The Corruption
58 crypto wallets have made millions on Trump’s meme coin. 764,000 have lost money
- 58 wallets have made over $10 million each from President Donald Trump’s meme coin, totaling $1.1 billion in profits, blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis said.
- 764,000 wallets of mostly small holders have lost money on $TRUMP, according to the firm.
- The $TRUMP event, set for May 22 at Trump National Golf Club, Washington, D.C., includes a reception for the 25 wallets with the largest balance, along with a White House tour.
Prospect.org » Democrats Cave, Prepare to Rubber-Stamp Trump Crypto Corruption
A ‘Trump Card Visa’ Is Already Showing Up in Immigration Forms (Wired)
The Ugly
Vehicles in the US that are heading to Canada are being stopped by US Border Patrol before they leave the country and arrive at Canadian customs
CBC » The added checkpoints come as fewer Canadians travel to the US, with many citing Trump’s tariffs and threats of making Canada the 51st state as their reasons. April saw a 51% drop in cars with B.C. licence plates heading into the US from southwest B.C. compared to the same month last year.
US immigration lawyer Len Saunders — who works in Blaine, Washington — said these types of checkpoints are typically put in place during a crisis such as an amber alert or when there’s a criminal on the run.
“What’s new is that they’re doing them every single day, which I’ve never seen,” he said.
Saunders worries the added step at the border could deter more Canadians from travelling to the U.S.
“When Canadians hear they’re doing these outbound checks and they’re taking not minutes but hours, nobody is going to come down here,” he said.
US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell didn’t cut interest rates today
The New Republic » “If the large increases in tariffs that have been announced are sustained, they’re likely to generate a rise in inflation, a slowdown in economic growth, and an increase in unemployment,” the Federal Reserve chair said.
AP » The Federal Reserve kept its key interest rate unchanged Wednesday, brushing off Trump’s demands to lower borrowing costs, and said that the risks of both higher unemployment and higher inflation have risen, an unusual combination that puts the central bank in a difficult spot.
The Fed kept its rate at 4.3% for the third straight meeting, after cutting it three times in a row at the end of last year. Many economists and Wall Street investors still expect the Fed will reduce rates this year, but the sweeping tariffs imposed by Trump have injected a tremendous amount of uncertainty into the US economy and the central bank’s policies.
US planning to deport migrants to Libya despite ‘clear’ violation of court order
Axios » Federal judge temporarily blocks deportations to Libya
Reuters » Swiftly deporting migrants to Libya would violate court order, US judge rules
The Guardian » The Trump administration is reportedly planning to deport a group of immigrants to Libya, despite a judge’s efforts on Wednesday to block any such flights and the state department’s previous condemnation of the “life-threatening” prison conditions in the country.
NYT » The decision to send deportees to Libya was striking. The country is racked with conflict, and human rights groups have called conditions in its network of migrant detention centers “horrific” and “deplorable.”
Trump administration asked Ukraine to take deported US immigrants amid war
WaPo » The Trump administration earlier this year urged the Ukrainian government to accept an unspecified number of U.S. deportees who are citizens of other countries, according to documents reviewed by The Washington Post, an extraordinary request of a nation at war and dependent on American military and financial support for its survival.
Trump’s threatened tariffs appear so much larger in the mirror
NYT » There has been a mantra spreading among weary corporate executives who are becoming resigned to Trump’s tariffs while still hoping to avoid the worst of their effects: Ten percent is the new zero.
The statement refers to the 10% tariff that Trump put in place on most US imports one month ago. Such a significant increase in US tariffs would have been unthinkable a few years ago. But it no longer seems like such a big deal, compared with the truly large tariffs that Trump has already imposed or threatened elsewhere.
Trump administration warns FIFA World Cup visitors not to stay too long
NBC » Members of Trump’s Cabinet said Tuesday that while they look forward to the US’ co-hosting next year’s FIFA World Cup, they want to make sure foreign visitors don’t stay longer than they’re allowed.
The quadrennial tournament, which the US will host alongside Mexico and Canada, is expected to attract millions of fans from dozens of countries. The Department of Homeland Security has indicated it’s ready to handle the influx of international travelers.
JD Vance jokes about deporting tourists attending 2026 World Cup
HuffPost » “We’ll have visitors from close to 100 countries. We want them to come, we want them to celebrate, we want them to watch the game,” Vance said. “But when the time is up, they’ll have to go home, otherwise they’ll have to talk to [Homeland Security] Secretary Noem.”
The Bizarre
Trump plans to call the Persian Gulf the Arabian Gulf
AP » Trump plans to announce while on his trip to Saudi Arabia next week that the US will now refer to the Persian Gulf as the Arabian Gulf or the Gulf of Arabia, according to two US officials.
Arab nations have pushed for a change to the geographic name of the body of water off the southern coast of Iran, while Iran has maintained its historic ties to the gulf.
Trump’s Worldwide Trade and Tariff War
US requested China for trade meeting in Switzerland
- Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer will both meet with their Chinese trade and economic counterparts in Switzerland.
- An upcoming meeting was requested by the Trump administration.
- China will be entering the talks “firmly” opposed to US tariff hikes.
- Trump takes issue with China’s characterization.
AP » China beefs up economic safeguards ahead of US trade talks in Switzerland
- Beijing’s central bank governor and other top financial officials outlined plans Wednesday to cut interest rates and reduce bank reserve requirements to help free up more funding for lending.
