Attack From Within: How Disinformation is Sabotaging America - An Important Well-Documented NonFiction By Barbara McQuade

“All warfare is based on deception.”

—sun tzu, The Art of War

Need Help Recognizing Truth?

Misinformation is false or inaccurate information—getting the facts wrong. Disinformation is false information which is deliberately intended to mislead—intentionally misstating the facts.

“In fascist politics, language is not used simply, or even chiefly, to convey information but to elicit emotion.” —jason stanley, Jacob Urowsky

“We, the People, recognize that we have responsibilities as well as rights; that our destinies are bound together; that a freedom which only asks what’s in it for me, a freedom without a commitment to others, a freedom without love or charity or duty or patriotism, is unworthy of our founding ideals, and those who died in their defense.” 

—president barack obama 

I was visiting Ireland in the spring of 2018, when the country was considering a referendum that would end the nation’s prohibition on abortion. In a country with an official Catholic faith, I imagined that the debate would be raging with the passion of a blood feud. Instead, I was surprised to find that advocates on both sides of the issue stood on street corners, passing out literature and politely engaging passersby who expressed interest in learning more about the issue. To this day, I still keep on my desk a button that says “Tá,” Irish Gaelic for “yes”—the choice that would change the law to permit abortion and the side that ultimately prevailed in the election by an overwhelming margin. Irish feminist Ailbhe Smyth observed that the country was able to conduct the vote without becoming split.1702 She attributed that success to “creating an empathetic framework of discourse so that people are not at each other’s throats.”1703 Combating disinformation is a massive undertaking, and defeating it will require the kind of empathy I saw in Ireland. The Irish people were committed to preserving their national unity above all else. As I saw in Ireland, I do not expect us to find unity on the substance of issues—we will always have differences of opinion on issues such as criminal justice and government spending—but we must be united in the process of how we solve problems. The ability to solve any problem requires a shared understanding of facts and truth. What is truth? Philosophers and religious scholars debate the meaning of the term. There are some truths that may be unknowable to the human mind, such as the meaning of life or whether intelligent beings exist elsewhere in the cosmos. But truth is different from fact. Facts can be verified, even if our perceptions of them may vary. The color of the traffic light at the time of a car accident is often a knowable fact. So is the number of votes a particular candidate received in an election. Finding facts requires investigation, discovery, documentation, and testing. Scientists find facts. Researchers find facts. Ordinary people find facts every day. Are we out of milk? Did Dad take the car? These are facts that are knowable. Our opinions about facts may vary: Is the coffee hot? Do we need to fill the gas tank? Reaching conclusions requires interpretation, and reasonable minds may disagree. What I deem “hot” may be different from the preferences of others; the fuel level at which I think a car requires a refill likely varies from the risk tolerance of others. We can tell the difference between opinion and facts. And while we are all free to form our own views, we must commit to debating them from a shared set of facts. Overcoming Fear How do we preserve our democracy when political opportunists are willing to grab power through lies instead of adhering to democratic norms? I think the answer lies in the same strategy basic to every relationship: we need to care more about maintaining the relationship than getting our way. In American government, that means needing to care more about ensuring democracy than about imposing our will. In How Democracies Die, authors Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt examine not only the demise of democratic governments but the factors that permit them to survive. They conclude that democracies thrive when leaders abide by “unwritten democratic norms.”1704 In America, these norms have been “mutual toleration” and “forbearance.”1705 They define mutual toleration as the acceptance of the opposing party as a legitimate part of our political system. In the United States, political candidates engage in mutual toleration when they concede elections to the winning opponent. Forbearance is the use of restraint in exercising power.1706 Presidents exercise forbearance when they refrain from using their veto power over measures enacted by other branches of government.1707 In American history, both parties have been guilty of failing to exercise forbearance at times. Legislatures engage in gerrymandering to create voting districts that will give advantages to their party.1708 Both Republican and Democratic presidents have granted ill-advised pardons.1709 But in recent years, the Republican Party seems to have abandoned forbearance, perhaps because its leaders see their political power dwindling. While losing the popular vote for the presidency in five of the six elections between 2000 and 2020, the GOP nonetheless managed to capture five of eight open seats on the Supreme Court during that same period, in part by violating norms. Senator Mitch McConnell was unabashedly duplicitous in holding a confirmation vote for President Trump’s nominee Amy Coney Barrett following the death of a sitting justice in an election year, after refusing to provide a hearing for President Obama’s nominee under similar circumstances.1710 And now, we have reached the point where some political opportunists have even sacrificed the democratic norm of mutual toleration, the acceptance of the legitimacy of political rivals. Is this the natural end of American democracy? Sometimes democracies die. Perhaps ours has outlived its natural life. But the alternatives to democracy, as Churchill said, are inferior forms of government. Democracies protect the sovereign power of the people to choose who will serve and represent them. The people can hold leaders accountable and express their dissatisfaction by voting them out of office. Allowing decisions to be made in any way except by the will of the people risks creating preferences for one group of people over another, a far cry from the self-evident truth that all of us are created equal. Demanding Leaders Who Speak the Truth To preserve our democracy, we must commit to working together for the greater public good. That means choosing leaders who will reject the use of disinformation to achieve political gain. Democracy requires an informed electorate. While our pluralistic society will always contain differing opinions, we must start from common ground so that we may engage in meaningful debate and make decisions that are in the best interests of our country. The solutions suggested in the last chapter can help us reduce disinformation and blunt its impact, but defeating disinformation will require something more. We have real problems to solve—climate change, persistent racial injustice, growing disparities in wealth distribution, a changing economy, public health challenges, global conflict, refugee crises, poverty, crime, cyber threats, and many more. To rise to the challenges we collectively face, we need leadership that can bring us together. Our abilities to solve problems have never been greater: Technology offers unimaginable advances in medicine, food distribution, and alternative energy. Distance learning presents opportunities for job retraining and access to higher education. Social media allow us to maintain relationships with family members and friends and to collaborate with people on the other side of the world. Certainly, we face significant challenges, but leaders who offer rational solutions give us our best chance to solve them. Navigating that world requires leaders who will bring out our best hopes rather than prey on our worst fears. As he took office during the Great Depression, President Franklin D. Roosevelt appealed to people’s courage when he told them, “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself,”1711 assuring Americans that they could meet any threat that might come. At this moment, America needs leaders who can unite us to face our challenges with courage and optimism. We the People But leaders in a democracy, of course, are simply a reflection of the voters who elect them—all of us. In a time when we spend inordinate amounts of time and money on spectator sports, movies, and reality television shows, it can be argued that we get the leaders we deserve. In a democracy, a government of the people, we need responsible leadership not just from our elected officials but from our citizenry. We the people need to recognize that the use of disinformation as a weapon to exercise political power is a threat to democracy, and we must work to abolish it. We must use our voting power to insist on leaders who use facts to solve problems instead of lies to divide us. Voters must accept reasonable compromise from our leaders rather than demanding ideological purity at any cost. We can hold candidates and leaders accountable by refusing to elect or reelect those who knowingly perpetuate false claims and engage in deliberately divisive rhetoric. We should call out those who stand with any political party over country, who allow political ends to justify unscrupulous means. We should condemn leaders who glorify violence and bigotry. If we do not, we will be opening the door wider to greedy hucksters and power-hungry opportunists. We must also exercise mutual tolerance and forbearance in our own lives. We need to do the work to verify facts needed to make informed decisions about significant societal issues, such as health crises and climate stabilization. We must avoid the temptation to go along with the con when our own side uses disinformation to advance its goals. We need to exercise restraint when we see a snarky comment online. Sharing, liking, and adding a mocking comment for cheap, fleeting laughs to “own” our opponents just exacerbate divisions and fuel disinformers. Lasting Peace among Ourselves An essential way to begin to heal our divide is by offering olive branches to people with whom we disagree. We must see people with different views not just as our political opponents but as our fellow Americans. People who have been duped by constant lies, as we have seen, will be reluctant to change their minds. The way to persuade them of the facts is not by mocking their foolishness or judging their enabling behavior. According to Ruth Ben-Ghiat, those who have followed duplicitous leaders “may feel ashamed and unwilling to admit their errors in judgment unless they are approached with the right spirit of openness, at the right time.”1712 In a polarized society, people can “dig their trenches deeper, or they can reach across the lines to stop a new cycle of destruction, knowing that solidarity, love, and dialogue” can conquer political demagogues.1713 Taking this approach requires grace. According to journalist Anand Giridharadas, author of The Persuaders, a book on political reconciliation, we must meet people where they are.1714 If we want to win over the hearts and minds of our fellow Americans, we can’t insist that everyone share all of our views. “In a time of escalating and cynical right-wing attacks on so-called wokeness,” he writes, we should all work to make space for “the still waking.”1715 While we may have strong commitments to certain values like fighting hate and respecting personal pronouns, we should express “gentleness toward people who haven’t got it all figured out, who are confused or even unsettled by the onrushing future.”1716 This model is not a fantasy. It was at work in Ireland in 2018. It has worked in our own history. As president, Abraham Lincoln understood the need to welcome fellow citizens back into the fold, even after a bloody civil war. As the war ended, he delivered his second inaugural address, which ended with a plea for reconciliation: With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation’s wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and his orphan, to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations.1717 Respecting each other means telling each other the truth. While we can never rid politics of spin and advocacy, we can insist on facts and refuse to perpetuate assertions we know to be lies simply to make a buck or somehow get ahead. Allowing public leaders, media, businesses, and institutions to propagate falsehoods assaults the integrity of our democracy. If we want to protect our rights from tyrants and con men, we must fight disinformation as unpatriotic, a betrayal of the American people. We must denounce as traitors the liars who use members of the public as their unsuspecting political pawns. To love America is to love the truth. We must make truth in democracy our national purpose. Only an unyielding commitment to the truth can save us from the fate that met Rosanne Boyland, Ashli Babbitt, and Brian Sicknick. We can best honor their memory, and the memories of the service members who have sacrificed their lives for our country, by working to save American democracy from death by disinformation.*

*Italics my emphasis

It was about 15 years ago when I was working with an author on his first book about the Vietnam War. I remember clearly that he needed much help in proofreading and so when he used the word, disinformation many times, I thought it was an error. I had never heard of the word disinformation before then. Now, however, there is an even greater need to learn the difference between the words, misinformation and disinformation!

Because, as Barbara McQuade has confirmed in her book, Attack From Within: How Information is Sabotaging America, there is a great difference in the meaning of these two words with only one letter different! First, I learned that disinformation is created and distributed on purpose! While misinformation normally is a mistake, a misunderstanding of what actually is correct. While those in the military use disinformation to ensure safety and coverage of those are placed in danger and the disinformation is done to protect them, America has now been inundated with disinformation! The chosen decision to lie about who you are or what is happening! Indeed, I agree that in a small way moving all the way to the former head of our nation Disinformation is indeed sabotaging our democracy! But do you really understand what is happening and why it is so important? McQuade does a wonderful job through her research and her day-to-day involvement with this important matter.

Barbara McQuade is a professor at the University of Michigan Law School, her alma mater, where she teaches courses in criminal law, criminal procedure, national security, and data privacy. She is also a legal analyst for NBC News and MSNBC, and co-host of the #SistersInLaw podcast. From 2010 to 2017, McQuade served as the US Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan. She was appointed by President Barack Obama and was the first woman to serve in her position. Earlier in her career, she worked as a sportswriter and copy editor, a judicial law clerk, an associate in private practice, and an assistant US attorney.

I chose to excerpt the final chapter of this book. It is a great overview and places the issues right back at the feet of the readers. Because that is where they belong.

“The information war is about territory—just not the geographic kind. In a warm information war, the human mind is the territory.”

—renée diresta, “The Digital Maginot Line”

For me a high percentage of what is enclosed in this book was repetitive to what I've already learned. However, what this book does is put it into a format that is much easier to use in relation to an overall theme. And, there is an extensive review of all issues as have occurred either earlier in history or in other countries. There is a key overall element that we must recognize. Otherwise, the book is of little value. We must acknowledge that there is a major difference in countries headed by authoritarian leaders. Without going into a lot of detail, please consider just one issue that was recently taken away from Americans--the right of choice, the right of privacy, and the right to medical health issues related to pregnancy. When a small minority of America chose to place a leader in the White House with certain mandates, it is very clear to all of us now that they did not speak for the majority of Americans... And the results have been disastrous. Yet disinformation continues to be used, new laws are being created based upon nothing but a political desire to dominate... Consider, then, what a dictator would do related to ALL issues that are handled by the Federal Government, based upon our Constitution.

First the writer looks back in history to those authoritarians that were once in charge of a country. Stalin was adept at word use and quickly became a dictator who murdered mass numbers of ethnic groups who he feared could be troublesome. In what was called the Great Purge he got rid of those he feared was disloyal...Then he edited all news that went out related to what had been done. Now we look to Putin in the same position, as he looks to regain control over the democracy of Ukraine. Imagine how the Russian people had lived so many years without the freedom to even hear...truth... And, of course, we now know that Disinformation was clearly part of an authoritarian government playbook both then and now.

“The correct use of propaganda is a true art.” 

—adolf hitler, Mein Kampf

In Chapter 2, McQuade interestingly starts by moving from the political realm into our home life when she shares a story about an opera star who, after marrying, began to have memory issues, confusion and fear... Only to learn that it was her new husband who was gaslighting and lying to her... I thought this sudden switch to our individual lives, was brilliant. For surely many of us, naturally, enter into the lens of politics through our personal opinions. We have seen how America has been divided so unique from any other part of our history, yet, so similar in what has possibly occurred in our own lives. Just as the husband betrayed his wife, we see that a minority of our politicians and their followers are lying through their teeth, pushing a minority point of view that is far from what We The People believe in... 

For me, I have read so many books from those who have been abused, destroyed by innuendo, or outright slander, yet, these individuals are "protected" under Freedom of Speech. When I was on a university campus, scheduling the use of facilities for classes and events, we had 2 places for those who wanted to share their opinions. Two places!!! The point was not to deny individuals the right to free speech. The point was that such free speech could not interfere with the business of the university. That has been moved to such an extreme version of free speech, that, now, most of us, in our daily lives have to question, is what I am hearing the truth? And, for many, IT WILL NOT BE.

“To be free is not merely to cast off one’s chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others.” —nelson mandela

In the fall of 2022, Florida suffered one of the deadliest storms in its history.893 Hurricane Ian claimed 148 lives and caused devastating property damage.894 It was the forty-sixth Category 4 or 5 hurricane in the Atlantic Ocean in the last twenty years—approximately the same number that had occurred over the prior forty years, a trend experts attributed to climate change.895 In its aftermath, Vice President Kamala Harris noted, “It is our lowest-income communities and our communities of color that are most impacted by these extreme conditions and impacted by issues that are not of their own making.” In response, Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene took to Twitter and wrote, “@KamalaHarris hurricanes do not target people based on the color of their skin. Hurricanes do not discriminate. And neither should the federal government [be] giving aid to people suffering from the devastation of Hurricane Ian. Is your husband’s life worth less bc he’s white?”896 

The tweet was the perfect combination of race-baiting, tribe-signaling, and attention-getting, while falsely suggesting that Harris was promoting race discrimination. Only in America! 

Our cherished freedoms are non-negotiable but bring with them certain risks. According to Richard Stengel, the former State Department official and Time magazine editor, “Disinformation is especially hard for us to fight because our adversaries use our strengths—our openness, our free press, our commitment to free speech—against us.”897 It is warfare by jujitsu—a sport in which a smaller, weaker person can defeat a larger, stronger opponent by using their power against them. Today, our adversaries are not just foreign operatives but our fellow Americans, insiders who understand better than anyone how to use our strengths against us. When it comes to disinformation, a number of distinctly American virtues are also our vulnerabilities. First, our constitutional commitment to free speech is enshrined in the First Amendment and regarded by the left and the right with a near-religious reverence. As a result, many of us embrace the view that we would defend the right of our neighbors to express even the most offensive ideas, because their right to express them is essential to democracy. And so, with few exceptions, people are free to say anything, even if their statements are factually incorrect or, worse, intentionally deceptive. Our well-intentioned but permissive defamation laws, designed to protect robust criticism of public officials and public figures, make it difficult to deter people from making false statements. The Supreme Court’s interpretation that the First Amendment protects political spending has opened the door to dark money in campaigns. The FBI’s shameful history of infringing on civil liberties, with its counterintelligence operations of the 1960s and ’70s that targeted civil rights leaders and Vietnam War protesters, makes the agency reluctant to investigate crimes that touch on free speech or assembly. In addition to free speech, other features of American life make us susceptible to disinformation. Our capitalist instincts to favor innovation have led us to give digital media platforms immunity from lawsuits regarding content, which has fostered disinformation online. Paywalls are creating knowledge gaps among socioeconomic groups. The same demographic diversity that makes us strong also makes it easy to divide and polarize us. Our declining trust in institutions—some of it driven by disinformation—makes some of us willing to believe deceptive claims about our government and each other. All of these factors make the United States particularly fertile ground for social manipulation.

I'm a fan of computerization and social media, as this blog proves...I will have been blogging for 20 years in 2025! No once have I purposely used disinformation. Truth has become almost an obsession for me. Why? Because the one personal thing in my life, my personal relationship with Jesus--with God, it being used as Disinformation! Purposely. Some by those who claim to be religious, purely to gain power... This...is...not...right. Nobody should have the use of Truth at their discretion! Think about it. What would our life be if every single person in the world lied!? Surely, more chaos than we have NOW!

“We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things not because they are easy but because they are hard.” —president john f. kennedy

Barbara McQuade devoted an entire chapter to possible solutions, noting those that had been tried, and failed, but continued to support the idea that We The People must do something to greatly decrease, control, or totally eliminate disinformation! I really do believe that each of us wants to think that what is being said by all within the nation is true. Let me give you one small example... After Covid, many corporations were doing strange things to try to recoup what they had lost during the shutdowns. Of course, that did not necessarily mean that each of them had actually gone into debt during the period. Many chose to decrease the size of the package, rather than increase prices! I am not dumb! Most people are not stupid! We immediately saw the difference, checked the contents size which continued to use the same measurement of weight for the content... LIES! We immediately recognized just who was lying... And we chose our purchases based upon who was giving us true sizes and weights...

Our country has allowed false advertisements, false content materials, and more. Many products now being sold do not even go through Federal regulation! Corporate leaders and their Boards are more concerned about making the highest profit for the top people. We all know that and see it functioning in the republican party who refused to allow more taxes be required by these corporations.  President Biden was the first leaders who was able to at least get approval to have medication prices negotiated. Insulin prices are not fixed at a maximum price... But the corporations have yet to pay comparable tax rates as We The People... The longer we allow politicians who take money for their own benefit, rather than working for We The People, the worse it will get, I promise you!

Read this Book. Read it if you have no idea what the issue related to Disinformation is. Read this book to consider what has happened under a dictatorship, which is what Trump is promising if elected. Read this book to get further information on how personal lives are affected by Disinformation--Information that is knowingly used to deceive We The People! Prepare yourself to ask the right questions and if a candidate cannot answer it...do not vote for that individual. People- Each Person- chooses to use Disinformation. Do not allow yourself to be so Totally Secure in your choices that you block yourself from hearing Truth from somebody else other than your circle of friends. I believe this book will help you in finding truth...

GABixlerReviews

Mary M. Schmidt Introduces Animal Poems - To Enjoy Or To Emulate!

Have you noticed that more writers are using the written word to express emotions? Some are concerned--worried about what is now happening in America... Some write fiction related to those issues... But, once in a while, somebody like Mary M Schmidt chooses to write to make us smile, to bring forth laughter, even, while sharing about things we are all familiar with, but have stopped paying attention to... to escape for a little while our reality... I, for one appreciated that decision. Because, of course, I can quite easily choose to consider living as one of those animals surrounding us! Cats! Here's what she says about living as a Cat...

CATS 

This is Charlie. She lives with me and now has 5 kittens to take care of... But, is she having fun or would she rather being doing cat things...

Today I am a cat,

I have to be on the lookout

 Where is that brat? I wait, I watch, here she comes, Wait, what’s she holding now? 

A fuzzy, cute little mouse! I slowly lift my claw, 

As her daddy warns… 

Don’t tease that cat or she will scratch. 

I get into my position, as the rodent drops, 

all I need now is a string of cheese, 

but wait Is it another trick? 

I see her smile, her smirk and as I release

 The most dramatic hiss, warning this pest 

She better get out of here or I will attack! 

What’s this, thank God, it’s Monday 

Freedom rings, the bell goes off and now, 

I can watch soaps with Mom. 

I sit and purr listening to Mom hum the

 

One Life to Live tune. 

Tick, tock, I think I hear the clock. 

Is that the sound of footsteps? Do I hear the door?

 Oh, no, it can’t be true… Is that brat back again?

 I better run, I better hide, no, wait… 

What, she doesn’t want to bother me today? 

Have you had a cat? I've lived with cats for most of my life, ranging from one or two up to 30! Wow... That was not a happy time for me or them. The life of a cat is definitely one I'd have to think about as to whether I wanted to be one!

Maybe... A Skunk!  And, of course, we remember the most well known! Pepe Le Pew!

Living in the country, I sometimes have had the displeasure of "smelling" a skunk... A pity, really, because they are so close to being a cat, that I'd like to pet one...LOL... Let's check out the author's thoughts:

I think I’m cute, 

so why doesn’t anybody seem to like me?

 I met this girl; I thought she was staring back at me, So I asked her out on a date…. 

She merely turned up her nose and pranced away, grumbling 

About how I smelled worse than a garbage dump

 I couldn’t believe what I was hearing 

since I bathed in the creek! 

I know she’s just imagining things; 

there can’t possibly be a stench, 

I’m a great-looking French gentleman. 

Where o where are you my beauty queen?

 I wait here at the corner and now here she comes

 The loveliest woman around, 

come here my sweet pea

 I am the skunk of your dreams! 

Oh, no, not again, 

she just clobbered me over the head, 

Now I have to slink away in a skunk’s disgrace. 

Uh, gee, what is that smell? Where is it coming from? I just can’t tell!

 Let me just stand here and hitchhike

 I stick out my thumb 

Oh, dear, it looks like I’m in luck! 

It’s another girl in a convertible 

Am I seeing this right? She looks just like me.

 I grin sheepishly as I slide in the passenger’s seat Hoping the odor is pleasantly disguised 

She doesn’t seem to mind as we drive into the sunset. Love is in the air for a great catch of a skunk, 

But who would want to date a skunk that stunk? 

Wait a minute, she is one, too! 

This is a fun book and there's more... Want to be an Ant?

Or a sheep?

Or a Puppy?

Or a Showfish

Or a Bird in a Cage?

Or a Chicken?

Or a Show Rabbit?

Or a Squirrel?

Or a Beautiful Butterfly?

I used to crawl around on the ground 

I always had to scrounge… But deep down inside

 I knew I was made for so much more. 

One day I saw this beautiful creature fluttering around a Cherry tree 

I was amazed wishing I could be there, too. 

All the ants, worms and grasshoppers laughed at me. They said I would never fly like that, 

I figured that I was just another ugly bug 

That slinked around in dirt and grime.

 I looked up, and kept watching the sky

 A cherry fell from the tree Wait a minute… 

What was happening to me? 

It really felt like I was spreading my wings. 

All the sudden I arose, I mustered up the courage.

 The impossible came alive, a miracle was born

 I transformed into a beautiful butterfly! 

A gorgeous day it was, a bright glowing cloudless sky. I just couldn’t describe, a picture so divine 

I learned all sorts of tricks, 

I turned left, I turned right, I twirled up, 

I twirled down, I swarmed and buzzed 

My problems were out of sight! 

I love being a butterfly, 

But once long ago, it just wasn’t true 

I knew there was a promise, sacred and true 

Mary M, Schmidt

As I finished this book, I thought that it was a wonderful book to share with your children as well. Sure, we adults sometimes like to get away from the chaos, but to children, it is a way to learn all about the animals that they might meet some day...! Reading of them, sharing the life they might be leading... Yeah, this book has much potential for both children and adults...when you want to play, Let's Pretend! Fun guaranteed!

GABixlerReviews

A Heartwarming Christian Romantic Suspense Novel From T. E. Killian...

 

God has a plan for each of us, and those plans tend to overlap quite a bit sometimes. But the problem is, what’s good for one person may not be good for the next person. See what I mean?” Hunter only nodded. “Well then, does Karrie seem to be permanently damaged by being away from you?” Hunter frowned and thought about that for a moment before shaking his head. “But now you and Karrie are together and maybe even for the long haul this time. Do you see how God has prepared each of you for this very time?” Hunter’s mind was suddenly on overload. He stood and walked around his desk. “Enough! I appreciate you two coming over here and helping but right now, I’ve got to get somewhere alone so I can let loose and empty my mind. But I promise you I’ll think about all the things you’ve told me, just later. Okay?”

~

They entered the foyer of the church and, after greeting Pastor Howell, who met them at the door, Sabrina stood off to the side so she could watch for Hunter. She sure hoped she wouldn’t have to wait long. Already, people were giving her strange looks. Finally, about five minutes later, she saw Hunter’s truck pull into the parking lot. But he didn’t get out right away. Was he going to leave now without even coming in? She was trying to decide if she should go out there or not when his door opened and he stepped out. At first, he just stood there, looking toward the entrance. Then he started walking toward it, but very slowly. Again, she wondered if she should go out to meet him or not. That was when she felt a hand on her shoulder and turned around to see Pastor Howell standing there. “He has to do this completely on his own, Sabrina. It’s the only way it’ll work for him.” When she gave him an incredulous look, he chuckled. “I’ve known Hunter for twenty years. He’ll always follow through with what he says he’ll do.” He held up a hand with the palm up to her. “That is as long as no one else interferes with those plans.” He smiled and added. “Just be patient and all of your plans will come about too.” Before she could react in any way to that bomb, he walked to the other end of the foyer just as Hunter stood hesitating on the other side of the door...

~

So, he took a deep breath and stepped past Karrie, out into the aisle. That first step forward was the hardest step he’d ever taken. He’d jumped out of airplanes in the Army and that first step that took him out into the open air had been a scary one, but this one at least rivaled that one. He had only taken one step when he felt movement to his left and looked down to see Karrie at his side, grinning up at him. She mouthed, “Me too!” They took another step, then he felt movement on his right, and there was Sabrina, also grinning up at him. Wow! When they made it up to the preacher, who seemed to know what was going on, Hunter looked at Sabrina and she gave him a sheepish grin. He knew then she must have told the preacher ahead of time. Well, that was good. Maybe this way he wouldn’t have to do so much explaining to the preacher. The preacher held out both hands to Karrie, who took them, and he talked softly to her for a moment, then turned to Hunter. “Are you coming up here to proclaim that you have accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior Hunter?” Hunter could barely manage a choked ‘yes’ past his clogged throat. He couldn’t take his eyes off his little girl who was so grown up now. The preacher prayed quietly with all of them, then turned his mic back on to address the church. “Brothers and sisters, I would like to introduce to you a new brother and sister in Christ. I’m sure most of you know Hunter Billingsley, our chief of police, but you may not know his daughter Karrie, who has recently come to live with him.” After that, the preacher told everyone about him and Sabrina getting married, then he prayed again, and the service was over. But just as he thought he could breathe a sigh of relief, the whole church descended upon them. Hunter was glad that Sabrina had prepared him for this. The first ones to make it to Hunter were Ryan and Chase, and they were both grinning and pounding him on the back. Finally, it was over and the whole group was sitting down to dinner at Ryan and Candy’s house. As usual, the teenagers were all eating in the living room, leaving the dining room for the adults. Hunter looked around that table and couldn’t keep the grin off his face. Just a year ago, the three men, no make that four men at the table, were all single and planning to stay that way. Now, even Pete and his office manager, Beverly, had just announced a few minutes ago that they were getting married, too. He had quickly looked at Sabrina’s face and knew that she had already known. Her face was simply beaming with joy.

~~~

When someone decides to hear about Jesus and his possible role in their lives, many are as confused about it as was Hunter Billingsley, the police chief of Clear Creek. He was a good man and had been in the position for twenty years. In fact, he had come to Clear Creek to join the police force. Only to have his wife soon take his daughter and leave, divorcing him at some point. It was a difficult time because his ex-wife refused to allow Hunter to have much interaction with his daughter. And, he learned later, that she had filled Karrie's mind with lies about her father, telling her that he had not wanted either of them...

Hunter was in the midst of stopping a bank robbery and dealing with the aftermath while at the local library, a young girl, obviously in distress, came in looking around... Sabrina, the head librarian came and talked with her, taking her into her private office. At that time, she wouldn't say her name and Sabrina quietly talked with her, asking if she was hungry and then providing for her needs. Ultimately, she was to learn that Karrie was Hunter's daughter.

Sabrina had had a few squabbles with Hunter over the years, but she really had never had the chance to get to know him. She could tell, however, that Karrie was not ready to be turned over to her father, even if he was the sheriff. Actually Hunter was relieved. Although he had been thinking more and more about Karrie, he had known that his ex-wife had placed many obstacles between he and Karrie. Surely, he needed to learn more before he could even start to interact with a young teen who he barely knew... 

Sabrina is an interesting character, one that readers will find, little by little, to be an extraordinary woman. She had never married, at 41, and had thought she was content with her life, until her two best friends had both married within a short period of time. It was through those events that Sabrina had gotten to know a little about Hunter, since the two men her best friends married were best friends of Hunter...

Karrie had remember Sabrina from the short time she had been in Clear Creek when she was little. She agreed to go home to stay with her, at least until she could deal with her past and possible future. When her mother's newest husband started touching Karrie inappropriately, she knew she had to leave. On the other hand, from what her mother had told of her father, he was mean and would likely not be willing to have her stay. But she had no place else to go. She had hitchhiked 300 miles and Sabrina knew she needed time to just relax and start to feel better. It was quite some time before she was able to tell Sabrina about what her stepfather had done...

When she did, she was so upset that she called Hunter who then made calls to his lawyer to start action for him to have custody, immediately.

While the family drama is moving forward, Hunter is threatened with a rock thrown through his window with a message "You Will Die..." Hunter had chills going down his back, wondering who and why somebody wanted him dead... Suddenly there was an important reason for Karrie to continue to stay with Sabrina--to ensure her safety... But even that didn't stop the villain as the next rock was thrown where Sabrina and her father, along with Karrie, worked to restore Mustangs. Now Hunter's women were being targeted!

The majority of the book relates to the developing relationships among Hunter, Sabrina, and Karrie and their lives... Reading about Karrie's growth as she lived with those who loved her was truly wonderful. And, once she was more secure, she started being the young teen who she was supposed to be... Truly heartwarming as she helped in molding a new family now based in Christian love. With less than 5% of the book dealing with villain action, the development of a new life for those who fell in love with each other, including Karrie, with her father and her new Mom, Sabrina, is simply too good a book to miss. Do check it out!

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Jessica Huntington Desert Cities Mysteries - Books 1-5 Presented by Anna Celeste Burke!

 

Series--5 of 7

“What do you say, Peter? Can we do it?” “Commercial flights are booked until tomorrow morning, at the earliest. I found four seats on a flight leaving LAX at 6 a.m. which ought to get us in before 9 a.m.” 

“No! We’ve all got to go so when we find Frank he knows we all love him.” Tommy was beginning to flush and his eyes filled with tears. “Do something, Jessica!” “I can check on a charter, but that usually requires a little notice. Let me call Dad, first. Maybe he can arrange for us to use the corporate jet.” “Paul might be able to help, too,” Jerry suggested. “I’m not sure how happy he’ll be to rescue his rival for your affections, but he won’t let that stop him from doing the right thing.” “I don’t want to ask that of him. It puts him in an awkward situation with the firm, too. If he does a favor for one associate, he can’t very well refuse others. I’ll call Dad. He can help me figure this out.” “Do you think they’ll have room for us at Palma Dorado?” Tommy asked, vibrating with anxiety and excitement. “Please tell me they’ll let you bring your service dog along. 

You know what, Jerry? Dave and Timmy are in Cabo—they do shows in a nightclub down there. Maybe they have room for us and won’t mind a dog.” “I don’t believe it’s the dog they’ll mind,” Jerry said, and then caught himself when Tommy put both hands on his hips. “We’re going there on business—maybe dangerous business—even if we take precautions. We don’t want to get friends in trouble, do we?” Before the debate could continue, I spoke up. 

“We stick together. We keep our mouths shut about why we’re in Cabo even if we run into people we know. Palma Dorado will accommodate pets—in their villas—not at the resort hotel.” “A villa would be good, right? You can probably squeeze most of us in there, so we might only need one or two.” He didn’t wait for an answer but turned to Anastasia. “Did you hear that? Your momma’s going to get us a villa.” Then he started to sing that old Frank Sinatra or Bing Crosby song, South of the Border, Scott had mentioned. Holding out one hand for Anastasia, she hopped up onto her hind legs, and stepped along beside Tommy as he danced. “Thomas, this isn’t a vacation. You need to settle down,” Bernadette didn’t have a knife in her hand, but she was wagging a big wooden spoon she’d brought with her from the kitchen when she heard the excitement going on in the situation room. “He won’t be like this all the way to Cabo, will he?” Laura asked. “Not if he knows what’s good for him. Bernadette will toss him out of the jet somewhere over the Sea of Cortez and let him swim the rest of the way.” “Go home and pack while Jessica makes the arrangements,” Bernadette chided. 

“Pack? Why? At a place like Palma Dorado, they’ll have everything we need. We know this isn’t a vacation, but we don’t want to create suspicion. We’ll blow our cover if we don’t go shopping, to the spa, the nightclubs, and…” “That’s enough, Tommy!” Tommy’s eyes and mouth flew open at the tone in Jerry’s voice. I was shocked, too. That was the first time I’d ever heard Jerry speak to Tommy in that way. I held my breath, waiting for a tantrum or a crying jag. Instead, Tommy suddenly settled down. “You’re right. I’ll sleep in a tent on the beach. Can we please just bring Frank home before they kill him—his fellow cops—not the frigging drug lords.” “I’m going to see what kind of arrangements I can make for support. If Mik and his pals believe taking off for Mexico is their get out of jail free card, they’re wrong, Tommy. There’s plenty of corruption among the Mexican police, but they don’t want our fugitives from justice any more than we want theirs. They’ve got all the dirty cops they need. 

When it comes to tracking fugitives from the U.S., they’ve been very cooperative in the past few years. Trust me on that. I’ll check to see if the feds have issued warrants for the arrest of Mik and Eckhardt—for Jenkins, too, now that we know he was the fourth man in the crew that picked up Frank Saturday morning. Heck, let them arrest Frank, too, if that’s what it takes to extricate him from Baja.” “Even if they haven’t issued arrest warrants, they ought to be willing to subpoena all of them as witnesses to crimes committed during the operation of the drug ring. We could get Frank out of there that way, too.” Peter nodded, enthusiastically. “Okay, I’ll bring that up if I need to.” “If that doesn’t work, maybe I can get Dick Tatum to help us. He just texted me that the post mortems for both Toby Foster and Jeff Baker identified marks as being left by Mik’s ring. In an earlier complaint filed by Toby Foster, hospital staff took photos documenting the same bruises which Foster told them Mik had caused. No arrest warrant was ever issued since Foster died not long after that and his death was ruled an accidental overdose. Dick can ask for that to be done now on behalf of both dead men. At least Harry Mik won’t go free.” “Why not get Dick moving on it? It can’t hurt to have another warrant out for a man like Mik. 

Do you want everyone to go home and pack? We won’t need much since if we can’t find Frank in a day or two, we ought to come home and put together another plan. If, and when we do find Frank, he’s going to want to get out of there ASAP.” “I’ll book the villas for three nights. If we want to leave before then, we’ll do it. Will you want to bring a team with you?” 

“Let me worry about that after I speak with the feds and see what they’re willing to do,” Peter responded. “You’ve got your hands full finding accommodations for us.” “Do you think this resets our seventy-two-hour clock?” I wondered if bumping up against that limit was behind Peter’s concern about keeping our visit short. “Maybe, but we’re only halfway through that clock anyway. I don’t want to tell too many people about this, but Don, Dick Tatum, and George Hernandez need to know. Someone’s going to have to babysit while we’re gone.” “Unless the feds are willing to come and pick up our houseguests. Is there any way they can reunite Scott with his family members? Federal protective custody is a good idea for him if it can be arranged.” “That’s a great solution for Scott, Jessica. I’ll raise the subject in a ‘what if’ kind of way. Who knows how long that might take to arrange, though.” I suddenly realized how silent it had become in the situation room as Peter and I hashed things out. 

“So?” Laura asked. “I don’t believe anyone should leave.” As soon as the words were out of my mouth, I realized that wouldn’t work. “Shoot! Do you all have passports? Are they up-to-date?” I heard a chorus of “yeses.” “You’ve got to go get them. How should we handle this, Peter? The last thing we need right now is to have one of our cats get nabbed by a fleeing rat. We haven’t changed our clothes or showered or anything like that. Maybe everyone needs to go home.” “We’ve got a laundry room to wash and dry clothes. There are bathrobes in all the closets and plenty of toiletries. I don’t see any reason we can’t all be cleaned up and ready to go in a couple of hours. Do you?” Bernadette looked around the room. That summoned a resounding round of “nos.” “I’ll go shower right now,” Laura said. “Can I borrow a t-shirt and sweats?” “Sure. You can, too, Kim. Tommy’s right, though. We can shop when we get to the resort if it’s not too late.” “Yes!” Tommy said. “If you guys strip down, I’ll wash and dry our clothes. Sorry, I don’t iron, as Jerry already knows.” “Wrinkles don’t bother him for some reason.” “There’s an iron and ironing board in the laundry room if the ‘wrinkle free’ cycle on the dryer doesn’t do it for you,” I suggested. “Once I’m cleaned up, why don’t you all give me your keys, tell me where your passports are, and one of Peter’s guys can escort me to collect them. Are they easy to find?” Jerry, one of the most well-organized among us, piped up immediately. Kim and Brien took a little longer. Heck, I needed a minute to remember where I’d stashed mine. 

“That’ll take a while, but at least it’ll keep everyone from scattering in different directions,” I mumbled, trying to figure out if there was a better way to do this. “I can’t come up with a better idea. Brien could escort you if he didn’t have to wait for Tommy to wash his clothes. I have swim trunks, but other than that, there’s nothing in the house that’ll fit him.” Brien took that as a cue to strike a bodybuilder pose. I shook my head. “Peter, if you can spare someone, let’s go for it!” “I like the idea, although Laura doesn’t need to leave. All my associates are bonded and licensed by the state. You can trust them to go through your stuff. Keys, please. Write down where the documents are supposed to be—add your phone number in case there’s a problem.” 

“Post-it note time!” Tommy sprang into action, leaping down the hall as if he were Nureyev. Anastasia bounded after him. We all stared for a good thirty seconds before Bernadette took charge. “That’s a yes, Peter. I’m already cleaned up, so I’m fixing lunch. Jessica, get busy with the flight and the hotel! I know where our passports are.” “Aye-aye!” I said, saluting Bernadette as she bustled off and I called Dad. I’d hardly finished explaining what we needed before he put me on hold. “Wheels up in less than an hour. The plane will be at the Jackie Cochran by two at the latest. They’ll file a flight plan if you tell me when you want to leave. It’s not a very long fight. If you leave by four or five, you should arrive at the resort in time for a late dinner. Someone at Palma Dorado should be able to tell you if Frank’s there. You have a recent picture of him, right?” “I do. Thanks so much, Dad. I hope you’re right that someone recognizes Frank, tells us which suite he’s in, and we can take him along to dinner. A piece of cake, right?” I started to fidget. Soon, I’d be bouncing like Tommy. Anastasia was on the job, though, putting her head in my lap and looking up at me with her soulful eyes to calm me down. “Let’s hope so. Don’t do anything stupid. Let Peter and the people he enlists do the heavy-lifting on this one. 

No guns! The Mexican police won’t be as lenient as George Hernandez on Bernadette or anyone else in your party who brandishes a gun—even if they don’t fire it wildly!” “Bernadette’s learned her lesson. I don’t want anyone to do anything that might get Frank shot. George is in the loop. Don will be soon, and Peter’s on the phone to los federales and whoever else they suggest we speak to—maybe even someone with the Mexican police who specializes in finding U.S. fugitives. It’ll be hard to make a move without advice from a member of law enforcement. Hopefully, not an untrustworthy swine like the guys with Frank.” “I hope that also means if Peter’s contacts tell you stay put in Rancho Mirage, you’ll do it.” I didn’t even want to suggest that option to Tommy. “Don’t worry. We’ll do as we’re told.” I crossed my fingers. “Sure, you will. If anything goes wrong, your mother will never let me forget it. Please don’t break my heart, Jinx.” My eyes teared up when he used that silly nickname derived from Jessica Alexis. It was a holdover from a childish demand I’d made when I learned Dad’s real name was Henry even though everyone always called him Hank. I hoped my current idea to take the entire Cat Pack to find Frank wasn’t as ridiculous as that one. “I’ll be careful, and I do listen to Peter.” I hadn’t made a reservation anywhere in Cabo yet. Arriving on a Sunday night, we’d be able to find rooms somewhere—even if the resort was booked. “Please ask the crew to plan for a four o’clock departure. We’ll be there by three-thirty at the latest.” “Will do. Love you!” “Me, too. Thanks, Dad—especially for making this happen at the last minute.” 

“I’d appreciate more notice when you invite me to the wedding.” “Wedding? What wedding?” I heard him laugh as he hung up. My face burned as I recalled Frank’s declaration of love, written with passion and determination in the note he’d left with his dad. No doubt, in a moment moment when he was profoundly disturbed at the prospect of losing everything, including his life. I hesitated to take his words seriously, even as my heart pounded furiously. “Earth to Jessica. This is Tommy calling!” Tommy stood in front of me in a bathrobe with a towel wrapped around his head. He undid the towel and drooped it over his shoulders, leaving his red hair standing up on end. “Did you say we’re leaving at four?” “That’s the plan.” He leaned in and kissed me all over my face. Anastasia loved it and wanted in on the lovefest. “Stop it, Tommy. You’re wet!” “You should be too—go! We’ve got a schedule to keep. 

We’re going to get Cousin Frank back, aren’t we, wonder dog?” Tommy did a little kick and then stepped around in a circle. Anastasia did the same—perfectly in sync. I stared in amazement as I called Palma Dorado. “Reservations, please.”

~~~

I don't really like book sets for review purposes... But they are so handy for a binge read of series books that I sometimes choose the ultimate reading experience, just for the fun it provides... Readers get to meet the characters, in particular, in the very first book and after that, we know enough about each that we can sink further and further into "who" the characters are... This author, however, has done something better, potential reviewers are able to preview each of her series books available on YouTube... Because of this, I'll just be talking about the final book... The Dead Cousin... in this set.

Jessica Huntington begins the series as a recently divorced woman who found her husband cheating with another woman...in their bed! Throughout the series, Jessica will have to deal with her ex and his new wife over and over until in this set, both her ex and his wife are heading to prison... And what an open marriage they had as the movie star wife creates chaos in public...and more... That might have been a little "payback" of relief for Jessica, IF she was not also in those same news papers talking about her, as if the two women were vying for attention and loyalty of the man who had been husband to both of them.

Jessica really wanted nothing to do with this couple, can you blame her? But as she began to get back into her own personal life, as a lawyer, she was caught becoming an amateur detective for murder cases happening in families of her clients... And they wanted Jessica's help. By the time of the second book, Jessica had willingly accepted her new role, even, pulling together her friends--and their friends--into what they called a Cat Pack... She lived in Cathedral City, added that to the once musical team pulled together as friends... and wound up having a Cat Pack, which, later, by the way, will have an animal join the group...but he's a Dog... LOL You'll love what happens when the Dog visits a club in Mexico!

Jessica is rich, so rich that she has a credit card that none of us will ever own... And, when she is distressed, trying to deal with her divorce, especially, she goes on shopping binges... for her as well as all of her friends. Being rich does one thing that we see happening through the series, she is able to work to provide justice for the families of those who were dead due to violence... Bernadette, her friend and long-term house manager, slowly is helping her through the trauma and has introduced her to a local priest who is counseling her about the use of money that cannot really solve her emotional needs...

Each of the books has a death of a family member, not necessarily of Huntington. As the series continues, Jessica begins to be interested in the opposite sex again--it took some time to get rid of the image of her husband in HER bed with another woman. But the first man she was attracted to happened to be gay, and, at that time, we learn more about Tommy who was the brother of a woman who had been murdered. He and Jessica came together in sorrow and Tommy looked to Jessica for the attention he had lost from his sister. Needless to say that both Tommy and Jerry became a part of the Cat Pack...

Then Jessica had the opportunity to work in a new lawyer's office opening in her area and was attracted to the man who had hired her... While at the same time, she reconnects to a local long-time friend... Readers watch as she becomes involved with...both... and then struggles with her own emotions as she knows that she doesn't want to hurt either one, but she just is unable...to...decide. Perhaps her past disaster with her Ex is the reason she is unable to commit...

Each of these books are uniquely different than the standard amateur detective books. First, because the Cat Pack keeps increasing as special skills are needed from one person or another, it seems they want to stay in the Pack! No wonder! Meetings normally have delicious food which is provided by Bernadette or catered... And, if a road trip is needed to solve the case, Jessica foots the bill for the entire Pack! But, I hasten to point out. Those who work with her are not moochers--well, maybe one or two seem to be at first, the pool boy, for instance who is always looking for something to eat--but are able to provide their special skills to meeting the needs of the team...

In fact, the last book involves a hesitant, but definitely a member of the team, simply because he's interested in Jessica... And when he is kidnapped, Jessica will stop at nothing to bring him back! And that, indeed, involves renting a villa in Mexico and taking the Pack who always seem hungry, needing clothes to complement their newest caper, and working hard to ensure that every single murder mystery is solved and completely explained for the readers' satisfaction.

Get the idea that I thoroughly enjoyed this delightful, but deep-dive series into how relatives are caught in a devastating loss and need help to find justice... And, find that the Cat Pack is who you're gonna call! Definitely a Winner!

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