It’s Saturday, so I’m going to make this quick and get you everything you need to know so you can get back to your day.
Here are the top headlines:
Hispanic early turnout in Texas is surpassing 2024 presidential levels
Trump rallies in Georgia while his own Senate candidate admits he’s down at least 7 to Ossoff
Obama is in Detroit while Trump is in Georgia for dueling rallies
The White House is weighing MASS PARDONS for junior staffers
The Financial Times reports Russia secretly controlled a Trump-linked $25 billion Alaska gas project
ProPublica reveals secret terms of Trump’s Venezuelan oil deal
Trump denies the rumor that he wants to turn the press pool into a swimming pool, but floats moving the press out of the briefing room
Mark Carney goes after Musk for Starlink and reaffirms Canadian sovereignty
Zelenskyy speaks more on Musk slowing Starlink and Trump’s relationship with Putin
And speaking of Musk…he’s slapping content warnings on our book on the final day of first-week sales
A few important notes before we dive in:
Again, our book, WTF America?!: The Way Out of This Hell and Back to Democracy, is OUT NOW!!! If you’ve been considering ordering, go ahead and grab your copy now! TODAY will determine whether WTF AMERICA?! makes the New York Times bestseller list! We are SO CLOSE, and every order right now makes a difference. Help us get across the finish line!
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Republicans Are Terrified of What They’re Seeing in Texas
This is a number that everyone needs to see. Per data shared by Tom Bonier, Texas early turnout is nearing 3 MILLION votes, and Hispanic turnout is now AHEAD of where it was in the 2024 presidential election. And young voters are driving it.
Remember, Texas Hispanic voters were supposed to be Trump’s big success story. The Republicans in Texas based their gerrymander around trends in the 2024 election. Those trends have completely reversed. Hispanic voters are overwhelmingly supporting Democrats this cycle, as are young voters. And the turnout trends suggest a huge amount of backlash toward the incumbent party.
While Trump Rallies in Georgia, His Candidate Sees the Writing on the Wall
Trump posted on Truth Social that he’s holding a “Big Rally in Georgia today.” His Senate candidate needs all the help he can get. And he knows it. On Newsmax earlier, Rep. Mike Collins admitted he’s at least 7 points behind Jon Ossoff. The chyron on the screen while he was lamenting about his polling was “EARLY VOTING SURGES AS DEMOCRATS OUTPACE GOP IN KEY STATES.” Even Newsmax couldn’t hide it.
Trump’s rally sets up a dueling moment with Barack Obama, who is in Detroit tonight working to energize Democratic voters. We’ll be streaming it live on MeidasTouch.
Panic and Pardons
The Washington Sun reports that White House attorneys are evaluating whether to issue MASS PARDONS to junior staffers, with Trump allies pushing the regime to shield lower-ranked officials from prosecution and other legal challenges. They know what happens if and when they lose power, and they are terrified.
Russia, Alaska, and a Trump Family Friend
The Financial Times says U.S. executives QUIT a $25 billion gas venture over claims that Russia was secretly in control. The former CEO of Polar Train LNG told the FT that Russian gas giant Novatek financed and controlled the project without U.S. approval, which triggered a mass resignation over fears the company was violating sanctions.
Polar Train is building a gas export terminal on Alaska’s North Slope as part of a Trump regime push to expand energy exports to Asia. The venture was launched with the involvement of Gentry Beach, an investor with close ties to…the Trump family. Per FT, the project has also come up in high-level talks between Washington and Moscow over business deals connected to ending the war in Ukraine, deals that of course would benefit Trump and his cronies. Novatek’s Arctic LNG 2 was blacklisted by the U.S. in 2023, and U.S.-Russia discussions have floating lifting sanctions in exchange for help building an export terminal in Alaska.
So a Trump family friend’s energy project was allegedly being run by a sanctioned Russian company while Trump’s people negotiate with Putin.
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The Secret Venezuelan Oil Deal
ProPublica has a new investigation into the terms of Trump’s Venezuelan oil deal, which centers on Alejandro Betancourt, a 46-year-old Venezuelan energy baron who has been the target of corruption investigations. Venezuelan opposition leaders and congressional Democrats have both criticized the deal.
Per ProPublica, the deal is built with a corporate firewall meant to STOP future U.S. presidents and Venezuelan leaders from changing or dismantling it. Some of the regime’s partners could stay anonymous behind a parent company based in Barbados. And it could be YEARS before the venture produces enough oil to matter to the U.S. at all.
Put this next to the Alaska story, and you see a clear pattern. Trump ties, hidden ownership, and secret business deals designed to outlast any accountability.
Trump’s Pool Denial
Trump took to Truth Social to deny a report he plans to remove the White House Press Room and bring back the old swimming pool underneath it. He called the idea stupid.
Maybe he should tell a guy named Donald Trump, who posted this on Truth Social a few weeks back:
Very dumb. And yes, with a B.
He also said in the same post he “may move the Fake News to a less obnoxious location.”
Carney and Zelenskyy Hit Back
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney had a few moments worth sharing in Türkiye. Asked about a trade deal with the U.S. before midterms, he put the ball back in the U.S.’s court, saying the United States is “a little hard to predict.” On Elon Musk throttling Starlink, he said he was searching for the right adjective for whoever made that call against a country fighting for its citizens’ lives against naked aggression. And on Trump’s threats: “We’ll never be the 51st state.”
Carney also launched a new Canada–Türkiye Strategic Partnership with President Erdoğan, and Sen. Rick Scott lost it, claiming Canada “sides with dictators, terrorists & thugs.”
Zelenskyy, in an interview with ABC, again confirmed that SpaceX slowed Starlink down and said he’s sure Elon knows about it. Asked whether Trump is friends with Putin, Zelenskyy said they’re in “quite good relations.”
Speaking of Musk…
Now to something personal. X is putting an “age restricted adult content” warning over posts about our book WTF America?!: The Way Out of This Hell and Back to Democracy. A reader named Caroline posted a photo of the book saying she couldn’t wait to start reading, and X hid it behind the warning. Others have confirmed the same thing.
Here’s why the timing matters. The New York Times bestseller list comes out Wednesday, but first-week sales only count through today. Suppressing the book today could decide whether it reaches a whole new audience.
The response from readers on Threads, Bluesky, and TikTok has been incredible. People are calling it the book of our time, saying they can’t put it down, and a follower named Patricia told us she just ordered two more copies for two special women in her life. Thank you all.
I think they’re scared of this book for a reason. It lays out in detail how we got here, explains the mess we’re in, and shows how we get to a better future where we fight back. It’s the same Musk who throttled Starlink over Ukraine, now throttling a book about democratic backsliding on the day that matters most.
Here’s how you can help today:
Repost, comment, and like posts about the book
The hardcover counts most toward the list, but the ebook helps too, and the audiobook is available
Thank you all for being part of this community. Let’s stay strong!
trump WOULDN’T BE TALKING ABOUT ISSUING SO MANY PARDONS OF HIS STAFF IF HE & THEY ALL WEREN’T SO CORRUPT‼️‼️‼️
THINK ABOUT IT‼️‼️‼️
He knows he’s becoming a lame duck (and a cooked goose) which terrifies him. All he wants is 20 billion for himself and 100 billion for his family and would sell Alaska to Putin to do it. Presidency is okay but oligarchy is forever.