Trump Budget Seeks Funds for FBI Surveillance of Americans Over Political Beliefs

The Trump administration is seeking taxpayer dollars to surveil Americans whose political beliefs don't align with its agenda, according to budget documents flagged by Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon, D-Pa.

The White House budget proposal requests funding for a "joint mission center" that would "proactively" target Americans labeled as terrorist threats based on criteria including anti-Christian sentiment, "anti-Americanism," and "anti-capitalism." Those definitions come directly from NSPM-7, a national security memo the Trump administration issued last year.

The proposed budget explicitly references social media platforms as key surveillance targets for this domestic monitoring operation.

"We've been raising the alarm about Trump's counterterrorism directive -- NSPM-7 -- a plan to label Americans as domestic terrorists over opposition to immigration enforcement, beliefs about capitalism, and positions on race, gender, and religion," Scanlon wrote on X. "Now, the White House wants to use taxpayer dollars to spy on those who oppose its extremist agenda."

The funding request was first reported by journalist Ken Klippenstein and represents a concrete step toward implementing the administration's vision of using federal law enforcement to target political opposition.

Privacy Official Exits Justice Department

The surveillance push comes as key oversight positions are being vacated. Kilian Kagle, a privacy official with the Civil Rights Division at the Justice Department, resigned last week without providing a public explanation.

Kagle's departure is particularly notable given the division's role in overseeing voting rights -- and the Trump administration's ongoing efforts to compel states to hand over sensitive voter information. The timing raises questions about whether career officials are being pushed out or choosing to leave rather than participate in politically motivated data collection.

War Profiteering and Weapons Stockpiles

While seeking funds to spy on Americans, the Pentagon is also requesting $4.5 billion to replenish Tomahawk missiles depleted during Trump's war with Iran. Each Tomahawk missile costs approximately $2 million.

Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., pointed out on "All In with Chris Hayes" that Trump's reckless military spending directly benefits defense contractors who have agreed to fund the president's legally dubious new ballroom at the White House. The arrangement creates a clear incentive structure: the more missiles Trump fires, the more contracts flow to companies backing his personal projects.

The war has proven economically devastating while enriching the defense industry -- a pattern that should concern anyone worried about how executive power gets wielded when personal financial interests align with military escalation.

Russian Propagandists at the White House

In a stunning display of the administration's comfort with foreign influence, the founders of Tenet Media reportedly attended the White House Easter celebration on Monday. Tenet Media is a right-wing organization that was paid by Russian interests to launder pro-Russian talking points to Americans in an illegal influence scheme.

Their presence at a White House event suggests the administration sees no problem cozying up to individuals who participated in a foreign propaganda operation targeting American voters.

Erasing History at the Holocaust Memorial

The U.S. National Holocaust Memorial has quietly removed content about the connections between American racism and Nazi ideology. According to Politico, the museum deleted a page called "Teaching Materials on Nazism and Jim Crow" that provided lesson plans and resources about links between American segregation laws and the Nazi regime.

The page included materials on African American soldiers during World War II and Afro-Germans during the Holocaust. While a museum spokesperson claimed the Trump administration did not request the changes, the timing aligns with the administration's broader efforts to whitewash discussions of structural racism.

AI Slop and Lawmaker Credibility

The week also saw multiple MAGA lawmakers sharing AI-generated images purporting to show a colonel rescued after his plane was shot down over Iran. The images were fabricated, but that didn't stop members of Congress from promoting them as real.

Meanwhile, TMZ has been tracking lawmakers who vacationed during the Department of Homeland Security shutdown. Rep. John James, R-Mich., posted an old video of himself at a gun range in an apparent attempt to create doubt about whether he actually went to Turks and Caicos during the crisis.

The combination of lawmakers falling for obvious AI fakes while trying to cover up their own absences during a government shutdown speaks to a broader collapse of accountability in Congress.

The Pattern Is Clear

The Trump administration's budget priorities reveal what it actually values: surveillance of political opponents, weapons stockpiles to enrich defense contractors, and the infrastructure to label dissent as terrorism. Meanwhile, career officials responsible for protecting civil rights and privacy are heading for the exits.

This isn't about national security. It's about using the tools of national security to entrench power and punish opposition. And they want you to pay for it.