Weekend Report: Trump seeks to end separation of church and state

Plus: JD Vance’s preposterous defense of Nixon and Watergate. And: Pete Buttigieg separated from his children in swatting attack, a vile terror hoax no doubt inspired by MAGA.

Donald Trump’s Religious Liberty Commission told the Justice Department in a report that the separation of church and state has always been an “error” and that the supposed true meaning of the Constitution should be “restored.” Lest anyone think this is one of those reports that was meant to placate the base, the report was unveiled by its chair, Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick, in the Oval Office with Trump, flanked by Ben Carson and Dr. Phil, and the Justice Department is ready to follow its guidlines.

The criminal thinking of the Trump regime was on display in JD Vance’s talk this week in California, in which he said if Watergate happened today, it would be a blip of a story. He claimed former president Richard Nixon was set up by the “deep state,” which took him down in the way Trump’s supposed enemies are trying to take him down. It’s a breathtaking, though not-so-shocking take that both underscores that JD Vance isn’t very smart (if he intends to run for president on that platform) and is in fact as dangerous as we thought.

Former transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg was targeted in what is clearly a MAGA-inspired, vile, homophobic incident of pure terrorism. Children’s Protective Services was notified, in a false report, that he was abusing his and his husband Chasten’s twin four-year-old boys. A police officer showed up with CPS and separated Buttigieg from his children overnight while they were questioned. The allegations were deemed a fake report—which is a crime—but the trauma and terror were the point. Buttigieg spoke out about this latest form of swatting, threatening a lawsuit against those responsible...