Tuesday, March 24, 2026. Chump has no idea what he's doing with regards to the war on Iran, he has no concerns about how he's destroying the economy, ICE arrests a crying woman at an airport, Kristi Noem's boytoy is upset that the press is covering his dealings, and much more.
INDIA TODAY reports,
"The longer the Iran war continues, the more complicated it becomes for
US President Donald Trump, who is facing boiling criticism with no easy
way out in sight. Leon Panetta, former US defence secretary and Central
Intelligence Agency director, said that Donald Trump is stuck between
'a rock and a hard place' after weeks of conflict." Chump changes the
reason for the war near daily just as he changes the goal for it. He
has no idea what he's doing. Akbar Shahid Ahmed (HUFFINGTON POST) reports on the mood of some service members:
Interviews
with active duty soldiers, reservists, and advocacy groups focused on
service members found some U.S. troops who are caught up in the war are
reporting vulnerability, overwhelming stress, frustration and
disillusionment to the degree they may leave the military. The
reservists and active duty soldiers spoke on condition of anonymity for
fear of retaliation or because they were not authorized to speak to the
press.
A military official who is treating
service members evacuated from the Middle East to Landstuhl Regional
Medical Center in Germany amid Iran’s retaliation said troops are
suffering from “inadequate force protection and planning” and already
reporting a severe, destabilizing toll from Iranian ballistic missiles
and drones that have been repeatedly striking American military
facilities. Thirteen troops have been killed amid the war so far, seven
due to strikes, and at least 232 have been wounded.
A
ground operation would be “an absolute disaster… we don’t have a plan
for that,” the official said earlier this week. “We can’t even fully
defend a single land base in the theater.”
A veteran and reservist who mentors younger officers told HuffPost her contacts are expressing a loss of faith to a new degree.
“I’m
hearing out of service members’ mouths the words, ’We do not want to
die for Israel — we don’t want to be political pawns,” she said. Another
reservist in touch with current troops separately reported hearing
similar comments.
“I’ve shared conscientious
objector information six times in the past two weeks and I’ve been in
the military almost 20 years — I’ve never had people reach out this
way,” the first reservist continued.
[. . .]
The
lack of a clear, consistent narrative justifying the Iran war is a key
source of discontent among troops, the reservists said, demoralizing
those who believe a poorly planned conflict is placing them in
unnecessary danger for no identifiable strategic benefit.
His
timeline for the conflict also grew increasingly muddled. Early on,
Trump said the fighting could continue for “four weeks or so.” Not long
after, though, he claimed the campaign was “very complete, pretty much,”
before later walking that back and saying the war would not be over
that week, though it would end “very soon.”
Meanwhile,
the Pentagon has asked Congress to sign off on another $200 billion for
the Iran conflict, a massive funding request that appears at odds with
Trump’s repeated claims that the war is nearly over. The administration
is also reportedly considering sending additional air and naval assets
to escort oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz and keep the vital
shipping lane open.
Oil prices rose and global stocks ticked
higher on Tuesday, a day after President Trump set off a drastic market
reaction by backing away from a threat to strike Iranian energy
infrastructure.
On Monday, crude oil
plunged and stocks jumped after Mr. Trump said the United States and
Iran were in talks to end the war. Iran denied that negotiations were underway and accused Mr. Trump of issuing false statements to calm rattled energy markets.
Senior military
officials are weighing a possible deployment of a combat brigade from
the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division and some elements of the division’s
headquarters staff to support U.S. military operations in Iran, defense
officials said.
The
officials described the military’s actions as prudent planning, noting
that nothing had been ordered by the Pentagon or U.S. Central Command,
which declined to comment. The officials spoke on the condition of
anonymity to discuss ongoing planning.
The
combat forces would come from the 82nd Airborne’s “Immediate Response
Force,” a brigade of about 3,000 soldiers capable of deploying anywhere
in the world within 18 hours. These forces could be used to seize Kharg
Island, Iran’s main oil export hub.
Another
possibility being considered, should President Trump authorize U.S.
troops to seize the island, is an attack by about 2,500 troops from the
31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, which is on its way to the region.
A
conservative media personality is sounding the alarm about President
Donald Trump’s polling on key issues ahead of November’s midterm
elections.
“November is a long way away, but if
these numbers hold, we are going to get massacred in the midterms.
That’s just reality,” Jesse Kelly, host of The Jesse Kelly Show, wrote
on X, alongside the results of a new CBS News/YouGov poll that showed
Trump underwater on issues including the Iran war, the economy and
immigration.
Five
new polls have suggested that President Donald Trump’s approval rating
is falling in some cases to record lows, as America’s conflict with Iran
in the Middle East continues, and concerns about the U.S. economy are
growing nationwide.
[. . .]
One of the five new polls was a CBS News/YouGov survey,
conducted between March 17 to 20. In total, 3,335 U.S. adults
participated and the outcome revealed that 60 percent said they
disapprove of the way Trump is handling his job as president.
This marked a net percentage point drop in approval of 20, according
to RealClear Polling. Some 49 percent of participants also said they
“strongly disapprove” of Trump’s actions as president, while 24 percent
said they “strongly approve.”
For
the economy, inflation and immigration, more participants disapproved
than approved the way Trump was handling the policy areas.
Disapproval
of how he was handling the situation in Iran was 62 percent, while 32
percent believed the U.S. economy would be in recession next year. Of
those polled, 52 percent felt Trump’s policies were making them
“financially worse off.” The survey had a margin of error of plus or
minus 2 percent.
And on the economy? Jennifer Bowers Bahney (MEDIAITE) notes, "CNN
data guru Harry Enten claimed Donald Trump was 'last in the pack' of
all 21st century presidents when it comes to voter approval on the
economy." As Jill Lawrence (BULWARK) pointed out, "His
top economic priority has been to enrich himself and the rest of the
billionaire/(Jeffrey) Epstein class, while sharply cutting resources for
programs that help low-income people." Thomas Kika observes:
The odds that Republicans will lose both the House and the Senate in the upcoming midterm elections are increasing, and according to a new breakdown from a Fox News analyst, it will be entirely President Donald Trump's fault.
Democrats
have been tipped to retake the House majority since late last year,
when simmering voter resentment against Trump saw his approval rating
tank and led to major Democratic victories in off-year elections. Due to
an unfavorable slate of races, the Senate was seen as a long shot for
the party initially, but as Trump and his agenda have grown more and
more unpopular, the odds have slowly begun to break for Democrats, with
some polls now putting the chamber as a toss-up.
Today on MS NOW's MORNING JOE, they noted how ICE at the airport is a bad look for Republicans heading into the mid-terms.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents violently arrested a woman at an airport just one day after President Donald Trump called for them to help fill TSA staffing gaps.
Video
of the incident on Sunday night showed two plainclothes agents dragging
a sobbing woman away inside a boarding area of San Francisco
International Airport. The reason for her arrest was not officially
stated, and the agents refused to identify themselves or show an
official badge. Meanwhile, airport authorities surrounded the agents to
protect them while they kidnapped the woman—as a young girl traveling
with her stood behind them crying during the arrest.
Kristi Noem’s right-hand man—and alleged “loverboy”—had even more access to sensitive government secrets than previously known.
Corey
Lewandowski, a top aide to the ousted Homeland Security secretary,
wielded the full might of the Department of Homeland Security—sitting in
on classified briefings and weighing in on contracts approved by the
agency, The New York Times reported Saturday.
More
than 20 current and former Trump administration officials told the
Times that Lewandowski, who was brought on by Noem, 54, to serve only
130 days annually as a special government employee, built a system in
which he was privy to all the department’s resources—and secrets.
Lewandowski,
who is married, has been glued to Noem’s side since she stepped into
her role last January. During that time, the former Trump adviser
reportedly cast a powerful vote on most of the department’s ground
operations and personnel decisions and was the driving force behind
Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino’s ascension to power.
Bovino
announced he was departing the agency this month following his
leadership of immigration crackdowns across the country that saw two
U.S. citizens in Minneapolis killed by federal agents.
Lewandowski
also reportedly placed employees on leave on a whim over trivial
matters, sources told the Times. Last month, the 52-year-old made
headlines for reportedly firing a U.S. Coast Guard pilot after a blanket
belonging to Noem was left behind on a different plane.
More
insight into the vast power Lewandowski wielded at DHS comes from
additional reporting alleging that he sought personal paydays by
steering companies seeking highly lucrative government contracts.
Democrats
on the House Oversight Committee have launched a new inquiry into
outgoing Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s top aide, Corey
Lewandowski, who allegedly sought personal payments from contractors, as
was outlined in an NBC News investigation last week.
On
Monday, House Oversight Democrats sent a letter to the private prison
company GEO Group asking it to disclose details of meetings and
conversations Lewandowski had with the firm both before the transition
period after President Donald Trump was elected in 2024 and during 2025.
Lewandowski
denied allegations he sought payments in exchange for favorable
contract decisions. GEO Group did not immediately respond to a request
for comment.
GEO Group is the largest owner of
detention centers in the United States, and the company plays a major
role in Trump’s mass deportation of unauthorized immigrants. The firm
holds more than a billion dollars worth of contracts with DHS.
Democrats on the House Committee on Oversight and Reform issued the following:
Washington, D.C. — Today, Rep. Robert Garcia, Ranking Member of the House Committee on Oversight and Reform, demanded answers from GEO Group after new NBC News
reporting alleged Corey Lewandowski, a Special Government Employee at
the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), attempted a pay-to-play
scheme with the private prison company over DHS contracts. Lewandowski
allegedly demanded kickbacks based on the value of GEO Group’s new or
renewed contracts with DHS. After Lewandowski rejected GEO Group’s
counteroffer to put him on retainer, Lewandowski allegedly told a senior
DHS official not to award the corporation any more contracts in an
apparent act of retaliation.
“Corey
Lewandowski appears to have engaged in deep-rooted corruption at the
Department of Homeland Security, and this massive pay-to-play scheme
should concern all Americans. We need answers directly from any
companies Lewandowski was soliciting. Oversight Democrats are going to
root out this corruption at DHS, and we won’t stop until there’s
accountability,” said Ranking Member Robert Garcia.
In
the letter to GEO Group Chairman and CEO George Zoley, Ranking Member
Garcia wrote, “Mr. Lewandowski may have used his position in the Trump
Administration and close relationships to President Trump and Secretary
Noem to enrich himself while serving as a special government employee
(SGE). If true, these allegations of Mr. Lewandowski shaking down
contractors for kickbacks represent a clear violation of the law and a
serious breach of public trust by DHS. We ask for your cooperation in
our investigation.”
This letter is an
escalation of Oversight Democrats’ investigation into Corey
Lewandowski’s role at the Department of Homeland Security. This month,
Ranking Member Garcia joined Rep. Rick Larsen, Ranking Member of the
House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and Rep. Bennie G.
Thompson, Ranking Member of the House Committee on Homeland Security,
to demand
an investigation by the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Office
of Inspector General into Corey Lewandowski’s employment. Additionally,
the Ranking Members wrote directly to DHS and demanded all
communications and internal records regarding Corey Lewandowski’s
involvement in DHS personnel and contracting decisions.
In August, Ranking Member Garcia wrote
to then-Secretary Kristi Noem regarding Corey Lewandowski’s employment
as a Special Government Employee, demanding a complete accounting of his
service days (including records and logs), assessment on whether he has
exceeded his 130 day limit as an SGE, all documents and communications
regarding his role in personnel decisions (firing/hiring) and grant
approvals in FEMA operations, and all documents and direct
communications between Lewandowski and any lobbying firm, lobbyist, or
government contracting consultant.
In September, Ranking Member Garcia wrote
to the Office of Government Ethics and to then Secretary Kristi Noem
demanding the public release of Corey Lewandowski’s financial
disclosures, which they have illegally failed to produce. Lewandowski
meets the qualifications to be a public filer, meaning that legally, his
financial disclosures must be made public.
Kristi
Noem’s alleged longtime lover is lashing out—threatening a legal
showdown after a bombshell report accused him of trying to cash in on
lucrative government contracts.
Corey
Lewandowski, a top Trump attack dog and adviser to the ousted Homeland
Security secretary, is threatening litigation against NBC News, which
reported that multiple companies complained to the Trump administration
that Lewandowski stood to profit from the DHS contracting process.
Former modeling agent and longtime ally to President Donald Trump,
Paolo Zampolli asked a top ICE official for help "to settle a personal
score" and have the mother of his child deported during a custody
battle, according to The New York Times.
Zampolli, a now presidential special envoy, introduced Trump to the president's now wife Melania.
He
found out that his Brazilian ex-girlfriend, Amanda Ungaro, had arrested
on charges of fraud at her work and in custody at a Miami jail — and
last year talked to a top official at ICE, David Venturella, to see if
she could be placed in ICE detention, citing that she was in the country
illegally, The Times reported.
The
two had been going through a custody battle over their teenage son and
"now he saw an opportunity" to try and get him back, Friday's report
stated.
A source familiar with Zampolli's communications and records acquired by
The Times revealed that Ungaro was picked up from a Miami jail by ICE
agents before she could make bail and later deported. Although this
could have happened without her ex-boyfriend's involvement, it raises
questions about how members of the Trump administration have used the
federal government during Trump's second term to pursue personal
vendettas.
When
Ungaro met Zampolli, she was still a teenager, and he was in his early
30s. While Zampolli insists that their courtship didn’t begin until
Ungaro was 19, certain sources imply that Ungaro was much younger when
her grooming by Epstein began.
“This is not
family drama. This is a criminal operation,” Ungaro shared in a
statement published by Bekah Day this January. “I have proof that me and
my family have faced harassment, threats, and blackmail from Paolo for
years. I have information and proof of government and public officials
being bribed by Paolo.I have proof that Paolo began trying to date me
when I was 15 years old, and it is true that I was on Jeffrey Epstein’s
plane as a teenager. I was only 16 years old the first time I was put on
his plane.”
Tr*mp and Zampolli’s longstanding
ties feature a number of fellow Epstein associates, such as magician
David Copperfield. In a 2013 email, Zampolli wrote to Melania: “As you
know Donald changed my life w/ u That night at dinner w/ Copperfild.”
During
Tr*mp’s first administration, when he put Zampolli on the board of the
Kennedy Center, Zampolli and Ungaro lived together in Washington with
their son. But by 2023, Ungaro discovered that her partner was busy
grooming other young girls, and left him. In June of 2025, he called ICE
on her.
A political analyst was taken aback on Sunday by a report that uncovered
new details about the death of disgraced financier and convicted sex
criminal Jeffrey Epstein.
On Friday, the Miami Herald reported that several bags of shredded documents were found outside of the Metropolitan Correctional Center
in Manhattan, where Epstein was being kept. Investigatory documents
obtained by the outlet revealed that at least one inmate was involved in
disposing of the documents and raised questions about the extent of the
prison guards' involvement in the ordeal.
Podcaster and owner of MSW Media, Allison Gill,
was taken aback by the report as she discussed it on a new episode of
her podcast, "The Breakdown," on Sunday. She called the report a
"massive revelation."
"If there weren't already a million really weird coincidences
surrounding the death of Jeffrey Epstein, if there weren't a mountain of
odd coincidences, this story ... would still raise glaring alarm bells
just on its own," Gill said.
Gill noted several facts presented
in the report that seemed "pretty convenient." For instance, an inmate
named Steven Lopez was interviewed by FBI agents about the document
shredding, but was only asked yes-or-no questions. A prison lieutenant
was also present during the interview.
Donald Trump's
Justice Department is facing renewed scrutiny after a newly surfaced
report claimed officials destroyed large volumes of documents in the
days following Jeffrey Epstein's death, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
The
explosive allegation, buried in a batch of records released earlier
this year, suggests key materials may have been discarded while federal
investigators were still trying to piece together what happened inside
the New York jail where the disgraced financier died.
According to the document, seen by The Daily Beast,
a Bureau of Prisons review team was sent into the Metropolitan
Correctional Center shortly after Epstein was found dead in August 2019.
But
instead of simply examining procedures, witnesses described a steady
stream of shredded paperwork being hauled out of the facility.
"[Redacted]
has never seen this amount of bags of shredded documents coming out to
be put in the dumpster at the rear gate of the MCC," the report stated.
The
activity reportedly unfolded while multiple agencies, including the FBI
and inspector general officials, were present amid the ongoing
investigation.
For those who've forgotten, Donald
Chump was president in 2019 when Epstein was jailed and died. It was
his Justice Dept that was in charge. Bill Barr and others back then told
a story that honestly doesn't hold up anymore. Samantha Ibrahim (OK!) notes:
At least one inmate was reportedly used to help discard the files, according to the DOJ.
“[Redacted] was bringing back bags of shredded papers, around 4 or 5
bags, and caller brought them into the gate to throw into the dumpster.
[Redacted] told caller that the after-action team is shredding huge
amounts of paperwork,” the files said.
“Caller
found it suspicious that an after-action team charged with
investigating would be shredding huge amounts of paperwork with all of
the officials from the AIG, FBI and BO[P] in the building in the middle
of an investigation. Those giving instructions to [redacted] said, ‘Make
sure you get that box too,’” the document read, also referring to the
Assistant Inspector General.
A CBS News investigative review of 90 post-mortem photographs,
conducted in October 2025, found that evidence markers were absent,
items had been moved, and the FBI did not arrive at the cell until 1:35
p.m., more than seven hours after Epstein's body was found. Forensic
analyst Nick Barreiro, who reviewed the photographs for CBS News, said,
'The FBI literally has all of the best tools. They have every tool you
can imagine. And they used none of it as far as we can tell.'
Nearly two years elapsed before investigators formally interviewed the
two corrections officers on duty the night Epstein died. Epstein's
brother Mark told CBS News, 'This was never properly investigated as a
proper homicide, it was never investigated.' His attorneys said DNA
tests were never confirmed as having been carried out, while former
Attorney General William Barr told investigators in a deposition that he
could not remember whether they had been performed.
Political pressure to release Epstein-related government files
intensified throughout 2025. In November of that year, the US House of
Representatives passed the Epstein Files Transparency Act,
which the Senate unanimously approved and President Donald Trump signed
into law. The legislation required the attorney general to release all
unclassified records related to Epstein, with the explicit instruction
that no document be withheld on the basis of 'embarrassment,
reputational harm, or political sensitivity.'
Allison Gill (MEIDASTOUCH NEWS) reviews the details on the shredding of documents following Epstein's death.
Let's wind down with this from Senator Elizabeth Warren's office:
Construction of these
facilities threatens to waste billions of taxpayer dollars; does not
advance U.S. national security or improve the military’s readiness
Migrant detention centers have been likened to “concentration camps for immigrants”
Washington, D.C. — Senator Elizabeth Warren
(D-Mass.) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), both members of the Senate Armed
Services Committee, launched a new investigation into the diversion of
military resources as the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is
funnels billions of dollars through a Navy contract vehicle to build a
network of migrant detention centers — some of which have been likened
to “concentration camps for immigrants.” In a new letter to Secretary of
Defense Pete Hegseth, the senators call for the Pentagon to end its
agreement with DHS.
“Diverting military resources to assist the development of ICE’s new
detention facilities does not advance U.S. national security — nor the
quality of life for our troops — and does nothing to improve the
military’s readiness for conflict,” wrote the senators.
The Worldwide Expeditionary Multiple Award Contract (WEXMAC) vehicle was created in 2021 as a tool to support naval expeditionary forces “in austere and remote locations across the globe.” The contract initially supported U.S. national security efforts in Afghanistan, Sudan, and the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Since September, the Pentagon has allowed
DHS and ICE to use the program to award 120 contracts to build and
maintain a network of migrant detention centers. One recent award went
to The GEO Group, a massive private prison company with a history of unsafe and inhumane conditions.
The Pentagon has also increased the WEXMAC contract ceiling sixfold,
from $10 billion to $65 billion, since DHS and ICE began using the
program, raising concerns that the Department of Defense (DoD) is
funneling or preparing to funnel more resources from the military toward
immigration enforcement. A previous investigation led by Senator Warren and Representative John Garamendi (D-Calif.) found
DoD had diverted more than $2 billion of military funds—originally
meant for fixing military barracks, training service members, and
schools for military children—toward immigration enforcement. Pentagon
officials have admitted that the military won’t be reimbursed by DHS for those funds.
“We are [also] concerned about the lack of transparency and financial
risks associated with this contract vehicle…[which allows] DHS to
sidestep the full federal acquisition process and fast-track the
construction of migrant detention centers,” said the senators.
The WEXMAC program is structured such that it allows DHS — through
DoD — to award construction and maintenance contracts to a small set of
contractors under one large contract. After the large contract is
awarded, Pentagon officials can quickly approve work by any of these
contractors without further competition, increasing risks of taxpayer
waste. DHS officials are also reportedly
attempting to quickly award contracts and avoid federal competition
rules, which are specifically designed to avoid political favoritism.
The Pentagon also appears to be relying on uncertain legal authority to
allow DHS to use this contracting vehicle.
“We are concerned that [WEXMAC] is only the latest example of a
systemic pattern of diverting DoD resources to support DHS missions, and
that this diversion threatens military readiness,” concluded the senators.
The lawmakers asked Secretary Hegseth to end DoD support for these
programs, writing that DoD should not allow DHS to “bypass federal
acquisition procedures and fast-track the construction of migrant
detention facilities throughout the United States.” They also asked DoD
to provide clarity on its agreement with DHS, detail what actions it’s
taking to prevent the waste of taxpayer funds, and provide an accounting
of the funds and resources spent supporting DHS for the building of
detention centers by March 31, 2026.
