Subscribe

What Kind of Regime Are MAGA Oligarchs Building? - The Friday AM Quickie 2/7/25

By Corey Pein —

I'm rooting for the Eagles in the Super Bowl because I want to see what kind of mischief the fine people of Philly will get up to. - Corey

SunsetLakeCBD.com

Valentine’s Day is nearly here. Whether you're spoiling your special someone or treating yourself, Sunset Lake CBD has the perfect way to celebrate: delicious CBD-infused edibles.

From setting the mood to relaxing after a long day—or simply enjoying a peaceful night’s sleep—their CBD treats are made to make your Valentine’s Day even sweeter.

Save 35% on all CBD edibles and select bundles when you use code “Valentine” at checkout! But hurry—this exclusive offer ends February 9th at midnight ET. See site for additional terms and conditions.

Subscribe to the AM Quickie's NEW paid newsletters here!

THE BIG NEWS

AOC: Don't Panic! Take a Breath and Call Your Senators

Jacob and I have been doing our best to keep you up to speed about the second Trump administration's blitzkrieg campaign to overthrow the constitutional order. It's clear the Trumpocalypse threatens what's left of American democracy. What's not yet clear is exactly how the MAGA coalition, from fundamentalist Christians to power-worshipping tech oligarchs, plans to remake the government in the wake of this constitutional crisis.

Has there been an unlawful seizure of power by an unelected and unpopular foreign billionaire? Certainly, and that's how the Congressional Progressive Caucus describes the situation.

Are we seeing a second Trump coup attempt? That's what The New Republic calls it.

Is the Republican goal a dictatorship? Oregon Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley thinks so.

Is it fascism? The writer John Ganz argues as much.

Is it a corporate putsch to establish a privately owned "network state"? Emma and the MR crew had a great discussion yesterday about that very question.

Sadly, it may be all of the above, in some measure. And Trump, whose role seems to consist of ranting and rambling and signing orders people hand to him, almost certainly doesn't have a handle on what his sycophants are doing.

New York Squad Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez tries to explain everything that's happened since Trump returned to the White House in a 90-minute Instagram video posted this week. It's worth a listen. Here's the gist:

"What Donald Trump has done is completely given up his power and handed a lot of it over to Elon Musk. Elon Musk has appointed some teenagers and some people in their early 20s to raid US systems, including sensitive information at the US Department of Treasury," AOC explains. (Federal judges yesterday ordered limits on Musk's access to Treasury data and his push for federal workers to resign, but much damage has already been done.) "They're going after money and they're going after people."

AOC implicates not only Musk but all the billionaires who attended Trump's inauguration – including Amazon's Jeff Bezos and Meta's Mark Zuckerberg – in the establishment of this undemocratic new regime. "They are controlling media, they are controlling digital communications, and they are doing all of this so they can prop up Trump and personally profit." AOC also suggests that Musk's AI-powered raid of the Treasury is intended to help pay for the $4 trillion in tax cuts for the wealthy that Republicans hope to renew this year.

The situation is by no means hopeless. "The paralysis and the shock that you feel right now is the point. They are trying to induce a passivity among the general public. It is of political importance to take a breath. That does not mean tune out, it does not mean be apathetic. It just means take a breath, because we are about to lock in and focus," she says, asking supporters to call their Senators to urge that they reject Trump nominees, and to make sure their neighbors know their rights. And to avoid giving in to fear. "We are in the Wizard of Oz. They want you to think it's this big green floating head. When they are little, little, little, little men...with big, fragile egos."

Trumpocalypse, Con't.: Democratic Talkathon Fails to Stop Confirmation of Project 2025 Honcho as White House Budget Boss

  • Only 290 Workers May Survive Unlawful Purge of 10,000 USAID Staff and Contractors; US Farmers May Lose Out on $2.1 Billion in Food Aid Sales "The biggest thing that keeps me up at night is that I see USAID's destruction as a test case — a practice run — in how far the administration can bend or break the law to get what they want," one USAID official says. "We are the canary in the coal mine." via NBC News, the Washington Post, and the Associated Press.
  • Trump Sanctions International Criminal Court Over Its Investigations of War Crimes in Gaza "One leader in Dearborn, [Michigan,] granted anonymity to speak candidly, described a sense of remorse among some in the Arab American community who voted for Trump or sat out the election but now 'think we screwed up but we're not going to admit it.'" via the Associated Press, Politico, NBC News, and the New York Times.
  • New Attorney General Pam Bondi Gives Free Reign to Foreign Influence Campaigns "Bondi, before becoming attorney general, had worked as a corporate lobbyist for clients that included Qatar." via NBC News and the Washington Post.
  • Justice Department Sues Chicago Over Sanctuary Policies as NYC Tells City Workers to Defer to ICE If They Feel 'Fear' Meanwhile in New Delhi, liberal Congress Party lawmakers protested the violent and "degrading" treatment of 104 Indians deported from the US, an experience one unfortunate migrant calls "worse than hell." via the Chicago Sun-Times, the New York Times, and the AP.
  • 'Intolerable': Panama's President Says US State Department Is Lying About Him Cutting a New Deal Over the Canal An anonymous State veteran claims Marco Rubio has "a Trump campaign minder" looking over his shoulder; it's also unclear whether Trump put Rubio in charge of the National Archives and Records Administration in addition to his other gig as the country's top diplomat. via the AP, the New York Times, and 404 Media.
  • Federal Firefighter Hiring Halted as New FAA Chief Promises to 'Remake Our Airspace' with Musk-Led Computer Overhaul Trump yesterday mused about last week's deadly midair crash over Washington, DC, likening the situation to his favorite sport, saying, "It's like, did you ever see, you go to a driving range in golf and you're hitting balls, hundreds of balls, thousands of hours. I never see a ball hit another ball." via NBC News and the Washington Post.
  • Bemoaning 'Anti-Christian Bias,' Trump Names Megachurch 'Prosperity' Preacher to Lead New White House Faith Office At the National Prayer Breakfast at the Capitol, Trump yesterday said the two attempts on his life had caused him to "feel much more strongly" about God, whom Trump believes "saved me." via the AP.
  • Even Before Kash Patel Gets Confirmed, the FBI 'Is Already Dead' Accidental acting director Brian "Drizz" Driscoll yesterday handed over the names of agents who worked on Jan. 6 cases to the Justice Department, despite "concerns for the safety of our personnel." via HuffPost, Politico, and CNN.

QUICKEST QUICKIES

  • Israeli Military Prepares for Supposedly 'Voluntary Departure' of Gaza Palestinians "Strong winds, rain and winter are adding to the suffering of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza, with thousands of families living in worn-out tents after their homes were destroyed in Israel's bombardment." via NBC News, Al Jazeera, and the Associated Press.
  • CDC Posts Then Deletes Report on Bird Flu Showing Humans Shared Virus with Pets Trump has silenced the public health agency, along with many others; experts fear that new evidence about bird flu may be being held up "for political purposes" in a way that will cause harm. via the New York Times.
  • Despite Videos, Southern California Edison Says There's No Evidence Its Equipment Caused Eaton Fire As of yesterday more than 40 lawsuits from more than 600 residents have been filed against the utility, blaming its equipment for starting the blaze that torched 9,000 homes. via NBC News and the Los Angeles Times.
  • Brazil's in-School Smartphone Ban Takes Effect Mariana Waetge, a 13-year-old student, reports that "people who didn't have many friends and would use their phones to hide" now instead "end up playing board games or reading books." via the AP.

SOME NUMBER

$250–$15,000

That's how much the Shirion Collective "surveillance network" founded by Florida tech entrepreneur Daniel Linden has offered as a bounty to anyone who can identify students, doctors, or politicians protesting for Palestinian rights. As the Intercept reports, Shirion is collaborating with another pro-Israel group, Betar US, to document who shows up at pro-Palestine protests in the hope that the Trump administration will deport them.

ON THE SHOW TODAY

2/7: Happy Friday! The MR Crew break down the biggest headlines of the week.

DON'T MISS MR CLIPS‌

Fox Host Has Violent and Inhumane Reaction to Trump Trans Ban

I'm a little surprised they let the brunette girls participate

CLASH OF THE TITANS

The right is starting to get better at comedy and it's making lefties nervous!

PARTING WORDS

"I know they're guilty because they did something wrong. That's how they got a ticket."

-- Former Republican Petersburgh, New York town justice Richard Snyder, speaking to the State Commission on Judicial Conduct last year about his attempt to get out of jury duty by saying his work as an untrained lay justice had biased him against defendants. Snyder resigned in December, the New York Times reports, but his lack of is experience is typical of the colonial-era system many states still use to process minor cases.

Anniversary Sale!

It's the 20th anniversary of The Majority Report, and we have the merch to prove it! Buy some swag at shop.majorityreportradio.com and help us keep going for another 20 years. Thanks!

Quickie Discount Code Corner

Hey check it out! Stuff on sale!

Check out Seder's Seeds at sedersseeds.com! 
It's growing season, so it's time to get your very own Seder's Seeds! Go to https://sedersseeds.com and get 15% off your entire order when you enter the discount code Majority

IAC Laser Engraving: Visit https://iaclasers.com and use Coupon Code MAJORITY10 at checkout to save 10% on your order. They have also updated their site recently, so if you’ve visited in the past, you’ll want to visit again and check out the new products.

Fast Growing Trees: This Spring Fast Growing Trees has the best deals online, up to half off on select plants and other deals. And listeners to our show get an ADDITIONAL 15% OFF their first purchase when using the code MAJORITY at checkout. That’s an ADDITIONAL 15% OFF at https://FastGrowingTrees.com using the code MAJORITY at checkout. https://FastGrowingTrees.com code MAJORITY. Offer is valid for a limited time, terms and conditions may apply.

Earthbreeze: Right now, my listeners can receive 40% off Earth Breeze just by going to https://earthbreeze.com/majority! That's https://earthbreeze.com/majority to cut out single-use plastic in your laundry room and claim forty percent off your subscription.

Blueland Cleaning Products: Blueland has a special offer for listeners. Right now, get 15% off your first order by going to https://Blueland.com/MAJORITY. You won’t want to miss this! https://Blueland.com/MAJORITY for 15% off.

Prolon: Right now, Prolon is offering The Majority Report with Sam Seder listeners 10% off their 5-day nutrition program. Go to https://ProlonLife.com/MAJORITY.

ExpressVPN: Stop handing over your personal data to the Big Tech monopoly that mines your activity and sells your information. Protect yourself with the VPN I trust to keep me safe online. Visit https://ExpressVPN.com/majority. That’s https://ExpressVPN.com/majority to get three extra months free.

Ritual: Essential for Men is a quality multivitamin from a company you can actually trust. Get 40% off your first month for a limited time at https://ritual.com/MAJORITY. This offer is only available through January 31st. Start Ritual or add Essential For Men to your subscription today.

ZBiotics: Go to https://zbiotics.com/MAJORITY to get 15% off your first order when you use MAJORITY at checkout. You can also sign up for a subscription using my code - so you can stay prepared no matter the time or occasion. ZBiotics is backed with 100% money back guarantee so if you’re unsatisfied for any reason, they’ll refund your money, no questions asked.

Henson Shaving: Henson Shaving is giving my audience a 2-year supply of blades for FREE. Just go to https://HENSONSHAVING.com/MAJORITY, That’s https://HENSONSHAVING.com/MAJORITY. Add a razor and 100-pack of blades to your cart, then enter code MAJORITY to get the blades for free.

Shopify: Sign up for a one-dollar-per-month trial period at https://shopify.com/majority. Go to https://shopify.com/majority now to grow your business–no matter what stage you’re in.

LiquidIV: Revive yourself for the New Year. Grab your Liquid I.V. Hydration Multiplier Sugar-Free in bulk nationwide at Costco or get 20% off your first order when you go to https://liquidiv.com/majorityrep at checkout. That’s 20% off your first order when you shop better hydration today using promo code MAJORITYREP at https://liquidiv.com.

Nutrafol: Take the first step to visibly thicker, healthier hair. For a limited time, Nutrafol is offering our listeners ten dollars off your first month’s subscription and free shipping when you go to https://Nutrafol.com/men and enter the promo code TMR. Find out why over 4,000 healthcare professionals recommend Nutrafol for healthier hair.

Sunset Lake CBD: Sunsetlakecbd is a majority employee owned farm in Vermont, producing 100% pesticide free CBD products. Use code Leftisbest and get 20% off at http://www.sunsetlakecbd.com.

CozyEarth: IF you’ve never tried Cozy Earth, I've got awesome news!  You can SAVE up to 35%  off Cozy Earth right now!  But hurry... this offer won't last.  Go to https://CozyEarth.com and enter mypromo code MAJORITY REPORT at checkout for up to 35% off on your first order!  That's https://CozyEarth.com promo code MAJORITY REPORT.