==WATCH: Jocelyn Benson refuses to agree socialism is ‘evil’

'I think that the only thing that is really evil is when people claim that they work for the people but really don't'==

BY TRAVERS KOORY | AUGUST 6, 2026

Democratic gubernatorial nominee Jocelyn Benson declined Wednesday to discuss criticism from her Republican opponent for pushing a “socialist agenda.”

At a bar in Lansing alongside Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a reporter confronted Benson about comments from Republican nominee John James in the wake of the candidates’ primary victories on Tuesday.

“Your opponent is saying you’re pushing a socialist agenda, and he keeps calling out socialism saying that it’s evil, what do you have to say to him about that?” the reporter questioned.

user avatar

News Channel 3 WWMT-TV

@wwmtnews

In response to criticism from her opponent about pushing a "socialist agenda," Jocelyn Benson said "the only thing that is really evil is when people claim that they work for the people but really don't."….

https://x.com/wwmtnews/status/2085142718242586655

==WATCH: Jocelyn Benson refuses to agree socialism is ‘evil’

'I think that the only thing that is really evil is when people claim that they work for the people but really don't'==

BY TRAVERS KOORY | AUGUST 6, 2026

Democratic gubernatorial nominee Jocelyn Benson declined Wednesday to discuss criticism from her Republican opponent for pushing a “socialist agenda.”

At a bar in Lansing alongside Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a reporter confronted Benson about comments from Republican nominee John James in the wake of the candidates’ primary victories on Tuesday.

“Your opponent is saying you’re pushing a socialist agenda, and he keeps calling out socialism saying that it’s evil, what do you have to say to him about that?” the reporter questioned.

user avatar

News Channel 3 WWMT-TV

@wwmtnews

In response to criticism from her opponent about pushing a "socialist agenda," Jocelyn Benson said "the only thing that is really evil is when people claim that they work for the people but really don't."….

https://x.com/wwmtnews/status/2085142718242586655

Murkowski Will Not Support Blanche Nomination for Attorney General

August 7, 2026 | Sundance |

As a nation we are in an abusive relationship with government.

However, specificallyAlaska is in an abusive relationship with Senator Lisa Murkowskiand their codependent enabling ofher political existence is creating serious harm to the rest of the nation.

Senator Murkowski says she will not support the nomination of Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche to fill the full role of U.S. Attorney General.

Murkowski is not up for reelection until 2028.

https://theconservativetreehouse.com/blog/2026/08/07/murkowsi-will-not-support-blanche-nomination-for-attorney-general/#more-285892

The Outrage Grift – Steve Bannon and John Solomon Sell a False Story Relying on Audience Naivete 1/2

August 6, 2026 | Sundance | 198 Comments

I don’t like doing this, but it needs to be done. People keep sending me this video; it is nonsense. Steve Bannon and John Solomon broadcast a conversation targeting John Thune, Tom Cotton and Todd Blanche for obstructing the release of transcripts held in the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence (SSCI).

What Solomon reports in this interview is disconnected from the process that exists. Solomon wants the transcripts of former CIA Director John Brennan released. Fine, no problem. Except Solomon apparently doesn’t understand the process to gain declassification of an equity that is not within the executive branch. The transcript is in the legislative branch.

There are separation of powers issues, equity issues and stakeholder issues that create a process that needs to be followed. This is the same process that was used to gain the Michael Atkinson transcript from the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI). Solomon and Joe diGenova can follow the process and succeed, just like I did. Or Solomon and diGenova can gnash their teeth, create outrage and fail. WATCH (prompted):

Solomon NAMES REPUBLICANS He Says Are BLOCKING The TRUMP INVESTIGATION2:24

(https://youtu.be/ecGOVHl5tCg

This nonsense is why trusting John Solomon is a fool’s errand, and the reason why I have suspected Solomon of performance theater for several years. His teaming up with Steve Bannon, well, it just tracks.

Tick-Tock… Nothing. I digress.

First, assuming they have security clearances, John Solomon and/or Joe diGenova can ask SSCI Chairman Tom Cotton to let them read the Brennan transcript in the SSCI secured compartmented intelligence facility (scif). There is nothing stopping them, or anyone else with a clearance, from reading the transcript; assuming Cotton would permit it (he would). That’s the first point.

Second, after their review they can ask the SSCI to hold a senate vote to release the legislative branch equity to the executive branch, with a classification review that might need redactions based on stakeholder equity. [Same process as the Atkinson transcript]. The Senate can then vote to release it and start the process.

I am not a defender of John Thune or Tom Cotton; the exact opposite is true. However, you don’t defeat the silo system by attacking it at the point of their greatest strength. You obtain the material by following the process and forcing compliance with due diligence [just like the Atkinson transcript].

There is a separation of powers issue. The transcript belongs to the legislative branch, not the executive branch. The executive needs to request it from the legislative. Then it needs to be reviewed by IC stakeholders (ODNI and CIA) for classification review and/or redactions. Then it is returned to the SSCI who determine how to release it – from their own committee or to the DNI for release.

In current disposition the President cannot declassify something the executive branch doesn’t have.

https://theconservativetreehouse.com/blog/2026/08/06/the-outrage-grift-steve-bannon-and-john-solomon-sell-a-false-story-relying-on-audience-naiveite/#more-285860

>>24911386

2/2

TheLastRefuge© @TheLastRefuge2 • 6h

0.•••.. Sounds like Sperry and Solomon have the same circle of sources. However, unfortunately, just like retrieving the HPSCI transcript of Atkinson things don't operate the way Solomon and Sperry outline them. (Go Figure] The entire SSCI committee needs to vote for a release of SSCI material. If that testimony was during a classified session (it was), then IC silo rules on releasing classified discussion without stakeholder approval gets even more complicated - so, it's not just Thune/Cotton. The IC operating system is designed to stop sunlight, to block public release. Cotton can navigate it, but it takes working with the White House. Has Solomon or diGenova asked Chairman Cotton if they may go to the

Senate SCIF and review the transcript?

That's the first step. If no, then what they are pushing is a narrative - not really trying to get to

the result. As to the Rubio stuff, it makes sense - because Rubio was always on the other team until recently.

Paul Sperry @paulsperry_ - 14h BREAKING: DOJ sources tell me Senate GOP leaders (Thune/Cotton) are refusing to declassify a key John Brennan transcript in order to "protect [then-SSCI Chair (2020-21)] Marco [Rubio] for a presidential run because Marco looks bad kissing [Dem Vice Chair Mark] Warner's ass.

@SenTomCotton

This report is completely false. John Brennan has a lot to answer for on the Russian collusion hoax and l fully support President Trump's push for accountability and to get these documents to a grand jury. The release of Senate materials to a grand jury requires the passage of a Senate resolution, which I was working to secure until the incompetence and negligence of the Department of Justice and the White House

legislative-affairs office interfered and thwarted the president's goals. My committee will continue working with the administration on this matter, just as we have from the beginning. And when Marco Rubio led the committee, he worked hard to expose and stop any misconduct in our intelligence agencies.

Paul Sperry © @paulsperry_ • 14h BREAKING: DOJ sources tell me Senate GOP leaders (Thune/Cotton) are refusing to declassify a key John Brennan transcript in order to "protect [then- SSCI Chair (2020-21)] Marco [Rubio] for a presidential run because Marco looks bad kissing [Dem Vice Chair Mark] Warner's ass"

https://theconservativetreehouse.com/blog/2026/08/06/the-outrage-grift-steve-bannon-and-john-solomon-sell-a-false-story-relying-on-audience-naiveite/#more-285860

How Zelensky misread Donald Trump.1/2KEK

Why the carefully planned White House visit was doomed from the start

Published 7 Aug, 2026 10:44 | Updated 7 Aug, 2026 11:45

By Vitaly Ryumshin, journalist and political analyst

Another season of the ‘win over Donald Trump’ game has begun, and this time it was Vladimir Zelensky’s turn. Last week, the Ukrainian leader made his first visit to the United States this year, a trip widely billed as potentially decisive.

The atmosphere could hardly have been more different from his visits in 2025,when Zelensky travelled to Washington like a man walking toward a firing squad. This time he arrived projecting confidence, buoyed by promises from supporters that adiplomatic breakthrough was within reach.

The build-up reflected those expectations, and a carefully orchestrated public relations campaign accompanied the visit as much of the Western mainstream media greeted Zelensky with glowing coverage. Several MAGA-aligned bloggers, previously hostile to Kiev, unexpectedly adopted a friendlier tone,while Republican senators added pressure by reviving Lindsey Graham’s proposed “hellish sanctions” bill after the lawmaker’s deathand the EU dispatched Finnish President Alexander Stubb as a visible show of support.

=•Zelensky also tried to strengthen his hand by raising tensions with Iran to reinforce the image of a common threat, reportedly bringing what was described as valuable intelligence on America’s adversaries to the White House and, for good measure, even abandoning his usual military-style clothing in favor of something closer to a suit.==

One can only imagine how much political capital and moneyKiev and its allies invested in preparing this visit, but the problem is that the returns appear remarkably modest. The immediate objective may have been achieved, given there was no repeat of the disastrous Oval Office confrontation of February 2025, when Zelensky left Washington after a public clash with US President Donald Trump,but avoiding disaster isn’t the same as achieving success.

The Ukrainian had two principal goals,securing additional American military assistance and persuading Trump to adopt a tougher position towards Russia, but behind those broad aims lay countless practical issues, from Patriot missile production licenses to future weapons deliveries. However,the entire conversation reportedly lasted less than an hour.

That matters, because anyone familiar with Donald Trump understands that formal meeting times can be deceptive, and those who have worked with him have long remarked that discussions often revolve around his own stories and observations, leaving surprisingly little time to address detailed policy questions. Whether or not that characterization is entirely fair, an hour was plainly insufficient to tackle the wide range of issues Zelensky had hoped to resolve, and there was not any meaningful change in Trump’s public position afterwards.

There were no new military aid packages. There was no dramatic escalation of pressure on Moscow and no particularly enthusiastic endorsement of Zelensky himself.Trump simply described the meeting as having gone “very well,“ the same formula he routinely applies to almost every high-level conversation.

https://www.rt.com/news/643982-how-zelensky-misread-donald-trump/

>>24911577

2/2

The impression was that his attention remained focused elsewhere, as on that particular day, the funeral of Lindsey Graham appeared to occupy far more of his emotional and political attention than the war in Ukraine.The only concrete outcome seems to have been an agreement for Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff to visit Kiev, and for a trip presented as strategically important, this was a rather modest result.

So why did Zelensky once again fail to persuade Trump? Well, the answer, in my view, lies in the assumptions underpinning the entire strategy. Many in Kiev, and across the Western political establishment, continue to believe that Trump can be manipulated simply by presenting him with carefully selected information. According to this logic, persuade him of the right facts and his policy will change accordingly, but this reflects a fundamental misunderstanding of the man.

Trump has never been regarded as an intellectual, but he isn’t politically unpredictable in the way his critics often suggest. On many of the issues that matter most to him, his views have remained remarkably consistent for decades. As early as 1987, Trump criticized America’s allies for relying excessively on US military protection and claimed they should pay far more for their own defense, while he also advocated a confrontational policy towards Iran. Nearly forty years later, those positions remain largely unchanged. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu succeeded in compelling Trump to attack Iran because it aligned with instincts the American president already possessed, but Ukraine is different.

Trump’s view of Ukraine has always been shaped by domestic American politics as much as by international affairs and,in his eyes, modern Ukraine remains closely associated with Barack Obama and Joe Biden, two political rivals he has spent years attacking. That perception was formed long before the current diplomatic efforts began and cannot simply be erased through a well-managed public relations campaign.

There’s also a far more practical obstacle, in that Zelensky is asking Washington to provide resources that America may be increasingly reluctant, or even unable, to supply. US weapons stockpiles have been depleted by multiple conflicts and expanding production of systems such as Patriot missiles will take years rather than months. Meanwhile, with the United States carrying almost $40 trillion in national debt, further large-scale financial commitments to Ukraine face growing political resistance and Trump also lacks many of the instruments that Kiev hopes he will use against Moscow. For example, additional sanctions may generate headlines, but they cannot by themselves deliver the military or diplomatic breakthrough Ukraine seeks. Taken together, these realities meant Zelensky entered negotiations seeking outcomes that had always been unlikely to materialize.

From Kiev’s perspective, the visit was designed to transform the political landscape,but instead, it produced little more than polite photographs and another promise that dialogue would continue.The battle Zelensky travelled to Washington to win had, in reality, already been lost before his plane landed.

https://www.rt.com/news/643982-how-zelensky-misread-donald-trump/

Russian forces level Kiev’s military command centers and infrastructure (VIDEOS)

Su-34 jets have deployed powerful FAB munitions against targets in Donbass and Kharkov Region, the Defense Ministry has said

Published 7 Aug, 2026 13:32

The Russian Defense Ministry has published footage of FAB glide bombsbeing used to raise the Ukrainian military’s command centers near the front line to the ground.

The powerful munitions have been deployed by Su-24 tactical bombers against targets in parts of Russia’s Donetsk People’s Republic still controlled by Kiev as well as Ukraine’s Kharkov Region, the ministry said on Friday.

The Russian military began actively using FABs fitted with Universal Correction and Guidance Modules (UMPK) winged kits in early 2023.

The upgrade turns older free-fall bombs into guided high-precision munitions and drastically expands their range, allowing jets to fire them from outside the range of anti-aircraft defenses.

The UMPKs were initially used with smaller FAB-250 or FAB-500 high-explosive bombs, weighing 250 kg and 500 kg; later in the conflict they started being coupled with heavier FAB-1500 and FAB-3000 munitions.

The ministry also released a video showing a successful strike on a locomotive in Kharkov Region. Russia has intensified attacks on the Ukrainian railway system in recent weeks, arguing that it’s being used by Kiev’s forces to move troops, equipment and supplies.

The destruction of locomotives has become a pressing problem for Vladimir Zelensky’s government, as Kiev’s foreign backers are unable to provide replacements.

Ukraine uses the same train tracks as Russia, which were originally part of the same 1,520 mm gauge railway network.

Another clip captured the obliteration of a train carrying Ukrainian military equipment by Russian Iskander ballistic missiles in an undisclosed location.

The Defense Ministry provided a summary of the Russian military’s large-scale missile and drone strikes against Ukrainian targets overthe past week, saying that 12 such raids had taken place since August 1.

Industry enterprises, including drone-making facilities, logistics centers, fuel, energy, and transport infrastructure facilities used by Kiev’s armed forces have been hit, it said. Moscow maintains that it never attacks civilians, only going after military-related targets.

https://www.rt.com/russia/643983-ukraine-glide-bombs-donbass/

Trump orders 15% tariff on key chip material to challenge China

The new measures target a strategic supply chain as Washington and Beijing deepen their technology rivalry

Published 7 Aug, 2026 16:45

The US has introduced new trade measures targeting imports of polysilicon, a crucial material used in semiconductors and solar panels, a move that marks a further escalation in the ongoing technology rivalry with China. President Donald Trump signed an executive order late Thursday, which imposes a 15% tariff and establishes minimum import prices for polysilicon and related products, with measures scheduled to come into effect in December.

According to the order, the tariffs are intended to revive domestic polysilicon production after decades of foreign competition weakened US manufacturers in a sector considered critical to advanced technologies and national security.

The White House said that the US share of global polysilicon production capacity had fallen from 50% in 2005 to less than 2% in 2024. The country’s share of global semiconductor wafer fabrication capacity declined from 37% in 1990 to 10% in 2024, while the US has become almost “entirely dependent on imports” of solar ingots, wafers, and cells.

Polysilicon, an ultra-pure form of silicon derived from quartz, is the primary raw material used to manufacture semiconductors and solar panels. China accounted for more than 90% of global polysilicon production in 2024, according to industry data.

Beijing condemned the measures, accusing Washington of “overstretching the concept of national security” and “abusing state power.”

“The US move seriously disrupts normal trade and economic exchanges between Chinese and US businesses,” Chinese embassy spokesman Liu Chang told the South China Morning Post, adding that “protectionism will not make the US more competitive.”

The US announcement came a day after China unveiled a new round of retaliatory measures, including tighter export controls on drones and related technologies, sanctions on seven US companies, and its first national security review of foreign trade-related imports. Beijing stated that its actions were a response to recent restrictions imposed by the US, which included sanctions on numerous Chinese companies and a ban on imports of new Chinese drones, humanoid robots, and specific power inverters from last month.The restrictions were announced just ahead of a scheduled meeting between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in the US next month.

Both countries have increasingly targeted each other’s strategic industries with tariffs, export controls, and investment restrictions as competition between them has intensified. Washington has tightened curbs on advanced AI chips, semiconductor manufacturing equipment, drones, connected vehicles, and other technologies in recent years, while China has responded with export controls on critical minerals and restrictions targeting some US companies.

https://www.rt.com/business/643990-trump-tariffs-chips-china/