News On Tap For Thursday, February 19, 2026

Accountability Is Coming

Today’s batch of “News On Tap” has a strong flavor of accountability, though it’s still not strong enough for our tastes. Some accountability tied to the Trump/Epstein files did finally arrive today, and the world saw some accountability for insurrection too. Meanwhile, Trump’s immigration wars roll on, even as Trump’s economy is failing. We’ve also got news from Election Land, and Olympic updates too. Plus, more performative sanctimony from Trump’s minions - which we can talk about with John Fugelsang, when he stops by the bar tonight. Read up, get informed, and we’ll see you here tonight!

First Round - Measures Of Accountability

Accountability & The Trumpstein Files

• UK Police Arrest Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor On Suspicion Of Misconduct In Public Office Over Ties To Jeffrey Epstein

• King Charles Issues Statement After His Brother Andrew’s Arrest Amid Epstein Files Revelations

• Billionaire Les Wexner, In Deposition By House Panel, Tells Lawmakers He Was ‘Conned’ By Epstein And Did ‘Nothing Wrong’

• House Democrats Say Questions About The Corruption Of Wexner & Epstein Shouldn’t Stop With Congress

• Growing Number Of California Lawmakers Call For La28 Olympics Chairman Casey Wasserman To Step Aside Over Epstein Ties

• Media Matters: Confirmed - The Fox Propaganda Channel Is Hiding The Latest Epstein Revelations From Their Audience

• Aaron Regunberg: The Republican Party Has Become A Single-Issue Party. Their Issue Is Elite Impunity.

Accountability In Korea

• South Korea’s Former President Yoon Suk Yeol Jailed For Life For Leading Insurrection

• Yoon’s Verdict Does Not ‘Wrap Things Up.’ What’s Next For South Korea After Yoon’s Life Sentence? A Divided Nation Working To Repair Itself.

• Lessons From Korea — Yoon Removal Shows Us What Should Have Been In The U.S.

Technology On Trial

• Zuckerberg Defends Meta Against Social-Media Harm Accusations During Landmark Civil Trial

• Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg Sticks To Talking Points In Testimony On Kids’ Instagram Use

• Apple Now Being Sued By West Virginia For Alleged Failure To Stop Child Sexual Abuse Material On iOS Devices

Second Round - Trump’s Immigration Wars

• DHS Shutdown Talks Hit A Wall As Republicans Continue To Fume

• Rep. Hakeem Jeffries: Democrats Remain ‘Steadfast’ In Their Demands For Major ICE Reforms As DHS Shutdown Continues

• So-Called ICE “Drawdown” In Twin Cities Shows Enforcement Activity Has Just Shifted To Suburbs

• Trump DOJ Lawyer In Minnesota Found In Contempt By Federal Judge For Lack Of Compliance In Judicial Orders [Gift Link]

• Federal Judge Throws Out Trump Administrative Board’s Ruling Endorsing Trump’s Mass Detention Policy

• Trump DOJ Admits To Violating Court Orders In Immigration Cases Over 50 Times Since December — Just In New Jersey

• Journalists Arrested In Cameroon While Covering Secretive U.S. Deportations [Gift Link]

• As ICE Buys Up Warehouses, Even Some Trump Voters Are Saying No

• Trump Admin. Directing DHS To Investigate & Prosecute Naturalized Citizens Who May Have Improperly Voted In Past Elections Before They Became Citizens

Third Round - Republicans Can't Govern

Trumponomics Is Failing

• U.S. Trade Deficit Remained At Massive $901 Billion In 2025, Despite Trump’s Tariffs

• U.S. Economic Indicators Remain Slow For 2026, Amid Continued Weakness In The Economy

• Trump’s Hack Economic Adviser Kevin Hassett Now Says Fed Staff Should Be ‘Disciplined’ For Reporting The Truth, That U.S. Residents Pay Tariff Costs

Trump’s War On Good Govt.

• Trump-Appointed Commission Speeds Through Approval Of Massive New White House Ballroom

• Trump Regime, That Wants To Censor Content Here, Now Plans Online Portal To Bypass Content Bans Of U.S. Content By Europe & Elsewhere

• Trump Officials Limit FEMA Travel To Disaster Areas Amid DHS Shutdown

• NIH Director Will Now Temporarily Run The CDC In Trump Admin. Staff Shake-Up

Fourth Round - More News To Drink About

Election Land

• Trump Hits Campaign Trail In Key Battleground Georgia, As Special Election Race To Replace Marjorie Taylor Greene Heats Up

• Georgia State Election Board Rules They Won’t Take Over Fulton County Elections, For Now

• Sen. John Cornyn Warns Of A Republican ‘Massacre’ In Texas If Ken Paxton Beats Him In Their Senate Primary

• Texas Republicans Alarmed About Candidate For State Comptroller. Who Recently Purchased Epstein’s Former New Mexico Ranch

Performative Sanctimony

• Pete “Kegbreath” Hegseth Welcomes Radical “Christian” Nationalist To Lead Official Pentagon Prayer Service

• Right-Wing ‘Catholic’ Karoline Leavitt Insults Vatican On First Day Of Lent

Foreign Affairs

• As Trump Weighs Possible Iran Strikes, U.S. Military Moves Into Place [Gift Link[

• U.S. Gathers The Most Air Power In The Mideast Since The 2003 Iraq Invasion

• Trump Holds First ‘Board Of Peace’ Meeting Over Gaza’s Future, With Most Key U.S. Allies Absent

• No Surprise: Russia-Ukraine Talks Yield No Peace Breakthrough

Miscellaneous But Important

• New Study Confirms High IQ Men Tend To Be Less Conservative Than Their Average Peers

• Former Aide Now Confirms Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales, From Texas, Had Affair With Aide Who Set Herself On Fire

• Eight Skiers Dead After California Avalanche Near Lake Tahoe

Fifth Round - Media, Entertainment, & More

Media Matters

• FCC Chairman Brendan Carr Confirms “Enforcement Action” Now Underway Against ABC’s ‘The View’ For Supposed Violation Of So-Called ‘Equal Time’ Rule

• Brian Stelter: Don’t Be Fooled - The Trump FCC’s ‘Equal-Time’ Push Is Almost All Bark, No Bite

Entertainment & More

• U2 Surprise Drops Politically Charged New EP, Called “Days Of Ash,” With Six New Songs

• Bad Bunny Gets First Lead Movie Role In ‘Porto Rico’

Olympic Recap

• Olympics News, Live Updates: Women’s Figure Skating Final Today, As U.S. Women’s Hockey Team Goes For Hockey Gold

• U.S. Men’s Hockey Beats Sweden In OT, As Canada’s Men’s Hockey Team Rallies To Defeat Czechia In OT, Both Winners Reaching Olympic Semifinals

• U.S. Speed Skater Jordan Stolz Claims 1500m Silver For Third Medal In Milan

• U.S. Women’s Curling Team Clinches Spot In Semifinals, With Win Over Switzerland

Tonight’s Bar Regular:

John Fugelsang, our friend, comedian, broadcaster, podcaster, Host of “Tell Me Everything with John Fugelsang” weeknights on Sirius XM and author of the bestselling book “Separation of Church and Hate” is back tonight for more news, drinks, and fun. We’ll talk about all the accountability - or lack thereof - tied to the Trump/Epstein files, and we’ll talk about some of the news of the past week, including the Trump regime’s attack on environmental policy, Trump’s ICE monsters, & the death of Rev. Jesse Jackson and the real Christianity the Right is desperate to avoid. Grab a drink & join us tonight!

---

Join us today, on any of our radio affiliates, or subscribe and listen ad-free anytime!

• Detour Talk Radio - Tri-Cities Area Of Tennessee

• WCPT AM 820 – Chicago

• Georgia Now Radio - Atlanta

• AM 950 - Minneapolis/St. Paul

• Progressive Voices Radio - Worldwide, Via Tune In