WTF Just Happened Today? – Audio Edition

Thursday, March 5, 2026 — Trump fired Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and replaced her with Sen. Markwayne Mullin; Senate Democrats blocked a Republican bill to reopen the Department of Homeland Security for a third time; the House rejected a bipartisan effort to force Trump to seek congressional approval for continued military action in Iran; Trump said he wasn’t concerned about rising gasoline prices caused by the Iran war, saying "if they rise, they rise"; two dozen Democratic-led states sued Trump to stop his new 10% global import tariffs; and a Jan. 6 rioter pardoned by Trump was sentenced to life in prison for molesting two children.

Tuesday, March 3, 2026 — Trump warned that "I guess the worst case" from U.S.-Israeli campaign against Iran would be “somebody takes over who’s as bad as the previous person”; Secretary of State Marco Rubio claimed the U.S. attacked Iran first because “we knew that there was going to be an Israeli action” and that it would “precipitate an attack against American forces”; Sen. Thom Tillis threatened to block Trump administration nominees and stall committee work unless Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem answers his questions about the Charlotte’s Web immigration operation; Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick agreed to a voluntary, closed-door House Oversight interview on his ties to Jeffrey Epstein after Justice Department records contradicted his Senate testimony; the Justice Department abruptly reversed itself and will defend Trump’s executive orders targeting four law firms, less than 24 hours after telling the same court it wanted to drop the appeals; the Interior Department threatened to hold employees “accountable” after an internal database leaked showing National Park Service staff flagging hundreds of items that could “disparage” Americans for possible revision or removal; the Supreme Court temporarily blocked California from enforcing a 2024 law that limited when educators could tell parents about a student’s gender identity or sexual orientation; and voters in Texas, North Carolina, and Arkansas head to the polls today to kick off the 2026 midterm season.

Thursday, February 26, 2026 — Pro-Trump activists circulated a 17-page draft executive order urging Trump to declare an election emergency and use it to impose federal voting rules, including limits on mail ballots and voting machines; the Trump administration believes "the politics are a lot better if the Israelis" attack Iran first, thinking Tehran’s retaliation would build U.S. support for American attacks; the FBI subpoenaed phone “toll records” for Kash Patel and Susie Wiles in 2022 and 2023 during Special Counsel Jack Smith’s investigating into Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election and his mishandling of classified documents; Hillary Clinton’s closed-door deposition before the House Oversight Committee’s Jeffrey Epstein investigation was briefly paused after an unauthorized photo from inside the room was posted on social media; a federal judge ruled that the IRS violated federal privacy law “approximately 42,695 times” by sharing taxpayer addresses with ICE; the U.S. recorded net negative migration in 2025 for the first time since the Great Depression; 61% of Americans say they support deporting unauthorized immigrants, but 60% say ICE agents have “gone too far"; and 56% of Americans say they don’t trust Trump to make the right decisions about using military force overseas.

Tuesday, February 24, 2026 — Trump will deliver his first State of the Union of his second term with his approval rating near an all-time low, and polling showing that 55% of Americans disapprove of his job performance; at least 45 congressional Democrats plan to skip Trump’s State of the Union; Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger will deliver the Democrats response to Trump’s State of the Union, putting her “kitchen-table” affordability message at the center of their midterm strategy; Trump’s promised 15% “worldwide” tariffs went into effect at 10%; the Justice Department withheld some Epstein files tied to allegations that Trump sexually abused a minor and removed other documents where accusations against Epstein also mentioned Trump; the Pentagon privately warned Trump that a major military strike against Iran could turn into a prolonged campaign that would likely produce U.S. and allied casualties and drain air-defense interceptors; 61% of Americans think Trump has "become erratic with age"; 57% of Trump’s critics say his immigration crackdown is the worst thing he’s done in his second term; 26% of independents approve of the job Trump is doing as president; and 10% of Americans say things are going well in the country, while 34% say things could be better, and 52% say things are going poorly and major, disruptive change is needed.

Thursday, February 19, 2026 — Trump used the first meeting of his Board of Peace to announce that he’ll decide "over the next probably 10 days" whether to continue nuclear talks with Iran or order a U.S. military strike; Trump is reportedly weighing an initial limited strike on Iran, hitting a small set of military or government targets to pressure Tehran into a nuclear deal; the Trump administration ordered ICE to arrest refugees who have been in the U.S. for a year but haven’t obtained permanent resident status yet; the FCC opened an investigation into ABC’s “The View” over potential violations of the Equal Time Rule after the show booked Texas Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico; and Trump signed an executive order invoking the Defense Production Act to increase domestic production of glyphosate and elemental phosphorus.

Tuesday, February 17, 2026 — Congressional Democrats sent the White House a new counterproposal to reopen the Department of Homeland Security after the agency’s funding lapsed Saturday; an 18-year-old man was arrested near the U.S. Capitol after exiting a white Mercedes SUV and running toward the building carrying a loaded shotgun; Senate Republicans have lined up at least 50 votes for the Trump-backed SAVE America Act, which would require proof of U.S. citizenship to register to vote and mandate photo ID nationwide; the U.S. military destroyed three small boats in the Eastern Pacific and Caribbean, killing all 11 people aboard; Stephen Colbert said CBS lawyers stopped him from airing an interview with Texas state Rep. James Talarico, a Democrat running for U.S. Senate; a federal judge ordered the Trump administration to restore slavery-related exhibits that the National Park Service removed from the site in Philadelphia where George Washington lived as president; Rev. Jesse Jackson, the civil rights leader who helped define Black political power after Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination and twice ran for president, died; 39% of Americans approve of Trump’s job performance with 56% disapproving; and 38% of Americans approve Trump’s immigration policies – the lowest level since his return to the White House and down from 50% from a year ago.

Wednesday, February 11, 2026 — Democrats accused Attorney General Pam Bondi of turning the Justice Department "into Trump’s instrument of revenge"; a federal grand jury refused to indict six Democratic lawmakers over a video that reminded active-duty military and intelligence personnel they must refuse unlawful orders; the House voted to rescind the national emergency Trump used to impose tariffs on Canada, with six Republicans joining nearly all Democrats in approving the resolution; U.S. employers added 130,000 jobs in January and unemployment fell to 4.3%; the Congressional Budget Office projected a $1.85 trillion deficit this fiscal year, rising past $3 trillion by 2036; and 60% of Americans disapprove of Trump’s handling of border security and immigration.

Monday, February 9, 2026 — Ghislaine Maxwell invoked the Fifth Amendment and refused to answer all questions during a closed-door House Oversight Committee deposition; the top House and Senate party leaders received a heavily redacted May 2025 whistleblower complaint against Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard after an eight-month delay; the White House deleted Trump’s racist Truth Social post that depicted Barack Obama and Michelle Obama as apes; the Trump administration told Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer it would release frozen federal funding for the $16 billion Gateway rail tunnel if Penn Station and Washington Dulles International Airport were renamed after Trump; Trump, a noted athlete, called a U.S. skier at the Winter Olympics “a real loser"; and Trump, a noted pop-culture tastemaker, declared Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl LX halftime show “one of the worst,” calling the largely Spanish-language performance “absolutely terrible” and that “nobody understands a word.”

Wednesday, February 4, 2026 — Trump doubled down on his call to “nationalize” voting, saying the federal government should “get involved” in state elections; the Supreme Court allowed California to use its voter-approved congressional map for the 2026 midterms; the Trump administration said it would pull 700 federal immigration officers from Minnesota; the Justice Department removed a Department of Homeland Security attorney in Minneapolis after she told a judge that “this job sucks” and asked to be held in contempt so she “could get 24 hours of sleep”; the man who tried to assassinate Trump at his Florida golf club in 2024 was sentenced to life in prison; the Washington Post laid off about one-third of its staff, calling the elimination of more than 300 newsroom jobs a “strategic reset”; and 37% of voters approve of the job Trump is doing as president.

Monday, February 2, 2026 — The partial federal government shutdown entered its third day after funding lapsed Saturday morning, and the House still doesn’t have the votes needed to pass the Senate-approved bill to reopen agencies; attorneys representing victims of Jeffrey Epstein asked two federal judges to order the Justice Department to take down its Epstein-files website, saying the release exposed victims’ names and other identifying details and created an “unfolding emergency”; the Justice Department opened a federal civil rights investigation into the killing of Alex Pretti; Fulton County, Georgia, plans to sue the FBI and the Justice Department over a search warrant that county officials said resulted in the seizure of 2020 election records; Trump called on Republicans to “nationalize the voting” and seize control of election administration from states; and 44% of voters approve of Trump’s job performance, while 56% disapprove.

Wednesday, January 28, 2026 — FBI agents executed a search warrant at Fulton County’s election facility near Atlanta, seeking records related to the 2020 election; Senate Democrats demanded new restrictions on ICE in any deal to avert a partial U.S. government shutdown; Trump’s domestic National Guard deployments are costing taxpayers about $93 million a month; the two federal officers who fired guns during the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis were placed on administrative leave; Rep. Ilhan Omar was attacked at a Minneapolis town hall when a man approached the lectern and used a syringe to spray her with an unknown liquid; the Federal Reserve kept interest rates steady at 3.5% to 3.75%, defying pressure from Trump and pausing after three consecutive quarter-point cuts; Trump warned that a “massive Armada” led was heading toward Iran and threatened another U.S. attack if Tehran did not “make a deal” on its nuclear program; and a record 45% of Americans identified as political independents in 2025.

Monday, January 26, 2026 — Trump agreed to “look into reducing the number of federal agents in Minnesota” after a Border Patrol agent killed Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse and U.S. citizen; Trump sent border czar Tom Homan to Minnesota to oversee ICE operations; Senate Democrats threatened to block the House-passed funding package unless Republicans strip out the Department of Homeland Security bill; the CDC’s vaccine advisory panel said polio, measles, and possibly all shots should be optional; and the American Academy of Pediatrics told parents to ignore the CDC’s revised federal guidance and instead follow its full childhood vaccine schedule.