Flotsam and Jetsam - The Second Stab at the Nerd Prom

They kind of caught me by surprise with the rescheduled White House Correspondents Dinner. I guess I wasn't paying attention, again. Any, it was held last night at the Waldorf Astoria in Washington DC. Capt. Ed at Hat Hair heard Trump to Recognize Secret Service Officer Shot at First WHCA Dinner at Nerd Prom, Take 2. Seems reasonable. As you might remember, the Secret Service agent Victor Gonzales survived the close range shotgun blast thanks to his vest. He also runs down the list of administration attendees, which notably does not include JD Vance and Marco Rubio. RedState's Jen O'Connell has Hot Takes: Media's Reaction to Redo of the White House Correspondents' Dinner Was As Expected. Aw, he was mean to the poor babies. Althouse host's Trump's routine (I hesitate to call it a speech) and offers her opinions of some of it in "Is this supposed to be fun? Am I supposed to be serious? Am I supposed to be a comedian?" "Trump finally gets his White House Correspondents' Dinner speech. ... And here's the joke I thought was the best: "Under my administration, a once-feared and powerful regime that relentlessly attacked America has finally been toppled. Their former leaders have been removed and they're now being run by a gay dictator facing internal divisions. But I for one wish Bari Weiss all the best at CBS News. She's a wonderful woman."

Victor Davis Hanson @VDHanson, "President Trump is leading a political "counter-revolution," seeking to reverse decades of progressive policies on immigration, education, energy, and American history, doing more than any other Republican president." At Althouse, "His detractors have adopted the 'Never Vance' slogan and flooded social media, especially over the past week, with attacks..." ""... including claims that Vance is 'unfit' to be vice president due to his efforts to negotiate a peace deal with Iran. They have asserted, without evidence, that Vance is making policy decisions not supported by President Donald Trump. They have likened him to former president Barack Obama and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont)...." I'm reading "Knives are out for Vance in the GOP. His allies say it’s a coordinated ‘op.’ The vice president has faced a barrage of attacks recently that are unusual for their intensity and how early in the political calendar they are taking place" (WaPo)(gift link)." PJM's Matt Margolis, Is This the Reason Your Leftist Relatives Are Cutting You Off? and Sarah Anderson reports a Black-Owned Atlanta Restaurant Faces Boycott Calls for Serving a Republican.

RCD looks at Hegseth’s Herculean Task.

PJM's Cathy Salgado notes One Pennsylvania County Has 3,500 Noncitizens on Non-Juror List, Potentially Voting and Bob Spencer wonders Is Dem Fundraising Powerhouse ActBlue a Massive Money Laundering Machine? Yes, the example he provides is stunning. A Larry video at Hat Hair, Trump DOJ Confirms Investigation Into New Jersey Voter Rolls.

Karol Markowicz at NYPo thinks Democrats are completely blind to the DSA’s brazen party coup — so the rest of us must step up. RCP cites James Carville: DSA Are "Paternalistic, Over-Educated Little White Turds" Who "Think They Know Better Than You" Yep. Rainer Zitelmann at Reason explains How Capitalism Beat Communism in Vietnam. "It only took a generation to go from ration cards to exporting electronics." At Da Signal, How Cuba Became the Nerve Center of the Anti-American Left. Dave Strom at Hat Hair opines Shamelessness Is, You Must Admit, a Huge Political Advantage, featuring a picture of Dan Goldman. I think it's an essential, at least on the Democrat side. 

Hat Hair's John Sexton hears from Morris Katz: We May Have Missed a Few Red Lines with Platner. Just a few. Seth Mandel at Commentary calls AOC’s Latest Dual-Loyalty Hoax a Doozy. At the Crimson Hub, AOC, Her Brother, and the Property Taxes Billed To Their Mother. Luke Rosiak at Da Wire reports Ilhan Omar’s Sister Linked To Central Figures In Minnesota’s Fraud Scandal. "Records tie company founded by "Squad" member's sister to largest public theft scandal in Minnesota history." Jon Tobin at JNS claims The lies behind Mamdani’s Netanyahu stunt are the real threat. "New York’s mayor isn’t going to arrest Israel’s prime minister. But the widespread belief in the “genocide” blood libel illustrates how toxic ideologies, AI and social media are defeating facts." At Althouse, "You want voters to believe you posted to this account but all of the bad things came from someone else, including a friend who is dead?" Matt Smith @mattsmith_news, "When asked today if he was 100% certain he didn't write any of the offensive posts on the 'Dirt McGirk' Twitter account, David Crowley said, "Look, we would have to go through all of these different posts, but the ones that I've seen that were printed, I did not write those."" "And the pig got up and slowly walked away."

RAW EGG NATIONALIST @Babygravy9, "Amazing we're just never going to hear anything about this ever again, including the fact the killer said he was paid by Tim Walz to do it." Quote Nick Sortor @nicksortor, " JUST IN: Tim Walz appointee Vance Boelter has been sentenced to TWO LIFE SENTENCES plus 40 years for the murder of Minnesota House Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman Boelter’s vehicle was found with “NO KINGS” flyers on the seat, and kiIIed Hortman and her husband soon after she voted against healthcare for illegals. Will Walz pardon this guy too?"

Beege Welborn at Hat Hair observes Chicago West and South Side Save A Lot Stores Closing, Blame New EBT Rules and likes Steve Hilton Debuting Wild New Campaign Ads: Enough Is Enough!

Steve Hilton puts out devastating ad exposing communist California’s mindless, Godless leftist machine! https://t.co/tfIJvVdv05

— The Chris Salcedo Show (@CSalcedoShow) July 24, 2026

John Sexton sees the California Wealth Tax Battle Continues. PJM's Vicky Taft has another West Coast, Messed Coast™ – Climate Lie Implodes but Greens Already Spent Taxpayers' Billions.

wretchardthecat @wretchardthecat, "Current operations in Iran are no longer starting from the original position. Iran’s missile attack volume was substantially higher in March 2026 than in July 2026 going from as many as hundreds per day then to mere dozens now. It's retaliatory power, while still existent, has clearly diminished..." Peter Orem @PeterMOrem, "I think we're still operating within war-gamed scenarios."

From Althouse, Why Madison police don't have body cameras. Molly Beck @MollyBeck, "Former Madison Mayor Paul Soglin’s perspective on why Madison police don’t have body cameras (Soglin was mayor until 2019):"

The Guardian whines about a British-born man living in US since age of nine held by ICE under threat of deportation, "Connor Read, who is married and has two children, was detained in June during residency permit interview." Also, an extensive, but pretty petty criminal record. But just for kicks, he should claim asylum based on England's censorship policies.

Curt at Flopping Aces sees The Press Tried to Shame Elon. He Put the Entire Media Class on Trial. Wall Street Mav @WallStreetMav, "This was basically the interview." Ace, Elon Musk Demolishes Snarky Superior Editor of The Economist, "The extremist didn't like being told that she's the actual extremist." From Twitchy, Ben Shapiro Schools Piers Morgan: Free Speech Means I Don't Have to Feed Your Clickbait Show. Dave Strom takes The Curious Case of the Woman Who Was Baited Into Saying the 'N' Word.

EducatëdHillbilly™ @RobProvince, "Let’s be honest about why this article was written & published… It’s was a shot across the bow to any white woman that even thinks about complaining about abuse by anyone not white. It was a threat to shut up lest be called a white supremacist. A murderer of Emmitt Till. A klan member." Quote Michael McCarthy @MMcCarthyREV, "UPDATE: A top USA TODAY executive stood by Nancy Armour's explosive column linking some Caitlin Clark fans to white nationalists. "Her column is clearly labeled Opinion," she tells @FOS." At Mazelite Airaksinen, NYC Doc Claims Orthodox Jews Smell and "Criminally, Fraudulently and Illegally" Live in USA, "Dr. Robert Guarino is a pathologist in the West Village of NYC and Staten Island." John Sexton was really shocked by a NYT Opinion: 'Land Acknowledgements Are Infuriating.' "If you mean it, give it back, the conservatives said. They are not asking in good faith, but they are asking for the right thing. It names the gap between the words and anything the institution is willing to surrender."

And even more at the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 07.24.26

Flotsam and Jetsam - New Jersey Registered 6600 Illegals to Vote

We're still dwelling on President Trump's speech on election integrity and the fallout thereof. CNN's Michael Smerconish hosted at Hat Hair, 'If It's Newsworthy Enough to Rebut, It's Worth Airing' From TownHall, Trump Was Right: NJ Gov. Mikie Sherrill Forced to Eat Crow Over Massive Voter Registration Error. Sundance at CTH sees New Jersey Governor Admits Over 6,000 Illegal Aliens Were Registered to Vote in Motor-Voter System Between 2023 and 2024r. Ace, Software "Glitch" in Democrat-Riddled NJ Allows That Thing the Media Democrat Party Says Never Happens to Happen 6600 Times, "A "glitch" permitted 6,600 illegal aliens to sign up to vote, and we know at least 400 did illegally vote. Deb Heine at AmGreatness," and cites JTN's John Solomon: The Same Media Who Proclaimed That China's Theft of 40 Million Voter Records from the UK Was a Major Breach Now Says That China's Hacking of 220 Million American Voter Files is NBD. Dave Catron at Am Spec sees Mail-In-Voting: Appeals Court Hands Trump Big Win "The court ruled that the USPS may require states to turn over voter rolls before mailing out ballots." Flopping Aces @FloppingAces, "The D.C. Circuit didn’t rule that fraud happened. It ruled that freezing a basic ballot-tracking rule would cause irreparable harm before the November election. Read that again. A federal appeals court just said the administration needs time to implement serialized barcodes and voter-list submissions for mail-in ballots. Not mass purges. Not voter ID theater. Simple chain-of-custody tools so the Postal Service can track what it carries. And the reaction? Full institutional meltdown..." Bob Hoge at RedState wonders What Are They So Afraid Of? CA AG Bonta's Slippery Title Switch Tries to Kneecap Voter ID Measure. Larry Correia @monsterhunter45, "The thousands of comments on my voter fraud post remind me of one very important thing. The issue isn't about Trump. It is about the perception of the citizens. But they need to make it about Trump. It is difficult to dismiss the valid concerns of millions of nervous or angry citizens. It is easy to dismiss one guy as a sore loser and make the whole thing about his ego. Hence any discussion of this topic inevitably devolves into them fixating on Trump and the details surrounding one election and one moment in time, and ignoring everything else in the universe, up to and including fundamental human nature (as in some people cheat)." Christian Heiens @ChristianHeiens, "If given enough time, the rules will always be gamed in order to subvert the game itself and defeat the purpose of the contest in the first place. This is inevitable because the rewards are too great. The point is never to have a good time or even to entertain the audience. The point is to win. So the rules will be maliciously “followed”, even as the animating spirit behind them dies. This tweet isn’t about basketball."

RealRobert @Real_RobN, "And here it is… USAID more than doubled its spending on Brazil as soon as Bolsonaro won the 2018 election. This wasn’t because Brazil suddenly needed twice the aid; the money was spent on operations aimed at overthrowing the Brazilian government. The 2022 Brazilian election was stolen from Bolsonaro just as the 2020 U.S. election was stolen from Donald Trump and from Kari Lake in 2022, with USAID and the CIA involved in installing election-rigging machines that Brazilians didn’t even want..." Polymarket @Polymarke, "BREAKING: Nicaragua’s President Daniel Ortega declares the country will no longer hold elections, eliminating any future electoral challenge to his rule."

Doug Burgum to Newsmax: 'Geopolitics of Energy Have Changed Forever'. CDR Salamander, looks at Cuba Libre, "The Department of State's Cuba Report," and Do You Know Why the PRC Has a Polar Strategy? "...do we?" Hat Hair's John Sexton notes Zelensky Reverses Course, Fires Ukraine's Top General. NOELREPORTS @NOELreports, "Russia's Defense Ministry recruited just over 8,000 drone operators for its Unmanned Systems Forces in the first half of the year, despite an annual target of 78,800. Analysts calculated that recruitment should have reached about 34,400 by then, leaving the ministry at roughly a quarter of its planned pace. Deputy Defense Minister Alexei Krivoruchko reported the figures."

Sundance is keeping us abreast of relations with our neighbor to the north, Trump Administration Announces Section 338 Tariffs at Rate of 50% Across Wide Range of Canadian Goods and Imports, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney Responds to Latest U.S. Tariff Increase, Ontario Premier Doug Ford Promises “to Dismantle the U.S” Economy in Retaliation for Tariffs ("Considering the economy of the USA is ten-times larger than Canada, that’s quite a threat from Premier Doug Ford") and USTR Jamieson Greer Outlines Details of Misleading Talking Points by Canadian Trade Officials. Beege Welborn at Hat Hair sings Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho and Trump Lit the Fires in Canada.

Dave Strom hears WaPoo whine Trump Is Putting Up Statues of Former Slaveholders! Bo Loudon @BoLoudon, "WOW: President Bill Clinton has COPIED President Trump's signature red 45-47 hat, now wearing a red 42 hat. Trump owns our culture and style, and if you can't beat them, join them! Even Bill Clinton can't deny it." Monica Crowley @MonicaCrowley, "THE TRUMP EFFECT." Quote Gunther Eagleman™ @GuntherEagleman, "EPIC: Spanish soccer star Ferran Torres rocks a “MAKE SPAIN GREAT AGAIN” hat just one day after meeting President Trump! Socialist government in Spain, but real Patriots are still out here repping hard."

Stacy McCain takes on The Pro-Hamas Socialist Democrats. Seth Mandel at Commentary looks at The Normalizing of Mamdani’s Creepy Bibi Obsession. Scott Pinsker at PJM says Mayor Mamdani Is NOT Bluffing: The Revolutionary Upside to Arresting Netanyahu. From NYPo the Divine Miranda Devine thinks Mamdani and his DSA comrades have one goal — a communist revolution in America. Hat Hair's Dave Strom sees them Embracing Mao Now. Northern Barbarian @xnoesbueno, "This is like a pro-terrorism Islamist privileged twat commie douchebag homerun derby." Quote Zeteo @zeteo_news, "Will the real Hasan please stand up? @hasanthehun joins @mehdirhasan to once and for all settle who the better Hasan is. Stay tuned for the latest episode of ‘We’re Not Kidding’ dropping on http://zeteo.com this Wednesday." James Lindsay, anti-Communist @ConceptualJames, "Fun facts about Mao's Little Red Book. Ok, so first of all, it's not even a book in the sense of making an argument or whatever. It's not even a piece of propaganda. It's acollection of quotations allegedly from Mao Zedong. It's basically Brainy Quotes Mao Edition..." Quote Eyal Yakoby @EYakoby, "Hasan Piker celebrates being given a copy Mao’s Little Red Book in China. His friend next to him: “This is more important than the Bible!” This is who Democrat Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed is." TownHall's Matt Vespa thinks you should Watch a NYT Columnist Obliterate the Left's Main Obsession in Less Than Six Minutes and CNN's Jake Tapper Asked This Leftist Michigan Senate Candidate About Israel and Iran. It Didn't Go Well. Ilya Somin at The Volokh Conspiracy points out the Contradictions of Socialist Prison Abolitionism "Many "democratic socialists" want to abolish prisons. But this is in conflict with their objective of making many more activities illegal." Under real socialism, the penalty is often death. Nate Hochman @njhochman, "One of the many explosive revelations in this new State Department report is that the Venceremos Brigade—which has brought 10,000+ American left-wing activists to Cuba, including high-profile Democratic politicians like LA Mayor Karen Bass—was built and run by actual Cuban spies." Clay Travis @ClayTravis, "This is important. The far left in this country is mostly made up of people who spent a ton on their degrees and can’t make back what they spent. As a result, they hate capitalism." Quote Nate Silver @NateSilver538, "Income and education are usually positively correlated. But sometimes the relationship breaks down. What's the most Democratic voting group in America? People with post-graduate degrees but lower-to-middle incomes." Spencer Pratt @spencerpratt, "a black fourth grader in Mississippi is two and a half times as likely to be proficient in math and reading as one in California" Don't let communists run your state."

At Althouse, They should have stood by Platner. Now they have to stand by Jackson, the new guy who's being foisted on Mainers. ""Democrat set to replace Platner in Maine led state Senate with a temper/Troy Jackson, the presumptive Democratic nominee to challenge Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), yelled and cursed at fellow state lawmakers, interviews reveal" (WaPo)(gift link)." Team Cruz @TeamTedCruz, "In one four-minute, off-the-cuff answer, Talarico managed to advocate for or say all of the following: - Reparations are part of his faith tradition. - Race-based tuition relief. - Race-based homeownership grants. - Race-based baby bonds. - Slavery still defines modern Texas. - Government must “repair” the past. - When Democrats win the Senate they will enact reparations - The George Floyd Act was “transformational.” - Washington must protect Americans “from police violence.” - Shows like 'Cops' promote violence." Capt. Ed at Hat Hair looks at How's It Going for Talarico? BLM Activist Shouts Him Down at His Own Rally As He Simps for Crockett. From Ace, BLM Activists Bully James Talarico Into Admitting How Extreme His Leftwing Politics Really Are. At Twitchy, NOT YOU! Pete Buttigieg Asks, 'Then What?' After Trump ... and He's Not Gonna' Like the Answers.

Mediaite reports Republicans Gain Ground on Democrats Heading Into 2026 Midterms, New Washington Post Poll Reveals. At Da Mail, Morning Joe warns Democrats are doomed to more election failure in 2028 as party continues to embrace 'extraordinarily loony ideas'. TV News Now @TVNewsNow, "Fox’s @BretBaier: “If Van Jones and Bill Maher are sending up the red flares, is that what’s happening inside the traditional Democratic Party?” Former Biden senior advisor: “Yes, and there should be more of it to be honest. The opinions that are being taken up by these Democratic socialists are political non-starters in any of the places that we actually need to put together a Democratic majority,” adds @JohnWMcCarthy.

Althouse "Former President Joe Biden lost his bid Monday to block the release of audio recordings and transcripts of interviews with his longtime ghostwriter..." "The NY Post reports." VodkaPundit at PJM, COURT: 'Smithers, Release the Biden Tapes!'

At the Washington Stand, Feds Recover Less Than 1% of $400 Billion+ in COVID Relief Funds Lost to Fraudsters. From NYPo, California city chief arrested on a yacht just three weeks after taking over top job "Sausalito’s new city manager was arrested early Saturday on suspicion of felony burglary after Marin County sheriff’s deputies responding to a noise complaint found her aboard a yacht that authorities say belonged to someone else."

OSINT613, The U.S. Campaign Against Iran Is Moving Inland: This Is No Longer a Coastal War. At PJM Rick Moran hears Trump Weighs Massive Escalation in Iran As Houthis Threaten to Close the Red Sea's Critical Strait and Cathy Salgado sees Trump Calls Out Dems for Helping Iran ‘Savages,’ Punishing U.S. Citizens. At Hat Hair, Capt. Ed wonders Will – and Can – Trump Target Pickaxe Mountain Next? and John Sexton cites Iran: Don't You Dare Strike Our Nuclear Facilities. The Hormuz Letter @HormuzLetter, "BREAKING: At least 8 oil tankers have aborted transit through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait following the Houthi naval blockade against Saudi Arabia, including 3 Chinese VLCCs carrying Saudi crude. Three tankers loaded with Saudi crude bound for China and one for India have made U-turns in the Red Sea and are now aborting their transit through the Bab El-Mandeb. 4 additional tankers turning north in the Red Sea have been identified as Agios Gerasimos, MICA, NAVIG8 Express, and Trust." IQ 594 | Cody Penn-Dent @codypd "So let me get this straight… China, who is an ally of Iran, has decided to participate in a magic show by not sending boats through a corridor that Iran and its ragtag psycho pals in Yemen say is closed From this I am to infer the ragtag psychos closed it?" Quote Martin Kelly @_MartinKelly_ "At least 4 (there are more) ships, including 3 Chinese VLCCs have aborted transit via the Bab al Mandeb after the Houthis implemented a blockade on Saudi ports. Interesting here that Chinese affiliation clearly does not provide immunity to those ships which meet the Houthi criteria.

Don Surbers sees The Boasberg boomerang, "He inadvertently led Trump to a court that may expedite deportations." From Ace, Michigan Appeals Court Reverses Two More Convictions in Fake-News Gretchen Whitmer "Fednapping" Prosecutions, "The Regime wants to prove that "right wingers" commit as much terrorism as left wingers. But they don't. So they have to manufacture offenses." And, the Border Patrol Wanted to Question Fauci's Catspaw Peter Daszak When He Returned from the Wuhan Lab in China. The FBI Blocked Them from Asking Fauci's Pal Any Questions, "We need a Truth and Reconciliation Committee to discover what was really going on in Wuhan and which government officials need to be in prison." At Da Caller, Hawaii’s Top Court Unleashes ‘Unserious Screed’ Against Conservative-Majority Supreme Court, it was kind of a hissy fit. From JTN, Conservative think tank wants Supreme Court to legalize home whiskey distilleries, "The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled recently that the federal ban against home whiskey distilleries is unconstitutional. However, the 6th Circuit upheld the federal ban."

The NYPo ed board wonders Why hasn’t Mahmoud Khalil been deported yet? At Chronicles No English, No Problem — Until the Crash Happens. Eric Florack at PJM, The Great American Demographic Shift.

Andy Ngo @MrAndyNgo, "Hey @ABC News. How can Sunny Hostin be your Senior Legal Correspondent and Analyst when she was caught on video unethically abusing her power to help her son escape accountability with police and lying about being a current federal prosecutor? The latter is a federal crime."

Sister Toldja, Watch: Brandon Gill Shows Museum Director No Mercy During Hearing on Wokeification of the Smithsonian. Althouse, "Do you think that it's the goal of the Smithsonian Institution to promote white supremacy culture?" "Congressman Brandon Gill asks Smithsonian Museum director Anthea Hartig at the House Oversight Committee hearing today. It's quite an exchange. Gill has a very well-planned set of question designed to destroy Hartig, and Hartig's defense is almost entirely restricted to long silences and diligent note-taking, as if she's endeavoring to learn from Gill." Eric Daugherty @EricLDaugh, "OMG. Brutal moment as Rep. Brandon Gill embarrasses Smithsonian Director Hartig with this line of questioning GILL: Is it important to be polite? HARTIG: Yes GILL: Your organization says politeness is a defining characteristic of white supremacy culture. Ma'am, are you a white supremacist? HARTIG: No, sir. GILL: Why does your organization say being polite is part of being a white supremacist? ANOTHER ONE: GILL: Is objectivity important for history? HARTIG: We strive to be objective GILL: Your document says being objective is white supremacy. HARTIG: Mm... GILL: Are you promoting a white supremacy culture at the Smithsonian? Ma'am, is this a difficult question?" Ace, sees Democrats Push Unhinged Racialist Propaganda as Republicans Probe the Smithsonian for Its Rampant Leftwing Bias.""The museum does not take sides,' a Smithsonian official declared, perjuring herslef." Beege Welborn Excuse Me, Sir - Did You Perhaps Drop Some White Supremacy Here? Mark Judge at the Chronic, Gottfried is Right: Wokeness Is Not Communism, It’s Demonic Narcissism.

From Twitchy, Even Trans Host Can't Stop Making Faces As Trans Dem Ashley Webb Explains How He's MEDICALLY a Woman. At Althouse, "We want to prevent all the bizarreness and keep our state normal." Said Bruce Skaug, an Idaho state representative, "who is sponsoring legislation to bar cities and counties from adopting local nondiscrimination policies that extend protection to sexual orientation or gender identity." Quoted in "How a 911 Call Led to the Nation’s Strictest Trans Bathroom Law/People in Sandpoint, Idaho, don’t know how to characterize a woman’s brush with a transgender woman in a Y.M.C.A. locker room, but the emergency call that followed is still reverberating" (NYT)(gift link).

At Campus Reform, Denver SDS says TPUSA ‘needs to be smashed’ amid university investigation. "Denver Students for a Democratic Society, a left-wing student group, says it 'will not tolerate' TPUSA’s presence on campus."

More at the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 07.21.26 (Afternoon Edition).

Flotsam and Jetsam - Smoke on the Water

A view from the beach on 7/17/26

It's Sunday, so the news is a bit sparse and somewhat off the wall. From Sundance at CTH, Canadian Prime Minister Blames U.S. Climate and Energy Policy for Canada Wildfires "President Trump pointed out Canada’s forestry mismanagement and their failure to follow through with previous promises of investment that have led to catastrophic wildfires now producing smoke streams making U.S. Northern cities and states live under dangerous conditions. Prime Minister Mark Carney was asked about the U.S. government position, and he immediately hit back by saying the cause of Canada’s wildfires is ‘climate change’ and President Trump’s unwillingness to support the Paris Climate Treaty has created the problem that Canada is now dealing with." Tim Sheehy @TimSheehyMT, "As a former waterbomber pilot who used to lead an aerial firefighting fleet, I can tell you “send help” is an extremely dishonest framing by the Canadian government. The Canadian government routinely blocks U.S. firefighting companies from attacking fires in Canada, while aggressively sending their government-subsidized aircraft to the U.S. to earn commercial rates from the U.S. taxpayer. It’s big business for them and they run it like a Chinese protectionist racket." The smoke was thickest here on Friday. You could smell it easily. Last evening a thunderstorm and a cold front came and blew it away.

Misty Severi at JTN reports Democratic strategist James Carville blasts major news networks for not carrying Trump speech, "Mainstream media networks, ABC, CNN and NBC, all declined to show the speech on its news programs and opted to stream it online and show clips of it with commentary during their regular live programming." Nick Arama at RedState sees the White House Crushes CNN's New Claims About Its Failure to Cover Trump Speech. Amy Curtis at TownHall shows just how CBS News' 'Fact-Checks' of Trump's Address Ignore the Facts. PJM's Scott Pinsker explains The Secret Reason Why Fox News Is So Silent About Trump’s Election Fraud Speech. "The producer sent me a one-sentence reply: “I like it - but We don’t touch election fraud in any capacity.” Nothing else needed to be said. Unless you’re a total moron (or CNN’s “chief media analyst”), you could read between the lines: One of the longterm consequences of Fox News settling its lawsuit with Dominion Voting Systems for $787.5 million is that FNC programming will avoid discussing voter fraud." .... "UPDATE: Fox has just published a major story on Trump's speech and his revelations about election meddling: READ THE DOCUMENTS: White House releases election integrity files after Trump speech." The Reactionary Techno Fog looks at Michigan Voter Fraud and Chinese Influence Ops: Declassified. From Twitchy, Elissa Slotkin's 'Quiet Part Out Loud' Slip Makes the Rounds After She Says Election Fraud Doesn't Exist. Rapid Response 47 @RapidResponse47, "@StephenM: "We've reached a point in society where access to fettuccine at Olive Garden is vastly more secure than deciding who is Commander-in-Chief of the country." PASS THE SAVE AMERICA ACT!"

I&I finds By 3-To-2 Margin, Americans Believe U.S. Is Turning Into A ‘Socialist State’. New York Post @nypost, "DSA member says she has no problem supporting 'secret Nazis' under one condition https://trib.al/IwxwHrg" Handre @Handre, "The Nazi economy was socialism in a better-tailored uniform. Strip away the parades and you find exactly what Mises diagnosed in 1940 as Zwangswirtschaft: private ownership on paper, total state control in practice. You held the title to your factory. Göring's ministries told you what to produce, what to charge, whom to hire, and where your profits went. That is ownership the way a prisoner owns his cell..." From Breitbart, Polis: Socialism ‘a Tool to Further Exploit People’. TownHall's Matt Vespa likes how Kathy Hochul Got Grilled on Why Everyone Is Leaving NY. Pretty soon, you run out of other people's money, especially when the other people run out on you. 

At the Crimson Hub, Nirav Shah, In The Maine Senate Race, Says He's an 'Outsider,' And He Sure Is. At Althouse, "Many of these candidates claim to espouse progressive beliefs that are similar to Graham. The thing is, it was never about the bullet points..." ""... but rather the way he was willing to speak to any issue directly and honestly that made voters love and trust him." Said Spencer Toth, who was Graham Platner’s organizing director, quoted in "Without Platner, Maine Democrats Scramble to Keep Grassroots Energy Alive/Graham Platner’s campaign for Senate imploded last week. The activists who backed him are seeking a candidate to carry his populist message in the race against Republican Susan Collins" (NYT)." Platner was mostly about wearing flannel well and spouting socialist cant in a deep manly voice. 

Following the insaner side of US politics, Stacy McCain has Knife-Wielding Psycho-Tranny Is Former Arizona Democratic Party Official and Communism, the Palestinian Death Cult and the Pro-Terrorism Red-Green Axis. At News Wax, the intersection, Mamdani Still Mulling Netanyahu Arrest During UN Meet.

The Vigilant Fox @VigilantFox, "RFK Jr. says HHS loses $100,000,000,000 a year to theft. He found some thieves would bribe poor people with flat screen TVs to get their patient numbers and enroll them in hospice. Then they would proceed to bill Medicaid "$6,000 a month FOREVER." RFK JR: "We shut down 800 hospices. You know what a hospice is? Where you're going to die. Typically, if you go to a hospice, you leave within 18 days because your dying is terminal." "We started looking at these hospices in Los Angeles, and the people never died. Two or three years later they were there, and we're paying $6,000 a month." "We found a hotel room with 29 hospices in it. I mean a hotel, every room was a hospice, and none of them had any patients. They were just addresses." "The guys who own them, they were Estonians and Armenians and people from Eastern Europe who were getting the patient numbers. They were stealing them from doctors' offices."..." At Da Caller, $225,000,000 In ‘Hideous’ Fraud Schemes Found Across US Schools, Report Alleges.

Ken Timmerman at Am Great explains The Trump Trap, "Trump's MOU set a trap. Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps fell into it." Joe Chalfant at TownHall claims Iran Just Killed the Memorandum of Understanding. At News Wax, Iran Suspending Commitments to Interim Deal With US. They just stopped pretending to abide. And, US-Iran Fighting Escalates With Infrastructure Targeted. Eric Daugherty @EricLDaugh, " JUST IN: Iran is REELING after President Trump ordered CENTCOM to begin targeting infrastructure targets, causing power outages and destruction of bridges "The war planners [are] bombing ROADS AND BRIDGES around Bandar Abbas!" The IRGC is getting CUT OFF from key supply lines to Bandar Abbas, key to Strait of Hormuz control The REAL bridge and power plant day is still coming up. Iran will be forced into compliance!" Bandar Abbas is a major key to control of the Strait of Hormuz. At Althouse, "In the days before the sentence was carried out, she had tried to keep living as if nothing was about to happen... She showered and wore thick felt-like clothes..." "From "I danced until 2am… then it was off to my flogging/An Iranian rapper and critic of regime was determined to show no suffering as a woman in a black chador put down her Quran and picked up her whip" (London Times)."

Clown World ™ @ClownWorld, "The Boston Globe’s headline: “She came to Boston for a Noah Kahan concert. Now she’s in ICE custody” The actual story: she missed a 2017 immigration court hearing, which triggered an outstanding removal order years ago The concert isn’t why she’s in custody. The removal order is." From NYPo, DHS issues scathing update on future of ‘maple leaf menace’ accused of slapping patriotic teen. "“This illegal alien who assaulted a teenager has no business being in our country,” DHS wrote in a statement on X, dubbing her a “maple leaf menace.” “She is now in [ICE] custody pending REMOVAL from our nation,” the agency’s statement concludes." Too easy. Drop her off in Nicaragua. At News Wax, DHS Warns TPS Holders to Take Exit Offer and Sen. Blackburn Revives Ban Birth Tourism Act. From NYPo, Trump administration weighs imposing $100K bonds on green card applicants. Lawrence Person's BattleSwarm Blog says Fuck You, Tim Walz, for pardoning a child molester to protect him from deportation. Anyway it didn't work. Marco Rubio deported him anyway. Alex West Q @RealAlexWest_Q, " HOLY CRAP! Sec. Marco Rubio just got a MASSIVE standing ovation in Germany after he told Europe we need to move back toward Christianity and against 3rd world migration Marco is CRUSHING it and the whole world sees it! We LOVE MARCO."

NIOH Berg @NiohBerg, "Meet Andy Burnham, Britain's soon to be new PM. • Nobody voted for him • Nobody asked for him • He is haunted by allegations over his handling of the rape gangs • His main concern seems to be that Starmer wasn't enough of a tyrant • He will make everything worse • He will make Britain suffer even more." RadioGenoa @RadioGenoa, "In Europe there is a strange phenomenon where churches burn and mosques do not."

From Campus Reform, Brown taps hallucinogen researcher to lead 'merit' seminar "Brown University has selected anthropology and linguistics professor Paja Faudree, whose recent scholarship focuses on Indigenous use of hallucinogenic plants, to lead the 2026-27 Pembroke Seminar." At NewsWeek, US Universities Got Over $300M From Sanctioned China Entities. Gee, I wonder why China gives money to US schools; it's not altruism. 

NYPo claims New numbers reveal the child sex-change mania is worse than we knew "Recently released court documents show that Children’s Hospital Colorado, affiliated with the University of Colorado School of Medicine, prescribed puberty blockers to more than 250 patients and cross-sex hormones to nearly 550 patients in a single year, 2025."

Flotsam and Jetsam - Trump Voting Speech Reactions Day 2

President Trump's address to the nation largely on the problems with our voting system are the talk of the town. Even though, most of this was at least hinted at before, it's useful to have a re-airing of grievances. Matt Margolis at PJM, Democrats Don't Want You to See This Video of Biden on Election Interference. TheFOO @PolitiBunny, "It’s wild how hard Schumer is trying to stop our elections from being secured. lol." Quote Chuck Schumer @SenSchumer "Not now. Not ever. The SAVE Act is dead on arrival in the United States Senate. x.com/atrupar/status…" Rasmussen Reports @Rasmussen_Poll, "Once Upon A Time ... A crazy man claimed that voter data for every American was in China, and the CCP had used secret illegal U.S. election computer access to switch votes in 2020. And the crazy man was mocked & sued. But times changed, and new information came to light ..." Mike Lindell, the My Pillow guy. Ace, Trump: We Recovered Documents From the CIA About Their Scheme to Hide All Intelligence from Me That Could Help Me in My 2020 Re-Election Campaign and Trump: There Is Evidence of a Massive Chinese Effort to Compromise America's Voting Rolls -- But the Deep State Covered It Up, "This is treason. And the death penalty should be on the table." Hat Hair's Dave Strom cites CNN and Blinken in 2024: Yes, China Was Interfering in U.S. Elections. Victory Girls say Yes Virginia, There Were Election Integrity Issues And Data Was Stolen. Ezra A. Cohen @EzraACohen, "Just wait till the American people get the full story on the concerted effort across multiple IC agencies to suppress information related to CCP interference in the election to Biden’s benefit. Who was the ring leader? Several of us stood up to it at the time." Quote Christopher Porter @DrPorter "CIA and ODNI senior leadership harassed and drove me from the building when I said China had interfered in 2020. So thankful that @FBIDirectorKash is standing up for the truth senior Intelligence Community leaders conspired to hide."

Mary Chastain at LI cites Mullin: ‘We’ve Identified 250,000 Noncitizens Registered to Vote’ in Four States, “We also worked with proactive states to identify 28,000 non-citizens on their voter rolls, plus 400,000 individuals that are still registered to vote that are deceased.” Sundance at CTH, DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin Outlines 250,000 Illegal Aliens Registered to Vote in Four States. Capt. Ed at Hat Hair, NEW: DHS Announces New Election-Security Measures After Trump Release of Intel.

 According to PJM's Vicky Taft, NBC, ABC, and CNN Blacked Out the President's Speech, So Aunt Mary and Uncle John Deleted THEM. ConfirmBias @Fulcrumbs44, "My guess is that the networks thought that President Trump would be speaking about Fulton County last night. They likely had all of their talking points set. Instead he threw them a curveball, and spoke about the fact that our media had been compromised by foreign entities. While he was revealing they were compromised, they were kind enough to suppress his address....and prove his point!" Cernovich @Cernovich, "Last night the entire media establishment was spooked. Selfie videos and posts from Dems including Kamala. That says it all." Quote 2WAY @2waytvapp, “When I hear complaints from Democrats that, ‘we can’t air false election claims because that will discourage the voters,’ … I say, ladies and gentlemen, the media aired false election claims about ‘Russia, Russia, Russia’ for the entirety of the Trump presidency,” says @MarkHalperin about TV news networks refusing to air Donald Trump’s primetime address. “So get off your frigging fainting couches and don’t tell me that we cannot listen to political leaders making false accusations about an election.” Northern Barbarian @xnoesbueno, "Exactly correct. Still waiting for our shitbag media to do the Pulitzer-winning takedown on that. (They won't. No Pulitzer up that alley)." Quote Stephen L. Miller @redsteeze, "I don't know if any of these claims are true, but what did happen in 2020 was a global pandemic that originated in a Chinese laboratory and was partially funded by USAID and facilitated by Ecohealth Alliance, which, in fact, ended up affecting the election later that year." Ace, The Same Media That Pushed Hillary's Fake Opposition Research About Russia Collusion For Six Years Can't Believe Trump Is Alleging Election Irregularities. "Hillary's oppo fictions were worth reporting -- but an actual scandal with actual documentation doesn't."

At No Pasaran! The Economist Weekly Reveals Its Frustration: Why Won't Donald Trump Let the SAVE Act Go? wretchardthecat @wretchardthecat, "It's not necessary to believe in a specific instance of US voter fraud or system corruption to realize that the current system falls far short of the standard one required of any professional database. Essentially there should be an indexed table of voters with primary keys and a transaction log of their votes related by foreign key to elections. The fact that this is so hard to implement suggests there is great pressure not to make it secure. Creating a technically secure voting system is not the hard part. Wanting one is." Teri Christoph at RedState sees how Olive Garden Just Accidentally – and Hilariously! – Made the Case for Voter ID. You need a picture ID to use their Never-Ending Pasta Pass.

I&I reminds us Hey, Republicans, Spending Is Still Out Of Control. Yep.

From Insty, ALIVE OR DEAD? HE’S SCHRODINGER’S SENATOR: Benny Johnson @bennyjohnson, "BREAKING: Kentucky Politicians Want to Know If Mitch McConnell is 'Dead’ Multiple Kentucky politicians demand that Mitch McConnell’s office provide convincing proof that the senator is still alive. Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear says he received multiple calls suggesting McConnell may have died while he was hospitalized. Speaking with Katie Couric, Beshear said two separate calls from government agencies raised alarms and he sought reassurance about McConnell's condition. "I got two calls from agencies suggesting that Sen. McConnell had passed away," Beshear said...." I suspect he's alive, but that he'll never see the Senate floor again.

John Sexton thinks it's remarkable that Ukraine's Drone Attacks Work on a Free Market System. Pay for play.

Ace thinks the Maine Democrats' Debate to Replace Graham Platner Sparks Question, "Say, Why Did We Get Rid of Graham Platner?" "Maine Democrats staged a Candidate Cattle Call last night." Hat Hair's Beege Welborn observes Maine Dems Dump Rape-y Nazi and Get a Freak Parade (Pick the tranny!) and John Sexton hears Things Not Going Well for Guys Who Recruited Platner. Jeff Charles at TownHall, This Is What's Happening to the Consultants Who Made Graham Platner. From NYPo, Maine socialists try again — with another he-man fake to sub for Graham Platner. Crimson Hub says Maine Senate Candidate Troy Jackson Wants Higher Taxes But Had His Own Tax Issues.

End Wokeness on X: "Mamdani housing event features a lady in a mask ranting about her landlord, declaring "eviction = violence"." Mary Chastain, New York City Mayor Mamdani Continues His War on Landlords "Mamdani might achieve his collectivism goal sooner than expected." If you thing housing is bad now, just wait. TownHall's Dmitri Bolt thinks Marco Rubio Just Delivered the Most Devastating Case Against Communism Yet. Coddled Affluent Professional @feelsdesperate, "No one is prepared for how stupid things are about to get." Quote 𝖓𝖎𝖓𝖊 @atlanticesque "Young democrats being +22 on “Free market economy” and -31 on “Capitalism” is both funny and bleak x.com/averyfjames/st…" I don't like the word 'capitalism' which derives from Marx, and much prefer "free market" economy. It's about more that capital. Sensurround @ShamashAran, "Democrats, Please Get Your Act Together..." From Twitchy, Socialists and the City: Cynthia Nixon Scores a Sweet NY Gig After Staying at a Holiday Inn Express "Recently, we reported on the miraculous tale of Christine Marinoni, who managed to land a $200,000-a-year job as the chief of mass engagement (whatever that is) in New York's Department of Education. How did she get the job? Oh, did we forget to mention that she is married to actress, far-left nutjob, and trans activist Cynthia Nixon, who—purely by coincidence, we're sure—had held a huge fundraiser for Zohran Mamdani before he was elected mayor?" Capitalism or socialism, one constant in government is graft. Amy Curtis at TownHall observes Colorado Governor Jared Polis Jumps on the Anti-Socialist Bandwagon and Abdul El-Sayed's Latest Appeal to Voters Backfires. From the Free Bacon, ‘The Doctor … Thinks of You as a Half Citizen’: Abdul El-Sayed Said Doctors Who Don't Accept Medicaid 'Discriminate' Against Black People. His Psychiatrist Wife Doesn't Participate in the Program. "'Because of the nature of structural racism,' doctors think of a Medicaid patient as a 'half citizen,' El-Sayed said." So she works for free like a good communist?

Mary Chastain again, Dem Rep. Adam Smith Voted Against Israel in Part Due to Threats Against Family, "But Smith attempts to appease those leftists even more by railing against Israel in his statement." William A. Jacobson @wajacobson, "A year or two from now when the stories surface that U.S. jobs have been lost b/c Israel is producing it's own munitions and systems for itself and int'l markets, remember it was forced to do so by the psychopathic isolationist right and DSA-controlled Dems." Quote Yonah Jeremy Bob @jeremybob1, "EXCLUSIVE: Israel to produce its own JDAMs (precision bombs) within 2 years. It's already been locally producing other bombs for 2 years. It also quadrupled Arrow production for ISRAELI USE thanks to 2 Germany Arrow deals." I like how the perfesser misused "it's." Nobody's perfect. 

Dave Strom at Hat Hair, This Is Bat-Guano Insane, California, but it's not too insane for California. At Twitchy, Jennifer Newsom Stumbles and Stammers When Confronted With the Fact the DOJ Probe Started Under Biden. Capt. Ed, Walz: Hey, Let He Who Has Not Molested a Kid Throw the First Stone, Amirite? Amy Curtis again, Democrat Bob Brooks’ Financial History Raises Serious Questions in Key PA House Race. A Democrat with poor money handling skill? Whoda thunk? Matt Margolis swears Democrats Are Panicking and Scrambling to Hide Something Big, with an NDA "before a private meeting on the party's finances."

Ace, As US Forces Knock Out Iranian Power Plants, the IRGC Tells Iranians to be Like the UK and France and Turn Off the AC and Die In the Summer Heat. "Trump's bombing them all the way back to modern day Europe." Lee Smith at Table wants to know Is Trump Ready to Win Yet? "After suddenly collapsing the foundations of America’s security architecture in the Middle East, President Donald Trump now recalls that Iran is run by crazy liars—and that the point of fighting wars is winning. But is the administration’s new line just more talk?" wretchardthecat @wretchardthecat, ""We are in an essential and existential war with America," [Iran's] Qalibaf said. My comment: His surprise is understandable. The Europeans believed the Israelis would retaliate "proportionately" for Oct 7. Bomb a few symbolic targets in Gaza but stop short of invasion, negotiate with Sinwar. Nor did anyone think the Ukraine war would last longer than WW2. Judging by the British defense budget, they counted on it ending back in 2024 or 2025. As for Iran the French and British fleets (if you can use the term) were going to de-mine the straits just as soon as the war ended, and that should have been some time ago. Instead to Qalibaf's (and everyone's) surprise they unaccountably turned into *real* wars. The kind played for keeps, that end with a last man standing, the sort where the losers, like Hamas, will be hunted down long after they are old and grey, with old Jihadis being shot in their beds by the grandsons of those who perished on that day. "We are in an essential and existential war with America," [Iran's] Qalibaf said. Who pulled a switcheroo on them? After decades of "Death to America" ain't that a surprise." John Sexton hears Iran Places Billboard in Tehran Showing Trump in a Coffin. Trump ought to bomb it just to show we can.

Sarah Anderson at PJM says Dang! Bessent Has a Personal Message for the Fake News About His Assassination Attempt. Driscoll at Insty sees how the THE NEW REPUBLIC DEESCALATES: Scott Bessent: A Deranged Leftist Attempted to Assassinate Me Shortly After I Became Secretary of the Treasury. The New Republic: Don’t You Understand You’re Forcing Us Lefties to Murder You? Ace, Scott Bessent: A Deranged Leftist Attempted to Assassinate Me Shortly After I Became Secretary of the Treasury. The New Republic: Don't You Understand You're Forcing Us Lefties to Murder You? Vance/Rubio or Rubio/Vance?

Cannot be overstated how good this is. https://t.co/88ioa9Jw2p

— Ilya Shapiro (@ishapiro) July 17, 2026

Cam at Bearing Arms has a sigh of relief as Third Circuit Says Ban on 'Assault Weapons' and 'Large Capacity' Magazines Is Unconstitutional.

At Da Wire, ‘I’m Happy’: Agents Celebrate After Trump Reverses Controversial ICE Order, "Not sure how they don't consult Trump about this before they send out guidance to every field office." Beege Welborn, That Thing That Never Happens Seems to Be Happening Again, illegals on welfare. From Campus Reform, DHS to begin placing stricter time limits on student visas. "The Department of Homeland Security will begin limiting student visas to a period of no more than four years, though visa holders can apply for extensions."

RCP reports Democrat State Attorneys Sue to Keep CNN as Partisan as Possible. Trying to block Bari Weiss from being put in charge. Beege Welborn declares The All Bull Corporation News Is Battin' 1000 With Their Reporting.

Rich Penkoski @WFCPreacher, "BREAKING: Virginia State Senator Saddam Azlan Salim (D-Fairfax) has introduced Senate Bill 624, legislation that would define "Islamophobia" within Virginia's assault and battery laws while requiring law enforcement to track crimes allegedly motivated by anti-Islam bias..." RCW looks Inside the Mind of an Online Extremist and retains enough sanity to tell about it.

From da College Fix, Court sides with U. Pittsburgh professor demoted for criticizing affirmative action. 

NYPo claims New numbers reveal the child sex-change mania is worse than we knew.

Linked at Pirate's Cove in the weekly Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup and links.

Flotsam and Jetsam - Biden Autopens a Book

Not a scintillating day. Capt. Ed at Hat Hair names it Entitlement by a Thousand (Video) Cuts: Biden Inc Announces New Lecture Book. Ace sees Biden Slur and Stumble His Way Through Ad for His Ghostwritten "Memoir". "This drooling imbecile was paid $10 million by the corrupt corporate media for a book that won't make $2 million." Now that Hunter's source of income have dried up. Aidan McLaughlin @aidnmclaughlin, "Incredible to watch this video and remember that Biden and his team fought for him to serve a second term. This is a recorded video, no doubt with multiple takes, and in the finished product he can barely speak." Quote Joe Biden @JoeBiden, "I’ve written a book about my time as President. It’s called PROMISE ME, AMERICA. It’s coming out November 17th and is available for preorder now. " Luvenalis @Luvenalis1, "A tweet Joe didn't write on a book he didn't author about a presidency he didn't attend." Spencer Pratt @spencerpratt, "This guy couldn't even sign his own name. He's not writing books. LMAO Politicians write books to launder money. Nobody wants to read this, but the corrupt NGOs he provided for as President will buy up 100K copies and burn 'em to hold up their end of the bribes."

At CTH, Sundance hosts Acting AG Todd Blanche's Nomination Hearing, DNI Jay Clayton Senate Intelligence Committee Nomination Hearing and President Trump Highlights Importance of Data Centers. Bob Hoge at RedState sees Adam Schiff Tries to Embarrass AG Nominee Todd Blanche, but It Wasn't a Fair Fight. At Twitchy, AG Nominee Todd Blanche Needed No Words to Properly Respond to Insults From America's Dumbest Senator, Mazie Hirono. 

Ace is looking forward to tonight, In a National Address Tomorrow Night, Trump Will Reveal a Far More Extensive Foreign Penetration of the 2020 US Elections Than Ever Known; Plus, RussiaGate Was Faked to Protect the Real Country Intervering in Elections: China, on Behalf of Democrats, "From Paul Sperry:..." At his substack Insty sees Trump Seizing the Day "Will Trump invoke the Guarantee Clause to impose election integrity? A prediction." Maybe! "So if President Trump announces that we have uncovered massive electoral fraud — as he almost certainly will — and that he is dispatching huge numbers of federal election watchers to oversee voting and counting in areas where fraud has occurred, he would be acting directly under a power that the Constitution has vested in him. For a state to have a “republican form of government,” it must have meaningful elections, and elections that are rigged are not meaningful. Stopping them from being rigged would be protecting a republican form of government. Congress has passed other election laws, mostly for reasons of combating race discrimination, but those aren’t strictly applicable to these circumstances."

Matt Vespa on Why Sunny Hostin Melted Down About Lindsey Graham's Sister Becoming a US Senator. It's kind of her thing. PJM's Sarah Anderson hears Nikki Haley's Got Something to Say to the 'Ladies' at 'The View'.

At the WSJ, Putin Was Xi’s Role Model. Now He’s the Junior Partner. "Four years of war and economic isolation have reduced the Russian president to a supplicant in a relationship growing more imbalanced." Anton Gerashchenko @Gerashchenko_en, "Russian Novosibirsk. The line to buy fuel is huge. The person filming says he's driving about 60 km/hour, so you can imagine how long the line is. There are reports that fuel is only available at some gas stations in the city." Jack Prandelli @jackprandelli, ""Massive new oil partnerships with Iraq." That is how Trump teased what is co ming out of today's meetings with Iraq's prime minister. Behind the phrase: Chevron negotiating to take over oilfield assets previously run by Russia's Lukoil, HKN Energy targeting 140,000 barrels a day at the Hamrin field, and Halliburton managing the Bin Omar and Sinbad fields in the south. The stated reason: diversify away from Hormuz risk and away from Chinese and Russian dominance in Iraqi energy, with new pipeline routes planned through Turkey to the Mediterranean. This is the American energy leverage thesis playing out in crude and infrastructure now, not just gas."

Capt. Ed at Hat Hair says Escalateo: US Steps Up Pace of Attacks As Iran Threatens Gulf Energy Production. From RCE, Peace or No Peace, the Iran Conflict Has Forever Changed the Strait of Hormuz. From the Babylon Bee, Trump To Secure Strait Of Hormuz By Posting Old Man Who Asks You 3 Questions Before You May Pass. ""Great guy, beautiful guy," Trump told reporters. "He's been doing this a long time, from what I've been told. Asking questions. And you better have the right answers. If you don't, you're toast. I met him. He asked me the questions, and I got all of them right. But not Dan Scavino. He got one wrong and was thrown somewhere. We don't know where. We're looking for him.""

Don Surber is Cheering a less-known military victory, "Venezuela earthquake response shows losing USAID was no big deal."

Breitbart Bus Dig calls it A CPI Report for the Record Books "The June inflation report was even better than it looks. Don’t get us wrong. The headline figure was glorious. The consumer price index fell by 0.4 percent for the month, the biggest decline since the big dips in March and April of 2020, when the economy was reeling from the pandemic shutdown. Prior to that, you have to go all the way back to January of 2015, when the CPI fell 0.7 percent."

The Manhattan Contrarian contends "Red Scare"? Actually The Communist Resurgence In The Democratic Party Is Very Real. Quotulatiousness doubts the people saying “Communism no longer comes for your property.” Hat Hair's Dave Strom has hopes Is the Socialist Moment Already Over?

And another thing the Media made and unmade Graham Platner, "Just as Donald Trump is a poor person’s idea of a rich person, Candidate Platner is a rich person’s idea of a poor person." Steve Soukup at Am Great looks at Graham Platner and the Rationalization of Everything. "The politicization of everything creates, in the ruling class, a belief in the infallible righteousness of their mission, which, in turn, legitimizes any tactics necessary to take and hold power." Kurt Schlichter at TownHall thinks James Talarico Has Got a Secret. "I don’t know what that blasphemous little imp’s secret is, but he’s got one. Don’t be fooled by that creepy smile on his creepy face; there’s something wrong with James Talarico. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but I don’t ever want to see his browser history, and I’d sooner have somebody from The Lincoln Project babysit my kid." PJM's Stephen Kruiser swears Gavin Newsom Really Doesn't Want to Be President. "Everything that Newsom pats himself on the back for is the kind of thing that I truly believe ends up being a disqualifying knock on him with Ma and Pa Dem in the Midwest. He doesn't know that because California is the biggest ideological bubble in the nation." Hat Hair's Dave Strom thinks it's Hilarious: Ro Khanna's Stunt Not Enough for Pro-Hamas Crowd. Peter Savodnik @petersavodnik, "I agree with @jpodhoretz that antisemitism is a bigger problem on the left than the right, and I agree that that's surprising. Just as important is why..." PJM's Scott Pinsker lauds the The Political Castration of Chuck Schumer — and the Rise of GOP Superman Brandon Gill. "Schumer is so hated, his Maine endorsement would guarantee defeat — not by the hands of Republicans, but his fellow Democrats!"

Ace is furious at Jack Smith Who Shredded the Constitution to Spy on Republican Congressmen, Then Repeatedly Lied About It Under Oath. "Congressional speech, including phone calls and text messages, are protected against subpoenas by the Speech and Debate Clause. There is a bullshit way around this. The DOJ will sometimes seize these messages anyway but they first go to a "Filter Team" to make sure that nothing in the messages is protected by the Speech and Debate Clause. If a message falls into that category, it's not passed on to prosecutors. But Jack Smith said "YOLO" and just read all the messages he wanted to read, without any Filter Team clearing them first. And of course, 90% of those he illegally, unconstitutionally spied on were Republican congressmen."

Town Hall's Matt Vespa is outraged, Wait, That’s How Many Messages the Secret Service Missed Regarding Trump's Would-be Assassin at Butler? Breaking911 @Breaking911, "A new inspector general report released two years after the attempted assassination of Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania, says the Secret Service missed more than 100 radio transmissions warning about the suspected gunman. The attack killed firefighter Corey Comperatore as he shielded his family and wounded two others. Investigators say communication failures and security lapses represented missed opportunities to stop the shooting." IIRC, the SS wasn't listening to anything the locals put out.

Capt. Ed, Stopping the Stops Stop: Trump Reverses DHS Order. From Ace, Trump: There's No Way I'm Stopping ICE Traffic Stops Just Because the Left Has Fully Embraced Violence As Its "Political Speech" "The stops are back on (if they were ever off)." Matt Margolis at PJM likes how Jesse Watters Schools Jessica Tarlov on the Houston ICE Shooting. WBAL TV, FBI affidavit alleges drugs found in van involved in Houston ICE shooting. Which explains why they tried to run/run over the agent.

Was it worth it?

Mike Miller at RedState, Welcome to America, Eh? Canadian Woman Allegedly Slaps Minor in Trump Gear, Ends Up in ICE Custody. Deport her to Nicaragua just for fun. Libs of TikTok @libsoftiktok, "The husband of Kaitlyn Tracey posted a video CRYING after his Canadian wife was arrested for allegedly assaulting a teen girl wearing Trump-themed attire in NJ. He conveniently leaves out why his wife was arrested… If you’re a foreigner and you come here and assault American citizens, you will be deported!" Libs of TikTok @libsoftiktok, "Kaitlyn Tracey's husband has an art poster on his wall featuring small children with the text "1000 Virgins for Satan's Master." What a creep."

Daniel Horowitz @RMConservative, "The end result of social transformation without representation." Quote DR POOL @DRPOOLQ1, "TERRIFYING: It's gotten so bad in Minnesota that police are saying they are SOMALIANS FIRST. He isn't even speaking English."

CIS looks at Sen. Lindsey Graham’s Unique Immigration Legacy. "A journey from amnesty proponent to foe of open borders and ‘birth tourism.’"

Bonchie @bonchieredstate, "Matthew Yglesias apparently has no idea how AI works and where it gets its “views” from." Quote Holden @Holden114 "He cannot be this stupid." Oh, I think he can. But, honestly, I'm shocked Google is that neutral.

VodkaPundit at Insty wants you to SAY IT LOUD AND PROUD: "The West Is a Superior Civilization (And I Don’t Care If That Offends You). “The West has experienced wars, harbored atrocious dictatorships, and served as the birthplace of a great many foolish ideas, including the wokism that ravaged civilization in this century. But what has made this civilization great is its ability to recognize those deviations and try to correct them, or at the very least condemn them." From the College Fix, U. Nebraska internal review finds ‘no evidence’ of DEI — experts say it doesn’t add up. Campus Reform reports Education Department portal reveals $72B in foreign funding to US colleges.

Jenn Pellegrino @JennPellegrino, "I can't believe this is real. The Chancellor of UC San Francisco testified under oath that a "vast majority of pregnancies are in women." Implying some pregnancies occur in men. When asked directly whether a non-biological woman has ever had a baby, he refused to answer. This is the head of one of the top medical schools in the country." Capt. Ed, Gallup: Confidence in Academia Craters. UCSF Chief: Hold My Transgender-Friendly Microbrew. Carlo Carrasco, Trump Administration Trashes Biden-Era LGBTQ Foster Care Rule "Remember a few years ago when the administration of failed US President Joe Biden came up with a foster care rule that sought to require children who identify as LGBTQ be placed with families willing to accept them through gender identity?" Sasha Stone @realsashastone, "Also the temptation to make history will be too great." Quote Chris Gore @ThatChrisGore "Eliot Page will get nominated for Best Supporting Actor for The Odyssey. Page plays Sinon, a proxy for Achilles in Hades and the significance of the role begs for awards recognition. #TheOdyssey". 'Eliot' Page used to be Ellen. 

The Wombat has even more at In The Mailbox: 07.15.26 (Afternoon Edition) and In The Mailbox: 07.15.26 (Evening Edition). The Wombat has FMJRA 2.0: Slowly I Turn up and garnering clicks at The Other McCain.