Feb. 17, 2025: 9:52 a.m.:
Happy President’s Day
Happy President’s Day to the most iconic President of all time. pic.twitter.com/E2pBHckpeH
— Derrick Evans (@DerrickEvans4WV) February 17, 2025
WND
‘Mass chaos and confusion’: Dem AGs suing to block Musk influence in government looking to hire notorious climate crusaders
Democratic attorneys general who are suing to block Elon Musk’s supposed federal “power grab” are actively looking to hire lawyers from a program established with cash from Democrat mega donor Michael Bloomberg.
Keith Ellison of Minnesota, William Tong of Connecticut and Anthony Brown of Maryland are three of the 14 Democrat attorneys general who filed a lawsuit Thursday alleging that President Donald Trump broke the law in appointing Musk to launch a full assault on wasteful governance via the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). While the three officials say that Musk — an unelected official and billionaire — undermines the Constitution, each of their offices are soliciting applicants from a New York University (NYU) law school program that received about $6 million from Bloomberg, who is an unelected billionaire, in 2017.
NYU School of Law’s State Energy and Environmental Impact Center (SEEIC) “studies and supports the work of state attorneys general in defending, enforcing, and promoting strong laws and policies in the areas of climate, environmental justice, environmental protection, and clean energy,” according to its website. SEEIC started with the help of about $6 million from Bloomberg Philanthropies, Bloomberg’s charitable organization, and it has placed fellows into state attorney general offices in the past to assist with lawsuits targeting major energy companies for their role in climate change, for example.
SEEIC’s website currently features open applications for special attorney general positions inside the offices of Tong, Ellison and Brown; while the particulars vary for these positions, they all generally focus on climate, energy and related issues by design, according to their respective descriptions. However, SEEIC pays the salaries of its fellows, rather than the state governments that compensate the sitting attorneys general.
The description of the open roles in Minnesota notes that preferred qualifications include “a background in federal administrative law challenges,” suggesting that any prospective hire may be working on challenges to the Trump administration’s aggressive energy agenda. Depending on their level of experience and qualifications, applicants hired by the three attorneys general can rake in anywhere from $85,000 to $174,000 in salary.
While they are actively seeking out climate-focused lawyers funded by an unelected billionaire, the three Democrats are at the same time deeply concerned over their belief that Trump broke the law in deputizing Musk to make the government more efficient with his DOGE team.
“There is no greater threat to democracy than the accumulation of state power in the hands of a single, unelected individual. Although our constitutional system was designed to prevent the abuses of an 18th century monarch, the instruments of unchecked power are no less dangerous in the hands of a 21st century tech baron,” the Democrat attorneys’ general lawsuit states. “In recent weeks, Defendant Elon Musk, with President Donald J. Trump’s approval, has roamed through the federal government unraveling agencies, accessing sensitive data, and causing mass chaos and confusion for state and local governments, federal employees, and the American people.”
In personal statements, Ellison bemoaned that “Trump installed Elon Musk at the head of that agency without vetting and Senate confirmation,” while Tong lamented that “no one elected Elon Musk” and that “Donald Trump has allowed this unelected billionaire to worm his way into our government.” For his part, Brown said that “the president has given one man unchecked power to reshape our government.”
Bloomberg has poured hundreds of millions of dollars into climate activist groups and organizations explicitly aiming to crush the coal and petrochemical industries in the U.S. After Bloomberg dropped out of the 2020 presidential race, he proceeded to give future President Joe Biden tens of millions of dollars to beat Trump.
“It’s quite entertaining from a consumer protection perspective to watch public officials who are using billionaire-backed law firms to push climate change cases to fundamentally reshape our economy and remove products from store shelves, and officials who are actively soliciting for billionaire funded attorneys to be placed in their offices, turn around and sue over the amount of influence of a billionaire who they don’t agree with and don’t control,” O.H. Skinner, executive director of the Alliance for Consumers, told the Daily Caller News Foundation. “And that’s before considering how much money the federal government under Joe Biden shoveled out to left-wing nonprofits to subsidize their collective efforts to reshape our country, which is exactly what is under pressure from the efforts of Elon Musk and others in the Trump administration.”
The offices of Tong, Brown and Ellison did not respond to requests for comment.
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Advice To Politicians | John Howard
WATCH: Mark Levin scorches ‘illegal unconstitutional cities and states’
‘Quite bizarre’: WATCH Turkeys circle Harris gravestone
A group of turkeys spotted circling a ‘Harris’ gravestone in North Dakota.
The footage was captured by a cemetery worker at the Riverside Cemetery in Fargo, North Dakota.
“It was quite bizarre,” the man, Paul Eickhof, said.
The reasoning behind the ‘turkey circle’ may be due… pic.twitter.com/1ceYSdz7Nr
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) February 16, 2025
‘We have spirit all over the world’: Watch Trump become star attraction at Daytona 500
DAYTONA BEACH, Florida – President Donald Trump became the runaway star of the famous Daytona 500 NASCAR race on Sunday.
“The biggest applause we heard all day long was when they put Donald Trump’s face on the big screen,” a Fox TV announcer said. “The crowd went crazy.”
Fox just talked about Trump being the star of the show at the Daytona 500:
“The biggest applause we heard all day long was when they put Donald Trump’s face on the big screen. The crowd went CRAZY.” pic.twitter.com/Taus7VVHfI
— johnny maga (@_johnnymaga) February 16, 2025
The president flew on Air Force One from Palm Beach International Airport up to what’s marketed as “the world’s most famous beach” to attend the annual race.
Trump talked with the drivers, and saluted them saying, “They have a lot of courage doing this … they have a lot of guts.”
President Donald Trump at the Daytona 500: “It’s great for the country. Our country is doing well again… and it’s been less than four weeks. It’s going to only get better.”
— America (@america) February 16, 2025
He also posed for photos with his granddaughter Carolina, the daughter of Eric and Lara Trump, and even took her in his presidential limousine known as “The Beast” around the track before the commencement of action.
We welcome the President of the United States to the #DAYTONA500. pic.twitter.com/9o5hgnxsFM
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) February 16, 2025
Daytona was pic.twitter.com/0hjypEekOH
— Lara Trump (@LaraLeaTrump) February 16, 2025
President Donald Trump’s view from his trip around the track at the Daytona 500
The people’s President is a First Class Grandfather
From @EricTrump IG pic.twitter.com/V6ldnvJIRv
— Alec Lace (@AlecLace) February 16, 2025
The president said in a pre-race message:
“This iconic race showcases the fastest, most fearless drivers in motorsports, who represent our Nation’s love of tradition, competition, and automotive innovation. The Daytona 500 brings together people from all walks of life – from lifelong racing fans to first-time spectators – they all join in celebrating a shared passion for speed, adrenaline, and the thrill of the race.
Donald Trump at the Daytona 500 was LEGENDARY.. pic.twitter.com/Tfm3oJmGow
— American AF (@iAnonPatriot) February 16, 2025
“From the roar of the engines on the track to the echo of ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’ soaring through the stands, the Daytona 500 is a timeless tribute to the speed, strength, and unyielding spirit that make America great. That spirit is what will fuel America’s Golden Age, and if we harness it, the future is truly ours.
The Beast leading the pack at the Daytona 500.
— Donald J. Trump News (@DonaldTNews) February 16, 2025
“Since the very beginning, NASCAR has carried forth a proud tradition of honoring our heroic Service members for their unwavering courage. While fans from around the world gather today at Daytona International Speedway, we extend our unending gratitude to the selfless men and women in uniform who risk their lives to keep us safe.
“When the engines start or the checkered flag waves, and all 500 thrilling miles in between, our Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, Coast Guardsmen, and Guardians stand ready to defend cherished traditions like this – and for that, we are truly thankful.”
BREAKING DAYTONA 500
MASSIVE COMM WIZARD OF OZ
THE GOLDEN AGEPresident Donald J. Trump
Seen with granddaughter is wearing the RUBY SLIPPERS at Daytona 500GOING BACK TO THE GOLD STANDARD WE ALWAYS KNEW HOW TO GO BACK WE JUST HAD TO LIVE THROUGH THIS JOURNEY TO GET… pic.twitter.com/94mUyyMyxr
— SANTINO (@MichaelSCollura) February 16, 2025
Follow Joe on X @JoeKovacsNews
Netanyahu: ‘Gates of hell will surely open’ if all hostages not freed
(TIMES OF ISRAEL) — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Donald Trump “are working in full cooperation and coordination” on Gaza, the premier said on Sunday alongside US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
“We have a common strategy and we can’t always share details of this strategy with the public,” Netanyahu said, “including when the gates of hell will be open, as they surely will if all our hostages are not released, until the last one of them.”
Israeli PM Bibi Netanyahu alongside US Secretary of State Marco Rubio: “President Trump and I are fully coordinated with a shared strategy. Not everything can be revealed—including when the gates of hell will open.” pic.twitter.com/FaLgAf8kcf
— Ari Hoffman (@thehoffather) February 16, 2025
Netanyahu made the comments to the press after meeting with Rubio in his office in Jerusalem.
‘Nature abhors a vacuum’: Watch Kamala deliver a fresh, delicious word salad at Broadway musical
It has been more than three months since Kamala Harris was crushed by President Donald Trump in the presidential election, but the time off the campaign trail has not harmed the flavor of the former vice president’s infamous word salads.
Video emerged Sunday afternoon of the Democrat addressing the cast and crew of the Louis Armstrong Broadway musical “A Wonderful World,” where Harris reminded everyone how “nature abhors a vacuum.”
“When we think about these moments where we see things that are being taken but also let’s see it as you know, nature abhors a vacuum.”
“So where there’s a vacancy, then let’s fill it. Right?”
“And let’s know that reality is that the promise of our nation has always been all about the expansion of rights, not the restriction of rights. We’re seeing a U-turn right now.
“For those rights to be maintained, which means we have to be vigilant and it’s just the nature of it.
NEW: Kamala Harris gives inspiring speech to the cast of ‘A Wonderful World’ on Broadway, inspires by noting how “nature abhors a vacuum.”
“When we think about these moments where we see things that are being taken but also let’s see it as you know, nature abhors a vacuum.”
“So… pic.twitter.com/IinA9ElmLV
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) February 16, 2025
“But we have to we have to be clear-eyed. And it doesn’t mean we don’t see the beauty in everything. Right? These things all coexist.”
“But I believe we fight for something, not against something, and that’s our optimism. Right?”
Colin Rugg, co-owner of Trending Poltics who posted the video, quipped: “I’m pretty inspired, but I’m still trying to figure out what she’s saying.”
Juanita Broaddrick, who accused former President Bill Clinton of sexually assaulting her, said: “It’s inconceivable that she could walk and chew gum at the same time. There are no words to elaborate about this imbecile.”
Others remarked:
“I read the transcript and my husband knew right away who it was. She has such a way with words!”
“Kamala talking about voids is ironic considering her speech left a void in everyone’s understanding.”
“I’ve earned a PhD and have taught at university since the 1990s, and I think I speak for a lot of people when I say…What in the name of Holy God is @KamalaHarris trying to say?”
“She acts like she is saying something extremely relevant and profound and then waiting for the rally of agreement and awareness. She is really mixing a screwed up word salad leaving people thinking WTH is she talking about.”
“I call it saying everything and nothing at the same time.”
“It is a pure word salad that resonates with no one. Democrats keep pushing these DEI disasters, and they’re toast – they won’t win anything for a generation.”
“She just keeps flying off that wagon. I think the wagon has a faulty ejection seat.”
“America almost had this woman as our president. Holy cr*p.”
“Nothing can fill that vacuum.”
Make it make sense? pic.twitter.com/0cHljU3iQ4
— Anti Woke Memes (@AntiWokeMemes) February 16, 2025
LMAO pic.twitter.com/0HxeP2zex1
— Anti Left Memes (@AntiLeftMemes) February 16, 2025
Follow Joe on X @JoeKovacsNews
Safe landing for earmark cash
Topline: If federal officials ever need an emergency escape route from the debt crisis they’ve created, they will be in luck. The Institute of Museum and Library Services has already spent $60,500 to finance the Parachute Museum in Dayton, Ohio.
That’s according to the “Wastebook” reporting published by the late U.S. Sen. Dr. Tom Coburn. For years, these reports shined a white-hot spotlight on federal frauds and taxpayer abuses.
Coburn, the legendary U.S. senator from Oklahoma, earned the nickname “Dr. No” by stopping thousands of pork-barrel projects using the Senate rules. Projects that he couldn’t stop, Coburn included in his oversight reports.
Coburn’s Wastebook 2010 included 100 examples of outrageous spending worth more than $11.5 billion, including the earmark for the Parachute Museum — which would be worth over $88,000 today.
Key facts: Visitors to Aviation Trail’s Parachute Museum can find “comprehensive information related to the design, fabrication and use of parachutes,” including videos and touchscreen exhibits.
The museum opened in 2003 but was not completed until 2010, thanks to funding secured by Rep. Mike Turner (R-OH).
Congress banned federal earmarks for museums in 2024 and reissued the ban in 2025, recognizing that the funds were often wasteful or riddled with conflicts of interest. Perhaps the 2023 earmark from Rep. Kweisi Mfume (D-MD) was the wake-up call: he budgeted $2 million for a wax museum that features a statue of himself.
The new rule would be an excellent idea — if anyone actually followed it. Congress passed dozens of earmarks for museums in 2024 and requested dozens more for 2025.
Search all federal, state and local government salaries and vendor spending with the AI search bot, Benjamin, at OpenTheBooks.com.
Summary: At this rate, Congress members will soon be able to open a museum about the hundreds of earmarks they have handed out to other museums.
The #WasteOfTheDay is brought to you by the forensic auditors at OpenTheBooks.com
This article was originally published by RCI and made available via RealClearWire.
How Trump’s tariffs can reverse de-dollarization
Immediately upon assuming office, President Donald Trump reiterated that he would impose 100% tariffs on BRICS nations contemplating de-dollarization. Trump advocates a worldview in which the U.S. dollar remains the undisputed reserve currency, but unlike his predecessors, he perceives BRICS as a serious challenge to the greenback’s predominance. Targeted tariffs combined with incentive structures for alignment with American interests can discourage countries from pursuing de-dollarization policies.
In August 2023, the White House determined that BRICS—a multilateral organization of which the membership now includes Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates—does not represent a geopolitical threat to the United States due to the divergent priorities of each member. Such an assessment ruled out punitive measures against BRICS.
Trump embraces the opposite view, maintaining that tariffs are a way to motivate countries to align with Washington’s priorities and incentivize domestic manufacturing. Scott Bessent, Trump’s pick for Treasury Secretary, outlined this approach in an interview late last year. Drawing a comparison to the nuclear strategy of escalating to de-escalate, Bessent explained that “you can put tariffs on with the idea of getting rid of all the tariffs.” This is similar to how Washington uses sanctions, but Bessent noted that excessive use of the latter tool can lead countries to abandon the dollar, as demonstrated in the past few years.
Indeed, following Russia’s war in Ukraine, the United States and the European Union moved to seize $300 billion in Russian Central Bank assets. During its last days in government, the Biden administration attempted to convince European leaders that the money should be moved to an escrow account to which Moscow would only get access if it signed a peace deal. Russia recently retaliated with a new legislative initiative that allows it to confiscate assets in “unfriendly” countries.
The problem for Washington is that, although the Kremlin is similarly engaging in asset seizure, Russian President Vladimir Putin has crafted an image of himself as a defender of the Global South’s interests and as responding to Western aggression. Speaking before representatives from African and Asian countries, Putin argues that “we never tried to oust anyone from our market” and that the West relies on “neo-colonial practices” to make African countries “dependent on Western technology and loans.” Putin also frequently repeats that Western countries are responsible for escalation—both military and financial—and that Moscow has been collaborating with developing countries for decades.
Russia and China enjoy much more direct messaging to the Global South, presenting themselves as alternatives to American financial hegemony. This stokes anti-Western sentiment amongst countries that perceive Beijing and Moscow as disposed to provide economic and security aid without using their currencies as a tool to force democratization.
The Trump administration’s response to this increasing hostility is to induce countries to trade in the dollar. During the same interview, Bessent suggested that the United States could set up a three-tiered system in which countries fall from the desirable green zone to the yellow to the red zone if they fail to align with Washington’s interests. Bessent cited India continuing to buy Russian oil as an example of what might demote a country from the yellow to the red box. Trump’s 100% tariff threat on BRICS countries pursuing de-dollarization is rooted in the same approach.
For the past few weeks, Trump has used tariffs to achieve rapid political outcomes. When Colombian President Gustavo Petro refused to accept planes carrying migrants deported from the United States, Trump issued a 25% tariff on all goods imported from Colombia that would rise to 50% the following week. Within the same day, Petro reversed his decision and offered a presidential plane to return migrants to Colombia. Since the United States accounts for approximately 34% of Colombia’s trade, Petro had no choice but to put himself in lockstep with Washington’s migratory policy.
Trump has also succeeded in obtaining concessions from America’s neighbors through targeted tariffs. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum agreed to deploy 10,000 National Guard troops to the U.S.-Mexico border to monitor drug trafficking and illegal immigration in exchange for a month-long delay in the implementation of 25% import tariffs. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau struck a similar deal, committing to reinforcing the U.S.’ northern border with personnel and technology to stop the illegal flow of fentanyl. Tariffs have thus strengthened Washington’s bargaining position to achieve its domestic objectives.
Regarding the United States’ major adversaries like Russia and China, tariffs are not intended to secure instantaneous reversals. Washington is seeking long-term shifts that benefit it domestically and internationally. For instance, Bessent noted that “we are trying to make China rebalance. China over-manufactures and they deprive the household sector. They under-consume.” The end goal of instituting tariffs is to encourage “more U.S. manufacturing,” he added, which entails additional jobs, decreased supply chain dependence, and reduced costs over time. In this spirit, Trump warned business leaders across the globe that they would face tariffs if they do not bring manufacturing to the United States.
Trump desires a somewhat more immediate shift when it comes to Russia. He threatened Putin with high tariffs and a new volley of sanctions if he does not come to the negotiating table to end the Ukraine war. Russia has shown an impressive ability to circumvent Western sanctions up to this point—a process it began after its annexation of Crimea in 2014 when it was hit by Obama-era sanctions—and there are few industries in which Moscow still finds itself dependent on the United States. However, Trump’s statements may serve as a concrete signal to the Kremlin that he is intent on seeing an end to the war as soon as possible.
The Trump administration appears largely united on the idea of using forceful methods to maintain the dollar’s status as the world’s reserve currency. One exception was when Vice President JD Vance said last year, “when I see our mass consumption of mostly useless imports on the one hand and our hollowed-out industrial base, on the other hand, I wonder if the reserve currency status also has some downsides.” However, if tariffs designed to foster domestic manufacturing and increase the quality of American products are strategically used to reverse de-dollarization, this would address Vance’s concerns.
Nevertheless, the administration should be prepared to respond to the first signs of the alternate outcome. It is possible that tariffs levied against current or aspiring BRICS members, for example, will convince these countries to turn to cross-border payment systems, replacing dollar-based transactions monitored by Washington with local currency equivalents.
What makes tariffs more attractive than sanctions, however, is that they are less likely to accelerate de-dollarization. Excessively applying sanctions to coerce countries to align with American interests can smack of dollar weaponization, pushing countries directly into Russia and China’s embrace. Tariffs, on the other hand, are a trade tool that remains separate from the international financial payment systems undergirding the dollar.
Tariffs can thus incentivize alignment with American policies—as Bessent proposes in his green-yellow-red box analogy—in subtler ways than the blanket sanctions that Washington has used for the past few years. Unlike sanctions, however, they carry inflammatory effects, which will have to be weighed when considering their implementation. As Bessent said, the ideal situation is if tariffs can be removed after they have achieved their political objective, but this may take time when dealing with more persistent countries such as China.
President Trump has concluded that BRICS presents a credible threat to the U.S.-led world order, which is sustained by the dollar’s role as the global reserve currency. He is willing to use tariffs as a political instrument to convince countries that it is in their interest to operate within the American financial system. Targeted tariffs accompanied by incentives to compliant countries may prove more useful than sanctions in combating de-dollarization, enabling the United States to defend its economic and political interests in the face of Sino-Russian rapprochement.
Axel de Vernou is a senior at Yale University majoring in Global Affairs and History with a Certificate of Advanced Language Study in Russian. He is a Research Assistant at the Yorktown Institute.
This article was originally published by RealClearDefense and made available via RealClearWire.