It's Happened: The United States of America Is No Longer a Democracy  —  If you haven't had time yet to soak in the details of the stunning Tom Homan story that Carol Leonnig and Ken Dilanian of MSNBC broke over the weekend, hold on to your hats.  I'd say you won't believe what you're about to read, but of course, you will.

Tulsi Gabbard Breaks With Trump in MAGA Free Speech Rebellion  —  CARR SMASHED  —  Political observers viewed the comments as an implicit rebuke to the administration's punitive steps attacking dissent  —  Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard has broken ranks with the Trump administration …

A lot of powerful people just don't realize how unpopular Trump is  —  Last week, ABC/Disney canceled Jimmy Kimmel's late-night show after the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, Brendan Carr, threatened to revoke the broadcast licenses of television stations that carry the program.

EXCLUSIVE |  Mamdani pulls planned ABC town hall event after network suspended Jimmy Kimmel's show  —  Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani announced Monday that he is cancelling a televised town hall with WABC News planned for Sept. 25 in the wake of the network suspending comedian …

Tables turn for Democrats as they use shutdown for leverage … It's Republicans who are pushing a “clean” seven-week continuing resolution, which they say will buy time for more negotiations on full-year spending bills and possibly an extension of expiring health insurance subsidies.

I Thought I Knew Silicon Valley.  I Was Wrong  —  Tech got what it wanted by electing Trump.  A year later, it looks more like a suicide pact.  —  For decades, Mark Lemley's life as an intellectual property lawyer was orderly enough.  He's a professor at Stanford University and has consulted for Amazon, Google, and Meta.

How ICE Raids Are Making It Easier for Civilian Men to Assault Immigrant Women  —  Kylie Cheung argues in this op-ed that a rash of cases of men dressing as plainclothes ICE agents and assaulting immigrant women is possible because ICE agents operate with impunity.

US offers financial lifeline to Argentina's Javier Milei  —  Scott Bessent proposes support package during market volatility  —  US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has said “all options” are on the table for the Trump administration to support Argentina through a bout of severe market volatility …

Trump Cancels Trail, Bike-Lane Grants Deemed ‘Hostile’ to Cars  —  The Trump administration canceled grants for street safety measures, pedestrian trails and bike lanes in communities around the country this month, each time offering a simple rationale for yanking back federal aid: the projects aren't designed for cars.

Transcript: Trump Boat Bombings Get Worse as Damning Info Emerges  —  The following is a lightly edited transcript of the September 22 episode of the Daily Blast podcast.  Listen to it here.  —  (Editor's note: After we recorded, Trump bombed a third vessel in similarly lawless fashion.)

Join the ACLU and Over 400 Artists to Defend Free Speech  —  Jimmy Kimmel was taken off the air after our government threatened a private company with retaliation for Kimmel's remarks.  This is a dark moment for freedom of speech in our nation.  —  This is unconstitutional and un-American.

Top Goon  —  Kristi Noem is the face of Trump's police state.  Corey Lewandowski is the muscle.  Who really runs DHS?  —  On the morning of May 7, before making his way to Capitol Hill to testify in front of Congress, Cameron Hamilton, then the acting administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, packed up his office.

Exclusive: US could hit entire International Criminal Court with sanctions soon  — U.S. considers entity-wide sanctions against ICC, sources say  — ICC member states to oppose U.S. sanctions at U.N. meeting  — ICC holds emergency meetings to prepare for U.S. sanctions

The Roberts Court Is Winning Its War on American Democracy … Twenty years ago, Chief Justice John Roberts took the oath of office and ushered in a new era for the Supreme Court.  His 2005 confirmation vote marked the transition from the Rehnquist court—where a narrow majority of conservatives …

Why Trump's directive to AG Bondi should be seen as an impeachment-level scandal  —  The president isn't just being accused of trying to weaponize federal law enforcement, he's now publicly flaunting his corrupt and authoritarian efforts.  —  Imagine a scenario in which an investigative reporter uncovered …

Trump Appointees Roll Back Enforcement of Fair Housing Laws  —  Interviews and internal documents show that signature civil rights protections in housing are being dismissed as ideologically driven and D.E.I. in disguise.  —  In one email, a Trump appointee at the Department of Housing …

Here's How Much The Trump Kids Have Made Because Of The Presidency  —  President Trump just had the most lucrative year of his life.  But percentage-wise, members of his immediate family, including sons Eric, Don Jr. and Barron, did even better.  —  President Trump's dad, Fred …

Trump Must Lose the Second Bank War  —  Henry Clay understood what was wrong with the unitary executive theory back in the 1830s.  —  “Eventually, executive power will become completely uncontainable, and our beloved constitutional Republic will be no more,” Supreme Court Justice Ketanji …

Trump's Tax Cut Is Underwater.  Can a ‘Refund Boom’ Save It?  —  Republicans are hoping a new name, along with larger refunds for many Americans next year, can buoy an economic agenda that polls show is unpopular.  —  Republicans admit there is a problem with the broad tax and health care law they passed this summer.

Allvin: First F-47 Sixth-Gen Fighter Already Being Built, Expected to Fly in 2028  —  NATIONAL HARBOR, Md.—The first F-47 Next-Generation Air Dominance fighter will be ready to fly by 2028, and the first airframe is already being built, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David W. Allvin announced during …

Trump Wants to Target Left-Wing Groups.  Here's How He Might Do It … There is a long history of political players improperly deploying the IRS for political purposes, says Patrick G. Eddington, a senior fellow at the Cato Institute.  “The IRS has been misused repeatedly …

Supreme Court will weigh expanding Trump's power to shape agencies by overturning 90-year-old ruling  —  The Supreme Court said Monday it will consider expanding President Donald Trump's power to shape independent agencies by overturning a nearly century-old decision limiting when presidents can fire board members.

The US economy has a new problem: Democracy is under siege  —  The nation's top economic statistician was fired.  Central bank independence is being undermined.  The federal government is buying chunks of private companies and demanding cuts of revenue streams.

Why Democrats can't match Trump's gerrymander push … “It's no doubt the case that it's harder for Democrats to do this right now than Republicans,” said All About Redistricting author and researcher Douglas Spencer, an expert in election law at the University of Colorado.

Florida launches ‘violent extremism’ portal for public to report threats  —  Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced Monday that the state is expanding ways for residents to report alleged threats of political violence.  —  During a press conference at Valencia College in Orlando …

Trump to Redirect $2.4 Billion in California High-Speed Rail Aid  —  The Trump administration plans to allocate the roughly $2.4 billion that was stripped from California's embattled high-speed rail to other transit projects.  —  US Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said Monday …

NASA introduces its newest astronauts: 10 chosen from more than 8,000 applicants  —  NASA introduced its newest astronauts Monday, 10 scientists, engineers and test pilots chosen from more than 8,000 applicants to help explore the moon and possibly Mars.  For the first time …