It Is Always Someone Else’s Fault

Have you noticed that with Trump?

Trump tries to blame Reflecting Pool woes on vandalism, without offering substantiation

AP News

June 20, 2026

President Donald Trump on Saturday announced that federal authorities had made “multiple arrests” of people he said were vandalizing the Reflecting Pool as he struggled to explain why the $14-million-plus rehabilitation project he launched for the nation’s 250th anniversary seemingly backfired.

Trump said his predecessors had let the pool turn an algae-stained green and that he’d line it with “American flag blue” so it better reflected the Washington Monument. But after the new pool was unveiled, its blue tinge quickly became a familiar green. Workers treated it with chemicals to kill the algae, but then the painted blue lining on the bottom began to peel.

Have you noticed that with Trump?

Trump tries to blame Reflecting Pool woes on vandalism, without offering substantiation

AP News

June 20, 2026

President Donald Trump on Saturday announced that federal authorities had made “multiple arrests” of people he said were vandalizing the Reflecting Pool as he struggled to explain why the $14-million-plus rehabilitation project he launched for the nation’s 250th anniversary seemingly backfired.

Trump said his predecessors had let the pool turn an algae-stained green and that he’d line it with “American flag blue” so it better reflected the Washington Monument. But after the new pool was unveiled, its blue tinge quickly became a familiar green. Workers treated it with chemicals to kill the algae, but then the painted blue lining on the bottom began to peel.

Yup, yup, it was Biden's fault! That’s it. Yeah!

“We’ve had some real problems with Vandalism at the beautiful Reflecting Pool,” he posted on his social media site Friday night. “Just like three days ago, they destroyed the grass outside of the Pool, they’ve also done everything possible to hurt the inside surface that was just installed.”

[…]

“We’ve had some real problems with Vandalism at the beautiful Reflecting Pool,” he posted on his social media site Friday night. “Just like three days ago, they destroyed the grass outside of the Pool, they’ve also done everything possible to hurt the inside surface that was just installed.”

So who was arrested? The Washington Post reported:

David Hearn had just finished a loop around Hains Point on Friday as part of a 52-mile bike ride when he swung by the Lincoln Memorial to see the refurbished Reflecting Pool for himself.

Noticing a piece of the new “American flag blue” liner that was partially detached from the pool bottom, Hearn said he reached into the water to see what it felt like. Moments later, as the Bethesda man prepared to leave, U.S. Park Police officers arrested him on a misdemeanor charge of destruction of government property. He is scheduled to appear in D.C. Superior Court on July 9.

Yup! That’s it.

My theory: as they were vacuuming up the algae, they started pulling up the liner.

I can picture how the pool liner fiasco happened.

A Mar-a-Lago neighbor meets Trump while walking their dogs. In the small talk as they were walking, Trump says, “You know, I have this horrible, horrible algae-infected pool! I just don’t know what to do with it. I want to make it United States flag blue. You know, I think it will look great!”

The neighbor says, “I know a guy who paints pools!”

Smoke And Mirrors

The Trump administration was touting its cuts to Medicaid, saying it was going after fraud—despite the fact that the "fraud" consisted of billing issues, not actual fraud.

Trump administration shares new work requirements for Medicaid recipients

June 3, 2026

NPR Heard on Morning Edition

By Julie Rovner, A Martínez

The Trump administration this week released guidance for states on the work rules many Americans on Medicaid will need to abide by in order to be eligible for benefits on Jan. 1.

A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:

The Trump administration is telling states how to set up work requirements for adults who get their health insurance from Medicaid. That's the program for low-income and disabled people that is funded by the federal government and states. Now, under these new rules, Medicaid recipients will need to prove that they are working, going to school or volunteering at least 80 hours a month. Work requirements were in President Trump's big tax and spending law that he signed last July. That law had a lot of Republican support, and no Democrats in Congress voted for it. Julie Rovner hosts the "What The Health?" podcast. So, Julie, why are Medicaid work requirements such a popular policy for Republicans?

The Georgetown University Center for Children and Families (CCF) wrote that,

Only a handful of these Medicaid and CHIP provisions can be viewed as addressing fraud, waste and abuse but they account for only 2.5 percent of the gross Medicaid and CHIP cuts.3  States will face significant cost shifts under some of the major Medicaid and CHIP cuts, particularly those restricting state use of provider taxes, at the same time states will face other large cost shifts for SNAP benefits under the law.   

Similarly, the law’s provisions related to the Affordable Care Act’s Marketplace eligibility and enrollment policies do nothing to prevent fraud, waste, and abuse.  CBO estimates that these provisions would cut gross federal Marketplace spending by an additional $213 billion over the next ten years.  This also does not account for interactions and revenue effects.4  Altogether, the gross Medicaid, CHIP, and Marketplace cuts total $1.2 trillion over ten years.  Even accounting for interactions, the net Medicaid, CHIP, and Marketplace cuts equal $1.1 trillion over ten years.

But there are side effects that these cuts will cause. People don't stop getting sick just because they can't afford care. It is not like a night at the movies where you can simply choose not to go. People keep getting sick! They go to hospitals, which are legally required to take all patients, regardless of their ability to pay.

About 110,000 poor CT adults could lose Medicaid coverage

A new definition for ‘medical frailty’ published by the federal government on June 1 may mean fewer people qualify for exemptions to work requirements

CT Mirror

by Keith M. Phaneuf and Katy Golvala

June 17, 2026

With about 110,000 poor adults at risk of losing Medicaid coverage under new federal work rules this January, officials are scrambling to avert a swell in uninsured patients forced to seek care through hospital emergency departments.

And while maintaining preventative care for thousands remains a foremost concern, some officials fear this trend could strain hospitals’ finances — just months after state tax changes dedicated hundreds of millions extra each year to the industry.

“This is the most irresponsible piece of legislation in American history,” state Sen. Matt Lesser, D-Middletown, co-chairman of the General Assembly’s Human Services Committee, said of the Medicaid rules changes enacted last July by Congress and signed by President Donald Trump.

The ramifications of that legislation on states, Lesser added, “are staggering and completely boneheaded.”

The bottom line: insurance costs will soar for the rest of us. How do you think the medical system will pay for the care of those who do not have health insurance?

Trump & Company hawk their cuts, waving the banner of "stopping fraud." But they didn't eliminate the cost of healthcare... they just shifted the bill from the government's pocket to ours.

How Childish!

Can you get more petty then this...

‘A Literal Coverup’: What Is the Kennedy Center Hiding Behind Those Tarps?

Gv Wire

By The New York Times

June 20, 2026

 In the early hours of June 13, in an action that turned out to be news around the world, workers hung massive tarps from scaffolding across the front of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and under court order removed President Donald Trump’s name from the marble facade.

Or did they?

True, the center’s operations chief, Matt Floca, filed a sworn declaration with a federal court later that day saying that Trump’s name had been removed. And true, a New York Times photographer captured evidence through an opening in the tarp that the letter “A” came off. Another photographer recorded evidence of the demise of a “D.”

But in a downer denouement for Trump’s critics, a week later the tarps are still there, prompting some to wonder whether at least some of the letters are, too. As of Friday evening, there was no visual evidence that the letters splashed across the building had been restored to “The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts.”

So are they keeping the tarp up to hide the removal of Trump's name, or is there another reason?

The Best Government Money Can Buy!

Green water!

Green water that shouldn't be there!

The contract came from the National Park Service, but here's a funny thing... nobody knows who initiated the contract.

‘Residual algae’ coats part of newly opened Reflecting Pool

KESQ News Channel 3

June 10, 2026

The Trump administration has spent days heavily promoting the finished renovations at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, crediting the president with making Washington, DC, look “better than ever.”

But a day after the reservoir was filled post renovations, there was already quite a bit of algae visible from the water’s edge.

CNN spotted a worker clearing the algae from the bottom of the recently filled pool while shooting a video on Wednesday. Asked for comment, an Interior Department spokesperson said the algae is “residual” and a normal part of the early process of restarting operations at the Reflecting Pool.

“What you are seeing is residual algae from the supply lines, which have been sitting dormant for eight weeks while construction has been taking place. It’s part of the normal startup process. We are removing the algae, and the nanobubblers will maintain the pool and keep it algae free,” communications director Kate Martin said in a statement.

No... what you are seeing is something thought up without any research into whether it would work or what would be needed to make it work. The Reflecting Pool holds 6.5 million gallons of water, or about 10 Olympic-size swimming pools' worth of water!

Did you see all the ducks floating on the Reflecting Pool? You know, ducks do in the water what bears do in the woods. Couple that with the fact that the pool is basically very large, very shallow, exposed to full summer sun, continuously receiving natural water (from the Potomac River's Tidal Basin), frequented by birds, and designed to have relatively calm water. Those are almost textbook conditions for algae growth.

“I originally thought I’d do it for $2 or $3 million,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. “Just do a base. But now we are fixing up the exterior of it so we will probably be in it for less than $20 million.”

According to a contract summary under the Obama administration, the cost for renovations to the Reflecting Pool at the time was $35.3 million.

So how did we end up with this half-baked idea? Simple... Trump wanted it.

I picture some guy at a million-dollar cocktail party walking up to a politician and saying, "Hey, I've got something to fix the Reflecting Pool!"

A little campaign donation later, an idea conceived over champagne wishes and caviar dreams became a reality—or a nightmare!

Then we have Trump's other idea... let's paint it flag blue! With no thought given to how that dark color would affect the pool.

This has been a cluster f**k from the beginning.

---

Then there are the questionable donations, the Daily Beast reported...

Trump’s Botched Vanity Project Fiasco Just Got Even More Embarrassing

The owner of one of the firms that received a no-bid contract for the work has a checkered past.

Janna Brancolini

Jun. 19 2026

President Donald Trump’s overhaul of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool continues to make headlines for the wrong reasons, as new revelations surface about one of the contractors involved.

Trump, 80, had bragged for months about repainting the massive pool on the National Mall his hand-selected shade of “American flag blue,” but less than 24 hours after the project was completed, the pool turned green with algae.

Soon after, the blue finish began flaking off and floating to the surface, despite the fact that the firm overseeing the renovation had been paid about $14 million—more than seven times Trump’s original estimate of $1.8 million.

Now, The New York Times has revealed that the firm tasked with installing the water-purification system to prevent algae bloom is owned by a long-time Trump supporter and two-time felon who pled guilty to bribing a congressman and violating campaign finance laws.

Federal contracting records show the National Park Service bypassed the government’s usual competitive-bidding process and awarded a $1.7 million no-bid contract to the Ohio-based firm Greenwater Services, the Times reported.

The company is owned by J.J. Cafaro Investment Trust led by John J. Cafaro, a Trump donor who owns a Palm Beach mansion near the president’s private Mar-a-Lago club.

Trump has described Cafaro as a “fantastic man,” the Times reported, despite his multiple run-ins with the law.

And now, people are starting to ask questions!

Trump’s Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool work comes under scrutiny: 4 things to know

The Hill

by Mallory Wilson 

06/19/26 

President Trump’s efforts to renovate the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool have not gone smoothly, despite the president maintaining he has a lot of experience with pools.

Questions have swirled about the no-bid, multimillion dollar contract given to complete the pool renovations, one of several Trump beautification projects in Washington, D.C., ahead of the U.S.’s 250th anniversary.

[...]

No bid contract

Trump first announced his plans to renovate the Reflecting Pool in April, saying he would fix leaks and change the color of the bottom to “American flag blue.”

[...]

Cost for work has ballooned

The cost of the contract for work on the reflecting pool has ballooned up to $14.7 million, federal records showed this week.

The contract given to Atlantic Industrial, which was tasked with resealing, waterproofing and repainting the pool, has gone up more than $1.5 million in just the past month.

[...]

It’s not easy being green 

Green algae was quick to make its comeback after the renovations were finished, turning the pool’s color from blue to green.

[...]

Peeling paint

Trump specially picked the color for the bottom of the reflecting pool, but the material used appears to have survived less than two weeks at the bottom of the pool before photos showed it peeling away and floating to the top.

Ah yes, Trump has many interesting friends! What do they say about birds of a feather flock together? It looks like felons do the same.

Saturday 9

Saturday 9: The Men in My Little Girl's Life (1965)

On Saturdays I take a break from the heavy stuff and have some fun…

BANNER

 

 Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here. Chosen for Father's Day.

1) In this song, a father shares the story of his daughter's life through first the boys, then the men, she brought home. The first is Rod, a little kid who wants to play in the backyard. Who were your playmates when you were young? Did you find it more fun to have them over to your home, or to go to theirs?

They don't call up "Baby Boomers" for nothing. We all hung around together until we got the keys to Daddy's car.

We terrorized each other's home equally... from one basement to another on a rainy summer day.  

2) Then his daughter asked if Lee could carry her books on the walk to/from school. During your junior high years, how did you travel to school (bus, bicycle, car pool, shoe leather)?

By bike

We lived at the end of a dead-end street, this get out you had to peddle up a 150Ft hill. Then it was all downhill from there, a mile and half. But that meant it was a mile and half pumping up hill back the the house. End is a breath taking coast down the hill and in to the driveway.

3) Throughout this song, the father recalls that his daughter alternately called him "Daddy," "Dad," "Popsie," "Pop" and "Father." How did/do you address your father?

Dad.

4) The song ends with the daughter asking her father to babysit. When did you last look after someone else's child?

Um… um… you should asked “Have you ever…”

5) This record was a Top 10 hit in the US and it made the Top 20 in Canada. Much of its success was attributed to Mike Douglas' TV popularity. From 1965 to 1981, he hosted a daytime talk show. Do you watch much daytime TV?

Sad to say but over the winter I watched a lot of TV… western reruns.

6) Mike Douglas was a father himself. He had three daughters, including twins. Are there twins in your family?

Nope.

 

Now about Father's Day ... 

 

7) Retail chains like O'Reilly Auto Parts, Auto Zone and Jiffy Lube are all promoting gift cards and car-related gifts for Father's Day. If you got a gift card from one of those stores, how would you upgrade your ride?

Detailed the inside of the car.

 

8) Dick's Sporting Goods also enjoys a spike in gift card sales around Father's Day. Have you more recently given or received a gift card?

Once again… Um…  I never received a gift card. I given some but never received one.

9) In days gone by, ties were the #1 Father's Day gift. But as today's workplace has become more casual, fragrance has taken over the top spot. Dove Men+Care offers gift sets with shampoo/conditioner, body wash and antiperspirant. Think about your shower routine. Are your shampoo, body wash and antiperspirant all the same brand or the same scent?

Well first off, you only need shampoo if you have hair. Scented body wash. 

---

Today I am down in central New Jersey today and my niece's for the last of the current crop grand-nieces of college graduates. Down and back in one day... dinner at a restaurant at 1, and back to my niece's house. I plan on leaving around 5 or 6, it should be around 3 hour drive back. 

Do You Know The Symbolism?

Of Trump signing the MOU at the Palace of Versailles?

The treaty oft Versailles in 1919 ended World War I, and piled a deep burden on Germany that resulted in WW II.

Too bad, they did arrange the room like it was in 1919.

You Knew This Was Going To Happen

[Political Analysis]

Is the U.S. backing out of the Iran agreement?

The optics of the Iran war have shifted, leaving Trump with what appears to be a defeat. He has always needed to be seen as the “top dog,” but now he is being viewed as a loser.

The reflection pool has turned green.

The anti-weaponization slush fund was blocked.

Immigration policy was overturned.

The Kennedy Center rebranding failed.

Things have not been going well for Trump.

Now people are calling the MOU a surrender document. Even more damaging for the author of “The Art of the Deal” is the growing sentiment that President Obama’s treaty was better than Trump’s. Trump invested significant political capital in presenting this agreement as a major achievement and an improvement over previous Iran diplomacy, but that narrative is now unraveling.

Criticism is coming from multiple directions: some argue the agreement gave Iran too much, while others say the military campaign failed to achieve its stated objectives. Now he is hearing that he lost the war, and his ego cannot accept that. Even many Republicans in Congress see it as a bitter pill to swallow.

I believe Trump will pivot to domestic issues, targeting groups like the LGBTQ+ community, immigrants, and other minorities. When he is backed into a corner, he tends to go on the offensive against those with less power to push back.

Expect more posts about “unemployment fraud” on his X platform. You may see crackdowns on blue cities over alleged fraud that is more likely due to administrative or billing errors rather than actual wrongdoing.

You may also see a wave of anti-trans legislation—anything to distract from the situation in the Middle East.

Trump has blurred the lines between politics, personal branding, media presence, and business interests more than any recent president, and this is increasingly becoming a liability for him.

 

---

 

Updated: 9:45AM 

 

 

[/Political Analysis]

He Is Politicizing Everything

The Trump administration is now “weaponizing” unemployment insurance, cutting it off to blue states that don’t kowtow to him.

Trump administration warns governors to crack down on unemployment insurance

By Nick Viviani

FOX 5

June 17, 2026

The U.S. government wants states to do more to combat fraud, waste, and abuse in their unemployment insurance programs and is threatening to withhold federal dollars until they do.

Big picture view:

Letters from the Labor Department were sent to the governors of every state warning that, if they do not crack down on their unemployment programs, administrative funds would be withheld. The move is the latest action by President Donald Trump’s administration to combat fraud and waste in state programs. 

What they're saying:

"We are officially putting governors on notice," Acting Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling said in a statement Wednesday. "The American people will no longer tolerate the blatant waste, fraud, and abuse of their hard-earned tax dollars — no state should allow it either. If states allow it, they will suffer the consequences."

The backstory:

The Labor Department blamed poor oversight, outdated technology, weak identity verification, and lax control for "allow[ing] unprecedented fraud to flourish." Its statement cited examples from California, Illinois, and New York to show how hundreds of millions of dollars have been reportedly lost to fraud, improper payments, and mismanagement.

Funny how they all Blue states named.

Back in April,

Vance to focus fraud efforts on Democratic states, Trump says

By Reuters

April 3, 2026

President Donald Trump on Friday ​said Vice President JD Vance will ‌focus on investigating fraud in Democratic-run states in his new role as "fraud czar."

"His focus will be 'EVERYWHERE,' ​but primarily in those Blue States," ​Trump said in a post on Truth ⁠Social, singling out California, Illinois, Minnesota, Maine ​and New York.

First it was ICE going after blue states, now it is unemployment insurance being framed as fraud in blue states. But as usual, they offer no data to back up their accusations.

Trump’s Department of Labor claims without data that states defrauded government

Acting secretary Keith Sonderling threatens to withhold administrative funds from states for first time in history

The Guardian

Michael Sainato

Wed 17 Jun 2026

Keith Sonderling sent letters to 53 states and US territories demanding action to “combat waste, fraud, and abuse” within the unemployment insurance program, threatening to withhold administrative funds from states for the first time in history.

“We are officially putting governors on notice,” said the acting US secretary of labor. “The American people will no longer tolerate the blatant waste, fraud, and abuse of their hard-earned tax dollars – no state should allow it either. If states allow it, they will suffer the consequences. This department is no longer afraid to use every lever available to ensure taxpayer money is protected.”

The agency did not provide data on fraud or alleged fraud in unemployment systems, but highlighted three Democrat-led states – California, New York and Illinois – and made claims about each.

The article also noted that much of the so-called “fraud” is actually billing and payment error.

The Department of Labor also claimed that New York loses an estimated $2m a day in unemployment insurance fraud and improper payments, but did not differentiate between the two. They also cited that Illinois had improper payments of $320m, at a rate of 14%.

Improper payments are not fraud, rather are most often cited as due to antiquated technology, with an estimated improper payment rate of 14.9% across the US.

This is the Trump administration’s typical MO: make broad, attention-grabbing accusations that dominate headlines, but are not supported by clear data.

Friendly news outlets like Fox News plaster it all over their headlines: “Massive Fraud Crackdown.” What they don’t mention is that much of it is billing error and that states are actively pursuing actual fraud cases. But they don’t mention that.

I also want to point out that states are going after fraud:

• Audits uncover issues with timely delivery of N.C. unemployment benefits, $47 million in fraudulent payments
• California’s troubled unemployment agency squandered $4.6M on cellphones, devices that went unused for years
• Colorado: State audit finds $5M in UI overcharges to employers

It is not as though the states are doing nothing. Much of the data the federal government is using comes from the states themselves. This is nothing more than grandstanding.

And you know darn well that if the feds do this the courts will overturn it like they did with the ICE and CBP fake claims. The courts blocked him in cutting funding to Sanctuary Cities. When he cut funding to states' Welfare & Social Services programs. When he tried to cut Public Health & Research. So if he goes through with these threats I foresee the court blocking him again.

Judge Shopping?

This is really off the deep end—they are grasping at straws. They are going after a medical association! Now get this... for fraud!

FTC sues transgender care group, arguing it deceived parents and patients

The World Professional Association for Transgender Health has a leading role in determining how gender-affirming care is provided.

Politico

By Simon J. Levien

06/17/2026

The Federal Trade Commission is suing the leading transgender health care group in federal court. The agency argued on Wednesday that the World Professional Association for Transgender Health made “deceptive claims” in its health care guidelines for transgender children. The group’s members include psychiatrists, surgeons, pediatricians, endocrinologists and primary care doctors who work with transgender patients.

The FTC, like the Health Department, has been on a monthslong legal tear to clamp down on providers and hospitals that offer gender-affirming care. Gender-affirming care refers to medical interventions for minors experiencing distress that their bodies do not align with their gender identity.

This is total bonkers!

“Medical organizations must follow the science, disclose conflicts and put patients first,” said Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in a news release praising the FTC’s action.

The agency alleged that WPATH’s trans care recommendations violate the FTC Act by misleading parents and patients about the necessity and efficacy of these treatments. The FTC filed its complaint in the federal court in Fort Worth, Texas, alongside several red states, which joined the suit: Alaska, Iowa, Nebraska and Texas.

Ah... now I see. RFK Jr. has his two cents in this politically motivated attack on WPATH. And this appears to be a spinoff from a British investigation.

 The Trump administration has pointed to a British government review that found the evidence supporting gender-affirming care’s efficacy is weak, and produced its own study arguing the same. The administration supported Tennessee’s defense of its law barring gender-affirming care for minors in a Supreme Court case last year that Tennessee won 6-3.

So why Texas and not Washington, D.C. to file the case? Because the FTC had recently received an unfavorable ruling from Judge Boasberg in D.C. in related litigation involving WPATH. Meanwhile, down in Texas, they had a very good chance of getting a judge that Trump appointed... and they got Judge Mark Pittman! Who is he?

• In 2022, Pittman struck down the Biden administration's student-loan forgiveness program,
• In April 2023, Pittman issued the first major ruling in the case seeking to suspend the FDA's approval of mifepristone,

And of course the Republican states are jumping on board...  The Advocate writes;

The Federal Trade Commission, joined by the attorneys general of Alaska, Iowa, Nebraska, and Texas, filed the lawsuit against the World Professional Association for Transgender Health in federal court in Texas. The complaint alleges that WPATH made deceptive or unsubstantiated claims about the safety, effectiveness, medical necessity, and evidence base for puberty blockers, hormone therapy, and surgeries for young people.

It doesn't look good for us!

I'm not a legal expert, but I believe that this case is mainly to show the MAGA base that they are tough on us. The grounds they are basing their case on have been called novel and aggressive. What are its chances of succeeding? I give it a 50/50 chance to win in the Supreme Court. They seem to be essentially trying to reclassify medical consensus and clinical guidelines as "commercial marketing." It is an aggressive stretch of consumer protection law designed to bypass the traditional medical boards and go straight for the financial and legal jugular.

My Worry

Trump is in a slow meltdown… everything he touches is falling apart!

👉 The Kennedy Center went down in flames in court.

👉 His pièce de résistance—the ballroom—has costs skyrocketing… $300 million! $500 million! Now the estimate is over $600 million.

👉 His arch is being challenged in court.

👉 The Reflecting Pool, once blue, is now green!

👉The big one… the Iran situation. He caved and surrendered!

Everywhere you look in the news, the top article is about the MOU. Many news outlets are pointing to the fact that President Obama’s treaty was better than Trump’s MOU.

I am concerned that he might take drastic action to counter a perception of weakness. He is a loose cannon and might do anything.

As a trans woman, I am worried that he will take it out on us.

Good Luck

The EEOC doesn't believe in discrimination!

Intersex teacher in Florida says school fired him based on belief he was trans

Shepard Scalf said in an EEOC filing that a parent complained to the district that he was transgender.

The Advocate

Mathew Rodriguez

Jun 16, 2026

Shepard Scalf, a Florida teacher who is intersex, is alleging in a new Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filing that his school district fired him because they perceived him as transgender. Scalf was assigned female at birth but identifies as male, per the Monday filing.

In the filing, Scarf claims that, at the same time he was fired, he was told that his performance as a Language Arts teacher at Patriot Oaks Academy in the St. Johns County School District was “exemplary,” and that there was no “merits-based justification” for his termination. Scalf taught sixth grade and had been newly hired for the 2025-2026 school year.

“At the same time, the district knew both that I have a male gender identity (they gave me a placard saying ‘Mr. Scalf’) and that I was assigned female at birth (based on my employment paperwork),” Scarf wrote. “I therefore believe this termination was based on the perception that I am transgender.”

Hey! The Republicans don't care about the little details like he is intersex, all they see is he is not like them. He is different... therefore unacceptable to them.

Per the filing, the letter from Asplen claimed that, due to Scalf being a first-year teacher, his employment was “probationary” and could be dismissed without cause. The letter said he would be placed on temporary leave following a board meeting. Scalf says he was given the choice to accept the probationary release or voluntarily resign. Scalf resigned after being told by the union rep that a resignation would be better for his future career prospects than a termination, according to the EEOC filing.

[...]

After his resignation, Scalf says he received evidence that his termination was due to a parent complaining that he was transgender, per the filing.

It will be a hard uphill battle with Florida and Trump's EEOC

“Heya Joe… who wonna da Second World War, you so smart?”

Those words are from Firesign Theatre's “How Can You Be in Two Places at Once When You’re Not Anywhere at All” and to paraphrase them... “Heya Don… who wonna da Second Iranian War, you so smart?”

How does "The art of the deal" Trump do in this compared to Obama?

So … let me get this straight:

• The official numbers say the war cost around $25–30 billion but estimates put it as high as $100 billion.
• It is estimated that ~1,400–1,700 Iranian civilians were killed including ~120 schoolchildren killed in the one missile attack on the school.
• At least 13 U.S. service members killed and ~380 wounded
• And what it has done to our allies in the region is beyond calculations.

What Trump did not get...

❌ No regime change (Iran’s government remains intact)

❌ No confirmed dismantling of Iran’s missile program

❌ No full shutdown of Iran’s proxy networks

❌ No permanent or fully verified nuclear rollback

❌ No decisive military defeat of Iran

What Iran got...

✅ Sanctions relief on oil exports

✅ Return to global oil markets

✅ Partial access to frozen assets

✅ Easing of shipping and maritime restrictions 

✅ Potential reconstruction and investment prospects of $300 billion dollars in loans

Bottom line: Trump surrendered!  

Really Bad News!

I mean some really bad news: the Trump administration has stopped enforcing discrimination cases against trans people in the workplace!

Judge tosses lawsuit challenging civil rights agency’s pullback on transgender workplace protections

AP News

By  CLAIRE SAVAGE

June 15, 2026

A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit alleging that the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is unlawfully refusing to enforce workplace protections for transgender workers.

Chief Maryland District Judge George L. Russell III dismissed the case on Friday, saying the court lacks jurisdiction over the complaint, and plaintiff FreeState Justice, a Maryland LGBTQ+ advocacy group, lacks standing to pursue it.

“While deeply troubling, the Court agrees with Defendants that the EEOC’s decision to alter its investigations of gender identity discrimination claims constitutes a discretionary decision over which the Court lacks authority to review,” said Russell, a nominee of President Barack Obama, in a memorandum opinion filed Friday.

[...]

On behalf of FreeState Justice, legal advocacy groups Democracy Forward and the National Women’s Law Center sued the EEOC in July 2025, alleging the agency’s “Trans Exclusion Policy” violates Supreme Court precedent, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Fifth Amendment’s Equal Protection guarantee, and the Administrative Procedure Act.

Not being a legal expert, I would have to say that what the judge said about jurisdiction is correct. However, it seems to me that the court did not address the Fourteenth Amendment Equal Protection Clause issues directly. What I see is that they did not reach the discrimination question—whether a protected class (transgender people, as sex-based discrimination under Title VII) is being singled out for unequal treatment.

What the judge did was focus on whether an agency can determine its own enforcement policies. The court concluded that it can, but it did not reach the question of whether those policies, if they systematically exclude a protected class, would themselves be unlawful.

However, if the EEOC is systematically refusing to process or pursue transgender-related discrimination cases as a category, then that goes beyond ordinary enforcement discretion and begins to look like a discriminatory policy applied to a protected class.

So it is off to the appeals court we go. This may eventually reach the Supreme Court, where the key question will likely be whether courts can review only an agency’s policy itself, without considering whether that policy results in unequal enforcement of anti-discrimination protections.

Bad Reviews!

Tacky!

Strange!

Triumphalist!

Crass!

Gaudy!

Unseemly!

Those are some of the adjectives used to describe the fight at the White House! What Trump was create a circus on the White House lawn,

Trump, 80, Eviscerated for Defiling D.C. With Tacky UFC Spectacle

Daily Beast via Yahoo

Mary Papenfuss, Matt Young

Sun, June 14, 2026

President Donald Trump is facing a backlash for turning the White House and Washington, D.C., into a circus for his UFC birthday spectacle.

The White House and its surroundings were filled with eyebrow-raising events for the America 250 celebrations over the weekend. At the top of the bill is a UFC fight on Sunday night, also Trump's 80th birthday.

The hijinks got started Saturday morning with the weigh-ins of the fighters, who promoters warn will get hurt and bloodied in Sunday's seven wild spectacles. Heavyweight Josh Hokit walked unsteadily and appeared to drool, dribble, or vomit at the weigh-in. "So what? Maybe I was drinking last night," the bare-chested fighter told spectators. "Who wouldn't be? I have a giant Black man that wants to knock me out."

The pre-fight entertainment also got a lot of attention in creating a circus like atmosphere...

Posting footage of the moment, Trump critic Ed Krassenstein wrote, "Donald Trump has made a disgrace of America."

The bizarre moments continued as adrenaline junkies from The Nitro Circus performed motorbike jumps on the South Lawn of the White House.

"Disgraceful," wrote the Lincoln Project in response.

I think that this photo says it all...

Motorsports athletes and stunt performers do a motorcycle jump ahead of the UFC Freedom 250 fights on the South Lawn. / Alex Brandon / via REUTERS

Everything Trump touches turns to that brown stuff!

---

---

Even the UFC wants noting to do with it again!

Don’t expect a repeat. UFC boss Dana White says ‘never again’ to another White House fight night

AP News

By  DAN GELSTON

June 15, 2026

By the time Justin Gaethje pummeled his bloodied foe to a pulp and celebrated a championship win with a backflip off the top of the wire-mesh cage, then shook hands with President Donald Trump — and even fist-bumped Melania — this much about his company’s future was clear to the ultimate boss of UFC: Just say no to the White House.

“It was an amazing, experience, this was a one-of-one,” UFC CEO Dana White said.

“It will never happen again.”

Oh, not because the show dubbed Freedom 250 and ostensibly held to celebrate Trump’s 80th birthday and the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence’s signing wasn’t by White’s accounts a smashing success. He crowed about merchandise sales and streaming service subscriptions and how UFC surpassed its goals in every metric he could list at a news conference that stretched well into the dawn’s early light Monday.

Translated from business speak: "We made tons of money!"

Forget it, almost impossible to top on a night when fighters essentially treated their walkouts like they were kids on a class trip. The all-male lineup toured the West Wing, the Oval Office, walked past presidential portraits, through the Roosevelt Room, the Cabinet Room — and the winners even got a meet-and-greet with Trump.

[...]

Forget it, almost impossible to top on a night when fighters essentially treated their walkouts like they were kids on a class trip. The all-male lineup toured the West Wing, the Oval Office, walked past presidential portraits, through the Roosevelt Room, the Cabinet Room — and the winners even got a meet-and-greet with Trump.

[...]

“Usually, I kind of blank out when it comes to getting ready to walk to the cage,” Gaethje said. “It was pretty crazy, looking at the Declaration of Independence. The original one. Their language was different. I’m not smart enough to read that.”

Gaethje also banked a whopping $825,000 in bonus money for winning “Performance of the Night” and “Fight of the Night” honors.

[...]

Blood and guts were a mandate before an American fighter wrapped himself in the flag.

Under Trump the White House is now center stage for a 3 ring circus!

There Are So Many Titles I Could Use

Like what were you expecting?

Really, Texas is one most anti-everything state, they are so far right that they stand in the shadow of Trump.

A Muslim Texan sought to find his place in the party at the state GOP convention. He left in tears.

Muslim delegates and attendees hoping to participate in the state Republican convention were shunned and rejected by members as they espoused themes of party unity ahead of the November election.

Texas Tribune

by Renzo Downey

June 15, 2026

To some extent, Mohamed Hussein knew he was preparing to enter the lion’s den.

But he made the decision to attend the Republican Party of Texas Convention to confirm for himself that he had a place in the GOP, even as members of the party have railed for months about the urgency of ending Sharia Law and the so-called “Islamification” of Texas.

What he found was a party that didn’t want him. He arrived with hope but left in tears after being told explicitly that he should leave the country.

The Republican party is a party that is against "The Others"

Hussein was among four Muslims who arrived at the convention in earnest — not as protesters, but as delegates or attendees — to participate in the annual meeting of the state’s most hardlined Republicans as they vote on the party’s priorities and hear from GOP leaders. Two prevailing themes from the Houston gathering were party unity and combatting Sharia Law, a movement that veered into outright Islamophobia by members of the convention.

The Republican party has turned into the party of the White Christian Nationalists 

The Constitution. What's That?

For Trump & Company losing in court is starting to get them mad. So what do they do... use the tactics that Trump developed with his businesses! The Trump administration has developed it to an art form the appealing, delaying compliance with, sought to circumvent court orders they disagreed with, or failed to fully comply with court orders.

Trump flexes executive power with unprecedented flouting of lower court rulings

AP News

By  SUDHIN THANAWALA

May 2, 2026

When a federal judge shot down a Trump administration policy of holding immigrants without bond last December, it seemed like a serious blow to the president’s mass deportation effort.

Instead, a top Justice Department official insisted the ruling wasn’t binding, and the administration continued denying detainees around the country a chance for release.

By February, the district court judge, Sunshine Sykes, was fed up. Sykes, a nominee of President Joe Biden, accused Trump officials in a ruling that month of seeking “to erode any semblance of separation of powers,” adding that they could “only do so in a world where the Constitution does not exist.”

Hardly isolated, the case illustrates a broader pattern of defiance of lower court decisions in President Donald Trump’s second term.

[...]

In the second Trump administration’s first 15 months in office, district court judges ruled it was violating an order in at least 31 lawsuits over a wide range of issues, including mass layoffs, deportations, spending cuts and immigration practices, the AP’s review of court records found. That’s about one out of every eight lawsuits in which courts have at least temporarily blocked the administration’s actions.

Why can he get away with thumbing his nose at the courts... simply the Republicans in Congress do not have a backbone, and they let Trump walk all over the Constitution!

Scripps News Service reported...

The Republican administration's power struggle with federal courts — which is testing basic tenets of U.S. democracy — reflects an expansive view of executive authority that has also challenged the independence of federal agencies, a president’s ethical obligations, and the U.S.’s role in the international order.

Judges find widespread noncompliance

The violations in the 31 lawsuits are in addition to more than 250 instances of noncompliance judges have recently highlighted in individual immigration petitions — from failing to return property to keeping immigrants locked up past court-ordered release dates.

Who is going investigate the charges... the DOJ? Ha! Trump has them wrapped around his little finger!

And now... can you believe this? They want to do away with one of most basic Constitutional rights! The right to be heard in court... habeas corpus! This goes father back than the Constitution, it goes back be traced to medieval English law! To the Magna Carta in 1215 and back to even 1066 and Anglo-Saxon England.

The Trump adminstration has a problem with that!

Frustrated by Courts, Trump Weighed Suspending a Constitutional Right

Secret memos show that the White House debated last year, to a greater degree than previously known, whether to limit habeas corpus rights for undocumented immigrants.

The New York Times

By Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan

June 15, 2026

Last spring, Will Scharf, an arch-conservative lawyer serving as the White House staff secretary, wrote a secret memo to the chief of staff that reflected growing unease in the West Wing about one of the extreme measures being weighed by Stephen Miller, the powerful adviser driving President Trump’s deportation campaign.

Dated April 29, 2025, and stamped “confidential,” the memo was careful and lawyerly but amounted to a warning against end-running the rule of law. The subject line read: “THE WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS.”

[...]

The suspension of habeas corpus has occurred just a handful of times in U.S. history, and always under the most dire circumstances of war or invasion. Yet to a greater degree than previously known, administration officials, encouraged by Mr. Trump, actively weighed taking that step in the early months of his second term — this time to accelerate the mass deportation of immigrants in the country illegally.

Hey! Forget about the laws that get in our way... this is the president!

The International Business Times UK (Why does it seems like on the NYT and foreign media are the ones only carrying this?) reports,

Donald Trump's second White House seriously explored suspending a core constitutional protection to speed mass deportations and curb protests, according to newly disclosed internal memos written in Washington in 2025 by senior staff secretary Will Scharf. The confidential documents, detailed in reporting for the forthcoming book Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump, show that aides weighed using both the suspension of habeas corpus and the Insurrection Act as tools against unauthorised immigrants and demonstrators.

The revelations trace back to the early months of Trump's second term, after his emphatic 2024 election win emboldened a hard-line immigration drive from the Oval Office. Stephen Miller, restored as one of the most powerful figures in the West Wing, was again pressing sweeping measures to accelerate deportations and sideline the courts that had frustrated the first Trump administration. What had previously sounded like late-night cable talk was being turned into draft policy, routed through a small circle of loyalists and sceptics.

They knew that this was a bad idea, why else keep it secret?

It has historically been held that only Congress can suspend it, a precedent famously tested during the Civil War when President Abraham Lincoln suspended it and was rebuked by Chief Justice Roger Taney in the case Ex parte Merryman. But given this Congress's fear of Trump, I doubt very much that they would do anything to stop him!

---

They are also ignoring maritime law;

To rebuild trust in maritime policy, the US must ratify the Law of the Sea

The Hill

by Andrew D. Thaler,

 06/15/26 

Alone in the middle of the Caribbean Sea, somewhere off the coast of Dominica, in the dead of night with no lights to guide me, I swam. With no motor, no radio, and a hull filling quickly in the rough chop, our little dinghy no longer offered safety. The currents would soon pull us far offshore, a tiny speck in the endless sea. We chose to abandon ship. 

[...]

There is a trust among mariners — trust that in our worst moments we cast aside whatever grievances divide us to offer aid. Our struggle is, first and foremost, against the sea. 

This duty to render aid to mariners in distress is codified in the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, the International Convention on Maritime Search and Rescue, and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. 

On Sept. 2, 2025, the U.S. attacked an unidentified vessel in international waters, and then attacked again as at least two sailors clung to the wreckage of their small boat. Over the next eight months, the U.S. would strike more than 60 small vessels, killing over 200 sailors. None of these sailors have ever been conclusively identified as narco-terrorists, though several were found to have no connection to Latin American drug trade. These were not enemy combatants — they were but men clinging to upturned hulls in a vast and unforgiving sea.

But this is the Trump adminstration, and they don't follow the law.

All The King's Horses And All The King's Men

I don't know about you, but it sure does seem like everything is falling down around "The Art of the Deal" Trump. It feels like everyone except his most devoted MAGA shills is jumping ship.

As for all his loyal minions, he either had to shit-can them because things were getting too hot, or they committed the unforgivable sin of contradicting the boss.

Take a look at the Secretary of Defense... um.. er... Secretary of War.

Just look at the whole name thing. Why "war"??? Did he feel that it fit better with his macho self-image of him riding off to battle on a white charger?

Case in point: D-Day, Normandy, 2026.

 ‘A point of resistance’: the Normandy village that said ‘non’ to Pete Hegseth

US defence secretary cancelled appearance at D-day event in Langrune-sur-Mer after protest by residents

Ashifa Kassam and Kim Willsher

Sun 14 Jun 2026

When news came that the US defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, would be travelling to Normandy to mark D-day, some in the seaside village of Langrune-sur-Mer – where the afternoon ceremony was slated to be held – felt they had to speak up.

“We found it unbelievable that they could send someone who held views and values contrary to democracy, human rights, peace and Europe,” said resident Chantal Richard. To her, the incongruence felt deeply personal. “We grew up going to D-day ceremonies, some of us had grandparents or parents whose lives were affected by this war.”

The view led Richard and the 40 or so other members of Langrune en Commun, a residents’ association, to sign a 179-word statement. Published days before the 82nd anniversary of the D-day landings, it called for Hegseth’s visit to be cancelled.

But wait! There's more! He got caught in an embellishment.

"Shoes for Industry"

"Shoes for Defense"

On CBS's Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan, he got called out for...

Pete Hegseth says it's a "manufactured story" that U.S. faces munitions stockpile shortage

By Kaia Hubbard

June 14, 2026

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Sunday refuted the idea that the U.S. is facing a crisis with its munitions stockpile, despite testifying earlier this year that replenishing the stockpile could take "months and years."

"That is a manufactured story that the media wants to peddle and ultimately our stockpiles are great, and they're only getting stronger," Hegseth said on "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan."

Weeks after the ceasefire began in the war with Iran, Hegseth testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee on the Pentagon's $1.5 trillion budget request. During the April 30 hearing, Hegseth estimated that it could take "months and years" to replenish the stockpile as the Iran war had stretched on for months. Hegseth called the timeline "fast," and he noted that the speed will depend on the weapon system.

[...]

"I think it's widely understood that when you attack over 10,000 targets from the air with cruise missiles and ballistic missiles and bombs from airplanes, you are using a lot of munitions, and we do not have an endless supply of these things," Kelly said. "So now we're in a posture where we've got to be incredibly careful."

Then came the biggie! He admitted that Trump's war accomplished nothing... we got the exact same thing President Obama had.

WOW! Secretary of War Crimes Pete Hegseth Admits Trump’s Iran Deal Gets NOTHING that Obama Didn’t Get

Daily Kos

by News Corpse for Media Watch

June 14, 2026

The political and PR tug of war between Donald Trump and Iran is continuing to strain relations without making any observable progress. On Saturday Trump posted a comment on his dedicated propaganda platform, Truth Social, declaring that an alleged “peace” deal would be signed Sunday (today). So far, there’s been no confirmation of that.

On Sunday morning Trump’s Secretary of War Crimes, Pete Hegseth, was interviewed on CBS News’ Face the Nation by Margaret Brennan. During their discussion Hegseth admitted something that totally contradicts what Trump has been lying about for years with regard to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) negotiated by the Obama administration to halt Iran’s nuclear aspirations.

Hegseth: Obama begged Iran for a deal. We bombed Iran, and then put in a blockade…The document says Iran will never have a nuclear weapon, won’t seek one, won’t buy one, won’t have one.

Brennan: JCPOA said that too.

Hegseth: But they didn’t have the threat of military force the way that we do…and that’s why they’re at the table. The huge difference is we did this from a position of strength. Trump led with military might.

I hear that Hegseth is hopping around on one foot now. Somehow, in Pete Hegseth's mind, blasting a country into ruin is better than sitting down peacefully and negotiating a treaty.

Do I think Trump will fire him? No, his Christian Nationalist base is too strong.

Suppose You Gave A Party

And it cost 1.5 million dollars to go?

Only birthday boy Trump wants White House UFC fight | Opinion

A Reuters/Ipsos poll released June 11 found only 16% of Americans 'said it was appropriate for Trump to hold the Ultimate Fighting Championship event, scheduled for his 80th birthday.'

Rex Huppke

USA TODAY

June 14, 2026

A more proper title for the heavily sponsored UFC Freedom 250 fight desecrating the White House lawn on June 14 would be: "Donald Trump’s Sad Little Mandatory Birthday Party."

After all, while the event is cloaked in America’s 250th anniversary iconography, it’s happening on the president’s 80th birthday, it’s a mixed-martial-arts company run by one of his friends, and Trump is the one who foisted the garish event nobody asked for on the American people. 

Now we have a 92-foot-tall “claw” structure in front of the People’s House, covered in corporate logos ranging from Bud Light to Polymarket and promoting everything from nicotine pouches to crypto.

[...]

But I’m not at all alone in thinking this event has no business being held on the White House property.

As usual, Trump is out of touch with reality and does what he wants without any thought. Some of the adjectives used to describe the fight are "tawdry," "vulgar," "gladiatorial," "Hobbesian," and a "bizarre, commercialized spectacle."

Few Americans back Trump's White House cage match plan, Reuters/Ipsos poll finds

Reuters

By Jason Lange

June 11, 2026

Summary

• Only 16% of Americans approve of Trump holding UFC event at White House
• UFC event coincides with Trump's 80th birthday
• One in five Americans say they are mixed martial ​arts fans

Few Americans, including only a third ‌of Republicans, approve of President Donald Trump's plan to hold mixed martial arts cage matches at the White House on Sunday to celebrate U.S. history, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found.

Just 16% of Americans said ​it was appropriate for Trump to hold the Ultimate Fighting Championship event, ​scheduled for his 80th birthday, while 46% said it was inappropriate and ⁠the rest didn't offer an opinion.

[...]

Only 31% of Republicans considered it appropriate, a ​small share considering that eight in 10 Republicans approve of Trump's overall performance in ​the White House, according to the six-day poll, which concluded on Monday.

Meanwhile, Trump has been hawking UFC Freedom 250 as "The Greatest Show on Earth."

---

I want to point out one thing: just about everywhere you look, you see Freedom 250—the truck tours, the events around the country, and Washington, D.C.

Freedom 250 is not America250, which was created by Congress. Rather, Freedom 250 is a private, for-profit company! The Freedom 250 truck tour was even designed by the ultra-conservative PragerU!

Freedom 250 was created in 2025 when Trump bypassed Congress entirely to establish it via executive order. Technically structured as a public-private partnership housed inside the National Park Foundation, it operates as a limited liability company (LLC). However, it functions as a vehicle that allows for-profit, commercial entities to monetize historic federal spaces like the White House and the Lincoln Memorial (i.e., to allow Trump to make a buck off of it!).

The LA Times reports that,

But the gala is facing fierce legal challenges from activists who say UFC Freedom 250 is a scam flavored by financial and political corruption, accusing Trump and his close friends Ellison and UFC chief Dana White of benefiting financially from the event. Opponents say Trump has purchased stock in UFC’s parent company, TKO Group Holdings, while pointing out that UFC Freedom 250 is happening weeks before the Fourth of July anniversary.

There are those who say that this flies in the face of the U.S, Constitution's Emoluments Clause! Trump owned a chunk of TKO Group Holdings is bring up all types of questions, Front Office Sports writes...

The Public Integrity Project, a Washington, D.C.-based organization seeking to combat political and corporate corruption, filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, alleging that the event violated strict National Park Service regulations, failed to secure Congressional approval, and did not involve a required environmental review.

Since then the judge ruled in Trump's favor, but the article goes on to say,

The lawsuit also highlights a core element of UFC Freedom 250: the longtime friendship between U.S. President Donald Trump and UFC president and CEO Dana White that enabled the event.

“This plan is deeply corrupt,” the suit reads. “The president is giving White and his company what none have enjoyed before: unfettered access to the White House and Lincoln Memorial to stage a private, for-profit sports event, with all the promotional and branding opportunities that accompany such access.”

WHAM! That is the smoking gun! His ownership in the parent company! 

So who is going tonight?

Dana White and Donald Trump directly split up the guest list like a private party, rather than a public or military celebration:

• The Troops: 1,200 seats (roughly 28% of the venue).  
• Donald Trump’s Personal Invites: 1,000 seats.  
• Dana White (UFC): 200 seats.  
• Ari Emanuel (TKO Group CEO): 200 seats.  
• The Rest (Lobbyists, Corporate Partners, and VIPs): Roughly 1,700 seats.

---

Here is what the New Republic had to say;

The president turns 80 on Sunday, and, as with everything pertaining to Donald Trump, his need to place himself at the center of our attention is pathological. He could not just have a dinner at the White House, or a party at Mar-a-Lago. No; he had to build a massive arena on real estate that belongs to the people of the United States to host a vulgar, garish event that is one of the most violent forms of spectacle available to the human race today. Trump will be sitting there like some Roman emperor at the Colosseum watching enslaved men try to stave off lions. The man who wanted law enforcement to shoot protesters “in the knees” is probably bummed he couldn’t just replicate that.

But if you can’t have lions, six UFC fights are the next best thing. Granted, UFC fighting is very popular in the United States and across the world. I’ve read various accounts this week contending that UFC fighting has supplanted hockey as the fourth-most-popular sport on television, behind the big three of football, baseball, and basketball. I’ve also read that its popularity may have peaked; here’s a 2025 piece by a sportswriter who has followed “combat sports” for 15 years, showing that the number of matches is in steep decline. “The United States, long the backbone of [mixed martial arts], has seen a sharp decline in activity,” wrote John S. Nash. “In 2009, more than 6,266 professional fights took place across the country. This would be the pinnacle for American MMA contests. By 2024, that number had dropped to just over 3,027—a 52 percent decrease.”

And they don't mince words;

But inside his little MAGA cocoon on Sunday night, he’ll be a manly man, presiding over watching other manly men spill each other’s blood for the leader’s greater glory. It’s the most undemocratic pageant one could imagine, a fact that—given that scant 16 percent support—the people know in their bones. In fact, this is exactly what fascism is: grotesque, violent spectacle that repulses most of the population but drives the fervent worshippers to a frenzied state and tries to bully its way into being synonymous with what it means to be a real American.

---

Update: 6/16 @ 7PM

More article are coming in at the fight and the public thoughts. It seems that many people have picked up on the military part in the fights.

Why the White House’s use of military personnel at the UFC bout was so offensive

It seemed as if Trump and organizers were trying to borrow some of the military’s stature to add an air of legitimacy to the head-spinning circus.

MS Now

Jun. 16, 2026

By Steve Benen

For the most part, the UFC event on the South Lawn of the White House was exactly what critics expected it to be: It was vulgar and obnoxious. It was violent and tacky. It was classless and unbecoming of a once-great institution. It even faced credible allegations of corruption.

For Donald Trump, who threw this ridiculous birthday party for himself, it was an expensive and needlessly self-indulgent circus. The New York Times’ Michelle Goldberg made a compelling case that the gathering was “a garish spectacle of American decline,” reminiscent of the 2006 satire “Idiocracy,” which “depicts a United States led by a professional wrestler whose middle name is Mountain Dew.”

But as the dust settles on the event, and the “claw” is dissembled, one element of this gathering continues to stand out.

For me I saw the "Honor Guard" at the Lincoln Memorial and I wonder whose paying for them?

Sunday night’s gathering was not merely a UFC event; it was an event that intertwined the sport and the armed forces in ways that were tough to defend. Historian Heather Cox Richardson noted the trouble began the day before the fights. From her Substack column:

[On Saturday night], while workers were putting up scaffolding at the Kennedy Center, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) fighters held a press conference at the Lincoln Memorial in advance of the UFC cage matches to be held at the White House on Trump’s 80th birthday on Sunday. Trump sent the United States Army Herald Trumpets, the U.S. Army ensemble chiefly responsible for playing the entrance and exit fanfares for the President of the United States, to open the event.

The fighters walked from Lincoln’s statue down the steps of the memorial through the Armed Forces Full Honor Cordon, a pathway formed between two groups made up of sixteen service members in dress uniforms. This is the U.S. military’s highest ceremonial formation, usually reserved for heads of state, foreign dignitaries, senior officials, and funerals for military heroes.

A day later, the event began in earnest with the U.S. Marine Corps Silent Drill Platoon. Writing for The Bulwark, Mark Hertling added, “This was not just a matter of military musicians (in this case, the Marine Band and Army Band), a flyover (in this case, both the Thunderbirds and the Blue Angels), and a joint color guard representing each service branch presenting the flag. There were also officers serving as aides to VIPs, standing in formation and escorting civilians. There were members of the National Guard providing site security alongside various federal civilian police.”

At one point, Goldberg’s column noted, the audience saw “a Marine Corps honor guard onstage with ring girls in sparkly red hot pants and a human-size Monster Energy Drink can.”

This was a circus! A humiliation to the military. They were used as props in a stage production and may have violated federal laws... 32 CFR § 705.35 - Armed Forces participation in events in the public domain. The military generally cannot endorse or appear to endorse a private business, product, or commercial venture. DoD regulations explicitly prohibit military participation that would "endorse or selectively benefit" a corporation or commercial enterprise.

But when the president owns the company all laws are tossed out!