Former Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg was interviewed on Friday at the Texas Tribune Festival in Austin. When asked by The Atlantic’s Editor-in-Chief Jeffrey Goldberg whether he believed Vice President JD Vance to be a “fascist,” Buttigieg replied with a withering critique. x x YouTube Video Buttigieg: If it's convenient for him to be a fascist, he'll be a fascist. Maybe later on, he'll go back to being a Silicon Valley Democrat. He'll be whatever he needs to be. Right? I mean, this is a guy who went from Donald Trump is Hitler—that’s what he said—to I have seen the error of my ways. He’ll be something new later on, maybe. Related | It sure seems like JD Vance doesn't give a sh-t about his family

President Donald Trump is panicking about an impending House vote on releasing the Epstein files. In a Truth Social post Friday morning, Trump called the Republicans who plan to vote in support of the release «weak,» «soft,» and «foolish.»  And White House aides have suggested that any Republicans who vote to release the files can kiss goodbye to any future endorsements from the president. GOP Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina, for example, was seeking Trump's endorsement in a crowded Republican gubernatorial primary. But given that she seems to support releasing the Epstein files, she likely won’t get it. Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky speaks with fellow Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, both of whom support the release of the Epstein files. “Helping Democrats deflect from Republican success is not a good GOP primary election strategy,” an unnamed White House official told NOTUS. But Trump's threats don’t seem to be working. Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky said that his fellow GOP lawmakers are telling him privately that they plan to vote in favor of the bill, which Massie co-authored with Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna of California. Massie and Khanna had to resort to a discharge petition to get the bill to the floor, as House Speaker Mike Johnson was running cover for Trump and refused to put it up for a vote.  The discharge petition reached a majority of signatures on Wednesday after Johnson finally swore in Democratic Rep. Adelita Grijalva of Arizona.  Massie also told Republicans that this is not the issue to cave to Trump on. “The deal for Republicans on this vote is that Trump will protect you if you vote the wrong way. In other words if you vote to cover up for pedophiles you've got cover in a Republican primary,« he told CNN. »But I would remind my colleagues that this vote is going to be on your record for  longer than Trump is going to be president. And what are you going to do in 2028 and 2030 when you’re in a debate either with a Republican or a Democrat and they say, ‘how can we trust you, you covered up for a pedophile back in 2025?’” It's unclear why Trump is so adamant on keeping the files hidden, especially since he insists that he is not implicated in them. However, a trove of emails released by House Democrats Wednesday show Epstein claiming that Trump knew about the girls he trafficked and even spent time with them at Epstein’s home. A cartoon by Pedro Molina. Indeed, Courier Newsroom released a searchable database Friday, providing access to the 20,000 documents in which Trump is mentioned in more than 1,600 of them. Perhaps that’s why Trump is doing everything in his power to not only stop the vote but to change the subject, like his Thursday announcement of new military action in South America. But that plan is unlikely to work, as Republicans who traditionally back Trump are breaking with him on the Epstein files and are even planning a media blitz with Epstein survivors next week. «Many of the victims of Jeffrey Epstein were abused as teenagers. And this information should have come out a long time ago! The American people deserve full transparency into who was involved in these horrific acts,” GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia wrote on X. “I believe the victims. They along with their attorneys have told me numerous times that President Trump is NOT implicated in this.”  She concluded, “I stand with these women and all victims of sexual abuse. It is a shame our government is working harder to protect pedophiles than they are fighting for the victims! These women deserve our fight!!»

Support my Patreon for early access and exclusives. Follow me on Mastodon, Bluesky, or at my website. Related | Enough Senate Democrats appear ready to cave on the shutdown—for nothing

A daily roundup of the best stories and cartoons by Daily Kos staff and contributors to keep you in the know. Trump suddenly declares military operation as Epstein scandal reignites Talk about a deadly distraction. How screwed is the GOP in 2026? One upcoming election may tell us. Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District could be a bellwether. Trump basically admits his tariffs are raising grocery prices Certain items will get exemptions from Trump's moronic tariffs in an effort to lower costs. Cartoon: On second thought ... Donald Trump is probably wishing the government was still shut down. Federal workers can kiss free speech goodbye in Trump's America Speaking up will get you a pink slip. DOJ gets green light on bogus case against ICE-protesting Democrat The Trump administration’s retaliatory prosecutions continue. Mike Johnson has run out of Epstein excuses The House speaker can’t delay a vote any longer. Click here to see more cartoons.

The latest sham investigation by Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte, based on sham invocations of mortgage fraud, just got referred to the Department of Justice so that Mr. Weaponization Working Group himself, Ed Martin, can likely kick off a sham prosecution. This time, it’s California Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell. Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell of California So weird that these totally neutral and fair investigations just happen to always converge on people Trump perceives as his enemies, right? What are the odds? It’s especially weird given that Pulte really needed to look no farther than his own father and stepmother to locate the kind of mortgage arrangements he insists are fraudulent.  Oh hello, Pulte’s daddy. It looks like you and your wife just happen to be claiming two homestead exemptions, one in Michigan, and one in Florida. Neat trick, really. Dad claimed one exemption, stepmom claimed the other, and that little bit of what Pulte says is prosecutable fraud when anyone else does it likely saved his parents an estimated $158,000 in taxes for 2025 alone.  But now, if Federal Reserve Board of Governor member Lisa Cook did that, it is for sure fraud, right? Federal Reserve Board of Governor member Lisa Cook Hmm. Well, that’s just his parents. They’re not part of the administration, and definitely no one in Trump’s administration would have any sort of untoward mortgage arrangements.  Well, except for Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who has two primary residences, one in Bedford Hills, New York, and one in Provincetown, Massachusetts.  Oh, and except for Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer, who did two primary residence mortgages back to back in a hurry, including one for her second home in Arizona. Oh also, and except for Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who has a primary residence in New Jersey and another one in Washington, D.C. Sorry, wait, one more. Environmental Protection Agency Director Lee Zeldin has one primary residence in Long Island and another in D.C.  When faced with the fact that multiple Cabinet members have the same type of mortgage arrangements that Pulte says was criminal behavior when undertaken by anyone with a (D) after their name, the White House went with one of its blustery, fact-free denials. “This is just another hit piece from a left-wing dark money group that constantly attempts to smear President Trump’s incredible Cabinet members. Unlike [Fed Gov.] Lisa ‘Corrupt’ Cook who blatantly and intentionally committed mortgage fraud, Secretary DeRemer, Secretary Duffy, and Administrator Zeldin own multiple residences, and they have followed the law and they are fully compliant with all ethical obligations,” the White House said in a statement to ProPublica. Show your work. New York Attorney General Letitia James Oh hello again, Pulte’s daddy. Did you rent out one of your primary exemption homestead homes this year? Whoopsie, that’s super illegal, and is what your son determined was completely fraudtastic behavior on the part of New York Attorney General Letitia James.  Now, thanks to Interim U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan, always the number one Florida insurance lawyer in our hearts, the DOJ did score an indictment against James, though it appears to be rapidly falling apart. James’ mortgage contract did not prohibit renting and it also looks like Halligan may have just withheld exculpatory evidence from the grand jury to get that indictment. There are no guardrails left to stop Pulte, however, as once the Fannie Mae watchdogs started looking into whether Pulte improperly obtained mortgage records of Democrats Trump hates, they referred it up to the Office of the Inspector General for FHFA, and then the acting inspector general sent it to the U.S. Attorney’s office in the Eastern District of Virginia and … we’re back to Halligan.  So, the ethics and internal investigation folks at Fannie Mae were fired and then Trump fired FHFA’s acting inspector general, just for good measure. That’s one way to solve it. Nothing is going to stand in the way of Pulte using his position improperly to gin up sham charges that just somehow happen to be things that are totally fine when Republicans—like his daddy—do them. 

I tried to convince myself I could live vicariously through others. But with a second marriage came a second chance

Google has been accused of secretly enabling its AI assistant Gemini to collect data without user knowledge or consent Read Full Article at RT.com

Lukoil has moved to sell its overseas assets to the Swiss-based trader following the latest US sanctions Read Full Article at RT.com

Shipments of US gas to Ukraine and Slovakia via Poland could reportedly reach up to 5 billion cubic meters annually Read Full Article at RT.com

German arms maker Rheinmetall has reported a 20% year-on-year rise in revenue, driven by exports to Ukraine and soaring EU defense spending Read Full Article at RT.com

The Netherlands could reportedly hand back control of Chinese-owned chipmaker Nexperia after Beijing lifted export curbs Read Full Article at RT.com

EU member states could be forced to phase out Chinese telecommunications equipment in their mobile networks under the bloc’s proposed ban Read Full Article at RT.com

The 57.7-foot-long Canadarm2 robotic arm extends from a data grapple fixture on the International Space Station’s Harmony module in this July 23, 2025, image.

This image shows two massive galaxy clusters. The vast number of galaxies and foreground stars in the image were captured by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope in near-infrared light. Glowing, hot X-rays captured by NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory appear in pink. The blue represents the dark matter, which was precisely mapped by researchers with Webb’s detailed imaging.

IBM has released two new complex quantum processors alongside a new framework that would allow us to track the first demonstration of quantum advantage.

Scientists successfully sequence the RNA from woolly mammoths found in Siberia that lived up between 10,000 thousand and 50,000 years ago.

Astrophotographer Andrew McCarthy has snapped a striking shot of a skydiving YouTuber perfectly aligned with the fiery surface of the sun. The unlikely image, dubbed «The Fall of Icarus,» required meticulous planning to pull off.

A man in New Jersey has died from a meat allergy that people can develop after being bitten by certain tick species.

Clements is drawn to glass as «a material defined by its capacity to hold tension.» Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $7 per month. The article Glass Flora and Fauna Flutter in the Delicate Work of Kate Clements appeared first on Colossal.

More than 70 artists across North America respond to a single object: an oversized wooden matchbox. Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $7 per month. The article 70+ Artists Transform Matchboxes for Joy Machine’s ‘General Strike’ appeared first on Colossal.

Arghavan Khosravi makes an inward turn in her new body of work. Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $7 per month. The article Radiant Sculptures by Arghavan Khosravi Meditate on Subconscious Terrain appeared first on Colossal.

Wide, impasto layers of oil paint cloak Li Songsong's canvases, creating a cacophony of color and texture. Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $7 per month. The article Layers Upon Layers Root in History in Li Songsong’s Impasto Paintings appeared first on Colossal.

After six momentous leaps, Gabriel C. Brown and Andrew McCarthy completed their mission. Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $7 per month. The article A Skydiver Appears to Fall from the Sun in a Stunning Image appeared first on Colossal.

«A single face can represent one person, but it can also stand for a community, a generation, or a shared emotional landscape.» Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $7 per month. The article Against the Pyramids of Giza, Vhils’ Etched Portraits Are Monuments of the Everyday appeared first on Colossal.

Formula 1 has confirmed that world-renowned DJ David Guetta will headline the 2026 British Grand Prix. Taking place on the Thursday evening, the performance will form part of the Frenchman's global MONOLITH tour next summer, and will also be his only UK performance.Guetta said: “I’ve played some incredible shows around the world, but performing at Silverstone during the British Grand ...Keep reading

Oscar Piastri has insisted that the relationship with his McLaren team-mate Lando Norris is «probably better than it has been» amid the closely contested championship fight.Both McLaren drivers are fighting for their first drivers' championship. With three rounds of the 2025 season remaining, which will include three grands prix and one sprint race, Norris leads the standings by 24 points over ...Keep reading

NASCAR issued a series of technical changes in a scheduled rule book update on Friday afternoon that included which tracks would formally utilize the 750-horsepower tapered spacer and language that paves the way for an additional manufacturer.This was previously announced but Bristol Motor Speedway, Darlington Raceway, Dover Motor Speedway, Nashville Superspeedway and World Wide Technology ...Keep reading

McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown has confirmed the Woking outfit will not let emotion change its approach in the drivers' championship fight despite the rising pressure. McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, along with Red Bull's Max Verstappen, are all still in contention for the drivers' title with three rounds remaining. Norris currently leads by 24 points over his team-mate, who ...Keep reading

JR Motorsports (JRM), co-owned by NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr. and sister Kelley Earnhardt Miller, is going Cup racing again next year.The highly successful NASCAR Xfinity Series team (soon to be rebranded as the NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series) made its Cup debut in the 67th running of the Daytona 500, earlier this year.Justin Allgaier, who won the 2024 NASCAR Xfinity Series ...Keep reading

Iowa Hawkeyes' Tate Sage cut up the middle for a two-handed slam vs. the Xavier Musketeers.