May This Week Be a Pivot
I just wanted to share three lists I’ve made about this week so far.
Wednesday’s hearings
The first was about the range and magnitude of hearings on Wednesday.
4 court hearings today:
1) Review of Trump’s tariffs in SCOTUS
2) Hearing on FBI’s review of Jim Comey material w/o new warrant
3) Closing arguments and deliberation for sandwich guy in DC
4) Preliminary injunction hearing for CBP/ICE invasion of Chicago, featuring Greg Bovino vids
As I noted here, not only did it sound like there are at least five votes to throw out Trump’s tariffs, Neil Gorsuch also said some important things about whether Congress can abdicate its power to declare war.
The Comey hearing did not go well for the government. Magistrate Judge William Fitzpatrick ordered the government to hand over everything by end of day yesterday, to load up the grand jury transcripts to the docket, and to answer a bunch of questions.
ORDERED that, by 5:00 p.m. on November 6, 2025, the Government shall produce to Defendant, in writing, the following information:
- Confirmation of whether the Government has divided the materials searched pursuant to the four 2019 and 2020 warrants at issue into materials that are responsive and non-responsive to those warrants, and, if so, a detailed explanation of the methodology used to make that determination;
- A detailed explanation of whether, and for what period of time, the Government has preserved any materials identified as non-responsive to the four search warrants;
- A description identifying which materials have been identified as responsive, if any; and
- A description identifying which materials have previously been designated as privileged; and it is further
Fitzpatrick also forbade the government — which should apply both to this investigative team and the one trying to do the conspiracy against rights case in Florida — from searching the materials.
The government filed a notice of compliance, noting Fitzpatrick’s written order was filed just after noon, confirming it had handed him the materials, but not confirming that they had explained the scope and filter questions.
1 The Order at D.E. 161 was received via CM/ECF at 12:13 p.m. on November 6, 2025.
But after that, they filed an appeal of Fitzpatrick’s order to load the grand jury transcript that claimed Fitzpatrick had not filed a written order they noted in their earlier docketed filing.
1 A written order pursuant to the Magistrate Judge’s oral order at the November 5 hearing has not been entered on the docket.
They didn’t say whether they had answered Fitzpatrick’s questions (which, in any case, don’t reveal whether the investigative team had access). Fitzpatrick could simply file a response saying that Comey has an indvidualized need to figure out if Miles Starr relied on privileged information to get the indictment before he moves to suppress these warrants; in any case, stay tuned.
As you’ve no doubt heard, sandwich guy Sean Dunn was acquitted. Kudos to Sabrina Shroff, who is one of the most ferocious defense attorneys in the country.
In Chicago, Judge Sara Ellis enjoined CBP and ICE from continuing to abuse the First and Fourth Amendments of people in the city. Here’s Chicago Sun Times’ report on the hearing.
After Wednesday, we got two horrible decisions — one at SCOTUS, one in the Sixth Circuit — for trans people. All was not good. But there was important movement in some places.
Will Millennials finally lead us beyond the War on Terror?
The second list marked four things that suggest we could move out of the world Dick Cheney significantly created.
- Monday: Dick Cheney kicks it
- Tuesday: 34-yo Muslim becomes mayor of NYC
- Wednesday: Gorsuch raises grave concerns abt Congress abdicating the power to declare war
- Thursday: Pelosi announces retirement
Even assuming SCOTUS will throw out Trump’s tariffs, I’m sure we’ll be disappointed by whatever opinion they release doing so. Nevertheless I have hopes that this kind of language from Gorsuch makes it into that opinion.
JUSTICE GORSUCH: — we shouldn’t be concerned with — I want you to explain to me how you draw the line, because you say we shouldn’t be concerned because this is foreign affairs, the President has inherent authority, and so delegation off the books more or less.
GENERAL SAUER: Or at least —
JUSTICE GORSUCH: And if that’s true, what would — what would prohibit Congress from just abdicating all responsibility to regulate foreign commerce, for that matter, declare war to the President?
[snip]
JUSTICE GORSUCH: Can you give me a reason to accept it, though? That’s what I’m struggling and waiting for. What’s the reason to accept the notion that Congress can hand off the power to declare war to the President?
GENERAL SAUER: Well, we don’t contend that. Again, that would be —
JUSTICE GORSUCH: Well, you do. You say it’s unreviewable, that there’s no manageable standard, nothing to be done. And now you’re — I think you — tell me if I’m wrong. You’ve backed off that position
How to pay for free buses
Finally, there’s this observation.
Wednesday: The incoming Mayor of NYC names Lina Khan a key advisor
Thursday: Corrupt shareholders of Tesla create the Trillion dollar Keta-Man
When Jerry Nadler announced his retirement, Lina Khan was one of the first people mentioned as a worthy replacement. She almost immediately said she was not interested.
I’m wondering if she was already thinking about what more she can accomplish as an advisor to Mamdani.
This sure feels like a week that — if we survive long enough to look back at it — was a pivotal one.
Friday – US airspace capacity reduced due to the continuing shutdown. Thousands of flights cancelled.
The tangerine Mussolini can’t even make the planes run on time. I wonder if Kash and Kristi’s private jets will be affected?
No, theirs won’t and I would guess the courier service planes won’t either.
A lot of private jets use smaller airports. In L.A., that’s Van Nuys, Santa Monica, and maybe Burbank and Long Beach.
Teterboro, Dallas Love, and Houston Hobby are included in the reductions, so the private jets will be affected there. Also, Elon can only launch rockets at night.
planes run on time?
As you stated in just the previous sentence, run at all.
Immediately following Ellis’ injunction Bovino’s convoy violated it. https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/06/bovino-claims-agents-operate-legally/ There need to be serious contempt sanctions on these scofflaws.
Your list doesn’t include the Tuesday elections (beyond NYC), which may be the most important event of the week. If we can ensure free and fair elections going forward (far from guaranteed) that is our best bet for repudiating and ridding ourselves of this tinpot wannabe dictator.
Yup. That particular list was just meant to think of the transition from Dick Cheney’s world to Mamdani’s, with all that might entail. We had that entire thread on the election, and Run for Something is still tallying up their wins.
Bovino lied on the stand, where are the consequences for that?
Correct, he wasn’t wearing his SS uniform when he testified.
Good list. I would like to add a few more things that are coming to a head:
1). Huge job losses (effects most everyone);
2). The stock market AI bubble will burst in the near future (effects mostly professional and investor classes);
3). The crytocurrency thing will lead to alot of people losing lots of monies (effects GQP idiots);
4). Healthcare costs are going up (hits mostly those on Medicaid and ACA, but everyone is impacted),
5). All these above coupled with tariffs and inflation starting to hit over the Holidays (effects most everyone);
6). People seeing more and more people get brutalized by HSI and not liking our Govt treating people this way (most everyone sees this);
7). Trump tearing down the East wing (most everyone see this);
8). Trump corruption is out in the open and on a massive scale (we are likely only seeing the tip of the iceberg);
9). Trump is becoming more and more isolated from his supporters (he does not hold rallies any longer across the country);
10). And the list goes on.
*affects
The sooner the AI bubble bursts, the better. Japan is a cautionary tale in this regard. If the current irrationality continues unabated, it will actually be even worse because unlike most bubbles, where the inflated prices are still associated to underlying tangible assets (property, commodities, shares), there is nothing underpinning the AI frenzy. Data centers are not valuable on their own, and rapidly depreciate since GPUs have short operating lives.
“Data centers are not valuable on their own”
Data centers can be used for computation applications beyond consumer-facing GenAI. The questions is whether other applications can vacuum up the available compute capacity fast enough to keep those projects in the black.
The GPUs those data centers use are specialized for AI, not general cloud compute. You can reuse a lot of the infrastructure, but only after you buy all new racks at ruinous expense — assuming you even have the customer demand for non-AI workloads.
I agree that data centers *can* be valuable to the extent that computing power can always be put toward meaningful ends, such as academic investigations in computational chemistry, mathematics, etc.
I should have been more clear that my point that the investment put into data centers built for AI will not be returned. They are essentially wasted capital (or in the language of economists, sub-optimal resource allocation).
…and the data centers are adverse competitors with everyone else for gigawatts, and will (if the AI bubble doesn’t just burst but get vaporized) be the death-knell for our planet’s habitable climate.
Meanwhile, a ’29-style crash (to make the Bush economic collapse look measly) is teed up and the club is on the downward swing, according to the guy who called the ’08 debacle.
https://www.businessinsider.com/big-short-michael-burry-bubble-warning-x-account-scion-crash-2025-10
Sigh…goodbye capitalism and hello feudalism
https://apnews.com/article/amazon-layoff-ai-14000-artificial-intelligence-cb64af47ebb794541fbdfa8fd264932c
AI puts 14,000 out of work at Amazon. Remember, MAGA billionaires are job creators!
Possible new data center in my area.
https://whyy.org/articles/conshohocken-pennsylvania-residents-pushback-data-center-proposal/
If it burns coal will the MAGA residents downwind enjoy the Big Beautiful exhaust?
Agency’s important. Bezos fired 14,000 Amzon employees. He hopes AI can do some of the things they did, but doesn’t likely have data to show it will. He needs the cost savings to obscure, however partially, how much he and his tech bros are spending on AI.
Also, the 420th anniversary of the Gunpowder Plot, aka Guy Fawkes Day.
420, you don’t say…carry on.
I’m hoping this is a pivot.
One small typo—
“… Comey has an indvidualized need to figure out of Miles Starr relied on privileged information…”
Figure out IF Miles Starr?
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Comey should plan his defense as if the government has read the files and are using them, while simultaneously hammering the violation of the 4th Amendment and DoJ procedures regarding privileged material. The latter move draws that line clearly and Judge Fitz will be happy to oblige. The judge may also add referrals for violating his very clear orders as well as the search shenanigans because abuse of power under color of authority is one of the worst crimes.
ew: “Neil Gorsuch also said some important things about
whether Congress can abdicate its power to declare war.”
Trump admin tells Congress it currently lacks legal justification to strike Venezuela https://edition.cnn.com/2025/11/06/politics/trump-venezuela-legal-congress-land
[Updated 7 hr ago] Bertrand, Hansler, Lills, Cohen, Atwood
From later in the CNN article:
From the internal link: Justice Department tells Congress Trump doesn’t need its approval for military strikes on alleged drug boats CNN November 2, 2025
They don’t even know those are “drug boats”. I’d bet most are fishing boats. If they’re smuggling, it’s at the local level, because none of those boats could reach the US.
“They don’t even know those are “drug boats”. ”
It doesn’t matter, even if they were “drug boats”.
Summary execution is certainly not the penalty for any law breaking that I’m aware of. They are extrajudicial killings by definition. But they absolutely trot out summary execution as the go-to solution for every problem, don’t they?
Why does the legacy media never mention how far away these attacks are, roughly 1200 miles from Miami.
“Seeking a separate legal opinion” from DoJ amounts to Pam Bondi ordering the head of OLC to find a way to give Trump what he wants.
Its opinions are not law. They do bind executive branch employees. They become law if and only if the courts agree with them. The hard part is for someone outside the DoJ to find standing to litigate.
MAY THIS WEEK BE A PIVOT
Absolutely! Thanks for articulating that, Marcy!
As Helen Kennedy [Daily News Journalist, ret.] says:
https://bsky.app/profile/helenkennedy.bsky.social/post/3m4yyblryvs2p
November 6, 2025 at 9:01 PM [PHOTO]
Links to:
Trump event paused in Oval Office when guest faints Story by AFP 13h
I would name that PHOTO: TRUMP’s 2AM Phone Call: Like a deer in the headlights.
Looked like Convict-1 just didn’t give a shit about the guy, only that his presser’s optics were ruined. I also note that RFK Jr skedaddled as fast as Hawley did on J6 leaving Dr Oz to tend to the victim (he survived).
Then again, Convict-1 is busy appealing the SNAP restoration order so he can starve more kids. His shutdown also closed the Ft Leavenworth dining hall leaving no food options for junior soldiers without transportation off base, and FWIW, neither the reservists or National Guard tropps are getting paid either, only active duty.
Trauma will make them Men!
I preferred the picture from earlier in the event where Oz is talking and everyone is paying attention to him, while the occupant of the resolute desk looks like it’s “Weekend at Donnie’s”.
The one where he’s slumped in his chair, sleeping, and the right side of his mouth is drooping?
Brilliant caption to photo, harpie! How he’d react when he learns his owner Putin has launched a nuke heaing our way. Pathetic.
In his warped and distorted mind, ‘if I don’t look at him/it/whatever… then it is not be real and cannot harm me.’ Selfish & gross POS.
A spot of on-set trouble, as the star waits impatiently for the filming to resume. Don’t they know how valuable his time is?
The video of the event is even worse. Once the guy falls down and several people rush over, Trump tries to leave by walking out the left side of the desk, only to be blocked by the people attending to the guy who fainted. That’s when Trump just ends up standing there. Like, does he not realize that he could walk around the *other* side of the desk? Trump really looks lost and confused in the video.
I can’t see if there is something or someone blocking the right side of the desk. So maybe Trump couldn’t get out from behind the desk and decided that just standing there was his best option. It’s just weird.
The reduction in flights that begins today is a sign to me of this being a pivot week.
Millions of folks losing SNAP benefits is of no consequence to the folks who brought us DOGE. It brought stories designed to evoke sympathy, not provoke change. For Trump and his ilk, SNAP is for blacks and browns to keep voting for Dems, not food assistance for those on the edge of starvation. The poor, to them, are really just lazy. Ending SNAP, even temporarily, is a feature, not a bug.
Federal contractors are laying off their workers, as their contract income has disappeared and in many cases, will not return once the shutdown ends. To Trump, though, this is nothing. He’s been screwing contractors all his life, and this is simply the way things are done.
But.
Forcing airlines to cut their flights . . . this will irritate the folks with money. Middle class people heading to their long-awaited vacation spots. Business people flying for business. Rich people flying because they can. And it’s only going to get worse. Air traffic controllers are beginning to not just call in sick for a shift, but quit altogether. God forbid that an ATC snaps under the stress, and two planes collide.
This is a different kind of pressure. It hits the folks who watch CNBC. It hits the folks who check their investment portfolios and retirement accounts on a weekly, if not daily, basis. More critically, it hits the folks who make large political donations. Cancel or suspend SNAP? No problem. Cancel or suspend my plane travel? Get my congressman on the phone!
Inconveniencing or causing pain for the poor for over a month has been no big deal to the folks in the Capitol and the White House.
Inconveniencing or causing pain to federal contractors for over a month has been no big deal to them, either.
But inconveniencing or causing pain to the middle class, the upper class, and donor class is a whole ‘nuther thing altogether.
Maybe, just maybe, the pivot is approaching. But I fear that pivot week under Trump 2.0 may be like infrastructure week under Trump 1.0.
Agreed. The double whammy of withholding SNAP benefits and fucking up air travel 2 weeks before Thanksgiving holiday travel starts is likely to get the attention of Republican members of Congress in a way nothing else has this year.
I don’t think the SNAP issue resonates nearly as strongly with the GOP members of Congress as the airport issues. MOC use the airlines, so that hits them personally. SNAP, on the other hand, is something that only *those* people use.
I can’t recall who said it — perhaps Rev. Art Simon, the Lutheran founder of Bread for the World, or perhaps a long-ago activist progressive Roman Catholic bishop — but the saying remains true: The poor have no lobbyists.
Sen Justice (R-WV) is making the plea for his state’s needy.
“A lot of people are hurting and the Republicans can’t let that just pass them….”
(Newsweek, do i have to post a link?)
Sen. Justice should have noticed that about 10 months ago. His party doesn’t care about people who aren’t wealthy and white.
EPA’s Zeldin can spin flight stoppages as “Donald Trump improved air quality during his term. MAHA!”
Yesterday, someone on the local news in the Bay Area said that private plane flights equal 14% of overall air traffic, so the government could just stop all private flights and none of the commercial flights would have to be affected.
Now that would have been a dilemma, piss off the donors or piss of everyone else? Gee, look at what they chose.
War on Thanksgiving!!!!
I’m glad that Dunn got his verdict, but note that the judge would have been justified in dismissing the case under the doctrine of “de minimis non curat lex.”
Just got back from a little “work” trip that entailed stops in Grand Rapids MI, Dayton OH and Rapid City SD. The work ranged from cleaning out a storage locker, collecting data on VOC emissions from Honda parts supplier to evaluating Dept. of Labor activities, so I got to interact with a wide range of individuals and operations on my travels.
While I had a lot of interesting discussions, the one that stuck out was in the realm of Dr. Wheeler’s analysis of the fracturing of the media landscape. While perusing the wonderful but highly policed downtown Rapid City, I overheard a discussion between retail workers about advertising as well as politics that seemed to confirm that small businesses are finding it harder to advertise things due to that fracturing. Since there were far more workers than patrons, I could hear and then interact with one of the participants in that conversation. While I sensed fear about the economy, I am also heartened that even as the media seems to be fracturing, the people seemed to understand who has been telling the truth and it has been Democrats. I have to wonder if we are in the same dynamic that was around at the end of WWII when the media wanted Dewey but the people intuited that Harry S. Truman was still their man.
While it is far too late to ask my grandfather or father why my middle name was Eugene, I am fairly certain it comes from the same source as Mamdani’s key quote ‘I can see the dawn of a better day for humanity.’ While Mike Stone’s list is relevant, I hope this time is a pivot, but we shall see. Ugh I just had to look up who “The Palm” is as they are funding pro disarming Hamas ads on my local radio station.
I hope it is a pivot, but so much damage has been done. Putin must be pleased.
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Hopefully someone with some courtroom procedure expertise can answer this – Given that the written order only said that the GJ transcripts (etc) were to be filed on the docket under seal, would that necessarily get them to Comey + team?
Reporting linked from an earlier post here suggested that the oral order was to provide those materials _to Defendant_, which seems to be what Government is appealing. In that regard, might they be correct that there is no written order?
Filing under seal means as to the public access they are sealed off. The litigants still get them.
I finally had a chance to read the transcript of the oral argument in the tariffs case, and I agree that there is very good reason to think that Trump is going to lose. I have a sense that Gorsuch would much like to author the decision, but Roberts was very close mouthed and may well join the majority (so 6-3) to assign the opinion to himself.
One interchange that I did not see get much reported was Justice Alito’s jibe at Katyal that “I wonder if you ever thought that your legacy as a constitutional advocate would be the man who revived the nondelegation argument.” Tr. 126-27. There may be more in that snub than meets the eye.
There are a lot of crosscurrents as to when such an opinion might issue but if and when the Court finds against Trump it would be a crippling blow to his entire economic and foreign policy program – assuming one can dignify it in such terms.
Pivot
Yes, he could afford ability
But hired only for hostility
For he lacked the least humility
And forget about civility
So his best all lack agility
As they dish out their futility
While his experience with nubility
Arrests hopes of their tranquility
As he rips out divot after divot
Knocking his balls into a privet
The rest of us are ready to pivot
Determined we’ll outlive it
Set the turkey on a trivet
As holiday eyes will rivet
Watching hosts who will shiv it
With all the thanks we can give it
Friday while some states are filling SNAP cards with full payments 47 appeals to the 1st circuit.
The cuts of “surplus” food to food banks and schools is still there.
Wednesday DHS announced they will arrest persons committing crimes outside of Federal buildings property lines. DHS considers all protesters lose 1st and 4th amendment rights if there is one “rioter”.
Portland inflatable costumes subject to 200 dollar fine and 500 dollars if obstructing access.
https://oregoncapitalchronicle.com/2025/11/06/repub/dhs-speeds-rule-that-could-permit-more-fines-and-arrests-of-protesters-at-federal-buildings/
Election results nationwide Tuesday were nasty for the GOP.
Puppy Killer Noem’s guidelines aside, the fed’s jurisdiction relates to location and protection of federal facilities, not federal or state crimes in general, wherever found. Same with attempting to fine costume wearers that are not illegally impeding access to federal facilities or committing other crimes within their jurisdiction.
As for the costume bit about hiding identities, should we assume Noem’s guidelines also apply to ICE goods not wearing easily legibly identification that accurately identifies the wearer’s name, rank, and the agency for which they work? Asking for a friend.
“Let them eat dirt,” pronounced the President
As long as I’m King in my senile mind, who cares if they can pay their rent?
I don’t give a damn about the poor, so I simply won’t relent
Let the shutdown continue—they can all live in a tent!
For the US poor, regardless of party, for the children and innocents
The terror’s only just begun, in the form of lost dollars and cents
Sycophant Vance continues to dance, mascara’d puppet on a string
Fellow Foodstamp Terrorists, America’s Veep and would-be King
Maybe.
An intelligent (or, at least bottom line correct) tariff ruling is not as consequential as corrupt rulings over election matters.
This election was not consequential enough for that kind of court shit to play out. That’s in the future, would be my guess.
Plus, our entire national security apparatus/institutions are, as Marcy might put it — well and truly fucked.
Having finished Tim Weiner’s “The Mission The CIA In The 21st Century” last night has me feeling not so good about the future.
The book is really good. Or I thought it was, anyway.
I think Peterr would like it. Probably many others here, too.
The main thread of hope I try to maintain is this country has zero (until now) experience living under Orwellian authoritarianism, and it very well could be that a critical mass WILL rise and WILL somehow figure out a way to successfully be rid of it.
But I dunno. It is going to be hard.
I’ll just note that one of the week’s “Most Popular” recipes at NYT Cooking is
a gin martini called “Obituary”…might just be related to Halloween, I guess.