MS NOW's Rachel Maddow kicked off her weekly show with a political obituary for Lori Chavez-DeRemer, the scandal-plagued Secretary of Labor for the Trump administration, who announced her resignation on Monday following months of explosive scandals.

"Today, another one down," said Maddow, after recounting other Trump administration officials who had to leave in disgrace, like Greg Bovino and Pam Bondi. "And where do you want to start with this one? In January, the New York Post was first to report on a complaint about Trump's Labor Secretary that had been made to the Department's inspector general. And I got to tell you, the New York Post has since done a ton of groundbreaking reporting on this scandal at Trump's Labor Department."

"Chavez-DeRemer faced allegations of drinking in the office during the work day and of taking staff members to strip clubs and of taking personal trips at taxpayer expense," Maddow said. "She was accused of pursuing a sexual relationship with a member of her security detail. That member of her security detail was then put on leave. Then he resigned. Then her chief of staff was forced out. Then her deputy chief of staff was forced out. Then her director of finance was forced out."

"Then we learned that her husband — hey, there's a husband! — he was banned from going inside the Labor Department's headquarters building," Maddow continued. "That ban on him entering the building came after two Labor Department staff members accused him, the Secretary's husband, of sexually assaulting them at the Labor Department headquarters building."

And somehow, even after all that, Maddow continued, "the hits just kept coming."

"Last week, The New York Times was first to report on Trump's Labor Secretary allegedly sending text messages to her employees during the workday, telling them to bring her wine," said Maddow. "This is what The Times says, quote, 'In one text message, Ms. Chavez-DeRemer asked a staff member to bring rosé to her hotel room,'" which came from "a hotel bar in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, where the Labor Secretary went on an official visit last July.

Additionally, per that report, Maddow noted, "Some of the young women were instructed by the Labor Secretary herself to, quote, 'pay attention to her husband and father' ... Three Labor Department staff members have filed civil rights complaints against Trump's Labor Secretary and the Department describing a hostile work environment."

"But now Trump's Labor Secretary is out, too," said Maddow. "As of tonight, Trump Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer is out of her job. Her lawyer told us here at MS NOW tonight, quote, 'Secretary Chavez-DeRemer did not resign due to findings that she violated the law. Her decision to leave office was personal.'"

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Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth fired Army Chief of Staff General Randy George on April 2 with a terse phone call lasting less than a minute, providing no explanation or advance notice.

George received the call during a Pentagon meeting while Army Secretary Dan Driscoll was on vacation in North Carolina.

According to The Daily Beast, Hegseth's dismissal was motivated by paranoia, described by George as "disloyal."

The abrupt firing drew criticism within the Pentagon and Trump administration circles, particularly given the ongoing U.S. and Israel war against Iran.

White House officials stated Hegseth retains presidential confidence. But The Wall Street Journal reported the unusually public feud has raised questions about whether personal vendettas influence his decisions during a time of unprecedented military commitments worldwide.

Pentagon insiders have expressed concern about Hegseth's leadership approach and personnel decision-making process.

Watch the video below.

President Donald Trump's "counterproductive" policies regarding immigration and global trade have turbocharged resistance against his administration in rural America, according to a new analysis.

Bob Davis, co-author of a book on Trump's trade policies with China, argued in a new guest essay for The New York Times that Trump's push to deport illegal immigrants and upend trade relations with China has caused severe economic harm to rural cities like Hickory, North Carolina. In turn, local advocates say there is growing resistance to the Trump administration among youth, a demographic that Trump did well with in the 2024 election.

"President Trump has held up these towns as a symbol of all that’s gone wrong with the American economy," Davis wrote. "His attacks on globalization and on China, in particular, resonate with voters and power his 'America first' agenda. The president has sought to restore American manufacturing by imposing sky-high tariffs and empowering an aggressive deportation force. But if you spend any time in Hickory, you can see how counterproductive these policies are."

Davis spoke with Ginny Romero, the executive director of Centro Latino, who said she has never seen local youths so energized to vote in November.

“I have never seen youths so ready to vote, and not just youths — every age group, every generation," she said.

Alaska Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-AK) had a simple answer when a constituent confronted him about a broken campaign promise at a public forum this month — he ran.

Sullivan was wrapping up a Zoom session at ComFish, Alaska's commercial fishing conference, when someone on the call put him on the spot.

"Hey Senator, do you have a second for one more question?" asked Jacob Carlson.

"Nope, I've got to run, I've got a 5 o'clock press conference. And I've got to prepare for it," Sullivan said.

"Oh but why did you break your pledge to return the money you took from the Pebble Mine CEO?" Carlson asked.

Sullivan's response was swift.

"I gotta run. Thanks!" he said — and disappeared.

"Why did you break your pledge? To return the money?" Carlson demanded to know.

But the senator had already left.

"Ok. With that ..." an organizer of the forum said, trailing off as the audience chuckled.

The recorded exchange is making the rounds in Alaska political circles, according to Alaska Public Media's Alaska At-Large newsletter, and is expected to feature prominently in upcoming anti-Sullivan ads as his Senate race against Democrat Mary Peltola heats up.

In 2020, Sullivan pledged to donate all campaign contributions from Pebble Mine's then-CEO Tom Collier to charity after secret recordings surfaced of Collier bragging that he had Sullivan "sitting over in a corner and being quiet." Sullivan called Collier's behavior "unethical practices."

Sullivan is still accepting contributions from Pebble's current CEO John Shively, who gave $500 in December and another $500 in February.

Newly unsealed deposition transcripts obtained by the Wall Street Journal revealed that Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton admitted under oath to violating attorney-client privilege by handing over data from a former client to a plaintiff suing them.

This comes as Paxton fights in a heated runoff for the GOP Senate nomination against incumbent Sen. John Cornyn, who trails him in most polls. President Donald Trump was previously considering an endorsement of Cornyn to bail him out, but now appears not to be interested in doing so.

"The deposition marked a rare instance of Paxton being made to answer questions under oath," noted the report. "It remained effectively sealed when the case’s judge, a donor to Paxton’s wife, state Sen. Angela Paxton, delayed ruling on its sealing for more than four years until the case was settled in 2023."

One of the details from the deposition, reported the Journal, is that he confessed to handing over information that he had an ethical obligation to keep confidential.

"Charles Loper III, trustee of Paxton’s blind trust, sued Byron Cook, a former business associate, claiming fraud by Unity Resources, an energy investment company. Paxton wasn’t a defendant in the suit, but was Unity’s former lawyer, board member and investor," said the report. In the deposition, "Attorneys pressed Paxton on having given Unity records to his own attorney Mitch Little — who was also representing Loper in suing Unity — but not to Unity itself. 'I’m sure I did,' Paxton said of giving the communications to Little, saying that he had done so to see if they were privileged."

"Legal ethics experts declined to read the deposition because it is under a protective order, but said giving former client communications to anyone — especially someone suing the client — is a violation of attorney-client privilege," said the report. "And, records belong to the client and can’t be withheld, they said."

Paxton campaign spokesman Nick Maddux denied the report, saying, “The Wall Street Journal has spent the last year bending over backward to be an extension of the Cornyn campaign, but this one takes the cake.”

A lawyer was stunned on Monday while discussing a new civil rights investigation the Trump DOJ is undertaking.

In a new episode, Shant Karnikian, a lawyer and co-host of the "Civil Unrest" podcast, discussed the Trump DOJ's civil rights probe into Cassidy Hutchinson, a former Trump administration staffer who testified against the president during the inquiry into the Jan. 6 insurrection. On April 7, the New York Times reported that the DOJ is investigating whether Hutchinson lied to Congress.

"This is political retribution at its worst," Karnikian said.

Karnikian noted that the probe appeared to focus on a couple of statements. In one, Hutchinson claimed that President Donald Trump reached out and tried to grab the steering wheel of "The Beast," the president's car, on January 6 to return to the Capitol. She also testified that Trump did not do anything to protect former Vice President Mike Pence during the insurrection.

Karnikian also recalled Hutchinson testifying that she was coached by Trump's ethics lawyers ahead of her testimony. Hutchinson said she felt pressured to tell the court that she "didn't recall" certain details.

"That's despicable stuff," Karnikian said.

President Donald Trump accused news media outlets of misrepresenting the Iran war on Truth Social, claiming he is "winning a War, BY A LOT" even though coverage suggests otherwise.

Trump criticized major publications like the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Washington Post, calling them "fake news."

He claimed Iran's military capabilities have been severely degraded and exalted the alleged destruction of their navy and air force, while stating his U.S. blockade is costing Iran $500 million daily.

The president described media coverage as anti-American, saying it rooted for Iran's victory.

Trump has previously made false statements about the conflict, including claiming Iran agreed to surrender uranium stockpiles.

Reports indicate the Strait of Hormuz remains obstructed, Iran and the United States remain far apart in negotiations, and U.S. war objectives remain unclear.

Trump asserted the blockade will remain until a deal is reached.

Watch the video below.

One of the sharpest legal minds ever to stand before the Supreme Court decided to have a little fun with the justices Monday — and got a pointed reminder from the bench that daring the nation's top judges is a risky game, Courthouse News Service reported.

Lisa Blatt has argued more cases before the Supreme Court than any other woman in American legal history. On Monday she was back at the podium, this time defending a Maryland hospital system in a dry but consequential fight over the boundaries of federal court power.

The dispute centered on whether to expand or discard the Rooker-Feldman doctrine, a legal principle that limits federal courts from second-guessing state court decisions. Justice Neil Gorsuch pressed opposing counsel Elizabeth Prelogar to make the case for scrapping it entirely, asking her to "sing a few bars for me."

Prelogar, the former top government lawyer who once argued — and lost — the case that ended federal abortion rights, obliged. But when the argument turned to whether the doctrine could realistically be overturned, Blatt stepped in with a verdict of her own.

"Not in an April case," she told the justices. "Not happening." Laughter rippled through the courtroom.

Justice Samuel Alito, appointed by George W. Bush, was unmoved.

"Don't dare my colleagues," he said flatly.

Justice Elena Kagan had already signaled skepticism toward Blatt's position, warning that a ruling in her favor would effectively tell lower courts that the doctrine was "alive and well" — a message she called "very odd."

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson pressed Prelogar from the other direction, worrying that her proposed rule would give state court losers little incentive to exhaust their appeals before running to federal court.

Together Blatt and Prelogar have racked up nearly a century's worth of Supreme Court appearances between them. When the sparring was finally over, they hugged.

The Department of Homeland Security has plans to create smart glasses that can spy on immigrants and protesters, according to a new report.

Journalist Ken Klippenstein reported on Substack, citing budget documents, that DHS is building on existing technology to create the glasses, which could record video and give agents instant access to data about someone's immigration status and other biometric data held by the federal government. Klippenstein said the project is part of DHS's goal to create a "ubiquitous surveillance" world.

"It might be portrayed as seeking to identify illegal aliens on the streets, but the reality is that a push in this direction affects all Americans, particularly protesters," a DHS attorney told Klippenstein, according to the report.

Klippenstein noted that the U.S. military used similar technology during the War on Terror. For instance, the military created its own biometric watch lists and developed the Handheld Interagency Identity Detection Equipment, which provided troops with real-time access to a person's biometric information.

"ICE Glasses eventually will do all of that in a more compact way," Klippenstein reported. "The secret recesses of the government already collect what are literally called 'non‑cooperative biometrics,' where the data is captured without a subject’s consent."

"That’s the world of ubiquitous surveillance that the Department of Homeland Security is looking to reproduce here on American soil," he added.

As the confirmation hearings for President Donald Trump's nominee to lead the Federal Reserve approach, Democrats are planning to focus on his finances, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday evening.

"In a preconfirmation filing last week, Warsh disclosed assets worth more than $100 million but declined to identify the underlying holdings of his largest individual investments, citing confidentiality agreements," reported Matt Grossman and Nick Timiraos. "The Office of Government Ethics conditionally certified the filing, noting it complies with federal ethics law for all but several dozen holdings. It said Warsh will be in compliance only after he divests those holdings, which Warsh has agreed to do if he is confirmed."

"That opacity is the central complaint in a staff memo circulated by Senate Banking Committee Democrats and reviewed by The Wall Street Journal," said the report. "'Without the ability to review Mr. Warsh’s holdings in public and in detail, it is impossible to determine whether Mr. Warsh is holding an interest in institutions he would be responsible for regulating as Fed Chair,' the memo said."

Of particular importance to Democrats' probe is that "Warsh’s largest reported investments are stakes in a fund run by investor Stanley Druckenmiller, for whom Warsh has worked. That fund, Juggernaut, has recently appeared to hold shares in Fed-regulated bank companies," said the report. Fed officials are legally prohibited from owning stock in banks regulated by the agency.

All of this comes amid the broader question of how Trump has attempted to use politically charged investigations to jawbone the Fed, and outgoing Chair Jerome Powell specifically, into lowering interest rates even amid a high-inflation environment.

At least one Republican lawmaker, Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC), has threatened to hold up any Fed appointments, including Warsh, if Trump does not back off this legal pressure on the central bank.

A Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee lobbed an ominous threat at FBI Director Kash Patel during a CNN interview on Monday.

Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) joined CNN's Erin Burnett on "Erin Burnett OutFront," where they discussed a recent report by The Atlantic detailing Patel's excessive drinking and on-the-job absenteeism. It also included details about an instance where the SWAT team was called to wake up Patel because he was not answering his phone after a night out drinking.

Patel sued The Atlantic for $250 million, alleging he was defamed by the article. He also told Maria Bartiromo of Fox News that people who "come after" him should expect to appear in court.

Klobuchar told Burnett that Patel should expect to hear from her committee.

"We must have an immediate hearing with Kash Patel," Klobuchar said. "If he says, 'See you in court,' I think he should also say, ' See you in the Judiciary Committee.'"

"It's not a surprise that his response, instead of either resigning or giving his facts out there, he attacks and sues in court," Klobuchar said. "This is what this administration does. There's a constant attack on journalism in the media, and it's time and time again these suits by Donald Trump and others are ultimately thrown out."

Senate Majority Leader John Thune is getting eaten alive by his own base after quietly shelving Donald Trump's signature voter fraud legislation — and the knives are out.

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) lit the fuse Friday with a single scorched-earth post: "Just so America knows, after two weeks in recess, John Thune is no longer considering the SAVE America Act."

The SAVE America Act, Trump's prized legislation requiring proof of citizenship to register to vote, has been a cornerstone of the MAGA election integrity agenda. It follows years of GOP lies pushing widespread voter fraud claims.

Thune's decision to drop it after a two-week congressional recess left true believers feeling blindsided and betrayed by the man the party put in charge of the Senate.

The announcement triggered an immediate meltdown across MAGA world, with Trump loyalists turning their fury on the Senate's top Republican with a ferocity usually reserved for Democrats.

"John Thune is pathetic," wrote one user. "Traitor to the republic," fumed another, adding a call for "tar and feathers."

Georgia state Sen. Greg Dolezal, a self-described Trump conservative running for lieutenant governor, called it "the largest blown political trifecta in history" and demanded Thune be replaced.

"Absurd. Replace Thune. This is the largest blown political trifecta in history. Y’all have a mandate-get it done," he wrote on X.

Others called for his resignation outright.

"The American people are being betrayed," wrote one account. "This will not stand," echoed another.

Some are already calling for primary challengers. Others are demanding Sens. Mike Lee (R-UT) and Ted Cruz (R-TX) force Thune out.

Jeannette Garcia of Turning Point USA added, "Unacceptable. Pass The Save Act NOW!"

On Sunday, Pat Ford, producer of "The David Parkman Show," argued President Donald Trump surrendered the Republican Party's traditional political advantage on tax policy due to his severe unpopularity.

According to a recent Fox News poll, Trump's approval rating among independent voters on tax policy dropped 58 points, a significant shift from his first term at the White House.

In a new reaction video, Ford characterized Trump's approval rating on taxes as "completely collapsing," noting this demonstrates broader administrative failures since tax policy typically represents Republican strength.

Ford continued, describing the Trump brand as "toxic" for voters, explaining that tax questions serve as a proxy for expressing overall displeasure with the administration.

He stated that voters are dissatisfied with Trump's handling of multiple issues, including the war, the economy, and the Epstein files.

"So, you say anything with Trump's name in the question, and they're [voters] going to react negatively to it," Ford said, "That's exactly how toxic and unpopular this guy is right now."

Watch the video below.

President Donald Trump apparently believed that professional wrestling matches were completely organic events — and nearly fell out of his seat watching one with disbelief, according to The New Yorker.

The revelation came as part of a deeper dive into how wrestling mogul Linda McMahon, now the head of Trump's Department of Education, approached her position and the influence she has over the administration.

"When Donald Trump was a kid, his favorite wrestler was Antonino Rocca, though Trump called him Rocky Antonino, and when classmates tried to correct him he insisted that he was right," wrote Zach Helfand. "One can see why wrestling appealed to him — the crowd is everything, the rules mean nothing, and the referees are so feckless that they often get knocked out and everyone laughs."

"In the late eighties, Trump hosted WrestleMania IV and V at the Trump Plaza in Atlantic City," the report continued. "The shows bombed, but Trump enjoyed himself. The wrestler Bret Hart remembered Trump almost falling out of his chair when Hart appeared to crack his face on a metal turnbuckle. 'He believed it,' Hart told me. 'He couldn’t believe I didn’t get killed.'"

Professional wrestling is widely known to be a staged spectacle, where the stunts performed during the matches are choreographed and scripted ahead of time for maximum entertainment.

McMahon has come under controversy for making it her stated goal to dismantle the very department she is running, as well as for how she has conducted tours around the country to exclude those who might disagree with her positions.

CNN's Kristen Holmes was floored on Monday after President Donald Trump's latest move to make life harder for his administration officials.

Holmes reported during CNN's "Erin Burnett OutFront" that Trump administration officials have been conducting a "flurry" of back-door diplomacy over the last week to prepare for an upcoming meeting in Pakistan to end the war in Iran. However, Trump has made several public statements, both on social media and during press conferences, that have made negotiations much tougher for those officials, Holmes said.

Holmes was floored when she described a conversation with the president in which he claimed not to know who from the Iranian delegation was attending the meeting.

"President Trump was asked about it. He said at one point that he didn't know that they were going to be there. 'Maybe they'd be there.' 'It's not a big deal if they aren't there.'"

"Of course, it's a big deal!" Holmes emphatically declared. "They are trying to get a deal done. This administration is looking for an off-ramp, and they are hoping that these talks will lead to that."

Last week, Vice President JD Vance traveled to Pakistan to negotiate an end to the war but returned empty-handed. Trump said during a rally in Las Vegas last Thursday that he was considering traveling to the country himself to participate in the negotiations.

A longtime GOP analyst said on Monday that he's alarmed by the acts of one of Trump's "irresponsible and reckless" leaders, as evidenced in a new report.

Bill Kristol, editor-at-large of The Bulwark, said during a new episode of "The Bulwark Podcast" with host Tim Miller that the recent report by The Atlantic about FBI Director Kash Patel's excessive drinking while on the job was "alarming." Not only is Patel's behavior concerning on its face, but Kristol added that it also showed how little pushback Patel is receiving internally, which may be a sign of a larger issue.

"I'm alarmed that, on the one hand, they're so alarmed by him," Kristol said about the anonymous sources who spoke to The Atlantic. "And on the other hand, it seems like he should be weaker than he is as director. I'm worried that their culture is to go along, or maybe there are some people who like having him there. Maybe I'm being unfair. Maybe they are curbing him more than I realize. I hope they are. This is something serious."

Kristol also warned that Patel may still be able to inflict significant damage on the FBI, even though recent reporting has portrayed him as incompetent.

"I'm pretty worried about the DOJ, FBI, and DoD situation," Kristol said. "Totally irresponsible and reckless leaders getting some push back, but also they can do an unbelievable amount of damage, and do it in a ham-handed and heavy-handed way."

A CNN fact-checker smacked down President Donald Trump's Iran claims one by one on Monday, warning that even the president's most basic claims cannot be trusted.

Daniel Dale's analysis documented a pattern of frequent false, dubious and unverifiable claims about the war. The most recent came Monday morning, when Trump told the New York Post that JD Vance was already on his way to Pakistan for Iran negotiations - only for Vance's motorcade to be spotted at the White House. He wasn't leaving until Tuesday.

"Trump’s inaccurate remark might be shrugged off, the kind of little thing a busy president could understandably get wrong. But it’s part of a pattern that has accelerated over the past week – of this president being incorrect about even the most basic of matters related to the Iran war," wrote Dale.

On Friday, Trump declared the "Hormuz Strait situation is over" and that Iran had agreed to never close it again. Iran closed the strait the next day.

"But the situation very clearly wasn’t over: Trump himself had posted the same morning that the US would continue its blockade on ships heading to or from Iranian ports; Araghchi had said its opening of the strait only applied to a specific Iran-approved path near its coastline rather than the lanes ships had generally used before; and an Iranian official posted later in the day that ships had to get approval from the navy of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards and pay tolls," wrote Dale.

Additionally, Trump told reporters the Pope had said Iran could have a nuclear weapon when the Pope said no such thing.

The crescendo came last week when Trump told journalists Iran had agreed to an unlimited moratorium on nuclear activities, cut off all support for Hamas and Hezbollah, and surrendered its enriched uranium stockpile. Asked point-blank for confirmation, Trump replied: "They've agreed to everything."

Iran's foreign ministry responded that its enriched uranium "will not be transferred anywhere under any circumstances."

A former national security official quoted by Dale put it bluntly.

“One of the big differences between the current round of US-Iran diplomacy and prior rounds is that this administration and the President in particular are unreliable narrators,” Eric Brewer, a former National Security Council counterproliferation official, posted on social media on Friday. “Iran watchers have gotten pretty good at parsing statements from both sides over the years, but we’ve never had to contend with a US president that is so outspoken and prone to exaggeration, fabrication, and outright lies.”

A scandal-plagued Democratic mayor who moved from Illinois to Georgia to run as a Republican is now admitting she moved before she even concluded her term as mayor.

According to WGN 9, "Tiffany Henyard’s fight to remain on the ballot in Georgia revealed she continued to collect money from two elected positions in Illinois even after she said she moved to Atlanta. 'My residency is real, lawful, and supported by the evidence,' Henyard told members of the Fulton County, Georgia, board of elections. They were examining whether she met the one-year residency requirement to hold office in Georgia."

Henyard is seeking a position on the Fulton County Board of Commissioners, as a Republican, after she had served as the Democratic mayor of Dolton, Illinois, a small community immediately south of Chicago, where she called herself the "Super Mayor."

During her time in office, Henyard racked up a number of scandals, including allegations she mismanaged the village's finances, and got into a physical fight at a Thornton Township board meeting between her boyfriend and a community activist who called her a slur. She was overwhelmingly defeated in a landslide primary vote in February 2025.

After that loss, she "continued to hold office until the new mayor was sworn in on May 5, 2025. She was also the Supervisor of Thornton Township until her successor took over on May 19, 2025," said the WGN 9 report. "When a member of the elections board asked how she could hold office in Illinois while living in Georgia, she responded: 'I was a lame duck. I couldn’t do anything.'"

A number of politicians have faced allegations that they don't actually live in the places they represent, with one of the most prominent cases being Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), who has been accused of secretly living in Florida.

A lawyer revealed on Monday that FBI Director Kash Patel's latest "terrible" decision just put President Donald Trump's Department of Justice in a bad spot.

Michael Popok, a lawyer and host of the podcast "The Intersection with Michael Popok," said during a new episode on Monday that Patel's decision to sue The Atlantic for $250 million in a defamation suit over a report about his excessive drinking while on duty has just opened up Trump's DOJ to being deposed in the lawsuit. Popok said that would give The Atlantic more information about other instances they've reported on, but may not have had the full picture.

Popok said it was a "terrible" decision on Patel's part to file the lawsuit.

"What you've really done is open up Kash Patel, those in his inner circle, both current and former FBI, those who have been fired, and all the sources for the reporting to have to testify," Popok said.

"This is one of the dumbest things I've ever seen," he added.

Last week, The Atlantic published a bombshell report describing Patel's erratic behavior at the helm of one of the nation's most powerful law enforcement agencies. Patel allegedly threatened to sue the outlet ahead of the story's publication, Popok said.

Policy expert William Becker published an op-ed in The Hill arguing that President Donald Trump has one final opportunity to redeem his legacy by resigning on health grounds.

Becker detailed the administration's controversies, including constitutional violations, conflicts of interest, pardon abuse, military deployment against civilians, among many others.

Despite voters giving Trump a second opportunity to improve his legacy, Becker wrote, each time he has made matters worse. He also warned that if Trump refuses to resign, Congress is responsible for removing him before irreparable damage occurs.

He argued voluntary resignation would prevent Trump's legacy from becoming merely a historical "morality lesson," and health concerns provide a plausible face-saving rationale.

Becker concluded, “He doesn’t understand, or perhaps will not admit, that he is memorializing a decade in which he caused decay, division, degradation, degeneration and disgrace,” adding, “Once Trump leaves office, the plaques on his monuments will explain how the government failed America and nearly allowed the world’s continuing democracy to slip away.”

Watch the videos below.

Reactions mounted on Monday after the White House confirmed that Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer has resigned from her Cabinet job — the third Trump administration member ousted in less than two months.

White House communications director Steven Cheung announced DeRemer's departure in a post on X.

"Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer will be leaving the Administration to take a position in the private sector," Cheung wrote. "She has done a phenomenal job in her role by protecting American workers, enacting fair labor practices, and helping Americans gain additional skills to improve their lives. Keith Sonderling will take on the role of Acting Secretary of Labor."

Social media users reacted to the news, with several pointing out a potential pattern.

"Only the best! And it’s another woman that Trump pushes out," user CjMtheIrish, who self-describes as a "blue collar liberal," wrote on X.

"Another bites the dust!" Political commentator Lucas Sanders wrote on X.

"Somebody earlier said this is the Liquor Cabinet and you know what," media personality and podcast host Pastor Ben Dixon wrote on X, sharing the "it's true" meme of Dwight from "The Office."

"Another woman it should be noted," Kevin Leecaster, climate action advocate, wrote on Bluesky.

"Lori Chavez-DeRemer resigned today, a week after this," Daniel Nichanian, editor in chief of Bolt, wrote on Bluesky, adding his post from five days prior, "The father AND the husband of Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer were both texting the same young women on her staff."

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Customs and Border Protection tariff refund system went live Monday, marking what small business advocates call a “complex” first step for entrepreneurs to recoup $166 billion in import taxes accrued under President Donald Trump’s emergency tariffs, which the U.S. Supreme Court struck down in February.

Importers and brokers can now upload a detailed list of each tariff paid under Trump’s now-illegal order to charge duties under the International Economic Emergency Powers Act, or IEEPA.

Customs officials estimate 330,000 importers paid the duties. Refunds are expected within 60 to 90 days, according to CBP.

The Supreme Court’s 6-3 decision earlier this year found Trump’s steep global tariffs exceeded his presidential powers.

Following the high court’s decision, U.S. Court of International Trade Judge Richard Eaton ordered the government to stop charging the tariffs and establish a refund system.

A handful of small businesses and Democratic state attorneys general led the legal challenge to Trump’s 2025 “Liberation Day” tariffs.

Small business owners angry, frustrated

States Newsroom documented the experiences of several small businesses across the U.S. who faced increased costs following Trump’s change in international trade policy.

Now many are experiencing a “confusing mix of relief,” Richard Trent, executive director of Main Street Alliance, told States Newsroom in an interview Monday.

Trent, whose organization advocates on behalf of small businesses said “our entrepreneurs, many of whom were angry that they had to pay tariffs in the first place, and were frustrated by the back-and-forth over the last year, opened up the portal this morning only to see that it had crashed. It just feels like the uncertainty just keeps popping up.”

Trent, who spoke to “five or six” businesses Monday morning who experienced technical issues, said the portal was up and running again by afternoon.

Customs and Border Protection did not confirm for States Newsroom whether the system had crashed, but rather provided a written statement.

“U.S. Customs and Border Protection has developed a new tool, the Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (CAPE), to efficiently process refunds, pursuant to court order, for importers and brokers who paid IEEPA duties,” according to an agency spokesperson.

“CBP has issued guidance to the trade community to help them prepare to use the new CAPE tool. Importers and brokers can visit CBP’s website for resources and step-by-step guidance,” the statement continued.

Monday’s launch is the first part of a four-step process in refunding the taxes paid by American businesses of all sizes.

Trent said the “complex” process is yet another hurdle for small operations.

“This is progress, but it’s not yet justice,” Trent said in an earlier statement Monday. “Small business owners should not have to jump through hoops to get back money they never should have had to pay. We need a refund process that is simple, accessible, and fast.”

Guides for refunds

The Liberty Justice Center, the libertarian legal advocacy group that represented small business plaintiffs before the Supreme Court, has established the Tariff Equity Refund Resource for America. The platform offers online guides for how to properly submit documentation for the refunds.

“We took this fight all the way to the Supreme Court on behalf of small businesses, and we’re not stopping now,” Sara Albrecht, chair of the Liberty Justice Center, said in a statement Monday. “We are a nonprofit law firm — our only goal is to help businesses recover every dollar they are owed, not to take a percentage of it. At a time when others are looking to profit off confusion, we are making this process clear, accessible and free.”

Trump declared international trade a national emergency just over a year ago, citing a trade imbalance on imports and exports between the United States and several other countries. The president imposed a 10% blanket tariff on all global imports and steeper double-digit taxes on products from some of the top U.S. trading partners.

The president delayed and changed the rates on numerous occasions.

Following his Supreme Court loss, Trump imposed a new round of universal, temporary tariffs under a separate statute. The Liberty Justice Center is again representing small businesses in court to fight the new import taxes.

Missouri Independent is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Missouri Independent maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jason Hancock for questions: info@missouriindependent.com.

This story was originally reported by Grace Panetta of The 19th. Meet Grace and read more of their reporting on gender, politics and policy.

President Donald Trump’s second Cabinet was never exceptionally diverse from the start. And in the past two months, three women have been fired or resigned.

The first to go, on March 5, was ex-Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, the face of the Trump administration’s mass deportation agenda. Then, less than a month later, Trump ousted former Attorney General Pam Bondi. And on Monday, embattled Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer announced her resignation.

“Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer will be leaving the Administration to take a position in the private sector,” White House communications director Steven Cheung said in a statement. “She has done a phenomenal job in her role by protecting American workers, enacting fair labor practices, and helping Americans gain additional skills to improve their lives.”

Chavez-DeRemer, a former Republican congresswoman from Oregon, has found herself embroiled in several scandals and was the subject of an internal misconduct investigation during her time leading the Labor Department. Chavez-DeRemer had been one of two Latinx Cabinet secretaries, along with Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Only 17 percent of Trump’s second-term Cabinet nominees were non-White, according to a 2025 Washington Post analysis. But compared with his last term, more women have been in Cabinet and other high-level roles: Women initially made up 37 percent of his second-term Cabinet, up from 17 percent. Trump also tapped Susie Wiles as the first woman to serve as White House chief of staff.

Former President Joe Biden’s Cabinet was the most diverse in history: 48 percent of those who served in his Cabinet were non-White, and 45 percent were women.

All three women former Cabinet members had received public blowback for various aspects of their performance in their roles. Noem’s Department of Homeland Security drew nationwide outrage for its aggressive approach to immigration enforcement in major cities, especially after federal immigration officials shot and killed two U.S. citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, in Minneapolis.

Bondi received bipartisan criticism and scrutiny for the Department of Justice’s handling of its files related to Jeffrey Epstein, though Trump’s impetus for firing her was reportedly that he was frustrated about the DOJ not moving aggressively enough to prosecute his political foes.

Chavez-DeRemer was the subject of an internal investigation into allegations of fraud and misconduct at the department, The New York Times reported. They included complaints of a toxic work environment from staffers who said they were asked to perform personal errands for Chavez-DeRemer and her husband, Dr. Shawn DeRemer, who was reportedly banned from the Labor Department’s headquarters for making unwanted sexual advances toward women staffers.

Investigators also reviewed personal texts from Chavez-DeRemer, her father and her husband to young women staffers at the department, including requests to bring her alcohol on trips, The Times reported.

Deputy Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling will take over as acting head of the department, according to Cheung.

While Trump’s Cabinet has been remarkably more stable than in his first term, the jobs of a number of other high-ranking officials have been rumored to be in trouble.

Tulsi Gabbard, a former Democratic congresswoman from Hawaii who switched parties and became part of the MAGA coalition, was confirmed last year as the nation’s chief intelligence official. She is the only Pacific Islander member of Trump’s Cabinet. The Guardian reported that Trump was asking advisers whether he should replace Gabbard after she declined to denounce a deputy, Joe Kent, who resigned over his disagreements over the U.S. war with Iran.

The women remaining in Trump’s Cabinet are Gabbard; , Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins;, Education Secretary Linda McMahon; and Kelly Loeffler, head of the Small Business Administration.

FBI Director Kash Patel and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick have both also drawn criticism and speculation that their jobs were on the line.

Trump has, at times, sidelined women and not punished men in his administration who have found themselves in hot water. He initially nominated Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York as his ambassador to the United Nations, but withdrew her nomination amid concerns over Republicans’ narrow House majority.

After his national security adviser, Mike Waltz, added a journalist to a Signal group chat where he and other top Trump administration officials were discussing military operations, Waltz was fired from his post last spring but instead took the position of UN ambassador. Rubio has since been serving as the acting national security adviser.

The internet jeered Apple CEO Tim Cook after it was announced on Monday that he is stepping down.

Apple said in a statement that Cook will transition to the executive chairman role on Sept. 1, and that hardware expert John Ternus will assume the chief executive role. The move ends Cook's 15 years of leading the company, during which time he oversaw the development of the Apple Watch and AirPods.

"It has been the greatest privilege of my life to be the CEO of Apple and to have been trusted to lead such an extraordinary company," Cook said in the statement.

Political analysts and observers jeered Cook, who donated $1 million to President Donald Trump's inauguration campaign and gave the president an award during an awkward Oval Office visit last year, after the announcement.

"Good. He ens---tified Apple and bowed down to a dictator," Linda Stevens, a consultant and founder of Spatial Spirits, posted on Bluesky.

"He's decided to spend more time handing out gold statues to Donald Trump," author John Hatch posted on Bluesky.

"How will they fill the shoes of someone who made iPhone boring and bribed our dictator president?" former journalist Mark Wright posted on Bluesky.

"I wonder which cabinet position he was offered?" Cliff Gilmore, a retired military officer, posted on Bluesky.

The government of the United Kingdom has barred a far-right gadfly Republican candidate from entering the country, mere days after she announced her planned trip in May — but she remains undeterred.

Last week, Valentina Gomez announced on X that she had obtained an electronic travel authorization to visit the country, and made clear that her angle was to protest against the existence of Muslims in Britain.

"VISA APPROVED. See you on May 16th in England," wrote Gomez, tagging Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, and the account for the Home Office and adding, "you’re only good at protecting the muslim rape gangs. Try to arrest me & see what happens. England belongs to the English. Not the mohameds."

But as of Monday, her remarks appear to have backfired.

"The Home Office has barred Valentina Gomez from the UK on the grounds that her presence would not be conducive to the public good ... Her Electronic Travel Authorisation has been revoked," reported Ben Bloch of Sky News.

Gomez responded to this by posting a video of herself on X, vowing that she would still be going.

"I just got banned from England by a dirty Pakistani Muslim, because I'm not coming to rape or kill little girls," said Gomez. "Plan A is for airplane, and since that's no longer an option, we're going to Plan B, and Plan B is for boats." She said that she would do the same thing Muslim refugees do, "hop on a boat and get free luxury accomodation, and deliver my beautiful speech, and if they dare to arrest me, I guarantee you that the White House will get involved."

Gomez previously ran unsuccessfully for the Secretary of State of Missouri and for a congressional seat in Texas.

She ran under the slogan "Don't be Weak and Gay," and to get attention online, posted videos of herself torching LGBTQ-affirming books and a copy of the Qur'an. She has also proclaimed Black Americans are "ungrateful" people who should "get the hell out" of the country if they don't like how they're treated.

Nick Anderson is a Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial cartoonist.

Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer will be the next Trump administration official to depart, the White House announced on Monday.

Steven Cheung, the White House communications director, announced DeRemer's departure in a post on X.

"Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer will be leaving the Administration to take a position in the private sector," Cheung wrote. "She has done a phenomenal job in her role by protecting American workers, enacting fair labor practices, and helping Americans gain additional skills to improve their lives. Keith Sonderling will take on the role of Acting Secretary of Labor."

DeRemer is the third cabinet secretary to depart the Trump administration this year. Attorney General Pam Bondi was let go after she failed to prosecute the president's enemies, and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem resigned after a series of leadership missteps.

President Donald Trump's brag that he can sign his name on an executive order better than other presidents left one analyst aghast on Monday.

On Saturday, Trump signed an executive order legalizing some natural medicines to treat veterans with serious mental health challenges. Trump bragged to the audience, which included administration officials and podcaster Joe Rogan, about the quality of his signature during the ceremony. David Pakman, host of the liberal "David Pakman Show" on YouTube, said in a new reaction video that Trump's brag was as terrifying as it was revealing.

"That is terrifying!" Pakman said. "And it is a level of humiliation for the office of the presidency that is almost beyond words."

Trump's mental fitness has been called into question recently after a couple of raving social media posts. In one, he threatened to obliterate the Iranian civilization if the Iranian regime did not reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a critical global waterway that is responsible for 20% of the world's energy trade.

In another post, Trump shared an AI-generated photo of himself appearing as Jesus Christ healing a sick man in a bed. Trump defended the photo by saying he thought it made him look like a doctor.

FBI Director Kash Patel filed a $250 million defamation lawsuit Monday against The Atlantic and staff writer Sarah Fitzpatrick over an article alleging excessive drinking and erratic behavior.

The complaint claims the article contains "false and obviously fabricated allegations designed to destroy Director Patel's reputation and drive him from office."

The Atlantic's report cited more than two dozen sources, including current and former FBI officials, who alleged Patel has rescheduled meetings to recover from intoxication and has been unreachable when needed.

Critics argue the lawsuit may backfire by potentially triggering discovery proceedings that could verify the article's claims. On Blueky, journalist Mona Burns noted the lawsuit confirms Patel was locked out of the FBI system on April 10, sparking speculation about his employment status.

Multiple observers warned that legal discovery could expose evidence supporting the allegations, with Democratic Rep. Ted Lieu sarcastically commenting on the resulting depositions via X.

Watch the video below.

Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson rebuked her colleagues on Monday with a solo dissent, saying she "cannot fathom" the majority's decision in a case.

Brown Jackson criticized the high court's decision in the District of Columbia v. R.W. to reverse a lower court decision that said a police officer had violated the Fourth Amendment by stopping a person without reasonable suspicion, MS NOW reported. The justices wrote in an unsigned per curiam opinion that the D.C. appeals court's previous ruling had failed to consider the "totality of circumstances."

In the dissent, she referred to the “assessment of which particular facts to weigh and to what extent, I cannot fathom why that kind of factbound determination warranted correction by this Court.”

Jonathan Turley, law professor, columnist and analyst, described the scolding dissent.

"Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson has issued another sole stinging dissent. In a 7-2 decision (with liberal justice Elena Kagan joining the majority), the Court upheld the authority of police to make a stop based on the totality of the circumstances..." Turley wrote on X. "Jackson wrote that 'I cannot fathom' how the seven justices could second-guess the lower court in rejecting the police claims. She accused her colleagues of mere "wordsmithing." Just for the record, it would be useful to review those words..."

The justice appeared to call out her colleagues' decisions.

"Even if I would have assigned more heft to a particular fact in my own first-instance assessment, I would not wordsmith a lower court in this fashion. In my view, this is not a worthy accomplishment for the unusual step of summary reversal. Therefore, I respectfully dissent," Brown Jackson wrote.