Every Election Is Now Existential
Anne Applebaum: “A nationalist’s narrow victory in Poland offers a preview of many knife-edge contests to come, all across the democratic world.”
Conspiracists Think Musk-Trump Breakup Is a ‘Psyop’
Wired: “The extremely public and increasingly unhinged breakup of Elon Musk and President Donald Trump has caused chaos in DC, forced Silicon Valley executives to pick sides, and wiped more than $150 billion off Tesla’s market cap.”
“But in the conspiracy-theory-addicted corners of the internet, the feud between Musk and Trump is nothing more than a fake, planned distraction.”
Quote of the Day
“I will apologize profusely as soon as there is a full dump of the Epstein files.”
— Elon Musk, in a post on X that he later deleted.
Polling on Elon Musk Is a Warning for Republicans
Politico: “It’s not Musk’s ownership of one of the most influential social media platforms that should give the president pause. Nor is it the billionaire tech mogul’s status as the world’s richest man, with a recent history of bankrolling Republican causes.”
“It’s Musk’s stratospheric popularity with the Republican base, as revealed in the polls.”
“Musk is not about to overtake Trump himself as the dominant figure in the party, to be clear. But the jilted former “special government employee” is uniquely suited to become a chaos agent who could terrorize the GOP — potentially wreaking havoc on Trump’s legislative agenda and the party’s midterm election plans.”
Trump Blames Musk’s Behavior on Drugs
“President Trump is blaming Elon Musk’s behavior on drug use as the acrimonious blowup of their partnership left both men — who lobbed online insults and threats at each other on Thursday — with a lot at risk,” the New York Times reports.
“Mr. Trump has been telling associates over the last 24 hours that Mr. Musk’s ‘crazy’ behavior is linked to his drugs.”
Politico: Trump tries to move on from feud.
Trump Has Options to Punish Musk
New York Times: “The Pentagon and NASA remain intensely reliant on SpaceX, Mr. Musk’s rocket launch and space-based communications company, to get to orbit and move government data across the world.”
“But there are options available to the president that could make Mr. Musk’s relationship with the federal government much more difficult than it has been so far in Mr. Trump’s second administration.”
“Mr. Trump’s most accessible weapon to punish Mr. Musk is the ability to instruct federal regulators to intensify oversight of his business operations, reversing a slowdown in regulatory actions that benefited Mr. Musk’s businesses after Mr. Trump was elected.”
Tim Higgins: Why would Musk pick a fight with Trump?
Chinese Communist Party Member at Crypto Dinner
“The Trump White House has repeatedly sounded an alarm about visitors with ties to China’s Communist Party coming to the United States, arguing that they are a potential security threat,” the New York Times reports.
“But the administration appears to have literally left the door open to a member of a Chinese government group when it went along with a plan to give the biggest purchasers of President Trump’s digital currency access to the president and the White House.”
Inside the Trump-Musk Breakup
“For once, President Donald Trump was trying to be the adult in the room,” The Atlantic reports.
“Trump and Elon Musk, two billionaires with massive egos and combustible temperaments, had forged an unlikely friendship over the past year, one built on proximity, political expediency, and, yes, a touch of genuine warmth. Relations between the president and his top benefactor had grown somewhat strained in recent weeks, as Trump began to feel that Musk had overstayed his welcome in the West Wing. Musk had suggested privately that he could stay on at the White House, an offer that Trump gently declined… But Musk was still given a gracious send-off last Friday—complete with a large golden, albeit ceremonial, key—aimed at keeping the mercurial tech baron more friend than foe.”
“The peace didn’t last even a week.”
Musk Floats ‘The American Party’
Elon Musk floated a new political party on Friday after falling out with President Trump over the big, beautiful bill, The Hill reports.
Said Musk: “The people have spoken. A new political party is needed in America to represent the 80% in the middle! And exactly 80% of people agree. This is fate.”
He followed up with a potential name for the group, “The America Party.”
Newsom Floats Withholding Federal Taxes
“Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday suggested California consider withholding tens of billions in annual federal tax dollars amid reports Donald Trump is preparing funding cuts targeting the state,” Politico reports.
“Newsom’s suggestion came after CNN reported the president was considering a ‘full termination’ of federal grant funding for California’s universities.”
Appeals Court Reinstates Trump’s Ban on Associated Press
“A federal appeals court panel on Friday reinstated parts of President Donald Trump’s ban of the Associated Press from several key areas where presidential press events are typically held, including the Oval Office, Air Force One and the president’s home in Mar-A-Lago,” Politico reports.
Probe Examines If Hegseth Shared Attack Plans
“The Defense Department inspector general’s office is examining whether it was Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth or an aide, perhaps acting at his behest, who used Hegseth’s account on the unclassified chat application Signal to divulge detailed information about forthcoming air attacks on Yemen,” the Washington Post reports.
Justices Let DOGE View Social Security Data
“The Supreme Court on Friday let members of the Department of Government Efficiency, formed by Elon Musk, have access to sensitive records of the Social Security Administration,” the New York Times reports.
“The court’s order was brief and unsigned, which is typical when the justices rule on emergency applications.”
Washington Post: “Taken together, the orders were another example of the Supreme Court granting the Trump administration’s emergency requests to lift or scale back lower court rulings blocking his initiatives while legal challenges play out.”
U.S.-China Trade Talks to Resume Next Week
Three top White House officials will meet with Chinese trade representatives in London on Monday, as trade tensions seemed to cool between the two giants, Quartz reports.
Wrongly Deported Man to Return and Face Charges
Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the Maryland man mistakenly deported to El Salvador in March, will be returned to the US, where he will face federal criminal charges, CNN reports.
“Abrego Garcia has been indicted on two criminal counts in the in the Middle District of Tennessee: conspiracy to unlawfully transport illegal aliens for financial gain and unlawful transportation of illegal aliens for financial gain.”
New York Times: “The stunning move, which had been quietly planned for several weeks, could provide a much-needed offramp for the Trump administration, which has bitterly opposed a series of court orders to take steps to release him following his wrongful removal on March 15.”
DOGE Is On a Recruiting Spree
Wired: “While Elon Musk and Donald Trump post through their breakup, DOGE shows no signs of slowing down—and potential recruits are being told they can make up to $195,000 a year.”
Trump Planning to Extend TikTok Deadline Again
“President Trump is planning to give TikTok another lifeline,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“With a mid-June deadline approaching and trade talks with China in limbo, Trump is expected to sign an executive order staving off enforcement of a law banning or forcing the sale of the app.”
“It would be the third extension since Trump took office in January.“
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