Trump Expands Aluminum and Steel Tariffs

The Trump (R) Administration announced that 50% Duties are now in Effect on more than 400 additional kinds of Products that contain Aluminum or Steel. The New Product Categories include everyday items such as Car Parts, Plastics, and Specialty Chemicals. Economists warn that the New Levies could further Strain the U.S. Supply Chain and Raise Prices for Consumers.

"Auto parts, chemicals, plastics, furniture components, if it's shiny, metallic, or remotely related to steel or aluminum, it's probably on the list," Brian Baldwin, Vice President of Customs at Kuehne + Nagel International AG wrote on LinkedIn of the Expanded List. "This isn't just another tariff—it's a strategic shift in how steel and aluminum derivatives are regulated," He wrote.

The Levies extend to 407 New Product Categories, the Department of Commerce (DOC) said Tuesday. "Today's action expands the reach of the steel and aluminum tariffs and shuts down avenues for circumvention – supporting the continued revitalization of the American steel and aluminum industries," Jeffrey Kessler, the DOC Uunder-Secretary for Industry and Security, said in a Statement.

The Release from the Agency links out to a List that identifies the newly included Product Types Only by the Specific Customs Codes that apply to them, Not by what the Products are Actually called. For example, the DOC identifies the Product Category of Fire Extinguishers only as "8424.10.0000," a 10-digit Code buried among hundreds of other 10-digit Codes. This Format makes it very Difficult for the Public to get a Full picture of All the Products that are Affected by Monday's Expanded Tariffs.

Experts say the Impact will be Enormous. "By my count, the steel and aluminum tariffs now affect at least $320 billion of imports based on 2024's general customs value of imports," Jason Miller, a Professor of Supply Chain Management at Michigan State University, wrote on LinkedIn. That is a Substantial Increase from His Prior Estimate of roughly $190 billion. "This will add more inflationary cost-push pressures to already climbing prices that domestic producers are charging as picked up by July's PPI data," He continued.

Trump has repeatedly relied on Sector-Specific Tariffs to Enact His Sweeping Trade Agenda. In June, Trump announced that He was Doubling Tariffs on aluminum and Steel Imports to 50% for most Countries, creating Widespread Uncertainty for Businesses and U.S. Trading Partners reliant on the Valuable Commodities.

The White House said that the Tariffs on Additional Products should "not come as a surprise." "The President called for a new steel and aluminum product inclusions process in February," White House Spokesperson Kush Desai (R) said in a Statement. "[The Bureau of Industry and Security] established the new product inclusions process in April, and companies submitted requests for product inclusions in mid-May," He said. "Thus, it has been clear for many months that new products could be treated as steel and aluminum derivatives."










NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker

MS Supreme Court Map Violates Voting Rights Act

A Federal Judge has Ordered Mississippi to Redraw its Supreme Court Electoral Map, after Finding the Map Dilutes the Power of Black Voters. U.S. District Judge Sharion Aycock Ruled the Map, which was Enacted in 1987, Violates the Voting Rights Act and Cannot be Used in Future Elections.

The Mississippi Branch of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Helped Litigate the Lawsuit, Arguing the Map Cut Mississippi's Delta Region, a Historically Black Area, in half.

“This win corrects a historic injustice," said Ari Savitzky, a Senior Staff Attorney at the ACLU Voting Rights Project.

"All Mississippians will benefit from fair district lines that give Black voters an equal voice — and new generations of Black leaders an equal chance to help shape the state’s future by serving on the state’s highest court.”

The Lawsuit, started and Filed on April 25th, 2022, Argued the Map Diminished the Black Cote in the Central District.

Aycock's Ruling Notes that only Four Black People have Served on the Mississippi Supreme Court. All of them held the same Seat in the Central District, and were First Appointed to the Position by a Sitting Governor.

Aycock wrote that Sshe will Impose a Deadline for the Mississippi Legislature to Create a New Map.










NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker

NYC Ask Court Stop ICE Arrests at Immigration Court Hearings

New York City Mayor Eric Adams (I) is Siding with the City's 3 million Immigrants, Filing Suit to Stop the Trump (R) Administration's Campaign of Courthouse Arrests. He's calling for an immediate Stop to the Actions by ICE Agents. The steady stream of Arrests, One day a 20-year-old High School Student, another Day a 6-year-oldCchild and Her Mother, has the City Filing a Friend of the Court Brief to Stop the Practice once and for All.

"You can't snatch people off the courthouse steps anymore. That's wrong. Don't do it. And we're asking a court to say they can't do that anymore," First Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro said. Mastro said the City is simply Fed-Up with the Heavy Handed Actions of ICE Agents Arresting People who show up for Court Hearings.

The Suit, filed as an Amicus Brief, or Friend-of-the-Court, seeks an Immediate Halt to Courthouse Arrests by ICE, saying the Practice has taken a "Heavy Toll" on a City where 3 million, 40% of the Population, are Immigrants. "The sheer number of individuals detained is remarkable: in just a two-week period between late May and early June, federal officers arrested more than 130 people in a lower Manhattan immigration courthouse building," City Officials wrote in the Suit.

"We have to allow people to go through the legal process, and that's why we filed the amicus brief," Adams said. "The 7-year-old and her mother have not committed any crimes. You know, the 7-year-old was gearing up to go back to school in a couple of weeks," said Murrad Awawdeh of the Immigration Coalition.

Awawdeh, the Immigration Coalition's President and CEO, is happy the City filed the Suit, but He says the City and the Mayor should be doing more. "I want to see him say that the NYPD is not going to collude illegally with the Department of Homeland Security or ICE. I want make sure that he's investing more resources into immigration and legal services. Additionally, making sure that's he's protecting our sanctuary policies," Awawdeh said.

"Nothing in the constitution prohibits arresting a lawbreaker where you find them. The ability of law enforcement to make arrests of criminal illegal aliens in courthouses is common sense. It conserves valuable law enforcement resources because they already know where a target will be. It is also safer for our officers and the community.

"These Illegal Aliens have gone through Security and been screened to not have any weapons," a Department of Homeland Security Spokesperson said in a Statement. "Further, illegal aliens are NOT 'New Yorkers,' and trying to shield them from law enforcement poses a threat to the actual American citizens and legal residents of New York City. Mayor Adams should know that; his sanctuary policies enabled the shooting of a CBP officer in Manhattan by two illegal aliens just last month. This Administration is once again implementing the rule of law. We encourage all sanctuary politicians to stop the chaos, join us, and side with the American people instead of criminal illegal aliens."

The City was Not the only One to file Suit. State Attorney General Letitia James (D) wants a Judge to Stop ICE from Holding Immigrants at their Lower Manhattan Field Office, in what She claims are Inhumane and Unsanitary Conditions.

"While the City does not set immigration policy or decide who enters this country, it must govern with an eye to the reality that asylum seekers and undocumented immigrants have made the City their home. The tactics employed against many of the individuals represented here— using their appearances at court for routine immigration hearings as opportunities to detain them, threaten to deter people from accessing the court system on which local governance depends. The implications threaten to reach well beyond the immigration arena and reach countless other matters affecting public welfare," New York City Corporation Counsel Muriel Goode-Trufant wrote in the Brief.

Goode-Trufant wrote that Immigrants Heading to Court have been "caught in a trap laid by immigration authorities" which Presents them "with an impossible choice: risk detention by attending future court proceedings or run the same risk by not attending. To put it mildly, this undermines the public interest."

The New York City Council recently Passed an Additional $33.6 million in Funding for Pro-Bono Legal Services, saying the Crackdown has led to an Increased need for Legal Support.










NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker

Trump Revokes Security Clearances of Government Officials

The Trump (R) Administration has Ordered the Revocation of the Security Clearances of 37 Current and Former National Security Officials, including some who Worked on the Intelligence Community’s Assessment that Russia Interfered in the 2016 Presidential Election.

A Memo from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI), Accuses the Targeted Individuals of having Engaged in the “Politicization or Weaponization of Intelligence” to Advance Personal or Partisan Gain. It’s the latest Action of Retribution by the Trump Administration against National Security Officials, He perceives as having been Against Him.

It comes as Trump's Government has launched a Sweeping Effort to Cast Doubt on the Legitimacy of Intelligence Community Findings that Russia Interfered on Trump's Behalf in the 2016 Election. But, The Russian Government conducted Foreign Electoral Interference in the 2016 U.S. Elections, with the Goals of Sabotaging the Presidential Campaign of Hillary Clinton (D), boosting the Presidential Campaign of Trump, and Increasing Political and Social Discord in the U.S.

According to the U.S. Intelligence Community, the Operation Code Named Project "Lakhta[3][4]" was Ordered Directly by Russian President Vladimir Putin. The "Hacking and Disinformation Campaign" to Damage Clinton and help Trump, became the "core of the scandal known as Russiagate".

The Internet Research Agency (IRA), based in Saint Petersburg, Russia, and described as a Troll Farm, created Thousands of Social Media Accounts that purported to be Americans supporting Radical Political Groups and Planned or Promoted Events in Support of Trump and against Clinton.

They reached Millions of Social Media Users between 2013 and 2017. Fabricated Articles and Disinformation were spread from Russian Government-Controlled Media, and Promoted on Social Media. Additionally, Computer Hackers Affiliated with the Russian Military Intelligence Service (GRU) Infiltrated Information Systems of the Democratic National Committee (DNC), the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), and Clinton Campaign Officials, notably Chairman John Podesta (D), and Publicly Released Stolen Files and emails through DCLeaks, Guccifer 2.0, and WikiLeaks, during the Election Campaign.

Several Individuals connected to Russia, contacted various Trump Campaign Associates, offering Business Opportunities to the Trump Organization and Proffering Damaging Information on Clinton. Russian Government Officials have Denied Involvement in any of the Hacks or Leaks, and Trump Denied the Interference had even Occurred.

Russian Interference Activities triggered Strong Statements from U.S. Intelligence Agencies, a Direct Warning by then U.S. Ppresident Barack Obama (D) to Russian President Vladimir Putin, Renewed Economic Sanctions against Russia, and Closures of Russian Diplomatic Facilities and Expulsion of their Staff. The Senate and House Intelligence Committees conducted their Own Investigations into the matter.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Opened the Crossfire Hurricane Investigation of Russian Interference in July 2016, including a Special Focus on Links between Trump Associates and Russian Officials and Spies and Suspected Co-Ordination between the Trump Campaign and the Russian Government. Russian attempts to Interfere in the Election were First Disclosed Publicly by Members of the U.S. Congress in September 2016, Confirmed by U.S. Intelligence Agencies in October 2016, and further Detailed by the Director of DNI in January 2017. The Dismissal of James Comey, the FBI Director, by President Trump in May 2017, was partly because of Comey's Investigation of the Russian Interference.

The FBI's work was taken over in May 2017 by former FBI Director Robert Mueller, who led a Special Counsel Investigation until March 2019. Mueller concluded that Russian Interference was "sweeping and systematic" and "violated U.S. criminal law", and He indicted Twenty-Six Russian Citizens and Three Russian Organizations. The Investigation also led to Indictments and Convictions of Trump Campaign Officials and Associated Americans. The Mueller Report, released in April 2019, examined over 200 Contacts between the Trump Campaign and Russian Officials, but concluded that, though the Trump Campaign welcomed the Russian Activities and expected to Benefit from them, there was Insufficient Evidence to bring Criminal "Conspiracy" or "Coordination" Charges against Trump or His Associates.

In November 2020, Newly Released Passages from the Mueller Special Counsel Investigation's Report indicated: "Although WikiLeaks published emails stolen from the DNC in July and October 2016 and Stone—a close associate to Donald Trump—appeared to know in advance the materials were coming, investigators 'did not have sufficient evidence' to prove active participation in the hacks or knowledge that the electronic thefts were continuing."

In Response to the Investigations, Trump, Republican Party Leaders, and Right-Wing Conservatives, Promoted and Endorsed False and Debunked Conspiracy Theory Counter-Narratives, in an effort to Discredit the Allegations and Findings of the Investigations, Frequently referring to them as the "Russia Hoax" or "Russian Collusion Hoax".










NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker

Another Trump Ally Faces Disbarment

A former Justice Department (DOJ) Official and longtime Ally of Trump (R), should Lose His License to Practice Law, after He worked to Overturn the Results of the 2020 Presidential Election, a Washington-based Disciplinary Panel decided. Jeffrey Clark, who was a Senior DOJ Attorney during Trump's First Term, has Vowed to Fight the Ruling that determined His Conduct Violated Professional Ethics.

Clark was “prepared to cause the Justice Department to tell a lie about the status of its investigation” into the 2020 Presidential Election, which was Won by Joe Biden (D), the D.C. Board on Professional Responsibility said in its Report. “Lawyers cannot advocate for any outcome based on false statements and they certainly cannot urge others to do so,” the Board explained.

But former DOJ Official Clark who now, in Trump’s Second Term, Leads the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Division that Vets proposed Executive Branch Rules, “persistently and energetically sought to do just that on an important national issue,” the Report stated. “He should be disbarred as a consequence and to send a message to the rest of the Bar and to the public that this behavior will not be tolerated.”

The Disciplinary Panel’s Ruling is based on Clark’s attempt to Pressure DOJ Officials into Issuing a False Statement claiming there was Substantial Evidence of Election Fraud. A Senate Judiciary Report detailed His Alleged Actions, claiming Clark in December 2020 tried to get His Superiors to Send a Letter to Georgia Lawmakers saying they’d “identified significant concerns” about the Election in the State. When Officials Refused,

Clark met with Trump and Discussed the Possibility of Replacing then-Acting U.S. Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen. That led to a White House Meeting in Early January 2021 that Left Multiple Senior Justice Department and White House Officials, threatening to Resign if Trump made Good on a Plan to make Clark the Acting AG.

Clark’s Attorney in the Disciplinary Case, Harry MacDougald, has Defended His Client, insisting, “They want to disbar Jeff Clark for the heresy of privately recommending further investigations of the 2020 election.” MacDougald believes Clark was unfairly Targeted for giving Legal Advice, calling the Situation “a pure thought crime and a travesty of justice.”

Rachel Cauley, the White House OMB Communications Director, also backed Clark, Branding the Board’s Ruling “another chapter in the Deep State’s ongoing assault on President Trump and those who stood beside him in defense of the truth.”

According to Cauley, “Jeff Clark has been harassed, raided, doxed and blacklisted simply for questioning a rigged election and serving President Trump.” The disciplinary board’s disbarment recommendation next heads to the D.C. Court of Appeals, which will make the Final Decision.










NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker

Top Air Force General Exits in Latest Pentagon Shake Up

The Chief-of-Staff of the Air Force, Gen. David Allvin, will Retire Two years into a Four-year Term, Marking the Latest early Ouster of a Senior Military Officer under Trump (R).

The Air Force Disclosed the move in a Statement, saying that Allvin had announced that He plans to Retire in Early November. No Successor was announced, and Allvin will continue to Serve until One is Confirmed by the Senate, the Statement said.

Allvin was informed last week, that He would be asked to Retire and that the Pentagon under Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth (R) wanted to go in another Direction. As a trade-off, the Pentagon would allow Allvin to announce the Decision, it was certainly Not His choice.

Allvin’s impending Departure follows the Firings of several other Senior Military Officers, since Trump’s return to the White House this year, including the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Chief of Naval Operations, the Commandant of the Coast Guard, and the Vice Chief of Staff of the Air Force.

Generals and Admirals serving in Less Prominent Roles also have been Purged, sending a Shock Waves through the Pentagon and much of the U.S. Military, where Stability Typically is seen as an Asset.

One possibility to Replace Allvin appears to be Gen. Thomas Bussiere, whom Trump Nominated in July to become Vice Chief-of-Staff of the Air Force. Bussiere has Overseen Air Force Global Strike Command, and its Arsenal of Nuclear Weapons from Headquarters at Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana since 2022, and is Highly regarded by Senior Political Appointees at the Pentagon.

In His current Role, Bussiere oversaw Aspects of Operation Midnight Hammer, the U.S. Strike on Iranian Nuclear Facilities in June. The Trump Administration has repeatedly Touted the Operation as a Win. Administration Officials have been Frustrated for some time with His Oversight of Preparations for a potential Security Crisis involving China.

Allvin said in His Statement Monday, that He is grateful to Trump, Hegseth, and Air Force Secretary Troy Meink, for the “opportunity to serve as the 23rd Air Force Chief of Staff.” He had previously Served as the Air Force’s No. 2 Officer for Three years.

“More than anything, I’m proud to have been part of the team of Airmen who live out our core values of integrity, service and excellence every day as we prepare to defend this great nation,” Allvin said.

Meink, who was Confirmed as the Top Political Appointee in the Air Force in May, said in the same Statement that the Service is Fortunate to have Leaders such as Allvin. “During his tenure, the Air Force has undertaken transformational initiatives that will enable Airmen to answer their nation’s call for decades to come,” Meink said. “General Allvin has been instrumental in my onboarding as the department’s 27th Secretary and I’m forever grateful for his partnership as well as his decades of exemplary service to our nation.”










NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker

MO AG to Become FBI Co-Deputy Director

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey (R), will serve as the FBI's Co-deputy Director, alongside the Law Enforcement Agency's current Second-in-Command, Dan Bongino (R).

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche (R) Confirmed the News on X, saying Bailey "took on the swamp, fought weaponized government, and defended the Constitution" as Missouri's Top Law Enforcement Official. Bailey will Resign from His Current Job on Sept. 8th, He said in a Statement.

"My life has been defined by a call to service, and I am once again answering that call, this time at the national level," Bailey wrote.

Bongino welcomed Bailey to the Agency in an X Post. "Let's get after it," FBI Director Kash Patel (R) wrote in response to Bongino.

In the past, the FBI Deputy Director has typically been a Career Staffer at the Bureau. Neither of the Trump (TR) Administration's Deputy Leaders had a History with the FBI Prior to their Appointments. Bailey served in the Army and worked as a State Prosecutor in Missouri for much of His Career, and Bongino was a Secret Service Agent before working as a Media Personality.

Bailey has served as Missouri's Attorney General since 2023. He's known for asking the Supreme Court to Intervene on Missouri's Behalf in a Criminal Case against President Trump brought by New York Prosecutors, a Longshot Request that was Rejected by the High Court.

He's also Defended His State's Restrictions on Abortion and Gender-Affirming Care for Minors, and Sued Starbucks over its Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Policies.

A Trump Loyalist, Bongino Clashed with some other Administration Officials last month, amid Controversy over the FBI and Justice Department's Handling of a Review of the Jeffrey Epstein Case. The Deputy FBI Director didn't show up to Work at the Department at one point, and weighed Resigning from His Role.

A Source familiar with the Matter said at the time, that Trump hadn't Lost Confidence in Bongino, but there was some Frustration at the White House about the Deputy Director.

"Any attempt to sow division within this team is baseless and distracts from the real progress being made in restoring public safety and pursuing justice for all," White House Spokesperson Harrison Fields (R) said last month.










NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker