Donald Trump

BBC - The US Department of Justice has announced that this week's unprecedented settlement of President Donald Trump's lawsuit over the leaking of his tax returns blocks the IRS from reviewing tax filings that Trump, his family and his businesses made in the past. Some lawmakers and legal experts say the department has violated federal law with its addendum to the agreement that shuts down current possible tax audits and investigations. The justice department, however, says the addendum is simply a customary waiver used in legal settlements.

In January, Trump and his two eldest sons sued the IRS [Internal Revenue Service] for $10bn over leaks of their business and personal tax returns. It was the first time a president had sued the US government.  On Monday, the justice department announced the suit was settled and the government had agreed to create an almost $1.8bn (£1.3bn) fund to compensate people who believe it unfairly investigated them. It has already inspired one lawsuit, as well as resistance from within Trump's own Republican party.

People  -   Donald Trump Jr. and Bettina Anderson are rumored to be tying the knot over the upcoming Memorial Day weekend. When asked by a reporter if he planned to attend his son's ceremony, President Donald Trump was noncommittal, saying it was "not good timing"

"I have a thing called Iran and other things," the president said, after noting that he was going to "try and make it"

Alternet -   Count Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.) among the sparse but growing crew of Republicans with the courage to criticize President Donald Trump as he crushes the GOP.  Bacon is also among the ranks of Republicans retiring this year, so he finds his courage “on the way out the door” as some critics have accused. Nevertheless, from the safety of his retirement, Bacon is lobbing major pushback against Trump’s controversial slush fund settlement proposal on CNN.

“This whole thing smells,” Bacon told CNN. “You have the president is the is the plaintiff, but he's also in charge of the defendants. So he's, in a sense, negotiating with himself. And most people look at that. And that's not impartial. It surely looks partial. So there has to be some kind of arbitrator or some kind of like a judge or something that helps provide an impartial decision on who would get this money.”

Price of gas

Data: AAA. Map: Sara Wise/Axios

Meanwhile. . .

A guide to converting your lawn into a wildlife friendly garden 

The rise and fall of blacks in our "democracy"

Trump's nominee for Surgeon General

The Guardian  - Donald Trump’s nominee for surgeon general sells an herbal supplement that contains an ingredient prohibited by the US military and which health experts have warned can cause liver damage.  Dr Nicole Saphier’s record of selling dietary supplements, which are only loosely regulated in the US, has raised concern among doctors and consumer advocates, some of whom allege she sells “snake oil”.  Amazon said it had opened an investigation into the products after the Guardian inquired whether they were in compliance with the company’s policies on supplement sales.

The profit in immigrant warehouses

Alternet America - It turns out the secret to making money in real estate is knowing someone who controls a $40 billion federal budget.  Under former Secretary Kristi Noem, the Department of Homeland Security was planning to spend nearly $40 billion to buy up dozens of warehouses around the country to convert them into makeshift detention camps capable of holding 1,000 to 10,000 people each.

Many of the warehouses had been sitting on the market for years. Now DHS is buying them at a massive markup. One warehouse in Socorro, Texas, recently valued at $11 million, was purchased by ICE from the company El Paso Logistics II LLC for $123 million — more than a thousand percent profit....

The administration has already purchased enough warehouse space to hold more than 41,500 people at once. The friends of the White House who couldn’t unload those properties are now considerably less burdened. America’s taxpayers are picking up the difference.

Gavin Newsom

Bloomberg - Gavin Newsom is trying to have it both ways on AI as he prepares for a probable presidential bid in 2028, writes Erika D. Smith. It’s a fine line trying to keep one of his state’s most profitable industries happy while navigating a growing national backlash against it

Canada

Bloomberg - Should they stay or should they go? That’s the question Albertans may soon confront when voters in Canada’s energy heartland decide this fall whether to begin a legal process that could ultimately lead to secession.

• Premier Danielle Smith says she’ll hold a referendum on Oct. 19 in a bid to contain independence sentiment within her United Conservative Party, which has governed the province since 2019.
• The decision follows a court ruling that blocked an earlier push to petition the government for a secession vote. The judge sided with indigenous groups, whose treaty rights predate Alberta’s creation as a Canadian province in 1905.
• Polls show separatism remains a minority view, with especially weak support among women and residents of major cities.
• The French-speaking province of Quebec offers a cautionary tale. Rising separatist sentiment there in the 1970s drove many businesses to Toronto from Montreal. Quebec voters ultimately rejected independence in a razor-thin 1995 referendum.

Trump grip in GOP primaries masks vulnerabilities in the fall

The Hill -   President Trump’s grip on Republican primaries appears tighter than ever as a string of GOP officeholders who came under his wrath fell to defeat in contests over the past month in Indiana, Kentucky and Louisiana.  Yet there’s a disconnect for the party, which is facing alarm bells about its standing as it heads into the midterms....

Trump’s power in a GOP primary may not be enough to prevent heavy Republican losses in the fall when more independents and Democrats are also casting votes for the House and Senate.

“It’s simple: He has a hold on the Republican base, which you see come out in primaries,” said Susan Del Percio, a veteran GOP strategist who does not support Trump. “Most primary voters are Donald Trump voters, but not all Donald Trump voters are primary voters. They only show up every four years for Donald Trump.”

House rejects bill to further museum honoring women

Roll Call -  A once-bipartisan effort broke down Thursday as the House rejected a bill to pave the way for construction of a Smithsonian museum honoring women.  Previously championed by both sides of the aisle, the legislation saw last-minute changes at a House Administration Committee markup in March that led Democrats to withdraw their backing. The new version would prohibit exhibits from including transgender women or girls, as well as give the final say on location to President Donald Trump. 

“They have shown that they are willing to destroy a bipartisan bill in order to respond to the White House,” said Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández, D-N.M., who chairs the Democratic Women’s Caucus. 

The bill would allow the museum to be built within the reserve of the National Mall, an area where construction is tightly restricted. Although the bill names the South Monument site across from the National Museum of African American History and Culture, it would also give the president the ability to “designate an alternative site” at his discretion. Democrats have decried the changes as a “poison pill” that derailed years of work.

Democrats review of 2024 gets criticized

NPR - The Democratic National Committee yesterday released an external review of its 2024 campaign losses to identify lessons for 2026 and beyond. DNC Chairman Ken Martin is facing internal criticism for shelving the report after he received it in December 2025. Martin has apologized for not releasing the report and for not being more transparent about the decision. But he also said he disavows the report, which was delivered incomplete. The 192-page document, written by Paul Rivera, a Democratic consultant unaffiliated with the Biden and Harris campaigns, lacks key sections, including a conclusion and an executive summary.

The report is full of incorrect claims that can't be verified, NPR’s Stephen Fowler says. The DNC released the report with a disclaimer that it was not provided with “the underlying sourcing, interviews, or supporting data for many of the assertions contained herein." The report barely mentions voter concerns such as the cost of living, the conflict in Gaza and former President Joe Biden's age. Despite this, Fowler says it highlights an important disconnect: While voters may disapprove of the DNC and national party leaders, they still support their local Democrats and candidates. This dynamic suggests the national party will likely be weak heading into the 2028 presidential nominating process, where it has a lot of influence

Congress leaving town for a week

NPR - Congress is preparing to leave town for a weeklong recess without passing a Republican-backed plan to fund immigration enforcement for the next three years. This is a top priority for President Trump, who told congressional Republicans he wanted additional funding approved by June 1. Trump's $1.8 billion "Anti-Weaponization" fund may derail the deadline. The fund aims to compensate people who say they have been targeted by the government. It's not included in the immigration enforcement measure, but some Senate Republicans wanted to address it before passing the funding. Discord also appears to be growing among House Republicans, who called off a vote last night on a resolution limiting the president’s war powers.

A number of Republican senators said they were blindsided by the "Anti-Weaponization Fund" announcement, NPR's Barbara Sprunt tells Up First. The money hasn't been appropriated by Congress. Sprunt says Senate Republicans were on the verge of passing the immigration enforcement funding, but some withdrew their support over concerns about the $1.8 billion fund and Trump's White House ballroom plans. The ballroom was initially expected to be covered by private donations. After the shooting at the correspondents' dinner, plans shifted to transform it into a secure facility, and costs have since soared to about a billion dollars. Trump wanted Congress to pay for its additional security. Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, who lost his primary this week, publicly denounced funding for the ballroom and criticized the anti-weaponization fund. Sprunt now wonders whether the GOP is entering a new chapter in which members feel emboldened to challenge the president rather than hesitate.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche

Alternet -   Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche is desperate to land the job permanently, and according to a new report from Politico, to do so, he has launched his "most audacious move yet" in a bid to cement the Justice Department as President Donald Trump's personal law firm.

Blanche, who previously served as Trump's personal attorney, was appointed as an acting replacement at the DOJ following the ouster of Pam Bondi in April. Since then, he has made several high-profile moves, which observers have chalked up to his attempts to curry favor with Trump and land the full-on AG job.

"When Todd Blanche announced charges against the Southern Poverty Law Center last month, critics accused him of placating President Donald Trump in an effort to secure the attorney general job permanently," Politico explained on Friday. "Blanche weathered similar criticism about a week later, when the Justice Department indicted longtime Trump foe James Comey a second time, accusing him of threatening the president’s life with an Instagram photo of seashells."

Now, Blanche and the DOJ have spearheaded a wildly controversial new settlement for Trump, closing out his suit against the IRS by establishing a $1.776 billion "anti-weaponization" fund, to be paid out to individuals who have supposedly been targeted by the government for their political beliefs. Despite that claim, it has been widely interpreted as a means for funneling money to Trump's allies and supporters. The settlement also contains the unprecedented provision that neither Trump nor his family can ever be audited by the IRS ever again.

Weather

NY Times -   El Niño is the name given to powerful shifts in Pacific Ocean winds and water temperatures that can drastically transform global weather patterns. Over the centuries these natural patterns have sparked epic droughts and heat waves, and have intensified epidemics.

Some academics even claim to see the fingerprints of El Niño on political and economic crises in ancient Egypt, or on the downfall of the Moche civilization in present-day Peru, more than 1,000 years ago. And in 1877 and 1878, a famine fueled by El Niño killed millions of people across the tropics, hardening inequities that, as one research paper put it, “would later be characterized as the ‘first world’ and ‘third world.’”

Right now, the world is entering a new El Niño phase. Researchers are warning it could be one of the strongest on record and are invoking this history as an admonition that natural forces, when they reach their highest magnitude, can lead to profound volatility and hardship.

In general, El Niño makes for wetter conditions in some parts of the Americas while suppressing the Atlantic hurricane season. The phenomenon raises the risk of dryness in South and Southeast Asia, Australia, and southern Africa.

Of course, the current El Niño is in the early stages of formation and might not live up to the hype. But if the forecasts prove accurate, it would be a whopper and its consequences would play out across a world that has grown far more resilient but also has new vulnerabilities.

House GOP cancels war powers resolution

The Guardian -  House Republicans canceled a scheduled Thursday vote on a war powers resolution aimed at ending the US war with Iran, a measure that likely would have advanced had the vote been held.  The cancellation, which avoided political embarrassment for Donald Trump, is the latest signal that congressional support for the US president’s war is diminishing.

The three top House Democrats, Hakeem Jeffries, Katherine Clark and Pete Aguilar, called Republican leadership “cowardly” for cancelling the vote.“For nearly three months, Donald Trump has forced America and our men and women in uniform into a reckless and costly war of choice in Iran. Donald Trump and Pete Hegseth took us to war without clear objectives, an exit strategy, public support or the authorization required by the United States Congress,” the Democrats said in a statement.

“The Republican-controlled House continues to behave like a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Trump administration. Republicans cowardly pulled a scheduled vote on a War Powers Resolution – legislation that would have passed with bipartisan support and required the President to end the conflict in the Middle East,” they added.

The vote has been postponed until lawmakers return from a recess in June, but it appears likely that the resolution could pass then.

Donald Trump

Huffington Post -    President Donald Trump has once again invoked Jesus Christ, this time in his latest erroneous claim that the 2020 election he lost was “rigged.”  This comes just weeks after the president faced backlash for sharing a social media image depicting him as ... Him.

Speaking with reporters on Wednesday morning, the president argued that if the Son of God had been a vote-tallying election official, he would’ve actually won California. “You have a rigged vote out there. That’s the problem,” Trump claimed. “You have really rigged votes in California. You have all the mail-in ballots, everything else. Very hard to win because the elections are very dishonest.”

“If we had Jesus Christ come down and count the votes, I would have won California, because I do great with Hispanics,” he added.

US votes against historic UN climate change decision

The Guardian -   The UN has voted 141-8 to adopt a resolution backing a world court opinion that countries have a legal obligation to address climate change, with the US – which is the world’s biggest historical emitter – among the small group opposing it.

The UN secretary general, António Guterres, said Wednesday’s general assembly vote, in which 28 countries abstained, underscored that governments are responsible for protecting citizens from the “escalating climate crisis”.

“I welcome the adoption of the General Assembly resolution on the ICJ’s advisory opinion on climate change – a powerful affirmation of international law, climate justice, science + the responsibility of states to protect people from the escalating climate crisis,” Guterres said in a post on X.

The resolution, brought by the Pacific island Vanuatu, affirms a July 2025 advisory opinion by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) that states are obligated to reduce fossil fuel use and tackle global warming.

While not legally binding, the court’s advisory opinion is already being used in climate litigation around the world and judges are starting to reference it in their climate-related rulings....

The US joined Saudi Arabia, Russia, Israel, Iran, Yemen, Liberia and Belarus in opposing the resolution on Wednesday. Cop31 climate summit host Turkey, India, and oil producers Qatar and Nigeria were among those abstaining.

Grocery prices continue to climb

The Hill -  Federal inflation data confirms what you may have been feeling already: Groceries are getting more expensive. Unfortunately, things may be about to get a whole lot worse, economists are warning.  The price of groceries rose 2.9% in April compared to the same month a year earlier, according to government figures released in May. That was the highest year-over-year inflation rate for the category since August 2023.

When compared to the same time last year, fruits and vegetables have seen some of the biggest price hikes. Tomatoes are 40% more expensive now than they were this time last year. Bad growing weather, tariffs, and rising fuel prices have all contributed to the huge change in tomato prices, reports the New York Times.

Coffee, another imported product, is 19% more expensive than it was last spring.

You’re also likely seeing inflated prices at the butcher counter. Meat is up 9% overall, but beef has grown even more expensive. Ground beef is about 15% pricier, beef roasts are 18% more, and steak is up 16%.

Trump's tax scheme could save him more than $100 million

NY Times -   A tax audit that President Trump has been fighting since his peak earning days as a television celebrity was most likely wiped away in this week’s agreement with the Justice and Treasury Departments.

The agreement, part of a resolution to an unusual lawsuit that Mr. Trump and his sons filed against the Internal Revenue Service, frees the president from a potential adverse ruling that could have cost him more than $100 million, according to an analysis of his tax returns in 2020 by The New York Times.

Two years ago, Mr. Trump’s middle son, Eric Trump, acknowledged to The Times that the audit remained active. During his father’s first term in office, the matter was put on hold, records obtained by The Times showed.

It is unclear whether the matter was placed on hold again during the president’s current term or was resolved. If it was still pending until this week, the increased interest and penalties would have grown significantly.

Polls

THe Hill  - A Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday showed one of his lowest ratings recorded so far, finding only 34 percent of respondents approved of his job performance. Only a third said they approve of his handling of the economy.

The results were split along partisan lines, with nearly all Democrats disapproving of him on the economy and an overwhelming majority of Republicans in approval. But there was a significant shift within the president’s party.

Only 73 percent of Republicans said they approve of Trump’s handling of the economy, while almost a quarter disapprove. That’s a significant change from Quinnipiac’s poll last month, when 88 percent of Republicans approved of the president on the issue.

Health

NY Times  -  The rate of children’s primary care visits that included a mental health diagnosis rose dramatically from 2014 to 2023 in Massachusetts.  Anxiety showed the largest jump of any mental health condition tracked, with a 300% relative increase over the decade.

The Guardian -   Individuals bear at least 80% of the responsibility for their ill health in old age, according to a report aimed at challenging the belief that physical decline is either inevitable or primarily the responsibility of the state.

The report, launched at the Smart Ageing Summit in Oxford last week, argues that individuals have far greater control over their longevity than is commonly understood. The authors call on the government to take legislative action on alcohol comparable to restrictions on smoking.

Newsweek -  Emergency room visits for tick bites have climbed to the highest levels for this time of year since 2017 in every U.S. region except the South Central states, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said in warning earlier this morning.

Artificial Intelligence

Deep State Tribunal -    A mandatory artificial intelligence dispatch system at Pizza Hut is now accused of wrecking a successful franchisee’s business and vaporizing $100 million in value—raising fresh alarms about centralized tech mandates and who pays when automation fails.

A major Pizza Hut franchisee alleges a required artificial intelligence platform caused “cascading operational breakdowns” and about $100 million in losses.  The lawsuit claims the Dragontail system clashed with the operator’s DoorDash-heavy delivery model and stripped local managers of control.

Filed in Texas Business Court, the case highlights how corporate technology mandates can shift risk and cost onto small-business owners.\

The dispute underscores the need for accountability and human oversight as artificial intelligence spreads through everyday commerce... The complaint alleges that Pizza Hut’s required Dragontail artificial intelligence system caused “cascading operational breakdowns,” slowed order times, disrupted third-party delivery integrations, and triggered a claimed “loss of business and enterprise value of around $100 million.”

Legal issues

New Republic -   A federal judge ruled Wednesday that President Trump has to comply with the Presidential Records Act, overruling an opinion from the Department of Justice last month.  The DOJ’s Office of Legal Counsel issued an opinion in April claiming that the act was unconstitutional because it unfairly restricted “the constitutional independence and autonomy of the Executive.” In response, two organizations, the nonprofit watchdog group American Oversight and the American Historical Association sued in federal court, and on Wednesday U.S. District John Bates ruled that the act is in fact constitutional.

Workers

Newsweek -   A growing number of Americans are running out of unemployment benefits as hiring slows, leaving job seekers without income support after months of searching.  The trend highlights a gap in the labor market, where layoffs remain low but finding new work is taking longer.

Workers in industries like tech, media and retail are among those most affected, as long-term unemployment rises.

Despite a relatively low unemployment rate, economists say the labor market is stuck in a “low hire, low fire” cycle—companies aren’t cutting jobs in large numbers, but they also aren’t adding them. That means workers who lose jobs are increasingly struggling to find new ones before their benefits expire.

.The unemployment rate has remained near historic lows, but analysts say it does not fully capture the growing strain beneath the surface.

More Americans are working part-time when they want full-time jobs

Multi-job households are rising

Long-term unemployment is increasing

Reuters described the stability as a potential “mirage,” while Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the economy is in an “unusual and uncomfortable” balance.

The Guardian - US employers spend more than $1.5bn a year on labor union opposition efforts, according to a report published on Wednesday by the Economic Policy Institute.

“This is millions or even billions of dollars that’s not going towards workers and investing into their workplace,” said Margaret Poydock, a co-author of the report and a senior policy analyst at the EPI. 

Employers spent company money hiring consultants and law firms specializing in union avoidance and on legal counsel, representation and litigation services during union elections and organizing campaigns.

Poydock said the role of these union-avoidance law firms and consultants has, in part, contributed to the decline of unionization membership and density over several decades. Union density in the US is at 10%, compared with 20.3% in 1983. Despite this decline, Gallup polls report nearly 70% of Americans approve of labor unions.

Meanwhile. . .

Congressional Insider - Former Assistant United States Attorney Carmen Lineberger is charged with emailing confidential Trump-investigation records to her personal accounts.  Prosecutors say she disguised files with “recipe” names and even forwarded a report after Judge Aileen Cannon ordered it sealed.

The case highlights double standards in how Washington treats document handling in politically charged Trump investigations.  Lineberger has pleaded not guilty, so the evidence and motives will be tested in court.

Ethnicity

Huffington Post -  The Tr ump administration has proposed ending a long-standing federal civil rights requirement, which legal experts say will make it harder for employees to raise concerns about discrimination and may help make the American workplace whiter.

Most companies are required to report their employee demographic data to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the federal agency that enforces anti-discrimination law in every single workplace across the country, thanks to a rule created in 1966. Collecting and sharing this data ensures that companies are complying with civil rights laws that prohibit discrimination based on protected characteristics like race or gender.

The EEOC proposed last week to end the rule mandating such data collection, known as EEO-1.

“The decision to no longer collect this data, I think, is part of a larger pattern of the federal government stepping back from its historic role of protecting workers and ensuring equal opportunity in the workplace,” said Amalea Smirniotopoulos, senior policy counsel at the Legal Defense Fund, a legal organization that advocates for equality.

The rule promotes transparency, allows companies to analyze their own employment practices and helps the EEOC enforce the law. The data can also help individuals bolster their own discrimination claims.

For example, Bass Pro Shops, an outdoor-focused chain store, was forced to pay $10.5 million after the EEOC found that the store had a pattern of discriminating against Black and Latino men in its hiring and recruiting practices. In their initial complaint, the employees used the data to bolster their claims.

Helping other groups

Rural Organizing - Based on our experience and the experience of many members of our network, we have seen that mutual aid is an essential tool to build political power and provide for our neighbors. Oftentimes door knocking or explicitly political outreach turns people off, but mutual aid provides an entry point to meet people's material needs, reach people that are hard to reach, and provide a different entry point to community participation.  We think incorporating mutual aid is important for anyone engaged in local politics: from no kings or immigrant defense work to traditional campaigning.

California's big inactive voters still signed up

Independence Journal - New court filings say California is sitting on 873,000 inactive voter registrations, raising fresh alarms about dirty rolls in a state already infamous for one‑party rule and mail‑in voting. Judicial Watch has sued California in federal court, alleging the state is ignoring voter‑roll clean‑up duties under federal law.

The group says at least 873,000 inactive registrations are still on the books across dozens of counties. Prior Judicial Watch cases forced major clean‑ups in Oregon and Colorado, removing hundreds of thousands of ineligible names.
Federal law requires states to make a “reasonable effort” to remove ineligible voters, but does not allow automatic purges of inactive voters.

Gas prices

Shortlysts - Average gasoline prices have moved above $4 per gallon in all 50 states, up from a national average of $3.19 in May 2025. AAA reported a national average of $4.56 on Wednesday, while seven states have already crossed the $5 mark. California now sits above $6 per gallon, while Georgia, the lowest-priced state, barely remains over $4.

Best states for military retirees

MOAA  -   South Carolina remained atop WalletHub’s annual survey of Best and Worst States for Military Retirees for the third year in a row, with North Dakota moving into the second spot and Wyoming – ranked by the financial site as the top state for all retirees – taking third.

 Oregon finished 51st in the military-retiree rankings (which include Washington, D.C.) for the fourth straight year. Vermont took 50th, while neighboring New Hampshire came in No. 4.

 The full list, released May 18, weighs economic, quality of life, and health care factors across 28 metrics such as tax rates, job growth, weather, availability and quality of VA and military facilities, and cost of living. Maryland fell from second place on last year’s list to fifth this year, while Virginia slipped from fifth to 11th.

 Among the survey’s findings:

South Carolina was the only state to rank in the top 10 in all three categories – second in Economic Environment behind Alabama, third in Quality of Life behind Wyoming and Maryland, and 10th in Health Care.

Massachusetts ranked first in Health Care and ninth in Economic Environment but finished 50th in Quality of Life, just above Oregon.

Washington, D.C., was the only jurisdiction that didn’t crack the top 40 in any category, finishing 41st in Economic Environment, 49th in Quality of Life, and 48th in Health Care to take 49th overall. Vermont finished 40th in Health Care but was last in Economic Environment and 42nd in Quality of Life.

Science

NPR - Thousands of researchers across the U.S. continue to grapple with the damage inflicted on science in 2025 during the Trump administration, despite a funding restoration earlier this year. After the Trump administration attempted to cut, freeze or suspend billions of dollars for research the previous year, some Republicans teamed up with Democrats to quietly restore portions of that funding through the appropriations process. But advocates say the money is not reaching scientists at the rate it should. They also say that the National Institutes of Health's lack of transparency is compromising the integrity and reliability of scientists’ research. NPR spoke with researchers who are feeling the consequences of having their funding previously terminated. Here's what they had to say.