Trump Vows To Give Every Adult $5,000 If He Wins Midterms
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on The Times.
This is the sub-heading.
At the first-ever Republican midterm convention, speakers called the Democrats ‘communists’ and championed the president’s policies of ‘common sense’
These are the first two paragraphs.
President Trump pledged to issue a “dividend” of $5,000 to every American adult if the Republicans hold the House and Senate in the midterm elections.
Speaking at the opening night of the first-ever Republican midterm convention in Dallas, Trump said the payout — which would amount to $1.35 trillion — had only one caveat: that it should be spent in the United States.
I first read this story, whilst I was recovering in Homerton Hospital, after a fall that appeared to knock me out in my bedroom. I suspect a rug slipped, while I was getting dressed.
Reports of the convention, sound more like that of a Mafia or drug-dealers convention, than that of a supposedly responsible political party.
Trump Is Flailing While Iran Calls The Shots
William Hague in The Times is generally a good read and today’s piece on the US and Iran negotiations, is no exception.
After this sub-heading.
US negotiations displayed hopeless naivety and for all the tough talk now, the president keeps showing he’ll back down
He then starts the article with these two paragraphs.
A month ago, when I read the memorandum agreed by the US and Iran to end the war between them, I literally gasped with surprise. To anyone who has ever been in negotiations with the Iranians, as I was over nuclear issues a decade ago, the concessions made to them seemed extraordinary.
Most striking was that the US is to develop a plan “with at least $300 billion” for the economic development of Iran — a huge incentive to keep the peace but also a colossal subsidy for a regime that President Trump had only weeks earlier set out to destroy.
Is this $300 billion money from the US Treasury, the oil sheikhs’ underwear drawers or from tariffs on uninvolved countries like the UK, Germany, China and Canada?
How many citizens of the UK would sign up for the deal?
About three I would think and two of them would be Nigel and Farage.
The rest of the article is very much a worthwhile read and it finishes with this concluding paragraph.
There have been obvious costs to the war — increased inflation, severe disruption to the Gulf states and of course loss of life. But what we are seeing this week is the cost of the concessions made to get out of it, with much more to come.
We will all be paying more to live our lives, because Donald Trump wanted the Nobel Peace Prize. All he deserves is a pointed hat with a D on it.
There Was Only One Lion Of Vienna, But Fifteen Lions Were Too Much For Mexico, The Crowd And The Officials
One of my earliest memories of football in the 1950s, is the exploits of England centre-forward Nat Lofthouse of Bolton Wanderers.
- I have vague memories of watching the 1953 Matthews Final on our first television, where Lofthouse was on the losing Bolton side.
- I don’t have any memory of the infamous game for England, that gave Lofthouse his nickname.
- But I do remember the controversial 1958 Cup Final between Bolton and Manchester United, which came three months after the Munich disaster. The final was controversial because Lofthouse barged the Manchester United goalkeeper; Harry Gregg into the net for the second goal, in their 2-0 win.
But football was a much tougher game in the 1950s.
The Lion Of Vienna
This except from Lofthouse’s Wikipedia entry, explains how he received his nickname.
On 25 May 1952, Lofthouse earned the title ‘Lion of Vienna’ after scoring his second goal in England’s 3–2 victory over Austria. In doing so he was elbowed in the face, tackled from behind, and finally brought down by the goalkeeper.
I’m afraid some of the tactics of the Mexicans needed more punishment than the officials gave them. And where did the officials conjure up eleven minutes of added time from?
Perhaps Trump had promised a nice holiday in one of his resorts, if they could not stand in the way of a Mexico-USA final, or at least ensure, that England didn’t progress to the quarter-finals.
After all FIFA rescinded a red card for USA’s star forward. Read about this surprising decision in this article on the BBC, which is entitled Red Card System In Disarray Over Trump, Fifa And Balogun Decision.
Thomas Tuchel On The Officials
This article on the Independent is entitled Thomas Tuchel Hits Out At Mexico v England Referee In Furious Rant: ‘Everything Went Against Us’.
Trump Administration Withdraws Appeal, Leaving Wind Energy Leasing And Permitting Freeze Vacated
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
The Trump Administration has withdrawn its appeal of a federal court ruling that vacated the section of its January 2025 Presidential Wind Memorandum that halted federal leasing and permitting activities for onshore and offshore wind projects, leaving the court’s decision in place and the wind permitting and leasing freeze overturned.
These two paragraphs add more details.
The US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit has granted the federal government’s motion to voluntarily dismiss its appeal of a December 2025 ruling by the US District Court for the District of Massachusetts, which found the challenged section of the Presidential Wind Memorandum unlawful and vacated it in its entirety.
With the dismissal, the district court’s ruling remains in force, meaning the indefinite nationwide pause on wind energy leasing and permitting activities can no longer be enforced.
To quote one of my favourite accountants and a very good friend.
Trump has been screwed, glued and tattooed.
Thankfully, he also has appeared to have given up fairly quickly and has stopped throwing good money after bad.
Council Says ‘No’ To East West Rail Demolitions
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the BBC.
This is the sub-heading.
A council has strengthened its opposition to houses being demolished to make way for a huge railway project.
These three parargraphs add more details to the story.
Bedford Borough Council said any demolitions for the East West Rail line, from Oxford to Cambridge, would be “unacceptable”.
The Conservative-led authority’s response to the latest consultation on the project, external was finalised at a meeting on Wednesday.
The East West Railway Company (EWRC) said the demolitions were necessary to speed up construction time.
In February, I wrote Delays To Opening Makes Station A ‘Laughing Stock’ and if Winsford station was a laughing stock then, it now appears that the whole East West Rail Line, is one gigantic omnistambles.
In the linked post, I said this.
My feeling is that this project has been badly affected by too many adverse factors.
- A lack of overall leadership at the top of the project.
- Too many changes of Government in the UK.
- Are all these governments committed to the project?
- No Overall Control In Bedford Council
- The uncertainty about the Aylesbury Spur, which I wrote about in East-West Rail: Aylesbury Spur.
- The inability to reach a sensible compromise on route through Bedford, with the large number of Nimbys in the area.
- I used to live near Newmarket and their ideas for the town will arise the anger of the horse-racing industry.
- The theme-park I wrote about in ‘Rollercoasters In My Back Yard’: Welcome To Universal Studios Bedford, hasn’t exactly helped.
- Stories like East West Rail: Could A New Rail Link ‘Tear Apart’ A Village?, don’t help.
The planning for East West Rail hasn’t been good.
I can see Universal Studios Bedford with the backing of Donald Trump, suing Bedford Council for all the money they’ve wasted.
I Hope The American Army Doesn’t Navigate Using Google Maps
There is an article in The Times today, which is entitled As The World Watches Kharg Island, Iran Gets Oil Out Another Way.
This is the sub-heading.
Satellite imagery reveals millions of barrels have been shipped from the ‘forgotten’ port of Jask — used only once before
The only Jask, that Google Maps can find is a marketing agency in Solihull. At least Jask,Iran finds it.
Looks a bit deserty to me!
I just had to ask Google AI if the US Army has a Camel Corps and I received this answer.
Yes, the U.S. Army operated a “Camel Corps” experiment between 1856 and 1866, using camels for logistics and supply transport in the Southwest, particularly Texas and California. While considered hardy and effective, the corps was never an official unit and was abandoned due to the Civil War, soldier preference for mules, and lack of long-term support.
Key Facts about the U.S. Army Camel Experiment:
Origin: Proposed by Jefferson Davis (then Secretary of War) and approved by Congress with a $30,000 budget.
Acquisition: Around 70 camels were imported from the Mediterranean (Egypt, Turkey, Tunisia) in two shipments.
Operation: The camels were based primarily at Camp Verde, Texas, transporting cargo across desert terrains.
Key Leaders: Major Henry C. Wayne directed the experiment, and Lt. Edward F. Beale praised the camels’ endurance in reports.
End of Project: The program was abandoned during the Civil War. Confederate forces captured some camels, and the remaining herd was sold at auction in 1864-1866.
While the camels themselves were durable, they were often disliked by soldiers due to their difficult temperament compared to mules. Some camels were sold to miners or escaped, leading to reports of wild camels in the Southwest for decades following the experiment.
Ocasio-Cortez, Markey Ask Trump Admin To Explain Paying TotalEnergies USD 1 Billion ‘In Taxpayer Money’ To Drop Offshore Wind Projects
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
US lawmakers Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ed Markey have sent a letter to Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum on the plan by the Trump administration to pay nearly USD 1 billion to TotalEnergies to cancel offshore wind projects off the US East Coast, calling on the administration to stop the payment and explain the legal basis and funding source for the proposed transfer.
These four paragraphs add detail to the story.
As reported recently, the US government’s agreement with TotalEnergies concerns the company’s exit from offshore wind development in the country by relinquishing leases for projects off New York/New Jersey and North Carolina, for which the administration intends to pay approximately USD 928 million.
The agreement also stipulates that TotalEnergies would redirect that money to oil & gas projects in the US. The company, in a press release issued after signing the agreement with the government, indicated that it would invest proceeds from the payment into a liquefied natural gas export facility in Texas and other oil and gas activities in the US that will support both domestic supply and the demand in Europe.
As reported recently, the US government’s agreement with TotalEnergies concerns the company’s exit from offshore wind development in the country by relinquishing leases for projects off New York/New Jersey and North Carolina, for which the administration intends to pay approximately USD 928 million.
The agreement also stipulates that TotalEnergies would redirect that money to oil & gas projects in the US. The company, in a press release issued after signing the agreement with the government, indicated that it would invest proceeds from the payment into a liquefied natural gas export facility in Texas and other oil and gas activities in the US that will support both domestic supply and the demand in Europe.
Trump may have got what he wanted and stopped development of wind farms, but at what cost to US taxpayers?
Out of curiosity, I asked Google AI, “Which LNG Terminal In Texas Have TotalEnergies Agreed To Develop”, And Received This Answer.
TotalEnergies has agreed to develop and invest in the Rio Grande LNG (RGLNG) project located in South Texas.
Key details regarding TotalEnergies’ involvement include:
Partnership: In June 2023, TotalEnergies signed a framework agreement with NextDecade Corporation to participate in the development of the Rio Grande LNG project.
Ownership and Phase 1: TotalEnergies holds a 16.67% stake in the first phase of the project, which includes three liquefaction trains with an annual capacity of 17.5 million tons per annum (Mtpa).
Offtake Agreement: TotalEnergies has agreed to purchase 5.4 million tons per annum (Mtpa) of LNG from Phase 1 for 20 years.
Expansion (Train 4): As of September 2025, TotalEnergies has reached a Final Investment Decision (FID) for a 10% stake in the joint venture developing Train 4 of the Rio Grande LNG facility.
NextDecade Stake: TotalEnergies also acquired a 17.5% stake in NextDecade Corporation, the developer of the project.
The Rio Grande LNG project is located in Brownsville, Texas, and is expected to contribute to TotalEnergies’ goal of expanding its U.S. LNG export capacity to 15 million tons annually by 2030.
I shall be watching this project. Especially, as several new techniques have come forward in the last few months.
Has Donald Trump Made Any Reasoned Comments About Lord Sugar?
This was an obvious question to ask Google AI and I received this answer.
Donald Trump has not made any significantly “reasoned” or analytical comments regarding Lord Alan Sugar. Instead, his public comments have been focused on a 2012 Twitter spat and personal attacks aimed at undermining Sugar’s business reputation.
Twitter Spats (2012): The feud escalated when Trump used Twitter to criticize Sugar’s support for wind turbines in Scotland. Trump attacked Sugar’s business acumen, stating, “If you think ugly windmills are good for Scotland you are an even worse businessman than I thought and, in my opinion, should not be doing The Apprentice”.
“Small Timer” Accusations: Trump has accused Sugar of being “not successful enough” to host The Apprentice and claimed that the show’s success in the UK was solely due to his own American format.
Personal Claims: Trump asserted that he “approved” Sugar for the British version of the show and instructed him to “drop to your knees and thank me”.
Earlier Admiration (2010): Before the feud, Trump reportedly made a positive comment to the BBC in 2010, expressing admiration for his counterpart and stating Sugar had “done great” on the show.
Lord Sugar has responded by calling Trump “useless,” “not in his class,” and a “blatant liar”.
Has Lord Sugar Made Any Reasoned Comments About Donald Trump?
This was an obvious question to ask Google AI and I received this answer.
Yes, Lord Alan Sugar has made several reasoned and critical comments regarding Donald Trump over the years, primarily focusing on Trump’s business acumen, his performance on The Apprentice, and his political actions.
Based on his public comments, primarily around 2016–2020 and later, Sugar’s views can be summarized as follows:
Apprentice Performance: Sugar has frequently argued that he is superior to Trump in the context of hosting The Apprentice, calling Trump “useless” in comparison and asserting that Trump was “not in his class”.
Business Acumen: Sugar has challenged the notion of Trump’s extreme wealth, at one point suggesting he would challenge Trump to show whose check for £100 million would clear, referring to Trump’s claims of wealth as “nonsense”.
Political Style and Media Handling: Sugar has criticized Trump’s handling of the media, describing him as “childish” for blaming media outlets and labelling him a “blatant liar”. In 2020, he referred to Trump as a “comedian” who talked “rubbish” regarding his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, noting that his advice was erratic and contradictory.
Trade and Policy: Sugar has criticized Trump’s economic policies, such as tariffs, describing them as “a disaster” that do not take into account the “ramifications of his actions”.
Despite these criticisms, Sugar acknowledged in 2020 that Trump possessed a “fighting spirit” that resonated with his followers.
Global Investor Joining RWE On Two Norfolk Vanguard Offshore Wind Projects, FID Expected in Summer
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
Global investment firm KKR and RWE have signed an agreement under which KKR acquire a 50 per cent stake in each of RWE’s Norfolk Vanguard East and Norfolk Vanguard West offshore wind projects, totalling 3.1 GW in installed capacity. The wind farms were just awarded Contracts for Difference (CfDs) in the UK’s seventh CfD allocation round (AR7).
These three paragraphs add a few more details.
The two Norfolk Vanguard projects, which RWE bought from Vattenfall in March 2024, have already secured seabed rights, grid connections, development consent orders (DCOs) and all other key permits.
On 14 January, RWE said it launched the process to raise non-recourse project finance debt for the projects and that it expects the closing of the partnership transaction and the project financing, as well as the final investment decision (FID), in the summer of 2026.
Located 50 to 80 kilometres off the coast of Norfolk, the two offshore wind farms are planned to be commissioned in 2029 (Norfolk Vanguard West) and 2030 (Norfolk Vanguard East).
RWE do seem to be lining up everything ready for that final investment decision in the summer of 2026.
- I suspect that with KKR on board, that they have got the money ready and I wouldn’t be surprised to see these two projects quickly progress to a completion.
- I also think it was significant that we have Goldman Sachs involved in Highview Power, who may have a solution to affordable energy storage and now we have KKR getting involved with one of the most professional offshore wind power developers in the world.
- Are Goldman Sachs and KKR placing bets against Trump’s anti wind power stance?
The Germans will certainly need a lot of energy and British offshore wind power, would appear the only place, where it is available easily in quantity to the Germans.
I await the next few months with a lot of interest.
The Anonymous Widower 