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… Trump took Maria Corina Machado’s Nobel Peace Prize medal with a big grin on his face. She gave it to him framed with this caption: “To President Donald J. Trump. In gratitude for your extraordinary leadership in promoting peace through strength, advancing diplomacy, and defending liberty and prosperity. Presented as a personal symbol of gratitude on behalf of the Venezuelan people in recognition of President Trump’s principled and decisive action to secure a free Venezuela.”
… Trump posted on Truth Social after the meeting: “It was my Great Honor to meet María Corina Machado, of Venezuela, today. She is a wonderful woman who has been through so much. María presented me with her Nobel Peace Prize for the work I have done. Such a wonderful gesture of mutual respect. Thank you María!”
… Trump was asked today why he would want someone else’s medal: “She offered it to me. She said nobody deserves this prize more in history than you. And I think she is a very fine woman and we will be talking again.”
… Machado was on Fox & Friends this morning: Q - “In spite of the Nobel Prize Committee saying you couldn’t transfer your Nobel Prize to anyone, especially to Trump, you did. Why did you do that? Machado: Because he deserves it. It was a very emotional moment.”
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… My prediction is, now that Trump has taken possession of her medal he will never meet with her again. He will do nothing whatsoever to put her in power or push the Maduro regime, which is still running Venezuela with Trump’s backing, to hold free and fair elections. In short, Machado gave Trump the only thing she had that he wanted, and now he will never think about her again.
… Machado gave a speech today to the Heritage Foundation in DC: “Delcy Rodríguez is a communist. She is the representative of China, Iran, and Russia in Venezuela. But she does not represent the Venezuelan people, or the armed forces.”
… But Delcy Rodriguez is running Venezuela, backed by Trump, who now has Machado’s medal. Maybe she can buy some Trump crypto.
… Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-CA): “If you invade a foreign country, sideline the democratically-elected opposition, and take control of its oil reserves, you are probably the last person that deserves the Nobel Peace Prize.”
… WSJ: “CIA Director John Ratcliffe traveled to Caracas to meet with Delcy Rodríguez yesterday. In the two-hour meeting, he told her the Trump admin wants to strengthen its working relationship with the government and discussed potential opportunities for economic collaboration.”
… Financial Times: The first US sale of the Venezuelan crude oil was to a company whose senior member had donated to Trump’s re-election campaign. The sale was conducted last week to a company called Vitol. John Addison, a senior trader at Vitol, donated $6 million to PACs backing Trump’s re-election campaign.
… Addison also attended the meeting Trump had with oil executives at the WH and was also involved in his company’s efforts to secure a $250 million deal for Venezuelan crude. The deal kick-started the president’s controversial plan to sell up to 50 million barrels of Venezuelan oil.
… WH spokesperson Taylor Rogers was asked about it: “President Trump always does what is in the best interest of the American people, such as brokering this historic energy deal with Venezuela immediately following the arrest of narcoterrorist Nicolás Maduro. The media’s continued attempts to fabricate conflicts of interest are a tired attempt to distract from the incredible work only this president is capable of achieving.”
… So Trump has agreed to let the Maduro regime remain in power without Maduro, in exchange for a massive amount of oil, then a Trump mega donor is selling that oil on the international market to whoever, then the proceeds of that are being deposited in a Qatari bank account, then Trump decides how he wants to spend that money, and Congress is not involved in any of it. Nothing to see here.
… Rolling Stone: “Jimmy Kimmel has a tempting opportunity for Trump. After Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado gave her Nobel Peace Prize to the president yesterday, Kimmel attempted to bribe Trump with his choice of any of the awards Kimmel has won over the years.”
… Kimmel: “Trump loves awards. Giving him an award seems like the only way to get him to do anything. And with that said, Mr. President, I have an offer I think you’ll find difficult to refuse. If you, and only if, you agree to pull ICE out of Minneapolis and put them back at the borders where they belong, I am prepared to offer you one of the following trophies that I have been honored with over the years.”
… Kimmel showcased a red velour stand lined with numerous awards, including a Daytime Emmy, a Clio, a Webby, and a Writers Guild Award. “Or,” Kimmel added, “best of all, I’m willing to hand over my 2015 Soul Train Award for White Person of the Year. The choice is yours. I will personally deliver any or even all of these to the Oval Office in exchange for leaving the people of Minneapolis alone.”
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… Guardian: “Some CBS News employees expressed concern after the network cited two anonymous ‘US officials’ on Wed to report that the ICE officer who fatally shot Renee Good in Minneapolis ‘suffered internal bleeding to the torso’ after the incident, citing ‘two US officials briefed on his medical condition.’ But there was also internal skepticism at the network about the report. It was met with ‘huge internal concern’ by some, one CBS News staffer said.”
… “Before the original report was published, a medical producer at the network suggested in an email to colleagues that ‘it would be helpful to ask what type of treatment he received’, and whether the officer received surgery or any other type of procedure.”
… CBS senior VP David Reiter wrote in another email: “I’m no doctor, but internal bleeding is a very broad term and can range in severity. A bruise is internal bleeding. But it can also be something serious. We do know that the ICE agent walked away from the incident – we have that on camera.”
… “The network’s top editor, Bari Weiss, expressed a high level of interest in the story on an editorial call Wed morning, according to staffers who listened.”
… A CBS staffer: “There was big internal dissension about the ‘internal bleeding’ report here last night. It was viewed as a thinly-veiled, anonymous leak by [the Trump admin] to someone who’d carry it online. Felt to many here like we were carrying water for the admin’s justifying of the shooting to keep our access to our sources.”
… CBS is now the go-to media outlet for the Trump regime to launder their propaganda to a mainstream audience, although I’m not sure how much longer they will have a mainstream audience.
… Axios: “Trump’s team recently reviewed private GOP polling that showed support for his immigration policies falling. The results, reflected in public surveys, bolstered internal concern about the admin’s confrontational enforcement tactics. Now, as the chaotic scenes from MN play out around the clock on TV and social media, some Trump advisers quietly are talking about ‘recalibrating’ the WH’s approach - though it’s unclear what changes Trump would embrace, if any.”
… “The worries in part of Trump’s brain trust are the first signs of internal second-guessing his controversial ICE enforcement tactics. The private polling suggested a rupturing of the coalition of independent, moderate and minority voters who were key parts of Trump’s victory in 2024. To the degree they support a more constrained approach, some advisers are playing to the president’s occasional misgivings about the optics of some ICE tactics.”
… Top Trump advisor: “I wouldn’t say he’s concerned about the policy. He wants deportations. He wants mass deportations. What he doesn’t want is what people are seeing. He doesn’t like the way it looks. It looks bad, so he’s expressed some discomfort at that. There’s the right way to do this. And this doesn’t look like the right way to a lot of people.”
… Tom Homan was on Laura Ingraham’s Fox show: “We’re going to create a database. Those people that are interfering, we’re going to make them famous and put their face on TV. We’re going to let their employers and their neighborhoods and their schools know who these people are. I bet you a lot of their employers don’t know what they are doing.”
… Trump posted today: “In Minnesota, the Troublemakers, Agitators, and Insurrectionists are, in many cases, highly paid professionals. The Governor and Mayor don’t know what to do, they have totally lost control, and our currently being rendered, USELESS! If, and when, I am forced to act, it will be solved, QUICKLY and EFFECTIVELY!”
… MN AG Keith Ellison responded: "It's just a lie. I think you could put it in the category of Haitians in Ohio eating pets. People are outside because they're upset. They're outside because their neighbors are being hauled off."
… Immigration attorney Aaron Reichlin-Melnick: “Note that the Trump admin hasn’t yet been able to produce evidence of a SINGLE ‘paid protestor.’ They’ve had total control of the FBI and the DOJ and ICE HSI and yet despite all of that, they can’t even find ONE person who they can accuse of being paid to protest.”
… A new Quinnipiac poll shows that only 36% of Americans approve of the way Kristi Noem is handling her job. That is down from 39% in the same poll last July.
… Ingraham to Homan: “Are you concerned about the CNN and Quinnipiac polls that show declining public support for ICE and Trump’s approach to immigration enforcement? Homan: I think we need to better at messaging what we’re doing.”
… CNN: “58% say President Trump’s first year has been a failure. That includes two thirds of independent voters. Now, why is that? Across the board, Americans disapprove of how the president is handling every major issue.”
… The new CNN poll: 58% said Trump’s first year was a failure. 55% said Trump’s policies have worsened economic conditions. 64% said he hasn’t gone far enough in trying to reduce the price of everyday goods. 36% say he has right priorities.
… The lowest poll numbers Trump got on the economy during his first term was a 44-49% approval. Now his approval on handling the economy is 39-61%.
… NOTUS: “Trump’s problem with Latinos might run much deeper than just their dissatisfaction with the economy. In a focus group of politically independent Latino men and women this week, all of whom supported the president in 2024 but said they now had regrets about their decision - expressed a deep concern about Trump’s handling of the economy and cost-of-living issues.”
… “But the session also revealed a growing fury at other aspects of Trump’s second term, especially his aggressive immigration enforcement and sudden eagerness to intervene in foreign affairs. Many of the participants said they’ve changed how they see Trump personally - no longer the crude-but-pragmatic leader of his first term but rather someone who is sinister and out of control.”
… One participant: “It just seems like the mask is off. That’s who he is. And it’s kind of crazy.”
… “An Oct survey from the Pew found that 70% of Latinos disapproved of the president, while 65% of them disapproved of his immigration policies specifically. Polling data also suggests that Latinos have had a negative reaction to ICE enforcement: 68% of them thought ICE had been too aggressive, while 69% disapproved of the agency overall.”
… Republican pollster Whit Ayres: “To the extent that ICE is targeting people beyond those who have committed crimes, it’s going to create significant pushback from the Hispanics who voted for Trump, as well as other Americans.”
… NYT on the latest Trump pardon: “Trump pardoned a porta-potty magnate Arie Eric De Jong III who was sentenced to 5 months in federal prison for illegally disposing of sludge in cities across southern California.”
… We will find out in a few days how much he paid. I’m going to estimate this one at around $2 million.
… Cook Political Report: “10 months out from Election Day, it’s increasingly clear that Democrats are in a strong position to win control of the House this Nov. 18 House race ratings change - ALL in favor of Dems. House Dems only need to flip 3 seats to win a majority. Even if Democrats lose some of their own members defending particularly difficult seats, the number of Republicans in peril should give Democrats more than enough opportunities to win 218 seats.”
… Kobeissi Letter: “Shocking stat of the day: The top 10% of US earners now reflect a record 49% of all consumer spending. This percentage has risen +13 points over the last 30 years, marking a dramatic shift in spending power. At the same time, the bottom 80% of earners represent just 37% of total consumer expenditures, down -11 percentage points since 1995.”
… “This means the top 10% account for a record 33% of US GDP, as personal consumer expenditures account for 68% of total economic output. Meanwhile, the bottom 80% account for just 25% of the US economy. Asset owners are the only winners in this economy.”
… WH economic advisor Kevin Hassett was asked on Fox Business why legislation hasn’t moved forward on Trump’s demand that credit card companies lower interest rates to 10% by Jan. 20: “Our expectations is that it won’t necessarily require legislation because there will be great new Trump Cards provided voluntarily by the banks.”
… Here’s what happened. Trump was getting beat up for not doing anything and not caring about affordability. So he fired off a late night post demanding that credit card companies lower their interest rates in honor of the anniversary of his inauguration. Credit card companies, naturally, either said no or just ignored him. So now he can say he tried, I guess. And, once again, Hassett knows he is lying through his smirk.
Another long week and I am looking forward to day off tomorrow. This time we are doing absolutely nothing - staying in, cooking and binging a period show and recovering. We’re getting old. You need these once in while. Supposed to be snow and nasty weather anyway.
If you missed yesterday’s Bulletin, you can find it here. The next one will be the Weekend Bulletin out on Sunday night. Thank you to everyone who reads, shares and subscribes to my work.
… Ag Sec Brooke Rollins was asked on Fox about widespread mockery of her Marie Antoinette suggestion that Americans can buy a piece of chicken, a piece of broccoli, and a corn tortilla for $3 if they want an affordable meal: Q - “You’re getting heat all over social media for saying you can eat healthy for $3. Rollins: When you eat healthy, it actually is less expensive in many ways than a fast food meal.”
… WaPo: “When introducing the highest US tariffs since the Great Depression, Trump made a clear promise in the spring: ‘Jobs and factories will come roaring back into our country.’ They haven’t. Manufacturing employment has declined every month since Trump declared ‘Liberation Day’ in April, saying his widespread tariffs would begin to rebalance global trade in favor of American workers. US factories employ 12.7 million people today, 72,000 fewer than when Trump made his Rose Garden announcement.”
… “The trade measures that the president said would spur manufacturing have instead hampered it, according to most mainstream economists. That’s because roughly half of US imports are ‘intermediate’ goods that American companies use to make finished products, like aluminum that is shaped into soup cans or circuit boards that are inserted into computers.”
… “So while tariffs have protected American manufacturers such as steel mills from foreign competition, they have raised costs for many others. Auto and auto parts employment, for example, has dipped by about 20,000 jobs since April.”
… Economist Michael Hicks: “2025 should have been a good year for manufacturing employment, and that didn’t happen. I think you really have to indict tariffs for that.”
… Politico: “A handful of House Republicans are signaling they won’t support continued protection for Trump’s tariff powers - which could present serious problems for GOP leaders. House Republicans voted in near lockstep Sept to adopt a rule that effectively blocks challenges to the president’s sweeping global tariff declarations, though it took a drawn-out whip operation on the floor. That measure expires at the end of this month.”
… “Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE) said he’s been watching House Rules Committee hearings to see if leadership tries to add an extension of the protections into legislation headed to the floor. He said the pitch from GOP leaders is always, ‘You don’t want to vote with the Democrats, right?’ Bacon responded: ‘I don’t know. I don’t think the Midwest likes tariffs.’”
… Trump: “I may put a tariff on countries if they don’t go along with Greenland. We need Greenland for national security. Nobody understood tariffs until I came along.”
… Rep. Darren Soto (D-FL): “Double whammy! Trump wants to raise prices on Americans to help invade Greenland, which we don’t want.”
… WH Trade Advisor Jamieson Greer was asked on CNBC about Trump’s statement: Q - “The president just said he might put tariffs on countries that don’t go along with Greenland. Is that going to happen? Greer: Presidents for decades have always used sanctions authorities to address geopolitical matters.”
… Retired Gen. Barry McCaffrey: “It’s a mistake to think Trump’s Greenland madness is about US national security. We’re not going to home-port naval units or station bombers. Greenland is a sensor platform not a combat base. This is about minerals and ego for new territory. Dangerous.”
… NPR: “Breaking with the US, Canada has agreed to cut its 100% tariff on Chinese electric cars in return for lower tariffs on Canadian farm products, PM Mark Carney said Friday. Carney made the announcement after two days of meetings with Chinese leaders. He said there would be an initial cap of 49,000 vehicles on Chinese EV exports to Canada, growing to 70,000 over 5 years. China will reduce its tariff on canola seeds, a major Canadian export, from about 84% to about 15%.”
… Carney: “It has been a historic and productive two days. We have to understand the differences between Canada and other countries, and focus our efforts to work together where we’re aligned.”
… “Carney, the first Canadian PM to visit China in 8 years, said better relations would help improve a global governance system that he described as ‘under great strain.’ He called for a new relationship ‘adapted to new global realities’ and cooperation in agriculture, energy and finance.”
… “Those new realities reflect in large part the so-called America-first approach of Trump. The tariffs he has imposed have hit both the Canadian and Chinese economies. Carney said ahead of his trip that his govt is focused on building an economy less reliant on the US at what he called ‘a time of global trade disruption.’ China is hoping Trump’s pressure tactics on allies such as Canada will drive them to pursue a foreign policy that is less aligned with the US.”
… Sen. Brian Schatz (D-HI): “We just got absolutely rolled in this Canada-China deal. A stark foreign policy failure with domestic economic consequences. The most basic principle in politics and geopolitics is loyalty to friends. And we weren’t just disloyal - we were hostile. So here we are.”
… NYT: “For a year, Wall Street’s dominant theme has been the so-called K-shaped economy, in which the well-to-do have powered financial activity despite lower earners’ struggles. This week, the nation’s largest banks reported a broadly disappointing set of quarterly earnings, the first stumble after a yearlong spree of rising markets and softening regulations paid off handsomely for the finance set.”
… “Results at Bank of America, Citi, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo all fell short of expectations, and their shares fell. Troubles ranged from delayed merger deals (JPMorgan) to stubborn expenses (Citi) to questions about the efficacy of artificial intelligence tools (Bank of America). Results from major lenders are closely watched because they contain hints about the state of the economy and ordinary American consumers.”
… CBS: “New data shows more Americans are filing for bankruptcy, the latest indication that price pressures and an uneven economy are leaving some households strapped for cash. Total consumer bankruptcy filings jumped 12% from 478,752 in 2024 to 533,949 in 2025.
… “John Rao, senior attorney with the National Consumer Law Center, said the rising cost of medical insurance, mounting credit card debt and the restart of student loan repayments are serving as some of the major catalysts for bankruptcies. Inflation has also made it tougher for Americans to cover expenses while paying down their debt, he added: ‘There comes a point where the mounting bills, the increasing balances on credit cards, all those things just weigh people down so much.’”
… Politico: “The primaries before the midterm elections haven’t even started yet, but Andy Beshear is running for president. His local political advisers are thinking deeply about his strategy, and he’s tapped a handful of national strategists to guide him in these early days. Beshear already has a two-pronged theory of the case about why he’s positioned to be his party’s nominee in 2028.”
… Beshear: “Democratic primary voters are going to be, number one, focused on electability. Who do we believe has the best chance of beating JD Vance? I’m a guy who has won 3 straight statewide elections in a Trump +30 state. I think it’s a mixture of both electability and the idea that, here’s somebody that not only could win in a purple state, he wins in a red state.”
… “You both want somebody who’s electable, but then somebody who can deliver. Democrats and a lot of Republicans are going to look for someone who can right the ship, hopefully who can heal the country and who can get us past our McCarthyism moment and back to a more stable time.”
… Beshear argues that even though he doesn’t say provocative things and seek social media and podcast attention, he thinks that will be an asset in 2028: “I think by the time that we reach 2028, the country is going to be tired. And they’re going to be so tired of what Trump has done, the idea of having a Democratic version of Trump is more than that - it’s exhausting.”
… He drew a contrast between himself and Gavin Newsom: “I don’t believe in responding to Trump like Trump. And I was always taught that if one person’s yelling and you start yelling out… the way Trump’s attacking CA is different, and so I understand what Gavin is doing is standing up for his people in his situation.”
… Beshear said another strength he has is he can unite both centrist and progressive Dems: “I’m a pro-business, pro-union Democrat that vetoed an anti-trans bill. So I believe in standing up for people’s rights. I believe strongly in them. At the same time, I spent 80% of my time on jobs, infrastructure, healthcare, public safety and public education.”
… Politico: “It’s still unclear whether Congress will be able to strike a deal on the Homeland Security bill, which has been in limbo as the two parties battle over immigration policy. The latest offer House Republicans sent to the Senate on the DHS bill would order the dept to fund body cameras for immigration enforcement agents - an overture intended to win bipartisan support. A handful of GOP lawmakers are also showing openness to Democrats’ demand that immigration officers get more training on de-escalation.”
… The Dumbest Senator Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) was on Fox talking about Greenland: Q - “Troops from Germany, France, Sweden, and Norway are taking part in a military exercise in Greenland. What kind of message are they sending to America?
Mullin: Well, I don't think this is a message to the US. This is a message to China and Russia.”
… Those countries specifically said that it was because of Trump’s threats. And China has zero ships near Greenland, no presence in Greenland, no investments in Greenland, and isn’t actively seeking any of those things. That is something Trump invented as his excuse to own Greenland.
… Trump held a press gaggle in the Oval Office today on drug prices, where he struggled to stay awake before leaving early for 4 days of golf in Palm Beach. Dr Oz: "One of the areas we use ‘most favored nation’ drug prices is fertility drugs. That's why we're going to have so many Trump babies!”
… Reporter to Trump: “You urged protesters in Iran to keep fighting in the streets and that help was on the way. Is help on the way? Trump: Well, we’re going to see.”
… NYT: “Nestled in a strip mall in suburban Philadelphia, The Trump Store is hard to miss with its all-caps sign in bold next to a photo of Trump hugging the American flag. But after 6 years of drawing MAGA supporters from all over, the 800-square-foot store that sports everything from hats and watches emblazoned with the president’s name is closing. The store’s owner, Mike Domanico, said that, with sales down, it was time.”
… “By the time Domanico decided to close the store on Jan. 31, he was making roughly 30 sales per day - just a fraction of what he once earned. He recalled making about 100 sales per day in the months leading up to the 2024 presidential election, and roughly double or triple that amount when the store first opened to immense demand in Feb 2020.”
… Domanico: “I did very well for the store for 6 years and it’s just time to move on for me.”
… End of an era. Sad.
… Sun: “Former Senator Kyrsten Sinema has been accused of busting up a woman’s marriage with a drug-fueled affair in a bombshell lawsuit. The ex-Arizona politician allegedly seduced her security guard with racy pictures of herself and an erotic MDMA trip, his jilted ex-wife Heather Ammel claims. Ammel opened up about the jaw-dropping alleged affair in the lawsuit filed in NC, which is one of the few states where scorned ex-spouses can sue over someone interfering with marriage.”
… “She claims Sinema, who stepped away from politics in 2025, seduced and had sex with her husband Matthew Ammel during a period throughout 2023 and 2024, despite knowing he was married. The senator, who is not married, would send her security guard ‘romantic’ texts that ‘exceeded the bounds of a normal working relationship,’ the lawsuit alleges.”
… “At one point, she described having missionary sex as ‘boring’ and another time she sent a picture of herself wearing a towel, the suit claims. Sinema and Matthew discussed his mental health issues, and she allegedly paid for him to get psychedelic treatments for his PTSD stemming from his military service. The senator allegedly convinced Matthew to bring illicit drugs to a work trip so she could ‘guide him through a psychedelic experience.’”
… “Heather confronted the senator after her husband attended a wedding with Sinema in June 2024, serving as security and a guest. She sent a text message from Matthew’s phone to Sinema that said, ‘Are you having an affair with my husband? You took a married man away from his family.’ The couple separated later that year in Nov. In the lawsuit, Heather argues the ex-senator’s alleged actions ruined her marriage, leading to financial hardship and emotional distress.”
… I don’t think Sinema is going to be able to filibuster this lawsuit.
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