LOTS OF POSTS IGNORED BY BLOGGER.....
OR REMOVED ON THEIR WHIM!
ALL POSTS ARE AVAILABLE ON
MIDDLEBORO REVIEW AND SO ON
BLOGGER DOESN'T LIKE TRUTH OR FACTS!
BLOGGER DOESN'T LIKE FUND RAISERS AND DELETES
POSTS THAT INCLUDE FUNDRAISING THAT 'VIOLATES THEIR
UNDEFINED COMMUNITY STANDARDS SO ALL 'FUND RAISING'
IS DELETED - CONTRIBUTE AS YOU ARE INCLINED TO SUPPORT
IMPORTANT ISSUES! THESE ARE NOT SOLICITATIONS
… Mike Johnson said he is very confident about Republican chances in the midterms because he’s formed a prayer group for it and is certain that God wants them to win: “This is a God thing. We have intercessory prayers who are on the ground at the Capitol praying each of these things through. More and more people are understanding there must be something do this.”
… Trump was on Fox & Friends this morning:
Q - “Are you worried the tariffs you put forward over the last couple days will hurt the economy? Trump: No, because it’s bringing in hundreds of billions of dollars.”
… That’s exactly why they are hurting the economy.
Q - “We hear that you’re talking with leaders from Iran. But Iran has come out publicly and said ‘we’re not talking to the US’. Trump: Well, they just came out and said we are talking. Q - So could you tell me who you’re talking to? Trump: We’ve had some very good talks.”
… He never said who he was supposedly talking to.
“It’ll take them many years to ever rebuild, and if I go back and finish up the job as some people would like with the bridges - it takes them 10 years to build a bridge. They know I’m going to do that if they don’t make a deal. The bridges are going to be gone. Literally, in less than 2 hours, most of the major bridges will all be gone—and the power plants, in one day.”
On Iran’s Pickaxe Mountain: “We have the greatest cameras in the world focused on it. I know exactly what’s going on at Pickaxe, it’s not a big problem. We took out their nuclear sites, and we’ll have to take out Pickaxe if we don’t make a deal. If we don’t make a deal, we’ll take it out very easily.”
… He supposedly already took it out a year ago.
Q - There are reports that Netanyahu will brief you on Iranian activity at Pickaxe Mountain: “I don’t need Bibi to tell me that. Bibi is telling me that because he wants me to stay involved. I heard Bibi announce that, I said ‘why don’t you just tell it to me? Why do you have to announce it to the world?’ I know exactly what’s going on.”
“I stopped 8 wars, I would say 5 of them because of tariffs. The threat of tariffs stopped India and Pakistan from going into a nuclear war.”
… Yes, the first nuclear war in history between two countries with nukes would have already happened if it wasn’t for Trump threatening tariffs on Truth Social and a billion people would be dead. Right.
… Trump had meetings with both Zelenskyy and Netayahu today in the Oval Office. Netanyahu posted this:
 |
… Steve Bannon: “I think all of Trump’s most ardent non-‘Israel First’ supporters are furious. Netanyahu has had twice as many visits to the WH in 18 months as Winston Churchill had in all of World War II - with every one of them a disaster for America.”
… Politico: “Many of the president’s anti-interventionist allies had hoped the latest ceasefire attempt would lead to a permanent end to the conflict. Instead, they’re grappling with the possibility that Netanyahu, who is visiting the US for the 7th time since Trump took office last year, may instead push the president into a new, more durable phase of war that could leave the US embroiled in conflict in the Middle East for months, if not years.”
… Zelenskyy posted: “A good meeting with President Trump at the Oval Office. The President and I discussed licenses for Patriot interceptor production and several other ideas that could help. We also spoke about diplomacy – it’s important that the diplomatic process be reinvigorated. Our teams will arrange the details of their further communication. I am grateful to the US for its firm support.”
… The WH sent JD Vance over to the Capitol Rotunda for Lindsey Graham’s service while Trump was meeting with Zelenskyy in the Oval Office. Probably a wise move.
… Later in the afternoon, Trump and his cabinet attended Lindsey’s funeral. Sean Hannity gave the eulogy: “Lindsey probably has a heavenly version of Mar a Lago. It may even be a little bigger. He may have a little more gold in the Oval Office in his mansion in heaven. And I wouldn’t be surprised if he added one big beautiful ballroom and an arch somewhere on the property. because you would wanna obviously duplicate his dearest friend in life, you, Mr. President.”
… Really shocking that Lindsey’s memorial service turned into a tribute to Donald Trump.
… Trump also attempted to put a TicTac in his mouth but he missed his mouth and dropped it on the floor. He made it on the second attempt.
 |
… Naturally, he left the first one on the floor for someone else to pick up later.
… As soon as the next speaker started talking about Lindsey and not Trump, he promptly fell asleep in public again in the middle of the day.
 |
… CNN’s Kaitlan Collins was asked about the WH Correspondents’ Dinner on the Daily Show. Jon Stewart: “Was he bombing as hard as it appeared on TV? Collins: What was most surprising to me was that the room was filled with a lot of his staffers, his cabinet, his allies, and Republicans in Congress. It was so quiet in the room during the president’s remarks.”
… On Trump’s frequent personal attacks on her: “It’s really not about me, and I don’t want it to be about my reaction. In those moments it’s important to put the reminder back on the work, on the question, and on the non-answers that we get.”
… Axios: “KY Gov. Andy Beshear demanded that Sen. Mitch McConnell verbally address constituents and demonstrate his ability to serve or resign his seat in a blunt letter sent to the senator and his staff. Beshear said in the letter that it was also being sent to John Thune, whom Beshear urged to investigate McConnell’s capacity to serve:
…. Beshear: “I understand anyone’s desire for privacy, but when you run for office and serve as one of a state’s two US senators, you willingly abdicate much of your personal privacy. That’s the deal, and we all know it when we run. All of this speculation and even this letter could have been avoided with a minimal amount of transparency. Kentuckians are just asking you to be honest.”
… Beshear to Bloomberg: “There’s an argument out there that Aug 3 is a date where I could not later call a special election. Those that are really pushing this I think are under the impression that a Democrat in KY might be able to win that election. It’s been since 1992 that we had a Democratic senator in KY.”
… “You mentioned a lot of missed votes. I want to point out some other missed votes that might not be a bad thing. McConnell hasn’t been there to vote on the SAVE Act, which would tear voting rights away. He hasn’t been there to vote to support this war on Iran that this president started and shouldn’t be continuing. Not having Mitch McConnell show up isn’t necessarily a bad thing because he certainly doesn’t show up to help the American people.”
… Stephen Miller on Fox: “AOC, Bernie, Omar—these are people who, even 10-15 years ago, would have been relegated to the outermost fringes. They are now the heart of the party. The Democrats have become the party of freaks, weirdos, losers, and crazies. But you can't laugh it off because it's deadly serious. When you give these people power, everything you know and love in this world falls apart. You have chaos, corruption, decay, violence, poverty.”
… Stephen Miller calling someone else a freak and weirdo. Almost like Trump making jokes about people’s weight.
… Punchbowl: “The vote on Acting AG Todd Blanche’s confirmation is coming down to the wire. Just 48 hours before a key Senate Judiciary Committee vote on Blanche’s nomination for the permanent AG job, GOP Sens. John Cornyn and Thom Tillis are holding firm on their conditions for backing Blanche - and indicating there’s been little movement toward a deal that would unlock their support.”
… “Both senators, whose votes are needed for Blanche to advance to the Senate floor, are demanding that DOJ formally eliminate the ‘anti-weaponization’ fund and curtail an IRS audit immunity deal for Trump. Cornyn said that DOJ has ‘not sufficiently’ addressed his concerns but noted they’re ‘still talking.’”
… Cornyn: “We just need for the documents to conform to what Blanche’s testimony was at the hearing, where he said the weaponization fund was dead and he said that the immunity from future audits does not extend to people beyond the parties to the lawsuit.”
… Cornyn posted: “Fake news alert: there is no ‘deal’ on Blanche nomination. They know what they have to do.”
… Laura Weiss with Punchbowl: “The standoff between Todd Blanche and Judiciary Republican swing votes is really coming down to the wire. Cornyn and Tillis want DOJ to formally kill anti-weaponization fund and restrict Trump’s audit immunity deal before they advance him in committee. Vote is scheduled for Thursday.”
… MS NOW: “Last week, former DOJ lawyer Liz Oyer testified in the Senate against the confirmation of Todd Blanche as AG. Then came the death threats. Oyer oversaw the DOJ’s pardon office before Trump ousted her last year and promptly turned the office into a tool to help out his donors and political allies. She has said she was fired for refusing to restore actor Mel Gibson’s gun rights after his 2011 conviction for domestic violence.”
… “And she was a key witness urging senators to vote against confirming Blanche, who has already sought as acting AG to quash further inquiry into the Epstein files and drew criticism over his softball interview with convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell. And it seems Republicans are now fueling attacks against Oyer as they try to make Blanche the nation’s top law enforcement official.”
… “Oyer attributed the threats to dubious accusations - peddled by Missouri’s Republican senators, Josh Hawley and Eric Schmitt, and in conservative media - that she was basically an ally to rapists and murderers. At the Senate hearing, the two senators homed in on Joe Biden’s decision to commute most federal death sentences.”
… “Oyer explained that her recommendation to reassess the cases of all 40 inmates on federal death row, 37 of whom Biden spared from execution, was in keeping with the admin’s broad opposition to capital punishment. She also dispelled misinformation that commuted inmates will be ever be released from prison.”
… John Thune infuriated the MAGA people with this statement on Fox today on nuking the filibuster to pass the SAVE Act: “I’ve had this conversation with the president many times. The votes are not there to do it. I know he thinks he can persuade people, but this is a hard position for a lot of Senate Republicans.”
… There are reportedly at least 15 Republican senators who will not vote to repeal the filibuster rule under any circumstances.
Reminder there is no Bulletin tomorrow because I do my weekly podcast Uncovered where we do a deep dive into the top stories of the week and try to bring interesting takes to each topic that were not widely known or reported.
Going to also visit some small town bookstores in the morning to try to add a few old used classics to my literature collection. For 30 years I read nothing but non-fiction - almost all history and biographies. Now I read nothing but fiction. I guess I get enough of the real world most days now.
Thank you to everyone who reads, shares and subscribes. Late next week we are going to get under 90 days until the midterms and this is the time when information, organizing, and mobilizing is very important. I pride myself on covering elections well and these are the times when it is my Super Bowl.
If you missed yesterday’s Bulletin, you can find it here.
… The Times (UK): “FIFA’s president Gianni Infantino is planning to sell stakes in the World Cup to private investors under a scheme that could potentially earn him tens of millions of pounds. Investor discussions held with figures close to the Trump admin. FIFA has now confirmed to The Times this Infantino plan is under discussion with Josh Kushner as proposed lead investor.”
… Josh is Jared Kushner’s brother.
… UEFA statement: “This crosses a line that football’s governing institutions should never cross. UEFA takes it extremely seriously. So should every National Football Assn. So should every stakeholder: leagues, clubs, players, supporters, govts and everyone who cares about the future of the game. The soul and governance of football are not assets to trade - especially with zero transparency as to who gains financially. None of us are the owners of football. It is not FIFA’s to sell.”
… House Judiciary ranking member Jamie Raskin sent a letter to Infantino demanding a list of gifts to Trump, communications about DOJ cases and ticket prices, and visitor logs to FIFA’s Miami and Trump Tower offices. Raskin says that the DOJ during Trump admin dropped multiple corruption charges against FIFA officials in exchange for financial benefits to Trump personally.
… A federal magistrate judge in Florida has ordered the Donald J. Trump Revocable Trust to begin producing financial documents sought by the BBC in Trump’s sprawling defamation lawsuit, rejecting arguments that the subpoena was improper or overly burdensome.
… The ruling comes after Trump dramatically increased his claimed damages in the lawsuit from $5 billion to approximately $10 billion, alleging that a BBC documentary caused catastrophic harm to the value of his “brand, properties, and businesses.” That claim ultimately became the key reason the court sided with the broadcaster.
… US Magistrate Judge Enjoliqué A. Lett made clear that Trump cannot seek extraordinary damages while simultaneously shielding the financial info necessary to test those claims: “As currently pled, Plaintiff’s damages are at issue.”
… Judge Lett found that because Trump himself placed the value of his businesses and brand at the center of the case, the judge concluded that the requested financial information is relevant and proportional to the litigation.
… Bill Pulte: “Good News! We are, this morning, Executing a 5th and Near Final Round of TERMINATIONS, an approximately 30% Staff Reduction from Weeks Ago. The Intelligence Community must protect the American people, NOT the political whims of the bloated and corrupt elite class.”
… Kyle Cheney with MS NOW: “Trump loyalist Bill Pulte, the unqualified acting DNI, just announced a 5th round of layoffs at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence - hours before his (also unqualified) replacement is likely confirmed by the Senate.”
… NBC: “A key grand jury witness in a case against a former Olympic canoeist accused of tampering with the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool testified that the area was already damaged and would have required repairs regardless. David Hearn was indicted this month and accused of damaging the liner of the pool. Hearn previously told NBC that ‘the condition of the Reflecting Pool was the same after I stepped away from the water as it was before I got there.’”
… “The witness, who is not identified, was the only person who testified about damages, and said that the property had already been damaged before, authorities say, Hearn stuck his hands in the water, according to Hearn’s team. He was charged with destruction of property and accused of doing more than $1,000 worth of damage to the pool.”
… “Hearn’s team questioned whether there is enough evidence to show he caused more than $1,000 in damage to the pool, the threshold necessary to charge him with a more serious crime. The witness’ testimony, according to Hearn’s lawyers, ‘established that the pool had substantial preexisting damage requiring repair before any alleged conduct by Hearn.’”
… Politico: “The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee announced it is spending $40 million on organizing, research and voter contact across 10 states as the party looks to take back control of the upper chamber. The effort, branded as ‘Win The Senate’, includes 7 states where Democrats are on offense - ME, NC, OH, AK, TX, IA and FL - along with 3 where the party is playing defense - GA, MI and NH.”
… “The funds aren’t going toward expensive ad buys, but instead on-the-ground staff, new offices, volunteer programs and outreach to groups including Latino, Black and Alaska Native voters. The organizing and infrastructure investments could help counter a potential flood of GOP super PAC cash that many Democrats expect to come later in the fall.”
… Kamala Harris email going out soon in support of Troy Jackson: “I know what it is like to step up to the plate with a short runway to Election Day. Troy will have just 101 days between his nomination for Senate and when voters in Maine will cast their ballots. It will not be easy. It will take a massive grassroots team coming together. But I know this team can take this on. Troy is stepping up for us, so we need to step up for him. I am happy to offer my support, and I hope you will do the same.”
… Harris got the most votes of any presidential candidate in history in Maine, and she never endorsed Platner.
… Troy Jackson on MS NOW: “People wanted people to stand up for them. They’ve always wanted that. That’s what I want. Trump made an argument that he was going to do that, but now it’s buyer remorse across the state. The tariffs are killing businesses, we’ve lost healthcare because of the Big Beautiful Bill.”
… I really wish Democrats would stop using Trump’s name for their budget bill. Just a pet peeve of mine. Not all do it, but many do.
… NOTUS: “Democratic strategist Morris Katz’s public mea culpa last week for his role in promoting and protecting Graham Platner didn’t sit well with at least one person familiar with the inner workings of the former candidate’s political operation.”
… Platner’s political director Genevieve McDonald, who quit last Oct when the controversies first broke, on Katz: “I don’t believe him. I mean, consultants shouldn’t have main character energy. We have lost the plot when consultants are doing PR tours for themselves, for their own redemption, and that is what this felt like.”
… “She said Katz’s admission that he misjudged the situation is an effort to protect his career rather than a genuine admission of wrongdoing, and another chance for him to build out a political status that she thinks has a tendency to overshadow his actual political clients.”
… McDonald: “We’ve gotten to a point where it seems as though I’ve read as much about Morris Katz as I have about the candidates that he works for. I do think the process was irresponsible. It appears Fight Agency and Daniel Moraff were so eager to launch him and push out any potential competitors in the primary that they did not do their due diligence.”
… CBS: “Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said the Trump admin’s plan to ramp up arrests and deportations of Haitian migrants is a ‘mistake,’ arguing the move could bruise the state’s economy and risk putting Haitians in danger in their home country. More than 300,000 people from Haiti are set this week to lose Temporary Protected Status after the Supreme Court upheld the Trump admin’s plan to end the policy for Haitians.”
… “ICE has drawn up plans to launch a deportation blitz focused on Haitian migrants as early as this week. The operations could focus in part on the thousands of Haitians who live in OH, many of whom have settled in the city of Springfield in recent years. During the 2024 campaign, Trump claimed, without evidence, that Haitian immigrants in the city were eating cats and dogs.”
… DeWine said the planned deportation operations would be “a blow to Springfield and a blow to the state of OH. These are people who have helped Springfield really come back. The Haitians who are living there and employed there, they came there to work, and they came there because there were jobs that were not being filled by other people.”
… “DeWine also pointed to the dire security situation in Haiti, a deeply impoverished country that has dealt with years of political instability, with gangs controlling large swaths of territory. The country is mired in ‘virtual chaos,’ the governor said, with ‘no semblance of govt,’ leading the State Dept to warn Americans not to travel there.”
… Puck: “Sen. Tim Scott has developed a reputation for running the Senate’s most dysfunctional offices—consumed by high turnover, internal rivalries, and a string of political missteps. As his portfolio has expanded, so has the scrutiny. Sen. Scott holds ‘pruning’ meetings where he reminds staff they are replaceable. He has staff openly compete for jobs, which he thinks is part of the interview process but aides say pitts people against each other.”
… “Scott has gone through 3 Banking Committee staff directors in 18 months, 20 Banking Committee staff have left during his short tenure. He's had 3 chiefs of staff in less than 3 years, and 5 comms directors in 5 years.”
… Semafor: “Fewer Americans than ever approve of the job the Supreme Court is doing, according to new Gallup polling, a decline driven by a drop in Republicans’ approval over the last year. One-third of US adults approve of the job the high court is doing, down from 39% last year, while a record high of 61% disapprove.”
… 58% of Republicans approve of the court, according to the poll, which was taken after the conclusion of the latest term. That’s down from the near-record 79% who approved of the court last September. The court’s recent rulings against Trump’s tariffs and his birthright citizenship order may have contributed to that softening in approval.”
… Post and Courier (SC): “The Pentagon is taking steps to rename Joint Base Charleston after Air Force veteran Lindsey Graham. Secretary of the AF Troy Meink ordered staff to begin work with Air Mobility Command and Joint Base Charleston leadership to take ‘all necessary and appropriate actions’ to begin converting the name of the crucial East Coast air base to Joint Base Lindsey Graham.”
… Pete Hegseth just personally awarded something called the ‘Mexican Border Defense Medal’ to service members at the Pentagon.
… Veteran’s advocate and congressional candidate, Fred Wellman: “I need you to understand how patently stupid this is. This is what we colloquially call an ‘I was there’ award. Service medals are not given in a ceremony on a neck ribbon EVER. Rarely in a ceremony at all. I’ve got stacks of them for Korea, Desert Shield, Hurricane Hugo, Iraq, and more.”
… “90% of the time they show up on your records and you might get a physical medal handed to you at the office. These aren’t combat awards. Certainly not with a neck ribbon like the Medal of Honor! How much money was wasted on this ridiculous ceremony for propaganda?”
 |
… Politico: “Gabriel Perez, the WH staffer who allegedly used his advanced knowledge of Trump’s speeches to place bets on the prediction market Kalshi, no longer works for the federal govt, a WH official said Tuesday. WH spokesperson Davis Ingle declined to answer questions about whether Perez was fired.”
… “The change in employment status comes less than two weeks after ABC News reported that Perez was in talks with the CFTC to settle allegations that he used his knowledge of Trump’s speeches to win more than $100,000 on Kalshi. Perez allegedly placed wagers on whether Trump would say specific words or phrases during speeches and events.”
… “Reuters reported earlier this month that Perez is under CFTC investigation for potential insider trading.”
… Perez has been with Trump since 2016 as his Teleprompter operator. I guess he figured everyone else in this admin including his boss was grifting and scamming like crazy so he had to find a way to get a piece of the action.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.