Category: Uncategorized

And Once Again, Trump Thinks He Can Jack Up Auto-Parts Tariffs Anew, Then “Order” US Automakers To NOT Raise Prices?!

~ condor ~ Leave a comment

You might think it an Onion headline — but no, it is the capitalists’ paper of record.

The WSJ. And the NYT. Crazy.

Both are reporting that Trump is this morning threatening US automakers, immediately after he personally raised their cost of goods sold by an additional 25%… to NOT pass along the cost increases.

Someone should tell him how Nixon’s wage and price controls worked out. [They didn’t.]

And here’s a novel concept: if as preznit, you don’t want base-model US pickup trucks to cost north of $110,000, at the dealership… ROLL BACK YOUR STUPID A$$ TARIFFS on parts coming across the border from Mexico and Canada.

Damn.

This is simply… a clown show now. And to be clear, the preszit (after Reagan era legislation) is largely forbidden from setting prices (or wages) in any retail US market.

So the US automakers ought to give him exactly what his Nineteenth Century bass-ackwards tariff policies contemplate: ~$110,000 per base model US pickup truck — at the dealership, to Joe Sixpack.

It would be hilarious… if it wasn’t so tragically… sad. He’s a loon.

नमस्ते

In Which Tangerine 2.0 Argues There Can Be “No Consequences” For Filing Knowingly False Sworn Pleadings — By Agency Heads Like Ezell…?!

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Perhaps recognizing that a deposition in the case before USDC Judge Alsup in SF… will lead inexorably to perjury charges — or at least, civil contempt citations in federal court, overnight Team Tangerine asserted the astonishing position that Trump’s agency heads are too busy and too important to be bothered with having to tell the truth in court. Damn.

You will recall that the able USDC Judge Alsup called Charles Ezell out personally in a hearing last month, for making false statements under oath in a sworn affidavit the government filed. Once caught, the lawyers for Tangerine simply withdrew his sworn statement, and refused to make him available to the Judge — to explain why he swore to matters that he had to know were false — including claiming he was on a call he never attended — and he knew when he signed the affidavit that what was purportedly said on that supposed call… was a lie.

Quite rightly, we the people expect of our federal law administering employees (since we pay their salaries, afterall) that they will tell the truth in court. That is how we come to trust that our government works for us, not against us. The idea that Trump/Musk can just wave its hands and say “never mind” — ask this other guy instead of Ezell and all is healed… is frankly… preposterous.

But that is what they said in SF overnight. I will only quote the smallest bit of it, to give you a flavor. These jamokes are absolutely… shameless:

…Defendants have now withdrawn that TRO-opposition declaration and will not otherwise rely on Acting Director Ezell’s testimony in this litigation, given the Court’s concerns with allowing a party to submit declaration testimony that is not subject to cross-examination.

In sum, Mr. Ezell’s deposition should be precluded because he is a high-level official whose testimony would detract from the performance of his official duties and because there are no extraordinary circumstances present warranting his deposition.

If the Court denies a protective order, the government will consider filing a petition for a writ of mandamus in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Defendants respectfully request that, if the Court denies a protective order, the Court order the deposition delayed at least two weeks to give the government time to consider whether to seek such relief. Furthermore, if the government were to file a mandamus petition, the deposition should be stayed until the court of appeals rules on that petition….

Sheesh! Now you know. Onward, smiling just the same — with a bike ride to get hot fish tacos tonight — by the lake, as it warms up here, with my baby girl!

नमस्ते

Hinderaker Is Admitting That Trump Has Blown The Ukraine Negotiation. Huh.

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Hinderaker must know that things are going to blow apart in Trump’s face — in Ukraine.

When, three months ago, Hinderaker said “Nobel Peace Prize”… that was silly.

Trump has never had it in him to deliver offers with the humility to achieve a lasting peace.

And now we see… he lacks the acumen to efficiently prosecute a covert military operation.

So Hinderaker wants to save his own a$$ first, as always.

Hilarious.

Out.

Isar’s Spectrum Rocket May Now Launch From Norway, Saturday Morning Eastern Time…

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Hopefully the winds will stay calm through early Saturday morning in the northern latitudes around Andøya, Norway.

We shall see, but here is the newly revised time-line/launch window from the privately-funded rocketeer:

…Isar Aerospace, based near Munich, Germany, is scheduled to make the first-ever launch attempt of its Spectrum two-stage rocket no earlier than Saturday, March 29, at 11:30 UTC from the Orbital Launch Pad at the Andøya Space Center in Norway. An earlier attempt on Monday, March 24 was scrubbed due to high winds.

Isar is targeting the beginning of a three-hour window that ends at 14:30 UTC….

The Spectrum rocket will be flying on a northwest trajectory over the Norwegian Sea, which would take any payload into a retrograde orbit, although no customer payloads are on board this flight. Andøya, at 69 degrees North latitude and above the Arctic Circle, is one of the most northerly rocket launch sites in the world and can support orbital inclinations between 90 and 110.6 degrees. Andøya is planned to support up to 30 orbital launches per year….

Now you know. Smiling, onward.

नमस्ते

OMB Gets “No Stay” In First Circuit — Tangerine 2.0 Loses Again! Rhode Island Injunction Continues (“Freeze Stays Frozen”) Against OMB/DOGE Actions…

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Again… these guys couldn’t do a much worse job of changing government mechanisms… if they tried their best to do so.

They are just so fecklessly incompetent — and malignant — that the whole thing has become a sad farce. When Hinderaker calls the efforts “a juggernaut” today, I assume he must mean… in the same way a crippled sub… sinks, to the bottom of the Pacific. But whatever — he was never very good with pithy metaphors. Heh.]

In any event, here’s the First Circuit’s 48 page slapdown of today, and a bit:

…OMB circulated a document to federal agencies entitled “Instructions for Federal Financial Assistance Program Analysis in Support of M-25-13” (“OMB Spreadsheet”). It “required” “[a]ll Federal agencies that provide Federal financial assistance… to complete the attached spreadsheet and submit it to OMB” by February 7, 2025. The spreadsheet listed over 2,500 federal funding lines, including for programs that the OMB Q&A explicitly stated were excluded from the pause, the Head Start program being one example….

[T]he Plaintiff-States alleged that they receive significant amounts of federal funds to provide essential services to their residents. They further alleged that the Agency Defendants’ implementation of the OMB Directive, by resulting in the withholding of these funds and providing them with less than twenty-four hours’ notice of doing so, would interfere with their ability to provide such services. They alleged, too, that the tight time frame for the OMB Directive’s implementation and the last-minute notice of it “compounded the[ir] injuries” because they could neither “prepare for or mitigate” the fiscal impact nor effectively plan for any future or downstream fiscal effects….

[D]espite bearing a “strong showing” burden under Nken’s first factor, the [Trumpian] Defendants make no clear or developed argument to us that the District Court abused its discretion in relying on that record to apply the preliminary injunction to such freezes. We thus conclude that, as to this aspect of their motion for the stay, the Defendants also have failed to make a strong showing of their likelihood of success on the merits….

So… it is like… 82-3 against Tangerine 2.0. Hilarious.

नमस्ते

Power Alley: In The Merck v. Merck Multi-Billion Dollar Federal Lanham Act Name Spat In Newark, There Will Be Oral Argument Held On May 30, 2025…

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The argument that day will be over what sort of limits may be placed on evidence — to be introduced at some future bench trial date, on which of the two is usurping the other’s name and branding.

I suspect the real goal of the oral argument will be to help each side see the weaknesses in its own case, here. That is where the able Senior USDC Judge is heading, I think.

Yes, as I’ve long said, this case should settle. Neither side should risk losing well-over a century’s worth of brand goodwill, built up in the two iconic pharma names and word marks at right, globally… by going to trial. There is much room for a settlement that allows each to move on. But we shall see. Here’s the able USDC Judge Salas’s order, just entered — for that May date:

…TEXT ORDER:

The Court will hold oral argument on Defendants’ motions in limine (D.E. Nos. [261], [262], [264], [268], [269] & [271]) on Friday, 5/30/2025 at 01:00 PM in Newark – Courtroom 5A before Judge Esther Salas.

In the interim, Defendants’ motions in limine (D.E. Nos. [261], [262], [264], [268], [269] & [271]) are ADMINISTRATIVELY TERMINATED for docket management purposes only.So Ordered by Judge Esther Salas on 3/27/2025….

Onward, as Kennedy outlines plans to cut about 10,000 positions from Health and Human Services. Damn. That’s a setback, for the progress of bio-sciences, and human health care. Just… damn.

नमस्ते

CREW Files Its First Expedited Discovery Request, In DC — Of Elon Musk And DOGE. And It’s A Banger!

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This will be very enlightening.

This also “drags back in” the breaches of employment terms Elon Musk allegedly committed when he fired all those X-itter workers two years ago (as he bought it, and rebranded Twitter as. . . X-itter). Obviously, he’s using the exact same playbook here, is the allegation (see the last several pages of this attachment — at pages 10, 11 and 12 — to the discovery motion).

…All documents, including responses, produced in response to Plaintiff States’ First Set of Written Discovery in New Mexico v. Musk, No. 1:25-cv-429 (D.D.C. filed February 13, 2025), and the consolidated case Japanese American Citizens League v. Musk, 1:25-cv-643 (D.D.C. filed Mar. 5, 2025), including copies of Defendants’ answers to all requests for production, interrogatories, and requests for admission, including objections, as well as any exhibits, attachments, logs, files, or other things produced in response to Plaintiff States’ requests in that case, as well as any deposition transcripts produced….

Plaintiff also seeks a deposition of DOGE under Fed. R. Civ. P. 30(b)(6) on the following topics:

. . .Describe all instances in which any DOGE employee told an employee of a federal agency that the DOGE employee would or could call law enforcement in response to the other employee’s conduct, including who made such statement, the federal agency and conduct of the federal agency employee at issue, the law enforcement entity referenced, and, if the law enforcement was called, who made the call and law enforcement’s response….

Identify whether any DOGE employee or DOGE Team member has used or presently uses non-official messaging systems or applications with auto-delete functionality, including but not limited to Signal, to conduct government business [in violation of federal record-keeping laws; and identify…]

DOGE’s establishment, mission, responsibilities, personnel, leadership structure, authorities, and decision-making and reporting structure (including the relationship of DOGE to DOGE Teams and DOGE employees detailed to or otherwise working at or with federal agencies and the relationship of DOGE Teams to federal agencies) between January 20, 2025 and the date of deposition.

The scope of DOGE’s and DOGE Teams’ authority with regard to federal agencies, and actions DOGE or DOGE Teams have actually undertaken with regard to federal agencies, between January 20, 2025 and the date of deposition.

The role and responsibilities of all DOGE employees detailed to or otherwise working at or with federal agencies, or having supervisory authority over DOGE employees detailed to or otherwise working at or with federal agencies, between January 20, 2025 and the date of deposition, including their titles at DOGE and any federal government entity; their responsibilities at federal agencies, DOGE, and any other federal government entities to which they have been detailed and/or otherwise assigned; their authority with regard to
other federal agency staff; the supervision of said DOGE employees; and the policies, procedures, and protocols pertaining to their detailing to and activities at other federal agencies.

DOGE’s budget, resources, funding, and expenditure of federal funds.

DOGE’s recordkeeping and retention policies and practices….

Yep — these jamokes are in for a rough ride. Just as it ought to be. Onward.

नमस्ते

Space Telescope Advances — In Just About 18 Years: Spitzer To JWST…

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Regardless of how one feels about the naming of the JWST, there can be no debate — about its peepers: the gain in visual acuity is nothing short of breathtaking.

Both Hubble and Spitzer took wonderful images, even into the infrared, as well — for their day. But the Webb, or JWST as I refer to it… is like using binoculars for the first time, after hunting down hummingbirds, with your bare eyes… for decades. These are the same star forming region inside our own Milky Way, in a spot called Herbig-Haro 49/50 (HH 49/50), or the “Cosmic Tornado”.

It is very nearby — right in the neighborhood, when we are speaking in galaxy-scales.

I’ll offer more on the interstellar science about it all — and a nice new masthead… likely over the coming weekend.

But I wanted to pause here a moment — to note the geometric leap we’ve made in imaging, in under one crop of undergrads. These are things to smile about, even as a Secretary of Defense lies to our faces. Onward.

नमस्ते

Mr. Khalil And Other Columbia Students To Amend Their Complaint Against Kristi Noem And Trump And ICE And DHS…

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We will tune in tomorrow to several audio streamed hearings, including this one. Mr. Khalil will have the upper hand, that much is certain.

So… this will be interesting:

…Notwithstanding the Executive Branch Defendants’ and the Congressional Defendants’ position, in light of the fact that the Court maintained the Temporary Restraining Order pending the supplemental briefing owed to the Court tomorrow and contemplating Plaintiffs’ filing of an amended complaint, it is Plaintiffs’ position that the Temporary Restraining Order should remain in place unless and until the Court decides otherwise based on the filings tomorrow afternoon and the filing of the second amended complaint on Tuesday, or at whatever time the Court determines.

Accordingly, it is respectfully requested that the Court’s grant Plaintiffs’ request, pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. Rule 15(a)(2), to amend their complaint a second time….

Onward, grinning — these Tangerine 2.0 folks are… malign idiots.

New Supplement — In SF/Seattle — More Mayhem, From Trumpian Foot-Dragging On Complying With Court Orders Re Probationary Employees At HUD And NOAA…

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Pending before the able USDC Judge Alsup is a motion to compel the federal government to comply with the Alsup TRO and other prior orders, as to probationary employees. It seems Tangerine and Musk are foot-dragging on compliance.

In fact, it was just about two days ago that some Oregon HUD probationary employees were finally, unequivocally notified that they were re-instated, if that was what they wished. That order was entered 15 days ago, now. They are all owed missing paychecks, through tonight — no matter what. Here’s the just filed 22 page supplement — and a bit:

…The mass termination of probationary federal employees will have rippling effects statewide. For example, sweeping terminations of probationary employees at the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) could “effectively incapacitate” Washington’s housing authorities, which provide vital services to low-income Washingtonians. Dkt 70-7 ¶ 8. Mass firings at the National Institutes of Health would have deep financial implications for Washington state’s top research institutions. Id. ¶ 12. Terminations of NPS probationary employees will lead to unsafe conditions in Washington’s national parks — which receive tens of millions of visitors per year — and hamper park rangers’ ability to assist or rescue injured visitors. Id. ¶ 13.
Terminations at agencies like the BOR and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers risk compromising critical infrastructure such as the Grand Coulee Dam, the largest hydropower producer in the United States. Id. ¶ 16. And probationary employee terminations impacting wildfire response will significantly diminish Washington’s ability to prevent, respond, and contain catastrophic wildfires. Id. ¶ 15.

Of course, the record is already replete with examples of harms that have affected other Plaintiffs and that would similarly affect the State of Washington….

This may well lead to more than one Tangeriner or Muskite… spending a few nights in jail. Geez. Out.

नमस्ते