Have brokered dog detente. Think I should get the Nobel prize

New: Vance warns U.S. strikes will continue if Iran targets ships in Strait open.substack.com/pub/diplomat...

Got some red white and blue going on here

250 open.substack.com/pub/diplomat...

The view of DC from a tote bag at Politics & Prose

Trump intensifies push for voter restriction bill. “Change the voters, change the country,” Trump aide Stephen Miller wrote. open.substack.com/pub/diplomat...

Trump says he took Iran deal to avert economic calamity open.substack.com/pub/diplomat...

The text of the US/Iran ‘understanding’ that a senior US administration official read to reporters on a call today. open.substack.com/pub/diplomat...

In Montreal, Taco Trump est ouvert

New: Revisiting a voter in Pittsburgh open.substack.com/pub/diplomat...

Seconded Also the Robert Caro books on LBJ are outstanding, you definitely ought to tackle them!

A truly disgusting speech that disgraces the sacrifice made by the Allied soldiers who stormed the beaches of Normandy to defeat fascism.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s decision to bring six of his children on an official trip to France is putting added strain on his personal protective detail amid heightened threats stemming from the Iran war.

Ode to long books. open.substack.com/pub/diplomat...

Trump says he will attend G7 summit in France reut.rs/4ucMDgQ

seems kinda bad tbh

INNOCENT

Am having lunch at 10:50am

New: Five take-aways on the prospective US Iran deal open.substack.com/pub/diplomat...

Trump raises refugee ceiling by 10,000 to bring in more white South Africans reut.rs/4nP8qKh

Bravo

fun one today www.nytimes.com/badges/games...

New: Iran stalemate drags on Trump as he heads to China open.substack.com/pub/diplomat...

“Broadcasting House was in fact dedicated to the strangest project of the war…to tell the truth. Without prompting, the BBC had decided that truth was more important than consolation.” Such a smart book about the BBC in WWII, with observations that resonate today (h/t Backlisted pod)

The U.S.’s failure to learn the *most obvious lessons* from its actions’ repeatedly going sideways is the craziest thing on a long list of crazy things about it.

Iran reviewing U.S. proposal on ending the war open.substack.com/pub/diplomat...

I love Laura Rozen @lkrozen.bsky.social and it's so wild, to me, after sitting and watching the entire Rubio briefing - that when drumpf trickled his Truth about suspending "Project Freedom" it's only NOW that I'm clocking how unhinged that truly was.

Had like 16 cups of coffee to stay up late to do an interview on what Trump doing on Iran, that had a few major reversals between when they asked and when it taped. And basically became another reflection on Trump’s psychology, & probably went in the trash

The longer, the better.

Let's be clear that the ongoing naval blockade of #Iran is an act of war (according to the UN Charter, the Supreme Court, DOJ/OLC, & DoD). The American people deserve better than word games. This is not a partisan issue, it is Congress' constitutional duty. www.nbcnews.com/politics/con...

New: Trump touts blockade as he seeks face-saving exit from Iran war open.substack.com/pub/diplomat...

Cats.

"One... twooooo.... two and a haaaalf.... I mean it buster... two and a haaaalf...."

The dog chewed on a pillow and I now have goose feathers in my hair, in my nose,… then the dog ate my glasses. have found one lens

Trump announces extending Iran ceasefire open.substack.com/pub/diplomat...

“Some Trump officials privately acknowledged to CNN that the president’s public commentary has been detrimental to talks, noting the sensitivity of the negotiations and the Iranians’ deep mistrust of the US.” www.cnn.com/2026/04/20/p...

bee was so hard today I may have missed the next Islamabad meeting

The White House said more Iran talks could be held in Pakistan, amid signs parties could be nearing framework deal open.substack.com/pub/diplomat...

I spent a few days in Budapest in the late 80s (start of its transition from Communism). A truly magnificent city. It's been hard in recent years to not feel bad about what it has been going through.

Azalea

Timely, in local Little Free Library

Vance: Iran did not accept U.S. demands. Trump admin demand Iran forego the right to enrichment seen as key stumbling block to a deal. “Unfortunately, we couldn’t make any headway,” Vice President Vance said after Islamabad talks. open.substack.com/pub/diplomat...

We need more of this!

Therapydogs and their volunteer handlers at Pittsburgh airport

New: Watching the strange spectacle of Trump committing political suicide open.substack.com/pub/diplomat...

Happy Passover wishes to those who celebrate

Both Roberts and Gorsuch sound intensely skeptical of the Trump administration's arguments against birthright citizenship. The three liberals have already opposed Trump's executive order. So if this holds, there's five votes against Trump right there.

Letter: Congress is not supposed to rubber-stamp wars after the fact. It is supposed to decide whether a president should take the country into war in the first place. Why does Blake Moore need us to tell him that?

New: Ex Pentagon officials fear broken Trump national security process could lead to risky Iran ground escalation open.substack.com/pub/diplomat...