It’s Saturday, September 26, 2026. It’s the weekend, so I’ll do my best to make today’s update quick. Here’s what we are tracking:
Trump rejects an Iranian ceasefire and privately expects to bomb Iran after the midterms. He’s now at a Tennessee football game
Russia wages “total war” on Ukraine’s economy, hitting a McDonald’s warehouse and killing civilians in Kyiv
Ukraine strikes Russian refineries and a missile parts plant 800km away
Diesel hits $6.50/gallon as the White House struggles to contain the fallout from the Iran War
The U.S. and Russia gut a UN pact on AI weapons
Kimberly Guilfoyle is in hot water after reportedly telling Greece the U.S. could topple its government
The Army quietly plans to target Cuba next, while Trump says no military is needed
And more…
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Trump Puts Iran on a Midterms Clock as He Rejects Peace
Trump has reportedly rejected Iran’s offer of a 7-day ceasefire that would have reopened the Strait of Hormuz and restarted nuclear talks in exchange for lifting the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports, per WSJ. Trump is now telling aides he expects he will resume bombing after the midterm elections. A reporter asked him about this earlier today, and Trump dodged the question. Trump has previously said the midterms don’t factor into his decisions related to war. Chalk that up as yet another lie.
Trump’s big-brained explanation of events is that Iran “outsmarted themselves” by closing the Strait before he built “the greatest blockade ever in military history.” He conveniently leaves out that the Strait is closed because of the decision he and Netanyahu made to start this war in the first place. He also posted another map relabeling it the “TRUMP STRAIT.” Meanwhile, officials tell the Journal that the Trump regime is hesitant about major combat operations in part because U.S. munitions are running so low.
The Pentagon, meanwhile, quietly added 37 service members (29 Navy sailors and 8 Marines) to its official wounded tally, which now stands at 861. No other details given.
Treasury official Jonathan Burke reportedly toured the Middle East and Europe telling countries they had to choose between Iran and the U.S. Oman, the UAE, and Türkiye have made moves against Iranian airlines and banks, and over 50 countries have been contacted, per WSJ. In Basra, Iraq, protesters surrounded an Iranian plane, chanting against PM Zaidi’s government due to their compliance with U.S. aviation sanctions on Iran.
Diesel Keeps Going Up, Up, Up… Republicans Keep Blaming Biden
The White House has backed away from a diesel export ban, at least for now, per POLITICO. The White House instead is eyeing expanded tax-exempt dyed diesel and state tax cuts. They are trying to push the onus onto the states, and make it their responsibility to find ways to cut prices. As we reported last week, even Energy Secretary Chris Wright had warned an export ban was a bad idea and would raise prices. Diesel is at $6.50 a gallon, that’s about $2.80 higher than just a year ago.
Georgia Republican Senate candidate Mike Collins, who is up against Democratic Senator and rising star Jon Ossoff, was asked about affordability after two years of full GOP control. Collins admitted gas was too high, and then blamed “Bidenomics.” It’s September 2026, buddy! Get a new line!
Fox’s Laura Ingraham told viewers that aside from the skyrocketing prices and Iran War, Trump’s policies are working amazingly.
And The Economists cover this week? “When America Walks Away.”
Russia’s “Total War” on Ukraine
Russia is now targeting Ukraine’s economy, causing billions in damage, per The New York Times’ Andrew Kramer.
Russian drones hit a McDonald’s warehouse in the Brovary district twice, destroying it. Kyiv Oblast Governor Tymur Tkachenko said it looked like a deliberate strike on an American company.
The Sushiya restaurant chain’s warehouse, internet provider Datagroup’s Kyiv office, and the Swedish-owned Eskaro paint factory in Odesa were hit as well.
Ukraine hit back. Zelenskyy confirmed strikes on the Perm and Novoshakhtinsk refineries, 2 radar stations in Rostov, and the Iskra plant in Ulyanovsk. Iskra sits around 800km from Ukraine and makes components for Kh-59 missiles and Pantsir air defense.
After meeting CIA Director Ratcliffe, Zelenskyy said U.S., European, and Ukrainian intelligence all share the same assessment of Russia’s hybrid attacks on European arms sites and its covert mobilization.
Putin envoy Kirill Dmitriev is in NYC, reportedly meeting with Witkoff and Kushner, while senators from both parties on the Foreign Relations Committee are demanding answers about Trump inviting Putin to the G20.
Russia Threatens NATO’s Eastern Flank
Russian state outlet RIA Novosti published, and then deleted, an article by Alexander Nosovich, which floated nuclear missile strikes on Lithuania. Putin called Estonia’s leadership clowns. Per Bloomberg, Finnish F/A-18s and Swedish Gripens jointly intercepted Russian aircraft over the Gulf of Finland for the first time.
Guilfoyle’s Greece Debacle
U.S. Ambassador and Don Jr.’s ex, Kimberly Guilfoyle, allegedly said at a March dinner in Athens, while discussing the collapse of Romania’s government, “We can do that to any country we want. We can do that here,” per the WSJ. Greek officials were…not pleased. Greek Energy Minister Stavros Papastavrou replied that Greece’s government was elected by its voters.
The Xi State Dinner
Trump’s state dinner table seated billionaires worth a combined $1.13 trillion. Billionaires like Elon Musk, Jensen Huang, Lisa Su, and Tim Cook sat at a table with Donald Trump, Melania, Chinese President Xi, and the First Lady of China.
They partied alongside other elites, including Fox New’s hosts Bret Baier, Laura Ingraham, and Jesse Watters, as well as conservative members of the Supreme Court.
Fox hosts were bragging about their “epic” party with the Chinese officials.
So they all got a nice dinner. What did the people get? Well, it doesn’t seem like much. While farmers go bankrupt and mortgage rates top 7.5%, Trump bragged that Xi found his renaming of Artificial Intelligence to “Super Intelligence” to be interesting. The U.S. was also gifted 2 pandas. China, on the other hand, got to watch as our service members got on their hands and knees to roll out the red carpet for them. They partied with U.S. elites. They obtained highly sensitive components from our stealth fighters after they were accidentally shipped to Hong Kong. The Chinese Foreign Minister rebuked the U.S.’s threat of sanctions over China’s relationship with Iran. And at the UN, Chinese VP Han Zheng told “the relevant country” to stop threatening Cuba and condemned unilateral military action in the Middle East.
AI Weapons, Cuba, and the Press
WaPo reports that the U.S. and Russia stripped the requirement for human review before AI-assisted strikes from a UN autonomous weapons pact.
On Cuba, Trump says he doesn’t think military action will be needed. This comes as reports have said that the U.S. is preparing for some sort of military intervention in the country.
Trump posted that “fake news” shouldn’t be allowed in the White House (people who cover stories he doesn’t like), banned CNN from today’s trip, and then insisted he loves a free press. He also reposted a QAnon-linked account attacking Obama.
That’s your Saturday update. Thanks for reading, staying engaged, and remaining in this fight. If you haven’t preordered our book WTF America?!: The Way Out of This Hell and Back to Democracy, consider doing it today.
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Shoutout to the Meidas Mighty!
Blaming Biden is simply red meat for his dumb, stupid brain dead base
Are they too stupid to realize that Biden isn't president anymore and that Republicans control the white house, the house and the senate. Everything that has happened is the fault of this administration but I'm sure his MAGA groupies will believe him. Things were a lot better before he came into office. Prices weren't this high, gas wasn't this high and we weren't in any wars. Thats all on you Trump administration. Own your failures and stop blaming everyone for your stupid policies.