1. A Popular Information reveals that two more "progressive" super PACs are linked to House Republicans and Speaker Mike Johnson. They've worked pretty hard to cover their tracks, but not quite hard enough. Follow along for details.

UPDATE: Mike Johnson said he has nothing to do with this dirty tricks operation. Which is interesting because what I reported was that it was linked to the Congressional Leadership Fund, the House Republican Super PAC. The CLF has declined to comment.

1. Lead Left, a super PAC created on 4/24, purports to stand "against MAGA extremists." It has spent $3M+ in Democratic primaries. But it's funders and motivations have been secret. Until now. It's a GOP dirty tricks operation. 🧵

Donate to his Super PAC? He'll boost your online casino. Donate to his Super PAC? He'll pardon your crimes. Donate to his Super PAC? He'll appoint you to a government position. Donate to his Super PAC? He'll grant you favorable regulatory rulings that help your business. Everything is for sale.

1. Trump has repeatedly promoted an online casino, Stake, on social media after its founder and owner, Bijan Tehrani donated $1 million to Trump's Super PAC, MAGA Inc. According to multiple state regulators, Stake is an illegal operation.

1. One of the clearest examples of pay-to-play politics you will ever see in last night's MAGA Inc. FEC filing.

1. This week, Trump said that the extra money that Americans were spending on gas due to the Iran War was "peanuts." We did the math, and the increased energy costs for Americans is equivalent to 14.5 million pounds of peanuts That's 110 pounds of peanuts for every American household

1. Today is an FEC filing day! It's one of many days between now in the midterms when we'll learn critical info about how money is being deployed to shape the outcome. If you want to learn how to do this research yourself, I'm hosting a webinar on June 5.

Hunter Biden, not a great guy

1. Number of stories about Trump buying and selling hundreds of millions of dollars in stocks in the first three months of 2026: CBS: 0 CNN: 0 Fox News: 0 NPR: 0 PBS: 0 Politico: 0 Semafor: 0 Business Insider: 0

1. What I found in Trump's new 113-page financial disclosure report. It doesn't look good.

1. On March 11, Trump toured a Thermo Fisher Scientific facility in Ohio and repeatedly praised the company. On *the same day* Trump bought between $15,000 and $50,000 of Thermo Fisher stock. The purchase was "UNSOLICITED," meaning it was requested by the customer, not recommended by an advisor.

1. Major media outlets are credulously reporting that cost of the Iran War was $29 billion so far, citing the Pentagon. This number is absurdly low. It is based on flawed accounting and completely excluding major categories of costs. But it still made all the headlines.

"The Patriot-News, for example, won the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for its landmark reporting on the sex crimes of Penn State defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky... On May 9, The Patriot-News published an article headlined, 'Kalshi promo code PENNLIVE: UFC 328 Preview'..." popular.info/p/pulitzer-w...

1. A network of prominent news outlets, including The Oregonian, The Plain Dealer, The Star-Ledger, have quietly published more than 17,000 articles since 2022 pushing promo codes for sports books and prediction markets Advance Local, which owns these outlets, claims this is journalism.

I've been doing campaign finance research since 1997 With the midterms approaching, I’m sharing the research methods I’ve developed over nearly 30 years I'm hosting a webinar that will teach you exactly how to follow the money It's open to anyone with a paid subscription to Popular Information.

1. Trump has spent the last 18 months saying major cities run by Democrats were crime-infested hellholes. Actually, violent crime was at historic lows in many cities when he took office and new data shows it has dropped agin in 2026. Cities are safer than they've been in a long time.

Don Jr. and Eric launched Trump Moblie in June 2025 and promised a "MADE IN AMERICA" gold-plated Trump phone by August. They started accepting $100 deposits for pre-orders. 11 months later, the Trump phone has not materialized.

Trump Media, the parent company of Truth Social, just reported its 2026 Q1 results. It lost $405 MILLION on $900,000 in revenue.

The courts just ruled that the tariffs that Trump imposed to replace the ones the Supreme Court struck down were also illegal. Just as I reported in February. Major media outlets blew this story.

1. State Farm spent $1.139 BILLION on ads in 2025 promoting the message that they are an ethical company that will be "there" when you need them. The victims of the California wildfires had a different experience.

1. Hegseth testified in Congress that the cost of first 60 days of the Iran War cost $25 billion. Internally, the Pentagon says its $50 billion. Popular Information crunched the numbers, and the real cost is much higher: At least $72 BILLION.

RIP Project Freedom (5/4/26 — 5/5/26)

1. Meta is facing thousands of lawsuits alleging that it pushed an addictive product on young people causing emotional and physical harm. Some of the plaintiffs are families of young people who committed suicide. Meta says that Zuckerberg is too busy to testify in more than one trial.

I really want to speak to medical providers who have been continuing to provide care to detainees during this period. If that’s you or you have a lead, hit me on Signal at juddlegum.47

1. ICE has not paid for detainee medical care for 7 MONTHS The termination of payments to providers has coincided with a MASSIVE SPIKE in detainee deaths. This is a health crisis and a moral crisis. Follow along for details. 🧵

When the idea of a bailout was first floated, I started researching who associated with Spirit had significant political connections to the Trump I administration. I couldn’t find anyone.

1. Trump has used the presidency to promote businesses that he and his family own 110 times in the last 16 months, a Popular Information investigation reveals. Trump has repeatedly promoted Trump-branded golf courses, crypto tokens, and consumer products on social media and at presidential events.

1. Peter Thiel is pouring millions into a dystopian new start-up that seeks to discredit journalists reporting on wealthy people with a combination of retired intelligence operatives and a "jury" of AI models The company is even trying to pressure reporters to turn over the IDs of anonymous sources

1. On 60 Minutes, Trump said No Kings protests were responsible for the latest assassination attempt against him. FACT: No Kings is one of the most peaceful large-scale protest movements in history. 15 million participants and a handful of violent incidents — many by counter-protesters

Trump is laser-focused on the issues most important to the American people: Building a ballroom at the White House and blockading the Strait of Hormuz.

1. A member of the U.S. Special Forces was just arrested for using classified info to turn a 400K profit on Polymarket. The company is CELEBRATING this scandal as evidence that "the system works." But Polymarket's story doesn't add up. Let's dig in. 🧵

POINT: Prediction markets are the ultimate truth-finding machine. COUNTER-POINT:

1. A tiny California tribe, the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation, just donated $2 MILLION to MAGA Inc, Trump's Super PAC. I decided to find out why. It's an illustration of exactly how business is done in Trump’s Washington. Follow along for details. 🧵

As Trump's war on Iran continues, reminder that his own son-in-law Jared Kushner — who is leading negotiations with Iran — stands to profit from lucrative contracts with its regional rivals. War gives dictators like Trump (and his family) more power and more wealth.

The insider trading suspicions looming over Trump's presidency www.bbc.com/news/article...

Inquiring minds want to know

Articles about Jared Kushner's diplomatic role with Iran that mention Kushner has received billions from the Saudi government (2/28-4/19): NYT: 5 of 58 WashPost: 1 of 43 WSJ: 0 of 40 AP: 0 of 26 CNN Wire: 0 of 18 NY Post: 0 of 17 Chicago Tribune: 0 of 4 LA Times: 0 of 4 Boston Globe: 0 of 2

1. As Jared Kushner heads to Pakistan to represent the United States in critical talks with Iran, the media is ignoring a historic corruption scandal. Kushner is serving in this role while on the payroll of the Saudi government. Let's look at the data. 🧵

Have been wondering when candidates would start talking about this. One of the biggest corruption scandals is U.S. history playing out in real time.

Before Trump started the war in Iran: Iran was not building a nuclear weapon The Strait of Hormuz was open Thousands killed during the war were alive

Trump’s strategy for the war in Iran is to take what he wishes would happen and pretend it has already happened. It has not been working well.

I have no idea why this event exists. IMO, the purpose of journalism is to interrogate power, not schmooze with it

"Hundreds of previously redacted records reveal how Amazon has put pressure on independent sellers using its platform into raising their prices on the sites of competitors such as Walmart and Target"

1. For $500,000, you can have a one-on-one meeting with Trump tomorrow, according to an email solicitation obtained by Popular Information. Follow this thread for details. 🧵

Is 9:18 AM too early for lunch?

1. Coachella performers, including Sabrina Carpenter, Justin Bieber and Karol G, are funding the MAGA movement. Let's follow the money. 🧵

You know who else was weak on crime? JESUS. Famously advised people who have been assaulted to “turn the other cheek.” Big-time loser.

Vance has never “opposed” the war an Iran! He has publicly supported it from the beginning and every step along the way. The idea that he privately opposed it and that should be considered his official position is absolute garbage.

So the Trump administration’s two goals in peace talks with Iran are: 1. A commitment by Iran not to develop a nuke (This was part of the Obama deal that Trump canceled) 2. Opening the Strait of Hormuz. (Was open before war.)