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Trump judge quashes subpoena of FBI agent behind seized 2020 election ballots

Trump-appointed District Court Judge J. P. Boulee quashed a subpoena for an FBI agent who was behind a search warrant that allowed the federal government to seize ballots and other materials from the 2020 presidential election in Fulton County, Georgia.

In a 16-page ruling on Thursday, Boulee noted that Fulton County had filed a motion to return the election materials and had subpoenaed FBI Special Agent Hugh Raymond Evans, who had signed the affidavit for the warrant that searched the county's election headquarters.

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White House increasingly being caught 'flat-footed' because of Trump: columnist

The relentless chaos consuming Donald Trump's administration isn't just the result of the president's reckless indifference to consequences. His inner circle has absorbed and amplified that same destructive pathology, creating an echo chamber of incompetence at the highest levels of government.

New York Times columnist Jamelle Bouie argues that the botched Iran war exposes the administration's fundamental inability to plan for anything beyond its own fantasy scenarios.

Trump and his aides failed to anticipate Iran targeting shipping lanes and closing the Strait of Hormuz, the columnist wrote. They didn't prepare for serious, sustained retaliation against American Gulf allies. They didn't account for an energy crisis or potential global economic disruption. And they apparently never considered that European allies would largely reject their pleas for military support.

The damning reality: the administration didn't genuinely plan for or expect virtually anything that has actually defined the war. Two questions emerge: What did they plan for? And what exactly did they expect to happen?

The answer reveals stunning delusion. Trump and his team apparently expected token Iranian resistance followed by rapid regime collapse, installation of a pro-American government, and a quick return to the status quo — essentially a replay of their Venezuela intervention.

This exposes the real pathology. Trump is famous for dismissing everyone around him. He is a textbook narcissist — arguably the most solipsistic person ever to hold the presidency. Decades of public life offer little evidence he believes other people possess their own independent minds.

Every administration reflects its leader's character, and this one is no exception. Like Trump, the White House fundamentally fails to grasp that other actors possess agency. It views itself — and him — as the protagonist of the universe. Everyone else is either a supporting character or an NPC: extras with no will of their own.

When others inevitably act independently, the president and his administration are caught completely "flat-footed" For Democrats, this represents a golden opportunity, Bouie argued.

The White House's complete inability to understand that people outside its walls have their own intentions and agency gives Democrats a distinct strategic advantage. They can seize the initiative knowing Trump will struggle to respond constructively.

This dynamic is already playing out. During the partial Department of Homeland Security shutdown, Trump has stubbornly refused to budge — as if sheer obstinacy will bend reality to his desires. The result: chaos at the nation's airports and a collapsing approval rating.

House GOP plots to strip social safety net funds to pay for Trump's Iran war: report

House Budget Chair Jodey Arrington (R-TX) is eyeing using funds from state and local social programs to pay for President Donald Trump's war in Iran.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth recently acknowledged that the Pentagon was developing a plan to ask Congress for an additional $200 billion, adding that “that number could move.”

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Trump admin plants story aimed at blaming military leaders for Iran mess: analysis

A fresh excuse for the Iran war failures may be being plotted by Donald Trump's administration, according to a political analyst — and it would throw the military under the bus.

Emily Horne, a former National Security Council and State Department staffer, believes the president's team will claim military shortcomings have impacted the war with Iran in the coming days. Speaking to Greg Sargent of The New Republic, Horne claimed a story had been planted in the press to test the waters of blaming military intelligence as a reason for wartime shortcomings.

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Trump's 'war goal' gets emoji-mocked by crucial peace talks partner

A key partner in U.S.-Iran peace talks seemingly mocked President Donald Trump's shifting goals for ending the war he launched nearly a month ago.

Pakistan has tried to position itself as a facilitator to wind down the joint U.S.-Israel military operation against Iran, but Pakistani defense minister Khawaja Asif questioned one of the goals put forth by the American president as he seeks an off-ramp for the conflict.

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Trump's ability to 'comprehend' what's going on now openly questioned: MS NOW's Lemire

During a discussion on the multiple crises that Donald Trump’s White House is facing, MS NOW’s Jonathan Lemire pointed out that there are questions about the president’s ability to understand that his war in Iran is not going as well as he appears to think it is.

With the panel pointing out the high cost of gas for Americans due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, combined with chaos in US airports because the president is holding up legislation that pays TSA agents, Lemire suggested the president may be overwhelmed.

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'It's not going to be pretty': Trump's frustration with Iran finally boils over

Donald Trump’s promises that negotiations with Iran are going well have been falling flat and he appears to have lost patience.

Earlier in the week, the president postponed plans to conduct wide-range bombing of Iran’s energy infrastructure because he said he saw an opening in negotiations — a claim Iran quickly refuted.

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GOP lawmakers are treating Trump 'like a child' — and he 'should be offended': MS NOW host

The decision by the Republican congressional leadership to create and award Donald Trump the first-ever “America First Award” at a National Republican Congressional Committee fundraiser left the panel on “Morning Joe” both amused and baffled on Thursday morning.

The MS NOW segment began with a clip of House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) telling attendees, “We're going to honor him with a new award that we will present annually from this point forward. But he is the suitable and fitting recipient of the first-ever America First award. We can think of no better title for what that is. That's this beautiful golden statue here, appropriate for the new golden era in America.”

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'Politically toxic' Cabinet member will be out before midterms: Ex-White House doctor

A former George Bush administration official has claimed one member of Donald Trump's Cabinet will be removed from their post before the midterm elections.

Ex-White House doctor Jonathan Reiner, who served as Vice President Dick Cheney's cardiologist, believes RFK Jr. will be ousted from the Department of Health and Human Services to save face on an unpopular series of departmental changes. Reiner wrote on X, "The question now is not if RFK, Jr will be pushed out of HHS, it’s when.

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GOP dinner veers wildly off track as Trump descends into Supreme Court onslaught

A GOP fundraising speech went wildly off track Wednesday as President Donald Trump veered into a vicious attack on Supreme Court justices he appointed.

The National Republican Congressional Committee dinner at Washington, D.C.'s Union Station descended into the angry airing of deeply held grievances as Trump lost it against the judges he believes betrayed him by striking down his tariff scheme.

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Flailing Trump can't find a CDC chief: report

President Donald Trump's search for a new director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is in limbo, reported The New York Times, because he can't find anyone who supports some modicum of mainstream science on vaccines and embodies vaccine conspiracy theorist Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s Make America Healthy Again movement.

The issue is that a CDC director who opposes vaccines is unlikely to have the votes in the Senate, said the report, greatly constraining Trump's ability to nominate someone who could work well with his Cabinet secretary.

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​Desperate USPS forced to impose first-ever fuel surcharge as Trump's war reverberates

The U.S. Postal Service is hitting package shippers with its first-ever fuel surcharge starting next month, as skyrocketing diesel prices driven in part by turmoil in the Middle East push the already cash-strapped agency toward the financial brink, the Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday.

The 8% surcharge kicks in April 26 and is set to run through January 2027. It applies to packages only, with a medium Priority Mail flat-rate box set to jump from $22.95 to $24.80 overnight.

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'Your district is in danger': Florida Republicans get brutal midterm message

Democrats had a tough response for Republicans in Florida after flipping two GOP districts blue — a potential sign of what could be expected come midterms this fall.

The major wins follow several other Democratic victories in the 2025 elections that revealed the party has gained ground in historically Republican districts or have won those races altogether, according to a Politico report published Wednesday.

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