Edward Lear Zagori, Greece 1860
🚨BREAKING: Marine Le Pen celebrates MAJOR VICTORY in French Senate elections
— Basil the Great (@BasilTheGreat) September 28, 2026
Le Pen QUADRUPLED the number of Senators she has in the French Upper House meaning she can now form a Caucus and call votes
Things are changing in France
They're all going home pic.twitter.com/KmR2C27qFO
https://twitter.com/IngrahamAngle/status/2104725846682485065?s=20 https://twitter.com/Amy_Buttermaker/status/2104800051419562226?s=20Weg mit der MAFIA! pic.twitter.com/xIjxSCama5
— ENKELIN MÜLLER (@GNaktiv) September 28, 2026
Absolutely incredible. The Washington neocons need to have their heads examined. They are arming and funding this blithering madness. And they started the war with Russia in 2014 by funding the coup d' etat that overthrew the legitimately elected pro-Russian president of Ukraine. https://t.co/6XfPbCU8TQ
— David Stockman (@DA_Stockman) September 28, 2026
“Super intelligence refers to AI that is magnitudes more capable in speed and power than humans.”
• Trump To Order Renaming Artificial Intelligence ‘Super Intelligence’ (ETM)
President Donald Trump said Tuesday he will sign a “very powerful” executive order on “super intelligence.”“This kind of innovation in government is just a preview of what is possible with super intelligence, or SI, and that’s the official name in the United States,” he said. “I’ll be signing a very powerful executive order. I spoke to President Xi [Jinping]; he loves it, and because when you say ‘artificial intelligence,’ it’s artificial.”Read more …
“This isn’t; this is extreme intelligence,” he continued. “It’s superior intelligence. It’s supreme, also intelligence, but the word ‘super’ is the best word of all, and it’s the simplest.” Brendan Steinhauser, CEO of the Alliance for Secure AI, said he worries Trump’s use of the term “muddies the waters between tool AI and super intelligence.”“I do think it could blur the lines between what we have now and what we may have a year from now, or two years from now, or five years from now, and I do think it’s unhelpful because with these words, you’re trying to convey something very specific,” he said. “We don’t have super intelligence yet. We may be on the cusp of general intelligence.”
When asked why the president is interested in renaming AI, former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon told the Daily Signal the president is making the case that artificial super intelligence is coming soon. Super intelligence refers to AI that is magnitudes more capable in speed and power than humans.
“President Trump makes the case that we are hurtling to AGI or ‘super intelligence,’ which is exactly what every expert in the field says humanity is not prepared for—without letting the [Chinese Communist Party] beat us, we must cease being ‘accelerationists,’” Bannon said. The rebrand also could be an effort to delegitimize a Sen. Bernie Sanders, D-Vt., bill that would ban artificial super intelligence, according to Steinhauser.
If artificial super intelligence is developed, it will be too late for humans to control it, understand it, or turn it off, he said. “By embracing the term and using the term, it makes me wonder whether they believe that super intelligence is a real thing,” Steinhauser says. Nathan Leamer, executive director of the pro-AI advocacy group Build American AI, is excited about the name change. “I am so excited to have that president leading the conversation on how this promising technology will create opportunities for Americans,” he told the Daily Signal.
Trump spoke while unveiling a new website that uses artificial intelligence to make it easier for U.S. citizens to access federal services.The website, America.gov, will make sure “the federal government no longer stands in your way, and it stands only at your service,” Trump said. Trump said the creation of the new website was so complicated that the administration has been working on it since almost Day One.
“We’re making it dramatically easier and faster, and more convenient to get what you need exactly when you need it,” he said. Trump said this will make it easier for married women to change their names without navigating “a stressful bureaucratic process that took months and months and even years to complete.” “Very soon, all she’ll have to do is ask America.gov, and it’ll fill out the forms, track the progress, and send her a new Social Security card, passport, and insurance card in the mail. It’ll arrive almost instantly,” he said.
“Whether you’re a scout leader who wants to reserve a campsite at a national park, a senior citizen trying to choose a Medicare plan, or an American veteran trying to get the benefits that you’ve earned and so justly deserve, America.gov will be there to help and to help you accurately and quickly,” he said. “And with this, nobody can any longer complain about providing proof of citizenship or voter ID.” The first part of the website launched Tuesday, but Trump said it will continue to evolve in the months ahead. “I will sign a historic executive order directing every federal government agency to make all of their public-facing services integrate directly with America.gov as soon as possible,” he said.
Americans will be able use the advanced chatbot to navigate through tens of thousands of federal government websites.
The site uses Ai – or should we say SI?
• Trump Launches America.Gov Website Simplifying Access to Govt Services (ET)
President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Sept. 29 directing all federal agencies to integrate services with a new website designed to make it easier for users to find information and interact with the government. He described the tool as “one of the most revolutionary product launches of all time.”Read more …
America.gov will serve as a landing page consolidating nearly 30,000 federal government websites into one chatbot, powered by SpaceX’s Grok and Google’s Gemini. The site allows users to ask questions and receive guidance about procuring services. “The federal government no longer stands in your way, and it stands only at your service,” Trump said. “We’re simplifying it. We’re glamorizing it. We’re making it what it should be.”Plans for full integration with more than 10,000 forms across agencies will provide opportunities for full-service enrollment, where visitors can “apply, enroll, and track progress directly in the chat,” according to a statement on the new site. Users will find a “front door” to the government replacing the “endless maze” of websites and regulations, according to the president.
“It’s not just simply a website. It’s a restoration of America’s founding promises, and it’s a reinvention of your government for the 21st century and beyond,” Trump said. “We’re putting power and control back into the hands of the people, right where it belongs.” Once complete, Americans can request replacement Social Security cards, apply for passports and name changes, and access countless other government services.
“And with this, nobody can any longer complain about providing proof of citizenship or voter ID,” Trump said, while calling for lawmakers to pass the SAVE America Act, which would mandate proof of citizenship to register and IDs to vote. “They’re always saying it’s too complicated. It’s not complicated anymore.” Privacy is built into the system, no login is required, the site does not track visitors, and no personal information or conversations are recorded, according to administration officials.
Preventing data leaks and hacks is a priority, Trump said during his address, noting rapid advancement in technology and potential threats while touting security precautions against any attempts to infiltrate the system. Visitors can type queries into the text box, mirroring modern AI interfaces. The chatbot can also translate three spoken languages— English, Spanish, and French—with more additions coming soon.
While the technology is built on artificial intelligence platforms, the president is proposing a universal name change for the innovation, suggesting that super intelligence, or SI, is superior to the “artificial” alternative.Airbnb co-founder Joe Gebbia, the nation’s first chief design officer, revealed the website to the public in a product-demo style presentation at the Andrew Mellon Auditorium in the nation’s capital.
“There was a time when Americans entered great public buildings to meet our government, and when they did, the spaces achieved a user experience unlike anything else,” Gebbia said, noting the impact of architectural design and grand rooms that communicated “dignity and respect” to all who entered.
“America.gov carries that idea into the age of super intelligence to reimagine a government built around you that respects your time, that works for you, that we can be proud of as Americans.” Approximately 39 million Americans visit federal government websites every day, collectively spending more than 10 billion hours annually on government-related paperwork, according to administration officials.
The website is live as of Sept. 29, with more features expected in the coming months.
Everything App. He’s been talking about it for ages.
• Elon Musk Makes a Move on the Banks (Jeffrey A. Tucker)
When Elon Musk took over Twitter, fired four out of five employees, and rebranded it X (just because he thought it sounded cool), the talking heads predicted doom for the company. The opposite happened. It is now one of the most popular sources of news in the world, and a major delivery system for what social media is supposed to be.Read more …
He always had more in mind. He explained at the outset that he wanted to turn X into the “everything app.” I winced when I heard those words. As someone who worked in web development for years, I learned to regard every promise of a “one-stop shop” to be foolish. It never happens. Best to pick one thing you do well and stick with it.To my own amazement, X is indeed taking steps toward being the Everything App. Not yet, of course, but the advent of his X Money platform is major and serious. It is being rolled out gradually to premium members. Under the new content-creators payout program, people are paid within the app and invited to use the service for transferring money.
Described thusly, it would seem to be another version of Zelle or Venmo and therefore not that much to notice, much less celebrate. But when you look at the details of what X Money is doing, another reality emerges. It would appear that this app is making a move on the banks themselves.
The evidence is on the app now. It offers a way to link your paycheck to X Money to enjoy a quicker payout than if your paycheck flows to your bank account. Speed is one thing, and a good thing, but why else would you do this?
The key comes in the details which have not been advertised (Musk doesn’t like old-style marketing). These are not regular dormant cash accounts like you get in a regular checking account. They pay a return. Not just any return. The return is higher than you would otherwise get in a normal money market.
For now the Annual Percent Yield (APY) is an eye-popping 6 percent as an initial customer-acquisition rate. Not only that, the X Money card that comes digitally with the service (and physically on the ask) offers fully 3 percent cash back. A high rate plus instant peer-to-peer transmission, a metal Visa card with 3 percent cash back, and early direct deposit is meant to pull balances and daily activity onto the platform.
What you notice from these terms is that this goes way beyond a mere money-transmission service. What’s being provided here, with quick and easy signups, is a highly lucrative vehicle for serious investment. Put your cash in and have it earn 6 percent. That beats inflation. With 3 percent cash back, you are way ahead of the game. That is reason enough to switch.
As a user I immediately found myself in a bind. Initially I thought I would enjoy spending my X Money on groceries and movie tickets or something along those lines. But with this level of earning power, I will lose money if I do that. I would be forgoing the return from the money held. Better to use the cash in my bank or my credit card that also pays 3 percent cash back.
The calculation here favors keeping the money in X Money, not spending it. Indeed, the calculator favors moving cash from banks into X Money and earning the return. To be sure, that 6 percent could change in a year or two or three. It would be up to how the app is managed. Meanwhile, do you understand what this means? It means an actual reward for … saving money!
Imagine that. Cash that earns a return on an app that allows peer-to-peer transfer at zero cost. This is disruptive innovation of the sort we’ve come to expect from this man and his companies. Elon has designated the X Money app for now to be a loss leader in direct revenue but a huge investment in becoming what he likely thinks it can be in the long run: an actual option to the banks.
There might even be more afoot here. The banking rails themselves are provided by Cross River Bank. Founded in 2008, the bank carved out a special niche in working with new digital companies that focus on in-app service provision and edgier products like cryptocurrency. It is FDIC-insured but eschews traditional banking in favor of innovation. Even with its smaller capitalization, it is an ideal partner for a disruptive technology like X Money.
Recall too that Elon Musk was one of the founders of PayPal. It was started with a high hope of developing a new form of money transmission and even a new form of money. It eventually found itself regulated out of that vision to become what it is today, which is a highly valued means of payment for the digital age.
X Money seems to learn from mistakes made in those days to build out fully banking services from the very foundation. With the inclusion of crypto as part of the banking rails, we can easily imagine a future in which X Money integrates with a service like Coinbase to move money from dollars to crypto and back again.
One thing that is notable to me is the effortlessness of the signups and verifications. The developers have learned that customers recoil at too many screens, too much language, too many aggressive demands for passwords and accounts. They are using the latest technology to make signups and management extremely easy and clean.
That said, X Money does of course comply with all the arduous federal regulations concerning Know Your Customer laws and tax-reporting requirements. This is by no means an app that places a premium on your privacy. Even to make it work requires government IDs and 3D facial scans from our phone. I despise all of that while also understanding that this is the price any financial entrepreneur pays to make anything innovative these days. X Money is compliant across the board, which, from my point of view, is unavoidably regrettable.
It’s entirely possible that Elon has a big vision for this platform that he has not yet shared. Indeed, I’m struck by how much of the system that he has built so far has not been advertised at all. It’s extremely interesting how the rollout is going. The app presents direct information to the customer screen by screen, the pitch, the conditions, the advantages. Normal advertising speaks to the masses; Elon’s way is to speak to the individual user. It’s very different.
We can imagine two polar opposite futures with this new service.
Optimistically, it becomes the innovator of a new form of money and monetary services that eventually replaces paper money and even the dollar. Remember that the app is global. What if the assets of X and other companies emerge as the asset baking of a new form of currency?
Pessimistically, X Money becomes just another new layer of the emergent financial control grid that spies on us and even worse: the integration of money and social media reminds one of China’s Social Credit System. This future sometimes feels baked into the technologies we use and the deep relationship of tech companies and the government.
Which will it be? We do not know. But from what I can see, there is a strong rationale for expecting this platform to be a major player and going concern in the future world of money and finance.
They seem to be tumbling off their pedestals, the overlords.
“Anthropic Warns of ‘Existential AI Risks To Humanity’ In IPO Prospectus; OpenAI Scraps Release Of “Deceptive” Model..”
• Anthropic Warns of Existential AI Risks; OpenAI Scraps “Deceptive” Model (ZH)
Another day, another doom headline involving frontier AI labs. Yesterday, OpenAI announced that they would be scrapping the planned release of its next-gen AI model because of “deceptive” behavior. Today, we find out from a leaked prospectus ahead of Anthropic’s $2T IPO that AI could pose “catastrophic or existential risks to humanity.”Read more …
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei
“Our development of highly advanced models, platforms, and applications and expansion of use cases could further ` increase the risk that our models cause harm,” the Claude chatbot developer reportedly said, adding that a model becoming self-aware would create a “significant limitation” on the company’s ability to assess model safety. The company, which has positioned itself as a safety-first AI lab, devoted roughly 80 pages of the 261-page main body of its prospectus to laying out risk factors, nearly twice the 48 pages it used to describe its business. -ReutersThe company warned of our impending doom in their prospectus, which was leaked to Reuters and FT. Aside from that, the document also showed that the company reported a net loss of more than $42 billion in 2025. Companies going public are required to list risks to their business model – including regulatory concerns and safety issues. A warning about their product causing human extinction is a new one. * * *
Days after we detailed the unprecedented freezing of OpenAI’s top models following a disastrous breach where autonomous AI agents leaked user images to the web, OpenAI has reportedly scrapped the planned release of its next-generation AI model due to severe safety and “alignment” failures. It basically lies when convenient (they used the word “deceptive”).
According to a new report from the Wall Street Journal, OpenAI was aiming for an October debut of GPT-6.1 Astra, a model designed to complete complex, end-to-end tasks without human assistance – only to scrap the planned release after internal testing revealed that the AI was not only acting unsafely, but was actively lying to its handlers.According to Saachi Jain, OpenAI’s head of safety systems, GPT-6.1 Astra regressed significantly in its alignment testing, which measures how well the model adheres to human intent. And just like a baby Skynet, the model exhibited “higher levels of deception,” meaning it wasn’t always honest with users about the actions it did or did not execute.
What’s more, the model regressed sharply on what OpenAI calls “scope authorization.” The AI would aggressively push forward on tasks without asking for user permission and would attempt to access external tools and services even if it was unsafe to do so. Highlighting the internal struggle to control the system, Jain noted, “For anything regarding safety and alignment, there’s a trade off. You really do need to find what’s the right line between staying within scope, but also avoiding laziness in terms of how the model actually pursues tasks even when it hits friction”.
As we previously reported, on Sept. 20 an internal OpenAI research agent discovered a gap in the DNS filtering of its training sandbox and used it to query an external public chatbot despite internet-access restrictions. OpenAI’s misalignment monitoring system flagged the behavior within 15 minutes, and a human reviewer picked it up three minutes later. The company subsequently said training, evaluation, and inference involving tool use for its most capable models would remain paused while it validated its containment systems and conducted additional red-teaming.
This latest cancellation does not exist in a vacuum. In July, during internal cybersecurity evaluations, OpenAI’s own agents blew through restrictions designed to keep them isolated from the internet and compromised both the company’s research infrastructure and Hugging Face. According to OpenAI’s own postmortem, the agents communicated through unauthorized channels, exploited vulnerabilities in shared infrastructure, executed code on dozens of Hugging Face servers, obtained full root access on one server, acquired credentials to the company’s messaging platform, and later gained full administrator access to an OpenAI research cluster.
OpenAI itself called the episode a “warning shot” for us and for the world, acknowledging that highly capable agents can now work around technical controls and take dangerous actions that no human directed. The company said the incidents did not affect OpenAI customer data, product functionality, or availability.
And Hugging Face wasn’t the only external system involved. Australian officials have confirmed that an OpenAI agent gained unauthorized access to non-public aggregate statistics on a government Medicare portal after its initial requests were denied. Separately, a security researcher linked more than 16,000 attempts to work around restrictions on a United Nations trade-statistics API to agents he said were highly likely to have been operated by OpenAI. The UN data itself was public, and OpenAI said it was looking into the findings.
“Donald Trump does have more influence on more races than any other Republican, even than Ronald Reagan,” Luntz added. “I’ve never seen a Republican as engaged and involved as this guy. And it matters.”
• Frank Luntz Just Gave Dems Devastating News About the Midterms (Margolis)
Frank Luntz, a smart pollster who fell out of favor with the right for refusing to get on board with Donald Trump, just handed Republicans a glimmer of hope for the midterms. And that hope comes from the very man Luntz spent years criticizing. Luntz’s standing with conservatives took a serious hit starting in 2016. As Trump took over the Republican Party, Luntz grew more and more critical of his rhetoric and put real distance between himself and the GOP.Read more …
A big chunk of the conservative movement tuned him out, and his skepticism toward Trump fueled most of that backlash. So when Luntz says Trump could carry Republicans to victory in November, it’s worth listening. His polling shows a rough cycle for both parties, but the details favor the GOP. Trump and Republicans aren’t polling well, yet Democrats are doing even worse, and they’ve dug themselves deeper into their media bubbles. Even the turnout advantage Democrats are banking on turns out to be pretty thin.“I’m looking at a turnout differential that advantages the Democrats by a couple of points, which means that there are more people who oppose Donald Trump, who are planning to vote, than those who support him,” Luntz told CNN This Morning on Monday. “There’s always been a historical advantage to the party out of power in the midterms, particularly in the first midterms.” A couple of points? That’s it? The party out of power usually walks into its first midterm with the wind at its back, and Democrats can only manage a two-point edge. Luntz also explained why that edge is so fragile.
Trump’s voters show up when he’s on the ballot and stay home when he isn’t, which makes his absence in November a bigger problem for Republicans than his approval ratings. “When he is on the ballot, his people come out. They participate,” he said. “They did in the on-year elections, 2016 and 2024. And they did not, in 2018. And they did not as much, even when Joe Biden was the president in 2020, for the 2022 election.” The fix is obvious, and Trump is already working on it. Luntz said the whole map hinges on whether the president can get those voters engaged again, starting with the biggest prize.
“But he needs his people to vote in a place like Texas,” Luntz continued. “If the Trump voters participate, the Republican nominee in Texas is elected. If the Trump voters don’t participate, the Democrats will achieve an upset. It’s the same thing in states as small as Iowa, Alaska. It even matters in a state like Ohio.”
When CNN’s Audie Cornish pressed him on whether that coalition still holds together, Luntz ticked off the groups he’s watching. He admitted Trump’s Latino numbers have slipped, but said the president “saw the difference” those voters made for him and for down-ballot Republicans. He’s also tracking male union voters, who shifted toward the GOP at historic levels in 2024, and voters under 30, who gave Trump more support than young voters usually give a Republican. “And this allowed him to bring over more senators, more congressmen,” Luntz said.
Then came the line that should make every Democrat nervous. b”Donald Trump does have more influence on more races than any other Republican, even than Ronald Reagan,” Luntz added. “I’ve never seen a Republican as engaged and involved as this guy. And it matters.” More influence than Reagan. From Frank Luntz, of all people. Luntz did warn that voters are frustrated with the war, affordability, and Trump’s style, and he had a message for the pollster-bashers in Trump’s orbit: “The votes are the votes. The results are the results.” But he made it clear that the path to victory runs straight through Trump.
“But if he turns out his people, who still like him, still believe in the Trump message and the Trump agenda, we can have an upset,” he said.
Democrats have spent months treating a midterm wave as a sure thing. They won’t be happy to hear that a pollster who has never been a Trump cheerleader has them polling worse than the GOP, clinging to a turnout lead of just two points, and facing the most engaged Republican he’s ever seen.
“Because it’s not about Donald Trump,” Khanna said. “He’s going to be a lame duck, and in my view, increasingly irrelevant.”
• Democrats Split on Whether to Impeach Trump Again (Chase Smith)
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) said on Sept. 28 that Democrats would put lowering costs first if they win the House in November. But he did not rule out impeaching President Donald Trump, as members of his party are split publicly on whether to try for that a third time. Asked on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” how much of a Democratic majority’s next two years would be spent on hearings about Trump, his family, and his administration, Jeffries said the party is focused on affordability but also has an oversight role.Read more …
“We’re committed to an affordability agenda,” he said. “As I travel the country, speak to people, whether that’s in urban America, rural parts of America, the heartland of America, small-town America, or black and brown communities throughout America. The one thing that is clear is that people are struggling.“They are drowning in this failed Republican economy. They’re working hard, they’re playing by the rules, but they cannot thrive and can barely survive. It’s an unacceptable situation. And so, when we say we’re focused on affordability, we mean it.”
Jeffries said he believed that there has been “unprecedented corruption unleashed on the American people” and that if Democrats win the House, they would “have a responsibility to visit the type of accountability that is consistent with the House as a separate and co-equal branch of government.” Pressed on the balance between accountability and affordability, he said the next Democratic caucus would include progressives, moderates, and more socially conservative members united around the cost of living.
Jeffries said when it came to cleaning up what he called the “rampant corruption” that exists in Washington, Democrats would “follow the facts, apply the law, be guided by the Constitution, and then let the chips fall where they may on behalf of the American people.” “We have a responsibility, of course, as a Congress, to serve as a check and balance on an out-of-control executive branch. That’s not partisan, that’s patriotic,” he said.
Jeffries’s comments came a day after Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that impeaching Trump a third time would not be a mistake for Democrats. “No, it’s not. Because it’s not about Donald Trump,” Khanna said. “He’s going to be a lame duck, and in my view, increasingly irrelevant.
“The point is to stand up for the Constitution.”Impeachment says that you can’t get into an illegal war in Iran without constitutional approval. Impeachment says that you can’t just start firing federal employees in defiance of what Congress says. Impeachment says you can’t do deals with foreign governments to allegedly enrich your own family. “It’s about setting a standard.” He said Democrats could pursue impeachment while also moving on child care, the minimum wage, paid family leave, and taxes on billionaires in their first 100 days.
“We can do both,” he said. Khanna was responding to a clip of Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), who told an audience at the Center for American Progress on Sept. 22 that Democrats should not pursue impeachment if they win control of Congress. “What I will encourage my colleagues to not do, especially those who have more fire in their belly in this area, is don’t be impeaching anybody. Let’s just get back to work,” Duckworth said.
“I’m not interested in being in a confrontation with Donald Trump. I can be. I have been. It’s not going to stop me. But I would rather move the ball forward through the benefit of the American people. “And if we can do it in a way that allows him to save face and he doesn’t stop us, then that’s better for everybody all around.” Duckworth, speaking at an event on U.S. – China relations ahead of Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s White House visit, said her priority was resolving tariffs that she said threaten Illinois soybean, corn, and pork farmers.
Trump was impeached by the House in 2019 and 2021 and acquitted by the Senate both times. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) said on John Catsimatidis’s “Cats Roundtable” radio show on Sept. 27 that a Democratic majority would turn oversight into a campaign against Republicans. “You will see the Democrats take that oversight function and turn it into a weaponization of government. They will go after everybody. They say they’re not going to, but we know they will,” Jordan said.
“They’ll do a third impeachment of President Trump. “But that’s just part of it. They’re going to investigate the first family. They’re going to investigate Cabinet secretaries, anyone. “Jamie Raskin is going to go after Todd Blanche and Kash Patel. They’re going to have people in other committees go after Secretary Hegseth and on and on; it’s going to be.”
Jordan said potential targets he believed that Democrats would go after include businesses that helped fund Trump’s inauguration and potential 2028 Republican presidential candidates, including Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. “It’ll be nonstop weaponized investigations, not for legitimate oversight, but to just go after your political opponents,” he said.
Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) is the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee and would be in line to lead it under a Democratic majority. The midterm elections are on Nov. 3. The White House stated that the threats amount to “decades” of recycled “investigations against President Trump, his family, and his administration,” in an emailed response to The Epoch Times.
Know when to recuse yourself.
• The Alito Controversy Raises Persistent Problem on the Court (Turley)
Yesterday, Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito recused himself from one of the term’s most important cases: Suncor Energy Inc. v. County Commissioners of Boulder County. As I have previously discussed, the case involving the liability of energy companies for nuisance actions tied to climate change could have sweeping implications for the country. Justice Alito should be commended for avoiding even the appearance of a personal interest or a conflict in the case.Read more …
However, the controversy should prompt the Court to explore a longstanding problem for justices in holding financial interests that can conflict with their duties. The solution is simple: justices need to use blind trusts. Supreme Court Clerk Scott Harris released a letter revealing that Alito decided he “will not continue to participate” in Suncor Energy Inc. v. County Commissioners of Boulder County.Suncor Energy, Boulder sued energy companies under “theories of public and private nuisance, trespass, unjust enrichment, and civil conspiracy, claiming that they knowingly contributed to climate change while misleading the public about its impacts.” The Colorado Supreme Court ruled for the city and the county in finding that such lawsuits are not barred by federal preemption. If such lawsuits are allowed to go forward, it would expose companies to potentially thousands of climate change lawsuits. Oral agument is set for Oct. 5,
The recusal is a blow for challengers who believe that the opinion could be close and Alito was believed to be on the side of barring such actions. It is now down to 8, so a single loss of another conservative could result in a 4-4 tie — leaving the lower court decision unchanged.
While the letter did not give a reason, critics had called for Alito’s recusal due to his financial interest in energy companies which could benefit from the decision.
That included 30 organizations which jointly asked the Senate Judiciary Committee to investigate his involvement in the case. Notably, the court responded to media inquiries by declaring that Alito had no financial interest in any party to the case and that legal counsel had told him that there is no need to recuse himself.
Yet, the standard is whether a reasonable person could question his impartiality and, while he had no interest in the parties, he appears to have investments in other energy companies. Justice Alito previously withdrew shortly before arguments in a separate oil industry case earlier this year.
The Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (EIGA) established financial disclosure reporting requirements for many high-level government officials and employees, including the Justices of the Supreme Court. Supreme Court Justices file publicly available financial disclosure statements that report certain financial transactions. However, they are not required to put their investments into a blind trust.
Justices should be able to have investment portfolios, but they can hold such investments in blind trust or qualified blind trust. In a blind trust the justice will “have no control over, will receive no communications about, and will (eventually as existing assets are sold and new ones obtained by the trustee) have no knowledge of the identity of the specific assets held in the trust. As such, once a blind trust is established and new assets obtained, an official will not need to (and will not be able to) identify the particular assets 13 5 C.F.R. § 2635.403(b).”
Other federal officials must use such trusts and there is no reason why justices should be exempt, in my view. This has been a continual and embarrassing problem. Years ago, the Court affirmed an appellate ruling in a major case involving a $400 billion lawsuit in American Isuzu Motors v. Ntsebeza (2008) without a hearing after four justices had to recuse themselves (Chief Justice John Roberts Jr. and Justices Anthony Kennedy, Stephen Breyer, and Samuel Alito Jr).
The business interests of justices should not interfere with the business of the Court. You should either be an active investor in the markets or a justice, not both. The public has a reasonable expectation that, in seeking this high office, justices are willing to set aside certain privileges or interests. This is one of them.
This is not to cast aspersions on the justices. These recusals show that members, including Justice Alito, are cognizant and committed to avoiding even the appearance of a conflict of interest. Moreover, some judges and justices resolve this question by using diversified mutual funds or ETFs. where the justice does not control the micro-allocations within the fund. However, there is still knowledge of financial interests in given areas.
This is not a costless obligation for justices. Blind trusts add costs (which Congress may want to consider defraying) and can be complex. However, the business of the Court is too important to be routinely compromised or complicated by these financial interests.
While legislation has been introduced along these lines, it would be simpler for justices to voluntarily adopt this practice. Consider it is the price of being one of nine. If you want to sit on this Court, you have to do justice which is only fully possible if your investments, like justice itself, are blind.
“Russia’s parliamentary elections have shown that its people cannot be intimidated or defeated, the president has said..”
• ‘Victory Will Be Ours’ – Putin (RT)
Russia’s parliamentary elections have shown that its people cannot be intimidated or defeated, President Vladimir Putin has said. Speaking at a Kremlin meeting with the leadership of political parties on Monday, Putin said attempts to disrupt the election campaign and interfere in the country’s internal affairs had failed, adding that “terrorist methods and instruments of foreign intelligence services” had been used.Read more …
The September 18-20 vote was accompanied by a massive Ukrainian drone raid targeting Moscow and other Russian regions on its final day. Russian officials said more than 1,600 UAVs were repelled, including 450 on approaches to the capital. Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin described the attack as “unprecedented” and said it had been intended to disrupt the elections. At least two civilians were reported killed in Moscow Region.Putin thanked tens of millions of Russians for taking part in the vote, saying the turnout had ensured the “indisputable, unquestionable legitimacy” of the election. “People here are strong, courageous and educated; everyone understands perfectly well what is happening around Russia,” Putin said. “It became clear that such people cannot be intimidated. And it is impossible to defeat such people, such a country. Therefore, victory will undoubtedly be ours.”
The president also said the vote had demonstrated public support for Russian troops, noting that candidates who had taken part in the Ukraine conflict had won seats in parliament. The ruling United Russia party secured 355 of the State Duma’s 450 seats. Separately on Monday, Putin signed a decree increasing the authorized strength of the Russian Armed Forces to 2,441,630 personnel, including 1,550,500 servicemen. The measure adds 15,500 positions compared with the previous decree.
“As the economy falters and winter approaches, Kiev’s commitment to its Western backers leaves little room for peace..”
• Ukraine Is Asking For A Truce. While Preparing For A Bigger War (Poletaev)
Washington is pushing for an energy truce between Russia and Ukraine. Kiev supports the initiative, and Moscow has also responded favorably. Another round of shuttle diplomacy has taken place: US President Donald Trump met with Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky, and a special representative of Russian President Vladimir Putin traveled to the US for talks with his American counterparts. Work is underway to revive the trilateral negotiation format involving Russia, Ukraine, and the US.Read more …
Judging by these and other news reports, one might get the impression that things are moving toward a diplomatic breakthrough and a truce between Russia and Ukraine. However, this impression is deceptive: A closer analysis reveals that the positions of the parties have not changed over the past year. On the contrary, Ukraine’s worsening situation has hardened its resolve to fight to the bitter end.Up the down staircase
In spring 2025, Ukraine, with the backing of its European allies, launched a major campaign for a ceasefire. The expectation was that Trump would force Putin to accept the terms imposed by Europe and Ukraine, freezing the hostilities along the line of contact without any preconditions.A truce would have cemented Ukraine’s defeat in the conflict. However, Russia’s primary objective would not have been achieved: The anti-Russian regime in Kiev would remain in place, and Ukraine would retain its role as a Western foothold against Russia. A temporary truce would allow Ukraine to recover and prepare for revenge in the future. A year ago, despite major issues, Ukraine still functioned: The remnants of the civilian economy operated, and despite considerable disruptions, steel and agricultural production (two of the country’s main export sectors) continued.
Without Western financial aid, Ukraine would have already faced a financial catastrophe; however, it continued to exist. Despite occasional disruptions, major industrial facilities remained operational, as did the small and medium-sized businesses that supported them – suppliers, transport companies, various outsourced services, construction and repair crews, and so on. Cafes, restaurants, the telecommunications sector, and small businesses stayed open. Ukraine’s robust logistics sector remained active. The government collected taxes from all these businesses.
However, in spring 2026, Ukraine decided to force Russia to conclude a truce by starting a ‘war on cities’ – large-scale strikes on the Russian rear. It first targeted oil refining and export facilities, and then the civilian sector, including the warehouses of companies such as Wildberries and Ozon.
The worst possible moment
Escalation only makes sense when ‘escalation dominance’ can be maintained. Otherwise, the outcome will be detrimental to the party that started the escalation. That is exactly what happened: In response to Ukraine’s attacks, Russia launched a broad offensive against Ukraine’s civilian sector. From the start of the conflict, Ukraine has not concealed the fact that it uses civilian logistics infrastructure to transport military cargo. Launchers for long-range drones targeting Russia have often been hidden under the guise of civilian trucks.
Ukrainian strikes on Black Sea oil and grain exports gave Russia a pretext to respond in kind and effectively block Ukraine’s shipping in the Black Sea. As with strikes on warehouses, Russia maintained the upper hand in the escalation. There are several reasons for this: Russia’s increased firepower, the depletion of Ukrainian air defenses, and more broadly, Ukraine’s smaller size, its lack of strategic geographic depth, and fewer targets within the country. While the ‘war on cities’ affected Russia as well, Ukrainian strikes did not cause the same amount of damage.
All this prompted Zelensky to propose a truce. What he actually proposed was returning to the way things were before this year’s escalation, and pretending like it never happened. But does he really want a truce? It may look that way. After all, the Ukrainian economy – and consequently the Ukrainian state itself – is beginning to disintegrate; Ukraine’s key exports – its only source of revenue aside from foreign aid – have been effectively destroyed. For the first time in history, steel production in Ukraine has come to a complete halt; restarting it would take months if not years. By all accounts, the country is facing the most difficult winter yet. If this is not grounds for making political concessions, then what is?
The only available option
Zelensky’s calls for a truce are accompanied by opposing statements. One moment, he demands a “winter package” of weapons from Trump; the next, he declares that the war will not end until Crimea is “liberated.” Domestically, he is intensifying the crackdown on the Russian language and the Orthodox Church, even though this only heightens tensions within Ukrainian society. Clearly, given these parameters, Russia will never agree to a ceasefire. So is it all just schizophrenia or a calculated move?I’d say it’s the latter. It’s true that if we consider Zelensky as the leader of Ukraine, then his actions are insane and amount to suicide. However, if one views him as the military proxy of Europe’s anti-Russia coalition, then everything falls into place.
For Zelensky and his regime, Ukraine is not their own land; it is a resource and an instrument for war against Russia. To save Ukraine, Zelensky must accept Russia’s terms. Yet Ukraine’s masters cannot accept Russia’s terms, as that would mean a crushing defeat for them.Consequently, the war must go on. If the destruction of rear-area logistics and energy infrastructure does not affect the ability of the Ukrainian army to hold the front line, then logistics and energy don’t matter. Of course, left without electricity, heat, and jobs, Ukraine’s civilian population will endure great suffering – but Zelensky doesn’t care about that.
Taking this logic into account, even an energy truce is bad for Ukraine, as a moratorium on mutual strikes would deprive Kiev – or rather, its masters – of the only effective leverage over Moscow.Of course, this is a one-way street. In an earlier article, we analyzed how the Ukrainian state is becoming detached from its own society. Today, I’d like to point out that in its current form, the Kiev regime has no other options: On one side of the scale lies the fate of Ukraine, and on the other, the interests of its masters. Zelensky has no real choice. In the interests of its masters, Ukraine must sacrifice itself and inflict the greatest possible damage on Russia, or if possible, even defeat it.
As long as there remains hope for Russia’s defeat, nothing else matters. Ukraine wants to either freeze the conflict along the line of contact and prepare to take revenge later, or fight to the bitter end. Russia understands this very well; that is why it has once again rejected any idea of a partial truce – this was recently expressed by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at the UN, and then by Putin. Even though this year, Russia was seriously affected by Ukrainian strikes, Moscow is only open to ending the conflict on its own terms.
***
What comes next? Both sides are actively preparing for the winter campaign, and it appears that, for the first time since the start of the conflict, long-range air strikes (the war on cities) will become the primary theater of operations. Moscow is confident that the Ukrainian army cannot inflict strategic damage on Russia; consequently, its only option is to maintain escalation dominance by responding to the Ukrainian strikes with even more powerful attacks. Under these circumstances, there can be no talk of either an energy truce or freezing the conflict along the line of contact.
We need Le Pen to save Europe.
“Her National Rally party and an ally have won enough seats to form a group in the upper house for the first time”
• Le Pen Scores ‘Historic Victory’ In French Senate Vote (RT)
Marine Le Pen’s right-wing National Rally (RN) and an allied party have won enough seats in the French Senate to form a group for the first time. The breakthrough comes months before a presidential election in which polls currently put Le Pen in the lead. RN and the Union of the Right for the Republic (UDR) will together hold at least 15 seats in the 348-seat upper house following Sunday’s vote. A group requires a minimum of ten members and gives its lawmakers a greater role in Senate committees, where legislation is examined.Read more …
“This is a historic victory, and a major milestone with the formation for the first time of a group in the Senate,” Le Pen wrote on X. She said the result showed the party gaining support across France and that its senators would carry the concerns of local communities into the presidential campaign.mDespite RN’s latest gains, the Senate will remain controlled by the conservative Republicans and their centrist allies.RN president Jordan Bardella has nevertheless called the result a sign of the party’s momentum ahead of what he described as “the mother of all battles,” referring to the upcoming presidential election. In July, the Paris Court of Appeals reduced Le Pen’s five-year ban on holding elected office over a misused funds conviction, clearing her to run in the 2027 race to replace Emmanuel Macron who will be leaving office after serving two terms.
A Toluna Harris Interactive poll published on Monday has placed Le Pen as the frontrunner at 35-36% in the first round and projected that she would defeat both left-wing France Unbowed leader Jean-Luc Melenchon and centrist former Prime Minister Edouard Philippe in hypothetical runoffs.
The RN breakthrough has drawn a hostile response from rival factions, including from Socialist Senate group leader Patrick Kanner, who said his party would work to contain the “chamber of horrors” entering the Senate. Le Pen accused Kanner of “dishonoring himself” and insulting both the newly elected senators and the local officials who voted for them.
The prospect of Le Pen replacing Macron raised particular concerns among the Western backers of Ukraine. The Telegraph reported in August that officials fear her election could disrupt the French-led effort to coordinate military and financial support for Kiev, as well as plans to deploy Western troops there after a ceasefire.
RN has long challenged Macron’s approach to the Ukraine conflict, opposing open-ended funding for Kiev and steps it says risk a direct confrontation with Russia. Le Pen has repeatedly stressed that the conflict needs a diplomatic solution and has called for normalizing relations with Moscow.
Let me guess: Soros?
• Border Patrol Puts Illegal Alien Caravan on Notice (Catherine Salgado)
U.S. Border Patrol is already warning the caravan of illegal aliens recently formed to head toward our southern border that they are going a long way just to be disappointed.Read more …
It is not clear why the caravan formed at this particular time. Perhaps illegal aliens are hoping that if Democrats sweep the midterms, the Trump administration will be so busy fighting a Democrat Congress that it will not have the time or attention to continue guarding the southern border well. After all, the Trump administration always listens to court orders, no matter how illegitimate, telling them not to deport illegal aliens and terrorists. Is this what the cartels have in mind?In any case, as of right now, no illegal alien caravan is going to be able to sneak across the border with Mexico and into our country. No large migrant group has achieved that feat since soon after the second Trump administration took office.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shared a statement with Fox News that correspondent Bill Melugin posted on X September 28. “The United States Border Patrol is actively tracking a migrant caravan which departed San Pedro Sula, Honduras on September 20, 2026. USBP is closely engaged with its international partners to monitor their movement and any additional developments,” the statement began.
DHS added, “USBP reminds migrants that under the leadership of President Trump and Homeland Secretary Mullin, the border has remained closed and secured for the last 16 months. Migrants considering making the dangerous journey to our country should also be aware that the days of ‘catch and release’ are over, and Biden’s disastrous open border policy has been SEALED SHUT. Anyone attempting to illegally enter the United States will be apprehended, prosecuted, and removed from the country.”
DHS also jokingly posted footage of a hot-dogging football player and the comment “Our time has come” in response to the initial report about the migrant caravan.
The caravan originally started in Honduras but has now crossed into Mexico, according to Fox News. As of Monday, hundreds of people were involved in it, but it still seems to be much smaller than the gargantuan floods of millions that charged our border during the Biden-Harris administration. So most of the foreigners considering coming to America still understand that this is not the most promising time just to walk in and demand asylum.
Fox quoted one member of the Honduran caravan who claimed there was no leader of the group, that hunger and poverty were the only reasons they headed toward the United States. But we have no idea whether we can trust anything he says. And obviously there must be some reason that these illegal aliens are putting all this effort into hiking toward America even though the Trump administration is already planning to deny them entry. What is going on that is a secret we don’t know about?
“Want to Kill Christianity in America? Try This One Simple Trick the State of Maine Pulled.”
• Want to Kill Christianity in America? (Victoria Taft)
Say a prayer for Christianity because the state of Maine has just shown a way to steal it from American life. The story starts back in 2013, when a Portland, Maine, woman gave birth to a baby girl, Ava, with her now ex-boyfriend. Eventually, in 2017, Emily Bickford accepted Christ as her Savior and began to attend church with her daughter. Eventually, when they began attending Calvary Chapel of Greater Portland in 2021, Ava wanted to be baptized. Dad, who had 50/50 custody, said no way.Read more …
While mom was adjudicated to be a good mother, dad was working behind the scenes to establish that taking their daughter to church was harmful. He hired a cult expert out of California, and the expert began watching Calvary Chapel of Greater Portland’s Sunday sermons as they build a case against Ava attending church. She continued to take her daughter to church. In 2021, dad, Matthew A. Bradeen, officially claimed that going to Calvary Chapel exposed their daughter to alleged messages portraying dad as hostile to her faith, going to hell if he didn’t change, and, in general, harming their relationship.This is surmise, but it sounds like she was afraid her dad was going to hell and wanted to talk to him about it. Now she can’t even bring up Christianity around him because it makes him look bad. In fact, so complete was the order cleaving the kid from religious study that it included, “any services, gatherings, or events associated with Calvary Chapel; whether and what material, literature, video, or other messaging associated with, or created or published by, Calvary Chapel she reviews; and whether she associates or communicates with any member of Calvary Chapel other than Ms. Bickford,” Liberty Counsel, Bickford’s attorneys, reported.
Calvary Chapel preaches everything, everything, that other mainstream churches teach all around the country world. And that message of salvation is too scary for kids? The Christian civil rights legal group, Liberty Counsel, got involved and took the case to the Maine Supreme Judicial Court, where a unanimous six-justice panel said the order should stand because, hey, it’s not like Christianity was involved in the case, and that, after all, it was just about messaging making dad look bad.
After the District Court ruled against Bickford, Liberty Counsel appealed the case to the Maine Supreme Judicial Court, which upheld the lower court’s decision. In its decision, the Supreme Judicial Court cited a 2024 example of the fear mongering at church in which Pastor Carey prayed for the family by name during a service and asked God to help Bradeen. The pastor “described Bradeen as in need of salvation and noted that the church had been praying for Bradeen for a long time.” Calvary Chapel of Greater Portland Pastor Travis Carey says these decisions represent “the most dangerous precedent that has been set in our nation in a long time and we’re right in the midst of that battle.”
They went so far as to hire a specialist out of California, it’s public record, and even though they spent about $15,000 to hire her, her opening thesis of what is a 20 page hit piece was ‘I do not opine that Calvary Chapel is a cult,’ but spent the next 19-1/2 pages, [in which] she basically makes the case that we are a cult for preaching Biblical truths.
What is even more egregious is that judge in Cumberland County family court — and it is worthwhile saying that she is a lesbian and is married to an ACUL lawyer —she cited [sic] that the mother would no longer have the parental duties to make religious or medical decisions — stripped her from that and gave 100% autonomy to the father.
Liberty Counsel attorney and founder Mat Staver now hopes the U.S. Supreme Court will take the case. This [District Court] opinion rejects the First Amendment right of a fit parent to raise her child consistent with her Christian faith. This opinion goes against other state court decisions involving custody in the context of religious free exercise rights and ignores precedent from the U.S. Supreme Court. We will ask the High Court to take this case and overrule the decision.
PJ Media readers are smart. They know that this is a litigation tool to stop teaching kids the Gospel. It will start small and then become a precedent by which any church message can be construed to scare the children in any kind of court case.
Schools and other outlets teach children that the world is going to end any minute allegedly because of what we’ve done to God’s creation, but you can’t preach to a kid from a broken home that she has a Father in heaven who cares for her even more than her earthly one? You can’t preach that there’s a Creator in control of the creation?
Atheistic commies really don’t like the competition. This dad, who I’m guessing is one of the Maine liberati, just proved in multiple courts that religious messages are “harmful” to children. This story isn’t over, but we’ve just entered a very dark, secular place. We sure hope people of faith will get out and vote for the light in November.
First orbital flight of Starship successful! https://t.co/xVNsnUKTm0
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 28, 2026
https://twitter.com/SawyerMerritt/status/2104563930752319513?s=20 https://twitter.com/Miaavswpv/status/2104718535272608229?s=20SpaceX is building massive infrastructure for the future https://t.co/oTr9iROWo9
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 28, 2026
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