Occupy Banksters & Crony Capitalism & GREED

Trump's shock and awe tests Americans' response to chaos
Axios | Tina Reed | 02/10/25

Political anxiety has been building for years as a 24-hour news cycle, social media and algorithms create seemingly endless outlets for strife.

But President Trump's pugnacious style and the breakneck series of changes he and Elon Musk unleashed has ratcheted everything up, delighting his supporters and leaving his critics panicked and without a single rallying point.

Mental health professionals say even people who don't see themselves as directly affected by administration actions are feeling frazzled by the dizzying pace and Trump's enduring ability to command attention.

They may feel it through the venting of a spouse, the distress of a neighbor with a trans child or an anxious friend who works for a government contractor. ... Read more

Union sues Trump admin over CFPB shutdown attempt and DOGE access
Axios | Avery Lotz | 02/10/25

Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought was hit with two union lawsuits on Sunday after he issued directives freezing much of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's (CFPB) work.

Why it matters: The CFPB has become the latest target of President Trump's Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), threatening a critical oversight agency that safeguards consumers from unfair business practices.

Vought, who is the acting head of the CFPB, directed employees in a weekend email to halt much of their work, including issuing rules and conducting investigations, multiple outlets reported.

Employees were also informed the agency's headquarters would be closed this week, a move that mirrors how DOGE shuttered the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) headquarters last week.

CFPB employed some 1,600 people in fiscal year 2023. ... Read more

Homeland Security Secretary Noem says DOGE team has access to agency data
--> CNN | Aileen Graef and Veronica Stracqualursi | 02/09/25

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on Sunday acknowledged that Elon Musk's government efficiency team, which has been tasked with slashing federal spending, has access to her agency's data, including that of federal disaster aid recipients' personal information, as part of an "audit" she welcomes.

Appearing on CNN's "State of the Union," Noem said that President Donald Trump had "authorized" Musk's Department of Government Efficiency team to gain access to DHS' network, adding that she was "absolutely" comfortable with that.

The Washington Post first reported that members of DOGE, who do not have security clearance, gained access to the Federal Emergency Management Agency's network, which has the private information of Americans who received disaster relief grants. ... Read more

Trump touts 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum imports
Axios | Rebecca Falconer | 02/10/25

President Trump said he'll announce 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum imports on Monday and "reciprocal tariffs" later this week.

The big picture: Trump campaigned on using tariffs to boost the economy and revive the domestic industry, which economists have warned would hit U.S. consumers, though he's so far mostly quickly pulled back on such threats.

Tariffs of 10% remain in effect on Chinese imports, a move that sparked China's government to announce tariffs of 15% on U.S. coal and LNG and 10% on U.S. crude oil, agricultural machinery, large-displacement cars and pickup trucks. ... Read more

Bill Gates on Trump, Musk, U.S.-China and More | WSJ | 01/21/25 | 11:37