War of the Roses (Thorns?)🍿 😱✡️🌻✡️🌻✡️😱 🍿 

🍿🍿 🍿🍿:  Yesterday’s eruption between Ketamine Musk and the Mango Maniac was inevitable and fun to watch in a ghoulish, train crash kind of way.  In case you missed it the two traded poison tipped barbs over Trump’s Big Ugly Bill with Musk trashing it as a bloated monstrosity and Trump responding that Musk was just really peeved because he wasn’t getting his share of all that pork he was whining about.  The battle quickly turned personal with Musk claiming that the reason more of pedophile Jeffrey Epstein’s files haven’t been released by the FBI is because Trump figures prominently in them;  that without his financial lift Trump would have lost the 2024 election, more than implying that Pennsylvania’s Senate seat would have remained in Democratic hands; calling for the creation of a third party and then doubling down by calling for Trump’s impeachment.  Trump threatened to cut Musk’s lucrative government contracts, adding he never understood why Biden hadn’t done so when Musk started funding his campaign.  Musk then said, great idea Donnie, I’ll start by cancelling the Dragon 🐉 capsules, the essential rockets that bring US astronauts to and from the International Space Station and by the way, you should be replaced by JD Vance, who remained awfully quiet during the intense dust up.  Steve Bannon who knows a thing or two about being on the outs with Trump also weighed in, calling for Musk to be criminally investigated and deported back to South Africa perhaps with a long pit stop in the infamous El Salvador gulag.  Republicans in the House and Senate either ignored the ruckus or said nice things about both players because though they know their voters are Trump supporting MAGAs they also don’t want Musk funding their opponents.  Before the day ended, Musk backed off a bit, saying that he wouldn’t cancel his Dragons 🐉 🐉.  Reports are that some in the White House are trying to negotiate a truce, maybe one that solves the dilemma of who gets custody of Stephen Miller’s wife Katie and their three toddlers.  Will the truce be successful, who can say, but we all know warring couples who fight bitterly and then make-up only to fight again, and as Diddy trial watchers know abusive relationships can last a long time, so don’t count this bromance out just yet.  Tesla’s stock price which took a big hit yesterday is up in early trading. Replenish your 🍿 🍿supply, this could be just one chapter in a long saga.  Also, regardless of how it ends, the Big Ugly bill is still heading our way.    

Global Politics:  Yesterday in the same televised Oval office meeting where he bemoaned his deteriorating Musk relationship, Trump who had more than once promised to end the Ukraine-Russian war on day one of this term, told German Chancellor Friedrich Merz that “it might be better to let Ukraine and Russia fight for a while before pulling them apart and pursuing peace.”  He likened the war to a “fight between two children who hate each other” adding "sometimes you're better off letting them fight for a while and then pulling them apart." Fred Trump must have been one helluva a father, little wonder that Trump’s older brother turned to alcohol. It’s also no surprise that Russia, one of those warring children, unloaded a slew of missiles on the other, Ukraine, last night. Trump also finally spoke directly with Chinese leader Xi yesterday. According to the readout of the call provided by the Chinese because we no longer get real US generated readouts, going with a ship analogy, Xi told Trump that the two needed to “steer clear of various disturbances or even sabotage” to keep their trade war truce intact. Xi doesn’t have to worry about mid-term elections, four-year presidential elections, or term limits, so he’s got all the time in the world to wait out Taco Trump and his tariffs. Does anyone know how to say popcorn in Chinese, or any other language because it’s fair to assume that leaders around the world are watching, not just how the trade talks with China turn out, but Musk and Trump’s very public spat.

Reproduction:  The war over reproductive rights wages on.  The Trump administration rescinded guidance from the Biden administration that required hospitals, including those in states with near total abortion bans, to provide emergency abortions when needed to ensure the health of a pregnant woman seeking emergency room care. Keeping with the theme of making life more difficult, even deadly, for women seeking reproductive autonomy and emergency care, FDA Commissioner Marty Makary said he plans to review the safety of abortion drug mifepristone. Mifepristone which was approved for use in the US in 2000 has a long track record and remains the only option for women in states where abortion is banned so this review has little to do with its safety but a lot to do with satisfying the anti-abortion crowd.

#BringThemAllHomeNow