It's funny that Jeanine Pirro brought a box of evidence to WH to persuade Trump. He wants her to consciously *throw out* exculpatory facts and *knowingly* prosecute innocent people. So facts can't persuade him by definition. Me and @barbmcquade.bsky.social on this: newrepublic.com/article/2139...

It's cool that this is just how things are now. Very healthy that this is just happening constantly with no repurcussions.

Greg Sargent@gregsargent.bsky.social · 6h ago

It's funny that Jeanine Pirro brought a box of evidence to WH to persuade Trump. He wants her to consciously *throw out* exculpatory facts and *knowingly* prosecute innocent people. So facts can't persuade him by definition. Me and @barbmcquade.bsky.social on this: newrepublic.com/article/2139...

Brown University has a widget that tracks the cost of the Iran war to American consumers (as contrasted to whatever the Pentagon is spending). Per-household cost now exceeds $600. iranwarcost.watson.brown.edu

"The organization also secured grants from Ford Motor Company and Amazon to assemble and distribute thousands of kid-friendly “go bags” that include backpacks, blankets, toothbrushes and stuffed animals." dark!

Lawrence Culver@lawrencecphd.bsky.social · 60m ago

Gift link. The climate disaster arrives on Sesame Street: “A fierce storm tore through the set of the 57-year-old show to help children make sense of extreme weather…children born in 2020 will experience up to 7 times more extreme weather than children born in 1960.” www.nytimes.com/2026/08/05/c...

States with the lowest literacy rates shouldn’t be banning books, they should be reading them

♥️🔥♥️ Wed, Aug 5 Smoke fills the sky through out our region, please take care, especially if you are out. ♥️ thoughts to all affected by the fires. Epic yesterday which ended w/3 inland orca groups: T46s & T124A2s, T36/36Bs & T137A, & T65As. 📸 T137A Jack launches in Tacoma by Julie Davis 8/4. #psws

Corruption, Corruption, Corruption

Lawmakers call for Pentagon probe of Trump family-backed companies

The letter to the Pentagon’s inspector general was prompted by reporting from The Post that startups affiliated with the president’s sons have won $3.2 billion in defense contracts.

washingtonpost.com

🚨 HAPPENING NOW 🚨 Women's Marchers have been arrested in the Capitol for standing vigil for the people killed by ICE. #AbolishICE llustrations by @channeldraw

FT: "... Since attacking Iran in February, Trump’s immediate demands have shrunk from a sprawling list of concessions .. to just one: that Iran allow the Strait of Hormuz to return to its prewar state ..” @financialtimes.com #SuezMoment www.ft.com/content/87b0...

Donald Trump trapped between escalation and an Iran deal on Tehran’s terms

US president faces few good options to exit a war he once said would end swiftly with the Islamic republic’s surrender

ft.com

Israel Strikes Lebanon After Accusing Hezbollah of Cease-Fire Violation www.nytimes.com/2026/08/05/w...

Israel Strikes Lebanon After Accusing Hezbollah of Cease-Fire Violation

At the same time, Israeli and Lebanese negotiators were holding talks in Rome aimed at fostering a long-term diplomatic settlement.

nytimes.com

CNN matches Reuters. @cnn.com www.cnn.com/2026/08/04/p...

Hearings like this are a reminder that if you work for Donald Trump, you are a person of low character and have no integrity. There are no exceptions.

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 2h ago

😮 Trump's nominees are the most pathetic men in the world 😮 During a hearing, Blumenthal made Trump nominees squirm by asking them who won the 2020 election -- a question they refuse to answer -- but then Schiff upped the ante by asking them *who won the 2016 election.* Here's a supercut:

Gonna go out on a limb here and say racist cranks who write for extremist white nationalist websites like VDARE should not, in fact, be confirmed to top roles in the Department of Justice.

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 2h ago

SCHIFF: You told my staff you stood by your article in white nationalist website VDARE where you wrote, 'Muslim immigrants & their kids seem prone to terrorism' C: I wrote that article in support of Trump's travel ban S: Do you stand by it? C: I stand by that article S: That's all I need to know

Home sales are slumping, renovation spending is losing steam and yet lumber prices have risen this summer to their highest level in four years on.wsj.com/4gfbq00

Home-Building Is Sputtering, but Lumber Prices Haven’t Been So High in Years

Steep duties on Canadian lumber, wildfires and sawmill closures have cut supply and pushed up prices.

on.wsj.com

I encourage all of us to have the grace and focus shown in this going up within minutes of the race being called.

The Trump Administration has already come for your healthcare and food assistance. And now they're coming for Head Start, a program that gives more than half a million kids access to free preschool. They'll do just about anything except lower costs for you.

Trump overhaul could gut Head Start preschool standards, leaving states to set the rules

President Donald Trump's administration is planning to overhaul the Head Start program. Two people familiar with the deliberations tell The Associated Press the Republican administration's proposed ch...

apnews.com

4: To top it off, HHS Sec. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ordered a FDA “review” of mifepristone, further risking medication abortion access, even though SCOTUS temporarily blocked a lower court’s attempt to restrict the drug nationwide.

Supreme Court Blocks Restriction on Abortion Pill Access: What It Means for Mifepristone

The Supreme Court ruled that the FDA's rule letting providers prescribe mifepristone via telehealth and allowing pharmacies to dispense it will remain in effect. Here's what this means for abortion pi...

rewirenewsgroup.com

3: Reviving Comstock would essentially ban telehealth abortion care federally. This isn’t a new fight: We’ve long reported on how the Comstock Act was quietly positioned as a back door to cobble abortion access nationwide.

Trump Hasn’t Forgotten About Abortion—Amidst ICE Raids, The Comstock Act Looms Heavy – Rewire News Group

Analysis: If Republicans dust off an 1873 law to stop doctors from mailing abortion pills, the grim effects of the 'big, beautiful bill’ will get infinitely wor

rewirenews.link

2: While he didn’t explicitly name the Comstock Act—a dormant 1800s-era law that banned, among other things, the mailing of abortion pills—during the call, Blanche told Senators during a July confirmation hearing that he would “carefully evaluate every lawful action available” to enforce Comstock.

1. Now-deleted audio shows that Acting AG Todd Blanche privately told faith leaders the DOJ is working to make the 2022 Dobbs decision, which revoked federal abortion protections, “permanent in every single state.” Blanche also suggested a crackdown on the mailing of abortion pills.🧵

BREAKING: The New Mexico Department of Justice has sued Acting AG Todd Blanche and the DOJ, requesting the court for access to unredacted Epstein-related investigative files that the DOJ has been withholding.

But we still need to talk about dinner. Or more specifically, we need to talk about the things survivors need to do to keep the peace, get through the day, survive. And that includes getting dinner on the table. As always, this is for survivors. 3/3 dot-connecting.ghost.io/on/

On Max Miller’s dinner

Believing survivors means understanding that survivors do many things to keep themselves safe — including cook dinner for their abusers.

dot-connecting.ghost.io

More allegations of abuse. The unforgivable release of sensitive images of his tiny daughter. His invoking the allegations against Trump as a reason why he is staying in the race. Every word out of his mouth is awful and I bet super painful for survivors to hear. 2/

I wrote this essay Monday evening, in a state of agitation after watching Max Miller’s use his wife’s act of making him dinner as evidence that he couldn’t possibly have abused her. I published it this morning, and mere hours later it’s all gotten even more horrific. 1/ dot-connecting.ghost.io/on/

On Max Miller’s dinner

Believing survivors means understanding that survivors do many things to keep themselves safe — including cook dinner for their abusers.

dot-connecting.ghost.io

Mike Johnson is the most powerful person in the U.S. House, and he has made it abundantly clear that domestic violence isn’t disqualifying. Which makes it very clear that he doesn’t care about domestic violence. And while none of this is surprising, we should not stop being horrified by it.

Karly Kingsley@karlykingsley.bsky.social · 6h ago

Mike Johnson told Politico that he's standing behind Max Miller despite the "serious" domestic abuse allegations against him. Pro tip: if Mike Johnson is for it, do the opposite.

The narcissist always manipulates the story to blame the victim while acting like they're the victim. It's the most infuriating form of abuse.

This sends the message to men and boys — from classrooms to Congress — that abusing women is not disqualifying. That it won’t stop you from getting what you want in life. This is much bigger than just Max Miller. But Miller’s comments are sure symbolic of it. 2/2

This highlights a profound impact of Trump — the further normalization of violence against women. Trump got elected in spite of his long history of violence against women. He is not held accountable when he continues to abuse women. 1/2

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 5h ago

Max Miller on why he's staying in the race: "When we go back to 2015 and 2016, & people in the media looked at President Trump, & everyone came out with allegations. Dozens of women, dozens of crazy allegations, dozens of nasty criminal misconduct. And you know what he did? He stayed in the fight."

BLUMENTHAL: Judge Cook, who won the 2020 election? COOK: A joint session of Congress certified Joe Biden BLUMENTHAL: How many times have you rehearsed that answer with the White House? Who won the popular vote? COOK: So if you look at each state, the governor-- B: So you're unwilling to answer

BLUMENTHAL: Judge Cronan, you're already on the district court. Who won the 2020 election? CRONAN: Joseph Biden received the majority of electoral votes B: You have nothing to lose. You have a lifetime appointment, and yet you're unwilling to state the simple fact that Biden won the 2020 election