Prices Up, Laws Broken, Healthcare Cut 4.16.25 Ally Sammarco Apr 17 Happy Wednesday, readers, and welcome back to Common Sense, your source for news and analysis on the circus that is American politics and entertainment. Probable cause established that Trump administration officials acted in criminal contempt of court… CBS News reports, A federal judge said Wednesday that probable cause exists to find the Trump administration in criminal contempt over what he said was its defiance of an order to turn around planes carrying Venezuelan migrants who were bound for El Salvador. U.S. District Judge James Boasberg wrote in a 46-page decision that the government's actions on March 15 "demonstrate a willful disregard" for his order barring the government from transferring certain migrants into Salvadoran custody under the wartime Alien Enemies Act. Those actions, he wrote, are "sufficient for the court to conclude that probable cause exists to find the government in criminal contempt. The court does not reach such conclusion lightly or hastily; indeed, it has given defendants ample opportunity to rectify or explain their actions. None of their responses has been satisfactory." "The Constitution does not tolerate willful disobedience of judicial orders — especially by officials of a coordinate branch who have sworn an oath to uphold it," Boasberg wrote.” Massive cuts to health budget in store for Trump admin, according to document obtained by CNN... CNN reports, “The Trump administration is formulating plans to cut roughly a third of the federal health budget, eliminate dozens of programs and vastly whittle down health agencies, according to an internal document reviewed by CNN. The preliminary memo, sent from White House budget officials to the Department of Health and Human Services, previews the administration’s plans to slash discretionary federal health spending and rework health agencies in the image of President Donald Trump and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr’s /Make America Healthy Again’ mandate. The document, dated April 10, could still be finalized with changes. If enacted as is, it could cut total federal health spending by tens of billions of dollars a year. It would also consolidate dozens of health programs and departments into the Administration for a Healthy America (AHA), a new entity unveiled by Kennedy during mass layoffs earlier this month.” Common Sense with Ally Sammarco is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Many on both sides of the Atlantic are intrigued, worried about Trump's upcoming meeting tomorrow with Italian PM Giorgia Meloni… Politico reports, Top European officials are antsy about Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni traveling to Washington to meet with President Donald Trump Thursday with trade talks on a razor’s edge. But they also know she might be their best chance to ease transatlantic tensions. Meloni, a leader with ties to Italy’s far-right who’s tacked to the center in working closely with European Union partners, is uniquely positioned to engage with Trump productively on behalf of her own country and Europe more broadly, experts say. Her EU colleagues hope she’ll be able to nudge Trump toward a trade deal to avoid more tit-for-tat tariffs and to influence his approach to resolving the war between Russia and Ukraine.” Chinese online retailer Temu, popular in the U.S. braces for changes given Trump tariffs, and consumers should expect changes, too… NBC News reports, “Chinese online retailer Temu, whose “Shop like a billionaire” marketing campaign made its way to last year’s Super Bowl, has dramatically slashed its online ad spending in the U.S. and seen its ranking in Apple’s App Store plunge following President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs on trade partners. Temu, which is owned by Chinese e-commerce giant PDD Holdings, had been on an online advertising blitz in recent years in a bid to attract deal-hungry American shoppers to its site. With hefty spending on TV ads as well across Facebook, the company promoted clothing, jewelry, home goods and electronics at bargain basement prices.” Today’s Furry Friend Check out these Litter-ary Cats – they run a bookstore! Today’s Buzz People notes “surprising shade, harsh rants and Taylor Swift-inspired memes from King/Perry/Sanchez flight to space… The magazine reports, “Blue Origin's first all-female flight may have only lasted about 11 minutes, but it was enough time to inspire countless memes and incite some criticism as well. On board for the journey on Monday, April 14, were Gayle King, Katy Perry and Lauren Sánchez, the fiancée of Blue Origin CEO Jeff Bezos as well as rocket scientist Aisha Bowe, bioastronautics research scientist Amanda Nguyen and film producer Kerianne Flynn. Some of the most viral memes were in response to King’s facial expressions before the flight. The journalist, 70, looked visibly distressed as she boarded the capsule in West Texas, even though the other women on the crew looked overjoyed. [Gayle rethinking all her life choices…’ wrote one user, while another quipped, 'Gayle king is all of us on a Monday.’ King, who has been candid with her nerves over the trip, later set the record straight at a news conference after the short flight. "At that moment I was so afraid, I just wanted to get into my seat because I just wanted to let the training kick in,’ she said.” Thanks for reading. Check back in tomorrow evening for the next edition of Common Sense.