Donald Trump has sweeping plans for a second administration. Here’s what he’s proposed

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Trump's secret oil baron

Photo illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Photos: Getty Images and Wikimedia Commons

President Trump's historic Venezuelan oil deal revolves around a colorful and controversial man from Caracas with a long history of supporting U.S. interests — including the operation to remove former strongman Nicolás Maduro, Axios' Marc Caputo writes. Why it matters: Alejandro Betancourt, 46, runs the oil company that's entering into an unprecedented partnership with the Pentagon. It gives America access to some of Venezuela's vast oil fields at a time when U.S. reserves are low. A U.S. official told Axios: "No Betancourt, no energy-security deal. And Maduro might still be in power if it wasn't for him." Betancourt's life story has an oil-like boom-and-bust aura, replete with billion-dollar deals, international intrigue, a longstanding money-laundering probe and even a Spanish castle raided by authorities. 👀 Inside the room: As Trump demanded Maduro leave Venezuela last year, Betancourt played a crucial role in gauging whether Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodríguez would run the government as a replacement. "There was no direct ask from Alejandro to Delcy; it was more getting a sense on where her head was at," said a second U.S. official briefed on the private talks between the two Venezuelans. Betancourt was in regular contact with Trump's unofficial Venezuela fixer, Mauricio Claver-Carone, and discussed how to keep oil flowing and the economy running in post-Maduro Venezuela. The backstory: Betancourt's relationship with the U.S. government began in Trump's first term, when the administration declared Maduro an illegitimate president. Trump became the first world leader to recognize the head of Venezuela's national assembly, Juan Guaidó, as the nation's rightful leader in 2019. Betancourt acted as a go-between, linking Maduro's opposition with Venezuelan political figures and top-level military officials to build domestic support for a nonviolent, democratic transition to a Guaidó government, said an opposition figure and Guaidó's brother, Gustavo Guaidó. 🔎 Behind the scenes: Betancourt, Rodríguez and officials from the State Department and the Pentagon's Office of Strategic Capital had a handshake agreement on the oil deal by mid-August. Under its terms, officials say: Venezuela receives between 16% and 40% of production, depending on the oil field. It also gets income taxes. The U.S. puts no money into the deal, has a 35% equity stake and gets 20% of the after-tax oil at production cost. That's about $30 a barrel (crude was priced at $90 yesterday). Betancourt's North American Blue Energy Partners gets access to 17 fields and the implied backing of the U.S. military. "No other oilman can say he has the Pentagon on his side," a U.S. official told Axios.

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💡 Why Army Secretary Dan Driscoll resigned

Two key reasons led to Army Secretary Dan Driscoll's resignation, announced yesterday: the feeling that his modernization initiatives were being blocked, and the chaos created by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's firing of senior generals, U.S. officials tell Axios' Colin Demarest and Barak Ravid.

• Why it matters: Driscoll's wartime resignation, on top of Hegseth's firing of Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George this spring, leaves the military's largest service without Senate-confirmed leadership, civilian or uniformed.

🪖 Behind the scenes: Driscoll recently spoke with President Trump and expressed his concerns about the state of the Army. Another person described the situation to Axios simply: "Sad."

• A White House official said Driscoll was asked to stay longer, until after midterms. But Driscoll told the White House he felt like it was time for him to go.
• Driscoll is expected to leave the Pentagon in the coming days, according to The Wall Street Journal, which first reported his resignation.

The intrigue: Driscoll was a rising star in the Trump administration but had an icy relationship with Hegseth. Some U.S. officials say the defense secretary "was suspicious and paranoid" toward Driscoll, partly because of Driscoll's close relationship with Vice President JD Vance, a classmate at Yale Law.

• Driscoll and George were advocates of the Army Transformation Initiative, which sought to combine two commands — the Futures Command and the Training and Doctrine Command — and cut big-name weaponry, including the AH-64D Apache, M10 Booker and Gray Eagle drone.

🖼️ The big picture: Driscoll, nicknamed "drone guy" for his work on military modernization, had a meteoric rise in the Trump administration after the president nominated him to be Army secretary.

• Driscoll's juice was boosted partly by his willingness to engage media outside the Pentagon's preferred conservative press pool and an expansive travel circuit. He garnered some Democratic support during his confirmation process, with 16 Democrats backing him.

Go deeper.

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Army Secretary Dan Driscoll is stepping down after 18 months on the job, White House says Driscoll is stepping down after 18 months on the job, the White House said Monday, in the latest departure of a top military leader during the Trump administration. Read more.

Why this matters: No reason was given for Driscoll’s departure, but tensions with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth have been widely reported. It marks the latest in a series of shakeups of the military leadership, with the Army especially seeing major upheaval.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤ WATCH: Trump brushes off Hegseth 2028 speculation US military has no plans to send troops to the polls in November, top general says New US missile appears to have left wide path of death and destruction in Iranian city, report says Days after Trump announces Venezuela oil deal, White House fills in some of the details Battleground Republicans still waiting for Trump to open his campaign wallet What to expect in the Massachusetts state primary Kalshi bans ex-Congressman George Santos for life after concluding he likely was insider trading Supreme Court lets White House continue construction on Trump’s $400 million ballroom

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Judge calls Trump mail ballot rule ‘substantively unconstitutional’ as court battle extends

A Massachusetts federal judge on Monday declined the Trump administration’s request to overturn the temporary restraining order she signed last week that blocks the U.S. Postal Service from carrying out a rule placing new restrictions on mail-in voting.

https://floridaphoenix.com/2026/08/31/repub/judge-calls-trump-mail-ballot-rule-substantively-unconstitutional-as-court-battle-extends/?

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📍1 for the road: MapQuest takeover

Photo: Mert Alper Dervis/Anadolu via Getty Images 📱 MapQuest (remember them?) skyrocketed to the top of Apple's app store after defying President Trump's call to rename Lake Ontario as "Lake America." The app surpassed Google Maps and Apple Maps in the app store, TechCrunch reports. Read MapQuest's release. ps:Good for them!!!!!

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Oil giant Chevron is expected to announce it will expand operations in Venezuela, US official says

Oil giant Chevron is planning to expand its operations in Venezuela, a U.S. official said Tuesday, just days after President Donald Trump announced an ambitious deal to develop the nation's oil reserves and give the Pentagon a stake in the profits. Read More.   USPS Whistleblower Claims A whistleblower warned Congress yesterday that a rushed US Postal Service system stemming from President Donald Trump’s effort to impose new federal requirements on mail voting could prevent legitimate ballots from reaching voters ahead of November’s midterm elections. The system, temporarily blocked by a federal judge, would require election officials to upload voter information and ballot bar codes to a federal portal before ballots are mailed, giving USPS a new role in verifying who may receive them—a process traditionally handled by state and local officials (see what’s different). The whistleblower alleges USPS built the system in roughly three months, despite such projects typically taking roughly a year. A single bar code failing a sample check could cause an entire batch to be rejected and returned to election officials. Roughly 30% of Americans voted by mail in 2024; see how mail-ballot deadlines vary by state. Explore the 160-year history of voting by mail, beginning with Civil War soldiers casting ballots from the battlefield.

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Americans hate ‘Lake America’

A person photographs boats on Lake Ontario from the Canadian shoreline in Grimsby, Ontario. (Keito Newman/The Canadian Press/AP)

President Donald Trump’s new trade war with Canada and his push to change the name of Lake Ontario to “Lake America” are proving to be deeply unpopular among Americans.

A Reuters-Ipsos poll conducted in recent days found that nearly two-thirds of Americans oppose Trump’s executive order to rename the lake: 63% are opposed and just 14% are in favor, with the rest undecided. The poll also shows Americans oppose Trump’s new tariffs on Canada nearly 3-to-1, or 57% to 20%.

Despite Trump blaming Canada for the escalation, significantly more Americans say the US is more responsible for the dispute. Republicans seem to want Trump to take a softer approach too, while strong backing for his position remains in the single digits among GOP voters. Put simply, there appears to be little appetite for a fight with our neighbor to the north. But none of that appears to be changing Trump’s calculus. He’s pressing ahead, with or without the public behind him.

+ More analysis: Americans hate ‘Lake America’

+ Plus: MapQuest is No. 1 on the App Store after refusing to change Lake Ontario’s name

+ Rhetoric heats up: White House social media post shows bald eagle pinning down Canada goose

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Not enough money, people or paper

President Trump’s proposed changes to mail ballot rules are hitting another hurdle, with election officials saying it’s too late to even try to comply with the proposed rules before the November midterm elections. The administration wants redesigned ballot envelopes with more comprehensive tracking barcodes and states to submit voter information through a new federal system. But officials say there isn’t enough time to print millions of new envelopes, train workers or make the other changes required within the next two months — even if states can find the millions of dollars they expect compliance to cost. For now, election officials say they’re preparing for the midterms as usual and telling voters they can expect to vote by mail as they have in the past.

+ Read more: Election officials say they can’t comply with Trump’s proposed mail ballot rules

+ Analysis: The light is blinking red on Trump messing with the 2026 election

+ USAFacts: How many voters cast ballots early and by mail?

Editor’s note: CNN has partnered with the not-for-profit USAFacts to share government data and insights that we believe are relevant to our audience.

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Postal Service work to comply with Trump’s executive order is rushed and sloppy, a whistleblower contends The U.S. Postal Service is poised to launch a hastily built, error-riddled computer system that could jeopardize the process of mail voting relied upon by one-third of all voters, according to a whistleblower statement released Tuesday by Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal. Read more.

Why this matters: The effort is part of the implementation of President Donald Trump’s executive order limiting mail voting and has been temporarily halted by a federal judge. The ruling is being appealed by the administration and the directive may ultimately end up back before the U.S. Supreme Court.   The disclosure from the unidentified whistleblower contends that the Postal Service has been scrambling to try to build a complex system that would normally take a year or more in only three months, sometimes in defiance of the judge’s orders halting work. The goal is to have it ready for use in the midterm elections. The disclosure contends that, due to the new procedures, a single scanning error in a batch of tens of thousands of ballot envelopes could prevent any from reaching voters.   The Postal Service released a statement Tuesday evening in response to Blumenthal’s letter, pledging to work with Congress and the courts. It noted that the judge who issued the latest restraining order explicitly allowed the service to continue to develop its online tool for states that want to use it voluntarily. “Regardless of political party or perspective, we share a common goal: ensuring that Americans can have confidence that their election mail will be handled securely and delivered reliably,” the Postal Service said.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤ Sen. Ed Markey, 80, wins Mass. Democratic primary over opponent who called for generational change Tuesday's full primary election results Macho, macho men? Democrats talk masculinity on campaign trail after years of Trump’s bravado House passes short-term funding bill to avoid a shutdown before the election

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MAGA-Curious CBS Boss Hit With Furious Staff Backlash

Disgruntled CBS staff lament another poor editorial decision from Bari Weiss.

CBS News boss Bari Weiss drew intense backlash from her own staff after intervening in a story to tie Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed to the anniversary of the Sept. 11 terror attacks.

Current and former staffers blasted to Status the “shameful” story the now-Trump-friendly network wrote about El-Sayed, who is bidding to be the first Muslim elected to the Senate, as well as an accompanying social media post suggesting he may be “facing the risk of renewed scrutiny and fresh political attack” ahead of the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.

Monday’s article was about how the Michigan Democrat had deleted two posts on X that he wrote during the COVID-19 pandemic, noting that the virus had already killed more Americans than the 2001 terror attacks.

In one since-deleted post, El-Sayed, a former epidemiologist and public health official, noted that more Americans had died in the COVID-19 pandemic than in the 9/11 attacks, and hoped “that means we’ll spend the next ten years fighting a war for public health & against poverty ... like we launched a global #WaronTerror after 9/11. We could save lives rather than take them.”

In another deleted post mentioned by CBS News, which El-Sayed wrote on Sept. 11, 2021, he said, “Today, I mourn the 3K lives, 6K injuries, & infrastructural devastation in NYC, perpetuated ignorantly in the name of my faith. Tomorrow, I’ll mourn ~1M lives, millions of injuries, & infrastructural devastation in 3 countries, perpetuated ignorantly in the name of my country.”

El-Sayed deleted the posts after scrubbing his entire social media output from before July 2023, with his campaign telling Politico that he did not want the posts to be “taken out of context.”

However, Weiss, who had no experience in television news production before Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison parachuted her into the role of editor-in-chief at CBS News, believed the deleted posts were scandalous enough to report on.

Sources told Status that Weiss even personally directed that the story’s headline be changed to specifically mention that El-Sayed had deleted posts referencing the 9/11 attacks.

The decision left many in the CBS newsroom in disarray, with staffers seeing it as another example of poor news judgment damaging the network’s reputation and credibility under Weiss’ reign.

“They took a small nugget of news, forced it into something much larger, and messed up,” one CBS News staffer told Status.

A former senior CBS News staffer added that the story was “shameful” and that the “racism is overt.”

A source familiar with CBS News’ editing process told the Daily Beast that Weiss’ intervention to mention El-Sayed’s deleted posts had actually improved the original headline.

“Stories are published all the time about politicians’ deleted tweets. This is no different, and El-Sayed had not explained at the time of publication why he deleted the tweets,” the source said.

“We later published an on-camera interview with El-Sayed who gave a comprehensive response to the piece. And, given these points, the idea that staff are frustrated or upset about the piece simply is not accurate.”

The report was published as El-Sayed faces media scrutiny for embracing progressive streamer Hasan Piker, who has been widely criticized for suggesting that the U.S. deserved 9/11 as payback for previous foreign policy mistakes—a remark for which Piker has since apologized.

However, Status’ Oliver Darcy suggested that CBS News and Weiss would never have considered framing the story around El-Sayed’s deleted posts if the Democrat had not been a Muslim.

“He didn’t praise the 9/11 attackers, minimize the horror of the terrorist attacks, or promote conspiracy theories as to what happened that day—unlike many high-profile figures in the MAGA movement,” Darcy wrote.

“Like many mainstream figures at the time, he simply compared the death toll from the pandemic to 9/11 and argued that the government should respond to the public health crisis by marshaling its resources toward solving the problem with similar haste.”

The Daily Beast has contacted Abdul El-Sayed’s office for comment.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/maga-curious-cbs-boss-bari-weiss-hit-with-furious-staff-backlash-over-abdul-el-sayed-story/?

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This Is the Shady Truth About Trump’s Phony ‘Victory’: Guru

The president’s big oil deal is rooted in corruption, the political guru said.

President Donald Trump’s oil deal with Venezuela is less of an agreement and more of a robbery, top foreign policy analyst David Rothkopf argues.

Appearing on The Daily Beast Podcast, the political expert explained that what the president called the “biggest oil deal in world history” is a prime example of the Trump administration’s “mafia government” abusing its power.

“It behaves much like the government does in the Kremlin, where it takes what it wants, it doesn’t care about the law, it breaks the laws, it enriches the people at the top, it doesn’t care about anybody else,” Rothkopf said. “You don’t agree with them at home? You don’t get support, we’ll try to prosecute you. Don’t agree with them overseas? We’ll invade you, we’ll attack you, we’ll cut your aid.”

“And in this particular case, it also ties into the corruption that lies at the core of that, which has left Trump billions and billions of dollars richer after a year in office,” he continued.

“The Venezuela deal is a perfect example because he wants us to celebrate it. Except the following,” he added. “It’s not a deal because he doesn’t have the ability to make the deal, and he’s stealing the oil.”

Trump, 80, announced Friday on Truth Social that the U.S. would take control of 65 billion barrels of Venezuelan oil—a fifth of the country’s reserves—as part of a joint partnership with a private Venezuelan company North American Blue Energy Partners.The agreement comes months after U.S. military forces seized former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro to extradite him for prosecution on narco-terrorism and drug trafficking charges. The White House has worked closely with Maduro’s successor, former Vice President Delcy Rodríguez, in the aftermath.“Remember, the United States is getting this oil because we attacked Venezuela, and at gunpoint, are saying, ‘Hand over the oil.’ That’s illegal under international law,” Rothkopf explained. “It’s also, by the way, illegal under Venezuelan law, which has a constitution that says you can’t hand over oil reserves to a foreign government.”

The political expert noted that the deal was likely illegal under U.S. law as well, as it funnels money into the government and the Pentagon without congressional approval.

“We don’t know how much money out of this Trump or his buddies are gonna make,” he said. “All we know is that we have the most corrupt government in the history of the United States, with a president who seems committed to monetizing the presidency.”

“He’s trying to take essentially what is piracy—exactly the same kind of war of aggression Russia has waged in Ukraine—and steal the patrimony of another country because he thinks maybe he could make some bucks off of it,” he concluded. “It’s a crime; it’s not a deal.”

The Daily Beast has reached out to the White House for comment.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/this-is-the-shady-truth-about-trumps-phony-venezuela-oil-deal-victory-political-guru-david-rothkopf/?

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Trump Voters’ Confidence in Their Decision Dramatically Crumbles

It couldn’t come at a worse time for the president.

Donald Trump’s voters are becoming steadily less certain that they made the right call in returning him to the White House.

Just 58 percent of Trump’s 2024 voters now say they are “very confident” they made the right choice, according to a new University of Massachusetts Amherst poll. That figure has fallen in four consecutive surveys, from 74 percent in April 2025 to 69 percent, then 62 percent and now 58 percent.

But there is an important wrinkle. The proportion of Trump voters who say they would actually change their vote has not continued to climb.

A separate question in the survey found that roughly one in six Trump voters would not vote for him again, essentially unchanged from the previous reading. Alexander Theodoridis, co-director of the UMass Poll, described it as roughly 15 percent of Trump voters saying they “might or would vote differently or not vote at all” if they could do it over again.

“There are no takebacks in electoral politics, but around 15 percent of Trump voters now tell us they might or would vote differently or not vote at all if they had it to do over again,” Theodoridis said.

“This is hardly a mass exodus from the Trump tent, but is enough that it certainly could’ve been decisive against Trump in what was a relatively close 2024 election,” he added. “More notably, though, there are now clear, consistent signs of an erosion trend.”

The erosion is visible elsewhere in the survey. The share of Trump voters reporting mixed feelings about their vote has more than doubled from 4 percent in April 2025 to 9 percent now. Those saying they have some regrets and might choose differently have risen from 1 percent to 3 percent, while those who say they would rather not have voted have jumped from 1 percent to 6 percent.Trump’s standing with Republicans has also deteriorated. His approval among self-identified Republicans has fallen from 89 percent in April 2025 to 75 percent now, a 14-point drop. Among voters who backed Trump in 2024, his job approval has fallen 10 points, according to UMass.

Overall, Trump’s approval rating has reached 32 percent, with 64 percent disapproving. The poll was conducted Aug. 21–26 among 1,000 respondents.

That does not amount to a mass rejection of Trump. A majority of his voters still say they are very confident they made the right choice.

But the direction is difficult to miss. Four surveys, four declines, and 16 points gone from the number of Trump voters who are completely sure they made the right decision.

The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-voters-confidence-in-their-decision-dramatically-crumbles/?

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Obsessed Trump Finds a New White House Construction Project

The private renovation was historically savaged by Republicans.

President Donald Trump has found a new private area of the White House he plans to overhaul.

Trump, 80, rejoiced on Monday after the Supreme Court voted to allow him to continue work on his $400 million vanity ballroom, complete with a military bunker underneath and a “drone port” on the roof. The president said the “Ballroom and Military Complex” will be finished by summer 2028, with his second term finishing in January 2029.

Now, Trump has set his sights on renovating the Harry S. Truman Bowling Alley, which was built in 1947 and paid for by the former president’s friends and supporters from Missouri as an early 63rd birthday gift.

Former President Dwight Eisenhower relocated the alley in 1955 to what is now the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, or EEOB, before former President Bill Clinton renovated it in 1994.

Despite only being available to White House staff and their guests, Politico’s West Wing Playbook has reported that a contract for nearly $253,000 has been granted for lighting work on the VIP bowling alley.

The General Services Administration awarded the sum on July 28, under the auspices of the Executive Office of the President, to Charles Mann Enterprises, founded by the former NFL player. The same contractor received another $8,880 on August 18 for escort services to allow workers into secure areas at the White House for construction purposes, the report noted.

On the same date, the Washington-based construction management company was awarded a separate $878,000 for an “EEOB basement studio project.” Politico said the award listing had no further details about the unnamed project taking place in the same location of the bowling alley.However, the publication pointed out that while MAGA signed off on the new bowling alley renovations, Republicans instantly savaged a proposed overhaul of the private alley planned by former President Barack Obama in 2014.

Ninety minutes after plans to replace the “irreparable” bowling alley were printed in Time magazine in July 2014, the GSA announced it was canceled.

Time said the cancellation notice did not explain what happened, but “optics” likely played a role. The magazine added, “The lanes are reserved exclusively for the use of White House staff and guests. It was not clear how much the replacement would have cost.”

At the time, Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus criticized the Obama administration’s priorities in a tweet, crossing out “the economy” and “secure border” and ticking “Repair WH Bowling Alley.”

The idea of renovating the bowling alley led former Rep. Pat Meehan introduce an amendment to stop funding for the project.

“With our nation $17 trillion in debt, upgrading the president’s private bowling alley shouldn’t be a priority,” Meehan said at the time. “A spiffy new bowling alley may suit the wants for commander in chief, but I think I speak for the taxpayers of the seventh congressional district when I assert that it is certainly not a need.”

The Daily Beast has contacted the White House and GSA for comment. Neither responded to Politico’s request for comment.

The bowling alley was already repaired during Trump’s first administration, with first lady Melania Trump refreshing the area in May 2019.

She “oversaw a restoration of the original wooden lane” while electrical wiring and new mechanics were also updated, as well as a “fresh interior.”

That renovation was funded by the Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America.

The lanes are just steps from the West Wing, while former President Richard Nixon built a separate one-lane bowling alley under the North Portico of the White House in 1969.

As well as demolishing the historic East Wing to build his ballroom, Trump has paved over the White House Rose Garden, added a helipad to the South Lawn and turned the Colonnade into a “Presidential Walk of Fame.”

https://www.thedailybeast.com/obsessed-trump-finds-a-new-white-house-construction-project/?

ps:Pathetic!!!!!

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Billionaire Trump Gives Jaw-Dropping Lecture to His Own MAGA Base

The president blasted American communities that don’t want data centers built in their backyards.

President Donald Trump is raging against Americans who don’t want data centers built in their communities, claiming they will end up “backwards and poor.”

The 80-year-old president fired off a furious rant on Truth Social on Monday apparently aimed at those who oppose the data centers, despite some of the opposition coming directly from MAGA country.

“The only reason that communities throughout the U.S.A. should not want Data Centers is if they want to end up being backwards and poor,” Trump whined. “If they want to be successful and rich, with far lower taxes and jobs all over the place, let Data Reign.”

The president went on to claim that the “good news is that there are plenty of other places that want them.”

“If we kill the Golden Goose, you will only have yourselves to blame. China could not be happier with this anti Data Center movement,” Trump continued. “Actually, they can’t believe it is happening!”

It puts Trump at odds with the majority of Americans, who oppose the building of artificial intelligence data centers in their communities.

Gallup found earlier this year that seven in ten Americans oppose constructing such data centers in their areas, including 48 percent who strongly oppose it and 23 percent who somewhat oppose it.

Just 7 percent strongly favor the building of centers in their local communities, while 20 percent somewhat favor the move.

The overwhelming opposition has led some Republicans to announce support for data center pauses or moratoriums heading into the midterms, but Trump on Monday appeared to scoff at their concerns and how the issue could impact the November election.

Earlier this month, Michigan Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers announced support for a one-year moratorium on data center development as he faces a tough race to take the state’s open seat.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott ordered an audit of data center projects in his state earlier this month as he runs for re-election in November. Polling by the University of Texas’ Texas Politics Project found 57 percent of Texans strongly or somewhat oppose the construction of data centers in their communities.

Trump was just in Texas last week to raise money for scandal-plagued Texas Republican Senate candidate Ken Paxton as the GOP fights to hold onto the seat in what has been a reliably red state for decades.

Much of the local communities’ concern when it comes to building data centers is about how it would impact local resources, quality of life and increased costs, such as higher utility bills. The concerns, according to Gallup polling, outweigh the economic benefits.

Americans have been struggling with higher costs of living already, including rising energy and gas prices, but Trump has largely dismissed concerns about affordability as a hoax by Democrats as his war in Iran and tariff policies drive up costs.

Building a modern AI center can use as much power as 100,000 homes and, in some cases, much more, the World Resources Institute found. They also require a massive amount of water for cooling, with a mid-sized center using as much as 300,000 gallons of water a day.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/billionaire-trump-gives-jaw-dropping-lecture-to-his-own-maga-base/?

ps:Pathetic!!!!!

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Public Launches Unprecedented Barrage Against Trump’s ‘Grotesque’ Arch

A new government report has laid bare the scale of the project—and the fierce opposition it faces.

President Donald Trump’s proposed giant arch has drawn more than 100,000 public comments describing the vanity project as “garish,” “grotesque,” “tacky,” and “authoritarian”.

A new National Park Service assessment has laid bare the scale of the project—and the torrent of opposition it faces as the 80-year-old president tries to remake Washington in his own image.

Some of the sharpest objections concerned the impact on nearby Arlington National Cemetery, the sacred burial ground for fallen soldiers from across American history.

One woman warned the 250-foot arch would “desecrate the solemnity of the Arlington Cemetery as a hallowed place of repose for those military members and their families.”

Another person criticized the fact that triumphal arches signify victory and conquest, whereas the Lincoln-Arlington corridor represents “service and sacrifice.”

And one commentator simply urged: “Please shut down this asinine assault on America. We don’t need or want an arch, a ballroom, or any of the other tributes he has put forward to stroke his ego. No! No! No!”

But the more damaging assessment arguably came from the government itself.

In a new report, the National Park Service concluded that the project would have “adverse effects” on several historic landmarks because of changes to space, land use, vegetation, and views.

The damage would be particularly concentrated around Memorial Circle, where the arch will be built near the cemetery on one side and the Lincoln Memorial on the other.

But the project would also affect the National Mall, the U.S. Capitol, the Washington Monument, the Jefferson Memorial, the Georgetown Historic District, the Old Naval Observatory, the Key Bridge, and the National Cathedral, the report says.

The 133-page assessment also makes clear that the Arch is more like a building, with five levels, an exterior spanning 9,812 square feet, and an observation deck situated 160 feet above the ground.

Visitors would reach the top via elevators and spiral staircases after passing through airport-style security screening.

But the structure is so high that people standing on it could be visible from Arlington National Cemetery, which conducts about 30 funeral services each day.

What’s more, the project would require foundations drilled about 71 feet into the ground, where the NPS admits there is a “moderate to high sensitivity” for intact archaeological resources. Those resources could include buried landscapes dating back to 10,000 B.C.

Despite all this, Trump is determined to make his project a reality.

Just as Napoleon Bonaparte had the Arc de Triomphe and Chinese Emperor Qin Shi Huang had the Great Wall, Trump has long wanted his own giant structure in the capital as part of his legacy.

The idea is modeled on the iconic arch in Paris, but would dwarf that version, which is only 164 feet tall.

According to Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump, a new book by New York Times reporters Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan, Trump initially considered adding a giant fist to the top of the structure.

This, according to the book, would represent the defiant pose he struck in the immediate aftermath of an assassination attempt against him in Butler, Pennsylvania, in July 2024.

The president was also so interested in an observation deck that, according to the book, he called French President Emmanuel Macron for his opinion.

“Do you think they’d throw bottles? Maybe we should have a viewing platform,” he reportedly asked Macron.

“You can see Arlington Cemetery, it’s a great view. I don’t know. It’s dangerous. You can jump off it,” Trump added. “What do you think, Emmanuel? Do people jump off it? No?”

The project was eventually unveiled by the president last October during a dinner party for billionaires donating to his White House ballroom.

Asked at the time who it would be built for, Trump was unequivocal: “Me,” he replied.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/donald-trumps-asinine-triumphal-arch-sparks-public-fury/?

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Trump’s Lake Name Change Immediately Blows Up in His Face

The president’s latest bizarre name change is hugely unpopular with Americans.

Donald Trump’s new name for Lake Ontario is not at all popular with Americans, a new poll reveals.

The 80-year-old president threw a tantrum after trade negotiations with Canada broke down and decided the best way to teach his northern neighbors a lesson was to unilaterally rename “Lake Ontario” “Lake America.”

Canadians have been unimpressed and defiant, thumbing their noses at his executive order, which holds no legal basis in their country. But even south of the border, Trump’s play has not gained much traction.

Only 14 percent of respondents in a new Reuters/Ipsos poll said that renaming the lake was a good idea, while 63 percent said they did not support it.

The same poll gathered opinions on the tariffs Trump has introduced on America’s closest ally, which he said would be imposed after the collapse of trade negotiations between Ottawa and Washington, D.C., last month.

Just 20 percent of respondents supported the levy, while 57 percent opposed it.

The tariffs have seen Canada respond in kind with a tranche of new taxes on U.S. goods. Both moves will likely see higher prices for everyday Americans, who are already reeling from sky-high gas prices due to the war in Iran and brutal grocery costs turbo-charged by a perfect storm, from low herd sizes to ratcheted fertilizer prices.

The three-day poll wrapped on Sunday and shows strong skepticism among Americans about a trade war with Canada.

Higher prices and affordability are worrying Republicans ahead of the midterms in November, which are expected to act as a referendum on Trump’s first two years back in the White House.

The economy will likely be at the top of voters’ minds, and now Republican candidates face the decision of whether or not to break with Trump or stick with the man who has led their party for a decade.

It comes as The Hill reports Trump’s approval has tanked to a new low of 32 percent. The University of Massachusetts (UMass) Amherst poll was conducted in late August and saw a 1-point drop from the same poll conducted in March.

The new poll found that 64 percent of people disapproved of his job since returning to the White House.

One-sided name changes have become a go-to for a scolded Trump, who also unilaterally renamed the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America last year.

Google changed Lake Ontario’s name for users in the U.S. on Saturday, while those in Canada still see the real centuries-old name.

“Since we update Google Maps to reflect name changes in official government sources, which is GNIS [Geographic Names Information System] for the U.S., people using Maps in the U.S. will see ‘Lake America,’ those in Canada will continue to see ‘Lake Ontario’ and those outside of the U.S. and Canada will see both names,” Google wrote in a blog post cited by the BBC.

Meanwhile, Ontario’s premier Doug Ford has hit back at Trump by erecting a huge sign saying “Lake Ontario,” and “Lac Ontario,” for French speakers, with the added message of “now and always.”

“Long before President Trump, this lake was called Lake Ontario,” he said, according to the BBC. “Long after President Trump is gone, it will still be called Lake Ontario.”

https://www.thedailybeast.com/trumps-lake-name-change-immediately-blows-up-in-his-face/?

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Hegseth Posts Vile Attack on Woman as Pentagon Collapses Around Him

No gibe is too cheap for the would-be presidential contender.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has been called out for a vile social media post apparently mocking a Canadian youth cadet instructor for being overweight.

Hegseth has been burnishing his Christian credentials for a possible presidential run in 2028 despite the Pentagon hemorrhaging top brass under his command as he backs Donald Trump’s increasingly costly war on Iran.

The 46-year-old is also fixated on the physical appearance of the officers under his command, declaring last September that he no longer wants to see “fat generals and admirals” or overweight troops.

On Monday, Hegseth shared a photo with his two million X followers originally posted by the Vernon Cadet Training Center, in British Columbia. It shows a smiling cadet receiving a medal on the final day of training.

The Canadian facility teaches cadets aged 12 to 18 military-style leadership and drills and is operated under the Department of National Defense. Its instructors are largely volunteers.

Hegseth picked one photo from the original carousel of 10, added a Canadian flag and wrote, “(this is real).”

His post attracted a flood of criticism, with one Canadian veteran writing, “Wow. The Secretary of Defence is body shaming cadet groups. A youth group. This is not a military unit. They are kids looking for adventure, test themselves and align themselves with the values of service.”

Another asked what point Hegseth was trying to make by sharing the picture. “You’re the Secretary of Defense, and our country is currently engaged in a war,” they wrote. “Why are you posting what appears to be some sort of insulting tweet about teenagers in Canada?”

“Hegseth... is rage-posting about Canadian teenagers in a cadet program,” another post read. “Unserious, unhinged, and embarrassing.”

Another commenter wrote: “There’s the Pete Hegseth brand of Christianity and there’s the Dolly Parton brand of Christianity. Be like Dolly.”

The Daily Beast has contacted the Vernon CTC for comment.

Pentagon Deputy Press Secretary Jacob Bliss told the Daily Beast, “The X post speaks for itself.”

In a statement to the Daily Beast, a spokesperson for the Department of National Defense said, “We are proud of the professionalism and contributions of all our dedicated Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) members.”

Promoting the program’s aim to provide youth with the opportunities to develop “leadership skills, knowledge, and self-confidence in a safe, welcoming, and inclusive environment,” the statement added, “We celebrate the achievements of cadets across Canada and the dedicated CAF members, civilian instructors, and volunteers who help young people build character, resilience, and teamwork, preparing them to lead with integrity, serve with purpose, and grow with honor.”

The post follows President Donald Trump, 80, ramping up his trade feud with Canada and signing an executive order to rename Lake Ontario—which straddles the U.S.-Canada border—“Lake America.”

Hegseth previously opposed having women in key military positions. In November 2024, just days prior to Trump announcing his role running the Pentagon, the former Fox News host told podcast host Shawn Ryan, “I’m straight-up saying we should not have women in combat roles.”

He added, “It hasn’t made us more effective, hasn’t made us more lethal, has made fighting more complicated.”

When Hegseth announced his new policies on “the highest male standards” for combat roles last September, Hegseth said, “If women can make it, excellent. If not, it is what it is. It will also mean that weak men won’t qualify because we’re not playing games. This is combat. This is life or death.”

The X post comes as Hegseth is in the midst of a crisis at the Pentagon with Army Secretary Dan Driscoll quitting on Monday after months of feuding behind the scenes.

Fox News’ Jennifer Griffin reported that Driscoll quit due to “concerns with the administration surrounding Army transformation and readiness and Hegseth’s blocking those efforts specifically by firing the Generals who were responsible.”

A close friend of Vice President JD Vance, Driscoll is expected to exit the Pentagon in the coming days, according to The Wall Street Journal.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/pete-hegseth-posts-vile-attack-on-woman-as-pentagon-collapses-around-him/?

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MAGA Rep Throws Trump’s Insulting Lecture Back in His Face

Rep. Tim Burchett is on the side of Americans who don’t want data centers built in their backyards.

A MAGA congressman has blasted Donald Trump for suggesting that people who oppose the construction of data centers want to “end up being backwards and poor.”

The 80-year-old president dismissed concerns from voters across the country who do not want the energy-intensive behemoths built in their communities, saying they should want them so they can be “successful and rich.”

“The good news is that there are plenty of other places that want them. If we kill the Golden Goose, you will only have yourselves to blame,” Trump posted on Truth Social on Monday. “China could not be happier with this anti Data Center movement. Actually, they can’t believe it is happening.”

When asked for his response to Trump’s remarks by MeidasTouch’s Pablo Manríquez, Tennessee Rep. Tim Burchett replied: “I guess I’m backwards and poor.”

“I think what we need to do is start putting those in military installations and places like that, and they’ve done a poor job of educating the public on those things,” Burchett, 62, said on Monday.

“They’re just ‘oh, we’re for them, and then you should be for them’ kind of thing,” he added. “We should have brought everybody to the table. We used to stay in the legislature, go a little slower, get there a little faster.”

Opposition to data centers is one of the few things that appears to unite the country. In June, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found that 77 percent of U.S. adults worry AI-driven data centers will raise electricity costs. More than half (57 percent) also said they would oppose building a data center in their community.A May Gallup survey also found that seven in 10 Americans said they would oppose constructing artificial intelligence data centers in their local area, including nearly half (48 percent) who were strongly opposed.

Several MAGA and Republican federal and gubernatorial candidates have realized voters largely oppose data centers, running ads that break with Trump and voicing their opposition to boost their midterm chances.

Trump’s own supporters made sure to tell the president they opposed him while replying to his Truth Social post.

“Mr. President: Think about farm land and about water resources, and a man as intelligent as you will see that the absolute position you are taking is flawed,” one Truth Social user wrote. “What use is being rich if you cannot get access to water and food?”

Another added: “Thank you, but no thanks. We wish to remain a farming community, not IT. America cannot eat a data center, or survive without our farms.”

New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, one of the most vocal opponents of data centers in Congress, had her own take on Trump’s assessment that only “backwards and poor” people do not want them built.

“How about we put one in Mar-a-Lago?” she told MeidasTouch. “We’ll see how backwards and poor he is in response to that.”

The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/maga-rep-tim-burchett-throws-trumps-insulting-data-centers-lecture-back-in-his-face/?

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Longtime Republican Voter Calls BS on Trump

Retiree Tom Weeks, 66, is among a growing number of Texans turning on Trump.

A longtime Donald Trump voter has had enough of the president’s “bulls--t,” calling him out live on CNN.

Lifelong Texas Republican Tom Weeks, 66, has pledged to vote for Democrats in the midterms over data center concerns. Many Republicans in the state are angry at Gov. Greg Abbott’s refusal to block construction of the massive facilities, giving his Democratic challenger, Gina Hinojosa, hope for an upset.

A UT/TPPP poll found that 57 percent of Texas voters either strongly or somewhat oppose construction of the centers in their community.

Among those is Weeks, who reacted angrily to President Trump pushing back against voters’ concerns. “The only reason that communities throughout the U.S.A. should not want Data Centers is if they want to end up being backwards and poor,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Monday, appearing to undermine the concerns of everyday Americans.

He didn’t stop there. “If they want to be successful and rich, with far lower taxes and jobs all over the place, let Data Reign. The good news is that there are plenty of other places that want them. If we kill the Golden Goose, you will only have yourselves to blame. China could not be happier with this anti Data Center movement. Actually, they can’t believe it is happening!” he ranted.

Weeks, who met with Hinajosa last month to discuss his concerns, called Trump’s response “bulls--t.”

“I think it is bulls--t rhetoric and is insulting as hell. It is insulting our intelligence because they don’t want to hear this noise on their property. Let them build one at Mar-a-Lago,” Weeks, who lives in the North Texas suburb of Granbury, told Laura Coates Live on CNN on Monday.

“People who think we are backwards morons are not the ones living with it. I think he has made some moronic statements.”

A growing voter backlash over data centers that strain local resources—and the AI technology they power, which threatens to put Americans out of work—is becoming an increasingly serious liability for Republicans.

Abbot responded to the political backlash by halting approvals of some 1,800 new data centers worth billions of dollars, citing concerns that they use too much power and water.

“My party has failed,” Weeks, who worked in the paper supply business, told the Washington Post last week.

He’s been fighting against the construction of data centers and a bitcoin mine, rattled by the round-the-clock noise they bring.

“Nothing has been done by our party to help,” he added. “Any Republican who has been in office since we started this fight, I’m not going to vote for them.”

“We’re going to vote for whoever we think understands our plight and she does,” he said of Hinojosa, Abbott’s challenger. He’s not the only one.

Rena Schroeder, who unsuccessfully ran as a Republican for a state Senate seat last March, attended a Talarico campaign event featuring Hinojosa last month. Schroeder, who now identifies as an independent, said she plans to vote Democratic. She also helped launch a group called “Break Rank,” which she said has attracted around 100 voters. Weeks is also involved.

“We’re calling it ‘breaking rank’ because of the level of corruption” in the Republican Party, she said. “We the people are breaking rank.”

Glenda Berg, another lifelong Republican, also plans to vote for Talarico and Hinojosa. Berg, 84, a retired bookkeeper who lives near Temple in Belton, said she voted for Abbott and Trump three times but has since been “appalled” by the president’s actions, which she said run “against what democracy is based on.”

It comes amid a mounting approval problem for Trump. CNN reported his overall approval rating has fallen to 34 percent, matching a career low reached after his supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol in 2021. Half of Americans now strongly disapprove of him, a record high across his two terms, while just 15 percent strongly approve, also a record. Only 31 percent have a positive view of the Republican Party under his leadership, according to the CNN poll conducted by SSRS from July 23 to 27.

Reuters separately reported that Trump’s political brand is increasingly a liability for Republicans defending slim congressional majorities in the November 3 midterms. A Reuters/Ipsos survey of 924 registered voters, conducted Aug. 28-31, found his approval at 33 percent, with Democrats appearing more energized heading into the midterms.

A University of Massachusetts Amherst poll found Trump’s approval had fallen to a new low, with 32 percent of 1,000 respondents approving of his job performance and 64 percent disapproving, including 54 percent who strongly disapproved. The Aug. 21-26 survey marked a 1-point drop from March. It also found 68 percent said Trump was not handling the war with Iran well, compared with 25 percent who said he was handling it somewhat or very well. The margin of error was 3.5 percentage points.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/longtime-republican-voter-calls-bs-on-trump/?

ps:It's about time, but I'll believe it when I see it!

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Raging Trump Melts Down at TV Network Over His Big Disaster

The president went nuclear on a seemingly innocuous news report.

Petulant President Donald Trump has melted down over a minute-long ABC News segment about his disastrous war in the Middle East.

The network’s chief White House correspondent, Mary Bruce, reported on Tuesday evening that the Trump administration was looking to “turn up the economic pressure” on Iran as the two countries traded military strikes for the first time since June.

Bruce was referring to comments made by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent during an earlier interview with FOX Business’ Larry Kudlow at the G20 finance ministers’ meeting in Asheville, North Carolina.

Bessent said the U.S. would target countries that support Iran, and freeze assets belonging to officials, as well as banks and offshore accounts. He called this “economic asphyxiation.”

Appearing on World News Tonight with David Muir, Bruce said that showed clearly what the White House wanted to achieve. “The Trump administration is trying to turn up the economic pressure on Iran,” she said.

“Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent saying they are going to, quote, ‘economically asphyxiate Iran and force them to the bargaining table,’” she added, triggering Trump’s ire.

Not long after the broadcast, the 80-year-old president posted on Truth Social, denying the report and appearing to contradict Bessent’s comments. “I’m not trying to force Iran to the bargaining table, as ABC Fake News reported,” he said.

“I couldn’t care less if they sign a worthless, to them, agreement. I like our position now much better, with almost total control of the Hormuz Strait, and their economy totally collapsing. They are just playing out the inevitable. When are the Iranian people going to rise up and fight?” he added.

Trump’s post ended with his usual sign-off—“President DJT”—although his Truth Social posts are mostly written and sent by his $150,000-a-year assistant, Natalie Harp, 35.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Tuesday that Tehran was prepared to “reciprocate” if the United States returns to the terms of the June ceasefire agreement negotiated by the two countries.

Bruce also noted the escalation in fighting. On Sunday, the U.S. carried out rocket strikes on Larak Island in the Strait of Hormuz. The U.S. Central Command said it launched “precise action” against the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to prevent it from placing mines in the vital shipping route.

Tehran responded by attacking two U.S. bases in Jordan with ‌ballistic ⁠missiles. Iran also claimed that it targeted an air base in the UAE with drones, although these claims were denied by the nation’s Ministry of Defense.

On Monday, in a Truth Social post just after 8 a.m. ET, the president described Iran as “officially a Failed Nation. IT IS DEAD!”

He followed up on Tuesday, saying that the U.S. was hitting targets near the Strait of Hormuz “in retaliation for the Iranians’ failed attempt at adding sea mines” to the waterway, and “shooting eight missiles, all successfully knocked down, at our Military Base in Jordan.”

He warned: “If the failed Nation of Iran retaliates for this very justified attack, they will be hit again at a much harder and higher level, but it will not be the biggest attack of them all, that is waiting in the wings and, when it is over, there will be very little left of the Islamic Republic of Iran!”

https://www.thedailybeast.com/raging-trump-melts-down-at-tv-network-over-his-big-disaster/?

ps:Even more pathetic!!!!!

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Former Presidents Unite to Shame Trump Over 9/11 Diva Fit

Donald Trump is snubbing a ceremony to mark the 25th anniversary of the historic terror attacks.

All four living former U.S. presidents have confirmed their attendance at a ceremony in New York next week to commemorate the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, which Donald Trump has decided to skip for a typically petty reason.

Joe Biden, Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush, who was president at the time of the 9/11 attacks, will all attend the event at the World Trade Center site marking the 25th anniversary of the attacks, The New York Times reported.

Trump was initially also set to appear at the event at Ground Zero. However, the Times previously reported that the 80-year-old president bailed after being told he would not be allowed to deliver one of his rambling speeches at what is supposed to be a somber occasion to remember the nearly 3,000 people who were killed that day.

Instead, Trump will mark the 25th anniversary of the attacks at the Pentagon, which was also targeted by a plane hijacked by al Qaeda terrorists.

The National September 11 Memorial and Museum has barred politicians from making speeches at the annual Ground Zero commemoration since 2012, except for delivering poems or other texts, such as the Gettysburg Address, in order to keep the day’s focus on the victims and their families.

Vice President JD Vance is expected to attend the memorial on behalf of the Trump administration, but will not speak.

Trump has furiously rejected the suggestion that he bailed on the 9/11 event in New York City after being told that he could not give a speech. In a vile Truth Social post, Trump attacked New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman, who was one of four bylines on the original report about his upcoming absence, and claimed that she had “made up a story.”“Maggot Hagerman, the Fake Reporter from The Failing New York Times, an unattractive person both inside and out, and who knows less about me than most reporters on the beat,” Trump wrote on Aug. 28. “She’s been falsely writing about me for years—She’s a stalker, and should be forced to turn over any and all money that she’s made through her fake reporting on me.”

A source told the Times that Trump’s travel plans before and after the 9/11 event meant it made more sense to fly out from Joint Base Andrews in Maryland after appearing at the Pentagon, rather than cause major logistical issues by flying from a commercial airport in New York or New Jersey.

Trump is headlining a midterm convention in Dallas before the memorial and is scheduled to depart on Sept. 12 for his golf course in Doonbeg, Ireland, where the Irish Open will be held.

Biden’s appearance at the 9/11 memorial will be a rare public outing for the 83-year-old as he is being treated for an aggressive form of prostate cancer that has spread to his bones.

Hillary Clinton, Trump’s 2016 election rival who was a New York senator at the time of the 9/11 attacks, will also attend the memorial event.

The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/former-presidents-unite-to-shame-trump-over-911-diva-fit/?

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Trump Sparks Fury With Plans to Tear Down Popular Sculpture From Kennedy Center

Joel Shapiro’s Blue is the latest victim of the president’s hands-on redesign.

Donald Trump has ordered the tearing down of a popular statue in the latest step of his MAGA makeover of the Kennedy Center.

The National Park Service will close an area around the performing arts hub on Wednesday and bring in a crane to yank Joel Shapiro’s Blue from the grounds.

The dancing figure becomes the latest casualty of Trump’s redesign of the center on the banks of the Potomac. Internal documents obtained by The New York Times suggest that the sculpture was tapped early in Trump’s second term for removal.

Former curator of visual arts and special programming at the Kennedy Center, Josef Palermo, was laid off in March as Trump installed lackeys across the board. He said on Tuesday that the lack of announcement about the removal was worrying.

“The Kennedy Center is in effect holding these pieces in trust for the American people, and there should be a lot more transparency,” he said.

The statue had been in situ outside the REACH theater expansion since 2019. The trust that owns it will determine its next location.

Hands Off The Arts, an activism collective that aims to protect art threatened by Trump’s politicization of the center, reacted angrily to the news.

“First they came for the façade, now they come for the grounds. Say your final goodbyes to Blue, Joel Shapiro’s beloved figure outside The REACH,” an Instagram statement from the group read. It referenced Trump’s ill-fated efforts to have his name permanently fixed to the front of the center.

“Wednesday, September 2, 2026 will forever be known as the day the United States government tore down a piece of public art at the behest of a petulant crybaby. But it won’t be the last.”

The group said they had “paused” a protest scheduled for Friday, but added that it had “some other ideas up our sleeves.”

“Knowing President Trump’s blue state hysteria, bet the Kennedy Center statue would stay in place if it were red. Or gold,” another commentator added.

Another person had a similar take. “Pretty sure if we slap tacky gold leaf gilding on it 47 would love it,” they said.

President Donald J. Trump has taken aim at the Reach, a $250 million expansion that marks the only structural addition to the Kennedy Center since its 1971 debut. Philanthropist David Rubenstein, the former Kennedy Center chairman ousted after Trump stacked the board with his own loyalists, primarily funded the project.

In a court filing pushing to put Trump’s name back on the front of the building, administration lawyers ridiculed the addition’s moniker, writing that “just seven years ago, the Center named a substantial portion of its grounds, ‘The REACH,’ without a semblance of protest. Nobody had any idea what it even meant.”

Despite the legal team’s confusion, the name is a deliberate acronym standing for Renew, Experience, Activate, Create, and Honor—a nod to President John F. Kennedy’s visionary ideals and the institution’s mission to make the arts accessible to the public.

The tearing down of Blue follows filings ahead of last week’s court appearance in which Trump administration lawyers suggested the building could be bulldozed and replaced with an outdoor amphitheater unless they could shut the place down for two years to carry out the renovations the president has deemed necessary.

They argued that the venue was “structurally unsound, fundamentally unsafe, and embarrassing to the Nation’s Capital.”

Trump took control of the Kennedy Center after returning to office, replacing its leadership and installing a board that made him chairman. His obsession with it is one of the many ways he is trying to reshape Washington in his own image.

The 80-year-old former real estate mogul is also constructing a ballroom at the White House; building a helipad on the South Lawn; and planning a giant arch near the sacred Arlington Cemetery.

He also attempted to paint the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool “American flag blue”—only for his handpicked contractors to damage the iconic landmark.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-sparks-fury-with-plans-to-tear-down-beloved-sculpture-from-kennedy-center/?

ps:What a pathetic leader!

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Trump Demands His Own Fans Pony Up Fortune Just for a Photo

Getting in the door costs much, much more.

A picture is worth a thousand words—and $88,600, if GOP donors want theirs taken with Donald Trump next week.

The Republican National Committee is holding two events on Sept. 9 and 10 in Dallas as part of a midterm convention, during which Trump and Vice President JD Vance will appear at roundtables and give keynote addresses.

Each event is pricey to attend, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday, not including the cost of a photo.

Just getting in the door at the Sept. 9 event with Trump, 80, costs $250,000, according to an RNC invitation seen by the outlet. Donors who then want their photo taken with the president must pay $88,600 more.

To see Vance, 41, the following day costs $75,000, and a photo with him runs $35,000, the invitation says.

The Daily Beast has contacted the RNC and the White House for comment.

Four other elections for Senate seats held by Republicans are also deemed battlegrounds: Alaska, Iowa, Ohio, and Maine.In some states, the early voting window opens later this month.

Meanwhile, the Trump-aligned super PAC MAGA Inc. has plenty of cash to use on the midterms: more than $400 million. Over $800,000 of that was used last month to help South Carolina Sen. Darline Graham advance to the general election, much to the surprise of her primary opponent, Rep. Ralph Norman.

MAGA Inc. hasn’t publicly announced any spending plans against Democrats, which has led some Republicans to worry about Texas in particular.

“They keep saying they’ll spend, but they haven’t,” a senior GOP source told CNN.

Spokesperson Alex Pfeiffer told CNN that the super PAC “will be hosting events throughout the nation” leading up to the midterms, but to date it hasn’t announced any events in Texas.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-fans-asked-to-cough-up-88k-for-photo-in-gop-cash-grab/?

ps:Beyond pathetic!!!!!

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Republicans Have a Texas-Sized Senate Problem on Their Hands. What’s It Going To Cost Them?

Spoiler alert: President Trump is not feeling generous.

This column is being republished with permission from its original home on Substack. For more from Chris Cillizza, subscribe here.

As November’s midterm elections loom ominously on the GOP’s horizon, Texas Republican Sen. John Cornyn has unloaded on the man who beat him in a runoff to become the Republican nominee in the state’s Senate race over the summer: Ken Paxton.

“Paxton’s a poor campaigner,” Cornyn told the Texas Tribune. “He’s lazy and doesn’t raise money. And he basically is not offering a very compelling case for his election. He’s making this harder than it needs to be. But so be it — we are where we are.”

You might be tempted to dismiss Cornyn’s comments as simply sour grapes — after all, Paxton ended the incumbent’s Senate career over the summer by a whopping 28 points.

And I am sure Cornyn is bitter. But he’s also right!

Here’s the fundraising numbers (as of June 30) for Paxton and Democratic nominee James Talarico:

Paxton: $9.2 million raised, $7.5 million spent, $1.75 million on hand

Talarico: $68 million raised, $47 million spent, $21.5 million on hand

Talarico has raised seven times more than Paxton—and has 12 times as much money left to spend.

And it’s not just Cornyn making that point.

Louisiana GOP Sen. John Kennedy, in an appearance on Fox News on Sunday, bluntly admitted that “money is a problem” in the Texas race, adding: “We in the Senate don’t have the money budgeted for Texas. We need help from the president.”

Texas is going to be—at minimum—a $100 million investment for the GOP. Paxton has never been a good fundraiser. He isn’t going to turn into one all of a sudden.

Senate Republicans don’t want to be on the hook, because they were very clear that Cornyn rather than Paxton was the better general election nominee. Trump endorsed Paxton anyway.

Under that line of thinking, Trump—and the $400 million that MAGA Inc., his allied super PAC, has sitting in the bank—should be the one to try to bail Paxton out of political disaster. Except that Trump isn’t super keen on that.

While a Paxton super PAC is reportedly going on air to the tune of $15 million this week, the larger question remains: Who is going to cut the check—and it’s a very big check—that it is going to take to (potentially) drag Paxton to victory?

It’s a question on which the Senate majority might tilt.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/republicans-have-a-texas-sized-senate-problem-on-their-hands-whats-it-going-to-cost-them/?