Ahmed Baba

Trump Moves To Silence Economic Truth After Jobs Report Exposes Tariff Damage Job growth hit post-pandemic lows. Rather than own the consequences of his tariffs, Trump is emulating foreign authoritarians by firing the chief labor statistician for simply sharing accurate data.

I wrote an article yesterday further debunking Trump’s lies about the jobs report.

Check it out and consider becoming a free or paid subscriber to my newsletter:

Lies. Even William Beach, the BLS commissioner appointed by Trump in his first term, debunked this:

“There’s no way for that to happen. The commissioner doesn’t do anything to collect the numbers. The commissioner doesn’t see the numbers until Wednesday before they’re published.”

Trump Moves To Silence Economic Truth After Jobs Report Exposes Tariff Damage Job growth hit post-pandemic lows. Rather than own the consequences of his tariffs, Trump is emulating foreign authoritarians by firing the chief labor statistician for simply sharing accurate data.

Job growth just had its weakest 3 months since the pandemic.

Instead of owning the economic damage from his tariffs and changing course, Trump is emulating foreign authoritarians by firing the chief labor statistician for simply releasing accurate data.

Well hello there, blue check. @bsky.app with the old-school verification system. And I wasn’t even forced to pay an $8 tribute to an egomaniacal billionaire. Nice.

MAGA Split Over Epstein Files, Uniting Americans and Where Dems Go From Here Ahmed Baba Joins Unaligned.

Had a refreshing conversation with @anakasparian.bsky.social on her Substack last week 🙌🏾

We talked about the cracks in the MAGA coalition over the Epstein Files, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, and how good faith dialogue can cultivate understanding, empathy, and real persuasion.

At this point, Nixon comparisons don’t do Trump’s level of corruption justice. Donald Trump makes Richard Nixon look like Mr. Rogers

No, the revisions are not hard evidence. Revisions in jobs numbers have occurred since the BLS began publishing monthly employment data in 1915

The job numbers are so bad that Trump's only response is to falsely claim they were cooked and fire the Commissioner of Labor Statistics. He's unleashing a tantrum of lies rather than a strategy to strengthen the economy. This just makes him look weak and autocratic.

After accurately reporting that Trump oversaw the weakest 3-month period of job growth since the pandemic, the Bureau of Labor Statistics Commissioner is being fired.

Anyone in Trump’s Administration who dares to tell the truth gets punished. This is some Orwellian insanity.

May’s job numbers were revised down by 125k, from +144k to +19k and June was revised down by 133k, from +147k to +14k.

July’s 73k numbers are also far less than expected.

The labor market is softening. Growth is slowing. Inflation persists. Trump’s economy is weakening.

Tonight on
@SiriusXM
#127:

-Burt Flickinger on retail tariff apocalypse
- @ahmedbaba.bsky.social on the Trump/Epstein Timeline
-We're Still Here with @simonmoyasmith.bsky.social & @juliefrancella.com
-Your calls, all night: 866.997.GRIT

I think framing Trump’s self-enrichment in the context of how his policies are harming everyday America’s is a simple, effective, digestible anti-corruption message Democrats should repeatedly deliver.

I talked about this on MSNBC in May:

Trump Corruptly Profits From The Presidency While Raising Prices On Americans While Trump tells Americans to ration dolls, he's grifting hundreds of millions in crypto projects—selling access to the presidency, rewarding investors, & pushing policies that enrich his family.

While Trump raises prices with tariffs and guts Medicaid for America’s most vulnerable people, he’s been grifting billions—through crypto schemes, foreign real estate ventures, and shameless self-dealing.

I wrote about this in my newsletter—subscribe 👇🏾

Stunning hypocrisy from Karoline Leavitt:

“[Trump] doesn’t want to see people like Nancy Pelosi enriching themselves off of public service and ripping off their constituents in the process.”

Trump has grifted billions while raising prices and cutting Medicaid for millions

Trump’s New Epstein Comments Contradict The Timeline & Raise Troubling Questions Trump's claim that he stopped associating with Epstein after he "stole" girls, including Virginia Giuffre, from Mar-a-Lago contradicts the timeline of their friendship and raises new questions.

I wrote about Trump’s new Epstein comments in my newsletter today. Giuffre’s family is asking the right questions.

Virginia Giuffre’s family responds to Trump’s new Epstein comments, asks if they indicate Trump was aware of Epstein and Maxwell’s crimes in real-time.

Trump’s New Epstein Comments Contradict The Timeline & Raise Troubling Questions Trump's claim that he stopped associating with Epstein after he "stole" girls, including Virginia Giuffre, from Mar-a-Lago contradicts the timeline of their friendship and raises new questions.

Trump says he cut off Epstein after he "stole" girls from Mar-a-Lago, including Virginia Giuffre—but she was recruited in 2000.

Trump praised Epstein and said he likes young women in 2002. Reportedly sent him a birthday card in 2003. Didn't cut ties until 2004.

Nothing makes a more compelling case for the Epstein files to be released than when Trump opens his mouth

Trump’s claim that Epstein recruiting young girls, including Virginia Giuffre, from Mar-a-Lago is what ended his friendship with Epstein doesn’t line up with the timeline. Trump continued to associate with and praise Epstein for years after Giuffre was recruited.

‪Props to this reporter for asking that follow up on Virginia Giuffre. We already knew Maxwell recruited Giuffre from Mar-a-Lago but I think this is the first time Trump is confirming he was aware of it in real-time and now saying others were recruited. We need to know how many‬

Trump confirms that Jeffrey Epstein recruited young girls from Mar-a-Lago, including Virginia Giuffre, an underage victim of Epstein. He says multiple people were "stolen" from his spas. How many of them were underage girls? How many was Trump aware of?

Another notable thing Trump says in this clip: “A lot of people in Palm Beach were invited to his island.”

Ok. So, Trump is claiming he knows of numerous people in Palm Beach who were invited to Epstein’s island. Seems newsworthy and warranting follow up questions and reporting.

The UN says 1/3 of the 2.1 million people in Gaza go without food for days at a time. 100,000 women and children are suffering from severe malnutrition. The New York Times reports that nurses in hospitals are fainting from a lack of food

But Trump is worried about a “thank you.”

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If you like this article about Russell Vought and Project 2025, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber to my newsletter.

I’ve been writing and warning about Project 2025 since 2023, and I still cover how it’s being implemented.

Check it out:

To be clear, the “massive trade deal” Trump is hoping to get with the EU would only reduce the threatened tariff rate from 30% to 15%—still higher than before he took office. So, a preemptive congrats for slightly less terrible price hikes 👏🏾

With Musk Out, Russell Vought Quietly Advances DOGE Cuts To Tactical New Phase The far-right mastermind behind Trump’s federal purges is no longer in the shadows. With Elon Musk and his loud approach out, Russell Vought is carrying out DOGE's mission more methodically.

I’ve written extensively about Project 2025 since 2023, and have analyzed how Vought has played a key role in executing that agenda.

Vought has led the gutting of agencies, purging of civil servants, and the elimination of independence from agencies:

In Russell Vought’s chapter on executive power in Project 2025, he attacks the notion of independent agencies and straight up says that the president should act with a “boldness to bend or break the bureaucracy to the presidential will.”

Trump has sought to do exactly that.

Need more of this. Rather than stand there silently while Trump rambles, Powell actively debunks his nonsense.

Don Lemon & Ahmed Baba Unpack How Trump’s Epstein Cover-Up Is Backfiring Don Lemon and I break down Trump’s refusal to release the Epstein Files, the Wall Street Journal's reporting that he was told he's named in the files, the growing backlash, and what could happen next.

Just went live on Substack with Don Lemon and discussed how Trump's Epstein cover-up is backfiring. Check it out:

Independents Drive Trump's Approval to 37% Second-Term Low President Donald Trump's job approval rating has fallen to 37%, the lowest of his second term as a result of a decrease among independents.

Here’s the poll: