LD50

They’re Not Just Trying to Fire Pete Hegseth — They’re Trying to End His Future and Scare the Next Generation This isn’t about one job. This is about making sure Pete Hegseth never holds power again — and sending a message to every young conservative who might think about serving. Impeachment is the constitutional weapon that does both. The House charges him. The Senate convicts and removes him. Then comes the part that actually matters: the separate vote to disqualify him from “any Office of honor, Trust or Profit under the United States.” That single vote bars him from the presidency, from Congress, from any federal office for the rest of his life. That’s exactly the kind of permanent cost some Democrats have said they want. Sen. Elissa Slotkin put it plainly: she wants “signature cases” against people who enabled Trump so that young people coming out of school will say, “Lord, that might be buying myself a ton of problems that I don’t want, and so let me avoid participating in that.” Impeachment and disqualification are the ultimate version of that message. Removal is temporary. Disqualification is permanent. It tells the next generation of Republicans that serving can cost them not just their current job, but every future one. If the Senate stops short of the disqualification vote, he walks away free to run/serve again. If they finish the job, his path is closed and the deterrent is locked in. That’s why they’re pushing it. And that’s why it matters.

RULE #7 Put not off your clothes in the presence of others, nor go out of your chamber half dressed. Young George Washington recorded this as his seventh Rule of Civility. In other words: finish getting dressed before you walk into the room, and maybe don’t start undressing while people are still trying to have a conversation. The rule is a gentle reminder that “I’m just getting ready” is not a spectator sport. Eighteenth-century Washington apparently felt strongly enough about it to write it down, which suggests that even then someone was strolling out of their chamber missing a stocking and calling it efficiency. In modern times this is the person who steps out of the house with their pants sagging halfway down, constantly having to pull them up as they walk—like the style some gangbangers and certain fashion trends made famous. The rule simply asks that you complete the private process—including getting your pants fully on and staying up—before imposing the unfinished version on everyone else. Civility, it turns out, sometimes just means pulling your pants all the way up before you leave the room. Rule 7 of George Washington’s Rules of Civility. We’re posting them one by one so we can practice them together.

GOP, wake up: every state is now a battleground. Alabama. Alaska. Arizona. Arkansas. California. Colorado. Connecticut. Delaware. Florida. Georgia. Hawaii. Idaho. Illinois. Indiana. Iowa. Kansas. Kentucky. Louisiana. Maine. Maryland. Massachusetts. Michigan. Minnesota. Mississippi. Missouri. Montana. Nebraska. Nevada. New Hampshire. New Jersey. New Mexico. New York. North Carolina. North Dakota. Ohio. Oklahoma. Oregon. Pennsylvania. Rhode Island. South Carolina. South Dakota. Tennessee. Texas. Utah. Vermont. Virginia. Washington. West Virginia. Wisconsin. Wyoming. All 50. No free passes. No automatic wins. The 2026 results showed Democrats competing and flipping places Republicans once treated as safe. The map is wide open. Invest everywhere. Recruit everywhere. Show up everywhere. 2028 starts with treating every state like it can decide the outcome—because it can.

RULE #6 Sleep not when others speak, sit not when others stand, speak not when you should hold your peace, walk not on when others stop. Young George Washington recorded this as his sixth Rule of Civility. It is about paying attention to the people around you and matching your behavior to the moment. Falling asleep while someone is talking, sitting while everyone else stands, talking over silence, or walking away while others have paused—all of these treat the group as if it exists only for your convenience. The rule asks for the opposite: stay present, notice what others are doing, and adjust so you are not the distraction or the exception. In modern terms this can look like putting the phone down when someone is speaking, standing when the rest of the room rises, or waiting instead of filling every quiet gap with your own words. The principle is simple presence—recognizing that shared time belongs to everyone in it. Civility is often the decision to stay with the moment instead of drifting out of it. Rule 6 of George Washington’s Rules of Civility. We’re posting them one by one so we can practice them together.