Cartoons Weekend, Plus: Giving You the Willies

New and old music from Willie Nelson, as Trump fires a judge and deports a two- year-old kid.

Greg Mitchell is the author of more than a dozen books and now writer/director of three award-winning films aired via PBS, including “Atomic Cover-up” and “Memorial Day Massacre.” Now watch trailer for acclaimed 2025 film “The Atomic Bowl.” Before all that, he was a longtime editor of the legendary Crawdaddy. You can still subscribe to this newsletter for FREE. Sustain this newsletter by ordering one of his books.

Somehow there’s a new Willie Nelson album this week, by one tally his 77th studio album and 154th in all. This one is devoted to songs written by Rodney Crowell over the past half-century. The title track, below, also features Rodney sharing vocals. As for me, I first saw Willie in concert in NYC about 1973 and Rodney a couple of years later backing up Emmylou.

Back in 1962, clean shaven Willie sings brief medley of his greatest hits (penned for others):

He would go on to sing Townes’ “Pancho & Lefty” with many partners, most memorably with Merle, but even a fine effort with Dylan.

Maybe call Trump and Hegseth “Punchy and Leftover”? From Maureen Dowd this morning….

Having his wife, Jennifer, a former Fox producer, by his side at the Pentagon, where she is known as the “human leash,” has not kept Pete on the straight and narrow….Trump, who often casts by looks, may have liked Hegseth’s slick style and pretty face. But even the Emperor of Chaos must realize this Princess of Chaos has to go.

Then there’s this:

But hope on the horizon?

And that was before yesterday’s headlines:

Trump Says He Wouldn’t ‘100 Percent’ Agree America Should Be Ruled by Laws, Not Men

U.S. Deports 2-Year-Old U.S. Citizen to Honduras

Funeral for the Pope—and America?