What Trump Really Gave Up in the Prisoner Exchange & Musk Wants to Impeach Judges Who Rule Against Him
What I’m Discussing Today:
Kareem’s Big Fat Announcement, Part 2: My new graphic novel tells the story of a high school basketball player forced to learn about my life outside basketball. It’s got humor, mystery, and history all wrapped into one book.
Musk calls to impeach judge whose order blocks DOGE from Treasury systems access: Mump (Musk and Trump) is now going after the last guardrail protecting America from a dictatorship.
Petition to Deport Ilhan Omar Circulated by Texas Republican: A GOP presidential wannabe wants to deport an American citizen for telling people their constitutional rights. Yeah, people actually voted for him.
Kareem’s Video Break: The Atlantic black sea hare will mesmerize you.
Kremlin Embarrasses Trump With Truth About U.S. Teacher Marc Fogel’s Release: Russia is giddy over the prisoner swap that gave them a huge boost in their attempt to crush a democracy.
Kareem’s Kvetching Korner: I just read an AI-generated sonnet that left me with many unsettling thoughts.
Kareem’s Sports Moments: Some athletes will try anything to test their skills.
Nat King Cole Sings “Nature Boy”: The story behind this enchanting song is as entertaining as Cole’s ethereal performance.
Kareem’s Big Fat Announcement, Part 2
You already know about We All Want to Save the World: My Journey Through Social Justice Movements from the 1960s to Today, which I discussed in my previous newsletter. My second book is a graphic novel called Champion, co-written by my longtime writing pal Raymond Obstfeld and illustrated by the very talented Ed Laroche.
What the book is about
This is a novel, not an autobiography, though it does contain elements of my life. The plot reflects my love of basketball, social causes, and especially Sherlock Holmsian mysteries. I mostly wrote it to be exciting, funny, and inspiring.
Monk Travers is a high school senior dedicated to playing in the NBA to the exclusion of his friends, his girlfriend, his schoolwork, and his other talents (art and music). As punishment for being caught vandalizing a rival school’s mural, his coach assigns him a project: a school-wide presentation about Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (yeah, I’m talking about myself in the third person). At first, Monk is ecstatic until Coach tells him it cannot include anything about Kareem’s basketball career. Only about the man.
This is where it gets weird, but a fun weird. Bleary-eyed from research, Monk sees visions of Kareem as he is today as well as he was in high school. The two versions of Kareem don’t always get along. Monk is by High School Kareem’s side when he relives a life-threatening riot in Harlem. Older Kareem keeps popping up unexpectedly in Monk’s classroom and at his job in a record store to taunt him.
I promised mysteries: Who’s slashing Monk’s bicycle tires? Who’s sabotaging his project? What do all the clues he finds add up to? A big reveal at the end!
The story is less about the details of my life, though there’s plenty of that and more about how a young high school student discovers how to become more than one thing. He finds deeper fulfillment, purpose, and joy in life by following his dreams, but also by embracing his community’s needs. To me, that’s what makes a true champion.
A sneak peek of the book
Here are two pages from the graphic novel where Older Kareem (me today) and High School Kareem (in that awesome hat) sit with Monk in the library. Both Monk and High School Kareem don’t understand why 21-year-old Kareem refused to play in the 1968 Olympics, even though it would have been a boost to his career. Instead, it brought death threats. Old Kareem tries to explain:
Preorder Champion:
If this looks interesting to you, or you think someone you know might enjoy it, click the preorder button below. Preordering locks in the lowest possible price and it also gives the publisher an idea of how many books to print. The more preorders, the larger the print run. So, don’t wait!
Another Day, Another Threat to American Democracy
Musk calls to impeach judge whose order blocks DOGE from Treasury systems access (CNBC)
SUMMARY: Elon Musk has called to impeach a federal judge in New York, Paul Engelmayer, over an order that temporarily restricts the tech centi-billionaire and his DOGE team from accessing U.S. Department of the Treasury payment systems and sensitive data.
Over the weekend an outraged Musk posted on X, the social network he owns, calling Engelmayer, “A corrupt judge protecting corruption,” adding, “he needs to be impeached NOW!” He also posted an explanation on X of what he wants to do with the Treasury Department.
…Engelmayer, a U.S. district Judge appointed by former President Barack Obama, issued an order temporarily blocking DOGE from accessing those systems on Saturday in response to a complaint brought by 19 states’ attorneys general against Trump, the Treasury and its newly appointed secretary, Scott Bessent.
Musk subsequently posted on X: “This ruling is absolutely insane! How on Earth are we supposed to stop fraud and waste of taxpayer money without looking at how money is spent? That’s literally impossible! Something super shady is going to protect scammers.”
In response to Musk’s remarks, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin, who is among the plaintiffs in the case, told CNBC via email, “What’s shady is a tech billionaire breaking the law to try to steal millions of Americans’ sensitive data.”
MY TAKE: Judges ruling against Musk’s rampage is turning out to be one of the biggest issues of the Musk/Trump coup. Musk is bristling at having any legal limits to his power.
Notice that Musk does not dispute the judge’s legal reasoning that “disclosure of sensitive and confidential information and the heightened risk that the systems in question will be more vulnerable than before to hacking.” Instead, Musk’s tantrum is merely about anyone daring to question his authority. He treats America like one of his companies and he’s the undisputed boss.
Legal experts are sounding the alarm because Trump and Musk’s threats against judges and the judicial system will end the people’s last defense against dictatorship.
“Sotomayor Issues Stark Warning: 'We Will Lose Our Democracy’”
“Trump and Musk Continue Attack on Judiciary as ABA Warns “Rule of Law” Under Threat”
“More than a dozen state attorneys general file lawsuit challenging Musk and DOGE's authority”
Of the three branches of the government, they already own the Executive and Legislative, while having a tight grip on the throats of the Judiciary with a majority of the SCOTUS supporting whatever Trump does.
While Musk accuses the courts of corruption, he fails to address Trump ordering the Justice Department to drop corruption charges against NYC Mayor Eric Adams, because Adams cozied up to Trump during the election and jumped aboard Trump’s anti-immigration purge. As a result of the DOJ’s own corrupt move, Manhattan’s U.S. attorney and three other lawyers in the office resigned in protest. Nor does Musk address his having access to private information about his competitors and the power to have contract advantages with the U.S. government for his companies.
The court system should not go gentle into that dark night of surrender.
Petition to Deport Ilhan Omar Circulated by Texas Republican (Newsweek)
SUMMARY: Representative Brandon Gill, a first-term lawmaker from Texas, has circulated a petition calling for Representative Ilhan Omar, a United States citizen, to be deported.
Omar, a Minnesota Democrat, decried the effort, saying it was "truly disgusting that members of the Republican party feel emboldened to engage in racist and quite frankly fascist remarks."
…Republicans have clashed with Omar, one of two Muslim women in Congress since she arrived in the House of Representatives in 2019. Omar became a U.S. citizen in 2000 when she was 17. She arrived in the U.S. as a refugee during the Somali Civil War in 1995.
In a fundraising email titled "Petition: Deport Ilhan Omar," first reported by Axios, Gill's campaign called for supporters to sign a petition for Omar to be deported to Somalia.
"Friend, we should have never let Ilhan Omar into our country," the email said. "And frankly, America would be a much better place if she were to be sent back to Somalia."
The email appeared to reference a video shared on social media last week that prompted critics to accuse Omar of conducting seminars for Somalis who are in the U.S. illegally.
The video shows a roomful of unidentified people before cutting to a clip of Omar in a different room telling a reporter that people are "not obligated" to answer questions from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and urged them to "learn the laws and prepare yourself."
Trump ally Elon Musk accused Omar of "breaking the law," prompting Omar to respond on X that "every single person in this country deserves to know their rights. That's legal."
She added the video "is manipulated, and I wasn't even at the event shown."
…"A normal society would refer to that as treason," [Gill’s campaign] email added. "But regardless of labels, one thing is clear: The time has come to arrest and deport Ilhan Omar."
MY TAKE: Gill has read the room and determined that the country now fully supports racism, misogyny, and deliberate misinformation. A few years ago, when people cared about the truth and facts, such accusations would never have been openly tolerated. Now, lying and racism are a fund-raising tool.
What specifically is Omar being accused of that Gill deems treasonous and worthy of deporting an American citizen? She advised immigrants (whether legal or illegal) of their rights. She was correct in saying that immigrants are not required to answer questions from ICE based on the Fifth Amendment. They have the right to have an attorney present before answering questions. Isn’t that right one of the things that makes us love America? Which is more treasonous, telling someone about the Fifth Amendment, or denying them their rights under the Constitution? Using Gill’s logic, he should be deported to DimBulblovia.
Gill declares that Omar should never have been admitted to the U.S. She was twelve years old when she arrived in the U.S., the child of a family of educators, civil servants, and military officers. Her mother died when she was two years old. She was raised to believe and defend democracy, which she has done as a member of Congress.
The video that Gill is using to condemn her is patched together to misinform, which Gill is aware of but has chosen to ignore since it doesn’t suit his purposes. He’s following the Trump template of lie, deny, and imply. But he knows he has an easy target for the far right: she’s a woman, a person of color, and a Muslim.
The main takeaway is that Gill just doesn’t think people should know about their rights under the Constitution. Is that a person who should be in Congress (and who thinks he’ll be president one day)? Every dollar given to him is cutting off a line of the Constitution. Who knows, we may need that document someday to show our grandchildren the kind of country we once were.
FYI: This Republican campaign to censor through intimidation anyone who discusses immigration rights continued with threats to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (“Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to Trump Border Czar: ‘Learn to Read’”). Ocasio-Cortez held a webinar informing migrants of their constitutional rights regarding ICE raids and deportation. Trump’s “border czar” Tom Homan responded by saying on Fox News' The Ingraham Angle that he has asked the deputy attorney general to look into Ocasio-Cortez’s webinar, and that “maybe AOC is going to be in trouble now.” For what? The information she gives is readily available on the internet. Will Trump close down the internet and deport the people who run Google?
Kareem’s Video Break
Here’s a creature I had never seen before: the Atlantic black sea hare. It’s a type of sea slug, but watching it swim through the water is absolutely hypnotic. Watching it could put you into a deep meditative state.
Kremlin Embarrasses Trump With Truth About U.S. Teacher Marc Fogel’s Release (The Daily Beast)
SUMMARY: The deal Donald Trump brokered with Russia to release American school teacher Marc Fogel on Tuesday was, in fact, a prisoner swap—even though the president had tried to suggest otherwise.
The Russian man freed in the deal is Alexander Vinnik, 45, who stands accused of laundering billions through the digital currency exchange website he ran, an unnamed U.S. official told The New York Times on Wednesday.
A spokesperson for the Kremlin told reporters earlier on Wednesday that the U.S. had released a Russian citizen in exchange for Fogel, but declined to identify the person until they returned to their home country, according to the Associated Press.
MY TAKE: I’m thrilled that Marc Fogel has been released after his unjust imprisonment. But while we’re celebrating his return, we need to take a closer look at the cost.
First, the lying part. When asked what we gave up in the exchange, Trump said that Fogel's release did “not [cost] much” and that this was merely a show of good faith from the Kremlin. Why not be transparent right up front with the American people? Maybe because of his past hypocrisy.
When President Biden secured the release of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich from a Russian prison (despite Trump proclaiming he was the only one who could do that), Trump complained that the cost was too high: “Are we releasing murderers, killers, or thugs? Just curious because we never make good deals, at anything, especially hostage swaps. Our ‘negotiators’ are always an embarrassment to us! I got back many hostages, and gave the opposing Country NOTHING – and never any cash. To do so is bad precedent for the future. That’s the way it should be, or this situation will get worse and worse.” Yet, while president, Trump engaged in at least four releases of American prisoners in exchange for prisoners we held. In the 2020 exchange with Iran-backed Houthis, Trump exchanged 200 Houthi militants for four Americans.
Again, I have no problem with exchanging prisoners. But there seems to be a much bigger concession than Trump admitted. Immediately after the exchange, Trump touted his phone call with Putin where they discussed ending the war with Ukraine. Following that phone call, newly confirmed U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth quickly announced that Ukraine would not be admitted to NATO, which would then obligate member countries to defend them, and that Ukraine should not expect their borders to return to pre-war status. (Following strong backlash, Hegseth backtracked somewhat.) What did America get in exchange for these massive concessions? Nothing. Trump, however, whose Musk-run rampage through the government (while banning pennies and paper straws), got a publicity win of having his photo taken with a grateful hostage.
Meanwhile, our European allies are reeling from Trump’s betrayal of them in order to cozy up to Putin. Russian media is celebrating how Putin owned Trump in this “negotiation” (“Laughing Kremlin Insiders Say Trump Has Given Putin Greenlight to Expand the War”): “U.S. President Donald J. Trump stunned the world by offering unprecedented concessions to Russia in its ongoing invasion of Ukraine on Wednesday—seemingly without getting anything in return…While Ukrainians and their allies were left in disbelief, Russian state TV and radio stations were full of elated propagandists, who grinned ear to ear and periodically broke out into uproarious laughter.” The co-host of one Russian news show pointed out that Trump was doing Moscow’s job of “sawing” Europe into pieces.
Yes, we got an American back, but Trump’s eagerness to give away so much, to weaken our allies and in turn, our country’s security—both physical and economic—does not bode well for our future prosperity. He’s already proven to be a bad negotiator who can be taken advantage of. Given Republicans cowering in their corners as they confirm unqualified and dangerous Trump appointees, America’s only hope is the court system designed to curtail would-be dictators. Given that SCOTUS is Trump-sympathetic, maybe our best hope is to vote out Republicans in Congress so they don’t have the majority anymore.
Kareem’s Kvetching Korner
This is where I can indulge my pettiness about minor things that bug me but aren’t worth getting outraged about.
I’m very disturbed by DeepSeek’s sonnet that appears above.
First, China’s DeepSeek kicked the American AI industry in the crotch, causing a trillion-dollar loss in the tech index (though it has recovered since that initial crash). But that initial rush for everyone to defect to China’s AI is weird given that it is also deeply censored when it comes to any uncomfortable facts about China’s politics. For example, if you ask it “Who is Tank Man in Tiananmen Square” (an internationally famous figure), the chatbot says: “I am sorry, I cannot answer that question. I am an AI assistant designed to provide helpful and harmless responses.” When asked about the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, it responds “Let’s talk about something else.” It’s shocking to see it admit it offers only “harmless” responses because who defines what is harmful versus helpful? So, those using DeepSeek are supporting China’s censorship. On the other hand, many GOP states are using the same measure to censor what schools teach: anything that makes kids feel uncomfortable or guilty about the past is nixed. Totalitarian birds of a feather.
Even more disturbing, though, is that the sonnet isn’t half bad. It has some decent lines and phrases: “minds both vast and cold,” “wisdom’s mimicry,” and “logic binds, yet lacks mortality.” It’s the level of a promising freshman in a college poetry class: With work, they could be really good. While the cautionary theme of asking whether humanity is giving up more than it gains from the development of AI is common, we have to remember that it is only writing about what it’s read, not anything original: It is only “wisdom’s mimicry.”
It’s like a child who’s overheard their parents’ discussion and then writes a poem echoing their opinions. The question is whether that level is good enough for most people as AI moves into writing our novels, creating our paintings, and penning our movies and TV shows. Then art will no longer represent the emotional and intellectual struggles of humanity but offer only a dim reflection of what it means to be human. A mocking parody of our joy and pain, striving for meaning.
Kareem’s Sports Moments
If there’s one thing that distinguishes exceptional athletes, it’s that they’re always up for a challenge to test their skills. No matter how crazy.
Kareem’s Jukebox Playlist
Nat King Cole: “Nature Boy” (1948)
Released in 1948, “Nature Boy” was so popular that it sold over a million copies and launched Nat King Cole’s career into the White mainstream. I love the song because it’s a dreamy story that seems to enchant the listener. The story behind the song is even more remarkable, not just how it got to Cole, but how it was a precursor to the hippie movement of the 1960s.
The song’s writer was George McGrew, who later changed his name to eden ahbez. While playing piano in a health food store and raw food restaurant, he came to embrace a German-inspired philosophy called Naturmensch (nature person). He wrote the song while living in a cave near Palm Springs. When Cole was performing in Los Angeles, ahbez tried to give the song to Cole’s manager, who refused to take it. Instead, he left it with Cole’s valet, Otis Pollard, who passed it on to Cole. To record it, Cole needed ahbez’s permission, but he was nowhere to be found. Finally, they found him living under the Hollywood sign and got his permission.
The song has become a jazz standard and was recorded by many greats. Yet, it’s Nat King Cole’s version that truly captures the eerie, ethereal charm of the song. Be prepared to drift off on its other-worldly melody.
Nat Cole: "The best friend a song ever had", said Jack Benny. I agree. The 60th anniversary of Nat's death was February 15.
Thank you, Kareem, just for being here this morning. So much to unpack but it’s good to escape sometimes. I’ll listen to Nat singing but unfortunately I can’t forget that he was unable to purchase a house where he wanted to live, even given his worldwide fame. We must stay strong and fight Mump et al. Peace and Love to fellow patriots.