ACCOUNTABILITY: Hegseth Sacks General for Leaking Controversial Intel Report on Iran Strikes.

I MEAN, HE ISN’T WRONG:

The CIA must arm and give logistical support to the moderate rebels. This is a people who are ready to overthrow their tyrannical government and embrace Western democracy. https://t.co/T9tjMhZnok

— Pine Baron (@SpiritofPines) August 24, 2025

CHANGE: 4 African countries get official hometowns, special visa category in Japan under migration deal.

Announced on the sidelines of the 9th Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD 9), held in Yokohama from August 20–23, 2025, the initiative forms part of Japan’s strategic effort to strengthen bilateral ties with African nations, promote cultural exchange, and address labour market challenges arising from its rapidly declining population.

Director of Information at the State House, Abiodun Oladunjoye, confirmed for the Nigerian side that the partnership will include a special visa category for highly skilled, innovative, and talented young Nigerians wishing to live and work in Kisarazu. Artisans and other blue-collar workers willing to upskill will also benefit from the special dispensation visa.

Similar arrangements are anticipated for Tanzania, Ghana, and Mozambique, providing structured pathways for professional development while supplying Japan with needed workforce talent.

Japan faces an aging population, with nearly 30% of its citizens aged 65 and above, and fewer than 60 working-age individuals per 100 retirees. This demographic shift has intensified the country’s need for foreign labour to support key sectors such as technology, manufacturing, agriculture, and healthcare.

Gaijin are increasingly Japan’s future, but if it goes for them anything like it’s gone for Europe…: “Japan should take a look at Western Europe and see how that strategy worked out for their diminishing native populations. Hope you like riots and massive social upheaval, because that’s what’s coming. Japan, you just should have had more kids.”

DAVID MANNEY: From Little Rock to L.A. to Chicago: Strong Presidents Act, Not Dictate. “This is the situation President Donald Trump faces with Baltimore and Chicago, where local leaders downplay crime or refuse to take action. The president offers to send in the National Guard, acting not as a tyrant, but as the man fixing the streetlight before the neighborhood falls into chaos.”

THE NEW SPACE RACE: SpaceX eyes Starship reusability milestones in rocket’s tenth flight test.

Launch is scheduled for 7:30pm Eastern, weather permitting.

You can watch it live here.

IT’S TIME FOR VICTORIA TAFT’S West Coast, Messed Coast™: Border Czar Tom Homan Mocks Antifa in Surprise Visit to Sanctuary Cities.

FLORIDA MAN FRIDAY [VIP]: Drug Delivery by Drone, What Could Go Wrong? “It’s time for your much-needed break from the serious news, and this week, we’ll learn when not to try and recover your drone, how not to dress for a police chase, and what they do for fun in Slovakia.”

CHANGE: Cracker Barrel loses almost $100 million in value as stock plunges after new logo release.

Wall Street’s reaction to the logo redesign comes as Cracker Barrel has been working to refresh its image through new menu items and redecorated stores that eschew the 55-year-old chain’s old-timey approach in favor of a more modern look.

According to the company’s website, the man and barrel in the old logo represented “the old country store experience where folks would gather around and share stories.”

It’s unusual for a company’s share price to plunge dramatically due to a logo redesign, although marketing missteps can cause investors to question a company’ strategy. Cracker Barrel’s overhaul has been overseen by CEO Julie Felss Masino, who last year described the chain as “not as relevant as we once were,” and announced plans to update its down-home menu.

I’m not a customer, so the change doesn’t affect me — but I’m certainly enjoying the memes.

Related (From Ed): Same here:

OUCH: Turley: John Bolton Could Face Years in Prison.

THE ROUND OF CHOICE FOR GANG-BANGERS EVERYWHERE: California’s Lead Ammo Ban Working as Intended, With Copper .22LR Ammo Expensive and Hard to Get.

THINGS WON’T RETURN TO NORMAL UNTIL THE LEFT FEELS THE PAIN OF THE NEW RULES THEY WROTE:

If actually happened here. In this country to Trump. And you applauded it. Get fucked. https://t.co/AYZW4xHQPF

— Chris Barron 🇺🇸 (@ChrisRBarron) August 22, 2025

BIDEN’S WHITE HOUSE SPOKESMAN SAYS THEY SPOKE IN PERSON ONLY TWICE.

A White House spokesperson for President Joe Biden has testified that he only spoke to the then-chief executive in person twice, Republican Rep. James Comer told reporters Thursday.

Ian Sams, who testified in front of a House committee about the MAGA-led conspiracy surrounding an autopen Biden used to sign legislation and pardons, was a spokesman for the White House Counsel’s Office from mid-2022 to August 2024.

Sams was one of Biden’s staunchest defenders last year, combating claims that the former president displayed signs of significant cognitive decline in his final year in power.

Comer, of Kentucky, countered on Thursday that it would be difficult for Sams to know the actual state of Biden given their limited interaction.

“He communicated with Joe Biden two times,” Comer said, citing Sams’ testimony, which has not been made public. “He saw Joe Biden—talked to Joe Biden—two times, the entire stint as White House spokesperson, but yet he would, every day, tweet and issue statements from the podium of the White House.”

The lawmaker clarified in a statement to Fox News that Sams also spoke to Biden once over the phone and on a virtual call in another instance. That raises their total interactions to four — about one every six months.

Biden being unable or unwilling to communicate with his own spokesman is some “MAGA-led conspiracy” about autopen abuse how, exactly?

NOT REALLY FEELING THE SHOCK: We Elect Psychopaths — And Then Act Surprised When They Act Like Psychopaths.

WHERE’S THE WINDOW? Passengers sue United and Delta for selling ‘window’ seats next to blank walls. “The lawsuits allege that United and Delta long have been aware of consumer complaints posted on social media about the windowless seats yet continued charging extra for window seats without windows.”

THE RATES ARE TOO DAMN HIGH: The Housing Market Hurts Americans, and Trump Blames Powell.

2026 PREVIEW: Vance in Georgia: Trump Team Has Your Back, Ossoff Doesn’t.

RUY TEIXEIRA: Two, Three, Many Sister Souljah Moments!

This is the top challenge facing the Democrats today. Yet they are shockingly M.I.A. in dealing with it. Democrats overwhelmingly would rather do anything than do what is needed: two, three many Sister Souljah moments. Consider how Democrats have handled culturally-inflected issues since their 2024 election defeat.

Trans? A few peeps, quickly slapped down by the Groups and party activists.

Immigration? Everything Trump’s doing is wrong. We’ll only cooperate with federal law enforcement when we feel like it.

Crime? Not a problem. Everything’s going great—especially in D.C.! Democratic House leader Hakeem Jeffries: “The crime scene in D.C. most damaging to everyday Americans is at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.” Trump’s turning D.C. into a police state!

Race? DEI is wonderful and we’ll defend it to our dying breath. Same thing with racial preferences. Those who oppose these policies are racists and white supremacists.

The list could go on. Using the traditional 0-10 Sister Souljah scale, where zero is doing nothing at all, 5 is barely adequate, and 10 is what Bill Clinton did, I’d give today’s Democrats a 1 for the occasional grudging admission in interviews and the like that maybe the Democrats have overdone their noble commitments a little bit (though of course their heinous opponents are 100 percent wrong). And the 1 might be generous.

Moments like these are when the Old Guard that pissed everything away is usually forced aside by the Young Turks to build things back up. But in the Democrats’ case today, the next generation seems even more radical, and determined to continues pissing everything away.

I keep saying two things: They can’t stay stupid forever, and that they seem determined to try.

Go long on popcorn.

KRUISER’S MORNING BRIEFING: Karen Bass Exists to Make Gavin Newsom Look Competent. “Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass has been getting all of the wrong kinds of press since fire destroyed Pacific Palisades and other areas of her city. We’ve seen public officials not handle crises well before, but Bass is going to need her own wing in the Mega FAIL Hall of Shame. Bass is the mayor of the second largest city in the country and has performed as if she couldn’t be trusted to keep fake houseplant alive.”

ASKING THE IMPORTANT QUESTIONS: What if A.I. Doesn’t Get Much Better Than This?

Lots of juicy details, but this one stands out:

Continuing to buy into the A.I. hype might bring its own perils. In a recent article, Zitron pointed out that about thirty-five per cent of U.S. stock-market value—and therefore a large share of many retirement portfolios—is currently tied up in the so-called Magnificent Seven technology companies. According to Zitron’s analysis, these firms spent five hundred and sixty billion dollars on A.I.-related capital expenditures in the past eighteen months, while their A.I. revenues were only about thirty-five billion. “When you look at these numbers, you feel insane,” Zitron told me.

Something that can’t go on forever will stop, the wise man once said.

ICYMI, IT’S MY THURSDAY ESSAY FOR VIP SUBSCRIBERS: We’re Losing the Race for the Ultimate High Ground.

SARAH HOYT’S SHOCKED FACE IS STUCK LIKE THAT:

Gavin Newsom is using the gerrymandering to raise money for his own campaign?

Who could possibly have seen this coming?https://t.co/Gx87TqdQPP https://t.co/6QcDQHcMfH

— Will O'Neill (@RealWillONeill) August 21, 2025

As I wrote earlier this week, “California Governor Gavin Newsom believes in nothing aside from furthering the endless ambition of California Governor Gavin Newsom.”

THE COST OF WAR: Parts of Russia face gasoline shortages after Ukraine struck refineries.

Since early August, Ukraine has targeted a number of oil refineries including Novokuibyshevsk, Syzran, Ryazan and Volgograd in response to Moscow’s missile and drone attacks.

In Russia’s far eastern region of Primorye, local media reported lines stretching back kilometres (miles) as motorists queued to fill up with gasoline. Authorities blamed an influx of tourists.

NNK, an oil company, said many of its gasoline carriers in the region were stuck in traffic jams for three to six hours at a time due to repair works on the roads, according to local media.

Yevgeny Balitsky, Moscow-appointed governor of Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia region, which is mostly under Russian control, said on Thursday that gasoline retail sales in several areas were suffering problems because of peak demand and refinery maintenance.

“In the Zaporizhzhia region, the fuel shortage is further complicated by logistics issues and the threat of enemy attacks on fuel trains,” he said.

If you’d like more details than Reuters can provide, there are plenty of them on this X thread.

This seems relevant, too: Trump suggests Ukraine should attack Russia to win war.

“It is very hard, if not impossible, to win a war without attacking an invaders country. It’s like a great team in sports that has a fantastic defence, but is not allowed to play offence. There is no chance of winning! It is like that with Ukraine and Russia,” Mr Trump wrote in his Truth Social website.

“Crooked and grossly incompetent Joe Biden would not let Ukraine FIGHT BACK, only DEFEND. How did that work out?”

I’d rather Trump wrangle an equitable armistice, but since Putin seems determined to slow walk the peace process, I’m very curious to see how Kyiv’s systematic attacks on Russia’s energy oil infrastructure pan out.

PAULA BOLYARD: Rest in Peace, James Dobson, and Thank You.

THEY’RE RIGHT TO BE: Teachers are skeptical of ‘equitable’ grading: ‘Students sink to lower expectations.’

OOF:

I believe you mean $0.00

Thank you for your attention to this matter. https://t.co/RlJ5d2hIQf

— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) August 21, 2025