From the back seat of The Beast, President Trump takes a lap of the Freedom 250 Grand Prix ahead of the Indycar race Sunday. [White House photo.]

Trump in SpaceX – President Trump’s portfolio managers purchased between $15,001 and $50,000 worth of SpaceX stock when it went public in June, the International Business Times reports. A major contractor with the NASA space agency led by ex-DOGE chief Elon Musk, who wants to use the company’s spaceships to colonize Mars and briefly became the first-ever trillionaire after its stock’s initial public offering, it was part of more than 1,000 trades the president’s managers made in June, according to the IBT. 

Neither Musk, who is no longer a trillionaire on paper, nor Trump have done well with SpaceX stock, so far. It has dropped in value from $156.11 per share June 23, shortly after its IPO, to trading at just under $137 per share as of Tuesday morning.

•••

Neither Snow, Nor Rain, but Maybe SCOTUS – The Supreme Court in a 10-page unsigned ruling Monday cleared the way for the Trump administration to begin implementation of the president’s executive order from early this year to impose restrictions on mail-in voting. But it is far from a sure victory for President Trump’s effort to regulate voting and comes within a week or two of states’ distribution of mail-in ballots for the November 3 midterms.

The SCOTUS ruling paused a federal judge’s injunction that banned the federal government from applying provisions of Trump’s EO in the November election to the 23 states and District of Columbia challenging the EO’s legality, according to SCOTUSblog. SCOTUS says it’s too soon for courts to consider the challenge by the 23 states + D.C. because the order has not yet been carried out and thus states have not yet suffered the sort of injury to allow the lawsuit to move forward.

A separate, more pertinent ruling by the same judge in a case filed by a different set of plaintiffs remains in effect for now. That ruling, SCOTUSblog’s Amy Howe writes, prohibits the US Postal Service from implementing one provision of the EO anywhere in the US.

•••

That Was D-Day? – Treasury Sec. Scott Bessent’s “Economic D-Day” on Iran Monday was more a show about nothing but continued sanctions, renamed – because the Trump White House likes this sort of thing – Operation Economic Outcast. 

Operation Economic Outcast included sanctions on more than 60 entities, including Chinese firms but not any sanctions with teeth barred at China itself, which buys most of Iran’s oil. The Chinese government warned that such economic warfare will heighten tensions, The Wall Street Journal reports. China said it would safeguard its rights and interests.

•••

Meanwhile, at the Pump – It seems Economic D-Day might have had some positive effect on gas prices at the pump. Unleaded regular fell 0.3 cents per gallon Tuesday to $4.0969 per gallon, according to AAA’s national average. That’s $1.2807 per gallon costlier than on February 27. Diesel is up, however, by 0.65 cents from Monday and by $1.868 over late February, to $5.6199 per gallon. –TL

_______________________________________________

MONDAY 8/24/26

Uh Oh, Canada – Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney won’t back down in the trade war President Trump is waging on his country. After negotiations between the US and Canada broke down Saturday over Trump’s earlier threats of 50% tariffs on such goods as lumber, concrete and ice hockey equipment, Carney threatened to retaliate on those tariffs “dollar for dollar.”

Trump raised the stakes further on Monday, according to The Wall Street Journal.

“On January First, 2027, Tariffs on all Cars, Trucks, both large and small, Automotive Parts, and Steel, will be increased to 50%,” the president Truth Socialed.

Carney had said in a 22-minute address to Canada on Saturday that US trade representatives had thrown last-minute curveballs including a demand that his country comply with US diktats on tariffs on its trade with other countries, The New York Times reports. US negotiators demanded changes that “included threats on French language and culture and Canadian culture that would never be acceptable for that reason,” Carney said.

Trump’s trade war on Canada threatens the economic health of both nations. For Carney, Trump’s demands represent a major step toward the president’s demands to make Canada the 51^st US state.

“We cannot accept what they offered and we will not give what they asked,” Carney said in his address. “We were not prepared to compromise Canada’s sovereignty or undermine our key industries.”

•••

‘Economic D-Day’ on Iran – Treasury Sec. Scott Bessent promises to announce Monday afternoon new economic sanctions on Iran meant to end the war in lieu of the deals that have not been reached since late February. Earlier Monday, Iran threatened fines or confiscation on dozens of ships in the Strait of Hormuz, the Financial Times reports. 

The Persian Gulf Strait Authority set up by Iran said on X-Twitter that 46 ships had violated “Iranian protocols” for transiting the Strait.

•••

Meanwhile, at the Pump – AAA’s national average for unleaded regular Monday is $4.0991 per gallon, off 1.01 cents from Friday and up $1.2837 over February 27. Diesel is $5.6134 per gallon, up 3.7 cents over Friday and +$1.8615 versus late February.

•••

Ballroom Blitz -- Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts Friday issued a temporary order staying US District Judge Richard Leon’s order that put on-hold construction of President Trump’s pet ballroom project (SCOTUSblog). Roberts’ administrative stay allows construction to continue for now, which is good news for the president no matter what, as the ballroom is “65% complete in its entirety, and moving quickly toward total completion,” US Solicitor Gen. John D. Sauer told the court.  –Compiled and edited by Todd Lassa

_____
MONDAY 8/24/26

Vice President JD Vance appeared on ABC's The View June 11 upon the release of his book, Communion: Finding My Way Back to Faith. ABC parent Disney is suing the Federal Communications Commission in federal court for challenging its broadcast license and seeking to regulate such talk shows for criticizing President Trump.

Bonds Down – Bond yields are heading back up to a nearly 20-year high Friday, a sign of a troubled economy even in the face of a bullish stock market after Secretary Scott Bessent signaled Wednesday a Treasury Department plan to double long-term government bond buybacks from a $2-billion maximum to at least $4 billion per operation for September to November, according to The Wall Street Journal. Initial result Wednesday is that yields for a 30-year bond fell to about 5.23% from 5.311%.

A lower rate is better for signaling a good economy, as higher rates mean less confidence in the US economy and higher interest rates overall.

Shortly after Bessent’s announcement Wednesday, bond yields began to shoot back up toward that 5.311% high as the gross national debt breached $40 trillion. Heavy borrowing for the AI industry is another major factor for rising bond yields over the past several months. 

On Thursday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.32%, with the NASDAQ down 1%. Bitcoin values were up, a sign of weakness in the US dollar’s value, the WSJ reports.

•••

Meanwhile, at the Pump – AAA’s national average for unleaded regular Friday is $4.1092 per gallon, 0.88 cents higher than Thursday and up $1.2938 over February 27. Diesel is $5.5764 per gallon, up 2.87 cents over Thursday and +$1.8308 versus late February. –TL

_______________________________________________

THURSDAY 8/20/26

A Trillion Here, A Trillion There ...  Gross US debt topped $40 trillion for the first time Tuesday to hit $40.47 trillion, up from $39.978 Monday, The Wall Street Journal reports. That’s about 100% of annual gross domestic product and about double of what government debt had reached just nine years ago, in 2017, according to NPR’s All Things Considered. 

Tuesday’s debt is about 100% of annual US GDP, the WSJ notes, up from just 31.5% of GDP in 2001, after four years of government surpluses. The newspaper pointed to wars, the dot-com bubble and tax cuts for the sudden onset of big-time debt. The 2007-09 Great Recession also quickly built debt by draining tax revenues and prompting stimulus programs, much like the COVID-19 pandemic a half-generation later, the WSJ writes. 

Pretty soon you're talking about real money.

•••

Meanwhile, at the Pump – AAA’s national average for unleaded regular Thursday is $4.1044 per gallon, 1.84 cents higher than Wednesday and up $1.285 over February 27. Diesel is $5.5477 per gallon, up 4.57 cents over Tuesday and +$1.8021 versus late February. –TL

_______________________________________________

WEDNESDAY 8/19/26

Canada Gets Three Days – In a social media post about 90 days before 50% tariffs on Canadian lumber and other goods were to take effect, President Trump announced a three-day reprieve, saying progress in negotiations had been made, The New York Timesreports. 

Prime Minister Mark Carney was less optimistic, saying only that progress has been made in the negotiations.

•••

Trump Ends Military Drills in South Korea – Regularly scheduled US military drills with South Korea are all but over, BBC Radio reports. President Trump denounced them as they commenced Monday, characterizing North Korea as “unthreatening and respectful.”

NPR’s Tamara Keith noted South Korea’s unwillingness to help the US in the war on Iran, and Trump also mentioned his “very good relationship” with North Korea’s leader/dictator, Kim Jong Un.

•••

Meanwhile, at the Pump – AAA’s national average for unleaded regular Wednesday is $4.086 per gallon, 0.32 cents higher than Tuesday and up $1.2666 over February 27. Diesel is $5.502, up 3.65 cents over Tuesday and +$1.7564 versus late February. –TL

_______________________________________________

TUESDAY 8/18/26

Disney’s ABC Strikes Back – Disney’s ABC network has filed suit in federal court in Washington, D.C. alleging efforts by the Federal Communications Commission, as led by chairman Brendan Carr, to challenge its broadcast licenses and regulate its talk show, The View are illegal and an attempt to stifle speech President Trump finds objectionable, The Wall Street Journal reports. 

Carr last year launched an investigation into Disney’s diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives to determine whether they violate the FCC’s prohibition on unlawful discrimination. ABC executives consider the FCC’s DEI probe a reaction to its late-night show Jimmy Kimmel Live poking fun of the president and of The View’s harsh criticism of Trump.

•••

Disarming Hamas – White House Son-in-Law Jared Kushner returned Monday from Israel to tout on Fox News the Trump Board of Peace’s success in negotiating a disarmament plan for Hamas in return for Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, among others, have been dubious about the plan’s chance of success.

Now an official tells The Times of Israel that the Board of Peace may abandon its initial plan, which Hamas approved July 30, that would break up the Gaza Strip into five sections with the Israeli Defense Force withdrawing from each one at a time as Hamas turns over its arms, one at a time. Under the new plan, according to the official, Hamas would hand over all its weapons in Gaza before the IDF would pull its troops back to the Gaza border. 

Such a plan would get Israel on board at the potential expense of losing Hamas support, according to TToI.

•••

Tuesday’s Primaries – Arkansas, Florida and Wyoming hold their primaries Tuesday according to Ballotpedia.

•••

Meanwhile, at the Pump – AAA’s national average for unleaded regular Tuesday is $4.0654 per gallon, 0.18 cents higher than Monday and up $1.2634 over February 27. Diesel is $5.4677 per gallon, up 0.13 cents over Monday and +$1.7262 versus late February. –TL

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MONDAY 8/17/26

SCOTUS Rejects Trump Appeal – With no noted dissent, the Supreme Court rejected President Trump’s second request for a review of writer E. Jean Carroll’s $5 million judgment against him after a federal jury in New York found he had sexually abused and defamed her, The New York Times reports. SCOTUS gave no reason for its refusal to hear Trump’s request, which is not unusual. 

Still pending is the president’s request for SCOTUS to overturn a much larger 2024 jury award of $83.3 million for defaming Carroll in 2024 after she accused Trump of a decades-old rape.

•••  

Past Expiration Date – Remember the 60-day ceasefire the US negotiated with Iran to give time to reach a peace deal, open the Strait of Hormuz and guarantee Iran would never build a nuclear weapon? You’re excused if you slept right through the early Monday expiration.

White House Son-in-Law Jared Kushner marked the occasion by negotiating with Hamas over the Trump Board of Peace’s 15-step roadmap to end the fighting with Israel in Gaza. Kushner was to present the deal for approval to Israel Monday, NPR’s Morning Edition reports. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is considered a hard sell, what with his latest re-election bid coming in 10 weeks, before our midterms.

Trump says he may endorse a candidate in Israel’s election, though he considers intervening inappropriate.

“I think it’s most appropriate for me to stay out of Israel’s elections,” Trump said, according to Haaretz. “But I may endorse somebody.”

It wasn’t long ago that Trump appealed to Israeli President Isaac Herzog to pardon Netanyahu from charges of bribery, fraud and breach-of-trust. Now Trump’s endorsement will not necessarily go to his erstwhile close ally. 

Meanwhile, Trump threatens to bomb Middle East ally … Trump “confirmed” backchannel negotiations to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and prevent nuclear arms development, with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in an interview Monday morning with Fox News’ Trey Yingst. But the president said of the US ally that has been negotiating directly with Iran these last 60 days, “If Oman gets in the way, we’ll bomb the shit out of them.”

•••

Meanwhile, at the Pump – AAA’s national average for unleaded regular Monday is $4.0636 per gallon, 1.4 cents lower than last Friday and up $1.2616. Diesel is $5.4454 per gallon, up 1.89 cents over Friday and +$1.7249 versus late February.

•••

Blanche Explains His Devotion to Trump – Former personal attorney to Donald J. Trump and newly confirmed (51-50 in the Senate) Attorney Gen. Todd Blanche would not commit to acting independently of the White House, he told NBC News’ Kristen Walker on Meet the Press Sunday. 

Blanch explained: “There’s a big difference between saying we will always do our job and prosecute any case and act independently of the White House. No, I’m not going to pledge that and no, no attorney general should ever pledge that and if I were to pledge I’m going to be independent of the White House, what that means is if President Trump says, ‘I want the Department of Justice to go after every violent criminal in this country,’ which is what he said, what you’re saying to me is I’m going to say, ‘No sir, I’m not going to do it.”

Notice Blanche singled out “violent” criminals and not the white-collar ones. The AG said he would act with integrity and without fear or favor, “and that’s exactly what we’ve been doing and what every Department of Justice should do.” –Compiled and edited by Todd Lassa

_____
MONDAY 8/17/26

The Consumer Price Index rose 0.1% month-over-month for July, for an annual inflation rate of 3.4% the Labor Department reports. That’s a tick below June’s 3.5% and May’s 4.2%, when Iran’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz hit big. [Bureau of Labor Statistics]

•Pundit-at-Large Stephen Macaulay vents on Trump tariffs and tax cuts in The Gray Area.

Worse at Sea – Multiple sailors on the USS Abraham Lincoln have tried to go overboard as deployment in the Middle East begun November 21 has no publicly announced return date, Navy Times reports. 

The “gruelling” nearly eight-and-a-half month deployment has “intensified” worries about the mental health and risk of self-harm among roughly 5,000 sailors aboard, according to Stars and Stripes. Family members spoke to Acting Navy Sec. Hung Cao and other senior officials in town halls conducted Thursday, including a town hall in San Diego, home port to the Abraham Lincoln, attended by an estimated 200 family members, two spouses who attended told Stars and Stripes. 

In a letter to Cao and war/Defense Sec. Pete Hegseth, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) noted “widespread reports of shortages of basic supplies, water contamination, plumbing issues, deteriorating mental health, deck safety concerns and disruptions in the mail system, which have caused many care packages in route to the ship to be lost in transit for months,” The New York Times reports.

In a social media post Wednesday, Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) wrote that “unlike Donald Trump, I’ve seen active duty. The way he’s treating our service members as he carries out this illegal war is not just disgusting, it’s dangerous.”

Hegseth told reporters during a visit to Panama Thursday that the Defense Department makes sure that every ship, crew and captain have everything the Pentagon can provide “at every single moment.” (NYT again). “Some deployments are longer than others, and ⁠I have more respect and gratitude for those sailors than anybody. What they do in ​those high seas in those austere conditions with less port calls — it’s incredible.”

•••

Count Binface Wins via Loss – Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has won his minister of Parliament seat in for Clacton, on England’s south coast, with 63.34% of the vote in a special election he called after resigning the seat. His most prominent challenger, Count Binface, took 26.93% of the vote, The Guardian reports. 

Britain’s mainstream political parties refused to participate in the election. Right-wing populist Farage, who critics say called for the special election to deflect attention from an investigation by the parliamentary standards commissioner for failing to declare a £5 million (about US$6.7 million) gift from a crypto billionaire, did not attend the vote count because he would not “be demeaned and humiliated by nobodies.” 

But the real winner appears to be Count Binface, who gets a refund on his ballot filing fee and has won the best vote count in his political career. So far.

•••

Meanwhile, at the Pump – National average for unleaded regular rose 0.61 cents Friday to $4.0776, AAA reports, which is up $1.2756 from February 27. Diesel is $5.4265 per gallon, up 2.22 cents over Thursday and +$1.7027 versus late February. –TL

_______________________________________________

THURSDAY 8/13/26

Trump Sued Over Truth Social API – Left-leaning news publication The Intercept along with the Freedom of the Press Foundation is suing President Trump citing the First and Fifth Amendments for his Truth Social media outlet’s application programming interface (API) charging $60,000 to $100,000 per month for early access to his posts. The federal suit was filed with the Southern District of New York.

“Trump is trying to enrich himself by privatizing government information that he has no right to sell,” said Ben Muessig, editor in chief of The Intercept.

In addition to the First Amendment of the Constitution, the suit alleges Trump via his Truth Social API is charging “unreasonable sums” for access to government information and by undermining the right to equal access to equal protection under the law, in an “out-and-out plan of extortion.”

A spokesman for Truth Social, which is not part of the lawsuit filed against the president, told Politico that “information from President Trump is disseminated by countless platforms and news outlets, many of which offer subscription APIs.”

•••

Leavitt to Leave White House – Speaking of Truth Social, President Trump used it to announce his White House spokesperson, Karoline Leavitt, will step down to spend more time with her family (per The New York Times), a decision “I totally understand and respect.”

Leavitt recently returned from maternity leave after giving birth to her second child. Trump said she will become one of his “top” outside advisors.

•••

How It Begins? – MyPillow founder and CEO and longtime 2020 election denier Mike Lindell is refusing to concede his loss in Tuesday’s Minnesota Republican gubernatorial primary, alleging voting anomalies, Mediaite reports. Lindell lost the primary to state Rep. Lisa Demuth, 43% to 32%. 

•••

Meanwhile, at the Pump – National average for unleaded regular rose 3.55 cents Thursday to $4.0715 AAA reports, which is up $1.2695 from February 27. Diesel is $5.4043 per gallon, up 4.68 cents over Wednesday and +$1.6805 versus late February. –TL

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WEDNESDAY 8/12/26

July CPI Details: Energy prices fell 1.5% from June, with shelter up 0.1% (approximately two-thirds of monthly items), food up 0.1% and food away from home up 0.3%. Grocery prices fell 0.1%.

•••

Meanwhile, at the Pump – National average for unleaded regular rose 2.44 cents Wednesday to $4.036 per gallon, AAA reports, up $1.234 from February 27. Diesel is $5.3575 per gallon, up 3.62 cents over Tuesday and +$1.6337 versus late February. 

•••

Great Lakes Primaries – From the state that brought us Sens. “Fighting Bob” LaFollette and Joe McCarthy, Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley upset progressive state Rep. Francesca Hong’s run for the Democratic primary for Wisconsin governor Tuesday. Crowley, who dropped out of the gubernatorial race then rejoined this summer after Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez’s campaign ended over a financial scandal, had an uphill battle against Hong, who was far ahead in the polls.

Wednesday morning, Crowley, who was endorsed by outgoing Democratic Gov. Tony Evers led Hong by 3,211 votes, according to The Cap Times of Madison, close enough for a recount. 

West of the Mississippi from Wisconsin, Trump-backed Mike Lindell, the My Pillow guy, lost the Republican primary for governor with 32% of the vote to Minnesota state Rep. Lisa Demuth’s 43%, Minnesota Now reports.

Demuth faces Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D) November 3 in their bid to replace 2024 vice presidential candidate Tim Walz, who announced in January he would not run for a third gubernatorial term, nor, indeed, any political office ever again.

About Klobuchar’s seat … Progressive Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan won the Democratic primary for gubernatorial candidate Amy Klobuchar’s seat, The Associated Press reports. She faces winner of the Republican primary, former NBC Sunday Night Football sideline reporter Michele Tafoya. 

•••

For the Graham Seat – President Trump will not lose the Republican primary run-off in South Carolina for a full-term replacement of the late Sen. Lindsey Graham. While Trump endorsed Sen. Darlene Graham (R-SC), who was appointed to replace her brother after his death last month, her opponent in the runoff, Rep. Ralph Norman, is a member of the über-conservative House Freedom Caucus.

Graham took 32.7% of the special Republican Party primary for Senate to Norman’s 24.7%, according to AP.

Winner of the special Republican primary runoff August 25 faces Democratic candidate Annie Andrews.

•••

‘Generational Change’ – Voters seeking “generational change” will not return Rep. John Larson (D-CT), 78, to the House for another term after ex-Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin, 46, defeated the incumbent in Connecticut’s Democratic primary Tuesday, according to AP. Republican candidate for Connecticut’s very blue 1^st District is physician Amy Chai. –TL

_____________________________________________

Iran War, Week 20

TUESDAY 8/11/26

The Art of the Quagmire – President Trump is going “low-key” on negotiations with Iran even as the two sides argue about who owes whom for the four- to six-week war now in its 20^th week. 

Trump told reporters Monday he wants Iran to pay the US reparations, NPR reports. 

“We’re going to ask for money for damage they’ve done over a 50-year period,” Trump said, after Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Secretary Mohammed Bagher Zolghadr demanded reparations from the US in a multi-point offer Saturday that brought the two sides no closer together.

Washington Post columnist and senior fellow in national security studies at the Council on Foreign Relations Max Boot told Morning Edition that Trump’s tactics in the war, in which he has flipped between negotiations and threats of annihilation at least seven times in 20 weeks, is “guaranteed to fail.” While the president sees it as a “brilliant” negotiating tactic, Iran sees it as confusing and incoherent, he says.

•••

Meanwhile, at the Pump – After about a week of small, steady gas and diesel price declines, the prices have ticked up Tuesday, according to the AAA. National average for a gallon of unleaded regular is $4.0116 Tuesday, up a quarter of a penny over Monday and up 1.2096 over February 27. Diesel is $5.3213 per gallon Tuesday, up 2.17 cents over Monday and +$1.5975 over late February.

•••

Tuesday’s Primaries – Wisconsin, Minnesota, South Carolina, Connecticut, Vermont and Alabama hold midterm primaries August 11.

•••

What’s on the Flight Menu? – President Trump switched from his new über-luxurious Qatari-gifted Boeing 747-8 to his old, über-fortified Air Force One 747 on his return flight July 8 from a NATO summit with world leaders in Ankara, Turkey, after credible threats of an attack by Iran. 

Or so we were told. 

It seems a third aircraft and an airport catering truck served as Air Force One for the return flight, The Washington Post scoops, citing material it reviewed as well as an official familiar with the operation and another person with knowledge of Trump’s travel. The president was “secretly shuttled” from the old, über-fortified Air Force One 747 – already the alternative to the ex-Qatar Air Force One -- to an Air Force C-32A by hiding him in an airport catering truck, according to the report.

A Pentagon spokesman referred the WaPo’s questions about the operation to the White House, which publicly has repeated its account that Trump returned to the US aboard the good old blue-and-white Boeing 747. Compiled and edited by Todd Lassa

_____
TUESDAY 8/11/26

President Trump excoriated War Sec Hegseth, WaPo scoops, for apparently misleading him on the Iranian war’s depletion of US missiles. [White House photo]

Blanche is Official – The Senate confirmed Todd Blanche as attorney general very, very early Saturday morning by 50-49 vote, per CQ Roll Call, as senators were working hard to get out of town for their scheduled summer recess. 

Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) announced his support Friday in a floor speech to give Blanche that wafer-thin margin. Republican Sens. Susan Collins (ME) and Lisa Murkowski (AL) joined Democrats and the two independents who caucus with the Democrats to oppose Blanche over his apparently rescinded anti-weaponization fund for President Trump & Friends & Supporters and the previously acting AG’s handling of the Epstein Files. (Former Senate leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) was absent, still in recovery from a fall.)

Trump was scheduled to formally swear in Blanche Monday afternoon.

•••

Budget Punted Again – Also in the way of the Senate’s summer recess was a Republican plan to pass a procedural vote that would move forward the next fiscal year’s budget, due September 30.

Republicans held a call in Senate Leader John Thune’s (R-SD) office Thursday as President Trump once again demanded they not leave Washington before they pass the SAVE America Act bill to clamp down on voter ID and mail-in ballots in time for the midterms, Roll Call reports.

Instead of a budget that would include $1.5 trillion for defense alone, the Senate early Saturday passed, 90-6, a stopgap bill very close to the House’s measure to extend the current budget to December 11. Both sides of the aisle were eager to avoid a partial government shutdown for the month before the midterms, according to The New York Times.

“After three unnecessary lapses in funding during the fiscal year 2026 cycle, putting the possibility of yet another harmful shutdown off the table should be a priority for each and every one of us,” said Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME).

“This is an important step forward to prevent a shutdown no one wants and provide the runway we need to negotiate funding bills in the months ahead as we fight to rein in Trump’s corruption and make life more affordable for families back home,” said Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA), top Democrat on the Appropriations Committee.

•••

Straight in the Strait? – Has Iran got a deal for you, President Donald J. Trump, sir: Supreme National Security Council Secretary Mohammed Bagher Zolghadr Saturday laid out Iran’s demands the US must meet in order to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, according to The Wall Street Journal. They include: 

•Lifting of the US Naval blockade

•Withdrawal of all US forces

•End of all US sanctions on Iran

•Free Iran’s frozen assets

•Pay war reparations

•End (President Trump’s) threats and insults

This has prompted WSJ Politics newsletter editor Damian Paletta to ask, rhetorically; “Why is Iran Acting Like It Is Holding All the Cards in Hormuz Talks?” 

Justification for Paletta’s all-caps headline is that it appears Iran has, at the least, a better hand than Trump amidst the apparent Pentagon weapons shortage.

•••

Meanwhile, At the Pump – National average of unleaded regular is $4.0091 per gallon Monday, off 3.31 cents from last Friday and up $1.2071 over February 27, the AAA reports. Diesel is $5.2996 per gallon Monday, 3.17 cents cheaper than Friday and +$1.5758 over late February. –TL

_______________________________________________

FRIDAY 8/7/26

•Why Trump is Laughing -- Todd Blanche is in as attorney general. Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) says he will vote to make the acting AG's role permanent.

"All considered, I will vote for Mr. Blanche," Cassidy said from the floor of the Senate Friday.

Sens. Lisa Murkowski on Friday and Susan Collins on Tuesday said they will vote against Blanche and with Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) out on sick leave potentially for the rest of his term, Cassidy's vote is essential to a majority of the Senate.

•Economy Loses 23,000 Jobs -- The US economy lost 23,000 jobs in July, the Labor Department reports, while the unemployment rate dropped to 4.1%, from 4.2% in June. Gains in health care jobs were more than offset by losses in local government, education and retail trade, according to the department's Bureau of Labor Statistics.

><Pundit-at-Large Stephen Macaulay argues in the right column that Abdul El-Sayed’s win Tuesday in the Democratic primary race for senator from Michigan hands MAGA Republican Mike Rogers a win. Contributing Pundit K.E. Bell disagrees, in the left column.

•••

Murkowski DeBlanched – Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) said Friday she will vote against acting Attorney Gen. Todd Blanche’s confirmation for permanent status of his job, according to The Guardian, thus joining Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), who announced the same on Tuesday. With Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) alive but not kicking his way back to Capitol Hill, President Trump’s nominee for AG cannot afford one more Republican defection.

•••

Trump Targets the 14^th, Again – A 6-3 Supreme Court decision in late June for Trump v. Barbara upholding birthright citizenship isn’t enough to stop President Trump and Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller from trying again. Trump on Thursday issued a couple executive orders attempting to limit the provision of the 14^th Amendment, “to promote the integrity of its immigration system, to ensure that non-immigrant visa classifications are used only for their lawful and intended purposes, and to prevent the exploitation of those classifications by persons engaged in birth tourism.”

•••

Let’s Get This Strait – Undoubtedly bolstered by reports of depleted US military arms because of its attacks on Iran, Iran says its agreement with Oman to reopen the Strait of Hormuz would prohibit US and Israeli vessels, NPR reports. 

Under the agreement conditional on the US ending its blockade on the Strait, Sameer Hashmi, reporting from Dubai, tells Morning Edition Friday that under the agreement with Oman (with the US sitting this one out) Iran would fine violators up to 20% of cargo value and both countries and individuals deemed to having caused damage to Iran would be denied passage through the Persian Gulf as well as the Strait of Hormuz until Iran is compensated. 

Under the tentative agreement, Iran would be responsible for navigational guidelines, monitoring vessel traffic, maritime security and environmental protection, Hashmi says.

•••

Meanwhile, At the Pump – National average of unleaded regular is $4.0422 per gallon, off 2.11 cents from Thursday and up $1.2402 over February 27, the AAA reports. Diesel comes in at $5.3313, or 1.61 cents lower than Thursday and +$1.6075 over late February.

•••

Will Putin Target NATO? – Russian dictator Vladimir Putin could test NATO with a limited assault on an allied country – anything from a cyberattack to a small-scale land incursion – in the next few years, The Wall Street Journal reports, citing a new US intelligence report. The assessment says Russia would not conduct the incursion during the war in Ukraine according to the newspaper, which notes reports of severely depleted Pentagon arms stockpiles from the war on Iran.

But NATO has confirmed a Russian Kh-101 cruise missile in July crashed in Eastern Poland, a member country, while early this week an unidentified object struck a cargo plane at Leipzig/Halle Airport in Germany, where an armed drone was discovered in a secure area of cargo flight operations. –TL

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THURSDAY 8/6/26

Iran War, Week 20 – Will there be a 21^st?

Iran and Oman – without the US – have reached the “final stages” of an agreement for a commercial route through the Strait of Hormuz, Semafor reports. The deal would make a path to enter the Strait near Iran and exit near Oman, according to the report.

But a dysfunctional Iranian regime exacerbated by “very difficult” interaction with Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, who was “gravely wounded” in the initial US attack on Iran late last February, is complicating negotiations with Oman, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told Iranian state television. 

President Trump’s last flip between negotiating a deal with Iran and conducting the biggest US military attack “since World War II” was further weakened by reports that our military has used up virtually all its long-range precision missiles, reported by Reuters Tuesday.

On Wednesday, The Washington Post scooped that Trump and his war/Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth “clashed” at last weekend’s Camp David meeting (pictured above) when the president told the war secretary he thought the munitions shortage “had been fixed.” (WaPo quoted two people familiar with the matter on condition of anonymity.) 

Mideast advisor to the George W. Bush administration Michael Singh told NPR’s Michel Martin on Morning Edition Thursday that Iran considered Trump’s WWII-level threats not credible. 

“We’re nearing a deal it seems that would hand Iran much more control of the Strait and is frankly better for Iran than the deal they rejected last week,” Singh said.

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Meanwhile, At the Pump – National average of unleaded regular is $4.0633, off 1.68-cents from Wednesday and up $1.2613 over February 27, the AAA reports. Diesel comes in at $5.3474 Thursday, or 1.48 cents lower than Wednesday and +$1.6236 over late February. –Compiled and edited by Todd Lassa

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THURSDAY 8/6/26

Abdul El-Sayed has edged out Rep. Haley Stevens for an open Senate seat in Michigan's Democratic primary, The Associated Press reports. He faces Republican Mike Rogers in the November 3 general election.

Deal Up Wednesday – The US, Oman and Iran are close, Axios scoops, to an interim agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which means another ceasefire between the US and Iran and a jump-start of negotiations over a nuclear deal. Look for a Trump administration announcement Wednesday.

Sources for Axios’ report are two regional sources and a US official.

This comes hot on the heels of a Reuters exclusive Tuesday that the US has used “virtually all” of its long-range precision missiles during the five months of war with Iran, three people familiar with Pentagon data told the news agency. The shortage involves primarily US Army surface-to-surface weapons, a.k.a. Army Tactical Missile Systems, or ATACMS, and Precision Strike Missiles, or PsRM.

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Blanche Confirmation Still Uncertain – Having received written reassurance from acting Attorney Gen. Todd Blanche that he will not press forward with President Trump’s $1.776 “anti-weaponization” fund, lame duck Sens. John Cornyn (R-TX) and Thom Tillis (R-NC) ushered Blanche’s nomination for the permanent AG position out of the Judiciary Committee Tuesday and on to the full Senate. Vote was along party lines.

But Blanche’s confirmation is not a done deal. While Cornyn, who lost his primary this year to Trump-endorsed Texas Attorney Gen. Ken Paxton and Tillis, who chose not to run for re-election could have stopped Blanche cold in committee, Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), who faces a serious challenge from progressive-populist Democratic challenger Troy Jackson, is doing the opposite. 

Collins says she will vote against Blanche’s confirmation, citing “several actions that have eroded (the Justice Department’s) independence,” according to Politico. 

Part of that erosion for Collins is the Trump DOJ’s settlement with the Trump Internal Revenue Service that created the anti-weaponization fund, which could pay millions to January 6^th rioters and immunize the president, his sons and the Trump Organization from tax audits.

Meanwhile, Republican Sens. Bill Cassidy, of Louisiana, and Lisa Murkowski, of Alaska, have not committed to Blanche’s confirmation. If all three ultimately vote against him, his confirmation will be sunk. 

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Gas, Diesel Ease – National average of unleaded regular is $4.0801, off 0.89 cents from Monday and up $1.2781 over February 27, the AAA reports. Diesel comes in at $5.3622 Wednesday, or 0.98 cents lower than Tuesday and +$1.6382 

over late February. –Compiled and edited by Todd Lassa

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WEDNESDAY 8/5/26