Governing for the Wealthy: Tax Cuts, Deregulation, and Billionaire Access

Tech billionaires Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos, and Elon Musk were seated prominently in front of cabinet picks at Trump's inauguration ceremony, drawing criticism from Trump opponents as a sign of oligarchic influence.

Trump fired senior labor board official Gwynne Wilcox in what the official described as an 'unprecedented and illegal' move, effectively paralyzing the National Labor Relations Board. Wilcox pledged to challenge the dismissal.

Trump directed the Department of Justice to pause prosecutions under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, which bans bribery of foreign officials. The directive came alongside his pardon of Rod Blagojevich.

Trump and Elon Musk launched mass layoffs at federal agencies, with termination notices sent to the Department of Education and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) as part of efforts to downsize the federal government.

The Trump administration is conducting an unprecedented crackdown on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, with workers reporting chaos and fear as lawsuits cause basic functions to grind to a halt.

Trump signed an executive order making independent regulators including the Securities and Exchange Commission and Federal Trade Commission answerable to the White House, significantly expanding presidential control over these agencies.

The Trump administration issued a flurry of tech-friendly directives that relaxed regulations and dropped a lawsuit, benefiting billionaires who donated to Trump, including those in crypto and big tech sectors.

Republicans are planning significant cuts to Medicaid as part of efforts to fund a $4.5 trillion tax cut package and mass deportations, with Medicaid recipients expressing concern about the potential impact on healthcare access.

The USDA cut more than $1 billion in local food purchases for schools and food banks, raising concerns that millions of children could lose access to free school meals as food costs rise.

Trump administration is accused of offering 'quid pro quo' by fast-tracking a controversial fossil fuel pipeline deal in Michigan that benefits a Trump donor company, raising pollution concerns.

Trump fired two Democratic members of the Federal Trade Commission, a move likely to face legal challenge as the agency is traditionally an independent regulatory body.

A federal judge blocked the Trump administration's dismantling of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and ordered employees to be reinstated. The decision prevents the administration from dissolving the agency.

Union leaders accused Trump of union-busting through an executive order seeking to eliminate collective bargaining across federal agencies. The order was characterized as an attempt to silence federal workers.

A federal judge blocked the Trump administration's move to dismantle the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau through mass terminations, preventing the administration from dismantling the consumer watchdog agency.

Carlos Watson, co-founder of Ozy Media who was convicted of fraud, was granted clemency by Trump through a presidential commutation. Watson was about to begin serving a 10-year sentence when he received news of the commutation.

The House passed a Republican budget framework that paves the way for Trump's agenda, including his sweeping tax cuts and immigration plan by unlocking a multitrillion-dollar resolution.

The Trump administration announced plans to reclassify approximately 50,000 federal workers with 'policymaking' duties under 'Schedule F,' making them easier to hire and fire based on political allegiance. A federal judge blocked the Musk-led efficiency team's effort to lay off 1,500 of the 1,700 employees at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

A draft Trump budget document outlined steep cuts or elimination of funding for child care, housing assistance, foreign aid, and health research, described as targeting 'radical' safety net programs.

Mass resignations at the Labor Department have raised concerns among staff about the impact on worker protections both domestically and internationally. Insiders warned of 'catastrophic' consequences from widespread departures and additional cuts planned under the Trump administration.

Trump's 'One Big Beautiful Bill Act' tax proposal has rattled bond markets and drawn criticism as 'fiscally irresponsible' for making permanent massive tax cuts for the wealthy at a cost of $4.6 trillion over ten years. The policy shift has pushed investor skepticism to new levels.

Trump pardoned reality TV stars Julie and Todd Chrisley, who were convicted in 2022 of conspiring to defraud community banks out of more than $30 million and tax evasion. The pardons are part of an expanding use of presidential clemency powers.

Trump administration officials dismissed concerns that cuts to federal benefits under the president's tax-cut bill would lead to deaths, calling such fears "totally ridiculous." Budget Director Russ Vought said the plan would not slash federal safety net programs.

The Trump administration is pushing to defund the Job Corps program while expressing support for funding more trade schools generally. The move is part of broader efforts to scale back social safety net programs.

Trump's sweeping tax-and-spending bill passed Congress with a 218-214 House vote after days of negotiations and internal Republican resistance. The legislation extends tax cuts, increases immigration enforcement funding, cuts federal safety net programs, and includes $40 million for a 'Garden of Heroes' memorial.

President Trump signed a sweeping tax cut and spending bill into law during a July Fourth ceremony. The bill slashes federal safety-net programs including Medicaid and food stamps while increasing funds for immigration enforcement and introduces various tax changes that blend supply-side economics with populist campaign promises.

A Trump administration law will cut food stamps for an estimated 2.4 million people by expanding work requirements to parents of teenagers, adults up to age 64, and veterans, according to Congressional Budget Office findings.

A federal court lifted a previous block on Trump's mass firings at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, allowing the president to proceed with laying off 1,500 employees at the agency.

Trump administration orders have stripped nearly half a million federal workers of union rights as part of an effort targeting collective bargaining contracts for nearly one million government employees. The administration has justified the action on national security grounds.

The U.S. Senate appeared poised to approve an industry lobbyist, Douglas Troutman, to lead chemical safety at the EPA. If confirmed, the top four toxics office positions at the agency would be held by former industry lobbyists.

The Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service are issuing rules that provide hundreds of billions of dollars in tax relief to major corporations and the ultrarich, according to reporting by the New York Times.

The Trump administration moved to dismantle the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, arguing that the agency's funding mechanism is unlawful. The action reflects the administration's broader challenge to independent regulatory agencies.

Trump pardoned British billionaire Joe Lewis, former owner of Tottenham Hotspur, who had been fined $5 million and given three years probation for an insider trading scheme by a New York judge.

President Trump pardoned Tim Leiweke, former CEO of Oak View Group, who had been charged with federal antitrust violations for allegedly rigging the bidding process for the Moody Center arena in Austin, Texas. The White House offered no public explanation for the pardon.

President Trump pardoned Tim Leiweke, an entertainment executive who was indicted by his own Justice Department for allegedly orchestrating a conspiracy to rig bidding for an arena at a public university. This summer, Trump administration officials had publicly lauded the indictment as an effort to root out corruption.

A U.S. senator called for an insider trading inquiry after Trump donors who are co-chairs of an LNG firm purchased nearly $12 million in company shares each following meetings with Trump administration officials. The donors have denied wrongdoing.

The National Labor Relations Board, the federal watchdog for workers' rights, has been rendered ineffective as employees face challenges with corporations, according to labor movement observers who describe a hostile climate under Trump.

A federal judge ruled that the Trump administration must continue funding the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, blocking attempts to defund the agency that Trump vowed to shut down since returning to office.

The Trump administration agreed to be exempted from the OECD's global tax deal targeting profits of large multinationals, watering down a landmark 2021 agreement that had set a minimum global corporate tax rate of 15%.

US antitrust chief Gail Slater was removed from the Justice Department after losing support from Vice President JD Vance and Attorney General Pam Bondi. The decision marks another significant personnel change in the Trump administration's law enforcement agencies.

New York Times investigation reveals a 'pardon industry' has emerged around the Trump administration, with wealthy inmates studying the blueprint of Joseph Schwartz, who spent nearly $1 million on lobbyists and operatives to secure his presidential pardon. Schwartz paid right-wing operatives claiming ties to Trump confidante Laura Loomer, a lobbyist connected to pro-Israel evangelical networks, and lawyers with personal relationships with Trump's 'pardon czar' Alice Marie Johnson and White House counsel David Warrington — walking free after just three months of a three-year federal sentence. Fellow inmates at Otisville federal prison camp have been studying Schwartz's campaign, raising questions about whether clemency under Trump is effectively for sale.

Nearly 4,000 meatpacking workers at a JBS USA plant—owned by a top Trump donor—are set to strike on Monday, marking the first labor strike in the meatpacking industry in decades.

Fraud charges against Indian billionaire Gautam Adani were reportedly dropped after he hired a lawyer associated with Trump. Adani had been accused of conspiring to pay $250 million in bribes to Indian government officials.

President Trump pardoned Stephen Buyer, a former Republican congressman from Indiana who was convicted of insider trading in 2023 after serving nearly two years in prison for using nonpublic information to trade stocks.

A firm tied to Trump donor John J. Cafaro received a no-bid, multimillion-dollar contract to clean and renovate the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool. A White House spokeswoman stated the president was not involved in selecting Greenwater Services.

The Supreme Court issued a landmark ruling allowing President Trump to fire leaders of independent agencies like the Federal Trade Commission, striking down nearly a century-old precedent that insulated such agencies from direct presidential control. The decision expanded Trump's power over the federal bureaucracy while drawing criticism from legal experts as contrary to constitutional separation of powers.

President Trump pardoned 11 people on July 3rd, including nine individuals convicted of violating the Clean Air Act, and a major donor involved in fraud connected to Jack Abramoff.

A federal judge granted the Justice Department's request to dismiss fraud charges against Gautam Adani, India's richest man, after the Trump Justice Department moved to drop the case. The dismissal raised questions about the administration's handling of white-collar criminal prosecutions.

The Department of Homeland Security spent $464 million on a no-bid contract to purchase 10 used aircraft from Daedalus Aviation Corporation — a firm whose chairman had donated to a political committee supporting former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem — claiming urgent need for deportation flights. The fleet has since sat largely idle: three luxury business jets were offered for loan to other agencies including one for FBI director Kash Patel's use, while seven Boeing 737s have been parked at a Louisiana airport for months because the agency lacked staff to operate them. Former ICE acting director John Sandweg said buying a fleet of planes would not have made his top ten list of ways to increase deportations.

Democratic lawmakers sent letters to President Trump demanding he disclose who manages his stock portfolio, which gained $2 billion last year, citing over 30 suspicious trades preceding favorable government announcements.

The U.S. national debt hit $40 trillion, with analysts warning the massive borrowing has raised interest rates and financial stability concerns. Walmart reported its slowest U.S. sales growth since 2020 due to high gas prices and consumer pullback, despite the company receiving nearly $3 billion in tariff refunds.