Is the Muskrat working for China? (Is Trump working for Putin?)
The fact we donāt know and canāt know is itself a problem
https://robertreich.substack.com/p/is-the-muskrat-working-for-china
"There are two huge national #security questions at the heart of the Trump regime.
The first is whether #ElonMusk is working, at least in part, for Chinaās #XiJinping...
#Musk has been in regular contact with the #Russian president āa close partner of #China...
Itās A Start: Musk & DOGE Take Their First Real Hit
https://www.techdirt.com/2025/03/21/its-a-start-musk-and-doge-take-their-first-real-hit/
"So the [Trump] govt tried a āfoil a judicial order with this one quick trick!ā maneuver by converting a #DOGE staffer into a #USAID official, which would then seem to grant him the mantle of legitimacy to effectively ratify his teamās own illegitimate actions. But it didnāt work: the court subsequently reiterated that the injunction kept anyone connected with DOGE out of the agencyās business"
"Having a #court at last officially credit the arguments that any DOGE authority was falsely claimed seems an important point to be reached... Right now all these cases are being litigated against the big black box of the #government...
But with DOGE it is different because what it is finally starting to dawn is the #judicial recognition that #DOGE has no constitutionally-appointed governmental power"
https://www.techdirt.com/2025/03/21/its-a-start-musk-and-doge-take-their-first-real-hit/
#ElonMusk #Musk #Coup #Corruption #Trump #GOP #USPol #Law #News #USA
āFrustrated and angryā Iowans confront Sen. Chuck Grassley at raucous town hall in Hampton
An overflow crowd packed the Franklin County Courthouse as Iowans asked Grassley about Donald Trumpās funding cuts, Elon Muskās mass firings
https://www.thegazette.com/government-politics/frustrated-and-angry-iowans-confront-sen-chuck-grassley-at-raucous-town-hall-in-hampton/
"Iowansā anger over funding cuts & mass firings of federal employees led by billionaire #ElonMusk ās #DOGE ... boiled over during a raucous #TownHall ...hosted by #Republican Iowa #US Sen. Chuck Grassley."
Michael Lewis: Government Workers Are Not the Corrupt Ones
https://www.thebulwark.com/p/michael-lewis-government-workers
"Elon Musk claims heās rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse with all his mass firings. But #DOGE should be looking higher up the food chain to target the #graft: for example, the #SouthAfrican immigrant whose #car company would not have gotten off the ground without the taxpayer money he still collects."
#ElonMusk #Musk #Corruption #Business #Politics #USPol #Podcast #News #US #USA
Elon Musk Made No Promises
So with Trumpās blessing, he is going after #SocialSecurity
https://steady.substack.com/p/elon-musk-made-no-promises
"With no authority other than #Trump saying he can, #Musk, who has manipulated & bought his way into the system, is cutting 7,000 jobs at #SSA, or 12% of the workforce, and closing more than 40 field offices. Closing those offices is a terrible idea for an agency where getting an in-person appointment is already notoriously difficult."
Elon Musk is accelerating a 50-year government privatization project
Trumpās DOGE campaign accelerates a longtime Republican trend
https://www.salon.com/2025/03/22/elon-musk-is-accelerating-a-50-year-government-privatization-project-_partner/
" #DonaldTrump has aggressively moved to shrink the federal #government...
#DOGE has been billed as a cost-cutting initiative, although the actual amount of money being saved remains unclear...
these actions reflect a longer trend of privatizing govt."
#ElonMusk #Coup #Corruption #Trump #GOP #Politics #USPol #Business #News #US #USA
The FBI Is Investigating Attacks on Tesla as āDomestic Terrorism.ā Hereās Why That Matters
The domestic #terrorism designation could give law enforcement sweeping authority to surveil people protesting against Elon Musk's role in the #US federal govt, civil liberties experts warn
https://www.wired.com/story/fbi-tesla-arson-domestic-terrorism-protests/
"instead of focusing on people who are alleged to have committed... acts of violence, the FBIās focus... people who it thinks are expressing āanger or animosity towards #Tesla or #ElonMuskā
Centralizing Personnel Authority
A new #Trump move seeks to evade #court orders & empower DOGE
https://donmoynihan.substack.com/p/centralizing-personnel-authority
"Why the new confidence in OPM? #OPM is, effectively, a subsidiary of DOGE now. DOGE employees, when they meet resistance, have not been shy about threatening federal employees or contractors... The new #EO means that #DOGE employees have even more leverage in their interactions with agencies."
#ElonMusk #Musk #Coup #Corruption #Trump #GOP #Politics #USPol #News #US #USA
"We are watching #DOGE become both the most important unit in #government, but also one that claims to have limited legal power. It is amassing these powers through a series of... legal fictions...
We have struggled to characterize DOGE... DOGE is better described as a network, with members across govt, and inside & outside of govt. It operates around a single charismatic figureāMusk, not Trump"
https://donmoynihan.substack.com/p/centralizing-personnel-authority
#ElonMusk #Musk #Coup #Corruption #Trump #GOP #Politics #USPol #News #USA
IRS Predicts DOGE Lost Half a Trillion Dollars for the USA
https://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/irs-predicts-doge-lost-half-a-trillion-dollars-for-the-usa
"the IRSās internal projections estimate that the DOGE-driven disruptions to the #IRS since the inauguration are on track to have reduced #tax receipts by more than $500 billion...
in about eight weeks #DOGE managed to lose the US #government, more or less light fire, more than half of what goes to all non-defense discretionary spending."
#ElonMusk #Coup #Corruption #Trump #GOP #Politics #USPol #News #US #USA
How #TeslaTakedown is bringing the fight to Musk
"Part of the reason people are coming out is because they feel itās having a real impact on Elonās pocketbook."
https://www.publicnotice.co/p/tesla-takedown-musk
"activists and regular citizens around the nation (and world) have been showing up to #Tesla showrooms to #protest Muskās actions & #DOGE generally. What started as small #protests have grown to well-attended #demonstrations in many different states."
Elon Musk lashes out at US judges as they rule against Doge
#Musk lambastes #judges as leftwing activists in more than 20 posts as #Trump admnās judiciary clash intensifies
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/mar/22/elon-musk-doge-judges-usaid
"In the days after a federal judge ruled Elon Muskās dismantling of #USAID likely violated the #constitution, [Musk] issued a series of online attacks against the #American judiciary... & called on #Congress to remove his newfound legal opponents from office."
Trump & DOGE Propel VA Mental Health System Into Turmoil
A chaotic restructuring order threatens to degrade services for veterans...
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/22/us/politics/veterans-affairs-mental-health-doge.html
"a new return-to-office policy ... mental health providers... found no way to ensure patient #privacy... arrangement violates #ethics regulations & #medical privacy laws. At the same time, layoffs of at least 1,900 probationary employees are thinning out already stressed services that assist #veterans"
"Clinicians warn that the changes will degrade mental #health treatment at the #VA., which already has severe staffing shortages...
The #DOGE cuts have already sparked #chaos & confusion within the sprawling agency, which provides care to more than nine million #veterans. The #Trump admn has said it plans to eliminate 80,000 VA #jobs, and a first round of terminations has halted some #research studies & slashed support staff."
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/22/us/politics/veterans-affairs-mental-health-doge.html
Protests against DOGE pop up across East Tennessee following federal employee layoffs
Two #protests were held in #Knoxville against #DOGE and #Tesla. Another was held in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
https://www.wbir.com/article/news/local/sevierville-sevier/protests-against-doge-pop-up-across-east-tennessee-following-federal-employee-layoffs/51-08fbe756-9a76-4993-9530-716c684c6868
"People across East #Tennessee gathered to protest the #Trump Administration, #ElonMusk and the Dept of Govt Efficiency.
#Resist #Resistance #Protest #Musk #DonaldTrump #GOP #Coup #Corruption #USPol #News #Park #NationalParks #Nature #Video #Tennessee #USA #US
Buying the vote
https://www.muskwatch.com/p/musks-political-muscle-faces-first
"In #Wisconsin, an #ElonMusk -backed super PAC is offering registered #voters $100 in exchange for their contact #information and signatures on a petition...
So far, America PAC and Building America's Future, a Musk-backed nonprofit, have spent $20 million combined in support of Schimel.
...the PAC can use the program to hoover up contact information to email, call, or text voters before election day"
Musk Is Positioned to Profit Off Billions in New Govt Contracts
The boost in federal spending for SpaceX will come in part as a result of actions by Trump & Elon Muskās allies & employees who hold #government positions...
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/23/us/politics/spacex-contracts-musk-doge-trump.html
"At NASA, after repeated nudges by #Musk, the agency is being squeezed to turn its focus to Mars, allowing #SpaceX to pursue federal contracts...
And at the #FAA & the White House... #Starlink satellite dishes have recently been installed"
"The Department of Gaslighting Efficiency"
Non Sequitur by @Wileymiller for March 24, 2025
https://www.gocomics.com/nonsequitur/2025/03/24
#Comics #Comicstrip #Doge #ElonMusk #Musk #Trump #GOP #Politics #USPol #Humor #PoliticalCartoon #US #USA
Elon Musk Is Demolishing the Rationale for Citizens United
The #SupremeCourt said in 2010 that the decision wouldnāt damage Americansā faith in #democracy. Whoops.
https://newrepublic.com/article/193058/elon-musk-citizens-united-kennedy
"in #CitizensUnited v. Federal Elections Commission, in which the court struck down key guardrails against corporate spending in #American elections, Kennedy rejected the allegation that the courtās ruling would have deleterious effects on how #Americans perceived their republic."
"The last two months have proven him disastrously incorrect. #ElonMusk, a South African [immigrant]... spent $288 million to reelect #DonaldTrump last year. In return for his contributions, he has been given more #power over the federal #government than any other private individual since the founding...
The entire federal government now seems to bend to one manās personal interests."
https://newrepublic.com/article/193058/elon-musk-citizens-united-kennedy
#Musk #Coup #Corruption #Trump #GOP #Politics #USPol #CitizensUnited #News #US #USA
"The courtās #liberal members... were unpersuaded by Kennedyās reasoning... criticized the #conservative majority for its dangerous nonchalance toward the corrosive effects of #corruption...
Stevensās dissent... carries even greater weight w/the benefit of hindsight. He described Kennedyās majority opinion as āa rejection of the common sense of the #American people, who have recognized a need to prevent #corporations from undermining self-government"
https://newrepublic.com/article/193058/elon-musk-citizens-united-kennedy
Bondi Continues Using DOJ As Musk Retribution Weapon In Warning To Dem Who Protested Tesla
https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/bondi-continues-using-doj-as-musk-retribution-weapon-in-warning-to-dem-who-protested-tesla
"Crockett participated in a non-violent conference call discussing protesting #ElonMusk...
Bondiās warning... for Crockett to ātread very carefullyā amid her criticism of #Musk, is yet another example of Donald Trumpās Dept of #Justice functioning as an extension of the White House ā protecting Muskās #business interests"
Bernie Sanders and AOC Rallies Are Pissing Off Elon Musk
The two #Democrats are drawing huge crowds on the #FightOligarchy tour. And itās making #Republicans nervous.
https://newrepublic.com/post/193071/bernie-sanders-aoc-rally-pissing-off-elon-musk
"[Musk] who is still bribing people to vote Republican is pushing wildly unsubstantiated claims about paid protesters at the #BernieSanders & Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez rallies.
Sanders & #AOC started their #FightingOligarchy tour last month"
#Resist #Resistance #ElonMusk #Musk #Trump #USPol #News #USA
Judge Rips Elon Muskās DOGE for Seizing Americansā Personal Data
A federal judge has blocked DOGE from getting even more access to #Americansā sensitive personal #data.
https://newrepublic.com/post/193084/judge-blocks-elon-musk-doge-personal-data
"Judge Deborah Boardman... ruled that Elon Muskās #DOGE has no legal right to the personal #information of American citizens held at the Dept of #Education, the Office of Personnel Management, and the #Treasury Dept...
referred to the Privacy Act of 1974"
DOGEās Supposed Savings Are About to Cost the US a Lot of Money
The IRS is bracing for a huge hit to its revenue thanks to Elon Muskās cuts.
https://newrepublic.com/post/193093/irs-revenue-elon-musk-doge-cuts
" #DOGE directed staff cuts at the agency have sparked fears that #US tax revenue could plummet by 10%, or $500 billion...
Last year, the #IRS collected $5.1 trillion, w/ $825 billion going to the #Defense Dept. Such a massive loss would hobble #government services or increase the national deficit"
The Importance of Being SpaceX
#Tesla might be suffering, but SpaceX is poised to profit off billions in new government contracts
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/24/us/politics/musk-spacex.html
" #SpaceX is positioning itself to win billions in new federal contracts from the #Pentagon, the Federal #Aviation Admn, the Federal #Communications Commission and #NASA...The scale of the #business is staggering, as is the potential for #conflicts of interest."
#ElonMusk #Musk #Corruption #Coup #Trump #GOP #Politics #USPol #News #USA
#Trump and #ElonMusk have tried to derail the many #lawsuits against #Doge and #Musk by claiming that he is NOT in charge of Doge.
Well, Musk's own lawyers tanked that defense. In a Delaware filing, they wrote this:
āMusk... is a high-ranking government officialā¦ The White House has designated Musk a āspecial government employeeā
in charge of Establishing and Implementing the President's Department of Government Efficiency
(āDOGEā).ā
https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.276598/gov.uscourts.dcd.276598.30.1.pdf
Oops!
Trumpās Elon Musk Obsession Is About to Cost Him Big Time
#Republicans are secretly panicking over Donald Trumpās affection for Elon Musk.
https://newrepublic.com/post/193087/donald-trump-elon-musk-republicans-panicking
"Republican strategists & voters with an affinity for #DonaldTrump are not keen to see the worldās richest man make cuts to agencies & programs that they rely on, sparking concerns that Muskās entrenchment in Trumpās agenda could cost #conservatives in midterm #elections."
Long waits, waves of calls, web crashes: Social Security is breaking down
A flood of cuts led by Elon Musk has sent the agency into #chaos as a new commissioner prepares to take charge.
https://archive.is/pKm6q#selection-553.0-557.110
"The #SocialSecurity Admn website crashed 4 times in 10 days this month, blocking millions of retirees & disabled #Americans from logging in to their online accounts... so many employees have been pushed out... as part of the ... efforts led by #ElonMusk"
How DOGE scrapped the hunt for Ukraineās missing children
After DOGE halted Yale researchers' data on missing Ukrainian children, the fate of 35,000 kids remains uncertain.
https://www.counteroffensive.news/p/how-doge-scrapped-the-hunt-for-ukraines
" #Doge cut off funding for a group of #Yale University researchers...
known as the #Humanitarian Research Lab, & they were helping to find & return #Ukrainian children deported to #Russia.
...they have accumulated a database of 35,000 #children"
Why the Wisconsin Supreme Court race is a big deal
The resistance needs a morale boost. But its importance goes beyond that
https://www.publicnotice.co/p/crawford-schimel-wisconsin-supreme-court
" #ElonMusk, has poured money into the #election...
As #Musk rampages through the federal govt & #Trump attempts to terrorize his opponents into silence... the public, the #media, the #GOP, & the #Democratic Party itself all need to be forcefully reminded that Trump is vulnerable, widely disliked, & can be defeated"
Wisconsin Supreme Court Race a Test of Muskās Reach
Conservative contender Brad Schimel wants to keep the courts from reining in executive power. Trumpās co-president wants to help.
https://www.thebulwark.com/p/wisconsin-supreme-court-race-a-test-elon-musk-brad-schimel-susan-crawford-trump-dummy
"Wisconsinās #SupremeCourt race is shaping up to be a referendum... on a 2nd #Trump presidency... [and] a test of public sentiment toward #Musk, as he continues to wreak havoc on federal agencies, employees, & functions without just cause, due process, or authority."
Future of Social Security Benefits Top of Mind for Senior Nashvillians
Nashville SSA field office already understaffed with long wait times, according to local expert, even as it shows up on list of 47 DOGE plans to close
https://nashvillebanner.com/2025/03/25/social-security-protest-nashville/
"the #Nashville field office showed up on a list of 47 #SocialSecurity offices #DOGE plans to close. The #news was met with intense pushback from people across the city who depend on the office for support."
Social Security, Buffeted by Turmoil, Awaits a New Leader
The billionaire Elon Musk has become fixated on finding #fraud inside the agency, which provides #retirement, survivor and #disability payments to 73 million Americans each month.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/24/us/politics/frank-bisignano-social-security-upheaval.html
"Musk has claimed that vast numbers of #Americans are fraudulently drawing benefits from the agency, an assertion experts say is demonstrably false."
#ElonMusk #Musk #Coup #Corruption #Lies #Trump #GOP #Politics #USPol #News #US #USA
Why Social Security is in the worst crisis since its founding in 1935, and what you can do about it
https://robertreich.substack.com/p/why-social-security-is-in-the-worst
"Please call your #senators & #representatives today and tell them you want to save #SocialSecurity by adding back staff #Musk has fired... and keeping Muskās hands off Social Security.
The #Capitol switchboard operator is at (202) 224-3121. An operator will connect you directly with the #House and #Senate offices you request."
Trump and Musk want you sicker so they can be richer
Why we must move the debate from "government spending" to "Elon & Donald's looting."
https://thecause.substack.com/p/trump-and-musk-want-you-sicker-so
"the Musk/Trump regime is waging against America's #health care...
"simultaneously increase toxins in our air, #food, & water."... gutting medical #research in "colleges & hospitals in every state." & they are aiming to kick millionsāas many as 36 million of the hardest-working #Americansāoff of #Medicaid"
Teslaās Europe sales drop nearly 45% amid row over Muskās Trump links
US carmakerās European market share falls as Chinese rival BYD overtakes it on global revenue, topping $100bn
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/mar/24/tesla-sales-eu-slump-elon-musks-donald-trump-byd
"buyer backlash over Elon Muskās high profile & controversial behaviour...
The Texas-based electric carmaker sold less than 16,000 vehicles across #Europe last month, down 44% on average across 25 countries in the #EU, the #UK, #Norway & #Switzerland"
Elon Muskās DOGE Cuts Are Crashing Social Security
DOGE cuts are making the #SocialSecurity Admn fall apart.
https://newrepublic.com/post/193134/social-security-falling-apart-elon-musk-doge-cuts
"Dudek and DOGEās actions have caused #chaos within the agency, pushing out experienced officials who were running the SSAās complicated information #technology & benefit systems. As a result, an agency that has been underfunded for years now is on the brink of being shut down"
#ElonMusk #Musk #Doge #Coup #Corruption #Trump #GOP #Politics #USPol #SSA #News #USA
Musk Slashes Social Security as Republicans Debate What a āCutā Is
https://www.thebulwark.com/p/musk-slashes-social-security-as-republicans
" DonaldTrump has long insisted that he would not cut #SocialSecurity benefits... which has forced the [GOP] to argue that the cuts #DOGE is making to the programs arenāt actually cuts, because they arenāt reducing the size of the Social Security checks... Theyāre just affecting many other things related to the delivery of those checks."
#ElonMusk #Musk #GOP #Politics #USPol #SSA #Lies #News #US #USA
Shakedown #Politics, Sabotage, Self-Enrichment: How to Talk About #Trump & Musk's Authoritarian Activities
https://lucid.substack.com/p/shakedown-politics-sabotage-self
" #Trump & #Musk are not merely creating another #autocracy along the lines of #Hungary or #Turkey, with inspiration from South African #apartheid and the #JimCrow South. They are innovating the #authoritarian playbook with their power-sharing agreement and their chainsaw & wrecking-ball tactics."
#ElonMusk #Coup #Corruption #GOP #Politics #USPol #News #USA #US
Elon Muskās Hostile Takeover of Wisconsin
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zBICTkaeGUM
"Elon Musk's PACs have spent millions backing #Trump loyalist Brad Schimel in Wisconsin's #SupremeCourt race.
If Schimel wins, the court could uphold a total #abortion ban, attacks on #unions, and gerrymandered maps ā and change state law to benefit #Tesla."
#ElonMusk #Musk #Corruption #Wisconsin #Politics #USPol #News #Video #US #USA
Bondi demands Crockett apologize for aggravated mean to Elon
Hurting Musk's feefees is not a crime no matter how many Fox hits the AG does.
https://www.publicnotice.co/p/bondi-crockett-musk-tesla
"Attorney General #PamBondi is threatening #Texas Democratic Rep. #JasmineCrockett for participating in protests of Elon Muskās efforts to burn down the federal #government.
The #TeslaTakedown movement is an attempt to grab the worldās most famous ketamine user by the wallet & make #fascism rude again."
How the Social Security Admn is dodging a federal court order
https://www.muskwatch.com/p/how-the-social-security-administration
"The #Trump admn has installed a #DOGE operative as the new Chief Information Officer (CIO) of the #SocialSecurity Admn (SSA) in an apparent effort to evade a federal court order blocking DOGE affiliates from accessing databases containing the sensitive personal #information of millions of #Americans."
#ElonMusk #Musk #Coup #Corruption #Trump #GOP #Politics #USPol #SSA #News #USA #US
The Trump administration has installed a DOGE operative as the new Chief Information Officer (CIO) of the Social Security Administration (SSA) in an apparent effort to evade a federal court order blocking DOGE affiliates from accessing databases containing the sensitive personal information of millions of Americans.
Trump Is Changing the Rural Broadband Rules. Guess Who May Benefit?
Biden threw billions at rural broadband, but the process was slow as molasses. Trump may speed it upāwhile lining the pockets of his co-president.
https://newrepublic.com/article/193127/trump-rural-broadband-rules-musk
"the #Broadband Equity, Access, & Deployment Program, or BEAD...$42.5 billion... Now that the #Trump admn has its hands on BEAD, it may take a lot of that #money āas much as half of it, or even moreāand give it to #ElonMusk"
DOGE staffer 'Big Balls' provided tech support to cybercrime ring, records show
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/doge-staffer-big-balls-provided-tech-support-cybercrime-ring-records-show-2025-03-26/
"The best-known member of Elon Musk's US #DOGE Service team of technologists once provided support to a #cybercrime gang that bragged about trafficking in stolen #data and cyberstalking an #FBI agent...
#EdwardCoristine is among the... DOGE effort that has been given sweeping access to official #networks"
#ElonMusk #Musk #Coup #Crime #Tech #Technology #Trump #GOP #USPol #News #US #USA
How Elon Muskās SpaceX Secretly Allows Investment From China
https://www.propublica.org/article/elon-musk-spacex-allows-china-investment-cayman-islands-secrecy
"As a US #military contractor, #SpaceX sees allowing #Chinese ownership as fraught. But it will allow the investment if it comes through secrecy hubs like the Cayman Islands... āIt is certainly a policy of obfuscation,ā an expert said...
troubled by the possibility that a #defense contractor would take active steps to conceal foreign ownership interests"
As a U.S. military contractor, SpaceX sees allowing Chinese ownership as fraught. But it will allow the investment if it comes through secrecy hubs like the Cayman Islands, court records say. āIt is certainly a policy of obfuscation,ā an expert said.
Inside DOGEās Plan to Invade the Treasuryāand Throttle USAID
Court filings show that from the earliest days of the 2nd #Trump administration, Elon Muskās DOGE had a plan to infiltrate US Treasury payment systemsāand turn them against USAID.
https://www.wired.com/story/elon-musk-doge-plan-treasury-usaid/
"reveal the extent of #DOGE penetration into the most sensitive systems at the #Treasury...
this access was in service of the admnās plans to target #USAID."
#ElonMusk #Musk #Coup #Corruption #GOP #Politics #USPol #News #US #USA
[NYT headline is misleading]
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/26/us/politics/elon-musk-tesla-wisconsin.html
" #ElonMusk is far and away the biggest spender in this yearās race for the Wisconsin #SupremeCourt...
$20 million and counting... comes as his electric car company, #Tesla, is suing #Wisconsin over its #law prohibiting vehicle manufacturers from selling cars directly to consumers... requires a franchisee to act as a middleman.
Tesla filed the #lawsuit ... days before #Musk began spending on the race."
Zhi Zhu šøļø
