The Morning Sixpack—June 27, 2025

Trump’s trade delays, GOP tax bill chaos, Tesla leadership shakeup, ICE detentions, and Senate parliamentarian drama fuel DC turmoil

It’s just another day in Trumplandia!

Supreme Court Chips Away at Nationwide Blocks on Trump’s Birthright Citizenship Ban

The Supreme Court just handed President Trump a significant win by scaling back nationwide injunctions that have stalled his controversial ban on automatic citizenship for babies born in the U.S. to undocumented immigrants and foreign visitors.

This 6-3 ruling doesn’t decide if the birthright citizenship ban itself is constitutional—far from it. Instead, it tackles a legal procedural question: Should federal courts issue sweeping nationwide injunctions that halt policies across the entire country while the courts weigh their legality? Justice Amy Coney Barrett, writing for the majority, argued these broad orders overstep judicial authority and aren’t what Congress intended. “Federal courts do not exercise general oversight of the Executive Branch,” she wrote, “they resolve cases and controversies consistent with the authority Congress has given them.”

Liberal justices, led by Sonia Sotomayor, fiercely dissented, calling the ruling a “travesty” that risks “chaos for the families of all affected children.” The decision sends the cases back to lower courts to sort out what this means practically and leaves room for opponents to keep fighting the policy on constitutional grounds.

This isn’t just a dry legal spat—it’s at the heart of Trump’s aggressive immigration crackdown. The ban is part of a broader agenda that includes travel bans, fast-tracked deportations, and suspension of refugee admissions. The crux of the debate? Whether unauthorized immigrants are “subject to the jurisdiction” of the U.S. government under the 14th Amendment, which guarantees citizenship to anyone born on U.S. soil except children of foreign diplomats. Trump’s team claims they’re not, but legal experts say that would rewrite over a century of settled precedent.

The ruling is a win for Trump’s administration’s pushback against what many see as judicial overreach, but it’s just the start of a complex legal battle over birthright citizenship’s future.

Source: WaPo (gift article)

Birthright citizenship, like ALL of our US Constitution, Bill of Rights, and “settled law,” is subject to re-interpretations now. ALL OF THEM. There is no more “settled law.” One of the bedrocks of our legal system (hell, going back to the “home country” and beyond) is precedent.

Well, precedent means jack shit now.

Trump’s July 8 Trade Deadline? Don’t Hold Your Breath—TACO Strikes Again

President Trump’s self-imposed July 8 deadline for finalizing trade talks is looking less like a hard stop and more like another classic case of TACO—Trump Always Chickens Out.

Administration officials are now openly suggesting negotiations could drag well into the fall, potentially wrapping up by Labor Day instead.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent dropped the hint during a Fox Business interview Friday, saying, “Nothing gets done in Washington well in advance,” and that deals with over a dozen countries might be finalized by early September. The U.S. is currently haggling with trading partners including the EU, Japan, Vietnam, India, and Malaysia, all trying to dodge the steep tariffs Trump announced back in April—tariffs that were then paused for 90 days.

The July 8 tariff deadline is looming, but the White House isn’t making a big deal out of it. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt called the deadline “not critical,” signaling that the administration is preparing to kick the can down the road again. Whether this extension applies across the board or just to select countries remains unclear.

Bessent also bragged about progress on roughly a dozen trade deals beyond China and Britain, but anyone paying attention knows this administration’s history: bold deadlines, followed by delayed decisions and last-minute reversals. So yeah, TACO is on the menu once again.

If you’re betting on quick resolutions, my advice? Don’t. In Washington, trade negotiations move at their own pace—and Trump’s timeline is just a suggestion.

Source: NYT

Republicans Face Last-Minute Chaos as Trump’s Tax-Cut and Spending Bill Hits Senate Roadblocks

President Trump’s signature “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” is on life support as Senate Republicans scramble to push it through before the July 4 deadline. What was supposed to be a smooth legislative victory is now bogged down by internal party divisions, a nonpartisan Senate referee throwing out key provisions (make sure you read the last story), and fierce Democratic opposition.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune had hoped to start voting on the bill Friday, but the Senate Parliamentarian slapped down more than $250 billion in healthcare cuts, deeming them off-limits under budget rules. Democrats piled on objections, highlighting blocked provisions that would deregulate gun silencers, carve out tax breaks for religious colleges, and tighten tax benefits aimed at low-income families.

The bill itself aims to extend Trump’s 2017 tax cuts while funding tighter border security, a militarized crackdown on immigration, and beefed-up military spending—an ambitious agenda that now seems anything but certain. Behind the scenes, three Republican defections could kill the whole thing, with Medicaid cuts causing the biggest headache over fears they’d gut rural hospitals.

Trump, showing he’s not ready to roll over yet (but be sure to back up the TACO truck), is sticking around Washington over the weekend to personally lean on wavering senators, but time is short. If this bill doesn’t clear Congress soon, the nation’s debt ceiling battle looms—a potentially devastating financial crisis waiting in the wings.

If you thought passing major legislation with razor-thin majorities was straightforward, welcome to the real Washington mess. This is going to get ugly—and fast.

Source: Reuters

Tesla’s EV Sales Slide Hits Home as Elon Musk Fires Manufacturing VP

Tesla just experienced its first-ever drop in vehicle sales since mass production began—and it’s shaking up the leadership.

The electric car giant announced it sold fewer cars in 2024 than in 2023, with profits plunging 71% in Q1 of 2025, sparking the firing of VP of Manufacturing and Operations Omead Afshar.

Afshar, who oversaw multiple senior executives, including key regional sales VPs, became the second top executive to leave recently after Milan Kovac resigned from Tesla’s humanoid robotics program. Musk’s management shakeup signals serious pressure as Tesla faces a tough market and growing competition, especially in Europe, where sales dropped 28% amid a consumer shift toward cheaper Chinese EVs.

Afshar’s firing also echoes a 2022 internal probe into his role in sourcing materials for one of Musk’s secretive projects, showing the high stakes and scrutiny within Tesla’s ranks. Despite the turmoil, Afshar publicly praised Musk’s leadership, highlighting the tension between internal challenges and public loyalty.

Meanwhile, Tesla’s stock is down nearly 20% this year, with some blaming Musk’s close ties to Trump and controversial federal reforms for the company’s rocky ride. The Tesla story right now is less about electric innovation and more about navigating a brutal sales slump and corporate shakeups.

If Tesla can’t turn this ship around fast, Musk’s empire might find the road ahead a lot bumpier than expected.

Source: UPI

This is a classic example of “first mover disadvantage.” The conventional wisdom (aka, “common sense”) would suggest that it’s great being the first in any industry or niche.

The real world almost always disagrees.

A 64-Year-Old Iranian Woman Detained While Gardening in New Orleans

Madonna “Donna” Kashanian, who has lived in the U.S. for 47 years, was handcuffed and taken into custody by immigration agents right outside her home in New Orleans.

The 64-year-old woman, who came to America as a student and sought asylum decades ago, now finds herself held in ICE detention despite having no criminal record.

Kashanian’s family says she consistently complied with immigration rules and feared deportation since Trump took office. After her asylum was denied, she was granted a stay of removal on the condition she meet all requirements—a condition her family insists she honored. She even tried to adjust her status through marriage to a U.S. citizen, but that was denied over a past government-flagged fraudulent marriage.

Her arrest happened just hours after U.S. airstrikes in Iran, as ICE detained 11 Iranians nationwide over the weekend. Kashanian was first jailed in Mississippi before being transferred to the South Louisiana ICE center. Neighbors reported the arrest lasted less than a minute, yet the emotional impact on her family is immense—they’re now scrambling for legal help amid a shortage of immigration attorneys.

This case highlights a troubling trend: Since January, ICE arrests of people without criminal histories have surged by 807%. With nearly 59,000 detainees nationwide, the immigration crackdown shows no signs of slowing—and longtime residents like Kashanian are getting caught in the crossfire.

If this isn’t a wake-up call about how immigration enforcement has ramped up under the current administration, I don’t know what is.

But for MAGA, cruelty is always the point.

Source: The Guardian

Meet the Senate Parliamentarian: The Unelected Power Broker Driving GOP Tax Bill Chaos

Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough has become the most hated person in Washington for Senate Republicans struggling to push through Trump’s tax and immigration bill, aka “The Big Stupid Shitty Bill.”

She’s the rule enforcer who’s repeatedly nixed key provisions, including hundreds of billions in Medicaid cuts, and now faces calls for her firing—but don’t hold your breath just yet.

MacDonough isn’t some rogue bureaucrat; she serves at the pleasure of the Senate majority leader and advises on what stays in a reconciliation bill under strict Senate rules designed to keep legislation focused on budgetary issues. Her role is to interpret complex Senate procedures and make nonpartisan rulings that, while not binding, carry enormous weight. Ignore her advice, and you risk the Senate’s procedural integrity—something even some Republicans say they don’t want to sacrifice.

Appointed by Democrat Harry Reid in 2012 and retained by GOP leaders including Mitch McConnell, MacDonough has a long history of cutting through political noise, whether blocking Democrats’ minimum wage hikes or immigration provisions. She’s even helped safeguard critical moments like protecting Electoral College ballots during the Capitol riot. Yet, her impartiality hasn’t stopped furious GOP senators from tweeting demands for her ouster.

Here’s the reality: While some Republicans loudly call for MacDonough’s firing, history and Senate tradition suggest she’s likely to remain in her post—at least officially. But mark my words, her influence will either be undermined or completely ignored as frustrated lawmakers push their agendas by other means. The parliamentarian’s reign may be coming to a chaotic end, one way or another.

When rules get in the way of power plays, expect the fight to get uglier—and the parliamentarian to become a political football.

Source: API