# The Trump Administration: The Clusterfuck Continues (Part 1) **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Tags:** trump\ **Created:** [November 11, 2024, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068 "2024-11-11T06:19:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 262
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/5282 "2025-05-30T03:07:53Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > An all-white nation of deeply ignorant Trump-worshipers, that’s what Trump wants. [![](https://media1.tenor.com/m/D9YjwF4aRg4AAAAd/donald-trump-correct.gif) ](https://media1.tenor.com/m/D9YjwF4aRg4AAAAd/donald-trump-correct.gif) ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/5283 "2025-05-30T03:15:29Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > An all-white nation of deeply ignorant Trump-worshipers, that’s what Trump wants. In other words, he wants to replicate himself. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/5284 "2025-05-30T05:23:25Z")
He’s a malignant narcissist. He already doesn’t see or recognize humans other than himself. He’s just trying to iron out the annoyances in reality that conflict with his delusional neurosis. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/5285 "2025-05-30T05:26:57Z")
> [@Cervaise](#): > > He already doesn’t see or recognize humans other than himself. You just reminded me of something I discovered two days ago. Scannig comments on a number of news articles relating to migrants being deported, some of the magaflatearthers have decided to embrace one particular pronoun. They’re referring to the deportees as _it_. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 6:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/5286 "2025-05-30T06:51:37Z")
It’s Friday round-up time! [The felon still cannot accept rejection or responsibility.](https://www.aol.com/trump-lashes-judges-tariffs-blames-021303011.html) > [@](#): > > [President Donald Trump](https://www.usatoday.com/news/politics/donald-trump/) attacked the judges who [blocked his tariffs](https://www.yahoo.com/news/trade-court-blocks-most-donald-235442248.html), a ruling later [temporarily paused](https://www.yahoo.com/news/trade-whiplash-appeals-court-allows-193701623.html) on appeal, and blamed a conservative legal group for giving him bad advice on judicial picks. > > In a [lengthy social media post](https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/114593880455063168) May 29, part of a [pattern of Trump lashing out at a judiciary](https://www.yahoo.com/news/trumps-clash-courts-brewing-war-090159143.html) that has ruled against major pieces of his second-term agenda, the president directed his ire at the three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of International Trade. The panel is the same one that invalidated his use of an emergency-powers law to implement tariffs. > > “Where do these initial three Judges come from?” Trump asked. “How is it possible for them to have potentially done such damage to the United States of America?” _There is more at the link. I didn’t want to quote too much of the article._ I want to know how it’s possible _he_ is in a position to now be doing and to have already done so much damange to America all by his lonesome. [And here’s more on his beef with people who are involved in the legal profession and its governance.](https://www.aol.com/news/justice-department-tells-american-bar-180328723.html) > [@](#): > > **FIRST ON FOX—** The [Justice Department](https://www.foxnews.com/category/politics/justice-department) on Thursday formally notified the American Bar Association that it will no longer comply with its ratings process for judicial nominees, the result of what it argues is a biased system and one that “invariably and demonstrably” favors nominees put forth by Democratic administrations. > > The letter, sent by U.S. Attorney General [Pam Bondi](https://foxnews.com/category/person/pam-bondi) to ABA President William R. Bay, was previewed exclusively to Fox News. It marks the latest escalation in a protracted legal fight that Republicans have waged against the nation’s largest association of legal workers. > > “For several decades, the American Bar Association has received special treatment and enjoyed special access to judicial nominees,” Bondi said in the letter. “In some administrations, the ABA received notice of nominees before a nomination was announced to the public. Some administrations would even decide whether to nominate an individual based on a rating assigned by the ABA.” [The master of negotian gives a master class in diplomacy–in how not to be diplomatic.](https://www.aol.com/powell-meets-trump-presidents-invitation-173016610.html) > [@](#): > > The Federal Reserve said that Jerome Powell met with Donald Trump Thursday “at the president’s invitation,” and the White House said the president told the central bank boss that he is making a mistake by not lowering rates. > > The face-to-face encounter follows months of Powell [criticism](https://finance.yahoo.com/news/trump-aims-at-fool-powell-after-fed-rate-hold-122752369.html)from Trump and pressure on the Fed to ease monetary policy. & > [@](#): > > The chair said he and his colleagues on the Fed’s rate-setting committee will make decisions about monetary policy “based solely on careful, objective, and non-political analysis,” the Fed added in its statement. & > [@](#): > > Earlier this month the central bank elected to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged in a range of 4.25%-4.50%. > > Following that meeting, Trump on social media called the central bank boss a “fool” who “doesn’t have a clue.” The president added during an Oval Office press conference on May 8 that he didn’t plan to meet with Powell, saying, “It’s like talking to a wall.” [The Department of State is getting the shawarma treatment.](https://www.aol.com/state-department-notifies-congress-reorganization-175753436.html) > [@](#): > > WASHINGTON (AP) — The State Department on Thursday notified Congress of an [updated reorganization](https://apnews.com/article/state-department-rubio-reorganization-trump-usaid-3fc186fefddaaa72c3040db9fb380af4) of the massive agency, proposing cuts to programs beyond what had previously been revealed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and a steeper 18% reduction of staff in the U.S. > > The planned changes, detailed in a notification letter obtained by The Associated Press, reflect the Trump administration’s push to [reshape American diplomacy](https://apnews.com/article/international-students-visas-trump-guidance-social-media-a1f5180ce83560aff66dd65534906697) and [scale back the size](https://apnews.com/article/elon-musk-donald-trump-big-beautiful-bill-aa2bc70b0ebdb219b5dd3e9f8fae03af) of the federal government. The restructuring has been driven in part by the need to find a new home for the remaining functions of the [U.S. Agency for International Development](https://apnews.com/article/doge-usaid-elon-musk-e56588069f7610ef13f844293d058ccb), an agency that Trump administration officials and billionaire ally [Elon Musk’s](https://apnews.com/article/doge-musk-trump-ai-starlink-gsa-efficiency-d67a41d1be98db11f05ca8e4472f53bd) Department of Government Efficiency have [dismantled](https://apnews.com/article/usaid-trump-musk-foreign-aid-firings-a3af8ce6ef17878b718c8e2ed3bf98e4). > > The proposal includes an even higher reduction of domestic staff than the 15% initially floated in April. The department is also planning to eliminate some divisions tasked with oversight of America’s two-decade involvement in Afghanistan, including an office focused on resettling Afghan nationals who worked alongside the U.S. military. That’s approximately one fifth of the deparmet. And take special notice of the last sentence I quoted. [Senior ICE officials removed.](https://www.aol.com/trump-administration-ousts-top-ice-190128799.html) > [@](#): > > WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The Trump administration is removing two senior immigration enforcement officials as the White House is demanding a sharp increase in arrests of migrants in the U.S. illegally, three people familiar with the move said on Thursday. > > Top U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials Kenneth Genalo and Robert Hammer will be pulled from their posts, the people said, requesting anonymity to discuss the shift. > > ICE confirmed the changes in a statement but did not cite White House pressure to increase arrests. Genalo, who heads ICE’s enforcement and removal division, will retire, the agency said. Robert Hammer, the head of ICE’s investigative arm, will be reassigned. [It seems Bobby Junior incensed the felon, evidently.](https://www.aol.com/white-house-acknowledges-problems-rfk-192617295.html) (The **bolding** is mine.) > [@](#): > > WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House will fix errors in a much-anticipated federal government report spearheaded by U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary [Robert F. Kennedy Jr.](https://apnews.com/hub/robert-f-kennedy-jr), which decried America’s food supply, pesticides and prescription drugs. > > Kennedy’s wide-ranging “Make America Healthy Again” [report](https://apnews.com/article/kennedy-vaccines-food-supply-pesticides-prescription-drugs-de043eb2e0ef7de889416b98141b9078), released last week, cited hundreds of studies, but a [closer look by the news organization NOTUS](https://www.notus.org/health-science/make-america-healthy-again-report-citation-errors) found that **some of those studies did not actually exist.** > > Asked about the report’s problems, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the report will be updated. > > “I understand there was some formatting issues with the MAHA report that are being addressed and the report will be updated.” Leavitt told reporters during her briefing. “But it does not negate the substance of the report, which, as you know, is one of the most transformative health reports that has ever been released by the federal government. Yeah, the substance of the report is unsubstantiated. Why does this sound oh so familiar in regard to the Second Felonial Era? [Chinese students say our goverment now resembles theirs.](https://www.aol.com/news/rubio-seeks-revoke-visas-chinese-210913094.html) (The **bolding** is mine.) > [@](#): > > Chinese students say they’re questioning their decision to study in the U.S. after Secretary of State [Marco Rubio](https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/trump-administration/trump-taps-trusted-officials-four-jobs-rubio-rcna206500) announced that the federal government will attempt to [“aggressively” revoke their visas](https://www.nbcnews.com/world/asia/us-will-aggressively-revoke-chinese-students-visas-rubio-says-rcna209637). > > Rubio said Wednesday that Chinese students “with connections to the Chinese Communist Party or studying in critical fields” would be targeted. > > Chinese students who spoke to NBC News on Thursday said that they came to the U.S. for freedoms they felt they did not have back in China but that now the Trump administration is starting to resemble the strict regime they left behind. > > **“USA stands for freedom. It stands for democracy. … That’s why we come here to chase our dreams,” said one Chinese Ph.D. student at a New Jersey university, who requested anonymity out of fear of retaliation. “In China, the government can control education, high schools, colleges, universities. We thought that the USA could be different.”** There’s more. I’ll post the rest after I get home. It’s a 3-day holiday weekend here and the power’s going to be cut to the office in a few minutes. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 8:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/5287 "2025-05-30T08:37:34Z")
[Here’s an article discussing nine things with the Big Bullshit Bill.](https://www.aol.com/9-provisions-tagging-along-trumps-151037212.html) Let’s focus on this bit first. > [@](#): > > ## Pell grant and student loan changes > > The bill includes a change to the Pell Grant program, which provides federal aid to low-income students to attend colleges and universities. > > Right now, students are considered full time and qualify for the maximum amount of aid if they take 12 credits a semester. > > The bill would change that to 15 credits a semester, which the [National College Attainment Network](https://www.ncan.org/news/699766/House-Proposes-1500-Cut-to-Max-Pell-for-Students-Taking-12-Credits.htm) estimated would result in a nearly $1,500 cut in benefits for students who can’t increase their course load because of work or caretaking. > > It would also end multiple existing programs for people to pay back their student loans, including a Biden-era program that tailored payment requirements to the person’s income. It would be replaced with [a new fixed-rate program](https://www.npr.org/2025/04/30/nx-s1-5381149/trump-republicans-student-loan-repayment). So this would instantly revoke the full-time status of very many students. And the repayment for those who manage to increase their course load will no longer be income based. And here’s a kicker: military members and veterans who are availing themselves of the GI Bill must be enrolled as full-time students to get the full monthly benefit. And here’s an interesting twist in regards to foreign workers in the United State. > [@](#): > > ## Charging foreign workers > > Migrants often move to other countries in part to send money home to their family or community abroad. The United States is the [world’s largest source](https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2023/12/18/remittance-flows-grow-2023-slower-pace-migration-development-brief#:~:text=Remittance%20flows%20to%20South%20Asia,the%20second%20quarter%20of%202023.) of these transfers, known as remittances. > > The Republican bill would implement a 3.5% tax on those transfers, which must be paid by the person sending the money. It would include an exemption for U.S. citizens and nationals sending money abroad. Did I say interesting? I meant fucked up. And speaking of fucked up treatment of foreigners. > [@](#): > > ## New immigration fees > > The GOP proposal would [charge new fees](https://www.yahoo.com/news/1-000-seek-asylum-house-214036858.html) for people seeking to immigrate to the United States. > > Among the proposed fees: $1,000 to request asylum, $550 payments every six months for work authorization, $500 to apply for temporary protected status, $1,000 for undocumented immigrants paroled into the country, and $3,500 to sponsor unaccompanied child migrants. Moving on to other matters. [Another reason not to believe Noem and another fucked up situation.](https://www.aol.com/news/exclusive-kristi-noem-said-migrant-234452915.html) The fidocider’s assertion: > [@](#): > > Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem posted a stunning allegation on Wednesday: A undocumented migrant sent a letter threatening to kill President Donald Trump, promising to “self deport” after the assassination. > > “Thanks to our ICE officers, this illegal alien who threatened to assassinate President Trump is behind bars,” Noem wrote in a social media post that included the letter and a picture of the man arrested. DHS also sent out a [press release](https://www.dhs.gov/news/2025/05/28/secretary-noem-releases-statement-after-ice-arrests-illegal-alien-who-threatened). > > The story was picked up by multiple news outlets. The president’s allies used it to highlight what they see as the dangers of undocumented migrants and the work of the administration to boot them out of the country. What investigators say. (The **bolding** is mine.) > [@](#): > > The problem: Investigators believe the migrant was a victim of a setup. > > Law enforcement believes the man, Ramon Morales Reyes, 54, never wrote the letter, which was sent to an Immigration and Customs Enforcement office and other law enforcement agencies, several sources familiar with the matter told CNN. > > **Instead, investigators suspect the letter was intended to benefit a separate individual who is currently awaiting trial in a robbery and assault case in which Reyes is a victim. They do not consider the threat to be credible.** > > In investigating the case, agents believe the person may have been involved in sending these letters, claiming to be from Reyes, in an attempt to have Reyes deported before the case could go to trial, sources said. [The emir of Qatar really wants everyone to know the felon initiated the so-called gift of an airplane.](https://www.yahoo.com/news/trumps-air-force-one-deal-170800720.html) > [@](#): > > Despite [previous claims from the Department of Defense](https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/pentagon-accepts-luxury-jet-qatar-air-force/story?id=122038664) that the United States has officially accepted the luxury Boeing 747-8 jumbo jet from Qatar, the United States and Qatar have not yet finalized the details of the agreement, which are still being reviewed by their respective legal teams, according to a White House official and sources familiar with the discussions. > > A White House official stated that the White House’s legal team is currently finalizing the details of the gift, working on a memorandum of understanding – or MOU – between the United States and Qatar. The Washington Post [first reported the news.](https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/05/28/trump-qatar-air-force-one/) > > The plane from Qatar is currently in the United States, according to sources familiar with the matter as well as President Donald Trump, who confirmed the plane was here. However, Qatar wants to clarify the details surrounding the transfer, specifically emphasizing that the Trump administration was responsible for initiating the discussions about the donation of the luxury jet to the U.S. government, sources familiar with the negotiations said. I find it interesting there are still lawyers working for the felon. Prison, firings, dismbarments. What’s left for how they can kill their careers. Anyway, that crack legal team isn’t about to decide something the felon wants is illegal. [The few, the proud, the Marines, unless you happen to be Black.](https://www.yahoo.com/news/marine-corps-grooming-policy-slammed-122000644.html) > [@](#): > > Kyle Bibby of Black Veterans Project tells theGrio that the new guidance represents “another discriminatory policy enacted under a Secretary of Defense with a history of hostility to Black people.” > > A recently updated grooming policy issued by the United States Marine Corps is being slammed by advocates for negatively targeting Black male service members. > > The policy is a reversal of a decades-long waiver that allowed Black men with coarse or curly hair to electively wear their beards as a result of a skin condition. The waivers allowed Black service members to avoid the military’s requirements for men to be clean-shaven. > > In March, the Marine Corps issued a new guidance on pseudofolliculitis, or PFB, which is a skin condition more commonly known as razor bumps or ingrown hairs. PFB disproportionately affects Black men (60%), [according](https://www.aocd.org/page/pseudofolliculitisb) to the American Osteopathic College of Dermatology. Despite allowing waivers since the 1970s, the new guidance from the Marine Corps now states that the condition could lead to a service member being expelled from the military branch if the issue persists, reports [NBC News](https://www.nbcnews.com/news/nbcblk/dermatologists-say-marines-tightened-shaving-waiver-hurt-black-members-rcna208090). [O.C.G. will be returned to the United States.](https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-administration-agrees-return-wrongfully-002812904.html) > [@](#): > > “In general, this case presents no special facts or legal circumstances, only the banal horror of a man being wrongfully loaded onto a bus and sent back to a country where he was allegedly just raped and kidnapped,” Murphy wrote. > > On Wednesday, lawyers for the [Department of Justice](https://www.independent.co.uk/topic/department-of-justice-0) said [Homeland Security](https://www.independent.co.uk/topic/homeland-security) officials are preparing to return him to the United States — and potentially release him from custody for humanitarian reasons. That means they can do it for Garcia also. There are some more. After all, the Second Felonial Era is a veritable waterfall of inanities. But that’s enough for one day. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/5288 "2025-05-30T10:52:31Z")
Now comes an accusation that the HHS “MAHA” report is the way it is, with the nonexistent papers that it cites, because it was composed with the able assistance of AI > [@](#): > > Tell-tale signs of AI usage in the report, which aimed to explain the causes of poor U.S. health outcomes, included repetition and the wholesale invention of studies and authors in its citations, per The Post. > > “Some references include ‘oaicite’ attached to URLs — a definitive sign that the research was collected using artificial intelligence,” [the publication explains](https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/05/29/maha-rfk-jr-ai-garble/?_pml=1). “The presence of ‘oaicite’ is a marker indicating use of OpenAI, a U.S. artificial intelligence company.” > > White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt tried to downplay the errors in the report during a briefing on Thursday, casting its substantive flaws as “[formatting issues.](https://www.huffpost.com/entry/us-trump-maha-report_n_6839221ee4b02a937ce1eb66?origin=top-ad-recirc)” (Huffington Post, quoting the Washington Post) > **[Trump Escalates War On Harvard, Pushes Senate To Pass His ‘Big, Beautiful...](https://www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-presidency-live_n_681d03c5e4b007ccedaf84a9/liveblog_68392880e4b02a937ce1edd4)** > > Several Republicans pushed back on the bill, which still faces an uncertain future in the Senate. After that piece in the _Chicago Sun-Times_ that suggested non-existent books (by real authors) for summer reading, this is pretty easy to believe. Especially because the MAHA report also cites papers by real authors who said they never wrote them. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 11:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/5289 "2025-05-30T11:15:37Z")
Here’s another report on the many problems and nonexistent cites in the MAHA report. This one doesn’t bring up possible AI authorship, though: > **[New RFK Jr Scandal: MAHA Report is a Steaming Pile](https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2025/5/29/2324955/-New-RFK-Jr-Scandal-MAHA-Report-is-a-Steaming-Pile?utm_campaign=trending)** > > RFK Jr’s Department of Health and Human Services just released their much hyped MAHA report and it’s more ha ha than MAHA. From NOTUS: A "Make America Healthy Again"(MAHA) report submitted by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.... ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/5290 "2025-05-30T13:01:41Z")
The Whote House replies to the problems with the MAHA report: > [@](#): > > For example, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt was pressed for some kind of explanation for the MAHA debacle. The president’s chief spokesperson responded by claiming there were “some formatting issues" with the document. > … > In case this isn’t obvious, “formatting issues” tend to refer to things such as page margins, font size or perhaps misnumbered pages. > … > > To describe references to nonexistent scientific research, in an official federal document related to public health policy, as “some formatting issues” is like saying the Titanic confronted “some evening issues.” > **[As more fake citations emerge in the ‘MAHA’ report, White House struggles with...](https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/fake-citations-emerge-maha-report-white-house-struggles-defense-rcna209915)** > > To describe references to nonexistent scientific research as “some formatting issues” is like saying the Titanic confronted “some evening issues.” Actually, the full quote is interesting: > [@](#): > > “I understand there were some formatting issues with the MAHA report that are being addressed, and the report will be updated, but it does not negate the substance of the report,” she said, defending the report as “backed on good science.” > **[Appeals court temporarily allows Trump tariffs to move ahead](https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/trump-administration/live-blog/trump-administration-elon-tariffs-medicaid-immigration-live-updates-rcna209644#rcrd80402)** > > Elon Musk leaves the White House and a federal trade court rules against Trump's tariffs. ---
**Author:** ![Fretful\_Porpentine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fretful_porpentine/32/2873_2.png) [@Fretful\_Porpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fretful_Porpentine)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/5291 "2025-05-30T13:33:57Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > The bill includes a change to the Pell Grant program, which provides federal aid to low-income students to attend colleges and universities. > > Right now, students are considered full time and qualify for the maximum amount of aid if they take 12 credits a semester. > > The bill would change that to 15 credits a semester, which the [National College Attainment Network](https://www.ncan.org/news/699766/House-Proposes-1500-Cut-to-Max-Pell-for-Students-Taking-12-Credits.htm) estimated would result in a nearly $1,500 cut in benefits for students who can’t increase their course load because of work or caretaking. This is … honestly less horrible than some of the things they could be doing to Pell, but I’m a faculty member in a state that has already tried to place the same restriction on state-based financial aid, and they walked it back after a few years. It’s one of those things that _sounds_ evidence-based on paper (students who take 15+ credits are, in fact, statistically more likely to graduate), but gets the cause and effect backwards: the students who are not taking 15 credits are usually the ones with complicated lives and multiple responsibilities to balance, and / or ones who are already struggling academically and will struggle more if they overextend themselves. It also means students are incentivized to stay enrolled in a course they are definitely going to fail, rather than dropping it, which helps nobody – the student’s GPA suffers, so also do the professor’s teaching evaluations (these track fairly closely with students’ final grades in the course), and so, sometimes, do other students who might genuinely benefit from the resources being expended on students who aren’t going to pass, since faculty / advisors / tutoring staff don’t have infinite amounts ot time. ---
**Author:** ![dasmoocher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/dbc845/32.png) [@dasmoocher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dasmoocher)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/5292 "2025-05-30T14:00:05Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > [quoting article] > [President Donald Trump](https://www.usatoday.com/news/politics/donald-trump/) attacked the judges who [blocked his tariffs](https://www.yahoo.com/news/trade-court-blocks-most-donald-235442248.html), a ruling later [temporarily paused](https://www.yahoo.com/news/trade-whiplash-appeals-court-allows-193701623.html) on appeal, and blamed a conservative legal group for giving him bad advice on judicial picks. Another example of how Trump is never at fault. For anything. > [@Monty](#): > > [quoting article] > The [Justice Department](https://www.foxnews.com/category/politics/justice-department) on Thursday formally notified the American Bar Association that it will no longer comply with its ratings process for judicial nominees, the result of what it argues is a biased system and one that “invariably and demonstrably” favors nominees put forth by Democratic administrations. This made me curious so I asked ChatGPT if US judges need a legal degree: > In the **United States** , most judges **do need a legal degree** , but not all. Here’s how it breaks down: > > ### 1. **Federal Judges (including Supreme Court Justices)** > > - **No constitutional requirement** for a law degree or even legal training. > - However, **in practice** , all modern federal judges **have law degrees** and significant legal experience. > - Appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. > > [snipped lower court answers] So I guess it’s only a matter of time before we get nominations for federal judges who not only haven’t passed the bar, but haven’t graduated to law school. Maybe some Republican Senators will grow a backbone during confirmations if Trump’s unpopularity keeps increasing and they think they can defy him. Maybe. It says a legal degree is needed **in practice**. There were a lot of things that were norms or done in practice before Trump started shitting on them. (A Google search said a law degree for judgeships is _typically_ required, so I think ChatGPT is correct on this.) We already have a Surgeon General nominee who has a medical degree but didn’t complete her residency and isn’t board-certified in anything, AIUI. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/5293 "2025-05-30T15:33:20Z")
[Evidently the contest for the most powerful man in the world, Nayib Bukele, ow has a rival: Xi Jinping, completely leaving a certain orange tinged wannabe behind the Cheeto dust cloud.](https://finance.yahoo.com/news/live/trump-tariffs-live-updates-trump-says-china-violated-trade-agreement-with-us-tariffs-face-legal-limbo-191201493.html) > [@](#): > > President Donald Trump lashed out at China on Friday morning on [Truth Social](https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/114596705340367716), saying China had “violated” its trade deal with the US. > > “The bad news is that China, perhaps not surprisingly to some, HAS TOTALLY VIOLATED ITS AGREEMENT WITH US. So much for being Mr. NICE GUY!” Trump wrote. > > Trump did not specify how China allegedly broke the agreement. But his comments added to a growing list of complaints from US officials. During an [interview with CNBC](https://www.cnbc.com/video/2025/05/30/watch-cnbcs-full-interview-with-u-s-trade-representative-jamieson-greer.html), US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer claimed the Chinese were “slow rolling their compliance.” For someone who (supposedly) wrote _The Art of the Deal_, the wannabe is incredibly bad at making deals. ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/5294 "2025-05-30T16:03:46Z")
It’s **[TACOs](https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/2025/05/29/trump-taco-question-what-is-taco-trade-what-does-taco-trump-mean-trump-taco-bowl-tweet-memes-tariff/83916877007/)** all the way down (with ketchup!). Let’s see how he chickens out of the Xi deal too. Mr. Nice Guy! Hilarious! [![](https://ts1.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.HWzhqWqcVJLIjMtpa0msVQHaGR&pid=15.1) ](https://ts1.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.HWzhqWqcVJLIjMtpa0msVQHaGR&pid=15.1) ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/5295 "2025-05-30T16:24:46Z")
> [@](#): > > Trump did not specify how China allegedly broke the agreement. Do we even have any trade agreement with China right now? I think we need to know that before we know how they broke it. ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/5296 "2025-05-30T16:29:11Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > Do we even have any trade agreement with China right now? You barely have a Trade Nod and a Wink right now. ---
**Author:** ![smithsb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smithsb/32/12107_2.png) [@smithsb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smithsb)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/5297 "2025-05-30T16:40:12Z")
Didn’t we have 200 trade agreements within days? This was a month ago. # Trump says he’s negotiated 200 trade deals — but won’t say with whom The president was cryptic about the deals he says he’s reached but said he would give more details in a few weeks. [https://www.politico.com/news/2025/04/25/trump-200-trade-deals-time-interview-trade-war-tariffs-00309294](https://www.politico.com/news/2025/04/25/trump-200-trade-deals-time-interview-trade-war-tariffs-00309294) ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/5298 "2025-05-30T16:47:56Z")
> [@smithsb](#): > > Didn’t we have 200 trade agreements within days? Only if he counts kids going through their Pokemon card collections with each other. ---
**Author:** ![dasmoocher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/dbc845/32.png) [@dasmoocher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dasmoocher)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/5299 "2025-05-30T17:36:39Z")
I heard they’ll be announcing a deal to import _mithral_ from Middle-Earth any day now. Seems about as real as any of them. ---
**Author:** ![Frodo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frodo/32/302_2.png) [@Frodo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frodo)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/5300 "2025-05-30T18:28:39Z")
The original (accept no substitutes) Marvelous Middle-earth Metal is mithr_ **i** _l, mithr_ **a** _l is the knock-off version from Forgotten Realms’ Toril. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/5301 "2025-05-30T18:44:21Z")
> [@Frodo](#): > > The original (accept no substitutes) Marvelous Middle-earth Metal is mithr_ **i** _l, mithr_ **a** _l is the knock-off version from Forgotten Realms’ Toril Spoilered, because it’s topic drift: IIRC, TSR (the original publishers of D&D) had to change names/spellings of a number of things in the early days of D&D, due to a copyright-infringement suit from the Tolkien estate. That’s how ents became treants, hobbits became halflings, balrogs became balors / Type VI demons, and mithril became mithral. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068.md?page=261) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068.md?page=263)