Tag Archives: Marco Rubio

Raw Story: Travesty’: Ex-presidents issue rare rebuke of Trump as major agency axed

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Obama:

A pair of former U.S. presidents issued a rare rebuke of President Donald Trump on Monday in a farewell meeting to former employees of the U.S. Agency for International Development.

Former president Barack Obama called Trump’s decision to shutter the agency “a travesty.” He also credited the agency with both saving lives and creating economic growth across the globe.

Bush:

Former president George W. Bush chided Trump for gutting a program within USAID known as the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, which he credited with saving 25 million lives across the world.

“You’ve showed the great strength of America through your work — and that is your good heart,’’ Bush said in a pre-recorded message. “Is it in our national interests that 25 million people who would have died now live? I think it is, and so do you.”

Our resident fascist:

Trump has raged against USAID since the day he took office for his second term. One of the first executive orders Trump signed described U.S. foreign aid offices as being “not aligned with American interests and in many cases antithetical to American values.”

He then sent Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, to investigate USAID’s spending and recommend ways to reduce the agency’s financial prowess. Musk described USAID as “a criminal organization” and “a viper’s nest of radical-left Marxists who hate America.”

And one of the fascist’s royal suck-ups:

The pressure had its intended impact. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who previously described USAID as an agency with “amazing achievements,” swiftly recommended cutting 83% of programs under the agency’s umbrella.

Travesty’: Ex-presidents issue rare rebuke of Trump as major agency axed

https://www.rawstory.com/usaid-2672503313

Washington Post: Morale craters at State Department as mass layoffs loom

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Secretary of State Marco Rubio has called the agency “bloated,” yet as violence spiked in the Middle East, staff say they’ve been asked to work extra hours.

The Trump administration’s plan for mass layoffs at the State Department has left much of the workforce exasperated and embittered, tanking morale as extra demands were made to assist U.S. citizens seeking to flee the Middle East amid Israel’s war with Iran, employees say.

At the direction of Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the State Department informed Congress in May that it planned to reduce its U.S. workforce by more than 15 percent — almost 2,000 people — as part of a sweeping reorganization intended to streamline what he has called a “bloated bureaucracy that stifles innovation and misallocates scarce resources.” Separately, he has accused certain bureaus within the department of pursuing a “radical political ideology.”

Rubio had set a July 1 timeline for the dismissals, but execution of the plan is contingent on a favorable ruling from the Supreme Court, which is evaluating President Donald Trump’s sweeping attempt to fire federal workers across numerous government agencies. It’s unclear when the court could act.

Amid the wait, State Department staff were asked to work additional hours to help at-risk Americans as fighting between Israel and Iran stirred fears of a full-scale regional crisis. A task force, established on June 12 to manage evacuations, faced an even greater sense of urgency after Trump directed U.S. military intervention in the conflict.

Demoralize them, then make them work harder! That sounds so “Trumpian”!.

Morale craters at State Department as mass layoffs loom
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has called the agency “bloated,” yet as violence spiked in the Middle East, staff say they’ve been asked to work extra hours.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/06/28/state-department-layoffs-trump-rubio

Also here:

Morale craters at State Department as mass layoffs loom
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has called the agency “bloated,” yet as violence spiked in the Middle East, staff say they’ve been asked to work extra hours.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/morale-craters-at-state-department-as-mass-layoffs-loom/ar-AA1HAbuY

CNN: US did not use bunker-buster bombs on one of Iran’s nuclear sites, top general tells lawmakers, citing depth of the target

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The US military did not use bunker-buster bombs on one of Iran’s largest nuclear sites last weekend because the site is so deep that the bombs likely would not have been effective, the US’ top general told senators during a briefing on Thursday.

The comment by Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Dan Caine, which was described by three people who heard his remarks and a fourth who was briefed on them, is the first known explanation given for why the US military did not use the Massive Ordnance Penetrator bomb against the Isfahan site in central Iran. US officials believe Isfahan’s underground structures house nearly 60% of Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile, which Iran would need in order to ever produce a nuclear weapon.

US B2 bombers dropped over a dozen bunker-buster bombs on Iran’s Fordow and Natanz nuclear sites. But Isfahan was only struck by Tomahawk missiles launched from a US submarine.

So what we heard from King Donald was largely lies and hot air — par for the course.

US’ top general tells lawmakers | CNN Politics
The US military did not use bunker-buster bombs on one of Iran’s largest nuclear sites last weekend because the site is so deep that the bombs likely would not have been effective, the US’ top general told senators during a briefing on Thursday.

https://www.cnn.com/2025/06/27/politics/bunker-buster-bomb-isfahan-iran

Huffington Post: Donald Trump Makes Eye-Rolling New Title Suggestion For Pete Hegseth

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The president’s throwback title idea went awry.

Donald Trump on Wednesday raised eyebrows with a controversial suggestion to rename the secretary of defense position as secretary of war.

Speaking at a NATO meeting in The Netherlands, Trump introduced Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth by saying:

“Secretary of state and secretary of war. Shall we say secretary… It used to be called secretary of war. Maybe for a couple of weeks we’ll call it that because we feel like warriors.”

He continued:

“It used to be called secretary of war, in fact if you look at the old building next to the White House, you can see where it used to be secretary of war. Then we became politically correct and they called it secretary of defense. I don’t know, maybe we’ll have to start thinking about changing it but we feel that way.”

Great warriors indeed! A draft dodger and an O-3 washout! 😀

Trump Makes Eye-Rolling New Title Suggestion For Pete Hegseth
The president’s throwback title idea went awry.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/donald-trump-pete-hegseth-title_n_685cf373e4b0f78c5737d4d1

MSNBC: Maddow Blog | Trump’s response to intelligence assessment on Iran strikes takes an incoherent turn

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The intelligence about the U.S. strikes on Iranian targets can’t be conclusive and inconclusive at the same time.

As Donald Trump arrived in the Netherlands this week for an annual NATO summit, the American president reportedly hoped to take a victory lap of sorts, celebrating the success of the preemptive military strikes he approved targeting Iranian nuclear sites. As is often the case with the Republican, reality quickly got in the way.

On Tuesday, the world learned of a preliminary intelligence assessment from the Pentagon’s Defense Intelligence Agency, which jolted the public and political debate. As NBC News confirmed, the initial assessment concluded that the U.S. airstrikes “were not as effective” as Trump claimed, and the mission set Iran’s nuclear program “back by only three to six months.”

Looney bird Trump is in denial:

Pressed on the efficacy of the mission and the accuracy of the intelligence, Trump said, “The intelligence was very inconclusive. The intelligence says we don’t know. It could have been very severe. That’s what the intelligence says. So I guess that’s correct. But I think we can take the ‘we don’t know.’ It was very severe. It was obliteration.”

Or put another way, according to the American president, U.S. intelligence officials don’t know, but he does know.

Trump’s response to intelligence assessment on Iran strikes takes an incoherent turn
The intelligence about the U.S. strikes on Iranian targets can’t be conclusive and inconclusive at the same time.

https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/trumps-response-intelligence-assessment-iran-strikes-takes-incoherent-rcna214937

NBC News: Pro-Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil released after months in detention

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Minutes after the Columbia University activist was released, the Trump administration filed an appeal of his release.

Pro-Palestinian activist and Columbia University graduate student Mahmoud Khalil was released from detention Friday evening, ending more than three months of custody in a test of the executive branch’s power to unilaterally act against legal U.S. residents.

…

Assistant Homeland Security Secretary Tricia McLaughlin lashed out at “rogue” U.S. District Court Judge Michael Farbiarz, saying he had no authority to order Khalil’s release.

“This is yet another example of how out of control members of the judicial branch are undermining national security,” McLaughlin said. “Their conduct not only denies the result of the 2024 election, it also does great harm to our constitutional system by undermining public confidence in the courts.”

Government attorney Dhruman Sampat had argued that Congress has given the executive branch sweeping powers to determine who could be removed from the county.

The courts should not have the authority to interfere, Sampat said.

With regard to permanent residents, this presumed “authority” is total b*llsh*t!

Pro-Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil released after months in detention
Minutes after the Columbia University activist was released, the Trump administration filed an appeal of his release.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/rcna214163

Robert Reich: The Dogs of War

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What’s really going on.

As a result, he’s probably getting decent advice about what’s good for Trump but not about what’s good for America or the world. It’s an inevitable consequence of purging from the government anyone more loyal to the United States than to him. Besides, Trump only listens to information he wants to hear.

1. Why is Trump taking us into war with Iran?

2. Is (or was) Iran building a nuclear weapon?

3. Is Trump getting good information and advice?

4. Will Iran now cave and agree to destroy its remaining stockpile of enriched uranium and allow inspectors to confirm that the stockpile is gone?

5. Have the bombings wiped out Iran’s capacity to enrich uranium to produce fissile material for nuclear weapons?

6. What’s the worst Iran can now do to the United States in retaliation?

7. Will the American public “rally ‘round the flag” and support Trump in this war

8. Will he send in American ground troops?

9. What’s Congress likely to do now?

10. Bonus question: Where does the phrase “dogs of war” come from?

The Dogs of War
What’s really going on

https://robertreich.substack.com/p/the-dogs-of-war

New York Magazine: Playing Secretary — Could These Be Pete Hegseth’s Last Days in the Pentagon?

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As war looms, Pete Hegseth’s Pentagon is beset by infighting over leaks, drugs, and socks. How long will Trump stand by his man?

In the drama of Hegseth’s January confirmation hearings, it was easy to get distracted by the financial settlement for an assault allegation, by the multitudinous accounts of heavy drinking on the job, by claims of misogyny from both his mother and his sister-in-law, by the fact that Hegseth, while married with three small children, had fathered a child with a Fox News producer who was also married with small children, during which pregnancy he had slept with the woman who later accused him of assault, and thereby miss some straightforward information about his managerial experience.

Pete Hegseth had run a nonprofit called Veterans for Freedom for several years, an organization that employed fewer than 20 people, and resigned after alleged financial mismanagement nearly bankrupted the organization. He had run a group called Concerned Veterans for America, which employed around 160 people, and resigned amid allegations of misconduct and, once again, financial mismanagement.

In choosing Hegseth, Donald Trump did not choose from the large set of people who had never managed an organization, or the considerably smaller set of people who had managed an organization without incident, but from a smaller still set of people who had managed multiple bureaucracies and resigned multiple times under complex circumstances.

It’s a good read but a bit long. Click the link below to read the entire article:

Could These Be Pete Hegseth’s Last Days in the Pentagon?
archived 13 Jun 2025 19:07:18 UTC

https://archive.is/xG4FF#selection-1205.0-1209.128

Axios: Judge denies Mahmoud Khalil’s release after Trump admin submits new filing

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A federal judge has declined to release Columbia University alumnus Mahmoud Khalil from federal detention after the Trump administration submitted a last-minute filing.

Why it matters: The administration’s tug-of-war with courts over Khalil represents a historic test for immigrants’ speech rights – namely, those of permanent residents – particularly where they concern pro-Palestinian speech.

Driving the news: The federal government on Friday said that continuing to detain Khalil does not violate the court’s Wednesday injunction, because Khalil’s detainment is now based on “other grounds,” such as being undocumented when he entered the U.S.

How many millions of our $$ will be wasted harassing this poor guy and his family?

Judge denies Mahmoud Khalil’s release after Trump admin submits new filing
The Trump admin argued that the judge’s injunction “does not interfere” with authority to detain Khalil on other grounds.

https://www.axios.com/2025/06/13/trump-admin-refuses-to-release-mahmoud-khalil-despite-judges-order

Guardian: Newsom says use of national guard for Ice raids ‘ends tomorrow at noon’ – as it happened

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A federal judge ruled that Donald Trump acted illegally when he commandeered the California national guard and ordered thousands of troops to Los Angeles amid protests over immigration raids. The troops return to the control of California’s governor, Gavin Newsom, at noon on Friday.

Newsom says use of national guard for Ice raids ‘ends tomorrow at noon’ – as it happened
Judge temporarily bars president from deploying troops to LA, an order president has already appealed. This blog is now closed.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/live/2025/jun/12/la-protests-los-angeles-california-curfew-ice-immigration-marines-national-guard-donald-trump-latest-updates