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Justin Glawe: Crime is down. But Trump’s authoritarian power grabs are escalating.<\/a><\/h2>\nRandom street crimes are being used as pretexts for repression.<\/p>\n
The White House has seized on two unrelated incidents of street crime as a pretext for a federal government power grab at a time when violent crime has in fact dropped across the country.<\/p>\n
The attempted carjacking of Edward \u201cBig Balls\u201d Coristine in Washington DC and a street brawl in Cincinnati are the latest cause c\u00e9lebr\u00e8<\/em> on the American right, which has long supported Donald Trump\u2019s plans for military and law enforcement crackdowns in largely Democratic cities. Both incidents are being used as anecdotal evidence of out-of-control crime across the country \u2014 a narrative that is necessary for Trump and Republicans to maintain their grip of fear on their MAGA base.<\/p>\nAnd it\u2019s worked: a Gallup poll in October found that 64 percent of Americans<\/a> believed crime had gone up in 2024, but new data from the FBI shows that is not the case. In fact, 2024 saw the lowest levels of violent crime since 1969<\/a>, with violent crime down 4.5 percent across the country, including a 14.9 percent drop in murders.
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\n(Justin Glawe more…)<\/a><\/p>\nLAWdork: Trump takes on D.C., sort of, in a rambling news conference full of lies<\/a><\/h2>\nIt’s bad. But there are limits to the steps Trump actually took on Monday \u2014 and reasons why he could take these steps \u2014 that are worth noting.
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<\/p>\nmany more DC citations at bottom<\/em><\/h2>\n<\/center><\/p>\n
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Heather Cox Richardson: Letters from an American – August 11, 2025<\/a><\/h2>\n…
\nIf that was Trump\u2019s big announcement, the big story seems to have been something different.<\/p>\n
Trump\u2019s performance at the press conference\u2014an event for which his handlers would have made sure he was at the top of his game\u2014made it clear that his mental deterioration is moving rapidly. He let Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Attorney General Pam Bondi, and FBI director Kash Patel explain the actual plan, taking the microphone himself to describe a fake world in which he plays the role of hero, solving five wars, creating a booming economy, solving the border security others couldn\u2019t, protecting Americans from a hellscape that exists only in his rhetoric.<\/p>\n
The administration\u2019s seizure of power is anything but imaginary. As Stengel noted, \u201cThroughout history, autocrats use a false pretext to impose government control over local law enforcement as a prelude to a more national takeover. That\u2019s far more dangerous than the situation he says he is fixing.\u201d …
\n(Heather Cox Richardson more…)<\/a><\/p>\n
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James Eagle: Trump’s Gold Bar Fiasco<\/a><\/h2>\n…
\nWhen a Swiss refiner asked US Customs whether kilogram gold bars would be exempt from Trump’s 39% Swiss tariffs, they got an answer so idiotic it sent shockwaves through global markets. Because Swiss gold bars have serial numbers stamped on them, Customs ruled they’re “too processed” to qualify for exemption.<\/p>\n
Gold futures on COMEX in New York immediately spiked $100 above London prices. Swiss refineries halted US shipments. Banks faced billions in potential losses. The White House, caught completely off guard, desperately promised an executive order to override their own agency while calling the ruling “misinformation.”<\/p>\n
The somewhat farcical response suggests that the misinformation was provided by the US government. Otherwise, why else would the market react so vehemently?
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\n(James Eagle more…)<\/a><\/p>\n
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Conversation: How RFK Jr is systematically undermining vaccines around the world<\/a><\/h2>\n
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And it\u2019s worked: a Gallup poll in October found that 64 percent of Americans<\/a> believed crime had gone up in 2024, but new data from the FBI shows that is not the case. In fact, 2024 saw the lowest levels of violent crime since 1969<\/a>, with violent crime down 4.5 percent across the country, including a 14.9 percent drop in murders. It’s bad. But there are limits to the steps Trump actually took on Monday \u2014 and reasons why he could take these steps \u2014 that are worth noting. <\/center><\/p>\n … Trump\u2019s performance at the press conference\u2014an event for which his handlers would have made sure he was at the top of his game\u2014made it clear that his mental deterioration is moving rapidly. He let Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Attorney General Pam Bondi, and FBI director Kash Patel explain the actual plan, taking the microphone himself to describe a fake world in which he plays the role of hero, solving five wars, creating a booming economy, solving the border security others couldn\u2019t, protecting Americans from a hellscape that exists only in his rhetoric.<\/p>\n The administration\u2019s seizure of power is anything but imaginary. As Stengel noted, \u201cThroughout history, autocrats use a false pretext to impose government control over local law enforcement as a prelude to a more national takeover. That\u2019s far more dangerous than the situation he says he is fixing.\u201d … … Gold futures on COMEX in New York immediately spiked $100 above London prices. Swiss refineries halted US shipments. Banks faced billions in potential losses. The White House, caught completely off guard, desperately promised an executive order to override their own agency while calling the ruling “misinformation.”<\/p>\n The somewhat farcical response suggests that the misinformation was provided by the US government. Otherwise, why else would the market react so vehemently?
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\n(Justin Glawe more…)<\/a><\/p>\nLAWdork: Trump takes on D.C., sort of, in a rambling news conference full of lies<\/a><\/h2>\n
\nmany more DC citations at bottom<\/em><\/h2>\n
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Heather Cox Richardson: Letters from an American – August 11, 2025<\/a><\/h2>\n
\nIf that was Trump\u2019s big announcement, the big story seems to have been something different.<\/p>\n
\n(Heather Cox Richardson more…)<\/a><\/p>\n
\nJames Eagle: Trump’s Gold Bar Fiasco<\/a><\/h2>\n
\nWhen a Swiss refiner asked US Customs whether kilogram gold bars would be exempt from Trump’s 39% Swiss tariffs, they got an answer so idiotic it sent shockwaves through global markets. Because Swiss gold bars have serial numbers stamped on them, Customs ruled they’re “too processed” to qualify for exemption.<\/p>\n
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\n(James Eagle more…)<\/a><\/p>\n
\nConversation: How RFK Jr is systematically undermining vaccines around the world<\/a><\/h2>\n
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