Mother Country How I Love You. Tabs, Mon., July 7, 2025

Morning news roundup and things to read!

Tabs gif by your friend Martini Glambassador!

Good morning! Marcie has the week off. Am I going to have to write posts? HOW WILL WE LIVE????

Absolutely horrendous news on July 4, as flash flooding in the Texas Hill Country swept a still unknown number of little girls away, all of them Donna Rose and Lu’s age. The death toll at the moment is about 70. But while people with brains in their heads are waiting for reporting on how much Trump and Musk’s DOGE massacring NOAA and the NWS had to do with the lack of forecasts and communication, the worst people in the world are blaming “weather manipulation” and “Joe Biden.” It’s real REAL bad y’all. (Jeff Tiedrich / The Fucking News)

The National Weather Service was properly staffed up for the emergency, AP says, and if I were somebody who lies about shit and blames the opposition for everything, I would ignore that bit of reporting and blame Trump anyway but I’m not, so. The county had previously declined to put in a siren system, even though 10 teenagers were killed in a flash flood 40 years ago, because it would have been expensive. (AP) Except — hmmm? — did the NWS lie to the AP about being properly staffed, because the New York Times says the NWS office was missing “a senior hydrologist, staff forecaster and meteorologist in charge, according to Tom Fahy, the legislative director for the National Weather Service Employees Organization, the union that represents Weather Service workers.” And: “That office’s warning coordination meteorologist left on April 30, after taking the early retirement package the Trump administration used to reduce the number of federal employees, according to a person with knowledge of his departure.” That seems important too! (NYT)

Here are two beautiful things to make you cry. AMERICA! Popehat and the Filipino veterans citizenship. (Popehat) What Mr. Ramirez taught Charlotte Clymer. (Charlotte’s Web Thoughts)

We have sent the migrants to South Sudan. (Chris Geidner at Law Dork)

From last week, and I don’t know if I already gave you this one: The filthy deal between Trump, Salvadoran President Bukele, and MS-13, and what that has to do with the shockingly bullshit case against Kilmar Abrego Garcia. Our Liz goes deep. (Public Notice)

After passage of Trump’s Big Bullshit Bill, the rural hospitals are closing already. Presumably Joe Biden’s fault. (Splinter) The budget bill tax scam, explained! (Greg Sargent at The New Republic)

Who’s giving Kristi Noem $80,000 (undisclosed) and why? (ProPublica)

Donald Trump is doing a UFC championship at the White House. Why that’s more than just vulgar and aesthetically gross. (The Guardian)

Dude’s lawyer got in trouble for citing a bunch of hallucinated cases via AI, so she cited ELEVEN MORE hallucinated cases. (Caselaw)

I enjoyed this essay on feminism’s Sex Wars! (Jude Doyle)

Here’s a couple of overviews of the WHAT THE FUCK NEW YORK TIMES pathetic, screamingly unethical story on Zohran Mamdani’s hacked college application, before I get around to writing a post on the WHAT THE FUCK NEW YORK TIMES pathetic, screamingly unethical story on Zohran Mamdani’s hacked college application. Ugh I hate writing posts! (Don Moynihan / Noah Berlatsky)

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Coming WONKMEETS!

Join me, Shy, and the kids in ANACORTES, WASHINGTON, Sunday, July 13, 4-6 p.m. at Washington Park! We’ll buy some fried chicken and beer, come and hang out! We’ll be near the playground near Sunset Beach.

Join me, Shy, the kids, and Dok in SEATTLE, Sunday, July 20, 3-6 p.m. at Lincoln Park near the North Play Area! We’ll be coming off a weeklong trip to Shy’s family cabin (built by his dad and his grandpa with their hands in the 1960s!) in the San Juans, so help us out and come potluck!

Join Thalia and Menotsure in ATLANTA, Saturday, July 26, 5-8 p.m. at Reformation Brewery for a lovely evening of brewing up good trouble! Reformation Brewery has both indoor and outdoor seating, has food available, and is both pet- and kid-friendly. Please email Thalia at realistic.caregiving@gmail.com to RSVP.

Do YOU want to host a Wonkmeet in your neck of the woods? Seize the means of Wonkmeet production, and email me at rebecca at wonkette dot com with the deets!

Wonkette has parties! You should

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