Today in Politics, Bulletin 364. 5/5/26
… Trump held an event with kids in the Oval Office to announce he was relaunching the presidential physical fitness program. It was, as always, a bizarre event where he alternately rambled, ranted, talked about himself, said inappropriate things, and fell asleep during brief intervals when nobody was talking about him.
… As the event concluded, Trump took the kids outside to demonstrate his athletic prowess with a putting display. He missed every putt before finally giving up and handing it off to hall of fame pro golfer Gary Player. I posted the video on social media if you wanted to watch it on Twitter, Bluesky or Threads.
… HHS Secretary RFK Jr. and Education Secretary Linda McMahon were present at the event as they gathered around Trump with young kids behind his desk:
McMahon: “In order to have a sound mind, you do have to eat well, you do have to exercise.” (Trump dozed off right as she was saying this).
Trump on Iran: “They respect us. They didn’t used to respect us. But they respect us more than we’ve ever been respected. Our country now is the hottest country anywhere in the world.”
… Kids started fidgeting …
“You can have 200,000 people protesting and have 5 or 6 sick people with guns, and when they start shooting them right between the eyes - a woman dropped dead with a bullet right there.” (points to his forehead between the eyes).
… Kids getting very uncomfortable …
“We don’t want to go in and kill people. It’s too tough. Great people. I know the people. I have so many Iranian friends from NY. I don’t want to kill those people.”
… Kids now pretty freaked out …
Trump to a kid who said he wants to be a weightlifter: “You’ll never compete against women in powerlifting. Did you see they had a man powerlifter and he decided to go the opposite direction? Do you think you can take me in a fight?”
… Kids look like they want to get the hell out of there as soon as possible…
Trump to another kid: “Barack Hussein Obama, who phased out physical fitness. Have you heard of him?”
“According to CNN, I’m at 100% approval within the Republican Party.”
… He continues to reference the stupid Harry Enten segment citing a poll of “MAGA Republicans.” CNN breaking news: Trump cultists support Trump.
RFK Jr: “There’s a lot of people who could probably do a 50-mile hike. Trump: What about me? You didn’t mention my name. RFK Jr: This guy walks 9 miles a day on a golf course every weekend, so he could do it in a breeze.”
… Trump uses a golf cart.
On John Thune refusing to eliminate the filibuster: “I’m disappointed. I like John a lot, but he has a couple of Republicans that are foolish people.”
… I posted a video today of Trump this weekend walking on the tarmac towards Air Force One where he wasn’t able to walk in a straight line and was pretty wobbly on his feet. You can watch it on Twitter, Bluesky, or Threads.
… An anonymous doctor on Twitter reposted the clip with this caption: “Ataxia. Issue with the cerebellum. Differential: stroke, degenerative, tumor, or drug adverse effects. We have physiological, behavioral, and observational evidence of chronic stimulant dependence. How this guy has not dropped dead of a cardiovascular or cerebrovascular event, given his poor lifestyle choices and risk factors, defies the odds. It’s coming.”
… Senate Republicans released the text of the bill to fund DHS which contained (surprise!) $1 billion dollars in taxpayer money to pay for Trump’s ballroom. Punchbowl: “$3.4B for CBP through 2029. $30 Billion for ICE. $2.5B for DHS.
$1 billion for the ‘East Wing Modernization Project, including above-ground and below-ground security features’.”
… “Senate GOP leaders plan to put the reconciliation bill on the floor the week of May 18, the final week both chambers are scheduled to be in session this month. That means key Senate Republicans will likely aim to hold any markups on the reconciliation text next week.”
… Sen. Jeff Merkley, the top Budget Committee Democrat, said in a statement that “Senate Democrats are prepared to review this bill line by line and vigorously challenge any provision that violates the Byrd Rule.” Merkley also argued Republicans are “ignoring the needs of middle-class America,” citing high costs, while providing funding for Trump’s ballroom project, ICE and CBP.”
… Politico: “A federal judge said Monday that the Trump admin had put her security at risk by posting a ‘patently false’ allegation that she knowingly released an ICE detainee with an international warrant for murder. DOJ attorney Kevin Bolan profusely apologized to US District Judge Melissa DuBose for the press release posted last week by the DHS, which Bolan acknowledged was ‘simply was not true’.”
… Bolan said that he didn’t tell the judge about the foreign arrest warrant because ICE officials instructed him not to. She also noted that the April 30 release slamming her - “Activist Biden Judge Releases Violent Criminal Illegal Alien Wanted for Murder”- remained online Monday.
… DuBose appeared particularly aggrieved that Bolan knew about the arrest warrant and intentionally withheld that info from her, although she later said she believes that ICE is primarily responsible for what she called ‘misconduct.’ DuBose said at the hearing she is considering whether to hold officials from DHS or DOJ in contempt of court for their handling of the situation: “There was a serious breakdown in the ethical codes here.”
Reminder there is no Bulletin tomorrow because I do my weekly podcast Uncovered where we do a deep dive into the top stories happening right now. I’ve been pretty hot with my predictions lately on the show - I guess 6 years of listening to every Trump speech and interview helps to give you some insight into the malignant narcissist.
If you missed yesterday’s Bulletin, you can find it here.
… Pete Hegseth held another press conference this morning about the war with Joint Chief Chair Dan Caine:
Q - “In the last 24 hours, Iran has fired at us. Is the ceasefire over? Hegseth: No, the ceasefire is not over. This is a separate and distinct project.”
Q - “On the first day of this conflict, Trump addressed the Iranian people directly and said, when we're finished, take over your govt. It will be yours to take. And then on the 7th day of the conflict, in a Truth Social post, the president said, there will be no deal with Iran except ‘Unconditional Surrender’. What happens to that pledge to the Iranians? And when did the president decide to capitulate on his
