Showing posts sorted by date for query emergency. Sort by relevance Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by date for query emergency. Sort by relevance Show all posts

Thursday, July 23, 2026

“Justice” Kavanaugh Says This Is Fine

BREAKING: ICE agents showed up at a work site in Brownsville, Texas, claiming to be looking for two people… and ended up illegally handcuffing TWO U.S. CITIZENS, throwing one of them against a truck, threatening to arrest him again, and scanning everyone’s faces to determine their “status.”

In the video, ICE showed up looking for two people. They asked the foreman if he knew them. He said no.

Then, they asked if they could talk to the other workers about the people they were looking for.

The foreman said, “If they want to talk to you, they can.”

And then an ICE agent tried to scan the foreman’s face to run him through their system.

The foreman told him he was not allowed to just scan his face.

The foreman then walked over to one of his workers’ trucks, where ICE agents were surrounding the work vehicles at their work site.

He asked what was going on.

He repeatedly asked who they were looking for, and told them the people they claimed to be looking for were not there.

The agent responded, “Well, we want to make sure.”

The foreman told them, “Well, we aren’t them. You all need to leave.”

And then an ICE agent threatened to arrest him.

“You need to settle down or I have to put you in cuffs.”

Except this man was not threatening them. He was not attacking them. He was not even raising his voice.

He was standing there, asking questions and telling government agents to leave his workplace, after they had already expanded their investigation beyond the two people they claimed to be looking for.

So, the ICE agent threw him against a truck and handcuffed him.

A U.S. citizen.

And after they released him, he asked for the agents’ badge numbers.

And the agent responded by threatening to handcuff him AGAIN.

The government cannot simply show up, invade your workplace, surround your vehicles, demand access to people who are not the subjects of their investigation, scan your face, and then arrest you because you object to what they are doing.

The First Amendment protects your right to question government agents and verbally protest their actions.

The Fourth Amendment protects you from unreasonable searches and seizures.

And an arrest cannot simply be used as punishment because an officer does not like the fact that you are standing there, asking questions, or asserting your rights.

Then the foreman saw another person ICE had in handcuffs…

He told them they needed to let him go because he was not the person they were looking for.

The agents eventually released the person they had in handcuffs… after scanning his face and discovering that he was also a U.S. citizen.

The government is creating situations where people are expected to silently obey armed agents, who refuse to explain what they are doing… while they violate your constitutional rights… and then punishing anyone who dares to ask questions.

When the government tells you that your only options are blind obedience or punishment… you are not living in a free country.
BREAKING: ICE agents blocked in a U.S. citizen’s car… and then threatened to arrest her for not moving.

In the video, a U.S. citizen was sitting in a public parking lot when ICE agents pulled up directly in front of her car, and blocked her from leaving.

Then, they accused HER of “impeding” them.

She told them she literally couldn’t move because THEY had blocked her in.

The agent said they would back up… and if she didn’t move, “that’s your chance.”

Her response…

“My chance for what?”

The agent then cited “18 USC 111,” a federal law that makes it a crime to forcibly assault, resist, oppose, impede, intimidate, or interfere with certain federal officers while they are performing their official duties.

But, the law is not a magic phrase that allows federal agents to arrest anyone who annoys them. The statute includes a forcible-act requirement.

Sitting in a public parking lot is not “impeding” a federal officer.

So, she asks…

“How am I impeding you when you just pulled up in front of my car?”

The agent then yelled:

“Move your car or it’s over!”

She told him they couldn’t move.

He started yelling, “Back up, or you are under arrest. We aren’t playing anymore.”

She responded…

“Well, you can’t arrest me.” While she backed up.

The agent gets mad and… while walking next to her car as she was backing up… replied,

“Yes I can. Try me.”

This is an absolutely insane abuse of power.

The government cannot create the circumstances that make it impossible for you to leave, accuse you of “impeding” them, because you cannot leave, and then threaten to arrest you for not doing the impossible.

Because that is coercion, and it’s illegal.

And the most terrifying part is… this is how ICE agents are trained to operate.

They create confusing, threatening situations where people don’t even know if they are being lawfully detained, if they are free to leave, or if they are about to be arrested for simply existing in the wrong place.

And then the government expects people to calmly trust that everything they are doing is legal.

Which is exactly why constitutional protections exist.

Because “I’m a federal agent” is not a magic phrase that makes your constitutional rights disappear.
BREAKING: Tom Homan says if you don’t want to be killed by ICE agents, you should just comply…. So here is an example of what he wants you to comply with.

In this video, a woman noticed vehicles in a parking lot that she believed could be ICE vehicles… So, she started filming.

The people noticed she was filming, and drove past her.

She was alone, so she decided to leave.

Then, they started followed her.

But here’s the thing… she wasn’t even 100% sure they were ICE agents.

They were in unmarked vehicles, and they weren’t using emergency lights.

As she was driving down the street, being followed by these unmarked cars, one of the vehicles pulls up beside her, cuts her off, and the cars box her in.

She had nowhere to go without hitting the curb, or hitting the vehicle that had just cut her off.

She honked, but the vehicle just sat there.

Eventually it moved, and the vehicles drove away.

Now, imagine being a woman, alone in your car.

A group of cars, you cannot clearly identify as law enforcement, start following you.

They don’t turn on emergency lights. They don’t clearly identify themselves. And one of them cuts you off and blocking your vehicle from being able to drive away.

What are you supposed to think is happening?

Because from your perspective, it looks like you are being kidnapped by random people.

And that is the terrifying part of what ICE is doing.

They are creating situations where people have no idea whether the people surrounding them are legitimate law enforcement officers, or strangers attempting to abduct, or rob them.

And Tom Homan’s answer to being kidnapped, or robbed, is…

“Just comply.”

Don’t try to drive away. Don’t defend yourself. Don’t try to escape.

Just calmly allow unidentified people, in unmarked vehicles, to follow you, box you in, and potentially kidnap or rob you…

Because if they happen to be ICE agents, and you react like a normal person who believes they are being kidnapped, you could be assaulted, detained, or even shot.

Do you understand how dangerous and insane that is?!?

“Just comply” means women are being told to surrender to potential kidnappers, and hope they turn out to be government agents.

And if they don’t?

Tom Homan says it’s their fault for not complying.
This is not just Trump’s Amerika. This is not just Stephen Miller’s Amerika.

This is the GOP’s Amerika.

Abolish the GOP. Abolish ICE.
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Friday, July 10, 2026

Born Every Minute….

 So, according to Reuters, Trump & Co. considered using the EAC to rig the national voter application form, or to declare a national emergency and force states to fix “vulnerabilities” in their voting systems.

Nothing ever came of either plan, so Trump just fired everyone on the commission.

Which is supposed to cause all those problems?

P.T. Barnum was right.

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Donald Trump Has Absolutely No Legal Authority Over Federal Elections

 Not in the Constitution. Not at law.

The “boyhood pal” in question is Peter Ticktin, an 80-year-old Florida lawyer who first met Trump in the 1950s at the New York Military Academy. Ticktin was in the Oval Office as recently as last week according to Taylor, and has vigorously pushed Trump to declare a national emergency over unsubstantiated claims of foreign election interference in the 2020 election.

“Ticktin insists the proof of the grand conspiracy is coming any day now, once [Venezuelan President] Nicolás Maduro starts talking from federal custody. And some have speculated that the Trump administration is trying to induce the Venezuelan leader to go along with such an admission in exchange for leniency,” Taylor wrote in an analysis published on his Substack Thursday.

“Trump’s pal also claims Democrats are plotting to steal enough seats in November to impeach both Trump and Vance and install Hakeem Jeffries in the Oval Office. I know what you’re thinking, because I thought it too. This man sounds like a quack. Well, yes. He sure seems to be a quack. And that’s actually why I’m taking him seriously.”

Ticktin has already helped draft an executive order “to declare a national emergency based on alleged 2020 foreign election interference,” CNN reported earlier this week. And, with Trump having already attempted to impose limits on mail-in voting, Taylor feared that the president could very well follow through on Ticktin’s calls to place the midterm elections “under federal control” by declaring a national emergency.

“It's our expectation that the president will undertake more illegal and unconstitutional actions to steal the midterms. He will dispute the outcome if his side loses, even if the loss is decisive and beyond dispute,” Taylor wrote.

“And he will – in all likelihood – try to prevent the peaceful transfer of power to the political opposition. After all, he’s done it before. But this time we’re better prepared to fight it. And we need to stand together.”
So trying to challenge, or even stop, the 2026 midterms on the basis of a baseless conspiracy theory about the 2020 election, is a non-starter. Trump went to court over 60 times in 2020 to overturn his election. Even the Sinister Six wouldn’t hear it.  This would be 468 elections in 50 states (unless he only wants to challenge the ones where Republicans lose. That’s a good look, too.). None of that will “cancel” the elections.  (And how does he block the “peaceful transfer of power” in Congress? Send in the National Guard?)

This, however, is real: It’s the danger in front of us right now I’m worried about. 
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Sunday, July 05, 2026

Less Is More

The top EPA atmospheric warming is Code Maroon, used only for emergency situations. Code Purple is the warning level just below Maroon. To Trump, “biggest” only means “best.” Which explains his complete lack of aesthetic values. Clearly the work of Ninja 🥷 vandals who snuck in during the night.
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Friday, July 03, 2026

$68 Million Later

Or A/C! I suspect foreign interference! From France!🇫🇷  Unfortunately, people went out to see the epic flyover on one of the hottest days on record, in one of the hottest places on earth. As it turns out.

Brought to you by clean, beautiful coal.
Certainly not for preparedness. Imagine the calamity if there had been far more people, dropping like flies. Except God wasn’t angry. But I do like the idea of Trump as Pharoah; thinking he’s in charge, when he so clearly is not. NOT reading the room.
In a joint statement Friday, Freedom 250, the U.S. Park Police, the National Park Service, the Secret Service and the Federal Emergency Management Agency said they had coordinated to expand cooling resources, water stations and medical support for the "Salute to America" event.

"We are proud to welcome the public to a safe, well-prepared, and truly memorable celebration of America's 250th birthday," the statement read.
Hours after 7 people went to hospital and the fair closed for the afternoon. It’s not like the heat wasn’t predicted,,wasn’t known, and wasn’t knowable.

And the President is still delusional.
NOT before Hell freezes over.
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THE SOFT HANDS OF A PRECIOUS FEW

SEND THE TALL SHIPS TO IRAN! LET’S SEE HOW THEY LIKE THAT! YOU KNOW WHERE ELSE THEY DON’T HAVE A/C? FRANCE!!🇫🇷 SO WHY DON’T YOU GO OVER THERE IF YOU DON’T LIKE IT!?!?? HERE.
JUST IN: NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani used America’s 250th anniversary to sharply criticize the country, accusing the U.S. of allowing children to go hungry while billionaires and “oligarchs” gain more power.

He said America’s wealth was built by working people with “calloused, dirt-streaked hands" while accusing the country of allowing the wealth built by workers to be concentrated in “the soft hands of a precious few.”
THOSE OVERWORKED POOR PEOPLE SHOULD HAVE BEEN GRATEFUL THEY HAD JOBS! EXPLOITATION OF LABOR IS WHAT MADE THIS COUNTRY GREAT!! FOR RICH PEOPLE! 🤑 WALK IT OFF! NEGLIGENCE AND UNSAFE CONDITIONS ARE WHAT MADE THIS COUNTRY GREAT! AND LIABILITY INSURANCE!! IT’S JUST ANOTHER WORD FOR NOTHIN’ LEFT TO LOSE!! AIN’T YOU PEOPLE GOT NO KULCHUR?! THIS IS NOT SOCIALISM! BECAUSE A REPUBLICAN IS DOING IT!! AND THEY CAN’T BE SOCIALISTS! I’S LIKE,  A LAW…OR SOMETHING.

 🤦‍♂️

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ETTD: 4th Of July Version

There was that little hitch with respirators, wasn’t there? That’s when he explained why he had tweeted “INVOKE ‘P’!”, with no further explanation. He thought he was increasing the availability of respirators.  He thought that’s how government worked. We may need those respirations again.
The bulletin references the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Air Quality Index (AQI), which measures air pollution on a scale from 0 to 500. During a typical large fireworks display, air quality forecasts often reach the Orange category (AQI 101-150), indicating unhealthy conditions for sensitive groups, including children, older adults, and individuals with heart or lung disease.

For comparison, severe wildfire smoke events commonly produce AQI readings between 200 and 300.

According to the emergency bulletin, however, two air quality models are projecting pollution levels that exceed the EPA’s standard AQI scale, with forecast values above 500 AQI near the center of the projected smoke plume.

The bulletin further states that most atmospheric models predict the plume will move eastward. Many scenarios indicate the smoke could remain trapped at relatively low altitudes rather than rising high enough to disperse quickly, potentially prolonging exposure for communities downwind.

Officials are reportedly concerned about exposure to both heavy metal particulate matter released by fireworks and carbon-based smoke particles.

According to the bulletin, both pollutants could maintain AQI-equivalent risk levels above 500 for at least two hours after the fireworks conclude. The document also states that heavy metal contaminants may remain suspended in the air for 14 hours or longer following the display.

The reported health concerns extend beyond the immediate aftermath of the event. The bulletin cites historical data indicating significant increases in cardiovascular and respiratory emergency cases immediately following major fireworks displays, with an additional surge occurring approximately six to ten days later.

As a result, healthcare facilities are reportedly being advised to prepare for elevated cardiopulmonary patient volumes during the two weeks following the celebration.

The bulletin also recommends that staff and volunteers working on or near the National Mall and surrounding areas wear N95 respirator masks to reduce inhalation of airborne particulate matter.

If the forecasts prove accurate, the nation’s 250th anniversary celebration could produce one of the largest short-term air pollution events ever associated with a fireworks display in the United States. Whether those modeled conditions ultimately materialize will depend on weather patterns, atmospheric mixing, and the final execution of the fireworks program.
Why this extraordinary concern?
According to the document, this year’s fireworks show is expected to be unlike anything previously conducted in Washington, D.C. Officials estimate approximately 880,000 fireworks shells will be launched—compared with roughly 20,000 shells during a typical Independence Day display, representing more than 40 times the normal number of fireworks.
I’m sure it will be fine. It’s not like the Administration is malignant, incompetent creeps all the way down….
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Thursday, July 02, 2026

But Trump Has To Prove He Can Do It!

In the middle of a record heat wave, where they can’t bring coolers and can’t buy drinks, and where there is absolutely nothing to do but wait for the sun to go down and Grandpa ShoutyPants to yell incoherently for two hours before fireworks start around midnight.

It’ll be the biggest crowd in D.C. since Trump’s first inauguration!
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Wednesday, June 24, 2026

DOGS AND CATS! LIVING TOGETHER! MASS HYSTERIA!

Which is why Trump can’t get the SAVE America Act passed? And if Americans had “faith” in elections, maybe turnout would be higher, and approval of Congress wouldn’t be perennially in the toilet (see, e.g., Mark Twain on the subject). Accepting election results as a matter of law, and as a matter of public opinion? Two vastly different things. And as American as cherry pie.

Besides, Americans are getting sick of Trump whinging about elections. Even Katy Tur reported that Americans get it: Republicans only complain when they lose. We’ve all seen this movie by now. And it doesn’t end with the world blowing up.

That was “Dr. Strangelove.” And it was a comedy. 🎭 
And what does he do, then? Invoke the Insurrection Act? Suspend Congress? Suspend the Constitution? 

As I’ve noted before, there really is no provision for a “state of exception” in the Constitution. Nor in English common law; they have their monarch, we have “we, the people.”

There’s nothing going to happen in November, except to Trump’s future. And he’s not even coping with the present.

Furthermore:
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Even If He Considers It A National Emergency

 Ummmm…

Every Bill which shall have passed the House of Representatives and the Senate, shall, before it become a Law, be presented to the President of the United States; If he approve he shall sign it, but if not he shall return it, with his Objections to that House in which it shall have originated, who shall enter the Objections at large on their Journal, and proceed to reconsider it. If after such Reconsideration two thirds of that House shall agree to pass the Bill, it shall be sent, together with the Objections, to the other House, by which it shall likewise be reconsidered, and if approved by two thirds of that House, it shall become a Law. But in all such Cases the Votes of both Houses shall be determined by yeas and Nays, and the Names of the Persons voting for and against the Bill shall be entered on the Journal of each House respectively. If any Bill shall not be returned by the President within ten Days (Sundays excepted) after it shall have been presented to him, the Same shall be a Law, in like Manner as if he had signed it, unless the Congress by their Adjournment prevent its Return, in which Case it shall not be a Law.
Article I, Sec. 7, cl. 2, U.S. Constitution 

Trump is probably counting on a “pocket veto,” because Congress is due to recess soon for July 4. But:
An adjournment of Congress during a session does not prevent the President from returning a bill he disapproves, as long as appropriate ar- rangements are made by the originating House for the receipt of Presidential messages during the adjournment. Thus, it has been held that a Senate bill cannot be pocket vetoed by the President during an ‘‘intrasession’’ adjournment of Congress for more than three days to a day certain, where the Sec- retary of the Senate has been authorized to receive Presidential messages during such adjournment. Kennedy v. Sampson, 511 F.2d 430 (D.C. Cir. 1974); see also Kennedy v. Jones, 412 F. Supp. 353 (D.D.C. 1976). The Supreme Court has held that the adjournment of the House of origin for a period not exceeding three days while the other House of the Congress remained in session, does not prevent the return of a vetoed bill to the House of origin. Wright v. United States, 302 U.S. 583 (1938).
The 10 day clock doesn’t start running until the bill is presented to the White House; and day of presentment, as well as Sundays, don’t count. So the Senate could appoint someone to receive the President’s “message,” and prevent the pocket veto.

But Trump has announced the cancellation of a signing ceremony, which might well be the “return” required by the Constitution. He doesn’t have to veto it. 

Which would mean the pocket veto never engages, especially if Trump makes his refusal/“return” formal by sending it to the Senate before they recess.

The most reasonable explanation is that he’s too stupid to know what he’s doing, and he had no leverage to get the SAVE America act passed.
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Birds Of A Feather 🪶

You honestly have to love the absolute state of Russian military logistics right now, with Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov frantically preparing an emergency report to tell Putin that the army has officially run out of gas.. 🇷🇺⛽️🚨

A massive internal crisis has erupted within the Russian General Staff. Following highly effective Ukrainian drone strikes on major refineries, the Kremlin has been forced to redirect fuel away from the frontlines to stabilize a growing fuel shortage in Moscow. The result? Total paralysis for Russian armor. Commanders on the ground have bluntly informed Gerasimov that offensive operations cannot continue because supply trucks and tanks are literally running on empty. 🏎️💨

To make matters worse, occupied Crimea is rapidly sliding out of Moscow's control. Fuel shortages are so severe that the occupation administration just banned all civilian gasoline sales, suspended public transport after 10 PM, and left Russian "tourists" stranded in massive lines. According to the internal leaks, the General Staff has concluded that Russia cannot simultaneously defend Moscow, hold Crimea, and sustain an offensive in Donbas with their current resources. Oh, and the air defense missile stockpiles in Belgorod and Kursk are completely depleted because they were moved to protect Moscow's elite. Grab your popcorn, the entire war machine is stalling in real time! 😂🍿

Source: Internal Russian General Staff data leaks, regional administrative updates via Reuters, and strategic monitoring by The Moscow Times (June 23, 2026).
Ironically… I wonder if Putin has tried that approach?
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Friday, June 12, 2026

How It’s Going

🤔
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Wednesday, May 13, 2026

Well, Since You Don’t Work….

Been there.

Can I just say, I’m really enjoying this (and I’m really forced to wonder what this guy does for a living. You’ll see.):
NEGUSE: My understanding is a no bid contract is reserved for situations where delay would cause serious injury. What's the injury with the reflecting pool?

BURGUM: We had 19 fountains across the city that didn't work

NEGUSE: That's the serious injury to the government?! And who picked this company? Trump said 'I have a guy who's unbelievable at doing swimming pools'
HUFFMAN: Do you agree most Americans are struggling right now to afford basic necessities because of rising costs?

[which is now higher. thanks for that.]

BURGUM: This administration inherited the highest inflation in 40 years

HUFFMAN: Are families struggling with rising costs? Yes or no

BURGUM: During the first yea--

HUFFMAN: You're deflecting to Biden
Biden pretty much said that, too.  He didn’t get re-elected, in case Burgum missed that, too.
HUFFMAN: Who is this arch for?

BURGUM: The American people. And there are 68 capitals that have arches

HUFFMAN: And we're gonna build one just a little taller than the one in Pyongyang, because someone in the White House insists ours be the biggest. And Trump said this arch is for him. We can enter that into the record if you like.
MIN: Do you know how much new energy China put online last year?

BURGUM: Intermittent or base load?

MIN: All energy. 543 GW. How much was renewable? 434 GW.

BURGUM: But only when the wind is blowing and sun is shining

MIN: Meanwhile, the US put up 53 GW of new energy last year -- less than 10% of China. You're clear bias against renewables is harming our national security.
DEXTER: Your budget cuts national parks by $1 billion. If you put this $1 billion towards our parks instead of Trump's ballroom, you could avoid that cut. That would benefit every single American. Did you ever object to this level of spending on the ballroom?

BURGUM: There's a massive security complex--

DEXTER: It's clear to me you didn't do anything to stop it
RANDALL: Look at this safety hazard. There's a backlog of $300m in deferred repairs needed for Olympic National Park alone. Now look at this AI image Trump posted of draining the reflecting pool. You're actually in it. Of these images, which do you think should be the higher priority?

BURGUM: We have deferred maintenance issues all over the country

RANDALL: Yes! And you find Trump's vanity projects more important
Oof Burgum walked right into this.

Burgum: Can you explain why the states that pursued the policies you’re describing have the highest power prices in the country?

Magaziner: Does North Dakota have one of the highest power prices in the country? You have one of the highest percentage of renewables.

Burgum: False!

Magaziner: The data doesn’t lie.

Burgum: The data is lying.
Data is notorious for lying. Especially in this Administration.
Rep. Magaziner plays video of Doug Burgum boasting about wind energy production in North Dakota while he was governor.

Magaziner: Were you wrong as governor to expand wind energy? Why don’t other states around the country deserve the same? We do. We deserve access to these wind and solar projects that you are blocking.
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Wednesday, April 29, 2026

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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Monday, April 06, 2026

U.S.Intelligence Stops At The Resolute Desk

And it’s a bit more than one airplane:
Based on currently available information, since the start of Operation EPIC FURY in February 2026, the US military has lost or suffered damage to the following manned aircraft:

- 4x F-15E "Strike Eagle" (3 to friendly-fire over Kuwait, 1 to Iranian fire)
- 1x E-3G "Sentry" (on the ground at Prince Sultan Airbase in Saudi Arabia)
- 1x A-10C "Thunderbolt II" (crashed, circs TBC)
- 2x CH-47F "Chinook" (heavily damaged on ground at Camp Buehring in Kuwait - TBC if write-offs)
- 2x HH-60W "Jolly Green II" (reported to have taken fire during CSAR over Iran, cited making it into Iraq with significant smoke trail - no casualties reported, extent of damage/repair options TBC)
- 1x F-35A "Lightning II" (emergency landing after taking fire, pilot received medical care, extent of damage/repair options TBC)
- ?x KC-135R/T "Stratotanker" (1 lost with 6 crew KIA over Iraq, 1 damaged in same incident and hasn't flown since, 1+ destroyed on ground at Prince Sultan Airbase in same incident as E-3G, as yet unconfirmed reports of up to 5 additional damaged or destroyed at same or another base prior)

I have no doubt there are probably other incidents that are not publicly known yet, and obviously I've only included manned platforms here - I'm aware the MQ-9A "Reaper" UAV fleet has suffered several losses too.
Also, the Strait of Hormuz remains closed. Besides:
Iranian operatives have been digging out underground missile bunkers and silos struck by American and Israeli bombs, returning them to operation hours after an attack, with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) still retaining a significant amount of its cruise and ballistic missiles as well as mobile launchers, according to recent U.S. intelligence reports shared with The New York Times.
Often, the proclamation of truth is obscured by what we today call “fake news” — lies, insinuations, and unfounded accusations. Yet, in the face of such obstacles, the truth does not remain hidden; rather, it comes forth to meet us, living and radiant, illuminating even the deepest darkness.
Not exactly what the Pope was getting at, but close enough for government work.
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Sunday, April 05, 2026

Easter 🐣 Diplomacy

Same energy, via Popehat:
Trump’s motion for emergency review of the decision halting the East Wing project is astoundingly, historically bad and embarrassing and refers to the ballroom as “desperately needed” not once, not twice, but three times, which is plausible in a Bridgerton B-plot but not in an appellate brief.

/2 The motion reads as if it were drafted by a generative AI fed on Trump Truth Social posts and the NY Post. I genuinely lack the power of expression to say how bad it is.
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Saturday, April 04, 2026

“…you didn’t do for me.”

MAGA (what’s left of it) was unhappy with this nurse for reading Matthew 25:

Matthew 25:31-46 (SV) 

"When the Son of Adam comes in his glory, accompanied by all his messengers, then he will occupy his glorious throne. Then all peoples will be assembled before him, and he will separate them into groups, much as a shepherd segregates sheep from goats. He'll place the sheep to his right and the goats to his left. Then the king will say to those at his right, 'Come, you who have the blessing of my Father, inherit the domain prepared for you from the foundations of the world. You may remember, I was hungry and you gave me something to eat; I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink; I was a foreigner and you showed me hospitality; I was naked and you clothed me; I was ill and you visited me; I was in prison and you came to see me.' Then the virtuous will say to him, 'Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and fed you or thirsty and gave you drink? When did we notice that you were a foreigner and extend hospitality to you? Or naked and clothe you? When did we find you ill or in prison and come to visit you? 

And the king will respond to them, 'I swear to you, whatever you did for the most inconspicuous members of my family, you did for me as well.' 

Next, he will say to those on his left, 'You, condemned to the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his messengers, get away from me! You too may remember, I was hungry and you didn't give me amything to eat; I was thirsty and you refused me a drink; I was a foreigner and you failed to extend hospitality to me; naked and you didn't clothe me; ill and in prison and you didn't visit me.' 

Then they will give him a similar reply: 'Lord, when did we notice that you were hungry or thirsty or a foreigner or naked or weak or in prison, and did not attempt to help you?' 

He will then respond: 'I swear to you, whever you didn't do for the most inconspicuous members of my family, you didn't do for me.' 

The second group will then head for everlasting punishment, but the virtuous for everlasting life. 

Hamilton’s critics say that she is misrepresenting Scripture, but she wonders how that can be when she was literally just reading Jesus’ words.

Why in the world would they think that?

Trump is seeking to pay for his new $1.5 trillion military budget by cutting the following:

$510 million - Grants for farmers and agricultural research
$82 million - Loans for rural small businesses (Fully eliminated)
$61 million - Support for farmers and food markets (Fully eliminated)
$240 million - School meals and food education for children abroad (Fully eliminated)
$659 million - Community building grants
$47 million - Support for minority-owned businesses (Fully eliminated)
$449 million - Economic development grants for communities
$1.6 billion - Weather forecasting, fisheries, and coastal protection (NOAA)
$993 million - Scientific research and technology standards
$150 million - Support for American exports and trade
$2.2 billion - Broadband and internet access programs
$8.5 billion - Funding for public schools
$1.5 billion - Vocational training and adult education (Fully eliminated)
$2.7 billion - College access and higher education support
$15.2 billion - Roads, bridges, and infrastructure projects
$1.1 billion - Home energy efficiency and clean energy programs (Fully eliminated)
$1.1 billion - Scientific research funding
$386 million - Environmental cleanup programs
$150 million - Cutting-edge clean energy research
$4 billion - Help paying home heating and cooling bills for low-income families (Fully eliminated)
$768 million - Refugee resettlement assistance
$819 million - Care and shelter for migrant children
$775 million - Local anti-poverty programs (Fully eliminated)
$5 billion - Public health programs, mental health services, and disease prevention
$5 billion - Medical research (NIH)
$129 million - Healthcare quality and safety research
$356 million - Emergency preparedness and disaster response
$1.3 billion - FEMA community disaster preparedness grants
$707 million - Cybersecurity protection for critical infrastructure
$52 million - Airport and transportation security
$40 million - Protection against chemical and biological weapons threats
$53 million - Funding for homeland security operations
$3.3 billion - Community development block grants for local neighborhoods (Fully eliminated)
$1.3 billion - Affordable housing construction grants (Fully eliminated)
$393 million - Programs to reduce homelessness
$529 million - Housing assistance for people living with HIV/AIDS (Fully eliminated)
$489 million - Housing and services for Native American communities
$50 million - Grants to help communities build more housing (Fully eliminated)
$60 million - Enforcement of fair housing and anti-discrimination laws
$58 million - Homebuyer and renter counseling services (Fully eliminated)
$45 million - Renewable energy development programs (Fully eliminated)
$1.7 billion - Grants for local law enforcement and public safety
$20 million - Civil rights mediation and legal access programs (Fully eliminated)
$1.6 billion - Job training for at-risk youth (Fully eliminated)
$395 million - Jobs program for low-income seniors (Fully eliminated)
$234 million - Worker safety and labor protection programs
$101 million - Enforcement of equal pay and workplace anti-discrimination laws
$46 million - Programs to combat child labor and forced labor abroad
$2 billion - International humanitarian aid
$1.2 billion - Food aid for hungry families abroad (Fully eliminated)
$4.3 billion - Global health and disease prevention programs
$2.7 billion - Funding for the United Nations and international partnerships
$642 million - International economic and treasury programs
$315 million - Democracy and anti-corruption programs abroad
$486 million - Grants for public transit projects
$4.2 billion - Electric vehicle charging infrastructure
$372 million - Airline service for rural and small communities
$145 million - Grants for sustainable and equitable infrastructure
$204 million - Loans and investment for underserved communities
$1.4 billion - IRS taxpayer services and enforcement
$100 million - Air pollution monitoring and reduction programs (Fully eliminated)
$1 billion - EPA grants to states for environmental protection
$2.5 billion - Clean drinking water and wastewater infrastructure funds
$90 million - Grants to reduce diesel pollution (Fully eliminated)
$3.4 billion - NASA space and earth science research
$297 million - NASA technology innovation programs
$1.1 billion - International Space Station operations
$143 million - STEM education programs
$309 million - Small business development and entrepreneurship programs
$170 million - Small Business Administration operations
$158 million - Loans for small businesses
Maybe because they think this is good? And that Jesus would do what they would do? First mistake: thinking Jesus would always do what you would do. “Glory be to God!” does not mean: “Because God agrees with me.”
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Friday, April 03, 2026

The Silence Is Not The Silence Of Good Friday

There have been several incidents involving U.S. aircraft in the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) area of operation (AO) within the last 24 hours:
1. A U.S. Air Force F-15E "Strike Eagle" was hit by Iranian fire and crashed in Iran. Both crew members survived, with 1 being rescued, and a large combat search and rescue operation is ongoing for the 2nd.
2. A U.S. Air Force HH-60W "Jolly Green II" conducting operations to rescue the downed F-15 crew took small-arms fire with at least 1 crew member injured, but it continued back to base.
3. The pilot of a U.S. Air Force A-10C "Thunderbolt II" ejected over the Persian Gulf, with Iran claiming responsibility for shooting it down. The pilot was recovered safely.
4. A U.S. Air Force F-16C "Fighting Falcon" briefly showed on flight tracking sites squawking 7700 (emergency) over Iraq.
5. A U.S. Air Force KC-135 "Stratotanker" was squawking 7700 (emergency) over Israel.
Of course, when you want Trump to shut up…. What has Trump done today?
Statement today from Republican Sen. John Curtis of Utah, as several Republican lawmakers begin to break from President Trump over the ongoing and escalating Iran War:

“I stand by the President’s actions taken in defense of our national security interests in the Middle East. But we must be clear-eyed about history and the Constitution. While I support maintaining our readiness and replenishing stockpiles, I cannot support funding for further military operations without a formal Declaration of War from Congress.”
Pope Leo: I'm told that President Trump recently stated that he would like to end the war. I hope that he's looking for an off-ramp. I hope he's looking for a way to decrease the amount of violence, the bombing, which would be a significant contribution to removing the hatred that's increasing constantly.
I'm devastated to report that lots of Trump & Bibi supporters believe that I have betrayed my principles for arguing that Dems should be reaching out to the anti-war left and not shunning them in this moment.

I will look inside & reflect. I must admit that on the surface this seems like a convenient thing to be mad about to avoid reckoning with the historic disaster that is Trump & Bibi's Iran war and the coming wreckage for the global economy and the GOP that is going to result.
Or you could complain about what the Pope said. Or respond to Trump, about whether or not to take the oil. As if he could….
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Wednesday, March 25, 2026

“We Are A Deeply Unserious Country”

SNAFU.
U.S. President Donald J. Trump was critical of the Democrats today on his Truth Social app for their continued blockage of key funding for the Department of Homeland Security, that has caused the President to move ICE agents inside airports to aid the embattled TSA, as they go weeks without pay. Per the president’s statement, he may call up the National Guard should the congressional budget impasse continue.
(Those water bottles get heavy! And has Trump forgotten he can’t nationalize the Guard without an “emergency.”? Which long airport lines, ain’t.)

 Trump did this! With a little help from the electorate.
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Sunday, March 15, 2026

Follow The Money

Goldman Sachs confirms Hormuz oil flows have collapsed from 19.5 million barrels per day to 0.5 million. Net disruption after pipeline rerouting: 17.2 million barrels per day offline. Two independent vessel trackers recorded zero oil tankers crossing the Strait on 12 March. The largest energy chokepoint on Earth is not closed by a navy. It is closed by a spreadsheet.

Seven major P&I clubs cancelled war-risk coverage for the Persian Gulf effective 5th March under Solvency II protocols. Premiums for remaining voyage cover surged 300 to 1,000%, reaching 1% of hull value: $2 to $3 million per VLCC on a seven-day renewable basis. The $20 billion DFC reinsurance facility backed by Chubb has limited uptake because it excludes full P&I liability. Lloyd’s still offers single-voyage cover. Nobody is buying because the premium assumes the mines, and the mines are on the seabed.

The Strait is open. The insurance is not. And without insurance, no vessel moves.

While 19 million barrels per day sit stranded on either side of the chokepoint, one category of vessel continues transiting: Chinese shadow fleet tankers carrying Iranian crude settled in yuan through CIPS. Kpler confirms 11.7 to 16.5 million barrels have reached China since 28 February. These tankers do not carry Western insurance. They do not need Western insurance. They operate under Chinese state-backed coverage, Iranian IRGC safe passage, and yuan settlement through a payment system that processed $24.5 trillion in 2025 at 43% year-on-year growth. The only oil moving through Hormuz is oil that does not touch the dollar.

This is the moment the petrodollar system was designed to prevent.

In 1974, Saudi Arabia agreed to price oil exclusively in dollars in exchange for American military protection. That agreement created a world where every barrel required dollars, every central bank held dollar reserves because energy demanded them, and American financial hegemony rested on the simple proposition that oil equals dollars. For fifty-two years, the equation held. The 2026 war is breaking it not through policy but through physics: the insurance architecture that enabled dollar-denominated oil transit has collapsed, and the only transit still functioning operates in yuan.

The dollar’s share of global reserves has fallen from 71% in 2000 to 59% today. Yuan global payments remain at 2.89%. No single event kills the petrodollar. But the Goldman data reveals what the contrarians miss: the war has created a live demonstration of a post-dollar energy system operating at scale. Chinese tankers transit. Yuan settles. CIPS clears. Iranian oil reaches Chinese refineries at $9 to $12 below Brent while Western buyers pay $96.72. The system works. It is working now. And every day the Strait remains closed to dollar shipping is another day the alternative proves it does not need the original.

President Trump’s multinational warship call is the response: send navies, reopen the Strait, restore dollar-denominated traffic, and kill the yuan alternative before it scales. If the coalition succeeds, dollar pricing survives. If it fails or fragments, the war that was launched to destroy Iran’s nuclear programme will have accidentally created the conditions for the multipolar energy order the dollar was designed to prevent.

The IEA has released 400 million barrels of strategic reserves, the largest coordinated draw in history. It covers 23 days of the 17.2 million barrel daily shortfall. The war is sixteen days old. The reserves are finite. The insurance cancellations are not.

Nineteen million barrels per day reduced to half a million. Zero tankers on 12th March. Yuan tankers the only vessels moving. And the fifty-two-year-old system that priced every barrel in dollars is watching its replacement operate in real time through the waterway it can no longer transit.
A system hoist on its own petar. And the 400 million bbl will that will cover only 23 days of shortfall, will take 200 days to release. And now it’s being released as a “loan.”
The US gov seems to have changed its mind about the terms of the use of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve:

Earlier this week, it announced a **SPR release** (an outright sale, and the method used in the emergency actions of 1991, 2005, 2011 and 2022)

But now, the DOE has published details for something different: a **SPR exchange** (effectively, an oil loan, with the barrels returned later with interest)
So, maybe much longer than 200 days to release.  And the collapse of the insurance/petrodollar system indicates a collapse in the trust of the Trump administration by the world.  No matter what Trump says about how respected we are now. He bestrides the world stage like a clown colossus. We get these guys as a lovely parting gift: Meanwhile, Trump asks China for help in opening the Strait. He doesn’t have a fucking clue.
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