Days 124 and 125: Budget and a CBO score

Apologies for the no-show yesterday! We're back today though, with a double-dose of Trumpian fuckery!

• The administration put forth a complete budget. Here's an overview of how it would impact various parts of government. Cliff notes version: Trillions saved in cuts to the poor! Back to budget surplus in 10 years! (Note: Assumes unrealistic economic growth!) Huge tax cuts for the rich! "Being compassionate means being compassionate to people who pay taxes!" I am without words.
• Apparently the administration is incompetent, double-counting $2 trillion in income in the budget. They then doubled down and saying it was done on purpose.
• The budget has been touted for including paid maternity leave. The only problem is that as written, their scheme doesn't work.
• If you don't read anything else about the budget, read this.
• That Russian scandal keeps on appearing, with leaks that Russians were overheard by intelligence agencies discussing how to influence Manafort and Flynn.
• The Republican Healthcare proposal has been scored by the CBO, and it's a doozy. 23 million more uninsured within a decade, $119 billion in savings (due to cutting taxes on the rich), and huge increases in premiums to anybody who is not young and healthy.
• Former CIA Chief Brennan spoke with the House Intelligence Committee, and gave some more details on what they observed Russia getting up to. The testimony lends great credence to the necessity of proper investigations into Russian collusion with the Trump administration. (Another very readable article)
• Trump met with the Pope. The Pope did not look happy. Otherwise, I haven't seen anything significant regarding this story.
• Trump is lawyering up with outside counsel to respond to the Russian allegations. Of course, in doing so, he has created a new conflict of interest...
• The Washington Post got their hands on a transcript of Trump's call with Philippine President Duterte from April. Back then, we were outraged that an invitation to visit was extended to the autocrat. The transcript is even worse - praising extrajudicial killings, disclosing the secret locations of nuclear submarines, and more. The Pentagon is apparently incensed.
• Ben Carson, who you might remember is heading up the Housing and Urban Development portfolio, just called poverty a "state of mind". Give me a fucking break. This guy is completely unfit for his position.
• And just to assure you that the world is safe under Poptart Trump, a US warship has been sent to undertake a "freedom of navigation operation" in the vicinity of China's highly-contested islands in the South China Sea. China is unlikely to be happy.

And finally, to make you feel really good, this is an in-depth report on Jared Kushner's slum-lord company. The most relevant sentence: "there is a clear pattern of Kushner Companies’ pursuing tenants over virtually any unpaid rent or broken lease — even in the numerous cases where the facts appear to be on the tenants’ side". Pursuing people who completely lack the means to fight back against incorrect legal documents is utterly vile