Today in Politics, Bulletin 445. 8/21/26 Ron Filipkowski Aug 21 ∙ … Wild new revelations in the Natalie Harp saga as Daily Beast published a few of the letters she sent Trump during their trip to Scotland. DB: Natalie Harp’s intimate letters to Trump are being revealed in full for the first time—showing her spilling her heart, and saying she is “unworthy” of him. “You are all that matters to me. I don’t want to ever let you down.” … “The Daily Beast is publishing them amid swirling questions over the national security implications of 35-year-old Harp’s status as 80-year-old Trump’s most significant gatekeeper, even being used as a conduit to the president by foreign leaders. … The extraordinary letters were written in 2023, either during or after Harp accompanied Trump on a trip to Scotland and Ireland. They reveal Harp’s utter devotion to Trump. She even tells him she is envious of women “whose only job seems to be to talk with you and look pretty.” … “I want that job!!” she writes in the letter, saying she missed the days when he would call “and we’d talk about everything and nothing. We shouldn’t have to talk about work all the time!!” she tells Trump. … Author Michael Wolff said that the letters were “discovered by members of the staff” in the piles of printouts which Harp would deliver to Trump. They were photographed, and those images were in circulation among the campaign staff. Wolff said that there was “a revolt” among staff at the time he was passed the letters. “The aides around Trump knew that he was spending too much time with Harp, that her influence was growing.” … Excerpts from her letters: “We could be out on the Course, with no machines, and even forget what time it was! I didn’t have to be ‘Human Printer.’ I could take time to enjoy good conversation, and still get all my work done at the end of the day. In fact, I even had time to take long morning and evening walks to enjoy each Sunrise and Sunset (though I did forget to eat and sleep!).” “I’ve always felt like an in-betweener, somewhere between Staff and those you enjoy talking to on the Plane or at Dinner, because that’s who I used to be to you when I was a ‘Talkshow Host’. I wish I could hear every conversation, because that’s when you’re having a good time, getting away from it all, at least for a few moments.” “And please, when I fail, will you tell me?” she writes. “You have the absolute right to cuss me out, if need be, when I deserve it, because no one knows or cares about me more.” … Jonathan Lemire in The Atlantic: “One new word stood out: Natalie. The line got a knowing laugh from a handful of observers in the room, and it electrified a subset of political obsessives on social media, who took to their favorite platforms and group chats with some version of ‘Oh, he went there!’” (I feel seen). … But although Jon Ossoff’s aside resonated with the junkies, the majority of Americans likely had no idea who this Natalie woman was, and might never have given it another thought. But then the West Wing lost its mind. And Trump did too. Their pushback was so overwhelming, so obviously coordinated, so ugly and personal that it became a story.” … “The WH inadvertently created news, as well as a permission structure for even the most cautious, fact-based media organizations to take on the topic. Which is why the name Natalie Harp is now everywhere. If the goal was to shut down talk about Harp, it backfired spectacularly. Suddenly, media outlets that had ignored her felt the need to write about her.” … “Questions about her security clearance came up, along with this one: When was the last time Melania Trump was seen in public anyway? (July 19, at the World Cup final.) And as more stories were written, West Wing aides got angrier, taking their cues from a furious president, two outside allies and a senior staffer told me. ‘It’s rare to see them this worked up about anything,’ one told me.” … “That furor, in a way, underlines Harp’s importance in Trump’s world. She is the president’s constant companion on Marine One, at Mar-a-Lago, and at summits across the world, those familiar with her position told me. They added that the president has described her to them as ‘my Natalie.’” … As I predicted, Melania made a surprise cameo appearance at the WH as Trump brought her out after the Harp story exploded. Daily Mail: “Melania Trump made her first public appearance with her husband Donald in more than a month. It marked a rare public outing for the presidential couple after the two have not been spotted together since the July 19 FIFA World Cup final in NJ.” … “Melania has only been spotted publicly 38 times this year, while she was seen 140 times in the first 18 months of her husband’s first term. Harp, meanwhile, is constantly seen in the Oval Office, boarding Air Force One, spending weekends with the President at his eponymous clubs and at his speaking engagements.” … Melania posted a photo today with her official car for Trump’s Freedom 250 IndyCar race in DC this weekend. … The Atlantic columnist Elaine Godfrey: “How many words does it take to trigger MAGA world? Three, it turns out. When Sen. Jon Ossoff said at a rally on Sunday that Trump wants to ‘travel with Natalie’. The outrage from Trump allies was as loud as it was predictable: Megyn Kelly, Newt Gingrich, and Laura Ingraham, among others, accused Ossoff of misogyny, despite having previously defended Trump’s own sexist comments. (The word hypocrisy feels inadequate here.)” … “But as this debate over propriety unfolds, a dedicated swath of the Democratic base is delighted. Since Trump’s reelection, these voters have been hankering to see their leaders show, well, a little more fight. So far, most of that fight seems to have come from midterm candidates on the far left, who often target the Democratic Party itself or the so-called establishment. To hear Ossoff, a more moderate Democrat in a reddish-purple state, direct a sharp—albeit petty—jab directly at the president thrilled such voters.” … Some, in fact, found it almost cathartic. “Someone finally said something,” a 52-year-old woman named Rebecca, who attended Ossoff’s Atlanta rally, told me, sounding delighted. Bring on the “smoke,” Aaron Whitely, the chair of the Democratic Party of Chatham County, in GA, told me. “The younger folks are looking for it. The older folks are loving it.” … “Ossoff appears to know this. It’s why viral clips of the senator, who is running for reelection, seem to pop up every few weeks like zinnias in summer. It’s also why you can’t have a conversation about the 2028 presidential race without mentioning his name.” … CNN: “The US Navy is working to rename an aircraft carrier under construction that was set to honor a Black sailor hailed for his heroic actions during the attack on Pearl Harbor. During Trump’s first term, the Navy announced that the Ford-class carrier would be called the USS Doris Miller, recognizing an enlisted sailor who helped defend US forces from Japan’s attack.” … “It’s unclear what the Navy is seeking to change the name of the carrier to, though two sources said there have been internal conversations about renaming it to honor Trump. It would be an unprecedented move to name an aircraft carrier after a sitting president. The Navy directed questions from CNN to Pete Hegseth’s office. A DOD spokesperson said they had nothing to announce at this time.” … “Doris “Dorie” Miller, from Waco, TX, enlisted in the US Navy in 1939. On the day of Japan’s attack, Miller - a Mess Attendant Third Class at the time - was retrieving laundry when bombs began falling on the US fleet. Mess attendant was one of the only jobs in the Navy open to Black men, according to the VA. Damage by Japan’s attack kept him from returning to his assigned battle station.” … “Miller proceeded to aid his wounded commanding officer, and then, despite having received no training on the system, took control of an anti-aircraft gun and opened fire on the Japanese aircraft.” … VA website: “Although untrained, he laid down effective fire and stopped firing when he ran out of ammunition and the ship began to sink. Even then, he persisted in helping his fellow sailors to safety until he finally made his way to shore.” Miller was famously portrayed by Cuba Gooding Jr. in the 2001 film “Pearl Harbor.” … "In 1942, Admiral Chester Nimitz presented Miller with the Navy Cross, and he was then sent out on a War Bond tour with several white service members, “making him the first African American allowed on the speaking tour,” according to the VA. Roughly a year later, Miller was killed during the Battle of Makin when his ship was hit by a Japanese submarine’s torpedo.” … Now Hegseth wants to name it after the Draft Dodger in Chief. … Former Trump Dep. Press Secretary Sarah Matthews on CNN: “He knows that no one will build monuments to him when he leaves office, so he has to do it himself.” … Trump took questions from reporters today and when asked about Scott Bessent’s failed intervention to prop up the bond market, addled Trump (who probably has no idea Bessent is even doing that and wouldn’t understand it if he did) answered it as if the question was about economic sanctions on Iran: Q - Bond yields have come back up since then. Have you talked to Bessent about another type of intervention? Trump: The ultimate intervention is our military. And if we have to use that, we will.” Iran would love to make a deal. But they’re not ready to make the right deal.” On the Strait of Hormuz: “We have total control, as you know, of the border. We have total control of that entire region - and that means well into it, the land areas.” On Karoline Leavitt’s possible replacement: “Scott Jennings is good. Margo Martin is good. I tell you what, I have never had so many applications. Everyone wants that job.” Q: “On the beef deal, which countries did you make the deal with? Trump: I don’t want to say.” … The peasants aren’t allowed to know where their foreign beef comes from. … Gas market expert Patrick DeHaan: “The national average price of gasoline slowly inching up, $4.11/gal this Friday morning, while diesel is now $5.57/gal, or 25 cents from matching its all-time record or $5.82/gal.” … CNN: “The average cost of packing a school lunch has risen by almost 11%. That’s a significant increase from last year. It’s going to cost you almost $4,000 a year to feed your kids for school lunch. Sandwich bread is up 22%. Juice boxes up 20%. Oranges up 17%. Crackers up 15%.” … Abdul El-Sayed on MS NOW: Q - “Why do you think Mike Rogers is so far refusing to agree to a date for this debate? El-Sayed: I hate to say it, he’s a coward. Rogers the Dodger does not want to actually debate because he knows that he’s an empty suit with no new ideas and a terrible record that he’s going to have to contend with. And then he’s going to be asked to defend Trump’s hideous record on everything from the economy to foreign policy to the drapes in the ballroom.” “He doesn’t want to have a debate. He’d rather just not face questions and instead make AI ads that go after me because of the color of my skin or how I pray. We’ve got to have a conversation about how we actually address the inflation crisis, how we get people health care, how we take on so many of the challenges that Trump is creating. I’m eager to have that conversation. He is welcome to do that, or he can continue to dodge or go back to his McMansion in FL.” “Rogers gets asked by a really smart, enterprising local reporter about his position on data centers. And the man clearly hasn’t actually thought about his position on data centers because he does whatever Trump or the corporations tell him to do. And he’s like, ‘I think we should take a pause’. Then his team tries to make up for the fact that he just made policy from the hip because he hasn’t taken the time to think about it, and issues a press release calling for a statewide moratorium.” “But guess what? He’s running for US Senate, meaning he can’t actually do anything at the state level. These aren’t serious people. These are corporate shills who are bought off by the companies who stand to benefit at our loss. And he stuck again between what the voters actually want and what Trump and the corporations who control him want.” … James Talarico on MS NOW: “Ken Paxton is anti-puppy, and I wish I was joking when I said that. But reports just came out revealing that, as AG, Ken Paxton protected a research lab that was notorious for torturing and killing hundreds of puppies. Paxton never misses an opportunity to do the wrong thing. And he won’t fight for the little guy, even when the little guy is literally a puppy.” Reminder there is no Bulletin tomorrow because I’m off Saturdays. I will be back on Sunday night with the Weekend Bulletin. If you missed yesterday’s Bulletin, you can find it here. We are heading out for a mountain hike in western Maine tomorrow with some cool waterfalls and gorges along the way to the summit. It is about 20 minutes from where Tucker Carlson lives. Hopefully he won’t be there. Thank you to everyone who reads, shares and subscribes! Meidas+ is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. … Rep. Greg Casar (D-TX) on MS NOW: “Flipping Texas is on the map, and the pollsters are just starting to catch up on this news. We know that we like to do everything bigger in Texas. There’s going to be a blue wave across the country. But we’re working on a blue tsunami in Texas.” “As Democrats, we need to own patriotism. We need to own taking care of our service members. And the best way to take care of our service members and our veterans is to not send them into needless conflicts just to make some military contractor more money.” … By the way, Casar is one of my favorite members of Congress. We have so many young stars. I wish some of the older members would move on to make room for them in leadership roles. Casar is one of the best. I truly think we are like a sports team who keeps its biggest stars on the bench. The good news is that in the modern era of social and independent media, they don’t have to sit quietly in the corner waiting their turn. … Politico: “Trump’s Super PAC continued to sit on its $400 million war chest in July, according to new spending figures, refusing to open the coffers to boost Republican candidates. The MAGA Inc. super PAC didn’t even spend in TX, where Ken Paxton is essentially in a dead heat with James Talarico and where Republican donors say Trump bears the responsibility to finance the campaign needed to keep the state from flipping.” … “The MAGA Inc. super PAC added over $3 million in cash on hand since the beginning of July, increasing the war chest to over $403 million. The PAC didn’t spend on behalf of any candidates last month, continuing a trend from June. The lack of direct spending on candidates comes as some Republicans said last month they are worried that the president and his PAC are waiting too long to get involved with competitive races.” … Trump has raised $403 million. He still hasn’t spent a single dollar on the midterms. … Since their lies about the state of the economy aren’t working with voters heading into the midterms, a series of Republicans went on Fox today to alternate between making excuses and blaming Biden. And Obama: Sen. Jim Banks (R-IN): Q - How do you think the conflict in Iran is going to affect the midterms? Banks: I give Trump so much credit. Some things are more important than elections. Host - But the election is coming. Banks: Trump’s legacy is going to be that he was the president who brought peace to the Middle East and to the whole wide world. We can be grateful and proud of that.” … So much peace in the Middle East. Sen. John Husted (R-OH) at a campaign rally today: “I want to tell you why electricity prices are rising - because of Obama and Biden.” RNC Chair Joe Gruters on NewsNation: Q - “New polling shows over 60% of Americans disapprove of the economy under Trump and puts his approval rating on 33%, the lowest it has ever been. How do you convince people you’re the right choice? Gruters: The president is still dealing with the Biden issues that were left over.” … Gruters defended Darlene Graham after her terrible performance in the SC senate debate where she appeared to know nothing: “I will tell you she is supportive of the president. That means the president trusts her and trusts her judgment. At the end of the day, she will be a MAGA warrior. It’s a quick learning curve once you’re thrown in there.” …Rep. Rich McCormick (R-GA) defended Graham on CNN: “You can gotcha on anything. I promise you, if I if I get into the weeds with you - and you’re really informed - I can stump you on a few things. Host: But I’m not a US senator.” … WaPo: “To kick off the week, Trump threatened to bomb Oman, a US ally that has been acting as a mediator trying to end the war against Iran. The next day, Trump posted a map with a circle around the Strait of Hormuz - and land along its shorelines in Oman, UAE and Iran - labeling the area ‘NEW U.S. Territory.’” … “Trump’s incendiary missives this week were a symptom of growing frustration, as the president does not appear to see a way out of the war that he started. Nearly 6 months after launching attacks on Iran with Israel and 75 days before elections that will determine whether his party retains control of Congress, Trump faces the kind of open-ended conflict he once claimed he would end.” … “Unable to force Tehran’s surrender and declare the victory he sought, Trump is increasingly lashing out at allies. He also seems worried of a potential side deal between Iran and other Persian Gulf countries that would open the strait, analysts said.” … Andrew Leber, a Middle East scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace: “He’s in a situation that he can’t get out of - and unlike so many other things that Trump has gotten himself into, he cannot get bailed out.” … AP: “Tens of thousands of residents in northwest Indiana were in survival mode Thursday as they endured a 9th day without power, throwing out spoiled food, lining up for hot meals and searching for places to charge their phones. In Gary, IN, schools remained closed after the deadly Aug. 11 storm downed trees and power lines. Residents turned to social media to find open laundromats and working Wi-Fi, while others sought food, diapers and cleaning wipes for low-income neighbors.” … “Meanwhile, heavy rains in central Ohio brought flash flooding that covered roadways in Columbus, the state capital, where emergency crews rescued motorists from stranded cars and saved a 12-year-old boy who was swept off a bridge.” … “Northern Indiana Public Service Co. said 68,000 customers were still without power as of Thursday morning. The utility said it has restored power to 306,500 others since Aug. 11. But power is not expected to be fully restored until Tuesday in some places, including Gary.” … “Courtney Page-Tan, an IN University professor who studies community resilience, said health concerns grow each day of a prolonged outage. With many people using generators, poor ventilation can lead to carbon monoxide poisoning. In addition, those reliant on medical devices risk having them lose their charge, while refrigerated food once safe to eat could pose health risks as it spoils.” … Trump has not said or posted a single word about the situation in Indiana. He did post about the Reflecting Pool, ballroom and DC car race last night. … Meidas reporter Scott Macfarlane: “Trump’s ‘get out of jail free’ cards for convicted crooks are actually costing crime victims a fortune. A scathing new investigation by Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee details how the sweeping wave of Trump’s pardons has robbed federal crime victims of $1.7 billion in potential restitution and fines.” … Because Trump wiped clean the slate of court-ordered restitution to victims, the convicted criminals are relieved of having to pay back stolen funds or to fix damage of their crimes. The investigation argued Trump’s pardons have triggered a historic and “massive redistribution of wealth in favor of convicted criminals.” … WSJ: “In 2023, Donald Trump Jr. stood on a podium at the NY Stock Exchange to celebrate the debut of PublicSquare, a little-known online marketplace founded as a MAGA alternative to Amazon and other e-commerce sites. Company executives hoped Trump Jr., an early investor and board member whose father pushed to snuff out progressive politics in American boardrooms, would help drive business to their ‘anti-woke’ marketplace.” … “They envisioned the marketplace as a place where American brands could sell household goods and family products to conservative, patriotic and religious consumers. 3 years later, PublicSquare is struggling. The company’s marketplace failed to gain traction with consumers, and its underlying business model later fell apart, executives acknowledged, after Trump embraced the tech companies he had attacked on the campaign trail.” … “Financial losses began piling up following years of excessive spending. The company has reported cumulative losses of nearly $160 million since going public, through the end of July, and remains unprofitable. Its stock has cratered by 99% since it went public in 2023.” … “Starting in 2024, shortly after Trump won the presidential election, the West Palm Beach, FL, company paid Trump Jr. $42,000 a month in consulting fees. Last year, Trump Jr. was making more than the company’s then-CEO.” … Reuters: “More than 150 wallets on Polymarket may have traded on inside US military information, attracting copycat bets and raising concerns that the market could broadcast signals exploitable by foreign adversaries. The analysis by the nonprofit research group Anti-Corruption Data Collective sheds new light on likely military insider trading on the prediction market and the broader risks such activity may pose.” … “Polymarket's international platform settles trades on a blockchain, meaning wagers are public, although traders remain anonymous. ACDC analyzed all settled markets through May 5 to identify ‘long-shot’ bets, which it defines as wagers of at least $2,500 placed cumulatively in an hour or less on an outcome with odds of 35% or less.” … “Within that universe, ACDC found 556 wallets it dubbed ‘Orcas,’ a nod to the killer whale’s precise and selective hunting tactics. These traders typically opened an account and quickly placed a highly successful long-shot bet in niche markets where insiders may have an informational edge, before in many cases cashing out and disappearing. … Of those, there were 152 exceptionally successful wallets that bet on military and defense markets, making $8 million collectively, with an average win rate of 97.2%.” … Trump posted: “Today, I concluded a deal to substantially lower the price of ground beef for working American families. For the next 90 days, the US will allow up to 300,000 metric tons of product for ground beef to be imported with no out of quota tariff.” … Trump-supporting Merriweather Farms posted one word on social media: “Betrayal.” … Sen. Tim Sheehy (R-MT): “I’ve advised Trump against this course of action for a year because American ranchers have been struggling against the packer monopoly for decades, and this will further harm them - most of whom are MAGA Republicans. The President’s heart is in the right place on wanting lower prices for the American people, and beef prices have been impacted by the Mexican screwworm. … But the reality is this action will make it more difficult for American ranchers to rebuild our herd and bring prices down for the American people. And most importantly, this will harm our ranching families who feed the nation.” … Sen. Deb Fischer (R-NE): “I’m extremely disappointed by this decision from the WH. We all want lower grocery prices, but as I’ve said for months, we cannot do it at the expense of American producers. Flooding the market with foreign beef hurts our livestock industry and undermines the long-term solution: growing the US cattle herd to meet demand.” … I’m sure Republicans will make the rest of us pay the MAGA ranchers billions in the 3rd Farm bailout bill this year. … NYT: “As the supply of interceptors from the US and Europe dwindles, civilian deaths rise in Ukraine. Nearly 1,400 civilians were killed in the first 6 months of 2026, a 37% increase from the same period in 2025 and a 114% increase from 2024.” … WSJ: “The global shortage of ballistic missile interceptors - particularly Patriots - and the failure of US manufacturers to dramatically ramp up production has emerged as the Achilles heel of the entire free world and its partners. Part of the imbalance in the missile threat is that the autocracies—those actually at war, like Russia and Iran, and those not yet, like China—have already put their defense-industrial base on a war footing, achieving rapid increases in production.” … Hours before the deadline, the Supreme Court stayed the order of the DC Court halting construction of the ballroom tomorrow “pending further order.” So they are taking the case and construction can continue whenever they decide to issue a final ruling, which could take a very long time. By the time they rule it could be completed. … The Atlantic: “Trump gets what he wants, when he wants it, from the National Park Service. One and a half million dollars to replace brick pavers in Lafayette Park, across from the WH? Contracting officials at the NPS DC HQ found the money within 5 days last month. A $170,000 request to remove a fence around the Hains Point golf course, preparing the ground for a new ‘championship-quality’ layout? 6 days this summer. And the $5 million project to gild equine statues along the nearby Memorial Bridge? That took 12 days.” … The rapid-approval system is specific to projects Trump wants, thanks to a reorganization at the Interior Dept led by Secretary Doug Burgum. Trump issued an executive order to make DC “safe and beautiful,” justifying the creation of an NPS docket of “WH priorities” that is handled separately from other park projects and is prioritized both for funding and contracting resources.” … “The list I received includes Trump’s well-known projects on the National Mall and the refurbishment of the WH, along with several lesser-known efforts: The hiring and equipping of 450 new Park Police officers in the DC region, and more than $12.8 million—some of which came from DOJ—for police equipment, including new Flock license-plate-reading cameras, radios, tasers, laptops, body cameras, and body armor.” … "Internal documentation for park projects typically includes “Consequences of Failure to Act,” which scores the urgency based on health and safety measures. When work began in January on fountains near the WH, officials described the need for the work in this way: “Such failure will disappoint visitors, as well as residents and employees of the WH.” … The new project-funding system was described by a contracting officer during an April meeting with NPS officials. “There’s 3 different lists: WH priorities, high priorities, and low priorities.” Projects on the low-priority list likely would not be completed. WH priorities, meanwhile, were nonnegotiable. As DC is beautified at great expense, vital needs at dozens of national parks are not being filled.” … Ohio Capital Journal: “OH Republican candidate for governor Vivek Ramaswamy has spent nearly $700,000 leasing a private jet since the start of his campaign, according to campaign finance records. Ramaswamy has spent nearly $690,000 leasing aircrafts since the start of his campaign.” … “The Republican candidate spent nearly $560,000 leasing a private jet from V Leasing LLC, whose address listed for the company is a house owned by Ramaswamy. He has also spent nearly $130,000 leasing a private jet from TVPX Aircraft Solutions in Salt Lake City, Utah.” … CBS: “Trump appeared on the radio show of Michael Cohen, his fixer-turned-foe, in a stunning public reunion with the man who once called him a ‘Cheeto-dusted cartoon villain’ and testified against him both in court and before Congress. The interview, part of which aired on Cohen’s radio program on 77 WABC-AM in NY, was an exceptionally friendly affair, with only passing reference to the men’s tumultuous history.” … Trump to Cohen: “They weaponized you like nobody’s ever been weaponized, like few have been. I respect the fact that you recanted everything you said. That’s a big thing that you did.” … “In an interview with CNN shortly before the radio interview aired, Cohen said he had resubmitted a pardon application to the WH that had been denied by the previous admin, but had yet to receive any response and planned to follow up Friday.” … From Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy’s Great American Road Trip show on YouTube where they traveled the country for 7 months with their 9 children: To his daughter who wants to go to Harvard: “If I send you there, I think what happens is they have professionalized figuring out how they can take good, young girls like you and, I think, corrupt their mind. They get perverted and contorted.” Rachel Campos-Duffy: “The key to a good, long-lasting marriage is to marry someone very good-looking that you’re attracted to because marriage involves a lot of forgiveness, and it’s easier to forgive someone when you’re very attracted to them.” Invite your friends and earn rewards If you enjoy Meidas+, share it with your friends and earn rewards when they subscribe.