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Greetings from Ukraine - specifically speaking, the outskirts of Kharkiv, which is marginally more salubrious than the inskirts of Kharkiv, a fairly cheerless post-Soviet dump. The Russians are about eight miles away, so we may be interrupted by incoming or the lads getting rat-arsed and bellowing "The Song of the Volga Boatmen". Nonetheless, blackouts permitting, I shall be here to answer questions from Mark Steyn Club members around the planet live at 3pm North American Eastern - which is 8pm in London, 9pm in Paris, and 10pm in Ukraine, where I had planned to be hollering "Keeeeeeeeeev!" with especial relish, but instead have galloped on to the front lines... If the infrastructure does not hold, we shall re-convene in the morning.
On to the new war. As you know, I think it's a fiasco equivalent to Suez. However, being an even-handed sort of chap, I try to start each column by linking to a positive pro-war analysis. So, courtesy of Michael Doran:
Seven Myths About the Iran War
I am in Ukraine on personal business, for a book I have in mind. However, distance does lend perspective on the unfolding American tragedy. While Mark Levin was sticking pins in the map of Kharg Island, he managed to lose his own state.
Yesterday, Virginia voted 51-49 in favour of a special mid-decade re-districting that turns its eleven congressional seats from a six-five purplish state into a ten-to-one bright blue state.
But not to worry, says the micro-genius. We'll get it back on appeal:
Sue the sh*t out of these thugs! https://t.co/PmviuityUh
— Mark R. Levin (@marklevinshow) April 22, 2026
Because, as the Republican Party learned after November 2020, state courts are really eager to overturn election results. Oh, wait, no: the Republican Party never learns nuthin'. Here is how Mr Levin's fellow rock-ribbed conservatives reacted:
The early vote looked slightly redder than what was seen in last year's general election in the state, signaling a potential path for the "no" campaign to win. The election day vote, though, wasn't red enough to secure a win.
Still, Republicans and anti-gerrymandering voices are touting "no"-vote turnout as a strong message of resistance to the Democrat-led plan.
"Even in defeat, this is a powerful message," said Brian Cannon, co-chair of the advisory council to the bipartisan group No Gerrymandering Virginia.
"Even in defeat, this is a powerful message": the GOP should make that the official party slogan. Could sell a zillion T-shirts - although the real big bucks would be in getting a twenty-minute pre-slogan-adoption tip-off so one could invest in T-shirt futures.
At any rate, as things stand, the Democrats have an extra four House seats to add to the extra five they gained courtesy of the rock-ribbed conservatives of the US Supreme Court:
Supreme Court allows California to use congressional map benefitting Democrats
So, without taking into account the Democrats' current edge and the forty-seventh president's all-time low poll-of-polls job approval and the 60-35 direction of country numbers - forget all of that - the House of Representatives under the new rules in Virginia would already have a fourteen-seat Democrat majority going into the election. Meanwhile, Senate Majority Leader John Thune used two months of shock'n'awe to sit on his flabby Republican arse and lift not a finger to pass the "SAVE America Act", which, unlike most of the stupid legislative appellations, was well-merited and to the point. For those of us who have since mid-2015 (unlike Levin) regarded the current president as America's last chance, this is an accelerating tragedy.
While you were busy regime-changing Iran - from Abbas Araghchi and Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, foreign minister and parliamentary speaker on February 27th, to Abbas Araghchi and Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, foreign minister and parliamentary speaker right now and the guys who'll be sitting across the table from JD Vance in Islamabad - while you were busy regime-changing Iran, Mark Levin and the Democrats regime-changed you.
So it's not just that, of the 197 sovereign nations across the globe, 195 blame what's happening right now on the US: vehicle-use restrictions from South Korea to Bangladesh to Slovenia, etc. Who cares? American "conservatives" take a not un-endearing pride in all that: in the words of the Irving Berlin First World War marching song, "They were all out of step but Jim", so screw those towelheads in Ljubljana and Euroweenies in Kuala Lumpur.
And it's not just that the sole remaining ally, the 196th nation, is none too happy about the "major about-face" in Washington.
And it's not just that a nation with $40 tril in federal debt is now considering giving money to one of the Top Ten wealthiest countries on earth as penance for having destroyed its business model as the Monaco of the Middle East. I'd love to hear the Treasury Secretary explain to the owners of midwestern diners and north country feed-stores why they have to work longer hours to bail out emirs.
But forget all that: who cares about bollocksing the world? Right now, American "conservatives" are self-bollocksing. It is said by his closest advisors that the President is prepared to lose the midterms over Iran. Well, that's pretty much baked in. But the redrawn state maps and the inertia of "SAVE America" are putting a more fundamental question-mark over the GOP's future.
Anyway, feel free to be as hostile as you like on today's show. Don't leave it to a Putin drone to take me out tonight when you can stun me into a gibbering fool with your trenchant aperçu. Membership of The Mark Steyn Club is required for Q&A only if you wish to ask a question. We love to hear from brand new members, and especially appreciate those who are having such a grand time around these parts that they've signed up a chum for a Steyn Club Gift Membership. Among the additions to our ranks in recent days are newbies from around the planet - from Norway to New Zealand, Hampshire to New Hampshire, Montreal to Monrovia. If you've joined this week either for a full year or a see-how-it-goes experimental quarter, do shoot me a head-scratcher for today's show.
But, if you're not interested in joining, no worries, as they say in Oz: We seek no unwilling members - and as always the show is free to listen to, so we hope you'll want to tune in. So see you back here at 3pm North American Eastern - which is 8pm in London, 9pm in Paris, 10pm in Kharkhiv, 10.30pm in Tehran, midnight in Islamabad, and the wee small hours of Thursday beyond...
