Week 73 — The Return – The Weekly List

This week Trump and senior regime officials continued to give ever-changing objectives and endgames for his Iran War, which entered its fifth week. Trump continued efforts to game his beloved stock market, which at one point entered correction territory, with rosy statements ahead of markets opening. The price of gas rose above $4 a gallon, and the vast majority of Americans expressed disapproval and dismay with Trump’s handling of the war and economy. Trump’s approval was now lower than former president Richard Nixon’s during Watergate, and George W. Bush’s during the lows of the Gulf War. At times, in fact frequently, Trump made statements this week that call into question his mental acumen, at a time when he alone is calling the shots for a war that has increasing global impacts.

The Republican-led Congress, meanwhile, was unable to come to a simple resolution on funding parts of the Department of Homeland Security, instead leaving Trump to act unilaterally, and order that Transportation Security Administration workers be paid ahead of spring break. Republicans in Congress not only once again abdicated their role of controlling the budget, they also left town for a two week recess, leaving Trump alone in D.C. as he deployed thousands more troops to an increasingly unpopular war they had not approved. TMZ took to publishing photos of members of Congress living it up on vacation amid a DHS shutdown and a country in chaos.

Not only was Trump literally alone in D.C., but figuratively the U.S. was increasingly isolated with his actions. Trump, his regime, and Republicans continued to make remarkable concessions to Russia, which was aiding Iran and helping them successfully target U.S. troops and interests, while distancing the U.S. from our post World War 2 alliances. The survival of NATO is undoubtedly in question.

Finally, this week had several important court rulings, mostly against Trump. We continue to see his regime’s attempts at retribution against Trump’s perceived enemies. We also continue to see a growing dysfunction in our federal agencies. The week closes out with Trump breaking yet another precedent, attending a Supreme Court hearing on his birthright citizenship executive order, and preparing to address the nation in the evening on his Iran war.

The DOJ reached a settlement with Michael Flynn, a conservative activist who served in the first Trump regime, to pay him $1.25 million. Flynn pleaded guilty to lying about his contacts with a Russian official in 2017, and later sued in 2023 claiming political persecution.
A group of Jan. 6 insurrectionists sued the Capitol Police and Metropolitan Police Department in Florida for tens of millions in damages, alleging “indiscriminate” use of force repelling the attack that caused them physical and emotional injuries.
On Thursday, the Treasury Department announced Trump’s signature would appear on U.S. currency in June to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the country, marking the first time in 165 years that the currency would be signed by a president rather than the U.S. treasurer.
On Monday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill into law renaming the airport near West Palm Beach as President Donald J. Trump International Airport, effective July 1.
NYT reported the DOJ and IRS were struggling with ethical concerns over Trump’s $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS, and had yet to respond, and were considering delaying the case until 2029. Assigning a DOJ lawyer would be unworkable since they work for Trump.
Trump regime officials believed that ultimately the DOJ and IRS would consult with Trump on how the government should respond to his lawsuit. Additional ethics concerns were raised by the prospect of a huge settlement of taxpayer dollars to Trump and his family.
Politico reported under Trump, the Federal Emergency Management Agency had rejected aid for Democratic-run states at the highest rate in the agency’s 47-year history: just 23% of disaster aid was approved, compared to 89% for states with Republican governors and senators.
A Fox News poll found Trump’s disapproval at 59%, the highest for the pollster during both regimes. Trump also had his lowest approval with Republicans in the second regime, falling from 92% last March to 84%. The poll also found 64% disapprove of Trump’s handling of the Iran War.
An AP-NORC poll found that 73% of Americans were extremely (45%) or somewhat (28%) concerned about being able to afford gas in the next few months, including 60% of Republicans. Just 20% of Republicans supported deploying U.S. ground troops in Iran.
On Friday, Rep. Sam Graves, a senior Republican who chaired the House Committee on Transportation, said he would retire, the 36th House Republican to do so, setting a new record for most Republicans to retire since 34 retired in 2018, during Trump’s first regime.
On Monday, Democrats flipped the 30th seat since Trump took office, with Brian Nathan, a military veteran and electrician, winning a special election for a Florida state senate seat in the formerly reliably Republican district of West Tampa.
On Wednesday, the U.S. Postal Service said it would impose its first-ever surcharge on packages, raising prices by 8% phased in starting April 26, to cover the rising costs of fuel and transportation.
The DOJ admitted in a court filing that it repeatedly made a “material mistake” in court, citing an ICE memo titled “2025 ICE Guidance” to justify arrests at immigration courts, which led to courthouse arrests nationwide.
Propublica reported the DOJ had quietly dropped more than 23,000 criminal cases in the first six months of the Trump regime, including investigations into terrorism, white-collar crime, drugs, and other offenses, as the regime shifted lawyers to work on immigration cases.
NYT reported 46 immigrants have died in ICE custody under Trump, including 13 in the first three months of 2026 alone, indicating the pace of deaths was increasing. The deaths have led to calls for congressional hearings, six lawsuits, and condemnation from home countries.
On Monday, the government of Mexico condemned the Trump regime’s immigration crackdown, after a 14th Mexican died in ICE custody, saying it would “exhaust all legal, diplomatic and multilateral avenues to demand justice,” calling it “an alarming and unacceptable trend.”
NYT reported that in 2025, 75% of all metro U.S. counties saw population growth slow or turn negative, amid mass deportations and voluntary departures, fewer migrating into the U.S., domestic migration, and declining birth rates
On Wednesday, New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill signed legislation prohibiting law enforcement, including ICE, from wearing masks. Sherrill said, “I can’t believe we have to say this, but in the United States of America, we’re not going to tolerate masked, roving militias.”
Propublica reported after Trump pardoned Joseph Schwartz, a nursing home operator who pleaded guilty to $39 million in fraud and was sentenced to three years in prison, families of patients who won millions in lawsuits were unable to collect from him.
Daniel Tocci, a Jan. 6 insurrectionist pardoned by Trump, was sentenced to four years in prison for possessing more than 100,000 child sexual abuse images and videos. His lawyer said charges should be dismissed since the evidence was gathered in his Jan. 6 prosecution.
The Trump regime delayed nominating a new Centers for Disease Control director, despite passing the 210 day limit for an acting director to stay in place without Senate confirmation, due to trouble finding a director who aligns with Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s views.
Roll Call reported the Trump regime planned to ask Congress to cut National Institutes of Health spending by 20%, in what would be a massive blow to the biomedical research agency.
NYT reported that 95,000 federal employees have left scientific agencies through layoffs, retirements, or resignations since Trump took office. Of those, as estimated 10,000 held doctorate degrees in the sciences.
Kate Marvel, a prominent climate scientist, left NASA after being unable to get funding for her work. She wrote, “the Earth is warming due to human activities, this warming is already responsible for human suffering…None of this is, or should be, the least bit controversial.”
NYT reported that Defense Department Sec. Pete Hegseth blocked promotions of two Black and two female officers from becoming one-star generals, removing them from a list of three dozen officers. It was unclear if Hegseth had the legal authority to do so.
Ricky Buria, Hegseth’s chief of staff, reportedly told Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll that Trump would not want to stand next to Black or female officers at events. Senior military officials could not recall previous defense secretaries removing a name from the promotion list.
A group of Epstein survivors sued the Trump regime and Google over the disclosure of their personal information in the latest Epstein files release, saying the DOJ had “outed approximately 100 survivors,” and sought to immediately and permanently take the information down.
Bloomberg reported a lawyer for whistleblower Erez Reuveni told Congress the DOJ Inspector General refused to investigate his misconduct complaint against Emil Bove and other Trump regime top officials.
On Wednesday, top Republicans on the House and Senate Armed Services committees castigated the Pentagon over the lack of details in an Iran War classified briefing, including plans for troops, and warned the regime could lose Congressional support if it cannot make its case.
Some Republicans also voiced concern that the conflict could spiral into a ground war. Rep. Nancy Mace posted on X, “I will not support troops on the ground in Iran, even more so after this briefing.” Rep. Ryan Mackenzie warned of getting “embroiled in another forever war.”
On Friday, Iran-linked hackers published excerpts of FBI Director Kash Patel’s personal emails online, including photographs of the director and other documents, indicating they had successfully hacked his account.
Three fired FBI agents filed a class-action lawsuit against Patel and Attorney General Pam Bondi, on behalf of all FBI employees who have already been fired or could be, saying they were victims of political retribution, and were fired without due process and civil service laws.
WAPO reported Patel was pushing to release records relating to a decade-old investigation of Rep. Eric Swalwell, one of Trump’s perceived enemies, and a suspected Chinese intelligence operative, even though the FBI and a GOP-led House Ethics Committee took no action.
A federal judge ruled on civil litigation brought by police officers and Democratic lawmakers, including Swalwell, related to Jan. 6, finding that evidence showed Trump’s speech at the Ellipse was political in nature, and therefore did not provide Trump with immunity in the case.
On Wednesday, Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte made two criminal referrals for New York AG Letitia James, alleging she committed insurance fraud. The referrals came months after the DOJ failed for a third time to prosecute James.
On Wednesday, speaking at a National Republican Congressional Committee dinner, Trump raged about the Supreme Court tariff ruling, saying of two of the people he appointed, Justices Neil Gorsuch and Amy Coney Barrett, “they sicken me,” and “they’re bad for our country.”
Trump said he planned to avoid using the word ‘war’ for Iran, instead calling it a ‘military operation,’ citing, “the word ‘war,’ that’s maybe not a good thing to do,” and adding, “They don’t like the word ‘war’ because you’re supposed to get approval.”
Trump claimed that Iran was “on its knees” and desperate for a deal, and said that Iran had offered to make him “the next Supreme Leader,” but he said, “No, thank you, I don’t want it.”
At the dinner, House Speaker Mike Johnson awarded Trump with a newly created “America First award,” saying it was a token of appreciation for his leadership.
On Wednesday, NYT reported that Iran’s attacks on U.S. bases across the Middle East had forced U.S. troops to relocate to hotels and office space throughout the region, essentially working remotely, raising questions about the Trump regime’s preparation for the war.
On Wednesday, the White House posted cryptic videos on X and Instagram. In one posted at 9:15 p.m. ET, a female voice asked, “It’s launching soon, right?” The video was deleted 90 minutes later. It was unclear if the videos were posted intentionally.
On Wednesday, FT reported that Russia was sending drones, medicine, and food to Iran. NYT reported that European allies were worried that Russia was preparing to deliver advanced drones to Iran to use against the U.S. and Israel. The Trump regime played down the threat.
On Thursday, a delegation of members of Russia’s State Duma were invited by five Kremlin-friendly House Republicans to the U.S. Capitol, the first time Russian lawmakers had visited since the country’s invasion of Ukraine. The State Department lifted sanctions for the visit.
In a letter to Sec. of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Department Sec. Scott Bessent, five House Democrats and one House Republican demanded to know why Russian lawmakers who were “subject to U.S. sanctions” were able to visit and tour the U.S. Capitol.
On Thursday, Trump rebuked NATO allies on Truth Social, posting in all-caps that “NATO nations have done absolutely nothing to help with the lunatic nation,” adding “the U.S.A. needs nothing from NATO, but will “never forget” this very important point in time.”
On Friday, Axios reported Rubio got into a heated exchange with EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas at a G7 ministers meeting, after Kallas confronted him for not pressuring Russia, while making demands of Ukraine, noting, “A year has passed and Russia hasn’t moved.”
Later Friday, speaking to reporters, Rubio denied a statement made by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky that the Trump regime demanded Kyiv hand over its eastern Donbas region to Russia in exchange for a security guarantee, saying, “That’s a lie.”
Swiss public broadcaster SRF reported Swiss trust in the U.S. was suffering, after Switzerland ordered Tomahawk missiles years ago, and now the U.S. said they cannot deliver them. When the Swiss tried to halt payments, the Trump regime seized and redirected funds paid for F-35s.
WAPO reported the U.S. was considering diverting military aid meant for Ukraine to the Middle East, after U.S. Central Command has hit more than 9,000 targets in four weeks, burning through munitions. The U.S. had used 850 Tomahawk missiles, raising concerns about supplies.
On Thursday, at a cabinet meeting, Trump said Iran said, “‘we’re not negotiating…Of course, they’re negotiating. They’ve been obliterated,” and castigated NATO allies, saying, “I heard the head of Germany say ‘this is not our war,’ about Iran, I said, ‘Well, Ukraine’s not our war.’”
Trump also went off topic several times, including his preference for Sharpie pen; bragging about the Kennedy Center name change, “I was honored when the board changed the name a little bit;” and musing about running for president of Venezuela because he was so popular.
Trump told Cabinet officials that he voted by mail in last week’s Florida special election, “because I felt I should be here instead of being in the beautiful sunshine;” however records showed that Trump cast his vote by mail from Palm Beach.
Later Thursday, Trump seemed confounded, posting on Truth Social and calling Iranian officials “very different and ‘strange,’” claiming that they were “begging” for a deal, and adding they “better get serious soon.”
Later Thursday, Trump extended the pause of attacking Iran’s energy for another 10 days, his second extension since threats of an attack in 48 hours on Saturday, claiming the talks were going “very well.” Iran said on social media that they did not ask for the extension.
Later Thursday, WSJ reported that the Trump regime was considering sending another 10,000 ground troops to the Middle East. The force would be in addition to 5,000 Marines and the thousands of paratroopers who had already been deployed to the region.
NYT reported foreign diplomats expressed concern that the U.S. diplomatic machine was malfunctioning. Secretary of State Rubio was not taking a lead role as would be typical. Iran exploited the confusion to pick which regime officials they wanted to negotiate with.
On Friday, Reuters reported that according to U.S. intelligence, the Pentagon can only confirm with certainty that about a third of Iran’s missile arsenal and about a third of its drones had been destroyed. The numbers were far less than shared by Trump and others.
Semafor reported the State Department reallocated $1.25 billion in funding to Trump’s so-called Board of Peace, including pulling $1 billion from international disaster assistance, $200 million from peacekeeping operations, and $50 million from organizations and programming.
On Friday, MSNOW reported White House officials said Trump was getting bored with the Iran War, and wanted to move on. Trump had started to shift conversations to issues like the economy, domestic issues, and midterms.
Later Thursday, a federal judge temporarily blocked the Trump regime from designating Anthropic as a supply chain risk, calling the regime’s move a “classic illegal First Amendment retaliation.”
On Friday, Trump told American farmers gathered on the South Lawn for a speech, “I just gave you 12 billion dollars. I don’t know if you know that or not,” to some applause, then added, “You make enough money. It doesn’t matter to you, right?” The crowd went silent.
On Friday, the stock market closed lower, with the S&P 500 having its worst week since the Iran War started, and closing lower for the fifth week, with every sector in the red except for energy. The Nasdaq was down more than 10%, entering correction territory.
On Friday, contradicting Trump who said the Iranians were “begging” for a deal, Rubio said the U.S. has “had an exchange of messages from the Iranian system,” but they had not responded to the U.S. 15-point plan, and added that the U.S. wanted to know who it was talking to.
Later Friday, at the Future Investment Initiative Priority Summit, a Saudi-backed conference in Miami, Trump said, “We have a thing called a war” but “for legal reasons” he calls it a “military operation” because that way we “don’t need any approvals” from Congress.
Trump also mused about renaming the Strait of Hormuz as “the Strait of Trump,” joking, “Excuse me. I’m so sorry. Such a terrible mistake” then adding, “The fake news will say, ‘He accidentally said’ — No, there’s no accidents with me, not too many. If there were, we’d have a major story.”
Trump also seemed to blame the Iran War on his not getting the Nobel Peace Prize, saying, “When I didn’t get the Nobel Peace Prize. You gotta understand, I don’t care. Norway has lost so credible. I stopped 8 wars,” adding, “President Putin called me” to say he stopped so many wars.
Asked about leadership, Trump said, “you’ve got to win,” and there are “mostly losers,” adding, “I hang out with losers because it makes me feel better. I hate guys that are very, very successful and you have to listen to their success stories. I like people that like to listen to my success.”
While Trump was speaking, 12 American troops were injured, two severely, when Iran struck a building and several unmanned aerial vehicles, at the Prince Sultan air base in Saudi Arabia, the second strike to the base.
Iranian strikes also hit and destroyed a U.S. Air Force E-3 Sentry aircraft, said to cost roughly $450 million, despite Trump repeatedly saying that Iran’s capabilities had been obliterated. A military expert called the aircraft loss “a serious blow to (U.S.) surveillance capabilities.”
On Saturday, Zelensky told NBC News that he was “100%” confident that Russia took satellite images of a U.S. air base in Saudi Arabia three times, and shared the intelligence with Iran, in the days before the strike.
On Saturday, CBS News reported that European allies were publicly and privately telling American diplomats that Russia was helping Iran’s war efforts far more than the U.S. had acknowledged. Kallas said that cooperation included helping “with intelligence to target Americans.”
A report by the the National Security Strategy to U.K. Parliament urged the government to move away from reliance on the U.S. for defenses, and should move toward “a clear plan, along with other European allies, for a transition towards greater European leadership of NATO.”
Later Saturday, WAPO reported the Pentagon was preparing for a weeks-long ground operation in Iran, as thousands of soldiers and Marines arrived in the Middle East. Trump had vacillated between saying he was winding down the war, and escalating it during the week.
CNBC reported that Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said at a conference the U.S. had brought home “$100 million of gold — physically, the gold,” from Venezuela for the first time in “over 20 years,” for commercial and consumer purposes.
On Sunday, the Trump regime allowed a Russian oil tanker to reach Cuba, effectively breaking the months-long blockade of oil the regime had created by not allowing any country’s oil tankers to enter, including from its traditional source, Venezuela.
Asked about it on Air Force One, Trump told reporters, “We don’t mind having somebody get a boatload, because they need — they have to survive.” The humanitarian situation in Cuba had become dire under Trump’s blockade. It was unclear why Russian oil was okayed.
Trump also baselessly claimed, “We’ve had regime change” in Iran, because so many leaders had been killed, saying Iran had moved onto its “third regime,” and U.S. negotiators were speaking to “a whole different group of people,” who have “been very reasonable.”
Trump also pulled out a large image of his proposed White House Ballroom, and bragged about it saying, “It’s become really beautiful. It matches and fits the White House.” He also said the U.S. military would have a “massive military complex” under the ballroom.
Trump’s explanation came after NYT reporting that the ballroom’s plan had not been properly scrutinized as it was rushed through, and contains many design flaws including its portico was too big, stairs which led nowhere, and the columns would block views from inside.
A federal judge, appointed by George W. Bush, halted construction of Trump’s ballroom on Tuesday, saying Trump must get approval from Congress, adding the president “is the steward of the White House for future generations of First Families. He is not, however, the owner!”
The judge added that the Trump regime had not identified a law that allowed Trump “to demolish the White House’s East Wing last year without congressional approval.” The Trump regime said it would appeal the “egregious” decision.
Shortly after, Trump told reporters the judge was “so wrong” and “I’m allowed to continue building as necessary.” Later, in a lengthy Truth Social post, Trump attacked the plaintiffs, posting, “The National Trust for Historic Preservation, a Radical Left Group of Lunatics”
Later Sunday, Trump told FT that his preference would be to “to take the oil in Iran,” but complained “some stupid people back in the U.S. say: ‘why are you doing that?’ But they’re stupid people,” and adding, “Maybe we take Kharg Island, maybe we don’t. We have a lot of options.
On Monday, before the markets opened, in what had become a familiar pattern of Trump seeking to buoy markets, Trump posted on Truth Social that the regime was “ in serious discussions with A NEW, AND MORE REASONABLE, REGIME to end our Military Operations in Iran.”
Trump also threatened that “if the Hormuz Strait is not immediately “Open for Business,”” the U.S. would “conclude our lovely “stay” in Iran” by blowing up all of Iran’s electric generating plants, oil wells, and Kharg Island, as well as “possibly all desalinization plants.”
Trump also posted, thanking “Highly Respected President Alexander Lukashenko,” the authoritarian leader of Belarus, for releasing 250 more prisoners, saying he looked forward to seeing him at the next Board of Peace meeting. Russia state media TASS reported on the post.
Ahead of a Supreme Court hearing of the birthright citizenship case, Trump posted on Truth Social that countries are “selling citizenships” to the U.S., attacking the federal court system as “stupid,” and adding, “Dumb Judges and Justices will not a great Country make!”
WAPO reported that the Trump regime had cited white supremacist Alexander Porter Morse, a Confederate officer during the Civil War who was known for his anti-Black and anti-Chinese racist views, in their Supreme Court argument to end birthright citizenship.
On Friday, at CPAC, FCC chair Brendan Carr said, “Trump is winning” against the “fake news,” citing PBS and NPR being defunded; Joy Reid, Sleepy-Eyed Chuck Todd, Jim Acosta, John Dickerson are gone. Colbert is leaving. CBS is under new ownership, and soon CNN will have new ownership.
On Tuesday, a federal judge blocked the Trump regime from implementing Trump’s executive order to stop funding for PBS and NPR, citing the First Amendment right to free speech “does not tolerate viewpoint discrimination and retaliation of this type.”
On Tuesday, a federal appeals court paused a lower court ruling that Voice of America journalists and staffers should be immediately reinstated. The regime did not appeal the ruling vacating their other actions to close down Voice of America.
On Wednesday, ICE agents started to perform duties of TSA agents at some airports, including checking IDs and screening passengers alongside TSA agents. Some passengers worried that ICE agents were not properly qualified for screening, or might racially profile.
On Thursday, the 41st day of the partial government shutdown, Trump posted on Truth Social that he would sign an executive order to pay TSA agents, posting, “It is not an easy thing to do, but I am going to do it!” It was unclear where the funding would come from.
Hours later, at 2:20 a.m. ET, the Senate voted unanimously ahead of the busy spring break week to fund DHS, except ICE and CBP. The House on Friday voted down the Senate version, and passed its own funding bill that would fund the entire DHS, but was sure to fail in the Senate.
Shortly after, on Friday, Trump signed a memo directing that TSA agents be paid in full, citing, “these circumstances constitute an emergency situation compromising the Nation’s security.” Critics noted Trump had held up paying TSA agents, and could have done it at any time.
On Saturday, more than 3,200 No Kings protests were held in all 50 states and around the world, with the flagship rally in St. Paul, Minnesota. The organizers estimated that 8 million participated in protests, the largest of the three No Kings protests so far.
Organizers said two-thirds of events happened outside of major cities, up 40% from the first mobilization last June. Many young protestors joined in the third No Kings marches to protest the Iran War, and Trump’s immigration crackdown was also a major theme.
On Saturday, Trump ally, singer Kid Rock posted a video of an Apache helicopter hovering for several seconds near his home, as he stood by his pool. Two army helicopters were seen flying near his home. An Army spokesperson said officials were aware and investigating.
On Monday, the Army suspended the aircrew, saying, “Army aviators must adhere to strict safety standards, professionalism, and established flight regulations.” On Tuesday, Hegseth reversed the suspension, posting on X, “No punishment. No investigation. Carry on, patriots.”
On Monday, TSA workers started receiving paychecks for the first time since February 14. Border Czar Tom Homan said ICE agents would remain at airports until he was clear how many TSA workers would return, saying, “It depends how many TSA agents come back to work.”
On Monday, the DHS funding lapse hit 44 days, making it the longest government shutdown in U.S. history. Congress had left D.C. on Friday for a two week recess leaving no resolution in sight.
On Monday, a poll by UMass/Amherst found Trump’s approval had hit the lowest point for either regime: 33% approved, and 62% disapproved. On his military action in Iran, 29% approved, and 54% disapproved. On issues, Trump’s net approval was immigration -25, jobs -31, inflation -47.
On Monday, Axios reported House Republicans were considering a reduction in health care spending to cover the $200 billion in funding requested by the Trump regime to fund the Iran War.
Bloomberg reported more than 50 House and Senate Democrats were investigating the Trump regime’s plan to spend $38 billion to convert warehouses into immigration jails, citing ICE used a non-competitive bid process and warehouses “were built to hold products, not people.”
On Sunday, WAPO reported that Hegseth was upending wartime norms with an unprecedented embrace of Christian nationalism, sparking a backlash as multiple former high-ranking military officials and experts said the approach violates the Constitution and hurt cohesion.
Pope Leo XIV rejected the prayers in remarks on Palm Sunday, saying in English that God “does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war.” Citing a Bible passage, he added, “Even though you make many prayers, I will not listen: Your hands are full of blood.”
On Monday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt opened the press briefing, saying, “Could you hear our ‘amen’ in there? We just had a little loud prayer as a team,” saying Trump was joining “Christians celebrating the resurrection of our lord and savior, Jesus Christ.”
On Monday, WSJ reported Trump aides said he was willing to end the war without the strait being reopened, saying the effort to reopen the chokepoint would extend beyond his stated time-frame of four to six weeks. He would push allies in the Gulf and Europe to reopen the strait.
On Monday, FT reported Hegseth’s broker at Morgan Stanley contacted BlackRock in February about making a multi-million investment in their Defense Industrial Active ETF. The inquiry was flagged at BlackRock and not completed.
Holdings of the ETF included some of the Defense Department’s biggest customers such as RTX, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, as well at Palantir. A Pentagon spokesperson denied the FT reporting, calling it “false and fabricated.”
Later Monday, Eric Trump shared a video on X of Trump’s skyscraper presidential library, which would loom over Miami, saying the “landmark” would stand “as a lasting testament to an amazing man, an amazing developer, and the greatest President our Nation has ever known.”
Trump told reporters on Tuesday that the library would be “most likely a hotel” or an office, “with a beautiful building underneath and a 747 Air Force One in the lobby.” The land for the library was gifted to Trump at no cost in a state-backed deal.
On Tuesday, Trump castigated allies on Truth Social, threatening, “You’ll have to start learning how to fight for yourself, the U.S.A. won’t be there to help you anymore, just like you weren’t there for us.”
Trump also singled out France, posting they “wouldn’t let planes headed to Israel, loaded up with military supplies, fly over French territory,” calling France “VERY UNHELPFUL,” and adding, “ The U.S.A. will REMEMBER!!!”
Trump also singled out the U.K., posting countries “like the United Kingdom, which refused to get involved in the decapitation of Iran,” telling them, “Number 1, buy from the U.S.” and “Number 2, build up some delayed courage, go to the Strait, and just TAKE IT.”
Shortly after, Trump told CBS News he was not “quite yet” ready to remove U.S. assets, but that allies must “come in and take care of” the Strait of Hormuz, adding, “Iran has been decimated, but they’re going to have to come in and do their own work.”
Trump also repeated his claim that despite repeated strikes by Iran, including a Kuwaiti oil tanker overnight, “there’s no real threat” in the Strait of Hormuz, adding, “NATO is terrible, and they’re all terrible. So if they want oil, come up and grab it. There’s no real threat.”
On Tuesday, Hegseth and Joint Chief of Staff Dan Caine held their first press briefing in 11 days, highly unusual in a time of war, as the price of gas rose above $4 a gallon. The press access, and ability to ask questions, was limited to news outlets friendly to the Trump regime.
Hegseth said the “upcoming days will be decisive,” echoing much of Trump’s morning posts attacking our allies, and claiming negotiations were “very real” and “active and, I think, gaining strength,” and threatened if there is not a deal, “we’ll negotiate with bombs.”
On Tuesday, CNN reported that as Trump said the war could wrap up soon because the regime had accomplished its goals, Trump, Hegseth, Rubio, and Leavitt continued to give different and ever-changing objectives for the war.
On Tuesday, a third U.S. aircraft carrier was deployed to the Middle East, carrying an additional 5,000 troops, bringing the total to be in the region to 55,000.
Later Tuesday, Trump signed an executive order directing the DHS to create a “state citizenship list” to determine voting eligibility and changing the rules for mail in voting. The order was viewed as unconstitutional, as voting is the purview of states and Congress only.
Trump also told reporters in the Oval Office that the U.S. would be leaving Iran in two to three weeks, extending beyond Trump’s initial estimate of four to six weeks. The stock market rallied on Tuesday after promises of wrapping up the war in a short time frame.
Trump also again lied that “We have had regime change now. Regime change was not one of the things I had as a goal,” and also lied that, “They will have no nuclear weapon, and that goal has been attained.” There was no intelligence that Iran’s nuclear capability had been eliminated.
On Tuesday, a report by the United Nations Development Program found the Iran War could plunge four million more people across the Arab world into poverty, and that the region’s economy could lose more than $190 billion in just one month.
On Tuesday, the European Commission warned of the impact of the Iran War, warning the oil crisis triggered by the war would bring a lengthy upheaval, and urging Europeans to work from home and drive less, and to double down on building more renewables.
On Tuesday, Rubio told reporters that the U.S. “is going to have to reexamine” the merits of its relationship when the war is over, citing, “If NATO is just about us defending Europe if they’re attacked, but them denying us basing rights…that’s not a very good arrangement.”
On Tuesday, an American journalist, Shelly Kittleson, was abducted on a busy street in central Baghdad while reporting on the war. The State Department said on X they were “aware of the reported kidnapping,” and seemed to blame her for not heeding their advisory.
On Tuesday, a federal judge ruled that the Trump regime had the right to obtain a list of Jews on campus at the University of Pennsylvania as part of its federal investigation into the alleged antisemitism on campus. Many on campus had drawn comparisons to tactics of Nazi Germany.
On Wednesday, a CNN/SSRS poll found Trump’s overall approval at 35%, a new low for the pollster, while 77% of Americans said conditions in the U.S. were poor, 65% said Trump’s policies had worsened economic conditions, and 31% approved of his handling of the economy.
On Wednesday, Sen. Elizabeth Warren demanded in a letter that the Trump regime explain why it used the threat of tariffs on European countries that initiated formal investigations into Trump ally Elon Musk’s xAI for enabling child sexual exploitation online.
On Wednesday, Trump claimed Iran’s “new regime president,” who he claimed was “much less Radicalized and far more intelligent” (there was no new leader) had asked for ceasefire, but contradicted himself from the day prior, saying first the strait would have to be fully opened.
On Wednesday, Trump attended the Supreme Court hearing on his birthright citizenship order, becoming the first president to sit in on Supreme Court proceedings. The move came after Trump had publicly tried to bully and intimidate the Supreme Court justices.

For the first time since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Russian lawmakers traveled to the U.S. for talks with Republican House members and a tour of the U.S. Capitol, organized by Representative Anna Paulina Luna. (Credit: Luna X account)