Ann's Mega Dub: Linda McMahon proves money can't buy love or good looks

Tuesday, March 4, 2025

Linda McMahon proves money can't buy love or good looks

Do you have kids? We have two. Linda McMahon should never have been confirmed as Secretary of Education due to being completely unqualified. No surprise, she's preparing to shut down the agency:

Newly confirmed Education Secretary Linda McMahon told staffers on Monday that the department must embark on a "momentous final mission" as it undergoes a "historic overhaul."

"This review of our programs is long overdue. The Department of Education is not working as intended," McMahon wrote in an email.

Business Insider viewed McMahon's email, titled "Our Department's Final Mission." McMahon was confirmed as education secretary on Monday, and the email was also posted to the Department of Education's website late Monday evening.

In her email, McMahon asked Department of Education staff to apply "dedication and excellence" to the agency's "historic final mission."

"As I've learned many times throughout my career, disruption leads to innovation and gets results. We must start thinking about our final mission at the department as an overhaul — a last chance to restore the culture of liberty and excellence that made American education great," McMahon wrote.

Her "career"? She married a wealthy man. What's she saying? Is she confessing to be a whore?

That makes me sad. A woman with that face is going to starve if she tried to make it as a prostitute.

Senator Patty Murray's office issued this yesterday:

ICYMI: Pressed by Sen. Murray, McMahon Can’t Name a Single Requirement of Landmark Education Law; Murray Grills McMahon on Trump Plans to Dismantle Education Department, DOGE Access to Sensitive Student Data

WATCH: At Nomination Hearing, Murray Grills McMahon on Trump Plans to Dismantle Education Department

*** WATCH: Senator Murray’s floor speech***

Washington, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), a senior member and former Chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, took to the Senate floor to speak out against the nomination of Linda McMahon for Secretary of Education. A formal pre-school teacher and community college educator herself, Senator Murray sounded the alarm over President Trump and Elon Musk’s plans to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education, which would devastate students, families, and schools across the country.

“We need a Secretary of Education with a really deep understanding of how to use this crucial position to strengthen educational opportunities and outcomes for every student in this country. We need a Secretary of Education who will put students first—not billionaires—who will stand up for our kids, every single one of them, even if it means standing up to Donald Trump and Elon Musk… On each of those accounts, Linda McMahon fails to make the grade,” said Senator Murray.

“Let’s be clear what it will mean if Trump, Musk, and McMahon have their way, and try to turn the Department of Education into something that kids read about in our history books,” continued Senator Murray. “There are 26 million K-12 students from low-income neighborhoods who could see their schools lose federal funding, lay off teachers, or even close. There are 9.8 million students at rural schools that count on federal support, which could face similar challenges. There are 7.4 million students with disabilities who could see the IDEA program upended, cutting off support that state and local taxpayers will need to provide. There are 6.6 million students who get Pell Grants to help them afford college, prepare to enter the workforce, or further their careers—who could be impacted by the chaos of abolishing the Department. And there are 8.1 million high school students and 3.3 million college students who are served by our career and technical education programs that are administered by the Department of Education.

A senior member and former chair of the HELP Committee, Senator Murray has championed students and families at every stage of her career—fighting to help ensure every child in America can get a high-quality public education. Among other things, Senator Murray negotiated the bipartisan Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), landmark legislation that she got signed into law, replacing the broken No Child Left Behind Act. As a longtime appropriator, she has successfully fought to boost funding to support students and invest in our nation’s K-12 schools, and she has secured significant increases to the Pell Grant so that it goes further for students pursuing a higher education. Senator Murray also successfully negotiated the FAFSA Simplification Act, bipartisan legislation to reform the financial aid application process, simplify the FAFSA form for students and parents, and significantly expand eligibility for federal aid.

During McMahon’s confirmation hearing, Senator Murray pressed McMahon on whether she will ensure approved funding gets out to serve students as the law requires and whether she would protect students’ data from DOGE. She also asked McMahon to name a single requirement of ESSA—and McMahon demurred, failing to name any.

Senator Murray’s full remarks, as delivered on the Senate floor today, are below and video is HERE:

“I got my start in politics as a mom in tennis shoes fighting to protect a preschool program—and I still wear that label proudly.

“I am a former preschool teacher. I’m also a former community college educator. And I am also a former school board member.

“So, I don’t mess around when it comes to making sure every single one of our students, in every corner of our country, has access to a quality public education—one that leaves them prepared for the future, and opens the doors of opportunity wide.

“That’s not a responsibility I take lightly. It never will be.

“Our kids are the future of this country, and the Department of Education is really at the heart of how we make sure they are set up for success. But Donald Trump and Elon Musk want to rip the heart out of public education in America—and abolish the Department of Education.

“Well, not if I can help it. And that’s why I believe we need a leader at the Department of Education who actually believes in the mission of the Department of Education!

“We need a Secretary of Education with a really deep understanding of how to use this crucial position to strengthen educational opportunities and outcomes for every student in this country.

“We need a Secretary of Education who will put students first—not billionaires—who will stand up for our kids, every single one of them, even if it means standing up to Donald Trump and Elon Musk.

“And, Madam President, on each of those accounts, Linda McMahon fails to make the grade.

“I’ve had concerns from the outset about whether Ms. McMahon has the experience we should expect from an Education Secretary, and I’m sorry to say my concerns have not been alleviated. Far from it!

“I asked her in her confirmation hearing about the Every Student Succeeds Act, that is the law I negotiated with Republicans to finally fix No Child Left Behind, and provide more flexibility to states and schools, while ensuring accountability for our tax dollars. She couldn’t name a single requirement of the law—not one!

“How is she supposed to enforce our education laws when she didn’t even bother to study up before her Senate confirmation hearing?

“On fighting for public schools, it is already painfully clear that McMahon’s plan for our students and schools is in lockstep with Trump’s pro-billionaire agenda.

“They are going to let public schools get robbed blind as the richest people in the world suck money out of the schools and communities that need it the most. They’re going to cut off funding that directly supports our students and teachers, and send it straight to the pockets of unaccountable private and for-profit K-12 schools.

“And on standing up for our students, standing up to President Trump—Linda McMahon got it backwards.

“When I asked her at our hearing about making sure schools get the money that we, Congress, passes—even if Trump and Musk try to block it—and making sure that our students’ data is protected as DOGE tries to muck around with no oversight or accountability, she made it very clear: she would not stand in their way.

“But it gets worse, because when it comes to Trump’s mission of destroying the Department of Education, she’s all too ready to grab a hatchet and get to work.

“The irony is, that while Trump and Musk talk about eliminating the Department of Education, they are trying to involve the federal government even deeper into schools than ever before.

“They talk about how schools and parents know best—and then threaten schools if they don’t do what they say!

“Apparently, Ms. McMahon thinks: why should we have a Department of Education if Trump and Elon Musk actually can just tell schools what they can do, and what they can teach?

“Well let’s be clear what it will mean if Trump, Musk, and McMahon have their way, and try to turn the Department of Education into something that kids read about in our history books.

“There are 26 million K-12 students from low-income neighborhoods who could see their schools lose federal funding, lay off teachers, or even close.

“There are 9.8 million students at rural schools that count on federal support, which could face similar challenges.

“There are 7.4 million students with disabilities who could see the IDEA program upended, cutting off support that state and local taxpayers will need to provide.

“There are 6.6 million students who get Pell Grants to help them afford college, prepare to enter the workforce, or further their careers—who could be impacted by the chaos of abolishing the Department.

“And there are 8.1 million high school students and 3.3 million college students who are served by our career and technical education programs that are administered by the Department of Education.

“Trying to abolish the Department—or even just taking a wrecking ball to the critical work that it does—will hurt our students who face homelessness. It will cut off federal aid to students who want to pursue a higher education. It will undermine enforcement of the rights of students with disabilities. It will reduce assistance intended to lift up students not getting the support they need, weaken protections for students, scrap evidence-based research that helps us know what is working, for whom, and how, and it will leave for-profit colleges free to rip off students and families, which we have seen happen in the past, and we can’t let that happen again.

“So, the fact that Ms. McMahon has not opposed Trump’s grand plan to abolish the Department of Education is not just a red flag—it is a blinking, blaring fire alarm.

“It means either she doesn’t fully understand just what the Department does and how devastating it would be to abolish, or she doesn’t care. Either way, I have to say, I find that disqualifying.

“So here is my message to everyone, and like any good preschool teacher, I am going to make this short and simple: We cannot have a Secretary of Education who doesn’t believe in having a Secretary of Education. That’s kind of common sense.

“I mean, why would we have someone in charge of the education department who thinks it should not exist, who doesn’t care if we have a Department focused on getting our students and schools the support they need?

“So, Madam President, let me finish with this. I still have in my office a quilt that my kids, in my preschool, made for me on the very last day I taught preschool.

“It is hung prominently on the wall of my biggest meeting room, it is a beautiful patchwork of squiggles and smiles drawn in bright messy crayon.

“And when I look at it, I remember the little hands that made each one of those squares. I think about those little heads with big curious minds and a world of possibilities before them.

“I remember the responsibility that we all felt to make sure they were leaving our preschool ready to succeed.

“I wonder how many of the children that made those little small squares now have kids of their own.

“And I reflect on how the decisions we make in education today—the policies that we fight for, the people that we confirm or reject here—will set a course for our children and our country for years to come.

“There are two clear courses ahead of us with this vote: one where we have a Department of Education that continues to work to support every student, and give them a bright possible future—or one where we don’t.

“One where every kid is on their own. One where lights are turned off, anddoors are shut,and opportunities are closed—unless you happen to have the right zip code, or the right money.

“I know which future I’m going to vote for today—the one where we live up to our responsibility and all of our kids can live up to their fullest potential and pursue big dreams.

“I urge my colleagues to join me in voting for that future—and against Linda McMahon for Secretary of Education.”

###

This is C.I.'s "The Snapshot:"

Tuesday, March 4, 2025. Chump plans to deliver more vile and disgusting words tonight.

Let's start with Lawrence O'Donnell from last night on MSNBC.

Tonight, Convicted Felon Donald Chump will address the nation.. He'll lie as usual, he'll bluster, he'll probably crap himself -- apparently that's happening more often. But as bad as it will be, it won't be as bad as last Friday's Oval Office.

Natalie Maines was not elected to any office.

In 2003, ahead of the start of the illegal Iraq War, she made some comments on a stage in England and got attacked and savaged. And some attacking her free speech rights -- Diane Sawyer for one -- argued that it was so offensive because the remarks were made on foreign soil.

We had to listen to that garbage from fools and moderates over and over.

Where were these same people in the last days?

The one area of that performance last Friday that has largely been ignored were his comments about Joe Biden, his attacks on former US President Joe Biden.

This was not a campaign event.

This was a US president in the Oval Office attacking a past president with one hateful lie after another.

It was petty and it was shameful and the press corps apparently is going to just remain silent

It was part of Chump's continued attack on this country and his continue hatred of this country.

It was also a further demonstration that he is not fit for office. (Related, see Paul Krugman's analysis of where Ukraine stands now.)

Ahead of tonight's speech, Senator Patty Murray's office released the following:

Senator Murray: “The state of the union is that the President is spitting in the face of the law and he is letting an unelected billionaire fire cancer researchers and wreck federal agencies like the Social Security Administration at will.”

Washington, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) issued the following statement on her decision to not attend President Donald J. Trump’s joint Congressional address:

“I will not be attending President Trump’s address to Congress. The state of the union is that the President is spitting in the face of the law and he is letting an unelected billionaire fire cancer researchers and wreck federal agencies like the Social Security Administration at will.

“The state of the union might be great for corrupt billionaires like Elon Musk as Trump guts our foremost consumer protection agency, and even for dictators like Putin, who are cheering on the dismantling of USAID and the betrayal of our allies—but the rest of the country is in a state of emergency as Elon fires the experts responding to bird flu or managing our nuclear weapons stockpile, all while Republicans sprint to tear apart Medicaid and kick families off their health care to pass massive tax giveaways for billionaires.

“Instead, I’m meeting with constituents who have been harmed by this administration’s reckless firings and its illegal and ongoing funding freeze across government. There are farms and small businesses across Washington state and America who are on the verge of collapse because Trump and Elon are illegally blocking federal dollars they are owed. There are thousands of fired federal workers, many of them veterans, who have been carelessly laid off by Trump and Musk with no consideration for the services they provide and how that might harm millions of Americans, whether that’s VA patient safety or the timely disbursement of Social Security checks. I’ll be focused on sharing those stories from Washington state.”

###

Ahead of Chump embarrassing the nation again tonight, Senator Tammy Baldwin's office issued the following:

Baldwin will highlight Republicans’ budget that tees up more than $800 billion in cuts to Medicaid

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) announced that Milwaukee constituent Renee Scherck-Meyer will be her guest at this year’s State of the Union address on Tuesday. Renee has incurable stage 4 breast cancer that has metastasized to her brain, lungs, and liver. Renee relies on Medicaid for her treatment, and without it, she would be forced to ration or forego cancer treatment, hastening her death, or increasing her risk of bankruptcy trying to afford treatment to stay alive.

“Republicans are planning to rip away health care from more than one million Wisconsinites on Medicaid to pay for tax cuts for billionaires,” said Senator Baldwin. “While it’s one thing to cite numbers and statistics about those who will be impacted by these cuts to Medicaid, it’s another thing to put a face and name to one of them. That’s why I am honored to bring Renee, a Wisconsinite who is petrified that her Medicaid coverage might be ripped out from under her, as my guest to this year’s State of the Union. As Renee bravely battles cancer, the absolute last thing she should be focused on is whether she’ll have to ration or forego care because of Medicaid cuts. But that’s the reality she – and so many others – are facing. I’m proud to share Renee’s story and fight against cuts to the health care program that so many Wisconsinites rely on and, in Renee’s case, need to stay alive.”

Republicans are planning deep cuts to Medicaid that will jeopardize the coverage of 72 million Americans, or 1 in 5 people living in the United States who use Medicaid. This includes nearly half of all children, 31.5 million, over 8.3 million seniors, and around 15 million people with disabilities. Medicaid also pays for 6 out of 10 residents in nursing homes, with 5.6 million Americans counting on Medicaid for their long-term care bills and Medicaid paying for over half of long-term care in the United States. Severe cuts to Medicaid will also jeopardize rural hospitals and clinics’ ability to keep their doors open. Over 12 million rural Americans rely on Medicaid for health care.

In Wisconsin, over 1.2 million are enrolled in Medicaid. About 1 in 3 children in both Wisconsin’s rural and metro communities have Medicaid coverage. More than 300,000 kids under age 19 are members of BadgerCare Plus or another Wisconsin Medicaid program.

###

And Senator Elizabeth Warren's office issued this:

Doug Kowalewski was recently fired from the National Science Foundation amid Trump’s and Musk’s unlawful firings, massive cuts to federal agencies

Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) announced that Doug Kowalewski of Wellesley will be her guest at the 2025 State of the Union. Doug is a former National Science Foundation (NSF) employee who, after 3.5 years at the agency, was fired unexpectedly in Elon Musk’s and the Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) gutting of the federal workforce. Doug shared his story at Senator Warren’s recent town hall in Framingham, Massachusetts.

“I'm bringing Doug to force Trump to confront the federal workers he fired – the people who make this country run,” said Senator Warren. “The National Science Foundation is the engine that powers our nation's basic scientific research, and by taking a sledgehammer to this agency, Trump and Musk are gutting our research and innovation pipeline and our local economy in Massachusetts. That isn’t efficient — it’s cruel, short-sighted, and it’s costing American jobs and devastating millions of families.”

“Donald Trump and Elon Musk are firing dedicated civil servants and plotting to replace us with new hires who will make critical science funding decisions with a political agenda, not a scientific one. Millions of Americans who have dedicated their careers to this country are suffering because of unelected billionaires like Elon Musk. I’m in Washington with Senator Warren to fight back against these illegal firings and stand up for hardworking federal workers,” said Doug Kowalewski.

At Senator Warren’s town hall in Framingham, Doug shared the story of his unexpected firing from the agency along with 167 of his colleagues. At the NSF, Doug was a Program Director for Partnerships and Innovation, helping bring in millions in funding to the federal government. The NSF provides a quarter of federal support for basic research at colleges and universities across the country.

###

Only Alien Musk knows what Chump will say tonight -- Musk knows because he's the one who gives the orders at the White House while Chump trots along beside him obediently.

Musk?

Alien Musk is not 'the science guy.' He's built nothing. He buys things. He builds nothing. Bill Nye? He's the science guy. Jennifer Bowers Bahney (RAW STORY) reports:

Weather experts predict that Elon Musk's latest round of government firings at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), including at the National Weather Service, will almost certainly make it more difficult to predict dangerous weather emergencies as quickly as needed.

As the Washington Post reported, "The administration let go of meteorologists, hydrologists and technicians that help inform daily weather forecasts in places including Boston and Boise, Idaho. It fired scientists who build, improve and maintain weather models that form the backbone of weather forecasting around the globe. Staff at offices responsible for warning the public about tsunamis, tornadoes and hurricanes lost their jobs, as did an entire team dedicated to communicating NOAA’s work and science to the public.,"

On CNN Monday, Bill "The Science Guy" Nye claimed that the mass layoffs pointed to "fundamental corruption," as Musk seeks to replace NOAA with his own Starlink system.

"Mr. Musk has this company, Starlink, and he's proposing that NOAA be supplanted by a private company. And just to the young guys that have gone to work on this, that have gone in to the digital services office to destroy or mess up our electronic systems, keep in mind that this is fundamental corruption. This is, it's just corruption when you're trying to monopolize a government service."

At the urging of Welfare Queen Musk, Chump is destroying our country and our government. As the world rejects Musk, Chump just grabs him all the tighter and rubs up against him furiously. Eliot Wilson (CITY AM) reports:

Last week it was reported that Tesla sales in Europe fell by 45 per cent in January compared to the same month in 2024, despite the market for electric vehicles being otherwise buoyant. This has led to inevitable speculation that the European public is turning away from the brand because of the high-profile and controversial involvement of its CEO, Elon Musk, in the provocative antics of Donald Trump’s second presidency: politics is costing him money.

Let us get some technical aspects out of the way which Musk’s supporters will – with justification – offer in mitigation. First, Tesla sales have tended to dip in January over recent years, though not by such a substantial margin. Second, the company’s Model Y compact crossover SUV, its bestselling model, is undergoing a facelift: the new version was launched in China in January for delivery there and in the United States, Canada and Mexico beginning in March, and it has only just become available to order in Europe.

The evidence suggests it is more than this, however. Electrifying.com, an advice site and marketplace for electric vehicles, found that 60 per cent of car buyers have been put off purchasing a Tesla because of Musk’s political views and activities. It is at least a contributory factor.

[. . .]

It is worth noting, however, that Musk’s estimated net worth has fallen by $100bn in the past two months. His wealth, on paper at least, is so great it loses any real meaning: it is comparable to the GDP of Chile or Pakistan. But so substantial a fall demonstrates a relationship which Musk and others on the Trumpian right are eager to point out to their opponents: in business, politics isn’t cost-free.

The reality is that most people are idiots when it comes to money and that's especially true of someone like Alien Musk. Cher has pointed out that when she and Sonny were coming up in their careers, she'd notice how someone raised with money (Jane Fonda) didn't usually spend a lot while she and Sonny did -- Sonny on cars and Cher on kitchen appliances. She wouldn't buy, for example, one blender, she'd buy two or three in case one broke on down the line and they had no money left. They came close many times to having no money left and that's why Cher learned about money. Some never do.

Most people you see as rich really are not. They live beyond their means and borrow tons of money -- that's true of Donald Chump today and it was true of Michael Jackson. If Jackson hadn't tried to go back on tour would his health had held out for a few more years even if he remained addicted to drugs? Very likely. But despite the press on those big deals with SONY, he never got SONY money because he couldn't pull it together to deliver the albums outlined in the contract. He borrowed. He borrowed some more. Near bankrupt, he ended up living overseas on charity.

And still the average American thought he was rich. He should have been but he put up the money making publishing catalogue for collateral on yet another loan. He lost ATV. He lost everything.

Alien Musk wants you to think that he only lost a little money -- especially with all he has.

Reality, when you truly are rich, you don't spend less than $300 million attempting to elect your buddy Chump. That's your first clue that Alien Musk's fortune is over-estimated.

And cash wealth rarely actually matches estimated wealth. That's why Chump has all his grifting schemes. Had he been forced to pay the sum to E Jean Carroll already, he would have been wiped out. And if he wasn't president now, banks would be closing down loans for him because his financial debt is so deep.

Most of the time, an Alien Musk can skate away for years. But when the business community starts noticing them losing millions, it does impact how much a bank with an outstanding loan is ready to work with him.

Headlines like REUTER's "Tesla sales decline across Scandinavia as Musk faces test of brand" do not help him. Nor is helped by the information in a BUSINESS INSIDER report entitled "Growing protests target Tesla showrooms with Mariachi bands, raccoon puppets, and cardboard Cybertrucks." AP quotes brand consultant Robert Passikoff who explains, "It's marketing 101: Don’t involve yourself in politics. People will stop buying your products."

Moving from perceived wealth to the economy, Dan Ladden-Hall (DAILY BEAST) reports:

An economist warned Monday that the U.S. is “gagging” on uncertainty around the Trump administration’s economic policymaking, and that the situation could get worse.

Mark Zandi, Moody’s Analytics chief economist, gave the dire assessment during an interview with CNN in which he was asked about comments made by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent over the weekend about the potential impact of the tariffs Trump is threatening to impose on China, Canada, and Mexico.

[. . .]

CNN host Kate Bolduan asked Zandi if he agrees with Bessent’s conclusions that the tariffs—which are scheduled to go into effect on Tuesday—won’t drive up prices for American consumers.

“I think they’re going to raise prices,” Zandi answered. “They’re a tax on American consumers. If you add up all of the tariffs that are now in play, those that have already been imposed—like the 10 percent on China—and those that are being discussed, like the 25 percent on Canadian and Mexican imports… That’ll add about $1,250 to the typical American’s bill over a period of a year.”

Others are sounding alarms as well. Nuria Salobral (EL PAIS) reports:

Donald Trump has been president of the United States for little more than a month and few things have turned out as expected at the beginning of last November, when he won the election. Investors and citizens had been forewarned of the significance of his electoral promises, but reality is now imposing caution, if not outright concern, in the face of economic measures that have dispelled the initial optimism with which Trump was received. Beyond the tariffs, which have yet to materialize as announced, U.S. economic indicators suggest a rise in inflation and a decline in confidence that is taking hold in Wall Street. The intensity of this trend, and how the powerful U.S. financial market reacts, will determine the measures to be adopted by the White House, experts warn.

US inflation expectations and consumer confidence are not what they were when Trump won the presidential election on November 5. January marked the fifth consecutive month of rising headline inflation, which reached levels not seen since June, and core inflation, which had moderated last month, returned to 3.3%, the level at which it stagnated during the second half of last year. The first month of the year is usually one of price adjustments, in which updates arise that correspond to the previous year and often cause punctual rises in inflation, but experts at CaixaBank Research believe that the data point to the persistence and rebound of some inflationary pressures. “January’s data do not suggest good progress in the disinflationary process. The last mile of inflation will not be an easy road, and although January may be just a stone on the road, this data will only serve to reinforce the caution that the Fed will take ahead of 2025″, they explain. The PCE index, a personal consumption expenditures deflator that is one of the Fed’s favorite inflation indicators, did provide some relief on Friday. It fell in January by one-tenth of a point to 2.5%, as expected, while the underlying rate, excluding fresh food and energy, was 2.6% year-on-year, two-tenths of a point lower than the previous month. Even so, five-year inflation expectations reflect a clear rise in recent months, from 2.3% before Trump’s victory to 2.6% today.

In terms of confidence indicators, the Conference Board’s consumer confidence indicator showed that U.S. consumer confidence plummeted in February to the lowest level in eight months, while expectations are below 80 points, a level the firm considers to be a precursor to recession. The University of Michigan’s February consumer confidence gauge, released a week ago, fell to the lowest level in 15 months and showed that inflation expectations have shot upward, largely because of the threat of new import tariffs.

Think the pushback at townhalls hasn't been working? You'd be wrong. Phillip Nieto (MEDIAITE) reports:

House Republican lawmakers on Capitol Hill criticized Elon Musk’s efforts to target federal workers — with one saying it “seems rash” to “fire people via Twitter.”

CNN anchor Manu Raju noted that the Department of Government Efficiency’s cuts and layoffs in the federal workforce have affected people across the political spectrum in terms of Congressional districts.

Raju spoke with Reps. Rich McCormick (R-GA), Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY) and Juan Ciscomani (R-AZ) — who expressed their concerns about DOGE coming off as “insensitive” due to the mass firings.

RAJU: Give me a sense on your concerns.
MCCORMICK: To be a little bit more compassionate in the way we message this. It matters to people. And I want to make sure that we don’t come across as insensitive. We care about people. That’s why we’re making the cuts.
MALLIOTAKIS: This idea that they’re going to just fire people via Twitter. Elon Musk, that to me seems rash. It seems not appropriate.
RAJU: DOGE specifically, but the cuts, you have any concerns about that?
CISCOMANI: We’re having conversations in our district about all that.

The townhalls are bringing some needed reality into the worlds of detached members of Congress. Of course, crazy old man Chump sees conspiracy where the rest of the country sees citizens. Molly Sprayregen (LGBTQ NATION) reports:

Republican members of Congress have been met with hordes of angry constituents as they host town halls across the country, and President Donald Trump is claiming that the “boos” are coming from paid actors.

“Paid ‘troublemakers’ are attending Republican Town Hall Meetings,” Trump claimed on Truth Social. “It is all part of the game for the Democrats, but just like our big LANDSLIDE ELECTION, it’s not going to work for them!” Trump’s 2024 election wasn’t a landslide: He won only 49.78% of the popular vote and beat his opponent by roughly 2.2 million votes, the smallest margin of victory for any president since Richard Nixon’s 1968 election.

Sorry, Chump, but the "paid actors" would be the members of the Cabinet that you had applaud Alien Musk last week.

Ellie Quinlan Houghtaling (THE NEW REPUBLIC) adds:

Unable to acknowledge that Americans might actually be upset with his agenda, Donald Trump has cooked up a bizarre theory to explain the mass protests taking place in Republican lawmakers’ town halls across the country. But the rationale behind the idea sounds awfully familiar to his presidential election conspiracy.

[. . .]

The venomous protests are a warning sign for the Trump administration that public patience is already wearing thin for his aggressive agenda. Last month, Missouri Representative Mark Alford was practically shut down at his own town hall after he expressed support for Musk’s massive layoff plan. At one point, while suggesting to the crowd that they could vote for someone else in the next election if they didn’t approve of Musk’s appointment, one person shouted back, “We didn’t elect Elon!”

Alford seemed to take a page out of Trump’s own playbook in the immediate aftermath, refusing to chalk up the local frustration to his own inaction. In an interview with CNN, Alford referred to his own constituents as “outside agitators.”

Some BLUESKY comments ahead of tonight's State of the Union Address.