John Adams
@libertariandiary.com
Lawyer • Blogger • Bleeding-Heart Libertarian • Cat Guy • Web: https://libertariandiary.com & https://freewhitewater.com • Alum: Penn, William & Mary, Cornell Law • Never Trump Before Never Trump
"[T]he company was not an all-American affair. The multibillion-dollar project has received secret funding from the same powerful Russian company that was to provide the technology, according to the energy executive who until last month led the U.S. firm and two others..." #Trump #Russia
In U.S. Gas Talks With Kremlin, Hidden Financing for Alaska Project Emerges (Gift Article)
Interviews and documents show a Russian energy giant secretly funded a U.S. firm. The deal has been discussed in talks to end the war in Ukraine.
nytimes.com
My take at Cato on why DOJ's lawsuit against Alaska is borderline frivolous, abusive, contemptuous of federalism and more. "In the aftermath of the 2020 election, courts made clear that they would not allow meritless litigation to steal an election. They may soon have to make that clear again."
DOJ Sues to Prevent Certification of Alaska Senate Winner (If It's a Democrat)
The U.S. Department of Justice today sued the state of Alaska, seeking to enjoin it from certifying a narrow Democratic win in the Alaska senate race — at least if the winner is a Democrat and the res...
cato.org
Yglesias says re: Minneapolis, as a defense against the idea that oppostion was wrong, that "I mean, what it took in Minnesota to turn that around, they killed multiple U.S. citizens." That's true! But it also took Bloody Sunday and similar incidents to galvanize national support for civil rights.
Jake Grumbach@jakemgrumbach.bsky.social · 22h agoA helpfully clear exchange here Hasan: "So your argument is that [Minnesota ICE protesters] should stay at home because immigration is a salient issue for Donald Trump. Opposing ICE is only going to help Trump. Wait until we win the election in 2028." Yglesias: "Yes that is what I would have said"
A helpfully clear exchange here Hasan: "So your argument is that [Minnesota ICE protesters] should stay at home because immigration is a salient issue for Donald Trump. Opposing ICE is only going to help Trump. Wait until we win the election in 2028." Yglesias: "Yes that is what I would have said"
Matthew Yglesias continues to say that talking about ICE and excessive force in immigration enforcement helps Republicans. He is obviously wrong about this and refuses to acknowledge the data. Way past time for everyone to update their priors on this.
"A financial crisis is worse than an ordinary recession. It’s when the plumbing of finance fails, and credit stops flowing even to borrowers who did nothing wrong. The Great Depression of the 1930s was an extreme financial crisis, in which 9,000 banks closed and the money supply dropped by a third."
How Worried Should We Be About the Economy? Let’s Look at 2008. (Gift Article)
It’s not impossible to spot the characteristics of a brewing financial crisis. We can look to 2008 for clues.
nytimes.com
Command Post: Hegseth Takes Secret Meeting with Netanyahu #IranWar #ForeverWar
Command Post: Hegseth Takes Secret Meeting with Netanyahu
A recording from The Bulwark's live video
thebulwark.com
"THE SUPER PAC FORMERLY KNOWN as “Democrats for Mike Rogers” might be aiming its efforts at recruiting Dems to defeat Abdul El-Sayed in the Michigan Senate race. But according to their latest FEC filings, the group’s funds are coming almost entirely from deep-pocketed Republican donors." #Michigan
Democrats for Mike Rogers Employs Firm of ‘MAGA Warrior’
Now known as TFM, the PAC also revealed even more Republican donors in its latest financial disclosure.
thebulwark.com
The Party demands a single message: Trump, Vance, RNC Demand Republicans Stop Criticizing Ramaswamy Ad #GOP #Ohio #Ramaswamy
Trump, Vance, RNC Demand Republicans Stop Criticizing Ramaswamy Ad
Republican Party Adds New Plank to Its Platform: Ramaswamy’s Ad Was ‘So...
talkingpointsmemo.com
"One of the first orders of business of the next Congress will be the impeachment of Hegseth and his removal from office..." #Hegseth
Everything Hegseth Touches Breaks
Pete is no Ike.
open.substack.com
"GOP operatives from states across the country used Presler’s home address to cast ballots in Pennsylvania during the 2024 election. They include a consultant who voted in Florida in both 2020 and April 2025, along with a right-wing social media personality from Oklahoma." #GOP #ElectionLaw #PA
Top GOP Operative Let Out-of-State Voters Vote From His PA Home
Legal experts say Scott Presler’s houseguests could run afoul of election law.
thebulwark.com
Lights are reflected off a bulletproof screen as President Trump speaks during a campaign rally in Greenville, North Carolina. More photos of the week: reut.rs/4yGkBNh 📷 Evan Vucci
GOP scaremongers over France: “The barbarians are at the gates, and America’s safety and prosperity are on the line,” National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) spokesperson Bernadette Breslin emailed to reporters. #GOP #FUD
To Motivate Base, GOP Cites Ancient Fear: France
Plus: Which corporate PACs are paying for Ramaswamy's despicable new ad campaign?
open.substack.com
Ramaswamy now hopes to revive his campaign in the most morally depraved way imaginable: by siding with the man who raped his opponent when she was 12 years old. trib.al/AHFzMa3
Vivek Ramaswamy’s Vile Attack Ad Is Trumpism in a Nutshell
The Ohio Republican gubernatorial candidate’s ad against Amy Acton is disqualifying. It’s also precisely what you would expect from a MAGA regime that protects abusers.
trib.al
Oh, yes, of course they do: MAGA Media Learns to Love Vile Vivek Ramaswamy Ad #MAGA #Ramaswamy #Ohio
MAGA Media Learns to Love Vile Vivek Ramaswamy Ad
For these supposed moral authorities, the only question is whether it works.
open.substack.com
"Win or lose, Vivek Ramaswamy will be the candidate who took a woman’s childhood abuse and made it his closing argument." Read more from Rick Wilson here: https://bit.ly/4dN6ka0
The mother from hell made a deal with the devil. In Vivek Ramaswamy’s ad, Amy Acton’s mother posed as a champion for sex abuse victims and called her daughter a liar. What she left out: she chose Amy’s rapist over Amy. Court docs back Amy. The most diabolical attack ad ever.
President Trump said he called Google’s Sundar Pichai to discuss renaming the Atlantic Ocean, but would “probably pass” after the chief executive told him: “Please don’t ask us to do that.”
Trump says he called Google’s CEO to discuss renaming Atlantic Ocean
The president said he discussed renaming the Atlantic Ocean with Google CEO Sundar Pichai, who replied: "Please don't ask us to do that."
washingtonpost.com
"Most of the Russian content so far, spread by bot networks around the world, has targeted Democratic candidates, especially in closely contested Senate races that could determine control of Congress in Mr. Trump’s remaining two years in office." #Russia #Putin #USElections
Covert Russian Group Targets James Talarico With Baseless Claims in Texas Senate Race (Gift Article)
Russian influence operations appear to be stepping up efforts to meddle in the midterms, according to intelligence officials. Most are targeting Democrats.
nytimes.com
The war Mr. Trump said we had already won... #IranWar #ForeverWar
U.S. and Israel Draw Up Plans for Renewed Strikes on Iran After Elections (Gift Article)
Renewed hostilities might not be any more successful than the war’s first phase, and President Trump has repeatedly canceled plans for a return to major combat.
nytimes.com
"Ordinarily, moving historical items within the building is a deliberate process overseen by curators. Hegseth’s staff dispatched its own team to relocate an Eisenhower globe. They dropped it...The resulting gash appears to be several inches wide." wapo.st/3WF2YQo
Hegseth wanted Eisenhower’s globe for his office. His staff broke it.
Photos obtained by The Post show a gash in the World War II-era artifact that resulted from a botched relocation attempt inside the Pentagon.
wapo.st
The Case Against Susan Collins — Health care, Immigration enforcement, Tariffs, Energy prices. #Maine #SusanCollins
The Case Against Susan Collins
The Maine senator accumulated power. But what good has she done with it?
thebulwark.com
"This is not the first time Ramaswamy has had a problem involving a campaign ad and a child abuser....Ramaswamy’s property-tax ad featured Vernon Edwards, a registered sex offender who pleaded guilty to two counts of gross sexual imposition involving his niece, who was younger than 13." #Ohio
How Low Can Vivek Go?
The Ohio Republican crawls below the gutter.
open.substack.com
WATCH: “That ad is truly one of the most despicable things I have seen in politics,” says Chris Hayes of the Vivek Ramaswamy-backed attack ad featuring Amy Acton’s estranged mother, who Acton hasn’t spoken to since 1978 after a childhood marked by sexual abuse.
‘How desperate is Vivek?': FURY over attack ad featuring Acton’s estranged mother
YouTube video by MS NOW
youtube.com
"They offered her $10 million a year for four years along with a range of bonuses. In total, including bonuses, she was guaranteed more than $50 million over four years, according to interviews and documents obtained by The New York Times." #Habba #Trump #Pardons
A Billionaire Wanted a Trump Pardon. His Family Gave Alina Habba a $50 Million Deal. (Gift Article)
Julio Herrera Velutini, a prominent Venezuelan, was seeking clemency. He got it not long after his daughter gave Ms. Habba, a lawyer close to President Trump, an extraordinarily lucrative job.
nytimes.com
BREAKING WSJ: Elon Musk ordered the slowdown of the military-grade version of Starlink that Ukraine relied on.
Exclusive | Musk Ordered Starlink Slowdown That Blindsided Ukraine
The SpaceX founder authorized the move and has been discussing Ukraine with Trump, but the president has denied ordering the restrictions.
wsj.com