Aspiring To Be Belle

IN A CONVERSATION with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky last August, President Donald Trump noted that Ukraine hadn’t held elections since the Russian invasion, asking whether elections are called off during a war. Before Zelensky could respond, Trump added: “Oh, that’s a good thing.” Five months later, Trump mused apophatically about canceling elections out of disdain for Democrats. Just days after that, in an interview with Reuters, Trump reflected with his typical braggadocio that, given his great success as president, “we shouldn’t even have an election” this November. The sheer number of times Trump brought up canceling elections forced White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt to clarify that the president was only joking.

But in light of Trump’s repeated affronts to democracy—including January 6th and his sustained lies about the results of the 2020 election—we are forced to take these remarks seriously. His comments show that he does not understand the essential place elections hold in our constitutional order and, in doing so, reveal a man unfit for the office he holds.

If and when Trump, believing he will lose control of Congress and face a third impeachment, tries to suspend November’s congressional elections, voters need to remember that Americans have held elections through national and international upheavals far more worrisome than anything the forty-seventh president can cite.

In 1862, in the midst of the Civil War that killed as many Americans as every other conflict in the nation’s history combined, Abraham Lincoln did not try to suspend the country’s congressional elections. Nor in 1864, when he ran for a second presidential term against Union General George B. McClellan, did he defy the country’s electoral laws and traditions.

Similarly, in 1898, during America’s war with Spain, William McKinley never tried to call off America’s congressional elections. And, despite warning against the dangers posed to the country’s democratic and economic systems by “radical” Democrats led by William Jennings Bryan, McKinley did not try to block the presidential election in 1900. Since there were no polls to encourage McKinley’s hope of winning, he simply believed Americans would not abandon their regard for traditional political institutions by electing Bryan. He, of course, was right.

'goon' -linguistic drift gave her a new meaning. i hope her new life is good for her. i miss her.

'henchman' -too gendered. can be shortened to 'hench' in a pinch, but lacks punch.

'servant' -too domestic to apply to all those who serve evil.

'underling, subordinate' -this one only works if they get off on being beneath you and/or you don't properly pay your workers.

'associate' -this one's good for grizzled mercenaries or lone agents but doesn't work good for broad swathes of an organization.

'slave' -same as underling but more intense. really fun for some of the group. unsavory for others in a way that limits the scope of the thing.

'thrall' -only really applies if you're brainwashing them and that's not something i've learned how to do en masse yet

'flunky, toady, stooge, lackey' -these are just insulting, and that isn't conducive to a healthy work environment. imagine going to work and your job title is 'stooge'.

'acolyte' -works for those that worship you, but again. lacks the scope.

'supporter, follower' -unspecific and vague

'assistant, helper, aide' -not sinister at all. just means you're doing things for me. swagless in this manner. could be good if used to describe someone who's so clearly more that as a way to emphasize their obedience via understatement, but that's only useful for a few members of the organization. and even then, 'associate' works better.

Trump rejects idea that Iran betrays his 'no new wars' campaign message

JUNE 7, 20267:07 PM ET

BRIDGEWATER, N.J. (AP) — President Donald Trump is dismissing the idea that launching the war with Iran this year betrayed his refrain of "No new wars" that he made repeatedly as he campaigned again for the White House.

Trump, in an interview that aired Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press," said he "didn't guarantee" there would be no wars if he were back in office.

here it is. read this one, and the go make a public comment

The Republican candidate for LA mayor is spreading conspiracy theories that his election was stolen.

This is what Trump empowered. Lose any election? Just claim fraud.

The counterintelligence threat level was raised by the Defense Intelligence Agency in recent weeks after growing concerns that Israeli espionage had become more aggressive than usual, sources say.

June 5, 2026, 7:13 PM MST

By Gordon Lubold, Courtney Kube and Dan De Luce

WASHINGTON — The Pentagon is increasingly concerned about Israel ramping up its spying on the U.S., recently raising the counterintelligence threat level from America’s top ally in the Middle East to the highest level, according to two U.S. officials and one former U.S. official.

The Pentagon’s Defense Intelligence Agency in recent weeks issued the new counterintelligence threat assessment amid rising tensions between Israel and the U.S. over the way forward in the war with Iran, the officials said. They said the DIA posted an internal message, viewed by one of the current officials, that raised the level for Israel to “critical.”

The designation stems from concerns within the Pentagon that Israel is making a particular effort to surveil top U.S. officials to get information on the Trump administration’s internal deliberations and decision-making on the conflicts in the Middle East, the officials said.

The DIA assessment includes a seven-page document and features a chart, according to one of the current U.S. officials. The document says the assessment of Israel is that its ability to conduct human espionage and technical collection is at a “critical level,” according to the official.

It also identifies a series of specific incidents that heightened U.S. concerns, the official said.

A spokesperson for the Israeli Embassy in Washington, D.C., said in a statement that it is “completely false” that Israel spies on the U.S. “Israel does not gather intelligence on American entities, let alone US government officials,” the spokesperson said. “Israel intelligence collection efforts are aimed at its enemies, not its allies. Any claims to the contrary are either misinformed or politically motivated.”

There have been officials arrested for spying for Israel.

Israel is bragging about war crimes. They started the war on Iran.

June 6, 2026, 6:03 AM MST

By Jane Lytvynenko

U.S. influencers and an administration official arrived in Russia just as Vladimir Putin, the country’s president, needed a publicity boost.

The small group of Americans flew in as the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, or SPIEF, often dubbed Russian Davos, opened on June 3 in the port city. The annual conference serves as a promotional vehicle for the country as Putin seeks to project strength and global power. Officials say this year they are receiving 20,000 guests from over 100 countries, with 76 countries sending high-level representatives.

Putin has increasingly faced setbacks on the battlefield as a Ukrainian drone strike campaign disrupts critical logistics routes and public support at home wanes. The forum opened to plumes of black smoke rising above St. Petersburg after a Ukrainian aerial attack damaged a naval base and an oil terminal, part of increased strikes targeting Russian oil infrastructure.

Candace Owens, a popular right-wing podcaster and a onetime ally of Donald Trump’s, became perhaps the most visible American guest at the forum, which also included Rodney Mims Cook Jr., chairman of the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts, which has been overseeing the White House ballroom construction. Elsewhere in Russia, manosphere bloggers Andrew and Tristan Tate, dual U.K.-U.S. citizens, have filmed from Moscow, where they took selfies in Red Square and sipped cocktails at a rooftop bar. They did not attend the forum.

Their presence may deliver a domestic propaganda victory to Putin, experts say, as Russians become dissatisfied with the cost of the war. The Ukrainian bombardments have constricted the supply of gas in the oil-rich country and there are reports of Russians in several regions having to line up at the pump for hours at a time.

“They want the propaganda value of implying that there’s some kind of economic thaw between the United States and Russia, which is not really the case,” said Michael Kimmage, the director of the Kennan Institute at the Wilson Center, a nonprofit policy research organization.