Sunday, October 18, 2026

Hot Political Takes

Because I mentioned El Sayed:
Here's the most important detail about mid-20s former @HawleyMO staffer Tommy Teepell getting his ass handed to him by @AbdulElSayed .

Teepell's Daddy was just offering people $200 to make just THOSE KINDS of stupid comments.

Tommy is a paid agitator and he STILL stepped all over his own dick.
Pretty sure El Sayed knew this, or at least wasn’t surprised by, Teepell’s question. Yeah, about those polls and the models they’re using: Early voting in Texas starts tomorrow. As my uncle used to say: “Clever, these Chinese.” Trump can’t walk in a straight line. (This should be a baseline qualification to run for the office.) We’ll always have Paris. News Nation is dumb enough to believe this. But given the track record of this Administration, it’s still credible. “[B]eyond anything the public has understood the case to be about” just means the models of our expectations are as unprepared for reality as the Texas election polls. Well, very likely. The future is still the Great Unknown. And News Nation is still as credible as Trump.
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October 9

Russian President Vladimir Putin has proposed that he, President Donald J. Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping meet next month to discuss the war in Ukraine, without Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, according to people familiar with the discussions who spoke to The Wall Street Journal. A former Russian intelligence officer said Putin raised it in an Oct. 9 call with Trump.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed discussions are taking place, saying there is “no clear understanding yet regarding the meeting itself or its potential agenda.” A senior U.S. official said Trump has not agreed but could be receptive. The White House declined to comment.

The Kremlin suggested holding it on the sidelines of the APEC summit in Shenzhen, China, Nov. 18 and 19, the sources said. Others close to the talks said China indicated it would not object if Trump is on board.
Earlier:
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said earlier today that he held a phone call with White House Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff and White House Envoy Jared Kushner. Per the statement from President Zelensky, discussions were centered on peace negotiations and past contacts that were had recently in Florida.

This comes amidst this past week’s U.S. waiver of key Russian sanctions and the throttling of Ukraine’s Starshield access which hampered Ukraine’s offensive capabilities significantly.
Context is all.
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This Is The “Genius”…

Trump: "My decision on Russia is a very simple one. I am in the process of negotiating Peace in the war between Russia and Ukraine, and don’t want to do anything that will drive, foolishly, Russia away from the bargaining table. Great progress is being made, and that includes current hostage negotiations! Signing that document at this time will do that, and I can sign it later, or any time that I want! Perhaps more importantly, Russia is doing very little, if anything, to help the Islamic Republic of Iran, compared to what they could be doing, and I want to keep it that way, and will, unless stupid people get in the way. Lastly, Zelenskyy is using Diesel Refineries in Russia as a target, knowing that these attacks are seriously hurting the world diesel markets, including those in the United States. Farmers, ranchers, and businesses of all kinds are suffering greatly from this, but Russia is, nevertheless, sending, at a low price, millions of barrels of diesel to the World. Zelenskyy doesn’t care, and frankly, with all of the money that Europe is famously giving him, and that Crooked Joe Biden gave him in the past, he doesn’t want to end this war, and probably never did. He could have made a better deal two years ago than he can now. His country is in shambles, a large portion of his land is lost, his oceans and seas are gone, and his male population is low, wounded, and/or dead. I WANT THIS WAR END! Thank you for your attention to this matter. President DONALD J. TRUMP"
... who is going to declare “martial law”* because he won’t like the election returns, and intimidate millions of voters (most of whom will have voted by Election Day) with ICE and DOJ monitors, and armed military personnel, and seize voting machines and force Mike Johnson to force the House clerk to refuse to seat the entire House; or just the new members; or just the Democrats; or just the New Democrats (the conspiracy theory hasn’t worked out those details yet, even though its most prominent proponent is a retired federal judge), or Trump will cancel elections because “NATIONAL SECURITY!”**

The guy who lost 60+ futile and bootless court cases in 2020, and wholly failed to change a THING!, is going to succeed this time in an election in which HE HAS NO ROLE WHATSOEVER!  This guy:
Funny, that. It’s barely an alteration on this: He’s been saying that for at least a month now, at every rally. No one seems to notice that IT MAKES ABSOLUTELY NO FUCKING SENSE in a healthcare system where you need health insurance to see a GP, or buy anything stronger than aspirin,  a system that’s been that way for the past 50 years (yes, I do remember when “health insurance” meant “hospitalization,” and pharmacies were places doling out prescriptions for acute, seldom chronic, conditions.).  So what he’s really saying is : “FUCK YOU, DROP DEAD! GOVERNMENT SHOULD NOT HELP YOU!” I swear, if it wasn’t for AARP, he’d have shuttered Medicare in the One Big Ugly Disaster.

And people still don’t think he means what he says, because he sounds so stupid saying it. And then others attribute massively stupid possible actions to him. It’s like they can’t get out of their own way to see him clearly.


*So do the people counseling Trump to declare “martial law,” or who fear he will. It’s not a legal concept countenanced by our constitution, legal system, or legal history. He might as well declare the landing of Apollo 11 secured the entire moon for the United States of America. But then MAGA would be upset because they all know the moon landing was faked.

**Yeah, that’s not a “GET OUT OF ELECTIONS FREE” card, either.
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💩

Yeah, but it doesn’t hurt when this happens:Rogers wants to hide behind the Sacred Narrative. 
WELKER: Zelenskyy just said he believes the US government slowed Starlink. Can you definitely say no one in the Trump administration ordered restrictions?

BESSENT: President Trump and Secretary Rubio have categorically said that no one in the Trump administration did that. President Zelenskyy should be very careful about making reckless statements like that
"Reckless statements”? Coming from this administration, that’s hilarious. (Trump said he doesn’t know what’s going on. Elmo said Starshield is run by the Pentagon, not SpaceX. So apparently, nobody’s in charge? That’s a good look.) (Elmo doesn’t want people to realize he can cut off their StarLink, too. Starshield is a government contracted program. If Musk arbitrarily decided to slow down Ukraine, then that’s yet another problem. Bessent is covering himself in all kinds of shit, here.)
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Hit Dog’ll Holler

It’s better (pardon my pettiness, but I don’t disavow that!) in context: Hewitt objects to a real answer rather than a fake answer. An answer like this is more comfortable? (And the attack was in March, and Vance still hadn’t heard of it?) Even CBS had to get in on it; So, the Sacred Narrative* must be preserved, must be bowed down to, and “disavowal” must be ritually performed according to the rites approved by the right wing. El Sayed failed to complete the ritual. Therefore , he failed to “disavow.” Pay attention: he disavowed the Muslim Brotherhood twice in that conversation, but he shredded the basis for the requirement that he do so. And that’s the problem for Tommy and Jan and Hugh and Ari.

Yeah, Tommy was not a concerned voter, he was a plant looking to score points. El Sayed proved he’s fit to stand on the floor of the chamber of “the greatest deliberative body in the world” and stand his ground.

I call that a win.

*Yes, the tweet was deleted, but the text remains. The powers that be at CBS were less than pleased. There are many Sacred Narratives that must be observed.


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Saturday, October 17, 2026

🤦‍♂️

I used to tell people I’d been yelled at in court by judges, Id learned could handle  anything.

Seriously, if you’re in court as a lawyer, expect the judge to yell at you. I don’t mean it’s a common occurrence, but judges run their courtrooms. And sometimes they do that by yelling. You just move on. 

Whinging, in print, in court pleadings, that the judge was mean to you, is frankly unprofessional. Even if the judge is a demented asshole, you preserve your error and make the best of a bad situation. One of the first trials I worked on involved two defendants and a complicated set of facts. All the parties planned on a trial lasting at least three weeks.  The federal judge announced he had a trial set in Pecos (we were in Austin) in a week, and that was all the time he had for this trial. The plaintiff got two days to make their case, each defendant got one day for their defense, with the first day for jury selection. That was arguably more error than berating incompetent counsel (who are always fodder for any judge’s ire.). 

All this pleading really establishes is that the DOJ now has to look up to see bottom.  It’s gonna be a long time recovering from Trump.
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The Important Thing

Does any of that make any sense? The arena holds 8500, at best. He seems to be confusing Montana with Arizona, which was an outdoor event. SOCIALISM! Texas has almost 20,000 windmills, more than any state in the country. The windmills are real, the factories are only of his mind. That’s the important thing.
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All They’ve Got

Trump: "We have 5 states where your child goes off to school as Tim and comes back as Tammy 3 or 4 days later. It's true. And teachers make a decision. 'Goodbye Timmy I love you so much, I'll see you later.' And you say, 'Where's my son? My son is in the hospital.' Can you imagine? They don't even need approval"
Only Trump can imagine it. What nobody else can imagine, is what this sick fantasy has to do with the price of gas, or diesel, or food. Or how it addresses blatant corruption and government of, by, and for the billionaires.

Which seems to be what people are ready to vote against.
Pretty they aren’t motivated by fear of forced trans surgeries.
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(Im)Plausible Deniability

Following Russia’s devastating overnight attacks that heavily targeted Ukraine’s energy grid, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky took to X today to decry recent actions by the White House that saw additional Russian sanctions waived on top of the current 6 month oil and gas export waiver implemented in the last two weeks.
Latest: ​Zelenskyy tells reporters over WhatsApp that restrictions on Ukraine's Starlink systems remain. Interceptor drones can't function, logistics and operations hobbled. The maximum speed is 161 kph; "exceeding this limit causes the Starlink connection to cut out completely, resulting in the loss of the drone."

He says Ukraine has done tests to determine whether SpaceX is truly facing technical issues, as has been told Kyiv by the US side, or if this is a "deliberate operation... to restrict us, cut us off, and prevent us from defending ourselves and protecting our people, both at the front and among the civilian population."

He says Ukraine "sent a couple of vehicles equipped with Starlink terminals into European Union territory."

"They moved at speeds exceeding 180kph, and the Starlink systems worked perfectly. We have the relevant logs and evidence to prove this."

He adds: "The conclusion is clear: the restrictions are in effect within Ukraine but do not apply within the European Union. In other words, this is a planned operation."
Elon Musk proposed slowing down Starlink for Ukraine to President Trump, according to four sources familiar with the discussions who spoke to The Telegraph. One said Trump “agreed,” paving the way for the Pentagon to put speed limits on Starshield, the military version of Starlink that Ukraine uses to intercept jet powered drones and strike behind enemy lines. A European official and two Ukrainian sources confirmed that version to the paper.

The report conflicts with public statements. Musk wrote on X Wednesday that “any limits on speed or usage” are “decided by the US military and ultimately POTUS.” Trump said Friday that neither he nor Musk was responsible. A senior U.S. official told AFP the president made no such request. Reuters reported Thursday, citing two U.S. officials and a Western official, that the order came from inside the White House and reached Pentagon leaders as a message that Starshield needed to be slowed. The Pentagon has not publicly explained the restrictions.

Ukraine says the limit, about 100 mph (160 km/h), disrupted strike missions and the drones it uses to intercept Russia’s jet powered drones. Zelensky said Friday that Kyiv received signals from the White House that capabilities would be returned, but that speeds had not gone back to the previous limit.

The limit came as Washington pressed Kyiv to stop striking Russian oil refineries in an effort to relieve strained supplies.
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🎶Somethin’ Happenin’ Here🎶

🎶Everybody look at what's goin' down🎶
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Seems Like Old Times

Rep. Omar’s lawyers sent a letter to DOJ prosecutors
They also sought the preservation of any records from a 2019 inquiry into Omar’s immigration history, which unfolded during Trump’s first administration. The Post reported Thursday that as part of that review, career immigration officials examined many of the same issues at the heart of the current probe — including questions over Omar’s birth date and her father’s military record in Somalia — and determined there was insufficient evidence of wrongdoing to warrant a full investigation.

“The political motivations behind this pre-election investigation and search are clear as day,” Omar’s attorneys wrote, adding: “This search was neither justified nor lawful.”
Desperately searching for something in the last seven years they can use to establish a RICO violation. Everything old is old again.

As for the search itself:
Among the restrictions the attorneys said agents did not follow were provisions requiring investigators to provide Omar’s lawyers with a copy of the warrant and to contact the House Office of General Counsel before carrying out the search. That would have given Omar the chance to consult with congressional attorneys on any legislative work product that might have been exempt from federal seizure, her lawyers said.
Her lawyers say she wasn’t given that opportunity until an hour into the search. Now ordinarily, DOJ would decline comment. But this is Trump’s DOJ:
A Justice Department spokesperson dismissed the letter as “riddled with false allegations and inaccuracies.”

“Our attorneys and law enforcement partners complied with all court orders and legal obligations, as they always do,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “Leaking a letter to the press right after sending it is not good faith. It is a publicity play.”
Trump’s DOJ can’t resist an opportunity to try this case in the court of public opinion. 

Omar's lawyers said:
“There is no legitimate basis for any suggestion that she has violated any law concerning her citizenship status,” the letter read. “Still, recent experience teaches that the absence of a proper predicate has not stopped this Administration from pursuing politically motivated criminal investigations into President Trump’s opponents.”
Trump’s DOJ seems determined to prove them right.
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This Is Fine

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Friday, October 16, 2026

🐂 💩 All The Way Down

Yikes. In a desperate-sounding video, CENTCOM Commander Adm. Brad Cooper insists the Strait of Hormuz is “controlled by the United States… not Iran” and “open for business,” despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary:

“Let me be clear. The Strait of Hormuz is controlled by the United States and our regional partners, not Iran, and it remains open for business. Over the last seven days alone, about 400 merchant ships have sailed through the strait. U.S. forces have also assisted Gulf partners in shipping over 100 million barrels of crude oil during the same period, adding to the more than 1.3 billion barrels of crude.

We have helped regional allies ship through the strait in recent months.”
U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) commander Admiral Brad Cooper has issued an update on operations against Iran. Adm. Cooper says the U.S. naval blockade has denied Iran at least $25 billion in oil revenue and that, apart from humanitarian assistance, Iran has no imports or exports by sea. He says about 400 ships have transited the Strait of Hormuz over the past seven days, and that U.S. forces have helped Gulf partners ship more than 100 million barrels of oil. Cooper also said U.S. efforts have helped freeze about $350 million in Iranian cryptocurrency, and that more than 20 civilian mariners have been killed by Iranian attacks on shipping since February.

The update comes as Iran continues to target vessels. Windward counted at least 23 attacks on commercial ships in and around the strait in the two weeks ending October 14, and Iran claims control of the area.
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Dumb And Dumber

A criminal RICO action requires a predicate act cataloged in the RICO statute. One of those is 18 USC 1028, which reads (as the lawyers say) in pertinent part:
(a) Whoever, in a circumstance described in subsection (c) of this section— (1) knowingly and without lawful authority produces an identification document, authentication feature, or a false identification document;

(2) knowingly transfers an identification document, authentication feature, or a false identification document knowing that such document or feature was stolen or produced without lawful authority;

(3) knowingly possesses with intent to use unlawfully or transfer unlawfully five or more identification documents (other than those issued lawfully for the use of the possessor), authentication features, or false identification documents;

(4) knowingly possesses an identification document (other than one issued lawfully for the use of the possessor), authentication feature, or a false identification document, with the intent such document or feature be used to defraud the United States;

Subsection C of 1028 reads:
The circumstance referred to in subsection (a) of this section is that— (1) the identification document, authentication feature, or false identification document is or appears to be issued by or under the authority of the United States or a sponsoring entity of an event designated as a special event of national significance or the document-making implement is designed or suited for making such an identification document, authentication feature, or false identification document;

(2) the offense is an offense under subsection (a)(4) of this section; or

(3) either—

(A) the production, transfer, possession, or use prohibited by this section is in or affects interstate or foreign commerce, including the transfer of a document by electronic means; or

(B) the means of identification, identification document, false identification document, or document-making implement is transported in the mail in the course of the production, transfer, possession, or use prohibited by this section.
I’m guessing they mean to make a case on (a)(4) based on the incorrect birthdate. Which is going to require proof she knew the birthdate she used to apply for citizenship was in error, and that error defrauded the American government.

Yeah, sure.

I don’t know enough of the argument to opine, but search warrants are fishing expeditions, to some degree. I can give you an example from civil litigation. Before law school, I was a legal assistant working with two lawyers on a case involving civil engineering design for a then new building at UT Austin. It was a very large building that had generated a lot of documents. UT was the plaintiff, so we (representing the engineers who designed the drainage system that failed to contain a heavy rainfall) asked UT for all documents related to the project. They complied, and I was ushered into a very large room filled with documents.  Letters, memos, blueprints, change orders (this was long before electronic communications lie email). I was given 8 hours to find what I wanted, and UT would copy it.

Fishing expedition. I was looking not only for a history of the project, but anything that would provide us a defense. I’ve never worked a criminal case involving a search warrant, but that’s what HSI was looking for in Omar’s home. Basically, anything that would be incriminating.

But it still sounds like a very thin reed. It’s my understanding Omar was a minor when she came to this country, and later she applied for citizenship. She may have relied on what she was told by her family as to her birthdate . If she did, it’s hard to say she committed fraud by using that date in her citizenship application. There’s also the question of fraud, which does not simply mean you got your birthdate wrong. If she knew, say, the year was off (apparently HSI thinks she’s younger than she says she is), is that fraud? Or just an error?

When does an error in paperwork rise to a RICO violation? It’s just a little hard to see how this plays out in court, except as a vindictive prosecution.

BTW, this is why the plumber says the statute of limitations doesn’t apply:
5) “pattern of racketeering activity” requires at least two acts of racketeering activity, one of which occurred after the effective date of this chapter and the last of which occurred within ten years (excluding any period of imprisonment) after the commission of a prior act of racketeering activity;
That is, actually, a kind of statute of limitations. Under RICO, HSI has to show Omar committed two acts of fraud, the last being within the last 10 years. That would be a fraud per (a)(4), above. This is not getting any easier to prosecute, because the fraud (it seems) was committed on her citizenship application. When else did she fraudulently misidentify herself for the purpose of defrauding the government? When she filed to run for office? If they can’t prove at least two acts, one within the last 10 years, they can’t bring a RICO prosecution. So the application error/“fraud” would be over 10 years old, and that is barred by the statute. Pretty sure that’s what they’re looking for.

Fishing expedition.

Getting her birthdate wrong there ain’t the same thing as getting it wrong on her application. And it’s not clear yet that either could be fraudulent.

But it doesn’t have to be clear yet. HSI still has to make its case to a grand jury. And it may, or may not, have documents that further that case.

Granted, this may all be eyewash. This Reuters article indicates Omar became a citizen at 17 as a minor, via her father’s naturalization. That was in 2000. So what has happened since 2016 that is a predicate act which could connect to what her father did in 2000, and connect to her acts in 2000? When she was 17?

All the hallmarks of another Trump hard fail.
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The Briar Patch

 I mentioned the BBC lawsuit, and this popped up:

“The Court has admonished Plaintiff for his lack of participation to no avail. Going forward, the Court expects strict compliance with its … Order, the failure of which will lead to sanctions,” Lett wrote.

Lett had warned Trump in June, after he failed to give the BBC his side of a joint motion, writing that lawyers “are not permitted to disregard the Court’s orders and procedures” and that failing to respond “may result in sanctions including granting the relief by default,” meaning she could rule for the BBC without hearing from Trump.
The short version is, Trump sued the BBC, and has since refused any and all discovery requests. He even dropped his claim that his businesses had been damaged, to avoid discovery of his business records (to prove any damages). Now he’s refusing to give a deposition until sometime next year; and the court is threatening sanctions that could include dismissal of the case.

A consummation Trump now devoutly wishes, so he can blame someone else for this stupid venture and its squalid failure. If he tried to drop it, the court might demand a hearing. If the court dismisses, Trump can whine and walk away, whining.

It’s what he does best.
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Do They Think This Will Win The Midterms?

I guess clapping isn’t working? Maybe that’s what’s going on. There were two reports that Patel was in Moscow, when he hadn’t left the country. And this is an opinion piece, not WSJ front page reporting.

OTOH, if it buys Ukraine intelligence access, they could take out some more troll farms. I mean, it’s useless, except it appeases Trump until a new Congress can take over.
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CLAP HARDER, GODDAMMIT!

YOU’RE KILLING TINKERBELLE! When pigs fly, AND Hell freezes over. You don’t sound like you know what day it is. Who can bother with details? Do you know what day it is, Grandpa?
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New Time Measure: A Zacharia!

A Zacharia is half a Scaramucci.* Yeah, that’s what did it. 🙄 

“YOU’RE FIRED!” No, this was not reality TV.📺 
When you’ve lost Hannity AND Kilmeade….. WOW. He’s really pissed with Brian and Sean.


*Just doing what I can.
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People Just Aren’t Believing Hard Enough!

And they don’t understand it’s all Biden’s fault.
CBS: Vance had to face a lot of questions from voters on the administration's handling of the economy. We had a small business owner who was wondering — and they were Trump voters — when the economic wave that Trump is talking about, this "A+ plus economy," is going to show up in her pocketbook.
"REMAIN CALM! ALL IS WELL!!” Because AI is going to make everybody rich! 🤑  I guess they didn’t get the memo. 📝 
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Pardon Me?

 Library of Congress:

Whether Presidents may pardon themselves is an unresolved legal question for which there is no judicial precedent. Some federal officials discussed the prospect of a self-pardon during the Nixon, Clinton, and first Trump Administrations;nhowever, no President has issued a self-pardon, and no federal court has directly addressed the matter. Legal scholars and commentators have debated the question and reached differing conclusions. Proponents of the view that the President may pardon himself often emphasize the lack of limitation in the constitutional language, as well as certain historical views and pronouncements of the Supreme Court as to the breadth of the President’s pardon power in general.

By contrast, those asserting that the President lacks the power to pardon himself raise competing textual arguments and suggest that self-pardons could be inconsistent with other constitutional provisions, such as the Article I provision stating that officials convicted in an impeachment trial shall . . . be liable and subject to Indictment, Trial, Judgment, and Punishment, according to law. A Department of Justice Office of Legal Counsel opinion issued shortly before President Nixon’s resignation concluded that the President cannot pardon himself [u]nder the fundamental rule that no one may be a judge in his own case, and some scholars subsequently have supported this opinion. Even if a President were to pardon himself, there is some debate as to whether a court would issue a definitive ruling on the pardon’s lawfulness given practical considerations and separation-of-powers concerns. Some Members of Congress have introduced constitutional amendments that would preclude self-pardons, but no proposals have been adopted.
I really expect the end of Trump’s term, if not the next two years alone, is going to trigger a series of constitutional amendments to rival the post-Civil War era. A self-pardon would make amending the presidential pardon power a no brainer, but the evidence of “pay to play” pardons would do just as well. Definitively revoking presidential immunity should be another. The 14th amendment revoked Dred Scott and Plessy. The 16th amendment revoked Pollock v Farmer’s Loan and Trust. There’s clear precedent for the authority.

Changing the Court itself? Congress has all the Art. III authority it needs to do that. Maybe we need to bury the “unitary executive” theory, too. Even clarify the authority of the 15th… as long as we’re writing a wish list. (Don’t get too starry eyed. Only 17 amendments have been added after the first 10, though over 11,000 have been formally, and informally, proposed. Such as:
What if we elected the President of the United States by lot—by pulling a ball representing a candidate out of a bowl? A constitutional amendment introduced in Congress in 1846 proposed precisely that.

In 1838, one member of Congress shot another, prompting the introduction of an amendment to the Constitution to deny public office to duelers.

A citizen wrote to Congress in 1963 to advocate for a constitutional amendment to require that Americans “tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.” Anyone who failed in that duty would be sentenced to 20 years of hard labor.
Serious and unserious, IOW. But still, only 17 since 1791. And one repealed another (21 repealed 18), so that’s only 15 still active. Clearly time for a few more, though.)
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“Pivoting” v. “Saying It Out Loud”

The decision to limit the Starshield satellite service used by Ukraine’s military came from inside the White House, according to two U.S. officials and a Western official briefed on the matter, speaking to Reuters. They said Defense Department leaders received a message that the service needed to be slowed. They did not say who in the White House sent it or who carried it out.

A senior U.S. official told Reuters, “No such request was ever made by the president.” The White House did not answer whether other administration officials might have made it. A senior Ukrainian official said Kyiv made calls to the White House, State Department and Pentagon and was told it was a White House decision.

Starshield is the military version of Starlink, built for government customers. Elon Musk wrote on X that because the government owns and controls Starshield systems, any limits are decided by the U.S. military or the president, Reuters reports. SpaceX did not respond to Reuters.

Ukrainian officials say the restriction hindered strike missions against Russian forces and logistics in occupied territory and slowed interceptor drones used against Russian Shahed drones. A Ukrainian defense ministry source said Thursday that terminals now work in motion, but only up to 100 mph (160 kph).

Source: https://reuters.com/world/europe/order-limit-starshield-ukraine-came-inside-white-house-sources-say-2026-10-15/ Image
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I Wonder If The Polling Models…

...are taking this into account? Or this.
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Whiskey Tango Foxtrot?

Tired, demented old man mumbles about household projects while the world melts down around him.

This is a disintegrated salience network. The part of his brain that determines what matters is gone.

“And you're seeing this for the first time. This used to be grass. So if we did this, you couldn't do it. It was unusable. You know, this is built on a wetland. So the grass was always wet.

Even if you were in a drought, the grass was soaking wet. And especially women with the high heels, they'd be holding their shoes. They go out and buy beautiful new high heels that go into the White House and they come back and their shoes are destroyed.

But we did a job with the same stone that matches the White House stone and hasn't been totally finished. We're going with the black over here, too, because the limestone doesn't hold up well. Never, never did. Never will.

But what we've done here is really amazing. We put a brand new coat over the White House, brand new coat. We fixed up the walls. They were all broken, chopped, terrible shape. A lot of the ornamentation, like around the windows, was broken. And many years ago, 30, 40, 50 years ago, probably a lot during Biden three years ago because he had no idea what the hell he was doing.

But you'd look at a window and you'd see ornament on the right side. And on the left side, you'd see it was it had fallen off. Some people think that's OK, but I don't think it's OK.

So we had molds made of the right side. We put it on the left side. It's all perfect now. So we re-skinned. Basically, it's a re-skinning. And that building is good to go for another 100 years or at least actually.

But even this, the you see the the top sections where it was so bad, I didn't even like standing under it. The thing was all cracked and broken all over the place. We put the sign up, solid brass, half inch thick, as opposed to laminate. You ever see these laminate? They they don't want to spend the money on the brass. So they have a piece of brass laminated. It's about a hundredth of an inch thick. And they put it on a piece of wood to save a lot of money. And then in about two years, it decomposes and it's laying all over the floor. We don't do that.

But up there is the Rose Garden. And then we, as you know, that wall has sat for 150 years empty. And I said, something has to be on that wall. And I just had the the notion I've often thought of it because I've never seen it before. A presidential walk of fame. So we went from George Washington to Trump.

And that will be extended on this wall right up here because somebody said, oh, but you have no room for anybody else. I said, no, it extends this way. And but I'm going to have to leave that because whoever it is, maybe they won't be able to figure that out. And if they don't figure it out, I don't know what they're going to do. You know, but we have we have at least one hundred and twenty five years of extension going this way.

So it's fun. But everybody loves the presidential walk of fame. Nobody knows if there is any. And we have a very generic, very good description of every president from Washington all the way down.

And we get a little bit more personal as we get closer to my my year. Talk a little bit about in more detail about what we've had to put up with. So who knows? I'll probably change that as soon as they get in. But all I do is write the truth.”
I have no causal analysis here, nor would I put much credence in one. I would only point out that you aren’t likely to see that transcript in the NYT or WaPo. Or the New Yorker, for that matter. Yet Trump is clearly pivoting away from reality in a way far more concerning than Joe Biden displaying the consequences of jet lag at a televised debate.

And yet: 🦗🦗🦗
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UK To Trump: 🖕🏻

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Thursday, October 15, 2026

“Pivoting”?

What is it about MSM punditry that it can never state the obvious until it’s no longer obvious, it’s just the wallpaper? Trump hasn’t been a supporter of Ukraine for at least 10 years. This is hardly the first time he’s promoted Putin over Zelenskyy.
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Democrats Don’t Have A Message

 Everybody says so.

El- Sayed: "Here‘s the thing about it – no matter who you are, how you love, how you pray, how you identify, where you are from, it just should not be this hard.

Should not be this hard to afford a second bag of groceries. Should not be this hard to fill up your tank. Should not be this hard to afford a home. Not be this hard to see a doctor. Should not be this hard to pay your taxes and know that that money will be spent on you and your kids rather than dropping a bomb on somebody else and their kids. Should not be this hard.

Shouldn‘t be this hard to keep our money here. Spend it on roads and bridges here, build our schools here, provide healthcare here. Shouldn‘t be this hard. Shouldn‘t be this hard."
. @JamesTalarico : I was up in Abilene meeting with residents — Democrats and Republicans alike — because they are building three giant data centers in Abilene.

A data center popped up right across the street from a mother’s dream home. Now her young son wakes up in the middle of the night and thinks it’s day because the light’s shining through his window.

I’ve rolled out a plan to crack down on these giant data center companies. We’ve got to force them to pay for their own energy instead of jacking up our utility bills. We got to force them to recycle their water so they are not exacerbating the water crisis here in Texas.

We must force them to get the consent of the people who live in these communities before they start building.
@JamesTalarico : We need immigration and customs enforcement in this country — but that’s not what we’re seeing.

What we’ve seen over the last year is a secret police force. We don’t want masked men in unmarked vehicles terrorizing our communities. We don’t want federal agents murdering our neighbors before our very eyes.

Lorenzo Salgado lived in Houston for 35 years as a construction worker. He sent his three boys to college. Lorenzo Salgado embodies the American dream. He is exactly the kind of person we want in this country. Lorenzo Salgado was a child of God, endowed with infinite worth.

Lorenzo, our fellow Texan, deserves justice, and that’s exactly what I’ll fight for in the U.S. Senate.
El-Sayed: J.D. Vance was just in Michigan. He had a cute little rally in Monroe. He invited the five people who like him. But imagine being the candidate for Michigan and having to invite somebody from Ohio to campaign for you.

Now, at his little rally, he wanted to raise questions about my commitment to America. And let me tell you, nobody understands how deep and profound the gift of this country is like a kid who was born here but for the accident of history that allowed that to happen. I got a front-row seat to what my life might have been had I not been born in America.

So don’t lecture me about America. I know America. And I know that in America…

In America, we’re big enough to guarantee health care to our people rather than taking it away.

In America, we’re big enough to invest in unions rather than busting them.

In America, we don’t tell people what to believe. We value their beliefs.

In America, we don’t question the outcomes of democratic elections.
You may have noticed that I haven’t talked about my opponent at all tonight — because I don’t want people to vote just against Ken Paxton, I want them to vote for me.

I want them to know my values and my vision.

This election is not about left versus right. It’s about whether we will have a senator who puts money in your pocket or a senator who puts money in their own. That is the choice before us in November.
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🤫

The sound of silence.
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The Sunk Cost Fallacy

El-Sayed: Trump’s neat trick is to become the subject of every conversation and to force people to take sides. And here’s the thing about it: once you take sides, he’s forcing you to double down on crazier and crazier stuff. And soon enough, you’re out here signing on to a bunch of things that, like three years ago, you’re like, “That’s insane.”

But here’s the problem: you don’t want to have to face down that one friend who’s going to tell you, “I told you so.”

And so what happens is that you keep doubling down on the craziest stuff. And you find yourself so far gone up that tree that there’s no way you can climb down. We’ve got to help those folks. Because guess what? They’re paying for $5 gas too. They’re paying insane diesel prices too. They can’t see a doctor either
And one way to overcome it.

Or, you can be like Trump: Or more like John McCain, who actually had lucid moments.
MacCallum: If you want to be on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, you have to be able to understand who is our enemy and who is our ally.

Trent: Our president is currently making deals with Russia and praises North Korean dictators.

MacCallum: You’re saying it’s ok if El-Sayed is friends with the Muslim Brotherhood?

Trent: I think it’s ok to be in favor of the Arab spring. Do you know who was in favor of the Arab spring and cheered on the Muslim Brotherhood? John McCain.
And valiantly upholding the standard that every accusation is a confession: Utterly incapable of self-awareness or understanding the concept of irony.
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