The Biggest Loser

GrateEggspectations · June 3

“Disgusting abomination.”

Looks like the feud is going nuclear.

Botch · June 4

If muskrat isn't careful, he's not going to get the multi-billion-$ contract to upgrade our 1950's-era Air Traffic Control systems.

DoubleEgger · June 4

Botch said:

If muskrat isn't careful, he's not going to get the multi-billion-$ contract to upgrade our 1950's-era Air Traffic Control systems.

With all of the quality control that Musk’s companies are known for…

Ike · June 4

Botch said:

If muskrat isn't careful, he's not going to get the multi-billion-$ contract to upgrade our 1950's-era Air Traffic Control systems.

I thought Reagan bought new euipment just before or after he fired all of the air controlers.

JohnInCarolina · June 4

lousubcap · June 4

Wednesday TRUMP ADMINISTRATION LITIGATION

"The Bureau of Prisons must provide transgender inmates with hormone therapy and gender-affirming social accommodations while a lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s policy denying prisoners gender-replacement treatment proceeds, a federal judge ruled yesterday. Amy Harmon reports for the New York Times.

A federal judge yesterday extended an injunction banning the Trump administration from canceling unspent COVID-19 funding for schools.Jonathan Stempel reports for Reuters.

A federal judge yesterday dismissed the Democratic Party’s lawsuit alleging that Trump’s executive order that sought to assert greater control over executive branch agencies was intruding on the independence of the Federal Election Commission, ruling that the case was too speculative to justify the court’s emergency intervention. Josh Gerstein and Kyle Cheney report for POLITICO.

A federal appeals court yesterday reversed a lower court’s dismissal of a lawsuit challenging policies that would restrict immigration judges from speaking publicly on legal and policy issues, directing the lower court to assess whether the Civil Service Reform Act’s enforcement bodies are currently functioning well enough to require that the case be handled through that system.

Department of Health and Human Services records that DOGE used to determine which employees to fire were “hopelessly error-ridden” and contained “systemic inaccuracies,” a group of terminated employees allege in a new class-action lawsuit seeking damages over their dismissals. Daniel Barnes and Lauren Gardner report for POLITICO.

New Jersey Mayor Ras Baraka yesterday filed a lawsuit against Acting U.S. Attorney Alina Habba and a DHS official, alleging his arrest by immigration agents at a detention center last month was a politically motivated move by the Trump administration. Andrew Goudsward reports for Reuters."

Botch · June 4

Ike said:

Botch said:

If muskrat isn't careful, he's not going to get the multi-billion-$ contract to upgrade our 1950's-era Air Traffic Control systems.

I thought Reagan bought new euipment just before or after he fired all of the air controlers.

He did, and a lot of it is still in place (floppy disk drives, etc). There are some subsystems (like tracking flights from airport to in-sky systems to destination airport that still use printed paper strips) that are still in use since the '50s. I saw something about it last weekend, can't remember what show.

EDIT: It was John Oliver:

https://youtu.be/YeABJbvcJ_k?si=FFAMGMGgQ7kLCzbk

Botch · June 4

^^^ I re-watched that, and highly recommend it for everyone. Also, read thru the comments; lots of current and retired ATC and pilots confirm the piece.
I'll also add here that Biden's original infrastructure bill included about $8B for updating ATC; my own party stripped it out.

lousubcap · June 5

Xi has CHEETO by the short hairs regarding any serious trade negotiations. The rare earth minerals are his hammer. I don't condone the greater USA being negatively impacted by this "WDIB" (Who's Richard Is Bigger) confrontation. However, if I were Xi I would hold fast as we all know TACO.

Gulfcoastguy · June 5

https://insideevs.com/news/761675/how-ford-gm-plan-ev-battery-breakup-with-china/

We will see how this comes out.

Botch · June 5

This morning the 50% tariffs on steel and aluminum went into effect, and President "Red Light!/Green Light!" didn't cancel them; stand by, we'll see what the situation is by the weekend.

Ike · June 5

As I recall, fishless will update us on the price of steel.

lousubcap · June 5

Thursday TRUMP ADMINISTRATION LITIGATION

""The Trump administration must facilitate the ability of the 140 Venezuelan immigrants removed to El Salvador to seek habeas relief, a federal judge ruledyesterday. Finding that the removals were carried out illegally, the judge gave the administration a week to propose how the men can pursue cases in U.S. courts challenging their removal. Josh Gerstein and Kyle Cheney report for POLITICO; Mariah Timms reports for the Wall Street Journal.

A federal judge yesterday blocked the deportation of the family of the man accused of attacking a group of demonstrators who were expressing support for Israeli hostages in Boulder, Colorado, ruling that “deportation without process could cause irreparable harm.” Victoria Albert reports for the Wall Street Journal.

A federal appeals court yesterday declined to lift a lower court’s order blocking the Trump administration from carrying out mass layoffs at the Education Department that would effectively shut the agency down. Devan Cole reports for CNN.

A federal judge yesterday temporarily blocked the Trump administration from eliminating the Job Corps, the largest U.S. job training program for low-income youth, while proceedings challenging the effort to shutter the program are ongoing. Dietrich Knauth reports for Reuters.

Pennsylvania yesterday filed a lawsuit against the Department of Agriculture alleging that the agency had illegally cut off funding under a pandemic-era federal food assistance program. Marc Levy reports for AP News.

Alvin Brown, the former Vice-chair of the National Transportation Safety Board, yesterday filed a lawsuit challenging his removal by Trump last month, arguing that his firing was illegal and threatened the NTSB’s safety mission. David Shepardson reports for Reuters.

A judge yesterday agreed to grant the joint request filed by the DOJ and White House trade adviser Peter Navarro’s attorneys to dismiss the DOJ’s case filed as part of the Biden administration’s efforts to recover Navarro’s emails sent during the first Trump administration. Spencer S. Hsu reports for the Washington Post.

A Guatemalan man who the Trump administration unlawfully deported to Mexico landed back in the United States yesterday, the man’s attorneys confirmed. The man was later taken into custody by ICE agents and was being transported to a detention facility in Arizona, an attorney added. Jennifer Sinco Kelleher reports for AP News.""

fishlessman · June 5

Ike said:

As I recall, fishless will update us on the price of steel.

it will be interesting, price increases for this spring were in the plans since last summer anyways. politically its a train wreck, business wise it will just chug along as we are very used to price increases. my markup will stay the same and as usual, prices quoted will be good for 1 days barring its availability at time of order

fishlessman · June 5

if you are buying a new car with steel hubcaps, hold onto your wallet...... do they still make cars with hubcaps

Botch · June 6

fishlessman said:

if you are buying a new car with steel hubcaps, hold onto your wallet...... do they still make cars with hubcaps

Cars with hubcaps? I know of one (MKBHD)
Steel? Don’t think so, plastic only.

lousubcap · June 6

Friday TRUMP ADMINISTRATION LITIGATION

"A federal judge yesterday temporarily blocked the Trump administration’s effort to prevent foreign students from enrolling at Harvard. Stephanie Saul and Andrés R. Martinez report for the New York Times.

A group of immigrant rights organizations filed a lawsuit yesterday arguing that deporting U.S. migrants to El Salvador is unconstitutional. Filed in Federal District Court in Washington, the suit argues that the underlying agreement between the two countries violates due process protections, the right to a public trial, and the prohibition against cruel treatment. Alan Feuer reports for the New York Times.

A federal judge yesterday ordered the Trump administration to restore AmeriCorps-funded programs across 24 states and Washington, D.C. However, U.S. District Judge Deborah Boardman’s ruling does not halt the administration’s efforts to place a large portion of the agency’s workforce on administrative leave, with plans to terminate their employment by June 24. Mariana Alfaro reports for the Washington Post.

An 18-year-old Massachusetts student on a now-lapsed visa who arrived in the United States at 7 years old was released from custody yesterday after a judge granted him bond, following his arrest by ICE over the weekend during a traffic stop. Authorities said the agents had been looking for the teenager’s father, who owns the car he was driving at the time. Nate Raymond reports for Reuters; Leah Willingham reports for AP News.

Faculty members and researchers from the University of California filed a lawsuit late Wednesday against Trump and multiple federal agencies, aiming to launch a first-of-its-kind class action challenging the administration’s broad cuts to research funding. Tyler Kingkade reports for NBC News."

Botch · June 6

From Robert Reich, yesterday:

When it comes to non-Americans, Trump and his regime are clear: Foreigners — especially if they’re Chinese — are no longer wanted here. Nor are their products. Nor are we prepared to sell them our advanced technologies.

But foreign bribes? Hell, they’re welcome at the highest levels, even if they result in some critical technologies reaching China.

First, consider all the front doors now closing to China.

The State Department is revoking the visas of Chinese students who are “studying in critical fields.” This could be a big deal. Some 277,000 students from China attended school in the United States last year, second only to the number of students from India.

In addition to raising tariffs on Chinese products entering the United States, Trump is considering prohibiting major Chinese chipmakers — as well as units of Chinese technology giants like Alibaba, Tencent, and Baidu — from trading with the United States.

Meanwhile, the United States has ordered a broad swath of American companies to stop shipping high-tech goods to China without a license and revoked licenses already granted to certain suppliers.

Last week, the United States suspended some sales to China of components and software used in jet engines and semiconductors, including chemicals and electronic design automation software for semiconductors.

In late March, the Trump administration added 80 companies and organizations to a list of companies that are barred from buying American technology and other exports because of national security concerns. The move, which targets primarily Chinese firms, cracks down on companies that have been big buyers of American chips from Nvidia, Intel, and AMD.

The rules are aimed at restricting China’s access to artificial intelligence and advanced computing needed to augment its military.

But as these front doors to China close, back doors are opening.

A technology trail now leads from the United States to oil-producing nations and then to China.

Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and United Arab Emirates have been granting Trump personal favors. Their presumed goal is to get access to American technology.

Qatar has given Trump a luxury jet, a “palace in the sky.” (It’s to him personally. No subsequent president will be able to use it.)

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) has invested $2 billion in Jared Kushner’s private equity firm. And Dar Global, a Saudi luxury developer, is partnering with the Trump Organization on at least three projects across the Middle East, including a Trump Tower Jeddah, another in Riyadh, and a Trump International Hotel and luxury golf development in Oman.

Trump’s family crypto firm, World Liberty Financial, recently announced that its so-called “stablecoin” — with Trump’s likeness all over it — will be used by the United Arab Emirates to make a $2 billion business deal with Binance, the largest crypto exchange in the world. The deal will generate hundreds of millions of dollars more for the Trump family.

What do Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE get from all these deals? All are seeking to diversify their economies away from oil by boosting their technology sectors.

Trump is granting them greater access to advanced technologies from the United States, including advanced semiconductors from companies like Nvidia and AMD.

Yet at the same time, these nations are strengthening their strategic partnerships with China in artificial intelligence, advanced computing, and quantum information technology.

They’ve entered into joint ventures with Chinese counterparts for producing unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and AI-related projects, including the development of smart cities and AI-powered infrastructure.

Here’s another back door to China: Chinese crypto billionaire Justin Sun, who’s based in Hong Kong.

Sun is the largest holder of Trump’s $TRUMP memecoin. His $23-million investment has put him into the exclusive circle of investors who were invited to a private VIP dinner with Trump on May 22.

Until Trump’s election win, the 34-year-old entrepreneur was in the sights of U.S. authorities and persona non grata in much of the U.S. crypto industry. His company. Tron, which operates a blockchain network with the same name, has been a popular channel for crypto’s criminal fraternity to move funds.

The U.S. Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network wrote in a private 2023 report that Tron was “growing in popularity among illicit actors.” By last year, more than half of all illegal crypto activity — some $26 billion — took place on the network.

Sun faced charges from the Securities and Exchange Commission, which in 2023 accused him of fraudulently manipulating the market for Tron’s TRX token. The Justice Department had been investigating Sun for suspected financial crimes, people familiar with the case said. The U.S. attorney’s office in Manhattan requested information from Sun in 2021 and continued gathering evidence through at least 2023, some of the people said, causing him to avoid travel to the U.S. over concerns about a possible arrest warrant.

But now? The SEC asked a court in February to pause its lawsuit, and most of the other investigations are on the way to being closed.

Is it possible that Sun’s Tron network will become a means for China to move funds in pursuit of advanced technology from the United States? Of course.

While America’s front doors are closing to China, back doors are opening in the form of personal payoffs to Trump that result in alternative routes for America’s advanced technology to reach China.

Officially, Trump is closing America’s front doors so China doesn’t get our critical technologies. Unofficially, he’s opening back doors to China that give it access to these technologies and make him and his family even richer.

What’s being sold? Who’s being sold out?

JohnInCarolina · June 7

lousubcap · June 9

Monday TRUMP ADMINISTRATION LITIGATION

"The Supreme Court on Friday limited a lower court directive allowing a watchdog group wide-ranging access to DOGE’s records in a lawsuit over whether DOGE is subject to the Freedom of Information Act. The majority held that “[s]eparation of powers concerns counsel judicial deference and restraint in the context of discovery regarding internal Executive Branch communications.” Josh Gerstein reports for POLITICO.

The Supreme Court on Friday also allowed DOGE staffers to access the Social Security Administration’s sensitive records of millions of U.S. residents,ruling on the Trump administration’s emergency application brought by labor unions and an advocacy group represented by Democracy Forward Foundation. Adam Liptak and Abbie VanSickle report for the New York Times.

A federal appeals court on Friday paused a lower court’s ruling that temporarily required the White House to allow journalists from the Associated Press to cover Trump’s events and travels. In a 2-1 decision, the majority held that the White House “retains discretion to determine, including on the basis of viewpoint, which journalists will be admitted” to multiple spaces in the White House complex or on the Air Force One. Zach Montague and Minho Kim report for the New York Times.

A federal judge yesterday declined to block Trump’s removal of three board members of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), ruling that the plaintiffs failed to demonstrate a strong likelihood the firings were unlawful or that they would suffer irreparable harm. CPB President and CEO Patricia Harrison signed a document affirming that the three members remain on the board after the ruling was made, according to a source. The court also wrote that ““Congress intended to preclude the President … from directing, supervising, or controlling the Corporation.” Sarah Fortinsky reports for the Hill.

A federal judge on Friday denied a request by the American Library Association to halt the Trump administration’s further dismantling of the Institute of Museum and Library Services, holding that recent court decisions suggest that his court lacks jurisdiction to hear the matter. AP News reports."

Botch · June 10

Just an idea I have, that I hope you all spread if you think it's a good one.
This coming 14th our dictator-wannabee will hold a military parade to Himself, on his birthday. Neither the members of my own party in congress, nor the supreme court, are doing anything to stop him. He absolutely thrives on attention, and if for some reason TV/Cable/'net viewership drops by about 40-50% on that day, ALL DAY, hopefully that'll be a message received.
I only do FB, and a couple special interest forums, so I don't have a loud voice. IF you think this is a good idea, please spread it as much as possible on your own sites; let's make this happen. Thank you.

Scott "Botch" Boettcher, Capt, USAF (Retired)
Registered republican since 1978

lousubcap · June 10

Let's flip the theme-June 14th is National Bourbon day. A celebration we can all get behind! 🥃

lousubcap · June 10

Tuesday TRUMP ADMINISTRATION LITIGATION

"A federal judge yesterday blocked the Trump administration from enforcing anti-diversity and anti-transgender executive orders in grant funding requirements, ruling that the government cannot force recipients to halt programs that promote diversity, equity and inclusion or acknowledge the existence of transgender people in order to receive grant funds. Janie Har reports for AP News.

A court yesterday found that Trump's invocation of the Alien Enemies Act was illegal, declining to “stretch the AEA’s meaning so broadly that mass migration or criminal activities by some members of a particular nationality could qualify as an ‘invasion,’” The court’s ruling blocks deportations under the Act in the Western District of Texas. POLITICO’s Kyle Cheney reports.

A coalition of Democratic states yesterday filed a lawsuit contesting the Trump administration’s reversal of a Biden-era effort to stop distribution of “forced-reset trigger” devices, which turn semiautomatic rifles into makeshift machine guns. Zach Montague reports for the New York Times.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta yesterday filed a lawsuit against Trump’s deployment of the National Guard to Los Angeles, arguing that the president could not lawfully federalize 4,000 members of the state National Guard in response to protests without a request from California Governor Gavin Newsom. Jacob Soboroff, Gary Grumbach, and Dareh Gregorian report for NBC News.

Bonta also yesterday asked a federal court to rule that it was unlawful for the DOJ to direct California’s public school system last week to undo its transgender athlete policy and to attempt to block the state’s federal funding. Malathi Nayak reports for Bloomberg."

caliking · June 10

Botch said:

Just an idea I have, that I hope you all spread if you think it's a good one.
This coming 14th our dictator-wannabee will hold a military parade to Himself, on his birthday. Neither the members of my own party in congress, nor the supreme court, are doing anything to stop him. He absolutely thrives on attention, and if for some reason TV/Cable/'net viewership drops by about 40-50% on that day, ALL DAY, hopefully that'll be a message received.
I only do FB, and a couple special interest forums, so I don't have a loud voice. IF you think this is a good idea, please spread it as much as possible on your own sites; let's make this happen. Thank you.

Scott "Botch" Boettcher, Capt, USAF (Retired)
Registered republican since 1978

I already planned to do this, but I very much doubt that the drop in viewership would be understood as intended. Trump is less bothered about what people think about him, as it would distract him from the pimary goal of raping our country for $$$.

JohnInCarolina · June 10

This is just kind of incredible. Whatever shred of dignity Rubio had left, it's surely been vaporized by now. This is North Korea type sh!t.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHk2Trw-d_o

lousubcap · June 11

Actually the main thing I took from the above clip was that CHEETO was not the final boarder. Normally the lead dog (POTUS-even if CHEETO) arrives and the door is then shut. That was not a face plant event.

Botch · June 11

I have no experience in climbing aluminum stairs in 5” elevator shoes, so I can’t comment.

JohnInCarolina · June 11

DoubleEgger · June 11

It’s the Reichstag fire all over again.

lousubcap · June 11

Wednesday TRUMP ADMINISTRATION LITIGATION

A federal appeals court yesterday allowed Trump to maintain tariffs on China and other U.S. trading partners, in a ruling extending a stay granted shortly after the U.S. Court of International Trade last month found that Trump did not have the power to impose the measures. The appeals court directed an immediate expedited review of the case, scheduling a hearing on July 31 to be heard by the full court. Tony Romm reports for the New York Times.

The Trump administration, for now, does not have to comply with a judge’s order directing the government to give due process to Venezuelan immigrants who were deported to El Salvador under the Alien Enemies Act authority, a federal appeals court ruled yesterday. The court’s decision to issue the interim stay is intended to give appellate judges more time to consider the merits of the lower court’s ruling. Alan Feuer reports for the New York Times.

A federal judge yesterday declined to immediately grant Gov. Gavin Newsom and the state of California's request for a temporary order restraining Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth from ordering National Guard troops and Marines to support immigration raids in Los Angeles. The judge gave the Trump administration 24 hours to respond and set a hearing on the matter tomorrow. Kyle Cheney and Josh Gerstein report for POLITICO.

A federal judge yesterday dismissed a lawsuit challenging Trump’s attempt to dismantle the U.S. African Development Foundation, finding that Trump was acting within his legal authority when he fired the USADF’s board members in February. Rebecca Boone reports for AP News."

The Biggest Loser

Comments

Categories