As Seen in the Omaha World-Herald: The Ethanol Powered Engine Act

Another The Justice Department reportedly wants to indict Cassidy Hutchinson. plan is still “two
weeks away,” and the pardon “Suppose you were an idiot, and suppose you
were a member of Congress; but I repeat
myself.” (Mark Twain)
Ring the bells. Polish the gold candelabras.
Punchbowl News, carried on MS NOW, reports DOJ
wants to indict Cassidy Hutchinson for her January 6
testimony. Harmeet Dhillon’s Civil Rights Division,
built to fight police abuse, is guarding us from a
staffer’s memory. The New York Times reported some
doubted there was a case.
the Justice Department chasing a witness
instead of a crime?
Hmm? Probably Yes!
As the mob chanted “Hang Mike Pence,” Hutchinson
testified, Mark Meadows told her Trump thought his
Vice President “deserves it.” Trump denied it.
Will Trump finally get Mike Pence hanged
before he leaves office?
Hmm? Probably No! He’ll settle for prosecuting the
woman who told us about the chant.
THE ENEMIES LIST; AND WHY
Hutchinson joins James Comey, indicted for lying to
Congress just before the limitations deadline, after
career prosecutors found no case, according to Jack
Smith. Smith expects indictment himself. A Senate
committee held Dr. Anthony Fauci in contempt on a
party-line vote.
Our theory, plainly labeled opinion: these are the
witnesses, prosecutors and paper trail. Justice
Department policy bars indicting a sitting President;
the Supreme Court’s immunity ruling covers official
acts, not private conduct. After January 2029, private
conduct may face prosecution if statutes of limitations
and other legal requirements permit. Official-act
immunity can continue. Every witness indicted today is
a witness impeached tomorrow. For “Honest” Don,
retribution isn’t revenge. It’s estate planning.
Is the retribution campaign really about the
past?
Hmm? Probably No! It’s about the future.
Does discrediting witnesses today protect
“Honest”
Don tomorrow? Hmm? Probably Yes!
PARDON STAR BROKERS: NOW
FRANCHISING
Meet the Pardon Star Brokers. In September 2026, a
60 Minutes hidden camera caught lobbyists Jack
Burkman and Jacob Wohl pitching a $300,000
clemency campaign, with a pardon promised as early
as October 2026. CBS put the industry’s going rate as
high as $3 million.
Growing chains have customer-service problems.
Boosie Badazz says he paid $600,000, got no pardon
and wants a refund. Tax-fraud convict Joseph Schwartz
paid about $960,000 and got clemency. A 50 percent
close rate. The White House says clemency isn’t for
sale. Who is buying?
HOW THE PARDON FRANCHISE WORKS
1 Find the inventory. About 16,000 applications wait
in line.
2 Sell the shortcut. $300,000 to $3 million up front,
called “advocacy,” never a guarantee.
3 Skip the line. CBS found about 70 percent of
clemency bypassed the Justice Department.
4 Name-drop the regional managers. Promise famous
MAGA voices will lobby the boss. (They deny it.)
5 Deliver, sometimes. $960,000: clemency. $600,000:
arbitration.
6 Watch the product appreciate. One signature,
endless supply, restitution wiped clean. No farm or
factory has margins like that.
An Honesty Reporting satirical franchise disclosure.
Customer results may vary.
Is this the best Trump investment idea ever?
Hmm? Probably Yes!
THE COUNT: TWO TERMS, REAGAN AND
THE FORECAST
DOJ counts 238 first-term clemency grants, 143 on
Trump’s last night. As of October 8, 2026, the cited
second-term figures include roughly 1,500 January 6
grants on January 20, 2025, plus 216 individual
pardons in about 20 months. Total: about 1,950.
Reagan granted 406 in eight years, roughly four grants
monthly. Trump’s cited individual-pardon rate is near
11 monthly.
Straight-line: about 2,000 second-term grants and
2,250 over eight years, more than five times Reagan.
Fines and restitution forgiven, which House Democrats
put near $1.7 billion, would exceed $4 billion. Nancy
Reagan said Just Say No. This White House says Just
Sign Here.
Would Ronald Reagan recognize this
Republican pardon policy?
Hmm? Probably No!
FOUR HUNDRED TONS OF FORGIVENESS
The catalog’s crown jewel: former Honduran
president Juan Orlando Hernández, convicted by a U.S.
jury and sentenced to 45 years. DOJ said he and his
co-conspirators moved 400-plus tons of U.S.-bound
cocaine. Trump pardoned him on December 1, 2025.
He walked out that day.
Assuming U.S. short tons, 400 tons is roughly 363
million grams: more than a gram for each of about 340
million Americans. Cocaine can be fatal, but toxicity
varies with dose, purity, route and health; this is a
quantity comparison, not a universal lethal-dose
calculation. The administration that blows up alleged
drug boats freed the man who ran the highway.
Will the families of overdose victims remember
this in November?
Hmm? Probably Yes!
Retribution is not a health plan. Revenge does not
lower the price of gas.
SPARE A THOUGHT FOR HIS GOLF GAME
With an enemies list and a pardon franchise, when
does the poor President play? Figures cited as of
October 8, 2026: about 26 percent of second-term days
at his golf clubs; an estimated $115 million to
taxpayers. On August 2, 2026, he announced a
Bedminster club championship despite little practice.
Is all that pardon-selling and revenge hurting
his golf game?
Hmm? Probably No! He just won the club
championship.
THE SAUDI CONNECTION: YOUR
NEWSROOM
Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, which put $2
billion into Jared Kushner’s firm, now owns a piece of
your news. Paramount’s Warner Bros. Discovery
takeover closed October 6, 2026. David Ellison’s
Trump-friendly Skydance holds CBS News, 60
Minutes and CNN, backed by about $24 billion from
Gulf funds, roughly $10 billion Saudi. The funds have
no voting control; a board is meant to protect CNN’s
independence. We will see.
Will CNN and 60 Minutes keep investigating
the crown prince who helped buy them?
Hmm? Probably No!
Is Fox News happy the other networks are
wearing its outfit?
Hmm? Probably No! Nobody likes showing up to the
White House party in the same dress.
HIGH CRIMES AND MISDEMEANORS?
The Constitution permits removal for “Treason,
Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.” The
pardon power is nearly absolute, but James Madison
warned at Virginia’s 1788 ratifying convention that a
President using pardons to shelter suspicious friends
could be impeached. In our opinion, the questions
answer themselves.
Did other Presidents let money flow to friends
and family by the billions while they held
office?
Hmm? Probably Hell No!
Is selling access or favors, even indirectly, a
high crime and misdemeanor worthy of
impeachment?
Hmm? Probably Yes!
Is pardoning a man convicted of helping move
more than 400 tons of cocaine a high crime and
misdemeanor?
Hmm? Probably Hell Yes!
Will Congress have the votes, and the
backbone, for impeachment after November?
Hmm? We Can Only Hope!
Meanwhile, the cited 2026 gas price rose from $2.80
to $4.47; cancer kills more than 600,000 Americans
annually; the health plan never arrives. Estimated
Trump family crypto income reached $1.2 to $1.4
billion in 2025. People who need help are ignored
while retribution reigns.
THE WRONG VICTIMS
Congress ordered the Epstein files released. CNN
found 90-plus FBI interview records in Maxwell’s
evidence log apparently missing from DOJ’s release,
including interviews tied to a Trump accuser. DOJ
denies deleting anything. Survivors called their July
2026 meeting with acting Attorney General Todd
Blanche “demoralizing”; DOJ suggested FBI
investigators. Blanche personally interviewed
Maxwell, later moved to minimum security.
Roughly 1,500 January 6 rioters pardoned in one day
included Andrew Paul Johnson, later sentenced to life
in Florida for molesting children. Time to free rioters.
None for Epstein’s victims.
Suspicious?
Hmm? Probably Yes! And potentially
self-incriminating and damaging to upper management.
Does Donald Trump have a “little” trouble
treating women fairly and honestly?
Hmm? Probably Hell Yes!
Ask E. Jean Carroll: a jury found Trump sexually
abused and defamed her, awarding more than $88
million, upheld on appeal. Ask Stormy Daniels, whose
hush money underpinned his 34 felony convictions.
Ask Lady Liberty, still waiting for fair treatment. We
deserve better this November.
THE BALLOT QUESTION
A President of either party who turned prosecutors on
witnesses would deserve every word. To every Iowa
and Nebraska candidate, on the record, yes or no: Will
you stop DOJ from serving as a personal revenge
service, and focus on health care and fuel prices
instead?
Can the voters stop it in November?
Hmm? Probably Yes!
RETRIBUTION IS NOT A HEALTH PLAN.
WE DESERVE BETTER THIS NOVEMBER.
Dedicated to law enforcement and public servants of every
party who work for the values of all Americans.
THE FORECAST: EIGHT YEARS OF MERCY
First term, actual (48 months) 238 (144 pardons, 94 commutations)
Second term as of October 8, 2026 (about 20
months)
About 1,500 January 6 grants + about 216
individual pardons
Projected full second term About 2,000 (about 510 individual pardons)
Projected eight-year total About 2,250
Reagan, eight years 406 clemency grants
Fines and restitution forgiven, projected $4 billion+
Straight-line projection from DOJ and Salon/House Democrats figures; excludes untallied
second-term commutations and any going-away rush.
DO THE MATH
Cocaine moved, per DOJ 400+ U.S. short tons ≈ 363 million grams
Americans (population assumption) ≈ 340 million
Cocaine per American ≈ 1.07 grams
Potentially lethal dose Varies; no universal threshold
Result More than a gram per American; a quantity
comparison, not a lethality calculation
p Honest Politics in Print
SCAN TO SUPPORT
PAID FOR BY HONESTY REPORTING LLC | WWW.HONEST-POLITICS.COM
A Pause and an Apology Keep Honest Politics in Print
SCAN TO SUPPORT
PAID ADVERTISEMENT
HONEST Veritas Pro Populo | Brent Lambi
FOLLOW HONEST POLITICS ON @_HonestPolitics | x.com/_HonestPolitics
www.honest-politics.com
The Justice Department reportedly wants to indict Cassidy Hutchinson. the health plan is still “two
weeks away,” and the pardon “Suppose you were an idiot, and suppose you
were a member of Congress; but I repeat
myself.” (Mark Twain)
Ring the bells. Polish the gold candelabras.
Punchbowl News, carried on MS NOW, reports DOJ
wants to indict Cassidy Hutchinson for her January 6
testimony. Harmeet Dhillon’s Civil Rights Division,
built to fight police abuse, is guarding us from a
staffer’s memory. The New York Times reported some
officials doubted there was a case.
Is the Justice Department chasing a witness
instead of a crime?
Hmm? Probably Yes!
As the mob chanted “Hang Mike Pence,” Hutchinson
testified, Mark Meadows told her Trump thought his
Vice President “deserves it.” Trump denied it.
Will Trump finally get Mike Pence hanged
before he leaves office?
Hmm? Probably No! He’ll settle for prosecuting the
woman who told us about the chant.
THE ENEMIES LIST; AND WHY
Hutchinson joins James Comey, indicted for lying to
Congress just before the limitations deadline, after
career prosecutors found no case, according to Jack
Smith. Smith expects indictment himself. A Senate
committee held Dr. Anthony Fauci in contempt on a
party-line vote.
Our theory, plainly labeled opinion: these are the
witnesses, prosecutors and paper trail. Justice
Department policy bars indicting a sitting President;
the Supreme Court’s immunity ruling covers official
acts, not private conduct. After January 2029, private
conduct may face prosecution if statutes of limitations
and other legal requirements permit. Official-act
immunity can continue. Every witness indicted today is
a witness impeached tomorrow. For “Honest” Don,
retribution isn’t revenge. It’s estate planning.
Is the retribution campaign really about the
past?
Hmm? Probably No! It’s about the future.
Does discrediting witnesses today protect
“Honest”
Don tomorrow? Hmm? Probably Yes!
PARDON STAR BROKERS: NOW
FRANCHISING
Meet the Pardon Star Brokers. In September 2026, a
60 Minutes hidden camera caught lobbyists Jack
Burkman and Jacob Wohl pitching a $300,000
clemency campaign, with a pardon promised as early
as October 2026. CBS put the industry’s going rate as
high as $3 million.
Growing chains have customer-service problems.
Boosie Badazz says he paid $600,000, got no pardon
and wants a refund. Tax-fraud convict Joseph Schwartz
paid about $960,000 and got clemency. A 50 percent
close rate. The White House says clemency isn’t for
sale. Who is buying?
HOW THE PARDON FRANCHISE WORKS
1 Find the inventory. About 16,000 applications wait
in line.
2 Sell the shortcut. $300,000 to $3 million up front,
called “advocacy,” never a guarantee.
3 Skip the line. CBS found about 70 percent of
clemency bypassed the Justice Department.
4 Name-drop the regional managers. Promise famous
MAGA voices will lobby the boss. (They deny it.)
5 Deliver, sometimes. $960,000: clemency. $600,000:
arbitration.
6 Watch the product appreciate. One signature,
endless supply, restitution wiped clean. No farm or
factory has margins like that.
An Honesty Reporting satirical franchise disclosure.
Customer results may vary.
Is this the best Trump investment idea ever?
Hmm? Probably Yes!
THE COUNT: TWO TERMS, REAGAN AND
THE FORECAST
DOJ counts 238 first-term clemency grants, 143 on
Trump’s last night. As of October 8, 2026, the cited
second-term figures include roughly 1,500 January 6
grants on January 20, 2025, plus 216 individual
pardons in about 20 months. Total: about 1,950.
Reagan granted 406 in eight years, roughly four grants
monthly. Trump’s cited individual-pardon rate is near
11 monthly.
Straight-line: about 2,000 second-term grants and
2,250 over eight years, more than five times Reagan.
Fines and restitution forgiven, which House Democrats
put near $1.7 billion, would exceed $4 billion. Nancy
Reagan said Just Say No. This White House says Just
Sign Here.
Would Ronald Reagan recognize this
Republican pardon policy?
Hmm? Probably No!
FOUR HUNDRED TONS OF FORGIVENESS
The catalog’s crown jewel: former Honduran
president Juan Orlando Hernández, convicted by a U.S.
jury and sentenced to 45 years. DOJ said he and his
co-conspirators moved 400-plus tons of U.S.-bound
cocaine. Trump pardoned him on December 1, 2025.
He walked out that day.
Assuming U.S. short tons, 400 tons is roughly 363
million grams: more than a gram for each of about 340
million Americans. Cocaine can be fatal, but toxicity
varies with dose, purity, route and health; this is a
quantity comparison, not a universal lethal-dose
calculation. The administration that blows up alleged
drug boats freed the man who ran the highway.
Will the families of overdose victims remember
this in November?
Hmm? Probably Yes!
Retribution is not a health plan. Revenge does not
lower the price of gas.
SPARE A THOUGHT FOR HIS GOLF GAME
With an enemies list and a pardon franchise, when
does the poor President play? Figures cited as of
October 8, 2026: about 26 percent of second-term days
at his golf clubs; an estimated $115 million to
taxpayers. On August 2, 2026, he announced a
Bedminster club championship despite little practice.
Is all that pardon-selling and revenge hurting
his golf game?
Hmm? Probably No! He just won the club
championship.
THE SAUDI CONNECTION: YOUR
NEWSROOM
Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, which put $2
billion into Jared Kushner’s firm, now owns a piece of
your news. Paramount’s Warner Bros. Discovery
takeover closed October 6, 2026. David Ellison’s
Trump-friendly Skydance holds CBS News, 60
Minutes and CNN, backed by about $24 billion from
Gulf funds, roughly $10 billion Saudi. The funds have
no voting control; a board is meant to protect CNN’s
independence. We will see.
Will CNN and 60 Minutes keep investigating
the crown prince who helped buy them?
Hmm? Probably No!
Is Fox News happy the other networks are
wearing its outfit?
Hmm? Probably No! Nobody likes showing up to the
White House party in the same dress.
HIGH CRIMES AND MISDEMEANORS?
The Constitution permits removal for “Treason,
Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.” The
pardon power is nearly absolute, but James Madison
warned at Virginia’s 1788 ratifying convention that a
President using pardons to shelter suspicious friends
could be impeached. In our opinion, the questions
answer themselves.
Did other Presidents let money flow to friends
and family by the billions while they held
office?
Hmm? Probably Hell No!
Is selling access or favors, even indirectly, a
high crime and misdemeanor worthy of
impeachment?
Hmm? Probably Yes!
Is pardoning a man convicted of helping move
more than 400 tons of cocaine a high crime and
misdemeanor?
Hmm? Probably Hell Yes!
Will Congress have the votes, and the
backbone, for impeachment after November?
Hmm? We Can Only Hope!
Meanwhile, the cited 2026 gas price rose from $2.80
to $4.47; cancer kills more than 600,000 Americans
annually; the health plan never arrives. Estimated
Trump family crypto income reached $1.2 to $billion in 2025. People who need help are ignored
while retribution reigns.
THE WRONG VICTIMS
Congress ordered the Epstein files released. CNN
found 90-plus FBI interview records in Maxwell’s
evidence log apparently missing from DOJ’s release,
including interviews tied to a Trump accuser. DOJ
denies deleting anything. Survivors called their July
2026 meeting with acting Attorney General Todd
Blanche “demoralizing”; DOJ suggested FBI
investigators. Blanche personally interviewed
Maxwell, later moved to minimum security.
Roughly 1,500 January 6 rioters pardoned in one day
included Andrew Paul Johnson, later sentenced to in Florida for molesting children. Time to free rioters.
None for Epstein’s victims.
Suspicious?
Hmm? Probably Yes! And potentially
self-incriminating and damaging to upper management.
Does Donald Trump have a “little” trouble
treating women fairly and honestly?
Hmm? Probably Hell Yes!
Ask E. Jean Carroll: a jury found Trump sexually
abused and defamed her, awarding more than $million, upheld on appeal. Ask Stormy Daniels, whose
hush money underpinned his 34 felony convictions.
Ask Lady Liberty, still waiting for fair treatment. deserve better this November.
THE BALLOT QUESTION
A President of either party who turned prosecutors witnesses would deserve every word. To every Iowa
and Nebraska candidate, on the record, yes or no: Will
you stop DOJ from serving as a personal revenge
service, and focus on health care and fuel prices
instead?
Can the voters stop it in November?
Hmm? Probably Yes!
RETRIBUTION IS NOT A HEALTH PLAN.
WE DESERVE BETTER THIS NOVEMBER.
Dedicated to law enforcement and public servants of every
party who work for the values of all Americans.
THE FORECAST: EIGHT YEARS OF MERCY
First term, actual (48 months) 238 (144 pardons, 94 commutations)
Second term as of October 8, 2026 (about 20
months)
About 1,500 January 6 grants + about 216
individual pardons
Projected full second term About 2,000 (about 510 individual pardons)
Projected eight-year total About 2,250
Reagan, eight years 406 clemency grants
Fines and restitution forgiven, projected $4 billion+
Straight-line projection from DOJ and Salon/House Democrats figures; excludes untallied
second-term commutations and any going-away rush.
DO THE MATH
Cocaine moved, per DOJ 400+ U.S. short tons ≈ 363 million grams
Americans (population assumption) ≈ 340 million
Cocaine per American ≈ 1.07 grams
Potentially lethal dose Varies; no universal threshold
Result More than a gram per American; a quantity
comparison, not a lethality calculation
Keep Honest Politics in Print
SCAN TO SUPPORT
PAID FOR BY HONESTY REPORTING LLC | WWW.HONEST-POLITICS.COM
An update on the Berkshire Hathaway defamation matter and why I am putting my own case on hold for now.
When I filed this case, I expected a straightforward process involving discovery and documents. If the record supported it, I also expected the true wrongdoer
to be named as a third party defendant.
That is not what has happened. It is my opinion that discovery in this matter is being shaped by people whose names do not appear in the case caption. I
cannot prove that today, and I will not tell readers otherwise. I can only tell you what I believe and why I am acting on it.
I am therefore pausing my lawsuit.
I want to be plain about Berkshire Hathaway. My view is that the company and its agents may themselves have been used by someone else who gave them a
version of events and left them to act on it.
“Berkshire is not the author of this defamation but a vehicle for it.”
If I am right, Berkshire is not the author of this defamation but a vehicle for it. To the extent that my filings suggested otherwise, my apology is sincere.
My hope is that Berkshire Hathaway or its agents will come forward or tell others what I suspect they may already know: the origin of this matter is federal.
I remain of the view that my dispute with the federal government is ongoing and that the government’s objective is to silence and discredit me.
Free speech has cost me a great deal. In this political climate, it is plainly not free.
Brent Lambi
The opinions expressed above are solely those of the author.
PAID ADVERTISEMENT
HONEST Veritas Pro Populo | Brent Lambi
FOLLOW HONEST POLITICS ON X
@_HonestPolitics | x.com/_HonestPolitics
www.honest-politics.com
Another The Justice Department reportedly wants to indict Cassidy Hutchinson. plan is still “two
weeks away,” and the pardon “Suppose you were an idiot, and suppose you
were a member of Congress; but I repeat
myself.” (Mark Twain)
Ring the bells. Polish the gold candelabras.
Punchbowl News, carried on MS NOW, reports DOJ
wants to indict Cassidy Hutchinson for her January 6
testimony. Harmeet Dhillon’s Civil Rights Division,
built to fight police abuse, is guarding us from a
staffer’s memory. The New York Times reported some
officials doubted there was a case.
Is the Justice Department chasing a witness
instead of a crime?
Hmm? Probably Yes!
As the mob chanted “Hang Mike Pence,” Hutchinson
testified, Mark Meadows told her Trump thought his
Vice President “deserves it.” Trump denied it.
Will Trump finally get Mike Pence hanged
before he leaves office?
Hmm? Probably No! He’ll settle for prosecuting the
woman who told us about the chant.
THE ENEMIES LIST; AND WHY
Hutchinson joins James Comey, indicted for lying to
Congress just before the limitations deadline, after
career prosecutors found no case, according to Jack
Smith. Smith expects indictment himself. A Senate
committee held Dr. Anthony Fauci in contempt on a
party-line vote.
Our theory, plainly labeled opinion: these are the
witnesses, prosecutors and paper trail. Justice
Department policy bars indicting a sitting President;
the Supreme Court’s immunity ruling covers official
acts, not private conduct. After January 2029, private
conduct may face prosecution if statutes of limitations
and other legal requirements permit. Official-act
immunity can continue. Every witness indicted today is
witness impeached tomorrow. For “Honest” Don,
retribution isn’t revenge. It’s estate planning.
Is the retribution campaign really about the
past?
Hmm? Probably No! It’s about the future.
Does discrediting witnesses today protect
“Honest”
Don tomorrow? Hmm? Probably Yes!
PARDON STAR BROKERS: NOW
FRANCHISING
Meet the Pardon Star Brokers. In September 2026, a
60 Minutes hidden camera caught lobbyists Jack
Burkman and Jacob Wohl pitching a $300,000
clemency campaign, with a pardon promised as early
as October 2026. CBS put the industry’s going rate as
high as $3 million.
Growing chains have customer-service problems.
Boosie Badazz says he paid $600,000, got no pardon
and wants a refund. Tax-fraud convict Joseph Schwartz
paid about $960,000 and got clemency. A 50 percent
close rate. The White House says clemency isn’t for
sale. Who is buying?
HOW THE PARDON FRANCHISE WORKS
1 Find the inventory. About 16,000 applications wait
in line.
2 Sell the shortcut. $300,000 to $3 million up front,
called “advocacy,” never a guarantee.
3 Skip the line. CBS found about 70 percent of
clemency bypassed the Justice Department.
4 Name-drop the regional managers. Promise famous
MAGA voices will lobby the boss. (They deny it.)
5 Deliver, sometimes. $960,000: clemency. $600,000:
arbitration.
6 Watch the product appreciate. One signature,
endless supply, restitution wiped clean. No farm or
factory has margins like that.
An Honesty Reporting satirical franchise disclosure.
Customer results may vary.
Is this the best Trump investment idea ever?
Hmm? Probably Yes!
THE COUNT: TWO TERMS, REAGAN AND
THE FORECAST
DOJ counts 238 first-term clemency grants, 143 on
Trump’s last night. As of October 8, 2026, the cited
second-term figures include roughly 1,500 January 6
grants on January 20, 2025, plus 216 individual
pardons in about 20 months. Total: about 1,950.
Reagan granted 406 in eight years, roughly four grants
monthly. Trump’s cited individual-pardon rate is near
11 monthly.
Straight-line: about 2,000 second-term grants and
2,250 over eight years, more than five times Reagan.
Fines and restitution forgiven, which House Democrats
put near $1.7 billion, would exceed $4 billion. Nancy
Reagan said Just Say No. This White House says Just
Sign Here.
Would Ronald Reagan recognize this
Republican pardon policy?
Hmm? Probably No!
FOUR HUNDRED TONS OF FORGIVENESS
The catalog’s crown jewel: former Honduran
president Juan Orlando Hernández, convicted by a U.S.
jury and sentenced to 45 years. DOJ said he and his
co-conspirators moved 400-plus tons of U.S.-bound
cocaine. Trump pardoned him on December 1, 2025.
He walked out that day.
Assuming U.S. short tons, 400 tons is roughly 363
million grams: more than a gram for each of about 340
million Americans. Cocaine can be fatal, but toxicity
varies with dose, purity, route and health; this is a
quantity comparison, not a universal lethal-dose
calculation. The administration that blows up alleged
drug boats freed the man who ran the highway.
Will the families of overdose victims remember
this in November?
Hmm? Probably Yes!
Retribution is not a health plan. Revenge does not
lower the price of gas.
SPARE A THOUGHT FOR HIS GOLF GAME
With an enemies list and a pardon franchise, when
does the poor President play? Figures cited as of
October 8, 2026: about 26 percent of second-term days
at his golf clubs; an estimated $115 million to
taxpayers. On August 2, 2026, he announced a
Bedminster club championship despite little practice.
Is all that pardon-selling and revenge hurting
his golf game?
Hmm? Probably No! He just won the club
championship.
THE SAUDI CONNECTION: YOUR
NEWSROOM
Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, which put $2
billion into Jared Kushner’s firm, now owns a piece of
your news. Paramount’s Warner Bros. Discovery
takeover closed October 6, 2026. David Ellison’s
Trump-friendly Skydance holds CBS News, 60
Minutes and CNN, backed by about $24 billion from
Gulf funds, roughly $10 billion Saudi. The funds have
no voting control; a board is meant to protect CNN’s
independence. We will see.
Will CNN and 60 Minutes keep investigating
the crown prince who helped buy them?
Hmm? Probably No!
Is Fox News happy the other networks are
wearing its outfit?
Hmm? Probably No! Nobody likes showing up to the
White House party in the same dress.
HIGH CRIMES AND MISDEMEANORS?
The Constitution permits removal for “Treason,
Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.” The
pardon power is nearly absolute, but James Madison
warned at Virginia’s 1788 ratifying convention that a
President using pardons to shelter suspicious friends
could be impeached. In our opinion, the questions
answer themselves.
Did other Presidents let money flow to friends
and family by the billions while they held
office?
Hmm? Probably Hell No!
Is selling access or favors, even indirectly, a
high crime and misdemeanor worthy of
impeachment?
Hmm? Probably Yes!
Is pardoning a man convicted of helping move
more than 400 tons of cocaine a high crime and
misdemeanor?
Hmm? Probably Hell Yes!
Will Congress have the votes, and the
backbone, for impeachment after November?
Hmm? We Can Only Hope!
Meanwhile, the cited 2026 gas price rose from $2.80
to $4.47; cancer kills more than 600,000 Americans
annually; the health plan never arrives. Estimated
Trump family crypto income reached $1.2 to $1.4
billion in 2025. People who need help are ignored
while retribution reigns.
THE WRONG VICTIMS
Congress ordered the Epstein files released. CNN
found 90-plus FBI interview records in Maxwell’s
evidence log apparently missing from DOJ’s release,
including interviews tied to Trump accuser. DOJ
denies deleting anything. Survivors called their July
2026 meeting with acting Attorney General Todd
Blanche “demoralizing”; DOJ suggested FBI
investigators. Blanche personally interviewed
Maxwell, later moved to minimum security.
Roughly 1,500 January 6 rioters pardoned in one day
included Andrew Paul Johnson, later sentenced to life
in Florida for molesting children. Time to free rioters.
None for Epstein’s victims.
Suspicious?
Hmm? Probably Yes! And potentially
self-incriminating and damaging to upper management.
Does Donald Trump have a “little” trouble
treating women fairly and honestly?
Hmm? Probably Hell Yes!
Ask E. Jean Carroll: a jury found Trump sexually
abused and defamed her, awarding more than $88
million, upheld on appeal. Ask Stormy Daniels, whose
hush money underpinned his 34 felony convictions.
Ask Lady Liberty, still waiting for fair treatment. We
deserve better this November.
THE BALLOT QUESTION
A President of either party who turned prosecutors on
witnesses would deserve every word. To every Iowa
and Nebraska candidate, on the record, yes or no: Will
you stop DOJ from serving as a personal revenge
service, and focus on health care and fuel prices
instead?
Can the voters stop it in November?
Hmm? Probably Yes!
RETRIBUTION IS NOT A HEALTH PLAN.
WE DESERVE BETTER THIS NOVEMBER.
Dedicated to law enforcement and public servants of every
party who work for the values of all Americans.
THE FORECAST: EIGHT YEARS OF MERCY
First term, actual (48 months) 238 (144 pardons, 94 commutations)
Second term as of October 8, 2026 (about 20
months)
About 1,500 January 6 grants + about 216
individual pardons
Projected full second term About 2,000 (about 510 individual pardons)
Projected eight-year total About 2,250
Reagan, eight years 406 clemency grants
Fines and restitution forgiven, projected $4 billion+
Straight-line projection from DOJ and Salon/House Democrats figures; excludes untallied
second-term commutations and any going-away rush.
DO THE MATH
Cocaine moved, per DOJ 400+ U.S. short tons ≈ 363 million grams
Americans (population assumption) ≈ 340 million
Cocaine per American ≈ 1.07 grams
Potentially lethal dose Varies; no universal threshold
Result More than a gram per American; a quantity
comparison, not a lethality calculation
p Honest Politics in Print
A Pause and an Apology Keep Honest Politics in Print
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HONEST Veritas Pro Populo | Brent Lambi
FOLLOW HONEST POLITICS @_HonestPolitics | x.com/_HonestPolitics
www.honest-politics.The Justice Department reportedly wants to indict Cassidy Hutchinson. the health plan is still “two
weeks away,” and the pardon “Suppose you were an idiot, and suppose you
were a member of Congress; but I repeat
myself.” (Mark Twain)
Ring the bells. Polish the gold candelabras.
Punchbowl News, carried on MS NOW, reports DOJ
wants to indict Cassidy Hutchinson for her January 6
testimony. Harmeet Dhillon’s Civil Rights Division,
built to fight police abuse, is guarding us from a
staffer’s memory. The New York Times reported some
officials doubted there was a case.
Is the Justice Department chasing a witness
instead of a crime?
Hmm? Probably Yes!
As the mob chanted “Hang Mike Pence,” Hutchinson
testified, Mark Meadows told her Trump thought his
Vice President “deserves it.” Trump denied it.
Will Trump finally get Mike Pence hanged
before he leaves office?
Hmm? Probably No! He’ll settle for prosecuting the
woman who told us about the chant.
THE ENEMIES LIST; AND WHY
Hutchinson joins James Comey, indicted for lying to
Congress just before the limitations deadline, after
career prosecutors found no case, according to Jack
Smith. Smith expects indictment himself. A Senate
committee held Dr. Anthony Fauci in contempt on a
party-line vote.
Our theory, plainly labeled opinion: these are the
witnesses, prosecutors and paper trail. Justice
Department policy bars indicting a sitting President;
the Supreme Court’s immunity ruling covers official
acts, not private conduct. After January 2029, private
conduct may face prosecution if statutes of limitations
and other legal requirements permit. Official-act
immunity can continue. Every witness indicted today is
a witness impeached tomorrow. For “Honest” Don,
retribution isn’t revenge. It’s estate planning.
Is the retribution campaign really about the
past?
Hmm? Probably No! It’s about the future.
Does discrediting witnesses today protect
“Honest”
Don tomorrow? Hmm? Probably Yes!
PARDON STAR BROKERS: NOW
FRANCHISING
Meet the Pardon Star Brokers. In September 2026, a
60 Minutes hidden camera caught lobbyists Jack
Burkman and Jacob Wohl pitching a $300,000
clemency campaign, with a pardon promised early
as October 2026. CBS put the industry’s going rate as
high as $3 million.
Growing chains have customer-service problems.
Boosie Badazz says he paid $600,000, got no pardon
and wants a refund. Tax-fraud convict Joseph Schwartz
paid about $960,000 and got clemency. A 50 percent
close rate. The White House says clemency isn’t for
sale. Who is buying?
HOW THE PARDON FRANCHISE WORKS
1 Find the inventory. About 16,000 applications wait
in line.
2 Sell the shortcut. $300,000 to $3 million up front,
called “advocacy,” never a guarantee.
3 Skip the line. CBS found about 70 percent of
clemency bypassed the Justice Department.
4 Name-drop the regional managers. Promise famous
MAGA voices will lobby the boss. (They deny it.)
5 Deliver, sometimes. $960,000: clemency. $600,000:
arbitration.
6 Watch the product appreciate. One signature,
endless supply, restitution wiped clean. No farm or
factory has margins like that.
An Honesty Reporting satirical franchise disclosure.
Customer results may vary.
Is this the best Trump investment idea ever?
Hmm? Probably Yes!
THE COUNT: TWO TERMS, REAGAN AND
THE FORECAST
DOJ counts 238 first-term clemency grants, 143 on
Trump’s last night. As of October 8, 2026, the cited
second-term figures include roughly 1,500 January 6
grants on January 20, 2025, plus 216 individual
pardons in about 20 months. Total: about 1,950.
Reagan granted 406 in eight years, roughly four grants
monthly. Trump’s cited individual-pardon rate is near
11 monthly.
Straight-line: about 2,000 second-term grants and
2,250 over eight years, more than five times Reagan.
Fines and restitution forgiven, which House Democrats
put near $1.7 billion, would exceed $4 billion. Nancy
Reagan said Just Say No. This White House says Just
Sign Here.
Would Ronald Reagan recognize this
Republican pardon policy?
Hmm? Probably No!
FOUR HUNDRED TONS OF FORGIVENESS
The catalog’s crown jewel: former Honduran
president Juan Orlando Hernández, convicted by a U.S.
jury and sentenced to 45 years. DOJ said he and his
co-conspirators moved 400-plus tons of U.S.-bound
cocaine. Trump pardoned him on December 1, 2025.
He walked out that day.
Assuming U.S. short tons, 400 tons is roughly 363
million grams: more than a gram for each of about 340
million Americans. Cocaine can be fatal, but toxicity
varies with dose, purity, route and health; this is a
quantity comparison, not a universal lethal-dose
calculation. The administration that blows up alleged
drug boats freed the man who ran the highway.
Will the families of overdose victims remember
this in November?
Hmm? Probably Yes!
Retribution is not a health plan. Revenge does not
lower the price of gas.
SPARE A THOUGHT FOR HIS GOLF GAME
With an enemies list and a pardon franchise, when
does the poor President play? Figures cited as of
October 8, 2026: about 26 percent of second-term days
at his golf clubs; an estimated $115 million to
taxpayers. On August 2, 2026, he announced a
Bedminster club championship despite little practice.
Is all that pardon-selling and revenge hurting
his golf game?
Hmm? Probably No! He just won the club
championship.
THE SAUDI CONNECTION: YOUR
NEWSROOM
Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, which put $2
billion into Jared Kushner’s firm, now owns a piece of
your news. Paramount’s Warner Bros. Discovery
takeover closed October 6, 2026. David Ellison’s
Trump-friendly Skydance holds CBS News, 60
Minutes and CNN, backed by about $24 billion from
Gulf funds, roughly $10 billion Saudi. The funds have
no voting control; a board is meant to protect CNN’s
independence. We will see.
Will CNN and 60 Minutes keep investigating
the crown prince who helped buy them?
Hmm? Probably No!
Is Fox News happy the other networks are
wearing its outfit?
Hmm? Probably No! Nobody likes showing up to the
White House party in the same dress.
HIGH CRIMES AND MISDEMEANORS?
The Constitution permits removal for “Treason,
Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.” The
pardon power is nearly absolute, but James Madison
warned at Virginia’s 1788 ratifying convention that a
President using pardons to shelter suspicious friends
could be impeached. In our opinion, the questions
answer themselves.
Did other Presidents let money flow to friends
and family by the billions while they held
office?
Hmm? Probably Hell No!
Is selling access or favors, even indirectly, high crime and misdemeanor worthy of
impeachment?
Hmm? Probably Yes!
Is pardoning a man convicted of helping move
more than 400 tons of cocaine a high crime misdemeanor?
Hmm? Probably Hell Yes!
Will Congress have the votes, and the
backbone, for impeachment after November?
Hmm? We Can Only Hope!
Meanwhile, the cited 2026 gas price rose from to $4.47; cancer kills more than 600,000 Americans
annually; the health plan never arrives. Estimated
Trump family crypto income reached $1.2 to billion in 2025. People who need help are ignored
while retribution reigns.
THE WRONG VICTIMS
Congress ordered the Epstein files released. found 90-plus FBI interview records in Maxwell’s
evidence log apparently missing from DOJ’s release,
including interviews tied to a Trump accuser. denies deleting anything. Survivors called their 2026 meeting with acting Attorney General Blanche “demoralizing”; DOJ suggested investigators. Blanche personally interviewed
Maxwell, later moved to minimum security.
Roughly 1,500 January 6 rioters pardoned in one included Andrew Paul Johnson, later sentenced in Florida for molesting children. Time to free rioters.
None for Epstein’s victims.
Suspicious?
Hmm? Probably Yes! And potentially
self-incriminating and damaging to upper management.
Does Donald Trump have a “little” trouble
treating women fairly and honestly?
Hmm? Probably Hell Yes!
Ask E. Jean Carroll: a jury found Trump sexually
abused and defamed her, awarding more than million, upheld on appeal. Ask Stormy Daniels, hush money underpinned his 34 felony convictions.
Ask Lady Liberty, still waiting for fair treatment. deserve better this November.
THE BALLOT QUESTION
A President of either party who turned prosecutors witnesses would deserve every word. To every and Nebraska candidate, on the record, yes or no: you stop DOJ from serving as a personal revenge
service, and focus on health care and fuel instead?
Can the voters stop it in November?
Hmm? Probably Yes!
RETRIBUTION IS NOT A HEALTH PLAN.
WE DESERVE BETTER THIS NOVEMBER.
Dedicated to law enforcement and public servants of party who work for the values of all Americans.
THE FORECAST: EIGHT YEARS OF MERCY
First term, actual (48 months) 238 (144 pardons, 94 commutations)
Second term as of October 8, 2026 (about 20
months)
About 1,500 January 6 grants + about 216
individual pardons
Projected full second term About 2,000 (about 510 individual pardons)
Projected eight-year total About 2,250
Reagan, eight years 406 clemency grants
Fines and restitution forgiven, projected $4 billion+
Straight-line projection from DOJ and Salon/House Democrats figures; excludes untallied
second-term commutations and any going-away rush.
DO THE MATH
Cocaine moved, per DOJ 400+ U.S. short tons ≈ 363 million grams
Americans (population assumption) ≈ 340 million
Cocaine per American ≈ 1.07 grams
Potentially lethal dose Varies; no universal threshold
Result More than a gram per American; a quantity
comparison, not a lethality calculation
Keep Honest Politics in Print
An update on the Berkshire Hathaway defamation matter and why I am putting my own case on hold for now.
When I filed this case, I expected a straightforward process involving discovery and documents. If the record supported it, I also expected the true wrongdoer
to be named as a third party defendant.
That is not what has happened. It is my opinion that discovery in this matter is being shaped by people whose names do not appear in the case caption. I
cannot prove that today, and I will not tell readers otherwise. I can only tell you what I believe and why I am acting on it.
I am therefore pausing my lawsuit.
I want to be plain about Berkshire Hathaway. My view is that the company and its agents may themselves have been used by someone else who gave them a
version of events and left them to act on it.
“Berkshire is not the author of this defamation but a vehicle for it.”
If I am right, Berkshire is not the author of this defamation but a vehicle for it. To the extent that my filings suggested otherwise, my apology is sincere.
My hope is that Berkshire Hathaway or its agents will come forward or tell others what I suspect they may already know: the origin of this matter is federal.
I remain of the view that my dispute with the federal government is ongoing and that the government’s objective is to silence and discredit me.
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Another Huge Breakthrough!
The Justice Department reportedly wants to indict Cassidy Hutchinson. Congratulations, America: gas is $4.47, the health plan is still “two
weeks away,” and the pardon business is now franchising.

THE GIFT ARRIVED TWO DAYS LATE
Putin turned 74 on October 7, 2026.
Trump promised a call; the Kremlin said
none came. Hurt feelings didn’t last. On
October 9, 2026, the call came, and Trump
announced Russia would ship 300,000 tons
of diesel at once, millions more to follow.
Treasury opened the market to Russian
diesel through April 7, 2027.
Remember the Graham “sanctions bill
from hell” Trump signed September 18,
2026 to choke off Russia’s oil money?
Ukraine’s negotiators were in Miami that
day. Hours after the deal, Russian strikes
killed at least 17 Ukrainians. Zelensky,
never consulted, called it unfair, dishonest,
weak and a “birthday gift” to Putin. We
didn’t name it. He did.
Savings at the pump? Diesel dipped seven
or eight cents, to a national AAA average of
$6.28, and analysts doubt the trend will
change. Even Republicans balked:
Nebraska’s Don Bacon called it the wrong
answer, Texas’s Michael McCaul said it
funds the Kremlin’s war machine, and
Alaska’s Lisa Murkowski said use sanctions
instead.
Did Putin get a better birthday present
from our President than Americans got all
year? Hmm? Probably Yes!
THEN HE ASKED FOR A NEW
UKRAINE
On October 10, 2026, the President said
Ukraine needs a new president, “one who
can make a deal”, the worst rupture, Axios
said, since the 2025 Oval Office blowup.
Zelensky, he said, better damn well stop
hitting Russian refineries, which he blamed
for hurting American farmers. Zelensky had
offered a fair trade: no strikes on Russian
refineries if Russia stops striking Ukraine’s
power plants. Trump took Putin’s deal
instead. Replacing Zelensky has been
Putin’s wish since his tanks rolled in.
Putin answered with missiles: at least 20
dead in Zaporizhzhia, three of them
children, four wounded in Kyiv, more than
60 dead in four days. Zelensky’s summary:
Russia’s choice is war.
Is Putin’s wish list becoming the White
House to-do list? Hmm? Probably Yes!
Ukraine needs a new president, says ours.
Does he want Russia to get a new one, too?
Hmm? Probably Not!
Should an aggressor who invaded his
neighbor and kidnapped its children be
rewarded? Hmm? Probably Not!
Did Ukrainian drones hurt Iowa farmers
more than tariffs and no farm plan? Hmm?
Probably No!
THE OTHER BIRTHDAY CARD
Vladimir isn’t the first. In 2003, for
Jeffrey Epstein’s 50th, a letter bearing
Trump’s name went into a birthday album:
typed text inside a hand-drawn naked
woman, signed below the waist, wishing a
shared “wonderful secret.” The Wall Street
Journal reported it in 2025; Epstein’s estate
gave the album to Congress under
subpoena. Trump calls it fake and sued for
$10 billion. In April 2026, a judge
dismissed the suit without ruling on the
truth; his lawyers vow to refile.
A card for Epstein, a gift for a man wanted
by the ICC, is there a pattern? Hmm?
Probably Yes!
Is it easier to chase Cassidy Hutchinson
for perjury than to release every page of the
Epstein files? Hmm? Probably Yes!
FRIENDS AND “ENEMIES”
Canada gets tariffs and 51st-state talk.
Brazil, a democracy, got punishing tariffs
and a lecture. Europe, which stood with us
after 9/11, is told it freeloads. Russia , the
Soviet heartland Republicans warned us
about for fifty years, gets a call, a waiver
and a seat at the table.
Europe noticed. Sweden said energy
revenue feeds Russia’s war chest; Germany
stands by sanctions; Poland asked where
Russia’s spare diesel would even come
from. On October 12, 2026, the EU adopted
its largest round of sanctions listings since
2022, some 1,600 listings, three days after
Washington gave Moscow a waiver.
Reagan called it an evil empire.
This White House calls it a diesel supplier.
Is the President more comfortable with
Moscow’s strongman than with our
democratic allies? Hmm? Probably Yes!
THE RETRIBUTION DOCKET
Putin got a gift; critics got grand juries.
The Justice Department is reportedly
seeking to indict Cassidy Hutchinson for
allegedly lying to Congress about January 6,
2021, through, oddly, the Civil Rights
Division. Jack Smith said he barely relied
on her. Comey has been hauled into court;
Fauci’s former adviser was indicted in April
2026. The Atlantic reported top
law-enforcement jobs may hinge on
indicting the President’s enemies. Our
stated opinion: the pattern is the point.
Brand every witness a liar, and nobody
believes them when this term ends.
Is “perjury” now the charge for testimony
you didn’t like? Hmm? Probably Yes!
Does it make holding a former President
accountable, by impeachment or in court,
harder? Hmm? Probably Yes!
THE PRIZE HE DIDN’T WIN
The Nobel Peace Prize went to Navi
Pillay, who led the Rwanda genocide
tribunal and sat on the International
Criminal Court. She heard the news in
Nuremberg’s Courtroom 600, where Nazi
leaders were tried. Trump, who said during
the week of October 5 he deserved it, posted
that the committee “demeaned” the prize.
The White House slapped new sanctions on
the ICC, Nuremberg’s heir, which has a
warrant out for Putin over Ukraine’s
deported children. So the court that wants
Putin arrested is “corrupt,” and Putin gets
diesel waivers. Funny how that works.
Would he call the committee corrupt if it
had handed him the medal? Hmm?
Probably No!
Does sanctioning the court that indicted
Putin help Putin? Hmm? Probably Yes!
MEANWHILE, BACK HOME
Americans are still waiting for the health
plan “two weeks away” for a decade, lower
prices, lower tariffs, farm income in Iowa
and Nebraska, diesel under $6.28. The
Trump family has made billions from crypto
and side deals while in office.
Is America losing while the family
business wins? Hmm? Probably Yes!
Will one Russian tanker fix any of it?
Hmm? Probably No!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, VLADIMIR.
SORRY, AMERICA, YOUR GIFT IS
STILL IN THE MAIL.
VOTE LIKE YOUR PAYCHECK
DEPENDS ON IT. IT DOES.
Sources: Washington Post, CNN, Axios, GovBrief
(Oct. 9, 2026); Al Jazeera, UN News, ABC News
(Pillay Nobel, Oct. 9); Charter 97/TASS (Oct. 7–8);
CBS News, Bloomberg, Mediaite, MS NOW
(Hutchinson, Oct. 8–9); AP/PBS (Morens, Apr. 28,
2026); United24 (Graham sanctions law); Variety
(WSJ suit dismissed, Apr. 13, 2026); Axios, Kyiv
Post, Newsweek, AP via ABC News (Oct. 10, 2026).
THE LEDGER
WHO WINS WHO LOSES
Diesel Deal
Putin’s war chest;
a pre-election price headline.
Ukraine’s leverage; the sanctions law.
“New Leader”
The Kremlin, hearing
its demand echoed.
A democracy at war; U.S. credibility.
Epstein Card
A President who sues
instead of explaining.
Epstein’s victims;
voters promised the files.
Allies A man who admires strongmen.
Allies doubting our word;
our own security.
Grand Juries
Trump, turning
accusers into defendants.
Future witnesses;
an independent DOJ.
ICC & Nobel
War criminals who
see judges punished.
Nuremberg’s rule:
no one above the law.
WITHOUT READER SUPPORT,
THIS COLUMN DISAPPEARS.
Independent voices are becoming harder to
find in America. Your contribution helps keep
Honest Politics going. Asking difficult
questions, challenging powerful institutions and
giving readers a voice.
A PAUSE AND AN APOLOGY
An update on the Berkshire Hathaway defamation matter and why I am choosing not to pursue this matter any further for the time being.
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Happy Birthday, Vladimir – Love, Donald
Two days after Putin turned 74, the President delivered the present: a six-month waiver
on Russian diesel. It wasn’t his first birthday greeting to a man he should have avoided.
Then he went back to prosecuting critics and sulking about a Nobel Prize.
Image created with AI.
THE GIFT ARRIVED TWO DAYS LATE
Putin turned 74 on October 7, 2026.
Trump promised a call; the Kremlin said
none came. Hurt feelings didn’t last. On
October 9, 2026, the call came, and Trump
announced Russia would ship 300,000 tons
of diesel at once, millions more to follow.
Treasury opened the market to Russian
diesel through April 7, 2027.
Remember the Graham “sanctions bill
from hell” Trump signed September 18,
2026 to choke off Russia’s oil money?
Ukraine’s negotiators were in Miami that
day. Hours after the deal, Russian strikes
killed at least 17 Ukrainians. Zelensky,
never consulted, called it unfair, dishonest,
weak and a “birthday gift” to Putin. We
didn’t name it. He did.
Savings at the pump? Diesel dipped seven
or eight cents, to a national AAA average of
$6.28, and analysts doubt the trend will
change. Even Republicans balked:
Nebraska’s Don Bacon called it the wrong
answer, Texas’s Michael McCaul said it
funds the Kremlin’s war machine, and
Alaska’s Lisa Murkowski said use sanctions
instead.
Did Putin get a better birthday present
from our President than Americans got all
year? Hmm? Probably Yes!
THEN HE ASKED FOR A NEW
UKRAINE
On October 10, 2026, the President said
Ukraine needs a new president, “one who
can make a deal”, the worst rupture, Axios
said, since the 2025 Oval Office blowup.
Zelensky, he said, better damn well stop
hitting Russian refineries, which he blamed
for hurting American farmers. Zelensky had
offered a fair trade: no strikes on Russian
refineries if Russia stops striking Ukraine’s
power plants. Trump took Putin’s deal
instead. Replacing Zelensky has been
Putin’s wish since his tanks rolled in.
Putin answered with missiles: at least 20
dead in Zaporizhzhia, three of them
children, four wounded in Kyiv, more than
60 dead in four days. Zelensky’s summary:
Russia’s choice is war.
Is Putin’s wish list becoming the White
House to-do list? Hmm? Probably Yes!
Ukraine needs a new president, says ours.
Does he want Russia to get a new one, too?
Hmm? Probably Not!
Should an aggressor who invaded his
neighbor and kidnapped its children be
rewarded? Hmm? Probably Not!
Did Ukrainian drones hurt Iowa farmers
more than tariffs and no farm plan? Hmm?
Probably No!
THE OTHER BIRTHDAY CARD
Vladimir isn’t the first. In 2003, for
Jeffrey Epstein’s 50th, a letter bearing
Trump’s name went into a birthday album:
typed text inside a hand-drawn naked
woman, signed below the waist, wishing a
shared “wonderful secret.” The Wall Street
Journal reported it in 2025; Epstein’s estate
gave the album to Congress under
subpoena. Trump calls it fake and sued for
$10 billion. In April 2026, a judge
dismissed the suit without ruling on the
truth; his lawyers vow to refile.
A card for Epstein, a gift for a man wanted
by the ICC, is there a pattern? Hmm?
Probably Yes!
Is it easier to chase Cassidy Hutchinson
for perjury than to release every page of the
Epstein files? Hmm? Probably Yes!
FRIENDS AND “ENEMIES”
Canada gets tariffs and 51st-state talk.
Brazil, a democracy, got punishing tariffs
and a lecture. Europe, which stood with us
after 9/11, is told it freeloads. Russia , the
Soviet heartland Republicans warned us
about for fifty years, gets a call, a waiver
and a seat at the table.
Europe noticed. Sweden said energy
revenue feeds Russia’s war chest; Germany
stands by sanctions; Poland asked where
Russia’s spare diesel would even come
from. On October 12, 2026, the EU adopted
its largest round of sanctions listings since
2022, some 1,600 listings, three days after
Washington gave Moscow a waiver.
Reagan called it an evil empire.
This White House calls it a diesel supplier.
Is the President more comfortable with
Moscow’s strongman than with our
democratic allies? Hmm? Probably Yes!
THE RETRIBUTION DOCKET
Putin got a gift; critics got grand juries.
The Justice Department is reportedly
seeking to indict Cassidy Hutchinson for
allegedly lying to Congress about January 6,
2021, through, oddly, the Civil Rights
Division. Jack Smith said he barely relied
on her. Comey has been hauled into court;
Fauci’s former adviser was indicted in April
2026. The Atlantic reported top
law-enforcement jobs may hinge on
indicting the President’s enemies. Our
stated opinion: the pattern is the point.
Brand every witness a liar, and nobody
believes them when this term ends.
Is “perjury” now the charge for testimony
you didn’t like? Hmm? Probably Yes!
Does it make holding a former President
accountable, by impeachment or in court,
harder? Hmm? Probably Yes!
THE PRIZE HE DIDN’T WIN
The Nobel Peace Prize went to Navi
Pillay, who led the Rwanda genocide
tribunal and sat on the International
Criminal Court. She heard the news in
Nuremberg’s Courtroom 600, where Nazi
leaders were tried. Trump, who said during
the week of October 5 he deserved it, posted
that the committee “demeaned” the prize.
The White House slapped new sanctions on
the ICC, Nuremberg’s heir, which has a
warrant out for Putin over Ukraine’s
deported children. So the court that wants
Putin arrested is “corrupt,” and Putin gets
diesel waivers. Funny how that works.
Would he call the committee corrupt if it
had handed him the medal? Hmm?
Probably No!
Does sanctioning the court that indicted
Putin help Putin? Hmm? Probably Yes!
MEANWHILE, BACK HOME
Americans are still waiting for the health
plan “two weeks away” for a decade, lower
prices, lower tariffs, farm income in Iowa
and Nebraska, diesel under $6.28. The
Trump family has made billions from crypto
and side deals while in office.
Is America losing while the family
business wins? Hmm? Probably Yes!
Will one Russian tanker fix any of it?
Hmm? Probably No!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, VLADIMIR.
SORRY, AMERICA, YOUR GIFT IS
STILL IN THE MAIL.
VOTE LIKE YOUR PAYCHECK
DEPENDS ON IT. IT DOES.
Sources: Washington Post, CNN, Axios, GovBrief
(Oct. 9, 2026); Al Jazeera, UN News, ABC News
(Pillay Nobel, Oct. 9); Charter 97/TASS (Oct. 7–8);
CBS News, Bloomberg, Mediaite, MS NOW
(Hutchinson, Oct. 8–9); AP/PBS (Morens, Apr. 28,
2026); United24 (Graham sanctions law); Variety
(WSJ suit dismissed, Apr. 13, 2026); Axios, Kyiv
Post, Newsweek, AP via ABC News (Oct. 10, 2026).
THE LEDGER
WHO WINS WHO LOSES
Diesel Deal
Putin’s war chest;
a pre-election price headline.
Ukraine’s leverage; the sanctions law.
“New Leader”
The Kremlin, hearing
its demand echoed.
A democracy at war; U.S. credibility.
Epstein Card
A President who sues
instead of explaining.
Epstein’s victims;
voters promised the files.
Allies A man who admires strongmen.
Allies doubting our word;
our own security.
Grand Juries
Trump, turning Future witnesses;
I
WITHOUT READER SUPPORT,
THIS COLUMN DISAPPEARS.
Independent voices are becoming harder to
find in America. Your contribution helps keep
Honest Politics going. Asking difficult
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