Rolling Stone: Spooked by Trade Wars, Trump Officials Hoard Supplies: ‘It Would Be Stupid Not To!’

Some Trump administration officials are stockpiling toilet paper and food before Trump’s tariffs cause prices to skyrocket

This is what they tell the geese:

Donald Trump’s trade wars with China and other nations are widely expected to cause sharp economic pain, but some experts have warned consumers not to hoard supplies and goods before prices skyrocket, arguing that mass stockpiling could backfire spectacularly.

But this is what the ganders do:

Two Trump administration officials and a Trump aide tell Rolling Stone that they have done some stockpiling of their own in recent weeks or months, and that they know others working in Republican politics — inside and outside of the administration — who are doing the same. One of the Trump officials says they have already run to Target to bulk-buy toilet paper, some types of food, and other household supplies. 

When asked why they’re doing this, the Trump aide — who says they and their partner have done similar household-supply hoarding lately, and are also “stashing cash” reserves in their D.C.-area home — simply replies: “Because it would be stupid not to!” The aide adds that they still believe in Trump’s tariffs regime, though, citing the supposed advantage of “short-term pain” in exchange for long-term “prosperity.”

https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/trump-officials-hoarding-supplies-trade-war-tariffs-1235329235

Rolling Stone: ‘Lives Are In Danger’ After a Trump Admin Spreadsheet Leak, Sources Say

Two Trump administration spreadsheets – which each include what numerous advocates and government officials say is highly sensitive information on programs funded by the U.S. State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) – were sent to Congress and also leaked online. 

The leak, which sent a variety of international groups and nonprofits scrambling to assess the damage and protect workers operating under repressive regimes, came after the organizations had pressed the Trump administration to keep the sensitive information private and received some assurances it would remain secret.

Reached for comment, White House Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly says: “These documents were transmitted to Congress and not publicly released by the State Department.” She urged Rolling Stone to contact “whoever leaked it and in turn, made it public.”

“Please do not share the spreadsheet that was circulating yesterday with terminated awards listed and if possible remove it or ask it to be removed from anywhere you’ve seen it,” reads one message shared in a private USAID chat late this week. “It contains information about partners who are working in unsafe environments with restricted civil society space or terrible LGBTQ laws etc. A few of our friends already had to pull staff on an emergency basis yesterday due to threats and unwanted attention from their governments. Please pass along to anyone you think needs to see this.”

One top executive at an international nonprofit and U.S. government implementing partner that’s been grappling with the fallout bluntly tells Rolling Stone: “In all our years of receiving grants from a range of governments, we have never seen the safety of government partners treated with such reckless abandon. People will lose their liberty, and possibly even more, because of this.”

Another source with knowledge of the situation – a State Department career official – says: “Lives are in danger that did not have to be.” 

What do you expect when your government is run by a bunch of wannabes from Fox News?

‘Lives Are In Danger’ After a Trump Admin Spreadsheet Leak, Sources Say