Trump's List

When during his campaign Trump promised “retribution” on his enemies if he won, it’s safe to say most people thought that either it was just overheated rhetoric or a plan to target a few prominent people.

But as it has turned out, Trump had a much bigger target in mind — taking his revenge out on our entire nation.

As Jamelle Bouie argues in the Times, “It is hard to describe Trump’s first month and a half in office as something other than a retribution campaign against the American people.”

He continues: 

“Under the cover of an audit, he has empowered Elon Musk, his de facto co-president, to take an ax to any and every program that helps ordinary Americans. The so-called Department of Government Efficiency has stripped funds or personnel or both from the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the National Park Service, the National Weather Service, FEMA, the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Social Security Administration, among others. It has degraded the federal government’s ability to deliver critical services to tens of millions of Americans and is endangering direct payments to millions more. There is no apparent rhyme or reason to these cuts, only a nihilistic drive to cause as much damage and to make it as irreparable as possible.”

If you were wondering whether or not you’d make it onto Trump’s enemy’s list, relax. We all did.

(Thanks to Doug Foster for pointing me to Bouie’s piece.)

HEADLINES:

• Trump Promised Retribution. Turns Out He Had a Very Big Target in Mind. (NYT)

• Canada’s Liberal Party chooses Mark Carney to succeed Justin Trudeau (CNN)

• Tariffs Are Bad. Tariff Uncertainty Is Even Worse. (Bloomberg)

• Trump declines to rule out recession amid tariffs’ effects on markets (WP)

• Trump's Canada, Mexico tariffs try to 'stop the bleeding' in US economy: UAW chief (ABC)

• Companies warn investors that sweeping federal cuts might hurt business (WP)

• As Trump upends foreign policy, Berkeley scholar sees irreparable damage to U.S. power and prestige (U-C)

• Musk Doesn’t Understand Why Government Matters (NYT)

• The Fool’s Gold of a Crypto Reserve (WSJ)

• Homeland Security appoints new leadership at ICE amid faltering deportation push (Reuters)

• House Republicans unveil bill to avoid shutdown and they’re daring Democrats to oppose it (House Republicans unveil bill to avoid shutdown and they’re daring Democrats to oppose it (AP)

• Republican Medicaid cuts could shutter rural hospitals, erode maternity care (WP)

• Iran criticises 'bullying countries' after Trump letter for nuclear talks (BBC)

• US condemns Syria violence after hundreds killed in sectarian clashes (Financial Times)

• China has a message for Trump: the US won’t stop its rise (CNN)

• Hamas says talks with US focused on release of American hostage in Gaza (Reuters)

• Israel cuts off electricity supply to Gaza (NBC)

• How China came to dominate the world in renewable energy (WP)

• Police Catch Man Smuggling Cocaine Under Toupee (The Onion)