The Conversation -- April 4, 2025
Brian Evans, et al., of CNBC: "The stock market was pounded for a second day Friday after China retaliated with new tariffs on U.S. goods, sparking fears ... Donald Trump has ignited a global trade war that will lead to a recession. Here’s a tally of the stock market damage: The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 2,100 points, or 5.5% on Friday, its biggest decline since June 2020 during the pandemic. This follows a 1,679 point decline on Thursday and brings the drawdown from its record to more than 14%. The S&P 500 nosedived 5.8%, also the biggest decline since June 2020. The benchmark shed 4.84% on Thursday and is now off 17% off its recent high. The Nasdaq Composite. home to many tech companies that sell to China and manufacture there as well, dropped 5.6%. this follows a nearly 6% drop on Thursday. The measure is 22% lower than its December record, a bear market in Wall Street terminology. The selling was broad with only 14 members of the S&P 500 higher on the day. Major market indexes closed at their lows of the session."
⭐Katie Mettler & Maria Sacchetti of the Washington Post: “A federal judge on Friday ordered the Trump administration to ask the government of El Salvador to release a man U.S. immigration officers mistakenly deported to a mega-prison there last month, in an emergency ruling after his lawyers argued that the man was at imminent risk of death. U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis in Maryland ordered the Trump administration to return Kilmar Abrego García, the husband of a U.S. citizen and longtime Maryland resident, to the United States by no later than 11:59 p.m. on Monday. As the judge issued her order, supporters outside the courtroom cheered.” This is a developing story. ~~~
~~~ Marie: Let's see how forcefully the Trumpies make the ask.
Okey-doke. Now we have a better picture of Trump's immigration plan:
~~~ Scripps News Group: Donald "Trump on Thursday showed reporters an example of the gold card he has proposed that would give immigrants a pathway to citizenship in exchange for a $5 million purchase price. 'You know what that is?' Trump asked as he held up the card. 'It's the gold card, the Trump card.... For $5 million, this can be yours.' The card ... Trump showed to reporters bore his image and signature and the words 'The Trump Card.' It was marked with its $5 million purchase price. The cards are part of a program through which foreigners could fast-track a path to U.S. citizenship. Such a program would be similar to the existing EB-5 visa program, which the U.S. began in 1990 to encourage job creation by foreign investors. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has said the 'gold card' system would replace the EB-5 visa program." Thanks to RAS for the link.
~~~ Marie: The competition is intense for the Trump Brownnoser of the Week, but kudos to the person who designed that "Trump card"; s/he might have won the prize.
I’m speaking with myself, number one, because I have a very good brain and I’ve said a lot of things. -- Donald Trump, March 2016
He’s at the peak of just not giving a fuck anymore. -- White House Official, speaking of Trump in April 2025 ~~~
~~~ You know that formula that Trump used to determine tariff rates? Well, guess who's idea it was? Wacky Peter Navarro's. And guess who chose it over a menu of other, more nuanced formulae? Yes, yes, the dullest tool in the shed, Donald Trump. ~~~
~~~ Natalie Allison, et al., of the Washington Post: “After its debut in the Rose Garden on Wednesday, the crude math drew mockery from economists as Trump’s new global trade war prompted a sharp drop in markets.... Inside and outside the White House, advisers say Trump is unbowed even as the world reels from the biggest increase in trade hostilities in a century. They say Trump is unperturbed by negative headlines or criticism from foreign leaders. He is determined to listen to a single voice — his own — to secure what he views as his political legacy.” The article examines the, uh, decision-making process that led to the tariff fiasco.
David Lynch of the Washington Post: “The tariff barrage that ... Donald Trump unleashed this week on the world economy marks a decisive end to an era of freewheeling globalization that was shaped by American policymakers, business executives and consumers. The United States is now abandoning the system that made it rich and powerful, gambling that it can become more prosperous by waging a global trade war on friend and foe alike. Trump’s new protectionism breaks with international economic policies that were pursued by more than a dozen American presidents as the nation grew into a superpower that boasted a $30 trillion economy, the world’s largest and most innovative.”
Colby Smith of the New York Times: “Jerome H. Powell, the chair of the Federal Reserve, warned that ... [Donald] Trump’s tariffs risk stoking even higher inflation and slower growth than initially expected, as he struck a more downbeat tone about the outlook, despite the economy so far remaining in a 'good place.'... Mr. Powell characterized the risks of that outcome, which he warned could include higher unemployment, as 'elevated.' 'While tariffs are highly likely to generate at least a temporary rise in inflation, it is also possible that the effects could be more persistent,' he said in a speech at a conference in Arlington, Va., on Friday.”
Quelle Idiot! Roger Cohen of the New York Times: “'FREE MARINE LE PEN!' With this blunt call, a strange one in that the French far-right leader is walking the streets of Paris..., [Donald] Trump has waded into the politics of an ally, condemning her conviction this week on embezzlement charges and her disqualification from running for public office. The conviction was 'another example of European Leftists using Lawfare to silence Free Speech,' Mr. Trump wrote on Truth Social. Elon Musk, his billionaire aide, drove home the point: 'Free Le Pen!' Mr. Musk echoed on his social media platform X. More than an extraordinary American intervention in French politics, the statements ignored the overwhelming evidence arrayed against Ms. Le Pen, who was convicted of helping orchestrate over many years a system to divert European taxpayers’ money illicitly to offset the acute financial difficulties of her National Rally party in France.”
Charlie Savage of the New York Times: “The Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel has traditionally been a powerful guardrail in American government. It has issued interpretations of the law that bind agencies across the executive branch, decided which proposed policies were legally permissible or out of bounds and approved draft executive orders before they went to presidents to be signed. But in ... [Donald] Trump’s second term so far, the office has largely been sidelined. As Mr. Trump issues policy after policy pushing legal limits and asserting an expansive view of his power, the White House has undercut its role as a gatekeeper — delaying giving it senior leadership and weakening its ability to impose quality control over executive orders. Its diminished voice is shifting the balance of legal power in the executive branch toward the White House, speeding up Mr. Trump’s ability to act but creating mounting difficulties for the Justice Department lawyers who must defend the government in court.”
North Carolina. Eduardo Medina & Nick Corasaniti of the New York Times: “In the prolonged legal battle over a North Carolina Supreme Court seat, a state appeals court panel ruled on Friday that tens of thousands of voters would need to promptly verify their eligibility or have their ballots thrown out. The decision could lead to the results of the November election being overturned. The ruling was a win for Judge Jefferson Griffin, a Republican who narrowly lost the election in November and challenged the result. His opponent, Justice Allison Riggs, is one of two Democrats on the seven-member Supreme Court. The case has tested the boundaries of post-election litigation and drawn wide criticism. Judge Griffin’s legal argument centers on a claim that some 65,000 people who voted early or by mail in the Supreme Court election did not provide required proof of identity — either the last four digits of a Social Security number or a driver’s license number — when they registered.”
Constant Méheut of the New York Times: “A Russian missile strike Friday on Kryvyi Rih, a city in central Ukraine [that is the hometown of President Volodymyr Zelensky], killed at least 14 people and wounded more than 50, local officials said. It was the latest in a series of Russian attacks on urban centers in recent days that have caused significant civilian casualties despite ongoing cease-fire talks. Oleksandr Vilkul, head of Kryvyi Rih’s defense council, said on social media that five children were among the dead. He said the missile struck a residential neighborhood, with a playground nearby. Other officials warned the death toll could rise as rescuers continued to search the rubble for victims.”
Russian War Crimes. Kim Barker of the New York Times: “In recent months, Ukrainian and international human-rights officials have accused Russian troops of executing Ukrainian soldiers who have surrendered instead of taking them as prisoners of war, as required under the Geneva Conventions treaties that outline how nations should treat enemy forces and civilians during armed conflict. A recent U.N. report decried an 'alarming spike' in Russian executions of Ukrainian prisoners. In December, Ukraine’s human rights ombudsman office announced that 177 Ukrainian prisoners of war had been executed on the battlefield since the beginning of the war; of those, 109 were killed in 2024 alone. Russians have killed at least 25 additional Ukrainian soldiers since then, according to Artem Starosiek, who runs Molfar, a Ukrainian consultancy that supports the war effort and analyzed videos to come up with that tally. The Times could not independently verify that count.... Five Ukrainian drone pilots said in interviews that they had watched as drone videos showed their fellow soldiers surrendering, only to be killed. On Telegram, such videos have become commonplace.”
~~~~~~~~~~
If you're looking for a nice family activity to participate in Saturday, get started at this HandsOff! page, which will guide you to protest events in your area. (Also linked yesterday.)
⭐Heather Cox Richardson: “Today, before the stock market opened, Trump posted on his social media site: 'THE OPERATION IS OVER! THE PATIENT LIVED, AND IS HEALING. THE PROGNOSIS IS THAT THE PATIENT WILL BE FAR STRONGER, BIGGER, BETTER, AND MORE RESILIENT THAN EVER BEFORE. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!!'... Trump justified the tariffs by declaring that the U.S. is in the midst of a national emergency, but this afternoon he left the White House for a long weekend in Florida, where his private Doral resort outside of Miami is holding the first domestic golf tournament of the season of LIV Golf, which is financed by the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia. Trump’s tariffs are not an economic policy. Tariffs are generally imposed on products, not on nations.... While Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told CBS, 'You’re going to see employment leaping starting today,' in fact, both automaker Stellantis and appliance manufacturer Whirlpool announced layoffs because of the tariffs. Josh Marshall of Talking Points Memo points out that building and establishing a new plant in the U.S. will take a minimum of three to five years even if investors are inclined to support one, but Victoria Guida reported in Politico that corporate executives are saying they cannot invest in manufacturing until they can project costs, and Trump is far too unpredictable to enable them to do that with any confidence....”
~~~ Marie: Do read on. Richardson covers quite a few important points, the most salient, IMO, is this: "Ending systems of global free trade dovetails with the idea of getting rid of the international rules-based order created after World War II." That "rules-based order" "provide[s] ways in which countries could protect their sovereignty and work out their differences without going to war." Emphasis mine. (As for that golf outing with the Saudis ~~~
~~~ Erik De La Garza of the Raw Story: “... Donald Trump created an uproar Thursday evening after reports emerged that he would skip the dignified transfer of the four U.S. soldiers who died in Lithuania for a golf event.... 'Thousands of Lithuanians lined the streets with dignity and respect to honor the four lost American soldiers,' Matt McDermott posted on X. 'Trump prioritized golf over their dignified transfer.'”) ~~~
~~~ ⭐ Jonathan Last of the Bulwark takes an intensely bleak view of U.S. prospects: "It took just 71 days for Donald Trump to wreck the American economy, mortally wound NATO, and destroy the American-led world order. He did this with the enthusiastic support of the entire Republican party and conservative movement. He did it with the support of a plurality of American voters. He did not hide his intentions. He campaigned on them. He made them the central thrust of his election. He told Americans that he would betray our allies and give up our leadership position in the world.... Half of the electorate — the 77 million people who voted for Trump — as either fundamentally unserious, decadent, or weak. And no empire can survive the degeneration of its people.... There is no going back....
~We have a deeply stupid government — from our economically illiterate president to our craven and foolish secretary of state, from the freelancing billionaire dilettante who is gutting American soft power to the vaccine-denying health secretary who is firing as much talent as he can. From the senior economics advisor who thinks comic books are good investments, to the senators who voted to confirm this cabinet of hacks, to the representatives who stumble over themselves justifying each new inane MAGA pronouncement. But also, we have the government we deserve."
Brian Evans, et al., of CNBC: "Stocks plummeted Thursday, sending the S&P 500 back into correction territory for its biggest one-day loss since 2020, after ... Donald Trump unveiled sweeping tariffs, raising the risk of a global trade war that plunges the economy into a recession. The broad market index dropped 4.84% and settled at 5,396.52, posting its worst day since June 2020. The Dow Jones Industrial Average Tumbled 1,679.39 points, or 3.98%, to close at 40,545.93 and mark its worst session since June 2020. The Nasdaq Composite plummeted 5.97% and ended at 16,550.61, registering its biggest decline since March 2020. The slide across equities was broad, with more than 400 of the S&P 500′s constituents posting losses. Thursday’s moves sent the S&P 500 to its lowest level since before Trump’s election win in November. The benchmark now sits about 12% from its record close touched in February. Shares of multinational companies tumbled." (Also linked yesterday.)
Christian Shepherd, et al., of the Washington Post: “China said Friday that it will impose a 34 percent tariff on U.S. goods, matching levies targeting China by ... Donald Trump that Beijing called 'inconsistent with international trade rules.' The announcement was made by China’s State Council, the country’s cabinet, which also condemned 'unilateral bullying' by the United States in a statement. China’s Ministry of Commerce also announced a slew of non-tariff measures Friday, including the suspension of export licenses for 16 U.S. firms over allegations of products having military applications, and adding 11 companies to its 'unreliable entities list.'... China’s measures came as stock markets in Asia and Europe fell sharply Friday....” Politico's story is here.
John Tasker of CBC News: "Liberal Leader [MB: and Prime Minister] Mark Carney said Thursday ... Donald Trump's move to levy tariffs on virtually every country will 'rupture the global economy,' torpedo economic growth and prompt devastating consequences for workers and businesses in this country and around the world. Carney said Trump's tariffs against Canadian goods are 'unjustified, unwarranted and, in our judgment, misguided,' and the country must hit back with what he called carefully calibrated and targeted countermeasures' to make it clear Canada will not stand for this sort of economic broadside. The Liberal leader said the government will levy a tariff on U.S.-made vehicles that are not compliant with the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement, to match what the Americans did to the Canadian auto industry Wednesday."
Max Boot of the Washington Post: “... assuming that Americans continue to buy as many imports as they did last year, [Donald Trump's] plan would amount to an $880 billion annual tax hike that will be paid not, as Trump insists, by foreigners but by U.S. businesses and consumers. That’s 2.9 percent of gross domestic product, which would make this the largest tax increase since 1942. And that’s not even counting the cost of the likely retaliation from affected nations — or the billions lost in the stock market in response to Trump’s announcement. If Trump were trying to implement an income tax hike of similar magnitude by executive order, it would be plainly unconstitutional. Everyone knows that only Congress can set tax rates. What’s different about tariffs? On its face, nothing. Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution states: 'The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises.' The McKinley Tariff that Trump has said he admires was not an executive order signed by President William McKinley; it was legislation sponsored by McKinley when he was chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee. So, too, the 1930 Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act — which did much to worsen the Great Depression — was passed by Congress.” Read on. Boot explains why at least one expert calls Trump's imposition of tariffs under supposed emergencies to be abuses of power. (Also linked yesterday.)
Aaron Blake of the Washington Post: Trump “slapped some surprisingly high tariffs on key allies — including Israel and Vietnam — while sparing nations such as Russia, Cuba and North Korea altogether.... [Also not on the list: Vatican City, Burkina Faso, Seychelles, Somalia and Belarus.] The charts [he displayed (images linked here yesterday)] listed the percentages that the countries allegedly are taxing U.S. goods next to each country and territory under the heading 'Tariffs Charged to the U.S.A.,' with the following in smaller print: 'Including Currency Manipulation and Trade Barriers.' Trump then just charged most countries half of what they purportedly were charging us. But that’s not where the numbers appear to actually come from. As financial journalist James Surowiecki quickly figured out, the White House seems to have used a very simplistic formula: Our trade deficit with that country, divided by the country’s exports to us. That’s a measure of something, but it’s not, strictly speaking, about tariffs. It’s about a trade imbalance. The White House denied Surowiecki’s claim, pointing to a mathematical formula featuring Greek symbols. But when that formula is deconstructed, it appears as simple as he claimed.” ~~~
~~~ Marie: Hilarious. The White House dummkopfs think if you slap some Greek symbols onto a super-simple algebraic equation (X = A/B), it's suddenly higher mathematics that only an MIT professor can grasp.
Ben Leonard of Politico: “Sen. Chuck Grassley, a senior Republican lawmaker from the farm-heavy state of Iowa, is spearheading new legislation that would reassert Congress’ authority over tariffs amid ... Donald Trump’s trade war escalation. The measure, jointly introduced Thursday with Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), would limit the president’s power to impose tariffs. It would require the president to notify Congress within 48 hours of such an imposition and for Congress to explicitly approve any new tariffs within 60 days. The bill also would allow Congress to end any tariff at any time. It’s highly unlikely this proposal will ever become law. Still, support from Grassley — who chairs the Judiciary Committee, sits on the Finance Committee and is third in line for the presidency as the Senate’s president pro tempore — sends a strong signal about the GOP’s growing unease with Trump’s actions and the party’s willingness to say something about it.” ~~~
~~~ Lie Down, Roll Over, Play Dead. Katherine Tully-McManus, et al., of Politico: “Meanwhile, Republicans on Capitol Hill — who could use their own votes to stop the new tariffs cold — made clear they had no intention of acting anytime soon.... In interview after interview Thursday, as the markets sunk deeper and deeper, senators made clear they would not be sticking their necks out on the issue.... One bipartisan proposal introduced Thursday by Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) would limit presidential power on tariffs.... But only a handful of Senate Republicans expressed interest in that measure....” BUT ~~~
~~~ Sahil Kapur & Scott Wong of NBC News: “The fallout from ... Donald Trump's aggressive new tariffs has spurred Congress into action, with a growing number of Republicans joining Democrats to express interest in using their power to restrain him. After the GOP-led Senate delivered a rare rebuke to Trump on Wednesday by voting to undo his tariffs on Canada, lawmakers in both chambers are weighing additional steps to rein him in. Senators are eyeing other mechanisms to rescind Trump’s existing tariffs while limiting his ability to impose new ones. And Democrats in the House are exploring ways to force a vote to revoke Canadian tariffs, putting out feelers to attract support from Republicans. These efforts have a high bar for success as any resolution to undo Trump’s tariffs, or new law affecting his powers, would have to get around a presidential veto.”
This looks like a joke in which someone is supposed to ask, "How expensive ARE Easter Eggs?" But it's a real New York Times headline: "Easter Eggs Are So Expensive Americans Are Dyeing Potatoes."
Maggie Haberman, et al., of the New York Times: Donald “Trump fired six National Security Council officials after an extraordinary meeting in the Oval Office with the far-right activist Laura Loomer, who laid out a list of people she believed were disloyal to the president, U.S. officials said on Thursday.... The decision came after Ms. Loomer vilified the staff members by name during the meeting on Wednesday, when she walked into the White House with a sheaf of papers attacking the character and loyalty of numerous N.S.C. officials. Michael Waltz, the national security adviser, joined later in the meeting and briefly defended some of his staff, though it was clear he had little if any power to protect their jobs. It was a remarkable spectacle: Ms. Loomer, who has floated the baseless conspiracy theory that the Sept. 11 attacks were an 'inside job' and is viewed as extreme even by some of Mr. Trump’s far-right allies, was apparently wielding more influence over the staff of the National Security Council than Mr. Waltz, who runs the agency.” (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
Julian Barnes of the New York Times: “The head of the National Security Agency and U.S. Cyber Command was removed from his job on Thursday, according to the top Democrats on the congressional intelligence committees. Senator Mark Warner of Virginia and Representative Jim Himes of Connecticut condemned the ouster of Gen. Timothy D. Haugh, who led both the spy agency and the military command.... A spokeswoman for Cyber Command said she could not confirm General Haugh’s removal, and referred questions to the Pentagon, which did not respond to a request for comment. A White House spokeswoman did not confirm the ouster. But a U.S. official briefed on the matter said Laura Loomer, a far-right activist and outside adviser to ... [Donald] Trump, called for General Haugh’s removal during her Oval Office meeting on Thursday. Mr. Trump ordered Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to fire General Haugh....
“'I have known General Haugh to be an honest and forthright leader who followed the law and put national security first — I fear those are precisely the qualities that could lead to his firing in this administration,' Mr. Himes said.... Current and former officials said General Haugh’s deputy at the National Security Agency, Wendy Noble, was also removed from her post, and potentially reassigned to another position at the Pentagon. Current and former officials said General Haugh’s deputy at the National Security Agency, Wendy Noble, was also removed from her post, and potentially reassigned to another position at the Pentagon.... [An] official] said neither General Haugh nor Ms. Noble was told why they were being removed, only that 'your services are no longer required.'” ~~~
~~~ Ellen Nakashima, et al., of the Washington Post: “The firings were advocated for by far-right activist Laura Loomer during a meeting with ... Donald Trump on Wednesday, she confirmed to The Washington Post on Thursday evening.... 'NSA Director Tim Haugh and his deputy Wendy Noble have been disloyal to President Trump,' Loomer said in a post on X early Friday. 'That is why they have been fired.' Loomer told The Post that she urged Trump to dismiss Haugh because he was 'handpicked' by Gen. Mark A. Milley, who was chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in 2023 when Haugh was nominated to lead Cyber Command and the NSA. As chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff..., Milley would have had a role in helping select the nominee for Cyber Command.... Noble was reassigned to a job within the Pentagon’s Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security. The NSA is part of the department.” The NBC News story is here. ~~~
~~~ Marie: Got that? A crazy right-wing extremist and conspiracy theorist who hates Muslims and says 9/11 was an "inside job" is making personnel decisions for the National Security Agency and has fired -- among others -- the head of the agency, who is a decorated four-star Air Force general. BUT ...
~~~ Dan Nexon in LG&$: "Frankly, the explanation being leaked — that an unhinged conspiracy theorist talked Trump into removing Haugh and Noble — is the best-case scenario. As numerous people have pointed out, this is also what we’d expect to see if Haugh and Noble refused an illegal surveillance order."
Alex Horton & Dan Lamothe of the Washington Post: “The Pentagon inspector general’s office said Thursday that it will scrutinize disclosures made by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth using the unclassified messaging app Signal, as he and other top Trump administration officials coordinated a highly sensitive military operation last month in Yemen, complying with a request from Republicans and Democrats in Congress. Steven A. Stebbins, the Pentagon’s acting inspector general, said in a memo to Hegseth and Deputy Defense Secretary Steve Feinberg that the review will 'determine the extent to which the Secretary of Defense and other DoD personnel complied with DoD policies and procedures for the use of a commercial messaging application for official business.' It also will 'review compliance with classification and records retention requirements,' Stebbins wrote.”
Like Taking Candy from a Whiney Baby. Robyn Dixon & Catherine Belton of the Washington Post: “The Trump administration has twice claimed major progress in peace talks over the war between Russia and Ukraine, with partial ceasefires on energy infrastructure and in the Black Sea, only to see all sides present wildly different interpretations on what had been agreed on as the fighting continues.... Critics contend that the U.S. negotiation team is no match for the hardened ex-Soviet officials with decades of negotiating experience and knowledge of Ukraine.... The U.S. team is not made up of experienced Russia experts, said Alexander Gabuev, director of the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, while Trump’s main Russia envoy, Steve Witkoff, is a property developer and friend of the president.... 'The Russians expect that Trump may be the gift that keeps on giving to Russian foreign policy goals,' said Gabuev, including 'destroying transatlantic unity, which has been [a] Russian foreign policy goal for many years, if not centuries.'”
Alan Feuer of the New York Times: “A federal judge in Washington said on Thursday that there was a 'fair likelihood' that the Trump administration had violated an order he issued last month to stop deporting Venezuelan migrants to El Salvador under an 18th-century wartime law. Speaking at a hearing, the judge, James E. Boasberg, said that he was likely to wait until next week to issue a ruling about whether the White House was in contempt of court for having ignored his order. The announcement that he would delay a final decision came after he spent nearly an hour in a remarkable interrogation of a Justice Department lawyer [Drew Ensign].... Mr. Ensign often stumbled as he tried to respond to Judge Boasberg’s inquiries. He repeatedly said that he either did not know the answers or asserted that the information was protected by attorney-client privilege.... Justice Department lawyers have repeatedly stonewalled Judge Boasberg’s efforts to query them about what administration officials knew about his order stopping the flights and when they knew it.” Politico's story is here. ~~~
~~~ Marie: There are many reasons I'm not a judge. One of them is that I would have thrown Ensign in jail right then and there to see if a nice time-out in solitary confinement would help refresh his memory as to who-all might have earned the privilege of joining him.
Kari Lake Defies Court Order. Minho Kim of the New York Times: “The Trump administration has failed to disburse congressionally approved funding for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, the news network originally set up to counter Soviet propaganda during the Cold War, despite a judge’s order to keep it operating, according to court filings and officials at the news organization. The news group, known as RFE/RL, has not received nearly $12 million for its April funding from the U.S. Agency for Global Media, the federal entity overseeing it. The unusual delay in the disbursement has forced the news organization, which relies almost exclusively on congressional funding, to furlough some of its staff and cut parts of its programming.... The U.S. Agency for Global Media also canceled satellite contracts for RFE/RL on Thursday, potentially hampering the delivery of Russian-language programs from the news outlet.... Around 40 partner stations in Europe that broadcast Radio Free Europe’s live programs in Russian rely on satellites.... Kari Lake, a Trump-appointed special adviser at the U.S. Agency for Global Media, said in a statement on Thursday that the administration had not disbursed the funding in an effort to increase oversight and ensure accountability.”
Cheyenne Haslett of ABC News: "On the heels of terminating 10,000 jobs from the Department of Health and Human Services this week, Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. told ABC News some programs would soon be reinstated because they were mistakenly cut.... Kennedy's comments were in response to a question about a branch at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that monitors lead exposure levels among children and manages prevention across the country. The program was gutted on Tuesday. 'There were some programs that were cut that are being reinstated, and I believe that that's one,' Kennedy said. Kennedy did not provide details on what other programs might be reinstated, or when.... Despite calling some program cuts a 'mistake,' Kennedy has maintained that no 'essential services' or 'frontline' jobs would be impacted by HHS's massive restructuring. That was news to Erik Svendsen, the director of the division that oversaw the CDC's Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention branch, who told ABC News in an interview that the work was completely stopped. Svendsen had not received any indication it would be reinstated or continued through another part of the CDC.” ~~~
~~~ Marie: I make plenty of "mistakes" myself, but I think I'd figure out -- if I was slashing my way through the CDC -- that an office with the title "Lead Poisoning Prevention" was engaged in preventing lead-poisoning. And if had no idea whether or not lead-poisoning was a bad thing that should be, you know, prevented, I'd ask. Please don't tell us "mistakes were made." This has all been purposeful destruction of public services, most of which taxpayers anticipate will services they expect the government to provide. ~~~
~~~ Sophie Gardner of Politico lists some of the CDC services that Kennedy/DOGE have cut in their "restructuring" effort.
Anemona Hartocollis, et al., of the New York Times: “The Trump administration intends to block $510 million in federal contracts and grants for Brown University, expanding its campaign to hold universities accountable for what it says is relentless antisemitism on campus, according to two White House officials familiar with the plans. Brown became the fifth university known to face a potentially dire loss of federal funding, leaving other universities that the administration has targeted wondering when their turn might come.”
Michael Bender & Stephanie Saul of the New York Times: “The Trump administration sent Harvard a list of demands on Thursday that would have to be met to end a government review of $9 billion the school receives in federal funding.... The conditions largely follow the playbook the Trump administration used to force Columbia University to comply with its demands last month, after canceling $400 million of that school’s federal grants and contracts. In both instances, the government asked Harvard and Columbia to impose bans, with few exemptions, on masking.... The Trump administration also pressured the universities to intensify efforts to hold student groups 'accountable,' cease admissions practices based on race, color or national origin and revamp policies on campus protests. Harvard would also be required to 'commit to full cooperation' with the Department of Homeland Security, the agency that enforces immigration policies, including deportations.” MB: I guess we can imagine what “full cooperation” with Homeland Security/ICE means.
Jennifer Schuessler of the New York Times: “Cultural groups across the country have received letters informing them that their grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities were canceled, stirring fears of great harm to museums, historical sites and community projects of many kinds. Starting late Wednesday night, state humanities councils and other grant recipients began receiving emails telling them their funding was ended immediately. Instead, they were told, the agency would be 'repurposing its funding allocations in a new direction in furtherance of the president’s agenda.'”
Nathaniel Weixel of the Hill: “A federal judge granted a temporary restraining order Thursday that stops the Trump administration from pulling back more than $11 billion in public health funding from state and local health departments. Judge Mary McElroy of the federal district court in Rhode Island granted a 14-day restraining order to a group of 23 states and the District of Columbia that filed a lawsuit against the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) earlier this week.” (Also linked yesterday.) The New York Times story is here.
Everything Old Is New Again. Jill Lepore in a New York Times op-ed: “... I was ... struck at how little of what [Elon] Musk proposes is new and by how many of his ideas about politics, governance and economics resemble those championed by his grandfather Joshua Haldeman, a cowboy, chiropractor, conspiracy theorist and amateur aviator.... Mr. Musk’s grandfather was also a flamboyant leader of the political movement known as technocracy. Leading technocrats proposed replacing democratically elected officials and civil servants — indeed, all of government — with an army of scientists and engineers under what they called a technate. Some also wanted to annex Canada and Mexico.... Under the technate, humans would no longer have names; they would have numbers.... [An] army of technocrats would eliminate most government services.... Decades ago, in the desperate, darkest moment of the Depression, technocracy seemed, briefly, poised to prevail against democracy.... The chief reason for technocracy’s failure was democracy’s success. [President Franklin] Roosevelt was inaugurated on March 4 and immediately began putting the New Deal in place while calming the nation with a series of fireside chats.” MB: I've made this a gift link. Lepore points out other things about Haldeman's career that Musk has emulated. The bright side of Lepore's op-ed: maybe the Musk/Trump phenomenon will be short-lived.
Lauren Weber of the Washington Post: “The Senate confirmed Mehmet Oz to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in a party line vote of 53-45 Thursday, placing him in charge of overseeing more than $1 trillion in annual spending. Cementing his turn from daytime TV star to D.C. bureaucrat, Oz leveraged his physician bona fides to waltz through the confirmation process and helm the agency that regulates health insurance for millions of Americans. The massive budget of Oz’s agency makes it a target for efforts to cut government spending. Oz dodged questions in his confirmation over whether he would oppose cuts to Medicaid, the health insurance program for the poor.” (Also linked yesterday.)
Sean Burch of the Wrap: “Another Washington Post staffer is ditching the paper over owner Jeff Bezos’ recent changes to its coverage. Eugene Robinson, the longtime political columnist, told staff on Thursday he is leaving WaPo after 45 years due to the 'significant shift' Bezos recently implemented, where the opinion section will focus on the 'two pillars' of personal liberties and free markets.” Interesting that one of the richest people in the world suffers from the Dunning-Kruger effect. No, Jeff, you're really not good at running a newspaper.
~~~~~~~~~~
Europe. Adam Satariano of the New York Times: “European Union regulators are preparing major penalties against Elon Musk’s social media platform, X, for breaking a landmark law to combat illicit content and disinformation.... The penalties are set to include a fine and demands for product changes.... These are expected to be announced this summer and would be the first issued under a new E.U. law intended to force social media companies to police their services.... European authorities have been weighing how large a fine to issue X as they consider the risks of further antagonizing Mr. Trump amid wider trans-Atlantic disputes over trade, tariffs and the war in Ukraine. The fine could surpass $1 billion, one person said, as regulators seek to make an example of X to deter other companies from violating the law, the Digital Services Act.... The investigation began in 2023, and regulators last year issued a preliminary ruling that X had violated the law.”
South Korea. Michelle Lee of the Washington Post: “South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol was removed from office Friday, when the country’s Constitutional Court unanimously upheld a parliamentary vote to impeach him over his effort to impose martial law. The court said Yoon had undermined the authority of the National Assembly and other democratic institutions, and had 'gravely violated' his duties to the people and as commander in chief when he mobilized troops to try to seize political control of the legislature in December.... Yoon was not in court but in a statement after the resounding decision, he apologized for his 'shortcomings' and thanked the public.... The ruling was welcomed with cheers by the crowds outside the court, where those calling for Yoon’s removal were gathered, amid a heavy police presence.” The Guardian's story is here.
23 Comments
Reader Comments (23)
So I see the stock market downturn in the wake of Fatty’s temper tantrum tariffs is the worst daily loss since 2020.
The LAST TIME Trump was president*.
Hmmm…
But don’t worry. The PoT is the party of economic stability. At least that’s what they always tell us when economic catastrophes occur with one of their guys in the White House. Must be a coincidence. Yeah. That’s it. Just a coincidence.
Health and Defense
Hmm…let’s see. We have a former heroin addict with only a partial brain who knows nothing about science or medicine and once asserted the 1918 influenza pandemic that killed millions was caused by a vaccine that wasn’t invented until 1945, who has just fired 10,000 trained health professionals, doctors, and researchers who don’t go along with his debunked conspiracy theories, in charge of the health of hundreds of millions of Americans.
Now we have a hack TV star who was found guilty of hawking phony health supplements running Medicare and Medicaid.
On the defense side, we have an alcoholic Fox TV host who hands out military attack plans like he was passing out flyers on the Mall, a national security advisor who invites a reporter to a top secret defense meeting, a meeting held over off the shelf, unauthorized software known to be easily cracked by high school hackers, who uses a commercial email service for trading top secret information, and a bug-eyed, non-government employee, whose only job is spreading batshit crazy conspiracy theories on internet chat rooms, firing highly decorated military and national security personnel she doesn’t like.
AND the guy in charge of it all, who is crashing world markets, is off playing golf.
So we’re healthy and well protected. Right?
MAGA.
A companion piece to Lepore in the NYTimes.
https://theconversation.com/a-1930s-movement-wanted-to-merge-the-us-canada-and-greenland-heres-why-it-has-modern-resonances-252587
I came into the world as Technocracy was on its last legs. A few adherents were still around in northwest Washington State and the painted yin/yang Technocracy symbol remained on buildings here and there. Oddly, it shared a version of that symbol with the Northern Pacific Railroad, a precursor of today’s Burlington Northern/Santa Fe, which might have made Technocracy seem more prevalent in my 1950’s than it actually was.
For whatever reason, Technocracy (the notion, if not the movement) appealed to this young boy scientist, and as I played with that sermon about meritocracy a month so ago, I thought again about about Technocracy’s cloudy vision. Might be back to that vision later. The mixed blessings of the planed economy still fascinate.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technocracy_movement
Newsweek has breaking news on the jobs report for March. U.S. added 228,000 jobs compared to 117.000 for February with a "modest" uptick in unemployment rate.
By the numbers:
https://www.vox.com/energy-and-environment/2018/3/6/17077330/trump-regulatory-agenda-omb?
Of course, in the Pretender administration, numbers can always change.
"It would require the president to notify Congress within 48 hours of such an imposition and for Congress to explicitly approve any new tariffs within 60 days"
How does that work when Congress has already declared that the whole year equals one day? Does the president have two days to notify Congress or two years? The knock on effect of our criminally stupid Congress.
Last week Musk sold X to his own AI company. I've seen speculation that he did it at least in part to be able to write off the devaluation of $12 billion dollars on his taxes. I think that would be a good starting point for the European regulators with their fines.
Per the Pretender the tariff barrage is designed to "Make America Wealthy Again."
But America already is. It has over 30 percent of the world's measured wealth. China comes in second with about 18 percent (Wikipedia)
The problem: In 2024, two-thirds of that wealth was in the hands of the top ten percent of Americans. The bottom fifty owned less than three percent. (statista.com).
I do understand why so many feel "poor." They are.
Can't see tariffs fixing any of that. Can see a different tax system doing it....Maybe someone ought to tell the Republicans.
The Atlantic
"How the Trump Administration Learned to Obscure the Truth in Court
This is a litigation strategy born of the first travel ban.
By Leah Litman
In this and other cases now being litigated, the government is following a playbook established during the fight over the first Trump administration’s travel ban, which barred entry into the United States from several majority-Muslim countries. From that litigation, the administration learned a strategy for implementing portions of its legally dubious agenda without the Court’s explicit blessing: go fast. Speed facilitates obfuscation. By pushing litigation to a breakneck pace—and changing the underlying details just as quickly—the administration was able to get the Supreme Court’s approval for policies without full legal scrutiny. That same approach is once again under way in the deportations case and in others now before the Court."
"For $5 million, this can be yours."
"Trump shows off $5M "gold card' that provides path to citizenship for foreigners
The card President Trump showed to reporters bore his image and signature and the words "The Trump Card." It was marked with its $5 million purchase price."
More numbers.
The 228,000 jobs gained in March don't reflect those lost due to cuts in the federal workforce.
https://www.scrippsnews.com/politics/immigration/trump-shows-off-golden-trump-card-meant-to-replace-a-visa-program-for-wealthy-immigrants
(The jobs report is down page)
So far 279,000 have been lost to the DOGE hatchet. 216,000 in March.
https://www.khou.com/article/money/business/houston-business-journal/2025-federal-government-job-cut-total
For any Democrats wondering how to combat the astonishing bullshit of Fat Hitler’s lies, Doge’s destructions, and Bible Mike’s mincing mendacity…Here’s how you do it.
Melanie Stansbury, (D-NM) is mad as hell and she ain’t gonna take it no more.
Stansbury had not been on my radar previously, but she is now. Here she is, demanding to know why the actual hell, Bible Mike’s minions in the House are holding hearings—while Fatty and Elmo are burning down the freakin’ country—on walk-in refrigerator standards. Cuz what’s more important?
You go, girl.
@Ken Winkes: I was not able to read the KHOU report you linked (got a 404 error), but I did find the Scripps report, and it does not say precisely what you wrote. Rather, it says,
"The United States added 228,000 jobs in March despite nearly 4,000 federal workers losing their positions.... The report notes that federal employees who have been placed on paid leave or severance are counted as employed."
Bearing in mind that some of those federal workers laid off may get their jobs back through litigation or, uh, "corrections" of "mistakes," (see RFJK's remarks, linked above) plus additional cuts that seem to be in Musk's sightline, the number of federal workers who are out of work seems very much in flux.
Anyhow, the March report does reflect 4,000 federal-worker layoffs, but not all of those who, for instance, may have taken buyouts and (presumably) are still receiving paychecks.
BTW, I see from the CNBC report (linked in the right column) where the Idiot Trump wrote this: “GREAT JOB NUMBERS, FAR BETTER THAN EXPECTED. IT’S ALREADY WORKING. HANG TOUGH, WE CAN’T LOSE!!!”
What's "already working"? The jobs numbers are from March. Trump just imposed most of the tariffs in April. Does he think the jobs numbers were better than experts' expectations just because Donald Trump is POTUS*? I guess so.
@Akhilleus: Good for Melanie Stansbury. I hope Democrats are making speeches like this every day the House is in session (which, okay, isn't that many).
Yes, Marie. When people use the phrase "hard-workin' Americans" on both sides, they are NOT including the congress members in that phrase. We are paying the salaries of these lovely species of rabble, and they do things like call a fired government employee LIKE THEMSELVES a "clown" for asking what is planned to fix these outrages...( I hope Rep. Jim Banks either goes back to darkest Indiana or burns in hell.). By all rights, he should have been put on a train to nowhere directly after congratulating himself on a snappy comeback. I vote for hell, how 'bout you?? Just think, we are their bosses, supposedly...And actually, so is the presidunce, who is getting stupider by the hour. Oh, that's right. He NEVER works unless it is stepping to a mic to emit some more drivel.
@Marie
This one seems to work on my Mac.
https://www.khou.com/article/money/business/houston-business-journal/2025-federal-government-job-cut-total/285-55fcc5ed-8279-46dd-b569-ceadde0cbae8
@Jeanne: One more vote for hell. Will the Devil still accept my vote if I don't put down my social security number? Is it easier to vote in Hell than North Carolina?
@Marie: I think the credit for the Trump Card's design probably goes to some AI image generator. I can't see anyone at the Blight House having the know how or the creativity to actually put something, even that awful, together on their own. That assault on the eyes was probably made by inputting $5 Million + Trump + Gold Toilet =
Jonathan Chait, in The Atlantic,
Trump Has Already Botched His Own Bad Tariff Plan
"...precisely two hours and 17 minutes after insisting that his policies would never change, Trump returned to Truth Social to announce excitedly that the policies were going to change: 'Just had a very productive call with To Lam, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, who told me that Vietnam wants to cut their Tariffs down to ZERO if they are able to make an agreement with the U.S. I thanked him on behalf of our Country, and said I look forward to a meeting in the near future.'
The possibility remains that Trump will revert to insisting that the tariffs are permanent and irrevocable. The day is still young."
Let's hope the penquins of the Falkland Islands come to their senses and make a deal too!
to RAS: That is so disheartening what is happening in NC. On the one hand, one has to admire the dastardly talent of winger lawyers to find obscure laws that will help someone win an election he lost (sounds like Eastland, doesn't it?) and on the other hand, it would be really nice if they could be run out of town rather than admire their tenacity and mendacity. Now 65,000 citizens have to justify their own votes to a bastard who is a reeeeeeealy sore loser, not unlike one FH.
Yeah, lots of members of the Sore Losers fraternity. I believe someone last week said that it was a wonder there were so many MAGA/GOP members who were Sore Winners, which is why they have behaved and looted so thoroughly since November.
Happy weekend, everyone. Maybe southern FL will break off into the ocean, taking with it the guys in charge of this hell we are all in...
More Homeless Veterans
"Trump's VA is ending a rescue program that's saved 17,000 military veterans' homes
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs said Thursday that it will end a mortgage-rescue program designed to help veterans who have fallen behind on their mortgages keep their homes.
But the scant details offered so far by the VA make it unclear whether the program will be replaced by a different rescue program — or whether the move will strand thousands of other vets, many of whom are in financial peril because of the VA's own mistakes.
Tens of thousands of veterans were left facing foreclosure after the VA abruptly cancelled a key part of a pandemic-era mortgage relief program that allowed vets to skip mortgage payments if they had trouble paying."
The headline is solid, but by the Second paragraph NPR is floating, with no evidence, that maybe FH's administration is just getting ready to roll out a new program to deal with veterans losing their homes. Let's all play make believe and wonder if the PoDunce that hates veterans, also known to him as suckers and losers, might decide to pay off all these veterans' mortgages in full. That might happen right? Even with the FH's regime disappearing people for wrong speak, denying due process to legal residents as he sends them to foreign torture prisons, fires experts because of their expertise and starts trade wars, probably in preamble to real wars, most of the press can not write an article without trying to sanewash and defend the absolute inhumanity that is taking place before our very eyes. They report on the criminality and cruelty that is happening, but can not help themselves from trying to twist themselves into pretzels as they put the rosiest of spins on everything this administration does. Even when the results will be throwing veterans and their families to live out on the street, which they want to make into grand offense itself.
@Jeanne: The fact that the North Carolina voters did everything asked of them before casting their votes makes what the appeals court is trying to do to them infuriating. That along with the fact that this purge of voters is so blatantly partisan and not brought in good faith by a man who wants to sit and rule on the highest court in the state. The voters spoke and chose the sane option, but the robed criminals want another of their own on the bench next to them to help sell "justice" to their friends and those who will pay the most.
Longing for the days when the worst thing a President could do is wear a tan suit.
@NiskyGuy: Right. In August. While he was on vacation. On the Vineyard.
Trump wore a golf shirt and complimented himself in ALL CAPS on his great economic policy -- on the day that thousands of Americans discovered they would have to postpone their retirements because their retirement accounts lost 20 percent of their value.