Newsom Nightmare: Trump 'Would Arrest' As Bessent Warns Over 'Criminal Tax Evasion'

 As Los Angeles grapples with escalating riots targeting ICE agents conducting immigration enforcement operations, California Governor Gavin Newsom faces a mounting cascade of crises.

On Monday - as Los Angeles spirals out of control amid anti-ICE protests which resulted in President Trump deploying the National Guard, Trump suggested that Newsom 'should be' arrested over his mishandling of the situation.

When asked about a back-and-forth between Newsom and White Hous border czar Tom Homan - who threatened to arrest anyone that obstructed immigration enforcement efforts - including the governor (though he said that neither Newsom nor LA Mayor Karen Bass had crossed the line,' Trump said: "I would do it if I were Tom. I think it's great," adding "Gavin likes the publicity but I think it would be a great thing. He’s done a terrible job, look — I like Gavin Newsom, he’s a nice guy but he’s grossly incompetent, everybody knows that."

Trump also defended his decision to call in the National Guard, posting to Truth Social Monday that "f we had not done so, Los Angeles would have been completely obliterated," adding that Newsom and Bass "should be saying, ‘THANK YOU, PRESIDENT TRUMP, YOU ARE SO WONDERFUL. WE WOULD BE NOTHING WITHOUT YOU, SIR."

Meanwhile over the weekend, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent accused Newsom of threatening criminal tax evasion after the Democrat governor suggested withholding tens of billions of dollars in state payments to the federal government.

Newsom issued the threat after reports emerged saying that President Donald Trump plans major funding cuts to California while readying with costly fines for allowing a biological male to compete in girls' sports and win multiple state titles.

"A Biological Male competed in California Girls State Finals, WINNING BIG, despite the fact that they were warned by me not to do so," Trump recently wrote on Truth Social last week. "As Governor Gavin Newscum fully understands, large scale fines will be imposed!”

Newsom responded to Trump’s post, writing on X: "Californians pay the bills for the federal government. We pay over $80 BILLION more in taxes than we get back. Maybe it’s time to cut that off, @realDonaldTrump.”

Secretary Scott Bessent fired back at Newsom’s threats, warning that the governor’s actions could constitute criminal tax evasion. The top Trump administration official then said that Newsom’s plan would defraud American taxpayers and leave California residents liable for any unpaid federal taxes.

"I am certain most California businesses know that failing to pay taxes owed to the Treasury constitutes tax evasion and have no intention of following the dangerous path Governor @GavinNewsom is threatening," Bessent said on X. "I would warn state officials, including payroll managers, that federal law attaches personal liability to an attempt to evade or defeat tax."

"Instead of committing criminal tax evasion, Governor Newsom should consider a tax plan for California that follows the Trump Tax Cuts model and reduces the onerous state tax burden to allow families to keep more of their hard-earned money,” the Treasury secretary added, branding the governor's plan "extremely reckless."

Just days before President Trump’s social media post condemning California’s policies on transgender athletes, AB Hernandez, a transgender junior from Jurupa Valley High School, dominated the girls’ state track and field championships in Clovis. Hernandez secured gold in the high jump (5 feet, 7 inches, with no failed attempts) and triple jump (sharing first place), while earning silver in the long jump. This sparked controversy, as Hernandez shared the podium with female competitors who placed just behind her during Saturday’s finals, fueling debates over fairness in competition.

Violent anti-ICE protests escalated in downtown Los Angeles as radical demonstrators clashed with police, set vehicles ablaze, and blocked a major freeway, marking a third day of unrest on Sunday.

The turmoil surged nationwide over the weekend, with far-left agitators storming the streets of Los Angeles, New York City, and Chicago to denounce ICE’s intensified immigration raids aimed at securing the border. Undeterred, these protesters unleashed havoc, challenging law and order in America’s cities.

In Los Angeles, authorities arrested 27 individuals on Saturday as approximately 300 National Guard troops were deployed to restore control, with the first units arriving Sunday morning. Late Saturday, LAPD officials reported 10 additional arrests—including a dangerous suspect accused of hurling a Molotov cocktail—while three courageous officers sustained injuries but avoided hospitalization in the line of duty.

 https://www.zerohedge.com/political/newsom-nightmare-ca-governor-faces-criminal-tax-evasion-warning-amid-la-riot-chaos

China Exports To US Tumble As Transshipments To Evade Trump Tariffs Soar

 Overnight China published its latest inflation/trade data dump. It showed that, as expected, China is still unable to kickstart its economy as it remains mired in deflation, with May CPI printing -0.1% (the last time CPI was positive was in January) while PPI is going from bad to worse, printing -3.3% YoY, and negative since February 2023! 

Meanwhile, China's trade growth moderated in May - after the April surge - despite the substantial tariff rollback between the US and China, and came in below consensus expectations (exports: +4.8% yoy, imports: -3.4% yoy).

The moderation in headline export growth reflects the continued fall in China's exports to the US with another 17% sequential decline after seasonal adjustment.  Meanwhile, the decline in imports appears widespread, consistent with fewer working days in May compared with a year ago.

By product, export value of housing-related products fell in May, while exports of automobile and tech-related products rose. The imports of energy products and metal ores declined notably, partly due to falling prices. Overall, the trade surplus was US$103.2bn in May, higher than in April.

By region, while China's exports to the US plunged further in May, exports to other economies picked up.

As shown in the next chart, while normally Chinese exports to the US would be around $50BN, they have since dropped to $30 billion.  And as Brad Setser notes, "the trailing 12m of exports to the US isn't tracking exports to Europe."

Import values from most trading partners declined in May, except for those from the EU and LatAm.

The broader collapse in Chinese exports to the US, as reported by China, and US imports from China, as reported by the US (both are used to the rather gaping data divergences in the past), can be seen in the next chart.

Among major DM countries, exports to the US dropped by 34.5% yoy in May (vs. -21.0% yoy in April). China's imports from the US declined by 18.1% yoy in May (vs. -13.8% yoy in April). China's exports to the EU rose by 12.0% yoy in May (vs. +8.3% yoy in April), while imports from the EU were roughly unchanged from a year ago in May (vs. -16.5% yoy in April). Among major EM countries, exports to ASEAN rose by 14.8% yoy in May (vs. 20.8% yoy in April). Exports to Africa rose by 33.3% in May (vs. 26.3% yoy in April), however, imports from EM countries mostly moderated from April to May.

So how has China's economy not yet collapse if it has lost about 40% of its US export markets? Simple: transshipments. To fill the hole from exports lost to the US, China is ramping up exports to other countries... that then go on to re-export to the US!

And to make it abudnantly clear that all the trade war has so far achieved is boosted transshipments is the following Setser chart showing that whatever export volume has been given up by China, has been more than made up by ASEAN (mostly Vietnam) + Taiwan, i.e. filling the hole with transshipments.

The bottom line, as everyone who is familiar with China's economy knows, and as Brad Setser repeats this morning, is that "net exports are still driving China's economy", and is why not just the US - but also Europe - is expressing  outrage with Beijing's relentless mercantilist model, which exports deflation - and economic pain - to every market targeted by China's sweatshops.

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/china-exports-us-tumble-transshipments-evade-trump-tariffs-soar

Trump Did It: Executives & Administrators Are Increasingly Using TDI To Fight DEI

 by Jonathan Turley,

“Trump made me do it.”

Across the country, this is a virtual mantra being mouthed everywhere from businesses to higher education. Corporations are eliminating woke programs. Why? Trump did it. Universities are eliminating DEI offices and cracking down on campus extremism. Trump did it. Democratic politicians are abandoning far-left policies. Trump did it.

For those who lack both courage or conviction, the claim of coercion is often the next best thing. The “TDI defense” is born.

Of course, they did not invent Trump, but they needed him. For years, schools like Harvard and Columbia ignored warnings about the rising antisemitism on campuses. They refused to punish students engaged in criminal conduct, including occupying and trashing buildings. These administrators did not want to risk being tagged by the far-left mob for taking meaningful action.

Then the election occurred, and suddenly they were able to blame Trump for doing what they should have been doing all along.

Administrators are now cracking down on extreme elements on campuses.

At the same time, hundreds of schools are closing DEI offices around the country. Again, most are not challenging the Trump administration’s orders on DEI or seeking to adopt more limited responses. They are all in with the move, while professing that they have little choice.

In other words, schools are increasingly turning to TDI to end DEI.

The legal landscape has changed with an administration committed to opposing many DEI programs as discriminatory and unlawful. However, it is the speed and general lack of resistance that is so notable. In most cases, the Trump administration did not have to ask twice. Trump seemed to “have them at hello,” as if they were longing for a reason to reverse these trends.

Many will continue to fight this fight surreptitiously. For example, shortly before the Trump election, the University of North Carolina System Board of Governors voted to ban DEI and focus on “institutional neutrality.” Yet, even Administrators emboldened by the TDI defense are finding resistance in their ranks. For exsmple, UNC Asheville Dean of Students Megan Pugh was caught on videotape, saying that eliminating these offices means nothing: “I mean we probably still do anyway… but you gotta keep it quiet.”  She added, “I love breaking rules.”

The Board, perhaps not feeling the same thrill, reportedly responded by firing her.

The same pattern is playing out in businesses. Over the last few weeks, companies ranging from Amazon to IBM have removed references to DEI programs or policies. Bank of America explained, “We evaluate and adjust our programs in light of new laws, court decisions, and, more recently, executive orders from the new administration.”

Once established, these DEI offices tended to expand as an irresistible force within their institutions and companies. Full-time diversity experts demanded additional hirings and policies on hiring, promotion, and public campaigns. Since these experts were tasked with finding areas for “reform,” their proposals were treated as extensions of that mandate. To oppose the reforms was to oppose the cause.

While some executives and administrators supported such efforts, others simply lacked the courage to oppose them. No one wanted to be accused of being opposed to “equity” or being racist, sexist, or homophobic. The results were continually expanding programs impacting every level of businesses and institutions.

Then Trump showed up. Suddenly, these executives and administrators had an excuse to reverse this trend. They could also rely on court decisions that have undermined long-standing claims of advocates that favoring certain groups at the expense of others was entirely lawful.

This week, the Supreme Court added to these cases with its unanimous ruling in Ames v. Ohio Department of Youth Services, to remove impediments to lawsuits by members of majority groups who are discriminated against.

For many years, lower courts have required members of majority groups (white, male, or heterosexual) to shoulder an added burden before they could establish claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. In a decision written by Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, the court rejected that additional burden and ordered that everyone must be treated similarly under the law.

Many commentators noted that the ruling further undermined the rationales for disparate treatment based on race or other criteria within DEI.

In other words, more of these programs are likely to be the subject of federal investigations and lawsuits. Of course, if these executives and administrators were truly committed to the programs in principle, they could resolve to fight in the courts. The alternative is just to blame Trump and restore prior policies that enforce federal standards against all discriminatory or preferred treatment given to employees based on race, sex, religion, or other classifications.

Former Vice President Hubert Humphrey once observed that “to err is human. To blame someone else is politics.” That is evident among politicians. For years, many moderate Democrats voted to support far-left agendas during the Biden administration, lacking the courage or principles to oppose the radical wing of the Democratic Party. Now, some are coming forward to say that the party has “lost touch with voters.”

Rather than admit that their years of supporting these policies were wrong, they blame Trump and argue that the party must move toward the center to survive.

The calculus is simple: You never act on principle when you can blame a villain instead. It is not a profile of courage but one of simple convenience. No need for admissions or responsibility — just TDI and done.

Jonathan Turley is the Shapiro Professor of Public Interest Law at George Washington University and the author of “The Indispensable Right: Free Speech in an Age of Rage.”

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/trump-did-it-executives-administrators-are-increasingly-using-tdi-fight-dei

Never Take Candy from Strangers

 by Barry Ritholtz

I grew up in the generation of latchkey kids: Both parents worked; you came home from school, fixed yourself a quick bite, then ran off to the playground for some stick- or b-ball. We weren’t wildly overscheduled; we didn’t have 20 hours a week of school events, after-school activities, and projects.  We were (mostly) on our own.

This led to a generation of parents who recognized the risks all this unsupervised play created. The results were three simple rules that every kid who grew up in the 1960s, 70s, and even 80s had to learn:

1. Make sure your parents knew where you were going to be after school;

2. Be home for dinner (hands washed and at the table) by 6pm;

3. Never take candy from strangers.1

That was it!

Every other rule was a variation on this theme. Whether you had a sleepover at Brian’s house or were playing hoops with Marc, Chuck, and Ritchie, you had to leave a note or a message at home and/or your parents’ workplace as to what you were doing that day. Dinner was the same time every day, and if you were late, there was gonna be hell to pay for it.

Technology has rendered the rules 1 and 2 obsolete: Parents know exactly where their kids are to within a few feet, courtesy of the tracking apps on their phones. Texting lets them know precisely when they are coming home. But that third rule…

Today, I want to discuss why you should never take candy from strangers. It was true when I was 12 years old, developing a decent pull-up jump shot and studying for my bar mitzvah. It’s true today, perhaps more so. It’s true, even if you are an adult, married with two kids, a dog, and a mortgage.

It’s so obvious and ingrained – at least to my generation – that it’s easy to overlook the simplicity and brilliance of this concept.

Just as your mother used to tell you not to take candy from strangers, so goes it with taking investment advice from strangers on TV, in print, weblogs, and most especially social media.

When a stranger offers you something for free, it should immediately make you ask a few questions: Who are they? What do they want? Do they have your best interests at heart? What’s in it for them? Always ask yourself: What are these people selling?

Is it a newsletter? Some wacky trading scheme or crypto scam claiming it’s gonna make you millions? “Just make 1% per day to turn $100 into millions” type nonsense.

At the very least, they are asking for your time and attention, and that has tremendous value to you as an individual. Collectively, it’s worth billions of dollars to big tech and media.

I devote at least 10 chapters in “How Not to Invest” discussing these exact topics because its that important. See:

Who do you listen to?
Prediction, Inc.?
Forecasting Chaos
What are they selling?
24/7 Financial Advice
TikTokInvestors
Gell-Mann Amnesia
Signal-to-Noise Ratio
Lose the News
Use the News: Reengineer Your Media Diet

Before you accept the investing advice from a random stranger, ask yourself if they are concerned with your comfortable retirement, or buying a new house, paying for your kids college. If they don’t know your zip code or tax bracket, how on earth is their advice geared to your circumstances?

Of course it is not. It’s selling something, be it advertisements, investment products, newsletters, or God knows what else.

Most of what you see, hear, and read was not written with you in mind. It was created to sell a product. (This blog post, as an example, is exhorting you to buy my book). These sales pitches are not nefarious, but they have become so ubiquitous that we often overlook them.

It’s not realistic to suggest people tune everything out. However, I am making three suggestions for all consumers of financial content:

-Understand what media you are consuming;

-Make intelligent, well-informed choices;

-Prioritize quality over quantity.

I am not suggesting you become a curmudgeon, but rather, be a little less gullible and naïve. When I started out in the finance industry, I believed every line that came my way from every salesman, any fund manager, and quarterly calls filled with nonsense. I was an easy mark for a smooth-talking bullshit artist.

This is why my Mom was right to warn me not to take candy from strangers. Her advice applies equally to taking investment advice from people you don’t know and whose process, track record, and temperament you are unfamiliar with.

It took some time and some expensive losses before I figured that out.

Taking investment advice from people you do not know in the media in all of its forms is no different than taking candy from strangers.

https://ritholtz.com/2025/06/candy-from-strangers/

British Gov't: Western Cultural Concerns Are Signs Of "Right-Wing Terrorist Ideology"

 by Jonathan Turley,

Free speech in the United Kingdom has long been in free fall, with expanding criminalization and regulation of speech. Much of this effort is carried out to combat disinformation or radicalism.

The subjectivity of such “Prevent” standards is evident in a new media report that officers are being trained to look for “cultural nationalism,” including those people who are concerned that Western culture is under threat from mass migration.

Such concerns are now viewed as indicative of “right-wing terrorist ideology.”

Europe, like the United States, is showing a surge in political support for politicians seeking to limit and reverse mass immigration into their countries. That includes Great Britain.

The material is part of an online training course for British hospitals, schools, universities, and other public institutions that are expected to identify and report extremists to the government.

The training would subject a large number of British citizens to potential investigation as right-wing extremists. In 2023, a government report by William Shawcross concluded “populist conservative voices who have nothing to do with violent extremism” are often identified by investigators even though the overwhelming number of attacks committed in the UK were “Islamist in nature.”

There have also been warnings that by classifying “cultural nationalism” as an indication of extremism, the anti-terror scheme could be used to stifle public debate.

A Home Office spokesman insisted, however, that “Prevent is not about restricting debate or free speech, but about protecting those susceptible to radicalisation.”

That is a rationale already used in the UK to arrest those with dangerous thoughts or viewpoints.

For years, I have been writing about the decline of free speech in the United Kingdom and the steady stream of arrests, including in my book, The Indispensable Right: Free Speech in an Age of Rage.

A man was convicted of sending a tweet while drunk, referring to dead soldiers. Another was arrested for wearing an anti-police t-shirt. Another was arrested for calling the Irish boyfriend of his ex-girlfriend a “leprechaun.” Yet another was arrested for singing “Kung Fu Fighting.” A teenager was arrested for protesting outside of a Scientology center with a sign calling the religion a “cult.”

Nicholas Brock, 52, was convicted of a thought crime in Maidenhead, Berkshire. The neo-Nazi was given a four-year sentence for what the court called his “toxic ideology” based on the contents of the home he shared with his mother in Maidenhead, Berkshire. Judge Peter Lodder QC dismissed free speech or free thought concerns with a truly Orwellian statement:

“I do not sentence you for your political views, but the extremity of those views informs the assessment of dangerousness.”

Lodder lambasted Brock for holding Nazi and other hateful values:

“[i]t is clear that you are a right-wing extremist, your enthusiasm for this repulsive and toxic ideology is demonstrated by the graphic and racist iconography which you have studied and appeared to share with others…”

Recently, the UK effectively resumed blasphemy prosecutions and previously arrested a woman for silently praying to herself near an abortion clinic.

The training captures the potential chilling effect on speech where any publicly stated concerns over immigration and Western Civilization could lead to your being reported to the police. It reflects the cavalier approach to such speech regulations in not just the UK but throughout Europe.  However, this European model is being promoted by many in the United States, including some who are calling on the European Union to challenge the United States over the regulation of speech.

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/british-govt-western-cultural-concerns-are-signs-right-wing-terrorist-ideology

Migrant pickpocket crew nabbed working the crowd at NYC Governor’s Ball Festival

 A crew of migrant pickpockets was nabbed plying their trade at the Governor’s Ball Festival in Queens — and all three are back on the streets, according to police and court records.

Police responded to the three-day music festival at Flushing Meadows Corona Park on Friday night on reports of stolen phones, where eagle-eyed cops spotted the three Colombian immigrants — including one woman who was caught grabbing a phone out of the victim’s purse, law enforcement sources said.

Three migrants — Maritza Cortes Palomo, 35, Windi Paola Mendoza Echeverry, 34, and Maria Mendoza, 30 — were arrested at the park and charged with fourth-degree grand larceny and fifth-degree criminal possession of stolen property, an NYPD spokesperson said Sunday.

Three migrants were arrested for pickpocketing patrons at the Governor’s Ball Festival on Friday, according to police.Brandon Nagy/Shutterstock

Echeverry was also charged with resisting arrest, police said.

According to sources, cops from the NYPD Pickpocket Squad and Patrol Borough Queens North flooded the festival looking for sticky-fingered crooks, which led to the Friday night arrests.

One of the migrants had four phones tucked in her waistband when she was arrested, sources said.

Court records show that all three of the alleged Governor’s Ball thieves were arraigned on Saturday and Sunday and all were released without bail pending return court appearances.

All three women told police they live in Florida.

Under the state’s controversial 2019 criminal justice reforms, the charges lodged against the three migrants were not eligible for bail.

Cops responded to the Governor’s Ball Festival in Queens on reports of stolen phones and arrested three migrants.Brandon Nagy/Shutterstock
Palomo and Mendoza are due back in court on July 29, and Echeverry is scheduled for Aug. 12.

The Post reported last year that teams of pickpocketing asylum seekers had created an additional headache for the NYPD, with sources identifying at least 100 migrant offenders.

One year earlier, the department created the pickpocket team to combat the trend.

https://nypost.com/2025/06/09/us-news/migrant-pickpocket-crew-nabbed-working-the-crowd-at-nyc-governors-ball-festival-police/