I certainly hope this is a trend.

In a plea deal in 2024, Smirnov admitted that he had not only completely fabricated the Biden-Burisma connection but that it was conjured with the assistance of at least four Russian officials. trib.al/XPWuqC1

While I am not, in general, a huge fan of the Cato Institute, particularly since their policy positions often reveal a more partisan conservative bias than their professed libertarian creed, on the issue of DHS's violation of US laws and the Constitution they have been consistently spot on.

In a letter to leading Senators, the White House outlined concessions they are willing to make to end the DHS funding impasse. Among the "concessions" is an agreement not to deport American citizens. Evidently Trump considers not deporting Americans to be a concession. Link to full letter below.

With these fresh threats from Trump, the vote on the SAVE Act will provide another excellent opportunity to see which (if any) Republicans in the Senate can stand upright and which are primitive spineless creatures.

John Roberts, the man who contributed more to enabling Trump's lawlessness than anyone except perhaps Mitch McConnell, evidently just realized that his monster has turned on him. Among other rulings, Roberts brought us unlimited dark money in campaigns and absolute immunity for Trump.

Embassy Baghdad under attack. Gas fields in the UAE ablaze. All air traffic grounded across much of the region. Strait of Hormuz closed. Tanker outside the Strait attacked. Americans stranded. Thousands dead. World and US economy weakening. None of it is necessary. All of it is Trump's fault. #ETTD

Paul Noth perfectly captures the Trump Administration's complex planning in the lead-up to the war against Iran.

This map from the front page of CNN accurately portrays a curious geographic fact. That small white circle mid way between mainland Oman and Musandam is also part of Oman! It is called Al Nahwa. In the 1930's, the residents voted to be part of Oman. The border was peacefully formalized in 1969.

I'm not a fan of AI slop, but sometimes it can be as accurate and humorous as a good editorial cartoon. www.youtube.com/shorts/_Cc1D...

Just a reminder that in January of this year, Trump and Hegseth decommissioned EVERY US mine sweeper. Yep. Every. Last. One. Evidently they could never imagine a scenario in which the US needed minesweepers. In Trump's America, we are governed by idiots.

Matson nails it.

Trump forgets that has threatened to invade two different NATO allies, Canada and Denmark. He also sides with Putin over NATO every time. Pro tip for Donnie: Once you blow up a bridge, you can't blackmail people into doing what you want by threatening to blow up the ruined remains of the bridge.

Just a reminder as Trump DEMANDS that NATO countries come to rescue him from the quagmire he has created in the Persian Gulf: Article 5 of the NATO charter requires allies to respond if another member is attacked. It says nothing about helping to fight wars of choice.

Who would have guessed that after Trump started a war in the Middle East for no good reason, and as Trump publicly berates our allies as he sides with Putin, that US allies would decline Trump's invitation to put their citizens' lives at risk to save Trump from a disaster of his own making?

The Financial Times nails how Trump has undermined US national security by jettisoning professionals in favor of idiot toadies. No competent Middle East, nuclear, energy, or military expert would have supported Trump's foray into Iran. Hannah Arendt was right.

If you are a former national security official with the US military, State Department, or intelligence services, or are an academic focusing on national security, consider joining National Security Leaders For America (NSL4A), a non-partisan group dedicated to democratic principles. More info at:

The sad truth: The Supreme Court has ceased being the guarantor of our constitutionally guaranteed freedoms. Instead, the Court now rubber-stamps Trump's efforts to undermine the Constitution, destroy free speech, and end voting rights--usually via the "shadow docket" with no legal reasoning given.

As Operation Epstein Diversion continues, Allison Gill collected a few helpful reminders.

Robert Tait is among a large and growing number of analysts who believe that Trump is hoping that his insane war on Iran will lead to a major terror attack in the USA that Trump could then capitalize on in the run-up to the mid-term elections. Trump has been dreaming of cancelling the election.

Trump: The war with Iran is a total success! Also Trump: Pleads for assistance from other countries to fix the mess he created.

Simple information about what the SAVE Act would actually do to American voters. Tens of millions would lose their right to vote unless they spend lots of $$$ and jump through bureaucratic hoops before November.

No one who ever worked at senior levels of the Pentagon, State Department, or CIA would ever believe that career pros told Trump that invading Iran would be quick and easy or that Iran would not close the Strait. As this WSJ article outlines, Trump obviously ignored all advice except his own.

By threatening to deny the license of any broadcast news company that does not tow the Trump line, Carr is publicly announcing that the goal of the Trump Administration is to rip up the Constitution to install an authoritarian government.

The same Trump who regularly insults and betrays our allies, including by specifically telling the UK that he does not want their ships, is now calling upon our allies to come clean up the mess he made out of the Persian Gulf. NONE of this had to happen. ALL of this is Trump's fault.

Just curious... was ANYONE fooled by this picture that Trump posted of himself decked out in his toy soldier uniform from his obscenely expensive prep school? Can even the MAGA crowd believe that Trump ever served a day in his life, or even has a concept of what service means?

Trump's definition of "we" does NOT include ordinary Americans.

In the first two weeks of Trump's war against Iran, US taxpayers have shelled out over $16 billion for ammo and other war expenses. Meanwhile, Putin has raked in over $6 billion due to higher oil prices and Trump's decision to drop sanctions. Here at home, Americans are paying much more for energy.

A better headline, and story line, would be: "Trump starts unjustified war; asks others to finish it." www.theguardian.com/world/live/2...

A more honest and accurate headline would be: "Trump assured massive profits to fuel Putin's war on Europe while simultaneously paying off oil execs who bankrolled his campaign."

Random thoughts: I vividly remember the first time I learned that I was the target of an assassination plot. Not as a generic American diplomat (who are always targets), but me personally. Over ensuing decades, I received so many such warnings that I cannot begin to recall them all. Strange life.

Trump's decision (two weeks into his ill-considered war) to bomb Iran's Kharg island makes no sense at first, but if you think about it, there is a reason to the mad king's actions. By destroying a major oil terminal, Trump is ensuring that Putin will continue to enjoy massive inflows of cash.

Thanks to Trump's war of choice in the Persian Gulf and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, Putin is raking in an extra $150 million A DAY to fund his war in Ukraine. Over the next few weeks, Putin will rake in at least $10 billion. Does anyone think Putin will help Iran to keep the Strait closed?

While MAGA trolls can be annoying, they are straight-forward about their intentions. The closeted MAGA trolls are more insidious. Rather than screaming MAGA MAGA, they use tactics such as "what-about-ism" and "sane-washing" Trump's lies, whines and rants in the hopes of confusing people.

When a federal judge (finally) put ICE officers under oath, they admitted that they are given daily detention quotas and rely heavily on a Palantir-supplied AI tool to select targets, without warrants and without enough evidence to obtain one. They simply go into neighborhoods and round people up.

What the US Military's own rules say about Hegseth's decision to sink an Iranian ship and then deny assistance to survivors.

Putin is already supplying intelligence to Iran to help them target US bases and service members in the Gulf region. Now that Trump has announced that the US will suspend sanctions on Russian oil for as long as the Strait of Hormuz is closed, look for Putin to help Iran keep it blocked. Idiocy.

Trump posted on his social media account about the people of Iran that "I, as the 47th President of the United States of America, am killing them. What a great honor it is to do so!” This is the very same Trump who once listed protecting the people of Iran as one of his rationales for war.

I just double-checked and it is true that four US Army drones were stolen from Fort Campbell. www.militarytimes.com/news/your-mi...

Remember when Trump campaigned on bringing down the debt? The US National Debt increased by over $1,000,000,000,000 in the first five months of the fiscal year. One trillion in new debt. Meanwhile, Pete Hegseth is splurging on king crab, lobster, and steaks as Trump cuts off food aid for kids.

Trump's continuing lies about the assault on the elementary school in Minab are beneath contempt. Readily available commercial satellite imagery available since the day after the attack clearly show impact marks from multiple (at least 7) precision munitions. A misfire could not do that.

When Trump declared that high oil prices are great because "we are making a lot of money," he gave away the fact that his definition of "we" only includes billionaires and donors. Ordinary Americans are shelling out big time at the pump and the money is flowing to big oil companies and investors.

Remember when the GOP and the MAGA movement was raising alarm bells about the rise of the "surveillance state"? It turns out that a DOGE employee made a copy of EVERYONE's private Social Security information with all details included to take with him to his next job at an AI firm.

FYI: The International Energy Agency (IEA) is a non-political, technical organization founded after the oil shocks of the 1970's and tasked with helping the globe to manage stable energy supply. It 32 member countries and 13 associates account for most global energy demand.

While the IEA decision to make the largest ever release from global strategic petroleum reserves will help stabilize crude prices, don't expect US gasoline pries to go back down to where they were anytime soon. US gas prices shoot up like a rocket and fall like a feather.

As I posted when it first happened, I knew that US missiles struck the Minab school. Publicly available imagery and even Pentagon press announcements provided more than sufficient proof (despite Pentagon denials). Now, everyone is seeing the truth.

My old friend Fatih Birol certainly made the right decision by convincing IEA member nations to authorize the largest withdrawal from strategic petroleum reserves in history. The massive withdrawal will help stabilize prices. LNG consumers, however, are out of luck. There is no LNG reserve.

As a direct result of Trump's ill-conceived war on Iran, oil exports from Iran are going up. That's right: up, not down. With Iran's IRGC in effective control of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, guess which ships are able to transit safely? Bingo! Those carrying Iranian crude off to China.

As I posted a few days ago, based on my experience in the Persian Gulf during the "tanker war" I believe that Iran would attack the crew quarters and wheelhouses of ships rather than trying to sink them. These photos on CNN show that is true. Iran also placed mines, but those did no sink any ships.