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Ukraine Considers Legalizing Porn Industry to Fund Its War

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Wall Street Journal: “Unlike in most European countries, the production, distribution and possession of pornography in Ukraine is illegal, punishable by up to seven years in prison. Still, Ukraine has been unable to curtail a vast and lucrative porn industry, which officials say operates with the protection of corrupt police. “

“Ukrainian authorities are now demanding taxes from people who work in the porn industry. But anyone who complies is effectively confirming their involvement in criminal activity.”

New Hampshire Democrats Sound an Alarm

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“Two months before the midterms, Democrats are devoting vast financial resources to red states like Ohio, Iowa and Texas, daring to hope their party can reclaim the Senate with victories in a series of states President Trump won in 2024,” the New York Times reports.

“New Hampshire would like a word.”

“In recent weeks, a tide of anxiety has risen among Democrats in the Granite State who are concerned that a party with big dreams of expanding its map could let the seat left open by the pending retirement of Senator Jeanne Shaheen, a Democrat, slip from its grasp.”

Republicans Find There Is No Escape From Trump

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“In the White House Rose Garden last week, President Trump gathered some of the most politically endangered House Republicans for a dinner where he promised to make himself the face of the party’s uphill battle to keep control of Congress,” the New York Times reports.

“The scene encapsulated the box that GOP lawmakers have found themselves in as they stare down a bleak political environment.”

“They cannot afford to snub Mr. Trump, needing help from his enormous financial reserves and strong turnout from his base to win their campaigns. But they also do not want the election to be a referendum on the president, whose popularity is at a record low. And so far, he has shown little appetite for focusing on anyone’s political needs besides his own.”

Democratic Socialists Turn to Social Events for Recruitment

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Wall Street Journal: “The socialists, it turns out, are highly social.”

“In chapters across the country, they enjoy DSA barbecues, beach days, running clubs, happy hours, karaoke, prom nights, transgender rights and bodily autonomy game nights, reading groups, Marxist study circles and more. The DSA is even moving into affairs of the heart with a recent ‘Socialist Speed Dating’ event in New York’s Lower East Side.”

Gloria Steinem’s Final Essay

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Gloria Steinem, in her last essay for the New Yorker:

“For me, saying that I am a feminist has always meant that I believe in the social, economic, and political equality of all males and females of all races and groups. I know this sounds too simple to need a word, but equality is still the exception, not the rule.”

“Maybe we should call it egalitarianism, or even humanism. The problem with humanism is that it is often interpreted as being anti-religion, so I don’t think it’s inclusive enough. Regardless of what we call it, it just means treating each of us as uniquely human. The experiences of race and gender and class are very real and important, but they are also constructed and changeable. Our humanity is consistent and sacred.”

“Still, for some, it remains a mystery why women need a movement to distinguish our efforts toward equality. For me, it seems quite obvious.”

Republican Midterm Convention Speakers Revealed

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“President Trump and his top allies will share the stage with Republican candidates in some of the nation’s most competitive races at next week’s GOP midterm convention in Dallas,” Axios reports.

“The lineup underscores a central purpose of the convention: firing up Trump voters and getting them to turn out in November, even though the president isn’t on the ballot.”

“Trump will speak both nights of the Sept. 9-10 convention, while Vice President Vance will deliver a keynote address on the second night.”

GOP Warns Rank-and-File Members Not to Alienate Base

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“The Republican National Committee is issuing a warning to rank-and-file lawmakers up for reelection who are considering shying away from President Trump during the campaign: do so at your own peril,” the New York Post reports.

Said a RNC spokesperson: “If members are choosing to keep an arm’s length from the president, they risk alienating their base and they risk 15 to 20 percent of their key Republican voters not turning out because they don’t feel like they’re a good supporter of the president’s policies.”

Trump Removes White House Shrouds

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“Workers on Saturday removed drapes shrouding the White House’s iconic North Portico, as President Donald Trump prepares to show off his renovation work when Chinese President Xi Jinping visits the White House later this month,” the Washington Post reports.

“Teams of workers had been working under the shrouds for two months to repair the North Portico’s tall, white columns, as well as fortifying the portico’s entrance to the White House.”

Trump Says Beef Imports Coming from Argentina, Brazil

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“President Trump said Friday that tariff-free imported beef will be coming from Brazil and Argentina, among other places, as his administration works to alleviate stubbornly high prices,” NewsNation reports.

Said Trump: “It’s coming from Argentina. It’s coming from Brazil. It’s coming from a couple of other places. We have our inspectors down. It’s very clean. It’s very good.”

Trump’s Super PAC Drops $10 Million in Texas Senate Race

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“Donald Trump’s super PAC, MAGA Inc. spent $10 million this week to support Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in his tight Senate race, a financial disclosure filed Saturday afternoon revealed,” NOTUS reports.

“The president faced criticism from Republicans for not spending enough money to support Paxton, whom he endorsed over incumbent Sen. John Cornyn this spring.”

The Ballroom, the Arch, and the Rush-Job Presidency

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“Construction is notoriously slow-going work. But in Donald Trump’s Washington, cranes and bulldozers appear like DoorDash deliveries: fast, frictionless, and on demand,” The Atlantic reports.

“To build the president’s White House ballroom, roughly 250 workers have been pouring concrete and installing steel framework, keeping the site humming for 20 hours a day, seven days a week. The National Park Service has proposed a similarly intensive schedule for Trump’s planned triumphal arch… These are very different and ambitious projects, but they share the same presumed deadline: January 20, 2029.”

“They also share a risk: The compressed schedules could lead to shoddy work that will require more repairs later.”

Law-and-Order Republicans Turn Against Flock Cameras

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“The Texas governor, Greg Abbott, directed police departments last week to stop spending state money on Flock Safety cameras, the license-plate readers that have drawn bipartisan backlash around the country,” the New York Times reports.

“Days later in Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis’s administration ordered the systems removed from state roads. Mr. DeSantis has described the surveillance technology as ‘out of control.'”

“Both governors are tough-on-crime Republicans with deep backing from law enforcement agencies. Yet their moves underscore how the political winds are shifting against Flock and other plate-reading systems that have been embraced by police departments.”

Financial Times: Republicans revolt against Flock AI surveillance as tech backlash intensifies.

Trump Must Provide Notice Before Arch Construction

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“A federal judge said the Trump administration must provide the court with 48 hours’ notice before engaging in any work on the Memorial Circle for the president’s proposed 250-foot arch — a day after the interior secretary announced that groundbreaking would soon begin,” NOTUS reports.

“U.S. District Judge Tanya S. Chutkan’s order, signed Friday evening, applies to activity like excavation and construction, but exempts on-site information gathering to ensure compliance with the National Historic Preservation Act.”

New York Times: Is work starting for Trump’s arch? It depends who’s asking.

U.S. Rejects Map Change to Properly Show Africa

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“The United Nations voted Friday to endorse a world map that more accurately reflects the true size of continents, following an African-led campaign,” the Washington Post reports.

“The UN General Assembly voted 164 votes to 1 to adopt a resolution to encourage members to use the ‘Equal Earth’ projection rather than the commonly used Mercator map, which dates back to the 16th century.”

“The U.S. cast the sole vote against the initiative, while six countries abstained: Estonia, Georgia, Lithuania, Moldova, Serbia and Ukraine.”

About Political Wire

Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.

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