💣 THE 60-DAY DAY
Trump’s Iran war hits the 60-day mark today under the War Powers Resolution. He notified Congress on March 2. Friday, May 1, is the day the Constitution says he needs an authorization vote to keep firing. He does not have one.
Last night, the Senate rejected the war powers resolution 47–50 — the sixth Iran-war resolution Republicans have killed since March. Maine Republican Susan Collins crossed for the first time, joining Rand Paul and the Democrats. Two Republican defections, four short.
The administration’s official position arrived from Pete Hegseth in Senate Armed Services testimony Thursday: “The 60-day clock pauses or stops in a ceasefire.” Collins’ answer in one sentence: “It is not a suggestion; it is a requirement.” The ceasefire is also a US blockade of Iranian ports and a Strait of Hormuz still closed by Tehran — the kind of “pause” that costs 9.1 million barrels a day of Persian Gulf supply, the largest oil disruption ever recorded.
Some lawmakers are privately discussing suing the President if strikes continue past midnight. The procedural move — a federal injunction over an active military operation — has not been attempted in the modern era.
🛢️ THE PETROYUAN MOMENT
The United Arab Emirates formally exits OPEC and OPEC+ today — first major-producer departure in the cartel’s nearly six-decade history. The UAE was the third-largest producer behind Saudi Arabia and Iraq. The exit was announced on April 28, four weeks into a war in which fellow OPEC member Iran fired missiles and drones at Emirati territory. Bloomberg framed it as the Iran war reshaping the oil market. Asia Times read it as a petroyuan moment for Asian buyers.
🤝 THE ISLAMABAD DRAFT
Iran handed its fresh peace proposal to Pakistani mediators Friday. CNN sources confirm the structure: reopen the Strait first, lift the US blockade, then nuclear talks. The ceasefire would be extended for a long period — or made permanent — before Tehran’s centrifuges enter the conversation.
🚪 DHS REOPENS, ICE STAYS DARK
Trump signed the bill last night ending the 76-day DHS shutdown — the longest agency lapse in US history. TSA, Coast Guard, FEMA, CISA funded through September. ICE and CBP — no money. The deportation machine stays on shutdown.
✊ WORKERS OVER BILLIONAIRES
750 May Day events in 600 cities. 500 organizations. One slogan. No School. No Work. No Shopping. The first general-strike posture of the Trump second term.
🎯 THE PATTERN
May Day is traditionally a day of worker solidarity, but in America today, it’s a marker of opposition to a runaway executive and his billionaire class. On a date when congressional authorization should have been sought by the president, Trump continues to shrug off constitutional norms, prosecuting a war only he can end. But the real tell here may be the transitioning of the world from a petrodollar-based economy to a petroyuan economy. As the UAE leaves OPEC, you can almost feel the balance of power shift towards the East. That may be the ultimate legacy of the Trump-Iran war that will be felt not only at the pump but in US$ hegemony going forward.
Ice is still being paid, they just can't expand as much as they wanted. They've been paid the entire time.
Zev, May Day in Canada traditionally celebrated like the Europeans: a festival marking Spring and renewal. Including Maypole dancing. So we have both meanings now, both great. Rights and renewal.......