Last Wednesday, I wrote about Ohio Rep. Max Miller and his refusal to end his reelection campaign in light of the multiple accusations of violence against his ex-wife, including holding a gun to her head and throwing boiling hot water on her as well as breaking the collarbone of his 2-year-old daughter. But one of his abusive actions has really resonated with observers–his refusal to return his daughter’s beloved blue bunny.
Miller, 37, has faced domestic violence and physical abuse allegations for years, most recently from his ex-wife, the mother of his 2-year-old daughter. But no detail has broken through quite like the “little blue bunny.” Conservative colleagues who previously had avoided commenting on Miller’s personal life called this week for his resignation after his former father-in-law, another powerful Ohio Republican, accused the second-term congressman of holding his granddaughter’s stuffy “hostage” for 48 hours.
“This girl is crying at night because she can’t sleep without her little blue bunny, and his answer is, ‘I’m just not going to give it to you,’” Sen. Bernie Moreno told reporters Tuesday.
Miller, who has denied all claims of abuse, posted screenshots on X the next day that he said exonerated him. His ex-wife’s team had sent the wrong “conduit” to fetch the bunny, he said, according to the text messages between the two, which delayed the handoff by 14 hours — not 48.
She asked him to please just leave it in the mailbox, according to the exchange, which racked up 2.3 million views.
By “the wrong conduit” Miller meant that his wife had sent a family friend to pick up the bunny instead of her father. So Miller refused to return it. Back to the WaPo:
CNN’s Jake Tapper asked the question on so many minds, “Did you hold this doll hostage?”
On this, the internet agreed.
“What kind of father wouldn’t deliver the bunny himself, knowing that it helps his little girl sleep at night?” one commenter asked.
“This does not make you look better,” added a reporter for Gateway Pundit, a far-right news site.
“There are literally thousands of fathers reading those tweets and thinking: ‘When my daughter lost her favorite toy, I led a search party as if for a downed NATO nuclear warhead. And when that failed, I paid $300 for a replica on eBay,” posted David Frum, a former speechwriter for President George W. Bush.
Suddenly, the standoff over a toy in Ohio had sparked passionate chatter nationwide.
“Everybody gets it, no matter which side of the aisle they are on,” said Jon Krosnick, director of the Political Psychology Research Group at Stanford University. The little blue bunny, he added, “communicates so powerfully to all of us.”
Psychologists call the special toys or blankets that toddlers grow attached to “transitional objects.” In our culture, child begin to sleep alone much earlier than in many others cultures. Children here use their blanket or a stuffed animal as an attachment figure. Usually, by about age 6, kids can let go of the special object, but many older children keep it nearby and some even take it when they go away to college. I still recall my “blue blankie” that I carried with me everywhere as a child.
You can read the rest of the WaPo article using the gift link above.
Ohio Representative Max Miller has denied holding a little blue bunny hostage—but a series of messages shows the alleged abuser has a pattern of stealing his two-year-old daughter’s toy.
Miller has been accused of physically abusing his ex-wife Emily Moreno, daughter of Senator Bernie Moreno, for years. Amid the many abuse allegations against Miller, the lawmaker has taken the time to refute one distressing detail about his relationship with his daughter.
Speaking to the press Monday, Senator Moreno claimed that over the weekend, Miller had refused to return his daughter’s blue bunny. “This girl is crying at night because she can’t sleep without her little blue bunny. His answer is ‘I’m just not gonna give it to you,’” Moreno said.
“This is the level of total and complete depravity,” he added.
Miller denied withholding his daughter’s beloved bunny, claiming that he’d scheduled it to be picked up from his mailbox through the family’s parental coordinator, Dr. Deborah Koricke.
However, a series of screenshotted messages obtained by Mother Jones’s Abby Vesoulis suggest that Miller has a history of keeping the blue bunny hostage.
In one email dated March 19, 2025, Emily Moreno begged Miller to return the toy. “Can [redacted] please have her bunny back? She’s had it since birth, sleeps with it every night, carries it with her around the house, and sees it as a source of comfort,” Moreno wrote.
She also urged Miller not to “punish” their daughter because he was upset with his ex-wife.
At that time, the girl would have only been 1 year old! I said on Wednesday that Miller is monster, and this proves it. This man is cold as ice.
In a text message exchange from May, Senator Moreno asked if the bunny had been left behind, and Miller replied that the family could go through the parent coordinator to retrieve it. “I have no notes or record of what you are referring to,” Miller added.
“It’s the blue bunny she sleeps with, but got it,” Moreno said.
In an email from August 3 (right after the weekend Senator Moreno mentioned), Moreno’s attorney reached out to Miller’s lawyers in an attempt to have the bunny returned. “Why must this be a controversy? This is totally ridiculous. Please have Max return the bunny forthwith,” the attorney wrote.
In another text message from an unknown date, the family’s parent coordinator claimed that Miller “adamantly refuses” to leave the toy in the mailbox for Senator Moreno to retrieve.
The Miller race could have serious repercussions for Ohio and for Republicans’ hopes of hold in the House.
The controversy around Rep. Max Miller (R-Ohio) is complicating the midterm landscape for Ohio Republicans as Democrats build momentum in the Buckeye State, a former battleground that’s become a red state in the Trump era.
Miller, who is running for a third term in a competitive House district, is facing calls to step down after allegations of domestic abuse toward his ex-wife, the daughter of Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio). He has forcefully denied the claims, but the controversy could make his red seat an easier pick-up opportunity for Democrats in the high-stakes fight for House control.
Ohio is also host to a highly competitive Senate race, where former Sen. Sherrod Brown (D) has lodged a comeback bid against incumbent Sen. Jon Husted (R) that could bolster Democrats’ chances of taking back the upper chamber this fall — plus a neck-and-neck race for Ohio governor in the state that’s been GOP-led for more than a decade.
“In an environment where Republicans have been particularly strong in Ohio, this year’s environment is going to be much more challenging for them, and this certainly doesn’t help things,” said Robert Alexander, a political science professor at Bowling Green State University in Ohio, on the Miller developments.
“I think that the fact that so much of the attention is on Republicans is a good thing for Democrats,” he added. “The more it’s about Republicans, I think the better that Democrats will likely do.”
Forbes reports that a rally that Miller was to appear at had to be cancelled for “security concerns” amid “threats.” The rally was to be in support of the “SAVE American act.”
Miller has also donated $1 million to his campaign, according to the Wall Street Journal. That sounds like desperation. (Apparently Miller comes from a wealthy and prominent Ohio family.)
It so happens that Miller has a Democratic opponent, and he is beginning to draw attention.
Brian Poindexter, until recently a little-known Democratic candidate in a solidly Republican House district, lit a Marlboro cigarette and jammed a screwdriver into the latch of a shed door he had built. He ignored his phone, which had been blowing up in recent days because of a political scandal rocking Ohio.
“It’s crazy to have him running for Congress,” said the candidate’s father, Bob Poindexter, 68, who had made bolts for a living until he retired last year. He was watching his son work. “What would be really crazy is if he won.”
That prospect is rapidly becoming less crazy, as the campaign of Representative Max Miller, Republican of Ohio, has descended into turmoil over allegations that he had physically abused his wife and young daughter.
Mr. Poindexter, who turned 47 on Tuesday, is a hard hat-wearing, union card-carrying ironworker. With fresh opportunity — given Mr. Miller’s struggles — to win over voters in a Cleveland-area district that went for President Trump by double digits, he is the type of candidate some Democrats believe can claw back working-class voters who have flocked to Mr. Trump in recent years.
This week, he has set out to test that strategy in a Republican stronghold that is suddenly seen as competitive, and that could help Democrats retake the House.
Though he launched his campaign in January, Mr. Poindexter had been largely ignored by Democratic Party leadership until last week, when the fallout from an ugly custody battle between Mr. Miller and his ex-wife, the daughter of Senator Bernie Moreno, spilled into the national news. The district, which stretches from Amish country to the suburban shores of Lake Erie, has been considered comfortably Republican for a decade.
Read more using the gift link if you’re interested.
In other news, the Senate voted to confirm Todd Blanche as Attorney General, not that anyone is surprised.
The Senate confirmed Todd Blanche as attorney general in a vote early Saturday, cementing the command of President Donald Trump’s former personal lawyer at a Department of Justice that Trump has sought to bend to his will.
The Republican-led Senate voted 50-49 to make Blanche the second confirmed attorney general since Trump returned to the White House last year with a stated desire to use the law enforcement agency to investigate his political enemies. While Blanche has already been leading the department in an acting capacity, his confirmation could free him to pursue the administration’s agenda even more aggressively.
Blanche said on social media that he was “deeply honored by the trust and confidence President Trump has placed in me,” adding that he was “grateful” to senators for working late to confirm him.
The vote followed a tumultuous confirmation fight that exposed deep concerns — from some Republicans as well as Democrats — about installing Trump’s close ally atop a Justice Department that historically prided itself on its independence from the White House.
In the end, Blanche was confirmed by the narrowest of margins, opposed by two Republicans — Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska — and by every Democrat.
As Daknikat wrote yesterday, retiring Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy cast the deciding vote–just as he did with RFK, Jr.
Early Saturday morning, the Senate voted to confirm Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche to the official role after Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) caved and publicly backed President DonaldTrump’s former personal lawyer the day before.
Blanche was confirmed on a narrow 50-49 vote, with almostall Republicans aligning with the president. Thetwo exceptions wereSens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska). In other words, Cassidy, who initially withheld his approval overconcerns aboutBlanche helping Trump prosecute political enemies, pushing the $1.8 billion anti-weaponization slush fund, and exempting the president from IRS audits, capitulated—knowing that his was the deciding vote. He did so shortly after Murkowski announcedher opposition.
In his Friday remarks on the Senate floor, Cassidy raised several reasonable points on why Blanche should not be confirmed: “approving the anti-weaponization slush fund,” “exempting the president from IRS audits,” and the aforementioned “bringing suits against political enemies.”
But the senator—who recently lost his bid for reelection after being targeted as a “disloyal disaster” by Trump—summonedperplexing arguments from his familiar playbook: “Mr. Blanche has made commitments” to be better, Cassidy noted. “I have spoken to Mr. Blanche five or six times,” he assured his colleagues, and not approving Blanche “puts at risk the progress made fighting violent crime, human and drug trafficking, and fraud.” The Trump administration’s fight on crime and human and drug trafficking has led to significant increases in militarization domestically and abroad, while attacks on so-called widespread fraud have cut essential social programs like Medicare and Medicaid.
This isn’t Cassidy’s first rodeo in backing downfrom his principled opposition to a controversial or clearly unqualified candidate. He used similar logic to advance Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s nomination as health secretary as the deciding vote, putting naivetrust in his “assurances on vaccines.” And the senator did so again earlier this week—although his wasnot the sole deciding vote—to confirm Erica Schwartz, the physician and attorney who wasTrump’s pick for CDC director. Schwartz repeatedly dodged questions on whether she would carry out all of Kennedy’s policies, even if she believed it contradicted scientific evidence.
What a loser.
Trump got some bad news about his precious ballroom yesterday.
A federal appeals court on Friday ordered President Donald Trump’s administration to halt construction of its $400 million ballroom at the White House because the project lacks congressional approval.
Trump doesn’t have the unilateral authority to build a 90,000-square-foot (8,400-square-meter) ballroom where the White House’s East Wing stood before he ordered its demolition last fall, according to the decision by a three-judge panel from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit….
In a 2-1 decision on the ballroom, the appeals court sided with historic preservationists who sued to stop construction of the massive structure, which has begun to rise aboveground on the east side of the White House, according to the most recent aerial photos of the site. The court said it would stay its ruling for two weeks to give the administration time to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.
“Whether or not a massive ballroom should be constructed is for Congress to decide and is not a matter for Executive self-help,” the court wrote.
“This holding has nothing at all to do with whether the proposed ballroom is desirable, or not, as a matter of policy. This ruling does not even necessarily mean that the Defendants may not ultimately construct the ballroom.
“What it does mean,” the court continued, “is that the Defendants may not do so during the district court’s expeditious litigation without securing Congress’s authorization, as the Constitution and laws require.”
More detail from Kyle Cheney and Josh Gerstein at Politico:
A federal appeals court panel has ruled against President Donald Trump’s attempt to unilaterally demolish portions of the White House to build a massive ballroom, saying the unprecedented project requires congressional approval.
“Executive actions that take control of that property out of the hands of the people’s representatives while irreparably harming the historical and visual architecture of perhaps the most prominent public building in the United States seriously intrude on the public interest,” Judges Patricia Millett, an Obama appointee, and Bradley Garcia, a Biden appointee, wrote in a joint majority opinion issued Friday.
The appeals court put its ruling on hold for two weeks to allow Trump to seek relief from the Supreme Court. If the high court doesn’t act by then, above-ground construction at the site would have to halt….
Trump has claimed that security concerns necessitated tearing down the East Wing and replacing it with a ballroom and other features, such as a rooftop launching pad for drones. In his post Friday, he referred to the planned structure as a “Military Center.”
But the appeals panel’s majority rejected the notion that raising security issues meant the courts couldn’t enforce federal statutes governing funding for such projects.
“The bold assertion that the Executive can act with utter lawlessness, destroying treasured national landmarks and harming the interests of individuals, and that no court can stop it flouts our constitutional order,” Millett and Garcia wrote. “While this court accords great weight and deference to invocations of national security and the safety of the President, such arguments are not an automatic get-out-of-law-free card.”
The ruling is the latest blow to Trump’s effort to remake Washington, D.C., in his image. A federal judge blocked his bid to add his own name to the Kennedy Center, and his effort to revitalize the Reflecting Pool at the base of the Lincoln Memorial has been marred by construction failures and the failed prosecutions of alleged vandals that Trump had blamed for the defects.
Of course he has already wrecked the entire White House complex.
The Iran war still drags on, and the Iranians have issued some demands.
A top Iranian national security official delivered a sweeping set of demands on Saturday that he said the United States must meet before the Strait of Hormuz can reopen to maritime traffic, throwing the fate of the critical trade waterway into question.
Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, issued a statement carried by state media laying out multiple requirements for reopening the strait. He called for the United States to lift its naval blockade and sanctions on Iran, withdraw the U.S. military from around Iran, pay war reparations and release frozen Iranian assets, as well as end attacks on Iran’s allies in the region and threats against the country.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Iran’s demands. A previous cease-fire between Iran and the United States, agreed to in June, had said that sanctions would be fully lifted only in the event of a final deal regarding Iran’s nuclear program. And U.S. officials have said in the past that Iran could only access its frozen funds if it committed to giving up its highly enriched uranium first.
The statement from Mr. Zolghadr came as Iran and Oman have been negotiating an agreement on the future management of the Strait of Hormuz, which sits between the two countries. Iran effectively closed the strait in retaliation for being attacked by the United States and Israel in February.
Mr. Zolghadr’s list of demands upended expectations that a deal with Oman would soon allow commerce to flow through the strait once more and ease global energy prices. They will likely put pressure on President Trump to consider Iran’s conditions if he wants to lower consumer prices for Americans, which pose a risk for Republicans ahead of November’s midterm elections.
Even before Mr. Zolghadr’s statement, Iranian officials had hinted on Saturday that the reopening of the strait was not imminent. Hossein Mohebbi, a spokesman for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, said that reopening the strait was “not contingent on the Iran-Oman negotiations.”
In comments carried by Tasnim, an Iranian news outlet affiliated with the Guards, Mr. Mohebbi said that it would depend “on the United States fully accepting Iran’s conditions.” He did not specify those conditions, other than to say that the United States must not interfere in Iran’s ongoing negotiations with Oman or other countries.
Meanwhile, top General Dan Caine is trying to find a way out of Trump’s Iran mess.
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine is reportedly quietly working toward an exit from Donald Trump’s Iran war, even as the president appears to believe more air strikes could force a deal.
As the war enters its sixth month, CNN reported Friday that Caine has privately discussed the limits of further military action with other top Trump advisers, warning that continued bombing may not be enough to secure a ceasefire.
“Caine is looking for an off-ramp,” one source familiar with the matter told the outlet.
U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Dan Caine testifies before a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on U.S. President Donald Trump’s FY2027 budget request for the Department of Defense on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 30, 2026.Ken Cedeno/Reuters
The 57-year-old general has discussed the matter with CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Vice President JD Vance—all before meeting with Trump to coordinate their message and to emphasize the limitations of certain military options.
The news comes as Trump, who has long criticized articles he doesn’t like, has lashed out at reports about weapons shortages as a result of his war, which he had said would only last a few weeks.
The Washington Post reported that during a Cabinet meeting last Friday, Trump, 80, accosted Defense Sec. Pete Hegseth for being ill-informed about the shortages, which Trump thought “had been fixed.”
The shortages were primarily of long-distance guided missiles and interceptors, according to the Post. This was reportedly one reason there were fewer missile strikes over the past week.
Hegseth, 46, denied the story.
Caine’s discussions with other top officials about war prospects, one source told CNN, “is just his way of protecting the military.”
That’s all I have for today. Thoughts? What else is on your mind?
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Former U.S. President Joe Biden’s prostate cancer has spread to other parts of his body and is causing him pain, even as he continues to speak out on public issues, his son Hunter said in an interview.
In a wide-ranging interview with the BBC broadcast late Friday, Hunter Biden grew emotional as he discussed his father’s condition, describing it as very sad to watch.
“The cancer has spread, metastasized into his bones and further,” he said. “It’s very painful and it’s very debilitating in many respects.”
Biden, 83, was the oldest man to serve as U.S. president and his age was a source of concern for much of his four years in office. He and his White House advisers have faced intense criticism for allegedly concealing the extent of his problems, especially after he was forced to abandon his bid for re-election after a disastrous debate with his eventual successor, Donald Trump.
The Sky Dancing banner headline uses a snippet from a work by artist Tashi Mannox called 'Rainbow Study'. The work is described as a" study of typical Tibetan rainbow clouds, that feature in Thanka painting, temple decoration and silk brocades". dakinikat was immediately drawn to the image when trying to find stylized Tibetan Clouds to represent Sky Dancing. It is probably because Tashi's practice is similar to her own. His updated take on the clouds that fill the collection of traditional thankas is quite special.
You can find his work at his website by clicking on his logo below. He is also a calligraphy artist that uses important vajrayana syllables. We encourage you to visit his on line studio.
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Sky Dancing 
I hope everyone is enjoying the weekend. It’s really hot here, but my trusty heat pump is keeping me cool.
Some sad news: Joe Biden’s cancer has spread to his bones.
Scripps News: Hunter Biden says Joe Biden’s cancer has spread, causing severe pain
Former U.S. President Joe Biden’s prostate cancer has spread to other parts of his body and is causing him pain, even as he continues to speak out on public issues, his son Hunter said in an interview.
In a wide-ranging interview with the BBC broadcast late Friday, Hunter Biden grew emotional as he discussed his father’s condition, describing it as very sad to watch.
“The cancer has spread, metastasized into his bones and further,” he said. “It’s very painful and it’s very debilitating in many respects.”
Biden, 83, was the oldest man to serve as U.S. president and his age was a source of concern for much of his four years in office. He and his White House advisers have faced intense criticism for allegedly concealing the extent of his problems, especially after he was forced to abandon his bid for re-election after a disastrous debate with his eventual successor, Donald Trump.