politics

Well that's just the normal functioning of a very cool and very legal government.

FTA:

Two Democratic legislators are introducing a bill on Wednesday aimed at Mr. Musk and the so-called Buffalo Billion project, in which the state spent $959 million to build and equip a plant that Mr. Musk’s company leases for $1 a year to operate a solar panel and auto component factory.

The bill would require an audit of the state subsidy deal to “identify waste, fraud and abuse committed by private parties to the contract.” It would determine whether the company, Tesla, was meeting job creation targets, making promised investments, paying enough rent and honoring job training commitments.

If Tesla was found to be not in compliance, the state could claw back state benefits, impose penalties or terminate contracts.

KEY FINDINGS

• Just 100 billionaire families poured a record-breaking $2.6 billion into federal elections in 2024, one of every six dollars spent altogether by all candidates, parties and committees.
• That’s two-and-a-half times the roughly $1 billion spent by individual billionaire donors in 2020.
• Billionaire political spending is up 160-fold since the Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United decision allowed for unlimited campaign donations.
• The vast bulk of billionaire-family donations went to so-called independent expenditure groups–which thanks to Citizens United can raise unlimited amounts from each donor–rather than directly to candidates or parties, which still work under campaign-contribution limits.
• Billionaire spending heavily favored Republicans. Over two-thirds (70%) of billionaire-family contributions went in support of GOP candidates and conservative causes. Less than a quarter (23%) backed Democratic hopefuls and progressive causes. (The remainder went to committees without a clear partisan or ideological identity.)
• In the three Senate races that gave Republicans control of the Senate, billionaire giving constituted a huge amount of Republican outside spending: Montana 58.1%, Pennsylvania 56.8%, and Ohio 44.5%.
• Almost three-quarters (71%) of the total amount used by outside spending groups to attack the Democratic presidential candidate, Kamala Harris, came from billionaires. Billionaires supplied over three-fifths (61%) of all the outside dollars spent praising Donald Trump.
• While the potential undue influence on government policy of billionaire donors has always been a concern, the second Trump administration has seen a blatant and unprecedented swapping of campaign contributions for political power, most notoriously in the case of Elon Musk.
• Musk’s 2024 campaign contributions were four times more than what he paid in annual federal income taxes between 2013 and 2018.
• The Trump-Musk attempt to dismantle the federal government and the Republican tax-cutting agenda could potentially save billionaire-family donors trillions of dollars in taxes, turning a huge profit on their 2024 political investment.

Summary

Democrats celebrated Susan Crawford's 10-point win in Wisconsin’s state supreme court race over Elon Musk-backed Brad Schimel, preserving the court’s 4-3 liberal majority.

Musk, who spent $25M supporting Schimel, faced online ridicule, including a post from the Democrats’ official account showing him in a cheese head labeled “Loser.”

They cast the result as a rejection of Trump’s agenda and Musk’s influence. Crawford called it a victory over the “richest man in the world.”

Republicans questioned Musk’s impact. Trump stayed silent but celebrated narrower GOP House wins in Florida

Pawall - Archive.ph link here

Summary:

China has taken steps to restrict local companies from investing in the US, according to people familiar with the matter, in a move that could give Beijing more leverage for potential trade negotiations with the Trump administration.

Several branches of China’s top economic planning agency, the National Development and Reform Commission, have been instructed in recent weeks to hold off on registration and approval for firms that are looking to invest in the US, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing sensitive issues.

While China has previously placed restrictions on some overseas investments for reasons linked to concerns about national security and capital outflows, the new measures underscore tensions playing out between the world’s two biggest economies as Donald Trump ramps up tariffs. China’s outbound investments into the US totaled $6.9 billion in 2023, according to the latest available figures.

There’s no sign that existing commitments by Chinese companies in the US and elsewhere, or China’s purchases and holdings of financial products including US Treasuries, would be affected, the people said. It’s unclear what prompted the NDRC to halt the processing of applications or how long this suspension might last.

The NDRC and the Ministry of Commerce, both in charge of initial approvals for companies’ foreign investment, didn’t immediately reply to a request for comment. US equity futures dropped to session lows after the Bloomberg report. European stocks also extended their decline.

Summary:

Lawmakers are calling on the Social Security Administration chief to resign after internal emails revealed that the administration shut Maine off from the late-age insurance program in retaliation for publicly defying the MAGA agenda.

Representative Gerry Connolly called Tuesday for the resignation of Leland Dudek, the acting commissioner of social security. In a release, Connolly’s office shared emails sent by Dudek in which the DOGE acolyte inquired to his staff about which contracts Maine had with his agency and ultimately chose to cancel them, despite being aware that doing so would increase fraud and waste.

“Despite reinstating the contracts on March 7, 2025, and claiming that he did not intend to harm the people of Maine, the emails obtained by the Committee show that Acting Commissioner Dudek knew of the negative impacts of cancelling the programs and was willing to hurt the people of Maine and waste taxpayer money to avenge President Trump,” Connolly’s office wrote.

What the fucking fuck!?

Good to know

Link to text of bill

H.R. 2578: To require drug testing for special Government employees, and for other purposes.

Introduced on April 1, 2025

This bill is in the first stage of the legislative process. It was introduced into Congress on April 1, 2025. It will typically be considered by committee next before it is possibly sent on to the House or Senate as a whole.

Sponsor: Mikie Sherrill

Representative for New Jersey's 11th congressional district

Democrat

More detail from Axios:

A House Democrat is introducing long-shot legislation that would force billionaire Trump lieutenant Elon Musk and his staffers at DOGE to undergo routine drug testing, Axios has learned.

Why it matters: Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-N.J.) cited a Wall Street Journal report from 2024 that alleged Musk has used illegal drugs including LSD, cocaine, ecstasy, mushrooms and ketamine as the impetus for her bill.

• DOGE spokespeople did not respond to requests for comment.
• An attorney for Musk told the Journal that Musk is "regularly and randomly drug tested at SpaceX and has never failed a test."

Driving the news: Sherrill's bill, a copy of which was first obtained by Axios, would require special government employees to undergo a drug test before they begin work and enter into a random drug testing program.

• Anyone who tests positive for certain illegal drugs would be barred from federal service for at least a year.
• Citing Signalgate, Sherrill said it is "more important than ever to protect the American people from the Trump Administration's reckless incompetence and blatant disregard for national security."

Between the lines: Musk and many DOGE staffers have been designated as special government employees.

• The Justice Department defines a special government employee as "anyone who works, or is expected to work, for the government for 130 days or less in a 365-day period."
• The title is usually used for subject-matter experts who are brought on to assist with specific projects.

What they're saying: "Those with access to sensitive information must be thoroughly vetted, clear-eyed, and exercise good judgment," said Sherrill, a former Naval aviator running for New Jersey governor.

• She argued the special government employees at DOGE should "be held to the same standard as other executive branch employees."
• That includes "conflicts of interest or passing a drug test to maintain employment or a security clearance," she said.

Reality check: Sherrill's bill is highly unlikely to become law any time soon as Republicans control both chambers of Congress and the White House.

EDIT: updated with Axios article and link to text of bill

Nonprofit hospitals are building tax-exempt real estate empires — and working to crush politicians who stand in their way.

Summary

Elon Musk’s job approval dropped to 41%—his lowest since joining the Trump administration—according to a Marquette Law School poll.

His favorability fell to 38%, while 58% disapproved of his work leading DOGE.

The decline follows backlash over Musk’s political involvement, including his $22 million support of Brad Schimel, who lost Wisconsin’s Supreme Court race.

Musk’s alignment with controversial Trump policies, such as calls to annex Canada, has further eroded public support.