Kat's Korner (of The Common Ills)

Wednesday, May 06, 2026

The Rolling Stones

The Rolling Stones. Still rolling. Patrick Ryan (USA TODAY) reports:

On May 5, the rock icons announced their 25th studio album “Foreign Tongues” (out July 10), which they teased with two bluesy new songs: rollicking lead single “In the Stars” and the tempestuous “Rough and Twisted.”

That same day, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood touched down at the Weylin in Williamsburg for an afternoon launch party, greeting fans at the cavernous, historic former bank-turned-event space. Inside, projections of the Stones’ famous tongue-and-lips logo danced across the ceiling, and guests were served a selection of passed hors d'oeuvres and cocktails poured with the group’s signature Crossfire Hurricane rum.

The band joined superfan Conan O’Brien for a freewheeling, roughly half-hour conversation, in which they discussed the recording process and how they stay vital more than 60 years into the Stones’ career together. O’Brien began by asking Jagger, 82, how he still sounds exactly as he did when he was in his 20s.

“Well, I was taking a lot of drugs back in 1968,” Jagger quipped.

“This is an intervention, by the way,” O’Brien volleyed back.

“Oh, God, not another one!” Jagger exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air. “No, the secret is practice, I think. It’s simple.”

Richards, 82, meanwhile, spoke at length about he comes up with his classic guitar riffs.

“You can’t write em, you can’t force em — they come to you,” Richards said into his microphone, before apologizing to the crowd that most of his response was inaudible. “I keep waving this thing around! I’m so sorry, ladies and gentlemen.”

Kendra Syrdal (PARADE) reports on Keith Richards' most famous riff:

61 years ago during the evening of May 6th, 1965, guitarist Keith Richards of The Rolling Stones was fast asleep at home in his flat in Carlton Hill. Richards heard a melody in a dream, briefly woke up, recorded the riff on cassette, and promptly went back to bed. He'd later finding the tape contained just about 30 seconds of the riff and almost an hour of himself snoring. That fateful tape would morph into what is largely considered to be one of the best hooks in rock history in the number one Stones song, "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction."

Richards has said of the bizarre story and circumstances, "Without knowing it, in the middle of the night, I’d woken up, picked up the guitar which I quite often slept with. So anyway, it was one of those rare nights when I was actually alone, and obviously I’d recorded about 15 seconds of 'Satisfaction.'"

"Satisfaction" opens with the iconic and memorable riff by Richards, and was released as a single and later was included on their albumb Out of Our Heads. "Satisfaction" was released as a single in the US on June 4th, 1965, and would go on to chart on Billboard the following week on June 12th. It would remain on the chart for 14 weeks and held the number one spot for four of them. This would mark the first number one hit for the Stones in America.

Staying with the Stones, Ryan Louis Mantilla (COLLIDER) offers his pick of their best album:

The Rolling Stones boast quite an extensive discography, one notable example being Sticky Fingers. The influence of their ninth studio album, released in April 1971, cannot be overstated. It not only reached the top of the Billboard 200 — marking their second ascent to the number 1 spot at the time — but also solidified the band’s status as rock legends. Renowned for its daring fusion of rock, blues, country, and soul (as well as its infamous, controversial cover), the album garnered critical acclaim in addition to commercial success. The overall cohesion of the record reflected a band fully in command of its musical identity. Decades later, it still stands as one of the essential works in the Stones’ catalog, celebrated for its enduring influence on generations of musicians.
The Rolling Stones currently have eight number 1s on the Billboard charts, one of which came from the success of Sticky Fingers. After the band first reached Number 1 with their Out of Their Heads album in 1965 — which spent three weeks at the top — Sticky Fingers became their second number-one album on May 22, 1971. It remained at Number 1 for four weeks before Carole King’s Tapestry took over the top spot. Of course, much of the album’s success can be attributed to its standout songs, particularly the hit singles “Brown Sugar” and “Wild Horses.” All tracks were co-written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, except for “You Gotta Move” (written by Fred McDowell and Gary Davis) and “Sister Morphine,” which Jagger and Richards co-wrote with Marianne Faithfull.

Alex Hoegler (MEN'S HEALTH) looks back at who gave the Stones their start:

George Harrison changed the music industry more than six decades ago when he formed The Beatles with John Lennon, Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney. But if not for his special gift of music scouting, another iconic rock band may have never gotten a chance.

Harrison's contributions to The Beatles put him in a special place of music lore, yes. But fans of another iconic rock band, the Rolling Stones, may not know just how vital Harrison was in helping them break through as well.

As many die-hard fans of The Beatles know, Decca Records in London infamously rejected The Beatles, who went on to sign with EMI. The rest, as they say, is history.

Harrison would not hold a grudge against Decca Records, though. As Record Collector recalled in 2022, Harrison spoke to Dick Rowe, the head of A&R at Decca Records, and advised him to check out a new band called the Rolling Stones.

And so, down Mr. Rowe went to see the Rolling Stones perform at London's Crawdaddy Club on May 5, 1963. That, ladies and gentlemen, was another history-changing day for the rock n' roll industry.

Here's their latest "Rough & Twisted."

Closing with C.I.'s "The Snapshot:"

Wednesday, May 6, 2026. Democrats in Congress lead the fight for mifepristone, Donald Chump lies and encourages those under him to lie, so Hegseth lies, JD Vance lies, Homeland Security lies to the court, and much more.

Let's start with this from Senator Patty Murray's office:

More than 250 House and Senate Democrats filed an amicus brief to the Supreme Court urging them to overturn a Fifth Circuit decision that would upend the FDA approval process and restrict access to life-saving mifepristone.

ICYMI: Senator Murray Statement on Fifth Circuit Ruling to Harshly Limit Access to Medication Abortion Nationwide

Washington, D.C. – Yesterday, more than 250 Senate and House Democrats—led by U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA); Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY); Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), and Ron Wyden (D-OR); House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY); and Representatives Katherine Clark (D-MA), Frank Pallone Jr. (D-NJ), Diana DeGette (D-CO), Jamie Raskin (D-MD), and Ayanna Pressley (D-MA)—filed an amicus brief to the Supreme Court urging them to overturn a Fifth Circuit decision that would upend the FDA approval process and restrict access to mifepristone. This brief follows emergency appeals from the manufacturers of mifepristone; the Supreme Court issuing a temporary stay of the decision Monday morning until next Monday, May 11; and the announcement that the Court has ordered briefing on the stay by this Thursday, May 7.

The lawmakers argued that mifepristone already undergoes a rigorous FDA approval process, and the medication has repeatedly been found to be safe and effective. For a court to overturn this decision not only limits who is able to receive this vital and life-saving medication, putting lives at risk, but it also undermines the longstanding, congressionally mandated, and evidence-based decision-making process at the FDA.

“For more than a quarter century, FDA has repeatedly and consistently affirmed that mifepristone is safe. Over seven million patients in the U.S. have safely used mifepristone. And as with other drugs, FDA continues to monitor the post-marketing safety data on mifepristone—data confirming that mifepristone is safe without regard to how it is dispensed,” the members wrote.

The lawmakers also argued that the Fifth Circuit ruling was clearly not based on the merits of the distribution method of mifepristone, or the scientific backing of the medication, but rather a desire to limit the ability of individuals to receive abortion medication. The emergency stay is necessary to ensure that Louisiana is not able to deny medically appropriate care to patients far beyond the state’s borders.

“Decades after FDA’s initial approval of mifepristone and years after the in-person dispensing requirement was eliminated, the Fifth Circuit on an ‘emergency’ basis ordered FDA to re-impose this onerous nationwide restriction on all Americans. Allowing that decision to remain in place undermines the science-based statutory framework Congress commands and threatens patient access to reproductive health care,” the members continued. “As has been well publicized, many U.S. residents in states where abortion is legal live far from any reproductive health care provider. Reinstating an in-person dispensing requirement for mifepristone exacerbates an already significant reproductive health crisis by limiting access to the most common method of early abortion.”

The members argued that this is a clear case of judicial overreach by a lower court.

“Preserving evidence-based access to mifepristone, including when dispensed by mail or retail pharmacy, is necessary to mitigate the imminent harm facing members of the public. Women deserve access to mifepristone for reproductive health care, and all Americans deserve integrity in the congressionally mandated, evidence-based process for FDA’s drug regulatory decisions,” the members concluded.

In the Senate, the amicus brief was signed by all 47 Democratic U.S. Senators.

In the House, the brief was signed by 212 Democratic U.S. Representatives.

The lawmakers’ amicus brief to the Supreme Court can be read in full HERE.

###

And now let's turn to the administration.

They lie to the American people. Every day. The administration lies about everything. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has been lying to the American people about the 'success' in slowing Iran from getting a nuclear bomb. Tom Latchem (DAILY BEAST) reported yesterday afternoon:

Pete Hegseth squirmed at the Pentagon over a damning intel leak showing Donald Trump’s war on Iran has barely slowed the regime’s race to a nuclear bomb.

The defense secretary, 45, was confronted by reporters on Tuesday after Reuters reported that the timeline for Iran to assemble a nuclear weapon—currently estimated at up to a year—has not budged since the U.S. first bombed the regime’s facilities last June, despite the fresh blitz the president launched in late February.

Pressed on how the timeline could be unchanged “after so much bombing,” Hegseth refused to engage with the substance of the question, telling the briefing room: “We don’t discuss the specifics about intel, and anybody that does shouldn’t be, and I can’t confirm or deny whether that is, indeed, correct.”

Will Neal had reported on the leak earlier for THE DAILY BEAST:

Donald Trump’s own military intel says he’s failing to make any progress on the key goal he says his war in the Middle East is designed to achieve.

Assessments by U.S. intelligence suggest Iran would currently need exactly the same period of time to build a nuclear bomb as it would have needed in the aftermath of Trump’s attacks on facilities in the country last June, Reuters reports.

The president claimed after those initial assaults that he had “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear program. His officials instead suggested the attacks had pushed any prospective timeline on building a bomb back by a year.

Yesterday on MS NOW, US House Rep Seth Moulton took on the notion of "the cease-fire is holding" and noted that Hegseth is lying and wondered how truthful Hegseth was being with Chump?

US House Rep Seth Moulton: They obviously have no strategy to win this war, to end this war. And that's dangerous for us and our allies and our troops.

Meanwhile the editorial board of THE INDEPENDENT notes the reality of what Chump's done with his war of choice:

Every discussion about the war in the Persian Gulf should include a reminder that the Strait of Hormuz was open and entirely unblockaded before Israel and the United States attacked Iran. Had Donald Trump not decided to join Benjamin Netanyahu’s campaign, we would not now be contemplating a global energy crisis, shortages of food and medicines, and widespread economic recession.

Two months in, and the world is poorer and less safe as a result of that decision. Notwithstanding Iran’s unlawful seizure of the channel, some accountability is needed.

Framed in that context, Project Freedom – Mr Trump’s audacious new plan to escort “innocent bystander” ships through the blockaded shipping lane – is an elaborate and costly exercise to solve a problem that didn’t exist only a few weeks ago.

Chump really screwed the pooch this time. He didn't have to join Netanyahu in the war. He didn't have to ignore the advice he was given not to go to war on Iran -- Tulsi Gabbard made her feelings known and he ignored them. He just knew it was going to be a few days and then done. But it hasn't turned out to be a few days. It's not over two months and counting. Oil prices have soared. Inflation has increased. The American people are suffering. And he still can't figure out a way to end the war. So it continues.

And Chump who has spent the past 16 months making it clear that the US doesn't need its traditional allies anymore, is now considering seeking a UN Security Council resolution per Secretary of State and White House press spokesperson Marco Rubio. Edith M. Lederer (AP) notes, "A proposed U.N. resolution threatens Iran with sanctions or other measures if it doesn’t halt attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz, stop imposing 'illegal tolls,' and disclose the placement of all mines to allow freedom of navigation." The draft also calls for Iran to help implement a humanitarian corridor through the strait.

The war drags on despite federal law. Alexander Bolton (THE HILL) reports:

Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) is leading a push within the Senate Republican Conference for a vote on a resolution to authorize the use of military force against Iran beyond the 60-day window set by the 1973 War Powers Act. But Senate Republican Leader John Thune (S.D.) doesn’t appear eager to schedule a vote that would give Republican lawmakers ownership of the controversial war.

Senate Republican sources say Murkowski likely won’t get a vote on her measure because it’s not privileged. Additionally, she would need Thune to agree to put it on the busy Senate calendar.

But if Republican senators don’t have an opportunity to vote on a measure to authorize military operations against Iran, that could open the door for more Republicans to vote for a Democratic-sponsored resolution ordering President Trump to withdraw U.S. troops deployed against Iran.

Democrats plan to vote against any resolution authorizing the use of force against Iran because every Democratic senator opposes the conflict except for Sen. John Fetterman (Pa.).

This morning, Ben (MEIDASTOUCH NEWS) notes that Chump's Project Freedom which began on Monday has already been set aside.

David E. Sanger (NEW YORK TIMES) notes:

When the cease-fire in the war with Iran went into effect a month ago, President Trump was pretty direct that if the Iranians failed to end their nuclear program, or to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, the bombers would be back in the air. “If there’s no deal, fighting resumes,” he said, making it very clear this was just a pause.

But it turns out, according to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, that the war actually ended at some point after the cease-fire took hold, or so he told reporters at a news conference at the White House on Tuesday. “The Operation Epic Fury is concluded,” he said. “We achieved the objective of that operation.” The effort to reopen the strait, Mr. Rubio said, is entirely a defensive and humanitarian operation that would result in direct military exchanges with the Iranians only if U.S. ships came under fire.

Later on Tuesday, Mr. Trump announced that he was pausing even that effort — which was only one day old, and had succeeded in getting just a few ships freed — “for a short period of time,” citing what he said was “great progress” toward an agreement with Iran. But he kept the American blockade in place, part of a strategy of maximum economic pressure.

Still, Mr. Trump’s suspension of the effort to guide ships out of the strait seemed to contradict the administration’s stated position that it was intolerable for Iran to block an international waterway, and that only the United States had the ability to force it open again.

For the White House, the insistence that the war was over was the latest rhetorical leap in an effort to put a war that has created the greatest political crisis of Mr. Trump’s presidency in the rearview mirror. But the mere proclamation does not make it true. Missiles were still flying. Both sides insist they control traffic in the waterway.

And despite Mr. Rubio’s declaration that the objectives of the war have been accomplished, they clearly have not.

It's nothing but another con job from our convicted felon Donald Chump.

It's not a war, JD Vance wants you to know, it's "a blip." Tom Boggioni (RAW STORY) notes:

The vice president spoke at a manufacturing facility during a rally to boost the candidacy of Rep. Zach Nunn (R-IA) to fill the seat being vacated by retiring Sen. Joni Ernst (R) and, while downplaying the economic devastation being visited on US consumers by the war, he awkwardly admitted, "We also know that a lot of our farmers are struggling with high fertilizer prices. I'm aware of that. As the president of the United States has said, we got a little blip in the Middle East. We gotta take care of some business on the foreign policy side."

The panel on “Morning Joe” was quick to pounce on Vance’s dismissive comments.

Co-host Willie Gest, speaking with conservative columnist David French, prompted his guest with, “We had two days ago the president of the United States calling this a ‘mini war. ‘Yesterday you had Vice President Vance calling this a blip. I think everyone who's lost a family member in this war, or who's now paying $4.50 a gallon on national average, or much more in many states, would consider it much more than a blip. They're trying to sort of minimize and diminish the war and in many ways, wish it away.”

“You know, it's very clear at this point that it looks like Trump was essentially sold a bill of goods that he thought, and he keeps using the Venezuela comparison, we've heard it that he thought what he was getting was going to be a short and glorious and victorious military operation and he hadn't thought this through," French noted.

Co-host Joe Scarborough turned the conversation back to Vance’s remark.

“Over 100 school children being killed the first day of the war is a blip, up to maybe 10,000, 15,000 Iranians being killed, JD Vance is calling a blip,” he recited. “You have JD Vance calling a blip entire communities in Lebanon being wiped off the face of the earth. I mean, how would JD Vance feel if his community that he grew up in didn't have a building left standing? That's what's happening in Lebanon, all across Lebanon, because of this, quote, ‘blip.’”

“That's what's happening in Iran because of this blip,” he added. “And as you say, people across the world are paying for this day in and day out with an economy that's getting worse. And of course, I guess only people like me worry about spending money and the national debt, but this war has already cost us $250 billion at minimum.”

Moving over to the issue of the administration lying to the courts, Corbin Bolies (THE WRAP) notes:

MS NOW host Rachel Maddow appeared stumped after a Justice Department lawyer apologized to a federal judge for withholding information about an arrest warrant that led to a "patently false" Department of Homeland Security press release about said judge, leading the judge to consider contempt charges against the department.

"Lying to a federal judge, lying about a federal judge is a really big deal if you're a lawyer or a government official," Maddow said on Monday.

The "Rachel Maddow Show" host then broke down the case in Rhode Island involving the state's U.S. Attorney's office and U.S. District Court Judge Melissa DuBose, a Biden appointee. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin Bolan apologized to DuBose on Monday after a Homeland Security press release on Thursday -- titled "Activist Biden Judge Releases Violent Criminal Illegal Alien Wanted for Murder" -- accused her of knowingly releasing an ICE detainee who had been accused of murder in the Dominican Republic.

Bolan acknowledged on Monday that the press release "simply was not true" and said he didn't inform DuBose about the warrant because he believed authorities in the Dominican Republic hadn't signed off, according to Politico. DuBose said the "completely erroneous and dangerous" press release put "judicial security at risk" and was "setting up a false narrative," saying she would consider contempt charges for both federal departments.

Homeland Security caught lying to the courts yet again and lying about the courts.

This is how Chump's administration rolls. They lie repeatedly. They've done that since January of last year and it's past time that they are held accountable.

Daniel Hampton (RAW STORY) notes:

U.S. District Judge Melissa DuBose, a Biden appointee based in Rhode Island, said Monday the "patently false” April 30 DHS press release headlined "Activist Biden Judge Releases Violent Criminal Illegal Alien Wanted for Murder" put her personal safety at risk and was still on the government's website as of Monday's hearing. DHS has yet to acknowledge the error.

“The April 30th, completely erroneous and dangerous press release is still on their website,” the judge complained, according to Politico. “It puts people at risk. It’s a threat to judicial security.”

“I’m not trying to make this political,” DuBose, a Biden appointee, added. “It’s also very important that the public has the facts. As long as this particular post is out there, it’s setting up a false narrative.”

Tommy Christopher (MEDIAITE) picks up there:

Judge Dubose also said “there was a decision made not to be truthful to the court,” and that “there certainly was a massive breach of this court’s trust in this case.”

Gomez attorney Melanie Shapiro said she was blindsided by the murder charge as well. She wrote in a statement: “I was completely shocked by the information about the warrant and deeply disturbed by the extremely inflammatory rhetoric against Judge DeBose. If I knew about an outstanding warrant from the Dominican Republic for murder, I would never have filed the petition.”

That was Monday. Mattathias Schwartz (NEW YORK TIMES) reports on Tuesday:

A federal judge said Tuesday that she was referring a Trump administration lawyer to face an investigation into potential misconduct for withholding key information from her about a case.

The lawyer, Kevin M. Bolan, leads the civil division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Rhode Island. In court filings and during a hearing on Monday, Mr. Bolan acknowledged that he had failed to disclose important information to the judge about an immigrant who had been arrested and had petitioned for release. Mr. Bolan has apologized, but Judge Melissa R. DuBose said that the court still needed to get to the bottom of the omission.

“It’s the candor and the lack of candor to this court that has to be addressed,” she said. “And it has to be fully investigated, so we don’t have anything like this happen again.”

The judge said the referral would be made under the court’s local rules that govern disciplinary proceedings against attorneys. Cases can be heard by a single judge or all active judges, with punishments ranging from private reprimands or fines to disbarment. At an earlier hearing on Monday, Judge DuBose also discussed the possibility of sanctioning Mr. Bolan’s client, the Department of Homeland Security.

Other lies include that Chump's ballroom wouldn't cost the taxpayers a single cent. That lie appears to have imploded.

Chump's winding down before our eyes. Nick Hilden reports that risk analyst Brett Erickson is attempting to determine what Chump's legacy will be. It isn't pretty:

As Erickson points out, Trump’s 2024 campaign boiled down to several key points, among which were the release of the Epstein files, no new wars and the general Make America Great Again ethos. But over the first 18 months of his term, Trump has not only failed to deliver on these promises but has fumbled them so badly that they will define his presidency.

“At this point,” writes Erickson, “it is clear that there will forever be a massive stain on the Trump legacy as a result of the Epstein cover-up. I don’t think anyone, Democrat or Republican would disagree with that.” The fallout from the mishandling of the Epstein files was so severe that it angered and alienated some of his strongest supporters, such as former Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, podcaster Joe Rogan and far-right conspiracy theorist Alex Jones.

But Erickson devoted most of his criticism to Trump’s assertion there would be “no new wars,” saying, “this is where we see this conflict REALLY begin to rupture the foundation of his presidential legacy. It’s not JUST that he campaigned on ‘No New Wars’ and then decided to conduct regime change in Venezuela, launch a massive war against Iran and repeatedly say ‘Cuba is next’, it’s that he’s LOSING in Iran.”

Chump is losing it -- as his behavior around children makes clear.

Let's wind down with this from Senator Elizabeth Warren's office:

Response from ED (PDF) | Response from Treasury (PDF)

Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking Committee, released new responses from the Department of Education (ED) and the Treasury Department (Treasury) demonstrating that the agencies cannot articulate a clear purpose or plan for implementing their illegal interagency agreement (IAA) transferring the administration of federal student loans to Treasury.

The responses were in reply to Senator Warren’s April 2nd letter with Senators Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), and Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), pressing Secretary of Education Linda McMahon and Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent to rescind the IAA.

In new responses to the senators, the agencies failed to provide basic details about the implementation of the agreement, including timing, cost, and Treasury’s plans for forced collections, or concretely explain how the agreement will help borrowers and families.

Treasury also confirmed that while ED is transferring staff to Treasury to execute the IAA, Treasury is also transferring staff to ED, raising further concerns that the arrangement is wasting staff and resources.

Previous IAAs have cost ED over $1 million in extra program costs and resulted in weeks-long delays in grant disbursements that students and schools rely upon.

While ED and Treasury again insisted in the new responses that their IAA is legal, Secretary McMahon admitted to Senator Warren last year that she understands she has no authority to move the statutory responsibilities of the Department of Education to other agencies without Congress passing legislation first.

“The Trump administration has no explanation for how this latest attempt to dismantle the Education Department is helping anyone — because it isn’t,” said Senator Warren. “The truth is that Trump is jacking up costs for borrowers and wasting resources. This illegal agreement is bad for students and families, and I'll do everything I can to fight back."

Senator Warren has led the fight to make our higher education system more affordable, cancel student loan debt, and hold student loan servicers accountable for incompetence and malfeasance. She launched the Save Our Schools campaign in a coordinated effort to fight back against President Trump’s attempts to abolish the Department of Education.

On April 28, 2026, Senators Warren (D-Mass.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) pressed the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s new Student Loan Ombudsman, Geoffrey Gradler, on his plan to protect student loan borrowers, especially given his past censorship of a key student loan report at the CFPB and his background as a lobbyist for lenders. The senators also asked him to recuse himself from past clients’ matters that might come before his office at the CFPB.
On April 2, 2026, Senators Warren, Sanders, Wyden, Murray, and Baldwin—all top Democrats on influential education committees—pressed Secretary of Education Linda McMahon and Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent to rescind their plans to move the administration of federal student loans to the Treasury Department, the latest move in the Trump administration’s attempts to dismantle the Department of Education.
On February 23, 2026, Senators Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders, along with Representative Ayanna Pressley, released a response from the Department of Education to their November letter regarding a potential sale of the federal student debt portfolio. In the response, ED confirms for the first time publicly that they are weighing a sale of the federal student loan portfolio.
On February 19, 2026, Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) pushed Education Secretary Linda McMahon on concerns that the U.S. Department of Education is apparently obstructing Congressional efforts to hold federal student loan servicers accountable for underperformance.
On February 2, 2026, Senator Warren released a new report revealing the findings of their investigation into how private student loan lenders will reap the benefits from cuts to federal student loan access enacted in Republicans’ Big, Beautiful Bill (OBBBA). The report is the first Congressional analysis of the impacts of the OBBBA’s student loan restrictions on the private lending market.
On January 22, 2026, Senators Elizabeth Warren, Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), and Tim Kaine (D-Va.) led their Senate colleagues in demanding answers from Trump Education Secretary Linda McMahon about the Trump Administration’s proposal to eliminate affordable student loan repayment options for millions of Americans.
On December 8, 2025, Senator Warren led her colleagues in writing to the federal student loan servicers to ensure they are providing borrowers with the customer service they deserve in the wake of the Trump administration’s student loan policy whiplash. The senators sent letters to MOHELA, Nelnet, EdFinancial, Maximus, and CRI.
On December 1, 2025, Senator Warren published an op-ed in USA Today calling for Secretary of Education Linda McMahon to resign following the recent news that President Trump and Secretary McMahon plan to further dismantle the Department of Education (ED).
On November 17, 2025, Senator Warren led over 40 of her colleagues in a letter urging Secretary of Education Linda McMahon and Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent to immediately end any plans to sell or transfer the federal student loan portfolio to the private market.
On November 10, 2025, Senator Warren led her colleagues in a letter urging the Trump administration to use the IRS’s existing legal authorities to stop the looming “tax bomb” facing borrowers who obtain income-driven repayment (IDR) discharges of their student loan debt.
On October 15, 2025, Senator Warren and Representative Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) led 70 members of Congress in a letter calling on the Trump administration to address the ongoing and unprecedented wave of student loan delinquencies and defaults, which threatens the financial stability of millions of people and could have disastrous effects on the American economy.
On September 19, 2025, following a push by Senator Warren and nine other senators, the Acting Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Education agreed to open an investigation into DOGE’s infiltration of internal systems, including the scope of its access to sensitive student loan borrower information and its impact on borrowers’ rights and privacy.
On August 26, 2025, Senator Warren led colleagues in sending a follow-up letter to Education Secretary Linda McMahon condemning the Department of Education for deliberately hiding the “Submit a Complaint” button on the Office of Federal Student Aid’s website, firing employees responsible for providing customer service to borrowers and families and misleading Congress about the scope of these firings.
On August 4, 2025, Senator Warren led eight Senators in pressing major private student loan lenders on their plans to serve the incoming surge of borrowers who will be pushed to the industry because of Republicans’ recently passed “Big, Beautiful Bill.”
On July 17, 2025, Senator Warren released a new 23-page report, “Education At Risk: Frontline Impacts of Trump’s War on Students,” highlighting warnings from 11 major national education and civil rights organizations on the impact of the Trump Administration’s dismantling of the Department of Education (ED), slashing support to millions of American students, primary and secondary school teachers, administrators, parents, and student loan borrowers.
On July 15, 2025, Senators Warren and Sanders, along with Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, sent a letter to Secretary of Education Linda McMahon, urging her to reverse the interest hike on student loan borrowers in the SAVE forbearance.

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The following sites -- plus Rebecca's "justice dept defends todd blanche lying" and Mike's "Liars Chump and Hegseth" -- updated:

Tuesday, May 05, 2026

Smokey Robinson, Sabrina Carpenter, Steve Nicks, Cher, the Beatles

Isabella Torregiani (PARADE) reports:

Did you know one of Motown’s most iconic songs almost didn’t exist? “Ooo Baby Baby,” the beloved hit by Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, started as a spontaneous onstage improvisation — and ended up on Rolling Stone’s “500 Greatest Songs of All Time.”

In 1965, The Miracles were performing at the Howard Theatre in Washington, D.C. Smokey Robinson typically sang a medley of love songs by other artists, but one night he spontaneously added the line “Ooo baby baby.”

“The guys, we were so in tune to each other, they just started to harmonize with that, and the people went crazy. So, we decided we would just do a song,” Robinson recalled to WaxPoetics.

The R&B group soon released “Ooo Baby Baby,” taken from their Going To A Go-Go album. Written by Robinson and Warren “Pete” Moore, with Robinson producing, the song features a plea from the lead singer asking his partner for forgiveness after cheating.

Smokey wrote and co-wrote some great songs. There's also "Tracks of My Tears," "Being With You," "Shop Around," "Who's Lovin' You," "You Really Got A Hold On Me," "I'll Try Something New," "My Guy," "My Girl," "The Way You Do The Things You Do," "I Second That Emotion," "Get Ready," "The Tears Of A Clown," "The Composer," "Cruisin'" . . . .

He's written so many amazing songs.

Now for two songwriter, Elsa Keslassy (VARIETY) notes:

Sabrina Carpenter delivered one of the biggest surprises inside the Met Gala, as Stevie Nicks joined her on stage to sing a duet of Fleetwood Mac's song "Landslide."

The song, which Nicks wrote for Fleetwood Mac's eponymous 1975 album, was recently featured in the finale of "Stranger Things."

Bailey Richards (PEOPLE) adds of Stevie's outfit:

The legendary singer-songwriter, 77, made a surprise appearance — and her Met Gala debut — at fashion’s biggest night on Monday, May 4, in a custom Zara gown designed by none other than couturier John Galliano, according to a press release.

In line with Nicks’ dark and glamorous wardrobe, the one-of-a-kind piece — which Galliano created exclusively for the singer’s first-ever Met Gala appearance — was black and midnight blue, and featured a dramatic crinoline silhouette with “an overlay skirt intricately embroidered with tulle and chiffon roses in appliqué,” according to the release.

The sprawling skirt draped across The Met steps at the star-studded event — which, this year, features the dress code "Fashion is Art," a reflection of the Met's spring 2026 exhibition titled "Costume Art."

The custom Zara look also included a silk taffeta and velvet jacket, which shone under the bright carpet lights, as well as — true to form — a top hat. The towering accessory, which featured a black feathery detail, was created in collaboration with milliner Stephen Jones, according to the release.

Juliana Ukiomogbe (IN STYLE) notes Cher at the gala:

At the 2026 Met Gala, Cher referenced an icon: herself. The 79-year-old superstar arrived at the Monday, May 4, event in a gothic-leaning look that nodded to a piece from her past.

The “Believe” singer opted for a custom Burberry design by Daniel Lee. The all-black ensemble featured a long silk tulle dress with a leather corset and semi-sheer fabric. She accessorized the look with a cropped leather jacket embellished with crystal detailing and wore patent leather boots.

The entertainer styled her wavy, bleached-blonde hair in a center part, and her glam featured slightly rosy cheeks and a nude lip. Diamond rings also adorned her manicured fingers.

Per Vogue, the outfit paid homage to the iconic sheer Bob Mackie dress she wore to the Met Gala in 1974, which featured a white feathered skirt and coordinating sleeves.

Cher reflected on that 1974 Met Gala in a red carpet interview on Monday. "At the first Met Gala, I was naked, and so many people were upset about it, but now people wouldn't even give it a thought," she said, per People. "I was real skinny, so there was nothing really showing."

And let me note the Beatles. Val Barone (COLLIDER) writes:

In 1967, The Beatles were at the height of their creativity. They had stopped touring, and their last release from 1966, Revolver, was their most ambitious album. At least, until the album that changed everything. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Bandwas revolutionary from the start, considered the first concept album. Just the cover art drove people into a frenzy in the '60s, and each song pulls the listener deeper into the world the Fab Four crafted. The last song, "A Day In The Life," is the perfect culmination for the album of the decade, its psychedelic themes, orchestral arrangements, and pop culture references perfectly capturing the music revolution The Beatles were leading at the time.

"A Day In The Life" is arguably the pinnacle of the Lennon-McCartney songwriting partnership. The song was first started by John Lennon, who had the opening lines of "I read the news today, oh boy." He started writing it after reading the news of the death of Tara Browne, the heir of the Guinness fortune, in a car crash. Lennon sings the opening lines softly, over a soothing yet ominous piano and acoustic guitar. The song imagines what the accident must have been like, talking about the "lucky man who made the grade", and says that though the news was "rather sad," Lennon still laughed. The young man "blew his mind out" after not noticing that the lights had changed. Lennon also addresses the commotion that his death caused in the world, as a lot of people knew who the heir was. The verse ends with a line that was controversial for its time, which was a suggestion from Paul McCartney. Lennon sings, huskily, "I'd love to turn you on," a phrase that had still to be used in music, and that was heavily associated with the drug world.

Lennon sings most of the song, but Paul McCartney sings the middle part, which is a hurried account of his morning routine as a teenager in Liverpool ("Woke up, fell out of bed, dragged a comb across my head"). Lennon recounted the experience of writing it the year later, marveling at how easily the song had evolved.

"It was a good piece of work between Paul and me. I had the “I read the news today” bit, and it turned Paul on, because now and then we really turn each other on with a bit of song, and he just said “yeah” — bang bang, like that. It just sort of happened beautifully," Lennon shared, calling it "a real groove." He also spoke about how they decided to divide the singing parts. Lennon had written most of the verses, except for one part. "I needed a middle-eight for it, but that would have been forcing it, all the rest had come out smooth, flowing, no trouble." McCartney, however, had been working on a short song that they both knew instantly would have fit perfectly into it, and that became the middle part.

Closing with C.I.'s "The Snapshot:"

Tuesday, May 5, 2025. The American people overwhelmingly say the country is headed in the wrong direction and that Chump is too weak for the job, Todd Blanche continues to speak nonsense, the Iran War continues to drag on, and much more.

This morning on MEIDASTOUCH NEWS, Ben gives a rundown on the ongoing war on Iran.

John Yoon (NEW YORK TIMES) reports:

A top Iranian official warned on Tuesday of an escalation in the Strait of Hormuz and accused the United States of violating the fragile cease-fire, a day after the U.S. Navy began an initiative to escort commercial ships through the strait, a vital oil shipping waterway.

As the truce appeared to falter, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Iran’s top negotiator in the stumbling peace negotiations, said in a social media post that “a new equation” was emerging in the waterway. He said that American actions had endangered shipping through the strait, which Iran has effectively blockaded since the war began in late February.

“We know well that the continuation of the current situation is unbearable for the United States, while we have not even started yet,” Mr. Ghalibaf said.

The U.S. Navy began escorting commercial ships through the Strait of Hormuz on Monday. The U.S. Central Command said that two commercial ships operating under the American flag had passed through the waterway. Maersk, the Danish shipping giant, said that one of its vessels, a carrier transporting vehicles that was flying the U.S. maritime flag, had passed through the strait.

But reports of attacks from Iran in and around the Persian Gulf quickly tested the American actions and the Pakistani-brokered cease-fire that paused the war last month.

Chump makes one inane remark after another. Erica L. Green and Zolan Kanno-Youngs (NEW YORK TIMES) note his lies regarding the domestic impact of his war of choice:

Facing pressure to address the economic fallout of his war in Iran, President Trump on Monday sought to portray his policy wins for small businesses as evidence that he was succeeding in building up the economy.

Speaking to business leaders from across the country at an event in the East Room of the White House, Mr. Trump declared that slashing taxes and regulations had yielded “record business,” and that the economy was “roaring.” The White House described the Small Business Week event as highlighting “the extraordinary revival of Main Street under his America First agenda.”

But looming over it all was a war abroad that Mr. Trump had begun, and whose economic impact is compounding cost-of-living concerns among Americans, many of whom increasingly say their economic reality has worsened under his tenure.

Mr. Trump’s comments on Monday created a sharp contrast with the economic reality outside Washington, as rising energy prices hammer families and businesses alike.

This comes as Americans look at him and judge him to be unfit to serve as president. Ashleigh Fields (THE HILL) reports:

A new poll found that most Americans say they believe President Trump is mentally and physically unfit to serve as commander in chief.

The Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos poll found that 59 percent of U.S. respondents said that Trump does not have the mental sharpness it takes to lead the country. Forty percent of respondents said the president is mentally equipped for leadership, and 1 percent of participants skipped the question.

Comparatively, 55 percent of U.S. adults said Trump is not in good enough physical health to serve as president, while 44 percent disagreed and 1 percent of survey participants skipped the question.

59%. That is what you could call a landslide. 59% of Americans believe "Trump does not have the mental sharpness it takes to lead the country."

And he doesn't.

But 59% of the American people are no longer willing to bite their tongues. They've seen Chump and his lies and they've watched him destroy the economy. They see him claim that he doesn't need Congressional approval to continue his war on Iran even through he does need it.

They've grown used to the fact that he lies and then he lies some more.

That is how he plays it.

Khaleda Rahman (NEWSWEEK) notes:

RealClearPolitics’ average of polls shows 61 percent of Americans believe the country is on the “wrong track” as of April 28, marking the first time public sentiment has reached that level during Trump’s second term. Some 61.6 percent of Americans thought the county was heading in the wrong direction on January 18, 2025, two days before Trump was inaugurated for a second term, according to RealClearPolitics’ average.

It comes as polls have shown the president’s approval rating has dropped in recent months, and that his rating on handling of all major issues including the economy remain underwater amid high grocery and gas prices due to the Iran war.

61% believe the country is on the wrong track.

61%.

Again, a clear majority of Americans.

Yesterday's snapshot noted:

In related news, AP reports:

European leaders on Monday said that U.S. President Donald Trump’s snap decision to pull thousands of U.S. troops out of Germany came as a surprise but is a fresh sign that Europe must take care of its own security.

The Pentagon announced last week that it would pull some 5,000 troops out of Germany, but Trump told reporters on Saturday that “we’re going to cut way down. And we’re cutting a lot further than 5,000.”

He offered no reason for the move, which blindsided NATO, but his decision came amid an escalating dispute with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz over the U.S-Israeli war on Iran, and Trump’s anger that European allies have been reluctant to get involved in the conflict in the Middle East.

Sam Levine (GUARDIAN) reports:

Donald Trump has threatened to withdraw more US troops from Germany after stunning European leaders and some senior members of his own party by last week announcing the withdrawal of 5,000 soldiers from Germany.

The move left 30,000 US troops still in the country, according to CNN. But Trump threatened on Saturday that more cuts were coming. “We are going to cut way down, and we’re cutting a lot further than 5,000,” he told reporters on Saturday.

[. . .]

The Republicans who chair the armed services committees in Congress, Senator Roger Wicker of Mississippi and Representative Mike Rogers of Alabama, released a joint statement on Saturday saying they were “very concerned” by the possibility of reducing troops in Germany.

Republicans and Democrats in Congress are speaking out on the move. For example, Ashleigh Fields (THE HILL) adds:

Rep. Jason Crow (D-Colo.) on Sunday criticized the Trump administration’s decision to withdraw 5,000 troops from Germany following a public spat with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.

Last week, the German chancellor said that Washington was being “humiliated” by Iran amid the closure of the Strait of Hormuz in remarks condemned by President Trump.

Crow said, “It appears as though this decision was made because Donald Trump was upset by a comment made by the German chancellor, like he is getting emotional and angry about this, and he’s making really consequential troop decision — troop movement decisions based upon being upset by the comments of a foreign leader, which is no way to run a foreign policy,” during an appearance on CBS News’s “Face the Nation.”

“So, we’re looking into it, and we’re going to make sure that any movements, if they do occur, are actually in our interests,” the House Democrat added.

Steve Benen (MS NOW) observes:

This is the start of a presidential tantrum, not the end of one: Trump told reporters late Friday that he intends to cut U.S. troop deployments in Germany “a lot further” than 5,000. Hours earlier, a reporter asked whether he was considering pulling U.S. troops out of Spain and Italy, too, since its leaders also recently hurt Trump’s feelings. “Yeah, probably,” he replied. “Why shouldn’t I?”

The Pentagon reportedly didn’t see this coming: Politico reported last week that Trump’s threats, preceding Friday’s announcement, “stunned defense officials.”

The Putin angle: The same Politico report noted that Trump’s initial threat “came hours after he spoke by phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has long sought to reduce the number of NATO troops in Europe.” The American president has been going to scandalous lengths to please Moscow, and the decision to withdraw U.S. troops from Germany belongs on the same list.

The pushback on Capitol Hill has been relatively bipartisan: While Democratic officials were quick to condemn the administration’s move, they weren’t alone, as some congressional Republicans agreed that the redeployments are a mistake.

This won’t help our geopolitical interests: In an opinion piece for The New York Times, Linas Kojala, the chief executive of the Geopolitics and Security Studies Center in Lithuania, argued persuasively that Trump’s move “risks weakening one of America’s best strategic investments: a military presence that deters Russia and keeps Europe’s old rivalries from becoming America’s problem again.”

As Rachel Maddow noted last night on MS NOW, the US troops he's removing from Germany?

Rachel Maddow: Where do you think they sent the US troops who had to be evacuated really quickly off of all those undefended bases all over the Middle East? Where'd they send them? They sent them to Germany because we have a really big troop presence in Germany and lots of facilities for our troops in Germany. There have been hundreds of US troops wounded in Trump's Iran War so far. Where do US troops get evacuated to when they're wounded in the Middle East? They get evacuated to Germany because we have such a big troops presence there and lots of military facilities there to handle those things. Trump is now sending 5,000 American troops home from that crucial position.

As Americans suspect, he has no idea what he's doing. Take the battleships he wants built. Alex Henderson reports:

In December 2025, President Donald Trump announced that a World War 2-era battleship would be back in use. But defense technology has changed considerably since that war, which ended 81 years ago in 1945. And according to analysis from the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank, the "Trump-class battleship" doesn't meet the needs of 21st Century defense and warfare and is absolute technologically.

Fortune's Jake Angelo, in an article published on May 3, explains, "Here's the issue: the U.S. Navy hasn't operated a battleship since the last Iowa-class vessel was retired in 1992 — a type of vessel which hasn't even been constructed since the mid-20th Century. The Trump-class battleship, which the Department of Defense is requesting upwards of $1 billion to build, will inherently be stuck in WW2, and would be rendered helpless against modern-day weapons. In fact, despite the billion-dollar price tag, Cato puts the true cost at $20 billion apiece, and it still won't be able to subvert modern-day, advanced anti-ship missiles."

Turning to acting Attorney General Todd Blanche,

Sarah K. Burris reports:

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche made an appearance on "Meet the Press" on Sunday, where he was forced to admit that the term "8647" wasn't worth indicting someone over.

Since the arrest of former FBI Director James Comey, clothing bearing the message "86-47" has appeared all over Etsy and Amazon. During the show, host Kristen Welker pulled up the search on Amazon for such clothing and asked Blanche whether everyday Americans should expect a visit from the FBI and Secret Service for wearing such a shirt or for posting the numbers anywhere online.

Blanche was clear, no one is being targeted over "86-47" unless there is a reason to believe they are specifically threatening the president.

“This is not just about a single Instagram post,” Blanche said. “This is about a body of evidence that [prosecutors] collected over the series of about 11 months. That evidence was presented to the grand jury.”

CNN legal analyst and former prosecutor Elie Honig explained that the filing from the Justice Department makes it clear that it's only about the Instagram photo that Comey posted.

"If you look at the indictment, if you look at the statute that DOJ has chosen to charge here, if you look at the wording of the indictment, it's quite clear that Jim Comey's Instagram post with the seashells, that is the case. And the case is that post. So I'm skeptical," said Honig.

The legal expert doesn't think that the DOJ will find much that would materially change the meaning of the phrase "86-47" to be more threatening than what Comey posted and said.

Former prosecutor and ex-law school professor Glenn Kirschner explained that the comments dealt a blow to the Justice Department's case.

Blanche's press conference made it clear that the photo was part of a larger case involving "threatening the life of the president."

After showing the clip of Blanche promising that every post of "8647" "does not result in indictments," Kirschner asked, "Really? Todd?"

"He just admitted that there are countless, maybe thousands, tens of thousands of people posting, saying, wearing t-shirts that display that very same thing, and what did he say? 'No! They're not prosecuted for that!'" recalled Kirschner. "Why? Well, they're not Donald Trump's perceived enemies, are they?"

Steve Benen (MS NOW) notes of Blanche:

During his latest appearance on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Donald Trump’s former defense lawyer, who’s launched an unsubtle campaign to persuade the president to nominate him as former Attorney General Pam Bondi’s successor, argued that people should stop talking about Republican-appointed Supreme Court justices gutting the Voting Rights Act and start instead talking about voter ID.

“Every time you walk into a restaurant or a club, you have to show your ID,” the acting attorney general told host Kristen Welker. “How about you have to show your ID to vote? That’s not anything that’s crazy, and that’s what we should be talking about.”

So, a few things.

First, treating the gutting of the Voting Rights Act as an inconvenience to be overlooked is ridiculous.

Second, I’ve been to plenty of restaurants, and I’ve never even heard of one that requires patrons to show identification at the door.

Third, the right to dine out is in no way comparable to the right to vote, as the acting attorney general really ought to understand.

But as important as these elements are, they’re not unfolding in a vacuum. Blanche is in the midst of an unannounced audition, which he’s trying nail through a series of unsubtle moves that include indicting people the president doesn’t like, advocating firing squads as a method of federal execution, releasing absurd reports critical of the Biden administration while gratuitously slamming Joe Biden himself, and intervening in support of Trump’s ballroom crusade.

So while the Republican lawyer’s “ID at restaurants” line was laughable, it wasn’t intended to persuade the public; it was intended to impress the president watching to see whether Blanche would embarrass himself in support of Trump’s agenda.

Let's wind down with this from Senator Patty Murray's office:

The Fair Trusts for Fiscal Responsibility Act cracks down on tax avoidance and ensures that millionaires and billionaires pay their fair share

A conservative estimate projects Murray’s bill would generate $675 billion over ten years

Senator Murray: “The revenue from this bill alone could extend the ACA tax credits AND provide high quality child care for every working family in America.”

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, introduced the Fair Trusts for Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2026 to close tax loopholes used by the wealthiest Americans to avoid paying taxes through complicated trust arrangements. The legislation is co-led by Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR), Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Committee.

“Firefighters and nurses don’t get to hide their money in a trust fund and skip out on paying their taxes—billionaires shouldn’t get to either,” said Senator Murray. “The very wealthiest Americans hide their fortunes in a trust for generations and call it tax planning—that is absurd and those are dollars that should be going to our schools, infrastructure, and health care. In America, if you earn a paycheck, you are paying taxes—it’s time to close the loophole that lets individuals with armies of lawyers stash away billions without paying taxes. This Republican Congress has bent over backwards to rig the system for billionaires. I am simply proposing that the ultra-wealthy—people with more than $50 million sitting in a trust—finally pay what they owe and contribute their fair share back to the country that made their success possible. I’ll bet that most Americans would prefer we fund child care and pre-k for every working family in this country rather than let billionaires get a free ride on their taxes. The revenue from this bill alone could extend the ACA tax credits AND provide high quality child care for every working family in America. If you don’t have more than $50 million laying around in a trust, you don’t have to worry about this bill resulting in anything other than better funded roads and public schools.”

“We cannot allow there to be ultra-wealthy dynasties in this country hoarding all the money and power for generations on end, and we cannot have a tax system that encourages it,” said Senator Wyden. “Our budgets suffer and economic opportunity bleeds away when the ultra-wealthy dodge taxes in America, so this bill is a smart way of ensuring the highest earners are paying a fair share just like nearly everybody else.”

Most Americans will not receive an inheritance, and for those that do, only those with assets exceeding $30 million—for a married couple—are required to contribute a portion through taxes, and even then, only on amounts over that substantial exemption. Fewer than 0.1% of Americans pay estate tax at all. These funds provide revenue that can be used for essential investments in our country, like schools or critical infrastructure. Yet many of the very wealthiest Americans use special trusts to delay, minimize, and avoid paying taxes. Experts estimate that hundreds of billions of dollars and potentially trillions of dollars are held in generation-skipping transfer tax exempt trusts that are not subject to the rule against perpetuities.

The Fair Trusts for Fiscal Responsibility Act addresses tax avoidance head on by applying a 1 percent rate on trust assets between $50 million and $100 million, 1.5 percent between $100 million and $250 million, 2 percent between $250 million and $1 billion, and 3 percent on assets above $1 billion. To ensure fairness, the bill provides full refundability of the withholding against estate tax liability so that only those actively avoiding transfer taxes face increased burdens, while also capping total withholding so it does not exceed estate tax owed. The legislation further strengthens compliance through new reporting requirements and penalties for noncompliance, while exempting charitable trusts, ERISA-qualified employee benefit trusts, and other trusts not typically used in estate planning.

A conservative estimate of a similar proposal indicates that Murray’s legislation would raise approximately $675 billion over ten years, noting, “even based on our low-end estimate of $4.5 trillion in GST-exempt trusts today, if those trusts face an average annual tax of 1.5% under the withholding tax, that is approximately $675 billion over ten years.” This could fund free school lunch for every kid in America, child care for every working family, and the replacement of every lead pipe in America; alternatively, the revenue could fund the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) for decades, or extend the enhanced premium ACA tax credits nearly twice over.

In addition to Senators Murray and Wyden, the bill is also co-sponsored by Senators Van Hollen, Booker, and Alsobrooks.

The legislation is endorsed by Americans for Tax Fairness, Patriotic Millionaires, Public Citizen, Groundwork, Economic Security Project Action, NETWORK Lobby, National Women’s Law Center, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), Service Employees International Union (SEIU), American Federation of Teachers (AFT), and United for a Fair Economy.

“A tax system that favors the rich makes America a poorer country for everyone, including the rich themselves. Working Americans can’t wait until later to pay taxes,” said Bob Lord,Senior Vice President for Tax Policy, Patriotic Millionaires. “Taxes are withheld from every one of their paychecks. So when ultra-rich Americans use trusts to delay paying estate tax for 50 years on billion-dollar fortunes left for their grandchildren, average Americans feel cheated. Sen. Murray’s Fair Trusts for Fiscal Responsibility Act would end this outrageous preferential treatment and restore a feeling of fairness to our tax system. Ultra-rich families wouldn’t make more tax payments. They’d just make more timely tax payments, like the rest of America does.”

“ATF applauds Senator Murray for introducing the Fair Trusts for Fiscal Responsibility Act,” said David Kass, Executive Director of Americans for Tax Fairness. “For decades, the wealthy have been able to hoard massive amounts of wealth and pass it down to future generations through key loopholes. The existing estate-tax exemption is so high ($30M for married couples) that only the wealthiest 0.1% of estates owe any tax. Yet wealthy families can further reduce what they pay through strategies like GRATs and dynasty trusts, leading to losses in revenue for public investments in education, healthcare, and more. This legislation would make key reforms to curb these abuses and rein in dynastic wealth in our country.”

Senator Murray is fighting for tax fairness and closing loopholes on Wall Street. Last month, at a Senate Budget Committee hearing on Social Security, Senator Murray slammed the Trump administration for gutting the Social Security Administration (SSA) and questioned witnesses on the fact that the very wealthiest Americans have the smallest effective payroll tax rate. Murray made clear that when it comes to addressing SSA solvency, there is no reason for working people to face drastic benefit cuts when the very wealthiest could simply pay their fair share.

In 2025, Senator Murray helped introduce the Carried Interest Fairness Act to eliminate a tax loophole that benefits wealthy money managers on Wall Street. The current carried interest loophole allows investment managers to often pay almost half the tax rate compared to most other Washington workers. Over the course of her career, Murray has long championed a fair tax system—rejecting Republican efforts to cut benefits for working people and repeatedly pushing for reforms to ensure the very wealthiest Americans simply pay their fair share. Murray has always recognized that the national debt and deficits pose real challenges; however, it has been her longstanding belief that America can reduce budget deficits while still investing in national priorities that support economic growth.

The full text of the legislation is HERE.

A one pager is HERE.

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The following sites -- plus Ruth's "Chump would love for everyone to live in a state of fear" -- updated: