At precisely 11 AM EDT on May 29th, 2019, former Special Counsel Robert Mueller finally spoke publically about his investigation of Russian interference with the 2016 presidential election, Russian contacts with the Trump Campaign, and Donald Trump’s efforts to hamper that investigation, more than two years after it began. It was Mueller’s first public statement on the matter, and it fell into the body politic with a resounding boom.
On May 24th, 2019, UK PM Theresa May made a tearful departure from the political scene, as she announced her resignation in the wake of the collapse of the disastrous Brexit negotiations to withdraw Britain from the EU. The move was not unexpected, as May had intimated as much, should the third vote on a dissolution proposal fail in Parliament, which it did in late March. At that time the European Union gave Britain a further seven months to craft a deal suitable to all parties, but having failed at each successive attempt over the prior three years, May felt new leadership was required to resolve the impasse.
On Wednesday, May 22nd, a White House meeting on proposed infrastructure legislation between Democratic leadership and Donald Trump imploded in under five minutes when the President berated Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, taking them to task about ongoing congressional investigations into his conduct, motivations and finances. Trump threatened a total lack of legislative action so long as the investigations continue, then proceeded to the Rose Garden for an open-air airing of his grievances before the Press.
The President’s latest meltdown in an ongoing series was well timed celestially, as the 22nd was the very day that his cosmic referent, asteroid Troemper, came to its station, turning retrograde in the company of Saturn and Pluto, a combination focused on exacting punishments and penalties (Saturn) for criminal acts (Pluto). Adding fuel to the fire was Troemper’s exact conjunction with the USA’s natal Pluto at 27 Capricorn, highlighting the fast-developing power struggle between the executive and legislative branches, as Trump attempts to stonewall Congress by ignoring or undermining their legitimate oversight role, constitutionally mandated.
Early on Friday, May 17th 2019, the sad news came of the death of Internet feline sensation Grumpy Cat, just seven years old. The Greats always go in threes, and Grumpy Cat was preceded into eternity that week by singer/actress Doris Day and comedian Tim Conway. Grumpy, whose given name was Tarder Sauce, actually passed on the 14th, following complications from a UTI infection. One of the most photographed felines in history, Grumpy Cat had 1.4 million Twitter followers, countless internet memes and merchandise, and a loyal fan base who will mourn her passing.
On Monday, 13 May 2019, singer and actress Doris Day passed away at the age of 97, after a bout with pneumonia. The popular songstress, an icon of feminine chastity and purity in the 1950s and ‘60s, was also a passionate animal rights advocate and activist, as well as a vegetarian, walking her talk.
Once the toast of Hollywood, one of only eight performers to be top box office earner in four years over the life of her career, Day’s films evoked a simpler, carefree era. Her sunny-yet-feisty, can-do, smoldering virgin persona eventually fell out of favor with audiences, but her films were box office gold for over a decade. Teaming with Rock Hudson in such popular successes as “Pillow Talk”, “Lover Come Back” and “Send Me No Flowers”, Day also starred opposite such Hollywood royalty as Cary Grant, David Niven and Jimmy Stewart.
On April 29th 2019 The Washington Post, whose Fact Checker database has been tracking Donald Trump’s lies, misrepresentations, and false or misleading claims, announced that the 45th President had reached a new milestone, with 10,000 falsehoods uttered. Apparently it took Trump some 601 days into his presidency to make 5000 such statements, an average of 8 per day, but only an additional 226 days to double that figure, raising his rate of deception to 23 per day over the ensuing seven month period, which included the buildup to the 2018 Midterms, the government shutdown, and the release of the Mueller Report.
