SmartNews

'Gross': Ex-RNC spokesman disgusted as Trump admin warps country star's song to troll him

A former Republican National Committee spokesman ripped the Trump administration on Tuesday on MSNBC for twisting a song about giving people a "second chance" into one about "chaining people and vengeance."

Tim Miller of The Bulwark joined "Deadline: White House" with host Nicolle Wallace to discuss a new song from country superstar Zach Bryan, in which he rips Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids.

Keep reading... Show less

'It's never gonna be you!' Trump loyalists get dose of succession reality from analyst

Jim Acosta and Molly Jong-Fast spoke Tuesday about ongoing political turmoil, mocking Secretary of State Marco Rubio and White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller over their chances to succeed President Donald Trump.

Jong-Fast ripped Miller, saying he "sounds nuts" and that he "spends almost all of his time on Twitter" — a trait the Trump administration likes.

Keep reading... Show less

'Juries see that pause': Ex-senator warns Pam Bondi stumbled on key Epstein file questions

A former senator reacted Tuesday to Attorney General Pam Bondi's combative and stumbling responses to questions about the Jeffrey Epstein files before a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, warning that "juries see that pause."

Attorney and former Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill (D) told MSNBC's Nicolle Wallace that eventually, more information would come out.

Keep reading... Show less

Trump officials ignored their own guidance with bid to stiff federal workers: reporter

A memo released this week reveals the Trump administration is considering denying retroactive pay for up to 750,000 federal workers furloughed as part of the federal shutdown. But it turns out this doesn't just violate federal law, it contradicts prior guidelines the Trump administration itself laid out in an earlier memo.

According to MSNBC analyst Sam Stein, "The [Office of Management and Budget] memo ... saying furloughed workers aren't necessarily allowed backpay seems to be in direct contradiction to the [Office of Personnel Management] shutdown guidance the administration issued LAST MONTH."

Keep reading... Show less

'Remarkably off-message': MTG stuns analyst as she throws GOP leaders under the bus

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) made Republicans' effort to silence Democrats' demands in the federal shutdown much more difficult, Aaron Blake wrote for CNN on Tuesday.

On paper, it shouldn't be so. Greene is notoriously one of the most hard-right, pro-Trump lawmakers in Congress, and she has gone so far as to urge Senate Republicans to bypass the filibuster to ram through funding for the government and go over Democrats' heads.

Keep reading... Show less

James Comer undercuts Trump's threats and condemns possible Maxwell pardon on CNN

A top Republican in Congress pushed back on claims made by President Donald Trump about the government shutdown and a potential pardon for convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell.

Rep. James Comer (R-KY) joined CNN's Jake Tapper on Tuesday to discuss the ongoing government shutdown and a few of Trump's latest threats. Earlier in the day, Trump threatened to withhold pay from furloughed government workers. The president has also not yet denied whether he will pardon Maxwell or not, a topic that was revisited during a Monday news conference when CNN's Kaitlan Collins asked Trump about the pardon.

Keep reading... Show less

'Actually working': Political psychiatrist explains how she broke through to MAGA die-hard

Former Watergate prosecutor Jill Wine-Banks spoke with political psychiatrist, Dr. Karin Tamerius, on her "Just the Facts" podcast on Tuesday, and the discussion walked through how one woman broke through far-right propaganda to have a conversation with a MAGA loyalist.

"So, I reached out to my angry uncle. Someone who listened to Rush Limbaugh, watched Fox News. Who was kind of living in a parallel universe from mine," said Dr. Tamerius.

Keep reading... Show less

'Remarkable to watch': Reporter taken aback as Dems 'unprepared' for Bondi's attacks

Evan Perez, CNN's senior justice correspondent, was visibly taken aback by Senate Democrats on Tuesday, who he said appeared "unprepared" for the performance Attorney General Pam Bondi gave before the Judiciary Committee.

Bondi was grilled by Democratic senators during a hearing on Tuesday about President Donald Trump's efforts to release the Epstein files and the administration's deployment of federal troops to Democratic-run states and cities. Bondi appeared combative and frequently yelled at Senators who asked questions that she found disrespectful.

Keep reading... Show less

'She blew it': Ex-GOP analyst shreds Pam Bondi over 'venomous' Senate hearing

A former Republican strategist and staunch critic of President Donald Trump shredded Attorney General Pam Bondi's "venomous" appearance before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday in a new essay.

Rick Wilson, who co-founded The Lincoln Project, argued in a new Substack essay that Bondi displayed "performative outrage" during the hearing. She vociferously attacked Democratic Senators who asked questions about President Donald Trump's efforts to hide the Jeffrey Epstein files and deploy federal troops to Democratic-run states and cities.

Keep reading... Show less

'Extreme brutality': Trump admin accused of unlawful crackdown to intimidate the press

A group of plaintiffs in Chicago, including reporters, press associations, nonprofits, and unions, has filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration, alleging that federal agents have used "extreme brutality" trying to silence journalists and protesters in the city, reported Politico on Tuesday.

"The organizations — who were also joined in the suit by individual protesters — allege in the 52-page suit that federal agents acted to 'intimidate and silence' civilians and members of the media who did not pose an imminent threat to law enforcement at protests outside a local Immigration and Customs Enforcement processing facility — posing a violation to protesters’ and journalists’ First Amendment rights," the report continued.

Keep reading... Show less

'It is just illegal!' Trump's new threat to government workers shredded by senator

Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) shredded President Donald Trump's latest threat to government workers during an appearance on CNN on Tuesday.

Coons joined CNN's Kasie Hunt on "The Arena" to discuss Trump's threat to not pay furloughed government workers back pay once the government reopens. Coons's comments come hours after the president told reporters that some government workers "don't deserve" to be paid once the shutdown ends.

Keep reading... Show less

'I'm not a slave!' Marjorie Taylor Greene condemns White House 'pressure' over Epstein

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) complained about "unbelievable blowback and pressure from the White House" on releasing files about Jeffrey Epstein, despite her support for President Donald Trump on controversial topics, such as the Jan. 6 riots.

"I've always been an unapologetic Trump supporter," Greene told Real America's Voice host Eric Bolling on Tuesday. "Spent millions of dollars out of my own campaign to do that."

Keep reading... Show less

'Never seen that!' Nicolle Wallace needles Pam Bondi over binder of ad hominem attacks

MSNBC's Nicolle Wallace couldn't help but notice that Attorney General Pam Bondi had a large binder of answers and personal attacks to lodge against Democrats.

While a Reuters reporter managed to capture a shot of some of Bondi's binder notes, Wallace noticed just how thick it was and how overtly partisan her talking points were.

Keep reading... Show less