Flotsam and Jetsam - Iran Deal Reached? Another Platner Pratfall

Yesterday was a big day for news out of Iran, first, in the morning word of fresh US air strikes and the possibility of taking Kharg Island, the main Iranian oil export terminal, and promises to keep it up until the theocracy bent the knee, then later in the day word that further strikes had been suspended because Iran was 'this close' to signing the deal. News Wax reports Trump: US Will Hit Iran 'Very Hard,' Take Kharg Island. Ward Clark at RedState, Trump Announces Bold New Kharg Island Move to Crush Iran Regime. At Hat Hair, Capt. Ed Trump: Here Comes Round 3, and We're Taking Kharg Island Soon and a Larry vid, Trump Striking Iran, Seizing Kharg Island? VodkaPundit at PJM, UPDATE: NAH. 'They Should Have Made a Deal': Trump to Seize Iran's Oil Infrastructure. Althouse finds "At some point in the not too distant future, we will be taking Kharg Island, and other oil infrastructure points, and assume total control of their Oil and Gas Markets..." "... much like we have with Venezuela, which is working out brilliantly for both Venezuela and the United States of America. Thank you for your attention to this matter! President DONALD J. TRUMP" Trump at Truth Social." followed by "Based on the fact that discussions with the Islamic Republic of Iran have been brought to the highest level of Iranian leadership and approved, I have, as President of the United States of America, cancelled the scheduled strikes and bombings against Iran this evening. Discussions and final points have been, in both concept and great detail, approved by all parties involved, including the United States, Israel, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Turkey, Pakistan, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan, Egypt, and others. The Naval Blockade will remain in full force and effect until this Transaction is finalized — Time and place of the signing to be announced shortly." Capt. Ed, BREAKING: Trump Calls Off Iran Strikes, Claims Deal Made. Teri Christoph at RedState, Did Iran Just Blink? Trump Abruptly Cancels Thursday Night Strikes (but Keeps Iran's Ships Boxed In). VodkaPundit, HANG ON THERE, PARDNER: 'We Just Made a Great Settlement of the War With Iran'. Matt Vespa at TownHall, Wait, Did Trump Just Clinch a Deal With Iran? Sundance at CTH, President Trump Expresses Optimism a Deal with Iran Has Been Reached. Are they still playing for time? Almost certainly, but they can't buy that much. We'll see quickly about opening the Strait of Hormuz and in a little while about the "nuclear dust." Ben Whedon at JTN reports a 'Secret Mission': Trump reveals 100M barrels of oil have cleared Strait of Hormuz. TownHall's Kurt Schlichter says Don’t Panic About Trump’s Iran Strategy Just Yet. At RCD, Protracted Iran-War Parleys: Is It Part of U.S. Strategy? and from RCE, The Middle East Crisis Proves the Case for U.S. LNG.

Dave Strom at Hat Hair, I Thought It Would Be a Stalemate, But Right Now Ukraine Is Winning the War. But at Am Con Ted Snider warns Russia’s Warnings Signal Danger of Widening War. "In the Baltics and in Kiev, the risks of a major escalation are rising." I don't think they can sustain a wider war. 

News Wax reports UK Defense Minister Healey Quits Over Defense Spending. ""You have ​been unable, and ‌the Treasury has been unwilling, to commit ‌the resources that the nation needs to defend the country at this ⁠time of ‌rising threats," ⁠Healey said in his letter to Starmer." The Beeb, Starmer must 'find more money' for defence says second minister to resign over military spending plan. Sundance, Three Days After Prime Minister Starmer Pledges to Lead New Ukraine Military Effort, British Defense Minister Resigns. Didn't Starmer lose an election or something? Brad Essex at RedState sees The New Battle for the West - Pete Hegseth Brings Uncomfortable Truths to Normandy. Visegrád 24 @visegrad24, "Hegseth’s D-Day speech at Normandy American Cemetery, France today: “Today, different European beaches are stormed by different dangerous ideologies. Beaches in Spain, Italy & Greece. Boats & men arrive. When will Europe do something about that invasion?”" The Divine Ms. Devine at NYPo, Pete Hegseth’s D-Day speech gave Europe a spot-on warning – be smart or be invaded. Dan McCarthy at RCP thinks Pope Leo Misjudges the Moment. Electing a Chicago pol as pope was a bad idea.

Matt Vespa says the The Graham Platner Nazi Tattoo Story Just Got Worse. Sister Toldja at RedState has a Report: The Graham Platner 'Redemption' Tour Hits a Snag As Another Alleged Ex Spills the Tea. Ace, Former Left-Wing Girlfriend: Gerald Platner Cheated With Me on His Fiance (Whom He Hid From Me), Said He Got a Nazi Tattoo to Remind Him That the US Was "the Bad Guy" In Foreign Policy, and Also, Has "Small Dick". "Oh man, they always throw in that last one. Or so I've heard. From others. I heard Larry O'Connor promise yesterday that more is coming. Here's a little more." David Harsanyi @davidharsanyi, "Platner's many controversies have probably obscured the fact that most of what he says is vacuous sloganeering and gibberish. I listened to a number of his interviews and speeches; and he's never wandered in the vicinity of an original insight" Well, he is a Democrat. Capt. Ed, Senate Dems Wonder: Who Signed Us Up For Platner Duty, Anyway? and Khanna: Can't a Lying, Violent, Nazi-Tatted Mooch Get a Little 'Grace and Redemption'? (Sure, but not as Senator) and You Don’t Hate the Media Enough, ‘Pouncing’ On Der Oysterführer Edition.

At State of the Day. the State of Tuesday: NOW'S OUR CHANCE, MR. PRATT. "We all know it in our bones to be true." Sue, and make them prove the votes are legit. Susie Crabtree at RCP, As Pratt Gets Bad News, California Vote-Counting Fuels Conservative Distrust. Fred Lucas at Da Signal, How California’s Election Procedures Turn Early Leads Into Late Losses. Masses of votes harvested from the homeless, often bought and paid for. Elaine @elbh, "The enthusiastic gloating over a the loss of a candidate whose entire campaign was simply to clean up his hometown is one the most disgusting displays of arrogance and ugliness I’ve ever seen in my life. This is nothing short of political bullying. It’s abhorrent and it is increasingly why the ideal of American politics being of the people and for the people is being supplanted by professional grifters and communist activists. Absolutely disgusted." Quote TMZ @TMZ, "Jimmy Kimmel trolls Spencer Pratt, rents him a U-Haul to leave L.A. after election loss."

Christopher F. Rufo @christopherrufo, "California's political leaders have failed to clear the brush in the public land bordering Los Angeles. Fire expert Gabriel Mann explains how the state's policies are making another massive wildfire inevitable. "It's ready to burn." I remember watching the Santa Monica Mountains burn from my parents house in Rancho Park.

CNN whines the Postal Service won’t deliver mail ballots for states that don’t hand over voter lists, under plan for Trump directive. Cooperation is a two-way street.

Sabremom says Let's talk ActBlue and money laundering. "Or that time I found my dead grandma. Not MY dead grandma. But she’s got the same name, and is probably SOMEBODY’S grandma." Alex Bruesewitz @alexbruesewitz, "This should be the biggest story in America. How much foreign money has been funneled to democrats through ActBlue over the past decade?!" Quote Eric Daugherty @EricLDaugh "HOLY SMOKES. ActBlue just PLED THE 5TH and REFUSED to answer about getting foreign donations infiltrating US politics on behalf of Democrats She wouldn't even refute getting RUSSIAN money!"

From NYPo, Zohran Mamdani’s disdain for NYC business is showing — painfully. Tom Knighton at BA observes Gun Manufacturer Bails on Virginia, Heads to Pro-Gun Georgia. Gooder and harder. RCD examines The Blame America First Syndrome. Brilyn Hollyhand @BrilynHollyhand, "We loathed Obama like you loathed Trump. Except we loathed Obama because he loathed America. You loathe Trump because you loathe America." PJM's Stephen Kruiser thinks Dems Will Freak Out When They Get to Hell and Find Out How Few Republicans Are There.

Da Wire, ‘F*ck Austin!’: Karmelo Anthony Supporters Harass, Threaten Friends Of Slain Teen Outside Courthouse, "I hope he burns in hell!" Dave Strom calls them Unhinged: Random Assaults on White People, Attacks on Austin Metcalf's Family and says This Response to Senseless Violence Is Pathetic. At Twitchy, Professor Blames Austin Metcalf’s Father for Not Teaching His Son ‘Black Boys Have Boundaries. "In other words, Jeff should have taught Austin that black people will try to kill you if you ask them to stop violating social norms." From Ace, Savage Anthony Karmelo Supporters Now Making Death Threats Against Austen Metcalf's Family and Randomly Punching White People in the Face for TikTok Clout; White People Must Remain Calm and Not Cause Incitement or Division. Hat Hair's John Sexton catches Newsweek saying The Karmelo Anthony Trial Didn't Respect His 'Reasonable Fear', comparing him to Kyle Rittenhouse. Jason Cohen @JasonJournoDC, "NEW: Greg Gutfeld ROASTS Jasmine Crockett over her Karmelo Anthony comments “She says we don’t know what it’s like to be a black woman and that’s true. But she doesn’t know what it’s like to be a white man. A white man like me. I can’t afford to be as stupid as she is.” “I have to try harder — because I’m going to be called all sorts of names — but she can say whatever she wants.” “We have an incredibly low bar for black Leftist commentary. If any white person said that stuff about the murder of a black kid, it would be the apocalypse.” “But on the Left, every heartless bozo gets a hall pass.”" Wesley Yang @wesyang, "This photo of black people rejoicing at the OJ not guilty verdict told us where we were in 1995 The videos of black people freaking out over the Anthony guilty verdict tells us where we are in 2026. (Zero to minimal progress.)"

Gail Heriot at Insty says YES, TITLE VII DISPARATE IMPACT LIABILITY IS UNCONSTITUTIONAL: "The Office of Legal Counsel’s 25-page opinion is important. It’s a breakthrough on an issue I’ve been working on for a long time. But … uh … what’s really important is that it cites me seven times. Purr. Josh Blackman has a short summary ..."

From Sundance, President Trump Nominates SDNY U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton to Serve as Director of National Intelligence and Short Term FISA (702) Extension Fails in House – Strangely Specific Concern from Democrat Leadership. They know how it can be abused, because they did it under Obama/Biden. 

Jon Schweppe @JonSchweppe, "lol" Quote Andy McCarthy @AndrewCMcCarthy, "No to Todd Blanche for Attorney General https://nationalreview.com/2026/06/no-to-todd-blanche-for-attorney-general/" 

NYPo, Trump admin has found 146K migrant kids who went missing under Biden: DHS chief. Sundance, DOJ Announces Series of Arrests During Investigations to Find 450,000 Missing Unaccompanied Alien Children. Calling-all-RushBabes has *A Tale from Sanctuary State. Enabler of Illegal Immigration. From Twitchy, 'I've Watched That 67 Times'! Here's Our Anti-ICE Loon FAFO of the Day.

Ace, HHS Investigating Terror PR Organization CAIR Over Possible Misuse of Federal Funds. "Apparently this has to do with using federal dollars -- why are we giving CAIR any money? -- to pay for some kind of sketchy, unaccredited "Afghan Legal Services" fund. What?!?! You want to know if this is a misuse of federal taxpayer money? Well I'm glad you came to me. It is. Obviously." Frank Stephens @justrightFrank, "An illegal immigrant who arrives by dinghy admits that he's been working for the Taliban since he was 10. He is put in to a hotel where he kidnaps and sexually assaults a 7 year old child. British Justice gives him 2.5 years, he will serve about 18 months." Lawrence Person's Battleswarm Blog sees Commie Jihadis On The Grassy Knoll, "It used to be that Fifth Columnists funded by foreign interests operated from the shadows, holding clandestine meetings while trying to undermine the nation. Today, however, Islamist organizations linked to both communist China and global Jihad networks openly proclaim their hatred for the United States right here in Texas.

Dave Strom hears from Leslie Stahl: Firing of Scott Pelley Was Worse Than Human Trafficking and the Holocaust! Jay Caruso at WaEx, No one is entitled to work at CBS or anywhere else. James Kirchick @jkirchick, "Can we call them anti-American now?" Quote Tom Bevan @TomBevanRCP, "The Nation has published a special edition for America 250 which, unsurprisingly, carries pieces like: "250 years of genocide, theft, and displacement" "The celebration of the nation's birth is a sham" "Shame" "The Bald Eagle perfectly embodies America's flaws"..." John Podhoretz @jpodhoretz, "Who stopped? It was a Stalinist rag until 1956, it was a Maoist rag until 1979, it was a Sandinista rag until 1991, and throughout it has supported American terrorists from Sacco and Vanzetti to the Weather Underground to street violence during Black Lives Matter." To be fair, the Bald Eagle does, but it looks pretty majestic doing it. Variety @Variety, "Vice President JD Vance will appear on "The View" on June 16, marking his first visit to the ABC daytime talk show. Vance will join all six of the program's co-hosts to discuss his new book “Communion: Finding My Way Back to Faith.”

Greg Lukianoff at Insty notes GOVERNMENT CENSORSHIP DOESN’T GET BETTER WHEN IT’S OUTSOURCED: If officials can’t ban speech directly, they shouldn’t get to pressure platforms, AI companies, or broadcasters to do it for them. Sens. Cruz and Wyden’s JAWBONE Act would help victims fight back.

The Telegraph reports the Belfast suspect is former policeman, "Friend claims Hadi Alodid is from prominent north Sudan family and was followed to Britain by two brothers via Dublin." wretchardthecat @wretchardthecat, "Beheading case puts pressure on Common Travel Area (CTA) transits between the Republic of Ireland and British Northern Ireland. Hadi Alodid, 30, is charged with attempted murder over Monday’s knife attack in which Stephen Ogilvie lost an eye. Alodid, a Sudanese national, entered Northern Ireland across the Irish border by bus in February 2023, having flown to Dublin from Paris. Alodid then claimed asylum upon arrival and was granted leave to remain in the UK until 2028. Democratic Unionist Party leader Gavin Robinson has said the “open porous border” with Ireland should be closed, while TUV leader Jim Allister asked for clarity on what basis Alodid was admitted at Dublin Airport in 2023." Doug Murray at Da Spec, Britain imported a problem it refuses to name. Beege Welborn discourses on Importing 'Alien Cultures' and 'Losing' Eyes. Megan Basham @megbasham, "I also think what we’re seeing with the British and American public are people who have been incredibly generous for many decades. They HAVE welcomed many many foreigners. And if you look at Ilhan Omar, you see how that generosity is so often repaid. With ingratitude, entitlement, and smears about systemically racist systems even as they leap to the front of the line in social programs and college admittance over native populations that happen to have white skin. So no, they don’t want to welcome more foreigners in. People tend to feel less generous when their generosity is unappreciated." From the Bugscuffle Gazette, Oh, look ... "... I was right." Quotulatiousness has “Thoughts and prayers” in a Two-Tier Keir accent. At Insty, LIFE IN TWO-TIER KIER’S WORLD: Dr Philip Kiszely @KiszelyPhilip, "We’re at the stage now where beheadings are regrettable, but tweets are unforgivable." Peter Hague @peterrhague, "When the British government complain that social media inflamed the riots in Belfast, what they are actually saying is: “If people know how badly be have betrayed the country, they will kick off” It’s an accidental confession that their entire ideology has failed." Northern Barbarian @xnoesbueno, "Black Dumpling gets at the heart of the matter. The United Kingdom is under the boot of full-on tyranny. It is not simply the electoral, demographic and cultural overwhelming of the indigenous people. It is not just the two-tiered justice that has police ignoring actual crime when there is a claim of racism. It's that they can't even talk about it without the very real fear of prosecution and prison. Britain is no longer a first world democratic nation. It is a third world despotism." Quote BLACK DUMPLING™ @BlackDumpling "You want to know what's most chilling to me? At first I couldn't figure out what was going on with this post. Wildly disproportionate likes to views and almost no one was commenting on it. Very few were actually seeing it. Then I started to look at WHO was liking the post." Drew Pavlou @DrewPavlou, "BREAKING NEWS: Australia's public broadcaster ABC News just accused @elonmusk of ''inciting racial tension'' in Belfast because he did not censor footage showing a Sudanese refugee attempting to behead someone. They're angrier at Elon than at the stabber." Elon Musk @elonmusk, "The news orgs that say this instead of caring about innocent people being beheaded in the streets are scum of the Earth." From Ace, UK Government Begins "Instructing" "Journalists" On How to Spin the Beheading Agenda They Have Ushered Into the Country. "As we see on the American left: the Real Crime isn't the real crime at all, the Real Crime is noticing the actual real crime. And they will not tolerate the Real Crime of Noticing. Even as they instruct their pet "journalists" to convince the public to tolerate the actual real crime and show some understanding and empathy and above all else, "Remain Calm" and do not make a fuss." NotTheBee, Remember the Scottish girls in the viral axe video? Two migrants have been found guilty of harassing and assaulting them. Dave Strom, says Preach It, Brother! Basil the Great @BasilTheGreat, ""You cannot change the rules so people who had a legal right to be here have to leave" "Yes you can" "Well you can but do you want to live in a country that does that?" "YES" BASED PATRIOT."

At Campus Reform, 5 times universities pushed leftist ideologies during 2026 graduation ceremonies. They didn't say these were the only times. James Martin Center, Colleges Can’t Have Their Cake and Eat it Too "We made college an obligation. We should not be shocked when students treat it like one."

Ace sees a Whistleblower Vindicated: Biden Officials Conspired to Violate Court Order Stating that "Transgender" Could Not be Classified as a Protected Categroy Under Title IX (Which Protects Women on the Basis of "Sex", Not "Gender Identification"). Can we impeach him in retrospect, or even posthumously?

Fish Pic Friday - Veronika Machová

Veronika Machová@vercamachovaa Czech Republic🇨🇿 Fishing is life🤍
@westinfishing_cz_sk Ambasador Parys

New Study Finds Chesapeake Ospreys Starving

 CBF, New Study Links Starving Chesapeake Bay Osprey to Menhaden Woes

A new peer-reviewed study links unprecedented levels of starving osprey chicks in the Chesapeake Bay to concerns around menhaden, a nutrient-packed fish that is a key food source for osprey and many other species.

While several factors influence osprey productivity, reduced availability of Atlantic menhaden is likely the primary driver of poor osprey reproduction in saltier parts of the Chesapeake Bay, according to the study. The new report is based on data from the 2024 nesting season and published this week in Frontiers in Marine Science by researchers at the College of William & Mary’s Center for Conservation Biology, the U.S. Geological Survey, the Maryland National-Capital Park and Planning Commission, and the Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center.

Research in recent years has documented osprey chicks starving in nests across portions of the Chesapeake Bay where osprey primarily rely on menhaden for food. Osprey in many parts of the region are reproducing at rates well below what’s needed to sustain the population.

Virginia is the only state along the Atlantic coast that still allows industrial menhaden fishing in state waters. That lone remaining industrial operation—Omega Protein and their fishing partner Ocean Harvesters—extracts over 100 million pounds of menhaden from Chesapeake Bay waters each year, with no scientific understanding of the impacts to the Bay’s ecology or coastal communities.

Widespread osprey nesting failures are among several warning signs that the menhaden population is struggling in the Bay, including plummeting catches by small-scale watermen who catch menhaden for bait for local crab fisheries.

In a 2025 letter to state fishery regulators, the Virginia Institute of Marine Science suggested the Virginia Marine Resources Commission give “serious consideration to reducing purse seine fishing in Chesapeake Bay,” given that data to understand impacts of concentrating the industrial menhaden fishery in Virginia waters remains “woefully inadequate.”

The new study notes that “a large degree of uncertainty remains about the status of adult menhaden within the Chesapeake Bay.” It adds, “To more fully resolve this uncertainty, assessments of menhaden abundance could enhance understanding of their role within the ecosystem and support management of consumers that depend on them.”

As part of the budget process that will wrap up later this month, Virginia legislators are considering investing in Chesapeake Bay menhaden research. These data are crucial to understanding the impacts of highly concentrated industrial harvests and how many menhaden a healthy Chesapeake Bay requires.

Recent polling shows that 80 percent of Virginia voters support state funding for a menhaden study.

Well, "Science" has spoken. I suspect the study was designed to find this. Unfortunately that's the way this thing tends to work, at least as long a I was in science. 

On the other hand, I see less Ospreys around our neck of the woods these days. Oh, they're here, but not in the numbers that they were several years ago. 

Flotsam and Jetsam - Iran 'Kinetic Action' Reheating

For lack of anything else new and exciting, the revived Iran conflict gets top billing. Ace, After Iran Downs Apache Helicopter, Trump Threatens New Round of Airstrikes "Is he serious this time or is it more, you know, twitter bullshit?" At Althouse, "If we need to negotiate with bombs, we’ll negotiate with bombs. And we’re very good at it. Nobody better in the world." "Said Pete Hegseth, quoted in "Iran War Live Updates: U.S. Will Strike Iran Again Tonight, Hegseth Says/The secretary of defense, Pete Hegseth, said a new American attack would be launched on Wednesday night. Earlier, President Trump said more attacks were coming, a day after he predicted peace" (NYT)." And Trump posts a "West Wing" clip decrying the notion of a "proportional response." Capt. Ed at Hat Hair hears Trump say to Iran: Bridge and Power Day May Be Back, Baby; UPDATE: On Like Donkey Kong? Airstrikes starting against radar and other air defense type sites, like they're getting ready for a big air operation. From the Scuttlebutt, Pardon, Your Bias is Showing. How the media always stops the chain of causation on the US, particularly if they can blame Trump.

Sundance at CTH reports President Trump Signs the Secure America Act. Ace, Trump Signs Bill to Fund DHS and ICE Throughout the Rest of His Term, "The 80-day long (IIRC) Democrat shutdown resulted in chaos and disruption but ultimately failed. They're the party of chaos and disruption, riots and "teen takeovers," subway knife attacks and women having their throats slashed open by infinitely-indulged homeless maniacs." Sundance also notes President Trump Delivers Shocking Response to Question About USMCA Renewal "President Donald Trump responded to a question about the current status of the USMCA trade agreement, or what Canada calls CUSMA. Watch and listen to how President Trump points out that he has no intention of renewing the USMCA." unseen1 @unseen1_unseen, "Like Tillis, this idiot admits he lied to voters for the last 10 years." Quote The Calvin Coolidge Project @TheCalvinCooli1, "New: Texas Republican Senator John Cornyn tells CNN’s Manu Raju that he has much more freedom to go against President Trump now: “Are you kidding? Of course. Absolutely. My liberation day: May 26.”" At Insty, NANCY MACE IS OUT, ENDORSES OPPONENT FOR S.C. GOVERNOR. "“Buried the hatchet.” She started out promising but has been kind of erratic." Hat Hair's Beege Welborn says it Looks Like Daffy Kathy Done Broke 'the Deal' on a pipeline she had agreed to as part of the price for an ocean wind farm. Starve NY of power. See if I care. WaEx introduces The man leading Trump’s nuclear renaissance.

Hat Hair's Capt. Ed Gulps: Consumer Price Index Inflation Soars to 4.2%, Core to 2.9%. At CNBC, Social Security retirement trust fund may be depleted in 2032, new trustees report finds.

Twitchy laughs at the notion that Americans Will Be So Triggered When the Whole Planet Cheers Every Goal Against Them at the World Cup. Elijah the Middleborne @TheMiddleborne, "My brother in Christ, Americans barely know we even have a team." RedStates Jen O'Connell finds a group of Europeans who Fall in Love With America While Touring the Country; Americans Need to Take Lessons. "Thank goodness a German X user named Freddy, and several other European visitors touring the U.S. ahead of the World Cup events, are paying no attention to the Debbie Downers at NPR and on the left." Right over Left Everytime @RightSide_Uk, "Elon Musk just exposed the EU’s biggest lie. Ursula von der Leyen was lecturing about “democracy” when Musk hit her with the truth: “If democracy is the foundation of freedom, surely your position as leader of the EU should be elected directly by the people?” The EU is run by unelected bureaucrats who impose mass migration, net zero madness and speech controls on 450 million people — with zero accountability. This isn’t democracy. It’s a dictatorship in slow motion. The people are waking up. The EU’s days are numbered."

TownHall's Scott McLallen hears a Democrat Calls Republicans Fascists, Wishes He Could 'Run Over' Trump at Congressional Baseball Game. At Althouse a Great catch, by U.S. Senator Eric Schmitt. Eric Schmitt @Eric_Schmitt, "Left it all on the field. Republicans win 11-2 Honored to be named MVP."

Hat Hair's John Sexton notices Politico's Senior Political Columnist is Clueless. Jonathan Martin @jmart, "The most interesting part about this is not the actual rehab, which is fine and in some cases needed, it’s the impulse to be for whatever Trump is for. His passion is renovation and buildings and grounds? OK that’s what we’re into, also" Quote Steve Guest @SteveGuest, "It’s undeniable: President Trump improved the Reflecting Pool ahead of America’s 250th by light-years. Anyone who denies that fact has an incurable case of TDS." "So the story here is not that people adopt whatever Trump likes. The story is that the media automatically attacks whatever he does. But Martin can't see it." At Althouse, Can we not all love the new pool? Howard Lutnick @howardlutnick, "I stopped by the new Reflecting Pool. It is simply glorious. There were a thousand people, everywhere, taking pictures and just enjoying its beauty. Thank you President Trump for restoring our city’s national treasure." No, we must hate it, because Trump!

Much hay is still being made over Nazi adjacent, woman beating communist Graham Platner's run for the Maine Senate seat currently occupied by RINO Susan Collins. Capt. Ed hears DSCC Chair Gillibrand: Oysterführer Uber Alles, or Tomorrow Belongs to Dems and Free Press: Dem Response to Platner Astonishing After #MeToo Posturing. Jonathan Turley notes On the Kavanaugh Anniversary, Democratic Leaders Swap Me Too for Maine. Batya Ungar-Sargon claims The Democrats Have Officially Ceded the Moral High Ground "In electing Graham Platner, they have chosen winning over being the party of "Believe All Women" and "Fight Fascism."" At Twitchy, The View's Sunny Hostin Declares Days of Dems Taking the Moral High Ground OVER. PJM's Rick Moran has a Poll: Democrats Willing to Throw Black Voters Under the Bus to Gain Power. Cynical Publius @CynicalPublius, "Consider the possibility that the DNC saw Graham Platner’s Nazi affiliation to be a PLUS. Maine is a swing state and Collins is practically a Democrat. They can’t run to the left of Collins, not really. So maybe they want to run to the RIGHT of Collins, and since these idiots ACTUALLY BELIEVE we are all actual Nazis, maybe they saw Platner as the ideal candidate. Because they are stupidly brainwashed. Just a theory…" Nick Arama at RedState thinks Platner's Reply When Asked If More Might Be Coming Should Worry Dems. At Fox, Platner’s ‘living on the sea’ claim dismantled by critics as financial docs paint a different picture. "Platner's disclosures show he earned little from oyster farming and harbor duties versus $4,800 monthly in disability." Twitchy, 'Scum Attracts Scum': Data Republican Delivers a Truth Bomb Ratio to Graham Platner. DataRepublican (small r) @DataRepublican, "Hello Mr. Platner, Ratio. That's it. That's the whole rebuttal. You are someone who, by the virtue of his Reddit posts, manages to be simultaneously a filthy-literal-Communist and anti-Semite. That in itself is an egregious sin, because literal, card-carrying Communists are fundamentally at odds with America's norms. But if that weren't enough, you have voluminous Reddit posts defending the Nazi Totenkopf symbol. You clearly knew the tattoo you got and you defended it publicly. There's no either/or way about it. Scum attracts scum. Which is why you can comfortably swim in both literal-Communist and literal-antisemitic far-right circles. I am no fan of Sue Collins. But the fact you are running against her, that you have even the smallest chance of defeating her --..." PJM's Matt Margolis hears Democrats Are Literally Blaming Trump for Their Support of Graham Platner. Don Surber observes Democrats don’t vet, "Woman who called Epstein “Uncle Jeffrey” screened Obama’s Cabinet appointees." Josh Kraushaar @JoshKraushaar, "Klain is a former U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum board member..." Quote Josh Kraushaar @JoshKraushaar, "BREAKING @jewishinsider via @marcrod97: "Ex-Biden chief Ron Klain defends Graham Platner’s Nazi tattoo" Klain: "The tattoo was a skull and crossbones to remember his fallen comrades from his service in Afghanistan"" Drew Holden @DrewHolden360, "Thread: A quick side by side of things legacy media outlets will describe as Nazi-adjacent when they’re about Trump vs. how these outlets talk about Graham Platner’s Nazi tattoo, which an ex-gf of his confirmed to the NYT was deliberate." At SpliceToday, Mark Judge want to know Will NPR Reported David Folkenflik Do His Job on Platner? Not very likely. Nick Arama likes Trump's Surprising, Hilarious Endorsement of Maine Senate Candidate ""She does because she's a sane woman. She's not my best friend at all," Trump said. "But she's a sane person. She's a person that's never missed a vote in many years. I mean, she's like 10,000 votes. She had 10,000 votes. She never missed a vote. Unfortunately, because sometimes she voted against me! "You know, look, she's a sane woman, and she's a respected person. Maybe a little different ideology than me. "But this guy is a thug. He's a fake thug. He's a phony. I made a lot of money picking out phonies. He's a real phony. He's a bad person."

From Lawrence Person's BattleSwarm Blog, California Election Fraud Update For June 9, 2026. Dave Strom at Hat Hair hears from Homeless Addicts in L.A.: They Paid Us to Vote. Ace, Surprise! Democrat "Ballot Harvesters" Were Illegally Paying Skid Row Homeless Drug Addicts $5 to "Vote" for Nithya Raman. "Isn't odd that these meth-addicted morons knew, in advance, that it was Nithya Raman who would need the bulk of their "votes" and not the current communist mayor? It's almost as if most of these votes were cast after Election Day, with Democrat "ballot harversters" knowing they needed many more votes for Nithya Raman to eliminate the one person they needed out of the race, Spencer Pratt." From Da Caller, ‘They’re Crooked’: Spencer Pratt’s Bruising Mayoral Loss Raises Election Integrity Concerns. Dmitri Bolt sees Spencer Pratt Responds to His Crushing Defeat in LA With a Mysterious Image. PJM's Stephen Kruiser has a Friendly Reminder That California Is the DNC's Testing Ground. 

From the Free Bacon, 'Weak Link' Gavin Newsom Took $50K From Chinese EV Exec of Now-Blacklisted 'Chinese Military Company,' According to New Pentagon Classification, 'The Department of War has blacklisted BYD for a reason,' a former US ambassador says.
 'It means that there is a threat to the national security of the United States.' Chris Rufo et al at CJ observes Gavin Newsom Broke His Promise About California’s Fire Management Work. "Starting last year, the governor “fast-tracked” land, now totaling nearly 100,000 acres, for fire management. So far, state-approved groups have completed projects covering less than 1 percent."

Ace, Trump Orders the Postal Service to Not Deliver Mail-In Ballots to States That Refuse to Turn Over Their Voter Lists. "CNN is so mad. States' rights! States' rights! States' rights!" The News and Observer has news and observes a Judge rules voters known as ‘never residents’ can’t participate in any NC election. 

Dave Strom sees The Insanity of Karmelo Anthony's Defenders. From Ace, Jasmine Ratchett: "Black Women Live in Agony" Daily that Murdered Athlate Austin Metcalf "Never Lived Through" (Except The Day He Was Murdered by a Jasmine Ratchet Supporter) "Was she ever murdered? No? So Austen Metcalf did actually experience agony of a kind that this fat donut disposal unit and sloppy whore can only imagine. She also blacksplains that the knife used to lethally stab him through the heart is not really a deadly weapon at all. She says that in her opinion as a Real DEI Lawyer, she would have argued that the knife was not a deadly weapon, thus sparing Karmelo Anthony the death penalty, even though the knife is a weapon which was used to inflict an almost-instantly deadly wound. She's a good lawyer, she really earned that J.D." TMZ @TMZ, "Exclusive: Austin Metcalf's family is receiving death threats after the Karmelo Anthony verdict. Read more: https://tmz.me/43rnK6w"

At PJM Sarah Anderson thinks This Classy Clapback From Alveda King to Jasmine Crockett Is a Must-Watch. Matt Margolis sees Jesse Watters Make a Fool Out of Jessica Tarlov Over the SPLC Case. "Watters then made that point with a comparison aimed squarely at Tarlov: "Say Turning Point was funding Antifa … that we thought was going to young conservatives and they were sending it to people to buy all black and they were busing them to Portland to commit crimes. And then they were raising money off this crazy Antifa stuff." Believe me, the camera caught Tarlov's face, and it was priceless."

Sundance reports President Trump Navigates Speaker Mike Johnson on FISA Reauthorization and sees Interesting Names Being Floated for Permanent DNI Role.

CNBC whines White House border czar Tom Homan blames New York Gov. Hochul for promised ICE surge. Beege Welborn says When ICE Visits Your Plant and Your Employees Drop From 100 to 24? That's All on You. QThestorm @17QStorm, "BREAKING: Marco Rubio just said the quiet part out loud. Americans work 40+ years… Pay taxes. Follow the rules. Build the country. Then retire on $800, $900, maybe $1,000 a month. Meanwhile, new arrivals can allegedly receive more support from the same system they never paid into. Read that again. The people who built America are being pushed to the back of the line. This is not compassion. This is a government priority problem. America First was never just a slogan. It was a warning. Who comes first? The taxpayer… or the system?" Libs of TikTok @libsoftiktok, "Somalis stomp on the American Flag while holding a photo of the referee who was denied entry to the U.S. for alleged ties to a terrorist organization at a protest in Somalia."

And Another Thing, Press martyrdom and the state of legacy media. "Between the constant leaks, backbiting, and endless meetings, does anyone at CBS News do any work?" Mary Katharine Ham @mkhammer, "Having lost a job and lost a spouse in my lifetime, they are very, very, so much not the same." Quote Townhall.com @townhallcom "NYTimes: I can hear how much this has hurt you. Scott Pelley: Yes. It's like your spouse being murdered." PJM's VodkaPundit has hopes that Bari Weiss Prepares to Do to CNN What She's Doing to '60 Minutes'. "But here's why you should absolutely positively get your hopes up that somebody at CNN is about to Pelley themselves into irrelevancy, courtesy of the New York Post. The paper reported late Tuesday that "CBS News boss Bari Weiss is likely to gain editorial oversight of CNN if and when Paramount Skydance’s acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery is approved.""

At Spiked! The barbarism in Belfast. Right Angle News Network @Rightanglenews, "It has now been revealed that the Belfast man who was nearly beheaded by an African migrant, Stephen Ogilvie, was helping the same man who attacked him move in as a next door neighbor just four days before the attack." A Driscoll post at Insty, WHEN THE LAW OF THE LAW OF MERITED IMPOSSIBILITY REBOUNDS TO EUROPE: Here Come the Riots. GB News @GBNEWS, "'There's a genuine feeling that what happened last night would not have happened if everything was in place to stop people like the alleged perpetrator getting in here.' Night Editor at Belfast Telegraph, John Laverty conveys the anger of Belfast locals over the knife attack." Kevin Sorbo @ksorbs, "You seem more upset over the protest than you do the beheading that took place." Quote Keir Starmer @Keir_Starmer, "The scenes in Belfast last night were shocking and completely unacceptable. There is no justification for the violence and disorder that we saw threatening our communities, nor for those who encouraged it, online or elsewhere." Ace, After Single Night of Fiery But Mostly Peaceful Protests, Two-Tier Keir Starmer, Who Did Not Mention Henry Nowak Until the Video of His Police-Assisted Murder Was Released, Is Johnny-on-the-Spot in Condemning Riots. "Belfast experienced some rioting last night. The riots were, as the US media described the BLM riots, "fiery but mostly peaceful." There was disorder, Some People Set Fire to Some Vehicles, a house was burned, but they were "mostly peaceful," meaning no one was killed." Sundance thinks The Irish, Scots and English are at The End of the “first follower” phase in Cultural Survival. From the Independent UK, As I watch Belfast burn in violent protests, I think of the far right in England and the US spreading poison. "People who know nothing of my city and have probably never been here are using what’s happening to their own advantage, writes Amanda Ferguson in Belfast." Drew Pavlou @DrewPavlou, "BREAKING NEWS: Australia's public broadcaster ABC News just accused @elonmusk of ''inciting racial tension'' in Belfast because he did not censor footage showing a Sudanese refugee attempting to behead someone. They're angrier at Elon than at the stabber." EducatëdHillbilly™ @RobProvince, "Amazing how these were never used against Floyd protestors." Quote BRITAIN IS BROKEN @BROKENBRITAIN0, "BREAKING: Police are now using WATER CANNONS against protesters in Belfast Footage shows a group of protesters using a wheelie bin as cover against the water cannons as widespread unrest continues to break out ..."

Dave Strom hears the Feds Uncover a Michigan Conspiracy to Attack U of Michigan Officials to Force Cutting Ties to Israel. Libs of TikTok @libsoftiktok, "BREAKING UPDATE: The @okstate administrator who threatened a Conservative student for honoring Charlie Kirk in a speech was REMOVED from her position." Quote Libs of TikTok @libsoftiktok, "EXCLUSIVE: @JoshuaW4145, a conservative Oklahoma State University student, spoke with us after he was reprimanded by his university for giving a speech honoring the death of Charlie Kirk and promoting free speech. A faculty member allegedly told him that his speech was "triggering" and "partisan," and that his year was going to be "difficult" for him. He encourages others to stand up for their rights in order to "spark the flames of positive change on your campus and community that will never be put out."" At Campus Reform, Princeton ends 133-year anti-proctoring tradition amid AI cheating fears. "Princeton University will require instructors to supervise all in-person examinations beginning July 1 to respond to growing concerns about AI-assisted cheating and academic integrity violations."

And more! at The Wombat's In The Mailbox: 06.10.26.

Thursday Tanlines

Australian Broadcasting Company, Solariums operating underground despite commercial ban

It is illegal to operate a commercial solarium across most of the country, but finding one online and booking a session takes only minutes.

Jess* has been using solariums through the underground market for about eight years.

"I spend a lot of time on my appearance, whether that's at the gym, botox, all of those sorts of things to enhance my appearance, and to me I guess having tanned skin just became part of that package," the Melbourne woman said.