Military group deluged in complaints as Armageddon views pushed on troops
The Military Religious Freedom Foundation, or MRFF, has received over 110 complaints from service members across all military branches regarding commanders promoting apocalyptic Christian theology surrounding the Iran war. Complaints came from more than 40 units at 30+ military installations between Saturday and Monday. One commander told non-commissioned officers the war was "part of God's divine plan," citing the Book of Revelation and claiming President Trump was "anointed by Jesus to light the signal fire in Iran to cause Armageddon." MRFF President Mikey Weinstein noted commanders expressed "unrestricted euphoria" about the conflict fulfilling fundamentalist Christian End Times prophecy. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has elevated Christian nationalism theology within the military and attends White House Bible studies led by pastor Ralph Drollinger, who teaches that supporting Israel is biblically mandated.
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Trump tried to sabotage nemesis over bid to release Epstein files: report
President Donald Trump was reportedly so hell-bent on trying to stop lawmakers from revealing the relationship he had with Jeffrey Epstein that he tried to poach a Republican enemy's staff.
Trump apparently wanted to stop Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) and his team. Massie was pushing legislation to prompt the Department of Justice to release the Epstein files and the trove of documents connected to the late financier and convicted child sex offender, according to The Daily Beast.
The president reportedly aimed to disrupt Massie, who had co-sponsored the legislation with Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA).
"As the House moved toward a vote on releasing the Epstein files last summer and fall, the White House and top Trump allies launched an effort to forestall it that lawmakers told me was unprecedented in its intensity and scope," according to The Atlantic.
"Massie called it a '360-pressure campaign,' one felt not just by him and his staff but anyone associated with him," The Atlantic reported. "One tactic he had not experienced before: Some of his key staff members were suddenly offered more prestigious jobs in the Trump administration or more lucrative jobs in the private sector—the idea being that if Massie no longer had a full staff, he couldn’t pursue ambitious legislation."
Massie revealed several situations that caused him to pause.
"Massie recalled asking an employee who, a few weeks before the vote, had received an employment offer that would double his salary: 'Did it ever occur to you that they might be offering you this job to basically make me less effective?' He said the young man sheepishly replied: 'That’s what my mom said.' He turned down the offer and finished writing the bill," according to The Atlantic.
The Republican lawmaker has also signaled that he has felt unsafe during the process to release the files.
"I’ve p---ed off enough billionaires who are clearly amoral people that I might have shortened my expected lifespan,” he told The Atlantic.
Glaring Marsha Blackburn forced into awkward standoff with reporter outside tardy elevator
A sluggish elevator forced Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) into an awkward confrontation with a local TV reporter seeking answers about her gubernatorial campaign.
The MAGA senator is the frontrunner in the Republican primary for Tennessee governor, but she's refusing to debate her GOP rivals and has refused to give interviews with reporters, so the delayed elevator at an event in Nashville forced her into a tight spot with WTVF-TV's Ben Hall.
"Senator, can we ask you about your run for governor?" Hall said.
An aide told the reporter Blackburn didn't have time for questions, but Hall said reporters were told she would speak with the media.
"Well, we were told you were going to answer some questions," Hall said. "Why don't you have time to talk? Should you talk to voters about what you plan to do as governor?"
Blackburn glared at the reporter as she waited for the elevator, and Hall asked why she would not debate her GOP opponents.
"We're talking to Tennesseans every single day, every single day," Blackburn replied.
Hall asked whether voters had a right to hear about her plans if elected governor, and she retreated to her talking point.
"We are talking to individuals every single day," she repeated.
Hall continued pressing the senator for answers about taxpayer subsidies to lure the Starbucks headquarters to Tennessee and other campaign issues, and Blackburn continued repeating her talking point as she continued to wait for the elevator to arrive.
"Are you uncomfortable talking about issues surrounding the campaign?" Hall asked, and Blackburn insisted she wasn't. "Then why won't you sit down and do interviews? We've asked you for interviews multiple times."
Blackburn turned to her talking point once again before the elevator finally ended her stalemate.
"She's running out the clock, and it may be a political strategy," said longtime conservative commentator Steve Gill, publisher of the TriStar Daily. "I'm not sure it's a policy strategy, and she may pay a price for it down the road because voters won't know what she really stands for."
Early voting starts in three weeks, and the winner of the GOP primary will be a heavy favorite to win the November election.
"That is not the look that you want from someone who's asking to be the chief executive officer of the state of Tennessee, who ought to be able to fully discuss issues," Gill said.
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