Morning Crescent

An idea:

“This soil and the air space extending above it shall not be a part of any nation and shall not be subject to any entity’s jurisdiction.”

It's much easier to do a genocide if nobody sees it happen

Barely an hour ago, Palestinian journalist Anas Al-Sharif warned us all: “If this madness doesn’t end, Gaza will be reduced to ruins, its people’s voices silenced, their faces erased — and history will remember you as silent witnesses to a genocide you chose not to stop.” Israel just killed him.

Are we still talking about J̷e̷f̷f̷r̷e̷y̷ ̷E̷p̷s̷t̷e̷i̷n̷ the fact that the president of the United States is a serial (and adjudicated) sexual abuser?

IF YOU ARE IN ONE OF THESE DISTRICTS PLEASE MAKE A CALL RIGHT NOW DOES NOT MATTER IF YOUR VOICE SHAKES CALL AND SAY YOU OPPOSE BBB Scripts here: 5calls.org

Ogles: "I had a Democratic member of Congress come up to me on the House floor yesterday. And he said, 'This is officially where I'd say you're a horrible human being for targeting Zohran, but the reality is we as Dems hope you're successful b/c he's the worst thing that ever happened to our party'"

A contender for the most “Show me your budget and I’ll tell you who you are” bills in modern history. An act of breathtaking moral monstrosity and nearly unprecedented self-sabotage for the country.

Once again from my brilliant and talented (and anonymous) colleague, some dramatic moments from today's hearing:

It's 2p here in Boston, and we're back on the record in the NIH grant terminations case. It's possible Judge Young could issue some sort of ruling here in the next few minutes, or he could provide more context for case management going forward. Stay tuned.

"I believe we are in crisis. The distance between what is said and what is known to be true has become an abyss. Of all the things at risk, the loss of an objective reality is perhaps the most dangerous. The death of truth is the ultimate victory of evil. ... 1/2

I think we’ve found the new GOP motto:

Over Utah (somewhere)

Walkabout Berkeley Hills

Those lies are now predicated on “reports” from the last two years of Congressional investigations.

Crimes in broad daylight. Trump and his friends are getting rich off this chaos. Market manipulation doesn’t even begin to describe this.

Trump has signed an executive order targeting Susman Godfrey, the law firm that helped Dominion Voting Systems obtain its $787 million settlement from Fox for the network's 2020 election lies.

“Mommy, no. Mommy.” Daughter captures the moment masked ICE agents smash the window of her mother's car in order to take her into custody. The government claims the 52-year old seamstress is an associate of the MS-13 gang. www.thebaltimorebanner.com/community/lo...

> @jamellebouie.net today: www.nytimes.com/2025/04/09/o...

Easy to forget as Bessent looks helpless amid the growing economic carnage that he's also in charge of the IRS. He's in way over his head

There was an episode of Star Trek:TNG where holodeck character Moriarty has some “control stick” such that when angry Moriarty randomly yanks that one lever, the entire ship shakes and lurches and is threatening to blow up. Hm. I don’t know what I’m thinking of that right now.

Even the Onion in their new “Dark” theme, isn’t this dark. #NotTheOnion

SpaceX just landed a $5.92B contract with the Pentagon for Space Force rocket launches — the largest contract among the three firms who secured deals to send satellites into orbit. While DOGE cuts essential services for you, Musk is getting a taxpayer-funded windfall. Hello?

"We can be realistic about how dark things have gotten and retain the hope necessary to fight what could well be a long, even generational struggle to reclaim American democracy." Unsettling overview of how off the rails everything has gotten:

Lawlessness is intentionally removing prisoners from the US courts' jurisdiction so you have no accountability when you deprive them of their rights and do other awful things to them. The thing you monsters forgot: The courts still have jurisdiction over YOU for doing that.

It’s time to ban members of Congress from trading stocks. I stopped trading individual stocks when I first ran for Congress because I wanted people to know I’m working for them, not to turn a profit.

Judge Howell’s actions in the USIP hearings have been confounding and disgusting. I can’t imagine what she’s thinking.

Trump's mouthpiece essentially says it's okay for him to ignore a judge's order because he's in charge.

NEW: Another Skadden attorney has resigned in protest, citing the law firm’s decision to strike a deal with Trump. “Skadden is on the wrong side of history. I could no longer stay knowing that someday I would have to explain why I stayed,” the lawyer, Thomas Sipp, wrote in his resignation letter.

BREAKING: More journalists have died in Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023 than in both World Wars and other major wars, combined. Our new report outlines the costs of war to journalists – and the journalism we all rely on. [THREAD, 1/8] watson.brown.edu/costsofwar/p...

Michigan people, if you know more about this please reach out. DMs are open, my email is Jay at ballsandstrikes dot org. Glad to keep you anonymous.

The leak, which sent a variety of international groups and nonprofits scrambling to assess damage and protect workers operating under repressive regimes, came after the organizations had pressed the Trump admin to keep the sensitive information private and received assurances it would remain secret.

One lesson I've learned from history, is that few reputations survive being on the opposite side to the Quakers www.quaker.org.uk/news-and-eve...

ICE, history is not on your side

Global Day of Action, Tesla Takedown Ann Arbor, MI Saturday, March 29th, 2025 #tesla #teslastock #teslatakeover #resist #resistance

He fired the black chairman of the joint chiefs for being woke and hired his brother.

Look in the mirror (as I'm suire you do often, Gavin). You have made yourself toxic. Your suit isn't empty; it's filled with a Fetterman. California Governor Newsom Says the Democratic Brand Is ‘Toxic’ www.nytimes.com/2025/03/29/u...

🎙️Interview: #Trump's 'sustained campaign of attacks on US #universities and #science will take years to recover from’ and the impact will be ‘devastating’ primarily for the USA but also for #GlobalHealth Professor @martinmckee.bsky.social of @lshtm.bsky.social www.france24.com/en/video/202...

For years conservatives and some liberals complained incessantly about ‘cancel culture’ and the lack of ‘free speech’ on campuses. None of that stuff comes even close to what the right is now doing in power, in terms of the open bullying and pressuring of colleges and censoring of curricula.

Penalties for foreign students who write critical op-eds: high. Penalties for top government officials who chat about secret attack plans on Signal: low.

America isn't a free country anymore. 😡 Disney is being investigated for DEI practices. Here in America, you get investigated for supporting equal rights in the workplace.

“Asked whether she believes other professors might be encouraged to leave the United States, Shore wrote that she believes many of her colleagues will consider relocating due to the current political climate, which she deemed an ‘American descent into fascism.’”

The Constitution gives Congress the authority to set tariffs, declare wars, approve emoluments for presidents. Etc.

1/ On April 5, there are nationwide protests happening literally everywhere in the US. Find more details here: handsoff2025.com

This is how it's done. A strong and principled response by WilmerHale to the illegal Executive Order attack - a form of attempted government intimidation declared unconstitutional by a federal judge. This is how to guard the rule of law.

Sorry to see @UMich close its DEI office. @UMich complies with all laws prohibiting demographic preferences. Promoting DEI instead means welcoming the exchange of all viewpoints. But rather than blame the victim, I blame the White House for its heavy-handed directives to dictate academic values.