The Mark Thompson Show

We examine President Trump's July 17, 2026, national address, including reactions to his remarks. "A White House teleprompter operator made more than $100,000 on Kalshi bets related to public speeches made by President Trump, two sources familiar with the matter told CBS News. The sources identified the federal employee as Gabriel Perez. A Kalshi spokesperson said the company investigated Perez's trading activity after its surveillance systems detected trades that didn't adhere to typical buying and selling patterns. Kalshi froze Perez's account, locking more than $90,000 in profits he made on the platform, the spokesperson confirmed." Mr. Mo'Kelly, Michael Shure, and Michael Snyder will join...

"Pete Hegseth wants a manly military. And he really, really wants you to know how badly he wants a manly military. In his 2024 book, The War on Warriors, Hegseth worried that the military risked becoming “effeminate, and apologetic”; he insisted that what liberals really want is “soft men, and a weak military,” and he scolded “Pentagon pussies” who refuse to stand up for soldiers on the battlefield. As secretary of defense, Hegseth has blocked the promotion of female military officers, removed the first woman to lead the Navy, and ordered a review of women’s “effectiveness” in ground-combat roles. He has also used the...

Todd Blanche is getting grilled today as he faces what could be the toughest test of his confirmation process to become Attorney General. Senators are expected to press him on the Justice Department’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files, allegations of politically motivated prosecutions, his close ties to President Trump, and his support for a proposed $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund. With Republicans holding only a narrow advantage on the Senate Judiciary Committee, today’s hearing is likely to produce sharp exchanges and revealing answers. We’ll break down the biggest moments, what Blanche says under oath, and what it all means for...

"A federal judge on Monday imposed professional penalties against lawyers representing President Trump in a civil lawsuit he brought against the IRS and harshly criticized the Justice Department for its handling of the case, concluding that the suit was brought for an "improper purpose."
In a scathing 56-page decision, U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams referred one of Mr. Trump's lawyers, Alejandro Brito, to the Florida Bar for potential disciplinary action. The judge limited the ability of a second lawyer, Daniel Epstein, to practice in the Southern District of Florida."
"US military says latest strikes will ‘continue imposing a...

"President Donald Trump said on Monday that the United States was reinstating a naval blockade on Iran and would be reimbursed 20% on all cargo shipped through the Strait of Hormuz after ​Tehran claimed it had closed the vital waterway.
"The Hormuz Strait is OPEN, and will remain OPEN, ‌with or without Iran. We are reinstating THE IRANIAN BLOCKADE," Trump said on Truth Social."
"Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said Sunday in his first public statement since he was hospitalized nearly a month ago that he was “briefly unconscious” after he suffered a fall.
In the statement, accompanied by a photo...

"An erratic and at times irascible Donald Trump has said he felt a “tremendous love” from western leaders at the Nato summit, only hours after lambasting them over their defence spending and not helping the US in attacking Iran." "President Donald Trump on Wednesday blundered his way through a briefing with reporters during a crunch summit of the NATO military alliance in Ankara, Turkey. While sitting alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the president bragged about the U.S. military’s ability to resist attacks from Iran, specifically an assault on the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln." Mr. Mo'Kelly and David Katz w...

CNN's Scott Jennings claims to have recently spoke to Mitch McConnell on the phone while he's been in the hospital. Unfortunately, Republican cable news analysts aren't the most trustworthy people in the world so who knows how much of his claim is true...
Michael Shure, John Rothmann, and Jared Yates Sexton will join us to discuss the top stories of the week.
The Mark Thompson Show 
7/8/26
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A major controversy has erupted in Maine's U.S. Senate race after a 41-year-old woman publicly accused Senate candidate Graham Platner of sexually assaulting her five years ago. The allegation has thrown his campaign into turmoil, with numerous Democratic voices calling on him to withdraw from the race.
Donald Trump pretty much admitted on Monday he meddled in the World Cup over a red card given to a USA team player during Wednesday’s game against Bosnia-Herzegovina.
According to the rules, Folarin Balogun should’ve been suspended for Monday’s game against Belgium, but FIFA lifted the suspension on Sun...

On the 250th anniversary of American independence, hundreds of masked members of Patriot Front, a neo-fascist, white supremacist organization, marched through Washington DC. To the horror of many onlookers, the group gathered at Union Station carrying banners, including the Confederate flag, before marching toward Capitol Hill.The group was also spotted riding the DC Metro, drawing concerned reactions from other passengers. We’ll explore what this reveals about extremism in America and whether it’s inflamed by Trump and his MAGA movement. 
iHeart Political Analyst Gary Dietrich will stop by to talk politics. 
The conversation continues with author and sc...

There is a Presidential package option for the wealthy to watch Trump’s fireworks extravaganza. The Kennedy Center is offering a $25,000 VIP fireworks experience for the Fourth of July display in Washington, D.C. Meanwhile, the mishaps continue with a big chunk of the stage at the Great American Fair crashing down and narrowly missing a group of dancers. Is Trump cutting corners on this celebration? We are following the indictment of three-time U.S. Olympian David Hearn over alleged damage to the National Mall reflecting pool, and the questions surrounding President Trump's reported $1.4 billion in cryptocurrency income and what it...

Tucker Carlson is now openly talking about helping build a new third party after breaking with the GOP over Trump’s war with Iran — a major sign of fracture inside the MAGA/right-wing coalition. Once one of Trump’s loudest media allies and a key voice pushing JD Vance into the VP slot, Carlson now says the Republican Party has abandoned “America First” principles and become indistinguishable from Democrats on war and finance. His proposed third-party push could expose a deeper rebellion inside Trump’s base — one driven by anger over foreign wars, immigration, and distrust of both major parties. Controversial...

New financial disclosures show President Donald Trump reported more than $2.2 billion in income during 2025, a dramatic increase from the roughly $600 million he reported the previous year. The filings indicate that much of the surge came from cryptocurrency ventures, digital tokens, licensing agreements, and other business interests that expanded after his return to the White House. The disclosures are already fueling renewed debate over presidential ethics, conflicts of interest, and whether a sitting president should be able to profit from private business ventures while serving in office.
A federal judge is dealing the Pentagon another legal setback, blocking a policy...

In a major victory for Donald Trump, the Supreme Court cleared the way for the president to remove members of independent federal agencies, marking one of the most significant expansions of presidential authority in decades. The ruling allows the administration to move forward with the firings of officials at agencies such as the Federal Trade Commission, while broader legal challenges continue, and it signals that longstanding protections designed to insulate independent regulators from political pressure may no longer hold. 
It’s a double whammy powerhouse kind of show as we welcome Pulitzer Ptize winning author and investigative journalist David Cay...

The Supreme Court handed Donald Trump another major legal setback, delivering rulings that pack significant consequences.
Underwhelming. That seems to be the consensus of attendees of The Great American State Fair. It’s President Trump's official 250th-anniversary celebration on the National Mall  going on through July. The fair was organized by Freedom 250, that’s the Trump administration-created group that seemed formed to compete with the congressionally established America250 organization. Most states participated,  but Maine, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania refused to send delegations, citing costs, scheduling conflicts, and politicization concerns. Other states left their booths unstaffed, with visitors finding empty displays at Haw...

Here we go again. Ship traffic in the Strait of Hormuz is at a standstill again. The United Nations International Maritime Organization halted its plan to evacuate stranded ships after a British military report confirmed a vessel was struck by a projectile off the coast of Oman. The attack occurred just hours after Iran threatened ships using the UN-backed evacuation route without Tehran's permission. Iran's newly established Persian Gulf strait authority has now warned that any transit outside its designated routes will not receive safe passage guarantees. Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, visiting the Gulf to reassure American...

For years, the Trump family organization cultivated lucrative relationships with Persian Gulf allies, but according to recent reporting, his decision to wage war on Iran and his unpredictable leadership have severely damaged his standing in the region. Now, major business figures and government officials, once friendly with Trump, are feeling betrayed. .Analysts say regional leaders that actively tried to prevent the war are angry over Trump's decision-making. That includes Emirati business leaders and government officials that say Trump's war reversed years of strategic cooperation. We’ll examine the growing rift between Trump and his once-loyal Gulf supporters. Corey Brettschneider is a...

In a stunning political move this week, President Donald Trump cancelled a planned ceremonial signing of a major bipartisan housing affordability bill at the Capitol. The bill, which passed both chambers of Congress by overwhelming margins, would have addressed critical housing affordability challenges facing Americans.
Trump is using the bill as leverage to force lawmakers to pass his proposed "SAVE AMERICA ACT," which would implement a radical overhaul of voting procedures. In a post on Truth Social, Trump declared the housing news conference and signing cancelled "until such time as we pass the desperately needed SAVE AMERICA ACT, which...

Vice President JD Vance says there is "very good" progress in Switzerland  with Iran negotiations. He says Iran is agreeing to allow nuclear inspectors back into the country following initial negotiations . Was he sitting at the same table as Iran’s negotiators? Iran's foreign ministry spokesman says nope, there  are no "plans for IAEA inspections" of nuclear sites,  Iran maintains the Strait of Hormuz will "never return to its pre-war conditions" and that Iran will maintain control of the vital waterway. Vance painted a positive picture with a new communication line established between negotiators to prevent incidents and ensure safe comme...

Iran negotiations are causing uncertainty inside the Trump administration. President Trump recently joked that if the negotiations succeed, he'll take full credit, but if it fails, he's handing the blame to Vice President JD Vance. It might seem like a joke on the surface, but it may also indicate that Trump is positioning Vance as the face of the Iran negotiations, despite Vance's initial opposition to the war. Vance has had to come to the president’s defense repeatedly over this very unpopular war. Could it impact Vance's 2028 presidential aspirations?  Is Vance’s role allowing Secretary of State Marco Rubio to st...

More than 160 military recruits at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas are battling a flu outbreak instead of completing training. Just weeks before the outbreak, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ended mandatory flu vaccination for the military, citing bodily autonomy and concerns about "overreaching mandates.” According to The Guardian, after the vaccine became optional in April 2026, only about 40% of recruits chose to get vaccinated. Now, at least 160 servicemembers living in tight quarters are sick and they're being ordered to get vaccinated as part of containment efforts. This outbreak highlights the consequences of policy changes in military medicine and raises cr...

American “hardliners” opposing the US–Iran memorandum of understanding, are being accused of selectively trusting Iranian state-linked messaging while dismissing diplomatic progress. Details of the agreement remain incomplete. Vice President JD Vance is saying sanctions relief and un-freezing assets would be conditioned on Iran’s follow-through in upcoming technical talks over the next two months. Responses are mixed: hardliners inside Iran are protesting, some US and Israeli critics warn of risks, while other international leaders call the deal a potential game-changer. 
We will talk about it with John Rothmann. He is a  presidential historian, a Middle East expert with a particul...

Is Trump’s Iran War and apparent peace deal a win or another Trump headline in search of substance?  
President Trump is touting a new Iran deal as a major breakthrough, but lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are asking what’s actually in this agreement. 
The reported deal comes with big promises about stability, security, and reopening the Strait of Hormuz, but details are scarce and even some Republicans say they’ll need answers before declaring victory.
We will run it past Pulitzer Prize winning author and investigative journalist David Cay Johnston. 
Mark talks politics...

Trump’s UFC White House stunt was quite the spectacle. President Trump’s birthday party/UFC fight event on the White House lawn brought out the bros, from Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg, Kris Marszalek, CEO of Crypto.com and David Ellison, the CEO of Paramount Skydance to Pete Hegseth and Kash Patel. Was the event intended to rescue a “macho” image for a president that seems to be getting weaker  and sleepier by the day? A president made to look even weaker by not being able to steamroll Iran as he planned?  Mark will discuss. 
The conversation continues with author and sc...

Elon Musk has built some of the most valuable companies on Earth, but how much of that success comes from innovation, and how much comes from a system that gives billionaires a different set of rules? As SpaceX’s valuation soars and IPO speculation grows, we look at the regulations, government support, private market advantages, and exceptions that critics say helped fuel the Musk empire. Were the rules bent ? Here we go again with the back-and-forth on Trump’s Iran War. Trump says a deal is imminent, but Iran says there’s no final decision on that. It’s contrary to what...

Bill Gates has some big regrets when it comes to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Yesterday, Gates testified to the House Oversight Committee about his past ties to Epstein. In a closed-door hearing, Gates said Epstein attempted to leverage information about Gates’s extramarital affairs “to pressure me to re-engage with him” after Gates had begun to cut ties. Gates said he regretted meeting with Epstein, but had never seen Epstein commit criminal conduct, and denied victimizing anyone. He acknowledged the meetings were a “grave error in judgment” that risked his reputation and his philanthropic work. Meanwhile, Epstein‘s longtime former perso...

A ceasefire broken. The U.S.launched “self-defense strikes” on Iranian air defense and radar sites last evening after a U.S. Apache helicopter was downed Monday near the Strait of Hormuz. The two pilots were rescued. This came after President Trump said the U.S. response “should be very strong, very powerful,” and earlier said talks with Iran were in their “final throes,” possibly concluding in “two or three days” though the status of those negotiations is now unclear.  Sources say U.S. targets included Iranian air defenses and radar installations as part of the retaliation. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi sa...

President Trump is likely not pleased at having to relive a booing crowd over and over again as the video replays today. He attended Game 3 of the NBA Finals at Madison Square Garden last night and became the first sitting U.S. president at an NBA Finals game. When the arena showed him on the jumbo screens during the national anthem as he gave a military salute, he was met with loud boos from the crowd; the jeers subsided when the U.S. flag appeared and fans cheered the Knicks. Trump watched from Knicks owner James Dolan’s suite with gu...

President Trump abruptly ended an on‑camera interview with NBC’s Kristen Welker after a heated back‑and‑forth about his claims that the 2020 election was “rigged” and assertions of voting problems in California’s recent primary. The exchange escalated when Welker pressed Trump for evidence. He accused her and major networks of being “crooked,” removed his mic, and left, later agreeing to a second interview. The segment also touched on his defense of a proposed roughly $1.8 billion fund to compensate allies (which the Justice Department said would not move forward) and his remarks about the possibility of war and U.S. elections. 

Trump is using wartime presidential authority to hand $700 million to coal-fired power plants in the US to prop us what he calls “clean, beautiful coal”, despite it being the dirtiest of fossil fuels. The funds will be used to bring a new coal export terminal online in Oakland, California, and to restart an existing facility in Maryland. That's in addition to plants across 10 states: West Virginia, Kentucky, North Carolina, Indiana, Tennessee, Arkansas, Arizona, Oklahoma, North Dakota and Wisconsin. Trump says "Each of those 10 states voted for Trump, We won them all.” The two new coal plants will be in Alaska and We...

The GOP-led House is behind a largely symbolic measure directing the president to remove U.S. forces from active hostilities with Iran unless Congress authorizes force or declares war. Four Republicans joined all Democrats in supporting it. The vote follows earlier attempts that stalled out. It also builds momentum for a related effort in the Senate. The White House is raising objections saying the move could weaken negotiations. The House also advanced a separate motion to bring Ukraine aid to the floor. Mo Kelly will discuss the idea that this vote signals growing congressional resistance, even within Trump’s party. Fo...

Results from yesterday’s primaries are still coming in, but they are shaping the 2026 midterm map and setting up a string of dramatic November matchups from New Jersey to California. We will look at key primary outcomes that could flip critical House and Senate districts and continuing redistricting efforts that could upend midterm outcomes. 
Presidential historian and political analyst John Rothmann joins the show to talk elections and more. 
Politics Girl - Leigh McGowan - stops by to talk Trump, midterms and America 250.
The Mark Thompson Show 
6/3/26

Today's Guests Links
Politics Girl - Leigh...

Trump Stops Israel Strike Plan? Iran Quitting Talks? David Cay Johnston & Trita Parsi Join 6/2/26
The Mark Thompson Show 
6/2/26

Today's Guests Links
Prof. David Cay Johnston at RIT, Pulitzer Prize winning Author & Investigative Journalist  https://bsky.app/profile/davidcayjohnston.bsky.social
https://www.dcreport.org/2026/06/01/kids-who-remember-hurricane-helene-trauma/
Trita Parsi https://tritaparsi.substack.com/

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Not so fast J6ers. A Judge is blocking payments from Trump’s new $1.776B "Anti‑Weaponization Fund" while courts consider challenges to the settlement that created it.  Trump is posting angry rants on social media against U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema who ordered a temporary freeze on any transfers, claims processing or disbursements from the fund after a lawsuit by former Jan. 6 prosecutor Andrew Floyd and other plaintiffs argued the program unlawfully favors political allies and lacks oversight. The fund was created as part of a deal tied to President Trump dropping lawsuits against the IRS and related civil...

Corruption Central has new address: 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. From Trump’s Weaponization slush fund to international negotiations including Trump Towers and sketchy stock trades and Crypto deals, this next gift should come as no surprise: Dell wins a $9.7B Pentagon deal — weeks after Trump publicly urged people to “go out and buy a Dell” and after Michael Dell’s family pledged $6.25B to seed the administration’s “Trump accounts.” We’ll check out the contract (a five‑year Core Enterprise Technology Agreement to supply Microsoft licensing, cloud subscriptions and on‑prem software). We’ll drill down into the Pentagon’s claim the award followed a compe...

Now threats to blow up Oman are coming from Trump. He is warning Oman to abandon talks with Iran about jointly charging a toll for ships in the Strait of Hormuz saying, “Oman will behave just like everybody else or we’ll have to blow them up.” Mark will discuss Trump’s latest threat, the rejected toll plan, the diplomatic ties between Oman and Iran and the U.S. military posture proposed to keep shipping open, and of course, dig into the regional and global risks if tensions escalate. Trump’s Iran war is bringing disastrous global economic consequences.Dr. Bill Black...

A new NPR report reveals the Department of Justice, under the Trump administration, systematically removed news releases and public records connected to prosecutions from the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. That includes records documenting violent assaults on police. Some records have been preserved by independent trackers and NPR’s Jan. 6 archive. Even so, the effort to wipe away criminal records fits into broader actions by the Trump administration, like mass pardons, personnel changes at DOJ, and public messaging that attempts to reframe the riot. We welcome presidential historian John Rothmann, host of the podcast ‘Around the Political World with...

President Trump returns to Walter Reed…again.
Monday was Trump’s third in-person medical checkup during his second term and it comes as experts speculate that his health is failing. We will look at he White House statement made about Ttump’s health, prior imaging and exams (including last year’s CT scan and April physical), the administration’s explanations for bruising and leg swelling (chronic venous insufficiency and aspirin use), and how critics and independent physicians have reacted to repeated visits and limited public detail despite being the oldest person to take on a new US presidential term. 
A trip...

The $1.8B Trump–Blanche slush fund is even more corrupt than we first realized. Todd Blanche is reportedly offering to cut Republican senators in on payouts to buy their support. They will be able to apply for fund money too. This scheme threatens America’s Constitutional Democracy. Please watch, share, and call your senators to demand an investigation and stop this. Mo Kelly will discuss this and more. We’ve got journalist Michael Shure, The Culture Blaster, Michael Snyder and Friday Fabulous Florida too!

Trump’s sketchy new $1.776 billion “anti-weaponization” fund will operate through the end of 2028. It will be overseen by a five-member commission to be appointed by the acting attorney general. Fearing convicted and pardoned January 6th insurgents will be eligible for payouts, two Capitol police officers are filing suit to put a stop to it. The DOJ says the commission will decide an applicant’s eligibility and payouts under a broadly worded “totality of the circumstances” standard. We welcome former federal prosecutor, and now defense attorney, David Katz to discuss the legality of what critics are calling Trump’s Slush Fund, the attached b...