DeFranco News Clips
The Stock Market Stabbing That Explains the Kai Cenat Scandal
updated
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Another six US service members have been killed in Trump’s war in Iran;
thousands more troops are on the way the Strait of Hormuz is still on lockdown; and the administration’s latest effort to deal with the fallout involves helping Russia fund its war in Ukraine.
But let’s start with the latest Americans to die—which bring the total U.S. death toll in Operation Epic Fury to at least 13 service members. You first had CENTCOM reporting that yesterday at around 2pm eastern time a “KC-135 refueling aircraft went down in western Iraq”—saying:
“Four of six crew members on board the aircraft have been confirmed deceased as rescue efforts continue”—and adding: “The circumstances of the incident are under investigation. However, the loss of the aircraft was not due to hostile fire or friendly fire.”
A few hours later, however, CENTCOM reported that all six crew members aboard the aircraft had died—saying again that the “circumstances of the incident are under investigation” and that “the loss of the aircraft was not due to hostile fire or friendly fire.” And while we wait for more information about exactly what went wrong it’s worth noting that aerial refueling is no easy task—and there have apparently been multiple accidents over the years in which an incorrect approach resulted in damage or death.
And over the course of this now two-week-old war there have also been other accidents as well. You had three fighter jets shot down by forces from Kuwait in “an apparent friendly fire incident” during the first days of the war—although all the pilots were safe. Ann yesterday you had a fire in the main laundry area of the USS Gerald Ford aircraft carrier—reportedly resulting in “non-life-threatening injuries” to two sailors.
And with that, in addition to the death toll, the number of service members getting hurt in this war is also going up. Right, as of Tuesday, the Pentagon said roughly about 140 service members had been wounded so far. With a spokesperson claiming that eight were severely wounded and most had only minor injuries, saying that over 100 had already returned to duty.
Although, notably, we then got reason to doubt this administration’s definition of “minor injury”—with CBS reporting on Wednesday that dozens of service members suffered injuries including brain trauma, shrapnel wounds, and burns. Including more than thirty who remained in hospitals and at least one who was at risk of having a limb amputated.
And this was only talking about those injured in an Iranian drone attack in Kuwait that resulted in the first six deaths of service members in this war. An attack that CENTCOM initially said that only eight people had been killed or seriously wounded while "several others sustained minor shrapnel injuries and concussions."
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Produced by: Cory Ray, Philip DeFranco
Edited by: James Girardier, Maxwell Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks, Matthew Henry
Art Department: William Crespo
Writing/Research: Jared Paolino, Philip DeFranco
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#USA #America #Iran
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Edited by: James Girardier, Maxwell Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks, Matthew Henry
Art Department: William Crespo
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#Iran #USA #Trump
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But then back to the final bit of the news, the House Oversight Committee just held a closed door deposition with Richard Kahn, Epstein's former accountant. And so now, we are again seeing both sides play the spin game and create their own talking points about what was said and what should be believed.
Khan is now the executor of Epstein’s estate, though he claims he had no knowledge of Epstein’s crimes, that he never observed any abuse or trafficking or heard any complaints, but that he still regrets he may have "unknowingly assisted Epstein in any way."
And according to the representatives there, he answered every single question and named some of the clients who contributed to Epstein’s absurd wealth. Claiming that Les Wexner, Leon Black, Steven Sinofsky, Glenn Dubin, and the Rothschild family all paid Epstein millions. Leaders in the committee also said that Kahn admitted to impersonating Epstein in communications with banks and facilitating a fake marriage between two women in Epstein’s orbit. And when it comes to other powerful people who may have had ties to Epstein’s wealth, Rep. Suhas Subramanyam told MS NOW:
“We asked him if there were any financial transactions between Epstein and other heads of state or other politicians, and he did mention the name Ehud Barak. And remember that Virginia Guiffre had mentioned that a former Israeli prime minister, which Barak is, had violently r—- her.”
But you also have Republicans focusing on who Kahn did not implicate, especially Trump, again trying to use this deposition to clear the president’s name, with Chairman James Comer saying:
“Mr. Khan testified under oath that, democrats asked this question, he had never saw any type of transaction to Trump or anyone in Trump’s family. That makes the fifth witness that has testified now under oath that they have never seen any involvement by Donald Trump.”
But, as you can imagine, Democrats do not see it the same way, with them pushing back on a ton of Kahn’s deposition, saying they flat out do not believe that Epstein’s accountant and estate executor was clueless about his crimes. With Robert Garcia, the committee’s Democrat lead, writing that:
“Jeffrey Epstein’s massive sex trafficking ring would not have been possible without the consistent payments and services of his long-time accountant Richard Kahn…It’s not credible that he had no knowledge of Epstein’s activities, and his testimony today only raises more questions.”
And when it comes to Trump, Garcia specifically said that Kahn “confirmed that Epstein spoke about Trump ‘a lot.’” With Rep. Subramanyam adding that the committee asked Kahn about the settlement program he is running for the estate and:
“We asked specifically if Trump’s accusers had actually gotten a settlement and he did confirm that”
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Produced by: Cory Ray, Philip DeFranco
Edited by: James Girardier, Maxwell Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks, Matthew Henry
Art Department: William Crespo
Writing/Research: Maddie Crichton, Philip DeFranco
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#USA #America #EpsteinFiles
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While Trump’s waging literal war abroad, his coalition is waging metaphorical war against each other back home over that first war in Iran. And the fault lines here are the same as they’ve been for other splits in the MAGA base, whether it’s over the Epstein files, the Kirk assassination, or the rise of Nick Fuentes. Which is to say, it’s Ben Shapiro on one side, and pretty much everyone else on the other.
“This is not the United States’ war. This war is not being waged on behalf of American national security objectives, to make the United States safer or richer. This war’s not actually even about weapons of mass destruction, nukes, chem bio. This war is waged purely because Israel wanted it.”
“If Tucker wants to claim that Donald J. Trump is a tool of the Jews, which is clearly what he wants to say, he should just say it.”
With Megyn Kelly coming out to make an argument similar to Tucker’s, and calling out Ben directly. “No one should have to die for a foreign country. I don’t think those four service members died for the United States. I think they died for Iran or for Israel. … But our government’s job is not to look out for Iran or for Israel. It’s to look out for us. And this feels very much to me like it is clearly Israel’s war. Mark Levin wanted it. It’s his war. Ben Shapiro, Lindsey Graham, Miriam Adelson,. That’s obvious.”
To which Ben countered that Donald Trump is responsible for this war, not Israel or the Jews, and arguing that if you have a problem with the war, you have a problem with Trump. “She is such a coward. She is such an unbelievable coward. You don’t like President Trump? You don’t like what he’s saying? Just say his name, you coward, you unbelievable coward. Tucker and Megyn both, unbelievable cowardice. Say his name. You won’t! You won’t.”
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Produced by: Cory Ray, Philip DeFranco
Edited by: James Girardier, Maxwell Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks, Matthew Henry
Art Department: William Crespo
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#USA #America #MAGA
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#DominionUniversity #DetroitSynagogue #USA
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Edited by: James Girardier, Maxwell Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks, Matthew Henry
Art Department: William Crespo
Writing/Research: Cory Ray, Philip DeFranco
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#Iran #USA #America
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It looks like Kristi Noem is about to leave the Department of Homeland Security in shambles. Because last week, Trump gave her the boot, framing it as a promotion, though we all know what really happened. But now it’s been reported that by the time she’s gone on March 31, there’s likely going to be dozens of pending contracts still sitting on her desk that she never got to.
This because back in June, she began requiring that all DHS contracts worth more than 100,000 dollars come to her for personal approval first. Thing is, that’s like most if not almost all DHS contracts, more than one person’s meant to handle, especially a person who seems more concerned with maximizing her television presence than doing administrative work.
So you have a source telling Axios: “There's a mountain of backed-up contracts and invoices on her desk that the new guy will just have to deal with.” Now Noem’s department justified the policy as a measure to combat waste, fraud and abuse, claiming back in August that it had saved over 10 billion dollars. But critics counter that it’s made the department’s work impossible.
In fact, some vendors have reportedly begun billing the department in chunks of 99,999 dollars and 99 cents just to get paid. With another source telling the outlet: “From everything that I've heard, it's still a giant shit show up there.” Adding: “The ramifications of her tenure are going to be felt for years and years and years and years. We're not really going to know exactly how bad it is until we have a major hurricane that unfortunately impacts someplace in the United States.”
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Edited by: James Girardier, Maxwell Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks, Matthew Henry
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#USA #America #Trump
And we also only know anything at all about this potentially unprecedented breach thanks to a whistleblower.
The potential data leaker was reportedly a former DOGE engineer who worked for the SSA last year and eventually started a job as a government contractor in October. He reportedly claimed to have two highly restricted databases of US citizens’ information called “Numident” and “Master Death File,” at least one of which he carried on a thumb drive. The complaint alleges that he still had access to his SSA computer and credentials, leaving the data wide open to this kind of breach. However, SSA denies these claims.
The ex-DOGE member reportedly asked the whistleblower for help transferring data from the thumb drive to, quote, “his personal computer so that he could ‘sanitize’ the data before using it” at his new employer. In response to this, one colleague refused to help the DOGE-er because, well, it’d be illegal. But, the whistleblower says that legal recourse wasn’t a concern for the DOGE bro, who was allegedly expecting to receive a presidential pardon if he ran into any trouble.
There’s no concrete evidence to say that he was ever actually able to upload the data, and the Post hasn’t confirmed his name or the name of the company he tried to share the data with since they haven’t independently confirmed the accusations.But anonymous sources tell the Washington Post that the Government Accountability Office has already started its own audit of DOGE’s access to data, which is indicative of the type of scrutiny the department is under.
What we do know is that one of the alleged conversations the whistleblower mentioned happened around early January, per the whistleblower complaint. However, reports say that when the Post looked into it, the SSA and the engineer’s new company said they didn’t know anything about the complaint and didn’t report any findings in their subsequent investigations.
Since then, the engineer’s lawyer has also told The Post that he denied all wrongdoing.
This is all a tough pill to swallow because, in the past, the SSA has been known to be very restrictive with personal data.
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Edited by: James Girardier, Maxwell Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks, Matthew Henry
Art Department: William Crespo
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#DOGE #USA, #America
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Edited by: James Girardier, Maxwell Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks, Matthew Henry
Art Department: William Crespo
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#Iran #USA #California
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Edited by: James Girardier, Maxwell Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks, Matthew Henry
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#USA #Iran #IranWar
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#Iran #USA #America
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Yesterday, Justice Brett Kavanaugh and Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson made a rare public appearance together at an annual lecture in memory of a former federal judge and prosecutor, Thomas Flannery. And they gave us a heated back and forth about how the court is handling a barrage of emergency requests to clear the way for Trump administration policies. Or, as heated as Supreme Court justices get.
But before we get into their sparring, we should talk about what exactly they’re arguing over.
Since coming back into office, the Trump administration has flooded the Supreme Court with emergency applications - asking them to give a quick greenlight for a whole bunch of stuff on the Trump agenda. Like immigration, federal funding, banning trans athletes, and firing of independent agency leaders. Now, the court’s conservative supermajority has allowed many of the policies to take effect - even as the lower courts debate their legality.
For comparison, on the court’s normal docket, justices choose which cases to take up and are given extensive written briefs and hear oral arguments. From there, they engage in lengthy deliberations and often take months to come to a decision before publishing an opinion that lays out how each justice voted as well as their reasoning. On the emergency docket, or “shadow docket,” cases are typically decided without oral argument or a full briefing sometimes in a matter of days - with no vote count and no reasoning whatsoever.
And just for scale here - the Trump administration has won a staggering 80% of the cases they’ve brought on the shadow docket. Which is leaps and bounds more than the Biden administration won.
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Edited by: James Girardier, Maxwell Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks, Matthew Henry
Art Department: William Crespo
Writing/Research: Star Pralle, Philip DeFranco
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#SCOTUS #America #USA
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But then, back to the news, New Mexico’s Department of Justice is searching Epstein’s Zorro Ranch as part of its criminal probe into the property. Right, newly released files accuse Epstein of abusing women and girls at the property, and there is even an allegation that he ordered the bodies of two girls be buried nearby.
But despite these claims, the home was never fully investigated like Epstein’s other properties were. So yesterday, the state’s DOJ announced this search, asking the public to “please stay away from the area and ground any drone activity nearby to avoid interfering with the ongoing law enforcement operation.”
But you also have officials tempering expectations and warning that the search might not lead to much, right. With the state’s Attorney General recently writing an op-ed saying:
“I want to be honest about the challenges ahead. Epstein has been dead for years. Zorro Ranch has changed ownership. Physical evidence may no longer exist, and the statute of limitations has likely run on many potential offenses. These are real obstacles, and survivors deserve to hear them stated plainly. But we will follow the evidence wherever it leads and leave no credible question unexplored.”
And he also promised to release a public report of all findings in the investigation.
As for this ownership change, the estate sold back in 2023, and this year we learned it is now in the hands of a Texas real estate mogul, who actually just won the Republican primary for Texas comptroller. He has promised to cooperate with the investigation and search fully, saying this is a “a welcome step toward truth and justice.” But even with his support, since the home sold years after Epstein’s death, there are questions about what kind of evidence could even remain.
But still, lawmakers from the state are urging that no stone be left unturned, sharing a tipline for anyone with information on crimes Epstein and his associates committed in New Mexico. Over the weekend, there was also a major rally outside the ranch to coincide with International Women's Day. And it was attended by the brothers of Virginia Roberts Giuffre, who was one of the most vocal Epstein survivors until she died of a reported suicide last year. And there, they demanded that the DOJ release the full files, including the names of the men that Virginia alleged abused her in New Mexico.
With some hoping that these state-level inquiries might be a turning point in the Epstein case since many are just not happy with how the federal government has handled it, with many thinking the DOJ is orchestrating a massive coverup.
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Produced by: Cory Ray, Philip DeFranco
Edited by: James Girardier, Maxwell Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks, Matthew Henry
Art Department: William Crespo
Writing/Research: Maddie Crichton, Philip DeFranco
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#USA #America #Epstein
Right, a federal grand jury just told the Arizona Senate to hand over audit records from Maricopa County. Maricopa County is the largest county in Arizona. It was pivotal in the 2020 election, and helped swing the state in Biden’s favor, making the first time a Democrat had won Arizona since Bill Clinton in 1996. Since Trump lost the state in 2020, he’s been obsessed with it.
Following the 2020 election, the Arizona Senate oversaw an audit of the election records, which was largely funded by groups who were openly MAGA and peddled conspiracy theories around the election. These groups provided more than $5.7 million for the audit.
These were organizations like America’s Future, chaired by former Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn, and a nonprofit ran by former Trump lawyer Sidney Powell, who pleaded guilty in a case connected to her efforts to overturn Trump’s loss in Georgia in 2020. Not surprisingly, the auditors submitted largely unsubstantiated claims that Arizona’s election included deleted files, faulty internet connections and questionable signature verifications.
Maricopa County was pretty staunch about refuting these claims.
“This board is done with explaining anything to these people who are playing investigator with our constituents’ ballots and equipment, paid for with people’s real tax dollars.”
There was also what felt like a live-Tweeting event circa 2010, where Maricopa County was fact-checking the claims against them in real time on social media, making their position clear that many of the false accusations stem from the auditors leading an inexperienced, seemingly clumsy audit.
But it seems like Trump didn’t learn any lessons because Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen confirmed yesterday that the Senate did, in fact, now five years later, receive the subpoena, with which they complied. Reports have questioned the fact that Arizona state law requires paper ballots to be destroyed two years after the election. But the caveat here is that the audit team made digital copies of the 2020 ballots, according to Secretary of State Ken Bennett. It’s yet to be revealed if those copies were a part of the information turned over, however. Nevertheless, this subpoena comes not even two months after the FBI seized an Atlanta election office, again, in connection to the 2020 election.
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Edited by: James Girardier, Maxwell Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks, Matthew Henry
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#Arizona, #USA, #America
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#Russia #Trump #USA
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And selling the Trump administration’s story about the war in Iran may be harder than they expect both at home and abroad, and they have Kari Lake to thank for that. That is, unless a federal judge in DC has his way.
Right, Judge Royce Lamberth of the US District Court for the DC just ruled that Kari Lake’s leadership of the US Agency for Global Media is unlawful. And with this ruling, Lamberth has invalidated everything Lake has done during her time - including laying off hundreds of people and the cuts to broadcasters both here in the states and around the world. So now the question is whether this ruling is actually going to stick.
But let’s back up a bit - the US Agency for Global Media is the umbrella for many news outlets including Voice of America. Which began broadcasting in 1942 during World War II to combat Nazi and Japanese propaganda. And it also includes Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty - which kicked off in the 50s as a part of a CIA-backed initiative to stir up dissent against communism in the Soviet Union. Though the CIA notably stopped being involved in the 70s. There’s also Radio and Television Martí, a network established in 1983 to break through Cuban censorship, and Radio Free Asia, created as a response to the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre in Beijing. And then there’s the Middle Eastern Broadcasting Networks, which was created in 2004. Which notably includes Radio Farda (Far-duh) as the Iranian branch.
Right, all of these are fully funded by the USAGM - delivering the news in dozens of languages and reaching hundreds of millions people around the world. And bringing news to places with incredibly limited press freedoms. And, despite how they started, they had full editorial independence for decades - with the agency’s charter requiring its journalists deliver actual news and information. Rather than being just a government mouthpiece.
With the so-called “firewall” referring to policies that insulate them, their content, and their staff from political influence. But that firewall first came under attack during Trump’s first administration - with Trump’s hand-picked leader doing his best to chip away at the agency’s editorial independence by punishing journalists who wouldn’t fall in line to back Trump.
Which, naturally, led to some lengthy court battles and, eventually, a federal inquiry that found Trump’s hand-picked leader had, at least in some cases, violated the law.
And because history and the Trump administration repeat itself, we’re back in that same place again - this time with Kari Lake as Trump’s chosen.
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Produced by: Cory Ray, Philip DeFranco
Edited by: James Girardier, Maxwell Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks, Matthew Henry
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#KariLake #USA #America
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But then, back to our last bit of news for the day, Trump is threatening to not sign any legislation until the SAVE Act becomes law. Writing yesterday:
“It must be done immediately. It supersedes everything else. MUST GO TO THE FRONT OF THE LINE. I, as President, will not sign other Bills until this is passed.”
And the SAVE Act, as you likely know, mandates stricter voter registration and ID policies, Requiring voters to prove their citizenship with documents like a passport or birth certificate, even though it is already illegal for noncitizens to vote in federal elections. And no matter how much Trump tries to peddle conspiracies about it, noncitizen voting is incredibly rare, so some fear that not only will this not even help election integrity, it could actually hurt it. Because it would just make it harder for eligible citizens to vote.
Right, only half of Americans have a passport, and the process to get one can be lengthy and costly. But still, it passed the House last month, and now sits in the Senate’s hands. And Trump is making it clear that he wants the Senate to move, telling the chamber to to focus “exclusively” on the act if necessary.
He previously even said that he would “close government” over the SAVE Act because it is such a high priority. With him adding yesterday:
“AND NOT THE WATERED DOWN VERSION - GO FOR THE GOLD: MUST SHOW VOTER I.D. & PROOF OF CITIZENSHIP: NO MAIL-IN BALLOTS EXCEPT FOR MILITARY - ILLNESS, DISABILITY, TRAVEL: NO MEN IN WOMEN’S SPORTS: NO TRANSGENDER MUTILIZATION FOR CHILDREN! DO NOT FAIL!!!”
And those last provisions there regarding trans athletes and gender reassignment surgery were notably not even in the version signed by the House, so he’s asking to load even more into it. Which is a pretty big ask considering its odds in the Senate are tough, right, Democrats largely do not support it and Republicans only have a razor thin majority, but need 60 votes to get it passed. And while Trump has previously urged his party to get rid of the filibuster to pass it, Majority Leader John Thune has pushed back on those calls.
On top of that, some Republicans have even spoken out against the act, saying they are unwilling to pass it in its current form. So you had minority leader Chuck Schumer seeing Trump’s legislative threat and writing:
“The SAVE Act is Jim Crow 2.0. It would disenfranchise tens of millions of people. If Trump is saying he won’t sign any bills until the SAVE Act is passed, then so be it: there will be total gridlock in the Senate. Senate Democrats will not help pass the SAVE Act under any circumstances.”
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Produced by: Cory Ray, Philip DeFranco
Edited by: James Girardier, Maxwell Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks, Matthew Henry
Art Department: William Crespo
Writing/Research: Maddie Crichton, Philip DeFranco
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#USA #America #Trump
Federal authorities are looking into an attempted bombing that took place during a counter-protest conflict outside of New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s mansion on Saturday. Here’s what happened. Jake Lang, who outlets are describing as a “right-wing provocateur,” planned an "Americans Against Islamification" demonstration on Saturday.
“We’re going to make sure that America knows this is a white, Christian country, and we’re going to keep it that way. We’re going to make sure Mamdani knows he’s not welcome in New York City.”
Now, you may remember Lang from, well, getting his ass kicked at a previous demonstration a few months ago. He was also a rioter on January 6th who was arrested and later pardoned by Trump.
“It sounds like J6, which is the most American thing in history. We have the power. We are the people, and if we want to get someone out of prison, this is our country. We have the right to self-determination.”
The demonstration he planned on Saturday was pretty flagrant, using images of what many have recognized as dogwhistles that call back to the Klan, aiming directly at who he describes in his post as the “Number one Muslim worldwide: Zohran Mamdani”.
Reports say that Lang initially only showed up with about 20 followers, but the counter-protestors grew to a crowd of more than 100. As tensions grew, reports show that one of Lang’s followers sprayed mace at a group of protestors, fistfights broke out and that’s when two, quote, “smoking objects” were thrown. 18-year-old Emir Balat is accused of throwing the devices. 19-year-old Ibrahim Nikk has also tentatively been accused of supplying at least one of those devices. Both suspects were reportedly arrested on Saturday. Thankfully, no injuries were reported in relation to the incident.
As of right now, their charges are unknown. Things kept developing on Sunday, when officials reportedly roped off an area a few blocks from Gracie Mansion.
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Produced by: Cory Ray, Philip DeFranco
Edited by: James Girardier, Maxwell Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks, Matthew Henry
Art Department: William Crespo
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#Mamdani, #USA, #America
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Edited by: James Girardier, Maxwell Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks, Matthew Henry
Art Department: William Crespo
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#NYC #ZohranMamdani #USA
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Edited by: James Girardier, Maxwell Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks, Matthew Henry
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#Iran #USA #America
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Writing/Research Cory Ray, Philip DeFranco
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#Iran #USA #America
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Things in America have gotten so polarized that a majority of people now think their fellow citizens are just bad people. That’s what Pew Research found in a newly released survey that polled people from 25 different countries. Right, in nearly all of the countries surveyed, a higher share of people said they thought their countrymen had somewhat or very good morals, compared to those who had somewhat or very bad levels of morality.
But not the U.S.! Nope, we were literally the only country where a majority of respondents — 53% — said they thought their compatriots are morally and ethically bad. Meanwhile, while we’re over here hating each other, our neighbors to the north are on the complete other end of the spectrum.
The stereotypes about Canadians being ridiculously nice are apparently true — a whopping 92% said they think their fellow citizens are good people, and honestly, they probably are…
Now, as for why Americans are so skeptical of each other, that’s not entirely clear — Pew didn’t ask follow-up questions about why Americans are so negative, and they’ve never asked this question before, so there’s no data over time.
But we do have a few insights. First of all, Pew did find a notable partisan bias, with Democrats and independents who lean toward blue much more likely than Republicans and Republican leaners to rate fellow Americans as morally bankrupt — 60% versus 46%. But that partisan bias was also seen in more than half of the countries surveyed, so it’s not just the U.S.
Beyond that, experts also say another possibility is simply that morality itself has become so politicized in the U.S. because political leaders use religion and morality as a political tool, with one scholar explaining: “When you have a deep degree of political polarization as we have now, that erodes trust in lots of other ways. Especially right now where much of it is framed in terms of religious teaching. The framing of things as religious issues skews the perception.”
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Getting back into the news, now that Kristie Noem is out of the Trump merry-go-round of officials, it seems like Democrats have started aiming at Attorney General Pam Bondi. While Democrats have been critical of Bondi since the start, their energy was somewhat split between her and Noem as ICE agents were unleashed throughout the country.
But reports are speculating that with a little extra time on their hands as the new head of DHS settles in, Bondi could receive the most collateral damage from the fallout. Much of Congress hasn’t been pleased with how Bondi has handled the Epstein files, and we’ve seen it play out all over our screens.
“This guy has Trump derangement syndrome. You’re a failed politician.” With cherry picked redactions, delayed promises and straight up hidden files, Bondi has a lot to be worried about. “40 minutes of me catching you red-handed. (Bondi) Redhanded? THere was one redaction of over 4700, and we invited you in.”
Her alleged lack of transparency has led five Republicans on the House Oversight Committee to join Democrats in the vote to subpoena Bondi on her handling of the files. “Mr. Chairman, on this vote, the yeas are 24, the nays are 19”
You also had Representative Shri Thanedar introducing articles of impeachment against Bondi for obstruction of Congress and dereliction of duty, reportedly for Bondi’s withholding of the Epstein documents, but we haven’t heard back from the DOJ about that so far.
Hakeem Jefferies definitely didn’t hold his tongue after Noem was let go, reportedly calling out Bondi and advisor Stephen Miller, saying, "We're going to approach those two toxic individuals with the same intensity that has now led to the termination of Kristi Noem." And judging by his past comments about the DOJ, just like on the other side of the aisle, that lack of transparency seems to be his biggest gripe with Bondi.
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#PamBondi #KristiNoem #DonaldTrump
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Texas Representative Tony Gonzales has dropped out of his re-election campaign after finally acknowledging sexual texts with a staffer who later took her life. Gonzales took to social media to make the announcement, saying, "After deep reflection and with the support of my loving family, I have decided not to seek reelection while serving out the rest of this Congress with the same commitment I've always had to my district."
The announcement comes during an intense primary battle that fell into a run-off race as Gonzales’s campaign was largely marred by texts he sent to Regina Santos-Aviles. In 2024, he reportedly asked her for, quote, sexy pics, and asked sexually questions despite her saying that things were going too far.
Reports say she was found dead in her home back in September of 2025. Gonzales spoke out about the situation in an interview with radio host Joe Pags. "I made a mistake, and I had a lapse in judgment, and there was a lack of faith, and I take full responsibility for those actions. Since then, I've reconciled with my wife, Angel. I've asked God to forgive me, which he has, and my faith is as strong as ever."
His admission came not long after the House Ethics Committee opened up an investigation related to Gonzales’ relationship with the staffer, looking to see if he "engaged in sexual misconduct" with an employee or "discriminated unfairly by dispensing special favors or privileges."
Gonzales responded to that as well. “I look forward to the ethics committee starting an investigation. I appreciate the opportunity to provide all the facts and all the details that occurred in the entire situation.”
But, rightfully so, some have responded to Gonzales’s interview, alleging that he hasn’t actually been all that forthcoming with the facts and details before now. He’s been reported saying that the initial rumors were untrue. And then he allegedly tweaked that story to say that he was being blackmailed while his primary opponent, Brandon Herrera, tried to politicize the issue.
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Because on top of everything else, he’s now being sued over allegations that his TikTok sale was an illegal sweetheart deal that benefitted allies who personally enriched him, giving them free rein to censor political content while still allowing China to spread propaganda.
Right, the case question was brought by the anti-corruption law firm called the Public Integrity Project on behalf of two software engineers from rival companies who say they suffered financially from the Trump administration’s actions. And specifically, the suit alleges that both Trump and Attorney General Bondi acted illegally in their handling of the 2024 law passed by Congress and signed by Biden that forced TikTok’s Chinese owner, ByteDance, to sell its U.S. assets or face a ban.
Right, that law was supposed to take effect right when Trump took office, but he directed Bondi not to enforce it and then signed four executive orders extending the deadline until he could reach a deal he liked. But the suit claims that Trump’s extensions and Bondi’s refusal to enforce the law were both illegal.
And, beyond that, the plaintiffs also allege that the deal Trump eventually reached was still illegal under the 2024 law. Arguing that the statute bans Bytedance for having an ongoing “operational relationship” with TikTok’s American operations, but under the deal, the company still owns the app’s algorithm and runs other key operations like e-commerce, marketing, and advertising.
With the suit claiming that Trump’s deal allowed ByteDance to keep control over “all the essential elements of TikTok,” thus allowing the company to continue pushing Chinese propaganda and censoring content it doesn’t like.
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As we move on to more news of Trump disappointing the American people, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz pointed fingers at him for political retribution instead of helping with rampant fraud in the state. Yesterday, Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison sat in front of the House Oversight Committee to discuss fraud and Minnesota’s ICE presence.
Trump originally cited Minnesota’s fraud for the reason he sent at least 2000 ICE agents into the state, which has caused nothing but chaos that led to the murders of Alex Pretti and Renee Good.
If you didn’t catch our episode from a few days ago, you might be wondering what the fuck immigration officers can do about fraud. Well, after a viral video accusing Somali daycare owners of running a child care fraud scheme and other crackdowns of fraud scandals dating back to 2018, this administration decided that Minnesota’s Somali community was to blame.
To be fair, reports and investigations have supported that fraud is, in fact, a major problem across the state. It’s so bad that it led Walz to drop out of his campaign for re-election.
Nevertheless, their framing and sort of arbitrarily making Minnesota’s Somali community the face of the problem has people thinking, to be frank, that this is an issue of flagrant xenophobia meant to push the president’s immigration agenda. And Governor Walz has long since held this position as well. But the Trump administration hasn’t let up.
“We have decided to temporarily halt certain amounts of Medicaid funding that are going to the state of Minnesota”
So when Walz and AG Ellison appeared in front of the Oversight Committee yesterday, things were bound to go badly.
“As governor, I expect you to know this information. Thank God you’re not Vice President of the United States.”
Before the hearing even started, the Oversight Committee released a report with scathing claims against Walz and Ellison. And the claims from that report summed up the main shots Walz and Ellison took at the hearing.
“Whistleblowers spoke out, and state officials chose delay and denial over action.”
The report claimed that Walz and Ellison were aware of some fraud problems as early as 2019, allowing state agencies to fund groups suspected of fraud so they weren’t accused of racism.
They also made claims related to Feeding Our Future, a nonprofit group that’s become a major player in this conversation. All of these, they claim, resulted in potentially billions of Medicaid-related funds being lost or at risk.
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#USA, #America, #Walz
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Then, back to the news, Howard Lutnick is going to face the House Oversight Committee to answer questions about Jeffrey Epstein. And Pam Bondi, Bill Gates, and a whole slew of other people might be joining him.
Right, starting with Commerce Secretary Lutnick, there has been a ton of pressure to subpoena him to testify in the committee’s Epstein probe. And yesterday, he beat them to the punch and volunteered to do it, telling Axios: "I look forward to appearing before the committee. I have done nothing wrong and I want to set the record straight."
The interview will reportedly be held behind closed doors, with a transcript to follow.
With Committee Chairman James Comer commending Lutnick for “his demonstrated commitment to transparency [and] his willingness to engage with the Committee.”
And while we obviously don’t know yet what the committee will ask, it will likely center around Lutnick’s relationship with Epstein, as it appears Lutnick lied about the timeline and extent of it. Lutnick and Epstein were previously neighbors in New York, and last year, Lutnick claimed he only ever visited Epstein there once, adding:
“I was never in the room with him socially, for business, or even philanthropy. If that guy was there, I wasn’t going ‘cause he’s gross.”
But when the files were released, we saw the two had communicated over the span of a decade, including after Epstein was convicted of sex crimes. And he even visited Epstein’s island in 2012, and is photographed with him there, too. So you had some politicians wanting him to resign over this, others using it to mount pressure to get him to testify, and Rep. Nancy Mace was actually seeking to subpoena him.
And now he offered testimony himself, so that is needed. But Mace is still eyeing subpoenas for other people in the Epstein investigation, including Trump’s own Attorney General. Because during a hearing this morning, she said:
“Mr. Chairman, I move that the committee issue a subpoena against the honorable Pamela Jo Bondi to appear before the Committee for a deposition regarding the department’s handling of its investigation into Jeffrey Epstein and his associates.”
And this motion comes as reports have repeatedly alleged that the DOJ has been removing Epstein files and that tens of thousands have been taken down “for review.” With this including files levying allegations against Trump. So once Mace made this motion, you had people like Rep. Ro Khanna thanking her and adding:
“This afternoon [The Oversight Committee] votes on this -- whether to stand with survivors or the Epstein class. I hope colleagues [will] stand for transparency with Nancy Mace, Thomas Massie, and me.”
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But in another long-shot push for accountability, you had DHS Secretary Kristi Noem facing the House of Representatives today. Right, yesterday she had a hearing with the Senate, and today it is the House’s turn. With her grilling now coming as polls say that half of Americans now want to abolish ICE.
It is no surprise that ICE’s aggressive tactics, the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, and deportations have been the big focus for Democrats questioning Noem. With Rep. Jamie Raskin accusing her of a cover-up:
"There have been three homicides in Minneapolis in 2026. Your agents committed two of them. Rather than work with state and local authorities to solve these homicides, you barred Minnesota's investigators from the crime scenes. You're denying them access to all the evidence that you have about the deaths of their citizens. It smells like a cover up, and it makes me wonder who the real domestic terrorists are."
And he then asked her about the circumstances of their killings:
“Is it lawful for federal agents to shoot and kill a person for engaging in peaceful protest and nothing else?..in instances of peaceful protests, no it is not…is it lawful for a federal agent to shoot and kill a person for filming them on a public street…no…is it lawful for federal agents to shoot and kill a person just because is lawfully carrying a holstered firearm under the second amendment…no…and finally is it lawful for federal agents to shoot and kill an innocent person or even a criminal suspect just for driving away from them?...no.”
Then, you had Rep. Pramila Jayapal asking her about ICE detaining American citizens. Noting that yesterday, Noem told the Senate that ICE agents could in fact arrest citizens if they have reason to question their citizenship status, if they are obstructing law enforcement, or for probable cause. But Jayapal then turned to American citizens who were arrested by ICE and asked this:
“Raise your hand if you were not charged with any crime following your detention. Not a single one of you were charged with a crime. Now raise your hand if any of you were not even asked to prove that you were US citizens during your detention. Not a single one of you were even asked about your citizenship status. Now, please raise your hand if you were detained by ICE simply for legally protesting or monitoring ICE activity under your First Amendment rights. All for US citizens have raised their hands.”
And when asked if she would like to apologize to these citizens, Noem said she would need more context, so you saw Jayapal shooting back saying:
“You have actually turned the United States government against its own residents… Yours is a case of failed leadership secretary, you need to resign, be fired, or be impeached.”
And like I said, this hearing comes as American citizens are not happy with ICE.
According to YouGov, 50% support abolishing ICE, compared to just 39% who oppose the idea. And while support for ICE has been steadily shrinking, this is the first time the outlet’s polling has hit the 50% mark on abolishing the agency.Right, as you might expect when you look at party lines 77% of Democrats want to get rid of it, but so do 52% of independents, and even nearly a quarter of Republicans.
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To start, this primary election sets each state up for the Midterms, which has been a point of concern for Republicans across the country.
“If we lose the midterms and we lose 2028, some in this room are going to prison – myself included."
The Republicans have seen less voter morale as the president has led us into war and away from his potential involvement in the Epstein files. But voters also aren’t sure if Democrats have what it takes to land anything here, with increasing schisms amongst the party over various issues.
More directly related to voters, Republicans have pushed to redraw congressional maps across the country that put more Republican asses in congressional seats, but more on that later.
Overall, one of the biggest questions as the primaries have started has been on whether or not the same, often elderly incumbents are going to be able to prove themselves over a younger generation of politicians.
There were a few close races to watch for the Senate, but I’ll start with some of the less controversial states. In Arkansas, Republican U.S. Senator Tom Cotton will go head to head with Democratic challenger Hallie Shoffner for a seat in the Senate. In North Carolina, former Governor Roy Cooper, a popular moderate who received 92% of the votes last night will be opposed by Michael Whatley, who’s already received a Trump endorsement.
“I want to thank President Donald J. Trump for his strong and unwavering support in this race.”
But then we have Texas, the real star of the show.On the Republican side, Senator John Cornyn and Attorney General Ken Paxton are heading into a runoff, which was sort of predictable once Representative Wesley Hunt joined the race back in the fall.
Both Cornyn and Paxton are in Trump’s good graces, although neither received an official endorsement. This works in their favor with Texas Republicans who have largely maintained their support for the president even as national support has wavered.
The rundown on these candidates is that Cornyn claims Paxton would be a liability in the Midterms because of his history of controversies and legal troubles.
“Texas Republican voters will learn more about my record of delivering conservative victories in the US Senate and learn more about Ken’s indefensible personal behavior and failures in office.”
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But getting back into the news, the masked people breaking into homes and throwing people into unmarked cars are largely untrained, and Kristie Noem just defended them to Congress.
Last week, ex-ICE agent Ryan Schwank gave a pretty damning testimony about ICE training cuts in front of the Senate.
I am here because I am dutybound to report that the legally required training program at the ICE Academy is deficient, defective and broken. For the last five months, I watched ICE dismantle the training program, cutting 240 hours of vital classes from a 584-hour program. Classes that teach the Constitution, our legal system, firearms training, the use of force, lawful arrests, proper detention and the limits of officers’ authority.”
Schwank made accusations that his ICE supervisors gave him blatantly illegal orders and coerced him into following them.
“I was instructed to read and return a memo in my supervisor’s presence which claimed ICE officers could enter homes without a judicial warrant. Incredibly, I was being shown this memo in secret by my supervisor who made sure that I understood that disobedience could cost me my job.”
Separately from the documents informing the Post’s reporting, Democrats released DHS documents that also indicated disturbing changes and reductions to ICE’s training programs.
Of course, at the time, DHS denied Schwank’s claims, saying, “Despite false claims from the media and sanctuary politicians, no training hours have been cut.” However, they followed that up with claims that ICE training had been “streamlined…without sacrificing basic subject matter content.”
It didn’t add up then, and it’s definitely not adding up after a recent article from the Washington Post that corroborates Schwank’s story. The Post found “previously unreported records,” which have yet to be disclosed, that “offer new details about what was cut from ICE’s basic training program." And that already sounds different from the picture DHS was trying to paint.
As Schwank testified, the Post reports that ICE “removed about 240 hours from its basic training program,” which is “more than 40 percent of instructional time,” and the public has noticed.The Post says that most of the cuts happened in August, right around the time that Pam Bondi directed law enforcement in the nation’s capital to cooperate with immigration enforcement to protect their city from what she calls this dangerous “proliferation of illegal aliens.”
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We just got footage of both Hillary and Bill Clinton’s Epstein depositions from last week. We talked about this yesterday, the Clintons wanted their hearings to be broadcast live to the public just like Noem’s, but they were denied. So instead, they happened behind closed doors, meaning the representatives who grilled them had time to tell their side of the story and craft a spin or narrative before we could actually see what happened.
And one of the biggest conflicts there involved Bill’s comments about Trump. Because last week, Republicans in the House Oversight Committee insisted that Clinton “exonerated” Trump, while Democrats claimed that his testimony actually raised questions about Trump’s relationship to Epstein. And what actually happened kind of fell somewhere in the middle, because when Bill was asked if Trump should answer questions in front of the committee, he said:
“That's for you to decide. But he did know him well and I once had a brief discussion with him about it.”
And the session was about to move on, but Bill then added that Trump “Never said anything to me to make me think he was involved in anything improper.”
“Donald Trump would come out and play a few holes with us. And he somehow knew I had flown in Jeffrey Epstein's aircraft. And he said, ‘You know, we had some great times together over the years, but we fell out all because of a real estate deal.’ and he said, ‘I'm sorry it happened.’ That's all."
That notably clashes with Trump’s prior claims that he booted Epstein from Mar-A-Lago because he was a “creep.” And then for her part, Hillary said Trump should “absolutely” be deposed by the committee, arguing:
“Donald Trump has been held civilly liable for sexual assault by a jury of his peers…That is behavior that fits a pattern if one were looking for a pattern.”
As far as Hillary is concerned, a lot of the headlines about her center on her interactions with Rep. Nancy Mace.Because after Hillary spoke last week, Mace claimed that she chewed Hillary up so much that she screamed and became “unhinged and combative.” And now that we have the video, it seems there were a few moments where Hillary felt Mace was prodding her after she said she had no information. But things really took a turn when Mace started asking about commerce secretary Howard Lutnick:
“And then how do you know Howard Lutnick?... I know Howard Lutnik because when I was senator on 9/11, the firm he headed, suffered the greatest loss of life. As I recall, something like 650 of his employees were murdered by terrorists that day. Howard Lutnik missed being a victim because he was delayed dropping his child off to kindergarten…I know that… You asked the question, I'm going to answer your question…now you’re going to yell at me?”
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French President Emmanuel Macron just announced that his country is increasing its nuclear arsenal for the first time in decades. And this move is incredibly significant for a few reasons. First of all, it breaks a major nuclear taboo and marks a landmark shift in the country’s doctrine.
Right, France has long insisted on keeping its nuclear stockpile independent, but as part of the new build-up, Macron said that the country will expand cooperation with other European allies. This including by allowing other nations to participate in certain nuclear activities, like wargame drills, and offering to temporarily deploy nuclear-capable fighter jets to allied countries. Though Macron made it clear that the French president will have the sole power to make decisions on any deployments.
But, even then, this announcement has sweeping implications for the whole of Europe. Right, France is the only EU member with nuclear weapons — in fact, it actually has the fourth largest arsenal in the world, though the U.S. and China dramatically outpace it. But France is also one of just two countries in Europe that possess those capabilities — the other is the U.K., which needs the U.S. for technological support.
So, as a result, most European countries rely primarily on the U.S. for nuclear deterrence.
Right, the U.S. has long protected European allies under its “nuclear umbrella” — a security guarantee that ensures American nuclear forces will be used to defend those allies if they are threatened by adversaries.
But many European leaders have raised serious concerns about Trump’s wavering commitments to a region — an unprecedented shift in U.S. foreign policy that has undermined decades of transatlantic security. So, as a result, you had Macron arguing that France needs to step up to fill the security vacuum Trump has created as Europe continues to face both new and ongoing threats to its stability.
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But then, in the final bit of news we should touch on for today, Democrats believe they have enough votes to get Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to testify in their Epstein probe. And if the midterms go their way in November, they think they could eventually get Trump to do the same, too. With Rep. Ro Khanna saying on Meet the Press yesterday:
“We have the votes to subpoena Lutnick…I am working with a Republican actually to subpoena Howard Lutnick next week, and I believe he will come before the committee.”
With this coming as Republican Nancy Mace said she would call him to testify. And for quite a while now, Lutnick has been facing a ton of pressure to either face the Oversight committee or outright resign from his position because of his Epstein ties. Right, the files suggest that Lutnick lied about the timeline of his relation to Epstein, and even show the two emailing after Epstein was convicted of sex crimes.
Then over the last couple of days, there was a ton of backlash after the DOJ briefly removed a photo of Lutnick from the files. That image shows him with Epstein on his island, Little St. James, and an official claimed that the picture was part of a batch of documents flagged to be reviewed for nudity.But there is no nudity in the photo, so you had politicians on both sides of the aisle demanding answers as to why the DOJ took that image down.
And even though there is bipartisan support to get Lutnick in the hot seat, it seems the one person still very much on his side is Trump. Because when he was asked about the possibility of the House deposing Lutnick, Trump insisted that the secretary is a “very innocent guy, doing a good job."
Which actually brings us to calls for Trump to testify himself, right. For weeks, Democrats in the House Oversight Committee have argued that the president needs to answer questions about Epstein. With Robert Garcia, the committee’s ranking democrat, saying that now that Bill Clinton has testified:
“Republicans have now set a new precedent, which is to bring in presidents and former presidents to testify….We are now asking and demanding that President Trump officially come in and testify in front of the Oversight Committee. He appears in the Epstein Files next to Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell almost more than anybody else."
And right now, the idea that Trump would actually be brought in is a long shot at best, right, most Republicans are still bending over backwards to defend him. But, Democrats are really trying to make this a sticking point heading into the midterms. With Garcia saying that if the House turns blue and he gets to lead House Oversight, the committee would “absolutely” pursue an interview with Trump. And they have even floated getting Melania to talk, too.
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Edited by: James Girardier, Maxwell Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks, Matthew Henry
Art Department: William Crespo
Writing/Research: Brian Espinoza, Philip DeFranco
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#France #Europe #NATO
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there were three mass violence events all within about 12 hours this weekend.
Early Sunday morning, shots rang out in Austin in a shooting authorities are now investigating for terroristic motivations.
That was the scene caused by a gunman who Austin police have identified as Ndiaga Diagne Here’s what we know: the shooting took place outside Austin’s Buford’s Backyard Beer Garden in the Sixth Street area, a popular nightlife destination in the city.
Investigators say the shooter circled the block multiple times before he stopped in front of the bar, turned on his hazards and opened fire on patrons standing on the bar’s patio and front sidewalk area. Then, he drove further down the street and parked before approaching the bar on foot, opening fire again..
There was already a heavy police presence in the area, so authorities were able to intercept him before he did further damage. The shooting ultimately left three people dead – two bystanders and the shooter himself. 14 others were also injured in the shooting, and three of those were left in critical condition after the attack.
The bar is also close to the University of Texas at Austin, leaving some university students impacted.
To explain more about the shooter himself, reports say that he “first entered the U.S in 2000 on a B-2 tourist visa and became a lawful permanent resident six years later after marrying a U.S. citizen.” He was then naturalized in 2006. The shooter reportedly wore a hoodie that read “Property of Allah,” as well as a t-shirt with the Iranian flag.
According to reports, the shooter has also been posting about his support for the Iranian regime and his hatred for Israeli and American leadership since about 2017. Along with that, authorities reportedly found things in the shooter’s car that ultimately led to bigger concerns around terrorism.
“Obiviosuly, it’s way too early in the process to determine an exact motivation. But there were indicators on the subject and in his vehicles that indicate potential nexus to terrorism. Since we’re looking at it as a potential matter of terrorism, obviously, the Joint Terrorism Task Force is engaged. In terms of specifically what type of terrorism, we’re just prepared to say that it was potentially an act of terrorism.”
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Produced by: Cory Ray, Philip DeFranco
Edited by: James Girardier, Maxwell Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks, Matthew Henry
Art Department: William Crespo
Writing/Research: Victor Sledge, Philip DeFranco
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#UTAustin #Texas #Iran
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Produced by: Cory Ray, Philip DeFranco
Edited by: James Girardier, Maxwell Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks, Matthew Henry
Art Department: William Crespo
Writing/Research: Brian Espinoza, Philip DeFranco
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#Pakistan #Iran #USA
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Produced by: Cory Ray, Philip DeFranco
Edited by: James Girardier, Maxwell Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks, Matthew Henry
Art Department: William Crespo
Writing/Research: Cory Ray, Philip DeFranco
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#USA #America #Trump
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Over half a million children in Minnesota have just lost their healthcare. That’s because Vice President JD Vance and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services administrator Mehmet Oz aka Dr. Oz announced yesterday that Minnesotans were going to see a major blow to Medicaid funds.
“We have decided to temporarily halt certain amounts of Medicaid funding that are going to the state of Minnesota in order to ensure that the state of Minnesota takes its obligation seriously to be good stewards of the American people’s tax money.”
And, to that, I first say, the tax crime call is coming from inside of the house. But more seriously, by “certain amounts” here, Vance means $259 million dollars of Medicaid funds.
Why are they doing this? Well, this administration has had their eyes on Minnesota as the site of major Medicare fraud scandals. The conversation blew up a few months ago when conservative Youtuber Nick Shirley posted a video questioning daycare workers in Minnesota.
“(Shirley) Where are the children at? (Worker) I don’t know. (Shirley) Do you know where the children are at? (Worker) No. (Shirley) Where are the children at in these daycare centers? (Worker) I don’t care. (Shirely) Are the children here today? (Worker) No. (Shirley) No children? (Worker) Yeah.”
The conversation grew when people like Vance and Kash Patel posted about it as well.
Of course, Trump claimed to have sent ICE to Minnesota in a supposed effort to fight this alleged epidemic, with DHS saying, “Minnesota is ground zero for the war on fraud.” And, much like in the viral video, this administration has pointed fingers at Minnesota’s Somali population for most of this, which also shows why ICE was Trump’s answer to a fraud issue.
“Members of the Somali community have pillaged an estimated 19 billion dollars from the American taxpayers. We have all the information, and in actuality, the number is much higher than that.”
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Produced by: Cory Ray, Philip DeFranco
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#Minnesota #USA #America
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FBI Director Kash Patel has fired at least ten employees who were involved in the investigation into Trump’s alleged mishandling of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago as he faces continued scrutiny for his personal use of FBI jets — Including new allegations that his jet-setting delayed the agency’s response to a mass shooting and the assassination of Charlie Kirk.
Right, multiple sources have told reporters that the terminations are part of a broader internal investigation into the actions employees took that resulted in criminal charges against Trump. And according to CNN, Patel ordered that investigation after discovering that the FBI had subpoenaed his phone records — as well as those of current White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles — during the probe in 2022 and 2023, when they were both private citizens.
But the timing here is super significant, because the firings reportedly came just hours after Patel himself told Reuters about the subpoenaed records. With the FBI director alleging that investigators obtained toll records, which show the timing and recipients of calls, but do not include direct recordings or any information about the actual content of conversations.
Right, those toll record requests are actually quite common in big criminal investigations to establish proof of communications and do not indicate any evidence of wrongdoing. With Patel telling Reuters that he didn’t know why the FBI seized the phone records, and the outlet adding that it couldn’t determine whether Patel or Wiles was under investigation, if so, why.
But it’s not surprising that Patel and Wiles would have their toll records subpoenaed because both were very close to Trump at the time of the federal investigation. Right, it has been known for years that investigators closely scrutinized Patel — I mean, he was compelled to testify before a grand jury in the case. And it’s already public information that investigators obtained some of Wiles’ phone records.
But, despite that, you had Patel trying to spin the narrative as a targeted attempt to go after Trump and his closest allies, with him also accusing FBI officials of trying to hide the fact that they had subpoenaed the records.
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Produced by: Cory Ray, Philip DeFranco
Edited by: James Girardier, Maxwell Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks, Matthew Henry
Art Department: William Crespo
Writing/Research: Lili Stenn, Philip DeFranco
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#KashPatel #CharlieKirk #FBI
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Art Department: William Crespo
Writing/Research: Brian Espinoza, Philip DeFranco
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#Cuba #USA #America
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But back to the news, Hillary Clinton claims that Republicans are using her to distract the public from Trump’s ties to Jeffrey Epstein.That is what she said in opening statements this morning before sitting for a closed-door deposition with the House Oversight Committee as part of their investigation into Epstein and his associates.
Hillary released her remarks on Twitter before the testimony began, and she specifically went after the Committee's chairman, James Comer, to accuse him of playing “partisan political theater” when he should be helping trafficking survivors, saying:
“The Committee justified its subpoena to me based on its assumption that I have information regarding the investigations into the criminal activities of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Let me be as clear as I can. I do not.”
And this is something Hillary has said in the past, claiming she does not recall ever meeting Epstein, that she never went to any of his homes or properties. She also has argued that it is unfair that she has to sit for a deposition, because the majority of the law enforcement officials subpoenaed in this case did not have to appear before the committee and were able to submit statements.And Hillary submitted a statement herself, but she was still threatened with contempt charges, so she argues:
“This institutional failure is designed to protect one political party and one public official, rather than to seek truth and justice for the victims and survivors.”
And that is a clear reference to Trump, right, she is claiming they are putting her in the hot seat so people will look at her instead of the president. But no surprise, she believes he is the actual problem, noting that his administration has gutted resources for investigating trafficking crimes, Something she called a tragedy and scandal worthy of its own investigation, then adding:
“A committee endeavoring to stop human trafficking would seek to understand what specific steps are needed to fix a system that allowed Epstein to get away with his crimes in 2008. A committee run by elected officials with a commitment to transparency would ensure the full release of all the files.”
“It would get to the bottom of reports that DOJ withheld FBI interviews in which a survivor accuses President Trump of heinous crimes. It would subpoena anyone who asked on which night there would be the ‘wildest party’ on Epstein's island.”
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Produced by: Cory Ray, Philip DeFranco
Edited by: James Girardier, Maxwell Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks, Matthew Henry
Art Department: William Crespo
Writing/Research: Maddie Crichton, Philip DeFranco
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#USA #America #Epstein


