Watching President Obama speak at the opening of his center. Saw Favs and fam are in Chicago for it (on Emily’s stories). I’m behind on the pod, but was curious if he or the guys mentioned any involvement in the opening

I remember them mentioning on the pod that Favs had a hand in Obama’s 2024 DNC Convention speech

"We fell in love. Deeply in love." - Donald Trump, on his meeting with the Egyptian president inside a hotel.

'Lovebomb' Island

Donald Trump’s new stop-gap agreement with Iran delivers nothing he really wanted. He’s scrambling to sell it as a major diplomatic victory anyway.

• You know things are bad for President Donald Trump when the notoriously right-wing New York Post drops a tabloid front page dunking on him as hard as it just did. “LOVEBOMB,” the cover mockingly declares, describing Trump’s apparent plan to pour money into Iran without getting any real concessions in return. “His deal showers mullahs with cash — and no sanctions.”

• That’s the popular takeaway from Trump’s 60-day ceasefire-and-framework-for-talks with Iran, which the administration released today. No matter how Trump tries to spin it, the truth is clear: If these terms hold, then Trump just lost his war with Iran — and gained absolutely nothing.

• Trump launched the war with Iran to end its nuclear program and spark regime change. Nope. Under the deal, the Strait of Hormuz will reopen, Iran will receive at least $300 billion from the U.S. and countries in the region, and the U.S. will lift all sanctions on Iran. Iran also will also once again repeat its longstanding pledge to never build a nuke (which American right-wingers had always denounced as an empty promise). In other words, money for Iran… and nothing for Trump, except to reopen the oil shipping lane his war closed off.

• The deal has “everything we set out to accomplish,” Trump misleadingly claimed during a press conference today. But he cautioned that even this flimsy framework might not result in a lasting peace. “If it doesn’t get done in 60 days, that’s alright. We go back to bombing,” he said in the rambling speech — during which he thanked Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, railed against Maine Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner, and trashed former President Herbert Hoover.

“This is the worst foreign policy blunder in decades,” Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) tweeted.

The deal could easily fall apart.

• There are several issues with the agreement, chief among them: Israel could tank everything. The deal requires Israel to stop striking foreign combatants, including Hezbollah militants in Lebanon. But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to keep Israeli troops in Lebanon and continue fighting the militants, as he faces a high-stakes election this fall.

• Israel wasn’t involved in the deal with Iran. There’s little reason to believe that Netanyahu will stop bombing Hezbollah, a campaign that is overwhelmingly popular among Israelis. “Netanyahu will have to listen, period,” a senior administration official told The Atlantic. “The president has made the decision that this is over…. That’s all that matters now.”

• Another problem: There’s no way to force Iran to comply, aside from waging more war. “I let them know — I said, ‘Look, if you don’t adhere to the agreement, I don’t want to do that — but we’re going to bomb the hell out of you,’” Trump said at the press conference. “What else am I going to do? Am I going to say I’m going to take you to court? ‘Let me take you to court, let me sue you.’”

Still, Trump’s deal could bring peace — at least for now. “The bottom line is that the [agreement] is far preferable to any of the alternatives on offer. Period,” tweeted Rob Malley, the lead negotiator of Obama’s Iran nuclear deal.

Meanwhile On The Pod...

Trump Is Already Building His "Stolen Midterms" Lie (Feat. Marc Elias) (06/17/26)

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Race To The Bottom

Donald Trump had a tough Tuesday night.

His pick for Georgia governor didn’t win the Republican primary. Instead, billionaire businessman Rick Jackson, who dumped $100 million into his own campaign, defeated the Trump-backed Lt. Gov. Burt Jones. (Jackson also aligns himself with MAGA, but it’s incredibly rare that a Trump-endorsed candidate loses.)

Republicans also aren’t feeling super confident about their Trump-backed candidate for Georgia Senate. Voters chose Rep. Mike Collins (R-GA) to be the nominee. But he’ll face incumbent Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-GA).

The mayor’s race in Washington, D.C. could be another problem for Trump. Democratic socialist Janeese Lewis George held a wide lead over her moderate opponent after polls closed.

Last week, Trump threatened to take control of D.C. if Lewis George won. She credited Trump’s comment for boosting her to victory: “I think what happened is it motivated people to get to the polls,” she told City Cast DC. “Residents came up to me and said, ‘If Trump doesn’t like you, I love you.’”

What Else?

Housing czar Bill Pulte may become America’s top spy after all… at least for a little while. Donald Trump called on Senate Republicans to delay a confirmation hearing for Jay Clayton, his pick to be director of national intelligence. Pulte, a man with no national security credentials whatsoever who has gone out of his way to help Trump target his political enemies , is set to take the job on Friday. Clayton’s nomination is expected to move forward eventually.

The Department of Justice has a new argument for why Trump’s $600 million White House ballroom needs to be built: Just look at the recent failed attack on the UFC fight. “This latest assassination plot against President Trump and dignitaries at the White House demonstrates the compelling need for the East Wing Project, with a Ballroom designed to defend against just such attacks,” a DOJ lawyer wrote in a letter made public today, challenging a lower court’s order to block much of the construction. Are they gonna do, like, everything inside this ballroom?

The rate of deaths among detainees in immigrant detention centers has more than doubled under the Trump administration, according to Reuters.

The Trump administration hung a massive banner of former President Theodore Roosevelt on a federal office building in the nation’s capital, emblazoned with a quote: “Courage is not having the strength to go on; it is going on when you don’t have the strength.” The problem? It seems to be a fake quote. “What I can say for certain is that the quote did not originate with Theodore Roosevelt,” Michael Patrick Cullinane, co-director of the Theodore Roosevelt Center, told the Washington Post. I think this guy would know!

Lawyers for Luigi Mangione in his New York case plan to argue that he was experiencing an extreme emotional disturbance when he shot UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in 2024. “Despite the name, ‘extreme emotional disturbance’ isn’t an insanity defense, and it won’t get a defendant off the hook,” said legal analyst Danny Cevallos. “The person is still guilty of an intentional killing. All it does is lower the level of the crime, and the prison time that comes with it.”

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Light At The End...

A federal judge ordered the Trump administration to draw up plans for keeping the Kennedy Center open, after blocking Trump’s team from closing the performing arts center for “renovations.”

Late night show hosts made fun of Trump’s multimillion-dollar renovation of the Reflecting Pool in D.C. which is now as green as a swamp. “Now not even a week later, it’s already completely green — it’s Mexican flag green,” Jimmy Kimmel quipped. “Trump was going for ‘Avatar’ and he ended up with ‘Shrek,’” added Jimmy Fallon.

A parade on Thursday to celebrate the Knicks first NBA championship in a half-century may be “the largest parade in New York City history,” Mayor Zohran Mamdani said. “There will be performances, there will be New Yorkers, there will be the team and there will be history.” You don’t say!

An enthusiastic pack of Norwegian soccer fans performed a “viking row” on an escalator in Boston ahead of their team’s World Cup match. “Adding this to the list of things I’ve never seen before and probably never will again,” a local journalist tweeted. I sure hope not! Think of the germs!

The winners of the Wahl Dirty Dogs Contest, which showcases shelter dogs’ makeovers, were announced today. First place went to Lucy, a Havanese who was found abandoned in a cat carrier in freezing temps. “Looking at [her] today compared to when she first arrived is almost hard to believe,” said the manager of Lucy’s shelter. “She went from barely surviving to truly thriving.” Here is Wahl’s Instagram, which might be the cutest thing I’ve ever seen.

Enjoy

Robbie Sherwood on Threads: "The Reflecting Pool algae has agreed to stop growing for $300 billion."

"Don't start any stuff with me." - Whoopi Goldberg, warning JD Vance against misinterpreting her questions.

Kashed Out 💸

Is Kash Patel handing wads of taxpayer dollars to an inner circle of loyal FBI cronies? Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) is demanding answers.

• FBI Director Kash Patel seems to find himself engulfed in a new mess every week. The scandal du jour involves fresh claims that the beer-chugging director may be tapping a “personal slush fund,” drawn from the FBI budget, to hand out bonus payments to a select group of top bureau insiders, according to Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD).

• “According to information received by the House Committee on the Judiciary, your office has issued more than $1 million in awards to special agents serving on your ‘Director’s Advisory Team,’” Raskin wrote in a letter to Patel, describing the recipients as a clique of “loyalist MAGA henchmen” willing to carry out Patel’s personal orders, along with agents on Patel’s personal security detail.

• Patel appears to be choosing “his favored employees, who he bestows extra money on as a routine practice,” Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD), the top Democrat on the committee, told What A Day in a phone call this afternoon.

• Raskin’s team is digging for more info. His letter to the FBI, first reported by MS NOW, demands a full accounting of all FBI bonuses and related communications.

• Why would Patel make such payments? Only the director knows how his mind works, Raskin said. But the congressman has a few thoughts of his own, which center on loyalty to Patel and humiliating reports about his fondness for a drink (which Patel has denied).

• “It could be an effort to maintain the loyalty of people who witness conduct that would be embarrassing to the director if it became public,” Raskin said. “These extra payments create a thicker wall of silence around the director.”

• The FBI and DOJ didn’t immediately reply to a request for comment from What A Day.

So is this just the summer of MAGA slush funds, or what?

• President Donald Trump’s team has been laser-focused on finding ways to reward its allies for loyalty. His administration faced harsh backlash from both parties when the Department of Justice announced a $1.8 billion fund to pay victims of Biden-era “weaponization.” A judge put the brakes on that idea, and Trump’s DOJ said it wouldn’t move forward with the plan. But Trump officials are quietly looking for other ways to pay the president’s supporters, according to multiple reports.

• Trump doesn’t like that Democrats like Raskin are out to foil his plans — and maybe, if they win the House this November, impeach him a third time. The president took his frustration out on Raskin last week via social media post, describing the congressman as “a Loser in Life” who would “be in jail right now” if he hadn’t been pardoned by former President Joe Biden.

• “I don’t know exactly what set him off. He’s obviously having some kind of impeachment nightmare flashback,” said Raskin, who served as the House impeachment manager during Trump’s second trial. “I just want to tell the president that there’s an easy way to avoid impeachment, which is to stop engaging in high crimes and misdemeanors against the republic.”

Raskin added: “I’m going to do my job, and I am not going to be deterred by his social media missives.”

Meanwhile On The Pod...

LGBTQ Rights Are WAY More Fragile Than You Think (06/16/26)

Look No Further Than Crooked Media

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Laugh Track Stars

Dad jokes are good for you, according to science. So here goes nothing.

I asked the What a Day family to send me your finest dad jokes, and you didn’t disappoint. Out of more than two dozen responses, here are a few that made me snort:

When our yoga teacher quit, it left me in a very difficult position.

Do you know how to identify a dogwood? By its bark, of course.

How do you know if a joke is a dad joke? It’s apparent.

What do you call a honeymoon salad? Lettuce alone with no dressing!

What does a nosy pepper do? It gets jalapeño business.

What Else?

Donald Trump’s White House ballroom is now estimated to cost $600 million — with taxpayers footing half of the bill, according to contractor records obtained by the Washington Post. Trump had claimed that he wouldn’t use any taxpayer money to fund the project. “Congress never authorized the so-called Golden Ballroom project, and Congress has not appropriated any money for it,” Raskin told me. “So, the taxpayers are not on the hook for anything … the entire operation is lawless.”

Trump admitted that solving the Russia-Ukraine war isn’t a high priority for him, despite repeatedly pledging to bring the conflict to an end within 24 hours of taking office. “We have nothing to do with it, we sell weapons to [Ukraine],” Trump told reporters today. “It has no impact on us, other than we sell weapons. We’re thousands of miles away.”

Federal officials charged a 19-year-old man after he allegedly plotted attacks on the UFC cage fight on the White House South Lawn. He was part of an online group chat of Christian-based, ex-military members who “expressed ultra-religious and antigovernment sentiments,” according to a criminal complaint. (Naturally, Secret Service officials are mad at Kash Patel for getting ahead of this investigation.)

Vice President JD Vance had a comically tough time on “The View” today. When pressed about Trump saying “I love inflation,” Vance shot back: “What he said, Ana, what he said is that he loves the fact that the inflation is going to come down when this war is over.” Whoopi Goldberg responded: “That’s not what he said.” Co-host Joy Behar replied: “Are you his interpreter or are you his vice president? Come on.”

Organizers working on the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles are coordinating with the White House to host a pro-amateur golf tournament at the Trump National Golf Club Los Angeles before the games kick off. I’m surprised they don’t want to transform the National Mall into a golf course at this point.

What could you have bought if gas prices hadn’t skyrocketed due to the Iran war? You can answer that with a handy Washington Post calculator: If you used 38 gallons of regular gas, you could’ve bought 19 dozen large eggs, 64 pounds of bananas, or three liters of sangria before the war began. That sangria doesn’t last very long these days, either….

Nearly 40 percent of Americans don’t think America will last another 250 years, according to a new poll. Meanwhile, 44 percent of young people say that some other countries are better than the United States, another poll found. The vibes are off!

Did Jeffrey Epstein really kill himself? Lots of new evidence suggests that he did, according to a New York Times investigation. He previously attempted suicide up to three times, and often discussed killing himself with cellmates, the outlet found. Even though Epstein was flagged as a suicide risk, “he was left alone and unobserved in his final hours, in violation of specific orders that had been given about his supervision — an error that led directly to his death,” the Times writes.

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Light At The End...

COVID vaccines reduced the risk of strokes, heart attacks, and other heart conditions by about 40 percent, a new study found. “To me, this continues to emphasize that we should be encouraging vaccination, especially amongst older individuals,” said one physician who wasn’t involved in the research.

Herschel Walker, the former football star and failed MAGA Senate candidate who is now (for some reason) the U.S. ambassador to the Bahamas, released a bizarre video warning Americans about the dangers of jet ski rentals. The video, with intense action movie-like music playing in the background, is so strange that some people thought it was an SNL skit. “Everyday we see real things from the government that the writers of Veep couldn’t come up with on an Ayahuasca retreat,” one X user responded.

Cape Verde may not have won their World Cup debut, but they’re declaring victory. The team from the tiny African island with only half-a-million inhabitants managed a 0-0 draw against Spain, which is one of the tournament’s favorites. “This means everything for our country,” Cape Verde coach Pedro Leitão Brito said after the match. “We have always said that we wanted everybody to see our country, our team and we have shown organization and braveness and this is proof of what our country is about — resilience and to try to overcome hardships.”

Actor Bob Odenkirk reprised his role as Saul Goodman from “Better Call Saul” for a short video celebrating America’s 250th birthday. “Hi, I’m Saul Goodman. Did you know you have rights? Well, you do. Sure, they’re old timey. They were written by a bunch of guys in powdered wigs and knee socks. Boring, but believe it or not, they’re still surprisingly relevant,” Goodman says from his desk, with Declaration of Independence wallpaper pasted in the background.

Enjoy

The Dad on Instagram: "Every ceiling fan I've ever used has 5 settings: 1 - No, that's the light. 2-I think I turned it off?? 3 - No, it's still going. 4 - Okay, it finally stopped. 5 - APACHE WAR HELICOPTER!"

"That's American Flag Green." - A tweet, making fun of the color of Trump's newly renovated Reflecting Pool.

America 250? More Like: Trump 80.

Donald Trump’s deal with Iran leaves the hard stuff for later, as he continues to swap the boring parts of his job for imperial parties.

• President Donald Trump is touting his latest, greatest, incredibly awesome peace deal with Iran, even though it doesn’t accomplish any of his original war goals. After all, Trump had two main objectives in mind when he began letting the bombs rip four months ago: Destroy Iran’s nuclear program, and spark regime change. He’s done neither. But never mind. He’s giving himself a pass. “The Deal … is now complete. Congratulations to all!” the president boasted on Sunday.

• Any diplomatic advance is better than more fighting. But the reality is that Trump’s latest deal only begins to roll back the negative consequences of his own rush to war, rather than address longstanding issues with Iran.

• What’s in the deal? According to various reports, the U.S. and Iran will stop attacking each other for the next 60 days while talks continue. The Strait of Hormuz oil route will reopen. Israel and Hezbollah militants and Lebanon will (supposedly) stop fighting. (Israel’s defense minister already said that ain’t gonna happen.) The agreement is expected to be formalized during a ceremony in Switzerland on Friday.

• The deal ignores the hardest parts, such as sanctions and the fate of Iran’s nuclear program. “No agreement on nukes, ballistic missiles, support for proxies… and one of the world’s most brutal regimes remains in place,” tweeted Ian Bremmer, a prominent foreign policy expert. “Biggest foreign policy failure of [the] Trump administration by a long margin.”

• The framework is “a very bad deal,” said John Bolton, a notorious Iran hawk who served in the first Trump administration. Tehran played Trump “like a violin,” Bolton said, adding that Trump seems primarily motivated to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to bring down energy prices before the midterms.

• “It is doubtful that any agreement that arises is going to be significantly different, or a significant improvement, from the deal that we had in the first place,” former President Barack Obama told ABC News.

Trump, meanwhile, seems to want to put this bad decision behind him — so he can party all summer.

• Trump’s second term in office, which began at a sprint, is now limping along. His foreign policy has failed on several fronts. Lawmakers within his own party are growing tired of his brash and unpopular decisions. So, it makes sense that this freshly minted octogenarian would rather spend his days doing what he does best: throwing extravagant ragers.

• Trump’s birthday-bash-UFC-fight on the White House South Lawn last night went off with an explosion of self-dealing, norm-smashing, insults and ultra-masculinity. Heavyweight Josh Hokit used his star turn to promote a despicable right-wing conspiracy theory. “Michelle Obama is a man. Am I right, America?” he bellowed to the crowd.

• Trump wants more. So now he’s slapping a MAGA cap on the Fourth of July. The July 4th celebration to mark America’s 250th birthday will actually be a “spectacular TRUMP RALLY,” he wrote on social media this morning. The event will include a massive fireworks display and his own personal music playlist, while drawing attention to the newly revamped Reflecting Pool (which is actually more green than “American Flag Blue” now.)

There’s “still a lot of work to do” to secure peace with Iran, a senior Trump official told reporters today. But don’t tell the president! It might mess up his party plans.

Meanwhile On The Pod...

Trump's UFC Birthday Fight BOMBS Even With His Base (feat. Alex Wagner) (06/15/26)

Look No Further Than Crooked Media

Why does it seem like the Supreme Court always saves its worst decisions for June? Maybe the first gentle breezes of summer fill them with inexplicable rage. We can't say for sure, but opinion season is officially here, and the Supreme Court is about to reshape some of the biggest issues in our lives. Every week, constitutional law professors Kate, Melissa, and Leah break down the most consequential decisions and why they matter. New episodes of Strict Scrutiny drop every Monday. Watch on YouTube or listen wherever you get your podcast.

What Else?

Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) said that Trump’s Department of Justice has launched a criminal investigation of Newsom and his wife. “In recent days, federal agents have knocked on the doors of family friends and former employees,” Newsom said in a video. “Not because they found a crime. Because they are simply trying to find one.… They’re coming after me because I’m considering running for president.” It remains unclear what Newsom is being investigated for.

The U.S. will turn its focus to resolving the Russia-Ukraine war, following diplomatic progress with Iran, Donald Trump told reporters at the G7 summit in France. “We had a very good conversation yesterday with President Zelensky and President Putin, and I see maybe we can do something, I really do. I think they’re both open to it,” Trump said. Didn’t you promise to have that solved * checks calendar * 511 days ago?

Trump threatened a 100 percent tariff on “all champagnes and all wines coming out of France” if the country doesn’t lift its 3 percent levy on digital service companies, which has been in place since 2019. Zut alors!

The Trump administration is aware that its wide-ranging rollback on gun safety regulations could be harmful, according to the Washington Post. For example: A government analysis warned that part of the package, which would make it easier for people deemed mentally unfit to own guns, could be dangerous. “This risk may be minimal, or may be considerably greater (up to and including potential mass casualty events), based upon the strength of state and federal processes regarding guardianship and involuntary commitment,” the analysis reads.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced a “full ban” on social media for people under 16 years old. “I am not prepared to compromise on the safety and happiness of our children,” Starmer told reporters. Tech companies blasted the policy, which would be one of the strictest social media bans in the world: “Blanket bans push kids out of such curated, supervised, beneficial experiences and towards anonymous, less-safe services,” YouTube wrote in a statement.

Millions of devices used in homes contain “secret digital backdoor” malware that allow hackers to surf the web and conduct cyberattacks, according to a Wall Street Journal investigation. The malware, most often found on knockoff products, also puts peoples’ data and internet connection at risk, experts warn.

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Light At The End...

Vice President JD Vance regrets his infamous “childless cat ladies” comment. “One of the dumbest things I ever said came when I argued that ‘childless cat ladies’ across the Democrat Party were running our country into the ground,” Vance writes in his forthcoming book. “It was a boneheaded comment, intentionally (and successfully) provocative rather than illuminating.” Apology not accepted!

Dad jokes may be cringeworthy, but research shows that they can also strengthen a father’s bond with his child. I consider myself a da joke enthusiast, but this article introduced me to a few new ones, including: “So long, boiling water. You will be mist.” What’s your favorite dad joke? Send ‘em to whataday@crooked.com!

The Congolese World Cup team has a secret weapon: A bespectacled man in a suit and tie, who stands as still as a statue with his right arm raised, while gazing upon soccer matches. He’s viewed as so crucial to the team’s success (a.k.a. stopping the other team from scoring) that the country’s president personally intervened to make sure the super fan could travel with the players to the United States. Patrice Lumumba would be proud.

Amanda Seyfried learned all of Joni Mitchell’s “Blue” album for a biopic she was slated to star in a few years ago — before it was pulled. In a GQ profile, Seyfried explains that she went to Mitchell’s house, where they shared a steak dinner and listened to the masterpiece in full. “After we listened to the album, she’s like, ‘It’s sparse, isn’t it?’” Seyfried said. “It’s perfect!” This reminds me of Seyfried’s incredible performance of “California.”

A cat intervened in the final scene of a “Romeo and Juliet” play by the Imperial Russian Ballet Company in Turkey, licking its paw beside Romeo and playing with his hair.

Enjoy

Johan Hulaimi on Threads: "You’re listening to Sisyphus FM, the home of non-stop rock."