“Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed the Middle East with Pope Leo at the Vatican on Thursday, at an audience that follows President Donald Trump’s criticism of the first American pontiff over the Iran war. The closed-door meeting, which lasted 45 minutes, was the first between the head of the Catholic Church and a Trump cabinet official in nearly a year. It comes at a fraught time between Washington and the Holy See, with relations at a low after weeks of presidential attacks on Leo and the Chicago-born pope’s outspoken responses.” (05/07/26)
“The unshakably conservative voters of northern Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District sent Rep. Thomas Massie to Congress 14 years ago because he promised to stick to his principles under pressure from the GOP establishment in Washington, D.C., and aggressively fight the man—the man back then being President Barack Obama. But grassroots Republicans may pull the plug on the libertarian iconoclast precisely because he insists on keeping that commitment, because Republicans here now like the man—President Donald Trump—and support a party establishment on Capitol Hill laboring to deliver almost everything he wants.” (05/07/26)
“Andrew Day and Harrison Berger talk to Ryan Grim of Drop Site News about signs of diplomatic progress with Iran, possible Israeli sabotage of negotiations, and the Iranian Lego videos. Recorded May 6, 2026.” (05/07/26)
“At this point it’s almost routine: Almost every time Donald Trump makes a major announcement about the Iran War, that announcement is preceded — sometimes by only a few minutes — by huge and hugely profitable bets in the oil market. … The Trump administration is making no real effort to crack down on whoever is trading using inside information, and these inside traders are operating with a complete sense of impunity, assured that they can get away with it. The stench of corruption is overwhelming. Yet aside from the raw corruption, these incidents also raise a larger question. The insiders ripped off the parties who sold futures to them at what turned out to be very unfavorable prices to the sellers. What broader damage does this kind of unchecked insider trading do?” (05/07/26)
“The Church Committee exposed sweeping abuses by America’s intelligence agencies 50 years ago. Section 702’s recent reauthorization suggests lawmakers are increasingly comfortable with expansive spying on American citizens.” (05/07/26)
