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Raw Story
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[l] at 11/9/25 11:27am
Donald Trump's administration is "shockingly wrong" for its move to instruct states to undo previously awarded SNAP benefits for low-income Americans, according to a Republican senator Sunday.Politico reported over the weekend, "The Trump administration is telling states not to pay full November food stamp benefits, revising its previous guidance after winning a temporary victory at the Supreme Court on Friday."That rollback didn't sit well with U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK).According to Semafor's Eleanor Mueller, "Murkowski calls the administration’s instructing of states to undo full SNAP benefits 'shockingly wrong.'"Mueller went on to quote the lawmaker as saying, “It’s one thing if the federal government is going to continue its level of appeal … to say this can’t be done... But when you are telling the states — that have said this is a significant enough issue in our state that we're going to find resources to backfill, or frontload, whatever term you want, to help our people — those states should not be penalized for it for doing that."Murkowski then added, "That to me is just shockingly wrong.”Murkowski calls the administration’s instructing of states to undo full SNAP benefits “shockingly wrong.”“It’s one thing if the federal government is going to continue its level of appeal … to say this can’t be done.”“But when you are telling the states — that have said this…— Eleanor Mueller (@Eleanor_Mueller) November 9, 2025

[Category: Lisa murkowski]

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[l] at 11/9/25 11:00am
A federal judge hand-picked by former President Ronald Reagan is stepping down from his lifetime appointment in protest of President Donald Trump, who he accused of launching an “assault on the rule of law.”“My reason is simple: I no longer can bear to be restrained by what judges can say publicly or do outside the courtroom,” wrote Mark Wolf, who in 2006 became the chief judge of the Court of Massachusetts, in an op-ed published in The Atlantic Sunday.“President Donald Trump is using the law for partisan purposes, targeting his adversaries while sparing his friends and donors from investigation, prosecution, and possible punishment. This is contrary to everything that I have stood for in my more than 50 years in the Department of Justice and on the bench.”Wolf said that his resignation would allow him to more publicly speak out against the Trump administration, as well as support litigation against his administration in an effort to protect “the rule of law and American democracy.” He also intends on advocating for judges that he argued have been hamstrung under pressure and threats from the White House.Trump has frequently lashed out at federal judges from the Oval Office for rulings he perceives as unfair. In March, he called for the impeachment of U.S. District Judge James Boasberg, who ruled against the administration’s efforts to deport migrants to El Salvador’s notoriously dangerous CECOT prison. Legal experts have condemned Trump’s attacks on judges as a tool to undermine the independence of the judiciary, and Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson argued Trump’s attacks were “designed to intimidate those of us who serve in this critical capacity.”Trump’s attacks on judges have also put their safety at risk, Wolf argued.“Trump’s angry attacks on the courts have coincided with an unprecedented number of serious threats against judges. There were nearly 200 from March to late May 2025 alone,” Wolf wrote.“These included credible death threats, hundreds of vitriolic phone calls, and anonymous, unsolicited pizza deliveries falsely made in the name of the son of a federal judge, who was murdered in the judge’s home in 2020 by a disgruntled lawyer.”

[Category: Trump]

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[l] at 11/9/25 10:36am
"Whoa," a MSNBC host said on Sunday as a public defender described Supreme Court Justice Judge Neil Gorsuch apparently criticizing a power grab by Donald Trump.Liz Oyer, a former pardon attorney, appeared on MSNBC over the weekend, and was asked about the issue of tariffs. She noted that there was "a really interesting argument at the Supreme Court this week that suggested that a couple of conservative justices may join the liberals in striking down Donald Trump's tariffs."She continued, specifically noting comments made by Gorsuch."I mean, we won't know until we actually see the ruling, but the arguments certainly suggested that a couple of judges are very interested in potentially striking this down," she said. "And the most stunning comments came from Neil Gorsuch, who is a strong conservative member of the court, who made a comment indicating that he believes that the Trump presidency has been gradually but steadily taking too much power away from the legislature. Congress."That led host Jonathan Capehart to blurt out, "Whoa."Oyer further added, "So the Supreme Court is sort of telegraphing that congress has the responsibility for taxation. Tariffs are a tax. And if we need to tariff other countries, it should be congress doing it, not the president."

[Category: Neil gorsuch, Trump]

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[l] at 11/9/25 10:20am
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) made a bold prediction Sunday that the ongoing government shutdown would end “today,” while accusing Democratic lawmakers of engaging in what he called “political terrorism.”Now on its 40th day, the ongoing government shutdown has officially become the single-longest shutdown in U.S. history. It began on Oct. 1 after Democrats refused to back any spending package that did not include an extension of Obamacare subsidies, which, if allowed to expire, will see 4 million Americans lose health insurance and hike premiums by 114% for millions more.“I think this madness ends today! This political terrorism Democrats have been using – shutting down airports, people not getting paid, SNAP benefits going away – it's backfiring,” Graham said Sunday, speaking with Fox Business’ Maria Bartiromo. “They want us to do two things by terrorizing the country: repeal the $1.5 trillion in savings we had from the Big Beautiful Bill... and they also want us to continue for another year Obamacare, which is the biggest scam on the planet!”Graham went on to back a new proposal President Donald Trump had floated on Saturday to, instead of funding an extension to Obamacare subsidies, send that money directly to Americans in a multi-billion dollar payout, similar to the stimulus checks Americans received during the COVID-19 pandemic.The Senate is set to convene Sunday at 1:30 p.m. EST, and Bartiromo, attempting to clarify Graham’s statement, asked him to affirm his statement.“Yes, today – the government will re-open today!” Graham said. “We're not going to talk about health care until it does, and when it does, Donald Trump is going to lead this nation to change Obamacare where all the money goes to the seven-top insurance companies in the world, they have been enriched from 500% to 1,000% increase in stock while premiums under Obamacare have over doubled. Trump's going to end that!”"The government will re-open today!"Sen. @LindseyGrahamSC predicts the gov shutdown will end today, accuses Dems of engaging in "political terrorism." pic.twitter.com/CSOgKtQQzc— Alexander Willis (@ReporterWillis) November 9, 2025

[Category: Lindsey graham]

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[l] at 11/9/25 10:00am
In yet another display of the same divisive rhetoric that defined his first term, US President Donald Trump has once again pulled the United States into the crosshairs of global instability, this time by saber rattling over Nigeria’s complex ethnic and religious conflict. Trump not only threatened to slash US aid, but he also said he might order “fast and vicious” military strikes against what he calls “Islamic terrorists” slaughtering Christians. Aside from the fact that Trump is wrong, he is ranting xenophobic ideas, platforming American exceptionalism, and demonstrating a blatant disregard for the lives of millions caught in the cross fire of what is simply a resource war with colonial-era grudges.Let’s be clear: The violence taking place today in Nigeria is heartbreaking and must end. Boko Haram’s extremism, clashes between farmers and herders, and general hooliganism have claimed over 20,000 civilian lives since 2020. It is true that Christian communities in the north-central regions have suffered unimaginable horrors as raids have left villages in ashes, children murdered in their beds, and churches reduced to rubble. The April massacre in Zike and the June bloodbath in Yelwata are prime examples of the atrocities taking place in Nigeria. These incidents are grave reminders that the international community must pay more attention to this crisis.But Trump’s response is crude and wrong. Painting all Muslims as genocidal monsters is not the answer. Calling Nigeria a failed state ripe for American liberation is not the solution, especially since the data shows otherwise. According to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project, more Muslims than Christians have been targeted in recent years. Boko Haram has massacred worshipers in mosques, torched markets in Muslim-majority areas, and threatened their own co-religionists.The crisis in Nigeria is not a holy war against Christianity. Instead, it’s a devastating cocktail of poverty, climate-driven land disputes, and radical ideologies that prey on everyone and not just any distinct group. By framing Nigeria’s conflict as an existential threat to Christians alone, Trump is not shining a spotlight on the victims. Instead, he is weaponizing right-wing conspiracy theories to stoke Islamophobia, the same toxic playbook he used to fuel his ban on Muslims, and which left refugee families shattered at America’s borders.Americans must reject Trump’s imperial fantasy and instead demand congressional oversight on any military action.Nigeria’s leaders are right to be astonished and furious. Presidential spokesperson Bayo Onanuga said he was “shocked” over Trump’s invasion musings, while President Bola Tinubu decried the religious intolerance label as a distortion of their “national reality.” Even opposition voices, like Labour Party spokesperson Ken Eluma Asogwa, admit the government’s security lapses but reject Trump’s extermination narrative as baseless fearmongering.Trump should indeed be viewed as a warmonger, seeking every opportunity to sow discord and destruction in his wake. He sees every crisis as a photo op for his machismo and self-promotion. His first term was a disaster and now, in his second term, he wants to unleash drones and troops on Africa’s most populous nation, destabilizing a key partner in counterterrorism and migration management.Unilateral strikes will only inflame the conflict’s root causes like resource scarcity and ethnic tensions. If anything, Trump’s misguided ideas to resolve the crisis will only exacerbate it by creating new waves of refugees and sowing even more discord throughout Nigeria. The country needs real solutions, not Trump’s wrong-headed conspiracy theories. He should be saving those who are vulnerable, not bombing them into submission.A real solution would involve surging humanitarian aid to displaced families, partnering with the United Nations and African Union for joint security training, and pressuring Nigeria’s government through incentives, not threats. Real strength is in building bridges. Trump shows his weakness by building bunkers.The Nigerian crisis is a clarion call for the world, but especially for America. Trump’s rhetoric is not just wrong; it is a betrayal of American values. Americans must reject Trump’s imperial fantasy and instead demand congressional oversight on any military action. America must recommit to a foreign policy that heals rather than divides. The world is watching, and for the sake of Nigerian lives and the American soul, we must not allow Trump to drag America into a quagmire of his own making. Nigeria deserves better.
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[l] at 11/9/25 9:48am
Australian economist and professor Justin Wolfers issued a dire warning this weekend that however the Supreme Court ends up ruling on the White House’s tariff policy, mass “mayhem” was likely to follow.“If – as I expect – the Trump tariffs are ruled illegal, we're going to move from eight months of unconstitutional illegal tariff turmoil to a whole new set of tariff turmoil,” Wolfers said, appearing on journalist Molly Jong-Fast’s show “Fast Politics” on Saturday.“It'll be this crazy, crazy soap opera in which the president tries to run an economy by pretending he – and he alone – can move the pieces around the global economy chessboard.”The Supreme Court is currently weighing in on the president’s authority to impose sweeping tariffs. Lawyers for the Trump administration say the president has such authority under a 1977 law that permits his office to impose tariffs in response to emergencies – which President Donald Trump has said is the United States’ trade deficits with other countries.Justices have expressed skepticism, however, at the Trump administration’s case for the tariffs, giving rise to increasingly panicked attacks on the court from the president, who warned the United States could be “reduced to almost Third World status” if the court rules against him.If the court sides with Trump on the tariffs, Wolfers warned that the “headaches” from the trade policy would persist; if the court rules against Trump, then an entirely different type of “mayhem” would likely unfold, he warned.“If you think you've seen mayhem, strap in: there's plenty more ahead!” Wolfers said.Wolfers also railed into the Trump administration’s team of economists, many of whom helped shape Trump’s sweeping tariff policy.“What we have in the current White House is you can take any ranking of the horsepower of economists; there is no one in the White House who is in America's 10,000-best economists,” Wolfers said. “That's not an exaggeration, it's a qualitative statement. They've gone dragging through the gutter, stupid is as stupid does. It's not a well-advised White House... Maybe incompetence is part of the strategy.”

[Category: Trump]

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[l] at 11/9/25 9:28am
President Donald Trump was dragged through the mud Sunday for his panicked attack on the Supreme Court as his authority to impose sweeping tariffs may be on the verge of being struck down.In an online post on his social media platform Truth Social, Trump erupted at the Supreme Court over its growing skepticism of his authority to impose tariffs, implying that the court was uneducated on the intent of the Founding Fathers as it relates to his authority to impose tariffs.“The whole thing is ridiculous!” Trump wrote. “...WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON???”Trump’s lashing out at the Supreme Court drew an immediate response from online critics, including from X user “PatriotTakes,” who researches and monitors “right-wing extremism” and has amassed more than 458,000 followers.“Trump is ‘panican’ because he based his whole (failed) economic strategy on a constitutionally questionable tariffs based on emergency powers,” they wrote, referencing the Trump-coined term he used to describe panicking Republicans who opposed his tariffs.Others, like X user “Albino Jiginosis,” a self-described sports enthusiast whose profile says they’re from Illinois, called Trump a “completely unserious individual and an embarrassment” in response to his online outburst.“Trump knows the tariffs are cooked and is flailing,” they wrote in a social media post on X Sunday.The Supreme Court heard arguments from the Trump administration's lawyers Wednesday in defense of the president’s authority to impose sweeping tariffs. They argued that under a 1977 law, Trump had the authority to impose tariffs in response to emergencies, which in this case, they argued, was the United States’ imbalance trade with other nations.A majority of the nine justices on the Supreme Court, however, have shown skepticism at the Trump administration’s arguments, potentially giving reason for Trump’s continued outbursts. Trump previously warned that the United States may be reduced to “almost Third World status” should the court rule against him.“Seethe, cope and seethe Donnie,” wrote X user “NPC35882722,” who’s frequently posted or shared content supportive of Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), in a social media post Sunday. “Maybe ask Argentina for our cash back and f--- you and your 50 year banker scam.”Trump is “panican” because he based his whole (failed) economic strategy on a constitutionally questionable tariffs based on emergency powers pic.twitter.com/kooC3MOeG0— PatriotTakes ?? (@patriottakes) November 9, 2025

[Category: Supreme court, Trump]

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[l] at 11/9/25 9:10am
While 'Reaganism' is "still an article of faith for many conservatives," the future of the Republican Party despite it taking a beating at the ballot box last Tuesday, is 'Trumpism,' according to New York Times opinion writer Damon Linker."The second Trump administration has given the country 10 months of relentless power grabs, a globally disruptive trade war and, most recently, a demolition project at the White House — all while an inexorably rising cost of living continues to weigh on American workers," Linker writes."The result? A presidential approval rating that has plummeted from already middling levels," he adds.Republicans, Linker says, are now contemplating whether Trump's "distinctive brand of right-wing populism" has any viability. Linker thinks it does."Could Mr. Trump prove to be a temporary aberration? Might the Republican Party return to its Reaganite essence once the man who has done so much to trash it finally leaves the Oval Office in a few years?" he asks.Unfortunately, he writes, Reaganism seems to be over."In other words, is the future of the Republican Party Reaganism or Trumpism? The answer, I’m afraid, is most likely Trumpism," Linker says.President Ronald Reagan, he notes, was a one-off, saying, "Reagan’s election in 1980, through the presidency of George W. Bush and the candidacies of John McCain and Mitt Romney, was an unusual and fleeting moment of moderation and responsibility for the G.O.P."Reaganism, he writes, "was provoked and inspired by the sense of threat and moral clarity of the Cold War and its immediate aftermath."Republicans have now returned to what Linker says is "a spirit of furious reaction to modern liberalism, an unwillingness to countenance compromise with the realities of governing a sprawling continentwide commercial nation and a conviction that political wisdom lay in the country’s turning inward and indulging a temptation toward self-absorption.""Any serious effort to think through what’s likely to follow the Trump presidency needs to grapple with these potent and persistent strands in the right’s political DNA," Linker says.A rebellious right, Linker says, started to emerge at the end of the Cold War."Discontented factions on the right first began to rebel against their marginalization immediately after the end of the Cold War and demise of the Soviet Union," he explains.George W. Bush's administration, Linker says, rewrote "the Cold War script to portray the global war on terror as a battle for freedom against the enemies of civilization — largely satisfied the most rabid factions of the Republican base.""Had a Democrat been president when Al Qaeda unleashed its attacks, the furiously reactive antiliberalism of the Old Right might have overwhelmed the G.O.P. more than a decade before it actually did," Linker says.Republicans in the White House, Linker notes, "kept populist rage submerged — at least until it began to heat up in response to the financial crisis and Great Recession and then to boil over during the Obama administration, leading first to the Tea Party protest movement."Today, Linker says, "we’ve been living in a world dominated by Mr. Trump and a newly emboldened hard right."The MAGA movement, he writes, "aspires to take a wrecking ball to the 'administrative state' and career civil service, use extortionist threats to force ideological capitulation across civil society, deploy troops and a masked federal police force to round up and deport millions of immigrants, and bully other countries into submission to the president’s will."When Trump eventually exits, and he will, Linker says, the stench of "the more personalistic dimensions of his rule — above all, its most breathtaking examples of corruption — will likely recede as well," he notes.But other stains of Trumpism will linger, Linker says."Much of the rest will remain, including a willingness to use sweeping state power to combat anyone who dares to defy the destructive impulses of the rejectionist Republican base," he writes.Removing this should become the Republican Party's number one issue, he writes."What might tame these reactive impulses is unclear, but doing so may be the G.O.P.’s, and the country’s, most pressing priority," Linker says."If Republicans receive a drubbing in next year’s midterm elections in proportion to the one they suffered this past week, many in the party will begin to think more anxiously about where it should turn in 2028. Such thoughts (and second thoughts) will need to grapple seriously with the right’s longstanding dark currents that are part of our national character and cannot be willed or wished away," he adds.
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[l] at 11/9/25 8:58am
President Donald Trump promoted a debunked conspiracy theory Sunday suggesting that former President Barack Obama has collected $40 million in taxpayer money since 2010 for “royalties linked to Obamacare,” Obama’s signature domestic policy.“Wow!” Trump wrote, sharing an image of a social media post on X detailing the conspiracy theory.Promoted by X user “The Patriot Oasis,” who has amassed more than 333,000 followers and frequently shares pro-Trump content, the conspiracy theory has been debunked numerous times over the past few months, and actually originates from a satirical social media page, “America’s Last Line of Defense,” which intentionally publishes fictional stories.Several prominent right-wing social media influencers have since taken the satirical post and promoted it as truth, drawing hundreds of thousands of views, which as of Sunday now includes the president himself.According to the debunked claim, Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, halted the federal government’s payments to Obama, a component of the theory that suggests Trump is not briefed on major cuts instituted by the very government agency he created.According to several law professors who spoke with AFP, the idea that Obama could have even registered a trademark in relation to Obamacare was unfeasible, given that the ownership of a government program would, in fact, be the government itself."[Trump] created the Space Force. And the name Space Force is a trademark pending that's owned by the US military," said Erik Pelton, an intellectual property lawyer and professor at Georgetown University, speaking with AFP. "Because it's a governmental program, that's who would own the name."AFP had also conducted a search of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office database and found no such registered trademarks for Obamacare.

[Category: Trump]

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[l] at 11/9/25 8:43am
Congressional Republicans are reportedly trying to insert anti-abortion language into government funding legislation as the shutdown continues, with the GOP and President Donald Trump digging in against a clean extension of Affordable Care Act tax credits as insurance premiums surge.Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, sounded the alarm on Saturday about what he characterized as the latest Republican sneak attack on reproductive rights.“Republicans said they might vote to lower Americans’ healthcare costs, but only if we agree to include a backdoor national abortion ban,” Wyden said in remarks on the Senate floor.The senator was referring to a reported GOP demand that any extension of ACA subsidies must include language that bars the tax credits from being used to purchase plans that cover abortion care.But as the health policy organization KFF has noted, the ACA already has “specific language that applies Hyde Amendment restrictions to the use of premium tax credits, limiting them to using federal funds to pay for abortions only in cases that endanger the life of the woman or that are a result of rape or incest.”“The ACA also explicitly allows states to bar all plans participating in the state marketplace from covering abortions, which 25 states have done since the ACA was signed into law in 2010,” according to KFF.Wyden said Saturday—which marked day 39 of the shutdown—that “Republicans are spinning a tale that the government is funding abortion.”“It’s not,” Wyden continued. “What Republicans are talking about putting on the table amounts to nothing short of a backdoor national abortion ban. Under this plan, Republicans could weaponize federal funding for any organization that does anything related to women’s reproductive healthcare. They could also weaponize the tax code by revoking non-profit status for these organizations.”“The possibilities are endless, but the results are the same: a complete and total restriction on abortion, courtesy of Republicans,” the senator added. “Trump said he’d leave abortion care up to the states. Well, this latest scheme makes it crystal clear: A de facto nationwide abortion ban has been his plan all along.”The GOP effort to attach anti-abortion provisions to government funding legislation adds yet another hurdle in negotiations to end the shutdown, which the Trump administration has used to throttle federal nutrition assistance and accelerate its purge of the federal workforce.Trump is also pushing a proposal that would differently distribute federal funds that would have otherwise gone toward the enhanced ACA tax credits, which are set to expire at the end of the year.“It sounds like it could be a plan for health accounts that could be used for insurance that doesn’t cover preexisting conditions, which could create a death spiral in ACA plans that do,” said Larry Levitt, executive vice president for health policy at KFF.This story was published in partnership with Common Dreams. Read the original here.
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[l] at 11/9/25 8:32am
Donald Trump on Sunday raged against Democrats, demanding that they "stop terrorizing the American people."Taking to Truth Social, the president wrote "I am sorry that the American People are being terrorized by Democrats who have decided to shut the Government down to make me and other Republicans continue ObamaCare subsidies, which have been a windfall for Health Insurance Companies, and a DISASTER for the American People.""The largest Health Insurance Companies have seen their Stock Prices soar (Some over 1000%!) since the passage of ObamaCare. Meanwhile, Americans’ Premiums have more than DOUBLED, contrary to President Obama’s promise," he added this weekend. "I believe that the money should go directly to THE PEOPLE to purchase better Healthcare, and create competition. This enrichment of Health Insurance companies must stop. It is long past time to lower Premiums, not enrich Insurance Companies. I stand ready to work with both Parties to solve this problem once the Government is open. Stop terrorizing the American People. Stop pushing failed policies!"In a separate post, Trump added, "Democrats claim to be working for 'the little guy,' and driving down your Health Insurance, but the OBAMACARE SCAM goes STRAIGHT TO THEIR BEST FRIENDS IN THE INSURANCE INDUSTRY.""THEY ARE MAKING A 'KILLING,' while Health Coverage only gets WORSE. If Democrats get their way again, they’re in for another HUGE Payday at the expense of the American People," Trump claimed without evidence. "NO DEAL! Republicans should give money DIRECTLY to your personal HEALTH SAVINGS ACCOUNTS that I expanded in our GREAT BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL. Thank you for your attention to this matter!"

[Category: Trump]

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[l] at 11/9/25 8:05am
A fierce ally of Donald Trump Sunday sounded the alarm about what she sees as a detrimental alliance the president has made.Trump has previously enraged some parts of his Make America Great Again (MAGA) base with his embrace of Qatar, a Middle Eastern nation that played a role in Israel-Hamas negotiations. Far-right Trump fans condemn Qatar for its links to nations that sponsor terrorism.Laura Loomer, a MAGA influencer who has been dubbed "The Trump Whisperer" due to her close ties to the president, is one such individual who doesn't like how close Trump has become with the Middle Eastern country.Early Sunday morning, she dropped a lengthy screed on the subject of Qatar."I really wish President Trump would come to terms with the fact that Qatar is not our ally," she wrote on X. "I would also really like to see the Emiratis and the Saudis pledge to triple their investment commitments into the US to wedge out Qatar under the condition that President Trump designates the Muslim Brotherhood as a foreign Islamic terrorist organization when Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud (MBS) visits the White House and meets with President Trump this month."She continued:"Obviously I don’t speak for President Trump, but why would we want or need to be handcuffed by Qatar, a global sponsor of Muslim Brotherhood and Iranian proxy terrorism? Why would we want Qatar to have any leverage or influence over the US simply because of money and a $400 million plane?"The influencer then added, "I’m sure there’s plenty of Money to replace the Qatari commitments.""The reality is, until the United States tells Qatar to go pound sand, we are not going to see an enforceable Trump admin initiated designation of the Muslim Brotherhood, because a designation of the Muslim Brotherhood would mean having to cut ties with Qatar since Qatar funds the Muslim Brotherhood and HAMAS," she wrote. "This would also mean that we would have to shut down the Qatari embassy in Washington DC that likely wishes they could bribe every single politician in DC to support Qatar and oppose designating the Muslim Brotherhood as a foreign Islamic terrorist organization."

[Category: Qatar, Trump]

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[l] at 11/9/25 7:31am
Donald Trump's latest plan to help people buy homes is getting a horrible reception from many experts and political observers, with one individual declaring it a "spectacularly dumb" idea.Trump recently teased a plan for a "50-year mortgage" on his social media, and on Saturday administration officials confirmed such a plan is in the works. But with 30-year mortgages already putting some people in debt for much of their lives, some analysts sounded the alarm.Progressive influencer Alex Cole said, "A $400K house at 6% costs $863K on a 30-year mortgage. On Trump’s 50-year plan? $1.38M. That’s half a million more in interest. Trump supporters cheering for 50-year mortgages is like turkeys cheering for Thanksgiving."Dem strategist Mike Nellis said, "Trump’s 50-year mortgage proposal is a spectacularly dumb idea.""He’s basically admitting he has no clue how to lower housing costs—just a plan to enrich banks and trap Americans in debt until they die," Nellis wrote.MeidasTouch wrote, "Trump and his cronies are now pushing 50-year mortgages. Buckle up. This is going to make the 2008 mortgage crisis look like the good old days."Common Sense Investor added, "TRUMP JUST POSTED THE 50 YEAR MORTGAGE! 50-YEAR MORTGAGE = LIFETIME DEBT. BANKS GET RICH. YOU NEVER GET FREE."An X user known as @InNomeniDei added, "Trump really screwed himself proposing a 50 year mortgage."A Florida conservative known as Richard FL wrote, "Trump is so America First, that he wants your children to have a 50 year mortgage on their homes. Imagine, buying a house when you're 27, paying until you're 77, and then paying home insurance and property taxes until you expire. What have I missed?"Sonny Day, a self-proclaimed "Finance Bro," chimed in, "President Trump is a catastrophic failure. A 50 year mortgage is a lifetime of debt and interest. I regret voting for him or at all for that matter. Self aggrandizing and out of touch with his voting base."Conservative analyst Tom Nichols also weighed in when confronted on the topic:"A 50 year mortgage is not 'leniency,' it's a scam aimed at...well, at people like this, who will go bust then join Tea Party 2.0 and swear that the government is to blame for making them do stupid things like signing up for 50 year mortgages."

[Category: Trump]

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[l] at 11/9/25 7:16am
The Trump administration is facing a wave of condemnation after new reporting has revealed details about the systemic “torture” migrants were subjected to after being deported to El Salvador’s notoriously dangerous CECOT prison.The Trump administration has sent around 250 migrants to El Salvador’s CECOT prison as part of its broader mass deportation policy. And, while the prison’s tortuous conditions have been well documented, The New York Times recently spoke with 40 former inmates whose testimony, forensic experts say, indicated “the existence of an institutional policy and practice of torture,” the outlet reported Sunday.Speaking with the Times, the former inmates said they were beaten repeatedly, subjected to waterboarding-like torture, stripped naked and forced to perform sexual acts, and denied lifesaving medication. Of the 40 men interviewed, only three had criminal histories beyond immigration and traffic offenses, despite Trump’s pledge to only deport the “worst of the worst.”The detailed account of the torturous conditions left many critics stunned, including former MSNBC host Mehdi Hasan, who called for Democrats – should they regain control of Congress and the White House – to not forget what the Trump administration had subjected migrants to and to hold them to account.“This is what Trump, [Vice President JD] Vance, [Homeland Security Secretary Kristi] Noem and [White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen] Miller did. This is on them,” Hasan wrote Sunday in a social media post on X to his nearly 2 million followers. “There needs to be criminal accountability if the Dems ever get back into power.”Activist, lawyer and Trump critic George Conway concurred with Hasan’s call for accountability, telling his more than 2.2 million followers that the Trump administration should also face accountability for its targeted strikes on suspected drug traffickers – operations that some former officials have since questioned the legitimacy of.“Absolutely, positively,” Conway wrote in a social media post on X Sunday, agreeing with Hasan’s statement. “And for the [Caribbean] boat strikes, too.”This is what Trump, Vance, Noem and Miller did. This is on them. There needs to be criminal accountability if the Dems ever get back into power. https://t.co/FNP8zkt3zw— Mehdi Hasan (@mehdirhasan) November 9, 2025

[Category: Trump]

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[l] at 11/9/25 6:45am
President Donald Trump erupted Sunday at the Supreme Court as its increasingly skeptical justices weigh in on the president’s authority to impose sweeping tariffs.“So, let’s get this straight??? The President of the United States is allowed (and fully approved by Congress!) to stop ALL TRADE with a Foreign Country (Which is far more onerous than a Tariff!), and LICENSE a Foreign Country, but is not allowed to put a simple Tariff on a Foreign Country, even for purposes of NATIONAL SECURITY,” Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social. “That is NOT what our great Founders had in mind!”The Supreme Court first heard arguments for and against Trump’s authority to impose tariffs last week, and a majority of the justices expressed skepticism at the Trump administration’s position, a skepticism that saw online betting platforms predict the court would strike down Trump’s signature trade policy.Trump has grown increasingly panicked at the possibility of the Supreme Court striking down his tariffs, warning that the United States “could be reduced to almost Third World status” should the court rule against him. And on Sunday, that panic appeared to evolve into rage as Trump lashed out at the court online.“The whole thing is ridiculous! Other Countries can Tariff us, but we can’t Tariff them???” Trump wrote. “It is their DREAM!!! Businesses are pouring into the USA ONLY BECAUSE OF TARIFFS. HAS THE UNITED STATES SUPREME COURT NOT BEEN TOLD THIS??? WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON???”Trump’s argument in defense of the tariffs rests on his administration’s reading of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, a 1977 law that permits the president to impose tariffs in response to emergencies. The emergency, his administration has claimed, is the United States’ trade deficits with other countries. Whether the court will agree with that position is set to be determined in the coming days or weeks.
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[l] at 11/9/25 6:31am
Donald Trump recently shocked his own allies with a military threat that came after the president watched a Fox New story on the topic, according to new reporting.The Washington Post on Sunday published a new report called, "Trump’s ‘guns-a-blazing’ threat to Nigeria shocked key players, aides," in which the outlet claims that "Trump’s threat to go 'guns-a-blazing' into Nigeria concerned U.S. military officials in Africa and surprised even those who had been pushing the issue."Raw Story reported more than a week ago that Trump threatened military action on foreign soil, escalating previous remarks about the ally."If the Nigerian Government continues to allow the killing of Christians, the U.S.A. will immediately stop all aid and assistance to Nigeria, and may very well go into that now disgraced country, 'guns-a-blazing,' to completely wipe out the Islamic Terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities," Trump said on Truth Social at the time. "I am hereby instructing our Department of War to prepare for possible action. If we attack, it will be fast, vicious, and sweet, just like the terrorist thugs attack our CHERISHED Christians! WARNING: THE NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT BETTER MOVE FAST!"The Post investigated how that threat came to be, and reported, "Trump’s threat to go 'guns-a-blazing' into Africa’s most populous country was the result of a months-long pressure campaign on behalf of Nigerian Christians by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and American evangelical leaders — but it surprised even those who had been pushing the issue."The report continued:"The threat caught many off guard and generated immediate concern within United States Africa Command (AFRICOM), which directs American military operations across the continent. Leaders told the Pentagon they had other priorities, according to three people familiar with the matter, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss ongoing operations. One of those familiar said AFRICOM also communicated that striking a region with limited U.S. presence and intelligence was unlikely to make a difference."Referring to Trump's new priority as "seemingly out of the blue," the report states that "the president’s initial post followed a meeting in Washington between his top advisers and members of the faith community, and after he watched a Fox News segment on the topic aboard Air Force One, according to three people with knowledge of the situation.""The push to make the issue an administration priority was long in the making, the people said, but the president’s threat of military action was entirely unexpected," the report states.Read the article here.

[Category: Nigeria, Trump]

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[l] at 11/9/25 6:15am
Donald Trump's character on Saturday Night Live stood indifferent as a man collapsed in his the Oval Office, drawing attention to a widely mocked moment.After an introduction by characters including those portraying Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Dr. Oz, a man collapses behind them and the camera slowly pans to James Austin Johnson's Trump character. Last week, SNL's Trump mused jokingly about the president's recent MRI."Oh hi, didn't see you there, someone was dying in my office," Trump says when the camera fully reaches him. He then notes that he stood there and stared at the emergency "like a sociopath.""I didn't even pretend like I was going to help," he said, noting that RFK Jr. "booked it out of here like someone was trying to give him a vaccine.""Each week I like to create a big visual that sort of sums up how things are going. Last week it was the demolishing of the East Wing," SNL's Trump said. "This week it's a medical professional almost dying in my Oval Office."

[Category: Snl, Trump]

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[l] at 11/9/25 6:00am
A Republican state lawmaker is voicing concerns as New Mexico legislators push to investigate Jeffrey Epstein’s 8,000-acre compound that sits about 35 miles south of the state capital.On Friday, Democratic state Rep. Andrea Romero officially introduced a proposal to establish a “truth commission” – at a cost of $2.5 million – to investigate activities at Epstein’s complex, known as “Zorro Ranch,” KOAT-TV, a local ABC affiliate, reported Sunday. But for one Republican state lawmaker, the timing of the probe was suspect.“Why now?” said Republican state Rep. Stafani Lord on Friday, according to KOAT-TV. “Why not a long time ago? Every time I ride my motorcycle past [Zorro Ranch], I get sick to my stomach.”The outlet also reported that Lord had raised her questions in the context of ongoing political tensions surrounding the matter, and made reference to President Donald Trump’s supposed pledge to release files related to Epstein.Epstein, who died in 2019 awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges, had a long personal relationship with Trump, a relationship that has plagued his second stint in the White House as new revelations about their relationship continue to be unearthed.Epstein purchased Zorro Ranch in 1993 from former New Mexico Gov. Bruce King, and is alleged to have sexually abused minors at the location alongside his longtime accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell. He hosted powerful figures at the compound throughout the years, including Britain’s Prince Andrew, former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson and celebrity Woody Allen.Epstein had also reportedly planned to use Zorro Ranch to “seed the human race with his DNA” by impregnating women at the compound, the New York Times reported in 2019.According to Romero, who represents Santa Fe, the proposed investigation would probe current and former state officials as to their knowledge of the activities at Zorro Ranch.“This commission will specifically seek the truth about what officials knew, how crimes were unreported or reported, and how the state can ensure that this essentially never happens again,” Romero said. “There’s no complete record of what occurred.”Zorro Ranch would be sold in 2023 to an undisclosed buyer, and its name changed to “Rancho de San Rafael.” The mysterious owner or owners have since filed a complaint to dispute the property tax burden they were issued after purchasing the property.

[Category: Epstein]

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[l] at 11/9/25 5:42am
Donald Trump early Sunday morning raged against Democrats and Republicans alike who have spoken out against his controversial foreign trade policy.Trump has upset those on both sides of the aisle with his habit of initiating retaliatory tariffs against allied nations based on his personal grievances. The Supreme Court is currently considering whether Trump even has the power to put his tariffs in place based on a law expanding the president's "emergency" powers.This weekend, Trump took to Truth Social to shout about the "fools" who oppose him on that issue."People that are against Tariffs are FOOLS! We are now the Richest, Most Respected Country In the World, With Almost No Inflation, and A Record Stock Market Price. 401k’s are Highest EVER," Trump wrote without citing any evidence. "We are taking in Trillions of Dollars and will soon begin paying down our ENORMOUS DEBT, $37 Trillion."He then added, "Record Investment in the USA, plants and factories going up all over the place. A dividend of at least $2000 a person (not including high income people!) will be paid to everyone."In a separate follow-up post, Trump added, "WITHOUT TARIFFS, WE HAVE NONE OF THE FOLLOWING (JUST POSTED) TRUTH!!! President DJT."

[Category: Trump]

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[l] at 11/9/25 5:27am
President Donald Trump reignited his demands early Sunday morning for Republican senators to terminate the filibuster, warning GOP lawmakers that they would become “the stupid party” should they continue to defy him.“Republicans Should Terminate the Filibuster (THE DEMS WILL DO IT THE FIRST CHANCE THEY GET!), End the Shutdown, Pass lots of Great ‘Things,’ and Win the Midterms,” Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social. “SO EASY TO DO - Be the Smart Party, Not the Stupid Party!”Trump has ramped up calls in recent weeks for GOP senators to eliminate the filibuster, a Senate rule that allows a member to block a bill that receives less than 60 votes. His calls come amid the ongoing government shutdown, which reached its 40th day on Sunday and has become the single-longest shutdown in U.S. history.The shutdown was sparked by Democrats’ refusal to back any spending bills that didn’t include an extension of Obamacare subsidies, which are set to expire this year. If allowed to expire, an estimated 4 million Americans would lose health insurance, and premiums for millions of Obamacare enrollees are projected to increase by 114%.With there being 53 Republicans in the 100-member Senate, the party’s majority is too small to overcome the filibuster and adopt a spending bill to re-open the government. Were the filibuster to be eliminated, however, Republicans’ simple majority would be enough to force through a spending bill without an extension to Obamacare subsidies, as well as a plethora of other agenda items from Trump, including legislation to ban “transgender for everybody,” as Trump has stated, and additional tax cuts, too.

[Category: Trump]

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[l] at 11/9/25 4:00am
In 2021, following MAGA’s J6 storming of the US Capitol, media columnist Margaret Sullivan observed that such orchestrated violence could not have happened without Fox News. She wrote, “The mob that stormed and desecrated the Capitol … could not have existed in a country that hadn’t been radicalized by the likes of [Fox News hosts] Sean Hannity, Tucker Carlson and Laura Ingraham, and swayed by biased news coverage.”Fox News didn’t deny that it platformed Trump’s stolen election claims after knowing them to be false, nor could it after Dominion Voting brought the receipts. In the run up to J6, Fox anchors laughed to each other that Trump’s and his supporters’ election claims were “ludicrous” and “totally off the rails”(Tucker Carlson); “F’ing lunatics” (Sean Hannity); “Nuts” (Dana Perino); “Complete BS” (Fox Producer); “Kooky” (Maria Bartiromo); “Mind Blowingly Nuts” (Fox VP); and that, “There is NO evidence of fraud. None” (Bret Baier).And yet, to the American people, Fox hosts said the opposite, relentlessly, and kept at it until the manufactured outrage crescendoed in the J6 attack.Fox is normalizing and selling Trump’s police stateIn 2025, Fox is at it again, this time parroting Trump’s false claims about immigrants, crime, and ICE. As Trump’s masked agents commit widely documented atrocities in Democrat-run cities, Fox hosts call ICE protesters “domestic terrorists,” while platforming false claims that ICE officers have “federal immunity“ for their crimes.Last week, when Kristi Noem claimed that “No American citizens have been arrested or detained” by ICE agents, Fox News and affiliates ran the entire segment with no fact checks and no clarification. It is well publicized and well known that more than 170 American citizens have, in fact, been tackled, arrested and detained illegally by Noem’s ICE agents. When Fox showed a masked, male agent slamming a 5-foot-tall woman onto the concrete, Fox’s Laura Ingraham ran the clip praising ICE’s excessive violence with, “good job.”By ignoring (or encouraging) ICE brutality, while overstating threats against federal agents, Fox News is, once again, radicalizing viewers with falsehoods.Fox is also normalizing a police state, grooming the public to welcome the specter of Trump’s secret police in their daily lives. As Trump gears up to invade and oppress citizens in every state with "quick reaction forces" trained to control "civil disturbances" that Trump himself will cause, Fox News will, yet again, be an accomplice to the criminal violence. Only this time, far more than 5 people are likely to die.Fox has an outsize megaphoneFox News is the most-watched news channel in the US. It has consistently led the charts in both total viewers and key demographics, over competitors like MSNBC, CNN, and broadcast networks such as ABC and NBC.In 2020, Pew Researchers found that Fox News viewers are far less likely to diversify their news sources, compared to viewers of other outlets. As a result, a significant portion of the American public consumes unfiltered, un-factchecked Trump propaganda all day, every day. Small wonder we are a nation so dangerously divided. Small wonder that how people feel about ICE depends on where they get their news.Trump and his rightwing echo chamber specialize in manipulating an uninformed public by fomenting and amplifying hatred. Hatred, of course, sells. But when charismatic leaders pair hatred with a manufactured fear of “other,” unspeakable atrocities follow.Fox News couldn’t spread lies in the UK, so they leftBefore it was repealed in 1987, US broadcast media operated under the Fairness Doctrine, an FCC rule that required stations to be both balanced and fair. Since its repeal, the U.S. has grown significantly more polarized, a trend supported by multiple studies and metrics.Today, with Trump illegally threatening the US media Putin-style, American audiences are increasingly turning to British news sources like the BBC for accurate reporting. Independent analysis and media watchdogs agree: British public service broadcasters provide more accurate Trump coverage than Fox News. That accuracy is the by-product of strict impartiality rules enforced by Ofcom, the UK’s media regulator.Several years ago, when Fox News tried to air in the UK, it could not meet that nation’s impartiality and accuracy standards. Fox found non-biased reporting so challenging that it ultimately chose to stop broadcasting in the UK altogether.If the UK can require accuracy in the media, so can weWhen media in the UK present partisan viewpoints, they are subject to England’s “due impartiality” and “due accuracy” rules, legal mandates that require broadcasters to present multiple viewpoints. The same rules require broadcasters to timely correct significant errors, prohibiting UK channels from serving up one-sided propaganda.Under the UK’s Communications Act 2003, all broadcasters are also prohibited from airing ‘unjust or unfair treatment’ of individuals or organizations. On matters of major political controversy, the media must present a wide range of differing views on the same topic. Individuals and organizations facing reports of significant wrongdoing are given the opportunity to timely respond (a “right of reply”).These are not onerous requirements; they are minimal, and, if shepherded by a bipartisan coalition in the US, could go a long way in reducing media bias on both sides. So far, attempts to introduce similar legislation in the US have failed, in part because there is no public outcry demanding it.It is time to demand it. If we continue to allow propaganda to be sold as ‘news’ to unsuspecting viewers, ideological differences will deepen, legislative gridlock will continue, and political violence from Fox News’ homegrown radicals will continue to worsen and spread.Sabrina Haake is a columnist and 25+ year federal trial attorney specializing in 1st and 14th A defense. Her Substack, The Haake Take, is free.

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