Markets are priced for an early end to the Iran war. But Tehran won't be seen to let Trump off too easily

I was too young to remember the Gulf War or any NATO Yugoslavia engagements but trying to think of a start of a US war that the public feels less engaged in than the Iran war. The lack of consent manufacturing, not quite ignorance but lack of awareness in full etc. Gas stuff might change that but

Witkoff admits he and Jared Kusher are communicating with Russia through Putin adviser Yuri Ushakov "independently." Witkoff goes on to say the Russians told them they are not sharing info with Iran. Pinky promised.

Trump, when asked, "It sounds like the Russians are helping Iran target [USians]. What do we do? Trump: “What a stupid question that is to be asking.”

The latest Quinnipiac University poll found more than half of the American electorate opposes the ongoing military campaign against Iran, and nearly three-quarters said they would be against the use of U.S. ground forces there. From Stars and Stripes' Phillip Walter Wellman:

Trump: "I had a very good call with President Putin." "Putin wants to be helpful." "You can be more helpful if you get the Ukraine Russia war over with. "He wants to be very constructive." To his benefit, Trump does claim he told Putin to stop the war in Ukraine, so that's different.

that a former DOGE software engineer may have walked out the door with access to two highly sensitive SSA databases and intended to bring that information to a private sector employer.

Yes, let's not put another dismally unqualified and incompetent Trump loyalist in charge of our government agencies. That's like taking a shit in your pants and changing your shirt.

Iranian FM Araghchi confirms they are receiving military help from Russia, "it's nothing new, and it's not a secret", when asked to confirm if Russia is providing targeting info on US troops to Iran, "as far as I know, we have a pretty good partnership with Russia."

“When President Trump says that Iran is in a place of unconditional surrender, he’s not claiming the Iranian regime is going to come out and say that themselves.” -- Karoline Leavitt That's not how this works. That's not how any of this works.

This is what we were afraid would happen during his first term, but thankfully there were enough competent adults in the room to rein him in. Now that he has surrounded himself with a clown car of incompetent sycophantic idiots who only tell him what he wants to hear, we are totally f*cked.

The administration is ill-equipped to handle the basic duties of their jobs. They choose chaos and corruption over transparency and accountability.

Dumbest news of the week so far, and that’s saying something

We shut down USAID but: www.mediaite.com/politics/pet...

The voting technology company Smartmatic accused federal prosecutors of weaponizing the Justice Department against it to promote President Donald Trump’s 2020 election lies and aid his allies facing massive defamation lawsuits. www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/...

"If your kid was in the armed services and you watched Pete Hegseth doing his WAR! schtick, what would you think? If it was me, I’d be sick to my stomach seeing that my child’s life was in the hands of a man with low character and lower intelligence."

Release the files.

We know.

Not really breaking any news here.

"MS NOW has found that the released files still appear to be incomplete, missing FBI notes and memos reflecting interviews with women alleging abuse by other prominent men." www.ms.now/news/doj-sit...

The big problem with the US discussion about Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine is that most republican and mainstream discussants suggest that Trump should pressure Putin, when they should be outraged that Trump so obviously supports Putin. Deal with reality!

Fucking clowns.

The best reporting going on right now is from ProPublica. They're careful researchers and they aren't the kind of trash that hides their work behind paywalls.

Our new searchable database is the most comprehensive public source of financial disclosures across the executive branch. Here's what we've found using the data so far:

Lutnick must go The Epstein files & other evidence is shocking We @democracydefendersfund.org & @publiccitizen.bsky.social have the receipts! Our detailed demand is here 👉 f9c23fd5-1644-4a5f-a561-d04e6b5736d6.usrfiles.com/ugd/f9c23f_8... AND @thedailybeast.bsky.social has the exclusive👇

I know it's not much compared to this war, but we're now also spending $650 million a month just on the *interest* accruing on the tariff refund money that Trump is stalling on paying back.

Congratulations to Shawn Harris, a decorated U.S. Army combat veteran endorsed by VoteVets, on advancing to a runoff in #GA14!

I would drop these off at some donation bin so fast! 🤢

Trump's taste in fashion

Everything is maybe slightly worse than we said it was going to be. Anyone paying attention could have seen this coming a million miles away.

No one in the trump administration can explain why we’re in gulf war 3–stupid Trump worried about midterms wants to make it impossible to vote —- stupid but also scary Trump administration filled with kleptocrats —-stupid but also annoying

I was in a 2 hour briefing today on the Iran War. All the briefings are closed, because Trump can't defend this war in public. I obviously can't disclose classified info, but you deserve to know how incoherent and incomplete these war plans are. 1/ Here's what I can share:

Yall we SHOULD be having stories of gossip and rumors being leaked from politics and pretty much everywhere right now. This is the perfect circus environment and the performance is closed to the public. The silence is abnormally eerie.

🔵 Democrats flip another seat in the New Hampshire State House. Democrat Bobbi Boudman wins a special election in a Trump+9 district, after losing the same seat by 14 points in 2024. A 13-point Democratic overperformance.

This is perfect. People might ask for refunds instead of donating. Put that moonfaced chud on a national tour! 🍿

Since Trump’s election: 🔵 Democrats have flipped 28 state legislative seats 🔴 Republicans have flipped 0

Our analysis, which shows that more women nearly bled to death during miscarriage after Texas banned abortion, adds to a growing body of reporting revealing that maternal outcomes have gotten worse under bans. (Published July 2025)

The law of unintended consequences rules.

A political commentator who argued that white people are the victims of racism and need help protecting their “identity” withdrew his candidacy Tuesday for a senior diplomatic role in the State Department as Republican opposition placed his nomination in jeopardy.

⬇️ For your consideration: Watch to learn about the $220M taxpayer-funded ad campaign that's tied to a mysterious Delaware LLC and a horse named Gill. More details: propub.li/4uoc28E

Donald Trump’s mental decline has gotten worse recently — and the media is barely reporting on it. This is happening as he launches a costly war that he can't coherently explain or even offer a justification for. This is a danger to us all. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NQHLciC67V8

They. Just. Lie.

This is the guy who likes to downplay non-fatal injuries suffered by US service members in combat.

They hate me because I fight. They attack me because I win. I will do everything I can to protect free and fair elections. I will never back down.

Jeffrey Epstein's best friend, Donald Trump: "You daughter, she has to be of age. Like above 6 years old."

I guess since battery tech and solar energy is now cheaper than ever (and the price is dropping!) nuclear energy is dirty, dangerous and I oppose it. We should drop the issue of using nuclear tech as it is a global security issue and we have absolutely no plans for the waste. Nuclear power is over.

But they cant feed the poor