Democrats are coming for the receipts, the administration is checking the exits, and the donor class still expects bottle service
Well, kitties. America voted for adult supervision, and Washington is reacting like a teenager who just heard Mom’s car pull into the driveway. Somebody is hiding the booze. Somebody is deleting the group chat. Somebody is explaining that the smoke coming out of the kitchen is actually executive privilege.
The blue wave gave us something we desperately needed: a chance to make these bastards answer questions under oath. It did not magically unplug the machinery they have spent two years building. They still have agencies, lawyers, federal money, and enough audacity to declare a locked filing cabinet a national security strategy.
Meanwhile, ordinary people are still fighting for healthcare, trans people are still being asked to surrender rights so politicians can feel comfortable, and civilians overseas are paying for decisions made by men who will never have to cling to burning wreckage.
So yes, celebrate. Then put your shoes back on. The cats have located the paperwork.
Daily Shit Show Highlights
- Democrats prepare to reclaim the checkbook Russell Vought apparently mistook for his personal property.
- DOJ departures bring fresh questions about the administration’s political investigations.
- FEMA makes disaster decisions harder to track. How wonderfully reassuring.
- Florida gets reminded that taking away healthcare requires an actual explanation.
- Trans candidates win while voters approve measures targeting trans rights.
- Schumer’s lobbying orbit reminds us that blue ties also come with corporate strings.
The Budget Nerds Are Coming for Russell Vought’s Checkbook
Catherine Rampell examines Democrats’ plans to reclaim Congress’s spending authority and confront Russell Vought’s budget operation. Somewhere, a woman with three spreadsheets and a working knowledge of appropriations law is about to become his worst fucking nightmare. Send her coffee.
January 3: Clock In, Democrats
Our breakdown covers the investigations and affordability priorities Democrats have announced for the new Congress. Healthcare, household bills, and administration misconduct belong on the agenda. We did not work our asses off so you could spend January admiring the office furniture.
Miller and Vought Apparently Prepared a “Voters Can Bite Me” Contingency Plan
Lance Rosen examines reported plans to keep advancing administration policy through executive power after losing Congress. His historical comparisons are his analysis. The practical concern is plenty ugly on its own: how much can these men push through spending decisions and executive actions while Congress fights to restrain them?
Watch the Paperwork While Everyone Watches the Tantrum
Jack Hopkins connects reported executive planning, personnel changes, and threats surrounding congressional oversight. Keep watching the funding decisions, regulations, and subpoena responses. The loud asshole gets the camera, but the quiet asshole with the administrative memo can ruin your whole county.
Trump’s Election Order Still Belongs in the Evidence Folder
This March 2025 order sought changes involving citizenship documentation, election administration, and ballot receipt deadlines. It is background, not a fresh announcement, and its text alone does not establish what is legally enforceable. Putting a presidential seal on something does not turn “because I said so” into constitutional authority.
Imagine the Presidential Candidate With the Most Votes Winning
The National Popular Vote Compact would direct participating states’ electoral votes to the nationwide popular vote winner once membership reaches 270 electoral votes. NCSL’s April tally stood at 222. New legislative opportunities still require actual votes and enacted laws. Apparently, making the most votes count requires homework.
FEMA Responds to Scrutiny by Making the Receipts Harder to Find
POLITICO reports that FEMA stopped publishing pending disaster request information used to examine Trump’s aid decisions. That makes accountability harder when communities need answers. If your disaster relief system cannot withstand people looking at the list, the list is probably not the damn problem.
Florida Learns “Figure It Out Yourself” Is Not Due Process
A federal appeals court upheld a ruling against Florida’s confusing Medicaid termination notices. People deserve to understand why their coverage is ending and how to challenge the decision. Healthcare should not disappear inside a bureaucratic escape room designed by people who resent the existence of patients.
Public Land, Private Upside. Check the Investments.
ProPublica flags officials’ potential profits from public land data centers. Kitty would like the financial disclosures, please.
The Blue Wave Won. Keep Your Support Network Close.
Our companion essay looks at preparing for backlash after an electoral victory. Rest, community, and sustainable organizing belong in that preparation. You are allowed to take a nap without personally supervising the collapse of fascism for forty five minutes.
The Legal World Gets Some New Neighbors
David Lat examines newly elected lawyers, including Melat Kiros, and the election’s consequences for the legal system. Pay attention to state attorneys general and judicial races, too. Those offices determine whether somebody challenges the bullshit and what happens when the bullshit gets to court.
Trump Questions the Cruelty, Promotes the Architect
The PunchUp reports that Trump acknowledged his immigration approach might have been too harsh while elevating Stephen Miller. Quite the personnel decision. A softer television answer means precious little to the family facing enforcement tomorrow. Show us changed instructions, changed practices, and people actually being protected.
Hegseth’s Congressional Forecast Looks Unpleasant
Axios reports potential Republican defections on Hegseth impeachment. A House vote would begin another fight; removal takes Senate action.
DOJ’s Departure Lounge Is Getting Attention
POLITICO’s reporting covers senior DOJ departures. CBS reports Quiñones resigned amid questions about the probe. Resignations leave questions; preserve the records.
Harmeet Dhillon Is Leaving. The Record Stays.
Mother Jones examines the departing civil rights chief’s campaign against universities. Her exit leaves policies, investigations, and consequences that still deserve scrutiny. Packing the desk does not pack away accountability. Leave the files, Harmeet. We have reading to do.
The People in the Water Deserve More Than a News Cycle
Drop Site reports fishermen’s accounts of surviving strikes near Qeshm Island, including people clinging to wreckage. Their testimony demands investigation into what happened and how targeting decisions were made. These are human beings whose lives extend beyond the moment an American audience changes the channel.
Pentagon Watchdogs Want the Billionaire Advisory Club to Follow the Law
Watchdogs suing over Project Meridian allege violations of federal advisory committee transparency rules and raise financial conflict concerns. Those claims await judicial resolution. Meanwhile, asking defense industry figures to help shape future military priorities deserves scrutiny. Kitty would like to see the guest list and the invoices.
Schumer’s Private Equity Orbit Gets the Flashlight
Sludge traces former Schumer aides lobbying for private equity interests while progressives push restrictions. Those relationships establish access worth examining, not automatic proof of wrongdoing. We can demand evidence and still ask hard questions. The blue wave did not wash Wall Street’s fingerprints off the furniture.
The UAE Hired a Lobbyist With a Familiar Political Connection
Sludge reports that Jennifer Poersch, whose husband runs Senate Majority PAC, registered to represent the UAE Embassy. Registration is disclosure, not proof of a crime. It gives the public a relationship to examine. Foreign influence does not become less interesting because somebody at the fundraiser knows your spouse.
Trans People Are Not the Fine Print on Your Victory Party
Chris Geidner documents trans and nonbinary candidates’ victories alongside the passage of discriminatory ballot measures. Celebrate the wins and confront the harm. Democrats need to defend trans people through legislation, legal challenges, and public advocacy. Human rights do not belong on the menu of concessions.
Final Kitty Thoughts
We have every right to enjoy this victory. We also have people to protect and a government that needs considerably more supervision than a toddler holding scissors.
Keep demanding documents, explanations, and results. Ask uncomfortable questions of Republicans, Democrats, donors, contractors, and anyone else who thinks proximity to power should exempt them from scrutiny.
We elected people with gavels. We expect to hear some fucking knocking. Meow Mother Fuckers!
Featured Resisters and Resources
- Daybook is a job-search platform for careers in politics, public policy, government affairs, advocacy, nonprofits, national security and law. It can help people looking for campaign, legislative, communications and other public-service-related work.
- March Against Epstein is a march and event-information website focused on survivor support and public calls for accountability in the Epstein case.
What We Are Watching Today
- Scheitler’s 60 minutes interview https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2aC8lAOQbg
- 7:50 AM EST
Secretary Rubio Meets with German Foreign Minister - 7:58 AM EST
Washington Journal: Paul Kane Discusses Congressional News of the Week - 8:30 AM EST
Washington Journal: News Headlines and Viewer Calls Live - 9:00 AM EST
Washington Journal: Alex Isenstadt Previews the Week Ahead at the White House - 9:15 AM EST
Washington Journal: Henry Olsen on Future of the GOP Post Midterm Elections - 10:00 AM EST
Supreme Court Weighs Prisoners’ Right to Sue Over Alleged Medical Neglect - 11:00 AM EST
Supreme Court Hears Property Rights Dispute Involving Pipeline Company - 11:00 AM EST
Justice Department Announces Model Cities Initiative in St. Louis, MO - 11:00 AM EST
Secretary Hegseth Remarks at U.S. Naval War College - 12:00 PM EST
U.S. House of Representatives - 1:00 PM EST
Governor-Elect Rob Sand (D-IA) Holds Press Conference - 2:00 PM EST
U.S. House of Representatives - 2:30 PM EST
Justice Department Announces Model Cities Initiative in Jackson, MS - 3:00 PM EST
U.S. Senate - 9:00 PM EST
Washington Journal Primetime
Today’s Call to Action
1. Read Today’s Resistance Survival Guides
2. Sign these Petitions and Send These Pre Written Letters
- Stop Trump From Labeling Nonprofits as Terrorists
- Tell Google: Stop forcing AI into our schools
- Put AI to Work Saving Endangered Wildlife
- Tell Congressional Democrats: Congratulations! Now Hold Trump Accountable.
- Stop Trump from holding Camp Lejeune compensation hostage
- Tell Congress: Stop the Dirty Data Center and Pollution Deal
- Demand your representative hold Hegseth accountable for his reckless leadership by supporting articles of impeachment. >>
- Sign the petition: Well done, Democrats. Now, let’s hold Trump accountable.
- Don’t Sacrifice Public Lands to Fossil Fuels
- Stop Trump From Selling Wall Street Special Access
- Tell the EPA: Make polluters find & fix their methane leaks
- Sign the petition and tell Congress to vote to impeach Defense Secretary Hegseth.
3. Attend an Event
- Monday Resistance Roundtable, November 9 at noon ET: Join Democrats Abroad online for discussion and a concrete democracy action.
- Decoding the Midterms, November 9 at 2 p.m. ET: Join the Brennan Center virtually for election analysis and congressional priorities.
- Democracy and DEI: Can Cities Save Them?, November 9 at 3 p.m. ET: Attend Seattle University’s free webinar on local democracy and community power.
- Further Together, Always, November 10: Join Common Power’s virtual gathering to discuss election results and next steps for organizing.
- The Midterm Elections: Hope or Horror?, November 12: Join Michael Krasner and Let’s Talk Democracy for a virtual forum examining the election results.
6. Contact Your Lawmakers Directly
- Demand Epstein accountability: “Hi, I’m [name], a constituent in [ZIP code]. I’m asking [Representative/Senator name] to demand a full accounting of withheld Epstein records, protect survivor privacy, and pursue public hearings on documented investigative failures. What specific action will your office take this week?”
- Protect access to health care: “Hi, I’m [name], a constituent in [ZIP code]. I’m asking [Representative/Senator name] to protect Medicaid and affordable health coverage, oppose cuts that leave people uninsured, and reduce prescription costs. Please tell me what legislation your office supports.”
- Defend congressional oversight: “Hi, I’m [name], a constituent in [ZIP code]. I want [Representative/Senator name] to defend Congress’s oversight authority, demand compliance with lawful subpoenas, and investigate documented abuses of federal power. Please prioritize public hearings and meaningful protections for whistleblowers.”
7. Who Are We Boycotting This Week?
- Tesla: Skip new Tesla purchases and leases.
- Amazon: Skip Amazon orders and Prime renewals and shop independently.
- Meta: Stop buying Facebook and Instagram ads and cancel paid subscriptions.
- Trump branded businesses: Avoid Trump hotels, golf resorts and merchandise.
- Fox News: Cancel Fox Nation subscriptions and contact the network’s advertisers.
