Khameini Archives - The Automatic Earth

"I studied the Koran a great deal. I came away from that study with the conviction that by and large, there have been few religions in the world as deadly to men as that of Muhammad."

— Alexis de Tocqueville pic.twitter.com/5kEDStXKHJ
— Humble Flow (@HumbleFlow) March 21, 2026

Christopher Hitchens: ”In 1786, when the United States was barely a country, it was having its sailors taken as slaves by the Barbary states, the states of the Ottoman Empire and North Africa. Tripoli, shores of Tripoli. Ships stopped, its crews carried off into slavery. We… pic.twitter.com/hbRRR4mCYP
— Taya (@travelingflying) March 21, 2026

https://twitter.com/Thevictoria76/status/2035326809483706368?s=20

Is JD right ? pic.twitter.com/haeI1AQi8a
— N Ecc 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 (@Neccccy) March 21, 2026

https://twitter.com/ivan_8848/status/2035321243969241307?s=20

Splitting up the Arab world.

• Saudi Arabia & UAE Inch Closer To Joining US-Israeli War (MEE)

Earlier this month, Elbridge Colby, a senior official in the US Department of War, held a call with Saudi Arabian Defense Minister Khalid bin Salman, who is also the brother and top adviser to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Iran’s attacks on US bases in the Gulf were heating up, and the US needed expanded access and overflight permissions. Saudi Arabia agreed to open King Fahd Air Base in Taif, in Western Saudi Arabia, to the Americans, multiple US and western officials familiar with the matter told Middle East Eye.

The base is important because it is farther from Iranian Shahed drones than Prince Sultan Air Base, which has come under repeated Iranian attacks. Taif is also close to Jeddah, the Red Sea port that has become a critical logistics hub since Iran effectively took control of the Strait of Hormuz. Current and former US officials tell MEE that if the Trump administration is preparing for a longer war on Iran, Jeddah may be critical for sustaining US armed forces. Thousands of US ground troops are en route to the region from East Asia.
Saudi Arabia’s decision to expand base access, current and former officials say, underscores a shift in how the kingdom and some other Gulf states are responding to the US-Israeli war on Iran. “The attitude in Riyadh has shifted towards supporting the US war as a way to punish Iran for strikes,” a western official in the Gulf told MEE. Trump and the Saudi crown prince have been holding regular phone calls for the last three weeks, the US and western officials told MEE. The UAE has also told the US that it is geared up for a long war, putting no pressure on Washington to wrap up the conflict soon. In a phone call earlier this month, UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed told his counterpart, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, that the UAE is prepared for the war to last up to nine months, the US official told MEE.
Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar lobbied US President Donald Trump against attacking Iran. While they host US military bases, the states insisted that they not be used as launchpads when the US joined Israel on 28 February to attack Iran. Despite this, the Gulf states have paid the heaviest price for the US’s decision to go to war. The UAE alone has intercepted 338 ballistic missiles and 1,740 drones since the start of the war. Qatar suffered the worst attack of any Gulf state despite being a critical mediator that has consistently focused on de-escalation. Iran responded to an Israeli attack on its South Pars gas field this week by launching missiles at Qatar’s Ras Laffan refinery. The damage will take three to five years to repair and affects 17 percent of Qatar’s gas production, according to Qatari energy minister Saad al-Kaabi.
Some states, like Oman, have said that Israel hoodwinked the US into launching an unlawful attack on Iran. There is also anger at the US over its value as a security guarantor. The US has been unable to replenish the Gulf states’ Patriot and Terminal High Altitude Area Defence interceptors. The US bases in the Gulf, meant to protect the Arab monarchies, have been targeted. Meanwhile, oil and gas exports have ground to a halt. Omani Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi wrote in The Economist this week that this is “not America’s war” and that Washington’s allies needed to make clear to the US that it was dragged into a conflict with little to gain.
Busaidi’s remarks contrasted with those of Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan. After Riyadh and the port of Yanbu were attacked by Iran, he delivered a blistering message to the Islamic Republic. One former US intelligence official described it as “fighting words”. Farhan said Iran had committed “heinous attacks” which “are an extension of [Iran’s] behavior that is based on extortion and sponsoring militias, threatening the security and stability of neighbouring countries”. “Saudi Arabia has repeatedly tried to extend its hand to the Iranian brothers…but the Iranians did not reciprocate,” he said, adding that the kingdom reserved the right to take “military action”.
While no one in the Gulf wanted a war with Iran, the Gulf states are approaching the conflict from varied, evolving perspectives as it drags into its fourth week, experts say. Saudi Arabia is the largest country in the region, and like the UAE, it has ambitions to project hard power abroad. In fact, Saudi Arabia attacked the UAE’s allies in Yemen just before the war on Iran erupted. Oman has carved out a niche for itself as a mediator. As one of the countries least hit by Iran in the region, the relative security of its capital, Muscat, is also being noticed by expatriates leaving Dubai. “There is a divide emerging in the Gulf,” Bernard Haykel, a professor of Near Eastern studies at Princeton University, who speaks with the Saudi Arabian crown prince, told MEE.
“Saudi Arabia and the UAE were neutral before this war. But as they have been attacked, they have come to the realization that they cannot live with this hardline Iranian regime next door, which can, at a moment’s notice, extort the region by closing the Strait of Hormuz,” he added. The Saudi capital, Riyadh, and the kingdom’s energy infrastructure have been targeted by Iran. But the conflict is widely seen in the region, and increasingly inside the US, as an Israeli power grab. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has said that Israel is guilty of committing genocide in Gaza. The Israeli war on the enclave has killed over 72,000 Palestinians since it started in October 2023.

“The Hormuz Strait will have to be guarded and policed, as necessary, by other Nations who use it — The United States does not!”

• Trump Gives Iran 48-Hour Ultimatum on Strait of Hormuz (Catherine Salgado)

President Donald Trump has delivered a specific deadline to the terror-sponsoring Iranian regime to stop terrorizing a strategic waterway or face devastating consequences. On the afternoon of Saturday, March 21, Trump posted on Truth Social, “If Iran doesn’t FULLY OPEN, WITHOUT THREAT, the Strait of Hormuz, within 48 HOURS from this exact point in time, the United States of America will hit and obliterate their various POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST! Thank you for your attention to this matter.”

The Trump administration has been trying to pressure other nations into helping patrol the Strait of Hormuz, which is actually much more necessary for their economies than for ours, but most of the governments have been reluctant to commit any resources. Great Britain, Japan, France, Italy, Germany, and the Netherlands finally issued a joint statement expressing a willingness to help protect the strait, but it is not clear if they have actually provided the means to do so as of yet.
Besides Israel, which has been America’s partner in the joint Iran operation, none of our allies seemed eager to step up to the plate, and many of them actively complained about the operation. The Republic of Somaliland has offered a long-term military and economic partnership with the United States in exchange for recognition, but the Trump administration has not yet accepted the offer. Besides our allies’ whining and moaning, one of Trump‘s pet peeves throughout this Iran operation has been Western mainstream media claiming the operation has been a disaster for America. He addressed another such claim on Truth Social just before delivering his ultimatum to the Iranian regime.
“The United States has blown Iran off of the map, and yet their lightweight analyst, David Sanger, says that I haven’t met my own goals,” the president posted. “Yes I have, and weeks ahead of schedule! Their leadership is gone, their navy and air force are dead, they have absolutely no defense, and they want to make a deal. I don’t! We are weeks ahead of schedule. Just like their incompetent Election coverage of me, The Failing New York Times always gets it wrong!”Trump also hinted that the Iran operation is going so successfully that it might be coming to a close soon. In a Friday post, he declared:
We are getting very close to meeting our objectives as we consider winding down our great Military efforts in the Middle East with respect to the Terrorist Regime of Iran: (1) Completely degrading Iranian Missile Capability, Launchers, and everything else pertaining to them. (2) Destroying Iran’s Defense Industrial Base. (3) Eliminating their Navy and Air Force, including Anti Aircraft Weaponry. (4) Never allowing Iran to get even close to Nuclear Capability, and always being in a position where the U.S.A. can quickly and powerfully react to such a situation, should it take place. (5) Protecting, at the highest level, our Middle Eastern Allies, including Israel, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, and others.”
As noted above, the strait remains a key area of concern for him as foreign hysteria about it impacts international energy prices. “The Hormuz Strait will have to be guarded and policed, as necessary, by other Nations who use it — The United States does not!” Trump wrote bluntly. “If asked, we will help these Countries in their Hormuz efforts, but it shouldn’t be necessary once Iran’s threat is eradicated. Importantly, it will be an easy Military Operation for them. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”Israel and America are doing the whole world a favor by taking down the worst terror-sponsoring regime on the planet.

First ever AI leader.

• Iran’s New Supreme Leader Has Never Been Seen Since Taking Office (ZH)

Amid widespread reporting that Iran had long ago moved into a emergency wartime decentralized command among autonomously-acting units, serious questions persist as to the role of Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, who replaced his slain father, longtime leader Ali Khamenei. What’s clear is that the new, younger Khamenei – who may have been wounded in the early days of US-Israeli strikes, hasn’t been seen in any public way, not even on TV, throughout the war. There have not so much as been official recent images of him circulated. This has raised obvious questions on the degree to which the Ayatollah is actually running the country and the wartime response, also after national security official Ali Larijani was killed. Larijani had clearly been the interim public face of the Islamic Republic, before his death less than a mere week ago (reportedly on March 17).

In the meantime The Wall Street Journal on Saturday writes that Iran is filling the gap of the Ayatollah’s public absence with AI and voice-overs: In his first, fiery address to the Iranian nation on March 12, new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei vowed to “avenge the blood of our martyrs” and to keep the Strait of Hormuz closed. That message of defiance wasn’t delivered by Khamenei himself: It was read out on state television by a female news anchor. Since then, the mystery surrounding Khamenei’s whereabouts and well-being has only deepened. Khanenei hasn’t appeared in public, nor has the Iranian government issued new images of him or even recordings of his voice.
His 86-year old father did not appear to have been in hiding at all when he was slain by airstrike on the very first day of Operation Epic Fury. It could be that the younger Khamenei is directing the war from a much more secure and hidden setting, for example a deep underground bunker – or in a remote part of the country. Axios newly reports:The CIA, Mossad and other intelligence agencies around the world were watching during Nowruz on Friday to see whether Iran’s new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei would follow his father’s tradition and give a new year’s address.The intrigue: When the holiday passed with only a written statement from Mojtaba, the mystery around his physical condition, whereabouts and role in Iran’s war effort deepened.
As for who is really at the helm of the Iranian state, there’s little doubt that the elite IRGC is now largely driving the response. To some degree, amid ongoing reports of assassinations by aerial bombing of a slew of top military leaders, it doesn’t ultimately matter who precisely is in charge. Iranian institutions have deep benches, in the sense that especially high military officials are replaceable.
https://twitter.com/MirzaMahan/status/2035371388861571168
At the same time, Tehran has signaled it is ready for a ‘long war’ – and will keep fighting while imposing a high cost on its attackers. This means it doesn’t have to ‘win’ in a conventional sense, but just has to survive and exact pain. The WSJ writes, “Three weeks into the war, the Iranian regime is signaling that it believes it is winning and has the power to impose a settlement on Washington that entrenches Tehran’s dominance of Middle East energy resources for decades to come.”

And Bibi’s the friend?!

• Netanyahu: 48 Hours Proved Iran Is the ‘Enemy of Civilization’ (Salgado)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu impressed upon foreign nations griping about the joint U.S.-Israel Iran operation that the Islamic regime of Iran is an enemy to civilization — and even to human life itself.It is rare to find a conflict in history where one side is thoroughly evil and even demonic, while the other side is fighting for truly noble goals. But the fight between America and Israel (and the Persian people) on oneside and the terrorist Iran regime on the other is just such a conflict. The Iranian regime is literally illustrating that more every single day.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, today, at the site of the missile hit in Dimona:

“If anyone needed an explanation of why Iran is the enemy of civilization, and the enemy and the danger to the entire world. You got it in the last 48 hours. https://t.co/IZoJ1snuSw pic.twitter.com/dziq31IGBH
— Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) March 22, 2026

Just after an Iranian strike caused a mass casualty event in Arad, at least 25 people including a 10-year-old boy also suffered injuries from Iranian missile fire striking the city of Dimona, Israel. From the scene of the strike, Netanyahu said, “If anyone needed explanation of why Iran is the enemy of civilization, and the enemy and the danger to the entire world you got it in the last 48 hours.”
He explained further, “In the last 48 hours, they fired … on civilians, on children. There’s a children’s nursery here. There’s an old …person’s home here. Civilians, families, they fire terror weapons on civilians. And often they use cluster bombs, which are forbidden by international law.” Besides that, Netanyahu emphasized, “The second thing that [Iran’s regime] did is that they fired on Jerusalem right next to the holy places. They sent ballistic missiles that could have destroyed the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Al Aqsa Mosque, and the Western Wall, the three holiest sites to the three monotheistic religions, they don’t care. They fired at everyone.” https://twitter.com/Breaking911/status/2035025896440996079
Thirdly, Netanyahu stated, Iran’s regime “fired an intercontinental ballistic missile 4,000 kilometers right into Diego Garcia, the American British base. They can reach down with these ballistic missiles everywhere in Europe, almost everywhere in Europe. I’ve been warning that for years.” This is why NATO needs to quit whining about Donald Trump and realize this is their war too. Speaking of which, Netanyahu’s fourth point was Iran’s regime having “shut down the important maritime Strait of Hormuz trying to blackmail the world with oil — terror blackmail. Four things that they’re doing in 48 hours.”

EU countries are doing that. Ever since it was founded.

80 years later, Trump is the first one to say something.

• America’s War With Iran Could Destroy NATO From Within (Sadygzade)

The widening confrontation driven by the military actions of the US and Israel against Iran is exposing something far larger than a regional crisis. It is revealing the accelerated decomposition of Western unity at the very moment when the old architecture of unchallenged American hegemony is visibly fading. In that sense, the strikes on Iran are not simply an act of escalation in one theater. They are a historical stress test for NATO itself, for the credibility of Washington’s leadership, and for the entire Western claim to strategic coherence in an age of global turbulence.

For decades, the Atlantic alliance rested on a simple assumption. The US would lead, Europe would follow, and even when there were frictions, the structure would hold because all parties believed that the preservation of American primacy was identical with the preservation of their own security. That formula is breaking down in real time. The war around Iran has made this impossible to ignore. Western European leaders are no longer merely expressing discreet discomfort or ritual concern. They are publicly and demonstratively refusing to be drawn into an American military adventure whose goals they do not understand, whose consequences they do not control, and whose costs they know they will be forced to absorb. Germany, France, the UK, and Spain have all rejected direct involvement in the US-Israeli military campaign against Iran, while leading European officials have stated in essence that this is not their war, that Europe had not been properly consulted, and that Washington had not offered any convincing plan for success.
That matters because the dispute is not about tactics alone. It goes to the heart of alliance politics. If Washington can ignite a conflict with enormous global implications and then demand support from its allies after the fact, while offering neither consultation nor a credible endgame, then NATO ceases to function as an alliance of coordinated strategy and begins to resemble a system of imperial requisition. The Europeans understand this. Their refusal is a message, that the US increasingly treats its allies not as sovereign partners but as instruments to be mobilized after decisions have already been made in Washington and West Jerusalem. It says that when the strategic center becomes erratic, unilateral, and ready to externalize risk, the periphery begins to detach.
Donald Trump’s own rhetoric has thrown this reality into even sharper relief. When NATO members refused to support the American effort around Iran and to commit naval forces to the Strait of Hormuz, Trump did not respond as the steward of an alliance. He responded as a resentful patron whose clients had failed to obey. Media reports quoted him calling NATO’s refusal a very foolish mistake and making it clear that the US would remember that everyone agreed in words but did not want to help in deeds. In the same political atmosphere, he also signaled that because of American military power, the US no longer needed or desired NATO assistance and, in essence, never truly had. Washington is increasingly willing to threaten, humiliate, or discard its own allies whenever they cease to be tactically useful.
This is why the current split is so serious. It is not only Europe resisting a war. It is Europe being forced to confront the possibility that the US would rather risk the cohesion of NATO than restrain its own escalation. In other words, Washington appears increasingly ready to sacrifice not only the comfort and stability of its allies, but potentially the political substance of the alliance itself, if preserving American freedom of action requires it. That is what imperial decline often looks like. A hegemon in ascent builds institutions because institutions extend its reach. A hegemon in decay empties those same institutions of meaning because they begin to constrain its impulses.

The EU is the odd one out.

• The Middle East Crisis Is Rewriting Energy Security Doctrine (Vaid)

Missile and drone attacks on energy hubs across the Gulf have drawn the wider US-Israeli war with Iran directly into the core of global energy routes. Within three weeks, the region has shifted from a zone of latent risk to the epicenter of heightened security concerns around energy infrastructure and commercial shipping. The Strait of Hormuz, which carries about 21% of global petroleum liquids, has transformed from background anxiety to an overt risk corridor. As insurers reassess exposure and tanker activity slows, the chokepoint itself has become the flashpoint for geopolitical contagion into energy markets.

A week into the conflict, the United States pledged naval escorts and broader supply side measures, however it failed to secure backing from European allies to get involved militarily. On March 19 a host of European countries, as well as Japan and Canada, had expressed their readiness to contribute to efforts to ensure safe passage through the Strait. However, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz told reporters on the same day in Brussels that Berlin would only involve itself in the region after military action comes to a halt, stating, We can and will only be able to get involved once the guns fall silent.
While various data and media report suggest that some tankers are effectively able to traverse the Straight, for which some countries, including Pakistan, China, Iraq, and Malaysia are having talks with Iran, safe navigation has still not been fully restored, and markets remain unconvinced that diplomatic signaling alone can quickly normalize flows.
Oil markets reacted swiftly, as Brent rose above $119 per barrel on March 19 before easing to about $109.85 on March 20, still leaving it nearly 7% higher for the week. More strikingly, the benchmark Middle East Dubai crude hit a record of around $166.80 per barrel, underlining how physical market tightness is now outpacing headline futures benchmarks. Analysts continue to warn that any sustained Hormuz disruption could push crude far higher. Even absent a full blockade, costlier freight, insurance, and rerouting are embedding a durable war premium, redefining OPEC+ s role, and especially the Saudi Russia axis, as guardians not just of oil prices but of the credibility of Gulf sea lane security itself.

“Once again, US service members are thrown into an unjust war for a foreign power ..”

• Join The US Military – Kill And Die For Israel (McGlinchey)

President Trump’s decision to join Israel in launching a regime-change war on Iran has so far cost the lives of at least 13 American service members. More than 200 have been wounded, dozens seriously enough to require evacuations to military hospitals in Europe and the United States. Among them are individuals who’ve suffered traumatic brain injuries, burns and shrapnel wounds. One was facing potential amputation of an arm or leg. As much as these service members and their families are victims of Iran’s justified retaliation for a surprise attack perpetrated amid ongoing negotiations, they’re victims of a betrayal perpetrated by their president and the joint chiefs of staff, who cast them into an unconstitutional war of aggression, packaged in lies and initiated to advance the agenda of a foreign government, while undermining the security of their own country.

Of course, US casualties comprise a small subset of the total bloodshed. In executing this unjust war, Americans have collectively inflicted far more death and dismemberment than they’ve endured, teaming up with their Israeli counterparts to kill more than 3,000 Iranians, including some 150 schoolgirls — mostly between age 7 and 12 — whose school was destroyed by Tomahawk cruise missiles at the war’s very start.
Though it should have already been apparent, Operation Epic Fury should make clear that — service members’ good intentions aside — combat waged under the US flag rarely has anything to do with American security. Moreover — and I say this as former Army Reserve enlistee and Regular Army officer — anyone thinking of starting or extending a military career should understand that their government may send them to be killed, maimed or psychologically damaged, and to slaughter foreign innocents, so long as it helps those in power remain in the good graces of the extremists who rule Israel, and their powerful collaborators inside the United States.
A New Regime-Change War Built On False Premises
Under international law, a war of aggression is considered a supreme war crime unto itself, and Operation Epic Fury is precisely that. Like so many of America’s wars before it, this one was launched on false premises. Contrary to the US-Israeli narrative… Iran was not developing a nuclear weapon. In 2007, the US intelligence community assessed that Iran halted any effort to develop a nuclear weapon in 2003. Since then, the intelligence community has periodically re-validated that conclusion, most recently in March 2025. Belying Trump’s claim that the United States had only two weeks in which to stop Iran from having a nuclear weapon, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard this week testified that Iran had made “no efforts” to rebuild its enrichment capacity after it was devastated by last summer’s US bombing.
Note that, in 2005, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei issued a fatwa — a formal interpretation of Islamic law — asserting that “the production, stockpiling and use of nuclear weapons are forbidden under Islam and that the Islamic Republic of Iran shall never acquire these weapons.” In the opening act of their latest warfare on Iran, the United States and Israel collaborated to kill him.
Iran did not stray from the 2015 nuclear deal until Trump did. When Trump withdrew the United States from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), Iran was in full compliance. Among other things, the JCPOA required Iran to eliminate its medium-enriched uranium, slash its cache of low-enriched uranium by 98%, limit future enrichment to 3.67%, agree to even more external monitoring than it was already submitting to, and render its heavy-water reactor worthless by filling it with concrete. After Trump withdrew the United States from the JCPOA in 2018 and reinstated sanctions, Iran waited a year, but then began straying from its own commitments, using elevated enrichment as a lever to push for a new agreement and relief from suffocating sanctions. Iran says the JCPOA permitted it to suspend its commitments after Trump’s withdrawal, citing language governing “material breaches” and “significant non-performance.”

How far can you go? What if you make your opponent say terribly racist things in AI?

• Artificial Intelligence Is Taking Over Political Campaigns (George Caldwell)

Artificial intelligence is dominating the 2026 midterms—and not just as a political issue. Major congressional campaigns are increasingly using “deepfake” AI technology in videos that slam their opponents and amplify endorsements from allies. Incumbent Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, is seeking to fend off a primary challenge from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, and is employing some unusual strategies. The Cornyn campaign released an AI-generated music video with a parody of the B-52s’ 1989 hit “Love Shack” as the soundtrack. It depicts an animated likeness of Paxton engaged in corruption and marital infidelity.

The B-52s told TMZ in a statement upon the ad’s release, “Today we learned that our song ‘Love Shack’ is being used without our approval for a political attack between two politicians in the beautiful state of Texas. We do not endorse either candidate. We have already formally demanded the song immediately cease to be used in this tasteless and illegal way.” The Cornyn campaign declined to comment on the ad’s use of AI and whether it had responded to the band’s request. Paxton’s campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) recently employed deepfake technology to go after Texas Democrat Senate nominee James Talarico for past social media posts.
The state representative is attempting to win in a state that has not elected a Democrat U.S. senator since 1988. “Radicalized white men are the greatest domestic terrorist threat in our country,” a realistic likeness of Talarico says, quoting an actual 2021 social media post from the candidate. The NRSC ad includes a small watermark in the corner stating that the content is “AI generated.”

James Talarico, in his own words: pic.twitter.com/lDlUoqBbP7
— Senate Republicans (@NRSC) March 11, 2026

“In my faith, God is non-binary,” Talarico’s likeness says later, quoting another 2021 post. Talarico’s campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the video’s representation of him. Jesse Jackson Jr., who lost in the Democrat primary for Illinois’ 2nd Congressional District on Tuesday, used AI to amplify an endorsement from former Rep. Bobby Rush, who represented the state’s 1st Congressional District for three decades. Rush’s voice has been weakened due to throat cancer. At the beginning of the advertisement, he speaks with his natural voice before his digitally altered voice kicks in.
“Cancer damaged my vocal cords, but it didn’t take away my voice,” Rush says. “I’ve asked the producers to use AI, artificial intelligence, to help me.” He says in his altered voice, “Like me, Jesse is a lifelong social justice warrior and passionate advocate for the marginalized.” Jackson, the son of the late Rev. Jessie Jackson, served in Congress from 1995 to 2012 alongside Rush, but left amid a fraud investigation, for which he later spent time in prison. He lost his primary on Tuesday.

AI.

• Report: Pentagon to Adopt Palantir as Core U.S. Military System (CTH)

Recently when the Anthropic software and ideology conflict with the Pentagon surfaced as a result of limits placed by the provider, alternative provider Palantir’s CEO remarked that any AI developer who challenges the U.S. military application of the product was foolish because the U.S. government could just take control of the company under the claim of national security.In essence, Palantir CEO Alex Karp was saying AI developers who contract with the govt ultimately become bound to the limits or lack thereof as determined by the govt. If software developers want to contract with the military, then fight the Pentagon over use of those software applications, they will lose.

In response to the Anthropic issue, the Pentagon withdrew from their purchase arrangements and blacklisted them from further federal contracts. Now a report is highlighting that Palantir will take the lead position in providing the software, the Maven Smart System, for the core U.S. military functions.As described, “Maven is a software platform that uploads information from drones, satellites, sensors, radar, and other battlefield intelligence sources. The system then analyzes battlefield data in real time, identifying and prioritizing potential targets — including buildings, enemy vehicles, and weapons and ammunition stockpiles — for intelligence analysts to review and act on.”
NEW YORK, March 20 (Reuters) – Palantir’s Maven artificial intelligence system will become an official program of record, Deputy Secretary of Defense Steve Feinberg said in a letter to Pentagon leaders, a move that locks in long-term use of Palantir’s weapons-targeting technology across the U.S. military. In the March 9 letter to senior Pentagon leaders and U.S. military commanders, Feinberg said embedding Palantir’s Maven Smart System would provide warfighters “with the latest tools necessary to detect, deter, and dominate our adversaries in all domains”.
The decision is expected to go into effect by the close of the current fiscal year, which ends in September, according to the letter, which was reviewed by Reuters and has not been previously reported.Maven is a command-and-control software platform that analyzes battlefield data and identifies targets. It is already the primary AI operating system for the U.S. military, which has carried out thousands of targeted strikes against Iran over the last three weeks.

Elon Musk (Tesla, SpaceX) and Alex Karp (Palantir)

“.. Trump and the American people are fed up with the nonsense, all inflicted on behalf of illegal alien criminals.”

• Trump Says ICE Will Run Airport Security If Dems Don’t Fund TSA (Salgado)

President Donald Trump just made a major power move in the ongoing fight with Democrats over funding the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), as he threatened to put immigration officers in charge of airport security if funding is not immediately forthcoming. Chaos continues to reign at many American airports as the partial Democrat shutdown lengthens and Transportation Security Administration (TSA) employees increasingly don’t show up for work, leading to extremely long lines and travel delays. The Democrat congressmen who don’t have to deal with ordinary TSA lines don’t care, but Trump and the American people are fed up with the nonsense, all inflicted on behalf of illegal alien criminals.

Trump warned on Truth Social Saturday, “If the Radical Left Democrats don’t immediately sign an agreement to let our Country, in particular, our Airports, be FREE and SAFE again, I will move our brilliant and patriotic ICE Agents to the Airports where they will do Security like no one has ever seen before, including the immediate arrest of all Illegal Immigrants who have come into our Country.” With tens of millions of illegal aliens in our country, the likelihood is that a fair number of them are using air travel. Wouldn’t it be interesting to know just how many? And to top it off, Trump promised Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers would have a “heavy emphasis on those from Somalia, who have totally destroyed, with the approval of a corrupt Governor, Attorney General, and Congresswoman, Ilhan Omar, the once Great State of Minnesota. I look forward to seeing ICE in action at our Airports. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
Honestly, it would be pretty amazing to see this threat put into action, partly out of curiosity to see just how many illegal aliens and criminals ICE would find flying, and partly because Democrats’ heads would literally explode. The DHS funding showdown affects millions of people. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy posted on X in frustration, “Hardworking TSA agents are sleeping in their CARS to save money on gas because Democrats won’t end the SCHUMER SHUTDOWN and fund DHS! What happened to the Democrats who claimed to be the party of the WORKING CLASS?!” The party of slavery has always lied about its dedication to the American working class, but its false pretense is particularly obvious right now.
This is exactly the way that Republicans should be dealing with Democrats, not granting them concessions, but putting the pressure on them to do the right thing. We cannot trust anything Democrats say, and multiple Republican presidents have found out to their cost after they made unwise concessions that they were the only ones who intended to uphold the bargain. Our national security and immigration enforcement are much too important to gamble away bit by bit on trying to please Democrats who will never be happy with any amount of compromise. So instead, Republicans should be threatening consequences that will panic Democrats, like replacing TSA with ICE.

They want someone who refuses all talk.

• Senate Democrats Are Quietly Plotting To Oust Chuck Schumer (ZH)

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has had a fractured relationship with the Democratic Party base ever since he voted to fund the government last March. Unfortunately for him, time hasn’t healed that wound, and there’s a growing resistance to Schumer that hopes to oust him from his leadership position after the midterms. The Wall Street Journal, drawing on more than four dozen interviews with Democratic senators, candidates, current and former congressional aides, activists, and advisers, found widespread unease about the New York senator’s grip on the party’s direction. The report makes it clear that Schumer’s own colleagues increasingly see him as an anchor, slowing their response to President Trump, steering primaries toward centrists they don’t want, and draining the fundraising pipeline that Democrats desperately need heading into the midterm elections.

According to the report, last month, Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut met with progressive activists at a French restaurant in Georgetown. The conversation turned to what to do about Schumer. According to people familiar with the dinner, Murphy disclosed that some lawmakers had already been running informal vote counts to see whether enough support existed to remove Schumer from his leadership post. Murphy added that Schumer had enough backing to survive. But the fact that anyone was counting at all said something. Murphy has since walked it back, carefully. “Could someone infer from that that someone was keeping a count? Maybe, but that’s not what I meant,” he told reporters. “I meant that he has the support of the caucus.”
But Murphy’s backpedaling doesn’t change the reality. Murphy is reportedly part of a group of senators who have been actively canvassing colleagues about their frustrations with Schumer. This group, nicknamed “Fight Club,” (hey…) is a Signal chat group where progressives coordinate strategy around opposing Schumer’s preferred candidates in key 2026 races. The Fight Club’s grievance, at its core, is that Schumer is tilting the playing field toward centrists while an insurgent energy on the left goes untapped. The group includes Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass) and Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minn.), and it appears that Warren has been initiating those conversations directly. Smith’s advisers have gone further, holding discussions with other Senate staff about concrete scenarios to challenge Schumer’s leadership.
The concern isn’t purely ideological. It’s financial, and that’s where things get uncomfortable. Schumer’s aligned super PAC, Senate Majority PAC, got outpaced by its Republican counterpart last year. Entering 2026, the Democratic super PAC had $36 million in cash on hand and $12.4 million in debt. The GOP’s equivalent had $100 million on hand and zero debt. In the money primary – the one that quietly decides Senate races before a single vote is cast – Schumer’s side is getting lapped Making matters worse for Schumer, meetings among Democratic Senate chiefs of staff, which should be routine operational sessions, have reportedly become forums for airing discontent with Schumer’s stewardship. The pressure building in those rooms is aimed at a specific outcome: Schumer commits to retiring from the Senate when his seat is up for re-election in 2028, clearing a path for whoever comes next.
That next person may already have a name attached. Sen. Brian Schatz of Hawaii has been identified as Schumer’s own preferred successor. Apparently, Schumer has thought this through enough to have a pick. But Schatz isn’t moving until Schumer moves first. His posture, per senators and aides familiar with the discussions, is to wait it out. Schumer may have the votes to survive a mutiny for now. But his colleagues are doing the math, his fundraising is underperforming, his preferred candidates are generating internal blowback, and the party seems anxious to see him go. The caucus isn’t in open revolt yet, but it’s not looking good for Chuck Schumer.

It’s global. Armstrong can’t explain it either.

• Russia to Refer Childless Women for Psychiatric Evaluations (Martin Armstrong)

Russia is now advising psychological counseling for women who do not intend to have children, which is precisely the type of response governments default to when they refuse to confront economic reality. They search for cultural or emotional explanations when the issue is economical. Russia’s fertility rate has fallen to roughly 1.4 children per woman, well below the 2.1 replacement level, and total births have declined to near post-Soviet lows at just over 1.2 million annually. This decline has been persistent, not cyclical, and the population is aging rapidly as deaths continue to exceed births. At the same time, the war has removed a significant portion of young men from the population.

The same pattern is unfolding across all developed economies. Europe’s fertility rate is now near 1.3. Spain and Italy are closer to 1.1. Germany is around 1.4. France, once the exception, has fallen sharply and recently recorded more deaths than births for the first time in decades. Japan has been below replacement for years and continues to contract. Even countries that implemented aggressive family subsidies, such as Norway and Hungary, have failed to reverse the trend.
Globally, fertility has collapsed from more than 5 children per woman in the 1960s to just above two today, and the developed world is already well below replacement. The common explanation offered by governments is psychological or social. They speak of changing values, delayed adulthood, or lifestyle preferences. That explanation collapses under scrutiny because it ignores the economic structure that determines behavior.
People do not make long-term commitments, such as having children, without confidence in their financial future. Children represent the largest long-term investment a household can make. When confidence declines, that investment is postponed or abandoned. At the same time, dual-income households became the norm not by choice but by necessity. A single income no longer supports a family in most developed economies. This fundamentally changes having children because both parents must remain in the workforce to maintain financial stability. Long ago, children helped to secure a family’s financial future, but the opposite rings true today.
Russia’s situation simply reflects these dynamics in a more concentrated form. Economic uncertainty, war, sanctions, and structural inefficiencies amplify the same forces present elsewhere. When surveys show that a large percentage of women do not plan to have children in the near term, that is not a psychological condition. It is a rational response to economic instability amid war. Women in Russia must now face the harsh reality that their husbands will face a compulsory draft, and they will be left raising children alone.
Historically, birth rates rise during periods of expansion and confidence. The post-World War II baby boom occurred because housing was affordable, employment was stable, and future prospects were positive. The economic structure supported family formation. Today, the structure works in the opposite direction. Housing costs, taxation, childcare expenses, and job insecurity create an environment in which the cost of raising children exceeds the perceived benefits. Governments attempt to offset this with subsidies, but those programs do not address the core issue, whixh is the declining return on productive activity relative to cost.
This is why policies focused on incentives have failed. Hungary introduced substantial financial benefits for families. Norway expanded welfare support. France has long provided family subsidies. None of these measures reversed the long-term decline because they do not change the underlying economic equation. The demographic consequences are significant. A declining birthrate leads to a shrinking workforce, increasing dependency ratios, and pressure on pension systems. Governments respond by raising taxes or increasing borrowing, which further reduces the net income available to working households. This creates a feedback loop that reinforces the decline.
When confidence in the future declines, long-term investments decline. Children are the most fundamental long-term investment in any society. The decline in birth rates is therefore not a social anomaly but a direct reflection of economic confidence. Russia proposing psychological counseling illustrates how far removed policy responses have become from reality. This is not a question of convincing people to want children. It is a question of creating an economic environment where having children is viable.

Got to try.

• Rhinos back in African Park For First Time After 40 Years (RT)

Uganda has begun reintroducing rhinos to its Kidepo Valley National Park, marking the species’ return to the area 43 years after it was wiped out by poaching, the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) has reported. The first two southern white rhinos were transported from Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary to Kidepo on Tuesday, part of a phased plan to relocate a total of eight animals, according to UWA. The effort is aimed at restoring a population that disappeared from the park in the early 1980s.

The move follows years of preparation, including the construction of a fenced sanctuary, ranger outposts, and monitoring systems to ensure the animals’ protection and adaptation to the new environment. The park, one of Uganda’s most intact savannah ecosystems, was identified as suitable after feasibility studies assessed habitat conditions and security. “This moment marks the beginning of a new rhino story for Kidepo Valley National Park,” UWA Executive Director James Musinguzi said, adding that the translocation was the first step toward re-establishing a population.
Officials said the animals will initially be kept under close observation inside a secure sanctuary before being gradually integrated into the wider park ecosystem.Rhinos once roamed widely across Kidepo Valley, but heavy poaching led to their local extinction, with the last recorded animal killed in 1983. Conservation efforts accelerated in 2005 with the launch of a breeding program at Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary, helping rebuild Uganda’s rhino population to more than 60. Authorities say the return of rhinos is expected to boost biodiversity and tourism while supporting efforts to restore endangered wildlife species in one of Africa’s most isolated national parks.

In January, UWA relocated four southern white rhinos from Ziwa sanctuary to Ajai Wildlife Reserve in northwestern Uganda and aims to move up to 20 rhinos to the reserve. Uganda’s move comes amid wider efforts across Africa to protect rhino populations. Separately, Kenya in December opened what it says is the world’s largest rhino sanctuary in Tsavo West National Park, bringing together around 200 black rhinos in a protected area of more than 3,200 square kilometers.

https://twitter.com/HungaryBased/status/2035408598038405213?s=20

I wonder what changed pic.twitter.com/1Yogzaqtis
— Declaration of Memes (@LibertyCappy) March 22, 2026

SpaceXAI + Tesla TERAFAB Project

Goal is a trillion watts of compute/year

Most must necessarily go to space, as US electricity is only 0.5TW https://t.co/hMtg9vNLcw
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 22, 2026

It’s actually insane what SpaceX is doing to the space industry right now

In 1981, it cost ~$65,000 to put 1 kg into orbit
For 50 years, the industry accepted this as the standard. Reusable rockets were "impossible"

Then one company – led by a man obsessed with getting humanity… pic.twitter.com/lOJblaXMnG
— X Freeze (@XFreeze) March 21, 2026

https://twitter.com/Rainmaker1973/status/2035350715695276059?s=20

Aspirin prevents the deadly spread of cancer (metastasis) – concluded from recent review.

This spread is responsible for ~90% of cancer deaths.

Clinical trials have shown reductions in circulating tumor cells, a key measure of cancer spread.

Aspirin prevents it by:

❖… https://t.co/1kBJifUeI8 pic.twitter.com/oXHC22ScJg
— Dalton (Analyze & Optimize) (@Outdoctrination) March 21, 2026

Support the Automatic Earth in wartime with Paypal, Bitcoin and Patreon.

Debt Rattle March 2 2026

Mar 022026

March 2, 2026 Posted by Raúl Ilargi Meijer at 9:09 am Finance Tagged with: AfD, Bill Clinton, births, casualties, Epic Fury, Iran.election, Khameini, Netanyahu, Paul Craig Roberts, Russia 93 Responses »

Egypt, Fayum mummy Portrait of a boy, with a golden pendant. between 50 BCE and 250 CE

• The Road to World War III (Paul Craig Roberts)

• Has Netanyahu Destroyed Trump’s Presidency? (Paul Craig Roberts)

• Trump’s Attack On Iran: Message To Vladimir Putin (Gilbert Doctorow)

• What Epic Fury Means for Putin (David Manney)

• Iran Names Interim Successor To Khamenei Under 2nd Day Of Massive Bombs (ZH)

• Netanyahu and Trump: the New Hitler-Mussolini Pact (Paul Craig Roberts)

• Trump Can Rely on Past Dem. Presidents for Authority to Attack Iran (Turley)

• Israel Uber Alles (Paul Craig Roberts)

• US Military Suffered 200 Casualties In Retaliatory Strikes – Tehran (RT)

• Bill Clinton ‘Did Not Have Sex’ With Mystery Woman In Epstein’s Jacuzzi (RT)

• UK, France Aiming To Tank Peace Talks With Ukraine Nuke Plot – Diplomat (RT)

• 85% Of Babies In 2026 Will Be Born In Asia And Africa (ZH)

• Court Says You Can’t Call AfD “Confirmed Right-wing Extremist” (Eugyppius)

• Joe Biden Accuses Trump Of Planning To ‘Steal’ The Midterms (ZH)

This is Scott Jennings at his absolute best.

“The MOST courageous commander in chief of my lifetime.”

When CNN’s Sara Sidner tried to corner @ScottJenningsKY over Trump’s “no war” promise — he delivered a 60-second masterclass.

SIDNER: “How do you square the no war promise… pic.twitter.com/1BGUNAfizz
— Overton (@overton_news) March 1, 2026

Good informational video on what happens when the straight of Hormuz closes.

It closed yesterday. pic.twitter.com/9fseSH6AdX
— Syrian Girl (@Partisangirl) March 1, 2026

Jeffrey Sachs: US & Israel Attack Iran – War Is Spreading Across the Region https://t.co/SRI2R5eDxB pic.twitter.com/xPoOLFfGHn
— Glenn Diesen (@Glenn_Diesen) February 28, 2026

Pepe

Neo-Caligula is apoplectic.

Had to cancel his Mission Accomplished rant.

His regime change "strategy" miserably failed.

The Pentagon's $1.1 billion radar in Qatar has been turned to dust.

Iran is hitting hard all across the Gulf.

And has not even gone hypersonic. pic.twitter.com/G7vJZ2awxc
— Pepe Escobar (@RealPepeEscobar) February 28, 2026

BREAKING: Iran launched two ballistic missiles against Cyprus, hosts a significant U.S. intelligence facilities as well as British troops.

Iran continues to expand this war… https://t.co/SHAeMs5saT pic.twitter.com/lexa8lmrop
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) March 1, 2026

https://twitter.com/Thevictoria76/status/2027757456667910334?s=20

Dr. Fei-Fei Li just called out the biggest blind spot in the entire AI industry.

We have been building half of human intelligence. And calling it the finish line.

Li: “If you look at human intelligence, it pretty much boils down to two buckets.”

The first bucket is language.… pic.twitter.com/J7ipeqxOC8
— Dustin (@r0ck3t23) February 28, 2026

Electricity output is the single best proxy for industrial capacity https://t.co/VCaYm8u9Bi
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 1, 2026

Paul Craig Roberts had a busy weekend.

• The Road to World War III (Paul Craig Roberts)

The failure of Putin and Xi to stand up for their countries in the face of Washington’s aggression has convinced Trump that he can act with impunity anywhere in the world. Remember, Trump said words to the effect that he can do whatever he wants. Trumps words reminded me of Lenin when he declared that “the scientific concept of dictatorship means neither more nor less than unlimited power, resting directly on force, not limited by anything, not restricted by any laws, nor any absolute rules. Nothing else but that.” With AI destroying endless thousands of American jobs, Trump will have plenty of canon fodder with which to invade Cuba, Turkey, Egypt (“from the Nile to the Euphrates”), and with which to occupy Taiwan.

The Iranian government shares responsibility for the attack on Iran with Russia, China, Israel, and Trump. The witless Iranian government allowed itself to again be deceived, thinking that they were in peace negotiations with Trump while Trump and Israel were preparing an attack on Iran. The Iranian government did not even have the intelligence to protect the country’s leadership from assassination by Israeli missiles. The Iranian government tried to ignore the coming attack and gave away the strategic initiative to its enemies. Putin has done the same thing, and it seems Xi also.
These are the wrong messages to send to Trump and Israel. Gilbert Doctorow believes, correctly in my opinion, that the inability of Iran, Russia, and China to act intelligently has brought us to the opening stage of World War III. Putin himself, like Iran, has been deceiving himself and the Russian people for a long time by participating in Ukrainian “peace negotiations,” despite the fact that Putin has said time and time again that it is impossible to trust the Americans. Nevertheless, Putin has setup himself and his country for another deception like the Minsk agreement. China’s only weapons are words that mean nothing whatsoever to Washington.
Perhaps the Democrats will impeach Trump for committing the United States to a war crime without the consent of Congress. But as Trump has proved himself to be Israel’s effective tool, the Democrats would find themselves up against the Israel Lobby, a fight for which Democrats have little stomach. My conclusion is that Israel and it’s American puppet will continue along the road to World War III.

“What the choice comes down to is that Trump represents Israel over Americans, and Democrats represent immigrant-invaders over Americans. The question is: who do you prefer for your ruler?”

• Has Netanyahu Destroyed Trump’s Presidency? (Paul Craig Roberts)

I am happy to report that finally there is some good news. The latest Gallup Poll brings it to us. The poll shows that the attitude of Americans to the Israelis and the Palestinians has shifted and now favors the Palestinians. Little doubt this was brought about by the heartless cruelty toward Gaza civilians by the so-called “Israeli defense force.” Watching a genocide in which entire cities are destroyed, women and children are shot in the head intentionally by Satanic Israeli soldiers, denial by Israel of medicine, food and water for bombed-out Palestinian civilians, and statement after statement by members of the Israeli government that the intention is to dispel Palestinians from Palestine have all contributed to waking up America about the alleged “only democracy in the Middle East.” Perhaps the Israeli-Trump military attack on Iran yesterday will contribute to waking up the peoples of the Western world.

Americans have also noticed the growing curtailment of their free speech. In some states, such as Texas and Florida, an American citizen who criticizes Israel is disqualified from holding a state job or having a contract to supply the state with goods or services. Students critical of Israel’s behavior are expelled from university. Foreign students are deported if they criticize Israel or support Palestine. University professors are dismissed. Corporate and media employees are fired. It finally dawned on part of the American population that Israel is canceling the First Amendment to the US Constitution. It is easier for Trump to expel by deportation from America, a foreign student legally in the United States who protests the Israeli genocide of Palestine then it is for Trump to deport an illegal alien who has no right whatsoever to be present in the United States.
Additionally, Americans have noticed that president Trump represents Israel first and America afterward. It is an affront to national honor to have a president who kowtows to a foreign government. The escape of some Americans from insouciance has resulted in 41% of Americans sympathizing with the Palestinians and 36% with the Israelis. This is a dramatic change from 2019 when about 60% of Americans were aligned with Israel and only 21% with Palestinians. The strongest shift toward Palestinians is among Democrats and Independents. The Republicans with the exception of representative Massey and Senator Paul remain in Israel’s pocket.
There is a large downside for Trump in this development. The United States has spent the first quarter of the 21st century fighting Israel’s wars against Arab states that opposed Greater Israel. With the orchestrated 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center and Pentagon, the George W Bush regime provided the excuse–the New Pearl Harbor– for the United States military to eliminate seven opponents to Greater Israel in five years. The Bush regime claimed that Muslims were responsible and launched a war that destroyed Arab opponents to Israel’s domination of the entire Middle East. Using American blood and vast amounts of American money, Washington has destroyed Iraq, Libya and Syria for Israel. And now Netanyahu has his two- bit puppet, Donald Trump, at work destroying Iran for Israel.
So what is Trump to do? Polls indicate that a large majority of Americans oppose war against Iran. But if Trump refused the mission handed to him by his Israeli master, he would lose the Israel’s Lobby support, and alienate the powerful Israel Lobby and the “Christian Zionists” who comprise a large segment of MAGA America. By going ahead with the attack, Trump alienates those opposed to more war and to Israel’s domination of the American government. With the midterm elections later this year, it is possible that by placing Trump between a rock and a hard place Netanyahu has destroyed the Trump presidency. The pros and cons of Democrats returning to power are obvious. The pro is that Democrats are likely to separate American interests from Israel’s. The con is that Democrats have taken an ideological position against “white racist America.” What the choice comes down to is that Trump represents Israel over Americans, and Democrats represent immigrant-invaders over Americans. The question is: who do you prefer for your ruler? The Israelis or the Muslims and the Hispanics?

Gilbert Doctorow hidden inside a Paul Craig Roberts article. Oh well…

• Trump’s Attack On Iran: Message To Vladimir Putin (Gilbert Doctorow)

This note will be brief insofar as the news from the Middle East is still sparse. The Israeli-US attack on Iran resulted in destruction of the offices of the Ayatollah and of buildings of security forces in Tehran and in other cities, though reports are only preliminary. As for the Iranian counter-attack on Israel and on US military bases in the Gulf, information is still sketchier. However, my purpose is not to provide military intelligence but to offer political intelligence that is highly relevant to the prime interest of this Community – the war in Ukraine and how/whether attempts at brokering a peace by Trump still have any credibility.

The answer to that question is a resounding ‘no.’ U.S. diplomacy with Iran has now for the second time in less than a year been used only as a cover and a side-show while a vicious act of aggression against Iran was being planned. U.S. diplomacy is an exercise in treachery, nothing more. This truth was widely discussed on Russian state television on the leading news and commentary shows in the past few weeks. Presumably it was discussed within the Kremlin as well, but it is not at all clear that Vladimir Putin is ready to take the measures that the latest developments in Iran point to, namely: to break off all negotiations with Witkoff-Kushner and the Ukrainians; bomb the hell out of Kiev right now to put an end to Ukraine’s war-making potential on the front-lines and free brains and resources for Russia’s entry into the Middle East as co-defender of Iran alongside China.
I mention in passing that Trump’s speech to the nation announcing the start of U.S. military operations against Iran for the sake of degrading its military forces and promoting regime change was a vile collection of untruths and outright fabrications. Trump smashed any hopes we may have had that he could play a constructive role in international relations.
Yesterday, in my analysis of how the European Institutions have become smotherers of freedom of expression, of how the Commission exercises monarchical absolutism typical of the ancient regime, I said that they have to be put on a new footing, with cancellation of parliamentary democracy in favor of U.S. style Separation of Powers. Nota bene, checks and balances do not work every time, but they are our only hope for there to be public space open to debate on foreign and domestic policy with no holds barred. Trump’s action yesterday was immediately denounced by a member of Congress as violating the Constitution by opening war on Iran without authorization of Congress. We will see how far this censure goes, but it is a good start towards curbing autocracy in the Oval Office.
©Gilbert Doctorow, 2026

Iran oil exports to Russia? What? Russia is a major oil exporter in and of itself.

• What Epic Fury Means for Putin (David Manney)

The confirmation that Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed during joint U.S.-Israeli airstrikes was a cause for celebration inside the country. U.S. military officials announced that the operation targeted Iranian leadership compounds, missile facilities, and nuclear infrastructure across Tehran and other strategic sites. U.S. and partner forces began striking targets at 1:15 a.m. ET to dismantle the Iranian regime’s security apparatus, prioritizing locations that posed an imminent threat. Targets included Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps command and control facilities, Iranian air defense capabilities, missile and drone launch sites, and military airfields.“The President ordered bold action, and our brave Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, Guardians, and Coast Guardsmen are answering the call,” said Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of CENTCOM.

Following the initial wave of U.S. and partner strikes, CENTCOM forces successfully defended against hundreds of Iranian missile and drone attacks. There have been no reports of U.S. casualties or combat-related injuries. Damage to U.S. installations was minimal and has not impacted operations. The first hours of the operation included precision munitions launched from air, land, and sea. Additionally, CENTCOM’s Task Force Scorpion Strike employed low-cost one-way attack drones for the first time in combat. Operation Epic Fury involves the largest regional concentration of American military firepower in a generation.Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that the strikes aimed to eliminate immediate threats that Iran’s regime posed.Now, will this affect the war between Ukraine and Russia?
Iran has long supported Russia’s war effort in Ukraine. Under President Vladimir Putin, Moscow relied on Iranian Shahed drones to strike Ukrainian infrastructure and cities, which became central to Russia’s strategy of targeting energy grids during the winter months.Iran also supplies oil to Russia during periods when sanctions squeezed global markets. Disruption within Iran is now pitting two competing forces against each other. On the one hand, direct Iranian support to Moscow weakens amid disruptions to oil production and drone exports.On the other hand, instability in the Persian Gulf pushes oil prices upward, and Russia remains one of the world’s energy exporters.
Global energy markets face one of their gravest shocks in decades as joint U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran and Tehran’s retaliatory missile attacks across the Gulf disrupt oil exports from the world’s most important producing region.The duration of the conflict will likely determine the scale of the disruption, but for now, the threat and uncertainty are already enough to severely impact flows from the region, which accounts for 20% of global oil supplies.Barring a swift resolution, oil prices will likely rise sharply when trading opens on Monday morning. Benchmark Brent crude oil prices rose in recent weeks to around $70 a barrel, their highest since August 2025, as investors braced for military confrontation in the Middle East.
With 20% of global oil shipments passing through the Straits of Hormuz and tanker traffic slowing amid heightened security risks, Iran’s temporary closure of maritime routes sent oil prices sharply higher. A 10-12% spike in global crude prices strengthens Russia’s revenue stream, at least in the short term. That creates a paradox in the Ukraine conflict: Higher oil prices give Putin breathing room, while every dollar increase in crude prices translates into billions of additional revenue for the Kremlin. China, facing reduced Iranian supply, may turn more heavily toward Russian exports; that shift could deepen Moscow’s economic relationship with Beijing.

Khameini was no.1 for 35+ years. Not so easy to replace. Takes time.

• Iran Names Interim Successor To Khamenei Under 2nd Day Of Massive Bombs (ZH)

As questions hang over who will ultimately succeed Iran’s slain supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, an interim leader has been appointed to fulfill his duties. Top Shia cleric Alireza Arafi has been named to the interim Leadership Council after Supreme Leader Khamenei was confirmed killed in US-Israeli strikes, state media reported Sunday. The ISNA news agency has described that Arafi, a member of the Guardian Council, is joining President Masoud Pezeshkian and Chief Justice Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei on the body tasked with carrying out the supreme leader’s responsibilities until the Assembly of Experts appoints a permanent successor. All of this happening as US-Israeli bombs continue to fall on Tehran and other sites for a second straight day, ‘uninterrupted’ – as President Trump pledged Saturday.

Born in 1959, 67-year-old Alireza Arafi ranks among the most powerful clerics in Iran. Before his emergency elevation, he held three key posts: director of the nationwide Islamic Seminary system, member of the Guardian Council, and member of the Assembly of Experts. While rooted in Qom’s clerical establishment, Arafi combines traditional religious authority with seeking to carefully modernize Iran; however his appointment of course signals continuity, and he’ll be tasked with seeking to ensure regime survival – which is what this moment is all about for Tehran. Most importantly, Arafi is viewed by the IRGC and political leadership as a loyal insider who will preserve a retaliatory trajectory during wartime.
Heavy US and Israeli bombing has been observed Sunday on the Iranian capital, particularly on known government and military command centers, but that hasn’t stopped large gatherings of mourners in other parts of the country.While there’s been evidence of local celebrations in some sectors among anti-government Iranians, Sunday footage on state TV and other international media shows loyalists in possibly the hundreds of thousands showing solidarity with the slain Ayatollah the Islamic Republic leadership.
]President Masoud Pezeshkian condemned the killing as “a great crime” and has declared seven days of public holidays in addition to the 40-day mourning period. Outraged and saddened Iranians were seen pouring into the streets of the capital soon after state TV finally made the announcement confirming Khamenei’s killing during the opening salvo of the US-Israeli attack. Iranian authorities have alleged major war crimes, including the deaths of over 85 young girls attending school when a bomb struck.
“There will be expected ceremonies,” Pezeshkian said, while noting they will have to happen even while the bombardment continues across the country. He’s also said his country views revenge as its “legitimate right and duty” after Khamenei had been murdered by the “most wicked villains in the world.” The president further claimed the act was a “declaration of open war on Muslims, especially Shiites, in all corners of the world.” According to NBC:
The government in Iran is under attack like never before. Today tens of thousands of regime supporters packed into Tehran’s Revolution Square to mourn the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in a joint U.S. and Israel military operation. They chanted “God is great!” while officials promised revenge. One said Iran would deliver “terrifying blows” to make the U.S. and Israel beg for mercy.

“Every American has the right to be totally ashamed.”

• Netanyahu and Trump: the New Hitler-Mussolini Pact (Paul Craig Roberts)

Trump’s claims against Iran are a packet of lies. They are Trump’s excuses for complying with Netanyahu’s demand that Trump take the United States to war against Iran for the sake of Israel’s agenda of Greater Israel. This is despicable behavior for anyone, especially for a president of the United States. Americans always fall for patriotic propaganda, and the gullibility and insouciance of the American population is what Netanyahu and Trump are relying on to insure misperception of illegal aggression as humanitarian work blessed by God. The Iranian government, the Iranian people, Putin, and Xi share responsibility for the wanton act of aggression against the Iranian nation.

The Iranian government sat on its butt, giving up the strategic initiative, despite the obvious fact that a massive attack against Iran was nearing completion. The utter stupidity of the Iranian people allowed themselves to be tricked by American operatives into mindless participation in demonstration not against the US and Israel, but against their own government, and gave Trump and Israel an excuse for the attack and the hope that it will lead to regime change utin and Xi not only lacked the intelligence to form a mutual security agreement between Russia, China, and Iran, an agreement that would have prevented the attack, but they also failed to provide Iran with air defenses to deter the attack. It seems that Alastair Crooke’s report that China had provided Iran with reliable air defense was not accurate.
In other words, neither the Iranian government nor its supposed allies were capable of acknowledging reality and taking the necessary steps to prevent the Netanyahu-Trump attack on Iran. Considering the unreality in which Putin and Xi operate, the same fate is likely for Russia, and then China will be pulled into a war over Taiwan. The United States has already demonstrated its capability to produce anti-Chinese demonstrations in Hong Kong and other parts of China. Just as the Arab countries, unable to organize, have been knocked off one by one while the others stood and watched, Russia, Iran and China seem to face the same fate.
Trump has taken America to war without consultation with, or approval by, Congress. This should be an impeachable act, but as the war is for Israel, any complaints are likely to be muted. As the United States has shown its willingness to ignore the First Amendment in order to silence critics of Israel, the United States will also give up Congress’ power to decide on war. Trump’s war on Iran proves that he is the complete Israeli puppet and that the United States of America has been harnessed to Israel’s goal of a Greater Israel.
Every American has the right to be totally ashamed.

The authority is murky, standard.

• Trump Can Rely on Past Dem. Presidents for Authority to Attack Iran (Turley)

With the launch of the attacks on Iran, some have already declared the action unconstitutional. That includes the immediate condemnation of Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.). The precedent, however, favors the President in this action, though the attack triggers obligations of notice and consultation with Congress. I am sympathetic to those who criticize the failure to seek declarations of war from Congress before carrying out such operations. Indeed, I have represented members of Congress in opposing such wars. We lost. The courts have allowed presidents to order such attacks unilaterally.

Article II, Section 2 of the Constitution states that “the President shall be commander in chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the militia of the several states.” However, the Constitution also expressly states that Congress has the power to declare war under Article I, Section 8, Clause 11. Our last declared war was World War II. Since that time, Congress and the courts have allowed for resolutions to supplant the declaration requirement. They have also allowed for unilateral attacks on other nations.President Trump has referred to this action as a “war” and said that it will not be a limited operation. The attack will result in calls for compliance with the War Powers Resolution, passed by Congress in 1973.
The resolution requires “in the absence of a declaration of war” that a president report to Congress within 48 hours after introducing United States military forces into hostilities. The WPR mandates that operations must end within 60 days absent congressional approval. Notably, there was a recent secret briefing of the “Gang of Eight” that may have included a foreshadowing of this operation. Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed on Saturday that he has given notice to those senators.
Under the WPR: “The President in every possible instance shall consult with Congress before introducing United States Armed Forces into hostilities or into situations where imminent involvement in hostilities is clearly indicated by the circumstances, and after every such introduction shall consult regularly with the Congress until United States Armed Forces are no longer engaged in hostilities or have been removed from such situations.” The WPR limits such authority to “hostilities, or into situations where imminent involvement in hostilities is clearly indicated by the circumstances,” and can be exercised “only pursuant to (1) a declaration of war, (2) specific statutory authorization, or (3) a national emergency created by attack upon the United States, its territories or possessions, or its armed forces.”
President Trump has cited the documented attacks of Iran and its proxies on U.S. forces and its allies. It is also a state sponsor of terrorism and has continued to seek nuclear weapons in defiance of the demands of the international community. Recently, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) announced that Iran had again barred it from these sites. There has historically been deference to presidents exercising such judgments under this vague standard. That was certainly the case with the attacks in Bosnia and Libya under Democratic presidents. Even with the highly deferential language, presidents have long chaffed at the limitations of WPR. Nixon’s veto of the legislation was overridden. Past Democratic and Republican presidents, including Obama, have asserted their inherent authority under Article II to carry out such operations.
There is always a fair amount of hypocrisy in these moments. There was no widespread outcry when Obama attacked Libya, particularly from Democrats. When I represented members to challenge the undeclared war in Libya, Obama (like Trump) dismissed any need to get congressional approval in attacking the capital city of a foreign nation and military sites to force regime change. Figures like then Secretary of State Hillary Clinton were lionized for their tough action in Libya. Recently, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) sponsored a resolution to bar President Donald Trump from taking military action in Iran without congressional approval. Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) proposed a similar resolution. Neither was passed.
Critics can also rely on Authorizations for the Use of Military Force (AUMFs) to assert limits on the president when authorizing limited, defined military actions. Such resolutions date back to the Adams Administration in the Quasi-War with France. A 2001 AUMF authorized the President “to use all necessary and appropriate force against those nations, organizations, or persons he determines planned, authorized, committed, or aided the terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001.” It also authorized presidents to take military action to prevent future acts of terrorism against the United States.
The 2002 AUMF authorizes the President to use “necessary and appropriate” force to “defend the national security of the United States against the continuing threat posed by Iraq.” Past presidents have interpreted these AUMFs to extend to new threats and beyond countries like Iraq. In a 2018 report, the Trump Administration declared that the 2002 AUMF “contains no geographic limitation on where authorized force may be employed.”

“Once Trump has cleared the path for Israel, will Israel then turn on America?”

• Israel Uber Alles (Paul Craig Roberts)

During war, war propaganda, dominates over factual reporting, and even is turned by court historians into historical “fact” that prevails for years after the war is over. The current reporting on the Israeli-American attack on Iran is even more doubtful, considering the enormous lies we have been told by Israel and Trump. According to Fox News, in the joint military surprise attack on Iran, Israel’s missiles targeted the Iranian leadership, and the American missiles attacked the Iranian missile sites. Israeli and American officials confirm that Israel succeeded in assassinating 40 more Iranian top leaders, including Supreme Leader Khamenei, leaving Iran without leadership.

Whether or not true, if this is a loss remains to be seen. Apparently, the Iranian leadership lacked the wits to see that an attack was imminent and continued in the negotiations that Trump was using a second time to set Iran up for a surprise attack, and the Supreme Leader made no effort to locate to a safe place. This is not a sign of Iranian intelligence. It is likely that Iran will be defeated, the usual fate of a military that permits the strategic initiative to remain in the hands of the enemy, as Putin and Xi have also done. As Russia and China are too frightened to come to Iran’s aid, the defeat of Iran could also mean the end of BRICS and the New Chinese Silk Road. Russian and Chinese leadership are demonstrating that their support is purely verbal and means nothing.
Congratulations to Netanyahu, the Israel Lobby, and Israel’s American neo-conservative agents who are succeeding in the restoration of Israeli-American world hegemony. It seems that Israeli-American hegemony has no opponents capable of standing up to domination by the Israeli-American alliance, much less the pathetic Russian and Chinese governments. Russia and China will be knocked off one by one as they lack the intelligence to unite. Once Trump has cleared the path for Israel, will Israel then turn on America?

US military officially says 3 dead. I don’t believe it was 200.

“Iranian forces have retaliated against American-Israeli attacks by targeting Washington’s military bases across the region..”

• US Military Suffered 200 Casualties In Retaliatory Strikes – Tehran (RT)

The US has suffered 200 casualties in Iranian retaliatory strikes on bases across the Middle East, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has claimed. Backed by the US, Israel launched what was described as a preemptive operation against Iranian military and nuclear-related targets in the early hours of Saturday, claiming the strikes were aimed at neutralizing threats posed by the Islamic Republic in the region. US President Donald Trump later confirmed that the White House had supported West Jerusalem in conducting the strikes, citing the failure of nuclear diplomacy as a direct trigger for the move.

“As a result of missile strikes on American bases, at least 200 US military personnel were killed and injured,” the Tasnim news agency reported Saturday, citing a statement by the IRGC. Commenting on the retaliation, IRGC General Ebrahim Jabbari warned Trump that the Islamic Republic has “advanced capabilities” and is ready for a prolonged conflict. “At the start of the war we will strike everything we have in our stockpiles,” Jabbari said, vowing to launch “the most powerful missiles later.” IRGC General Ebrahim Jabbari:Trump should know that today we fired the missiles from the back of our stockpile.Soon, we will unveil weapons that you have never seen before. — Clash Report (@clashreport) February 28, 2026 “What we have not shown until now, and what, as we Iranians say, we ‘put to rest in brine,’ we will reveal in the coming days,” he added.
Iran’s retaliation targeted several US military facilities across the Middle East, including the Fifth Fleet support center in Bahrain, a base in Iraqi Kurdistan, Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait, Al Dhafra Air Base in the United Arab Emirates, Muwaffaq Al Salti Air Base in Jordan, and Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia, according to reports. Israeli news outlets also said that some 35 missiles were launched toward Israel, with one person reportedly injured. The latest strikes represent Israel’s second major military campaign against Iran in less than a year. In June 2025, during a 12-day conflict, the IDF in cooperation with US military forces carried out a surprise bombing of the Islamic Republic’s military and nuclear facilities, killing senior military commanders, government officials, and nuclear scientists.

There’s a woman’s face behind that black square in the photo.

• Bill Clinton ‘Did Not Have Sex’ With Mystery Woman In Epstein’s Jacuzzi (RT)

Former US President Bill Clinton allegedly told congressional investigators that he did not have sex with a woman photographed with him in a jacuzzi, and does not even know her name, according to CNN and NBC sources familiar with the testimony about his links to late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Clinton’s closed-door deposition before the House Oversight Committee on Friday lasted roughly six hours and concluded without the former president or his legal team addressing the press. The former president chose to manage the public response through social media, asserting in his opening statement that he “saw nothing” and “did nothing wrong.”

Several members of the committee told reporters outside the Chappaqua Performing Arts Center that the session was “productive” and said Clinton at times spoke more candidly than his attorneys preferred.“He did attempt to respond to every single question asked, even when his attorney told him to shut up,” House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer said. Rep. Nancy Mace thanked the former president for cooperating.Lawmakers questioned Clinton extensively about his appearances in newly released Epstein files, including photographs showing him alongside Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, who is currently serving a prison sentence for sex trafficking offenses.
At one point, Clinton was asked about photographs released by the Justice Department showing him in a hot tub with a woman whose face was redacted, according to CNN. Clinton allegedly said he did not know the woman and denied having any sexual relationship with her. He also repeatedly told investigators that he never visited Epstein’s private island. The inquiry also examined Clinton’s presence in Epstein flight logs and White House visitor records from the 1990s. Clinton has previously acknowledged traveling on Epstein’s private jet but has described their relationship as brief and said he was unaware of Epstein’s criminal conduct.
Clinton was represented during questioning by longtime attorney David Kendall, while spokesperson Angel Urena issued a written statement criticizing the Justice Department’s handling of Epstein-related evidence files. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who unlike her husband briefly spoke to reporters following her own testimony a day earlier, described the inquiry as “political theater.” Video recordings and transcripts of both Clintons’ depositions are expected to be released in the coming days, pending legal review. The testimonies form part of a wider congressional effort to examine individuals connected to Epstein’s network. Comer said additional subpoenas are expected but declined to identify future witnesses.

“Any attempt to strengthen Ukraine’s position by supplying it with a dirty bomb or any other components will not lead to any results .. ”

• UK, France Aiming To Tank Peace Talks With Ukraine Nuke Plot – Diplomat (RT)

The UK and France are planning to arm Ukraine with a nuclear weapon to ensure its conflict with Russia is not settled in US-backed peace talks, senior Russian diplomat Gennady Gatilov told RT in an interview on Friday. Earlier this week, Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) accused London and Paris of plotting to transfer the necessary components, technology, and equipment needed to develop a nuclear weapon or so-called ‘dirty bomb’.

The plans were specifically timed to undermine the trilateral Russian-US-Ukrainian peace talks, according to Gatilov, Russia’s permanent representative to the UN Office in Geneva. He argued that Kiev’s Western European backers have been increasingly “angered” by Russia’s advances on the battlefield. “This period was certainly not chosen by chance… there were truly important trilateral negotiations taking place,” he said. The UK, France and Ukraine’s other European sponsors were “essentially sidelined… which is causing them discontent, extreme discontent,” he said.
I think this was an attempt to increase their role in this process, and thus continue to encourage the Ukrainians, the Ukrainian regime, to continue military action. The diplomat cited the example of the failed 2014-2015 Minsk Agreements, which were ostensibly intended to reconcile the post-coup government in Kiev with anti-Maidan forces in Ukraine’s east. Germany and France were guarantors of the accords. Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel and former French President Francois Hollande later admitted that the accords had been exploited to stall for time and allow Kiev to rearm.
According to Gatilov, from the early stages of the Ukraine conflict, France and the UK have played an “important role” in turning the country into what he called an “anti-Russia project.” When asked if the alleged nuclear handover plot by London and Paris would strengthen Kiev’s negotiation position in the peace talks, the diplomat said no. “Any attempt to strengthen Ukraine’s position by supplying it with a dirty bomb or any other components will not lead to any results,” he said. “On the contrary… this will worsen the political situation and complicate the search for a political solution to the problem.”

Where the West was lost.

• 85% Of Babies In 2026 Will Be Born In Asia And Africa (ZH)

In 2026, 85% of babies worldwide will be born in just two continents: Asia and Africa. Where someone is born can shape everything from access to education and healthcare to long-term economic opportunity. This map, via Visual Capitalist’s Bruno Venditti, shows how global births are distributed across continents, based on population projections from the United Nations.

Asia Accounts for Nearly Half of Global Births
Asia is expected to see about 64.9 million births in 2026, accounting for roughly 49% of all births worldwide. Despite declining fertility rates in countries like China, Japan, and South Korea, Asia’s sheer population size keeps it at the center of global demographics. South and Southeast Asia, in particular, continue to contribute large numbers of births each year. As a result, nearly one in every two people born in 2026 will be born somewhere in Asia.
Africa Makes Up More Than One-Third of Global Births
Africa is projected to record 47.6 million births in 2026, representing 35.9% of the global total. This reflects the continent’s high fertility rates and young population structure. Many African countries are still early in their demographic transitions, with limited declines in birth rates so far. As population growth accelerates, Africa’s share of global births has been rising steadily and is projected to increase further later this century.
Smaller Shares in the Rest of the World
All other continents account for a relatively small share of global births. Latin America and the Caribbean are expected to see 9.3 million births, or 7% of the total, while Europe accounts for just 4.6%. North America’s share stands at 3%, reflecting lower fertility rates despite population growth driven by migration. Oceania contributes 0.5% of births, and Antarctica, with no permanent population, records no births at all.

“The broadly worded judgment is a stinging humiliation for The Marshmallow Minister ..”

• Court Says You Can’t Call AfD “Confirmed Right-wing Extremist” (Eugyppius)

Old friends may remember the farce we experienced last May, when outgoing Marshmallow Interior Minister Nancy Faeser pushed her gaggle of goons in the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) to upgrade their political classification of Alternative für Deutschland.No longer did the BfV consider the national political party to lurk under mere “suspicion of right-wing extremism,” oh no. They announced suddenly and with much establishment fanfare that they had determined the AfD to be “confirmed right-wing extremists.”

Faeser and her goons hoped this new designation would edge the AfD more firmly into Evil Nazi Fascist Hitler territory in the popular mind, thereby preparing the way for banning the party. According to the dumb Gender Studies-tier retards unassailable and unbiased experts of the BfV, the AfD were more definitely Evil, more definitely Nazi, more definitely Fascist and more definitely Hitler than ever before. They had such clear proofs of all the Evil Nazi Fascist Hitlerism lurking within the AfD that they could not even reveal them. Doing so, Faeser said, would compromise the mysterious sources and methods of her highly sophisticated political spy agency. Instead, the Interior Ministry leaked a classified dossier supporting the upgrade to sympathetic media like Der Spiegel, and these media promptly published earnest articles telling us all how absolutely Fascist and Evil and Nazi and Hitler all the secret evidence showed the AfD to be, because trust us bro.
What happened next is that somebody leaked the full 1,000-page dossier to the alternative news outlets Cicero and NiUS, both of which promptly published the full .pdf. It turned out to be one of the stupidest and most trivial documents I’ve ever read. The supersecret hyperspy sources tapped by the BfV? Google and social media posts. The supersecret hyperspy methods used by the BfV? Compiling interminable lists of potentially untoward or possibly impolite things AfD politicians uttered in googlable documents or on social media. It was so bad that almost overnight the dossier destroyed much of the momentum for an AfD ban – exactly the opposite of what its architects had intended. Even many establishment figures quietly admitted what a travesty the whole thing had turned out to be.
NEVERTHELESS: The establishment moved quickly to capitalise on the new extremist designation. Various state governments began plotting to cleanse the civil service of AfD members on the grounds that they were affiliates of an officially “extremist” organisation. In Rheinland-Pfalz they even toyed with the idea of illegally excluding AfD candidates from running in local elections also on the basis of this bureaucratic designation. The Social Democrats began pushing to initiate ban proceedings against the AfD, a move that – if successful – would grant the left parties indefinite parliamentary majorities both nationally and across many state parliaments, amounting to a kind of legal coup and casting us into a new DDR-light regime.
Meanwhile, the AfD filed suit with the Administrative Court in Cologne to overturn their upgraded designation because it was so obviously dumb and unfounded. They also asked the court to prohibit the designation temporarily, while their primary lawsuit is pending – a long involved process that will take years. The Cologne judges released their unusually extensive 55-page decision on the temporary injunction yesterday. For the party-banning speech-repressing opinion-monitoring enthusiasts of Our Democracy, it is a disaster.

“Claims Credit For Border Security .. ”

Requiring voter ID equals stealing the election.

“..he’s going to do everything he can to prevent you from wanting to vote ..”

I’m trying to see a logic in here…

• Joe Biden Accuses Trump Of Planning To ‘Steal’ The Midterms (ZH)

Former President Joe Biden made one of his rare post-presidential appearances Friday in Columbia, South Carolina, stepping onto a stage at a downtown art museum to accept a lifetime achievement honor from the state’s Democratic Party. During the speech, Biden claimed that Donald Trump is rigging the 2026 midterms before a single vote has been cast. “Here’s the good news,” Biden told the crowd. “In America, the power still belongs to the people for now. And the way to show the power is vote, show up, and vote. And folks, when we do that, that’s bad news for Donald Trump, and he knows it. That’s why he’s trying to pull out more and more barriers – put them up. He’s trying to steal the election because he knows he can’t win your vote, so he’s going to do everything he can to prevent you from wanting to vote.”

The “barriers” Biden was referencing are Trump’s push for photo ID requirements and proof of citizenship for first-time voter registration – the two key components of the SAVE America Act currently awaiting a Senate vote. Biden framed these measures as existential threats to democracy. What he did not mention is that the American public has already rendered its verdict on these policies — and it is not remotely close. A Pew Research Center survey found that 83% of Americans support requiring a government-issued photo ID to vote, including 71% of Democrats, 76% of black Americans, and 82% of Hispanics. = Gallup found nearly identical results: 84% in favor of photo ID requirements, with 98% of Republicans, 84% of independents, and 67% of Democrats on board. Eighty-three percent also support requiring proof of citizenship for first-time voter registration.
“The bottom line is this,” CNN’s chief data analyst Harry Enten said earlier this month. “Voter ID is not controversial in this country. A photo ID to vote is not controversial in this country. It is not controversial by party, and it is not controversial by race. The vast majority of Americans agree … that, in fact, you should have a photo ID to be able to vote.”

Americans agree with Nicki Minaj when it comes to voter id.

83% of favor photo voter id to vote per Pew. This includes 70%+ of Democrats and Republicans, as well as 75%+ of Americans across races…. White, Black, and Latino.

It's not controversial. pic.twitter.com/9Kocw85Uh8
— (((Harry Enten))) (@ForecasterEnten) February 3, 2026

Biden was speaking, in other words, about a policy his own base largely supports — insisting it’s election theft. Biden also attempted to rewrite his legacy by claiming he had secured the southern border.”The day I left office, border crossings in the United States were lower than the day that I entered an office inherited from Trump,” he said. “He is — I won’t say it. That’s just a fact.” What Biden failed to mention was that border crossings hit record highs on his watch. The numbers were so high that even Barack Obama’s Department of Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson said back in 2024 that they were unsustainable.
During his presidency, he claimed that he needed new legislation to address the border crisis and insisted that it was up to Congress to give him the authority he needed to close the border. The Biden administration only chose to act on the border when polling showed that Trump had a significant advantage on the issue of immigration.No matter how hard he tries, Joe Biden can’t rewrite his record on the border. Rather than own his legacy, he’s proving exactly why Donald Trump won in 2024.

Elon Musk shares his core philosophy on building world-class teams:

“If somebody gets things done, I love them. It’s pretty straightforward”

He hires for four core traits:
– Talent
– Drive
– Trustworthiness
– Goodness of heart (he says he underweighted this at one point)

“Are… pic.twitter.com/A16nLdUqWC
— X Freeze (@XFreeze) February 28, 2026

https://twitter.com/NicHulscher/status/2028122511922135127?s=20 https://twitter.com/scitechgirl/status/2028150089315680453?s=20 DNA https://twitter.com/BrainyScience/status/2027854938894663775?s=20 cell https://twitter.com/MAstronomers/status/2027852771680981086?s=20 https://twitter.com/maximumpain333/status/2027909335939223723?s=20

The electron has no surface. When you imagine an electron… You probably think of a tiny sphere orbiting a nucleus. But that's an outdated image. In modern physics, the electron has no boundary. It has no "skin." It has no measurable surface. As far as we've been able to… pic.twitter.com/VPQOKQY1I9
— Amazing Physics (@amazing_physics) March 1, 2026

The impossible architecture of these bird nests

pic.twitter.com/b0SfCD5t5H
— Science girl (@sciencegirl) February 28, 2026

https://twitter.com/latestincosmos/status/2027842472345538797?s=20

⚡️ It sounds like something from the future, but it’s real science. Scientists have created a single particle of light that can exist across 37 quantum informational layers at once. Using advanced entanglement methods, they linked the photon’s color and phase into one unified… pic.twitter.com/TmB3ucaCaC
— SciTech Girl (@scitechgirl) March 1, 2026

https://twitter.com/AstronomyVibes/status/2028078201843449970?s=20

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Debt Rattle June 19 2025

Jun 192025

June 19, 2025 Posted by Raúl Ilargi Meijer at 9:33 am Finance Tagged with: Civil War, EU, hypersonics, Khameini, missile interceptors, NATO, neocons, Strait of Hormuz, surrender, Trump 86 Responses »

Rembrandt van Rijn Self portrait with tousled hair 1629

• Ayatollah Tells Trump “We Will Never Surrender” In Televised Speech (ZH)

• Trump Says Iran Reached Out, But It’s ‘Very Late To Be Talking’ (ZH)

• Strait Of Hormuz Disruption Fears Surge (ZH)

• Neocons Dragging Trump into WWIII – Martin Armstrong (USAW)

• Israel Running Low On Missile Interceptors (ZH)

• Only 16% Of Americans, 19% Of Trump Voters Want US To Join War On Iran (ZH)

• Erdogan Backs Iranian Response To Israel (RT)

• Is the Trump Project Unravelling? (Alastair Crooke)

• Blue Collars, Bigger Paychecks: ‘Strongest Growth in 60 Years’ (PJM)

• Germany Stoking Russophobia and Fears of World War III (Norbert Davies)

• NATO Rearmament Is Completely Pointless – Putin (RT)

• Brussels Makes EU ‘As Uncompetitive As Possible’ – Putin Envoy (RT)

• Intelligence Has Departed Every Government (Paul Craig Roberts)

• 40% of Americans Expect Civil War In Next Decade (RT)

• Zelensky Seeks $40bn a Year For ‘Resilience’ (RT)

Iran has no Rothschild central bank. No IMF loans. The region’s deepest oil reserves. It supplies 87% of China’s crude, controls the Strait of Hormuz through which $1.2 trillion flows annually and trades outside the U.S. dollar. That’s why they want it broken.

— Monero Money (@MoneroMoney) June 18, 2025

I saw this man being interviewed on TV.
I guess they invited him on thinking he would say the opposite.
We looked at each other and both said,

" He won't be on again"pic.twitter.com/tbywmVlmdO

— sandra (@mrsDugskullery) June 17, 2025

Sachs

Our Foreign Policy is Governed by a Deep State apparatus, the CIA, Mossad, MI6

Prof. Jeffrey Sachs: Mossad, effectively has determined US policy for decades, and, Trump is falling into line.

President Putin, in 2017, expressed something that, we all learn as well. He knew it in… pic.twitter.com/r3ytHyNzbj

— Ignorance, the root and stem of all evil (@ivan_8848) June 17, 2025

JEFFREY SACHS: "Netanyahu, I regard as one of the most delusional and dangerous people on the planet."

Sachs states that this conflict isn’t about U.S. security, but that it’s Netanyahu’s war. He says we’ve already fought 6 on Israel’s behalf.

Are we about to fight a 7th? pic.twitter.com/a7e9u92c6f

— Russell Brand (@rustyrockets) June 17, 2025

What actually changed overnight and why did it change overnight?

Candace Owens unveils the only reason. pic.twitter.com/DqggjFQTr9

— Fake Batman (@FakeBatmanClub) June 18, 2025

https://twitter.com/RussiaIsntEnemy/status/1935005386307707124

Ritter

Americans, watch @JudgingFreedom on YouTube if you want to know what is really going on in the world…. pic.twitter.com/TvyjUyOABC

— Kerry Burgess (@KerryBurgess) June 17, 2025

Here is @MikeBenzCyber explaining in a coherent, 15 minute presentation of how four of our Supreme Court justices are involved in CIA operations…https://t.co/uqwHUMkPQ7

— Dave Collum (@DavidBCollum) June 18, 2025

Message for the home front, not Trump.

• Ayatollah Tells Trump “We Will Never Surrender” In Televised Speech (ZH)

In a rare and important nationally televised wartime speech by Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, he warned against American military intervention on behalf of Israel. bHe set out three clear messages: first that Israel’s aggression happened when Tehran was engaged in indirect nuclear talks with the US and that there was no sign whatsoever that harsh military action was coming. This is confirmation he and the Islamic Republic were caught completely off-guard. Axios had claimed that Washington knew about it, and that the talks were a smokescreen to allow Israel the element of total surprise when its warplanes began hitting Iranian nuclear sites. Second, he asserted that the Americans should know that Iran is not going to surrender and that US entry into the war would bring irreversible destruction.

A third main point Khamenei maid in the speech, even as bombs are still falling on Tehran and elsewhere, is that the American military’s entry into the conflict would be clear sign of weakness for Israel. “The US President threatens us. With his absurd rhetoric, he demands that the Iranian people surrender to him. They should make threats against those who are afraid of being threatened. The Iranian nation isn’t frightened by such threats,” the Ayatollah said according to state translation. “It isn’t wise to tell the Iranian nation to surrender. What should the Iranian nation surrender to? We will never surrender in response to the attacks of anyone. This is the logic of the Iranian nation. This is the spirit of the Iranian nation.”

He continued: “The US entering in this matter [war] is 100% to its own detriment. The damage it will suffer will be far greater than any harm that Iran may encounter.” And more: The harm the US will suffer will definitely be irreparable if they enter this conflict militarily. The Zionist regime’s malicious attack on our country took place at a time when Iranian officials were indirectly engaged in negotiations with the US side. There was no indication on the part of Iran that signaled a military move. Speaking on the question of potential direct US involvement already, Khamenei said, “It was already suspected that the US was involved in the malicious move carried out by the Zionist regime, but considering their recent remarks, this suspicion is growing stronger day by day.”

Iran has one big thing: hypersonics. But how many, and how strong?

• Trump Says Iran Reached Out, But It’s ‘Very Late To Be Talking’ (ZH)

President Donald Trump on Wednesday fielded reporters’ questions on the Iran crisis, but refused to answer whether the US military will directly enter the war, amid Israeli requests that the Pentagon assist in striking Iran’s nuclear facilities. “There’s a big difference between now and a week ago,” Trump told reporters outside the White House, and added curiously: “Nobody knows what I’m going to do.” He indicated that the Iranians had reached out but he feels “it’s very late to be talking.” But he also threw out the possibility: “We may meet. It’s, I don’t know, there’s a big difference between now and a week ago,” he said on the White House lawn. “I can tell you this, that Iran’s got a lot of trouble and they want to negotiate. And I say, ‘Why didn’t you negotiate with me before all this death and destruction?'” And more:

“For 40 years they’ve been saying death to America, death to Israel, death to anybody else that they didn’t like,” he said. “They were bullies. They were schoolyard bullies. And now they’re not bullies anymore. But we’ll see what happens. “I wouldn’t say that we won anything yet. I would say that we sure as hell made a lot of progress.” He further described Iran as “totally defenseless” at this moment of Israeli warplanes having full dominance of skies in Western Iran. According to a recent Bloomberg headline: “Iran’s Missile Attacks Wane, Allowing Israel to Start Reopening“ Amid all of this, CNN is reporting that a third US aircraft carrier is being moved, though not all the way to Middle East waters. This could be as ‘back-up’ to the two carriers currently deploying to the CENTCOM region of responsibility:

“USS FORD CARRIER STRIKE GROUP EXPECTED TO DEPLOY TO EUROPE: CNN”. CNN details of this latest new deployment: “The USS Ford Carrier Strike Group is expected to be deployed to Europe next week, near the Middle East, putting a third aircraft carrier in close proximity to the conflict between Israel and Iran, a US official and two other people familiar with the matter said. nThe Ford’s scheduled deployment to the European Command theater has been in the books since late last year. But it will likely move into the eastern Mediterranean Sea, near Israel, given the ongoing conflict with Iran. At the same time, another aircraft carrier is en route to the Middle East, where it will either join or replace the USS Carl Vinson, CNN has reported.

Meanwhile the hawks are circling, as GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham said he spoke with President Donald Trump last night about Iran, and that he argued there is one facility that “it would be hard to Israel to get without our help.” “We’ll see what the president does. But I never felt better about the end of the Iran nuclear program is very close, and the world will be better off for it,” Graham said.

“Starting tomorrow, for 100 days, no oil tankers or LNG cargoes will be able to pass through the strait without Iran’s approval,” Khandouzi said..”

• Strait Of Hormuz Disruption Fears Surge (ZH)

JPMorgan’s forecast of triple-digit Brent crude prices could soon be a reality as conflict risk in and around the Strait of Hormuz intensifies. The waterway, which handles roughly 20% of global oil trade, remains one of the world’s most critical maritime chokepoints. Any disruption, particularly amid growing military escalation between Iran and Israel, could impact energy flows worldwide and send prices soaring. The most concerning sign of potential maritime disruption in the Strait of Hormuz emerged in the overnight hours via a statement on X by former Iranian Economy Minister Ehsan Khandouzi. While unofficial, the timing and seniority of the comment may reflect broader regime sentiment—or serve as a warning of what’s to come.

“Starting tomorrow, for 100 days, no oil tankers or LNG cargoes will be able to pass through the strait without Iran’s approval,” Khandouzi said. He stated, “This policy is decisive if it is implemented “in a timely manner.” Any delay in its implementation means enduring more war inside the country. Trump’s battle must be ended with a combination of economy and security.”

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Such messaging, especially when paired with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) naval activity in the region, raises the increasing probability of IRGC actions targeting commercial shipping lanes in the strait. This escalation could serve as the catalyst that turns JPMorgan’s $120–$130 per barrel Brent crude forecast from a scenario into a market reality. Some more excerpts from the full JPM note: A blockade of the Strait of Hormuz—the world’s busiest oil-shipping channel—would shut down the region’s oil trade, supercharging oil prices. The skinny waterway—at its narrowest point it is only 21 miles (33 km) wide— separating the UAE, Oman and Iran, connects the Persian Gulf with the Indian Ocean, and facilitates the movement of some 30% of the world’s seaborne oil trade and 20% of the world’s LNG supply.

Widespread GPS jamming has been reported across the strait for the last several days: Which unfolded into a maritime disaster early Tuesday when crude oil tanker Front Eagle slammed into the port quarter of the tanker Adalynn, sparking a massive fire on Adalynn, and concerns about a potential ecological disaster have surged. All in all, the world’s most critical maritime chokepoint appears to be in the crosshairs of the Iranian regime. On Tuesday, President Trump met with his national security team for over an hour to discuss the Middle East and later held a call with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu. The key question now is whether the U.S. will enter the conflict. If it does, a shipping disruption in the Strait of Hormuz is almost guaranteed—setting the stage for global energy markets to be thrown into turmoil.

“Things are going to be bad in the US but much worse in Europe. Armstrong says, “If they turn this into a Jihad or holy war, it will go absolutely crazy. You are going to be looking at civil war in virtually every city.”

• Neocons Dragging Trump into WWIII – Martin Armstrong (USAW)

Two weeks ago, legendary financial and geopolitical cycle analyst Martin Armstrong was signaling a big turn toward war. We all know Ukraine is out of control with no peace deal in sight, and now the Middle East is blowing up too. Armstrong says, “I think Trump has been kind of snookered into this . . . Netanyahu knew he could not get the nuclear. Now, he says we are losing because they have not been able to achieve that. So, Netanyahu says President Trump, please go in and attack Iran and eliminate that, which is World War III. . .. Iran is not by itself. We have to consider what is going to take place here. . .. I am concerned this drags in Russia and also China. . .. You have Zelensky over there conspiring with Britain to use an old Soviet torpedo to sink an American ship so they can blame that on Russia.

You have the same nonsense in the Middle East so they can create a false flag there to say Iran attacked American forces. They are trying to drag Trump into World War III. These neocons are horrible people. They have no humanity, and they do not care about how many people die.” For anyone hoping this would blow over or not be too severe, forget that. Socrates, Armstrong’s computer program that is extremely accurate, says this is going to be a long and very bad dream. Armstrong says, “Socrates is not showing this is going to be over swiftly and ending. It is warning that this is going to be more protracted. On top of that, Iran has supersonic missiles. They had them before we did. They claim they domestically developed them, but it’s widely believed Russia helped them. In addition to that, about 80% of the oil from Iran goes to China. This, to me, is a classic neocon blunder.”

Things are going to be bad in the US but much worse in Europe. Armstrong says, “If they turn this into a Jihad or holy war, it will go absolutely crazy. You are going to be looking at civil war in virtually every city. This is not good. If you are looking at war that is a dispute over a border or economics, you can come to some sort of negotiation. You cannot do that when you are talking about a religious war. . .. If you take out the Supreme Leader, you are going to turn this into a religious war. You are looking at Muslims reacting in Europe and even the United States. This is s different type of war, and we better damn well respect that.”

Armstrong thinks gold will hit some resistance at around $4,000 per ounce and then go up to $5,000 per ounce. When that happens, Armstrong says silver will easily hit $50 per ounce and beyond. Armstrong says oil could hit $115 a barrel sometime in July, and it could go higher from there. In closing, I asked Armstrong what he would tell President Trump right now. Armstrong says, “We are in a war cycle, and it is a contagion. . .. Get the hell out of Ukraine, and get the hell out of the Middle East.” Armstrong is still strongly recommending getting two years of food.

Will the US step in? Note: these things don’t stop hypersonics.

• Israel Running Low On Missile Interceptors (ZH)

Following multiple rounds of Iranian missile barrages that have proven far more effective than many “experts” anticipated, the Israeli Defense Forces are already running low on defensive Arrow interceptor missiles, making Israel all the more desperate for the United States to join the war Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government initiated on Friday the 13th. Meanwhile, as Iran’s retaliation continues, reports of war-fatigue among Israel’s population are already emerging.

Against that backdrop, President Trump has been dialing up the intensity of his rhetoric as he pushes Iran to capitulate to demands that it cease all uranium enrichment — a demand that Iran has long ruled out as a violation of its sovereignty, while insisting its nuclear program isn’t focused on creating a weapon. The US intelligence community assessed that to be true in March. “UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!” exclaimed Trump in a terse Tuesday social media post. Trump, who spoke with Netanyahu by phone on Tuesday, is considering options that include a US strike on Iran, the Wall Street Journal reports. As his deliberations continue — while some members of Congress are backing a resolution that would bar a US attack without congressional authorization — the Pentagon continues shifting a variety of assets toward the region. The DOD insists they’re for defensive use, which includes shielding Israel from the consequences of starting a war with Iran.

According to an individual briefed on US and Israeli intelligence, Israel is on pace to run out of defensive missiles in 10 to 12 days. “They will need to select what they want to intercept,” that person told the Washington Post. “The system is already overwhelmed.” Arrow interceptors are manufactured by Israel Aerospace Industries. The United States has been pushing other missile defense assets into Israel over the last week, but the Wall Street Journal reports that practice is already raising concerns about the effect on US military readiness.

“Neither the U.S. nor the Israelis can continue to sit and intercept missiles all day,” Tom Karako of the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) told the Journal. “The Israelis and their friends need to move with all deliberate haste to do whatever needs to be done, because we cannot afford to sit and play catch.” (CSIS is funded in part by the US government and major weapons manufacturers.) According to Israeli financial newspaper The Marker, the ongoing missile defense is costing Israel about $285 million a night, though ZeroHedge readers will reasonably brace for the day that American taxpayers are presented with the bill.

Even ahead of running out of interceptors, Israel is struggling to consistently defend its citizens and assets from Iran’s arsenal, and especially its cutting-edge hypersonic missiles. Videos of the missiles repeatedly hammering Israel have been making jaws drop around the world and across social media since Iran began retaliating for Israel’s unprovoked launch of a war on Iran.

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Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) said that strikes over Tuesday night used “a new advanced missile.” According to state media, the first-generation Fattah hypersonic ballistic missile has a two-stage solid-fuel system, a 1,400-kilometer range, a top speed of Mach 13-15, and a maximum time-to-target of just 336 seconds. Claiming it repeatedly and easily penetrated Israel’s defenses, the IRGC boasted that “tonight’s missile strike demonstrated that we have achieved total control over the skies of the occupied territories.”

Of course, there’s also the question of how long Iran’s inventory of offensive missiles can last — but it’s far from clear how much of the arsenal remains after accounting for missiles already launched and others destroyed by Israeli strikes. Iran’s pace of strikes has reportedly eased over the past two nights. “Iran has to make a very, very difficult calculation, because they have a limited amount of missiles, and considering the rate of fire, they cannot replenish in real time,” said International Institute for Strategic Studies analyst Fabian Hinz told the Post. Working to accelerate the math to Iran’s detriment, Israel said it struck missile factories on Tuesday, along with a centrifuge production center.

“The ongoing war between Israel and Iran is not our war. Even if it were, Congress must decide such matters according to our Constitution.”

• Only 16% Of Americans, 19% Of Trump Voters Want US To Join War On Iran (ZH)

As President Trump reportedly considers issuing an unconstitutional order to commit the US military to Israel’s war on Iran, a new poll finds very little public support for an American attack on Iran — even among those who voted for Trump in 2024. According to an Economist/YouGov poll taken between June 13 and 16, only 16% of Americans “think the US military should get involved in the conflict between Israel and Iran. In an even more significant finding, only 19% of people who voted for Trump in 2024 support American military involvement. (23% of all self-identified Republicans support going to war.) Similarly, 56% of all Americans say the United States should engage in negotiations with Iran. That avenue has even greater support among Trump supporters — with 63% advocating negotiations.

On the other hand, some of the poll’s findings illustrate the effectiveness of decades of government propagandizing about Iran that’s been echoed by establishment media. For example, 61% of Americans say Iran’s nuclear program poses either an “immediate, serious threat” or “somewhat serious threat” to the United States. In 2007, the US intelligence community issued a National Intelligence Estimate that concluded with “high confidence” that Iran was not developing a nuclear weapon. That same conclusion has been periodically reiterated by the intelligence community ever since, including just three months ago. Similarly, 50% of Americans and 68% of Trump voters classify Iran as an “enemy” of the United States. A quarter of Americans categorize Iran as “unfriendly.”

Interestingly, the poll also asked respondents to characterize Israel in the same way. Here, 10% said Israel was unfriendly and 6% called Israel an enemy; 61% said Israel was either an ally or friendly, while 23% said they were unsure. Against the top-line finding of 16% of Americans saying Israel is either “unfriendly” or an “enemy,” some groups with above-average negative convictions about Israel include Hispanics (21%), 18- to 29-year-olds (21%), 30- to 44-year olds (20%), income under $50k (18%) and liberals (22%).

There’s not a single demo in the country whose majority is not opposed to US involvement in Israel’s war of aggression against Iran! Check out these polling figures. Never seen anything like this before. This is HUGE!!! pic.twitter.com/9X98CoI3WS

— Connor Freeman (@FreemansMind96) June 18, 2025

The finding of broad unpopularity of another US war in the Middle East comes alongside a rising chorus of voices demanding that the decision should be made by the Congress, as required by the United States Constitution. On Monday, Republican Rep. Thomas Massie and Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna introduced the “Iran War Powers Resolution” that would prohibit the US military from “unauthorized hostilities in the Islamic Republic of Iran.” Also on Monday, Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine introduced a resolution in the upper chamber that would require a debate and vote before any use of force against Iran.

“The Constitution does not permit the executive branch to unilaterally commit an act of war against a sovereign nation that hasn’t attacked the United States,” said Massie “Congress has the sole power to declare war against Iran. The ongoing war between Israel and Iran is not our war. Even if it were, Congress must decide such matters according to our Constitution.” A coalition that spans ideological lines is forming to back the resolutions, and the Ron Paul-affiliated Campaign for Liberty has posted a webpage that makes it quick and easy for citizens to urge their representative and senators to sign on.

An Israeli official tells CNN that Israel's war with Iran is "premised on the fact that the US will join at some point" pic.twitter.com/52uau9ya9g

— Dave DeCamp (@DecampDave) June 17, 2025

Big player between Christians and Islam. NATO member.

• Erdogan Backs Iranian Response To Israel (RT)

Iran has a legitimate right to respond to Israel’s attacks, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said, accusing West Jerusalem of engaging in “banditry and state terrorism.” He also compared Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Adolf Hitler. Israel began bombing Iran on Friday, claiming Tehran is nearing the completion of a nuclear bomb. Iran dismissed the accusations and retaliated to the Israeli military operation with waves of drone and missile strikes on the Jewish state. “It is entirely natural, legitimate, and lawful for Iran to defend itself against Israel’s banditry and state terrorism,” Erdogan stated on Wednesday during a parliamentary group meeting in Ankara.

The Turkish president strongly criticized Israel’s leadership for its acts of aggression, claiming that Netanyahu has “long surpassed the tyrant Hitler in the crime of genocide.” He also condemned the global inaction over Israel’s aggression in Gaza, seen by the UN rights committee as characteristic of genocide, stating that “the blood of massacred civilians, murdered babies, and children is splattered not only on the hands and faces of those who support Israel’s arrogance, but also on those who remain silent.” Türkiye is doing “everything we can” to stop what he called “inhumane aggression” not only against Iran, but also Gaza, Syria, Lebanon, and Yemen, Erdogan insisted. “Stopping Israel’s aggression is essential for the world and humanity,” he said. Ankara is staying vigilant and “closely monitoring Israel’s terrorist attacks on Iran,” he said.

The government is committed to safeguarding the country’s interests, peace and security and is prepared for “every possible negative development and scenario.” Russia has condemned the Israeli campaign as illegal and warned that strikes on Iran’s nuclear infrastructure could trigger a “nuclear catastrophe.” In a statement on Tuesday, the Russian Foreign Ministry said Israel’s attacks on peaceful atomic sites violate international law and threaten global stability. US President Donald Trump, however, has backed Israel and demanded Iran’s “unconditional surrender.” On Tuesday, he claimed that American forces and allies have achieved “complete and total control of the skies over Iran,” and said the US knew the location of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, calling him an “easy target.”

When you lose Tucker Carlson and Steve Bannon…

• Is the Trump Project Unravelling? (Alastair Crooke)

The Musk versus Trump fallout (at least for now) has a distinct ‘made for television’ quality to it. But do not be deceived by the entertainment content. The spat illustrates a fundamental contradiction at the heart of the MAGA coalition. It is quite possible that this contradiction will erupt at some further point and may end up triggering the slow decay of Project Trump. bA fulcral moment in the last U.S. election was the switch of Silicon Valley’s ultra-rich Tech oligarchs from their support for the Democrats to Trump. It brought both money and the potential glittering prize that America could seize a monopoly over global data storage; AI; and what Yanis Varoufakis calls ‘cloud capital’ – the purported ability to extract rent (i.e. fees) for access to America’s putative massive data hoard and to Big Tech’s associated platforms. Such a data monopoly, it was believed, would then give the U.S. the ability to manipulate how the world thinks – and to define the products and planforms seen to be ‘cool’.

The notion too was that a monopoly on data centres could potentially be as lucrative as the U.S. monopoly of the dollar used as the principal trade currency – which could provide major capital inflows to offset debt. The explosive quality to a coalition of Tech Oligarchs with the MAGA Populists, however, is that both factions hold irreconcilable visions – both for dealing with America’s structural debt crisis, as well as that of America’s cultural future. The ‘Tech Bros’ vision is wildly radical; it is ‘authoritarian libertarianism’. Peter Thiel, for example, argues that a small posse of Oligarchs should rule the empire, unfettered by any democratic limitation; that the future should be based in ‘disruptive technology’; be robotic and AI driven; and that the populace should be tightly ‘managed’ through AI control.

The Trump Economic Team’s vision is quite different: Trump’s own primordial objective – to which geo-politics is subordinate – is to shore up the dollar as the world’s main trading currency. This objective however can only be sustained through addressing America’s unsustainable debt overhang. The overhang reflects the imbalance that built up after 1970 when the U.S. trade account slipped into deficit: On the one hand, the U.S. has facilitated an exaggeratedly large sphere of global dollar indebtedness to splurge worldwide; but at the same time, this massive inverted pyramid of debt rests on a diminutive and shrinking American production base. nIn other words, whilst America benefited enormously from these capital inflows, it can no longer expect to grow itself out of its own, self-created debt-trap.

Team Trump proposes to address this imbalance through devaluing the dollar (perhaps by up to 30%), by corporate tax cuts (to induce a return of overseas manufacturing to the U.S.), and thus bringing about a managed shrinkage of the offshore dollar debt cloud relative to U.S. productive capacity. To be clear, this does not solve the debt problem – It just buys time. The Tariff ‘shock and awe’ strategy was intended to frighten the world into making unwise deals to accommodate this schema. The U.S. pressure on states for greater NATO defence spending too, similarly follows U.S. ‘bankruptcy best practice’ for the restructuring of existing creditors. So far, this has not worked out as planned, due in major part to Chinese resistance. As a result, the U.S. bond-market (debt market) remains today on tenderhooks, with every auction a nail-biter.

Over simplifying things – one can see that the populist MAGA base are insisting on a return to a real human economy and well-paid employment prospects versus the contrasting dystopian view of theTech Bros, who see only a (non-human) disruptive tech, robotic and AI future. These visions are completely at odds with each other. Knowing this background may explain how Steve Bannon (a supporter of the MAGA populists) can be viscerally opposed to Elon Musk, labelling him an apostate, an ‘illegal migrant’, with the demand that he be deported. The question is, how did such contradictory visions find themselves joined into a single coalition?

“..create up to 6 million blue-collar jobs in construction and manufacturing, reversing decades of offshoring.”

• Blue Collars, Bigger Paychecks: ‘Strongest Growth in 60 Years’ (PJM)

We’re only five months into President Donald Trump’s second term, and we’ve seen him keep many of the promises he made during his campaign, a rarity for anyone in politics. Now, we can add a pretty historic bump in blue-collar wages to the list. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced on Tuesday that real wages for hourly workers are up almost 2% so far this year, the strongest growth in 60 years. Under Joe Biden, hourly wages were down nearly 2%. As a matter of fact, no other president has seen a rise in hourly wages since Richard Nixon… with the exception of Trump’s first term, during which wages were up 1.3%.

Thanks to @POTUS’s pro-growth, America First policies, real wages for hourly workers are up nearly 2% in the first five months of @realDonaldTrump’s second term — the strongest growth in 60 years.

No president has done that before — except President Trump in his first term.… pic.twitter.com/gasjQn33eb

— Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (@SecScottBessent) June 17, 2025

Bessent, who sat down with columnist and “Pod Force Once” podcast host Miranda Devine for an interview recently, said three things have contributed to this significant growth: falling inflation, the president’s “emphasis on manufacturing,” and the removal of illegal immigrants from the workforce. Bessent told Devine that when Biden opened up the border and allowed everyone to flood the country, it was a disaster for “working Americans” because it put pressure on their wages. Team Trump also believes that if the One Big Beautiful Bill passes, wages will increase even more, while inflation drops even lower. The bill targets hourly and blue-collar workers via elements like “no tax on tips.” “The bill would also eliminate federal income taxes on overtime pay for over 80 million hourly workers in industries like manufacturing, construction, and first responders who often rely on overtime for income,” according to Devine. She adds that it would also provide “tax incentives for manufacturers to build U.S. factories,” which would “create up to 6 million blue-collar jobs in construction and manufacturing, reversing decades of offshoring.”

Bessent also released a statement on Tuesday, praising the Senate’s version of the One Big Beautiful Bill: “We applaud the Senate’s action to progress this critical legislation and expand upon President Trump’s tax relief for hardworking Americans. The One, Big, Beautiful Bill will protect families and small businesses from the largest tax hike in history and deliver No Tax on Tips, No Tax on Overtime, and new tax cuts for seniors. The bill will ensure the United States remains the premier destination for global capital, while protecting American companies and workers from foreign taxes. The passage of this bill will deliver the permanence and certainty both individual taxpayers and businesses alike are looking for, driving growth and unleashing the American economy. We look forward to continuing to work with the Senate and the House to further refine this bill and get it to President Trump’s desk.”

The Trump Administration applauds the Senate’s action to progress this critical legislation and expand upon @POTUS’s tax relief for hardworking Americans.

The One, Big, Beautiful Bill will:

✔️ Protect families and small businesses from the largest tax hike in history
✔️ Deliver…

— Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (@SecScottBessent) June 17, 2025

The only thing they have left to sell is fear.. Their economy is crashing… Find someone to blame it on..

• Germany Stoking Russophobia and Fears of World War III (Norbert Davies)

Berlin continues to peddle lunacy, warning the state needs to be prepared for an attack from Russia within the next four years. The Western European nation responsible for starting two world wars now has designs to enlarge and modernize its civil defense infrastructure as its European NATO allies fast-track militarization in preparation for a potential direct showdown with Russia, according to Ralph Tiesler, head of the Federal Office of Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance (BBK). Presently, Germany has around 600 operational shelters with room for half a million people, which is less than 1% of the population. In comparison, the BBK said that Finland has 50,000 protective shelters, amounting to space for 4.8 million people, or 85% of its population.

In a series of recent interviews with national media, Tiesler said that to manage the shortage, the BBK plans to convert cellars, underground garages, and metro stations into a system of bomb shelters capable of accommodating up to one million people out of Germany’s population of 85 million. The hardened facilities would come complete with food, water, bathrooms and sleeping areas. “For a long time, there was a widespread belief in Germany that war was not a scenario for which we needed to prepare. That has changed. We are concerned about the risk of a major war of aggression in Europe,” he told the Süddeutsche Zeitung news outlet. “New bunkers with the highest protection standards cost a lot of money and take time. We need faster solutions,” Tiesler said, adding that his agency will present a comprehensive plan later this summer.

“Nearly every basement can become a safe place in the event of an attack,” he said in a separate interview with Zeit, encouraging his fellow Germans to reinforce windows, stock essentials, and prepare to shelter for extended periods. President Vladimir Putin has consistently argued that Moscow has “no reason, no interest – no geopolitical interest, neither economic, nor political, nor military” to fight with the countries of the NATO bloc. While downplaying the likelihood of a full-blown Russian invasion of Berlin reminiscent of the final days of World War II, Tiesler warned that as a major NATO logistical hub, Germany would become a target for “selective strikes” in the event of an eastern front conflict.

German hospitals are being considered for their ability to treat mass casualties, with Tiesler warning that the national health system could witness up to 1,000 additional patients daily in the event of a military confrontation. Other plans include doubling the number of warning sirens nationwide, upgrading emergency apps to include missile strike instructions, and possibly introducing a national civil service requirement, as reported by RT. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who gave Ukraine the greenlight to use long-range missiles against Russia, pledged to turn the Bundeswehr into the strongest conventional army in Europe by giving it all the financial resources it needs to become so. Merz also said he would introduce a new volunteer military service. Defense Minister Boris Pistorius reportedly hopes for a “drastic increase” to the country’s military budget, up to €90 billion ($102 billion) by 2028.

Tiesler has insisted that civil protection must not be neglected, estimating that at least €10bn (£8.4bn) would be needed over the next four years to cover civil defense needs, and at least €30bn over the next decade. All this must be accomplished by 2029, the year German officials have repeatedly cited as the deadline for Berlin to be “ready for war.” Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov said that “the absurdity of such statements is clear to anyone who understands the slightest bit of history and the goals of the special military operation in Ukraine, which we announced openly and without hiding.” Russian officials have repeatedly said that Moscow is seeking the “denazification” and “demilitarization” of Ukraine, as well as an arrangement guaranteeing that the country would not join NATO, and would instead recommit to neutrality.

Meanwhile, Moscow has also slammed Western Europe’s militarization drive, which is pushing smack up to the Russian border in the Baltic States and Finland. Rather than supporting U.S.-led peace initiatives for the Ukraine conflict, the EU and UK are instead gearing up for an apocalyptic confrontation with Russia.

Lavrov recently stated that Germany’s military buildup and arms deliveries to Kiev prove Berlin’s “direct involvement” in the conflict. He warned that the country is “sliding down the same slippery slope it already followed a couple of times in the last century – toward its own collapse.” According to a survey by the Levada Center, a Western-funded organization which has been designated as a “foreign agent” in Russia, the United States is no longer the country tht Russians consider the most unfriendly. Germany is now in first place, with 56% of respondents describing it as an “unfriendly country” towards Russia, followed by the UK at 49% and Ukraine at 43%.

Russia will not attack.

• NATO Rearmament Is Completely Pointless – Putin (RT)

Moscow does not consider any NATO rearmament to be a threat to Russia, President Vladimir Putin told journalists on the sidelines of the 28th annual St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. Certain threats could arise from the US-led military bloc’s actions, but Russia would be ready to address any challenges to its security, Putin stated at a Q&A session early Thursday, adding that any increase in defense spending by NATO would not make a difference. “We do not consider any NATO rearmament to be a threat to the Russian Federation, because we are self-sufficient in terms of ensuring our own security, and we are constantly improving our armed forces and our defense capabilities,” Putin said.

The Russian leader has insisted there is “no doubt” that Russia “will mitigate all the threats that may arise.” Putin dismissed rhetoric about an alleged threat posed by Moscow to NATO as an “inconceivable lie” used by Western governments to justify tax increases and the diversion of public funds to the military-industrial complex. “A Nazi propagandist once said that the more incredible the lie, the faster people will believe it. This legend that Russia is planning to attack Europe, the NATO countries, is the same inconceivable lie,” Putin said. “Everyone understands that this is nonsense. And they deceive their population to ensure the extraction of money from the budget… and to explain failures in the economy.”

Couldn’t have done it “better” if you tried..

• Brussels Makes EU ‘As Uncompetitive As Possible’ – Putin Envoy (RT)

Officials in Brussels are completely undermining the EU’s competitiveness, according to Kirill Dmitriev, the CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund and presidential envoy. His comment follows the European Commission’s proposal to eliminate all Russian oil and gas imports within two years. EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jorgensen unveiled the plan, which is backed by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, on Tuesday. It seeks to ban all new gas contracts with Russia, and presents measures to facilitate the end of Russian oil imports by the end of 2027. “EU Commission bureaucrats seem obsessed – with making the EU as uncompetitive as possible on the global stage,” Dmitriev, who is also the Russian president’s special envoy for investment and economic cooperation, wrote on X. “Mission accomplished or still in progress?”

The comment came in response to criticism from Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto, who warned that the plan represents “a serious violation” of Hungary’s sovereignty. He claimed that the EU is “ready to dismantle Hungary’s secure and affordable energy supply.” The legislation seeks to apply EU trade law mechanisms to imports of Russian oil and gas, enabling Brussels to bypass potential vetoes from countries such as Hungary and Slovakia. Energy prices across Europe soared following Ukraine-related sanctions in 2022. Jorgensen said the latest phaseout is not about Ukraine, but because “Russia has weaponized energy” against the EU. Moscow has called the sanctions illegitimate and counterproductive. Russian President Vladimir Putin has set the lifting of sanctions as a condition for resolving the Ukraine conflict.

The Kremlin also noted that Russia has been a reliable energy supplier to the bloc. Russia, once the EU’s main gas supplier, sharply reduced exports three years ago amid Western sanctions and the Nord Stream pipeline sabotage. Its share of EU pipeline gas fell from over 40% in 2021 to around 11% in 2024. While most EU countries have cut Russian gas, landlocked members, including Hungary, Slovakia, Austria, the Czech Republic, and Serbia, still rely on limited supplies through various exemptions. Meanwhile, Russian LNG imports to the EU have surged, making up 17.5% of the bloc’s supply last year – second only to the US at 45.3%. France, Spain, and Belgium took in 85% of these shipments, according to the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA).

“We are headed into a massive conflagration, because there are no honest governments on earth..”

• Intelligence Has Departed Every Government (Paul Craig Roberts)

Iran had the strategic advantage over Israel and could have wiped Israel out. Instead, the hapless Iranians sat passively on their butts, gave a gratuitous demonstration of their capability, thus putting Israel on guard without doing any damage to Israel. Next the Iranian government failed to see the many indications that it was about to be attacked while it wasted its time in “peace negotiations,” and had an important part of its leadership decapitated and its oil fields set on fire. Talking about doing oneself in, Iran takes the cake. Reminds me of Putin. Putin kept Russia sitting on its passive butt for eight years self-deceiving himself with his “Minsk Agreement,” while Washington built and equipped a large Ukrainian army.

Unable to get a mutual security agreement from the Biden regime, on the eve of the Ukrainian army’s intended invasion of the two Donbas republics–Russian people whose requests in 2014 to be reincorporated into Russia Putin foolishly refused, Putin had to finally intervene although he had made no effort to be militarily prepared and had to rely on a semi-private army known as the Wagner Group. The Russian general staff were jealous of the fighting capability of the Wagner Group and wanted the troops integrated into their forces. When the Wagner Group’s commander and his troops could no longer stand the mindless restraints Putin was putting on the conduct of a war, causing Russians casualties while restraining Russian offensives, some of the Wagner Group marched on Moscow as a protest.

The Russian generals called it a coup, a rebellion. The Wagner Group’s leader died “mysteriously in a plane crash,” the Wagner group was broken up. Thus, an effective Russian fighting force was destroyed by the government it was fighting for. The latest consequence of Putin’s inability to face up to reality is the attack on the Russian strategic triad. Again Putin denied reality and said it was not an act of war against Russia, just a terrorist action. Putin did more damage than Ukrainians to Russia’s fighting force. As I recently wrote in a column, there are wars everywhere but they are not acknowledged as wars. Governments are too stupid to understand that this is a dangerous situation. Now Trump has demanded “unconditional surrender” from Iran or Trump is going to assassinate the Iranian leader. “We know where he is hiding,” Trump added.

Can you imagine! What has Iran done to America? Nothing. Trump is hot and bothered that Iran, according to Netanyahu, has, or is about to have, nuclear weapons, the thought of which discomforts Netanyahu, President Trump’s real boss. Tulsi Gabbard, US Director of National Intelligence told Trump that the American intelligent services believe there is no evidence of Iranian nuclear weapons. Really, does anyone think Israel would be attacking Iran if Iran had nuclear weapons? Israel tried to take out Iran’s nuclear research facilities and failed, lacking the ability. So Netanyahu has passed the task on to the Trump and his MAGA-American super patriots. Americans have already destroyed FIVE countries for Israel, disguised as “the war on terror,” and now Netanyahu has set Trump up to do in the sixth.

The Russian Foreign Ministry responds to this dangerous situation with nothing but meaningless words. RT reports: “The ongoing intensive attacks by the Israeli side on peaceful nuclear facilities in Iran are illegal from the point of view of international law, create unacceptable threats to international security and push the world towards a nuclear catastrophe,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement published on Tuesday. Why does the Russian Foreign Ministry think that Washington or Israel care what it says? As Russia never does anything, Russia is not a player. If the Russian Foreign Ministry has anyone capable of thought, just because Iran has a target on its back doesn’t mean that Russia doesn’t. China also has a target on its back, and the Chinese government sits there passively telling their “Russian allies” to sue for peace in Ukraine.

The stupidity is unimaginable. What is the point of seeking peace with those whose intention is to get you?Israel and/or Washington bribed, paid, threatened, or ordered the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) board to push through last week’s “biased anti-Iranian resolution” on Tehran’s nuclear program,” which, without an inspection, gave Israel a free hand, and led to this tragedy, according to the Russian foreign ministry. Yet, Putin and his foreign ministry are desperate to be a part, even a subordinate part, of the totally corrupt Western World whose reality is a fabrication of lies. I sometimes wonder if the Russian population is lost to Russia. Have the decades of Washington’s propaganda via the Voice of America, Radio Liberty into the minds of Russians succeeded in alienating Russians from their own defense?

If not, why are the Russians doing such a poor defense of themselves. All the Russians do is to protest the West’s official narratives. What kind of resistance is this? None at all. The absence of resistance leads to war. Are there any governments capable of acknowledging reality? Every government is lost in official narratives that are stupid and dangerous beyond belief. Tulsi Gabbard, US Director of National Intelligence, reported to President Trump that the US intelligence community discounts the Israeli claim that Iran has, or is about to have, a nuclear weapon. Trump responded: “I don’t care what she says.” Trump’s controller–Netanyahu–told Trump different, and Trump believes his controller, not his own appointee as Director of National Intelligence.

With Netanyahu firmly in charge of the US government, war is a certainty. American patriots will conclude that I am on the side of Iran, Russia, and China, which shows the limits of emotional response. I am on the side of truth and life. When governments refuse to confront reality, reality runs away with them. We are headed into a massive conflagration, because there are no honest governments on earth. A government somewhere has to stand up and acknowledge that pointless war is afoot, and the presence of nuclear weapons makes it dangerous.

Lovely.

• 40% of Americans Expect Civil War In Next Decade (RT)

Forty percent of Americans believe a civil war in the US is “somewhat” or “very” likely within the next decade, a new YouGov poll released on Tuesday suggests. The poll, which surveyed 3,375 adults, underscores widespread anxiety over the nation’s deepening divisions. It also follows a wave of unrest in the country, including violent protests against federal deportations and nationwide demonstrations aimed at President Donald Trump. Women were more likely than men to consider civil conflict plausible, with 45% indicating it was likely. Views also varied by political affiliation: 48% of Democrats, 39% of independents, and 32% of Republicans said a civil war was at least somewhat probable. While respondents were more or less split on the likelihood of a civil war, just over 20% were unsure or declined to answer.

The data also suggested racial disparities. Among white respondents, 10% said a civil war was “very likely,” compared to 18% of black respondents. Hispanics were the least likely to completely dismiss the idea, with only 11% saying a conflict was “not likely at all,” while 15% called it “very likely.” Earlier this month, riots erupted across California in response to federal immigration enforcement actions. Trump deployed the National Guard and Marines after a public clash with California Governor Gavin Newsom over his handling of the crisis. Last week, Minnesota State Representative Melissa Hortman and her husband were fatally shot and State Senator John Hoffman and his wife injured in what officials called “politically motivated” attacks.

On Saturday, an estimated 5 million people participated in “No Kings” marches across all 50 states. Organizers described the protests as a stand against “authoritarianism, billionaire-first politics, and the militarization of our democracy.” Meanwhile, some Republican allies have warned that Trump is losing support for deviating from his “America First” platform, particularly after backing Israeli strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities. Trump dismissed the criticism in an interview with The Atlantic, saying he alone defines what “America First” means.

Always looking out for number 1.

• Zelensky Seeks $40bn a Year For ‘Resilience’ (RT)

Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky has called on Western donors to commit $40 billion annually to prop up his country’s budget, following a high-profile snub by US President Donald Trump at the G7 summit. Zelensky made the appeal Tuesday during the gathering in Kananaskis, Canada, where he failed to get an audience with Trump, who left early.Posting a photo on social media of himself speaking to six leaders, Zelensky demanded sustained donations. “It’s crucial to have $40 billion annually in budgetary support for Ukraine – to ensure our resilience and the ability of our country to carry on,” he said, urging the US to approve the aid.

Trump “does not apply strong enough pressure on Russia,” Zelensky claimed, despite Kiev purportedly defending Washington’s global interests. He called on other G7 members to lobby the US leader, while advocating investment in Ukraine’s arms production and new sanctions against Russia. The summit’s results have been reported as a disappointment for Kiev and have cast doubt on the prospects of a Trump-Zelensky meeting at a NATO leaders summit scheduled for next Tuesday. “It is a permanent hazard that Ukraine is a victim of events and Trump’s short attention span,” a Ukrainian official told The Guardian. “There had been all sorts of promises for this summit – including new US arms deliveries being offered.”

G7 leaders did not issue a joint statement on Ukraine, reportedly due to Trump’s refusal to endorse language critical of Russia. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s chair summary noted that participants supported Trump’s efforts to broker a “just and lasting peace in Ukraine” and backed Kiev’s call for an unconditional ceasefire. Russian officials have dismissed the Ukrainian demand as a ploy to give Kiev’s forces time to regroup. During recent peace talks in Istanbul, Moscow offered two options for a conditional truce: A withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from territories that have joined Russia, or a halt to Ukraine’s military mobilization and Western arms deliveries. Kiev rejected both proposals.

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https://twitter.com/Mangan150/status/1935303367137645000

Worth the read
https://twitter.com/anarchy_build/status/1935254968031678505

Iran map

This map shows territorial losses of Iran during the last ~200 years. Should the political system in Iran collapse, some borders might be moved in the process too. Political maps like this aren't permanent and the human toll behind even the smallest border shift can be… pic.twitter.com/X9Mzzm6Yag

— Simon Kuestenmacher (@simongerman600) June 17, 2025