RESIGNED TO IT: After clashing with Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth over the firings of senior military leaders in line for promotion, Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll, the service’s top civilian leader, resigned yesterday.

  The NY Times has described the military as “rudderless” in the midst of war with Iran because of Hegseth’s elimination of senior combat-experienced leaders. The Army, for instance, has not had a chief of staff since April when Gen. Randy George was fired. 

  Driscoll met personally with President Trump to hand in his resignation and discuss the military situation. Trump is described as having been surprised when Driscoll told him about  the situation in the Pentagon.

BAD RAP: Thirty years after rap star Tupac Shakur was gunned down in Las Vegas, former Los Angeles gangster Duane Davis, 63, was convicted of murder by his own words. It took the jury only about three hours to find Davis guilty of first-degree murder.

  Davis had been accused of procuring the gun used in the 1996 car-to car shooting in which the 25-year-old Shakur was killed and rap mogul Suge Knight was wounded. The shooting was the result of a feud between East and West Coast hip-hop labels.

  Davis had cooperated with investigators in a drug case and told them things about the Shakur murder that he believed were covered by his cooperation agreement. He then began speaking publicly about his involvement, even writing a book, admitting that he was a witness to the killing, opening the door to be charged.

SPOTTY RECORD: The new director of the Centers for Disease Control made the unusual move of challenging the cause of death attributed to measles in two cases reported by Pennsylvania, skirting the agency’s usual acceptance of reports by states. 

  The incident may indicate the politicization of the CDC under Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Kennedy in a social media post accused the Pennsylvania’s Democratic governor of “manipulating” the truth.

DANCE FEVER: The Supreme Court by a 5-4 majority ruled that that the preservationists who sued to stop construction of President Trump’s 90,000-square-foot ballroom did not have legal standing to bring their lawsuit because they were not directly harmed by the project and therefore it may continue to go up.

  Chief Justice John Roberts joined the minority saying the project is likely illegal. The majority did not say that it is, ruLing only on the technical question of “standing.”

  Given the length of time it takes to pursue a lawsuit and the speed at which the ballroom is being built, it is likely to be completed.

  Roberts wrote in his dissent that the White House is “an iconic American building whose symbolism and history are wrapped up in its architecture,” and that, “All the more reason to ensure that those responsible follow the rules in deciding what to tear down and what to build up at the People’s House.”

  President Trump initially called the giant ballroom something presidents have wanted for generations then turned to calling it a necessity for national security with a bunker complex, hospital facility, and military drone port on the roof.

  The ballroom will dwarf the White House itself. Trump posted that, “When completed in the Summer of 2028, the magnificent Ballroom and Military Complex will be something that the entire Country is very proud of.” 

INFINITE SCROLL: 

— Vice President JD Vance called Michigan’s Democratic Senate nominee, Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, an outspoken critic of Israel, “very, very evil” at a campaign rally near Detroit. 

  People like Mr. El-Sayed “see themselves not as citizens of a common nation fighting for every single person — whether they’re Jewish or Christian, whether they’re white or Black or brown — but see themselves as fighting for one group at the expense of others,” Vance said. “And that is how, ladies and gentlemen, you destroy the United States of America.” 

— Stepping up his administration’s claim that vaccination can cause autism, President Trump posted a meme saying, “No published case has explicitly documented an unvaccinated Amish child with autism.”

— And, entering the fray over the construction of giant data centers that cover acres of land while sucking up water and electricity, Trump posted this: “The only reason that communities throughout the U.S.A. should not want Data Centers is if they want to end up being backwards and poor. If they want to be successful and rich, with far lower taxes and jobs all over the place, let Data Reign.”

LAST KICK: Argentina’s beloved soccer star Lionel Messi, who led his country’s team to the World Cup Championship in 2022, officially announced his retirement from the game at age 39.

 Messi’s final game was this year’s loss to Spain in the World Cup championship, at the end of which Messi was seen wistfully looking at the crowded stadium, soaking up the roar of the crowd for what appeared to be the last time, which it was.

  Messi had played in six World Cups and reached the final game three times.

He is heralded as one of the greatest soccer players of all time. In this last tournament Messi scored eight goals and four assists, a lot of a player of any age. 

Posting on Instagram, Messi said the decision to retire “hurts deep in my soul”, but that he “realizes the time has come.”

THE SPIN RACK: The number of confirmed dead in the Nepal river flood has reached 1,000. — The Metropolitan Museum of Art cancelled its planned exhibit honoring British designer John Galliano after an uproar from the Jewish Community. Galliano has been convicted of antisemitism in France.

BELOW THE FOLD: The Kalshi prediction market … gambling market … banned former Republican congressman George Santos for life for being deceptive about whether he would attend a State of the Union address. Kalshi says he made $17,000 betting on his own actions.

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