The Trump Presidency Timeline
Documenting the chaos since day one. 2125 entries and counting.
trumps america
latinos voted for cheaper eggs, got trumpflation instead
Latinos hold "Voten por Trump" signs, blissfully unaware that "por" apparently translates to "enjoy your higher rent and same grocery bill".
Donald Trump rode back into the White House in 2024 on a wave of Latino voters who were sick of paying $7 for eggs and listening to Fox News tell them Joe Biden personally stapled price tags to avocados. One year in, those same voters are noticing a tiny problem: the prices are still high, the economy still feels terrible, and the guy who promised to "fix it on day one" mostly fixed his golf calendar.
Trump pulled a record 46% of the Latino vote in 2024, largely because 93% of his Latino supporters said the economy was their top concern. In other words, they weren’t falling in love with the Republican Party; they were breaking up with the Democrats’ anemic economic messaging and hoping the reality show landlord would somehow be better at math than he is at paying contractors. Now CBS polling shows his Latino approval has cratered to 38%, with 61% disapproving of his handling of the economy and 69% hating his performance on inflation—which is awkward, given that his entire brand was "I alone can make groceries affordable".
While the White House brags about lower gas prices, tariff revenue, and foreign investment—because nothing says working-class relief like "tariff revenue"—Latino voters are judging the economy the old-fashioned way: by what it costs to feed their families and keep a roof over their heads. Inflation is still above the Fed’s target, food and housing costs are up, and prices are rising more slowly, not falling, despite Trump's insistence that everything is getting cheaper because he said so. Some of the very voters who helped put him back in power are now looking at their receipts and concluding that maybe, just maybe, the guy who built his career on bankruptcy and fraud wasn’t the savior of their household budgets.
So we’ve arrived at the predictable sequel to "Latinos for Trump": "Latinos for Regret". They were sold a strongman who would crush inflation and restore prosperity; they got a man who holds summits at his golf club, blames everyone else for the economy, and hopes no one notices that the only thing consistently going down under Trump is his poll numbers.
Source: bbc.com
#trumps-america#killing-democracy
killing democracy
doj watches five videos of a killing, investigates none of them
Todd Blanche explains that the DOJ can see the videos just fine and has decided the real suspect is anyone demanding an investigation.
Deputy attorney general Todd Blanche — formerly Trump’s personal lawyer, now apparently America’s chief Nothing To See Here officer — went on Fox News to announce that the Justice Department is “not investigating” the killing of Renee Good by ICE agent Jonathan Ross in Minneapolis. This, despite the fact that Good’s death was recorded on at least five phones, including Ross’s own, and happened less than a mile from where George Floyd was murdered. Blanche helpfully explained that DOJ’s civil rights division doesn’t just investigate every time an officer is “forced to defend himself” — a brave new standard under which the only thing that matters is how confidently the killer says "self-defense" on cable news.
Blanche also claimed DOJ never bows to public or political pressure and "never" launches investigations in response to outrage — a lie so blatant it’s practically a confession. In the first Trump administration, the same DOJ opened a "robust" federal civil-rights probe into George Floyd’s death within days, leading to federal convictions of four officers. But sure, this time, with Trump openly running the department like his personal law firm, it’s all about timeless principles and not at all about protecting armed federal agents who just killed a woman in the street.
The video evidence that supposedly "clears" Ross has, inconveniently, already been forensically dissected by the New York Times, Bellingcat, and others, all of whom concluded that Trump’s claim that Good "ran over" the agent is false. That didn’t stop Homeland Security chief Kristi Noem from going on TV to say everyone can see Ross was "attacked with a car," or Harmeet Dhillon — now running the DOJ civil rights division, because nothing says civil rights like a hard-right activist — from amplifying Trump’s lie on X the day Good was killed. Meanwhile, witnesses say federal officers blocked a physician and ambulances from treating Good as she lay dying, which in a functioning rule-of-law system might be the sort of thing the civil rights division looks into.
Instead, Pam Bondi, Trump’s attorney general, skipped right past the dead woman to warn protesters that obstructing or attacking federal agents is a crime. In other words: the only people in legal danger here are the ones upset that an ICE agent shot a woman at point-blank range and then had colleagues allegedly prevent her from receiving medical care. The Trump DOJ has already been repurposed to harass enemies, protect allies, and hand out pardons like loyalty punch cards. Now it’s sending a clearer message: federal law enforcement can kill you on camera, lie about it online, and the nation’s top "law enforcement" agency will proudly refuse to even ask a follow-up question.
Source: theguardian.com
#killing-democracy#lawlessness#forever-grifting
racism
trump discovers asylum… for the right kind of refugees
The Statue of Liberty, updated with a new plaque: "Give me your white, your Western, your English-speaking masses… everyone else, try again never."
The Trump administration is reportedly toying with the idea of granting asylum to Jewish people fleeing the UK, but only after the proposal was floated not by, say, human rights experts or refugee agencies, but by Trump’s personal lawyer, Robert Garson. Because nothing says serious asylum policy like "I talked to the president’s attorney who once filed a $50m tantrum against Bob Woodward that got laughed out of court." Garson says he’s been in touch with the State Department about offering refuge to British Jews who feel unsafe amid a real and disturbing rise in antisemitism in the UK.
But don’t mistake this for a sudden humanitarian awakening. Garson helpfully explains why this asylum idea is so appealing: British Jews are a "highly educated community" that "speaks English natively" and "doesn’t have a high proportion of criminals". In other words: this is not about protecting vulnerable people, it’s about importing the "right" kind of refugees. Just a few months ago, the same Trump administration proudly slashed the total refugee cap for 2026 to 7,500 and earmarked most of those slots for white South Africans. People fleeing war, famine, or U.S.-backed dictatorships? Get in line behind the curated Eurocentric victim list.
Garson says he sees "no future" for Jews in the UK and blames British prime minister Keir Starmer for allowing antisemitism to grow, while Trump’s special envoy on antisemitism, Yehuda Kaploun, gets looped into the brainstorm as if U.S. asylum law is just another Mar-a-Lago side project. Meanwhile, protests against Israel’s devastating assault on Gaza are casually recast as "marauding mobs" and "baying for Jewish blood"—a handy way to smear dissent while polishing Trump’s image as the great protector of Jews abroad, even as his movement at home happily platforms white nationalists.
So we end up with the Trump doctrine on refugees: if you’re brown, Muslim, poor, or fleeing the consequences of U.S. foreign policy, the door is bolted shut. But if you’re white or Western, politically useful, and can be deployed as a talking point against your own government? Step right up, there might be room in the 7,500-person refugee cosplay quota. Human rights, but make it demographic curation.
Source: theguardian.com
#racism#anti-immigration
forever grifting
trump tries to pardon his way through puerto rico, misplaces the docket number
Wanda Vázquez Garced, fresh from the magic Trump pardon machine, where justice is optional but donor access is guaranteed.
Donald Trump tried to sprinkle some magic pardon dust on former Puerto Rico governor Wanda Vázquez Garced, but the White House somehow forgot to include the actual criminal case she pleaded guilty in. The pardon only lists the original 2022 bribery indictment (3:22-CR-342), not the 2025 misdemeanor campaign finance case (3:25-cr-00296) where she cut her deal. So, for now, the case is still active and the judge is still moving toward sentencing, but don’t worry — the White House says they’ll fix it "out of an abundance of caution," which is Trumpworld for "we messed up the paperwork on the crony bailout again."
Vázquez Garced’s plea deal came after her lawyers and those of her billionaire co-defendant Julio Herrera Velutini trekked to Main Justice, with Trump lawyer Chris Kise conveniently in the mix. Herrera’s daughter just happened to drop $2.5 million into Trump’s MAGA Inc. super PAC in December 2024, but we’re assured the plea agreement came from "good faith negotiations" and "compelling" new evidence, not pressure from on high. In other words, absolutely nothing to see here except a billionaire family shoveling millions into Trump’s political machine and then watching the criminal exposure get dialed down and ultimately pardoned.
Meanwhile, former DOJ pardon attorney Liz Oyer politely notes that Trump’s "recurring" pardon screwups — like the Jan. 6 pseudo-mass-pardon that’s now being cited by an alleged pipe bomber — could have been avoided if the White House had followed literally any normal process. But instead of using the Office of the Pardon Attorney, Team Trump keeps winging it, generating legal chaos while cronies and loyalists walk. The lead prosecutor on the case, now running for Congress, calls it a "sad day for the rule of law" and says Puerto Ricans deserved a trial. But sure, tell us again how this is the law-and-order president bravely defending America from corruption.
Source: nbcnews.com
#forever-grifting#corruption#killing-democracy
killing democracy
white house to cbs: nice news network you got there, shame if someone sued its ass off
Karoline Leavitt explains the First Amendment: you’re free to broadcast whatever you want, as long as it’s all Trump, unedited, and legally indemnified.
The Trump White House has discovered a bold new innovation in media relations: skip the spin, go straight to the mob threat. Press secretary Karoline Leavitt was recorded telling CBS anchor Tony Dokoupil that if the network dared to edit Trump’s 13-minute interview, the president would "sue your ass off." Because nothing says "free press" like the government warning TV networks to air Dear Leader un-cut or face legal retribution.
This all happens after Paramount, CBS’s parent company, already cut Trump a cool $16 million settlement over a 2024 60 Minutes segment, teaching the extremely subtle lesson that if you sue loudly enough, billion-dollar media companies will fold like lawn chairs. Now CBS is run by Bari Weiss— parachuted in with no TV news experience, but with deep ties to conservative media and a boss whose dad is Trump pal Larry Ellison. Shockingly, under this new regime, CBS killed a 60 Minutes piece on Venezuelan men deported by the administration, allegedly because the White House didn’t respond in time. In other words: if Trump doesn’t like it, it doesn’t air.
Leavitt now insists the American people "deserve" unedited Trump interviews, and proudly notes, "And guess what? The interview ran in full." Yes, when the White House threatens a network and the network obediently complies, that’s not transparency, that’s state media cosplay. But sure, tell us again how the real threat to democracy is college kids protesting, not the sitting president using legal intimidation and friendly billionaires to turn a major news network into his personal broadcast arm.
Source: theguardian.com
#killing-democracy#fascism#forever-grifting
fascism
trump considers sending the 82nd airborne to fight… press conferences
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, apparently now a prime suspect in the federal crime of Saying Mean Things About ICE.
Nothing says "law and order" like threatening to roll tanks into Minneapolis because the mayor hurt ICE's feelings. Jacob Frey went on "Meet the Press" to point out the awkward fact that crime in his city is actually down in multiple categories, and that Minneapolis is, in his words, "safe" and "not going to be intimidated." In other words, the situation on the ground doesn’t remotely justify Donald Trump dusting off the Insurrection Act — unless the real emergency is that local officials keep telling federal agents to "get the f--- out" after they shoot a woman to death.
The Pentagon, ever the straight man in this ongoing farce, has already put about 1,500 active-duty troops from the 11th Airborne Division on prepare-to-deploy orders, calling it "prudent planning" in case Trump decides that protesting ICE killings is now an insurrection. A helpful White House official chimed in that it’s "typical" for the "Department of War" — yes, they actually called it that — to be ready for whatever the president dreams up, presumably between Truth Social posts about the deep state.
Meanwhile, the Justice Department is investigating Frey and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz for the apparent crime of… publicly criticizing federal immigration enforcement. The theory: that their statements might have "conspired" to impede ICE, which is a long way of saying the feds are testing whether the First Amendment still applies to people who tell them to go away. Walz called it what it is — "weaponizing the justice system and threatening political opponents" — which is a dangerous authoritarian tactic, but a very on-brand one for this administration.
Frey’s proposed public safety plan is radical in its simplicity: if the goal is peace and safety, maybe stop flooding the city with federal officers who keep shooting residents and provoking protests. The administration’s counterproposal is to send in paratroopers and criminally investigate the people asking them to leave. But sure, tell us more about how this is all about "safety" and not about turning dissent into a military problem.
The Pentagon, ever the straight man in this ongoing farce, has already put about 1,500 active-duty troops from the 11th Airborne Division on prepare-to-deploy orders, calling it "prudent planning" in case Trump decides that protesting ICE killings is now an insurrection. A helpful White House official chimed in that it’s "typical" for the "Department of War" — yes, they actually called it that — to be ready for whatever the president dreams up, presumably between Truth Social posts about the deep state.
Meanwhile, the Justice Department is investigating Frey and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz for the apparent crime of… publicly criticizing federal immigration enforcement. The theory: that their statements might have "conspired" to impede ICE, which is a long way of saying the feds are testing whether the First Amendment still applies to people who tell them to go away. Walz called it what it is — "weaponizing the justice system and threatening political opponents" — which is a dangerous authoritarian tactic, but a very on-brand one for this administration.
Frey’s proposed public safety plan is radical in its simplicity: if the goal is peace and safety, maybe stop flooding the city with federal officers who keep shooting residents and provoking protests. The administration’s counterproposal is to send in paratroopers and criminally investigate the people asking them to leave. But sure, tell us more about how this is all about "safety" and not about turning dissent into a military problem.
Source: nbcnews.com
#fascism#killing-democracy#anti-immigration
killing democracy
trump-pardoned insurrectionist tries pro-ice rally, gets snowballed into the sidewalk
Jake Lang, freshly pardoned by Trump for trying to overturn democracy, bravely discovers that Minneapolis is less enthusiastic about fascism than his Telegram group chat suggested.
Jake Lang, a January 6 rioter who went from allegedly swinging a baseball bat at cops to getting presidential clemency from Trump, decided his next act should be a tiny pro-ICE, anti-Islam, anti-Somali hate rally in Minneapolis—and it went about as well as his last coup attempt. He threatened on social media to burn a Quran on the steps of City Hall, because nothing says "constitutional patriot" like staging a religious bonfire to celebrate masked federal agents dragging people out of cars.
Instead, only a handful of far-right fans showed up, and they were promptly drowned out and chased off by hundreds of counterprotesters who forced at least one of them to ditch an offensive shirt. Lang left with bruises and scrapes on his head, discovering the hard way that Minneapolis is not, in fact, eager to host a "Nazis for ICE" pop-up event. Meanwhile, police rolled in with an armored van and riot gear, because when Trump’s DHS dumps 2,000 federal officers into a city, the cosplay has to be consistent.
All of this is happening against the backdrop of Trump’s latest immigration crackdown in the Twin Cities, where daily protests have erupted over ICE officers breaking down doors, yanking people from homes and cars, and generally treating a major metro area like a live-fire training exercise. The operation has already claimed at least one life: Renee Good, a U.S. citizen and mother of three, was shot by an ICE officer on 7 January—because nothing says "law and order" like killing citizens in their own communities. A federal judge has now had to explicitly rule that immigration officers may not detain or teargas peaceful protesters who are just watching, which is not the kind of thing a healthy democracy needs spelled out.
One Liberian man, Garrison Gibson, who fled a civil war and has lived in the U.S. for decades, told reporters he’s now afraid to leave his house after federal agents smashed in his door with a battering ram. His T-shirt read "Immigrants make America great"—a risky statement in Trump’s America, where the government’s position is closer to "Immigrants make great targets." But sure, tell us again how this is all about "protecting the border" and not about turning federal law enforcement into a roaming intimidation squad for the president’s culture war.
Source: theguardian.com
#killing-democracy#anti-immigration
retribution
send in the cops, the pen signed something
Trump, moments before demanding the FBI raid a Bic ballpoint for conspiring with the deep state.
Donald Trump is now demanding that Biden’s entire Cabinet be arrested because some documents were signed with an autopen — a perfectly legal, long-used presidential tool that’s about as controversial as a stapler. In other words, the guy who tried to overturn an election is shrieking "lock them up" over a robo-signature device every modern administration has used.
Because nothing says "rule of law" like insisting your rival’s Cabinet should be hauled off in handcuffs for using the same basic technology that signs half of Washington’s holiday cards. This isn’t about signatures, it’s about a would-be strongman normalizing the idea that political disagreements are crimes and the presidency comes with its own personal police force.
So while lawyers, historians, and anyone who’s ever worked in government calmly point out that autopens are standard practice, Trump is out here demanding arrests on TV like he’s ordering off a menu. But sure, tell us again how he’s the victim of a weaponized justice system — right after he finishes explaining why a robot pen is now grounds for mass political purges.
Source: today.com
#killing-democracy#fascism
corruption
america first, ethics last: trump launches conflict-of-interest etfs
The New York Stock Exchange celebrates the launch of "America First" ETFs, where the only real underlying asset is the president’s ego and a total absence of shame.
Donald Trump has discovered a bold new innovation in governance: why merely be president when you can also be a walking SPAC? The Trump Media and Technology Group has spun Truth Social into a whole patriotic financial ecosystem: five "America First" ETFs, a nuclear fusion company (sure), a crypto bank-in-waiting, and a meme coin that crashed faster than his approval ratings. All of this is happening while Trump sits in the White House, insisting there are no conflicts of interest, because nothing says "clean government" like a president whose personal brand is literally ticker-symbolized.
Instead of a standard presidential blind trust, Trump parked his Trump Media shares in a revocable trust run by Donald Trump Jr – in other words, a blind trust where the only thing blind is the ethics office. As Yorkville America and Crypto.com shovel billions into Trump’s financial playground, the administration is busy helping out the new friends: a pardoned Binance ex-CEO after a $2bn investment, a conveniently paused SEC investigation into Justin Sun after he dropped $200m into Trump’s token, and a mysteriously vanished federal inquiry into Crypto.com right after Trump took office. But yes, the White House swears that "neither the president nor his family" will ever have conflicts of interest. Ever.
Meanwhile, Trump’s crypto arm, World Liberty Financial, is trying to become a federally regulated bank, prompting Elizabeth Warren to point out the obvious: this would make Trump the first president in US history to literally oversee his own financial institution. Ethics watchdogs are openly saying the quiet part out loud – that anyone who wants something from the government can just buy some Trump-branded financial products to signal loyalty. In other words, US foreign and domestic policy now comes with a prospectus and management fees. "America First" has finally been translated into its true meaning: America is first in line to buy the president’s bag.
Source: theguardian.com
#corruption#forever-grifting
trade war
world’s dumbest greenland heist spooks the global economy
Artist’s impression of Trump’s Greenland strategy: set the global economy on fire and hope Denmark folds before the bond market does.
Donald Trump is once again holding the global economy hostage because he wants Greenland, and apparently the 21st century is just fanfic now. His latest tantrum: threatening 10% tariffs on European imports in February, cranking up to 25% by June, not because of any coherent trade strategy, but because he’s mad Europe won’t hand over a giant icy island like it’s a Monopoly property he landed on.
The IMF has been screaming for a year that this kind of on-again, off-again trade war is poison for investment, but Trump has discovered that weaponized uncertainty is fun. Businesses in the UK and EU had just finished pretending they could plan around those much-vaunted Trump trade deals signed with great photo-op ceremony last summer. Now he’s casually lighting them on fire, right as France is in a budget crisis and Germany is trying to crawl out of stagnation, because nothing says "stable global partner" like using tariffs as a ransom note for someone else’s territory.
At home, the genius plan is also busy kneecapping Trump’s own economic goals. Tariffs are already at their highest levels since World War II, and while inflation hasn’t exploded yet, analysts are warning that once pre-tariff inventories run out, prices will jump. That would force the Fed to stop cutting interest rates—directly sabotaging Trump’s obsession with cheaper money, even as he harasses Jerome Powell and files legal action against him for the crime of not being his personal rate-cut butler.
Markets have mostly adopted the "Taco" doctrine—Trump Always Chickens Out—after last year’s aborted all-out tariff threat. But there are cracks: gold and silver prices are soaring in a classic flight to safety while the AI bubble props up stock indices. Investors are basically betting that he’ll bluff and back down again. If they’re wrong, and they finally price in the fact that the president is using tariffs as a blunt-force weapon against major allies for a vanity land grab, then—as IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva put it—buckle up. In other words, Trump’s trade policy is now just a very expensive vibes-based Greenland fan project.
Source: theguardian.com
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#trade-war#killing-democracy
killing democracy
trump discovers the 'illegal orders' are the ones that say no to him
Elissa Slotkin, moments before being informed that citing the Constitution is now a hanging offense in Trump’s America.
Elissa Slotkin, former CIA officer and current senator, made the unforgivable mistake of reminding U.S. troops they don’t have to follow illegal orders. In response, Donald Trump did what any totally normal, definitely-not-authoritarian president would do: call it “treason”, boost posts suggesting the lawmakers should be hanged, and unleash his pet prosecutors and defense secretary to make sure everyone else gets the message.
Slotkin and a group of Democrats with military and intel backgrounds recorded a 90-second video citing the Uniform Code of Military Justice and the Constitution – you know, the things Republicans swear they worship until someone actually uses them. Trump labeled it treasonous, amplified calls for their execution, and now his DOJ attack dog in DC, Jeanine Pirro, wants to "interview" Slotkin while Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth tries to retroactively demote Mark Kelly’s retired Navy rank. Because nothing says "support the troops" like weaponizing the Pentagon to punish a former astronaut for a YouTube video.
Slotkin, who has literally studied authoritarian regimes for a living, points out that Trump is running the classic strongman playbook: physical intimidation, legal intimidation, and public threats to scare critics into silence. In other words, he’s turned the U.S. government into a vibes-based dictatorship where the president screams "treason" at anyone who suggests the military shouldn’t become his personal goon squad. But sure, tell us again how this is all about "law and order."
Slotkin and a group of Democrats with military and intel backgrounds recorded a 90-second video citing the Uniform Code of Military Justice and the Constitution – you know, the things Republicans swear they worship until someone actually uses them. Trump labeled it treasonous, amplified calls for their execution, and now his DOJ attack dog in DC, Jeanine Pirro, wants to "interview" Slotkin while Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth tries to retroactively demote Mark Kelly’s retired Navy rank. Because nothing says "support the troops" like weaponizing the Pentagon to punish a former astronaut for a YouTube video.
Slotkin, who has literally studied authoritarian regimes for a living, points out that Trump is running the classic strongman playbook: physical intimidation, legal intimidation, and public threats to scare critics into silence. In other words, he’s turned the U.S. government into a vibes-based dictatorship where the president screams "treason" at anyone who suggests the military shouldn’t become his personal goon squad. But sure, tell us again how this is all about "law and order."
Source: theguardian.com
#killing-democracy#fascism#lawlessness
anti immigration
spreadsheet fascism meets the deportation machine
America, now with a handy dashboard for tracking how efficiently we can ruin people’s lives.
The Times pulled the receipts on Trump’s favorite hobby — mass deportation — and turned it into a neat little 2:27 data explainer, because nothing says functioning democracy like needing a graphics desk to map out how many people your government is ejecting. Using internal data, they line up Trump’s deportation numbers against Biden’s and show how Trump’s DHS treated human lives like defective inventory to be shipped back out as fast as possible.
The video walks through how Trump’s "deportation machine" was engineered to maximize fear and volume: more arrests of people with long-standing ties to the U.S., fewer protections, and a system designed to grind through due process like it was an optional software add‑on. Biden’s approach looks "softer" on a chart, but the point is clear: Trump’s team built an industrial-scale removal apparatus that any future wannabe strongman can flip back to turbo mode with a signature.
In other words, we didn’t just get cruel policies; we got a permanent infrastructure of cruelty, complete with dashboards, metrics and performance targets. Because nothing screams land of the free like a finely tuned deportation pipeline waiting for its next authoritarian upgrade.
Source: nytimes.com
#anti-immigration#killing-democracy
killing democracy
hillbilly elegy to authoritarianism
JD Vance, seen here workshopping whether to call it populism, nationalism, or just good old-fashioned bootlicking.
JD Vance, once the earnest memoir guy warning about Trumpism, has completed his final Pokémon evolution into Trump’s favorite boot-licking mini-me. Now vice-president and 2028 candidate in everything but FEC paperwork, he tours the country telling heartwarming Mamaw stories while insisting that Democrats invented violent crime, because nothing says "populist authenticity" like using your grandmother as a prop for law-and-order demagoguery.
In office, Vance has helpfully abandoned most of the beliefs he used to say out loud. On foreign policy, free speech, and transparency, the former critic of Trump has "reconsidered"—which in practice means doing exactly what Trump wants and pretending he always has. He played shutdown hardball, leaned on redistricting, and went on a diplomatic cosplay trip to Israel, all while positioning himself as the natural heir to the movement if and when the current Dear Leader term-limits himself via mortality.
The free-speech warrior phase didn’t survive contact with power either. After the assassination of rightwing activist Charlie Kirk, Vance turned from "controversial speech must be protected" guy into "we demand retribution for anyone who reacts the wrong way" guy, using the vice-presidency to police political emotion and thought. He literally escorted Kirk’s casket on Air Force Two and guest-hosted the podcast from his ceremonial office—state power and propaganda blending together like it’s totally normal.
And while Vance skipped the Mar-a-Lago situation room cosplay while Trump directed an attack on Venezuela, he was very much present for the part that mattered: the White House meeting with oil executives to carve up the country’s resources. When Trump wandered off to admire the site of his future ballroom—because of course he did—Vance shared a knowing grin with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, another 2028 hopeful. In other words, American imperialism as a reality show, with JD Vance auditioning to be the next host.
Source: theguardian.com
#killing-democracy#fascism#imperialism
killing democracy
davos 2026: spirit of dialogue meets spirit of coup
Donald Trump explains that seizing foreign presidents with US troops is actually very legal and very cool, flanked by people who definitely know better and are pretending they don’t.
The World Economic Forum picked “A Spirit of Dialogue” as its 2026 theme, and then invited Donald Trump – the guy who spent the last year treating international law like a non-disclosure agreement. He shows up in Davos with the largest US delegation ever, because nothing says “rules-based order” like flying in the whole wrecking crew: Marco Rubio at State, hedge-fund guy Scott Bessent at Treasury, Wall Street broker Howard Lutnick at Commerce, and real-estate pal Steve Witkoff as “special envoy,” which is apparently now a job title for friends of the regime.
Over the past year, Trump threatened blanket tariffs, demanded NATO cough up more cash, ordered the Fed to slash rates “immediately,” and then spent the follow-up months trying to force a pro‑Russian peace on Ukraine. In just the last few weeks, he’s sent US troops to Venezuela to physically seize Nicolás Maduro, talked casually about annexing Greenland, and threatened to attack Iran over its internal repression. In other words, the old postwar order is now whatever Trump felt like tweeting and then half‑remembering in a briefing.
The rest of the world is, very belatedly, noticing this might be a problem. Central bankers – the people who normally think “strongly worded footnote” is going too far – issued an unprecedented joint letter defending Fed chair Jerome Powell’s independence after Trump spent months trying to turn monetary policy into a campaign slush button. UN chief António Guterres is out here saying the quiet part loud: when leaders “pick and choose which rules to follow,” they’re not just undermining global order, they’re setting a perilous precedent. Translation: Russia started shredding the rules in Ukraine, but the United States, under Trump, is now enthusiastically lighting what’s left on fire.
Meanwhile, global military spending has surged to $2.7 trillion as democracies and dictatorships alike panic-buy weapons in response to Russia, China, and the increasingly unhinged US. Senior diplomats quietly admit that Trump’s little adventure of projecting force into places like Venezuela could spark a global backlash – because nothing says “defending freedom” like kidnapping another country’s president. So Davos 2026 is billed as the last‑chance saloon for the old world order: Zelenskyy pleading for Ukraine, Europeans begging for free trade and NATO, Guterres begging for international law – all while Trump roams the Promenade surrounded by US tech giants demoing AI, the same US military machine that just tried regime-snatch in Caracas, and a global elite still pretending this is fine as long as the canapés keep coming.
Source: theguardian.com
#killing-democracy#imperialism#lawlessness
killing democracy
trump turns louisiana senate race into personal loyalty test
Bill Cassidy, smiling like a man who just realized his real opponent isn’t Julia Letlow or the Democrats, but the guy rage-posting endorsements from the Oval Office.
Donald Trump, still treating the federal government like his personal HR department, has now publicly encouraged Rep. Julia Letlow to primary Sen. Bill Cassidy in Louisiana—because nothing says "healthy democracy" like the president using his office to punish a senator for voting to impeach him for inciting an insurrection. On Truth Social, Trump blasted out that Letlow has his "Complete and Total Endorsement" and urged her to "RUN, JULIA, RUN!!!"—which is less a campaign slogan and more a direct order from the Dear Leader.
Letlow, who reportedly wouldn’t even consider running without Trump’s blessing, dutifully responded that she is "honored" by his endorsement and that her mission is to make the country "safer and stronger"—in other words, more obedient to Trump. She added that the Senate seat "belongs to the people of Louisiana," which is a bold thing to say while openly waiting for Mar-a-Lago to tell her whether she’s allowed to pursue it. The White House, ever the subtle authoritarian project manager, has quietly assured her that support will be there if she jumps in, but didn’t want to move too early and upset Cassidy, who’s been a useful vote for them, including to confirm noted public health menace and conspiracy enthusiast Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as HHS Secretary.
Cassidy, for his part, is insisting he’s running as a "principled conservative" and says he’s confident he’ll win if Letlow runs. This is the same Cassidy who voted to impeach Trump for "incitement of insurrection" and has been critical of RFK Jr., but still hasn’t bothered to actually haul Kennedy back before his committee for promised quarterly oversight hearings. So he’s trying to split the difference: mildly skeptical of the regime, but not so skeptical that he actually uses his power to check it. In Trump’s GOP, though, voting to impeach him is the only thing that really matters, and the punishment is clear: someone younger and more compliant gets a Truth Social coronation and a shot at your job.
So the 2026 Louisiana Senate race is shaping up less as a contest of ideas and more as a public loyalty ritual to a president who demands total fealty, deploys primaries as retribution, and has turned the entire party into a constant audition for his approval. But sure, tell us again how this is just normal politics and not a slow-motion party purge in a personality cult that happens to control the federal government.
Source: nbcnews.com
#killing-democracy#fascism
imperialism
trump accidentally invents canadian nationalism
Mark Carney walks beside Donald Trump, slightly out of focus—symbolizing Canada’s new foreign policy of pretending the neighbor from hell is just background noise.
Donald Trump has managed to do what a century of Canadian history classes could not: make Canadians genuinely patriotic. After returning to office, he slapped tariffs on key Canadian sectors, joked about Canada as "the 51st state," and followed it up with enough erratic foreign-policy chest thumping that a third of Canadians now think the US might one day take "direct action" to control their country. Because nothing says "stable ally" like your northern neighbor quietly workshopping invasion scenarios in poll questions.
Canadians have responded in the most polite way possible: by stopping coming to America and taking their money elsewhere. Trips south are down over 25%, US tourism is out billions, and California is now reduced to running "please come back" ads like a clingy ex. Meanwhile, US liquor is getting yanked off shelves, imports of American booze are collapsing, and Mexico just leapfrogged the US as a car supplier. In other words, Trump’s "America First" strategy is doing wonders—for Canadian tourism, Mexican automakers, and every politician north of the border who can spell "sovereignty."
On the political front, Trump even rewrote Canada’s federal election script. The Canadian Liberals were headed for the dumpster with Pierre Poilievre’s Conservatives cruising to victory, until Trump’s second-term chaos and tariff tantrums helped panic Canadians into rallying around Mark Carney—the technocrat who sold himself as the guy who could actually stand up to the orange hurricane next door. Trump’s big win? Turning America into a perceived "enemy or potential threat" for nearly half of Canadians and supercharging a "Buy Canadian" defense and procurement push that explicitly shifts away from US suppliers. But sure, tell us more about how this is all 12-dimensional trade genius.
#imperialism#trade-war
killing democracy
trump’s doj bravely defeats cat toy in 35 minutes
Marine One bravely survives direct contact with a homeless man’s cat toy, in what Jeanine Pirro briefly hoped would be her Nuremberg moment.
Jeanine Pirro, now inexplicably in charge of the US attorney’s office in DC, just racked up another stunning loss in her war on reality. A jury took about 35 minutes to acquit Jacob Winkler, a homeless man accused of aiming a laser at Marine One while it ferried Donald Trump—aka the world’s most fragile helicopter passenger. The alleged weapon? A red dot from a cat toy keychain. Because nothing says “serious federal law enforcement” like trying to send a homeless guy to prison for five years over something you buy in a PetSmart impulse bin.
Winkler’s public defenders politely translated this clown show: the federal government in the capital of the richest country on earth is burning scarce resources trying to make a felon out of a man with nothing but a novelty trinket, while “real threats” go unaddressed. In other words, Trump and Pirro are using the justice system as a cosplay security detail for the Dear Leader, and the actual safety of DC residents can go stand in line behind his feelings.
This is all part of Trump’s “crime emergency” in DC, where he sent in troops and had DHS and FBI agents doing neighborhood patrols like some budget Pinochet reboot. Pirro’s office has been cranking out federal cases against locals for “assaulting federal officers” and “threatening” Trump—most memorably losing a case against a guy who threw a Subway-style sandwich at a CBP agent in body armor while calling them “fascists.” The jury, once again, declined to pretend that’s terrorism.
Pirro’s office issued at least 16 press releases this week, but somehow none of them mentioned getting demolished in court over a cat toy and a hoagie. The Trump administration keeps trying to criminalize dissent and poverty; juries in DC keep replying: lol, no. But sure, tell us more about how this is all about “law and order” and not a flailing authoritarian ego trip.
Source: theguardian.com
#killing-democracy#lawlessness
imperialism
stable genius calls for new iranian government, what could go wrong
Trump, fresh off trying regime change in his own country, thoughtfully workshopping regime change in someone else’s.
Donald Trump has announced that it’s time for “new leadership in Iran,” because nothing says respect for sovereignty like the guy who tried to overturn his own election casually calling for regime change in another country. In an interview with Politico, Trump declared that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is “a sick man” and that Iran is “the worst place to live anywhere in the world” — a bold statement from the man who keeps trying to turn the U.S. into Florida with nukes.
While Khamenei accuses Trump of encouraging “agitators,” Trump has been busy telling Iranians to “take over institutions” and promising that “help is on its way,” which is definitely not ominous language when the Pentagon is simultaneously preparing to send a carrier strike group, additional aircraft, and land-based air defense systems to the region. In other words, we’ve reached the “spontaneous grassroots freedom uprising, coincidentally backed by a massive U.S. military build-up” portion of the program.
Thousands of protesters have already been killed — at least 3,090 dead and over 22,000 arrested, according to HRANA — but Trump briefly tried on his “human rights guy” costume by saying he “greatly” respects that “over 800” scheduled hangings were allegedly canceled by Iran’s leadership. The White House could not provide any source for that number, but why let facts get in the way of a good self-congratulatory fantasy? Meanwhile, the U.S. is evacuating key personnel from its largest Middle East base as Trump “weighs potential military action,” because nothing calms a brutal crackdown like dangling the prospect of another American war in the region.
So to recap: an authoritarian U.S. president who tried to cling to power at home is now cheerleading institutional takeovers abroad, musing about regime change, and parking a carrier strike group off Iran’s metaphorical lawn. But sure, this is all about freedom and human rights, and definitely not about another round of made-for-TV geopolitics starring Donald J. Trump.
Source: nbcnews.com
#imperialism#national-security
corruption
trump to regulate netflix-warner deal, immediately invests in netflix-warner deal
Trump, bravely fighting corporate concentration by personally investing in the corporations he’s supposed to regulate.
Donald Trump looked at America’s antitrust laws, ethics rules, and that whole "not personally trading in stuff you’re about to regulate" norm and said: what if we just didn’t? Days after bragging he’d "be involved" in the government’s decision on the $82.7bn Netflix–Warner Bros Discovery merger, Trump went out and bought at least $1m in their bonds. Because nothing says "independent regulator" like literally buying a financial stake in the companies whose merger you’re about to review.
The White House disclosure shows four purchases in mid-December, just over a week after the deal was announced and right after Trump mused about their "very big market share" and promised he’d be part of the call on whether it goes through. Meanwhile, a rival $108.4bn hostile takeover bid from Paramount Skydance — backed by David and Larry Ellison, both very friendly with the Trump crowd — is also in the mix. So on one side, the president is personally invested in the target companies; on the other, his buddies are bankrolling the competing bid. Regulatory capture? No, no, this is regulatory arbitrage for friends and family.
An anonymous administration official insists Trump’s portfolio is "independently managed" and that neither he nor his family can "direct, influence, or provide input" on investments. In other words: it’s just a wild coincidence that the blind trust keeps clairvoyantly buying into firms whose fate is about to be decided by the guy who owns the trust. Meanwhile, critics like Elizabeth Warren and the Writers Guild are pointing out that the merger is an "anti-monopoly nightmare" that will kill jobs, crush wages, and jack up prices. But sure, let’s pretend the real concern here is consumer choice, not the president quietly loading up on bonds while he gets ready to play antitrust cop on his own portfolio.
Source: theguardian.com
#corruption#forever-grifting
forever grifting
trump promised to cut your power bill in half, instead he doubled down on the shutoffs
A Baltimore resident sorts through her electric bills, trying to find the line where Trump cut them in half. Spoiler: it’s printed right next to the ‘affordability crisis is a hoax’ disclaimer.
Donald Trump promised to cut Americans’ energy bills in half within 12 months of taking office. Instead, the average household electricity bill went up 6.7% in 2025, costing families about $116 more than the year before – because nothing says “populist champion of the working class” like jacking up the price to keep the lights on. Washington DC households got hit with a 23% jump, Indiana 17%, Illinois 15%, and the midwest in general got the full “forgotten Americans” treatment in the form of steep utility hikes.
And it’s not just electricity. Gas prices climbed another 5.2%, and power shutoffs for unpaid bills are exploding. In New York, disconnections rose fivefold in a year, as more people – not just the poorest, but middle-income families too – are deciding whether to pay the utility or eat. Mark Wolfe of NEADA helpfully translated Trump’s promise into reality: instead of a 50% cut, his actions have raised home energy costs for everyone.
Naturally, faced with data, Trump did what he always does: declared the affordability crisis a “hoax” and a “fake narrative” invented by his enemies. So on the campaign trail, it was “I’ll cut your total electric bill – cars, AC, heaters, everything – by 50, five-zero percent, less.” A year in, it’s: your bill didn’t go up, you’re just too woke to appreciate these premium, freedom-infused kilowatt-hours. In other words, the only thing getting slashed in half is the distance between his lies and the shutoff notice taped to your front door.
Source: theguardian.com
#forever-grifting#killing-democracy