Analysis: The new balance of power in American consumer and political markets

With DJT, the GOP and MAGA in power again, it is time to consider power. It flows from multiple sources, including politics, commerce and formal religion, especially Christianity. Not much power seems to arise from other sources like academics, liberal arts, philosophy, formal logic or science, unless they attach to politics, commerce or religion. That's especially true for science, especially if it is inconvenient to major power centers in politics, commerce or formal religion.

After DJT's election, one can assert there is a major war between between DJT's and MAGA's power and the commercial consumer market. For example, most consumers want to do something about global warming. DJT, MAGA and the carbon energy sector want to deny, distort or downplay the issue. So far, DJT, MAGA and the carbon energy sector simply ignore consumer sentiment and demand. Business as usual. That has been the case since the 1970s when most of the public became aware of environmental problems. 

It's always important to specify what the "market" means or is. The market in the time of DJT in his 2nd term means first and foremost far more kleptocratic, authoritarian political power demand or pressure at the expense of consumer power. Consumers are mostly a diffuse, non-political commercial market power source. That is the reality. 

A new reality is that DJT and MAGA now have far more power over Bezos, Zuckerberg and other billionaires and multi-millionaires than consumer's collective but diffuse power. That's why elites of commerce now owe and pay fealty to highly concentrated DJT and MAGA power. They have bended their knee and turned against democracy. In my opinion, that is inherent in unrestrained capitalism and capitalism under threat by sufficiently powerful authoritarianism. 

Nowadays, resistance to DJT and MAGA imposes risks on highly wealthy people and huge corporations. The risks also extend to many non-elites who are exposed to serious damage from kleptocratic authoritarian threats, e.g., federal employees. For the elites, the risks are loss of most or all of their wealth and power from a corrupt authoritarian American regime and government. To protect their wealth and power, capitalist elites and big businesses have no choice but to betray consumers and democracy. These are the new realities of the American capitalism game. Maybe it has been significantly that way for years. But is is definitely overwhelmingly that way now. 

Opinions about this will obviously vary widely. These are my mine. 

About federal authority and power for DOGE and Elon Musk

All kinds of sources are reporting that Musk, operating in DOGE (the Department of Government Efficiency) is aggressively intruding on major federal operations, e.g., here, here and here. What legal basis is there for this?

Q: What is the legal or constitutional basis on which DOGE has any power to do anything at all?

A: Elon Musk’s DOGE derives its authority from President Donald Trump’s executive orders, which reorganized existing executive branch structures rather than creating a new federal agency. Its legal standing hinges on contested interpretations of presidential power and ongoing litigation challenging its compliance with federal transparency laws.

Legal Basis for DOGE’s Authority

Executive Order Framework: DOGE was established via a January 20, 2025, executive order renaming the U.S. Digital Service (USDS) as the U.S. DOGE Service and embedding it within the Executive Office of the President. This leverages the President’s constitutional authority (Article II) to manage federal operations and reorganize executive agencies without congressional approval. The order grants DOGE access to agency records and systems to “modernize federal technology and software,” bypassing prior regulations that might restrict such access.

Temporary Organization Status: DOGE operates as a “temporary organization” under 5 U.S.C. § 3161, which allows short-term federal entities to address specific missions. This structure avoids the need for congressional authorization, though critics argue it exceeds statutory intent by centralizing influence over federal policy.

Advisory Role vs. Enforcement Power:

DOGE lacks direct legislative or regulatory authority. Its mandate is advisory, focusing on recommendations for cost-cutting, IT modernization, and workforce reductions. However, its proximity to the White House amplifies its influence, as agency heads are required to form “DOGE teams” to align with its agenda.

Constitutional and Legal Challenges

Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) Violations: Multiple lawsuits allege DOGE operates as an unlawful advisory committee under FACA, which requires transparency, public access, and balanced membership. Plaintiffs argue that despite its rebranding as part of the executive branch, DOGE’s initial formation involved private actors (e.g., Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy) shaping policy without accountability.

Separation of Powers Concerns:

Critics contend DOGE’s structure concentrates power in unelected billionaires, undermining congressional oversight and civil service protections. Legal experts warn that its recommendations to “pause” regulations via executive action could test constitutional limits on presidential authority.

Ethics and Transparency Risks: DOGE’s use of encrypted messaging (e.g., Signal) and Musk’s potential conflicts of interest (e.g., SpaceX contracts) have sparked demands for records under FOIA. Opponents argue its opacity violates norms of democratic governance.

Key Precedents and Counterarguments

Historical Analogues: DOGE mirrors past presidential commissions like Reagan’s Grace Commission, which similarly advised on cost-cutting without formal authority. However, DOGE’s integration into the executive branch distinguishes it from purely external advisory bodies.

Judicial Outlook: Courts will likely scrutinize whether DOGE’s operations qualify as a FACA committee or fall within the President’s managerial discretion. A ruling against DOGE could force compliance with transparency laws or dissolution.

So, in other words, even if the courts eventually do hold that what DOGE and Musk are doing is illegal, vast damage will already have been inflicted. That damage could be mostly avoided if the courts issue restraining orders or injunctions to resolve legal challenges to DOGE policies, its mode of operations and its conflicts of interest. 

Perplexity says that Federal courts are moderately likely to issue temporary restraining orders (TROs) or preliminary injunctions against DOGE initiatives, given the legal challenges alleging violations of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) and separation of powers concerns. However, the likelihood hinges on judicial interpretations of procedural requirements, the urgency of harm, and the administration’s compliance history. The likelihood of success on the merits requires plaintiffs must show DOGE violates FACA’s transparency rules, e.g., public meetings, balanced membership, and record-keeping.

There is a track record of similar cases with FACA Precedents. So far, federal courts have historically enforced FACA strictly. For example, in Alabama-Tombigbee Rivers Coalition v. Department of Interior (1994), a court blocked agency decisions made by noncompliant advisory committees. And, in AAPS v. Clinton (1993), courts scrutinized Hillary Clinton’s role in a health care task force, ruling that advisory bodies must comply with FACA if non-federal members shape policy. In addition, federal judges issued 55 nationwide injunctions against Trump’s policies during his four years in office, signaling significant willingness to curb executive overreach. For context, federal judges issued 19 nationwide injunctions during Obama's eight years in office.

MAGA attacks on the MSM, inconvenient truth and democracy gain strength

NBC News reports: Pentagon removes major media outlets, including NBC News, from dedicated workstations in new 'rotation program' -- NBC News, The New York Times, NPR and Politico must vacate their office spaces in two weeks for other news organizations — including at least one that did not request to be added. .... The new outlets rotating in are One America News Network — which will take NBC News’s spot — the New York Post [owned by Rupert Murdoch], Breitbart News Network and HuffPost. Three of the new outlets are conservative, while HuffPost leans progressive. HuffPost does not have a Pentagon correspondent, and the site did not request a space, spokesperson Lizzie Grams said. .... The memo did not include further details about the process of the new “rotation program,” including how officials chose which outlets needed to vacate office space first, how the new outlets were chosen and which are next, and how long an outlet would remain without an office space before it was rotated back into the building.

That is yet another corrupt authoritarian move. Here, MAGA acts to subvert Pentagon news reporting by replacing four high fact accuracy sources with two medium credibility sources and two low credibility, i.e., crackpot, sources. From here on out, we can expect a higher level of lies, opacity and pro-DJT and pro-MAGA military propaganda. This rotation will lead to biased scrutiny of Pentagon activities, with all four of the incoming outlets having lower fact reporting standards compared to departing organizations. The change will amplify partisan MAGA propaganda while decreasing evidence-based military coverage.

These four are getting kicked out.

These four are put in. Politico didn't even ask to be included.

DJT unleashes a damaging economic attack on California

The NYT reports (not paywalled) about a major attack that DJT has launched to damage California's economy:

Trump Officials Release Water in California

That Experts Say Will Serve Little Use

Local officials and experts said the water the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers began sending downstream on Friday could have been helpful to farmers later this year. President Trump, in an apparent reference to the move, called it a “victory”

Trump administration officials began releasing significant amounts of water from two dams in California’s Central Valley on Friday in a move that seemed intended to make a political point as President Trump continued to falsely blame the Los Angeles wildfires on water policies in the Democratic-run state.

The releases, as ordered, have sent water toward low-lying land in the Central Valley, and none of it will reach Southern California, water experts said. Nonetheless, President Trump said on Friday that the same action would have prevented the Los Angeles wildfires on the other side of mountain ranges over which that water has no way of traveling.

“Photo of beautiful water flow that I just opened in California,” President Trump posted on Friday on social media in an apparent reference to the dam releases. “Everybody should be happy about this long fought Victory! I only wish they listened to me six years ago — There would have been no fire!”

Experts expressed dismay on Friday that releasing so much water now served little use for farmers, who typically have higher irrigation needs in the spring and summer months when agricultural fields are abundant.

“I’ve never seen them do this, other than in a major flood,” said Robert Thayer, a supervisor in Kings County, which is downstream of the Tulare County dams.

Water supplies from Northern California played no part in the ability of firefighters to combat the flames in Los Angeles County. Hydrants in Pacific Palisades went dry because the municipal water system was not designed to fight so many fires simultaneously. A reservoir that fed the neighborhood was empty because of maintenance issues, not because of a lack of supply to Southern California.

In my opinion, this crosses a major red line. This is an unwarranted attack on California and its economy. DJT is intentionally wasting precious water, knowing that it will do no good now. He clearly hopes that this will cause serious harm later in the year when a lot of water will be needed for irrigation. 

This action is pure authoritarian revenge against a state that voted against DJT, MAGA and their plans for turning America into a morally rotted, callous, authoritarian kleptocracy. 

Q: Is there another plausible way to see this other than authoritarian revenge, if so, what is it?

Global warming update: Risk assessments and economic cost estimates

This discusses data from a March 2024 risk assessment analysis. Total average global warming economic cost was running at ~$400 billion/year. Projected annual cost in some number of years is ~$1 trillion.   

A risk assessment by Lloyd's Futureset and the Cambridge Center for Risk Studies, Extreme weather leading to food and water shock: How vulnerable is the global economy to extreme weather and food shocks?, estimates ~$5 trillion in loss over 5 years in the event of a major (1 in 50 years) food and water shock caused by extreme weather. In an extreme food and water shock scenario (1 in 1,000 years), the estimated 5 year loss is projected to be ~$17.6 trillion.

A handy-dandy cost estimator

As we all know, a trillion here and a trillion there, and pretty soon you're talking about some real money. And lots of misery for affected people. Probably tends of thousands of deaths, but these risk assessments do not consider human deaths or impacts. These risk assessments deal only with economic losses, not human deaths. This global warming thing is starting to heat up figuratively and literally.

MAGA update: Planning for DJT's 3rd term; Regarding the Trump catastrophe

Some folks are now seriously considering ways that DJT could get a 3rd term in office, assuming he lives that long. Politico writes:

It’s the stuff of liberal nightmares and MAGA dreams: a third Trump term.

But it can’t happen, right? After all, the Constitution imposes an explicit two-term limit on the presidency — even if those two terms, like Trump’s, are non-consecutive. “No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice,” the 22nd Amendment mandates.

Even Trump, notorious for bending norms and breaking laws, couldn’t possibly circumvent that clear constitutional stricture, right?

Don’t be so sure.

Around the globe, when rulers consolidate power through a cult of personality, they do not tend to surrender it willingly, even in the face of constitutional limits. And Trump, of course, already has a track record of trying to remain in office beyond his lawful tenure.

If Trump decided he wanted to hold onto power past 2028, there are at least four paths he could try:

• He could generate a movement to repeal the 22nd Amendment directly.
• He could exploit a little-noticed loophole in the amendment that might allow him to run for vice president and then immediately ascend back to the presidency.
• He could run for president again on the bet that a pliant Supreme Court won’t stop him.
• Or he could simply refuse to leave — and put a formal end to America’s democratic experiment.

Each path would face serious political, legal and practical impediments. But the prospect of a third Trump term shouldn’t be dismissed with a hand wave.

Trump, after all, is definitely not dismissing the prospect. He’s been openly floating it for years.

In August 2020, he told supporters: “We are going to win four more years. And then after that, we’ll go for another four years.”

One can only wonder what horrors are in store for us.

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DJT blamed Biden and DEI (diversity, equity, inclusion) for the tragic airplane and helicopter crash in Washington DC a couple of days ago. He has no evidence of DEI involvement. So instead of asserting evidence, he claimed his allegation is a matter of common sense. The fact is that the control tower was understaffed because DJT gets rid of federal employees and weakens the FAA.

It is therefore a matter of fair and balanced common sense to believe that since DJT is the president, the FAA is under his control, and DJT weakened the FAA because he hates and wants to get rid of government, the tragic accident and the deaths are his fault.

Henceforth, we can rationally blame DJT of the accident and the deaths. We can refer to it as "Trump's catastrophe."

And, for some context:

Q: What actions did Trump take regarding the FAA in the days before the air disaster in Washington DC?

A: In the days preceding the midair collision near Washington, D.C., the Trump administration implemented significant changes to federal aviation oversight:

Leadership and Personnel Changes

FAA Leadership Vacancy: The FAA was without permanent leadership at the time of the crash, as Administrator Michael Whitaker resigned during the transition period after clashing with Trump ally Elon Musk.

TSA and Coast Guard Firings: Trump dismissed Transportation Security Administration (TSA) Administrator David Pekoske and Coast Guard Commandant Admiral Linda Fagan, both critical to aviation and maritime security.

Advisory Committee Dissolution: All members of the Aviation Security Advisory Committee—a panel established post-1988 PanAm bombing to advise on safety—were removed.

Policy Shifts
Federal Hiring Freeze: On January 20, Trump issued an executive order freezing civilian federal hiring, including air traffic controllers, despite bipartisan legislation mandating their recruitment. Critics warned this could exacerbate existing staffing shortages.

DEI Rollbacks: On January 21, Trump signed an order eliminating diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives at the FAA, reverting to “merit-based” hiring. This followed claims that DEI policies lowered standards, though no evidence linked these changes to the crash.

Of course none of that supports or contradicts DJT's excuses or his critics allegations. A serious professional investigation is needed. One can reasonably believe that a neutral, professional investigation will never happen. Given his track record, DJT will make damn sure any investigation will show he had nothing to do with it, even if he did. Nonetheless, it is a fact that DJT was president and the disaster happened on his watch. On that basis alone this is Trump's catastrophe. 

The buck stops with DJT. He demanded power and fought dirty to get it. Now he has it, everything is on him.