Democracy Watch: Donald Trump no longer gives a f**k, we will pay more for everything with Trump’s tariffs, Trump Admin must pay USAID contractors $2 billion owed, and more

Socialite Life is a lively celebrity and pop culture website that offers a daily dose of divas, drag queens, hot male celebrities, models, and all the latest celebrity news. Given that our democracy is currently in turmoil, we feel compelled to keep everyone informed about the chaotic situation the Trump administration is creating in this country.

In Democracy Watch, we’ll share a roundup of the most alarming and mostly illegal activities that the Trump administration engages in a few times a week, along with some ridiculous things that Donald Trump and co-president Elon Musk are attempting to do.

We’ll also offer some useful resources to keep you informed about current events and guide you on how you can help prevent the United States from becoming the next Russia.

“This is not normal.” That’s what the small, handwritten sign held by Rep. Melanie Stansbury (D-New Mexico) said as President Donald Trump walked into the House chamber Tuesday night for his first address to Congress in his second term. She stood silently with her note card of protest as Trump entered the room surrounded by his escorts and as he was cheered on by smiling and smitten Republicans. She held it until Republican congressman Lance Gooden of Texas ripped it from her hands and flung it into the air, and thus proved her point. This is not normal. [The Washington Post – Gifted]

If you’d like to read all the craziness in Donald Trump’s Presidential Address, here you go. [NPR]

Representative Al Green was kicked out of Trump’s Presidential Address, and a whole bunch of his colleagues should have followed him right out the door. [NY Mag]

Lawyers working on a case against the Department of Government Efficiency found new ammunition late Tuesday night in the form of President Donald Trump‘s own words during his joint address to Congress. “I have created the brand new Department of Government Efficiency, DOGE. Perhaps you’ve heard of it. Perhaps. Which is headed by Elon Musk, who is in the gallery tonight,” Trump said during his speech. The quote was quickly picked up by Kelly B. McClanahan, a lawyer in a case that centers on the legality and operations of DOGE. McClanahan, who represents parties suing DOGE, entered a new court filing shortly after the president’s remark highlighting the quote as “new evidence,” emphasizing that Trump had affirmed Musk was heading DOGE. [NBC News]

Last month, the Trump regime placed a $1 spending limit on most government-issued credit cards that federal employees use to cover travel and work expenses. The impacts are already widely felt. At the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, scientists aren’t able to order equipment used to repair ships and radars. At the Food and Drug Administration, laboratories are experiencing delays in ordering basic supplies. At the National Park Service, employees are canceling trips to oversee crucial maintenance work. And at the Department of Agriculture and the Federal Aviation Administration, employees worry that mission-critical projects could be stalled. In many cases, employees are already unable to carry out the basic functions of their job. [WIRED]

Donald Trump threatened on Tuesday to halt all federal funding for any college or school that allows “illegal protests” and vowed to imprison “agitators”, in a social media statement that prompted alarm from free expression advocates. “All Federal Funding will STOP for any College, School, or University that allows illegal protests,” the US president wrote on Truth Social. “Agitators will be imprisoned/or permanently sent back to the country from which they came. American students will be permanently expelled or, depending on on [sic] the crime, arrested. NO MASKS! Thank you for your attention to this matter.” I do not know if Donald Trump has heard of the First Amendment. [The Guardian]

The Supreme Court on Wednesday backed a federal judge’s power to order the Trump administration to pay $2 billion to U.S. Agency for International Development contractors but did not require immediate payment. In doing so, the court on a 5-4 vote rejected an emergency application filed by the Justice Department after U.S. District Judge Amir Ali issued a series of rulings demanding the government unfreeze funds that President Donald Trump put on hold with an executive order. [NBC News]

Guests are paying millions of dollars to dine and meet with President Donald Trump at special events held at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida. Business leaders can secure a one-on-one meeting with the president at Mar-a-Lago for $5 million, according to sources with direct knowledge of the meetings. At a so-called candlelight dinner held as recently as this past Saturday, prospective Mar-a-Lago guests were asked to spend $1 million to reserve a seat, according to an invitation obtained by WIRED. [Wired]

Get ready to pay more for vehicles, alcohol, electronics, produce and lumber. President Donald Trump has moved forward with a plan to put sweeping tariffs on all goods coming into the United States from Canada and Mexico, threatening a trade war with its closest trading partners — and higher prices for Americans on thousands of consumer goods. The U.S. began collecting a 25% tariff on nearly all goods from Mexico and Canada starting at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday. Businesses ranging from automakers to alcohol producers have warned that the added costs for companies to import goods from Canada and Mexico will have wide-ranging implications across the American economy. While some companies will look to source their goods from other countries or move production to the U.S., those moves could take years. [NBC News]

President Donald Trump’s plan to impose tariffs on Canadian goods is drawing an immediate response as Ottawa responds with levies on U.S. products targeting Republican-led states, including Florida oranges and appliances from Ohio. The Canadian response to the U.S. trade action set to take effect Tuesday has been in the works for weeks since Trump first announced his intention on Feb. 1 to upend decades of trade cooperation between the two nations. Canada is now poised to hit the U.S. with 25 percent tariffs on C$30 billion of U.S. goods and the threat of C$125 billion more after a 21-day consultation period. The list of what would get tariffed immediately includes food — poultry, beef, fish, yogurt and more — along with various textiles and furniture. [Politico]

With less than two weeks to go before a March 14 deadline, Republicans and Democrats in the U.S. Congress appear to be nowhere close to a deal to avert a government shutdown that would throw Washington into deeper turmoil. [Reuters]

On Monday, the Republican-led Senate voted to confirm Linda McMahon as the new secretary of the U.S. Department of Education. McMahon, a former professional wrestling magnate who led the U.S. Small Business Administration during President Donald Trump’s first term, was confirmed by a 51-45 vote along party lines. The White House has been clear that it intends to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education, and that it will be McMahon’s job to oversee that effort. [NPR]

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said Sunday that government spending could be separated from gross domestic product reports in response to questions about whether the spending cuts pushed by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency could possibly cause an economic downturn. “You know, that governments historically have messed with GDP,” Lutnick said on Fox News Channel’s “Sunday Morning Futures.” “They count government spending as part of GDP. So I’m going to separate those two and make it transparent.”Doing so could potentially complicate or distort a fundamental measure of the U.S. economy’s health. Government spending is traditionally included in the GDP because changes in taxes, spending, deficits and regulations by the government can impact the path of overall growth. GDP reports already include extensive details on government spending, offering a level of transparency for economists. [AP]

King Charles met with Vladimir Zelenskyy at Sandringham this past weekend and they managed to not get into a shouting match. [Celebitchy]

RFK Jr.‘s focus on vitamin A for measles has health experts worried for some reason. Of course, I’m being sarcastic. The measles outbreak in Texas has sparked debate over the use of the vitamin. Some (that should read most (not sure why The Washington Post is framing this that way) health experts warn that it may not be effective and is not a replacement for vaccination. [Washington Post – Gifted]

Cryptocurrencies are again riding high, after President Trump announced that he would create a national crypto reserve with five tokens, including three lesser-known and highly volatile ones. It’s the latest boost that Trump has given the crypto industry, which spent some $130 million backing him and other Republicans. But the news drew criticism from many, including conservatives and even ardent crypto backers, over many concerns: giveaways to an already wealthy community, delegitimizing the digital currency industry and more. [NYT]

President Donald Trump‘s decision to pause all U.S. aid to Ukraine is a bitter blow – not just for Kyiv but also for European allies who have been lobbying the U.S. administration to continue its support. So, what could this mean for Ukraine? [BBC News]

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has paused offensive cyberoperations against Russia by U.S. Cyber Command, rolling back some efforts to contend with a key adversary even as national security experts call for the U.S. to expand those capabilities. A U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive operations, on Monday confirmed the pause. [AP]

President Trump‘s decision to suspend all military aid to Ukraine is the latest in a string of moves that could have been plucked from Vladimir Putin‘s personal wish list. Trump is also considering sanctions relief for Moscow and hinting at regime change in Kyiv. The Moscow-friendly streak comes as he seeks to foster peace in Ukraine and better relations between nuclear-armed superpowers. So far, we have not seen Russia reciprocate in any way. [Axios]

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