The Worst Nuclear Deal in History

 

The billions of dollars the Saudi monarchy has gifted President Donald Trump’s family have paid off. Trump has caved to Saudi demands to provide the Kingdom precisely the nuclear technology he says is a grave threat in Iranian hands.

In a new agreement signed on Wednesday, Trump agreed to let the Saudis enrich uranium and reprocess plutonium, the two ingredients used in nuclear bombs. The Saudis promise this will be used only for peaceful purposes, but Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said as far back as 2018 that “without a doubt if Iran developed a nuclear bomb, we would follow suit as soon as possible.”

Trump’s generosity to Saudi Arabia — which has numerous lucrative deals in place with members of Trump’s family, particularly the $2 billion the Saudis invested in Jared Kushner’s private equity fund — could unleash a flood of new nuclear programs. If the Saudis get this technology, others will demand it, too.

How we got here:

Ever since the dawn of the Nuclear Age, U.S. policy has denied the ability to enrich uranium and reprocess plutonium to other nations because it is a shortcut to nuclear weapons. The huge and expensive facilities can be developed openly and legally until a government takes the quick jump from making nuclear reactor fuel rods to making the cores of bombs. With this deal, Trump has effectively just greenlit a Saudi nuclear bomb program. That is why, in 1946, the Congress passed the Atomic Energy Act, prohibiting the sale or transfer of nuclear weapons technology to any nation, including our allies.

Trump has effectively just greenlit a Saudi nuclear bomb program.

So, how did we get to the point where the United States in now willing to sell this technology to one of the most brutal dictatorships in the world? In 2013, the Saudis unveiled a plan to build as many as 16 civilian nuclear reactors. Nuclear reactor companies salivated at the prospect of contracts worth hundreds of billions of dollars.

But Saudi nuclear power reactors make little economic sense. Nuclear is the most expensive way to produce electricity, especially since Saudi Arabia sits on an ocean of oil and is ideally suited for much cheaper solar and wind energy production. 

“When it comes to power generation, it’s 10 times more expensive than solar power because they are blessed with an unbelievable amount of sunshine,” Princeton scholar Bernard Haykel told “PBS News Hour.” “So, frankly, if you’re looking to generate power to liberate more oil from electricity generation, it makes much more sense to use a combination of solar, wind and gas, natural gas.” Still, if they just wanted to waste their money on reactors, it wouldn’t be a problem. But they want more. Much more.

Centrifuges for fuel = centrifuges for bombs:

Saudi Arabia wants the entire nuclear fuel cycle. They want to make the fuel for the reactors, then reprocess the spent fuel rods when they are used up. The same centrifuges that spin uranium gas to enrich it to the low levels required for nuclear fuel can spin it to the high levels for the cores of nuclear bombs. The same reprocessing plants that can break down used fuel rods for waste disposal can separate out the reactor-produced plutonium in those rods for use in nuclear bombs.

With these plants, Saudi Arabia would have both pathways to the bomb. The Hiroshima atomic bomb was made of uranium; the Nagasaki bomb, plutonium. That is why there are strict controls on these fuel-cycle technologies. It is these controls that Prince Salman wants the U.S. to waive, including strict inspections. Trump has agreed, dependent on whether a U.S.-Saudi study determines an enrichment facility would be warranted.

Saudi Arabia wants the entire nuclear fuel cycle.

Most countries with nuclear reactors do not have such plants. They buy their fuel from the half-dozen or so countries and consortiums that make it. Given the enormous construction and operating costs, it doesn’t make economic sense for a country to produce its own fuel unless it has 20 or more reactors. Saudi Arabia doesn’t yet have one. But it wants an enrichment facility.

This is exactly the issue with Iran. The decades-long dispute has not been over the construction of an Iranian nuclear power reactor at Bushehr, but about Iran’s enrichment of uranium. Saudi Arabia wants to match that capability. To become a nuclear-threshold state. To have the capability to make the material for bombs should it decide to do so. Just like Iran.

The folly of thinking our allies can have nukes, but our foes cannot:

The Saudis want the U.S. to give it a looser deal than the one struck with its neighbor, the United Arab Emirates. In that case, the U.S., under Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, established the “gold standard” for nuclear cooperation. The UAE promised that it would never enrich uranium or reprocess plutonium. The UAE now has an operating power reactor at the Barakah nuclear complex.

In capitulating to Saudi demands, Trump commits a profound strategic error: believing this technology can be trusted in the hands of friends while denied to foes. Even if the worst happens, he thinks it OK for his friends to have nuclear bombs. As a presidential candidate in 2016, Trump told CNN that Japan and South Korea should have their own nuclear weapons. Most pointedly, when asked if Saudi Arabia should get nuclear weapons, he responded: “Saudi Arabia, absolutely.”

But when regimes change, the technology remains. Iran’s path to nuclear capability began in the 1970s under Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, when the Nixon administration approved his plans for dozens of nuclear power reactors and agreed that Iran could enrich uranium and even process plutonium.

The shah did not survive to implement his plans, and at first the Islamic Republic that replaced him rejected this “Western technology” but changed its mind during the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s, restarting the nuclear program, including secret efforts on bomb technology. 

Even if the Saudi monarchy does not build a bomb, will it still rule the nation in 20 years, when the nuclear plants are fully operational? Will militant jihadists rule, inheriting the bomb program Trump gifted his friend?

Nor is the risk just regime change. Israel, Pakistan, India and North Korea all secretly and illegally began their bomb programs using nuclear technology acquired for civilian use, in violation of numerous bilateral and global agreements prohibiting these nations from doing just that.

When regimes change, the technology remains.

Is this a done deal? Not necessarily. In 2023, when President Joe Biden tried for a “grand bargain” with Saudi Arabia that would have traded nuclear technology and advanced weaponry for recognition of Israel, liberals and conservatives united to eventually kill the deal.

Twenty senators wrote in opposition to the proposed Biden plan, and a politically diverse group of nuclear proliferation experts and former officials signed a letter organized by the right-leaning Foundation for Defense of Democracy (FDD), a strong proponent for war with Iran. “Riyadh does not need uranium enrichment to produce peaceful nuclear energy,” the letter argued, “Enrichment could bring Saudi Arabia to the brink of acquiring nuclear arms, and U.S. policy should prohibit it.”

And there’s opposition from the same circles to Trump’s even more generous deal. “A bad U.S. nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia is coming for congressional review,” wrote Andrea Stricker, deputy director and research fellow of the FDD’s Nonproliferation Program, on Wednesday. “Congress should block it. If it does not, one hopes the policy will be reversed by a subsequent administration before too much damage is done.”

Stricker is right. The outcry over the deal forced Trump to pledge on Thursday that the contracts would be conditioned on Saudi recognition of Israel — similar to Biden’s deal but now highly improbable given Israel’s destruction of Gaza and continued violence in the West Bank.

Does Trump even mean it? Or is it just something he said to get through the day and quell opposition until he can push the deal through. His Truth Social post contained another lie: that there would be no enrichment. Of course there will be enrichment. That is the whole point of the deal.

Trump’s tangle of lies, his deep ignorance of the deal he approved then walked back, his inability to even make a binding agreement (see the memo of understanding with Iran, the Gaza Peace Plan, the tariffs, etc.) may sink the pact. But don’t count on it. Saudi influence in Washington is powerful, particularly with Trump and his business partners who could profit handsomely from the deal. It will take an all-out effort to block what will be the worst nuclear deal in history.

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Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young

 

When Neil Young walked onto the stage of New York City's Fillmore East on July 26, 1969, he wasn't officially a member of Crosby, Stills & Nash. He had been recruited simply to help the trio reproduce their increasingly sophisticated studio recordings in concert. By the end of the evening, however, it was obvious that something much larger had happened. Young's razor-edged guitar playing, unmistakable voice, and songwriting brilliance transformed one of rock's most celebrated vocal groups into a creative force unlike anything popular music had seen before.

Within months, Crosby, Stills & Nash had become Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young—a quartet whose combination of breathtaking harmonies, political consciousness, and musical ambition would define the singer-songwriter era of the early 1970s.

The story actually began years earlier on the California music scene. David Crosby had been dismissed from The Byrds in 1967 after creative disagreements and increasingly erratic behavior. Stephen Stills emerged from the ashes of Buffalo Springfield following the breakup of one of America's most influential folk-rock bands, while Graham Nash shocked the British music world by leaving the Hollies at the height of their commercial success.

Each musician was searching for a new creative beginning. Legend has it that when the three gathered informally at Joni Mitchell's house—and later at Cass Elliot's home in Laurel Canyon—they spontaneously sang together. The blend was extraordinary. Their voices locked together with an almost supernatural precision, creating harmonies unlike anything heard since the golden age of The Everly Brothers.

Their self-titled debut album, released in May 1969, became an immediate critical and commercial triumph. Songs such as "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes," "Marrakesh Express," "Wooden Ships," and "Helplessly Hoping" showcased sophisticated songwriting wrapped around luminous three-part harmonies. Yet while the album sounded effortless in the studio, reproducing those layered guitar arrangements and intricate vocal textures onstage proved far more difficult. Stephen Stills was responsible for much of the album's instrumental work, often playing multiple guitars, keyboards, and bass. To perform the material live, the trio needed another exceptional musician. Neil Young was the obvious choice.

Young and Stills had forged a remarkable musical partnership in Buffalo Springfield, where their contrasting styles had pushed each other to new creative heights. Stills admired Young's fearless guitar playing, while Young respected Stills' versatility and arranging skills. Although their relationship was often competitive, it was also deeply productive. Manager Elliot Roberts encouraged the reunion, believing Young would strengthen the band's live performances without disrupting its chemistry. Young initially hesitated, wary of becoming trapped in another group after Buffalo Springfield's collapse, but eventually agreed to join the touring lineup. His first appearance came at Bill Graham's legendary Fillmore East in Manhattan on July 26, 1969.

For audiences expecting the polished folk-rock harmonies of Crosby, Stills & Nash, Young's arrival introduced an entirely new dimension. His guitar solos were raw, unpredictable, and emotionally explosive, providing a dramatic counterweight to the trio's pristine vocal arrangements. More importantly, his songwriting brought a darker, more introspective perspective that balanced the optimism often found in the trio's material. By the time Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young performed before hundreds of thousands at Woodstock just three weeks later, the transformation was complete.

"We're scared shitless," Stephen Stills famously joked to the Woodstock audience before adding, "This is only the second time we've ever played in front of people." The remark wasn't entirely exaggerated.

Despite the inexperience of the new lineup, Woodstock instantly established Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young as one of the defining voices of a generation. Their acoustic harmonies offered moments of remarkable intimacy amid one of history's largest rock festivals, while their electric set hinted at the enormous musical possibilities still to come.

Those possibilities would be fully realized during the recording of Déjà Vu. Sessions began in late 1969 and stretched well into 1970, becoming nearly as legendary as the finished album itself. Recorded primarily at Wally Heider Studios in San Francisco and Hollywood, the project was marked by perfectionism, personality clashes, and the immense pressure of following one of the year's most acclaimed debuts. All four musicians arrived with fully developed songwriting identities and strong opinions about arrangements, often resulting in painstaking recording sessions that consumed months.

Neil Young's participation fundamentally altered the band's musical direction. His haunting composition "Helpless" became one of the album's emotional centerpieces, while "Country Girl" showcased his cinematic approach to songwriting. Stephen Stills contributed the exuberant "Carry On," David Crosby unveiled the ethereal title track "Déjà Vu," and Graham Nash added the gentle optimism of "Teach Your Children," which featured unforgettable pedal steel guitar by Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead. The result was less a unified band album than a remarkable conversation between four extraordinary songwriters.

The sessions were not without turmoil. Egos frequently collided. Drug use became increasingly prevalent. Young often disappeared for days without warning, while Crosby later admitted the recording process sometimes bordered on chaos. Yet the creative friction also fueled the music. Rather than smoothing away their differences, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young allowed their contrasting personalities to shape the album's emotional landscape. Moments of soaring harmony were balanced by songs filled with loneliness, political anxiety, and personal reflection.

Released in March 1970, Déjà Vu immediately became a cultural milestone. It debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard album chart and ultimately sold more than eight million copies in the United States alone. Beyond its commercial success, the album captured the complex emotional mood of America at the dawn of a new decade. The optimism of the Summer of Love had begun giving way to political unrest, the Vietnam War continued to escalate, and the innocence of the 1960s was rapidly disappearing. Songs such as "Woodstock," Joni Mitchell's reflective anthem inspired by the famous festival, and "Almost Cut My Hair" reflected a generation wrestling with identity, protest, and disillusionment.

Perhaps the album's greatest strength lies in its remarkable diversity. It moves effortlessly between folk, country, rock, blues, and acoustic balladry while never losing its distinctive voice. The four principal songwriters challenged one another constantly, resulting in an album that feels simultaneously intimate and epic. Few records have so successfully balanced individual artistic expression with collective musical chemistry.

Neil Young's arrival also changed the trajectory of every musician involved. While he remained fiercely protective of his solo career—releasing After the Gold Rush only months after Déjà Vu—his periodic reunions with Crosby, Stills & Nash produced some of the most memorable music and performances of the next five decades. The tensions that frequently threatened to dissolve the quartet also became the source of its greatest creative achievements.

Looking back, Neil Young's debut performance with Crosby, Stills & Nash at the Fillmore East was more than the addition of another talented musician. It marked the birth of one of rock's most influential supergroups and set the stage for an album that remains among the defining artistic statements of the singer-songwriter era. Déjà Vu demonstrated that four strong creative voices could challenge, frustrate, and ultimately inspire one another to produce music greater than any of them might have achieved alone. More than half a century later, both the concert and the album continue to symbolize a brief but extraordinary moment when four remarkable artists found perfect harmony—both literally and creatively. 

-FB

"We are past the point where special treatment and multiple chances make sense"

 

Yesterday afternoon, federal District Judge Emmet Sullivan did something unexpected. Noting that courts, “In cases in which sensitive materials may be in issue,” have the “inherent authority to review such material ex parte, in camera as part of its judicial review function,” Judge Sullivan gave acting Attorney General Todd Blanche five days to provide him with unredacted copies of documents in the Epstein Files that the Justice Department continues to withhold. 

In camera review refers to a process where the Judge would review documents in chambers, without the public or the press present, and an ex parte proceeding in this context is one where the judge reviews sensitive information in the possession of one party without the other party present to determine what, if anything, should be turned over.

Judge Sullivan asked for the following items:

Eight emails along with supporting documentation to confirm DOJ’s representation that the names that are redacted in the published version of the documents are the names of victims.

A document with the names in the “to” and “from” lines redacted, and documentation to support DOJ’s claim that those names are of law enforcement personnel.

A document along with support for DOJ’s claim that the names that are redacted in the published version are the names of victims.

This is in the case filed by Katie Phang, which we discussed here.

The order can be found here.

The Judge previously entered an order that required the government to turn over specific categories of documents it was required to make public by the Epstein Files Transparency Act that became law on November 19, 2025, but has so far failed to disclose. Instead of complying with the court’s order, DOJ asked for two additional months, writing that the government “strongly disagrees” with the court’s order.

Of course, many litigants disagree with decisions judges make. The proper course of action is appealing them. Unless that judge or a higher court issues a stay, the government, like any other party, is obligated to comply.

Before Trump and during the Biden administration, courts were able to rely on representations made by the Justice Department. Every lawyer for the government understood they owed the courts a duty of candor; everything they said in court must be true to the best of their knowledge and swiftly corrected if they subsequently became aware of additional information. The government obeyed court orders, even the ones it disagreed with.

But that’s no longer the case. The presumption of regularity is essentially no more. The presumption is the “‘general working principle’ that means courts will ‘insist on a meaningful evidentiary showing’ before entertaining doubts about the integrity of official acts or documents.” It was commonly used to advance the idea that in the absence of evidence to the contrary, courts should presume government employees, including DOJ lawyers, acted properly in the execution of their duties. Now it’s on life support and Judge Sullivan’s order is another nail in its coffin.

This most recent order suggests that Judge Sullivan doesn’t believe the government when it says something is the case, even when that “something” is as simple as the identity of the person in a “to” line in an email. But the government has acted like it has something to hide, even after Congress passed the Transparency Act and Trump signed it into law. 

So, the Judge isn’t accepting what the government has represented to it as truthful, and is requiring documentation to support its claims. Under any other president, the Attorney General would have been disturbed by the suggestion prosecutors couldn’t be trusted. There would be disciplinary review. But here, the acting Attorney General is the defendant in the case. It’s paradigmatic of how far DOJ has fallen.

Phang v. Blanche is significant because it’s the only lawsuit seeking to enforce the Epstein Files Transparency Act that is moving forward. But it also is taking its place on the list of cases where the courts have found reason to distrust the Justice Department; everything from the deportation case where Judge Boasberg in the District of Columbia opened contempt proceedings against the government (whether they can proceed is currently pending en banc review before the Court of Appeals) to the slush fund case where a court concluded DOJ was party to a settlement designed to benefit Trump in his family in a lawsuit that was a “sham.”

When I was an Assistant United States Attorney, I argued cases in front of the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals frequently. One of my favorite judges would always point to the lights the court used to keep track of the lawyers’ time: green meant you could keep talking, yellow meant you were almost out of time, and red meant stop. This Judge liked to emphasize that last part, telling lawyers that when the red light came on, they were out of time and needed to stop arguing. Knowing that some lawyers would try to keep going, he would emphasize, with a hint of a smile, that “The red light is not aspirational.”

His gentle humor took some of the tension out of the room. But the advice holds in a much more serious context, minus the levity: Complying with the law and with court orders isn’t aspirational either. It’s one of the bedrock principles that makes our democracy possible. It’s been that way for 250 years.

The Trump administration doesn’t seem to see it that way. For them, the law is at best a speed bump in the road when it gets in the way of what they want to do. Court orders are mere suggestions. There is a great deal of concern about the moment where a court directly orders the government to do something and it refuses to. 

But the reality is, we have been dancing on the precipice of that moment virtually since this administration got underway. There is no longer anything to be gained by bending over backward to give the administration multiple chances to comply. Courts may not have armies to enforce their orders, which is, perhaps, why they have tried to avoid a direct confrontation. But the government must comply with the law, just as all other litigants must follow a judge’s dictates. We are past the point where special treatment and multiple chances make sense.

Thanks for being here with me at Civil Discourse and for your support and subscriptions, which make the newsletter possible. At this time last year, many people were asking whether we were approaching or in a constitutional crisis. My answer then was yes. The fact that courts are still struggling, a year later, with what they can do to convince the Trump administration to comply with the law confirms it. Your commitment to understanding these issues and sharing what you know with people in your circle as the midterm elections approach is essential. A Republic, if we can keep it.

We’re in this together,

Joyce Vance

 

Trump’s rambling gala address included insults, potshots and quip about a third presidential term

 

Trump joked around with the room of journalists who he again accused of producing “fake news” as he hurled insults at his political enemies in a speech at the White House correspondents’ dinner. A day after the Trump administration abandoned, for now, an extraordinary bid to subpoena reporters over their coverage, the US president attended the rescheduled White House correspondents’ dinner – an annual celebration of press freedom – in Washington on Friday evening.

It came three months after the original event was scrapped in April when a man fired a shotgun at a security checkpoint outside the ballroom. The Trump’s hour-long speech was mostly lighthearted and sarcastic, with occasional swipes at the news media, a profession he eventually said he respected, praising journalists for doing an “amazing job”.

Later in the speech, Trump, who has regularly attacked the press over its coverage of his presidency, insisted his war on Iran was going “extremely well”. He told a room full of journalists: “Don’t believe the fake news.”

Trump and his officials joined hundreds of reporters at the Waldorf Astoria, a smaller venue than the vast Washington Hilton ballroom that was evacuated when shots were fired in April, in a suspected targeting of the president and his administration.

The speech included a handful of scripted jokes, one at the expense of Robert F Kennedy Jr, his health secretary who he quipped had personally run over the cow that became the evening’s “very delicious beef tenderloin”. Kennedy has championed the health benefits of beef tallow and animal protein.

Trump also mocked the weight of Chris Christie, the former New Jersey governor, and Jerry Nadler, the New York congressman, imagining the two wrestling over a piece of cheesecake. He ridiculed the appearance of his critics, including Bruce Springsteen who he said “looks like hell” and took aim at CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, who had been honored earlier for her White House coverage, saying she does not smile enough. Trump said he “hated” Adam Schiff, a Democratic California senator, and one of his most prominent congressional critics, while mocking the size of his head and neck.

At one point, after a joke about term limits fell flat, Trump broke the fourth wall, asking the audience whether anyone understood “this whole freakin’ stupid speech that they wrote”. Trump ended his remarks with a joke that landed awkwardly, declaring that he planned to run and win a fourth election – a reference both to his false claim he won the 2020 election and to his repeated suggestion that he could seek a third term, despite the constitution’s two-term limit.

“I won three times, now I’m going to do it again,” the president said, sarcastically, placing a red “Trump 2028” hat on his head.

 

The room of journalists watches as Donald Trump delivers his speech. Photograph: Jonathan Ernst/Reuters

Before Trump spoke on Friday, a series of journalists who published revealing stories on the president and his administration – including the team behind the Wall Street Journal story alleging he had sent a “bawdy” letter to the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein in 2003 – received awards on stage. Trump has sued the Journal over its reporting.

Weija Jiang, outgoing president of the White House Correspondents’ Association, had sought to underline the importance of duty – both for those in the White House, and the people who cover them. “No matter how complicated or tense the relationship is between the press and the presidency, what we share is far more important than anything else and that is our duty: to serve the American people,” Jiang told the dinner.

Beginning his remarks, Trump claimed the speech he had originally prepared was “gonna be a doozy”, suggesting he would pare back his attacks at the rescheduled event: “Just like my presidency, the second time is always better – and the third time will be better yet … I’m only kidding.”

The usually celebratory dinner was dedicated in part to Victor Gonzales, a Secret Service officer who was shot and wounded at the original correspondents’ dinner in April while helping stop the gunman, and hotel staff who helped guests during the attack.

The man charged for the shooting, Cole Allen, has pleaded not guilty to attempting to assassinate the president.

 

US Secret Service personnel outside the venue during the dinner at the Waldorf Astoria. Photograph: Nathan Howard/Reuters

An advance team spent weeks putting together a security plan for the new venue, and Sean Curran, the US Secret Service director, told reporters this week that agents were braced for trouble even at the black-tie dinner.

While it is customary for presidents to address the annual White House correspondents’ dinner, Friday’s speech is the first Trump has made at the event in either of his two terms. He boycotted the dinner throughout his first term, and has long attacked the press corps, including many of the journalists in the room.

“It matters that you came here tonight,” Jonathan Karl, chief Washington correspondent at ABC News, told the president on stage. Trump has sued multiple news organizations over their coverage of him, and routinely dismisses unfavorable stories as “fake news”. Trump’s administration has gone further still, barring the Associated Press from the White House press pool and limiting other journalists’ access to the Pentagon.

Missing from the guest list this time: Melania Trump, the US first lady; JD Vance, the vice-president; and Marco Rubio, the secretary of state. All had been present in April.

-The Guardian

Democrats Stick It to Hegseth

 

Senate Democrats do not always shine when interrogating Trump regime flunkies at public hearings. But this week, a full court press at the Senate Armed Services Committee revealed the extent of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s dishonesty and incompetence. One after another, Senate Democrats skewered his disastrous mismanagement of an illegal, catastrophic war. Democrats pressed their advantage as we learned the Trump team has been lying about its military success.

“Iranian attacks on nine U.S. locations across the Middle East in the two weeks since the ceasefire broke down show that the country maintains an ability to inflict damage on precise targets, despite the Trump administration’s repeated claims that Iran’s military capabilities have been diminished or destroyed,” the New York Times reports. 

Hegseth testified during a week that Donald Trump reprehensibly claimed that dead service personnel supported his catastrophic war and disgusted millions of Americans by noting on social media that the 18 military deaths due to his fruitless war wasn’t nearly as high a count of fallen soldiers as other historic wars (including Vietnam). 

Meanwhile, the Trump crew maintained a tight lid on casualty statistics, lest Americans learn the extent of our unpreparedness and the accurate toll Trump’s folly has taken. Ranking member Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI) was in top form at the Armed Services hearing: Reed noted that the Pentagon had spent years planning for a potential military campaign against Iran — and that any such plan would have assumed the strait could be closed.

“Were you unaware of that?” Reed asked. Hegseth did not dispute it. Of course, the Strait of Hormuz was front and center in every single aspect of that,” Hegseth replied before defecting by attacking the Biden administration. “We had U.S. boats that surrendered to Iranian ships under the Biden administration,” the defense secretary argued.

“Listen, we’re talking about the war you started,” Reed said, cutting him off. “Not a situation in which oil was flowing freely,” he continued. “There was no conflict. We weren’t losing personnel as a result of Iranian actions. So, your fallback to the Biden administration is just a very, very obvious excuse for what I think is probably — as you described so often — gross negligence.”

“You did not fully inform the president that you would be in a situation where the Strait of Hormuz could be effectively closed, oil prices could surge, and effectively, the Iranians could maintain their ability to strike back as they are right now. They just killed some of our servicemen last weekend.”

When Hegseth resorted to slobbering praise of Donald Trump, Reed interjected: “Excuse me,” Reed replied. “He should be praised for starting a war without authority, creating a situation in which the world economy is suffering tremendously [?] We have to have extra money for our farmers, and we have no outcome — at least no realistic outcome — in sight yet.”

As we have come to expect, Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-GA) was devastating in his takedown of Hegseth. Ossoff repeatedly used Hegseth’s own baseless bravado to reveal he had grossly exaggerated about our military accomplishments (e.g., destroying Iran’s missile program):

Ossoff demolishes Hegseth -- then Hegseth has an epic crash out Sen. Jon Ossoff used Hegseth's premature declarations of victory against him during his Senate testimony, repeatedly reading back statements Hegseth made in March and April about Iran's military being "destroyed"

That helped set the stage for Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI), who lambasted Hegseth. “You, sir, are the failure. Not the men and women who are on that front line. Not the men and women who hold up their honor with distinction. But if there’s a lack of a winning strategy, they’re in harm’s way. Their leaders have failed them.” Peters continued, “You don’t have a strategy. You don’t have a long-term plan to actually win this war.”

Democrats also didn’t hesitate when going after Hegseth for making an exorbitant funding request. Underscoring the $37.5B the Pentagon burned through on a senseless war, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) demanded to know: “At what point do you stop asking Americans to foot the bill for a war they don’t support, on top of an inflated budget request and billions in reconciliation funds that you still haven’t spent?”

Hegseth, unsurprisingly, was out of his depth and lacked any cogent answers. When he tried to filibuster with a canned Islamophobic rant, Shaheen was ready: “I don’t want to hear your speech because I have limited time. So, if you can’t answer my question, then I will move on to my next question.”

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) also pressed Hegseth on the funding issue, pointing to Americans’ fury at spending billions on a war they never wanted rather than on critical items they desperately need. “You are asking for unlimited money for bombs when people can’t feed their families, and I don’t know how this administration intends to defend those decisions to the American people,” she said. She also blasted his conflicting claims:

“We just don’t know which version of the war to believe,” she observed. Democrats’ persistence seemed to shame at least one Republican into pressing Hegseth for real answers. When Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Dan Caine danced around questions about Iran’s nuclear capabilities, Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) couldn’t conceal his frustration:

HEGSETH: This is a regime hell-bent on nuclear ambitions. And...

JOHN KENNEDY: Guys...

HEGSETH: President Trump’s...

KENNEDY: We need straight answers.

HEGSETH: ...Been willing to go after this.

KENNEDY: We need straight answers.

Frankly, Democrats should demand straight answers from Kennedy and his Republican colleagues: Was it a mistake to confirm Hegseth, an abjectly unfit nominee? Why didn’t they demand his removal after Signalgate? Why have they allowed Hegseth to repeat obvious lies without consequences? Why are they not demanding his resignation now?

On Wednesday, Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) appeared on PBS and summed up the situation. “We have provided billions of dollars to this Defense Department. The fact is that Hegseth has not managed it well, and this administration has taken us into a war that has no strategy,” she said. “It has no justification. 

It has no exit strategy. And now they are asking us, the taxpayers, through Congress to spend literally billions of more of our taxpayer dollars.” She added, “It is hurting our military readiness. It is misusing our defense spending and our troops who are fighting for us, and it is hurting Americans’ pocketbook in many ways.”

She also let Hegseth have it for blaming Joe Biden, who left office more than 18 months ago. “Hegseth’s … in fact, many of the Cabinet members’ go-to responses if they don’t have a good response, blame Biden,” she said.

“Look, Biden did not get us into this war. Trump and Hegseth started this war, and they refuse to take responsibility for it. I find that appalling.”

In sum, undaunted Senate Democrats on the Armed Services Committee demonstrated unwavering and unrelenting grilling of Trump’s grossly unfit flunkies, effectively revealing the extent of their unfitness — and the degree of culpability that Trump’s congressional enablers bear for serial, catastrophic failures. In the case of Iran, they must continue to hold the Trump regime and its Republican collaborators responsible for the rising death toll, soaring costs, and diplomatic/geopolitical disaster unfolding before our eyes.

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Democrats Cannot Blow It in 2028!

 

As the only pro-democracy national political party, the Democrats have the awesome responsibility of selecting a 2028 presidential ticket that can win the election convincingly, rescue the White House and executive branch from the most noxious and destructive regime in history, and forge a path to restore and bolster our democracy.

While a winning presidential ticket can certainly emerge from a chaotic, poorly designed nominating process and, conversely, a losing ticket can certainly emerge from a pristine nominating system, Democratic Party members and those concerned about the fate of our nation must maximize chances of winning by a non-contestable majority. Putting in place a coherent system of governance that does not create its own headaches officially begins this week.

“Members of the Democratic National Committee’s rules and bylaws committee are meeting at the Salamander Hotel on Thursday and Friday to recommend which states should ‘receive waivers to hold early nominating contests,’” The Hill reported. States that do not follow the calendar will lose all delegates and face a stiff $270,000 fine.

Twelve states divided among four regions (East, West, South, Midwest) are vying for 4-5 spots that would get the early position in the weeks before Super Tuesday. Whatever the Rules and Bylaws Committee decides, its decision will require approval by the full DNC in August.

Governors and U.S. senators whose names are already part of the 2028 buzz (Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock), 2020 winners in the early state contenders, and favorite sons (e.g., Pete Buttigieg, who won Iowa in 2020 and now resides in Michigan) would certainly like their states in the mix. 

However, for that very reason, the likelihood that the DNC picks a state that favors one or more obvious contenders reduces the likelihood that the state will get an early position. States with diverse electorates — such as South and North Carolina, Nevada, or New Mexico — that do not obviously favor one or more specific contenders will certainly be favored to snag a spot in the pre-Super Tuesday lineup.

“As the DNC considers its presidential primary calendar, it’s important that they build a calendar that allows the party and the candidates to hear from a broad cross-section of Americans, because listening to voters and understanding and responding to the issues that matter to them is essential to victory,” Lavora Barnes, the former Democratic chair of Michigan, told me. “This is why states with populations that look like all of America should be prioritized.”

Democrats should also look beyond the specific early primary states chosen. Zero energy should be expended trying to dissuade various candidates not to run. Having the largest, most robust debate at the start makes it less likely any segment of the electorate will feel disenfranchised or ignored. Who cares if you think Kamala Harris will never win (Turn the page! She had her shot!) or that no one outside the legacy media pays attention to Rahm Emanuel. 

Let them run; the voters will sort it out. What is clear is that even if they were to weigh in, party elders (or those purported to know what the electorate will want in 2 and a half years, or crotchety moderates who incorrectly foresaw disaster if Zohran Mamdani ran for office, or a sliver of the electorate that lives on Bluesky) carry no weight with voters.

The staid format of debates, especially the trite podium line-up of a dozen or more candidates ready to chime in with canned responses, also does not serve voters well. Rather than promoting nasty soundbites or reducing candidates to playing pundit (What makes you think you can win?), Democrats would be smart to innovate with different formats, special topics, subgroups of candidates, and nontraditional moderators. (I would love to hear Heather Cox Richardson ask candidates about their vision of American democracy or Paul Krugman discuss economic inequality with candidates in a small roundtable setting).

Allowing billionaire or corporate-owned legacy media — which has enabled Trump and evidenced scant understanding of the existential threat to democracy we face — moderate debates is foolish in the extreme. “They forced Democrats [in 2020] to distinguish themselves from each other on questions that there’s no hope of actually being able to accomplish in the short term, like Medicare for all,” Michael Podhorzer, former AFL-CIO political director and progressive political analyst, told me. That just forced Democrats to “exaggerate their differences.” 

Left to their own devices in 2027--2028, those same media figures will almost certainly “want to create internecine battles over issues of less relevance to most voters,” Podhorzer explained, leaving some candidates racing to take sides with Republicans (to prove their “moderate” bona fides) and leaving everyone aggrieved over issues of little import. Democrats should pledge not to repeat that experience.

There are enough journalistic refugees from legacy media, highly skilled independent media interviewers, and engaging think-tank gurus to sideline the corporate media crowd, thereby giving candidates room to shine while helping to rejigger the media landscape to benefit pro-democracy forces.

Finally, voters, activists, and engaged pundits really should drop the entire subject of “electability.” No one knows. Donald Trump has won twice, Zohran Mamdani was elected mayor of New York, and countless incumbents lost in primaries. Trying to game out in advance which candidates will match up well against a yet-to-be-determined Republican nominee on issues not remotely clear years in advance is entirely pointless.

It makes for lazy punditry, but worse, it promotes an ‘if the other guy wins, we are doomed’ or ‘we cannot win unless my gal wins’ mentality, which is intellectually dishonest and the last thing a big tent party charged with building a giant coalition needs.

In sum, as the first stages of officially constructing the 2028 presidential primary process get underway this week, the stakes will be astronomically high for the DNC, party activists, candidates, and voters. However, by abiding by the political equivalent of the Hippocratic Oath (don’t make the primary system the province of a tiny number of overwhelmingly white states, don’t chase people out of the race, don’t let legacy media run the show, don’t fall into the “electability” trap), Democrats can avoid some of the pitfalls of past election cycles. 

Above all, the greater pro-democracy coalition must remember that — whenever the nominee is chosen — past grievances must be put aside. Our democracy’s future depends upon it.

-Jennifer Rubin, The Contrarian is community-supported. Help fund bold journalism and critical lawsuits to stop Trump’s corruption by becoming a paid subscriber. Join the fight now.

 

Telltale signs of Trump’s pathological lying

Behavioral analysts and body language experts note that Donald Trump’s physical affect and speaking style often exhibit distinct patterns when he is making false or misleading statements. These indicators—which are regularly analyzed in political and psychological studies—include: 

The "Accordion" Hand Gesture: When discussing complex topics or delivering highly questionable claims, he frequently moves his hands up and down in an accordion-like motion, which experts identify as a way to physically "package" information he is trying to sell to the audience.

Rapid Head Shaking: He often performs quick, subtle "no" head shakes while simultaneously saying "yes" to a claim, a physiological mismatch often linked with subconscious deceit. 

Defensive Language and "DARVO": When challenged, his effects shift from performative to aggressive.

The Guardian strategy: Deny the accusation, Attack the accuser, and Reverse the Victim and Offender to divert scrutiny. 

"Duping Delight" and Smiling: Observers have noted that he will sometimes display "duping delight"—a fleeting, self-satisfied smile that occurs when he is successfully misleading the room or repeating a fabricated attack.

Increased Vocal Projection: When presenting false narratives, his voice frequently becomes more monotone and noticeably louder, relying on volume and repetition to force the point rather than nuanced persuasion.

Psychologists have also observed that his Constant Repetition of Falsehoods creates an "emotional adaptation," leading to a lack of traditional "guilt" cues, which makes his lying behavior uniquely difficult to read compared to conventional politicians. Consider his habitual glancing down every time he lies and fluttering his eyes to avoid eye contact with the camera or his interviewer as well. He doesn’t realize what a poster child he is as a pathological liar who “suffers” from malignant Narcissism.

-FB & YouTube Video

A Commentary That Is Still Relevant Today:

So, why do some people support this lying scoundrel? According to neuroscientist Bobby Azarian, “Some people support him out of ignorance. Basically, they are under-informed or misinformed about the issues at hand.”

Consider when he still redundantly states the 2020 election was stolen, and they simply take his word for it. This is called “The Dunning-Kruger Effect. [In other words], the problem isn’t just that they are misinformed; it’s that they are completely unaware that they are misinformed, which creates a double burden [for them]. Studies have shown that people who lack expertise in some area of knowledge often have a cognitive bias that prevents them from realizing that they lack expertise [or knowledge and intelligence].”

“As psychologist David Dunning wrote in an op-ed for Politico years ago, ‘The knowledge and intelligence that are required to [understand an issue at hand] are often the same qualities needed to recognize that one is [unwitting] — and if one lacks such knowledge and intelligence, one remains [completely oblivious] and is [incapable of understanding complex issues]. This includes political judgment: These people cannot be reached because they mistakenly believe they are correct [without the use of logic, inferential and divergent thinking, analysis, synthesis, common sense, evidence and facts].”

Moreover, why do MAGA politicians still support him? They want to hold on to their power, despite the consequential destruction of our democracy and the Constitution. There are also people who continue to support him because of their selfish greed. Why did they vote for him a second time? When he was in office, their idiotic rejoinder was usually “It’s the economy.” Of course, they did not care about millions of people who suffer while he continues to abet the American oligarchy. 

On the other hand, there are those who still support him and choose to ignore his seditious and treacherous behavior, his reprehensible ignorance, egregious incompetence, intentional maliciousness, anti-social personality disorder, pathological narcissism, psychopathic dominance, impulsivity, remorselessness, cheating and lying. One can assume they continue to support him today because of their own illogic, xenophobia, fear, resentment, racism, hatred, anxiety, insecurity, avarice, credulousness, submissiveness, and powerlessness.

from September 29, 2020

-Glen Brown