Brad Reed

Before joining Raw Story, Brad Reed spent eight years writing about technology at BGR.com and Network World. Prior to that, he wrote freelance stories for political publications such as AlterNet and the American Prospect. He has a Master's Degree in Business and Economics Journalism from Boston University.

Billionaire pushes return of public hangings as part of 'masculine leadership' initiative

Venture capitalist Joe Lonsdale, a co-founder of data platform company Palantir, is calling for the return of public hangings as part of a broader push to restore what he describes as “masculine leadership” to the US.

In a statement posted on X Friday, Lonsdale said that he supported changing the so-called “three strikes” anti-crime law to ensure that anyone who is convicted of three violent crimes gets publicly executed, rather than simply sent to prison for life.

“If I’m in charge later, we won’t just have a three strikes law,” he wrote. “We will quickly try and hang men after three violent crimes. And yes, we will do it in public to deter others.”

Lonsdale then added that “our society needs balance,” and said that “it’s time to bring back masculine leadership to protect our most vulnerable.”

Lonsdale’s views on public hangings being necessary to restore “masculine leadership” drew swift criticism.

Gil Durán, a journalist who documents the increasingly authoritarian politics of Silicon Valley in his newsletter “The Nerd Reich,” argued in a Saturday post that Lonsdale’s call for public hangings showed that US tech elites are “entering a more dangerous and desperate phase of radicalization.”

“For months, Peter Thiel guru Curtis Yarvin has been squawking about the need for more severe measures to cement Trump’s authoritarian rule,” Durán explained. “Peter Thiel is ranting about the Antichrist in a global tour. And now Lonsdale—a Thiel protégé—is fantasizing about a future in which he will have the power to unleash state violence at mass scale.”

Taulby Edmondson, an adjunct professor of history, religion, and culture at Virginia Tech, wrote in a post on Bluesky that the rhetoric Lonsdale uses to justify the return of public hangings has even darker intonations than calls for state-backed violence.

“A point of nuance here: ‘masculine leadership to protect our most vulnerable’ is how lynch mobs are described, not state-sanctioned executions,” he observed.

Theoretical physicist Sean Carroll argued that Lonsdale’s remarks were symbolic of a kind of performative masculinity that has infected US culture.

“Immaturity masquerading as strength is the defining personal characteristic of our age,” he wrote.

Tech entrepreneur Anil Dash warned Lonsdale that his call for public hangings could have unintended consequences for members of the Silicon Valley elite.

“Well, Joe, Mark Zuckerberg has sole control over Facebook, which directly enabled the Rohingya genocide,” he wrote. “So let’s have the conversation.”

And Columbia Journalism School professor Bill Grueskin noted that Lonsdale has been a major backer of the University of Austin, an unaccredited liberal arts college that has been pitched as an alternative to left-wing university education with the goal of preparing “thoughtful and ethical innovators, builders, leaders, public servants and citizens through open inquiry and civil discourse.”

Leaked memo shows Trump DOJ wants list of groups that express 'anti-American sentiment'

A leaked memo written by US Attorney General Pam Bondi directs the Department of Justice to compile a list of potential “domestic terrorism” organizations that espouse “extreme viewpoints on immigration, radical gender ideology, and anti-American sentiment.”

The memo, which was obtained by journalist Ken Klippenstein, expands upon National Security Presidential Memorandum-7 (NSPM-7), a directive signed by President Donald Trump in late September that demanded a “national strategy to investigate and disrupt networks, entities, and organizations that foment political violence so that law enforcement can intervene in criminal conspiracies before they result in violent political acts.”

The new Bondi memo instructs law enforcement agencies to refer “suspected” domestic terrorism cases to the Joint Terrorism Task Forces (JTTFs), which will then undertake an “exhaustive investigation contemplated by NSPM-7” that will incorporate “a focused strategy to root out all culpable participants—including organizers and funders—in all domestic terrorism activities.”

The memo identifies the “domestic terrorism threat” as organizations that use “violence or the threat of violence” to advance political goals such as “opposition to law and immigration enforcement; extreme views in favor of mass migration and open borders; adherence to radical gender ideology, anti-Americanism, anti-capitalism, or anti-Christianity; support for the overthrow of the United States Government; hostility towards traditional views on family, religion, and morality.”

Commenting on the significance of the memo, Klippenstein criticized mainstream media organizations for largely ignoring the implications of NSPM-7, which was drafted and signed in the wake of the murder of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk.

“For months, major media outlets have largely blown off the story of NSPM-7, thinking it was all just Trump bluster and too crazy to be serious,” he wrote. “But a memo like this one shows you that the administration is absolutely taking this seriously—even if the media are not—and is actively working to operationalize NSPM-7.”

Klippenstein also warned that NSPM-7 appeared to be the start of a new “war on terrorism,” but “only this time, millions of Americans like you and I could be the target.”

Holiday spending plans plunge to lowest level ever as Trump economy triggers panic: data

A new batch of data is offering more evidence that the US economy is in rough shape heading into the holidays.

The latest Economic Confidence Index released by Gallup on Thursday has found that Americans’ confidence in the economy has fallen by seven points over the last month, and now stands at its lowest level in more than a year.

Overall, Gallup found that just 21% of Americans currently describe the economy as excellent or good, while 40% describe it as poor. The outlook for the near future also looks grim, as more than two-thirds of Americans surveyed said the economy is currently getting worse.

This deteriorating economic confidence is weighing on Americans’ holiday shopping plans, as Gallup found that planned holiday spending expenditures have “plummeted” from just over $1,000 in October to $778 in November. The decline in spending expectations also occurred across all income groups, although it was particularly steep among low-income households, which slashed their estimated holiday spending by an average of $267.

Gallup noted that while it’s common for shoppers to trim their spending plans the closer it gets to the holidays, the drop between October and November this year was the biggest it has ever recorded, even “surpassing the $185 drop seen during the 2008 global financial crisis.”

The Gallup survey was not the only troubling economic data to drop on Thursday, as outplacement firm Challenger, Gray, and Christmas released its latest report showing that hiring in the US has slowed to its lowest level in the last 15 years, while layoffs now total their highest level since 2020, when the country was at the peak of the Covid-19 global pandemic.

The data on layoffs came just one day after global payroll processing firm ADP estimated that the US economy lost 32,000 jobs in November, with small businesses shouldering by far the most job losses.

President Donald Trump, who earlier this week dismissed concerns Americans might have about affordability as a “Democrat scam,” has reportedly decided to hit the road in an effort to convince voters that they’ve never had it so good.

According to Axios, Trump next week will start touring the country to tout his administration’s economic policies, and he is expected to “aggressively push back against criticism over the cost of everyday essentials—an issue that helped propel him to victory over Kamala Harris last year.”

However, a new poll published by Politico on Thursday shows that Trump may have an uphill climb selling his economy even to his own voters.

Overall, the poll found that 37% of voters who backed Trump last year now say that the cost of living crisis is the worst they have experienced in their lifetimes, while only 24% of 2024 Trump voters say that the cost of living crisis at the moment is “not bad.”

The poll also found that Trump’s efforts to blame former President Joe Biden for the current state of the economy aren’t flying, as 46% of voters say that Trump is most to blame for the current state of the economy, compared to 29% of voters who put the primary blame on Biden.

‘Yikes’: New jobs data further undermines Trump claim of thriving economy

Economists on Wednesday expressed significant concerns after new data from global payroll processing firm ADP estimated that the US economy lost 32,000 jobs last month.

As reported by CNBC, small businesses bore the brunt of the job losses, as firms with fewer than 50 employees shed a total of 120,000 jobs, more than offsetting the 90,000 in job gains reported by firms with 50 or more employees.

The loss of 32,000 jobs in November marked a major miss for economists’ consensus estimate of 40,000 jobs added on the month, and CNBC noted that the total number of jobs lost according to ADP data “was the biggest drop since March 2023.”

Heather Long, chief economist at Navy Federal Credit Union, noted in a post on X that the job losses recorded by ADP were widespread across the US economy.

“Yikes,” she wrote in reaction to the report. “Most industries were doing layoffs. The only ones still are hiring are hospitality and healthcare.”

Long also said the disparity between small and large businesses in terms of job growth was more evidence that the US is experiencing a “K-shaped” economy in which those at the top of the economic ladder thrive, even as everyone else struggles.

“Larger companies are still hiring,” she explained. “Smaller firms (under 50 workers) are doing the layoffs. It’s been a very tough year for small biz due to tariffs and more selective spending from lower and middle-class consumers.”

Kevin Gordon, head of macro research and strategy at the Schwab Center for Financial Research, observed that ADP hasn’t reported such a big drop in small-business employment since October 2020, when the US economy was suffering through the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Alex Jacquez, chief of policy and advocacy at Groundwork Collaborative, cautioned against reading too much into ADP data, although he added that “in the absence of up to date government payrolls, all other signs point to a further deteriorating labor market.”

Charlie Bilello, chief market strategist at financial planner Creative Planning, argued that the ADP jobs numbers were part of a negative three-month trend in which the US economy lost an estimated 4,000 jobs per month, which he said was “the first three-month decline since the 2020 recession.”

Bilello added that “a year ago, we were adding over 200,000 jobs per month.”

Diane Swonk, chief economist at accounting firm KPMG, argued that the ADP report showed job losses in the US economy were “broad based” and “were accompanied by a cooling of wage gains” for workers who still have jobs or are switching from one job to another.

“Those with a job are clinging on, while those without are left wanting,” she explained.

Dean Baker, senior economist at the Center for Economic and Policy Research, argued that the ADP report blows up President Donald Trump’s spin about the health of the US economy.

“The booming job market exists only in Donald Trump’s demented head,” he wrote.

Shamed: The media companies deemed most willing to capitulate to Trump

Media advocacy organization Free Press on Tuesday unveiled an index that documents and rates major media organizations' reactions to the coercive demands being made by U.S. President Donald Trump.

As Free Press explained in a press release, its Media Capitulation Index tracks actions being taken by 35 major media conglomerates who are facing pressure from Trump and his allies to curb critical reporting and commentary on his administration.

"In this investigation, Free Press found that to varying degrees the owners of America's largest media firms are caving to pressure from an authoritarian-minded president and his captured federal agencies," the organization wrote. "This capitulation is not unique to owners of news outlets—like Paramount (which owns CBS), Disney (ABC) and Warner Bros. Discovery (CNN). Rather, it's a pervasive trend that applies to nearly all commercial media, including cable and telecommunications firms and online platforms."

Free Press argued that media companies have been bending to Trump's will through four major methods: Paying out lavish settlements in lawsuits brought by the president; rolling back their programs for enhancing diversity, equity, and inclusion; pressuring journalists and commentators to soften or even censor their criticisms of the president; and "attempting to curry favor with the president during inaugural ceremonies, private dinners at Mar-a-Lago, and meetings in the White House."

The index uses a scale to rate media organizations that range from "independent" on one end to "propaganda" on the other. Of all the media companies surveyed by Free Press, only two are rated as independent: Bloomberg Media Group and Netflix. The New York Times Company for now is the least compromised of any print media conglomerate outside of Bloomberg and is merely listed as "vulnerable," while Nant Capital, the owner of the Los Angeles Times, is the most compromised and is rated as "obeying" the Trump administration.

When it comes to broadcast media, no companies earned an "independent" ranking, and CBS owner Paramount was ranked as "obeying" the Trump administration in the wake of its decisions to give Trump a $16 million payout and then cancel the show of longtime Trump critic Stephen Colbert.

Former New York Times public editor Margaret Sullivan, a longtime critic of the American media's response to Trump, praised Free Press on her Substack page for highlighting the major problems facing the American media in the second Trump term.

"Huge, diverse corporations own news companies, and independent journalism all too often takes a back seat to corporate profits, mergers, and other forms of consolidation," she said. "Meanwhile, public media has been defunded, local journalism lacks local ownership, and partisan propaganda has found an influential home on radio and cable news."

She also interviewed Tim Karr, who works as Free Press' senior director of strategy and communications, about why her former employer did not earn an "independent" rating on the index.

"There is a tendency to 'both-sides' reporting about the Trump administration,” Karr said of The New York Times' coverage, which he added seems to give "equal weight to the forces of democracy and the forces of authoritarianism."

Trump supporters 'must be ostracized' for America to survive: ex-megachurch pastor

Former megachurch pastor John Pavlovitz has written a new piece on his Substack page that takes a distinctly Old Testament attitude toward supporters of President Donald Trump.

In his piece, Pavlovitz makes the case that Trump supporters "must be ostracized" going forward due to their complicity in what he sees as the president's ruinous second-term policies.

"The people we love, live alongside; those we work and study shoulder to shoulder with; those we have invited into our hearts and homes. They are as responsible for all of this as he is, as those in his Cabinet are," he writes.

ALSO READ: 'This should be shocking': Judge levels Trump DOJ in scathing ruling

Pavlovitz argues that Trump supporters have had all sorts of chances to correct course over the years despite seeing the president's cruelty and his authoritarian aspirations up close.

"They shunned their responsibility as Americans, they rejected the teachings of their faith tradition, and they abandoned any kind of moral footing by enabling the ascension of a felon-rapist-scumbag mobster who lacks a single noble impulse," he contends. "Through whatever combination of racism, misogyny, prejudice, intellectual ignorance, and plain old hatred, they willfully coronated him."

He then goes on to advise his followers to simply cut any Trump-supporting friends or relatives out of their lives.

"If we truly believe in bending the arc of the moral universe toward justice at this place and time, his supporters need to become pariahs," he writes. "They should not be welcome where good people gather. They need to be held accountable for unleashing this hell on the rest of us."

Pavlovitz does make an exception for Trump supporters who have "come to their senses" and he advises treating them with a spirit of forgiveness and charity.

"But as far as his cheerleaders, champions, kindred spirits, sycophants, and disciples—they are proving themselves unreachable with reason, impervious to compassion, and mortally allergic to anything that reasonable human beings value," he adds.

'Grandstander!!!' Trump rages at Democratic senator for visiting wrongfully deported dad

President Donald Trump on Friday angrily lashed out at Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) after he made a trip to El Salvador to confirm the well being of Kilmar Abrega Garcia, an immigrant whom the Trump Department of Justice acknowledged had been wrongfully deported to the country.

Writing on his Truth Social page, the president accused Van Hollen of engaging in an empty publicity stunt, despite the fact that he succeeded on Thursday night in meeting with Garcia and confirming that he was alive and unharmed.

"Senator Chris Van Hollen of Maryland looked like a fool yesterday standing in El Salvador begging for attention from the Fake News Media, or anyone," Trump fumed. "GRANDSTANDER!!!"

ALSO READ: US-born citizen being held for ICE under Florida’s new anti-immigration law

Trump and his administration have in the interpretation of experts been defying an order from the United States Supreme Court to facilitate Garcia's return to the United States, although so far no court has yet moved to hold the administration in contempt for its defiance.

Trump this week floated the idea of sending American citizens to El Salvador and even told El Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele that he should construct five additional megaprisons to house "home-grown" American criminals.

'This should be shocking': Judge levels Trump DOJ in scathing ruling

The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals has rejected the Trump Department of Justice's request to block orders that the Trump administration facilitate the release of wrongly deported immigrant Kilmar Abrego Garcia.

The decision, which was written by Reagan-appointed Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson III, informed the administration that it would not "micromanage" the orders of Judge Paula Xinis, who has demanded that the administration provide daily updates its efforts to return Garcia to the United States.

What's more, Wilkinson laid out the stakes of the Garcia case in bracing terms.

"The government is asserting a right to stash away residents of this country in foreign prisons without the semblance of due process that is the foundation of our constitutional order," he wrote. "Further, it claims in essence that because it has rid itself of custody that there is nothing that can be done. This should be shocking not only to judges, but to the intuitive sense of liberty that Americans far removed from courthouses still hold dear."

Wilkinson then referred to the recent Supreme Court decision ruling that the administration facilitate Garcia's return, which he said took care to not infringe upon the powers of the executive branch as outlined by Article II in the United States Constitution.

"The Supreme Court’s decision does not, however, allow the government to do essentially nothing," the judge wrote. "It requires the government 'to ‘"facilitate" Abrego Garcia’s release from custody in El Salvador and to ensure that his case is handled as it would have been had he not been improperly sent to El Salvador. 'Facilitate' is an active verb. It requires that steps be taken as the Supreme Court has made perfectly clear."

Toward the end of his opinion, Wilkinson warned the Trump administration that they were harming their own powers by refusing to comply with court orders.

"The Executive will lose much from a public perception of its lawlessness and all of its attendant contagions," he wrote. "The Executive may succeed for a time in weakening the courts, but over time history will script the tragic gap between what was and all that might have been, and law in time will sign its epitaph."

Trump treasury secretary 'repeatedly cautioned' him against move that would tank market

United States Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has reportedly been trying to calm President Donald Trump's rage at Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell due to the negative impacts it could have on the economy.

Politico reports that Bessent has "repeatedly cautioned" Trump against his desire to fire Powell, as doing so would likely set off panic in the global stock markets and further damage the American economy that has already been reeling from the president's trade disputes with nearly every country on the planet.

"Any attempt to remove Powell — a legally questionable option Trump considered in his first term — would feed instability in markets already woozy from the recent tariff whiplash," Politico writes. "Investor confidence that the central bank will make decisions based on the path of the economy rather than on short-term politics is a key underpinning of the U.S.’s global financial reputation."

ALSO READ: Trump has found a 'trapdoor' that could 'swallow the Constitution': analysis

Trump has been pushing Powell to aggressively cut interest rates as the economy is showing signs of major weakness, but Powell on Wednesday indicated that he has no plans for rate cuts in the immediate future.

What's more, Powell signaled that he was waiting to see how Trump's global trade war would affect the American economy, as he noted the tariffs implemented by the president are even larger than the ones passed nearly a century ago that economists blame for fully sinking the United States into an economic depression.

Powell's term is not set to expire until next year and Trump on Thursday indicated that he is very anxious to see him depart, despite the fact that Trump nominated Powell for this very job during his first term in office.

Trump has found a 'trapdoor' that could 'swallow the Constitution': analysis

The Atlantic's Jonathan Chait says that President Donald Trump's refusal to bring back Kilmar Abrego Garcia from El Salvador is about much more than a wrongly deported immigrant.

As he writes in his latest piece, Chait believes that the Garcia case represents a "trapdoor" that Trump is exploiting that he believes could "swallow the Constitution" thanks to his deal with El Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele to permanently imprison both immigrants and potentially American citizens.

"So long as he can find at least one foreign strongman to cooperate, Trump can, if he wishes, imprison any dissident, judge, journalist, member of Congress, or candidate for office," writes Chait. "If this sounds hyperbolic, bear in mind that Trump has expressed his desire to do these things."

ALSO READ: 'Do your damn job': GOP senator ignites fury by saying she fears Trump 'retaliation'

Chait argues that this is the result of pro-Trump activists radicalizing themselves after his loss to President Joe Biden in 2020 and spending years concocting plans to bring down the pillars of American civil society that they find most threatening to their agenda.

This is why, Chait adds, Trump's second term has been so much more radical than his first.

"The previous Trump White House allowed all kinds of kooks and extremists into its ranks, but the new version has pushed the boundaries even further," he explains. "Darren Beattie, who briefly got a job in the first Trump administration before being fired over ties to white nationalism, was welcomed back into the new administration. Marko Elez, a staffer for Elon Musk, lost his DOGE job over recent social-media posts explicitly endorsing racism; Vance intervened to restore him. Laura Loomer, a conspiracy theorist once banished from Trump’s orbit, was able not only to brief the president, but to persuade him to fire half a dozen senior national-security officials."

In conclusion, Chait warns that the "post-liberal right’s ideas about revenge and power are currently the most influential ideas in the world" and "their implications need to be taken with deadly seriousness."

'Do your damn job': GOP senator ignites fury by saying she fears Trump 'retaliation'

A clip of Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) making the rounds on social media has ignited controversy because she admitted to feeling intimidated by threats from President Donald Trump and his supporters.

In the video, Murkowski responded to a question about what she'd say to Americans who are worried about speaking out against Trump and she said that "we are all afraid" and then added that "I am oftentimes very anxious myself about using my voice because retaliation is real."

However, Murkowski also said that speaking out was "what [voters] asked me to do" and she said that she was going to "use my voice to the best of my ability" even if it came off as "pretty confrontational."

Many users on BlueSky reacted with anger to the clip and said that many Americans who have a lot less power and wealth than Murkowski were nonetheless not afraid to speak out against the president.

ALSO READ: 'This is not Trump's country': Experts see 'powerful' groundswell as outrage builds

"You're a United States Senator in the face of fascism," wrote University of Wisconsin Madison political scientist Mark Copelovitch. "Do your damn job. People with far less power than you are sitting in overseas concentration camps right now, our students are being deported, and the lying idiot you confirmed for HHS Secretary is demonizing autistic kids and lying about vaccines."

"Wow," wrote Brown University political scientist Corey Brettschneider. "This is a member of the president's party saying she is afraid (I take it) of him. This should be an inflection point. Principled Republicans need to speak up, even if they worry about what might happen, because they helped bring us here."

Other commentators were more sympathetic to Murkowski's position but still believed she could be doing more.

"I sympathize with feeling fear to do your job but I feel strongly the remedy is to quit your job, not to stop doing it, especially when people rely on you to do your job," wrote attorney Ken White.

City University of New York historian Angus Johnston encouraged his followers to watch Murkowski's full remarks and to not just react to her comment about feeling afraid.

"Lot of people dunking on this clip, but Murkowski, asked for advice for people who are afraid to speak up, acknowledges that she shares that fear," he explained. "But she then says it's 'not right' that people are made to be afraid of retaliation for speaking up, and says it won't stop her from doing her job."

Health care policy analyst Charles Gaba, meanwhile, suggested that Murkowski could do more to throw roadblocks into Trump's agenda.

"She shouldn't resign, because she'd just be replaced by a MAGA a------," he wrote. "But she could EASILY switch parties or at least go Indy... hell, she won re-election as a WRITE-IN candidate a couple of terms ago."

Wow. This is a member of the president's party saying she is afraid (I take it) of him. This should be an inflection point. Principled Republicans need to speak up, even if they worry about what might happen, because they helped bring us here.

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— Corey Brettschneider (@democracyprof.bsky.social) April 17, 2025 at 10:42 AM

I sympathize with feeling fear to do your job but I feel strongly the remedy is to quit your job, not to stop doing it, especially when people rely on you to do your job.

[image or embed]
— Aiding And Abetting Terrorists Hat (@kenwhite.bsky.social) April 17, 2025 at 10:54 AM

Lot of people dunking on this clip, but Murkowski, asked for advice for people who are afraid to speak up, acknowledges that she shares that fear. But she then says it's "not right" that people are made to be afraid of retaliation for speaking up, and says it won't stop her from doing her job.

[image or embed]
— Angus Johnston (@angus.bsky.social) April 17, 2025 at 10:35 AM

She shouldn't resign, because she'd just be replaced by a MAGA asshole. But she could EASILY switch parties or at least go Indy...hell, she won re-election as a WRITE-IN candidate a couple of terms ago.

[image or embed]
— Charles Gaba (@charlesgaba.com) April 17, 2025 at 10:47 AM

'Remarkable break from protocol' as Pete Hegseth 'snubs' foreign minister: CNN

CNN's Natasha Bertrand on Thursday brought word that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had failed to greet French Minister of the Armed Forces Sébastien Lecornu after he arrived in the United States to discuss the war in Ukraine.

While talking with host John Berman, Bertrand revealed that "we are just learning that [Hegseth] failed to greet the French defense minister outside the Pentagon early this morning during an honor cordon."

She then explained why this was so potentially significant.

ALSO READ: 'Step it up': Democratic senator put on the spot to get more 'gangster' on Trump

"Really a remarkable break from protocol," she said. "And it's unclear why he essentially snubbed the defense minister there. He has been trying studiously, though, to avoid the press, and press would have been present at that honor cordon. And so that could be one reason why he did not appear there, but it is really a remarkable break from previous secretaries of defense, who make it a point as a show of respect to greet their counterparts outside the Pentagon when they host them for these very high level bilateral meetings."

"Huh," replied Berman. "That is something."

Hegseth has been under intense press scrutiny after it was revealed that he sent classified attack plans into a Signal group chat in the presence of The Atlantic's editor in chief last month.

Watch the video below or at this link here.

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

'Step it up': Democratic senator put on the spot to get more 'gangster' on Trump

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) got some pushback during an appearance on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" for her party's response to the barrage of controversial actions being taken by the Trump administration.

During a roundtable discussion with Warren, "Morning Joe" contributor Mike Barnicle pointed out that many of the Trump administration's moves were laid out in the Heritage Foundation's Project 2025 long before he won the 2024 election, and he wondered why Democrats nonetheless seem to have been caught flat footed.

"They planned these things and clearly have planned them for quite some time, and it seems to me that there's no really tough, almost gangster-like response from the Democrats about what's going on," he pointed out.

"Ultimately that's not who we are," Warren replied.

"Well you better step it up then!" Barnicle replied.

ALSO READ: 'Tesla tanking': MSNBC financial expert delivers brutal news to Musk investors

Warren evaded answering and said that voters should be concentrating on the unpopular agenda Republicans are trying to push through Congress.

"There is a pattern here, I know it feels like a dust storm, but watch what's happening back in Congress," she said. "They're moving forward every step, taking every step to do what? To be able to do giant tax giveaways for billionaires and pay for it how? On the backs of cutting Social Security, cutting our promises to our veterans, cutting health care for little babies, taking away support for our public schools, for our kids with special needs. They think they can get away with that... Here's our secret plan: We'll tell everyone right now... the truth because... this is so damned unpopular."

Watch the video below or at this link.

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

Elon Musk's company the 'frontrunner' to build widely criticized Trump project: report

President Donald Trump's determination to build a nationwide missile shield on par with the Iron Dome in Israel may be about to become even more controversial.

Reuters reports that Elon Musk's SpaceX, along with software maker Palantir and drone builder Anduril, have emerged as the "frontrunners" to build Trump's "Golden Dome" missile shield that has been widely criticized by defense experts as a costly and unnecessary proposal.

According to Reuters' sources, the three companies are pitching a plan to "build and launch 400 to more than 1,000 satellites circling the globe to sense missiles and track their movement" and to also build "a separate fleet of 200 attack satellites armed with missiles or lasers would then bring enemy missiles down."

ALSO READ: 'Trump has a problem' as he runs into roadblock that can't be 'bullied' away: ex-lawmaker

However, the plan includes one highly unusual clause that could give Pentagon officials pause: SpaceX is pitching its missile dome system as a subscription service in which the government would pay for access to it, which means that the United States would not actually own the infrastructure being put in place.

Reuters notes that "all three companies were founded by entrepreneurs who have been major political supporters of Trump," including most prominently Musk, who spent hundreds of billions of dollars to get the president elected.

Critics have claimed that building such a system would cost taxpayers trillions of dollars and have questioned its necessity given that no foreign country has ever launched missile attacks against the United States.

'The Trump administration is lying': Dem senator left furious by trip to El Salvador

Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) accused the Trump administration of blatantly lying about the whereabouts of wrongfully deported immigrant Kilmar Ábrego García on Wednesday.

After touching down in El Salvador to inquire about García's whereabouts, Van Hollen said that he was not able to see García nor even to have a phone call with him.

Per CBS News' Scott MacFarlane, Van Hollen explicitly said that "the Trump administration is lying" about García.

"If you listen to President Trump... you would think that U.S. courts have found that Mr. Ábrego García is part of MS-13," Van Hollen said, referring to the violent criminal gang whose origins are in Central America. "But in fact they have not found that. Recently a U.S. federal judge said that the Trump administration did not have evidence to support the claim that he had ever been part of MS-13."

ALSO READ: 'A little germs is good': Fox News host tests '5-second rule' by eating banana off floor

He also emphasized that García has never been charged with a crime.

García has been held at the Center for Terrorism Confinement (CECOT), a megaprison in El Salvador that has faced numerous accusations of human rights abuses.

The Supreme Court ordered the Trump administration to facilitate García's return to the country but so far it has not taken any steps to do so.