DIRTY TRICKS 2.5

1. Eliminated food safety

• Advisory committees on food safety were disbanded or weakened.
• Food inspection standards relaxed.
• Verdict: Mostly true
• Source: NPR, 2025

2. Taking bribes

• No conclusive public evidence or court rulings proving bribery.
• Allegations remain unproven legally.
• Verdict: Not proven
• Source: Politico, 2025

3. Dismantling civil-service

• Weakened job security and firing protections for federal employees.
• Simplified removal of career civil servants.
• Verdict: Largely true
• Source: White House, 2025

4. Using the presidency for profit 

• Conflicts of interest with government clients paying for Trump properties.
• Ethics watchdogs documented financial benefits.
• Verdict: Well supported
• Source: CREW, 2025

5. Silencing critics

• Media pressure and intimidation documented.
• Examples include talk show host suspensions linked to administration pressure.
• Verdict: Supported
• Source: EW.com, 2025

6. Threatening the press

• Threats of regulatory actions against unfavorable media.
• Public attacks on press credibility.
• Verdict: Supported
• Source: Reporters Committee, 2025

7. Promoting propaganda

• Labeling critical media “fake news.”
• Promoting administration-friendly narratives.
• Verdict: Plausible
• Source: Poynter, 2025

8. Undermining the rule of law

• Ignored court orders, especially on immigration.
• Interference with judiciary processes reported.
• Verdict: Well supported
• Source: The Guardian, 2025

9. Attacking voting rights

• Supported laws making voting harder for some groups.
• Efforts to weaken voting protections.
• Verdict: Largely supported
• Source: ACLU, 2025

10. Putting political cronies in charge

• Many appointments are based on loyalty, not merit.
• Cronyism is widespread in government posts.
• Verdict: Supported
• Source: Washington Post, 2025

11. Undermining democracy

• Baseless claims of election fraud.
• Attempts to discredit election institutions.
• Verdict: Well supported
• Source: BBC, 2025

12. Attacking the Constitution

• Challenged the separation of powers.
• Ignored constitutional checks and balances.
• Verdict: Largely supported
• Source: SCOTUS Blog, 2025

13. Ignoring climate change

• Withdrew from the Paris Agreement.
• Rolled back environmental protections.
• Verdict: Well supported
• Source: EPA, 2025

14. Privatizing public lands

• Opened protected lands for extraction industries.
• Reduced land protections significantly.
• Verdict: Largely supported
• Source: USGS, 2025

15. Undermining public health

• Mishandled the COVID-19 pandemic response.
• Cuts to health funding and science-based policies.
• Verdict: Well supported
• Source: CDC, 2025

16. Weaponizing government 

• DOJ and IRS were used against political opponents.
• Favoritism towards allies documented.
• Verdict: Largely supported
• Source: NYTimes, 2025

17. Crushing unions

• Rolled back labor protections.
• Appointed anti-union officials.
• Verdict: Largely supported
• Source: AP News, 2025

18. Privatizing the military

• Increased reliance on private military contractors.
• Accountability concerns raised.
• Verdict: Supported
• Source: Defense Department, 2025

19. Politicizing the military

• Military events are used for political purposes.
• Pressure on military loyalty to Trump personally.
• Verdict: Well supported
• Source: CNN, 2025

20. Ignoring veterans

• Mixed record: increased funding but criticized for inadequate support.
• Veteran groups voiced concerns.
• Verdict: Partially supported
• Source: VA, 2025

21. Violating human rights

• Documented family separations at the border.
• International human rights criticism.
• Verdict: Well supported
• Source: Human Rights Watch, 2025

22. Enriching family & friends

• Family members benefited financially and through contracts.
• Nepotism concerns are widespread.
• Verdict: Largely supported
• Source: NYTimes, 2025

23. Ignoring national security

• Disregarded intelligence community assessments.
• Controversial dealings with adversaries.
• Verdict: Supported
• Source: CNN, 2025

24. Causing economic harm

• Trade wars disrupted markets.
• Tax policies favored the wealthy; the pandemic response caused a downturn.
• Verdict: Partially supported

• Source: Bloomberg, 2025

  Initially, dirty tricks referred to a series of GOP illegal and unethical tactics used by CREEP Nixon during the Republican administration, most notably orchestrated by individuals like Donald Segretti. These "dirty tricks" included spreading false information, creating forged letters, and planning disruptive actions against political opponents, which culminated in the Watergate scandal after the committee to re-elect the president, (CREEP) operatives broke into the Democratic National Committee headquarters.