Today in Politics, Bulletin 335. 3/26/26
… Trump held another marathon cabinet meeting today where he rambled incoherently, lied often, went off on tangents, said batshit crazy things, received effusive praise from his sycophants, and fell asleep again.
On gas prices: “It’s not over, so maybe it’ll go up a little bit more. It’s all gonna come back down to where it was and probably lower. And my predictions have been right. Trump was right about everything - they have a new hat that says that.”
… Sen. Andy Kim (D-NJ): “‘They have a new hat’ is not a real plan to bring your gas prices down.”
On Newsom’s dyslexia: “You don't want to have a person with a mental disability being your president. And Gavin Newsom said he can't read a speech, he’s actually a very stupid person.”
“A reporter said it’s terrible that I talked that way about somebody with mental disability. I said, I have no problem with it. But I don’t want a person with mental disability to be my president. I don’t want a stupid person being president.”
“I’m the only president that ever took a cognitive test. I took it 3 times. It’s actually a very hard test for a lot of people. It wasn’t hard for me. It starts off with an easy question and by the time you get to the middle it gets tougher - math equations and things.”
On taking a cognitive exam: “But I aced it. I got them all right. President Obama, he wasn't a smart man. I know all about him. He wasn't a smart man. Highly overrated.”
“All of the sudden the war starts, and they start shooting at Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait, Oman. Everybody was shocked, including us.”
“The Iranian regime is now admitting to itself that they have been decisively defeated. They’re saying to people, ‘This is a disaster.’ They know it. That’s why they’re talking to us. They wouldn’t talk otherwise. They can’t make a comeback. They now have a chance to make a deal.”
“I’m so disappointed in NATO, because this was a test for NATO. We’re gonna remember. Remember this in a number of months from now. Remember my statements.”
On NATO: “I never thought we needed them. I was doing a test. I said, ‘I’d love to have you come up. Bring your boats. You can sail through the beautiful Hormuz Straits and you can protect people that are being shot at.’ They didn’t do it. And that’s small potatoes.”
“When I heard the head of Germany say ‘this is not our war’ about Iran, I said well, Ukraine is not our war, we helped. I thought it was a very inappropriate statement to make. But he made it. He can’t erase it.”
“This ballroom is gonna be something. It’s so beautiful for this city, so desperately needed by presidents. Now it’s no secret the military wanted it more than anybody. It was supposed to be secret but it became un-secret because of people that are really unpatriotic saying things.”
“We’re building an arch, a triumphal arch, which will be incredible for the city. We’re fixing up what was the Kennedy Center. I was honored when the board changed the name a little bit. We’re gonna open it with a bang in less than two years.”
“I’m a gold person. It’s all real stuff. You can’t imitate it. Someday they’ll discover a paint that will look like gold and that man is gonna be the richest man in the world. It’s 24 karat.”
“See, this pen right here. This pen is an interesting example. It’s the same thing. So this pen is very inexpensive. But it writes well. I like it. But I can’t have the pen the way it was. You know what it is. I don’t want to give too much publicity but they do treat me well. Sharpie.”
“It’s a tough situation, that whole Ukraine situation, very very tough. It doesn’t have any impact on us. Virtually nothing. In fact, if anything, we sell a lot of equipment for that unfortunate war.”
“The judges are really hurting this country. Justice Roberts doesn’t like when I say it, but the judges are really hurting this country. And frankly, the justices. The Supreme Court has really hurt our country too.”
“In MN, it’s very Somalia-oriented. These people come from a crooked country, disgusting country, one of the worst countries in the world. They come to our country - low IQs - and they rob us blind. Stupid people, and they rob us blind.”
On voting by mail this week: “I used a mail-in ballot. You know why? Because I’m President of the United States and because of the fact that I’m President of the United States, I did a mail-in ballot.”
… Trump then went around the room for this cabinet secretaries to glaze Dear Leader:
Trump: “Pete Hegseth was born for this role. They gave him a hard time. Somebody came up to me yesterday and gave me a very hard time saying I made a mistake. He’s doing a good job. (Looks at Hegseth) When I tell you who it was you won’t believe it. He gave me such a nasty hard time.”
Hegseth: “You wouldn’t know it if you listen to the dishonest, hate-Trump media. The folks here in the room, these cameras, they have a choice. You’re either informing the American people of the truth or you’re not. My message to the media is to get it right.”
… Trump then fell asleep while Hegseth was speaking.
Doug Burgum: “I literally think they’re gonna put up a statue to President Trump in Venezuela. Trump: That would be great. Burgum: And it’s not a political statement. He’s the liberator. The oil we are getting from Venezuela, that flows to American refineries on the gulf coast, lowering the cost of gas in America. Trump interrupts: Forget that. When are they gonna do the statue?”
Scott Bessent on gas prices: “Many people, especially the Democrats, underestimate the will of the American people for short-term volatility for 50 years of safety that we are gonna have on the other side of this”
Steven Witkoff explained that he and Jared Kushner told Trump before the war that peace negotiations were pointless: “Jared and I both agreed that the Iranians were there just to buy time until a weaker president arrived.”
… Devastating numbers for Trump in a new Fox poll:
Approve of the US military action in Iran - 42%. Disapprove - 58%.
77% of Republicans support the war, 12% of Democrats, and 28% of Independents. .
64% of voters disapprove of how Trump is handling Iran.
62% disapprove of his overall foreign policy.
… Trump’s approval among White non-college men in the Fox poll continues to drop dramatically:
Mar 2025: 58-41% (+17)
Dec 2025: 55-45% (+10)
Feb 2026: 50-50% (=)
Mar. 2026: 48-52% (-4)
… TACO Trump later announced on Truth Social that he was “pausing” his threatened bombing campaign for 10 more days after he paused it initially for 5 days (which expired tomorrow) since “peace talks” are supposedly ongoing.
… Middle East expert Dennis Citrinowicz: “Inside Iran, there is a growing sense that the balance is tilting in their favor, that time is on their side, and that they are not the ones under real strategic pressure. If that assessment holds, Tehran has little incentive to concede to demands it sees as dictated by Washington.”
… “This raises a critical concern: if the US genuinely believes Iran is weak, deterred, and likely to comply with maximalist demands, then it may be misreading the situation entirely. Because if Iran operates with a sense of resilience, or even perceived advantage, then waiting for meaningful concessions is likely to lead to disappointment, not a breakthrough.”
… Trump’s former NSA John Bolton on CNN: “If we had taken Kharg Island about 3 weeks ago when it still would have been a surprise to the Iranians, that might have made some sense. I don’t understand why we didn’t blockade the Strait of Hormuz ourselves at the beginning.”
… Mike Johnson gave Trump another trophy at a Republican fundraiser last night: “Tonight we have created a new award. We are going to do something we’ve never done before. We will honor him with a new award. He is the first ever recipient of the America First Award. That is this beautiful golden statue here, appropriate for the golden era.”
… Rep. Seth Magaziner (D-RI): “They have to treat the President like a child. So embarrassing for everyone involved.”
… NBC: “Tensions flared behind closed doors Wed as defense and intelligence officials briefed some lawmakers about the war in Iran, with Republicans and Democrats expressing frustration about a lack of clarity and information about Trump’s strategy.”
… “Much of the frustration during the briefing for the House Armed Services Committee centered on the prospect of the US’ sending ground troops into Iran, including what the troops could be used for and whether the US can adequately protect them once they were deployed.”
… A congressional source: “There was no plan, no strategy, no end game shared, and they didn’t give any answers. It’s unclear if there isn’t a plan or if there is a plan and they wouldn’t share it with members.”
… Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) after attending the war briefing from the admin: “I was not convinced when I walked out of there that troops on the ground were necessary to declare victory. I believe Trump can declare victory now. I have a hard time understanding what Kharg Island has to do with some of our objectives and thinking through and wargaming through what the consequences of taking Kharg Island might mean.”
… Mace: “We’re doing all of this with the knowledge that Russia is aiding Iran. China is aiding Iran. And so, to do this in a more protracted manner, to put troops on the ground, then they’re going to have to come to congress and convince us that it is the right thing to do.”
… Mace told Axios that she will “most likely” vote with Democrats on the new War Powers Resolution to block Trump from continuing the war without congressional approval.
… Trump’s 2024 campaign manager Chris LaCivita, who is also managing Trump’s revenge campaign against Thomas Massie, responded to Mace’s comment with this post: “Here’s another one done.”
… LaCivita then posted a video of Mace bypassing a long TSA line at the airport yesterday with this caption: “Rules for thee but not for me.”
… Axios: The Pentagon is developing military options for a “final blow” in Iran that could include the use of ground forces and a massive bombing campaign:
Invading or blockading Kharg Island, Iran’s main oil export hub.
Invading Larak, an island that helps Iran solidify its control of the Strait of Hormuz.
Seizing the strategic island of Abu Musa and two smaller islands, which lie near the western entrance to the Strait of Hormuz and are controlled by Iran but also claimed by the UAE.
Blocking or seizing ships that are exporting Iranian oil on the eastern side of the Strait of Hormuz.
… Gregg Carlstrom, Middle East correspondent for The Economist: “Obviously none of the scenarios described here (seizing various islands, blockading Iranian oil exports) are a ‘final blow’ in military terms. But they’re not even necessarily a victory image that Trump can point to and end the war. If you seize an island and Iran won’t make a deal to get it back, then you have to hold it and defend it. Iran gets a say in whether your ‘final blow’ is actually the end.”
… Pete Hegseth presiding over his daily ‘Christian Prayer and Worship Service’ at the Pentagon: “Almighty God who trains our hands for war and fingers for battle, behold now the wicked who rise against your judgment and the peace of the righteous. Pour out your wrath against those who plot vain things and blow them away like chaff before the wind.”
… Reuters reported that a Pakistani official told them that Israel wanted to assassinate Iran’s Foreign Minister Aragchi and Speaker Ghalibaf. It had coordinates of their movements. Pakistan intelligence got the info about Israeli plans and informed the US that if Israel kills Aragchi and Ghalibaf, there will be no one left in Iran to talk to and Iran will be taken over by the hardcore IRGC commanders. US then intervened and stopped Israel from carrying out strikes to eliminate Aragchi and Ghalibaf.”
… NYT: “Iran has bombed US bases across the Middle East in retaliation for the US-Israeli war, forcing many American troops to relocate to hotels and office spaces throughout the region. So now much of the land-based military is, in essence, fighting the war while working remotely, with the exception of fighter pilots and crews operating and maintaining warplanes and conducting strikes.”
… “Iran responded forcefully to the joint American and Israeli strikes, targeting not only US bases but also embassies and oil and gas infrastructure throughout the region. Many of the 13 military bases in the region used by American troops are all but uninhabitable, with the ones in Kuwait, which is next door to Iran, suffering perhaps the most damage.
… “6 US service members were killed in a strike on Port Shuaiba that destroyed an Army tactical operations center. Iranian drones and missiles also targeted Ali Al Salem Air Base, damaging aircraft structures and injuring personnel, and Camp Buehring, damaging maintenance and fuel facilities.”
… Bloomberg: “The conflict in the Middle East is reviving the specter of inflation and hobbling the global economy just as it was showing signs of strengthening at the start of the year, the OECD said. The organization sharply increased its inflation forecasts for major economies and now sees the avg rate for the Group of 20 this year jumping to 4% - with an even higher pace in the US - rather than the 2.8% it predicted in Dec.”
… CNBC: “The US Postal Service said it is seeking to impose a temporary 8% fuel surcharge for package and express mail deliveries to deal with rising transportation costs, which include higher oil prices as a result of the Iran war. If approved by the Postal Regulatory Commission, the surcharge would take effect April 26 and remain in place until Jan. 17, 2027.”
… “The 8% surcharge would apply to postage on Priority Mail Express, Priority Mail, USPS Ground Advantage, and Parcel Select products. First-class stamps and other mail services would not be affected. Oil prices have jumped more than 40% since Feb. 28, when the US and Israel attacked Iran.”
Tomorrow is Ask the Editor where I choose 5 of your questions to answer on a podcast for Substack subscribers. Please leave your question or just a topic you want me to talk more about in the comments section below. Yesterday was my weekly podcast Uncovered, where I did a deep dive into the top stories right now. You can find that here.
If you missed the last Bulletin, that is here.
… NBC: “Michael Flynn and DOJ have agreed to settle a lawsuit filed by Flynn over his claims of political targeting in a 2017 case in which he initially pleaded guilty. A judge previously tossed Flynn’s lawsuit in 2024. His attorneys filed an amended complaint last June after Trump took office. Flynn, one of Trump’s top campaign surrogates in 2016, was appointed NSA during Trump’s first term.”
… “His tenure was short-lived, however. He resigned after less than a month after it was revealed he had lied to VP-elect Mike Pence and admin officials about conversations he had had with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak during the
