500 Worst Things Trump Did in 2025 - Part 3 #201-300, April-June 2025. Ron Filipkowski Dec 29 This is a comprehensive list of the worst things that Trump and his admin did in 2025, in chronological order. Part 3 deals with the time period from April-June. If you missed Part 1 with the first 100, you can find it here. Part 2 with the second 200 is here. The remaining two parts will be published tomorrow and Thursday. Thank you for reading, sharing and subscribing to my work. Meidas+ is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. APRIL 2025 201. NYT detailed how RFK Jr has taken steps against vaccination efforts: “The NIH halted funding for researchers who study vaccine hesitancy and canceled programs intended to discover new vaccines to prevent future pandemics. The CDC shelved an ad campaign for the flu shot. HHS cut billions of dollars to state health agencies, including funds needed to modernize state programs for childhood immunization. The FDA canceled an open meeting on flu vaccines with scientific advisers. Kathleen Hall Jamieson of Annenberg Public Policy Center: “This is a simultaneous process of increasing the likelihood that you will hear his voice and decreasing the likelihood that you’ll hear other voices. He is decertifying other voices of authority.” 202. WaPo reported that Greg Pearre, a senior executive at the Social Security Admin, was physically dragged from his office this week after a dispute with DOGE staff. Pearre was in charge of an IT team working on the agency’s data systems, and objected to DOGE’s effort to cut off immigrants from being able to access bank accounts or credit cards. 203. Two days after Trump issued his 4th “final warning” to Putin that he better agree to a cease fire or he might impose sanctions, Putin bombed a church service on Palm Sunday in Kiev. Financial Times: “Russia just killed dozens of Ukrainians in a missile strike on Palm Sunday, a day after Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff met Putin, shook hands and posed for cameras. Witkoff visited an Orthodox Christian cathedral. The death toll from Russia’s Palm Sunday ballistic missile attack on Sumy is now 32 killed, including 2 children, and 99 people injured, of which 11 are children.” 204. Trump told Salvadorian autocrat Bukele that he wanted him to build more concentration camps in El Salvador so he can send US citizens there next. Trump was speaking quietly and privately to Bukele in the Oval Office away from reporters, but was captured on a hot mic: “Home-growns are next. The home-growns. You gotta build about 5 more places. It’s not big enough.” Trump later to the press: “I’d like to go a step further. I said to Pam Bondi, I don’t know what the laws are, but we also have homegrown criminals. I’d like to include them in the group of people to get them out of the country.” 205. WSJ reported that Trump’s personal attorney Boris Epshteyn has been shaking down law firms that Trump targeted with executive orders. So far he has negotiated almost $1 billion in free legal services from firms that have surrendered and caved to Trump. Epshteyn led Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election with Rudy Giuliani and John Eastman. 206. When asked about the Putin Palm Sunday massacre bombing that killed dozens in Ukraine including children, and injured over a hundred, Trump blamed Biden and Zelensky: “I was told Russia made a mistake. But this is Biden’s war - this is not my war. Zelensky and Biden did an absolutely horrible job in allowing this travesty to begin.” 207. Zelensky gave an interview on 60 Minutes where he said that attacks on population centers could be prevented but the US is withholding weapons systems the EU is willing to pay for: “Honestly, I don’t understand why we can’t come to an agreement on additional Patriot systems. Especially since such an agreement was reached at the NATO summit. We still haven’t received these additional Patriot systems. Russia strikes Ukrainian cities daily. 1,700 attacks on schools, 600 children dead. 780 hospitals and clinics attacked. 13,000 civilians killed. And up to 100,000 Ukrainian soldiers dead.” 208. Trump posted that he wanted to revoke the broadcast license of CBS because of the Zelensky interview: “They are not a ‘News Show,’ but a dishonest Political Operative simply disguised as ‘News,’ and must be responsible for what they have done, and are doing. They should lose their license! Hopefully, the FCC as headed by Brendan Carr, will impose the maximum fines and punishment, which is substantial, for their unlawful and illegal behavior. CBS is out of control, at levels never seen before, and they should pay a big price for this.” 209. Former NYT reporter Nicole Perlroth on constant tariff changes: “Every one of these moves whiplashed America’s biggest corps. Take FedEx. Every single move forced FedEx to code in new rules into its tracking systems to reflect whatever Trump was feeling that day. These aren’t necessarily variables that are easy to code in. They cost companies 6-7 figures to adjust. And then the next day they have to do it all over again.” 210. Harvard rejected the Trump admin demand that they agree to govt oversight and make sweeping changes to governance, admissions and hiring practices. The admin retaliated by freezing $2.2 billion in fed grants and a $60 million contract. 211. Trump then made new threats: “Perhaps Harvard should lose its Tax Exempt Status and be Taxed as a Political Entity if it keeps pushing political, ideological, and terrorist inspired / supporting “Sickness?” Remember, Tax Exempt Status is totally contingent on acting in the PUBLIC INTEREST!” 212. After his meeting with Putin, Witkoff told Fox there were great business opportunities for US billionaires in Russia: “We actually came up with Putin’s request to have a permanent peace. Q - I imagine Putin probably wants to be in business with the US and Europe. Is that a potential that could come out of this? Witkoff: There’s no doubt about it - there’s a possibility to reshape the Russia-US relationship through some very compelling commercial opportunities.” 213. Fed Chair Jerome Powell said they were unable to lower interest rates because of Trump’s tariffs: “The level of tariff increases announced so far is significantly larger than anticipated, and the same is likely to be true of the economic effects which will include higher inflation and slower growth.” Trump then threatened to fire Powell: “Too Late Powell should have lowered Interest Rates long ago, but he should certainly lower them now. Powell’s termination cannot come fast enough!” Powell responded: “Our independence is a matter of law. We’re not removable except for cause. Fed independence is very widely understood and supported in Congress.” 214. Bloomberg reported that China was furious about Vance calling Chinese workers “peasants”, and will not engage in trade talks until Vance apologizes for the remark: “China wants to see a number of steps from Trump’s admin before it will agree to trade talks, including showing more respect by reining in disparaging remarks by members of his cabinet.” WaPo’s Robyn Dixon: “That JD Vance comment about ‘Chinese peasants’ was taken in China as deeply offensive, and it is now a hurdle to trade talks. Trump admin’s approach appears tone deaf on this.” MSNBC’s Catherine Rampell: “This is the problem with electing an admin of too-online edgelords instead of people who actually want to govern. You can’t just ‘shitpost’ your way to a deal with China.” 215. FCC Chair Brendan Carr threatened to go after Comcast and CNN over what he said is biased coverage over the Kilmar Garcia story: “Comcast outlets spent days misleading the American public—implying that Abrego Garcia was merely a law abiding US citizen, just a regular ‘Maryland man’. When the truth comes out, they ignore it. Comcast knows that fed law requires its licensed operations to serve the public interest. News distortion doesn’t cut it.” 216. Billy Long, Trump’s nominee to run the IRS, had past campaign debt paid off by several people who had current tax issues pending before the IRS. The New Republic: “Long reported in campaign finance disclosures that he loaned $130,000 to his unsuccessful 2022 campaign for the US Senate, with the dormant campaign committee raising $36,000 in the past two years. This meant that Long would have been personally on the hook for more than $100,000. Shortly after Trump announced Long as his pick to head the IRS, the committee was suddenly flush, taking in $137,000 in Jan, and Long used that to reimburse himself.” 217. WSJ that WH Faith Office leader Paula White continues to raise huge amounts of money on the side for her StoryLife ministry. While making her solicitations, she references her work in the WH and uses clips of herself praying over Trump in the Oval Office. Richard Painter who was WH Ethics counsel for Bush: “This is the use of a public office for private gain. You cannot use the presidency or any other public office to raise money for private orgs. No private org should be doing this.” 218. RFK Jr got intense backlash over comments he made about autistic children: “These are kids who will never pay taxes, they’ll never hold a job, they’ll never play baseball, they’ll never write a poem. They’ll never go out on a date. Many of them will never use a toilet unassisted.” The Atlantic writer Jemele Hill: “Thinking of my friend Holly Robinson Peete, who has raised a productive, amazing autistic son, who is fearless, gainfully employed and pays taxes. These were disgusting, irresponsible comments by someone who is charged with overseeing public health for hundreds of millions of people. He is not qualified for this.” 219. Trump’s for DC US Attorney Ed Martin failed to report hundreds of media interviews he made in the last few years, including over 150 he gave to Russian state media. The disclosure form he recently filed with the Senate before his confirmation failed to disclose ones that included comments that he would prosecute family members of Biden and criminally charge people involved in fed investigations of Trump. 220. Marco Rubio shut down the Global Egagement Center, which identified and countered foreign disinfo campaigns - mostly from Russia, China and Iran. AP: “While the center’s mission was to track foreign influence operations, it occasionally called out domestic websites and social media accounts it believed were amplifying propaganda related to issues like the Russia-Ukraine war. Rubio argued this crossed into dangerous territory for free expression.” Former State Dept spokesman Ned Price: “This is a deeply misleading and unserious portrayal of an organization focused on identifying foreign - primarily Russian - disinfo ops.” 221. Treasury Dept appointee David Eisner attempted to run interference for Pillow Man Mike Lindell with the IRS on his pending audit. Eisner wrote to senior IRS staff that Lindell - whom he called a “high profile friend of the president” - received his second audit letter in two years and “he is concerned he may have been inappropriately targeted.” Nina Olson: “That’s so inappropriate. In my 18 years as the national taxpayer advocate with over 4 million cases that came into the Taxpayer Advocate Service, in that time with taxpayers experiencing significant problems with the IRS, I have never had a Treasury official write me about a case.” 222. Hegseth’s former spokesman John Ullyot published an editorial in Politico where he said the DOD was in “total chaos” since Hegseth took over: “From leaks of sensitive operational plans to mass firings, the dysfunction is now a major distraction for the president—who deserves better from his senior leadership. It’s hard to see Hegseth remaining in his role for much longer.” 223. NYT reported that US soybean farmers will be amongst the hardest hit by Trump’s tariffs. The US sells $12.8 billion in soybeans to China every year, more than any other single product. Soybeans were 9% of all US exports to China last year. China is now looking replace those soybeans with increased imports from Brazil and Argentina. Soybean farmer Heather Feuerstein: “Farmers deal with bad weather. We deal with pests. We deal with tractors breaking. That’s our lives. But tariffs are a threat to our continued way of life.” 224. Tyler McBrien, Editor of Lawfare: “The new State Dept reorg pretty much cuts all departments related to global women’s issues, global criminal justice, conflict stabilization operations, trafficking in persons, and international religious freedom offices/bureaus.” 225. The FDA suspended a quality control program for testing of milk and other dairy products because of dramatic staff cuts by RFK Jr to the food safety and nutrition division. RFK Jr fired 20,000 HHS employees already with more likely to come. The Food Emergency Response Network has also suspended its quality control program for 170 food testing labs due to staff shortages. 226. Trump called on Rupert Murdoch to fire the Fox pollster after their latest poll showed his approval rating down to 44%: “Murdoch has told me for years that he is going to get rid of his FoxNews, Trump Hating, Fake Pollster, but he has never done so. This ‘pollster’ has gotten me, and MAGA, wrong for years. Also, and while he’s at it, he should start making changes at the China Loving Wall Street Journal. It sucks!!!” 227. Fox: “Another US MQ-9 Reaper drone was shot down by the Houthis in Yemen. This is the 7th MQ-9 Reaper drone shot down by the Houthis since March 3rd. It is the 6th US MQ-9 drone shot down over Yemen since US Central Command began daily airstrikes on the Houthis on March 15th. Today marks Day 40 of US daily air strikes against the Houthis, and yet the Houthis continue to fire missiles to shoot these expensive US assets down. Each MQ-9 drone costs about $30 million a piece.” 228. Fox Chief Political Analyst Brit Hume: “Trump keeps pounding Zelensky and saying it's harder to deal with him than it is with Putin. Putin hasn't agreed to much of anything except yes, he'd love to annex Crimea, which is part of the proposal that's before him now. That's no concession. All that is, is taking a gain. Zelensky resists that because Crimea, up until the Russians invaded it 10 years or so ago, was part of Ukraine. So, I'm not exactly sure what the president's talking about when he says that Zelensky has been more difficult to deal with than Putin." 229. AP: “Pete Hegseth had an internet connection that bypassed the Pentagon’s security protocols set up in his office to use the Signal messaging app on a personal computer. Known as a dirty’ internet line by the IT industry, it connects directly to the public internet where the user’s information and the websites accessed do not have the same security filters or protocols that the Pentagon’s secured connections maintain.” WaPo reported that Hegseth used a workaround so he could continue to use Signal in secure areas where he wasn’t permitted to use his personal cell phone, by installing the app on a computer in his Pentagon office. 230. CBS reported that Hegseth ordered modifications to a room next to the Pentagon press briefing room to retrofit it with a makeup studio that can be used to prepare for TV appearances: “The price tag for the project was several thousand dollars, at a time when the admin is searching for cost-cutting measures. The renovation that was initially planned was estimated to cost more than $40,000, but the ideas were scaled back.” 231. Citadel CEO Ken Griffin said US Treasuries’ used to be the gold standard as a safe and reliable investment, but Trump has “put that brand at risk. It can be a lifetime to repair the damage that has been done.” He talked about capital fleeing the US for other bond and currency markets, especially Europe: “There’s no great opportunity when the pie is rapidly shrinking. All you’re trying to do is tread water and not drown.” Bridgewater, the largest hedge fund in the world: “We have been through many big economic shifts over Bridgewater’s 50-year history, so we don’t speak lightly when we say that this looks like a once-in-a-generation one. We see exceptional risks to US assets.” 232. DC US Attorney Ed Martin apologized for praising a Nazi sympathizer as he awaits his Senate confirmation. Martin praised Timothy Hale-Cusanelli, who is described by DOJ as a Nazi sympathizer and white supremacist. Martin called Hale-Cusanelli ‘extraordinary’ while emceeing an awards ceremony last year at Trump’s golf club. Martin: “I denounce everything about what that guy said, everything about the way he talked. At the time, I didn’t know it. I certainly didn’t know all the terrible things that he said and how he had acted.” Politico’s Kyle Cheney: “It is unfathomable that Martin was unaware of the widely publicized allegations about Hale-Cusanelli, who he has interviewed for hours and whose case made national headlines for years after J6.” 233. Trump pardoned Michele Fiore, the high profile Las Vegas Republican councilwoman who was convicted of defrauding donors who believed they were giving money for a statue to honor a police officer who was killed in the line of duty. 234. DOGE created havoc again by moving 4 million people in the Social Security Dead Master File. Rennie Glasgow, a SSA claims analyst: “DOGE staffers went into the system and they killed off people. About 4 million people, they marked them as dead. But they’re not sure if those people were supposed to be marked as dead, so they’re sending us an email saying, ‘If these people come into the office with their ID, you can reinstate them.’ So we’re going to be resurrecting a lot of dead people. We have to go through this long process to resurrect them, to get them back as alive, which can take about 3-4 days. When they mark someone dead on the Social Security record, it stops their life. It stops their car payments, it stops their credit, it stops their ability to do anything. Their ID gets flagged. And most times those things have to go to the payment center.” 235. Trump invited the top 220 investors in his $TRUMP crypto scam to “a private intimate dinner” with him at his club in VA, followed by a private tour of the WH. NYT: “As news of the dinner invitation spread on social media, the memecoin’s price surged more than 60%, suggesting that investors were rushing to accumulate the coin to qualify for a seat at the dinner.” Corey Frayer, who oversaw crypto policy for the SEC during the Biden admin: “This is really incredible. They are making the pay-to-play deal explicit.” 236. KY Gov. Andy Beshear said FEMA unjustly denied disaster aid for 8 counties affected by serious flooding in his state. FEMA wrote to him: “Based on the results of the joint Preliminary Damage Assessments, it has been determined that the impact to the individuals and households in Butler, Franklin, Knox, Laurel, Lawrence, and Whitley Counties is not of the severity and magnitude to warrant their designation under the Individual Assistance program.” 237. Chinese importers canceled orders for 12,030 metric tons of US pork. Dexter Roberts with the Atlantic Council’s Global China Hub: “This is a targeted response from China to hurt parts of the US that are red. Farmers are very worried. One bad year and you might be mortgaging the farm.” The Nat Pork Producers Council: “US pork producers remain at the tip of the spear with China tariffs. The new tariffs make it impossible for American pork producers to compete in that market”. China bought $125 million in US pork in 2024. 238. Witkoff met with Putin alone again. Fox Chief Nat Sec Correspondent Jennifer Griffin: “Where are the subject matter experts with Witkoff? Putin, the KGB officer, is laughing. Meanwhile the instability at the Pentagon is not helping project strength during these delicate negotiations. There is still no confirmed NSA (Cyber Command) director after Hegseth fired Gen Hauck and his deputy for no reason, not even a nominee yet for the person overseeing the crown jewel of US intelligence and SIGINT, which might come into handy when you are negotiating with Putin and Xi.” Alex Marquardt, CNN’s Chief Nat Sec Correspondent: “Yet again, Witkoff meets with Putin with no other senior US officials. While Putin has two of his closest aides. This is the 4th Witkoff-Putin meeting this year and Witkoff doesn’t appear to have taken a senior diplomat/intel/expert with him to any of them.” 239. CNN: “In the month since the US launched a major military campaign targeting the Houthi rebel group in Yemen, the militants have successfully shot down at least 7 multi-million-dollar American drones, hindering the US’ ability to move into ‘phase two’ of the operation. The US was hoping to achieve air superiority over Yemen within 30 days, but the platforms best suited to conduct that persistent effort, the MQ9 Reaper drones, keep getting shot down. Over the last 6 weeks, the Houthis have launched 77 one-way attack drones, 30 cruise missiles, 24 medium-range ballistic missiles, and 23 surface-to-air missiles either at US forces, into the Red Sea, or at Israel. The intel community assessed that over nearly 6 weeks of US bombing, the Houthis’ ability and intent to keep lobbing missiles at US and commercial vessels in the Red Sea and at Israel is little changed.” 240. Kristi Noem inundated the HQ building of Customs and Border Patrol in DC with over a dozen action photos of herself in various outfits out in the field with agents. Many photo ops were ridiculed from both the right and the left. After Noem was asked about it by a sneering Laura Ingraham on Fox, she stopped doing them for a few months. But she has the photos all over DHS buildings. 241. The Trump admin made it easier for Musk to launch his self-driving cars on US roads by loosening crash reporting requirements. Musk has complained in the past about the regulations and crash reporting rules. Transportation Sec Sean Duffy: “This admin understands that we’re in a race with China to out-innovate, and the stakes couldn’t be higher. Our new framework will slash red tape and move us closer to a single national standard that spurs innovation.” 242. Trump ordered DOJ to investigate ActBlue, the fundraising platform used by almost every Democratic candidate and cause. Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT): “If anyone out there was undecided on whether Trump is operationalizing a precise, coordinated plan to destroy our democracy so he can rule until he dies, the move to shut down Act Blue, the primary way Democrats’ campaigns are funded, should be the final proof point.” 243. Trump’s FEMA administrator Cameron Hamilton outlined a plan that would make it more difficult for states to get disaster aid. CNN: “It dramatically raises the threshold for states to qualify for public assistance, effectively quadrupling the amount of damage a community must suffer in order to receive fed aid. The proposal also recommends reducing the share of recovery costs the federal govt will pay, limiting the types of facilities eligible for assistance and denying all major disaster declarations for snowstorms.” 244. Politico reported that RFK Jr’ fired workers with the Center for Firefighter Safety, Health and Well-being, the World Trade Center Health Program, the Health Hazard Evaluation program, and CDC’s National Firefighter Registry for Cancer. These agencies provided services for hundreds of thousands of people over the years. Kenny Schroeder, a firefighter hired by the CDC to help recruit participants for the cancer database, described the cuts as “really a gut punch. It’s very disheartening.” 245. Pam Bondi vowed to lock up journalists who receive info from govt officials: “Fed govt employees intentionally leaking sensitive info to the media undermines the ability of the DOJ to uphold the rule of law, protect civil rights, and keep America safe. This conduct is illegal and wrong, and it must stop. Therefore, I have concluded that it is necessary to rescind Merrick Garland's policies precluding DOJ from seeking records and compelling testimony from members of the news media in order to identify and punish the source of improper leaks.” 246. Don Jr., Trump megadonor Omeed Malik, and Steve Witkoff’s sons Zach and Alex launched an invite-only club with an initial fee of $500,000 to join. The club is called the “Executive Branch”. Politico: “Their goal is to create the highest-end private club that DC has ever had, and cater to the business and tech moguls who are looking to nurture their relationships with the Trump admin.” Sen. Chris Murphy: “Trump has set up a new club where CEOs, tech bros, and foreign oligarchs can pay $500,000 to join in order to get access to the Trump Cabinet who will all be there regularly. This is the most corrupt WH in history.” 247. China’s Foreign Ministry said Trump continued to lie about speaking to President Xi about a trade deal. Spokesman Guo Jiakun responded to Trump’s most recent claim in his TIME interview: "The two heads of state have not called each other recently. I would like to reiterate that China and the US have not conducted consultations or negotiations on the tariffs issue. If the US really wants to solve the problem through dialog and negotiation, it should stop threatening and blackmailing.” 248. Jeremy Warner, Economics Editor, Daily Telegraph (UK) on Trump’s tariff chaos: “Trump has in the meantime made himself – and the US – into an international laughing stock, never mind the damage that policy uncertainty is inflicting on the global economy. Repeatedly forced to row back on its demands and aspirations, the WH has been left looking back-footed and ridiculous. His policy positions change with such frequency – often dramatically so – that it is impossible to know what’s real and what isn’t. One moment, he wants the chairman of the Fed Reserve fired, the next he says he’s never had any such intention. It would be nice to think that tomorrow we might awake to find it’s all been a bad dream, but sadly, this is no nightmare: the bewildering confusion of it all is entirely real.” 249. Charlotte Observer editorial said since Trump took office they have been getting screwed on disaster aid: “Payments have been delayed for hundreds of FEMA grants and reimbursements. Reimbursements of more than $60 million for debris removal and other operations are overdue, and $105 million from FEMA’s Disaster Relief Fund has been frozen. The state is still awaiting over $1 billion in related Dept of Ag funding that was due March 21.” 250. 60 Minutes’ Scott Pelley told viewers that Executive Producer Bill Owens resigned in protest over editorial restrictions being placed on the show because principle stockholder Shari Redstone needs the Trump admin to approve her sale of parent-company Paramount to tech billionaire Larry Ellison: “Paramount began to supervise our content in new ways. Stories we pursued for 57 years are often controversial — lately, the Israel-Gaza War and the Trump admin. Bill made sure they were accurate and fair. He was tough that way. But our parent company, Paramount, is trying to complete a merger. The Trump admin must approve it.” 251. Pete Hegseth posted on X: “This morning, I proudly ENDED the ‘Women, Peace & Security’ program inside DOD. WPS is yet another woke divisive/social justice/Biden initiative that overburdens our commanders and troops - distracting from our core task: WAR-FIGHTING. WPS is pushed by feminists and left-wing activists. GOOD RIDDANCE WPS!” The WPS was signed into law by President Trump in 2017. Its sponsor in the Senate was Marco Rubio. Its sponsor in the House was Kristi Noem. Former Marine F-18 pilot Amy McGrath to Hegseth: “You are lying again. It’s not divisive. It’s a small program for DOD but one based on real data, so it doesn’t fit your caveman style understanding of security.” 252. WaPo reported that Harmeet Dhillon, Trump’s new head of DOJ’s civil rights division, is cleaning house with at least half of the 380 career prosecutors getting fired or quitting: “Since being sworn in this month, Dhillon has redirected her staff to focus on combating antisemitism, the participation of transgender athletes in women’s sports and what Trump has described as anti-Christian bias and the Democrats’ ‘woke ideology.’” 253. Trip Gabriel from NYT: “World Liberty, the Trumps' crypto firm, has erased centuries-old presidential norms, eviscerating the boundary between private enterprise and govt policy in a manner without precedent in modern American history. Donald Trump Jr. said of the guys running their crypto firm, ‘You could put them in a boardroom at Goldman Sachs, and they’re going to smoke the people in the room.’ One of them ran the website ‘Date Hotter Girls’. Two worked together selling colon cleanses and get-rich-quick advice.” 254. After getting a half-dozen very expensive Reaper drones shot down, Trump’s war in Yemen also cost us a $67 million fighter jet. An F/A-18E Super Hornet, along with the tow tractor that was pulling it, fell off the deck of the USS Harry Truman and into the Red Sea. MAY 2025 255. Trump fired his NSA Mike Waltz, making him take the fall for SignalGate. Sen. Mark Kelly said Hegseth should have been the one fired: “I think they’re holding the wrong guy accountable - I think they fired the wrong guy.” Sen. Elizabeth Warren: “Pete Hegseth shows real leadership by passing the blame to Mike Waltz. Was it Waltz who set up Signal on Hegseth’s office computer and added his wife, brother, and lawyer in a war plan group chat?” 256. NYT: “Trump Org has agreed to a new Middle East golf course and real estate deal that involves a Qatari govt-owned firm, two weeks before Trump is set to travel to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and UAE on a state visit. The project in Qatar is a partnership with Qatari Diar, a real estate company established by the country’s sovereign wealth fund and chaired by a govt minister. Eric Trump traveled to the Middle East this week to attend a crypto conference and promote the company’s real estate developments, which include a separate Trump-branded tower in Dubai. The two projects will also involve Dar Global, the international subsidiary of the private Saudi real estate firm Dar Al Arkan, which is leading the project and has close ties to the Saudi govt.” 257. Marco Rubio, Vance, and Musk condemned Germany labeling the AfD party an extremist organization. Rubio: “Germany just gave its spy agency new powers to surveil the opposition. That’s not democracy—it’s tyranny in disguise. Germany should reverse course.” Vance: “The AfD is by far the most representative of E. Germany. Now the bureaucrats try to destroy it.” Former CIA agent Marc Polymeropoulos: “This is the depths to which the US has sunk, globally. We are now defending a ‘Nazi-light’ party - in Germany of all places. It will take a generation, if ever, before the world looks at the US again as the bright shining city on a hill. It is infuriating- and embarrassing.” 258. HuffPost: “An international trucking logistics firm is buying as much as $20 million worth of Trump’s crypto coins to influence the admin’s trade policy. Freight Technologies CEO Javier Selgas said that buying Trump coin would be ‘an effective way to advocate for fair, balanced and free trade between Mexico and the US.’ They filed a notice with the SEC that it was issuing bonds to raise the money to buy Trump Crypto.” Tony Carrk with Accountable.us: “It’s just another day for Trump that an international freight company is paying a $20 million tribute towards the Trump family fortune after openly wishing it will lead to admin tariff relief.” 259. Trump said he’s putting tariffs on movies filmed in other countries: “The Movie Industry in America is DYING a very fast death. Other Countries are offering all sorts of incentives to draw our filmmakers and studios away from the US States. This is a National Security threat. It is, in addition to everything else, messaging and propaganda! Therefore, I am authorizing the Dept of Commerce to immediately begin the process of instituting a 100% Tariff on any and all Movies coming into our Country that are produced in Foreign Lands.” 260. EU Commission Pres. Ursula von der Leyen and French Pres. Macron announced a massive effort to lure top scientists and researchers from the US to Europe as the Trump admin declares war on science. Von der Leyen: “We will put forward a $500 million package to make Europe a magnet for researchers. We will also offer the best and brightest the right incentives to come to Europe. Trump made a gigantic miscalculation. The role of science in today’s world is questioned. The investment in fundamental, free and open research is questioned. But science has no passport, no gender, no ethnicity or political party.” 261. Eric Trump and Junior circled the globe cashing in on the presidency. NYT: “A luxury hotel in Dubai. A second high-end residential tower in Saudi Arabia. Two cryptocurrency ventures. A new golf course and villa complex in Qatar. And a new private club in DC. In many cases these new deals promoted over the last week will personally benefit not only Eric and Don Jr., but also President Trump himself.” Just in the past 10 days, Trump Jr. made stops in Hungary, Romania, Serbia and Bulgaria, which included visits with foreign govt leaders. Eric Trump was shuttling among Qatar, UAE and other Middle East spots to push the family’s real estate and crypto plans.” 262. Trump: “REBUILD, AND OPEN ALCATRAZ! For too long, America has been plagued by vicious, violent, and repeat Criminal Offenders, the dregs of society, who will never contribute anything other than Misery and Suffering. Today, I am directing the Bureau of Prisons, together with DOJ, FBI, and DHS, to reopen a substantially enlarged and rebuilt ALCATRAZ, to house America’s most ruthless and violent Offenders. The reopening of ALCATRAZ will serve as a symbol of Law, Order, and JUSTICE.” Stephen Miller: “Alcatraz was built at a time when this country was strong and it knew how to take care of villains and monsters. We need a place in this country where we can send people to visually demonstrate their total separation from society.” 263. 764,000 people lost money on Trump’s crypto scam. CNBC: “Most of the wallets that lost money held smaller amounts of the token. While around 2 million wallets have bought into the token, 58 wallets made more than $10 million apiece, totaling roughly $1.1 billion in gains.” 58 people made millions. 764,000 lost money. 264. Melania Trump also got in on the action. FT reported that that a small handful of unknown individuals made millions in a few days after Melania announced her crypto scam the day before the inauguration: “24 accounts bought $2.6 million in tokens 2 minutes before they went live, then 81% of their purchases were sold within 12 hours at windfall profits. One person bought $681,000 of Melania crypto 64 seconds before the existence of the project was made public and sold it for $39 million hours later.” 265. Reuters reported that Pete Hegseth inexplicably halted a shipment of weapons to Ukraine. He stopped 11 flights loaded with artillery shells and other weapons: “In a matter of hours, frantic questions reached Washington from Ukrainians in Kyiv and from officials in Poland, where the shipments were coordinated. Who had ordered TRANSCOM to halt the flights? Was it a permanent pause on all aid? Or just some? Top national security officials - in the WH, the Pentagon and the State Dept - couldn’t provide answers. Within one week, flights were back in the air. The verbal order originated from Hegseth. The president was unaware of Hegseth’s order, as were other top national security officials in the meeting. The cancelations cost TRANSCOM $2.2 million.” 266. FEMA Dir Cameron Hamilton was fired by Kristi Noem one day after he said this to a House Appropriations subcommittee: “I do not believe it is in the best interests of the American people to eliminate FEMA.” 267. Trump withdrew the nomination of Ed Martin for DC US Attorney because he couldn’t get the votes in the senate: “I have to be straight. I was disappointed. A lot of people were disappointed, but that’s the way it works. Sometimes, that’s the way it works.” He then appointed Fox host Jeanine Pirro to take over, which later resulted in the office descending into complete disarray with an unprecedented string of court losses. 268. Trump’s fired his Surgeon General and nominated Casey Means. The Independent: “Trump has selected a conspiracy theorist and self-styled Make America Healthy Again ‘wellness influencer’ who is not currently licensed to practice medicine to be the nation’s next Surgeon General. According to a newsletter than Means publishes, she believes in using spiritual mediums, praying to ancestor shrines, doing full moon ceremonies to amplify her dreams, asking the trees in the forest to deliver advice on men, and dabbles in hallucinogenic mushrooms.” 269. The State Dept and US embassies pushed countries to buy Musk’s Starlink if they want tariffs lifted. WaPo: “Marco Rubio has increasingly instructed officials to push for regulatory approvals for Musk’s satellite firm at a moment when the WH is calling for wide-ranging talks on trade. In India, govt officials have sped through approvals of Starlink with the understanding that doing so could help them cement trade deals with the admin.” 270. Newark Mayor Ras Baraka was arrested outside an ICE detention center. Baraka was engaged in a peaceful protest to assert local jurisdiction over an ICE operation he claims violates city law. Baraka was speaking with members of Congress who were present for a scheduled visit when ICE agents blocked his access. Shoving ensued, then Baraka was placed in handcuffs by fed agents. Rep. Robert Menendez Jr, who was there: “It was an act of intimidation. They feel no weight of the law and no restraint on what they should be doing. And that was shown in broad daylight today when they not just arrested the Mayor of Newark but when they put their hands on two members of congress standing behind me. How is this acceptable!?” 271. NBC on Kash Patel: “For decades, the head of the FBI has attended a daily 8:30 AM ‘director’s brief,’ where he is presented the most important intelligence and law enforcement info gleaned from thousands of agents and analysts across the country. Unlike his recent predecessors, Patel is receiving the brief two days a week. Officials who worked on the morning director’s briefings were told that the schedule was changed because Patel sometimes failed to arrive on time. Two current FBI officials said Patel sometimes seemed uninterested in the material and his intelligence briefers are struggling to craft a briefing that captures his attention. Since taking office, Pate has made 3 flights on FBI planes to Nashville, where his girlfriend, a country singer, lives; 2 flights to Las Vegas, and one flight to NY, where he attended a pro hockey game.” 272. Judge William Sessions ordered Tufts Univ student from Turkey Rümeysa Öztürk to be released from ICE custody after Marco Rubio stripped her of her visa and ordered her deported for co-authoring an op-ed in her student newspaper calling on the Tufts president to support a student vote to divest from Israeli companies: “These are very substantial claims of First Amendment and due process violations. This is a woman who is just totally committed to her academic career in a caring and compassionate way. There is no evidence that she has engaged in violence or advocated violence.” 273. Guardian: “Large institutional investors have massively increased their holdings of Trump Media in recent months, with many enlarging their positions by 100s of millions of dollars.” Tony Carrk with Accountable.us: “Institutional Wall Street investors and even a foreign company with business before the admin have effectively offered a form of tribute by bulk purchasing shares in DJT. Considering Trump Media has been hemorrhaging hundreds of millions of dollars in losses, there’s little doubt these hedge fund managers are hoping for a different kind of return on their investment. The President might as well put up a ‘bribe me’ sign on the WH – it’s corruption out in broad daylight.” 274. After Trump was forced to drop the nomination of DC US Attorney nominee Ed Martin, he announced that Martin will now be in charge of reviewing pardon requests at DOJ. This led to some of the most corrupt pardons in US history. Stay tuned. 275. ABC: “Trump accepted a super luxury Boeing 747-8 jumbo jet from the royal family of Qatar - a gift that is to be available for use as the new Air Force One until shortly before he leaves office, at which time ownership of the plane will be transferred to the Trump presidential library foundation. Trump toured the plane, which is so opulently configured it is known as ‘a flying palace,’ while it was parked at the W. Palm Beach Airport.” 276. CREW: “During the 4 years that Trump serves his 2nd term, real estate developers will be working on, planning, building and opening a total of 20 Trump-branded projects around the globe. In 9 foreign countries, these developers will seek subcontractors, buyers and permits from the govt. The developments that are underway—being planned, constructed, sold and delivered to buyers—will nearly triple the number of Trump properties operating abroad.” 277. NBC: “Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff broke with long-standing protocol by not employing his own interpreter during three high-level meetings with Putin, opting instead to rely on translators from the Kremlin. A short video of a meeting shows a smiling Witkoff entering the room alone before he shakes hands with Putin, who is also broadly beaming. Witkoff does not appear to be accompanied by any advisers or experts who typically support American officials conducting delicate and complicated negotiations.” Former US Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul: “This is a very bad idea. I speak Russian and have listened to Kremlin interpreters and US interpreters at the same meeting, and the language is never the same. At the end of every meeting that I attended, I debriefed the interpreter to make sure we heard everything correctly. You can’t do that using a Russian official.” 278. DNI Tulsi Gabbard sent out a directive to intel agencies to gather info on Greenland’s independence political movement, perceptions about US interest in the island’s resources, and to identify people who might support Trump’s move to take it over. 279. Trump surrendered again on tariffs - this time reducing his 145% tariffs to 30% on China. Economist Justin Wolfers: “Yet another zig, another zag, and another 90-day pause is just more policy chaos. I mean, we are now in the midst of a different 90-day pause with 189 other countries. The extent of this chaos cannot be understated.” Fox Business analyst Charles Gasparino: “Trump raised tariffs on the world, the markets, particularly the bond market - which we need to finance our debt - rebelled. Trump then was forced to back off. End of story. Film at 11 of the president spinning this as a major victory.” 280. WSJ on Trump’s trip to the Middle East: “Saudi Arabia, UAE and Qatar, the three countries on the president’s itinerary, stand out for their warm embrace of Trump Inc. In the past year, Trump-branded residential towers have been launched in Dubai and Saudi Arabia, and a developer unveiled a Trump luxury golf resort at a state-owned project in Qatar at an event featuring Eric Trump and a Qatari minister. A UAE state and royal family fund earlier this month used $2 billion of a new crypto coin issued by Trump’s World Liberty Financial. Trump admin accepted a plan from Qatar.” David Schenker, Asst Sec of State for Middle East Affairs in Trump’s first term: “The national interest has seemingly merged with the president’s interests in some ways. It’s obviously a different way of doing business, unprecedented for the US.” 281. One day after Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa offered to build a Trump Tower Damascus as a sweetener to persuade Trump to meet with him during his Middle East trip to discuss the US lifting sanctions on his country, Trump announced he was lifting sanctions. He said it will “give them a chance at greatness” and claimed he was only doing it as a favor to Saudi Arabia’s MBS: "Oh, the things I do for the Crown Prince." 282. Trump fired the head of the US Copywright Office Shira Perlmutter. Rep. Joe Morelle: “It is surely no coincidence he acted less than a day after she refused to rubber-stamp Musk’s efforts to mine troves of copyrighted works to train AI models. It seems like a highly relevant detail.” Perlmutter warned that if AI companies are allowed to mine copyrighted works from artists, scientists, engineers, inventors, and others that could be used by those companies to compete with human creators and put them out of business. 283. The NYT reported that Trump’s month-long operation bombing Yemen cost $1 billion in military assets with virtually zero tangible results before Trump declared victory and gave up. The Houthis shot down at least six $30 million MQ-9 Reaper drones and lost two F/A-18 Super Hornets worth $67 million each. Despite that fact that Trump pledged the Houthis were going to be “completely annihilated,” they continued firing at vessels and drones while reinforcing their bunkers and relocating weapons stockpiles underground and continued launching missiles at Israel even after the US backed out. 284. For the first time since 1917, Moody’s Rating Service downgraded the credit rating of the US. CNBC: “The debt downgrade pressured bond prices, sending yields higher, at a time when the economy is already awaiting the full impact of Trump’s unfolding tariff policy. The 30-year US bond yield traded above 5% and the 10-year yield topped 4.5%, levels that hurt equity markets last month and helped lead Trump to back off his stiffest tariff measures. Rates on mortgages, car loans and credit cards track the 10-year yield.” 285. Trump called for the arrest of former FBI Director James Comey after he posted a photo of sea shells on the beach in the shape of the numbers “86 47”. He claimed that “86” means “assassinate”, and Comey was sending out a code to operatives to take him out. Stephen Miller: “As the former FBI director, and key leader of the deep state, Comey’s call for assassination is a chilling escalation of the war against our democracy by a faction committed to its destruction.” Trump: “He knew exactly what that meant - it meant assassination.” 286. Kash Patel and Dan Bongino did a joint interview on Maria Baritromo’s Fox show, and she asked them whether Jeffrey Epstein really committed suicide. They both reversed themselves on a position they had taken publicly for many years. Patel: “I know a suicide when I see one, and that’s what that was.” Bongino: “He killed himself. I’ve seen the whole file - he killed himself.” 287. US taxpayers paid the family of J6 insurrectionist Ashli Babbitt nearly $5 million after the Trump admin agreed to settle a wrongful death lawsuit. Sen. Ruben Gallego: “Paying money to a terrorist’s family using US taxpayer dollars. The hundreds of Police injured that day should be compensated.” Capitol Police Chief Tom Manger: “I was extremely disappointed, and I disagreed with the DOJ’s decision to settle.” 288. Venezuelan immigrants who supported Trump feel betrayed that he is revoking their Temporary Protected Status. Carol Perez: “I supported Trump. I believe there is a large community of Venezuelans who did. This was a hard blow because practically the same day he took office he went against Venezuelans. It seems personal.” Adelis Ferro, Venezuelan American Caucus: “We feel beyond betrayed. They used us. During the campaign, officials from the Republican Party told us that they will not touch the documented people.” 289. AP reported that 2 months after tornados destroyed their towns, people in MS were still waiting for FEMA. Firefighter and homeowner Bobby McGinnis: “We need federal help, and we need it desperately, and we need it now. Trump said ‘America first’, we’re going to help our American folks first. But we haven’t seen the federal folks down here.” 290. St. Louis Mayor Cara Spencer said FEMA had not provided any assistance yet after the city was devastated by tornadoes: “What we need right now is fed assistance. This is where FEMA and the fed govt has got to come in and help communities. Our city cannot shoulder this alone. We need partners at the national level, at the fed level, to step up and help. Cities across the nation, when they are experiencing disasters such as this, this is what the fed govt is for. We need your help. FEMA has not been on the ground. We do not have confirmed assistance from FEMA at this point.” 291. Kristi Noem revoked Harvard’s Foreign Exchange Student Program, preventing Harvard from enrolling any additional students and requiring foreign students currently enrolled to transfer to another school or be forced to leave the country. Noem demanded that Harvard provide her with records of all disciplinary actions taken by the University against foreign students to be used to revoke visas. Harvard refused. 292. WSJ: “Private clubs have emerged as a moneymaking venture for the president’s second term, and a hub for donors and favor-seekers alike. It now costs a record $1 million to join Mar-a-Lago, up from about $500,000 during his first term. The initiation fee at Trump’s golf club in Bedminster rose to $125,000, surging from $75,000 in recent years. Another Trump golf club in FL now charges more than $300,000 to join.” NBC: “More than 200 wealthy, mostly anonymous crypto buyers are coming to DC to have dinner with Trump. The price of admission: $55,000-$37.7 million. That’s how much the 220 winners of a contest to meet Trump spent on his volatile cryptocurrency token, $TRUMP.” 293. Bloomberg: “Already since the early days of his reelection campaign, Trump has more than doubled his net worth to about $5.4B. The approach is clear, the Trump’s are selling the family name - and doing it at scale. They’re licensing their name to billions of dollars in projects around the world, and the deals include foreign govts.” 294. Vietnam broke some of their own laws to rush approval of a Trump golf resort and a Trump Tower Ho Chi Minh City because they believe that’s what they have to do to get new US tariffs lifted. NYT: “Vietnam has granted concessions more generous than what even the most connected locals receive.” Le Van Troung was coerced into signing a consent form to allow a burial site with 5 generations of his ancestors to be plowed over to make room for the golf course, as well as rich farmland that has sustained local families for centuries. Vietnamese officials face intense pressure to strike a trade deal that would head off Trump’s threat of steep tariffs, which would hit about 30% of Vietnam’s exports.” 295. Trump announced he surrendered on EU tariffs again while declaring victory, claiming he was only doing it because the EU Commissioner was nice to him in a phone call. Trump reduced the tariffs on China in exchange for nothing. He paused the tariffs on Canada and Mexico in exchange for nothing. 296. Trump pardoned a Sheriff who was convicted of taking bribes to sell law enforcement badges to people who used them to drive in emergency lanes, bypass TSA lines, and other abuses. BBC: “Jenkins was found guilty of 1 count of conspiracy, 4 counts of honest services fraud and 7 counts of bribery concerning programs receiving fed funds. Prosecutors said he accepted bribes from 8 people, including 2 undercover FBI agents. The men who bribed Jenkins paid for auxiliary deputy sheriff positions so they could avoid traffic tickets and carry concealed firearms without a permit.” 297. NYT on another pardon: “Weeks before Trump pardoned Paul Walczak, his mother, Elizabeth Fago, attended a $1M/head ‘candlelight dinner’ with Trump for MAGA Inc. Walczak’s pardon application emphasized Fago’s financial support for Trump and her connection to a plot to publicize Ashley Biden‘s diary. A judge sentenced Paul Walczak to 18 months in prison and $4.4M in restitution. Trump’s spared Walczak from serving even 1 day in prison or paying any of the $4.4M.” Former Rep. Tom Malinowski: “Guy steals his workers’ Social Security contributions to buy himself a yacht. His mom donates $1 million to Trump for a pardon. The pardon not only gets him out of jail - it saves him $4 million in restitution payments. Pretty good return for bribing the president.” 298. Trump then pardoned another 11 felons. WaPo: “Trump pardoned a couple who admitted to knowingly employing a felon at their insurance company and a popular hip-hop artist convicted of gun charges, in addition to commuting the sentence of former Gangster Disciples leader Larry Hoover. The pardons of former congressmen Michael Grimm of NY and John Rowland of CT brought to 9 the number of former Republican members of Congress Trump has pardoned.” NBC: “Larry Hoover Sr. the ‘chairman of the board’ of Chicago’s Gangster Disciples, was serving 6 life sentences tied to the drug trade and is called ‘one of the most notorious criminals in Illinois history’.” 299. Trump fired another one of his senior nominees right before his confirmation hearing, this time NASA chief Jared Isaacman. Trump posted on Truth Social: “After a thorough review of prior associations, I am hereby withdrawing the nomination of Jared Isaacman to head NASA. I will soon announce a new Nominee who will be Mission aligned, and put America First in Space.” He would then appoint Sean Duffy as interim. Then removed Duffy and renominated Isaacman after Musk called him “Sean Dummy” after he threatened to award some of Musk’s contracts to Bezos. 300. Trump bizarrely reposted an “article” from a deranged supporter that said Joe Biden was assassinated in 2020 after the election and Democratic leaders made a clone of him using robotics to appear as president publicly while they ran the govt behind the scenes. There was literally nothing else in the article beside the bizarre QAnon conspiracy theory. Even Fox did a story on this one, with the headline: “Trump shares post saying Biden was executed, replaced with clones.”