VIDEO OF THE DAY: Trump panics, tries to walk back own plans to gut Social Security and Medicare
After casually and directly stating live on CNBC that there are "lots of things" Republicans can do with entitlement programs "in terms of cutting," the disgraced ex-president — who proudly refuses to ever admit fault or concede defeat — tried to walk back his plan to strip Social Security and Medicare from tens of millions of Americans, telling Breitbart just two days later he wouldn't do anything "to hurt them." Trump operates from a position of zero convictions — he stands for nothing, except himself, of course — so, admittedly, it's hard to know which of his many lies to believe, but leaving the fate of America's bedrock social safety net to the whims of a serial narcissist who will literally say anything about everything seems like an incredibly unwise move.

Take Action: Say NO to Republicans' national abortion ban!

GOP nominee for North Carolina public schools superintendent called for violence against Democrats, including executing Obama and Biden
Totally normal and not at all alarming. Why aren't Democrats more willing to reach across the aisle and meet these people in the "middle"?

Take Action: End child poverty in America by expanding the Child Tax Credit!

Democrat Ryan Busse takes a strong stand against extremist MAGA governor
Ryan Busse for Montana: Under MAGA Governor Greg Gianforte, the state of Montana has become a hotbed of extremist Christian nationalism and Trumpian authoritarianism. Democrat Ryan Busse is going to put a stop to Gianforte’s plan to create another GOP one-party state — but he’s going to need your help to do it. Montana is famous for having independents and moderates willing to elect Democrats like Busse, so we’re going to need to knock on every door. Can you chip in to help push Ryan Busse over the finish line and flip a red governor’s mansion?

In remarkable twist, Trump’s first criminal trial could be delayed
Prosecutors in the disgraced ex-president's porn-star hush-money case signaled that they would be open to a 30-day adjournment, hinting at a possible postponement just 11 days before his first criminal trial was set to begin. The Manhattan District Attorney’s office cited an enormous caseload for its reasoning. Uh, yeah. It's Manhattan. Kind of a busy place. Maybe prosecutors should, you know, plan for that? And, for the love of all living things, what Faustian bargain did Donald make to successfully avoid criminal accountability for this long in his 77 lawless, godforsaken years on earth? We'd really like to know.

Report reveals chilling number of cops arrested for child sex abuse
More than 1,800 state and local police officers were arrested on charges related to child sexual abuse in the US between 2005 and 2022, a chilling investigation by The Washington Post revealed Thursday. In most of the arrests, victims were not related to or acquaintances of their abusers, with some children reportedly being assaulted by the very officers who were sent to help them after they fell victim to a separate sexual assault. "In case after case, officers intentionally earned the trust of parents and guardians, created opportunities to get kids alone and threatened repercussions for broken silence," the Post wrote. "Unlike teachers and priests, they did it all while wielding the power of their badges and guns."

Take Action: Stop Republicans from weakening child labor laws!

Mitch McConnell leads disgruntled right-wingers in complaining about new federal judge-shopping fix
Sen. McConnell led the right-wing charge against the Judicial Conference’s announcement of a long-overdue, new policy to crack down on the judge-shopping that has been so beneficial to right-wing litigants hellbent on foisting their will on the majority of America with the aid of a few hand-picked jurists. The conference — a 26-member panel led by Chief Justice John Roberts of all people — revealed that it would unroll a new policy to randomize the assignment of cases seeking nationwide injunctions on federal or state action. This would stymy litigants from repeatedly filing in divisions with only one judge to significantly up the odds of a friendly ruling with the power to at least temporarily block a federal government policy for the entire country. Republicans have weaponized this judicial loophole to great effect, returning to the same handful of Trump-appointed judges to combat and thwart Biden administration policies they simply don't like. While the announcement was scant on enforcement details, experts expressed enthusiasm that the Judicial Conference felt compelled to act on the blatant court manipulation. Always on brand, McConnell urged lower courts to simply ignore the guidance, because laws, guidelines, and regulations are apparently only relevant so long as they are useful to his craven cause.

Utah governor signs bill encouraging teachers to carry guns in classrooms
Republican Gov. Spencer Cox just signed a deeply dangerous bill encouraging teachers to carry firearms at school and keep loaded weapons in their classroom. But don't worry, the new law also provides annual training for teachers on how to defend classrooms against active threats, and instruction on how to safely use firearms in a school setting. What could possibly go horribly wrong?

Take Action: Pass the assault weapons ban!

Pete Buttigieg shreds Marjorie Taylor Greene over State of the Union antics
No Lie with Brian Tyler Cohen: Get her.

Trump's own judge immediately kills one of his desperate legal ploys
After a full day hearing arguments related to two motions by Trump's legal teams to dismiss his sweeping, stolen classified documents case, US District Judge Aileen Cannon — a Trump-appointee— promptly denied one motion without prejudice. Even though the motion is off the table for now, Trump still has several other attempts to delay or outright dismiss the case in the works. Originally set to begin on May 20, the trial still does not have a renewed court date, and the November general election is fast approaching.

Matt Gaetz subpoenaed by woman he allegedly had sex with when she was a minor, report says
Florida congressman and guy who definitely never returns his shopping cart at the grocery store Matt Gaetz was subpoenaed in a civil defamation lawsuit by the team representing a woman who he was accused of having sex with when she was a minor, the latest development following a yearslong investigation into whether Gaetz paid women for sex. Gaetz managed to escape federal charges after the Justice Dept. concluded its own two-year investigation, in part because of credibility issues with his former close friend and convicted sex trafficker Joel Greenberg and another key witness, but accusations surrounding the congressman's sexual behavior simply will not go away. Nor should they.

Why Democratic Rep. Jim Himes opposed the TikTok ban in the US House
Wednesday’s vote in the US House to ban TikTok passed overwhelmingly, with just 65 members opposing. One might think Rep. Jim Himes would be among the yes votes. As the ranking Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, set to become the chairman if his party takes back the House, Himes takes a keen interest in national security. And after all, the bill — which would force China-based ByteDance to sell TikTok within about six months or face a ban on downloads on most US devices — is all about national security. The fear is that Chinese authorities could force ByteDance to turn over sensitive information from TikTok users, or perhaps use the platform’s powerful algorithms to steer users to a certain point of view on, say, Taiwan independence or the war in Gaza. But Himes explained his vote was simply a matter of freedom of expression, free access to information, and freedom of speech. "The United States government would be shutting down a hugely robust venue for protected expression," Himes said. "Anytime the government steps in and says 'You shouldn't be reading this,' it really troubles me."

Trump-backed Senate candidate faces GOP worries that he could be linked to adult website profile
Bernie Moreno surged to the front of the pack in Ohio's crowded GOP primary after picking up the endorsement of one wildly ill-equipped, serially indicted cult leader, but his rise in the polls is giving some Republicans more than a little anxiety. Moreno, who pivoted sharply from a one-time public supporter of LGBTQ rights to a hardline opponent — is now confronting questions about the existence of a 2008 profile seeking "Men for 1-on-1 sex" on a casual sexual encounters website called Adult Friend Finder. Oops. Moreno's campaign claims the creation of the profile was "part of a juvenile prank" orchestrated by a former intern, but then of course they would say that, wouldn't they?

The USA, today

The daily planet

Hope...

Share Tweet