By AFP
March 11, 2025
French senator Claude Malhuret vividly criticised Trump and Musk - Copyright AFP TATYANA MAKEYEVA
Antoine Maignan
US politicians are unable to stand up to Donald Trump, a French lawmaker said, after the viral success of a speech where he damned the US president as presiding over “Nero’s court” and described his advisor, Elon Musk, as a “buffoon on ketamine”.
The main chamber of France’s upper house, the Senate, is usually the venue for stately discussion rather than speeches that go viral worldwide.
But senator Claude Malhuret, a veteran politician who sits with a faction aligned with President Emmanuel Macron in the Senate, last week grabbed global attention due to his colourful choice of language.
“Washington has become Nero’s court, with an incendiary emperor, submissive courtiers and a buffoon on ketamine in charge of purging the civil service,” he said in the speech.
He was comparing Trump to notoriously tyrannical Roman emperor Nero.
He also made reference to Musk, owner of social media platform X and the world’s richest person, who has been put in charge of Trump’s federal cost-cutting efforts.
Given English subtitles by social media users, the speech by Malhuret — a former minister, MP and mayor — has been viewed millions of times and also broadcast by international news networks.
– ‘Never imagined’ –
The former doctor and minister told AFP he had echoed the “concern” and “anger” of many in the United States during the eight-minute speech, given during a Senate debate on Ukraine and European security.
“I never imagined that an internet user would spontaneously translate it into English and that it would go viral to such an extent, particularly in the United States,” he said in an AFP interview.
He said he had given voice to an unease in the United States about Trump’s behaviour that is felt on both sides of the political divide.
“Judging by the very, very, very many messages I have received since then, I think that Americans today feel that their politicians are unable to stand up to Trump.
“The Republicans, of course, are afraid of reprisals and so are saying nothing, even those who disagree with him.
“And the Democrats are still reeling from their presidential defeat and the party is not yet in working order.
“For my part, many of the messages I received asked: ‘How come it has to be a French politician who says this, when no-one there is saying it?'” he said.
He added that even people who voted for Trump were starting to believe “it is starting badly and, above all, that the world order is being called into question”.
– ‘Dictator supported by a traitor’ –
Malhuret said in the speech that Europe was at a “critical juncture of its history”.
“The American shield is slipping away, Ukraine risks being abandoned and Russia is being strengthened,” he said.
He said the message of Trump — the “king of the deal” — is that “being his ally serves no purpose because he will not defend you”.
Malhuret accused Trump of presiding over a “seizure of democracy”, saying “never in history” had a US president “surrendered to the enemy”.
“We were at war with a dictator,” he said in reference to Russian President Vladimir Putin. “Now we are fighting against a dictator supported by a traitor.”
During their heated meeting in the Oval Office, Trump had treated the “war hero” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as a “stable boy”, Malhuret said.
In his interview with AFP, Malhuret insisted that, compared to the daily diatribes from Trump and Musk, what he had said was “very respectful”.
“I don’t insult them,” he stressed.
He acknowledged he used “colourful expressions”, explaining: “I prefer colourful expressions to insults or curses.”
‘Cower before a mad king’: GOP moves to ‘surrender’ Congress’ power over Trump’s tariffs
The New Civil Rights Movement
March 11, 2025
U.S. President Donald Trump talks to the media next to Tesla CEO Elon Musk, with Tesla cars in the background, at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., March 11, 2025. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarqu
Facing a midnight Friday deadline to prevent a federal government shutdown if no budget is passed, the Republican Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson, insists he has the votes to secure a continuing resolution, a “CR,” and without any help from Democrats. Democrats have vowed to oppose the measure, citing its spending cuts to health care and veterans’ benefits, as well as the inclusion of controversial policy provisions — despite Appropriations Committee Chairman Tom Cole’s specific claim to the contrary.
Democratic Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries on Monday wrote: “House Republicans want to gut Medicaid. Hard pass.”
“The 99 page bill continues funding levels for federal agencies through September 30, 2025,” NPR reports. “GOP leaders argued the bill was largely a ‘clean’ continuation of current funding levels, but it does include a boost for immigration enforcement and a boost for defense programs.”
It also includes a little-noticed provision, however, that, according to one longtime congressional staffer, “preemptively surrenders” Congress’s constitutional authority to block President Donald Trump’s highly controversial and unpredictable tariffs, which he appears to be imposing and rescinding on a whim.
Here’s how one noted economist explained President Trump’s tariffs on Tuesday:
“Tariffs are on/off/paused, and are targeted/universal, applied to our friends/foes/everyone, starting sooner/later. They’ll be in place for the short/long run because they are a useful policy/bargaining chip, and will solve our problem with fentanyl/deficits/manufacturing/revenue,” wrote Justin Wolfers a professor of economics and public policy.
Meanwhile, that provision House Republicans quietly inserted into the bill that at least temporarily would revoke their authority is now getting some attention.
“Republicans snuck a provision into the rule for the CR that would preemptively surrender congressional authority to block tariffs,” observes Aaron Fritschner, deputy chief of staff to U.S. Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA). “When House Republicans vote for this rule today, they will also be voting to support Trump’s tariffs and all the resulting damage to the US economy.”
Congressman Beyer, in a joint statement with U.S. Rep. Suzan DelBene (D-WA), blasted the rule:
“”Every House Republican who votes for this measure is voting to give Trump expanded powers to raise taxes on American households through tariffs with full knowledge of how he is using those powers, and every Republican will own the economic consequences of that vote. It speaks volumes that Republicans are sneaking this provision into a procedural measure hidden from the American people.”
“While [Trump] babbles about making Canada the 51st state, your groceries and housing are getting more expensive and your retirement accounts are getting crushed- and House Republicans are supporting him every step of the way.”
The provision might be able to be removed if the House voted to do so after the CR is passed, but chances of that happening — voting to oppose a core tenet of Trump’s agenda — are slim if the GOP holds the House majority. Trump would also have to sign the bill, or the House would have to overturn a veto.
Some House Democrats are explaining their opposition to other provisions in the continuing resolution, which one of them, U.S. Rep. Sean Casten (D-IL), appears to compare to an exercise in bondage.
“I don’t know whether the GOP will get the votes on their disaster of a bill this week. But I do know that majorities of Republicans voted against similar bills for all of the last 2 years. So what is making them strap on the ball gag and climb into Trump’s dungeon now?” Congressman Casten wrote on social media.
Noting that “Congress has the Constitutional power of the purse and has reaffirmed it through multiple laws (Impoundment Control Act, Anti-Rescission Act) that are being used by multiple courts to block the WH’s over-reach,” Casten warns that the CR “has language that would weaken those cases.”
“This is what you do to cower before a mad king. It is not what you do if you are defending a constitutional democracy,” he declares.
And continuing his explanation for opposing the bill — and continuing his ribald language, Casten notes that the bill “would cut ~$28 billion in funding we passed under the PACT Act to make sure veterans who were exposed to Agent Orange and toxic burn pits get healthcare coverage. Pissing on US veterans is a choice.”
There’s more.
“It would slash funding for USDA food inspectors. You know, the people who go into monitor the spread of avian flu, or to make sure you don’t have E. Coli in your lettuce,” he writes.
“It gives the White House much more discretion over public-private partnerships, essentially allowing them to prioritize infrastructure projects (highways, rail, etc.) only in their political supporters communities. That is anti-American, in the purest sense,” says Casten.
“It cuts rent subsidies for low-income folks. Which means a whole lot of landlords are going to find themselves forced to evict some ~32,000 families. If you think your community needs more homelessness, that’s a good idea. Otherwise… really f’ing dumb.”
Congressman Casten concludes, “Here’s the bottom line. When faced with a constitutional crisis, some members of Congress are fighting back. Others are strapping on the ball gag, climbing into Trump’s dungeon and assuming the American people share their masochistic fetish.”
Casten also includes in his analogy Fritschner’s observation about stopping their ability to block Trump’s tariff’s. He responds: “This is how you legislatively mandate the ball gag.”
See the video or at this link.
March 11, 2025
U.S. President Donald Trump talks to the media next to Tesla CEO Elon Musk, with Tesla cars in the background, at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., March 11, 2025. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarqu
Facing a midnight Friday deadline to prevent a federal government shutdown if no budget is passed, the Republican Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson, insists he has the votes to secure a continuing resolution, a “CR,” and without any help from Democrats. Democrats have vowed to oppose the measure, citing its spending cuts to health care and veterans’ benefits, as well as the inclusion of controversial policy provisions — despite Appropriations Committee Chairman Tom Cole’s specific claim to the contrary.
Democratic Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries on Monday wrote: “House Republicans want to gut Medicaid. Hard pass.”
“The 99 page bill continues funding levels for federal agencies through September 30, 2025,” NPR reports. “GOP leaders argued the bill was largely a ‘clean’ continuation of current funding levels, but it does include a boost for immigration enforcement and a boost for defense programs.”
It also includes a little-noticed provision, however, that, according to one longtime congressional staffer, “preemptively surrenders” Congress’s constitutional authority to block President Donald Trump’s highly controversial and unpredictable tariffs, which he appears to be imposing and rescinding on a whim.
Here’s how one noted economist explained President Trump’s tariffs on Tuesday:
“Tariffs are on/off/paused, and are targeted/universal, applied to our friends/foes/everyone, starting sooner/later. They’ll be in place for the short/long run because they are a useful policy/bargaining chip, and will solve our problem with fentanyl/deficits/manufacturing/revenue,” wrote Justin Wolfers a professor of economics and public policy.
Meanwhile, that provision House Republicans quietly inserted into the bill that at least temporarily would revoke their authority is now getting some attention.
“Republicans snuck a provision into the rule for the CR that would preemptively surrender congressional authority to block tariffs,” observes Aaron Fritschner, deputy chief of staff to U.S. Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA). “When House Republicans vote for this rule today, they will also be voting to support Trump’s tariffs and all the resulting damage to the US economy.”
Congressman Beyer, in a joint statement with U.S. Rep. Suzan DelBene (D-WA), blasted the rule:
“”Every House Republican who votes for this measure is voting to give Trump expanded powers to raise taxes on American households through tariffs with full knowledge of how he is using those powers, and every Republican will own the economic consequences of that vote. It speaks volumes that Republicans are sneaking this provision into a procedural measure hidden from the American people.”
“While [Trump] babbles about making Canada the 51st state, your groceries and housing are getting more expensive and your retirement accounts are getting crushed- and House Republicans are supporting him every step of the way.”
The provision might be able to be removed if the House voted to do so after the CR is passed, but chances of that happening — voting to oppose a core tenet of Trump’s agenda — are slim if the GOP holds the House majority. Trump would also have to sign the bill, or the House would have to overturn a veto.
Some House Democrats are explaining their opposition to other provisions in the continuing resolution, which one of them, U.S. Rep. Sean Casten (D-IL), appears to compare to an exercise in bondage.
“I don’t know whether the GOP will get the votes on their disaster of a bill this week. But I do know that majorities of Republicans voted against similar bills for all of the last 2 years. So what is making them strap on the ball gag and climb into Trump’s dungeon now?” Congressman Casten wrote on social media.
Noting that “Congress has the Constitutional power of the purse and has reaffirmed it through multiple laws (Impoundment Control Act, Anti-Rescission Act) that are being used by multiple courts to block the WH’s over-reach,” Casten warns that the CR “has language that would weaken those cases.”
“This is what you do to cower before a mad king. It is not what you do if you are defending a constitutional democracy,” he declares.
And continuing his explanation for opposing the bill — and continuing his ribald language, Casten notes that the bill “would cut ~$28 billion in funding we passed under the PACT Act to make sure veterans who were exposed to Agent Orange and toxic burn pits get healthcare coverage. Pissing on US veterans is a choice.”
There’s more.
“It would slash funding for USDA food inspectors. You know, the people who go into monitor the spread of avian flu, or to make sure you don’t have E. Coli in your lettuce,” he writes.
“It gives the White House much more discretion over public-private partnerships, essentially allowing them to prioritize infrastructure projects (highways, rail, etc.) only in their political supporters communities. That is anti-American, in the purest sense,” says Casten.
“It cuts rent subsidies for low-income folks. Which means a whole lot of landlords are going to find themselves forced to evict some ~32,000 families. If you think your community needs more homelessness, that’s a good idea. Otherwise… really f’ing dumb.”
Congressman Casten concludes, “Here’s the bottom line. When faced with a constitutional crisis, some members of Congress are fighting back. Others are strapping on the ball gag, climbing into Trump’s dungeon and assuming the American people share their masochistic fetish.”
Casten also includes in his analogy Fritschner’s observation about stopping their ability to block Trump’s tariff’s. He responds: “This is how you legislatively mandate the ball gag.”
See the video or at this link.
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