July 26, 2025

DOGE builds AI tool to cut 50 percent of federal regulations

The U.S. DOGE Service is using a new artificial intelligence tool to slash federal regulations, with the goal of eliminating half of Washington’s regulatory mandates by the first anniversary of President Donald Trump’s inauguration, according to documents obtained by The Washington Post and four government officials familiar with the plans.

The tool, called the “DOGE AI Deregulation Decision Tool,” is supposed to analyze roughly 200,000 federal regulations to determine which can be eliminated because they are no longer required by law, according to a PowerPoint presentation obtained by The Post that is dated July 1 and outlines DOGE’s plans. Roughly 100,000 of those rules would be deemed worthy of trimming, the PowerPoint estimates — mostly through the automated tool with some staff feedback. The PowerPoint also suggests the AI tool will save the United States trillions of dollars by reducing compliance requirements, slashing the federal budget and unlocking unspecified “external investment.”

The tool has already been used to eliminated more than 1,000 “regulatory sections” at the Department of Housing and Urban Development in under two weeks, according to the PowerPoint, and to write “100% of deregulations” at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). Three HUD employees — as well as documents obtained by The Post — confirmed that an AI tool was recently used to review hundreds, if not more than 1,000, lines of regulations at that agency and suggest edits or deletions.

The tool was developed by engineers brought into government as part of Elon Musk’s DOGE project, according to two federal officials directly familiar with DOGE’s work, who, like others interviewed for this story, spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe internal deliberations they were not authorized to discuss publicly.

https://wapo.st/451U8wD

July 26, 2025

With Manifest Destiny art, DHS goes hard on 'white makes right'

John Gast’s 1872 painting “American Progress” depicts Manifest Destiny, the religious belief that the United States should expand from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean in the name of God. (Fotosearch / Getty Images)

Since the start of President Trump’s second term, the Department of Homeland Security’s social media team has published a stream of content worthy of a meme-slinging basement dweller on 4chan.

Grainy, distorted mug shots of immigrants. Links to butt-kissing Fox News stories about MAGA anything. Whiny slams against politicians who call out la migra for treating the Constitution like a pee pad. Paeans to “heritage” and “homeland” worthy of Goebbels. A Thomas Kinkade painting of 1950s-era white picket fence suburbia straight out of “Leave It to Beaver,” with the caption “Protect the Homeland.”

All of this is gag-inducing, but it has a purpose — it’s revealing the racist id of this administration in real time, in case anyone was still doubtful.

In June, DHS shared a poster, originally created by the white-power scene, of a grim-faced Uncle Sam urging Americans to “report all foreign invaders” by calling Immigration and Customs Enforcement. On July 14, the DHS X account featured a painting of a young white couple cradling a baby in a covered wagon on the Great Plains with the caption, “Remember your Homeland’s Heritage.”

https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-07-26/dhs-manifest-destiny-american-progress-painting

July 26, 2025

Who said it?

“The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.”

July 25, 2025

Trump Endorses Sarasota's Joe Gruters to Lead Republican National Committee

The Republican National Committee will need a new leader soon to replace the current chairman who is stepping down to run for a North Carolina U.S. Senate seat -- and President Donald Trump’s choice is in Sarasota.

“Fortunately, I have somebody who will do a wonderful job as the Chairman of the RNC,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “His name is Joe Gruters, and he will have my Complete and Total Endorsement.”

Gruters, a Florida state senator representing Sarasota County, is the RNC’s treasurer and was previously chair of the Florida Republican Party. He is also running in 2026 to be Florida’s Chief Financial Officer.

“I’m looking forward to advancing President Trump’s America First agenda as the next Chair of the RNC," Gruters said in a statement to the Herald-Tribune. "He is the greatest President in our nation’s history, and I’m ready to serve, fight, and win for our party and our country.”

https://www.heraldtribune.com/story/news/local/sarasota/2025/07/25/trump-backs-sarasotas-gruters-as-rnc-chair-amid-florida-cfo-race/85370742007/

It's no surprise Gruters has Trump's support. He's the same Sarasota Republican committee dipshit who previously awarded Trump "Statesman of the Year" not once, but twice...

July 25, 2025

Eliminating capital gains on home sales would be a boon for older homeowners in high-cost states

President Trump floated the idea this week of removing the tax homeowners with high equity pay when they sell their house.

President Trump recently said his administration was “thinking about” removing capital gains taxes on home sales to help jump-start the sluggish housing market. The biggest beneficiaries of such a change will likely be longtime homeowners in the country’s more expensive housing markets.

Removing or increasing the capital gains limit — currently $250,000 for single homeowners or $500,000 for married couples — on home sales has been a longtime priority for the real estate industry, which argues that steep tax bills are keeping some homeowners who wish to relocate or downsize stuck in homes that no longer fit their needs.

Take the case of a homeowner in San Francisco, where home prices have more than tripled between 2000 and 2025 to a median price of about $1 million today. A homeowner who purchased in 2000 for $300,000 might have $700,000 of gains if they sell now. Depending on their tax filing status, between $200,000 and $450,000 of those gains could be taxable at rates between 15% and 20%. Under any scenario, their tax bill would be in the tens of thousands of dollars.

Those owners are getting more attention in today’s market because for-sale inventory is constrained in many parts of the country, pushing home prices to record highs. It’s unclear exactly how much helping wealthier homeowners would enliven a sedate market. While it could unlock more inventory, some experts say it could worsen the affordability problem.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/eliminating-capital-gains-on-home-sales-would-be-a-boon-for-older-homeowners-in-high-cost-states-090052929.html

July 25, 2025

Trump Could Strike 'Hidden Pardon' Deal With Ghislaine Maxwell: Bondi Aide

Donald Trump could be plotting a “hidden pardon” deal with Ghislaine Maxwell to clear his name during the administration’s Jeffrey Epstein crisis, according to a former Pam Bondi aide.

Maxwell, who is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for her role in Epstein’s sex trafficking of minors, was interviewed on Thursday by Justice Department officials, including Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche.

Dave Aronberg, a former state attorney for Palm Beach County who was once Bondi’s drug czar when she was Florida’s attorney general, said on CNN that Blanche’s role in the interview was “extremely extraordinary.”

“It’s as if the number two executive at CNN was conducting this interview with me instead of you,” he told host Brianna Keilar. “Like, what? It never happens. Also, he’s not going to be knowledgeable about this case like the line prosecutors who actually handled her case.”

Aronberg suggested that the interview could be part of a scheme by the Trump administration to “protect the president” as he faces a surge of concerns about his relationship to Epstein.

He hypothesized that there could be “a deal with Ghislaine Maxwell that she would get some immunity now and maybe a hidden pardon in the future: some sort of implication that she would be pardoned in the future if she comes out and says that the president was... not involved in any criminal activity.”

https://www.thedailybeast.com/donald-trump-could-strike-hidden-pardon-deal-with-ghislaine-maxwell-says-pam-bondi-aide/

July 25, 2025

Ghislaine Maxwell Can't Help But Notice Interview Room Covered In Plastic Sheeting

TALLAHASSEE, FL—Perplexed that the Department of Justice had chosen a setting with such strange decor to ask her about Jeffrey Epstein’s co-conspirators, Ghislaine Maxwell confirmed Thursday that she couldn’t help but notice her interview room was covered in plastic sheeting.

“Wow, you’ve got the whole room tarped up—you guys doing some painting later?” said Maxwell as she stepped into the Florida courthouse’s windowless office, with eyewitnesses reporting that she then carefully shuffled over to a plastic-wrapped chair after briefly slipping on the slick, sheeted floor.

“I see you’ve got plenty of bleach, too. You must be pretty concerned about hygiene with all the people who pass through here. And hey, you’re all wearing ponchos. Is it supposed to rain later? Looked sunny when I came in, but I’d take a poncho too if you’ve got a spare. Alright, I guess you’re closing the door, let’s get down to it. Good call picking a soundproof room so we can really focus on the interview.”

At press time, Maxwell was reportedly heard muttering “Ohhhhhh, that’s what it’s for,” after noticing the knife sticking out of her ribcage.

https://theonion.com/ghislaine-maxwell-cant-help-but-notice-interview-room-covered-in-plastic-sheeting/

July 24, 2025

GOP senators push Obama conspiracy to hide Trump's Epstein scandal

Republican Sens. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and John Cornyn of Texas are following President Donald Trump's command to distract from the Epstein files by going after President Barack Obama.

Both lawmakers are now calling for a special counsel to probe whether Obama committed treason through the investigation into Russia’s role in the 2016 election, which consumed much of Trump's first term.

"For the good of the country, Senator [Cornyn] and I urge Attorney General Bondi to appoint a special counsel to investigate the extent to which former President Obama, his staff and administration officials manipulated the U.S. national security apparatus for a political outcome," Graham wrote on X Thursday.

Graham and Cornyn are referring to the ridiculous lie cooked up by Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, who baselessly accused Obama of a "treasonous conspiracy" in which he “manufactured intelligence” about Russian election interference in 2016 to "subvert the will of the American people" by "trying to usurp the President from fulfilling the mandate bestowed upon him by the American people."

https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2025/7/24/2334970/-GOP-senators-push-Obama-conspiracy-to-hide-Trump-s-Epstein-scandal

It's all just a big fucking game to them. Wouldn't it be nice if these Republican asskissers actually focused on legislation to improve the lives of all Americans?

July 24, 2025

Trump Awards $1.26 Billion Contract to Build Biggest Immigrant Detention Center in US

Tent camp with 5,000 beds would be the largest such facility in the country, fueling fears of advocates who say they often don’t meet basic needs

The federal government has awarded a contract to build and operate a sprawling tent camp at Fort Bliss, an Army base in Texas, to serve as an immigrant detention center.

In the Trump administration’s latest move to vastly expand space for such detention, the work would turn the base in El Paso, with more than 1 million acres and an airport, into a deportation hub with 5,000 beds, according to a US Department of Defense contract notice. That would make it the largest immigration detention facility in the country.

The contract for Fort Bliss is worth $1.26 billion and was awarded to Virginia-based Acquisition Logistics Company through a special program that directs federal dollars to small businesses, according to two people familiar with the matter who asked to not be named discussing something that hasn’t been shared publicly. The Army is putting up $232 million for the work, the Defense Department notice says. The Wall Street Journal reported earlier that the contract had been awarded but did not include its value or the winning bidder. Ken Wagner, president and chief executive officer of Acquisition Logistics, declined to comment.

The Fort Bliss contract is by far the biggest ever for Acquisition Logistics, which Wagner, a retired Naval flight officer, founded in 2008. It specializes in supply chain management and other technical services, particularly for the US military, according to Wagner’s LinkedIn profile. Acquisition Logistics has received contracts worth roughly $29 million from the Defense Department over the past five fiscal years, mainly for logistics support work, according to government records. Most of that was through set-asides for small businesses.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-07-22/trump-awards-immigration-detention-center-contract-for-fort-bliss-in-texas?accessToken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJzb3VyY2UiOiJTdWJzY3JpYmVyR2lmdGVkQXJ0aWNsZSIsImlhdCI6MTc1MzM2NDM0MCwiZXhwIjoxNzUzOTY5MTQwLCJhcnRpY2xlSWQiOiJTWlQ0MVJHUFdDUUMwMCIsImJjb25uZWN0SWQiOiJDNjgyQTUwQzJCRDM0MTFCQTgwQjEwQjZEQjczQzM1MSJ9.vYXjZKb28WsQtD15jEjdt4GRm94LK1HZJeqUNEH28As

A $1.26B "tent camp" contract awarded to a "small business". Hmmm....

July 22, 2025

DeSantis targets Broward, Gainesville with DOGE audit letters

Gov. Ron DeSantis announced on Tuesday in Fort Lauderdale that his office was going to conduct on-site inspections of local governments that don’t cooperate with his efforts to audit their spending.

At the news conference, he also accused Broward County of not complying with the effort, though he acknowledged local officials had given his office requested financial information.

DeSantis announced the Florida Department of Government Efficiency task force in February, mimicking the name of the Elon Musk-affiliated federal program, in order to “further eliminate waste within state government, save taxpayers money, and ensure accountability in Florida.”

On July 11, the governor’s office sent Broward County officials an email requesting details about their revenues and expenditures. County officials told the Herald they complied with the request by about 5 p.m. July 21. On Monday, shortly after former Sen. Blaise Ingoglia was sworn in as the state’s chief financial officer, he and DeSantis’ office increased the pressure.

“WE’RE NOT WASTING ANY TIME!” Ingoglia posted on X Monday evening, sharing the copy of another letter the DeSantis administration sent to the mayor of Broward County less than two hours prior. “Accountability is coming.”

https://www.tampabay.com/news/florida-politics/2025/07/22/desantis-doge-ingoglia-broward-gainesville-audits/