Trump Medicaid & Spending Freeze Problem Is Getting Worse, 489lb Rapper Sues Lyft for Discrimination
PDS Published 01/28/2025
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We need to talk about Trump and him banning trans troops in the military, freezing all federal loans and grants, firing prosecutors who helped criminally investigate him, and ordering the CDC to stop working with the W.H.O (read the letters, not “who”) immediately.
Starting with the four executive orders Trump signed yesterday focused on the military.
And the order that has gotten the most attention here is one that paves the way for a ban on transgender troops.
Right, and specifically, the order doesn’t immediately ban trans people from serving, but rather it directs the Pentagon to revise medical standards, arguing that the department’s policy for troop readiness is:
“inconsistent with the medical, surgical, and mental health constraints on individuals with gender dysphoria.”
And adding, “many mental and physical health conditions are incompatible with active duty, from conditions that require substantial medication or medical treatment to bipolar and related disorders, eating disorders, suicidality, and prior psychiatric hospitalization.”
Now, VERY notably here, as you can see, that doesn’t just apply to trans people — experts say that this list could impact tens of thousands of people with various conditions, depending on how it's interpreted.
But the order makes it very clear that trans people are the main intended target here, taking aim at them in personal terms, claiming that:
“expressing a false ‘gender identity’ divergent from an individual’s sex cannot satisfy the rigorous standards necessary for military service.”
And going on to accuse trans troops of going against “a soldier’s commitment to an honorable, truthful, and disciplined lifestyle, even in one’s personal life,” adding:
“A man’s assertion that he is a woman, and his requirement that others honor this falsehood, is not consistent with the humility and selflessness required of a service member.”
What’s more, this action also comes a week after Trump reversed an order Biden signed in 2021 lifting the ban on trans people in the military that Trump himself had put in place during his first term.
Now, with all that, it’s already being reported that rights groups are preparing to file a lawsuit against this order, so we’ll be keeping an eye on movement there.
But, as mentioned earlier, the order targeting trans troops was just one of the actions focused on the military that Trump took yesterday.
He also signed two separate orders directing the Pentagon to end DEI programs and start the process of creating a “next generation” missile defense shield for the U.S. that Trump is calling “The Iron Dome for America.”
This in reference to Israel’s infamous defense system.
And the final order would reinstate and offer back pay to members of the military who were discharged for refusing to get the COVID vaccine as mandated by the Pentagon.
Though, with that, it’s unclear how many people this will actually impact, because the Biden administration actually rescinded that vaccine mandate two years ago.
And so far, just over 100 of the more than 8,000 service members who were discharged have rejoined.
Okay, so that’s the military orders, but another big piece of Trump administration news is that the White House Office of Budget and Management — OMB — has ordered a pause to ALL federal grants and loans, effectively freezing trillions of dollars.
And this move was announced in a 2-page memo sent to agencies late last night, with the action set to take effect at 5 p.m. today.
And this decision has set off a massive wave of panic and confusion because the memo is incredibly vague, and it’s really unclear how far-reaching this will be or how long it will even be in place.
Right, the memo outlining the move only states that agencies:
“must temporarily pause all activities related to obligation or disbursement of all Federal financial assistance, and other relevant agency activities that may be implicated by the executive orders, including, but not limited to, financial assistance for foreign aid, nongovernmental organizations, DEI, woke gender ideology, and the green new deal.”
And ordering all agencies to “complete a comprehensive analysis” to “identify programs, projects, and activities” that could go against Trump’s executive orders.
But it also doesn’t set a date for when the freeze will be lifted, saying only that agencies need to report their findings to OMB by February 10th.
And asserting that agencies must keep the pause on grants and loans in place until OMB has reviewed their findings and “provided guidance” to each agency.
But that could take a while — we’re talking about every single federal agency trying to figure out if the many, MANY programs they oversee go against Trump’s orders.
But the OMB isn’t even telling the agencies which specific orders they need to comply with — and that’s also a total moving target because Trump keeps issuing more and more orders every day.
So now, agencies are scrambling to try and figure out what this means, and as they do, the pause will disrupt and delay funding that fuels the American economy and serves tens of millions of people — potentially hundreds.
Right, experts have said the memo will halt tons of essential federal functions including:
And that even includes some projects that directly advance Trump’s own agenda, like one that helps state and federal law enforcement counter drug-trafficking organizations.
But one of the biggest questions here is whether this will impact Medicaid — which is used by more than 70 million Americans — because the federal government distributes those funds to the states.
Right, the memo doesn’t say anything about Medicaid — and when reporters asked Trump’s press secretary today if the program was frozen, she was unable to answer the question, responding: “I’ll check back on that.”
Now, notably, the memo does mention that Medicare and Social Security won’t be impacted.
And it includes an exception for “assistance received directly by individuals.”
But it’s unclear exactly what that means, because a lot of federal money that goes to individuals is actually first given to states and organizations that then distribute it.
Additionally, the memo also notes that federal agencies can also continue taking certain administrative tasks as required by law, adding that OMB “may grant exceptions” on a case-by-case basis.
But this move goes beyond the funding of government agencies — right, the memo also explicitly says that this mandate applies to programs that support nongovernmental organizations.
And experts saying that will have a whole OTHER host of sweeping ramifications, with the chief executive of the National Council of Nonprofits saying in a statement:
“From pausing research on cures for childhood cancer to halting food assistance, safety from domestic violence and closing suicide hotlines, the impact of even a short pause in funding could be devastating and cost lives. This order could decimate thousands of organizations and leave neighbors without the services they need.”
So this is absolutely astronomical — but it’s also questionable legal.
Right, the Constitution grants the power of the purse Congress, which has already approved these funds and directed where they will go.
And budget experts say that while the president is generally allowed to freeze spending for a period of time, certain conditions must be met first.
For example, Trump would have to specify which budget accounts are frozen, and he has to have certain justifications.
With one expert saying that pauses over policy disagreements aren’t legal.
Which is why we’ve seen Democrats widely decrying this move as illegal, and multiple different groups and states already promising to sue.
Okay, so those are the two biggest pieces of news today — at least for now — but there are two other things I want to quickly hit on.
The first is that the Justice Department under new management announced yesterday that it has fired more than a dozen officials who worked on the two special counsel investigations into Trump.
With the DOJ saying in a statement that acting attorney general James McHenry informed the employees that he “does not trust these officials to assist in faithfully implementing the President’s agenda.”
And in a letter sent to the fired officials that was obtained by The Washington Post, McHenry explicitly referenced Trump’s repeated claims that the Biden administration weaponized law enforcement to undermine Biden’s political enemies.
But you had experts saying that this is actually exactly what Trump is doing with this move: going after his perceived opponents.
But it’s not just political — experts also say this move violates civil service protections for nonpolitical employees and contradicts decades of civil service law that says employees can only be fired for misconduct or bad performance, not doing their jobs as directed.
With Greg Brower, a U.S. attorney during the George W. Bush administration, saing that this move was totally unheard-of, adding:
“This is unprecedented, given the career status of these people, which makes them not subject to dismissal by the president, and the apparent lack of any cause that the department has been able to articulate.”
So this is really notable, and while there have been and will be a lot of firings as Trump continues his transition to power, these are distinctly different, which is why it’s so important to flag.
And then the final thing I want to touch on today is the news that the Trump administration has now asked CDC officials to stop working with the World Health Organization and cut off all communication.
Right, and this move comes one week after Trump issued an order beginning the process of withdrawing from the WHO.
But experts still said this new demand comes as a surprise because Trump’s order didn’t take immediate effect, instead just kicking the process.
What’s more, there are several things that need to happen before the U.S. can actually leave the WHO.
Right, first and foremost, Congress actually has to approve the decision.
And the U.S. also needs to provide a one-year notice and meet its financial obligations for the fiscal year.
So this sudden shift seems to go against the expected timeline — with one expert explaining:
“Stopping communications and meetings with WHO is a big problem.”
“People thought there would be a slow withdrawal. This has really caught everyone with their pants down.”
And adding that “Talking to WHO is a two-way street” because both agencies are in contact daily and benefit from collaboration on tests, treatments, and outbreaks.
Which is why you also have others arguing that this sudden move poses a number of direct health threats, including setting back investigations trying to stop various viruses and monitoring bird flu outbreaks.
So yeah, just another day in our new reality, I guess.
And with this, I’d love to know what you think about any of the different pieces of news we’ve talked about today.
"But some of the biggest questions here have been how this will impact Medicaid and food stamps — which together are used by more than 100 million people. Right, the memo said absolutely nothing about those essential programs — even while specifying that similar ones like Medicare and Social Security wouldn't be impacted. And we saw absolute chaos playing out in real time as I was recording. Right, when Trump's press secretary was asked whether Medicaid was frozen at a press conference, she was totally unable to answer the question, responding: 'I’ll check back on that.' And shit got so messy that the OMB issued ANOTHER memo to agencies trying to clarify. Saying that ‘mandatory programs like Medicaid and SNAP will continue without pause.’ And adding that, among other programs, there also won’t be pauses on funds for small businesses and farmers, Pell grants for students, rental assistance, and Head Start — which promotes the school readiness for low-income families. With the new memo also claiming that ‘any program that provides direct benefits to Americans is explicitly excluded from the pause and exempted from this review process.’ But it’s also unclear what that means, because a lot of federal money that goes to individuals is actually first given to states and organizations that then distribute it. What’s more, despite the new memo’s claim that Medicaid wouldn’t be interrupted and Head Start wouldn’t have funds paused, we saw numerous reports to the contrary. Right, providers who run Head Start programs reported today they were unable to access federal funds because they lost access to the federal Office of Head Start’s payment site. And you also had Senator Ron Wyden tweeting that his staff ‘has confirmed reports that Medicaid portals are down in all 50 states following last night's federal funding freeze,’ calling the move ‘a blatant attempt to rip away health insurance from millions of Americans overnight and will get people killed.’ Though, with that, we did see Trump’s press secretary sharing a statement on X later in the afternoon saying: ‘The White House is aware of the Medicaid website portal outage. We have confirmed no payments have been affected — they are still being processed and sent. We expect the portal will be back online shortly.’”
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We need to talk about this controversy surrounding Dajua Blanding [Pronounce 00:44], also known by her rapper name “Dank Demoss” or more simply “Big Dank.”
[Clip, 00:46 - 00:51, check for copyright]
Right, she’s a musician in Detroit who—and this is relevant to the story—weighs nearly 500 pounds, according to the Express Tribune. [Same B roll andquote, find “489”]
So earlier this month, she reportedly ordered a Lyft ride to a Detroit Lions watch party. [Image andQuote, find “watch party”]
But when the driver arrived in his sedan, he apparently told her he couldn’t let her inside, and that’s when she started filming. [Lead B roll into clip]
[Clip, 00:21 - 00:31] Caption: [Driver:] “Yeah, I got no space in my—my car is small.” [Dajua Blanding:] “I can fit in this car.” [Driver:] “No, believe me, you can’t.” [Dajua Blanding:] “Yes I can.” [Driver:] “Believe me. I’m sorry.”
With him then explaining that his tires were “tired,” seeming to imply that he didn’t think they could support her weight. [Continue B roll]
Then telling her he’d cancel the ride so she wouldn’t be charged, suggesting that she order a larger vehicle instead. [Same B roll]
[Clip, 01:31 - 01:39 - 01:45] Caption: [Dajua Blanding:] “I don’t ever have to order an Uber XL.” [Driver:] “You know, I’m really sorry.”
So Blanding posted that video to TikTok and Instagram, where they subsequently went viral and got picked up by several news sites.
With her saying she wanted to spread body positivity and show what larger people have to go through.
She also posted an image showing the weight limits for different car models, purporting to prove that the one that she ordered could’ve picked her up. [Quote, find “car models”]
And then adding that the experience was humiliating, and she had chosen to take a mental health break. [Quote same link, find “mental health”]
But now, she’s taken it a giant step further, reportedly filing a lawsuit against Lyft for discrimination.
With her attorneys telling Fox News that weight is a protected characteristic in Michigan. [Quote, find “protected”]
[Clip, 01:54 - 02:05] Caption: “It would be no different than a driver pulling up and saying, you know, ‘I don’t want to have black people in my car,’ or ‘I don’t want to have Christians in my car or Muslims in my car.’ It’s the same. Under the law, it’s the same.”
Meanwhile—and it’s unclear whether this happened before or after the lawsuit—but Lyft replied to Blanding on Instagram, writing:
“We’re disheartened to look at this driver’s unacceptable behavior. Please DM us at your earliest convenience for additional support. We’d like to address this as soon as possible.” [Quote]
But as of right now, it’s unknown whether she’s been in contact with them, though she did give an interview to Fox in which she explained her perspective.
[Clip, 00:42 - 00:44;Clip, 00:51 - 00:55;Clip, 01:04 - 01:12;Clip, 01:39 - 01:43] Caption: “I’ve been in cars smaller than that, you know? … As I’m walking, I see him like making faces. I’m like, ‘aw man.’ … The kicker part was when he started to talk about his tires, you know? I felt like that was a slap in the face. That was like, my tires. You know? Like … I just want them to know, like, it really hurt my feelings.”
So that’s where this story is right now, but with everything you’ve seen, I wanna hear from y’all; what are your thoughts on all this?
Links:
https://www.fox2detroit.com/news/detroit-rapper-sues-after-lyft-driver-says-she-wont-fit-his-car
https://www.sportskeeda.com/pop-culture/who-dank-demoss-lyft-controversy-explained-rapper-reveals-denied-service-due-size
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Alright, if you’ve been thinking about buying a new phone, PC, gaming console -- pretty much ANYTHING with a chip, I’d buy it now.
That’s because President Donald Trump announced this yesterday:
“In particular, in the very near future, we’re going to be placing tariffs on foreign production of computer chips, semiconductors and pharmaceuticals to return production of these essential goods to the United States of America.”
“They left us and they went to Taiwan, which has 98% of the chip business by the way.” @0:00-0:21
He went on to say that such a tariff would start at 25%.
This is one of those things that every American will feel… unless you’re like Ted Kaczynski living in a cabin in the middle of nowhere.
Right, almost anything with electronics involves microchips in some way, and most of those are made in Asia.
The Dee-ram and NAND Flash spaces are dominated by Korea’s Samsung and SK Hi-nix alongside the Japanese firm Kee-ohks-ee-ah. (Kioxia pronunciation)
And for the non-tech nerds out there, those types of chips are needed for any type of computer.
But the real concern is how expensive semiconductors from TSMC will become.
They’re based in Taiwan and it’s impossible to understate how important they are for tech.
Right, look at the closest tech thing to you -- which is probably your phone: It has TSMC parts.
TV or monitor? Probably TSMC stuff in there.
Even things you wouldn’t consider “techy,” like your car is filled with TSMC components.
All that might come as a shock to you because it’s not one of the big tech names most people would recognize… and that’s because TSMC doesn’t sell their stuff to you or me.
Instead, their stuff is what makes products from companies like Apple, Nvidia, AMD, and Intel possible.
TSMC is so important that their CEO said they would make their foundries inoperable rather than give them to China if there was ever an invasion. []
But why is Trump even floating this tariff plan for chips, pharma, and steel?
The short version is Republicans think it’ll boost domestic productions, especially in these industries which are arguably national security concerns.
And that’s something that both Republicans and Democrats actually agree on, because the Biden Administration was also working on boosting our production.
The two sides just heavily disagree on how to do it.
Right, Biden signed the CHIPS act, which set aside $280 billion to help build chip foundries and manufacturing centers here in the US.
However Republicans disagree with this approach, with Trump saying yesterday:
“We don’t want to give them billions of dollars like this ridiculous program Biden has -- ‘give everyone billions of dollars,’ They already have billions of dollars. They’ve got nothing but money Joe. They didn’t need money, they needed an incentive and the incentive is going to be they’re not going to want to pay a 25, 50 or even 100% tax. They’re going to build a factory with their own money, we’re not going to give them money. They’re going to come in because it’s good for them to come in. They're giving them money and they’re not even going to know what to do with it.” @0:24-0:51
Notably, it seems like the major tech companies did have a plan on “what to do” with the money from the CHIPS Act, despite Trump’s claims.
Intel has been working on new facilities across the US while TSMC is opening a $12 billion foundry in Arizona.
But what would the end result of this be?
Almost every company uses foreign chip makers in some capacity and the costs to import the products are just going to be passed down onto consumers so that Apple, Nvidia, and other companies can maintain their margins.
In the long term, who really knows.
There are arguments that increased domestic production will make it so that American-made chips are as competitive as foreign ones in American markets.[]
But at the same time, protective tariffs like this have happened in the past and they were devastating.
It limits trade and according to groups like the Semiconductor Inndustry Assocition production in the US and Asia is not a 1-to-1 comparison.
Making chips in the US is flat out more expensive. Salaries are far higher, costs to build factories are higher, cost of raw materials are higher.[]
Taken together, it means that for a domestic chip to cost the same as a foreign one some kind of tariff would need to stay in place, something that TSMC has also said when talking about its new Arizona facility.[]
The counter to that is if domestic production leads to innovation and the US becomes a powerhouse chip maker, it could mean that the best chips come from the US and it cascades from there to balloon the industry.
(There’s also the national security angle:
These industries are so important that you need a domestic version in case some kind of war breaks out and the US is cut off from foreign suppliers.
This is partially why we subsidize farmers despite the fact that foreign crops would be cheaper without them. Not having our food supply could be catastrophic).
But we’re talking about complete theory at this point and we really won’t know the answer for many years to come.
In the meantime, prices will go up if these tariffs are put into place, so have fun with a Switch 2 that is more expensive than you thought!
Just go to Zocdoc and download the app for FREE. Then find and book a top-rated doctor today!
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All hell is breaking loose in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
A rebel offensive backed by neighboring Rwanda has left dozens dead and thousands on the run, sparked protests a thousand miles away, and now threatens to usher in a whole new phase in one of Africa’s longest and deadliest conflicts.
And with that, to really make sense of all this, we gotta go back to the beginning.
Right, the eastern Congo region, which is home to some of the most valuable mineral resources in the world?
It’s been wracked by conflict for over three decades.
And in a lot of ways, it goes back to the Rwandan genocide in 1994.
Right, when members of the Hutu (Who-too) ethnic majority murdered as many as 800,000 people, mostly of the Tutsi (toot-see) minority. []
With the aftermath of this including what are known as the first and second Congo Wars, with some form of conflict, of course, continuing to this day.
And in fact, according to the UN, an estimated 6 million people have died of war-related causes in Congo since 1996 — from not only violence, but also malnutrition and preventable diseases.
Not to mention nearly another 6 million Congolese are internally displaced.[]
And with all that, there are now about 100 armed groups vying for a foothold in eastern Congo.
One of them is the March Twenty-Three Movement, better known as the M23.
It’s mostly made up of ethnic Toot-sees who broke away from the Congolese army.
It says that it is fighting to protect Toot-sees and other minorities.
But in reality, at least according to experts and rights groups, it spends its time seizing control of rare minerals and committing massacres and other other atrocities.
And with that, the group first emerged in 2012 when it also captured the largest city in the eastern region of the DRC – a city by the name of Goma (Go-muh).
And while they were eventually defeated and driven out, now? They’re back.
Right, in 2021, after years of regrouping, it launched a new campaign, seizing control of large areas of territory in a province bordering Rwanda.
This month, they went even further, capturing territory in a second Congolese province for the first time.
And on Saturday, after more than a decade, the group finally made their way back to the city (BROLL: 0:26-0:31)
Where, notably, many people fleeing the violence of M23 and other armed groups had already taken shelter.
With many now fleeing again as the rebels fight to completely capture the city. []
And with that, as of recording, the fighting? It’s still going on.
With a senior U.N. official in the country reporting yesterday that it had spread to every neighbourhood in the city. []
And today, we’re seeing reports of dead bodies scattered in the streets of Goma and hospitals being overwhelmed by patients with gunshot and shrapnel wounds.
With a W-H-O coordinator also saying they’re hearing “reports of health workers being shot at and patients including babies being caught in crossfire.” []
And then, a UN spokesperson saying there’s been repots of rapes and sexual violence. []
And with all that, the reported death toll at this time is as high as 25.[]
And of course, the number of displaced, which was already at 400,000 people for this month alone? (BROLL: 0:08-0:13)
Like the death toll, there’s a good chance that number gets bigger.
And also with all this, tensions between the DRC and Rwanda – which are always high – they’re now off the fucking chartts.
Right, because like I mentioned at the beginning, M23 is backed by the Rwandan government.
At least, according to the UN, the US, and most people you ask.
Right, Rwanda, for its part, denies supporting the group, only acknowledging last year that it has troops and missile systems in eastern Congo to safeguard its security.
With U.N. experts estimating up to 4,000 Rwandan forces are in Congo now.[]
Though, notably, on Sunday, Congo’s foreign minister said that more Rwandan troops had crossed the border, coming directly into Goma.
Saying this amounted to “a declaration of war” on Rwanda’s part.[]
And notably, adding to that, Congolese and Rwandan soldiers have reportedly exchanged artillery fire across the border. []
And so you have Reuters reporting that “the U.N. and global powers fear the conflict could spiral into a regional war” akin to the first and second Congo wars in the late 90’s and early 2000’s.
With the agency also describing recent events as the worst escalation of the long-running conflict for more than a decade. []
And on top of all that, all this is triggering chaos on the complete opposite side of the country, in the capital city of Kinshasa (Kin-shah-suh) (BROLL: 1:31-1:40)
Right, with police reportedly firing tear gas at angry crowds who burned tires, chanted anti-Rwanda slogans, and targeted a UN office and embassies of several countries seen as favourable to Rwanda.
Notably, including the embassy of the US, along with France, Belgium, Kenya, and Uganda.
But with that, that’s where we are now.
Right, we’ll have to wait and see where things go from here.
I will say, the Congolese and Rwandan presidents are set to attend an online meeting tomorrow.
So hopefully some sort of common ground can be found there, but as we know with these situations, anything could happen.
