iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

A judge agreed to permanently dismiss a criminal case charging a former Olympian with vandalizing the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool. So now federal prosecutors won't be able to revive the case no matter how much political pressure Trump gives.

apnews.com

DC judge permanently dismisses case charging ex-Olympian with vandalizing Reflecting Pool

A judge in Washington has agreed to permanently dismiss a criminal case charging a former Olympian with vandalizing the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 2h

Americans don’t need to tune in to Trump TV or log in to Truth Social to find out how much it costs to buy a home, feed their families or fill up their cars. And no amount of explaining otherwise makes things cheaper.

theguardian.com

When Trump’s narrative meets voters’ realities

By Donald Trump’s telling, we’re in a US ‘golden age’. Americans may feel differently. Plus: Anger at the elite and a gunfluencer runs in Texas

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 2h

When asked whether he would declare a state of emergency before the midterms, Trump told Time magazine: “I don’t rule anything out or in. We’ll see.” He is determined to control the midterm outcomes — his own freedom and that of his family's is at stake.

theguardian.com

Trump doesn’t rule out declaring state of emergency before midterm elections

President also dismissed low poll ratings as ‘fake numbers’ and deflected responsibility for Iran war in Time interview

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 15h

Marjorie Taylor Greene, Trump acolyte turned critic, notes, “We have not seen a caravan headed to the U.S. southern border in several years, why now? Oh yeah, there is an election coming & the GOP needs to scare you into voting.”

washingtonpost.com

Analysis | Trump’s playing his greatest hits. They don’t work as well as they used to.

With midterm elections a month away, the president is turning the audacity up to 11 as he labors to reverse his party’s decline in the polls.

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 15h

Robin Maher, the executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center, says Christa Pike would likely not be sentenced to death if she were tried today. “A lot has changed.” What has not changed is the USA's ability to find a 'humane' way to execute.

nytimes.com

What to Know About the Attempted Execution of Christa Pike (Gift Article)

Ms. Pike, 50, survived two doses of lethal injection in Tennessee. She was sentenced to death for the 1995 murder of a classmate.

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 16h

There is a lot to question: the students who participated; those who stayed silent; policies that feared sensitivity training as being too 'woke'; the police who botched the report. That list gets longer by the hour. Good for students taking a hard look.

nytimes.com

Cornell Students Question Greek Life Culture After Sexual Assault Claim

With their university under fire in the wake of a sexual assault lawsuit, students are having difficult conversations about Greek life, campus rituals and the possibility for lasting changes.

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 16h

Administration officials have been actively focused on unsubstantiated claims of widespread voter fraud by noncitizens, and now we learn they overlooked credible election threats by terrorists. How convenient for the people desperate to stay in power.

theguardian.com

Trump officials abandon effort to investigate election threats, experts warn

Credible threats appear to have been overlooked as administration focuses on unverified claims of voter fraud

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 17h

Pete Hegseth bragged about how he fired 20% of the country’s generals, weeding out the ones he and Trump find disloyal to their agenda. He uses 'woke' as an excuse. Why do they need loyalists to the point where they are firing generals? What is the plan?

msn.com

MSN

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Reposted by Grandma

Adam Cohen (My Personal Views Only) @axidentaliberal.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Anyone who doesn’t see that this is part of a long term plan-not for the midterms, really, but for 2028 and beyond Isn’t paying attention

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Reposted by Grandma

California Dreamin’… 😎 @jerasikehorn.bsky.social · 21h

Are you paying ATTENTION, yet?! 👇

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 17h

A majority, 65%, of U.S. adults now blame Trump’s policies for persistently high costs. So what? He's not on the ballot. But control of congress is. Who goes to jail - and how many go to jail - if they lose?

apnews.com

Trump said he would campaign in midterm battlegrounds. He's starting in deep red states instead

President Donald Trump has vowed to campaign in 35 of the most competitive battleground races in the final sprint to November’s midterm elections.

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 17h

Only 17% of adults approve of Trump's handling of the cost of living. Just 26% approve of his handling of the economy overall. I think he knew this even before the polls confirmed it and has been trying to curb voting & find ways to steal elections.

apnews.com

Most Americans blame Trump for high prices as midterms approach, a new AP-NORC poll finds

A new AP-NORC poll finds that most Americans blame President Donald Trump for persistently high prices, while only about 2 in 10 approve of his handling of the cost of living.

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 17h

Tehran is still testing diplomacy, with a seven-day proposal, but it isn't holding out much hope that the USA really wants this war to end, and Iran is planning for continued aggression on the part of the nation that started this forever war.

reuters.com

Iran readies harder retaliation if attacked as diplomacy faces long odds

Iran is preparing a broader and more forceful response if the United States resumes large-scale military attacks, sources said, while continuing a diplomatic push that Iranian officials privately see ...

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Ken Paxton has a history of financial and sexual scandals scrolling back decades. He has 20 articles of impeachment against himself; double the 10 Commandments he wants displayed everywhere.

theguardian.com

Ken Paxton’s Christian identity politics obscure a history of scandal | Sidney Blumenthal

The Texas Senate candidate rose to power as a culture warrior. His record is a marriage of hypocrisy and cynicism

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

As a mob of his supporters ransacked the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, Trump and his aides continued to work the phones that night and encourage lawmakers to derail the transfer of power to Joe Biden. If you called Don that day, your activity was swept up.

politico.com

Blackburn sues Jack Smith for obtaining her phone records

The Republican senator brought the suit one day after the former special counsel testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

In the 19 months since Donald Trump took over the Kennedy Center, the institution has borrowed everything its bank would lend it, dipped into money donors had given on the condition it never be spent and more.

washingtonpost.com

The Kennedy Center was solvent when Trump took over. Then its finances collapsed.

The Post examined 15 years of the institution’s financial records to see why it went south after the president took over.

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Hegseth: "We need students of western civilization and the pillars of our republic. Leaders who understand the faith of Jerusalem, the philosophy of anthems -- Athens. The power of Rome, and the freedom of Philadelphia circa 1776." Yup. OK then.

24vids.com

Hegseth: "We need students of western civilization and the pillars of...

Aaron Rupar posted video about Hegseth: "We need students of western civilization and the pillars of our republic. Leaders who understand the faith of...

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Ethan Harper, the general counsel to Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.), was expected to leave his role today and begin a new one in the White House Staff Secretary’s office next week. But that hearing left his boss deeply embarrassed and Harper left behind.

politico.com

Schmitt aide’s move to White House in doubt following Jack Smith hearing

Ethan Harper, Sen. Eric Schmitt’s general counsel, was expected to start at the White House next week.

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

So apparently, the federal reserve failed on many counts to follow standard Government procedures, and construction costs to renovate two Fed buildings more than doubled from an original estimate. Sounds like how the White House does renovations.

apnews.com

Fed watchdog finds no crimes in $2.4B building renovation, only mismanagement

The Federal Reserve’s internal watchdog says that the central bank has broadly mismanaged an expansive building renovation project but did not find any criminal violations, as alleged by Trump adminis...

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said the alliance had responded to Russia's message by declaring: "We are a defensive alliance. And stop the nuclear threats. This is absolutely not called for and not helpful." I wonder if Putin will stand down?

reuters.com

Russia sends nuclear warning to NATO as tensions rise in the Baltic

Russia has warned NATO it would be ready to resort to nuclear weapons if the Western alliance attempted to cut off Kaliningrad, a Russian exclave that borders the Baltic Sea.

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Trisha Hope was once a proud member of the Front Row Joes, a group of Trump superfans who follow the president to rallies around the country. She says if they impeach him again, she will approve.

theguardian.com

Donald Trump's Maga cult is finally crumbling | Arwa Mahdawi

With the midterms looming, and after the Epstein files and the war on Iran, Trump superfans are losing faith in their lame duck president, writes Arwa Mahdawi

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard urged Americans in a message ahead of U.S. midterm elections to take to the streets and rally against Donald Trump, claiming the U.S. president’s war in the Middle East has failed. I wonder where they got the idea for that?

apnews.com

Iran tells the US public that Trump's war has failed, and other Mideast developments

Iran's Revolutionary Guard has urged Americans to protest against Donald Trump ahead of U.S. midterm elections. They claim Trump's Middle East policies have failed.

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Cultist pastor Shane Vaughn says MAGA is "being seduced by the sophistry of Satan" if they complain about gas prices. He is like my Dad yelling at teenage brother, "You need to grow up. You need to wake up. You need to wise up. And you need to shut up."

peoplefor.org

Shane Vaughn Tells MAGA To Shut Up About Gas Prices

Trump cultist pastor Shane Vaughn says MAGA is "being seduced by the sophistry of Satan" if they are complaining about gas prices. He has some simple advice: "You need to grow up. You need to wake up....

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Thanks to the Supreme Court, the government now has a wide-ranging tool in its effort to identify noncitizens and ineligible voters. It will only be a matter of time before they use it against the next enemies list.

nytimes.com

Here’s How Trump Is Building a National Citizenship Database to Check Voters (Gift Article)

The Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to deploy a system that merges personal data from across the government. Questions remain about its reliability.

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Two senators are demanding answers within the next 48 hours about “how this president is literally stealing their tax dollars to air campaign ads celebrating himself.”

apnews.com

Homeland Security taps $20M in taxpayer funds for pro-Trump ads

DHS has tapped $20 million to pay for campaign-style ads glorifying President Donald Trump.

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

It was meant to be a dramatic confrontation, a public accusation of perjury against Jack Smith. But Senator Eric Schmitt’s amateur sleuthing into basketball led him to the wrong game, league and state.

nytimes.com

Jack Smith Defends Trump Charges as Senator’s Perjury Claim Falls Apart (Gift Article)

A Republican eager to prove the former special counsel was dishonest appeared to instead demonstrate his own confusion over basic facts.

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Trump intends to spend the next 30 days campaigning for Republicans, many of whom are underwater. But what if even a gerrymandered House map & a whopping cash advantage won’t be enough keep their majority? The GOP had time to plan. They squandered it.

politico.com

‘On a scale of 1 to 10, 10’: Trump’s midterm travel schedule underscores GOP troubles

Each trip to play defense robs the GOP of a chance to put Democrats on the back foot in states that are traditionally competitive.

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

It amazes me that his lame excuse - that Obama and Bush did it also, is believed and repeated by his supporters. As if an anti-substance abuse ad urging youth to stay safe & does not mention the POTUS in office is the same as Trump's self-promoting ads.

apnews.com

Homeland Security taps $20M in taxpayer funds for pro-Trump ads

DHS has tapped $20 million to pay for campaign-style ads glorifying President Donald Trump.

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Of course our President would not do such a thing. I am shocked, SHOCKED, that anybody would think so. BTW, did we ever find out what transpired between him and Putin at Helinski during his first term?

apnews.com

Trump disputes his ambassador's account that he asked China's president if he wanted to buy US arms

President Donald Trump has asked Chinese President Xi Jinping if he wanted to buy weapons from the United States, the U.S. ambassador to China said.

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Republicans are trying to campaign for the midterms, but they gave the toddler all power and looked the other way while he started spending. Voters “don’t want to be worried about how their taxpayer dollars are being spent,” says Utah Sen. John Curtis.

politico.com

Trump controversies pile on Senate Republicans as they seek midterm escape

Voters “don’t want to be worried about how their taxpayer dollars are being spent,” Utah Sen. John Curtis said.

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Republicans are scrambling to cast themselves as the party of sanity against a rising tide of socialism. They need to do this, they believe, to win the midterms. But then the Trump White House normalized the practice of federal corporate ownership.

washingtonpost.com

Opinion | The GOP had one real strategy left for November. Trump kneecapped it.

Republicans will pay for the president’s big-government policies.

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Donald Trump has turned his Cabinet meetings into spectacles of public groveling. We've known this for some time, but now the nation needs to be run, and the people running it, even if they had the skills to do so, are distracted.

wapo.st

In 3-hour televised Cabinet meeting, Trump soaks up flattery

For more than three televised hours, Cabinet members heaped praise on Trump in a fashion that analysts say resembled assemblies in authoritarian states.

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Polish up those apples, you folks. The rest of have known all along of the danger that comes from kowtowing, toadying, sucking up, piling it on thick, apple-polishing and otherwise bootlicking the boss. (Gift Article)

wapo.st

Opinion | Trump can’t resist a temptation known since the fall of man

From the Garden of Eden to the president's Cabinet meetings, apple-polishing has a sorry history.

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

It might surprise a lot of disgruntled voters, but the U.S. economy is doing pretty well. You know this because your President tells you. Repeatedly. You weren't going by those $4+ gas prices, were you? Or increased borrowing costs? Groceries? More?

politico.com

Trump's big regret: Consumers aren't buying his economic pitch.

Consumer sentiment is sagging, yet the economy is powering forward, driven by an AI investment boom and people still spending despite the strain of higher prices.

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Production is slated to begin in 2030, years after voters go to the polls in November. So "the largest steel plant in American history" may or may not be built in Iowa. No wonder he looked as if he fell asleep during his own meeting.

theguardian.com

Trump announces $15bn Iowa steel plant as he bids to boost flagging midterm hopes

President says plant will be built by Indian-owned company and calls it largest such facility in American history

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

ICE now schedules mass hearings in immigration courts, arranged at the last minute so that many people do not know about their court appointments or are unable to attend. They are then deemed no-shows — immediately subject to arrest and deportation.

theguardian.com

US immigration judges are deporting people in mass hearings – some without notice

Inside ‘mega master’ calendar hearings, the new tactic of scheduling hearings on short notice and deporting the people who don’t show up

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

ICE now detains more immigrants than ever, much if it through 287(g) agreements that deputize local police forces act on ICE’s behalf. ICE stalks the country, using these partnerships to arrest even those who have resolved their legal issues by probation. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/06/u...

nytimes.com

How a Memphis Gambling Raid Became a Sweeping Immigration Operation (Gift Article)

More than 120 people were arrested at a Memphis cantina, in one of the biggest immigration operations in Tennessee this year.

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

“DHS will not disclose or discuss law enforcement operations, strategy or tactics,” said Chandler Rebel, a spokesperson for the agency. But Americans have a right to know and approve of their tactics and policies. After all, we pay for it.

theguardian.com

Ilhan Omar brings bill to make ICE ‘pay the price’ for terrorizing communities

Make ICE Pay Act would block nearly $140bn in funding and redirect money to places reeling from Trump crackdown

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Grandma @grandmasweb.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

A Cuban man in Miami who stepped outside his house to take out the trash was detained moments after he had dropped the garbage bag into the bin. Now ICE is anywhere and everywhere, embedded in all corners of everyday life.

miamiherald.com

Cuban detained by ICE while taking out his trash in North Miami; family demands answers

He has since been transferred to the Torrance County Detention Center in Estancia, New Mexico, according to ICE’s detainee location search.

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