Latest news with #Trump-endorsed
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
DeSantis picks Blaise Ingoglia for CFO over Trump candidate
TALLAHASSEE — Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday elevated longtime ally Sen. Blaise Ingoglia to be the state's chief financial officer, choosing him over a candidate backed by President Donald Trump. Florida's CFO position has been vacant for more than half a year after Jimmy Patronis left the seat to run for Congress. Ingoglia, whom DeSantis called 'the most conservative senator in the state of Florida,' will serve as CFO through 2026, when the seat is up for election. 'I am going to be the conservative pitbull when it comes to spending as your next CFO,' Ingoglia said Wednesday during a news conference in Tampa with the governor. Florida's chief financial officer makes about $140,000 a year, serves on the state Cabinet and leads the state Department of Financial Services, which oversees financial regulators and investigates insurance fraud. The CFO signs the state's checks and has the power to audit how people are using state dollars. Both DeSantis and Ingoglia honed in on that power, with Ingoglia saying he intends to scrutinize local government budgets and 'start calling out some of this wasteful spending.' Ingoglia also said his priorities were working to eliminate property taxes on homesteaded locations, which DeSantis has pushed for. When Ingoglia ran for office in 2013, he had unpaid property taxes of more than $10,000, which he paid off after the Times asked him about the debt. He also said Wednesday he would focus on housing affordability and insurance. 'If an insurance company does not do what they say they're going to do, and contractually obligated to do, I am going to call you out,' Ingoglia said. Ingoglia has been in the Legislature since 2014, when he was elected to the Florida House of Representatives. He was elected to the Senate in 2022 to represent part of Pasco and all of Hernando County after DeSantis endorsed him, effectively shutting down what could have been a competitive Republican primary. In the Senate and on social media, Ingoglia has been an outspoken DeSantis supporter. He sponsored the DeSantis-proposed immigration bills early this year that legislative leaders bucked. As DeSantis rattled off Ingoglia's legislative accomplishments, the governor compared him favorably to Sen. Joe Gruters, R-Sarasota. Last year, Trump endorsed Gruters for CFO in 2026, saying that Gruters 'was on the 'Trump Train' before it even left the station.' On Wednesday, Gruters announced that Trump advisers Chris LaCivita and Tony Fabrizio are working on his 2026 CFO bid. When asked why he would support Ingoglia over the Trump-endorsed Gruters, DeSantis said that Gruters' 'record is contrary to what we've told the voters we would do.' DeSantis said he had never spoken about the CFO job with Trump. DeSantis called out Gruters for sponsoring an immigration bill this year that the governor vetoed. He also sponsored the compromise immigration package DeSantis signed into law shortly after. DeSantis also said Ingoglia was better on Second Amendment issues. Ingoglia didn't vote for the 2018 post-Parkland bill that instated red flag laws and raised the gun buying age to 21 in Florida, while Gruters did. (Gruters and Ingoglia this past session were both co-sponsors on legislation to reverse the gun buying age provision, which failed to get a hearing.) Gruters also found himself on the other side of DeSantis this last election, when he supported Amendment 3, a proposal to allow recreational marijuana use. Trump supported that amendment, but DeSantis leaned on the power of state government to fight against it. The amendment ultimately failed. Gruters is one of three candidates who have filed to run for chief financial officer in 2026. The other candidates are Republican Frank William Collige, a public adjuster, and Republican Benjamin Horbowy, who ran unsuccessfully for Florida Senate in 2020. Ingoglia has not yet filed to run for CFO in 2026. Former House Rep. Ralph Massullo, R-Lecanto, quickly announced his plan to run for Ingoglia's vacated Senate seat. DeSantis on Wednesday announced his endorsement of Massullo in a post on social media. Solve the daily Crossword
DW
12-07-2025
- Politics
- DW
For France's far right, US ties demand careful balancing act – DW – 07/12/2025
Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally is eyeing the 2027 elections. But the party is wary of the fallout for France from the Trump administration's policies. As President Donald Trump and his administrationbuild ties with far-right parties across Europe, France's National Rally is offering a wary response to Washington's overtures, as it surges in the polls and hopes to finally clinch victory in the country's 2027 presidential election. Multiple factors are shaping the National Rally's cautious approach towards Trump and his MAGA movement, analysts say: From the French party's traditional, if fading, distrust of a 'hegemonic' United States, to the negative impact on France of US tariffs, to strong antipathy towards Trump on the part of many French voters. "Overall they are relatively ideologically aligned with Trump, and they've been positive about his re-election," said Camille Lons, deputy Paris Office head of the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) of the National Rally. "But they're much more careful than a number of other populist leaders in Europe. There is more distance in the relationship than in Germany, or Italy for example." In Germany, some observers believe that strong backing by Trump allies, like Vice President JD Vance and Elon Musk, helped to catapult the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party to second place in the February elections. In Italy, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's warm relations with the US leader have lifted her standing within the European Union, which sees her as a potential bridge to smoothing ties with Washington. The Trump administration's influence is also discernable elsewhere in Europe, including in Hungary and in Poland, both of which hosted the US-founded Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) this year — a first for Warsaw, where the Trump-endorsed candidate Karol Nawrocki won June's presidential elections. "From the American side, these parties are seen as potential instruments to influence European politics," said German Marshall Fund program officer Zsuzsanna Vegh. "The fact they're euroskeptic and challenge the European Union plays into the hands of the [Trump] administration." But the US leader's brand carries risks for the National Rally, analysts say, even though France's leading opposition party shares his nationalistic, anti-immigration views. A June ECFR poll showed 55% of French saw Trump's policies as not only harmful for their own country, but half also believed they harmed the United States. Among National Rally voters, only 37% considered Trump's policies good for US citizens; just 18% thought they were good for French ones. "The National Rally is pursuing a strategy of vote maximalization," ahead of the 2027 elections, said Vegh. "It needs to appear as a party that is moderate enough to be able to draw voters from the mainstream — and not alienate its own electorate, which is also quite skeptical of Trump's impact on France." Trump's threat of massivetariffs on EU imports — potentially hitting French industry and agriculture — offers one example of the negative fallout, Vegh said. The National Rally "can't really risk appearing to be on overly friendly terms with a leader who might harm the interests of their core, blue-collar electorate." For National Rally leader and three-time presidential candidate Marine Le Pen, the Trump administration poses a delicate balancing act in other ways. Since inheriting the party from her father in 2011, Le Pen has spent years broadening and diversifying its base, reaching out to gay, Jewish, younger and more center-right voters — even as the National Rally's anti-immigrant, populist core remained intact. Her party emerged in first place in last year's European Parliament and French National Assembly elections, although it failed to capture a majority. Unlike other European far-right figures, Le Pen was not invited to Trump's inauguration. Earlier this year, her 29-year-old protege and National Rally president, Jordan Bardella, tangled with MAGA heavyweight Steve Bannon — cancelling a CPAC speech after Bannon appeared to make a Nazi salute. Bardella's move earned a sharp rebuke from Bannon. "That's a good example of the risk of being associated with Trump and his entourage," said the ECFR's Lons, "at a moment when the RN has been working so hard in trying to normalize its image and appear like a party that is able to govern." But when Le Pen was convicted of graft in March over a fake jobs scandal involving European Parliament hires — potentially sinking her presidential bid — Trump slammed the judicial decision as a "witch hunt." More recently, a Trump State Department appointee offered to bankroll Le Pen's appeal with US government funds, according to Politico and Reuters — an overture that was reportedly rebuffed. (Bardella is poised to take Le Pen's place as presidential candidate if she loses her appeal.) On a recent, party-organized visit to France's opulent Senate one sweltering afternoon, National Rally supporters offered a mixed take on the US leader and his impact. Former flight attendant Jacques Le Roy said he hoped his party would replicate Trump's signature measures: From tariffs and immigration crackdowns, to massive government layoffs which Le Roy described as "degreasing the system." He had a thumbs-up, too, for diluting the powers of the European Union, which the US leader has described as born to "screw" the US. "We agree with a lot of Trump's ideas," Le Roy said. "It's normal we have our differences. But the ideas remain the same." But finance student Noe Marguinal, also at the Senate visit, was less enthusiastic. "France and Europe are extremely tied to the United States, and in my opinion too much," Marguinal said. "I think it's better we decide more for ourselves than remain under the subordination of the United States." For the National Rally's critics, Trump's Washington sets an alarming precedent. Both Le Pen and Bardella lead the polls as potential presidential candidates. Analysts and ordinary French residents wonder whether a longtime 'Republican Front' of parties, previously blocking the National Rally from winning elections, will finally crumble. At a recent anti-Trump protest in Paris, many expressed fears of a National Rally victory. "Could it happen here?" asked French musician Clothilde Desjeunes, of the Trump administration's impact since taking office. "Yes. That's why we're out here fighting." Another protester, Cathy, with US-French nationality, echoed those concerns. "I'm worried about the National Rally, I'm very worried," she said, declining to give her last name for fear of reprisal. "I see a lot of parallels with the United States." What happens across the Atlantic could help shape the National Rally's electoral fortunes, analysts say. If Washington imposes steep tariffs on France, or if Trump's policies fail spectacularly, the party could feel the aftershocks, said Lons. Optionally, she said, it could be lifted by a surging European far-right alliance that Washington is trying to cultivate. It's more likely, she believes, that the party will hedge its bets. "They'll keep a distance with Trump, so they're not affected by his controversial positions," she said, "but they'll still be reinforced by the overall rise of the far right across Europe."
Hindustan Times
07-07-2025
- Business
- Hindustan Times
What becomes of Republicans who cross King Donald?
DONALD TRUMP'S One Big Beautiful Bill act (BBB) is a Frankenstein's monster of hand-outs, carve-outs, tax cuts and ideological splurges and purges. Independent analysis suggests it will increase America's deficit , stunt the economy and hit the poorest hardest. A recent poll by YouGov and The Economist found that just over one in three Americans support the bill. Elon Musk, a big Republican donor and a former 'first buddy' of Mr Trump, is so unhappy that he is proposing to create a new political party. Even so, only five Republican members of Congress voted against it—fewer than any budget of Mr Trump's first term. Since becoming president for the first time in 2017, Mr Trump has reshaped the Republican Party in his image. Loyalty comes before all else in the Trump Party: Republicans who cross him could find themselves on the receiving end of a social-media rant or, worse, facing a Trump-endorsed primary challenger. After Thom Tillis (pictured) voted against the BBB , Mr Trump took to Truth Social, his social-media platform, to condemn the senator from North Carolina, calling for a loyalist to run against him. Mr Tillis chose to withdraw from his re-election campaign altogether. His exit is a boon for Democrats who hope to win his seat next year. After combing through 52,792 of the president's social-media posts, The Economist has identified 30 Republican members of Congress whom Mr Trump has publicly scorned or sought to displace since his first inauguration (see chart 1). Of those 30, ten went on to resign or decide not to run for re-election, including Mr Tillis. Nine faced a Trump-endorsed primary opponent. Five are standing for re-election in 2026. The data is reminiscent of the famous epigram 'divorced, beheaded, died; divorced, beheaded, survived'. Of course, the parallel to Henry VIII is unfair. Unlike the murderous English monarch, Mr Trump shows clemency. He publicly reconciled with seven of the 30 (although the feud resumed in four cases). The president's ire has been directed at one in 20 Republicans who have served in the past eight years. That this number is not greater can be credited to the fear instilled by six occasions when a candidate endorsed by Mr Trump defeated a Republican incumbent. By this method, he dispatched four of the ten House Republicans who voted to impeach him in 2021, along with Representatives Mark Sanford, an early critic, and Bob Good, a hard-right conservative caught on tape implying that Mr Trump was not a 'true conservative'. His endorsement is so valuable that one Republican congressman from Kentucky took to airing ads in south Florida, aimed to reach Mr Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort. The president's ability to dislodge unfriendly colleagues is not absolute. Three Republicans have survived a Trump-endorsed challenge. Nancy Mace, a congresswoman from South Carolina, survived by embracing Mr Trump, recanting her previous, mild criticisms. Two of the remaining Republicans who supported Mr Trump's second impeachment—Senator Lisa Murkowski and Representative Dan Newhouse—defeated primary opponents under voting systems which allow voters to cross party lines. Ranked-choice voting in Alaska and the two-round system in Washington state meant they could draw on support from sympathetic or tactical Democrats and independents. Mr Trump appears to understand the limits of his powers. He has notably avoided feuding with Representative David Valadao of California, and despite calling her 'absolutely atrocious' in 2022 he has been relatively muted about Senator Susan Collins of Maine. Although both of them voted for his impeachment, they also represented constituencies that leaned towards the Democrats (Mr Valadao now represents a more Republican-leaning district). Maine uses ranked-choice voting and California uses a two-round system. Mr Trump's strategic restraint could be to preserve his record. 'I am 42-0 over the last two cycles and never even tried to run up the score,' he said of his endorsements in 2022. For their part, Democrats are happy to enjoy the red-on-red scraps. In 2022, Nancy Pelosi, then Speaker of the House, made the controversial decision to use Democratic campaign funds to boost pro-Trump Republicans. Though arguably corrosive for democracy, in a narrow sense the gamble paid off. In three of the six races where Mr Trump unseated his critics, the Republican replacements went on to lose the general election. Be careful what you wish for Republicans in competitive districts have to weigh the risks of crossing Mr Trump against the risks of being too closely associated with him as voters' dissatisfaction rises. Mr Trump's loyal base, who vote in Republican primaries, are pitted against moderate general-election voters. This dynamic is a gift for the Democrats, who have a narrow path to regaining the Senate in next year's midterm elections (see chart 2). In North Carolina, Mr Tillis will probably be replaced by a less popular Republican nominee. In Texas, the state's scandal-plagued hard-right attorney-general leads primary polls by double digits, taking advantage of the president's attacks on the incumbent senator, 'hopeless' John Cornyn (to use Mr Trump's epithet). The fracas substantially improves Democrats' chances of winning the two states, which are key to their Senate prospects. Mr Trump has made himself inextricable from the Republican Party. This gives him a lot of power. But from a tactical point of view, he can still be a liability for his party. What-becomes-of-Republicans-who-cross-King-Donald- What-becomes-of-Republicans-who-cross-King-Donald- What-becomes-of-Republicans-who-cross-King-Donald- What-becomes-of-Republicans-who-cross-King-Donald- What-becomes-of-Republicans-who-cross-King-Donald-
Politico
07-07-2025
- Politics
- Politico
‘Alligator Alcatraz' swamps GOP merch stores
TRAGEDY IN TEXAS — 'The twin granddaughters of Miami childhood education advocate David Lawrence Jr. are among the dozens killed during massive flooding in Central Texas this weekend, he confirmed Sunday,' reports David Goodhue of Florida Keys News and the Miami Herald. 'The girls, both 8 years old, and their 14-year-old sister attended Camp Mystic in Kerr County, an area where dozens of people died after the Guadalupe River swelled with rainwater and flooded the Texas Hill Country early Friday morning.' Gov. RON DESANTIS announced Sunday that Florida deployed rescue teams to help with the response. Good morning and welcome to Monday. Republicans in Florida and nationwide are capitalizing off 'Alligator Alcatraz.' The buzzy official name for state Attorney General JAMES UTHMEIER's project to set up an immigration detention center in the middle of the Everglades is opening up a whole new line of swag, fundraising emails and texts. The Republican Party of Florida appeared to be first to release merch, sending out a fundraising email on June 27, before the facility was open, that urged supporters to buy a T-shirt or hat to help 'keep Florida tough on crime and tougher on borders.' The state party painted a picture of the then-forthcoming center as 'gator guarded' and 'python-patrolled.' The campaign for Uthmeier started offering T-shirts, koozies, pins, bumper stickers and ballcaps this month. Some read, 'Nowhere to run. Nowhere to hide.' Over at the Restore Our Nation PAC, a political committee affiliated DeSantis, a text message urged supporters to 'get your very own 'Alligator Alcatraz' hat' signed by the governor to 'wear the mission' of detaining and deporting undocumented immigrants. The price? $35. They come in navy mesh or camo. The National Republican Congressional Committee is also selling $30 T-shirts taglined 'ICE with a bite.' 'I have a surprise for you,' read a fundraising text message from gubernatorial candidate Rep. BYRON DONALDS. 'President Trump and I toured Alligator Alcatraz.' An attached link then prompts supporters to donate, accusing Democrats of 'doing everything possible' to do away with the detention facility. Though Donalds wasn't part of setting up the state-run facility, he's the Trump-endorsed candidate for governor and spoke briefly at a roundtable during the president's visit. His district also includes Collier County, and the runway where the state set up tents for detainees is on the Miami-Dade and Collier County line. The act of imprisoning undocumented immigrants on the fragile ecosystem of the Everglades has horrified Democrats and environmentalists — as well as some Republicans who privately concede the whole thing is disturbing, given concerns around flooding, tropical storms and how difficult an evacuation might be if it's needed. A video of water from a typical South Florida summer rainstorm showed water seeping into the facilities just after Trump visited last week. Though the state's emergency division insisted the problem has been fixed, it's difficult to verify. Democratic state lawmakers who tried to tour the facilities last week were turned away, despite state law allowing them to turn up at detention centers without notice (more on that below). Fundraising figures from sales of 'Alligator Alcatraz' merchandise aren't likely to show up in campaign finance records that will become public in the next week or so; the cutoff for the quarter was June 30. So just how much this is resonating with the GOP base won't be immediately apparent unless candidates or political committees decide to release fundraising figures early. But it's clear top GOP leaders think 'Alligator Alcatraz' is an idea they can literally sell to devoted Republicans to help fill campaign coffers. It's all happening as Democrats continue to struggle to find their footing when it comes to immigration messaging. And that's more good news for Uthmeier as he tries to raise his name ID for a push to keep his seat as state attorney general in 2026. Campaign spokesperson KAYLA LITTLE said they'd seen 'record fundraising support out of the gate' and touted Uthmeier's accomplishments 'from cracking down on drug cartels and child predators, to rescuing over 40 missing kids, to spearheading the plans for the Alligator Alcatraz illegal immigration detention center.' 'AG Uthmeier has had one of the strongest of starts in office,' she said. 'And Floridians know the best is yet to come.' Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget that Playbook should look at? Get in touch at: kleonard@ ... DATELINE TALLAHASSEE ... PERSONAL FINANCES NOW POSTED — The personal financial disclosure for state Sen. JAY COLLINS, a frontrunner candidate for lieutenant governor, published after Friday's newsletter went out. Collins filed his paperwork on time, but it was not immediately publicly available because certain portions were being redacted for security reasons. It showed a net worth of $1.9 million, mostly tied into two homes he owns. It also showed his salary for Operation BBQ Relief, an organization that feeds communities affected by disasters, was roughly $212,500. Uthmeier posted his financial disclosure over the weekend, which showed he has a net worth of roughly $1.1 million. The filing also showed he had $38,000 in Bitcoin, as well as holdings in multiple stocks — despite the potential of publicly traded companies coming under the jurisdiction of a state attorney general's office. The companies included Tesla, NVIDIA, AT&T, Palantir Technologies and Exxon Mobil. His office said they were longer-term investments and that Uthmeier had not made any stock trades since becoming state AG. A Tallahassee condo he owns is being rented by state Reps. TAYLOR YARKOSKY of Clermont and CHASE TRAMONT of Port Orange. AHEAD OF THE HOLIDAY WEEKEND — 'In a surprising and possibly unlawful act, five state legislators were denied entry Thursday into a taxpayer-funded migrant detention center deep in the Everglades, raising questions about what will happen behind the razor-wire fences that are being erected surrounding the controversial facility the state has named Alligator Alcatraz,' report Antonio Maria Delgado of the Miami Herald. 'Armed only with state law and a growing list of humanitarian concerns, state Senators Shevrin Jones and Carlos Guillermo Smith, along with Representatives Anna V. Eskamani, Angie Nixon and Michele Rayner, arrived at the gates of the facility to conduct what they saw as a legally authorized inspection. What they encountered instead was silence, locked doors and a bureaucratic wall.' Meanwhile … The first group of detained immigrants began arriving at the facility on Thursday, report Curt Anderson and Kate Payne of The Associated Press. How's it all being funded? Court documents show that Florida hasn't yet received any federal dollars toward 'Alligator Alcatraz,' reports Matt Dixon of NBC News. FEARS OF ENVIRONMENTAL RUIN — 'Environmentalists worry that the rapidly constructed facility — which they contend sidestepped all required environmental permitting — will be harmful to the animals and ecosystem that surround it,' reports Alex Harris of the Miami Herald. 'Contrary to Gov. Ron DeSantis' claims of 'zero' impact, they say parts of the property are already being covered in trucked-in dirt and rock — possibly damaging surrounding wetlands and robbing habitat from Florida panthers, bonneted bats and wading birds that normally frequent the site.' And hazards of the location: Experts are worried about mosquito-borne illnesses affecting detainees, report Lori Rozsa and Rachel Hatzipanagos of the Washington Post. — 'The U.S. military is sending 200 Marines to Florida to support ICE operations,' reports Churchill Ndonwie of the Miami Herald. TOMATO, TOMAHTO — 'The U.S. Department of Commerce's announcement that it will withdraw from an agreement with Mexico controlling tomato imports is being applauded by Florida lawmakers, who say it will allow Florida and other U.S. farmers to catch up to what the agency has labeled 'unfairly produced Mexican imports,'' reports the Florida Phoenix's Mitch Perry. 'But the proposal is fiercely opposed by lawmakers in Arizona and Texas, who claim the tariff being placed on Mexican tomatoes will harm their own economies and provide consumers with less choice and higher prices.' PENINSULA AND BEYOND RUN AGAIN? 'A proposal to create lifetime term limits for elected officials was supposed to topple Miami's political dynasties, blocking establishment candidates from returning to elected office in City Hall,' reports Tess Riski of the Miami Herald. 'But recent changes to the proposal ahead of a key vote [this] week have created a loophole that could allow Commissioner Joe Carollo or former Mayor Xavier Suarez to return as mayor as early as November 2026.' PARKLAND MEMORIAL TAKING SHAPE — 'The memorial to honor those who died in the 2018 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland has broken ground and much of the first phase of landscaping is complete,' reports Lauren Brensel of the South Florida Sun Sentinel. 'But the foundation is waiting for more donations before construction can proceed. Members of the Parkland 17 Memorial Foundation said they expect this to be a multimillion-dollar project, but costs have yet to be finalized. The proceeds will cover the price of construction and future maintenance.' NYT SPOTLIGHT — Democratic Mayors DONNA DEGAN of Jacksonville and D.C. REEVES of Pensacola were among 16 mayors interviewed by The New York Times about what it was like to lead a city under President DONALD TRUMP. — 'Reopening of St. Petersburg's Barack Obama Library delayed again,' by Mark Parker of the St. Pete Catalyst. CAMPAIGN MODE REPUBLICAN LAUNCHING CAMPAIGN — State Rep. TOBY OVERDORF of Palm City is announcing this morning that he's running for the Florida Senate to represent District 31, which consists of Martin County and parts of Palm Beach and St. Lucie counties. The seat is held by GOP state Sen. GAYLE HARRELL of Stuart, who's term limited in 2028. 'Sen. Harrell has been a steady voice for our community, our environment and our way of life,' said Overdorf, a business owner and environmental consultant. 'I'm grateful for her leadership and look forward to building on the foundation she's established for the Treasure Coast.' DEMOCRAT LAUNCHING CAMPAIGN — University of Central Florida lecturer and community leader JANE AMAN is running for the state House seat in District 37, which includes parts of Orange and Seminole counties. It's currently held by state Rep. SUSAN PLASENCIA, a Republican. In her launch statement, Aman described helping students who are facing hunger, healthcare and housing issues. Aman has endorsements from Democratic Rep. MAXWELL FROST, state Sen. CARLOS GUILLERNO SMITH, state Rep. ANNA ESKAMANI and state Rep. RITA HARRIS. TRUMPLANDIA AND THE SWAMP RUSSIAN INTERFERENCE STORIES — 'Members of the board that hands out Pulitzer Prizes are trying to convince the Florida Supreme Court to halt a lawsuit President Donald Trump filed against them,' reports POLITICO's Gary Fineout. 'Lawyers for nearly two dozen board members asked the state Supreme Court this week to accept jurisdiction of the case. The Pulitzer board members took the action after two lower courts declined to stay the lawsuit and declined motions to dismiss the suit. In a Thursday court filing attorneys argued Trump's defamation lawsuit should be placed on hold until he is no longer president.' — 'The advertisers spending big in West Palm Beach just to reach Trump,' by Maggie Severns and Anthony DeBarros of The Wall Street Journal. DATELINE D.C. OVER THE HOLIDAY WEEKEND — Trump signed the tax and spending cut bill into law during a Fourth of July event at the White House. From The Associated Press: 'Against odds that at times seemed improbable, Trump achieved his goal of celebrating a historic — and divisive — legislative victory in time for the nation's birthday. Fighter jets and a stealth bomber streaked through the sky over the annual White House Fourth of July picnic as Trump and first lady Melania Trump stepped out onto the White House balcony.' ODDS, ENDS AND FLORIDA MEN BIRTHDAYS: State Rep. Stan McClain … former state Sen. Janet Cruz.
Time of India
06-07-2025
- Automotive
- Time of India
'Elon has gone too far': Former DOGE adviser writes to Tesla Board, 'Ask Musk to clarify his political ambitions'
Former DOGE adviser James Fishback wrote to the Tesla Board urging them to ask Elon Musk to clarify his political ambitions. Fishback said his investment firm Azoria Partners will defer the listing of its Azoria Texla Convexity exchange-traded fund after Musk's announcement that he was forming a new political party called 'America Party'. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The paperwork of the America Party was done, and it was registered with the Federal Election Commission with Tesla CFO Vaibhav Taneja listed as its treasurer. "Elon has gone too decision comes in direct response to @ElonMusk's announcement that he is launching a new national political party. This creates a conflict with his full-time responsibilities as CEO of Tesla. It diverts his focus and energy away from Tesla's employees and shareholders," Fishback wrote. "In May, when Elon stepped back from his work at DOGE and returned his attention to Tesla, we were encouraged. With Elon fully engaged, he gave shareholders renewed confidence in Tesla's future. Elon's announcement today undermines that confidence," the letter added. James Fishback announces 'Full Support for Donald' Though Fishback worked in the Department of Government Efficiency with Elon Musk, he announced his full support for President Donald Trump as he announced launching a super PAC to resist Musk's political ambitions. The PAC is named FSD, a play on Tesla's 'full self-driving' except that it stands for 'Full Support for Donald'. The PAC will spend money in any race where Elon Musk bankrolls a candidate, either from his new party or if he backs a Democrat or a Republican against a Trump-endorsed candidate. 'There's real frustration in our movement with Elon and his antics,' Fishback told Politico. 'I'm a big believer in what he's doing in the private sector. But when it comes to politics, he's dead wrong on this.' Fishback resigned from DOGE last month after Musk lashed out at Trump. Fishback, who is represented by Lex Politica, the same firm that represents Musk and his SuperPAC AmericaPAC, is putting $1 million of his own money into his PAC, the Politico report said.
