F. Left News

A new analysislysis from the Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR) finds that this coming Monday (March 9) is the day that million-dollar earners stop contributing to Social Security – a milestone that serves as a reminder that the program’s finances could be greatly improved by lifting the cap on earnings.

While the vast majority of working people pay income and payroll taxes on all their earnings throughout the year, the Social Security payroll tax is capped at $184,500. Once a person’s wage and salary income reaches that taxable maximum, they stop paying into the program.

The amount of income above the cap has risen dramatically: in 1983, only 10 percent of income was above the cap, but today it is approaching 20 percent – another illustration of rising income inequality in the country.

Eliminating the cap on taxable earnings would go a long way towards affirming Social Security as a social insurance program, while also fortifying the program’s finances for current and future beneficiaries – an issue that has been a priority for many political leaders over several decades.

While there are always political discussions about how to strengthen Social Security’s finances, many of the prescriptions – like raising the retirement age – are regressive in nature, disproportionately harming working-class workers. Making all workers pay their fair share by eliminating the cap, though, would provide substantial additional revenue without harming workers or retirees.

“Allowing higher earners to stop contributing to Social Security early in the year is a policy choice that shortchanges the program,” said CEPR Labor and Disability Researcher Hayley Brown, who authored the new analysis. “The tax cap on earnings is at odds with the ethos of shared responsibility that underlies social insurance. Lawmakers should reinforce that sense of shared responsibility and the program’s solvency by eliminating the cap.”

The latest jobs report shows the United States lost 92,000 jobs in February 2026, with prior months revised down by 69,000 jobs. The unemployment rate remains elevated at 4.4% and is near its highest levels in 4 years. The February report reveals a labor market that is barely hanging on as Trump threatens to reignite inflation with his illegal war in the Middle East.

Groundwork Collaborative’s Chief of Policy and Advocacy Alex Jacquez released the following statement:

“The deterioration in the labor market is visible from space. Trump’s reckless economic agenda has forced the labor market into the negative, threatening the livelihoods of American workers. As the president piles on blanket tariffs and oil prices soar, today’s report confirms he’s sent the economy straight into a stagflation spiral.”

Public Citizen sent a letter today calling upon the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to investigate highly suspicious bets placed on the outcome of the recent American-Israeli military assault on Iran and the death of Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Using platforms such as Kalshi and Polymarket, certain users have been able to make hundreds of thousands of dollars on political betting, specifically pertaining to the American-Israeli war on Iran. The timing of the bets has raised suspicion as to whether or not the bettors have inside information, as some of the bets were made mere hours before the U.S. strikes began.

The letter poses various questions on the connection between the political gambling and the military attacks on Iran:

• Insider Trading: Who placed these accurate and very substantial bets on the prediction market platforms moments before the actual attacks on Iran occurred?
  
• Unauthorized Disclosure of Confidential Government Information: Who within the Trump and Netanyahu administrations were privy to the timing and goals of the American-Israeli attacks?
  
• Political Betting: Given that some governmental officials do indeed have access to reliable non-public information on likely outcomes of political events, is it prudent to allow betting on such outcomes?
  
• Public Interest: Might some government officials manipulate public policies based on self-enrichment on prediction market platforms rather than based on the public interest?

“Allowing prediction market platforms to bet on virtually anything, any time is a recipe for disaster,” said Craig Holman, Public Citizen’s government affairs lobbyist. “The American people should not have to wonder whether government officials are exploiting their access to classified information to make a quick buck. The CFTC must act swiftly to regulate platforms like Kalshi and Polymarket in order to protect the public.”

The Federal Reserve released its February 2026 Beige Book, providing an updated snapshot of economic conditions across all 12 Federal Reserve Districts. A growing share of districts reported flat or declining activity as economic uncertainty and price sensitivity weighed on consumer spending alongside rising housing and food insecurities.

The report paints a clear picture of rising tariff costs, higher prices for basic necessities, and Trump administration policies disrupting businesses and squeezing working families.

Groundwork Collaborative’s Chief of Policy and Advocacy, Alex Jacquez, reacted with the following statement:

“Trump sold Americans a bill of goods he can’t deliver on, and he owes working families a refund. The president has driven up costs for consumers and businesses alike with his chaotic tariff policies and foreign wars. The Federal Reserve’s report should serve as a major red flag for the White House that Trump’s economy is flailing.”

BACKGROUND

The Federal Reserve’s Beige Book plays a critical role in informing monetary policy decisions by highlighting regional economic conditions gathered from contacts at businesses, banks, and community organizational contacts at each of the 12 Federal Reserve Districts. Economists have found that the Beige Book can offer early signals about turning points in the economy, including rising recession risks. In the March edition of the Beige Book, contacts reported that:

• Tariffs continue to push up costs. Nine Federal Reserve Districts cited rising input prices tied to tariffs, with many firms saying they are passing those increases directly on to customers.
  • A New York food ingredient company reported tariff-driven price increases moving through the supply chain. Some manufacturers are responding by shrinking package sizes while keeping prices the same.
  • In the Cleveland District, one manufacturer raised prices by 4.25% instead of the planned 3% to offset new steel tariffs.
  • Manufacturers in the Chicago District said tariffs are becoming harder to absorb. One firm noted that after splitting the cost with customers last year, they now plan to pass “the full cost on in 2026.”
• Rising prices for basic necessities are squeezing household budgets. As essential expenses rise, more households are cutting back and turning to community support to meet basic needs.
  • Nonprofits in the Philadelphia District reported increased demand for food assistance as many clients struggle to afford basic necessities.
  • In the Boston District, contacts highlighted continued reliance on food pantries driven by high prices for food, rent, and home heating.
  • Contacts in the Atlanta District said rising prices are forcing families to find new ways to stretch their budgets. Households are “selling clothes online, scrapping metal, tapping savings, utilizing buy now/pay later offerings, eliminating dining out, using coupons, and buying in bulk.”
  • Organizations serving low-income consumers in the Chicago District described rising food insecurity and ongoing challenges finding affordable housing.
• Spending patterns reveal a widening economic divide. While higher-income households continue to spend, many lower- and middle-income consumers are cutting back or trading down to cheaper options.
  • Contacts in the San Francisco District described a “bifurcated, or K-shaped, economy.” Discretionary spending remained strong among higher-income households, while lower- and middle-income consumers continued shifting toward lower-cost and store-label alternatives.
  • In the New York District, sales gains were concentrated among higher-income consumers. Even so, many shoppers remained price-conscious and searched across multiple retailers for better prices.
  • Retail patterns in the Atlanta District reflected the same divide. Discount stores reported steady demand from price-conscious shoppers, while higher-end retail sales remained resilient.
• Health care and insurance costs are rising. Contacts pointed to higher premiums, shrinking access to coverage, and growing financial strain on health care providers.
  • In the New York District, contacts said low- and moderate-income households and older adults are facing increasing challenges maintaining health insurance coverage as premiums rise and access to low-cost plans declines.
  • Nonprofits in the Dallas District warned that expiring Affordable Care Act subsidies and changes to Medicaid requirements could lead to a rise in the uninsured. Contacts said the shift could limit access to preventative care while hospitals absorb the cost of treating patients without coverage.
  • In the Kansas City District, contacts warned that many rural hospitals are under severe financial strain. Roughly half are operating at a loss, with several facilities in northern Missouri at risk of closure.

Our latest senseless illegal war against brown people, born of ever-shifting lies and fought by the sons of the blithe un-rich, is Trump's ultimate Wag-the-Dog distraction from his crimes, failures and pedophilia at home. Having oafishly declared the Iran regime “a vicious group of very hard, terrible people” - pot/kettle if you add "inept"- his "warriors" are now being told this is "part of God's divine plan," with The Rapture imminent (after killing more schoolgirls.) One sage: "It's a good thing Congress isn't alive to see this."

Leave it to "the world's most famous bone-spur patient," Board of Peace chair, recipient of a fake FIFA peace prize and pilfered real Peace Prize, cornered serial sexual predator facing exposure and pathological liar who vowed "no new wars" while attacking seven nations in a year to launch "the dumbest war in US history" - a tough competition - and the biggest US military operation in the Middle East since the 2003 invasion of Iraq, which Bush, Rumsfeld, Powell et al at least tried for months to justify with a pack of lies before making "the worst foreign policy decision in history." Trump: Hold my Coke. Experts have long warned that with his hubris, thin skin, historical ignorance and affinity for heedless demolition of buildings, customs, laws, credibility, he could wreak the most havoc in foreign affairs, where his power is most unbridled - especially now, as he grows increasingly desperate and dangerous.

Thus, having amassed a vast arsenal of US weaponry in the Persian Gulf, did he launch our current "national obscenity." Ever presidential, he did it in a sober, cogent speech at a White House lectern with all the gravity the occasion called for. Kidding: He did it in a histrionic 2:30 a.m post on his crappy platform from his golf bordello after a $1-million-a-plate fundraiser - cue cringe robotic dancing to God Bless the USA - and a bellicose, garbled speech, his face smeared in make-up beneath a tacky baseball cap?! Later, the White House released a photo of a hastily assembled War Room with black drapes around it and some guy peeking in - looking for the omelette bar? Observers: "Looks secure to me," "Looks like the Goodman wedding reception had to be moved," "These clowns seriously started WW lll from a blanket fort at a shitty golf club?!" and, "This is not how democracies go to war."

But we just did - with no (Constitutionally mandated) approval from Congress, no (historically obligatory) public debate, over the objections of his own intelligence agencies and against the wishes of 80% of Americans, including his own base. In a slurred, spurious, deeply Orwellian speech, he "upended half a century of US foreign policy" by proclaiming the $1-billion-a-day-but-who needs-groceries-or-health care Operation Epic Fury (presumably named by a 12-year-old minion), which he randomly called "the single greatest chance for the Iranian people to take back their Country." Citing zero evidence, he said many of Iran’s soldiers "no longer want to fight," are "looking for Immunity from us," and hope to "peacefully merge with Iranian Patriots (to) bring back the Country to Greatness" (like ravaged America) to "achieve our objective of PEACE THROUGHOUT THE MIDDLE EAST AND, INDEED, THE WORLD!” Because, bless his moronic heart, nobody ever thought of regime change before.

The world's worst negotiator moved to set the Middle East on fire after walking away from ongoing, reportedly promising talks in which Iran had already made concessions; given the regime's "stupefyingly overt corruption," they included bribes to a deeply unqualified Kushner and Witkoff. Trump's Very Serious, deep-dive analysis: "We were having negotiations with these lunatics, but it was my opinion they were going to attack first." So he did. The death toll in a swiftly spreading conflagration is now over 1,000, including at least six US service members. Gruesomely but not surprisingly, one of the first strikes hit the Shajareh Tayyebeh elementary school in southern Iran, killing an estimated 170 girls aged seven to 12. In a searing video of the carnage - woe to the murderers of little children - a distraught man stands amidst bloodied books, bodies, backpacks and shouts, "This was a school and they came to study."

Also killed the first day was Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and dozens of military commanders - so many, in a sign of Trump's famed proficiency, that he told news outlets he'd had a "beautiful plan" and several candidates for Iran’s new leadership but, oops, "They're all dead." There were other miscalculations. Despite his sanguine gibberish about PEACE, Tehran vowed to unleash "devastating blows" and the intact, powerful, heavily armed, fanatically loyal Revolutionary Guard, showing no interest in laying down their arms or ideology, warned of "a severe, decisive and regret-inducing punishment” of their killers. As in Iraq and everywhere else and one more time, a historian notes, regime change through bombing has never been successful: "Regimes are networks, (and) when an external power kills a leader, networks often consolidate, not fragment. Successors emerge, as do Martyr narratives."

As to the US, what has yet to emerge is a long-term plan, a lucid rationale for the mayhem. They throw spaghetti at the wall, offering wildly shifting goals, timelines, narratives, excuses of "imminent threat" so flimsy they'd be laughable if not lethal. They want to "destroy Iran’s missile capability," "annihilate their navy,” halt their regional hegemony, stop them from building nuclear weapons US intelligence insists are over 10 years away. Trump babbles: He wants "freedom for the people,” Iran "just wanted to practice evil," we have to "get rid of their whole group of killers and thugs," and they blocked his 2020 re-election. He really did "obliterate” their nuclear program in June but "we found they were in a totally different site - totally different, so it was just time.” One analyst: "The lack of any coherent message seems to suggest the lack of any coherent objective." Robert Reich: "He has no fucking clue what he’s doing."

Bizarrely, Trump's reportedly calling journalists to workshop objectives and timelines: 2 or 3 days, four to five weeks? More bizarrely - is it possible? - suddenly-anti-war MTG charges the regime, deep in "the same old bullshit," is even polling voters to ask how many casualties they'd accept: "How about ZERO you bunch of sick fucking liars." Meanwhile, MAGA struggles to define the debacle they've birthed. In a few head-spinning minutes, Mike Johnson claimed Iran "declared war on us," insisted "we're not at war," and clumsily pivoted to, "a very, umm, specific, clear mission, an operation." Enraged Dems were more forthright. Ruben Gallego: "Trump ran on exposing pedophiles and stopping wars, (and) is now protecting pedophiles and starting wars.” Chris Murphy on a vanity war "nobody in this country is asking for: "It won’t be the billionaire children of Trump and his buddies that die." Steve Schmidt, likewise bitter: They'll have "died to change the subject from child rape."

In greasy contrast, dry-drunk war-mongerer, preening macho cartoon, and "colossus of incompetence and extremism" Pete Kegsmith yammers about "our warriors fully unleashed to achieve our objectives, on our terms, with maximum authorities." Also "iron fist," "true force multiplier," "hitting them surgically, overwhelmingly" while seeking "off-ramps and escalations (to) execute what we need" with, "No apologies. No hesitation. Epic fury." What an epic asshole. He snarled at a presser with right-wing hacks: "Why would we tell you - you, the enemy, anybody - what we will or will not do?" He went full psychopath in another, braying of "death and destruction from the sky all day long" and "rules of engagement (that) are bold, precise, and designed to unleash American power. We are punching them while they are down." Also, "War is hell." Though Sherman added, "It is only those who have neither fired a shot nor heard the shrieks and groans of the wounded who cry aloud for blood, for vengeance, for desolation."

A Christian nationalist, Crusades fan-boy and sexist xenophobe who attends Bible study and Pentagon prayer services, Hegseth is a vital force in an explosive push to enshrine brimstone-breathing - and unconstitutional - Christian fundamentalism in America's military. Thus is our new war of choice being feverishly sold, not as a ploy to distract from Epstein, ICE, inflation etc but as a Biblically-sanctioned holy crusade toward a devoutly-to-be-wished End Times. Or in the more skeptical words of The Fucking News, "Jesus Christ, They Drafted Jesus Christ To Fight Iran." Since the Iran attacks, reports Jonathan Larsen, the Military Religious Freedom Foundation has logged over 200 complaints from 50 bases of every military branch about commanders telling troops this is "all part of God’s divine plan," with Trump improbably "anointed" to bring the Rapture, Armageddon and the return of Christ to recreate a white, straight, Republican, gated-community America.

Larson reports one Christian NCO wrote on behalf of 15 troops of multiple faiths, all rejecting the call to embrace a nihilistic, Revelation-based worldview. "This is not what my faith is for," he wrote, "and this is not what my uniform is for." MRFF head Mikey Weinstein, an Air Force and Reagan White House veteran, said he's been "inundated" by calls with "one damn thing in freaking common" - complaints about "the unrestricted euphoria" of commanders urging troops to accept their fundamentalist theology. Declares Weinstein, "Any military (pushing) their blood-soaked, Christian nationalist wet dreams upon the flames of this latest non-Congressionally sanctioned attack against Iran should be swiftly, aggressively and visibly prosecuted." Adds Dean Blundell, raised Evangelical, on a "crusade of low-IQ warriors": "If history has taught us one goddamn thing, it’s that holy wars don’t end when the true believers say they will. They end when there’s nothing left to burn."

Alas, in the case of this ill-conceived holy war, true believers may be embarking not just with epic fury, an iron fist and a blanket fort but irreparably clogged toilets. Adding a surreal twist to an already dark tale of Christofascist empire-building, new reports describe toilet lines of up to 45 minutes for 4,500 sailors on the world's most advanced warship, the US Navy's $13-billion, nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford, now facing what are politely termed "significant sanitation challenges" as it idles in the Persian Gulf. The ship's vacuum-based sewage system has long been plagued by repeated failures and lack of maintenance, but the latest breakdown of many of its 650 toilets may be the final straw for sailors already weary from an extended, 8-month deployment; after Trump's illegal Venezuela assault/kidnapping, they were ordered to go straight to his illegal Iran air strikes/mass murder. Some have posted gross videos of flooding shit; reads one, "Join the Navy, they said."

Still, their Commander-In-Chief says everything's swell. "It's going to go pretty quickly," he announced of the widening chaos in the Middle East. "We're way ahead of schedule." Experts warn the Iran war, coupled with the shift of national security resources to immigration, raises the risk of terrorism; says veteran and Rep. Jason Crow, "It just shot through the roof. But Trump just bragged about the "exciting times," and asked how he'd rate the success of the war on a scale of one to ten, he said he'd give it "about a fifteen." As to the likely growing casualties from his "noble mission," he's shruggingly said, "That's the way it is." Talk about epic fury: See the response from Kendall Brown, whose husband is on the USS Gerald Ford. "If you voted for this, I fucking hate you," she says in a now-viral video. "If you still support this, you are a monster."

"America is strong because its leaders are strong. President Trump proves that every day," reads a DraftBarron website by South Park's Toby Morton. "Naturally, his son Barron is more than ready to defend the country his father so boldly commands. Service is honor. Strength is inherited. Dog Bless Barron." Arguing, "Leadership starts somewhere," it offers the loving testimonial from his dad, "People come up to me, with tears in their eyes, and they say, ‘Sir, you’re the strongest. Send Barron off to war.’" For now, Operation What Now lurches on. Trump reportedly bombed Iran because "he had a feeling, based on fact." Melania explained how to achieve "enduring peace." Oil prices quickly spiked, and millions were stranded after airports and sea lanes shut down. Because we are the most exceptional, can-do country on earth, the State Department's Office of Overseas Citizens Services hotline was there to help. Sort of. Dog bless America.

"Five things to remember about war: 1. Many things reported with confidence in the first hours and days will turn out not to be true 2. Whatever they say, the people who start wars are often thinking chiefly about domestic politics 3. The rationale given for a war will change over time. 4. Wars are unpredictable 5. Wars are easy to start and hard to stop." - Timothy Snyder

- YouTube www.youtube.com

Skeptics of our latest imperialist incursion voice legitimate class concerns.Image from BlueSky

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) today introduced the Make Billionaires Pay Their Fair Share Act, legislation that would establish a 5% annual wealth tax on the 938 billionaires in America — who are now collectively worth $8.2 trillion. In its first year, the bill would provide a $3,000 direct payment to every man, woman and child in a household making $150,000 or less — $12,000 for a family of four — and use the estimated $4.4 trillion in revenue raised over the next decade to address the most pressing crises facing working families.

“At a time of unprecedented income and wealth inequality, this legislation demands that the billionaire class in America finally pay their fair share of taxes so that we can create an economy that works for all of us, not just the 1%,” Sanders said. “We can no longer tolerate a corrupt tax code that enables billionaires to pay a lower tax rate than the average worker. In a democratic society, we cannot tolerate 60% of our people living paycheck to paycheck — struggling to pay for housing, food and health care — while 938 billionaires have become $1.5 trillion richer. We cannot continue a trend in which, over the past 50 years, $79 trillion in wealth in our country has been redistributed from the bottom 90% to the top 1%. Enough is enough. Billionaires cannot have it all. It is time to enact a wealth tax on billionaires and use this revenue to address some of the major crises facing working families, the children, the elderly, the sick and the most vulnerable.”

“We have a deep economic divide in this country. On one side, places like Silicon Valley are generating extreme wealth. On the other side, families are struggling to cover the cost of health care, housing, and basic needs. We can tax billionaires a modest amount to make sure everyone has a fair chance while keeping our innovative engine. That is why I am proud to join Senator Bernie Sanders to lead the Make Billionaires Pay Their Fair Share Act,” Khanna said.

The Make Billionaires Pay Their Fair Share Act would establish a 5% annual wealth tax on just 938 billionaires in America who are now worth $8.2 trillion. No one who has a net worth of less than $1 billion would pay a penny more in taxes under this bill. According to an analysis by economists Emmanuel Saez and Gabriel Zucman, the legislation would raise $4.4 trillion over the next decade.

The bill would use revenue from the wealth tax to:

• Provide a $3,000 direct payment to every man, woman and child in a household making $150,000 or less — $12,000 for a family of four
• Reverse the $1.1 trillion in Medicaid and Affordable Care Act cuts in Trump's so-called "Big Beautiful Bill," which are estimated to cause more than 50,000 unnecessary deaths
• Expand Medicare to cover dental, vision and hearing for millions of seniors
• Build, rehabilitate and preserve over seven million affordable homes to eliminate the affordable housing gap and end homelessness
• Ensure no family pays more than 7% of their income on childcare
• Establish a $60,000 minimum annual salary for every public school teacher in America
• Expand Medicaid home health care for seniors and people with disabilities

Under the bill, Elon Musk — worth $833 billion and now wealthier than the bottom 53% of American households combined — would owe $42 billion in taxes, leaving him with approximately $792 billion. Mark Zuckerberg, worth $220 billion, would owe $11 billion. Jeff Bezos, worth $218 billion, would owe approximately $11 billion.

Read the bill text here.

Read a summary here.

Read the economic analysis here.

Most memorable about this week's longest, basest, game-show SOTU, a toxic, lying, us-and-them hate fest: The rowdy multitude of responses from a populace "defying the lie that we are powerless." Bigly upstaging a goalie's Medal of Freedom was "a marathon of truth-telling," from a cogent Dem response to the Portland Frogs leading a restive, joyful, shaggy defense of "this thing we call democracy" by We the People, insisting, "Don't be afraid to call it fascism - we got to meet this fuckin' moment."

The State of the Union speech, already a stale ritual of forced national unity, felt more farcical than ever in these rancorous times, a tawdry, surreal piece of performance art whose only true believers may be those MAGA morons who, when challenged, frantically, mindlessly yell "USA!! USA!!," their version of, "Oh yeah?!" They resorted to it several times Tuesday at a tacky event that over 70 deeply fed up Democrats skipped. "The President has shown no respect for the principles upon which this country is based," argued Maine's Sen. Angus King. "I cannot in good conscience participate in (a) function that would require me to ignore all that has gone before, and to pay him a measure of respect he has not earned." Other apt SOTU responses: Turner Classic Movies showed Gaslight, and Jeff Tiedrich proclaimed, "The State of the Union is - oh, who gives a fuck, really?"

The "18-year-long," "excruciatingly tedious," "most openly racist State of the Union in modern history" came as its perpetrator faces record-low 36% approval ratings, trailing by double digits in swing states and bleeding support among independents as he babbles about "fake polls," "silent support" and "made-up numbers" by "professional cheaters." His deplorable flunkies aren't faring any better. In a civil trial where investors are suing Elon Musk, his lawyers can't find jurors because so many Americans "hate him." They also hate ICE Barbie and her stormtroopers, and Kash Patel for his $75K, not-at-all-personal trip to Milan to chug beer with hockey players that so infuriated his own work force they sent 8 videos of it to media. There's also Rep. Tony Gonzales with another sex scandal MAGA doesn't need (though they need his seat), and perennial losers Kegseth and Pirro.

Still, given he "continues to live in a fantasyland where stuff becomes true just because he says it is," his SOTU was awesome, like his glittering State of Denial. Likely invisible were the Suffragette white outfits of Dem women, the photos of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, Rep. Al Green's sign, "Black People Aren't Apes" (he was escorted from the chamber), the "Release the Epstein Files" pins, and the stalwart, near-dozen Epstein survivors themselves invited by Dem lawmakers, reminders of ghastly new evidence and allegations and cover-ups lurking behind one key question from survivor Jess Michaels: “Does our government belong to the American people, or to those who prey on them?” There was, of course, no answer. In fact, there was no mention of Epstein. Or of the reviled ICE, stalled DHS, on-the-brink Iran, or long-suffering Ukraine on the 4th anniversary of its invasion.

There was, instead, a hate-lie-and-grievance-filled shit show, a Klan rally of "white-supremacist wolf whistles," a "fascist rally peppered with flop-sweat one-liners," a slurred, venomous, fact-free barrage of boasts, insults, puffery met with faithful Kim Jong Un-esque applause from co-conspirators filling up empty seats for an old man who endlessly burbled, lurched and clung to a podium as he hid a gross bruised hand behind him. It was, wrote Ana Marie Cox, a speech "simultaneously banal and unsettling (by) a greasy fleshhole of hate...rancid and powerful." Her trenchant analysis: "I fucking hate this guy." And no, full disclosure, we did not watch it. We just...couldn't. But sincere thanks to those strong souls who chronicled the debacle, most notably Mehdi Hassan and the folks of Zeteo here and here. Also to Jimmy Kimmel, for his fine, no-diapers introduction.

The musty lies and bombast unspooled. We were a dead country but now we're "the hottest." Dems are "suddenly using the word 'affordability' - somebody gave it to them," but high prices are all their fault. Countries hit by tariffs are "happy." Most foul were lurid tales about the "scourge of illegal immigration," like "Somali pirates who have ransacked Minnesota" and "pillaged $19 billion from the American taxpayer," though it was 80 Somali-Americans, led by a white American woman, who committed some fraud while over 100,000, 95% of them U.S. citizens, pay nearly $70 million in taxes and contribute $8 billion to the community but sure let's go with a collective ethnic smear. The crude, dumb, divisive finale: Stand if you agree your first duty is "to protect American citizens, not illegal aliens" - and don't forget the Seig Heil. Cheap Theatrics 'R Us.

Dems sat. Trump raged, "You should be ashamed." Ilhan Omar fought back: "You should be ashamed. You're killing Americans." MAGA yelled "USA!" Goebbels Miller shrieked “0 democrats stood for the (principle) leaders must serve citizens before invaders. Never has there been a more stunning moment in Congress." True, but not how he thinks. In a final, Oprah moment, the "merit vampire" who thrives on stolen glory bragged, "We’re winning so much we don’t know what to do about it" and to prove it here's the carefully choreographed USA Olympic hockey team who jeered with him in the locker room about their women cohorts who won bigger: "Come on in!" The MAGA frat party dregs cheered, hooted, fist-pumped more "USA!" Then he gave out medals, and fed the athletes Big Macs. Press Barbie: "He knows how to celebrate champions. No one does it like him!"

Ugh. The flip side: Kudos to the five hockey players, and the moms who likely largely raised them, who declined the non- invite; four of five came from Minnesota. And kudos to Public Enemy Hall of Fame rapper Flavor Flav, a longtime supporter of women's sports, who invited the women's team to party in Las Vegas and "celebrate for real for real" in July on a She Got Game weekend funded by him and area resorts. And gracious thanks to actor, gourmand and all-round mensch Stanley Tucci, who hosted the women on the patio of his favorite Milan restaurant, the Michelin-starred Ristorante Ratanà, where they happily feasted on pumpkin risotto and just desserts. Meanwhile, in the wake of the mad king's claptrap, Democrats won three local elections in swing states: two in Pennsylvania for a majority in the state house, one in Maine, further cementing Democrats’ hold.

Finally, there were myriad, heartening alternative events where lawmakers, advocates, Epstein survivors and whistleblowers vowed to, "Lean in, stand up and show up" in defense of democracy and fierce resistance - and stark contrast - to the small, mean narcissist down the road making up "facts" and boasting about stripping 2.4 million people of food stamps. The official Democratic response, from Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger, was succinct and forceful. Citing the pernicious rhetoric, cruelty, cover-ups, scams, ballrooms, she asked who benefits: "Is the president working for you? We all know the answer is no." Sen. Alex Padilla pointedly gave a follow-up in Spanish. Famously last seen getting tackled by DHS thugs for daring to ask ICE Barbie about her brownshirts' violent abuses, he asserted, "I am still here. Still standing. Still fighting."

His sense of resolve was echoed at a "People’s State of the Union” rally on the National Mall held by MoveOn and Meidas Touch, where speakers lambasted Trump's imaginary "Golden Age of America" in a country that in fact offers "one reality for everyday people and another for the rich and well-protected." Citing vast unmet needs on healthcare, housing, jobs, Pennsylvania Rep. Summer Lee of the Working Families Party vowed to "elevate the voices of (those) angry, scared and fed up with an administration that’s done nothing to help and a lot to hurt everyday people." Sen. Chris Murphy decried a speech ignoring ICE "tear-gassing schools, murdering citizens, and disappearing legal immigrants." The Progressive Caucus' Greg Casar reviled a $4-billion grifter "lecturing you, the American people, about how good you have it (when) everyone but Trump’s rich friends knows it’s a disaster,."

Meanwhile, at the National Press Club a few blocks away, a dozen members of the illustrious Portland Frog Brigade headlined a giddy, heartfelt, sold-out State of the Swamp, a SOTU "ribbital" hosted by DEFIANCE.org and advocacy media network Courier where attendees were encouraged to gather, preferably in frog caps, in "peaceful defiance and civic participation." M.C.'ed by Defiance head and former Trump staffer Miles Taylor, the event drew dozens of speakers, and a few frogs, who over several hours gave resolute, kinetic, briskly-3-minute speeches focused on the vital need to remember that, "Democracy is something we do, not just something we have." The most substantial time went to the last three speakers - the combative mayors of Minneapolis and Chicago, and an enraged Robert DeNiro - and they were all electrifying.

The mood was chill, festive, occasionally profane, but the message was consistent: In the face of unprecedented threats to our democracy by "a rapist vulgarian named Donald Trump," we must, "Refuse to shut up, sit down, or even stop ribbiting. Stay LOUD." Between speakers, video clips showed historic figures of defiance: MLK Jr, Muhammad Ali, Black Panthers, James Baldwin, John Lewis, lunch-counter sit-ins, Jesse Jackson rousing Sesame Street kids to say, "I am somebody." Next to the stage, about 20 inflatable frogs, "the jesters of this movement," stood and often danced in a "frog pond" with signs: "Damn Straight," "Amphifa," "Frogs Not Fascists." Earlier, they'd hit the Capitol to hand out pocket Constitutions to members of Congress and toured D.C. for proud green selfies. Taylor: "Who better to help navigate the swamp than a creature born in the swamp?"

Despite the focus on matters of substance - housing, healthcare, climate crisis, ICE abuses, democracy itself - the tone of many speakers was light-hearted and self-deprecating. Delaware Gov. Matt Meyers: "There are more frogs in this room than people in my state." New York Rep. Dan Goldman: "It's great to be here and not in Congress tonight." Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden on his political low profile: "I'm barely a household name in my own household." Oregon Rep. Maxine Dexter: "Thank you to the frogs who hopped across the country." The array of speakers was admirably broad - from a panel of First Amendment legal defenders to former White House Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham - and outspoken on "the weak, dumb, small, sad man" and "pathetic whiny loser who knocked down the East Wing and thinks he can knock down our democracy."

Colorado Rep. Jason Crow, one of the six veterans along with Mark Kelly under attack by Kegseth for re-iterating that the military should follow the law, began with, "Well, President Trump keeps trying to put me in prison. But I've never been very good at sitting in my foxhole and letting them send grenades my way. I fight back." Motormouth Joe Walsh, former "rock-ribbed" conservative and Illinois GOP rep with serious buyer's remorse, and author of the 2020 book Fuck Silence: Calling Trump Out for the Cultish, Moronic, Authoritarian Con Man He Is, was resolute on the "cruel bastard" who gave us Jan. 6 and "don't you for one moment think he's not gonna try" to mess with coming elections: "This moment calls for all of us to be courageous - we ain't never been here before. Our job is to blow him outta the water. Fuck Trump. The mid-terms are happening."

Over hours, their messages aligned: Fascists come after everyone in the end, even fellow fascists. MAGA is waiting its turn in the trashbin of history. Help put it there. Courage is more contagious than cowardice. An old story is dying. The elites have never been the ones to save us - it's always the people. Cruelty isn't strength, nor is defying the rule of law. Strength is the moral courage to say this is not right, to see other people as fully human. When empathy disappears, authoritarianism is next. Gutsy Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey: "We are not spectators in this moment. We are stewards of our democracy. Hold strong." DeNiro, on feeling "betrayed" by today's America, "like an abused spouse professing love for their abuser." "You have to lift people up," he said, his voice cracking. "If you've ever loved your country, this is the time to show it."

The aftermath of a grotesque SOTU tells us everything we need to know about the historic moment. Trump raged about "the bulging, bloodshot eyes of crazy people" who declined to stand with his fascism: "We should send them back (on) a boat with Robert DeNiro, another sick and demented person....saying (things) seriously CRIMINAL!" News surfaced that, during the speech, Ilhan Omar guest Aliya Rahman, a disabled Minneapolis woman dragged from her car by ICE who later gave searing testimony to Congress, was forcibly removed by Capitol Police and charged with "Unlawful Conduct" after she silently stood up in the gallery, like many others. On Friday, Trump held a million-dollar-a-plate, "Billionaires first, Americans last" fundraiser. And the day before, NYC Mayor Mamdani, with the help of AOC, released an adorbs video about his new free child care program. Which side are you on? Tough call.

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On Thursday, the Warner Bros. Discovery board decided to abandon its plans to sell the company to Netflix in favor of a Paramount Skydance bid.

In addition to offering $31-per-share to purchase the massive entertainment and news conglomerate, Paramount agreed to pay a $2.8 billion breakup fee to Netflix to walk away.

After WBD initially accepted Netflix’s offer for the company earlier this year, Paramount made a series of hostile bids for the company, aided by President Trump’s expressed preference that ownership transfer to his political ally and Paramount owner David Ellison and his centibillionaire, MAGA-loving father, Larry.

Free Press Co-CEO Craig Aaron said:

“The Netflix deal was disastrous but this new one is even worse. The idea that Paramount should be allowed to control CBS and CNN should be unthinkable, especially given their record of turning the Tiffany Network into a trash heap. The Ellisons have already promised the Trump administration that they’ll make sweeping changes to CNN given the chance, and we know what that means: firing journalists, spiking important stories, and replacing the news with empty propaganda.

“This deal endangers our democracy by giving a family of pliant billionaires even more control of vast swaths of our news coverage, TV stations and movie studios. Allowing more mergers in the already highly concentrated movie business will harm filmmakers and industry workers when Paramount delivers on its promise to make deep cuts to please its Wall Street backers. While a few Hollywood execs and sovereign-wealth fund managers in the Middle East might get rich from this deal, thousands and thousands of American workers will lose their jobs.

“In any normal administration this merger would be a non-starter. In this one, the corruption and capitulation of the Ellison family is the main selling point. They’ve already shown a willingness to bend to Donald Trump’s will and change their coverage and personnel to please his whims. Trump wants to control the news, and his Justice Department has been largely purged of anyone who might ask too many questions of a deal like this. State attorneys generals had better wake up to the serious dangers of this deal before it’s too late.”

The arrest of the U.K. rapist formerly known as Prince, and the echoing, trans-Atlantic edict that no one is above the law, lay ever-barer America's "true exceptionalism": A culture of immunity so corrosive our own heinous, in-his-fever-dreams "exonerated" Predator-In-Chief has enragingly yet to face any consequences for his manifold sins, crimes, cruelties and depravities, petty and profound. Finally, says Epstein survivor Maria Farmer, "(Let) all the dominoes of power and corruption begin to fall."

The stunning arrest by Thames Valley Police of "Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor" - notably, not "His Royal Highness," ”the Duke of York" or other niceties - on his 66th birthday was widely seen as not just an arrest but "a transfer of power," a possible, long- awaited shift in the tides for once-untouchable elites of the Epstein class that announces power and status may no longer keep them safe, at least outside the crooked U.S. Shortly after 8 a.m., police arrived in six unmarked vehicles at Wood Farm on King Charles’ Sandringham Estate to haul Andrew off; they also reportedly searched his former residence near Windsor Castle. The charge, "suspicion of misconduct in public office" - talk about your euphemisms - stems from Andrew's term as UK trade envoy from 2001 to 2011, when he allegedly shared with Jeffrey Epstein confidential government reports on potential investment opportunities from Vietnam, Singapore, China and Afghanistan.

The envoy gig mandates a "duty of confidentiality"; any "abuse of public trust" that uses public power as "private currency for self-serving or nefarious reasons" carries a maximum sentence of life in prison. (Just imagine what they'd make of the Trump cartel's brazen, perennial grifting.) Andrew, of course, has also been charged with raping outspoken Epstein victim Virginia Giuffre, who died by suicide last year at 41, which led to him being stripped of his royal titles before slinking out of public view. Regrettably, he never faced a rape charge in court due to several factors - a civil settlement with Giuffre, a high bar for conviction beyond a reasonable doubt, and other legal loopholes. Presumably for some Epstein victims, bringing Andrew to even a modicum of justice on the easier-to-prove misconduct in office charge may feel dispiriting, like nabbing the murderous Al Capone for tax evasion: Better than nothing, but not good enough.

Andrew's was the first arrest of a senior member of the British royal family in modern history. The last one arrested was King Charles I in 1647, following his defeat in the English Civil War by Parliamentarian forces; a believer in the divine right of kings, his tyrannical reign led to his imprisonment, trial for high treason, and beheading in 1649 - the moral arc of the universe moved faster then. After Andrew's arrest, his brother King Charles, who had received no warning beforehand, issued a statement on, not his bro but “Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor”; he expressed “deepest concern" but "whole-hearted support" for the investigation: "Let me state clearly: the law must take its course." Others cited the same probity. Prime Minister Keir Starmer: "No one is above the law.” The family of Virginia Giuffre: "No one is above the law, not even royalty." Heartbreakingly, they added, "For survivors everywhere, Virginia did this for you."

Waxing cautious about possible shifts in power, The Mirror’s Christopher Bucktin notes, "A birthday arrest should not stand alone as a rare spectacle. It should signal something larger: that no title, no fortune, no political office is sufficient armour against the law...Justice cannot stop at one imprisoned accomplice while others retreat behind legal teams and influence." A new report from the UN's Human Rights Council, which finds Epstein's wrongs "may reasonably meet the legal threshold of crimes against humanity," echoes him. Arguing the files' "credible evidence of systematic and large-scale sexual abuse, trafficking and exploitation" - thus contradicting the "little evidence" bullshit of our DOJ and FBI - it dismisses vapid calls to "move on" as "a failure of responsibility towards victims." Resignations alone aren't enough, it adds: "It is imperative that governments act decisively to hold perpetrators (criminally) accountable."

As further evidence "Epstein elites can't hide anymore" - except, yes, infuriatingly, here - active investigations of Epstein-related crimes in 16 countries are now sweeping up officials on both sex-trafficking and corruption charges; Canada will reportedly open the next one. In the UK, former ambassador to the U.S. Peter Mandelson was fired and is under investigation - oops, now arrest - for passing on financial info to Epstein; Starmer’s chief of staff, who appointed Mandelson, also resigned. In Norway, a former prime minister was charged with "gross corruption” for his Epstein ties, and two diplomats are being investigated. In France, so are a former Culture Minister, his daughter and a senior diplomat. Non-Epstein-related justice has also come for South Korea's former President Yoon Suk Yeol - a life sentence with hard labor for an insurrection - and Brazil's Bolsonaro, whose 2023 coup attempt got him 27 years, and no pardons.

"This is what accountability looks like," argues David Kurtz of Andrew's arrest and all the rest, which "sends a signal far beyond London - straight to Washington." What it proclaims: "If the King's own brother is not above the law, neither is the King's dinner guest, nor his Commerce Secretary." Infernally, the lesson has yet to be heeded in an America ruled by a two-bit, 34-count felon and rapist abetted by a cabal of flunkies managing a Mafia-style criminal regime with no bottom and a corrupt SCOTUS whose "out-of-thin-air immunity doctrine" has made him less accountable than actual royalty - spawning a nation "exceptional among developed nations solely in (its) unwillingness to hold the powerful to account, even in the most egregious cases." Confirming that stark reality was last week's unfurling, outside the DOJ, of a huge banner of Dear Leader, "an abomination and an outrage" straight-up declaring our alleged justice system "a pure creature of presidential whim, retribution and cover-up."

Meanwhile, despite Epstein files that "scream 'Guilty" - with his hideous name appearing over 38,000 times in 5,300 released files representing just 2-4% of the grisly whole - Trump had the chutzpah to respond to a question about the possible ripple effect at home of Andrew's arrest by professing, four times in 30 seconds, he's been "totally exonerated." "Well, you know, I'm the expert in a way, because I've been totally exonerated," he blustered, prattling on in toddler-ese. "I did nothin'. It’s very nice. I can actually speak about it very nicely. I think it’s a shame. I think it’s very sad. It’s very, very sad to me. It’s a very sad thing. To see it, and to see what’s going on with his brother. King. So I think it’s a very sad thing." Fucking Christ. Nope, wasn't me, nothing to see here, not a creep, all good, if sad. And not a word on the survivors. Appalled observers: "Guilty as fuck," "The man on my TV screen is batshit crazy," and, "I hope to live long enough to see this POS in a cell with an open toilet." Or maybe none?

Epstein’s carefully curated, now slowly splintering network of elites included billionaires, academics, politicians, scummy MAGA hangers-on like Steve Bannon - “Dude. You up??" - with culpability circling ever closer to Trump. A trove of damning evidence has surfaced, from the removal of 53 files bearing his name to journalist Roger Sollenberger's account of disappeared allegations in a civil complaint and FBI slideshow that the DOJ spoke four times to a Jane Doe who credibly charged she was forced to perform oral sex on Trump when she was about 14; when she bit down on his penis, she said he punched her in the head, kicked her out, and later raped her vaginally and anally. Experts say such emerging stories of abuse reveal a ghastly, familiar pattern; the latest, in Alaska, is "nothing short of horrifying." Thus does Masha Gessen argue that it's time for us to stop speaking of the Epstein story "as a story about extraordinary lawlessness. It is a story about ordinary lawlessness."

Dating back, in Trump's case, a savage lifetime. By now he's committed most of the crimes Thomas Jefferson charged King George with in the Declaration of Independence - ignored laws "necessary for the public good," sent "swarms of Officers to harass our people," kept "Standing Armies without Consent," altered "fundamentally the Forms of our Government," ravaging due process, free speech, health care, civil rights, history itself. The lies, deaths, grift, cruelty, unceasing assaults on decency. The "monstrous machine" to snatch up and spit out thousands of innocents - "¡Libertad!” - in concentration camps. The children trapped with cancer, measles, trauma: "Please get me out of here." Two-month old Juan Nicolás, unresponsive in Dilley, choking on his vomit, abruptly deported with his family to Mexico, tracked down and cared for thanks to "America's most relentless immigration reporter," because, "The story is rarely the policy - (it's) the person standing in the rubble of the policy."

Today, the two essential pillars of Trump's "fantasy version of nationalist renewal" - ethnic cleansing and tariffs - are both rubble, rejected by the public, the courts and even a corrupt SCOTUS, which enraged him so much he revived a cringe John Barron to rave about the "fools and lap dogs” who rejected his cherished tariffs and the imaginary hundreds of billions they brought in to make us '"the hottest country." The drek kept spewing. He praised lickspittles Thomas, Alito, Beer Keg Brett for "their strength and wisdom," especially Beer Keg, "for his, frankly, his genius." He respects them "because they not only dissented, their dissent is so strong. I'm very good at reading language and it read our way 100%...My thousands of victories...Like the wars I stopped. The Prime Minister of Pakistan said I saved 35 million lives by getting them to stop. That's -- and I did it largely with tariffs." He's vowed new tariffs, "and they can all be used in a much more powerful and obnoxious way." So much winning.

Also somewhere he asked the owner of "they made steel products" how he was, and the man said, "I'd love to kiss you," because "we were down to working one hour a week and then you came in and imposed tariffs (and) now we're going to double shifts seven days a week and maybe to 24 hours almost seven days a week, we're hiring people like we haven't - like I've never..." Trump: "Nobody's standing in (the) position I have as president had the insight, the courage, I don't know what it is. They're all pouring into the United States. But just like that great patriot said, Sir, what you've done, nobody thought was possible." As to "slimeball" Gorsuch and Coney Barret, they're "an embarrassment to their families" and were "swayed by foreign interests." Dems were intrigued: The Judiciary Committee's Jared Moskowitz felt he should find out more about them, and another Dem felt the next president "will have no choice but to replace all 9 members with new justices with no foreign entanglements."

On Saturday, the White House held the annual Governors' Dinner, designed to "build relationships and discuss things in a bipartisan way." Historically, the staid, candle-lit, black-tie affair - Melania wore $2,400 silver foil pants - can serve as a genial distraction from Congressional battles. In this rancorous moment, it was a shitshow - actors on both sides alternately called it "a farce" and "a glowing evening" - because after the Mad Hatter King uninvited two Dems, the only Black and only openly gay governor, Dems all boycotted it what became a MAGA ass-kissing fest. Trump used the moment to blame two Dem governors for a sewage spill in the Potomac River. "We have to clean up some mess Maryland and Virginia have left us," he snarled. "It's unbelievable what they can do with incompetence." The ruptured pipe is part of a D.C.-based, federally regulated utility under the oversight of the U.S. EPA. As to "mess," we hope to see this face replicated soon at home.

"It could go either way. There's no other way. You have other ways you can go. You don't have to go that way. You can go other way." - Donald J. Trump, lifelong sexual and financial predator and deeply, deeply shameful President of the United States of America

The former Prince Andrew leaving the police station after his arrestPhoto by Phil Noble/Reuters, a portrait of power crumbling in real time that went viral on BlueSky

Today, the Supreme Court ruled that Donald Trump’s use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to implement sweeping tariffs was unlawful. Global Trade Watch director Melinda St. Louis issued the following statement:

“The Supreme Court’s decision today deals a blow to Trump’s illegal, chaotic tariffs that have been used to benefit powerful corporate interests over working people.

“When used lawfully and as part of a wider strategic policy, tariffs can help protect U.S. jobs, raise labor and environmental standards, and correct corporate-driven trade imbalances that harm workers and communities. But Trump’s approach was never strategic, constructive, or rooted in concern for working people.

“These sweeping tariffs were deployed to bully other countries to benefit his corporate cronies and to fuel anti-humanitarian political goals, not to uplift the people harmed by decades of corporate-rigged trade policy. While today’s decision is a meaningful check on a specific abuse of power, Trump has made clear that he plans to use other tariff authorities to barrel ahead with his global bullying and secretive dealmaking.

“Congress and the courts should exercise their constitutional checks and balances over all of Trump’s authoritarian power grabs and should demand a trade policy that prioritizes the lives of working people over the billionaires that this administration has been carrying water for since day one.”

Today, the Supreme Court drew a clear line, ruling that Trump’s tariffs were not within his authority under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.

Food & Water Watch Senior Food Policy Analyst Rebecca Wolf issued the following statement:

“Trump’s misguided tariff tantrum has caused an affordability crisis for American consumers and farmers. Trump’s tariffs have driven consumer prices through the roof, and brought irreparable harm to farmers who have seen markets shrink with retaliatory tariffs.

“Today’s ruling is an important check on the President’s dangerous agenda. This decision marks an important step towards restoring balance and addressing the affordability crisis that indiscriminate tariffs helped fuel. We need sound trade policies that will help farmers and families — not undermine them.”

Food & Water Watch analysis of President Trump’s first term trade war found that in its wake:

• Farm bankruptcies rose 24% from 2018 to 2019.
• The number of farms harvesting soybeans decreased overall by 10.7% while the number of soybean farms with 1,000 acres or more increased by 5% from 2017 to 2022.
• The total number of farms fell 7% between 2017 to 2022, hitting small farms and Black producers hardest.
• Bailout funds flowed to the largest operations and multinational corporations.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today finalized a repeal of the 2024 Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) – a move that will allow coal- and oil-fired power plants to emit more brain-damaging mercury, other harmful heavy metals, and dangerous soot. Those emissions put the public at greater risk of heart and lung disease, cancer, and premature death.

EPA also eliminated a common-sense requirement that power plants install cost-effective systems to continuously monitor the amount of pollution they emit — depriving communities of a powerful tool for ensuring power plants comply with air pollution standards and provide real-time data on their emissions.

“Trump’s EPA is making an attack on public health with the repeal of the 2024 MATS,” said Earthjustice Attorney Nicholas Morales. “This unlawful repeal will result in higher levels of mercury, soot, and other hazardous pollution into our air and communities. With this move, the Trump administration is wiping out health protections critical for protecting children from toxins like mercury just to save the coal industry some money.”

The repeal of MATS follows a two-year exemption the Trump administration granted to some of the nation’s dirtiest power plants, many of which had demonstrated their ability to meet the updated 2024 standards. In June 2025, community and environmental groups represented by Earthjustice and other counsel sued the Trump administration over this unlawful decision. The exemptions, issued in April and July, allow 71 coal power plants to release more mercury, arsenic, and other heavy metals, despite overwhelming scientific evidence that tighter limits are achievable and would protect children, pregnant people, and people with chronic heart and lung disease from toxic air pollution.

Background on MATS

Before MATS was established in 2012, there were no federal limits on how much mercury and toxic air pollution coal and oil -fired powered plants could emit. The standards led to a 90% reduction in mercury emissions, 80% drop in other metals, and helped save up to 11,000 lives each year. In 2024, the EPA strengthened MATS, building on what has become one of its most effective air pollution rules.

EPA’s own analysis of the 2024 rule found:

• $33 million in annual health benefits

• Minimal impact on electricity reliability, with no expected retirements

• Only 33 plants required upgrades to meet non-mercury metal standards.

For many coal plants, the 2024 standards simply require tuning up existing pollution controls already in place, and most covered facilities had met or were on track to meet the tighter limits. By scrapping those stronger safeguards and reverting to outdated standards, EPA is giving a lifeline to some of the dirtiest power plants in the country at the expense of public health.

The following are reactions from our clients and the coalition

“This announcement really hits home for us here in the Houston area where one of the nation’s largest and dirtiest coal fired power plants remains fully operational,” says Jennifer Hadayia, executive director at Air Alliance Houston. “The danger of coal plants like W.A.Parish (owned by NRG) are not theoretical; they have real quantifiable harms on people’s quality of life and health. Repealing the rules that curtail coal plant pollution means that mercury, soot, arsenic, and other harmful substances will continue to be in our air at unhealthy levels. And for what reason? Most of the remaining coal plants in the U.S. were already on track to meet the stronger standards. This repeal is a dog whistle to a dying industry and won’t make anyone healthier. Those of us working to truly protect public health from the harms of air pollution will continue to push for stronger protections from coal pollution.”

“This rollback is one more example of the Trump administration putting fossil fuel interests ahead of the American people,” said Anne Havemann, deputy director at the Chesapeake Climate Action Network. “The 2024 MATS rule created meaningful gains in public health at minimal cost. That’s environmental protection at its best.”

“For decades, Montanans have breathed toxic pollution from the dirtiest power plant in the nation,” said Anne Hedges, executive director of the Montana Environmental Information Center. “The outdated, unreliable Colstrip plant has the highest rate of toxic air pollution of any similar coal plant in the nation. It is the only one of its kind that hasn’t installed modern pollution controls. People living downwind shouldn’t have to pay the price of this administration’s reckless disregard for human life through high medical bills and lower quality of life to treat health problems that are completely preventable. It’s heartless.”

“Repealing the 2024 MATS rule is the latest example of the Trump administration serving the fossil fuel industry instead of protecting public health. The excessive emissions of arsenic, mercury, and other toxic heavy metals cause the most harm to the people most in need of protection, including children, who are being exposed to these toxins during critical developmental windows,” said Lawrence Hafetz, legal director of Clean Air Council, headquartered in Pennsylvania, a state containing nine coal plants that would have been subject to improved standards.

“The Trump EPA’s decision to repeal the mercury standards is a direct attack on the health of Americans,” said Laurie Williams, Beyond Coal Campaign director of Sierra Club. “For years, these lifesaving safeguards have slashed the amount of toxic pollution coal plants dump in our air and water, keeping millions of Americans safe from heart attacks, asthma and premature deaths. Now, the president that promised to make Americans healthy again is deliberately weakening those protections and families will suffer preventable illness simply because he wants to give the coal industry another handout at the expense of our health. Americans deserve public health standards that are designed to protect people, not pad the profits of a dying industry that can’t compete with less expensive coal plants that rampantly pollute our air. But Donald Trump and Lee Zeldin have made their choice: help their buddies in the coal industry cut corners rather than prioritize the health and safety of our communities. The Sierra Club will fight this decision with everything we have to defend our communities from this dangerous and deadly rollback.”

“The coal industry is in decline, and dismantling clean air protections won’t bring it back,” says John Walke, senior attorney for NRDC. “It will only lead to more asthma attacks, more heart problems, and more premature deaths, especially in communities living in the shadow of coal plants. We have a right to breathe clean air, and we will fight for that right even if Trump’s EPA refuses to.”

“For over a decade, the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards have protected Americans from mercury and other dangerous pollutants emitted by coal plants, but now Donald Trump and Lee Zeldin are recklessly attacking these protections so their coal buddies can make a few more bucks,” said Sierra Club Climate Policy Director Patrick Drupp. “This is the complete opposite of making Americans healthy. By rolling back this commonsense, lifesaving protection, the Trump administration is making Americans sicker and unnecessarily exposing families and children to more dirty pollution that causes heart disease, cancer, and developmental disabilities. This is despicable and reckless, and we will continue to defend our communities from these health hazards caused by coal plants.”

“With so many of the nation’s coal plants concentrated in the Midwest, this decision sends an unmistakable signal that our communities are expendable,” said Brian Lynk, Environmental Law & Policy Center senior attorney. “Rolling back protections from toxic mercury pollution sacrifices public health to prop up a declining industry, even though it won’t change the fundamental economics driving coal’s decline. This administration is sticking its head in the sand while the rest of the world moves forward toward more affordable and less toxic energy sources.”

“This repeal is an unprecedented, unlawful, and unjustified reversal that flies in the face of congressionally mandated efforts to reduce hazardous air pollution from industrial facilities,” said Hayden Hashimoto, attorney at Clean Air Task Force. “EPA’s repeal puts polluters’ interests over public health by loosening the limits on emissions of air toxics from power plants, which the agency has previously recognized as the largest domestic emitter of mercury and other hazardous air pollutants. Allowing more emissions of air toxics puts Americans at greater risk for the benefit of a small number of particularly dirty coal plants.”

“Repealing these protections will allow coal plants to pour more mercury and toxic pollution into our air, which will then get into our water, food, and ultimately our children’s bodies. It’s a needless cruelty when modern pollution controls can provide greater safety,” said Surbhi Sarang, senior attorney at Environmental Defense Fund. “The Trump administration is willfully ignoring evidence that coal plants can reduce their pollution in readily available ways for reasonable cost – and American families will be the ones paying the price.”

Today, Donald Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency dismantled a bedrock environmental and public health standard that protects Americans from mercury and other dangerous toxic air pollutants, such as arsenic, lead, and chromium. Rolling back the new and more protective Mercury and Air Toxics Standards will allow coal- and oil-fired power plants to emit more damaging pollution that puts the public at greater risk of heart and lung disease, cancer, and even premature death, as well as causing severe neurological damage to fetuses and children.

According to the Sierra Club’s Trump Coal Pollution Dashboard, reversing the 2024 improvements and reverting to the 2012 standards will allow the dirtiest coal-fired power plants to emit 50 percent more mercury pollution. In May 2025, the Trump administration exempted 68 power plants—including some of the biggest polluters in the nation—from MATS after soliciting exemption requests from big polluters over email.

The Sierra Club sued the administration for these unlawful exemptions.

In response, Sierra Club Campaign Organizing Strategist Bonnie Swinford issued the following statement:

“These protections from mercury and other toxic pollution existed to protect communities from reckless polluters. By repealing these protections, the Trump Administration is giving handouts to the coal industry elites– and waging war on the public’s ability to hold polluters accountable. We deserve protection from dirty and expensive plants like Kingston and Cumberland coal plants. We cannot allow the Trump Administration and utilities like TVA to run these coal plants with no input from everyday people. We must fight to keep the public in public power.”

In response, Sierra Club Beyond Coal Campaign Director Laurie Williams issued the following statement:

“Donald Trump’s senseless decision to repeal the mercury standards is a direct attack on the health of Americans. For years, these lifesaving protections have slashed the amount of toxic pollution coal plants dump in our air and water, keeping millions of Americans safe from heart attacks, asthma and premature deaths, and protecting our babies from permanent neurological damage. Now, the president that promised to make Americans healthy again is deliberately weakening those safeguards, and families will suffer preventable illnesses simply because he wants to give the coal industry another handout.

“Americans deserve public health standards that are designed to protect people, not pad the profits of a polluting industry that can’t compete with cheaper, reliable, renewable energy. But Donald Trump and Lee Zeldin have made their choice: help their buddies in the coal industry cut corners rather than prioritize the health and safety of our communities. The Sierra Club will fight this decision with everything we have to defend our communities from this dangerous and deadly rollback.”

The Supreme Court’s 6-3 decision today striking down Donald Trump’s authority to impose sweeping tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act will do little to deliver meaningful relief to American consumers or businesses still paying the price for his chaotic trade agenda. Prices driven up by Trump’s tariffs will remain high, and the Court’s decision falls far short of restoring certainty to an economy warped by months of trade policy whiplash.

Tariffs affected by this decision amount to over $175 billion so far, with higher costs passed directly onto consumers while businesses pulled back on hiring and investment. Those costs are now baked into supply chains and balance sheets, and prices that have climbed since Trump took office are unlikely to come back down. The Trump administration has already signaled it will cobble together a patchwork of alternative legal authorities to preserve its trade regime, guaranteeing continued instability for businesses trying to plan, hire, and invest.

Groundwork Collaborative Chief of Policy and Advocacy Alex Jacquez reacted with the following statement:

“Any consumer looking for relief from tariff-driven price hikes did not find it at the Supreme Court today. The economic damage Trump has already done to business investment, manufacturing, and working families’ budgets will linger for years to come. Refunds for impacted businesses will take months or even years to process, and there is little reason to believe companies will pass those savings on to consumers. Trump must set aside his erratic tariff policy and instead pursue a trade agenda that protects workers, supports manufacturers, and doesn’t punish consumers.”

Email press@groundworkcollaborative.org to speak to a Groundwork expert about the economic costs of Trump’s trade agenda.

Today, Center for Food Safety (CFS) issued the following statement from George Kimbrell, Legal Director at Center for Food Safety, in response to the Trump administration’s February 18, 2026 Executive Order concerning glyphosate:

“This Trump Executive Order follows a long pattern from the administration: sound and fury, ultimately signifying nothing. Executive orders do not have the force and effect of law without new authority from Congress and here cannot magically give Monsanto immunity for the harms of its toxic glyphosate products. In addition to being legally meritless, the EO is factually unmoored from reality. The Trump Administration has demonstrated no threat to the continued availability of glyphosate, and in any case there are literally hundreds of other herbicides available to farmers and others. This EO is a transparent attempt to influence the Supreme Court to grant glyphosate-maker Monsanto/Bayer and other pesticide behemoths immunity from liability for the harms caused by their products. It also represents the Trump administration betraying MAHA yet again and a feeble attempt to divert attention from the disastrous effects of Trump tariffs on the farming community.”

Background

For over twenty five years, Center for Food Safety has worked to improve pesticide regulation and build a better, more regenerative future of food. Among other landmark cases on behalf of the public interest, a CFS lawsuit resulting to a federal court in 2022 holding that EPA’s cancer safety findings for glyphosate were contrary to both the law and scientific standards, and striking them down

New data released today by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows union representation grew by 463,000 in 2025, bringing the total number of workers represented by union contracts to 16.5 million. Thanks to years of sustained organizing, 11.2% of all wage and salary workers in the United States are now covered under union contracts, up from 2024 and the highest in 16 years.

“Billionaire bosses and union-busting politicians have tried to throw the kitchen sink at working people and their unions—slashing our jobs and rigging the rules to scare us out of organizing— but they are failing,” said AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler. “Working people are experiencing relentless attacks on our freedoms and our livelihoods. These numbers confirm what we’ve seen in the labor movement: Workers have felt President Trump’s billionaire-first agenda in action and are hungry to take back their power. Workers know that the best check on a bad boss is a strong union contract. In 2026, workers will continue to organize in every corner of the country and build power to fight for the lives they deserve.”

“Labor is one of the last institutions in this country that working people actually trust,” added Shuler. “Nearly 70% of Americans support unions and more than 50 million more workers are eager to join one—but broken labor law still has the deck stacked against them. Too many face vicious union-busting and retaliation for organizing and punishing lay-offs even as corporate bosses rake in profits. When Trump shut down the National Labor Relations Board from functioning by denying it a quorum, workers were forced to wait—beyond their own bosses’ delaying tactics—for their elections to be certified and legal justice to be served.”

The new report shows undeniable energy across the country:

• Years of organizing in new industries, workplaces and in “right to work” states in the South have pushed nationwide union density to 10%.
• Nearly half of all union growth came from Southern states, with younger workers organizing at a rapid pace.
• The number of public sector workers represented by a union grew by 236,000, up to 36.4% of that workforce.
• Despite the biggest act of union-busting in history, union density among federal workers grew to over 31%—the largest single-year increase since 2011—as workers responded to DOGE-driven attacks aimed at stripping away collective bargaining rights and driving experts out of their jobs.
• Private sector union representation grew to add 227,000 workers, with significant gains in health care, retail, education services and construction.
• Workers are looking to the labor movement for solutions as artificial intelligence (AI) threatens their jobs and basic rights. Already, the White House is barreling ahead with its billionaire-first “AI Action Plan” and empowering CEOs to use AI as an excuse to slash payrolls, with 7% of planned job cuts attributed to the new technology.

“Politicians face a clear mandate to stand up to union-busting bosses, whether they are in the corner office or the oval office,” Shuler said. “We call on Congress to pass the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act and the Public Service Freedom to Negotiate Act, and to reverse the single largest act of union-busting in American history by passing the Protect America's Workforce Act in the Senate.”

In response to a Trump administration official telling reporters there is now a 90% chance of U.S. military action against Iran in the coming weeks, the National Iranian American Council (NIAC) released the following statement:

“This assessment should trigger immediate action from Congress, the branch of government legally and constitutionally charged with deciding when the U.S. goes to war.

“The United States is positioned on the edge of a major war in the Middle East, one that would not be limited, short-lived, or contained. With extensive military deployments underway and public signals that diplomacy may soon be abandoned, the risk of a large-scale, prolonged and senseless conflict is immediate and real. A war on Iran would not help Iranians demanding change in the face of government repression but instead kill innocent people, create instability inside Iran, and ignite a region-wide conflict.

“NIAC, the largest grassroots Iranian-American organization in the United States, representing more than 70,000 members nationwide, has spent nearly 25 years advancing peace and working to prevent a catastrophic war with Iran. Earlier this month, NIAC Action and 25 other national organizations formally called on Congress to exercise its constitutional authority and take immediate action to remove U.S. forces from hostilities and prevent an unauthorized and devastating conflict. This could be the last chance for Congress to finally assert its Constitutional authority and debate whether our nation enters a major war with generational consequences.

“The power to declare war belongs to Congress, not the president. Yet the country is once again being steered toward war without a vote, without meaningful public debate, and without clear authorization from the representatives of the American people.

“A war with Iran would carry enormous regional consequences, endanger American service members and Iranian civilians alike, destabilize global markets, and risk spiraling escalation across the region and diminished civil liberties at home. The American public has consistently opposed such a war. Lawmakers must reflect that reality.

“There is a concrete path to prevent this outcome. The Iran War Powers Resolution (WPR), introduced in the Senate by Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Rand Paul (R-KY) and in the House by Representatives Ro Khanna (D-CA) and Thomas Massie (R-KY), would require the President to remove U.S. forces from hostilities with Iran absent Congressional authorization and make clear that any war must be debated and approved by Congress. If the reported 90% likelihood of military action is even close to accurate, Congress has no time to waste.”

The Center for Biological Diversity and a broad coalition of health and environmental groups sued the Trump administration today over its rollback of the landmark scientific finding that forms the core basis of federal climate action.

The lawsuit also challenges the Environmental Protection Agency’s rollback of tailpipe rules that cut pollution from cars and trucks — the nation’s largest source of climate pollution.

“We’re suing to stop Trump from torching our kids’ future in favor of a monster handout to oil companies,” said David Pettit, an attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity’s Climate Law Institute. “Nobody but Big Oil profits from Trump trashing climate science and making cars and trucks guzzle and pollute more. Consumers will pay more to fill up, and our skies and oceans will fill up with more pollution. The EPA’s rollbacks are based on political poppycock, not science or law, and the courts should see it that way.”

The 2009 endangerment finding concluded that planet-warming pollution like carbon dioxide and methane threatens public health and the welfare of current and future generations. It was based on overwhelming scientific evidence that has only become more robust and irrefutable since then.

The United States is the second-largest carbon polluter in the world, after China, and the largest historical emitter of greenhouse gases.

The endangerment finding underpins federal regulations that have reduced climate-damaging pollution from cars and trucks.

Revoking those lifesaving and gas-saving clean air standards will allow automakers to make cars that guzzle more gas and pollute more. It will force consumers to pay more at the gas pump.

The vehicle rules Trump plans to scrap would cut 7 billion metric tons of emissions and save the average American driver $6,000 in fuel and maintenance costs over the lifetimes of the vehicles made under the standards.

Today’s lawsuit was filed in federal court in the D.C. Circuit.

The case was brought by:

• The American Lung Association, American Public Health Association, Alliance of Nurses for a Healthy Environment, Clean Wisconsin, represented by Clean Air Task Force
• Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice (CCAEJ), Clean Air Council, Physicians for Social Responsibility, Rio Grande International Study Center (RGISC), and the Union of Concerned Scientists, represented by Earthjustice
• Center for Biological Diversity, Conservation Law Foundation, Environmental Defense Fund, Environmental Law & Policy Center, NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council), Public Citizen, Sierra Club

Today, the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) joined a group of environmental, public health and science nonprofits in filing suit against the Trump administration for unlawfully repealing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) endangerment finding and rolling back emissions standards for vehicles despite the transportation sector being the largest source of U.S. climate pollution.

The 2007 Supreme Court ruling Massachusetts v. Environmental Protection Agency—a court case where UCS was a petitioner—established that heat-trapping emissions are covered by the Clean Air Act. EPA’s 2009 endangerment finding then confirmed that global warming emissions are a threat to public health and the environment, with subsequent court rulings repeatedly reaffirming EPA’s obligation to the public to regulate these harmful emissions.

Below is a statement by Dr. Gretchen Goldman, president and CEO of UCS.

“EPA’s repeal of the endangerment finding and safeguards to limit vehicle emissions marks a complete dereliction of the agency’s mission to protect people’s health and its legal obligation under the Clean Air Act. This shameful and dangerous action by the Trump administration and EPA Administrator Zeldin is rooted in falsehoods not facts and is entirely at odds with the public interest and the best available science. Heat-trapping emissions and global average temperatures are rising—primarily due to the burning of fossil fuels—contributing to a mounting human and economic toll across the nation. This anti-science administration must be held to account for evading its responsibility to help address this acute crisis and we’re going to help make sure that happens.”

UCS is being represented by Earthjustice in this latest lawsuit. The joint press release from groups filing the lawsuit is available here. Please contact UCS Media Director Ashley Siefert Nunes to speak with a UCS expert.

UCS filed comments on behalf of its half a million supporters and its network of more than 22,000 scientists to voice strong opposition to EPA’s proposed repeal of the endangerment finding and vehicle standards. It also submitted a letter to EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin that was signed by more than 1,000 scientists opposing repeal of the endangerment finding and urging the agency to stop dismantling critical climate regulations and fulfill the mission of the agency to protect public health.

UCS has also filed and recently won a suit against the Trump administration related to its violation of the Federal Advisory Committee Act. A federal judge recently declared the Trump administration violated federal law when it secretly formed a “Climate Working Group” and tasked it with writing a dangerously slanted report that the administration then used as a basis for its proposal to overturn the endangerment finding. As part of that lawsuit—brought by UCS and the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF)—the administration was compelled to turn over more than 100,000 documents, which UCS and EDF plan to make available to the public in early March.

Vanuatu has tabled a draft resolution to the UN to formally endorse last year’s International Court of Justice advisory opinion on climate change. Despite pressure from big polluters to stall the momentum from international law to action, island nations like Vanuatu continue to push for accountability.

The current draft resolution responds to the unanimous ICJ advisory opinion on climate change, which among others confirmed that:

• The 1.5°C limit is legally binding, not aspirational, and must guide all state conduct.
• States have binding obligations under customary international law to prevent foreseeable climate harm and resulting rights violations—obligations that apply to all countries, including those that have withdrawn from the Paris Agreement.
• Fossil fuel subsidies, exploration licenses, and continued production can breach international law.
• Climate harm can be attributed to individual states, and states cannot escape liability by asserting that they are only one of many releasing greenhouse gases.
• States must regulate private actors, including fossil fuel corporations whose emissions cause harm, including transboundary devastation.

Fenton Lutunatabua, 350.org Program Lead Pacific & Caribbean said:

“Six months ago, this advisory opinion was unanimous, meaning all agreed that countries have the legal responsibility to avoid climate harm and are liable for the damages if they fail to do so. This decision put the fossil fuel industry, and the governments that enable them, on notice. It is crucial, for all of us on the frontlines, that this notice be turned into concrete action. The world may think that the climate crisis is confined to islands like ours in the Pacific, but the reality is that it is impacting everyone – from heatwaves in Australia to wildfires in the US. As people that have lived this reality for decades, we are urging the international community to grasp this opportunity to avoid the worst of it. Global cooperation to solve this crisis is in everyone’s best interest.”

Anne Jellema, Executive Director of 350.org, said:

“Vanuatu’s leadership is a powerful reminder that climate justice is not abstract, it is rooted in law, responsibility, and lived reality. The International Court of Justice has made clear that protecting people and the planet is a legal obligation, not a choice. This UN resolution is about turning that clarity into action.

At a time when some governments are trying to delay and deny, island nations are showing what true leadership looks like: standing up for fairness, accountability, and a livable future for all. Communities on the frontlines should not have to pay the price for pollution they did not cause. The world now has both the moral and legal mandate to act, governments must rise to that moment.”