The Conversation -- July 29, 2025

MSNBC is reporting that Senate Republicans just confirmed (alleged!) perjurer & Trump DOJ fixer Emile Bove to a lifetime position as an appellate court judge. ~~~

~~~ Jacob Knutson of Democracy Docket: "Senate Republicans confirmed Emil Bove, one of ... Donald Trump’s former attorneys, to a lifetime federal judgeship despite multiple whistleblowers alleging that he urged Department of Justice (DOJ) officials to ignore court orders. The Senate voted 50-49 to confirm Bove to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit. Only Republican Sens. Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) and Susan Collins (Maine) voted with Democrats against Bove’s nomination."

During the Trump/Starmer meeting, Trump expounded upon his "disappointment" with his old pal Putin: ~~~

Maxine Joselow & Lisa Friedman of the New York Times: “Lee Zeldin, the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, said on Tuesday the Trump administration would revoke the scientific determination that underpins the government’s legal authority to combat climate change. Speaking on a conservative podcast called 'Ruthless,' Mr. Zeldin said the E.P.A. planned to rescind the 2009 declaration, known as the 'endangerment finding,' which concluded that planet-warming greenhouse gases pose a threat to public health. The Obama and Biden administrations used that determination to set strict limits on greenhouse gas emissions from cars, power plants and other industrial sources of pollution. 'Repealing it will be the largest deregulatory action in the history of America,' Mr. Zeldin said. He said the finding and the regulations that stemmed from it 'cost Americans a lot of money.'” MB: Something else that “costs Americans a lot of money” -- and their lives and quality of those lives -- are the health consequences of pollutants. Zeldin has the face of an adorable little imp. He's a monstrous ghoul. ~~~

     ~~~ The AP's story is here.

Perry Stein, et al., of the Washington Post: “Jeffrey Epstein’s imprisoned associate Ghislaine Maxwell would be willing to testify to Congress if lawmakers offer her immunity and provide her with the questions in advance, her lawyer said in a letter obtained by The Washington Post. 'Our initial reaction was that Ms. Maxwell would invoke her Fifth Amendment rights and decline to testify at this time,' her attorney, David Oscar Markus, wrote in the letter to Rep. James Comer (R-Kentucky), who chairs the House Oversight Committee. 'However, after further reflection we would like to find a way to cooperate with Congress if a fair and safe path forward can be established.' In addition to immunity and questions beforehand, Maxwell said through Markus that she also wants to delay testifying until after the Supreme Court rules on her appeal of her sex-trafficking conviction.” A Politico story is here.

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Will Weissert of the AP: Donald “Trump met on Monday at one of his Scottish golf courses with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who pressed him on the U.S. taking a larger role in helping quell a growing food crisis in Gaza amid Israel’s ongoing war with Hamas in the territory. Starmer and his wife, Victoria, arrived at Trump’s Turnberry course on the southern coast, and the Republican president spent several minutes chatting with them and proudly pointing out key aspects of the property. But the prime minister didn’t wait until they were inside to insist that Gaza would be a key topic in their meeting, calling what’s occurring there 'a desperate situation.' Trump expressed concern about the humanitarian situation and urged Israel’s leader to take action as images of emaciated children have emerged.” (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ Michael Shear & Luke Broadwater of the New York Times: Donald “Trump on Monday expressed frustration about the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, opening a day of talks in Scotland with Britain’s prime minister by saying he was significantly speeding up the deadline for Russia to make peace and indicating disagreement with Israeli officials who have denied that anyone is starving in the war-torn enclave. Mr. Trump said that he had seen pictures on television of children in Gaza and said they 'look very hungry' and that 'we have to get the kids fed.'  He repeatedly said he wanted to get more food in to the area, but largely blamed Hamas for stealing the aid and selling it — a contention for which the Israeli military has found no proof.... Mr. Trump said he did not 'particularly' agree with a recent assertion by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that there was no starvation in Gaza.... Just days ago, the Trump administration said it had approved $30 million in funding for a fledgling aid distribution system in Gaza backed by Israel and run mostly by American contractors, which has seen deadly violence erupt near its distribution sites.... Mr. Trump on Monday claimed that 'no other nation [besides the U.S.] gave money.' In fact, as of January, the European Union had spent about $605 million on aid to Gaza since 2023, according to the European Commission.” At 12 noon ET Monday, this is part of the pinned item in a liveblog. More on Israel/Palestine linked below. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ Matthew Bigg of the New York Times: Donald “Trump said on Monday that he was 'disappointed' with President Vladimir V. Putin over the war in Ukraine, and said he would give Russia 10 to 12 days to end the conflict or face a new round of sanctions. Mr. Trump had warned Moscow earlier this month that the United States would impose “very severe tariffs” if Russia did not agree to a peace deal within 50 days, but on Monday he said he would bring that deadline forward. 'I’m going to make a new deadline of about 10 or 12 days from today. There’s no reason in waiting,' Mr. Trump told reporters in Scotland during a meeting with Prime Minister Keir Starmer of Britain. 'We just don’t see any progress being made.' If the Kremlin does not comply, 'it would be sanctions and maybe tariffs, secondary tariffs,' he said. Mr. Trump has repeatedly threatened to punish Russia over its escalating attacks in Ukraine but so far has not followed through.” Politico's story is here. (Also linked yesterday.) 

Dan Bloom, et al., of Politico: “Donald Trump reignited an old feud in Scotland Monday, taking potshots at Mayor of London Sadiq Khan while sitting beside Keir Starmer. 'I’m not a fan of your mayor,' said the U.S. president when asked if he would make a visit to London on his upcoming state visit. 'I think he’s done a terrible job … a nasty person. I think he’s done a terrible job. But I would certainly visit London, yeah.' The dig offered up an awkward moment for Starmer, the British prime minister, who was sitting alongside Trump following a bilateral meeting between the two leaders in Scotland.” ~~~

~~~ Then there was this extended outburst delivered in front of Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, who had come to supplicate before the old windbag: ~~~

     ~~~ Seth Meyers wondered if he was the only person who noticed that Trump was saying worse things about windminds than he said about Jeffrey Epstein.

Ellen Francis & Anthony Faiola of the Washington Post: “The tariff-and-spending accord announced Sunday by the United States and the European Union stands to avert a damaging trade war between two of the world’s largest economies, but it is lopsided in favor of ... Donald Trump’s protectionist policies, with Brussels swallowing bitter concessions in hopes of stabilizing a relationship that is vital not just economically but also for security interests. The rough agreement — which allows Washington to raise tariffs on E.U. goods while the Europeans promise to buy more U.S. products — quickly came under sharp criticism in Europe. Despite feisty rhetoric and vows to stand up to Trump, E.U. leaders largely acquiesced to the U.S. leader’s ever-changing demands.... European officials and analysts said the tentative agreement does not end the uncertainty because so many details must still be worked out.” ~~~

     ~~~ Paul Krugman disagrees. "Trump’s trade policy seems, if anything, to be tilting the playing field against U.S. manufacturing.... And he failed to gain any significant concessions [from the E.U.], mainly because Europe was already behaving well and had nothing to concede." Krugman himself boasts he could have cut a better deal -- "by doing nothing." Nonetheless, he sees big downsides for everybody because : "1. Trump probably believes he won, which will just encourage him to persist with his trade war. 2. This will hurt the world economy, with the burden falling mainly on lower-income Americans.... 3. European negotiators didn’t make many substantive concessions, but they pretended to give ground — and they didn’t retaliate, even though they were clearly entitled to do so, because the U.S. has just gone back on all its solemn past agreements. This makes the EU look weak...." 

Rebecca Robbins of the New York Times: “The trade deal reached between the United States and the European Union on Sunday will impose a 15 percent tariff on imported medicines from Europe. Drugmakers manufacture some of their biggest and best-known blockbusters there, including Botox, the cancer medication Keytruda and popular weight-loss drugs like Ozempic. The tariff rate is much lower than the levies of up to 200 percent that President Trump had threatened. Still, the new import costs stand to add billions of dollars in expenses for the drug industry and could lead to price increases for some medicines. That could translate into higher out-of-pocket costs and higher health insurance premiums for Americans. The 15 percent rate is final and will not be affected by the national-security-related tariffs that Mr. Trump is expected to impose on pharmaceuticals made elsewhere in the world, according to a White House official and senior European Commission officials. This outcome is something of a win for the pharmaceutical industry, which had feared that drugs from Europe would be hit with high levies related to national security. Both sets of pharma tariffs are expected to take effect simultaneously sometime next month, officials said.”

Donald Trump continues to handle the Epstein scandal with his unique sensibilities: ~~~

~~~ Chris Cameron of the New York Times: Donald “Trump said on Monday that he had 'never had the privilege' of visiting Jeffrey Epstein’s private Caribbean island because he had turned down an invitation from the financier. As part of a continued effort by Mr. Trump to distract, deny and deflect from his long-running relationship with Mr. Epstein, the president vigorously denied that he had ever visited Mr. Epstein’s private islands in the Caribbean, while in the same breath baselessly accusing his predecessor, former President Bill Clinton, of visiting the islands, his latest bid at conspiracy deflection. 'I never went to the island, and Bill Clinton went there supposedly' a number of times, Mr. Trump said during a trip to Scotland. Mr. Epstein owned two islands in the U.S. Virgin Islands — Little St. James and Great St. James, where he entertained famous friends and allegedly trafficked underage girls for sex. He continued, 'I never had the privilege of going to his island, and I did turn it down, but a lot of people in Palm Beach were invited to his island. In one of my very good moments, I turned it down.'...

“Mr. Trump also contradicted a previous explanation for the eventual rupture in their relationship offered by the White House. Aides had said that Mr. Trump barred Mr. Epstein from his Mar-a-Lago club 'for being a creep.' On Monday, Mr. Trump said Mr. Epstein was blacklisted because he had hired away some of Mr. Trump’s employees. 'For years, I wouldn’t talk to Jeffrey Epstein,' Mr. Trump said. 'I wouldn’t talk because he did something that was inappropriate. He hired help, and I said, “Don’t ever do that again.” He stole people that worked for me. I said “Don’t ever do that again.” He did it again. And I threw him out of the place, persona non grata. I threw him out, and that was it.'... Virginia Giuffre, a victim of Mr. Epstein’s sex-trafficking ring who died by suicide last year, had said that she was recruited into his world while working as a spa attendant at Mar-a-Lago.” An Axios item is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: The implication of Trump's remarks is stunning. He effectively acknowledges that he knew back in the day that something "very bad" was going on at Epstein's islands when he declares that it was in one of his "very good moments" that he chose not to go. Nonetheless, even today he thinks it would have been "a privilege" to participate in those "very bad" goings-on, "very bad" things that he obviously knows now were sexual abuse of children. Combine that with Trump's remarks to Howard Stern that he had no lower age limit for girls he would date, and his unannounced drop-ins at teenaged beauty pageant dressing rooms -- and we can be sure that Trump at least considered sexually abusing underaged girls and he "had no problem" with it. ~~~

~~~ Here is video of Trump's remarks Monday in response to reporters' questions about Epstein. Among other things, he called President Biden, Merrick Garland and Jim Comey "the worst scum on earth"; Bill Clinton went to Epstein's island 28 times; and Larry Summers also went there. ~~~

     ~~~ Evan Hurst of Wonkette is surprised to learn the autopen wrote the Epstein files. Hurst has thoughts on this and other matters of interest. 

AP: “... Donald Trump is asking a federal court in Florida to force Rupert Murdoch to give a deposition for the president’s lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal within 15 days, citing the media mogul’s age and physical condition. Trump sued the Journal, owned by Murdoch, in the U.S. District Court of southern Florida on July 18 for its story reporting on the Republican president’s ties to Jeffrey Epstein.... The president’s motion to the court on Monday noted Murdoch is 94 years old, is believed to have suffered several health scares in recent years, and is presumed to live in New York.” MB: Murdoch's lawyers should file a counter-motion, urging that Trump be deposed immediately on account of his advanced age and obviously deteriorating physical and mental conditions. 

Annie Karni of the New York Times: “Senator Richard J. Durbin of Illinois, the top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, on Monday demanded all recordings and transcripts of the July 24 and 25 Justice Department interviews with Ghislaine Maxwell, the longtime partner of Jeffrey Epstein who is serving a 20-year sentence for sex trafficking. In a letter to Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, who conducted the interviews, Mr. Durbin also demanded that the Justice Department commit to offering no pardon or commutation of Ms. Maxwell’s sentence in exchange for information, citing 'serious questions about the potential for a corrupt bargain between the Trump Administration and Ghislaine Maxwell.' The letter ... was co-signed by Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, Democrat of Rhode Island, who also sits on the Judiciary Committee. Because Democrats are in the minority and have no subpoena power, their demands may carry little weight with Mr. Blanche.” (Also linked yesterday.) 

Mark Berman of the Washington Post: “Attorneys for Ghislaine Maxwell, the imprisoned associate of deceased financier Jeffrey Epstein, on Monday urged the U.S. Supreme Court to hear an appeal of her sex-trafficking conviction and accused the Trump administration of making inaccurate, distracting claims in court papers. Maxwell, who was convicted in 2021, has said she was improperly prosecuted by federal officials. She contends her case should not have proceeded, saying a plea agreement Epstein signed in 2008 to resolve allegations that he molested dozens of girls prohibited charges against potential co-conspirators. The Justice Department recently said the widely criticized Epstein plea agreement, which was signed in South Florida, governed potential prosecutions only in that specific district and did not extend to New York, where Maxwell was indicted.” An NBC News story is here.

⭐Kyle Cheney & Josh Gerstein of Politico: “The Trump administration escalated its battle Monday to cast as rogue partisans federal judges who have blocked ... Donald Trump’s priorities, this time taking aim at James Boasberg, the chief judge of the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced her office had filed a misconduct complaint against Boasberg over comments, reported recently in right-leaning news outlets, that Boasberg made at a meeting of judges in March with Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts in attendance. According to the complaint, which was ... signed by Bondi’s chief of staff Chad Mizelle, Boasberg 'attempted to improperly influence' Roberts and two dozen other judges by suggesting the Trump administration might “disregard rulings of federal courts” and trigger 'a constitutional crisis.' Days after the alleged remarks, Boasberg, an Obama appointee, rejected the administration’s efforts to summarily deport hundreds of Venezuelan nationals to a notorious prison in El Salvador, finding many of the deportations abused due process. Despite the order, the administration disembarked most of the Venezuelans in El Salvador, a decision Boasberg had suggested flagrantly defied his order. Notably, the Supreme Court later vacated Boasberg’s order, saying the Venezuelan men should have filed lawsuits in the Texas district where they had been held before their deportation.” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Although it's true that President Obama named Boasberg to the D.C. District Court, Obama nominated Boasberg during his term as a D.C. Superior Court judge, a position for which Republican George W. Bush nominated him. So Boasberg is not, to borrow Trump's terms, a "radical left-wing liberal lunatic." Rather, he has run afoul of the Trump toady team by ruling against them.

Perry Stein & Theodoric Meyer of the Washington Post: “A new whistleblower has come forward to challenge the federal judicial nomination of Emil Bove, sharing evidence with lawmakers suggesting the controversial former attorney for Donald Trump and current top Justice Department official misled lawmakers during his confirmation hearing last month. The whistleblower — whose existence has not been previously reported — presented documentation that contradicts claims Bove made before the Senate Judiciary Committee about a Justice Department prosecution. The Washington Post reviewed the evidence and agreed to withhold details to protect the identity of the whistleblower, whose lawyers spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the whistleblower’s fear of retribution. Trump formally nominated Bove for a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit in June and a full Senate vote is expected this week — a faster timeline than most other judicial nominations.” The link is a gift link. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: So Bove aspires to be a top-tier federal judge; yet among his many failures, he committed perjury -- which is a crime -- during his confirmation hearing. And so far that seems to be A-OK with Republican senators. The courts & the entire justice system of course depend upon witnesses NOT lying under oath. Bove should not keep his job at the DOJ, much less become an appellate court judge. ~~~

     ~~~ Hailey Fuchs of Politico: “It’s not likely, though, that this new development could be enough to sway more Republicans to oppose him. GOP Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine are expected to vote 'no.' Sen. Thom Tillis, whose opposition to Trump’s previous U.S. attorney pick for the District of Columbia tanked the nomination and is not running for reelection, had been viewed as a possible Republican who could be flipped on judicial contenders. But the North Carolina lawmaker said Monday his support of Bove remained unchanged.”

Bove is not the only federal official who has been making false statements: ~~~

Sam Levin of the Guardian: “US immigration officers made false and misleading statements in their reports about several Los Angeles protesters they arrested during the massive demonstrations that rocked the city in June, according to federal law enforcement files obtained by the Guardian. The officers’ testimony was cited in at least five cases filed by the US Department of Justice amid the unrest. The justice department has charged at least 26 people with 'assaulting' and 'impeding' federal officers and other crimes during the protests over immigration raids. Prosecutors, however, have since been forced to dismiss at least eight of those felonies, many of them which relied on officers’ inaccurate reports, court records show. The justice department has also dismissed at least three felony assault cases it brought against Angelenos accused of interfering with arrests during recent immigration raids, the documents show. The rapid felony dismissals are a major embarrassment for the Trump-appointed US attorney for southern California, Bill Essayli, and appeared to be the result of an unusual series of missteps by the justice department, former federal prosecutors said.” Read on. ~~~

~~~ Josh Gerstein & Kyle Cheney of Politico: “A 9th Circuit Court of Appeals panel hearing arguments Monday on a lower-court order barring 'roving' immigration arrests repeatedly pressed a Justice Department attorney to confirm whether immigration officials have been ordered to carry out 3,000 deportations or deportation arrests a day.... Judge Ronald Gould, a Clinton appointee..., [said], 'I’m just trying to understand what would motivate the officers who did the round-up of aliens here to grab such a large number of people so quickly and without marshaling reasonable suspicion to detain.'... The answer to the question posed by the panel could carry enormous significance as they weigh whether to maintain a lower-court judge’s decision to bar the administration from resuming large-scale immigration sweeps in the Los Angeles area. U.S. District Judge Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong, a Biden appointee, ruled that the sweeps relied exclusively on factors such as race, ethnicity, language skills and job type to justify arrests, rather than individualized details that a person was in the country illegally.” DOJ attorney Yaakov Roth claimed ignorance of a quota even though Stephen Miller -- Trump's deportation ghoul -- told Sean Hannity on-air that “Under President Trump’s leadership, we are looking to set a goal of a minimum of 3,000 arrests for ICE every day.”

Zach Montague of the New York Times: “A federal judge on Monday indefinitely blocked the Trump administration from enforcing a policy that would prevent many Planned Parenthood clinics from receiving federal Medicaid reimbursements if they continue to offer abortion services.The order, issued by Judge Indira Talwani in Federal District Court in Massachusetts, extended a temporary block she had placed on the government earlier this month. She found that the policy retaliated against Planned Parenthood in violation of its First Amendment rights and could amount to an unconstitutional 'legislative punishment.' The lawsuit, filed earlier this month, came in response to a provision introduced in the sprawling policy bill that President Trump signed into law early this month. The bill imposed a one-year ban on state Medicaid payments to any health care nonprofit that offers abortions and received more than $800,000 in Medicaid funding in 2023.” (Also linked yesterday.) 

Vimal Patel of the New York Times: “When the Department of Justice recently opened an investigation into George Mason University over accusations that the university’s diversity programs were discriminatory, many members of the faculty were outraged. Professors quickly published a resolution supporting their president and the university’s efforts around diversity. Now, Justice Department officials say they will investigate the faculty, too.... Free speech advocates quickly denounced the move as an attack on academic freedom.” (Also linked yesterday.) 

Michael Bender, et al., of the New York Times: “Harvard University has signaled a willingness to meet the Trump administration’s demand to spend as much as $500 million to end its dispute with the White House as talks between the two sides intensify, four people familiar with the negotiations said.... University officials ... concluded months ago that even if they prevailed in their court fight against the government, a deal could help Harvard to avoid more troubles over the course of Mr. Trump’s term.” MB: I'm leading spelunking excursions in Cambridge now that I've found out the little college there is led by such enthusastic cavers. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Scott Lemieux in LG&$: “To make a point that should be obvious to people to whom it apparently isn’t, once you’ve accepted the principle that the government can make you pay half a billion dollars in exchange for charges that have virtually no chance of standing up in court so you can stop them from pulling funding, whether the government has a formal monitoring role is beside the point — they can always take funding away again and/or come back and demand more money. How any halfway intelligent person could believe that agreeing to a shakedown will help 'avoid more troubles' is beyond me.” Read on for Lemieux's take on Larry Summers' public statement about Ivy League shakedowns.

Betsy Klein & Samantha Waldenberg of CNN: “The Trump administration has identified a new target in its battle with elite higher education, announcing a two-pronged front against Duke University on allegations the North Carolina school is in violation of the Civil Rights Act. The Education Department is launching an investigation into Duke University and the Duke Law Journal, the department announced in a news release Monday, citing reporting that alleges the university was violating the Civil Rights Act. Education Secretary Linda McMahon and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. also sent a letter to Duke University outlining shared concerns about the use of race preferences in Duke’s hiring, admissions, and scholarship decisions.'... Separately, the letter from McMahon and Kennedy alleged 'serious allegations of systemic racial discrimination permeating the operations of Duke University School of Medicine and other components of Duke Health.'” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Oh, my lands, I suspect some sweet white boys' mamas are all consternated that Duke failed to accept their darling offspring into its most prestigious programs. How can a university be "the Princeton of the South" if it is not overloaded with white boys of an upper-crusty class?

Every Day Is “Bring Jesus to Work” Day. Taylor Telford of the Washington Post: “Federal employees can display religious items at work, pray in groups while not on duty and encourage co-workers to adopt their faith, according to guidance released Monday by the Office of Personnel Management, which manages the federal civilian workforce. In a memo titled 'Protecting Religious Expression in the Federal Workplace,' OPM Director Scott Kupor said that the government workforce should be 'a welcoming place' for employees who practice a religious faith.” The Hill's story is here.

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Oklahoma. Jamie Stengle & John Hanna of the AP: “An Oklahoma sheriff’s office Monday opened an investigation over reports that images of nude women were displayed on the state’s school superintendent office television during a meeting with education board members. Top Oklahoma lawmakers have sought answers over accounts given by two State Board of Education members, who said they saw the images during a meeting in Ryan Walters‘s office Thursday.... Education board members Becky Carson and Ryan Deatherage told the online news outlet NonDoc that ... they were the only people seated in places where they could see the screen.... Walters, a Republican, has spent much of his first term in office lauding ... Donald Trump, feuding with teachers unions and local school superintendents, and trying to end what he describes as 'wokeness' in public schools.... Walters said in a post on the social platform X on Sunday that 'any suggestion that a device of mine was used to stream inappropriate content on the television set is categorically false.'” MB: Right. Walters was probably reviewing a sex education proposal. Or maybe models for an 8th-grade drawing & painting workshop. So definitely "appropriate content."

South Carolina. Maggie Haberman & Ken Besinger of the New York Times: The Republican architect of Project 2025 — the right-wing blueprint that Democrats made a rallying cry in the presidential election last year — is mounting a primary challenge to Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, saying he isn’t sufficiently devoted to ... [Donald] Trump’s political movement. As he begins his challenge, Paul Dans, who is not originally from South Carolina, starts out as a distinct underdog. Mr. Graham, who has the support of Mr. Trump, has won past primaries handily despite appearing vulnerable, and he is likely to have a significant financial edge. But Mr. Dans plans to run highlighting the work of Project 2025, from which Mr. Trump distanced himself during his campaign before enacting significant portions of it into his government.”

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Colombia. Genevieve Glatsky & Julie Turkewitz of the New York Times: “Álvaro Uribe, Colombia’s conservative former president who shaped the country’s politics more than anyone over the past 25 years, was found guilty on Monday of bribery in criminal proceedings and procedural fraud. It was the first major criminal conviction of a former Colombian leader. Mr. Uribe was accused of working with a lawyer in an unsuccessful effort to bribe a former paramilitary to retract testimony that damaged him. The paramilitary had said that Mr. Uribe, 73, founded and financed a paramilitary group in the 1990s, during the country’s long and bloody internal conflict. The ruling, by Judge Sandra Heredia of a lower circuit court in Bogotá, is likely to further divide the nation, which has long debated the legacy of Mr. Uribe’s role in the conflict. As president from 2002 to 2010 he pursued an aggressive military campaign against the country’s leftist rebel groups, significantly weakening the largest group and bringing a measure of security the nation had not seen in years. But critics say his government’s tactics led to human rights violations against civilians and accused him of supporting right-wing paramilitary groups, for which they argue he should be held accountable.”

Israel/Palestine, et al. Aaron Boxerman of the New York Times: “Two of the best-known Israeli human rights groups said Monday that Israel was committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, adding fuel to a passionately fought international debate over whether the death and destruction there have crossed a moral red line. The two groups were B’Tselem, a rights monitor that documents the effects of Israeli policies on Palestinians, and Physicians for Human Rights — Israel. Their announcement was the first time major Israeli rights groups have publicly concluded that the Gaza war is a genocide, an assessment previously reached by some organizations like Amnesty International.” (Also linked yesterday.) 

The Conversation -- July 28, 2025

Vimal Patel of the New York Times: “When the Department of Justice recently opened an investigation into George Mason University over accusations that the university’s diversity programs were discriminatory, many members of the faculty were outraged. Professors quickly published a resolution supporting their president and the university’s efforts around diversity. Now, Justice Department officials say they will investigate the faculty, too.... Free speech advocates quickly denounced the move as an attack on academic freedom.”

Michael Bender, et al., of the New York Times: “Harvard University has signaled a willingness to meet the Trump administration’s demand to spend as much as $500 million to end its dispute with the White House as talks between the two sides intensify, four people familiar with the negotiations said.” MB: I'm leading spelunking excursions in Cambridge now that I've found out the little college there is led by such enthusastic cavers.

Zach Montague of the New York Times: “A federal judge on Monday indefinitely blocked the Trump administration from enforcing a policy that would prevent many Planned Parenthood clinics from receiving federal Medicaid reimbursements if they continue to offer abortion services.The order, issued by Judge Indira Talwani in Federal District Court in Massachusetts, extended a temporary block she had placed on the government earlier this month. She found that the policy retaliated against Planned Parenthood in violation of its First Amendment rights and could amount to an unconstitutional 'legislative punishment.' The lawsuit, filed earlier this month, came in response to a provision introduced in the sprawling policy bill that President Trump signed into law early this month. The bill imposed a one-year ban on state Medicaid payments to any health care nonprofit that offers abortions and received more than $800,000 in Medicaid funding in 2023.”

Matthew Bigg of the New York Times: Donald “Trump said on Monday that he was 'disappointed' with President Vladimir V. Putin over the war in Ukraine, and said he would give Russia 10 to 12 days to end the conflict or face a new round of sanctions. Mr. Trump had warned Moscow earlier this month that the United States would impose “very severe tariffs” if Russia did not agree to a peace deal within 50 days, but on Monday he said he would bring that deadline forward. 'I’m going to make a new deadline of about 10 or 12 days from today. There’s no reason in waiting,' Mr. Trump told reporters in Scotland during a meeting with Prime Minister Keir Starmer of Britain. 'We just don’t see any progress being made.' If the Kremlin does not comply, 'it would be sanctions and maybe tariffs, secondary tariffs,' he said. Mr. Trump has repeatedly threatened to punish Russia over its escalating attacks in Ukraine but so far has not followed through.” Politico's story is here.

Will Weissert of the AP: Donald “Trump met on Monday at one of his Scottish golf courses with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who pressed him on the U.S. taking a larger role in helping quell a growing food crisis in Gaza amid Israel’s ongoing war with Hamas in the territory. Starmer and his wife, Victoria, arrived at Trump’s Turnberry course on the southern coast, and the Republican president spent several minutes chatting with them and proudly pointing out key aspects of the property. But the prime minister didn’t wait until they were inside to insist that Gaza would be a key topic in their meeting, calling what’s occurring there 'a desperate situation.' Trump expressed concern about the humanitarian situation and urged Israel’s leader to take action as images of emaciated children have emerged.” ~~~

~~~ Michael Shear & Luke Broadwater of the New York Times: Donald “Trump on Monday expressed frustration about the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, opening a day of talks in Scotland with Britain’s prime minister by saying he was significantly speeding up the deadline for Russia to make peace and indicating disagreement with Israeli officials who have denied that anyone is starving in the war-torn enclave. Mr. Trump said that he had seen pictures on television of children in Gaza and said they 'look very hungry' and that 'we have to get the kids fed.'  He repeatedly said he wanted to get more food in to the area, but largely blamed Hamas for stealing the aid and selling it — a contention for which the Israeli military has found no proof.... Mr. Trump said he did not 'particularly' agree with a recent assertion by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that there was no starvation in Gaza.... Just days ago, the Trump administration said it had approved $30 million in funding for a fledgling aid distribution system in Gaza backed by Israel and run mostly by American contractors, which has seen deadly violence erupt near its distribution sites.... Mr. Trump on Monday claimed that 'no other nation [besides the U.S.] gave money.' In fact, as of January, the European Union had spent about $605 million on aid to Gaza since 2023, according to the European Commission.” At 12 noon ET Monday, this is part of the pinned item in a liveblog.

Aaron Boxerman of the New York Times: “Two of the best-known Israeli human rights groups said Monday that Israel was committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, adding fuel to a passionately fought international debate over whether the death and destruction there have crossed a moral red line. The two groups were B’Tselem, a rights monitor that documents the effects of Israeli policies on Palestinians, and Physicians for Human Rights — Israel. Their announcement was the first time major Israeli rights groups have publicly concluded that the Gaza war is a genocide, an assessment previously reached by some organizations like Amnesty International.”

Annie Karni of the New York Times: “Senator Richard J. Durbin of Illinois, the top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, on Monday demanded all recordings and transcripts of the July 24 and 25 Justice Department interviews with Ghislaine Maxwell, the longtime partner of Jeffrey Epstein who is serving a 20-year sentence for sex trafficking. In a letter to Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, who conducted the interviews, Mr. Durbin also demanded that the Justice Department commit to offering no pardon or commutation of Ms. Maxwell’s sentence in exchange for information, citing 'serious questions about the potential for a corrupt bargain between the Trump Administration and Ghislaine Maxwell.' The letter ... was co-signed by Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, Democrat of Rhode Island, who also sits on the Judiciary Committee. Because Democrats are in the minority and have no subpoena power, their demands may carry little weight with Mr. Blanche.”

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Waste, Fraud and Abuse, All on a Sunday Afternoon. In Sunday afternoon's top stories, we find Donald Trump (1) imposing billions of dollars in taxes/tariffs on U.S. consumers & businesses; (2) wasting a billion dollars of taxpayer money on a vanity project for the benefit of no one but Trump; and (3) just tossing $10MM taxpayer dollars out the window (and depriving families of needed contraceptives). 

(1) Cat Zakrzewski & Ellen Francis of the Washington Post: “... Donald Trump said Sunday he reached a trade agreement with the European Union, following months of contentious negotiations with one of the United States’ top trading partners.... Trump said he would impose a 15 percent duty on imports from the European Union, down from his latest threat of 30 percent. The White House did not immediately release specific details of the trade agreement, which are traditionally hundreds of pages long and take years to negotiate. 'I don’t think there are too many other factors, other than we’re going to get along great,' Trump said. U.S. importers will be paying the tariffs, whose costs are often passed along to consumers or businesses that buy the imported products. Trump met with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at Trump Turnberry, one of several golf courses that the president owns in Scotland.” (Also linked yesterday.) The AP's report is here.

(2) A “Gift” to Trump Costs Taxpayers $1BB. David Sanger & Eric Schmitt of the New York Times: “To hide the cost of renovating the plane Qatar donated to ... [Donald] Trump, the Air Force appears to have tucked it inside an over-budget, behind-schedule nuclear modernization program. [Mr.] Trump makes no secret of his displeasure over the cost of renovating the Federal Reserve headquarters.... But getting the White House to discuss another of Washington’s expensive renovation projects, the cost of refurbishing a 'free' Air Force One from Qatar, is quite another matter. Officially, and conveniently, the price tag has been classified. But even by Washington standards..., the techniques being used to hide the cost of Mr. Trump’s pet project are inventive. Which may explain why no one wants to discuss a mysterious, $934 million transfer of funds from one of the Pentagon’s most over-budget, out-of-control projects — the modernization of America’s aging, ground-based nuclear missiles.... Congressional budget sleuths have come to think that amount, slipped into an obscure Pentagon document sent to Capitol Hill as a 'transfer' to an unnamed classified project, almost certainly includes the renovation of the new, gold-adorned Air Force One that Mr. Trump desperately wants in the air before his term is over.” (Also linked yesterday.) 

(3) Maham Javaid, et al., of the Washington Post: “The Trump administration is set to destroy a large stockpile of U.S.-funded contraceptives stored at a warehouse in Belgium, which says it has 'explored all possible options to prevent the destruction.' The family-planning supplies, which include more than 50,000 intrauterine devices, nearly 2 million doses of injectable contraceptives, nearly 900,000 implantable contraceptive devices and more than 2 million packets of oral birth control, are worth about $9.7 million, according to an internal accounting in April, The Washington Post reported. 'The State Department confirms that a preliminary decision was made to destroy certain abortifacient birth control commodities from terminated Biden-era USAID contracts,' a spokesperson said in a statement.” (Also linked yesterday.) 

“Commander in Cheat.” Josh Marcus of the Independent: “Social media users pounced on a clip that appears to show Donald Trump cheating on the golf course during his ongoing trip to Scotland, the latest in a long line of accusations that the president cheats on the fairway. In the video circulated by liberal commentators, a caddy appears to walk ahead of the golf-loving president in his golf cart and drop a ball behind him as the president approaches.... 'The video of Trump’s caddy doing an Oddjob Slazenger drop isn’t a big deal; cheating at golf isn’t nearly the worst thing about Trump,' wrote The Atlantic’s Tom Nichols. 'But watching the cult of personality try to explain it away is really some creepy North Korean level stuff.'”

Watch the caddy, then follow the bouncing ball ~~~

     ~~~ Here's a video exposition of Trump's history of cheating at golf. ~~~

~~~ Marie: I found it thoroughly enjoyable to listen to these two Scotsmen: ~~~

Lies, Damned Lies & Imaginary Numbers. Naftali Bendavid of the Washington Post: “... Donald Trump made a promise at a reception last week for Republican lawmakers that was as impossible as it was specific: He would drive down drug prices by as much as 1,500 percent — 'numbers that are not even thought to be achievable,' he said. A price cannot drop by more than 100 percent, but Trump went on to make several other precise but clearly false numerical claims. The cost of gasoline had fallen to $1.99 a gallon in five states, he said; according to AAA, it was over $3 in every state. Businesses had invested $16 trillion in America in the past four months, he added; the entire U.S. economy last year was worth less than $30 trillion.... Trump ... attaches precise numbers to his claims with unusual frequency, giving the assertions an air of authority and credibility — yet the numbers often end up being incorrect or not even plausible.... Trump has made little secret of his disdain for research and expertise. Yet he routinely reaches for numbers or statistics, often grandiose ones, when seeking to hammer home the failures of his adversaries, the grandeur of his accomplishments or the boldness of his promises.” ~~~

    ~~~ Marie: If you wonder how Trump's business ventures could have failed so many times, perhaps part of the answer is that he can't do seventh-grade arithmetic. (While a price cannot decrease by 1,500 percent, it can increase by 1,500 percent; that is, the price of a $1 item would go to $15.)  

Alan Rappeport & Ana Swanson of the New York Times: “Top officials from the Trump administration will meet with their Chinese counterparts in Sweden this week for their third formal round of economic talks since President Trump raised tariffs on Chinese imports to triple-digit levels this year. The primary goal is to extend a fragile trade truce that has prevented a devastating clash between the world’s largest economies.... The negotiations come during a pivotal week for the global economy, which has been gripped by uncertainty as a result of Mr. Trump’s chaotic trade agenda. The Trump administration has been trying to win concessions from many countries before an Aug. 1 deadline for reimposing tariffs announced in April. Those levies were suspended in order to reach trade deals. Over the last week, the Trump administration has announced deals with some of America’s biggest trading partners in quick succession.”

Freedom, Slip-Slidin' Away. Charlie English in a New York Times op-ed: “... the very same [book] titles and authors the C.I.A. sent [into the Communist Eastern Bloc] during the Cold War — including '1984'— are now deemed objectionable by a network of conservative groups across the United States.... Orwell’s novel describes the dystopian world of Oceania, a totalitarian state where the protagonist ... works in a huge government department called the Ministry of Truth. The ministry is ironically named: Its role is not to safeguard the truth but to destroy it.... In the real Soviet system, every country had its equivalent of the Ministry of Truth, modeled on the Moscow template.... In the mid-2020s..., censorship efforts are mostly driven by Republican state legislators and parental-rights groups. Florida takes the lead, with more than 4,561 book bans recorded in that school year — including in one case a graphic novel adaptation of '1984' — via a combination of new state laws and parental pressure. Next come Iowa (with 3,671 book bans that year), Texas (538), Wisconsin (408), Virginia (121) and Kentucky (100).... 

“This year, after Mr. Trump signed three executive orders aimed at combating 'wokeness,' the Department of Defense’s education agency removed and reviewed more than 500 titles from its school system, including, according to one report, Aldous Huxley’s 'Brave New World,' which the C.I.A. had sent to the Eastern Bloc.... Mr. Trump, JD Vance, Ron DeSantis and their fellow travelers expound the virtues of the First Amendment while dismantling guardrails against disinformation and working to suppress political ideas they oppose. Book bans aren’t their only tool. They also block access for independent journalists, intimidate news organizations and defund outlets they perceive as hostile to the MAGA agenda, including NPR, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Radio Free Asia and Voice of America.”

     ~~~ Marie: I constantly wonder if Trump understands what he is doing. For instance, did Trump name his Twitter knockoff "Truth Social" in the tradition of the Ministry of Truth? Or did someone else suggest the name & Trump is oblivious to its heritage? 

Zeesham Aleem in an MSNBC opinion piece (July 26): “... on Wednesday [The Department of Homeland Security] posted an image of an old oil painting ... titled 'American Progress,' ... an iconic representation of American westward expansion ... painted by John Gast in 1872.... 'American Progress' shows a gigantic and angelic-looking blond woman with fair skin striding westward across the American plains.... Behind her, in the East, are trains, farms and boats lit up by a rising sun. At her feet are settlers heading West on wagons. And in front of her — the West — are Native Americans, along with buffalo and other wild animals, cast in darkness and beneath an overcast sky. In its post of the painting, DHS ... wrote: 'A Heritage to be proud of, a Homeland worth Defending.'... And earlier in July, DHS posted another oil painting — which it mistitled — of a settler couple in the West holding a baby in a covered wagon.... [Posting the paintings] gives the public plenty of clues about who DHS thinks belongs in America as it presides over a brutal mass deportation operation.... [DHS] is promoting the idea that America’s most authentic heritage can be traced back to its history of ethnic cleansing, racist social hierarchies and racial domination.... The 'homeland' is to be expropriated and protected from savages, and the people who most belong are the European settler class.” ~~~

     ~~~ Heather Cox Richardson expands on Aleem's theme, providing more evidence of "the use of American iconography to push ... [white nationalists] ... 'blood and soil' ideology.” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: As Aleem implies with the quotation marks he places around the word "homeland," the very name of the department is a loaded term, as "homeland" "often has ethnic nationalist connotations." People objected to its use when Dubya began using the term after 9/11. "In an August 5, 2002, speech, President Bush said: 'We are fighting ... to secure freedom in the homeland.' Prior to the creation of DHS, U.S. Presidents had referred to the U.S. as 'the nation' or 'the republic' and to its internal policies as  'domestic'. Also unprecedented was the use, from 2002, of the phrase 'the homeland' by White House spokespeople." The word "homeland" still makes me wince today.

Katie Shepherd of the Washington Post: “The residents of Westernport, Maryland, overwhelmingly voted for Trump. But after FEMA denied its aid request, the town feels like the president has turned his back on them.... Westernport town administrator Laura Freeman Legge said she estimated the town’s damages at $10 million, not including the damage to peoples’ homes and personal property. For a town with an annual budget of about $2 million, many repairs will need to be put on hold, potentially for years.” Now, they're complaining that Westernport should get aid because, even though the state voted Democratic, they voted for Trump. MB: Selfish bastids. FEMA aid is not supposed to be dependent upon a region or state's voting record but on need. Besides, these whiney Trumpists aren't the only people Trump "abandoned." He hurt all of us everywhere. 

Bible Mike Goes Off-Message Again. Sam Levine of the Guardian: “The US House speaker, Mike Johnson, said on Sunday he would have 'great pause' about granting a pardon or commutation to Ghislaine Maxwell.... Donald Trump and his allies, including Johnson, have been under immense pressure to disclose more information about Epstein for weeks, especially amid scrutiny over the extent of Trump’s relationship with Epstein. The splits over what to do with Maxwell illustrate the complicated challenge posed by the scandal for Trump, his Maga base and the broader Republican party. Johnson weighed in on the possibility of a pardon after Todd Blanche, the deputy attorney general, met with Maxwell, who is serving a 20-year prison sentence for sex trafficking, over two days last week.... Johnson adjourned the US House of Representatives early last week to avoid a vote on releasing Epstein files. He said on Sunday he favored 'maximum disclosure'. During his appearance on Meet the Press, he defended that decision, saying the legislation being pushed by [members of both parties] would require the release of uncorroborated information and could harm the victims of Epstein and Maxwell’s crimes.” 

Richard Severo & Peter Keepnews of the New York Times: “Tom Lehrer, the Harvard-trained mathematician whose wickedly iconoclastic songs made him a favorite satirist in the 1950s and ’60s on college campuses and in all the Greenwich Villages of the country, died on Saturday at his home in Cambridge, Mass. He was 97.” (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Coincidences abound. Just as Mr. Lehrer was breathing his last breath Saturday, I happened to find myself singing, sotto voce, "Alma," which Lehrer says he based on "... the juiciest, spiciest, racist obituary it has been my pleasure to read." ~~~

~~~~~~~~~~

Israel/Palestine/U.S. Richard Escobedo & Mia Salenetri of CBS News: "A group of Democratic senators led by Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland is urging the Trump administration to suspend American financial support for the Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a private food distribution organization that has been heavily criticized for the way it delivers food aid to Gazans and because so many have been killed trying to reach its distribution sites.  The U.S. and Israel have advocated for the recently established GHF to replace the United Nations, which has built an extensive network of humanitarian workers inside Gaza over decades. Israel accuses the U.N. of bias and collusion with Hamas. In a letter sent to Secretary of State Marco Rubio Sunday, the 21 senators expressed 'grave' concerns about 'the U.S. role in and financial support for the troubled GHF.' 'We urge you to immediately cease all U.S. funding for GHF and resume support for the existing UN-led aid coordination mechanisms with enhanced oversight to ensure that humanitarian aid reaches civilians in need,' the letter reads." ~~~

~~~ Ephrat Livni of the New York Times: “Major global news organizations are calling on Israel to lift restrictions on humanitarian aid entering the Gaza Strip and on the movement of reporters in and out of the enclave as Palestinian reporters there struggle to survive amid extreme privation. International leaders and humanitarian organizations have sounded alarms about Gaza’s rapidly worsening hunger crisis, which has led to dozens of hunger-related deaths this month, according to the local health authorities. Now news organizations, including The New York Times, have also begun weighing in, noting that Israel has restricted international reporters from independently entering the enclave during the war and that local reporters are trapped there without enough food to live or work.... The Foreign Press Association in Israel, a nonprofit that represents hundreds of journalists from more than 100 news outlets, has long sought permission for journalists to enter Gaza, but it has been deterred by the government and the Supreme Court.” ~~~

~~~ Aaron Boxerman of the New York Times: “Israel said it paused military activity in parts of Gaza on Sunday to allow in international aid, amid growing outrage over the severe hunger faced by Palestinians in the territory. The decision was a reversal by Israel that followed growing pressure over the dire conditions in Gaza, where nearly one in three people has not been eating 'for multiple days in a row,' according to the World Food Program, an arm of the United Nations. Many countries, including some of Israel’s traditional allies, blame Israel for the widespread hunger crisis. The Israeli government blocked almost all aid to Gaza from March through May in an effort to squeeze concessions from Hamas, and has restricted aid deliveries into the territory since then.”

Thailand/Cambodia. Edward Wong & Sui-Lee Wee of the New York Times: “Thailand and Cambodia agreed to a cease-fire starting at midnight on Monday, the leaders of both countries said, after the deadliest conflict between their two countries in more than a decade killed at least 36 people and prompted hundreds of thousands of civilians to flee the area. Thailand’s acting prime minister, Phumtham Wechayachai, and Cambodia’s prime minister, Hun Manet, shook hands with each other after holding talks in person for the first time since the fighting broke out five days ago along the countries’ disputed border. Since last Thursday, both countries have pounded each other with attacks, which at times included airstrikes and rockets fired.”

News Lede

New York Times: “A man armed with a folding knife who went on a random stabbing spree that left 11 people injured at a Michigan Walmart faces a charge of terrorism in connection with the attack, the authorities said on Sunday. The man, Bradford James Gille, 42, of Afton, Mich., also faces 11 counts of assault with intent to murder, Sheriff Mike Shea of Grand Traverse County said at a news conference on Sunday. Though officials said a motive for the attack remained undetermined, they are seeking to charge Mr. Gille with terrorism. Such a charge is customary in a mass attack like the one on Saturday because its intent was believed to be to bring fear and destruction to a community as a whole, rather than to harm specific individuals, Noelle R. Moeggenberg, the prosecuting attorney for Grand Traverse County, said.... The sheriff noted that 'multiple citizens, including one who was armed with a pistol,' confronted Mr. Gille in the parking lot, 'preventing him from harming further people and leaving.'”

The Conversation -- July 27, 2025

Richard Severo & Peter Keepnews of the New York Times: “Tom Lehrer, the Harvard-trained mathematician whose wickedly iconoclastic songs made him a favorite satirist in the 1950s and ’60s on college campuses and in all the Greenwich Villages of the country, died on Saturday at his home in Cambridge, Mass. He was 97.” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Coincidences abound. Just as Mr. Lehrer was breathing his last breath yesterday, I happened to find myself singing, sotto voce, "Alma," which Lehrer says he based on "... the juiciest, spiciest, racist obituary it has been my pleasure to read." ~~~

Waste, Fraud and Abuse, All on a Sunday Afternoon. In this afternoon's top stories, we find Donald Trump (1) imposing billions of dollars in taxes/tariffs on U.S. consumers & businesses; (2) wasting a billion dollars of taxpayer money on a vanity project for the benefit of no one but Trump; and (3) just tossing $10MM taxpayer dollars out the window (and depriving families of needed contraceptives). 

Cat Zakrzewski & Ellen Francis of the Washington Post: “... Donald Trump said Sunday he reached a trade agreement with the European Union, following months of contentious negotiations with one of the United States’ top trading partners.... Trump said he would impose a 15 percent duty on imports from the European Union, down from his latest threat of 30 percent. The White House did not immediately release specific details of the trade agreement, which are traditionally hundreds of pages long and take years to negotiate. 'I don’t think there are too many other factors, other than we’re going to get along great,' Trump said. U.S. importers will be paying the tariffs, whose costs are often passed along to consumers or businesses that buy the imported products. Trump met with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at Trump Turnberry, one of several golf courses that the president owns in Scotland.”

A “Gift” to Trump Costs Taxpayers $1BB. David Sanger & Eric Schmitt of the New York Times: “To hide the cost of renovating the plane Qatar donated to ... [Donald] Trump, the Air Force appears to have tucked it inside an over-budget, behind-schedule nuclear modernization program. [Mr.] Trump makes no secret of his displeasure over the cost of renovating the Federal Reserve headquarters.... But getting the White House to discuss another of Washington’s expensive renovation projects, the cost of refurbishing a 'free' Air Force One from Qatar, is quite another matter. Officially, and conveniently, the price tag has been classified. But even by Washington standards..., the techniques being used to hide the cost of Mr. Trump’s pet project are inventive. Which may explain why no one wants to discuss a mysterious, $934 million transfer of funds from one of the Pentagon’s most over-budget, out-of-control projects — the modernization of America’s aging, ground-based nuclear missiles.... Congressional budget sleuths have come to think that amount, slipped into an obscure Pentagon document sent to Capitol Hill as a 'transfer' to an unnamed classified project, almost certainly includes the renovation of the new, gold-adorned Air Force One that Mr. Trump desperately wants in the air before his term is over.”

Maham Javaid, et al., of the Washington Post: “The Trump administration is set to destroy a large stockpile of U.S.-funded contraceptives stored at a warehouse in Belgium, which says it has 'explored all possible options to prevent the destruction.' The family-planning supplies, which include more than 50,000 intrauterine devices, nearly 2 million doses of injectable contraceptives, nearly 900,000 implantable contraceptive devices and more than 2 million packets of oral birth control, are worth about $9.7 million, according to an internal accounting in April, The Washington Post reported. 'The State Department confirms that a preliminary decision was made to destroy certain abortifacient birth control commodities from terminated Biden-era USAID contracts,' a spokesperson said in a statement.”

~~~~~~~~~~

Luke Broadwater of the New York Times: “As ... [Donald] Trump golfed Saturday at his course in Turnberry, Scotland, hundreds of protesters took to the streets to denounce his presence in Britain, opposing the administration’s policies on immigration, the war in Gaza and myriad other issues. In Edinburgh, one woman played the bagpipes while holding an anti-Trump sign. Mr. Trump ... played with his son Eric and Warren A. Stephens, his ambassador to the United Kingdom, and the diplomat’s son. Donald Trump Jr. also accompanied his father on the trip to Scotland, where they were greeted at Glasgow Prestwick Airport by a crowd of supporters.... 'This immigration is killing Europe,' Mr. Trump said. 'And the other thing, stop the windmills. Killing the beauty of your countries.' On Saturday, the Scots, who opinion polls show have low regard for Mr. Trump, let their opposition to his policies be known. A group called Stop Trump Scotland organized a rally as a 'festival of resistance' against Mr. Trump that drew hundreds in Aberdeen, in Scotland’s north, and Edinburgh.” (Also linked yesterday.) 

Your Tax Dollars at Work. S.V. Date of the Huffington Post: “American taxpayers will shell out at least $10 million over the next several days so ... Donald Trump can participate in a marketing photo opportunity at his golf resort in Aberdeen, Scotland — the profits from which will flow directly into his own pocket. Trump is planning to visit his golf resorts in both Aberdeen on the east coast and Turnberry on the west. His appearance in Aberdeen coincides with the grand opening of a second 18-hole course there, which Trump has been personally publicizing in recent years. The trip is unrelated to a planned state visit to the United Kingdom in September, making it by far the most expensive golf vacation to date in either of his terms. It will also increase the total golf tab in his second term to at least $52 million. He spent $152 million in taxpayer money playing golf at his own resorts in his first term.” (Also linked yesterday.) 

Crazy Criminal Would Prosecute Rival. Ashleigh Fields of the Hill: Donald “Trump on Saturday doubled down on his accusations that former Vice President Harris paid celebrities to endorse her during the 2024 presidential election. The president, echoing previous claims that Harris paid Beyoncé, Oprah and Al Sharpton to support her White House bid throughout the campaign trail, said Harris and the celebrities involved should be 'prosecuted.' 'YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO PAY FOR AN ENDORSEMENT. IT IS TOTALLY ILLEGAL TO DO SO. Can you imagine what would happen if politicians started paying for people to endorse them. All hell would break out,' the president wrote in a Truth Social post. 'Kamala, and all of those that received Endorsement money, BROKE THE LAW. They should all be prosecuted! Thank you for your attention to this matter.'...”

Peter Baker in the New York Times: “No commander in chief ... has been as consumed by conspiracy theories as ... [Donald] Trump and now they seem to be consuming him. They have been the rocket fuel for his political career since the days when he spread the lie that Mr. Obama was secretly born overseas and therefore not eligible to be president. More than a decade later, Mr. Trump is coming full circle by trying to divert attention from the Epstein conspiracy theory with a new-and-improved one about Mr. Obama supposedly committing treason.... Mr. Trump ... relishes conspiracy theories, particularly those that benefit him or smear his enemies without any evident care for whether they are true or not.... Mr. Trump ... [once] falsely accuse[d] Mr. Obama of spying on him.... At one point, Mr. Trump spread the claim that Osama bin Laden was not actually dead and that Mr. Obama and Mr. Biden had the Navy’s SEAL Team 6 killed....

“The past week or so have seen a fusillade of Trumpian conspiracy theories, seemingly meant to focus attention away from the Epstein case. Mr. Trump accused Mr. Obama of 'treason,' and posted a fake video showing his predecessor being handcuffed in the Oval Office and imprisoned. He followed that Saturday with a fake image of Mr. Obama in the role of O.J. Simpson driving a white Bronco being chased by police cars, including one driven by Mr. Trump.... Asked last week about whether he had been told his name was in the [Epstein] files, Mr. Trump again pointed the finger of conspiracy elsewhere. 'These files were made up by Comey,' he told reporters, referring to James B. Comey, the F.B.I. director he had fired more than two years before Mr. Epstein died in prison in 2019. 'They were made up by Obama,' he went on. 'They were made up by the Biden administration.'”

Cat Zakrzewski of the Washington Post: “... Donald Trump split with Elon Musk almost two months ago. But he can’t escape one of his former friend’s parting blows: an explosive accusation that the president’s name appears in the Justice Department’s Jeffrey Epstein files. During the public implosion of his alliance with the president in early June, Musk claimed that Trump was refusing to release files related to the accused sex trafficker because the president was named in the documents.... Seven weeks later, new revelations bolster the mercurial billionaire’s claims. And even if Musk’s goal was merely to stoke the controversy without necessarily settling it, his mission has been accomplished — and then some.” More on the Revenge of the Creepy Nerd linked below.

Jamelle Bouie of the New York Times: “More than most recent vice presidents, JD Vance seems to be locked out of the room where it happens.... His online presence speaks to the main role he does seem to have in the White House: something akin to the president’s official fanboy. And in addition to acting as cheer captain for his boss, Vance works to give the administration a veneer of intellectualism to cover its cruelty, corruption and incompetence — a spokesman for the president’s brand of national populism.... Trump and Vance envision a world of tiered citizenship, each in his own way, where entry depends on heritage and status rests on obedience. The best traditions of our country make this difficult. And so they have found refuge in our worst.” The link is a gift link. (Also linked yesterday.) 

     ~~~ Marie: In his column, Bouie writes a graf that sort of explains the reason I put an asterisk after “president” when I refer to Donald Trump (I think this practice was originally Charles Pierce's idea). Here's Bouie: “As Trump himself will tell you, he tends not to know what his deputies are doing with their time. He professes to be ignorant of the actions of his government. Asked, for example, if his administration was planning to send migrants to Libya, he replied, 'I don’t know. You’ll have to ask the Department of Homeland Security.' He saves his attention and enthusiasm for the pomp and circumstance of the presidency. He’s eager to host other heads of state and government, to attend celebrations and to speak to crowds of supporters. He also spends a lot of his time at his clubs and resorts, golfing, gossiping and glad-handing with passers-by and hangers-on.”

Whistleblower Aid: “A Whistleblower Aid client and a former Department of Justice (DOJ) attorney has lawfully disclosed evidence to the DOJ’s Office of the Inspector General that corroborates the thrust of the whistleblower claims regarding Emil Bove and other senior DOJ officials actively and deliberately undermining the rule of law. Our client, whose identity we are protecting, has provided substantive, internal DOJ documents to the Inspector General, supporting former senior DOJ attorney-turned whistleblower Erez Reuveni’s allegations. Reuveni’s whistleblower complaint exposes 'high-level governmental personnel [at the DOJ who] knowingly and willfully defied court orders, directed their subordinate attorneys to make misrepresentations to courts, and engaged in a scheme to withhold relevant information from the court to advance the Administration’s priority of deporting noncitizens.” Here's a Huffington Post item. (You may have to scroll down for the HuffPost item.) (Also linked yesterday.) 

Sophia Tareen of the AP: “Federal immigration judges fired by the Trump administration are filing appeals, pursuing legal action and speaking out in an unusually public campaign to fight back. More than 50 immigration judges — from senior leaders to new appointees — have been fired since Donald Trump assumed the presidency for the second time. Normally bound by courtroom decorum, many are now unrestrained in describing terminations they consider unlawful and why they believe they were targeted. Their suspected reasons include gender discrimination, decisions on immigration cases played up by the Trump administration and a courthouse tour with the Senate’s No. 2 Democrat[, Sen. Dick Durbin (Illinois)].... The firings are on top of resignations, early retirements and transfers, adding up to 106 judges gone since January, according to the International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, which represents judges. There are currently about 600 immigration judges.”

Greg Jaffe, et al., of the New York Times: “Suspicions about leaks and a mistrust of senior military officers have defined much of [Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s] first six months on the job.... [A] standoff over [the] promotion [of Army Lt. Gen. Douglas Sims] reflects an ongoing clash between Mr. Hegseth’s highly partisan worldview, in which he has written that the Democratic Party 'really does hate America,' and the longstanding tradition of an apolitical military that pledges an oath to the Constitution. Mr. Hegseth’s actions could shape the military’s top ranks for years to come. His insistence on absolute loyalty, backed with repeated threats of polygraphs, also creates uncertainty and mistrust that threaten to undermine the readiness and effectiveness of the force, officials said.” The article goes on to reprise incidents that demonstrate what a catastrophe Hegseth is. This is a gift link.

Dan Lamothe & Ellen Nakashima of the Washington Post: “Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s use of polygraph tests to search for people leaking information to the news media was stopped at the direction of the White House after a senior adviser to Hegseth raised alarm to senior officials there about being targeted.... The adviser, Patrick Weaver, complained to White House officials this spring with concerns that he could soon be directed by Hegseth or another member of his team to submit to a polygraph test.... The possibility angered Weaver, an immigration hawk seen within the administration as a loyal foot soldier to ... Donald Trump and associate of White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller.... The White House intervention, which has not previously been reported, came in the form of a phone call by an individual close to the administration after Hegseth’s team had begun administering polygraph tests to people around the defense secretary in April, according to people familiar with the matter, who declined to identify the individual.”

Here's a Daily Mail story that sounds just like a Daily Mail story, but it's Bobby Junior, so it's true: ~~~

     ~~~ Sea Vampire Gives RFKJ a Hickey. Chris Melore, et al., of the Daily Mail: “On a tour of the Nez Perce salmon hatchery in Idaho on Thursday, RFK Jr let a parasitic sea vampire, also known as a lamprey, bite his arm until the creature left a 'hickey' behind. The head of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) posted about the blood-letting adventure on X, writing 'Lampreys hickeys at the Nez Perce salmon hatchery' while showing off pictures of the experience.”

Jacob Wendler of Politico: “Elon Musk is promising to shake up the midterms with his own political party.... Musk’s yet-unfulfilled plans to form an 'America Party' could threaten Republicans already fighting to defend their seats by razor-thin margins in next year’s midterms elections, Democrats argued, by siphoning off more disgruntled conservatives from Republicans than disaffected liberals from the Democrats.... New polling this week from Marquette University Law School found that 40 percent of Republicans say they would be somewhat or very likely to support an America Party candidate in their state or congressional district, as opposed to just one in four Democrats.”

Marie: I keep hearing or reading stories about Trump's plummeting poll number. But also too, there is this: ~~~

     ~~~ Miriam Waldvogel of the Hill: “The Democratic Party is viewed negatively by 63 percent of American voters — the lowest approval rating of the party in more than 30 years of The Wall Street Journal’s surveys — according to a new poll from the newspaper. The survey found that while voters disapproved of ... [Donald] Trump’s handling of a variety of issues, they generally said they trusted Republicans more than Democrats to take care of those issues in Congress.” (Also linked yesterday.) 

David Marchese of the New York Times interviews Robert Reich. MB: I don't often read interview transcripts, but I'm a fan of Reich's, so I went for it. That was definitely not a mistake. I share his views, including his feelings about boomers. And the story of "Mickey" is stunning. If you can't access the transcript, here's the real thing: (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

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Minnesota. Jeff Day & Ryan Faircloth of the Minnesota Star Tribune: "From the first 911 call, moments after Minnesota state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, were shot at their home in the early morning of June 14, police knew a masked gunman was impersonating an officer, had targeted a politician and was on the move. Yet it would take 10 hours for law enforcement to systematically alert lawmakers to the exact nature of the danger they faced. Communication across a patchwork of agencies was also spotty, leaving some officials unaware of the threat for hours and raising questions about whether the suspect, Vance Boelter, could have been caught earlier. In at least one instance, police didn’t follow their own procedures when they responded to attacks on the homes of lawmakers. The shootings killed Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, and wounded the Hoffmans." ~~~

     ~~~ The rest of the article is firewalled, by Scott Lemieux publishes some details from it. As Lemieux writes, those particulars are not good. After they heard gunshots inside the Hortmans' house, Brooklyn Park cops waited for an hour outside the house before they entered. MB: As long as police departments give priority to low-IQ job applicants, these kinds of remarkable errors in judgment will remain SOP.  

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Israel/Palestine, et al. Samy Magdy & Mariam Dagga of the AP: “A mother pressed a final kiss to what remained of her 5-month-old daughter and wept. Esraa Abu Halib’s baby now weighed less than when she was born. On a sunny street in shattered Gaza, the bundle containing Zainab Abu Halib represented the latest death from starvation after 21 months of war and Israeli restrictions on aid. The baby was brought to the pediatric department of Nasser Hospital on Friday. She was already dead.” MB: I'll bet Bibi had his lunch today. ~~~

~~~ Patrick Kingsley of the New York Times: “Following days of global outrage at Israel’s restrictions on aid to Gaza, the Israeli military announced on Saturday night that it would revive the practice of dropping aid from airplanes, and make it easier for aid convoys to move through Gaza by land. The announcement came amid a crisis of severe hunger in Gaza, where the number of wartime deaths caused by starvation has nearly doubled in the past month, to 127. Hunger has spiraled since Israel blocked all food deliveries between March and May. It then put in place a new and contentious aid system that required many civilians to walk for miles, through Israeli military lines, to reach a handful of food distribution points run by private contractors.”

Ukraine/E.U. Andrew Kramer of the New York Times: “The European Union said on Friday that it would withhold 1.5 billion euros, or $1.7 billion [in aid to Ukraine], from an overall fund of 4.5 billion euros whose disbursement is dependent on achieving good governance standards and that can’t be used for military purchases. The decision is not final, however, and the funding can be restored if Ukraine meets certain benchmarks. Mr. Zelensky had no public comment on the aid cut, which nevertheless was a setback for Ukraine’s leader, who is depending on European financial support to fill gaps left by the Trump administration’s refusal to underwrite Ukraine’s war effort.... The E.U.’s decision capped a tumultuous week for Mr. Zelensky, who first pushed a measure through Parliament that stripped the independence of two anticorruption agencies, raising protests from foreign leaders as well as the Ukrainian people.”