JUNETEENTH UPDATES

We'll Celebrate and Honor the End of Slavery Even if Others (cough cough) Won't ...

-As of the writing of this Substack, the United States has not yet actively started any bombing raids in Iran. That is apparently still being discussed among the highest echelons of the Pentagon along with our Commander in Chief - which, on the one hand sighscream, on the other hopefully the sane people are the last ones to get a word in with Dear Leader. Trump is apparently embodying the old Nixon "Madman Theory" of trying to be so unpredictable that the unpredictability itself is a deterrent ... except in Nixon's case, whatever else you thought of him, it was an actual strategy vs. the behavioral tics of an actual Mad King.

-That Trump is apparently seriously considering entering the Iran/Israel conflict is creating a series of divisions and open fights within MAGA-ville which, since Trump descended his escalator ten years ago this past Monday (yeesh), is somewhat unprecedented. Those divisions seem to be starting in the White House and Pentagon itself.

-The Washington Post reports discussions about potential attacks by American forces are being made without the presence, in any way, shape, or form, of Defense Secretary Pete (HIC!) Hegseth or his team ("Nobody is talking to Hegseth. There is no interface operationally between Hegseth and the White House at all") - though that could also be because Trump is personally blaming Hegseth for his Small Penis Parade, reportedly dressing him down in meetings over his biggest dream falling like an old, shriveled mushroom. (Har.)

-And, while you shall see in the next item the competition is tough, we'll call this the Petty Atrocity of the day - especially since Hegseth had to testify before Congress and took a TON of well-earned poundings by Democratic Senator after Democratic Senator over his utter incompetence and nincompoopery - so much so that all he could do while drinking ... water (WINK WINK) (ALLEGEDLY) (HIC!), all Drunky McHoneyPotAnyone? could come up with after another question about all the reports of how bad he is was to say to "be careful what you read ... and believing it, except for the BIBLE!" Sick burn, Drunky.

-On top of that, Trump's Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, is also apparently cut out from all decisions and discussions on this one. That crack appeared on Monday when Trump was told Gabbard thought bombing Iran was a bad idea. Trump replied "I don't care what she said!" and that reporting is backed up by more reporting this morning from NBC that she and her office are not in on the discussions - as well as other reports that she has "threatened" to resign if Iran is bombed by the U.S. Something else to watch as events roll on ...

-... becuse on top of all THAT, there are clear and open arguments raging all throught the MAGAverse. Recall that a huge part of the Trump myth that became the MAGA myth was Trump's insistence that Iraq was a "stupid" war and that he would never - EEEEEEEVER - do ANYTHING like Iraq! Weeeeellll ... apparently not so much, and nowhere was that firefight within MAGA laid so bare as in an infamous appearance by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Cancun) on the Tucker Carlson podcast in which Carlson "shockingly" attacked and exposed Cruz (and contributed to Cruz' well-known fetish for public humiliation) for Cruz' seemingly automatic and ignorant support of Trump's desire to attack Iran - perhaps even to take out the Ayatollah Khamenei - to "defend" Israel.

-Watching two of the dumbest and most craven people you know go at each other's throats admittedly has some entertainment value, and in truth the feeling (until proven otherwise) is that MAGAts who are staunchly anti-interventionist will become staunchly turn-Iran-into-glass-like-Dear-Leader-says ... but, given the total lack of MAGA last weekend, some of this infighting might - MIGHT - finally - FINALLY - be helping to crack the MAGA base at long last (though hopefully not by actually firing some missiles).

-Besides which, if you are wondering why figures like Carlson and Gabbard may be so against attacking Iran, one might only need to notice a certain connection that the two of them share: a familiarity, if not outright relationship, with one Vladimir Putin. Recall that Russia and Iran are very close allies, so much so that most of the drones being used by Russia to attack Ukrainian cities come from Iran.

-So any kind of escalation between Iran and Israel, or any kind of destruction of military capacity in Iran (yeah, I know, most of this involves Iran's nuclear programs, but the main part of Iran's weapons development programs are conducted in underground facilities that can only be penetrated by American-build weaponry), or in the extreme, a collapse of the Ayatollahs' rule, would be a severe blow to Russia and Putin. So they have a stake in seeing America stay out of the mess.

-And have I mentioned the whole Trump adoration of Putin thing yet? Yeah ... there's that variable too ...

-So while we wait for any potential decision on Iran, we should mention a rather important development in the MAGAGOP Congress and their attempts to pass the Big Bill O'Crap: the timetable to do so has been pushed back. The initial goal of having all of the Trump/Project 2025 wish list of cutting Medicaid, Medicare, food assistance, cancer research, student loans, and all sorts of other vital services and giving all the money to the richest of the richest of the richest of the rich was July 4, which fits in with Trump using the norms of this country to wipe his arse before the next fresh Depends (ALLEGEDLY).

-But the Senate's attempts to rework some of the nastiest crap in the House bill is taking so long that the goal is now August, when theoretically final summer vacations and football training camps start dominating people's attention - and, perhaps, calm down the internal fighting within MAGA, which has to be calmed given that the previous Bill O'Crap was passed by the House by one lone vote. The other problem is that the Big Bill O'Crap is HATED by the general electorate - even non-MAGA Republicans, which is enough to expose just how small MAGA really is - and the more that is revealed that's in this monstrosity, the less people like it.

-Continued public pressure to keep stringing this bill along, which could lead to supplemental bills to keep the government (such as it is) running - including, critically and sadly, ICE - will also raise discomfort within the MAGAverse, driving more wedges into the coalition and raising the spectre of an actual opposition that could force backing down of some of the worst provisions in the bill, later this year.

-That opposition is coming primarily from the streets and the momentum of the No Kings rallies last Saturday. Perhaps with an eye to try to do damage to the Big Bill O'Crap, the ongoing injustice that is ICE, and possibly even Iran, organizers of the No Kings rallies are looking at July 17 - a Thursday! - for the next set of rallies. That date is important because it is the birthday of revered civil rights icon John Lewis, and thus the working theme is true to Lewis' motto: "Good Trouble Lives On."

-Now, with all of this going on, you might be wondering (in the way you wonder if that wasp you saw when you sat outside was still around and might swoop in to try to get you) just what Trump was doing with Iran and the Big Bill O'Crap and the infighting amongst his allies was doing - probably something useless and embarrassing, you're thinking. And, BINGO!!

-Yesterday, as the world teeters on even more destruction, Trump decided that it was the perfect time ... to erect two 88-foot-tall flagpoles on to the White House lawn ("A gift from me!" he claimed, meaning somebody else flipped the bill) so giant massive American flags could be flown on them, so that he could then stand and salute them like he was a big boy or like he was saluting Kim Jong-Un. So he did, and in doing so, he once again made a horse's ass of himself - first by trying to make a joke out of not saying the word "erect," then by asking if any of the workers raising the poles were illegal immigrants, and generally wandering around like a lost old man (but unworried that any books about his age would be written - RIGHT, TAPPER?!).

-Quick aside: if you're wondering whether it's a good idea to have giant flagpoles near the White House ... it's a question. Some stories do worry that their size and position could do damage if they fell for some reason. Also, other observers note with skeeviness that the number "88" has an ugly symbolism as shorthand for "Heil Hitler," and that the number is tattooed on the aforementioned Pete Hegseth.

-Anyhow, not done being the dingus that he is, Trump then showed up in the White House for a photo op with the Italian soccer club Juventus as part of a hype for the Club World Cup, which is currently taking place in the U.S. (and if you didn't know about it, don't feel bad - nobody else seems to either, which combined with Trump's border and visa attacks is making the event a bit of a failure). While the team was there, Trump first droneasked them about Iran (because HUH?), then went to one of his nastiest go-tos, whether "a woman could make the(ir) team," an apparent attempt to fuse his trans bigotry onto a group of very confused-looking international athletes, and ended it by Trump looking at the copy of the Declaration of Independence in his office and asksharting, "I wonder if, you know, the Civil War, it seemed to me maybe that could have been solved without losing 600,000-plus people." It was just ... so Trump.

-Trump's snide comment about women playing sports, sadly, does bring us to the latest shredding of the Constitution by the Radical Right Supreme Court, whose six religious zealots ruled that the state of Tennessee could discriminate against transgendered children in that state by denying them the ability to get medical care because, somehow, discriminating against the transgender community does not count as being unconstitutional, or some such garbage.

-The only good news out of that ruling is that it was not a national ruling - states who do provide such care can continue to. Further, it was also revealed yesterday that the Federal government plans to defund an LGBTQI+ suicide hotline in 30 days, yet another attack on those communities by the most rabidly homophobic administration in American history, and one that could make even more people hit the streets to push for change.

-Yeah, some scary and bad stuff out there, to be sure. Take some time to take care of yourself and have some fun. I'll be seeing one of my nieces who teaches in Colombia this weekend (with my sibs in Ohio), so there's a chance the Sunday update won't happen, or if it does it'll be a bit quick. Don't fret!

-This is the weekend of the Summer Solstice, and the backbiting in MAGAville continues - as this Substack is being completed, Trump is again attacking Fox for having truthful polling that shows what little support he had is crumbling, Trump "special advisor" Laura Loomer is threatening to "expose" MAGAts who dare say anything mean about her Dear Leader, and the news of the Pentagon taking the wheel with any Iran action should hopefully ... HOPEfully ... make any decisions there sensible.

-Also, another SpaceX/Elon Musk-funded rocket blowed up real good last night on the launch pad. Apparently it was testing a flap at the top of the rocket, and it failed big time. Too bad so sad. Anyway …

-NEWS ON THIS DATE: In 1865, Union soldiers announced that slavery was no longer the law of the land in Galveston, TX, thus enshrining Juneteenth as the day slavery ended. In 1953, Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were executed for passing secrets about the atomic bomb to the Soviet Union. In 1956, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis broke up. In 2006, construction began on the Global Seed Vault. In 2016, LeBron James led the Cleveland Cavaliers back from a 3-1 deficit against the Golden State Warriors to win the NBA World Championship - the first title for the city of Cleveland since 1964.

-DEBUTS ON THIS DATE: A city-wide police force (in London, 1829), baseball using the rules we use to this date (1846), the Belmont Stakes (1846), fingerprints used to solve a crime (1892), Father's Day (1910), the Federal Communications Commission (FCC, 1934), the Tasmanian Devil (1954), Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Otis Redding (before a white audience), and The Who - all at the Monterey Pop Festival (1967), THE ROCKY HORROR SHOW (1973), INSIDE OUT (2015).

-HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Blaise Pascal, Wallis Simpson, Moe Howard, Guy Lombardo, Lou Gehrig, Alan Cranston, Lester Flatt, Pat Buttram, Pauline Kael, Louis Jordan, Nancy Marchand, Gena Rowlands, Shirley "Cha Cha" Muldowney, Aung San Soo Kyi, Salman Rushdie, Nick Drake, Phylicia Rashad, Ann Wilson, Duane Kuiper, Kathleen Turner, Mark DeBarge, Paula Abdul, Jean Dujardin, Dirk Nowitzki, Garfield the Cat, Zoe Saldana, and Macklemore.

-REST IN PEACE/POWER: J.M. Barrie, Ed Wynn, Len Bias, Jean Arthur, William Golding, Manute Bol, Slim Whitman, Gerry Goffin, Anton Yelchin, Koko the gorilla, Ian Holm, and Champ Biden.

-FEED THE WORMS: Radovan Karadzic and Ayman al-Zawahiri entered Earth on this date. Sam Giancana bought it on this date.

-Boris Johnson was born on this date. You decide if he gets a Happy Birthday or if he Feeds the Worms.

-TODAY'S MUSICAL INTERLUDE: Rest in peace, James Gandolfini.