It still surprises me that "the media" has ignored publishing the names of the commanders of the various vessels doing Trumps maritime executions. Those officers are carrying out unlawful orders and will eventually be subject to international war crimes. Where are the journalists?
hegseth now controls access to the DOD; only OAN and My Pillow Guy and the other handpicked right wing media are allowed near the dials. assuming mainstream media ever grew a set, where are the names of those officers listed?
Sabrina, this is low hanging fruit for any journalist worth their salt. Local news sources in Jacksonfille, Norfolk, Stars and Stripes, surely mention which ships are sent where. And crews talk! No need to go thru DoD. They can simply ask around. The skippers of those ships are carrying out unlawful orders — and they know it! But when we have a commander in chief who is a mafioso, maybe they are terrified to defy The Don.
The problem is this. There is NO civilian authority short of Congress that can do anything about what the military commanders who carried out the orders.
You'd have to go further up the military food chain to find officers in the chain of command who HAVE the authority to bring charges and the testicular fortitude to do so, knowing full well that it's a career ending move with Le Grand Orange in charge.
And, also understand that even if charges may be brought, the Royal Navel can just issue a blanket pardon to the commanders.
So, what possible good would it do for the press or anybody else to publicize the names of the commanders who are executing the orders? Having outraged civilians standing outside their houses (if they're living off base) screaming names at them won't hurt them any. It will probably traumatize their wives and kids, and where's the advantage in that?
And the United Nations can't do diddly squat about it, either, really. What are they going to do, provoke a war with the United States by sending armed naval vessels in to try and interdict the U.S. Navy? There's a big loser situation. No country in the WORLD could project enough naval power to do that. Think of the logistics involved.
Good response, John. But what's the point of doing nothing? If we want to take back our governance "by the people" we must act. >>> "When the people lead, the leaders will follow." Otherwise, as one of the ancient Greeks said: the strong do whatever they want, and everybody else suffers what they must.
A starting point would be for both sides of the aisle to restrain the power of pardon, which would not be beyond doable, as both sides are reasonably offended. ~eric.
Yes, we MUST keep protesting. Yes, we MUST keep on bringing out the truth.
But outing military commanders for doing as they're ordered? What USEFUL purpose does that serve? Or calling for them to go to jail, when there is NO reasonable mechanism to do that?
Personally, I don't CARE who the military commanders are that are carrying out the orders. Go after the bastards who are GIVING the orders. And THERE is a mechanism in place to do that, if they would only quit sniveling and brown-nosing and grow a conscience.
But someone also suggested that the U.N. send in naval forces to try to stop the U.S. Navy from doing this...and that's a good way to end up in a BIG war, and there are no real naval forces in the world that COULD counter the U.S. Navy, unless Venezuela and Columbia decide to turn over military bases to the Chinese.
you don't care about the commanders carrying out the orders? the United States uniform military code of justice defines what they are doing as murder. there have been sufficient notices to that effect; they can't claim ignorance. under the code they are sworn to, they have a duty to disobey.
Sabrina, I misspoke. Of course, I do care. But the point I'm making is that there is nobody above them in the chain of command who is going to take them to court.
And, as I've already pointed out, they might have a duty to disobey, but most of them are not willing to sacrifice their careers to disobey Le Grand Orange and his henchmen.
If they're dishonorably discharged, or spend five years in prison for disobeying an order, who is going to hire them? Who will care for their families?
There is also the possibility that the commanders have intelligence we DON'T have, nor do we have the RIGHT to have, as it would expose means and methods for our intelligence, which can lead to agents getting killed.
Is there a possibility that the fishing boats are, indeed, attempting to smuggling drug into the United States?
I'm not a professional fisherman, but I'm pretty certain that most of them don't need a high speed cigarette boat with quad outboard engines to fish.
John, journalism – "the fifth estate" is our Constitutionally-invisible conscience. When the oligarchs own the power of publishing, or not publishing, facts — we lose accountability. (Example: The editorial pages of WaPo are a case in point. Bezos bought it, and has snuffed opinion writing to curry favor with The Don.) So there is minimal reporting across the mainstream media.
"Good Germans" carried out Hitler's orders. American skippers are doing likewise, and nobody is saying HEY, WAIT A MINUTE! "We the people want answers, and facts." WE are duti-bound to hold our government accountable. Citizen-journalists could do this, but at great risk. We mustn't rely on the oligarchs to publish details. ~eric.
But calling out the military commanders fills no useful purpose. As I said, unless someone higher up in the direct military chain of command wants to put vital organs on the chopping block and prosecute the commanders, it's not a viable option.
What's the general public going to do if they know the ships' commanders names? There is nothing useful THEY can do.
Calling out those that are GIVING the orders. That's what needs to be done.
And, again, I reiterate...there IS a mechanism in place to go after those GIVING the orders. But so far, Congress and the Cabinet are too busy looking for Le Grande Orange's hemorrhoids while calling it 'fresh air'.
Those commanders are justifiably afraid of their Boss in the White Palace. But they should be more afraid of their Employers : "We the people." Unless and until WE show up, they will continue to cover their career-rear. That is our DUTY and PURPOSE.
Trump has worked with the mob for so long he knows exactly how to operate like they do: get the result he wants without getting his hands dirty. Except now, with the power of the presidency, he can be more obvious about it & carry out even more transgressions. Miles Taylor once said that Trump thought it was “cool” that Kim fired a rocket at his uncle who was tied to a tree. Given Trump’s totally twisted psychology it’s no surprise that the mob method appeals to him. Until Rs join together for self protection & take a stand against the Trump nightmare he will continue to murder, brutalize, destroy rule of law, destroy our very social fabric.
i give you 2 thumbs up for telling the truth about t-rump
and 2 thumbs down to the extorter in chief in the big white house
who has turned that place into a den of thieves.
trump and his gold loving friends must be held accountable for their murders in international waters or else the rule of law means nothing except a free pass to a dictator.
we won't know the dangers he's leaving us with until it's too late. the uk, Colombia, and a few other allies now refuse to share intelligence with the US. it's going to get worse before it gets better.
If you look at pictures of trump the day Epstein was "Epsteined", he gave an impromptu White House lawn press rant. He was pouring down sweat. Quite noticeably. Many people commented on it. There were articles about it. Why no one put the two together is beyond me. I mean, if you're having someone "Epsteined" you're bound to be a bit sweaty, yeah? Just my 2¢
Thank you Sabrina! On Substack you can edit/correct a post even after it’s published! This seems like an important candidate for that, and you could even put out a related Note explaining what’s up. While you’re at it you might want to correct a typo / the paragraph that starts “That fall, Epstein was confined at the Metropolitan...” should say “That spring [of 2019]”
Thanks, Sabrina, for another thoughtful and well written piece of "journalism" on Our Mad King Donald the 1st and his criminal enterprise destroying the American government and endangering the entire world. I, also, hold him personally responsible for the premature deaths of 1.2 M Americans, due to his undermining of the once strong faith of American citizens in the Public Health system and the very COVID-19 m-RNA vaccines that saved my life and tens of millions of my fellows. When the US lost 1.2 M in the pandemic, China lost 40K, and their population is 4 times bigger, for a kill ratio of 30:1. Is there a Nobel Prize for mass murder? Tramp is a mass murder that will even surmount his hero, Herr Hitler, if he's allowed to keep going. As you know (?), I have written a number of essays on "Greeley's Newsletter" (substack.com) on Tramp's psychopathology. Have a blessed day.
Like a mob boss, but dumb and impulsive - therefore, more dangerous.
I can't speak for other people, but my philosophy on life is that life itself is far more important than my own individual moment here. I personally don't get the appeal of living a longer life - which no matter what, ends in death.
I would rather die as a consequence of doing the right thing than *potentially* live longer by sitting on information which damns those who damn life itself.
agreed. when I was younger, I wondered whether, if I'd faced hitler's takeover in the 30s, I'd be in the resistance or fold. now I'm happy to know I'd fight.
Details on the Trump-Epstein scandal have been coming out slowly over a long time with dozens of people involved. It's hard to keep track of them all and visualize how they're connected. DemLabs has been creating relationship maps to help follow it. They're interactive so you can see the big picture, but also zoom in on one person for more details.
Those maps do what the headlines don't: they put the whole web in one frame. When you lay the names and ties out like that, the mutual dirt starts connecting. It’s amazing how fast the story sharpens when you can actually see who’s orbiting who. Thank you.
Right on, Ms Sabrina! Great hard hitting article that raises some frightening qustions that too many don't want to face! This has been a bad deal for us from day 1, and it can only get worse...
I'm with you all the way on this, Sabrina. After Epstein's death my thought was that Trump organized it. And it still seems to be foremost on Trump's mind.
I thought it was only a matter of time before you got around to taking a deep dive into this. Your work takes a lot more scholarship than mine does. This is another well researched analysis with excellent insights. My willingness to skim the surface of a subjects is why I manage to churn out a Substack every day.
I am glad you appreciate them. I think (with no modesty and a bit of self-aggrandizement) that when we combine your Substack and mine we are (or should be) the preeminent duo on Substack. I know mine have been getting darker recently because I experience a disconnect from reality when I try to find humor in what is happening to the country.
Thank you for bringing your experience and expertise to this topic. So many of us go through our lives looking for the good in people, it is, sometimes, invaluable to have experts point out the bad.
“You can hang him in a way that potentially generates a positive benefit for you…”
Looks like the would-be hangman got himself hanged.
Dean Obeidallah’s been all over the Epstein charges, Federal detention, and death timeline, convinced that Trump had Epstein murdered. It does fit.
Oh, and, while he may have murdered 66 people recently, let’s not forget that his malice and indifference led to the deaths of about 665,000 Americans (of the more than 1M dead) from COVID-19. So, by my calculation he’s a mass murderer.
Then there are the uncounted multitudes who died because USAID was shut down by the trump administration. Malnourished babies who could have been saved; frail elders the same. We will never know how many but we know who was responsible.
I wrote a second Substack on this today, The Marjorie Taylor Greene and Donald Trump Epstein story had muscular legs today so I've updated my morning Substack" It has a reference to this and a link. I admit I did have fun making the AI illustration which I hope you enjoy.
It still surprises me that "the media" has ignored publishing the names of the commanders of the various vessels doing Trumps maritime executions. Those officers are carrying out unlawful orders and will eventually be subject to international war crimes. Where are the journalists?
hegseth now controls access to the DOD; only OAN and My Pillow Guy and the other handpicked right wing media are allowed near the dials. assuming mainstream media ever grew a set, where are the names of those officers listed?
Sabrina, this is low hanging fruit for any journalist worth their salt. Local news sources in Jacksonfille, Norfolk, Stars and Stripes, surely mention which ships are sent where. And crews talk! No need to go thru DoD. They can simply ask around. The skippers of those ships are carrying out unlawful orders — and they know it! But when we have a commander in chief who is a mafioso, maybe they are terrified to defy The Don.
The problem is this. There is NO civilian authority short of Congress that can do anything about what the military commanders who carried out the orders.
You'd have to go further up the military food chain to find officers in the chain of command who HAVE the authority to bring charges and the testicular fortitude to do so, knowing full well that it's a career ending move with Le Grand Orange in charge.
And, also understand that even if charges may be brought, the Royal Navel can just issue a blanket pardon to the commanders.
So, what possible good would it do for the press or anybody else to publicize the names of the commanders who are executing the orders? Having outraged civilians standing outside their houses (if they're living off base) screaming names at them won't hurt them any. It will probably traumatize their wives and kids, and where's the advantage in that?
And the United Nations can't do diddly squat about it, either, really. What are they going to do, provoke a war with the United States by sending armed naval vessels in to try and interdict the U.S. Navy? There's a big loser situation. No country in the WORLD could project enough naval power to do that. Think of the logistics involved.
Good response, John. But what's the point of doing nothing? If we want to take back our governance "by the people" we must act. >>> "When the people lead, the leaders will follow." Otherwise, as one of the ancient Greeks said: the strong do whatever they want, and everybody else suffers what they must.
A starting point would be for both sides of the aisle to restrain the power of pardon, which would not be beyond doable, as both sides are reasonably offended. ~eric.
Oh, I'm not EVEN advocating doing nothing!
Yes, we MUST keep protesting. Yes, we MUST keep on bringing out the truth.
But outing military commanders for doing as they're ordered? What USEFUL purpose does that serve? Or calling for them to go to jail, when there is NO reasonable mechanism to do that?
Personally, I don't CARE who the military commanders are that are carrying out the orders. Go after the bastards who are GIVING the orders. And THERE is a mechanism in place to do that, if they would only quit sniveling and brown-nosing and grow a conscience.
But someone also suggested that the U.N. send in naval forces to try to stop the U.S. Navy from doing this...and that's a good way to end up in a BIG war, and there are no real naval forces in the world that COULD counter the U.S. Navy, unless Venezuela and Columbia decide to turn over military bases to the Chinese.
Then you'll run into the Monroe Doctrine.
you don't care about the commanders carrying out the orders? the United States uniform military code of justice defines what they are doing as murder. there have been sufficient notices to that effect; they can't claim ignorance. under the code they are sworn to, they have a duty to disobey.
Sabrina, I misspoke. Of course, I do care. But the point I'm making is that there is nobody above them in the chain of command who is going to take them to court.
And, as I've already pointed out, they might have a duty to disobey, but most of them are not willing to sacrifice their careers to disobey Le Grand Orange and his henchmen.
If they're dishonorably discharged, or spend five years in prison for disobeying an order, who is going to hire them? Who will care for their families?
There is also the possibility that the commanders have intelligence we DON'T have, nor do we have the RIGHT to have, as it would expose means and methods for our intelligence, which can lead to agents getting killed.
Is there a possibility that the fishing boats are, indeed, attempting to smuggling drug into the United States?
I'm not a professional fisherman, but I'm pretty certain that most of them don't need a high speed cigarette boat with quad outboard engines to fish.
John, journalism – "the fifth estate" is our Constitutionally-invisible conscience. When the oligarchs own the power of publishing, or not publishing, facts — we lose accountability. (Example: The editorial pages of WaPo are a case in point. Bezos bought it, and has snuffed opinion writing to curry favor with The Don.) So there is minimal reporting across the mainstream media.
"Good Germans" carried out Hitler's orders. American skippers are doing likewise, and nobody is saying HEY, WAIT A MINUTE! "We the people want answers, and facts." WE are duti-bound to hold our government accountable. Citizen-journalists could do this, but at great risk. We mustn't rely on the oligarchs to publish details. ~eric.
Again, we agree more than we disagree.
But calling out the military commanders fills no useful purpose. As I said, unless someone higher up in the direct military chain of command wants to put vital organs on the chopping block and prosecute the commanders, it's not a viable option.
What's the general public going to do if they know the ships' commanders names? There is nothing useful THEY can do.
Calling out those that are GIVING the orders. That's what needs to be done.
And, again, I reiterate...there IS a mechanism in place to go after those GIVING the orders. But so far, Congress and the Cabinet are too busy looking for Le Grande Orange's hemorrhoids while calling it 'fresh air'.
Those commanders are justifiably afraid of their Boss in the White Palace. But they should be more afraid of their Employers : "We the people." Unless and until WE show up, they will continue to cover their career-rear. That is our DUTY and PURPOSE.
Trump has worked with the mob for so long he knows exactly how to operate like they do: get the result he wants without getting his hands dirty. Except now, with the power of the presidency, he can be more obvious about it & carry out even more transgressions. Miles Taylor once said that Trump thought it was “cool” that Kim fired a rocket at his uncle who was tied to a tree. Given Trump’s totally twisted psychology it’s no surprise that the mob method appeals to him. Until Rs join together for self protection & take a stand against the Trump nightmare he will continue to murder, brutalize, destroy rule of law, destroy our very social fabric.
agreed. waiting for his night of the long knives.
What? When he kills all of the MAGAt grunts that helped him to gain and retake power?
He IS a mob boss. Running the biggest racket in our history.
i give you 2 thumbs up for telling the truth about t-rump
and 2 thumbs down to the extorter in chief in the big white house
who has turned that place into a den of thieves.
trump and his gold loving friends must be held accountable for their murders in international waters or else the rule of law means nothing except a free pass to a dictator.
we won't know the dangers he's leaving us with until it's too late. the uk, Colombia, and a few other allies now refuse to share intelligence with the US. it's going to get worse before it gets better.
If you look at pictures of trump the day Epstein was "Epsteined", he gave an impromptu White House lawn press rant. He was pouring down sweat. Quite noticeably. Many people commented on it. There were articles about it. Why no one put the two together is beyond me. I mean, if you're having someone "Epsteined" you're bound to be a bit sweaty, yeah? Just my 2¢
https://www.rawstory.com/2019/08/sweaty-trump-disgusts-the-internet-after-sopping-wet-white-house-rant-upped-his-meth-dose-this-morning/
thanks, wish I'd seen that when I was doing research for this column
Thank you Sabrina! On Substack you can edit/correct a post even after it’s published! This seems like an important candidate for that, and you could even put out a related Note explaining what’s up. While you’re at it you might want to correct a typo / the paragraph that starts “That fall, Epstein was confined at the Metropolitan...” should say “That spring [of 2019]”
Thanks, Sabrina, for another thoughtful and well written piece of "journalism" on Our Mad King Donald the 1st and his criminal enterprise destroying the American government and endangering the entire world. I, also, hold him personally responsible for the premature deaths of 1.2 M Americans, due to his undermining of the once strong faith of American citizens in the Public Health system and the very COVID-19 m-RNA vaccines that saved my life and tens of millions of my fellows. When the US lost 1.2 M in the pandemic, China lost 40K, and their population is 4 times bigger, for a kill ratio of 30:1. Is there a Nobel Prize for mass murder? Tramp is a mass murder that will even surmount his hero, Herr Hitler, if he's allowed to keep going. As you know (?), I have written a number of essays on "Greeley's Newsletter" (substack.com) on Tramp's psychopathology. Have a blessed day.
me too. my mom died of covid, isolated from her family for over a month on hospice while her body shut down. I blamed him then and now, and publish a mother's day piece about it every year. https://sabrinahaake.substack.com/p/mothers-day-an-evergreen-tribute
I am so sorry.
Like a mob boss, but dumb and impulsive - therefore, more dangerous.
I can't speak for other people, but my philosophy on life is that life itself is far more important than my own individual moment here. I personally don't get the appeal of living a longer life - which no matter what, ends in death.
I would rather die as a consequence of doing the right thing than *potentially* live longer by sitting on information which damns those who damn life itself.
agreed. when I was younger, I wondered whether, if I'd faced hitler's takeover in the 30s, I'd be in the resistance or fold. now I'm happy to know I'd fight.
All true. Trump has a helluva lot of motive to make Epstein be dead.
Has everyone seen Jack White’s epic takedown of Trump in response to hideous toadie Steven Cheung’s August insult? Why can’t journalists start every piece of reporting about the Felon-in-Chief with words like this?! https://variety.com/2025/music/news/jack-white-fires-back-at-donald-trump-danger-to-the-world-1236494559/
Thanks for telling the truth, and shining a light, Sabrina.
lux ex veritas, veritas ex lux ☀️
Details on the Trump-Epstein scandal have been coming out slowly over a long time with dozens of people involved. It's hard to keep track of them all and visualize how they're connected. DemLabs has been creating relationship maps to help follow it. They're interactive so you can see the big picture, but also zoom in on one person for more details.
https://thedemlabs.org/2025/11/12/track-the-trump-epstein-pedophile-scandal-with-this-free-online-library/
How to follow the Trump — Epstein pedophile scandal with relationship maps
https://thedemlabs.org/2025/11/13/follow-trump-epstein-pedophile-scandal-with-relationship-maps/
Fantastic, Deepak. Thank you.
Those maps do what the headlines don't: they put the whole web in one frame. When you lay the names and ties out like that, the mutual dirt starts connecting. It’s amazing how fast the story sharpens when you can actually see who’s orbiting who. Thank you.
Right on, Ms Sabrina! Great hard hitting article that raises some frightening qustions that too many don't want to face! This has been a bad deal for us from day 1, and it can only get worse...
I'm with you all the way on this, Sabrina. After Epstein's death my thought was that Trump organized it. And it still seems to be foremost on Trump's mind.
I thought it was only a matter of time before you got around to taking a deep dive into this. Your work takes a lot more scholarship than mine does. This is another well researched analysis with excellent insights. My willingness to skim the surface of a subjects is why I manage to churn out a Substack every day.
I won't write about Epstein today since I this this yesterday with "Well, here's another nice mess you've gotten me into, Jeffrey" here> https://halbrown.substack.com/p/well-heres-another-nice-mess-youve and the day before here> "Much ado about dirty document dumping" here> https://halbrown.substack.com/p/much-ado-about-dirty-document-dumping
My Substack today is about Trump's desire to be president for life. I'm hoping you write a more in-depth piece about this subject than mine. https://halbrown.substack.com/p/could-trump-become-president-for
but, lets be honest Hal, your posts are way more fun than mine are...
I am glad you appreciate them. I think (with no modesty and a bit of self-aggrandizement) that when we combine your Substack and mine we are (or should be) the preeminent duo on Substack. I know mine have been getting darker recently because I experience a disconnect from reality when I try to find humor in what is happening to the country.
Thank you for bringing your experience and expertise to this topic. So many of us go through our lives looking for the good in people, it is, sometimes, invaluable to have experts point out the bad.
“You can hang him in a way that potentially generates a positive benefit for you…”
Looks like the would-be hangman got himself hanged.
Dean Obeidallah’s been all over the Epstein charges, Federal detention, and death timeline, convinced that Trump had Epstein murdered. It does fit.
Oh, and, while he may have murdered 66 people recently, let’s not forget that his malice and indifference led to the deaths of about 665,000 Americans (of the more than 1M dead) from COVID-19. So, by my calculation he’s a mass murderer.
Then there are the uncounted multitudes who died because USAID was shut down by the trump administration. Malnourished babies who could have been saved; frail elders the same. We will never know how many but we know who was responsible.
Ckeck out "‘Explosive as Watergate’ Dem lawmaker predicts the end of Trump as Epstein vote nears" in Rawstory: https://www.rawstory.com/jeffrey-epstein-2674298963/ and see my comment here: https://bsky.app/profile/halmbrown.bsky.social/post/3m5oygtngkk2i
I wrote a second Substack on this today, The Marjorie Taylor Greene and Donald Trump Epstein story had muscular legs today so I've updated my morning Substack" It has a reference to this and a link. I admit I did have fun making the AI illustration which I hope you enjoy.
https://halbrown.substack.com/p/the-marjorie-taylor-greene-and-donald