Pete Hegseth Narrowly Confirmed as Trump’s Defense Secretary in Tie-Breaking Vote

 https://time.com/7209986/pete-hegseth-confirmed-donald-trump-defense-secretary/

Only once before has the vice president had to break a tie on a Cabinet nominee — during Trump's first term, when Vice President Mike Pence cast the vote to confirm Betsy DeVos as education secretary.

In contrast, McConnell said after the vote said Hegseth “did not reckon” with the reality of job, noting that the nominee's “mere desire to be a ‘change agent’ is not enough.”

Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., said there were few Trump nominees as “dangerously and woefully unqualified as Hegseth.”

Trump ousts more than a dozen inspectors general in late night action

 https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5106541-donald-trump-inspectors-general-ousters/

The ouster of the independent inspectors may be in violation of the federal law as the president is required to give a 30-day notice to Congress of his intent, The Post noted.

“It’s a widespread massacre,” one of the fired inspectors told The Post. “Whoever Trump puts in now will be viewed as loyalists, and that undermines the entire system.”

Rep. Angie Craig (D-Minn.), ranking member of the House Agriculture Committee, also blasted Trump for the move.

“This midnight purge of inspector generals, including at the USDA, is alarming and unprecedented,” Craig said in a statement. “While the president has the right to replace inspector generals, the late-night firing of these independent watchdogs not only violates the law but also hampers our ability to combat waste, fraud, and abuse and ensure programs are run as Congress intended, whether its disaster assistance for farmers or nutrition programs.”

“These firings threaten to undermine public trust at a time when many hardworking Americans doubt whether government institutions are looking out for them and reinforce the perception that politicians get to play by a different set of rules,” she added.

How Silk Road Founder Ross Ulbricht Got a Pardon From Trump

 https://www.wsj.com/us-news/law/ross-ulbricht-silk-road-trump-pardon-16f2e7a9?mod=hp_lead_pos8

Allies of the online drug bazaar’s founder made the case to the president that the two men shared enemies

4 freed Israeli hostages reunite with parents; Palestinians hail released

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog-january-25-2025/

Liri Albag, Karina Ariev, Daniella Gilboa, Naama Levy home after 477 days * IDF: Grave concerns for Bibas family * Israel: No return of Gazans to north until release of civilian Arbel Yehud arranged

Dealing with a stupid Corrupt Narcissist

https://mishpacha.com/if-you-cant-beat-him/

Whether they are simply acknowledging political reality or aligning themselves with a new zeitgeist, many titans of tech and industry who backed Democrats in previous elections are now lining up to support Trump.

This appears to be the new tactic adopted by former foes of the president: butter him up, and he’ll butter your toast. Call it loyalty or egotism, Trump’s penchant for rewarding perceived allies may just be the ticket to former enemies getting favorable treatment by his administration.

What’s the prize:

The pharma industry is looking for funding to support research on cancer medications. Bourla asked Trump to secure dollars from both government and the private sector. Pharmaceutical companies also face increasing moves on Capitol Hill to reign in the cost of brand-name drugs, their key moneymakers.

Elon Musk’s Biographer Calls Him a ‘Sociopath’ After Auschwitz Photo-Op

 https://www.thedailybeast.com/elon-musks-biographer-seth-abramson-calls-him-a-sociopath-after-auschwitz-photo-op/

Elon Musk’s biographer called him a “sociopath” after the MAGA billionaire’s 2024 visit to the Auschwitz death camp was dismissed by someone else at the event as nothing more than a “photo-op.”

On Wednesday, though, the partner of Gidon Lev, the 89-year-old Holocaust survivor who was the guest of honor at Musk’s much-publicized visit to the death camp, shared a scathing perspective on the event.

“I chatted with Elon Musk. I spent hours with him and walked with him through Auschwitz. I stood with him, looking at the nauseating heaps of hair, luggage, and shoes flooded with violet light meant to preserve it,” Julie Gray wrote on Facebook.

“Is Musk an antisemite?” she continued. “People, actually, it’s worse—he doesn’t care whatsoever… He was unmoved by the experience.”

Chabad rabbi speaks out against haredi support for Hamas ceasefire deal

 https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/402766

Rabbi Yosef Shmuel Gerlitzky, chairman of the Rabbinical Congress for Peace and longtime Chabad-Lubavitch emissary to Tel Aviv, harshly condemned the ceasefire-prisoner swap deal that Israel signed with the Hamas terror group, comparing it to the 2005 Disengagement from Gaza.

In an interview with Kol Hai Radio, Rabbi Gerlitzky denied the claim that the Council of Torah Sages supports the deal.

"This is a true danger to lives," said Rabbi Gerlitzky, who represents the organization of 400 rabbis who oppoe the deal. "The lack of official statement on the part of the Council of Torah Sages does not prove support."

He added, "This is a matter which will have severe repercussions."

Mitch McConnell Almost Sinks Hegseth With Dramatic ‘No’ Vote

 https://www.thedailybeast.com/jd-vance-casts-dramatic-tiebreaker-to-save-def-sec-hegseth/

It took newly inaugurated Vice President JD Vance rushing to the Senate floor to cast a tie-breaking vote to salvage Hegseth’s nomination after former Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell cast a stunning “no” vote against Hegseth, calling out Trump’s strong-arm tactics.

This Israel-Hamas Deal Sets a Dangerous Precedent

 https://www.wsj.com/opinion/this-israel-hamas-deal-sets-a-dangerous-precedent-hostage-terrorist-f51bdc58?mod=hp_opin_pos_5#cxrecs_s

Can God create a stone he can’t lift? Israel recently faced a similar question: Can politicians tie their hands behind their backs to render themselves incapable of action?

Swaths of U.S. Government Grind to a Halt After Trump Shock Therapy

 https://www.wsj.com/politics/policy/swaths-of-u-s-government-grind-to-halt-after-trump-shock-therapy-42a6b000?mod=hp_lead_pos1

The gears of government slowed to a halt this week after President Trump axed major federal initiatives across Washington, causing even routine functions to hit the skids. 

'Don’t say Hess to Nazi accusations': Elon Musk cracks Holocaust jokes - Garnel says he is friend of Israel!

 https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/402810

“Don’t say Hess to Nazi accusations! Some people will Goebbels anything down! Stop Gőring your enemies! His pronouns would’ve been He/Himmler! Bet you did nazi that coming,” Musk posted Thursday, adding laughing-face emojis.

His post earned reprobation from Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, a group that took criticism days earlier for declaring that Musk’s hand gesture was not a Nazi symbol.

“We’ve said it hundreds of times before and we will say it again: the Holocaust was a singularly evil event, and it is inappropriate and offensive to make light of it,” Greenblatt wrote on X. Addressing Musk, he added, “The Holocaust is not a joke.”

Greenblatt’s own account had remained silent earlier in the week after Musk’s hand gesture; he’d also refrained from commenting on Musk during a panel on antisemitism earlier Thursday at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. An ADL spokesperson did not immediately respond to questions about why Thursday’s post was denounced when the gesture wasn’t.

Ted Deutch, CEO of the American Jewish Committee, denounced Musk’s jokes in stronger terms.

“Wordplay about Nazis isn’t funny. It isn’t clever. And it’s dangerous,” Deutch wrote on X. Addressing Musk, he added, “However you feel about the accusations being made against you, this is absolutely the wrong response. Nazi-themed ‘jokes’ are offensive and harmful. Don’t belittle the seriousness of the Holocaust; you give cover to those who seek to do the same.”

Linda Yaccarino, X’s CEO, also responded to Musk’s jokes — with a laughing-face emoji. Yaccarino, who was hired by Musk, has pledged to curb antisemitism on the platform in the past.

Elon Musk is causing trouble in Europe. What’s in it for him?

 https://edition.cnn.com/2025/01/23/europe/elon-musk-europe-politics-x-disinformation-gbr-cmd-intl/index.html

“It’s interesting to see the similarities between he and (Trump); their ability to try to drive public opinion, especially, unfortunately by disseminating disinformation. Creating a lot of chaos, being disruptors,” Nelson said.

That chaos intensified after Musk made a gesture with his right arm on stage during a post-inauguration rally, which to some in Europe bore uncomfortable similarities to the Nazi or Roman salute used by fascist leaders in Germany and Italy. Musk has presented the reaction as a misinterpretation, writing on X that “the ‘everyone is Hitler’ attack is sooo tired.”

Trump's War on the Truth Has Officially Gone Full Orwell

 https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/a22547037/donald-trump-orwellian-truth-reality-eyes-ears/

“What you’re seeing and what you’re reading is not what’s happening.”

This is almost a little too on-the-nose Orwellian. In 1984, George Orwell described the totalitarian government's ultimate demand of its subjects:

The party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.

It has long been clear that the president is attempting to build a genuine authoritarian movement over which only his word has any power, and which he can use to ride roughshod over the institutions of democracy. So far, this attempt has been an unmitigated success, as his supporters inhabit the same infotainment vortex he does and other members of the Republican Party—which controls both Houses of Congress and has a constitutional duty to provide a check on the Executive Branch—bow to him out of craven fealty.

But none of that is actually the point. As Gessen explained beautifully, the point is to command power over reality itself. All this can be true at various times, or at the same time, if Trump says it is. Which is to say, we can't be sure that anything is true at all. In that environment, the only thing that matters is what powerful people say. Trump's war on the truth is an admittedly fascinating amalgam of vanity and crippling confirmation bias combined with a ferocious instinct for manipulation and deception. He is plummeting through the infotainment vortex, but he isn't gasping for air or grabbing at something to hang onto. He seems to thrive in the void.

Trump encourages people not to believe their eyes, ears or lungs

 https://edition.cnn.com/2020/06/04/media/donald-trump-disbelief-reliable-sources/index.html

Don’t believe what you read, hear or see.

That’s what the Trump White House and the pro-Trump media are relying upon: Disbelief. Story after story calls to mind the old Marx Brothers line “Who ya gonna believe, me or your own eyes?”