POLITICO Nightly: Big trouble for the Cuban exception

By Ali Bianco and Eric Bazail-Eimil A Cuban immigrant advocate wears a button reading in Spanish "Migrating is not a crime," during a press conference to denounce a recent Supreme Court decision which allows the Trump administration to strip humanitarian parole protection for more than 500,000 immigrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela. | Rebecca Blackwell/AP POWER OUTAGE — Until Friday, Cuban immigrants occupied a special place in American immigration policy. From the Mariel boatlift to “Wet Foot, Dry Foot ” policy to the sheer transformation of Miami as the so-called capital of Latin America, over the past 60 years Cubans have played a key role in rewriting the rules on immigration — sometimes carving out their own exceptions in U.S. immigration law. But a Supreme Court majority last Friday may have dealt a lasting blow to the traditionally privileged status of Cuban immigrants. The Trump administration now has the green light to end the Biden-era Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela (CHNV) parole program and eliminate the legal status of over 500,000 immigrants, including Cubans. Never before have so many Cubans been on the verge of losing status — let alone being deported en masse. Cubans, via the 1966 Cuban Adjustment Act, have long enjoyed their own specific path to citizenship; after living in the United States for a year, Cubans are fast-tracked towards obtaining permanent residency. And Cubans under that law have been exempted from other provisions of the Immigration and Naturalization Act. Politicians have tried (and largely failed) to replicate those special protections for other immigrant groups — most recently for Venezuelans . But none of those groups have achieved the political clout and influence needed to secure the kinds of benefits Cubans have enjoyed for nearly six decades under U.S. law. The Supreme Court’s recent decision allowing the Trump administration to cancel the parole program puts in limbo tens of thousands of Cubans who hadn’t been in the U.S. long enough to qualify for the Cuban Adjustment Act’s protections. That’s in addition to the 40,000 Cubans with deportation orders against them. It’s not the first time Cubans have seen their unique status in immigration law pared back. In 2017, the Obama administration nixed the Clinton-era “Wet Foot, Dry Foot” policy which granted Cuban refugees who were intercepted on U.S. soil automatic asylum as part of its efforts to reopen diplomatic relations with Havana. And the first Trump administration opted to enforce a deal with Cuba to accept deportation flights from the U.S., even as it reinstated other sanctions and measures against the island’s communist government. But the scale of the potential deportations now is expansive — and tinged in irony. After helping deliver Florida twice to Trump, Cubans have never had more influence in Washington. Cuban exile politicians are at the peak of their power. Marco Rubio, the former senator and son of Cuban immigrants, is one of the most influential American diplomats in recent memory, the first individual since Henry Kissinger to hold the national security adviser and secretary of state positions at the same time. On Capitol Hill, Rep. Mario Díaz-Balart (R-Fla.), another Cuban American, is the vice chair of the House Appropriations Committee and wields considerable influence within a narrow GOP House majority over the flow of legislation. That influence has only magnified with House Republicans’ slim majority. The “crazy Cubans” –– as Speaker Mike Johnson has dubbed Díaz-Balart and his South Florida colleagues Reps. María Elvira Salazar and Carlos Gímenez –– have wielded their influence in concert with Rubio’s policy priorities . But the Trump administration has been adamant about making good on Trump’s vow of the largest mass deportation in U.S. history — with the White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller pressing Immigrations and Customs Enforcement to ramp up arrests to 3,000 a day and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem pushing forward on canceling temporary programs, including CHNV. Deporting the thousands of Cubans suddenly out of status could go a long way toward reaching the numbers Trump promised on the stump. Only there’s one big problem: Miami’s Cuban voters are overwhelmingly Trump voters. Florida International University’s Cuba poll released just after the 2024 election showed a staggering 68 percent of Cuban Americans cast their ballots for Trump, nearly twice as many as in 2016 . To cast out Cubans would be political suicide for the GOP and could cost them in the midterms, says Dr. Eduardo Gamarra, a professor and pollster at FIU. “Now there are more Republicans than there are Democrats in Miami Dade County, it may have reached its apex,” Gamarra said, while cautioning that “these shifts are not permanent.” In the wake of the Supreme Court decision, the South Florida Cubans in Congress will attempt to thread the needle between breaking with Trump on deportations and defending the Cuban population that delivered them their political power. For their part, they are vowing to fight to preserve Cubans’ pathways to citizenship. Diaz-Balart wrote on X shortly after the Supreme Court ruling that they are working with the Trump administration “to make the case and find a permanent solution for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans who have fled political crises and cannot return to their countries of origin because of legitimate claims of persecution.” More specifically, the South Florida members are holding out hope they’ll convince the Trump administration to keep the Cuban exception. “They need to be treated a little bit differently,” Gímenez told reporters at a press conference in Miami following the court ruling. “They’re a part of our community, they’re part of our economy and they need to be treated as such,” Gimenez added. “So we’re going to be looking for some adjustments to what the enforcement mechanism of this ruling is going to be.” Welcome to POLITICO Nightly. Reach out with news, tips and ideas at nightly@politico.com . Or contact tonight’s authors at abianco@politico.com and ebazail@politico.com or on X (formerly known as Twitter) at @_alibianco and @ebazaileimil .   A fresh chapter for Playbook — same mission, new momentum. Jack Blanchard sets the scene. Dasha Burns brings the inside scoops. Adam Wren takes Washington into the weekend. Playbook delivers must-know reporting with style, clarity, and serious scoops. Subscribe now —and don’t miss a beat.     What'd I Miss? ***DISCREDITING THE NUMBERS CRUNCHERS FOR TAX CUTS FOR THE WEALTHY & GUTTING HEALTH CARE, FOOD PROGRAMS & MUCH ELSE....**** MAGA GOP HAVEN'T READ THE BILL, DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT IN IT....WHAT'S THE MASSIVE DEFICIT?  CREDIT AGENCIES HAVE DOWNGRADED THE CREDIT RATING OF THE U.S. WHICH WILL RAISE INTEREST RATES & DEVALUE THE U.S. DOLLAR!  MAGA GOP DANCE AROUND THE ISSUE WITH LIES!  TAX CUTS TO WEALTHY AT THE EXPENSE OF POOR AMERICANS, SLASHING FOOD PROGRAMS, CLOSING OFFICES, FIRING PERSONNAL, SLASHING RESEARCH, GUTTING GOVERNMENT...PROJECT 2025...  TRUMP'S FIRST REIGN OF ECONOMIC TERROR CREATED THE MASSIVE DEFICIT THAT MAGA GOP PRETEND DOESN'T EXIST - IT NEEDS TO BE PAID!  — House GOP gets megabill’s official price tag: $2.4T: Congress’ nonpartisan scorekeeper released its full price tag today of the tax and spending package House Republicans passed last month, predicting that the measure would grow the federal deficit by $2.4 trillion over a decade. The Congressional Budget Office’s forecast comes days after Elon Musk, freshly departed from serving as head of the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency, blasted the measure as “massive,” “outrageous” and “a pork-filled disgusting abomination.” Just before the new numbers were released this morning, Musk and CBO both came up as topics of discussion during the House GOP’s weekly closed-door meeting. excerpt:  The Congressional Budget Office’s forecast comes days after Elon Musk, freshly departed from serving as head of the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency, blasted the measure as “massive,” “outrageous” and “a pork-filled disgusting abomination.” Just before the new numbers were released Wednesday morning, Musk and CBO both came up as topics of discussion during the House GOP’s weekly closed-door meeting. Speaker Mike Johnson argued to his conference that the former DOGE chief was citing bogus totals from the CBO on the cost of tax cuts in the package, according to three people in the room. House Majority Leader Steve Scalise also disparaged the budget office Wednesday morning: “Anybody who cites CBO needs to recognize their history of being very wrong on predictions,” the Louisiana Republican said in a brief interview, noting the scorekeeper’s forecast of the multitrillion-dollar cost of the 2017 tax cuts. In the days leading up to the release of the full price tag, the White House was also laying the groundwork to discredit the Hill’s nonpartisan scorekeeper. Press secretary Karoline Leavitt alleged that the number-crunchers at CBO are “partisan and political” with a bias toward Democrats. ****TRUMP ON AN UNCONTROLLED CREDIT CARD? WHAT COULD GO WRONG?*** — Trump calls for scrapping debt limit, in megabill twist: President Donald Trump today said the debt limit should be “entirely scrapped,” throwing another wrench into negotiations around the GOP’s “big beautiful” bill. Trump’s comment on Truth Social comes as Republicans scramble to pass Trump’s new round of tax cuts and other policy priorities in a sweeping legislative package that would raise, rather than eliminate, the cap on the federal government’s borrowing authority. Republicans are facing a potential August deadline to raise the debt limit before the U.S. starts to default on its financial obligations. ***TRUMP GENUFLECTING TO PUTIN & BETRAYING UKRAINE!*** — Putin will ‘respond’ to surprise Ukraine drone strikes, Trump says: President Donald Trump said today he spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss the recent Ukrainian drone attack that destroyed more than 40 Russian aircrafts and the Russian leader said he will respond to Ukraine’s drone strikes. It remains unclear exactly how Russia would respond. In a post to Truth Social, Trump said his phone call with Putin lasted about one hour and 15 minutes. In addition to the most recent Ukrainian attack, Trump said, the two also discussed “various other attacks that have been taking place by both sides,” as well as Iran and a general understanding that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. The post was later deleted. ****PAY ATTENTION TO SENATE JUDICIAL CONFIRMATIONS!*** — Confirmation process begins for Trump’s first judicial nominees: The Senate Judiciary Committee is launching the confirmation process for the first judicial nominations of President Donald Trump’s second term. The panel this morning opened a hearing for Whitney D. Hermandorfer, Trump’s nominee for the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, and four other district court judges in Missouri: Maria A. Lanahan, Cristian M. Stevens and Zachary M. Bluestone for the Eastern District, and Joshua M. Divine for the Eastern and Western Districts. It is a continuation of a major priority of Trump’s first term: applying a conservative slant across the federal bench. The Senate confirmed hundreds of judges the last time Trump was in office. The Biden administration also confirmed hundreds of judges, leaving relatively few vacancies for Trump to fill upon his return to the White House in January. According to data from the U.S. courts, there are currently about 49 existing vacancies. AROUND THE WORLD ***MORE TRUMP TARIFF LUNACY THAT WILL PENALIZE CONSUMERS! IT'S UNCLEAR IF U.S. HAS THE CAPACITY TO REPLACE WHAT IS CURRENTLY IMPORTED....BUT DON'T LET REASON INTERFERE WITH TRUMP LUNACY!**** Premier of Ontario Doug Ford speaks to reporters at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025. | Ben Curtis/AP HIT BACK — Ontario Premier Doug Ford is urging Canada’s prime minister to retaliate against the United States after it doubled tariffs on steel and aluminum imports. But Prime Minister Mark Carney is holding off, arguing he’s close to striking a new trade deal with President Donald Trump. Ford and Carney aired their clashing approaches today, as the Ontario premier accused the PM of being bullied by the U.S. “You’re either standing up for Canada and protecting people’s jobs, their livelihoods,” Ford told reporters in Toronto today. “Or you sit back and get steamrolled. That’s not what I’m going to do.” Carney declined to comment on Ford’s remarks as he left his national caucus meeting. Ford told CNN’s “The Situation Room” earlier today that he “highly recommended to the prime minister directly that we slap another 25 percent on top of our tariffs, to equal President Trump’s tariffs on our steel.” Trump signed an executive order on Tuesday that doubled tariffs on steel and aluminum imports to the U.S., from 25 percent to 50 percent. In March, Canada imposed 25 percent reciprocal tariffs on a list of U.S. steel and aluminum products totaling C$15.6 billion. DANGEROUS HISTORY — The city of Cologne in western Germany is undergoing a major evacuation following the discovery of three unexploded bombs from World War II . Authorities on Monday found the munitions — two 1,000 kilogram bombs and one 500 kilogram bomb, all manufactured in the U.S. — in the central district of Deutz, on the eastern bank of the Rhine. Beginning at 8 a.m. today, approximately 20,500 residents were evacuated from their homes and workplaces. The evacuation zone covers the entire historic district, 58 hotels, three Rhine bridges, the town hall, the Deutz railway station — located across the river from the city center — as well as several museums, a hospital and two care homes. Cologne’s iconic cathedral lies just outside the danger zone. Germany’s national rail operator Deutsche Bahn warned of widespread disruption, with many train services diverted or canceled. Road traffic in and around the city has also been heavily affected.   Cut through policy complexity and turn intelligence into action with POLITICO’s Policy Intelligence Assistant —a new suite of tools designed to save you time and demonstrate your impact more easily than ever—available only to Pro subscribers. Save hours, uncover critical insights instantly, and stay ahead of the next big shift. Power your strategy today— learn more .     Nightly Number $7 billion The estimated cost of damage inflicted by Ukraine’s barrage of drone attacks on Russian airfields on Sunday, according to Ukraine’s SBU security service. The assault, which hit targets spread across Russia, might have taken out more than 40 strategic bombers and reduced Russia’s strategic cruise missile carriers by a third. RADAR SWEEP CRAFT CLOSURES — As Joann Fabric and Crafts expects to finish closing its almost 800 stores by the weekend, crafters across the country are mourning the loss of a textile giant. The Atlantic’s Andrea Valdez reports that the recent closures mark an ever-widening gap between crafting materials and their makers. While more generalized retailers and Amazon continue to sell craft supplies, Valdez highlights Joann’s characteristic affordability, accessibility and the community experience of entering the store to seek out the perfect colors or textures for upcoming projects. Parting Image On this date in 1972: Angela Davis talks to news media following her acquittal on murder, kidnap and conspiracy charges in San Jose, Ca. Davis was accused of supplying some of the weapons used in the attempted escape of prisoners from the Marin County Courthouse shoot-out in August 1970. | AP Marisa Guerra Echeverria contributed to this newsletter.  Did someone forward this email to you?  Sign up here .   Follow us on X Charlie Mahtesian @PoliticoCharlie Calder McHugh @calder_mchugh   Follow us

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You Can’t Erase the Truth Pete Hegseth is on the warpath to purge history he doesn’t like Dan Rather and Team Steady Jun 4 Credit: Getty Images Not many things you can take to the bank, but believe me — this reporter has, through many decades of employment, never felt discriminated against because I’m white. But to hear Donald Trump tell it, times have changed dramatically in America. Trump insists that white American heterosexual men are now a persecuted group. It is his basic argument for vanquishing all diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs in the federal government, and he has strong-armed public and private companies to go along with this charade. One of Trump’s loyalist minions, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, is taking it a step further in this latest culture war battle. Hegseth has already deleted Pentagon webpages and erased photographs of prominent Black, Latino, and female members of the U.S. military. He has fired the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, a Black four-star general, and the Commandant of the Coast Guard, a female admiral. He is on a rampage to remove mention of anyone in the U.S. military who isn’t white, straight, and male. On Tuesday, Hegseth ordered the Navy to remove the name of the USNS Harvey Milk, a Navy support ship named for the political trailblazer and gay rights activist. The decision to make the announcement at the beginning of Pride Month was no accident. Milk served in the Navy during the Korean War and was one of the first openly gay elected officials in the United States when he won a seat on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 1978. He was assassinated later that year by a political rival. The ship was named in his honor in 2016. Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell tried to explain the rationale. “Secretary Hegseth is committed to ensuring that the names attached to all DoD installations and assets are reflective of the Commander-in-Chief’s priorities, our nation’s history, and the warrior ethos,” he said. Though the USNS Harvey Milk was the only ship mentioned, CBS News has obtained a list of other vessels in Hegseth’s crosshairs: USNS Cesar Chavez - named for a co-founder of the United Farm Workers union and civil rights activist USNS Medgar Evers - named for the civil rights activist assassinated by a white supremacist in 1963 USNS Ruth Bader Ginsburg - named for the second woman justice on the Supreme Court, who fought for gender equality and civil rights USNS Dolores Huerta - named for a co-founder of the United Farm Workers union USNS Thurgood Marshall - named for the first Black Supreme Court justice and a pioneering civil rights attorney USNS Lucy Stone - named for an abolitionist and suffragist who after became the first woman from Massachusetts to earn a college degree and fought for women’s rights USNS Harriet Tubman - named for an enslaved person who escaped to freedom and then became a conductor on the Underground Railroad and Union spy during the Civil War “Pete Hegseth, the least qualified secretary of defense in American history. And this is the guy leading the charge? It's a joke. You’re not qualified for the job that you have. You didn’t get that job on merit,” said Hakeem Jeffries, the House minority leader, in a news conference after the name removal announcement. This is not Hegseth’s first attempt to erase history by erasing names. In 2020, Congress mandated that names of military installations honoring the Confederacy be removed. Fort Bragg, named for Confederate General Braxton Bragg, became Fort Liberty. Hegseth reversed the name back to Bragg but claimed it was now named for Private First Class Roland Bragg, who served during WWII. He did it again with Fort Benning, named for Confederate Lieutenant General Henry Benning, a Southern secessionist who opposed freeing enslaved people. In 2023, it was renamed Fort Moore to honor the service of Lieutenant General Hal Moore and his wife, Julia. In March of this year, Hegseth reverted the name back to Benning, but this time it was said to be in honor of Fred Benning, an Army corporal who served in France during WWI. Where did Trump find people like Pete Hegseth? The answer, of course, is the propaganda pit that is Fox “News.” In many important ways, there was a better America before Rupert Murdoch launched his right-wing “journalism” project. The far-right “views as news” was bad enough, as it brainwashed countless susceptible viewers with disinformation and hatred under the guise of news. But now, former Fox employees like Hegseth are policy-making government officials. As someone who was deeply involved in reporting on the Civil Rights Movement long before Hegseth was born, I am appalled that he would dismiss the struggles, the pain and suffering, even the death that so many Americans of color faced and the fight for recognition and equality that so many Americans strived for — those who weren’t straight white men. Can our differences in skin color, gender, or who we love really be a threat to Trump and his clan? No. This is about fueling prejudice to increase his power. For Trump, renaming is a conspicuous way to show he is fighting for “oppressed” white men everywhere! But he is also doing something far more nefarious. The Trump administration is using civil rights protections, meant to support people of color, women, people with disabilities, and members of the LGBTQ+ community, to rectify what he claims is the disenfranchisement of white men. Trump says he believes that merit should be the only criterion for advancement, though looking at his Cabinet, one wonders at his definition of the term. The administration has opened a civil rights investigation into the hiring practices of the city of Chicago, alleging the city has discriminated against white people by hiring Black people to senior government positions. And Harvard, one of the administration’s favorite punching bags, is being investigated by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for supposedly discriminatory hiring practices. The EEOC alleges that Harvard has favored minorities, women, and nonbinary faculty over white men. Any group, including straight white men, can be stereotyped or excluded. But what Trump, Hegseth, and their ilk are about is fanning old fires of hate to benefit themselves and their agenda. By the way, Hegseth chose to skip a NATO meeting today that was convened to discuss the escalating Russian invasion of Ukraine. It is the first time a secretary of defense has failed to show up for a meeting of the group, which was created by the U.S. to coordinate military aid to Ukraine. Perhaps he was too busy trying to decide which American civil rights leader’s name and history to erase next. Steady is free, but to support my team’s efforts to protect our democracy through the power of independent journalism, we’d appreciate it if you would consider joining as a paid subscriber. It keeps Steady sustainable and accessible for all. If you are not able to upgrade, we understand. No matter how you subscribe, I thank you for reading. Stay Steady, Dan

Think of your WALLET first & save money by reducing your expenses....

Allow me to share a recent issue...years ago, we replaced INCANDESCENTS with CFLs. ~15% of your electric bill is lighting. 

It's not sexy or headline grabbing, just your POCKET BOOK!

I replaced 2 ALWAYS ON LIGHTS with LEDs (that cost $1 each). The next month the bill dropped $5. Pretty good payback.

With the surcharges on the bill, the electric bill was creeping up & we began replacing CFLs with LEDs which began an odyssey of educating ourselves with availabilty & numerous outlets that overcharge including AMAZON & WALMART for which you need an outrageously priced membership to purchase overpriced LED BULBS. (Dispose of CFLs responsibly because they contain MERCURY.)

A limited attempt reduced the first partial month with some LED replacements by $13. 

60 watt equivalents were too bright in some locations, so we looked for 40 watt equivalents - most were grossly overpriced until we found 1000BULBS located in TEXAS. 

Their pricing for FLUORESCENT REPLACEMENTS is equally impressive although we haven't tackled FLUORESCENTS  yet. 

Shared only to highlight that if you want to reduce your expenses, you can with some time & effort!  Our peripherals are all on ENERGY STRIPS - when they're OFF - they're not using electricity. We can each pick away at our expenses & reduce our consumption.

You need to buy an appliance & ENERGY STAR provides the information that allows you to compare ENERGY EFFICIENCY of comparable appliances. Why not SAVE MONEY with the most efficient MODEL? 

Notice that EPA DESTROYER LEE ZELDIN wants to ELIMINATE ENERGY STAR - the program that rates ENERGY EFFICIENCY OF APPLIANCES - it allow CONSUMERS to make informed decisions & reduce their ENERGY CONSUMPTION!

There's an organization we support: SUSTAINABLE ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT COALITION (SEECPAC)  - consider subscribing!

excerpt:

It may be familiar to you if you own an energy-efficient refrigerator, washing machine, or other household appliance. Energy Star is an energy efficiency program that has saved over $500 billion in energy costs and prevented 4 billion metric tons of greenhouse gas pollution from entering the atmosphere. Those numbers alone make it the quintessential clean energy success story! 

But now, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin is spreading misinformation about it and threatening to privatize the public program.

In response to questions from SEEC Member Rep. Darren Soto (FL-9), Lee Zeldin said that the Energy Star program could be run outside of the government and voiced his doubts about how much the program saved consumers (as if he didn’t have access to basic data about the program administered by his own agency). 

CHINA is promoting CHEAP CLEAN ENERGY! 

CHINA is building ROADS & making FRIENDS while TRUMP insults friends & allies. 

For decades, REPUBLICANS have used CHINA as an excuse not to reduce U.S. ENERGY CONSUMPTION even though Americans are ENERGY GUZZLERS, using more PER CAPITA than CHINA!

That is no longer true! CHINA is leading with CHEAP CLEAN ENERGY & they're prospering! 

CHINA has HIGH SPEED RAIL, improved ENERGY GRID while KOCH & DIRTY ENERGY oppose & obstruct CLEAN ENERGY & Trump wallows in BIG POLLUTERS' $$$ ! 

Trump repeats his LIES that WIND TURBINES cause cancer...

CHINA is making friends & building roads, while Trump insults & offends other nations.  

The REST OF THE WORLD moves on ... will America join them? 

Watch now

Trump’s Green Energy Sabotage Needs More Attention...NOW!!!

In my interview with former Governor Jay Inslee, we break down how Trump’s cult-like GOP is gutting clean energy—and what you can do to stop it.

Ben Meiselas and MeidasTouch Network Jun 4

By Ben Meiselas

I had a critical conversation on the MeidasTouch Network this week with former Washington Governor Jay Inslee—one of the nation’s foremost leaders on climate action—and what we discussed should set off alarm bells for anyone who cares about American jobs, energy security, or even basic economic sanity.

The GOP’s proposed budget, crafted in Donald Trump’s image, isn’t just cruel. It’s a direct assault on the clean energy jobs that are transforming this country for the better. Jobs for electricians, ironworkers, machinists, and battery techs. Real, good-paying, American union jobs. Jobs that don't require a $40,000 degree but do provide dignity and a path to the middle class.

And Trump? He’s out there calling this the “green new scam,” mocking wind energy with his bizarre “windmills go round and round” rants. Meanwhile, our adversaries like China are thrilled to pick up the slack as we surrender our leadership in the global clean energy economy.

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Make sure you’re following the MeidasTouch Podcast on Apple Podcasts and Spotify—and if you want to help us keep growing, leave a quick 5-star review! Every follow and rating helps us fight back with the truth.

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Governor Inslee didn’t mince words. He called Trump’s policy “idiocy,” and he’s right. This MAGA cult is actively tanking tens of thousands of jobs. Inslee cited 62,000 lost already and driving up energy prices just to appease their failed, fossil-fueled overlord. These aren’t lefty talking points. These are hard economic facts. Solar and wind are now cheaper than coal in 92% of U.S. districts. Yet Trump and his cronies are tearing up the tax credits that made this revolution possible.

We must act. Inslee reminded us: democracy is simple. If politicians betray their constituents, we must vote them out. And that starts with putting heat on vulnerable Senate Republicans, folks like Thom Tillis in North Carolina, who know this MAGA budget is poison but are too spineless to stand up to Trump.

This isn’t over. The Senate can still stop this disaster. But only if we show up, speak out, and demand better. Call your senators. Share this interview. Join the movement. And let every last MAGA saboteur know: you kill our jobs, you kill your political career.

Let’s get to work. Join now as a paid subscriber to keep our independent reporting going.

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