Just One Thing: Ballroom Baloney
It's beyond ridiculous that congressional Republicans reacted to the failed attack at the White House Correspondents Dinner by pushing for the proposed massive White House ballroom. I'm not saying I'm against the ballroom. I'm just against stupid politicians.
Here's how our friend Leland Vittert put it in his must-read "War Notes" newsletter yesterday:
- A privately funded ballroom seemed trivial and harmless — now with a GOP effort to authorize federal funding, Republicans in swing districts will have to answer for it.
- Wait, there is more😬: It moves the conversation away from Democrats' refusal to take responsibility for their Hitler rhetoric.
- Perplexing🤦: The same man who figured out Americans would respond to “Build the wall” thinks they will also rally around “Build the ballroom.”
- Who thought that was a good idea?!?!?
I couldn't agree more.
Regarding Leland's last bullet point there, I still feel that Trump is like a poker player "on tilt", making rash and emotional decisions. I think he's kinda lost his populist touch and is slightly losing his grip on his base or at least his coalition. And given how close many elections are and the balance of power in the House is, "slightly" could turn out to be electorally enormous.
Regarding Republicans talking about the ballroom, here are a few different approaches, from best to worst, but all suffering from the fatal flaw of talking about this as if it's important compared to almost everything else going on in the world. The ballroom is a sop to Trump's unquenchable ego. It's unlike Rand Paul to play to that but I guess he'll do it every once in a while where he sees it as a low-cost move to give him more leeway to disagree with Trump on something else.
Rand Paul’s version has some congressional oversight and requires progress reports, but no taxpayer funding:
Lauren Boebert’s bill gives Trump all authority and does not call for government funding.
CONGRESSWOMAN LAUREN BOEBERT INTRODUCES THE TRUMP BALLROOM ACT | Representative Lauren Boebert
Text of the very short bill: https://boebert.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/boebert.house.gov/files/evo-media-document/boeber_063_xml.pdf
Lindsey Graham, who can always be counted on to disappoint, is calling for government funding and, sadly, he's not alone. But I think he's in the minority: Senate Republicans push for White House ballroom funding (Note the stuff about how much Trump asks about it. He truly is a raging narcissist.)
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Calling for government funding is MUCH dumber than making the ballroom the object lesson of the failed attack, which is dumb enough. Gasoline hit a new Iran War high yesterday and there's no reason right now to think it's going to get better soon. Food is stupidly expensive. Almost everything is expensive. And Lindsey Graham wants to talk about taxpayers coughing up $400,000,000 for a nice (and probably safe) place to have a big party? Oh hell no.
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One More Thing: Trump's speech welcoming King Charles of England
Since I'm pretty rough on Trump today I thought I'd add some praise of him, or at least of his speechwriter. His remarks welcoming King Charles and talking about the US relationship with England were some of the best I've ever heard him give. He's still shockingly bad at reading a speech but the content was wonderful and, to give credit where it's due, it's obvious that some of it was written by him. It's fairly short and worth a listen. He seemed like he was enjoying himself which seems rare lately.
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Today's Guests
Ben Johnston is COO at Kapitus (which provides small business loans). We'll discuss the beginning of the federal government's process to refund tariffs that the Supreme Court ruled to be illegal.
Gov't web page: International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) Duty Refunds | U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Articles about the process:
The Tariff Refund Portal: Here’s What You Need To Know
Trump tariff refunds begin but consumers likely to miss out
Seriously? This is outrageous. Trump says he will 'remember' companies that don't seek tariff refunds | Reuters
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Brad Taylor is a retired US Army lieutenant colonel who served in Delta Force, including as a squadron commander, in multiple deployments into war zones and other hostile areas overseas. And best-selling author of the Pike Logan novels. His latest, Shadow Strike, is a fun read (that I read on my recent listener trip to central Europe). The story is a great ride but I'm particularly fascinated by the writing process with this book because world events had a significant impact on the original plot.
New York Times bestselling author of 20 thrillers
Published last week: Shadow Strike: A Pike Logan Novel – A Pulse-Pounding Espionage Thriller on a Global Manhunt for a Deadly Assassin
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Other Stuff
They're baaaackkk...(yes, it's a Poltergeist reference): Company tied to Buc-ee’s buys land along Interstate 25
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I hope a LOT of people go to prison for this: Ex-NBA player Damon Jones 1st to plead guilty in gambling case - ESPN
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I wonder if this has anything to do with Colorado becoming less business-friendly:
Miami firm buying Re/Max, moving HQ from Denver
Speaking of unfriendly...Attacking the rich isn’t going to work out well as long as there are places that don’t:
Californians have the government they deserve: The California Wealth Tax Advances - WSJ
And a rich guy who no longer lives in New York but is still a big player there has some choice thoughts for that city's communist mayor: One of ‘the Rich’ Answers Mamdani’s Insult - WSJ
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I REALLY need to get to this today.
What the Hell Is Microlooting? - by Suzy Weiss
Listen to the podcast and it will help you understand why Democrats are such an utter disaster right now. Remember, politicians are almost never actually leaders. They're born followers. And the people the Dems are following are truly dangerous:
‘The Rich Don’t Play by the Ru… - The Opinions - Apple Podcasts
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I think Epic Jeana will cover this one as our resident Swiftie: Taylor Swift files to trademark her voice, likeness to ward off AI deepfakes
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For some reason this seems like a very Jeana story too even though I found it: San Francisco Is Going Nuts Over a Giant Sea Lion Named Chonkers - WSJ
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Let's talk about how corrupt our government is, in a banana-republic sort of way.
I’m so sick of the corruption of the Justice Dept, previously by Comey himself and now by the Trump administration:
Comey indicted over '86 47' seashell photo officials call Trump threat | AP News
Don't waste my time saying that "86" was a call to kill Trump. I've been an American, and using words, a long time, and that phrase has almost never meant physical harm to a person even if a gangster in a TV show or a soldier in an article used it that way. Everyone knows it means to either stop offering something you can't or don't want to offer anymore or to refuse service to someone.
What does 'eighty-six' mean? | Merriam-Webster
This case will be laughed out of courts of law and the court of public opinion, as it should be. And I say that as someone who despises Comey. Actually I think Comey and Trump are quite similar: they both think everything is about them. The problem is that filing lawsuits that can't be won make the charged person look like a victim. Comey is usually not a victim. He's a bad guy (though we must remember to thank him for making sure Hillary Clinton didn't become president) who thinks he's Superman. He deserves comeuppance. But this indictment is absolutely frivolous.
The Comey Indictment Has Already Backfired - by Eli Lake (may require subscription)
Still, Acting AG Todd Blanche is licking Trump's boots as furiously as possible trying to get the nod for the nomination for the Senate-confirmed version of the job. And what Trump wants is persecution of his actual or perceived enemies. It's unclear to me whether Blanche is confirmable...50/50 probably. I wouldn't be surprised if the next AG is Lee Zeldin, currently at EPA, especially after he gave a law lesson to a remarkably ignorant member of Congress.
I get it…the Obama and Biden administrations politicized a heck of a lot of government. But when does it stop?
FCC Orders a Review of ABC’s Licenses Amid Feud Between Trump and Kimmel - The New York Times
And some Biden-era corruption: Former Fauci aide charged for evading records requests
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I get that Trump is a malignant narcissist but why does everyone in government pander to him even in ways that don't seem to have been on his radar? I mean, he wants his signature on money, put his name on the Kennedy Center, got Ron DeSantis to rename an airport in Florida for him, and now this? US to produce passports bearing Trump's image
Just stop feeding his ego, already.
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The first article seems a little hyperbolic, especially when you get the additional info from the second article. Still, I do understand (a little bit) when folks get concerned/upset about classic American brands being bought by foreigners (ferners).
Iconic American Whiskey Brand Jack Daniel's Could Fall Under Foreign Control
Jack Daniel's maker Brown-Forman favors Pernod Ricard bid over Sazerac, source says | Reuters
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2026 Report: U.S. Airports With the Longest and Shortest Walking Distances - Spoiler alert, be prepared to WALK at DIA
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NO NO NO
Budget airlines seek help as United gives up on American deal
When even Josh Hawley, the worst Republican in the Senate, figures out the right answer, you know it's obvious:
‘Horsesh*t’: Hill Republicans align against Spirit’s bid for a Trump bailout | Semafor
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I think the craziest thing is that she did this without knowing the person being evicted, apparently: Massachusetts woman convicted for bee attack on eviction deputies - oregonlive.com
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Today's Video
First, it's true that this is really gross. Second, how stupid do you have to be to post it online? Third, it's almost funny how much the vending machine company is reacting...is it an overreaction or is it just doing what they should have done all along?
Teenager Faces Jail for Licking Vending Machine Straw: Police