(End of the American Dream)—Our founders intended for us to have a very small, very limited federal government. Instead, we have the largest and most bloated government in the entire history of the world. So we should all be glad that someone is finally attempting to get it under control. For far too long, ultra-powerful government agencies have been running around doing whatever they want and making our lives miserable in the process. Congress has been able to exercise very little control over these monstrosities, and their leaders had little fear of ever being held accountable for their actions. But thanks to Donald Trump and Elon Musk, a day of reckoning has arrived.
I honestly did not think that Trump and Musk were going to be able to accomplish so much in such a short period of time.
Look at what they just did to USAID. It has been operating without any sort of real accountability for decades, but it took Musk just a single weekend to feed it “into the wood chipper”…
We spent the weekend feeding USAID into the wood chipper.
Could gone to some great parties.
Did that instead.
USAID’s reign of terror is finally over.
What is left of it is going to be absorbed into the State Department under the firm hand of Secretary of State Marco Rubio…
“Well, that was always the goal was to reform it, but now we have rank insubordination,” Rubio told Fox News, in comments just one day after President Trump announced that Rubio would serve as the acting head of USAID – which itself came after Elon Musk’s DOGE team descended upon the agency and revealed that “USAID is a ball of worms. There is no apple. And when there is no apple you just need to get rid of the whole thing. That’s why it’s got to go. It’s beyond repair.”
According to Rubio, “Now we have basically an active effort — their basic attitude is, ‘We don’t work for anyone, we work for ourselves, no agency of government can tell us what to do.”
“So the president made me the acting administrator,” he added. “I’ve delegated that power to someone who is there full-time, and we’re going to go through the same process at USAID as we’re going through now at the State Department.”
It would be difficult for me to overstate how much of a disaster this is for the Democratic Party.
One source is calling it “worse than 9/11 for Democrats”…
Talked to a friend who has connections within the Democratic Party and he said the level of panic over Trump and Elon shutting down USAID is unlike anything he’s ever seen.
By following the money DOGE has struck a killing blow to the heart of the Democrat deep state machine.
Direct quote: “This is worse than 9/11 for Democrats. USAID is the primary vessel they use to achieve their political agenda. USAID is and always has been the primary source of funding for their influence peddling schemes and for their indirect sources of income”
This one federal agency was spending our tax dollars in some of the most bizarre ways imaginable.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt shared a few examples of USAID waste with the press…
Reading from the sheet, Leavitt went through it line by line.
She said: ‘$1.5 million to advance DEI in Serbia’s workplaces, $70,000 for a production of a DEI musical in Ireland, $47,000 for a transgender opera in Colombia, $32,000 for a transgender comic book in Peru.’
Hammering home the point, Leavitt, 27, who has already become a star of Trump’s administration, said: ‘I don’t know about you, but as an American taxpayer I don’t want my dollars going toward this crap.
I’m sorry, but I do not want my tax dollars to be spent on comic books in Peru. I am sure that you feel the same way. We are 36 trillion dollars in debt. We can’t afford this nonsense.
Following his dismantling of USAID, Elon Musk set his sights on the FBI.
On Tuesday, we learned that the FBI has “complied with demands to provide the Justice Department with details of thousands of employees who worked on investigations” related to the mass arrests on January 6th, 2021…
FBI officials have complied with demands to provide the Justice Department with details of thousands of employees who worked on investigations related to the January 6, 2021, US Capitol riot, according to people familiar with the situation.
The demand has caused consternation among FBI employees who fear it is meant to amass a list of personnel for possible termination by the Trump administration.
Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove, in a Friday memo with the subject line “Terminations,” had given FBI officials a noon deadline Tuesday to submit the details of thousands of agents and analysts. Bove previously ordered the firing of eight senior FBI officials, including those who oversaw cyber, national security and criminal investigations.
According to CNN, DOGE officials were seen entering FBI headquarters “to collect the information”…
Officials working for Musk at DOGE were spotted by CNN entering FBI headquarters on Tuesday in Washington, D.C., to collect the information.
FBI agents filed a lawsuit Tuesday trying to block the release of their names or identifying details after Trump administration officials demanded documents about who worked on January 6-related cases.
The agents say their jobs could be terminated within days.
The FBI has never been hit with a crisis quite like this.
Some FBI officials have already left or have been fired, but others are pledging to dig in for a fight…
The top agent in the FBI’s New York field office, meanwhile, told his colleagues he’s digging a “foxhole” to protect them.
“Do NOT resign or offer to resign,” the FBI Agents Association told members in an email obtained by CNN. “While we would never advocate for physical non-compliance, you need to be clear your removal is not voluntary.”
Separately, lawyers for prosecutors and FBI agents called the possible dismissal of employees who worked on Trump-related investigations a “violation of the due process rights” and threatened legal action in a letter to senior DOJ officials Sunday night.
It shall be very interesting to see how this plays out.
After the FBI, Musk is hinting that the IRS could be his next target.
I would love to see Musk audit the Federal Reserve as well.
Hopefully he will add that to the list.
Amazingly, some of the key members of Musk’s DOGE team have not even reached the age of 25 yet…
At just 19, Edward Coristine is the youngest of the fresh-faced bunch taking on corporate America and longstanding government institutions.
According to WIRED, he’s been dubbed an ‘expert’ in his field, and specifics about his role aren’t yet clear.
Akash Bobba, 21, Ethan Shaotran, 22, and Luke Farritor, 23, along with Coristine, have reportedly been granted A-suite level clearance for their work, meaning they can work out of the agency’s top floor with access to all physical spaces and IT systems.
I love that! If you are a young person, let me offer a little piece of advice. If you want to do great things in life, start doing them early.
Sadly, if you wait too long to get started you may find that you simply do not have enough energy to do everything that you wanted to accomplish.
President Trump promised to “drain the swamp” during his first term, but now it is actually happening during his second term.
Most federal workers have been given a short window of opportunity to accept a “deferred resignation” which would result in them being placed on “administrative leave” beginning on March 1st…
The Trump administration has sent federal workers an updated sample contract with new terms for accepting a deferred resignation, the next move in an effort to reduce the size of the federal workforce by the end of the fiscal year in September.
Federal workers who accept the administration’s resignation offer ahead of a deadline this week would work through Feb. 28 and be placed on administrative leave starting March 1, according to a copy of a contract the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) sent to federal agencies Monday.
Workers taking the deferred resignation deal would receive pay and benefits through the end of the fiscal year Sept. 30, according to a sample contract viewed by Newsweek.
So far, over 20,000 federal employees have accepted this deal, but that number is expected to grow substantially by the time we reach the deadline…
More than 20,000 employees — about 1% of the federal workforce — have signed up for an offer to quit their jobs in exchange for a deferred resignation deal that would have taxpayers continue to pay their salaries through the end of September.
But those numbers are increasing every day, according to an official familiar with the data, and the Trump administration expects a spike in resignations as employees near Thursday’s deadline to accept the offer.
Most of the people that are leaving are probably not in alignment with the new administration’s goals.
So this will be a good thing for Trump and his team.
It is being reported that if enough federal workers do not take the offer of “deferred resignation”, we could potentially see mass layoffs…
Layoffs of federal workers would be “likely” if too few employees quit under the White House’s deferred resignation program, the Washington Post reported on Tuesday, citing a memo from a General Services Administration official.
The White House last week offered 2 million civilian full-time federal workers to remain on the payroll through Sept. 30 but without having to work under the resignation offer, which is set to expire on Thursday.
Of course it isn’t just federal workers that are going to be hitting the bricks.
During the months ahead, we are going to be seeing mass layoffs all over the nation.
This period of transition is going to be tough for the entire country.
But at this moment, it is quite appropriate to be excited about the revolution that is occurring in Washington. I think that Chris Martenson summed things up quite well when he wrote this…
These are extraordinary times, and I mean that in every literal and historical sense I can muster.
Trump has started a revolution, it’s underway, and I am 100% here for it.
The short story is this is seismic. None of us have lived through what’s unfolding. Trump’s team is operating as if they are battling an internal foe that has taken over America and which seeks its destruction. If this is the case, then my view is they have correctly diagnosed the disease.
I very much agree.
But let me add a caveat.
No revolution will ultimately be successful unless America turns back to God.
We need to turn away from our evil ways and start doing what is right or else we will have no future.
So I greatly applaud efforts to make our federal government smaller and more efficient, but that is not enough.
There is only one way that we are truly going to turn things around, and we must not forget that.
Michael’s new book entitled “Why” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com, and you can subscribe to his Substack newsletter at michaeltsnyder.substack.com.
Why Bullion Beats Numismatics and Collectible for Your Safe or IRA
Precious metals continue to attract Americans seeking reliable ways to protect their wealth amid inflation, geopolitical risks, and stock market swings. Whether stored in a home safe or held inside a self-directed IRA, physical gold and silver deliver tangible value that paper or digital assets often lack. Yet investors must choose carefully between bullion—pure bars and coins valued mainly for their metal content—and numismatics or collectibles, where rarity, history, and collector demand heavily influence pricing.
Advisor Bullion serves as a dependable source for straightforward, high-quality bullion. The company specializes in physical gold, silver, platinum, and palladium, emphasizing transparent pricing and products that deliver maximum metal content for every dollar spent. This approach makes it ideal for both personal holdings and retirement accounts.
Bullion consists of refined precious metals in standard forms like one-ounce coins (American Gold Eagles, Silver Eagles, Canadian Maple Leafs) or bars. Their value tracks closely to the current spot price of the metal. A typical gold bullion coin trades near the live gold spot price plus a small premium. This structure keeps costs clear and predictable.
Numismatic coins and collectibles add substantial value from factors such as age, rarity, minting errors, or historical significance. A pre-1933 U.S. gold coin or graded proof piece can carry premiums of 30%, 50%, or even 200% above melt value. While this appeals to hobbyists, it creates complexity. Pricing depends on subjective grading, collector trends, and auction results instead of daily spot prices.
For investors focused on wealth preservation and retirement security rather than building a collection, bullion often delivers better results.
Lower Costs and Better Liquidity for Home Storage
When keeping metals in a home safe or private vault, liquidity and efficiency count. Bullion offers clear benefits:
- You acquire more actual gold or silver per dollar invested. Numismatics divert a large share of your money into rarity premiums and massive sales commission, reducing your metal exposure.
- Selling bullion involves tight bid-ask spreads, so you recover nearly full spot value with minimal fees. Collectibles require finding the right buyer and may sell at a discount if demand for that specific item weakens.
- Bullion prices remain transparent and update with global spot markets. You can track gold near current levels or silver accordingly and know exactly where your holdings stand. Numismatic values are priced by the Gold IRA companies with hefty margins applied.
- Standardized coins and bars store efficiently and divide easily for partial sales. Rare coins often need protective slabs and controlled conditions, adding hassle and expense.
- Bullion enjoys worldwide acceptance. A 1-oz Gold Maple Leaf or Silver Eagle sells quickly to dealers anywhere. Niche numismatic pieces may appeal only to limited buyers, slowing liquidation when speed matters.
In times when quick access to value becomes important, bullion’s simplicity stands out.
Stronger Fit for Precious Metals IRAs
Precious metals IRAs continue gaining traction as investors diversify retirement portfolios beyond stocks and bonds. IRS rules permit certain bullion products in self-directed IRAs if they meet purity standards (.995 fine for gold, .999 for silver) and are held by an approved custodian. Eligible items include American Gold and Silver Eagles plus many generic bars and rounds from recognized mints.
Numismatic and most collectible coins generally face heavy scrutiny from custodians due to valuation disputes and elevated markups. These higher premiums mean less actual metal ends up working inside the account.
Bullion avoids these issues. Its value links directly to verifiable spot prices, which simplifies reporting and lowers the risk of regulatory challenges. More of your IRA contribution purchases real metal instead of dealer profits or speculative upside. Over time, owning additional ounces that appreciate with the metal itself can create meaningful outperformance compared with high-premium alternatives that deliver fewer ounces.
Regulatory guidance from the CFTC and state securities offices repeatedly cautions against aggressive sales of expensive numismatics or “semi-numismatic” coins for IRAs. For retirement planning, transparent bullion from established providers reduces risk and aligns better with long-term goals.
How to Get Started with Bullion
Begin by clarifying your goals. Are you protecting savings in a safe, or moving part of a retirement account into a precious metals IRA? Focus on the number of ounces you can acquire at current prices rather than chasing marked-up collectibles.
Diversify sensibly: use gold for core preservation and silver for its blend of industrial and monetary qualities. Mix coins for easier divisibility with bars for lower per-ounce costs on larger buys. Arrange secure storage—whether at home with proper insurance or through professional facilities.
As economic uncertainties linger and faith in conventional assets erodes, bullion continues proving its worth as a dependable store of value. Its direct approach avoids the hype that sometimes surrounds collectible markets and keeps the focus on the metal itself.
For investors prepared to strengthen their portfolios, Advisor Bullion supplies the expertise and selection needed to acquire high-quality bullion efficiently. Whether building personal holdings or integrating metals into an IRA, their emphasis on transparent, investment-grade products helps secure more ounces today that support greater financial security tomorrow. In a complicated financial landscape, bullion’s clarity and reliability make it the smarter foundation for protecting what matters most.