“The husband of Karen Budd-Falen, a senior leader in the Department of the Interior, made millions of dollars from a Nevada mine that Budd-Falen’s agency approved, according to reporting by Public Domain and High Country News. As the associate deputy secretary, Budd-Falen is third in command at the department, which oversees the National Park Service. Her current role doesn’t require Senate confirmation. She also served in the Interior Department during President Donald Trump’s first administration. Her meetings and financial self-disclosure — or lack thereof — at the time are now coming under fire, after records showed that her family sold water rights necessary for a mining project without disclosing the hefty profit. Save Our Parks, an advocacy group for national parks, said that the ‘self-dealing goes beyond conflicts of interest into outright corruption’ in a news release.” (01/07/25)
Source: In These Times
Azadeh Shahshahani & Stephanie Guilloud
“A leaked Justice Department memo in early December outlined Attorney General Pam Bondi’s directive to the FBI to ’compile a list of groups or entities engaged in acts that may constitute domestic terrorism’. In addition to establishing a ‘cash reward system’ for information, the memo, first published by journalist Ken Klippenstein, lays out targets that include those who express ‘opposition to law and immigration enforcement’, ’adherence to radical gender ideology’, ’anti-Christianity’, ’anti-capitalism’, and ’anti-Americanism’. These documents imply that the “terrorists” are the brave teachers, neighbors, librarians, and community members blowing whistles, protecting students, keeping books on shelves, advocating for trans rights, and organizing for economic and social equity. Bondi’s directive builds on President Donald Trump’s National Security Presidential Memorandum known as NSPM-7 which names anti-fascism as domestic terrorism.” (01/06/25)
“When the Bush administration was planning and selling its war of aggression against Iraq in 2002, a common argument made by anti-war activists was that the whole thing was about oil. … This didn’t make all that much sense (for one thing, the war and occupation ended up costing on the order of $3 trillion, and Hussein would have been more than willing to just sell us the oil for a lot less than that), but for an administration whose two top leaders were both former oilmen, it had a surface plausibility. Donald Trump has done Bush one better: He simply said outright that his military attack on Venezuela, in which commandos kidnapped President Nicolás Maduro and transported him to Manhattan to be put on trial, was about oil.” (01/06/25)
“‘Quiet, Piggy!’ The president was intent on silencing Catherine Lucey. The Bloomberg reporter had provoked him with a question about the release of the Epstein files. His insult caught the public’s attention. But Trump’s tongue-lashing lexicon against women has a long history. Other female journalists have been dubbed ‘obnoxious,’ ‘terrible,’ ‘third-rate’ and ‘ugly.’ Vice President Kamala Harris, opposing him in the 2024 presidential election, was labeled ‘retarded’ and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi ‘crazy as a bedbug.’ The list goes on (and on and on). And who knows what was redacted from the Epstein files along those very lines? Mind you, those Trumpian insults hurled at women (and regularly offered about them) are anything but performative throwaways. They reveal Donald Trump’s deep and abiding contempt for females, an attitude that has taken a giant leap forward (or do I mean backward?) in policy terms in the Trump 2.0 years.” (01/06/25)
Source: New York Post
by Nicole Huyer & William DuVall
“Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s campaign message was simple: New York City’s cost of living is too high. True, starting a family and raising children have become unaffordable in New York City — and Mamdani believes his socialist plans are the answer. ‘We will deliver universal child care for the many by taxing the wealthiest few,’ he said in his inaugural speech last week. The scale of the city’s problem is undeniable: Three of the four most expensive US counties for child care, in terms of share of family income, are within New York City: The Bronx, Queens and Kings County (Brooklyn). Day-care center costs in The Bronx, for example, range from $300 to $406 per week ($15,600 to $21,112 a year) depending on the child’s age — but with a median household income of only $48,610, center-based child care is completely out of reach for most local families.” (01/05/25)
“Lego has unveiled Smart Bricks – tech-filled versions of its small building blocks – which it says will bring sets to life with sound, light and reaction to movement. However, the new product range is causing unease among play experts, who say it risks undermining what makes Lego special for children in an increasingly digital world. Announced at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2026 in Las Vegas, the Danish toymaker’s Smart Play system introduces new electronic components to the classic plastic blocks. Lego says its new tech-enabled products, launching in March with a new Star Wars set, are its most revolutionary innovation’ in nearly 50 years. But Josh Golin, executive director of children’s wellbeing group Fairplay, believes Smart Bricks ‘undermine what was once great about Legos’ – harnessing children’s own imagination during play.” (01/06/25)
Source: Caitlin Johnstone, Rogue Journalist
by Caitlin Johnstone
“If you were wondering why the US establishment was so much more chill about Trump becoming president this term than they were the first time around, you’re watching the reason now. The powers that be were assured that he’d carry out longstanding imperial agendas like kidnapping Maduro, bombing Iran and overseeing a final solution to the Palestinian problem, and they trusted him to carry out those plans. The MAGA narrative that the establishment hates Trump because he’s fighting the Deep State has never been true; there were certain factions within the US imperial power structure which disliked Trump, but that was only because he was not a proven commodity like Hillary Clinton and they didn’t trust him to be a reliable steward of the empire.” (01/06/25)
“Venezuela’s main opposition leader, Maria Corina Machado, has vowed to return home quickly, praising U.S. President Donald Trump for toppling her enemy Nicolas Maduro and declaring her movement ready to win a free election. Trump appears, however, to hope for now to work with interim President Delcy Rodriguez and other senior officials from Maduro’s government, disappointing the opposition and contributing to nervousness in Venezuela. ‘I’m planning to go back to Venezuela as soon as possible,’ said Machado, 58, who escaped from Venezuela in disguise in October to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, which she dedicated to Trump. ‘We believe that this transition should move forward,’ she told Fox News’ ‘Hannity’ program.” (01/06/25)
“At a time when principles are tested and passions run high, we have to return to the heart of what America stands for. It’s not just about who raises a flag, but who upholds the values of generosity, unity and a shared future. In the end, the question is about the soul of our nation. Who stands with America’s deepest ideals, and who does not? I came to America chasing a basketball dream, but I stayed because I found something far greater: freedom. As a Muslim and a legal immigrant, I came to the United States because freedom here is not just an idea. It is a way of life. I did not come to impose my beliefs on anyone. I did not come to burn flags or hate this nation. I did not come to conquer America.” (01/06/25)
“President Donald Trump says the US oil industry could be ‘up and running’ with increased operations in Venezuela within 18 months, after a surprise military operation removed President Nicolás Maduro from power. Trump told NBC News that ‘a tremendous amount of money will have to be spent, and the oil companies will spend it, and the oil companies will spend it, and then they’ll get reimbursed by us or through revenue’. Representatives from major US petroleum companies planned to meet the Trump administration later this week, BBC’s partner CBS News reported.” (01/06/25)
