Max Fischer

The panel voted to recommend against the combined measles, mumps, rubella and chickenpox vaccine for young children. It postponed to Friday a vote on a recommendation to drop universal newborn vaccination for hepatitis B. https://www.politico.com/news/2025/09/18/rfk-jr-s-vaccine-advisory-panel-makes-controversial-changes-to-two-childhood-shots-00572187 After the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee hearing where Monarez testified this week, Chair Bill Cassidy (R-La.) told reporters that if ACIP rescinded the universal hepatitis B vaccination recommendation for newborns, he would tell Americans not to trust the guidance. “We have decreased from 20,000 kids a year getting hepatitis B to like 20 a year. That’s an exponential decline,” said Cassidy, who sharply questioned Kennedy about his vaccine policy at a hearing earlier this month before the HELP Committee.

USA Today: Neither the White House nor the Department of Justice denied in statements that a probe of Homan had occurred.

FOX NEWS: Trump hounds Bondi to prosecute adversaries in now-deleted social media post: 'They're all guilty as hell' President demands prosecutions of Comey, Schiff and James in now-deleted Truth Social message https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-pressures-bondi-prosecute-adversaries-now-deleted-social-media-post-theyre-all-guilty-hell.amp

The Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday postponed the release of a key annual report central to future inflation data. Why it matters: The BLS — charged with collecting critical data on employment, prices and more — did not explain the reasoning for the delay or when it might ultimately be released. There is heightened concern about the future of U.S. statistics, including the politicization and accuracy of crucial data that affects the stock market and interest rates. Zoom in: The BLS said on Friday that the annual release of consumer expenditures data — initially set for Tuesday — would be "rescheduled to a later date." "We will update users when more information is available," the notice said. The Bureau of Labor Statistics did not respond to a request for a comment. Neither did The Department of Labor, which oversees the statistics agency. The big picture: The data offers key insights about consumer activity in any given year, including expenditures, income and demographic information. It is the only "federal household survey to provide information on the complete range of consumers' expenditures and incomes," the BLS website says. Crucially, the data is also used to determine the weighting of specific goods and services in the Consumer Price Index for the year ahead. The intrigue: The release was postponed last year, but the BLS offered more details then, including that the data would be released two weeks later. "The only real difference is that the 2024 press release explicitly noted a new publication date and also indicated that the delay was due to an error that they had to correct," Inflation Insights' Omair Sharif tells Axios in an email. "Today's press release doesn't give any information on what caused the delay or when it'll be released, so that is a bit odd," he added. What they're saying: "I suspect they just didn't have the release totally ready to go," says former BLS commissioner William Beach, adding that it was a "tricky data release." "I would worry, however, if there's a further delay. There are so many vacant positions at BLS that I'm surprised their release record so far has been very good," says Beach, whose term covered Trump's first stint in the White House and part of the Biden presidency. Between the lines: The agency is under tremendous strain, with staffing shortages and limited resources. It is also under unprecedented attack from the White House. President Trump fired the agency head last month after huge revisions to previous months' data confirmed a slowing labor market. The White House has nominated economist E.J. Antoni to lead the agency. Some prominent conservative economists have bashed Antoni as partisan and unqualified. "I think we are all concerned now about the future of our country's economic data," Erika McEntarfer, the former BLS commissioner abruptly fired by Trump, said this week at Bard College. "I can vouch for the accuracy and independence of the work of the agency up until the moment I was fired ... but in terms of the future: it is an uncertain moment," McEntarfer said. BLS has already cut back on data collection for specific CPI categories and certain regions, a result of staffing shortages and budget cuts. Plummeting survey response rates has wreaked havoc on jobs data at statistics agencies around the world, including the U.S. Bloomberg reported this week that the agency was looking to ramp up staff to collect price data in major metro areas. The Labor Department's internal watchdog launched a probe into BLS economic data collection earlier this month, citing challenges the agency "encounters collecting and reporting closely watched economic data." What to watch: "At the end of the day, if the annual data is finalized before year-end, then it should be plenty of time to incorporate the new weights for use with the release of the January 2026 CPI in mid-February," Sharif says.

WASHINGTON—Stressing that it was unrealistic to think he would recollect one such letter out of the vast number he has written in his lifetime, President Donald Trump told reporters Tuesday that he shouldn’t be expected to remember every single birthday card he has sent to child molesters. “Every month I’m probably sending off a dozen or so of these cards thanking pedophiles for a good time at their birthday parties or for the flight on their private jet—it’s ridiculous to think I’m going to recall each tiny thing I write,” said Trump, insisting that given the hundreds of such dispatches he has penned over the years, the child molesters’ names and the details of their orgies often blur together in his mind. “It’s really just a formality. I want to express a little gratitude for a nice party favor or for letting me spend time with their private harem. Most of the time I’m just repeating the same message, too. Hard to come up with something unique to say about every girl.” Trump revealed that as a time-saving measure, he would often dash off a large stack of such letters to child molesters in advance and fill in the specific details of the underage sex parties later. https://theonion.com/trump-claims-he-cant-be-expected-to-remember-every-birthday-card-he-sends-to-child-molesters/

The Pentagon will drastically change its rules for journalists who cover the Department of Defense, two U.S. officials who are not authorized to speak publicly confirmed to NPR Friday. The move drew sharp criticism from news organizations, who said it violated the bedrock of a free press. Going forward, journalists must sign a pledge not to gather any information, including unclassified reports, that hasn't been authorized for release. https://www.npr.org/2025/09/20/g-s1-89713/pentagon-new-strict-guidelines-for-media

Donald Trump cashed in on a massively corrupt foreign crypto deal—and no one blinked. https://newrepublic.com/post/200486/trump-corruption-scandal-crypto-uae-deal?utm_source=Bluesky&utm_campaign=SF_TNR&utm_medium=social The Times revealed that some officials in the Trump administration were wary about the chip deal due to UAE-China ties. But a key dissenter at the National Security Council, David Feith, was taken out of the equation when MAGA provocateur Laura Loomer questioned his (and five other NSC members’) loyalty, leading to their removal by the president. Silicon Valley investor David Sacks, Trump’s AI and crypto czar, then took a leading role in the negotiations—and received a White House ethics waiver in order to do so.

162,000 doctors strong: The American College of Physicians demands RFK Jr. be removed as HHS Secretary, warning he is undermining vaccines, science, and public health. Secretary Kennedy’s actions have undermined and destabilized our public health infrastructure, shown a blatant disregard for decades of evidence-based, proven science, and have spread dangerous medical misinformation, sowing chaos and confusion and putting lives at risk. We have lost confidence in his leadership and call for him to be removed and replaced with a qualified health expert with appropriate and relevant knowledge and experience. https://www.acponline.org/acp-newsroom/american-college-of-physicians-calls-for-removal-of-secretary-kennedy-at-hhs

The Texas Republican called Brendan Carr’s actions “right out of ‘Goodfellas.’” https://www.politico.com/live-updates/2025/09/19/congress/cruz-calls-out-fcc-for-taking-down-jimmy-kimmel-00573159 Sen. Ted Cruz on his podcast Friday admonished Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr for demanding ABC suspend Jimmy Kimmel’s late night show over comments regarding Charlie Kirk — calling Carr’s actions “dangerous as hell” and “right out of ‘Goodfellas.’” “If the government gets in the business of saying, ‘We don’t like what you, the media, have said; we’re going to ban you from the airwaves if you don’t say what we like’ — that will end up bad for conservatives,” said the Texas Republican.

https://www.propublica.org/article/trump-epa-greenhouse-gas-reporting-climate-crisis The Environmental Protection Agency is planning to eliminate long-standing requirements for polluters to collect and report their emissions of the heat-trapping gases that cause climate change. The move, ordered by a Trump appointee, would affect thousands of industrial facilities across the country, including oil refineries, power plants and coal mines as well as those that make petrochemicals, cement, glass, iron and steel, according to documents reviewed by ProPublica.

Republicans warn against mocking Kirk's death, threaten dire consequences At least 15 people fired or suspended for allegedly disrespecting Kirk's memory Online campaigns directed by Republicans continue to target Kirk's critics online https://www.reuters.com/world/us/charlie-kirks-allies-warn-americans-mourn-him-properly-or-else-2025-09-13/ Some Republicans want to go further still and have proposed deporting Kirk's critics from the United States, suing them into penury or banning them from social media for life. “Prepare to have your whole future professional aspirations ruined if you are sick enough to celebrate his death,” said conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer, opens new tab, a prominent ally of President Donald Trump and one of several far-right figures who are organizing digital campaigns on X, the social media site, to ferret out and publicly shame Kirk’s critics.

We can’t delay any longer’: Trump urges Bondi to prosecute his rivals In a Truth Social post Saturday, the president specifically called out Sen. Adam Schiff, former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James for prosecution. https://www.politico.com/news/2025/09/20/trump-bondi-truth-social-00574380 President Donald Trump publicly vented at Attorney General Pam Bondi on Saturday, saying the lack of criminal charges against top adversaries was “killing our reputation and credibility.” “We can’t delay any longer,” Trump posted on Truth Social in a message directed to “Pam.” “JUSTICE MUST BE SERVED, NOW!!!” He specifically lamented the lack of criminal charges against Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James, three of his most prominent political antagonists. Trump spent much of the post venting about Erik Siebert, the former U.S. attorney from the Eastern District of Virginia, whom he forced out Friday amid reports that Siebert did not believe there was enough evidence to charge James with mortgage fraud. Trump appeared to confirm those reports, accusing Siebert of saying “that we had no case.”

Trump Justice Dept. Closed Investigation Into Tom Homan for Accepting Bag of Cash Mr. Homan came under scrutiny after he was said to be recorded last year taking $50,000 in cash from undercover F.B.I. agents. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/20/us/politics/tom-homan-fbi-trump.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare Tom Homan, who was later named President Trump’s border czar, was recorded in September 2024 accepting a bag with $50,000 in cash in an undercover F.B.I. investigation, according to people familiar with the case, which was later shut down by Trump administration officials. The cash payment, which was made inside a bag from the food chain Cava, grew out of a long-running counterintelligence investigation that had not been targeting Mr. Homan, according to the people, who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe the case. Mr. Homan’s encounter with the undercover agents, recorded on audiotape, led him to be investigated for potential bribery and other crimes, after he apparently took the money and agreed to help the agents — who were posing as businessmen — secure future government contracts related to border security, the people said. After Mr. Trump took office this year, Justice Department officials shut down the case because of doubts about whether prosecutors could prove to a jury that Mr. Homan had agreed to do any specific acts in exchange for the money, and because he had not held an official government position at the time of the meeting with undercover agents, the people added.

How do you know they are illegal if they don't get a day in court? It’s that simple. Many Americans and legal folks have spent extended periods of time sitting in detention without seeing a judge. That is the ICE system and all of MAGA is cheering it on. MAGA doesn't believe in due process and if a folks get lost in the system, then oh well, at least we are getting rid of “those” people. You can't be that ignorant.

MAGA is either ignorant or purposely ignoring the truth. The FCC Commissioner, the White House and the MAGA universe is cheering and bragging they coerced ABC. They bragged they coerced CBS/Paramount to drop Colbert. MAGA has created a mafia state. Nice station you have there, would be a shame if anything happened to it.

Arresting and holding American citizens, arresting and deporting people without due process. I suppose they don't report facts in your bubble.

The burden of proof is on you. But we know MAGA doesn't believe in due process or the Constitution

You are advocating the firing of people when you have no idea what they said. When MAGA decrees all the MAGA cheer. Sounds pretty fascist.

These folks didn't cheer, they pointed out the hypocrisy of the MAGA state granting sainthood to a terrible person. Moreover, just like a fascist, authoritarian state like Russia and China they are going after schools for not sufficiently mourning a terrible person. MAGA State Fascism is making a mockery of the Constitution.

Oklahoma School Superintendent (AKA Facist Thug) Teacher Removal and Districts Under Investigation Regarding Charlie Kirk Oklahoma City, OK - It has been one week since the horrific political assassination of Charlie Kirk. In that time, we have seen teachers and schools across Oklahoma display vile rhetoric promoting the killing of a man who stood for free speech and debate. Over the past week, we have received a total of 224 reports through our Awareity software on defamatory comments, 30 Awareity reports on not observing a moment of silence and 3 reports on schools who refused to fly their flag at half staff. Our OSDE teams have investigated each report and identified 70 certified teachers, from 44 districts, who have made statements regarding Charlie Kirk's murder and 12 school districts who did not participate in a moment of silence. Superintendent Walters has made it clear that all teachers must abide by a set of standards written into the code of conduct. Any teacher posting defamatory and egregious comments will NOT be teaching in Oklahoma classrooms and any school that refused to participate in a moment of silence and/or lower their flags for Charlie Kirk is currently under investigation. In Oklahoma, we will continue to put students before political indoctrination agendas. MAGA “Free Speech” advocacy was all a lie. MAGA promises the crackdown will continue until their is full alligence to the MAGA State. Truly frightening stuff. Fight the Facists.

It’s a lie to call Kirk a “free speech advocate” when the MAGA government is spending all their time shutting down free expression and insufficient mourning. You’ll ONLY find this behavior in China, Russia, and authoritarian nations.

MAGA proves over and over again that their calls for free speech was all a lie. On our “list” is chilling and again proves that MAGA calls for “free speech” is all a lie. MAGA Congress pressures BkueSky to shut down criticism of Charlie Kirk. MAGA campaign for “free speech” was all a lie.

There is ZERO evidence that the Democrats or the White House pressured ABC to fire Rosanne Barr. It was the fact that her own co-stars said they didn't want to work with her. Y’all keep pretending that the situations are the same AND that when they are in power free speech will reign. Well, that was a total lie.

We touch down in time for lunch, check in to hotel and then early to the stadium. Staying to the last whistle. 🙂

The fact that MAGA is celebrating the government censorship is !@#$ing crazy and solid proof that all the talk of "Free Speech" was indeed a lie.