This is insane: Trump's rage and humiliation over the Reflecting Pool now has the White House urging DOJ to undertake new prosecutions *even though the government itself has already determined the person in question is innocent.*
Patrick
@patrickin.bsky.social
Politics, tech, climate, random stuff, cats, living in a deep red sea
Just gonna bang the drum again about Trump's money laundering history. There's a pretty clear pattern here going back 30+ years involving repeated fines, closed accounts, etc. It may actually be their longest running grift.
Trump bank accounts were closed due to concerns over possible money laundering, Capital One says
The court filing is tied to a lawsuit filed against Capital One by one of Trump’s financial holding companies shortly after he was sworn into office a second time.
pbs.org
NEW: Trump administration officials suggested funding research on crime against Afrikaners in South Africa. “It’s laughable to suggest that on the African continent, the prime issue of human rights concern is whites in South Africa,” one expert said.
What Is the Trump Administration Doing With Foreign Aid Money?
The billions of dollars Congress has allocated for foreign aid programs must be spent. One proposal from the Trump administration suggested funding research on crime against Afrikaners in South Africa...
propublica.org
With Blanche’s confirmation, the Senate has surrendered the rule of law. www.nbcnews.com/politics/jus...
Senate confirms Todd Blanche as attorney general after weeks of uncertainty
Senators from both parties had expressed concerns about Blanche’s role in President Donald Trump’s controversial IRS settlement deal and his prior work as the president’s personal lawyer.
nbcnews.com
I get that the Trump White House has decided that Congress is a vestigial organ, but I think there should be more coverage of the fact that Brendan Carr just up and said "yes, Congress put a 39% cap on media ownership, but I think I can ignore it for reasons."
Techdirt@techdirt.com · 5d agoBrendan Carr’s FCC Rewrites Media Ownership Law Only Congress Can Actually Change There are many ways to describe the Trump Era, but the executive branch's conviction that it... https://www.techdirt.com/2026/08/07/brendan-carrs-fcc-rewrites-media-ownership-law-only-congress-can-actually-change/
Welcome to the CAMBRIAN FECAL REVOLUTION. We didn't name it the Cambrian fecal explosion for obvious reasons. I'm happy to share this paper on fecal matter and its role in Cambrian ecosystems. So if you want to read a really shitty paper (50 days free access): authors.elsevier.com/a/1nYg8cZ3X7...
Republican elected officials, particularly Rand Paul and Ron Johnson, are a disgrace. Aside from their repeated attacks on Dr. Fauci, I ask you this: Who in their right mind will ever try to lead an American pandemic response again if the consequence is being harassed for the rest of your life?
Senators vote to hold Anthony Fauci in contempt of Congress for pleading the Fifth during tense hearing
Fauci declined to answer senators’ questions more than 100 times during last week’s hearing, angering Republican lawmakers who have targeted him for years.
nbcnews.com
BREAKING: in July 2026, *every single one* of the 2,528 refugees admitted in the U.S. were white South Africans. In FY 2026, the U.S. has admitted a total of 10,255 white South Africans, three Afghans (back in November), and nobody else. For reference, the U.S. admitted 100,060 refugees in 2024.
rpc.state.gov
Alex Ip 葉清霖@alexip718.com · last mo.BREAKING: in June 2026, *every single one* of the 1,062 refugees admitted in the U.S. were white South Africans. In FY 2026, the U.S. has admitted a total of 7,727 white South Africans, three Afghans (back in November), and nobody else. For reference, the U.S. admitted 100,060 refugees in 2024.
Wherein a right winger in Texas whines about tax revenue in NYC going to help people in need.
USA TODAY Opinion@usatodayopinion.usatoday.com · last wk.Opinion: Mamdani's idea may sound appealing, but it's NYC taxpayers who will take the hit, subsidizing discounts they may never even use.
This is a story about the President and several of his hand-picked appointees all committing crimes and blatantly lying to the public while stealing public funds and abusing the criminal justice system, but the NYTimes describes the situation like they're recapping a soap opera.
Larry Glickman@larryglickman.bsky.social · last wk.Another example of the problem with the fixation with Trump’s putative emotions: here a story about the Trump administration’s corruption, incompetence, and venality is framed as one about Trump’s “wrath.” www.nytimes.com/2026/08/01/u...
Reiterating that Musk's literal voter bribery last time was an unambiguous go-directly-to-jail felony, for which people have been successfully prosecuted over vastly smaller amounts. It wasn't just pouring money into a PAC, whatever one thinks of that. It was a black-letter plain-as-day crime.
Yes, Elon Musk’s Vote-Buying Is Against the Law
People have gone to prison for comparable schemes.
thebulwark.com
Matt Novak@paleofuture.bsky.social · 2w agoMusk got away with his $1 million vote-buying scheme in 2024. Why wouldn't he try something similar this November?
As if we needed more evidence that the Department of Justice was a just a tool of Donald Trump now.
Nsignificannot@nsignificannot.bsky.social · 2w agoapnews.com/article/trum... DOJ has no dog in this fight and the judge should have denied their entry in the case. It’s just Trump using taxpayer dollars for his personal benefit.
Upwards of 200,00 people may have lost their jobs today; or will in the upcoming days. There is a palpable sense of fear among the Haitian community right now. They need your support.
Heba Gowayed هبة جويد@hebagowayed.bsky.social · 2w agoMy Haitian friend was just fired from his job. "They said I don't have a legal status now." This is likely happening to hundreds of thousands of people across this country today. Sick.
Elon Musk, owner of X, has called the editor of the Economist "a traitor to the West, plain and simple" after her recent interview with him. He now argues that "anyone who opposes remigration is a traitor" Musk has been socialising violence since Aug25: "fight or die, that's what it comes down to"
This is the latest one that I can't believe doesn't have legs. They listed all the grants by whether the states they were in went for Harris or Trump and whether they had at least one republican Senator. All grants in Harris states w/o a republican Senator were canceled.
Trump Administration Admits Canceling Grants to States That Did Not Vote for Him (Gift Article)
Federal officials said in court documents that they halted billions of dollars in funding for energy projects to states “based solely” on whether they backed President Trump in the 2024 election.
nytimes.com
Trump administration admits, in court filings, that it canceled billions in federal grants not for policy or performance reasons, but because recipients lived in blue states. www.nytimes.com/2026/07/24/b...
Election denialism is now a broadly accepted position within the GOP. Arizona’s primary results proved that. The Republican candidates for governor, AG and secretary of state all helped Trump try to overturn the 2020 election — and they're willing to continue the work. https://demdock.com/4wi1JUn
A few weeks ago, after two years of work, I published a story unlike any I’d encountered in my 18 years at ProPublica. I’ve been off social media for a while, but I felt compelled to share some of my reporting journey here. 🧵
Isn't it weird that this week a currently sitting president had to pay a woman MILLIONS of dollars for *raping* (and defaming) her—and the media has forgotten all about it? There was a time that this would have been the ONLY story—until the rapist was driving from office.
One of my hobbyhorses is that if the USG can turn into THIS every 4 years, nobody will take those jobs. The benefits of stability and civic contribution are gone. The damage is permanent, which is a Republican goal. Any future reconstruction requires judicial & electoral reform as a prerequisite.
like I dunno, if I were a strategist in a functional opposition party I might pay smart and creative people to make viral TikTok and Instagram videos pointing out Republicans are illegally turning U.S. local broadcast TV into a right wing propaganda machine but that's just me
FCC to repeal 39% TV ownership cap in boost for Trump-friendly news orgs
FCC chairman claims power to repeal TV ownership limit set by Congress.
arstechnica.com
This AP investigation into David Brouillette, the ICE agent who shot Durán Guerrero in Maine is genuinely horrifying. Long history of extreme mental illness, chronic violence agst spouses and kids, PTSD and heightened violence from mil service. apnews.com/article/ice-...
AP Exclusive: ICE officer in Maine shooting has history of violent behavior, family and records say
The Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer who shot a Colombian man in Maine this week is an Army veteran who has struggled with serious mental health issues since early childhood, according to c...
apnews.com
NEW: We reported two years ago that Chicago police had made 200,000 secret traffic stops, failing to disclose them as required by law. Chicago police then admitted the problem, & promised to 'fix' it in a legislative hearing. We just investigated again: The problem... got WORSE.
Chicago Police Promised to 'Fix' Secret Traffic Stops. A Year Later, the Problem Has Only Gotten Worse. - Bolts
This story was produced as a collaboration between Bolts and Injustice Watch, a nonprofit news organization in Chicago focused on issues of equity and justice in the court system. In... Read More
boltsmag.org
Rachel Maddow’s description of Juan Sebastian Guerrero killed by ICE in Maine is a must see. She explains what happened w/out being graphic, and somehow that makes it even more powerful. Remember Alex, Pretti, and Renée? There have been no prosecutions. Still no justice. We know how this goes.
An incredible euphemism here for “the government is doing illegal discrimination”
This morning in Biddeford, Maine, a 26-year-old man said goodbye to his wife and daughter and left for work. Moments later he was dead, shot in the head by ICE agents, the second man ICE has killed in six days. ICE is killing our neighbors. ICE cannot be reformed. Abolish ICE.