insider interviewed Ukrainian insiders, including drone manufacturers, pilots, and designers, about how interceptors have evolved from a scrappy experiment into a top defense priority.
    7. [Said Sam Bendett, an advisor in the Russia studies program at the Center for Naval Analyses, a US research institution,] “As the number of aerial drone threats grew, so did the pressure on the defenders on both sides to use counters that are relatively cheap and simple.”
    8. Both Ukraine and Russia are now using a range of interceptor drones.
    9. … Interceptor drones, like many Russia-Ukraine battlefield innovations, were born out of desperation.
    10. Ukrainians first considered the technology in early 2024 as a cheap way to counter Russian reconnaissance drones, or uncrewed systems that typically cost upward of $100,000 and quietly cruise at up to 23,000 feet to surveil the battlefield. Urgency grew when winter came and Russia began unleashing waves of Shaheds — Iranian-designed attack drones that fly toward a target and detonate.
    11. Ukraine was running low on expensive surface-to-air missiles, partly due to dwindling US arms support, and was relying heavily on truck-mounted machine guns to take down Shaheds.
    12. Those defenses couldn’t keep up. Attack drones were slipping through, knocking out power grids and forcing rolling blackouts as temperatures dropped below freezing. Hospitals worked in the dark and often without water, and civilians scrambled to stockpile firewood and coal.
    13. Ukrainian drone engineers kicked into action and started redesigning their quadcopters into drones that could take down Shaheds.
    14. The “Come Back Alive Foundation”, Ukraine’s biggest crowdfunding organization, joined the effort with Dronefall, a program aimed at destroying 5,000 Russian drones with piloted first-person-view drones. Dronefall’s project lead, Taras Tymochko, said the program now works with 12 to 15 manufacturers and has sponsored drones that have intercepted more than 3,000 aerial vehicles. …
    15. … Interceptor drone designs are now quickly evolving. The Sting, for example, carries a warhead that’s propelled up to 213 mph via four rotating blades. The sensor-guided interceptor, produced by Ukrainian drone maker Wild Hornets, resembles a handheld missile and is small enough to fit inside a duffel bag. Other interceptors look like small gliders.
    16. The crews that deploy them must react instantly to threats. A pilot flying the Sting said his crew races out at night on tips from reconnaissance teams, with only 10 minutes to catch incoming Russian drones before they slip out of range. …
    17. Interest in interceptors has surged as Russia invests heavily in long-range drones. Last month, Moscow launched more than 800 in a single strike, and Western assessments warn the Kremlin could soon send up to 2,000 in a night.
    18. A single missile in the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System [or AMRAAM], one of the air defenses provided to Ukraine, costs roughly $1 million. Interceptor drones, which cost a few thousand dollars each, let Ukraine save its missiles for faster, deadlier cruise and ballistic
    19. NATO allies are starting to consider interceptor drones as a viable air defense option. The UK, for example, said last month that it would sponsor and jointly develop thousands of low-cost interceptor drones with and for Ukraine. …
    20. … Yeti, the lead instructor for Drone Fight Club, said only the best drone pilots can master interceptor piloting. Of the roughly 5,200 students the school has trained, only several dozen have completed its interceptor exams, which have a 30% pass rate.
    21. Part of the reason for the low uptake and pass-rate is because Ukraine’s troops are stretched thin and can’t afford to send drone pilots away for extended training periods, Yeti said. His students often have to rush through courses to return to the battlefield.
    22. … The war is a cycle of constant and deadly innovation, with solutions that work today potentially obsolete within months. Russia’s next move may already be here.
    23. In recent months, the Kremlin has increasingly been launching jet-powered Shahed drones. Dubbed the Geran-3 by Ukrainians, the new loitering munitions are rumored to fly at speeds of up to 310 miles per hour — essentially a piloted cruise missile that’s 100 mph faster than top interceptor drones.
    24. Behind the scenes, Ukrainian engineers are already working toward defenses for what could be the air war’s next phase.
    25. [ComeBackAlive’s Tymochko said,] “At this point, nothing is going to be announced. But I think that someday we will find them on the market and all of this will become public. It’s going to be the next stage of the competition.”
    26. MIKE: Be aware that all of us are witnessing military history. These drone wars are the biggest innovation in conventional warfare since the German blitzkrieg made the French Maginot Line obsolete when it invaded France in 1940. And Europe has also noticed.
11. Von der Leyen and Costa psychodrama sees them struggle in Copenhagen; By Jacopo Barigazzi | POLITICO.EU | October 1, 2025 11:54 pm CET. TAGS: Defense Drones , Enlargement , Platforms , Populism ,State of the Union, Hungary , Moldova , Russia , Ukraine, António Costa , Donald Trump , Emmanuel Macron , Friedrich Merz , Ursula von der Leyen,
    1. The presidents of the European Commission and the European Council have one thing in common ― their ideas aren’t flying.
    2. [A] summit of EU leaders in Copenhagen on Wednesday stretched beyond its scheduled finishing time. Presidents and prime ministers used the platform to insist that something must be done about Russian aggression, but without really coming to much consensus on exactly what it should be. …
    3. Von der Leyen … made a push to get support in Copenhagen on the establishment of a “drone wall” that would detect and shoot down drones flying across Europe’s eastern flank. But the concept as such was rejected by the biggest countries. …
    4. The president of the European Council, which is made up of the bloc’s 27 governments, wanted to use the summit to push for agreement on scrapping the need for all members to assent to new countries joining the EU. The idea was to make it easier for Ukraine’s and Moldova’s accession, getting past countries like Hungary who want to stop it happening.
    5. But that didn’t get far off the ground either. In the summit room, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán shot down the idea, according to three diplomats with knowledge of the discussions in Copenhagen. Expectations are not high that much will change on voting rules any time soon, they said.
    6. Leaders did decide they should continue their work on finding a way to use €140 billion worth of Russian assets frozen in Europe since Moscow’s invasion in 2022 to fund Ukraine. They also reiterated their determination to find a way to tackle Russian drone incursions in European airspace ― but neither of those ideas found concrete solutions. …
    7. … One of the reasons the two presidents wanted to make a splash was because they are vying for relevancy, and to make the point that they, personally, are doing everything they can to help Ukraine, according to the three diplomats.
    8. While von der Leyen has made many proposals to boost EU defense, this remains a core part of national governments’ individual powers. The bloc’s biggest countries don’t want the Commission to take away their authority. Smaller countries are more sanguine, particularly those in the East, because they feel more vulnerable to the Russian threat. …
    9. The summit showed that Europe’s most powerful national leaders still have the final word. That sometimes can be unsettling for those who operate the bloc’s machinery in Brussels — particularly when they hear a leader like Germany’s Merz start talking like there’s political capital in criticizing the EU. …
    10. … As expected, … No formal agreements were reached, with real crunch talks expected [in about a week] at the next European Council in Brussels. …

There’s always more to discuss, but that’s all we have time for today. You’ve been listening to Thinkwing Radio with Mike Honig from KPFT Houston 90.1-HD2, Galveston 89.5-HD2, and Huntsville 91.9-HD2. We are Houston’s Community radio. I hope you’ve enjoyed the show and found it interesting, and I look forward to sharing this time with you again next week. Y’all take care!