DAVID MARCUS: How Democrats sneaked in reparations, and how they'll protect them
DAVID MARCUS: How Democrats sneaked in reparations, and how they'll protect them
James Carville's advice to 'just do it' without talking about it mirrors what's already happened
The battle over reparations for racial minorities in the United States has grown somewhat quiet in recent years, but it's not because proponents of it have surrendered. It's because they have already won.
The list of ways in which our government redistributes wealth to minorities is long, as you’ll see below, but first, it's worth paying attention to something that Democratic strategist James Carville said recently.
Cannabis Culture store in Manhattan, New York, on Oct. 21, 2022. (Beata Zawrzel/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Referring to packing the Supreme Court and making Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico states, should Democrats retake power, the cagey old Cajun said, "Don't run on it. Don't talk about it. Just do it."
I posit that this is precisely what Democrats have done in regard to reparations.
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Take for example, marijuana legalization laws in states such as New York and Minnesota that offer loans, often forgivable, and training only to Black and Brown people, or other "special equity" groups,
This is millions of tax dollars being given to people solely on the basis of their race.
The excuse Democrats use is that Black and Brown people were disproportionately harmed by harsh drug laws, but obviously the vast majority have never been arrested for drug crimes.
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And it's not just the weed business. In Democratic enclave after Democratic enclave, these set-aside programs exist to help these "special equity" groups get a leg up in businesses like, oh, I don’t know, daycare centers and hospices. In states like Minnesota and California, we have seen how this form of reparations easily falls prey to fraud.
Another form of reparations that has saturated our society over the past two decades is mandatory Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion training both in the public and the private sector.
Another form of reparations that has saturated our society over the past two decades is mandatory Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion training. (Getty Images)
When a state or locality mandates, as almost every blue one does, that every government employee has to watch an hour-long video about how not to be a racist, with a quiz at the end, that costs millions, almost exclusively paid to Black- and Brown-owned providers.
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Even reparations studies themselves, of which there has been an endless supply and which all seem to land on needing more money for more studies, is a form of reparations.
Democrats aren’t even particularly shy about their use of reparations anymore. New York Mayor Zorhan Mamdani, as a candidate, defended his plan to heavily tax "wealthier and whiter," neighborhoods, by saying, "That is just a description of what we see right now. It’s not driven by race. It’s more of an assessment of what neighborhoods are being under-taxed versus over-taxed."
For some reason, Madman Mamdani thinks that if he phrases it this way he isn’t saying, "White people have too much money so the government will give some of it to non-White people," but that is exactly and literally what he is saying.
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This is how normalized and regular the use of reparations has already become in our society.
Democrats are not trying to bring about reparations, they already have. What they are doing now is protecting the multibillion-dollar industries that their backdoor reparations have already created.
Sadly, most of the people who benefit from this de facto form of reparations are a handful of activists, who like those who ran Black Lives Matters, often enrich themselves in the guise of fighting systemic racism.
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The vast majority of Black and Brown people do not benefit from a small number getting cheap forgivable loans to sling weed, only the people who take that money do.
Nobody has ever been brought out of poverty as a result of a DEI workplace training requirement, but those providing the services live high on the hog.
And all of these beneficiaries, though a small slice of the Black and Brown population, are generous donors and organizers for the Democratic Party.
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Nice work if you can get it.
Although most of this form of reparations is occurring on the state and local level, that doesn’t mean there is no role for the federal government to play. Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon has shown a willingness to go after these programs.
More needs to be done. This normalization that Democrats have pushed, of the government treating people differently based on the color of their skin, must be pulled out by the roots.
And as Carville pointed out, let this serve as a warning: The Democrats don’t have to tell you how they will fundamentally harm our country before they actually do it.
David Marcus is a columnist living in West Virginia and the author of "Charade: The COVID Lies That Crushed A Nation."
Trump Signs Order Expediting Drugs for Mental Health Treatment
President Donald Trump signed an executive order Saturday that he said “directs the FDA to expedite their review of certain psychedelics already designated as breakthrough therapy drugs.” A primary objective of the order is to speed treatment for veterans.
“The executive order I’m signing, we’re actually signing the executive order today, is really a moment,” Trump said. “These treatments are currently in the advanced stages of clinical trials to ensure that they’re both safe and effective for the American patients.”
The president said the executive order would implement “historic reforms to dramatically accelerate access to new medical research and treatments based on psychedelic drugs.” Citing the elevated veteran suicide rate, the president added: “In many cases, these experimental treatments have shown life-changing potential for those suffering from severe mental illness and depression, including our cherished veterans.”
“And the nice part is we’re actually doing this early, but it has been going on. Research has been going on for quite some time. But, you know, usually with things like this, nothing ever happens, no matter how the research ends up, but we’re changing that. This order will clear away unnecessary bureaucratic hurdles, improve data sharing among the FDA and the Department of Veterans Affairs, and facilitate fast rescheduling of any psychedelic drugs that become FDA approved,” Trump continued.
The president said “in 2024, a study from Stanford University, 30 special operation veterans with traumatic brain injuries underwent — it’s called ibogaine treatment — ibogaine, remember the name,” noting that they “experienced an 80 to 90% reduction in symptoms of depression and anxiety within one month.”
“In Texas, Republican leaders have already committed $50 million to the ibogaine research. And today, the federal government is making a $50 million research investment in its own. And so that was just approved just last night,” Trump announced.
“We’re also opening a pathway for ibogaine to be administered to desperately ill patients under the right to try law,” Trump said.
“Today’s order will ensure that people suffering from debilitating symptoms might finally have a chance to reclaim their lives and lead a happier life, just lead a happier life,” he added.
Two weeks ago, Trump signed a sweeping executive order aimed at tightening federal oversight of election integrity, directing multiple agencies to expand voter eligibility verification and impose new controls on mail-in ballots.
The order, titled “Ensuring Citizenship Verification and Integrity in Federal Elections,” outlines a series of measures that would increase coordination between federal agencies and state election officials, while also establishing new procedures for how ballots are distributed and tracked through the mail system.
At the core of the directive is a requirement that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), working with the Social Security Administration (SSA), compile and transmit lists of individuals confirmed to be U.S. citizens to state election authorities. These “State Citizenship Lists” would be generated using federal databases, including immigration and Social Security records, and updated regularly ahead of federal elections.
According to the order, the lists are intended to help states verify voter eligibility, though inclusion on the list would not automatically register an individual to vote. State laws and procedures would still govern registration requirements.
The order also calls for the Department of Justice (DOJ) to prioritize investigations and potential prosecutions related to election law violations. This includes cases involving the distribution of ballots to individuals deemed ineligible to vote, as well as any actors—public or private—who may be involved in producing or sending such ballots.
In a significant expansion of federal involvement in mail voting procedures, the directive instructs the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) to develop new rules governing the handling of mail-in and absentee ballots. Within 60 days, the Postmaster General is required to initiate a rulemaking process that would standardize ballot tracking and verification measures nationwide.
Under the proposed framework, all mail-in ballots would be required to use specially marked envelopes designated as official election mail. These envelopes must include unique tracking barcodes and meet specific design standards set by USPS to ensure compatibility with automated processing systems.
Trump Says He’s in No Hurry to Make Deal With Iran
The president gave an update on negotiations between Washington and Tehran in a weekend interview.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a Cabinet meeting in the Cabinet Room of the White House on March 26, 2026 in Washington. This is Trump's second Cabinet meeting of 2026 and the first since the United States and Israel began attacking Iran on Feb. 28, 2026. Chip Somodevilla/Getty U.S. President Donald Trump, in an interview published on May 30, said that he is in no hurry to make a deal with Iran to end the war, saying that neither Washington nor Tehran has signed an agreement yet.
“I’d like to say I’m in a hurry because gasoline prices are going to come tumbling down, but if you’re going to be in a hurry, you’re not going to make a good deal,” Trump told Fox News. “And slowly but surely we’re getting, I think, what we want, and if we don’t get what we want, we’re going to end it a different way.”
For weeks, the United States and Iran have been working to come to an agreement that would end the war, which started in February, as the conflict remains in a ceasefire. On May 29, Trump released the terms of a deal with Tehran and said he would be making a final decision soon.
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Along with demanding that Iran not obtain a nuclear weapon, Trump said in a post on Truth Social that the Strait of Hormuz must be opened “in both directions” and that Tehran must “complete the immediate removal and/or detonation of any mines that are left.”
Since the start of the conflict, the strait has effectively remained shut down, sending oil and gas prices surging, as the strait allows for the transit of about a fifth of the world’s traded oil and natural gas. As of May 31, gas prices in the United States averaged $4.34 per gallon, according to the American Automobile Association.
A White House official told The Epoch Times on May 29 that a White House meeting in the Situation Room on Iran lasted approximately two hours. No details were provided.
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Iran on May 31 claimed that the country’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) shot down a U.S. military drone that entered its airspace, in comments carried by state-run Tasnim News. The U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) has not publicly commented on the incident.
A top Iranian official, Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, also said on May 31 that Tehran’s military force is “pushing back the enemy in a great and history-making war,” referring to the United States, according to state-run media. He also claimed that the United States has retreated from the conflict while pushing a narrative of unity in the Iranian regime.
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In his May 29 post on Truth Social, Trump also wrote that mines would be removed from the strait and that ships trapped there may start to go home.
“Say HELLO to your wives, husbands, parents, and families from me, your favorite President!” he said.
On May 30, War Department Secretary Pete Hegseth said the United States would restart attacks against Iran if no deal can be reached and that the military’s ammunition stockpiles are being replenished.
“Our ability to recommence if necessary ... we are more than capable,” Hegseth told reporters in Singapore. “Our stockpiles are more than suited for that, both there and around the globe, so we’re in a very good place.”
The Pentagon head said that Trump was “patient” and that the president wants to make a “great deal” that ensures that Iran does not obtain a nuclear weapon.
Reuters contributed to this report.
