Autocrats Do the Same Thing

They try to cook the books to deny reality.

In Russia, they're classifying economic statistics to hide their worsening economy. Putin's decreed there will be no recession, so the way he'll do that is to tell everyone there's no recession.

In this country, our petulant leader fired the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics because he didn't like the numbers. The message is clear to her successors: Cook the books to please the Sundowner-in-Chief. He's also on a campaign to turn the Federal Reserve from caring about inflation to caring about his poll numbers.

But the bond market is what keeps the country from collapsing under the massive debt that Republican presidents have saddled it with. If the Angry Bloated Orage Toddler fucks around with the interest rates, large infestors will dump treasury bonds and then things will get much worse rather quickly.

Caturday

Solar Chip.

Ghislane Maxwell-- the Fix is In

Ghislaine Maxwell, convicted of sex trafficking in connection with Jeffrey Epstein, has been moved to a federal prison in Texas, officials said Friday.

Maxwell was transferred to the minimum-security federal prison camp in Bryan from a low-security prison in Tallahassee, Fla., a Federal Bureau of Prisons official told the Houston Chronicle.

It's a transfer, based on her offenses and her time in custody to date, she wasn't eligible for. But "they" moved her, anyway.

It's corrupt as fuck. Bondi and Blanche apparently bought Maxwell's cooperation with a transfer from a prison to a Club Fed that was against regulations.

Maxwell will say what they want her to say. She'll deny ever seeing Trump at anything. She'll deny even knowing who Trump is. And she'll get her pardon after the midterm elections. Bet on that.

Labor Statistics Will Now Be Meaningless Tripe

Owwrr Deer Leeedur is firing the Director of Labor Statistics in order to put someone in who will cook the books to order.

President Donald Trump on Friday ordered the firing of the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, hours after a stunning government report showed that hiring had slowed down significantly over the past three months.

Taking to Truth Social, he attacked Erika McEntarfer, the commissioner of the BLS. He claimed that the country's jobs reports "are being produced by Biden appointee" and ordered his administration to terminate her.
...
The politicization of economic data and potential interference with it by political appointees is something that's typically seen in nondemocratic countries like Russia, Venezuela or China.

And now here. Government statistics, at least those that the Sundowning Dictator can get his hands on, will be as valueless as those produced by Stalin's government.

Also, this:

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— George Conway 👊🇺🇸🔥 (@gtconway.bsky.social) August 1, 2025 at 4:16 PM

Because It's Friday

UP 4014:

A Tune For This Morning

"It Ain't Going to Go Away"