What does a TRUMP presidency look like?

[The Minsky Moment]

The Trump DOJ has cited the precedent of Keepseagle v. Vilsack, which is an embarrassing comparison to make that highlights the impropriety.  Keepseagle was a class action case brought to redress discrimination against Native tribes.  The settlement was made on notice to the class and had to be reviewed and approved by the District Court. The settlement fund is specifically barred from making payments to any individuals or for any private benefit.

None of the elements of the Keepseagle settlement are present here. This was a private action brought by the individual who controls the DOJ and IRS (the defendants). No advance notice, no court review, no court approval.  And it appears ALL the payments will be made to individuals for private benefit.  It's basically the exact opposite of the Keepseagle settlement.

DOJ has announced that the fund is non-partisan.  That's easy to verify.  Comey, James, Kelley, Schiff, the subway sandwich thrower etc. should all bring claims. 

Of course part of the problem here is that the entire first branch is MIA.  A real Congress would just shut this down.

[crazy canuck]

The rupture between the US and Canada continues.  Today the US suspended the Board of Defence. What is that you ask?

The Permanent Joint Board on Defense, first established in 1940, is made up of military leaders and diplomats from both countries who consider major strategic issues in joint defence and make recommendations to both countries' governments.

Well used to...

[Syt]

The fund is 1.776 billion, because of course it is.

[Tonitrus]

Shows they are not all that clever in exploiting the semiquincentennial...could have gone for 2.50 billion. 

[Valmy]

The rupture between the US and Canada continues.  Today the US suspended the Board of Defence. What is that you ask?

The Permanent Joint Board on Defense, first established in 1940, is made up of military leaders and diplomats from both countries who consider major strategic issues in joint defence and make recommendations to both countries' governments.

Well used to...

It is astounding to me how little anybody cares about unnecessarily shooting our own dick off with regards to all of our allies. Having a diplomacy that antagonizes everybody for no particular reason seems to be the new Republican policy.

[The Minsky Moment]

I agree but under the present circumstances, how could the Joint Board of Defense continue?  The single most salient strategic issue for Canada right now is defending against American aggression; hard to see Canadians getting useful recommendations from US military and diplomatic leaders on that issue.

[crazy canuck]

I agree but under the present circumstances, how could the Joint Board of Defense continue?  The single most salient strategic issue for Canada right now is defending against American aggression; hard to see Canadians getting useful recommendations from US military and diplomatic leaders on that issue.

More to the point, suspending the board is another good reason to take the threat of annexation seriously.

[Syt]

Just your typical Trump supporter.

https://www.reuters.com/sports/nationals-ban-individual-who-displayed-white-nationalist-sign-game--flm-2026-05-18/

Nationals ban individual who displayed white nationalist sign at game

May 18 - The Washington Nationals are investigating an incident during Sunday's game at Nationals Park when individuals unfurled a sign that directed fans to a white nationalist website and called for the deportation of "100+ million."

The individuals resisted removing the banner before fleeing the ballpark.

The team has identified and banned at least one individual ‌from Nationals Park and are working with the Metropolitan Police Department on a follow-up investigation, according to a team spokesman. They did not make public the identity of the banned individual.

"The Washington Nationals vehemently condemn discriminatory and hateful rhetoric, and we strive to make our home field a safe space for our fans," the team said in a statement to multiple media outlets.

The Nationals, who lost the game 7-3 to the Baltimore Orioles, have ⁠a daily "Salute to Service" honoring veterans and military personnel before the fourth inning. It was at that time when the banner was unfurled in the upper deck down the first-base line.

An usher attempted to confiscate the banner but the three individuals holding the sign pulled it back and fled, according to a team spokesperson.

Jake Lang, a Jan. 6 rioter and conservative influencer, took credit for the banner on social media.

The Athletic reported that it is not clear at this time how the banner got through security, with the stadium's magnetometers able to detect weapons but would not flag something like a nylon sign.

The Nationals' policy includes guidelines that "signs, banners and fan activities do not distract from the enjoyment ‌of sports ⁠games or other forms of entertainment ..." and includes restrictions on size and material.

The policy on subject matter is that as a baseball park, the stadium complex "is not a forum or place for use by the public at large for assembly and speech, for use by certain speakers or for the discussion of certain subjects."

Messages must relate to Major League Baseball, Nationals players and/or management and ⁠staff, the entity broadcasting the game or specific family-friendly messages about occasions such as birthdays, wedding anniversaries and engagements.

"Additionally, banners and signs may not bear a message that (i) is slanderous, (ii) is obscene, vulgar or indecent and inappropriate for viewing by children, (iii) contains "fighting words" likely ⁠to provoke a breach of the peace, (iv) is presented for a commercial purpose, or (v) contains derogatory matter relating to race, ethnicity, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, religion, national origin, ancestry, disability, marital status, age, personal appearance, ⁠familial status, familial responsibilities, matriculation, political affiliation, source of income, status as a victim of an intrafamily offense, place of residence or business or any other category protected by D.C. law."

The Nationals, in their posted guidelines, reserve the right to remove a non-conforming banner/sign or require a guest to immediately stop displaying it.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jake_Lang
He was part of Jan 6, of course:

Lang was arrested on January 16, 2021. He pleaded not guilty to all charges. Lang was in prison for four years on an 11-count indictment, including assault charges for attacking officers with a baseball bat.[2][6][7] Lang told Newsweek that during his time in prison he spent hundreds of days in solitary confinement in response to coronavirus lockdown and his continued political activities.[8]

He was pardoned by Trump. And continued his activities.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pardon_of_January_6_United_States_Capitol_attack_defendants

Edward Jacob Lang (Jake Lang), a far-right influencer, white supremacist, and candidate in the 2026 United States Senate special election in Florida is sued for multiple crimes and misdemeanors following his pardon:

• He was arrested after recording himself vandalizing an anti-United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement sculpture at the Minnesota State Capitol. Lang was arrested on the same day and jailed on suspicion of criminal damage to property, a felony. The ice sculpture had been commissioned and installed by the veterans organization Common Defense, whose communications director, Jacob Thomas, stated: "I gave eight years of my life in service to this country in the military. For an insurrectionist to destroy our display is an attack on the First Amendment veterans like me fought to defend".[189]
• In March 2026, Lang was charged with a misdemeanor for threatening Metropolitan Police officer Jason Bagshaw at an event commemorating the fifth anniversary of the Capitol attack, telling Bagshaw that he should be "put down like a dead dog" and hanged in front of the Capitol, as well as dragged "out by his ankles" and thrown "in the Potomac".[190]
• In March 2026, inappropriate texts exchanges with an underage girl were unveiled.[191]

[Syt]

https://apnews.com/live/trump-administration-updates-05-19-2026#0000019e-41aa-d908-a9df-e7ee87020000

US government agrees to drop tax claims against Trump in broadening of IRS lawsuit settlement

The document says the U.S. is "forever barred and precluded" from examining or prosecuting Trump, his sons and the Trump organization's current tax issues, states the one-page document posted to the DOJ website on Tuesday.

The Trump administration announced Monday the creation of a nearly $1.8 billion fund to compensate allies of the Republican president who believe they have been unjustly investigated and prosecuted, an arrangement that Democrats and government watchdogs derided as "corrupt" and unconstitutional.

According to a separate settlement agreement posted on the Justice Department website Monday, Trump will receive a formal apology from the U.S. government but "will not receive any monetary payment or damages of any kind" from the settlement.

 

[Tonitrus]

The document says the U.S. is "forever barred and precluded" from examining or prosecuting Trump, his sons and the Trump organization's current tax issues, states the one-page document posted to the DOJ website on Tuesday.

I am guessing that is not at all binding on a future administration.

[crazy canuck]

So much worse than originally reported.  This gives Trump, all his related companies and all his related business associates, the equivalent of a full civil pardon for all possible claims.

Staggering

[crazy canuck]

The document says the U.S. is "forever barred and precluded" from examining or prosecuting Trump, his sons and the Trump organization's current tax issues, states the one-page document posted to the DOJ website on Tuesday.

 

I am guessing that is not at all binding on a future administration.
[/quote]

This is general  release language and is enforceable if the release as a whole is enforceable. 

[Zanza]

  For once it's not an exaggeration to say that's literally what Hitler did too.

Also Trump did 3,700 stock trades in the first quarter. But I guess insider trading is also legal now.

[Sheilbh]

Also Trump did 3,700 stock trades in the first quarter. But I guess insider trading is also legal now.

I think it kind of always has been. I remember reading a piece ages ago on the extent of congressional insider trading (including family members) and it was extraordinary. The one that sticks in my mind was a Republican Senator I want to say from one of the Carolinas who entered the Senate with a successful small town business selling mowers and was worth something like $20 million at the end of his first term.

I think there may even be set-ups on some of the funds to track congressional stock purchases.

I think AOC and some others have proposed legislation to crack down on this which has been met with zero support from either party.

[Valmy]

Thomas Massie losing is one of the most pathetic things ever. The Republican Party and its voters are truly pathetic. They stand for nothing besides loyalty to Donald Trump.