"Can't Be Seized By A Tweet": Iran On Trump's 'Will Soon Declare Hormuz US Territory' Remark

08/15/26 12:42 PM

Tehran's reaction came after Donald Trump said he would "finish defeating" Iran and "soon" declare the Strait of Hormuz part of US territory.

"Felt Like A Trampoline": Survivors Recount Deadly Indonesia Earthquake

08/15/26 2:57 PM

Indonesia experiences frequent earthquakes due to its location in the Pacific "Ring of Fire", an arc of intense seismic activity stretching from Japan through Southeast Asia and across the Pacific basin.

'Diehard MAGA' fans have discovered the 'obvious' truth about Trump: columnist

08/12/26 2:57 PM

Supporters of the MAGA movement finally understand their needs come last with President Donald Trump, a new political analysis contends.The Guardian columnist Arwa Mahdawi argued Wednesday that cash-strapped conservative voters may not understand the nuances of international finance — but they can't help but see the widening gap between their incomes and the Trump's. Wrote Mahdawi, "It’s becoming more obvious to even the most diehard MAGA fan that they are being put last."While Mahdawi called out Trump for slashing USAID and sending major cash to conservative think tanks abroad, she also warned such policy shifts were unlikely to land with MAGA voters. "What does the average Trump voter, who was promised an America-first agenda, think about all this money going to 'public education' programmes in the UK instead of all the underfunded public schools at home?" she wrote before suggesting, "The short answer is: they’re not thinking about it at all."But what they are beginning to realize is that Trump's estimated $2.2 billion earnings last year had to have come from somewhere, the columnist argued. And Trump isn't doing himself any favors with his apparent lack of concern, she concluded. "Trump, for his part, has brushed off cost-of-living concerns, declaring last year: 'I don’t want to hear about the affordability,'" she wrote. "[The president] should start listening."

'Extraordinary' detail about Trump's catering container escape has Iran experts terrified

08/14/26 5:49 PM

Iran experts expressed extreme alarm Friday as more information emerged about President Donald Trump's frantic escape from a missile threat in a catering container, according to a Wall Street Journal report on Friday.The ploy to switch planes from Air Force One to another jet amid a threat from Iran has ignited a media firestorm and raised more questions about the current war. As Trump boarded another plane, which was accompanied by jet fighters, it left the press unknowingly vulnerable on Air Force One with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent."A U.S. official defended the response, noting the daily dangers Trump faces and said the threat revealed by the intelligence was serious enough for the Secret Service to greenlight the decoy plan and send the warplanes," according to The Journal."There are also growing fears about what the maneuver reveals: an administration genuinely concerned that Iran-linked assassins could, even in a friendly nation, endanger Trump," The Journal reported. Holly Dagres, an Iran expert at the think tank the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, described why this Trump administration move was so significant."It’s quite extraordinary that the president had to be smuggled onto a different plane after a NATO summit in a NATO country," Dagres said. "While the Trump administration touts the weakness of the Islamic Republic, its reach remains extensive enough to allegedly try and kill the most heavily protected leader in the world."

'Get this man a catering cart': Internet ridicules Trump as he battles Mother Nature

08/11/26 11:50 PM

The internet had a laugh as President Donald Trump appeared to struggle to walk down the stairs with an umbrella as wind and rain hit after Air Force One landed in Ohio on Tuesday.Trump stepped off his plane at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, where a crowd was waiting for him before he headed to Marine One, en route to the Patriot Games in Geneva, Ohio. It happened just a day after reports surfaced that Trump had used Air Force One as a decoy while returning from Turkey under a credible terror threat in July, fleeing in a catering cart and being taken to another aircraft while reporters and White House staff remained on the plane.The clip was shared by independent journalist Aaron Rupar on X."Trump still can't open an umbrella, struggles to get down stairs of Bribe Force One," Rupar commented, referencing the jet gifted to Trump by Qatar.Others noticed the moment."Get this man a catering cart!" Nick Turse, senior reporter at The Intercept, wrote on X."This is the hardest thing he will do all day," strategist Vincent D. Monroy wrote on X."That’s 6,000% more wind than what a man Trump’s age can handle," liberal commentator Chris Robinson wrote on X."How long until he orders the umbrella be arrested?" progressive commentator Janice Hough wrote on X.Trump still can't open an umbrella, struggles to get down stairs of Bribe Force One pic.twitter.com/oY2yGC2xsK— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) August 11, 2026

'Heartbroken' military families beg for help over 'miserable' new warship revelations

08/14/26 7:04 PM

As concerns mounted Friday over poor conditions onboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, families of military service members on another Navy ship were pleading for help.A new report from independent journalist Aaron Parnas detailed the troubling conditions and declining morale shared by sailors' families, including how service members on the USS George H.W. Bush were facing "virtually no food, water, or soap," The Daily Beast reported.A loved one of two U.S. sailors told Parnas via text how the situation was worsening for sailors on the warship in the Arabian Sea as the Iran war now drags on for more than five months."They've been out at sea for 146 days with no end in sight," the unnamed family member said. They learned about the conditions when her sister-in-law left the ship for a family emergency. "Morale is low, and everyone is miserable. It's heartbreaking."The USS Bush left Norfolk, Virginia, in March, The Beast reported.The reports onboard follow growing frustration about the USS Abraham Lincoln's roughly 5,000 sailors and Marines, who are nine months into a deployment that was supposed to end in May, with no return date announced.Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has pushed back on the accounts, telling reporters Thursday that the conditions had been "completely misrepresented," though he did not specify his concerns with the reporting. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), who pressed Hegseth for answers, rejected that characterization as disrespectful to the sailors enduring the hardships.The Navy has acknowledged the war disrupted supply routes but said the Lincoln now has access to clean water and healthy meals. The carrier USS George Washington is being sent to relieve the ship, which has been at sea more than 240 days with only two port calls.

'Magical thinking': Jared Kushner slapped with humiliating takedown over 'peace' claim

08/13/26 6:10 PM

Jared Kushner drew immediate backlash for a social media post claiming President Donald Trump had opened a new chapter of 'peace' in the Middle East, as a U.S.-initiated war raged on.Kushner posted Thursday on X to mark what he called the six-year anniversary of the Abraham Accords — the 2020 diplomatic agreements that normalized relations between Israel and several Arab states.The comments came despite a war that Trump began February 28 by launching strikes against Iran, igniting a regional conflict that has since drawn in Lebanon, Iraq, and Yemen, according to the Council on Foreign Relations."Magical thinking is the new norm in this US administration," former diplomat Alan Eyre responded on X, quoting Kushner's post.Eyre spent 40 years as a U.S. Foreign Service diplomat and served as the sole career diplomat on the U.S. nuclear negotiating team that produced the 2015 Iran nuclear deal.In his post on X, Kushner claimed that Trump had delivered what many said was impossible."Six years ago, President Trump launched the Abraham Accords and opened a new chapter of peace, partnership, and prosperity in the Middle East," Kushner wrote."The Middle East is once again at an inflection point," the president's son-in-law added. "Now we have an opportunity to build an even broader movement around cooperation, shared prosperity and security."In the February 28 strike on Iran, the U.S. and Israel killed Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and dozens of senior military figures, according to the Council on Foreign Relations. The war has not ended.Since March 2, Israel has also waged a separate war in Lebanon, where more than 4,300 people have been killed, including at least 253 children, according to the United Nations.Former Obama White House national security spokesman Tommy Vietor was among those who replied to Kushner directly on X."Yes the Middle East has been so peaceful since the signing of the Abraham Accords. No new wars. No slaughter of innocent people. Just good vibes and trade deals," Vietor wrote.Kushner, however, focused on the future."We surprised the world once. With the right leadership, focus, patience and courage, I believe we can do it again," he wrote.Andreas Krieg, a security analyst at King's College London, was less optimistic."Project 'Peace in the Middle East' is going very well indeed," Krieg replied to Kushner.The Strait of Hormuz — through which 20 percent of the world's oil once flowed — remained effectively closed as of Wednesday, with U.S.-Iran negotiations stalled, according to CNN.

'Manic' Hegseth slapped with drug test demands after 'arm thrashing' appearance

08/14/26 10:40 AM

A frantic appearance by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's before the media Thursday drew an accusation that he may require drug testing or an abuse intervention.The embattled President Donald Trump appointee spoke to reporters and attempted to address concerns about his deployment of an aircraft carrier in the Middle East that has lasted so long that one sailor attempted to leap overboard.Speaking to reporters in Panama, an intense Hegseth, 46, discussed the USS Abraham Lincoln, an aircraft carrier on extended deployment near Iran, the Daily Beast reported."We make sure that every ship, every crew, every captain, has everything we can provide them at every single moment," Hegseth said, adding that he understood the strain of long deployments from his own military service in Iraq and Afghanistan.His appearance and rapid-fire commentary caught the attention of California Governor Gavin Newsom, who posted on X describing Hegseth as appearing "delusional, manic, agitated" and noting his "arm-thrashing display." Newsom questioned whether Hegseth had recently undergone drug testing, asking, "Has Pete Hegseth done a drug test lately? Why are the results not public?"This is not the first time Hegseth has raised concerns by acting in a "manic" manner, according to Pentagon insiders.Hegseth has a documented history of substance abuse concerns. His ex-wife told the FBI that he "drinks more often than he doesn't," and former Fox News colleagues said he reeked of alcohol before going on air. Hegseth pledged to abstain from alcohol ahead of his Senate confirmation, which was narrowly approved with Vice President JD Vance providing a tie-breaking vote.

'Oh my God!' Wife of USS Lincoln sailor 'infuriated' after Trump accused families of lying

08/14/26 10:14 PM

A U.S. service member's wife had a blunt response on Friday for President Donald Trump after he dismissed reports of poor conditions on the USS Abraham Lincoln, even as families expressed serious concerns about their loved ones.CNN anchor Jake Tapper spoke with the unnamed woman, who shared that she could not identify herself over concerns for her husband's safety and career. Tapper asked what her reaction was to Trump's remarks after the president said he did not think the deployment was "long enough." Nearly 5,000 sailors and Marines have been deployed on the warship for nine months in the Arabian Sea during the Iran war."Oh my God! I don't think the man thinks before he talks," she said. "I was really hoping that at some point there would be a redemption. Try to redeem yourself at least a little bit with everything that you do and everything that you say. Have some empathy. Take some accountability for what's going on with your military, your ships, and your war. It's infuriating." She slammed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Trump for their comments dismissing the reports of deteriorating conditions and low morale among the troops."What the president is saying today, essentially saying that families are lying and service members are lying, even though the proof is right here on my phone, it is not fabricated," she said. "Nobody is lying."She criticized the Trump administration for not showing sympathy for service members "that they claim to scream and shout that they support when it's politically sound for them to use, 'support our troops, support our troops' until our troops need support. And now suddenly everyone's lying. And it's a fabrication and it's a misrepresentation.""I would so badly love to plaster my face and blow the whistle so loud on social media with my name and be like, 'this is real. We are real people. Those are real people on that ship. This is actually happening.' But unfortunately, I have to protect my husband's career."

'Sick': Firestorm as 'Cadet Bone Spurs' dismisses disgruntled military families

08/14/26 6:35 PM

People were outraged on Friday after President Donald Trump downplayed the reportedly poor conditions on the USS Abraham Lincoln, where service members have described a dire situation.Trump was boarding Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland heading to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York when the press corps started asking him questions about the naval vessel and sailors on board."Family members of service members are concerned about conditions on the USS Lincoln," one reporter said."That ship is moving. No, they’re not," Trump responded, saying that the ship would be replaced with another ship."Has the deployment gone on too long?" The reporter asked."No, no, no. Not nearly long enough," Trump said, not acknowledging military family members' worries.Political commentators and media experts reacted to the president's remarks.Internet personality and Chronicles associate editor Pedro L. Gonzalez reacted to Trump's response."Trump doesn't care about American troops at all," Gonzalez wrote on X. "He thinks people who serve in the military are suckers. He thinks people who fight and die for this country are fools. I don't know how you can hear Trump explicitly state that he's unconcerned about these service members and their families, that he thinks they haven't been deployed *long enough* in his idiotic war, and still conclude that he's deeply concerned about American lives."Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), an Iraq war veteran, had a sharp reaction to Trump's comments."Cadet Bone Spurs thinks he understands what happens on deployments," Gallego wrote on X. Progressive activist Alex Cole mocked Trump. "Trump: We love our military. Military: We have concerns. Trump: No you don’t," Cole wrote on X.U.S. Army veteran and activist Skyleigh Uhrich had a direct message for families of military service members."Attention Military & Military Families: Trump said 200 days of deployment at sea with no port of call is not along [sic] enough! All of you need to vote accordingly in November, all of your family members are being used as pawns in his sick game! He wouldn’t last 24 hrs pathetic mf!" Uhrich wrote on X.Liberal commentator Lucas Sanders responded to the president."Translation: I don’t care about their conditions," Sanders wrote on X.Trump doesn't care about American troops at all. He thinks people who serve in the military are suckers. He thinks people who fight and die for this country are fools. I don't know how you can hear Trump explicitly state that he's unconcerned about these service members and their… https://t.co/oEvuDGiZ9j— Pedro L. Gonzalez (@emeriticus) August 14, 2026