Move over Jeb Bush. Your 15 minutes are up. Donald Trump has announced his candidacy for President.

In a rambling 40 minute speech, he said he'll be the greatest president ever with respect for to the economy. He said our country is now run by losers. He said he has a net worth of $8.7 billion.

“The American dream is dead,” Trump said at the end of his speech. “But if I win, I will bring it back bigger and better and stronger than ever before.”

Trump is good for one thing: entertainment.

The Colorado Supreme Court yesterday ruled employers can fire workers who use marijuana outside of the workplace. The opinion in Coats v. Dish Network is here.

The supreme court holds that under the plain language of section 24-34-402.5, 13 C.R.S. (2014), Colorado’s “lawful activities statute,” the term “lawful” refers only to those activities that are lawful under both state and federal law. Therefore, employees who engage in an activity such as medical marijuana use that is permitted by state law 16 but unlawful under federal law are not protected by the statute. We therefore affirm the court of appeals’ opinion.

Brandon Coats, a quadriplegic and medical marijuana user who was fired from his job as a telephone operator at Dish Network for using marijuana in his off-job hours. [More...]

Here comes Jeb Bush, with a new exclamation point next to his name. Here's his launch video. He looks tired.

Also considering jumping into the race: John Kasich.

If Twitter is any gauge of popularity: Hillary has 3.6 million followers on Twitter. Jeb has 196,000.

The U.S. conducted an airstrike inside Libya today, killing Mokhtar Belmokhtar, the Algerian former al Qaida terrorist who left al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM)to form the al Mulathameen Brigade, which joined with Al Murabitoon. Via the New York Times:

In a significant escalation of American counterterrorism operations, the United States carried out an airstrike against a midlevel operative of Al Qaeda in Libya early Sunday, American officials said.

It was the first time the American military has carried out any kind of airstrike in Libya since the NATO operation there in 2011 helped oust Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi.

[More...]

Our last open thread is full. Here's a new one, all topics welcome.

Daily Beast has an update on U.S. captive Umm Sayyaf, widow of the Abu Sayyaf, killed in the U.S. raid. Apparently, she may be held for months without charges. The U.S. still hasn't decided what to do with her.

What happens if the U.S. captures numerous ISIS fighters in Iraq or elsewhere? Will a new detention center have to be built? Is their long-term detention authorized under the old AUMF? There are a lot of unknowns.

I'd still like to know the real name of Abu Sayyaf and his role in ISIS. The various pseudonyms and descriptions so far are unconvincing. Can't we at least have a photo?

Dominique Strauss-Kahn was acquitted of aggravated procurement charges today in France.

Although using prostitutes is not illegal in France, assisting in supplying them is illegal and regarded as procuring. Mr Strauss-Kahn had been accused of playing a pivotal role in facilitating the orgies.

The verdict brings to a close four years of legal proceedings against Mr Strauss-Kahn, including charges of attempted rape which were later dropped in 2012.

It's the correct decision legally. [more..]

We've got torrential downpours happening. It's a good night to stay in. Tomato soup and a tuna sandwich sounds about right.

I don't watch basketball, but I see the NBA finals are on.

On June 29, Jon bon Jovi and his wife will host a fundraiser in New Jersey for Hillary Clinton. He'll also perform. Tickets are $1,000 and $2,700. [More...]

President Obama has ordered 450 military trainers to deploy to Iraq to train Iraqi forces in the Anbar region. The new training facility would be at Taqaddum, which is near Ramadi in the eastern part of the province.

Obama decided on the new troop deployment in response to a request from Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, the White House said. The two leaders met on the margins of the G7 summit in Germany earlier this week.

The White House press release is here. [More...]

I just re-signed up with Netflix. It has announced new deals with Telemundo, Unimas and Univision and will expand it's latin programming.

I just finished watching 48 episodes of El Cartel 2: La Guerra Total (sequel to Cartel de Los Sapos.) I bought the DVD's, since it wasn't available with workable subtitles anywhere else.

Unimas has been airing Cartel de Los Sapos for a few months, and the finale is tomorrow night. Telemundo is in the midst of Senor de Los Cielos 3. Both have English captions, even on Xfinity. [More...]

The XXXII International Conference for Drug Control in Cartagena, Colombia, has wrapped up. Tomás Zerón, the head of the Mexico Attorney General's Criminal Investigation Agency, who attended the conference, tells Proceso (use google translate) that there are only two drug cartels and three drug lords left in Mexico: Sinaloa, led by Ismael Zambada-Garcia and Fausto Isidro Meza Flores, and CJNG (Jalisco New Generation)led by Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes. He said Sinaloa deals primarily in cocaine, while CJNG concentrates on meth. He also said Zambada-Garcia doesn't seem too active these days.

Zerón said the Zetas disintegrated, and the Gulf Cartel turned to kidnapping and extortion instead of drugs because it lacks the financing and contacts to obtain drugs. According to Zerón, the Juarez, Tijuana, Beltran Leyva and Knights of Templar cartels have dismantled, due to the death or detention of their leaders (more here), and now are operating as independent cells. [More...]

It's time for a new open thread. Here it is, all topics welcome.