Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse; The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, And 1 million Epstein files appeared from thin air

CBS furiously trying to take down the 60 Minutes segment about human rights abuses at the El Salvadoran prison that Bari Weiss spiked

“The Free Press”

Elon Musk is currently worth $648 billion, according to Bloomberg. To put that in perspective, if Musk spent $1 MILLION EVERY DAY, it would take him 1,774 YEARS TO SPEND $648 billion.

Rob Reiner leaves behind a rich political legacy that began long before Trump’s political career. Reiner redefined celebrity political advocacy, not only lending his voice to important causes but also implementing strategies that brought change.

1. Measles is ravaging South Carolina. Over 100 people infected, and hundreds more in quarantine. In response, RFK Jr., the nation's top public health official, has been SILENT But it's much worse than that. RFK Jr. and his allies are undermining confidence in the vaccine

At 2 PM Eastern today, I'll be speaking LIVE with John Harwood about corporate media capitulation to the Trump administration. Join us! open.substack.com/live-stream/...

1. The AI industry has kicked off a $100 million+ scheme to influence the 2026 midterm elections While they claim it's a "bipartisan" effort, it has all the markings of a campaign to benefit Trump and the GOP Let's review

Actually, Saudi Arabia is covering Kushner's travel expenses

1. Paramount's hostile takeover bid for Warner Bros. Discovery exposes Jared Kushner's game Kushner is not running a private equity fund. He's running an influence peddling operation. It's spelled out on page 42 of Paramount's new SEC filing

1. CNN and CNBC recently announced partnerships with Kalshi, a prediction market that lets you place bets on the news. Now, every story is a casino game. Although Kalshi's popularity has exploded, it remains relatively small and vulnerable to political manipulation.

Pretty much every article about the Putin-Kushner-Witkoff summit in Moscow yesterday fails to mention that Kushner is simultaneously accepting tens of millions in annual payments from the Saudis and other foreign governments. Seems like a key detail!

1. Jared Kushner's trip to Moscow yesterday was not just unethical; it was illegal. You cannot accept tens of millions of dollars from foreign governments and simultaneously conduct high-level diplomacy for the federal government. It says it right in the Constitution.

As Jared Kushner prepares to meet with Putin today on behalf of Trump, REMEMBER: After taking billions from the Saudis and other foreign governments, Kushner explicitly said he would not have a foreign policy role in this administration. popular.info/p/jared-kush...

1. Steve Witkoff, Trump's top negotiator for a peace deal in Ukraine, has an active financial partnership with Len Blavatnik, a billionaire sanctioned by the Ukrainian government. Witkoff and Blavatnik are co-developing ultra-luxury condos in NYC, a Popular Information investigation reveals.

1. In Tennessee, public libraries have closed for up to a week to facilitate a Trump-inspired book purge. Tennessee Secretary of State Tre Hargett (R) has ordered most of the state's public librarians to remove children's books with LGBTQ characters or themes.

1. EXCLUSIVE Musk’s xAI has secretly built its AI supercomputer, Collusus, using Chinese-made transformers, a security risk that leaves it vulnerable to espionage or sabotage The use of Chinese components was previously unreported Collusus performs sensitive work for the U.S. military

Pretty remarkable that Trump has installed someone on the Saudi dole — Jared Kushner collects millions in fees from the Saudis every year — in a key role for America's most sensitive and consequential foreign policy negotiations (Gaza, Ukraine), and it is largely TREATED AS A NON-STORY

ICE detainees did not sext with RFK Jr but still deserve your attention

1. An abrupt decision by the Trump administration on October 3 left thousands of ICE detainees without access to vital medical care — a crisis that is ongoing — according to previously unreported ICE documents obtained by Popular Information. Follow this thread for details. 🧵

1. Trump is in the process of sending millions in taxpayer money directly to his political allies — and himself. The money purportedly is to settle legal claims. But these claims are extraordinarily weak and have little to no chance of success. In reality, it is a brazen theft.

In an email to customers, Rocket Money has confirmed that they stopped advertising on the Tucker Carlson show following his interview with Nick Fuentes and are working “to ensure our partnerships reflect our values.” popular.info/p/update-roc...

BREAKING: Following Tucker Carlson's friendly interview with white nationalist Nick Fuentes, Rocket Money has ended its sponsorship of Carlson's podcast. 🧵

If you work for Rocket Money, I'd like to speak with you confidentially today. Please contact me on Signal at juddlegum.47

1. Tucker Carlson is mainstreaming white supremacy, hosting Nick Fuentes — a white nationalist who praises Hitler — for a fawning 2-hour interview These companies are sponsoring Carlson's show: Rocket Money Eight Sleep Beam

If Musk meets all the benchmarks of his new $1 trillion pay package from Tesla he will be paid $274 MILLION EVERY DAY FOR THE NEXT 10 YEARS This is his part-time job

Tucker Carlson is extremely normal

1. JD Vance dismissed Tuesday's election as “a couple of elections in blue states.” But there were significant contests around the country, including in purple and red states. From coast to coast, voters rejected the MAGA agenda. Let's review. 🧵 popular.info/p/six-electi...

Private prison industry is booming.

1. On September 23, Adelita Grijalva won a special Congressional election in Arizona, collecting 69% of the vote. 43 days later, Speaker Johnson has not sworn her in. The delay, 8 days longer than the previous record, has prevented Grijalva from forcing a vote to release the Epstein files.

1. On October 23, Trump pardoned CZ, the founder of Bianance. CZ had pled guilty to willfully violating anti-money laundering laws. His conduct, according ot the DOJ "allowed money to flow to terrorists, cybercriminals, and child abusers.” A week later, Trump is getting his payback.

After January 6, 2021, Amazon, Microsoft, Google, and Comcast publicly pledged to stop donating to politicians who sought to undermine the legitimate results of the 2020 presidential election. In 2025, these companies have stopped worrying about democracy and are buying Trump a ballroom.

1. Last week, there were 3 Trump corruption scandals in 4 days that would define any other presidency. Most people are probably not even AWARE of all three scandals. 🧵

This is America

1. Here are some facts about the guy, Timothy Mellon, who donated $130 million so Trump could pay the troops during the government shutdown. 🧵

1. The Trump administration quietly DOUBLED the bailout of Argentina from $20 BILLION to $40 BILLION Here is what is really happening

The New York Times describes Trump demanding his own Justice Department pay him $230 million as a "potential" ethical conflict.

Really appreciate you sharing this bit as the journalist who spent hours researching and analyzing the info it would be great if you could link back to the original work: popular.info/p/ice-boosts...

Probably fine. (From the invaluable @popular.info: popular.info/p/ice-boosts...)

1. USPS is like “handing a letter to a Black guy and hoping he takes it where it’s supposed to go” Hollywood stars perform "child sacrifices" “Did I say vaccines cause autism? Maybe” We spent a month in the manosphere

Along with the $20 billion U.S. taxpayer bailout to Argentina, the Trump admin announced another $20 billion for Argentina from private banks. But the banks won’t lend the money without a guarantee from the federal government. So it’s a $40B taxpayer bailout. www.wsj.com/finance/arge...

From @juddlegum.bsky.social’s newsletter this morning: “A Popular Information investigation reveals tens of millions in new ICE spending on guns, chemical weapons, and explosives.” popular.info/p/ice-boosts...

"Spending by ICE on guns and other weapons this year not only dwarfs spending during the Biden administration but also during Trump’s first term." @juddlegum.bsky.social @popular.info: popular.info/p/ice-boosts...

ICE increased weapons spending by 700% — including purchases of chemical weapons and guided missile warheads. ICE was always going to be Trump’s private military to deploy domestically against Americans. Pay attention.

1. ICE has sharply increased its spending on weapons in 2025, according to an analysis of federal gov't data by Popular Information. Records reveal ICE has increased spending on “small arms" — a category that includes guns, armor, chemical weapons, and explosives — by 700% compared to 2024 levels

Trump posted an AI video showing him DUMPING FECES on No Kings protesters. Here is how the media covered it: 1. NYT: Trump Posts Fake Video of Himself Flying a ‘King Trump’ Jet Over Protesters 2. Axios: Trump posts fake video in "KING TRUMP" jet as GOP dismisses No Kings marches

"I hear very few people are gonna be there" -- Donald Trump, 10/15/25

I’m old enough to remember when it was a scandal to say that a portion of your opponents were “deplorable.” This seems a lot worse?

1. In 2022, Jeff Bezos promised to give away the majority of his wealth during his lifetime. It is not going well. Since making the pledge, his net worth has almost doubled to $240 billion. Meanwhile, he has given less than $5 billion to charity.

1. Nations that have bestowed lavish gifts to President Trump — or enriched Trump and his family by striking business deals with Trump-connected companies — have later received extraordinary benefits from the Trump administration.