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Trump Escalates Attacks on the Smithsonian

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President Trump escalated his campaign to purge cultural institutions of materials that conflict with his political directives, alleging museums were too focused on highlighting negative aspects of American history, including “how bad slavery was,” CNN reports.

Said Trump: “The Smithsonian is OUT OF CONTROL, where everything discussed is how horrible our Country is, how bad Slavery was, and how unaccomplished the downtrodden have been — Nothing about Success, nothing about Brightness, nothing about the Future.”

Companies Can’t Hold the Line on Prices Much Longer

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“The corporate pricing dam is cracking — companies are raising prices, or signaling that increases are coming, to absorb some of the costs of the Trump administration’s tariffs,” Axios reports.

“Americans are already under strain from rapidly rising prices during the Biden administration. Another bout of hot inflation — at a time when the labor market is slowing down — will hurt.”


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Why Does Xi Keep Purging Loyalists?

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“No matter what Americans think of their politics, the United States still operates in the open. When the most powerful politician and the richest businessman fell out, the public got the full spectacle: barbed posts on social media and sniping in speeches,” the New York Times reports.

“China is the opposite. The country still doesn’t know why former President Hu Jintao was abruptly escorted out of the 2022 Communist Party congress, or what really happened when former Premier Li Keqiang died at 68 in 2023. And decades later, the full story of Lin Biao, Mao Zedong’s chosen successor, who fled China and died in a plane crash in 1971, is still unknown.”

“The secrecy has spawned a niche industry of ‘bedside eavesdroppers’ — Chinese online commentators who parse rumors and fleeting clues for signs of political shifts.”

Democrats Face a Voter Registration Crisis

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“The Democratic Party is hemorrhaging voters long before they even go to the polls,” the New York Times reports.

“Of the 30 states that track voter registration by political party, Democrats lost ground to Republicans in every single one between the 2020 and 2024 elections — and often by a lot.”

“That four-year swing toward the Republicans adds up to 4.5 million voters, a deep political hole that could take years for Democrats to climb out from.”

Israel Split Defines Michigan Senate Primary

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Punchbowl News: “The open Senate seat in Michigan, a state President Donald Trump won in 2024, has triggered an intense battle that’s morphed into a proxy fight over the future of the Democratic Party.”

“Rep. Haley Stevens (D-MI), seen as the favorite of Democratic leadership, is doubling down on her pro-Israel record. State Sen. Mallory McMorrow and former Michigan health official Abdul El-Sayed — to varying degrees — say Democratic voters want their leaders to reconsider what’s been a reflexively pro-Israel stance by both parties in Washington for decades.”

Trump to Paint Border Wall Black

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The “entire” U.S.-Mexico border wall will be painted black at the request of President Trump to deter illegal immigrant crossings, Axios reports.

Said Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem: “That is specifically at the request of the president. When something is painted black, it gets even warmer, making it even harder for people to climb.”

Adam Schiff Forms Legal Defense Fund

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Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA), has formed a legal defense fund amid a Department of Justice probe into his finances, Politico reports.

A frequent foe of President Trump’s, Schiff faces allegations from the president that he “illicitly claimed his primary residence was Maryland for financial benefit.”

Nebraska Announces Plans for ‘Cornhusker Clink’

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“Nebraska announced plans Tuesday for an immigration detention center in the remote southwest corner of the state as President Donald Trump’s administration races to expand the infrastructure necessary for increasing deportations,” the AP reports.

“The facility will be dubbed the ‘Cornhusker Clink,’ a play on Nebraska’s nickname of the Cornhusker State and an old slang term for jail.”

“The alliterative name follows in the vein of the previously announced ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ and ‘Deportation Depot’ detention centers in Florida and the ‘Speedway Slammer’ in Indiana.”

Trump Bypasses Senate to Install U.S. Attorneys

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“In U.S. attorney’s offices in Los Angeles, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico and upstate New York, the administration has effectively sidestepped or overridden both the Senate confirmation and judicial appointment processes for selecting U.S. attorneys,” Politico reports.

“Critics worry that the lack of oversight on some of Trump’s picks could create a perception — if not a reality — that those prosecutors are simply doing the White House’s bidding.”

Elon Musk Pulls the Plug on Third Party

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“Elon Musk is quietly pumping the brakes on his plans to start a political party,“ the Wall Street Journal reports.

“Musk has told allies that he wants to focus his attention on his companies and is reluctant to alienate powerful Republicans by starting a third party that could siphon off GOP voters.”

“Musk’s posture marks a shift from early last month, when he said he would form what he called the America Party to represent U.S. voters who are unhappy with the two major political parties.”

Megyn Kelly Embraces Marjorie Taylor Greene

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Oliver Darcy: “Megyn Kelly, who likes to brand herself as a fearless truth teller, instead played hype woman on Tuesday by giving conspiracy-monger Marjorie Taylor Greene a warm and fuzzy platform.”

“Kelly introduced Greene as merely a ‘lightning rod’ with ‘epic fights on Capitol Hill,’ scrubbing away years of unhinged rhetoric. During the lengthy interview, Kelly—a trained lawyer who has demonstrated she can effectively cross-examine guests when she wishes to—lobbed softballs and steered clear of meaningfully challenging Greene on her record of lies and bigotry.”

About Political Wire

goddard-bw-snapshotTaegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.

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