iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

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Prem Thakker ツ @premthakker.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

My gosh. Mike Huckabee's top aide: —Covered up an embassy report on Israeli killings of 9 Americans —Fabricated Orwellian reports on Israeli settler violence & the "Gaza Humanitarian Foundation" to make it sound good for Israel —Questioned staff on whether they were “pro-Israel” or “pro-Hamas”

In late March, at the height of the Iran war, Israel quietly approved more settlements in the Israeli-occupied West Bank than it ever had at one time.
Staff members at the United States Embassy in Jerusalem saw the move as potentially flouting one of President Trump's explicit red lines for Israel - no annexation of the West Bank - and drafted an urgent report intended for policy makers in Washington.
That memo never reached Washington. It was quashed by David Milstein, a top aide to Ambassador Mike Huckabee, according to three U.S. officials briefed on the process.
This was no isolated incident.
Since taking up his post in April 2025, Mr. Milstein, 36, has repeatedly suppressed or significantly revised embassy reporting on Israeli activities to present the Netanyahu government in a favorable light, according to a dozen people who work with or interact with Mr. Milstein in both Jerusalem and Washington:
• As settler violence in the West Bank surged in the spring, for instance, he stymied embassy reporting suggesting that the Israeli government was failing to take action, according to the three officials. Instead the embassy sent a cable to Washington, viewed by The New York Times, praising Israel for "cracking down" on the attacks.
• When members of Congress pushed for accountability over the killings of nine Palestinian Americans by Israeli settlers and security forces, he suppressed a detailed report that the embassy staff had written, effectively stonewalling lawmakers' efforts to gain information, according to multiple officials briefed on the matter.

Mr. Milstein rewrote the cable to declare GHF's operation a success while overlooking the mass casualties, according to people who saw the cable and were briefed on the editing process.
Troubled by glaring discrepancies between news coverage and the embassy's official reports, White House and State Department officials seeking a clearer picture of events bypassed standard channels at least twice to communicate directly with embassy staff, according to two officials briefed on the outreach and an internal communication from late this summer seen by The Times.
Veteran American diplomats said that withholding or twisting the information sent to Washington should raise serious concerns.
"The embassy ought to tell Washington everything — the good, the bad and the ugly," said Dan Kurtzer, who was the U.S. ambassador to Israel under President George W. Bush. "If they're not doing so, they are damaging the policy-making process and possibly undermining the president's policies."
Mr. Milstein also questioned several colleagues on whether they were "pro-Israel" or "pro-Hamas," according to four officials, who found the question inappropriate and said it made some people fearful of speaking freely.

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Janet Hill @saskajanet.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Mr. Northern Flicker shows off his black cravat and moustache. Always in style #birds

Woodpecker perched on the edge of a birdbath in front of a single, golden elm leaf floating on the water. Bird has black polkadots on its front, topped by a black chest patch that looks like a cravat. He also has a black moustache. This bird exudes confidence.

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Don Moynihan @donmoyn.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

The award will allow her to purchase up to six new Icelandic sweaters

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the Mountain Goats @themountaingoats.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Michael Whelan’s work is in my imagination’s double helix, so SO important to me when I was a young would-be writer. Love this thread

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JLRay @jlray.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Whoa, one of the pedophiles responsible for the GOP's political power just died. No, not that one, the other one. No, not that one, the other one. No, not that one, the other one. No, not that one, the other one. No, not that one, the other one. No, not that one, the other wgntv.com/news/chicago...

wgntv.com

Former House Speaker Dennis Hastert dies at 84

Former U.S. House Speaker John Hastert has died at the age of 84 from natural causes.

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Delilah S. Dawson @delilahsdawson.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

me, age 20: Oh, Mrs. Bennett, your 'nerves'. Sooo annoying. 🙄 me, age 48, in perimenopause: This woman has 5 DAUGHTERS and NO MONEY and a husband WHO WON'T WORK and spends all his time SMIRKING IN A LAY-Z BOY, staring at PIG BALLS and at any moment the whole family will be HOMELESS.

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Merriam-Webster @merriam-webster.com · 05/10/2026

The SPEAKER implies. The LISTENER infers. The DUDE abides.

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Mark Hamill @markhamillofficial.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Agreed, as long as you replace the word ”exciting” with “terrifying.” #MidtermsCantComeSoonEnough

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Mark Jacob @markjacob.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

The NY Times uses words like “fierce,” “steely,” “nimble” and “homegrown star of the Trump White House” to describe Karoline Leavitt, who just got a Fox News gig. Not a single mention of her relentless lying to the American public. Reporter Michael M. Grynbaum and his editors suck.

nytimes.com

Karoline Leavitt, Trump’s ‘Machine Gun,’ Has a New Gig at Fox News (Gift Article)

A fierce and nimble speaker, Ms. Leavitt is the second of Mr. Trump’s former press secretaries to join the cable news network.

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Robert Reich @rbreich.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Early voting is already underway in some states. From now until Nov 3, I urge you all to... 1) Help get out the vote 2) Protect our electoral machinery from interference 3) Not succumb to complacency, defeatism, or cynicism We are the only ones who can end this nightmare.

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Mike Quigley @quigley.house.gov · 03/10/2026

The White House stole official government funds to create and televise a campaign advertisement, right before the midterm election. If Democrats take control of the House next year, the Appropriations Committee and I are ready to undo this waste, fraud, and abuse, and hold people accountable.

theguardian.com

Lawmakers call for action on ‘plainly illegal’ taxpayer-funded ads to promote Trump

House Democrats say officials may have illegally misused public funds to pay for president’s ‘narcissistic ego trips’

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Matt Novak @paleofuture.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

“Asked how many times he had voted for Trump, Bos held up three tattooed fingers. But he said he’s done with the president.”

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Alicia @aliciablackgirl.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Repossessions and foreclosures are at 2009 levels. 50 million Americans are relying on Food Banks. The 1% pay a fraction of the taxes that used to support our country. It’s pretty clear where Trump’s priorities are.

abcnews.com

A gut punch in Ohio: Nearly 1,400 laid off at truck factory just days before Trump rally

President Donald Trump is trying to rally voters in the Dayton, Ohio, area on Saturday

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Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 29/09/2026

holy shit -- turns out Jack Smith went to a Hawkeyes game in Maryland but Schmitt's team is so reckless they concocted a conspiracy theory that Smith was actually in Atlanta seeing a Hawks game and colluding with Fani Willis. Klobuchar points out to Schmitt, "you have your teams wrong."

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Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 29/09/2026

Klobuchar has Schmitt dead to rights: "The game in fact was in Maryland. For a senator to have false information & imply, based on confusion about name of a team, that you were in another city & somehow involved that day in what was happening in Georgia & call you a 'dirtbag' deserves an apology"

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jamelle @jamellebouie.net · 29/09/2026

if the GOP runs a vance/schmitt ticket then they should just give up the pretense and make the party’s slogan the fourteen words www.axios.com/2026/09/29/e...

axios.com

Sen. Eric Schmitt is drawing buzz as a possible Vance VP in 2028

Vance views the Missouri senator as trustworthy.

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Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 29/09/2026

🤡 Schmitt beclowns himself 🤡 Schmitt concocted an elaborate conspiracy theory that Smith traveled to Atl for a Hawks game and to collude with Fani Willis, & flashed his "evidence" before accusing Smith of perjury. There's just one problem -- his facts were totally wrong. Here's the whole sequence:

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Kristine @kristinelogie.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

What are we going to do about the natsec that he’s stealing right now ? He convinced Marco to betray his country and commit treason by appointing him in charge of national archives to help hide what he’s stealing.

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Angry @angrystaffer.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

One thing I’ve noticed in 6 years of Trump: when he tries to cheat, he bumblefucks it spectacularly. Martial law doesn’t provide a mechanism for cancelling elections. I think it would have the exact opposite effect - turnout is already going to be high, that would send it to the stratosphere.

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Kingfisher & Wombat @tkingfisher.com · 26/09/2026

So apropos of nothing in particular, let’s talk about media tie-in novel pay vs. original work pay, shall we? Let’s say you write a novel. It’s set in your own world, your own characters, and titled The Original. You get a book deal! Look at you go!

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Quinta Jurecic @qjurecic.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

This seems fine, I can’t think of any reasons why we might need counterterrorism expertise right now

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Robert Reich @rbreich.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

Starbucks’ CEO made 6,666x more than the company's median employee in 2024. In 2025, he made 1,794x more. And we're supposed to believe Starbucks can't afford to bargain a fair contract with its unionized workers? I will continue my boycott of Starbucks.

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ProPublica @propublica.org · 26/09/2026

In response to our reporting, Susan Collins has mustered a defense that is full of incorrect and misleading claims. We’ve reviewed FBI evidence, examined thousands of pages of records and interviewed dozens of people. Here are the receipts.

propublica.org

ProPublica Debunks Susan Collins’ Claims About FBI Anti-Corruption Probe

ProPublica revealed that the FBI was circling Sen. Collins over a defense contractor’s donations — until President Trump gutted the unit in charge. Collins has since mustered a defense with a series o...

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Andrew Lawrence @ndrew.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

a president planning military operations based entirely on election cycles is actually a giant scandal

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U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission @cpsc.gov · 26/09/2026

If you own 20+ flashlights, at a certain point you're probably running an unregistered lighthouse but we're not the lighthouse safety commission so keep up the good work.

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Abdul El-Sayed @abdulelsayed.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

We can make more jobs and drop the price of electricity while solving the climate crisis, too.

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Don Moynihan @donmoyn.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

Once again, the Supreme Court prioritizes imaginary harms done to Trump by not allowing him to indulge in his conspiracy theories, as opposed to the very real harm done to citizens who may lose the ability to vote in this case.

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Matthew Gertz @mattgertz.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

It is bad that the White House demonstrates casual disregard for the rule of law.

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Marc Elias @marcelias.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

🚨BREAKING: Democrats filed a lawsuit late Wednesday asking a federal court to prevent the Trump administration from deploying armed federal agents to voting sites during the midterm elections. www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/...

democracydocket.com

Democrats sue Trump admin to keep armed agents from polls during midterms

Democrats filed a lawsuit late Wednesday asking a federal court to prevent the Trump administration from deploying armed federal agents to voting sites during the midterm elections.

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Anna Bower @annabower.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

happy first (full) day of fall, bluesky

ina garten in a witch hat saying “If you can't summon the flames directly from hell, store-bought is fine.”

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Angry @angrystaffer.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

No matter what side of the aisle you’re on, this argument should be chilling. Trying to limit freedom of the press under the guise of national security is what tinpot dictators do. That’s not how a functioning democracy works.

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Media Matters for America @mmfa.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

Trump has accused journalists of “treason” or being “treasonous” at least 13 times since last year.

mediamatters.org

President Trump keeps casually accusing news outlets of treason

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Uncle Duke @uncleduke1969.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

“Where’s Chris?” “I don’t know.” “You told him three o’clock?” “Like ten times.” “Fucking drummers.” “Should we wait a little longer?” “Screw him, take the picture.”

Four squirrels posed together in what looks like a band picture.

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Mark Harris @markharris.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

You read that right: Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Qatar will, thanks to the approval of Trump's FCC, own 49.5% of Paramount Warner Brothers, and CBS, and CNN. One of many things to keep in mind when you cast your vote in the next six weeks.

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Missing The Point @missingthept.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

President Trump is 0-2 against pools.

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FactPost @factpostnews.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

Fox: 7 out of 10 Americans believe the Trump administration lacks a clear strategy for ending the Iran war. That includes 83% of independents.

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Angry @angrystaffer.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

I’ve seen that theory, and the way he warns about it happening is nightmare fuel. Johnson is no longer Speaker at noon on January 3. The House Clerk prepares the roll prior to Congress losing their jobs. The theory is that they could simply leave Dems off. It wouldn’t work, but it would be chaos.

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Angry @angrystaffer.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

The courts are doing everything they can to keep elections fair. I think we will likely see more bomb threats - the 2024 model, and potentially see people trying to prevent voting. That’s why I’m urging everyone to vote early if at all possible. We’re going to win. But it’s going to be stupid.

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Jay Willis @jaywillis.net · 15/09/2026

Genuinely an insane paragraph from Sam Alito. “Voter fraud is real and scary and we have to stop it, so the fact that implementing Trump’s mail ballot rule will disenfranchise millions is legally irrelevant.” Brain melted. A right-wing podcaster in a robe. www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/25p...

___, (slip op., at 9) (internal quotation marks omitted).
As for the equities, the Government has a strong interest
in enforcing the rule, and implementing it will also “en-
hance the visibility of Federal Ballot Mail” in order to better
detect election fraud. 91 Fed. Reg. 54972. On the other side
of the balance, the plaintiff States invoke the practical ef-
fects of implementing the rule close to the midterm elec-
tions. I take that problem very seriously, but it is not
enough to convince me to deny the application.
First, as the District Court acknowledged, the States dis-

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Josh Marshall @joshtpm.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

attacking your country on foreign territory

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Randi Mayem Singer @rmayemsinger.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

They'll be dead. They don't care about anyone else or anyone's children or grandchildren.

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