Weekend Report: What's going on?

The FBI raids John Bolton's home, as Trump targets critics. White supremacy enters mainstream, but New York Times headline writers just don't get it. Newsom's trolling was highlight of the week.

Photo: Benjamin Wittis

Donald Trump’s former national security advisor, John Bolton, a staunch critic of Trump, saw his home raided by the FBI yesterday. This received lots of well-deserved headlines, as the stench of retribution was overwhelming. Less focused on is how Trump is also using accusations of “mortgage fraud” to target perceived enemies and push people he doesn’t like out of jobs.

The New York Times has a great report on how white supremacy has been mainstreamed by Trump and the MAGA movement, and how overt racism is now completely accepted in Republican politics. Except that the headline doesn’t tell us that, instead giving legitimacy—ironically doing exactly what the piece actually claims is happening in our politics—by calling all of this the “far right,” as if it’s another acceptable part of the political spectrum.

In a week that was among the most concerning of Trump 2.0—from the Vladimir Putin “summit” fiasco to the further military occupation of Washington, DC—California Governor Gavin Newsom at least got under Trump’s and MAGA’s skin, which is more than can be said of many other Democrats.