Walter Appling
@WalterAppling
Retired engineer. Grateful for the American experiment in self-government and rule of law. Long may it last.
The TikTok saga is in many ways a microcosm of our erratic and unprincipled approach to the challenges presented by Chinese technology. As our exposure to invasive and risky Chinese technology expands, our paralysis to do anything about it deepens. nytimes.com/2025/07/25/opi…
Trump, Obama and the Question of Treason Trump’s history of intemperate remarks has earned him a perverse kind of immunity; the more outrageous his statement, the faster it is often dismissed. —Jeffrey Toobin Trump is deranged. nytimes.com/2025/07/25/opi…
Yes, it's very believable that the UN packed up truckloads of food and medicine only to let it sit there while people starve. We should instead take the word of a government where one minister just spoke openly about "wiping out" Gaza and said "we don't need to be concerned with…
The food, medicine and aid are IN Gaza. The @UN won’t distribute it. Hundreds of truckloads are sitting there. The trucks are loaded. Demand they deliver. Yesterday, Hamas again rejected a U.S.-brokered ceasefire deal that Israel accepted. Where’s your unequivocal condemnation?
Footage emerges of Tulsi Gabbard's appearance on Joe Rogan's podcast in September 2018 admitting Russia interfered in the 2016 election. Here are her own words: “When you’re talking about these Russian troll farms that you mentioned, what is missing from all of the news…
The trade deals keep coming (not really), yet the dollar continues to weaken, down over 10% this year after the biggest first-half loss since 1973. The slump could be a sign that countries are now embracing de-dollarization: moving away from dollar-denominated assets. —Axios
As the details about triple-murderer Dahud Hanid Ortíz have come to light, Trump administration has refused to explain why a convicted killer was included in a prisoner swap touted by the WH as fulfillment of Trump’s promise to liberate Americans wrongfully detained abroad WaPo
MAGA Republicans are making plans to consolidate their hold on the American psyche. They know, because Trump has invested a lot of time and energy in this project, that their marching orders are to rewrite history. —Joyce Vance open.substack.com/pub/joycevance…
Trump’s 15 percent tariff on cars from Japan has angered U.S. automakers, which make cars in Canada and Mexico subject to 25 percent tariffs. — NYT Make it make sense? Not possible, it’s Trumpistan
How a Frantic Scouring of the Epstein Files Consumed the Justice Dept. There was a single goal in mind: find something — anything — that could be released to the public to satisfy Trump’s supporters nytimes.com/2025/07/24/us/…
One minute MAGA is calling for the death penalty for convicted sex traffickers and the next minute they’re sitting down and making deals with them.
The USSC concluded that Trump was absolutely immune from criminal prosecution for any conduct related to his authority over prosecutions of the Justice Department, even if they involved “sham” investigations or ones “proposed for an improper purpose.” Guess what he’s doing now?
“The President’s [citizenship] order will bring great benefits to the State and all American citizens. Our support for President Trump is unwavering, and we will continue to fight to defend his lawful actions.” - Steve Marshall, Alabama AG Way beyond mere sleazy pandering
Trump Calls Alleged Sexual Harasser Bill O’Reilly for Advice on Epstein It remains to be seen whether the president will adhere to the ex-Fox host’s advice. —William Vaillancourt thedailybeast.com/trump-phones-a… via @thedailybeast
How the hell did the United States allow a private citizen with massive conflicts this much control over a battlefield?
Musk ordered shutdown of Starlink satellite service as Ukraine retook territory from Russia A previously unreported order by Elon Musk to cut satellite communications over a portion of Ukraine disrupted a counteroffensive by Kyiv in the autumn of 2022. reuters.com/investigations…
FCC to Appoint a Babysitter to Make Sure CBS Isn’t Anti-Trump FCC commissioner Brendan Carr says CBS will have a "bias monitor" who reports directly to the president of Paramount Stalin agrees with Trump for having political commissars. gizmodo.com/fcc-to-appoint… via @
I have not give a single moment's thought to pardoning Ghislaine Maxwell, believe me! I hardly know her, except from sex parties. Although there was also one time when she came to Mar-a-Lago with me and one of Jeffrey Epstein's so-called "victims." Things were different then!
Thanks to sky-high partisanship and other political problems, today’s go-to vehicle for major U.S. economic policy reform is a gimmick-filled omnishamble bill rammed quickly through Congress in the cover of night via budget reconciliation, with all its rules and limitations. —SL
The Three Best—and Worst—Things in Trump’s Big Tax Law A few good policies can’t, alas, extinguish the fiscal dumpster fire. —Scott Lincicome thedispatch.com/newsletter/cap…
“It’s getting to be that time” — Trump gives Israel carte blanche to brutalize Gaza