We're Sorry We Have to Share This With You
The lewd doodle Trump denies exists. Plus: CBS News gets a Trump-approved watchdog. Rose Garden, now 100% concrete, 0% women. The Treasury Secretary's meltdown. And more good news about baby birds.
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I think I should give a blanket content warning for this newsletter. There is profanity, lewd imagery, and some talk of war. In each case we are quoting the people who run our nation so please don’t shoot the messenger.
As a palette cleanser we end with a charming follow-up on the puffling story we ran last week. Because apparently that's where we are now — relying on baby birds for emotional stability. Thanks to a member of the NNN audience for flagging the new video!
Here Are Your Headlines
Enigma, Aged: Good news for JD Vance? Recall that he insisted that the lewd message President Trump reportedly included in a birthday book for Jeffrey Epstein was “complete and utter bullshit.” He even tweeted, “Where is this letter?” The Vice President now has his answer: on the cover of the New York Times. The Times just published an image released by Democrats on the House Oversight Committee, after it was obtained from the Epstein estate. As you can see, in addition to the outline of a naked woman’s body the note includes a fictitious conversation between “Donald” and “Jeffrey,” that starts with a “voiceover” saying, “there must be more to life than having everything.” “Donald” remarks the pair “have certain things in common,” that “enigmas never age,” and ends with a birthday wish: “may every day be another wonderful secret.” Underneath, a distinctive and familiar signature: Donald J. Trump. Trump sued the Wall Street Journal, which first revealed the letter’s existence, for defamation, claiming “no authentic letter or drawing exists.” The note was reportedly included in a book for Jeffrey Epstein’s 50th birthday. Also worth a mention: Speaker Johnson last week told reporters that Trump was an FBI informant in the Jeffrey Epstein case, but has since walked back his comments.
Bending the Knee? Big changes in the media world. Paramount has appointed Kenneth Weinstein, a former Trump advisor and CEO of the right-wing think tank the Hudson Institute, to act as “ombudsman” at CBS News. His job? Field bias complaints and escalate serious cases to Paramount executives. This satisfies terms Trump regulators set for approving the $8.4 billion merger of Paramount — CBS’s parent company — with Skydance. The timing raises questions of journalistic independence at the network that once took down Senator Joseph McCarthy. Recall that last Fall, as the merger faced government review during the presidential campaign, "60 Minutes" aired an interview with Kamala Harris. Trump — with zero evidence — claimed it was edited to favor Harris and sued for $20 billion. CBS paid Trump $16 million (toward his "library"). The settlement triggered an exodus. CBS News President Wendy McMahon stepped down over differing views “on the path forward." "60 Minutes" executive producer Bill Owens also left, citing editorial independence concerns. There’s also word in the media world that Bari Weiss — the former New York Times writer who built a media empire on taking provocative political positions and critiquing “wokeism” on campuses and in mainstream media — may be tapped to run CBS News. Skydance, which now owns CBS, was founded and led by Trump ally Larry Ellison’s son.
God’s Plan: Trump announced new, unspecified Department of Education guidance to protect prayer in public schools today while speaking at the Museum of the Bible in Washington DC. He claimed students are being “indoctrinated with anti-religious propaganda and some are punished for their religious beliefs.” He also donated “the Trump family Bible” to the museum, and repeated his claim that former challenger Ben Carson told him “God wants you to win” the presidency. The Supreme Court ruled in 1962 that school-sponsored prayer violates the First Amendment, but recent cases have critics worried the Supreme Court would be open to allowing it. In the same speech Trump seemed to downplay domestic violence. Commenting on crime stats, he said, “Things that take place in the home, they call crime.... If a man has a little fight with the wife, they say this was a crime, see?”
Bad Timing: A massive immigration raid that swept up nearly 500 workers at a Georgia battery factory has created an awkward diplomatic moment — just as South Korea was promising $500 billion in US investments. South Korea reached a deal with the US yesterday to allow about 300 people detained during that raid on an EV battery factory to be released and flown home. The raid was the largest single-site immigration operation in ICE’s history. Most of the detained were South Korean nationals — whom South Korea officials say were here legally — but also some US citizens and lawful permanent resident. The South Korean government criticized the Trump administration for releasing videos and photos of the raid that show workers handcuffed and shackled. And one top S Korean official reportedly told the administration that the raid “occurred at a critical time” for the two countries, “when the momentum of trust and cooperation” achieved with Trump’s recent meeting with South Korea’s president “must be maintained.” In a Truth Social post today Trump insisted the two countries have a “great relationship” and encouraged the US ally to bring workers here “LEGALLY.” An anonymous worker told the BBC that “after this happened, many companies will think again about investing in the United States.”
This Means War: Today on Truth Social Trump declared DC a “safe zone” and asked “who’s next?” Over the weekend he published a probably AI-generated image showing Chicago’s skyline, helicopters, and flames, with the caption: “Chicago about to find out why it’s called the Department of WAR.” But when reporters asked him whether he’s sending troops into the windy city he said he’ll decide “in the next day or two.” Could his delay have anything to do with the ongoing pushback from Illinois leaders? Governor JB Pritzker responded to Trump’s war threat by saying, “The president of the United States is threatening to go to war with an American city. This is not a joke. This is not normal.” Rather than hit back, Trump downplayed the threat and border Czar Tom Homan claimed Trump only means to target “illegal aliens [and] public safety threats.” Interesting. So who is next? Here’s a reminder: cities with the highest murder rates in the US are all in red states.
Terror in Israel: Two Palestinian gunmen from the occupied West Bank opened fire at a bus stop in Jerusalem today, killing six and injuring dozens more. The victims are ages 25-79. Neither Hamas nor Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for the attack, though both praised it. The two gunmen were killed by an off-duty commander who was at the scene. Governments around the world — including Spain, which confirmed one of the victims was a Spanish citizen — condemned the attack.
Rare Rebuke: Israel’s Supreme Court ruled the government failed to provide Palestinian prisoners with enough food. The justices ordered the prison service to “take steps to ensure the supply of food that allows for basic subsistence conditions in accordance with the law.” The justices called this “the basic conditions of survival as required by law.” Itamar Ben-Gvir, the far-right politician in charge of the prison system, questioned whether the judges were “from Israel” and vowed to continue providing prisoners with only “the most minimal conditions stipulated by law.” One of the groups behind the petition accused the prison service of turning “Israeli prisons into torture camps.” Since Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, Israel has detained tens of thousands of Palestinians; according to Israel’s military intelligence, three-quarters of detainees from Gaza are civilians. At least 63 Palestinians have died in detention since the war began, according to the Palestinian Authority.
Mystery: Fibre optic cables in the Red Sea were cut this weekend, disrupting internet access across the Middle East and Asia. It’s unclear what caused the damage. Cables are vulnerable to damage by ships, sharks, and, yes, sabotage. Some suspect the Houthis, who remain in open conflict with Israel; when internet cables were cut in early 2024, the group was blamed, though it denied responsibility.
Conflict Continues: Trump yesterday claimed Israel had accepted his ceasefire terms, and warned Hamas this was its last chance to accept. He did not provide details on the terms of this deal. This comes as Israel’s defense minister warned that “a tremendous hurricane will hit the skies of Gaza City” today. The IDF has destroyed at least three residential high-rise buildings over the last few days. Prime Minister Netanyahu said about 100,000 Palestinians have evacuated Gaza City – one million remain. Hamas has urged civilians to ignore evacuation orders. “Wherever we go,” one local woman said, “death pursues us, whether by bombing or hunger.”
No Dice: A federal appeals court today rejected Trump’s claim that presidential immunity should shield him from paying $83.3 million in damages he owes E Jean Carroll. Trump was found guilty of defaming Carroll by repeatedly attacking her even after a jury found him guilty of sexually abusing her.
Speaking Out: A billionaire has broken the silence. Ken Griffin, the Trump-voting billionaire CEO of massive hedge fund Citadel, published an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal warning that Trump’s attacks on the Federal Reserve carry “steep costs” — namely the erosion of US credibility. “If eroded,” Griffin notes, “markets will demand far higher interest rates for longer-term debt.”
Roving Patrols: The Supreme Court today ruled ICE can continue conducting what critics call “roving patrols,” in which masked agents pull aside Latinos and interrogate them over their immigration status. Lower courts, a US District Court, and the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals largely agreed this practice is discriminatory when based largely on a person’s ethnicity, language, or presence at a location (e.g., a farm). The Supreme Court disagreed, without providing an explanation. Justice Brett Kavanaugh did note that “apparent ethnicity alone cannot furnish reasonable suspicion” to stop an individual, and that “reasonable suspicion means only that immigration officers may briefly stop the individual and inquire about immigration status.” Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote, “We should not have to live in a country where the government can seize anyone who looks Latino, speaks Spanish, and appears to work a low wage job.… Rather than stand idly by while our constitutional freedoms are lost, I dissent.”
Talk, Meet… Action?
The following content, which includes information on new Russia sanctions, the ousting of two prime ministers, a near-fistfight between two senior administration officials, and an update to our story on pufflings, is for paid subscribers. Thank you for your support! It makes our work possible.
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