The DC swamp is now drowning Trump

Italy's prime minister cheered across world as she delivers 'thrashing' to Trump

A diplomatic firestorm between President Donald Trump and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni sparked global reactions Friday.The prime minister acidly denied Trump's claims to an Italian TV network that she had "begged" him for a photo together during this week's G7 summit and that he agreed because he "felt sorry for her." Meloni claimed his comments were "completely made up.""I am frankly astonished," Meloni said. "I don't know why ⁠the president of the United States behaves like this towards his allies. It is not the first time, moreover.""I can only say it is disappointing that he does not show the same determination with the enemies of the West and of the United States, whose leaders he instead treats with far greater indulgence," she added. "There is one thing he should remember: neither I nor Italy ever beg."Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani responded to the row by scrapping his planned U.S. visit, writing on X that Trump's "serious and offensive words" toward Meloni "offend the whole of Italy."The 80-year-old president drew global condemnation for his comments about Meloni, who had been one of his strongest allies in Europe."I believe her," said journalist John McGuirk."She's fabulous," gushed defense analyst Michael Shurkin."Italian fire and brimstone," marveled Bruno Tertrais, of the Foundation for Strategic Research."This dust up with Italy is a perfect example of many of Trump's missteps," observed The Dispatch's Mike Nelson. "He tells a blatant lie without any reason, just because he has to sound like people are so willing to grovel to him. The false story gets him nothing and the fallout costs the United States.""Something to ponder for those Polish politicians who are investing all their chips in the fickle — as we can see yet again — favor of the Orange Genius and Winner of All Wars," noted Polityka's Michal Danielewski."Trump has never met an ally he does not try to screw over in the end," snarled MS NOW contributor Marc Polymeropoulos."Incredible (and real, not fake) thrashing of Trump but the PM who was at one time probably his strongest supporter in Europe (aside from the departed Orban)," noted author Gary Lucas."Trump just can’t keep himself from bullying women. It’s basic to his nature," said Phillips P. OBrien, a professor at the University of St. Andrews."She sounds genuinely fed up with this," added Alex Clarkson, a lecturer at King's College in London."Meloni is a fascist and all that, but it likely took a beautiful blonde who is one of Trump's only European allies to really kick back for his ... abuse of women," argued legal expert Marcy Wheeler."Trump has been crossing far too many lines," opined FirstPost's Sreemoy Talukdar. "An egomaniac whose senility has gone ahead of his low cunning. Behaves like a wet cat before autocrats and dictators, piles on leaders of democracies.""I'm afraid that the war @POTUS is waging with @GiorgiaMeloni will end for the US president just like the conflict with Iran," concluded Marek Magierowski, former Polish ambassador to the U.S. and Israel. "The prime minister has boiled over, like Mount Vesuvius. I know a few Italian women, and I wouldn't want to get into an argument with any of them. By the way, I don't recall such a sharp, public clash between the leaders of two allied nations in recent years."

'Biggest leaker' in the Trump White House singled out by ex-CNN anchor

A high-profile ex-CNN anchor singled out the insider said to be the "biggest leaker" in the Trump White House.Don Lemon said during an interview with Legal AF host Michael Popok that Vice President "J.D. Vance is like the biggest leaker of them all" in the White House based on what "many people have said and according to some of the reporting."Lemon and Popok were talking about Trump's efforts to hunt down the insider who leaked details of a "freakout" in the Situation Room over the Epstein files. The freakout is detailed in the forthcoming book Regime Change by New York Times reporters Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan."Donald Trump could very well be one of the people who leaked to" Haberman, Lemon admitted, adding that it's possible Trump "doesn't even realize it."However, he and Popok made the case for suspecting Vance is at least "the biggest source for people," as Lemon put it."He looks good in the story, relatively," Popok said, referring to the NY Times reporting on the Epstein freakout in the Situation Room. "Among the liars in the room, he looks like he's the one that says, 'let's get the story out about Donald Trump'...I'm like, among those people in the room, that was like the best thing to say."Lemon pointed to reporting on the Iran war that also seemed to favor Vance."Remember, the reporting was that J.D. Vance was the only one in the room who was against it," Lemon explained. "It's like, well, how does J.D. Vance always come out looking better than anyone?"Trump Chickens Out and Won’t Go After NYT Reporters for Epstein & Iran Leaks?! by Legal AFRead on Substack

Is Trump's Iran deal a failure? - video explainer

Donald Trump has signed a 14-point agreement with Iran, claiming it delivered a 'major win' for the US – even as it made significant political and financial concessions to Tehran to reopen the strait of HormuzTrump’s Iran deal is result of unrealistic ambitions for an untenable warIran announces plans to bring in maritime fees for strait of HormuzIran peace deal makes clear how far US has been forced to retreat since 2025 Continue reading...

Trump’s bungled pool project gets vicious review from DC residents: 'Feel for the ducks'

Multiple residents of Washington, D.C. told CNN Friday their unfiltered thoughts on President Donald Trump’s $14 million restoration of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool – and the feedback was scathing.“It looks bad!” one D.C. resident told CNN’s Tom Foreman. “I just see green – green slime.”Trump’s restoration of the Reflecting Pool has been just one of many of his D.C. beautification projects. It’s proven controversial given that the Trump administration handed the project to a contractor with ties to the president in a no-bid deal, bypassing what critics say should have been a competitive bidding process.After the completion of the $14 million renovation project, blue paint from the pool’s bottom appears to have peeled off, and the pool’s water has turned a deep green – as experts predicted it would last month. Federal workers have attempted to combat the growing algae by pouring peroxide into the pool, though as of Friday, it's largely had no effect.“Pouring all that peroxide into it clearly didn't help,” another D.C. resident told CNN. “I feel for the ducks.”Foreman told CNN’s John Berman that, after walking around the pool’s rim “over and over again” Friday, there were “very few places where you can see” any blue “at all.”“Those people behind you, they're just vacuuming full time?” Berman asked Foreman about federal workers seen wading in the pool with suction equipment. “Is this going to be a permanent thing, people standing in the pool vacuuming?”Foreman said, “There were more than a dozen of them out here all day long yesterday doing just that, working steadily to try to clear it. What is here is kind of what was here before in the eyes of many people passing by and about as bad as it's ever been.”"I feel for the ducks"DC residents give scathing reviews of Trump's $14M Reflecting Pool restoration pic.twitter.com/l0lyIFUOpF— Alexander Willis (@ReporterWillis) June 19, 2026

Trump’s Mar-a-Lago neighbor owns company behind Reflecting Pool humiliation

On Friday, the New York Times revealed more about the company that secured a no-bid contract to clean the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, and though the investigation has continued to reveal ties between the company and President Donald Trump, the White House insists these links have nothing to do with the decision to select the firm. This comes as enormous green algae blooms have concealed the American-flag blue Trump says he intended for the pool.According to the New York Times, the contract for the endeavor “shows that the National Park Service bypassed the competitive-bidding process that is typically required, and gave a $1.7 million contract to the firm, Greenwater Services of Brookfield, Ohio. Federal contracting records show that firm’s ultimate owner is the J.J. Cafaro Investment Trust, led by John J. Cafaro, a donor to Mr. Trump and a neighbor to Mar-a-Lago, the president’s private club in Florida. The water treatment company also listed Mr. Cafaro’s Palm Beach mansion as its address in Florida corporate records.” Cafaro is a “longtime Republican donor” whom Trump has described as a “fantastic man.”Interior Department spokesperson Katie Martin claims that the administration wasn’t aware of Cafaro’s political stance when the contract was awarded, saying, “This company was selected because they had the expertise, work force and materials needed to complete the job in time.”While several firms had expressed interest in the cleaning project, the Times writes that in April, the Park Service “gave the work directly to Greenwater Services, a company that federal records show had received only one other federal contract. The Park Service justified its decision to bypass competition by citing an exemption meant for urgent situations: It said there was no time to consider other offers because the system had to be installed in time for events celebrating the country’s 250th birthday.”What’s more, this isn’t the only no-bid contractor fouled in the scandal. According to the Times, “Another no-bid contract for $14.7 million had been awarded to a Virginia firm, Atlantic Industrial Coatings, for the same reason of urgent need. That business was paid to spread blue waterproofing material on the pool’s concrete floor. That work, too, shows signs of potential trouble. On Thursday, a section of the pool’s new layer of blue waterproofing appeared to have detached from the bottom and floated to the pool’s surface.” Martin declined to comment on that. As the Times reports, “Cafaro’s ties to Mr. Trump go back at least 10 years. In 2016, Mr. Trump boycotted a Republican debate and held a competing event, a televised fund-raiser for veterans causes. One of the major donors was Mr. Cafaro, who gave $50,000.”“J.J. Cafaro from Florida and from Cleveland: He’s a man who made a lot of money in Cleveland, does a good job, and a fantastic man. J.J., thank you,” said Trump at the time. Since then, records show that Cafaro has given Trump-related groups over $300,000. What’s more, Cafaro’s wife chaired a lavish International Red Cross Ball at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club.

JUST IN: Trump to Spend Weekend at Camp David After Signing Memorandum of Understanding with Iran

President Trump will travel to the President's Camp David retreat in Northern Maryland today after signing the memorandum of understanding to end the war in Iran on Wednesday.  The memorandum declared a 60-day ceasefire and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz as talks continue for a final deal to end the war. The post JUST IN: Trump to Spend Weekend at Camp David After Signing Memorandum of Understanding with Iran appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

Another Threat Against the President Appeared in Washington DC

Trump privately confirms GOP's greatest midterms fear: report

President Donald Trump has reportedly told associates and at least one foreign leader that he isn't worried about the political cost of his decisions ahead of November's midterms.The 80-year-old president's comments confirm what many Republicans have feared for months — that Trump is willing to let the party absorb the fallout from his choices, regardless of the consequences, reported the Wall Street Journal."Seventeen months into his second term, Trump is increasingly relying on his own gut instincts, dismissing the counsel of aides, conservative lawmakers and longtime associates," the newspaper reported. "The result has been a series of decisions that have confounded and frustrated Republicans — heightening fears that voters will punish the GOP in the November elections and testing Trump’s iron grip on the party."According to people familiar with the conversations, Trump privately told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he didn't care about the midterms, a remark meant to signal his commitment to the Iran campaign no matter the political cost.He's made similar comments publicly. Asked last month how much Americans' financial strain factored into his push to end the war, Trump said, "Not even a little bit," adding, "I don't think about anybody. I think about one thing — we cannot let Iran have a nuclear weapon."The comments have rattled Republicans already anxious about holding Congress in November. Trump has also downplayed the political damage from inflation, saying at one point, "I love the inflation," and has increasingly brushed off allies offering strategic advice with a blunt response: "I'm the president and you're not."That posture has frustrated lawmakers who say Trump's recent decisions — including a preliminary Iran deal that drew sharp criticism from Sens. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and Roger Wicker (R-MS), and a standoff over FISA reauthorization tied to an unrelated voter-ID bill — are complicating the GOP's path to keeping its majority. Cassidy called the Iran agreement "the worst foreign policy blunder in decades."Former GOP leadership spokesman Ron Bonjean said Trump's dismissiveness toward midterm concerns has already strained his relationship with congressional Republicans: "The total control that Trump once had over Congress just isn't there anymore."White House spokeswoman Olivia Wales defended the president's record, saying "no President has worked harder or delivered more than President Trump," and pointed to his work on immigration, the economy and national security as evidence.