Search results for tag #law
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Convened by #SiliconValley #billionaire #PeterThiel & #JDVance, then an investor who had written a best-selling memoir, the meeting included hedge fund heiress #RebekahMercer, then-FoxNews host #TuckerCarlson & economist #OrenCass, acc/to 2 people familiar…. The details have not been previously reported.
But the person in the room who would solidify the group’s ambitions was an Arizona insurance entrepreneur & conservative media figure named #ChrisBuskirk.
In 2019, a small group of #RightWing donors rented a resort outside the 100-person town of Rockbridge, Ohio, for a summit to secure the future of the #MAGA movement. They aimed to turn a singular candidate — President Donald #Trump — into an enduring political coalition, with a pipeline of voters, donors & candidates that would cement a radical transformation of the #GOP.
#law #Constitution #democracy #technocracy #plutocracy #aristocracy #USpol
Inside the #billionaire network shaping #MAGA’s post-#Trump future
#ChrisBuskirk put #tech #elites at the center of power in Trump’s Washington. His efforts are grounded in a controversial theory — an “#aristocracy” is needed to move the country forward.
#law #Constitution #democracy #technocracy #plutocracy
https://wapo.st/3Jsvgrl
His ouster also came about as he was preparing to send a letter to #Congress, of which Pulte was aware, notifying lawmakers that the #FHFA was not cooperating with the #InspectorGeneral's office, 3 of the sources said.
…Pulte has circumvented the agency's Office of Inspector General in pursuing those three cases, Reuters previously reported.
#Trump #law #RevengePolitics #USpol #authoritarianism #fascism #tyranny
Allen received notice of his termination from the White House after he made efforts to provide key information to prosecutors in that office, acc/to 4 sources. The information he turned over was constitutionally required, 2 of them said, while a third described it as being potentially relevant in discovery.
#Trump #law #RevengePolitics #USpol #authoritarianism #fascism #tyranny
#LindseyHalligan, the interim #USattorney for the Eastern District of Virginia who was hand-picked for the job by #Trump, subsequently indicted #LetitiaJames after her predecessor declined to do so, citing a lack of evidence.
#law #RevengePolitics #USpol #authoritarianism #fascism #tyranny
Created after the 2008 financial crisis, the #FHFA is typically a low-profile regulatory office, but Pulte has launched a new hotline targeting mortgage fraud & made public criminal referrals against a series of #Trump foes including #NYAG #LetitiaJames, as well as #FederaReserve Board Governor #LisaCook & California Democratic Senator #AdamSchiff.
#law #RevengePolitics #USpol #authoritarianism #fascism #tyranny
The ouster of Joe Allen, #FHFA's acting #InspectorGeneral, follows the agency's director, Bill Pulte, becoming an outspoken voice in support of the #Trump admin. Across the government, the Trump admin has so far fired or reassigned close to two dozen agency #watchdogs, who police #waste, #fraud & #abuse. It has also defunded the group that supervises those offices.
#law #RevengePolitics #USpol #authoritarianism #fascism #tyranny
Exclusive: #Trump ousts #watchdog of US housing regulator involved in mortgage probes of his foes, sources say
The internal watchdog for the US Federal Housing Finance Agency [#FHFA] is being removed from his role, four people familiar with the matter said, at a time when the housing regulator is playing a role in Trump's targeting of perceived enemies.
#law #RevengePolitics #USpol #authoritarianism #fascism #tyranny
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/watchdog-being-ousted-us-housing-regulator-involved-trump-crackdown-sources-say-2025-11-03/?utm_source=braze&utm_medium=notifications&utm_campaign=2025_engagement
…Until now, #Trump, in the half-joking estimation of one longtime adviser, has been able to order up investigations of his political enemies like Ubers.
But in two low-key but self-assured appearances over the past six weeks, #JackSmith has made it unmistakably clear that he will not only defend himself but take a hammer to Trump’s exaggerated or false claims about his work as special counsel.
#law #SeditiousConspiracy #ElectionInterference #coup #Jan6 #insurrection
Whether #JackSmith gets the chance to confront his accusers on the biggest official stage available to him, a public #House or #Senate hearing, remains very much an open question. Some #Republicans have privately expressed concern that #Trump’s quest for vengeance could backfire by giving a credible anticorruption investigator an open mic.
#law #SeditiousConspiracy #ElectionInterference #coup #Jan6 #insurrection
#JackSmith has told people in his orbit that he welcomes the opportunity to present the public case against #Trump denied to him by #SCOTUS decision asserting broad presidential #immunity from prosecution & adverse rulings from a Trump-appointed judge on the federal bench in Florida.
#law #SeditiousConspiracy #ElectionInterference #coup #Jan6 #insurrection
Quite the opposite, in fact. #JackSmith, who spent >2 years aggressively collecting evidence to prove #Trump mishandled #ClassifiedDocuments & tried to overturn the results of the #2020election, appears eager to publicly challenge a foundational pillar of #MAGA canon: that Trump was a sinned-upon innocent who did nothing to deserve scrutiny, much less 2 prosecutions.
#law #SeditiousConspiracy #ElectionInterference #coup #Jan6 #insurrection
Trump’s unrelenting fast-track drive to humiliate, investigate & prosecute the people he hates has gained momentum, in part, because his targets have not been in a position to inflict serious retributive pain on him.
#JackSmith is different.
Smith, the special counsel who twice indicted #Trump, appears unintimidated by the president’s demand that Republican lawmakers investigate him & that the #DOJ put him in prison for as-yet unproved & unspecified crimes.
#JackSmith, #Trump’s Target, Shifts From Defense to Counterattack
The former special counsel has told people in his orbit he welcomes the opportunity to present the public case against the president denied to him by adverse court rulings & the 2024 election.
Bring it.
#law #SeditiousConspiracy #ElectionInterference #coup #Jan6 #insurrection
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/03/us/politics/jack-smith-trump-investigations.html?unlocked_article_code=1.yU8.olrq.3OTGE8r_e1HD&smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare
The #Trump admin said in a second filing with the court that the money it is provisioning for #SNAP — derived from an emergency reserve — would cover “50% of eligible households’ current allotments,” meaning that many #LowIncome families could once again be in dire straits in a matter of days or weeks.
The govt communicated its intentions in a filing with a federal court, which had required an update by Monday. In the filing, the #DOJ said that the admin would “fulfill its obligation to expend” money in an emergency account for #SNAP, so that states could “calculate the benefits available for each eligible household.”
In doing so, the #Trump admin said it would not tap additional funds that might have allowed low-income beneficiaries to receive full payments in November.
The #Trump admin said Monday that it will *partially* fund #SNAP after 2 judges’ rulings required it to keep the #food #aid program running.
It’s not clear how much beneficiaries will receive, nor how quickly beneficiaries will see value show up on the debit cards they use to buy groceries. The process of loading the cards, which involves steps by state & federal govt agencies & vendors, can take up to 2 wks in some states. The average monthly benefit is usually ~$190/person.
The #USDA planned to freeze payments to #SNAP starting Nov. 1 because it said it could no longer keep funding it due to the shutdown. The USDA has a $5 billion contingency fund for the program, but the #Trump admin reversed an earlier agency plan to use that money to keep SNAP running. #Democrats argue that the admin could also use a separate fund of about $23 billion.
The situation leaves millions with uncertainty about how they will feed themselves.
The #Trump admin faces deadlines on Monday to tell 2 federal judges whether it will comply with court orders that it continue to fund #SNAP, the nation’s biggest #food #aid program, using contingency funds during the government #shutdown.
The program serves about 1 in 8 Americans & is a major piece of the nation’s social safety net — & it costs about $8 billion per month nationally.
#law #judiciary
https://apnews.com/live/donald-trump-news-updates-11-3-2025
“Judges lack the institutional competence to determine when foreign affairs pose an unusual & extraordinary threat that requires an emergency response,” Sauer wrote in a court filing.
Sauer also pointed to a recent concurring opinion from Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh in another case that suggested the 2 doctrines play little to no role in the context of national security & foreign policy emergencies.
#SCOTUS #Trump #law #PartisanCourt #ActivistCourt #AbuseOfPower #tariffs #economy
The other—the “nondelegation doctrine”—says that #Congress cannot transfer unlimited legislative powers—like its taxing authority—to the #ExecutiveBranch.
Solicitor general D. John Sauer said #Trump’s use of the statute to impose #tariffs was not an unlimited delegation of #power. The #law requires declared emergencies to expire in a year & reports to Congress about the tools used in the meantime. Even so, he said Trump’s power to declare an emergency was not subject to review by courts.
#SCOTUS
The case will also force the justices to address 2 doctrines favored by the conservative legal movement, both of which appear to work against #Trump’s claims. The “major questions doctrine” says #Congress must use clear language to authorize executive actions that could transform the #economy. #SCOTUS relied on the doctrine to invalidate many of President #Biden’s key initiatives, including his student loan forgiveness program.
#Trump’s order argued that the #tariffs were needed as a response to “large & persistent” #trade deficits.
Tara Leigh Grove, a UT at Austin #law professor, said the justices could find it a stretch to characterize longstanding trade deficits as an emergency. On the other hand, she said, the statute is broad & appears to give a president a lot of discretion.
“The justices will be struggling with whether they want to second-guess any presidential decision about an emergency,” she said.
“Emergency powers are meant to be used in emergencies,” said Michael W. McConnell, a former federal appeals court judge nominated by President George W. Bush, who is leading the coalition of small businesses. “No Supreme Court would want to provoke a confrontation with a president of the United States unnecessarily, but on the other hand, the law is the law.”
#SCOTUS #Trump #law #PartisanCourt #ActivistCourt #AbuseOfPower #tariffs #economy
…But prominent legal figures opposed to the #tariffs, including retired federal judges and a founder of the conservative #FederalistSociety, said the case was not a close call. While past presidents have invoked the emergency statute to impose sanctions or to freeze a country’s assets, #Trump is the first in 50 years to rely on it to impose tariffs.
#SCOTUS #law #PartisanCourt #ActivistCourt #AbuseOfPower #economy
They say that rolling back the #tariffs — & potentially refunding money already collected — could lead to economic ruin akin to the Great Depression, an interruption of #trade negotiations & diplomatic embarrassment. [so don’t break the law in the first place jackasses]
#SCOTUS #Trump #law #PartisanCourt #ActivistCourt #AbuseOfPower #economy
But the #law does not mention the words “tariffs,” “taxes” or “duties.” If the word “regulate” meant “tax,” the small businesses told the court, the president “could tax everything from autos to zoos.”
From the start, the admin has insisted that the consequences for the country are too significant for the court to resist #Trump.
#SCOTUS #PartisanCourt #ActivistCourt #AbuseOfPower #tariffs #economy
The 1977 statute gives the president certain tools to “deal with any unusual & extraordinary threat” to “the national security, foreign policy or economy of the United States.” That includes the power to “regulate” imports.
The president’s lawyers say that language gives him broad authority to impose #tariffs when he believes an emergency exists.
#SCOTUS #Trump #law #PartisanCourt #ActivistCourt #AbuseOfPower #economy
The admin’s on-again, off-again taxes on imports have roiled small businesses, prompting lawsuits from state officials & 6 companies, including the wine importer V.O.S. Selections & the toy manufacturer Learning Resources, whose cases are before the court on Wednesday. Trump’s actions, they say, were unlawful, cut into their profits & forced them to lay off employees & raise prices.
#SCOTUS #Trump #law #PartisanCourt #ActivistCourt #AbuseOfPower #tariffs #economy
#Trump used the statute to announce tariffs on goods imported into the US from China, Canada & Mexico, saying the levies were a punishment for failing to stop the flow of fentanyl. In April, he again relied on the International Emergency Economic Powers Act [#IEEPA] when he announced #tariffs on imports from >100 trading partners, saying they were needed to address #trade deficits with the rest of the world.
#SCOTUS #law #PartisanCourt #ActivistCourt #AbuseOfPower #economy
The case has divided the conservative legal community.
The #Constitution gives #Congress the power to impose #taxes. But soon after taking office, #Trump declared that a 1977 #law gave him the power to impose #tariffs unilaterally during “emergencies”.
#SCOTUS #PartisanCourt #ActivistCourt #AbuseOfPower #economy
…In a sign that the court recognizes the importance of the #tariffs case, the justices set a brisk schedule for the parties to submit written briefs & present oral arguments. They now seem likely to rule swiftly rather than wait until the end of the term next summer, as is their usual practice for the most consequential decisions.
#SCOTUS #law #PartisanCourt #ActivistCourt #AbuseOfPower #Trump #economy
Jack Goldsmith, a Harvard Law School professor & former top #DOJ lawyer under George W. Bush, said that because the legal issues were so closely contested in the #tariffs matter, some justices could
weigh broader implications across the set of presidential cases, concerned about either handing #Trump too much #power — or too many defeats.
#SCOTUS #law #PartisanCourt #ActivistCourt #AbuseOfPower #economy
Other such cases are on the horizon. Next month, #SCOTUS will consider #Trump’s efforts to seize control of #independent agencies. And in January, the justices will weigh his attempt to remove a member of the #FederalReserve Board. The admin has also asked them to consider the legality of the president’s executive order ending #BirthrightCitizenship.
#law #PartisanCourt #ActivistCourt #AbuseOfPower #tariffs #economy
#SCOTUS’ 6 conservative justices have so far been receptive to Trump’s claims of #PresidentialPower. Among other things, they have allowed the admin to withhold funds appropriated by #Congress, kick #transgender troops out of the #military & pursue aggressive #immigration-related policies—but all on a “temporary”, “emergency” basis.
The #tariffs case is the first time the justices have weighed the underlying legal merits of a key admin priority in Trump’s 2nd term.
The case “is one of the most important in the history of the country,” #Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social. “If a president was not able to quickly & nimbly use the power of tariffs, we would be defenseless, leading perhaps even to the ruination of our nation.” 🙄
Observers of #SCOTUS said the justices would be keenly aware that Trump would perceive a legal defeat as a personal blow.
#law #PartisanCourt #ActivistCourt #AbuseOfPower #tariffs #economy
Experts say the case is a tossup that poses difficult legal & political considerations for the justices, made all the more tense by Trump’s efforts to personalize the dispute.
#Trump had mused about attending the court’s argument this week, & has spoken repeatedly of the case’s importance to him. On Sunday, he said he decided against going to court, but stressed that he considered the stakes to be monumental.
#SCOTUS #law #PartisanCourt #ActivistCourt #AbuseOfPower #tariffs #economy
Again & again since #Trump returned to the White House, #SCOTUS’ conservative majority has blessed his boundary-pushing policies….
But on Wednesday, the justices will consider for the first time whether to say “no” to Trump….
At issue is the legality of his…use of emergency powers to impose sweeping #tariffs on nearly every US trading partner. The outcome of the case could significantly affect the global #economy….
#law #AbuseOfPower
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/03/us/politics/supreme-court-trump-tariffs.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare
After signing deals to buy hundreds of billions of dollars in computing power from the chipmakers #Nvidia & #AMD & the #cloud #computing company #Oracle, #OpenAI has reached a multibillion-dollar agreement with #Amazon.
OpenAI said on Monday that it had agreed to purchase $38 billion in cloud computing services from Amazon over the next 7 years. The additional computing power will help OpenAI build & deploy its #ArtificialIntelligence technologies, including the #ChatGPT #chatbot.
#tech #AI #law
#OpenAI Signs $38 Billion #Cloud Computing Deal With #Amazon
After signing agreements to use computing power from #Nvidia, #AMD & #Oracle, OpenAI is teaming up with the world’s largest cloud computing company.
#tech #AI #law #antitrust #technocracy #plutocracy
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/03/technology/openai-amazon-cloud-computing.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare
In Facebook groups & on Signal chats, tens of thousands of residents regularly #crowdsource information on #immigration agents’ last-known locations, neighborhoods being targeted that day & — importantly — the license plates, makes & models of the rental cars used by agents, which can change daily.
Some #ICE-spotting Facebook pages in #Chicago have up to 50,000 members.
#resist #Trump #law #Constitution #RightToProtest #CivilRights #Authoritarianism #fascism #Tyranny #ICE #CBP #Gestapo
That hyperlocal effort, spun off into dozens of chats on social platforms, has helped create a type of zone defense that - activists say - has slowed down #immigration agents & in some cases forced them to withdraw without making an arrest.
…Over 3,000 people have been detained in #Chicago since early September, acc/to #DHS.
#Trump #law #Constitution #RightToProtest #CivilRights #Authoritarianism #fascism #Tyranny #ICE #CBP #Gestapo
“We are not a violent city. This is not a war zone, & I think these guys are terrorizing us & trying to incite us,” said Conway. “We want them out. We want them to stop kidnapping our neighbors.”
#Chicago, a city of 2.7 million, has long been known as a patchwork of close-knit neighborhoods. And since the city took center stage of #Trump’s #immigration crackdown in September, those neighborhoods have mobilized against enforcement efforts, sometimes block-by-block.
The squad of agents had appeared in Lakeview last month, an upscale neighborhood dotted with dog daycares, medical spas & vegan restaurants, hopping over a gate to chase down a construction worker who was handcuffed & shoved into a vehicle.
When Courtney Conway, a 42-yr-old lifelong #Chicago resident, heard about the chase through FB groups & text message chains, she hopped on her bike to join the #protesters.
#Trump #law #immigration #Constitution #RightToProtest #CivilRights #fascism
#Chicago locals take on #ICE block-by-block
The #immigration agents' #TearGas #grenades clinked & then exploded against the concrete, shrouding the block in plumes of white gas. The dozen or so residents at the scene only screamed louder.
“We don't want you here,”yelled Rae Lindenberg. The 32-yr-old, who works in marketing, ran out of her apartment when she heard the shrill sound of whistles. "Get out of our neighborhood!"
#Trump #law #Constitution #CivilRights #fascism
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/were-not-violent-city-chicago-locals-take-ice-block-by-block-2025-11-02/?utm_source=braze&utm_medium=notifications&utm_campaign=2025_engagement
#Nigeria says #US *help* [unsolicited interference] against Islamist insurgents must respect its #sovereignty
Nigeria said on Sunday it would *welcome* US help in fighting Islamist insurgents as long as its territorial integrity is respected, responding to #threats of #military action by #Trump over what he said was the ill-treatment of #Christians in the West African country.
#law #Constitution #InternationalLaw #WarPowers #Evangelism #Autocracy #theocracy
https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/nigeria-welcomes-us-assistance-fight-terrorism-presidency-spokesperson-says-2025-11-02/?utm_source=braze&utm_medium=notifications&utm_campaign=2025_engagement
The #FBI’s leadership page was updated to show Devin Kowalski, previously special agent in charge of the FBI’s San Juan branch, is now running CIRG. Kowalski had been appointed to take over as permanent head of CIRG before the jet controversy, but Palmer was planning to stay on [as] his deputy….
The head of the CIRG team has oversight of thousands of agents & analysts specialized in handling dangerous threats, such as hostage rescues, & safety at major events….
Continuous Turnover
Palmer stepped into the role of acting leader of the critical incident response group [CIRG] in August when the prior chief was fired. That predecessor, Brian Driscoll, is now suing the admin with other ousted #FBI officials who say they were targeted for lacking loyalty to #Trump.
Wes Wheeler led the group until he was told to resign in March, along with numerous other leaders at FBI headquarters & Quantico.
#NationalSecurity #ShitShow #KashPatel #Trump #law #idiocracy
His exit was made official Friday, & a replacement to head the bureau’s crisis management operations including hostage rescue & bomb detection, has already been posted on the #FBI’s website.
#KashPatel was angered this week by social media posts & news stories calling attention to his use of an FBI jet that arrived in State College, Pennsylvania, where his 26yr-old girlfriend, country music artist Alexis Wilkins, sang the national anthem at a wrestling match….