Trump Under Pressure

Trump is Looking for a Lifeline

June 1, 2026 Trump is caught between demands to deliver on promises to keep Iran from developing nuclear capacity and to open the Strait of Hormuz as oil reserves continue to drop and oil prices in the US continue to rise, Return of Congress raises possibility that a war powers resolution will pass, As soon as details for a framework for ending the war in Iran are leaked to the media, Trump’s base complains and the negotiations fall apart, Trump is attacking Democrats and the judges who have been deciding against him in legal cases, Acts that were lined up to perform at Trump’s Freedom 250 celebration are cancelling, Iran says they are suspending negotiations with the US until Israel stops strikes on Lebanon, warning that they will close the Strait of Hormuz entirely, Trump posts wildly on social media, Trump professes to be bored with the negotiations with Iran,The Pentagon restricts access to its press office to all journalists.  Watch today's recording here: https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ- [https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ-] Get full, free access to Letters from an American here: https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe [https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe] You can also find me: Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.social [https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.social] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=en [https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=en] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/ [https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson [https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson] Get full access to Letters from an American at heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe [https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

A Declaration of Conscience

May 31, 2026 Margaret Chase Smith was elected represent Maine as a Republican in the House after her husband, who held that seat, died in 1940, Smith served three terms in the House and then was elected to the Senate in 1948, Anti-New Deal Republicans were insisting that the US government was sliding toward communism, Senator from Wisconsin, Joseph McCarthy, claimed he had a list of communists working for the State Department, McCarthy’s charges were unproven, but fellow Republicans did not protest, except for Senator Smith, On June 1, 1950, Smith made an eloquent speech in the Senate that bluntly challenged McCarthy, and condemned the leaders in her party who were supporting him and were making wild accusations, She wanted to see President Harry Truman replaced in the next election, but not with a Republican regime without integrity,  Her speech presented a Declaration of Conscience to her party, She was largely ignored at the time, but four years later the Senate condemned McCarthy, Smith would be remembered for her courage, while McCarthy has gone down in history as a disgrace to the Senate and to the country.  Watch today's recording here: https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ- [https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ-] Get full, free access to Letters from an American here: https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe [https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe] You can also find me: Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.social [https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.social] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=en [https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=en] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/ [https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson [https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson] Get full access to Letters from an American at heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe [https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

The Johnstown Flood

May 30, 2026 The members of the South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club were wealthy and influential, The Club took control of a Pennsylvania reservoir created by damming a river, and enjoyed it for sport, but it had no drainage system, Perched high above Johnstown, Pennsylvania, a factory town, members of the club gave little thought to the people living there, On May 31, 1889, the South Fork Dam failed in a torrential storm, 2,208 people died in the Johnstown Flood, the largest loss of civilian lives in the US to that time, The survivors who hoped to hold the members of the South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club accountable were disappointed, The four lawsuits that were launched against the club failed.  Watch today's recording here: https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ- [https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ-] Get full, free access to Letters from an American here: https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe [https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe] You can also find me: Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.social [https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.social] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=en [https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=en] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/ [https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson [https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson] Get full access to Letters from an American at heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe [https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

As Trump Takes Hits, He Lashes Out

May 29, 2026 The war in Iran and the rising cost of living are costing Trump support, While there is talk of an agreement with Iran, there are no signs that it is real, Public opinion is causing support to dwindle for Trump’s wish to be on the face of a new $250 bill, Trump lost in court on changing the name of the Kennedy Center and on closing the center for two years, Trump’s plans for a Freedom 250 celebration are fizzling, too, The Department of Justice has been temporarily stopped from creating or operating Trump’s $1.776 billion slush fund, Thirty-five federal judges have asked US District Judge Williams to reopen the legal case that the Trumps brought against the IRS, Trump and his loyalists are taking other actions, some of which have the potential to have wide repercussions.  Watch today's recording here: https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ- [https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ-] Get full, free access to Letters from an American here: https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe [https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe] You can also find me: Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.social [https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.social] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=en [https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=en] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/ [https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson [https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson] Get full access to Letters from an American at heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe [https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Weaponizing the Department of Justice

May 28, 2026 Trump is treating the nation’s capital as his property, Trump is lashing out, filing suits against E. Jean Carroll and the Wall Street Journal, Grand juries as well as judges are losing faith in the Department of Justice, Trump appears to be focused on corrupt dealings that benefit him and his family, Thirty-five former federal judges have challenged the slush fund set up by Trump and his MAGA loyalists and the notion that they had reached a “settlement agreement” with the Department of Justice, The judges wrote: “… the parties’ settlement was not, and never will be, legally justified.” Watch today's recording here: https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ- [https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ-] Get full, free access to Letters from an American here: https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe [https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe] You can also find me: Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.social [https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.social] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=en [https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=en] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/ [https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson [https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson] Get full access to Letters from an American at heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe [https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]