TUESDAY, JULY 1, 2025
The defendant would be CNN: We're sorry to see that the megabill has squeezed its way through the Senate.
Almost surely, it was always going to do that. We'll see what happens back in the House. Individual posturing to the side, the megabill will likely struggle through there as well.
Discussions have focused on the way the bill "reforms" Medicaid, but also on the bill's expected effect on future annual deficits and on the rapidly growing national debt. With respect to projected growth in the national debt, we'll only offer this:
Our annual deficits are already remarkably high. A nation experiences an annual deficit when the amount of revenue it brings in falls short of the amount of spending in which it engages.
As present, our revenue shortfall is quite high on an annual basis, and that is expected to continue indefinitely. Paul Krugman has recently said that this pattern moving forward is, in fact, "unsustainable."
What is the GOP's answer to that? Of course! In the face of those very large revenue shortfalls, the GOP went out in search of new ways to bring in even less revenue! Below, you see an excerpt from Andrew Duehren's new analysis piece for the New York Times:
NEWS ANALYSIS
Republican Bill Puts Nation on New, More Perilous Fiscal Path
[...]
[T]he Republican bill goes beyond simply extending existing tax cuts. It also introduces several new ones, including versions of President Trump’s campaign promises to not tax tips or overtime pay. Those policies are slated to last only through 2028, meaning Congress will again have to decide whether to extend expiring tax cuts. Given the popularity of lower taxes, and Democratic support for many of Mr. Trump’s ideas, lawmakers are likely to vote to extend them, effectively raising their [long-term] cost.
“All of a sudden, it’s just this endless daisy chain of expiring tax cuts and temporary tax cuts, on and on, which really ratchets down federal revenue,” said Brendan Duke, senior director for federal fiscal policy at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a liberal think tank.
Facing an endemic shortfall of revenue, the Republican Congress has found several ways to bring in even less revenue. Meanwhile, who knows? For some radicals within TrumpNation II, this may involve a desired catastrophic effect.
Our colonial nation had its witch trials. Earlier in that same century, the Dutch Republic experienced its tulip craze.
Here within our fractured culture, some retain their true belief in the endless miracle of tax cuts. Meanwhile, possibly due to the flooding of the zone, our major news orgs make less effort than they once did to explain any of this material.
Also this:
In the madness of the era, President Trump has now made the statement reported below. We're linking you to Alex Griffing's report for Mediaite:
Trump and Noem Pledge to Prosecute CNN For Reporting: ‘We’re Gonna Actually Go After Them!’
President Donald Trump and his Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem vowed to prosecute CNN over their recent reporting on a controversial ICE-tracking app and the network’s ongoing reporting on the impact of the U.S. strikes on Iran.
Deep inside a private Everglades, Secretary Noem went first. She said she's "working with the Department of Justice to see if we can prosecute" CNN for a recent report on that ICE-tracking app.
As you can see on Griffing's videotape, President Trump jumped in with this:
PRESIDENT TRUMP (7/1/25): And they may very well be prosecuted also for having given false reports on the attack in Iran. They were giving totally false reports. It was totally obliterated. And our people have to be celebrated, not come home and say, “What do you mean we didn’t hit the target?” We hit the target quickly.
You know, the pilots came home, they said we hit the target quickly. So they may very well be prosecuted for that. What they did there, we think, is totally illegal.
For the record, no one has ever said that the pilots "didn't hit the target." But so it goes in this revolutionary time.
There is, of course, no way to know if Noem and Trump were serious in these statements. Does President Trump mean what he said, or was he just flooding the zone again?
Either way, the statement by the sitting president is an example of madness. This is part of what came over the walls at the time of the recent arrival.
ReplyDelete"...the Republican Congress has found several ways to bring in even less revenue"
Bullshit, Bob: raising taxes is not the only way to raise government revenues. Tariffs also generate revenues. In fact, as the Laffer Curve illustrates, raising income taxes might actually bring in less revenues, by suppressing economic activity.
Not to mention that raising revenues is not the game; reducing deficits is. Cut waste-fraud-abuse -- and cut income taxes too!
Tariffs are taxes.
Deleteas the Laffer Curve illustrates...
DeleteBwahahahaha, Jesus Christ you maggots are stupid shits
DO THE MATHS SHEEPLE!!!
Delete"The United States raised $77 billion in tariff revenue for the entirety of 2024.
This amount represented 1.57% of total federal revenue in 2024."
So the real question is why do you bother posting something so obviously fact free? What is the point?
That would be the Laugher Curve.
Delete"Tariffs also generate revenues."
ReplyDeleteAnd they're also taxes.
The budget bill has a huge increase in tariffs (in 90 days). So, then, it raises taxes, it brings in revenues. So, what are you idiots unhappy about now?
Deletefuck you, maggot breath, it is totally regressive tax, you fucking fascist, in order to give tax breaks to mega-billionaires
DeleteTake it up with Bob Somerby, idiot-moonbat. He's only complaining about revenues.
DeleteI can't speak for other idiots, @3:19, but this idiot is unhappy about millions of people losing their access to healthcare, among other insanities packed into this bill.
DeleteNow what is it that you like about it?
There are tariff deals? Do explain!
DeleteYes, tariffs will provide revenue! But wait: why make “trade deals”? Doesn’t that imply that the tariffs and hence the tariff revenues are reduced or go away? Such a conundrum.
Delete"access to healthcare".
DeleteUnhappy bots happily repeat meaningless talking points.
An impact on the deficit will be the effect of deregulating. A lot of regs have been repealed and very few new ones implemented. These regs cost money to both the government and to the public. Abolishing them tends to fight inflation and reduce the deficit, but I do not know how to measure how much.
DeleteHow much has unregulated hazardous waste sites cost this nation in treasure and blood DiC? We don't even have the funding to clean them anymore. Had to remove that tax on chemical companies donchaknow. You people really are lost souls pretending to have a cause.
DeleteThe Courts not enforcing contracts is a huge money saver.
DeleteNow which business that proclaims taxes are too high and the government should get out of the way of business, do you think will agree?
"You people really are lost souls pretending to have a cause."
DeleteThe sooner you realize the cause the Right cares about is white supremacy, the more their actions make perfect sense.
Thomas and Alito will vote to sustain any conviction of CNN.
ReplyDeleteEveryone is sick and tired of CNN. CNN are fascists, and they need to be put to the electric chair.
DeleteWhat’s wrong with fascists?
Delete"CNN are fascists." I would love to have you elaborate on your very sound reasoning, deary. Bless your heart, but I never heard this before and would love to know what I am missing!!!
DeleteYou want the letters C-N-N put to death? How will I spell CraNk? Like, man you are one weird crank.
DeleteFascists are strong anticommunists. Aside from genocide and unprovoked war, fascists are actually pretty good.
DeleteWhat the hell you going on about? The fascists can't even run an airport in Newark.
DeleteThere are no fascists in Newark. The real fascists ran airports and other facilities skillfully.
Delete"We also have a lot of bad people that have been here for a long time ... many of them were born in our country. I think we ought to get them the hell out of here too, if you want to know the truth. So maybe that'll be the next job."
ReplyDeleteWhen is it a crime to hamper law enforcement? How much can you legally help the perp? Noem is asking the lawyers to answer that question.
ReplyDeleteIf you intentionally trip a cop who’s running after a perp, I think that’s a crime. Suppose you know that police will soon arrest a perp, and you warn him so he can get away? Is that a crime? I don’t know.
If it's a crime to say out loud, "Hey, I just saw a bunch of cops in my neighborhood," I'm sure there are many other things that will be equally illegal to say very soon.
DeleteIANAL Quaker, but I would guess that motivation might play a role. If someone mentioned the presence of cops with the explicit intention of helping someone escape, that might be a crime, for all I know. Of course motive would have to be proved.
DeleteWhat you describe, David, is thoughtcrime.
DeleteThe crime isn't what was said, but what you were thinking when you said it.
David in Cal,
DeleteNow that the Republican Congress passed Trump's deficit-tripling budget, have you decided which Republican Congressperson's desk you are going to shit on?
There's no crime. Again, David, your predicate is clumsily constructed and ill-fitting to the circumstances.
DeleteThe new BS use of "just wanting to know what the lawyers are thinking" while Rome burns is just more of the usual cover for Repukes being lawless.
DeleteIf asking the lawyers to interpret the law before acting is "lawless", is it more lawful to act without knowing what the law means?
DeleteThe Underground Railroad was illegal. Thank God it existed.
DeleteThe Fugitive Slave Law was specifically authorized by the Constitution.
DeleteYes, 7:38, it required the return of fugitive slaves to their “owners.” That’s why the Underground Railroad was illegal.
DeleteIf asking the lawyers to interpret the law THE WAY WE INSTRUCT THEM TO BREAK PRECENDENCE before acting is "lawless", is it more lawful to act without bullshit legal arguments?
Delete"If asking the lawyers to interpret the law before acting is "lawless", is it more lawful to act without knowing what the law means?"
DeleteHow about not acting at all, you nitwit.
By the way, tripping anyone intentionally is against the law. What do this have to do with the price of tea in China?
DeleteNotice how easily the word "perp" rolls off of DiC's tongue here. I was standing in line behind a group of laborers at noon today at the gas station, while they bought water and their lunches, on their break from working outdoors in 90 degree heat, thinking " these people are disgusting, I think I'll call them perps". You are what you are DiC, much to the detriment of this country. These people never wrecked the economy, as you and your ilk are doing while devaluing the dollar and complaining about a deficit that a moron could see coming. You never, ever learn. Hey I've got a brilliant idea for the future: let's use more coal as an energy source.
DeleteDavid is evil.
DeleteDecline in the value of the dollar in 2025 is the worst in more than 50 years. Trump is pushing the Fed to lower interest rates which would make the decline even worse.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/30/business/dollar-decline-trump.html
The dollar’s decline is very worrisome. Yes, Fed interest rates have some effect, but IMO the biggest cause is the deficit. I see no hope of reasonable control of the deficit, so I things the dollar’s decline is sadly inevitable.
DeleteThe biggest decline in more than 50 years, but it has nothing to do with Prince Orange Chickenshit. the party of personal responsibility has spoken
DeleteThe felon bankrupts everything he runs. His destruction of America is just another notch in Putin's belt.
DeleteNice article. Trump's policies have triggered this, as noted. Worst 6 month stretch since 1973. The debt, which will be worsened by Trump's big bill, will be the looming issue. Economically, failed Republican policies are now on steroids, and this economy is going the way of one of Trump's Atlantic Beach casinos.
DeleteDavid in Cal,
DeleteFor a bigot, acting like a clown who pretends they were once an actuary, you never fail to deliver on your economic ignorance.
The value of the dollar falling is good for the U.S. economy, because foreign buyers will come into the market due to their currency being worth more, relative to the USD. This drives down the trade deficit, which President, "I wish I fucked my daughter when she was twelve years-old", rants about being important.
David is a retired actuary.
DeleteThe devaluation of the dollar, prompted by Trump's tariffs and isolationist policies, makes foreign investment in US less attractive, as described in the NYT article.
DeleteIf NYT really did say that weak dollar is bad for the US economy, then they are much stupider, than I thought. Or much more into spreading disinformation, than I thought. Probably both.
DeleteAnyone can read the article. It turns out that investing in a country run by an erratic old man with isolationist trade policy is not attractive to foreign investors.
DeleteLike said: if NYT really did say (according to 3:05) that weak dollar is bad for the US economy, then they are much stupider, than I thought. Or much more into spreading disinformation, than I thought. Probably both.
DeleteYou can read whatever you want, but don't expect others to waste their time reading NYT.
Karl Marx warned us about corporations, like the NYT, over a century ago, but morons thought they knew better.
DeleteThe New York Times doesn't need our money. Trump and the Republicans are giving them yet another corporate tax break for a job well-done.
DeleteDevaluing the dollar has been a goal of trusted members of the Trump economic team since before his election. US assets priced in dollars have devalued relative to a stable foreign currency by >10% so far this year. The combination of a sinking dollar and tariffs is a 1-2 punch to the US consumer for any product made outside the US, spiking inflation. These people may have outsmarted themselves, in the same way that their tax policy is raising the national debt.
DeleteI Smell a Rat
ReplyDelete"Trump Fragrances are here. They’re called ‘Victory 45-47’ because they’re all about Winning, Strength, and Success — For men and women,” Trump wrote. “Get yourself a bottle, and don’t forget to get one for your loved ones too.”
Can you imagine the outcry if Obama or Biden had done this?
DeleteTrump is also selling gold caskets. They are selling for $8,647.
DeleteAt the end of his sales pitch, Trump wished everyone Merry Christmas...on July 1.
Delete$8,647 is a good price. But how long are they? For example, are they long enough so Trump could fit in one?
DeleteThree millimeters long. Enough to fit both of Trump's hands, end-to-end.
Delete"Trump Cut Rape Survivor Kits for Congo
ReplyDeleteJuly 1, 2025 at 3:30 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard 108 Comments
“President Donald Trump’s administration cancelled a major contract to supply emergency kits for rape survivors in Congo as violence surged in the east this year, leaving thousands without access to life-saving medication,” Reuters reports.
“The emergency kits include medication to prevent HIV and other sexually transmitted infections, as well as unwanted pregnancies. The decision to cancel the contract for around 100,000 post-rape kits has not been reported previously.”
People may not realize that raping women is part of warfare in many parts of the world, as it was in WWII and our own civil war:
"Both Union and Confederate, engaged in acts of sexual violence, including rape, during the American Civil War.
Here's a breakdown of what the sources indicate:
1. Evidence exists in various forms: Diaries, letters, newspapers, and court-martial records all contain evidence of rape and the fear of it.
2. Union soldiers were court-martialed: By 1865, over 400 Union soldiers had faced court-martial for sexual crimes against both white and Black women and girls.
3. Racial disparities in prosecution and punishment: Black soldiers were convicted and received harsher sentences for these crimes more frequently than white soldiers. White soldiers, in some cases, saw their guilty verdicts overturned.
4. Victims faced challenges in seeking justice: Women, especially Black women and poor white women, were often regarded with skepticism and had to overcome societal prejudices to have their cases taken seriously.
5. The Lieber Code offered some protection: This Union military code, signed in 1863, included explicit prohibitions against rape and offered a pathway for women to seek legal redress through military courts.
6. Not all cases were reported or tried: Many incidents of sexual violence likely went unreported, and even when cases went to trial, the men involved sometimes faced minimal consequences.
7. The fear of rape was real: Southern women, particularly during Union occupation, lived with the constant fear of sexual violence.
It's important to note that while the historical record reveals instances of sexual violence, historians have sometimes overlooked or minimized this aspect of the Civil War. However, recent research has brought this issue to the forefront, highlighting the experiences of survivors and the challenges they faced in seeking justice. "
Trump doesn't care what happens to black women in the Congo, but the rape kits he has cancelled included treatment of prevent AIDS and pregnancy. When a woman becomes pregnant, taking such medication is necessary to prevent the baby from being born with AIDS. Cutting this is another example of Trump's lack of responsibility, just as when he cut funding for FEMA and for weather prediction and the health care cuts his bill is making. A man who doesn't care about other people will cut anything without regard for how it will afffect others.
That is not normal.
This recent conceit about Arrival is annoying. It obscures whatever point Somerby thinks he is making and implies that the people on the right who are busily doing awful things to other people are somehow not human. That they ARE human and yet do inhumane things to others is the point.
ReplyDeleteAs a young person, I never understood how the people of Germany allowed Hitler to do his evil. Now I understand. Part of it is fear and part of it is that many of Trump's followers are as bad as Trump/Hitler. Somerby has always been unwilling to admit that, arguing that those who follow Trump are somehow not to blame, even claiming that the Blues made them do what they have done.
But everyone knew what Trump was during the 2024 election and a whole bunch of people voted for him anyway. They own that. So does Somerby, who couldn't find a single nice thing to say about Harris (except for her smile) and never urged his readers to make the right choice (an obvious right choice in the light of what has happened since January 21.
Trump is an evil man doing evil things with the help of a whole bunch of similarly evil people, amog them Somerby. Telling us to blame aliens is ridiculous when Somerby himself put Trump into office and knows that there are Russians and billionaires and good ole boys and bros but there are no aliens in the alt-right.
Perhaps Somerby finds this situation funny in some sly way, but I think it is too serious to snicker about. My husband has a list of people he would like to punch in the nose, should he ever meet any of them. Trump is #1, but I think Somerby should be #2, because of those he epitomizes, who should have known better and did this to our nation anyway.,
The Nazis were not responsible for their crimes. The socialists made them do it.
Delete9:19 - You advocate punching Somerby in the face because you disagree with him, and he’s the evil one?
DeleteDG,
DeleteFascism is something to be fought. Not something to be debated.
Fascism is something to be improved.
DeleteFascism is the Republican Party's cause.
DeleteI keep being told by not bright people that Hitler was a socialist. My understanding was he was a fucking Nazi bitch who used "socialism" as a campaign slogan. I would love to know how you think Nazi Germany was socialist. I would also love to know how you think the embrace of western European democratic socialism by essentially all parties has hurt / helped their societies.
DeleteJeff Tiedrich has pictures of the new Alligator Alcatraz t-shirts being hawked by the right:
ReplyDelete"every Republican is giddy with glee today, because the President of the United States is coming to the Grand Opening of their latest exercise in abject cruelty: an actual concentration camp.
read that sentence again. then read it another hundred times, and ask yourself: what the fuck?"
https://www.jefftiedrich.com/p/republicans-are-making-concentration
Republicans are making concentration camps great again but Somerby has the nerve to say that Trump is nothing like Hitler?
The main difference I can see between the two is that Hitler liked dogs.
Hitler liked dogs, medium rare.
DeleteThis is one Russia-funded social media disinformation operation. Who says there aren't others?
ReplyDelete"A U.S. Justice Department indictment unsealed in September 2024 revealed that employees of RT (formerly Russia Today), a Russian state-controlled media outlet, funneled nearly $10 million to a Tennessee-based company, which in turn paid right-wing influencers to create videos pushing content favorable to the Kremlin.
The Tennessee-based company has been identified by media outlets as Tenet Media.
The indictment alleged that this operation aimed to amplify U.S. domestic divisions and weaken opposition to Russian interests, such as its actions in Ukraine. The videos created by the influencers for Tenet Media were described as "often consistent" with these Kremlin interests.
Some of the prominent right-wing personalities associated with Tenet Media who received payment include:
Tim Pool
Dave Rubin
Benny Johnson
Lauren Southern
Tayler Hansen
Matt Christiansen
These individuals have significant online followings and were paid to create English-language videos on various social media platforms, including YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, and X (formerly Twitter). The Justice Department indictment itself did not name the influencers, but media reports identified them based on the company described in the indictment.
It is important to note that the U.S. Justice Department does not allege any wrongdoing by the influencers themselves, stating that some of them were given false information about the source of the company's funding. Several of the influencers, including Tim Pool, Dave Rubin, and Benny Johnson, have claimed they were unaware of the Russian funding and that they maintained editorial control over their content. They have stated they were victims of the alleged Russian scheme.
The Justice Department charged two employees of RT, Kostiantyn Kalashnikov and Elena Afanasyeva, with conspiracy to violate the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) and conspiracy to commit money laundering in connection with this operation. "
Just saw Benny Johnson posting stupid Putin shit yesterday. Must have been really punished... They should have been tried as war criminals, but America is so stupid few realize the level at which Putin is engaged with war against the west, including the USA.
Delete"TUESDAY: Lock them up, the president says!"
ReplyDeleteDon't lock him up, Somerby used to say, referring to Trump. But how much pain and trouble might have been avoided by locking up Trump before he had the chance to persecute his enemies, destroy our economy, undermine rule of law, corrupt the supreme court, kill people by abruptly withdrawing aid, etc. etc. etc.? There is a reason why dangerous people get locked up when they break the law or pose a danger to themselves or others. Even Somerby should recognize that now.
Somerby never said not to lock Trump up. He said not to become obsessed with the idea of locking Trump up, to the exclusion of all else.
DeleteLike Trump's fascism, which Somerby assumed everyone knew all about.
DeleteSomerby correctly says it's wrong to imagine that tax cuts can lead to a smaller deficit. History also shows that tax increases also don't lead to smaller deficits. That's because Congress can always spend money faster than the IRS can collect it.
ReplyDeleteWho said MAGAs weren't innumerate tools?:
Deletehttps://www.factcheck.org/2008/02/the-budget-and-deficit-under-clinton/
Companies should just give away their products and services, because corporate boards can always up CEO salaries and bonuses, faster than they can make it.
DeleteI am a former actuary.
Why does a former professional bean counter pretend to not be able to count the beans in support of bigoted fascism. Because bigoted fascists like David need to put their hatred of the other before good economic governance. In other words, a racist putz.
DeleteI’m not sure if David is a putz or a schmuck.
Delete
ReplyDeleteGreat news, Bob Somerby! Your transcript wish comes true:
"Going forward, the network [CBS] will promptly release full, unedited transcripts of future presidential candidates’ interviews. "
Thank you again, Donald Trump!
https://www.foxnews.com/media/paramount-global-settles-trumps-lawsuit-against-cbs-news-over-60-minutes-interview
Thanks for what? What does this change? What makes things better? What the ever loving you trying to say? Please elaborate.
DeleteImagine what kind of unspeakable horror could have happened to a child, which would make them grow-up to listen to anything Donald Trump has to say.
ReplyDeletePlease pray for these people.
Good news regarding the latest from Donald Trump. Televisions all come with mute buttons, now.
ReplyDeleteDavid in Cal's point about Trump and the Republican Party providing all corporations with huge tax breaks, whether they hire illegal immigrants instead white people or not, clearly shows how little Trump, the Republican Party, and David in Cal care about illegal immigration.
ReplyDelete"Zeke Hausfather
ReplyDelete@hausfath
·
This comparsion in the NYTimes today is pretty stark. China is racing ahead to be a high-tech exporter of 21st century technologies, while the US is doubling down on being a petro-state exporting the technologies of the 19th century"
Make America Putin's Russia Again. MAPRA!!!