Chris Ashbach

The US slips to its lowest-ever rank in a global corruption index | CNN Business The United States has fallen to its worst-ever position in a leading global index that measures views of corruption in the public sector among independent experts and businesspeople.

congratulations everyone

4 months after Trump pardoned Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, Forbes reports that Binance now holds $4.7 billion of the $5.4 billion supply of Trump’s World Liberty Financial stablecoin. That is 87%. It is the largest corruption scandal in the history of the US presidency.

Europe is holding its Epstein creeps accountable. Why can’t we? | Will Bunch Europeans are pushing to hold Jeffrey Epstein's creepy pals, including billionaires like Elon Musk, accountable. The U.S.? Not so much.

"The Epstein class" is a global rot

In Europe, ties to Jeffrey Epstein are ending careers, sparking spy probes, and possibly toppling governments

In America, not so much. How the lack of elite accountability became the tipping point for democracy. My new column www.inquirer.com/opinion/jeff...

The president of the United States had his Justice Dept. raid an election office and seize ballots in order to cast doubt on an election he lost. Yet, this is treated by legacy media as just another normal day.

I founded Democracy Docket because you deserve better. Subscribe now. hubs.ly/Q03M8rql0

a man with long blonde hair and a beard is holding a fishing rod ALT: a man with long blonde hair and a beard is holding a fishing rod

RIP The Natural

The news out of DC is consistently awful but it’s still kind of amusing to see all these tough guy members of Congress lining up in front of the cameras to say things like, “I can’t step outside the Rayburn Building when I’m here because if I hear rap music I’ll shit myself.”

Host: Nike is saying they're going to take a hit of about $1 billion because of the tariffs that they're going to need to offset with higher prices. Adidas, a $230 million hit, will have to raise prices. Walmart has warned of looming price increases. Ford is going to take at least a $3 billion hit

Why you might not know that 2024 was America's safest year since the 1960s An overwhelming majority of Americans, 64 percent, believe that crime increased across the country in 2024, according to a Gallup survey conducted late last year.

1. This week, the FBI released its comprehensive crime report for 2024, which revealed that both VIOLENT CRIME and PROPERTY CRIME reached their LOWEST LEVELS SINCE THE 1960s

This a massive story. But you might not have heard about it, even if you follow the news closely.

Here's why.

US placed on rights watchlist over health of its civil society under Trump International non-profit Civicus says ‘sustained attacks on civic freedoms’ put US on par with El Salvador and Kenya

Civicus pointed to three major issues including the deployment of military to quell protests, growing restrictions placed on journalists and civil society, as well as the aggressive targeting of anti-war advocates surrounding Palestine.

Read the full story ⬇️

"limited form of immunity"

Quarterback Luke Fahey of Mission Viejo is separating himself During Saturday's Edison High passing tournament, Luke Fahey shows why Ohio State is getting a top-notch quarterback.

www.latimes.com/sports/highs...

NEW: The Los Angeles Dodgers say they have denied entry to ICE agents who arrived at the stadium and "requested permission to access the parking lots."

1. The president would like you to believe that the violence in Los Angeles is so bad that he has “no choice” but to send in 4,000 National Guard troops in addition to 500 Marines to restore law and order.

How much has Elon Musk's Doge cut from US government spending? BBC Verify has looked at the agency's biggest claimed savings, examining the figures and speaking to experts.

DOGE’s so-called “savings” are smoke and mirrors. Half the receipts don’t exist, math errors are everywhere, and many “cuts” were never real. The numbers don’t add up — and we’re all paying the price.

👇🏻

The American tourism industry is sooooooo screwed.

Trump Laid Off Nearly All the Federal Workers Who Investigate Firefighter Deaths The cuts, which are part of Trump’s slashing of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, will also halt a first-of-its-kind study of the causes of thousands of firefighters’ cancer…

The Trump administration’s cuts to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health will also halt a first-of-its-kind study of the causes of thousands of firefighters’ cancer cases.

💥 BREAKING: Goldman Sachs shareholders voted today to reject two anti-DEI proposals, both by 98-2 percent. GS Board urged shareholders to vote to reject proposals. "We believe that diversity, including diversity of thought, experience and perspectives, is important to our commercial success."

Never understood why anyone would want one of these things in their house to begin with, but now? Christ.

This is horrible to post, but I may as well post it. We are essentially shutting down research operations in my group, which is focused on treatments for pediatric brain cancer. I’m a well funded investigator, and there’s no choice. Science can’t function without the stability of NIH

⛰️ 🌲 ⛰️ 🌲

Socialism is what they called public power. 

Socialism is what they called social security. 
 
Socialism is what they called the growth of free and independent labor organizations.
 
Socialism is their name for almost anything that helps all the people.

—Harry Truman, 1952

A brilliant Banksy.

Best timeline cleanse ever

US joins Russia to vote against UN resolution condemning Russia’s war against Ukraine | CNN Politics The United States joined Russia to vote against a UN General Assembly resolution condemning Russia’s war against Ukraine Monday in a stunning shift from years of US policy.

For the US to side with Russia and North Korea to oppose a UN resolution condemning the illegal invasion of Ukraine defies all common sense and adds insult to the countless injuries suffered by the brave Ukrainian people. edition.cnn.com/2025/02/24/p...

“Move fast and break things” may work for a tech startup, but it is no way to run our government. It will take decades for America to recover from this mindless mess.

Elon is telling everyone that he discovered trillions of dollars of social security money has gone to dead people & there is something else Congress is doing today besides holding hearings & having him testify about it under oath? Why? What could be more important?

"The death of expertise is really about the rise of two social ills: narcissism and resentment." -- @radiofreetom.bsky.social

And people in red states who rely on a lot of the funds that Elon Musk wants to cut are celebrating the richest man in the world taking away their social safety net.