Democrat Politics

President Donald Trump’s administration is ratcheting up its war with Harvard University, announcing Monday that the college will be cut off from federal funding until it caves to the president’s demands.

In a letter to Harvard, later posted online, Education Secretary Linda McMahon accused the university of making a “mockery” of higher education and told it to stop applying for federal grants—“since none will be provided.”

“Harvard will cease to be a publicly funded institution, and can instead operate as a privately funded institution, drawing on its colossal endowment, and raising money from its large base of wealthy alumni. You have an approximately $53 Billion head start,” McMahon wrote, in a post riddled with grammatical errors and the usual Trump-era use of random all caps for emphasis.

The three-page letter trotted out a familiar list of conservative grievances: claims of racism, plagiarism scandals, and attacks on university leadership. At one point, McMahon asked, “Where do many of these ‘students’ come from, who are they, how do they get into Harvard, or even into our country—and why is there so much HATE?”

She also accused the university of failing “its legal obligations, its ethical and fiduciary duties, its transparency responsibilities, and any semblance of academic rigor.”

Related | Harvard risks billions as university stands up to Trump

The letter is the Trump administration’s most aggressive move yet since Harvard sued the government over its decision to freeze billions in research funding after the school refused to comply with demands for intrusive federal oversight.

Education officials had previously framed the fight as being about antisemitism on campus. But the administration’s demands went far beyond that: appointing an outside overseer to monitor “viewpoint diversity,” banning masks, eliminating diversity programs, and requiring ideological vetting for international students. Harvard’s president warned in April that what the White House was asking for amounted to government control over the university’s “intellectual conditions.”

In a statement Monday night, a Harvard spokesperson said the administration was “doubling down on demands that would impose unprecedented and improper control over Harvard University and would have chilling implications for higher education.”

“Harvard will continue to comply with the law, promote and encourage respect for viewpoint diversity, and combat antisemitism in our community,” it continued. “Harvard will also continue to defend against illegal government overreach aimed at stifling research and innovation that make Americans safer and more secure.”

The pushback comes just days after Trump threatened to revoke Harvard’s tax-exempt status. Now, he’s going after its funding. The message is clear: Universities that don’t fall in line will get punished.

And even capitulation might not be enough. Columbia University learned that the hard way. After complying with the White House’s demands in hopes of regaining access to $400 million in federal grants, the money still hasn’t materialized.

Harvard isn’t alone. Since returning to the White House, Trump has led an aggressive campaign against the country’s elite universities, which he and his allies have long accused of pushing liberal ideology and marginalizing conservatives. Beyond Harvard, the administration has threatened to pull funding from other universities and opened investigations into scores of other schools, mostly elite institutions, as part of a broader purge of diversity, equity, and inclusion programs. 

But no university is more squarely in the administration’s crosshairs than Harvard.

And the fallout from this latest escalation could be massive. According to The New York Times, federally sponsored research made up 11% of Harvard’s revenue in fiscal year 2024. If that funding freeze sticks, the financial damage could be severe—and the political message even clearer.

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A cartoon by Clay Jones.

Related | Trump is losing elections all over the globe

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Rachel Maddow has a “special message” for media and political commentators who still call President Donald Trump a “populist.”

During her Monday night show, Maddow squashed the misconception that Trump is some kind of hero for working Americans, citing his weekend remarks on “Meet the Press” about how kids “don’t need to have 30 dolls. They can have three. They don’t need to have 250 pencils. They can have five.”

“The President has recently mused publicly that he does not care if the price of cars goes up. He does not care if we have a recession. He does not care if small businesses want relief from the tariffs. He does not care if strollers cost more,” Maddow said.

And while Trump is coming for the wallets of everyday Americans, Maddow also pointed out the White House’s decision to resume student loan collections this week, highlighting how little Trump cares about most people.

“Ever had a collections agency come after you? Remind me, please, what populism is. Somehow three dolls, five pencils, and a pounding on the door from the collections agency is not how I imagined it,” she said.

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Trump’s economic chaos is draining consumer confidence and straining household budgets. Millions are facing bills they can’t pay, plummeting credit, shrinking wages, and financial ruin. 

That’s Trump populism for you!

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President Donald Trump’s pick to serve as the top federal prosecutor in Washington, D.C., looks poised to fail after a key GOP senator grew a pair and said he won’t vote to confirm the nominee.

Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina said Tuesday he would not advance acting U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Ed Martin’s nomination through the Senate Judiciary Committee, a move that would likely keep Martin’s nomination from even making it to the Senate floor for a full vote. 

“I’ve indicated to the White House I wouldn’t support his nomination,” Tillis told reporters on Capitol Hill.

Of Martin’s numerous flaws as a candidate, he sympathizes with Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol insurrectionists—because he was at the riot himself.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters that Tillis’ opposition is likely the end for Martin, whose interim position expires on May 20.

Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina

“Obviously we would cross the bridge if and when we came to it, but it sounds like he’s got problems at the committee,” Thune told reporters.

Even if Martin managed to advance, it’s unlikely that he’d earn a majority of support from other Republican senators. Multiple GOP senators have expressed concerns with Martin’s past conduct.

Martin is an election denier who, in his current role, has helped to weaponize the Department of Justice against Trump’s perceived enemies with threats to investigate Democratic lawmakers, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and California Rep. Robert Garcia, because of comments they made about co-President Elon Musk.

At the same time, Martin has protected Trump supporters accused of breaking the law, including a GOP lawmaker whom a woman accused of assault.

Martin—who previously served as the chair of the Missouri Republican Party—has also been accused of verbally attacking judges and threatening students. Martin also likened former President Joe Biden to Adolf Hitler. At the same time, Martin has embraced Timothy Hale-Cusanelli, a Jan. 6 insurrectionist who is an overt antisemite and posted a photo of himself donning a Hitler mustache. Martin called Hale-Cusanelli an “amazing guy” and “great friend.”

Trump wanted Republicans to confirm Martin, bizarrely claiming in a Monday night social media post that he needs Martin to serve in the position in order to enact the “Make America Healthy Again” agenda of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Trump wrote:

According to many but, in particular, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., his approval is IMPERATIVE in terms of doing all that has to be done to SAVE LIVES and to, MAKE AMERICA HEALTHY AGAIN. This is a passion for Ed, more so than for almost anyone that I have seen. One of the reasons that I was so successful in winning the 2024 Presidential Election is my commitment to Health, and helping to Make America Healthy. The Cost of the Chronic Disease Epidemic has gotten out of control over the past four years of the Biden Presidency. We are going to take our Country BACK, and FAST. Ed Martin will be a big player in doing so and, I hope, that the Republican Senators will make a commitment to his approval, which is now before them. Ed is coming up on the deadline for Voting and, if approved, HE WILL NOT LET YOU DOWN.

But that message didn’t cut it for Tillis, who said Martin’s Jan. 6 past was a bridge too far.

“If Mr. Martin were being put forth as a U.S. attorney for any district except the district where Jan. 6 happened, the protest happened, I’d probably support him. But not in this district,” Tillis told reporters.

As the saying goes, a broken clock is right twice a day.

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A new report on Tuesday says that President Donald Trump was out of the loop as his own Defense Department made a major decision affecting the security of Ukraine.

Shortly after Trump took office, his administration ordered that arms shipments to the embattled nation be paused. Ukraine has been reliant on arms from the United States to defend its people after Russia invaded in early 2022. The shipments were eventually resumed.

Reuters now reports that Trump had no idea that this major policy was being issued, even though he is the leader of the country and head of the military.

Citing three sources close to the White House, Reuters says that Trump was unaware of the order made by Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. Other top national security officials who were in a meeting where an aid cutoff was discussed but not ordered were also reportedly unaware of Hegseth’s order.

“Negotiating an end to the Russia-Ukraine War has been a complex and fluid situation. We are not going to detail every conversation among top administration officials throughout the process,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said to Reuters. The White House told the outlet the Hegseth order was in line with Trump’s directives, but it did not explain why the major move was made outside of the typical decision-making process.

The decision cost U.S. Transportation Command—the agency tasked with transporting the material to Ukraine—$2.2 million, according to records that Reuters saw. The agency now claims the cost was $1.6 million.

The pause came while Ukraine has been intensely fending off Russian aggression in a conflict that has killed thousands. Trump, who has benefitted from Russian interference in American elections, frequently comes down on Russia’s side in disputes and often makes excuses for Russian leader Vladimir Putin’s authoritarian actions.

Assessing the report, retired Marine and defense expert Mark Cancian told The New Republic, “This is consistent with the administration’s policy to move fast, break things, and sort it out later.”

The aid disruption also came shortly before Trump and Vice President JD Vance verbally ambushed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during an Oval Office meeting, demanding that he be more publicly grateful for U.S. help. In reality, Zelenskyy has long been effusive in his praise for American help during his nation’s crisis.

Trump’s lack of knowledge of this critical decision raises further questions about his mental capabilities in office. He has made confused public statements on critical issues. During a recent town hall, Trump was asked about Harvard University and then went off on a rant about Harlem, New York.

Trump has also said on several occasions that he is unaware of activities happening in his own administration. In March, when news first broke of the leaked military plans disclosed by senior officials to a journalist via the Signal app, Trump told reporters, “I don’t know anything about it.”

While Trump is apparently oblivious to his administration’s actions (something of which he has accused former President Joe Biden), Hegseth has been involved in various international incidents and scandal after scandal.

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A federal judge appointed by President Donald Trump ruled against the conservative nominee for a seat on North Carolina’s state Supreme Court, saying in a scathing decision that he lost the election that took place more than six months ago and that the liberal justice’s victory must be confirmed.

Conservative nominee Jefferson Griffin lost the November state Supreme Court election to liberal Justice Allison Riggs by 734 votes, but has been appealing his loss for months. 

Related | Republicans are trying to steal a seat on swing state’s top court

Griffin wanted the state board of elections to throw out 65,000 votes, arguing that those voters needed to show identification in order to have their ballots counted—even though no other candidate in North Carolina challenged the validity of those ballots.

The conservative state Supreme Court ultimately ruled that thousands of voters who either were serving in the military or lived abroad needed to “cure” their ballots and show their identification or else their votes would be thrown out.

But U.S. District Court Judge Richard Myers, who was appointed by Trump in 2019, said Griffin was improperly trying to change the rules of the election after it took place, that his challenge was bogus, and that Riggs’ victory must be certified.

Jefferson Griffin

“You establish the rules before the game. You don’t change them after the game is done,” Myers wrote. He added that, “Permitting parties to ‘upend the set rules’ of an election after the election has taken place can only produce ‘confusion and turmoil,’” which “threatens to undermine public confidence in the federal courts, state agencies, and the elections themselves.”

Even some Republicans in the state had been criticizing Griffin’s effort to overturn his loss, including Pat McCrory, the last Republican governor of the state.

“Months after election day, Republicans in Raleigh are still spinning,” McCrory said in an April 23 message he delivered on a local PBS station. 

He continued, “The rules in this election were the same as in previous elections, approved by both Republicans and Democrats, and except for Jefferson not one other candidate in either party, winner or loser, this year or previous years, has asked for those overseas military votes not to be counted. Look, I’m a Republican. I supported Jefferson for Supreme Court. I wanted him to win. But spinning your way into a Supreme Court seat isn’t the way to do it. If you change the rules in this election after the election is over, then every election could be in doubt in the future.”

It’s unclear whether Griffin will appeal the ruling. A spokesperson for his campaign told local North Carolina reporter Bryan Anderson that they are “reviewing the order and evaluating next steps.”

But legal experts say even if he did challenge the decision, he was unlikely to win.

“The idea of retroactively changing the rules for which ballots should count—and applying those retroactive rules just selectively in places where the challenging candidate expects to gain relative votes—sure is unconstitutional in any election system that values the rule of law,” Richard Hasen, a professor at UCLA School of Law, wrote in a post on the Election Law Blog. “The only surprise (and disappointment) here is that the North Carolina Supreme Court was willing to bless this attempted election subversion.”

Riggs, for her part, declared victory—again—and said Griffin needs to hang it up.

“Today, we won. I’m proud to continue upholding the Constitution and the rule of law as North Carolina’s Supreme Court Justice,” Riggs said in a statement.

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Catholic cardinals are preparing to begin a conclave on May 7 to choose a successor to the late Pope Francis. But unfortunately for them—and for Catholics around the world—President Donald Trump has once again inserted himself into the conversation. 

On May 2, both Trump and the official White House social media accounts shared an AI-generated picture depicting Trump as the pope.

“It’s sad both for the White House and for the president. I mean, he makes themselves ridiculous, right?” Cardinal Anders Arborelius, bishop of Stockholm, told the Washington Post.

Even closer to home, cardinals are not pleased with Trump’s move.

“You know, it wasn’t good,” New York Archbishop Timothy Dolan said.

And some are even demanding that Trump apologize for his insensitivity. 

“This is deeply offensive to Catholics especially during this sacred time that we are still mourning the death of Pope Francis and praying for the guidance of the Holy Spirit for the election of our new Pope. He owes an apology,” Thomas Paprocki, bishop of Springfield, Illinois, wrote on X.

But, of course, Trump doesn’t seem like he’ll be taking accountability any time soon.

“You don’t mean the Catholics. You mean the fake news media?” Trump said when asked about the image. “I had nothing to do with it. Somebody made up a picture of me dressed like the pope, and they put it out on the internet. That’s not me that did it.”

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Trump’s computer-generated papal fantasy began earlier in the week when he told reporters that he would “like to be pope.” 

Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina voiced support for Trump’s supposed shot at becoming the next pope. 

“I was excited to hear that President Trump is open to the idea of being the next Pope. This would truly be a dark horse candidate, but I would ask the papal conclave and Catholic faithful to keep an open mind about this possibility!” he wrote on X.

It remains unclear if Graham meant that figuratively or if he was invoking one of the four horsemen of the apocalypse from the Bible’s Book of Revelation. Either way, it was an interesting sentiment from a man who once called Trump a “religious bigot.”

Similarly, Republican Sen, Mike Lee of Utah, who is a Mormon, shared the fake image on X. 

“What would Trump’s papal name be?” he inquired.

Even Vice President JD Vance joined in on the tasteless narcissism. 

A supposed Catholic, Vance’s version of Catholicism seems to lean more eugenic and natalist than reverent. He mused on X that Secretary of State Marco Rubio, another Catholic with a penchant for moral inconsistency, could be the next pope.

“I think [Rubio] could take on a bit more. If only there was a job opening for a devout Catholic…” he wrote.

Meanwhile, a survey conducted by YouGov on Monday found that 71% of respondents think that Trump’s AI-generated photo as the pope is inappropriate. Only 12% of respondents said it’s appropriate, and 17% said they are unsure.

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Trump’s spirituality has been, at best, laughable. But more often than not, it’s just plain unwelcome.

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After weeks of Republican hand-wringing over who might take on Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff in Georgia, the party just lost its best shot. 

On Monday, Republican Gov. Brian Kemp announced that he won’t be running for the seat in 2026, dealing a major blow to GOP operatives who were hoping he could flip one of the most vulnerable Democratic-held seats.

“I have decided that being on the ballot next year is not the right decision for me and my family,” Kemp wrote on X. 

Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff of Georgia

He added that he spoke with President Donald Trump and Senate leadership and pledged to help elect a “strong Republican nominee” who would “put hardworking Georgians first.” 

“I am confident we will be united in that important effort, and I look forward to electing the next generation of leaders up and down the ballot here in the Peach State who will keep our state and nation headed in the right direction in 2026 and beyond,” Kemp wrote.

That’s a nice sentiment, but the loss is real. And in Georgia, the reaction was swift. 

“Not necessarily the news we wanted to hear,” former Cobb County GOP Chair Jason Shepherd told Politico, summing up Republicans’ disappointment.

Kemp was by far the GOP’s strongest potential contender and the clearest threat to Ossoff, who has built a fundraising juggernaut. The Democratic incumbent raked in $11 million in the first quarter of 2025 alone, a staggering sum that his team says is the largest ever first-quarter haul for an incumbent senator during an off year.

Related | Georgia senator announces record-breaking haul as GOP pushes attack ads

But Kemp wouldn’t just have had to contend with Ossoff’s war chest. Running statewide as a Republican in 2026 will be tough. Trump’s approval ratings are dragging, and his policy agenda is already shaping up to be a political liability in key battlegrounds like Georgia. Kemp likely saw that and wisely bowed out, leaving someone else to take the hit.

This isn’t just a loss; it’s a warning sign. Even in a cycle where the Senate map should tilt toward the GOP, Georgia is far from a gimme. Despite both Senate Majority Leader John Thune and National Republican Senatorial Committee Chair Tim Scott personally trying to recruit Kemp, he still turned it down.

Ossoff isn’t guaranteed to win reelection, but the GOP now faces a familiar dilemma: finding a candidate who can survive a MAGA-fueled primary and still win a general election.

Republican Gov. Brian Kemp of Georgia

Kemp’s decision could trigger a crowded and messy primary. Trump loyalist Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene hasn’t ruled out a run, though early polling suggests that she’d struggle statewide. But that hasn’t stopped her from stoking speculation. 

“I have a lot of options open,” she told NBC News last week, though she was vague on whether she’s actively making calls or just basking in the buzz.

Other names are floating around, including Reps. Buddy Carter, Mike Collins, and Rich McCormick, but none of them have Kemp’s statewide profile and infrastructure. 

Georgia is a top GOP target in 2026, as one of just two Senate seats Democrats are defending in states that Trump won in 2024. But Kemp’s decision speaks volumes. He didn’t want to run in a midterm year where Republicans will have to answer for Trump’s chaos—and probably kiss the ring.

That was never going to be a good fit. In 2024, Trump publicly called Kemp “Little Brian Kemp” and slammed his wife for not backing his reelection. Kemp fired back, telling Trump to “leave my family out of it.” Things may have since thawed, but no one expects Kemp to grovel for Trump’s approval.

Which means that Kemp’s out. Ossoff is loaded. And Republicans are back to square one.

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A cartoon by Pedro Molina.

Related | Trump proves that he has no idea what the Constitution is—again

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Congressional Republicans have reportedly settled on the name of their legislation that will slash Medicaid benefits in order to pay for President Donald Trump’s tax cuts that overwhelmingly benefit the richest Americans.

According to Punchbowl News, the bill will be called the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, a play on Trump’s demand that Republicans put all of his policy proposals into “ONE BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL.”

Punchbowl reported that Republicans had been toying with calling the legislation the Renewing the American Dream Act. That was a ridiculous name too, of course, as the bill would cut things like Medicaid, food stamps, and grants for low-income students to attend college—all things that help poorer Americans stay healthy and obtain better-paying jobs, and actually achieve the American dream.

But Trump didn’t like that name, according to Punchbowl. And since Republicans do whatever Dear Leader demands, they changed up the plans.

President Donald Trump

The name of a bill seems like a silly thing to care about. But the name is important for how a party can sell legislation to the public.

For example, Democrats called then-President Joe Biden’s signature piece of legislation the Inflation Reduction Act, an effort to message around a key issue at the time of lowering inflation.

But “One Big Beautiful Bill” is a terrible name that has no meaning to anyone but Trump and his Make America Great Again cultists. 

And since the name is just a nod to the fact that Trump demanded Republicans come up with “one big beautiful bill” to capture all his unpopular policy priorities—like cutting taxes for the rich and giving him funds for his evil deportation plans—Democrats can remind voters that Republicans just cave to whatever their unpopular leader wants.

Democrats are already mocking the GOP for the apparent name of the legislation—which House Republicans are trying to pass before the Fourth of July but are having trouble agreeing on just how deep their cuts to critical social safety net programs should be.

Maddie McComb, a spokesperson for Democratic Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware, renamed the bill “One Big Billionaire Bailout.”

And Democratic strategist Jesse Ferguson mocked it as “One Bank-Breaking Bill”—a nod to the fact that the legislation would explode the deficit.

Even House Speaker Mike Johnson doesn’t seem too thrilled about the name, telling a group of anti-abortion zealots last week, “Don’t judge me if I have to name it that, because that is what [Trump] wants me to do.”

How embarrassing. 

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