Trump Says Iran Has Two Weeks to Avoid War – The Friday AM Quickie 2/20/26
Don't miss the heartwarming tale of Punch the lonely baby monkey who has finally made a friend, and who has single-handedly doubled attendance at Japan's Ichikawa City Zoo. I'm off, Whitney's back Monday. - Corey
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THE BIG NEWS
Sleepy Trump Rambles About 'Bad Things' Coming for Iran
As the US military buildup around Iran keeps growing, and diplomatic discussions between the two countries continue, Donald Trump for the first time yesterday gave a timeline for a possible American attack on one of the greatest military powers in the Middle East. "You're going to be finding out over the next, maybe, 10 days," Trump said yesterday morning, adding later in the day that the timeline for his decision to make war is "10 to 15 days, pretty much, maximum."
Daniel Shapiro, a former US ambassador to Israel and a top Pentagon official during the Biden administration, tells the Washington Post that "a major conflict with Iran poses grave risks," including "ballistic missiles capable of killing US troops in the region, a network of proxy forces across the Middle East that could quickly turn any attack into a far wider and deadlier war, and the potential for significant disruption to maritime shipping and the global oil market." And as the New York Times reports, the regime isn't even sure what its objectives would be with any possible attack on Iran, noting that "Trump has never consistently described his goals, and when he talks about them it is usually in a haze of brief, offhand comments." What's more, Trump "has given no speeches preparing the American public for a strike on a country of about 90 million people, and sought no approval from Congress."
Trump offered his 10-15 day timeline at the inaugural meeting of his so-called Board of Peace yesterday in Washington, DC. The group, which major US allies are boycotting, is intended to sidestep the United Nations process for resolving conflicts between countries, and all indications are it will serve as another vehicle for Trump's corruption. In addition to Iran, the board's attention is focused on Gaza. As the Associated Press reports, Gaza needs roads, water and sewage facilities, electrical grids and other critical infrastructure – but the one of the most notable pledges at yesterday's Board of Peace meeting came from FIFA, the international football organization that awarded Trump a mock peace prize last year, which pledged $50 million to build a new soccer stadium in the territory devastated by two years of Israeli attacks. They're making a mockery of Palestinian suffering while looking for real estate deals on the side.
Per HuffPost and MR, Trump wasn't even able to stay awake for the three-hour meeting. It all makes you wonder who's really making decisions in the White House about war and peace.
MORE STORIES TO WATCH
Andrew Arrest Leaves Yanks Green with Accountability Envy
British police yesterday released the former Prince Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor hours after arresting him at his residence on suspicion of official misconduct for sending government reports to his friend Jeffrey Epstein, the late elite sex trafficker, when he was an international trade advisor. Andrew's older brother, King Charles III, published a personally signed statement saying "the law must take its course" and pledging cooperation with the police investigation. Charles already stripped Andrew of his fancy titles last year. Historians say the last time a British royal was arrested was in 1649, when King Charles I was beheaded for treason. The New York Times reports that a British anti-monarchy group, Republic, has claimed credit for filing the police report that triggered Andrew's arrest. The family of the late Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein and Andrew's alleged victims, says the arrest shows "no one is above the law – not even royalty."
Many Americans are jealous of the show of accountability across the Atlantic. "Now we need JUSTICE in the United States," Kentucky Republican Rep. Thomas Massie, who pushed for the release of the government's Epstein files with California Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna, wrote yesterday. "If a Prince can be held accountable, so can a President," observed Democratic Rep. Melanie Stansbury of New Mexico, where Epstein owned a shady ranch.
Following Obama's Revelation, Trump Orders the Release of Government Files on Aliens and UFOs
Donald Trump, beset by scandals in his unpopular and aimless second term, is desperate for a distraction. He's also famously jealous of former Democratic President Barack Obama. So when Obama went viral last week by saying on a podcast that extraterrestrials "are real" (only to walk the revelation back somewhat with long-winded non-denials), Trump saw an opportunity. "Based on the tremendous interest shown," Trump wrote on Truth Social yesterday, he is directing the military and other agencies "to begin the process of identifying and releasing Government files related to alien and extraterrestrial life, unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP), and unidentified flying objects (UFOs), and any and all other information connected to these highly complex, but extremely interesting and important, matters." Speaking to reporters, Trump said Obama "made a big mistake" because by revealing "classified information." No reporters asked the obvious follow-up: Why is it classified to say that aliens are real?
This doesn't come out of the blue. Congress has been holding hearings and interviewing military and intelligence whistleblowers about a lengthy and ongoing coverup of what the government knows about UFOs and "non-human intelligence." Top Democrats including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer have been pushing for disclosure for the past several years by inserting provisions into military funding bills. Alas, because Trump is involved, this release will probably turn out like the Epstein files – insufficient and incompetently handled.
QUICKEST QUICKIES
- Homeland Security Plans to Round Up Hundreds of Thousands of Lawfully Admitted Refugees "It seems like they are just trying to find new and different ways to put grandma in jail," says Shawn VanDiver, a veteran who founded AfghanEvac. "You don’t invite people into the United States under one set of rules and start moving the goalposts after they arrive." via the Washington Post, the Associated Press, and the New York Times.
- MAGA Monuments Update: White House Ballroom Design Approved; Giant Trump Banners Hung from DOJ Meanwhile, three Vietnam War veterans have sued to block the construction of a 250-foot "Arc de Trump" near Arlington National Cemetary, saying the gigantic gaudy fascist monument "would dishonor their military and foreign service and the legacy of their comrades and other veterans." via the Washington Post, the New York Times, Politico, and the AP.
- Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer's Husband Shawn Has Been Banned from the Department's HQ for Groping at Least Two Women Meanwhile, the department's inspector general is also "investigating a formal complaint that Ms. Chavez-DeRemer was having an inappropriate sexual relationship with a subordinate — a member of her security detail — and abusing her office by taking staff to strip clubs, drinking alcohol on the job and taking personal trips at taxpayer expense." via the New York Times and Willamette Week.
- France's Macron Warns Italy's Meloni to Stay in Her Lane After She Laments Death of French Far-Right Student Eleven anti-fascist activists have been arrested in connection to the death of far-right anti-immigrant agitator Quentin Deranque, 23, at a protest last week outside a leftist party convention. via Al Jazeera, BBC News, and the New York Times.
SOME NUMBER
$100 billion
That's how much California would raise for healthcare and education programs through a one-time 5 percent tax on billionaires' assets that labor groups including the Service Employees International Union hope to place on the November ballot. As the Los Angeles Times reports, the threat of the billionaire tax may have prompted Meta's Mark Zuckerberg and Hollywood director Stephen Spielberg, in addition to big tech tycoons like David Sacks and Peter Thiel, to move their offices and residences out of the state.
ON THE SHOW TODAY
2/20: Happy Friday! Emma is still holding down the fort; the guests will be Ryan Grim, journalist and co-founder of Drop Site News, plus Wren Woodson and Mabel Kabani, hosts of the NEWSGIRLS podcast.
DON'T MISS MR CLIPS
Epstein Dominoes Begin to Fall
Bill Gates apparently can't show his face in public.
Zionist Influencer Goes Full Weirdo Over Spike Lee's 'Free Palestine' Fit
Why do so many sports talk show hosts sound out of breath?
PARTING WORDS
"Illinois deserves leaders who put voters first, not AIPAC or out-of-state Trump donors. I cannot support any candidate running for Congress who is funded by these outside interests."
-- Illinois Rep. Jan Schakowsky, withdrawing her endorsement of Cook County Commissioner Donna Miller in the state's 2nd Congressional District race in a statement to the Chicago Sun-Times. Politico reports that another pro-Israel group, the Democratic Majority for Israel PAC, has endorsed 11 House candidates across the country, including Miller, with "several in expensive and crowded primaries the party must win in order to retake the House."
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