Friday, May 01, 2026

Desperately Seeking Loopholes

U.S. hostilities with Iran that began in February have "terminated" for purposes of the War Powers Resolution, according to a senior administration official to Reuters. "Both parties agreed to a ​2-week ceasefire ​on Tuesday, April 7, ‌that ⁠has since been extended…there has ​been ​no ⁠exchange of fire between ​U.S. Armed ​Forces ⁠and Iran since Tuesday, April ⁠7."
Do they think that means any further action against Iran is a wholly new one that starts a new clock?
The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Dan “Razin” Caine, along with the Commander of U.S. Central Command, Adm. Brad Cooper briefed President Trump today for 45 minutes on new plans for possible military action against the Islamic Republic of Iran, two U.S. officials told Axios.
Never mind.

This only works if Congress allows it to work. The general public won’t care, except we’re still bombing Iran, and the price of gas keeps going up. The only thing that will make a difference is body bags. That will just make people care more; and not in a way that helps the GOP.
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Thursday, April 30, 2026

How The Day Ended

Seems like a lot of people know that. Alternatively: Sen. Blumenthal thinks those options include boots on the ground:
"I do have the impression, from some of the briefings that I have received, as well as other sources, that an imminent military strike is very much on the table, which is deeply disturbing because it could well involve American sons and daughters in harm's way and potential massive casualties," Blumenthal continued. "But what you saw, even from the brief clips that you played, was Secretary Hegseth essentially dissembling and evading pointed questions on the draining of munitions, on the cost of the war, as well as on this. Absolutely incredible and absurd theory about a pause in the 60 days, which is an absolutely ridiculous interpretation of the law."
Let’s talk about the “draining of munitions.”
According to Bloomberg, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) has requested the deployment of the U.S. Army's long-range hypersonic weapon (LRHW), aka "Dark Eagle," for use in Operation Epic Fury. The LRHW is still in development, having only completed a handful of classified tests to date. The request to the Pentagon comes due, in part, to Iran has moving their missiles out of range of the Precision Strike Missile.
Chris Hayes says Trump’s approval on the economy and inflation is -40 points, which is literally off the charts, and lower than Carter’s rating during stagflation and the original energy crisis. But that one was caused by OPEC, not Carter. There’s also reporting that what Trump fears is being a lame duck, being ineffective and irrelevant. That’s why he wants to build monuments. In essence, he wants to claim his immortality.

The problem is, Trump’s moving beyond political concerns. He still wants the SAVE Act, but what he really wants are his monuments. So does he care what happens if he sends in troops? 
Signs point to “No.”

And it could be Trump’s motive is as simple as this:
Which is as delusional as it gets. Or is this even worse?
They should be issuing a tsunami warning. Because when gas hits $5 a gallon, elections don’t go the way people in power think they will.

And yet, you’ve got Republicans giving Trump an A on the economy. An A.

With prices surging. They see the wave coming. They’re just pretending it’s not there.
Which means Republicans won’t object even if body bags start coming home. Now I’m interested to learn what Iran has to do with our freedom. Maybe there’s a new domino theory I haven’t heard of yet.

Every time I think these idiots learned the wrong lessons from Vietnam, I realize the only lesson they learned was that the other third rail is a new military draft. Short of that, they think Americans will tolerate anything that involves blowing foreigners up. 
Run that up the flagpole and see who salutes. 🫡

And how many people will have to die in Iran between now and next January?
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How Many Times Do I Have To Explain To You People?

 NYT editorial:

The ruling, in Louisiana v. Callais, makes it easier for states to draw districts for Congress, state legislatures and local councils that elect the candidates favored by white voting blocs. The officials who make the maps no longer need to worry much about whether they are sprinkling Black voters across many districts and eliminating majority Black districts," wrote the board. "The reality is that in the name of disentangling race from politics, the Supreme Court has given white voters more power at the expense of racial minorities."
"Race" is a concept invented and enforced by white people to differentiate them from “non-white” people (a term that has fluctuated over time, often applied to nationalities now accepted as “white”). Among white nationalists, “white” only means those who agree with them (“them” being very particular groups, usually). The very concept is about division. Us; them: power; without power. The Sinister Six have no interest in disentangling race from politics; politics is always about power. Even the root of “democracy” in the Greek of Attic Greece, is demo kratos, or “people power.” Politics is always about power. They’re only interested in the most American one: using race to ensure we continue to divide people, and one group enjoys power and privilege over other groups.

The Sinister Six may tell themselves they are saving democracy in America from racism, but they are only reinforcing and reinstating the racism that was here in 1776, and written into the constitution in 1789. If you don’t understand that, you’re lying to yourself as much as the majority in Callais is. This is America. You can’t disentangle race from politics. Race in America is politics. And it’s always used to wield power, over the group identified as “other.”

This is happening because the demographic shift is toward “non-white.” A shift that only really matters to whites. We know our ability to privilege ourselves depends on our power. Slaves outnumbered slaves owners in the American South before the 13th amendment, but slave owners had the power of the state behind them, right down to the Fugitive Slave Act. Losing that power, we had to impose new powers. The 15th Amendment was interpreted by the Supreme Court to allow literacy tests and poll taxes. We finally ended that with the Voting Rights Act, a law meant to implement the 15th Amendment.

And now where are we? Still imposing new powers on people we think we need to control, so we can stay in control. (And Clarence Thomas is proof the real concept of race is not skin color, but who gets to control whom.)
Warnock on SCOTUS:

First of all, no one elected this Court—to decide what kind of remedies we need in this moment. It’s really not up to the Supreme Court to say, “Well, we have reached the threshold where this issue around race and inclusion is no longer necessary.” That is not the job of the Court.

And I’m struck, quite frankly, by the very easy and nonchalant way in which this extreme, activist Court knocks down precedent after precedent. The bar for doing that ought to be high, but we’re seeing with this Court—whether we’re talking about voting rights or a woman’s bodily autonomy, the right to decide with respect to her own body—they just strike down things they don’t like.

They don’t have any respect, in the ways that we expect courts traditionally to, for precedent. And when precedents are torn down, you need a darn good reason to do it—and they are an activist court.
Art III of the Constitution:
Section 1

The judicial Power of the United States, shall be vested in one supreme Court, and in such inferior Courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish. The Judges, both of the supreme and inferior Courts, shall hold their Offices during good Behaviour, and shall, at stated Times, receive for their Services, a Compensation, which shall not be diminished during their Continuance in Office.

Section 2

The judicial Power shall extend to all Cases, in Law and Equity, arising under this Constitution, the Laws of the United States, and Treaties made, or which shall be made, under their Authority;—to all Cases affecting Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls;—to all Cases of admiralty and maritime Jurisdiction;—to Controversies to which the United States shall be a Party;—to Controversies between two or more States;—between a State and Citizens of another State,—between Citizens of different States,—between Citizens of the same State claiming Lands under Grants of different States, and between a State, or the Citizens thereof, and foreign States, Citizens or Subjects.

In all Cases affecting Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, and those in which a State shall be Party, the supreme Court shall have original Jurisdiction. In all the other Cases before mentioned, the supreme Court shall have appellate Jurisdiction, both as to Law and Fact, with such Exceptions, and under such Regulations as the Congress shall make.

The Trial of all Crimes, except in Cases of Impeachment, shall be by Jury; and such Trial shall be held in the State where the said Crimes shall have been committed; but when not committed within any State, the Trial shall be at such Place or Places as the Congress may by Law have directed.
Congress has power over even the courts. Not absolute power, but the power to make regulations and exceptions to the appellate jurisdiction of the Supreme Court. Even the composition of the Court is decided by Congress. Congress has the authority it needs. It just needs to use it 

this line from alito’s opinion, that the question before the court was “whether compliance with the Voting Rights Act should be added to our very short list of compelling interests that can justify racial discrimination,” is truly orwellian

it is racial discrimination to try ensure that the representation of a minority group is roughly in line with its proportion of the state’s population. it is equal protection to allow a state to obliterate a minority group’s representation.
Not disentangling race from anything. Just re-establishing who gets to decide when race matters.
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What I Mean When I Say The Congress Has The Whip Hand

Professor Vladeck:
There are specific reforms that would help (like an Article III Inspector General; a reassertion of control over the Court's docket; and use of the Court's budget as an oversight/accountability cudgel). But it's more about getting back to a place where the Court's *always* looking over its shoulder.
We have come to this pass because Congress has abandoned its authority. Impeachment and term limits and increasing the court size are, as Thoreau would put it, hacking at the branches of the tree of evil, instead of at its roots.

The good professor again:
The Callais ruling is the latest evidence that the real problem with #SCOTUS is that it can do whatever it wants without any fear of pushback from Congress.

The way to fix that is by making the Court *accountable* again, something that expanding it or imposing term limits won't actually accomplish:
And the portion of his argument not behind a paywall:
A world in which Congress is willing to hold the Court accountable is one in which it would not only override these kinds of patently ridiculous interpretations of statutes, but in which the specter of such legislative reaction might lead the Court away from such interpretations in the first place. And although the Court could still rest on (un-overrule-able) constitutional arguments to strike down Congress’s handiwork, that, too, assumes a Congress that wouldn’t simply respond by resorting to its array of other tools to push back against such an assertion of power by the justices.

Put another way, Callais itself and the reactions to it are both evidence, yet again, of what’s really wrong with the Court (the extent to which it has become completely unaccountable), and why the “right” way to fix it is to reform that, rather than hope that a Democratic president will appoint justices more committed than the justices in the Callais majority to the view that the Court is just one branch among three. Packing the Court may feel cathartic (and even accomplish partisan substantive goals) in the short term, but only at the further expense of the Court’s credibility and power in the medium- and long-term.
I won’t try to paraphrase, or even reiterate, the Professor’s arguments. The important point is to recognize the Congress has the whip hand, and we need to see that they reassert it.  Some reforms are certainly better than others; the devil is in the details, etc., etc., etc.  The important point now is to elect a Congress that will do something substantive. 

The Court wants to return us to our racist past. But we, the people, decide our path, not the Sinister Six. I’ve said before, it’s the Court that decided it was an independent third branch by itself, superior to, but apart from, the congressionally created federal judiciary. That judiciary is subject to ethical oversight, and retirement from the bench, that the Supreme Court says it is not subject to. Congress can change that. Art. III establishes the broad powers of a judiciary, and leaves the details to Congress.

Congress should remember that.
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Shouldn’t He Be On A 90 Minute Phone Call?

Trump: "Anybody running for President or Vice President should be forced to take a Cognitive Examination prior to entering the Race! By doing so, we wouldn’t be surprised at people like Barack 'Hussein' Obama, or Sleepy Joe Biden, getting 'ELECTED.' Our Country would be a much better place! I took the Exam three times during my ('THREE!') Terms as President, and ACED IT ALL THREE TIMES — An Achievement that, even on a single Exam, according to the Doctors, has rarely been done before! President DONALD J. TRUMP"
Trump: "For months, Senator Bill Cassidy (of the GREAT State of Louisiana!), a very disloyal person whose 'TRUMP' Endorsement got him elected, but later voted to impeach 'President Trump' on what has now proven to be a total Hoax and Scam, has stood in the way of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s Nominee, Casey Means, for the important position of U.S. Surgeon General. I nominated Casey, a strong MAHA Warrior, at the recommendation of Secretary Kennedy, who understands the MAHA Movement better than anyone, with perhaps the possible exception of ME! Nevertheless, despite Senator Cassidy’s intransigence and political games, Casey will continue to fight for MAHA on the many important Health issues facing our Country, such as the rising childhood disease epidemic, increased autism rates, poor nutrition, over-medicalization, and researching the root causes of infertility, and many other difficult medical problems. Casey, thank you for your service to our Nation! President DONALD J. TRUMP"
It’s okay, he recovered. Genius! We’ll end the blockade while still calling it a blockade! Nonsense!
SCALISE: We've delivered. People will remember that two years ago, we were paying almost $6 a gallon for gas. Right now it's in the $3s

KERNEN: When were we paying $6?

SCALISE: Two and a half years ago

KERNEN: That wasn't the average price

SCALISE: We are lowering inflation

KERNEN: We are actually above where we were then. Two years ago the average was $3.65.
Don’t they understand it’s not that bad? Does “grownups” mean delusional people? Yes. Yes, it does.
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Wednesday, April 29, 2026

Trump Is Delusional And Listens To Our Enemies

I think he did it twice.
Putin and Trump spoke by phone for 90+ mins, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said. Putin said he’s ready to declare a Victory Day ceasefire; Trump supported it and said a Ukraine deal is “close.”

Ushakov said Trump also viewed Russia’s recent Easter ceasefire positively. At Trump’s request, Putin described the front line as Russia holding the initiative and pushing back Ukrainian forces, and reiterated that Moscow’s goals would be achieved—preferably via talks.

Putin added that a settlement would require Zelensky to accept previously outlined terms. This was their 12th call since Trump’s return to the WH in early 2025.

Ushakov also said Putin noted Russia has transferred 20K+ bodies to Kyiv since the start of 2025, receiving just over 500 in return.

Separately, Putin expressed support for Trump following the April 25 assassination attempt in D.C. and condemned political violence. He also warned of “serious consequences” if the U.S. and Israel take military action against Iran, calling a ground op “unacceptable.”
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White Man’s Privilege Burden

BlueSky:

Alito authoring opinion saying fixing a racial gerrymander is also racist and then musing, 2 hours later, during oral argument about Trump's racist effort to end humanitarian protections against deportation for Haitians, about how he doesn't like dividing up people by race

I loathe this man so much
So say we all. 

BlueSky:
The court has simply recreated the pre-Brown world in allowing racial discrimination across a broad number fields as long as it is “facially neutral,” gutting the Reconstruction Amendments in the process.
BlueSky:
The "reactionary colorblindess" of the right-wing justices has reached its logical conclusion in finding that it is racist NOT to let Louisiana—and any other state for that matter—discriminate on the basis of race in voting.
Happy 250th, America. The more things change, the more they remain the same. It would be racist to do otherwise. The Sinister Six said so today.

The racism is the point. It always has been.
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A Dianne Feinstein Moment

(Reading the responses to this, I feel I have to explain that if any Trump nominee agrees with reality and the historical record, their nomination will be withdrawn before the hearing can end.)
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The Leader Of The Free World

U.S. President Donald J. Trump has told Axios that he's going to keep Iran under a naval blockade until the regime agrees to a deal that addresses U.S. concerns about its nuclear program, rejecting an Iranian proposal to first open the Strait of Hormuz and lift the blockade, while postponing potential nuclear talks between Iran and the United States.
During today’s phone call, Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomed President Trump’s decision to extend the ceasefire with Iran, while warning of “extremely harmful consequences” if Israel and the United States resumed strikes against the Islamic Republic, according to the Russian state-run news agency TASS.
Are these things connected? Well, certainly in some way.

And Trump’s idea of negotiating is: “Fuck the world economy! Fuck the U.S. economy!”? Gonna keep this up until we get back to the agreement Obama had? Well, he’s a great man, right?
(It’s an interesting premise, but, in the end, not much of an analysis. Of course Trump thinks he’s one of the seminal figures of history. What else is new?)
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The Point Is, To Agree With Me

U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, in his opening remarks this morning in front of the House Armed Services Committee for the administration’s requested $1.5 trillion defense budget in 2027, attacked members of Congress, both Democrats and Republicans, for not supporting the ongoing war against Iran:

“President Trump, unlike other presidents, has had the courage to ensure Iran never gets a nuclear weapon, and he's ironclad in that. We have the best negotiator in the world driving that deal. The biggest challenge, the biggest adversary we face at this point are the reckless, feckless, and defeatist words of Congressional Democrats and some Republicans two months in, I remind you, two months in to a conflict. Lest I remind you, and my generation understands how long we were in Iraq, how long we were in Afghanistan, how long we were in Vietnam. Two months in on an existential fight for the safety of the American people, Iran cannot have a nuclear bomb. We are proud of this undertaking. I am proud that President Trump was have the courage to do it and I look forward to sharing more about what our troops have accomplished. So I thank you again for the opportunity to address this committee. I ask that God would continue to watch over our troops in harm's way. And those that have fallen are always in our memory, and we fight to ensure their legacy. Look forward to answering the questions of this committee.”
HEGSETH: Their nuclear facilities have been obliterated

SMITH: Whoa whoa whoa whoa. We had to start this war, you just said, because the nuclear weapon was an imminent threat. Now you're saying it was completely obliterated?

HEGSETH: They had not given up their *ambitions*

SMITH: So Operation Midnight Hammer accomplished nothing of substance

HEGSETH: You're missing the point
And don’t make false equivalations!
Hegseth attacks Garamendi: "You stain the troops when you call this a quagmire two months in, handing propaganda to our enemies. Shame on you. Don't say I support the troops on one hand, and then a two-month mission is a quagmire. That's a false equivalation [sic]. Who are you cheering for here?"
(The wrong lesson from Vietnam: that we lost the war because we stopped “supporting the troops.” When “supporting the troop” actually means not sending them into pointless wars.)

(And this ain’t “Peter Pan,” Tinkerbelle. Clapping louder won’t make everything okay. Ye gods and little fishes, they are bad at this!)
"Why don’t you support the troops and quit asking do many gol-durned questions?” High gas prices support the troops!
Hegseth is asked if he considered the risk of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz ahead of time

Moulton: Did you consider this risk?

Hegseth: Of course, this department has looked at all aspects of this risk.

Moulton: And why did this department send the only minesweepers we had in the gulf to Singapore weeks before the war started.

Hegseth: We have lots of capabilities that you may or may not aware of at the classified level.
And yet, here we are.
Hegseth dismisses concerns over the Strait of Hormuz being closed because the US blockaded Iran’s blockade

Moulton: So they blockaded us, and then we blockaded their blockade—that's like if President Madison had said, well, the British just burned down Washington, but don't worry, we're going to burn it down as well.
Best analogy I’ve heard so far.
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I Wish I Could Say I Was Surprised

Professor Vladeck:
Second (and last) #SCOTUS ruling is the big one, Louisiana v. Callais.

For a 6-3 majority (Rs v. Ds), Justice Alito purports to narrow the ability of states to draw majority-minority districts as a remedy for race-based vote dilution, but, per Kagan's dissent, comes pretty close to gutting the VRA:
From that dissent:
"I dissent because Congress elected otherwise. I dissent because the Court betrays its duty to faithfully implement the great statute Congress wrote. I dissent because the Court’s decision will set back the foundational right Congress granted of racial equality in electoral opportunity. I dissent."
The 15th amendment, along with the 13th and 14th, were meant to provide some repairs to the fabric of a country that institutionalized racism.

At least we got rid of slavery.  But equal protection of laws still means “white people first,” and the 15th amendment is still the red headed stepchild, to which the Roberts Court has said again: “Nice try,”

It may be in the constitution, but that doesn’t mean we have to inconvenience white people over it.
... what the majority does today is to impose the Callais requirements. At their base, all those requirements have the same function: They force a vote-dilution plaintiff to prove that a State adopted an election rule with racially discriminatory intent. On the majority’s view, a rule diluting minority votes—even making them count for nothing—poses no problem if motivated by “nonracial factors.” Ante, at 24. So a State has free rein to “use traditional districting factors” even when they minimize or cancel out minority votes. Ibid. And yet more practically important, a State may (so says the majority) draw districts for any political purpose, including for a purely “partisan purpose[]”—that is, to increase one party’s electoral strength—no matter their racial effects. Ante, at 25. For that reason, the majority insists, a [VRA] Section 2 plaintiff has "a special burden to overcome."
Kagan, J., dissenting.

None dare call it “white man’s burden.” After all, discrimination against white people is the real race problem in America. That’s why the struggle to maintain this racist system is such a difficult one, and requires so much justification.

I can read every word of Alito’s opinion, and understand his argument. That’s the problem: I understand his argument.

I leave the legal riposte to the good Professor:
LULAC makes Callais worse:

Justice Alito's Callais opinion purports to preserve claims in which there's evidence of racially discriminatory intent.

But this is the same Court that simply waved its hands at a district court's *detailed* factual findings of exactly such evidence in the Texas case.
It’s almost as damning as what I said. Because it’s not the first time Alito and the majority have ignored the facts in favor of the outcome.
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4 A.M.?

He’s not up at that hour because he only needs 2 hours sleep in 24. Or because a crisis demanded his attention ( where was his attention, in that case?).

I, too, have seen dementia patients lose the ability to sleep, except from exhaustion. But they were much more clearly incapacitated, so the question is: is Trump’s problem psychological, or physiological? Organic, or emotional? Both, and a little bit of neither?

Whatever it is, in anyone else, you’d take away the keys and get them a caretaker. At a bare minimum.

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AI Imagery Is Cheap, Too

Or, this got out:
In recent meetings, including a Monday discussion in the Situation Room, Trump opted to continue squeezing Iran’s economy and oil exports by preventing shipping to and from its ports," according to the report. "He assessed that his other options—resume bombing or walk away from the conflict—carried more risk than maintaining the blockade, officials said."

"Yet continuing the blockade also prolongs a conflict that has driven up gas prices, hurt Trump’s poll numbers and further darkened Republicans’ prospects in the midterm elections," it continued. "It has also caused the lowest number of transits through the Strait of Hormuz since the war began."
He hasn’t resumed bombing yet. Why start now? Much more in character to just make himself look sillier.
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Translation:

Disney has just responded to the FCC's unprecedented challenge to its ABC station licenses:

"We have received the Federal Communications Commission’s order initiating an accelerated review of the licenses held by ABC’s owned television stations. ABC and its stations have a long record of operating in full compliance with FCC rules and serving their local communities with trusted news, emergency information, and public‑interest programming. We are confident that record demonstrates our continued qualifications as licensees under the Communications Act and the First Amendment and are prepared to show that through the appropriate legal channels. Our focus remains, as always, on serving viewers in the local communities where our stations operate."
"We’ve seen your lawyers. You don’t have the cards.” 🃏 

(No, I don’t give a wet snap about Disney and their broadcast licenses. But the FCC thinks they can challenge those licenses based on Disney employment practices that the FCC says are “DEI.” This makes as much sense as indicting Comey for taking pictures of sea shells.🐚)
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Tuesday, April 28, 2026

Exit Ramp

Trump had to have someone explain that one to him. That one, too. Gonna build that exit ramp all by himself.
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Todd Blanche Is Aware Of The 5th Amendment, Right?

"... with the defendant himself”? 8647 Popehat:
/5 As we wait to see the indictment I am interested to see whether they are smart enough to evade First Amendment analysis by just reciting the elements and not describing the “threat.”
(First Amendment protects all but a “true threat.” Whuch is why Secret Service investigate first, and seek indictments later.)

If I was more familiar with Federal Criminal Procedure, I’d start a pool on how soon after Comey enters a plea, that this gets dismissed. I’m sure it can be measured in Scaramuccis. Because they just don’t know how not to make this worse:
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One King…

According to Reuters, citing two U.S. officials with knowledge on the matter, agencies within the U.S. intelligence community have been given the direction of assessing the likelihood that Iranian decision-makers will react adversely if U.S. President Donald J. Trump declares a “unilateral” victory and moves to pull back from previous commitments to a conflict with the Persian nation.
One putz.
According to a release from U.S. State Department Deputy Spokesperson Tommy Pigott and earlier reporting by the Bulwark, the U.S. is set to release limited numbers of new U.S. passports with the visage of U.S. President Donald J. Trump to commemorate the United States’ 250th anniversary.
Because Trump “got” the 250th. It’s his, and you can’t take it away from him.

The candidate in 2028 who promises to replace all such passports free of charge, will have my vote.

One king, too:
King Charles: The Christian faith is a firm anchor and daily inspiration that guides us not only personally—

*applause*

King Charles: Guides us not only personally, but together as members of our community. Having devoted a large part of my life to interfaith relationships and—

*applause*
Now we know why Trump was in the residence angry tweeting at Iran and Germany during this speech. Leave the humor to the cat. You’re an official government outlet, not Jimmy Kimmel. Now, he’s funny!
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Nothing To See Here

After that motion to dissolve the ballroom injunction, who’s surprised? Yes, it should be treated with the seriousness it deserves. Or the Nora O’Donnell response.
Impeaching Trump leaves his DOJ behind. There are better ways. The Tl;dr/paywall solution:
U.S. President Donald J. Trump has told advisers he is not satisfied with Iran’s latest proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and end the Iran War, which calls on the United States to lift its ongoing blockade and postpones nuclear talks till after the conflict is over, according to multiple people briefed on discussions in the White House Situation Room who spoke to The New York Times.
So what is Trump going to do about it? Besides subtweet the German Chancellor…. Same thing he’s gonna do about gas prices, IOW.
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Or….

Or... Or... The King is otherwise occupied, and Trump is bored.
Trump: "The Chancellor of Germany, Friedrich Merz, thinks it’s OK for Iran to have a Nuclear Weapon. He doesn’t know what he’s talking about! If Iran had a Nuclear Weapon, the whole World would be held hostage. I am doing something with Iran, right now, that other Nations, or Presidents, should have done long ago. No wonder Germany is doing so poorly, both Economically, and otherwise! President DONALD J. TRUMP"
I was going to say it’s all about distraction. But it’s all about ego. Trump is always the superhero the world has been waiting for. Or so he thinks. It’s really rather remarkable how he’s come to resemble Wilson Fisk in the Disney+ version of “Daredevil,” or Homelander in the Prime version of “The Boys.” I can’t tell how much of that is happenstance, and how much is enemy action. But it is clear Trump thinks he, alone, is saving the world, and his authority, alone, should be supreme. Because how else is the world going to be saved?

And there our present troubles start.

It won’t be enough to remove Trump. I prefer the method of metaphorically emasculating him. Congress has the whip hand; it’s time they started using it. Congress can assert authority over the Supremes, directly (court size, jurisdiction, responsibilities), or indirectly (repeal presidential “immunity” with a Constitutional Amendment.). They may need to do all that to rein in the Imperial Presidency they’ve allowed to flourish. With the demise of political parties (they no longer control who gets access to their nominating process), the inevitable end of what FDR started, is Trump. If we, the people, through the Congress we directly elect, don’t insist on reforms now, even removing Trump from office is barely a Band Aid on this suppurating sore on the body politic. We need some post-Civil War equivalent amendments, and we need to assert the vox populi hand in the iron fist of government.

We won’t solve all our problems; but we can’t let it go on like this, or expect the absence of Trump to be the cure for what got us here.

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Yes, I Am Enjoying This Far More Than Should Be Allowed In Public

I want to see Cornyn or Paxton call for funding the ballroom in the general election. Hell, I just wanna see ‘em asked about it. Scott is making sense. This won’t last long. Or it’s a sign of the End Times. 👹
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The Sickness Unto Death

Well, we know Charles is ill. 😷 

About Trump, we must all become Kremlinologists. 
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🪩

I can’t confirm the size of the Home Court at the Obama Center, which is designed to be a community space, but it sure don’t sound like coincidence:
A consortium led by Clark Construction was awarded the US$200M contract in August 2025. In September, with plans for the ballroom still not submitted, commission chair Will Scharf clarified during a public meeting of the NCPC that the approval process is only required for construction, not demolition or site preparation work. Initially expected to seat 650, in September Trump said this had been revised upward to 900, and in October he said it would be able to hold 999 people.
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It Just Gets Dumber…

 … and dumber. The penultimate paragraph:

Even if that space cannot be conjured with a finger snap, the injunction “inevitably extends the time during which” the ballroom remains unavailable, and “the President’s residence remains less secure.” National Trust, 2026 WL 980554, at *7 (Rao, J., dissenting). “Every additional day of White House vulnerability harms the government.” Id. That is so, because every additional day of court-manufactured delay is yet another day that the lives of the President, his family, his Cabinet, and his staff, and those of future Presidents, are being subject to avoidable hazard. If any other President had the ability, foresight, or talents necessary, to build this ballroom, which will be one of the greatest, safest, and most secure structures of its kind anywhere in the World, there would never have been a lawsuit. But, because it is DONALD J. TRUMP, a highly successful real estate developer, who has abilities that others don’t, especially those who assume the Office of President, this frivolous and meritless lawsuit was filed. Again, it’s called TRUMP DERANGEMENT SYNDROME. On top of everything else, this project is a gift to our Country from President Trump, and other Donors. It is free of charge to the American Taxpayer. Who could ever object to that?
Yes, it’s all one paragraph. No, that’s not the entire paragraph.
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“Three Generations Of Imbeciles Is Enough!”

 Oh, wait, that’s not what they told the court:

They were asked by the United States Military not to bring this suit because of the Top Secret nature of the important facility being built. They were shown detailed plans and specifications of this knitted, unified, and cohesive structure by Top Officers and Leaders in both the Military and Secret Service. But this did not deter them because they suffer from Trump Derangement Syndrome, commonly referred to as TDS, as noted by Democrat Senator John Fetterman, of Pennsylvania, and are represented by the lawyer for Barack Hussein Obama, Gregory Craig. The lower section of the building does not work without the upper section and, likewise, the upper section of the building does not work without the lower. It is all one highly integrated unit! As an example, one venting system, one electrical system, one plumbing system, one security system, one air conditioning and heating system, one elevator connector and, very importantly, one structural steel and enforced concrete system — and more. Even the bullet proof windows and glass, and the heavy steel, drone proof roof, protect what is below. With such a facility, it would have been impossible for an attack like that which took place last Saturday evening in D.C. when an attempted assassin, armed with a shotgun, pistol, and knives, charged through a security checkpoint at the Washington Hilton in an attempt to assassinate President Donald J. Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, and members of the President’s Cabinet and senior staff, during the White House Correspondents’ Dinner. The Secret Service fortunately neutralized the assassin before he could reach the ballroom. However, Saturday’s narrow miss—which marks the third assassination attempt on President Trump since 2024—confirms what should have already been obvious: Presidents need a secure space for large events, that currently does not exist in Washington, D.C., and this Court’s injunction stalling this Project cannot defensibly continue, for the sake of the safety of President Trump, future Presidents, and their families, Cabinets, and staff. Defendants thus request that this Court issue an indicative ruling under Rule 62.1 that it will dissolve its injunction. Three assassination attempts—including the attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, where an assassin’s bullet hit the President’s ear—is enough. There is absolutely no argument that a woman walking her dog in the vicinity of the White House has STANDING to stop such a desperately needed structure for the people of the United States of America, as it will provide Presidents, current and future, a secure space to do their jobs. The day after this assassination attempt, Defendants asked the Trust whether they oppose this motion and still seek to stop this Project by continuing their dangerous lawsuit. The “Trust” refused to heed their request, and responded that it opposes this motion.
I was right: he wants to take the ballroom with him wherever he goes.
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It’s Always Worse Than You Think

Trump’s DOJ just filed what may be the most deranged written Motion ever. It reads more like a Truth Social post dictated by Trump himself. What an embarrassment.

The Motion is filled with inappropriate personal insults. It literally calls the National Trust for Historic Preservation name “FAKE” and says the group is “very bad for our Country.” It accuses them of suffering from “Trump Derangement Syndrome” and frames their lawyer as “the lawyer for Barack Hussein Obama.”

This is an actual line from the filing: “because it is DONALD J. TRUMP, a highly successful real estate developer, who has abilities that others don't, especially those who assume the Office of President, this frivolous and meritless lawsuit was filed.”

This is how the Department of Justice is writing now?

Then comes the opportunism. The filing leans heavily on the White House Correspondents’ Dinner incident and uses it to push Trump’s long-standing obsession with building a ballroom. Instead of addressing what went wrong, it argues that none of this would have happened if Trump’s project already existed.

They claim “bipartisan support” because of support from…John Fetterman.

The lawsuit also claims at multiple points the ballroom won’t cost taxpayers anything—something we now know to be false.

Every DOJ lawyer who put their name on this should be ashamed. And it should be a major scandal that it appears that Donald Trump is the one who actually wrote this. So much for DOJ independence.
Seriously.
“The National Trust for Historic Preservation” is a beautiful name, but even their name is FAKE because when they add the words “in the United States” to the National Trust for Historic Preservation, it makes it sound like a Governmental Agency, which it is not. In fact, the United States refused to continue funding it in 2005 because they strongly disagreed with their mission and objectives. They are very bad for our Country. They stop many projects that are worthy, and hurt many others. In this case, they are trying to stop one that is vital to our National Security, and the Safety of all Presidents of the United States, both current and future, their families, staff, and Cabinet members.
The opening lines. Pam Bondi was a Chinese wall.
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But Go On, Fund That $400 Million Ballroom

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Just Leaving This Right Here

And he seems nice: Can’t imagine why he thought it was okay to say that….
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Monday, April 27, 2026

Let’s See How Far They Go

Please put it to a vote. Maybe use reconciliation. Push it through as “budget neutral.” Maybe cut Medicare and Medicaid some more? See if you can get it past the Senate Parliamentarian. I mean, nobody’s gonna hold it against you, right? The people don’t blame the GOP for the lines at the airports? Or for ICE. Or rising costs, rising on the back of gas prices going up because Trump thought Iran would be a pushover; and now he’s too bored with Iran to even talk tough about them.

So, yeah, give him a ballroom. I’m sure it’ll pass easily. And nobody will notice that Congress can’t get anything done, except to service the whims of one of the least popular presidents in history.

Pass the bill, so the Democrats can order its destruction in 2027. Hell, they can even campaign on it. One more example of Trump’s corruption, and his waste, fraud, and abuse. Maybe get Paxton (or Cornyn, who knows?) to support it, so Talarico can beat either of them like a drum. If he wasn’t going to already.
See? The campaign ads write themselves.

(I really can’t believe the Republicans are this stupid. Still, as we’ve seen, anything is possible.)

UPDATE: Lawrence O’Donnell reports the ballroom Trump wants to build, would hold 1/4 the number of people at the Washington Hilton for the WHCD that had to be canceled. So please, please, please, GOP, I’m begging you. Insist on this ballroom being built, even as the evidence of what a wasteful vanity project it is, continues to mount. Do it! 😈

(The Hilton ballroom, btw, held 2600 people for that dinner.)
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You Wouldn’t Know It, But There’s A War Going On. AND An International Economic Crisis

German Chancellor Merz: It is quite obvious that the Americans have absolutely no coherent strategy whatsoever.

And the fundamental problem with these kinds of conflicts is always the same: it is not enough to simply get yourself in—you must also figure out how to get yourself out.

We witnessed that reality quite painfully in Afghanistan over the course of 20 long years. We saw the exact same thing happen in Iraq.

So this entire situation, as I have mentioned previously, is at the very least ill-considered. I do not see, at this present moment, what strategic exit the Americans are choosing—especially since the Iranians are either negotiating very skillfully, or just as effectively, refusing to negotiate at all.

Making the Americans travel to Islamabad and then leave empty-handed—there is a sense that a whole nation is being humiliated by the Iranian leadership, particularly the Revolutionary Guards.

As Europeans, we have extended an offer to assist in reopening the Strait of Hormuz once hostilities come to an end. We have also offered to deploy specialized minesweepers from Germany to clear the strait, which appears to have been mined.

But first, the fighting must stop.

And right now, I do not see how that is achievable in the short term. The Iranians are proving stronger than initially expected, and the Americans do not appear to have a convincing or coherent strategy for negotiations.

This is a complex and very difficult situation.

(Translated from German)
Merz: As far as Iran is concerned, yes, I have become disillusioned with that by now. And that is simply because the United States of America and Israel had assumed right at the beginning that this problem would be solved within a few days.

And today we have to realize that it has not been solved.

That is why we on the European side also want to make a diplomatic effort to find a solution. I have pointed out that for some time now, diplomatic efforts towards Iran have been taking place again from Germany as well.

We are coordinating closely with the American side on this, but we also state that we have our own European ideas on how to reach a solution to the conflict. I hope we succeed, but I am not sure.

(Translated from German)
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