Bond yields climbed Thursday, erasing most of the pullback they saw the previous day after the Treasury Department announced an intervention aimed at easing pressure on longer-dated government debt.

The yield on the 30-year U.S. Treasury bond — the primary focus of the accelerated buyback — was up more than 4 basis points at 5.236%.

Yields on 10-year U.S. Treasurys — the main benchmark for mortgages, auto loans and credit card debt — moved more than 4 basis points higher to 4.696%.

The 10- and 30-year yield levels were right around the level they held before the 8:30 a.m. announcement Wednesday that Treasury would be stepping up its bond buyback program.

The yield on the 2-year Treasury note , which more closely follows short-term Federal Reserve rate decisions, was last seen up more than 2 basis points at 4.20%.

One basis point equals 0.01%, or 1/100th of 1%, and yields and prices move inversely to one another.

The moves underscored the difficulty of market interventions, particularly at a time when U.S. debt faces a slew of factors that have been pressuring yields higher.

In a move announced Wednesday morning, the Treasury Department, led by Secretary Scott Bessent, announced it would at least double the size of its government debt buybacks, starting Sept. 9 and running through Nov. 4.

Yields tumbled following the announcement, with the 30-year down about 10 basis points after previously hitting its highest in about 19 years, predating the global financial crisis in 2008.

However, the trade quickly unwound, with yields higher Thursday as the market digested the move, as well as the longer-term structural problems facing the fixed income market.

The interventions “belie the underlying structural challenges and do nothing to address them,” Maia Crook, senior research analyst at JPMorgan Chase, said in a client note. “While [Wednesday’s] action forced some decline in longer-dated yields, the more lasting impact is the potential for higher risk premia reflecting a Treasury Department that is intervening in the market and moving away from its ‘regular and predictable’ tenet.”

The announcement came the same day that Treasury updated the national debt total, which pushed past the $40 trillion mark. At the same time, the market has faced stiff competition from record corporate debt issuance tied to the artificial intelligence buildout, all of which has contributed to rising term premiums, or the extra yield investors demand to hold U.S. government paper.

Traders were also digesting the latest Federal Open Market Committee minutes from July, released Wednesday. Officials at the meeting indicated that higher interest rates likely would be needed if there isn’t more progress on inflation. Economic data released since the meeting have shown modest monthly price increases, though inflation remains above the Fed’s 2% target.

On Thursday, the Philadelphia Fed’s manufacturing index posted its highest reading since April 2021.

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CNBC

I am a Portland mother of three. My oldest son, now 26, attended Lewis Elementary and had such a positive experience there that my husband and I built our home only blocks from Lewis so we could send our two younger children there as well. Lewis wasn’t just our neighborhood school. It was the school our family already knew and trusted.

I’ve lived my entire life in Portland, Oregon. I am also a Christian, and I believe parents have the right and the responsibility to know what their children are being taught. I never imagined that asking would get me banned from my children’s school.

It began when my 11-year-old brought home an “identity flower” assignment requiring him to identify his gender and share his answer with his class. I had received no advance notice and no opportunity to excuse him from an exercise that conflicted with my beliefs.

So, I did what parents do when they don’t understand something happening in their child’s classroom: I asked.

When I requested a meeting with the principal, I arrived to find three additional staff members waiting for me, including both of my children’s teachers and a school counselor. My questions were hardly revolutionary: What did “gender” mean in this assignment? What had the children been taught? Why hadn’t parents been informed?

At one point, my son’s teacher raised her voice and demanded, “Why do you need to know?”

Because he is my child.

It remains astonishing to me that this required an explanation.

The materials I eventually obtained only raised more questions. They instructed children to consider what gender “feels right” to them that day and suggested that the answer might later change.

People can disagree about whether that belongs in an elementary-school classroom. What should not be controversial is a parent’s right to know it is happening.

I joined the PTA in part so I could raise these concerns there, but when I asked to speak, I was prohibited from doing so. With that avenue closed, I wrote an open letter to other parents and distributed it peacefully from a public sidewalk outside the school.

Then came an argument with another parent during pickup. His wife and I had been speaking respectfully when he interrupted us, repeatedly shouting, “White people are disgusting!” within earshot of children. I called his comments racist, used language I regret, and walked away. I did not threaten him. I did not assault him. I was not arrested.

The next morning, police officers came to my home.

In front of my neighbors, they handed me an order barring me from my children’s school for one full calendar year for allegedly harmful and threatening behavior.

The man who raised his voice at me, to my knowledge, received no trespass order.

The principal then emailed the school community, accusing me of “harassment, intimidation, and threatening behavior” and referring to my views as “hate speech.” Parents were told to report me if they saw me on campus.

I appealed. Portland Public Schools (PPS) gave me a 30-minute Zoom “hearing” conducted by a panel consisting of two janitors and a basketball coach. One panelist emptied garbage cans while I spoke. No witnesses were called, and no meaningful evidence was presented.

They upheld the order, and because they did, I missed my son’s fifth-grade graduation.

Children get one fifth-grade graduation, and parents get one chance to be there for it. Other children looked at their mothers when they crossed that stage. My son looked for me and saw an empty chair.

PPS wasn’t finished.

When I later objected publicly to how I had been treated, the district threatened something far more consequential: it threatened to bar me permanently from every PPS property.

My daughter still has years left at this elementary school, and my son is beginning middle school. The message was difficult to misunderstand. Continue speaking, and you will be excluded from their schools forever.

So, I stopped.

That is the part of this story that should concern people regardless of what they think about gender, politics, or me.

Government doesn’t have to duct tape someone’s mouth shut to silence her. It merely has to make the price of speaking high enough. For me, that price was the possibility of losing access to my children’s schools forever. And for a while, it worked.

But parents do not need the government’s permission to ask what public employees are teaching their children. We do not surrender our right to criticize public officials when we enroll our children in public schools. Disagreement does not become “harassment” simply because officials find the speaker difficult or her opinions unwelcome.

That is why I am suing PPS.

I’m not asking a court to agree with my opinions. I’m asking the court to affirm that government officials cannot punish parents for questioning them, and that access to our children’s education cannot depend upon saying only what those officials want to hear.

I cannot get my son’s graduation back. That day is gone. But I can refuse to let fear silence me.

Allison Roberts, Christian Post

Quote of the day by George Augustus Moore, ‘A man travels the world over in search of what he needs and returns home to find it’ offers life advice on inner peace, family, relationship, friendship, companionship, happiness, human connection.

The U.S. national debt has surpassed $40 trillion for the first time, marking a historic milestone in a borrowing buildup that has accumulated over generations, through wars, recessions, tax changes, and the expansion of major federal benefit programs under presidents of both parties.

The Treasury Department reported that total public debt outstanding reached about $40.047 trillion Tuesday, according to The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times.

The number is striking, but the more significant measure for economists is debt held by the public — money the federal government owes to investors and other entities outside the federal government.

That figure is approaching the size of the entire U.S. economy, with publicly held debt already exceeding 100% of gross domestic product, according to the Journal.

The $40 trillion figure represents the cumulative result of decades of federal borrowing rather than the policies of any single administration.

The United States has carried debt since its founding, when the young nation borrowed heavily to finance the Revolutionary War.

For much of American history, however, federal debt remained relatively modest compared with the size of the economy and often rose sharply during wars or economic emergencies before declining during periods of peace and economic growth.

That pattern changed substantially during the 20th century as the federal government took on broader responsibilities.

Social Security became a permanent part of the federal budget, Medicare was established in the 1960s, and the government’s role in healthcare, retirement benefits, national defense, and other areas continued to expand.

Major national emergencies produced additional surges.

Debt rose dramatically during World War II, and borrowing again accelerated during the financial crisis of 2008 and the COVID-19 pandemic, when Congress approved trillions of dollars in emergency spending and economic assistance.

Doctor: Discover the 7 Surprising Signs of Liver Damage… See More Here

The Journal noted that the federal government has run an annual deficit every year since 2001, meaning it has consistently spent more than it has collected in revenue and has had to borrow to cover the difference.

The result is that borrowing that once was heavily associated with wars and economic crises has become a persistent feature of the federal budget.

The New York Times reported Wednesday that the government is on track to borrow more than $2 trillion this year.

A growing share of that borrowing reflects the cost of servicing debt accumulated in previous years.

Interest payments have become one of the largest expenses in the federal budget, with the cost rising as the government carries more debt and refinances older obligations at higher rates.

The fiscal pressures are increasingly visible in the bond market.

The yield on the 30-year Treasury recently reached roughly 5.3%, its highest level in nearly two decades, according to the Journal and Reuters.

Higher Treasury yields increase the government’s cost of issuing and refinancing debt and can also influence borrowing costs for households and businesses.

Still, investors continue to regard Treasury securities as among the world’s most important and liquid financial assets.

The United States also retains a major advantage from the dollar’s role as the world’s dominant reserve currency, which helps sustain demand for Treasury debt even as the government’s borrowing needs grow.

The long-term outlook, however, is becoming more challenging.

The Congressional Budget Office projects that if current laws remain in place, publicly held debt could rise to about 120% of GDP within a decade and roughly 175% within 30 years, according to the Journal.

Much of that projected increase is tied to the growing cost of Social Security, Medicare and other programs, as well as rising interest expenses.

The Trump administration is confronting those longstanding pressures while pursuing its own economic and fiscal priorities.

President Donald Trump has made reducing government waste, encouraging economic growth and strengthening federal finances among the administration’s goals.

The administration’s Department of Government Efficiency effort sought significant reductions in federal spending, while the administration has also pursued increased revenue through tariffs.

The New York Times reported that the administration has claimed more than $200 billion in DOGE-related savings, although the Government Accountability Office has raised questions about the reliability and transparency of some of those estimates.

Tariff policy has also produced substantial revenue, although the administration has faced legal challenges to some of the tariffs and the government is now issuing refunds to companies following court rulings.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has set a goal of reducing the federal deficit to 3% of GDP by 2028.

Bessent has also argued that some current fiscal pressures reflect circumstances that could change, while policies encouraging business investment could strengthen economic growth and eventually produce additional tax revenue.

In an interview with Newsmax cited by The New York Times, Bessent pointed to spending associated with the war in Iran and tariff refunds as factors affecting this year’s deficit.

Alert: Prepare for Any Emergency. Get This Radio Now, Before You Need It! See Here

He also defended provisions allowing businesses to immediately deduct certain investments in factories and equipment, arguing that the policy could encourage investment and expand the economy’s productive capacity.

“That is a hit now to the deficit, but we are creating productive assets for future growth which will be paying taxes down the line,” Bessent said, according to The New York Times.

The administration’s fiscal policies are therefore being implemented against a debt burden that was already enormous before Trump returned to office.

Republican and Democrat administrations have contributed to the accumulation through different combinations of tax policy, military spending, domestic programs, economic stimulus, and emergency measures.

The biggest challenge for lawmakers is that the largest components of federal spending are difficult to change quickly.

Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, national defense, and interest on the debt account for substantial portions of federal expenditures, while lawmakers from both parties have generally been reluctant to make sweeping changes to popular benefit programs or enact tax increases large enough to eliminate the deficit.

The aging U.S. population is expected to put additional pressure on Social Security and Medicare in coming decades.

At the same time, interest costs can continue rising even without new spending because the government must continually refinance existing debt.

For now, the size and liquidity of the Treasury market and the dollar’s global role continue to give the United States considerable financial advantages.

But the $40 trillion milestone illustrates the scale of the challenge confronting Washington.

The debt has been built over decades and across administrations of both parties.

Reducing its growth will ultimately require decisions about spending, taxes, economic growth and the government’s major benefit programs that extend well beyond any single presidency.

© 2026 Newsmax Finance. All rights reserved.

While far-left Twitch millionaire Hasan Piker built an enormous following attacking the United States, praising communist dictators, and declaring that America “deserved 9/11,” his younger brother was reportedly working on some of the nation’s most sensitive military aircraft.

Murat Piker, Hasan’s younger brother and frequent livestream companion, spent more than a decade working as an aerospace engineer at Boeing, according to a bombshell report from the Washington Free Beacon.

His projects reportedly included the new Air Force One, the E-6B Mercury nuclear command aircraft, airborne surveillance systems, military drones, satellites, and Boeing spacecraft.

According to Murat’s public LinkedIn profile, he worked for Boeing Defense & Space and helped lead the mechanical design and integration of next-generation satellite structures.

“I hold a Master’s in Aerospace Engineering from UCLA and possess active Security Clearances,” his profile states.

A person familiar with Murat’s employment history told the Free Beacon that he held a “top secret” security clearance.

That would have placed the brother of one of America’s loudest anti-American socialist influencers inside the heavily vetted world of classified defense contracting.

Murat also admitted during a recent interview with Rolling Stone that he performed some work on Boeing’s VC-25B program—the official designation for the next generation of Air Force One.

“I actually worked on VC-25B a little bit,” Murat said. Hasan quickly undercut him: “Yeah… on the toilet. Don’t let him act like he did anything cool.”

How do I know Hasan Piker’s brother worked on Air Force One? — Because Murat Piker bragged about it in an interview with Rolling Stone (which I know understandably very few people read)https://t.co/z8BWgoUaVO pic.twitter.com/2HmlgKQcTW

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Jim Hoft, Gateway Pundit

A video of the national anthem being played ahead of the Indiana Fever‘s recent meeting with the Atlanta Dream has been going viral this week.

The Fever came away with the win, but the on-field action has not really been the main topic of discussion in the days since.

Instead, a lot of it has centred around Sophie Cunningham being the only player to put her hand on her heart as the national anthem was playing.

Sophie Cunningham praised after national anthem video shared

In the clip which has been shared by multiple accounts on X/Twitter, Cunningham is standing slightly away from the rest of her teammates, none of whom have their hands raised.

Meanwhile, the Atlanta Dream squad are not believed to have taken to the court while the anthem was ongoing.

This has led to Cunningham receiving praise, while the WNBA has faced backlash.

One fan asked: “Why is the other team not on the court? What is wrong with the WNBA??”

A second fan tweeted: “Sophie Cunningham is the only good thing about the WNBA. Will support her but done with everything else.”

“God Bless her. No excuse for the others. Disgusting,” added another.

A fourth commented: “Sophie stood alone with hand on heart. That quiet move speaks loud.”

Another suggested: “Totally disrespectful. Let them go live over in Europe or anywhere else and let’s see how they feel then.”

“She’s Americas Sweetheart!! We stand behind you,” added a sixth while tagging Cunningham on X.

A seventh wrote: “Why won’t these people just leave the country for the one they respect? Shame on @WNBA.”

Josh Barker, Yahoo Sports

A beautiful public beach now looks like a dirty, hopeless slum.

Jungee Freiheit:

Ceuta has turned into a slum within a matter of days. Masses of migrants are living on the beach and building huts out of straw and cardboard. Our reporter Hinrich Rohbohm remains on the scene and is reporting.

And yes, people are angry.

Of course they are… if this were your hometown and a beach you’ve known and loved your entire life and it suddenly looks like a filthy slum, you’d be pissed too.

This is how many Americans feel when they look at the dilapidated neighborhoods in once-charming old US cities like Detroit, Chicago, Philly, and others.

But the anger that’s being aimed at the migrants, while totally understandable, should be aimed even harder at the people who invited them in.

Why have so many Western governments, including the United States, created conditions where millions of people believe migrating is worth the risk?

Right before this nightmare unfolded in Spain, they had launched a huge regularization program for illegals, which got over a million applications. Then Spain’s Supreme Court made it way harder for officials to quickly turn around and send back migrants who arrived by sea. Border-worker unions say they warned Madrid that the ruling was already being exploited everywhere, especially online. Social media lit up with rumors that the route into Ceuta had been opened. And now, after the nightmare unfolded, and it’s too late to do anything, Spain’s government now admits the ruling helped fuel the rush.

The real insanity here is creating policies that encourage people to leave their homes and cultures behind in search of some “new” life.

And now the people of Ceuta are left picking up the pieces (of trash).

A city of about 80,000 people can’t handle a sudden flood of tens of thousands of Africans without total chaos unfolding. Housing and bathrooms don’t magically appear. And this laughable idea of “integration” isn’t a magical fix either.

When tens of thousands of Africans suddenly show up, with totally different backgrounds, languages, and customs, while sleeping outside and wondering where their next meal is coming from, assimilating into local life probably isn’t at the top of their to-do list… and never will be.

And the people in power know that. They know perfectly well that their global “diversity” plan failed miserably, but they keep shoving it down the world’s collective throat.

The residents of Ceuta deserve borders their government will control, public spaces they can use, and some guarantee that their town won’t be overwhelmed whenever another rumor goes viral on TikTok or WhatsApp.

Even the migrants deserve something better than being lied to and lured by some fake fantasy of living in Europe… a place where they’re clearly not welcome.

Nobody wins here, except the globalist officials, who hide behind the migrants, hoping you won’t notice that they’re the ones to blame for this mess.

After more than 70,000 Moroccan migrants stormed the beaches at the end of July, thousands were left stranded in Ceuta. Now, they’ve turned the once-gorgeous beach into a shanty town, complete with cardboard houses, old blankets, tents, clothes strewn everywhere, and garbage all over the place, turning the shoreline into a ghetto in record time.

A beautiful public beach now looks like a dirty, hopeless slum.

Jungee Freiheit:

Ceuta has turned into a slum within a matter of days. Masses of migrants are living on the beach and building huts out of straw and cardboard. Our reporter Hinrich Rohbohm remains on the scene and is reporting.

And yes, people are angry.

Of course they are… if this were your hometown and a beach you’ve known and loved your entire life and it suddenly looks like a filthy slum, you’d be pissed too.

This is how many Americans feel when they look at the dilapidated neighborhoods in once-charming old US cities like Detroit, Chicago, Philly, and others.

But the anger that’s being aimed at the migrants, while totally understandable, should be aimed even harder at the people who invited them in.

Why have so many Western governments, including the United States, created conditions where millions of people believe migrating is worth the risk?

Right before this nightmare unfolded in Spain, they had launched a huge regularization program for illegals, which got over a million applications. Then Spain’s Supreme Court made it way harder for officials to quickly turn around and send back migrants who arrived by sea. Border-worker unions say they warned Madrid that the ruling was already being exploited everywhere, especially online. Social media lit up with rumors that the route into Ceuta had been opened. And now, after the nightmare unfolded, and it’s too late to do anything, Spain’s government now admits the ruling helped fuel the rush.

The real insanity here is creating policies that encourage people to leave their homes and cultures behind in search of some “new” life.

And now the people of Ceuta are left picking up the pieces (of trash).

A city of about 80,000 people can’t handle a sudden flood of tens of thousands of Africans without total chaos unfolding. Housing and bathrooms don’t magically appear. And this laughable idea of “integration” isn’t a magical fix either.

When tens of thousands of Africans suddenly show up, with totally different backgrounds, languages, and customs, while sleeping outside and wondering where their next meal is coming from, assimilating into local life probably isn’t at the top of their to-do list… and never will be.

And the people in power know that. They know perfectly well that their global “diversity” plan failed miserably, but they keep shoving it down the world’s collective throat.

The residents of Ceuta deserve borders their government will control, public spaces they can use, and some guarantee that their town won’t be overwhelmed whenever another rumor goes viral on TikTok or WhatsApp.

Even the migrants deserve something better than being lied to and lured by some fake fantasy of living in Europe… a place where they’re clearly not welcome.

Nobody wins here, except the globalist officials, who hide behind the migrants, hoping you won’t notice that they’re the ones to blame for this mess.

Revolver News

We are less than three months from the midterm elections, and for all the billions of dollars that will be spent convincing Americans otherwise, the choice facing voters is remarkably straightforward.

Do Americans want government guided by common sense? Or by crazy, woke ideas that have endlessly proven to make our lives worse? If they prefer the former, they can let Republicans continue driving American prosperity. If they prefer the latter, they can give Democrats the wheel.

The individual issues may change: crime, immigration, abortion, elections, education. But the throughline remains remarkably consistent. Vile ideas that would have once been confined to the lunatic fringe a decade ago have found eager champions in today’s Democratic Party.

As one example, look at Michigan.

Abdul el Sayed, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate, proudly campaigned alongside left-wing internet commentator Hasan Piker. Piker is notorious for his anti-American rhetoric, including his infamous 2019 declaration that “America deserved 9/11.” Piker also praises America’s most ardent enemies, claiming Chinese Communist dictator Mao Zedong was a “great leader” and dressing in his trademark suit.

But el Sayed doesn’t need Piker to prove he’s incapable of representing the American people. His support for socialist healthcare, defunding the police, and abolishing Immigration and Customs But el Sayed doesn’t need Piker to prove he’s incapable of representing the American people. His support for socialist healthcare, defunding the police, and abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement is proof enough of his crazy ideology.

Rep. Mary Miller, Washington Examiner

Mike Pence spent most of his life and his political career selling America a very curated version of himself.

Mike sold us this deeply Christian, socially conservative, old-school persona, a man who believed in traditional marriage, traditional views on sex, and two genders.

Long after Pence was gone from Team Trump, he was still describing the trans movement as this “radical gender ideology. He openly opposed trans military service, he backed restrictions on gender-transition procedures for minors, and he insisted over and over that there are only two genders.

This was Mike Pence’s persona, and nothing could shake it.

Until the new story out of The Atlantic dropped… now, we’re all wondering if Mike Pence is the new leader of the trans revolution.

It all started with a trans CIA officer who goes by the name “Julia Curlee.” He went public with an extraordinary story about Mike Pence. According to Curlee, while Pence was part of the Trump admin, he would brief the VP every morning for about a year. He said Pence asked him to extend the assignment, and when that assignment finally ended, Pence invited him and his family to the White House.

Of course, it’s not weird that Pence would be polite and professional to a CIA officer. That’s not the remarkable part of this story. What makes it remarkable is how Curlee describes the relationship he had with Pence.

According to this transgender CIA officer, one of the most famously socially conservative politicians in America didn’t just tolerate him; he felt affirmed by him… more than anybody else ever had, apparently.

And boy oh boy, Pence really laid it on thick.

Curlee remembered the time Pence met his mother at the White House. He actually referred to Curlee as his “daughter.” Curlee told the Atlanic what that interaction meant to him and Pence.

And this is where MAGA readers are probably going to raise both eyebrows.

The Atlantic:

“No one has affirmed my gender identity quite like Mike Pence.” “Well,” he said, “I’m glad I passed the test.”

That is quite a testimonial for Mike Pence, whose entire reputation has been carefully built around traditional Christian conservatism.

Passing “tranny tests” doesn’t sound very traditional, does it?

And it’s not like Curlee was some quiet, wall-flower CIA transgender who was still in the closet.

Many years before the Pence relationship unfolded, Curlee was already writing about his transgender identity, the CIA, and the bigger movement.

And speaking of the CIA’s love of trannies, we’ll get into more of that later…

As for Curlee, when he began writing about his trans life, he did so secretly. Nobody knew his real name yet.

Back in 2017, Curlee wrote another essay for The Atlantic under the pseudonym “Jenny Hall.” Curlee confirmed in his new piece that he was Hall and that the earlier essay was about his experience transitioning while working at the CIA.

The Atlantic:

“I relish the idea that I’m ISIS’s nightmare: trans, gay, Jewish, CIA, and worst of all, female.”

The 2017 essay celebrated the CIA’s acceptance of transgender employees and pushed for other American institutions to do the same.

That makes Pence’s role in Curlee’s later story even more weird and disturbing.

Because while Curlee was fighting the trans war from one side, Pence was publicly standing firm on the other.

At least that’s what he told us he was doing.

Back in 2023, Pence was still making the conservative case against transgender service in the military.

Scripps News:

“I just believe that the introduction of transgender soldiers in the military has not contributed to our readiness and ultimately is a distraction.”

Mike Pence made it clear that he would ban transgender troops.

You can see why Curlee’s story lands differently than some story about two people from different backgrounds just getting along and working together professionally.

Public Pence was campaigning against what he called “radical gender ideology,” but private Pence was an ally to the radical trans revolution.

Mike Pence has been lying to somebody. Is it the MAGA movement or the trans? Our bet is that he’s been lying to MAGA the entire time.

But wait, there’s another twist…

After January 6, 2021, Pence invited his former “Daily Brief” staff back to the West Wing for a farewell photo.

Curlee says he became emotional and told Pence he’d never been prouder to have worked for him because of what he had done the previous week with the 2020 election. Pence thanked him and told him how much that meant to him.

For MAGA, that little detail lands with a big ol’ thud.

Because J6 is the moment when Pence’s relationship with Trump’s movement shattered into a million pieces.

Now, we have a transgender CIA official applauding Pence for certifying an election that at least half the country thought was a fraud.

And speaking of Trump, Curlee is very critical of Trump’s second term and says he’s hostile and exclusionary toward the trans movement. He says he left the CIA after nearly two decades in government service.

But he opens his departure story by saying his CIA colleagues were betting on how quickly Trump’s admin would fire him, then describes Trump’s declaration that the federal government would recognize only two genders as another ominous sign of what was coming.

There was just one problem with his dramatic setup…

Nobody had actually fired him yet.

Here’s how Curlee tells it in the Atlantic piece:

At the CIA, they’d started an office pool on when I’d be fired.

President Trump would be sworn in for his second term at noon; the smart money had me gone by 12:15. But the smart money hadn’t counted on Trump’s first pick to run intelligence for the National Security Council being shredded by an online mob on suspicion of disloyalty. There wasn’t yet anyone in place to fire me.

After taking the oath, Trump spoke at the Capitol. “As of today, it will henceforth be the official policy of the United States government that there are only two genders: male and female.”

“Did he … ?” an NSA colleague asked. She glanced at me and looked away.

“Yeah,” I muttered. The good news: I was one of those two genders. The bad news: The administration would have views as to which one.

Trump’s return is a threat for him. His scientific “two-gender policy” is some kind of warning shot. Curlee is already bracing for the worst before anyone has even shown him the door.

But when Curlee looks back at Mike Pence, he gets all warm and fuzzy. You can already see where he draws the lines. The GOP establishment is clearly where Mr. Curlee feels more at home.

And that’s why the supposedly hard-line Christian conservative becoming one of the heroes in a transgender CIA officer’s personal story is very interesting indeed.

For MAGA, which already views Pence as the ultimate establishment traitor, that’s going to leave a mark.

Curlee’s story might also ring familiar for longtime Revolver readers.

Years ago, in one of our most viral pieces, we argued that the transgender movement had become one of the most aggressive and strangely influential forces inside left-wing institutions. We used a comparison to the Ottoman “janissaries,” the elite fighting force recruited from conquered Christian populations and converted into soldiers for the empire.

Our term for their modern cultural counterpart was memorable.

Here’s what we wrote at the time.

Revolver:

or those who didn’t grow up playing Age of Empires II, janissaries were the elite soldiers of the Turkish Ottoman Empire, which conquered the entire Balkans and Near East during the 15th and 16th centuries. They fought and won the toughest battles for the last and greatest of the Islamic empires that waged war against Christian Europe.

Today, it’s common on Twitter or in comments sections to see people quip that the most elite, tip-of-the-spear troopers for modern leftism are America’s growing pool of transgender people. Or, as the pun goes, “trannissaries.”

Why is the transgender movement so “successful?” In no small part, it’s because of how fanatically committed its members are to defending and advancing their ascended fetish. Why is transvestite content so successful online? Because transsexual radicals make up a very disproportionate share of moderators and power users on sites like Reddit or Wikipedia, and will harass or ban all who stand against them. Why is drag queen story hour everywhere? Because it turns out there are a whole lot of creepy autogynephiles eagerly volunteering to hang out with young children.

[…]

The comparison between the janissaries of old and the trannissaries of today is even more robust than that, though, and makes for some revealing insights about the nature of both the modern regime and its favorite playthings.

Both are the converted children of conquered peoples.

The most famous trait of the Ottoman janissaries was their unusual method of recruitment. New janissaries were made through the *devshirme, *(literally “collecting”), in which Ottoman officials went into the provinces, took boys aged roughly 8-15 away from their families, and brought them back to Constantinople for training as soldiers. In a major twist, though, the boys recruited were not taken from Turkish families, or other Muslim groups. Instead, they were taken from the conquered Christian peoples of the empire: Greeks, Albanians, Bulgarians, Serbs, and so on.

It’s an interesting piece that’s worth a read today:

Tranissaries: The Trans Movement’s Striking Parallels to a Dark and Forgotten Practice in the Ottoman Empire

As for Mr. Curlee’s story, and other transgenders around that time, it’s fair to note that the CIA wasn’t just “dealing with” them. They’d been openly recruiting them and promoting the CIA as this inclusive safe home for them.

It got so absurd, that around 2012, CIA recruiters were actually showing up at Pride events to talk about careers. The agency also had its own network for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender officers and allies.

But Curlee gives us an even more interesting detail about all of this “recruitment.”

In her 2017 Atlantic essay, she actually ended it by encouraging transgender kids to consider working for the CIA, and said they’re “always recruiting.”

And according to Curlee, the CIA used her articles on college campuses to recruit people.

The CIA has spent years marketing itself as a welcoming place for LGBT recruits.

And right in the middle of that world was one of the most supposedly “fire and brimstone” Christian conservatives in Washington.

Clearly, with all we know now, MAGA’s instincts about Pence were spot-on. He’s a phony. And now, thanks to this transgender CIA officer who spilled the beans, we have an even deeper and darker look behind Mike’s fake curtain.

Revolver News