Trump Gonna Ignore Mean Supreme Court, Tax Dolls And Pencils EVEN MORE
Biggest loser says what?
On Friday, three conservatives on the Supreme Court, Roberts, Gorsuch and Barrett joined the three liberals in deciding that no, President Donald John Trump cannot do EMERGENCY tariffs forever over some made-up non-emergency, and only Congress can levy taxes, as the framers clearly quilled into the Constitution.
¡VIERNES PASADO!
Then, as is his way, the Whiner-In-Chief heaved that certain justices were a disgrace and should be ashamed and blah blah blah, and he was going to, effective immediately, put a 15 percent tariff across the board under a different legal auspice. He blamed the justices some more that he’d be forced to go to court and litigate over the next two to five years so the Treasury never has to pay back all that Barbie- and pencil-tax money retailers were illegally forced to pay. (Unlike what his lawyers said in court, that they knew they’d have to pay them back. Sigh.)
Moreover, Trump’s so cheeseberder-biting mad he says he won’t even use capital letters for the Supreme Court anymore, LOL.
like ee cummings.
Maybe we’ll invent a new poetic form, maybe we’ll have a civil war! The uncertainty exuding from Unstable Genius Monday morning pushed down the value of the dollar, Bitcoin, short-term Treasuries and the Dow — the precious Dow we should all be focusing on instead of child trafficking victims! — even farther under 50,000 dollarpoints.
So now, as we wait for however many months and years of our taxpayer dollars going towards courts telling Trump he can’t do what he just did, as we have for the better part of the past decade of our lives, forward-thinking companies and states are already lining up for a slice of some $133 billion in refunds. Will you, Kevin and Karen Consumer, ever see any of your money again? LOL.
Costco, Revlon, Kawasaki, Bumble Bee Foods and other companies had already sued the administration before the ruling came down, and so are already lined up for a payback.
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker was first gov out of the gate on Friday, sending Trump a Strongly Worded Letter demanding payback for the $8.7 billion that his state’s residents already spent:
“Your tariff taxes wreaked havoc on farmers, enraged our allies, and sent grocery prices through the roof. This letter and the attached invoice stand as an official notice that compensation is owed to the people of Illinois, and if you do not comply we will pursue further action.”
Then after the Governors’ Association get-together (Wes Moore and Janet Mills attended after all), more leadership piled on.
California governor Gavin Newsom:
“Time to pay the piper, Donald. These tariffs were nothing more than an illegal cash grab that drove up prices and hurt working families, so you could wreck longstanding alliances and extort them. Every dollar unlawfully taken must be refunded immediately — with interest. Cough up!”
Nevada Treasurer Zach Conine also said he’s sending the feds a bill for $2.1 billion.
Never deterred, Monday Trump huffed he can do whatever he wants, and what he wants is to tariff EVEN MORE!
As President, I do not have to go back to Congress to get approval of Tariffs. It has already been gotten, in many forms, a long time ago! They were also just reaffirmed by the ridiculous and poorly crafted supreme court decision! President DJT
Reminder, more than three-fourths of US residents strongly disapprove of the way Trump promised tariffs would make America rich rich rich again, and instead prices have only been going up, because apparently Trump voters never learned-ed in school that tariff means tax. Specifically, tariff means tax on you, American company and/or consumer buying foreign goods! Or maybe voters thought all that tariff talk was more of Art Of Deal’s hi-larious joking.
Trump further pounded,
Any Country that wants to “play games” with the ridiculous supreme court decision, especially those that have “Ripped Off” the U.S.A. for years, and even decades, will be met with a much higher Tariff, and worse, than that which they just recently agreed to. BUYER BEWARE!!! Thank you for your attention to this matter. President DONALD J. TRUMP
What “game” would foreign countries play when the only action on the field is Trump deciding how much to gouge American consumers? That $133 billion did not make the trade deficit go down, by the way, a misguided premise to begin with. Trump’s volatility only made the dollar weaker, international investors warier, and the price of the US’s debt to itself even higher.
Meanwhile, the European Union’s parliament halted the ratification process of a sweeping trade deal with the US, with the trade committee chief Bernd Lange noting, “Nobody knows what will happen ... and it’s unclear if there will be additional measures or how the United States will really guarantee” its end of the agreement. Wild words to type about a country that little more than a year ago seemed like it would maintain economic hegemony forever.
All of that is not good for THE DOW or the bonds or the dollar or THE TRADE. Won’t somebody think about THEM? Not Trump or Howard Lutnick. When Trump says you get TWO DOLLS, you get TWO DOLLS! And a tax on your wire hangers!
OPEN THREAD.
[Wall Street Journal / NPR / Le Monde / NBC]
I very much like my congress critter, Shontel Brown.
She sent out an email asking for our opinion on if she should attend the SOTU.
I said no, so did most of my neighbors and Ms. Brown listened and is boycotting.
"I have attended every State of the Union address since I’ve been a member of the House of Representatives. Just last year, I took my seat in the chamber for President Trump’s Joint Address to Congress because the people I represent deserve to have their voice present in moments of national importance.
This year is different.
This week, I asked my constituents how they felt about the year’s State of the Union. After hearing from thousands of constituents, the majority view is clear: do not attend. Do not treat this moment as normal. Do not help create the appearance of unity and legitimacy where neither exists. I agree.
From the lying and lawlessness to the cruelty and corruption, President Donald Trump has consistently abused his office and put his own interests ahead of our country’s.
Attending his speech would suggest that what we are seeing now is just another chapter in the routine back-and-forth of American politics. It is not. It is a sustained pattern of division, dishonesty, and disregard for constitutional guardrails.
Trump’s speeches are always the same: lies, self-congratulation and smears. There’s no effort to outline serious plans or speak to the entire country. Worse still, he is in complete denial about the real state of our union.
In my State of the District address, I spoke about what Northeast Ohioans are experiencing: deep health care cuts, reductions in food assistance, and rising costs. I detailed how federal benefits have been frozen, how student aid and workforce programs have been slashed, and how local education and clean energy investments have been terminated. I outlined President Trump’s union-busting and attacks on civil rights. And I described how the weaponization of ICE has spread fear, chaos, and abuse in our communities.
Every day, we are seeing the consequences of policy choices that favor the wealthy, while working families get stuck with the bill.
Even more alarming, Trump’s White House has ignored Congressional oversight, defied the judiciary, and raided election offices. Corruption has been embraced and the Constitution has been ignored. From slapping his name on the Kennedy Center to invading foreign countries without Congressional consent, Trump has shown he doesn’t believe the rules apply to him. And thousands of ICE agents have mirrored that approach – with tragic consequences.
At event after event, my constituents have made it clear that they aren’t just upset by a far-right agenda, they’re worried about something much deeper: can our democracy endure if the President of the United States doesn’t want it to.
While I respect and support each decision my colleagues make, I believe that showing up and sitting through a speech built on a mountain of falsehoods and fear is not in the best interest of Ohio’s Eleventh Congressional District.
Participation can provide a veneer of respectability to conduct that does not deserve it. There are moments when presence signals respect. And then there are moments when absence signals conscience.
Instead of attending, I will spend that time with constituents, lifting up the stories of people harmed by these policies — seniors facing coverage loss, families navigating benefit cuts, workers affected by funding freezes, and small businesses squeezed by tariffs. And I will continue building support for my new bill to repeal ICE’s slush fund and put that money back into feeding our neighbors.
Representation is not measured merely by being present for a speech. It is measured by whether you are willing to tell the truth about what is happening in moments that will define our future and fight to change it.
This is not an ordinary time – and I believe pretending that it is would be a disservice to the Northeast Ohioans I represent."
https://shontelbrown.house.gov/media/press-releases/rep-brown-announces-decision-not-attend-state-union
I know you guys have been crazy with anticipation, but my kitchen light has stopped working again.
We had a discussion about ghosts, sure this is either old wiring or bulb burning out but thinking it's a ghost is fun.
I do have an actual ghost story from when I managed the Williams-Sonoma Outlet in lower Manhattan in the early 1990's. We were in an ancient 3 story building. The third floor had a bricked up door that had previously gone to the building next door, but there was no longer a floor on the other side of that door do to a fire. There were old scorch marks still on the wood floors of my building. Rumors were people had escaped a fire from the neighboring building but some died on the third floor of my building.
One night an entire wall of shelving collapsed uncovering that door. The shelving was repaired but things started getting weird.
I had a staff of big tough guys on my stock team, they refused to work alone on the third floor because dark figures had been seen there after hours.
One night I was on the third floor with an assistant manager, doing some final prep for a sale.
The third floor had the employee breakroom which also had a bathroom.
Suddenly we heard the water running in the bathroom. I went in there and there was no one.
But the bathroom sink had the water on full force. I turned it off and kind of brushed it off and went back to doing my work.
The water came on again.
It was a race between me and the assistant to see who could get down the stairs and out of there the fastest.