Author: craigcrawford

Trail Mix Host. Lapsed journalist, author & retired pundit happily promoting nothing but the truth for Social Security checks.

“I cannot believe he is a Russian agent…

“but he sure plays one on TV” — Tom Friedman

Trump revealed some spooky stuff yesterday in his Oval Office ambush of Zelensky. He seems to think he and Putin are in a buddy movie:

“Let me tell you, Putin went through a hell of a lot with me. He went through a phony witch hunt, where they used him and Russia. Russia, Russia, Russia, you ever hear of that deal? … It was a phony Democrat scam. He had to go through it. And he did go through it.”

He was even more wistful about Putin during a meeting with the UK prime minister: “I’ve known him for a long time now, we had to go through the Russian hoax together.”

Is that all there is to explain Trump’s affinity for Putin? He thinks they’re co-martyrs facing unfair attacks.

If so, then he really is Russia’s useful idiot.

Trump Recession Alert

  • Consumer confidence in Feb posted its biggest drop since 2021
  • Pending home sales dropped to the lowest level on record
  • Weekly jobless claims jumped 26%, much higher than expected
  • Egg prices hit an all-time high: $4.95 per dozen
  • S&P 500 and NASDAQ both entered negative territory for the year
  • S&P 500 has fallen 2.5% in the past month, NASDAQ down 4.1% in past month

Consumer Strike Today
USA TODAY: Consumers are planning a one-day economic blackout on Feb. 28. Here’s what to know.

The Constitutional Crisis Is Here

Donald Trump and Elon Musk have arrogated congressional power to themselves.

“The true urgent cause is to return that power to the legislature before the damage becomes irreversible.” — The Atlantic’s Jonathan Chait

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“Sometimes a constitutional crisis sneaks up on you, shrouded in darkness, revealing itself gradually. Other times it announces itself dramatically. Elon Musk, to whom Donald Trump has delegated the task of neutering the congressional spending authority laid out in Article I of the Constitution, could hardly be more obvious about his intentions if he rode into Washington on a horse trailed by Roman legions”.

This Is How Dictatorship Begins
DOJ Says Trump Administration Doesn’t Have to Follow Court Order Halting Funding Freeze — Democracy Docket

“The focus has to be on Republicans right now and why they have been completely and utterly silenced. I do not want all of the pressure to be on Democrats to figure this out when Republicans should care just as much about democracy as Democrats do.” — Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn.