Raw Story: ‘Is he confused?’ Gavin Newsom schools Trump on what his troops actually do

President Donald Trump complained Wednesday that California can’t be trusted with forest fire management — and then Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) reminded him that the people in charge of that were called away on Trump’s orders.

Trump made the comments in response to questions about whether the standoff between himself and Newsom over mass deportations could affect federal wildfire relief for the state.

“Sure, maybe,” said Trump. “The man’s incompetent. You clean the floor of your forest, and you won’t have any forest fires.”

“Clean the floor of the forest”? LOL! Should he wash the forest windows, too?

The president has made similar comments many times, at one point during his first term drawing widespread mockery and a rebuke from the Finnish government for claiming California needs to “rake” its forests to stop fires, like they supposedly do in Finland.

“You pulled National Guard from my command — who were literally doing this work — to stand around in front of a building in LA,” wrote Newsom. “Does the President of the United States not understand what his troops do? Is he confused again? Deeply disturbing.”

https://www.rawstory.com/trump-newsom-2672396890

Raw Story: ‘Lightning fast’: House lawmakers get a stern directive from Trump

President Donald Trump took to his Truth Social platform on Wednesday to demand that the House immediately act on a new package of cryptocurrency laws passed by the Senate.

“The Senate just passed an incredible Bill that is going to make America the UNDISPUTED Leader in Digital Assets — Nobody will do it better, it is pure GENIUS!” wrote Trump. “Digital Assets are the future, and our Nation is going to own it. We are talking about MASSIVE Investment, and Big Innovation. The House will hopefully move LIGHTNING FAST, and pass a ‘clean’ GENIUS Act.”

“Get it to my desk, ASAP — NO DELAYS, NO ADD ONS,” Trump added. “This is American Brilliance at its best, and we are going to show the World how to WIN with Digital Assets like never before!”

The GENIUS Act is the first legislation aimed at regulating so-called stablecoins, a form of cryptocurrency intended to remain stable in price as opposed to typical coins that can fluctuate wildly in value.

However, its passage in the Senate was fraught, as Democrats initially blocked the bill over a variety of concerns, including a lack of consumer protections, the potential domination of the space by tech companies, and the fact that the bill had a loophole that could be exploited by the Trump family to continue profiting off crypto ventures personally, a massive potential conflict of interest.

“A loophole that could be exploited by the Trump family”? A loophole for our Grifter-in-Chief? I’m shocked! Not!

Critics of the bill still fear it would be a giveaway to Trump ….

The king wants his due!

https://www.rawstory.com/trump-genius-act

Raw Story: Trump rebuked as judge bars re-arrest of another student activist

A federal judge has once again handed President Donald Trump a loss in the administration’s efforts to deport international student activist Mohammed Hoque.

According to Politico legal affairs reporter Josh Gerstein, Judge Jerry Blackwell of the District of Minnesota granted Hoque’s petition for a writ of habeas corpus, preventing him from being re-detained.

Hoque, a Bangladeshi national studying at Minnesota State University-Mankato involved in pro-Palestine activism, was arrested earlier this year, allegedly over the revocation of his visa. Authorities reportedly followed him home from class and arrested him in front of his family.

Blackwell ordered his release last month after the federal government failed to prove it had a political reason for locking him up and terminating his Student and Exchange Visitor Program, or SEVIS, status.

In issuing the habeas grant, Blackwell further slammed the Trump administration for targeting Hoque over First Amendment-protected political activity.

“The record separately establishes that Petitioner’s SEVIS termination violates DHS policies. The first is a policy against targeting protected speech,” wrote Blackwell. “The second is a policy that visa revocation does not justify SEVIS termination … Not only does agency policy preclude the practice, it contravenes federal law.”

https://www.rawstory.com/trump-deportation-2672387306

Raw Story: ‘Lies!’ Trump DHS officials torn apart over attempt to sweep allegations away

The Department of Homeland Security is vehemently denying allegations that it engaged in mass racial profiling in its immigration raids, but David J. Bier of the libertarian Cato Institute isn’t buying those denials for an instant.

DHS’s denials came last week in response to a report by the Los Angeles Times that a number of immigrant communities fear that stops and arrests are being done randomly against people based primarily on their appearance.

“Any claims that individuals have been ‘targeted’ by law enforcement because of their skin color are disgusting and categorically FALSE,” DHS posted to its official X account. “These types of smears are designed to demonize and villainize our brave ICE law enforcement. DHS enforcement operations are highly targeted, and officers do their due diligence. We know who we are targeting ahead of time. If and when we do encounter individuals subject to arrest, our law enforcement is trained to ask a series of well-determined questions to determine status and removability.”

But Bier couldn’t help but notice a telling omission from the denial.

“Of course they don’t link to the article which gives the proof that this is happening. DHS LIES,” he wrote, posting a damning passage from the very beginning of the original article:

“Brian Gavidia had stepped out from working on a car at a tow yard in a Los Angeles suburb Thursday, when armed, masked men — wearing vests with ‘Border Patrol’ on them — pushed him up against a metal gate and demanded to know where he was born,” the Times reported. “‘I’m American, bro!’ 29-year-old Gavidia pleaded, in video taken by a friend. ‘What hospital were you born?’ the agent barked. ‘I don’t know, dawg!’ he said. ‘East L.A., bro! I can show you: I have my f—ing Real ID.’ His friend, whom Gavidia did not name, narrated the video: ‘These guys, literally based off of skin color! My homie was born here!’ The friend said Gavidia was being questioned ‘just because of the way he looks.'”

https://www.rawstory.com/dhs-profiling

Raw Story: ‘Dystopian’: Expert slams ICE for demanding attorney ‘make a Sophie’s Choice’

A prominent immigration expert was horrified at the latest report on how Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers are going about their jobs.

The incident, caught on an Instagram reel, took place in San Diego, California, at a courthouse where numerous people awaited an immigration hearing. ICE showed up to arrest people who were following the legal process.

In the video, an ICE officer told an attorney, who was explaining that some of her clients included a family with health issues, to choose which of her clients would be arrested and which would be spared to get their hearing.

“I’m not picky so I’m giving you the options cause I have to take one. If not I’ll take all,” the officer says.

“This is dystopian,” said immigration attorney and American Immigration Council senior fellow Aaron Reichlin-Melnick. “An ICE officer explains he was ordered to arrest migrants at their court hearings — even those with pending cases. Then he asks an attorney to make a Sophie’s Choice.”

ICE is evil!

https://www.rawstory.com/ice-2672366385

Raw Story: MAGA senator fact-checked over ‘baffling’ list of false Trump accomplishments

Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-OH) went to X to post some of the triumphs that President Donald Trump had accomplished in just a few short months in office — the only problem is, almost none of what he advertised was actually true.

Even in the U.S. Senate you’ll find a few bozos who are a few cards short of a full deck. Today we pay homage to Senator Bernie “Short Deck” Moreno from Ohio.

Click the links below to read Short Deck’s fanciful recitation of Trump’s achievements:

https://www.rawstory.com/bernie-moreno-2672225616

Rolling Stone: Trump’s FEMA Denies North Carolina’s Request for Hurricane Helene Aid

The president repeatedly bashed the Biden administration’s response to the disaster

Late in the 2024 campaign cycle, parts of western North Carolina were devastated by Hurricane HeleneDonald Trump accused former President Joe Biden of abandoning the region and mishandling the response to the crisis. The disaster in North Carolina became the jumping point for a myriad of conspiracies and attacks by Republicans against the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FAMA). Trump vowed he would improve disaster responses as president. 

That was then.

This is now:

Now, four months into his administration North Carolina Governor Josh Stein, a Democrat, has become the latest lawmaker from a disaster-ravaged state who has been forced to beg the president to provide much-needed aid. 

On Friday, Stein published a video on social media informing the public that the Trump administration had denied the state’s request for FEMA to honor a Biden-era commitment to pay for 100 percent of debris removal costs. 

I guess King Donald changed his mind.

https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/fema-denies-north-carolina-request-hurricane-helene-aid-1235347521


Raw Story: Trump’s FEMA thumbs nose at state that backed him 3 times: ‘Gonna cost a lot’

Under President Donald Trump, the Federal Emergency Management Agency has turned down a request from a storm-ravaged state that narrowly voted for him three times.

Western North Carolina saw massive devastation last year from Hurricane Helene, which killed over 100 people and left the city of Asheville, along with a number of small communities in the Appalachian Mountains, struggling to pick up the pieces after flooding in areas that had hardly ever seen floods before. At the time, Trump supporters spread baseless conspiracy theories that the federal government was ignoring communities there, or only giving aid to Democratic areas, and Trump himself vowed to improve emergency management.

According to Rolling Stone, however, Trump’s administration is now denying an extension of a commitment to pay the full amount for a vital portion of the recovery process.

See above for the Rolling Stone article.

https://www.rawstory.com/fema-north-carolina

Raw Story: Trump is being ‘played for a fool’: conservative columnist

President Donald Trump is being “played by a fool” in negotiations over the Russian invasion of Ukraine, conservative columnist Max Boot warned in The Washington Post — and he has no idea how effortlessly he’s being used.

Trump has been tough to pin down on the Ukraine war. He has spent much of his political career sympathetic to Russia’s Vladimir Putin after his government interfered in the 2016 presidential election, and has frequently suggested Ukraine should give up territory to appease Russian aggression, but has more recently acted aware that Russia isn’t interested in peace — yet, Boot wrote, he keeps giving Putin far more chances than he is entitled to.

“President Donald Trump is not known for being patient or forgiving with those who defy his will,” wrote Boot. “In just the past few days, he has lashed out at New York Attorney General Letitia JamesBruce SpringsteenBeyoncé and former FBI director James B. Comey — all of whom have incurred his wrath for various reasons. Yet when it comes to dealing with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin — who continues to sabotage Trump’s showcase efforts to end the war in Ukraine — the president seems to have an endless supply of patience, goodwill and understanding.”

https://www.rawstory.com/trump-ukraine-2672134891

Raw Story: ‘Incompetent dunce’: MTG roasted after bailing on Senate race

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) finally settled weeks of speculation by taking her name out of consideration for Senate, in a lengthy post that railed against Republican lawmakers and insisted she could win the race but wouldn’t be able to accomplish anything because her GOP colleagues would just roll over for Democrats anyway.

“Incompetent dunce @mtgreenee claims that she’d definitely win the #GASen primary & general if she ran, but doesn’t want to run because the Senate is stupid,” wrote former Massachusetts state representative candidate Mathew Helman. “I’m not even exaggerating or oversimplifying. She knows she’d lose to Jon @ossoff. Otherwise, she’d run.”

https://www.rawstory.com/mtg-senate-2671926456

Raw Story: Ted Cruz thrown under bus as GOP senator desperately courts Trump ahead of brutal primary

Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) is fighting for his political life, according to new reporting from Axios.

The longtime Texas senator “is boasting a 99% voting record with President Trump in a new memo provided first to Axios,” said the report. This comes as Cornyn “and his firebrand primary challenger, state Attorney General Ken Paxton, are battling to win Trump’s coveted endorsement in what is quickly shaping up to be the most dramatic and expensive GOP primary of the cycle.”

“Cornyn’s team is using fellow Texas Sen. Ted Cruz (R) as a foil, tallying the votes to tout that Cruz has voted against Trump more often than Cornyn,” said the report. “Over Trump’s first term and so far in his second, Cornyn voted in line with Trump 99.2% of the time while Cruz voted with him 96.6% of the time, according to the data, which removed duplicative procedural votes.”

It’s a dog-eat-dog world! Let them devour one another!

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/ted-cruz-thrown-under-bus-as-gop-senator-desperately-courts-trump-ahead-of-brutal-primary/ar-AA1E4Nyu

More here:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/lies-gop-senator-lashes-out-after-stinging-ad-hits-airwaves-in-trump-s-backyard/ar-AA1E13WE