"Bottom line: if you were trying to create an economic meltdown, you could not be trying any harder than Trump is.
And Ruth Ben-Ghiat, an expert of totalitarian regimes, makes clear that this comes right out of the authoritarian playbook—because of the opportunities that a meltdown creates both politically and economically…for some."
~ David Pepper
#Musk #Trump #recession #inflation #authoritarianism #destruction #economy
/1
https://davidpepper.substack.com/p/trump-recession-is-coming
"Trump’s economic plans are incoherent and incomprehensible at least partially by design. The goal, by this longtime scam artist, is to bamboozle the American people and take their money."
~ Noah Berlatsky
#Musk #Trump #recession #inflation #authoritarianism #destruction #economy #BigLie
/2
https://www.publicnotice.co/p/trump-budget-2025-big-lie-mike-johnson
"An unprecedented recovery, a jobs boom, a renaissance in domestic manufacturing, and historic gains for Black workers may soon be a distant memory. President Joe Biden’s success in improving real incomes while fostering 21st century industries and revitalizing American infrastructure was consistently underplayed in corporate- and billionaire-owned media. Soon, those outlets may be pining for the good old days."
~ Jen Rubin
"The business press reflects rising panic:
'Stagflation fears bubble up as Trump tariffs take effect and the economy slows' CNBC
'The stagflation nightmare of the 1970s could rear its ugly head to take a toll on Americans’ wallets and livelihoods' Fortune
'The Two-Headed Monster Stalking the Economy Has a Name: Stagflation' Wall Street Journal"
#Musk #Trump #recession #inflation #authoritarianism #destruction #economy
/4
“''Stagflation’ Is One of Wall Street’s Biggest Nightmares. How to Prepare for the Worst' Barrons
'Trump's Tariff Flip-Flops Revive 'Stagflation' Fears' Investopedia
Now, even Trump won’t rule out a potential recession."
#Musk #Trump #recession #inflation #authoritarianism #destruction #economy
/5
"If you ask me, the public and especially big business are still behind the curve in understanding how much damage these people will inflict. Already we have a secretary of health and human services who responds to a major outbreak of measles by suggesting we take cod liver oil, and we have an agriculture secretary who suggests that the solution to high egg prices is to raise your own chickens."
~ Paul Krugman
#Musk #Trump #recession #inflation #economy
/6
https://paulkrugman.substack.com/p/the-paranoid-style-in-maga-policy
"Plus we’ve destroyed our alliances and are rapidly undermining our scientific and technological capacity.
As the economy stumbles and the stock market tanks, consumer confidence lags, and even some Trump voters are losing faith, what I find particularly revealing is how the Trump cabal are responding."
#Musk #Trump #recession #inflation #authoritarianism #destruction #economy
/7
"They aren’t rethinking their policies; they aren’t even making major efforts to justify their policies to an increasingly skeptical public. Instead, they’ve instantly descended into a pit of insane conspiracy theories. …
"While rule by crazy conspiracy theorists is an unquestionably bad state of affairs, let me lay out two specific reasons it’s bad":
1. The people in charge won’t learn from failure.
2. There will be a search for scapegoats.
Emily Singer offers a helpful rundown of the hogwash Republican elected officials are offering their constituents as the economic suffering Musk-Trump are creating sets in:
House Majority Whip Tom Emmer: "There may be some short-time disruption that's going to result in some negative impacts, no question.”
#Musk #Trump #recession #inflation #authoritarianism #destruction #economy
/9
Florida Rep. Greg Steube: "We have got to get our fiscal house in order in Washington, and if that means short-term pain for the country, then we're gonna have to walk through that together ...."
Missouri Rep. Mark Alford and Oklahoma Sen. Markwayne Mullin both tell constituents: You'll be paying more for things, but you'll love doing so.
#Musk #Trump #recession #inflation #authoritarianism #destruction #economy
/10
"In an affidavit filed in federal court on Friday, a former senior civil servant at the Social Security Administration (SSA) detailed how deputies for Elon Musk forced their way into the agency, formed a clandestine unit, and gained access to its most sensitive databases."
~ Caleb Ecarma
#Musk #Trump #DOGE #SocialSecurity #destruction #authoritarianism #economy
/11
https://www.muskwatch.com/p/in-affidavit-former-social-security
"Tiffany Flick, the affiant who served as the acting chief of staff to the commissioner of the agency until mid-February, also warned that careless actions by Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) could lead to interruptions in Social Security payments."
#Musk #Trump #DOGE #SocialSecurity #destruction #authoritarianism #economy
/12
"Donald Trump has done rapid, serious damage to the U.S. economy, and the MAGA elite knows it.
Saturated as the Trump movement is in fantasies and conspiracy theories, many of the people who manufacture myths for the Republican base do keep abreast of material reality."
~ Brian Beutler
#Musk #Trump #recession #inflation #authoritarianism #destruction #economy
/13
"They fear being caught by surprise. They don’t feel any obligation to prepare for and mitigate risks on behalf of American citizens, but rather to generate storylines about looming crises that hold Trump personally harmless, or paint him as victim or hero."
#Musk #Trump #recession #inflation #authoritarianism #destruction #economy
/14
"Here’s what’s really happening: U.S. markets are plummeting while global markets are rising. The first time since 1988 that U.S. stocks fell 3% while non-U.S. stocks rose 2.5%. Why? Because the U.S. under Trump has become a toxic cesspool of economic chaos."
~ Ben Meiselas
#Musk #Trump #recession #inflation #authoritarianism #destruction #economy #StockMarket #Dow
/15
https://www.meidasplus.com/p/trump-crashes-the-markets-and-panics
"Selling was intense on the Dow Jones Industrial Average and other major indexes in afternoon action Monday as recession fears mounted and Canada fired back on President Donald Trump's tariffs. Among the losers: Palantir Technologies (PLTR) got scorched, Nvidia (NVDA) continued to tumble, & Tesla (TSLA) saw its losses accelerate on the stock market today.
~ Michael Larkin
#Musk #Trump #recession #inflation #authoritarianism #destruction #economy #StockMarket #Dow
/16
"Following Friday's brief respite, indexes started tumbling again and kept sliding as morning turned to afternoon. The Dow plunged nearly 1,100 points, or 2.5%. American Express (AXP) and Goldman Sachs (GS) were among the worst laggards."
#Musk #Trump #recession #inflation #authoritarianism #destruction #economy #StockMarket #Dow
/17
Mark Mansour asks why Trump doesn't rein Musk in when it's clear many top Republicans including members of Trump's cabinet despise Musk. Mansour answers:
"In a word, Trump can’t rein him in because Putin doesn’t want him reined in."
#Musk #Trump #Putin #recession #inflation #authoritarianism #destruction #economy #StockMarket #Dow
/18
"Trump isn’t even pretending anymore. He is bragging about the firings, bragging about his tariffs and admitting that there may be a recession later in the year. By now, many of the idiots who voted him in must be realizing they were badly hoodwinked.
So what happens next? The best guess is that this will continue unabated."
#Musk #Trump #Putin #recession #inflation #authoritarianism #destruction #economy #StockMarket #Dow
/19
"Seven weeks after his inauguration, the bottom is falling out. Stocks are plunging. Treasury yields are falling. Consumer confidence is dropping. Inflation is picking up.
Over the weekend, Trump refused to rule out a recession this year, telling Fox News there will be a 'period of transition, because what we’re doing is very big.'”
~ Robert Reich
#Musk #Trump #Putin #recession #inflation #authoritarianism #destruction #economy #StockMarket #Dow
/20
"Well, yes, if 'very big' means destroying much of the federal government, allying with Putin against our traditional allies, and putting high tariff walls around America. …
Will the Trump slump turn into a recession? How will Trump lie and cheat his way out of it? Stay tuned."
#Musk #Trump #Putin #recession #inflation #authoritarianism #destruction #economy #StockMarket #Dow
/21
""The United States of America is in a free-fall not seen in modern history, and there is absolutely no reason to believe we will ever return to anything resembling respectability, or gain back the trust we lost when a serial-lying, Russia-owned convicted felon was elected" (continued in /23)
~ D. Earl Stephens
#Musk #Trump #Putin #recession #inflation #authoritarianism #destruction #economy #StockMarket #Dow
/22
(continued from /22)
"by a collection of selfish bigots, idiots, and trolls who whine they’ve been left behind because they can’t figure out a way to excavate themselves from the mud puddle they gleefully slid into.:
#Musk #Trump #Putin #recession #inflation #authoritarianism #destruction #economy #StockMarket #Dow
/23
Civil servant Jennifer Piggott lost her job in February due to Musk-Trump. She voted for Trump three times.
She now says people tell her, "You knew this was coming." She responds,
"But we didn't.
Nobody that I've talked to understood the devastation that having this administration in office would do to our lives."
Really?!
#Musk #Trump #Putin #recession #inflation #authoritarianism #destruction #economy #StockMarket #Dow
/24
