May 9, 2026

Matt Moret & Hugh Kellenberger of the New York Times Athletic: Donald “Trump's plan to turn East Potomac Golf Links in Washington, D.C., into a 'championship-level course' took a step forward Friday after half a dozen private and public entities reached a deal to overhaul the site. In a Friday night statement, the National Park Service said it will partner with National Links Trust, Fazio Design, First Tee of Greater Washington, D.C., Western Golf Association and the Evans Scholars Foundation to begin 'immediate renovations' of East Potomac, as well as Langston Golf Course and Rock Creek Park Golf. It said the group will turn them 'into the country’s premier public golf courses, while keeping them affordable and accessible for all.'... Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum will oversee the project.” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Despite the fact that I have a NYT subscription, I can't normally access Athletic articles that are linked on the Times' online front page. But this article, I could access, after dumping a pitch to subscribe to the Athletic. 

⭐Here. Is. The. Answer. Jamelle Bouie on the Virginia supreme court's decision to throw out the redistricting election. (If you don't have time to listen to all of Bouie's remarks, start at about 8 minutes in. But really.) Marie: Bouie's solution is kind of exciting -- AND he's right: 

     ~~~ Bouie makes the same points in his New York Times column but not with the same step-by-step logical argument he makes in the video.  

AP: “A Frontier Airlines plane hit and killed a pedestrian on the runway of the Denver International Airport during takeoff, airport authorities said, sparking an engine fire and forcing passengers to evacuate. The plane, on route from Denver to Los Angeles International Airport, 'reported striking a pedestrian during takeoff at DEN at approximately 11:19 p.m. on Friday,' the airport’s official X account wrote. A spokesperson for the airport said the pedestrian, who jumped a perimeter fence, has died. They said the unidentified person was hit two minutes after entering the airport. The person is not believed to be an airport employee.” According to the pilot, the individual was “walking across the runway.”

Russia. Paul Sonne of the New York Times: “About 352,000 Russian soldiers had died in the war against Ukraine through the end of 2025, according to a new estimate, underscoring the high cost that President Vladimir V. Putin is willing to bear to pursue his battlefield aims.The figure was released on Saturday — the day of Russia’s annual May 9 parade celebrating victory over Germany in World War II — by the exiled Russian media outlets Meduza and Mediazona. The number raises the prospect that about half a million soldiers in total have died on the Russian and Ukrainian sides.... The war has become Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War II.”

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David Fahrenthold & Luke Broadwater of the New York Times: Donald Trump let a no-bid $6.9 million contract to paint the Reflecting Pool at the Lincoln Memorial “to somebody he said had worked on his swimming pools.... Mr. Trump’s administration invoked an exemption meant for urgent situations ... only [--] to prevent 'serious injury, financial or other, to the government.' Administration officials made no public claim that such injury was likely; rather, officials said, Mr. Trump wanted it changed for the country’s birthday party on July 4.... The renovation plans exemplify how Mr. Trump views much of the nation’s capital as his imperial realm — to decorate, or even destroy, as he sees fit. In doing so, he and his administration have run roughshod over a decades-old review process for changes in Washington’s core, as well as rules intended to ensure government money is spent wisely and without favoritism....

“Government documents ... say the contract has already cost far more than Mr. Trump said it would, and that repairs would be needed again far sooner. They also show that Mr. Trump’s plan does not address one of the pool’s main problems: faulty plumbing in its filtration system. As a result, experts said it was unclear if Mr. Trump’s pool would remain blue — or if it would soon be obscured by a recurring layer of green algae.” (Also linked yesterday.) Update: The link has been changed to one that appears to be a gift link. Thanks to Akhilleus for the link. Do see his commentary below. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I was correct earlier yesterday when I suggested that driving the 22,000-pound Beast across the pool was idiotic. From the NYT report: “Tim Auerhahn, the chairman of the Aquatic Council, a consulting firm for the pool and hot-tub industry..., said he was also concerned by Mr. Trump’s decision to drive his motorcade across the pool’s surface on Thursday night.... That might have put huge amounts of weight on the notoriously leaky — and newly repaired — joints between its concrete slabs.” These people could not be stupider or more destructive.

Christina Jewett & Maggie Haberman of the New York Times: Donald “Trump has signed off on a plan to fire Dr. Marty Makary, commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, after a series of clashes over vaping, oversight of the abortion pill and a series of new drug application denials that rattled biotech companies.... Dr. Makary had a high profile for an F.D.A. commissioner, appearing frequently on television and podcasts to sell the work he was doing at the agency on improving the food supply, speeding up some drug approvals and trying to restore agency morale after thousands of staff members left.... He was an ally of Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s Make American Healthy Again supporters.... Ultimately, Dr. Makary’s efforts were not enough to overcome the grievances of a growing band of enemies focused on selling tobacco, opposing abortion and seeing biotech therapies authorized.... Leaving the White House Friday evening, Mr. Trump dismissed the idea that Dr. Makary would be fired.” Politico's story is here.

The New York Times is liveblogging developments in the Iran war. From the pinned item at 7:00 am ET: “The United States said it had fired on two Iranian-flagged oil tankers on Friday, as Iran’s foreign minister accused Washington of 'a reckless military adventure' and of undermining diplomatic efforts to end the war. U.S. Central Command said it had disabled the two tankers as they tried to reach an Iranian port. The latest strikes came a day after the U.S. military and Iran exchanged fire in the Strait of Hormuz — fighting that the Iranian military said was triggered by an earlier U.S. attack on another Iranian tanker. They also came as Iranian officials have said Washington and Tehran are debating a one-page U.S. proposal for the sides to reopen the strait and cease hostilities for 30 days as they negotiate a comprehensive deal to end the war.” 

Justin Wolfers in a New York Times op-ed: “The Defense Department says the conflict with Iran has cost taxpayers $25 billion so far. But this tally significantly understates the true cost. By my calculations, the bill for a typical American household likely runs to thousands — or even tens of thousands — of dollars.... My math suggests the Iran war will cost hundreds of billions of dollars, and very possibly trillions.... Yes, that’s a wide range; blame the economic fog of war. But what’s clear is that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is trying to obscure just how expensive this war will be.... Russell Vought, the director of the Office of Management and Budget, acknowledged as much when he told the House Budget Committee on April 15, 'I don’t have a ballpark for you.' I do. Since the start of the war, oil markets have been disrupted, and consumer confidence has cratered. The global economy is groaning, and military budgets are growing. The toll from this upheaval must be counted in lives disrupted, jobs lost, companies shut down (see: Spirit Airlines), and the income and output sacrificed. The less easily quantified costs — death, disability and mental health — could become much more dramatic should ... [Donald] Trump send troops into Iran, which still can’t be ruled out.”

The Avengers. Marie: Yesterday, I linked to a Washington Post report (gift link) that said the CIA had determined “that Iran can survive the U.S. naval blockade for at least three to four months before facing more severe economic hardship.” The reporters cited government four sources who were familiar with the CIA's analysis. Heather Cox Richardson writes, “Trump has told reporters that Iran’s economy is 'crashing' and that Iran was down to 18% or 19% of its former missile stocks. The content of the analysis is important, and so is the fact that CIA analysts are sharing it with reporters, suggesting they are disturbed by the administration’s current trajectory.” 

Richardson is right. Despite Trump's ruthless efforts to purge “the deep state,” some bureaucrats who believe their work is important are still willing to leak their departments' findings to reporters. As long as these people can hang on, and as long as media will publish their findings, the truth will out. Maybe some of these bureaucrats are not great patriots bent upon saving their country, but I'm going to guess the majority of them are not mini-Trumps hunched down in retributive mode. I'm going to guess these are mostly people who, at their own peril, are stepping over the slurry of lies and corruption to try to do the right thing.  

Still Murdering People. Adam Sella & Eric Schmitt of the New York Times: “The U.S. military on Friday conducted its third boat strike in five days against a vessel it accused of smuggling drugs, killing two and leaving one survivor at large in the eastern Pacific, U.S. Southern Command said in a social media post.... The strike on Friday, the latest after the military accelerated its pace of attacks in recent weeks, brought the death toll to at least 192. Military experts say that the strikes are illegal, extrajudicial killings. The U.S. Southern Command said in its social media post that it had notified the U.S. Coast Guard to activate a 'Search and Rescue system.' A U.S. official said the Mexican Navy was in charge of the search for the survivor.”

The Case of the Great Seashell Caper, Ctd. Zach Schonfeld of the Hill: “A federal judge on Friday set a July 15 trial date for former FBI Director James Comey on his new criminal charges of threatening ... [Donald] Trump.... The longtime Trump foe faces two criminal charges over allegations that a photo of seashells he shared on social media last May that displayed the message '86 47' amounted to a threat on Trump’s life.” ~~~ 

~~~ Perry Stein of the Washington Post: “More than a half-dozen prosecutors have been demoted or pushed out of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia due to fallout from the Justice Department’s push to prosecute former FBI director James B. Comey, leaving a key prosecutorial office understaffed and weakened. Other prosecutors have voluntarily decamped or scrambled to find new jobs, fearful they could be asked to work on cases that violate their principles.... Major cases, including one involving a terrorist attack in Afghanistan, have been hobbled by the turmoil.” MB: IOW, the DOJ can't prosecute terrorists because of President* Payback della Paranoia's get-Comey campaign. 

Hamed Aleaziz & Madeleine Ngo of the New York Times: “The Trump administration asked federal courts this week to revoke the citizenship of 12 immigrants who committed crimes or took other actions that officials say disqualify them from being Americans, signaling that it planned to make good on a pledge to increase the rate of denaturalizations. The Department of Justice filed the cases in federal courts across the country on Thursday and Friday. The individuals whose citizenship it seeks to revoke in this wave of cases are alleged to have obtained their status through fraud or by lying about past criminal acts, or because they demonstrated allegiance to terror groups after obtaining their citizenship. While the government has revoked citizenship in the past, it has done so sparingly because the process is difficult, and because citizenship is generally revered. The Trump administration, however, has indicated that it will use every power at its disposal to expel immigrants it considers undeserving of their presence in the United States.” The Hill's report is here. The ABC News report is here.

How bad is the Department of Homeland Security? Even a super-winger Trump-appointed, Clarence Thomas-acolyte judge rules against Trump's despotic DHS: ~~~  

Zach Montague of the New York Times: “A federal appeals court on Friday required the Trump administration to continue allowing lawmakers to inspect immigration detention facilities without advance notice, ruling unanimously that the impromptu visits posed minimal problems for the government. The decision by a three-judge panel of the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit preserved, for now, the ability of Democrats in Congress to make unannounced visits to detention centers and check on the conditions inside. It came as the Trump administration is working to dramatically expand the Department of Homeland Security’s detention capacity with converted warehouses and as detention facilities have repeatedly drawn allegations of human rights violations. 

“One of the three judges, Judge Neomi Rao, a Trump appointee, wrote in a 10-page concurring opinion that the government had not shown that it would be substantially harmed by allowing periodic oversight visits from members of Congress, beyond the 'administrative inconvenience.'... [However,] litigation over the issue will continue. Judge Rao, in her concurring opinion, wrote that she believed the lawmakers had overstepped the bounds of traditional congressional oversight and that the Trump administration would ultimately prevail in the case.” ~~~

     ~~~  Marie: Rao contends that 'As a practical matter, the members visit detention facilities as individual lawmakers. [But] ... conducting such investigations for oversight purposes is not a personal prerogative or right; rather, it is an exercise of the institutional power of Congress." Well, yeah, okay, but how do you tell the difference? Unless a member enters a detention facility & the only thing she does while she's there is have one of the detainees fix her hair, how do the jailers tell the difference between a "personal" visit and an "institutional" visit? If a member flashes her Congressional ID and says, "I'm here to check this place out," that should be that. Neither the personnel at the jail nor some distant court can possibly predetermine that the Congressperson is lying about her motives and does not intend to act in her official capacity.

Whereas previous Administrations have failed to be transparent on this subject, with these new Documents and Videos, the people can decide for themselves, ‘WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?’ -- Donald Trump, on his failed social media platform

Here, Trump turns perhaps the only sensible thing his administration has done this term into an unnecessary and false criticism of real presidents. This is a sick, miserable man. He can't do better because he's such a damaged, steaming hunk of rot. -- Marie ~~~

~~~ Michael Levenson of the New York Times: “In recent years, the government has sought to disclose more of the information — including videos, historical documents and grainy images — that it has collected on what it calls unidentified anomalous phenomena. Congress has held hearings in its own search for answers. On Friday, the Pentagon released what it called 'new, never-before-seen' files related to unidentified flying objects on a webpage with fonts and graphics reminiscent of a 1990s sci-fi thriller.... The Pentagon said more records would be released on a rolling basis. Some of the initial files include documents from the 1960s space race between the United States and the Soviet Union, when both countries were pushing beyond Earth’s limits.... Here’s a look at some key events in the recent push for information about U.F.O.s.” Politico's story is here.

Steve Eder & Eve Edelheit of the New York Times: “A suicide note purported to be written by the sexual predator Jeffrey Epstein while he was in jail in 2019 uses language that in some cases echoes his past writings to friends and family. One phrase found in the apparent suicide note — 'No Fun' — also appears on a handwritten page found in Mr. Epstein’s jail cell at the time of his death, as well as in emails he sent over the years. And another saying in the suicide note — 'watcha want me to do — bust out cryin!!' — appears in emails that Mr. Epstein had written to people close to him.” ~~~

      ~~~ Marie: Sadly, this NYT analysis undermines Akhilleus' implied theory -- which I have endorsed -- that the supposed suicide note was a plant, and was in fact the work of "some barely literate fat rapist." So all I can think to do now is suggest two other theories (1) that Trump so admired Epstein that he copied even his writing style; and/or (2) that Trump & Epstein were so close that they could, as the saying goes, "complete each other's sentences." The real story is probably not that different from our facetious conspiracy theories: Trump and Epstein are a couple of semi-illiterate, low-IQ, ultra-narcissistic, sexual predators who had too much money which in turn gave them too many opportunities to exploit others. The world would be a better place if these two creeps had remained outer-burrough small-time racketeers all of their miserable lives.

Jake Spring of the Washington Post: “A top Trump appointee at the Interior Department acknowledged that she has been involved in changes to grazing policies that benefit ranching businesses like her family’s, according to a video of her remarks — a claim that some ethics experts say could violate federal law. Associate Deputy Secretary Karen Budd-Falen told a Congressional Western Caucus event in December that grazing policy is part of her job, and “the thing that probably was the closest to my heart was grazing regulations,” according to a video that Senate Western Caucus Chairwoman Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyoming) uploaded to her public YouTube page. The remarks, which have not previously been reported, prompted at least one nonpartisan watchdog group to call for an investigation into whether she violated ethics laws.... 'The situation with Karen Budd-Falen seems to be quite brazen in the scheme of conflicts of interest,' [Michelle] Kuppersmith [of the Campaign for Accountability] said. 'She is, by her own admission, working on policy for grazing that will likely directly impact her own financial interests. And they’re not even trying to hide it.'” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Needless to say, this attitude that the purpose of "public service" (ha ha) is to help yourself comes from the top (where occupancy of the White House is the top).  

Maybe Even Mickey Mouse Has Had Enough. Jim Rutenberg & John Koblin of the New York Times: “ABC has accused the Federal Communications Commission of violating its free speech rights, potentially setting the stage for a protracted, high-stakes legal battle between the network and the Trump administration. The company said in a filing with the agency that regulators had a 'chilling effect' on free speech by trying to punish political content they disagreed with. The filing, made public on Friday, is the most aggressive defense from any television network since ... [Donald] Trump kicked off an extended campaign last year to bring media organizations to heel. It represented a striking departure for ABC. The network, under the corporate stewardship of the Walt Disney Company, set an early tone of compliance toward Mr. Trump when it settled a defamation lawsuit with him for $15 million in December 2024. Many legal experts considered Mr. Trump’s case unlikely to succeed in court. The filing was registered on behalf of a single ABC station in Houston and involved a minor regulatory dispute over the talk show 'The View.' But in a signal of its importance, the company’s paperwork was signed by one of the most experienced Supreme Court litigators in the country, Paul D. Clement, a solicitor general under President George W. Bush.” The link appears to be a gift link. Politico's report is here.

Thom Hartmann on how billionaire social media owners engineered their platforms' algorithms to bring us Donald Trump (and other Republicans) in 2024. Hartmann, who has decades of experience in monitoring online influencers, offers some suggestions on how to level the playing field. (Also linked yesterday.)

Danielle Paquette & John Cox of the Washington Post: “Once an unseemly feature of the web’s fringes, deliberately ambiguous chatter about political violence has spread on mainstream platforms over the past year — most often in reference to [Donald] Trump and Elon Musk, according to a new report from Know Your Meme, which tracks the rise of viral posts. 'Somebody should do it' and its online variants, the authors wrote, is wink-nudge shorthand for suggesting that somebody kill a powerful person.... Any debate about the normalizing of violent political rhetoric can’t ignore Trump’s role in spreading it, said Jeffrey A. Engel, founding director of the Center for Presidential History at Southern Methodist University. The head of state, he said, 'traditionally sets the tone for civility and morality in a nation.' Over the past decade, in addition to broadcasting the bound [Joe] Biden [tied to the back of a fast-moving pickup truck] illustration, Trump has repeatedly urged his supporters to beat protesters, called opponents 'traitors' and 'vermin,' amplified a call to 'HANG' Democrats, and described lawmakers’ behavior as 'SEDITIOUS' and '“punishable by DEATH!'” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: This is one of a number of reasons I oppose the death penalty. If you believe that no one has the right to take a human life, even for the worst of transgressions, then you can't believe there are circumstances in which it's "in the public interest" for you to do so. I don't even use obvious pseudo-threats like, "I'll kill you the next time you forget to put down that toilet seat." I just think it's best to keep a lid on incendiary language and imagery, even when it's framed or meant as a joke. That said, I do believe there are times when police officers and members of the military justifiably kill people.

Lauren Weber, et al., of the Washington Post: “As health officials scramble to limit the cruise ship spread of hantavirus, a rodent-borne disease that can be deadly when spread to humans, they’re all stressing one thing: this is not the coronavirus pandemic of a few years ago. World Health Organization officials have repeatedly said the risk is low for the outbreak taking place on the polar expedition ship Hondius, which is currently heading to the Canary Islands after the deaths of three passengers.... Virginia State Health Commissioner Cameron Webb told The Post that returning Americans would be sent to Nebraska, which houses the National Quarantine Unit, a federally funded quarantine facility, and the Nebraska Biocontainment Unit, news the CDC later confirmed in a statement.”

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George Chidi of the Guardian: “The reaction speed of southern states to the US supreme court’s decision last week in Louisiana v Callais has been breathtaking.... Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee and other southern states stun residents with all-out charge to redraw congressional maps to favor white voters after [the] supreme court ruling [that eviscerated the Voting Rights Act].... Donald Trump's demand to tear up political norms has been met by Republican states eager to dust off a segregation-era playbook that maximizes the political power of white voters.” ~~~ 

     ~~~ Hans Nichols of Axios: "Republican chances of keeping the House are surging, as panicked Democrats scramble to offset back-to-back-to-back redistricting blows." ~~~

~~~ Jim Saksa of Democracy Docket: "... last month’s U.S. Supreme Court ruling spurred a slew of southern red states to start the process of drawing new GOP-friendly maps, and after Virginia’s high court struck down the state’s Democratic-backed map Friday. Those twin blows mean this fall’s midterms appear unlikely to be fought out on a level playing-field, undermining hopes for a fair election.& As public opinion began to turn on him and his party last summer..., Donald Trump urged GOP-led states to gerrymander their congressional maps as aggressively as possible.... U.S. House Republicans currently seem likely to emerge 10 to 12 seats ahead of where they would’ve been before the redraws.... But the redraws won’t be limited to just Congress — state and local districts will be remade in the wake of Callais, squelching minority voters’ voices across the nation." ~~~

~~~ Steve M.: "I think Democrats will win the House this year despite all this -- ... [Donald] Trump is widely reviled and there's a massive enthusiasm gap between fired-up Democratic voters and not-at-all-fired-up Republican voters. I expect many 2024 Trump voters, especially young men, to simply stay home in November. But 2026 or 2028 will probably be a high-water mark for Democrats in Congress. Long term, I think it's possible that America could have a near-permanent GOP Congress, regardless of how popular Republicans are in the future." ~~~

~~~ Ari Berman of Mother Jones: In "the national context: It appears that Democrats are bound by one set of rules while Republicans play by another, and Republican-appointed judges have repeatedly put their collective thumb on the scale of elections to make sure their party prevails." Read the facts Berman uses to come to that conclusion. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I think Steve M. is right (at least on paper. Trump may send in the troops to grab voting machines, and -- by unlawful means - effect an overall GOP "win.") Can Congress make us wrong? Yes. The best outcome would be that (a) Democrats would gain majorities in both Houses of Congress; (b) would pass a law outlawing gerrymandering throughout the U.S.; (c) would initiate a Constitutional amendment to that effect; and (d) would figure out some logical, ethical way to balance the U.S. Supreme Court right out of its majority confederacy. Forever. The odds of all that happening? Maybe close to two in a hundred. On the other hand, Congressional Democrats could show some cajones and make the latest GOP atrocities the Last Gasp of the Confederacy.    

Alabama. Abbie VanSickle & Emily Cochrane of the New York Times: “Officials in Alabama asked the Supreme Court on Friday to clear the way for the state to use a new voting map for the midterm elections, hoping for permission to use districts that would boost Republican chances of flipping at least one Democratic-held seat. In a series of emergency applications, the Alabama officials urged the justices to allow the state to jettison its current congressional district map, citing the Supreme Court’s April 29 decision that upended Louisiana’s voting map and dealt a blow to the Voting Rights Act of 1965." the AP story is here. MB: Pardon my pessimism. I'm not the Oracle of Delphi, but I think I can predict the ruling on this case -- just as I've predicted the ruling on the Virginia redistricting case even before it was filed. ~~~

~~~ Virginia. This. Is. Really. Bad. David Lieb & Geoff Mulvihill of the AP: “The Virginia Supreme Court on Friday struck down a voter-approved Democratic congressional redistricting plan [link fixed], delivering another major setback to the party in a nationwide battle against Republicans for an edge in this year’s midterm elections. The court ruled 4-3 that the state’s Democratic-led legislature violated procedural requirements when it placed the constitutional amendment on the ballot to authorize the mid-decade redistricting. [MB: All of the justices in the majority were appointed by Republican governors; those in the minority are Democratic appointees.] Voters narrowly approved the amendment April 21, but the court’s ruling renders the results of that vote meaningless. Writing for the majority, Justice D. Arthur Kelsey wrote that the legislature submitted the proposed constitutional amendment to voters 'in an unprecedented manner.' 'This violation irreparably undermines the integrity of the resulting referendum vote and renders it null and void,' he wrote.” Thanks to RAS for the link. A New York Times story is here. An MS NOW report is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: No thanks to the Virginia supreme court where four justices don't give a flying fuck about the will of the people. The ruling isn't about justice. It's about the arrogance of power. ~~~

     ~~~ Madiba Dennie of Balls & Strikes under the headline: “Virginia Supreme Court: To Protect Democracy, We Must Stop Voters From Participating In It.” “Virginia Democratic Senator Tim Kaine highlighted this absurdity in a statement, observing that Virginia actually 'let the people decide for themselves in a free and fair election' while Republican-led states 'have redrawn their maps through backroom deals.”

     ~~~ Tim Balk of the New York Times: “The 4-to-3 ruling was a huge blow to Democrats’ efforts to keep up with Republicans in a nationwide redistricting battle. It came just 17 days after Virginia voters passed the referendum, which could have paved the way for Democrats to flip up to four Republican-held seats in the state in November. Here are four takeaways on the decision: Democrats face yet another big setback in the gerrymandering war.... Republicans have reclaimed a gerrymandering advantage, but that might not save them in the midterms.... Virginia’s top court said the referendum was set too late.... The legal battle might not be over. Late Friday afternoon, lawyers for the state of Virginia said in a filing to the Virginia Supreme Court that they intended to file an emergency petition to the U.S. Supreme Court....” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Good luck with appealing to the Supremes. I'm sure there is rock-solid Supreme Court dogma along the lines of, "It is unconstitutional to do anything that would aid Democrats" that is the first principle in writing any opinion. If you check Sam Alito's chambers, you'll find a needlepoint pillow (by the hand of Mrs. Sam) sporting that message. ~~~

     ~~~ Quinn Yeargain of the Downballot has a radical idea that would provide a short-term solution: "Virginia Democrats ... [can] send the entire court into early retirement.... Current law sets the mandatory retirement age at 73.... This number is arbitrary.... A modification of the judicial retirement age could be added to the next budget, which is due by June 30, and would come into effect upon passage. Then, after the bill is approved, the entire court would retire. A new court would then be appointed that could re-hear the case and have the opportunity to issue a different ruling. Democrats might prefer other solutions, but if they want to see the will of the voters respected in time for the November elections, there are virtually no other options — and none with as good a chance of success as this one." ~~~

     ~~~ Update. Marie: See Jamelle Bouie's short-term solution. It beats every other one. And the way he gets to it is both brilliant and -- after he presents it -- the most obviously logical response to the ruling. 

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China. Keith Bradsher of the New York Times: “China’s exports and imports each set monthly records in April, further cementing the country as the world’s leading trading nation as Beijing prepares to welcome ... [Donald] Trump for a summit next week with Xi Jinping.... China also ran a trade surplus — the excess of exports over imports — of $84.8 billion last month, according to data released on Saturday by the General Administration of Customs. However..., the war in Iran and closure of the Strait of Hormuz pushed up the cost of imported oil and natural gas, causing China’s overall imports to increase slightly faster than exports. The surplus in April keeps China on track for a third year of roughly trillion-dollar trade surpluses. China posted a $1.19 trillion trade surplus last year, easily breaking the world record of $992 billion that it had set the year before. Mr. Trump is expected to press Mr. Xi to buy more American goods.... But two recent court decisions overturning Mr. Trump’s tariffs on imports have eroded some of his leverage.”

Russia. Ivan Nechepurenko of the New York Times: “Vladimir V. Putin has cultivated the annual Victory Day parade commemorating the Soviet triumph over Nazi Germany into a cornerstone of Russian patriotic ritual.... This year, the parade highlighted a moment of weakness for Mr. Putin. Moscow is under a heavy security presence as Ukraine rattles Russia with long-range drone and missile strikes. The Russian authorities ... acknowledged that the beefed-up security was intended to protect Mr. Putin. The parade on Saturday included none of the usual muscle-flexing missiles and armor. Personnel from Russian military academies and other servicemen made their way through Russia’s most famous square. They included more than 1,000 soldiers and officers still active in the war in Ukraine and some from North Korea, who last year took part in pushing Ukrainian troops out of Russia’s Kursk region, according to a live broadcast from the event.... Early this week, Mr. Putin appealed unsuccessfully to the president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, for a parade-day cease-fire. On Friday night, in a decree tinged with mocking humor, Mr. Zelensky said that Ukraine would 'permit' Russia to hold the event by not attacking it.”