Power Without Diplomacy: How Trump's Second Term Is Reshaping America

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Democracy hangs in the balance as Trump's second term unfolds through executive orders and policy reversals that fundamentally alter America's relationship with education, business, and the world at large.

Harvard University stands at the forefront of resistance, challenging the administration's attempt to ban international students through what the university calls "clear retaliation" for exercising First Amendment rights. While a federal judge has temporarily halted this ban, the case exemplifies growing tensions between academic freedom and executive authority.

Meanwhile, American consumers face mounting challenges as Trump drops lawsuits against companies like Boeing and Capital One that the previous administration had pursued for alleged consumer abuses. "They've never seen a business practice they didn't approve of," notes one advocate, highlighting how protective guardrails are being systematically dismantled.

The economic consequences of "America First" policies become increasingly apparent, with analysts warning that domestically manufactured iPhones could triple in price to $3,500 if Trump forces Apple's production stateside. His threat of a "straight 50% tariff" against the European Union further showcases his preference for economic strong-arming over diplomatic negotiation, proudly declaring "I'm not looking for a deal."

Perhaps most revealing is the record surge of Americans applying for UK citizenship since Trump began his second term – a 12% jump that mirrors a similar spike during his first presidency. While these developments unfold, small acts of community kindness shine through, like the Iranian immigrant dry cleaner offering free services to job seekers, reminding us of the generosity and hope that persists despite political turmoil.

How will these policies reshape America's place in the world and affect your daily life? Listen now to understand what's at stake and why preserving democratic values matters more than ever.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
This is a world gone mad.
This is a world gone mad, mad,mad, mad, mad.
Yes, another week of A WorldGone Mad.
I'm Jeff Allen Wolf.
I'm back again to give mycommentary on the news.
Thank you for joining me.
Let's jump right in.
Here we go.
So a federal judge hastemporarily halted the Trump

(00:22):
administration's ban on HarvardUniversity's ability to enroll
international students.
Now US District Court JudgeAllison Burroughs ruled hours
after the nation's oldest andwealthiest college filed suit
Friday of its certification inthe student and exchange visitor

(00:44):
program was clear retaliationfor its refusal of the
government's ideologicallyrooted policy demands.
Now Burroughs is the same judgeconsidering a separate lawsuit
from Harvard challenging theadministration's freeze of $2.65
billion in federal funding.

(01:05):
Harvard's latest complaintargues the decision Thursday to
drop the school from theDepartment of Homeland
Security's SEVP system and thatit violates the law.
It is the latest act by thegovernment in clear retaliation
for Harvard exercising its FirstAmendment rights to reject the

(01:28):
government's demands to controlHarvard's governance, curriculum
and the ideology of its facultyand students.
The complaint states you know,there's only so many things you
can say about Donald Trump.
This stuff is silly.
Only so many things you can sayabout Donald Trump.
This stuff is silly.
It literally is an ABC of andI'm sorry to make this analogy,

(01:54):
but let's get anybody who's notwhite and who's not here, you
know, totally rallying aroundTrump and the Republican way of
life.
Get them the hell out of thiscountry and in this case Harvard
.
They're not allowed to haveinternational students and in
fact Trump even said he wentfurther that any students that
are there have to now leaveHarvard, relocate, go elsewhere.

(02:19):
I know Trump and the minionssupporting him want them to go
out of our country.
Very stupid, very lousy policy.
Let's see what the court systemrules.
Trump keeps dropping lawsuitsagainst companies Biden said
were cheating Americans.
Now the Trump administration isgiving businesses a free pass

(02:44):
from a wide variety ofenforcement actions.
Boeing, capital One, southwestAirlines and Coinbase all face
legal action from the Bidenadministration, which accused
the companies of cheating theircustomers, the government or
just otherwise acting improperly, but multiple federal agencies

(03:04):
under President Donald Trumphave dropped those suits.
Consumer advocates say thedropping of those legal actions
removes protections thatcustomers can't replace on their
own, giving businesses thegreen light to take advantage of
customers without fear ofpenalty.
They're basically trying totake consumer financial

(03:24):
protection down to zero, notdefend people at all when
they've been ripped off by banksand other financial service
companies, said Chuck Bell,financial policy, advocate of
Consumer Reports.
They've never seen a businesspractice they didn't approve of
the White House and most of theagencies did not respond to a

(03:46):
request for comment.
So basically, the handcuffs orshackles, so to speak, on these
companies are removed by Trump.
The consumer gets screwed.
No protection for us, no properchannels to go through.
Trump just said to all thesecompanies do what you want to do
against the American public.
Shameful.

(04:09):
Trump signs executive ordersthat White House says will boost
nuclear energy.
President Donald Trump signedfour nuclear energy related
executive orders on Friday thatwill speed up reactor testing,
allow the Departments of Energyand Defense to build nuclear
reactors on federally owned land, overhaul the Nuclear

(04:29):
Regulatory Commission, boost theUnited States mining enrichment
of uranium, a senior WhiteHouse official said.
Now the president also signedan order to restore what the
White House called gold standardscience, which comes as the
administration has cut billionsin federal grants that fund
scientific research and slashstaffing at several

(04:51):
science-focused agencies.
We're signing tremendousexecutive orders today that
really will make us the realpower in this industry, which is
a big industry, trump saidduring an Oval Office signing
ceremony.
So same methodology, same storyDonald removing the safeguards

(05:13):
that protect this country.
This is Trump's version of thatlittle blue pill that keeps his
genitals hard.
You know, it's his Viagra.
Pure power to Trump with allhis executive orders.
More Trump madness.

(05:33):
The iPhone could triple in priceto ready.
Thirty five hundred dollars foran iPhone if they're made in
the US analysis.
But wow, can't say that today,right guys?
Sorry about that.
An analyst warns US PresidentDonald Trump boasted jobs and

(05:55):
factories will come roaring backwhen he unleashed unprecedented
tariffs around the world duringhis Liberation Day address last
month.
But there's one product thepresident is particularly eager
to produce in the US iPhones.
I've long ago informed Tim Cookof Apple that I expect their
iPhones that will be sold in theUnited States of America will

(06:16):
be manufactured and built in theUnited States, not India or any
place else.
Trump posted Friday morning onTwo Social If that is not the
case and Apple doesn't do that,a tariff.
Ha, you gotta laugh everyone.
A tariff of at least 25% mustbe paid by Apple to the United
States.

(06:36):
But Dan Ives, global Head ofTechnology Research at financial
services firm WedbushSecurities, told CNN's Aaron
Burnett in April.
That idea is a fictional tale.
Us-made iPhones will likelycost more than three times their
current price of around $1,000,I've said because of the costs

(06:58):
associated with replicating thehighly complex production
ecosystem that currently existsin Asia.
You build that supply chain inthe US with a fab in West
Virginia and New Jersey.
There'll be $3,500 iPhones,referring to fabrication plants
or high-tech manufacturingfacilities where computer chips

(07:22):
that power electronic devicesare normally made.
Were computer chips that powerelectronic devices are normally
made, even then it would costApple about $30 billion and
three years to move just 10% oftheir supply chain to the US.
To begin with, ives toldBurnett no comment, yet back
from Apple.
So, trump, I want to laughlisteners, but it's so sad and

(07:46):
so dangerous.
Trump basically telling Appleagain, like he does with
everything else in his life andnow in the presidency you do
what I want and if you don't,there's going to be tariffs.
And an analyst is saying ifApple does everything in America
, the phone will triple plus incost to us, the consumer.

(08:09):
Trump doesn't get it.
He never will.
His minions lie down, roll overand play dead.
Trump says he's not looking fora deal with the EU after
threatening here we go.
Everyone say it with me a 50%tariff.
That's why all of you in theback and to the side, tariff,

(08:31):
tariff, tariff.
That's what Trump wants.
That's the only thing he knowsto do is tariffs.
President Donald Trump on Fridaythreatened a 50% tariff on
goods from the European Union,citing a lack of progress in
current trade negotiations.
Their powerful trade barriersVAT taxes, ridiculous corporate

(08:52):
penalties, non-monetary tradebarriers, monetary manipulations
, unfair and unjustifiedlawsuits against American
companies and more have led to atrade deficit with the US of
more than $250 billion a year, anumber which is totally

(09:13):
unacceptable, he wrote in a truesocial post Friday morning.
Our discussions with them aregoing nowhere, Trump wrote.
Therefore, I am recommending astraight 50% tariff on the
European Union, starting on June1st 2025.
But later, friday, at anexecutive order signing in the

(09:34):
Oval Office, trump escalated hismessage to the EU.
You know what I'm not lookingfor?
A deal.
We've set the deal.
It's 50% tariff.
Trump opened the door topushing his June 1st deadline,
further saying if somebody comesin and wants to build a plant
here in America, I can talk tothem about a little bit of a

(09:55):
delay.
Ah, it taxes my patience,wolfpack listeners.
Trump has either lost itdementia.
He's a lunatic, a little ofboth, a little of neither but
he's one screwed up person inthe White House and shouldn't be
in charge of anything.

(10:16):
And it's terrible what he'sdoing to Apple and other
countries and the consumer andHarvard and just a total waste
of DNA and a big mess.
This is a broken record withpure, unadulterated power by
Donald.
Plain and simple Do it my wayor else no diplomacy at all.

(10:39):
We all know this and we seethis on a daily basis.
We all know this and we seethis on a daily basis.
A record number of Americansapplied for UK citizenship as
Trump began his second term.
A record number of Americansapplied for the British
citizenship between January andMarch, according to the first

(11:01):
set of data covering the startof Donald Trump's second
presidential term.
Now, some 1,931 Americans putin an application, the most
since records began in 2004, anda jump of 12% on the previous
quarter.
Figures from the UK Home Officeshowed Thursday, applications
had already soared during theOctober-December period which
coincided with Trump'sre-election.

(11:22):
Successful applications by UScitizens to settle permanently
in the United Kingdom, ratherthan just move there initially,
also hit a record high last year, the latest period for which
official data is available Now.
Settlement comes with the rightto live work study in Britain

(11:42):
indefinitely and can be used toapply for citizenship.
More than 5,500 Americans weregranted settled status in 2024,
a fifth more than in 2023.
And here's a fact for youlisteners the last time American
applications for Britishcitizenship spiked guess when?
2020, during Trump's firstpresidential term and at the

(12:10):
height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Of course, all these people aregetting passports and want to
have citizenship in UK andelsewhere, because these people
think Donald Trump is a fuckinglunatic, a power mad freak with
no concern for anybody buthimself.
We know this deeply and a lotof people are acting on the

(12:36):
situation with getting thesepassports slash citizenships.
Supreme Court pauses the attemptto force DOGE to clarify its
role.
Chief Justice John Roberts onFriday temporarily paused action
in an emergency appeal overwhether the Department of
Government Efficiency, which wasrun by, if you remember, musk,
must turn over public documentslike other government agencies,

(12:56):
or whether it's shielded fromsuch requests because it is part
of the White House.
The case raises fundamentalquestions about the power and
transparency of an entity thathas slashed agency budgets and
government employees withunusual speed and that has
inspired a wave of federallawsuits against the Trump
administration, roberts, whohandles emergency cases rising

(13:20):
from the Federal Appeals Courtin Washington DC, issued an
administrative stay intended tohalt action for a short period
to give the justices time toreview the written briefing in
the case.
As is typically the case withsuch orders, he did not explain
his reasoning.
The emergency appeal fromPresident Donald Trump had

(13:41):
requested that the justices halta lower court order that would
allow a government watchdoggroup to depose DOGE staff to
better understand the entity'srole within the federal
government.
As they argue, it should becovered under the transparency
law known as the Freedom ofInformation Act.
The underlying request remainspending.

(14:01):
Remains pending.
So has anyone noticed besides meand I say that with heavy
sarcasm that the Supreme Courtat least the conservative side
of the Supreme Court has becomea big bunch of pussies?
And finally, the segment that Istarted a couple of months ago

(14:21):
and this is with permission fromthe Good News Network.
Here's a story about the ownerof a California dry cleaner and
how he's showing those down ontheir luck that the community
wants them to succeed, so he'sensuring they look their best as
they get ready for their nextbig break.
After talking to fellow ownersof dry cleaners about how they
could give something back to thecommunities.

(14:42):
He decided to offer speedycleaning and pressing of clothes
for free to any unemployedcustomer heading to a job
interview At Luxe Cleaning andAlterations on 1610 West
Campbell in San Jose.
Wes Campbell in San Jose ownerAli Sherkhodai says the pro bono

(15:03):
work is about fulfilling hislong-held ambition to infuse his
career with acts of kindness.
I think it will definitely givethem some hope that the
community they live in caresabout them.
He told San Jose Spotlight.
It's not just about getting,it's about giving.

(15:24):
That's the part that brings allof us joy Now.
He immigrated to the UnitedStates from Iran in 1986.
Ali wasn't sure where he'd findwork, even though he possessed
a degree in molecular biology.
So when no white-collar careeropportunities came knocking, he
started Lux Cleaners, whichbecame a super successful
business in the Silicon Valleyarea.

(15:45):
He says about five to tenpeople a week arrived to take
advantage of his generosity.
Spotlight reports that justrecently a woman came to him for
a shirt pressing en route to atech company interview, and
afterwards she stopped by totell Sherkhodai that she got the
job, all before leaving afive-star Yelp review saying I

(16:09):
definitely felt the love of mycommunity, ali said he and his
team were more excited than shewas.
Spotlight described him aspossessing a typical immigrant
work ethic finishing in fourdays what other tailors will do
in four weeks, cleaningcomplicated items like Indian

(16:29):
sarays and wedding dresses.
He does it all with a smile,hoping his customers pay forward
the kindness elsewhere.
That's one of the things that Ilove about having a small
business and dealing with peopleon a daily basis, he told the
spotlight.
I see many different facesevery day.
Believe me, a small smile canchange their day.

(16:51):
How very cool.
A former immigrant, no lessright, who understands the
meaning of citizenship inAmerica, no less right.
Who understands the meaning ofcitizenship in America.
Hey, donald, you need to take alesson from people like these,
instead of putting them down andhussing them and deporting them
outside the country illegally.

(17:12):
I will be back again Mondaywith another episode of A World
Gone Mad.
I'm your host, jeff Allen Wolf.
I've said it over and overagain before Say hello, email,
text me, phone call, love tohear from you.
Until I hear from you, thelistener, I'm sitting in a room

(17:34):
talking to myself.
Stay hopeful.
There is chaos in the world,can't you see?
And we need to stand up andpreserve our democracy.
This is a world gone mad.
This is a world gone mad.