Trump Seizes Capital, Vows Violence - The Tuesday AM Quickie 8/12/25
Another day, another message from space: a tiny asteroid 20 million years older than Earth pierced the roof of a Georgia man’s house and dented his floor. Jealous. That’s it from me this week. Over to Corey. - Whitney

ON THE SHOW TODAY
8/12: Today’s guest is Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-FL), representing Florida's 10th Congressional District. He is the former national director of March for Our Lives and the youngest member of Congress.
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Today you’ll read about Trump’s takeover of the US capital, the GOP’s massive wealth transfer to the richest 10 percent of Americans, and out-of-control wildfires across North America.
THE BIG NEWS
Trump Seizes Capital, Vows Violence
Trump deployed 800 National Guard troops to Washington, DC and took over the district’s police force yesterday, in a show of authoritarianism he said he’d bring to cities nationwide. He repeated the lie that the capital city is riven with crime; in fact, crime is at a 30-year low. And he said federal agents, DC police and National Guard members would use physical violence against civilians, The New York Times and The Washington Post reported.
“They fight back until you knock the hell out of them, because it’s the only language they understand,” Trump told reporters at the White House Monday. “It’s a disgusting thing.”
“It’s becoming a situation of complete and total lawlessness, and we’re getting rid of the slums, too,” Trump said. “I know it’s not politically correct. You’ll say, ‘Oh, so terrible.’ No, we’re getting rid of the slums where they live.”
Trump seized DC under the Home Rule Act, which allows him to take control of the police force for 30 days, or longer if Congress authorizes an extension. Troops are expected to be in town today under a deployment order set to end Sept. 25, NBC News reported last night. Among Trump’s first victims will be unhoused people. He told reporters they are “bloodthirsty criminals” and vowed to drive them out of town, but didn’t say how or where they would go.