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Tim O’Brien

@timobrien.bsky.social

180K followers 800 following 850 posts

Senior Executive Editor, @Opinion.bloomberg.com. Political Analyst, MSNBC. Author: “TrumpNation.” Priors: New York Times, Wall Street Journal. www.timothylobrien.com

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Tim O’Brien @timobrien.bsky.social · 27d

Trump sued me for $5 billion and lost. This is what I think he’s really after in the $15 billion defamation suit he just filed against the NYT, four reporters and Penguin Random House: www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...

Trump’s $15 Billion NY Times Suit Also Has a Serious Intent

The president wants to tear down another vital institution while unwinding legal protections for the media.

www.bloomberg.com

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Tim O’Brien @timobrien.bsky.social · 1d

“I figure it’s probably maybe the only way I’m going to get to heaven. So I better do a good job.” - Trump, 2016

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 1d

Trump: "I don't think there's anything that's gonna get me in heaven. I think I'm not maybe heaven bound. I may be in heaven right now as we fly on Air Force One. I'm not sure I'm gonna be able to make heaven."

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Tom Joscelyn @tomjoscelyn.bsky.social · 2d

“I spent three nights and three days in federal custody. During that time, I was never told what I was charged with, was not allowed to shower despite being covered in tear gas and pepper spray, had no phone call to my family, and no access to an attorney.” - George Retes, U.S. citizen and veteran.

I’m a US citizen and a veteran. ICE arrested me for no reason.

Jailed for three days without an explanation or ability to notify anyone, George Retes argues the only path to healing starts with the government taking accountability for its actions.

newsletter.ofthebrave.org

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Tim O’Brien @timobrien.bsky.social · 1d

“Digital arrests” are bilking Indians out of millions, leaving trauma and distrust in their wake.
www.bloomberg.com/opinion/feat...

Inside India’s Scariest Scam — and How to Stop It

“Digital arrests” are bilking Indians out of millions, leaving trauma and distrust in their wake.

www.bloomberg.com

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Reposted by Tim O’Brien

Michael Derby @michaelsderby.bsky.social · 2d

“The Sun-Times has documented four unmarked cars carrying federal officers without required plates, offering another way to shield their identities. Federal officials say they’re meeting regulations.”

Federal immigration officers wear masks, no name tags — now some drive cars without license plates

The Sun-Times has documented four unmarked cars carrying federal officers without required plates, offering another way to shield their identities. Federal officials say they’re meeting regulations.

chicago.suntimes.com

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Reason Magazine @reason.com · 4d

The Trump administration said Americans would fill farm jobs vacated by undocumented workers.

That's not happening, the Department of Labor now admits.

Trump's Labor Department admits that Trump's immigration crackdown is causing a shortage of farm workers

With fewer immigrant workers available on American farms, there is a risk of "supply shock-induced food shortages," the Labor Department says.

reason.com

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POLITICO Europe @politico.eu · 2d

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy today exhorted Kyiv’s allies to maintain pressure on Russia to end the war in Ukraine in parallel with the international efforts to achieve peace in the Middle East.

Zelenskyy urges continued pressure on Russia amid strikes on Ukraine energy plants

Moscow’s defense ministry confirmed that Russian forces targeted oil and energy infrastructure.

www.politico.eu

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Joyce White Vance @joycewhitevance.bsky.social · 2d

That’s a nice trick, since Biden wasn’t the president on Jan 6.

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Tim O’Brien @timobrien.bsky.social · 2d

Diane Keaton:
youtu.be/fQseNfavHJA

Diane Keaton Accepts the 45th AFI Life Achievement Award

YouTube video by American Film Institute

youtu.be

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Tim O’Brien @timobrien.bsky.social · 2d

RIP, Diane Keaton. www.theguardian.com/film/2025/oc...

Diane Keaton, Oscar-winning star of Annie Hall and The Godfather, dies aged 79

The legendary actor best known for her many collaborations with Woody Allen, as well as films including Reds, The First Wives Club and Book Club, has died

www.theguardian.com

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Tim O’Brien @timobrien.bsky.social · 4d

“Mortgage fraud.”

New York Attorney General Letitia James indicted on fraud charge.
apnews.com/article/leti...

New York Attorney General Letitia James indicted on fraud charge, AP source says

A grand jury has indicted New York Attorney General Letitia James on a fraud charge, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press on Thursday.

apnews.com

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Tim O’Brien @timobrien.bsky.social · 10d

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Tim O’Brien @timobrien.bsky.social · 10d

Joining @aliciamenendez.bsky.social on @msnbc.com in the 7PM hour to talk about the White House assault on the US Attorneys’ Offices and the broader legal system.

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Tim O’Brien @timobrien.bsky.social · 10d

China is pushing the Trump administration to roll back national-security restrictions on Chinese deals in the US, dangling the prospect of a massive investment package as part of a proposal that would upend a decade of policy. www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

China Pushes Trump to Drop Curbs as it Dangles Investment Pledge

www.bloomberg.com

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Tim O’Brien @timobrien.bsky.social · 10d

"About six in ten adults say they have heard “a little” (30%) or “nothing at all” (31%) about the expiring ACA subsidies, showing widespread lack of information on the cost of coverage for over 24 million people in the U.S." www.kff.org/affordable-c...

KFF Health Tracking Poll: Public Weighs Political Consequences of Health Policy Legislation | KFF

KFF's Health Tracking Poll finds that more than three-quarters of the public say they want Congress to extend the ACA enhanced premium tax credits that are set to expire at the end of this year. If th...

www.kff.org

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Tim O’Brien @timobrien.bsky.social · 10d

"The focus on voter fraud in Pennsylvania is particularly ironic because it sure looks like, and a trail of documentation suggests, that Posobiec is living in Maryland but voting in Pennsylvania. If so, that would be a violation of voting laws, experts say." slate.com/news-and-pol...

MAGA’s “Voter Fraud” Watchdog Votes in a Swing State. He Doesn’t Live There.

A long paper trail shows that Jack Posobiec casts a ballot in one state and lives in another.

slate.com

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Tim O’Brien @timobrien.bsky.social · 10d

The developer of ICEBlock, an app that lets people crowdsource sightings of ICE officials, has said he is determined to fight back after Apple removed the app from its App Store. www.404media.co/iceblock-own...

ICEBlock Owner After Apple Removes App: ‘We Are Determined to Fight This’

Apple removed ICEBlock reportedly after direct pressure from Department of Justice officials. “I am incredibly disappointed by Apple's actions today. Capitulating to an authoritarian regime is never t...

www.404media.co

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Tim O’Brien @timobrien.bsky.social · 11d

In an interview, Arrington expressed dismay that his refusal to provide an Eisenhower sword to Trump could have led to his forced resignation.

“I never imagined that I would be fired from almost 30 years of government service for this,” he said.
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/02/a...

After Declining to Give Trump a Sword for King Charles, a Museum Leader Is Out

www.nytimes.com

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Tim O’Brien @timobrien.bsky.social · 12d

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Tim O’Brien @timobrien.bsky.social · 12d

"Democrats, by centering their demands on restoring funding for Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act, are deploying their strongest legislative weapon — the ability to shut down the government — behind what polls show is their strongest issue: health care."
www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...

This Shutdown May Help Democrats, But Not Democracy

It’s easy to understand why Democrats want to use the government shutdown that began today to focus on the choices by President Donald Trump and the Republican Congress that will deny health insurance...

www.bloomberg.com

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Tim O’Brien @timobrien.bsky.social · 13d

“We should use some of these dangerous cities as training grounds for our military,” the president of the United States said.
www.nytimes.com/2025/09/30/u...

Trump Gave the Military’s Brass a Rehashed Speech. Until Minute 44.

www.nytimes.com

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Scott MacFarlane @macfarlanenews.bsky.social · 13d

Federal judge, appointed by Reagan, in 161-page opinion today in deportation matter:

"There’s the issue of masks... To us, masks are associated with cowardly desperados and the despised Ku Klux Klan. In all our history we have never tolerated an armed masked secret police"

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Barb McQuade @barbmcquade.bsky.social · 13d

Working on a new book, “The Fix: Saving America from the Corruption of a Mob-Style Government.” Drawing from my experience as a prosecutor, the book offers ideas to take back our democracy and a vision for the future. Available June 9, 2026. Here’s the cover. What do you think?

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Tim O’Brien @timobrien.bsky.social · 13d

“Shortly after the Senate failed to pass a measure to fund the federal government, the White House’s Office of Management and Budget issued a memo directing executive branch agencies to ‘execute their plans for an orderly shutdown.’”
www.nytimes.com/live/2025/09...

Update from Michael Gold

www.nytimes.com

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Alexandra Petri @petridishes.bsky.social · 13d

if the Trump Hegseth address had been an email www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/...

To: Entire Military Leadership of the United States, Stationed All Over the World, Who Would Have to Be Flown In Very Disruptively and Expensively If This Weren't an Email but for Some Reason Were an Urgent In-Person Address
From: Pete Hegseth
CC: Donald J. Trump
Subject: WARFIGHTER ETHOS
PLEASE DROP EVERYTHING YOU ARE DOING TO READ THIS EMAIL AT ATTENTION. THIS IS NOT SPAM AND I AM EXTREMELY SOBER! YOU ARE TOO FAT TO FIGHT WARS!

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jamelle @jamellebouie.net · 13d

great piece from the always-great @pastpunditry.bsky.social and a welcome antidote to vacuous commentators whose historical memories seem to go back no further than the first iron man movie

Opinion | The Right Didn’t Catch Cancel Culture From the Left

www.nytimes.com

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