A quick summary of Donald Trump’s bizarre sometimes maniacal press conference from Mar a Lago.
As he now frequently does my 18 year old son Zein asked the best question: is he delusional or is he lying. It’s both obviously.
He was lying when he suggested that Iran may have somehow “bought” a Tomahawk missile and fired it at their own school massacring 167 of their own schoolchildren in the first hour of the war (and presumably another to double-tap their desperate parents, teachers, and frantic emergency workers) In fact this may be the most vile despicable lie an American president has ever uttered in public. And that’s saying something.
It is certainly the most consequential lie because it will define what is left of his presidency.
But he must have delusional to repeatedly declare the Iranian forces as essentially disarmed, with no ships no air defence no missiles no launchers.
Because he knows we know that for three nights running Iran has been smashing Israeli cities left essentially undefended by virtually useless Iron Dome interceptors causing thousands of casualties many of them high-value personnel and destroying hundreds of often very consequential buildings and institutions.
He knows we know that he has just evacuated ALL US bases in the Persian Gulf because their retreat under fire is on our screens.
Thus his Arab allies (whom he dumped right in it by publicly stating how engaged they have been in his war while they are lying to their public that they are not) are now completely without US military presence on their land and at Iran’s mercy.
He is delusional surely in his statements that he is going to control the Straits of Hormuz. Any American ships in the Straits will be immediately destroyed by anti-ship missiles in fact several just have been.
If he lands the 82nd Airborne on the strategic island of Kharg in the Straits the Iranians will destroy the island, sink it, oil installations, US occupiers and all.
Blocking the Straits for good and creating an environmental catastrophe which will poison the entire Gulf Waters for years to come.
Does he think Iran is thinking about future oil revenues at this point?
This is an existential question for Iran now: to be or not to be?
Even British Intelligence sources are saying that idea is “terrifyingly nuts”.
But he was straight out lying, again consequentially so, when he quoted Vladimir Putin as being “very impressed” at Trump’s worst war leader in history performance! In fact the US-Israel attack on Iran is the most disastrous military-political blunder since Operation Barbarossa, Hitler’s invasion of the USSR.
And what can we say about his statement that he was doing all this: “For China”!!! And “honoured to do so”!
China is EXEMPT for Iranian measures, its tankers are passing freely through the Straits. The only country named as being so. Ditto Chinese shipping in the Red Sea courtesy of the Yemen authorities- Ansarallah. Was that a lie or a delusion? I don’t know son, your guess is as good as mine.
More much more on Wednesday on the Mother of all Talkshows.
George Galloway Leader of the Workers Party of Britain In Exile
Sacked Bersatu deputy president Hamzah Zainudin has indicated that he will proceed with plans to be a part of a new political entity, rather than accept an invitation to return to Umno.
While still coy on his exact plans, the parliamentary opposition leader last night hosted a breaking fast gathering attended by all Perikatan Nasional component party leaders and others, including Berjasa president Zamani Ibrahim, Pejuang president Mukhriz Mahathir, and Parti Keluarga Malaysia founder Khairi Jaya.
Apart from Gerakan president Dominic Lau and Malaysian Indian People's Party president P Punithan, also seated at the main table with Hamzah was MIC president SA Vigneswaran, whose party was previously speculated to exit BN and join PN.
PAS was represented by its central committee member, Pendang MP Awang Hashim.
Met by reporters later, Hamzah (above) said the gathering was held to strengthen ties.
“Strengthening these ties creates the feeling that I do not disregard any party, including Umno.
“But if the question is whether I will join Umno, no. As you can see just now, many parties are with me. So I will see how things develop for the future of the people.
“There is no need to join (Umno),” said Hamzah when quizzed on Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s remarks that all former members are welcome to rejoin the party under his “Rumah Bangsa” vision.
Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi (centre)
Before joining Bersatu, Hamzah was among Umno lawmakers who declared a loss of confidence in Zahid’s leadership and quit the party on Dec 14, 2018.
‘100pct support to PN’
On whether MIC still intended to join PN, Hamzah said the question should be posed to Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar as the coalition’s new chairperson.
“I am not affiliated with any party, so if you ask about that, I don’t know.
“What I can say is that I give my 100 percent support to PN,” he stressed.
PN chairperson Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar
Previously, Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin reportedly said he would block any attempts by Hamzah’s new party to join PN, as he accused the Larut MP of being “untrustworthy”.
Since his sacking, Hamzah has largely remained silent on his next political move, but last week he reportedly hinted at a potential takeover of the yet-to-be-registered Parti Keluarga Malaysia.
The purported takeover was revealed after Berita Harian reported its founder as claiming that the move is “almost 90 percent certain” based on recent discussions with Hamzah and Tasek Gelugor MP Wan Saiful Wan Jan.
Tasek Gelugor MP Wan Saiful Wan Jan
Hamzah said the discussions require detailed consideration.
“I don’t want anything to be left out. That’s why we are taking time. For example, when they formed the party, perhaps they wanted to do it quickly.
“So I feel there are several things that do not align with my nature. That is why I need time,” he said.
“I think there will be enough time. As soon as possible. That means maybe after Raya, before Raya - it depends,” he added when quizzed on preparations to face looming elections, including registering a new political party.
‘Just sack them’
Last night’s function held at an event hall in Putrajaya also saw the attendance of a line-up of sacked Bersatu leaders and lawmakers, and those awaiting disciplinary actions, including Bersatu vice-president Ronald Kiandee and Bersatu Women chief Mas Ermieyati Samsudin.
Bersatu veep Ronald Kiandee
Hamzah, in a swipe at Bersatu leaders aligned with Muhyiddin, said they should just proceed with sacking his supporters so that they could move on.
Bersatu secretary-general Azmin Ali and Bersatu information chief Tun Faisal Ismail Aziz had previously insisted that the party divisions remain intact despite mass resignations, and new office bearers will replace those who left.
U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern criticized President Donald Trump’s foreign policy on Saturday, saying the president “thinks he’s Napoleon” and warning of expanding conflicts from Venezuela to Iran, and potentially Cuba.
In a post on X, McGovern said the moves are “not about freedom or human rights,” but about rewarding wealthy donors and political allies. : Getty
Russia ready to supply energy to Europe if it asks, says Putin
Oil prices have skyrocketed over the Iran war, trading above US$100 this week for the first time since Russia launched its Ukraine offensive in 2022
Russian President Vladimir Putin said Moscow would continue to supply oil to ‘reliable’ partners in Asia, as well as EU members Hungary and Slovakia. (EPA Images pic)
MOSCOW: Russia would supply oil and gas to European buyers, provided such co-operation was “long-term” and did not put political pressure on Moscow, president Vladimir Putin said Monday.
Oil prices have skyrocketed since the US and Israel began striking Iran on Feb 28, trading above US$100 this week for the first time since Russia launched its Ukraine offensive in 2022.
In a televised meeting, Putin said Moscow would continue to supply oil to “reliable” partners in Asia, as well as EU members Hungary and Slovakia.
“If European companies and European buyers suddenly decide to reorient themselves and provide us with long-term, sustainable cooperation, devoid of political pressures, free from political pressures, then go ahead. We’ve never refused,” Putin said.
“We’re ready to work with Europeans, but we need some signals from them that they’re ready and willing to work with us and will ensure this sustainability and stability,” he added.
The EU banned maritime imports of Russian crude in 2022, while Russia’s pipeline exports to Hungary and Slovakia have been effectively halted since January due to damage to the Druzhba oil pipeline via Ukraine.
Putin’s comments came hours after Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orban urged the European Union to suspend sanctions on Russian oil and gas to counter prices sent soaring by the war in the Middle East.
Five players fled their Gold Coast team hotel fearing persecution at home for refusing to sing the national anthem before a match.
The Iranian team were labelled ‘wartime traitors’ for refusing to sing the anthem but later saluted and sang in remaining fixtures. (EPA Images pic)
GOLD COAST: Australia has granted asylum to some of Iran’s visiting women’s football team over fears they faced persecution at home for not singing the national anthem before a match, home affairs minister Tony Burke said on Tuesday.
Iranian players’ gesture ahead of an Asian Cup tournament match in Australia last week was widely seen as an act of defiance against the Islamic republic.
Five players escaped the team hotel on Australia’s Gold Coast overnight, holing up in a “safe location” while lodging their claims for asylum, Burke said.
“They were moved to a safe location by Australian police. I signed off last night on their applications for humanitarian visas,” he told reporters.
“They are welcome to stay in Australia, and they are safe here, and should feel at home here.”
US President Donald Trump earlier said he had spoken with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to confirm the women were safe.
“I just spoke to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, of Australia, concerning the Iranian National Women’s Soccer Team. He’s on it! Five have already been taken care of,” Trump said Monday on his Truth Social network, less than two hours after an initial post urging Australia to take them in.
Trump added that “some, however, feel they must go back because they are worried about the safety of their families, including threats to those family members if they don’t return.”
The Australian broadcaster ABC reported that five players evaded the team’s handlers at their accommodation in the Gold Coast.
Asked about their case on Sunday, foreign minister Penny Wong said Australia “stands in solidarity” with the people of Iran.
The son of Iran’s late shah, US-based Reza Pahlavi, warned on Monday that the refusal to sing the anthem could have “dire consequences”, and urged Australia to offer the team protection.
Pahlavi, who has not returned to Iran since before the 1979 Islamic revolution that ousted the monarchy, has billed himself as the man to lead a democratic transition to a secular Iran as the theocratic regime fights to survive.
Politicians, human rights activists and even “Harry Potter” author J.K. Rowling have also called for the team to be offered official protection.
“Please, protect these young women,” Rowling said in a post on social media.
‘Save our girls’
A presenter on Iranian state TV had branded the players “wartime traitors” after they stood motionless during the anthem before their match against South Korea.
In subsequent games, the players saluted and sang.
Crowds gathered outside the Gold Coast stadium where the side played their last match over the weekend, banging drums and shouting “regime change for Iran”.
They then surrounded the Iranian team bus, chanting “let them go” and “save our girls”.
On Monday, an AFP journalist saw members of the team speaking on phones from their hotel room balconies.
Asked about the possibility of asylum, a spokesperson for Australia’s home affairs department told AFP earlier it “cannot comment on the circumstances of individuals”.
Amnesty International campaigner Zaki Haidari said the women faced persecution, or worse, if they were sent home.
“Some of these team members probably have had their families already threatened,” Haidari told AFP.
“Them going back… who knows what sort of punishment they will receive?”
Iran’s embassy in Australia did not respond to a request for comment.
Trump hints end of Iran war in sight, saying operations ‘very complete’
President Donald Trump told CBS News that the US was 'very far' ahead of his initially stated timeframe for the war of four or five weeks
US President Donald Trump said Iran has lost its navy, communications and air force. (EPA Images pic)
TEHRAN: President Donald Trump indicated for the first time Monday that US military operations in Iran could be coming to an end, saying the war was “very complete” and progressing ahead of schedule.
The war had sent stock markets slumping and oil prices soaring again on Monday as Tehran, under new leader Mojtaba Khamenei, fired a new barrage of missiles at its Gulf neighbours and signalled that the strategic Strait of Hormuz would likely remain closed.
But Wall Street vaulted into positive territory Monday after Trump’s remarks, despite the lack of details on any solution to the conflict still raging in the Middle East.
“I think the war is very complete, pretty much. They have no navy, no communications, they’ve got no air force,” Trump told CBS News by phone, repeating battle damage assessments that he has given in previous days.
Trump told the US broadcaster that the US was “very far” ahead of his initially stated timeframe for the war of four or five weeks.
He is set to give a press conference shortly at around 5.30pm in the ballroom of his Doral golf club near Miami.
On the first day in power for the 56-year-old son of slain leader Ali Khamenei, Iranian troops mustered a fresh wave of missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, the UAE and Israel.
Another missile was also fired at Nato member Turkey, the second such incident in five days, with the alliance’s air defences intercepting it before it could hit its target.
With the Strait of Hormuz off Iran blocked for almost all oil tankers, the price of benchmark crude oil contracts rocketed past US$100 a barrel on Monday — their highest levels since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 — before edging back slightly.
French President Emmanuel Macron said that his country and its allies were working on a “purely defensive” mission to reopen the strait, through which nearly 20% of the world’s crude oil usually transits.
The mission would be aimed at escorting ships “after the end of the hottest phase of the conflict”, but experts say it would mean putting navy vessels at risk of incoming fire from the nearby Iranian coast.
Kamal Kharazi, a foreign policy adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, told CNN that Tehran was calculating that “the economic pressure will be beefed up to the extent that other countries intervene” to end the war.
Benchmark oil prices are up 40-50 percent since the US and Israel launched their attack on Iran on Feb 28, while stock markets around the world are down, hitting pension funds and savings.
Inflation caused by a sustained oil shock would also push up the price of goods for consumers everywhere.
Queues at petrol stations have been seen as far afield as Vietnam and the Philippines as drivers anticipate higher prices, while Hungary and Croatia in the EU announced fuel price caps.
Rallies
Iran faced a fresh blitz of US and Israeli strikes after its Assembly of Experts, the top clerical body, appointed its first new supreme leader in 37 years.
Iranian state media carried images of tens of thousands of people celebrating Mojtaba Khamenei’s selection in central Tehran on Monday, many carrying his picture.
Iran’s rebel Houthi allies in Yemen and the Hezbollah armed group in Lebanon pledged allegiance, while Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday promised “unwavering support”.
Unconfirmed US media reports over the weekend said that Moscow has been providing targeting intelligence to the Islamic republic’s military.
Trump told the New York Post newspaper he was “not happy” about Khamenei’s appointment, while Israel’s foreign ministry called him a “tyrant”.
Ali Ansari, a professor of Iranian history at the University of St Andrews in Scotland, told AFP the new supreme leader was a hardliner who had “been involved in all the most violent repressions that have taken place over the last 15-16 years”.
Ali Vaez, of the International Crisis Group (ICG) think tank, said the appointment was intended to send a defiant message that Trump’s war “has only replaced one Khamenei with another”.
Oil risks
Oil traders, policymakers and central bankers are all watching the Middle East for news about Gulf energy infrastructure, which is crucial for the world economy.
About 10 vessels in or near the Strait of Hormuz have come under attack since Iran blocked the waterway in retaliation for the US-Israeli attack, shipping experts say.
Global shipping giant MSC announced that it was formally halting some export shipments from the Gulf, meaning goods sitting on ships would be unloaded.
Following strikes on Bahrain’s Al Ma’ameer oil facility that ignited a fire, the country’s state-owned energy company Bapco joined its counterparts in Qatar and Kuwait in declaring “force majeure” — a warning that events beyond its control may lead it to miss export targets.
The Saudi defence ministry said Monday it had thwarted a drone attack targeting an oil field in the kingdom’s east, near the Emirati border.
‘Resistance’
In Israel, around 10 explosions were audible in Tel Aviv after the military announced it had detected missiles inbound from Iran.
At least one Israeli was killed when he was hit by shrapnel, emergency services said.
The multi-front war also intensified in Lebanon, which was dragged into the conflict last week when Israel and Hezbollah began trading fire.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on Monday accused Hezbollah of working to “collapse” the state, while the head of the group’s parliamentary bloc said it had “no other option to preserve honour, pride and dignity than the option of resistance”.
Lebanese authorities said on Monday that Israel’s attacks since March 2 have killed at least 486 people and wounded at least 1,313.
Events showed the bill was never meant to pass: it misunderstands the Westminster system, undermines the king’s discretion and ignores parliamentary confidence as the true check on power
From Badlisyah Abdul Ghani
Proponents of the Constitution (Amendment) Bill 2026, which sought to limit the prime minister’s tenure to 10 years, hailed the proposal as a landmark reform. Yet the events of March 2026 revealed a fundamental lack of preparation, showing that the bill was never meant to pass.
While curbing concentrated power is laudable, the chosen method fundamentally misunderstands how power is checked in a Westminster democracy. Among several amendments, this proposal mistook political symbolism for genuine institutional reform.
The cardinal sin
The bill’s most profound legal flaw was its direct assault on the discretionary powers of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong. The constitution vests in the king discretion to appoint a prime minister who “in his judgment” commands the majority’s confidence. Amending Article 43 to bar 10-year-veteran prime ministers from reappointment would have padlocked the king’s judgment.
Imagine a prime minister reaching the cap yet remaining the only figure still capable of commanding confidence. This amendment would force His Majesty to ignore his own assessment and turn to a less capable leader. Effectively, it would say to the king: “Your judgment is subordinate to a clock.”
Proponents argued that the amendment did not touch royal privileges under Article 38(4). Legally, this is a distinction without a difference. To constrain the discretion that defines a constitutional monarchy is to diminish its “position, honour, and sovereignty” in practice, if not in explicit text.
Westminster paradox
During the debate, the government framed the term limit as a guard against corruption and “prolonged concentration of power.” This reveals a startling lack of faith in the system that lawmakers are sworn to uphold.
The ultimate term limit already exists: loss of confidence. The primary check on a prime minister is not a calendar, but the will of the party and Parliament. Malaysian history proves this:
Tunku Abdul Rahman lost power after 13 years due to a loss of confidence from his party, Umno.
Hussein Onn’s departure was party-driven.
Dr Mahathir Mohamad resigned after 22 years, handing over to his deputy.
Abdullah Badawi resigned when his party told him his time was up.
Najib Razak’s tenure ended at the ballot box.
Mahathir’s second stint collapsed after 22 months of coalition infighting.
Muhyiddin Yassin lost office after 17 months when his coalition withdrew support.
Seven of nine prime ministers served for under a decade, while Tun Abdul Razak’s term was cut short by his terminal illness. The two who exceeded it left not by clock, but by party will. The Westminster system has never failed to “tell the time.”
Solution in search of a problem
How did this term-limit proposal come to be? It was pushed to appease coalition partners threatening to quit the Cabinet if their electoral commitments were unmet.
It reeks of political expediency: policy-making by focus group, not constitutional statesmanship. Dressing an untested populist promise in sacred language does not make it a solution.
No Westminster parliament has ever imposed such a limit; not even in the UK, where a 2014 private member’s bill died after its first reading. Yet here, a 10-year cap was presented as a cure for governance ills.
Opposition misdiagnosis
Barring the prime minister from holding the post of finance minister commits the same error: mistaking title for power. The prime minsiter already heads the Treasury by virtue of his office. Malaysia follows the Westminster practice: the prime minister is de facto First Lord of the Treasury; the finance minister, Second Lord.
Malaysia does not use these titles, but in reality, the practice is identical. Barring him from the finance ministry denies only a label, leaving power untouched. Authority over finance resides in the office, not the portfolio.
The proposal also misunderstands fiscal power. Parliament can reject or reduce the budget, but not substitute its own. Rejecting the budget withdraws confidence and brings down the government, because the executive commands a parliamentary majority.
This proposal treats the prime minister as an American-style President facing Congress. But the president is the apex of a single branch: the executive.
The prime minister’s power flows through the Cabinet and public services. One cannot surgically remove “finance” any more than “foreign policy” or “defence.” The prime minister remains first among equals, and that position always carries the decisive voice.
Clock, crown, confidence
The proposed term limit was an inelegant, legally dubious graft from a presidential system to a parliamentary body. It would have handcuffed the king, shackling the institution charged with deciding who becomes prime minister.
The bill fails to see that every prime minister, from Tunku Abdul Rahman to Ismail Sabri (save Tun Abdul Razak), was subject to a far more sophisticated, politically legitimate term limit: shifting sands of confidence. A fixed term creates perverse incentives: a lame-duck prime minister faces a rush to secure legacy or enrich allies.
The opposition’s counteroffer misunderstands this as well. The prime minister remains first among equals. The question is whether institutions are strong enough to check power openly and accountably.
Our constitution’s strength lies not in limits on tenure, but in the resilience of its institutions. In coalition governments, a prime minister dependent on fractious partners becomes a lame duck twice over. To codify a decade in stone or restrict portfolios ignores the Westminster system as constitutionally enshrined.
The abstentions of unity government MPs confirmed it: this term limit bill was never meant to pass.
Badlisyah Abdul Ghani is a lawyer and seasoned financial services veteran.
An 80-year-old nonprofit that advises conscientious objectors says its phone is "ringing off the hook" as American service members who object to the US-and-Israel-initiated war on Iran are seeking guidance on how to avoid being a part of it. Ominously, the group's executive director says the breadth of force mobilization is much like the run-up to the ground invasion of Iraq.
"Phone has been ringing off the hook," wrote Center on Conscience & War executive director Mike Prysner on X. "A LOT more units have just been activated for deployment than the public knows about." Founded in 1940, the Center on Conscience and War provides guidance to military service members pursuing a conscientious objector (CO) status or a discharge. The group also opposes military conscription.
In a post on the group's account, the Center said it received a call from someone who is on deployment orders and who "reports widespread opposition to Iran War within their unit...In particular, they conveyed disgust at the US massacre of the girls’ school as well as the attack on the Iranian frigate in international waters."
The US military is reportedly responsible for killing some 150 schoolgirls in Minab, Iran during the opening of the war. In another incident, a US Navy submarine torpedoed an Iranian ship that was departing a largely ceremonial naval event in India that involved 18 countries. Compounding the controversy over sinking a lightly-armed vessel 2,000 miles from the war theater, the Americans apparently left surviving sailors to drown in a violation of the Geneva Convention -- that is, a war crime. At least 87 died.
Under US military policy, CO status is defined as “a firm, fixed, and sincere objection to participation in war in any form or the bearing of arms, by reason of religious training and/or belief.” That would seemingly exclude service members who stand ready to defend America, but who view the war on Iran as an amoral enterprise being carried out solely to advance Israel's agenda in the region.
I just spoke with the mother of a service member in this unit. They were given one last call home before having to turn in their phones. He told his mom the were going “boots on the ground” tonight.
However, the group helps service members pursue other avenues for opting out of the latest US regime-change war in the Middle East. For example, in a Friday night post, the Center said service members who are in their first year in any branch "can *easily* get out just by reporting 'failure to adapt'...The evidence bar is low."
Prysner, who took on the executive director role on March 1, joined the US Army shortly before 9/11, and was part of the 2003 invasion of Iraq. After discharging, he became an activist against the war. He said what he's hearing from callers indicates a major mobilization on par with the final weeks before the catastrophic invasion of Iraq:
I was part of the buildup to invasion of Iraq. What I’ve heard today from troops & families is so reminiscent of Feb-Mar ‘03. Doesn’t prove the US is invading, but that they are definitely preparing to. Will they? Probably weighing many factors… and our resistance is one of them
Prysner also said the mother of a service member in a deployed unit relayed a disturbing account from her son: His commander attempted to build enthusiasm for the mission by saying it would bring about the second coming of Jesus Christ. That account parallels those publicized earlier this week by the Military Religious Freedom Foundation. As described by ZeroHedge contributor blueapples, just a few days into the new war, MRFF had already received more than 100 complaints from troops in 40 units who said leaders were pushing theological rationalizations for war on Iran. One commander allegedly said Trump has been “anointed by Jesus to light the signal fire in Iran to cause Armageddon and mark his return to Earth.”
Some ZeroHedge readers may know Prysner as the filmmaker who has collaborated with journalist Abby Martin on the Empire Files, a series of documentaries and videos that include "Gaza Fights For Freedom," which profiled the 2018 Great March of Return, a protest that saw Palestinians who approached the Israeli border wall shot by IDF snipers -- with 62 slaughtered on a single day.