☕️ COUNTDOWN ☙ Friday, August 28, 2026 ☙ C&C NEWS 🦠

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Talwani beats her own hearing by six days and freezes the ballot rule; North Carolina mails in seven; Treasury drafting an audit list with Soros on it; the summer riots that didn’t happen; more.

Good morning, C&C family, it’s Friday! Apologies for the late delivery and truncated roundup, but I had to play lawyer this morning at an emergency court hearing that landed right in normal blogging time. Things went well, but I couldn’t finish in time for an early delivery. But today’s edition makes up for lost quantity with hard-hitting quality. (Some of you will be relieved by the brevity.) In today’s roundup: Judge Indira Talwani didn’t wait for her own September 3rd hearing, entering a single combined restraining order in two cases that freezes the Postal Service’s new mail-ballot rule and quotes the government’s own lawyers back at them three separate times to do it; why North Carolina’s September 4th ballot-mailing deadline turns a routine appeal into a demolition problem, given that restraining orders generally aren’t appealable and the Supreme Court has already reversed this judge once this month; the New York Post’s exclusive report that Treasury is drafting a blueprint to audit “bogus” charities, with the Southern Poverty Law Center, CAIR, and a Soros foundation named as early candidates; the on-the-record receipts behind it, including Scott Bessent’s promise to follow the money “just like we followed it with the mafia” and his quiet appointment of a nonprofit task force nobody can find any public information about; why a three-source leak landing two months before the midterms may be the actual story; and the strange case of the missing riot season, featuring a Fort Myers protest that mustered dozens, a Portland anarchist scene reduced to smashing municipal equipment for points, and a State Department designation tying Antifa’s tech support to Hamas and Iran’s IRGC.

🌍🇺🇸 ESSENTIAL NEWS AND COMMENTARY🇺🇸🌍

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Politico is not normally known for its sense of humor. But yesterday’s wry headline tickled me: “Judge blocks Trump’s mail-in voting plan, again” Here we go again! (Good one, Politico.) The nation’s “first Indian-American federal judge,” Indira Talwani, did not wait for her September 3rd hearing. She’s stolen a march. And, to be fair, she marched right over the government’s lawyers.

“The Trump administration’s bid to overhaul mail-in voting ahead of the midterms,” Politico drily wrote, “is on hold once again.”

As I predicted, things are moving fast. The judge was in such a hurry that she drafted one combined order for two cases— the California case just refiled by blue states (already being called California II) and the League of Women case brought by liberal NGOs.

She issued a temporary injunction applying to both cases, a time-saving technique as sensible as mixing two recipes in the same bowl because dinner starts in 20 minutes.

Back when all this cuckoo lawfare began, I explained the different types of injunctions. For our Portland readers, I’ll remind you about the kind Judge Talwani just entered, the temporary injunction. It’s a bridge, usually lasting 14 days or less, meant to keep things steady until you can get to the ‘real’ injunction hearing, kind of like putting a butterfly in a glass jar until you can get the lepidoptery equipment together.

This order, framed as a sub-type of temporary injunction called a “TRO” (temporary restraining order) requires USPS to freeze and not make a single move until after the September 3rd hearing, at which time we can expect the judge to be ready with a real stinker of a longer-lasting injunction to replace the TRO.

To be perfectly honest, this order was an uppercut. She slapped the USPS’s lawyers with their own words. Not once. Not twice. Three different ways. It was the kind of thing that, when you’re the targeted lawyer, you read it and your heart sinks lower and lower until earthworms are stepping over it and asking if it’s okay.

The government lawyers’ biggest problem is that so much is happening so fast. There’s a very good reason ordinary litigation takes so long. Drawing things out gives lawyers and judges a chance to think things through. But in high-stakes injunction litigation, with emergency motions and emergency appeals pinballing around, it’s totally different. It’s a no-sleep situation. It’s like playing timed chess where you only get ten seconds to move, except if you hit the timer one second late, you get an electric shock and lose the game.

In short, under those kinds of circumstances, you make the best arguments you can, under pressure, not even trying to think three moves ahead; you’re just trying to handle the current move without blundering. So we can forgive their minor slip-ups. But judges collect minor slip-ups. They pile them up. Then they lay in wait for you.

Judge Talwani sprang the trap, gleefully reminding the government lawyers that, last time, they argued she should deny the plaintiffs’ injunction because they said she could just quickly enter a new temporary one when the Final Rule came out. Well, it’s out! Then she pointed out that, two days ago, the government’s lawyers were gushing about how easily the plaintiffs could amend and get back into court if they needed help. Which they did.

Finally, she noted that the government lawyers had predictably argued that, since we are basically two months out from the election, it is too late now. Some states, Talwani said, start mailing out ballots next week. (“Some” being North Carolina, on Sept. 4. Nevada is next, Sept. 14. Pretty much everyone starts by Sept. 19.) In other words, the government’s “too late” argument is also a compelling reason for her to move super fast, since everybody admits that time is of the essence.

Be careful what you wish for.

🗳️ It’s a nail biter! A countdown! Which wire should they cut? Judge Talwani intentionally characterized her order as a “TRO” because usually, TROs are not directly appealable under federal law. One more obstacle.

With North Carolina poised to mail ballots out next Friday, is there enough time left for an appeal? Judge Talwani, rubbing it in,again quoted the government’s lawyers’ own words —using quotation marks— as saying, “appellate review in the ordinary course would come too late for the 2026 midterms.” Ouch.

Behold, the frantic pace of emergency litigation. Forget about “ordinary course appeals.” It’s too late for those. It’s looking like it’s time to pick a wire and just cut it.

It’s impossible to predict what comes next. SCOTUS has once already found that a Talwani injunction halting the USPS “irreparably harmed” the government. Will they do it again? Can they do it fast enough to beat the hard North Carolina deadline? Will SCOTUS work over the weekend? Does the government have a plan for how to immediately appeal the TRO?

Throw some more popcorn in the microwave. We’re going to need it. 🍿

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In the most tantalizing development since Trump shut down USAID, yesterday the New York Post exclusively reported, “Trump admin set to target George Soros nonprofit, Southern Poverty Law Center and CAIR in major tax crackdown: sources.”

The Post claimed that the Treasury Department is drafting a blueprint to audit “bogus” charities and, eventually, strip non-compliant 501(c)(3)s. Logically, then, the Treasury could soon start revoking the tax-exempt status of fake NGOs, such as George Soros’ Open Society Foundation, the Southern Poverty Law Center, and the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

This made conservative social media fizzily exuberant, much like a 2-liter bottle of Jolt cola with a Mento dropped in it.

If true, it would bookend the 2025 USAID shutdown. That tectonic move —among President Trump’s first and best— lopped off the NGO cash supply. Many folks have noticed the conspicuous absence of any mostly peaceful protests this summer. Even “No Kings” seems to have shriveled. Some shrinkage, as George Costanza might say.

Do you feel, as I do, that you’ve been cut out of some fabulous wealth-building loop that everyone else seems to know about? I refer specifically to the habit of nearly every Democrat official and deep-stater of “running” one or more “charitable organizations” that always seem to be helping elect Democrats and creating generational wealth for those involved. It’s an improved version of the “OPM” (other people’s money) strategy that was so popular a few years back, right before the real estate market collapsed into a neutron star.

Oleaginous Governor Newsom and his wife have several multi-million-dollar 501c3s, including the “Representation Project” (irony) and the “California Partners Project.” Failed Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacy Abrams formed one called “Rewiring America” just as the Autopen was starting to warm up and crackle with new electricity. It somehow got a $20 billion EPA grant for, and I am not making this up, “residential decarbonization projects” (unnamed).

I’m old enough to remember when decarbonization was an excuse teenagers used for speeding (we called it “blowing out the carbons”).

Anyway, us normal folks can form all the 501c3s we want, but we lack the critical second step to wealth-building: owed favors and insider connections to the money-printing federal government or, as in California, bloated state governments. Nor do we have connections with the web of big progressive NGOs that slosh money around like a toddler carrying a bucket of water.

This is a massive problem. It threatens to rend the fabric of American society into soiled shreds. Between welfare fraud and 501c3 cronyism, the middle class is being flattened like a schnitzel. So any announcement that the federal government is finally cracking down on “fake charities” —any prospect whatever— is a balm for the soul.

🔥 There are some caveats to this story. First, the Post attributed it to “three sources familiar with the matter.” Um. Treasury declined to comment. Any 100% anonymously sourced story is thinner than Circle-K bathroom tissue, and I regularly criticize the New York Times for doing just that. On the other hand, the Post is well-connected to the Trump Administration. So. (In a minute, we’ll consider whether it could have been a strategic leak.)

The anonymous report included a few more substantial details, such as revealing that “the initiative leans in part on a 2025 executive order targeting nonprofits operating with a ‘substantial illegal purpose.’” That suggests—and it’s only a suggestion— Treasury is first looking at 501(c)(3)s with criminal (e.g., SPLC) and national security (e.g., CAIR) implications. Hopefully this resembles how ICE kicked off last year by deporting criminal illegal aliens.

“There’s a lot of internal pressure to get it done, but some people are still moving too slowly at the IRS,” one of the sources said. “That is expected to change very soon.” Let’s hope.

There is some outside evidence. The Post noted that, a few months ago, a group of leftwing NGOs sued the Treasury Department and the IRS for “illegally weaponizing the tax code against its political opponents.” (The Tea Parties could not be reached for comment.) The sources told the Post about internal disagreements over the policy, like whether it should start before the midterms, whether national security targets like CAIR should take priority, or whether Nancy Pelosi might hex them from her broomstick.

YOUTUBE: Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent tells TPUSA about “charity” crackdown (18:37).

Last October, Secretary Bessent told a TCPA podcast that Treasury is “actively working” to take down the financial networks supporting radical left-wing organizations. Then he said they’d already begun compiling lists and mapping the Byzantine connections between money-laundering networks.

In January, the Post reported that Bessent had appointed Tony Saffier, a former special operations veteran and AI executive, to head up an “interagency task force” looking into nonprofits. There is almost no further public information about the task force. If it is operating, it is keeping a low profile.

Of course, Secretary Bessent’s attention has also been somewhat divided, what with managing the economic part of the Iran War.

🔥 The last and perhaps most interesting aspect of this “development” is the timing of the leaks —from three sources, all at once— amounting to a slightly early “October Surprise.” The political implications are breathtaking.

Consider this: how are already-worried left-wing NGOs likely to react upon suddenly discovering they are standing outside the blast bunker— just as the midterms approach? Is it already working? Let’s study one signpost, for an example.

Last year —even without an imminent national election— we got: burning Tesla dealerships, coordinated No Kings rallies across thousands of counties, LA street riots (435 arrests), 1300+ “Hands Off” protests in 50 states, and battles over federalizing the National Guard— running right through to this January, when we watched wild ICE protests, as in Minneapolis, with church invasions, protestors trying to run ICE agents over in SUVs and suicidally charging armed law enforcement personnel.

Compared to last year, this summer has been abnormally quiet. No national-TV week. A comatose Los Angeles riot scene. No CHAZ/CHOP takeover. Wall Street unoccupied. Even though ICE is running at a historically high level of arrests, demonstrations conversely fell to the lowest they have been since Trump 2.0 started— nearly ten times below January’s Minneapolis spike.

🔥 Instead, what do we see this summer, on the very brink of the midterm elections? Two days ago, Wink News reported, “Protesters rally in downtown Fort Myers over reported ICE activity.” It looked less like a riot and more like a few well-fed seniors lining up for the early-bird buffet at the Golden Corral.

“Dozens of protesters gathered outside the Luminary Hotel in downtown Fort Myers on Wednesday night,” Wink reported, “amid reports of increased U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity across Lee County.” Dozens!

According to reports, the protestors put away the commercial-grade fireworks and instead unleashed the deadliest weapon in the progressive playbook: a cowbell.

Nor was it anyone’s best and brightest. The group’s leader struggled to enunciate their demands. “Well, we are against what ICE has been doing, just basically laying siegeto whole communities,” protest organizer James Abraham said. (A ‘siege’ against the 4:30 buffet seating, maybe.) “And these communities consist of our neighbors. I’d want them to be out there for me, so I’m out there for them.”

Note what is missing from the Fort Myers “Crush ICE” protest. No buses. No crowds. WINK counted “dozens,” including, presumably, the cowbell ringer. No pre-printed signs. No stacked bricks. No first-aid station. No fireworks. No hockey masks. No morons in frog costumes.

Zoom out. This summer, where, oh where, is Antifa? Where is the dreaded black blochiding? Under a rotting log? I’m not making this up: Portland’s terrifying Antifa brigade spent the August before midterms playing pole-camera-bingo. Headline from Street Roots, last week:

“A few nights ago we decided to challenge ourselves and wreck four camera towers in one night,” an August post on a Portland anarchist message board said. From national immigration riots down to vandalizing four Flock cameras in one parking lot. More shrinkage. “The competition,” Street Roots said, “includes an instruction zine and a bingo sheet of surveillance infrastructure for players to destroy.”

Now, try to follow me here. It’s not just that Antifa has lowered its sights from doxxing ICE agents, following them around, and sabotaging arrests of illegal aliens. It’s what it lowered its sights to. Vandalizing Flock cameras is criminal mischief, but it is the kind of popular civil disobedience the general public can get behind. Everybody hates the spy cameras. It’s almost like a PR campaign, if you follow the tortured anarchist logic. For once, Antifa got itself on the right side of an 80/20 issue.

Maybe I am giving those nitwits too much credit. They aren’t Gen Z’s best and brightest, after all. The point is, nobody is aiming Antifa at the federal government. They are being aimed at deeply unpopular spy poles. This lets them continue to cosplay as intrepid anarchists, and creep around in the dark “fighting the system,” but Portland’s brave (and admittedly smelly) resistance fighters are happily conforming to public opinion.

🔥 Coincidentally, on July 16, Bessent spoke at a State Department eventorganized by Marco Rubio. “Increasingly,” he said, “legitimate nonprofit and charitable structures are being exploited as a mechanism to conceal the movement of illicit funds to support political terrorism.” Then he dropped the hammer. “In the fall, the United States designated four far-left Antifa extremist groups abroad as foreign terrorist organizations.”

In January, Chris Rufo interviewed Bessent. “When you see these protesters, someone is financing them,” Bessent explained. “There are safe houses. When you see the 300 people with the same laser that they’re using to blind DHS agents in courthouses in Portland, someone bought those lasers.” Meaning, a left-wing NGO. If that isn’t a threat, I don’t know what is.

Rufo asked Secretary Bessent, “There are 501(c)(3) nonprofit groups funded by left-wing dark money, that are organizing—or at least at arm’s length encouraging—criminal activities. Is the Treasury looking into this? Is it something you have authority to crack down on, and what can we expect?”

Note Bessent’s answer: “Yes, yes, and yes. So these groups that are engaging in this—we have the authority, and we are examining them.” Then came the mailed fist inside the silk glove: “What we do is follow the money—just like we followed it with the mafia. We’ll find out who’s done this.”

Treasury took down Al Capone, not the FBI.

🔥 Two days ago, Fox News reported the State Department officially linked Antifa to Hamas through a far-left, Italian tech collective that helps terrorists with secure digital systems (that somebody must be paying for). It’s now been sanctioned with Treasury’s most powerful anti-terrorism tools, like seizing their bank accounts. Ouch. Fox:

Since January —which was the last time we’ve seen organized violent protests on a large scale— Antifa’s bootprint has been steadily shrinking. It keeps getting smaller and smaller. You just didn’t notice because there’s so much else going on and because it’s harder to notice things that aren’t happening.

Meanwhile, ‘No Kings’ (Antifa for senior citizens) has a dramatic number of zero rallies currently scheduled on its website. Think of that. We’re eight weeks from the midterms.

I’m not saying the NGOs are beaten. I’m not even saying they are stopping. I am saying they are being a lot more careful.

I’m going to suggest that the NGOs are fleeing from Antifa. Political games that used to be edgy and fun —funding anarchists— can now attract the Treasury version of an F-22 strike. USAID was the first step. Stopping the funding of domestic political terrorism is the second step. Curing 501c3 charitable fraud will be the third step, and I hope it starts soon.

Have a fabulous Friday! C&C will return tomorrow morning with the Weekend Edition roundup of essential news and caffeinated commentary. No emergency hearings scheduled.

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