Debbie

The people around Donald Trump are taking advantage of his diminished capacity to break the law.

Whatever they do now, we won’t forget — and we will hold them accountable.

Bailing out Argentina is—if any rules of politics still exist—so mind-bogglingly stupid.

$40 BILLION. More than what was cut from USAID. Enough to pay for about half of what's cut from SNAP.

Meanwhile, US farmers are awaiting their bailout, which is Trump-inflicted and will not make them whole.

Congressional Republicans complained vigorously about allegations of politicization of the IRS under Obama. It will be interesting to see what reaction this generates.

Racist Young Republican Chat Leaves GOP Stumbling to Respond Split over whether to discipline the offenders or just ignore the whole affair.

"Jewish conservatives, in particular, have grown less than thrilled to find their gentile compatriots so comfortable with gas chamber jokes and even ironic Hitler praise." And anyone who tries to hold to pre-Trump standards. www.thebulwark.com/p/racist-you...

Today, Vet Voice Foundation's Janessa Goldbeck and Paul Eaton were among former military briefing Governor JB Pritzker on Trump's continuing threats against the people of Illinois, and the dangers of his Federalizing the National Guard for that purpose.

No, he didn't write a book!!!

Johnson seems to be addicted to lying.

A couple making $88,000 in my district is going to see their [ACA] premiums double.

In Mike Johnson's district, that same couple will see their premiums triple.

The choices Republicans are making will hurt their own constituents. - @whipkclark.bsky.social

Is it racist to remedy racism? That’s the question at the heart of Callais v. Louisiana, which the Supreme Court heard on Wednesday. The case asks whether the Voting Rights Act gives Black Louisianans too much political power—and if so, whether the landmark law violates the Constitution. Unsurprisingly, the Republican-appointed justices seem eager to rule that it does. Throughout oral arguments, they suggested the VRA protects minority voters too effectively, dragging the government into race-conscious considerations that offend the equal protection rights of the white voters who sued in this case. And they floated various ways to gut what remains of the statute by twisting it beyond recognition or striking it down altogether. The result would be a windfall for Republicans, who stand to gain at least 19 seats in the House of Representatives if the Supreme Court frees them to gerrymander Black communities into oblivion. Such a decision would also devastate minority representation in Congress, eliminating up to 30 percent of the Congressional Black Caucus.

The Supreme Court's Republican appointees sound ready to transform the 14th and 15th Amendments into a weapon against the very racial minorities they were meant to protect—handing Republicans 15-19 additional House seats in the process. A disaster for democracy.
slate.com/news-and-pol...

Judge blocks Trump admin from laying off federal workers during government shutdown U.S. District Judge Susan Illston ruled that the administration isn’t following legal requirements for conducting reductions in force.

Russ Vought estimates more than 10k federal workers would be fired as a result of the shutdown.

His statement comes as a judge blocks the administration from laying off federal workers during the shutdown.

Trump is DOUBLING the amount of the Argentina bailout, to $40 billion. Nothing's been done to lower your cost of living right here, in America. America last.

Judge temporarily blocks the Trump administration from firing workers during the government shutdown A federal judge has temporarily blocked President Donald Trump’s administration from firing workers during the government shutdown, saying the human cost "cannot be tolerated.”

BREAKING: A federal judge has temporarily blocked the Trump administration from firing workers during the government shutdown.

U.S. District Judge Susan Illston in San Francisco said the cuts appeared to be politically motivated and were being carried out without much thought.

U.S. Attorney Was Forced Out After Clashes Over How to Handle Russia Inquiry

Extraordinary NYT story:

Trump’s DOJ pressured out another US Attorney in WESTERN Virginia for finding that a grand jury probe his bosses demanded was unwarranted.

They wanted a case discrediting the Russia probe — evidence be damned. www.nytimes.com/2025/10/14/u...

U.S. government pays for 2025's most expensive political ad campaign The next closest ad campaign is the $41 million effort to support California's redistricting measure.

Axios: "The most expensive political ad campaign of the year is being run by the Department of Homeland Security."

DHS has spent "at least $51 million this year on ads thanking President Trump for securing the border, according to AdImpact."

Let's have a serious conversation. When the youth wing of a major American political party is caught saying they "love Hitler" and want to send opponents to "gas chambers," what is the absolute minimum acceptable response from that party's leader?

🚨 BREAKING
Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes has sent a formal demand letter to Speaker Mike Johnson, ordering him to swear in Adelita Grijalva immediately. More ⬇️

Cartoon by @edwexler.bsky.social.

That's twenty-seven flat-out murders. That's twenty-seven lives taken without even a semblance of a legal justification under domestic or international law.
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/14/u...

Five months

First there was the Opium Wars. Now we have the Cooking Oil War.

The Situation: Democracy Dies in Both Sides-ism The Washington Post editorial on the Comey indictment was a failure of moral reasoning.

"The Post’s motto is ‘Democracy Dies in Darkness,’ but it doesn’t do well in false equivalence either."
@benjaminwittes.lawfaremedia.org and @rparloff.bsky.social respond to a recent Washington Post editorial that equates the prosecution of James Comey to Jack Smith's indictments of Donald Trump.

‘No Kings’ Has Republicans in Disarray Why GOP lawmakers are spreading fear about the upcoming rally.

No Kings has Republicans in Disarray

@cheetah.bsky.social latest Press Pass @thebulwark.com: www.thebulwark.com/p/no-kings-r...

5th Grade Teacher's Homework Packet About Charlie Kirk Has Parents Outraged

The worship is out of hand.

"Cleary’s departure is the latest in a string of resignations and firings in the Eastern District of Virginia in less than a month."

She was among those opposing the Comey sham indictment.

Missing teen with autism transferred to refugee facility by HPD He is currently being held at an Office for Refugee Resettlement facility.

A mom in Houston reported her 15-year-old son with autism missing. She spent 6 days terrified, searching for him. The whole time, Houston police knew exactly where he was since they helped ICE place him in a refugee facility.

This is beyond cruel.
www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston...

The Irredeemable DOJ Why James has an even stronger case of selective prosecution than Comey.

There isn’t another side to the argument. Every actor in the system—from defense attorneys to Justices on the Supreme Court—recognizes what is happening. The only question is how the criminal justice system should respond.”

open.substack.com/pub/harrylit...

🚨NEW: A case at the Supreme Court cites Trump reportedly promising oil donors favors as proof that pay-to-play influence is so pervasive that bribery laws must be narrowed so pay-to-play is no longer a prosecutable crime.

The case is represented by a Trump-connected law firm.

Let's be clear: If North Carolina Republicans gerrymander their already illegal map further, they will be sued and they will lose.

I never bluff and I usually win.

Shitty vibe reporting is not new — but its shoddy practitioners usually spell the name of person they are inaccurately sliming correctly. Breaking news: The Tiffany Network is now silver plate.

Lishay’s last post before putting the girls to bed:

“For two years now, every night we go out under the moon and say, "Good night, Daddy Omri," hoping he hears, hoping he feels.
Today, for the last time.

Tomorrow, Roni and Alma will say it to Daddy himself 🎗️ “

Credit: Ofir Berman