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Suit of the Week: Lafayette 148 New York

Black woman wears light gray pantsuit with crisp white blouse

For busy working women, the suit is often the easiest outfit to throw on in the morning. In general, this feature is not about interview suits for women, which should be as classic and basic as you get — instead, this feature is about the slightly different suit that is fashionable, yet professional. Also: we just updated our big roundup for the best women's suits of 2024!

I tend to think of Lafayette 148 New York as “the grown up in the room,” if that makes sense, amongst companies making designer suits. They're not flashy, they're not daring — no feathers or weird shoulders — they're just incredibly classic, well made suits.

They can be a bit pricy, though, so I always take note when they go on sale. Nordstrom just began a big “Early Black Friday” sale (there are SO MANY “early Black Friday” sales this year!), and this wool and silk suit is included in the mix. I love the light gray color.

Both pieces are 40% off — the blazer was $1298, but is now marked to $779, and the trousers were $798, but are marked to $478.

(Other quick notes in the sale: good savings on this reader favorite blazer from Cinq à Sept, these reader favorite bras, Cole Haan jackets, and loafers from Sam Edelman.)

Sales of note for 12.5

143 Comments

    1. You can also get pristine Lafayette 148 blazers and jackets on the Real Real for $75.

  2. I bought a pair of penny loafers from Loeffler Randall and they squeak SO MUCH. What can be done? It sounds to me like it’s not the sole of the shoe but the top.

    1. In a pinch, I once used powdered graphite (I keep a tube in my glove box for my car door) on some black leather shoes where the tongue squeaked and it worked. The graphite would have stained anything that wasn’t black.

      I would have tried baby powder if I had some at hand.

  3. For all of my adult life, I’ve lived 5-10 hours away from my parents. Same with my sister, who lives maybe a 20-hour drive away now. In the past year, mom was very ill and died. Dad was then ill and is now in assisted living in my city. At some point, my sister decided that she was done with us after mom died (she did not come to the funeral) and my relationship with her became text-only and increasingly fraught (text from me: Dad wanted to know if you wanted any of Mom’s jewelry; here are pictures of what I found in their bedroom; her: I want this and my half of the silver; rinse; repeat).

    It’s just the two of us on my side and her children are my only nieces and nephews and my children’s only first cousins. They overlap in age. This is the first Christmas since I guess we’ve been fired as her family. What do I do? Send gifts and cards as usual (gifts, all for teens, have long since been cash deposits on their debit cards that I run for them)? I know that as adults I would want to have relationships with them but while they live at home it will be hard to maintain any ties other than exchanging pleasantries by text and we are all “friends” on Insta (oddly, it’s just me and her kids; she isn’t on Insta but is on FB, where we are friends and a month ago she liked a picture I posted).

    I guess I’m realizing as the holiday e-mails pile up how much was lost this year and what the protocol is for this new life. [Dad is a mess, deep in mourning, probably oblivious to this all since he doesn’t text and Sibling hasn’t reached out since Mom died except for what I gather was one phone call that went poorly. Mom was the family social correspondent, so no one is expecting him to send out cards and I can help him write checks to my sister’s children, which he would probably want to do.]

    More details if it matters: Sister seems to have expected $$$ to come to her immediately upon Mom’s death (which she could definitely use, based on my rough understanding of her finances). She has a copy of Mom’s Will that, as is typical, leaves everything to my Dad. They were comfortable but by no means rich; I am grateful that between a modest pension and a good 401K plan, Dad should have adequate funds to live on. It’s basically an money fight that we are all the losers of.

    I haven’t opened up to any of my relatives about all this (just my husband), but I may see them over Christmas to take my dad to visit them. It’s all just such a mess. Totally grateful to my husband for really just listening.

    1. My general view in family dysfunction is that I have never regretted being proactively kind to the children caught up in adult drama, unless doing so would actually heighten the adult drama (e.g., I obviously wouldn’t reach out to a child against their parent’s wishes). I would maintain gifts and cards and kindnesses for the kiddos, and I would seek bereavement therapy (which often addresses post-death family dysfunction).

      Hugs — this sounds incredibly painful, especially this time of year, and I hope things improve with time.

    2. Send physical cards to the kids with a real message from you (and maybe your kids, too) and do the debit deposit, as well. That way there is a more personal touch to the relationship and a better likelihood of a continuing relationship. Also, you can reach out to them later in life. I lost touch with my aunt only to have her push her way back in when I was well into my 30s and I am so grateful I got to have a real relationship with her despite my father.

      1. Yes, this. Make real connections with the kids (notes in cards, messages via FB, texts etc) and then make sure your sister knows your door is open (if it is).

        I am very, very sorry. This all sounds really difficult.

    3. Your sister sounds deeply unpleasant. I would focus on gifts for the children, and spending Christmas with your dad.

    4. My mother was the last to go. Her money (not much) and the proceeds from a deeply mortgaged home were split evenly between her three children, per her will, which was pretty straightforward.

      The grandchildren, most of whom are from one of my siblings, decided pretty much immediately that there was something rotten in Denmark about this.

      Their parent, who was one of the three “heirs” (if you can call someone who comes into mid 5 figures such a thing) fed this conspiracy theory because they apparently didn’t want to own up to the fact that any money that would flow to their children should have come through them. Yes, that sibling immediately bought themselves a new car, the kind with a bow on it like in the TV commercials.

      The kids still haven’t figured it out, but other sibling and I have tried to be good aunts and uncles while staying out of it, with mixed results.

      Money brings out the absolute worst in people.

  4. Has anyone done something similar? I’ve always wanted to read the Bible front to back with some guidance / structure (I’m a UU- have interest in the history, context, theology but not in a denominational preaching kind of way ). I have a car commute and was thinking a podcast might exist for this but it’s hard to tease out the ‘Vibe’ from the descriptions. Any recommendations? Thanks!

    1. I think this is a cool idea as a non-religious person who was raised religious by a religious scholar. Someone may come in with an amazing recommendation, but if not, I would bifurcate what you’re looking for. Do a “Bible in 365 days” podcast. There are just a ton. Pick one without any guidance/structure. And whenever you are heading into a new book or group of books, read a commentary about that book/group of books. You can do the commentary as an audiobook, too.

      I’m not religious anymore so don’t have specific commentary recommendations, but in general, I think having a thematic commentary about, for example, the whole of the gospels, rather than a 5 minute commentary about Mark 13 or whatever, will be a better fit for what you’re looking for. I worry that shorter daily commentary will suffer for focusing on the trees rather than the forest, and it sounds like you’re interested in the forest.

      Good luck!

    2. Strongly recommend the Bible Recap (Tara Leigh Cobble) for this. She’s much more religious and conservative than I am, but I thought the podcast was great anyway.

    3. I did Bible in a Year with Fr Mike Schmitz and plan to do it again while reading along (after about 8 months in the OT I got a little bogged down and really didn’t follow).

      I’m not going to wholeheartedly recommend it to you, because maybe you have feelings about Catholics priests, but I thought it was well done and interesting. Each episode is about 15-30 minutes, with about 2/3 of that being scripture reading and 1/3 being a homily (sermon). There is definitely Catholic theology worked in, but most of the preaching is about the history and context. He does acknowledge differences in Catholic vs Protestant POV, and the theology is a little more macro than in the weeds. You can feel his excitement and passion for the Word! It’s also not a reading straight through of the Bible, but it is arranged in historical timeframes that advance the story of the salvation history.

      So, take from that what you will!

      1. I second this one. The historical arrangement is really helpful. I just ignore what Fr. Mike says about Martin Luther, haha.

    4. I don’t know the exact answer to your question, but a) the scholar Elaine Pagels has so many interesting, well-written books on religious history that if you don’t know her you should. And b) my dad really liked the book Who Wrote the Bible and has been trying to get me to read it for 20 years.

      1. Who Wrote the Bible is an amazing book — one of the most interesting non-fiction books I’ve ever read. I’m with your dad!

    5. Not a podcast, but Dan McClellan is a biblical scholar on TikTok and probably Insta. He is fascinating and provides historical context for interpretations of the bible. I learn something every time I watch him.

      1. He’s a Mormon, so I would be extremely skeptical about his interpretation and agenda.

        1. As opposed to all these other religious scholars being thrown around who have no interpretation or agenda? Unless you find a secular religious scholar I don’t think you’re going to be free of that.

          I was raised Mormon and left it 20 years ago, so don’t really have a dog in the fight. However I can tell you they definitely believe in the Bible without any crazy differences from my Methodist family. They use the King James Version.

          They believe the Book of Mormon is an additional text equal to the Bible. But the Bible plays significant parts of their religion.

    6. What I find most useful in interpreting the Bible is a solid understanding of the historical, cultural, and literary contexts. I like to combine secular resources with religious ones for this purpose. I like the Open Yale Course “Introduction to the New Testament History and Literature” as an overview of the context of the New Testament. Reading the lecture transcripts is a lot faster than watching the videos. You can then read commentaries as you go. The New Interpreter’s Bible One Volume Commentary is a classic but it is, out of necessity, rather cursory. I also like the Women’s Bible Commentary. When you get to the Gospels, Reading the Synoptic Gospels by O. Wesley Allen is a nice, accessible introduction to exegesis. I also like to use more detailed commentaries that focus on a single book of the Bible, such as the Westminster Bible Companion series. If you are willing to do a lot of searching and reading of samples you will also run across some great, more academic analyses of individual books. A lot of these read somewhat like doctoral theses. An example is Wisdom and Work by J. Daryl Charles, which focuses on Ecclesiastes. Most of the workbooks and guides designed for group or individual Bible study are garbage—very shallow, often slanted towards an evangelical interpretation, and very often wrong about history. For the Bible itself, the NRSV and the CEB are considered to be among the most accurate translations. I prefer the language of the NrSV, which flows better. I am also partial to the NASB, although it’s not as widely used. The New Oxford Annotated Bible is the standard study edition of the NRSV used in college courses.

      1. Adding—one good place to focus your background inquiry is on the purpose for which a particular document was written and its apparent intended audience.

      1. There is a program called Education for Ministry (EFM) that the Episcopal Seminary at Sewannee University organizes for congregations throughout the US. It has a scholarly, rather than doctrinal approach, so as long as a congregation is following the standardized curriculum, there will be room for a diversity of beliefs and understandings. I have finished year 1 (yes, it’s a commitment). To summarize the perspective on the Old Testament, “this is not the word of God – it is how people living 2500 years ago understood God and what they wrote down. What can we learn from it? What have we been told it meant that isn’t necessarily so?” This perspective is derived from the readings, not my particular congregation’s modifications – so even if you don’t want to participate in a group, the reading list is great. If you want it, reply to Paging EFM lady and I can send it to you.

  5. Looking for a gift for my niece – now in college in a cold city, but doesn’t have a lot of cold weather clothing. She wears her college hoodie a lot, but was thinking maybe one everyday warmer/chunky sweater she can throw over anything.

    She is very mellow, not heavily into fashion but likes cute things. I’ve had mixed luck in the past. She likes thrifting and doesn’t do fast fashion.

    3. LL Bean is not fast fashion and she only needs to buy one. I’d go that direction.

      Thrifting woolens may give rise to clothing moths, ask me how I know.

      1. I would not get a college kid anything from LL Bean except maybe the duck boots. The sizing is weird and frumpy.

        1. Oversized is popular right now. I have two in college. You sound like a millennial using the word “frumpy.” Gen Z doesn’t care about frumpy.

          1. There’s a difference between Free People oversized and LL Bean “meant to be semi-fitted on a person shaped like a tree trunk.”

      2. I think a GC to LLBean would be smart. She could take that in a bunch of different directions based on her needs. As someone who recently moved to a colder weather climate I find I’ve been buying a ton from them. Patagonia or Arcteryx could be alternatives if you need something trendier.

    4. My daughter likes cute things and is a college freshman in a cold place. When we made our campus visit last year in the dead of winter she really liked having a knee-length down coat. Hers is the Wunder Puff Long Coat from Lululemon. Lole also makes nice ones. She also likes her water-resistant fur-lined Doc Martens chelsea boots. She prefers lightweight non-wool sweaters for layering, as the buildings tend to be overheated. Her favorite is a sweater with a bow motif. You also can’t go wrong with cash or a gift card to her favorite coffee place. Check with her parents on that last one—there’s no Starbucks in my daughter’s college town, and she has a strong preference for one of the two local coffee shops.

    5. What is your budget? Would she like something from Patagonia, Cotopaxi, or a similar brand?

      1. My college daughter in Minnesota confirms that Cotopaxi is cool. Their down jacket is more of a fall weight, similar to the Patagonia down sweater. She also has a really awesome corduroy down puffer from Patagonia. You can find past season styles of both brands at a discount.

    6. I recommend the Gap Cashsoft Crop Cardigan. It’s a heavier weight so nice & warm.

  6. I’m a junior partner at an Am Law 100 firm. For the first time in my career, I’m dealing with what falls into the category of insubordination from a subordinate – a male senior associate. His tone is consistently disrespectful, he often questions my authority with an audience, and he generally has a huge ego and thinks he knows better than me. He doesn’t. In fact, I have a variety of concerns about his performance. How would you handle this?

      1. OP here, that’s a long term option, but I’d like to try and manage the situation before going nuclear.

        1. I wouldn’t bend over backwards to try to fix him, I don’t think men like that are likely to improve.

          2. @3:19 is right. Men like him don’t improve. Start documenting now and don’t mince words. Take action immediately in the moment.

        2. He’s not fixable. Do what you need to in order to create a paper trail and then get him out.

        3. Serious question: why do you want to manage it?

          In my experience, people like this only get worse.

      2. A junior partner doesn’t normally have that authority unilaterally. She can give him a bad review and get the ball rolling towards him being managed out, but she can’t just fire him and be done with it.

    2. At minimum, is it possible to get him removed from working on any of your matters? Ideally, he’d be canned, but if there is some partner who likes him, then letting the partner keep the insubordinate associate and keeping that associate away from your stuff seems like it could work.

      I left biglaw as a midlevel, but this is how I imagine the partners would have handled this kind of thing.

    3. short term- roll him off your project if you can; don’t staff him on anything else; speak with other partners to see if they’ve noticed the same problem

      long term- if the above is effective he will be quietly managed out

    4. Does he have a sponsor at the firm? Is he someone’s kid, best friend’s kid, etc.? How powerful is that person? If this guy is being sponsored by someone significantly more powerful than you, then honestly my advice is to get him off your matters but otherwise leave it alone other than some email “feedback” pointing out the issues with his work.

      If he is not protected, document the heck out of this. And then talk to HR. Do NOT mention “male” associate. Keep gender 100% out of it. In fact, do not ever mention his gender as a relevant fact ever again to anyone other than your spouse, priest or attorney. Do not reference his “tone”. Instead focus on the specific concerns about his performance, any efforts you have made to counsel him, and his response. If the “audience” in question is outside the firm, mention that as well. Then follow their advice.

      Good luck. Associates who think they are God’s gift are always a pain to deal with and they either learn or they get fired.

  7. Who else is flinging things to a cart and then checking for sales to pull the trigger. I feel if I buy, I will miss a sale.

    1. If you wait for a sale, your size might be gone.

      Otherwise buy the item a second time if it goes on sale within the return window, then return the non-sale purchase (i.e., do a slow-motion price adjustment for yourself).

    2. Ask for a price adjustment. I ordered pants on Friday, they were “final sale” and marked down. The price went lower on Monday and using online chat with the store I got a price adjustment. Pants arrived today and are perfect.

    4. I pretty much always do this. Mainly because I would otherwise buy a lot more on impulse than I really want/need.

  8. My boyfriend and I are late twenties and have been together around 4 years. Our plan was to get engaged next year, which I’ve been very excited about. He’s an immigrant who has been sponsored for a green card through his work, but due to long wait times, it could be decades until the green card comes through, and he’s on an H1B until then.

    With Trump’s election, he is getting really worried about how it may affect his immigration status. Apparently Stephen Miller has really threatened H1B visa holders in the past, and wants to start turning down renewals at much higher rates. I suggested to my boyfriend that we get court-married when we get engaged, and he was really resistant to that as a solution. He says that he doesn’t want to get a green card through me, basically because he wants to earn it himself and also feels like it would be corrupting the marriage process to be thinking about a green card as a motivating factor. I feel like this is a silly stance to take, because a) our immigration system is broken so the standards to ‘earn’ your green card are so ridiculously laborious and b) it is just so much more practical and expedites the process to get a green card through marriage. Especially since we were already planning to get engaged/married, I don’t see why it wouldn’t make sense to just get the paperwork part out of the way earlier, in order to pre-empt any of the administration’s weirdness.

    I am not going to push the issue with him, but what are your thoughts on his stance? Would it make him beholden to me to get a green card through me, even if we were planning to get married anyway? I love him so much and would want him to have a green card even if we broke up, so I don’t think it would tie him to me or make him indebted.

    1. I respect his thoughts. He may not want people assuming that’s why you get married, he may have a fantasy vision for marriage, he may not be ready for marriage in general, he may have other experiences in his life where people felt pressured (and even if he doesn’t feel pressured, it may be a plant in his life garden that he can’t ignore). Do I think he would owe you? No. Would I potentially feel the way he feels? Yeah. I have a hard time accepting a gift over $100 from my fiance! So I can respect that may be his genuine feeling and it is what it is.

    2. I would just get married. My husband is a naturalized citizen and his process was already underway before we were engaged, but if it hadn’t been and Trump was president elect, I would 100% have been willing to expedite the marriage timeline to protect him. I don’t view it as unromantic, actually. It’s a sign of your commitment.

    3. If you were absolutely going to get married anyway, do it now.

      If you were just waiting to get to that point in your relationship, don’t do it now. Wait until you’re sure.

    4. Does he have cold feet about marrying you? After four years of adult dating, you shouldn’t really have a plan to get engaged, so much as be engaged. He may be hesitant to get into a marriage that he’s unsure about, even if it benefits him.

    5. My thoughts: he doesn’t want to, so it’s good you’re not going to push it. If and when you are both ready, regardless of immigration status, you can get married. That might be next year as you have been planning.

      Side note: my best friend’s spouse is here on an H1B. They were engaged 3 years, married in 2021. They still do not have spouse’s green card (and this has all been under Biden’s admin!). Not to scare you, but even one of the more stereotypical “easier” routes may not be super fast.

    6. This is an odd take in my opinion. I don’t know the immigration system very well but I thought there was some sort of lottery system so “earning” it isn’t a hill I would die on. I could be wrong, but are you sure he is serious about the future of your relationship? If he was serious and there was a reasonable way to secure his ability to stay in the U.S., I think he would take it! I wouldn’t agree to anything until he proposed. A lot of men talk about wanting to get engaged but can’t fully commit and before everyone says I’m just petty, yes I did date someone for 6 years who still couldn’t propose. It happens and even though they say they are committed, that’s not always the case.

        1. There IS a green card lottery but the far more likely scenario here is that OPs fiance is from a country with a lot of H1B holders and there’s a straight up wait-list — for example, cat EB2 is ~1 year for H1B holders from most countries but almost 15 years for H1B holders from India. EB3 wait-lists are even longer. It’s possible fiance is thinking of moving up in category as a form of “earning” good green card? But I agree, it’s more likely he’s worried about being perceived as a “gold digger” or gaming the system (in my mind unfairly worried, if you are sure you would get married anyways, get married! Have the party later if you need to! But I think you’re right to respect how important this seems to him. The other important factor is whether /you/ are ok with the immigration risk – if he had to leave the country, would you follow? Would you marry then? This is your life too)

    7. His existence in the US is at the mercy of the sponsor (current employer). If they decide to fire him then he would have to find another sponsor. Additional, being tied to a company like this hampers career opportunities as he cannot easily switch jobs. Lastly, other than involved parties, no one will know how a green card was obtained. I’m sure he knows all of this so he may not be ready for marriage or may not even plan to stay.

    8. I’m sorry. My advice is that he probably doesn’t want to get married in the near future. Or at least, he’s hesitant enough that the shifting immigration landscape doesn’t motivate him. Men say a lot of things with regard to marriage. Watch what they do.

    9. I’d drop it, get engaged, and then pick it back up at that point. First hurdle is get engaged.

    10. I think people are overreacting by saying he doesnt went to get married. I completwly understand why getting a greencard through an employer is very different from getting it via marriage. He doesnt want to feel like a gold digger (even though he would not be!) I understand your logic, but feelings make sense too

    11. I’ve known people who got married for health insurance, and people who got married for better military benefits. I thought both of those were really valid reasons to either get married or move the process up, I would think marrying for a greencard the eve before horrible crackdowns by Stephen F’ing Miller is 100% acceptable.

      BUT I will say – none of those people are still married 20 years later.

    12. So having done the getting married for immigration reasons (19 years ago in january) here’s a couple things you may or may not be aware of:

      -there’s no way to earn a green card-immigration policy is all nonsense setup by the worst people in government
      -the green card line takes decades and isn’t a reasonable thing for him to expect. (a friend’s parents applied when she was born. they moved to the states when she turned 16) (sole exception- canadian nationals)
      -The green card lottery is also exceptionally unlikely to pan out (unless he’s from an unusual country with no immigration)
      -The aliens of extraordinary ability green cards are also not likely to pan out (if your boyfriend isn’t a nobel laureate, or a PhD who wrote 6 nature papers during his doctorate)
      -there’s no point in requesting a fiancee visa- it’ll take as long as a green card application and is good for only 6 months.

      -if you do get married and sponsor him for a green card, you’ll be guaranteeing that you can financially support him for 2 years whether or not you stay married. No matter what he will owe you for sponsoring him.

      -you’ll want to start gathering documentation that you’ve been in a relationship for 4 years- I brought a huge stack of essentially one piece of evidence that we’d been in a relationship per month such as pictures from vacations, apartment lease, dog adoption
      -you’ll want to hire a lawyer. I did it by hand along with all the translations since we were entirely broke at the time, and it was awful.
      -it’ll cost 5-10k for fees
      -you’ll have to collect a wacky array of documents such as any criminal records, name changes, long form birth certificates, apostile of marriage + translations if not in english

    13. I married and sponsored my spouse for a green card. He was on a student visa. He proposed independent of this, but I don’t see sponsoring a green card differently than any other marital commitment. We own a house and car together and have a child together. Of course I’m going to take the steps to ensure we can build a stable future together here.

    14. As an immigrant on H1-B waiting (for years and years and years…) for my green card, Stephen Miller is HORRIBLE. I would certainly have a discussion to unpack your boyfriend’s concerns, but would urge you both to get married legally ASAP if you are planning to anyways. Stephen Miller is an expert at throwing sand in the gears of an already barely functioning system. Expect further delays for immigration applications in the next administration.

    15. Proceed with caution — The green card via marriage would indebt YOU to him if the marriage ended!
      I believe that there is a requirement to commit to 10 years of financial support for the person you sponsor. If he quits his job & leaves you, you will have the responsibility to support him even if otherwise you wouldn’t have been responsible for Alimony.

      See form I-864 on USCIS website

      1. That is not true. “When you sign the affidavit of support, you accept legal responsibility for financially supporting the sponsored immigrant(s), generally until they become U.S. citizens OR are credited with 40 quarters of work.”

        The citizenship process takes 1-2 years, so that is the more likely timeline, unless he expressly does not want to become a citizen.

    16. Yellow flag, or a misunderstanding of US immigration laws. If he’s worried about being indebted to you, does that mean he’ll expect you to feel indebted to him when he does something that’s good for your future as a couple but most directly benefits you? Or maybe he isn’t at the point where he can conceive of “good for us” instead of just “good for me” and “good for you”. Either way, feels dicey to me. But I am of a more collectivist mindset when it comes to marriage, so if that’s not you disregard my opinion.

  9. Can’t tell any real-life friends so please allow me here – I am 37, single, no kids, my retirement savings is $130k, and my bank accounts (one CD, money market, savings, etc.) have a total of $45k. I have worked since I was 14, my only debt now is my car (~$8k loan). I cried at work today realizing I have $175k saved in different buckets. Realistically, I hope/plan to be able to get another $25k saved before my birthday next summer. I know this may seem like a pittance to many here but I am so proud and still kinda scared I’ll never have “enough” to retire but right now just trying to enjoy this milestone!

    1. Hey, I’m really proud of you and I hope you are high fiving yourself all day today!

    2. Congratulations! Financial security is so important, you have every right to be proud.

    3. That’s amazing. I’m around the same age as you and only have a fraction of that saved! You should be proud!

    6. This actually sounds great, and is similar to what I (married, with a kid) had at your same age. I am now in my mid-40s and through the magic of compound interest it has continued to grow.

      Have you considered including an index fund through an IRA or 401k?

    10. Congratulations! You’re doing a good job, just keep at it, and let compounding interest do its job.

    12. This 39 year old single woman with no children is proud of you for this milestone!

  10. I am generally team calm and reason around all things Trump, but as an attorney: you’ve gotta be fucking kidding me with the Gaetz pick. He was only a practicing lawyer for three years before entering politics.

    1. This is the anticredential administration. Education and expertise are considered bad.

    2. Getting upset that Trump admin picks are unqualified just strikes me as getting upset that clowns at the circus have their faces painted bright colors. This is the show the voters bought us tickets for.

      1. I’m sorta looking forward to when the leopards actually start eating his voters’ faces.

        1. I don’t look forward to anyone suffering under Trump but my only solace is I will likely be ok as a fairly well off woman in a very solidly blue state.

          2. I’m in California with 5+ more years before Medicare eligibility. I’m nervous about my host of preexisting conditions. The ACA (with no subsidies) made it possible for me to start my own small business. That’s what we want, right? Right? I don’t even know what “we” want anymore.

      2. His AG picks first admin were qualified. This is a very sharp dropoff for this position.

          1. Trump has historically really liked deep conservative legal credentials folks. Jeff Sessions is a perfect example—very conservative, very credentialed. Barr, too. Gaetz is pulled from a different playbook, and nothing would’ve told “thinking voters” to expect such a strong shift in preference.

          2. Literally everything would have told thinking voters this would happen. Essentially every single person who worked in his first admin has denounced him and he made it clear many, many, many times that he was going to surround himself with sycophants he won’t have to fire because they’ll never disobey him. If you didn’t see this coming you either don’t have a brain or were willfully turning it off because you were so blinded by misogyny.

          3. Jesus good lord. Take it down seven notches. I’m an ex-gov lawyer who worked in Dem admins. I am on a group chain
            with other ex-gov lawyers from my admin that is blowing up because all of us are surprised by this specific pick. I can assure you we all have brains.

            The ad hominem attacks and tantrum throwing in your comment are uncivilized and embarrassing. Do better. Wildly inappropriate and non-constructive.

        2. That’s the point. He was upset that his previous picks had at least a semblance of ethics and backbones so he has corrected those “errors.”

          1. +1 and he made it absolutely clear on the campaign trail that he wouldn’t repeat those “mistakes.”

      2. i thought everyone agreed she was a russian asset?

        i swear I don’t care but – are there ANY guardrails on who he appoints? ethics disclosures or stuff required for security clearances?

      4. Right? I can’t imagine even the most Republican congress could possibly confirm her.

        1. I’m hoping this one won’t get through Congress. I think she’s literally on the Kremlin’s payroll.

        2. He’s pushing congress to skip confirmations and allowing direct appointments.

    4. The Florida Republican establishment has spent considerable time and energy keeping him in a place where he can do the least damage while still having a place befitting his status as the son of a prominent state lawmaker.
      He was never fit for or meant to have a position where he could do more than make noise.
      As a fellow FSU alum it’s always cracked me up that he’s never featured as a prominent alumnus.

      1. “As a fellow FSU alum it’s always cracked me up that he’s never featured as a prominent alumnus.”

        As a W&M law alum – same.

        1. Same! But now that the media is announcing where he attended law school I am even more embarrassed to admit where I went than I already was.

          1. Fwiw, I thought W&M is a fine school. Outside of a few programs, FSU when I and Gaetz ( thank goodness it’s so big our paths never crossed) went there was known as a place where rich families’ failsons went to party for 4 years before joining the family business.

          2. Why would you be embarrassed to say you went to W&M law school? It’s a great school. I only know people who went there for undergrad but they were all smart and nice.

    5. Yea, but what qualified attorney is going to say yes to that position? I’m not putting my bar license on the line for whatever crazy sh*t trump will try to get his AG to do.

      1. He found multiple qualified lawyers first term. I may not have agreed with them, but they were certainly qualified. Gaetz is actually completely unqualified to run the department.

        1. Yea, but most of them have no interest in ever working for him again… I can kind of understand (though not agree with) why someone might have worked for him his first term. Now, nope. Other than Stephen Miller, is anyone still with him who was around the first time?

          1. That’s a fair point. But I have to imagine there were other options, at least among the current state AGs in red states.

    6. I am pleased to report that I only know about Gaetz or Noem from comments here.

      It’s going to be a f’ing s-show, people. If there’s something you do about it, then do it. If not, step away from the algorithm.

      1. Ha, I’m the OP of this post and I’m usually in this boat. But three different lawyers texted me about Gaetz (we’re all ex-gov, and it’s quite the gossip).

      2. Ditto. Here’s hoping I soon achieve the same level of blissful ignorance about politics that so many republican voters seem to have.

    8. I had heard Aileen Cannon for AG in several places, as the payoff for slow-walking his classified documents case(s). I guess she found out what he does with women he no longer has any use for.

      1. I was a longtime Floridian, and Pam Bondi would have been my guess over Gaetz for AG.
        I’m waiting for Christina Pushaw to crawl out from whatever corner of the MAGAsphere she’s currently inhabiting for a position somewhere in comms.

    9. There is a theory going around that the plan is to nominate a second-choice if/when the nomination of Gaetz is rejected. That second choice is rumored to be someone who would have never been acceptable but for the contrast with Gaetz.

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