Today in Politics, Bulletin 55. 1/23/25 Ron Filipkowski Jan 24 ∙ … Lauren Boebert and Nancy Mace had more bathroom drama today. Bloomberg’s Billy House with the latest from the House Bathroom Caucus: “I bear witness: Rep. Lauren Boebert bursting out of the House Women's restroom during this afternoon's vote series, complaining to security personnel stationed in the nearby Speaker’s Lobby of ‘a guy’ inside the bathroom. Intrigued, I stuck around to see who would emerge from the bathroom...and saw just 4 other people leave, all women.” Curious. … He continued: “Within minutes, however, Boebert was storming back from the House floor into the restroom - reinforced by Rep. Nancy Mace in tow. Who would dare leave this scene now? Not me. Mace is author of the resolution prohibiting transgender women in the chamber from using the women’s restroom. But alas, just seconds after this duo entered the bathroom, they come back out -- and went back quietly to the floor. A bit of bathroom vigilantism? … But that wasn’t the end of the story: “I later asked Boebert what this was all about, noting I had heard her complain there was ‘a guy’ in there. To her credit, she acknowledged it was a mistake. ‘There was a rumor there was, but it wasn't true,’ she told me.” … Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) says that aliens have secret bases under our oceans: “I’ve talked to people who are sonar people. And the way they hide it from us, because they say, it’s our sonar I believe - I haven’t been briefed on this, it’s just from what I’m putting together, we have some secret sonar, but what’s so crazy about it, like, we’re hiding it from the Chinese. Well heck, the Chinese sold us some components for it. They tell me something’s moving at hundreds of miles an hour underwater and it was as large as a football field.” … Burchett was then asked if he thought they had bases underwater: “I do. I’m not worried about them harming me. With their capabilities, they could have harmed us a long time ago if they wanted to.” I feel better. … Trump granted pardons today for anti-abortion activists convicted under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act, a law that protects doctors, nurses, staff and patients at clinics from violence, threats of violence, intimidation and harassment. … 21 people have been convicted of crimes under the FACE Act, and 10 are still in prison. Trump’s pardon frees all of them. … Josh Hawley this morning before Trump issued the pardons: “I have urged President Trump to pardon ALL of these pro-life prisoners unjustly persecuted by the corrupt Biden Administration.” … Sen. Mike Lee then introduced a bill today to repeal the FACE Act, because he says it has “been weaponized against pro-life activists and people of faith.” He says even though Trump’s DOJ will never enforce the law, he wants to make sure no future DOJ can either. … Rep. Barry Loudermilk was informed by a staffer with Mike Johnson’s office that if he subpoenaed Cassidy Hutchinson, they were concerned that she would reveal “sexual texts from members (of Congress) who were trying to engage in sexual favors” with her, according to a new report by WaPo. The report says that “multiple colleagues” expressed concern. Needless to say, if they were from Democrats they would have already been released. … Loudermilk said his committee will be investigating the conduct of the J6 Committee, federal prosecutors, and law enforcement who investigated the insurrection. Presumably, now that this story has been made public, Democrats will insist that Hutchinson be subpoenaed to any future hearings. … A federal judge in WA has issued a 14-day restraining order to block Trump’s executive order banning birthright citizenship. The lawsuit alleges that Trump’s order violates the 14th Amendment and previous court decisions. … Lauren Boebert told CNN she looks forward to giving tours of the Capitol to recently released J6 insurrectionists. When asked how she could justify doing that, Boebert said, “The Capitol police officers who took down barricades and gates are here, and they’ve been here ever since.” … Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-WA) told CNN that Trump’s pardons to J6 defendants who attacked police were a "middle finger to law enforcement and to our judicial system. I just think it demeans and disrespects the work that people do around here to protect public safety, protect us and also people around the country. They just send the wrong message to law enforcement agencies, to the public, to our judicial system and to citizens." … Newhouse is one of only two Republicans left who voted to impeach Trump for J6. … Mike Johnson said it “isn’t my place” to question Trump’s J6 pardons. Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA): “Not your place!?! Who the hell’s place is it? How about you stand with the officers who protected you and not a reality show wannabe dictator.” … Trump demanded that Fed Chair Jerome Powell dramatically lower interest rates, which would make his inflation even worse if that was combined with his proposed tariffs: “I think I know interest rates much better than they do. And I think I know certainly much better than the one who's primarily in charge of making that decision.” … Democratic State Sen. Bradford Blackmon (MS) introduced the ‘Contraception Begins at Erection Act’ to ban men from masturbating. The bill makes it illegal for “any person to discharge genetic material without the intent to fertilize an embryo." … Blackmon issued this statement: "All across the country, especially here in MS, the vast majority of bills relating to contraception and/or abortion focus on the woman’s role when men are 50% of the equation. This bill highlights that fact and brings the man’s role into the conversation. People can get up in arms and call it absurd but I can’t say that bothers me." … The fine for the first time getting caught masturbating would be $1,000. It goes up to $5,000 for a second offense. … Former Secret Service Agent and right-wing talk show host Dan Bongino, who began each day of Biden’s presidency with a post on X that he was the worst president in history, is not happy with Trump’s new hire Sean Curran as Secret Service Director. MAGA influencers were pushing for Bongino to get the gig, and he said publicly he would take the job if offered. But now he says that Trump never even spoke to him about it. Sad! … After the announcement of Curran was made, Bongino posted: “Don’t blame me. I tried.” He then said on his radio show today: “I’m not sure this is the right pick for right now. Donald Trump won the presidency. He’s free to pick his own people. That job wasn’t for me, but I would have at least liked to have some input into stuff. They didn’t want it.” … Republicans continue to rant and rave about Bishop Budde’s sermon. Mike Johnson: “Bishop Budde hijacked the National Prayer Service to promote her radical ideology. This was an opportunity to unify the country in prayer, but she used it to sow division. Even worse, she’s continued her political crusade in media interviews. Shameful.” … Former Hercules actor Kevin Sorbo doesn’t like that she’s a female Bishop: “The Bible is very clear on who is supposed to lead the church.” … Rep. Mike Collins (R-GA) called on Trump to deport her. He didn’t specify a country. … Bishop Budde was asked about Trump’s demand that she apologize: "I am not going to apologize to him. I don't hate President Trump. I strive not to hate anyone, and I dare say that I am not of the 'radical left' either." … Trump addressed the EU by video during their meeting in Davos. He told them that other NATO members must now increase their defense spending to 5% of GDP, far more than the goals in the charter. The US spends 3.4% of GDP on defense. He did not say whether he intends to increase the US defense budget to 5%, would would massively increase the deficit. … He was then asked about his promise to end the war in Ukraine in 24 hours: “Mr. President, when you're back here in Davos next year, will there be then a peace agreement with Ukraine and Russia by then? Trump: Well, you're going to have to ask Russia.” … He said he was be easy for him to end it in 24 hours. This is the 2017 health care and infrastructure plans 2.0. … Trump also claimed to them that he was close to a deal to a deal during his last term with Putin to get rid of all nuclear weapons: “We were talking about denuclearization of our two countries, and China would have come along. And I will tell you that President Putin really liked the idea of cutting way back on nuclear.” … Trump then directly addressed the Bank of America CEO: “I hope you start opening your bank to conservatives, because many conservatives complain that the banks are not allowing them to do business with the bank, and that included a place called Bank of America. They don't take conservative business. And I don't know if the regulators mandated that because of Biden or what, but I hope you're going to open your banks to conservatives because what you're doing is wrong.” … Bank of America refused to do business with people arrested for the J6 insurrection. They have also de-banked a few right-wing internet scam artists and Nazis. … Trump then latched onto Mark Zuckerberg’s complaint on Joe Rogan’s show about the EU hitting him with and other tech companies fines for insufficient content moderation: “They took court cases with Apple and they supposedly won a case that most people didn't think was much of a case. They won $15-16 billion from Apple. They won billions from Google. I think they're after Facebook for billions and billions. These are American companies, whether you like them or not. They're American companies and they shouldn't be doing that. As far as I’m concerned, that’s a form of taxation.” … Zuck suggested Trump hit the EU with tariffs for insisting on content moderation. Of course, co-President Musk favors that as well, so Trump issues the mob threat to the EU for his billionaire backers. … Trump is now threatening to completely abolish FEMA. On Fox: “FEMA is going to be a whole big discussion very shortly. Because I’d rather see the states take care of their own problems. If they have a tornado someplace, let that state take care of it.” … AOC: “What makes this go round with Trump so much more dangerous than the first time is that he is much more normalized this time around.” … The Trump Admin is now sending 1,000 soldiers and 500 Marines to the southern border. The Marines will be moved from CA where they have been on standby to help deal with the threat of more wildfires. A senior Marine Corps official told Fox that they are preparing for a total of 2,500 Marines to be sent to the border, they are treating it the same as a deployment into a war zone, and they “will be armed and have magazines in their weapons, unlike during past border missions.” … Immigration law expert Aaron Reichlin-Melnick: “The Trump administration just sent 500 Marines on standby to help with California wildfires to the border instead, where border crossings are the lowest level they’ve been in over four years.” … Also Reichlin-Melnick: “Right now, the Trump Admin is bragging about ICE carrying out 308 arrests on Tuesday. Do you know what the average daily number of ICE arrests was in Fiscal Year 2024 under Biden? 310.” … Rep. Nydia Velázquez (D-NY), on Trump claiming that he has to mass deport migrants because of crime: “Donald Trump did not care a bit about safer communities when he released those who were convicted of beating the shit out of police officers. So, don’t come to us and talk about security and safer communities when you do that.” … CBS is reporting that Trump’s VIP Candlelight Inaugural Dinner was a complete mess, with $250,000 a person tickets oversold. Super-wealthy megadonors were forced to wait outside in lines in 30 degree weather for nearly two hours - and these are people who aren’t used to waiting in lines. One attendee told them “it was a clusterfuck.” Another: “We were freezing our asses off.” … Many of the people standing outside waiting in freezing cold were billionaires. One person who donated millions to Trump grumbled: “It didn’t matter who you were.” … The seats inside the also venue got screwed up as many attendees moved the name cards to get closer to Trump’s table before others were able to get in, which resulted in some of Trump biggest donors with seats in the back of the room. Attendees said they were afraid to get out of their seats to dance or go to the bathroom because they worried someone else would grab it. … Then the food. Some of the billionaires left at 10:30 PM to get dinner somewhere else because they still hadn’t been served their food. Tragic. … A photo of Elon Musk was beamed onto the huge Tesla factory in Germany with the words “heil” and “boycott” in front of the Tesla logo. It was done by that country’s Centre for Political Beauty and Led by Donkeys from the UK. They also projected a video showing Mr Musk’s tweets supporting of Germany’s far-Right Alternative für Deutschland party. It is Tesla’s only plant in Europe. … Fox host Laura Ingraham says the whole Nazi salute thing is a misunderstanding: “We all know that Elon Musk is excited about the Trump agenda and that he is prone to sudden wild gesticulations.” … Sen. Lisa Murkowski was the first Republican to announce she will vote against Pete Hegseth: “I cannot in good conscience support his nomination. Managing DOD requires vast experience and expertise as the department is one of the most complex and powerful organizations in the world, and Hegseth’s prior roles in his career do not demonstrate to me that he is prepared for such immense responsibility. His leadership of two veteran organizations was marked with accusations of financial mismanagement and problems with the workplace culture he fostered.” … Murkowski also emphasized Hegseth’s statements about women: “I remain concerned about the message that confirming Hegseth sends to women currently serving and those aspiring to join. Women have served our nation with distinction, overcoming immense obstacles to excel in combat and leadership roles, and they deserve to know that their leader honors and values their commitment to our nation.” Meidas+ is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. … She concluded with a statement about his personal conduct: The past behaviors Hegseth has admitted to, including infidelity on multiple occasions, demonstrate a lack of judgment that is unbecoming of someone who would lead our armed forces. These behaviors starkly contrast the values and discipline expected of service members. Men and women in uniform are held accountable for such actions, and they deserve leaders who uphold these same standards.” … Sen. Susan Collins then became the second Republican to come out against Hegseth. To CNN: “I am concerned that Hegseth does not have the management experience and background that he will need in order to tackle these difficulties. His limited managerial experience involved running two small non-profit organizations that had decidedly mixed results. I am also concerned about multiple statements that Hegseth has made about women serving in the military. He and I had a candid conversation in Dec about his past statements and apparently evolving views. I am not convinced that his position on women serving in combat roles has changed.” … Sen. Tammy Duckworth: “All these allegations of passing out while drunk in uniform, going to strip joints in uniforms, having to be carried out of bars -- no soldier would ever get promoted with those types of behavior on their record, and yet my Republican colleagues seem to think that's okay for somebody who wants to be SecDef.” … But the really disgraceful vote was Sen. Joni Ernst, who was a female combat veteran and sexual assault survivor. Duckworth: “Joni Ernst, when she came out and said she had some concerns about Hegseth, was immediately flooded with attacks from the MAGA rightwing crowd. I think this is all about people buckling under to Trump. And it is really quite sad." … The filibuster was broken 51-49, so now there can be up to 30 hours of debate before final vote on the nomination. Another Senator or two could switch their votes, but not likely. All Democrats voted against Hegseth - including John Fetterman. … AP broke a story right after the filibuster vote that Hegseth paid $50,000 to his 2017 sex assault accuser for her non-disclosure agreement, which has prevented her from speaking to Senators. … Ivanka Trump says the new crypto $IVANKA is a scam: “It has come to my attention that a fake crypto coin called ‘Ivanka Trump’ or $IVANKA is being promoted without my consent or approval. I have no involvement with this coin. This fake coin risks deceiving consumers and defrauding them of their hard-earned money, and the unauthorized use of my name and likeness is a violation of my rights. This promotion is deceptive, exploitative, and unacceptable. My legal team is reviewing and will be pursuing measures to stop the continued misuse of my name.” … The Trump family has so many different cypto scams going right now that it’s hard for their MAGA fans to know what is theirs and what is not. Either way, the end result is the same - they will all lose their money. The only question is whether they will lose it to a Trump or a Trump impersonator. … Mikhaul Zygar, who writes for Der Spiegel and NYT on Russia, says that Russian oligarchs used to ridicule Elon Musk, but that has all changed since he bought his way inside Trump’s WH: “Many Russian oligarchs .. see him as embodying their dreams. A businessman wielding state-level power without holding any official position perfectly reflects the aspirations of Russian big business in the 1990s, when problems were solved through threats, bullying, and brute force. No one back then could have imagined that something similar would unfold in the West.” … Days after Vivek Ramaswamy abandoned the DOGE committee after a reported falling out with Musk, their General Counsel Bill McGinley announced that he is also leaving before it even gets started. … With Trump and Musk both denying that Vivek was fired from DOGE because of his comments about H-1B Visas, right-wing National File asked Vivek if that’s why he was asked to leave the committee: “Obviously.” … Trump was asked tonight if he was upset that Musk criticized the deal he announced yesterday with Open AI’s Sam Altman: “No it doesn't. He hates one of the people in the deal. I have certain hatreds of people too.” … MI Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson announced she is running for governor to succeed long-time ally Gretchen Whitmer in 2026. She told AP: “We’ll work to continue delivering and not just listening. Talking about economics and how to save people time and money.” Whitmer said she will not endorse anyone in the Democratic primary. … Pete Buttigieg, who moved to Michigan in 2020, is also reportedly considering a run. … But complicating matters for any Democratic nominee is the fact that former Democratic Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan is running as an independent, and could be a spoiler pulling votes away from the Democratic nominee in the general election. Benson has called for Duggan to drop out of the race. … The Trump Admin sent an email to all federal employees that if they think anyone is continuing to use DEI as a factor in any agency in the hiring or promotion process, they must “report all facts and circumstances within 10 days” to their new office monitoring it across all federal agencies. The memo concluded: “There will be no adverse consequences for timely reporting this information. However, failure to report this info within 10 days may result in adverse consequences.” … The Trump Administration has officially put a freeze on all pending and future litigation brought by DOJ’s Civil Rights Division. The memo ordered attorneys not to file "any new complaints, motions to intervene, agree-upon remands, amicus briefs, or statements of interest." Based on what was promised by Trump in videos and on his website, DOJ’s Civil Right Division will now focus on discrimination by companies and universities against white people. … Today’s Least Shocking News of the Day: After many Republican states essentially banned PornHub by requiring users to input their driver’s licenses, the use of VPNs to access the site went up in each state, but nowhere more than Florida. Florida Politics reports that demand for VPNs in FL has increased 1,150% since FL’s law went into effect, much more than any other state. … CREW is reporting that Jared Kushner and Trump just days ago announced yet another way foreign governments can funnel money to Trump while he is president - Trump Tower Belgrade: “Days before Trump's inauguration, Kushner partnered with the Trump Organization, to develop a Trump-branded luxury hotel and apartment complex in Belgrade, Serbia. Affinity Partners is functioning as a vehicle for foreign governments, including Saudi Arabia, to enrich the POTUS. … After revoking the security detail of his former NSA John Bolton, the NYT reports that Trump has now pulled the security details from his former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Special Envoy to Iran Brian Hook, both of whom have received credible threats from Iran. … Newschannel5 from Nashville reports that the Antioch school shooter posted on social media that he was “ashamed to be Black,” posted lots of anti-Semitic content, and wrote “Candace Owens influenced me above all others each time she spoke.” … Sen. John Kennedy to Trump’s Budget Director nominee Ross Vought at his confirmation hearing: “You're going to be challenging the status quo. You're going to be called crazy. Many people also called Noah crazy. And then the rains came, and all the fact checkers died.” … John Ratcliffe was confirmed as CIA Director by a vote of 74-25. … Semafor is reporting that Tulsi Gabbard’s nomination for DNI is in trouble as several Republican Senators are not thrilled with her past statements that seem to demonstrate she is an apologist for Putin and Bashar al-Assad. One Republican Senator told them: “There are very serious concerns by enough members to put her nomination in jeopardy.” … RFK Jr’s confirmation hearing has finally been set for Jan. 29. The hearing had been delayed while waiting for him to submit his financial disclosure forms. … A new poll in the 2025 NJ governor’s race shows Mikie Sherrill leading a crowded field in the Democratic primary with 10%, with Sean Spiller and Ras Baraka close behind at 8% each. … Axios is reporting that internal polling from Trump pollster Tony Fabrizio shows that Sen. Marsha Blackburn will be “the clear front runner” if she ran for Governor of TN. All signs are pointing the that, as she has been making calls around the state seeking endorsements. … Rep. Gerry Connelly (D-VA), who beat out AOC as ranking member of the Oversight Committee, introduced the identical bill that Republican Chair James Comer filed last year against Biden - the Presidential Ethics Reform Act, requiring strict transparency from a president about his financial activities. Connelly issued a challenge to Comer to now vote against his own bill that he filed last year. … Comer then responded to The Hill by claiming that he doesn’t fear Connelly as much as he feared Jamie Raskin, who just left the Committee for Judiciary: “When Raskin walked in the room, my blood pressure would go up 30 points. Connolly though? My blood pressure is stable when he walks in. I think he’s a good person and very sincere.” … Kim Kardashian lost 150,000 Instagram followers after she posted a picture of Melania Trump at the inauguration, according to social media influencer marketing agency Socially Powerful. … Reporter Roger Sollenberger: “White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt is filing new versions of reports from her failed 2022 campaign, so far revealing close to $200,000 in debt for ‘donor refunds’ that she owed supporters, but had never reported — and never reported refunding. Seems like she kept it.” … MAGA influencer Catturd checks in on Day 2 of his hospital stay for a bowel blockage: “Update - still in hospital. My stomach is feeling much better but still waiting for more tests today. They do know now that both times this happened, it was because of scar tissue from my appendix surgery decades ago. I’ll hopefully know more later.” … I’m not a doctor or anything, and I’m not sure what’s really going on with Turd’s gastrointestinal system because he does like to “do his own research” on things, but he did post this last year.