{"id":1013,"date":"2026-07-10T11:39:59","date_gmt":"2026-07-10T11:39:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/?p=1013"},"modified":"2026-07-10T11:39:59","modified_gmt":"2026-07-10T11:39:59","slug":"democrats-vs-the-red-scare","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/?p=1013","title":{"rendered":"Democrats vs The \u2018Red Scare\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Today\u2019s notice:<\/i><\/b> How potent is the word \u201ccommunism\u201d? A strange waiver at the SEC. Trump purges the Election Assistance Commission. CFPB\u2019s ultimatum. And: Paul Kane recalls the highs and lows of Senate nominee replacements. <\/i><\/p>\n

Read more Trump Purges Election Assistance Commission<\/a><\/p>\n

THE LATEST<\/b><\/h2>\n

Democrats are the new communists<\/b> \u2014 at least that\u2019s what Republicans are saying. During his Fourth of July speech, Donald Trump <\/b>used the words \u201ccommunist\u201d or \u201ccommunism\u201d 11 times. And there\u2019s no sign of stopping: As Republicans test out their midterms approach, you could be hearing a lot more about \u201ccommunists.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cElevating the most radical and extreme elements<\/b> of the Democratic Party is a net positive for Republicans,\u201dRepublican strategist Matt Gorman<\/b> told NOTUS\u2019 Manuela Silva, adding he believes there\u2019s no stretch in referring to some Democrats as communists: \u201cThese people have socialist and borderline communist views, and they\u2019re running under that label.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ain\u2019t gonna work<\/b>, respond Democrats.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is their attempt at trying to revitalize the Red Scare<\/b> that many people lived through decades ago, and we are not living in the same world anymore,\u201d says Usamah Andrabi, <\/b>communications director for Justice Democrats.<\/p>\n

Anti-communist messaging could still resonate<\/b> with Latinos who have a generational distrust of the political ideologies, said Steve Schale<\/b>, a Florida-based Democratic strategist who ran Obama\u2019s campaigns there. But, it\u2019s nothing new. \u201cRepublicans calling Democrats communists and socialists is a story as old as time,\u201d Schale said.<\/p>\n

Democratic strategist Rodell Mollineau<\/b> called the GOP messaging \u201claughable.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s going to be very hard for Republicans<\/b> to get into a philosophical debate and\/or throw mud at Democrats, when they\u2019re the ones in power and people are really upset and fed up at the state of the economy,\u201d Mollineau said. <\/b>Democrats\u2019 counter? How are those Trump promises about fuel costs and grocery bills?<\/p>\n

Open tabs:<\/b> Inside Trump\u2019s Oval Office Decision to Ditch the Iran Ceasefire<\/u><\/span> (WSJ); Grocery Stores Race to Cut Prices<\/u><\/span> (NYT); The renaming of Palm Beach\u2019s airport after Trump<\/u><\/span> (Palm Beach Post); The hidden costs of low-tax states<\/u><\/span> (Axios); Erika Kirk Secures Release of More Evidence From Her Husband\u2019s Killing<\/u><\/span> (NOTUS)<\/p>\n

From the SEC<\/b><\/h2>\n

Scoop: The strange case of the anonymous conflict of interest waiver. <\/b>Securities and Exchange Commission HR director David Reinhold <\/b>granted a waiver in May to an unnamed official holding stocks in Alphabet, Meta and Microsoft despite that official\u2019s work on an investigation that could involve the companies, NOTUS\u2019 Taylor Giorno reports<\/u><\/span>.<\/p>\n

Very unusual stuff: <\/b>The Trump administration has granted more than 250 conflict-of-interest waivers in his second term. But this is the only one that redacts the name and position of the official, Taylor writes.<\/p>\n

\u201c[C]ertain information may be redacted<\/b> if it would otherwise be exempt from disclosure under FOIA,\u201d Danae Serrano, the ethics counsel copied on the conflict of interest waiver, told NOTUS. The SEC declined to comment.<\/p>\n

From the Election Assistance Commission<\/b><\/h2>\n

A new mass firing. <\/b>\u201cAll three EAC commissioners were relieved of their positions as of 4pm ET today,\u201d reads an email from Amy Cohen<\/b>, executive director of the National Association of State Election Directors, to her membership last night. Jasmine snagged a copy of the message.<\/p>\n

What the EAC is: <\/b>NOTUS\u2019 government bureaucracy knower, Eric Katz, explains: EAC is a small federal agency Congress created<\/u><\/span> after the tightly contested 2000 election to write election management guidelines, provide best practices to state and municipal election officials and develop specifications for testing and certifying voting systems. EAC guidance is voluntary and the agency holds no enforcement authority. Republicans have tried, unsuccessfully, to eliminate it, though Joe Biden<\/b> doubled its size during his term. After Trump cuts, it now has just 65 employees.<\/p>\n

What administrators are saying: <\/b>\u201cIrresponsible and dangerous,\u201d Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes<\/b>, a Democrat, wrote in a statement posted online<\/u><\/span>. <\/b><\/p>\n

More on this <\/b>from NOTUS\u2019 Marissa Martinez<\/u><\/span>.<\/p>\n

From the CFPB<\/b><\/h2>\n

Move to D.C. \u2014 or else. <\/b>Acting Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Russ Vought<\/b> (a man with a couple of administration hats) signed warnings in June to employees of the department: Move to the District to work in the HQ at least two days a week by September, or lose your job. Employees have been given until July 21 to decide, NOTUS\u2019 Jade Lozada reports<\/u><\/span>.<\/p>\n

This is not the traditional RTO demand. <\/b>Many of the roughly 450 CFPB employees spread around the country are in roles designed to be outside Washington, Jade writes. The White House has said over and over it hopes to eliminate the agency entirely, but courts have blocked mass layoffs. The CFPB union sees Vought\u2019s order as an attempt to force workers to quit and further diminish the agency. Vought says he\u2019s carrying out RTO orders laid down by the president in an early executive order.<\/p>\n

From the campaign trail <\/b><\/h2>\n

Alan Keyes, Arne Carlson, Frank Lautenberg<\/b>: NOTUS\u2019 Paul Kane reminds us<\/u><\/span> of some of the highlights and lowlights of Senate nominee replacements in the wake of Graham Platner<\/b>\u2019s meltdown in the Maine Democratic primary. The good news for Democrats: Some of these people won. The bad news: While the Maine party has promised an open process, Paul writes that replacing a nominee usually requires a back-room deal, an idea that is very out of favor with voters in both parties right now.<\/p>\n

NEW ON NOTUS<\/b><\/h2>\n

Who\u2019s got the power?<\/b> Data centers, artificial intelligence, cryptocurrency mining and manufacturing, according to the 2026 draft of the National Transmission Needs Study, published every three years by the Department of Energy. NOTUS\u2019 Mara Hoplamazian reports<\/u><\/span> that this year\u2019s report says those Trump administration priorities are straining the grid, requiring more transmission infrastructure to handle the demand.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s a shift in focus from three years ago, <\/b>when a Biden-era report cited a clean energy transition as the biggest challenge for the grid.<\/p>\n

More:<\/b> Chuck Grassley Joins Democrats in Demanding Info on Kash Patel\u2019s Spending<\/u><\/span>, by Jose Pagliery<\/p>\n

DOJ Sues Maryland Over New Sanctuary Law<\/u><\/span>, by Marissa Martinez<\/p>\n

Former Olympian Pleads Not Guilty to Reflecting Pool Vandalism Charge<\/u><\/span>, by Angie Orellana Hernandez<\/p>\n

Mexico Seeks Charges Over Deaths of Mexicans in ICE Custody<\/u><\/span>, by Torrie Herrington<\/p>\n

Appeals Court Keeps Block on Texas In-State Tuition for Undocumented Students<\/u><\/span>, by Jackie Llanos<\/p>\n

NOT US<\/b><\/h2>\n

Read more The Case of the Redacted SEC Conflict of Interest Waiver<\/a><\/p>\n