Occupy Banksters & Crony Capitalism & GREED

MSNBC Highlights - Feb. 4 | MSNBC | 02/04/25 | 43:30

Trump's Gaza shock wave stuns Middle East and some in White House
Axios | Barak Ravid | 02/05/25

President Trump's stunning declaration that the U.S. could "take over" Gaza surprised many of his own advisers, thrilled right-wing Israelis, and deeply alarmed the governments in Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan, sources in Washington and around the region tell Axios.

Friction point: Trump's plan to displace two million Palestinians came at a very sensitive point of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire and hostage deal. It could even embolden both Hamas and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to resume the war.

Driving the news: After an Oval Office meeting with Netanyahu, Trump presented his proposal to turn Gaza - largely destroyed by Israel in its war with Hamas - into what he called the "Riviera of the Middle East" and invite "the world's people" to move there.

The sense of shock was palpable among the 150 journalists in the room. ... Read more

GOP at its finest

Doge staffers enter Noaa headquarters and incite reports of cuts and threats
The Guardian | Michael Sainato | 02/04/25

Staffers with Elon Musk's "department of government efficiency" (Doge) reportedly entered the headquarters of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa) in Silver Spring, Maryland, and the Department of Commerce in Washington DC today, inciting concerns of downsizing at the agency.

"They apparently just sort of walked past security and said: 'Get out of my way,' and they're looking for access for the IT systems, as they have in other agencies," said Andrew Rosenberg, a former Noaa official who is now a fellow at the University of New Hampshire. "They will have access to the entire computer system, a lot of which is confidential information."

Project 2025, written by several former Trump staffers, has called for the agency to be "broken up and downsized", claiming the agency is "harmful to US prosperity" for its role in climate science. ... Read more

Trump Backs Off of Tariffs, Senate Advances RFK Jr & We Send LA Firefighters to the Super Bowl | Jimmy Kimmel | 02/05/25 | 16:02

20,000 federal workers take "buyout" so far, official says
Axios | Marc Caputo | 02/04/25

About 20,000 federal workers have accepted the "buyout" offer put forward by the Trump administration last week, a senior administration official tells Axios.

Why it matters: It's a significant number of people - about 1% of the federal workforce - but still substantially less than the White House's target of 5% to 10%.

The offer is open through Thursday, meaning the total could rise, despite heavy opposition from unions and others.

"We expect more to come. If you see what's happening at USAID, it's just one piece of the puzzle," the official said, referring to the rapid restructuring of the federal agency that oversees foreign aid programs. ... Read more

January surprises with a global temperature record
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Axios | Andrew Freedman | 02/04/25

The planet just had its hottest January on record by a considerable margin, in a surprise finding (seriously) to climate scientists.

Why it matters: A La Nina event is ongoing in the tropical Pacific Ocean, which would typically be expected to cool the globe slightly. Yet that doesn't appear to be the case - at least not yet.

Zoom in: That the opposite is occurring suggests either a fluke or - combined with the record hot conditions in 2023 and again last year - something more mysterious.

So far, there's been no way to explain the 2023 and 2024 records, but the expectation is that this year will be a top 5 hottest year - just not first place. ... Read more

Mass Deportations: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver | MSNBC | 02/03/25 | 19:09

Musk intensifies government spending attack with push to cut all regulations
The Guardian | Robert Tait | 02/04/25

Elon Musk has proposed a "wholesale removal of regulations" in an intensification of his crusade to slash US federal government spending.

On a call aired on X, the social media platform he owns, the multibillionaire entrepreneur said regulations should be "gone" as vocal opposition grew against his mission as Donald Trump's enforcer as the head of a newly created "department of government efficiency" (Doge).

"Regulations, basically, should be default gone," Musk said in call joined by Vivek Ramaswamy, until recently the joint head of Doge, and two Republican senators, Joni Ernst and Mike Lee.

"Not default there, default gone. And if it turns out that we missed the mark on a regulation, we can always add it back in."

He also said the early days of Trump's presidency, combined with a Republican-controlled Congress, presented a unique chance of implementing a radical overhaul of US government.

"If it's not possible now, it'll never be possible. This is our shot," he said. "This is the best hand of cards we're ever going to have. And if we don't take advantage of this best hand of cards, it's never going to happen." ... Read more

How Climate Change Could Upend the American Dream
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Propublica | Abrahm Lustgarten | 02/03/25

Houses in the Altadena and Pacific Palisades neighborhoods were still ablaze when talk turned to the cost of the Los Angeles firestorms and who would pay for it. Now it appears that the total damage and economic loss could be more than $250 billion. This, after a year in which hurricanes Milton and Helene and other extreme weather events had already exacted tens of billions of dollars in American disaster losses.

As the compounding impacts of climate-driven disasters take effect, we are seeing home insurance prices spike around the country, pushing up the costs of owning a home. In some cases, insurance companies are pulling out of towns altogether. And in others, people are beginning to move away. ... Read more

Trump administration gives Musk allies access to Treasury payment system
Politico | Michael Stratford | 02/01/25

The Trump administration has approved plans to grant Treasury officials affiliated with Elon Musk's team access to the federal system that handles trillions of dollars in payments, according to two people familiar with the situation.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has signed off on a plan to give access to the payment system to a team led by Tom Krause, the CEO of Cloud Software Group, who is now working for the Treasury Department and serves as a liaison to Musk’s DOGE group that operates out of the United States Digital Service. One person familiar with the effort said Krause’s role will be subject to safeguards that would not allow any ability to make changes to the system and that no one outside Treasury would have access. ... Read more

We Are Living in Unprecedented Times | Bernie Sanders | 02/01/25 | 7:48

Why are the Democrats so spineless?
The Guradian | Moira Donegan | 02/03/25

What does the Democratic party believe in? It's difficult to tell. In 2024, Joe Biden and then Kamala Harris ran a campaign of moderation, reconciliation and emphasis on restoring institutional norms. This failed to capture much public attention when compared with the Trump campaign's carnival of grievance. In the months since their defeat, the Democrats have been confused, conflicted and internally contentious over how to best proceed.

The results have been contradictory and ineffectual. The Democrats have alternated between declaring Trump a fascist and a would-be dictator, and congratulating themselves on peacefully handing over the reins of power to him; they have railed against his corruption and his subordination to the unelected South African billionaire Elon Musk, but have also made themselves available to cooperate with Musk's project to gut the federal bureaucracy and reshape it in his own interests, the initiative that has been moronically termed "Doge". ... Read more

Republicans move to repeal lead limits imposed by Biden-era rules
The Guardian | Tom Perkins | 02/03/25

Republicans in Congress and the Trump administration are attempting to repeal the Biden administration's groundbreaking rules that require all the country's lead pipes to be replaced over the next 13 years and lower the limit on lead in water.

Environmentalists expressed alarm about the moves, which, if successful, would in effect prohibit the government from ever requiring lead line replacement in the future, or lowering lead limits.

The Trump administration is also working to kill a recently implemented ban on TCE, a compound that is among the most toxic and common water pollutants, and particularly a risk on military bases. ... Read more

Trump Blames DEI for Tragic Plane Crash, Kookie Kash Patel & Jimmy Chats with RFK Jr. JUNIOR | Jimmy Kimmel | 01/31/25 | 14:56