Walt Axson

It's like, how much more black could this be? And the answer is none. None more black.

[Ashley Schapitl @AshleySchapitl]

I've been sharing my thoughts on the D.C. Mayor's race and wanted to synthesize my concerns around Councilmember Lewis George's record on safety and failure to prioritize the interests of the vast majority of Washingtonians who play by the rules.

[Walt Axson @wmaxson]

@foster_type @jbarro @Tyler_A_Harper Can confirm.

[Mike Levin @MikeLevin]

This New York Times piece is worth your time. Here’s what is happening, as simply as I can put it.

Back in January, Trump sued the IRS, an agency he controls, demanding $10 billion over the leak of his tax returns a number of years ago.

IRS lawyers did their jobs. They wrote a memo laying out the defenses that could beat the suit, including the fact that Trump filed too late. His own lawyer was in court when the leaker pleaded guilty in October 2023, more than two years before Trump sued.

The Justice Department never showed up to court. Never argued back. Never used the defenses sitting on their desk.

The judge got suspicious and ordered both sides to explain whether they were actually opposing each other or just colluding. The day before that brief was due, Trump dropped the suit.

Same day, his Justice Department announced a $1.776 billion taxpayer-funded “anti-weaponization fund.” 

Trump gets a formal apology. The IRS agrees to drop any audits of him and his family, even though a 2024 Times report found a loss in an ongoing audit could cost him over $100 million.

The acting Attorney General, Trump’s former criminal defense attorney, picks the five commissioners who decide who gets paid. Trump can fire any of them. Proud Boys and Oath Keepers are not ruled out.

This is the most corrupt thing I’ve ever seen from an American president.

Where in the hell are my Republican colleagues?

https://t.co/La0nlLuz1r

[Derek Thompson @DKThomp]

Within one 24 hour period, Trump:

- got out of a $100 million IRS fine
- secured "immunity" from all future tax investigations for his family and friends
- created a $1.8 billion slush fund for lawbreaking supporters
- was reported for likely insider trading worth nearly $1 billion

All of the obvious things to say about this are true. It's bad. Nobody even tries to defend it. The closest thing to a defense you get is something about how "but Democrats suck" and "woke was also bad," which is not a defense, but rather a kind of moral blank check made out to the administration to give them the right to do anything.

But what I'm most curious about is whether this sort of lurid corruption creates a countermovement that successfully returns government to rule of law or whether it's establishing a norm of executive imperialism that every future administration will use to achieve its ends, which can always be justified by the moral blank check of "the other side is worse, so let us do whatever we want."

[Neera Tanden🌻 @neeratanden]

I am voting for McDuffie because I think blue cities need to be governed well, JLG's policies will more likely than McDuffie's raise crime, and Trump would weaponize that against Dems everywhere. My fellow DCers, don't sleepwalk into this

[Walt Axson @wmaxson]

@michaelschaffer @CityCast_DC I would buy a print copy of this, if it existed. Fantastic.

[Jonah Goldberg @JonahDispatch]

The Trump slush fund is a clear cut impeachable offense. https://t.co/nUveUBkApa

[Walt Axson @wmaxson]

@AmtrakNECAlerts Now know that 112 struck a trespasser. Not sure why that hasn’t been communicated publicly or why my reply above was hidden.

[Walt Axson @wmaxson]

@AmtrakNECAlerts What is going on with all of the NEC trains stopped for the last hour between DC and Baltimore, including 112? No info from Amtrak or conductors other than “stopped at request of municipal authorities”.

[Walt Axson @wmaxson]

@RiniSampath I’m curious what you think of JLG’s role in this.

[Walt Axson @wmaxson]

@maustermuhle @FeverPotomac The @councilofdc is always looking for new and more creative ways to make DC just a little bit worse.

[Walt Axson @wmaxson]

@PenguinSix Wow. 2d shooting in that area in last couple of weeks.

[Walt Axson @wmaxson]

@sahilkapur @frankthorp Should also apply to the House, whose members are often not as wealthy as in the Senate.

[Walt Axson @wmaxson]

@DMVNewLiberals I got a text for a push poll yesterday that was clearly from JLG or one of her supporters. Tested various anti KM messages.

[Watcher.Guru @WatcherGuru]

Reporter: "To what extent are Americans' financial situations motivating you to make a deal?"

President Trump: "Not even a little bit…I don't think about Americans' financial situations."

[Ben Casnocha @bencasnocha]

Per docs released in the OAI/Musk case, the University of Michigan endowment invested $20 million in the first round of OpenAI.

Best direct investment from an endowment of all time?

[Dr Helen Fry | WWII Historian @DrHelenFry]

Winston Churchill stood on the balcony in Whitehall on 8 May 1945, waving triumphantly to the vast cheering crowds below and raising his famous V for Victory salute.

It became the unmistakable symbol that the long, bitter war in Europe was finally over.

[Kenyan McDuffie @kenyanmcduffie]

This is horrifying. A person, potentially a teenager, shot in broad daylight near a school, Metro stop, and busy neighborhood corridor should shake every resident in our city.

I’m praying for the victim and their family. But prayers are not enough. We need urgent action to get illegal guns off our streets and make every neighborhood safer.

[Nick Hutchins @nicholasrhutch]

I’ll never understand cruises. Best case, you are a hostage in a mid-tier resort and get to pop off at a Señor Frog’s. Worst case, millions are asking for your ship to be bombed to smithereens to prevent you from returning.

[Rini Sampath @RiniSampath]

Loved showing Chad, the owner of local gems Causa and @ServiceBarDC, the new Small Business Concierge website our campaign designed.

We created the app to help entrepreneurs navigate DC’s overly complex permitting system — and to show residents that it’s possible for city government to be accessible and easy to navigate. You can check it out for yourself at https://t.co/2sW7oz98wW