This week, Lisa and David talk about Pete Hegseth’s panel of beardos and weirdos; Trump administration controversial taxpayer-funded ad campaigns; Mike Lee blocks bipartisan effort to prevent demolition of the Kennedy Center; Trump withdraws US from European anti-corruption watchdog; Jack Smith Senate Judiciary Committee hearing; Trump doxxing one of his own party’s Senators; another Trump loyalist and election denier quits so-called “grand conspiracy” probe; Trump formally agrees to stop fighting E Jean Carroll’s $5m verdict; Trump sending $500 Obamacare refund checks to battleground districts; Trump and AI billionaires promote AI “self-regulation”; botched execution of Christa Pike in Tennessee; BORGs; and more. New segment: what’s the right stirred up about: * Accusing Bruce Springsteen and Tom Morello of using the “Power to the People” music festival, as a partisan, anti-Trump rally disguised as a voter mobilization event. * September 2026 survey commissioned by Liberal Currents showing that 59% of surveyed Democrats would favor a military coup to remove Donald Trump, with critics weaponizing the findings to accuse the political left of abandoning its democratic principles. * Trump criticized the appointment of New York State Attorney General Letitia James as special prosecutor in the Cornell University Jane Doe case, saying she is a “corrupt person” and that the seven accused fraternity members (frequently dubbed the “Cornell 7”) “won’t get a fair shake.” On right-wing social media, the sentiment is highly protective of the accused students’ largely mirroring Trump’s statements and framing the renewed investigation as a broader critique of institutional bias. * Conservative complaints that mainstream outlets are amplifying ungrounded rumors of Trump hospitalization. * Overwhelmingly positive reception on the right of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s recent “State of the Force” address at Marine Corps Base Quantico. In the speech, Hegseth confirmed a 20% cut to the military’s top brass, targeting generals and admirals to purge “woke” influences framing the move as a necessary corrective. * Attacks from the right directed at Sarah Huckabee Sanders over a campaign advertisement promoting new “welfare-to-work” requirements that they say unfairly demonizes and mocks young white men—a core conservative demographic—rather than targeting systemic welfare issues. * Conservative media are framing the entire Jack Smith hearing as a successful, aggressive exposure of his alleged abuse of power. Heavily edited soundbite clips are being widely shared as examples of Republicans successfully standing up to a “corrupt deep state”. Added Context for White House Taxpayer-funded Ad Campaigns The Trump administration is facing intense bipartisan backlash after it was revealed that President Donald Trump personally directed the White House to launch a $20 million taxpayer-funded TV ad campaign. The White House has produced at least 13 of these ads, according to CNN. The administration insists the spots are completely legal “public service announcements” (PSAs). Critics claim it could amount to “felony criminal theft” of government property. House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Jamie Raskin and Representative George Whitesides have formally requested that the Government Accountability Office (GAO) investigate. It typically takes several months to over a year for the GAO’s Office of the General Counsel to issue a binding legal opinion. GAO has no direct enforcement mechanism. They cannot prosecute anyone. It would have to refer the matter to the Department of Justice, where prosecution is highly unlikely given these departments are under Trump’s executive branch. Congress can theoretically claw back funds or defund programs in the future but that would do absolutely nothing to pull the commercials off the air before the election. Furthermore, while clawbacks might penalize the operational budget of the border patrol, it has no impact to personal bank accounts or political campaigns of the president and his allies. The only way to physically force the ads off the air before the midterm elections is through the federal court system. Public interest groups or a coalition of lawmakers would have to file an emergency lawsuit seeking a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) and a preliminary injunction. They must prove to a federal judge that allowing the ads to continue running causes “irreparable harm” that cannot be fixed by a later financial clawback. Federal courts are historically highly hesitant to issue injunctions involving political speech or executive spending just weeks before an election. Once again, the legal and financial frameworks of the U.S. government are built on the assumption of compliance with norms. When an administration chooses to push past those boundaries, the system leaves the final enforcement up to the voters at the ballot box. Added Context for E Jean Carroll’s $5m Verdict, Trump’s Defamation Countersuit, and the $83.3 Million Judgment A May 2023 civil jury found Trump liable for sexual abuse (via forcible digital penetration) and defamation, awarding Carroll $5 million. Donald Trump filed a defamation countersuit against E. Jean Carroll in June 2023 following a CNN interview where she responded “Oh, yes he did” when asked about a jury’s finding that he had not technically committed “rape” under narrow New York penal law. Federal Judge Lewis A. Kaplan dismissed Donald Trump's defamation countersuit against writer E. Jean Carroll on August 7, 2023. Kaplan said Trump's claim had no merit and that Carroll's statements repeating the claim that Trump had raped her were "substantially true" given the jury's verdict. The $5 million verdict and finding of sexual abuse became final August 17, 2026 after subsequent appeals were exhausted, with the U.S. Supreme Court declining further review. A separate trial regarding earlier 2019 defamation claims resulted in an additional $83.3 million judgment against Trump. That case is currently temporarily delayed (stayed) while Trump’s legal team and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) pursue an appeal before the U.S. Supreme Court. To secure the delay and cover accumulating interest, Trump was ordered to post a $7.4 million bond. The DOJ is attempting to invoke the Westfall Act to substitute the U.S. government as the defendant, which would effectively nullify Trump’s personal liability. Under normal scheduling practices for its new term, the Supreme Court is expected to announce whether it will hear the case. If the court denies the petition, the $83.3 million judgment becomes final, and the temporary pause on the funds will lift. If the Supreme Court chooses to hear the appeal, the justices will evaluate arguments from Trump’s legal team and the Department of Justice regarding presidential immunity. Obamacare $500 Refunds The 30 states that will receive the Obamacare refunds are: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming. A data analysis by Reuters revealed that 71% of the total funds ($339 million) are landing in 13 marquee battleground states featuring competitive Senate or gubernatorial races. Added Context for Deportations of Unaccompanied Minors According to USCRI, there are no publicly documented cases of unaccompanied minors being sent to third countries under the U.S. government’s third-country removal program. What is Documented for Unaccompanied Minors While unaccompanied minors are not being sent to third countries, immigration attorneys and watchdog organizations have documented severe escalations in how they are handled within standard deportation channels: * Accelerated Repatriation to Home Countries: Instead of being sent to third countries, the administration has… Get full access to Outrage Overload Newsletter at outrageoverload.substack.com/subscribe
