Donald Trump has sweeping plans for a second administration. Here’s what he’s proposed

[phkrause]

Trump has unleashed chaos by distraction upon the international community. That’s no accident

LONDON (AP) — The Saudis are furious. The Danes are scrambling. Colombia has backed down. Mexico and Canada stand in a purgatory between tariff wars with the US and … not. China has retaliated, launching a trade war between the economic superpowers. The Brits, long proud of their “special relationship” with the United States, are leaning into their tradition of quiet diplomacy.

https://apnews.com/article/trump-chaos-gaza-greenland-trade-eabba5e346e0c41fb5e9391f84450668?

Trump says ceasefire deal should be canceled if Hamas doesn’t release all hostages by Saturday

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Monday that a precarious ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas should be canceled if Hamas doesn’t release all the remaining hostages it is holding in Gaza by midday on Saturday — though he also said that such a decision would be up to Israel.

https://apnews.com/article/trump-gaza-jordan-egypt-fox-palestinians-be4c67e124f7b8c7d5ad95231fc625a8?

Scientists warn Trump’s medical research cuts endanger patients as judge blocks the move for now

Scientists warn the Trump administration’s drastic cuts for medical research endanger patients, will cost thousands of jobs – and threaten America’s standing as a world leader in science and innovation.

https://apnews.com/article/trump-academic-research-funding-cuts-lawsuit-nih-fcdad42b9623305dd7ad8db4cff5fc1d?

Judge orders fired head of whistleblower agency reinstated while fight continues over Trump removal

WASHINGTON (AP) — A U.S. judge on Monday ordered the fired head of the federal agency dedicated to protecting whistleblowers to be reinstated while a court fight continues over his removal by President Donald Trump.

https://apnews.com/article/trump-office-of-special-counsel-firing-lawsuit-a57d4261fb63ecfe8e62455a5c1b4e0a?

They helped US order airstrikes against Taliban. Now Trump’s moves have left those Afghans in limbo

TIRANA, Albania (AP) — They helped the U.S. military order airstrikes against Taliban and Islamic State fighters and worked as drivers and translators during America’s longest war. They were set to start new lives in the United States.

https://apnews.com/article/refugees-trump-immigration-executive-orders-resettlement-afghans-2a673e3a01ff6fa5006ef47f50dba158?

[phkrause]

Judge extends deadline for federal workers to accept Trump administration’s ‘buyout’ offer

A federal judge has for now extended a pause on the deadline set by the Trump administration for federal workers to accept a deferred resignation offer and temporarily prohibited the government from soliciting more so-called buyouts.

https://www.cnn.com/2025/02/10/politics/buyouts-hearing-tro?

Trump planning to pardon Rod Blagojevich

President Donald Trump is expected to pardon former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, according to a person familiar with the plans.

https://www.axios.com/2025/02/10/trump-pardon-rod-blagojevich?

ps:Of course he will! All criminals need to stick together!!

Trump says his "Gaza takeover" plan won't allow displaced Palestinians to return

President Trump said in an interview with Fox News that the two million Palestinians he wants to move from Gaza to neighboring countries will not have the right to return to the enclave.

https://www.axios.com/2025/02/10/trump-gaza-takeover-plan-displaced-palestinians-fox?

• ?️ Five former Treasury secretaries warn in a New York Times op-ed that Elon Musk's access to the nation's payment system threatens both sensitive data and the rule of law. All five — Robert Rubin, Larry Summers, Tim Geithner, Jacob Lew and Janet Yellen — served in Democratic administrations. "While significant data privacy, cybersecurity and national security threats are gravely concerning, the constitutional issues are perhaps even more alarming," they write. Gift link.

 

Florida could lose millions in medical research dollars, sparking fears that lab lights will ‘go out’

Florida universities and institutions stand to lose millions of dollars in funding from the National Institutes of Health under changes proposed by the Trump administration, alarming researchers that the cuts could slow scientific progress and deprive patients of new treatments.

https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2025/02/10/florida-set-to-lose-millions-in-medical-research-dollars-sparking-fears-that-lab-lights-will-go-out/?

[phkrause]

(Trumps) Justice Department directs prosecutors to drop federal corruption case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams

The Department of Justice is moving to drop the federal corruption case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams, according to a memo obtained by CNN.

https://www.cnn.com/2025/02/10/politics/eric-adams-charges-dropped?

ps:Another criminal being let of the hook, but only as long as he complies with what the criminal in charge needs from him!!!!!

? Trump's executive action frenzy

Data: Axios research. Chart: Kavya Beheraj/Axios President Trump has signed more than 75 executive orders, memos and proclamations during his first 22 days in office — a far faster pace than his predecessors, Axios' Avery Lotz and Sareen Habeshian write. Why it matters: The executive actions reflect Trump's rhetoric on the trail — reducing diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives; cracking down on immigration; and formalizing "America First" foreign policy. ? Yesterday, Trump signed an executive order ending federal purchasing and forced use of paper straws, saying they "don't work" and don't last: "We're going back to plastic straws." ? Jon Stewart said last night on "The Daily Show," to audience laughter and applause: "OK, he's right on this one! He is right on this one. Those straws are ... objectively terrible." White House fact sheet ... Stewart clip. Go deeper: Tracking Trump's executive actions, category by category. Today's New York Times front page. ? Several legal scholars tell Adam Liptak, who covers the Supreme Court for the N.Y. Times, that the U.S. is in the midst of a constitutional crisis, by the definition of "presidential defiance of laws and judicial rulings. It is not binary: It is a slope, not a switch. It can be cumulative." Gift link. Trump told Fox News' Bret Baier during his Super Bowl interview, discussing USAID and the work of Elon Musk: "I think judges will have to do the right thing, really. Otherwise, you're going to have a whole big problem with the country."

[phkrause]

Elon slams Sam

The only fight more hostile than Elon Musk vs. the federal bureaucracy may be Elon Musk vs. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, Axios' Dan Primack and Ina Fried write.

• Why it matters: The victor could help determine the future direction of the world's most powerful technology.

Musk yesterday bid $97.4 billion to buy OpenAI's for-profit assets, which Altman is in the middle of cleaving from the company's nonprofit board.

• This is partly trolling, partly about upstaging the global AI summit in Paris, and partly about trying to slow down a strategic rival who has made recent inroads with President Trump.

⚡ Breaking: Altman told Ina this morning on the sidelines of the AI Action Summit that OpenAI isn't for sale — and particularly not to Musk.

• "There's been like versions of Elon trying to, you know, somehow take control of OpenAI for a long time," Altman told Axios. "So, it's like, OK, here's this week's episode."

?️ The big picture: Either way, Musk wins.

• At a minimum, he makes life difficult for one of his most bitter rivals.
• If Musk or xAI, his AI company, somehow end up with OpenAI's assets, which is extremely unlikely for a slew of reasons, then he wouldn't kick them out of bed, either.

Zoom in: It's unclear if Musk is offering more for the assets than Altman is. But it may not matter.

• OpenAI's board is mission-driven, meaning that it wouldn't necessarily have to take the most lucrative offer.

? This is unlike what happened when Musk bid on Twitter, which was chaired by the exact same person who now chairs OpenAI's board (Bret Taylor).

Via X

?️ Altman was at a dinner in Paris when the news broke — having been seated near Vice President Vance — and tweeted: "no thank you but we will buy twitter for $9.74 billion if you want."

• Musk clapped back: "Swindler."

The intrigue: One of the first things President Trump did when he took office was to announce Stargate, intended to be a $500 billion effort to build infrastructure for OpenAI.

• Musk immediately bashed the project, one of Trump's early big wins, claiming none of the players had the necessary money.
• If Musk controlled OpenAI, it would further entangle his business interests with his new position in the government.

?? Being there: News broke late enough Paris time that most people were at dinners and parties. The heads of state and CEOs were at Élysée Palace, the presidential palace. Second-tier execs and officials were at a foreign ministry event that featured robots (including an AI chef vs. a Michelin-starred chef).

• By the time the Musk news broke, people were dancing to house music as texts about Musk-Altman reverberated.

The bottom line: This episode is likely to become a footnote to the ongoing feud between the tech titans — but shows Musk's willingness to attack a company that Trump all but crowned as America's national AI champion.

[phkrause]

Trump on Vance

President Trump to Fox News' Bret Baier on whether he sees Vice President Vance as his automatic successor as the Republican nominee in 2028:

"No, but he's very capable. I mean, I don't think that it, you know — I think you have a lot of very capable people. So far, I think he's doing a fantastic job. It's too early. We're just starting."

✈️ Vance is using the AI summit in Paris and a security conference in Munich this week to make his vice presidential debut on the international stage.

ps:Wow! Not even 2 months into being VP and already getting kicked under the bus!!!!!

[phkrause]

Package delays

The recent tariffs set in motion by the Trump administration could be to blame for delayed packages coming from China on sites like Amazon, Shein and Temu. Last week, Trump levied a new 10% tariff on all goods coming to the US from China. Initially, the tariffs were also applied to packages imported from China worth less than $800 that were previously exempt. But the Trump administration suspended that provision temporarily, throwing the US Postal Service into chaos as it was forced to halt all package deliveries from China and Hong Kong to comply with the order. Experts say some packages have been caught up in the confusion and could still be sitting with customs, where they were set to undergo a more thorough inspection.

ps:I guess the billion Bezos put in the trump coffers wasn't quite enough???????

 

Gulf of America

The body of water formerly known in the US as the Gulf of Mexico is now listed for US-based users of Google Maps as the Gulf of America. "People using Maps in the US will see 'Gulf of America,' and people in Mexico will see 'Gulf of Mexico.' Everyone else will see both names," Google said in a statement Monday. The search giant said last month it would also change the name of Mount McKinley, the nation's highest peak, from Denali, which was a nod to the region's native population. Both moves stem from an executive action that President Trump signed after taking office, saying the changes "honor American greatness."

[bonnie1962]

1 hour ago, phkrause said:

ps:Another criminal being let of the hook, but only as long as he complies with what the criminal in charge needs from him!!!!!

It is rather humorous that Biden had to pardon his "questionable" family for crimes they might commit in the future. That was really rich. Probably smart tho. This rabid hatred of Trump and every action /word/look is bordering on a sickness. Every president I can remember has pardoned individuals that many found wrong. Desperation is beginning to show.

Personally a lot of us had a problem with Biden pardoning his son now and in the future,

[phkrause]

Clinton initiative cut over 377K federal jobs in the 1990s. It's not comparable to Trump's effort

Looking back on the 1990s, it's strange to imagine a time when a presidential campaign was won on a promise to balance the federal budget. Bill Clinton did it, too — the U.S. federal budget had a surplus between 1998 and 2001, the only time there's been a surplus since 1970. (The government's debt is $36.22 trillion at the time of writing).

https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/clinton-trump-federal-workers/?

USAID did not pay Ben Stiller to visit Ukraine

Claim:

The U.S. Agency for International Development funded actor Ben Stiller's trip to Ukraine, spending around $4 million.

Rating:

False

 

https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/usaid-ben-stiller-ukraine/?

[bonnie1962]

17 minutes ago, phkrause said:

Clinton initiative cut over 377K federal jobs in the 1990s. It's not comparable to Trump's effort

Looking back on the 1990s, it's strange to imagine a time when a presidential campaign was won on a promise to balance the federal budget. Bill Clinton did it, too — the U.S. federal budget had a surplus between 1998 and 2001, the only time there's been a surplus since 1970. (The government's debt is $36.22 trillion at the time of writing).

https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/clinton-trump-federal-workers/?

USAID did not pay Ben Stiller to visit Ukraine

Claim:

The U.S. Agency for International Development funded actor Ben Stiller's trip to Ukraine, spending around $4 million.

Rating:

False

 

https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/usaid-ben-stiller-ukraine/?

I am not sure if there was a comparison between Clinton or not. Don't know that I care how many federal employees get the ax. 

I am certain that there will be truth, exaggeration and outright lies at times. Would that come as a surprise to anyone?? If some of this moronic spending comes to an end that is the main thing. That is true of whichever party is in the White House,  Sad but true. I noticed a very obvious lack of concern over the dishonesty of the previous administration. Now  all this huffing and puffing. Pretty laughable after the past four years.

[bonnie1962]

21 minutes ago, bonnie1962 said:

I am not sure if there was a comparison between Clinton or not. Don't know that I care how many federal employees get the ax. 

I am certain that there will be truth, exaggeration and outright lies at times. Would that come as a surprise to anyone?? If some of this moronic spending comes to an end that is the main thing. That is true of whichever party is in the White House,  Sad but true. I noticed a very obvious lack of concern over the dishonesty of the previous administration. Now  all this huffing and puffing. Pretty laughable after the past four years.

I don't see anything sacred about a federal employee

 

[Gustave]

The media spasms can be attributed to the stunning amount of fraud and theft that's been going on in the Federal Agencies - Liberals know that "Daddy" has moved back in and he's got his belt out and is past ready to use it. It's going to be much harder now to use federal $ to set up a man with breasts and high heels to perform / dance gyrate their hips in front of toddlers. This is a stinging insult to the Liberal media who has grown accustomed to "supple piglet" being sacrificed to "Minor attracted persons". 

At some point a figure of announced savings will be put forth, the money Musk and Trump saved - my hunch is that some of this money will be used to start meaningful programs in the Cities for disadvantaged people and after that ball gets rolling the Democrat Party can pat itself on the rump as it heads to the trash heap of history. A once solid party soiled itself to the point it's only use became to serve itself. This is sad.

[phkrause]

Republican lawmakers urge Trump to respect federal court rulings

( The Hill ) – Senate Republicans are urging President Trump to respect the rulings of federal judges who have blocked his executive actions to freeze spending federal grants and loans, dismantle the U.S. Agency on International Development (USAID) and ban birthright citizenship.

https://www.newsbreak.com/news/3805171402940-republican-lawmakers-urge-trump-to-respect-federal-court-rulings?

Trump Orders ICE Purge of Top Officials as Deportations Fall Short

President Donald Trump has axed two top officials from their positions at Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) as pressure mounts for the federal agency to meet his ambitious deportation targets.

https://www.newsbreak.com/news/3805301990211-trump-orders-ice-purge-of-top-officials-as-deportations-fall-short?

With firings and lax enforcement, Trump is moving to dismantle government’s public integrity guardrails In the first three weeks of his administration, President Donald Trump has moved with brazen haste to dismantle the federal government’s public integrity guardrails that he frequently tested during his first term but now seems intent on removing entirely. Read more.

Why this matters: In a span of hours Monday, Trump forced out leaders of offices responsible for government ethics and whistleblower complaints. And in a boon to corporations, he ordered a pause on enforcement of a decades-old law that prohibits American companies from bribing foreign governments to win business. All of that came on top of the earlier late-night purge of more than a dozen inspectors general who are tasked with rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse at government agencies.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤ Hegseth renames North Carolina military base Fort Roland L. Bragg   Top Justice Dept. official orders prosecutors to drop charges against NY Mayor Eric Adams   Trump steps up his 2018 tariffs on steel and aluminum, risking inflation on promise of more jobs   Judge finds Trump administration hasn’t fully followed his order to unfreeze federal spending   US cyber agency puts election security staffers who worked with the states on leave   US judge keeps Trump plan to push out federal workers on hold   Third judge blocks Trump’s order ending birthright citizenship for kids of people in US illegally   Unspent aid worth billions lacks oversight as Trump dismantles USAID, watchdog warns   How Elon Musk’s crusade against government could benefit Tesla   Trump pardons ex-Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich 5 years after commuting his sentence   Trump pushes for plastic straws as he declares paper ones ‘don’t work’   News influencers favored Trump over Harris during campaign, study finds

[phkrause]

One Agency Tried to Regulate SpaceX. Now Its Fate Could Be in Elon Musk’s Hands.

When SpaceX’s Starship exploded in January, raining debris over the Caribbean, the Federal Aviation Administration temporarily grounded the rocket program and ordered an investigation. The move was the latest in a series of actions taken by the agency against the world’s leading commercial space company.

https://www.propublica.org/article/elon-musk-spacex-doge-faa-ast-regulation-spaceflight-trump?

ps:I guess that's not a conflict of interest?????

In Breaking USAID, the Trump Administration May Have Broken the Law

It was the week President Donald Trump had signed a sweeping executive order shutting off the funding for foreign aid programs. Inside the U.S. Agency for International Development, his political appointees gathered shell-shocked senior staffers for private meetings to discuss the storied agency’s new reality.

https://www.propublica.org/article/usaid-trump-musk-destruction-may-have-broken-law?

After meeting with Trump, Jordan’s king says his country opposes displacing Palestinians in Gaza

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump hosted Jordan’s King Abdullah II at the White House on Tuesday and renewed his insistence that Gaza could somehow be emptied of all residents, controlled by the U.S. and redeveloped as a tourist area.

https://apnews.com/article/trump-abdullah-jordan-gaza-hamas-israel-1f3ef249419ce61fc5c0f41412c24cb0?

Wrongfully detained American teacher Marc Fogel meets with Trump after being released from Russia in an ‘exchange’

Marc Fogel, an American teacher detained for more than three years in Russia, was welcomed back to the US by President Donald Trump on Tuesday night after the White House secured his release in an “exchange.”

https://www.cnn.com/2025/02/11/politics/marc-fogel-released-russia-trump/index.html?

Pope rebukes Trump administration over immigrant deportations and appears to aim directly at Vance

ROME (AP) — Pope Francis issued a major rebuke Tuesday to the Trump administration’s plans for mass deportations of migrants, warning that the forceful removal of people purely because of their illegal status deprives them of their inherent dignity and “will end badly.”

https://apnews.com/article/pope-trump-migration-09a89091f8e7dc3270099f0947d04e90?

Judge tells agencies to restore webpages and data removed after Trump’s executive order

WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge on Tuesday ordered government agencies to restore public access to health-related webpages and datasets that they removed to comply with an executive order by President Donald Trump.

https://apnews.com/article/trump-cdc-fda-doctors-for-america-5263fc6b6cbc723ca0c86c4460d02f33?

[phkrause]

Plastic straws have come to symbolize a global pollution crisis. Trump wants them to stay

Straws might seem insignificant, inspiring jokes about the plastic vs. paper debate, but the plastic straw has come to symbolize a global pollution crisis over the past decade.

https://apnews.com/article/trump-plastic-straws-pollution-oceans-packaging-e40da624633e75f120221d1d1d202554?

[phkrause]

⚔️ Musk's double-edged sword

Elon Musk's slash-and-burn approach is giving the White House genuine street cred with House conservatives. But it might not be enough to compensate for the outrage he's provoked among House Democrats.

Why it matters: If Democrats hold the line — and withhold their votes to fund the government — it will be exceedingly difficult for House Speaker Mike Johnson to avoid a government shutdown.

• Musk is flipping the traditional equation, in which Democrats vote to fund the government and Republicans feel compelled to do so under duress.
• While not all Democrats are on board with holding the government hostage to their anti-DOGE demands, many are clearly contemplating it.

Zoom in: For all the outraged Democrats that Johnson might lose because of Musk, he'll be on the hunt for Republican votes to replace them.

• "It helps," said Rep. Ralph Norman (R-S.C.). "However, the baseline needs to be intact at $2 trillion," he added, referring to how much spending he wants to cut in the (separate) reconciliation bill.
• "That's just additional," said Rep. Scott Perry (R-Pa.). "We appreciate it, but that's not enough."
• "We're excited to see it," said Rep. Warren Davidson (R-Ohio). However, "you're looking at two different things. What DOGE is working on is mostly stuff that we have to deal with by March 14."

By the numbers: In the last few government funding votes, more Democrats than Republicans have voted to prevent a shutdown.

• In December, Johnson lost 34 House conservatives on funding the government. In September, the number was even higher: 82 House Republicans voted against it.
• In both cases, every House Democrat supported it.

— Hans Nichols and Andrew Solender

⚖️ Trump's many-front court war

Data: Just Security. Chart: Kavya Beheraj/Axios Every one of President Trump's most sweeping executive orders is now being challenged in court by multiple lawsuits, Axios' Erin Doherty and Sam Baker write. Why it matters: They're setting the stage for historic Supreme Court showdowns that could test Trump's push to remake the federal government — and increase his power. They also could provide roadmaps for how to stop him. ?️ The big picture: Less than four weeks into Trump's term, the Justice Department is already defending signature parts of his agenda in more than 50 lawsuits. Judges have temporarily stopped several of his top priorities from taking effect — at least for now. But in many cases the White House is purposely pushing its legal limits, inviting this tsunami of legal challenges — signaling the administration's confidence that the conservative-led Supreme Court will back Trump. State of play: Three big pieces of Trump's agenda — immigration, trans rights and slashing the federal bureaucracy — seem particularly likely to make it to the high court. Immigration: Three federal judges — in New Hampshire, Maryland and Washington state — have ordered a freeze on Trump's Day 1 executive order to end birthright citizenship, including one who called it "blatantly unconstitutional." At least 22 states and other organizations have sued over Trump's order. Federal workforce: Trump's effort to slash federal programs has run into some snags in court, but legal experts believe he's likely to have the Supreme Court on his side. Judges have temporarily blocked the "buyout" deadline for federal workers and his decision to put thousands of employees at USAID on leave. Transgender rights: A federal judge temporarily blocked Trump's order that would transfer incarcerated transgender women to men's prison facilities, and would block them from receiving medical treatments for gender transitions. Keep reading.

[phkrause]

? Ford CEO: Trump creating "costs and chaos"

Ford CEO Jim Farley in 2023. Photo: Ryan Garza/USA Today via Reuters President Trump's early tariff moves have one thing in common: No matter the target, they all threaten to "blow a hole" in the auto industry, Ford CEO Jim Farley said at a conference in New York yesterday. Why it matters: Whether the tariffs are national (Canada, Mexico) or material (steel, aluminum), the industry fears the same effect — millions of cars a year coming in from Asia and Europe with a sudden cost advantage, Axios' Joann Muller writes. ?️ "So far, what we're seeing is a lot of costs and a lot of chaos," Farley said. "Let's be real honest long-term: A 25% tariff across the Mexico and Canadian border will blow a hole in the U.S. industry that we have never seen." Keep reading.   Federal agencies Dozens of federal workers gathered in Washington, DC, on Tuesday to protest for their jobs amid extensive cuts to federal agencies. Many were placed on administrative leave last week as part of Elon Musk's broader efforts to reduce government spending. On Tuesday, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing agencies to work with Musk's Department of Government Efficiency to cut staff and limit hiring. Most Republicans, at least publicly, support efforts to gut the federal workforce. But under the surface, some GOP lawmakers are growing concerned about the pair's efforts to usurp the authority of Congress.

[phkrause]

White House says it’s the judges — not Trump — causing a ‘constitutional crisis’

WASHINGTON (AP) — In the weeks since Donald Trump returned to office, Democrats and legal scholars have warned that he’s provoking a constitutional crisis by trying to expand his power and ignore laws that stand in his way.

https://apnews.com/article/trump-judges-rulings-constitutional-crisis-presidential-power-a9c593cf3f9faec23a03f4a5123fefdb?

Senate confirms Gabbard as Trump’s director of national intelligence after Republicans fall in line

WASHINGTON (AP) — Tulsi Gabbard was sworn in as President Donald Trump’s director of national intelligence on Wednesday shortly after she was confirmed by the Senate, where Republicans who had initially questioned her experience and judgment fell in line behind her nomination.

https://apnews.com/article/tulsi-gabbard-trump-senate-national-intelligence-director-a1045b3f6bf91e491892e347b42cdc90?

Inspectors general sue Trump admin over their firings

Eight of the federal agency watchdogs abruptly fired by President Trump last month filed a lawsuit Wednesday challenging their terminations.

https://www.axios.com/2025/02/12/trump-inspector-generals-lawsuit-firings?

Trump taps RNC executive as national cyber director

President Donald Trump is nominating RNC executive Sean Cairncross as his national cyber director, according to a list of new administration nominations obtained by Axios.

https://www.axios.com/2025/02/12/trump-names-rnc-executive-national-cyber-director?

Editorial: Trump’s Gaza bombshell would constitute ethnic cleansing

No president ever proposed anything so unhinged as Donald Trump’s brutal fantasy of evicting some 2.3 million Palestinians from Gaza and turning it into a massive real estate deal.

https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2025/02/12/trumps-gaza-bombshell-is-founded-on-ethnic-cleansing-editorial/?

[phkrause]

Congestion pricing

President Donald Trump wants to end New York City’s landmark traffic policy, but the program — the first in the US — is off to a strong start. Some drivers’ commutes are getting faster, and more people are walking around lower Manhattan. Crushed by tariffs? American craft beers, brewed in steel and canned in aluminum, are expected to take a hit from Trump’s new tariffs. They’re driving up the cost of critical materials for the once-flourishing industry, which has suffered several blows in recent years.

[phkrause]

The Trump Supporters Who Didn’t Take Him at His Word

The president keeps doing what he said he’d do, and some of his supporters keep being surprised.

By David A. Graham

A Foreseeable Future

Ask Trump supporters why they like the president, and chances are good you’ll hear something like: He tells it like it is and says what he means. The question, then, is why so many of them refused to take him at his word. Over the first three weeks of the second Trump presidency, a recurrent motif is that Trump does exactly what he said he would, and then people who backed him react with shock and dismay.

If you’re surprised, you weren’t paying attention—and judging from recent examples, many people weren’t. When Trump announced his plan (I’m using the word generously) to occupy the Gaza Strip and convert it into an international real-estate development, the chairman of Arab Americans for Trump, which formed to back him during the election, expressed shock and betrayal, and announced that the group would rename itself Arab Americans for Peace. Some Arab American voters may have felt compelled to lodge a protest vote against Joe Biden’s handling of the war in Gaza, even if it meant contributing to Trump’s win, but no one should have been surprised that a guy who used Palestinian as an insult during the campaign was not a sincere champion for the people of Gaza.

Some Venezuelan Americans in Florida are feeling similar outrage. Trump continued to make gains with Hispanic voters in 2024, but this month he ended Temporary Protected Status, a designation that allows noncitizens to stay in the country, for about 300,000 Venezuelans, with more TPS designees likely to lose their status later. “They used us,” the Venezuelan activist Adelys Ferro told NPR. “During the campaign, the elected officials from the Republican Party, they actually told us that he was not going to touch the documented people. They said, ‘No, it is with undocumented people.’” In fact, both Trump and Vice President J. D. Vance said they wanted to deport people legally allowed in the country, such as Haitians in Springfield, Ohio. Some voters just convinced themselves that their own groups wouldn’t become targets.

They’re not alone. Some Kentucky educators who voted for Trump are aghast that his administration is trying to cut off federal funding that they need to keep their schools functioning, despite his campaign-trail promises to abolish the Department of Education. “I did not vote for that,” one principal told CNN. “I voted for President Trump to make America first again and to improve our lives.” The Fraternal Order of Police, the nation’s largest police union, endorsed Trump for president, then decried Trump’s decision to pardon January 6 rioters who attacked police officers—never mind that he had promised pardons while campaigning. CEOs and bankers who decided they liked Trump better because he favors low taxes and less regulation are suddenly chagrined to learn that he was serious about tariffs. A Missouri farmer who voted for Trump is horrified that the administration is freezing federal funding for conservation programs, even though Trump promised to eliminate environmental programs and slash government spending.

All of this was foreseeable. In a 2015 tweet that remains depressingly relevant a decade later, Adrian Bott joked: “‘I never thought leopards would eat MY face,’ sobs woman who voted for the Leopards Eating People’s Faces Party.” But I don’t want to single out ordinary citizens. Even Republican members of Congress are doing the same dance—cheering on Trump cuts in general but scrambling to protect their own states from losing any federal money. They ran for office with the Leopards Eating People’s Faces Party, but they never expected the leopards to eat their faces too.

Other Trump promises were pretty dubious if you listened to the rest of his plans. “Starting on day one, we will end inflation and make America affordable again,” he said. But Trump’s signature campaign ideas were large tariffs and mass deportation. Both of these are inflationary: Tariffs raise the price of goods, and mass deportation makes labor scarcer, raising salaries, which in turn drives prices higher. Today, the Federal Reserve released the first Consumer Price Index update of Trump’s term, finding 3 percent inflation. That’s a hair above economists’ expectations but in line with last month’s figures. Persistent inflation shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone, and not only because of the sharp rise in egg prices, driven by bird flu, that my colleague Lora Kelley covered last week.

You don’t need an economics degree to predict this. You just had to heed the many warnings about it, which even Fox News covered. Or you could just listen to what Trump said, as when he suggested that tariffs would pay for child care or that Biden’s encouragement of wind power was responsible for inflation. These aren’t just the kinds of comforting nonsense all politicians sometimes peddle; they’re incoherent. Since winning the election, he has downplayed his inflation promises and announced a set of tariffs that, although not fully felt yet, may already be edging prices higher. Now Trump wants the Fed to drop interest rates, which would stimulate the economy—and likely increase inflation.

When Trump ran for president in 2016, uncertainty about his seriousness was understandable. He was a legendary merchant of hyperbole, and no one was sure where his persona ended and his real political intentions began. No such excuse applies anymore—as I pointed out in September, Trump was president once, and he tried to keep most of his big promises, albeit often ineffectively. This time around, Trump said he was going to do these things—and hey, he tells it like it is.

https://www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/archive/2025/02/the-trump-supporters-who-didnt-take-him-at-his-word/681674/?

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Federal judge allows Trump's "buyout" plan for federal employees to move forward

A federal judge in Boston is allowing the Trump administration to move forward with its federal worker “buyout” program for the moment.

https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/trump-presidency-tulsi-gabbard-confirmation-02-12-25?

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Masculine maximalism

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

President Trump and Elon Musk, arguably the two most unorthodox and influential American leaders of the 21st century, are practicing and fine-tuning a fused theory of governing power: Masculine maximalism. Why it matters: Trump and Musk believe powerfully in maximalist action and language, carried out by strong (mostly) white men as blunt, uncompromising instruments to prove new limits both to power and what's possible, Jim VandeHei and Mike Allen write in a "Behind the Curtain" column. "Fix Bayonets," Steve Bannon, a first-term Trump official whose "War Room" podcast makes him one of the most widely followed outside MAGA voices, texted us. "We are 'Burning Daylight' — short window to get this done." Trump, first in business and then politics, and Musk, first in business and now politics, are feeding off each other's natural instincts to do, say and operate by their own new rules. These instincts made them rich, famous and impervious to traditional rules, norms and even laws. Their success makes dissuasion by others futile, administration officials tell us. Trump and Musk view masculinity quite similarly: tough-guy language, macho actions, irreverent, crude — and often unmoved by emotionalism, empathy or restraint. ?️ The big picture: So much has happened so fast, in so little time, that it's hard to measure what matters most in the first 24 days of the Trump presidency (not even a month yet!). But stepping way back and appraising the totality of actions, the biggest shift is the instant imposition of this new power theory across all of government and the Republican Party: There's no opposition to this maximalist approach among Trump's staff or major MAGA media voices. And it's extremely limited among Republican lawmakers: Some have privately expressed concerns about DOGE, and winced at Vice President Vance's salvo about judges not being "allowed to control the executive's legitimate power." But even most GOP senators who expressed initial reservations about cabinet picks have turned supportive. ? Behind the scenes: Charlie Kirk — founder and president of Turning Point USA, MAGA's youth wing, and host of one of the most powerful MAGA podcasts — told us the "flood the zone" aggressiveness of the administration's first month will only increase as more top officials get confirmed and rolling. "This is just setting the foundation," Kirk said. "He's set a pace and said: My team can see the tempo I want." Kirk, who is very close to Trump, told us Trump's maximalist instincts are being amplified by his battle-hardened staff and Cabinet. "You have an entire Avengers team of people able to fulfill the president's wishes and orders," Kirk said. "When you're in exile for a couple of years, and have people writing your political eulogy, you enter with increased motivation and energy." Kirk, whose social media feeds are one of the most vivid reflections (and drivers) of MAGA sentiment, said his callers and followers are thrilled with what they're getting: "They knew he was serious. But they didn't know they'd get it so quickly, decisively and declaratively." Via X yesterday. ? Reality check: Trump is very intentionally testing the limits of executive power. The WSJ editorial contends: "Trump may be wrong, but there is no constitutional crisis as the cases make their way through the courts." What to watch: Democrats are beyond baffled on how to deal with Trump, Musk and maximalist power simultaneously. The opposition lacks anyone with a remotely similar social media and traditional media star power, or a coherent legislative way to slow or stop them. So Democrats are down to betting on the courts — or a future maximalist public backlash to maximalism. Column continues below.

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Part 2: The Trump-Musk formula

The Trump-Musk formula is now manifested everywhere, Jim and Mike write:

1. Power asserted, power claimed: Trump and Musk, much like they did in the private sector, set their own new limits of authority by stating them emphatically and acting aggressively.

• Trump and Musk have moved to cut at least 10,000 federal workers, while vowing "large-scale reductions in force (RIFs)" as part of "workforce reform" ... and offered deferred resignation packages to more than 2 million federal workers. (A federal judge on Wednesday let the "buyout" program proceed. The administration said it's now closed.)
• Trump and Musk sought to freeze federal grants and loans that total in the trillions ... and targeted "hundreds of billions" in fraudulent federal spending. Musk's DOGE gained access to Treasury's highly sensitive payment system.
• Trump threatened a global trade war ... stunned the world by saying the U.S. would "take over" Gaza ... stripped security details from his own former secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, and other former officials ... revoked the security clearance of former President Biden, ending his classified intelligence briefings ... and fired more than a dozen inspectors general — watchdogs who root out Executive Branch abuse.
• Trump's Pentagon deployed active-duty troops to the Southwest border. Trump's Justice Department pushed federal prosecutors to drop corruption charges against New York Mayor Eric Adams. And Trump pardoned former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D), who went to prison for political corruption.
• Trump, after campaigning as an American First hardliner, often sounds like limitless expansionist: saying the U.S. would "take over" Gaza ... and pushing to buy Greenland, make Canada the 51st state and take back the Panama Canal.

Via X yesterday.

2. Precedents are for chumps: Both think conventional, polite, rule-following CEOs and leaders are suckers and conformists. They believe wimps and posers play by the rules, worry about hurt feelings or damaged lives, and seek consensus.

• So far, Trump and Musk have every reason to feel vindicated: Most Republicans in Congress have sat by idly, or applauded gleefully, as the two laid claim to congressional powers of the purse and Cabinet scrutiny.
• Trump and Musk are freezing programs and firing federal employees — with scant scrutiny and little transparency.
• A Wall Street Journal editorial points out that Trump deliberately incited legal challenges with his executive order ending birthright citizenship, and by firing a member of the National Labor Relations Board: "Trump believes he'll win on both issues because he thinks previous Supreme Court rulings were wrongly decided." The Journal says Trump is on new legal ground by targeting the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and USAID — both of which were established by Congress.

3. Let men be men: Yes, there are some powerful women around Trump — led by White House chief of staff Susie Wiles. But the vast majority of the public and private action is carried about by aggressive, white men.

• They include Musk and his all-male DOGE posse; Stephen Miller, a White House deputy chief of staff who also is homeland security adviser and immigration lead; and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, the former Fox News star and decorated Army combat veteran who's bringing some of Trump's most disruptive dreams to life.

4. Humiliate the humbled: Both Trump and Musk use public appearances and social media posts to bully and pummel critics across politics, media and culture. They scoff at calls for humility and grace when blessed with power.

• In the case of transgender people, they want to restore "biological truth" and "the immutable biological reality of sex," as a Day 1 executive order put it, by making it "the policy of the United States to recognize two sexes, male and female."
• Both men like to provoke outrage — and outrageous responses. That makes Trump and Musk the center of the national conversation — and baits hyperventilating critics into outrageous responses.
• Trump and Musk have followed through on their promise to decimate DEI, targeting hundreds of such jobs. The Free Press wrote that the Trump administration, "and many of its highest-profile supporters, are fueling the idea that any minority with a job might not actually deserve it. These people see DEI everywhere."

5. Fused styles, fused worldview: As captured by Vance's AI speech in Paris this week, the most surprising twist in the Trump governing agenda reflects a fusion not just of the Trump and Musk styles but also their worldviews — nationalism with techno-optimism.

• Trump was indifferent or outright hostile to many Big Tech companies in his first term and most of his campaign. But now: Quick, vast AI expansion sits at the heart of his evolving economic agenda and philosophy.
• At the same time, Musk has been a vocal champion of nationalism. They're of one style, and increasingly of one shared mind and ideology.

? Join Jim & Mike next Wednesday for a webinar on "How Trump Thinks" — with special guest Marc Caputo, one of the best-wired Trump reporters — as part of our AM Executive Briefing membership series. Subscribe here.

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Mass deportation plan hits wall

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

President Trump's vow to deport "millions and millions" of unauthorized immigrants is meeting harsh reality and already stretching the limits of the government's resources less than four weeks into the new administration, Axios' Brittany Gibson writes. Why it matters: A lack of funds, detention space, officers and infrastructure to handle arrested immigrants is frustrating many involved in the effort — and made goals such as 1 million deportations this year seem unrealistic. ? Zoom in: That urgency led the White House to ask Congress for an immediate infusion of $175 billion to help ICE acquire more detention space, boost staff and address other needs. "At the end of the day, we've gotta just spend money," Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) said in a brief interview at the White House. "Unfortunately the American taxpayers are going to have to pay the bill on this." ICE agents and cooperating agencies say they're arresting 600 to 1,100 people a day, according to disclosures from the White House and ICE on X. That would put the administration on track to arrest roughly 25,000 immigrants in Trump's first month of office — far off the reach-goal of deporting 1 million a year that Vice President Vance pitched on the campaign trail. Since Trump took office Jan. 20, a lack of detention space has led to more than 460 arrestees being freed under the "catch and release" program. Go deeper: 5 biggest obstacles to mass deportation plan.

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? Trump touts Putin meeting

Via Truth Social yesterday.

President Trump said he might meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Saudi Arabia, Axios' Barak Ravid reports. Trump made the comment a few hours after speaking with Putin in their first publicly disclosed call since Trump took office. Why it matters: Trump said they had agreed on "starting negotiations immediately" to end the war in Ukraine, which is approaching its third anniversary. ?? Trump seemed to make key concessions on Ukraine's behalf ahead of any such talks, saying: "I don't think it is practical for Ukraine to have NATO membership" and that it's "unlikely that Ukraine gets all of its land back." But Trump later said he thought "some of that land will come back" to Ukraine. Keep reading.

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Federal firings

Scores of firings have begun at federal agencies, with terminations of probationary employees underway at the Department of Education and the Small Business Administration, sources told CNN. The moves mark the first from the Trump administration as Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency aims to dramatically shrink the federal workforce and pull back on government spending. Until now, federal employees across all US agencies had only been placed on paid administrative leave. The full scope of the firings remains unclear, though it has impacted at least dozens of workers. 

Trump-Putin call

President Trump said negotiations to end the Ukraine war will start "immediately" after he held a "lengthy and highly productive" phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday. The two leaders discussed the future of the conflict and "agreed to work together, very closely, including visiting each other's Nations," Trump said. His predecessor, President Joe Biden, hadn't spoken to his Russian counterpart in nearly three years, believing there was little to be gained in speaking to a leader he'd deemed a war criminal. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth also reaffirmed that the US will no longer prioritize European and Ukrainian security as the Trump administration focuses on securing US borders and deterring war with China.