The Conversation -- April 30, 2025
[The Trump administration is ] proudly lawless and anti-law.... [The danger] is that Trump is the most powerful person in the world, and he does not seem to be very good at restraining himself and he’s not getting any younger. -- Prof. Akhil Reed Amar, Yale Law
IOW, Donald Trump has a dangerous amount of power for an out-of-control ignoramus who is growing more and more senile. -- Marie ~~~
~~~ Charlie Savage of the New York Times: “Nearly every president has pushed the bounds of executive power to try to achieve something specific. And a handful of presidents who took office during a true national crisis, like the Civil War or the depths of the Great Depression, swiftly made a series of legally aggressive moves to grapple with the challenges facing the country. But the sheer volume and intensity of the power grab ... [Donald] Trump has undertaken in the first 100 days of his second term — an assault on legal constraints untethered to any equivalent catastrophe — is unlike anything the United States has experienced.... The rule of law in the United States has been traditionally understood to use checks and balances to prevent too much concentration of arbitrary executive power. But the maximalist cascade in the early days of Mr. Trump’s second term is testing the fundamental structures of American democracy in a way that has never been seen before. Mr. Trump, pursuing a confrontational style of presidential politics, has unleashed an assault on counterweights to his authority: attacking judges, sidelining Congress’s role in making decisions about taxes and spending, steamrolling internal limits on the executive branch and using the levers of government to try to force outside centers of power like law firms and universities to submit to his will.”
Zolan Kanno-Youngs, et al., of the New York Times: “New details deepen questions about the [Trump administration's] deportations [to El Salvador], showing that El Salvador’s president [Nayib Bukele] pressed for assurances that the migrants were really members of the Tren de Aragua gang.... As part of the agreement with the Trump administration, Mr. Bukele had agreed to house only what he called 'convicted criminals' in the prison. However, many of the Venezuelan men labeled gang members and terrorists by the U.S. government had not been tried in court.... The matter was urgent, a senior U.S. official warned his colleagues shortly after the deportations, kicking off a scramble to get the Salvadorans whatever evidence they could.... [Bukele] did not want to bring in noncriminal migrants; he could not convince Salvadorans he was prioritizing their national interests if he turned their country into a dumping ground for U.S. deportees from other countries, he explained to Mr. Trump’s aides.” ~~~
~~~ Then There's This. Really?? Michael Schmidt, et al., of the New York Times: “The Trump administration recently sent a diplomatic note to officials in El Salvador to inquire about releasing a Salvadoran immigrant whom government officials have been ordered by the Supreme Court to help free, according to three people with knowledge of the matter. But the authoritarian government of Nayib Bukele, the leader of El Salvador, said no, two of the people said. The Bukele administration claimed the man should stay in El Salvador because he is a Salvadoran citizen.... It remained unclear whether the diplomatic effort was a genuine bid by the White House to address the plight of the immigrant, Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, whom administration officials have repeatedly acknowledged was improperly expelled to El Salvador last month in violation of a court order expressly prohibiting him from being sent there. Some legal experts suggested that the sequence of events could have been an attempt at window dressing by officials seeking to give the appearance of being in compliance with the recent Supreme Court ruling ordering the White House to 'facilitate' Mr. Abrego Garcia’s release. The disclosure about the note adds to the confusion about the Trump administration’s efforts to free Mr. Abrego Garcia and whether it is seeking to comply with court orders.” ~~~
~~~ Marie: I would say Trump's remarks to Terry Moran of ABC News entirely undermine the fake cover story the administration has floated to Schmidt, et al. More from Aaron Blake, next, & Zolan Kanno-Youngs earlier.
Aaron Blake of the Washington Post: “Trump, for the second time in a week, undermined the administration’s claims about its ability to get [Kilmar] Abrego García — who was wrongly deported — returned to the United States. And it’s quite possible his comments could feature significantly in an ongoing showdown with the courts in which the administration is at the very least flouting court orders — if not outright defying them. Trump’s comments indicate the administration has effectively decided not to get Abrego García returned. And they could be used as evidence that the administration is deliberately violating court orders that said the administration must 'facilitate' his return.” Related NYT story, by Zolan Kanno-Youngs, linked below. ~~~
~~~ Marie: This is yet another example of Trump's practice of committing crimes right out in the open. In this case, he's admitting he defied not just lower court orders by also a Supreme Court directive. So Blake is right about Trump's admissions. Not only that, earlier today RAS hit the nail on the head after reviewing Trump's remarks to Terry Moran of ABC News: "Trump the Plague is literally being judge, jury and executioner. And it is with fake photoshopped evidence."
A Tiny Bit of Good News. Ana Ley of the New York Times: “Mohsen Mahdawi, an organizer of the pro-Palestinian movement at Columbia University, was freed from federal custody on Wednesday as immigration officials seek to rescind his green card as part of a widening crackdown against student protesters. In ruling to release Mr. Mahdawi on bail, Judge Geoffrey W. Crawford of Federal District Court in Vermont found on Wednesday that he did not pose a danger to the public and that he was not a flight risk. The judge drew parallels between the current political climate and McCarthyism, saying it was 'not our proudest moment.' The immigration case against Mr. Mahdawi will continue, his lawyers said, but he will now be able to fight it from outside a detention facility.... Mr. Mahdawi, 34, had been in custody since April 14, when immigration officials detained him at an appointment in Vermont that he thought was a step toward becoming a U.S. citizen.” The NBC News story is here.
~~~ Marie: Watch to the end. That final bit creeped me out.
Tim Miller, who is a Republican operative, can't believe how stupid Donald Trump is. He goes on for a long time, but his remarks toward the end are worth hearing: ~~~
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~~~ Many thanks to Ken W. for the link.
Jeff Cox of CNBC: “The U.S. economy contracted in the first three months of 2025, fueling recession fears at the start of ... Donald Trump’s second term in office as he wages a potentially costly trade war. Gross domestic product, a sum of all the goods and services produced from January through March, fell at a 0.3% annualized pace, according to a Commerce Department report Wednesday adjusted for seasonal factors and inflation. This was the first quarter of negative growth since Q1 of 2022. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had been looking for a gain of 0.4% after GDP rose by 2.4% in the fourth quarter of 2024. However, over the past day or so some Wall Street economists changed their outlook to negative growth, largely because of an unexpected rise in imports as companies and consumers sought to get ahead of the Trump tariffs implemented in early April.” ~~~
~~~ Marie: Cox kinda sorta explains why the figure may be a lagging indicator: “'Maybe some of this negativity is due to a rush to bring in imports before the tariffs go up, but there is simply no way for policy advisors to sugar-coat this. Growth has simply vanished,' said Chris Rupkey, chief economist at Fwdbonds.” And bear in mind that the reverse may come true: that is, the next quarter's U.S. GDP may look better than it really is because sales of domestic products suddenly will outpace foreign-made goods that Americans aren't buying because of the TrumperTariffs. ~~~
~~~ Then we get this false-lame excuse/blame-gaming bull from the Tariff King: ~~~
~~~ Kevin Breuninger of CNBC: “... Donald Trump on Wednesday blamed his predecessor and defended his sweeping tariffs after new data showed the U.S. economy contracting last quarter, while warning that his promised 'boom' will 'take a while.' 'This is [former President Joe] Biden’s Stock Market, not Trump’s. I didn’t take over until January 20th,' Trump said in a Truth Social post. 'Tariffs will soon start kicking in, and companies are starting to move into the USA in record numbers. Our Country will boom, but we have to get rid of the Biden “Overhang,’” he claimed. 'This will take a while, has NOTHING TO DO WITH TARIFFS, only that he left us with bad numbers, but when the boom begins, it will be like no other. BE PATIENT!!!' Trump wrote.” At 9:30 am ET, this is a breaking story.
The Lyin' King. Linda Qiu of the New York Times: Donald “Trump ... has moved at a dizzying pace in the first 100 days of his term, issuing a barrage of executive actions and seeking to expand the scope of his presidential power. Underlying those efforts is a nonstop distortion of basic facts as Mr. Trump has sought to reconfigure the global economy, reshape the federal government and restrict immigration. To justify his executive actions and policies, Mr. Trump has relied on false, misleading and hyperbolic claims, deflecting blame for catastrophes, boasting about purported achievements and trying to seek leverage with Ukraine in negotiating a peace deal with Russia. Here is a fact-check of Mr. Trump’s often-repeated claims.” (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Luke Broadwater of the New York Times: Donald “Trump marked the first 100 days of his second term on Tuesday at a rally in Michigan in which he celebrated his border crackdown and boasted of the retribution he has carried out against his perceived enemies and his opponents’ inability to thwart his agenda. The president addressed about 3,000 of his supporters at Macomb Community College, in an area near Detroit seen as key to his electoral victory in the state and emblematic of union workers’ shift from the Democratic to the Republican Party. Mr. Trump was in campaign mode, peppering his sentences with false statements — such as the lie that the 2020 election had been stolen — exaggerations, jokes and insults. He mocked the way his predecessor, Joseph R. Biden Jr., looked in a bathing suit and encouraged the crowd to cheer to indicate which demeaning nickname for him they preferred: 'Sleepy Joe' or 'Crooked Joe.'... Outside the venue, however, protesters gathered with signs saying, 'I dissent.' Two protesters who made it into the rally were removed by security, and the president laughed after calling one by the wrong gender.”
McScrooge McDonald, the Grouch Who Stole Christmas. Daisuke Wakabayashi of the New York Times: Donald “Trump’s China tariffs are threatening Christmas. Toy makers, children’s shops and specialty retailers are pausing orders for the winter holidays as the import taxes cascade through supply chains. Factories in China produce nearly 80 percent of all toys and 90 percent of Christmas goods sold in America. The production of toys, Christmas trees and decorations is usually in full swing by now. It takes four to five months to manufacture, package and ship products to the United States. Mr. Trump’s 145 percent tariffs have caused a drastic markup in costs for American companies. Most of the entrepreneurs that have shared their plans with The New York Times have not yet canceled their orders. They hope that the president will back away from the tariff brinkmanship. But the alarm in the industry is palpable, with the companies predicting product shortages and higher prices. Some business owners, citing how crucial holiday sales are to their bottom lines, are consulting bankruptcy lawyers.” (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Peter Eavis of the New York Times: “UPS said on Tuesday that it would cut 20,000 jobs this year as part of a long-term plan to reduce costs and bolster profit. The cuts come as President Trump’s tariffs are prompting some UPS customers to ship fewer goods. The company said 'macroeconomic uncertainty' prevented it from updating its forecasts for revenue and profits for 2025. UPS already cut 12,000 jobs last year. It now has some 490,000 employees, many of whom are members of the Teamsters union. In its latest cuts, the company said it would shed 'operational' employees, or those who sort or deliver packages. UPS also said it would close 73 buildings by the end of June.”
Lauren Gurley of the Washington Post: “... Donald Trump signed an executive order Tuesday afternoon softening tariffs on imported car and car parts, in a reprieve to auto-manufacturers who had protested the levies. While 25 percent taxes will remain on imported vehicles, the White House is changing the tariffs to ensure that they are not 'stacked' on top of other levies, such as for the steel and aluminum commonly used in automobiles, according to senior Commerce Department officials. Auto companies that finish building cars in the United States will also get some relief from tariffs on imported auto parts for two years.” (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) A CNBC story is here.
Last week, RAS suggested the following very good idea. It seems Trump the Tariff King doesn't care for it: ~~~
~~~ Shawn McCreesh & Karen Weise of the New York Times: “Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, on Tuesday accused the online retail giant [Amazon] of being 'hostile and political,' citing a report — disputed by Amazon — from Punchbowl News saying that the company would start displaying the exact cost of tariff-related price increases alongside its products. Displaying the import fees would have made clear to American consumers that they are shouldering the cost of ... [Donald] Trump’s tariff policies rather than China, as he and his top officials have often claimed would [MB: not!] be the case. After the report was published, Mr. Trump spoke about it over the phone with Jeff Bezos, Amazon’s founder, according to three people familiar with the exchange. An Amazon spokesman said the company had considered a similar idea, but only on part of its site, Amazon Haul, which competes with Temu, a Chinese retailer. Temu primarily ships directly to consumers and has begun displaying 'import charges' to reflect the end of a customs loophole that had exempted low-priced items from tariffs.” CNBC's report is here. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
One More Way Dark Ages Don Is Hurting the U.S. Economy: ~~~
~~~ Ben Casselman of the New York Times: “Cutting federal funding for scientific research could cause long-run economic damage equivalent to a major recession, according to a new study from researchers at American University. In recent months, the Trump administration has sought to cancel or freeze billions of dollars in grants to scientists at Columbia, Harvard and other universities, and has moved to sharply curtail funding for academic medical centers and other institutions. Deeper cuts could be on the way. As soon as this week, the White House is expected to propose sharp reductions in discretionary spending, including on research and development, as part of the annual budget process. Economists have warned that such cuts could undermine American competitiveness in areas like vaccine development, artificial intelligence and quantum computing, and could slow growth in income and productivity in the long term. The private sector can’t fully replace government dollars, they argue, because basic research is too risky and takes too long to pay off to attract sufficient private investment. The study, by a team of economists at American University’s Institute for Macroeconomic and Policy Analysis, is among the first efforts to quantify the risks posed by Mr. Trump’s cuts.” ~~~
~~~ Marie: To anyone with an ounce of appreciation for history, science, economics and education, it is obvious that curtailing scientific discovery is a disaster in more ways than one. Donald Trump is too ignorant & stupid to appreciate that, but one would think Elon Musk, whose wealth is based on innovation, would be the first to know that. Indeed, Elon very well may know that, but apparently he is such an an anti-social narcissist that he prefers not to share and expand the wealth. Meanwhile, these penny-pinching billionaires, along with Howard Lutnick, are looking forward to the good ole days of the early industrial age when Americans were toiling in sweatshops. Their shortsightedness is breathtaking.
It Ain't Over Till It's Over. Stacy Cowley of the New York Times: “Federal judges have again intervened to temporarily stave off mass layoffs at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the watchdog agency that oversees banks and enforces a wide range of consumer protection laws. On Monday afternoon, a three-judge panel from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia issued a 2-to-1 ruling barring the latest attempt by Trump officials to fire nearly 1,500 workers, around 90 percent of the agency’s staff.” Cowley goes through the back-and-forth of the cases related to Russell Vought's attempts to get rid of the CFPB & fight efforts to save it in court. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Arrogance, Cruelty, Lawlessness. Zolan Kanno-Youngs of the New York Times: Donald “Trump, whose administration has insisted it could not bring Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia back from El Salvador to the United States, said he does have the ability to help return the wrongly deported Maryland man, but is not willing to do so because he believes he is a gang member. 'You could get him back, there’s a phone on this desk,' said Terry Moran, an ABC News correspondent, noting a Supreme Court order to 'facilitate' the release of Mr. Abrego Garcia. 'I could,' Mr. Trump replied. Mr. Moran said Mr. Trump could call President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador and get Mr. Abrego Garcia back immediately. 'And if he were the gentleman that you say he is, I would do that,' Mr. Trump said. 'But he is not.' Mr. Trump added that government lawyers do not want to help bring Mr. Abrego Garcia back to the United States. Mr. Trump’s comments not only undermined previous statements by his top aides, but were a blunt sign of his administration’s intention to double down and defy the courts.” ~~~
~~~ And Stupidity. And Stubbornness. And Foolishness. Marie: I didn't find a clip of the part of the interview Kanno-Youngs relates, but here's Donald Dimento insisting to Moran that Abrego Garcia had MS13 tattooed on his knuckles, even though it's been proved that the photo depicting those characters was Photoshopped. He is a stupid, stubborn fool: ~~~
The Trump administration has figured out a way to get around the venerable Posse Comitatus law that limits the use of the military in law enforcement: give over strategic swaths of public land to the military. So a lot of the U.S.-Mexico border is now technically an army base. With Drunk Pete in charge. Great. ~~~
~~~ U.S. Enforces Militarized Zone Trespass. Maria Sacchetti, et al., of the Washington Post: “The Justice Department has begun the first criminal prosecutions of migrants who breach a newly expanded military zone at the southern border that is patrolled by U.S. troops, threatening people with additional penalties for crossing the U.S.-Mexico border illegally. At least 28 migrants were charged Monday with crossing into the 170-mile-long “National Defense Area,” a 60-foot strip of land that stretches across the bottom of New Mexico and has effectively been turned into part of a U.S. military installation. Prosecutors added the new charge of violating security regulations in U.S. District Court in Las Cruces to the more common misdemeanor of entering the United States illegally. Both crimes are classified as misdemeanors. But the new charge increases the possible penalties to up to a year in custody and $100,000 in fines, whereas the traditional illegal-entry charge carries only a maximum six-month jail term and up to $5,000 in fines....
“The Trump administration has surged thousands of troops and armored Stryker combat vehicles to the southern border in Hegseth’s goal to obtain '100 percent' operational control of the boundary with Mexico. The transfer of the Roosevelt Reservation land from the Interior Department to the Defense Department expanded the Pentagon’s authorities to patrol the land, allowing U.S. troops to temporarily detain migrants they encounter rather than simply calling law enforcement authorities.” ~~~
~~~ Marie: Seems to me if it works here, it could work in other places: say, the National Mall, the public spaces in front of the White House, etc. Remember when Trump wanted to "just shoot" protesters? Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the joint chiefs (whom Trump later accused of treason worthy of the death penalty), and Cabinet members seem to have put the kibosh on that idea. But who's going to stop Trump now? Drunk Pete??
Special Delivery. Return Receipt Required. Jacob Bogage & Hannah Natanson of the Washington Post: “The law enforcement arm of the U.S. Postal Service has quietly begun cooperating with federal immigration officials to locate people suspected of being in the country illegally, according to two people familiar with the matter and documents obtained by The Washington Post — dramatically broadening the scope of the Trump administration’s government-wide mass deportation campaign. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service, a little-known police and investigative force for the mail agency, recently joined a Department of Homeland Security task force geared toward finding, detaining and deporting undocumented immigrants, said the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of professional reprisals.”
Patrick Marley & Jeremy Roebuck of the Washington Post: “The Wisconsin Supreme Court on Tuesday suspended a county judge from performing her duties after she was charged with helping a migrant from Mexico briefly evade arrest. In a two-page order, the court barred Milwaukee County Judge Hannah Dugan from exercising her powers as a judge for the time being. No dissents were noted from the state’s high court, where liberals hold a 4-3 majority. The Wisconsin justices wrote in the unsigned order that they were acting 'to uphold the public’s confidence in the courts of this state.' Their order will remain in effect until the justices take further action.” The AP report is here.
Oh, you think Trump is concerned about antisemitism? ~~~
~~~ Katie Glueck & Tyler Pager of the New York Times: “The Trump administration has begun firing at least some of former President Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s appointees to the board that oversees the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, including Douglas Emhoff, the husband of former Vice President Kamala Harris, and other senior Biden White House officials. 'Today, I was informed of my removal from the United States Holocaust Memorial Council,” Mr. Emhoff said in a statement on Tuesday. “Holocaust remembrance and education should never be politicized. To turn one of the worst atrocities in history into a wedge issue is dangerous — and it dishonors the memory of six million Jews murdered by Nazis that this museum was created to preserve.' Mr. Emhoff is Jewish and an outspoken critic of the rise in antisemitism. His appointment to the council was announced in January; presidential appointments are typically five-year terms. The other officials who were dismissed include Ron Klain, Mr. Biden’s first chief of staff; Tom Perez, the former labor secretary and senior adviser to Mr. Biden; Susan Rice, the national security adviser to former President Barack Obama and Mr. Biden’s top domestic policy adviser who led a major national strategic effort to counter antisemitism; and Anthony Bernal, a senior adviser to Jill Biden, the former first lady.” (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) The CBS News report is here.
MEANWHILE, at Harvard. Anemona Hartocollis & Vimal Patel of the New York Times: “A Harvard task force released a scathing account of the university on Tuesday, finding that antisemitism had infiltrated coursework, social life, the hiring of some faculty members and the worldview of certain academic programs. A separate report on anti-Arab, anti-Muslim and anti-Palestinian bias on campus, also released on Tuesday, found widespread discomfort and alienation among those students as well, with 92 percent of Muslim survey respondents saying they believed they would face an academic or professional penalty for expressing their political opinions.... In a letter accompanying the two reports, Dr. Alan Garber, Harvard’s president, apologized for the problems that the task forces revealed. He said the Hamas attack on Israel in 2023 and the war that followed had brought long simmering tensions to the surface, and promised to addres
Tobi Raji, et al., of the Washington Post: “A coalition of two dozen states and the District of Columbia sued the Trump administration Tuesday, accusing Elon Musk’s U.S. DOGE Service of unlawfully dismantling AmeriCorps, which describes itself as the country’s 'only federal agency for community service and volunteerism.'... The agency sends thousands of people each year to work in schools, on disaster relief projects, in public health and environmental conservation, and in programs for veterans and military families.”
Benjamin Mullin of the New York Times: “The Corporation for Public Broadcasting sued the Trump administration on Tuesday, accusing it of illegally trying to fire three members of the company’s board. In the lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court in Washington, the media organization said the White House emailed three of the company’s five directors on Monday, telling them that their positions had been terminated. The administration did not offer any justification for the dismissals. The lawsuit argues that President Trump does not have the authority to fire directors from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which an act of Congress created more than a half-century ago. The suit asks the federal court to block the firings.” (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Minho Kim of the New York Times: “A federal judge ordered the Trump administration on Tuesday to disburse congressionally approved grant money it has withheld from Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, a federally funded news organization that provides independent reporting in countries with limited press freedom. The judge, Royce C. Lamberth of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, ordered the Trump administration to pay the news organization $12 million for its April funding. Judge Lamberth appeared to close a loophole from his previous ruling, which allowed the Trump administration to effectively hold funds for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty while facially complying with the court mandate.”
Brianna Tucker of the Washington Post: “Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Tuesday announced the department would eliminate an initiative created to increase women’s participation in national security spaces, despite the program’s bipartisan support from Congress and full backing from ... Donald Trump. The bill establishing the Women, Peace, & Security program was co-sponsored by two Trump Cabinet officials: Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi L. Noem and Secretary of State Marco Rubio — who previously served in the House and Senate, respectively — and signed into law by Trump in 2017. In a post on X, Hegseth derided the program, suggesting that the 'woke' initiative does not contribute or align with the Defense Department’s mission of 'warfighting' and incorrectly tied it to the Biden administration. 'This morning, I proudly ENDED the “Women, Peace & Security” (WPS) program inside the @DeptofDefense[,]' Hegseth wrote.” ~~~
~~~ Marie: Drunk Pete appears determined to annoy & insult everybody, from Donald Trump on.
Department of Illness & Human Disservices. Sheryl Stolberg & Christina Jewett of the New York Times: “Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. advised parents of newborns to 'do your own research' before vaccinating their infants during a televised interview in which he also suggested the measles shot was unsafe and repeatedly made false statements that cast doubt on the benefits of vaccination and the independence of the Food and Drug Administration. Mr. Kennedy made the remarks to the talk show host Dr. Phil in an interview that aired Monday on MeritTV.... He said, as he has in the past, that 'if you want to avoid spreading measles, the best thing you can do is take that vaccine.' But Mr. Kennedy also made clear, as he has in the past, that he believes it is up to individuals to decide. In suggesting vaccines are unsafe, he contradicted decades of advice from public health experts, including leaders of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.”
Maxine Joselow & Amudalat Ajasa of the Washington Post: “The Environmental Protection Agency plans to cancel a total of 781 grants issued under President Joe Biden, EPA lawyers wrote in a little-noticed court filing last week, nearly twice the number previously reported. The filing in the case Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council v. Department of Agriculture marks the first time the agency has publicly acknowledged the total number of grants set for termination, which includes all of its environmental justice grants. It comes amid ongoing court fights over whether the EPA has violated its legal obligations when clawing back the funds.” (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Teddy Rosenbluth & Apoorva Mandavilli of the New York Times: “Environmental Health Perspectives, widely considered the premier environmental health journal, has announced that it would pause acceptance of new studies for publication, as federal cuts have left its future uncertain. For more than 50 years, the journal has received funding from the National Institutes of Health to review studies on the health effects of environmental toxins — from 'forever chemicals' to air pollution — and publish the research free of charge. The editors made the decision to halt acceptance of studies because of a 'lack of confidence' that contracts for critical expenses like copy-editing and editorial software would be renewed after their impending expiration dates, said Joel Kaufman, the journal’s top editor.”
Way Too Late. Karoun Demirjian of the New York Times: “The only all-Black, all-female Army battalion to serve in Europe during World War II was awarded Congress’s highest honor on Tuesday, in a celebration of the type of diversity that has come under assault by the Trump administration. The unit, the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion — known as the Six Triple Eight — deployed to England in 1945 to clear a backlog of 17 million letters and packages. The mail was considered critical to maintaining U.S. soldiers’ morale during some of the most grueling and bloody chapters of the war. The members of the 855-woman battalion were given six months to complete the mission, knowing that if they failed — as some military leaders believed they would — the future of Black women in the military might be doomed. They finished in three, working around the clock, processing up to 65,000 pieces of mail in each eight-hour shift, and creating a card-based index of over seven million military serial numbers to ensure that mail addressed to people with similar names would go to the correct recipient.” ~~~
~~~ Marie: The Tyler Perry film, "The Six Triple Eight," is available on Netflix. It's a Tyler Perry film, so it's sappy and lacks nuance, but it's not terrible.
Marie: Nothing wrong with me. I'm fine, thanks. Just fine. Here is an entry I accidentally posted on the page for March 31. It merits reading despite my rremarkable goof-up: ~~~
“A Rare Moment.” Adam Liptak of the New York Times: “After a routine Supreme Court argument on Wednesday, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. asked the lawyer who had represented the government to return to the lectern. 'You have just presented your 160th argument before this court, and I understand it is intended to be your last,' the chief justice told the lawyer, Edwin S. Kneedler, who is retiring as a deputy solicitor general. 'That is the record for modern times.' Chief Justice Roberts talked a little more, with affection and high praise, thanking Mr. Kneedler for his 'extraordinary care and professionalism.'... Applause burst out in the courtroom, and that led to a standing ovation for Mr. Kneedler, with the justices joining, too. 'It was a rare moment of unanimity and spontaneous joy from all nine justices on the bench,' said Richard Lazarus, a law professor at Harvard. 'They were all beaming.' Kannon Shanmugam, a veteran Supreme Court lawyer, said it was 'one of the most electric moments I've ever seen in the courtroom.'
“The tribute to Mr. Kneedler's candor and integrity came against the backdrop of a different kind of courtroom behavior. In the early months of the second Trump administration, its lawyers have been accused of gamesmanship, dishonesty and defiance, and have been fired for providing frank answers to judges. Mr. Kneedler presented a different model, former colleagues said. 'Ed is the embodiment of the government lawyer ideal -- one whose duty of candor to the court and interest in doing justice, not just winning a case, always carried the day,' said Gregory G. Garre, who served as solicitor general under President George W. Bush.... 'He would much rather get the law right at the risk of losing ... than win at the cost of misrepresenting the law.'” (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
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Florida. Fenit Nirappil of the Washington Post: “Florida is poised to outlaw fluoride in drinking water under a bill approved Tuesday by the state legislature, adding the state to a growing backlash against a long-standing public health measure. The legislation heads to Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), who has criticized fluoridation as 'forced medication.'... The Trump administration is mobilizing to crack down on fluoride nationally, citing evidence of eroding benefits as fluoridated toothpaste and mouthwash become widely available, and possible health problems at high concentrations.”
Michigan. Reid Epstein & Dave Philipps of the New York Times: “When [Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer] went to the White House this month for her ill-fated meeting with ... [Donald] Trump — the one where she hid her face from a New York Times photographer — she had been trying to secure funding for an expansion of Selfridge Air National Guard Base near Detroit. So when Mr. Trump traveled to Michigan on Tuesday to announce ... that he was doing precisely what Ms. Whitmer had asked for, she had cause for a victory lap — despite the possible cost to her political prospects. She greeted him upon his arrival, creating another photo of them together, and then briefly stood beside him to make remarks thanking him for expanding the base. 'The fact that we got it done — all the grief is worth it,' Ms. Whitmer said in an interview after the event on Tuesday. 'The people of Michigan elected me twice because they know whether it’s threats or pundits ridiculing me for going to the White House, I’m always going to stand up for the people of Michigan.'... The Defense Department will station about 20 F-15EX fighter jets at the base beginning in 2028, according to a document it circulated to Michigan’s senators.” The AP report is here.
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PORN! (But not the sex kind)
I think it was Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart who, when asked if he could define pornography, said no, not exactly, but he’d know it if he saw it.
Every hour of every day, since Fat Hitler waddled back into the Blight House, a form of pornography is evident all across the political landscape in Washington, but no one says anything about it. Instead, if it’s talked about at all, it’s referred to as just business as usual. Or “efficiency”.
This is like describing the most obvious pornographic display as just a couple of people playing Twister. Only without clothes.
I’m talking about Tax Cut Porn—but not just any kind of tax cuts, it’s Tax Cuts for the Uber Wealthy Porn, the most obscene form of cuts. Why? Because it’s not simply that it’s unnecessary and unjustified, but that in order to hand these one percent perverts and moochers even more cash they don’t need, that money has to be taken away from Americans who DO NEED IT.
This morning, I listened, mouth agape, to a Ho-hum, here we go report about the latest Party of Traitors obscenity. They’re now screwing with student loans. Why? Because they believe that students are lazy, evil moochers who don’t deserve even the tiniest break (unlike wealthy evil moochers such as Elon Musk who deserve every break in the book and three or four dozen other breaks that aren’t even in the goddam book).
So the new plan is to end interest free loans for students while they are still in school. It used to be that interest didn’t kick in until you graduated. No more. Now they want students to start paying interest on the first day of class. Of course this guarantees that fewer kids will be able to go to college, but they’re fine with that too. Stupid voters are how they survive.
They’re also making qualifications for Pell Grants harder, which sticks it to the most economically challenged kids. Another plus.
But they can’t forget the schools themselves. Traitors HATE HATE HATE colleges and universities (unless they’re training grounds for Christian nationalism, natch), so how to stick it to schools while they’re screwing students?
Hey! Make the schools responsible if a kid defaults on their loan! Yeah! A stable genius idea! But this is like saying if someone takes out a loan to buy a car and they stop repaying the loan, the car dealer is on the hook too.
Yeah, it’s stupid and illogical, and nasty, but…PoT.. what do you expect?
But, look…what is the larger purpose for all this hippity-hop at the barber shop about student loans?
Oh…you guys know.
Tax Cuts for Musk and Trump and Bezos and Zuckerberg and the tech bros and hedge fund gazillionaires.
This is why federal departments are being closed, cancer research is cut, thousands fired, VA hospitals denied funds, lives destroyed, health endangered, essential services ended, Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security all endangered.
Tax cuts for the wealthy.
It’s Tax Cut Porn.
And they describe it as “efficiency”.
I liked the “Twister” lie better.
So, we know it when we see it, but no one says what it’s really for.
And that is just as obscene as destroying lives so fucking Mark Zuckerberg can buy another $500 million yacht.
Porn. For the super rich.
This link to the multi-talented cowboy poet friend who sent me song posted above:
https://cowboy-poet.blogspot.com/p/bio.html
Musically challenged as I am, didn't wish to take undue credit for the delightful dirge he sent my way.
Glorying this morning in the election results in what appears will not soon. be our 51st state.
Donny No-Deals
"'I could,' Mr. Trump replied. Mr. Moran said Mr. Trump could call President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador and get Mr. Abrego Garcia back immediately. 'And if he were the gentleman that you say he is, I would do that,' Mr. Trump said. 'But he is not.' Mr. Trump added that government lawyers do not want to help bring Mr. Abrego Garcia back to the United States."
Trump the Plague is literally being judge, jury and executioner. And it is with fake photoshopped evidence.
I hope Eliza Gilkyson of "Dark Ages" is in a safe place.
I would worry about ending up in Venezuela or Texas.
A vaccine study for the anti-science nuts.
New Zealand Covid Cases
Perhaps you've sometimes been inclined to think, "Well, maybe if we had a benevolent dictator, things would be okay."
RAS, in commenting on Trump's remarks to Terry Moran on Kilmar Abrego Garcia, illustrates why any dictator is dangerous. Admittedly, the criminal jury system with its requirement for "proof beyond a reasonable doubt" doesn't always work, but it sure as hell works better -- generally speaking -- than does a single "decider."
Rachel Maddow on the Americans getting caught up in the administration's immigration assault.
More citizens treated a "Little Rough"
"The woman, who News 4 will refer to as “Marisa”, and her three daughters came to Oklahoma looking for a slower, more affordable pace of life. They rented a house in a seemingly safe northwest Oklahoma City neighborhood.
[…]
But any comfort they had disappeared Thursday morning when about 20 men, armed with guns, busted through the door. “I don’t know who they were,” she said. “It was dark. All the lights were off.” Marisa said the men identified themselves as federal agents with the U.S. Marshals, ICE, and the FBI.
Marisa said the agents tore apart every square inch of the house and what few belongings they had, seizing their phones, laptops and their life savings in cash as “evidence.”“I told them before they left, I said you took my phone. We have no money. I just moved here,” she said. “I have to feed my children. I’m going to need gas money. I need to be able to get around. Like, how do you just leave me like this? Like an abandoned dog.”"
Bezos is probably happy that Amazon isn't displaying the tariff costs on their bills because it makes it easier to price gouge the customers if they believe all the price hike is because of Trump's tariffs. We saw during the pandemic how much the corporate fat cats loved to add to their profits at the expense of the little guy. In six months they will be bragging to the board about the new record profits once again as the people get nickel and dimed to death. And now the CFPB and other protections won't be there to help keep the Amazons from taking total advantage of us serfs.
emptywheel has more on Marie's math from the other day.
"100 Days, a Trillion Dollars: DOGE’s Costs Keep Adding Up
Elon Musk came in promising (at various times) to save a trillion dollars.
Instead, a hundred days in, and we’re already a trillion in the hole, and that’s before you consider defending these unlawful cuts, the increased costs that disease and extreme weather and wars will incur because we’ve defunded their mitigation, or increased borrowing costs arising from Trump’s trade war."
So this Florida Man gets convicted of diverting $11 million of his employees' SS and Medicare tax withholdings to himself (i.e. stealing $11 million from the US). Two weeks after sentencing, DiJiT pardons him. The guy's mom is a major donor to DiJiT and a person who helped flog Biden's daughter's diary back in the campaign.
The guy is a repeat offender. Now he's free to do it over again, probably for the next 3 1/2 years.
There is absolutely no shame in the WH, DOJ, or the GOP. None. Nada.
404 Media
"The U.S. government registered thetrilliondollardinner.gov around the time Donald Trump announced people who invested in the president’s cryptocurrency, $TRUMP, could win a chance to meet him, according to a lawyer who spotted the domain and 404 Media’s corroboration of those findings. The government also registered the domains dinnerforamerica.gov, and thetrillion.gov.
The domains signal that there may have been plans to incorporate official government internet infrastructure with the memecoin investment dinner, with the dinner already presenting ethical issues around the president promoting certain investments he would personally profit from. At one point, at least one of the domains redirected to a Department of Commerce login portal, according to the lawyer."
The Hill
"Thousands of protestors are expected to gather nationwide on Thursday to push back against the Trump administration’s policies, just days after President Trump marked 100 days back in the White House. Those planning to participate in the rallies have argued that Trump’s actions have harmed America’s working class, citing mass layoffs within the federal workforce and spending reductions under DOGE.
The 50501 organization, which was responsible for several other nationwide demonstrations, is helping to coordinate the May 1 events in Arizona, Oregon, New York, South Dakota and other states."
@RAS: Marcy is confused. She's right, but not for the reasons she thinks she's right.
I agree with (as I noted the other day) that the $500BB in lost revenue is a cost of Musk's stunts.
Also, the $135BB lost because of way Musk screwed up the personnel firings is another cost. So that's $635BB.
But the $430BB Marcy counts as "spending that taxpayers have paid for, but for which the services have been withdrawn or frozen" is not a cost of Musk's screw-ups. Rather it is, in the short-run, a savings, just as Musk claims it is. That is, the money wasn't spent, so it's still in the Treasury (to justify a tax break for Musk, et al.!).
The reason Marcy is right about this last item being a cost of Musk's mess is like what Ben Casselman of the NYT writes about this morning: true losses caused by not spending that money. For instance, the loss of productive, working taxpayers because they didn't get a Head Start or because they didn't get lunch or because they died early of cancer or some other illness that teachers, researchers, etc., would have mitigated. These losses for problems not solved and bad outcomes not mitigated are incalculable, but it's safe to assume that they are greater than the "savings" of dumping most of these programs.
But I don't think Marcy really understands that. She puts the $430BB in the same bucket with the $500BB in loss of receivables and $135BB in unnecessary expenditures. And that's wrong. If anything, she would have to subtract the $430BB from the $635BB, leaving Musk with a net expenditure (i.e., the opposite of savings) of $205BB.
The $430BB is a loss ONLY in the sense that had that money been spent, eventually the government would have recouped it -- and MORE -- in taxpayer revenue generated by those who benefited from the services provides with the $430BB.
I realize Musk's "move fast and break things" has kind of overwhelmed the powers that be, but it seems that hardly anyone has asked him to justify any of these cuts in personnel and programs. How is not sending up weather balloons to predict storms saving money, Elon? How is cutting OSHA personnel who safeguard workplaces a cost-savings, Big Balls? How is eliminating the small investment we make in health services for poor people around the globe improving our status and influence in the world, Marco? And so on and so on.
Marie wrote: "... money wasn't spent, so it's still in the Treasury."
Actually, it doesn't exist yet. Appropriations aren't "money" until they are "obligated" by the spending entity. That's the first time something that can be used to buy things enters the money supply.
Another thing Elon probably doesn't know.
I read an interview with some insufferable (and insufferably stoopid) PoT flack the other day in which this idiot tried to say it’s no big deal that Chainsaw Elmo and his Hitler Youth have fired tens of thousands of federal employees because they were mostly probationary hires who didn’t really do anything important.
Honest to Christ, the stupidity is astounding.
Probationary employees are the FUCKING FUTURE, you moron! These are smart, committed, passionate people who pass up more lucrative career paths, many of them, for public service. As probies, they are learning the ropes, gaining the kind of knowledge and experience to take over from the veterans who at some point will retire. The probationary period is vital so that institutional knowledge gets passed on to the next group who will one day be training other newbies.
In the interest of “efficiency”, should we shutter all the military academies because they’re full of “probationary” employees who don’t do “anything important”? How about police academies? They’re full of rookies who don’t do “anything important”!
For that matter, why don’t we just close the schools? Those kids are just probationary, right?
Oh, wait. They ARE trying to shut down schools.
So what they’re saying is, we don’t give a shit about the future. All we care about are the tax breaks we can manufacture for the wealthy right now. Because every penny we save by shivving the future goes into the pockets of the ultra rich,
That’s all they care about.
Oh, that, and making sure if Democrats do win back the White House, there’ll be nothing left of the federal government but a smoking ruin.
And please tell me how that makes America great again?
Fucking gaslighting vandals.