Dear Everybody:

 

The big news today is that the Iran War is still going on, even though you’d never know it:

–In spite of Trump’s wild claims that the Iran war is over and that the US is in charge of the Strait of Hormuz, neither is true. The war is still going. Trump has just stopped talking about it.

–The Bulwark: “Just like a cat doesn’t disappear when it hides behind a curtain with its tail sticking out, a war doesn’t end when we wash our hands of it and walk away.”

–Two months ago, Trump said this; “The Deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran is now complete. Congratulations to all! I hereby fully authorize the full free opening of the Strait of Hormuz and simultaneously herewith, authorize the immediate removal of the United States Naval Blockade. Ships of the World, start your engines! Let the oil flow! President Donald J. Trump.”

–Aaron Rupar: “Trump launched the Iran war with a grandiose video talking about regime change and destroying Iran’s capital. Six months later, he’s proven to be so weak that the US can’t even keep the Strait of Hormuz open. An absolutely resounding defeat.”

–Trump: “The USA has total control over the Strait of Hormuz. I THINK WE WILL KEEP IT! Praise be to Allah!”

–Lucian K. Truscott IV: “Lately, I’ve been trying to answer questions about the insane war Donald Trump decided to wage on Iran. Didn’t anyone think about how pissed off the Iranians would be when their religious leader and most of his family and the top officials of government were killed on the first day? Why didn’t anyone add up the amount of munitions we had and make an estimate of how long they would last? Why didn’t anyone think that Iran would close the Strait of Hormuz and transfer the world’s oil shipping in and out of the Persian Gulf? Why were US bases in the Middle East so poorly defended from Iranian attack after the war started? Who planned or did anyone do any planning at all, for the economic fallout from this war?… Why is the US so far behind when it comes to drone warfare?”

–Senate Republicans are getting swamped with voter complaints about Trump’s interminable war on Iran less than 100 days out from the midterms.

–But Trump’s administration is responding with its usual lies. Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent responded to criticisms of the war with, “They’re uninformed, deranged, and have no idea what they’re talking about.”

 

In The Grift Goes On news, Part I:

–Trump’s attempts to turn the country into a giant corrupt Mafia organization are getting more and more obvious. He just signed an executive order REMOVING reporting requirements to identify domestic and international sex traffickers, money launderers, and terrorists.

–Marco Rubio wrote the law in 2020. It went after the shell companies used for money laundering, and sex trafficking.

–Ron Filipkowski: “Trump just dismantled this so his blatant corruption and his cronies overseas can operate without consequence or detection. Organized crime is now legal and the US is open for exploitation by foreign and domestic criminals.”

–Damian Lynch: “It truly is a criminal mob operation working out of the White House.”

–I immediately thought of the scene in the movie DICK TRACY where the criminals have put Dick Tracy in jail and Madonna sings the song “Back in Business” (lyrics by Stephen Sondheim): “I’m gonna show you that good guys don’t always win. I’m gonna show you, good guys always finish last. Speaking of virtue, being nice is a thing of the past. When I want something done, I’ll say it with a gun. ‘Cause you put me back, back back in business.”

 

In The Grift Goes On news, Part II:

–Trump’s Treasury Department has granted preliminary approval to Trump’s crypto venture company, World Liberty Financial, for it to become a federally chartered bank.

–A United Arab Emirates sovereign wealth fund owns 49% of it, and Trump’s family owns the rest. The son of Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff is running it. (There are no words.)

 

In Trump and the Catapults news:

–One possible reason for Trump’s obsession with having a Navy of World War II battleships and aircraft carriers: as a kid, he was apparently obsessed with the TV show, “Victory at Sea.”

–No Free Ride: “Get rid of the catapults altogether! Fly ’em straight off the ship. It was good enough for Doolittle in World War II.”

 

In Trump Destroys Washington DC news:

–While I was gone Trump’s hand-picked board held a meeting and re-voted (in spite of the judge’s clear order) to close Kennedy Center and to put Trump’s name back on the building underneath the main signage: “Restored and renovated by President Donald J. Trump.”

–The judge in the case is furious. He announced that the board has to report the outcome of the meeting within five days and to also tell him what they’re doing about the tarp.

–Norm Eisen: “What just happened at the Kennedy Center Board meeting is a slap in the face to the rule of law. We will see the President and his corrupt cronies in court. This will not stand.”

–ramonaj: “He is trying still to put his disgusting name on the Kennedy Center!! No one is saying anything about it already being a NO no No. He never stops being a whining baby. All these projects need to be paid for by HIM. He has already added more to our debt than anyone in history.”

–Journalist Chuck Todd: “Just think about how low his self-esteem is that he needs this so badly.”

–CNN Anchor Pamela Brown said Trump told her mother in his twenties that his dream was t o have his name on every building in the world.

–Rabbi Joshua Hammerman: “Trump’s name can and will be removed from everything–everything,that is, except for the Epstein files.”

 

And speaking of the Epstein files:

–At a hearing this last week the DOJ did NOT produce the hand-written notes as they were ordered to do in the Katie Phang lawsuit. The DOJ said they were duplicative. (They’re not, as has already been proven by other notes that have been released.)

–The DOJ then refused to show the handwritten notes, and the judge said seeing them was the only way to know if they’re consistent and duplicative was to see them himself.

–The DOJ said no handwritten notes have ever been released. This is not true. FBI 302 reports and handwritten notes WERE produced in the Epstein files. They did it for some 302 files and not others. Interestingly, the ones they DIDN’T produce them for were the ones for the victim who made accusations against Trump.

–The DOJ then asked for a sealed hearing to discuss things. The judge said he’d thought about it, “but the public has a right to know what the hell is going on with this case. The victims deserve to know. The public deserves to know.”

–The DOJ then said, “We want a clean, clear order,” to which the judge replied, “I’ve already done that! Do you want me to issue another order saying, ‘I really mean it this time!’?”

–Phang’s lawyers asked the court to address Blanche’s failure to produce foreign language materials and Blanche’s blanket summary of redactions and why personal emails should be redacted.

–The judge said he WILL hold the DOJ in contempt if necessary. “That’s not a threat. It’s a promise.”

–Oh, and Todd Blanche didn’t show up for the hearing. He sent an underling, Andrew Block, because he was busy stumping for Trump at a campaign rally. When the judge asked him for an update on the progress of the judge’s order to immediately initiate review and production of the documents, Katie Phang said he “turned red, stammered, and hemmed and hawed, and eventually failed to answer the Court, thereby confirming what we all suspected. They haven’t even started.” (There’s method to this madness. By sending underlings, they can say they don’t know–because they don’t–and that causes even more delay. It’s nothing but a stalling tactic.)

–The Judge asked how many pages were left to review, and Block said he didn’t have a number. Judge: “But you knew this was going to be discussed today.” Block: “The DOJ’s position hasn’t changed.” Judge: “The Government’s position then is you’re just not going to comply with my court order.”

–Meanwhile Todd Blanche went on TV this morning and was asked, “Can you pledge the DOJ will always act independently of the White House?’ Blanche: “No, I’m not going to pledge that.” (Surprise, surprise.)

–Former federal prosecutor Barb McQuade: “This is an appalling departure from the post-Watergate mission of the Department of Justice. DOJ, as we once knew it, is no more. Blanche has turned it into Trump’s private law firm. What a complete disgrace.”

–Note: Has it ever been clearer that this is a cover up? And that the thing they’re covering up is Trump’s crimes against children?

–AlcatrazPsycho: “The DOJ is nothing but the private law offices of the MAFIA SYNDICATE.”

 

In other Epstein/Trump news:

–Dem Rep Ted Lieu said what everyone else dances around: “The Epstein files are being blocked because they show Trump raped children.” He said it publicly and on the record. And Trump, who sues everyone for anything and everything, has not sued him. It’s clearly defamation–unless it’s true.

 

In other Trump Destroying Washington DC news:

–The combined total of Trump’s White House and DC projects has been revealed to be $423 million dollars, which is more than the funding for 9 major national parks put together.

–“The National Park Service is being used as a piggy bank for Trump’s vanity projects. The National Park Service and Department of the Interior are giving Trump all of the money he wants.”

–As an example, the cost of his putting a short polished African granite pathway alongside a White House walkway was a stunning $689,232, and the cost for those gold frames for the portraits of the presidents along the pathway and Trump’s mocking plaques underneath them was $347, 503.

 

In Trump dementia/insanity news:

–Trump’s people have pretty much kept him away from reporters since his catering truck disaster, so he’s back to posting AI photos of himself with George Washington, this time with both of them on horseback. He’s also posting photos of himself (real this time) with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un and bragging about his great relationship with him.

–And he continues to talk about running for President in 2028: “The law is very strong on that. I’d love to run, but the law is very strong. I get asked by everyone, even tonight, they’re screaming at the event, ‘2028!’ No, everybody wants me to do it, but the law is very strong.”

–When signing his executive order against the vaccine schedule, Trump talked about seeing “proof of where they have a vaccination thing that looks like the size of a bottle of soda and pour it into a little kid’s body,” and “the one where they just pump what seemingly looks like gallons…”

–He also said about getting rid of the vaccinations for hepatitis B, COViD, flu, and other diseases, “The worst thing that would happen would be nothing happens. We’re not going to lose anything.”

–Patric Reynolds: “Just children’s lives.”

–At his rally, Trump called US Attorney Letitia James “a real slob” and said “she got off on a technicality.”

–When asked about the terrible state of the economy, he said, “The economy is doing unbelievably from the standpoint of Wall Street.”

–Jennifer Erin Valent: “Failure to truly comprehend the depths of Trump’s disordered psyche is a large part of how we got here. Far too many people have been inclined to think various versions of ‘Surely he wouldn’t…’ when the truth has always been, ‘Surely, he would.’”

–Robert Reich: “The problem is no longer Trump’s lack of ethics or his amorality. The current challenge is how to survive under a madman.”

 

In Albania news:

–That deal Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump were trying to make to buy up the wildlife refuge in Albania and turn it into a $5 billion dollar luxury golf resort (and/or a money-laundering project) is on the rocks not only because of opposition by the local people, but because there is now strong evidence that Kushner knew the land owned by gangster Artur Sheheu was stolen and that the land is really owned by the local village and its residents.

–Kushner’s company paid Shehu over $120 million dollars for the land after local officials gave him control of the peninsula land. That deal was based on documents Shehu had faked. Two months later Shehu was arrested for drug smuggling (cocaine) operations.

–Now Albania has frozen all of Kushner’s assets tied to the project.

–Kushner is also still having problems with the locals after he put up fencing topped by razor wire and his security guards punched a villager in the throat and then dragged him across the beach, and the incident went viral.

 

In other news:

–Forbes Magazine fired its top content editor after discovering he had accepted a $6 million dollar bribe from a company that works on determining the magazine’s rankings of top financial advisers.

–One way Max Miller managed to stay in the race for GOP Congressman and not get forced out by the Republican Party was that he donated to 16 different candidates, thus buying their silence.

–Trump is bulldozing the mouth of the Santa Elena Canyon in Texas’s Big Bend National Park.

–The BBC lawyers are moving to subpoena Don, Jr., Ivanka, and Jared Kushner in Trump’s January 6th defamation case.

 

In good news:

–The ACLU sued to get the records a county sheriff turned over to ICE and refused to admit. The ACLU won. They will get the records.

–8o% of voters in Missouri voted against a measure that threatened to kill citizen-led ballot initiatives.

–2 MIT engineers have developed a breath test that can detect pneumonia in minutes without any X-rays or lab work.

 

Best comment of the day, from The Lincoln Project: “The GOP tells you that the guy who falls asleep daily on live TV and hid in a catering cart after an Iranian assassination threat is making the USA look more powerful on the world stage. All while raising prices on everything and weakening our economy. Wake up. This isn’t winning!”

 

Keep calm and carry on,

Connie Willis