NEW: A California DA was prosecuting Stanford students for felonies over pro-Palestine protests. Bolts reported back in February that he was fundraising off these cases. Learning this, defense attorneys dug more, & filed a motion to force Rosen off the case for bias. A judge just removed him:

ProPublica used leaked tax returns to calculate that through complex tax avoidance schemes, Jeff Bezos pays a tax rate of 0.98% www.propublica.org/article/the-... So if we doubled the taxes he pays, that would mean he'd still be paying less than 2%.

watching vids making fun of 7th Heaven episodes, and it's absolutely wild how like 85% of the messaging on that show — which, when I was a kid, was what the weird Christian kids who weren't allowed to watch The Simpsons watched — would be seen as cringingly woke today

I think the reason I've been a little ambiently mad all day is because January 6th rioters are statistically the most likely group of pedophiles in the world and they clubbed a guy to death and they're going to be rich from the tax money that I give to the country I live in.

Jeff Bezos says raising his taxes won’t help. It’s a risk I’m willing to take. My column on taxing the rich and seeing how it shakes out: www.usatoday.com/story/opinio...

it’s because they don’t have a good answer for him taking money from chevron :(

Like, I just saw this over on Threads. This is supposed to be a "This you?" moment, but it doesn't make sense. Like... Yeah, he supports the candidate who supports the exact policy being discussed in his post. That's not hypocrisy. It'd be weird if he DIDN'T support the candidate he agrees with.

Like, I'll see Becerra supporters responding to Steyer supporters like, "You support taxing billionaires and yet you endorse a billionaire??? Hypocrite much!" without noting that the billionaire being discussed also wants to tax billionaires.

trump: *various noises* ideal democrat:

It appears not enough Republican senators are willing to support funding for Trump's vanity project.

Jeff Bezos slobbers bizarre praise on Trump www.dailykos.com/stories/2026...

Donald Trump won nationally by 1.5 points in 2024, but the median congressional seat was Trump+3.1. In 2026, the median will shift to Trump+5.2. By 2028, more GOP maps could shift it to Trump+8.5. But if Dems respond, 2028 could shift to just Trump+1.8, practically eliminating the GOP's advantage

Yup @atrupar.com bsky.app/profile/atru...

You realize that this slush fund shit is just going to encourage people to storm the Capitol again every time they lose, right?

It’s funny because it’s not true

Yesterday, Blanche refused to say Trump's $1.8 BILLION slush fund wouldn't be used to pay off convicted Jan 6 rioters & child molesters. I'm offering an amendment to prevent these criminals from getting a penny of your tax dollars. Will Republicans send your money to criminals & pedophiles?

When you lay it all out, it's VERY clear what Trump has in mind. And it demands immediate planning and action to stymie his extralegal plans. Things like removing GOP judges and justices, denying appropriations, regular impeachment demands... Hoping normal means will suffice is deranged.

Trump is putting no effort into becoming less unpopular but a TON into putting elements of a coup in place. Some of them may remain invisible, but the ones we can see point to his general approach: violent intimidation + corrupt judges + executive branch and congressional coconspirators + bribes.

I asked Gov Jared Polis (D) last Friday whether he will give clemency to other Colorado inmates who also don't show remorse or accountability for their crimes. This was his response:

Reposting with alt text

Boom. Vulnerable House GOPer says he's going to try to kill Trump's slush fund via a legislative option. This confirms what I argue below, that this is an impossible thing for vulnerable Rs to defend.

Also: Trump reaching "settlement" with IRS that could lavish millions on himself while paying off Jan 6ers shows how the political economy of MAGA fascism (h/t @lioneltrolling.bsky.social) really works. He persuades MAGA that his self-dealing is in their interests: newrepublic.com/article/2105...

Now that we know Trump's "settlement" with IRS will nix audits, potentially saving him millions, Jamie Raskin's push to force Repubicans to vote on this whole fiasco looks more urgent. Make Rs defend this with Trump 31 points underwater on the economy: newrepublic.com/article/2106...

50 years of knowing you and though all of it great love and respect. I hope you’re feeling the love today @janewiedlin.bsky.social Happy #Birthday…. Here’s to another trip around the sun 🎂🎂🎂🎂🎂🎂🎂🎂💕💕💕💕💕💕🎂🎂🎂🎂🎂🎂🎂photo by @hardandfastbook Melanie Nissen

In 2011, the year he was worth $18 billion, ProPublica reported that Bezos received a $4,000 tax credit for his children. He paid zero income taxes. Jeff Bezos should live in absolute terror of the public he has pillaged from.

Jeff Bezos paid $0.00 in income taxes in 2007 and 2011, years when his net worth was $4 billion and $18 billion respectively. Otherwise, he pays an income tax rate of about 1%. More people should know this! www.propublica.org/article/the-...

Why read past headlines: First of all, this opens with a hilarious story of a Trump suck-up beclowning himself. But then I get into the larger story of how Trump's narcissism and stupidity blind him to how his legacy will be one of failure. www.salon.com/2026/05/20/w...

Trump clearly imagines the White House ballroom will be an eternal tribute to his greatness. Instead, it's shaping up to be a perfect symbol of his failures. It's likely never to be finished. But even if it is, it will be hideous and stink of corruption. www.salon.com/2026/05/20/w...

This needed to be said, thank you! "...a moment in history when the supporting pillars of polite society are being ripped apart by a monstrous coalition of bigots, fascists, and software salesmen who want neither repercussions nor honest conversation about their historically terrible choices."

all this money flopping about and no money for science grants or bridge repair or health care or daycare or a living wage they should be more furious than they already are

Great post. Also, I think so much of the hatred comes from seeing MASSIVE investment of money, time, and physical resources in these shitty tools when it could have gone into people! The very young ppl being told to shut up and take it.

on my birthday I took to the newsletter to write about the AI commencement address backlash, and how growing anger at AI is now irreversibly tethered to justified rage at the extraction class -- whether AI boosters like it or not

Early in Trump's first term he invited a Russian "camera crew" into the Oval Office and shortly thereafter the whole room was gutted down to the studs and rebuilt for 'security' reasons. Now he's putting a public events center inside the WH perimeter, separated from everything else by Nothing, huh.

The whole premise of this "ballroom" is that you've got the nation's most secure military command center in the basement, and a top-security military drone installation on the roof, and between the two is an impossible-to-secure quasi-public space for foreign spies to have dance parties.

A man who was jailed for more than a month over his Facebook post about Charlie Kirk’s assassination has won an $835,000 settlement

the truth laying beneath both of these reasons is that taxing the rich is a matter of self-preservation

Exactly, people are far too busy attacking Wired’s editor claiming it’s her ego that’s the problem whilst also claiming he’s so big and important how can we expect him to keep track of everyone he talks to? Lord the gap is wide and the hypocrisy is loud.

Right?! This country has a real problem thinking that money should insulate you from the obligations of the social contract

My favorite thing about this clip is that Bezos looks 164 years old.

And therein lies the disconnect. Is news a “product” to be sold for profit like other commodities?

Between 250,000 and 300,000 Washington Post readers canceled their subscriptions in the immediate aftermath of Bezos's decision to slant their editorial coverage to favor Trump right before the 2024 election.

No one wants this.

Google is transforming Search from a list of links into an AI-powered experience filled with conversational answers, autonomous agents, and interactive interfaces — a shift that could further reduce traffic to publishers across the web.

If I were a zillionaire I wouldn’t debase myself flattering a corrupt idiot just to get some rocket subsidies.

Wut?

! Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) talking about this in today's Senate Judiciary Committee hearing. www.huffpost.com/entry/us-att...

Right? We pay property taxes on what is most Americans’ largest asset, our homes. We even pay on the unrealized capital appreciation of them. Why shouldn’t the wealthiest amongst us pay a similar tax?

We need to tax both assets and income.