MATT BERG
& CROOKED MEDIA

THURSDAY
APRIL 24, 2025

Vladimir, STOP!”

 
— Donald Trump, [yelling at Russian dictator Vladimir Putin]([link removed]) on social media like he’s a poorly trained puppy.

ANGER MISMANAGEMENT

Donald Trump’s lawless anti-immigration policy is costing him support. He’s only doubling down.

- President Donald Trump won reelection largely thanks to his polling strength on two key issues: the economy and immigration. But lately, both are becoming sore subjects for many voters. Americans are increasingly irate about his attempt to pilot the economy like a sugar-high child smashing every button in the cockpit ([as I wrote yesterday]([link removed])). Now, they’re getting fed up with his despotic anti-immigration policies, too. 

- Fresh polls show Trump has officially [lost the majority of Americans]([link removed]) on the issue of immigration. Half of Americans want Trump to bring back Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the Maryland father mistakenly deported to an [El Salvador mega-prison]([link removed]). (Go figure! Some people have decency!) Only 28 percent agree with Trump’s actions. 

- Trump blinked on the economy, in the face of weakening markets. But he hasn’t changed course on immigration. The latest: The Trump administration flew a Venezuelan construction worker from Philadelphia to Texas [for possible deportation]([link removed])… after a federal judge ordered that he cannot be removed from the country. This, of course, comes as Trump defies the Supreme Court’s order to facilitate the return of Abrego Garcia. Another judge today ruled that Trump’s team [must facilitate the return]([link removed]) of a second deported Venezuelan man. 

- Democrats fighting back are framing this as more than an immigration issue: “If Donald Trump chooses to defy the courts now and nothing happens, then he will be emboldened to keep doing so,” Rep. Yassamin Ansari (D-AZ) told What A Day. “I think that's why it's garnered even more concern from Americans than other issues.”

- Four Democratic lawmakers, including Ansari, visited El Salvador this week to advocate for Abrego Garcia and Andry Hernandez Romero, a gay makeup artist [who was also deported]([link removed]). They were denied a meeting with Abrego Garcia and told that no one has heard from Hernandez Romero since March 14. 

- “They're not making our border any safer. They're just creating chaos and fear, and I think that’s really devastating to human rights and to our reputation around the world,” Ansari said.

 
Trump’s immigration policies are getting harder for his MAGA minions to defend.

- After her trip to El Salvador, Ansari spoke with Fox News’ Laura Ingraham, an infamous MAGA apologist. The interview [devolved into chaos]([link removed]) after Ingraham called the visit a “political stunt,” and raised an unrelated case involving an immigrant charged with murdering his girlfriend. That’s the MAGA gameplan right now: Cherry-pick the worst allegations (proven or not) and avoid talking about due process, a constitutional right.

- “What we have seen from them is trying to completely distract and change the subject,” Ansari said. “They’ve gone on a full-fledged character assassination. It's their typical playbook, but I think it also shows that they know they're losing in the court of public opinion, in addition to the actual court.”

- Trump’s team was granted a slight reprieve in court last night, however: A federal judge overseeing Abrego Garcia’s case allowed the Trump administration a week-long pause to detail what steps it has taken to bring him back to the United States — if any. Abrego Garcia’s lawyers agree to the pause, which shows that both sides are trying to work something out, [legal experts say]([link removed]).

Meanwhile, Trump is still shitposting on social media: “THE DEMOCRATS ARE FIGHTING LIKE HELL TO KEEP MURDERERS … IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. THEY HAVE GONE CRAZY, AND ARE ONLY GETTING WORSE!!!” Are you sure Democrats are the ones who’ve gone crazy???

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WHAT ELSE?

[Donald Trump rebuked Russia for airstrikes that killed]([link removed]) nine people in Kyiv overnight. “Vladimir, STOP!” the president wrote on social media, addressing a nuclear-armed foreign dictator as if he were a rowdy goldendoodle. Meanwhile, the White House is [considering lifting sanctions]([link removed]) on Russian energy assets, in what I assume is Trump throwing Putin a treat for being a very good boy. 
 
[The Trump administration is weighing the removal of federal protections]([link removed]) from six national parks, to open them up for mining and drilling. Those parks include Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni-Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon, Ironwood Forest, Chuckwalla, Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks, Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante in Arizona, Utah, California and New Mexico. Well, a Big Oil executive is [literally remaking the Interior Department]([link removed]), so I expect an oil derrick on the South Lawn at this pace.  
 
[Trump asked the Supreme Court today to allow the Pentagon]([link removed]) to immediately ban transgender people from serving in the military. Two federal judges have already struck down the ban, saying that it's likely motivated by discrimination and not the military’s needs. 
 
[Trump rejected the idea of raising taxes on millionaires,]([link removed]) calling it “very disruptive.” This is awfully convenient, considering Trump [nominated over a dozen super-rich twerps]([link removed]) to powerful positions in his administration, after they contributed to his $239 million inauguration jackpot.
 
[Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had Signal, the encrypted messaging app,]([link removed]) installed on a desktop computer at the Pentagon, the Washington Post reports. Hegseth reportedly wanted to find a way to circumvent bad cellphone service in the building and communicate quickly with White House officials. Fun fact: Several Pentagon workers have lost their security clearances for [waaaaay less severe offenses]([link removed]) than Hegseth, who texted warplans to his wife. He’s a wife guy, can you blame him? (Yes!)
 
[Americans shouldn’t freak out about the Food and Drug Administration’s]([link removed]) temporary pause on testing milk for pathogens and other contaminants, according to health experts. “It’s an inconvenience,” one expert told the Post. “But ultimately, we’re a very highly regulated industry, and it’s going to continue to be very carefully regulated and monitored.” RFK Jr.s new motto: Got Paenibacillus bacteria?
 
[The Democratic National Committee is in turmoil after Vice Chair]([link removed]) David Hogg said he wants to raise millions of dollars to challenge Democrats through his own group, Leaders We Deserve. “No DNC officer should ever attempt to influence the outcome of a primary,” Chair Ken Martin told reporters today. 
 
[Trump is selling “Trump 2028” hats on his website.]([link removed]) God help us, the man is selling anti-constitutional, pro-dictatorship swag.

[Speaking of the lord, an Army pilot who sold LSD on the dark web hundreds of times]([link removed]) argued in court this week that he had a religious right to do so. “The Divine guidance and instruction he had received while communing with LSD” caused him to sell the hippie-tripping drug during the pandemic, he argued in legal papers. 

OUR CONTENT RUNNETH OVER
 
The Trump crowd has found a new American institution to haze: universities.
 
Under the guise of “fighting antisemitism” and gutting DEI, the right is threatening campus funding, calling in immigration authorities, and turning academic freedom into a battleground. And not in a fun themed party way. On [today’s episode of Assembly Required]([link removed]), Stacey Abrams talks to Wesleyan University President Michael Roth and Barnard professor Nara Milanich about what’s at stake — and how students and faculty can fight back - from reading local student newspapers, to raising your voices in your college’s community. 
 
Tune into [Assembly Required]([link removed]) now on [YouTube]([link removed]), or wherever you get your podcasts!
 
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[The Pentagon will continue providing gender-affirming care]([link removed]) to transgender members, after a court order determined Pete Hegseth’s ban on the practice was unconstitutional. Politico called the reversal “embarrassing” for ol’ Pete, but I don’t know if it’s more embarrassing than his new [make-up studio]([link removed]) or leaked warplans. This dude is just so bad at his job, it’s remarkable.

[A federal judge blocked the Trump administration from cutting funding]([link removed]) to K-12 public schools that don’t comply with his order to scrap diversity, equity and inclusion programs. At what point is Trump officially a total loser?

[Tennessee’s parole board recommended that country star Jelly Roll]([link removed]) be pardoned by the state’s governor. His most serious offenses were a robbery conviction picked up at the age of 17 years old and drug charges from when he was 23. Jelly Roll often visits jails and rehab centers before shows, has played basketball with kids at a youth center, and rented out restaurants for people who are homeless. 

[Billy McFarland, the felon who made headlines and spawned]([link removed]) documentaries with his hilariously doomed and frequently memed Fyre Festival, is selling the brand. This isn’t necessarily good news. But it’s incredibly comical: He tried to throw Fyre Festival 2, advertising tickets between $1,400 and $1.1 million, then canceled it a couple weeks before go time. “It’s clear that I need to step back and allow a new team to move forward independently,” McFarland said in a statement. I’m surprised he didn’t learn that lesson during his four years in jail??? Well… the show must go on.
 
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