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Trump Is Vandalizing The White House In Tacky Mar-A-Lago 'Style'

President Donald Trump is gilding the White House, using his so-called "gold guy" to add gold touches to the Oval Office on the taxpayer dime to make the historic building look like his tacky Mar-a-Lago club in Florida, The Wall Street Journalreported.

Trump has gilded the furniture, affixed gold ornaments to the Oval Office fireplace, added gold sculptures and picture frames, and reportedly installed a gold Trump crest over the doorway into the White House. He even ordered his and Vice President JD Vance’s portraits to be reprinted with a gold border because he wanted the pictures to “catch the light,” the Journal reported.

“It’s the Golden Office for the Golden Age,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told the Journal.

The Journal reported that Trump also wants to add a ballroom to the White House complex where he can hold events, like he does at his Florida club, where guests pay stupid amounts of money for the chance to heap praise on the egomaniacal leader.

Trump loves his gilded Mar-a-Lago ballroom, telling guests at an event in February, “The ballroom is in top shape. We just spent a lot of money on gold. I’ve got more gold in the ballroom than anybody’s ever had in a ballroom before.”

Trump apparently wants to recreate that at the White House.

The ballroom addition is a project Trump has wanted to do since 2016, when he reportedly spoke to the Obama White House and offered to build the $100 million project—even though Trump is notorious for not paying his bills and stiffing workers. During his campaigns he even stiffed localities, refusing to pay hundreds of thousands in fees for the public safety provided for his ego-stroking rallies.

The Obama administration laughed off Trump’s offer.

“I'm not sure that it would be appropriate to have a shiny gold Trump sign … on any part of the White House,” then-White House press secretary Josh Earnest said at the time.

But in Trump’s second term in office, where he’s acting like the dictator he’s always dreamed of being, he is now serious about remaking the White House—a worrying sign from someone who has mused about staying for a third term, despite the Constitution banning such a thing.

Trump’s tacky ballroom would be in addition to his plan to pave over the Rose Garden, the beautiful green space outside the White House where presidents hold events and press conferences. Trump’s reason for that? He said women are uncomfortable when their high heels sink into the grass. The horror!

Trump is gilding the White House and turning it into a gaudy mess comes at the same time that his administration is slashing federal spending for critical social safety net programs like Social Security, Medicaid, food stamps, preschool education for low-income Americans, and more. He is also cutting medical research, disease mitigation, and foreign aid, which is already having disastrous consequences and will undoubtedly lead to even more.

Worse, as Trump demands austerity from the country, he’s reportedly planning to spend tens of millions on a grotesque military parade in Washington, D.C., to celebrate his own birthday.

Trump is taking a page out of Marie Antoinette's playbook. "Let them eat cake!"

Reprinted with permission from Daily Kos.

How Kennedy's FDA And CDC Cuts Imperil Your Family's Health

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. swung his meat axe at the Health and Human Services Department on Thursday, leaking plans to theWall Street Journal that he plans to lay off 10,000 workers or about 12 percent of the department’s workforce.

If he follows through on the plan, the largest layoffs will come at the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — the two sub-agencies that drew his greatest ire while running for president. The leaked plan calls for eliminating 3,500 full-time positions at FDA and 2,400 at CDC, which represents nearly 60 percent of the total employment cuts.

“If you work for the FDA and are part of this corrupt system, I have two messages for you: 1. Preserve your records, and 2. Pack your bags," Kennedy wrote on X last October after endorsing the Trump campaign.

The memo said the three divisions at FDA that approve new drugs, biologics and medical devices, which depend largely on industry user fees for their funding, would be exempt from the cuts. Those three sub-agencies employ 11,800 of the FDA’s total workforce of 19,700.

That means the bulk of the layoffs will come in the agency’s Human Food Program, which employs a little less than 8,000. Eliminating 3,500 its workers would nearly halve a sub-agency that protects the nation’s food supply; oversees food additives and dietary supplements; and crafts nutrition guidelines and food labels.

Staff who work in foods who were not exempted from the cuts include people who work on solving, communicating, and preventing outbreaks; testing foods for contaminants like heavy metals or bacteria; developing nutrition and food labeling policy; and take enforcement against companies who break the law.

Roughly two-thirds of Human Food Program funding goes towards inspection or ‘field’ personnel aimed at keeping our food supply safe, said Sarah Sorcher, director of regulatory affairs at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, in an email. (Full disclosure: I worked there from 2004-2009.) “Cuts are likely to hit heaviest on the foods program,” she said. “There are a few reviewers working on pre-market approval of additives, including food contact substances, (so) this is a very small fraction of the workforce.”

A corporate field day

No doubt the food additives regulatory function that Kennedy’s Make America Healthy Again campaign put in its crosshairs will be decimated. Eliminating workers without having an alternative regulatory scheme in place could prove disastrous for the American public.

First, the food and chemical additives industry will fight any attempt to ban or regulate their products, using its small army of lobbyists to slow the regulatory process before going to the business-friendly courts to prevent implementation. Second, the supplements industry will enjoy a field day after a sharp reduction in staff at FDA.

With fewer personnel to conduct oversight, shyster-led companies will fill the airwaves and internet with ads making unproven health claims for products that have never been tested for safety and efficacy. In addition to Kennedy’s long history questioning vaccine safety, Kennedy in recent years backed unproven medical claims such as taking cod liver oil for measles and ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine for Covid.

If the Trump administration follows through on the cuts, Dr. Martin Makary, the newly confirmed head of FDA, will be handed a shattered agency incapable of carrying out many of its core functions. During his confirmation hearing, which took place shortly after the initial Elon Musk-ordered employment cuts at the agency were rolled back, Makary promised senators he would do his own assessment of personnel needs at the agency. This latest plan raises the obvious question of whether he played any role at all in evaluating staffing.

A surgeon by training, Makary during his hearing also revealed an affinity for blaming the marginal issues championed by his new boss for the rise in childhood illness, where the main problems in recent years have been identified as rising obesity caused by junk food diets and lack of exercise, environmentally-caused asthma and the return of once-conquered childhood illnesses due to vaccine hesitancy. When asked by a MAHA-friendly senator about the role food additives play in causing inflammation and gut microbiome alterations, Makary replied, “Half of our nation's children are sick and nobody has really been doing anything meaningful on this front … We have to look at those ingredients.”

States will be hit hard by CDC cuts

The employment cuts at CDC contained in the new Trump administration plan will eliminate an estimated 19 percent of all agency jobs. Many research functions, like the reports that go into the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, may fall by the wayside. Here’s the internet front page of a recent issue:

Public health agencies across the country, journalists and academic researchers rely on MMWR reports to identify emerging trends, deploy scarce resources, and identify issues that need further study. But Russell Vought, one of the key architects of Project 2025 and President Trump’s current director of the Office of Management and Budget, told Michigan’s Hillsdale College forum last September that most CDC workers “don’t even do public health. They are researchers that publish material. Who knows if it’s even relevant or not?”

Earlier this week, the administration announced it will cancel tens of billions of dollars in CDC grants to state and local health departments, which are dependent on federal funding to track infectious diseases, health disparities, vaccinations, mental health services, and other public health issues. It sent stop-work-immediately notices to the states, according to a news report in The Hill.

Many of the grants were authorized in the Covid relief bills passed during the Biden administration, which expire this September. Besides fighting the pandemic, state and local health officials used the money to also track the ongoing measles outbreak, improve their antiquated computer systems, and invest in other public health priorities.

States will soon become wholly dependent on their own resources to carry out these functions even as their residents continue to send most of their tax money to the federal government.

Merrill Goozner, the former editor of Modern Healthcare, writes about health and politics at GoozNews.substack.com, where this column first appeared. Please consider subscribing to support his work.

Reprinted with permission from Gooz News.

'Wall Street Journal' Blames Trump For Risking Auto Industry 'Bloodbath'

The Wall Street Journal’s conservative editorial board, fresh off calling out President Donald Trump for backing down for minor concessions when he delayed his announced tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports, is now explaining to Trump that implementing his tariff vision would devastate the U.S. auto industry.

Industry and economic analysts agree that Trump’s various proposed tariffs would greatly harm the U.S. auto industry, after Trump dubiously warned during the 2024 presidential election of a “bloodbath” in the industry if he wasn’t elected.

Trump warned of a “bloodbath” in the auto industry if he lost the election

In March 2024, Trump sparked a controversy by saying during a campaign rally: “Now, if I don’t get elected, it’s going to be a bloodbath for the whole — that’s going to be the least of it. It’s going to be a bloodbath for the country.”

Trump’s campaign and media defenders claimed that Trump’s comment was about the auto industry rather than another instance of his violent rhetoric.

Even then, Trump was lying. The auto industry was in excellent shape during the Biden administration. Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed that more people were employed in auto manufacturing late in the Biden administration than at any time since December 2006, with a peak of about 1.03 million Americans employed in the industry under Biden. BLS data also showed that wages throughout the auto industry reached record highs under Biden.

Additionally, Trump’s first-term steel tariffs “hampered the U.S. auto industry, sparking the loss of thousands of jobs,” according to PolitiFact.

A Wall Street Journal editorial warned “Trump’s tariffs will punish Michigan”

On February 25, the Wall Street Journal editorial board wrote of a new study that shows how Trump’s tariffs will “damage the U.S. car industry, even as the economy slows and uncertainty spreads.” The Journal continued: “If the goal is to harm U.S. auto workers and Republican prospects in Michigan, then by all means go ahead, Mr. President.” According to the editorial, the study from the Anderson Economic Group found that Trump’s 25 percent tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports would cause vehicle prices to soar:

Start with auto prices. The study estimates that a 25% tariff on the U.S. neighbors would increase the cost of a full-size SUV assembled in North America by $9,000 and a pickup truck by $8,000. The cost of an electric-vehicle cross-over would increase by $12,200. Canada is the biggest supplier to the U.S. of nickel, a key critical mineral in lithium-ion batteries.
…
Mr. Trump says tariffs will force auto makers to make more cars in the U.S. Not likely, and that would take time in any case. Domestic demand for some vehicle models—especially sedans—isn’t sufficient to justify the cost of building new U.S. factories. Auto makers will have to absorb the tariff, increase prices on cars, or stop selling some models because they are too expensive.

The Journal also wrote that “U.S. auto workers will pay, too, if auto sales drop as a result of higher prices.”

In response, Trump ranted about the Journal in general and this editorial in particular on Truth Social, writing:

I don’t understand The Wall Street Journal Editorial Board, never have. They come to my aid when I least expect it, sometimes strongly, and I greatly appreciate that — Very meaningful! But then they come out with some real CLINKERS, like today’s Editorial that my Auto Tariffs will hurt the Michigan Automobile Business. They are sooo WRONG, in fact, it is just the opposite.

Experts agree Trump’s tariffs will hurt the industry and raise car prices

Trump has announced multiple tariffs that would drastically affect the auto industry.

Trump’s 25 percent tariff on imports from Canada and Mexico would, according to the Cato Institute, “harm US automotive operations and workers, as well as American car consumers” because of the integration of both countries in the U.S. auto market.

Next to be announced were 25 percent tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, which of course are used car manufacturing. Lastly, Trump announced a 25 percent tariff on all automobiles (along with pharmaceuticals and computer chips) imported into the country.

Experts have made clear that these tariffs, either separately or together, would have devastating effects on the U.S. auto industry.

Bloomberg: Ford CEO Jim Farley warned that Trump’s tariffs on Canada and Mexico alone would “blow a hole” in and be “devastating” to the U.S. auto industry. [Bloomberg, 2/11/25]
Bloomberg: Tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports could raise new-car prices by $3,000. Bloomberg also reported that the tariffs “could add $60 billion in costs to the sector, according to consultant AlixPartners,” much of which would be “passed on to consumers, which could see new-vehicle prices rise by about $3,000, Wolfe analysts have estimated.” [Bloomberg, 2/11/25]
AP: “President Donald Trump’s tariffs on steel imports … could wreak havoc on American auto manufacturing, industry leaders say.” AutoForecast Solutions analyst Sam Fiorani told The Associated Press that “raising the price of what is among the most important components of the vehicle is only going to raise the price of an already expensive product.” [The Associated Press, 2/11/25]
CNN: “Consumers are expected to feel most of the burn by the new import taxes on automobiles, as prices of cars could jump by thousands of dollars, experts have warned.” CNN additionally reported that “nearly half of vehicle sales in the US last year, including cars and light trucks, were imported from foreign countries.” [CNN, 2/19/25]
Quartz: “A 25% duty on the average $25,000 cost of a vehicle imported from Mexico and Canada would add $6,250 in costs, S&P Global Mobility said.” Quartz added: “Cars that have parts imported from either country — such as a Ford F-series pickup with a Canadian engine — would also see a price increase.” [Quartz, 2/26/25]
Quartz: Anderson Economic Group estimates that Trump’s “announced duties on imports of aluminum and steel would add another $250 to $800 per gas-powered vehicle and up to $2,500 on EVs” and stated that it was “inevitable” that there would be job cuts. Additionally, according to Quartz, the group’s study showed “vehicles made in Europe and Asia would see a $800 to $1,600 price hike.” [Quartz, 2/26/25]
Yale’s Budget Lab: Trump’s 25 percent tariff on automobiles, pharmaceuticals, and computer chips would mean “average automobile and pharmaceutical prices would rise 8.5-10.5 percent, accounting for the tariffs themselves, potential dollar appreciation, and domestic price hikes.” [The Budget Lab, 2/25/25]

Reprinted with permission from Media Matters.

The Decline And Fall Of The (Trumpist) 'Wall Street Journal'

Many American institutions have beclowned themselves in the past 10 years — too many to list. To count the right-leaning institutions that have not succumbed to Trumpian populism takes only one hand. But the decline of The Wall Street Journal's editorial page has been particularly galling because, compared to the Heritage Foundation, Hillsdale College or the Claremont Institute, it had farther to fall.

In the pre-Trump era, the paper had some integrity. While the board was broadly aligned with the Republican Party, its editorials didn't hesitate to differ with Republicans on major questions.

In the Trump era, the Journal has become, if not Pravda, then something like The Nation magazine.The Nation reliably whitewashed the sins of the Soviet Union and other communist regimes because it regarded anti-communism as a greater threat to the world than communism itself. Similarly, The Wall Street Journal has gradually become a parody of itself on the grounds that Democrats are always and forever the greatest threat to the country.

With that guiding principle, there is simply no Republican, no matter how deranged or unfit, whom the Journal will not prefer to a Democratic opponent. In 2022, the Journal advised its Arizona readers to choose Kari Lake for governor despite the fact that Lake had called for the 2020 election to be decertified, denounced mask wearing and encouraged the use of hydroxychloroquine during the pandemic, promised to criminally pursue journalists who "dupe the public," and pronounced the nation "rotten to the core" when the FBI searched Mar-a-Lago. The Journal didn't mention most of that in its endorsement, claiming, hilariously, that Arizona's election was primarily about school choice.

This week, commenting on the drone kerfuffle, the Journal intoned that it couldn't be sure what people were seeing — but it was certain that the whole thing could be attributed to the erosion of trust in government.

Noting that "non-cranks" have reported seeing things that move strangely in the dark, the Journal quoted Jon Bramnick, a GOP state senator from New Jersey, who said, "It must be something going on that they can't tell us because they are so fearful of what the public's gonna do when they hear what the drones are doing."

You might think the paper would rebuke this state senator for getting out over his skis and encouraging conspiratorial thinking, but no, the editorial notes that "This is how deep the suspicion runs. And when that happens, conspiracy theories fill the air as much as drones do."

And guess who's responsible for this erosion of trust?

"The Biden administration has squandered its credibility to the point that it's rational not to believe what it says. Remember the Chinese spy balloon that traveled across the continental U.S.? The administration downplayed its importance while it was courting better relations with Beijing, only to shoot it down over the Atlantic Ocean."

Whoa. If you want to cite relations with Beijing as a source of mistrust, the Trump administration offers far more dire examples. While he was chasing a "great trade agreement" with Xi Jinping (the terms of which were never honored, by the way), Trump repeatedly lied about and minimized the risk of COVID-19, which had far more serious consequences for Americans' lives than waiting until the big spy balloon was over the ocean before shooting it down.

Nor did the Journal see fit to mention that Trump is, right on schedule and very on brand, stoking conspiracies of government malfeasance about the drones. He popped off: "Can this really be happening without our government's knowledge. I don't think so! Let the public know, and now. Otherwise, shoot them down!!!"

This is not to excuse President Joe Biden's betrayal of trust in repeatedly promising that he would not pardon his son and then doing so, or misleading the public about the degree of his physical and mental decline. But for the Journal to look at the world of 2024 and conclude that the erosion of trust in government is due to Biden without ever once mentioning that Trump and his minions are the most prolific bilge spillers imaginable is to be completely without scruple.

Just in the last few weeks of the campaign, Trump falsely alleged that FEMA was purposely withholding hurricane assistance in order to funnel funds to illegal immigrants, that the Congo was emptying its prisons to send convicts to the United States and that the 2020 election was stolen.Trust is crucial to the successful functioning of society. Many social science studies have found that nations with high trust have less corruption and greater prosperity than those with low trust. It makes sense.

If you believe that most people are untrustworthy, you will rely only on those within your own family or tribe and be less likely to engage with outsiders. Trust is a social and economic lubricant. It's also, as we've learned, quite easy to undermine when people get their information from online rumors and irresponsible politicians and other actors who stoke distrust for their own political ends.

The drone affair is fluff and will doubtless be forgotten in a month if not sooner. But the spectacle of the Journal chastising the Biden administration without a solitary word about Trump and his enablers (in whose ranks they stand) is breathtaking.

Mona Charen is policy editor of The Bulwark and host of the "Beg to Differ" podcast. Her new book, Hard Right: The GOP's Drift Toward Extremism, is available now.

Reprinted with permission from Creators.

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