Elect a Clown, Expect the Circus

Buckwoody Egger

DoubleEgger said:

That worm must have eaten the part of his brain that controls fiscal responsibility. 

Kennedy’s credit card balances range between $610,000 and $1.2 million in accounts that carry interest rates of 23.24% to 23.49%, the filing shows.

wowzers

could definitely be motivation for a narcissistic or desperate person to lie and do whatever to get some money

i can imagine someone out there in magaland would say that debt makes him relatable.  probably saying something logic bending like “see, he’s just like the rest of us but he has more debt because he’s rich”

didn’t someone else recently make deals with all sorts of devils to get elected and stay out of jail?

Botch

Buckwoody Egger said:
could definitely be motivation for a narcissistic or desperate person to lie and do whatever to get some money.

didn’t someone else recently make deals with all sorts of devils to get elected and stay out of jail?

One thing the DoD checks very carefully before granting Security clearances is the employee's financial records, for that exact reason.  This is very frightening wrt not just jfkjr.  

JohnInCarolina

DoubleEgger

Buckwoody Egger said:

DoubleEgger said:

That worm must have eaten the part of his brain that controls fiscal responsibility. 

Kennedy’s credit card balances range between $610,000 and $1.2 million in accounts that carry interest rates of 23.24% to 23.49%, the filing shows.

wowzers

could definitely be motivation for a narcissistic or desperate person to lie and do whatever to get some money

i can imagine someone out there in magaland would say that debt makes him relatable.  probably saying something logic bending like “see, he’s just like the rest of us but he has more debt because he’s rich”

didn’t someone else recently make deals with all sorts of devils to get elected and stay out of jail?

Apparently he is worth $30M so he has the means to pay it off. The fact that he pays that much in interest shows you how fat that brain worm got. 

Buckwoody Egger

DoubleEgger said:

Apparently he is worth $30M so he has the means to pay it off. The fact that he pays that much in interest shows you how fat that brain worm got. 

i hereby officially thank him for his contribution to the margins of the credit card firms. the more they make off of him subsidizes all the cash back incentives for the folks that pay off their card every month. 

JohnInCarolina

Only the best people, version 2.0

JohnInCarolina

DoubleEgger

Did Trump stop everyone from eating the dogs and cats in Ohio? 

lousubcap

Post weekend Clown Show summary:

"President Trump on Friday announced he was revoking the security clearances of former President Biden, former Secretary of State Antony Blinken, New York Attorney General Letitia James, and the Manhattan district attorney, Alvin Bragg. In an interview with the New York Post, Trump said he was also barring these and other lawyers from entering federal buildings. Matt Viser reports for the Washington Post; Miranda Devine reports.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem yesterday indicated Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) staffers have access to her agency’s data, including to the personal information of federal aid recipients. Noem said the access was “authorized” by Trump. Aileen Graef and Veronica Stracqualursi report for CNN.

Elon Musk on Friday announced he will rehire Marko Elez, a DOGE staffer who resigned over ties to a social media account advocating for racism and eugenics. Patrick Svitek reports for the Washington Post.

Edward Coristine, a 19-year-old DOGE staffer, has been previously fired from a cybersecurity internship over leaking internal information to competitors, according to a message seen by Bloomberg News. Jason Leopold, Margi Murphy, Sophie Alexander, Jake Bleiberg, and Anthony Cormier report.

The Treasury Department was warned last week that DOGE’s access to the federal payment network represents an “unprecedented insider threat risk,”according to internal emails reviewed by WIRED. Vittoria Elliott and Leah Feiger report.

Trump and Vice President JD Vance can discuss ongoing criminal and civil cases with Attorney General Pam Bondi and her deputies under the Trump administration’s new rules on White House-Justice Department communications, according to a memo seen by the Washington Post. Perry Stein and Jeff Stein report. 

The Trump administration personnel are questioning candidates for top national security positions on whether the 2020 was “stolen” and whether the Jan. 6 riot was “an inside job,” sources say. Ellen Nakashima and Warren P. Strobel report for the Washington Post.

The Trump administration has appointed Tom Krause, who has been leading DOGE’s review of federal payments, to perform the duties of Fiscal Assistant Secretary, a Treasury Department position previously held by David Lebryk. Michael Stratford reports for POLITICO.

Trump on Friday dismissed the head of the National Archives, Colleen Shogan, on Friday, according to White House Director of Presidential Personnel Sergio Gor. Raquel Coronell Uribe reports for NBC News.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau over the weekend instructed its employees to halt nearly all their work and work remotely “unless instructed otherwise.” Trump on Friday appointed Russel Vought, a Project 2025 architect and Director of the Office of Management and Budget, to be the Bureau’s acting Director. Colby Itkowitz, Yvonne Wingett Sanchez, Sarah Ellison, and Patrick Marley report for the Washington Post.

The Trump administration is moving forward with a plan to restart the detentions of migrant families in private prisons, a move that could result in arrests of children, sources say. Julia Ainsley reports for NBC News.

The Trump administration on Friday doubled the number of news organizations evicted from their Pentagon offices, rotating CNN, The Washington Post, the Hill, and War Zone out in favour of Newsmax, the Washington Examiner, the Daily Caller, and the Free Press. David Bauder reports for AP News."

JohnInCarolina

I think we are at that constitutional crisis point.  If this isn’t it, it’s certainly a harbinger of what’s to come:

lousubcap

"The president insists he’d like to annex at least one sovereign country during his second term, and it’s starting to look like he prefers America’s treaty ally Canada. The president spoke with Fox personality Bret Baier in a seven-minute interview recorded Saturday at Mar-a-Lago and which aired just before the Super Bowl. 

 Baier asked if Trump’s desire for Canada to become the 51st state of the U.S. is “a real thing,” as Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau reportedly told a private meeting of business professionals last week. The U.S. president replied, “Yeah, it is. I think Canada would be much better off being a 51st state because we lose $250 billion a year with Canada and I’m not gonna let that happen,” he said. “It’s too much. Why are we paying $200 billion a year, essentially, in subsidies to Canada? Now if they’re a 51st state, I don’t mind doing it,” he said. 

 Fact check: Trump is wrong about those alleged subsidies to Canada. It’s not $250 billion; not even close. “The U.S. trade deficit in goods with Canada was about $63 billion in 2024,” PolitiFact reports, and clarifies, “The overall trade deficit with Canada falls to about $41 billion when factoring in a U.S. surplus in services.”

 And for the record, “A trade deficit is not a subsidy,” PolitiFact notes. “Rather, the money going from the U.S. to Canada is to buy goods and services with a monetary value,” they add."

I did not listen to CHEETO!! BTW CHEETO makes Nixon look like a saint!

JohnInCarolina

lousubcap

Tuesday Clown Show summary:

"Trump yesterday pardoned former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich, whose 2011 corruption conviction included a charge of attempting to sell former President Obama’s vacated Senate seat. Niha Masih reports for the Washington Post.

Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove yesterday instructed the Justice Department to drop the corruption charges against New York Mayor Eric Adams, claiming the indictment limited Adams’ ability to cooperate in the immigration crackdown and that it could interfere with the mayoral primaries. William K. Rashbaum, Dana Rubinstein, Glenn Thrush, Michael Rothfeld, and Jonah E. Bromwich report for the New York Times.

Trump removed the Office of Government Ethics Director, David Huitema, from his post, the agency said. Myah Ward reports for POLITICO.

Seventeen Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency employees working on U.S. elections security have been placed on administrative leave pending review in recent days, a source said. Christina A. Cassidy reports for AP News.

The Homeland Security Department has asked the Treasury Department to deputize some of its law enforcement workers to assist in immigration enforcement, a document viewed by the Wall Street Journal shows. Tarini Parti and Richard Rubin report.

A 19-year-old DOGE staffer’s posting to new State Department and Homeland Security senior advisor roles has raised concerns about his access to sensitive information, U.S. officials say. Faiz Siddiqui, John Hudson, and Isaac Stanley-Becker report for the Washington Post.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced yesterday he is renaming Fort Liberty in North Carolina to Fort Roland L. Bragg. Before a 2023 change, the base’s name honored the Confederate general Braxton Bragg. John Ismay reports for the New York Times.

The U.S. Army will no longer allow transgender people to join the military and will stop facilitating gender transition procedures for service members, according to a court memo from Defense Secretary Hegseth. Idrees Ali and Phil Stewart report for Reuters."

lousubcap

Tuesday Russia-Ukraine update:

"The United States-Russia relations are “balancing on the brink of breakup,” Moscow’s deputy foreign minister said yesterday. Separately, a Kremlin spokesperson refused to confirm whether Trump and President Vladimir Putin have recently spoken, as Trump claimed. Astha Rajvanshi reports for NBC News.

The U.S. aid freeze has begun impacting efforts to hold Russia responsible for alleged war crimes in Ukraine, according to documents seen by Reuters. Anthony Deutsch and Dan Peleschuk report.

Russia’s Defence Ministry said air defence units intercepted and destroyed 15 Ukrainian drones overnight. Seven were downed over Russia’s southern Krasnodar region, while the rest were destroyed in the country’s southern and western regions, the ministry said.

The Ukrainian military said it shot down 61 out of 83 drones launched by Russia overnight, while just more than 20 of the unmanned aerial vehicles failed to reach their targets, the military added.

Russian state news agency RIA quoted the country’s Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin as saying that Moscow had not received any satisfactory proposals to start a ceasefire conversation with Ukraine."

Legume

The party of law and order 

lousubcap

Wednesday Clown Show summary:

"Trump yesterday signed an executive order empowering DOGE to oversee the federal government hiring process and directing agency officials to prepare “large scale” cuts to the federal workforce (including that “each agency hire no more than one employee for every four employees that depart,” with caveats for national security and public safety). Theodore Schleifer and Madeleine Ngo report for the New York Times.

Trump on Monday ordered a pause in the enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, a law aimed at curbing corruption in multinational companies, claiming it has been “abused” and impeded foreign policy objectives. Isabella Kwai reports for the New York Times.

Trump yesterday fired the Federal Labor Relations Authority Chair, Susan Tsui Grundmann, a White House official said. The firing appears to violate federal laws that protect the agency’s board from removal, reports Lauren Kaori Gurley for the Washington Post.

A 25-year-old DOGE staffer was “mistakenly” and “briefly” given permissions to control the Treasury payments system, court records released yesterday show. According to affidavits by Treasury Department officials, the staffer did not modify the databases before the permissions were corrected. Michael Stratford and Kyle Cheney report for POLITICO.

The FBI has gathered a list of 3,600 probationary employees as part of the Trump administration’s drive to size down the federal workforce, potentially paving the way for dismissals, sources say. Devlin Barrett reports for the New York Times.

Two top Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials have been demoted amid growing frustration with the pace of immigration crackdown efforts among Trump officials, sources say. Nick Miroff reports for the Washington Post.

The Office of Personnel Management has submitted draft regulations that would make it easier for federal agencies to fire officials who push back against “the elected President’s agenda,” according to documents obtained by POLITICO yesterday. Nick Niedzwiadek and Alfred Ng report.

Elon Musk’s financial disclosure reports will not be publicly released, a White House official said yesterday. The source also indicated Musk received an ethics training this week. Theodore Schleifer and Eric Lipton report for the New York Times.

The White House yesterday barred the Associated Press from covering an Oval Office event over the organization’s decision to not use the “Gulf of America” name in its coverage, AP Executive Editor Julie Pace said.

Trump yesterday named several nominees to financial regulatory posts and named the members of his intelligence advisory board. Michael Stratford, Declan Harty, and Katy O’Donnell report for POLITICO; Praveena Somasundaram reports for the Washington Post."

JohnInCarolina

JohnInCarolina

fishlessman

you cant make an omelette without breaking a few eggs

JohnInCarolina

fishlessman said:

you cant make an omelette without breaking a few eggs

does spoiling $500m in food count?

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/usaid-inspector-fired-trump-freeze-b2696917.html

fishlessman

JohnInCarolina said:

fishlessman said:

you cant make an omelette without breaking a few eggs

does spoiling $500m in food count?

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/usaid-inspector-fired-trump-freeze-b2696917.html

the pic posted in the article is vegetable oil they have to do something in what....6 months or so. canned goods in 6 years or so. ive used eggs gathered in the spring later in the fall, making an omelette and for pickling

lousubcap

Thursday Clown Show summary:

"President Trump yesterday signed an executive order calling for the U.S. Foreign Service to be reformed “to ensure faithful and effective implementation of the President’s foreign policy agenda” and stating that a failure to implement such policy would be grounds for “professional discipline.” Michael Crowley reports for the New York Times.

The Associated Press yesterday accused the White House of violating the First Amendment by banning it from covering multiple Oval Office events, saying the move was “plainly intended to punish The A.P. for the content of its speech.” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt defended the decision, stating that “it is a privilege to cover this White House” and “if we feel there are lies being pushed by outlets ... we are going to hold those lies accountable.” Katie Robertson and Maggie Haberman report for the New York Times; Dominick Mastrangelo reports for the Hill.

The ongoing Justice Department and FBI shake-ups have eroded continuity on national security matters by removing multiple veteran officials from a daily intelligence coordination meeting, officials say. Perry Stein and Mark Berman report for the Washington Post.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Tuesday said he plans to welcome the “keen eye of DOGE” to scrutinize Pentagon spending “very soon.” Zachary Basu reports for Axios.

Roughly 75,000 federal workers have accepted the Trump administration’s “fork in the road” offer before the program was closed yesterday, a senior administration official said. Rebecca Beitsch reports for the Hill.

The Federal Communications Commission is looking to open an investigation into Comcast, NBCUniversal’s parent company, over its DEI policies,according to a letter published by the FCC Brendan Carr yesterday. Dominick Mastrangelo reports for the Hill.

The Trump administration is planning to spend $400 million on purchasing armored Tesla vehicles, according to a State Department document detailing 2025 fiscal year procurement. The document was later revised to omit the word “Tesla.” Ryan Grim reports for Drop Site News; Bobby Allyn reports for NPR.

An unknown number of federal grants remains frozen by the Trump administration, according to nonprofits, government agencies, and other recipients. David A. Fahrenthold, Sharon LaFraniere, Nicholas Nehamas, and Coral Davenport report for the New York Times.

The Trump administration is considering using Defense Department funds to hire contractors to expand the scale and scope of immigrant arrests and deportations, sources say. Julia Ainsley and Courtney Kube report for NBC News.

Mass federal agency firings have begun, with terminations underway at the Education Department and the Small Business Administration, according to federal employees. Separately, sources said that dozens of General Services Administration’s Technology Transformation Services employees were fired yesterday. Rene Marsh and Tami Luhby report for CNN; Makena Kelly reports for WIRED."

JohnInCarolina

Can't wait to see how this goes.

JohnInCarolina

These are all people refusing to dismiss the case against Eric Adams.  The Trump DOJ just keeps moving the case from one unit to another, trying to find someone, anyone, willing to trade in their reputation in exchange for servitude to Dear Leader.   It seems that some lines are ones folks just won't cross.

JohnInCarolina

DoubleEgger

JohnInCarolina said:

These are all people refusing to dismiss the case against Eric Adams.  The Trump DOJ just keeps moving the case from one unit to another, trying to find someone, anyone, willing to trade in their reputation in exchange for servitude to Dear Leader.   It seems that some lines are ones folks just won't cross.

Donnie will check the Fox News roster and find someone. 

lousubcap

A perspective-likely not far off the mark-Ukraine and the way ahead...

Insights, analysis and must reads from CNN's Fareed Zakaria and the Global Public Square team, compiled by Global Briefing editor Chris Good   https://view.newsletters.cnn.com/messages/1739488703269d15f9504fa8a/raw?utm_

lousubcap

Friday Clown Show summary:

"At least seven federal agencies initiated layoffs of thousands of government workers yesterday, as Office of Personnel Management officials advised agency leaders to dismiss probationary employees. The Trump administration has also begun introducing surveillance measures for the remaining workers, a source said. Sophia Cai, Eli Stokols, Jack Detsch, and Brakkton Booker report for POLITICO; Ted Oberg and Megan Lebowitz report for NBC News; Jenna McLaughlin and Shannon Bond report for NPR.

The Trump administration this week notified Congress that it is prepared to challenge a long-standing Supreme Court ruling that protects regulatory agencies’ commissioners from being fired without cause. Ann E. Marimow and Lauren Kaori Gurley report for the Washington Post.

The Labor Department has approved DOGE’s use of software that could allow it to transfer vast amounts of data out of the agency’s systems, alarming some career civil servants. David Ingram reports for NBC News.

The State Department has not awarded Tesla a contract to produce “armored” electric cars, the agency’s spokesperson said yesterday. The budget document was a procurement forecast that was last modified in December 2024, before Trump took office, the official said. Daniel Arkin reports for NBC News.

Pentagon officials have invited a far-right activist with a history of extreme rhetoric, Jack Posobiec, to participate in Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s current overseas trip, according to documents reviewed by the Washington Post. Dan Lamothe reports.

The White House Correspondents’ Association yesterday again condemned the Trump administration, describing the White House’s barring of Associated Press from a news conference as an “outrageous escalation.” Ashleigh Fields reports for the Hill."

lousubcap

Excerpts from an Atlantic article by Anne Applebaum:

"Although Trump and Musk insist they are fighting fraud, they have not yet provided evidence for their sweeping claims. Although they demand transparency, Musk conceals his own conflicts of interest. Although they do say they want efficiency, Musk has made no attempt to professionally audit or even understand many of the programs being cut. Although they say they want to cut costs, the programs they are attacking represent a tiny fraction of the U.S. budget.

The only thing these policies will certainly do, and are clearly designed to do, is alter the behavior and values of the civil service. Suddenly, and not accidentally, people who work for the American federal government are having the same experience as people who find themselves living under foreign occupation." So what's the point of all this? It's been clearly spelled out in Project 2025 and described during speeches previously made by Trump and Vance. It's not about saving money. It's about breaking the system.

The stories about firings and department destruction are so plentiful that they can be overwhelming. So le'ts narrow things down to what all of them have in common. The always excellent Anne Applebaum is especially so here. The Atlantic (Gift Article): There’s a Term for What Trump and Musk Are Doing. How regime change happens in America. "The new system, whatever its ideology, will in practice represent a return to patronage...But before it can be imposed, the administration will first have to break the morale of the people who believed in the old civil-service ethos.

Vought, at a 2023 planning meeting organized in preparation for this moment, promised exactly that. People who had previously viewed themselves as patriots, working for less money than they could make in the private sector, must be forced to understand that they are evil, enemies of the state. His statement has been cited before, but it cannot be quoted enough times: 'We want the bureaucrats to be traumatically affected,' he said at the time. 'When they wake up in the morning, we want them to not want to go to work because they are increasingly viewed as the villains … We want to put them in trauma.'" She ends with: "There is still time to block this regime change, to preserve the old values. But first we need to be clear about what is happening, and why."

JohnInCarolina

@lousubcap - I saw someone observe that, were Musk serious about identifying waste and fraud, he would have brought accountants with him, not programmers.  Spot on in my opinion.