The Morning Sixpack - October 21, 2025
Trump’s America: Ballrooms replace history, pardons breed chaos, universities rebel, Diddy waits on clemency, and troops eye Portland.
Ron Johnson Dismisses Millions Losing Health Care Aid: “Not a Gut-Wrenching Problem”
Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson brushed off concerns that millions could lose their health insurance subsidies, calling the potential crisis “not gut-wrenching.”
As premiums skyrocket and millions stand to lose coverage, Johnson’s tone-deaf comments reveal just how disconnected Washington’s hardliners have become from everyday Americans.
Senator Johnson, one of Donald Trump’s most loyal allies, told CNBC that the loss of Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies wasn’t a big deal. “I don’t think this is gonna be any kind of gut-wrenching problem,” he said, adding that Democrats are just “lying” about the stakes. Meanwhile, experts from Harvard and the Urban Institute project health premiums could more than double next year, and roughly five million Americans could lose coverage entirely.
Editor: “But hey, no big deal. I gots mine!” you can imagine he and other MAGAs saying this—out loud.
When CNBC’s Joe Kernen pushed back—“Millions of people are gonna die”—Johnson waved it off, accusing Democrats and the “legacy media” of fearmongering. “Democrats say all kinds of things that aren’t true,” Johnson insisted. “That scares a lot of Republicans as well. Doesn’t scare me. I’m just looking at the reality.”
But the reality isn’t on Johnson’s side. A new KFF poll shows 78% of Americans—including 59% of Republicans—want Congress to renew the ACA subsidies. Even among MAGA-aligned voters, a majority support extending them. In other words, Johnson’s not just out of touch with Democrats—he’s out of step with his own base.
According to KFF, three-quarters of Americans would blame Trump or Republicans if the subsidies vanish. Yet Johnson continues to shrug off the human cost while millions brace for higher bills or lost coverage. For a man who loves to talk about “freedom,” it’s odd how casually he dismisses people’s freedom to afford basic health care.
Source: Raw Story
Editor: Ron Johnson treats a collapsing health safety net like a minor inconvenience—because when you’ve got taxpayer-funded coverage for life, empathy’s just optional.
Laura Ingraham Joins Trump Jr’s Business Venture After Years of Screaming About Hunter Biden’s Deals
Fox News firebrand Laura Ingraham has officially joined forces with Donald Trump Jr in a new $260 million business venture—despite spending years railing against Hunter Biden for doing the same thing.
The hypocrisy practically writes itself.
According to Bloomberg, Ingraham is now a board member of Colombier Acquisition Corp III, a special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC) co-founded by Trump Jr and his associate Chamath Palihapitiya. The company aims to “fund the next chapter of American Exceptionalism and help Make America Grow Again.” Translation: another Trump-world cash grab dressed up as patriotism. The firm is looking to raise $260 million in its IPO, which sounds a lot like the “swamp” Ingraham used to warn her viewers about.
This move cements the growing alliance between Fox News and the Trump family. Earlier this year, the network gave Lara Trump her own weekend show, completing the Fox-Trump media-industrial complex. Once upon a time, Fox tried to act like it was cooling on Trump during Biden’s term. Now? They’re back in full cult formation.
What makes this rich is Ingraham’s long history of attacking Hunter Biden over his business dealings. Media Matters estimated she mentioned him in more than 150 episodes across 2023 and 2024. She once called the Biden family “the Corleones,” claiming, “Given what we’ve learned about the long-term corruption and deception of the Biden family, the Corleones have nothing on them.”
Fast-forward to 2025, and she’s on the board with Trump’s son—whose family was literally found guilty of civil fraud last year.
Trump Jr’s 1789 Capital, which funds “American exceptionalism,” already boasts investments in AI, defense, energy, and several Elon Musk ventures. Its assets topped $1 billion in September. The company insists it maintains “maximum transparency and compliance,” which is a fun thing to say when your co-founder’s dad just had a $355 million fraud fine reduced on appeal.
Source: The Guardian
Editor: Laura Ingraham spent years screaming about nepotism and corruption—then cashed in on it.
Parting shot: Turns out “draining the swamp” just meant buying a penthouse in it.
Trump’s $40 Billion Bailout for Argentina Torches His ‘America First’ Credibility
It’s the latest proof that his “America First” mantra was never about America—it was about himself and his political cronies.
Ten months into his second term, Americans are drowning in higher costs and frozen paychecks, while their tax dollars are shipped overseas to rescue a right-wing regime on the brink.
The Trump administration has slashed Medicaid, cut food assistance, and made life harder for millions of working families—all while handing Argentina a $40 billion lifeline. This bailout, run through the Treasury’s Exchange Stabilization Fund with zero transparency, mirrors the kind of backroom global dealmaking Trump once pretended to despise. Even Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s excuse that Argentina is a “systemically important ally” can’t hide the political payoff: saving Trump’s ideological twin, President Javier Milei, from electoral disaster.
Asked how the bailout helps Americans, Trump told reporters he was “just helping a great philosophy take over a great country.”
Translation: this isn’t about helping the U.S.—it’s about exporting Trumpism.
Meanwhile, Milei’s austerity program has driven utility bills through the roof, crushed Argentina’s working class, and triggered widespread unrest. His party recently suffered major election losses, prompting Trump to swoop in like a political paramedic—with your money.
It’s a move that should alarm taxpayers. Using U.S. funds to prop up a foreign leader accused of corruption is bad enough. Doing it while cutting health care and food aid at home is the kind of hypocrisy that defines Trump’s “leadership.” The bailout not only risks billions but also sets a precedent for using the federal purse to meddle in foreign elections. Historically, ESF interventions came with strict repayment terms; Trump’s deal has none. Editor: It’s a giveaway.
Trump’s promise to “put America first” has collapsed under the weight of his own contradictions. His policies punish ordinary Americans while rewarding loyal autocrats abroad. If this is the “golden age” he promised in his inauguration, it looks a lot more like gilded rot.
Source: My Daily Grind News
Editor: Trump’s version of “America First” is a magic trick—he waves the flag with one hand while handing your wallet to a foreign strongman with the other.
Trump-Pardoned Capitol Rioter Arrested for Threatening to Kill Hakeem Jeffries
A Capitol rioter pardoned by Donald Trump has been arrested for allegedly plotting to assassinate House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries during a New York speech.
The same man once photographed trespassing on the Senate floor is now accused of threatening another branch of government—this time, with murder.
Christopher Moynihan, 34, allegedly texted that he would “eliminate” Jeffries ahead of the congressman’s speech at the Economic Club of New York. “Hakeem Jeffries makes a speech in a few days in NYC—I cannot allow this terrorist to live,” he wrote, according to a court filing obtained by CBS News. He reportedly added, “Even if I am hated, he must be eliminated. I will kill him for the future.”
Moynihan, who was pardoned just nine months ago by President Trump, was arrested Sunday by New York State Police after an FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force investigation. He now faces a felony charge of making a terroristic threat and remains in custody in Dutchess County on $10,000 cash bail or a $30,000 bond.
This isn’t Moynihan’s first brush with infamy. On January 6, 2021, he was among the first rioters to breach police lines and enter the Capitol. Prosecutors said he rifled through a senator’s desk shouting, “There’s gotta be something in here we can f–king use against these scumbags.” He later stood on the Senate dais chanting before police forced him out. Convicted of obstructing an official proceeding, Moynihan served 21 months in prison before Trump wiped his record clean.
Now, the man Trump deemed worthy of clemency is once again accused of targeting democracy itself—this time, not just with words, but with threats of bloodshed.
Source: New York Post
Editor: Another Trump pardon, another domestic terrorist back in the headlines.
Parting shot: When you hand out clemency like Halloween candy, don’t be surprised when the monsters come back for more.
Trump Weighs Commuting Diddy’s Sentence
Donald Trump is reportedly considering commuting rapper Sean “Diddy” Combs’ 50-month prison sentence—just days after freeing George Santos—because why stop at political corruption when you can sprinkle in celebrity chaos, too?
According to TMZ, a senior White House official confirmed that Trump is “vacillating” on whether to set Diddy free as early as this week. “Trump will do what he wants,” the source said, noting that some staffers are warning him against it. Diddy, convicted of violating the Mann Act, has served just 13 months of his sentence but could walk out of prison if Trump signs off.
The White House Communications Office denies the report, but TMZ insists their story is accurate. Either way, the timing reeks of political theater. Diddy’s lawyers reportedly contacted a top Trump insider immediately after sentencing, and within days, Trump told reporters he was “aware” of the request.
Once a Biden supporter, Diddy had fallen out of Trump’s favor, but apparently, all is forgiven if it makes headlines. The potential commutation would follow Trump’s decision last week to free disgraced ex-congressman George Santos, another loyalist who found redemption through presidential penmanship.
It’s a familiar pattern: Trump’s mercy seems to land hardest on the famous, the connected, and the conveniently newsworthy. Meanwhile, everyday Americans serve their full sentences without fanfare—or photo ops.
Source: TMZ
Editor: Trump’s pardon list reads like the world’s worst mixtape—politicians, crooks, and now platinum-selling felons.
Trump Bulldozes East Wing to Build $250 Million White House Ballroom — Calls It “Much-Needed”
Demolition crews have begun tearing down part of the White House East Wing to make room for Donald Trump’s new $250 million ballroom—a “dream project” he swore wouldn’t touch the original structure.
Now the walls are literally coming down, and the self-proclaimed “biggest fan” of the White House is gutting it like a Mar-a-Lago renovation special.
On Monday, witnesses reported backhoes ripping into the East Wing as Secret Service agents and staff looked on from the nearby Treasury steps. The president later confirmed the construction, proudly announcing, “Right on the other side, you have a lot of construction going on.” Trump posted on Truth Social that the “much-needed project” was finally underway, claiming “every President has dreamt of having a ballroom at the White House.” For the record, none of them demolished a national landmark to do it.
Democrats were quick to call out the project’s absurdity. “Trump’s billionaire ballroom. This is a disgrace. Welcome to the Second Gilded Age,” Rep. Darren Soto (D-FL) posted. Even some federal employees were told not to take photos of the demolition after images of the teardown hit social media. The Treasury Department, whose offices overlook the White House grounds, reportedly emailed staff to keep their cameras off.
Despite his past insistence that the project “wouldn’t interfere” with the current structure, Trump’s ballroom is replacing the entire East Wing—traditionally home to the First Lady’s offices. The new structure will nearly double the White House’s footprint and seat 650 guests. The president bragged last week that the project was “fully financed” through private donations, including multimillion-dollar contributions from Apple, Amazon, Lockheed Martin, and Coinbase.
This “People’s House” remodel is expected to cost taxpayers nothing upfront, but it rewrites a century of White House history with a bulldozer. Trump once promised to “preserve and protect” America’s institutions. Now he’s literally tearing them down for a bigger dance floor.
Source: The Washington Post (gift article)
Editor: Trump’s idea of patriotism is tearing down history to make room for his own ego.
BONUS(ES!)
#1 Seven Top Universities Reject Trump’s “Loyalty Pact” Tying Research Funding to Political Compliance
Seven major universities have flat-out rejected a Trump administration pact that would limit academic freedom in exchange for federal research money—calling it an attack on merit, independence, and free inquiry.
The proposal, which demanded ideological loyalty tests and restrictions on diversity and international enrollment, is already being called the biggest government intrusion into higher education in modern history.
The administration gave nine elite universities until Monday to respond to a proposed “research compact” designed to “prioritize funding for aligned institutions.” Translation: schools willing to play by Trump’s political rules would get more taxpayer money. By Monday night, seven—including MIT, Brown, Penn, Dartmouth, USC, UVA, and the University of Arizona—had rejected the offer outright. The University of Texas showed interest, while Vanderbilt hedged its bets, saying it was still “reviewing” the deal.
The University of Arizona’s president, Suresh Garimella, summed up the collective backlash best: “A federal research funding system based on anything other than merit would weaken the world’s preeminent engine for innovation.” In other words, science isn’t supposed to answer to political whims—no matter who’s in the White House.
Under the proposed pact, schools would freeze tuition for five years, cap international students at 15%, and adopt “strict gender definitions.” They’d also be required to include conservative protection clauses in governance policies and post salary data for graduates. Universities with large endowments—over $2 billion—would even be barred from charging tuition for certain degrees. Essentially, it’s a bureaucratic Trojan horse wrapped in populist rhetoric.
Despite the administration’s sales pitch about “restoring trust in higher education,” most institutions saw it for what it was: an ideological power grab dressed up as reform. The fact that only Texas seemed “enthusiastic” tells you all you need to know about where academia stands on Trump’s latest overreach.
Source: UPI
Editor: When the government starts attaching political strings to science, it’s no longer funding research—it’s funding obedience.
Parting shot: Trump’s “America First” apparently includes putting higher education last.
#2 Court Greenlights Trump’s Plan to Deploy National Guard to Portland—Oregon Officials Call It a ‘Gross Abuse of Power’
A federal appeals court has cleared the way for Donald Trump to send National Guard troops into Portland, Oregon, reigniting a constitutional showdown over presidential power and states’ rights.
The 2–1 decision by a panel of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a lower court order blocking the deployment, ruling that Trump likely acted lawfully in federalizing the Guard during protests.
Oregon’s leaders immediately pushed back. Attorney General Dan Rayfield warned that the decision “would give the president unilateral power to put Oregon soldiers on our streets with almost no justification,” adding, “We are on a dangerous path in America.” Governor Tina Kotek called the deployment a “gross, un-American abuse of power,” noting that a separate temporary restraining order still prevents troops from entering the state—for now.
The ruling comes amid Trump’s escalating use of military force in U.S. cities, with similar battles unfolding in Illinois and California. In Chicago, a federal judge blocked troop deployment after finding “a lack of credibility” in federal claims of ongoing unrest. California Governor Gavin Newsom accused Trump of using state troops as “political pawns,” saying the president’s actions “put our members of the military on the frontlines of a completely unlawful activation against American communities.”
The appeals court majority—both Trump appointees—said the lower judge failed to show proper “deference” to the president’s assessment that unrest near a Portland immigration facility justified military intervention. Judge Susan Graber, appointed by Bill Clinton, dissented sharply, writing that the ruling “erodes core constitutional principles” and “abdicates our judicial responsibility.” She urged the full 9th Circuit to “act swiftly” before an “illegal deployment of troops under false pretenses can occur.”
Despite Oregon’s contention that protests had long since calmed, the Trump administration claims violent threats persist and insists the National Guard is needed to protect federal property. The case now heads to an expanded en banc panel, which could overturn the decision—but for the moment, Trump’s authority to militarize Portland’s streets is back on the table.
Source: The Washington Post
Editor: Trump treating American cities like occupied territories isn’t law and order—it’s authoritarian cosplay.
Parting shot: At this rate, he’ll need his own domestic medal for valor in imaginary wars.
One more: This is the guy who thinks he deserves the Nobel Peace Prize, yet he’s waging war ON his own people in his own country.