Probably not the most important story of the day, but easily the most irritating. Sarah Anderson at PJM, Judge Stops Trump's Construction on White House Ballroom "U.S. District Judge Richard Leon determined on Tuesday that no statute comes close to allowing Trump to carry out this project of his own accord, and that construction must be halted until Congress approves the completion. So, I guess we're just stuck with a half-finished project?" At Althouse, "A federal judge ordered on Tuesday that construction be halted on President Trump’s proposed White House ballroom... saying work must come to a stop until the project receives a go-ahead from Congress." "The NYT reports. In a 35-page opinion, Judge Leon wrote that Mr. Trump likely did not have the authority to act without consulting Congress to replace entire sections of the White House — changes that could endure for generations. We're told there are 19 exclamation points in the opinion." Bonchie @bonchieredstate, "The East Wing is already gone. What exactly is the plan here? To just leave a half finished ballroom because some lib group sued out of spite?" Quote The Hill @thehill, "#BREAKING: Judge halts White House ballroom construction project https://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/5809614-trump-white-house-ballroom-construction-halt/." So now, everytime the executive branch want's to modify an executive branch building, it needs an act of Congress, and agreement from the judicial branch up to the Supreme Court? Well, that'll throw some sand in the gears! I suppose, it's a restriction intended to apply only to Donald Trump. I think we should put a sign up calling it the "Judge Leon Crater."
In other Donald Trump building news, the admin released a vision of the Trump Library to be built in Miami, and designed to drive his critics mad. Sundance at CTH, Eric Trump Shares Remarkable Preview for Trump Presidential Library, Located in Miami. At Althouse, Let's judge the architecture of The Donald J. Trump Presidential Library.
AOL, Kristi Noem's husband seen 'pouting in photos with fake breasts.' Sundance, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem’s Husband Had Secret Life as Crossdresser Pretending to Have Large Breasts. Daily Mail @DailyMail, "Secret double life of Kristi Noem's crossdressing husband Bryon: The pouting 'busty bimbo' photos and trove of explicit messages." At Insty, IT’S COME TO THIS: Weird, just weird.
Joe Chalfant at TownHall thinks Trump Just Issued His Most Consequential Executive Order Yet. "President Donald Trump has just issued an executive order requiring that states impose strict restrictions on mail-in ballots ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, and has tasked the administration with creating a new database of U.S. citizens who are confirmed to be eligible to vote." Disclose.tv @disclosetv, "NOW - Trump signs executive order curbing mail-in ballot fraud, requiring Homeland Security to prepare a list of citizens eligible to vote in each state, require the Postal Service to only send absentee ballots to voters on the list and mandate those ballots have envelopes and barcodes for tracking." I imagine a district court judge will have something to say about that. Sundance hosts President Trump Holds Oval Office Presser During Executive Order Signing.
Ars Technica, Trump convenes “God Squad” to override Endangered Species Act, up oil production. Seems fair. They don't care about endangered species when it comes to wind or solar.
PJM's Stephen Kruiser is running a Fun Thought Experiment — Vance and Rubio As 'Co-Presidents'. I have a slight preference for Vance, but Marco is really showing his stuff too. Remember, the Clintons ran on a co-President plank. At NYPo the Divine Miranda Devine: Cowardly GOP senators run home, after gumming up the DHS shutdown.
SpinStrangnessandCharm, “No Kings” explained to unwitting CCP dupes, and which kings they’re actually marching for: Yogi @Houseofyogi, "No Kings explained for people who think they're fighting fascism. You're standing in a crowd on Saturday. You look around and think yeah. No Kings. This is what democracy looks like. Bro. You're holding a sign made by a communist billionaire who lives in Shanghai. You live in a constitutional republic. Elections. Term limits. A free press that spent four years calling the president a fascist without one journalist being arrested. The modern left's definition of fascism: You love your country? Fascist....:" and much much more.
Beege Welborn at Hat Hair is happy, A British Judge Lays a BOOMITY on Starmer's Diego Garcia Give Away. What does he think he is, king? The Manhattan Contrarian explains Why Ukraine Wants So Badly To Be Independent Of Russia. Because Russia killed a few million of them in the past? olymarket @Polymarket, "BREAKING: Alberta now projected to schedule a referendum to secede from Canada this year. 60% chance. Offer theme statehood.
From Sundance, Secretary Marco Rubio Outlines Reason for U.S. Military Action in Iran, Lindsey Graham Wants Trump to Hurry and Wrap Up Iran War – Need to Avoid Exposing NATO Weakness, Secretary Hegseth and Joint Chief Chairman Caine Hold a Press Briefing and President Trump Tells EU Leaders to “Go Get Your Own Oil” from Gulf – In Interim, Welcome King Charles. Ace, Trump To Cowardly Countries Complaining They Can't Get Their Oil Through the Strait of Hormuz: If You Want Your Oil, Send In Your Navy and Take It Yourselves, Tough-Guys. Merryn Somerset Webb @MerrynSW, "Is there a small silver lining watching the just stop oil people understanding what happens if you do indeed just stop oil." Althouse hears Trump, "The hard part is done. Go get your own oil!" The White House @WhiteHouse, "“All of those countries that can’t get jet fuel because of the Strait of Hormuz, like the United Kingdom, which refused to get involved in the decapitation of Iran, I have a suggestion for you…” - President Donald J. Trump." Bonchie at RedState, The French Straw Just Broke NATO's Back. Ahmed Khalifa @_A_khalifa, "The craziest discovery from this war: Iran’s regime has way more fans in Europe than in the entire Middle East. Europe.. what on earth is going on with you!?" Steve Hou @stevehou, "It turns out the whole Iran conflict is a loyalty test for the Europeans and everybody failed." Jack Prandelli @jackprandelli, "In January I asked, did Trump capture Maduro to choke China's oil? 3 months later the answer is becoming clearer. Venezuela now selling at FULL market price (Rubio confirmed) China's discount: gone. Forever. Iran at war. Kharg Island threatened. 4.6M bpd to China disrupted. China's 2nd discount supplier gone. Hormuz China's main supply route: blocked. Bab el-Mandeb Houthis threatening China's alternative route In January this was a wild theory. Today it's the actual map. China imports 11.31M bpd. Every discount supplier is going offline. Every single route is threatened. Wild theory? Or the most precise geopolitical chess move in decades? have a look at my latest analysis here https://themerchantsnews.substack.com/p/if-this-is-a-crisis-why-the-market?r=tf0g2" wretchardthecat @wretchardthecat, "The terrible thought is starting to cross the mind of people who celebrated the ayatollahs controlling the Strait of Hormuz that control of that chokepoint could pass to a regime friendly to Washington." Driscoll at Insty, HMMM: Trump “is priming the the public (and world) with a new mental frame: the Strait of Hormuz is not Iranian sovereign territory anymore:”
Capt. Ed at Hat Hair cites Hegseth: 'Decisive' Days Ahead for Iran; Regime 'Fractured'? VodkaPundit at PJM parodies the media Stock Market Up! Hormuz to Open! Trump and Hegseth at Odds! CHAOS! Driscoll at Insty says KABOOM! "Trump posts clip of massive blast after 2,000-lb bunker buster bombs rip through an Iranian ammunition depot." From Fox, Iran's internet blackout hiding strike damage and suppressing dissent, Israeli officials say, "Israeli intelligence claims Starlink jamming and mass detentions are preventing Iranians from seeing or sharing what is really happening."
Eyal Yakoby @EYakoby, "BREAKING: A new Harvard/Harris poll reveals that a majority of Americans support the Trump Administration’s Operation Epic Fury." Open Source Intel @Osint613, "NEW Harvard Harris Poll: Key Takeaways on Iran & the War: •76% say the U.S. is currently winning the war against Iran •64% say Iran violated its nuclear deal •62% view Iran as a direct U.S. national security threat •67% say Iran is a leading source of instability, terrorism, and war •68% believe the Iranian people do not support the regime •73% support Israel over Hamas •51% support U.S. Israel strikes on Iran, 54% say the campaign is justified Support for the war is heavily split politically, Republicans strongly back it, Democrats largely oppose" From Gateway Pundit, Gallup Poll: Americans Largely Unbothered by Gas Spike After Iran Strikes. At the Free Bacon, Iranian Missile Strikes Fall to Lowest Level Seen During War As ‘Widespread Desertions’ Squeeze Regime’s Fighting Force, Hegseth Says, "Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Gen Dan Caine added that B-52 bombers are now conducting their first 'overland missions' of Operation Epic Fury." From the Small Wars Journal, Attack Helicopters Remain Vital to the American Way of War. PJM's Cathy Salgado is pleased to report U.S. Pilots Shot Down Over Kuwait Are Back to Dropping Bombs on Tehran.PJM's Scott Pinsker explains How to Disagree With the Iran War Without Being a Duplicitous Dirtbag, like Tucker. From Providence, Robert Nicholson sees The Two Ways to Win in Iran. Gummi @gummibear737, "Western civilization may never win another war if this keeps up This is maddening. The radical left, mainstream media, and the woke right are running the exact same playbook with the US/Israel campaign against Iran as they did with Israel in Gaza They create impossible standards in terms of: -Zero Casualties -Zero Economic Disruption -Zero Uncertainty -Zero Time to Accomplish the Mission -Zero Collateral Damage And everything the bad guys do is actually our fault because we made them do it….same script as Gaza…the bad guys have no agency and it’s actually our fault..." Stranger Ranger @couragemerry, "There has never, in recorded history, been a war wherein one side lost its entire chain of command—including its supreme political and religious leader—on the first day of fighting. In response to this, the entire foreign policy establishment has suffered a psychotic break." Quote Financial Times @FT "Iran could emerge from the war stronger and more dangerous https://ft.trib.al/tYTRJjL | opinion." Max Abrahms @MaxAbrahms, "Iran is winning the war if its goal is to have its military power smashed while inflicting very minimal damage to an ever increasing multinational coalition." Will Chamberlain @willchamberlain, "I'm trying to imagine the alternative history of WW2 if it looked like this war, and what the coverage might look like "It's January 11th, 1942, one month after Hitler declared war on the United States. Hitler, Goering, Bohrmann, and Himmler were all killed in an allied bombing attack on Hitler's headquarters, along with fifty other members of the German High Command. 95% of entire German navy is resting at the bottom of the North Sea. The Luftwaffe is no more. Allied aircraft achieved complete air superiority over Germany within 48 hours of the war's start. Still, many sophisticated commentators are saying that the Third Reich has the upper hand, because they have shut down travel through the Danish straits."" Roger Kimball at Am Great, The First Alt-War: Online Fantasy vs. Reality in the Iran Campaign "While commentators trade in familiar fears, events on the ground point to a far more decisive outcome than the online debate suggests."
Mossad Commentary @MOSSADil, "PRIME MINISTER NETANYAHU SIGNALS DIRECT COOPERATION WITH SAUDI ARABIA AND OTHER GULF STATES Netanyahu: Post-war plans include energy and economic cooperation with Saudi Arabia, including pipelines to bypass the Strait of Hormuz. “Iran must be stripped of this leverage.” He says Arab leaders now understand the threat and are ready to align. Stay connected, follow @MOSSADil." Capt. Ed calls it Too Grim to Check: IRGC Calling Iraqi Militias To Iran For Rescue? UPDATE: Executions Accelerating and Pezeshkian to US, Israel: Call Me, Maybe? Open Source Intel @Osint613, "Channel 14 says it obtained an exchange among Iranian leaders: President Pezeshkian: “I want to be involved in the negotiations with the U.S. Without a quick deal, our entire economy will collapse in 3 weeks.” IRGC chief Vahidi: “That’s exactly why you can’t be involved. You’ll give up everything for a deal.” After the call ended, the report says the Iranian president told his companions he feels like a ‘hostage’, “I’m unable to resign, I cannot make my own decisions, all I can do is read from a script I’m given” Channel 14 concludes its report by saying that the IRGC is effectively running the country now." Northern Barbarian @xnoesbueno, "Excuse me, that's mullahphobic. You think the Japan-America lovefest is fun, wait til the Iranian people have unfettered X access" Quote Tousi TV @TousiTVOfficial, "Iranians are putting up posters of Mojtaba Khamenei with the LGBT flag across the country." Some people are so stupid, Geiger Capital @Geiger_Capital, "Justice for the Gays of Hormuz."
