Greetings! Dept. of Sticks & Stones: NewsBusters dubbed Oliver Darcy, the founder of the influential media biz newsletter Status, a “pompous prick” for his takedown of the ratings-challenged “CBS Evening News” with Tony Dokoupil. NewsBusters called Darcy’s reporting “vindictive gruel.” For what it’s worth, I watched "CBS Evening News" this month, and concluded that it’s better written than either ABC’s “World News Tonight” or NBC’s “Nightly News.”  Most nights, Dokoupil’s wit shines through and I come away with a smile or even a chuckle by the show’s end. When it launched at the beginning of the year, the newscast faltered editorially in at least its first month as many pundits noted. The irony is that the show has begun to find its footing with sharp wordsmithing and many segments critical of the Trump administration, while losing part of its audience as Darcy correctly points out. My intention here is not to flack for the right-leaning embattled CBS News boss Bari Weiss. Many of her actions have left me deeply disturbed about the news division’s editorial independence and future...$300 million. That’s how much revenue is generated by MAGA-branded merchandise, including caps, t-shirts and watches, according to a NY Times investigation. Trump and  family have pocketed at least a million or two from the swag sales.  My guess is that the Trump tally estimate is on the conservative side...Who’s attending any of the No Kings rallies Saturday?  If you’re so inclined, please provide me with images and the name of the city where the rally took place (and  any other info for context). Send to Howard@TheRighting.com and I'll post early next week.  Worth noting: I’m somewhat puzzled why the demonstrations were scheduled for March when parts of the country are still chilly. Sunday, June 14, would have been better – Trump’s 80^th birthday!....If you keep reading and demonstrating, I’ll keep Righting. Howard

Greetings! A student in Charlotte, NC, is suing her high school for painting over her tribute to slain conservative activist Charlie Kirk. The school also accused her of vandalism. The student, Gabby Stout, has charged the school with violating her First, Fourth and Fifth amendments, according to GOPUSA. Let’s see if this story picks up steam in the conservative media echo chamber in the coming days...The website Feedspot ranked the top 60 conservative websites of 2026.  Even I learned about some new sites, which is saying something.  It’s a good resource with insightful information, including the number of social media followers for each outlet... NY Times conservative-lite scribe Bret Stephens makes a compelling case about  “why the war is going better than you think” in his latest  column... Gag alert: The right-wing 100 Percent Fed Up thinks Donald Trump and Elvis Presley look alike. Is it because at some point they may have shared the same dietician?...Agree! The American Conservative mourns America’s missing diplomatic strength. “Doing everything by war is in fact difficult, expensive, and unsustainable,” according to TAC’s John Russo...Somewhere, Putin is smiling: The Donald issued a read-between-the-lines threat to NATO – the powerful organization that is a burr in the Russian dictator’s behind -- for not supporting Trump’s war with Iran. In all caps, he wrote on Truth Social, “THE U.S.A. NEEDS NOTHING FROM NATO, BUT ‘NEVER FORGET’ THIS VERY IMPORTANT POINT IN TIME!”...Rock band name of the month: Dire Straits.  Seems appropriate for several reasons. If you don’t get the joke, you haven’t been paying attention...If you keep reading, I’ll keep Righting. Howard