Tomorrow USA

Given Donald Trump's record as a sex offender and his longtime association with pedo Jeffrey Epstein, it seems fitting that the headliner at his UFC birthday bash will be somebody who has been accused of various sex crimes.

Alex Pereira, a prominent mixed martial arts fighter set to headline the U.S. president's 80th birthday UFC event at the White House, is facing allegations of abuse from two women — and it isn't the first time. Court records reviewed by CBC News, including depositions, allege the 38-year-old Brazilian UFC fighter engaged in misconduct including assault, forcible confinement, coercive sexual encounters and stalking. The allegations, which Pereira denies, were first reported by Maike Backhaus for German broadcaster ARD/WDR. And they come as Donald Trump's administration continues to deal with fallout from the partial release of the Epstein files. Epstein survivors and lawmakers have accused the administration of a coverup and not believing the women who say they were trafficked and abused by the sexual predator who was once a close friend of Trump. The ongoing case was filed in the domestic violence division of the Miami courts in July 2025 by a German MMA presenter known publicly as Merle Christine, who was in a relationship with Pereira for roughly a year.

Of course Trump likes people like this.

At the White House news conference in early May where Donald Trump announced his birthday bouts, Pereira thanked the president for the opportunity to be fighting for the "special event." Trump then praised the martial artist, calling him "one of the greatest punches in the history of the business." After shaking Pereira's hand, Trump said, "He has a large hand. That's a powerful hand."

Trump is impressed by anybody who doesn't have tiny bruised hands.

Only one in six Americans believe the MMA fight at the White House is appropriate – regardless of thje past histories of the participants.

Trump's name has apparently been removed from the Kennedy Center. But we can't say for sure because a tarp was placed in front of the Center so the public could not see workers chiseling off Trump's name. The tarp has been left standing because Trump wants to delay the worldwide humiliation of everybody seeing the building properly cleansed of his name.

The tarp wasn't necessary in the first place. It doesn't protect passersby from falling letters. The area is cordoned off anyway.

Trump is again showing everybody how stupid he is. The tarp will only draw more attention to Trump's removed name and for a longer period of time.

Somebody could try to use a drone to peek above the uncovered top. Another possibility is that an insider at the Center opposed to Trump could take and leak a photo.

Expect the White House to fabricate an implausible excuse for keeping the tarp up. I was going to make up a couple of examples – but they are probably not goofy enough for the Trump White House.

Buyers' remorse is afflicting MAGA voters.

An MS NOW reporter spoke with 3-time Trump voters in Ohio who have soured on The Orange One.

Ohio went for Trump all three times but Republican candidates are struggling there this year.

In the latest Fox News Poll for US senator from Ohio, Democratic former Senator Sherrod Brown is leading incumbent Republican Jon Husted by 53% to 45%.

Fox News Poll: Democratic unity, Republican crossovers shape Ohio Senate race

We mentioned yesterday how the US Senate race in Ohio has been moved from Leans Republican to Toss-Up by the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia.

That Fox News poll also shows Trump 15 points under water with Ohio voters.

But wait, there's more!

That same Fox News poll, reporting on the race for governor of Ohio, shows Democrat Amy Acton one point ahead of Republican Vivek Ramaswamy. Ramaswamy was a candidate for the GOP presidential nomination in 2024 and was briefly the co-leader of DOGE before being pushed out by Apartheid Elon Musk. Acton leads Ramaswamy 50% to 49%.

Thanks to Trump, the reflecting pool is filling up with algae.

Thin layers of algae floated on the World War II Memorial side of the pool Friday morning, even after workers were seen cleaning out algae from the bottom of the pool Wednesday. The reflecting pool construction project started in April and work was completed last week as part of President Donald Trump’s sprawling plan to spruce up the capital ahead of the nation’s 250th anniversary. The president has characterized the century-old pool as “filthy” and “dirty,” claiming that the pool would look “far more beautiful, more beautiful than it did in 1922” upon renovation.

Early voting in the New York Primary begins today (Saturday) and concludes on Sunday June 21st. Use the link contained in the article up top to find your early voting site in the state.

This primary is for state and federal officials; some local judges are also on the ballot. On the statewide Democratic side, most incumbents such as Gov. Kathy Hochul and Atty. Gen. Tish James are running unopposed in the primary. In New York State, unopposed contests are not on the primary ballot.

Much of the attention in this primary is focused on races for US House. My own rep is running unopposed. But if you live in NY-12 in Manhattan, I recommend Alex Bores. He's relatively young and wants to rein in MAGA tech broligarchs.

Alex Bores for Congress

Democrats need a net gain of 4 seats in order to flip the US Senate. According to the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia, Dems will control the chamber if they win the 4 seats now rated as Toss-Ups. This news comes in the wake of the Center's prediction unit (called Sabato's Crystal Ball after Prof. Larry Sabato) upgrading the chances of Democrats in three close races.

Democrats’ odds of taking control of the Senate just got even better, with The Center for Politics Sabato’s Crystal Ball flipping three races blue. According to the new ratings, North Carolina’s open Senate race is now projected to flip into Democrats’ hands, with the contest now rated “Lean Democratic.”  And the Senate contests in Alaska and Ohio—states that President Donald Trump carried by 13 points and 11 points, respectively—are now rated “toss-ups.” “As we reassess the Senate playing field with a little less than five months to go until the November election, three Senate ratings move in Democrats’ favor today, and there are now enough toss-up races to give Democrats a clearer path to winning the Senate majority,” Sabato’s Crystal Ball wrote. Republicans are on shaky ground in all three of those states because Democrats not only nominated strong challengers who have won statewide races before, but Trump’s popularity is now underwater—even in states that he carried in 2016, 2020, and 2024.  Apparently, even die-hard Republicans in red states aren’t fans of Trump saying that “I love the inflation” and that he doesn’t care about Americans’ financial situations.

Trump proclaiming "I love inflation!" certainly deflates Republican chances of holding on to the Senate.

Here is the revised Senate map from Sabato’s Crystal Ball.

^^^ The states in yellow are toss-ups. Democrats need to win all 4 for Senate control. The ones in orange are leaning Republican. Those 2 are within reach. It would be nice to end up with 53 seats.

People are understandably paying attention to the price of gas. But a figure that's even more concerning is the dwindling supply of oil. What's going on in Cushing, Oklahoma is a warning of things to come.

Cushing, Oklahoma, dubs itself the pipeline crossroads of the world. The tagline is emblazoned on a giant roadside sign fashioned out of pipes on the corner of Main Street and South Stiles Road. It has a valve and everything. [ ... ] Cushing is the hub of America’s energy market. It literally provides the oil plumbing for the United States. It’s where America’s benchmark West Texas Intermediate oil is priced and warehoused. From there, it’s piped to refineries around the country. In normal times, Cushing stores around 40 million barrels of oil with capacity of up to 75 million. These are not normal times. Cushing’s current inventory is 21.6 million barrels, according to the US Energy Information Administration. That’s dangerously close to operational stress levels, the tipping point at which Cushing struggles to supply all of its customers with the oil they demand. When Cushing’s reserves get below 20 million, they effectively hit empty, scraping the bottom of the barrel of what is largely unusable sludge.

So the US is just 1.61 million barrels from being down to "unusable sludge".

The New York Times published a chart showing the rapidly dwindling global supply of oil.

This is the most rapid drop of the past seven years. The supply got lower for a while in 2023 due to the effects of sanctions on Russia for its illegal invasion of Ukraine. But the decline was slower and markets eventually adjusted. With Trump's Iran war, there's no end in sight and much more oil passes through the Strait of Hormuz than is exported by Russia.

So what is Trump doing about all this? Every week, sometimes more than once a week, he oscillates from threatening to destroy Iranian civilization to proclaiming a new peace deal. While I've not been counting, it seems like there's been close to three dozen such abrupt shifts.

As for energy sources, Trump is again championing the moribund coal industry. He's putting a QAnon conspiracy nut in charge of a new coal project.

‘This is not normal’: Trump leans on MAGA organizer to revive coal

Even if something miraculously came of this (SPOILER: it won't), it would be way too late to help with the current crisis.

Randy Rainbow musically follows up on the Stable Genius. His insertion of a commercial for his sponsor is indicated by a change in headgear.

Randy probably deserves credit for creating the word Mussoliniest.

^^^ We are within striking distance of 52 different instances of Trump being photographed sleeping in public. So a complete deck of Dozing Donny playing cards is theoretically possible by the end of the year.

It's not just that he's sleeping, he is having trouble walking. After falling asleep at the only NBA finals game the Knicks lost, he couldn't walk in a straight line at the airport.

Cardiologist questions Trump's health after JFK zig-zag walk

You read correctly. Trump now says that he LOVES inflation.

The current inflation caused by Trump Tariffs and the Trump Iran war are clearly of his own making. And since Trump feels he can do no wrong, what's not for him to love about it?

A new report released Wednesday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics found that America’s annual inflation rate had reached its highest levels in three years. Later, in the Oval Office, a reporter asked Trump whether the new inflation numbers concerned him. The president presented his own pathetic spin. “No, I love it. The numbers were great. You know what I really love? I love the inflation,” Trump said.

Now there's even more inflation for Trump to love.

The Producer Price Index (PPI) represents inflation at the wholesale level. If Trump loves inflation, the wholesale inflation figures probably give him orgasms.

PPI wholesale inflation hit 6.5% in May, highest since 2022

A periodic reminder that Capitol Hill Republicans could rein in Trump in a heartbeat. But they don't because they are more concerned with their political careers than they are with democracy and the economic well being of Americans.

Inflation Trumpflation continues to surge. Much of it is related to the undeclared Trump Iran war.

Soaring gasoline prices, triggered by the U.S. war with Iran, have pushed inflation to its highest level in more than three years. A report from the Labor Department Wednesday showed consumer prices in May were up 4.2% from a year ago. That's the biggest annual increase since April of 2023. Prices rose 0.5% between April and May, with higher energy costs accounting for more than 60% of that monthly increase. Gas prices have jumped by well over a dollar a gallon since the war began, strangling shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz — a critical pathway for much of the world's oil supply.

Food prices too.

Grocery prices showed little change during the month, rising just 0.1%. Stripping out volatile food and energy prices, "core inflation" was 2.9% for the 12 months ending in May, a slightly larger annual increase than the previous month.

Trump said he would end inflation on Day 1. it is now 506 days since Day 1 and things have only gotten worse under Trump. It began with the Trump Tariffs last year. Trump referred to the introduction of the tariffs as "liberation day". The only thing Trump liberated was your money from your pocket. The tariffs were ruled illegal, but nobody has gotten a refund from Trump for his illegal tax.

The May inflation spike for TL;DR fans...

^^^ Trump has more in common with the screwworm than with a virus. MAGA is a parasite which is sucking the lifeblood out of America.

As for the invertebrate screwworms, Trump and Elon Musk's DOGE cut funding to the government program which was monitoring and responding to the potential for screwworm infestations. With Trump and Musk, "government efficiency" means finding easier ways to channel resources to White House ballrooms and more tax breaks for billionaires.

Trump gets a taxpayer funded UFC birthday extravaganza on White House grounds while the rest of us get screwed by MAGA billionaires.

Private prisons are odious and should be outlawed.

It's ironic that the founder of a chain of private ICE prisons is an immigrant who was one of last to enter the United States at the fabled Ellis Island facility.

The founder of a private company accused of mistreating ICE detainees came to the US via Ellis Island in 1953

The founder is George Zoley who was brought here as a toddler from Greece. His prison company is known as GEO Group which is based in Florida. It operates 99 facilities, essentially a private American gulag.

Business has been great this year for George Zoley's GEO Group under Trump. Abusing immigrants is apparently quite profitable.

Few people know you better than your lawyer. So Ken Paxton's attorney is endorsing Democrat James Talarico for US Senate from Texas.

One of the lawyers who defended Attorney General Ken Paxton during his three-year-old impeachment trial endorsed Democrat James Talarico Monday in Texas’ U.S. Senate race. Dan Cogdell, a veteran Houston attorney who represented Paxton in his long-running felony securities fraud case and his 2023 impeachment, announced his support for Talarico in an interview with the attorney general’s Democratic opponent on the lawyer’s podcast. “I defended Ken Paxton for years in the impeachment trial and in state criminal cases,” Cogdell said on his podcast. “But in my view, respectfully, I think Ken has lost sight of his core mission, which is to represent the people of Texas. And unlike Ken, I believe to my core, James, that you believe in unity over division and that you know how to assemble not only Democrats, but independents and Republicans — and we need that right now.”

Crooked Ken Paxton is one of the most corrupt public officials in the US. He gives even Dementia Donald a run for his money.

This anti-Paxton ad from last month's GOP primary is still at YouTube. It was inspired by Dr. Seuss.

^^^ The Trump administration celebration of the 250th anniversary of the United States in one word.

Despite this economic and human toll, the war has achieved very little. While the president has been typically erratic in outlining the war’s aims, over the past three months he has generally stressed three objectives: eliminating Iran’s ballistic missiles, ending its nuclear program and helping the Iranian people overthrow their government.

None of that has happened. According to America’s own intelligence, the Islamic Republic retains roughly 70 percent of its prewar missile stockpile. The United States has neither eliminated Iran’s access to the highly enriched uranium that it could potentially use to build a nuclear bomb nor taken down the Islamic regime itself. Indeed, the Iranian government is arguably stronger than it was when the war began, having demonstrated its ability to cripple the global economy by restricting traffic through the Strait of Hormuz. »

— Peter Beinert writing at the New York Times.

The undeclared and unauthorized Trump Iran war has been the sort of fiasco we would expect from a dumbass loser like Donald Trump. The only good that might come out of it is that it may cause more people to see the benefits of renewable energy which is not subject to the whims of emirs, ayatollahs, or semi-literate orange billionaires.

Trump is now lying about his past campaign promises not to involve the US in new wars. Trump's serial lying is not exactly news. But for the record, CNN did a fact check which easily exposed his lies.

Fact check: Trump told NBC that he never promised not to start a new war. He did, repeatedly

His most glaring promise from the 2024 campaign...

"Under Trump, we will have no more wars, no more disruptions, and we will have prosperity and peace for all."