Deadline Poet / November 11, 2023

Senator Tuberville’s Block on Military Promotions

Calvin Trillin
Sen. Tommy Tuberville looks into the distance at the Capitol
Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, talks to reporters at the Capitol in Washington, May 16, 2023.(J. Scott Applewhite / AP Photo)

And then there’s Tommy Tuberville.
With rules the Senate favors still,
He needs a single poison pill
To block the jobs we need to fill.
For Tuberville this is a thrill—
And manna for his campaign till.
Among his colleagues on the Hill
Respect for him is nearing nil.

Calvin Trillin

Calvin Trillin is The Nation’s “deadline poet.”

More from The Nation

March for Our Lives

Meet the Young Organizers Survival Corps Meet the Young Organizers Survival Corps

Young organizers from around the country gathered at Haley Farm to study past social movements and train in the tactics of nonviolent resistance and grassroots organizing.

Rev. Dr. Liz Theoharis and Sam Theoharis

Signs

Signs Signs

Of things to come.

OppArt / Eric Baker

Workers harvest asparagus at Yakama Nation Farms in Harrah, Washington, on Tuesday, April 22, 2025.

The Trump Administration Wants to Make It Easier Than Ever to Exploit Farmworkers The Trump Administration Wants to Make It Easier Than Ever to Exploit Farmworkers

What is being described as “reform” in Washington will only make the abuse and wage theft that plague the program even worse.

Teresa Cotsirilos

New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani and NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch at a January news conference.

The Divisions Mamdani Commands Are About to Be Battle-Tested The Divisions Mamdani Commands Are About to Be Battle-Tested

The New York mayor draws flack from the Catholic press, holds his own for now with the NYPD, and will have to twist arms in Albany.

D.D. Guttenplan

David Gelernter, professor of computer science and a specialist in artificial intelligence at Yale University.

The Yale Professor Who E-mailed Epstein About a “Small Goodlooking Blonde” Student Is No Longer Teaching The Yale Professor Who E-mailed Epstein About a “Small Goodlooking Blonde” Student Is No Longer Teaching

After outcry from students over e-mails showing David Gelernter’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein, the computer science professor is under review by the university.

StudentNation / Zachary Clifton

US federal immigration agents patrol in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on February 4, 2026

Abolition Is Still the Only Way Out of This Abolition Is Still the Only Way Out of This

Forget the useless so-called “reforms” to ICE and policing currently on offer. We need much more fundamental change.

Andrea J. Ritchie