Marie Burns: December 2025

December 3, 2025

Tennessee Congressional Race. Shane Goldmacher & Emily Cochrane of the New York Times: “Matt Van Epps, a Republican former state official and Army veteran, won a special election for the House on Tuesday in Tennessee, holding off a surprisingly stiff Democratic challenge in an overwhelmingly Republican district that drew a flood of national attention and money. Mr. Van Epps’s victory over Aftyn Behn, a Democratic state representative from Nashville, was called by The Associated Press. With 95 percent of votes counted on Tuesday night, he was leading by nearly nine percentage points.... But the relatively tight margin in such a deep-red district nonetheless represents a warning shot about the [Republican] party’s vulnerabilities heading into the 2026 midterm elections. Mr. Trump carried the seat by 22 percentage points a little over a year ago. The Seventh Congressional District, which stretches from Kentucky to Alabama and includes part of downtown Nashville, had been drawn by G.O.P. state lawmakers specifically to elect a Republican.”

I didn’t know about the second strike. I didn’t know anything about the people. I wasn’t involved, and I knew they took out a boat, but I would say this, they had a strike. -- Donald Trump, Cabinet meeting, Tuesday ~~~

~~~ The Buck Stops ... Someplace Else. Adam Cancryn of CNN: “... Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Tuesday sought to distance themselves from the decision to launch a follow-up strike on a suspected drug boat in the Caribbean, insisting they weren’t aware of what the military had done after the first strike didn’t kill everyone on board.... Trump added that he was relying on Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to keep him apprised of the situation, and that Hegseth was 'satisfied' with the September attack.... The defense secretary did not learn about the second strike, he added, until hours later.... Hegseth — who initially derided the reports of a follow-up strike as 'fake' before the administration officially acknowledged that it occurred — lashed out again Tuesday at reporting of the decision-making, calling scrutiny of the second strike 'really irresponsible.'... Sen. Jack Reed, the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee told CNN’s Dana Bash, 'I’m very suspicious that they’ve never shared that tape with us and that they are consciously trying to cover up what took place.'” ~~~

~~~ Marie: This entire murder-for-oil campaign is an outrageous disaster; the cowardice of these two clowns is classic. So Trump blames Pete, and Pete blames the operation commander ~~~

I watched that first strike live. I didn’t stick around for the hour and two hours, whatever, where all the sensitive site exploitation digitally occurs, so I moved on to my next meeting. -- Pete Hegseth, Cabinet meeting, Tuesday

~~~ Exit, Tap-Dancing, Stage Right. Helene Cooper of the New York Times: “Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Tuesday that he had not noticed survivors in the water during U.S. military strikes that killed 11 people in the Caribbean in September. His remarks, at a cabinet meeting at the White House in which he cited the 'fog of war,' were the latest from Trump administration officials meant to address questions about whether the U.S. military committed a war crime when it launched a second strike on a boat on Sept. 2, killing two survivors of the initial attack who were clinging to the burning wreckage. Mr. Hegseth had said that he watched the operation live on video before he 'moved on' to his next meeting. But following news reports about the second U.S. strike, Mr. Hegseth said he 'didn’t stick around' to see it. The defense secretary said Adm. Frank M. Bradley, the commander of the operation, 'made the right call,' in ordering the second strike. 'He sunk the boat, sunk the boat and eliminated the threat, and it was the right call.'...” (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ Marie: This is of course the same Pete Hegseth who went on the Fox “News” teevee September 3 to boast, “I watched it live.” However, since he claimed Tuesday that he knew about the second strike “hours” after it occurred, he knew about it when he appeared on Fox. But now that he's been caught orchestrating a classic war crime, Pete says he had hurried away to another meeting and just plain missed Part 2 of the “double tap.” As Akhilleus wrote in Tuesday's Comments, “He preaches tough guy ethos, but when it comes to standing up for what he truly believes in (war crimes, illegal murder, lethality) he runs and hides.”

Zolan Kanno-Youngs & Shawn McCreesh of the New York Times: Donald “Trump unleashed a xenophobic tirade against Somali immigrants on Tuesday, calling them 'garbage' he does not want in the United States in an outburst that captured the raw nativism that has animated his approach to immigration. Even for Mr. Trump — who has a long history of insulting Black people, particularly those from African countries — his outburst was shocking in its unapologetic bigotry. And it comes as he started a new ICE operation targeting Somalis in the Minneapolis-St. Paul region.... 'When they come from hell and they complain and do nothing but bitch, we don’t want them in our country. Let them go back to where they came from and fix it,' Mr. Trump added as Vice President JD Vance banged the table in encouragement. He said Somalia 'stinks and we don’t want them in our country.' He described Representative Ilhan Omar, Democrat of Minnesota, who came to the United States from Somalia as a refugee and became a citizen 25 years ago, as 'garbage.' 'We could go one way or the other, and we’re going to go the wrong way if we keep taking in garbage into our country,' Mr. Trump said. 'She’s garbage. Her friends are garbage. These aren’t people who work. These aren’t people who say, “Let’s go, come on, let’s make this place great.”’” ~~~

~~~ Marie: Maybe the best NYT lede ever in a story about Donald Trump. ~~~

~~~ When he wasn't making racist remarks or deflecting responsibility for war crimes, Trump was dozing: ~~~

~~~ Natalie Allison, et al., of the Washington Post: “... Donald Trump closed his eyes for extended periods as Cabinet officials went around the room Tuesday providing updates on their work, at times seeming to nod off.... A Washington Post analysis of multiple video feeds of the meeting Tuesday showed that during nine separate instances, Trump’s eyes were closed for extended periods or he appeared to struggle to keep them open, amounting cumulatively to nearly six minutes. The episode was similar to an Oval Office event on Nov. 6 when the president spent nearly 20 minutes battling to keep his eyes open. Trump’s apparent drowsiness during the 2-hour, 17-minute gathering with his Cabinet followed pronouncements in recent days by the 79-year-old president, his advisers and his doctor that he is in excellent health and full of stamina — an assertion the president repeated early in Tuesday’s meeting. 'Right now, I think I’m sharper than I was 25 years ago,' Trump said, criticizing a recent New York Times article that said the president was facing the realities of aging. He later resurrected a frequent insult, 'Sleepy Joe,' to mock former president Joe Biden, the first octogenarian to serve as president....”

Annals of “Journalism,” Ctd. Erik Wemple of the New York Times (another refugee from the WashPo): The Pentagon is conducting a sort of orientation program for its new “journalists.” “Most of them are media figures newly credentialed to work as journalists within the sprawling complex, agreeing to strict new rules that nearly all traditional correspondents have refused to sign. The result has been a press corps full of people who are outspoken cheerleaders for the administration.... They include Laura Loomer, the influential pro-Trump activist; LindellTV, an upstart digital news site known for promoting election conspiracy theories; and Gateway Pundit, a site that has also often spread conspiracy theories.... The journalists who refused to sign onto the new rules work at news organizations such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, Fox News, national TV networks and wire services. They, as well as many media lawyers, have argued that the new rules conflict with the First Amendment.” Oh, and James O'Keefe & Matt Gaetz. Really. ~~~

~~~ AND, speaking of Drunk Pete's major screw-ups: ~~~

~~~ Noah Robertson & Dan Lamothe of the Washington Post: “The Pentagon’s inspector general is set to release in the coming days a redacted report scrutinizing Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s use of the commercial messaging app Signal to share sensitive U.S. military plans, according to four congressional aides familiar with the matter. The full, classified document has been shared already with the House and Senate Armed Services committees, as well as Hegseth’s office.... The incident became a major political crisis for the administration after Trump’s national security adviser at the time, Mike Waltz, inadvertently added the editor of the Atlantic magazine, Jeffrey Goldberg, to a Signal group chat as he and Hegseth, and other senior officials deliberated bombing Houthi militants in Yemen. Waltz was eventually removed from his White House post. He now serves as U.N. ambassador.”

Minho Kim of the New York Times: “The Trump administration last week told lawmakers that it would further shrink the broadcasting capacity of Voice of America despite a judge’s order to maintain robust news operations at the federally funded news group, which provides independent reporting to countries with limited press freedoms. Kari Lake, a Trump ally who leads the broadcaster’s parent agency, wrote in a Nov. 25 notice to Congress reviewed by The New York Times that the administration intended to close its six overseas news bureaus and four overseas marketing offices, including in Jakarta, Indonesia; Islamabad, Pakistan; Nairobi, Kenya; and Prague, Czech Republic.... The expected closures appear to contradict [Judge Royce C. Lamberth’s] order from April, which required Trump officials to resume operations at V.O.A. so that it would 'fulfill its statutory mandate' to serve 'as a consistently reliable and authoritative source of news.'”

Paul Sonne & Valerie Hopkins of the New York Times: “President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia held talks for nearly five hours late Tuesday with Steve Witkoff..., [Donald] Trump’s special envoy, and Jared Kushner, the president’s son-in-law, negotiating with the two U.S. emissaries as Washington pushed for an end to Russia’s war against Ukraine. The negotiators discussed the substance of U.S. peace proposals but did not delve into the wording of any provisions, reach any specific compromises or agree to a new summit between Mr. Putin and Mr. Trump, the Kremlin’s top foreign policy aide, Yuri Ushakov, told journalists after the marathon talks concluded.” (Also linked yesterday.)

Christopher Sherman & Mike Catalini of the AP: “Former Honduras President Juan Orlando Hernández, sentenced last year to 45 years in prison for his role in a drug trafficking operation that moved hundreds of tons of cocaine to the United States, was released from prison following a pardon from ... Donald Trump, officials confirmed Tuesday. The U.S. Bureau of Prisons inmate website showed that Hernández was released from U.S. Penitentiary, Hazelton in West Virginia on Monday, and a spokesperson for the bureau on Tuesday confirmed his release.” (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

I have never seen such open corruption in any modern government anywhere. -- Steven Levitsky, author of How Democracies Die ~~~

If you’re just an average citizen, you can’t even get in the line. I told my guy he’d probably be better off if he broke into the Capitol or made a major donation to Trump’s inauguration. -- Lawyer for an ordinary ex-con who meets DOJ criteria for a pardon but won't get one ~~~

~~~ Don Moynihan: Juan Orlando Hernández, the former President of Honduras, was tried and convicted of exactly the accusations that Trump is using to drum up a pretext for war against Venezuela. Hernández was convicted of receiving millions from violent drug gangs for facilitating the flow of 400 tonnes of cocaine into America, while corrupting state institutions.... Trump is also invading Democratic cities with military or paramilitary forces. His justifications for their presence is to improve public safety and enable his immigration sweeps.... But if Trump was interested in law and order, why does he keep pardoning criminals?... [Moynihan lays out a number of ways Trump has abused the pardon power.] He is pardoning politicians who have been convicted of corruption, even as he is using the justice system to target political opponents.... One analysis by Democratic House Judiciary staffers found that Trump’s pardons eliminated $1.3 billion in restitution and fines.... Trump is using pardons in the same way he has used other parts of the government, such as peace deals or tariffs: not as a demonstration of reasoned mercy, but as an opportunity to extract benefits for himself, his family or supporters.” Thanks to RAS for the link. (Also linked yesterday.)

Alabama. Chris Hippensteel of the New York Times: “The University of Alabama on Monday suspended two student magazines — one appealing to women, another to Black students — saying they ran afoul of guidance from the Justice Department on diversity, equity and inclusion programs. University officials told staff members at the publications — a women’s lifestyle magazine called Alice and Nineteen Fifty-Six, which encompasses Black culture and student life — that because of shifting federal policy on D.E.I. programs, the university could no longer support them. One official attributed the decision in part to a July memo from Attorney General Pam Bondi, in which she included recommendations on how institutions receiving federal funding could avoid what the Trump administration deemed unlawful D.E.I. practices.”

Nicholas Kulish of the New York Times: “Michael and Susan Dell announced on Tuesday that they would deposit $250 in individual investment accounts for 25 million children, an amount totaling $6.25 billion. It is one of the largest philanthropic gifts ever to go directly to Americans. The money expands the number of children who will receive seed money for the investment accounts, known as 'Trump accounts.' The federal government will give $1,000 to babies born between Jan. 1, 2025, and Dec. 31, 2028. The Dells’ gift extends to children up to 10 years old, though it limits eligibility to those who live in a ZIP code where the median household income is below $150,000.” The AP report is here. MB: Whatever these savings accounts are, they are not “Trump accounts.” (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ Ken W., in yesterday's Comments: "Nice of Mr. and Mrs. Dell, I guess, and I'll praise them for their generosity (the immense tax breaks they will receive aside). But to me, it's another glaring sign that the economy is badly out of whack. Why would one person have that much money to give to so many that have so little? " MB: That is, for better or for worse, the entity that should be deciding how to distribute that $6.2 billion is called "Congress." Mr. & Mrs. Dell should have deposited all of their billions (except the first one) into the U.S. Treasury in the form of assessed taxes. ~~~

~~~ And Here's the Proof of That. Theodore Schleifer & David Fahrenthold of the New York Times: “Elon Musk’s charitable foundation grew larger than ever in 2024. But, for the fourth year in a row, the huge charity failed to give away the minimum amount required by law — and the donations it did make went largely to charities closely tied to Mr. Musk himself.... The foundation is now one of the largest in the country, with more than $14 billion in assets. But unlike some other billionaires who have dedicated their nonprofits to broader social or political causes, Mr. Musk in recent years used his nonprofit in ways that narrowly track the interests of his for-profit businesses.... The Musk Foundation gave away $474 million in 2024, more than it has in any prior year. But more than three-quarters of that, $370 million, went to a nonprofit in Texas led by Mr. Musk’s top aide. That nonprofit appears to provide a benefit to Mr. Musk’s business empire: It operates an elementary school in a rural area where many of his employees live, near a cluster of Mr. Musk’s companies.”

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December 2, 2025

Exit, Tap-Dancing, Stage Right. Helene Cooper of the New York Times: “Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Tuesday that he had not noticed survivors in the water during U.S. military strikes that killed 11 people in the Caribbean in September. His remarks, at a cabinet meeting at the White House in which he cited the “fog of war,” were the latest from Trump administration officials meant to address questions about whether the U.S. military committed a war crime when it launched a second strike on a boat on Sept. 2, killing two survivors of the initial attack who were clinging to the burning wreckage. Mr. Hegseth had said that he watched the operation live on video before he 'moved on' to his next meeting. But following news reports about the second U.S. strike, Mr. Hegseth said he 'didn’t stick around' to see it. The defense secretary said Adm. Frank M. Bradley, the commander of the operation, 'made the right call,' in ordering the second strike. 'He sunk the boat, sunk the boat and eliminated the threat, and it was the right call.'...” ~~~

~~~ Marie: This is of course the same Pete Hegseth who went on the Fox “News” teevee in September to boast, “I watched it live.” Now, suddenly, we hear Pete had hurried away to another meeting and just plain missed the most egregious and most obvious war crime committed that day. As Akhilleus wrote in Tuesday's Comments, “He preaches tough guy ethos, but when it comes to standing up for what he truly believes in (war crimes, illegal murder, lethality) he runs and hides.”

I have never seen such open corruption in any modern government anywhere. -- Steven Levitsky, author of How Democracies Die ~~~

~~~~~~~~~~

Patti Daniels posts these two photos on Bluesky. She says both photos were taken this weekend:

~~~ RAS: "Which one of these men are we supposed to be worried doesn't/didn't know what he has been signing and orders given under his authority?" ~~~

~~~ Marie: Some helpers dressed up this old guy in a ridiculous red hat and white golf shirt and pushed him out into the lunchroom. They put a sign in front of him with his name on it. Maybe the sign has has name on the back, too, to help him remember who he is. When he's conscious. Which he is not. He cannot make it through a meal, even one being served in the middle of the day. This is what you see in a nursing home. Not an assisted living home, where most of the residents are elderly but chipper. A nursing home, where people cannot take care of themselves.

Gina Kolata of the New York Times: “The White House released a letter from ... [Donald] Trump’s physician on Monday about the results of 'advanced imaging tests.' The statement, by Dr. Sean P. Barbabella, said the tests on his cardiovascular system and abdominal region showed the president 'remains in excellent overall health.' Some medical experts said it was unclear what tests doctors conducted, why they were done or what the results mean. And, they said, a person without symptoms would not have imaging tests as part of a routine medical exam under ordinary medical circumstances. Mr. Trump, the oldest president ever sworn into his office, had M.R.I. scans in October as part of a semiannual physical exam.”

Is This What a POTUS* Should Be Doing? David Gilmour of Mediaite: “... Donald Trump unleashed a frenetic, late-night posting binge on Monday, flooding Truth Social with more than 160 posts in less than five hours, in a wild spectacle that saw him teeing off on political opponents and policies. From 7 p.m. to nearly midnight (ET), the president reposted an endless stream of clips, some of which were duplicated in what appeared to be an automatic loop, amplifying MAGA-friendly pundits and conspiracy theories. The torrent swung between nostalgia – including a ‘Make Christmas Great Again’ video featuring Trump’s cameo in Home Alone 2 – and a parade of attacks on his usual Democratic targets, from California Governor Gavin Newsom and Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) to Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) and former President Barack Obama.”

The Amazing Biden Set-up
Biden's Aides Did It While Trump Was President* and Before Biden Became President

... I was asked by Honduras, many of the people of Honduras, they said it was a Biden setup... I don’t mean Biden – look, Biden didn’t know he was alive, but it was the people that surround the Resolute Desk, surround Biden when he was there, which was about very little time, and the people of Honduras really thought he was set up and it was a terrible thing. He was the president of the country and they basically said he was a drug dealer because he was the president of the country, and they said it was a Biden administration setup, and I looked at the facts and I agree with them. -- Donald Trump, on why he plans to pardon former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez, a major facilitator of an international drug-trafficking ring ~~~

... much of the investigation occurred during Mr. Trump’s first term, and one of the lead investigators in the case was Emil Bove III, then a prosecutor for the Southern District of New York and later one of Mr. Trump’s personal lawyers. -- Tyler Pager, in a New York Times report

Juan Orlando's brother "Tony Hernández was arrested in late 2018, and during his trial exposed evidence linking [Juan Orlando] to illicit activities.... [In August 2019,] US prosecutors identified the sitting president in court documents that said he had taken part in a conspiracy in which drug proceeds went to support his election campaign.... The trial against Tony [which began in October 2019], along with prosecutions of other drug traffickers, exposed allegations that Juan Orlando had taken millions in drug money to help fund his political campaigns in return for assisting drug traffickers while in office. -- Sam Woolston, Parker Asmaan & Mike LaSusa of Insight Crime ~~~

Anyone know who was president in 2018 supposedly making up evidence on Juan? DJT, correct. -- RAS, in Monday's Comments ~~~

Charlie Savage, et al., of the New York Times: “The Trump administration on Monday defended the legality of a Sept. 2 attack on a boat in the Caribbean Sea as calls grew in Congress to examine whether a follow-up missile strike that killed survivors amounted to a crime.... At the White House on Monday, Karoline Leavitt, the press secretary, read a statement that said [Defense Secretary Pete] Hegseth had authorized the Special Operations commander overseeing the attack, Adm. Frank M. Bradley, 'to conduct these kinetic strikes.' She said that Admiral Bradley had 'worked well within his authority and the law directing the engagement to ensure the boat was destroyed and the threat to the United States of America was eliminated.'

“According to five U.S. officials, who spoke separately and on the condition of anonymity..., Mr. Hegseth, ahead of the Sept. 2 attack, ordered a strike that would kill the people on the boat and destroy the vessel and its purported cargo of drugs.... As that operation unfolded, they said, Mr. Hegseth did not give any further orders to [Adm. Bradley].... Speaking to reporters on Sunday night, Mr. Trump said that Mr. Hegseth had denied ordering a second strike to kill two people who were wounded but still alive after the first one, saying, 'Pete said he did not order the death of those two men.'... In [a] social media statement, on Monday, Mr. Hegseth said he stood by Admiral Bradley and what he called the admiral’s 'combat decisions' in the strike.” An AP story is here. ~~~

~~~ Paul McCleary of Politico: “The White House on Monday confirmed a second strike in September had killed wounded civilians after the first effort failed, and put responsibility largely on the naval commander leading the mission.” MB: Another confirmation that Nicolle Wallace played tape yesterday of Drunk Pete appearing on Fox “News” & saying of the September 2 strike, “I watched it live.”

~~~ Marie: For what it's worth, Retired Coast Guard Admiral William Baumgartner, in an appearance on MS NOW yesterday, said that it was highly unlikely that the boat struck on September 2 was on a drug-trafficking run. Traffickers don't fill a little open boat like that, he said, with eleven people. They fill it with drugs. So the whole premise of the strikes -- that U.S. forces were taking out tons of dangerous drugs bound to kill unsuspecting American addicts -- was far-fetched. Moreover, if your real purpose is to curtail the drug trade, you want to keep traffickers alive and capture them, so you can coerce them into ratting out leaders and others in the drug gang. ~~~

~~~ David Sanger & Helene Cooper of the New York Times: “Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has been a political problem for ... [Donald] Trump since his confirmation in the Senate early this year, which he survived thanks to a single, tiebreaking vote cast by Vice President JD Vance. He survived the leaked Signal chat episode, even when it became clear he had copied classified battle plans and pasted them into an encrypted, but unclassified, messaging chain. He blamed the press, began kicking news organizations out of the Pentagon press room and insisted they sign a pledge never to seek news not approved by his public affairs office. Almost no one signed, not even his previous employer Fox News. Now, the political price of Mr. Hegseth’s tenure at the Pentagon has increased. As investigations mount into the legality of strikes that have killed scores of people in the waters off Venezuela, his take-no-prisoners, leave-no-survivors approach has led even Republican supporters to demand answers. So far, few have been forthcoming. With claims flying that Mr. Hegseth’s orders might have led to the commission of war crimes — if not by the secretary, then by senior commanders following his general orders — Mr. Trump sounded over the weekend like he was putting some distance between himself and his defense secretary....”

“Even as Mr. Trump was answering questions aboard Air Force One about whether his defense secretary had stepped over the legal lines with the Venezuela killings, the same defense secretary was on social media cracking jokes about the affair. Mr. Hegseth posted a meme on Sunday depicting Franklin, the turtle from a children’s book series, firing a weapon at a vessel laden with cargo from a helicopter. 'For your Christmas wish list,' Mr. Hegseth wrote on social media. The joke fell flat, eliciting a storm of criticism, including from conservative social media users.” MB: Notice how Trump surrounds himself with people who are as psychologically warped as he is. ~~~

~~~ Seb Starcevic of Politico: “The publisher of children’s book series “Franklin the Turtle” hit out at 'unauthorized' depictions of its main character after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth posted a mock cover of Franklin shooting at drug traffickers.... 'Franklin the Turtle is a beloved Canadian icon who has inspired generations of children and stands for kindness, empathy, and inclusivity,' the publisher Kids Can Press wrote in a statement on X. 'We strongly condemn any denigrating, violent, or unauthorized use of Franklin’s name or image, which directly contradicts these values,' the publishing house added.... The Franklin books see the young turtle dealing with life’s everyday challenges ... and teach about themes such as courage and empathy.” ~~~

~~~ Noah Robertson & Tara Copp of the Washington Post: “Officials in Congress and the Pentagon said Monday they are increasingly concerned that the Trump administration intends to scapegoat the military officer who directed U.S. forces to kill two survivors of a targeted strike on suspected drug smugglers in Latin America, as lawmakers made initial moves to investigate whether the attack constituted a war crime.... When two survivors were detected, the military commander overseeing the operation, Adm. Frank M. Bradley, directed another strike to comply with [Defense Secretary] Hegseth’s order that no one be left alive, people with direct knowledge of the matter told The Post.... [Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt's] scripted remarks at a news briefing elicited a furious backlash within the Defense Department, where officials described feeling angry at the uncertainty over whether Hegseth would take responsibility for his alleged role in the operation — or leave the military and civilian staff under him to face the consequences....

“Hegseth, writing on social media Monday night, said he stands by the admiral 'and the combat decisions he has made — on the September 2 mission and all others since.' His statement is likely to deepen the sense of furor among military officials who suspect Hegseth is attempting to insulate himself from any legal recourse and leave Bradley ... to account for the fallout alone.”

Worst case scenario is what The Washington Post has reported and what CNN has reported, which is that Secretary Hegseth is the one who told Admiral Bradley that he wanted to ensure that there would be no survivors.... The best case scenario for him is that he gave some instruction to Admiral Bradley, who then interpreted it to mean the very same thing. That would also hold Secretary Hegseth responsible. -- Ryan Goodman, former DOD general counsel, speaking on CNN ~~~

~~~ Michael Luciano of Mediaite: “Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth made clear that he believes Admiral Frank 'Mitch' Bradley is the man responsible for a U.S. attack on the survivors of a boat bombing in the Caribbean.... On Monday night, Hegseth tweeted 'support' of Bradley while also making sure to say that the admiral was responsible for 'combat decisions[.]'... Fox News Chief Political Analyst Brit Hume quote-tweeted Hegseth and wrote, 'How to point the finger at someone while pretending to support him.' Earlier in the day, Hume said on Fox News that the story could be 'a big problem' for the Trump administration.” MB: Why, it's almost as if Brit doesn't care for his former colleague, Drunk Pete.

~~~ Marie: You can feel sorry for Adm. Bradley if you want to, because the White House & Hegseth are scapegoating him. On the other hand, when Dana Bash asked Sen. Mark Kelly, a former Navy captain, whether or not he would have carried out an order to make the second strike, he said without hesitation, "No." In fact, Adm. Baumgartner said that the Defense Department manual cites that specific situation -- enemy survivors at sea -- as an example of people the Navy must not kill but must attempt to rescue. So, IMO, any officer should have known not to order the second strike, not only as a moral matter but also as an element of their formal training and U.S. policy. If it turns out that Bradley did order the second strike -- whether or not Drunk Pete told him to -- he should face the appropriate consequences. ~~~

~~~ Update: Max Boot of the Washington Post: “The Defense Department’s Law of War Manual specifies: 'Orders to fire upon the shipwrecked would be clearly illegal.'”

~~~ Spencer Ackerman: "The wages of [degraded special operations forces over more than a decade] irresponsibility and lack of accountability have compounded to produce a new and appalling reality: Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and the then-leader of the Joint Special Operations Command [-- Adm. Mitch Bradley --] ... directly ordering open murders at sea.... The strikes are a blatant attempt at provoking a war with Venezuela or a coup against Nicolas Maduro, who rules over a country that just so happens to possess the world's largest oil reserves. And then the strikes operate under the invented pretext of combatting narcotrafficking while Trump plans on pardoning a convicted narcotrafficker and former right-wing president of Honduras in order to bolster the campaign of that country's conservative presidential candidate....

"Unless Hegseth and Bradley face criminal penalties for their illegal order, the bottom will drop out of military ethics. There will be no order too blatantly criminal for officers and enlisted personnel in the world's largest and most forward-deployed military to refuse.... Ever since he inserted himself in the Iraq debate to lobby for the 2007 troop surge that began his public career, Hegseth has shown himself to be a grifter, a narcissist, a man of petty resentments, and an abuser of his power. His adulation of violence translated into his successful televised lobbying for clemency for those accused and even convicted of war crimes." Ackerman's Wikipage is here.

~~~ Jennifer Rubin of the Contrarian: "Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who makes up in false bravado what he lacks in judgment and expertise, appears to have committed an inexcusable, unjustified violation of black-letter international and domestic law, according to a stunning Washington Post story released last Friday.... The Trump regime claims the report is false, but the evidence has not been specifically debunked. No explanation has been given as to why the video was edited to omit this part of the attack. Putting aside for the moment the legitimacy of the underlying order to shoot these boats out of the water (which, frankly, is hard to justify based on a false theory and made-up facts), it is impossible to imagine any Pentagon lawyer blessing this action. The concept of hors de combat — literally, out of combat — is a fundamental aspect of the law of war that prevents harming those disabled from combat." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ Also, see Patrick's comment in yesterday's thread about clarifying and modifying the pardon power.

Zolan Kanno-Youngs & Hamed Aleaziz of the New York Times: “During the early days of ... [Donald] Trump’s second term, he suggested there could be exceptions to his crackdown on immigration, specifically for those who had been brought to the United States as children and those who were stuck in limbo after the chaotic U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan under President Joseph R. Biden Jr. His intentions spoke to a common bipartisan belief that those groups should be treated with some degree of leniency. But the past couple of weeks have shown just how far even Mr. Trump has moved to block immigration and to demonize immigrants in his second term, erasing the lines around people who traditionally have been seen as special cases.”

Hamed Aleaziz, et al., of the New York Times: “The sweeping crackdown ... [Donald] Trump declared last week after an Afghan national was accused of shooting two National Guard members is poised to radically curtail immigrants from legally entering and living in the United States, putting up roadblocks unparalleled in recent history. Within a matter of days, the administration rolled out a series of far-reaching policy changes: pausing all asylum decisions for migrants currently in the United States; reviewing the green cards that allow people from 19 countries, mostly from the Middle East or Africa, to live and work permanently in the United States; reassessing the asylum approvals issued during the Biden administration; indefinitely halting immigration applications filed by Afghan nationals; and barring Afghans from entering the country.

“The new rules are poised to potentially upend the status of as many as 1.5 million migrants with pending asylum cases in the country, the more than 50,000 who gained asylum from the Department of Homeland Security under the Biden administration and untold more who had been hoping to seek refuge in the United States. And Mr. Trump has hinted that further action could come as a result of the attack, floating the possibility of denaturalization, or stripping people of citizenship.” ~~~

~~~ Chris Cameron of the New York Times: “Kristi Noem, the secretary of homeland security, said in a statement on social media on Monday that she recommended that ... [Donald] Trump enact 'a full travel ban on every damn country that’s been flooding our nation with killers, leeches, and entitlement junkies.' It was not immediately clear what countries could be targeted by such a ban, or how broad it would be, and Mr. Trump would have the final say. The president reposted Ms. Noem’s statement on his own social media account later Monday night, without offering any comment. Ms. Noem’s statement, which demonized immigrants as 'foreign invaders,' came amid a wider crackdown on legal pathways of immigration after the shooting of two National Guard members in Washington, D.C., by a gunman identified by the authorities as an Afghan national last week. Afghanistan is already on a list of 12 countries, primarily in Africa and the Middle East, that Mr. Trump instituted a travel ban on in June.” ~~~

~~~ Susannah George, et al., of the Washington Post: “The course of [Rahmanullah] Lakanwal’s journey from a trusted U.S. battlefield ally to the suspected shooter of two National Guard members on the streets of downtown D.C. remains unclear, in part. But like many Afghans who had worked for the United States and came to this country after the chaotic August 2021 U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, he appeared to struggle to adapt to his new circumstances and refused to take many of the entry-level jobs available to him as a recent immigrant.... Lakanwal, in addition to his earlier vetting to join the Zero Units, underwent extensive vetting by U.S. counterterrorism authorities, including the CIA and the National Counterterrorism Center, before entering the United States, according to people with direct knowledge of the case.... Lakanwal’s humanitarian parole expired in mid-2024, before his visa status was fully approved, so he applied for political asylum instead late last year and was approved in April 2025, multiple people familiar with the matter said.” ~~~

~~~ Ana Ley of the New York Times: “The Trump administration fired eight immigration judges in New York City on Monday, according to two people with knowledge of the matter. The firings followed an earlier round of job cuts in New York immigration courts and are part of a broader disruption across the country, which is taking place as the president seeks to accelerate deportations.... All the judges were dismissed from the immigration court’s offices at 26 Federal Plaza, a building that houses the New York City headquarters for the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency and has become the epicenter of migrant arrests in the city.... Immigration judges who were fired earlier this year suggested that the administration was targeting judges who were considered too lenient and was also trying to create a feeling of fear.”

Reveling in Racism. Paul Waldman: “The [Republican] party of today, embodied as it is in Donald Trump and the administration he leads, is no longer so worried about being called racist, because it has unashamedly taken white supremacy as its cause.... Here are some recent developments from the president and his administration[. Read on. It's a long list.]... To be fair, this is not all completely new; the anti-anti-racism backlash from the right has been in motion for some time....”

Marie: The great thing about tearing down part of the White House? Not so much space to decorate for Christmas! You remember Melanie's hall of blood-red trees? It's been reduced to asbestos dust. This little "Best Best" cranberry topiary propped on a side table in the Red Room will have to suffice: ~~~

~~~ Rachel Kurzius of the Washington Post: “The Grand Foyer also has a painting that depicts Trump bloodied yet triumphant after the assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, in 2024, with three small holiday bouquets sitting on the table beneath and flanked by a flower-filled light.” So Christmas-y! (Also linked yesterday.) The New York Times has a story here. Both stories include multiple photos of the decorations.

This Was Yesterday. Maxine Joselow of the New York Times: “The Federal Emergency Management Agency on Monday reinstated 14 employees who had been on administrative leave since August, when they wrote a letter to Congress warning that ... [Donald] Trump was gutting disaster response in the United States. The move ended more than three months of uncertainty for the employees, who had been subject to an internal investigation into what the Trump administration deemed their 'misconduct.' In notices sent to the workers last week, copies of which were reviewed by The New York Times, FEMA officials wrote that 'the misconduct investigation has been closed, and as a result you are being removed from administrative leave.' The notices did not disclose the inquiry’s findings.” (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ This Is Today. “Suspended FEMA Workers Who Criticized Trump Administration Got Their Jobs Back — Until DHS Leaders Found Out.” Gabe Cohen of CNN: “In a dramatic about-face, the Trump administration on Monday re-suspended more than a dozen FEMA employees mere hours after CNN broke the news that they’d been reinstated to the agency following a three-month exile and a probe into alleged misconduct.... 'CNN reporting revealed that 14 FEMA employees previously placed on leave for misconduct were wrongly and without authorization reinstated by bureaucrats acting outside of their authority,' a DHS spokesperson said in a statement. 'Once alerted, the unauthorized reinstatement was swiftly corrected by senior leadership. The 14 employees who signed the Katrina declaration have been returned to administrative leave.'... Just last week, the workers received reinstatement notices from FEMA.” MB: Happy Holidays, Folks!

Ivan Nechepurendo of the New York Times: “President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia is set to host Steve Witkoff..., [Donald] Trump’s special envoy, in Moscow on Tuesday, as the United States pushes for an end to the war in Ukraine. Mr. Witkoff is expected to present Mr. Putin with a U.S.-backed peace proposal that was revised by American officials after recent negotiations with Ukrainian diplomats. The initial version of the plan that emerged last month was seen by Ukraine and its European allies as echoing the maximalist demands Russia has made since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Mr. Witkoff’s visit to Moscow, his sixth since January, is to take place two days after American and Ukrainian delegations met in Miami to discuss the details of the potential peace plan, parts of which Ukraine has sought to soften. Both sides called those talks constructive but said more work was needed, without detailing the unresolved issues.”

All the Emperor's Men ... Are Billionaires & Sycophants. Jonathan Lemire of the Atlantic: “Every president, of course, deals with being in a bubble, distanced by the demands on his time and the extraordinary security concerns that come with the office. But in his return to the presidency this year, Trump has seldom ventured across the country to anywhere other than his own clubs. He also inhabits something of a news silo, watching far-right cable channels such as One America News Network and Newsmax along with Fox News. Even his social-media consumption has become narrower: Instead of being on the app formerly known as Twitter, where he’d occasionally encounter contrary views, he now posts solely on Truth Social, which he owns and where he is surrounded by sycophants. And his own White House staff, this time largely populated by true believers and yes-men (and a few yes-women), only adds to the echo chamber.” Thanks to akaWendy for the link. (Also linked yesterday.)

Jonah Bromwich & Tracey Tully of the New York Times: “A federal appeals court said on Monday that Alina Habba had been serving unlawfully as the U.S. attorney in New Jersey, dealing a blow to the Trump administration and most likely setting up a showdown at the Supreme Court. Ms. Habba is one of a number of U.S. attorneys whom the Trump administration has sought to keep in power through a series of unusual maneuvers even though she was neither confirmed by the Senate nor appointed by district trial court judges.... In its ruling, the three-judge panel, based in Philadelphia, affirmed an earlier ruling by a Federal District Court judge. The court said that the government’s tactics had violated the law as written.... It was not immediately clear how the ruling would affect legal proceedings in the New Jersey federal courts or whether Ms. Habba will continue to lead the office in the near future. The courts had already been operating in a kind of limbo, given her uncertain status. Certain types of criminal cases were slowed, and some grand jury proceedings were halted.” The AP's report is here. (Also linked yesterday.)

Andrew Jeong of the Washington Post: “Retail giant Costco, which sells hundreds of imported items..., is suing the Trump administration, seeking a full refund on the duties it has paid as a result of ... Donald Trump’s global tariffs imposed this year. Costco filed a lawsuit at the U.S. Court of International Trade on Friday, saying the administration’s tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) are unlawful. The 1977 law has historically been used to impose sanctions against other nations. It comes as the Supreme Court is considering whether Trump has legal authority to impose tariffs on a vast range of goods from nearly all countries.” An NBC News story is here. ~~~

~~~ Surprise! Peter Eavis of the New York Times: “... this year..., [Donald] Trump closed a loophole that had allowed goods worth $800 or less to enter the United States tariff free. The loophole, known as the de minimis exemption, ended for items from China in May and for the rest of the world in August. Shoppers must now pay duties for the first time, often in amounts far higher than they expected.... The abruptness with which the United States closed the loophole caused major disruptions for sellers of all sizes, as well as for express carriers like FedEx and UPS, postal networks and American shoppers.... Some sellers choose not to pay the tariffs themselves, and ask their customers to do so. That’s why shoppers need to scrutinize the checkout process and look at the fine print on sellers’ websites.... The big surprises occur when sellers don’t collect tariffs from buyers at the time of purchase — and don’t say how much consumers might have to pay later.... Some sellers give clear warnings that duties might have to be paid but don’t state the amount.” ~~~

~~~ Jaclyn Peiser of the Washington Post: “From spreading out payments to dodging impulse purchases, holiday shoppers this year took a more judicious approach to spending over the Black Friday-Cyber Monday sales weekend, recent data shows. Underscoring this trend, 'buy now pay later' services such as Klarna, Affirm, Afterpay and PayPal Pay Later are increasingly popular among consumers of all income levels — whether shoppers are looking for convenience or seeking to spread out their budget, according to David Tinsley ... [of] the Bank of America Institute.... More broadly, the rising cost of groceries, housing and energy — as well as tariff-induced price increases on core gifting categories including apparel, toys and electronics — has forced consumers to be savvier when their dollar isn’t going as far, analysts said....

“While the National Retail Federation forecasts spending in November and December will break a record $1 trillion — an increase of between 3.7 and 4.2 percent over the same period last year — that doesn’t mean people are buying more, rather that things are costing more, analysts say.... Still, there were signs of strength. Online sales on Black Friday reached $11.8 billion, according to Adobe Analytics. That’s a 9.1 percent surge over last year.... But in-store shopping slumped. Visits to malls and downtown areas on Black Friday fell a respective 2.5 percent and 2.6 percent compared to last Black Friday....” Emphasis added.

AP: “Air travelers in the U.S. without a REAL ID will be charged a $45 fee beginning in February, the Transportation Security Administration announced Monday. The updated ID has been required since May, but passengers without it have so far been allowed to clear security with additional screening and a warning. The Department of Homeland Security says 94% of passengers are already compliant and that the new fee is intended to encourage travelers to obtain the ID. REAL ID is a federally compliant state-issued license or identification card that meets enhanced requirements mandated in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.”

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Tennessee Congressional Race. Emily Cochrane of the New York Times: “Speaker Mike Johnson put the president on speakerphone during a Monday stop in [Tennessee], underscoring the unusual amount of national attention on a House special election.... It is the final special election of 2025 and, as Mr. Johnson told reporters, 'we think what will happen here will be a bellwether for the midterms next year.' [Republican Matt] Van Epps is running against State Representative Aftyn Behn, a Nashville Democrat who has energized many in her party despite a political record perceived by some as too liberal for Tennessee.... The district, which cuts through part of Nashville and stretches between the borders with Alabama and Kentucky, was left vacant after Representative Mark Green stepped down for a private sector job this year.... An Emerson College survey last week showed Mr. Van Epps beating Ms. Behn by only two percentage points, an uncomfortable margin in a district carefully drawn to favor a Republican candidate. Mr. Trump won the area by more than 20 points last year.”

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Honduras. CBS/AFP: "A businessman who has ... [Donald] Trump's backing for the presidency of Honduras was locked in a 'technical tie' with a rightwing TV host after a preliminary vote count, the Central American country's electoral body said Monday. Nasry Asfura, 67, led 72-year-old rival Salvador Nasralla by just 515 votes, making it a 'technical tie,' National Electoral Council (CNE) head Ana Paola Hall said on X after a partial digital tally of Sunday's down-to-the-wire ballot. She called for "patience" as the CNE starts a manual count in a vote that left the ruling left-leaning party out in the cold in one of Latin America's most impoverished and violent countries. Days before the vote, former Tegucigalpa mayor Asfura won Mr. Trump's backing — as the U.S. president sought to put his finger on the scale of another Latin American election. In a Monday post on his own Truth Social platform, Mr. Trump accused the Honduran electoral body of 'trying to change the results' of the vote, adding: 'If they do, there will be hell to pay!'" ~~~

~~~ Marie: So the thug who tried to overturn his own U.S. presidential election is now threatening another country's presidential election results. It figures.

December 1, 2025

Patti Daniels posts these two photos on Bluesky. She says both photos were taken this weekend:

~~~ RAS: "Which one of these men are we supposed to be worried doesn't/didn't know what he has been signing and orders given under his authority?" ~~~

~~~ The Amazing Biden Set-up
Biden's Aides Did It While Trump Was President* and Before Biden Became President

Anyone know who was president in 2018 supposedly making up evidence on Juan? DJT, correct. -- RAS, in Monday's Comments ~~~

Maxine Joselow of the New York Times: “The Federal Emergency Management Agency on Monday reinstated 14 employees who had been on administrative leave since August, when they wrote a letter to Congress warning that ... [Donald] Trump was gutting disaster response in the United States. The move ended more than three months of uncertainty for the employees, who had been subject to an internal investigation into what the Trump administration deemed their 'misconduct.' In notices sent to the workers last week, copies of which were reviewed by The New York Times, FEMA officials wrote that 'the misconduct investigation has been closed, and as a result you are being removed from administrative leave.' The notices did not disclose the inquiry’s findings.”

Jennifer Rubin of the Contrarian: "Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who makes up in false bravado what he lacks in judgment and expertise, appears to have committed an inexcusable, unjustified violation of black-letter international and domestic law, according to a stunning Washington Post story released last Friday.... The Trump regime claims the report is false, but the evidence has not been specifically debunked. No explanation has been given as to why the video was edited to omit this part of the attack. Putting aside for the moment the legitimacy of the underlying order to shoot these boats out of the water (which, frankly, is hard to justify based on a false theory and made-up facts), it is impossible to imagine any Pentagon lawyer blessing this action. The concept of hors de combat — literally, out of combat — is a fundamental aspect of the law of war that prevents harming those disabled from combat."

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Marie: I posted some entries after 9 am ET.

Charlie Nash of Mediaite: “During a Q&A with reporters on Air Force One, Trump was asked by a reporter about his decision to pardon Juan Orlando Hernandez, who was sentenced to 45 years in prison for drug trafficking and weapons charges in June last year. 'You have made so clear how you want to keep drugs out of the U.S. Can you explain more about why you would pardon a notorious drug trafficker?' questioned [a] reporter.... Trump replied, 'Well, I don’t know who you’re talking about.' [The reporter specified JOH.]

“'Well I was told – I was asked by Honduras, many of the people of Honduras, they said it was a Biden setup,' responded Trump. 'I don’t mean Biden – look, Biden didn’t know he was alive, but it was the people that surround the Resolute Desk, surround Biden when he was there, which was about very little time, and the people of Honduras really thought he was set up and it was a terrible thing.' Trump continued, 'He was the president of the country and they basically said he was a drug dealer because he was the president of the country, and they said it was a Biden administration setup, and I looked at the facts and I agree with them.' Asked, 'What evidence can you share that he was set up?' the president replied, 'Well, you take a look. I mean, they could say that you take any country you want, if somebody sells drugs in that country, that doesn’t mean you arrest the president and put him in jail for the rest of his life.'” ~~~

~~~ Marie: It is amazing how a gang of unnamed aides hovering around President Biden's desk could get DOJ prosecutors (and presumably a grand jury) to charge Hernandez, then get a jury to convict him, then get a judge to sentence Hernandez to 45 years in prison.

AP: “... Donald Trump said Sunday that he would release the results of his MRI test that he received in October. 'If you want to have it released, I’ll release it, the president said during an exchange with reporters as he traveled back to Washington from Florida. He said the results of the MRI were 'perfect.'... Trump added Sunday that he has 'no idea' on what part of his body he got the MRI. 'It was just an MRI,' he said. 'What part of the body? It wasn’t the brain because I took a cognitive test and I aced it.'” MB: Don't hold your breath. ~~~

~~~ David Gilmour of Mediaite: “But when CBS News senior White House correspondent Weijia Jiang asked what part of his body had been scanned, Trump swerved into attack: 'I have no idea. It was just an MRI. It wasn’t the brain because I took a cognitive test and aced it,' he said before pointing at her: 'I got a perfect mark which you would be incapable of doing.' The president then abruptly ending the exchange: 'Goodbye everybody” – pointing at another female reporter and saying, 'you too!'” MB: I do wonder why the AP report did not disclose the full exchange between Trump and the reporters. The AP report (with no byline) makes Trump sound as if he was magnanimously agreeing to accommodate reporters' demands.. Now we find out, unsurprisingly, that he was his usual rude self. This is why the general public has no idea what a POS Trump is. ~~~

~~~ Charlie Nash of Mediaite: Wherein Trump defends his calling Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) "seriously retarded" even though a reporter informed him that "many Americans do find ['retarded'] an offensive word."

Noah Robertson, et al., of the Washington Post: “In targeting [Sen. Mark] Kelly [D-Az.] and another prominent Democratic critic of the administration, Rep. Eugene Vindman of Virginia, the Defense Department under [Pete] Hegseth has been co-opted into the president’s norm-shattering bid to exploit what are supposed to be the nonpartisan tools of government to crush political foes.... Enlisting the Pentagon in this effort poses a unique threat to American democracy, according to historians, retired military officers and legal experts. Long-standing taboos against using the armed forces to further a president’s political machinations have helped ensure that service members obey their civilian leaders — and prevent this powerful institution from being used to suppress Americans’ constitutional rights. Discarding that standard, experts say, risks setting a harmful precedent.... Like the president, Hegseth has shown little regard for boundaries intended to insulate the military from political interference.” The link is a gift link. ~~~

~~~ Marie: It may be the Bezos Post where democracy goes to die (or something like that), but a few reporters are managing to at least get in some sideways swipes at Trump and the Dancing Trumpettes. Sadly, many top reporters & some columnists of yesteryear understandably have left the building. ~~~

~~~ Michael Gold of the New York Times: “A top Republican and Democrats in Congress suggested on Sunday that American military officials might have committed a war crime in ... [Donald] Trump’s offensive against boats in the Caribbean after a news report said that during one such attack, a follow-up strike was ordered to kill survivors. The remarks came in response to a Washington Post report on Friday that said that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had given a verbal order to kill everyone aboard boats suspected of smuggling drugs, and that this led a military commander to carry out a second strike to kill those who had initially survived an attack in early September. 'Obviously if that occurred, that would be very serious, and I agree that that would be an illegal act,' Representative Mike Turner, Republican of Ohio and a former chairman of the Intelligence Committee, said on 'Face the Nation' on CBS. Senator Tim Kaine, Democrat of Virginia, said on CBS that if the report was accurate, the attack 'rises to the level of a war crime.' And on CNN, when asked if he believed a second strike to kill survivors constituted a war crime, Senator Mark Kelly, Democrat of Arizona, answered, “It seems to.

“Speaking to reporters on Sunday, Mr. Trump expressed confidence in Mr. Hegseth. The president suggested that he 'wouldn’t have wanted' a second strike that killed survivors, before reiterating that he believed Mr. Hegseth had denied that account of the attack. The defense secretary did not directly contradict The Post’s reporting in his Friday statement but called it 'fabricated and inflammatory.'” MB: IOW, Drunk Pete & even Dementia Don know Pete is in trouble. And, to be clear, IMO, this was a war crime and/or murder when the U.S. made the first strike on that boat; the second strike compounds it. ~~~

~~~ Mariana Alfaro, et al., of the Washington Post: “... Donald Trump said Sunday that he has 'great confidence' that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth did not give a spoken order to kill all crew members aboard a vessel suspected of smuggling drugs in the Caribbean Sea in September. Trump said Hegseth told him 'he did not say that, and I believe him, 100 percent.'” ~~~

~~~ Joe DePaolo of Mediaite: “Conservative legal commentator Andy McCarthy torpedoed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s response to the blockbuster report which stated the secretary ordered the killing of everyone on board a suspected drug boat in the Caribbean in September. In a scathing National Review column published late Saturday, McCarthy — who also serves as a Fox News contributor — made clear that he believes the events, as laid out in the Washington Post report, are patently illegal.” MB: The linked National Review column is firewalled, but I was able to read it. If you can't access it, DePaolo summarizes the highlights.

That Was Then. I pledge you, I pledge myself, to a new deal for the American people. Let us all here assembled constitute ourselves prophets of a new order of competence and of courage. This is more than a political campaign; it is a call to arms. Give me your help, not to win votes alone, but to win in this crusade to restore America to its own people. -- Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Democratic presidential nomination acceptance speech, 1932 ~~~

~~~ ⭐This Is Now. Heather Cox Richardson: “The Trump administration is replacing American democracy with a kleptocracy, a system of corruption in which a network of ruling elites use the institutions of government to steal public assets for their own private gain. It permits virtually unlimited theft while the head of state provides cover for his cronies through pardons and the uneven application of the law. It is the system Russia’s president Vladimir Putin exploits in Russia, and ... Donald J. Trump is working to establish it in the United States of America.... On Friday evening, the Wall Street Journal published an article about the Trump administration’s negotiations with Russia over Ukraine.... The administration’s plan for peace was a Russian-led blueprint for joint U.S.-Russia economic cooperation that would funnel contracts for rebuilding Ukraine, extracting the valuable minerals in the Arctic, and even space exploration to a few favored U.S. and Russian businessmen.” Read on. ~~~

~~~ ⭐Guardian Editors: “When Swiss tycoons handed Donald Trump a gold bar and a Rolex watch – gifts that were followed by a cut in US tariffs – it ... was a reminder of how concentrated wealth seems to buy access and bend policy. It may, alarmingly, become the norm if the global 'inequality emergency' continues. That’s the message of the most recent work by the Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz. The economist sees the yawning gap between rich and poor as a human-made crisis which is destroying politics, society and the planet. He’s not wrong. The problem is no longer confined to a few fragile states. It is a global harm, with 90% of the world’s population living under the World Bank’s definition of 'high income inequality'. The US ... is the most unequal country in the G7, followed by the UK.... [Stiglitz's] His blueprint for change is contained within the G20’s first-ever inequality report, endorsed by key European, African and middle-income nations.”

Tim Ross of Politico: “Donald Trump’s drive to secure peace in Ukraine must not let Vladimir Putin off the hook for war crimes committed by Russian forces, a top EU official has warned, effectively setting a new red line for a deal. In an interview with Politico, Michael McGrath, the European commissioner for justice and democracy, said negotiators must ensure the push for a ceasefire does not result in Russia escaping prosecution. His comments reflect concerns widely held in European capitals that the original American blueprint for a deal included the promise of a 'full amnesty for actions committed during the war,' alongside plans to reintegrate Russia into the world economy. The Trump team’s push to rehabilitate the Kremlin chief comes despite international condemnation of Russia for alleged crimes including the abduction of 20,000 Ukrainian children and attacks targeting civilians in Bucha, Mariupol and elsewhere.” ~~~

~~~ Judd Legum of Popular Information: Steve “Witkoff, a billionaire with no previous diplomatic experience, is in charge of mediating an extraordinarily complex international conflict.... While serving in this role, Witkoff has maintained an active financial partnership with Len Blavatnik, a billionaire sanctioned by Ukraine over his ties to Russia. Witkoff and Blavatnik are co-developing a massive residential real estate project in New York City.... Witkoff is also partnered with Blavatnik on ... an ultra-luxury condo development in Miami.... Buried in Witkoff’s 33-page financial disclosure form, quietly posted to the White House website in September, [is the revelation] ... that Witkoff has ongoing financial interests that link him to Russian oligarchs and others hostile to Ukrainian interests.... On November 17, Senators Chris Murphy (D-CT) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) sent a letter to the White House Counsel and the Office of Government ethics noting that 'no agency ethics official signed the form… even though the 60-day deadline for an ethics official to review his form passed in October 2025.' The Senators say the form 'appears to have inaccurate or incomplete information.'”

Ben Rhodes in a New York Times op-ed on how President Biden and many Democrats have erred in embracing Netanyahu and his far-right, punishing authoritarian agenda: “... it is past time for Democrats to stop supporting this Israeli government. By letting go of an outdated approach, Democrats can reclaim their values, foster a bigger and more stable coalition and start building the world they want, rather than defending the indefensible.”

John Bowden of the Independent: “DHS Secretary Kristi Noem blamed the Biden administration on Sunday as the nation reacted to the horrific shooting of two National Guard troops deployed to the streets of Washington D.C. one week ago.... Police identified 29-year-old Rahmanullah Lakanwal, an Afghan national who worked with the CIA in Afghanistan against the Taliban and other forces, as the suspect.... During an appearance this Sunday on ABC’s This Week, Noem echoed her boss’s criticism of the Biden administration’s vetting procedures for Afghans who aided U.S. forces... 'He was brought into the country by the Biden administration through Operation Allies Welcome. And then, maybe vetted after that, but not done well, based on what the guidelines were put forward by President Biden,' Noem said on ABC News. 'Since he's been here, we believe he could have been radicalized in his home community and in his home state.'... NBC’s Kristen Welker ... questioned repeatedly why the Trump administration hadn’t completed the same vetting earlier in 2025, when his asylum application (submitted a year earlier) was accepted by DHS.... 'The vetting process, Kristen, happens when the person comes into the country,' Noem argued.” ~~~

~~~ Marie: Try to make sense of Noem's argument: (1) Biden's people didn't properly vet Lakanwal when he came into the country in 2021. (2) Trump knew that (because Biden bad). (3) Still, Trump's people granted Lakanwal asylum knowing he had not been thoroughly vetted. (4) Then sometime after he got to the U.S. (and after the Biden vetting) people in the U.S. "radicalized" Lakanwal. So how the hell is it Biden's fault for letting Lakanwal into the country when it was Trump's people who (a) granted him asylum while (b) conducting no vetting AND he supposedly (c) didn't become radicalized until after the Biden administration vetted him? Somebody should tell Barbie Kristi that CYA excuses are supposed to seem logical. On the other hand, her hair extensions did look very nice for the teevee interviews.

Rhian Lubin of the Independent: “The FBI is a 'rudderless ship' under director Kash Patel, who was described as being 'in over his head' in a damning assessment by active-duty and retired agents. Days after ... Donald Trump denied reports he was considering ousting Patel from his post as FBI director, a group of 24 experienced agents has shared a scathing report detailing their thoughts on his first six months in office, due to be presented to the House and Senate Judiciary Committees later this week. The report, obtained by the New York Post, comes after Patel has faced the heat for his use of government aircraft for multiple personal trips, assigning a SWAT team to protect his girlfriend, and reported clashes with senior Trump administration officials.”

MEANWHILE, Back at Corruption Junction. Cecilia Kang, et al., of the New York Times: “David Sacks, the Trump administration’s A.I. and crypto czar, has helped formulate policies that aid his Silicon Valley friends and many of his own tech investments.... Among his actions as the White House’s artificial intelligence and crypto czar: Mr. Sacks has offered astonishing White House access to his tech industry compatriots and pushed to eliminate government obstacles facing A.I. companies. That has set up giants like Nvidia to reap an estimate of as much as $200 billion in new sales. Mr. Sacks has recommended A.I. policies that have sometimes run counter to national security recommendations, alarming some of his White House colleagues and raising questions about his priorities. Mr. Sacks has positioned himself to personally benefit.... Mr. Sacks has been allowed to serve in government while working in private industry because he is a 'special government employee,' a title the White House typically confers on experts who temporarily advise the government.”

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Honduras. Annie Correal & Jeff Ernst of the New York Times: “Election authorities in Honduras announced on Sunday night that the conservative former mayor endorsed by ... [Donald] Trump and a sportscaster rival were virtually tied in a presidential election that many predicted would be volatile even before Mr. Trump weighed in on the race. The preliminary and partial results showed that Mr. Trump’s pick, Nasry Asfura, and the sportscaster, Salvador Nasralla, were in the lead, with ballots from just over a third of polling places counted. The candidate for the left-wing party in power, Rixi Moncada, was trailing far behind, the early results showed, with around half the votes cast for each of the right-wing candidates.”

Israel. Isabel Kershner of the New York Times: “Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel asked its president on Sunday to pardon him in his long-running corruption trial, a request that the president called 'extraordinary' and that critics said would run counter to the rule of law. Mr. Netanyahu’s unusual pre-emptive appeal to President Isaac Herzog, while his trial is still underway, came about two weeks after ... [Donald] Trump sent a letter to Mr. Herzog urging him to pardon the Israeli prime minister. A statement by the Israeli president’s office said the request would have 'significant implications,' and that he would 'responsibly and sincerely consider' it after seeking expert opinions.” ~~~

~~~ David Halbfinger of the New York Times: “Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s request on Sunday for a pardon that would short-circuit his long-running corruption trial ... seemed ripped from the playbook of ... [Donald] Trump. Mr. Netanyahu’s petition to the president of Israel, Isaac Herzog, admitted nothing and expressed no contrition. In a one-page letter that he himself signed, he did not use the word 'pardon,' instead stiffly requesting an 'end of the trial.' It came a little over two weeks after [Mr.] Trump sent a letter to Mr. Herzog urging him to pardon Mr. Netanyahu.”