When Donald Trump started his first presidential run in 2015-16, I honestly didn’t know much about his family beyond his own coked-up demon seeds. Trump’s siblings, his extended family of nieces and nephews, they all have pretty weird relationships with Uncle Don, especially in the past decade. Mary Trump – Don’s niece – wrote a book ripping him to shreds. Now it’s Fred Trump III’s turn. Fred has written a book called All in the Family: The Trumps and How We Got This Way. Fred is Don’s nephew, he’s the son of Don’s younger brother Robert, and Fred is father to a son named William. William has special needs – a rare seizure disorder, the product of a KCNQ2 mutation. William has a lot of medical needs and Fred Trump has been able to use some of his family’s web of trust funds to pay for his son’s care and medical help. When Don was in the White House, Fred Trump went to see his uncle and he even went through proper channels and spoke to all of the right HHS people and brought in disability rights advocates and all of that. Now Fred is revealing what his uncle said to him about his son William, and about all people with disabilities. Excerpts from Fred’s book:

[In the White House, in May 2020]: The meeting I had assumed would be a quick handshake hello with Donald had turned into a 45-minute discussion in the Oval Office with all of us—Azar, Giroir, the advocates, and me. I never expected to be there so long. Donald seemed engaged, especially when several people in our group spoke about the heart-wrenching and expensive efforts they’d made to care for their profoundly disabled family members, who were constantly in and out of the hospital and living with complex arrays of challenges.

Donald was still Donald, of course. He bounced from subject to subject—disability to the stock market and back to disability. But promisingly, Donald seemed genuinely curious regarding the depth of medical needs across the U.S. and the individual challenges these families faced. He told the secretary and the assistant secretary to stay in touch with our group and to be supportive.

After I left the office, I was standing with the others near the side entrance to the West Wing when Donald’s assistant caught up with me. “Your uncle would like to see you,” she said. Azar was still in the Oval Office when I walked back in. “Hey, pal,” Donald said. “How’s everything going?”

“Good,” I said. “I appreciate your meeting with us.”

“Sure, happy to do it.”

He sounded interested and even concerned. I thought he had been touched by what the doctor and advocates in the meeting had just shared about their journey with their patients and their own family members. But I was wrong.

“Those people . . . ” Donald said, trailing off. “The shape they’re in, all the expenses, maybe those kinds of people should just die.”

I truly did not know what to say. He was talking about expenses. We were talking about human lives. For Donald, I think it really was about the expenses, even though we were there to talk about efficiencies, smarter investments, and human dignity. I turned and walked away.

***

[After Robert Trump’s death in August 2020, the Trump family started giving Fred grief about how much money he was taking out of the family trust to care for his son William. Eric Trump told Fred to speak to Donald about it.]

Soon thereafter, I was up at Briarcliff Manor, home of the Trump National Golf Club in Westchester, N.Y. Donald happened to be there. He was talking with a group of people. I didn’t want to interrupt. I just said hi on my way through the clubhouse. I called him later that afternoon, and he answered. I got him up to speed on what Eric had told me. I said I’d heard the fund for William was running low, and unfortunately, the expenses certainly were not easing up as our son got older. In fact, with inflation and other pressures, the needs were greater than they’d been. “We’re getting some blowback from Maryanne and Elizabeth and Ann Marie. We may need your help with this. Eric wanted me to give you a call.”

Donald took a second as if he was thinking about the whole situation.

“I don’t know,” he finally said, letting out a sigh. “He doesn’t recognize you. Maybe you should just let him die and move down to Florida.”

[Excerpts from Fred Trump’s book, via Time Magazine]

Callous, disgusting, inhumane, vile. In other words, completely on brand for Donald Trump. I’ve been surprised, from time to time, by some of Trump’s statements and opinions, but the idea that he’s so profoundly ableist that he openly advocates for the death/murder of people with disabilities? That sounds exactly like him. The Trump/Vance ticket is really burning it all to the ground, aren’t they? In the recent days, the stories have all been: step-parents are real parents; women who are not mothers don’t have a stake in society; women with cats are horrible; people with disabilities should die; a Black and Indian-American woman who has won multiple elections is “DEI.”

Photos courtesy of Cover Images.

As of Thursday morning, July 25th, Barack Obama has not endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris. In his statement on Sunday, Obama actually endorsed an open mini-primary and a brokered convention. Given that Obama’s former staffers were a big part of the maneuvers against President Biden, maneuvers which did not include the party backing Vice President Harris as the nominee, it absolutely seems that there are strong divisions between Biden World and Obama World. Not only that, Obama is still sitting back and withholding an endorsement as Democrats quickly got in lockstep behind VP Harris. Obama reportedly sees his role as “uniting the party behind the eventual nominee.” VP Harris has already united the party as the nominee. Also: don’t confuse “Obama should endorse” with “VP Harris needs the Obama endorsement.” The two things are not the same – at this point, Obama’s silence is affecting HIS support, not VP Harris’s.

This week, the Democrats and right-wing media have all noted Obama’s public silence on VP Harris. There are a lot of rumors going around in Dem circles, and of course the right-wing media is trying to turn Obama’s seeming reticence to endorse Harris into something. The NY Post’s “sources” claimed that Obama is withholding his endorsement because he doesn’t believe Harris can beat Trump. An obvious lie, but one which be thrown out there because the rest of the party has already gotten in formation. Well, Obama World has gotten their feathers ruffled by the pushback on Obama centering Obama (and not Biden and Harris) as the great party healer. Obama World wants everyone to know that Obama has been advising VP Harris and he plans to endorse soon:

Former President Barack Obama and Vice President Kamala Harris have been in close touch since she announced her presidential candidacy Sunday, having multiple conversations this week as she kicks off her campaign, according to four people familiar with their discussions. Obama privately has fully supported Harris’ candidacy and plans to endorse her soon, these people said.

“He has been in regular contact with her and thinks she’s been off to a great start,” one of them said.

Obama is one of the only high-profile Democrats in the country who has yet to endorse Harris. While other party leaders have stepped forward to publicly back her, he has so far kept his support private. The people familiar with the discussions didn’t know the precise timing of his endorsement. One of them said Obama didn’t want it to overshadow President Joe Biden’s moment, particularly his Oval Office address to the nation Wednesday night.

Another person familiar with the discussions said Obama and Harris, who is seeking to maintain the momentum her campaign has enjoyed among Democrats since she entered the race, wanted his endorsement to stand as its own moment. Aides to Obama and Harris also have discussed arranging for the two of them to appear together on the campaign trail, though no date has been set, three of the people familiar with the discussions said.

Michelle Obama also supports Harris’ candidacy, two people familiar with the matter said.

During their conversations in recent days, Obama has offered Harris his counsel on setting up a campaign and on other aspects of mounting a successful bid for the White House, which he has done twice, the people familiar with their discussions said. From Obama’s perspective, Harris has taken on a lot in a very short time, and he sees himself as a resource and a sounding board for her as she navigates a high-stakes campaign with about just 100 days until Election Day, according to two of the people familiar with their discussions.

[From NBC News]

“Obama has offered Harris his counsel on setting up a campaign” – what’s funny about that is Harris is largely eschewing the Obama crew, the bros who made a name for themselves with their attachment to Obama. Several Obama bros wanted to work as senior campaign staff, but Harris has mostly inherited and hired Biden people and brought in her own people from her previous campaigns. The one Obama-era person getting cited a lot is Eric Holder, who was Obama’s long-suffering Attorney General. Harris has asked Holder to help her vet running mates. I don’t see that as “Obama helping Harris” though – Harris and Holder had an existing relationship/alliance and she trusts him. Anyway, Obama needs to endorse sooner rather than later just because his lack of endorsement is becoming a huge f–king distraction as VP Harris soars.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Backgrid.

Prince Harry gave an interview to ITV’s Tabloids on Trial documentary, all about the group of celebrities and victims of crimes who saw their lives upended by criminal acts by the British tabloids. Phone hacking, breaking-and-entering, stalking, unlawful monitoring, records-hacking, blagging, and all of it happening over the course of decades. Harry has already been successful in his lawsuit against the Mirror, not only did the judgment go his way, but he also won substantial damages and the Mirror Group had to settle all of the other claims Harry made against them. He currently still has pending lawsuits against the Sun (News Group) and the Mail. Several clips from Harry’s ITV interview were released this week, and his answers about “the family rift” and whether his mother was “paranoid” were of particular interest:

The Duke of Sussex has said that his legal crusade against the tabloid press was central to the breakdown of his relationship with his family. Prince Harry, 39, told an ITV documentary that “it would be nice” if the Royal family had joined forces to take on the media together.

He said: “I think everything that’s played out has shown people what the truth of the matter is. For me, the mission continues, but it has… yes. It’s caused… part of a rift.”

The Duke believes that his continuing legal fight against the press, which has involved several High Court claims, some of which are active, is largely to blame. Asked whether his determination to fight the tabloids had destroyed the relationship with his family, he told the documentary, Tabloids on Trial: “Yeah, that’s certainly a central piece to it. But, you know, that’s a hard question to answer because anything I say about my family results in a torrent of abuse from the press…I’ve made it very clear that this is something that needs to be done. It would be nice if we, you know, did it as a family. I believe that, again, from a service standpoint and when you are in a public role, that these are the things that we should be doing for the greater good. But, you know, I’m doing this for my reasons.”

The Duke also suggests in the documentary that his legal battles had demonstrated that his mother, Diana, Princess of Wales, was not “paranoid” as many have suggested but was “absolutely right” to fear what was going on around her.

Asked whether phone hacking had made him paranoid, he said: “I think paranoia is a very interesting word because yes, then it could be paranoia, but then when you’re vindicated it proves that you weren’t being paranoid. You know, same with my mother. There is evidence to suggest that she was being hacked in the mid-1990s, probably one of the first people to be hacked and yet still today, the press, the tabloid press, very much enjoy painting her as being paranoid. But she wasn’t paranoid, she was absolutely right of what was happening to her. And she’s not around today to find out the truth.”

It is his first interview since his claim against Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN) concluded in December 2023, when he was awarded £140,600 in compensation after 15 of 33 articles were found to have been the product of phone hacking or unlawful information gathering. Prince Harry called the judge’s ruling a “monumental victory”.

He said: “To go in there and come out and have the judge rule in our favour was obviously huge. But for him to go as far as he did with regard to, you know, this wasn’t just the individual people. This went right up to the top…this was lawyers, this was high executives. And to be able to achieve that in a trial, that’s a monumental victory.”

[From The Telegraph]

Obviously, the discussion about “paranoia” was particularly loaded, given that Prince William stood up in public in 2021 and called his mother paranoid and afraid, a fragile woman who was manipulated away from… being Charles’s dutiful wife, or something. Harry has always honored Diana and her efforts to tell her story, and obviously, Diana was not paranoid. They really were hacking into her phone and following her and doing all kinds of dreadful things to her.

Now, I think Harry is being very selective about what he says about the family rift and how his battle with the tabloids has changed his relationship with his family. It’s not simply that “anything I say about my family results in a torrent of abuse from the press” – it’s that anything he says results in a torrent of abuse from HIS FAMILY. But he still got some good hits in – “It would be nice if we, you know, did it as a family” and “from a service standpoint and when you are in a public role, that these are the things that we should be doing for the greater good.” 100%

EXCL: Prince Harry tells me his legal fight with tabloids was a “central piece” in the breakdown of his relationship with his family.

In our ITV1 documentary ,Tabloids on Trial, Harry says in a “public role these are the things that we should be doing for the greater good”. pic.twitter.com/M065MbRShk

— Rebecca Barry (@BeccaBarry) July 24, 2024

EXCL: “When you’re vindicated, it proves you weren’t being paranoid”

Prince Harry tells me he experienced the same paranoia as his mother Princess Diana.

Our exclusive interview features in Tabloids on Trial on ITV1 at 9pm on Thursday pic.twitter.com/hqkk9Or21h

— Rebecca Barry (@BeccaBarry) July 24, 2024

Photos courtesy of Backgrid, ITV.

Prince Harry received an inheritance from his late mother, and I believe he received the money when he turned 30. He ended up using some of that money to move to California with Meghan and Archie, as they set up their new lives. In those chaotic days in 2020, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex ended up signing contracts with Netflix and Spotify, and then Harry became the Chief Impact Officer of BetterUp. Don’t forget Harry’s book deal, which probably ended up being the most profitable and successful move of his new American life. Many in the publishing industry estimated that Spare’s sales more than justified his advance and that he made millions beyond his advance. The point is that the Sussexes have money now, they have many different revenue streams and they had to do commercials deals so that they could pay for their private security. Well, according to random British reporting, Harry will soon collect a seven-figure check from a dead relative. His great-grandmother, the Queen Mum, left money for Harry and Prince William in a trust. The money will be released to Harry on his 40th birthday in September.

Prince Harry is set to receive a rather hefty 40th birthday present later this year, according to a report. The Duke of Sussex will turn 40 on Sept. 15, and an eye-popping cash gift awaits him as he ventures into his 40s.

Unlike his estranged brother Prince William, who received a ceremonial bell concert at Westminster Abbey on the milestone birthday, Harry will get a huge payout thanks to arrangements made by his late great-grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother.

The late Queen Elizabeth II’s mother put $90 million into a trust fund for her family, and listed that Harry was to access his share of the trust when he turned 40 as one of the fund’s stipulations, the Times reports. Still, Harry will have to pay tax on his future commercial earnings, the outlet adds.

The father of two is reportedly set to receive a whopping $8.5 million from his share — which is more than William is slated to get, the Mirror reports. As the heir to the throne, William will in turn benefit from the tax-exempt Duchy of Cornwall — a private estate that funds his public, charitable and private activities.

“William will benefit from the vast wealth of the Duchy of Cornwall, a private estate that funds the public, charitable, and private activities of the king’s heir,” a source told the outlet. “As a result, Harry is likely to receive slightly more than half of the £14 million allocated for the brothers.”

The Post has reached out to Kensington Palace and reps for the Harry and Meghan Markle for comment. The outlet notes that the hefty sum of money will be a welcome addition to the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s net worth, which currently sits comfortably at about $60 million.

[From The NY Post]

The Sussexes are worth $60 million, true or false? I would say false, especially after the success of Spare. I don’t think $60 million is a crazy underestimate, but I would guess that their net worth is probably more like $80 million (including real estate). While the inheritance is nice, they’re trying to make it sound like the Sussexes are desperate for any kind of cash infusion. I don’t think they are. As for Huevo getting less money from the Queen Mum… I’m pretty sure that’s the way Diana’s estate was set up as well, with Harry receiving more money than William beecause William is “the heir.”

Photos courtesy of Cover Images.

Immediately following President Biden’s withdrawal from the 2024 election and endorsement of VP Kamala Harris, there were some nasty comments online about how “Hillary Clinton must be furious” or “Kamala will be president and Hillary won’t.” Meanwhile, the Clintons have always been part of KHive and Hillary has always been enormously supportive of VP Harris personally and politically. Once Hillary Clinton lost the 2016 election, she knew that she did her part to put cracks in the glass ceiling and that more women would run for office and eventually we will have a woman president. That time is now and Hillary Clinton is 100% on board with Kamala Harris. Bill and Hillary Clinton were fast out of the gate with their endorsement, and now Hillary has written a wonderful New York Times op-ed. Here’s a partial excerpt:

History has its eye on us. President Biden’s decision to end his campaign was as pure an act of patriotism as I have seen in my lifetime. It should also be a call to action to the rest of us to continue his fight for the soul of our nation. The next 15 weeks will be like nothing this country has ever experienced politically, but have no doubt: This is a race Democrats can and must win.

Mr. Biden has done a hard and rare thing. Serving as president was a lifelong dream. And when he finally got there, he was exceptionally good at it. To give that up, to accept that finishing the job meant passing the baton, took real moral clarity. The country mattered more. As one who shared that dream and has had to make peace with letting it go, I know this wasn’t easy. But it was the right thing to do.

Elections are about the future. That’s why I am excited about Vice President Kamala Harris. She represents a fresh start for American politics. She can offer a hopeful, unifying vision. She is talented, experienced and ready to be president. And I know she can defeat Donald Trump.

There is now an even sharper, clearer choice in this election. On one side is a convicted criminal who cares only about himself and is trying to turn back the clock on our rights and our country. On the other is a savvy former prosecutor and successful vice president who embodies our faith that America’s best days are still ahead. It’s old grievances versus new solutions.

Ms. Harris’s record and character will be distorted and disparaged by a flood of disinformation and the kind of ugly prejudice we’re already hearing from MAGA mouthpieces. She and the campaign will have to cut through the noise, and all of us as voters must be thoughtful about what we read, believe and share.

I know a thing or two about how hard it can be for strong women candidates to fight through the sexism and double standards of American politics. I’ve been called a witch, a “nasty woman” and much worse. I was even burned in effigy. As a candidate, I sometimes shied away from talking about making history. I wasn’t sure voters were ready for that. And I wasn’t running to break a barrier; I was running because I thought I was the most qualified to do the job. While it still pains me that I couldn’t break that highest, hardest glass ceiling, I’m proud that my two presidential campaigns made it seem normal to have a woman at the top of the ticket.

Ms. Harris will face unique additional challenges as the first Black and South Asian woman to be at the top of a major party’s ticket. That’s real, but we shouldn’t be afraid. It is a trap to believe that progress is impossible. After all, I won the national popular vote by nearly three million in 2016, and it’s not so long ago that Americans overwhelmingly elected our first Black president. As we saw in the 2022 midterms, abortion bans and attacks on democracy are galvanizing women voters like never before. With Ms. Harris at the top of the ticket leading the way, this movement may become an unstoppable wave.

[From The NY Times]

Hillary was serving up bar after bar in this piece, so much so that I wanted to excerpt even more! But you should just read the whole thing. She’s right about everything – President Biden’s moral clarity, the role she has played in normalizing female candidates running for president and the enormous and chaotic backlash Kamala Harris will face. I love this: “all of us as voters must be thoughtful about what we read, believe and share.” Don’t amplify every dipsh-t hate tweet, don’t believe every lie built on misogynoir, don’t read the hatchet jobs written by beltway flunkies. Concentrate and keeping moving!

Also: I’m getting emotional at the thought of Joe Biden pointing to Kamala Harris and saying, in essence, “I was the bridge to her.” And now Hillary is doing the same: “I didn’t win, but Kamala can.”

Photos courtesy of Cover Images.

Again, it’s Disclosure Week for the British monarchy. The end of June marked the end of the British tax year, and they waited until the Windsors were heading off for their three-month summer holiday to drop all of their financial disclosures, or their lack of disclosures in Prince William’s case. The big headline for Buckingham Palace is that they’re making even more money than ever, mostly from their vast royal real estate holdings and from wind farms on “royal” land. As such, the Sovereign Grant is increasing too.

King Charles is set for a huge £45m pay rise with an increase of more than 50% in his official annual income, official accounts reveal. Profits of £1.1bn from the crown estate – a percentage of which funds the monarchy – mean the sovereign grant, which supports the official duties of the royal family, will rise from £86m in 2024-25 to £132m in 2025-26.

The monarchy currently receives 12% of the crown estate profits to fund its work as well as to fund the 10-year, £369m renovation of Buckingham Palace. Royal aides said the increase will be used to complete the palace reservicing programme by 2027. The sovereign grant will be reviewed in 2026-27 to reassess the amount handed over to the palace and ensure it is an “appropriate level”.

The significant increase in the sovereign grant in 2025-6 and 2026-7 “will be used to fund the final stages of the Buckingham Palace reservicing programme, enabling it to be complete both on time and on budget,” said Michael Stevens, the king’s Keeper of the Privy Purse.

Once this is accomplished, he said “a reduction in the absolute amount of the sovereign grant will be sought as part of the royal trustees review in 2026-27, through primary legislation”, to ensure that the work of the royal family “continues to be funded at an appropriate level”.

[From The Guardian]

Don’t hate me but I sort of understand the scheme they’re running and it makes sense to me? They’re telling the government to keep the Sovereign Grant percentage where it is for the time being because they’re still paying for the hugely expensive refurbishment/reno of Buckingham Palace, a decade-long undertaking. Now, it’s also funny because as soon as Charles saw all of that money coming in, he was like: we need new helicopters!!

King Charles is set to replace his 15-year-old helicopters this year as income from the Crown Estates soared to £1.1 billion last year.

The money is spent on running the royal household and helping the monarchy function effectively. One aspect funded by the grant is the family’s transport costs to formal engagements.

In total more than 170 helicopter journeys costing a total of over £1b were taken in the last year. The palace revealed that these will now be replaced with two brand new AgustaWestland AW139s.

Other areas the crown plans to invest in is the eco-friendly overhaul of the monarchy. Windsor Castle has already had solar panels installed while two of the King’s State Bentleys are being converted to run on biofuel.

Royal travel costs soared by hundreds of thousands of pounds last year despite fewer engagements due to the illness of the King and Princess of Wales, figures show. The Sovereign Grant report revealed travel expenditure went up by £300,000 at a bill of £4.2m despite there being around 400 fewer visits and less foreign travel than the year before.

[From The Independent]

I would guess that the travel costs rose because Charles and Camilla travel with so many staffers and there’s so much stage-management for all of their events. As for the new helicopters… if the choppers are really 15 years old, then yeah, they should be replaced. But I’m irritated that there’s not more energy towards forcing the Crown to disclose helicopter and private plane usage and miles logged.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.

Democrats are still brimming with excitement over Vice President Kamala Harris’s presidential candidacy. Enthusiasm is off the charts. The money is rolling in. Harris is putting the right people around her. Elected Democrats quickly lined up behind her and they’re ready to ride her coattails in down-ballot races. One of the biggest items on VP Harris’s to-do lists is “choose a running mate.” As soon as people understood that VP Harris is The One, we quickly understood that she would choose the least scandalous white man she could find. We need someone who is a good public speaker, someone between the age of 45-65, someone who already has a political base, and hopefully someone who can help out in swing states. The NY Times compiled their list of contenders:

ANDY BESHEAR
Governor of Kentucky, 46
Mr. Beshear is a two-term Democratic governor from Kentucky, a solidly Republican state. When he first won in 2019, his victory was regarded as a fluke; Mr. Trump won the state by about 30 percentage points three years earlier. But last year, he easily won re-election. He has emphasized the “common good,” working with Republicans on legislation, including medical marijuana, and often talks about his Christian faith. It’s a message that could be particularly appealing for Democrats now, as they try to win over moderate white voters in the suburbs.

ROY COOPER
Governor of North Carolina, 67
Mr. Cooper is the governor of what might at best be called a swing-ish state — Barack Obama won there in 2008. Picking Mr. Cooper might put it in play, or at the least, press the Trump campaign to invest money in a state it would otherwise not have to worry about. In 2020, when Mr. Trump won the state by 1.3 percentage points, Mr. Cooper was elected by 4 points. But he is term-limited, so he cannot run again. And if Mr. Cooper gets the nod, every time he leaves the state to campaign, Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, a very conservative Republican who is running for governor, becomes the acting governor.

MARK KELLY
U.S. Senator from Arizona, 60
The Arizona senator rose to national prominence after his wife, Representative Gabby Giffords, survived an assassination attempt in 2011. Mr. Kelly, a veteran of the Navy and a former astronaut, began campaigning for stricter gun control. He won his Senate seat in 2020. He has carved out an image as a moderate in Arizona, building a coalition that relied on white women in the suburbs as well as young Latino voters who were crucial in delivering the state to Mr. Biden in 2020.

JB PRITZKER
Governor of Illinois, 59
Mr. Pritzker has been the governor of Illinois since 2019. That is not a battleground state, but he is a billionaire, and could help finance the campaign. That’s no small matter as Mr. Trump has seen an avalanche of financial support since Mr. Biden’s poor debate appearance in June. Mr. Pritzker – who would be the second Jewish running mate on a major-party ticket in history if he were picked – has drawn Democratic attention with his attacks on Mr. Trump. “Do they really want a president who is a felon who faces jail time?” Mr. Pritzker said in June.

JOSH SHAPIRO
Governor of Pennsylvania, 51
Mr. Shapiro was elected as governor in 2022 after serving as the state’s attorney general. Pennsylvania is a must-win state for Democrats, and Mr. Shapiro’s stock among Democrats rose after he swamped his Republican opponent in 2022, Doug Mastriano, winning 56 percent of the vote. As demonstrations against Israel spread across campuses this fall, Mr. Shapiro — who is also Jewish — denounced the rise in antisemitism after the attack by Hamas on Israel on Oct. 7. He also won praise for overseeing quick repairs after a messy bridge collapse on I-95 last year.

[From The NY Times]

The Times also listed “less likely contenders” for VP: Wes Moore (governor of Maryland), Tim Walz (governor of Minnesota), Pete Buttigieg and Gina Raimondo. I agree that none of those people will be chosen as a running mate. I also think Gov. Shapiro won’t be chosen, even if Pennsylvania is a battleground state. Shapiro comes with too much “baggage” politically. I also think Gov. Pritzker is at the bottom of the shortlist, just because he doesn’t bring much to the table politically or demographically.

So, yeah, I think the VP race is between Beshear, Kelly and Cooper. I’ve seen a lot of North Carolinians advocating for Cooper – he’s enormously popular in NC, he’s scandal-free, he’s a decent family man and he’s unlikely to have many political ambitions outside of being VP. With Cooper on the ticket, it’s very likely Harris will win NC, which would be a huge deal. But I think senior Democrats are really pushing for Mark Kelly. They were actually pushing for Kelly at the top of the ticket when they were trying to force President Biden out of the race. Kelly brings a lot to the table too – he’s a veteran and astronaut and a “man’s man” who supports women’s rights. But here’s the thing… that would be two “Western Democrats” on the ticket together. We need some regional balance, which both Beshear and Cooper bring.

Photos courtesy of Cover Images.

The Duchess of Sussex was seen outside this week! It’s the first time we’ve seen “street style” Meghan in a while, right? While she was seen at the ESPYs two weeks ago, there were no paparazzi photos of Meghan out in Montecito for several months. Well, Meghan was seen on Sunday, having lunch with Kimberly Williams-Paisley at a Montecito hot spot.

Meghan Markle and Kimberly Williams-Paisley caught up over an Italian meal last weekend.

On Sunday, July 21, the Duchess of Sussex, 42, and actress and activist, 52, were seen leaving Tre Lune in Montecito, California, in photos obtained by the Daily Mail. The Italian restaurant and celebrity hot spot is in the same Santa Barbara enclave where Meghan lives with husband Prince Harry and their kids Prince Archie, 5, and Princess Lilibet, 3. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex dined at Tre Lune a few days before Meghan’s birthday last August.

The pair, who are both alumni of Northwestern University, caught up over pasta and wine, PEOPLE understands. Williams-Paisley graduated from Northwestern in 1993, and the Duchess of Sussex earned her degree in 2003.

Meghan and Williams-Paisley aced summer style, with the Duchess of Sussex wearing a white Anine Bing button-down tucked into jeans with Chanel flats. She accessorized with Ray-Ban aviator shades and two gold necklaces, carrying her Dior Lady D-Lite handbag.

[From People]

It feels so random that Meghan would be friends with Kimberly, but maybe it’s the actress connection or maybe it’s the Northwestern alum connection or maybe they’re just neighbors or something. No, that’s not right, the Paisleys live in Tennessee? So who knows. As for the restaurant… I remember looking up Tre Lune’s menu before, so that must be one of Meghan’s favorite local places. The menu is amazing and I would love to try like five of those pasta dishes. I’m dying to know Meghan’s order.

Something I do know is that Meghan’s ability to accessorize causes the British press to freak out every single time. For this outing, Meghan wore “accessories worth £61,795” and of course they’re including her engagement ring and Dior purse. She also wore a Cartier necklace, because Meghan loves some sparkle and some gold jewelry. The Dior bag is the Lady Dior, which they named in honor of Princess Diana. My least favorite part of the ensemble? Those terrible jeans. The wash is too light and the cut is tragic.

Who is Meghan Markle’s lunch pal? Kimberly Williams-Paisley starred in Father of the Bride alongside Steve Martin and is married to Brad Paisley https://t.co/CyljiDYrlO pic.twitter.com/X7mufZGjxk

— Daily Mail US (@DailyMail) July 23, 2024

Meghan Markle sports outfit and accessories worth £61,795 as she visits Montecito restaurant with actress Kimberly Williams-Paisley – including a £15,500 Cartier necklace and Dior bag named after Princess Diana https://t.co/3jy1kb1w8r pic.twitter.com/vWcyaddLYn

— Daily Mail Online (@MailOnline) July 23, 2024

Meghan was spotted having lunch with Kimberly Williams-Paisley yesterday in Montecito.
She wore –
Anine Bing shirt – https://t.co/EtRwWqlSCo
La Ligne jeans – https://t.co/X6FDgeOnH8
Ray-Ban sunglasses – https://t.co/HgnWtbrizC
Dior bag – https://t.co/bzJibn5cT6
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It’s Disclosure Week over in the UK, with Buckingham Palace and Kensington Palace courtiers sitting down with royal reporters and talking them through the royal finances at the end of the British “tax year.” Just in time for the Windsors’ summer holidays too – they really want to drop these disclosures and walk away for three months. There’s a lot of information to get through, but this one deserves its own stand-alone story. Remember how King Charles evicted the Duke and Duchess of Sussex from Frogmore Cottage last year? Remember how the eviction came after the Sussexes paid for extensive renovations on the dilapidated shack they were “gifted” by QEII? Remember how they had a valid lease and Charles still evicted them, and then he was fully prepared to give the cottage to Prince Andrew? Yeah, funny story – Frogmore is still sitting empty.

Frogmore Cottage is still lying empty more than a year after the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were forced out, as Prince Andrew refuses to move into the residence. Prince Harry was asked to remove his remaining possessions from the property just weeks after he published his explosive memoir Spare last year.

The Sussexes had provoked fury by spending £2.4 million of taxpayers’ money renovating it, but they covered the costs themselves following the outcry.

The Duke of York was offered the option to move into the cottage, instead of residing in the £30 million Royal Lodge while he has no apparent source of income, but he declined. Prince Andrew was forced to step back from royal duties amid the scandal over his friendship with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. The King has long been trying to persuade him to leave his 30-room Windsor mansion in favour of Frogmore Cottage.

But yesterday a Buckingham Palace spokesman confirmed that Frogmore is still empty as they detailed the annual Sovereign Grant report, which sets out how the monarchy is funded by taxpayers.

‘I think at this point I wouldn’t speculate on who would be the future occupant of Frogmore Cottage,’ they said.

[From The Daily Mail]

These people suck so hard. All of them – the focus on Frogmore specifically is all about the Sussexes and the British media’s gloating that the Sussexes were evicted out of spite. But there are so many cottages, mansions, palaces, forts and castles sitting empty on Crown-owned estates or part of private royal real estate holdings. Charles has made this big deal about how much money can be made renting out all of these properties and he still can’t fill Frogmore. It’s wasteful, stupid and extremely petty.

Photos courtesy of Netflix/The Sussexes. Cover courtesy of The Sun.

None of the Windsors are big on public disclosures, but King Charles arguably disclosed the most information out of his entire family, disclosures about income, staffing and taxes when he was Prince of Wales. Now that Prince William is PoW, he’s “doing things his own way,” which means… nowhere near the kind of disclosures his father used to make. Per ITV:

Prince William has chosen to withhold more information about his finances, as the Prince of Wales, than his father did before him. In the end-of-year accounts for the Duchy of Cornwall, the estate William inherited when he became the heir to the throne, shows that he has withheld the amount of tax he pays on his earnings. The accounts for the last full year – in which Charles was the Prince of Wales – revealed he voluntarily paid £5.9 million in income tax.

While Prince William, as the 25th Duke of Cornwall, still pays income tax in the same way as the 24th Duke (Prince Charles), his office has decided not to reveal the amount as they are not obliged to do so. Tax is paid by the Prince of Wales on his earnings from the Duchy of Cornwall after deducting official expenditure on his family.

The integrated Annual Report released on Wednesday by the Duchy of Cornwall shows that the surplus available to William, Kate and their family was £23.6 million – a small reduction from the year before caused by property management. The surplus pays for the official, charitable and private lives of the Prince and Princess of Wales and their household. Tax is paid at standard UK tax rates once official costs have been deducted from the £23.6 million figure.

Senior royal sources indicated that the amount of income tax William pays is higher than his father, but Kensington Palace declined to say how much tax was paid in 2023/24, nor how much money was left from the surplus on which tax was owed. It meant the report into finances for the Prince of Wales’ office was much less transparent than the one in 2021/22 – the last full year that Prince Charles was entitled to the Duchy of Cornwall money.

William and Kate employ less staff than Charles and Camilla did when they had the Duchy of Cornwall funds. The current Prince and Princess of Wales employ 66 staff – whereas his father used to employ around 100. 67% of William and Kate’s staff are female and 33% are male. Kensington Palace does not have a target for the diversity of their staff but did reveal 14% of their employees are from minority backgrounds. But the most senior team around William and Kate, the management body that reports directly to them, are all white men.

The Executive Committee of the Household is made up of five men: William’s Private Secretary, Ian Patrick, Kate’s Private Secretary, Tom White, Chief Operating Officer, Sean Carney, Head of the private household, James Benbow, and Communications Secretary, Lee Thompson.

[From ITV]

Shock of all shocks, William is secretive and squirrelly. He does not want peasants to know the actual breakdown of his office staff, he doesn’t want people to know his income or who pays for what, and he does not want anyone to know about his tax situation. I find the gender situation in Kensington Palace fascinating – a bunch of white men in “executive” positions, bossing around a staff of mostly younger women. Judging from what we can see of KP’s operations, that’s my assumption, that these are mostly younger, inexperienced female staffers who don’t actually know what the hell they’re doing. The ethnic breakdown… “14% of their employees are from minority backgrounds.” I’m going out on a limb and saying that I bet that 14% is mostly Asian and not Black. Anyway, I’m still waiting for people to mock William’s “obsession with privacy” considering the man won’t even reveal his taxes.

Photos courtesy of Cover Images.