July 4, 2026 - Team USA Advances Without Balogun

Donald Trump took in $1.2 billion from crypto last year. That's what his new financial disclosure - 927 pages, released Tuesday - reveals. More than $500 million from World Liberty Financial. Another $635 million in meme coin royalties. Forbes says his net worth has nearly tripled in office, to $6 billion. The Washington Post calls the scale without modern presidential precedent.

And the country shrugged.

Mark Halperin thinks he knows why. Trump, he wrote and repeated on yesterday’s radio program, is a student of presidential self-dealing. If LBJ built a broadcast fortune while in office, Trump will do the same - supersized. To Trump, a difference in degree isn't a scandal, it's a scoreboard.

But it's another Halperin observation I can't shake: "To the extent the general public cares about these abuses of office, it is largely on the left, with many of the cynical citizens among us finding it difficult to work up more than annoyance at what amounts to the ultimate 'dog bites man' story: 'Politician Gets Richer.'"

Is he right? Maybe. Trump never hid any of this. Voters saw the coins and the Bibles and the sneakers - and elected him anyway. Then again, Halperin himself notes that this round of buckraking has stunned some conservatives out of their slumber. Even the Wall Street Journal opinion page flinched.

So today I'm not asking you to judge Trump. His voters did that three times and elected him twice. I'm asking you to judge Halperin's claim - about you. Go vote on the poll question. 

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The U.S. men's national team earned its first World Cup knockout-stage victory since 2002 with a 2-0 win over Bosnia-Herzegovina, but will face Belgium without leading scorer Folarin Balogun, who was suspended after receiving a controversial red card.

NBC News

At least 18 people were killed and about 90 injured after Russia launched one of its largest missile and drone attacks on Kyiv, striking dozens of locations despite Ukraine intercepting most projectiles, as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Moscow of rejecting peace efforts and renewed calls for stronger air defenses.

Al Jazeera

An Associated Press investigation reconstructs a deadly February strike on an Iranian primary school that reportedly killed at least 157 people, including 123 children, while raising questions about U.S. responsibility, Pentagon transparency, and possible intelligence failures that allowed the school to be targeted.

Associated Press

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are expected to marry at Madison Square Garden on July 3 in a black-tie ceremony with a strict no-phones, no-gifts policy, while preparations continue and hundreds of guests—including numerous celebrities—are expected to attend.

People

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A new Gallup poll finds American pride has fallen to its lowest level since 2001, with sharp declines among Democrats, independents, younger adults and women, while just 43% of Americans say they display the U.S. flag outside their home on holidays or other occasions.

Gallup

Russian urban climbers Angela Nikolau and Ivan Beerkus, known for the Netflix documentary Skywalkers: A Love Story, were taken into custody after illegally scaling the Empire State Building's spire, where they displayed a peace banner before being apprehended by NYPD officers.

Outside Magazine

The retrofitted Boeing 747-8i gifted by Qatar flew as Air Force One for the first time on Wednesday, replacing the VC-25A that has served presidents since 1990 with a larger, faster jet featuring gold fixtures, massage chairs, and a red, white, and navy livery chosen by President Trump.

Business Insider

Authorities in Ohio rescued 16 children, ages 18 months to 18 years, from what officials described as horrific and unsafe conditions inside a Vinton County home, arresting four adults on multiple felony child endangerment charges as investigators continue to examine the case.

The Cincinnati Enquirer

After revealing his four-month House absence was for inpatient depression treatment, Rep. Tom Kean Jr. drew sympathy but also criticism from colleagues — including Speaker Mike Johnson — who said the New Jersey Republican owed his constituents more transparency far sooner.

Politico

President Trump's aides are bracing for a lackluster turnout at his July Fourth address on the National Mall after sparse crowds and logistical stumbles plagued the Great American State Fair kicking off the country's 250th birthday celebration.

CNN