Category: Authoritarian

Trump Attacks Supreme Court Wall Street Journal Iran

President Donald Trump launched a series of Truth Social posts on Tuesday evening attacking the Supreme Court, The Wall Street Journal, wind energy, and Iran within 90 minutes. Trump announced Pennsylvania coal plants would remain open instead of being replaced by wind farms, which he called “costly and ineffective” and blamed for harming birds, repeating claims that scientists have disputed.

Trump assailed The Wall Street Journal as having “LOST ITS WAY,” targeting editorial board member Elliot Kaufman for an opinion piece criticizing Trump’s Iran negotiations. Trump accused billionaire owner Rupert Murdoch of directing the negative coverage and called the outlet a “failing political RAG.” This attack followed a federal judge’s dismissal of Trump’s $10 billion defamation lawsuit against the newspaper and journalists who reported on an alleged birthday letter to Jeffrey Epstein.

Trump posted a 340-word assault on the Supreme Court, claiming the justices he appointed have become “politically correct” and disloyal while Democratic appointees show unwavering loyalty. He criticized the Republican-appointed justices for lacking loyalty to him personally and allowing Democrats to “push them around,” referencing the court’s February decision striking down his tariff regime as unconstitutional and its pending ruling on birthright citizenship.

On Iran policy, Trump claimed Iran wants to open the Strait of Hormuz to earn $500 million daily and is only saying otherwise to “save face.” He stated that any deal with Iran would require the U.S. to “blow up the rest of their Country, their leaders included.” Trump’s comments followed his announcement that the U.S. would extend its ceasefire with Iran indefinitely at Pakistan’s request, leaving no timeline for resolving the conflict that began in late February and has caused thousands of deaths and a surge in gas prices.

Senator Elizabeth Warren responded to the ceasefire extension, telling CNN that Trump “has painted himself into a corner and he can’t find an exit,” noting the absence of any timeline on the blockade or war. Multiple recent polls show a majority of Americans oppose the Iran war.

(Source: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-truth-social-supreme-court-wind-farms-b2962313.html)

‘Political stunt’: Critics slam Trump’s reading of a Bible passage one week after posting AI image of himself as Jesus | The Independent

Donald Trump participated in a Bible-reading marathon on Tuesday, reciting a passage from 2 Chronicles 7:11-22 in a pre-recorded video from the Oval Office as part of the “America Reads the Bible” event. The passage, frequently cited by those claiming the U.S. was founded as a Christian nation, featured Trump seated at the Resolute Desk delivering a roughly three-minute recitation. Critics immediately labeled the reading a “political stunt,” while supporters praised the Republican president for publicly affirming Christian values and American identity.

The scripture reading follows Trump’s posting of an AI-generated image depicting himself as Jesus Christ one week earlier, which he later claimed showed him as a doctor rather than a religious figure. Trump deleted the Jesus image after backlash, falsely claiming it represented medical healing, and the incident sparked criticism from Christian commentators and former Republican allies including Marjorie Taylor Greene, who denounced the post as an inappropriate replacement of Jesus imagery.

The Bible reading occurs within Trump’s broader campaign to integrate Evangelical Christianity into federal governance. Since returning to office, Trump established the White House Faith Office headed by televangelist Paula White-Cain, who has compared him to Jesus, and authorized federal workers to encourage religious expressions in government workplaces. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has explicitly invoked Christian language in military contexts, praying that rounds “find their mark against the enemies of righteousness” during Iran war operations, demonstrating how Trump’s administration has weaponized religious rhetoric to justify military action.

Trump’s emphasis on Christianity has intensified his conflict with Pope Leo, the first U.S.-born pontiff, who has repeatedly condemned the Iran war and rejected the use of faith to justify violence. Trump attacked the pope in a 334-word Truth Social post, branding him “terrible” on foreign policy and falsely suggesting the pontiff accepts Iran possessing nuclear weapons. Pope Leo has refused to remain silent, stating he will continue speaking against war and promoting dialogue to end suffering.

Brian Kaylor, author of “The Bible According to Christian Nationalists: Exploiting Scripture for Political Power,” rejected Trump’s interpretation of the selected passage, telling the Associated Press that the verse represents “a promise made to one particular person in one particular moment” and cannot legitimately be applied to modern U.S. political purposes through decontextualization. Social media responses divided sharply, with supporters viewing the reading as moral leadership while critics questioned whether Trump has ever genuinely engaged with scripture.

(Source: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-bible-passage-reading-white-house-b2962262.html)

Trump ICE Detention Crisis Forces Federal Judges to Issue Sanctions

Federal judges across California are confronting a crisis in immigration detention created by the Trump administration’s mandatory detention policy. Since July 2025, the Department of Homeland Security has ordered all arrested immigrants held without bond, a dramatic expansion from the previous policy that applied only to those caught at the border. This change followed Trump’s signing of a spending bill allocating $45 billion to expand federal immigrant detention facilities.

The surge in detentions has overwhelmed California’s federal courts, particularly the Eastern District, which received over 2,700 habeas corpus petitions since January 2026 compared to fewer than 500 the previous year. Chief Judge Troy Nunley declared a judicial emergency in the district and sanctioned a Department of Justice attorney $250 for repeatedly violating court orders to release detained immigrants. Many detainees are longtime U.S. residents with no criminal records who were arrested during routine immigration check-ins, including an Afghan who supported American military efforts and a Cambodian grandmother who fled the Khmer Rouge.

Habeas corpus petitions, once reserved for death row inmates and suspected terrorists, have become the only recourse for immigrants seeking release. Judge Nunley stated that “the majority of the cases that we see are cases where people should not be detained” and emphasized that detainees are entitled to the same due process protections as any other person. However, some government lawyers have argued that the Fifth Amendment does not apply to detained immigrants, contradicting constitutional guarantees of due process.

The Trump administration’s policy has created procedural chaos across federal districts. Judge Sunshine Sykes of California’s Central District issued a decision describing the administration’s enforcement as inflicting “terror against noncitizens,” though the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals blocked her order requiring bond hearings. Federal judges unprepared for the volume of immigration cases are working nights to process emergency motions, while government attorneys claim they are overwhelmed by more than 300 cases assigned in three months.

Nationwide, nearly a quarter of approximately 30,000 active habeas petitions are filed in California courts, with half concentrated in Nunley’s Eastern District. Legal experts anticipate the dispute over mandatory detention will reach the Supreme Court as challenges progress through multiple appellate circuits. Judges across the country have expressed frustration that the Trump administration’s enforcement blitz has created a system that denies detainees the opportunity to gather evidence or consult with lawyers while forcing them to file emergency constitutional petitions instead of receiving standard bond hearings.

(Source: https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2026-04-19/trump-doj-habeas-corpus-immigration-detention)

Trump warns he will ‘blow up’ Iran if peace deal not reached | The Independent

President Donald Trump threatened to destroy Iran’s infrastructure, stating the “whole country is going to get blown up” if the nation does not reach a peace agreement with the United States. Trump’s ultimatum comes as a two-week ceasefire expires on Wednesday and follows the collapse of peace talks in Pakistan that Vice President JD Vance led.

The core dispute centers on Iran’s nuclear program, with the U.S. demanding its complete dismantling. The United States has implemented a blockade of Iranian ports to restrict oil sales as leverage in negotiations. Trump framed his threat as a shift in approach, declaring “no more mr Nice Guy” while threatening new military strikes on Iran if a deal is not finalized.

Negotiations are expected to resume with special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, though confusion persists regarding Vice President Vance’s role in future discussions. The escalation reflects Trump’s pattern of issuing inflammatory threats as negotiating tactics, following Pentagon briefings touting military operations against Iran as successful.

(Source: https://www.independent.co.uk/bulletin/news/iran-war-peace-deal-trump-b2960611.html)

Trump Claims Credit for Ending Wars He Started

Trump claimed at a Turning Point USA event in Arizona that he has ended ten wars, adding Iran and Lebanon to his previous list of eight. Trump stated, “If we add Iran and Lebanon, that will be 10 wars ended, and many, many millions of lives. Think of how many lives we have saved.” The State Department previously promoted this claim in October 2025, and Trump repeated it during a November 60 Minutes interview with CBS News’s Norah O’Donnell, pulling a written list from his pocket to enumerate conflicts he said he resolved through tariff threats.

CNN fact-checker Daniel Dale documented that Trump’s list contains fabricated or mischaracterized claims. The list includes a diplomatic dispute between Egypt and Ethiopia that was not a war, an undefined situation between Serbia and Kosovo that also was not a war, and the war in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, which has not ended despite a Trump administration-brokered peace agreement that was never signed by the rebel group leading the fighting. Trump falsely attributes credit for resolving conflicts that either did not occur as wars or remain active despite his claimed interventions.

Most significantly, Trump initiated one of the wars he now claims to have ended. Trump ordered U.S. strikes on Iran that began in June 2025 and escalated into major military action with Israel starting in February 2026. By claiming credit for ending a conflict he himself started, Trump demonstrates the disinformation central to his broader pattern of threatening war crimes against Iran while simultaneously portraying himself as a peacemaker.

Trump’s methodology for claiming war resolution relies on unsubstantiated assertions about his negotiating power. During his 60 Minutes appearance, he claimed he resolved disputes by threatening tariffs, stating, “I said, in many cases, in 60% I said, ‘If you don’t stop fighting, I’m putting tariffs on both of your countries.'” No evidence supports these claims, and many of the conflicts on his list predate his presidency or have continued regardless of his stated involvement.

Trump has repeatedly invoked the “eight wars” claim throughout his presidency to build his political brand as a peacemaker. This pattern of fabrication demonstrates abuse of power through the weaponization of false narratives to reshape his public image, diverting attention from actual military escalations he has ordered and supported.

(Source: https://www.mediaite.com/media/news/trump-proactively-claims-credit-for-ending-two-more-wars-one-of-which-he-started/)

Trump Loyalist DiGenova Tapped to Lead DOJ Florida Probe

The Justice Department has assigned Joe diGenova, a Trump supporter who worked on Trump’s failed 2020 election overturn campaign, to lead a controversial Florida investigation targeting Trump’s perceived political adversaries. DiGenova’s appointment follows the removal of career prosecutor Maria Medetis Long from the probe after she expressed concerns about rushing criminal charges against former CIA Director John Brennan, according to ABC News sources.

DiGenova served as U.S. Attorney for Washington, D.C. in the 1980s but has not worked as a prosecutor for decades. In recent years, he has frequently appeared on media outlets promoting Trump’s grievances and conspiracy theories about investigations into the president, including unfounded claims about the 2016 Russia investigation.

The so-called “grand conspiracy” probe examines whether intelligence officials and prosecutors engaged in unlawful efforts to target Trump over several years. DiGenova has previously called former CIA Director Brennan a “real traitor” and demanded he face criminal charges for allegedly lying to Congress, accusations Brennan has denied while standing by his role in the 2017 intelligence community assessment detailing Russian interference in the 2016 election.

DiGenova’s assignment to oversee the investigation signals a more aggressive approach and is likely to raise objections from attorneys representing individuals who have received subpoenas in the probe, given his extensive history of public commentary defending Trump during the Russia investigation and his demonstrated bias against the targets of this new inquiry.

The appointment represents the weaponization of federal law enforcement institutions against Trump’s perceived enemies, continuing the pattern of using government power to settle political scores rather than pursue legitimate justice.

(Source: https://abcnews.com/Politics/trump-loyalist-joe-digenova-dispatched-lead-dojs-controversial/story?id=132171939)

Kash Patel Says He’s Suing Over Report Claiming He’s Repeatedly Been Intoxicated in Public While FBI Director – Yahoo News UK

FBI Director Kash Patel announced plans to sue The Atlantic after the publication reported that he had struggled to log into a computer system on April 10, initially believing he had been fired by President Trump. According to the article by Sarah Fitzpatrick, Patel panicked and frantically contacted aides and allies about his supposed termination, with nine sources describing his behavior and two characterizing it as a “freak-out,” though the lockout was later determined to be a technical issue unrelated to any personnel action.

The Atlantic’s report also detailed allegations that Patel had been intoxicated in public at restaurants in Washington, D.C. and Las Vegas. The publication claimed that members of his security detail had experienced difficulty waking Patel on multiple occasions due to excessive alcohol consumption, and that a request for breaching equipment typically used by SWAT teams was made after Patel became unreachable behind locked doors.

Patel’s response came through FBI spokesperson Erica Knight, who dismissed the reporting as “fabricated” and announced a lawsuit would be filed. Patel himself posted on X stating he would meet the outlet “in court” and accused it of producing “fake news,” suggesting the actual malice standard required in defamation cases would favor his legal position.

FBI Assistant Director Benjamin Williamson released a statement calling the article “one of the most absurd things” he had read, characterizing it as “completely false reporting at a nearly 100% clip” despite a tight two-hour deadline provided to the publication for response. The statement was included in Patel’s social media post as supporting documentation for his claims of inaccurate reporting.

(Source: https://uk.news.yahoo.com/kash-patel-says-suing-over-031725423.html)

Trump Demands No Judge Stop His Military Ballroom

President Donald Trump posted inflammatory messages on Truth Social attacking Judge Richard Leon’s ruling on his $400 million White House ballroom project, characterizing the structure as militarily essential and declaring “no Judge can be allowed to stop” its construction. Trump’s posts came after Leon issued a revised order allowing underground construction of bunkers, bomb shelters, and military installations while prohibiting Trump from finalizing the above-ground ballroom design without Congressional approval, which the project still lacks.

Trump accused Leon of undermining national security and engaging in “illegal overreach,” claiming the ballroom is vital for presidential safety during events, inaugurations, and global summits. In his lengthy Truth Social rant, Trump detailed the ballroom’s purported military features, including missile-resistant steel, drone-proof ceilings, blast-proof glass, and military-grade venting, framing these specifications as necessary for protecting future presidents and world leaders.

Trump insisted the underground and above-ground portions are inseparable, claiming the underground sections serve no purpose without the upper structure and that the entire project is “tied together as one big, expensive, and very complex unit.” He further asserted that material worth hundreds of millions of dollars has already been ordered and partially paid for, suggesting the court order threatens investments already committed to the construction.

The ballroom remains funded through private donations and Trump’s personal cash rather than taxpayer money, yet Trump has framed judicial oversight as obstructing national defense. Trump previously attacked the court halt, and his administration appointed an unqualified receptionist to the Commission of Fine Arts, illustrating his pattern of circumventing institutional expertise and oversight on the project.

Trump’s assertion that judges cannot stop the project defies judicial authority and the requirement for Congressional approval, establishing a precedent for executive defiance of court orders. His characterization of legitimate legal review as “Trump Hating” and a “mockery to our Court System” exemplifies his broader pattern of attacking judicial independence when rulings oppose his interests.

(Source: https://www.mediaite.com/politics/trump-drops-wild-post-about-his-militarily-imperative-ballroom-no-judge-can-be-allowed-to-stop-it/)

Hegseth scolds reporters as ‘Pharisees’ in fire-and-brimstone Iran war briefing after Trump-as-Jesus furor | The Independent

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth used a Pentagon briefing on Iran operations on Thursday to attack journalists, comparing them to biblical Pharisees with “hardened hearts” who reject truth. Hegseth claimed the press exhibits “relentlessly negative coverage” and “unpatriotic” bias while refusing to acknowledge what he described as the “historic and important success” of U.S. military efforts and an emerging deal to address Iran’s nuclear program.

Hegseth’s attack centered on a Sunday church sermon about Pharisees witnessing Jesus heal a man, which he said paralleled journalists documenting military operations without recognizing their significance. He accused reporters of being “politically motivated” and “Trump hating,” stating their focus on negative coverage rather than military achievements proves they function as adversaries rather than observers of fact. Hegseth also attacked what he called “fake news” for failing to cover recruitment surges and national morale he attributed to Trump administration policies.

The defense secretary’s press conference assault on journalists reflects his ongoing hostility toward media access at the Pentagon, including attempts to restrict reporters from workspace designated for their use for decades. His tenure has been marked by repeated diatribes against the press during briefings conducted with Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair General Dan Caine, establishing a pattern of blaming journalists for insufficient support of administration military operations.

Hegseth’s invocation of religious imagery to attack the press mirrors Trump’s recent posting of AI-generated images depicting himself as Jesus, which drew backlash even from conservative allies before Trump deleted and later reposted similar content. Pope Leo XIV responded with a statement condemning those who “manipulate religion and the very name of God for their own military, economic, and political gain,” appearing to directly reference the administration’s use of religious rhetoric to justify military action.

The briefing underscores the Trump administration’s systematic attack on press freedom amid broader military escalation against Iran, with officials employing religious language and accusations of disloyalty to delegitimize journalistic scrutiny of war policy. Hegseth’s comparison of reporters to biblical antagonists represents an escalation in the administration’s framing of independent journalism as an obstacle to military objectives rather than a constitutional safeguard.

(Source: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/hegseth-iran-war-briefing-press-ai-photos-b2959018.html)

Trump Attacks Fox News Over Steyer Coverage

President Donald Trump attacked Fox News on Wednesday for covering Democratic California gubernatorial candidate Tom Steyer, whom Trump called a “SLEAZEBAG” and “LOSER.” Trump posted on Truth Social that the network was “promoting” Steyer instead of focusing on Republican candidate Steve Hilton, whom Trump has endorsed to succeed Governor Gavin Newsom.

Trump’s complaint about Fox News coverage lacked factual grounding. His post came approximately 40 minutes after Fox News had already featured Hilton on air discussing his campaign with host Harris Faulkner. Fox News had not run a substantial segment on Steyer on Wednesday but instead mentioned him briefly in relation to his fundraising totals, policy positions, and polling performance against other candidates.

The president appeared to reference a graphic displayed during Hilton’s interview that showed Steyer’s five-point immigration plan while Faulkner discussed his anti-ICE agenda and $120 million spending on the race. Hilton used the airtime to criticize Steyer’s immigration positions as “far-left extremism” and an extension of what he characterized as Biden-era open borders policies.

Trump’s attack on Fox News reflects a pattern of hostility toward the network when coverage does not align precisely with his preferred narrative. Trump has previously attacked both Fox News and Steyer simultaneously, demonstrating a longstanding grievance with both the billionaire Democratic donor and the Republican-aligned outlet that regularly gives Trump platform access.

Trump’s criticism of Fox News contradicts his repeated beneficiary status from the network’s coverage. Despite claiming the channel promotes Democrats, Trump continues to receive favorable treatment and extensive airtime on Fox News programming while endorsing Republican candidates aligned with his political interests.

(Source: https://www.mediaite.com/politics/trump-bashes-fox-news-for-covering-sleazebag-tom-steyer-right-after-interviewing-his-favorite-california-candidate/)

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