James Downie

2 weeks ago | msnbc.com | James Downie

As President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk escalated their feud, Senate Republicans were escalating their search for spending reductions in the “big, beautiful bill” that started the feud in the first place. Not satisfied with massive reductions to Medicaid, GOP lawmakers — with the president’s support — now have Medicare in their sights, according to NBC News.

3 weeks ago | msnbc.com | James Downie

President Donald Trump demanded Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell lower interest rates, on the heels of an unofficial jobs report hitting its lowest level in over two years. "ADP NUMBER OUT!!! 'Too Late' Powell must now LOWER THE RATE. He is unbelievable!!!" the president wrote Wednesday morning. The "ADP number" Trump refers to is the payroll processing firm's latest jobs report. According to ADP, in May private payrolls increased by just 37,000, the worst showing for any month since March 2023.

3 weeks ago | msnbc.com | James Downie

Billionaire Elon Musk blasted the Republican spending bill, the signature legislation of President Donald Trump's first year back in office, in a post on X on Tuesday. "I’m sorry, but I just can’t stand it anymore," Musk wrote. "This massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill is a disgusting abomination. Shame on those who voted for it: you know you did wrong.

3 weeks ago | flipboard.com | James Downie

5 hours agoElon Musk has hit out at President Donald Trump's signature tax and spending bill, describing it as a "disgusting abomination". The legislation - which includes multi-trillion dollar tax breaks and more defence spending while also allowing the US government to borrow more money - was passed by the …

4 weeks ago | msnbc.com | James Downie

When news broke that the White House had appealed the U.S. Court of International Trade’s ruling that most of President Donald Trump’s tariffs are illegal, I thought of the old familiar story of the man who lived by the river. Upon hearing a weather report that the river will flood, he resolves to stay. “God will save me,” he says. After being swept into the river, he’s carried past a branch he doesn’t reach for. “God will save me,” he says.