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

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1 for the road: Military parade prep

Tanks on the back of a rail car before being unloaded in Jessup, Md., yesterday for the Army parade. Photo: Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images The military parade in Washington on Saturday, celebrating the U.S. Army's 250th birthday, will have 18 miles of "anti-scale fencing" and 175 magnetometers at security checkpoints. The Army estimates 200,000 will attend the event, which coincides with Flag Day. An aerial shot of M1 Abrams tanks and Bradley Fighting Vehicles in Jessup, Md., yesterday. Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Keep reading ... Saturday's timeline. ps:Are we living in a dictatorship??????????

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Whistleblower Lawsuit Exposes Trump’s Secret ICE Plot

A new lawsuit accuses the Trump administration of using a secret subpoena to force Colorado officials to ignore state laws and hand over private financial information of residents sponsoring unaccompanied immigrant children. The state’s Democratic Governor, Jared Polis, is demanding that those state officials comply, allegedly under threat of termination, according to court documents reviewed by The Lever. 

https://www.levernews.com/whistleblower-lawsuit-exposes-trumps-secret-ice-plot/?

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? Law and order, except if you’re a corporation. After the Trump administration froze enforcement of federal anti-corruption law banning the bribing of foreign officials, new guidance released this week reveals the Department of Justice will narrow the scope of its Foreign Corrupt Practices Act investigations to individual conduct that “directly undermines U.S. national interests,” meaning corporations are off the hook at home for their wrongdoing abroad. 

• To comply with these new guidelines, the Justice Department’s prosecutorial team investigating foreign bribes — a squad that has shrunk by half since January — has closed 50 percent of all FCPA cases, according to the Wall Street Journal.

? Oh, you wanted a tax cut, too? GOP lawmakers have promised that their shrinkage of social services like Medicaid, Medicare, and SNAP in the big beautiful bill are necessary to pay for tax cuts for the working class — but now those breaks are also on the chopping block. According to Politico, Senate Republicans want to make the budget’s new tax breaks for corporations and the wealthy permanent, and to achieve that they plan to slash about $230 billion in cuts for the middle class that aren’t “as pro-growth,” including Trump’s campaign trail-touted no taxes on tips and overtime.

Some things never change. Elon Musk and Donald Trump are so over… but Musk’s taxpayer-funded gravy train may live on. While Trump publicly threatens to cancel the federal government’s contracts with the DOGE figurehead’s companies, a quiet carveout could see billions of dollars in rural Americans’ broadband funding held hostage to enforce an artificial intelligence regulatory gift— and possibly directed to Musk’s satellite company Starlink. 

Moving on. During the Biden administration, lawmakers allocated $42 billion to bring high-speed internet to rural and underserved communities under the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program. The original legislation prioritized fiber-optic infrastructure, which is widely regarded as the industry’s gold standard due to its durability, speed, bandwidth, and job creation. However, the Trump administration recently issued new guidance for BEAD funding that includes a complete "restructuring” of the program, tilting the playing field for satellites by revoking the Biden-era “fiber preference” provision and replacing it with a mandated low-cost one.

• Critics say fiber optic-focused infrastructure (which can be expensive to install in rural areas) is too costly for taxpayers. However, one state official shared data with Bloomberg showing satellites would cost consumers 53 percent more than fiber-optic over the next 30 years, in part due to their high maintenance costs (which can necessitate going into space, when repaired at all).

A satellite-sized carveout.  While spearheading BEAD’s restructuring, Trump Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick — a Musk endorsee and supporter — reportedly singled out Starlink as a potential new vendor. Meanwhile, the administration guidance issued last week confirmed as much as $20 billion in taxpayer BEAD funds are now available to alternative broadband technologies, including Starlink’s satellites. That’s up significantly from the $4.1 billion in funds that The Wall Street Journal reported Musk’s company was set to receive from the program. 

Taking it out on taxpayers. Meanwhile, backlash against Republicans’ proposed federal AI preemption measure (which originally would have banned states from issuing their own regulations on the technology for 10 years) has led lawmakers to weaken the provision. Now, the big beautiful bill would punish states that regulate AI by revoking their BEAD funding. Meanwhile, the administration's BEAD restructuring also nixes climate and labor standards and rolls back provisions requiring that BEAD-funded providers offer discounted internet plans to low-income customers.

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The DOGE 100: Musk Is Out, but More Than 100 of His Followers Remain to Implement Trump’s Blueprint

In an effort launched shortly after DOGE’s creation, ProPublica has now identified more than 100 private-sector executives, engineers and investors from Silicon Valley, big American banks and tech startups enlisted to help President Donald Trump dramatically downsize the U.S. government.

https://www.propublica.org/article/doge-elon-musk-trump-staffers-tracker-update?

EPA Drops Legal Case Against the GEO Group, a Major Trump Donor, Over Its Misuse of Harmful Disinfectant in an ICE Facility

The Environmental Protection Agency has withdrawn a legal complaint filed last year against the GEO Group, a major donor to President Donald Trump that has more than $1 billion in contracts with the administration to run private prisons and ICE detention facilities.

https://www.propublica.org/article/epa-legal-complaint-geo-group-trump?

ps:Money talks as always with this so called potus!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Live updates: Newsom asks court to block Trump's use of military to support LA immigration raids

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has filed an emergency motion in federal court to block National Guard members and Marines from assisting with immigration raids in Los Angeles. “Trump is turning the U.S. military against American citizens,” Newsom wrote on X. Read More.

Top RFK Jr. aide attacks US health system while running company that promotes wellness alternatives

A top aide to Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has built a following by accusing the nation's top medical institutions of financial corruption. But Calley Means, now serving as a White House aide, has his own financial stake in the nation's health system. Read More.

Trump's tax bill could raise taxes on foreign companies, hurting investment from abroad

President Donald Trump likes to say he’s bringing in trillions of dollars in investments from foreign countries, but a provision in his tax cuts bill could cause international companies to avoid expanding into the United States. Read More.

Some visitors report extra scrutiny at US airports as Trump’s new travel ban begins

President Donald Trump's new ban on travel to the U.S. by citizens from a dozen countries took effect Monday with relative calm, as some travelers with valid visas reported extra scrutiny at American airports before being allowed entry. Read More.

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More protests for Army parade

Temporary fencing is seen from the Washington Monument yesterday ahead of the Army's 250th birthday parade. Photo: Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images People protesting this weekend's multimillion-dollar military parade in Washington will be met with "very big force," President Trump said today. Demonstrations are planned in hundreds of cities to counter Saturday's parade, which coincides with Trump's birthday, the U.S. Army's 250th anniversary and Flag Day. ? "For those people that want to protest, they're going to be met with very big force," Trump said during an Oval Office press conference. "I haven't even heard about a protest," he said, "but ... this is people that hate our country." ? By the numbers: Army officials estimate some 200,000 people will come to Washington to see the parade, per AP. Officials are installing 18 miles of security fencing. There's no formal protest planned in Washington — organizers said they wanted to create a "contrast" with Trump, not a direct conflict. Go deeper.

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? Troops in LA will cost $134 million

National Guard soldiers stand outside the Edward R. Roybal Federal Building in Los Angeles yesterday. Photo: Kyle Grillot/Bloomberg via Getty Images More troops — including members of the National Guard as well as 700 Marines — are arriving in Los Angeles, though protests have calmed down significantly since Sunday night. The deployment is costing about $134 million, the Pentagon's acting comptroller said at a congressional budget hearing today. ⏱️ The latest: California Gov. Gavin Newsom seized on reports that the White House sent troops to LA without first securing a place for them to sleep, or arranging for supplies like food and water, criticizing the military presence as a haphazard stunt. "They wouldn't even have to be there had you just done your job," Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell shot back on X. What we're watching: Anti-ICE protests have sprung up all over the country over the past few days, Axios' Avery Lotz reports.

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$1,000 per baby

The so-called “Trump accounts” would provide parents of newborns with money to invest on behalf of their child’s future as part of a five-year pilot program. Here’s how it would work and who would benefit the most. ps:For what purpose? To just let them go into poverty later??   ⛔️ Republicans warn on deportations Some GOP lawmakers are starting to warn the Trump administration to reconsider its all-in deportation push. Why it matters: Republicans are convinced they have a clear mandate to kick out hardened criminals and gang members. But differences are emerging on how aggressively ICE should deport workers, longtime residents and some people who've sought refuge from brutal regimes. The White House wants ICE to arrest 3,000 people a day, and to dramatically boost their deportation numbers. That could lead to more workplace raids. Zoom in: Rep. David Valadao (R-Calif.) is urging Trump officials to "prioritize the removal of known criminals over the hardworking people who have lived peacefully in the Valley for years." Rep. Carlos Gimenez (R-Fla.) is worried about deporting people "that have been here for a while. There's some talk of jobs, etc., and also disrupting parts of the economy. We need to work something else out for those," he told us. Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-Texas) told CNN: "I think a big part of that is we all need to focus on convicted criminal, illegal aliens" instead of farm laborers. Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla.) told us: "There are some legitimate folks who have potential legitimate claims that if you send them back to a regime like Cuba or Nicaragua or potentially North Korea … we might be sending them to a situation where we frankly just don't want to do that." The other side: Some of the most vulnerable House Republicans said they have few qualms about the way Trump's deportation campaign is being carried out. "Rule of law is important," Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.) told Axios. But "each case-by-case could be different, and I trust our ICE to do it by the book." Rep. Zach Nunn (R-Iowa) said his primary concern is Afghan SIV applicants, but that he has had "nothing but success in being able to help those folks." — Andrew Solender and Hans Nichols

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The Unpredictability of Public Opinion (David McNew / Getty)

View in browser For months, as Donald Trump has hollowed out the executive branch, defied courts, and worked to suppress dissent, his critics have rightly worried about the lack of visible public opposition. Democratic Party leaders are still obsessing over the 2024 election; outside organizations are fatigued; and mass protests such as those seen in the early months of Trump’s first term have been missing. That began to change over the past few days, as demonstrations arose in Los Angeles over immigration-enforcement operations by federal agents. As they begin to spread to other cities, these protests look like the first mass movement against the second Trump administration. And with events scheduled this weekend to serve as counterprogramming to Trump’s birthday military parade, they have the potential to grow. Yet as this moment begins, some members of the anti-Trump coalition worry that these demonstrations will bring about disaster. Protests are messy; even when the majority of participants are peaceful, just a few bad actors can produce instances of violence, and big protests always draw a few bad actors. Observers have also worried about the optics of protesters carrying Mexican flags, lest the protests be seen as unpatriotic or anti-American. One overriding concern is that even minor missteps by Trump’s critics will give him an excuse to overreach further. “Trump is expecting resistance,” my colleague Tom Nichols wrote over the weekend. “You will not be heroes. You will be the pretext.” These concerns are understandable, and they are offered in good faith by dyed-in-the-wool Trump critics, who don’t hesitate to call him a budding authoritarian. They’re correct that Trump is welcoming confrontation. Trying to convince anti-Trump allies about the most effective tactics can feel much more productive than appealing to Trump to respect protests or the rule of law, especially because his actions are frequently erratic and irrational. But the focus on specific tactics, or on trying to predict how the president will respond, overlooks how effective large protests have been—not just historically, but also during Trump’s first term. The same could be true now. None of this is to excuse violent protests, which are dangerous and destructive, and also usually politically counterproductive in America. Actual violence in Los Angeles appears to be limited and small in scale, and Trump’s decision to federalize thousands of National Guard members and deploy hundreds of U.S. Marines is, as I wrote yesterday, both legally dubious and wildly disproportionate. The most heralded victims so far have been some Waymo driverless taxis, and local authorities blamed scattered violence on provocateurs who are tangential to the protests. Most protesters appear to be on the streets simply to witness and to speak out against the administration’s immigration raids. Take the president’s word for it: Even Trump says the situation is “very well under control.” The existence of large demonstrations, which are spreading into other cities, is itself a sign of Trump’s vulnerability. His turn to the military to try to enforce his will, less than six months into his term, is a gesture of authoritarianism, but it’s also an indication of his weak sway over the public. Plenty of experience shows that Trump almost always folds. Besides, Trump definitely wins if people disperse because they don’t want to provoke him. Peaceful protests can be very effective at changing policy and public opinion, and the biggest win for Trump might be for people to be so scared of what he’ll do next that they do nothing at all. As the journalist Asawin Suebsaeng noted on Sunday, you would be hard-pressed to find Americans counseling protesters in repressive nations—such as Iran or Burma or Hungary—to stop protesting just because their leaders might be spoiling for a fight. Furthermore, gaming out strategy and predicting how things might end here (or anywhere) is very difficult. This applies to everyone involved. Some advising caution are worried that protests will give Trump cover to intensify a crackdown, but he hardly needs an excuse, and his reactions are unpredictable. Meanwhile, people around Trump are very confident that they’re in a winning position on immigration. “We couldn’t script this any better,” someone “close to the White House” told Politico. “Democrats are again on the ‘20’ side of an 80–20 issue.” But why should anyone believe them? The story of Trump’s career is overreach followed by public opposition—including on immigration—and sometimes that opposition sways him. During his first term, Trump reversed his family-separation policy in summer 2018 because of widespread horror. Trump and his advisers were also convinced that protests against police brutality, which turned violent in cities such as Kenosha, Wisconsin, and Portland, Oregon, were going to win them the 2020 election, and they were proved wrong about that. The backlash has come even faster this term. Although Trump won the election with a campaign that focused intensely on immigration enforcement, Americans have been less enthusiastic about the results now that they’re experiencing their effects. Lots of people support deporting criminals, but they don’t like it when beloved community members such as Carol Hui, the woman whose story became a rallying point for a conservative Missouri town, are removed. (She has since been released. TACO.) In April, a Washington Post / ABC News / Ipsos poll found that a majority of people disapproved of Trump’s immigration policies. A CBS News / YouGov poll taken before the L.A. protests found him slightly higher—but at just 50 percent approval. The data journalist G. Elliott Morris finds that coverage of the improper deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia to El Salvador hurt Trump’s approval ratings. YouGov polls conducted since the protests began have found that pluralities of Americans disapprove of Trump deploying both the National Guard and the Marines. None of these polls should be taken as gospel, but they should give pause about drawing conclusions as to how the public at large will view what’s happening in Los Angeles. They are also a reminder that public opinion is not immutable—it’s dynamic and can be shaped. The anti-Trump movement can much more easily figure out what it stands for than it can predict what Trump might do next, or how other people will react. Related: Trump’s gross misuse of the National Guard Tom Nichols: Trump is using the National Guard as bait.

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A decades-in-the-making immigration war

Photo illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Photos: Via Getty Images

President Trump undoubtedly stands on strong political ground, backed by most Americans, in cases where he's deporting convicted criminals, Jim VandeHei and Mike Allen write in a "Behind the Curtain" column. Now comes a new test, literally 40 years in the making: How comfortable are Americans with deporting millions of immigrants who paid taxes, built families and committed no crimes after coming here illegally? Why it matters: That's the heart of the standoff in LA, as well as the broader Trump effort to expel potentially millions of immigrants who broke the law to get here and then played by U.S. rules. "I said it from Day 1: If you're in the country illegally, you're not off the table," Tom Homan, Trump's border czar, told the N.Y. Times. "So, we're opening that aperture up." The backstory: Congress, going back to 1986, has sought and failed to find a pathway to citizenship for those who fit the precise description above. Many current GOP senators were among those seeking said solution. But concerns about border security and rewarding illegal behavior killed every effort. Now, Trump, Republicans, some Democrats and much of the U.S. public are supportive of mass deportation instead. An estimated 14 million unauthorized immigrants live here — many of them working and paying taxes. They often fill jobs other Americans won't do — hotels, construction sites, landscaping and child care. Expelling them would sink some businesses, slow services in many communities, and hit close to home for lots of U.S. citizens. Will public enthusiasm wane when this reality becomes clear? Trump and White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller are pushing to hit a target of 3,000 immigration arrests a day, as first reported by Axios' Brittany Gibson and Stef Kight. That's triple the number of daily arrests that agents were making in the early days of Trump's term, Axios found. The only way to pull that off is by casting wider nets beyond convicted criminals to larger worksites. So raids could rise sharply at factories, restaurants and Home Depots, where people living here illegally often gather to seek day labor on job sites. "Wait till you find out how many trillions we have to spend on illegal aliens," Miller wrote yesterday in reply to a tweet by California Gov. Gavin Newsom about a Pentagon estimate that the National Guard deployment in LA will cost $134 million and last 60 days. ? The big picture: Accelerated deportations are a top personal priority for Trump, who relishes visibility for the raids. Amid the unrest in LA on Monday, Miller posted on X: "You can have all the other plans and budgets you want. If you don't fix migration, then nothing else can be fixed — or saved." White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson told us: "If you are present in the United States illegally, you will be deported. This is the promise President Trump made to the American people and the Administration is committed to keeping it." ? A CBS News/YouGov poll taken last week showed 54% approval of the Trump administration's program to deport immigrants illegally in the U.S. White House communications director Steven Cheung tweeted that finding and added: "And the approval number will be even higher after the national guard was sent to LA to beat back the violence this weekend." California Highway Patrol officers clash with protesters in Los Angeles yesterday. Photo: Eric Thayer/AP ? How it works: It's important to understand how people pay taxes even though they're here illegally: In 1996, the U.S. government created an alternative to the Social Security number for undocumented immigrants — the individual taxpayer identification number (ITIN). This allows people to pay taxes while being here illegally and awaiting a path to citizenship. Those people have been paying taxes, believing it would enhance their chances of getting citizenship. A portion of those taxes helps fund Social Security. Under that law, if they eventually get citizenship, those taxes will count toward their retirement. The amounts are substantial. Undocumented immigrants paid $96.7 billion in federal, state and local taxes in 2022, according to a tally by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. More than a third of what they pay funds programs they can't even access. Now, those ITIN numbers could be used to track people down. Deportation fears triggered a decline in tax filings this year in some immigrant communities in the D.C. suburbs, The Washington Post found. That sets the stage for a humanitarian showdown unlike any witnessed in U.S. history: Trump is willing to use the U.S. military inside America to protect U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents during roundups. The bottom line: There's no clear mechanism to differentiate between someone who came here recently alone versus a father of three, whose wife and children are living here legally, and have been here paying taxes and committing no crimes for a decade. In the eyes of the current law, illegal is illegal. When TV explodes with images of burning cars and lawlessness, Trump wins. But what about families torn apart or longtime neighbors yanked from their homes and taken away in handcuffs? That's when America's rawest views of immigration will be revealed.

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? Trump's strongman week

Troops deployed to LA. Paratroopers dropping from the sky before a partisan speech to troops at Fort Bragg. A military parade in D.C. that will coincide with Flag Day, the Army's 250th birthday — and the president's birthday.

• Call it President Trump's Strongman Week. Trump is making a point of showing executive force at a level he only dreamed about during his first term, Axios' Marc Caputo and Alex Isenstadt write.

Why it matters: Trump's swift militarized response to the LA protests marks a defining moment in his presidency, as he uses his military authority to juice his immigration crackdown and hammer Democrats.

? Zoom in: Trump said yesterday that he'll send troops to any city he deems at risk of riots or possibly even protests he doesn't like — including Saturday's military parade in D.C.

• Trump's executive order authorizing the National Guard deployment doesn't specify LA. It could apply anywhere.

Via X

? The intrigue: White House insiders say Trump's response to the LA protests appears to have energized him after a week in which Elon Musk brutally criticized him during their falling out over the "Big Beautiful Bill."

• "The president was actually hurt" by the Musk episode, according to a confidant who spoke with Trump about it. "Yes, he has feelings, and he was hurt the way anyone would be when a friend turns on them."
• "But that's gone now. LA wiped away the Elon drama," the source said. "What's driving the president is how the riots of 2020 are seared into his brain, and how he wished he could've sent in the troops to end it."

Keep reading.

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LA protests

Police made dozens of arrests overnight in a 1 square mile area of downtown Los Angeles where an emergency curfew was enacted. LA Mayor Karen Bass announced the 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew on Tuesday after 23 businesses were looted during earlier protests against the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown. According to the LAPD, nearly 200 people were arrested even before the curfew began. Demonstrations also took place in cities across the US, including Boston, Chicago, Denver, New York City, Philadelphia, San Antonio and Seattle. Ahead of more planned protests this weekend, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has announced the deployment of the Texas National Guard to various locations in the state. The Republican governor said on X that the Guard “will use every tool & strategy to help law enforcement maintain order.”   FEMA President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday that he plans to phase out the Federal Emergency Management Agency after this year’s hurricane season. He added that the federal government will distribute less aid for disaster recovery and that the funding will come directly from his office. “We want to wean off of FEMA, and we want to bring it down to the state level,” Trump told reporters during a briefing in the Oval Office, later saying, “A governor should be able to handle it, and frankly, if they can’t handle it, the aftermath, then maybe they shouldn’t be governor.” Due to hiring freezes, workforce reductions and funding cuts, FEMA has entered the hurricane season understaffed and underprepared. According to federal and state emergency managers, most states do not have the budget or personnel to handle catastrophic disasters on their own.   Tariffs A federal appeals court ruled on Tuesday that President Trump’s heftiest tariffs may remain in place while legal challenges play out and placed the cases on a fast track for resolution this summer. The decision came after the Trump administration appealed the Court of International Trade’s ruling finding the president exceeded his authority to impose country-wide tariffs, claiming a national emergency. In other tariff news, the US and China have agreed to a framework to implement a trade truce, officials said. While neither side disclosed details of the deal, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said that the countries had agreed to roll back export controls on certain goods and technologies, according to Reuters. Officials will now take the proposal back to their leaders for approval.

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Why Trump’s Birthday Parade Risks Being a Dark Turning Point

The president is, once again, disrespecting our armed forces by hijacking the U.S. Army’s 250th birthday celebrations—and turning it into a party for himself.

One of the fundamental differences between democracies and dictatorships is how the military is viewed. In democracies, the armed forces are an instrument of national defense, serving the people. But in authoritarian states, the military becomes a weapon the government wields against its own citizens.

This week, for the first time in our history, Americans are asking whether we have crossed a dangerous line in that regard.

It is the right question to ask.

As deeply disturbing and offensive as has been the deployment of troops in response to relatively small, largely peaceful protests in Los Angeles, it is very likely only the beginning. For years, since he was first elected as President, Donald Trump has sought the ability to use the United States military as a blunt instrument against those he perceives to be his domestic opponents.

While I was writing my book, “American Resistance,” former senior officials in his administration reported to me his deep frustration and visible anger whenever he was presented with constraints on his power. He wanted the military and its civilian leaders to do what he said. And virtually all of them warned that, if Trump were to be re-elected, his goal would be to sweep away such constraints. Many expressed deep concern that the result would be him becoming the authoritarian he clearly longed to be.

Today, many of those former officials see their warnings being realized. In fact, when I speak to them today, as I regularly do, they are among those who are most disturbed by what is happening.

This week, on the “Words Matter” podcast that I host with political expert Norm Ornstein, our guest was one of those former officials, Miles Taylor, who served as chief of staff at the Department of Homeland Security during Trump’s first term. Taylor, perhaps best known as the author of the “Anonymous” op-ed in the New York Times that first expressed concerns from within Trump’s orbit, was blunt in his warning. He said he believes that too many in the media are understating the dangers of Trump’s incipient authoritarianism.

Taylor made reference to how those closest to Trump, like current Deputy White House Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, have carefully studied those instances when the law gives U.S. presidents emergency powers—and how they can be exploited. Through Project 2025 and their own planning, they have sought to construct an administration where as many of the personnel and institutional guardrails limiting what a president can do would be removed.

Since the inauguration this past January, we have seen plenty of evidence of these efforts. The team around Trump was picked based not on qualifications or experience but rather on the basis of whether they would do exactly as Trump has said. You saw that manifested in the swiftness with which Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth deployed Marines to Los Angeles; to the degree to which Trump’s immigration team—Miller, Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem and “border czar” Tom Homan—have sought to use assertions of “national emergency” or “invasion” to justify sidestepping the rule of law in their efforts to round up “illegal” immigrants.

Indeed, in case after case, Trump and his team of enablers have sought to use the language of crisis (see the president’s social media posts about “insurrectionists” in LA and his wild lies about the extent of the damage they were doing) precisely because it provides a legal justification for him seizing additional powers and removing constraints on the use of that power.

While Trump has avoided invoking “the Insurrection Act” or declaring martial law thus far, with each week of this administration he has moved further in that direction. And this week, with the actions in Los Angeles, he took a particularly ominous stride down that path.

Even if they over-reach and the courts serve as a check on their plans—which they still sometimes do despite the efforts of the Supreme Court to help transform Trump into our first monarch since George III—Trump and his team know that legal battles take a long time and often afford them the chance in the interim to bully, cancel, intimidate, arrest, deport and otherwise seek to strip away the fundamental rights and protections hitherto enjoyed by the residents of this country. They might not win every case, but the impact they have while the wheels of justice are grinding as slowly as they often do can boost the president’s effective power and advance his agenda.

Trump’s role models are clear. His contempt for our laws is a matter of record. He and his team have been preparing for years to make his second term different from any presidency in U.S. history. He is unchallenged within his administration, by Congress or, much of the time, by the majority on our highest court. He has—through that court’s immunity decision—power unlike any chief executive in our history. He also burns with the desire to impose his will both on behalf of his family and friends but also against those he perceives as his opponents. (Taylor, for example, has been accused of nothing less than “treason” simply for expressing his views. He is not alone.)

For these reasons, for those who know or who have studied Trump, the events of this week are so profoundly chilling. Whether it is boots on the ground in Los Angeles or the polished boots that will be marching a four-mile parade route through our nation’s capital this weekend, we now have a president who sees the military as an extension of his own personal power—his most lavish and ostentatious acquisition yet. The unnecessary display of force in California and the D.C. parade alone are expected to cost in the neighborhood of $200 million.

The juxtaposition of his turning the unparalleled resources of the world’s most powerful armed forces against its own people and then presiding on his birthday over a Soviet-style show of might seems deeply intentional.

As a consequence of the agenda Trump has been implementing since he re-took office, many big questions will loom over the parade in dark counterpoint to the celebratory fly-bys of military aircraft.

Will we or our children ever look at a parade in the same way again?

Will the salutes and fanfare be for the troops or for a would-be American dictator?

And will we see the events of this past week, as do many of those who know Trump best, as a dark turning point in our history, a foreshadowing of the undoing of all that America’s soldiers have fought and died for during the past 250 years?

https://www.thedailybeast.com/is-trumps-birthday-parade-a-celebration-of-the-army-or-a-funeral-cortege-for-democracy/?

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Not Even Republicans Want to Go to Trump’s ‘Goose-Stepping’ Parade

Only a tiny fraction of Republicans plan to attend—MTG of course among them.

Donald Trump is throwing a lavish military parade on his birthday this year, but apparently many of his congressional faithful aren’t coming to the party.

Politico surveyed 50 GOP lawmakers, only seven of whom said they planned to attend the festivities in Washington, D.C., this weekend.

The near $50 million affair, which just so happens to be on Trump’s 79th birthday, will celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Army. It’s set to feature a daytime festival on the National Mall followed by a 6 p.m. military parade, a concert and fireworks. The Army expects as many as 200,000 people to attend.

But apparently, not many Republican leaders will be among them. According to Politico, Senate Majority Leader John Thune and Majority Whip John Barrasso aren’t attending, nor is House Majority Leader Steve Scalise. House Speaker Mike Johnson’s office didn’t respond to Politico’s inquiry.

Among those who made clear they were not going was Rand Paul, the Kentucky junior senator, who told reporters he was not in favor of “goose-stepping” parades. “I’ve never been a big fan of goose-stepping soldiers in big tanks and missiles rolling down the street,” he said in the Capitol. “So if you asked me, I wouldn’t have done it. We were always different than the images you saw of the Soviet Union and North Korea. We were proud not to be that.”

Lawmakers rarely spend time in Washington on weekends, returning instead to their families and districts.

Several lawmakers told Politico they’re skipping the event because they have prior commitments.

Sen. Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma told Politico it’s his anniversary this weekend, and “I choose to be married.”

Sens. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Rick Scott of Florida are also planning to skip out, as will House Freedom Caucus Chair Andy Harris.

Marjorie Taylor Greene, however, plans to show her face.

“Yes, of course,” the Georgia Republican told Politico. “I’m going to be there for the 250th anniversary of the Army.”

Also from the House, Byron Donalds, Cory Mills, Elise Stefanik, Rich McCormick, John McGuire, and Lisa McClaim said they would make an appearance.

The White House told Politico that Trump “looks forward to a historic crowd at the Army Birthday Parade, where he will be joined by top military leaders, administration officials, congressional representatives, and most importantly, thousands of patriotic Americans to celebrate 250 years of honor, courage, and sacrifice by our United States military.”

The event is expected to cost up to $45 million, but the spectacle may not get much airtime on several major TV networks that will reportedly stick to sports programming. Trump can rely on Fox News, however, for hours of special coverage.

It’ll come in the wake of an extraordinary series of events in Los Angeles, where demonstrators protesting federal immigration raids prompted Trump to deploy 4,000 National Guard troops and 700 Marines over the past few days

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has repeatedly called on the president to rescind his order, on Tuesday calling the deployments a “brazen abuse of power” that “inflamed a combustible situation.”

Newsom also condemned the upcoming parade, accusing Trump of forcing the military to “put on a vulgar display to celebrate his birthday, just as other failed dictators have done in the past.”

Trump said Tuesday any protesters at the festivities will be met with “very heavy force.”

https://www.thedailybeast.com/not-even-gop-lawmakers-want-to-go-to-donald-trumps-big-military-parade/?

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The upside-down priorities of the House budget

Adding significantly to debt while reducing incomes for the bottom 40%

https://www.epi.org/publication/the-upside-down-priorities-of-the-house-budget/?

The U.S. approach to globalization has gone from bad to worse under Trump

Summary: Globalization has created a challenging landscape for U.S. workers. Led by corporate interests, U.S. trade agreements from NAFTA onward have made matters worse rather than improving them. To counter this situation, we’re proposing a progressive trade policy agenda that tackles these pressing challenges facing U.S. workers:

https://www.epi.org/publication/the-u-s-approach-to-globalization-has-gone-from-bad-to-worse-under-trump-how-to-construct-a-progressive-policy-agenda-instead/?

 

? ICE raids, coming to a city near you. President Donald Trump pledged that no cost would be spared on his massive immigration crackdown, and lawmakers are backing him up. The American Prospect highlights that Republicans’ budget would allocate $27 billion toward enforcement and deportations, including 10,000 new U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. To the delight of Trump’s private prison donors, the bill also allocates $45 billion to construct new migrant detention centers, a 364 percent increase over last year. 

? The President’s crypto cash-in. A recent federal filing by Trump’s media company says in no uncertain terms that the president will benefit from cryptocurrency-friendly legislation currently being considered by Congress. As reported by Sludge, documents filed by the Trump Media & Technology Group about its new $2.5 billion Bitcoin treasury — funded by dozens of institutional investors anonymous to the public — state that Bitcoin’s reclassification as a highly regulated security would hurt the company’s business prospects. Meanwhile, an industry-backed bill explicitly defining blockchain assets like Bitcoin as more weakly regulated digital commodities just advanced through committee.

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? Trump's opening night

A tuxedo-wearing President Trump was booed and cheered as he took his seat for the opening night of "Les Misérables" at the Kennedy Center.

• Why it matters: It was his first time attending a show there since becoming president, reflecting his focus on remaking the institution in his image while asserting more control over the country's cultural landscape.

Trump has a particular affection for "Les Misérables," the sprawling musical set in 19th-century France, and has occasionally played its songs at his events.

• Go deeper.

Trump deal drought

Photo illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images

President Trump's reputation as a consummate dealmaker is being challenged by his second-term record, Axios' Dan Primack and Dave Lawler write. Why it matters: Supporters inside and outside the White House regularly rhapsodize his negotiating skills. Unorthodox moves are lauded as part of "The Art of the Deal." If Trump's dealmaking stature were to erode, it could limit his flexibility on everything from tariffs to taxes. ?️ The big picture: The bar Trump set for himself may have been impossibly high, but he's a long way from clearing it. He said he'd make peace in Ukraine on day one. That was more than 140 days ago. He said he'd make peace in Gaza. A ceasefire collapsed months ago, and talks are deadlocked. A two-month deadline for reaching a nuclear deal with Iran expires today. He said that trade wars were "good and easy to win." So far, the U.S. doesn't have a single trade deal finalized and implemented. The closest ones are with the U.K., with which America has a trade surplus, and with China, which remains just a framework. He hasn't yet approved deals over the future of either TikTok or U.S. Steel. The "Big Beautiful Bill" is increasingly unlikely to hit his desk by July Fourth. ?️ What we're watching: It's entirely possible that Trump will seal one or all of those outstanding deals. Momentum, however, is tough to find.

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Raids in Southern California rattle immigrant communities — including those in the US legally

More than 100 people in Southern California have been detained since Friday, inspiring days of turbulent protests and leading President Donald Trump to deploy National Guard troops and Marines to the LA area. Family members of detained workers in Los Angeles urged officials to uphold the city and the state of California as places of sanctuary for immigrants. Read More.   What's targeted in Trump's request for $9.4 billion in budget cuts from Congress President Donald Trump is looking to cancel $9.4 billion in spending already approved by Congress. That’s just a sliver of the $1.7 trillion that lawmakers OK’d for the budget year ending Sept. 30. Read More.   Members of the Fulbright scholarship board resign, accusing Trump of meddling All 12 members of the board overseeing the prestigious Fulbright scholarships on Wednesday resigned in protest of what they call the Trump administration’s meddling with the selection of award recipients, according to a statement they issued. Read More.   Veterans are divided over the Army's big parade, being held on Trump's birthday Until recently, the Army’s long-planned 250th anniversary celebration did not include a big parade. Added under the Trump administration, the event, featuring hundreds of military vehicles and aircraft and thousands of soldiers, has divided veterans. Critics say it's a thinly veiled celebration of President Donald Trump's 79th birthday when the Republican is making cuts to the Department of Veterans Affairs and banning transgender troops. Read More.

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How the world sees Trump

Data: Pew Research; Chart: Axios Visuals President Trump is seen around the world as a strong but untrustworthy leader, Axios' Dave Lawler writes from a new Pew survey. Across 24 countries, majorities said they consider Trump arrogant (80%) and dangerous (65%), but also a strong leader (67%). Far lower percentages believe he's honest (28%), well-qualified (41%), diplomatic (41%) or able to understand complex problems (42%). ? Zoom in: Confidence in Trump is lowest in Canada, Mexico and Western Europe. He fared much better in Israel, India and parts of Africa. While global confidence in Trump is low, it's higher on average than confidence in Chinese President Xi Jinping or Russian President Vladimir Putin. Explore the data

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Reworking Qatari jet will cost less than $400 million, says Air Force

It will cost less than $400 million to turn a luxury Qatari jet into President Trump's airborne command center, according to the U.S. Air Force.

https://www.axios.com/2025/06/11/trump-qatar-jet-air-force-one-cost?

[Theophilus]

What a waste of money.

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33 minutes ago, Theophilus said:

What a waste of money.

Exactly!! For a president that claims he's not a war mongerer, just doesn't make sense, because only those that want to show off the strength of there war machine do this stupidity!!!!!

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Nationwide protests

Demonstrations against the Trump administration's immigration crackdown have continued to spread across the US. On Wednesday, police in New York City, Los Angeles, Seattle and Spokane, Washington, arrested dozens of anti-ICE protesters. An overnight curfew was enacted for a second night in downtown LA to “stop bad actors who are taking advantage of the President’s chaotic escalation,” LA Mayor Karen Bass wrote on X. A similar curfew was also announced in Spokane. More than 1,800 "No Kings" events to protest the administration’s actions are scheduled to take place on Saturday, the same day as President Donald Trump's military parade in Washington, DC. Ahead of that parade, Trump told reporters that any protesters should be prepared to be met with a show of force.   Immigration A federal judge has granted Mahmoud Khalil’s habeas corpus petition and blocked the Trump administration from continuing to detain the former Columbia University graduate student. During the 2024 demonstrations on campus, Khalil served as a liaison between students protesting the treatment of Palestinians in Gaza and school administrators. He was one of the first in a series of high-profile arrests of pro-Palestinian student activists caught up in the Trump administration’s effort to crack down on antisemitism on college campuses and his detention sparked protests across the US. In the three months he was imprisoned in Louisiana, Khalil missed his own graduation and the birth of his first son. In other immigration news, Khaby Lame, the world’s most popular TikTok personality and a goodwill ambassador for UNICEF, has left the US after being detained at the airport by immigration agents in Las Vegas for allegedly overstaying his visa.

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LAPD Chief Calls BS on Trump’s Claim That Cops Asked Him for Troops

Jim McDonnell says police were “nowhere near” the stage where they needed federal assistance to control immigration protests.

The chief of the Los Angeles Police Department has shot down Donald Trump’s claim that he asked the president to send in the National Guard to help control immigration protests in the city.

Speaking to CNN’s The Source with Kaitlan Collins, LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell said the department was “not in a position” to make such a request and that they were “nowhere near” the stage where such action would be necessary.

“We have a protocol that we follow,” McDonnell said. “First, we bring all internal resources to bear on the issue, whatever it is. Then we mobilize the department, or part of the department, to get everybody out there dealing with the situation.”

“If we still don’t have the capacity to manage it, then through the sheriff we request mutual aid and bring in law enforcement partners from other police departments and sheriff’s offices throughout Southern California,” he continued. “We’re at that level now—and we’re nowhere near needing to reach out to the governor for the National Guard.”

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Daily Beast.

Trump sparked outrage in California after ordering the federalization of the California state National Guard and send troopers into Los Angeles to quell protests against federal immigration crackdowns.

The move came without approval from California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has repeatedly blasted Trump and accused him of like a dictator, imposing a “mindset of militarization, power, dominance, and control,” rather than following “the rule of law.”

Trump defended the deployment while speaking to reporters ahead of his visit to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts—an institution he has controversially reshaped under his MAGA agenda—to watch Les Misérables.

“If we weren’t there, if we didn’t bring in the National Guard and the Marines, you’d probably have a city that was burning to the ground,” Trump claimed. “In fact, the police chief said as much. He said, ‘We’re very lucky to have had them.’”

But McDonnell contradicted that narrative, and reiterated that the LAPD had not requested federal assistance to manage the unrest in parts of downtown L.A.

“My hope is that things are moving in the right direction now, and that we won’t have to, or wouldn’t have had to, take that step,” he told Collins.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/lapd-chief-jim-mcdonnell-calls-bs-on-donald-trumps-claim-that-cops-asked-for-troops/?

ps:We wouldn't expect anything else from the criminal-in-chief!!!!!!!!!!

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Amid Trump’s Immigration Onslaught, There Is No Sanctuary

For days, amid immigration raids and ensuing protests, Los Angeles has been gripped by a tense, anxious quiet. The city’s downtown is plagued by the buzz of helicopters circling at night, unmarked vehicles are idling near homes and businesses, and widespread confusion has cast a sense of unease — a scene that’s amplified on television screens and news feeds across America. 

https://www.levernews.com/amid-trumps-immigration-onslaught-there-is-no-sanctuary/?

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Protests over immigration raids pop up across the US with more planned Protests over federal immigration enforcement raids and President Donald Trump’s move to mobilize the National Guard and Marines in Los Angeles are spreading nationwide and are expected to continue into the weekend. Read more.

Why this matters: While many demonstrations against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency have been peaceful, with marchers chanting slogans and carrying signs, others have led to clashes with police, hundreds of arrests, and the use of chemical irritants to disperse crowds.   Activists say they will hold even larger demonstrations in the coming days, with “No Kings” events across the country on Saturday to coincide with Trump’s planned military parade in Washington, D.C.   Protest locations include Seattle, New York City, San Antonio, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Chicago, Denver, and Spokane.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤ Court hearing set on Trump’s use of National Guard and Marines to help with immigration raids in LA   Standoff in Los Angeles reignites old feud as Newsom resists Trump’s immigration raids   Mexican flags at LA protests spark debate over symbolism   WATCH: Why Los Angeles ICE protesters are staying in the streets   Immigration officers intensify arrests in courthouse hallways on a fast track to deportation   An Omaha food plant owner says he followed the rules for hiring immigrants. It was raided anyway.   Trump’s travel ban fuels despair and disgust with politics among Arab Americans in Michigan   Judge says government must release Columbia University protester Mahmoud Khalil   What to know about ‘No Kings’ protests against Trump’s policies on Saturday   Trump’s military parade is a US outlier in peacetime but parades and reviews have a long history   Trump’s mass deportations leave Democrats more ready to fight back   Democrats look for reinvention and a new playbook against Trump in key committee race   David Hogg won’t try to keep his DNC role amid dispute over Democratic primaries   Kennedy names 8 vaccine committee replacements, including COVID shot critic   Hundreds of laid-off CDC employees are being reinstated   House will vote on Trump’s request to cut funding for NPR, PBS and foreign aid   Trump EPA moves to repeal climate rules that limit greenhouse gas emissions from US power plants   Senate rejects effort to block arms sales over Trump’s dealings with Qatar and UAE   Trump says US gets rare earth minerals from China and tariffs on Chinese goods will total 55%   Critical minerals give China an edge in trade negotiations   Trump booed and cheered at the Kennedy Center while attending ‘Les Misérables’