Members phkrause Posted Sunday at 10:39 PM Author Members Posted Sunday at 10:39 PM Trump administration uses rare authority to claw back nearly $1B in spending approved by Congress WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is canceling nearly $1 billion in spending approved by Congress, the White House announced on Friday, using a rare and contested power to axe funding for immigrant services and diversity-focused initiatives. https://apnews.com/article/trump-rescissions-fundind-46b356590699e6225f783c74e7ee3597? ps:Pathetic ‘Let’s tell the truth’: Smithsonian head given standing ovation as he hits back at Trump attacks Outgoing secretary Lonnie Bunch rejects claims the institution is unpatriotic, telling audience ‘You cannot understand all without illuminating the dark corners’ https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/sep/26/lets-tell-the-truth-smithsonian-head-given-standing-ovation-as-he-hits-back-at-trump-attacks? Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted Monday at 12:56 AM Author Members Posted Monday at 12:56 AM Trump asked Xi to stop supporting Iran President Trump asked Chinese President Xi Jinping to halt any assistance to Iran when the two spoke during the state visit, U.S. Ambassador to China David Perdue told CNBC's "Squawk Box" yesterday. Why it matters: China's economic, intelligence and military support for Iran has undermined Trump's effort to isolate the country amid the ongoing war. The U.S. is conducting a massive economic pressure campaign against Iran. But without Chinese cooperation, it'll only be partially effective, Axios' Barak Ravid reports. The other side: According to Chinese state media, Xi urged Trump to de-escalate with Iran by returning to the June memorandum of understanding and reaching a nuclear deal. Read on. Via Truth Social Trump last night posted a map of the Middle East with the Strait of Hormuz relabeled as "TRUMP STRAIT," joining a presidential fantasy map collection that this month has included New Mexico as "New America" plus all of North America as part of the U.S. (extending to Greenland and Iceland). Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted Monday at 04:37 PM Author Members Posted Monday at 04:37 PM As work requirements kick in for Medicaid, some states are taking a tougher stance Work requirements for some Medicaid beneficiaries begin across the U.S. in January, the result of President Donald Trump's big 2025 tax cut and policy law, and a handful of Republican-led states are imposing tougher rules than the law requires. Read More. CNN says it was left off Air Force One for Trump's Saturday trip to a college football game The White House left CNN off Air Force One for President Donald Trump’s trip Saturday to a college football game in Tennessee, marking the latest media restriction from the administration in an ongoing dispute with First Amendment implications. Read More. Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted Monday at 08:03 PM Author Members Posted Monday at 08:03 PM 🚗 President Trump said he has approved plans to scale back fuel-efficiency rules for new cars and light trucks, gutting the Biden administration's EV push. A formal announcement comes tomorrow. (NYT gift link) ⚾ Major League Baseball asked the Trump administration if it's possible to host a game in a national park, similar to the recurring Field of Dreams game in Iowa. Locations have been scouted in Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming, but the White House said it's not a priority. (WashPost gift link) 📺 TV networks plan to resume pool coverage of President Trump today, even though the White House blocked CNN from Air Force One yesterday. (NYT gift link) 🚗 The Trump administration's new fuel economy standards ease requirements for automakers to control pollution from gas-powered cars and light trucks. Go deeper. Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted Tuesday at 06:16 PM Author Members Posted Tuesday at 06:16 PM Trump’s Wild Offer to Chinese Leader Revealed The president’s ambassador to China made the stunning admission in a Fox News interview. President Donald Trump offered China the chance to buy U.S. weapons in an astonishing proposal. During Chinese President Xi Jinping’s state visit to Washington, Trump at one point asked him if he would be interested in buying American weapons, U.S. Ambassador to China David Perdue admitted. The U.S. last approved $11 billion in sales of U.S. arms to Taiwan in December 2025, as China has been flirting with the idea of invading the small island to take it over. When asked by Fox News on Sunday about the administration’s stance on Taiwan’s independence, Perdue made the stunning admission that Trump had actually offered Xi weapons. “President Trump continues to say, ‘Hey, we sell arms to other people around the world.’ He actually asked President Xi if he would like to buy some, at one point,” Perdue said. That confession received no further inquiry or pushback from Fox host Shannon Bream. The Daily Beast has reached out to the White House for more information. Trump’s offer to Xi marks a stunning departure from decades of U.S. foreign policy that outright bans China from purchasing U.S. arms. U.S. law strictly prohibits the export of defense articles and defense services to China. After the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown in Beijing, the U.S. and European countries imposed arms embargoes on China that still exist today. The U.S. does sell weapons to Taiwan, much to the dismay of Beijing, which claims the country as its territory. Trump has delayed a more recent $14 billion arms package for Taiwan for several months, as he has dismissed bipartisan calls from Congress to advance it, describing it as a “very good negotiating chip” in his discussions with China. Following Perdue’s bombshell comments, a U.S. official told The Wall Street Journal that the Trump administration has no plans to sell weapons to China, while a second U.S. official pointed out that federal law bars weapons sales to China, adding that no plans or offers have been put on the table for Beijing. https://www.thedailybeast.com/trumps-wild-offer-to-chinese-leader-xi-jinping-revealed-by-david-perdue/? Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted Tuesday at 06:21 PM Author Members Posted Tuesday at 06:21 PM MAGA Revolts Over Wild White House Champagne-Spraying Video Dan Scavino is catching heat for a “shameful” video he posted partying it up. White House Deputy Chief of Staff Dan Scavino has sparked an uproar with a tacky flex on social media. Scavino, 50, posted what appears to be an AI-generated video on Instagram showing him popping champagne with what seems to be his second wife, Erin Elmore, and the president’s son Eric Trump and his wife Lara Trump. The video is set to the tune of Pitbull’s hit song “Don’t Stop the Party.” In the caption of the video, he wrote, “This is not an intended for the Dems heads to explode—Being some of the post State Dinner party has gotten out, I felt inclined to share mine as well, in complete transparency, with the American People. GOD BLESS THE USA!!!♥️🤍💙🇺🇸🦅🚀” It’s not the Democrats Scavino needed to watch out for, however, as the video infuriated prominent conservatives. Especially as Republicans look to hone in on their messaging strategy ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, which, if polling holds, will be a disaster for the GOP at the ballot box. Jonah Goldberg, editor-in-chief of the center-right outlet The Dispatch, responded, sarcastically saying, “This is precisely the midterm messaging the GOP needs from the Deputy White House Chief of Staff.” “You really have no shame, do you? Many Americans can’t afford groceries, gas or their mortgage payment, and you post a tone deaf AI video of you and your buddies partying at the People’s House,” Conservative activist Carrie Prejean Boller wrote. Conservative commentator Meghan McCain responded to Scavino’s post with some anecdotal economic observations, writing: “One of my friends couldn’t afford air conditioner this summer.” Never-Trump Republican Sarah Longwell wrote, “Real fall of Rome sh-t.” Other self-described MAGA accounts also weighed in on the luxurious display of wealth from Scavino. “Wow...This is really going to resonate with everyday Americans. They are so out of touch. It’s astonishing,” one person wrote. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Scavino appeared to acknowledge the backlash on Sunday afternoon by reposting yet another AI-generated video depicting the imagined afterparty, this time through the supposed lens of Xi Jinping’s “lost camera roll.” “…as the typical nutters are losing their s--t over AI created content, well done! It is AI, correct?😂🎯” he wrote on X. If Republicans’ concerns about the first video’s opulence amid Americans’ cost-of-living struggles reached Scavino, he apparently did not care. The AI video opens with Elon Musk, the world’s richest person, flipping through photos from the purported party. The images show Trump galloping through the White House on horseback; Vance and Musk holding his feet as Xi helps him do a keg stand; Trump jet-skiing on the Reflecting Pool; and Melania eating a lavish cake off his stomach, among other scenes. Republican concerns ahead of the November elections come as polling shows the GOP is headed towards a wipeout at the ballot box. President Donald Trump’s advisers have tried to tell him to focus more on affordability going into the 2026 midterms, especially after Republicans suffered serious losses in the off-year 2025 elections. Rank-and-file Republicans, meanwhile, are distancing themselves from Trump entirely. A growing number of Republicans, including those who represent safe Republican districts, have also deleted references to Trump on their campaign websites, including candidates whom Trump has endorsed. Trump, whose approval rating has sunk to one of the lowest of any president, has insisted that his administration has a winning record, and has doubled down on tying the midterms to his own record. He has told his MAGA base to just vote as though he is on the ballot. “Pretend that I am on the ballot,” Trump declared during the Republican midterm conference earlier this month. “I’m on the ballot.” https://www.thedailybeast.com/maga-revolts-over-tone-deaf-white-house-video-from-dan-scavino/? Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted Tuesday at 06:30 PM Author Members Posted Tuesday at 06:30 PM Trump Rages at Supreme Court for Ruining His Latest ‘Victory’ Checks and balances are for other presidents, apparently. Donald Trump, 80, has lashed out at his hand-picked Supreme Court justices after they handed him another defeat. In a rant on Truth Social Sunday morning, Trump raged about how the court had again refused to allow a new voting map in Missouri. “The Supreme Court of the United States will just not let Missouri have an Election Victory. They continuously, three times now, overrule Judges who came to the correct decisions,” the president wrote. With the midterms looming, Republicans in Missouri want to use a newly drafted electoral map that gives Republican candidates a leg up in races across the state and would potentially see them gaining a seat from the Democrats. The new map was created last year at the behest of Trump, who has been pushing Republican-controlled state houses to redraw boundaries and lock out Democrats. It divided Kansas City into several districts in an attempt to unseat long-time Democratic Rep. Emanuel Cleaver. The president’s push to redraw districts began in Texas and has since spread to other states, including North Carolina, Ohio, Florida and Tennessee. Democrats in California and Virginia also joined in the redistricting fight with maps favoring their party, but the Supreme Court blocked Virginia’s effort in a ruling that delighted the president. The Missouri map, however, has been knocked back by Trump’s own justices twice before, once by Brett Kavanaugh, and then unanimously by the full bench. On Friday, the justices shut it down a third time, issuing an unsigned ruling with no dissenters. The state’s 2022 map, which includes six seats currently held by Republicans and two by Democrats, will be used in November. “The election is not merely upcoming; it has already started. Ballots using the 2022 map have been printed and mailed. Absentee voting has already begun, as has military and overseas voting,” the decision said. Trump, furious that the highest court in the land did not do what he wanted, said the people of Missouri were “fighting so hard for Fairness and Election Security.” “Such tremendous Spirit and Love of our Country. I won Missouri BIG, all three times, and I couldn’t be more proud of doing so. A great place — I love you all! President DONALD J. TRUMP,” he continued. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The GOP is struggling to hold back a predicted blue wave in November, as Trump’s approval rating has tanked over the cost of living and his hugely unpopular Iran war. The redistricting is part of their attempt to maintain control of the House, which currently has 218 Republicans and 214 Democrats serving. For control to change hands, Democrats would just need to flip a handful of seats. https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-rages-at-supreme-court-for-ruining-his-latest-victory/? Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted Tuesday at 07:56 PM Author Members Posted Tuesday at 07:56 PM 🇮🇷 Trump expects Iran negotiations this week The day after rejecting an Iranian proposal to end the war, President Trump told Axios' Barak Ravid in a phone interview that U.S. negotiators will engage in more talks with the country this week: Qatar and other regional mediators are trying to revive negotiations between the U.S. and Iran, but the two sides are far apart on the key issues, Barak writes. While Iran wants to focus any talks on the Strait of Hormuz and the U.S. naval blockade, the Trump administration is demanding that Iran agree to nuclear concessions. "I expect more talks with Iran [this week]," Trump said. "They want to make a deal, but it is not the deal that I want to make. It is what we would have maybe agreed to a year ago. They overplayed their hand." Asked if he is considering resuming strikes against Iran, Trump said: "I am always thinking about it." Keep reading. Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted Tuesday at 08:21 PM Author Members Posted Tuesday at 08:21 PM Trump’s taxpayer-funded ads draw bipartisan criticism The Trump administration is using taxpayer money to air television ads featuring the president, including one in which he vows “a final battle” against communists and the “fake news” media. But the most provocative part of the new 30-second spot may be the tagline viewers saw during NFL broadcasts Sunday: “Paid for by the U.S. Government.” That money inevitably comes in part from Americans who oppose Trump’s agenda, meaning they, too, are helping pay to promote his message. The White House says the spots are patriotic public service announcements, but government watchdogs and members of both parties have raised questions about whether they cross legal lines barring federal funds from being used for political propaganda. Adding to the scrutiny is the timing: The ads are airing just weeks before the midterm elections, potentially blurring the boundaries between government messaging and campaigning. + Watch: Trump stars in taxpayer-funded video + Read more: Ads portray the president as a ‘relentless, square-jawed strongman’ + Inside Trump’s midterm strategy ps:Pathetic!! Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted Tuesday at 08:57 PM Author Members Posted Tuesday at 08:57 PM Vance Busted Using Bogus Numbers in His Big Crusade The vice president claimed his task force found $250 billion in fraud—but its own figures tell a murkier story. JD Vance’s claim that his White House task force uncovered $250 billion in fraud in just a few months is based on questionable accounting, a new report has revealed. The vice president has made fighting fraud a major part of his remit since Donald Trump put him in charge of the White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud in March. Earlier this month, Vance, 42, boasted at the Republican midterm convention in Dallas: “We found $250 billion of fraud just since the president made me the fraud czar.” But a New York Times analysis of the administration’s own records found some figures being used by Vance to show his task force’s successes are inflated, difficult to substantiate, or based on work that began before Trump returned to office—which one expert described as a “sleight of hand.” The White House says the administration has “uncovered” $245.7 billion, stopped another $62.9 billion annually, and enforced $59.1 billion through measures including criminal charges, settlements and penalties. But, unlike Vance’s boast, the ledger counts activity stretching back to January 2025 rather than the March 2026 creation of his task force, the Times reports. The administration has not released a detailed accounting that would let outsiders verify the totals, and a senior White House official told the Times that disclosing individual schemes could interfere with ongoing law enforcement investigations. The outlet also raises questions about what the administration is counting as fraud. Around half of the $245.7 billion supposedly “uncovered” comes from the Small Business Administration. When the Times sought an explanation, an agency spokeswoman pointed to estimates originating in a 2023 assessment of pandemic-era fraud and said approximately $122 billion had been identified as potentially fraudulent. Other supposed victories involve investigations that were well underway before Vance’s task force existed, the Times reports. The White House has highlighted more than $340 million in schemes targeted by the Justice Department’s new National Fraud Enforcement Division during its first week. But nearly $280 million involved defendants sentenced in cases uncovered and prosecuted before either the fraud task force existed or Trump’s second term began. The biggest example was a $250 million pandemic food-aid fraud operation in Minnesota. Federal investigators were pursuing the case in 2022, and charges were filed that September, during Joe Biden’s presidency. The accounting also includes money the government has not actually recovered, the Times found. More than a third of the ledger’s $59.1 billion in “fraud enforced” is linked to $22.6 billion attributed to the Small Business Administration. Most of that represents delinquent pandemic loans sent for debt collection, which had previously been identified as potentially fraudulent during the Biden administration, rather than billions already clawed back from fraudsters. Another $2.5 billion touted as Medicaid fraud savings consists of federal reimbursements temporarily withheld from California and Minnesota. The Department of Health and Human Services itself says those deferrals are not permanent cuts and funding can ultimately be released once eligibility documentation is provided. Former Interior Department inspector general Mark Greenblatt told the Times that portraying the work behind older cases as having occurred during the lifespan of Vance’s task force amounted, in his view, to “a sleight of hand.” Former U.S. Comptroller General David Walker said the administration’s headline numbers remain “assertions that have not been validated by independent parties.” The nonpartisan Government Accountability Office has estimated annual federal losses at between $233 billion and $521 billion, while experts told the Times that the Trump administration has intensified efforts to identify and combat it. The Daily Beast has contacted the White House and Vance for comment. https://www.thedailybeast.com/jd-vance-found-to-be-fudging-the-numbers-in-his-big-crusade-against-fraud/? ps:Typical from those that know trump!! Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted Tuesday at 09:19 PM Author Members Posted Tuesday at 09:19 PM Trump administration airs 2024 Trump campaign ad in latest taxpayer-funded messaging The 30-second video, which is virtually identical to one that aired in 2024, shows President Donald Trump walking down a hallway as his voice can be heard warning of a “final battle” against “globalists” and “warmongers.” It ends with a message that says: “Paid for by the U.S. Government.” Read more. Why this matters: It is the latest in a series of ads promoting the president ahead of the midterms. Lawmakers of both parties have criticized the new series of ads for their inherently political nature and the use of taxpayer dollars. Spending on the latest ad already topped about $319,000, according to AdImpact, which tracks media spending. The White House maintains they are like the ones used by past presidents, though those previous ads promoted particular policies, not Oval Office occupants. The White House in a statement on Friday defended the use of what it described as “public service announcements” and dismissed criticism of them as “deeply dishonest.” RELATED COVERAGE ➤ Trump asked China’s president if he wants to buy US arms, ambassador says US and China release reciprocal $30 billion product lists for tariff cuts after Trump-Xi meeting Trump said he would campaign in midterm battlegrounds. He’s starting in deep red states instead House Democrats plan vast oversight of Trump administration. Impeachment is an option New Jersey Republican Tom Kean Jr. and Democrat Rebecca Bennett clash over war in Iran, tariffs ‘Lower 48' is a phrase to fight over in Alaska. It’s a fixture in the state’s US Senate contest Kennedy Center put off planned repairs despite known structural issues, former employees allege Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted Tuesday at 09:39 PM Author Members Posted Tuesday at 09:39 PM Trump administration set to roll out lower fuel economy standards for cars, light trucks President Donald Trump said on his Truth Social media account Saturday that the less stringent mileage requirements would "take the waste out of building cars in America" and save families "thousands on a new, beautiful and safe car," while boosting auto production in the U.S. Read more. What to know: News of the revised standards immediately drew rebukes from environmentalists. Without these standards, in 2035, cars could produce 22,111 more tons of carbon dioxide per year than under the Biden-era rules. The average new car in America sold for $50,089 in August, according to Kelley Blue Book data. At the same time, Americans are spending more on gas as Washington’s war with Iran disrupts the global flow of fuel. The national average price for a gallon of gas was $4.47 on Sunday, up from $4.09 a month ago, according to the AAA motor club. RELATED COVERAGE ➤ High airfares could stick around even if jet fuel prices fall Where things stand after Iran’s new pitch for a deal to open the Strait of Hormuz Gulf nations have found ways to keep oil flowing through the Iran war, but the costs are mounting Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted Wednesday at 01:18 AM Author Members Posted Wednesday at 01:18 AM Ad Nauseam (Andrew Lichtenstein / Corbis / Getty Images) View in browser Your tax dollars are at work—promoting Donald Trump to the American people. In the past few days, two new ads appeared on some television channels. One, in black and white, features Trump walking down a hall and staring into the camera. In a voice-over, he says, “This is the final battle with you at my side.” The other features clips of Trump giving a speech at Mount Rushmore. But the most striking words are the ones on the bottom of the screen: “Paid for by the U.S. Government.” These are part of a series. Last week, as my colleague Matt Viser wrote, the administration aired an ad that featured images of Trump looking resolute and imposing, with the words “AMERICA WILL NEVER BE A COMMUNIST COUNTRY” superimposed for most of the spot, which also flashes various empty Trump policy boasts. (“Largest tax cuts in history,” which is flatly false; “reigniting American manufacturing,” which is dubious.) The soundtrack, apparently used without permission, is the musician JMSN’s song “Love Me.” To date, taxpayers have spent at least $443,000 on this ad alone, according to the Associated Press. The White House calls these “public service announcements,” intended only to remind “Americans to love their country and understand what makes it worth defending, at home, at our borders, and abroad,” a White House spokesperson told Viser. Taken at face value, this is the latest example of Trump’s Sun King–esque attempt to conflate himself and the state. This administration has named a new visa program the “Trump Gold Card,” tried to place his name before John F. Kennedy’s on an official memorial, established a 47-day training program at ICE to honor his number in the presidential sequence, printed his portrait in passports, and last week launched something called “Trump TV” under White House auspices. (It’s a glorified streaming-video app.) But the White House’s claim that these are PSAs should not be taken at face value. A much simpler term exists to describe them: propaganda. Senator Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican, pointed out that Trump’s political operation has plenty of cash to spend—almost $416 million as of August 31—and compared him to the strongman whom Hungarians toppled earlier this year: “Using taxpayer dollars, it feels like Viktor Orbán.” Another GOP senator, John Kennedy of Louisiana, said yesterday that no public official “should spend public money on private ads for themselves.” He added: “I think there oughta be a rule—well, there probably is a rule—you can’t spend public money to promote yourself.” Indeed, there is a rule. The law bars the use of taxpayer money on “publicity or propaganda.” The problem is how one defines that. The administration has cited past PSAs, including an anti-drug ad during the George W. Bush administration and a pro-COVID-vaccine spot from the Biden years, to justify the newest ads. The White House insists that these ads are not promoting Trump, because he is not currently running for election. “The PSAs are clearly not political,” an official told NBC News. “The president is not on the ballot, and the ads don’t have a call to action.” These pretexts are so skimpy that they would make a fig leaf shrivel in shame. The ads lean heavily on the White House’s big talking points this cycle, such as dark warnings about “communism.” Trump is not on the ballot, but he has repeatedly begged his supporters to treat this election as a referendum on him—writing on Truth Social this morning, “MAGA, pretend I am on the ballot.” Finally, the new ad is just a new version of one that his campaign produced late in the 2024 presidential race, only this time paid for with public money. (Perhaps someone should have edited out the line where Trump promises to “expel the warmongers from our government,” which hasn’t aged so well.) Yet just because the ads are wildly inappropriate, redolent of personalist dictators, and clearly violate the intent of the law, that doesn’t mean they can easily be stopped. A reasonable viewer will know that the ads are intended to boost Trump and Republicans in the midterms, but because the spots don’t have the “call to action” that qualifies them as campaign advocacy under the law, they may not violate the letter of the law. And even if they did, who would police that? Both houses of Congress are controlled by Republicans, whom the ad is intended to help. The Federal Election Commission doesn’t have a quorum to take action, because Trump has declined to nominate members. And anyway, the Supreme Court has consistently granted the president very wide leeway for any “official” actions. Kennedy’s there-oughta-be-a-rule response is understandable, but one big lesson of the Trump era is that writing a law to prevent every potential abuse of power is impossible. Attempting to do so would tie Congress up in reams of mind-numbing legislation. Courts might strike some of it down; other parts would be impossible to enforce; and a sufficiently motivated administration would simply find nefarious work-arounds, just as this one has. A functioning democracy cannot be just a matter of statute. It requires good faith and some measure of virtue from its officeholders. No law can substitute for character in leaders. That makes these transgressions primarily a matter for voters, not legislators or regulators. And in the case of the campaign ads, they can weigh in soon. As Paul Krugman writes, Trump’s personal unpopularity is already a drag on Republican candidates, so emphasizing his role would seem to be politically unwise. You can spend hundreds of thousands of dollars broadcasting a song called “Love me,” but you can’t make voters love you. Related: Trump’s public service announcement: “Love me” Trump is putting his face on everything. Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted Wednesday at 01:02 PM Author Members Posted Wednesday at 01:02 PM Allies Refuse to Visit U.S. in ‘Mind-Boggling’ Collapse Under Trump The U.S. is on pace to welcome 2 million fewer international visitors than last year. America’s closest allies are increasingly looking elsewhere for their vacations. Despite hosting the World Cup this year, the U.S. has suffered through a slump in international tourism. Visitors from Canada are down 23 percent over the past two years, while travel from Germany and France has dropped 16 percent and 15 percent year-to-date, respectively. Overall, the country is on pace to welcome 2 million fewer international visitors than last year, when approximately 68 million tourists came to the U.S. That would put overseas visits roughly 20 percent below the 2019 peak of 79 million visitors. “We’re the only major country in the world losing visitation,” Geoff Freeman, president and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association, told Axios. “It’s mind-boggling.” The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment. The decline follows an already brutal 2025 for American tourism. The U.S. welcomed roughly 4 million fewer international visitors last year than in 2024, a 5.5 percent drop in overseas tourism, according to CNN. Foreign visitor spending fell by more than $8 billion during the same period. Aside from the collapse in international travel during the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2025 decline marked the sharpest annual drop in overseas tourism in roughly two decades. The largest drop came from Canada, with far fewer Canadians traveling to the United States. Data from mobile tracking firm Cuebiq suggests Canadian travel to major U.S. cities may have fallen by as much as 42 percent over the past year. Relations between the U.S. and Canada, historically close allies, have broken down since Trump began his second term. Trump has floated the idea of annexing the country and making it the 51st U.S. state, and slapped tariffs on Canadian steel, aluminum, and automobiles. After Trump imposed tariffs on Canada last year, visits from Canadians fell by 17 percent, contributing to a 7.5 percent overall decline in tourism, Politico reported. But the U.S. has also seen a decline in visitors from many European countries like France and Germany. German visits to the U.S. fell about 12 percent in 2025, according to figures cited by Le Monde. French visits fell nearly 7 percent. Trump has raised tensions with his European allies since the beginning of his second term. France and Germany were among eight European countries Trump threatened with a 10 percent tariff, potentially rising to 25 percent, because they opposed his threat to annex Greenland. And in June 2026, Trump threatened major tariffs on French wine and champagne after French President Emmanuel Macron opposed the U.S. approach to Greenland. “I asked them not to charge American companies, and if they do, I have no choice but to charge a 100 percent tariff on all champagnes and all wines coming out of France,” the 80-year-old president told the New York Post. “All [French President Emmanuel Macron] has to do is get rid of the sales tax, and he wouldn’t have that kind of pressure.” Meanwhile, Trump publicly lashed out at German Chancellor Friedrich Merz after Merz criticized U.S. strategy in the Iran war. Trump called Merz “totally ineffective.” The confrontation was followed by the Pentagon announcing plans to reduce the number of U.S. troops stationed in Germany by 5,000. https://www.thedailybeast.com/allies-refuse-to-visit-us-in-mind-boggling-collapse-under-trump/? ps:Has the be the most pathetic senseless potus ever!!!!! Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted Wednesday at 03:42 PM Author Members Posted Wednesday at 03:42 PM Trump's wage-and-cost blues Illustration: Maura Losch/Axios Five weeks before the midterms, Americans' pocketbook pain is getting worse: Paychecks haven't kept up with inflation for the better part of this year, and borrowing costs have surged, Axios' Courtenay Brown writes. Why it matters: President Trump's record is effectively on the ballot, and economic sentiment remains deeply depressed, including among Republican voters. This is the backdrop as voters prepare to cast their midterm ballots: 1. In the past five months, pay for rank-and-file workers has trailed inflation. That's a recent reversal: Since the start of 2021, hourly pay for rank-and-file workers has climbed 29%, slightly outpacing the 27% gain in consumer prices. 2. Consumer prices are up over 5% since Trump took office, piling on Biden-era gains. It costs about $20 more to fill a 15-gallon tank of gas than it did a year ago. The national average for regular gas is $4.46 a gallon, up more than $1.30 from last September, according to AAA. 3. Mortgage rates are back above 7%, while rates on credit cards, auto and other loans remain elevated. Consumer sentiment is sitting at the second-lowest reading on record, according to the University of Michigan's tracker. Contrast that to Trump's first term: Before the pandemic, the same survey showed one of the strongest periods ever for America's consumer sentiment. Another gauge shows a similar decline: The Conference Board's confidence index averaged 126 from 2017-19, compared with just 89.4 for the latest reading in August. 📈 The other side: The lousy sentiment comes alongside strong economic growth that's apparent in the GDP figures — but hard for consumers to appreciate at the grocery store or the gas pump. A closely watched GDP tracker published by the Atlanta Fed shows the economy growing at a blistering 5% pace this quarter. Unemployment remains at a historically low 4.1%. 🐘 The GOP case: Kush Desai, White House senior deputy press secretary, tells us that "hard data of actual consumer spending and retail sales have been robust throughout President Trump's term so far." "American consumers are proving their resilience with their dollars every day thanks to the Trump administration's tax cuts, private-sector job creation, and investment boom." Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted Wednesday at 04:43 PM Author Members Posted Wednesday at 04:43 PM Hegseth says national security, military cyber forces will guard US election systems during midterms The U.S. National Security Agency and other military intelligence and cybersecurity forces will guard election systems in November, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Monday. Read more. Why this matters: Military cybersecurity experts have routinely helped monitor systems and deter potential hackers since election equipment was designated “critical infrastructure” in 2017. But Hegseth’s announcement comes after President Donald Trump gutted the civilian agency specifically created to safeguard election infrastructure, a division of the Department of Homeland Security called the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. Both announcements come with early voting already underway. The short timeline “suggests this is just theater,” said David Becker, a former U.S. Justice Department attorney who leads the nonprofit Center for Election Innovation & Research. RELATED COVERAGE ➤ 2 US Navy aviators eject while landing plane on carrier off Virginia, 4 sailors injured Trump’s mail voting crackdown tests Postal Service leader who says he’s ‘not political’ GOP doubts about Georgia and North Carolina have Republicans shifting focus in battle for Senate Trump can’t force election changes by blocking counterterrorism funds to states, judge says Stay with this one, here’s what other readers like you are spending time with: In GOP Speaker Mike Johnson’s district, the political mood is mixed for the party in power Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted Wednesday at 04:48 PM Author Members Posted Wednesday at 04:48 PM CNN, MS NOW and Politico ask a court to block Trump from enforcing his White House media ban Three news outlets that President Donald Trump abruptly banished from White House grounds this month asked a federal court to block the ban until the case is resolved. Read more. What to know: They say the Trump administration has “persisted in unpredictably and inconsistently implementing its ban” despite a judge’s restraining order— including selectively barring CNN from White House pool duties. A two-week temporary restraining order on Trump’s ban that restored the outlets’ White House access expires Oct. 8. “The White House’s words and actions leave little doubt that it will immediately reinstitute a complete ban of CNN, MS NOW, and POLITICO if allowed the opportunity,” lawyers for the three outlets wrote in a filing late Monday. The filing came a day after the Trump administration made clear it was not backing down. “It is a privilege, and not a right, to be there,” Attorney General Todd Blanche said on ABC on Sunday speaking about the White House. RELATED COVERAGE ➤ Taxpayers have funded nearly $1.5M in pro-Trump ads. Criticism is mounting, including from the GOP Second prosecutor resigns from Justice Department ‘grand conspiracy’ probe targeting Trump foes Alito steps aside in a major climate case after scrutiny over oil stock holdings Trump administration asks Supreme Court to allow transgender medical care restrictions in prison Trump disputes his ambassador’s account that he asked China’s president if he wanted to buy US arms From motorcycles to booze, US ban on $1 billion worth of Canadian imports goes into effect Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted Wednesday at 10:00 PM Author Members Posted Wednesday at 10:00 PM Trump says top tech firms have signed accord to ‘self-police’ AI development WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Tuesday said that he and a large group of leaders of artificial intelligence companies had signed a voluntary accord that will include internal and external reviews during a meeting at the White House aimed at addressing Americans’ fears about the technology. https://apnews.com/article/trump-ai-anthropic-musk-595796511f110fc006cca0d01329733e? Trump says top tech firms have signed accord to 'self-police' AI development President Donald Trump on Tuesday said that he and a large group of leaders of artificial intelligence companies had signed a voluntary accord that will include internal and external reviews during a meeting at the White House aimed at addressing Americans' fears about the technology. Read More. Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted Wednesday at 10:15 PM Author Members Posted Wednesday at 10:15 PM Watchdog says Trump can't cancel more than $800M in spending approved by Congress President Donald Trump is not permitted to withhold beyond the end of the fiscal year ending Wednesday more than $800 million in spending approved by Congress. That's according to a review from the Government Accountability Office that was sent to federal lawmakers and Vice President JD Vance on Tuesday. Read More. Trump hails the US military’s exit from Iraq after 12-year mission against Islamic State BAGHDAD (AP) — The U.S. military announced Wednesday that it completed the withdrawal of all American troops from Iraq, ending a 12-year mission to fight the Islamic State group and prompting President Donald Trump to hail the conclusion of “a very expensive excursion into Hell.” https://apnews.com/article/iraq-us-withdrawal-militias-disarmament-kurds-a097a39f3d1a3515adc2ba3298a6816f? Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted Wednesday at 10:36 PM Author Members Posted Wednesday at 10:36 PM A Conclusion in Search of Evidence (Anna Moneymaker / Getty) View in browser When President Trump returned to office last year, the administration had revenge on the agenda. First, the FBI purged agents who’d been involved in investigations into Trump while he was out of office. Second, the Department of Justice launched a major probe to prove a “grand conspiracy” to politically persecute Trump, which would rely in part on the former agents’ cooperation and testimony about improper or illegal actions. Perhaps you have spotted a potential flaw in the plan. The administration apparently did not. The team conducting the probe sought to compel testimony from agents involved in an August 2022 search of Mar-a-Lago, in which the FBI recovered documents that Trump had removed from the White House. Last week, lawyers representing agents involved in the search filed a motion saying that if they were forced to testify to a grand jury, they would relay “their firsthand memories of investigating a properly predicated allegation” that Trump had “unlawfully retained hundreds of highly classified documents,” as well as “factually supported opinions on why and how such retention put the country’s national security at risk.” No one should be surprised that the agents, who appear to have already been fired for simply doing their job, were not eager to testify in court that they’d been involved in anything untoward. Although such testimony would pose serious problems for the DOJ probe, the motion’s intent was not to sabotage it, The New York Times notes, but rather to seek assurances that if the agents testified, they would not be violating a federal judge’s order that bars publication of Special Counsel Jack Smith’s report about it. (Smith testified to the Senate Judiciary Committee today—more on that in a moment.) More to the point, the agents were never likely to have the sort of damning information about a conspiracy that prosecutors want. The facts of the Mar-a-Lago case are not complicated: Trump absconded with documents, many of them highly sensitive; did not turn them over when asked to do so by the National Archives and later via a subpoena; and was found in possession of them at Mar-a-Lago. Trump, who has denied any wrongdoing, didn’t really dispute any of these facts. He argued that he had declassified the materials—a claim for which he provided no evidence—and that he rightfully possessed them. (Prosecutors further alleged that he’d suggested to his lawyers that they hide some documents, and that he’d tried to hide others from them.) The grand-conspiracy probe, which attempts to tie together the documents case, investigation of the 2016 Trump campaign’s ties to Russia, and other investigations into Trump allies, has been a mess. In April, a career prosecutor leading the team was removed, reportedly after she concluded that there was not enough evidence to charge John Brennan, the CIA director under President Obama who has repeatedly tangled with Trump, with any crimes. (Brennan is reportedly facing two separate DOJ criminal investigations, which a law professor told The Washington Sun is an indication of either prosecutorial incompetence or malice; those might not be mutually exclusive.) She was replaced by Joseph diGenova, who was a federal prosecutor in the 1980s but has more recently been known for propagating conspiracy theories. He and his wife were appointed to Trump’s defense team during Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s probe in 2018 but quickly withdrew; they were later involved in Trump’s attempt to challenge the 2020 presidential-election results. DiGenova abruptly resigned earlier this month and implied that he had been under pressure to bring unjustified charges. “If you want indictments where there’s no evidence, you have an ethical problem,” he told the New York Post. Yesterday, another member of the team, Kurt Olsen, departed. The Times reports that Olsen faced difficulties with his security clearance; The Washington Post says that he was also frustrated by pressure from DOJ officials to move faster. If even Olsen thinks DOJ is being hasty, that would be stunning: He pushed DOJ to ask the Supreme Court to overturn the 2020 election and more recently was the driving force behind more conspiracy theories, including about voting in Fulton County, Georgia, in 2020. People like diGenova and Olsen are die-hard loyalists, not just deep-staters or fair-weather Trump fans. The problem with the grand-conspiracy probe is the fundamental premise, not staffing. Trump’s view of the world is zero-sum, such as in trade or diplomacy. The motive for the probe is that because Trump suffered during his criminal probes, his antagonists must have done something just as bad and must suffer the same. Perhaps you can see the flaw here too: Trump and his allies are starting with a conclusion of guilt and attempting to work backwards to find the charges and evidence to justify it. The risks of this were vividly displayed during Smith’s testimony today, in one of the most excruciating exchanges I’ve ever seen in politics. Senator Eric Schmitt of Missouri seemed convinced that he had caught Smith perjuring himself—when, in fact, Schmitt had failed to recognize the difference between the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks and the University of Iowa Hawkeyes women’s basketball team, eviscerating not only Schmitt’s dignity but also his theory that Smith had been covertly meeting with Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis to conspire against Trump. A robust debate continues about whether it was politically prudent to prosecute Trump for his various offenses in order to uphold the rule of law, or whether doing so simply inflamed his supporters and fostered an atmosphere of partisan retribution. Legally, the matter is simpler. On one side of the ledger, Trump did take the documents, Trump did try to overturn an election that he lost, and Trump’s 2016 campaign did have a series of inappropriate contacts with foreign governments. (The weakest case against Trump involved falsified business records, but that one produced a felony conviction.) On the other side, federal law-enforcement agencies did their job and investigated those actions, for which many were fired. Given the facts, is the DOJ probe investigating a grand conspiracy, or is it evidence of one? Related: A Department of Justice for an age of conspiracy theories Trump is turning DOJ into his personal law firm. (From 2025) Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted yesterday at 12:10 AM Author Members Posted yesterday at 12:10 AM Trump christens AI "constitution" With America's tech titans crowded around a single White House table yesterday, President Trump extracted what he called a "morally binding" compact on AI safety, Axios' Zachary Basu writes. The terms were simple: Press ahead, project optimism and police yourselves. Why it matters: The White House Accord on Super Intelligence, signed by OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Meta, xAI and Nvidia, formalizes industry self-regulation as Washington's response to the most alarming run of AI safety failures yet. 🖊️ Zoom in: Trump, who increasingly treats American AI dominance as central to his legacy, cast the accord as proof that an industry fractured over safety can still govern itself. He compared the document to "a constitution," claimed there was "a lot of commonality" among the tech leaders, and praised what he described as "tremendous self-policing." The one-page pact, which is deliberately light-touch, calls for "four layers of controls and auditing," including outside evaluators and independent board oversight. Between the lines: The accord refers vaguely to future "laws or regulations," preserving the possibility of a tougher federal regime if ultimately needed. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, a MAGA bogeyman and the industry's most prominent advocate for slowing frontier development, signed the pact but stressed to reporters that it was only "a start." Trump AI adviser David Sacks, by contrast, treated the accord as mission accomplished — declaring on X that the companies were "accepting responsibility" for AI safety thanks to Trump's leadership. Zoom out: The White House pact capped an extraordinary day for the AI race across three capitals of American power. 1. In Washington, Trump spent yesterday pulling AI deeper into both the machinery and mythology of his presidency. In the morning, he unveiled America.gov, an AI-powered front door to federal services, and vowed not to "stifle" a technology he says will eclipse the Industrial Revolution. Hours later, Trump signed an executive order directing the federal government to replace "AI" with "Super Intelligence" in official usage — and called on Congress to write the new terminology into law. 2. In Silicon Valley, OpenAI spent the day racing deeper into the age of autonomous AI while struggling to contain its risks. At its highly anticipated DevDay, the company unveiled a sweeping slate of products designed to make AI more persistent, capable and independent in everyday life, including a new personal assistant. But midway through Sam Altman's keynote, an explosive New York Times report revealed that OpenAI executives had brushed aside internal safety warnings months before its models began hacking outside systems. 3. On Wall Street, Anthropic's leaked IPO prospectus distilled the surreal economics of the AI race. According to Reuters, the company laid out a path to a valuation north of $2 trillion while warning prospective investors that its technology could pose "catastrophic or existential risks to humanity." Altman said OpenAI will delay its IPO until it can "make confident safety decisions" — even as the company reportedly seeks at least $30 billion in private funding at a roughly $1.4 trillion valuation. The bottom line: Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, seated at Trump's right hand for the East Room lunch, supplied the day's credo: "Trust and innovation are not in conflict. Safety is how trust is earned." Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted yesterday at 01:29 AM Author Members Posted yesterday at 01:29 AM An Uneasy Coalition View in browser The Make America Healthy Again movement has always had a split personality. Many of the movement’s leaders are fervent anti-vaccine activists whose views are at odds with scientific evidence and out of step with most Americans. At the same time, MAHA’s tenets include eating more vegetables and getting enough sleep, which is perfectly reasonable advice; it’s just hard to take seriously from people who, like Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., wax nostalgic about catching measles. That duality has been especially stark this month, as the midterms approach and Republicans look to MAHA for an electoral boost. At a conference two weeks ago for Children’s Health Defense, the anti-vaccine organization Kennedy founded, he told the audience that they had a “steadfast friend at the White House.” At a MAHA data summit on Monday, Kennedy previewed his plan to use a database of Americans’ health records to compare rates of autism among vaccinated and unvaccinated people. And yet, the second annual MAHA Summit, which was held yesterday in a hotel ballroom in Washington, D.C., seemed perfectly calibrated to downplay controversy. Other high-ranking administration officials, including Vice President Vance and Medicaid chief Mehmet Oz, spoke at yesterday’s summit, lending the affair an extra layer of high-profile polish, but the event was mostly an opportunity for its roster of sponsors to tout their products and services. An executive from Walmart—one of the event’s many corporate sponsors—spoke about making food labels simpler and more transparent, though he didn’t say how his company, which sells more groceries than any other retailer, plans to do that. After being lobbed yet another softball question from the moderator, he gushed, “It means a lot for us to be here with MAHA.” Also among the sponsors was Grail, a cancer-screening company, which just last week announced that its controversial early-detection test had been recommended for approval by a Food and Drug Administration panel. Hims & Hers and Gameday Men’s Health—two wellness companies that stand to make serious money if the FDA allows gray-market peptides to be made and prescribed in the United States—also chipped in. Bloomberg reported that companies that forked over $300,000 were allowed to have “meaningful input” on the selection of panelists and topics. (In an email, an HHS spokesperson wrote that the FDA’s decisions “are made through established processes grounded in law, science, and evidence.”) The MAHA Summit was “very money-driven,” Mary Holland, who runs Children’s Health Defense and was not on the speaker list for yesterday’s conference, told me outside the ballroom. Kennedy has for years denounced corporate influence over the health agencies he now oversees, but onstage, there was no handwringing about conflicts of interest. Instead, Tony Lyons, the president of the nonprofit MAHA Center, which organized the summit, offered praise for “the investors scaling natural remedies, breakthrough technologies, next-generation devices, and cutting-edge therapies.” (Lyons is also Kennedy’s longtime publisher, and his company, Skyhorse, paid Kennedy $4 million in book advances over the past year.) Corporate convenience seemed to beat out Kennedy’s “eat real food” agenda: The conference swag bags contained two organic snack bars, a packet of electrolyte powder, potato chips fried in grass-fed-beef tallow, and a bag of dehydrated taco filling made from pinto beans and peas, all vaguely MAHA-coded but certainly nowhere to be found on the administration’s inverted food pyramid. Plenty of Kennedy’s vocally anti-vaccine compatriots were in attendance, if not on the agenda. I spotted Mark Gorton, the president of the MAHA Institute, who, at the Children’s Health Defense conference, declared himself “the boldest anti-vaxxer in the anti-vax conference.” Del Bigtree, Kennedy’s former communications director, who once told me he’d rather his kids catch diseases such as polio and measles than get the shots that prevent them, spent most of his time chatting with his many fans in attendance. He was pleased at how large companies appear to be on board with MAHA, even if the summit steered clear of the issue—vaccines—that brought him and Kennedy together. “It really probably should be called ‘MAHA Food Summit,’” he told me. (An HHS spokesperson wrote that Kennedy “oversees an extraordinarily broad health portfolio and addresses different priorities in different settings.”) But lest Bigtree and other anti-vaccine activists have any doubts, Kennedy has repeatedly reassured them that he is on their side. At the Children’s Health Defense conference, he went so far as to read from a manufacturer’s list of possible adverse events from a hepatitis B vaccine. In an appearance on CNN last month, Kennedy again floated a possible connection between autism and vaccines, even though researchers have found no such link. Since Kennedy’s failed run for president in the 2024 election, he has drawn together an unlikely and seemingly uneasy coalition. Some are hard-core activists, like the guy I spoke with who was wearing a shirt that took aim at fluoride, vaccines, hospital births, aspartame, and root canals. But other attendees at the packed, invite-only event said they were there because they hoped psychedelics might be used to treat depression; because they thought that AI might improve health care; or because they were looking for answers to medical problems their doctors hadn’t been able to solve. They weren’t anti-vaxxers, and they weren’t necessarily big Kennedy fans, as a couple of them confided to me between sessions. But Kennedy and his Republican allies seem to hope they can channel these different levels of frustration with mainstream medicine and keep all of those voters under the MAHA banner. The midterms will be, among so many other things, a test of how far that banner can be stretched. Related: America is about to go over a peptide cliff. “I genuinely am upset that your kids are vaccinated.” Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted 9 hours ago Author Members Posted 9 hours ago Trump’s tariffs are back in court President Donald Trump’s sweeping global tariffs will face another legal test today. A three-judge panel will hear arguments over whether he can use a 1970s trade law to impose tariffs on nearly all US imports. Since July, goods from 80 countries, including China, India and Japan, have faced tariffs of 10% to 12.5% after the administration accused those countries of failing to address forced labor in goods shipped to the US. The tariffs are higher for countries deemed the “worst offenders.” This follows a Supreme Court ruling that Trump overstepped his authority by imposing a separate set of tariffs under a different law — triggering refunds worth $168 billion for importers. + Read more: President Trump’s global tariffs are back under the legal microscope + Also: Attention, protein-maxxers — Trump’s trade war is coming for your whey ps:Beyond pathetic!!!!! Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted 4 hours ago Author Members Posted 4 hours ago Trump, Big AI all-in together Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios. Stock: Getty Images President Trump and the AI industry have co-signed one of the biggest economic and technological wagers of all time, Axios' Zachary Basu writes. If it goes right: a new age of abundance — explosive productivity, staggering wealth and a generational leap in American power. If it goes wrong: a catastrophic bust that destroys capital, jobs and, in the words of several involved, threatens widespread human harm. Why it matters: Neither Trump nor the AI titans have plausible deniability. Their fortunes have become so tightly bound that success will be shared — and failure impossible to disown. 🖼️ The big picture: Trump and Big AI have fused their futures around four enormous bets. 1. The economic bet: Trillions poured into chips, data centers and power will create a productivity engine powerful enough to fuel a new Industrial Revolution. AI infrastructure spending is projected to reach $10.3 trillion by 2032, but the payoff remains unproven: one analysis found hyperscalers have spent nearly $1 trillion more on AI since 2024 than AI has generated in revenue. The promise sold by Trump and his tech allies: a new era of growth and abundance. The peril: a historic misallocation of capital on a scale few industries have ever seen. 2. The regulation bet: Washington can clear the runway for an AI takeoff while leaving the companies largely responsible for policing themselves. The new White House accord signed by Trump and the AI giants enshrines voluntary safeguards, company-led testing and third-party reviews instead of new federal mandates. The promise: American dominance over China. The peril: Self-regulation fails, forcing Washington to intervene only after damage has already been inflicted. 3. The safety bet: AI can grow vastly more powerful without becoming vastly harder to control. Many of the most dire safety warnings come from AI researchers themselves. Anthropic's own IPO prospectus contemplates scenarios in which advanced AI kills humanity. The promise is almost limitless: superintelligent systems that help cure diseases and accelerate scientific discovery. The peril: self-improving AI that evolves faster than its creators can comprehend or contain. 4. The political bet: Trump and Big AI can become inseparable without making each other even more toxic. Trump has staked his legacy on winning the AI race, dismissing fears about data centers costing Republicans in the midterms. The industry has staked billions on the policy environment he's creating. The promise: Trump and Big AI become partners in this century's defining technological transformation. The peril: Every AI failure, disruption or backlash becomes a liability they share. The bottom line: Trump and the AI industry are asking the country for a leap of faith at a time when polls show Americans lack faith in both. Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted 3 hours ago Author Members Posted 3 hours ago RELATED COVERAGE ➤ WATCH: Our team explains new AP-NORC poll findings Hegseth announces a new drone command and cuts to 20% of generals 3 GOP states go to US Supreme Court to challenge abortion ‘shield’ laws Senate approves Keith Sonderling, Trump’s pick to lead the Labor Department Data center bill falls short in Senate as lawmakers take final votes before the midterms High gas prices are spurring states to waive taxes and regulations US economy grew a solid 2.2% in the second quarter, government says Fed watchdog finds no crimes in $2.4B building renovation, only mismanagement Human rights groups ask UN to help end ICE’s effort to hide locations of detainees Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
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