"He takes food and health care from the neediest and tries to, in his words, traumatize people

[Quiet Em]

—then he calls himself a Christian,”

“Everyone still remembers when he said he wanted to cause maximum trauma to federal workers,” the neighbor said. “And that’s hard to forget.”

Russ Vought Is Trump’s Shutdown Hero. His Neighbors Think His Work Is “Abhorrent.”

https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2025/10/russ-vought-is-trumps-shutdown-hero-his-neighbors-think-his-work-is-abhorrent/

What You Should Know About Russ Vought, Trump’s Shadow President
Vought is the architect of President Trump’s broader plan to fire civil servants, freeze government programs and dismantle entire agencies. Here are some key things to know about the D.C. insider who wants to take a hatchet to the federal government.

https://www.propublica.org/article/about-russell-vought-trump-shadow-president?utm_campaign=propublica-sprout&utm_content=1761656434&utm_medium=social&utm_source=bluesky

The first article is from Oct. 3, the second one from Oct. 20, but the fact remains that this shutdown and the cruelty is being brought to you by Russ Vought. And this cruelty is intentional.

[Irish_Dem]

1. Trump could have handled everything in a less traumatic way.

Immigration, federal workforce cut backs, etc.

But he chooses the most public and brutal strategies.
The cruelty is the fun part for him.

[Dave Bowman]

2. He's a total psychopath.

[Baitball Blogger]

3. I think he wants these people hungry and crazed so he can use them against the Democratic party.

That's why we have to win the framing war.

[usonian]

4. The cruelty is to make you forget Epstein, whether you abhor or delight in it.

Yes, Trump will sacrifice his only misbegotten son, Mike.

[Jbraybarten]

5. He loves the pain and chaos that he causes.

[EYESORE 9001]

6. So Russ Vought has neighbors

He’ll have to live in a fucking bunker before it’s through.

[Seinan Sensei]

9. Russ Vought is the face of evil

Name something -- anything -- of his that aligns with the teachings of Jesus

[EYESORE 9001]

11. Reminds me of another plutocrat - Peter Thiel

He’s currently obsessed with identifying ‘the Antichrist’, and so far the best he can do is Greta Thunberg?
😱
Not a word about following the teachings of the ‘real’ Christ.

[AnnaLee]

7. In 2020, Trump declared himself winner of a lost election.

Now, he believes he has won a second Civil War and is the architect of Reconstruction to maim and impoverish his perceived enemies. Those enemies start with most Americans, most American institutions, most small American owned businesses, most American structures and monuments, all immigrants he isn't married to, all women, (you finish with what I forgot).

I sometimes seriously think he wants to show that, given the power of the Presidency, he can, for the fun of it?, make Americans relive even the depression so that he can try to remodel historic tragedies in a way where "his chosen" win and everyone else, worldwide, lose.

We are in a Reconstruction and MAGA has been fooled into believing they are getting revenge on the those who won the Civil War. They notice, but don't care, that they may lose everything but fake male superiority and fake jesus because the big guy lets them believe they can hang out in a golden ball room.

[Hugin]

8. The big lie covering their bigotry and contempt...

Has always been that they had something better than Social Security, Medicaid, Medicare, ACA, and other aspects of the security net.

If they did, why not just implement it? Why the need to tear down what was there first? Simply replace it.

Of course, the truth was that they never had anything else. They can’t stand to see something working that they can’t control and don’t directly profit from.

This goes far deeper than Trump. He’s only the means. This is the Republicans and their plan since Nixon and before.

Tearing down the East Wing without even a concept of an idea of what to replace it with is a metaphor for the entire Republican philosophy.

[Lonestarblue]

10. Vought is no Christian. He is Satan incarnate.

[the nelm]

12. Trump's Albert Speer...n/t

[Initech]

13. Donald Trump is an absolutely garbage, shitty excuse for a human being who brings out the absolute worst in people.