While she has done little more than state facts, Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) is emerging as the only Republican member of Congress currently willing to call out the fact that Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s lawless DOGE crusade is stripping Republicans in the House and Senate of one of the main powers they possess as elected officials: to create agencies and fund the federal government.
Continue reading “Senate Republican Acknowledges That This Might All Be Very Illegal”Trump DOJ Tries To Bully Its Way To End Of Eric Adams Prosecution
NEW YORK—I last saw attorney Emil Bove one month ago, when he was representing his client, then-President-elect Donald Trump, at his New York state court sentencing in early January.
On Wednesday, Bove was down the street at the federal courthouse, and had a new, bigger title. He’s the acting Deputy Attorney General. But after watching Bove argue before a federal judge that the DOJ should be allowed to proceed with dropping its prosecution of New York City mayor Eric Adams, it was entirely clear: he is still Trump’s lawyer.
Continue reading “Trump DOJ Tries To Bully Its Way To End Of Eric Adams Prosecution”President Trump Says He Offered Michael Flynn ‘About Ten Jobs’ In The New Administration
President Donald Trump was apparently interested in bringing one of the more problematic figures from his first administration into his new one.
On Tuesday night, Trump made an appearance at his private Florida beach club, Mar-a-Lago, which played host to a gala for America’s Future, a right wing organization chaired by retired Gen. Michael Flynn. TPM reviewed portions of Trump’s remarks, during which the President declared he was eager to see Flynn, who had a short and scandalous stint as White House national security adviser in 2017, make a return to government.
“Let me tell you, this guy, he’s the real deal,” Trump said with a beaming Flynn at his side. “He’s a real general and I told him — I offered him about ten jobs.”
Flynn was forced to resign from his post in the first Trump administration amid revelations he lied to former Vice President Mike Pence and others about his communications with the Kremlin’s ambassador to the U.S. He subsequently pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about his contact with the Russian diplomat, kicking off a unique legal saga that culminated in a pardon from Trump.
Since then, Flynn has become a prominent right wing activist involved in multiple organizations and business ventures that blend extremist politics with entrepreneurialism. He was also a prominent proponent of Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election. In his remarks at Mar-a-Lago, Trump suggested Flynn’s current endeavors are too prosperous for him to justify taking any of the President’s job offers.
“I think he’s doing so well he doesn’t need them, but I offered,” Trump explained. “I said, any time you want to come in, you know that Mike, OK?”
The White House and Flynn did not respond to requests for comment.
America’s Future was founded in 1946. Past chairs of the group include retired Brigadier Gen. Robert E. Wood, who was a key figure in the World War II era America First Committee, which was known for rampant anti-Semitism and fascist sympathies. According to the group’s website, America’s Future is “committed to preserving the Judeo-Christian values that make America exceptional.” Tuesday night’s gala was billed as a celebration of “American Exceptionalism.” According to the Palm Beach Post, the party touted a lineup of stars who are no stranger to right wing politics and controversy; actors Russell Brand and Mel Gibson were part of the event. Based on photos from the gala, comedienne turned pro-Trump rapper Roseanne Barr was also in attendance.
Along with Flynn, Trump was flanked by boxer Mike Tyson and musician Ted Nugent during his speech. The president — after baselessly echoing his past claims that the election he won was stacked against him — boasted about his performance since returning to office last month.
“We’ve just had an election. Fortunately, it was too big to rig. They tried and it didn’t work out too good for them,” Trump said, adding, “We’re going to do a job. … They say — this isn’t me — they say it was the best three weeks so far of any president ever.”
Trump went on to tout his “DOGE” efforts that have focused on cutting thousands of federal jobs, freezing congressionally allocated funding, and eliminating programs and language focused on diversity. The lawless efforts have raised substantial questions about data security and potential impacts to essential government services. In his comments, Trump framed it all as a major culture war victory.
“We wiped out a lot of crap, a lot of stuff, a lot of fake stuff,” Trump said. “You know what that was right? We took care of woke. I think you’re not going to see too much wokeness.”
During the speech, Trump also suggested his ideological rivals were completely defeated within his first few weeks.
“We have a little problem with the radical left, but the radical left — I think we’ve taken care of them pretty good,” Trump said.
Along with touting his domestic agenda, Trump suggested his one-sided negotiations with Russia to end that country’s war in Ukraine were yielding positive results.
“We had a very good meeting with Russia today to stop that ridiculous war killing everybody,” Trump said. “It’s ridiculous and we’ve got to stop it.”
As Trump discussed one of the most crucial global conflicts, he was flanked by Flynn and two of the gala’s headliners: musician Ted Nugent and boxer Mike Tyson. Trump described them as “fantastic” and called the event “very, very friendly territory.”
“We’ve got a lot of beauties here,” Trump said.
Annals of Branding
I continue to hear new accounts of the pulverizing of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The news focuses on funds and employees, each of which of course are pivotal. But less reported on is the administration systematically shutting down the various portals created to allow citizens to report abuses, the systems for monitoring of key agencies in response to complaints, various materials created to educate citizens about how to protect their rights in the financial world. It’s all collectively awful. But it reminds me of issues tied to branding.
The CFPB is more than a decade old and I’m a bit shamefaced to admit that I still often forget the precise order of the initials that function as its de facto name. This may be its relative youth or my own neurology. I remember NLRB and NIH more or less well. But it reminds me that the name of the agency and how it is discussed in the political space is half the battle and one that its supporters in the political space (as opposed to the people who work there) have more or less conceded. Any politicians discussing this should never be referring to the CFPB or even the spelled-out four-word name. It’s more like the National Consumer Help Line. Or the National Business Complaint Line. “Line” dates those ideas a bit. I hear there are now computers too. Some version of “Financial” should be in there to specify its focus. But “financial” is a bit arcane. National Bank and Credit Card Complaint Line? I’m sure others could come up with something snappier. But everybody but everybody has a complaint about bad service or businesses (banks, credit cards, payment processors, etc.) that are ripping them off. And you just can’t concede any ground on making it crystal clear to people that that is what this is.
Project Veritas Video At Heart Of Latest Trump Admin Improper Interference At DOJ
A right-wing conspiracy theory website is at the heart of the latest Justice Department resignation in protest of the Trump administration’s interference at the DOJ.
Continue reading “Project Veritas Video At Heart Of Latest Trump Admin Improper Interference At DOJ”Russia and the US Begin to Divvy up Ukraine at Riyadh Confab
On the campaign trail last year Donald Trump repeatedly promised that he’d end the Russo-Ukraine war on day one of his presidency. It was always a given that any peace deal struck by President Trump would be very much on Russia’s terms. But what’s developed over the last week looks qualitatively different. If not literally the same in terms of the carving up of land, these peace talks look more like the discussions leading up to the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact with the divvying up perhaps as focused on natural resource concessions as territory. That may sound a bit dramatic. But what’s actually being discussed in the meetings in Riyadh aren’t permanent or interim borders for Ukraine or repatriation of citizens or anything that might be the actual makings even of a one sided “deal.” The main topic of conversation appears to be new concessions for American companies in the Russian oil industry, which remains heavily reliant on western technology to remain productive. A particular source of discussion was a possible series of deals for American companies to participate in Russia oil exploration in parts of the Russia-claimed arctic which are now accessible because of global warming. Indeed, oil futures are currently trending down on the expectation that more unsanctioned Russian oil will soon be coming on the market.
Meanwhile the US has pressed the Ukrainians, who are excluded from the Riyadh, with an entirely different set of demands.
Continue reading “Russia and the US Begin to Divvy up Ukraine at Riyadh Confab”5 Points On How Trump Is Using Eric Adams To Commandeer The DOJ And NYC
Less than one month into office, the Trump DOJ has rolled out sweeping new innovations in corruption.
Continue reading “5 Points On How Trump Is Using Eric Adams To Commandeer The DOJ And NYC”Trump Must First Destroy The Gov’t In Order To Corrupt It
A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPM’s Morning Memo. Sign up for the email version.
Stay Focused On The Real Power Dynamic
Accretion of power is the core goal of Trump’s Project 2025 opening blitz. Since power in the tripartite federal government is finite, the accrual of power by the executive branch necessarily comes at the expense of the legislative and/or judicial branches. But that highfalutin constitutional framework doesn’t quite capture the petty transactional nature of what Trump is up to.
The WaPo has a story out this morning that begins to capture this new dynamic: Members of Congress going hat in hand to the Trump administration asking for special dispensation from the latest degradations, purges, shutdowns, and freezes.
Trump II’s opening month blitzkrieg has wreaked all manner of damage and destruction – some of that undoubtedly for the pure sake of doing it – but the real power dynamic is in converting the vast array of government goods and services into a political currency that Trump can exchange for favors, leverage, control, and obedience.
What were democratically agreed upon government programs now become baubles to be awarded friends and denied foes. Congress is reduced to a supplicant trying to secure exceptions, carveouts, and special treatment for themselves and their constituents. Even if Trump succeeds ultimately in wrecking only a portion of the federal government, he will have accrued vast new power not just by stripping it from Congress but apportioning the spoils back to individual members at the time, place, and manner of his choosing, on his terms, however corrupt they may be.
Tracking The Purges
- DOD is next.
- U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras of DC has reinstated Cathy Harris as chair of the Merit Systems Protection Board after she was fired by the Trump administration.
IMPORTANT
President Trump issued a new executive order purporting to rein in independent agencies and expand White House power and control over, among others, the FTC, SEC, and FCC.
Keep An Eye On This Case
President Trump’s attempted removal of Hampton Dellinger as U.S. special counsel is the first Trump II case to make it to the Supreme Court. A federal district judge last week ordered Dellinger reinstated, and the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals over the weekend denied the Trump administration’s request for relief. The administration immediately sought Supreme Court intervention, and the high court out the case on a quick schedule. Dellinger has already filed his brief with the court. Steve Vladeck explains why this case is unique and not representative of the other coming battles over independent agencies and executive power.
DOGE Watch
On the same day that U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan ruled there was an insufficient legal basis to issue a temporary restraining order against DOGE,
- Elon Musk’s role and what DOGE is actually doing remain clouded in secrecy and government misdirection.
- DOGE’s access to Americans’ personal data now includes the IRS, the Social Security Administration, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
- D’OH! DOGE claimed $8 billion in savings on a cancelled contract that was actually worth only $8 million.
- The GSA’s lead engineer for a government text-messaging service resigned Tuesday after DOGE requested access to sensitive data, including personal identifying information, the WaPo reported.
What Elon Musk Is Really About
Now that musk is saying he’s doing the DOGE stuff “because the globalists have plotted a Great Replacement in which they use government handouts to buy votes from illegal immigrants and urban blacks” maybe we don’t have to act like this is about deficits or cost cutting anymore
— Jake Grumbach (@jakemgrumbach.bsky.social) February 17, 2025 at 6:03 PM
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Cruel But Also Dumb
Errors, mistakes, screwups, and boneheadedness are part and parcel of the Trump II reign of terror:
- The Trump administration was considering destroying a stockpile of free-to-the-public COVID tests but reversed itself after the WaPo came asking questions.
- The Trump administration “accidentally” fired officials working on bird flu, and the USDA is now scrambling to try to rehire them.
An Awkward Day In Court For DOJ
The Justice Department will for the first time have to defend to a federal judge its corrupt bargain to drop criminal charges against NYC Mayor Eric Adams. U.S. District Judge Dale Ho set a hearing for 2 p.m. ET this afternoon on the government’s motion to dismiss that prompted an unprecedented wave of DOJ resignations. TPM’s Josh Kovensky will be in courthouse and file his report late this afternoon.
Harmonic Convergence: DOJ, Project Veritas, EPA
DOJ politicization collided with Trump’s impoundment effort thanks to a bogus Project Veritas video. It led to the forced resignation of a senior prosecutor in the DC U.S. Attorney’s Office who could not abide using criminal process to try to claw back $20 billion appropriated to the EPA and already sent out the door to Citibank.
Jeffrey Clark Is Back
Jeffrey Clark, the Trump I DOJ official who was an unindicted co-conspirator in the Jan. 6 case against Donald Trump and a one-time co-defendant of Trump’s in the Georgia RICO case has popped up as a senior adviser to Mark Paoletta in his role as the CFPB’s new chief legal officer. Paoletta is also the OMB general counsel. Both OMB and CFPB are currently being run by Russell Vought.
Thread Of The Day
🧵Who is opposing the Trump administration? I analysed 76 actions of the administration since inauguration and then searched for *meaningful* opposition to each. I grouped the types of opposition and considered what we can learn from both them & actions where opposition has been lacking 1/24
— Prof Christina Pagel (@chrischirp.bsky.social) February 17, 2025 at 1:42 PM
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Great Read
Come for Jamison Foser’s Drive-By Truckers lede and stay for the political analysis:
We aren’t in a situation in which we can pick only the “right” fights; only fights we can clearly win. Things are so much worse than that, and will be for a very long time. The cold hard truth is there aren’t very many fights we can have a high degree of confidence we can win; there’s too much stacked against us. We have to be willing to pick some fights we will probably lose, because those are pretty much the only kinds of fights we have.
Trump Shits On Ukraine As He Walks Away From It
The painful abandonment of Ukraine by the Trump administration began in earnest with Russia-U.S. talks sans Ukraine producing a process to end the war that also sidelines the victim of Russian aggression.
As if that capitulation weren’t grim enough, President Trump took the occasion to blame Ukraine for being invaded. “You should have never started it,” Trump said, lashing out at Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky in comments that also sought to undermine him politically at home. At a press conference in his office in Kyiv, Zelensky responded: “I would like to have more truth with the Trump team.”
As Farah Stockman notes, “Europeans are waking up to the fact that they are entirely dependent on a foreign power that is no longer acting like itself. America, which once championed the liberal democratic world order, is now turning against it in ways that are shocking to its allies.”
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Trump’s First-Term Inside Man At The DOJ Has Scored A Top Post At The CFPB
Remember Jeffrey Clark, the former acting assistant attorney general in the Trump DOJ’s environmental division? He became infamous in the first days of 2021, when Donald Trump tried, unsuccessfully, to install him as attorney general mid-coup attempt. Now, Clark is reportedly back in government, in a top post at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. It’s an agency that Trump, Elon Musk and other allies have taken steps to paralyze in recent weeks.
Continue reading “Trump’s First-Term Inside Man At The DOJ Has Scored A Top Post At The CFPB”How It’s Going
Was getting a read out a short time ago about firings at CMS (the agency that runs Medicare and Medicaid). The cuts run deep. And giving how much of the health care economy runs through these programs that’s of course worrisome. But the most telling detail is one I’ve heard from numerous other agencies. The people actually running the agency don’t actually know how many people have been fired or who they are. If you’re in charge of and responsible for running the place you really need to know that. But as in other agencies they’re having to piece that together by doing things like seeing whose emails have been turned off or just asking them. Did you get fired? You? Can someone ask Lori if she got fired? Imagine running an agency and finding out that there had been widespread terminations but not being given any details about who they are or how many there are. That’s pretty straightforward sabotage.