Mickey Mouse

Mickey Walks

Your mouth has probably gotten you in trouble at least once in your life. Hopefully, when you did it, it was when you were much younger and back in school and not during your adulthood like Ron DeSantis just did. What I’m talking about is when you say something and get yourself into trouble yet you keep talking, dig a deeper hole for yourself to climb out of, and get yourself into more trouble. Maybe it got you extra homework, suspension, detention, being grounded by your parents, or even getting your ass kicked. I think I did all of those. What Ron DeSantis did was keep talking until he got his ass kicked. What’s he doing about it now? He’s still talking.

Ron DeSantis is not smart enough to know when to shut up.

When the Walt Disney Company opposed the “Don’t Say Gay” law, DeSantis and Republicans should have just shrugged their shoulders. Speaking out in disagreement with Disney wouldn’t have harmed them either. But instead of just accepting that not everyone agrees with their homophobia, Ron DeSantis and Florida Republicans in the legislature declared war. Ron DeSantis set out to punish Disney for exercising its right to free speech.

Remember, this was over a difference of opinion. Disney was not campaigning against Ron DeSantis, Republicans, or even their hateful legislation. For the goons, it was, “How dare they disagree with us.”

First, Republicans took Disney’s self-governing district from them, of which there are over 1,800 in the state. It was just this one that belonged to “woke” Disney that had to be dealt with. But DeSantis and his goons then had to figure out how to move the costs of the district, that Disney was going to pay for it, back onto Disney and not the residents inside that district. It looks bad on a Republican governor, especially one who’s about to run for president, to raise taxes.

DeSantis created a new board to govern the district and filled it with religious fundamentalist goose-stooping zealots of his. The intentions of the new board weren’t just to regulate roads and sewage, but to hold Disney hostage, and refuse to improve areas in the district unless Disney made its entertainment product more family-friendly as Ron DeSantis saw it. It was a fascist move. But, before the new goon board took over, Disney pulled a fast one and the outgoing board made new rules that made is so the new board couldn’t make any changes until the years after the last living member of the royal family dies. This means the new board will NEVER make any changes or be able to hold Disney hostage to its fundamentalist whims.

So Ron DeSantis sued Disney…and then Disney sued DeSantis for attacking their freedom of speech which is how this entire thing started.

Ron DeSantis likes to say Florida is “where woke goes to die.” DeSantis is making Florida where the First Amendment goes to die. Ron DeSantis is making Florida hostile to business and free speech.

DeSantis should have known to leave well enough alone, but he’s stupid and he doesn’t have the personality or charisma to fight this war with one of Florida’s largest employers and largest tourist attractions.

Last Thursday, Disney announced it was scrapping plans for a $1 billion development in Orlando that would have involved the creation of a new office complex, importing a division from California, and generating 2,000 new jobs.

Disney intended to relocate its famed Imagineering department over the protests of its employees to take advantage of Florida tax incentives. Those employees did NOT want to leave California for Florida. Who can blame them? Now, Disney is going to keep those people in California. Some employees have already been relocated to Florida and Disney is working on new plans for them which may be re-relocating them back to California.

Disney parks chief Josh D’Amaro didn’t mention the culture war with DeSantis when he made the announcement, but Disney CEO Bob Iger was explicit in a call with investors last week when he asked, I’m assuming rhetorically, “Does the state want us to invest more, employ more people, and pay more taxes, or not?” Apparently, the state does not.

Ron DeSantis is stupid. He’s a Republican and Republicans are supposed to be good for business. Right? DeSantis is always talking about how great Florida is for business, yet here he is going to war with one over free speech. DeSantis has even talked about raising taxes on Disney, installing toll roads into and out of the resort, and even building a state prison next to it. Do you really want to move your business to Florida where there’s a petulant governor who may use his power to go after your business if you dare disagree with him?

So, how does Ron DeSantis run for the Republican presidential nomination when he’s killing business, jobs, and revenue for his state? Riddle me that, dumbass.

David Jolly, a former Republican Congressman from Florida said, “I think it’s a humiliating defeat for DeSantis nationally. It shows a mix of incompetence, vanity, stubbornness, and failure. Those are all the wrong themes for someone about to announce a run for the White House from a relative position of strength.”

Chris Christie said, “I don’t think Ron DeSantis is a conservative, based on his actions towards Disney.”

Donald Trump said DeSantis had been “caught in the mouse trap” and “now is doing even less for Florida’s economy.” Do you know how stupid you have to be to get owned by a Donald Trump quote? That’s like losing a spelling bee to Lauren Boebert.

Ron DeSantis understands business less than Donald Trump understands tariffs. Donald Trump, the self-proclaimed greatest businessman who ever lived (not true), and who also claims to have given Americans the largest tax cut in history (also not true), raised tariffs on imports that American consumers paid, which was a tax hike of over $80 billion.

Right now, Ron DeSantis is trying to save face and his ego, so he’s continuing his war with Disney when if he was really smart enough to be president, he’d know it’s past time to shut the fuck up.

Ron DeSantis isn’t even smart enough to understand that eating pudding with his fingers or stomping around in big white rubber boots will go viral, but it’s Mickey’s boots that are made for walking…walking out of Florida.

Creative note: I struggled this morning. I didn’t care that I had just drawn a cartoon on Ron DeSantis a few days ago (which went crazy popular on social media) or that I had just drawn Mickey for CNN. I hadn’t touched this issue yet and I made it a priority to do it today. The only problem was that I didn’t have a good idea for it. I wrote three ideas this morning and I think they were all OK, but I kept writing even though it was getting later in the day. Then I wrote a fourth idea I liked very much. And just as I was finishing up the rough outline of it, this idea hit me. And for a few seconds, I thought which one do I go with…Yeah, I gotta go with the boots.

Signed prints: The signed prints are just $40.00 each. Every cartoon on this site is available. You can pay through PayPal. If you don’t like PayPal, you can snail mail it to Clay Jones, P.O. Box 3721, Fredericksburg, VA 22402. I can mail the prints directly to you or if you’re purchasing as a gift, directly to the person you’re gifting.

Notes on my book, Tales From The Trumpster Fire: There are 19 copies of my book in stock, which go for $45.00 each, signed. Also, I have copies of my first book from 1997, Knee-Deep in Mississippi available for $20.00.

Tip Jar: if you want to support the cartoonist, please send a donation through PayPal to clayjonz@gmail.com. You can also snail it to P.O. Box 3721, Fredericksburg, VA 22402.

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Slip Him A Mickey

Here’s your cartoon for this week’s CNN Opinion newsletter. Please sign up to get these in your inbox every Sunday

I wrote this cartoon several months ago and put it in my Maybe folder though I knew I was definitely going to draw it at some point. On Friday, my editor at CNN asked me to do a cartoon on this subject and I whipped them out. They went for it.

Signed prints: The signed prints are just $40.00 each. Every cartoon on this site is available. You can pay through PayPal. If you don’t like PayPal, you can snail mail it to Clay Jones, P.O. Box 3721, Fredericksburg, VA 22402. I can mail the prints directly to you or if you’re purchasing as a gift, directly to the person you’re gifting.

Notes on my book, Tales From The Trumpster Fire: There are 19 copies of my book in stock, which go for $45.00 each, signed. Also, I have copies of my first book from 1997, Knee-Deep in Mississippi available for $20.00.

Tip Jar: if you want to support the cartoonist, please send a donation through PayPal to clayjonz@gmail.com. You can also snail it to P.O. Box 3721, Fredericksburg, VA 22402.

Watch me draw:

Lawsuits For Touchy Republicans

E. Jean Carroll is suing Donald Trump for defamation and Disney is suing Ron DeSantis over what it calls a “relentless campaign to weaponize government power” and attacking free speech.

Carroll took the stand yesterday in a New York City courtroom and testified, “I’m here because Donald Trump raped me, and when I wrote about it, he said it did not happen.” Trump’s claim that it didn’t happen is why there’s a lawsuit. Trump is not on trial for rape but for defamation.

Last night on MSNBC, Alex Wagner said more than once that Trump could be a “convicted rapist,” but that is not true, and why I don’t normally watch MSNBC. That’s sloppy and irresponsible journalism and presenting an opinion as fact. Trump will NEVER be convicted of raping E. Jean Carroll but the jury may still believe her anyway and award her financially for defamation.

I believe E. Jean Carroll, but her only evidence is corroborating witnesses, other witnesses who claim Trump sexually assaulted them, and Trump’s own words in the Hollywood Access tape. Carroll can’t even remember the year that she claims the rape happened. When there are over 20 women who claim they were sexually assaulted by Donald Trump, combined with his own braggarts of sexually assaulting women, it’s very believable that he assaulted E. Jean Carroll. But convincing a jury that Trump committed rape is a higher burden.

Writing for The Daily Beast, trial attorney Mitchell Epner said the jury has probably already made up its mind. And Trump won’t be present to try to change their minds as he does not plan to testify. The burden may be higher on Trump’s attorneys to debunk Carroll’s claims. Hell, Trump may have already written this off as another loss and be looking forward to the appeal.

The only testimony Trump has given on this case has been on Truth Social where in addition to claiming Carroll wasn’t attractive enough to rape, that her lead attorney is a “political operative” funded by a “big political donor,” and that the entire trial is another “witch hunt.” The judge admonished Trump’s lawyers over these posts, as they may be attempts to influence a juror. The judge also said tweets by Eric Trump may be illegal as they too could be attempts to influence jurors.

Without evidence or exhibits, this case isn’t as much of a he-said/she-said as it is a she-said/tweet-said. If this was a criminal trial, Carroll would lose. The hurdle is much lower in a civil case.

In Florida, Disney filed its suit against DeSantis minutes after his newly-installed handpicked board of goons declared a Disney-friendly deal null and void. DeSantis and the state legislature stripped away Disney’s special governing district (which is a huge thing for corporations in the Sunshine State) in an attempt to punish the mouse for opposing his ‘Don’t Say Gay” law. In creating a new board that governs the district Disney is in, DeSantis is also attempting to influence the product Disney produces. In doing so, DeSantis is trying to take away Disney’s freedom of speech.

DeSantis’ war on Disney has become personal. On DeSanti’s part, it’s fascist, anti-business, and narcissistic, all of which he has in common with Trump. Now, they’re both being sued in civil courts. Hopefully, in the future, DeSantis will face criminal charges for human trafficking when he used refugees as political props and flew them from Texas to abandon them in Martha’s Vineyard. The two main candidates for the Republican nomination facing criminal charges sure would be sweet.

Trump and DeSantis are both assholes who violate the rights of other people. Fortunately for them, Republican voters love assholes.

Music Note: I listened to The Hives and Incubus.

Signed prints: The signed prints are just $40.00 each. Every cartoon on this site is available. You can pay through PayPal. If you don’t like PayPal, you can snail mail it to Clay Jones, P.O. Box 3721, Fredericksburg, VA 22402. I can mail the prints directly to you or if you’re purchasing as a gift, directly to the person you’re gifting.

Notes on my book, Tales From The Trumpster Fire: There are 19 copies of my book in stock, which go for $45.00 each, signed. Also, I have copies of my first book from 1997, Knee-Deep in Mississippi available for $20.00.

Tip Jar: if you want to support the cartoonist, please send a donation through PayPal to clayjonz@gmail.com. You can also snail it to P.O. Box 3721, Fredericksburg, VA 22402.

Watch me draw:

Sticky Mickey

Florida Governor Ron “Puddin’ Fingers” DeSantis signed into law last Thursday a ban on abortions after six weeks. Several women attended the signing but we haven’t heard yet whether they were barefoot or not.

A lot of women, maybe most, are not aware they are pregnant until after six weeks. Florida Republicans are not using science with this legislation as much as they’re using dogma from their fundamentalist religion.

Currently, there’s a 15-week ban that’s being challenged in Florida’s Supreme Court. Republicans couldn’t wait to end that one before passing a six-week ban because they hate being out-gooned by other red states like Texas and Alabama. Every judge currently on the Florida Supreme Court was appointed by a Republican governor, four of the six by DeSantis (there is a vacancy so it’ll soon be five by DeSantis). Yikes. This is some Tallahassee Taliban shit, people.

As soon as the state Supreme Court affirms the 15-week ban, it’ll be overridden by the six-week ban. This court has all the legitimacy of the newly created board seated entirely of DeSantis goons that are set to oversee Disney’s special district.

If this becomes law, which it will, it’ll deny abortion access to over four million women in Florida. It’ll also affect women in surrounding states that already have abortion bans. Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi have each banned abortion at any stage. Georgia has banned abortion after six weeks. The closest state for Florida women to receive an abortion after six weeks is South Carolina, but not for a lack of trying. South Carolina Republicans tried to enact a six-week ban, but the state Supreme Court narrowly voted that abortion is protected by the state constitution. But Republicans are scrambling an even called a special session of the state legislature to try again to ban abortions after six weeks. Florida’s ruling may push them further out of fears of becoming an “abortion haven,” as one fundamentalist lawmaker put it.

But if you were afraid Florida was actually going to make itself “pro-life,” don’t worry. It’s not. Murderering is their favorite. The Florida Republican super-majority legislature passed a bill last week that Bootsie DeSantis is expected to sign that will allow juries to recommend the death penalty in capital cases on an 8-4 vote instead of unanimous votes (In case you’re a Republican, “unanimous” means everybody). In order to kill someone, an eye for an eye, Florida will no longer require that everyone vote yes…just most of them. What fun is there in being governor if you can’t kill people?

Boots has also suggested building a state prison next to Disneyland which could be the new home for death row. That should be great for tourism. Good job, Meatball. Award yourself with some pudding.

As for Mickey and Minnie, they may soon be doing some out-of-state tourism of their own.

Music note: I listened to The Shins, Colin Hay, and U2.

Signed prints: The signed prints are just $40.00 each. Every cartoon on this site is available. You can pay through PayPal. If you don’t like PayPal, you can snail mail it to Clay Jones, P.O. Box 3721, Fredericksburg, VA 22402. I can mail the prints directly to you or if you’re purchasing as a gift, directly to the person you’re gifting.

Notes on my book, Tales From The Trumpster Fire: There are 19 copies of my book in stock, which go for $45.00 each, signed. Also, I have copies of my first book from 1997, Knee-Deep in Mississippi available for $20.00.

Tip Jar: if you want to support the cartoonist, please send a donation through PayPal to clayjonz@gmail.com. You can also snail it to P.O. Box 3721, Fredericksburg, VA 22402.

Watch me draw:

Mouse Poker

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is making his fight against Disney personal. It has less to do with what’s best for the people in the state of Florida and more to do with Boots DeSantis’ fragile ego. In fact, the entire squabble started over his ego.

When the “Don’t Say Gay” law was first proposed, Disney came out against it. The smartest thing DeSantis and Republicans could have done with that was to ignore it. Nothing would have changed from it. The homophobic bill would have still become law, Florida bigots would all high-five each other, and Disney would continue going about business as usual and bringing in money to the state as it’s been doing for the past 56 years. After all, Disney is the largest employer in Florida. It would take a real dumbass to fuck with that.

So Governor Dumbass fucked with that. Making it personal, he and his Republican goons sought to punish Disney and did so by revoking the status of their special governing district. Florida is full of these special districts. They allow a company to self-govern an area, like with sewer and road maintenance thus reducing the tax obligations of citizens in those districts. It’s more complicated than how I explained it, but that’s the gist. Disney maintained its own local government, police department, and fire department for 56 years.

By taking away the special status, Republicans put the tax burden on citizens in the district. It took them a year to pass a new bill to put all the financial obligations back onto Disney while still not allowing them to self-govern. And, a new board was created to oversee the district. Naturally, the board is full of religious fundamental homophobic goons DeSantis appointed. DeSantis stated that he expects the board to go beyond making decisions on matters like water, roads, and sewage, and work to influence the content Disney puts out. But right before DeSantis’ new board of religious zealots, sycophants, and fucknuts could take control, the Mouse pulled a fast one. And it did it in broad daylight.

At the 11th hour, the outgoing board approved a change that allows Disney to retain control over the land within the outer limits of Orange and Osceola counties “21 years after the death of the last survivor of the descendants of King Charles III, king of England.” That fucks things up for DeSantis and basically makes the new board powerless. The new rule states, “Any changes will be “subject to Disney’s prior review and comment” to “ensure consistency with the overall design and theming” of the company’s park.” The good news for DeSantis and Republicans is that they’ll have full power to put Disney in its place 21 years after the last member of England’s royal family dies.

With this new ruling, Disney no longer needs board approval to build high-density projects or buildings of any height and can sell or assign development rights. It also bans the board from using Disney’s name or any of its characters.

One of DeSantis’ board members, Ron Peri, a right-wing homophobic Christian pastor said, “This board loses, for practical purposes, the majority of its ability to do anything beyond maintain the roads and maintain basic infrastructure.” You know this board full of homophobic religious fundamentalists didn’t join the board because they care about water and sewage. You know these goons joined up to prevent Disney from making future movies where Disney princesses marry Disney princesses. I’d watch that.

Disney issued a statement saying, “All agreements signed between Disney and the District were appropriate, and were discussed and approved in open, noticed public forums in compliance with Florida’s ‘Government in the Sunshine’ law.” Disney made the entire process public with notices knowing that Republicans were too busy high-fiving each other to notice.

Florida Republican lawmakers are once again talking about changing laws to invalidate the new rules. DeSantis himself is promising to punish the corporation further by piling on new taxes and toll roads to Disney, which is a weird position to take if you want to be the Republican nominee for president. How do you tell Republicans to vote for the guy who just raised taxes on a corporation? How do you tell Republicans to vote for the guy that just added higher fees to families visiting Disney World in Orlando? Disney isn’t going to pay those tolls, tourists are.

And, if DeSantis is hoping toll roads will discourage people from visiting and spending their money at Disney World, then he’s also discouraging people from visiting and spending their money in Florida. I don’t think even Donald Trump, who doesn’t understand that Americans pay for higher tariffs on China, is that stupid. Most governors want tourists to visit and spend money in their states, right?

In Kenny Rogers’ song “The Gambler,” he sings, “You gotta know when to hold them. Know when to fold them. Know when to walk away. Know when to run.” Ron DeSantis needs to know when he shouldn’t be playing poker because he doesn’t know how.

This is why I always try to play poker with Republicans.

Signed prints: The signed prints are just $40.00 each. Every cartoon on this site is available. You can pay through PayPal. If you don’t like PayPal, you can snail mail it to Clay Jones, P.O. Box 3721, Fredericksburg, VA 22402. I can mail the prints directly to you or if you’re purchasing as a gift, directly to the person you’re gifting.

Notes on my book, Tales From The Trumpster Fire: There are 19 copies of my book in stock, which go for $45.00 each, signed. Also, I have copies of my first book from 1997, Knee-Deep in Mississippi available for $20.00.

Tip Jar: if you want to support the cartoonist, please send a donation through PayPal to clayjonz@gmail.com. You can also snail it to P.O. Box 3721, Fredericksburg, VA 22402.

Watch me draw:

Dictator DeSantis

This isn’t really happening, is it? Florida isn’t really going to force bloggers to register with the state if they criticize state officials, is it?

It is if fascist-loving Republican state senator Jason Brodeur has his way.

Hey, Republicans, if you want people to stop accusing you of being fascists then maybe quit the fascism. Hmm? And make no mistake about it, this is fascism at its very core. Did you know that bloggers in Russia with over 3,000 readers must register with the state? That way it’s easier for them to find you when it’s time to throw you off a building.

This bill is titled “Information Dissemination,” which is bizarre coming from the party of election lies. The legislation states, “If a blogger posts to a blog about an elected state officer and receives, or will receive, compensation for that post, the blogger must register with the appropriate office within five days of the post.” The bill defines “elected state officer” as “the Governor, the Lieutenant Governor, a Cabinet officer, or any member of the Legislature.” Florida’s cabinet officers are elected and included the Attorney General, Chief Financial Officer, and Commissioner of Agriculture.

Failing to register your blog on state officials would result in a fine of $25 per day, capped at $2,500.

The bill also states the bloggers’ reports to the state “must include” the “individual or entity that compensated the blogger for the blog post, and “the amount of compensation received from the individual or entity.”

The state wants to know who’s saying bad things about officials and who’s paying for it. I guess that way, state officials can track down the financial benefactor and put the squeeze on them, if not the writer himself. Sometimes trying to pressure a blogger doesn’t work because I hear some of them can be crazy and out of fucks to give.

Several people contribute to this blog each month. They can vary from $1.00 to $15. There are not a lot of them but I appreciate each and everyone one of them for believing in my work so much that they want to contribute to it. They contribute to keeping it going. Now, imagine if I had to give the state a list of everyone who contributes. I would refuse, even if it became law.

The bill defines a blog as “a website or webpage that hosts any blogger and is frequently updated with opinion, commentary, or business content,” but it says the “term does not include the website of a newspaper or other similar publication.”

I think WordPress, which hosts this blog and millions of others, needs to hire some lobbyists and lawyers to challenge this shit.

Ron DeSantis’ spokesgoon said the governor was reviewing the bill and, “As usual, the governor will consider the merits of a bill in final form if and when it passes the legislature.” That was the wrong response if the governor loves freedom and democracy. Instead of saying he was considering the merits of some fascist legislation, he should have said, “This legislation, if passed, will go straight from the legislature and straight into the governor’s trash can.” Not this governor.

Who believes the governor who has punished Disney for disagreeing with him will veto this bill? Who believes the governor who outlawed the word “gay” from classrooms will veto this bill? Who believes the governor outlawing black history being taught will veto this bill? Who believes the governor firing elected officials will veto this bill? Who believes the governor trying to take over a state college in order for it to give a “conservative” education will veto this bill? Who believes the governor who just created a board of homophobic religious zealots to oversee Disney’s content will veto this bill? Who believes the governor who proclaimed that Florida is “where woke goes to die” will veto this bill?

I don’t think Ron DeSantis will veto this bill.

You would also think this is useless legislation since it violates the Constitution, but considering all the goons Trump and Mitch McConnell have stacked in the courts, who says it can’t get survive court challenges?

Brodeur needs more than a civics lesson. He said, “Paid bloggers are lobbyists who write instead of talk. They both are professional electioneers. If lobbyists have to register and report, why shouldn’t paid bloggers? Because in many cases, bloggers are journalists. A lobbyist has to file as a lot of their legislative efforts aren’t public. A blogger’s work is public. My cartoons and blogs are public and I rarely if ever talk to government officials. I don’t take government officials out to lunch or on fact-finding trips. I don’t play golf with congressmen. And what if a blogger isn’t paid?

Blogging is also speech. Freedom of speech is a constitutional guarantee. If I don’t register with the state, then I can’t say something about a specific topic? Republicans call themselves constitutionalists but it seems none of them have read the Constitution.

I haven’t read that this bill, if passed, would apply to bloggers outside of Florida. Maybe its author doesn’t understand he can’t legislate beyond his state’s borders. But I have half a mind to move to Florida just to challenge this bullshit bogus fascist legislation. But even without being in Florida, I need to care about this because Florida is still a part of the United States. Also, DeSantis is planning to run for president and I’m sure if elected, he’ll push his fascism nationwide.

Not in my America. When you go after bloggers and freedom of speech, you’re coming after me. You wanna fight? You got one. And if you think the mouse was tough, you haven’t tangled with a political cartoonist yet.

Frustrating blog note: I’m writing this at McDonald’s in Central Park. No, not the famous Central Park in Manhattan but the stupidly named Central Park in Fredericksburg which is not a park but a collection of strip malls with a neon design inspired by Las Vegas’ sunset strip. I’m not shitting you.

I came to Central Park to pick up my new eyeglasses. There were supposed to be two but apparently, I only bought one pair even though the salesman talked me into making sure the lenses for both frames were progressive, me handing him two frames, and us going back and forth about the lenses for both pairs. What really stumped me is that I paid the same price for this one pair that I paid for two last year. But OK, I bought one pair with a better set of lenses even though I wasn’t aware of that at the moment and they couldn’t compare to my last order because, for some reason, I have two accounts at America’s Best. Whatever. I have one pair now.

After picking up my ONE pair of eyeglasses, I walked over to Wegmans and got some rice and noodles from the buffet. I checked the notifications on my phone and realized I couldn’t read them because my eyes have not adjusted to my brand new ONE pair of eyeglasses at America’s Best, or they fucked them up. I had donated all my old pairs of eyeglasses to America’s Best to give to charity, but I decided to go back and retrieve the one I wore into the store. I did that, took a long walk to Starbucks to discover the lobby is closed, then walked back into the wind to write the blog at McDonald’s where I also ordered a mocha….and learned after paying that the mocha machine is done.

I also missed the bus to get down here so I had to order a Lyft. Quite frankly, the only thing that worked right today was the Lyft, the rice, and the noodles. Also, Madonna’s “borderline” is playing right now. “I feel I’m going to lose my mind.”

Signed prints: The signed prints are just $40.00 each. Every cartoon on this site is available. You can pay through PayPal. If you don’t like PayPal, you can snail mail it to Clay Jones, P.O. Box 3721, Fredericksburg, VA 22402. I can mail the prints directly to you or if you’re purchasing as a gift, directly to the person you’re gifting.

Notes on my book, Tales From The Trumpster Fire: There are 19 copies of my book in stock, which go for $45.00 each, signed. Also, I have copies of my first book from 1997, Knee-Deep in Mississippi available for $20.00.

Tip Jar: if you want to support the cartoonist, please send a donation through PayPal to clayjonz@gmail.com. You can also snail it to P.O. Box 3721, Fredericksburg, VA 22402.

Watch me draw:

Cartoon Bully

Ron De Santis is a bully. Republicans LOVE bullies. It’s why they love Donald Trump so much. Republicans believe bullying people weaker than you is a sign of strength. It’s also why they love Putin. But, bullying is just like it was in school. The bullies are cowards. They only pick on whom they believe they can beat up.

Remember when Donald Trump tried to bully Nancy Pelosi? Remember him crawling up his own bunghole when they were in the same room together and then Pelosi walked out of the White House putting on her shades like a boss? Remember when Donald Trump shut down the government until Congress would fund his racist border wall? Remember when Pelosi kicked his ass so hard that he reopened the government and the great dealmaker walked away with less than he started with? Remember when he tried to bully Hillary Clinton at the debate and she called him “Putin’s puppet” and his only retort was that of a child, repeating her attack? Remember when the entire Republicans Party bullied Hillary Clinton on Benghazi, but she showed up for the hearing and answered questions for 11 hours without the GOP landing a finger on her?

Bullies eventually get what’s coming to them. Mickey Mouse is going to kick Ron DeSantis’ ass.

Republicans will believe that DeSantis beat up the mouse…while they’re paying higher taxes to cover the fees DeSantis and the Florida legislature saved Disney from paying. According to Florida law, the state has to pick up the tab on public debt before it can revoke a self-governing status as it did with Disney last week. The law doesn’t take effect for a year but if they don’t back down, dumbass DeSantis and the stupid Republican Party of Florida will cost the state’s taxpayers over a billion dollars. Remember when conservatives were supposed to be fiscal? They haven’t been fiscal since Eisenhower.

Obviously, Ron DeSantis isn’t actually doing anything to benefit Florida. All he’s doing is throwing red meat at the base. He’s lied and gaslighted over COVID, vaccines, and face masks. He’s bullied students for wearing face masks. He’s banning teachers from teaching kids about homosexuality and transgenders, a thing that’s not actually happening. He’s banned math books that he claims are anti-white (learn how to read the dog whistles). He’s even signed legislation making it legal to run over people protesting for Black Lives Matter. None of this helps Florida. What DeSantis is doing is building his profile to run for president. To do that, he’ll have to beat the fattest cartoon character of all time, Donald Trump.

Donald Trump is a cartoon. He’s fat and dumb like Homer. He paints himself like Crusty the Clown. His hair’s crazier than Marge Simpson’s. His fingers are tinier than Maggie Simpson’s. He’s as evil as Mr. Burns. And he eats more hamburgers than Wimpy while also wanting other people to pay for them (sorry, I lost The Simpons’ theme). He’s gropier than Pepe le Pew. And, he’s more racist than all those old Tom and Jerry cartoons (Mammy Two Shoes with her dice and straight razor). My biggest challenge with cartooning the guy was that he’s already a cartoon. Ron DeSantis is on his way to becoming one as well.

DeSantis became governor by joining the Trump cult. He promised his state he’d govern just as stupidly as Trump governed as president (sic). DeSantis kept his promise. In his campaign commercials, DeSantis was teaching his child how to “build the wall” with Legos. His message was: Vote for me. I’m a bad father teaching my child how to be a racist. Florida made him its governor.

As we’ve seen from Republicans, they’re worms. DeSantis used Trump to get what he wanted. Now that he has it, he’s going to turn on Trump. We have a few questions.

Who will attack who first? Trump will attack DeSantis as the governor becomes a larger threat. DeSantis will avoid going after Trump directly, then he’ll start to tip-toe around it until eventually, he opens fire and war is declared.

Who will voters choose? That depends on if you want the cult or the guy who was really effective with the stupid racist bullshit. Donald Trump never did build his wall. He never got Mexico to pay for it. He never truly got his ban on Muslims entering the nation. He never successfully “sent them back.” DeSantis has made it harder for black people to vote. He’s gerrymandered his state so Republicans may increase their congressional representation by at least four. DeSantis has enacted laws against gays, blacks, Hispanics, trans people, math books, COVID, and cartoon mice. He’s making Florida a place racists throughout the nation want to move to. Voters will see these as accomplishments. To dog whistle that you hate minorities is one thing. Putting the screws to them is another. DeSantis is more effective than Donald Trump. But, Donald Trump is a better salesman for the bullshit.

Who will win? Trump will be older and slower but he still has the base. DeSantis is probably quicker and lighter on his feet, though not by much. I believe DeSantis is smarter and more manipulative than Donald Trump, but he doesn’t have the gameshow host shine. DeSantis hasn’t spent the past 40 years marketing himself to stupid people. They’re both bullies and cowards so they may be afraid of each other once they’re in the same room. I want to hear your prediction and your reasonings for it.

Who do I predict to win? It’s hard to choose because it’ll be so much fun to see either one lose. Personally, I hope Trump wins as we know Biden can beat him as he’s already done it. I think DeSantis will be a much more difficult opponent because DeSantis can learn. Trump does not learn. I just hope that on the way to the general election, these two really beat the shit out of each other.

How much popcorn will we need for the fight? Lots. You may have to get one of those Amazon subscriptions for popcorn so you don’t even have to get out of your chair and it just keeps coming.

Music Note: B-52’s, but I never listen to “Love Shack.” I hate “Love Shack.”

Signed prints: The signed prints are just $40.00 each. Every cartoon on this site is available. You can pay through PayPal. If you don’t like PayPal, you can snail mail it to Clay Jones, P.O. Box 3721, Fredericksburg, VA 22402. I can mail the prints directly to you or if you’re purchasing as a gift, directly to the person you’re gifting.

Notes on my book, Tales From The Trumpster Fire: There are 19 copies of my book in stock, which go for $45.00 each, signed. Also, I have copies of my first book from 1997, Knee-Deep in Mississippi available for $20.00.

Tip Jar: if you want to support the cartoonist, please send a donation through PayPal to clayjonz@gmail.com. You can also snail it to P.O. Box 3721, Fredericksburg, VA 22402.

Watch me draw:

DeSantis Death Disney

Here’s your cartoon for this week’s CNN Opinion newsletter. Please sign up to get these in your inbox every Sunday. 

I’m sorry to have taken so long to blog this cartoon as it ran Sunday and it’s now Wednesday afternoon. But I have been busy. I have to pitch ideas for my next CNN cartoon tomorrow so let me go ahead and post this now.

Signed prints: The signed prints are just $40.00 each. Every cartoon on this site is available. You can pay through PayPal. If you don’t like PayPal, you can snail mail it to Clay Jones, P.O. Box 3721, Fredericksburg, VA 22402. I can mail the prints directly to you or if you’re purchasing as a gift, directly to the person you’re gifting.

Notes on my book, Tales From The Trumpster Fire: There are 19 copies of my book in stock, which go for $45.00 each, signed. Also, I have copies of my first book from 1997, Knee-Deep in Mississippi available for $20.00.

Tip Jar: if you want to support the cartoonist, please send a donation through PayPal to clayjonz@gmail.com. You can also snail it to P.O. Box 3721, Fredericksburg, VA 22402.

Watch me draw:

Conspiracy Circle

In 2016, a right-wing goon from North Carolina shot a gun into a pizza parlor in Washington, D.C. His motivation was the belief a Satanic deep state cabal led by Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton was operating a child sex slave ring out of a basement of the restaurant. This was the beginning of the conspiracy theory cult Qanon.

Qanon believes Donald Trump was on a mission to uncover and destroy that Satanic cult of deep state Democrats engaged in pedophilia. Some Qanon followers believe Democrats either eat the babies or drink their blood. Others believe the deep state consists of reptilian people.

Qanon also believe Donald Trump was actually behind the Mueller investigation into his collusion with Russia, and that Mueller was actually working for Trump in a public ruse to to conceal he was actually going after Democratic pedophiles. Robert Mueller is a Republican after all. How all this worked is beyond me.

Of course, all that sounds crazy, right? No child sex trafficking ring was discovered at the pizza shop. There was no deep state. No lizard people. No members working at the shop who were a part of the Clinton presidential campaign. The shop didn’t even have a basement. So anyone who believes the Satanic Democratic deep state child sex trafficking conspiracy theory is just a deranged lunatic on the fringe, right? Personally, I believe the entire Republican Party consists of deranged lunatics.

For the past two years, these deranged lunatics have been gaslighting Dr. Anthony Fauci to the point they can’t even remember why it started. Dr. Anthony Fauci is the leading expert on viruses in this nation. He fought tirelessly against the pandemic, trying to save as many lives as possible. Dr. Anthony Fauci is a national hero.

As new information on the coronavirus came in throughout the pandemic, the strategies to fight it changed. When it started, we were advised not to wear face masks. The rules on face masks and social distancing changed. This made very angry stupid people claim the government was lying and that paranoia should trump science. Dr. Anthony Fauci was hindered throughout the pandemic by Donald Trump, who was suggesting we combat the virus with aquarium cleaner, horse dewormer, and bleach. Republicans were listening to morons like Jeff Rogan over scientists like Dr. Fauci. Republicans soon claimed it was Fauci shutting the nation down, canceling schools, and killing american jobs and businesses, even though Dr. Fauci has no power to do any any of these things. This is not a belief by the lunatic fringe. It’s a common perception among the GOP.

A poll conducted last February found that a quarter of Republicans (in case you’re one of them, a quarter is 25 percent) believe Satan-worshipping pedophiles running a global sex-trafficking operation control the U.S. government, media and financial institutions. A quarter of Republicans believe a storm is coming to sweep away the elites and restore the rightful leader of the country. And, a quarter of Republicans believe true American patriots may have to resort to violence in order to save the country.

This is not Qanon. This is the Republican Party. Additionally, 16 percent of all Americans, 44 million people, believe this shit.

While Qanon is only seen favorably by 16 percent of Republicans according to another poll taken earlier this month, nearly half of mainstream Republicans believe Democrats are engaged in child sex trafficking rings. And 30 percent of Republicans believe the top Democratic elites of the party are involved in child sex trafficking rings.

Ironically, Donald Trump is on tape eyeballing a little girl and talking about dating her in ten years. Donald Trump endorsed an accused pedophile for the United States Senate. Republicans in Tennessee are trying to eliminate age requirements for marriage so grown men can marry little girls. And it seems every time a politician is found guilty of a sex crime with a child, he’s a Republican. Fun fact: No Democratic Speaker of the House has ever been sent to prison for raping a child.

And in case you’re wondering, a majority of Republicans believe Donald Trump is the legitimate president of the United States.

This shit stems from Republicans gaslighting during the hearings to confirm Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court to Florida goon Governor Ron DeSantis canceling Disney. This morning, I saw a political cartoon at GoComics pushing the believe that Disney is full of “groomers.” This cartoon is being distributed by a major newspaper syndicate and it’s not based on any facts. This wasn’t a Ben Garrison cartoon. It’s mainstream conservatism.

I too believe we have to fight to save our nation. I don’t mean physically. I mean we have to fight against disinformation. I believe we don’t just fight the liars, but call out those who are giving them a platform, from syndicates to newspapers to social media platforms.

I have two predictions: The number of Republicans believe lies will continue to increase, and there will be another violent attack based on these lies.

Creative note: I have to be on a train this morning for two cartoon events in Washington over the next two days, so I started this cartoon around 9 PM last night. Being the stupid guy I am, I kept adding details and sitting back thinking about what I could add next. The next thing I know, it’s six hours later. I went to bed around 3 AM and woke at 6:30 AM. I had some really weird dreams in that short time period after googling so many images on Satanic ceremonies.

Music Note: I was watching the Nevalny thing on CNN and listened to an assortment of music, including songs by Counting Crows, Pink, and The Shins.

Signed prints: The signed prints are just $40.00 each. Every cartoon on this site is available. You can pay through PayPal. If you don’t like PayPal, you can snail mail it to Clay Jones, P.O. Box 3721, Fredericksburg, VA 22402. I can mail the prints directly to you or if you’re purchasing as a gift, directly to the person you’re gifting.

Notes on my book, Tales From The Trumpster Fire: There are 19 copies of my book in stock, which go for $45.00 each, signed. Also, I have copies of my first book from 1997, Knee-Deep in Mississippi available for $20.00.

Tip Jar: if you want to support the cartoonist, please send a donation through PayPal to clayjonz@gmail.com. You can also snail it to P.O. Box 3721, Fredericksburg, VA 22402.

Watch me draw:

Goofy Kills Mickey

Republicans have learned they can do pretty much whatever they want. No matter how devious and corrupt their actions are, Republicans can do it plain and clear in the open and get away with it. Ron DeSantis has learned from Donald Trump that if you’re the leader of your party, which he is in Florida (for now), the rest of his party will follow. No questions asked.

Florida Republicans sent a map of new congressional districts for Governor (sic) DeSantis to sign. He rejected it and made his own, eliminating two districts with black voting majorities, despite the state receiving two additional seats after the last census. DeSantis’ new map doesn’t just eliminate two black congressional seats but adds four new Republican seats. Florida’s Republican legislature was OK with DeSantis throwing out their map for his, and quickly approved it. Now DeSantis is going to sign the legislation he created. This is fascism.

Now, they’re attacking Disney for criticizing their “Don’t say gay” bill that bans teachers from discussing gay issues or sexual identification in schools. Disney criticized the bill, because it’s stupid and bigoted, and declared it will cease donating to political campaigns in the state. In retaliation, DeSantis and Florida Republicans voted yesterday to eliminate Disney’s self-governing status.

Florida created a law in 1967 giving The Walt Disney Company governmental control over the land in and around its central Florida theme parks. The special-purpose district gave Disney the responsibility for providing municipal services like power, water, roads, and fire protection, but freed the company from dealing with legal red tape or paying taxes for services that benefited the broader public.

Florida gave this special designation to Disney in exchange for the company making the state the base of Disney World and attracting millions of tourists. In 1967, Florida needed Disney more than Disney needed Florida. But as we’ve all come to learn, Republicans are backstabbers.

A self-governing status isn’t a privilege just for Disney in Florida. There are over 200 of these corporate self-governing districts in the state, like The Villages.

The Villages is a corporate-owned retirement community with a population of 80,000 angry Republican-voting seniors. Remember that video of an old fuck in a golf cart wearing pro-Trump gear and screaming “white power” at Black Lives Matter protesters in 2020? That was in The Villages. Donald Trump, who is the only president to visit The Villages twice, tweeted the video thanking The Villages. Anyway, The Villages, where old white people scream racist chants, votes overwhelmingly Republican. The vote for Trump over Biden in 2020 was over 70 percent in The Villages. So, you don’t see Republicans eliminating The Villages’ self-governing status, which makes it clear their vote against Disney’s status isn’t because they’re against self-governing districts.

This vote is merely about revenge and being butthurt. It’s obvious, it’s clear, and it’s out in the open. The only way not to see how petty and vile this action really is is by refusing to see it. They’re voting against a corporation that just said they’re not going to give the party and its candidates money anymore. This is fascism. This is a cult.

Republicans are forgetting that Disney helped build Florida. Their punishment of Disney is punishing the state, but Republicans will cut off their nose to spite their face. And, they don’t think long term. Case in point: Taking away this self-governing district will leave a debt hanging for taxpayers in Orange and Osceola counties to pick up, perhaps to the tune of over $2,000 per household. Remember, Republicans are supposed to be the party that cuts taxes.

Republicans voted to eliminate the self-governing district before working out all the details. They’re leaving that job for the next legislative session. Ever buy something with payments you can’t afford but think, “I’m sure I’ll figure out how to make those payments…which start next month. But look how shiny my new toy is.” That’s what Florida Republicans just did. Hitting Disney is the shiny toy they couldn’t wait to hit and show their base what they’ve done. It’s so shiny.

I’m curious if Florida’s increasingly right-leaning MAGA voters are going to look at their next tax bill and say, “I’m happy to pay this because Disney is a bunch of groomers.” Will they believe the principles of attacking a company just because they pissed off one man, Ron DeSantis, is worth them each paying over $2,000? I really don’t know because Florida Republicans are stupid. I’m sure DeSantis will find a way to blame that bill on Democrats, Disney, and pedophiles.

The legislation killing Disney’s self-governing status doesn’t mention Disney. It only designates the special districts created before 1968. Of course, there was only one special self-governing district in Florida before 1968.

Sometimes doing the right thing is costly, like Disney taking a stand and speaking out against Republican homophobia. And other times, doing the wrong thing is very expensive. Except, it may not be expensive for Republicans…just the people who voted for them.

Music Note: While drawing today’s cartoon, I listened to the Four Seasons, Dion, Del Shannon, and The Drifters.

Signed prints: The signed prints are just $40.00 each. Every cartoon on this site is available. You can pay through PayPal. If you don’t like PayPal, you can snail mail it to Clay Jones, P.O. Box 3721, Fredericksburg, VA 22402. I can mail the prints directly to you or if you’re purchasing as a gift, directly to the person you’re gifting.

Notes on my book, Tales From The Trumpster Fire: There are 19 copies of my book in stock, which go for $45.00 each, signed. Also, I have copies of my first book from 1997, Knee-Deep in Mississippi available for $20.00.

Tip Jar: if you want to support the cartoonist, please send a donation through PayPal to clayjonz@gmail.com. You can also snail it to P.O. Box 3721, Fredericksburg, VA 22402.

Watch me draw: