Lazy Caturday Reads: Mad King Chronicles

Posted: August 1, 2026 | Author: | Filed under: just because | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Good Afternoon!!

A young girl with cat, Berthe Marisot

Mad King Donald continues to struggle with how to end the idiotic war he started with Iran.

The mad king is focusing even more energy on rewarding the criminals who attacked the Capitol on January 6, 2001, and preventing him or his family members from ever having to pay back taxes. He cares more about those two goals than getting his Attorney general candidate approved by the Senate.

Meanwhile, Americans are stuck with a demented old man running our country into the ground.

Here are the latest updates in the Iran mess:

AP: White House signals Trump is weighing new strikes on Iran, and other developments in the Middle East.

CAIRO (AP) — The White House on Friday signaled that President Donald Trump is weighing carrying out new strikes on Iran as the U.S. presses for Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and abide by terms set out in a truce agreement the two sides forged last month only to quickly collapse.

There were no U.S. strikes on Iran overnight, but Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard said it had struck another two tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, and Kuwait said it intercepted drones.

Meanwhile, Hamas confirmed Friday that it will disarm in a potential breakthrough for ending the war in Gaza, but major obstacles remain….

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt expressed the U.S. administration’s frustration anew, charging that Tehran last month signed a memorandum of understanding with the U.S. on a truce but then quickly “broke it, shot at commercial ships, and killed American soldiers.”

“President Trump is not going to stand by and allow this terrorist behavior to occur,” Leavitt said in a statement on Friday evening. “Iran will continue to pay until they come to the table in, what President Trump deems, a meaningful way.”

Leavitt issued the fresh warning after Trump earlier on Friday told reporters that “we just want to win” in Iran and signaled that he expected U.S. military action to continue for some time.

“We’ll be hitting them very hard,” Trump said in an exchange with reporters during a meeting with members of his Cabinet at the Camp David presidential retreat in Maryland. “You know, at some point they’re going to say, ‘We just can’t take it anymore.’”

Euan Ward at The New York Times: Kuwait Says It Downed Iranian Drones as Mideast Braces for Possible Escalation.

Kuwait said that Iranian forces had launched a wave of drone attacks on its shores early Saturday, as the Middle East braced for a possible escalation in fighting after President Trump said he was preparing to hit Iran “very hard.”

The Kuwaiti military said that it had detected and destroyed multiple drones in its airspace since dawn, and that Iran had targeted critical infrastructure in the country’s north. A military spokesman said that falling shrapnel had damaged vehicles on the Kuwaiti island of Bubiyan, near the Iraqi border, but no casualties were reported.

Kuwait hosts one of Washington’s largest military deployments in the Middle East, and Bubiyan Island lies close to several critical U.S. military facilities. There was no immediate comment on the attacks from Iran or U.S. Central Command, which oversees American military operations in the region.

While there were no U.S. strikes on Iran reported overnight, there was little indication that the two sides were moving back toward diplomacy. The conflict has lurched between military confrontation and negotiations in recent months, and renewed exchanges of fire this week have punctured a brief lull in fighting.

Cat and her two kittens, Julius Adam

Speaking on Friday from Camp David, the presidential retreat in Maryland, Mr. Trump said the United States was weighing additional military action against Iran after days of escalating attacks across the region. “We’ll be hitting them very hard, and you know at some point they’re going to say, ‘We just can’t take it anymore,’” Mr. Trump said. “We just want to win,” he added.

The potential risk of escalation prompted security warnings from the State Department. On Saturday, the U.S. Embassies in Jordan, Iraq and Israel urged Americans to consider departing the region, or to be prepared to leave if the conflict intensified. The security environment in the Middle East remained “complex with the potential for unforeseen escalation,” the embassies said.

Analysis by Steven Erlanger at The New York Times: In Iran, the U.S. Appears Headed for a Strategic Defeat, Allies Fear.

To America’s allies, President Trump’s war in Iran, now in its sixth month, seems headed for a strategic defeat.

They worry that the inability of the United States to turn military superiority into a sustainably changed Iran has displayed a vulnerability that Russia and China will welcome. In addition, Mr. Trump’s goals remain unmet, and the U.S. military is running short on key armaments that it needs for global reach.

For the moment, Iran is seemingly resolute under a more radical government, its nuclear and ballistic missile programs are degraded but not destroyed, and the Strait of Hormuz is effectively under its control. The war has left both the United States and Israel in weaker positions — and blaming each other for the mess.

Iranian missiles and drones not only restrict traffic through the strait and damage the economic infrastructure of allied energy production, but they also continue to threaten American bases across the Middle East and have killed or injured American service members.

With Mr. Trump’s aims shifting, Washington is losing credibility both militarily and diplomatically, analysts said. Its conduct in the war underscores the impression that the United States is an unpredictable instrument of global disorder, they said.

The war may evolve, but so far the result has been “a strategic loss and an embarrassment,” said Robin Niblett, a former director of Chatham House, a think tank in London. “For U.S. allies and those who rely on the U.S. for security, this is confirmation that you can’t trust the United States.”

Even if the Islamic Republic collapses, he added, “people won’t forget that their security and their future were dragged into question by an unpredictable and wavering U.S. foreign policy.”

European allies remember Mr. Trump’s vow to seize Greenland from a NATO ally and his threats to leave the alliance unless other allies met his spending goals. Middle Eastern allies see their own security undermined by this war, even if they are too committed to Washington to abandon partnerships with the United States. But they are already hedging, looking for repaired ties with Iran and better relations with Europe, China and Russia, said Ali Vaez, the Iran project director for the International Crisis Group.

Dan Lamothe at The Washington Post has a scoop on Pentagon’s weapons shortages: U.S. general warns Pentagon he lacks sufficient forces to protect Israel.

The top U.S. general in Europe privately warned the Pentagon this week that he lacks sufficient naval forces to continue protecting Israel from incoming ballistic missiles, officials said, illustrating how the ongoing Iran war has imposed constraints on the military.

Gen. Alexus Grynkewich, the head of U.S. European Command, sent written notification to senior Pentagon officials saying that without another Navy destroyer he will be forced to choose defense of the United States “homeland” over that of Israel, said the officials, who like some others spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the correspondence.

Marguerite with a black cat, Henri Matisse, 1910

The Pentagon declined to comment. U.S. European Command did not respond to requests for comment. A spokesperson for the Israeli Embassy in Washington could not be reached for comment.

The general’s warning comes at a tenuous moment in the five-month conflict, as near-daily attacks have resumed following the collapse of peace talks between Washington and Tehran and the operation’s intensity has drained U.S. supplies of key defensive weapons.

The Navy has been particularly taxed, as the Trump administration has directed a blockade of Iranian ports in response to Tehran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz. The standoff has stymied the movement of Middle Eastern oil and other commodities through the narrow waterway, upending the global economy.

A bit more:

U.S. naval destroyers in the eastern Mediterranean Sea have been employed as a part of Israel’s defense for many years. The vessels, equipped with powerful radar and armed with an array of missiles, have downed missiles aimed at Israel not only by Iran, but by Houthi militants in Yemen that are equipped by Tehran.

European Command is central to this mission, as it coordinates military operations in the Mediterranean. At the same time, its forces must remain ready for any Russian incursion into territory protected by the NATO military alliance. Russia also poses a ballistic missile threat to the United States, with missiles capable of reaching the U.S. mainland.

The Navy has five destroyers that deploy from a U.S. port in Rota, Spain, with a sixth expected to arrive there later this year, Pentagon officials have said. But maintenance issues have piled up due to the Iran war’s tempo, complicating matters for Grynkewich, officials said. The Washington Post withheld specific details about the ships’ availability at the request of military officials, who cited security concerns.

As The Post reported in May, Pentagon assessments conducted earlier in the war showed that U.S. forces have shouldered the brunt of defending Israel from Iranian ballistic missiles. The assessments found that American weapons, including the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense and naval interceptors launched from the eastern Mediterranean, were used far more frequently than Israeli air defense weapons.

That’s interesting. I wonder if Trump will choose the U.S.  or his pal Netanyahu?

Iran is not only winning the war, they are also attacking U.S. infrastructure, but Mad King Donald won’t admit it’s happening.

Politico: Trump blames Minnesota water hacks on Walz, while evidence points to Iran.

President Donald Trump on Friday blamed a spate of recent hacks impacting water utilities in Minnesota on Gov. Tim Walz — contradicting preliminary findings from U.S. and industry officials who suspect Iran is behind an expanding campaign of digital disruption.

“I blame it on Minnesota because they are grossly incompetent,” Trump said at a cabinet meeting at Camp David on Friday, adding that Walz is “corrupt” and “Iran has bigger problems than worrying about Minnesota.” Asked later if he could rule out Iranian responsibility, Trump said, “ I don’t think there was an Iranian cyberattack. I think Minnesota ought to get its act together.”

The cat and two sparrows, by Marc Chagall, 1925

Trump’s dig at the Democratic-led state came just hours after the FBI and Environmental Protection Agency said they are responding to an unspecified number of cyberattacks at water and wastewater utilities in at least seven states. On Thursday, the government’s civilian cyber defense agency, CISA, warned of a “significant increase” in digital attacks on technology used broadly by U.S. water utilities.

While no U.S. agency has formally accused Iran of orchestrating the attacks, many federal, state and water industry officials suspect Tehran-linked cyber groups are responsible for the hacking campaign. CISA issued a report last week detailing a similar set of attacks it has tracked since April, which it linked to Iran.

Minnesota’s state IT agency disclosed this Tuesday that at least 30 community water systems in the state had been breached in what it described as a “coordinated attack,” but it did not name Iran as the perpetrator.

In a statement on X responding to Trump’s comments earlier in the day, Walz suggested Iranian hackers were targeting Minnesota and other states in retaliation for U.S. military strikes in Iran — and that therefore Trump was to blame.

“This is what modern warfare looks like, and it further illustrates there’s no plan to win a war with Iran,” Walz wrote.

I guess the Trump thinks Walz is also responsible the hacks in other states?

Dustin Volz and Ernesto Londoño at The New York Times: Scope of Hacks on U.S. Water Supply Widens as Evidence Points to Iran.

The scope of cyberattacks on U.S. water systems has grown to include at least seven states and may be far wider, officials and experts warned, as the authorities raced to safeguard the nation’s water supply against an assault that increasingly appeared to be the work of Iran.

While there were no indications that any water supply had been altered or made unsafe to drink, state and local officials throughout the country were on high alert for potential problems in vulnerable computers that are commonly used to monitor and adjust water quality, including chemical-treatment levels and water pressure. Minnesota first publicly reported the attacks, and now Michigan says its systems have also been targeted.

The attack has little precedent, experts said, but has long been the stuff of nightmares and sensationalized Hollywood thrillers: an apparent cyberattack by a foreign power during a time of war that could, at least in theory, jeopardize the health and safety of Americans.

Officials cautioned that they had not definitively determined that Iran was responsible for the attack and that the investigation was still preliminary. But they said Iran had stepped up cyberattacks since the U.S. and Israel launched a war against the country five months ago, and had previously targeted similar water systems and other critical infrastructure in the U.S. There seemed no financial motive, making a criminal attack less likely.

On Trump’s accusations:

Despite growing concerns, President Trump sought to downplay the matter on Friday by blaming Minnesota — which was early to spot and report the recent surge in malicious hacking activity, helping to prompt other states to probe their own water systems — for suffering intrusions his own intelligence agencies believe were highly likely carried out by Iran, officials familiar with the assessment said.

Bouquet and a cat, by Suzanne Valadon

“I think Minnesota is behind it,” Mr. Trump said on Friday in response to a reporter’s question about Iran’s possible involvement, which The New York Times earlier reported. “I don’t think there was an Iranian cyberattack.”  [….]

After Mr. Trump’s remarks, federal officials privately said Iran remains the top suspect but that the assessment remained preliminary and had not yet established definitive forensic proof. That is not unusual in complex cyber-investigations, which can often take months to reach authoritative conclusions, if at all.

Nate George, the mayor of Braham, a small city north of Minneapolis that was among those affected by the cyberattack, said federal and local officials had little doubt about the likely culprit.

“We’re getting bits and pieces of information from the state of Minnesota and the F.B.I.,” he said in an interview on Friday afternoon. “They are pretty sure it’s Iranian actors” but are reluctant to say so publicly, he added. A memo sent by an industry group that shares cyberthreat information among water utilities that was obtained by Wired magazine said the attacks aligned with hacking activity being conducted by Iran-affiliated actors.

Trump is a complete moron and we’re stuck with him for now.

In U.S. news, Trump has signaled he would rather pay off his January 6th goons and keep his tax free deal with the IRS than get Senate approval for his Attorney General pick, Todd Blanche.

Politico: Trump puts his ‘anti-weaponization fund’ back on the table.

President Donald Trump said early Saturday he would push to get the $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization fund” codified into law if the Senate does not confirm his attorney general pick, Todd Blanche.

The fund has emerged as a key issue stalling Blanche’s confirmation, with Sens. John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), who are both departing the Senate after the midterms, withholding their support in the Senate Judiciary Committee unless the White House commits to shelving the proposal in writing.

Now, Trump says the fund is back on the table, and maybe he’ll even keep Blanche on in an acting capacity if he can’t get his way in Congress next week.

“If Senators Cornyn and Tillis, both upset because I wouldn’t Endorse them (they lost, and quit, respectively!), aren’t going to approve Todd Blanche, one of the most respected professionals, according to everybody, in the Country, to be the United States Attorney General, then I will keep Todd as Acting A.G., and push hard to get the Anti-Weaponization Bill, which takes care of those who have been so badly treated by the Crooked Joe Biden (and Obuma!) Administration (I get nothing, although I was treated horribly!), PASSED,” he wrote.

“Todd Blanche was a voice of reason!” Trump wrote. “It will immediately be back on the table, and I will get it done.”

The missive comes a day after Trump reluctantly declared the fund “dead” in a Cabinet meeting at Camp David, making Saturday’s post a notable reversal in tactics as he moves from a negotiating posture to digging his heels in.

Politico: Blanche vote is rescheduled, but there’s no deal.

Senate Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley rescheduled a planned vote on Todd Blanche’s nomination as attorney general late Friday in a preemptive move as negotiations between the Trump administration and GOP holdouts continue.

Orange cat sleeping, Pierre Bonnard

The vote, now set for Tuesday after a scheduled Thursday vote was postponed, isn’t an indication that a deal allowing for Blanche’s confirmation is near, so much as it is a nod to Judiciary Committee rules that require three days of notice for a panel meeting.

There is no sign that President Donald Trump is about to acquiesce to the unflinching demands of Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), who wants a controversial settlement agreement between Trump and the IRS substantially pared back.

Cornyn, who lost his primary to a Trump-endorsed candidate, wants the Justice Department to nullify a $1.8 billion “Anti-Weaponization Fund” and limit the scope of a tax audit immunity component of the pact….

To advance Tuesday, Blanche needs to pick up Cornyn and Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), another senator on the panel with similar concerns. He can’t lose any GOP votes if he wants to be reported favorably out of the Judiciary Committee.

Kathleen Culliton at Raw Story has a slightly more colorful story on the Blanche controversy: Trump tantrum over ‘Jan 6th slush fund’ spurs uproar: ‘This is outrageous.

Trump’s Truth Social claim — that he no longer considers his controversial $1.8 billion fund to be “dead,” as he asserted at Camp David just the day before — swiftly drew criticism on Saturday morning.

” Trump doesn’t have the votes for this,” Bloomberg reporter Steven Dennis. “Republican senators have already voted against the fund, and even more against paying rioters who beat police officers who Trump pardoned.”

The president did not address the problem of support in his early morning post, he simply asserted he would “push hard” to get the “Anti-Weaponization Fund” passed.

His assertion came after a vote to confirm acting Attorney General Todd Blanche was delayed by two Republican Sens. Thom Tillis and John Cornyn, both of whom demanded written proof that the fund was dead.

“If Senators Cornyn and Tillis, both upset because I wouldn’t Endorse them (they lost, and quit, respectively!), aren’t going to approve Todd Blanche,” Trump wrote, “then I will keep Todd as Acting A.G., and push hard to get the Anti-Weaponization Bill.” [….]

The group Republicans Against Trump slammed Trump’s message as being poorly timed considering mounting conservative fears the could soon lose the majority in the Senate.

“Great messaging ahead of the midterms,” the group quipped.

Personally, I think Trump’s real concern is for the IRS deal that is attached to the slush fund. It would prevent him and anyone in his extended family on into the future from every having their taxes audited.

One more outrageous story out of the Senate and House.

Matthew Chapman at Raw Story: MAGA senator can’t say if son-in-law accused of abusing wife should be tossed off ballot.

Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-OH) was confronted about the brutal domestic violence allegations against his son-in-law, Rep. Max Miller — but couldn’t say whether they’re disqualifying.

His daughter, Emily Moreno, has accused Max Miller, her ex-husband, of abuse in court filings and police records, alleging he burned her with hot water, held a gun to her head, shoved her hard enough to cause injury, and broke their daughter’s collarbone. Her lawyers filed for a new restraining order against Miller this week, also alleging he harassed her attorneys and physically placed his hands on one of them.

Curiosity, by Horatio Henry Couldery, 1893

Miller is also facing a lawsuit alleging he broke the terms of his own hush deal, and this week, Emily Moreno filed a restraining order against him, revealing even more allegations.

Asked directly whether Republicans should yank Miller off the November ballot, Moreno gave a two-word non-answer, according to NOTUS.

“I don’t know,” Moreno said.

Miller, for his part, continues to deny all allegations and filed a lawsuit against Emily Moreno for defamation. He also made a counter-charge of domestic violence against her, but dropped that case this week amid growing backlash.

Republican leadership has largely remained silent on the matter, but faces growing pressure to try to remove Miller from the ballot, as the deadline to do so is rapidly approaching and his suburban Cleveland congressional district might be vulnerable with him continuing to run.

Morena is the Republican who swore at Dr. Antony Fauci in a Congressional hearing this week.

Politico: ‘Platner on steroids’: Max Miller abuse claims have Republicans silently sweating.

Public scrutiny of domestic abuse allegations against Rep. Max Miller is quickly mounting. His Republican colleagues have been slow to respond.

New reporting on government documents claiming that Miller poured hot water on his ex-wife, Emily Moreno, held a gun to her head and broke their young daughter’s collarbone has brought a wave of new attention to the Ohio lawmaker’s long-running public marital dispute. This week, Moreno’s lawyer filed for a restraining order against Miller, accusing him of harassing his ex-wife’s counsel.