March 26th in TrumpWorld

The continuing saga of one date's headlines while Donald J. Trump was President of the United States of America.  From January 2017 to January 2021 (and then beyond).  Hopefully, you'll remember why we don't want to do this again.
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March 26, 2017

"Since Carl Icahn, the billionaire investor, was named by President Trump as a special adviser on regulatory matters, he has been busy working behind the scenes to try to revamp an obscure Environmental Protection Agency rule that governs the way corn-based ethanol is mixed into gasoline nationwide.

It is a campaign that fits into the charge Mr. Trump gave Mr. Icahn, to help the nation “break free of excessive regulation.” But there is an additional detail that is raising eyebrows in Washington: Mr. Icahn is a majority investor in CVR Energy, an oil refiner based in Sugar Land, Tex., that would have saved $205.9 million last year had the regulatory fix he is pushing been in place."

Icahn Raises Ethics Flags With Dual Roles as Investor and Trump Adviser

I've known of Icahn for a long time.  (I have mentioned how much I love Wikipedia lately, right?)

Carl Icahn

"In the 1980s, Icahn developed a reputation as a "corporate raider" after profiting from the hostile takeover and asset stripping of Trans World Airlines."

More to the point:

"Also in October 2016, Icahn closed the Trump Taj Mahal Casino in Atlantic City, citing a $350 million loss over several years as well as failure to reach a deal with striking union workers. Nearly 3,000 workers lost their jobs."

"On December 21, 2016, it was announced that Icahn would serve as special advisor to the president on regulatory reform under President Donald Trump and that Icahn would aid Trump in an "individual capacity" rather than as a federal employee, and that he would not have "specific duties" and therefore would not have to relinquish his business interests while serving as an advisor to Trump."

"Upon becoming the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, Trump announced that he would nominate Icahn for United States Secretary of the Treasury."

"CVR Energy, in which Icahn has 82% ownership, would save $205.9 million a year if Icahn's proposal was adopted."

"CVR Energy's stock doubled after President Trump's election, increasing $455 million in value."

I didn't know any of this before I started writing this blog entry.  I'm not surprised by any of it...but I didn't know it.  Have you ever thought about writing?  You should.  It's amazing what you learn.
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March 26, 2018

"For Elliott Broidy, Donald J. Trump’s presidential campaign represented an unparalleled political and business opportunity.

An investor and defense contractor, Mr. Broidy became a top fund-raiser for Mr. Trump’s campaign when most elite Republican donors were keeping their distance, and Mr. Trump in turn overlooked the lingering whiff of scandal from Mr. Broidy’s 2009 guilty plea in a pension fund bribery case."

Fund-Raiser Held Out Access to Trump as a Prize for Prospective Clients

Selling access to the President was just normal business in the Trump Administration.  I don't remember a bit of this, do you?  What else was happening that a story like this couldn't gain any traction?  Chaos.

I mean, I *love* Wikipedia.

Elliott Broidy

"In October 2020, Broidy pleaded guilty to acting as an unregistered foreign agent working for Chinese and Malaysian interests."

"On January 20, 2021, Broidy was pardoned by President Donald Trump."  

That was the last day Trump was President -- just in case you didn't catch that.  Yes, 14 days after Trump tried to overthrow the Federal Government, he (or somebody *really* close to him) was still functional enough to remember Broidy needed a pardon.
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March 26, 2019

"President Trump and his Republican allies went on the offensive on Monday, vowing to pursue and even punish those responsible for the Russia investigation now that the special counsel has wrapped up without implicating him or his campaign in a criminal conspiracy to influence the 2016 election."

Trump and Republicans Seek to Turn the Tables in Post-Mueller Washington

It's important to remember -- at this time -- nobody knew what  was in the Mueller Report except Mueller's team and Trump's team.  And Trump's team (specifically, Attorney General Bill Barr) was purposely misleading the American Public about what was in the report.

Peter Baker (the New Your Times reporter writing this article) suspects it, but he hasn't confirmed it.  Yet.  And the Democrats smell a rat too.  All the way down in paragraph 8.

"Mr. Mueller’s report has yet to be released, so it remains unknown whether it includes damning new details that question the actions of Mr. Trump or his associates, even if they do not represent a crime. Six House Democratic committee chairmen sent a letter on Monday to Attorney General William P. Barr demanding he provide them the full report by next Tuesday."

The problem being, of course, nobody reads paragraph 8 and TV news doesn't have a paragraph 8.  Facebook, Twitter and TikTok don't even have a paragraph 2.
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March 26, 2020

"“This is certainly, in terms of dollars, by far and away the biggest ever, ever done,” President Trump said at the White House, where he veered from his usual partisan vitriol and praised Democrats for their work on the agreement. “That is a tremendous thing because a lot of this money goes to jobs, jobs, jobs — and families, families, families.”

The deal is the product of a marathon set of negotiations among Senate Republicans, Democrats and Mr. Trump’s team that nearly fell apart as Democrats insisted on stronger worker protections, more funds for hospitals and state governments, and tougher oversight over new loan programs intended to bail out distressed businesses."

Senate Approves $2 Trillion Stimulus After Bipartisan Deal

Would you look at that?  Trump does the right thing.  You see?  He's not all bad.  He's not a complete idiot.

I used this story because I have ulterior motives.  Don't make the mistake of thinking I'm trying to be fair here.  I am not.  I am trying to be truthful.

Two things I want you to note: "Democrats insisted on...tougher oversight over new loan programs intended to bail out distressed businesses."

And...

"Though the bill is more than double the size of the roughly $800 billion stimulus package that Congress passed in 2009 to ease the Great Recession..."

That last one has nothing to do with Trump but everything to do with Republicans.  Just file it away in your memory banks.  Two national, economic disasters -- 12 years apart -- with different responses (based on politics).

March 26, 2021 -- Trump is gone but not forgotten.

Finally, a Trump-free headline day.  His name pops up in several stories but, thankfully, not the headlines.  At least not on March 26, 2021.

But there was this, at the grocery store today.  Page 1.  First story.  God, help us.

Don Brown
March 26, 2024