Today in Politics, Bulletin 215. 9/27/25. Ron Filipkowski Sep 26 ∙ … The latest Epstein documents just released to House Oversight included a scheduled visit by Elon Musk on Dec 6, 2014 to Epstein Island. NBC: “Within documents of Epstein’s schedule, there is evidence that Peter Thiel and Steve Bannon had scheduled meetings with Epstein, as well as evidence of a pending trip by Elon Musk to Epstein’s island.” … Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) stirred the pot by suggesting that Trump wanted this to be included in the 3rd batch of documents released to the committee as his revenge for Musk’s comments about Trump’s Epstein connections: “Trump OUTS Elon Musk as being in Epstein Files. Revenge for Elon outing Trump? Elon, what do you know about Trump’s involvement?” … Trump posted this today on Truth Social: “Pregnant Women, DON’T USE TYLENOL UNLESS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY, DON’T GIVE TYLENOL TO YOUR YOUNG CHILD FOR VIRTUALLY ANY REASON, BREAK UP THE MMR SHOT INTO THREE TOTALLY SEPARATE SHOTS (NOT MIXED!), TAKE CHICKEN P SHOT SEPARATELY, TAKE HEPATITAS B SHOT AT 12 YEARS OLD, OR OLDER, AND, IMPORTANTLY, TAKE VACCINE IN 5 SEPARATE MEDICAL VISITS!” … WaPo reported on the urgent meeting where Sec of Defense Pete Hegseth summoned hundreds of the most senior generals and admirals stationed all over the world to DC next week: “Hegseth ordered hundreds of generals to travel on short notice from around the world to hear him make a speech on military standards and the ‘warrior ethos’.” … Source: “It’s meant to be an eyeball-to-eyeball kind of conversation. He wants to see the generals.” … Hegseth also put out a video making this announcement: “Under my direction, the soldiers who fought at the Battle of Wounded Knee will keep their medals. This decision is final. Their place in history is settled.” … The Atlantic’s James Surowiecki: “We gave 10 Medals of Honor to US troops who landed in Normandy and fought the Germans on D-Day. We gave 20 Medals of Honor - twice as many - to US cavalrymen who killed hundreds of Lakota, most of them women and children, at Wounded Knee. That’s absurd and embarrassing.” … “Congress awarded a huge number of Medals of Honor to soldiers who fought at Wounded Knee in order to try to change the narrative around the event. But 135 years later, we shouldn’t be pretending that all of those soldiers ‘deserved’ the highest honor the military bestows.” … Fallout today from the Trump-ordered authoritarian indictment of former FBI Director James Comey, who he has despised for years after the RussiaGate investigation, with even Fox analysts commenting on air today that they don’t think the case will hold up in court. … WSJ editor and Fox contributor Kim Strassel on Fox: “While I think a lot of Americans would love to see some sort of accountability for James Comey, I’m not sure this particular charge is the way to go about it. In part because I’m not sure it’s actually going to stick in the end and that will leave a lot of disappointed people, too.” … National Review editor and Fox contributor Andrew McCarthy on Ted Cruz’s comments about the case: “I love Ted, but McCabe never said that Comey authorized it. They’re not going to be able to prove he authorized the leak. By all accounts he didn’t. I don’t think this case even gets to trial.” … Minutes after his newly appointed US Attorney Lindsey Halligan got the indictment, Trump posted: “JUSTICE IN AMERICA! One of the worst human beings this Country has ever been exposed to is James Comey, the former Corrupt Head of the FBI. Today he was indicted by a Grand Jury on two felony counts for various illegal and unlawful acts. He has been so bad for our Country, for so long, and is now at the beginning of being held responsible for his crimes against our Nation.” … MSNBC’s Ken Dilanian: “What I am hearing from DOJ sources: The Comey indictment is among the worst abuses in DOJ history. Shocking. It’s hard to overstate how a big a moment this is.” … Katie Miller responded: “Yes absolutely shocking how they raided our President and trumped up charges for politics. Save your pearl clutching. We need to find and fire everyone who believes indicting Comey is an abuse. They are who went after our President.” … Mehdi Hasan: “Stephen Miller’s wife doesn’t seem to understand how all of this politicization and weaponization of the justice system, and open targeting of political opponents, could rebound on her lawless husband when/if Democrats are back in office.” … Dilanian said it appears that false evidence may have been presented to the grand jury to secure the indictment: “The indictment appears to attribute to Comey words he never uttered. In answering Sen. Ted Cruz (at a Senate hearing), Comey said he stood by his 2017 testimony. He did not say in the 2020 hearing that he had not ‘authorized someone else at the FBI to be an anonymous source in news reports.’” … Andrew McCarthy on Maria Bartiromo’s show: “I don’t think there’s a case. It seems to be premised on something that’s not true, which is that McCabe said that Comey authorized him to leak to the Wall Street Journal. I don’t see how they can make that case.” … Dilanian: “So interesting to hear Lindsey Graham frame the Comey case as being about the Trump Russia investigation, when actually it’s about whether Comey lied about authorizing someone to leak about another matter entirely. For MAGA, these charges are a way to punish Comey for alleged wrongdoing in the Russia investigation, despite the fact that he was cleared in that matter first by an inspector general and then by a Trump-appointed special counsel.” … MSNBC: “Lindsey Halligan, the newly installed US Attorney who has never prosecuted a case, presented the Comey indictment all by herself to the grand jury. She may have a problem finding a prosecutor in office to work on the case.” … Trump: “They weaponized the justice department like nobody in history. What they’ve done is terrible. So I hope - frankly I hope there are others.” … Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-TX) on Fox: “This is about lying to Congress under oath, and Comey needs accountability for that. He doesn’t get to just walk through the woods and write poetry and do other weird things and post on Instagram anymore. He’s gonna actually have to face it.” … Fox chief political analyst Brit Hume: “If the case comes down to James Comey’s word against Andrew McCabe’s, the jury might have a hard time believing either one of them.” … Rep. Mark Harris (R-NC) on Fox: “This is probably just the first step in a longer process and other individuals who are gonna get caught up in this.” … Fortune: “Lindsey Halligan, 36, takes over one of the most significant prosecutorial offices in the country despite having no experience as a prosecutor at any level. The appointment comes after Trump forced out her predecessor, Erik Siebert, for refusing to pursue charges against NY AG Letitia James and former FBI Director James Comey.” … “Halligan’s rapid ascension from FL insurance lawyer to fed prosecutor represents a stark departure from traditional DOJ hiring practices. Court records show she has participated in only 3 federal cases throughout her career, all while serving as one of Trump’s personal attorneys. By contrast, Siebert, whom she replaced, was listed as an attorney on 675 federal cases during his extensive prosecutorial career.” … “She went to Holy Family High School in CO before earning a degree in political science and broadcast journalism from Regis University in Denver—the same school Erika Kirk, Charlie Kirk’s wife, attended. During Halligan’s college years, she competed in the Miss Colorado USA pageant twice, reaching the semifinals in 2009 and placing third runner-up in 2010.” … “The E. District of VA, known as the ‘rocket docket’ for its rapid case processing, handles significant national security and terrorism cases owing to its proximity to DC. The office serves more than 6 million people with a staff of 300 prosecutors. Under federal law, Halligan can serve as interim US attorney for only 120 days unless extended by federal judges or confirmed by the Senate.” … ProPublica: “For months, the complaints have rolled in from parts of the country hit by natural disasters: FEMA was moving far too slowly in sending aid to communities ravaged by floods and hurricanes, including in central TX and NC. Many officials were blaming Kristi Noem. But records obtained by ProPublica show how one locality found a way to get FEMA aid more quickly: It asked one of Noem’s political donors for help.” … “The records show that Noem quickly expedited more than $11 million of federal money to rebuild a historic pier in Naples, FL, after she was contacted by a major financial supporter last month. The pier is a tourist attraction in the wealthy Gulf Coast enclave and was badly damaged by Hurricane Ian in 2022.” … “Frustrated city officials had been laboring for months, without success, to get disaster assistance. But just two weeks after the donor stepped in, they were celebrating their sudden change of fortune. ‘We are now at warp speed with FEMA,’ one city official wrote in an email. A FEMA representative wrote: “Per leadership instruction, pushing project immediately.” … “Along with fast-tracking the money, Noem flew to Naples on a govt plane to tour the pier herself. She then stayed for the weekend and got dinner with the donor, local cardiologist Sinan Gursoy, at the French restaurant Bleu Provence.” … Noem’s top adviser, Corey Lewandowski, also appears to own a home in Naples near the city’s pier, according to property tax records. Lewandowski is an unpaid staffer at DHS serving as Noem’s de facto chief of staff. (Media reports have alleged the two are romantically involved, which they have both denied.)” Reminder there is no Bulletin tomorrow because I’m off Saturdays. We are heading into peak fall foliage season over the next few weeks in New England, so activities are centered around that. Going to the Fryeburg Fair tomorrow which is celebrating its 175th anniversary. We will get a nice drive through Maine to see some early foliage. If you missed yesterday’s Bulletin, you can find it here. Next one will be out on Sunday night recapping the weekend. Meidas+ is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. … Trump: “We will be imposing a 50% Tariff on all Kitchen Cabinets, Bathroom Vanities, and associated products, starting October 1st, 2025. Additionally, we will be charging a 30% Tariff on Upholstered Furniture. The reason for this is the large scale ‘FLOODING’ of these products into the US by other outside Countries. It is a very unfair practice, but we must protect, for National Security and other reasons, our Manufacturing process.” … Note that he cites “national security” as his legal justification for tariffs on kitchen cabinets and bathroom vanities. … He wasn’t done with the new tariff announcements: “In order to protect our Great Heavy Truck Manufacturers from unfair outside competition, I will be imposing, as of October 1st, 2025, a 25% Tariff on all “Heavy (Big!) Trucks” made in other parts of the World. Therefore, our Great Large Truck Company Manufacturers, such as Peterbilt, Kenworth, Freightliner, Mack Trucks, and others, will be protected from the onslaught of outside interruptions. We need our Truckers to be financially healthy and strong, for many reasons, but above all else, for National Security purposes!” … Punchbowl: “Trump admitted Thurs that his tariffs have been hurting American farmers. His solution — a farm bailout using tariff revenues — requires congressional approval. But Democrats are in no mood to help Trump mitigate the impacts of his trade war. The solution is even simpler, Democrats say: Drop the tariffs.” … Ranking Dem on House Agriculture Committee Angie Craig (MN): “Trump is desperately trying to find a way out of the mess he’s made with his trade war against the world. Trump’s tariffs hurt farmers, but they also hurt small businesses, manufacturers and working families by making everything cost more.” … Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO): “I’d just say to my Democrat colleagues — they always say they’re the party of the working class. Well, fantastic, you know what, let’s compromise and let’s agree to give working people relief. We can start with farmers and go from there.” … Politico says that Trump’s budget director wants a govt shutdown and has been planning for it for years : “With the layoffs threat Wed, Russ Vought has cast himself as a main character in the shutdown standoff ahead of the Tues funding deadline. It’s a role he is no doubt comfortable playing, having navigated dozens of spending fights as a congressional aide, think-tank operative and Trump official. Now Vought is well positioned to further execute his long-held views on govt spending if federal cash stops cold, after months of groundwork undermining bipartisan funding negotiations and upending the federal bureaucracy.” … “His ideological allies are already excited by what Vought might have in store at OMB if the govt does in fact shut down at midnight Sept. 30. Paul Winfree, who served as Trump’s budget director during his first term, called Vought’s threat a ‘brilliant’ move. During the last shutdown under Trump, which ended in early 2019, Vought served in an understudy role. Winfree said Admin officials at the time sought to play down the impact on most Americans: ‘But this time, Russ is putting the pain on the bureaucracy.’” … “The OMB director’s latest move fits neatly into the playbook he articulated during vetting earlier this year for Senate confirmation, after helping write the Heritage Foundation’s controversial ‘Project 2025’ recommendations during Trump’s campaign. Put simply, he thinks Congress can set a ceiling for agency funding but a president can spend less.” … An official from Trump’s first term outlined Vought’s messaging strategy: “Shutdowns create a natural inflection point between essential and nonessential. If the govt can function with only essential employees and not inflict pain on the American people, then why would we not want that? It proves the point the admin has been making from the campaign all the way to day one: That there is bloat and excess within the govt.” … Trump to the press on the way to the Ryder Cup golf tournament today: “The Economy is doing well. Prices are down. We have virtually no inflation. Everything is going good. We’re respected by every nation in the world and you know what happened? The Democrats want to shut it down. They want to give trillions to illegal migrants—people who came into our country illegally.” … “They want to have transgender for everybody. These people are crazy - the Democrats. So if it has to shut down, it’ll have to shut down. But they’re the ones that are shutting down the govt.” … House Dem Leader Hakeem Jeffries: “Donald Trump, get back to Washington DC. Why are you at a golf event right now and the govt is four days away from closing? That’s outrageous. And it speaks to the fact that these extremists could care less about the health, safety, and economic well-being of the American people. They’re on vacation right now.” … Rep. Mary Miller (R-IL) introduced a bill that would ban the ability for women to get mifepristone by mail: “Chemical abortion drugs are dangerous, and women are suffering life-threatening complications because critical safeguards were recklessly removed. It is time to restore commonsense protections, guarantee adequate medical care for women, and hold Big Abortion accountable for putting profit over safety.” … Sinclair announced today that it will put Jimmy Kimmel’s show back on their stations across the country: “Over the last week, we have received thoughtful feedback from viewers, advertisers, and community leaders representing a wide range of perspectives. Our decision to preempt this program was independent of any govt interaction or influence.” … “Free speech provides broadcasters with the right to exercise judgment as to the content on their local stations. While we understand that not everyone will agree with our decisions about programming, it is simply inconsistent to champion free speech while demanding that broadcasters air specific content.” … Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT): It’s time to repeal and rewrite the 1996 Telecom Act. Meta owns Facebook, IG and WhatsApp. The Ellison family owns Paramount and CBS, and may soon get control of CNN, Tiktok, and HBO. iHeart owns a mind blowing 870 radio stations. Nexstar is about to own TV stations in half of U.S. markets. These mergers need govt approval. And in autocratic states, regimes benefit from a small number of oligarchs owning all the media.” … “The regime does a simple deal: make the media oligarchs rich in exchange for censorship of criticism of the regime. That’s EXACTLY what Trump is doing. He approved the Ellison/Paramount deal, but only with a public commitment to censorship. And he is now publicly threatening Disney and Nexstar and others if they don’t bend the knee and censor his critics. I wish the billionaires that own these companies cared about democracy more than getting rich. But they don’t. They are willing to help destroy free speech so they can buy a bigger private jet.” … “Media monopoly and autocracy DO go hand in hand. And so we need a remedy. How did we get so exposed to Trump’s corruption? The short answer is the 1996 Telecom Act. It smashed local media ownership preferences and made big mergers way easier. And it gave legal protection to today’s social media giants for harm done on their platforms. Repealing and rewriting the 1996 Act to allow govt to break up these growing pro-censorship monopolies is the only real protection from totalitarianism.” … “Hungary and Russia still have elections. But the regime never loses. Because the corporate media monopolies - controlled by the govt - won’t platform political opposition. And now it’s happening here. Democrats can’t just complain. We need a plan to stop it, for good.” … Newsmax: “First lady Melania Trump launched a line of American-themed Christmas ornaments. The ‘Celebrating America’ line includes 6 ‘limited-edition, handcrafted Christmas ornaments’ that are ‘designed to celebrate America and the upcoming 250th anniversary. Each ornament is proudly handcrafted in the US and will include an engraving of Melania Trump’s signature.’ according to Trump’s website.” … The ornaments cost $75-$90. The collection includes ornament-sized versions of Mount Rushmore, the Statue of Liberty, and the Empire State Building. Melania: “I am excited to continue this annual holiday tradition with the Celebrating America collection of ornaments. This year, I sought inspiration in our Nation’s upcoming 250th birthday, and all of the holiday blessings that we enjoy as Americans.”