# 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:** 332
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2025, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/6682 "2025-07-19T15:37:33Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > > “Belmont University claims to be a Christian institution grounded in Biblical principles, but its administration is injecting **anti-gospel DEI ideology** into its curriculum,” Ogles told Fox News Digital. Okay, that really has me scratching my head (before it explodes)… _Diversity, equality, inclusion._ They’re saying that Jesus preached AGAINST these? Can anyone give me the cites from the Gospels? And BTW, how did Jesus feel about including **JEWS**?? Hmmm? 🤪 ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2025, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/6683 "2025-07-19T15:49:10Z")
It was a right wing idiot talking to Faux news. What he said can be nothing but false. ---
**Author:** ![Guest-starring\_Id](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guest-starring_id/32/21736_2.png) [@Guest-starring\_Id](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guest-starring_Id)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2025, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/6684 "2025-07-19T16:10:03Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > As the [_New York Times_ reports](https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/17/business/epstein-banks-wyden-trump.html?partner=bloomberg), senator Ron Wyden (D-OR), who heads the Senate Finance Committee, is calling for enormous money transfers sent to and by Epstein — including wire transfers from wealthy individuals and payments to numerous women — to be made public. Man I hope MAGA presses on with this. > [@DavidNRockies](#): > > No better way to get back in His Orange-a-tude’s good graces than to go guns-hot after a known enemy of Trump (so many to choose from). So much this. Increasingly their modus operandus, it seems. When you don’t have something called policy… ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2025, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/6685 "2025-07-19T17:06:16Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > I have no problem with a Marine Corps general being the superintendent of the Naval Academy. I have no problem with General Borgshulte. In fact, I feel for the man, knowing that his predecessor’s tenure in the position came to an end because of bias by the felon and his accomplices. I’m not sure when the choice is made but about one in five Academy graduates opt for the Corps rather than the Navy as a career so a USMC Commandant is entirely plausible. 18 months after his predecessor was appointed, not so much. ---
**Author:** ![OttoDaFe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ottodafe/32/356_2.png) [@OttoDaFe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OttoDaFe)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2025, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/6686 "2025-07-19T18:35:39Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > … _Diversity, equality, inclusion._ They’re saying that Jesus preached AGAINST these? Can anyone give me the cites from the Gospels? … Obviously you’ve had your head in the sand and haven’t heard of the [Conservative Bible Project](https://credohouse.org/blog/andy-schlaflys-conservative-bible-project) (which I’ve mentioned before). Founded by ultra-conservative advocate Phyllis Schlafly’s son Andrew, its goal is to purge the Bible of all the liberal nonsense that’s corrupted it over the centuries, such as what is to be rendered to whom. About its accuracy, from the linked article: > What is most remarkable about this new translation is not that it lacks almost total credibility (which is true), but that political ideology is so strong that it overrides everything else. New Testament professor Douglas Moo, Wheaton Graduate School, and chairman of the Committee on Bible Translation which oversees the NIV and TNIV, did not mince words about the Conservative Bible Project. “Silly is probably as kind as I could be about it,” Moo told the [Tennesean.com](http://Tennesean.com). (As for cites from the above, I’m afraid you’re on your own. I’ve been warned about keeping my blood pressure under control.) ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUBv.2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanubv.2/32/3260_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUBv.2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUBv.2)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2025, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/6687 "2025-07-19T18:47:55Z")
If anyone wants to ruin their own day by reading it, add another “s” to Tennessean. And now I need some of Otto’s blood pressure medication. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2025, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/6688 "2025-07-19T18:56:50Z")
It reminds me of something I read once about the Old South; that their churches were so focused on defending slavery that Southern people who attended Northern churches would sometimes express surprise that Christianity addressed any _other_ subject than “why slavery is good”. It seems to me that history is repeating itself, and right wing “American Christianity” is well along in the process of being subsumed by the Republican party and reduced to nothing but a propaganda outlet for them. The separation of Church and State doesn’t just exist to protect the _State_ from the _Church._ ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2025, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/6689 "2025-07-19T19:04:59Z")
Thanks for the research, but I wouldn’t touch it with a 10-cubit barge pole. ---
**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:** [July 19, 2025, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/6690 "2025-07-19T19:09:57Z")
Interesting, this tennessean page turns to an eu.tennessean-dot-etcetera page when dialled from Germany and it says > Looks like there’s a problem with this site > > https: //eu. tennessean. etc / sent back an error. > > Error code: 406 Not Acceptable > > ``` > Check to make sure you’ve typed the website address correctly. > > ``` It’s probably better that way, have read enough crazy today. ---
**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:** [July 19, 2025, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/6691 "2025-07-19T22:21:16Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > > [@Monty](#): > > > > > “Belmont University claims to be a Christian institution grounded in Biblical principles, but its administration is injecting **anti-gospel DEI ideology** into its curriculum,” Ogles told Fox News Digital. > > Okay, that really has me scratching my head (before it explodes)… I forgot to ask: Doesn’t the constitution have something to say about the government and religion? I do not believe the Second Felonial Era has the authority to determine the “Gospel-ness” (to coin a term) of anyone’s actions. **Fun fact: If you go back and read the New Testament, you will see that it’s DEI to preach the Gospel to and accept as Christians _non-Jews_ in the first place!** ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2025, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/6692 "2025-07-19T22:23:10Z")
The Constitution doesn’t matter anymore. It turns out that, by and large, the people don’t give a shit. ---
**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:** [July 19, 2025, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/6693 "2025-07-19T22:41:13Z")
Things still going well in the "nothing to see here: Epstein files kerfuffle. The amount of unreleased Epstein evidence the government is in possession of is a bit mind boggling. For example: “The three-page index is a report generated by the FBI that lists the evidence inventoried by federal law enforcement during the multiple investigations into his conduct. According to that index, the remaining materials include 40 computers and electronic devices, 26 storage drives, more than 70 CDs and six recording devices. The devices hold more than 300 gigabytes of data, according to the DOJ. The evidence also includes approximately 60 pieces of physical evidence, including photographs, travel logs, employee lists…” Under pressure, DOJ is now considering releasing the grand jury transcript, but that contains only a tiny fraction of the evidence in the FBI’s possession and will not answer the question of who else participated in Epstein’s abuse of children/minors. More: “According to the DOJ, the evidence includes “images and videos” of victims who appear to be minors, “over ten thousand downloaded videos and images of illegal child sex abuse material and other pornography,” and a “large volume” of images of Epstein.” > **[What the government evidence list tells us about the unreleased Epstein files](https://abcnews.go.com/US/unreleased-epstein-files-include-logbooks-private-island-records/story?id=123851356)** > > Unreleased Epstein files include logbooks for private island, records show. ---
**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:** [July 20, 2025, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/6694 "2025-07-20T01:19:18Z")
> [@bobot](#): > > The Constitution doesn’t matter anymore. It turns out that, by and large, the people don’t give a shit. I’m going to have to say a certain type of person (magaflatearthers/pubbies [Is there a differrence now?]) don’t. Those are the people who love to parrot this nonsense: [“The constitution is not a suicide pact.”](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-united-states-constitution-as-a-suicide-pact/979129) [Accomplice Duffy is upset about how Mexico–you’re going to love this–operates airports _in Mexico_.](https://www.aol.com/trump-administration-imposes-limits-mexican-210447170.html) (The **bolding** is mine.) > [@](#): > > The Trump administration imposed new restrictions Saturday on flights from Mexico and threatened to end a longstanding partnership between Delta Air Lines and Aeromexico in response to limits the Mexican government placed on passenger and cargo flights into Mexico City several years ago. > > Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said Mexico’s actions to [force airlines](https://apnews.com/article/business-mexico-airlines-city-transportation-73226a2c65e147a0c86010bb910ec276) to move out of the main Benito Juarez International Airport to the newer Felipe Angeles International Airport more than 30 miles away violated a trade agreement between the two countries and gave domestic airlines an unfair advantage. Mexico is the top foreign destination for Americans with more than 40 million passengers flying there last year. > > \*\*"Joe Biden and Pete Buttigieg deliberately allowed Mexico to break our bilateral aviation agreement,” Duffy said of the previous administration. “That ends today. Let these actions serve as a warning to any country who thinks it can take advantage of the U.S., our carriers, and our market. America First means fighting for the fundamental principle of fairness.” > > All Mexican passenger, cargo and charter airlines will now be required to submit their schedules to the Transportation Department and seek government approval of their flights until Duffy is satisfied with the way Mexico is treating U.S. airlines.\*\* [I guess his parents should have taught him to take care of his papers better.](https://www.yahoo.com/news/ice-secretly-deported-pennsylvania-grandfather-231727150.html) Good Lord! What a load of horseshit this stunt by the felon’s accomplices is! > [@](#): > > The family of an 82-year-old [Chilean national feared](https://www.yahoo.com/news/venezuelans-deported-trump-brutal-el-190441674.html) he was dead for weeks before discovering that he had been [detained by ICE](https://www.yahoo.com/news/las-vegas-feeling-impact-trump-205623484.html) after he misplaced his green card, according to a report. > > Relatives last saw Luis Leon, who lives in Allentown, Pennsylvania, on June 20, when he and his wife visited the Philadelphia[immigration office](https://www.yahoo.com/news/border-patrol-carries-raid-home-212347505.html)to replace his lost green card, [_The Morning Call_](https://www.mcall.com/2025/07/18/luis-leon-allentown-grandfather-ice-guatemala/)first reported. > > There,[officers handcuffed him](https://www.yahoo.com/news/kristi-noem-says-other-unnamed-150514304.html) and took him away without explanation, relatives told the outlet. His family was left scrambling, contacting immigration offices, hospitals and even a morgue for more information on Leon’s whereabouts. > > Then, on July 9, Leon’s wife received a call that seemed to confirm the family’s worst fears; the caller claimed the 82-year-old had died. > > Thankfully, this week, his family members learned that Leon had been moved from a [detention facility](https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/alligator-alcatraz-desantis-florida-county-officials-emails-b2791511.html)in Minnesota to Guatemala. He’s now in a hospital in Guatemala City, the outlet reported. _The Independent_ has reached out to ICE for more information. > > It’s not immediately clear why he was sent to Guatemala. But last month, the Supreme Court left the door open for the Trump [administration to deport immigrants to countries they have never called home](https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-administration-could-deport-immigrants-193659045.html). And what terrible crime did he commit while in the US legally? > [@](#): > > Leon was granted political asylum in 1987 after surviving Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet’s regime, the outlet reported. He has a clean record — and hasn’t even been given so much as a parking ticket, the family claimed. So he fled a horrible situation, applied for asylum, was granted it, got approved for immigration (thus the green card), and has committed no crimes at all. But Cruella de Vile and her cohorts in crime decided that losing one piece of paper requires sending him to a country he’s never set foot in let alone committed a crime in. [Cruella de Vile’s hot on top important matters, though!](https://www.yahoo.com/news/kristi-noem-announces-tsa-security-134802263.html) Or not. > [@](#): > > Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem announced on Thursday that the TSA will open security lanes dedicated to families and military service members. > > “Families on the Fly" will create dedicated security lines for families with small children and give families a $15 discount for TSA pre-check enrollment, Noem said at a press conference at Nashville International Airport. & > [@](#): > > The “Honor Lane,” which will expedite security checkpoints for military service members and their families, opened in Nashville last month, Noem said. The new military lanes are available at 11 different airports and will expand elsewhere soon, particularly near military bases. This will make the screening _take longer_, you moron! [Florida’s not even pretending anymore they care about state vs federal authority nor the constitution.](https://www.yahoo.com/news/florida-plan-deputize-national-guard-124255908.html) (The **bolding** is mine.) > [@](#): > > Seeking to expand Florida’s role in federal immigration enforcement, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in May 2025 submitted the state’s [Immigration Enforcement Operations Plan](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/e9/71/ec07e76d4efcbc75fc5bf7f8d3f4/florida-ieo-plan-redacted.pdf) to the Trump administration. > > The plan, [endorsed by President Donald Trump](https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/trump-approves-florida-plan-to-use-national-guard-as-immigration-judges-to-speed-deportations/ar-AA1HQ9RT), says all of Florida’s roughly 47,000 law enforcement officers have received, or soon will receive, training to act as immigration officers. It’s part of an effort to, [as the plan notes](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/e9/71/ec07e76d4efcbc75fc5bf7f8d3f4/florida-ieo-plan-redacted.pdf), “maintain state-led border security operations in the absence of federal support.” > > **The DeSantis plan includes a proposal to deputize Florida’s nine National Guard Judge Advocate General’s Corps officers to serve as immigration judges.** [JAG officers are attorneys who serve as legal advisers](https://nationalguard.com/27-jag-corps-officer), prosecutors, defense counsel and military judges in a wide range of matters specific to the armed forces. That includes [courts-martial](https://jsc.defense.gov/Portals/99/2024%20MCM%20files/MCM%20(2024%20ed)%20-%20TOC%20no%20index.pdf?ver=b7JVpxV5rbIHg0ENlCRVKQ%3d%3d) and civil matters involving the military. Oh, yeah. And they don’t care about having military officers acting as judges in civilian matters in the United States. Isn’t that one of the hallmarks of a military dictatorship? [FUCK! And now we are back to having military-run internment camps in the United States.](https://www.yahoo.com/news/two-military-bases-set-house-204336292.html) > [@](#): > > The Department of Homeland Security plans to set up detention facilities on two U.S. military bases to temporarily house migrants set for deportation. This week, the Department of Defense authorized the use of those installations. > > A July 15 letter from Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth confirmed plans to let the Department of Homeland Security use property at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in New Jersey and Camp Atterbury in Indiana. The decision came after a request by Homeland Security. > > A defense official told Task & Purpose that the timeline for the new facilities hasn’t been made clear and depends on coordinating with DHS. > > The [July 15 letter](https://www.njspotlightnews.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/123/2025/07/Scanned-from-a-Xerox-Multifunction-Printer.pdf) to Rep. Herb Conaway (D-N.J.) confirms plans to house detained migrants on the two bases. According to the defense official, the Department of Homeland Security will establish temporary soft-sided holding facilities on the grounds of bases, rather than use existing structures. Soft-sided? Oh, yeah. Tents. [And the deportees can choose to take their US citizen children with them, right? Right?](https://www.yahoo.com/news/mom-claims-she-couldnt-bring-235430393.html) (The **bolding** and _italicizing_ are mine.) > [@](#): > > Heidy Sánchez brought her young daughter with her to an appointment at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in Florida in April, her attorney says. > > It was the last time she saw her husband, Carlos, or their then-17-month-old, Kailyn, in person: Sánchez was detained during the appointment and deported days later to her native Cuba. > > **Sánchez and her lawyer, Claudia Cañizares, maintain she was not given the option to take Kailyn — _who was still breastfeeding and had recently begun having seizures_ — with her as she was removed from the U.S.** [Cruella de Vile is franchising Alligator Auschwitz.](https://www.yahoo.com/news/kristi-noem-says-other-unnamed-150514304.html) > [@](#): > > Homeland Security Secretary [Kristi Noem](https://www.independent.co.uk/topic/kristi-noem) revealed that other states are in the process of [building Alligator Alcatraz](https://www.yahoo.com/news/concentration-camp-everything-know-trump-174858578.html)-style detention centers to hold alleged undocumented [immigrants](https://www.independent.co.uk/topic/immigrants). (The **bolding** is mine.) > > Nestled in the Florida Everglades about 45 miles from Miami, [the sprawling facility](https://www.yahoo.com/news/gavin-newsom-says-alcatraz-reopen-133023289.html) is quickly becoming one of the [most controversial](https://www.independent.co.uk/news/collier-county-ron-desantis-miamidade-county-kevin-guthrie-donald-trump-b2791205.html) symbols of [Donald Trump](https://www.independent.co.uk/topic/donald-trump)’s aggressive immigration crackdown. > > Last week, Noem praised Florida Governor [Ron DeSantis](https://www.independent.co.uk/news/ron-desantis-florida-legislature-kevin-guthrie-donald-trump-b2786849.html) during a recent news conference for collaborating with the DHS, adding that **five Republican governors have explored building similar facilities in their own states**. > > “We’ve had several other states that are actually using Alligator Alcatraz as a model for how they can partner with us, as well,” Noem said Saturday, without naming the states. > > “I’m having ongoing conversations with five other governors about facilities that they may have.” > > **Noem said that she cannot share the governors’ names but stated that announcements will be forthcoming soon.** Soon, huh? I’ll mark my calendar for two weeks from now. [The felon admits he’s stupid.](https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-inadvertently-admits-not-smart-221816672.html) > [@](#): > > The president was addressing the crowd at a signing for the GENIUS Act in the East Room when he brought up the value of the dollar and how a smart president would never let it slide. The GENIUS Act, which stands for Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins, establishes the first regulatory framework for stablecoins, which are digital currencies tied to the value of an asset like the U.S. dollar. > > **The problem with his comment is that the value of the U.S. dollar did slide during the first part of the year while Trump has been in office.** Of course the magaflatearthers just changed reality in what passes for their minds to portray the dollar’s decline as Biden’s, Hillary Clinton’s, or better yet Obama’s fault, not their idol’s. Serious question: Now that we are in what’s effectively a military dictatorship, I’d like to know if there has ever been other military dictatorships in which the dictator has not ever served in the miitary? I mean besides the felon’s loverboy’s North Korea. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2025, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/6695 "2025-07-20T04:04:15Z")
never mind ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2025, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/6696 "2025-07-20T04:07:50Z")
> [@OttoDaFe](#): > > > …New Testament professor Douglas Moo, Wheaton Graduate School, and chairman of the Committee on Bible Translation which oversees the NIV and TNIV, did not mince words about the Conservative Bible Project. “Silly is probably as kind as I could be about it,” Moo told the [Tennesean.com](http://Tennesean.com)… I bet he’s not going to let anybody cow _him_. ---
**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:** [July 20, 2025, 8:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/6697 "2025-07-20T08:25:57Z")
I remember the days of **[#MooToo and MooGA](https://schumanchu.eu/uploads/links/00048moo~too.png)** when we thought things couldn’t get much worse. They could. ---
**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:** [July 20, 2025, 10:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/6698 "2025-07-20T10:57:36Z")
Okay, mooving along. Alligator Alcatraz has been in the news of course. [But what about the real Alcatraz?](https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-mad-dream-revamping-alcatraz-124234878.html) > [@](#): > > Donald Trump’s bonkers scheme to [return Alcatraz Island to its inglorious past](https://www.yahoo.com/news/opinion-trump-wants-alcatraz-great-172912426.html) as one of the nation’s most feared prisons could run taxpayers upward of $2 billion. > > The president is apparently so hellbent on the made-for-Hollywood plan that on Thursday Attorney General Pam Bondi and Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum took a tour to assess the site, which currently attracts 1.6 million tourists a year. > > [An Axios report](https://www.axios.com/2025/07/18/trump-alcatraz-prison-cost-2-billion) quoted two administration officials outlining the costs of three prospective renovation plans. The most expensive option, costing the full $2 billion, would see the island’s existing structures demolished and replaced with a new “supermax” prison complex. > > For reference, a price tag of that amount would be equivalent to more than three decades’ worth of the $60 million the site currently brings in annually as a national park and museum, according to data from the National Park Service. [Haiti is dangerous! Is not! Is too! Is not! Is too! Is not! (This is a monologue.)](https://www.yahoo.com/news/contributor-haiti-become-more-violent-100800556.html) > [@](#): > > Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem [announced](https://www.dhs.gov/news/2025/06/27/dhs-terminates-haiti-tps-encourages-haitians-obtain-lawful-status) last month that temporary protected status for about 500,000 Haitians would end Sept. 2, five months earlier than planned. The Trump administration has cited flawed and contradictory assessments of conditions in Haiti — which, make no mistake, remains unsafe. > > Although a U.S. district court [halted](https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nyed.528747/gov.uscourts.nyed.528747.63.0_1.pdf) the action — at least temporarily — and reinstated the original termination date of Feb. 3, the administration is likely to challenge the ruling. The outcome of such a challenge could hinge on whether the courts receive and believe an accurate representation of current events in Haiti. > > The administration [asserts](https://www.dhs.gov/news/2025/06/27/dhs-terminates-haiti-tps-encourages-haitians-obtain-lawful-status) that “overall, country conditions have improved to the point where Haitians can return home in safety.” Nothing could be further from the truth. But few outsiders are entering and leaving the country lately, so the truth can be hard to ascertain. Who would ever have expected a conman to {gasp} _lie_? [This is pretty damn low.](https://www.yahoo.com/news/former-obama-official-sponsored-government-151414595.html) > [@](#): > > A former [Obama](https://www.independent.co.uk/bulletin/culture/barack-michelle-obama-divorce-podcast-b2790809.html) administration official and Trump critic was barred from attending the [graduation ceremony of a K9 officer](https://www.yahoo.com/news/freddie-k9-beagle-returns-being-031324190.html) he had sponsored - and named after his dead wife. > > [James Clapper](https://www.independent.co.uk/topic/james-clapper), [who served as Director of National Intelligence from 2010 until 2017,](https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/kevin-mccarthy-hunter-biden-new-york-post-b2243699.html) was informed by the nonprofit dog-training group that his name had been taken off the list for the event. > > The 84-year-old had sponsored the yellow Labrador, named Susan, as she completed her [CIA](https://www.independent.co.uk/topic/cia) training for “detection canines.” Once deployed, the dogs help to sniff out concealed explosives. I guess he should have sponsored a golf course tee instead. [Co-conspirator Kennedy is going to keep fixing it until it’s broke!](https://www.yahoo.com/news/rfk-jr-wants-change-program-110042452.html) > [@](#): > > Five months after taking over the federal agency responsible for the health of all Americans, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. wants to overhaul an obscure but vital program that underpins the nation’s childhood immunization system. > > Depending on what he does, the results could be catastrophic. > > In his crosshairs is the [Vaccine Injury Compensation Program](https://www.hrsa.gov/vaccine-compensation), a system designed to provide fair and quick payouts for people who suffer rare but serious side effects from shots — without having to prove that drugmakers were negligent. Congress created the program in the 1980s when lawsuits drove vaccine makers from the market. A special tax on immunizations funds the awards, and manufacturers benefit from legal protections that make it harder to win big-money verdicts against them in civil courts. [Aufbruch macht frei!\*](https://www.yahoo.com/news/alligator-alcatraz-detainees-encouraged-self-164533189.html) > [@](#): > > Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday rebuffed criticism of poor conditions at Alligator Alcatraz, the immigrant detention center, by saying people housed there have the option to self-deport instead. > > DeSantis said the U.S. Department of Homeland Security offers people at the detention center an “all-expense paid trip back to their home country” as soon as they’re processed. And he’s also going with the “It’s your own damned fault I’m being mean to you” line of thinking. > [@](#): > > “You never have to go to Alligator Alcatraz as an illegal alien,” DeSantis said at a news conference Friday. “If you can take that plane ticket and you go, and DHS is picking up the cost of that.” [Ther’e a Twist to the story of Venezuelans being repatriated.](https://www.yahoo.com/news/venezuela-receives-7-kids-left-194738500.html) > [@](#): > > Venezuela on Friday received seven children who had been left behind in the United States after their parents were deported by the Donald Trump administration. > > Seven boys and girls have been “rescued from the kidnapping to which they were being subjected,” Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello said at Maiquetia International Airport that serves Caracas. > > Cabello and First Lady Cilia Flores received the flight from Houston that also brought back 244 Venezuelans. > > Hundreds of people protested in Caracas last week demanding the return of at least 30 children the government says remained in the United States after their Venezuelan parents were expelled. > > Last month, parliamentary president Jorge Rodriguez said the children were “separated from their mothers, their fathers, their family, their grandparents” and “taken to institutions where they don’t belong.” [Lock 'em all up, dammit! Let God sort them out!](https://www.yahoo.com/news/15-old-boy-no-criminal-213740171.html) > [@](#): > > Authorities detained a 15-year-old boy without a criminal record at[Alligator Alcatraz](https://www.yahoo.com/news/concentration-camp-everything-know-trump-174858578.html)amid the haste to fill up the Florida facility, according to reports. > > As the state scrambled to open the [controversial detention center,](https://www.yahoo.com/news/kristi-noem-says-other-unnamed-150514304.html) Alexis, the teenager, seems to have been caught up in the mix. On July 1, three days before the facility officially opened, Florida Highway Patrol stopped a vehicle packed with Alexis and his friends before handing him over to federal authorities, the _Miami Herald_ and [_Tampa Bay Times_](https://www.tampabay.com/news/florida-politics/2025/07/17/alligator-alcatraz-teen-desantis-immigrant-detention/) first reported. > > Alexis endured three days in the [rapidly built facility](https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-said-alligator-alcatraz-built-155147484.html) consisting of tents and chain-link pens, his father told the _Tampa Bay Times._ > > The Florida Division of Emergency Management, which oversees the facility, admitted [he had been detained](https://www.yahoo.com/news/miami-archbishop-shreds-maga-praise-201749133.html), explaining he lied about his age when officers stopped him. > > “While at Alligator Alcatraz, an individual disclosed they had misrepresented their age upon arrest to ICE. Immediate action was taken to separate and remove the detainee in accordance with federal protocols,” a spokesperson for the division told _The Independent_ in a statement. “This is one of many problems with illegal immigration: individuals are in our country without any way to verify their identity.” An astute reader would note that this puts the lie to the Second Felonial Era’s claims that this is not a federal facility. The Florida state mouthpiece specifically stated the child was turned over to the federal authorities. The feds then had Florida lock him up. Also see above my comment about how one may depart Alligator Auschwitz. \*_Departure makes you free._ ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Wiggler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/red_wiggler/32/13190_2.png) [@Red\_Wiggler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Wiggler)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2025, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/6699 "2025-07-20T13:47:00Z")
I’m becoming increasingly concerned about Trump’s consolidation of police entities at the state and local levels. He is vastly increasing ICE’s budget and red state governors are beginning to pledge inordinate levels of cooperation from their state police and national guards. Since I’m one of those paranoid nutjobs who worries about the Orange Menace making a play for continuance in office three years hence, this trend fills me with unease. Who’s gonna stop him if he just says “fuck it?” ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2025, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/6700 "2025-07-20T14:37:25Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > But Cruella de Vile and her cohorts in crime decided that losing one piece of paper requires sending him to a country he’s never set foot in let alone committed a crime in. The cruelty is the point – she’s the one who shot her dog in the face after all. It will certainly discourage undocumented immigrants. It will also discourage international tourists and our Canadian winter visitors we get so much of here in Arizona. I mean, would an Mediterranean-hued Italian want to visit and risk being shipped off to El Salvador? ---
**Author:** ![ekedolphin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ekedolphin/32/10003_2.png) [@ekedolphin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ekedolphin)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2025, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068/6701 "2025-07-20T20:34:10Z")
Trump demanded that the NFL’s Washington Commanders and MLB’s Cleveland Guardians revert back to the names Redskins and Indians, even threatening to block the football team’s stadium deal if they don’t cave to his demands. [https://thehill.com/blogs/in-the-know/5410750-trump-washington-commanders-redskins-cleveland-guardians-indians-nfl-mlb/](https://thehill.com/blogs/in-the-know/5410750-trump-washington-commanders-redskins-cleveland-guardians-indians-nfl-mlb/) Fuck you, Trump. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068.md?page=331) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-the-clusterfuck-continues-part-1/1010068.md?page=333)