Talking Points Memo

Hello, it’s the weekend. This is The Weekender ☕️ There’s a story that Trumpists tell about 2020. The mass protests of that summer were a missed opportunity; Trump, having been thwarted in his desire to call out the military, was too kind. The left took that as an … Redoing 2020?Read more

My wording in this title is one part provocation. But there is a serious point to it. American political debates use the term ‘elite’ in a fairly impoverished way. Its use is pejorative rather than descriptive. The elites are the bad guys. And the good elites aren’t actually … The Trumpian EliteRead more

A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPM’s Morning Memo. Sign up for the email version. A Little Too Eager For Riots, Perhaps? Heading into a weekend of planned nationwide protests against the authoritarianism of President Donald Trump, right-wing figures in politics and law … Right-Wingers Sound Like They WANT Anti-Trump Protests To Turn ViolentRead more

From 30,000 feet, the trendlines for Democrats are cataclysmic: Blue states, particularly the powerhouses of New York and California, are leaching population that’s being hoovered up by southern states, particularly Florida and Texas. 

The massive budget bill that Republicans are currently negotiating in the Senate would do considerable damage to two of the most significant Democratic legislative victories of the last two decades: Obamacare and the Inflation Reduction Act.  Neither party is eager to talk about the impact of the “One … Passing Big Beautiful Bill Would Mean ‘Effectively Dismantling’ Obamacare, Gutting Inflation Reduction ActRead more

Hardly any Republicans in the Senate want to be caught dead at President Trump’s big boy parade this weekend.

We’re getting a bit more information about that hideous rally when President Trump ripped into his political opponents at Fort Bragg to the cheers of soldiers arrayed behind him. Now we learn that Army commanders at the base pre-screened soldiers at the rally for ones who support President … Opposition FreeRead more

A new episode of The Josh Marshall Podcast is live! This week, Kate and Josh discuss the L.A. protests and Trump’s big boy birthday parade.

A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPM’s Morning Memo. Sign up for the email version. What Will Judge Xinis Do Now? The slo-mo constitutional clash in the case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia inched forward with a new filing overnight in which his attorneys … Abrego Garcia Wants A Judge To Seize Pam Bondi’s PhoneRead more

House Republicans narrowly passed the rescission package President Donald Trump sent over last week to Congress in an effort to give an air of legitimacy to the Department of Government Efficiency’s rampage through the federal government. Democratic leadership called out their Republican counterparts in a press conference ahead … Jeffries Calls Out Republicans For Ceding Their Authority To Trump In Rubber-Stamping DOGE CutsRead more

I was driving when this afternoon’s events in Los Angeles took place. So I didn’t know about them in real time and only found out what had happened a couple hours later. (Appropriately enough, I was listening to the audiobook version of a Raymond Chandler novel.) Secretary Noem … Trump Wants to Rule as a Dictator. Make Him Do It.Read more

As many of you have probably noticed, TPM had significant downtime this afternoon. It turns out it wasn’t just us. Cloudflare had a series of broad outages this afternoon and TPM was downstream of that. About 20% of all websites use Cloudflare for core site functions (things like … About that OutageRead more

Just before Sen. Alex Padilla (D-CA) was forcibly removed from a Department of Homeland Security press briefing, forced to the ground and then handcuffed for asking a question, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem was in the middle of making a bizarre but crucial point. 

A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPM’s Morning Memo. Sign up for the email version. Coming Up Snake Eyes In a deeply unfortunate roll of the dice, the only three Trump appointees on the 16-judge D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals ended up being … How Some Very Bad Luck Has Made It Even Harder To Rein In TrumpRead more

As I mentioned in yesterday’s edition of Where Things Stand, there is an element of campaign-promise fulfillment intertwined in the Trump administration’s aggro deployment of National Guard troops to inflame an already tense standoff between LA protesters and local law enforcement. Trump’s spent much of his political career … Big Fans Of State Sovereignty Except When California Does ItRead more

We’ve discussed in a number of posts over the spring that Donald Trump’s effort to build a dictatorial, autocratic presidency is fundamentally a battle over public opinion. I’ve also noted in a series of posts that the states and their separate sovereignties are a key, defensive source of … A Hellscape Miscellany: Finding Sweet Spots of Leverage Amidst the ChaosRead more

A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPM’s Morning Memo. Sign up for the email version. Indiscriminate Numbers Games President Trump’ dream of mass deportations has always suffered from logistical and practical obstacles that make the entire exercise part cruelty, part performance, and part … Stephen Miller Demanded ICE Target Home DepotsRead more

The Trump administration’s decision to federalize the California National Guard to crack down on protesters demonstrating against ICE detentions in the city, absent a request from the state’s governor — and even despite assurances from local law enforcement that things were, for the most part, under control — … Punishing Blue Cities Was Always On The AgendaRead more

TPM will have a new editor and a new reporter next week. This is very exciting for us, allowing us to expand our reporting capacity and, hopefully, reach new audiences during what is a wild moment — both for democracy, and for journalism — with new stories and … TPM Adds Two New Members To Our TeamRead more

‘Border Czar’ Tom Homan has been, along with Stephen Miller, has been the public face of Trump border enforcement and anti-immigration politics going back to President Trump’s first administration when he was briefly acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). But in recent days, in a series … Why Is Tom Homan Going Full Fidel?Read more

National Guard troops are mobilized fairly frequently for domestic purposes, usually during natural disasters. Having them federalized isn’t that uncommon. But having them federalized over the objections of a state’s civil authorities is extremely uncommon and hasn’t happened in more than half a century. As this was unfolding … Digging Into Trump’s Attack on the State of CaliforniaRead more

A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPM’s Morning Memo. Sign up for the email version. What A Weekend We come into the new week with more weekend news to process than we’ve had since February or March, so I’m going to jump right … Trump Has Long Been Itching To Use The Military On American StreetsRead more

For months during the 2024 campaign, Donald Trump promised to use the military domestically. His campaign telegraphed it via news coverage and reports from friendly nonprofits; Trump mused about using soldiers against protests. After he defeated Kamala Harris, the then-President-elect reminded everyone that he wanted to see “military … Trump Admin Calls In National Guard Against LA ProtestorsRead more

This article is part of TPM Cafe, TPM’s home for opinion and news analysis. It was originally published at The Conversation. Responding to street protests in Los Angeles against federal immigration enforcement raids, President Donald Trump ordered 2,000 soldiers from the California National Guard into the city on June 7, … Los Angeles Guard Deployment Raises Specter Of Kent StateRead more

In my first post I wanted to make clear the specifics of what was happening with the National Guard. The President has the power to federalize the State National Guards. I wanted to make sure everyone knew that this is not a power Trump made up. It’s within … More Thoughts on the Unfolding Crisis in CARead more

This is serious enough to break in on the weekend. You’ve seen the intentionally provocative ICE raids in LA and the protests spawned by them. A short time ago White House immigration Czar Tom Homan said he was sending in the National Guard to control the situation. It … Breaking Out of Los AngelesRead more

Hello it’s the weekend. This is The Weekender ☕️ House Republicans are hoping the public breakup between President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk does not last very long for the sake of the “big, beautiful” reconciliation bill. Thursday’s news cycle was dominated by the clash between the … House GOP Fears Trump-Elon Breakup Might Get In ‘Big, Beautiful’ Bill’s WayRead more

This story first appeared at ProPublica. ProPublica is a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative newsroom. Sign up for The Big Story newsletter to receive stories like this one in your inbox. As the Trump administration prepared to cancel contracts at the Department of Veteran Affairs this year, officials turned to … DOGE Developed Error-Prone AI Tool To ‘Munch’ Veterans Affairs ContractsRead more

A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPM’s Morning Memo. Sign up for the email version. Stranded In Djibouti It had been two weeks since U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy of Massachusetts ordered the Trump administration to allow the detainees it was trying to … Trump Admin Laments South Sudan Deportation Debacle It CreatedRead more

Senate Republicans began the work this week of deciphering what exactly House Republicans’ have stuffed into President Trump’s massive spending package — and what elements of it they can live with.  One thing is clear: Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) and Republican leadership have their work cut … Senate GOP Sorts Out Which Poison Pills It Can Swallow To Pass House’s ‘Big Beautiful’ BillRead more