… AP: “Trump’s abrupt decision to waive sanctions on Russia days before they were to take effect drew outrage from members of Congress, which had overwhelmingly passed the legislation in a bipartisan display of American support for Ukraine in the war with Russia.
… Lawmakers from both parties blasted the executive order, the latest in a series of steps that the president has taken drawing the US closer to Vladimir Putin. Trump recently announced a diesel deal with Putin to import Russian energy in a long-shot effort to curb high gas prices in the US that are roiling the midterm elections on Nov. 3:
Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL): “I think it’s clear Russia is the aggressor, and we’ve got to do everything we can to put economic pressure on Russia. So it’s not the first thing I would be doing.”
Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC): “Beyond irresponsible. What part of enforcing a law passed 86-11 by the Senate does the President and his advisors not understand? It’s unconscionable that this admin is capitulating to a Russian dictator who illegally invaded Ukraine.”
Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX): “Lindsey would be appalled.”
Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY): “By giving the Russian economy life support, Trump’s deal with the devil keeps getting dirtier.”
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA): “Trump is thumbing his nose at Congress and enabling Putin to continue his war of aggression.”
… Zelenskyy posted:
“Sanctions relief will continue. I think the diesel deal and the move regarding the Lindsey Graham Act are not the end of it. Unfortunately. Shortly before the tragedy, Lindsey was in Ukraine. He always supported us very strongly and pushed for as much assistance to Ukraine as possible.
It’s difficult without him, I’ll be honest. I want to thank both Democrats and Republicans who supported his bill. And now, the decision to undo all of this, to block all of it, seems wrong to me. And it definitely helps only the Russians. It only fuels their satisfaction and their desire to keep killing people. This certainly does not stop the war.”
… Trump responded:
“Zelenskyy is using Diesel Refineries in Russia as a target, knowing that these attacks are seriously hurting the world diesel markets, including those in the US. Farmers, ranchers, and businesses of all kinds are suffering greatly from this, but Russia is, nevertheless, sending, at a low price, millions of barrels of diesel to the World.
Zelenskyy doesn't care, and frankly, with all of the money that Europe is famously giving him, and that Crooked Joe Biden gave him in the past, he doesn't want to end this war, and probably never did.”
… AP reporter Meg Kinnard asked Sen. Darlene Graham for her reaction to Trump lifting sanctions against Russia despite the sanctions bill named after her brother: “The sanctions bill was one of the tools given to Trump to end the war. It’s up to him whether he chooses to use it. I look forward to talking with him next week about this.”
… Very courageous and principled stand.
… Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE): “Congress has a lame-duck session. The President has an agenda: supplemental, reconciliation, ballroom, etc. I think the agenda is dead. Many of us won’t fund these things knowing he is propping up a dictator’s invasion and throwing an ally under the bus.”
… Marco Rubio was asked about Starshield at a press gaggle:
“It’s not, at this moment, available to Ukraine. But it’s under conversation. It’s under discussion right now. Q - Did the US have anything to do with it not working in Ukraine at the moment? Zelenskyy said it was the US. Rubio: No. I’m not sure Zelenskyy knows what he’s talking about. We had nothing to do with it. Nobody ordered Starlink speed to be slowed down.”
… Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ): “Innocent civilians are dying in Ukraine because of Trump/Musk and Rubio treats it like it’s a special at Applebee’s that has run out.”
… Financial Times war correspondent Christopher Miller: “It’s been a week and Ukraine still has no answers from the Trump admin nor SpaceX about why the Starlink and Starshield systems have been restricted and who ordered the speed limits. The WH and SpaceX each claim it’s the other who’s responsible. Rubio says nobody in the US is responsible.”
… Univ of CA professor Branislav Slantchev: “Either Marco just admitted that the US govt does not control Starshield and we are at the mercy of a ketamine junkie’s whims or that the govt does not control what the Pentagon does or that Marco is pathetically out of the decision loop altogether. Embarrassing.”
Q: “There’s a criticism that we’re basically giving Putin something for nothing. We’re giving Putin these freebies. What’s your response? Rubio: That diesel is going to be sold one way or the other. The diesel that Putin was going to sell, they were going to make it available to the global market one way or the other. The only difference is how much of it the US was going to get.”
… Slantchev: “Marco has completely lost whatever modicum of integrity he ever had, just as he himself predicted that he would, by working for Trump. The reporter should have reminded him that Russia’s ability to sell that gas - which he pretends is inevitable - depends on how our govt enforces the sanctions. So he basically said that because Trump isn’t enforcing sanctions, the sale was going to happen, which is why we might as well not enforce the sanctions. What a fucking weasel.”
… Zelenskyy on Meet the Press:
Q - “Who do you think is to blame for the disruption to the Starlink and Starshield services? Zelenskyy: Of course the message came from the American govt. Q - Has the system been fully restored? Zelenskyy: No, no. We have limitations.”
“If the US supports Putin, it’s unbelievable, it’s a tragedy. It’s a historic mistake. If US officially takes the side of Russia, of course we will not prevail and we will not be able to stand.”
On Trump: “I hope that he will change his decisions, because I think it’s all mistakes. It will not help us and it will not help the US. But it’s not my choice. And I hope he will change his attitude to Putin - we can’t compare me and Putin. He’s the aggressor.”
… Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was on next: Q - Zelenskyy just said he believes the US govt slowed Starlink. Can you definitely say no one in the Trump admin ordered restrictions? Bessent: Trump and Rubio have categorically said that no one in the Trump admin did that. Zelenskyy should be very careful about making reckless statements like that.”
… NYT: “A key element in the Trump admin’s broad plan for securing peace in Ukraine is a proposal that would turn years of American energy policy upside-down. Europe, the US pitch goes, should resume buying more Russian gas - a move that would be an economic boon for Moscow and give it renewed influence in the region.
… Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff have brought up the idea in talks with Ukrainian and European officials, including with Zelensky in Kyiv last month. To help entice Russia to end the war in Ukraine, the Americans have argued, Ukraine should consider restarting pipelines that used to carry Russian natural gas to Europe.
… European officials in the talks have recoiled at the idea, which would undo the EU’s years of efforts to rid itself of Russian gas. But Trump officials see Russian gas exports as a potential part of a peace settlement.”
… Andy McCarthy, editor of the conservative National Review in a scathing OpEd:
“We’re now well into Putin’s third decade as Russia’s murderous dictator. And Trump is giving him aid and comfort. Congress has become a laggard even when it is in session. In a properly functioning republic, there would be immediate hearings about this week’s shocking escalation of the Trump–Putin alliance.
Since the start of Trump’s second term, it has been excruciating to watch America’s president blame the victim, our ally Ukraine, for Putin’s war of aggression. Reagan and Poland this is not. As Ukraine fights for its survival against Moscow’s would-be hegemon, today’s president hectors it to surrender territory that Putin has been unable to take on the battlefield after 4 years of barbarism.
Trump claims to want peace, but his fine print consistently spells out Russia’s terms. Regardless of the president’s personal interest, the vital American interest stems from Russia’s being America’s enemy, quite apart from being Ukraine’s enemy. Trump has sided with the totalitarian aggressor over the allied European democracy upon which it preys.
This week, in lunatic public statements, the president again blamed Ukraine for the war and gratuitously insulted Zelenskyy (in stark contrast to Trump’s unconcealed admiration for Putin). Trump’s emissaries revived their pressure on Ukraine to settle the conflict by surrendering Ukrainian territory, and threatened that the admin would withhold crucial intelligence that Ukraine needs for its self-defense.
This week, Ukraine was horrified to learn, without warning, that Starshield had been restricted. Right at the moment Trump was warning Zelenskyy not to attack Russian refineries, the Starshield settings were somehow altered, such that the system could not track objects traveling at speeds greater than about 100 miles per hour - woefully inadequate to detect Russian aerial assaults.
Coincidentally, while the system was compromised, Putin’s forces conducted some of the most intensive aerial attacks against Ukrainian territory since the war began, firing 39 ballistic missiles and 128 Shahed drones, mainly at the greater Kyiv and Kharkiv areas. At least 9 civilians were killed, and many others wounded. 26 power facilities and 4 oil and gas facilities were damaged. More than 600,000 people lost power in the capital.
If we allow common sense to enter the equation, too many dark signs point in the direction of an American admin - at the very moment it was seeking Ukraine’s capitulation and threatening to leave it defenseless by denying intelligence - taking conscious action that left Ukraine exposed to an intense attack, which Russia just happens to have conducted right at the perfect time.
This is dark. It demands answers. Now.”
… Energy Secretary Chris Wright on CNN:
Q - “You said back in March when the war with Iran first began that gas prices would be lower within weeks, not months, and here we are several months later with the midterm elections two weeks away. Americans are still facing record prices at the pump. Has the admin let Americans down? Wright: No, we haven’t. Gas prices did come down. They’ve gone down the last few weeks.”
“The president is putting pressure on that’s a step forward for peace in the Russia-Ukraine war. Q - So now the US stance is to pressure Ukraine, not Russia? Wright: Oh, this is pressuring Russia. Russia does not have diesel to export. The only way they can get diesel to export is to turn down the conflict with Ukraine. This is quite innovative, actually.”
… Possibly the most ridiculous argument yet on this - that it somehow benefits Ukraine.
… The Telegraph: “China is supporting the Iran-backed Houthis as a way to pressure the US. The militant group is seeking to build a medium-range ballistic missile that, according to a research report, would be made with Chinese components. The Houthis are seeking to manufacture at least part of the Iranian Khaibar Shekan series of ballistic missiles.
… A research group has identified custom-made missile components, as well as raw materials, tools and testing equipment, in recent shipments intended for the Houthis, and has also found these components alongside shipping documents that list a Chinese supplier.
… The Houthis have increasingly sought to boost domestic production, but these latest revelations suggest a significant leap in their abilities, as only a few countries in the world have the expertise to produce missiles with such range. This also suggests an increasing independence from Iran, their main backer.
… In fact, Chinese companies represent the largest source of goods seized from shipments bound for the Houthis, according to UN reports and research by arms experts.”
… But Trump says this isn’t happening because his good friend President Xi told him that it wasn’t and Trump said Xi would never lie to him because he respects him too much.
… Financial Times: 24 ships were hit in the two weeks prior to 11 October, the most intense period of attacks in the entirety of the war. It is almost double the second worst period, when in the first two weeks of the war in March, 13 ships were hit.
… Institute for the Study of War: “Iran may be developing its anti-ship missile capabilities to improve its ability to target vessels.”
… The attacks have become more frequent, more geographically dispersed and more diverse in their tactics. Alongside missile and drone strikes, there are growing concerns about the use of mines, small boats for reconnaissance and targeting, and other methods designed to compensate for damaged surveillance and radar capabilities.
… Iran analyst Danny Citrinowicz:
“Iran is entering a new and intensive phase of military buildup, with the effort to restore and expand its ballistic missile capabilities at its core. The choice of Mehrdad Akhlaqi as Iran’s new Minister of Defense, who has significant experience in producing solid-fuel missiles, is no coincidence. It reflects the strategic direction Tehran is heading toward: a significant expansion of the missile array, acceleration of production rates, and strengthening the ability to conduct prolonged military campaigns.
“It is clear that Tehran has no intention of stopping. On the contrary, it is drawing lessons from the recent campaigns, accelerating its force buildup, and seeking to expand its missile capabilities, based on the understanding that they constitute a central component in its deterrence and response capabilities against Israel and the US.”
… New NBC poll:
29% say US is on the right track, 71% say wrong track.
82% say their finances are the same or worse today than one year ago, 18% say they’re better.
67% say the price of gas has caused them problems.
Trump approval rating: 34%
… Trump issue approval:
27% on cost of living
29% on Iran war
33% on AI
43% on border/immigration
… Will Trump deliver on his promise of $5,000 checks:
Yes - 14%
No - 71%
… Which party do you trust more to handle the following issues?
🔵Healthcare: D+23
🔵Cost of Living: D+14
🔵Inflation: D+14
🔵Education: D+14
🔵Iran: D+11
🔵Corruption: D+9
🔵Economy: D+9
🔵Transgender Issues: D+9
🔵Taxes: D+7
🔵Immigration: D+2
… Speaker Mike Johnson was asked by Spectrum about the bleak poll numbers for Republicans. He said it is a conspiracy between Democrats and the media: “I believe there’s a concerted effort between Democrats and the mainstream media that’s openly biased in their favor to discourage the Republican side.”
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… Trump rally in KY this weekend:
“I called Google, Google Maps. See, Google wouldn’t have taken my call in the first term, now they kiss my ass.”
“Why shouldn’t Paxton win? The other guy is a freak. He’s a vegetarian. I was calling it vaygan. I know nothing about that. I don’t like eating a piece of celery for dinner.”
“The stock market means a lot, you know. They say I always use the stock market. Well, actually I do when it’s good. If it’s bad, I don’t use it. If it has a bad day, I never talk about it.”
On fired federal workers: “Their wife likes them much more. They get much more turned on. They become almost violent in their love for their husband because