MATT BERG
& CROOKED MEDIA

TUESDAY
APRIL 29, 2025

Trump is a reverse Godfather, making offers other countries can’t accept.”

 
— Economist Paul Krugman, [on how Donald Trump]([link removed]) has dealt with the world. 

OH, CANADA

The Canadian Liberal Party’s historic victory shows how Donald Trump is uniting the world against the U.S. — and turning America First into America Alone. 

- How did Canada’s Liberal Party stage a stunning comeback in yesterday’s election, overcoming the Conservative Party’s huge 25 percentage point lead in just three months? The answer has a lot to do with anger against President Donald Trump, whose constant refrain about making Canada the “51st State” propelled Canadians to support the party seen as standing up to him — and reject the one that many say mirrors Trump’s values. 

- One Canadian voter [captured the vibe]([link removed]) with a pithy, viral quote to some TV journalists. She voted for “the best to take care of Trump,” she said. “Because Trump is, I’m sorry to say, an asshole.” 

- Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney had tough words for Trump too, albeit more diplomatic ones. “Trump is trying to break us so that America can own us. That will never, that will never, ever happen,” Carney said in his victory speech. The public's reaction to Trump was so overwhelming that Conservate Party Leader Pierre Poilievre lost [in his own electoral]([link removed]) district — after holding the seat for two decades.
 

- “Canada's election is an example of a lesson that Trump, of all people, shouldn't have to learn: Other countries have nationalism, too,” Stephen Wertheim, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, told What A Day.

- The Great White North isn’t the only place where people are mad at Trump. China is seizing advantage of widespread anger over U.S. tariffs. Beijing has recently [reached out]([link removed]) to European countries, offering to deal with them as a partner rather than a rival — a shift that would’ve been unthinkable in the Before Times. 

- “Donald Trump has unmade the world that America made at the end of World War II,” Ivo Daalder, former U.S. ambassador to NATO during the Obama administration, told What A Day. The U.S. has committed “suicide” on the world stage, he added. 

- Will the next president be able to rebuild what Trump destroyed? “No,” Daalder quickly responded. “If you look at a broken marriage … restoring the trust just takes time. Many times, it never happens. Because the system was based on trust — built up over generations, and that trust has been broken in a matter of months, weeks — I don't really see that being restored in anything less than a generation.”

 
Trump doesn’t worry about what most people think, [as I wrote yesterday]([link removed]). But Americans, too, are growing increasingly worried about his unsteady leadership and despotic instincts.

- Most Americans view Trump as a “dangerous dictator whose power should be limited before he destroys American democracy,” [according to a new survey]([link removed]) conducted by a nonpartisan research institute. That includes 87 percent of Democrats, 56 percent of Independents and 17 percent of Republicans. 

- Both Democrats and Republicans oppose some of the core policy ideas he keeps talking about, [according to another poll]([link removed]), including taking control of Greenland and Canada, and serving a third term.

Trump seems to be in denial about all this. “The Polls from the Fake News are, like the News itself, FAKE! We are doing GREAT, better than ever before,” Trump wrote today. This reminds me of that meme: “[Sure grandma, let's get you to bed]([link removed]).” 

AMAZON SLIME

Bravery! Integrity! Transparency! Sticking up for everyday Americans!

Nope… not in today’s news cycle. And not from online retail behemoth Amazon, or from the White House. I’m talking, of course, about the recent dustup between billionaire Jeff Bezos and Donald Trump over tariffs. 

It all started when a [niche political news outlet reported]([link removed]) this morning that Amazon would soon “display how much of an item’s cost is derived from tariffs — right next to the product’s total listed price.” The White House reacted to the news like a cat on hot bricks, presumably out of fear that average Americans would actually see how much Trump’s tariff war is really costing them.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt slammed Amazon for a “hostile and political act.” Amazon [shares immediately plunged]([link removed]).

Trump was “[pissed.]([link removed])” He personally called up Bezos, the shiny-headed Amazon founder, to complain that the company was even thinking about sharing that kind of information with its customers. 

Amazon quickly denied the report. The company has considered “listing import charges on certain products” on Amazon Haul, its spinoff website that sells cheap items, but “this was never approved and not going to happen,” a company spokesperson said.

Later Trump praised Bezos.

“Jeff Bezos was very nice. He was terrific,” Trump said. “He solved the problem very quickly. Good guy.”

So there you have it: Trumpenomics 2.0. Score one for the subservient billionaire — while the rest of us get to watch our shopping items mysteriously get more expensive… for no identifiable reason.

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WHAT ELSE?

[The White House is preparing to ease tariffs]([link removed]) that impact the domestic automotive industry, which is in danger of being slammed by rising costs in Donald Trump’s trade war (as everyone warned it would). I missed the chapter in “The Art of the Deal” where you backtrack on all your promises!
 
[The Trump administration wants to cut funds for an LGBTQ]([link removed]) youth suicide hotline, according to NPR. The move would target specialized services that the hotline provides, such as trained counselors who often share similar life experiences with the callers. Last year, nearly 40 percent of LGBTQ youth considered attempting suicide, [an LGBTQ youth advocacy group found]([link removed]).
 
[Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth spends at least half of his day]([link removed]) trying to find Pentagon employees leaking information, said Colin Carroll, one of Hegseth’s former top advisers who was fired this month. Carroll said that Hegseth, a former Fox News weekend co-host with a drinking problem, tries to “combat that image” by saying, “Hey, I’m gonna go work out with the troops.” [It ain’t workin]([link removed]), Pete!
 
[Trump’s team is gearing up for an impeachment fight]([link removed]) should Democrats win back the House next year. But the White House isn’t losing sleep over it. “Ooh, impeachment,” a Trump adviser told Axios, mockingly. “They already did it twice and it did nothing.” Welp, that’s a good sign for democracy!
 
[States will continue receiving $15 million in election security funding]([link removed]) — if they comply with Trump’s diversity, equity and inclusion policies, federal election officials are suggesting, according to the Washington Post. “To be bound to a political agenda from the president for money appropriated by Congress is wrong. We’ve never seen politicized terms and conditions before,” Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows told the paper. Yet another sign of a healthy, thriving democracy, amirite? 
 
[A $60 million U.S. Navy fighter jet was lost after it fell overboard]([link removed]) in the Red Sea. The aircraft carrier it was traveling on made a hard turn when Houthi rebels began firing at the ship, a U.S. official said. These ships famously don’t turn fast… so I’m curious whether something much more stupid happened here, lol. Did someone forget to set the plane’s parking brake?
 
[The Trump administration dismissed hundreds of scientists and experts]([link removed]) tasked with putting together the U.S.’s flagship climate report. Every few years since 2000, authors have worked to compile the report, which provides valuable insight into how climate change is affecting the United States. “If you get rid of all the people involved, nothing’s moving forward,” a previous co-author said. 

[Comedian Nathan Fielder depicted Paramount+ as Nazi Germany]([link removed]) in the new season of his show “The Rehearsal” after the company removed an episode of his other show — which promoted Holocaust awareness while using Nazi imagery — from its streaming service. Fielder’s takedown aired the same night that “60 Minutes” featured a segment bashing Paramount+ for editorial overreach. Maybe try [not capitulating]([link removed]) to the Trump administration, why don’t ya!

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[The only Black female unit to serve during World War II]([link removed]) received the Congressional Gold Medal today, following a long campaign to recognize their efforts. Known as the Six Triple Eight, the crew processed and sorted out some 17 million pieces of mail for American soldiers in Europe. It took them three months — meaning they worked twice as fast as projected.

[Starbucks says that new technology has helped]([link removed]) shave two minutes off the average time it takes to make customers’ drinks. Okay great! Now can you shave $2 off my venti iced vanilla latte with oat milk, since you’re saving so much time? Thanks!

[The Obamas' onetime summer home on Martha’s Vineyard is for sale,]([link removed]) decked out with a main house with a wraparound porch, a Cape-style guesthouse, a boathouse, and a private beach. Who wants to go in on this with me? We’ll need to find $39 million…

[My roommate, Walter, came up with a spectacular idea:]([link removed]) Create a hyperlocal magazine to build community with our neighbors. Well, the first edition is out, and the response on social media has been overwhelming. “I love community. The people yearn for community,” one user wrote. Get to know your neighbors! Consume physical media! Write little poems! Share recipes! You’ll be happy you did.
 
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