For the record, just deleted a thread on the seeming suicide note from Epstein that was released as part of the latest Epstein files drop. On balance it seemed more likely to be fake. Journalists are thinking through it all - most importantly, was it his handwriting? - and there's no need to rush.

Clueless US media understand Trump's shut down of Atlantic coast wind farms as just some vague national security thing about radar or as Trump's weird ideas about alternative energy. But in Denmark, this is immediately understood for what it is: a shakedown against two large Danish companies,

The New York Times investigated 346 people who donated at least $250,000 to Trump and found that more than half of them (197) have received pardons, jobs, government contracts, special treatment, or favors.

A sign of the times: Mike Pence is getting his revenge on the Heritage Foundation, which helped push Jan 6. Pence is now poaching its staffers for his new organization, taglined "The Conservative Movement Lives Here". And his board is led by his key advisers on Jan 6, who pushed back on Trump. 1/2

As CBS News falls apart please admire this marble bust of Bari Weiss that is installed at the fake unaccredited university she co-founded with Joe Lonsdale. Their U. of Austin is reportedly also falling apart, with faculty leaving and enrollment crashing, so we shall see where the bust ends up.

Let's remember that Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry, who is happy to try to overturn Greenland's democracy for Trump in 2025, was also happy to try to overturn US democracy for Trump in 2020. Rotten people are consistently rotten. 1/

Plus, violent and idiotic Jan 6 attacker Jake Lang, who beat officers with a baseball bat, is now causing actual international tensions after his dumb anti-Islam stunt got media coverage when he burned a Quran. Reportedly millions of people marched in Yemen. ansarollah.com.ye/en/archives/...

People are rightly disgusted by this speech, but it’s a measure of fascism’s normalization that many see this as more of the awful same rather than what I think most of us who’ve been reporting this beat hear it as: a significant calculated escalation. Full alert stuff.

MeidasTouch is wrong here. These images are from two different filings in the Giuffre v Maxwell, suit with different dates. In 2024, she re-filed material with Trump's name un-redacted. It was a scandal, it got news! Both versions are in Bondi's Epstein dump and both remain up. No one deleted. 1/

The NYT's take on the release of a tiny fraction of the Epstein files, heavily redacted with no explanations: ah, those silly conspiracy theorists will never be satisfied, will they? Am guessing this tone came from an editor. The NYT seems vested in declaring the files a nothingburger. 1/

Lot of black ink on those Epstein files from today's release - and this is the first tranche, the ones Bondi thought were LEAST damning. The rest are being illegally held back.

Would respond to this post defending David Brooks but Sanchez has turned off replies. To repeat: the issue is that Brooks was part of a tiny, exclusive, secretive "Billionaires' Dinner" sponsored by Epstein, then wrote a op-ed dismissing the idea of an "Epstein class" without disclosing that tie. 1/

I think it’s pretty unethical and inexcusable for him to have written a whole column downplaying the Epstein scandal without disclosing that he had attended a function with and funded by Epstein. And I’d like to see the Times respond to that.

The biggest story in politics right now is that the US is being run by low-level official Stephen Miller. We just got 1000s of words in Vanity Fair about Susie Wiles, Chief of Staff to the US president, but not one hint on how her Deputy Chief of Staff seized power and is now giving the orders. 1/

To all marveling at photos of NYT columnist David Brooks dining with Jeffrey Epstein, 2 years after Epstein finished his sentence for procuring a child for prostitution, here's what it was: the 2011 "Edge Billionaire's Dinner". Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos were there too. 1/ www.edge.org/event/the-ed...

So odd that GOP politics seem driven only by perception of manliness, not policy, while Dem pundits act like all that matters are positions on specific questions polled, not character or strength. Voters responded to Sen. Van Hollen's support of Abrego because he cared, acted, and seemed strong. 1/

David Brooks, who wrote in the NYT last month, "The Epstein Story? Count Me Out" is... in the latest Epstein photo dump published by @oversightdemocrats.house.gov. He should absolutely be fired by NYT for this. Major conflict of interest that he didn't disclose.

As the religious legal group ADF comes after medicated abortion (they already killed Roe v Wade) realize they were deep in Trump's 2020 self-coup. The head of ADF wrote the main lawsuit to overturn the election. Josh Hawley, husband of ADF lawyer Erin, drove the objections to the electoral count. 1/

Hearing this is payback for Colorado not honoring Trump/Peters ‘pardon’

People are treating Chris Whipple's Susie Wiles articles in Vanity Fair today as big news - the NYT even recapped them. But Wiles is no dummy; she knows how to work the press. These articles read like a Trump press release, excuse after excuse with no pushback. It's the anti-Chotiner interview. 1/

I need you to listen to and share this story - of how Trump is preparing to abandon Ukraine in exchange for Russian money for his billionaire friends. It could be the greatest corruption of American foreign policy in our history. Russia gets Ukraine. Trump's friends get rich.

Trump's National Security Strategy shocked many in pushing to overturn our alliances and cozy up to Russia. Reports now say it was largely written by Michael Anton, one of the first to push election-fraud claims in 2020: "Game on for the Coup", he wrote. Today's players are still the Jan 6 crew. 1/

As Trump Jr says the US will "walk away from Ukraine", let's face up to it: we should have seen this coming; Russia has deeply corrupted our GOP. This account stuck with Jan 6 because the attack was orchestrated - and also the people who promoted it were so tied to Russia. It was an act of war. 1/

Realize how bizarre it is that we are learning key details of an ongoing, high-profile FBI investigation via leaks: first the arrest of the pipe bomb suspect, then details of his interview. It suggests an unprecedented effort to bypass official channels to push out the truth. That's a good sign. 1/

David Roberts says he missed how destructive this administration would be. But studying Jan 6 taught what would happen. The Capitol attack was organized: the intent was treason. Failing to prosecute those who did it would embolden them: they would see how weak institutions were, and try again. 1/

No surprise: handing the FBI to conspiratorial podcasters creates even darker outcomes. Dan Bongino's update today reads like a wishlist from the techbros who already got your personal data, now are inserting AI tools into the FBI. Reporters must ask: is the company here Peter Thiel's Palantir? 1/

No surprise: handing the FBI to conspiratorial podcasters creates even darker outcomes. Dan Bongino's update today reads like a wishlist from the techbros who already got your personal data, now are inserting AI tools into the FBI. Reporters must ask: is the company here Peter Thiel's Palantir? 1/

Ukraine relations get even more chaotic. Two factions - Kushner/Witkoff and Vance/Driscoll - are both freelancing to set US policy: cutting out the State Dept, pushing Ukraine to surrender, then leaking to press to claim they are official. Why? Putin is desperate and has called in his assets. A 🧵 1/

Chaos and lies in US diplomacy & media: Marco Rubio now denies the US had any input into the savage 28-point ultimatum to Ukraine - says it's from Russia. But Axios reporters Barak Ravid and David Lawler, who got the leak, claimed it was written by the US, by Steve Witkoff and... Marco Rubio! 1/

MTG, smarter than most GOP Congressmen, commits to her strategy: be the first rat off the sinking ship. She predicts the GOP will lose the midterms and Trump will be impeached - and while she's often acting, that seems like a true belief. No one should embrace her but we should respect her savvy.

Patrick Byrne, faced with defamation suits for his lies, cannot figure out how to hire a functional lawyer to defend him... but has a PhD in Philosophy from Stanford. (From the same department Peter Thiel graduated from, for those keeping track.) His thesis is as much a mess as his legal team. 1/

Trump, weakly, is leaning on the same crew who helped him for Jan 6. He's found two pastors to publicly approve his plan for ICE to raid churches over Christmas: Paula White & Mark Burns. Burns was a rally speaker on Jan 5. White opened the Ellipse rally on Jan 6. 1/ (h/t @sarahposner.bsky.social)

Listen to Mike Johnson lie here and her and ask yourself why media asked no follow-up questions when Johnson smoothly told them he'd "adopted" an underage boy, even though Johnson kept changing the dates and details of his story.

MTG wants to be president, she knows the dirt, and she's not afraid to wield power. White House journalists: are you going to let this woman beat you to the story of foreign influence in the GOP? Years and years of Russian efforts right in your face. MTG's going to scoop you if you don't hurry up.

Bluesky hasn't noticed the contrast yet! Yesterday White House journalists sat meekly while Trump humiliated one of them ("Quiet Piggy"). A week ago the Miss Universe beauty queens, tougher and savvier, responded to a similar humiliation by walking out in solidarity - and got the official fired. 1/

good summary thread for the insane epstein/sulzberger/michael wolff connection

Why the NYT didn't report on their Epstein info is tangled up with another question: was Epstein a friend of the Sulzberger family? Epstein claims he first befriended NYT publisher "Punch" Sulzberger in the 1970s, when Sulzberger's daughter (age ~12) was at the prep school where Epstein taught. 1/

Each Epstein email has so many layers of slime people miss some. This email is Ken Starr, fired for covering up sexual assault, offering to help his former client Jeffrey Epstein's friend's sexual harassment charges by introducing him to Jed Rubenfeld, later put on leave for sexual misconduct. 1/

One fascinating thing in the Epstein email drop is an exchange around Trump's election in 2016. It suggests a tense, ongoing relationship - and Epstein's dark contacts. Part 1: On Sept 23, Linda Stone jokes with Epstein that he'll get a cabinet position if Trump wins. Like Trump owes him one. 1/

Let the implications sink in: during Trump's 2015 campaign, Michael Wolff advised Epstein on strategy given that both men knew dirty secrets about each other: "if it really looks like he could win, you could save him, generating a debt". "Save him" meaning, don't tell about Trump and the girls. 4/

This week in Trump-Epstein: first @jsweetli.bsky.social IDs the 14-year-old girl Epstein brought to Mar-a-Lago to meet Trump in 1994. Then the House Dems release an email where Epstein says Trump hung out at his house with underaged girls: "[VICTIM] spent hours at my house with him" 1/

Please realize: when Ed Martin drafted the pardon for the fake electors he was pardoning himself. He made it pre-emptive and general, so it covers "all United States citizens for conduct relating to ... efforts to expose voting fraud and vulnerabilities in the 2020 presidential election." 1/

A word of caution about the new Axios report that Dem Senators are caving. Remember the NYT ran articles for months claiming that Harvard was caving, which.. never happened. Turns out their anonymous sources were Trump staffers. Axios may be similar. But, it never hurts to call your Senator. 1/

A milestone: the court order in Chicago today potentially checks America's slide to a secret police state. For the first time, ICE and CBP agents are ordered to wear clear identification: badge numbers or names. Either they comply or this becomes THE issue in which the battle for democracy.

Can someone please explain the rationale behind NYT pieces like this, which repulse most of its subscribers? Is it hoping the NYT can cater to multiple groups without losing revenue? Bargaining for access to gossip from the far right? Or is Sulzberger using the NYT to spread his personal beliefs? 1/

We've found DHS is giving local cops a new facial recognition app to find immigrants. Point camera at face, tells the cop to detain person or not. The app is available on Google's Play Store. Google took down apps that report ICE sightings but now hosts this app www.404media.co/cbp-quietly-...

Here it is, the Constitutional crisis people feared, Trump openly and flagrantly defying a court order. And it's over... denying Americans food. We are literally facing a Constitutional breakdown over SNAP funds. This administration is making mistake after mistake. They can be beaten.

They just gutted Teen Vogue which had top notch political journalism. The media is continuing to purge any sort of political dissent to Trump and the oligarchs. www.vogue.com/article/teen...

Can we all agree that when a president pardons a guy who was convicted for financing terrorists, and then says he didn't know the guy but "I was told" to pardon him, the follow question MUST be "Who told you to pardon him?" But CBS never asked: who is making decisions in the White House? 1/

You laugh, but this is how the exododus went extinct