Remembering
James Robison

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The Brew: Bold Moves for a New Day

By Gayle McQueary Published on February 25, 2025

From seismic shifts in government leadership to corporate giants betting big on the United States, the nation is buzzing with developments that signal a transformative moment.

Trump Appoints Dan Bongino as FBI Deputy Director

President Donald Trump has once again stirred the pot, appointing conservative podcaster and former Secret Service agent Dan Bongino as the FBI’s deputy director; he’ll be working as second in command to newly confirmed fellow rabble rouser Kash Patel. The announcement came late Sunday on Truth Social, when Trump hailed Bongino as a “man of incredible love and passion for our Country.”

Bongino, 50, brings a colorful resume: A former NYPD officer, Secret Service agent in the George W. Bush and Obama administrations, and a media firebrand whose podcast, The Dan Bongino Show, is among the most popular in the nation, commanding millions of listeners daily. Critics, including some Democrats, decry his lack of FBI experience and his history of amplifying “conspiracy theories” — like claims that the 2020 election was stolen.

But supporters cheer his appointment as Trump’s bureaucratic purging of the “Deep State.” New U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi has already stated publicly that the corruption in the Department of Justice is “even worse than she expected,” and Patel has promised to return the FBI to its core mission – fighting actual crime – rather than probing citizens with politically unpopular views.

Bongino shared his acceptance and gratitude on X yesterday morning, saying, “My career has always been about service. I’m here to work. I’m here to lead. And I’m here to ensure that America’s law enforcement institutions uphold the values and integrity they were built upon.”

Let’s go!

Roosevelt Hotel to Return to Housing Paying Guests, Not Illegal Immigrants

The shakeups abound, as New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced yesterday that the iconic Roosevelt Hotel will be ceasing to operate as a migrant shelter. Since May 2023, the Midtown Manhattan landmark has housed roughly 173,000 asylum-seekers during the disastrous surge at the southern U.S. border.

The decision aligns with a broader initiative to adjust the city’s approach to migrant housing amid financial considerations, including potential changes in federal funding under the Trump administration. The president has threatened to shut off federal funding to all so-called “sanctuary cities” if they continue to defy his mandate to deport those who’ve entered the nation illegally.

As the Roosevelt prepares to shut its doors in order to refurbish before reopening later this year — hopefully reclaiming its Jazz Age glory in the process, questions linger: Will this shift ease tensions between city, state, and federal officials, or simply kick the problem down the road? Will the migrants who’ve been living rent-free in the hotel simply go back to living in other public facilities, such as gyms – or back on the streets?

The closure underscores a broader national reckoning with immigration policy in Trump’s second term.

DeSantis Ends Property Taxes Statewide

Down in Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis is making waves with a bold proposal: eliminate property taxes statewide. Speaking at a press conference in Tampa Monday, DeSantis argued that the tax — which averages $2,000 per year per homeowner — burdens families and stifles growth.

“Just for being on your property, you have to write a check to the government every year,” he said. “So, you’re basically paying rent to the government to live on your own property.”

It’s a gamble. Supporters see it as a lifeline for retirees and a magnet for new residents, cementing Florida’s tax-haven status (the Sunshine State is one of nine states that doesn’t levy an income tax on its residents). Many are unsure what this would mean for schools and other infrastructure supported with those tax dollars, but DeSantis has a solution of these financial worries: He aims to launch a new Department of Government Efficiency at the state level. That agency would operate for only a year, and most likely eliminate or consolidate as many as 70 departments statewide.

If his proposal for a constitutional amendment to eliminate property taxes moves forward, Florida could redefine state economics for the whole nation.

Task Force Set to Review JFK Assassination Documents

Sixty-two years after John F. Kennedy’s death, a newly formed task force, chaired by Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Florida), will hold a public hearing on March 26 to review documents related to significant historical events like his assassination and Martin Luther King, Jr’s.

Why now, all these decades later? Insiders point to Trump’s promise to “drain the swamp” and his personal fascination with the case — he’s called it “the ultimate cover-up.” Recent declassifications of documents regarding JFK in 2021 and 2023 stirred public hunger for answers, and pressure from his nephew, newly confirmed Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., have tipped the scales.

Unlike a full document dump, the task force — which is stacked with historians, former intelligence officers, and legal experts — aims to sift through redactions and assess national security risks. Conspiracy theories abound, from CIA plots to mob hits, but the GOP-controlled House Oversight Committee hopes a measured release will quell speculation without inviting chaos.

Luna seems to believe in accountability and transparency, which is apparent in her X thread detailing the declassification process.

https://twitter.com/RepLuna/status/1893034406530453778

Still, critics say the hearings are merely “theater” and want unredacted files to be released, while others think this is a shot to finally learn the truth about why those men were killed. Either way, it’s a slow burn toward solving one of history’s greatest mysteries.

MSNBC Cancels Joy Reid’s Show in Lineup Overhaul

MSNBC is shaking up its lineup, canceling The ReidOut, hosted by the highly partisan race-monger Joy Reid, after four years. The move, which is part of a broader overhaul under new network chief Rebecca Kutler, follows sliding ratings and a pivot toward centrism thanks to Trump’s reelection. Reid, who is known for fiery liberal takes, often drew cheers from the left, but conservatives pointed to her biggest flaw:

The cancellation is just one example of a media landscape that is now in flux: Cable news is losing ground to streaming, and MSNBC aims to reclaim viewers by giving Jen Psaki and the hosts of the weekend lineup in their expanded roles. Reid’s exit underscores how political tides shape the airwaves. Her next move is unclear, but she did take to the social media platform Bluesky, where she moved from X in November 2024 to protest Trump and Elon Musk, to thank her supporters and friends.

Bernie Sanders Would Like You to Pay for His Road Trip, Please

Finally, Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-Vermont) is hitting the road, asking for financial support to travel the nation for his “Fighting the Oligarchy” tour. Sanders shared that he is “going to be running around this country along with others to rally the American people to continue to fight for justice.” Apparently, there is no limit to what a Democrat is willing to do with other people’s money.

https://twitter.com/LangmanVince/status/1893623690580918702

In the past, Sanders has claimed that “the rich get richer while workers scrape by,” citing a 2017 Tax Policy Center report showing that the wealthiest 400 families in the nation are taxed at a rate lower than teachers pay — 23% versus 24.2% — after all taxes are tallied.

However this rally tour to grassroots areas to fight Trumpism and save democracy has sparked backlash: People are publicly asking why a multimillionaire like Sanders (whose net worth, despite spending the last 34 years in Congress, is $15 million) is asking for donations. Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) pointed out, “Leftists love to talk about rich people paying their ‘fair share’ Rarely do they tell us what that means.” He asked Sanders, “What, in your view, should be the highest tax rate?”

The optics on this donor funded cross-country road trip really aren’t good.

Along The Stream…

Chenyuan Snider tackles the question “Does American Culture Venerate Mediocrity?”

Meanwhile, podcaster Naomi Wolf explains why “The Government’s Spending and Debt Have Pushed the U.S. to the Brink of the Abyss.”

 

Gayle McQueary is The Stream’s social media coordinator. She has a background in production and is a scary judge of misspent tax money.