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The British aren’t coming
Congresswoman requires US ID to cover her panel
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene chaired a meeting of the House DoGE committee this morning, with the express purpose of cracking down on unused government buildings. “Federal agencies shouldn’t be maintaining empires at taxpayers’ expense,” she said in her opening statement.
But Cockburn’s curiosity was piqued by the new wording at the bottom of her office’s media advisory ahead of the event, which specified that journalists seeking to cover it required American documentation: “Media and the public entering the building will need a valid U.S. passport or driver’s license and will need to be escorted to the auditorium.”
The verbiage is different to previous press releases from her office: one promoting her town hall tour last October requires solely a “valid government ID matching your registration.”
The shy and retiring Georgia Representative seems to have gotten wise to the unofficial foreign correspondents’ brief when covering Trump’s America: find the most out-there MAGA character you can and get them to say something that will go viral.
Sky News nepo baby Martha Kelner achieved the feat at the end of last month, who baited MTG into asking, “What country are you from?” before snapping, “We don’t give a crap about your opinion and your reporting. Why don’t you go back to your country where you have a major migrant problem?”
Kelner followed hot on the heels of fellow Brit, podcaster Emily Maitlis, who last year Greene called a “conspiracy theorist” and told to “fuck off.” There’s that famous Southern charm…
On our radar
WHO’S ON FIRST? Spotted at the US Senate today: Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Tyler Glasnow, waiting for an elevator along with Senator Alex Padilla of California.
SHOP TALK Senior Advisor to the President Elon Musk branded his colleague Peter Navarro, the trade advisor, a “moron” who is “dumber than a sack of bricks,” after Navarro had said Musk was a “not a car manufacturer” but a “car assembler.”
AG-XIT The Department of Agriculture is set to “dismantle” its presence in DC, through layoffs and relocating other staff to three offices in to-be-determined locations around the country.
LET’S GET PHYSICAL President Trump is set to have his annual physical at Walter Reed this Friday. “I have never felt better, but nevertheless, these things must be done!” he wrote on Truth Social.
Stephen A. or Kamala 2028?
ESPN anchor ‘sick of this mess’
The 2028 field may be coming into view for Democrats, with a recent poll showing that Kamala Harris currently has the best shot at claiming her party’s nomination. The former vice president joined X competitor BlueSky this week – a sure sign that she is laser-focused on winning back the center. But another potential candidate has been also making moves: ESPN commentator Stephen A. Smith.
“Time to stop messing around,” Smith wrote on X. “Life is great. Especially at ESPN/Disney. Hate the thought of being a politician. But sick of this mess. So I’m officially leaving all doors open.” Smith linked to a Breitbart piece subtly titled, “Stephen A. Smith No Longer Ruling Out Possibility of Running for President in 2028.”
Right now Smith is faring incredibly poorly in early-stage polling, and Harris is winning a plurality of votes. But 2028 wouldn’t be the first time the Democrats nominated a dark-horse candidate who sounds great on TV. They did it 20 years ago with the little known one-term senator Barack Obama.
Others aren’t ready for this race to start.; Maryland’s Governor Wes Moore recently said that he isn’t (currently) running for president, and California’s Governor Gavin Newsom may be too enamored with his podcast stardom to take the plunge.
While Harris and Smith don’t necessarily have much in common, between the former’s history of locking up pot smokers and the latter’s infamous exhortation for people to “stay off the weed,” the duo had better hope their party’s chances don’t go up in smoke in three years’ time.
Tanks for the invite
Trump wants military parade in DC this June
Donald Trump turns 79 this year – and he wants an explosive celebration.
The President is looking to have a parade that would turn any four-year-old green with envy: he wants tanks to roll down the streets of Washington, DC to mark the 250th anniversary of the US Army on June 14 – also his birthday.
Trump tried to arrange a similar show of force during his first term, only to cancel his plans due to concerns over the astronomical cost. This time, however, is different. The President is unconcerned about needing to run for reelection (or is he?) – and he and Republicans are staking a lot of their credibility on making DC safe again.
Trump’s pick to serve as US Attorney for DC is already planning a crackdown on violent criminals. Republicans in Congress and Trump himself are threatening to take away DC’s home rule, which might explain why the city’s mayor has been far more polite to Trump this go-around.
Mayor Muriel Bowser dunked on Trump in 2018 over his proposed parade; this time, she already confirmed that Trump’s people have “reached out.” DC recently eliminated the 2020-era Black Lives Matter Plaza leading up to the White House.
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