Just War

Mike Johnson on the Pope: "If you wade into political waters, you should expect some political response & the Pope has received some. Frankly I was taken a bit aback by him saying something about 'those who engage in war, Jesus doesn't hear their prayers' or something. There's 'just war' doctrine.'"

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— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) April 15, 2026 at 4:00 PM

That there is "just war doctrine" does not mean it is being followed, obviously. The chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Doctrine:

“For over a thousand years, the Catholic Church has taught just war theory and it is that long tradition the Holy Father carefully references in his comments on war. A constant tenet of that thousand-year tradition is a nation can only legitimately take up the sword ‘in self-defense, once all peace efforts have failed’ (Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 2308). That is, to be a just war it must be a defense against another who actively wages war, which is what the Holy Father actually said: ‘He does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war.’ “When Pope Leo XIV speaks as supreme pastor of the universal Church, he is not merely offering opinions on theology, he is preaching the Gospel and exercising his ministry as the Vicar of Christ. The consistent teaching of the Church is insistent that all people of good will must pray and work toward lasting peace while avoiding the evils and injustices that accompany all wars.”

Not my theological dispute, but it is funny how these guys (republicans) are just dumbasses.

Pope-A-Dope

Trump rarely has a filter, but I am slightly curious about what is motivating JD to pick a fight with Pope Bob. Not that it has to make sense to me, but how does it make sense to him?

It's Us, Yes We're Back Again

Do we think there's even the notion of a plan here, or are they just following the random 3AM brain eruptions of the sundowning Mad King.

The Pentagon is sending thousands of additional troops into the Middle East in the coming days, as the Trump administration attempts to pressure Iran into a deal that could end the weeks-long conflict there while considering the possibility of additional strikes or ground operations if a fragile ceasefire does not hold, U.S. officials said.

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Schism

Very public converts (not all converts) have just decided they've found the religion which conveniently tells them God is behind everything they do, and in the case of some Catholic converts, that they certainly know better than the Pope.

Vice President JD Vance said Tuesday that Pope Leo XIV should “be careful” when he talks about theology, rebuking the pontiff over his criticisms of U.S. foreign policy.

I actually think treating the Pope like a political actor when he is being one is fine. I don't think religious figures should be entitled to automatic deference and respect. And, hey, if Vance breaks that taboo a bit, good for him.

It's just very funny because he is a recent convert lecturing the Pope about Catholicism. Also because he's a dumbass.

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Sadly, Evil Corp hasn't knocked recently.

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Corrupt Systems

One problem with corruption (very broadly defined), is that once it becomes entrenched in any institution, corrupt people make sure to push noncorrupt people out. One can't have any pesky whistleblowing dogooders around, even in the Political Party For Doing Good, as they might get in the way of everybody getting rich. The bad people push out the good people.

In early April, Stephanie Cutter, a former senior adviser to the 2024 Harris campaign and former Obama deputy campaign manager, was announced as a policy adviser for the prediction market firm Kalshi, where she will presumably work alongside Kalshi’s strategic adviser, Donald Trump Jr. In addition to her new gig, Kalshi has hired Precision Strategies, the communications firm Cutter co-founded, where she currently works as managing partner. Precision Strategies will help bolster the quasi-gambling firm’s presence in Washington as lawmakers become increasingly skeptical of the prediction markets industry. So far, so revolving door.

...

Cutter is not the first prominent Democratic insider to have moved from selling cryptocurrency to peddling prediction markets. Sean Patrick Maloney, the former DCCC chair, recently launched a prediction markets trade group that is backed by Kalshi. David Plouffe, Cutter’s former colleague on the Obama and Harris campaigns and at Precision Strategies, might also be interested in joining the effort. He has previously advised both Coinbase and Binance. Perhaps the most shameless sellout of the Obama presidency, former principal deputy solicitor general Neal Katyal, is also working on behalf of Kalshi.

Everybody's gotta eat, but I'm pretty sure Cutter has enough cash to eat well for the rest of her life.

I'm not always a perfect judge of character, and sadly I've found that "being more cynical" is the best defense against getting conned by people, but it is often not too hard to look at the people in politics and guess which ones are not, actually, primarily in it for the Do Gooding.

I won't claim I have had numerous opportunities to sell out, or that I never had my price for doing so, either, but I am regularly stunned by how easily people transition from supposedly being one of the good guys to working for Evil Corp.

Yes I do think there's something corrupt about being a senior adviser to a Dem presidential candidate while having one eye on your next lucrative gig.

This Is Not The Way

There is not a single voter in America, especially right now, who will be persuaded to take climate change seriously because of its impact on military readiness.

Deals

Seems like a "we'll push our scumbag guy (Swalwell) out if you push your scumbag guy (Gonzales) out" trade, perhaps necessary given the very close House.

I'm glad they resigned and I'm all for pressuring people to resign, but I actually don't like the idea of opening the door to making explusion votes a normal thing.

The Smartest Boys In The World

Running this blog all this time has had various impacts on my psyche. I wouldn't say all of the effects have been good! But early on I did learn that plenty of people who were umambiguously "smarter" than me read my blog, and that literally everyone who read my blog was "smarter" (knew more, etc.) about something!

I'm not a supergenius and there are plenty of things I don't know much about.

I don't know how idiots like this get so confident that they are supergeniuses.

“Some of the studies are testing new treatment regimens for drug- resistant tuberculosis,” I explained, hoping I could convey the very real danger in terms that would register with this audience. “Thousands of enrolled patients are at risk now that their lifesaving treatment is stopped. But that’s not the only danger. We only have limited options to treat drug- resistant TB. We’re using our antibiotics of last resort in these trials. Interrupting treatment midstream risks the development of new, even more drug-resistant strains that could be untreatable. For an airborne infectious disease, that is a serious national security risk.”

Adam thought for a moment and then responded, noting that the political appointees at USAID were “not health people.” It would be hard, he surmised, for nonexperts to understand this issue. And so he suggested that we draft a simple, “Barney-style” set of slides to help the political leadership grasp the dangers, referring to the purple dinosaur of children’s television. He recommended that we use the term “Super TB” instead of “drug- resistant TB” to describe the mutations that can develop when treatment is interrupted, because it might be more likely to “catch their attention.”

Adam then made clear that he did not count himself among those po- litical appointees who were not health experts. Though he had no relevant training or experience, he reassured me that he understood the severity of infectious diseases, noting that he had recently read a book about smallpox. Apparently he had watched movies as well.

“One thing I thought of while you were talking,” he added, gesticulating wildly with his hands to conjure the image in his mind. “If you can make one of those maps like they have in Outbreak, where it shows the red growing over time as the disease spreads? You know, like the zombie apocalypse? That would be great, very effective.”

The thought that Adam might have the most health expertise of anyone in the agency’s leadership made me shudder.

Excerpt from Into the Wood Chipper: A Whistleblower's Account of How the Trump Administration Shredded USAID.

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Everybody knows that I am the real Jesus.

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Oh No He's Lost Peter Baker

Notable, though of course it takes criticism from conservatives to prompt the piece.

As the president threatens to wipe out Iran and attacks the pope, even some former allies and advisers are questioning whether he has grown increasingly unbalanced, describing him as “lunatic” and “clearly insane.”

Yes, of course, Peter Baker is just reporting on what is OUT THERE and not expressing an opinion, which is forbidden - he doesn't even vote and makes sure to tell people that! - but it's a choice to do this piece.

This sort of thing is a little bit overdue. Will it shape coverage going forward, or has Peter just checked the box so that he can deflect criticism later?

You're Only Near-Jesus, Sir, Not Real Jesus

I guess Trumpsus was too much for his fans.

Q: Did you post that picture of yourself depicted as Jesus Christ? TRUMP: I did post it and I thought it was me as a doctor and had to do Red Cross. Only the fake news could come up with that one.

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— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) April 13, 2026 at 5:44 PM

The American Pope

I think we have a schism. Is it Pope Bob or Pope Don?

"Pope Leo is WEAK on crime." Murder rate skyrocketing in Vatican City!

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