We are at the brink

David J. Bier discusses his blog post, “Trump Has Cut Legal Immigration More Than Illegal Immigration,” on PBS NewsHour April 14, 2026

PBS NewsHour has @davidjbier.bsky.social on to talk about Trump's push against legal immigration

Why won’t Amazon explain why it reportedly paid three times as much as the next highest bidder for the Melania documentary?

This looks like bribery in plain sight. Amazon must give the American people answers.

ok, it’s definitely a bubble

Documents Reveal a Web of Financial Ties Between Trump Officials and the Industries They Help Regulate ProPublica is releasing a trove of disclosure records that detail the finances of more than 1,500 Trump appointees, including former lobbyists, industry executives and at least a dozen officials who d...

#ICYMI: We released a trove of disclosure records that detail the finances of more than 1,500 Trump appointees, including former lobbyists, industry executives and at least a dozen officials who declined to identify former clients.

"In small ways?" GMAFB

"But a news outlet of that formulation is fated to compromise ethics when a rock-solid story moving toward publication is deemed to fall outside the designated political comfort zone." 3/3

"Their path may be one of commercial convenience. Or of timidity. Or of appeasement to regulators, legislators and the president himself. Or the instinctual path of those who see the press only through the lens of politics. … 2/3

Margaret Sullivan, a must, as always.

She includes the quote below (from Marty Baron), followed by this:

"Media owners who substitute political goal posts for news values find refuge in sophistry. They lay claim to ethics; instead, they subvert them. …. 1/3

Watch how swiftly fake quotes get attributed to “S. Drimmer” now.

Thing is, this is exactly what ChatGPT was designed to do. Namely, jackhammer the grounds of truth beneath our feet. Whether the product is “good” or not is irrelevant. Its purpose is to remove people from acts of discernment.

Victor Moscoso, “Man with Spiral Eyes” (1966): 1) idea sketch for poster design, watercolour on paper, 2) sketch for poster, watercolour on paper, 3) sketch for poster, watercolour on paper, and 4) poster, offset litho.

This is brilliant. And terrifying. @nesrinemalik.bsky.social

This is very cool!

There is no abuse they would not stoop to.

Victoria Toensing @VicToensing Hubby being sworn in as Counsel to the Attorney General. 4:04 PM · Apr 20, 2026 · 6,199 Views Jason Reding Quiñones, the US Attorney in Miami, swearing in a much shorter Joe DiGenova.

Joe DiGenova, whose wife once solicited payments from foreigners to lie about Joe Biden in 2019, just got sworn in to investigate things those things he lied about in the past.

Over the weekend I laid out why this is so problematic.

emptywheel.net/2026/04/19/t...

The media blackout of Jared Kushner’s historic, ongoing corruption scandal As Trump's son-in-law returns to Pakistan for more talks with Iran, major news outlets are largely ignoring an egregious

As Trump's war on Iran continues, reminder that his own son-in-law Jared Kushner — who is leading negotiations with Iran — stands to profit from lucrative contracts with its regional rivals.

War gives dictators like Trump (and his family) more power and more wealth.

Third Annual Conference of the Centre for the Study and Application of Stoicism A quick post for those who are interested in Stoicism – the Centre for the Study and Application of Stoicism will be holding its third one-day conference on Friday 19th June, from 9.45am to 5pm, in…

New on the blog: the Third Annual Conference of the Centre for the Study and Application of Stoicism. A quick not that it's on 19th June, no registration necessary, and that I'm talking on "Cyclical Violence, Stoic Time and the Family in Seneca’s Tragedies". Apparently.

Trump Library Saga Takes Dark Turn: Where Did Millions in Funding Go? Four huge media conglomerates forked over $63 million in “settlements” earmarked for Trump’s presidential library. Democrats are trying to track that money—and the latest developments don’t inspire co...

SCOOP --> Paramount, Meta, and X are refusing to say what happened to their huge contributions to Trump's presidential library after Sen Elizabeth Warren raised questions about its fund getting dissolved. Ds say tens of millions remain unaccounted for.

Details here:
newrepublic.com/article/2092...

The insider trading suspicions looming over Trump's presidency The BBC has found a pattern of spikes in trades ahead of public announcements by the US president.

You’ve seen this before but the BBC has put it all together.

www.bbc.com/news/article...

Justice Department demands Michigan county turn over 2024 ballots Michigan Democratic Attorney General Dana Nessel dismissed the latest election inquiry from the Trump administration as “absurd” and “baseless.”

Now DOJ is demanding 2024 ballots from Michigan without a proper legal basis. Is it just a coincidence that it’s targeting swing states like Michigan, Georgia, and Arizona in the lead-up to the 2026 election?
www.nbcnews.com/politics/ele...

Thrilled by cover design of forthcoming book from the research project. aristotlebeyond.co.uk. It will be published open access in November or December.

My forthcoming book, “The Fix,” dissects the mob-like tactics of the Trump regime and proposes ideas to reclaim our democracy. Available now for pre-order here.
www.barbaramcquade.com

More of this, please

A grid photo of 16 different characters all played by the legend Tim Curry.

Tim Curry, the absolute legend, turns 80 today. This man took huge swings.

The Edmund Fitzgerald is the WORST earworm

Oh dear

What Is Palantir? An FAQ. The Peter Thiel–founded, ‘Lord of the Rings’–inspired company has a massive government presence and is seemingly always at the center of controversy. So, uh … why does hardly anyone know what it does?

For anyone who's waking up to this Palantir statement, I wrote a guide to the company and the fatuous chauvinism of its "defend the West" cosplay ideology a few weeks ago

Nosing around their site, FAQs and chatbot, FedEx claims they will have an online tool to pass on money they receive back from govt refund any charges.

But how likely is that and for how long?

And why are they still collecting duties on tariffs the SC rejected?

Question (esp. for tax lawyers!)

FedEx has sent me two requests for duties on books I recently received from France, I assume bc of Trump's tariffs. (Never charged this before Liberation Day.)

Should I pay duties from illegal tariffs?

@omrimarian.bsky.social @qjurecic.bsky.social 1/2