Trump’s Putin Autopen by Ann Telnaes
It saves time for his ballroom, arch, and golf course renovations Read on Substack
Who really wrote that initial 28-point deal?
A Statement from Ty Jones Cox at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities:
Taking Away Food Assistance Puts the Trump Administration on the Wrong Side of History
If you care about federal food assistance, it’s been a head-spinning couple of months.
Earlier this year, the Trump Administration and congressional Republicans enacted the largest cuts in history in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and canceled the long-standing annual Department of Agriculture survey that would document the cuts’ harms. But when the government shutdown began, they started expressing concern about risks to SNAP and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC).
It “helps no one” to cut SNAP benefits, said House Budget Committee Republicans. No one should “allow impoverished mothers and their babies to go hungry,” the White House Press Secretary opined — that is “so cruel.”
But as Maya Angelou said: when people show you who they are, believe them the first time.
And sure enough, as the shutdown went on, it became clear that President Trump was not concerned about the millions of people across the U.S. who need SNAP to help cover their grocery bills. They were just pawns in his political battle.
The Trump Administration became so determined to deny people their SNAP benefits that it fought all the way to the Supreme Court, even though the funds were available and it had the legal authority to use them.The Trump Administration became so determined to deny people their SNAP benefits that it fought all the way to the Supreme Court, even though the funds were available and it had the legal authority to use them.
The government has now reopened, and these nutrition programs are thankfully funded until the fall of 2026. The Administration hasn’t let up, though. Agriculture Secretary Rollins — after saying the government would be “failing” people if it didn’t provide SNAP benefits — has resumed her attacks on the program, falsely labeling it “corrupt” and ridden with “fraud.” In reality, SNAP has one of the most rigorous eligibility determination systems of any federal benefit program and SNAP participants must verify their eligibility regularly to stay connected to the program.
There’s a silver lining here: the public is more aware than ever of the value of programs like SNAP. There was a huge outcry and concern over the Trump Administration’s attempts to unlawfully and unnecessarily withhold SNAP benefits. The public won’t soon forget that SNAP benefits were suspended, and they won’t like seeing more people lose their benefits permanently as the food assistance cuts in the Republican megabill get implemented.
There is a long, proud tradition of bipartisan support for food assistance programs in the United States, grounded in a shared belief that no one should go hungry in a country with as many resources as ours. People from coast to coast and everywhere in between still deeply believe that cutting food assistance puts the Trump Administration and congressional Republicans at odds with broadly shared American values and on the wrong side of history.
(Embedded beneath the title with their code. Click through on the title to see the tables.)
Lobbying firms with close ties to President Donald Trump are raking in staggering amounts of revenue, and K Street spending is growing at the fastest pace since the federal government instituted quarterly reporting requirements in 2008.
While changes in administration shift which lobbying firms attract the most clients, Trump’s second term has introduced outsized growth among businesses that normally lag far behind the top-earning firms.
This year’s lobbying expenditures are growing at the fastest pace since quarterly reporting began in 2008. The first three quarters of 2025 saw a 13.1 percent increase in lobbying spending as compared to 2024. Adjusted for inflation, the year-over-year growth for the first three quarters was 7.7 percent. window.addEventListener(“message”,function(a){if(void 0!==a.data[“datawrapper-height”]){var e=document.querySelectorAll(“iframe”);for(var t in a.data[“datawrapper-height”])for(var r,i=0;r=e[i];i++)if(r.contentWindow===a.source){var d=a.data[“datawrapper-height”][t]+”px”;r.style.height=d}}});
While third-quarter lobbying tends to be quieter as Congress takes its August recess, Q3 of 2025 saw an 11.8 percent increase in non-adjusted spending when compared to 2024, the largest increase since 2009.
In total, the first nine months of 2025 saw $3.8 billion in lobbying spending. During the same period in 2024, lobbying spending totaled $3.3 billion.
Record increases in spending have coincided with Trump’s sweeping changes to policies and government institutions.
Trump’s second term has been marked by the explosive growth of lobbying firms that have close ties to the president. Leading the pack is Ballard Partners,
Ballard dethroned the previous top-earning lobbying firm, Brownstein, Hyatt, once year-to-date numbers were updated with Q3 earnings. Ballard has been paid $59.5 million for lobbying services in 2025, compared to the former lobbying king’s $54 million. Brownstein, Hyatt had earned the most revenue every year from 2021 to 2024.
In last year’s third quarter, Ballard Partners took in $4.7 million and ranked 16th. This year, it made over five times that, bringing in $25 million in just the third quarter.
The firm’s founder, Brian Ballard, was chairman of the Trump Victory PAC in 2016 and 2017. During President Joe Biden’s term, Ballard remained close with Trump while his lobbying firm lost nearly a dozen clients not even a year into the administration. In the first three quarters since Trump returned to office, the firm gained 135 clients, nearly doubling its roster.
A number of former Ballard Partners lobbyists are now serving in the White House as senior officials, including White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles and Attorney General Pam Bondi. window.addEventListener(“message”,function(a){if(void 0!==a.data[“datawrapper-height”]){var e=document.querySelectorAll(“iframe”);for(var t in a.data[“datawrapper-height”])for(var r,i=0;r=e[i];i++)if(r.contentWindow===a.source){var d=a.data[“datawrapper-height”][t]+”px”;r.style.height=d}}});
Ballard Partners isn’t the only firm profiting from the new administration. Among the top 20 earners of the third quarter, the firms that saw the most year-over-year growth in the first three quarters all have ties to Trump.
Businesses and foreign governments flocked to Trump-connected lobbying firms amid confusion and concern over which imports and countries would be affected by tariffs. As a result, the number of clients who hired lobbyists to address tariff policy more than tripled between the first three quarters of 2024 and 2025, reaching 342. window.addEventListener(“message”,function(a){if(void 0!==a.data[“datawrapper-height”]){var e=document.querySelectorAll(“iframe”);for(var t in a.data[“datawrapper-height”])for(var r,i=0;r=e[i];i++)if(r.contentWindow===a.source){var d=a.data[“datawrapper-height”][t]+”px”;r.style.height=d}}});
Lobbyists have said that the strategies to affect trade policy have changed since the first Trump administration. To have influence, lobbyists need to have close personal relationships with the president and those serving under him.. Brian Ballard attributed the growth of his firm to attracting clients concerned about tariffs.
Along with tariffs, trade lobbying has also seen an increase in clients, with the number of clients in the first nine months of 2025 increasing 40 percent compared to the same period last year, rising to 1,570. Trade was also the fifth most lobbied issue from Q1 to Q3 in 2025.
The issues with the most lobbyists in the first three quarters of 2025 were the federal budget and appropriations, health issues and taxes.
The miscellaneous health industry, which includes health organizations that aren’t health professionals, health services and HMOs or pharmaceuticals, more than doubled its lobbying spending in the first three quarters of 2025 compared to the same period last year. The Trump administration’s cuts to Medicaid and a potential lapse in funding for the Affordable Care Act have spurred more lobbying activity. In the first nine months of 2025, the industry spent $13.8 million on lobbying. window.addEventListener(“message”,function(a){if(void 0!==a.data[“datawrapper-height”]){var e=document.querySelectorAll(“iframe”);for(var t in a.data[“datawrapper-height”])for(var r,i=0;r=e[i];i++)if(r.contentWindow===a.source){var d=a.data[“datawrapper-height”][t]+”px”;r.style.height=d}}});
The industry’s top spender was Kidney Care Partners, which spent $945,000. The groups the organization represents include dialysis providers and pharmaceutical companies. In 2025, they’ve hired lobbyists to consult on Medicaid and Medicare issues and other health issues.
Lobbying in public education policy has come primarily from “school choice” advocacy groups, followed by organizations focused on strengthening or reforming public schools. The industry spent $902,000 in the first nine months, a 97 percent increase compared to the same period last year.
Invest in Education Policy, a conservative organization that works to advance school choice, was the highest spender in public education policy. The group spent $500,000 to lobby for the Educational Choice for Children Act of 2025 and the One Big Beautiful Bill. The Educational Choice for Children Act was included in Trump’s OBBB package passed earlier this year. It will provide a tax credit to generate money for families’ educational expenses, including private school tuition.
The industries that spent the most on lobbying in the first nine months of this year are the pharmaceuticals & health products industry, the electronics manufacturing and equipment industry, and the securities and investments industry, which spent $341.3 million, $226.3 million and $136.4 million, respectively.
This article was originally published by OpenSecrets, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that tracks money in politics. View the original article.
MTG is a piece of work (as we know.) This is from Talking Points Memo, linked just beneath this. Then, there’s a video with that Bluesky post next; you’ll want to click through. I didn’t listen; her voice is slightly more pleasant than POTUS’s.
In a reality TV presidency, you need beefs, heels, betrayals, prodigals returning, and all manner of plot tricks to sustain the manufactured artificial drama. Who knows where this plot twist ends up going:
BASH: We have seen these attacks from the president at other people. It’s not new. And I haven’t heard you speak out about it until it was directed at you. MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE: I think that’s fair criticism. And I would like to say, humbly, I’m sorry for taking part in the toxic politics.
[image or embed]— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) November 16, 2025 at 8:31 AM
https://morningmemo.talkingpointsmemo.com/i/179152267/quote-of-the-day
Scottie's Playtime 