Trump admin ousts NSA director in agency shake-up: Report



President Donald Trump’s administration on Thursday fired the director of the National Security Agency, Gen. Timothy Haugh, according to a report from the Washington Post.

Haugh’s civilian deputy, Wendy Noble, was reportedly removed from her position and reassigned a job with the Department of Defense’s Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security.

'This is called VETTING.'

The Post also stated that “at least five” National Security Council officials were terminated on Thursday.

The White House has not yet confirmed the reported firings, and therefore, the reasoning for the alleged actions is unclear.

However, Trump stated that he had ousted “some” NSC staffers, the Associated Press reported.

“Always we’re letting go of people,” Trump stated Thursday. “People that we don’t like or people that we don’t think can do the job or people that may have loyalties to somebody else.”

According to the AP, at least three terminated employees were “senior NSC officials” and the others were “lower-ranking aides.”

Pro-Trump activist Laura Loomer appeared to take credit for the alleged shake-up in a post on X, claiming that Haugh and Noble were removed because they were “disloyal” to the president.

She criticized Haugh as a “Biden appointee,” who was “HAND PICKED” by now-retired U.S. Army Gen. Mark Milley.

Loomer stated that Haugh was “referred for firing” as well as “his Obama loving protege, Wendy Noble.”

“This is called VETTING,” she declared.

Loomer reportedly advocated for the firings during a recent meeting with Trump.

“Thank you President Trump for being receptive to the vetting materials provided to you and thank you for firing these Biden holdovers,” she stated.

Following her meeting with the president, Trump told reporters, “Laura Loomer is a very good patriot. She’s a very strong person.”

“She makes recommendations of things or people, and sometimes I listen to those recommendations,” he stated.

Trump stated that during their meeting, Loomer “recommended certain people for jobs.”

He stated that Loomer had nothing to do with the fired NSC staffers.

However, in a separate post on X, Loomer appeared also to claim credit for those terminations.

“You know how you know the NSC officials I reported to President Trump are disloyal people who have played a role in sabotaging Donald Trump?” she wrote. “Because the fired officials are being defended by... Jen Psaki & Andrew McCabe on MSNBC & CNN RIGHT NOW.”

The White House did not respond to requests for comment from the Washington Post or the New York Post. The NSA referred the New York Post to the DOD, which also did not respond.

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Trump raises eyebrows by sharing video claiming he's 'purposely CRASHING the market'



President Donald Trump raised eyebrows Friday by sharing a video on Truth Social that claims he purposefully crashed the stock market to "push cash into treasuries." Trump's timing was especially provocative because his rollout of tariffs the previous day resulted in a multi-trillion dollar market wipeout.

Trump shared a video by a supporter that was posted to X Thursday evening with the caption, "Trump is playing chess while everyone else is playing checkers."

The video — which appropriates narration from a March 13 Instagram post by finance influencer Brian Decker — first appeared on a TikTok page that previously accused Hollywood elites of eating mermaids.

In an apparent validation of the video and Decker's core theory, senior Trump adviser Jason Miller noted, "Genius! You have to watch this video!"

In the video, a seemingly computer-generated voice states: "Trump is crashing the stock market by 20% this month, but he's doing it on purpose, and this is why Warren Buffet just said Trump is making the best economic moves he's seen in over 50 years."

There appears to be no evidence of Warren Buffett publicly making such an assertion in recent weeks.

'He's taking from the rich short-term and handing it to the middle class through lower prices.'

On the contrary, in a CBS News interview that aired nearly two weeks before the TikTok video was published, Buffett told talking head Norah O'Donnell, "Tariffs are actually — we've had a lot of experience with them — they’re an act of war, to some degree."

When asked whether tariffs might lead to higher inflation, Buffett said, "Over time, they are a tax on goods. I mean, the Tooth Fairy doesn't pay 'em!"

According to the TikTok video, Trump intentionally crashed the stock market in order to "push cash into treasuries, which forces the [Federal Reserve] to slash interest rates in May, and those lower rates give the Fed the ability to refinance trillions of debt very inexpensively. It also weakens the dollar and drops mortgage rates."

The narrator notes further that Trump's tariffs amount to a "genius play," forcing "companies to build here to dodge them. It also forces farmers to sell more of their products here in the U.S. to bring grocery prices way down. We've already seen this with eggs."

The video shared by the Republican president concludes by asserting he is effectively engaged in a wealth redistribution scheme: "Now remember, 94% of all stocks are owned only by 8% of Americans so Trump, he's taking from the rich short-term and handing it to the middle class through lower prices."

Blaze News reached out to the White House for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

'It's definitely not some sort of fringe conspiracy theory.'

There has been speculation in recent days and weeks that Trump has, as Decker hypothesized, been pushing for a crash or at the very least significant market chaos.

Charlie McElligott, a strategist at Nomura, told clients in early March that Trump and his administration needed an engineered recession to trigger a growth slowdown and disflation that would result in Fed rate cuts and a weaker dollar, reported MarketWatch.

"It's definitely not some sort of fringe conspiracy theory," Ben McMillan, CIO at IDX Advisors, told Business Insider earlier in the week. "I think it's a coin flip as to whether or not it's the intention, but there have been some data points that suggest it's a non-trivial possibility in my mind."

Among the "data points" McMillan reportedly had in mind was Trump's suggestion at Davos that he'll demand interest rates fall and the president's unconventional approaches to tackling the debt problem, such as gold card residency permits.

Trump just happened to state in a Truth Social post Friday morning, "This would be a PERFECT time for Fed Chairman Jerome Powell to cut Interest Rates."

While Forbes took issue with various falsehoods in the TikTok video, it noted that "to that theory's credit," yields for U.S. Treasury notes collapsed this week — which will likely mean cheaper borrowing. However, Forbes noted that lower Treasury yields can alternatively be achieved without tanking the markets, namely "by restoring fixed income investors' confidence in the federal government’s fiscal health through more austere spending."

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If You’re Hysterical About Trump’s Tariffs, Go Touch Grass

If toting a fainting couch around with you is your thing, fine. But there’s really no need to live this way.

NYC Mayor Adams ditches Dem primary, then takes aim at the 'deep state'



New York City Mayor Eric Adams, a Democrat, announced on Thursday that he will not seek the party's nomination but will run his re-election campaign as an independent candidate.

Adams, who rarely posts on his personal X account, shared a video announcing his decision. The announcement stood in sharp contrast to his two most recent prior posts from the summer of 2024, when he had voiced support for former Vice President Kamala Harris in the presidential election.

'I have never seen anyone do such a good job of defining that deep state.'

Just a few months later, Adams was effectively on the outs with Democrats, facing a federal corruption lawsuit shortly after he criticized the Biden administration for fueling the nation's illegal immigration crisis.

Adams wrote on Thursday, "I have always put New York's people before politics and party—and I always will. I am running for mayor in the general election because our city needs independent leadership that understands working people."

In his six-minute video, Adams discussed the grit of New Yorkers, the "bogus case" against him, and the other mayoral candidates.

— (@)

While he stood by his decision to call out the Biden administration for its immigration failures, he stopped short of severing ties with the Democratic Party.

"Some leaders choose rhetoric over results and fail to make working people their North Star. But the values of the working-class base — pro-public safety, pro-worker, pro-quality of life — are still there standing strong even if many who share them have left the party," he stated. "I had hoped to fight for them again in a Democratic primary for mayor."

"But the dismissal of the bogus case against me dragged on too long, making it impossible to mount a primary campaign while these false accusations were held over me," Adams continued. "Though I am still a Democrat, I am announcing that I will forego the Democratic primary for mayor and appeal directly to all New Yorkers as an independent candidate in the general election."

Adams acknowledged that the accusations against him in the corruption case "may have shaken" New Yorkers' confidence in him. He maintained his innocence, but expressed regret for "trust[ing] people I should not have."

He slammed his opponents without naming any mayoral candidates specifically.

"Some were advocating against more police, even if they are for them now," Adams said. "Some were fighting the pro-growth strategies of our administration. Some even sought to limit housing production. Some voted to give more of your tax dollars to other cities and towns in this state while refusing to change laws that let dangerous criminals run wild on our streets. And some sat at home and did absolutely nothing."

The mayor boasted his administration's record on housing, crime reduction, job creation, and benefit disbursements for low-income New Yorkers.

Adams admitted that he made mistakes.

"But it was not a mistake to invest more in housing than any other mayor. It wasn't a mistake to put a cop on every train. It wasn't a mistake to increase the value of housing vouchers and earn income tax credit to the highest levels ever," he stated.

"And it wasn't a mistake to put politics aside, defy my party when needed, and speak for the voice of working New Yorkers," Adams declared.

'Trump derangement syndrome is real.'

On Wednesday, the same day the indictment against Adams was dropped, comedian Andrew Schulz released a new episode of his podcast, "Flagrant," featuring an interview with the mayor. The two spoke about New York City's immigration crisis, Adams' decision to criticize the Biden administration, and the accusations against him.

Adams encouraged Schulz to read FBI Director Kash Patel's book, "Government Gangsters: The Deep State, the Truth, and the Battle for Our Democracy."

Schulz asked, "Is this what people refer to — and I think this word has been used too much, but the 'deep state,' or whatever it is?"

"It's not used too much," Adams responded. "It's real, brother."

"I have never seen anyone do such a good job of defining that deep state," he continued, referring to Patel. "You should have him on your show."

When asked whether legal immigrants should be afraid under the Trump administration, Adams responded by torching those on the left who have spread false rumors that Immigration and Customs Enforcement has targeted individuals with legal status.

"When I'm moving around my immigrant communities, and they share with me, 'We're afraid. We're afraid to go to school, work, church, etc.' Why are they afraid?" Adams asked. "The activists who love this hysteria are giving the impression that all the sudden ICE is going into our schools and taking our children, going into hospitals — that's just not true."

He declared that "Trump derangement syndrome is real" and expressed disappointment that the Department of Government Efficiency's efforts to root out waste and fraud had become politicized by the president's critics.

Adams also blasted the Biden administration for placing parents on the FBI watchlist for being concerned about what their children were being taught in public schools.

"I'm telling you, read Kash's book," he told Schulz.

One source close to Adams told the New York Post, "Now that this case is gone and he's running in the general, you're going to see a very 'f*** you' mentality from him."

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Blaze News original: Trump's reciprocal tariffs — and decades of devastating fees the world pushed on America



President Donald Trump has repeatedly scorched decades of unfair trading practices for hindering the United States' economy. He dubbed Wednesday, April 2, "Liberation Day" for America, unveiling a sweeping list of new tariffs targeting nations — both friends and adversaries — that have long burdened the U.S. with far higher fees than it has placed on them in return.

The administration had previously announced that it planned to roll out "reciprocal tariffs," explaining that the U.S. would begin imposing balanced fees. Trump left room for some exceptions to this rule, noting that countries fueling America's illegal immigration and drug crisis would face significantly higher tariff rates.

‘They charge us; we charge them.’

While Trump and his Cabinet have maintained that increasing tariffs will boost the U.S. economy, his Democratic critics and their corporate media allies contend it will have the opposite effect — passing the increased costs of imports on to American consumers. Everything from vehicles to everyday necessities, including gas and groceries, will skyrocket, according to Trump's detractors.

The fierce backlash and potential economic uncertainty of the unprecedented tariff hikes appeared to influence Trump to dial back his initial plan to implement across-the-board equal tariffs. Instead, on Wednesday, he revealed that most of the increases, while still reciprocal, are capped at about half the levels other nations currently slap on the U.S.

The new reciprocal tariffs

On Wednesday afternoon, Trump announced the administration's final decision on tariffs while highlighting how America has been treated unfairly.

Trump held up a chart listing the new "discounted reciprocal tariffs" next to "tariffs charged to the U.S.A.," which he noted factored in currency manipulation and trade barriers, not tariff rates alone.

— (@)

The chart listed China as charging the U.S. 67%.

"We're going to be charging a discounted reciprocal tariff of 34%," Trump said, referring to China. "They charge us; we charge them. We charge them less, so how can anybody be upset?"

"They will be because we never charge anybody anything," he added.

Trump continued down the chart, stating that the European Union has been "very tough traders."

"They rip us off," the president declared.

‘For decades, our country has been looted, pillaged, raped, and plundered by nations near and far, both friend and foe alike.’

Trump noted that most of his administration's reciprocal tariffs would amount to about half the rates foreign countries currently levy against the U.S. However, he stated that the administration would implement a 10% minimum baseline. For example, according to the chart, the U.S. will match the United Kingdom's and Brazil's 10% rate.

The administration rolled out the new tariff rates to address the U.S.' $1.2 trillion trade deficit. According to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, 15% of countries compose America's most significant trade deficits. He dubbed those nations the "dirty 15" in a March interview with Fox Business.

In its reasoning for the baseline rate, the White House cited a 2024 economic analysis that found a global 10% tariff would generate $728 billion and 2.8 million new jobs.

High tariffs against the US

Trump highlighted instances when foreign countries imposed steep tariffs against the U.S., pulling data from the U.S. Trade Representative's 2025 National Trade Estimate Report on Foreign Trade Barriers.

"For decades, our country has been looted, pillaged, raped, and plundered by nations near and far, both friend and foe alike," he claimed.

"Let me offer just a few examples of the vicious attacks our workers have faced for so many years," Trump continued. "The United States charges other countries only a 2.4% tariff on motorcycles. Meanwhile, Thailand and others are charging much higher prices, like 60%. India charges 70%. Vietnam charges 75%. And others are even higher than that."

Trump also explained that the U.S. charged only 2.5% on foreign-made automobiles, while the European Union imposes over 10% tariffs with 20% VAT fees, and India charges 70%.

"Perhaps worst of all are the non-monetary restrictions imposed by South Korea, Japan, and very many other nations," he added. "Toyota sells 1 million foreign-made automobiles into the United States, and General Motors sells almost none. Ford sells very little."

As a result of the "horrendous imbalances," Trump revealed that the U.S. would impose a 25% tariff on all foreign vehicles.

Trump stated that Canada imposed a 250% to 300% tariff on dairy products.

"China charges American rice farmers an over-quota, it's called, tariff rate of 65%," he stated.

‘Official trade data appears to show that China fell far short of implementing its commitments to purchase US goods and services.’

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, a tariff quota, or a two-tiered tariff, allows countries to impose a lower rate for initial imports and a higher rate for later ones.

Trump also noted that South Korea charges American rice farmers rates between 50% and 513%, while Japan imposes 700%.

A White House fact sheet from Wednesday highlighted several more "unfair tariff disparities," stating that the U.S. sets a 0% tariff on networking switches and routers, while India charges 10% to 20%.

"Brazil (18%) and Indonesia (30%) impose a higher tariff on ethanol than does the United States (2.5%)," it read. "Apples enter the United States duty-free, but not so in Turkey (60.3%) and India (50%)."

Trump's critics have claimed that his recent increased tariffs will result in higher costs for American consumers, with some countries imposing their own retaliatory fees. However, the administration argued that the U.S. has been mistreated for decades — long before Trump hiked any rates.

While Democrats continue to paint a picture that Trump's increases will spell disaster, a 2018 report from the Pew Research Center stated that U.S. tariffs were "among the lowest in the world."

"In 2016, according to the World Bank, the average applied U.S. tariff across all products was 1.61%; that was about the same as the average rate of 1.6% for the 28-nation EU, and not much higher than Japan's 1.35%," the report read.

However, it noted that the "average rates are weighted by product import shares with all of each nation's trading partners, and don't necessarily reflect the provisions of specific trade deals."

In other words, these averages include all trade with every nation, so the actual tariffs imposed on the U.S. could be lower or even much higher depending on the product and the partner country.

China

The USTR's latest annual foreign barriers report, cited by Trump, further exposed unequal trade practices between the U.S. and other nations, dedicating a significant portion of the document to detailing obstacles with China.

It stated that China has failed to follow through on implementing some of the "more important commitments" from its January 2020 economic and trade agreement with the U.S. The report specifically pointed to agriculture-related provisions and intellectual property and technology agreements.

"In addition, official trade data appears to show that China fell far short of implementing its commitments to purchase U.S. goods and services, which covered the years 2020 and 2021," it read.

Prior to China joining the World Trade Organization, an international group dealing with trade rules and agreements, it imposed notoriously steep tariffs on the U.S. China was charging an average of 22.1% on all general imports and up to 100% on vehicles.

Meanwhile, the U.S. has historically imposed a 2.5% tariff on imported foreign vehicles before Trump took office.

Upon joining the WTO in 2001, China consented to bring auto tariffs down to 25% over a six-year period and farm products to 15% or less.

A 2010 USTR report noted that China had made significant progress in lowering its tariffs after joining the WTO. However, it maintained "high duties on some products that compete with sensitive domestic industries." According to the report, China imposed 30% tariffs on large motorcycles.

"Likewise, most video, digital video, and audio recorders and players still face duties of approximately 30 percent. Raisins face duties of 35 percent," the report read.

India

In 2016, the USTR called India's tariff system "complex and characterized by a lack of transparency in determining net effective rates."

India, also a part of the WTO, reportedly had significant disparities between its Most Favored Nation rates and its bound rates, which are fees that generally cannot be exceeded for other WTO nations.

"India's average bound tariff rate was 48.6 percent, while its simple MFN average applied tariff for 2014 was 13.5 percent," the report stated.

At the time, the WTO listed India's bound rate at 114%.

"India also maintains very high tariff peaks on a number of goods, including flowers (60 percent), natural rubber (70 percent), automobiles and motorcycles (60 percent to 75 percent), raisins and coffee (100 percent), alcoholic beverages (150 percent), and textiles (some ad valorem equivalent rates exceed 300 percent)," the USTR report read.

European Union

The USTR reported in 2017 that the EU's tariffs were "generally low for non-agricultural goods" but listed several higher fees, including 26% for fish and seafood, 10% for vehicles, 22% for trucks, 6.5% for fertilizers and plastics, and 14% for bicycles.

The 2025 updated USTR report revealed that tariffs remained at those same rates.

Brazil

A 1996 UTSR stated that Brazil's maximum tariff level was 70%, which was down from 105% in 1990.

The USTR's 2016 report revealed that despite Brazil being a part of the WTO, its maximum tariff rates were steep, including 55% for agricultural goods and up to 35% on industrial products.

"Brazil imposes relatively high tariffs on imports across a wide spread of sectors, including automobiles, automotive parts, information technology and electronics, chemicals, plastics, industrial machinery, steel, and textiles and apparel," the report found.

The response

The Trump administration anticipates that some countries will respond to the tariff increases by implementing their own retaliatory fees. However, officials remain confident that the U.S. price hikes will bring more economic growth and not less.

Last month, Trump warned, "It's going to be very costly for people to take advantage of this country. They can't come in and steal our money and steal our jobs and take our factories and take our businesses and expect not to be punished."

‘A long-overdue shift away from a harmful economic framework that has devastated the working class.’

"And they're being punished by tariffs. It's a very powerful weapon that politicians haven't used because they were either dishonest, stupid, or paid off in some other form," he stated.

Trump committed to removing tariffs for foreign companies that build their products in the U.S. He rattled off a list of businesses that have already agreed to make significant investments in the U.S., including Apple, SoftBank Group, OpenAI, Oracle, Nvidia, Johnson & Johnson, Eli Lilly and Company, and Meta. Trump also noted that several automakers are ramping up American investments.

United Auto Workers members applaud as President Donald Trump announces new tariffs during a Make America Wealthy Again trade announcement event in the Rose Garden on April 2, 2025, in Washington, D.C. Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Trump pledged that Liberation Day would go down in history as the turning point that would "make America wealthy again," stating that "jobs and factories will come roaring back into our country."

The United Auto Workers, a union that endorsed Trump's challenger, Vice President Kamala Harris (D), in the 2024 presidential election, has expressed strong support for the president's foreign automobile tariffs, calling it "a long-overdue shift away from a harmful economic framework that has devastated the working class."

During his Wednesday address, Trump highlighted how the imbalanced trade market has also harmed American farmers and ranchers.

The National Cattlemen's Beef Association backed Trump's decision to impose higher tariffs.

"For too long, America's family farmers and ranchers have been mistreated by certain trading partners around the world. President Trump is taking action to address numerous trade barriers that prevent consumers overseas from enjoying high-quality, wholesome American beef. NCBA will continue engaging with the White House to ensure fair treatment for America's cattle producers around the world and optimize opportunities for exports abroad," said Ethan Lane, the association's president of government affairs.

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