July 16, 2026

The New York Times is liveblogging developments in the Iran War. From the pinned item at 5:20 am ET: “The United States appeared to expand its targets in Iran, and Iranian forces on Thursday launched more attacks on bases belonging to American allies in the Middle East, as the fighting over control of the Strait of Hormuz extended into a sixth straight day. The Iranian military also threatened to widen the scope of strikes. Ebrahim Zolfaghari, an Iranian military spokesman, said in a statement on Thursday that “all infrastructure in the region will be crushed” by Iran if ... [Donald] Trump made good on his renewed threat to target civilian infrastructure in Iran, including bridges and power plants. Such attacks could be considered war crimes under international law.

The King Gets His Coin of the Realm. Alan Rappeport of the New York Times: “Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced on Wednesday that the U.S. Mint would begin striking [the new $1 gold coins with Donald Trump's face on them] in celebration of the nation’s 250 years of independence. The creation of the coins bearing Mr. Trump’s image is one of several initiatives the Trump administration has been working on to fuse the president’s legacy with American currency, including adding his signature to new notes this year and an effort to create a $250 bill with his portrait. In a post on social media, Mr. Bessent said that the new coin would 'honor the enduring legacy of liberty and a lasting symbol of patriotism.' The Treasury Department unveiled initial designs of the coins last year. The plans to mint money with Mr. Trump’s image stirred controversy because of an 1866 law that enshrined a tradition that only deceased people could appear on U.S. currency to avoid the appearance that America was a monarchy.” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Okay, maybe less like a king & more like a feral cat pissing on everything to leave his mark. 

Aishvarya Kavi of the New York Times: Donald “Trump said on Wednesday that his administration was cracking down on unauthorized immigrant truck drivers and would seek to replace them with veterans. 'We are going to take our veterans; we’re going to teach them a lot about driving trucks,' Mr. Trump said, to take the place of drivers without legal immigration status, which he claimed without providing evidence were causing many accidents. The president added that 'any American who has driven a heavy truck for our military will automatically be eligible for a commercial driver’s license.' He did not give details on the proposal. Mr. Trump’s remarks, made during a military investment summit in Carlisle, Pa., appeared to reflect a broader administration push to curtail immigrant commercial licenses, including for legal residents. In March, about 200,000 immigrant drivers who had authorization to live and work in the United States lost their licenses.”

Donald Trump, Serial-Killer-by-Proxy. Isaac Arnsdorf & Ted Hesson of the Washington Post: “... Donald Trump came to the defense of immigration agents whose enforcement surge led to three deaths in the past week, countermanding Tuesday’s suspension of traffic stops that was imposed to contain the damage. The latest reversal underscored the White House’s bind between delivering on a core campaign promise for mass deportations and the deadly consequences of its enforcement operations, repeating a cycle of escalating arrests and recoiling from the political fallout. 'The men and women of ICE are doing a GREAT job, one that has to be done,' Trump said of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in a social media post on Wednesday morning. 'We CANNOT give up one of I.C.E.’s most important and effective Crime Fighting tools, THE TRAFFIC STOP!'” (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: What this murdering megalomaniac is saying is that it's okay to kill people who look as if they could be driving while immigrants -- so, you know, practically everyone, and certainly everyone whose skin has more color to it than Trump's pasty-white. And listen up, Republicans: this is a reminder that if you support Donald Trump, you are complicit in every cruel and unusual punishment he endorses and encourages. This is on you. ~~~

Blame the Victim, Ctd. Kash Is on the Case! David Goodman of the New York Times: “The F.B.I. is investigating whether drugs were inside a van last week when immigration agents killed the van’s driver [-- Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, 52 --] during an encounter in Houston, according to a search warrant application signed by a federal judge on Tuesday. A copy of the warrant application ... described the search for 'controlled substances' and included photographs of small bags inside the vehicle, a white Ford Transit cargo van.... [Mr. Salgado Araujo had] three other passengers when agents with Immigration and Customs Enforcement began following them.... Neither Mr. Salgado Araujo nor the other men in the car were the intended target of the immigration enforcement action.... Drugs were not the reason for the encounter, and there has been no indication that agents pursuing the van that day suspected drugs were present. There has also been no prior suggestion that Mr. Salgado Araujo or the others in the van had been involved with drugs or had any relevant criminal history.” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Goodman writes, “It was not immediately clear why the van had not been searched earlier, or whether the agents who obtained the search warrant found any drugs inside the van on the day of the shooting. A spokesman for the F.B.I. did not immediately respond to a request for comment.” Chalk it up to a combination of (1) ICE's history of blatant thuggery, and (2) my watching too many police procedurals on the teevee -- but I wouldn't be surprised if ICE agents planted “the four bags were visible through the windows, and three bags were seen in the middle of the dashboard.” As the Times might put it, it would be “unusual” for a drug dealer to display his wares on the dashboard of his vehicle for any passerby to see. I doubt this is dealers' go-to advertising technique.

Kash Is on the Case! Maggie Haberman & Glenn Thrush of the New York Times: “The F.B.I. has sought to speak with several people who traveled aboard the Qatari-gifted plane that ... [Donald] Trump flew on to Turkey last week, including asking some to turn over their mobile phones, as part of a leak investigation into reporting by The New York Times, according to people with knowledge of the situation. Among those whom investigators have tried to reach are members of the U.S. Secret Service who accompanied Mr. Trump on the trip.... The effort to obtain information from government officials comes after the administration served subpoenas on several Times reporters on Friday night.... Administration officials have said that the investigation, which is being led personally by Kash Patel, the F.B.I. director, and the White House chief of staff, Susie Wiles, is aimed at identifying anyone who shared information about security concerns related to the new Air Force One, which was the subject of two Times articles last week.” ~~~

~~~ Michael Grynbaum of the New York Times: “The New York Times filed a motion on Wednesday to quash subpoenas issued by the Trump administration to several of its journalists last week. The Justice Department subpoenas, which were delivered Friday evening by federal agents who showed up at reporters’ homes, sought to compel the Times journalists to testify about their confidential sources before a federal grand jury in Manhattan. The reporters had recently published articles that disclosed security concerns about ... [Donald] Trump’s new Qatari-donated Air Force One jet. In a statement on Wednesday, David McCraw, The Times’s top newsroom lawyer, called the subpoenas 'abusive and improper' and said they had been 'brought in bad faith to punish The Times for its coverage.... They violate the constitutional rights of The Times and its journalists,' Mr. McCraw wrote.”

Lawrence O'Donnell has quite a good overview of the Senate's "performance review" (as Sen. Corey Booker put it) of Todd Blanche's tenure at the DOJ: ~~~

Glenn Thrush, et al., of the New York Times: “The fate of Todd Blanche’s nomination as attorney general remained uncertain on Wednesday after a rocky confirmation hearing in which a Republican senator raised serious questions about his role in creating a $1.8 billion fund for purported victims of Justice Department persecution. The senator, John Cornyn of Texas, who was defeated by a Trump-backed opponent in a primary election, grilled Mr. Blanche about the fund and a related agreement granting ... [Donald] Trump and his family sweeping immunity from tax investigations.... After the hearing, he said he had not made up his mind [about whether or not to confirm Blanche]. Even a single Republican 'no' vote on the Judiciary Committee would block Mr. Blanche’s nomination from consideration by the full Senate.... A second lame-duck Republican on the committee, Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina, is also undecided but has said he is leaning toward voting 'yes.' Mr. Blanche’s confirmation is somewhat symbolic. He could serve in an acting capacity for the remainder of Mr. Trump’s term.”

Here's the New York Times liveblog of the Senate confirmation hearing of Todd Blanche. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ At the same time, the Times ran a liveblog that includes developments in the Senate confirmation hearing of SDNY U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton, whom Trump has pegged to be the new Director of National Intelligence. (Also linked yesterday.)

Ana Swanson & Ana Ionova of the New York Times: “The Trump administration said on Wednesday that it would impose a new 25 percent tariff on Brazil next week, arguing that the country had adopted a range of unfair trade practices against the United States. The tariff will apply to thousands of Brazilian products, but will exempt several major categories of exports, including oil and gas, beef, coffee, oranges, and aircraft parts. The tariff will apply to Brazilian ethanol, a senior administration official said, and take effect next Wednesday. The administration put a 40 percent tariff on many Brazilian exports last year. But ... [Donald] Trump walked some of the tariffs back in an executive order in November after a meeting with Brazil’s president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Then in February, the Supreme Court ruled that Mr. Trump’s use of an emergency law to impose those tariffs was unlawful, forcing him to remove the remaining tariffs on Brazil and other countries. The administration imposed a 10 percent tariff on almost all imports as a stopgap measure, but that tariff will expire this month.”

Evidently when you work for a criminal like Donald Trump, it's almost impossible not to get in on the grift, one way or the other. ~~~

~~~ Marie: A few days ago, I scanned a Washington Post story by Joanna Slater about JayDee Vance's conversation with a podcaster in which JayDee reflected on how “his lifestyle was 'totally transformed' after taking office, noting that he flies on his own plane, never goes to the grocery store and has an 'army of people' willing to 'cook me my food.'” He feigned concern that all of the perks could cause him to become “an entitled a[ss]hole,” and he said his dear, departed grandmother “would want him not to 'get too big for my britches.'” Republished by MSN here. I didn't see much point to the report, because in most cases what JayDee says is irrelevant, so I didn't link it. But that was wrong. Because now this: ~~~

     ~~~ Entitled Asshole Orders Helicopter to Take Child to Golf Lesson. Carol Leonnig & Vaughn Hillyard of MS NOW: “On Thursday last week, Secret Service agents groused among themselves as they prepared to deliver another perk to Vice President JD Vance’s family: join a military helicopter crew to fly his young son to his golf lesson. The planned trip on Marine Two ... was canceled at the last minute due to severe thunderstorms and high winds in the Washington, D.C., area that day.... But ... agents have shared concerns internally about Vance and his office pressing them for trips and assignments that some agents consider an inappropriate or even unprecedented use of government resources compared to prior vice presidents.... The agents pulled in to protect Vance and his family have also become 'fed up' with the last-minute travel demands that Vance and his wife, second lady Usha Vance, frequently place on the security team.... There’s no formal Secret Service policy prohibiting the use of a government helicopter for transporting a vice president’s child to a local event, but former and current Secret Service supervisors agreed the request for a chopper for this purpose has no precedent.”

~~~ Corey Johnson of ProPublica: “Despite regulating broadcast media, FCC commissioners have accepted pricey tickets to the Kennedy Center honors gala from CBS or its parent company, now Paramount... Ethics experts say that by accepting the gifts, FCC commissioners are compromising the agency’s impartiality and should avoid acting on Paramount’s pending merger.... After voting for a Paramount merger, Commissioner Olivia Trusty took tickets worth over $12,000. FCC Chair Brendan Carr has accepted tickets worth at least $63,000.” Thanks to RAS for the link.

“Precious Bodily Fluids.” Greg Jaffe & Azeen Ghorayshi of the New York Times: “Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced on Wednesday a new mandatory screening program to test all service members age 30 and older, including women, for testosterone deficiency annually. Hormone treatment for troops with low testosterone will be voluntary. 'Our most decisive tactical advantage will always be the individual warfighter,' Mr. Hegseth said in a video from his Pentagon office. 'We have a sacred duty to maintain that advantage.' The goal, he said in a social media message accompanying the video, was a 'High-T Department of War.'.... Mr. Hegseth’s focus on testosterone levels at a moment when U.S. forces are ramping up attacks in Iran is unorthodox. Defense secretaries typically focus on larger strategic questions, involving alliances, war and weapons production.” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: The other day (July 14), Akhilleus wrote an excellent takedown of the NYT's near-uncanny ability to normalize the abnormal. Most people -- as opposed to Stanley Kubrick's parodic fictional characters -- would call Drunk Pete's testosterone fetish insane; the Times calls it "unorthodox." The article Akhilleus cited was also about Pete's misogynistic orders, which the reporter called "unusual." The author of that report was Greg Jaffe, the lead writer on the "High-T" report linked here. Also, I know military personnel give up many of their individual rights in service of their country. But checking their testosterone levels? No exceptions? That seems mighty far up the ladder on the invasion-of-privacy scale. 

Danny Hakim & Jonah Bromwich of the New York Times: “The Trump administration fired a federal prosecutor on Wednesday, less than an hour after he was appointed to lead the United States attorney’s office in Seattle, a move that sets the stage for a likely legal battle. Federal judges in the Western District of Washington had unanimously appointed Roger Rogoff to be the Justice Department’s top official there, filling a vacancy that the president has never addressed. But the Trump administration has largely defied attempts by federal judges to fill vacancies, leading to Mr. Rogoff’s swift dismissal, via email, after 54 minutes. Unlike in similar Trump administration firings, Mr. Rogoff has retained an employment law firm and is weighing a legal fight over his dismissal. Such a challenge would almost certainly entail a lengthy, difficult court battle and raise the extraordinary prospect that a U.S. attorney could operate quasi-independently of the Trump administration.”

Kash Is on the Case! Devlin Barrett & David Fahrenthold of the New York Times: “An F.B.I. evidence-gathering team visited the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool on Wednesday afternoon after the landmark was drained so that crews could repair peeling sections of its newly installed blue lining. Photos taken by a New York Times photographer showed people wearing F.B.I. insignia and standing on the dry, grime-covered pool floor. They appeared to be documenting the scene in detail, with some using laser-scanning and measuring equipment. A spokesperson for the F.B.I. said that the team was assisting the U.S. Park Police in investigating damage to the pool....  The contractor that applied the liner, Atlantic Industrial Coatings, has said that the problems affected only a 'very small part' of the pool’s floor. The company said on its website that it intended to repair the pool as part of the warranty.”

Annie Karni of the New York Times: “The House on Wednesday rejected a measure to eliminate U.S. aid to Israel, but almost half of Democrats supported the move, reflecting a rapid and dramatic shift within the party away from decades of unequivocal support for the Jewish state. The measure, which sought to cut all $3.3 billion in military and humanitarian aid to Israel from a foreign affairs spending bill, failed by a vote of 104 to 314, with 10 voting 'present,' and all but one Republican, Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky, a sponsor, voting no. But more Democrats supported it than opposed it, including many who said they voted in favor despite their opposition to the cuts to humanitarian aid. It was the latest and starkest evidence of a major divide over backing Israel within the Democratic Party, which is grappling with a groundswell of hostility in its ranks toward Israel and its conduct of the war in Gaza.”

~~~~~~~~~~

Judson Jones & Mark Walker of the New York Times: “New York City on Wednesday night smelled of smoke and the sky turned a faint orange as air polluted by wildfires from Canada and the Great Lakes slipped across the Northeast, prompting alerts about poor air quality. The haze is expected to continue through the night, and even to worsen in some places, as the same heat dome that is pushing temperatures close to 100 degrees across much of eastern Canada and the United States traps the smoke from faraway wildfires close to the ground. Canada’s weather agency was predicting that poor air quality from the smoke will remain through Wednesday night, forecasting a 'very high risk' for poor air quality, a 10 on their 10-point scale.” MB: The article includes a map that shows my neck of the woods has good air quality this morning. In fact, the sun is shining upon my sunporch. That was not true yesterday, when I posted this: ~~~ 

Q: How's the weather in New Hampshire today?
A: Lovely, lovely. It was forecast to be a scorcher today on account of climate change, but the last couple of days have been 10 or 15 degrees cooler than predicted because the sky is so overcast with smoke particles from the wildfires in Canada, which are -- in part -- caused by climate change.