Thanks to Trump's war: "Oil prices rose to start the trading week. West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose 7% on Monday to around $94 a barrel, while Brent crude climbed 6% to around $97." www.cnbc.com/2026/05/31/s...

Thanks to the breakdown of talks with Iran:

The New Republic today: Trump’s Iran War Success Story Gets Blown to Pieces Satellite images reveal the true scope of Iran’s attacks on U.S. military sites. newrepublic.com/post/211166/...

"The government’s attempt to prosecute resistance to the president’s mass deportations mission has been destructive, absurd, often contradicted by the evidence offered, and conspicuously unbound by law..." newrepublic.com/article/2111...

"Meanwhile, Trump’s sinking approval, Iran debacle, ballroom, and slush fund are fracturing Trumpworld and the GOP: One Republican told The Atlantic that Trump has 'lame-ducked himself.'x newrepublic.com/article/2111...

Simply despicable: How Trump Is Wrecking the Agency That Protects Workers’ Labor Rights In his first term, Trump’s NLRB issued bad decisions. In his second, it’s being dismantled. newrepublic.com/article/2111...

The New Republic today: The American Revolution Is Not Complete Long after the founding, many ordinary Americans saw the Revolution as ongoing—an unfinished fight for freedom and equality. newrepublic.com/article/2101...

The Trumpian Machismo Infecting the Texas Senate Race Ken Paxton’s attacks on James Talarico are intended to make him appear more feminine in an effort to appeal to socially conservative voters. newrepublic.com/article/2111...

Trump’s America vs. Springsteen’s: I Know Which Is the “Real America” While the president is crashing out over his concert cancellations, The Boss is rallying the majority. newrepublic.com/article/2111...

So much for Trump's "Art of the Deal": Iran stops negotiations, vows to completely block Strait of Hormuz: State media www.cnbc.com/2026/06/01/i...

Iran suspends peace talks in protest over Israeli offensive in Lebanon Move puts further pressure on fragile ceasefire between Washington and Tehran www.ft.com/content/a4f1...

Simply despicable: One by one, U.S. civil rights agency dismantles tools to fight discrimination www.npr.org/2026/06/01/n...

Birthright Citizenship Existed Before the Fourteenth Amendment The idea that citizenship extends to everyone born on U.S. soil has precedents stretching back to the Founding. www.historynewsnetwork.org/article/birt...

"Fake News" is Nazi rhetoric. He knows this.

An emboldened Justice Department with acting Attorney General Todd Blanche at the helm is ramping up efforts to investigate and prosecute Trump’s perceived enemies. www.wsj.com/politics/pol...

"The only thing he had to do was—for once in his life—not act like an insane egomaniac..." www.theatlantic.com/politics/202...

On this date in 1921, the Black community of Tulsa, Oklahoma, was left in ruins following several days of violent attacks by white mobs outraged that Black residents had organized to protect a Black man from lynching. share.google/vDTOj1gjtPia...

It's all about him: The Military Daily News: Trump to Headline ‘Freedom 250’ Rally After Almost All Artists Exit Event www.military.com/trump-to-hea...

This morning, at 1:03 AM:

Simply despicable: Trump floats MAGA rally instead of concert after musicians drop out of Freedom 250 www.npr.org/2026/05/31/n...

Today's cartoon by Edith Pritchett for the Washington Post:

"Imperfection is beauty, madness is genius and it's better to be absolutely ridiculous than absolutely boring." -- Marilyn Monroe, born #OTD 1926

"I'm selfish, impatient and a little insecure. I make mistakes, I am out of control and at times hard to handle. But if you can't handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don't deserve me at my best." -- Marilyn Monroe, born #OTD 1926

A wise girl knows her limits, a smart girl knows that she has none." -- Marilyn Monroe, born #OTD 1926

In Trump's Physical Report, Doctors See Gaps in Details www.wsj.com/politics/in-...

"Until the great mass of the people shall be filled with the sense of responsibility for each other's welfare, social justice can never be attained." -- Helen Keller, who died #OTD 1968

"The most pathetic person in the world is some one who has sight but no vision." -- Helen Keller, who died #OTD 1968

"Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much." -- Helen Keller, who died #OTD 1968

Tonight, the brilliant star Antares will photobomb Sunday’s spectacle for a celestial three-for-one. The red supergiant star, 550 light-years away, is known as the “heart of scorpion” in the constellation Scorpius. A light-year is almost 6 trillion miles. apnews.com/article/blue...

At Walmart's gas stations, in recent weeks, people have begun to fill up with fewer than ten gallons at a time, for the first time since 2022. "That's an indication of stress," Chief Financial Officer John David Rainey told investors last week www.npr.org/2026/05/29/n...

NPR: Conservative Christians love this painting of George Washington. The event it depicts may not have happened www.npr.org/2026/05/27/n...

Trump’s name may come off the Kennedy Center. He could still destroy it. www.washingtonpost.com/style/2026/0...

"Buyer was convicted of insider trading by a jury and sentenced to prison. The letter doesn’t dispute that. So for regular people, it’s a felony. For Republican politicians, it’s a character reference."

Bob Dylan, At 85 Years Old, to Kick Off 2026 Summer Tour share.google/XnD2CTUG1SsE...

NPR: www.npr.org/series/g-s1-...

The Trump Administration has released a lengthy report on what it calls anti-Christian bias in the federal government. It details numerous instances that it says are examples of the Biden administration persecuting Christians for their beliefs. www.npr.org/2026/05/01/n...

PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: "In the end, we do not answer to bureaucrats in Washington. We answer to God in heaven. We do. We answer to God in heaven..." www.npr.org/2026/05/25/n...

Pew Research Center: "The Religious Landscape Study (RLS) is the largest single survey the Center conducts, aiming to provide authoritative figures on the size of U.S. religious groups because the U.S. census does not collect that information." www.pewresearch.org/religion/202...

How does the Christian tenet of "welcoming the stranger" come to bear on current debates about U.S. immigration enforcement and war? www.npr.org/2026/05/03/n...

The most corrupt president in history. Reported today by Mother Jones: How an Obscure MAGA-Linked Firm Lined up $1 Billion in Balkan Energy Contracts President Donald Trump’s official and personal interests are colliding yet again. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

Robert Reich: Beware of Trump's 250th Rally on the Mall open.substack.com/pub/robertre...

The very same pose:

Trump’s allies are already lining up to apply to his $1.8 billion fund www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...

The Atlantic today: Trump’s 250th Celebration Is a Fiasco The president has turned a solemn occasion into a Day of Trump. www.theatlantic.com/politics/202...

Today's cartoon by Nick Anderson. "Both men have spent years navigating a thicket of investigations, indictments, and ethical controversies, while simultaneously holding public office..."

"I'm interested in the fact that the less secure a man is, the more likely he is to have extreme prejudice." -- Clint Eastwood, born #OTD 1930

On this date in 1790, the United States established copyright law.

On this date in 2005, it was publicly revealed that former FBI official Mark Felt was “Deep Throat,” the anonymous informant at the centre of the Watergate scandal that involved U.S. President Richard Nixon's administration. www.washingtonpost.com/video/politi...

Congress has taken on Epstein. But lawmakers and survivors are still searching for accountability apnews.com/article/epst...