There was no pretense that the Justice Department and the FBI are independent of the White House. On the contrary, as Donald Trump seizes control over federal law enforcement and starts calling the shots at the DOJ, The New York Times reported that the White House event became “a diorama of power dynamics.” From the article:

Pam Bondi, Todd Blanche and Kash Patel left about an hour later, after President Trump tossed out, offhandedly, three names of people he wanted prosecuted: Jack Smith, the special counsel who brought two criminal indictments against him; Andrew Weissmann, a former F.B.I. official who was a lead prosecutor for the team investigating the Trump campaign’s possible ties to Russia in the 2016 election; and Lisa Monaco, the deputy attorney general under President Joseph R. Biden Jr.

The Oval Office press conference was, by any fair measure, bizarre. The public saw not only the elimination of the lines that separate the White House from prosecutorial priorities, Americans also watched a conspiratorial president throw a series of self-pitying mini-tantrums, while adding fresh names to his growing enemies list.

Trump, at a press conference with the U.S. Attorney General and the Director of the FBI, lists which of his political opponents he thinks the DOJ and FBI should go after:

— The Bulwark (@thebulwark.com) 2025-10-15T21:50:41.201Z

“What they did was criminal,” the Republican whined, pointing to vague illegalities that only exist in his imagination. “Deranged Jack Smith, in my opinion is a criminal. ... I hope they’re going to look into Weissman, too. Weissman is a bad guy. And he had somebody in Lisa who was his puppet, worked in the office really as the top person. And I think that she should be looked at very strongly. There was tremendous criminal activity.”.....

As scandalous as the missive was, it wasn’t an isolated incident. Trump continues to lobby leading federal law enforcement officials — brazenly and publicly, without regard for appearances or traditional American guardrails — driven by an apparent sense of grievance and entitlement.

What’s more, the ongoing corruption of the process, unfolding before our eyes, is likely to get worse before it gets better. As the ridiculous Oval Office event neared its end, Trump claimed that he and his team have been, in his estimation, “very, very soft” in pursuit of his political opponents, and he’s prepared to become even more involved in targeting his foes at a time of his choosing. Watch this space.

The Supreme Court is on the verge of further limiting voting rights, thanks in part to Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s unfounded insistence that considering race can only be legal for a certain amount of time into the future — regardless of what the law and the Constitution say.

The Trump appointee’s misguided approach was on display during a major hearing Wednesday in Washington. It was there that he asked a lawyer for the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund when race-based remedies should end. The question came in the context of the landmark Voting Rights Act and key post-Civil War constitutional amendments guaranteeing equal protection (the 14th) and prohibiting race discrimination in voting (the 15th).

The lawyer, Janai Nelson, said that there shouldn’t be a time limit and that the Voting Rights Act section in question — Section 2 — doesn’t even always require race-based remedies. Section 2 prohibits racially discriminatory voting practices or procedures, and it has become even more important after the Supreme Court, led by Chief Justice John Roberts, gutted another provision of the act in 2013......

Kavanaugh previously flagged the made-up time limit issue in a case from Alabama in 2023, when he and Roberts surprisingly formed a 5-4 majority with their Democratic-appointed colleagues to back a Section 2 claim. Kavanaugh wrote a concurring opinion that said “the authority to conduct race-based redistricting cannot extend indefinitely into the future.” The Trump appointee noted that Alabama “did not raise that temporal argument in this Court, and I therefore would not consider it at this time.”.....

Whatever one thinks of that as a policy matter, the law and the constitutional amendments at issue don’t have the time limits that the majority appears to wish they did.

And while those justices seem to want to forget the sordid history that made those legal tools necessary, or at least hope they’re no longer needed today, outlawing racial considerations for remedial purposes would also ignore the modern reality. Justice Elena Kagan observed at the hearing that Section 2 lawsuits “ask about current conditions, and they ask whether those current conditions show vote dilution, which is violative of Section 2.” She told the state’s lawyer, Benjamin Aguiñaga, that “what our precedents say and what you’re asking us now to change what our precedents say is that when those things operate currently right as of now and are proved in a courtroom, that — that still there can’t be a race-based remedy.”

“That’s correct, Justice Kagan,” Aguiñaga replied.

The result of curbing Section 2 would be “pretty catastrophic,” Nelson said at the hearing. She said that “any further neutering of Section 2 would resurrect the 15th Amendment as a mere parchment promise.”

Comedy Central’s “Daily Show” poked fun at Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Wednesday by mockingly agreeing to his new press restrictions at the Pentagon.

“After serious consideration, The Daily Show has agreed to the Pentagon’s new demands regarding press access,” the show said in a graphic posted on social media. “We were going to refuse, but everyone else rejected it so hard that it honestly made us feel kinda bad for Pete Hegseth.”

The statement went on to say of Hegseth, “the poor guy couldn’t even get Fox News to sign on and he worked for them a few months ago.”

“Even Newsmax refused. Brutal!” it said. “So we’re going to join in. Just so One America isn’t the only signature on this thing. It’s all just too humiliating.”.....

All of the nation’s major news organizations, including The Hill, have refused to sign the new policy, with a number of the major broadcast and cable news networks issuing a joint statement this week blasting the restrictions calling it “without precedent” and saying it “threatens core journalistic protections.”

CHICAGO (AP) — Federal immigration officers in the Chicago area will be required to wear body cameras, a judge said Thursday after seeing tear gas used against protesters and reports of a high-speed chase through a residential area.

U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis said she was a “little startled” after seeing TV images of clashes between agents and the public during President Donald Trump’s administration’s immigration crackdown.

“I live in Chicago if folks haven’t noticed,” she said. “And I’m not blind, right?”

Community efforts to oppose U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement have ramped up in the nation’s third-largest city, where neighborhood groups have assembled to monitor ICE activity and film incidents involving agents. More than 1,000 immigrants have been arrested since September.

The latter point was clearly true. In fact, the United States will “be there” for Argentinians to the tune of $20 billion: That’s the figure of the Trump administration’s recently announced bailout, intended to help bolster the South American country’s economy as it confronts a possible crisis.

As Tuesday afternoon progressed, Trump celebrated his likeminded ally — Milei is “MAGA all the way,” the American president said — though he struggled with a question he should’ve seen coming. The Washington Post reported:

President Donald Trump on Tuesday touted a $20 billion foreign bailout that he acknowledged would not primarily serve American interests, testing his leeway with his own ‘America First’ motto and in particular the patience of domestic farmers who have yet to receive their own relief from Trump’s trade war.

In response to questions about the expensive U.S. bailout, Trump conceded, “It’s not going to make a big difference for our country.” In other words, American taxpayers will be on the hook for $20 billion, but they shouldn’t expect to see much in the way of returns on the investment.

He went on to say that the money is intended to “help a good financial philosophy,” adding that if Argentinian voters turned against Milei, the Republican White House would abandon the bailout package and allow the South American country to move closer to a possible crisis.

Q: How is this rescue package America first?


TRUMP: It's really meant to help a good financial philosophy where Argentina can be successful again

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) 2025-10-14T18:16:18.106Z

.....Trump, ostensibly a champion of an “America First” philosophy, not only appears indifferent to those concerns, he didn’t exactly bring persuasive talking points to sell his idea on the merits. On the contrary, the American president made it sound as if he’s using a whole lot of taxpayer dollars to bolster a struggling foreign ally who’s facing an uncertain electoral future.

It’s worth emphasizing that, under the White House’s policy, Argentina will be expected to eventually repay the funds. That said, the International Monetary Fund has had to bail out Argentina 23 times, and the country owes the IMF more money than any other country on the planet.

With former Republican Rep. George Santos in prison, there’s an opening for the “most controversial member of Congress.” One member in particular is apparently ready to claim the mantle. NBC News reported:

A Florida judge issued a restraining order Tuesday against Republican Rep. Cory Mills of Florida for ‘protection against dating violence’ after his ex-girlfriend accused him of threatening and harassing her. In a petition filed in August, Lindsey Langston alleged that after they broke up, Mills threatened to blackmail her using nude images and videos and to physically harm anyone she dated.

Mills’ congressional office and his lawyer did not reply to NBC News' requests for comment. There are a lot of relevant details to the allegations, and the NBC News report is worth reading......

As it happens, we didn’t have to wait too long for an answer. The morning after the NBC News report was published, a reporter asked House Speaker Mike Johnson about his concerns regarding one of his fellow Republicans. Johnson claimed he was unfamiliar with the developments, adding that he’s “been a little busy,” despite the fact that his chamber is not in session and most of his members aren’t even on Capitol Hill.

Q: This has been reported for a while. Cory Mills was accused of beating a girlfriend in his DC apt. Are you concerned about these allegations?

JOHNSON: You have to ask Rep. Mills about that. He's been a faithful colleague. I don't know the details. Let's talk about things that are really serious

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) 2025-10-15T14:50:03.416Z

Pressed further on the issue, the Louisiana Republican applauded Mills for being a “faithful colleague,” then suggested he considered the underlying controversy to be unimportant.

“Let’s talk about things that are really serious,” Johnson concluded.

Twenty years ago, there was a Republican-led Congress working with a Republican president in his second term, just like now. At the time, the GOP suffered through a difficult “culture of corruption” era, featuring an astonishing number of Republican lawmakers who were caught up in ugly scandals. Names like Tom DeLay, Duke Cunningham, Bob Ney and Mark Foley became nationally notorious for a reason — and in the 2006 midterms, the party lost its majority......

In each of these instances, House Republican leaders didn’t simply leave matters to voters. They didn’t care that the members hadn’t been formally charged with any crimes. They didn’t punt concerns to the Ethics Committee. For all of their faults (and there were many), GOP leaders set standards and enforced them when members were caught in humiliating scandals.

Years later, Johnson not only appears to have forgotten those standards, he has also suggested it’s not a “serious” matter when a restraining order has been issued against one of his members.

The GOP leader added, in reference to funding questions surrounding the ongoing government shutdown: “We’ve always stood with Capitol Police and law enforcement. We’ve shown that in word and deed.”

Mike Johnson: "We've always stood with Capitol police and law enforcement. We've shown that in word and deed."

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) 2025-10-15T14:51:22.110Z

.....What’s more, as Johnson really ought to know, Congress commissioned a plaque to honor those officers who put their own lives on the line to protect him and his colleagues — though the Republican congressman still refuses to put it up, despite a statutory requirement.

Making matters a bit worse, the House speaker isn’t the only one who keeps tripping over the 2021 assault on the U.S. Capitol.

White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller recently said the country couldn’t tolerate “unlawful” and “riotous” assemblies around government buildings, despite the “unlawful” and “riotous” events surrounding the Capitol on Jan. 6.

Donald Trump recently condemned demonstrators who “scream” at police officers, “an inch away from their face, and then they start spitting in their face.” Of course, Jan. 6 rioters, many of whom did far more than just spit on police officers at the Capitol, nevertheless received presidential pardons from the Republican president just hours after his second inaugural.

Attorney General Pam Bondi recently declared, “If you touch a law enforcement officer, if you spit a law enforcement officer, if you batter a law enforcement officer, we are coming after you. No longer will you abuse the great men and women of law enforcement.”

Around the same time, Bondi’s Justice Department hired a Jan. 6 rioter who was literally filmed urging his fellow insurrectionists to “kill” police officers.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt recently declared from her podium, “This administration wants anyone who has ever committed a crime to be held accountable.” It wasn’t long before observers took note of the inconvenient fact that Trump keeps pardoning criminals — including violent felons who attacked police officers on Jan. 6 — making sure they aren’t held accountable.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection recently used its social media platform to issue a statement that read, “Let this be clear: Anyone who assaults or impedes a federal law enforcement officer or agent in the performance of their duties will be arrested and swiftly prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Attack a cop, and life long consequences will follow!” Trump’s Jan. 6 pardons proved otherwise.

FBI Director Kash Patel recently added in a statement of his own: “Hit a cop, you’re going to jail.” He neglected to mention the Jan. 6 rioters who hit cops and were rewarded by the president with get-out-of-jail-free cards.

The bottom line is simple: Republican talking points are routinely rooted in the idea that Jan. 6 either didn’t happen or has been forgotten, which is every bit as ridiculous as it sounds.

Politico obtained 2,900 pages of chats between leaders of Young Republicans groups, and the contents offer a timely reminder about the kind of systemic problems the party should want to address. From the article:

Leaders of Young Republican groups throughout the country worried what would happen if their Telegram chat ever got leaked, but they kept typing anyway. They referred to Black people as monkeys and ‘the watermelon people’ and mused about putting their political opponents in gas chambers. They talked about raping their enemies and driving them to suicide and lauded Republicans who they believed support slavery.

Politico added that members of the group chat (which has not been independently verified by MSNBC) “spoke freely” about, among other things, “the love of Nazis within their party’s right wing.”....

Common sense and common decency might suggest that prominent GOP leaders would rush to condemn the disgusting texts categorically and to make clear that the party will not tolerate such repulsive garbage. Indeed, it’s only fair to note that some Republicans did exactly that after the Politico report was published.

But JD Vance apparently had a different response in mind.....

In other words, confronted with Republican texts that were racist and violent — complete with references to gas chambers — Vance’s first instinct wasn't to condemn those responsible for those messages; his first instinct was to downplay the scandal and go after a Democrat.

To the extent that anyone might be persuaded by the Ohio Republican’s unfortunate attempt at clumsy and unnecessary spin, it’s worth emphasizing that Politico’s report was about more than “a college group chat.” The participants in question weren’t just random teens popping off between classes: Some of these Republicans are in their 30s and are currently working for elected officials, ostensibly serving the public. One, Samuel Douglass of Vermont, is even a sitting state senator. (The state’s Republican governor, Phil Scott, wasted little time in calling for Douglass’ resignation.)

For Vance to suggest it’s “pearl clutching” to condemn those who were part of this group chat says a great deal about the vice president’s judgment.

A few weeks ago, for example, the former special counsel, who’s maintained an exceedingly low public profile, delivered remarks at George Mason University and sounded the alarm about intensifying threats to the U.S. legal system. “My career has been about the rule of law, and I believe that today it is under attack like in no other period in our lifetimes,” Smith said.

Those were not his final words on the subject. The New York Times reported:

Jack Smith, the special counsel who twice secured indictments of Donald J. Trump, said it was ‘ludicrous’ to suggest he was motivated by partisan politics — and offered a scathing denunciation of the Trump Justice Department — in his first extended remarks since resigning in January. ‘The idea that politics played a role in who worked on that case, or who got chosen, is ludicrous,’ Mr. Smith said during an Oct. 8 interview with the former prosecutor Andrew Weissmann at the University College London that was posted online Tuesday.

At the same event, the prosecutor added, “I think the attacks on public servants, particularly nonpartisan public servants — I think it has a cost for our country that is incalculable, and I think that we — it’s hard to communicate to folks how much that is going to cost us.”....

But they ought to be careful what they wish for. Smith is an experienced, credible and capable prosecutor, who’s familiar with the evidence from Trump’s criminal cases at a granular level. The more Republicans drag him back into the spotlight, the more Smith will be positioned to remind the public about alleged presidential felonies the party would probably prefer to forget.

This Saturday, October 18, millions of us will hit the streets in No Kings protests across the country.

In the words of the organizers, “Show the world: America has no kings, and the power belongs to the people.”

To bring together the entire TBR community, I’ll be hosting a special No Kings live chat on Saturday. It’ll be a chance to share our observations and stories throughout this historic day and connect with each other in solidarity, defiance, and hope.

To enable as many people as possible to join the chat, I’m slashing the price of annual TBR paid subscriptions by 40%, starting today and continuing through Saturday.