It was a week in which Donald Trump left on the CAPS LOCK button to threaten Iran, sparking less fear of World War III than a social media joke fest:

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Trump To Discontinue Obama-Era Practice Of Using Lowercase Letters, the New Yorker's Borowitz Report quipped.

It was this comment from Iranian President Rouhani in a speech that caused Mr Trump's ire (although Mr Rouhani has said similar before):

"Peace with Iran would be the mother of all peace and war with Iran would be the mother of all wars."

Mr Trump's all-caps response, which may have once had the world on edge, became immediate comedy fodder:

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Iran's Foreign Minister struck back with a tweet the following day:

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Despite the general amusement about something very serious, the tweet did result in a week of speculation about whether the US is preparing to strike Iran.

Something to watch, especially considering that Australia may be asked to participate if that happens.

It also provided the President with a welcome distraction from his domestic woes. However, attention swung back when a tape emerged of Mr Trump and his former personal lawyer Michael Cohen allegedly discussing buying the story of a woman who claims she had an affair with Mr Trump in the mid-2000s.

The tapes first aired Tuesday night on CNN. By Wednesday morning, the President had lashed out on Twitter:

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The tape has caused further discussion about whether the President breached campaign finance laws by paying large sums of money to prevent bad publicity from affecting his campaign.

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Meanwhile, his arch nemesis Bob Mueller is still busy with the Russia investigation and is said to be analysing the President's tweets as part of his probe into whether Mr Trump has attempted to obstruct justice.

Meanwhile it's all the media's fault (again, still)

On Tuesday, in front of an audience full of veterans, the President slammed the press, telling attendees, "What you're seeing and what you're reading is not what's happening."

Which led to comparisons to George Orwell's 1984:

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The White House then blocked CNN reporter Kaitlan Collins from attending an event in the Rose Garden. The reason? She "yelled" questions during a morning photo-op with EU President Jean-Claude Juncker.

Not only did the White House Correspondents' Association come to Ms Collins' defence, but Mr Trump's favourite network, FOX News, backed her:

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This is notable in a press environment that's almost as partisan as the US Congress.

Speaking of Fox, check out this epic fail when the person booked to speak live on TV is the wrong person!

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Awkward.

ICYMI

Sean Spicer's memoir The Briefing is out an the reviews are scathing, to say the least.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is unlikely to be seen in the Oval Office this year after all. The White House says it wants to wait until the 'Witch Hunt' (aka Russia probe) is over. Note that the House and Senate leadership had already said the Russian President wouldn't be welcome on Capitol Hill. Loading

FLOTUS watches whatever station she likes, her spokeswoman says, after reports that she annoyed POTUS by watching CNN on Air Force 1. Loading

What I'm reading

49 years ago, this week:

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One year ago, this week:

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How time flies.