Today in Politics, Bulletin 398. 6/11/26

… TACO Trump began the day threatening a ground invasion of Iran and ended it by backing down and claiming that the concepts of a deal had been reached without providing any details, while reporting from Iran and Israel dispute that any deal has been reached.

… Trump this morning: “The US will be hitting Iran (Whose Navy, Air Force, Radar, Anti Aircraft, and all other forms of Defense, together with most of its offensive capability, are GONE!), VERY HARD TONIGHT. At some point in the not too distant future, we will be taking Kharg Island, and other oil infrastructure points, and assume total control of their Oil and Gas Markets, much like we have with Venezuela, which is working out brilliantly for both Venezuela and the US.”

… Then Trump went on on Fox & Friends:

• "They're dying to make a deal. They want to make a deal so badly. We dropped $250 million of bombs on them last night. They're really in submission. They just don't know it yet."

• "Behind the scenes I must tell you Iran can't believe the press they get. They can't even believe it. And they told me. They said, 'It's amazing how well we're doing in the papers. We're not doing so well--' They're negotiating with us to make a deal."

• "My preference has always been to take Kharg Island. I don't know that America has the stomach for it, to be honest with it. You'd make a fortune."

• "We could walk in there tomorrow. If I wanted to, we could put in a small group of soldiers and take over the whole place. They're finished."

… Iranian Parliament Speaker MB Ghalibaf then posted: “Wrong strategies and impulsive decisions will reset the entire board for the worse, explode energy infrastructure and markets and create an endless quagmire that you will be stuck in for years. You will see a different Iran.”

… When CNN’s Manu Raju asked Mike Johnson about a possible imminent ground invasion, he suggested that Trump was just bluffing again: “I think he’s communicating directly with our adversaries over there. I would not put too much stock in the details of that right now.”

… Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE) to Meidas: “I’ve been studying these guys my whole life. If you look too eager for a deal with Iran, they will exploit it. Trump is perceived as wanting a deal too badly, and Iran is going to take advantage of that. They should be begging us for a deal, not the other way around.”

… Former Trump special envoy Keith Kellogg on Fox: “Having a protracted war is not the American way of war. We ought to go back to the way we did it in World War II and World War I and finished the job, obliterate them.”

… Sen. Lindsey Graham on Fox: “Mr. President, if this doesn't get them to the table, you need to change your strategy. Go all in. Knock them out. Let the Iranian people take their country back over time and move to peace between Saudi and Israel once you deal with Iran.”

… CNN: "Sources tell CNN that President Trump is growing more and more furious, especially this week, after he ordered new strikes in Iran. They say he felt both Tehran and the media didn't view US military action as powerful enough, so he ordered another round of strikes yesterday."

… Then Trump made his TACO post: “Based on the fact that discussions with the Islamic Republic of Iran have been brought to the highest level of Iranian leadership and approved, I have cancelled the scheduled strikes and bombings against Iran this evening. Discussions and final points have been, in both concept and great detail, approved by all parties involved, including the US, Israel, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Turkey, Pakistan, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan, Egypt, and others. The Naval Blockade will remain in full force and effect until this Transaction is finalized — Time and place of the signing to be announced shortly.”

… Israel’s Channel 12: A senior Israeli official told Channel 12: "We do not recognize reaching an agreement.”

… Iran state media Fars: “Trump Backs Down Once Again.”

… Iran state media Tasnim: “Iran Once Again Forces Trump to ‘TACO’. Another Trump retreat, once again justified by claims of progress in the negotiations. Over the past two months, Trump has declared 38 times that an agreement was within reach and on the verge of being signed. In the span of just 3 days, he has ‘sent his VP to Pakistan’ 4 times in his imagination.”

… “Until Iran itself announces that an understanding or a possible agreement has been reached, Trump’s reports on the matter should be regarded as part of the same series of messages he has repeatedly issued in the past.”

… “This behavioral pattern of Trump, who initially threatens a side intensely and then backs down at the first sign of danger, has become known among American users as ‘TACO’. TACO is formed by combining the first letters of the phrase Trump Always Chickens Out, which in Persian means: ‘Trump always cowardly backs down’.”

… Trump then TACOed on his nomination of Bill Pulte for DNI after a bipartisan group of senators said they would not vote to extend FISA as long as Pulte was the nominee: I am pleased to announce the Nomination of very Highly Respected Jay Clayton, former Chairman of the SEC and the current US Attorney for the Southern District of NY, to be the next DNI.”

… Politico: “The ascension of Bill Pulte is a clear sign of the recent mood inside Trump’s WH: angry, insular, grievance-driven and increasingly shaped by a group of loyalists with direct access to the president. Interviews with Trump allies, GOP Senate aides and people close to the WH reveal a president increasingly frustrated with everyone, from his own team to the Senate.”

… “He’s pissed, and people are not recognizing the level of pissed that he is,” a Republican operative said, pointing to Senate Republicans’ opposition to Trump’s “Anti-Weaponization Fund,” WH ballroom funding and resistance to firing the parliamentarian as the fuel for Trump’s resentment.

… Even WH advisers weren’t spared the president’s fury after Trump sustained his first major loss of the election season in Iowa, where Randy Feenstra was defeated in last week’s gubernatorial primary. A WH ally: “He’s really angry about this Iowa endorsement - like really, really angry. He’s really angry that his consultants and people pushed him to do that.”

… AP: “Trump’s planned UFC fight on the WH’s South Lawn has required a monumental effort from more than 7 federal agencies, hundreds of staff working onsite daily and at least $60 million, according to a legal filing that offers a glimpse into the preparations.”

… The National Park Service responded to the lawsuit that seeks to prevent the event from happening: “Well over $60 million and tens of thousands of hours of labor have been expended.”

… “The installation began May 20, and the Secret Service worked with the UFC to screen between 20 and 30 trucks of equipment - as well as between ‘700 and 900’ staff - that came in daily for the installation. The document did not specify the extent of govt resources spent on the project, but said 7 agencies, including DHS and the FAA, have ‘allocated significant resources and manpower.’”

… Meidas reporter Scott Macfarlane: “Another flurry of court filings in 11th hour suit to halt UFC event at WH. Natl Park Service, which appears to be taking its instruction from the UFC, says there’ll be filming of participants INSIDE the Lincoln Memorial.
And they will closing access to Memorial. Meanwhile, plaintiffs submit additional reply to convince judge to order halt to the UFC event.”

… They argue the event is “a volcano of corruption, if allowed to go forward, will mark an inflection point in American history”. Plaintiffs are also asking court to order UFC/Trump Admin “to honor their June 9 representation that the UFC will not be allowed to use the (inside of Lincoln Memorial) chamber because it may not be used for special events under the governing regulation.”

… Plaintiffs also slammed the Trump Admin’s argument that the event has precedent from WH youth T-ball game and Easter Egg Rolls: “It is different: UFC Freedom 250 is a for-profit endeavor from which the President and his allies stand to profit. It is because of this fundamental corruption that Plaintiffs are entitled to preliminary relief against the Sunday night fights on the South Lawn.”

… Todd Blanche was asked about the lawsuit today: Q - “On the UFC fight--
Blanche: I’m not gonna talk about the UFC fight. Q - Will you abide by the judge’s order if he orders it be blocked? Blanche: I’m not gonna talk about the UFC fight.”

… Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA) to Meidas: “What’s next? Cockfighting? It’s such a sacrilege to the WH and our nation’s capital. And they’re going to maybe spend $60 million in taxpayer money on this spectacle? It’s ridiculous.”

… Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-FL): “It’s a vanity project. It’s using taxpayer dollars and govt resources to prop up Trump. He’s building this entire arena at the WH at a time when people can’t afford to live. Nobody has any damn money.”

Shelby Talcott,/Semafor

… Forbes: “Temperatures in DC are expected to soar this weekend and could hit a high of 95 degrees on Sunday, confirming the fears of some UFC organizers who warned hot, buggy weather could pose a problem for a highly publicized fight series planned for the WH lawn.”

… “The National Weather Service has issued a Hazardous Weather Outlook, warning heat index values could approach 105 degrees in the coming days and predicting a threat of rain showers and thunderstorms. Capitalweather.com forecasts temps of 89 degrees when the event begins at 8 PM EDT on Sunday, with a 80% chance of rain, and humidity pushing the heat index into the 90s.”

… “The particularly hot (and maybe wet) weather is shining a light on the reason the UFC almost never plans events in outdoor arenas—and has fans wondering how it will impact the fighters. The UFC has had only one outdoor fight in its history—in Abu Dhabi in 2010—and CEO Dana White later complained about the challenges posed by humidity, heat and bugs.”

… “Podcast host and UFC commentator Joe Rogan, who is set to work the WH fight, has repeatedly criticized the event over the last several months, claiming that weather in DC on the same data last year was ‘hot as fuck’ and saying fighters should not be fighting in events that aren’t in a controlled, air-conditioned arena.”

… Political commentator Mike Young on Trump admin attempts to blame Joe Biden for screwworm: “Let’s walk through what actually happened here, in order:

• DOGE cut the USAID program specifically designed to prevent screwworm from crossing the US-Mexico border. DOGE cut USDA’s animal disease control and prevention funding. That funding had supported more than 180 outbreak investigations in 22 countries and capacity-building in more than 160 laboratories. The screwworm monitoring and response program that watched the border for exactly this parasite - cut.

• Then screwworm showed up in Texas cattle. Gov. Greg Abbott declared a disaster for Zavala and Uvalde counties this week. Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins went on CNBC this morning and blamed the Biden admin, 17 months out of office. Her specific words: “obviously not much had been done to push back.”

• The program that was supposed to push back existed. DOGE eliminated it in March 2025. Rollins has been Secretary since Feb 13, 2025. The cuts happened on her watch. Beef prices are already high. Ranchers in south TX are now dealing with a flesh-eating parasite that was eradicated in this country in the 1960s - eradicated, specifically, using the sterile fly program her department defunded. The flies existed. The program existed. The budget existed. Until it didn’t.”

We had a great show yesterday on Uncovered where I did a deeper dive on Trump’s Knicks game appearance, Hegseth’s D-Day speech, screwworm politics, Mike Lee v. Hegseth on the Mormon religion, MAGA frustrations with the war, Republican election fraud claims, Iran and the helicopter that was shot down, Ted Cruz on masculinity, and lots more. If you missed the show, you can find it here.

If you missed the last Bulletin, that is here.

… Daily Beast: “Taylor Swift popped up in Celebrity Row as the NY Knicks pulled off the greatest comeback in NBA Finals history to put Trump’s fateful visit to Madison Square Garden behind them. The Knicks are now just one game away from the NBA title after triumphing over the San Antonio Spurs to take a 3-1 lead in the Finals.”

… “Fans blamed Trump’s presence for the Knicks’ loss on Monday—breaking a 13-game winning streak—with Saturday Night Live star Michael Che writing on Instagram after the loss, ‘ya just haaaaaaad to invite trumpty dumpty.’ Some superstitious fans were so paranoid that they sought to cleanse MSG of Trump’s bad vibes ahead of Game 4, and were seen burning sage outside the arena.”

… “Their efforts, combined with the huge showing of support from fans in attendance, paid dividends, as the Knicks bounced back from a 29-point deficit to beat the Spurs,