Alas, the time has come for me to bid adieu to my TGIF frenemies. I hear Nellie has mastered the art of gentle parenting and will be back from leave with the new heir imminently. Note to Free Press staff: If a short king you’ve never seen before wanders by your desk and demands that you pick him up and rub his belly, just do it. He’s your boss now; call him Sir and enjoy it. It’s been a pleasure filling in Nellie’s sensible shoes, but your Queen—mercifully—will be back in two weeks. TGIF!
→ Hochul aide arrested: Federal authorities arrested Linda Sun, a former aide of New York governor Kathy Hochul, along with her husband, Christopher Hu. The couple is facing multiple charges, including acting as an undisclosed agent on the behalf of the People’s Republic of China and the Chinese Communist Party; conspiracy to money launder; visa fraud; alien smuggling; bank fraud; failure to register as a foreign agent, and other charges. To add insult to injury, the story was quickly eclipsed by the even juicier Russian interference story (see below); Sun’s parents must be fuming.
The indictment alleges that Sun used her positions in New York state government to advance Chinese government interests. In their defense, they seemingly (allegedly) did this for the right reasons: not for love of country, but because they got paid. The couple purchased a house on Long Island in 2021 for $3.6 million, proving that even Chinese operatives can capture the American spirit.
→ Trump claims Arlington fight was fake news: On Tuesday, former (and future?) POTUS Donald Trump claimed that the story about his campaign team arguing with staff at Arlington National Cemetery during a photo opp late last month was FAKE NEWS made up by COMRADE KAMALA who has BLOOD ON HER HANDS and probably also COMING OUT OF HER WHATEVER. In reality, Trump wrote on Truth Social, it was a BEAUTIFUL DAY, the MOST BEAUTIFUL DAY and they did nothing but HONOR VETERANS and GOLD STAR FAMILIES.
The conflict (NO CONFLICT) arose after Trump visited Arlington for a wreath-laying ceremony marking the third anniversary of an ISIS suicide bombing in Afghanistan that killed 13 service members during the American withdrawal in 2021. According to NPR, which broke the story, two Trump campaign staffers got into an altercation with an Arlington official who attempted to block the campaign from bringing cameras into the site. Election-related activities are prohibited at military cemeteries, but when confronted, a Trump staffer pushed past the employee. Later, campaign spokesman Steven Cheung denied to NPR that there was any kind of altercation and claimed that that cemetery official was “clearly suffering from a mental health episode.” A spokesperson from Arlington National Cemetery, however, confirmed that the altercation did, in fact, take place and a report was filed. But I will surely be using “clearly suffering from a mental health episode” next time I get asked to stop filming my TikTok dances at military funerals.