The
Earth’s climate system is now “out of balance,” according to a new
global report — with scientists warning that a key measure of warming
has reached its highest level on record.
The
latest “State of the Global Climate” report from the World
Meteorological Organization finds that the planet is retaining more heat
than it releases back into space, a growing gap known as Earth’s energy
imbalance. And that imbalance is now accelerating.
In
2025, it reached its highest level since modern measurements began in
1960, the report found, signaling that heat is building up across the
planet faster than before. At its core, the concept is simple: the Earth
absorbs energy from the sun and reflects some of it back into space.
But rising greenhouse gas emissions are disrupting that balance.
As
more heat gets trapped, it doesn’t just stay in one place; it spreads
across the climate system. About 91% of that excess heat is absorbed by
the oceans, while the rest warms the land and atmosphere or melts ice.
Scientists say that buildup acts like a system under pressure.
“The
total amount of heat stored on Earth is not just increasing but
accelerating,” the report notes, pointing to long-term measurements
showing a sharp rise in heat accumulation in recent decades.
Yes,
we are stressing climate change again. It's important enough to cover
two days in a row. We all live on this planet, we need to stop trashing
it. Thomas Westerholm (NEWSWEEK) notes:
The
Earth’s climate is historically out of balance according to a new
international report, and the resulting storms will be deadly and
devastating.
The World Meteorological
Organization (WMO) said in a report that Earth‘s energy—defined as the
energy that enters Earth’s system from the sun and then exits—has never
been more out of balance than it is presently.
Under a stable climate, the Earth’s energy entering would be roughly equal to the energy that exits.
Instead,
energy is trapped by greenhouse gases, which raises the temperature
around the world, intensifying storms and even changing the temperature
and pH of the oceans.
“Human activities are
increasingly disrupting the natural equilibrium,” WMO Secretary-General
Celeste Saulo said in a press release.
“We will live with these consequences for hundreds and thousands of years.”
According
to the organization, changes in ocean warming and deep ocean pH are,
“irreversible on centennial to millennial time scales.”
Let's
be real - Phoenix already feels like living inside an air fryer for
half the year. But the projections for 2050 make today's summers look
almost mild. Around 1990, people in Phoenix experienced about 7 days
above 110°F in a typical year.
By 2050, Phoenix residents are projected to experience an average of about 47 days per year above that same threshold.
That
is not a rounding error. That is a near sevenfold increase in the most
dangerous category of heat. New data shows that if we don't take more
action to limit global warming, by 2100 temperatures in Phoenix will get
so high that over 1,297 hours every year will be considered unsafe for
outdoor work - that's 162 eight-hour work days.
This would mean nearly half of the working year could be lost to heat for outdoor workers if global warming reaches 3°C.
Extreme
heat already impacts people and businesses in the Phoenix metro area
significantly, and with a changing climate and a growing, aging
population, the magnitude of these impacts is anticipated to only
increase in the future. Think of it this way: Phoenix in 2050 may look
less like a Sun Belt city and more like a preview of what other American
metros will face a generation later.
Miami is next. One city that surprised me was Dallas, Texas:
Dallas
doesn't always make the first wave of headlines when people talk about
extreme heat. Phoenix and Miami tend to grab the spotlight. That's a
mistake.
Heat risk in Dallas, Texas is rated as
extreme, and the data behind that rating is striking. In a typical year
around 1990, people in Dallas experienced about 7 days above 101.8°F
per year. By 2050, people in Dallas are projected to experience an
average of about 39 days per year over that same threshold.
Dallas
also faces a compounding problem: drought. Average water stress in
Dallas is projected to be higher around 2050 than around 2015. The Upper
Trinity watershed, which contains Dallas, has experienced drought
conditions during about 61 percent of weeks since 2000.
A
city with rapidly growing population and infrastructure needs, facing
both heat and water stress simultaneously, is a pressure cooker scenario
in every sense of the phrase.
Sea
level rise projections consistently rank Thailand's capital as the
world's most vulnerable city. 5 metres above sea level - which, if you
think about it, is roughly the height of a kitchen countertop between an
entire city and the ocean.
That is an almost incomprehensible margin. 7 million people living in Bangkok could be exposed to flood risk by 2070.
Torrential
rains fill up the lower areas of the city and poor drainage systems do
little to mitigate severe flooding events, which can sometimes persist
for up to two months. Bangkok is among the so-called sinking cities,
where land subsidence caused by unsustainable groundwater extraction
compounds sea level rise, alongside Guangzhou, Ho Chi Minh City,
Jakarta, Kolkata, Nagoya, Tianjin, Xiamen and Zhanjiang.
Climate
scientists have criticized the Thai government for failing to implement
meaningful action, and some predictions put Bangkok underwater as early
as 2050.
Bangkok was number one, Jakarta is number two. For number three, we hit the US: Miami and then number four is New Orleans.
One
more time: We have only one planet. We need to take care of it. We
need political leaders that understand climate change and that see it as
real. We cannot afford Project 2025ers or other idiots. Chump has
thrown away so much progress that we could have made. We can't keep
doing this. We have to get serious and focused on saving our planet.
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.
The world is in a state of climate emergency, the head of the United
Nations declared Sunday, following the release of the latest State of the Global Climate report from the World Meteorological Organization.
“Earth is being pushed beyond its limits while every key climate indicator is flashing red,” said U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres.
“Earth’s energy imbalance, the gap between heat absorbed and heat
released, is the highest on record. Our planet is trapping heat faster
than it can shed it.”
The consequences, he added, “are written into the daily lives of
families struggling as droughts and storms drive up food prices, in
workers pushed to the brink by extreme heat, in farmers watching crops
wither, and in communities and homes swept away by floods.”
The report highlights the significance of record-high concentrations
of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere and notes that the effects are
visible everywhere, from the 11-year series of hottest-ever years to the
way heat is accumulating deep in the oceans. For the first time, it
includes a metric called Earth’s energy imbalance as a key climate indicator, measuring the rate at which energy from the sun enters and leaves the planet.
Loveland banned golf carts and ordered duffers to walk because the
dried-out turf couldn’t handle any more damage from tires. Satellite
sensors show the portion of Western lands covered by snow at record
lows. Thornton has already imposed strict watering limits for the
summer. Ski resort workers had their hours cut. Colorado’s signature
ponderosas are on hospice. The governor just activated the drought task
force, again, warning that Colorado is in the middle of its warmest year
in 131 years of recordkeeping.
Colorado is warmer and drier than 50 years ago. That is not in dispute. Climate change is present-tense.
We set out to catalog what that means on the ground and in the air
across Colorado. Not as a diagnosis for depressives, but as a motivation
for visionaries. Only by realizing what has already changed can
Coloradans figure out where to start the rescue, according to many of
the voices we consulted.
“We have, unfortunately, a lot of confidence that we should expect
continued warming for the next several decades,” said Adrienne Marshall,
a climate change professor and researcher at Colorado School of Mines.
“The choices we make as a society about our carbon emissions can still
have a large effect on how much warming we experience, and by extension,
what the impact is on snow and water in the West. We need to prepare
for continued warming, but the amount of warming that happens is to a
very large degree still up to us.”
State Forester Matt McCombs calls it “an end of innocence,” as he
travels the state warning people of the unstoppable demise of beloved
forest tracts. At the same time, McCombs added, “you’ve got to hold
harmless the past. We’ve got to stop judging each other so harshly.”
The dangerous heat wave
shattering March records all over the U.S. Southwest is more than just
another extreme weather blip. It’s the latest next-level weather
wildness that is occurring ever more frequently as Earth’s warming
builds.
Experts said unprecedented and deadly weather extremes
that sometimes strike at abnormal times and in unusual places are
putting more people in danger. For example, the Southwest is used to
coping with deadly heat, but not months ahead of schedule, including a
112 degrees Fahrenheit (44.4 degrees Celsius) reading in two Arizona
communities on Friday that smashed the highest March temperature
recorded in the U.S. Two places in Southern California also hit that
same temperature. All four spots are clustered within about 50 miles
(80.5 kilometers) of each other.
“This is what climate change
looks like in real time: extremes pushing beyond the bounds we once
thought possible,” said University of Victoria climate scientist Andrew
Weaver. “What used to be unprecedented events are now recurring features
of a warming world.”
March’s heat would have been virtually impossible without human-caused climate change, according to a report Friday by World Weather Attribution, an international group of scientists who study the causes of extreme weather events.
Climate change is real. Chump and the MAGA fools can deny it, they can chant 'drill baby drill' like it's 2008 and they're Sarah Palin, but the world knows better. And we're destroying our planet.
The "Pacific's enfant terrible" could unleash its fury this year. The El
Niño phenomenon, a warming of the equatorial Pacific Ocean, has a high
likelihood of reappearing in the coming months. The probability of its
emergence reaches 62% between June and August and 80% in fall, according
to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in an analysis published on March 12. On Thursday, March 19, the International Research Institute for Climate and Society at Columbia University (New York) even estimated this risk at 80% as early as this summer.
This natural oscillation is being
closely monitored because it acts as an amplifier of climate change: It
pushes up the global average temperature and favors the occurrence of
extreme events in many regions of the world.
El Niño occurs on average every two to seven years and usually lasts between nine months and a year. The previous episode, between 2023 and 2024, turned out to be the fifth strongest on record, although it did not reach an extreme level.
I can't believe how stupid -- willfully stupid -- this administration is and how it is fine with our earth being destroyed and made inhabitable. Catherine Zhu (CBC) notes a CBC interview:
For decades, David Suzuki has been a familiar face and voice in
Canada — known for his rare ability to make complex scientific and
environmental issues understandable.
That gift reached millions through The Nature of Things, the iconic CBC television series he began hosting in 1979.
Over
time, he became known not only as a scientist and broadcaster, but as a
passionate and outspoken environmental advocate — one of the first
major public figures to call for urgent action on global warming.
He
deepened that commitment in 1990 by founding the David Suzuki
Foundation, a non-profit dedicated to developing practical solutions to
some of the planet's most pressing environmental challenges.
In
2005, Suzuki was awarded the Companion of the Order of Canada. He has
also received the UNESCO Kalinga Prize for Science and the United
Nations Environment Program Medal, along with dozens of other honours.
Monday, March 23, 2026. Chump bellows over the weekend at Iran and
makes threats which he then retracts an hour ago this morning, his war
is destroying the US economy, his buddy Epstein might as well be alive
for all the attention his late pedophile buddy continues to garner, and
much more.
In
the video above, Ben (MEIDASTOUCH NEWS) brings us up to date on Chump
and Netanyahu's war on Iran. The war has been a failure, a tragedy and
a crime. Instead of admitting this, Chump attacks the media. It
really has gotten old Daniel Dale (CNN) notes Chump's baseless attacks on US media:
CNN inquired about Trump’s claim
on social media that media outlets worked “in close coordination” with
Iran to spread fake videos showing a US aircraft carrier on fire and
should be charged with “TREASON.” Asked which outlets disseminated these
videos, spokesperson Anna Kelly’s reply began, “President Trump is
right – global news outlets quickly amplified the Iranian regime’s false
claims about the USS Lincoln.” The three examples Kelly provided as
supposed proof, though, were all to foreign news outlets – one
Israeli, one Saudi and one Turkish – that quoted Iran’s baseless claims
to have struck the Lincoln; these outlets couldn’t possibly have
committed “TREASON” against the US, since they don’t owe allegiance to the US, and none of the examples included fake videos.
Declaring
that the president is right about things he is very obviously not right
about would be a highly unusual communications tactic from any other
White House, including Trump’s own first administration.
Each
White House communications team tries to put the best possible spin on
the falsehoods of the president it is serving. Under Biden, though,
aides tended to demand anonymity to address the falsehoods, then claim
Biden had merely misspoken, that the inaccuracy in question was
unimportant, or that there was broader context worth considering. They
wouldn’t make an on-the-record declaration that Biden was correct when
he was transparently incorrect.
Trump’s
communications aides during his first presidency, meanwhile, tended to
simply ignore media inquiries about Trump lies they knew they couldn’t
convincingly defend.
So
why do his second-term aides habitually put their names on “President
Trump is right” quotes when he plainly isn’t right? When we asked the
White House for an explanation in early March, Desai replied, “President
Trump has been right about everything, and CNN struggles to accept
this. Sad!”
Funny. But we have more plausible theories.
Trump’s
second-term administration is staffed with loyalists who are willing to
risk their reputations with the mainstream media to go out on shaky
limbs for him. Trump demands public praise and devotion. The president’s
never-back-down, never-admit-error ethos permeates this White House.
And since the president has himself publicly declared as recently as January
that “Trump is right about everything,” the people around him don’t
exactly feel free to concede he was wrong about even the most obscure of
subjects.
“They
know he expects a robust PR team that does nothing but praise him,”
said Stephanie Grisham, who served as Trump’s White House communications
director and press secretary in 2019 and 2020 before becoming a sharp
critic of him.
President Donald Trump’s chest-thumping ultimatum against Iran is looking like a misfire.
On
Saturday evening, the 79-year-old commander-in-chief threatened to
“obliterate” Iran’s power plants if the country did not end its
chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours.
Tehran’s answer came sooner—but it wasn’t the climbdown Trump had hoped for.
Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf warned
Sunday that Iran would “irreversibly” destroy critical infrastructure
of its neighbors in the Middle East—including energy and oil
facilities—should Trump follow through on his threat to hit the
country’s electricity grid, Reuters reports.
Qalibaf said such an attack would keep the price of oil elevated for the long haul.
President Trump said on social media that the United States and Iran
have held “very good and productive conversations regarding a complete
and total resolution of our hostilities in the Middle East,” and that he
had instructed the Pentagon to postpone any attacks on Iranian power
plants and energy infrastructure for five days. It is unclear who was
handling the diplomacy between the United States and Iran, which have
traded increasingly bellicose threats to escalate the conflict in recent
days.
Oh, look at TACO making his big
statement and then backing down. No, there was no "very good and
productive conversation" regarding the war on Iran. Chump just realized
he'd stepped out too far and was about to lose face on the world stage
so he lies an hour ago that Iran and the US just had "very good and
productive conversations." Oh, Chump, you look like a chump because you
are one.
Three
weeks into Operation Epic Fury, the uncomfortable truth is settling
over Washington like a storm cloud: air power alone cannot win this war.
Despite
destroying over 8,000 targets, sinking most of Iran’s navy, and killing
Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in the opening hours of the February 28
strikes, the Islamic Republic continues to fight back with a ferocity
that has caught the Trump administration off guard. Iran has effectively
shut down the Strait of Hormuz — the chokepoint for one-fifth of the
world’s oil — using missiles, armed drones, and reportedly sea mines.
Now,
according to multiple reports from CBS News, Reuters, and Axios, the
Pentagon has drawn up detailed plans to deploy ground forces into Iran,
including a potential amphibious operation to seize Kharg Island, the
offshore hub that processes 90% of Iran’s crude oil exports.
Three weeks of
disaster with no end in sight, no clear reason given for the war (none
that's stuck), and clues that it's not going well, that's the Iran war
that Chump joined Netanyahu in starting. Matt Spetalnick and Nandita Bose (REUTERS) explained on Saturday:
President Donald Trump ends the third week of the Iran war confronting a
crisis that seems to be slipping out of his hands: Global energy prices
are surging, the United States stands isolated from allies and more
troops are preparing to deploy despite his promise the war would be only
a "short excursion."
A defensive Trump called other NATO countries "cowards" for refusing to
help secure the Strait of Hormuz and insisted the campaign was unfolding
according to plan. But his declaration on Friday that the battle "was
Militarily WON" clashed with the reality of a defiant Iran that is
choking off Gulf oil and gas supplies while launching missile strikes
across the region.
Trump, who took office promising to keep the U.S. out of "stupid"
military interventions, now appears to control neither the outcome nor
the messaging of a conflict he helped to initiate. The lack of a clear
exit strategy carries risks both for his presidential legacy and his
party's political prospects as Republicans scramble to defend narrow
majorities in Congress in the November midterm elections.
And
the American people watch as this war of choice that was started in the
middle of the night and announced by a video Chump posted to his
Truth-Social cesspool continues. Despite Chump declareing it a victory
several times already, the war continues. And he's sending troops in.
He has no clue what he's doing. He has no idea how to end this war. He
only knows how to destroy -- including destroying the US economy. Sam Stevenson (NEWSWEEK) reports:
A new national poll shows President Donald Trump’s approval rating
collapsing among independent voters, marking his weakest showing with
the political middle since returning to office in that particular
series.
[. . .]
Independent voters often decide close elections, and their sharp move away from Trump comes as the 2026 midterms approach.
And a Yahoo News-YouGov poll
conducted over the weekend showed not only did 17% of Republicans
disapprove of Trump’s handling of Iran, but so did 24% of people who say
they voted for him in 2024.
Chump
has destroyed the economy -- again. People are trying not to panic as
they watch the prices of gas and food soar. Chump launched this illegal
war and he is being held accountable for it. Lee Moran (HUFFINGTON POST) notes:
Economist
Henrietta Treyz warned this weekend not to expect prices — which have
already been driven up by President Donald Trump’s Iran war — to fall
anytime soon.
Even
if the Strait of Hormuz, the vital channel off Iran’s coast through
which roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil passes, fully reopened
tomorrow, it would still take around 200 days for prices to return to
normal, she said on MS NOW.
But that scenario of the Strait reopening so soon is unlikely, the Veda Partners co-founder and director of economic policy told anchor Erielle Reshef.
It
means higher prices are here to stay, she said, with soaring crude oil
costs rippling across the economy to drive up prices in multiple
sectors.
“So,
if you’re trying to buy an airline flight, if you’re trying to do
anything, the costs of this war are going to trickle down across the
entire economy and it’s going to cascade for literally years to come,”
she said.
She
later warned consumers should brace for “higher interest rates, higher
gas prices, higher food prices, jet prices, semiconductor prices. I
mean, you name it, it’s across the economy now,” she added.
In
2007, Ex-Trump official Alexander Acosta, then the top federal
prosecutor for the Southern District of Florida, was pressed by his
subordinate to pursue a 60-count indictment she had prepared against
Jeffrey Epstein.
Acosta, according to a new report, dismissed the plan.
That subordinate was then-federal sex-crimes prosecutor Marie Villafaña, who Bloomberg reported
Friday had “begged” Acosta – who would later go on to become President
Donald Trump’s labor secretary during his first term – to “urgently”
arrest Epstein, but to no avail.
“I’m
having trouble understanding – given how long this case has been
pending – what the rush is,” wrote Matthew Menchel, Acosta’s chief
criminal prosecutor, in a 2007 email
to Villafaña that was released recently by the Justice Department.
“This is obviously a very significant case and [Acosta] wants to take
his time making sure he is comfortable before proceeding.”
Acosta
still can't explain why he negotiated the sweetheart deal he did with
Epstein. In his first term as president, Chump worried more about his
Epstein connections and how they might look. That's why, when Epstein
got arrested in 2019 and Secretary of Labor Acosta was suddenly facing
questions, Acosta suddenly resigned as Secretary of Labor. Contrast
that with Chump in his second term and Secretary of Commerce Howard
Lutnik. Last fall, Lutnick went on Miranda Devine's podcast and
announced that Epstein was a neighbor but that he and his wife broke off
all communication with him after visiting his residence and the chills
that they had while they were there.
Lutnick was a visionary or something. To hear him tell the tale.
But there are nursey rhymes with more truth in them than Lutnick's tale. As WIKIPEDIA notes:
In January 2026, newly released Epstein files showed
extensive contact between Lutnick and Epstein over several years. A
longtime Epstein aide reached out to Lutnick in November 2012 to arrange
a meeting while Lutnick was in Saint Thomas;
Lutnick, accompanied by his wife Allison and their four children,
agreed to a lunch on December 23 on Epstein's private island. Emails
showed Lutnick and his wife coordinating logistics, including where to
dock their yacht at Little Saint James. The day after the scheduled meeting, BBC News reported
that Lutnick "received an email from a redacted sender that said
Epstein wanted to pass a message to him, which said: 'Nice seeing
you'—suggesting that at least one visit did happen."[99] The
two also had drinks together on another occasion in 2011 according to
Epstein's schedule. In November 2015, Epstein received an invitation
from Lutnick to a fundraiser at his financial firm for Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign.
In 2017, the two men discussed plans about the construction of a
building across the street from both of their homes. The next year,
Epstein contributed to a philanthropic dinner hosted by Lutnick.[100][101]
When asked about the emails, Lutnick told The New York Times "I
spent zero time with him" and hung up. A Commerce Department spokesman
said Lutnick had "limited interactions" with Epstein "in the presence of
his wife" and has never been accused of wrongdoing.[101] On February 10, 2026, Lutnick testified before the Senate Appropriations Committee on
his relationship with Epstein. Here, Lutnick admitted that in December
2012, four years after Epstein's conviction, Lutnick and his wife and
children visited Little Saint James where they had lunch with Epstein.[102] The hearing led to bipartisan criticism, and calls for Lutnick's resignation.[103]
Of
course, Lutnick's not the only one who lied in 2025 about his
relationship with Epstein. Others would include, obviously, Donald
Chump. In 2025, Chump announced he had kicked Epstein out of Margo
Lard-Ass but that wasn't true as we've now discovered. Sarah K. Burris reports on
the revelation this week that Chump has lied repeatedly about his
relationship with Epstein and how Pam Bondi's Justice Dept tried to
cover that up by redacting a document:
Under
the law passed by Congress, the only redactions the Justice Department
can make are the names of the survivors of Epstein's abuse. But Wilson
has a copy of one document that was redacted by the DOJ and doesn't
mention survivors. It mentions Trump.
Wilson said that he was given the document by Rep. Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.), who obtained the full copy from another source.
"In
it, Trump's attorney at the time, Alan Garten, I believe, is the name,
revealed a few small things," Wilson said. "One of which is that Trump
never threw Epstein out of Mar-a-Lago."
Trump
has said for years that he and Epstein got into a fight over a real
estate matter. Then it was reported that Trump was actually mad that
Epstein was taking girls from his country club to work for him. It isn't
clear which one or if both are true, but Trump maintains that he and
Epstein fell out and he banned the trafficker from Mar-a-Lago.
A more recent report cites Trump telling a local Palm Beach County police officer that
he was grateful Epstein was finally arrested, saying, "everyone has
known he's been doing this." It flagged Trump's continued denials that
he never knew about Epstein's crimes.
Wilson said that Epstein was never a member of Mar-a-Lago and that Trump never threw him out.
"That
even after that, he went to Epstein's home, flew on his plane," Wilson
said. "This is material that the FBI and the Department of Justice have
absolutely no reason to redact, and yet it is still redacted in their
official version, even the one they will provide for members of
Congress."
In
the interview notes, Tr*mp appears to confirm that not only was Epstein
never a member of Mar-a-Lago, he was never expelled or asked to leave,
which runs contrary to Tr*mp’s oft-repeated story about personally
kicking out Epstein after he allegedly tried to recruit women from the
spa into his own trafficking empire. In the same interview, Garten
states that he spoke to the manager of Mar-A-Lago at the time, who
confirms that Epstein was never asked to leave the property.
We
know that Tr*mp and Epstein did fall out sometime in 2004, but the
cause had nothing to do with Epstein’s creepy behavior. That would
become Tr*mp’s story in after Epstein’s trial and conviction, but in
reality, the two sparred over an oceanfront property bidding war that Tr*mp eventually won.
Again,
it’s nothing we don’t know. Tr*mp lies, and he gets away with it
consistently. But there’s another bombshell that could, in combination
with this uncovered lie and what we know about the activity at Zorro Ranch, end up being impossible for congress to ignore.
Democratic
Senator Ron Wyden, a longtime critic of Tr*mp, uncovered something else
in the files that speaks to the DOJ’s massive cover-up. Wyden has been
trying to read files from a past DEA probe into Epstein’s activity, and according to Wyden, Tr*mp apointee Todd Blanche, the current Deputy Attorney General, keeps mysteriously blocking him from access.
“By
withholding this unclassified document from the U.S. Congress, you are
covering up for pedophiles and obstructing my investigation into the
financing of Epstein’s criminal sex trafficking organization,” Wyden
wrote to Blanche in a recent public letter.
As
with most of the unredacted bombshells we’ve seen, the reason certain
files are still being black barred has nothing to do with protecting
Epstein’s victims and everything to do with keeping Tr*mp’s million
mentions out of the press.
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.
Let's wind down with this from Senator Elizabeth Warren's office:
Warren: “Now, more than ever, we need strong, independent military lawyers.”
Warren: “Our enemies might not care about civilian casualties, but the US military always has.”
Washington, D.C. — At a hearing of the Senate Armed
Services Committee, U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) raised her
concerns to the commanders of United States Northern Command (NORTHCOM)
and United States Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) about the Trump
administration’s sidelining of the military’s Judge Advocate General
Corps (JAGs), who are responsible for providing independent legal advice
to commanders. This sidelining risks increasing the chances of civilian
harm as the war against Iran continues.
Under this Trump Administration, JAGs have been systematically sidelined in spite of federal law providing
that no one at the Department of Defense (DoD) may interfere with the
TJAGs’ ability to “give independent legal advice to commanders." In
February 2025, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth fired
The Judge Advocate General of the Army, Navy, and Air Force to avoid
“roadblocks” to the President’s orders. On March 12, Hegseth announced a “ruthless” review of JAGs to overhaul the Department’s legal offices.
“JAGs can't give their best advice if they fear losing their job
just for raising legal concerns with an operation,” said Senator Warren.
Senator Warren questioned General Gregory M. Guillot, NORTHCOM
Commander, on whether he witnessed NORTHCOM sidelining any JAGs. General
Guillot assured Senator Warren that the JAG corps is included in all
battle rhythm meetings at his command. However, Senator Warren pointed
out that across the department the Trump administration has reassigned
hundreds of JAGs to work on the president's immigration agenda, as well
as concerns about the chilling effects of the Secretary’s review.
“For decades, military lawyers have worked side by side with officers
to make sure that strikes are lawful and that they minimize civilian
casualties," said Senator Warren. “That doesn't make us weaker. It saves innocent lives and it prevents fueling terrorism.”
Since the start of the Iran War, Secretary Hegseth has shown a
complete disregard for the laws of war. On March 3, Secretary Hegseth
remarked that Operation Epic Fury would have “no stupid rules of
engagement.” On March 4, while describing U.S. military operations in
Iran, Secretary Hegseth announced, “death and destruction from the sky
all day long.” This rhetoric could endanger civilians, including
American citizens, in the region and around the globe. Already, a
preliminary investigation from the Department of Defense found the U.S.
was likely responsible for the strike on a girls’ elementary school that
reportedly killed at least 175 people – mostly children – in Minab,
Iran.
Senator Warren pressed Lieutenant General Francis L. Donovan,
SOUTHCOM Commander, on whether he would inform the Senate Armed Services
Committee if SOUTHCOM is directed to do something that the Lieutenant
General or his JAGs believed to be illegal. Lieutenant General Donovan
refused to commit to directly informing the Senate Armed Services
Committee, insisting on working through his chain of command.
Senator Warren raised her concern over Lieutenant General Donovan's
response and emphasized the need for nonpartisan military leaders to
commit to following the law.
“We need our nonpartisan military leaders to double down on their
commitment to following the law and speaking up when they are asked to
break it, and Congress needs to be able to step in and rein in this
lawless commander-in-chief and his self-styled Secretary of War,” concluded Senator Warren.
Transcript: Hearings to examine the
posture of United States Northern Command and United States Southern
Command in review of the Defense Authorization Request for Fiscal Year
2027 and the Future Years Defense Program. Senate Armed Services Committee March 19, 2026
Senator Elizabeth Warren: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
President Trump and Secretary Hegseth are repeatedly dragging the US
military across both legal and moral lines. Trump and Hegseth have
plunged us into an illegal war with Iran, where a US airstrike appears
to have killed 150 schoolchildren. And it's not just in Iran. Under
Trump and Hegseth, the military fired on civilians and shipwrecked
survivors in the Caribbean. And now, Secretary Hegseth is threatening to
give "no quarter" to adversaries. This is not who we are. Our enemies
might not care about civilian casualties, but the US military always
has. And that is why Secretary Hegseth’s attacks on the guardrails that
prevent civilian harm and civilian casualties is so dangerous.
So, take the JAGs. Now, more than ever, we need strong, independent
military lawyers, but there are serious concerns that JAGs cannot give
honest legal advice right now.
General Guillot, let me ask you, have you seen any evidence of the
JAG corps being sidelined, whether at NORTHCOM or elsewhere in the
department?
General Gregory M. Guillot: Senator, I have not seen
any evidence of the JAGs being sidelined in our command. I'll point out
that our JAG is included in all of our battle rhythm meetings, and in
fact, our JAG is sitting behind me right now.
Senator Warren: Yeah, and I just want you to know
I'm glad to hear that. Glad to hear it's not happening in your command.
But we know that this is a problem across the department. Secretary
Hegseth fired TJAGs because he thought they were "roadblocks," and he
installed his personal lawyer to retrain military lawyers to water down
constraints. He reassigned hundreds of JAGs to work on Trump's radical
immigration agenda. And last week, the Secretary said he's starting a
quote, "ruthless overhaul of the JAG system."
Look, for decades, military lawyers have worked side by side with
officers to make sure that strikes are lawful and that they minimize
civilian casualties. That doesn't make us weaker. It saves innocent
lives and it prevents fueling terrorism. But Secretary Hegseth has
blamed JAGs for what he calls, quote, "stupid rules of engagement."
General Donovan, let me ask you, if a JAG or a civilian harm advisor
says to distinguish between a military base and an elementary school in
an airstrike. Is that a stupid rule of engagement?
Lieutenant General Francis L. Donovan: No, Senator.
Senator Warren: Look, JAGs can't give their best
advice if they fear losing their job just for raising legal concerns
with an operation. One way we protect the integrity of legal advice in
our military is by creating for-cause removal protections for our JAGs.
Commanders also need to be able to speak up when they're being asked to
break the law.
General Donovan, your predecessor, was reportedly ousted because he
raised concerns about the legality of the Caribbean boat strikes. Will
you commit to informing this committee if SOUTHCOM is directed to do
something that you or your JAG think may be illegal?
Lieutenant General Donovan: Senator, my first
obligation if I face what I believe is an unlawful legal order is to
obviously seek legal counsel, discuss that with my higher headquarters,
and then move forward and not carry out an illegal order.
Senator Warren: Yeah, maybe you didn't hear my
question. My question was, will you commit to informing this committee
if SOUTHCOM is directed to do something that you or your JAG thinks is
illegal?
Lieutenant General Donovan: If I reported that to this committee, Senator, it would be through my chain of command.
Senator Warren: But you would make sure that we got the information?.
Lieutenant General Donovan: I would report to my chain of command.
Senator Warren: And you would not take any
responsibility for making sure we got that information? You do realize
we have oversight responsibilities here.
Lieutenant General Donovan: Senator, I would work that information through my chain of command.
Senator Warren: All right, that's a very concerning
answer here. Look, what's happening right now is very dangerous. We need
our nonpartisan military leaders to double down on their commitment to
following the law and speaking up when they are asked to break it and
Congress needs to be able to step in and rein in this lawless
commander-in-chief and his self-styled Secretary of War. Thank you.
