Flotsam and Jetsam - Vance say No Iran Deal, US Navy Crosses Into the Strait of Hormuz

NYT whines U.S. And Iran Fail to Agree on Peace Deal After 21 Hours of Talks, Vance Says. "Vice President JD Vance said the Iranian delegation had not accepted American terms for ending the war after a marathon, face-to-face session in Pakistan." Matt Vespa at TownHall, After 21 Hours of Negotiations, Vice President JD Vance Provides an Update. It's Not Shocking. Bonchie at RedState, New: Peace Talks With Iranian Regime Have Failed, Vance Gives Details From Islamabad Capt. Ed at Hat Hair, Vance: No Deal – And That’s Bad News For Iran; Update: Vance Exits ASAP. Trump should start bombing bridges, power and oil facilities, slowly at first, and then more rapidly the longer they dither. I can't imagine what they hope to gain by dithering, except maybe for more help from the media. The Babylon Bee @TheBabylonBee, "Pope Condemns Allied Forces For Not Just Talking It Out With Nazis https://buff.ly/jisfzC1"

 At Althouse, "Iran has been unable to open the Strait of Hormuz to more shipping traffic because it cannot locate all of the mines it laid in the waterway and lacks the capability to remove them..." ""... according to U.S. officials. The development is one reason Iran has not been able to quickly comply with the Trump administration’s admonitions to let more traffic pass through the strait. It is also potentially a complicating factor as Iranian negotiators and a U.S. delegation led by Vice President JD Vance meet in Pakistan this weekend for peace talks...." The NYT reports." Capt. Ed, NEW: US Navy Warships Cross Strait of Hormuz For First Time; UPDATE: Mine Clearing Begins. Sundance at CTH, U.S. Warships Have Entered the Strait of Hormuz. From the Victory Girls, Trump Says Strait Of Hormuz Is Opening And Iran Freaks Out. Jesús Enrique Rosas - The Body Language Guy @Knesix, "I honestly thought this map was made up Hundreds of supertankers, the kind that carry two million barrels each, are currently racing toward the US Gulf Coast from every direction. Atlantic, Indian Ocean, around Africa, the scenic route, the "we were heading to Saudi Arabia but NVM" route. Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz and everyone panicked. Oil hit $126 a barrel. Gas hit $4 a gallon. Cable news did the thing where they put a red banner on screen and say "CRISIS" in a font that suggests you should be hoarding toilet paper. And then something happened that nobody in media seems interested in reporting, for obvious reasons. The world just... switched suppliers? Like changing your internet provider except the internet provider is the entire effing global energy economy. American oil exports are approaching record levels. Gulf Coast refineries are running at 95% capacity. Supertankers that were mid-ocean on their way to the Persian Gulf literally turned around and headed to Texas. That's not a metaphor. Ship tracking data shows them doing U-turns in the Indian Ocean. Meanwhile China, which was getting 45% of its oil imports through Hormuz and paying basement prices for sanctioned Iranian crude, is now competing with Japan and Europe for the same expensive American barrels. Chinese manufacturers are already raising prices 20% on goods headed to the US. So to summarize: Iran played its biggest card and the main result is that the United States became the world's emergency gas station and China's cheap energy subsidy evaporated. This is either the most elaborate coincidence in the history of geopolitics... or someone planned the sequence Venezuela -> Iran -> profits!" So maybe Trump isn't in that much of a hurry to open the strait. Sundance at CTH hosts President Trump Not Accepting the Media Spin – Debunks the Nonsense in Strong Chopper Presser. wretchardthecat @wretchardthecat, "The Russian invasion of Ukraine and Iran's interdiction of the Straits of Hormuz and the Bab al Mandeb and the resulting decline in 'fossil fuel' supply have started a chain reaction in the UK, Ireland, Western Europe. 1) Created fuel shortages that windmills and solar panels could not offset. 2) Pushed governments, who already taxing their workforce to the max to support welfare, migrants and woke to subsidize energy costs forced to increase it again 3) Created demands for more drilling and nuclear power that are anathema to the Left 4) Exposed the inability of Woke governments to provide any meaningful energy or international security because they have already spent everything on welfare. Some politicians, like Starmer, are frantically trying to restore the status quo ante without any means to do it. It is like a whole house of cards has seen the props knocked out.." Dave Strom at Hat Hair, British General Admits That It Can't Deploy a Division Abroad. Ben Shapiro at RCP, This Is What a World Superpower Looks Like, Artemis II, then Iran.

The Jerusalem Post has word that China plans to deliver air defense systems to Iran in coming weeks, US intelligence reveals - CNN Fresh clay pigeons, unless they intercept them on the ground or water first. China doesn't care, they get their money either way. NYPo argues The regime is unraveling: Iran’s military defeat is in plain sight. Bill Glahn at Power Line says Iran Shot Their Bolt, and Missed. Max Abrahms @MaxAbrahms, "It’s almost impossible to win a war any more given the disgustingness of today’s information space between American grifters, social media incentives for disinformation-fueled clicks and nefarious foreign influences posing as America First." Overton @overton_news, "Douglas Murray just shattered the “failure” narrative with receipts after Bill Maher declared the Iran operation a disaster and called for the U.S. to “cut and run!” ..." From Behind the Black, A military pilot’s perspective on downed pilot rescue in Iran Easter weekend. Leslie Eastman at LI, One Heartbeat, One Target: The Classified Tool Behind a Daring Iran Rescue "Whatever mix of tools was actually used, an American pilot is alive, out of Iran, and back in friendly hands." I'm skeptical; I think this may be part of a disinformation campaign.

Ben Smith at LI, Rubio Strips Green Card of ‘Screaming Mary’s’ Son “Masoumeh Ebtekar – also known as ‘Screaming Mary’ – was the spokeswoman for the Islamic terrorists who stormed the U.S. Embassy in Tehran in 1979.” "In 2014, the Obama Administration granted visas to her son and his family to enter the United States. In June 2016, the Obama Administration gave them lawful permanent resident status via the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program."

Will Chamberlain @willchamberlain, "Border crossings to near zero. Net negative migration. 95% reduction in asylum grants. Lawsuits against a slew of woke universities. DEI getting crushed everywhere. Massive, beneficial deregulation. No tax on tips. No tax on overtime. Venezuela turned into an American ally. And that's just off the top of my head. It's not Trump's fault that everyone's an ingrate with the memory of a goldfish." Quote Joe @Joekart Replying to @willchamberlain, "Name one thing this administration has done that it promised it would. I can name a dozen ways this admin has backstabbed his base. I can’t name single accomplishment other than feeling good the day he won."  TCW explains why Deluded Trump-haters are like Monty Python’s Black Knight. At Althouse, Which U.S. First Ladies have received the cruelest treatment in the press (and in public conversation)? Especially which ones were disrespected as, essentially, whores? "I asked Grok. Answer after the jump. The easiest guess as to who came in first is the correct answer, so see if you know who came in second:" Stephen Moore at Hat Hair says Show Me the Money – The Trump Tax Cuts Benefit the Middle Class.

Dave Strom thinks L'Affaire Swalwell Is Objectively Hilarious. It has me in stitches, regardless of whether he's innocent or not. Mark Judge (remember him? ) at Hat Hair is wallowing in well deserved schadenfreude, Eric Swalwell and the Brett Kavanaugh Karma Train. Sundance notes Adam Schiff Disavows His Faithful Sidekick, Eric Swalwell. Althouse finds "In a stunning political reversal, prominent supporters of Rep. Eric Swalwell’s campaign for California governor withdrew their support Friday..." "... after the congressmember denied allegations that he sexually assaulted a woman twice, including when she worked for him. Swalwell was among the leading Democrats in the race to replace outgoing Gov. Gavin Newsom. But in just hours, he saw his most prominent supporters - including U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff and powerful labor unions - drop their endorsements and call for his exit from the race.... I'm reading "Allies yank support for Swalwell’s California governor run after sexual assault allegations" (AP)." Congressmember, heh. Ward Clark at RedState reports Anna Paulina Luna Is Filing to Oust Eric Swalwell From House Amid Sexual Assault Claims. Katie Porter @katieporterca, "In light of the allegations of sexual assault, Eric Swalwell should resign from Congress and end his campaign for public office. But those decisions do not absolve him of taking responsibility for his misconduct, especially when he has attempted to silence and retaliate against these victims. These allegations merit full investigations, and these women deserve the right to pursue justice. Too often, men escape any consequence for sexual misconduct by stepping out of power. That is a first and necessary step towards justice because it limits the ability for further harm. I stand with these women as they seek justice. Readers added context they thought people might want to know:" "Katie Porter has escaped consequence of physically and verbally abusing both her husband (with a pot of scalding hot mashed potatoes) and staff." Swalwell is the leading Democrat candidate in a crowded field in California's "jungle primary," with Katie Porter as the second, with polls showing the primary could result in two Republican candidates. But Swalwell is white and male so he has to go. Will he go politely? Not likely.

From the Free Bacon, 'That Ain't My Party': Al Sharpton Says It Would Be 'Crazy' for Black People To Celebrate America's 250th as 2028 Dem Hopefuls Pay Homage to Him. "'They're going to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the country July 4, but that's not our celebration,' Sharpton said" Meanwhile Zohran is scheming to scotch the 250th anniversary celebrations in NYC, Bonchie @bonchieredstate, "You want to know why? Because he’s going to hand out permits for protests instead and then pretend that’s the organic response to the country on the anniversary." Quote DeVory Darkins @devorydarkins, "Socialist Mayor Mamdani is facing backlash for preventing New Yorkers from celebrating America’s 250th birthday. He literally is locking the public out of Times Square and denying permits for the people to celebrate our nation's greatest milestone."

Mediaite can't believe its ears, ‘I’m Thinking About It’: Kamala Harris Teases 2028 Presidential Campaign. From the Free Bacon, Texas Democratic Senate Hopeful James Talarico Sought To Create ‘New Generation of Climate Activists’ by Mandating Climate Change Lessons in Texas Schools. "The Democratic Senate hopeful, who says he supports Texas's oil and gas industry, also joined a Greta Thunberg-inspired school walkout to ‘save our planet’ and introduced a Green New Deal-style bill mandating carbon emission reductions." CBS News @CBSNews, "In response to controversy surrounding a tattoo resembling a Nazi symbol and comments he made previously on Reddit, Maine Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner says "much of it was because of the culture I had come out of." "When I left the military, I came out of a hyper-masculine, hyper-violent place," he says. "I did four tours in the infantry. We have a crude sense of humor in the infantry. We certainly have a, I would say, narrow view of a lot of topics, and that colored my opinions and my beliefs." Readers added context to this video: "His tattoo was not "resembling" a Nazi symbol. His tattoo *was* a Nazi symbol, specifically the second version of the SS-Totenkopf, used from 1934 to 1945 by German SS." Monica Showalter at Am Think thinks about the Hand of Axelrod? 60 Minutes gives a platform for the Catholic Church's most leftist cardinals. "The idea would be win Catholics back over to voting for Democrats. Which would certainly mesh with what Axelrod is after."

One of the greatest community notes of all time.

Never deleting this app. pic.twitter.com/ntcdyU0gJ1

— Tim Young (@TimRunsHisMouth) April 10, 2026

Hans Mahncke at Da Fed claims Bondi Was Putting Out Fires — The Next AG Needs To Go To War.

Northern Barbarian @xnoesbueno, "The Soviets/DDR built a wall. It worked for 38 years, keeping East Germans from fleeing communist authoritarianism and poverty for the free, prosperous West. Then it came down. When everything finally, irrevocably went to shit on that side of the wall." Quote Bruce McGonigal @bruce_mcgonigal, "The Liberals are pitching the idea of charging Canadian youth $500K if they want to leave Canada to move to the USA.  Holding Canadian youth hostage is not what a democratic society does. x.com/AntonioTweets2…"

Hat Hair's Beege Welborn is pleased as punch to report Mahmoud Khalil One Step Closer to a Ticket Outta Here. 

Marc Thiessen @marcthiessen, "Public radio at its finest." Quote Defiant L’s @DefiantLs "Completely makes sense." Camus @newstart_2024, "Konstantin Kisin watched the BBC’s tech editor interview Elon Musk and came away stunned. Not because of the tough questions — but because the interviewer ran out of questions. Kisin asked the obvious: How do you run out of questions when you’re sitting across from the guy who wants to make humanity multi-planetary, built Tesla, and bought Twitter because he believes free speech is existential for society? He contrasted it with Bill Maher, who was “like a kid in a candy shop” interviewing Elon and clearly had plenty more to ask. Kisin’s blunt conclusion: it’s not just bias — it’s a dereliction of duty. Many journalists today aren’t trying to seek truth or cover stories fairly; they’re performing for their peers, making sure they’re seen asking the “right” questions. It’s a sharp observation about how journalism has changed." Elon Musk is certainly the world's most interesting man, sorry Dos Equis guy. I might be tongue-tied, but a good journalist should be better prepared.

From the College Fix, UMich shutters DEI office, still spends $15.3 million on 162 diversity-related employees. The grift is just too good to give up. Campus Reform, NYU scraps live commencement speeches after pro-Palestine activism controversy erupts. The Free Bacon suggests How to Handle Your Out-of-Control Ivy, a REVIEW of "‘Poisoned Ivies: The Inside Account of the Academic and Moral Rot at America’s Elite Universities’ by Elise Stefanik"

We live in a world of morons… pic.twitter.com/7Jh0KKhpHf

— Matt Couch (@RealMattCouch) April 10, 2026

Palm Sunday

 With new NATO member Suvi Laiho.

Bad news from Hawaii, Palm-Killing Beetle Found On Molokaʻi For First Time, Rediscovered On Maui

State officials are surveying parts of Maui and Molokaʻi for evidence of coconut rhinoceros beetles, and residents near detection sites are being asked to check palm trees for signs of damage after the highly invasive pest was discovered on both islands.

Beach Report 4/11/25

A fine Spring day, sunny, a bit breezy from the north, and on the borderline between shorts and t-shirt or jeans and long sleeve shirt. I opted for the later, and was a bit warm at the end of the walk.

This looks good here, but most of the beach was sandy, and a bit too rough to look in the surf.

Consequently, fossil hunting was tough. This medium size Snaggletooth upper was the best of five total teeth for the two of us.

Life on the Bubble

Just a short update on the the saga that began a little over three weeks ago, when I perceived I was getting a retinal detachment in my left eye, and we started the three part journey to Wilmers Eye Clinic at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, where they re-attached the retina, removed the vitreous humor from the eye, and put a bubble of C3F8 (perfluoropropane) gas in the eye to keep the retina in place while it healed.

The gas is reported to be absorbed over a period of six weeks, and based on what I'm seeing, it's about on track. When I look horizontally I have a visible fluid level mark in the middle of my vision, that sloshes when I move. If I look vertically, particularly down, I can actually "see" the edges of the bubble against the sides of the eye. So now I can at least track it's progress as it shrinks.

The big question of course, is how good the vision in the eye will be at the conclusion of the healing process. Right now, when I look forward at any distance it's very blurry, but it turns out having air in the eye makes it very nearsighted. I can see my stray eyebrow hairs and dirt on my glasses in great detail. When I look straight down now at my hand (or text), the focal distance is about 2 inches. It's a lot like looking through a dissecting microscope. But the good news is that the image is clear and highres, so it doesn't seem that the macula has been damaged (much). So I believe, once the bubble is completely absorbed, the vision will be pretty good, although my current glasses prescription probably won't be very good.

In the first days after the surgery, there was a black spot in the lower right corner of my vision, shaped a bit like an animal, with odd legs, tails and a head, and it was surrounded by a colored aura of bluish purple. In bright light I could see a bit through it, so I knew it wasn't totally defunct, but I was worried that it might remain that way. Well, the animal disappeared a few days ago, and while some of the colored aura remains, it seems to be fading day to day. I'm down to two different eye drops once per day, which is a substantial improvement over 4 types on a complicated schedule 4 times a day. One more week and I'm done with them altogether.

Overall, things are looking OK. Having one blurry eye that sloshes is a little unsettling, and it tries to give me a headache if I try to use that eye too much. I don't like driving much because my depth perception is fubar, and glancing left is useless, but driving locally, to the water company or the beach is fine.

Flotsam and Jetsam - Swalwell Rape Saga Breaks Out

Sister Toldja at Red State, Report: California Dems in Disarray As Former Staffer Accuses Swalwell of Twice Sexually Assaulting Her. John Sexton, CNN: Three More Women Describe Sexual Misconduct by Rep. Swalwell. Matt Vespa thinks The Eric Swalwell Sexual Assault Story Is Now a Total Fiasco. Driscoll at Insty, has Flashbacks :#HIMTOO? Report: California Dems in Disarray As Former Staffer Accuses Swalwell of Twice Sexually Assaulting Her. Rep. Eric Swalwell @RepSwalwell "There’s nothing political or partisan about acting decisively to end the scourge of domestic violence and sexual assault. That’s why I’m voting to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act. #VAWA" Steve Guest @SteveGuest, "Flashback." Quote Ben Petersen @bennpetersen, "#BREAKING: longtime Democrat Eric Swalwell staffer says he sexually assaulted her x.com/laura_nelson/s…" Jonathan Turley @JonathanTurley, "Eric Swalwell is denying allegations of multiple women alleging misconduct ranging from groping to rape. He is hoping that voters will apply a different standard than the one he applied to Justice Brett Kavanaugh during his confirmation..." and ...When Kavanaugh was asserting his innocence, Swalwell was leading the mob: “more and more cases that are separate and independent, that look the same, pretty soon a prosecutor starts to say to a jury … that the arrows are pointing in the same direction.” Western Lensman @WesternLensman, "It was only a month ago or so where Schiff was discussing how Swalwell as governor would help California “live up to its values." Aged like milk." Mary Chastain at LI, Swalwell Campaign Bleeds Leadership After New Sexual Assault Allegation. “…she became so inebriated that she only remembers snippets of the night, including pushing Swalwell away and telling him, ‘No,’ while he allegedly forced himself on her.” Brittany @bccover, "So the House minority leader calls on a member from his own party to end a campaign for governor- but not resign his seat? That should be the only thing he’s asked by reporters. Why not call on him to resign. He was preying on House staffers FFS." Quote Hakeem Jeffries @RepJeffries, "Statement on the Serious Accusations against Rep. Eric Swalwell."

VP Vance is now part of the team trying to finalize a ceasefire with Iran. The Peacock, Vance arrives for peace talks in Pakistan, warns Iran not to 'try to play us', "Pakistan’s ambassador expressed hope that the talks could serve as a one-stop event to end the war, but Vance warned Tehran not to "try to play us." Sunny @sunnyright, "Several things can be and are true at once: 1) The ceasefire isn’t working 2) The regime isn’t changed 3) The US has inflected severe destruction upon the Iranian military and state, which will take decades to rebuild and sets them back massively in their ability to threaten the world, and all at a sad but relatively minimal cost that any strategist would have readily accepted if it could’ve been guaranteed from the start." Sunny @sunnyright "The loss of a single American serviceman is horrendous. At the same time, if the cost we’ve seen had been guaranteed, any number of presidents would’ve bombed Iran over the last few decades. What stopped them was a fear of far greater cost with far less success." Sunny @sunnyright, "The losses are tragic and the ceasefire a joke. There’s risk in how we move forward from here, as I’ve highlighted a bunch. But the idea that the conflict until now has resulted in anything other than massively significant destruction for Iran and benefits for long term American security, is also disconnected from reality." Open Source Intel @Osint613, "IRAN WAR 2026 What was achieved. What wasn’t. The nuclear threat was pushed back. Not eliminated. Pushed back. Iran’s ability to launch sustained mass ballistic missile barrages at Israel as an existential threat has been completely degraded. The regime’s missile industry took a major hit. Mass production capability likely cut by at least ~80%. Hezbollah has been severely weakened. Israel is now shaping what could become a ~1000 km security buffer in Lebanon. Gulf states may want to work closer with Israel, potentially paving the way for more peace and normalization. Iranian economy was completely decimated before going into this, imagine where it is now, we will see how this plays out going forward. WHAT WASN’T ACHIEVED The IRGC still holds leverage over the Strait of Hormuz. That remains the biggest unresolved pressure point. Watch it closely. The regime is still standing. Still in control of Iran. Iranians are still in danger. LESSONS LEARNED..." At Hat Hair, Dave Strom says Trump Cannot Ignore the Strait, no, but he can wield it as leverage against |Euroweenies and Capt. Ed hears Trump: I Give It 24 Hours Before the 'World's Most Powerful Reset' . At Marine Traffic, I see tankers going through the Strait today, but you can't see the circumstances. Nick Arama at RedState, sees Iran Tries to Play Games, but Trump Just Let Them Know How Few Cards They Have. Rick Moran at PJM, Who's in Charge in Iran? A Splintered Government Makes Negotiations Nearly Impossible. Gazelle غزاله شارمهد @GazelleSharmahd, "This is Tehran now. They are not Iranians. They don’t speak our language. They are Hashd Al shabi jihadists from Iraq speaking Arabic. Iran does not have a “government” that somehow kills “its own people”. Iran is under Arab-Islamic occupation for 47 years. The Ayatollahs just learned a bit of Persian, but they are all foreign enemies to Iran, killing Iranians and will continue to do so as long as they remain in power..." Don Surber sees Art of the Deal met Sun Tzu in Iran "Trump also is spanking Britain, France and Red China." Capt. Ed, Mais Non: Israel Boots France From Lebanon Talks.

Rod Martin notices Chinese Weapons Failed in Venezuela and Iran. Now Beijing Faces the Consequences. "Battlefield humiliation did more than embarrass the CCP. It exposed the rot in Beijing’s military model, badly set back its bid to become a major arms exporter, and upended its calculations on Taiwan."

From the Free Bacon, As Regime Executions Mount, NYT Laments Trump’s War Is Preventing Iranians From Cherishing Nature, "Photos document how Iranians in affluent enclaves of northern Tehran are seeking 'respite from the daily terror wrought by airstrikes'." Dave Strom is outraged MS NOW's Stephanie Ruhle Praises Iran's Moral Courage. Adam Turner at RedState documents The Most Insanely Idiotic Criticisms of the Iran Conflict. 

IQ 593 | Cody Penn-Dent | influencer @codypd, "The only functional war vessel flying Royal Navy colors US taxpayers come through again." Quote U.S. Naval Institute @NavalInstitute, "It's National Winston Churchill Day to commemorate when the British Prime Minister became an honorary U.S. citizen. USS Winston S. Churchill (DDG-81) flies the Royal Navy White Ensign on special occasions and always has a Royal Navy officer as a member of the ship's company." Ace notices Putin Mocks Effete Effeminate Rent-Boy-Associate Keir Starmer, "Putin has been sending his illegal sanctioned "Shadow Fleet" oil tankers through England's bathtub -- or its former bathtub, as you'll see -- the English Channel. Keir Starmer told Putin to stop using the Channel for the illegal transport of sanctioned oil or he'd seize the shadow ships. And you know that when Keir Starmer acts tough, people take notice. So Putin sent his own warships into the Channel to protect the ships." PJM's Sarah Anderson looks at The New Monroe Doctrine: You Can Stand Me Up at the Gates of Hell, but I Won't Back Down. The Euro Con explains Why Ukraine Cannot Become Part of the EU.

The Center Square reports  U.S. added $1.2 trillion to national debt in six months. Buck Throckmorton at Ace's THE MORNING RANT: There Is Massive Industrial Investment Under Way in the U.S. Due to Repatriation of Manufacturing. Empowering America says America UPDATE the Jones Act NOW.

Matt Vespa at TownHall hears Supposedly, This Is the Person Who Saved Tulsi Gabbard's Job, Roger Stone? Magills @magills_, "Immensely funny that these people are now begging the Deep State to overthrow the president." Quote Republicans against Trump @RpsAgainstTrump, "Alex Jones: “How do we 25th Amendment his ass?”"

Stacy McCain says ‘Independent Journalist,’ My Ass! All of this is preamble to a weird story this week: Pentagon, White House Push Back on Alleged Remarks Made to Pope, Vatican. Dave Strom calls it Another Hoax Busted. Sidge S. Mondo ن @Magister_Mondo, "The Vatican story, the fake story re: Hesgeth's "exclusion of Catholics" from a prayer service, the dissemination of Hesgeth's pastor's remarks on Catholic processions... it's not a coincidence. The Left knows they can't get conservative Catholics' votes, so they're trying to poison the well." Quote Rorate Caeli @RorateCaeli "Liberal “Catholics” are simply diabolical, making things up to create dissension between the Holy See and the US Government Grotesque." Lucky Teter @TheMagaHulk, "The Chris Hale / Dem Op to drive Catholics away from MAGA is very obvious. Catholics make up 21% of the electorate and were a major factor in Trump winning in 2024. While Trump only won Catholics by 1 point in 2020, he won by 18 points against Harris. And the gap between White Catholics is even higher (from 15% win in 2020 to 26% in 2024.)..." Northern Barbarian @xnoesbueno, "Having lost his bid for a fourth term in the White House, Obama turned his eyes to the Holy See." Quote Catholic Arena @CatholicArena, "BREAKING Pope Leo XIV met today with former Obama strategist David M. Axelrod"

VodkaPundit at Insty, WELL, YEAH — BUT THAT WAS BEFORE ANYBODY CALLED THEIR BLUFF: Cari Kelemen @KelemenCari, "Looks like the "under oath" part scared them away. Very telling. Well played, Melania." Quote Spitfire @RealSpitfire "Epstein survivors decline any public Congress hearings after Melania’s speech yesterday. Interesting." Jellenne @Jellenne, "Call me crazy but wasn't that exactly what they were demanding just a few months ago on the steps of the Capitol?" Althouse digs a little deeper than the NYT for a change, "Mr. Trump projected sang-froid about it all on Friday. 'I don’t mind anything having to do with Epstein,'" ""But he was talking about it again because of something his wife chose to do. Was he upset that she had single-handedly thrust this story that had so bedeviled him back onto front pages around the globe? 'No,' he said. 'I never get upset.' He said that after he watched Mrs. Trump’s statement, he thought to himself: 'She had a right to talk about it, because the fake news covers her so inaccurately. Would I have done it that way?' the president mused. 'Perhaps not, perhaps, I don’t know.'"Writes Shawn McCreesh, in "Trump Says First Lady ‘Had a Right’ to Talk About Epstein/President Trump said in an interview that he had known his wife wanted to address rumors about the late sex offender at some point, but that he had not known exactly what she would say" (NYT). My search of the NYT archive included a term that wasn't in the article: Ungaro. I was looking, as I usually do, for elite media coverage of a story I am seeing in lowlier media, which I generally eschew. In this case, that would be things like "Amanda Ungaro Arrived in the U.S. on Jeffrey Epstein's Plane at 17 — Now She's Going After Melania Trump From Brazil" (Yahoo!news). I guess you can say I'm just seeing one of those things the NYT deems not "fit to print.""

Shipwreckedcrew explains A Bold Trump Plan To Use The Postal Service As A Firewall Against Fraudulent Mail-In Ballots "Multiple Dem Party activist groups file suits in courts packed with Democrat appointed judges to try and stop plan to require "trackable" ballot envelopes by states that use mail-in voting." Tom Knighton at Bearing Arms says Hey Hey, Ho Ho, More Reasons Pirro Needs to Go over her gun control record. 

Althouse finds A look at Trump's Triumphal Arch... with the Lincoln Memorial in the background, at a distance. I don't care, except that more big monuments makes the Capital's move to Fargo ND that much more difficult. 

A Larry vid at Hat Hair has Kamala Harris Hints at 2028 Presidential Run During Cringe Speech. Jesse Kelly @JesseKellyDC, "Every single elected Democrat has made clear what they intend to do with power should we ever allow them back into power. They’re not hiding who they are anymore. We should probably focus REALLY hard on not letting that happen." Quote Breitbart News @BreitbartNews "Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) says Trump's impeachment "has to be the Democratic agenda.” "We must proceed towards the goal of removing Donald Trump from office, and we must do this now."" Capt. Ed says Dems Discover Pandering On Impeachment, 25th Amendment Has Costs.

Sauron's Eye, reports One hospice doctor. One year. $71.7 million worth of Medicare claims.

M.A. Rothman @MichaelARothman, "𝐍𝐑𝐒𝐂 𝐉𝐔𝐒𝐓 𝐃𝐑𝐎𝐏𝐏𝐄𝐃 𝟐 𝐌𝐈𝐍𝐔𝐓𝐄𝐒 𝐎𝐅 𝐑𝐎𝐘 𝐂𝐎𝐎𝐏𝐄𝐑 𝐑𝐔𝐍𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐅𝐑𝐎𝐌 𝐐𝐔𝐄𝐒𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒 𝐀𝐁𝐎𝐔𝐓 𝐈𝐑𝐘𝐍𝐀 𝐙𝐀𝐑𝐔𝐓𝐒𝐊𝐀’𝐒 𝐊𝐈𝐋𝐋𝐄𝐑 Cooper — now running for US Senate in North Carolina — is being chased by reporters asking one simple question: why was DeCarlos Brown Jr. on his early release list? The reporter’s barrage, which Cooper refuses to answer: “𝘌𝘹𝘤𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘮𝘦 𝘔𝘳. 𝘊𝘰𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘳, 𝘸𝘩𝘺 𝘥𝘪𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘦 𝘋𝘦𝘊𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘰𝘴 𝘉𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘺 𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘵𝘰 𝘬𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘐𝘳𝘺𝘯𝘢 𝘡𝘢𝘳𝘶𝘵𝘴𝘬𝘢? 𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘯𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵? 𝘋𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘰𝘵𝘵𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘤𝘳𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘮? 𝘋𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 3,500 𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘴 𝘨𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘰𝘳?...”

Headlining Ace's Week in Woke <- Bill Melugin @BillMelugin_, "Umm…wow." Quote Homeland Security @DHSgov "IDEOLOGICAL CENSORSHIP. @ABC7 News Los Angeles revealed that they are using AI to edit DHS statements to conform to their narrative bias, including the removal of an illegal alien’s criminal background."

John Carter @martianwyrdlord, "The founder of the Electronic Freedom Foundation vs the current executive director of the Electronic Freedom Foundation." Follow it down the rabbit hole to Conquest's Law #2

Eyal Yakoby @EYakoby, "Horrifying, listen to three professors from Virginia public universities discuss taking down the United States through violence. “We actually need to crash the US—We must stand with the armed resistance.”" At The College Fix, WATCH: Europeans students hate America, but they love U.S. aid.

Ace, Shock, Surprise: Study from Finland Proves That "Transgender" Procedures Do Not Mitigate Mental Illness-- They Greatly Increase and Exacerbate It "Sorry I should have given you a "please be seated safely" warning but I'm just so stunned by this news I'm not quite thinking clearly. This was published April 4. "Psychiatric Morbidity" means "mental illness.""

Still more at the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 04.10.26, of course. 

Rule 5 Saturday - Suvi Laiho

This week's epitome of femininity is Suvi Laiho:

Instagram star and aspiring actress. On her suvihannaa Instagram page, she has accumulated more than 120,000 followers who can see some of her life in Los Angeles, workouts, and vegan things that she eats.

She got her first minor part in a TV series called Grostesquerie, where she played Nurse #2 in 2024 for one episode. She is also a fitness influencer.

She does lots of fitness and swimwear photos. She has even walked the runway for a Copacabana Beachwear show.

She is from Finland, but lives in Los Angeles, California.