20 July—Among the ephemeral gems flowing over the edges of the twin recycling bins in the Litchfield post orifice the other day were an even dozen Republican-themed envelopes addressed to USPS PO-box extortion victims including three no longer with us—two having crossed the bar, as Tennyson put it, and one having moved to Florida to prepare for it. And there was another envelope on the floor. None of the envelopes had been opened. Why would that be? Just wondering.

Anyway, that’s a pity, because the addressees on this side of the bar would have discovered that they were 2025 Charter Members of the Republican Presidential Task Force. And they’d have found personalized silvery plastic membership cards to prove it. The plastic key tags attached to the cards that confirmed the bearers to be 2025 charter members weren’t personalized but none the less impressive.

(The addressees also would have found begging letters, but since charter membership in the Republican Presidential Task Force didn’t appear to be contingent on sending money, who cares?)

The backsides of the silver membership cards naturally contained space for authorized signatures; the warning that the cards were non-transferable; the “Paid for by the Republican National Committee . . . Not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee” disclaimer; and the Republican National Committee seal with the stylized elephant.

Also on the backsides was a message to the lucky, privileged members: “The bearer of this card is distinguished as an official 2025 Charter Member of the Republican Presidential Task Force. As a Task Force Member, you are recognized as a key supporter of President Donald J. Trump and the Republican Party’s efforts to maintain our Congressional Majorities.”

Should one wonder why the message on the backsides shifted from the third person in the first sentence to the second person in the second sentence, before shifting again to the first person plural (or editorial singular) in the second sentence? Nah. Because the important thing is that the lucky (few?) GOP SOBs identified on the cards are actually recognized as presumably elite key supporters of Donald J. Trump’s and the Republican Party’s reprehensible efforts to make America a monarchy again . . .