Jon Herold comes in on July 4th Eve light on prep and heavy on chat energy, which turns out to be exactly right for a holiday Friday. Bill Pulte fired dozens of ODNI intelligence officials this week for allegedly withholding information from leadership, and Jon floats the theory that Ratcliffe may be the one directing the firings while Pulte provides cover. The New York Times reported that the US secretly warned regional allies to tip off Iran that Israel was planning to assassinate its Foreign Minister and Parliament Speaker during active peace negotiations, and Jon says it fits the pattern of Israel simply not caring about talks it never wanted in the first place. The left and a Chinese commentator are now publicly discussing Trump's third term, which Jon reads as projection mixed with genuine worry, and he plays Steve Bannon's Economist interview making the principled case that the will of the American people is what the Constitution actually embodies. A Texas state rep Jon interviewed back in August 2025 just got appointed as Abbott's election integrity policy advisor, and Jon got cited as a conservative influencer in the Dallas Morning News for it. CannCon's $2.40 gas prediction lands at $3.82 nationally. Jon also closed out Badlands YouTube early today to avoid a second strike.