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US Monthly Headline News July 2023 - Page 1
It's the week in extremism from USA TODAY.
Will Carless

The Pentagon appears to have failed to implement bold reforms – announced more than two years ago – aimed at stamping out extremism in the military, a USA TODAY investigation has found. Meanwhile, as things heat up at the U.S.-Mexico border, members of Congress are pressing the Department of Homeland Security on the status of its own extremism-related reforms. And a country music singer is being criticized over a song with violent lyrics and a music video filmed outside a courthouse that was home to a notorious Southern lynching and racial conflict. It's the week in extremism.
Opinion by Chauncey DeVega

Donald Trump has repeatedly demonstrated, through the many direct and implied threats of violence that he has made during his decades of public life, that he is a very violent man.

The many recent examples of Trump's violent ways include wishing death upon Hunter Biden and inciting his followers to assassinate former president Barack Obama by sharing what is presumed to be the latter's home address online. One of Trump's followers acted on those de facto commands last month and was apprehended by the Secret Service near Obama's Washington, D.C. home. The would-be assassin was armed with two guns and hundreds of rounds of ammunition.

Just this week, in a post on his Truth Social disinformation platform, Trump shared audio of his 2020 interview with the late right-wing radio host Rush Limbaugh, in which Trump says, "If you f**k around with us, if you do something bad to us, we are going to do things to you that have never been done before."
Trump has done things that have never been done before: Impeached twice in one term, attempted a coup, incited insurrection and sedition that caused the sacking of our capitol to name a few.

Story by Suchitra

Former president Donald Trump posted a threatening new video on his Truth Social account, ahead of his indictment. He threatened to “do things that have never been done before” to people who “f*** around with us.” An audio from the former president's interview on the late Rush Limbaugh's radio show three years ago is included in the MAGA.com video. The tape is from a radio event where Trump was speaking about Iran. Now, the clip has been repurposed just as Trump is set to receive another federal indictment on charges of attempting to rig the outcome of the 2020 presidential election. The video seems to be a response to that, as per Independent.
Story by Jamie Frevele

Jacob Chansley aka the QAnon Shaman was rejected in his bid to have his conviction dismissed related to his participation in the January 6 insurrection, but the judge didn’t have strong words for only Chansley — Tucker Carlson called out too.

Chansley completed his sentence after being convicted of obstruction of Congress and was released early, but wanted the conviction dismissed based on footage of the insurrection that was shown on Fox News by former host Tucker Carlson before he was fired. Chansley claimed that the video “undermines his conviction” and was “duplicative of police body-camera footage he was given months before he decided to plead guilty.”
Story by Chloe Taylor

Alameda Research CEO Caroline Ellison allegedly paid herself millions of dollars in a single bonus payment despite knowing about massive holes in FTX’s finances. Months before FTX filed for bankruptcy, she allegedly moved the money between various accounts until it landed in her own. Crypto exchange FTX spectacularly imploded late last year, dragging Alameda Research, its affiliate trading firm, down with it.

Alameda itself was losing huge amounts of money thanks to high-risk bets, with FTX accused of secretly redirecting its users’ funds to its sister firm to help plug its losses. Legal proceedings launched in the wake of FTX’s downfall have accused its top executives of gross mismanagement, including founder and CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (widely known as “SBF”). In December, Ellison herself pleaded guilty to seven offenses, including wire fraud and money laundering.
By Nicole Chavez, CNN

CNN — The Florida Board of Education approved a new set of standards for how Black history should be taught in the state’s public schools, sparking criticism from education and civil rights advocates who said students should be allowed to learn the “full truth” of American history. The curriculum was approved at the board’s meeting Wednesday in Orlando.

It is the latest development in the state’s ongoing debate over African American history, including the education department’s rejection of a preliminary pilot version of an Advanced Placement African American Studies course for high school students, which it claimed lacked educational value.
CNN

Joseph Ziegler, a 13-year IRS special agent with the Criminal Investigation Division, speaks with CNN's Jake Tapper about his testimony before the House Oversight Committee during which he said he witnessed federal prosecutors deviating from normal procedures, and echoed fellow whistleblower Gary Shapley’s claims that IRS investigators recommended charging Hunter Biden with far more serious crimes than what the president’s son has agreed to plead guilty to.
Story by Alex Griffing

Rep. Jerry Connolly (D-VA) tore into Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Thursday for appearing before the House Judiciary Weaponization of Government select subcommittee at the invitation of House Republican leaders on the topic of censorship. Connolly accused the 2024 Democratic presidential candidate of shaming his family name by being an “enabler” of the GOP, which Connolly claimed was using RFK Jr. as a political prop to attack President Joe Biden.

“And no matter what you may think, Mr. Kennedy. And I revere your name. You’re not here to propound your case for censorship,” Connolly said as he wound down his remarks. “You are here for cynical reasons to be used politically by that side of the aisle to embarrass the current president of the United States. And you are an enabler in that effort today,” the Virginia Democrat added.

“And it brings shame on a storied name that I revere. I began my political interest with your father. And it makes me profoundly sad to see where we have descended today in this hearing. I yield the balance of my time,” he concluded.
Story by Ben Blanchet

Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas) pointed out what she thought the House Oversight Committee “should be prosecuting” as she shifted the focus of a hearing on the Biden family and called into question former President Donald Trump receiving payments from China in 2017.

The first-term Democrat, in remarks at the hearing Wednesday, called on the Republican-led committee to look at the payments as she read from an NBC News report on Trump’s tax returns that went public in December. “We should be looking at the fact that ‘in 2017, Trump’s first year in office, he also made $6.5 million from China, his tax returns show,’” she said, adding that the source of the payments “is not clear from the returns.”
Story by David Edwards

Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes' office is reportedly investigating attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election in the state. Sources told The Arizona Republic an investigation focused on two slates of fake electors for then-President Donald Trump. It was also said to be looking into an audit led by Cyber Ninjas CEO Doug Logan.

The so-called audit "was managed, financed and organized by allies of Trump," the paper said. "It so far has cost Arizona taxpayers more than $5 million without delivering any definitive results." The Attorney General's Office confirmed that an investigation was underway but would not provide specifics. Logan declined to comment to the paper.
Story by Matthew Chapman

While Trump waits to see whether he is indicted in the January 6 investigation, the existing charges against him in the Mar-a-Lago classified documents case continue forward, with a back and forth between his lawyers and special counsel Jack Smith on when to hold the trial.

Trump's lawyers, however, committed a serious blunder by demanding the Judge Aileen Cannon push the trial date out to after the 2024 presidential election — at least according to former Trump National Security Adviser John Bolton on CNN Wednesday.

"I think the single most important question now on the legal side is whether any of these cases actually get to trial before the 2024 election," said Bolton. "That is what will be important. Not this indictment or that indictment or the next indictment. Which case if any gets to trial and does he get convicted?"
Story by Piyush Arora

WASHINGTON, DC: After 16 Republicans were charged over the "false elector" conspiracy, there have been mounting calls for officials to investigate Virginia "Ginni" Thomas for allegedly attempting to rig the 2020 election result. Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced on Tuesday, July 18 that the 16 individuals were each charged with eight felonies for allegedly trying to thwart the will of voters in the 2020 presidential election.

The 66-year-old wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas has also been under fire for her actions in the wake of the last election. At that time, Thomas allegedly sent text messages to Mark Meadows, the former chief of staff for Donald Trump, encouraging him to work to overturn Biden's victory and keep Trump in office. Additionally, she was also accused of sending emails to several lawmakers and Arizona election officials, arguing that it was their "constitutional duty" to pick a "clean slate" of electors who would be willing to proclaim Trump the winner in the Grand Canyon State in 2020.
Story by Brandon Gage

United States Representative Delia Ramirez (D-Illinois) clapped back at a witness who invoked the controversial and racist "Great Replacement Theory" during a House Homeland Security Committee hearing on Wednesday.

Right-wing lawmakers like House GOP Conference Chair Elise Stefanik (R-New York) have repeatedly referenced GRT — which maintains that white people are being supplanted by foreigners of color — as an excuse to crack down on undocumented immigrants. The conspiracy has also been cited by perpetrators of mass shootings to rationalize murder.

Meanwhile, Republicans are pushing for the removal of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, whom they allege "created our nation's historic border crisis by implementing intentionally reckless policies, failing to enforce the laws passed by Congress, and ignoring the advice, recommendations, and warnings of experienced law enforcement."
Story by Sarah K. Burris

Eliyahu Weinstein has been charged with fraud again, just two years after he had the remainder of a 24-year prison sentence commuted by Trump.

The case comes from the SEC Securities and Exchange Commission, which charged six people for a multi-million dollar scheme similar to a Ponzi scheme. The department said in a blistering press release that it had been "orchestrated by criminal recidivist Eliyahu Weinstein."

According to the charges, the individuals allegedly raised money to fund deals with healthcare products with a promise for investment returns. Approximately $38 million was raised from at least 150 investors, the SEC says.
Story by Brad Reed

New College of Florida, which in recent months has been taken over by allies of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, is facing major staff shortages as faculty members are fleeing for other jobs. In fact, the Tampa Bay Times is reporting that the school has lost more than a third of its faculty in the last few months, a churn rate that Provost Bradley Thiessen described as "incredibly high."

DeSantis and his allies may welcome the departures given that their stated goal is to transform the university into an "anti-woke" learning establishment. Nonetheless, it's causing big headaches for school administrators who are now scrambling to ensure they have enough faculty to teach classes.
Story by Sarah K. Burris

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported on Wednesday that the feds have requested the surveillance videos from the State Farm Arena where the 2020 election count and recount were carried out. "In a grand jury subpoena dated May 31, the Georgia Secretary of State’s office was directed to hand over 'any and all security video or security footage, or any other video of any kind, depicting or taken at or near' State Farm and 'any associated data,'" the report said.

While the feds didn't give a reason for seekng the videos, it is likely linked to the grand jury that's investigating attempts to overthrow the 2020 election. In Dec. 2020, Donald Trump's chief of staff, Mark Meadows, appeared at the Cobb County Civic Center where the Georgia Bureau of Investigation was reviewing absentee ballots to check signatures.
Story by Todd Betzold

After denying any connection among a recent string of murder cases, investigators in Oregon now say the deaths of four of six women found dead in and around Portland had strikingly suspicious similarities, RadarOnline.com has learned.

According to authorities, 38-year-old Jesse Lee Calhoun, who was released early from a previous prison sentence in 2021 by former Oregon Gov. Kate Brown, is being investigated as a person of interest in connection with at least four of the suspicious deaths, as Front Page Detectives reported.
Story by Lori Rozsa

The Florida State Board of Education approved new rules Wednesday for how Black history will be taught in public schools that critics are decrying as a “step backward.”

The updated standards include noting that enslaved people developed skills that “could be applied for their personal benefit,” and that in teaching about mob violence against Black residents instructors should also note “acts of violence perpetrated against and by African Americans.”

“These standards are a disservice to Florida’s students and are a big step backward for a state that has required teaching African American history since 1994,” the Florida Education Association, the state’s largest teachers union, said in a statement.
Story by Milla

The New York Times columnist Michelle Cottle blasted House Speaker Kevin McCarthy as a reaction to National Defense Authorization Act and pointed out some worrying trends inside the Republican party.

Cottle asked a valid question
In her piece for the New York Times Opinion, the columnist wrote, “Some days, Speaker Kevin McCarthy must look out over this House conference in awe and think: Are you maniacs trying to lose us the majority?”
The congressman’s announcement comes amid reports that the former presient may be indicted again
Abe Asher

Rep Matt Gaetz of Florida said on his podcast that he will in the coming days introduce a bill to defund Special Counsel Jack Smith’s investigation into former President Donald Trump as Mr Trump reportedly asks Capitol Hill allies for help as he faces another potential indictment.

“In the coming hours, the coming days, I will be introducing legislation under my name, in the House of Representatives, as a freestanding bill, to defund the Jack Smith investigation,” Mr Gaetz said on Tuesday. “And one reason why is the election interference feature. Another reason why: the lack of transparency.”

Mr Gaetz’s announcement comes just hours after Mr Trump said he’s received a letter from Mr Smith’s investigation into the events of January 6 informing him that he is the target of a grand jury investigation in Washington DC.
Story by Tatyana Tandanpolie

Judge Aileen Cannon, the Trump-appointed federal district court judge overseeing the Justice Department's documents case against the former president, denied the special counsel's motion for a protective order in the case Wednesday because the defense and the prosecution have not conferred sufficiently.

According to the Guardian and the Independent, Cannon told the Department of Justice that it can refile the motion for the protective order, required under section three of the Classified Information Procedures Act, once it has adequately conferred with attorneys for Trump and the personal aide charged alongside him, Walt Nauta.
Story by Justin Klawans

Las Vegas police executed a search warrant in connection with the decades-dormant murder case of rapper Tupac Shakur, the department said Tuesday.

"LVMPD can confirm a search warrant was served in Henderson, Nevada on July 17, 2023, as part of the ongoing Tupac Shakur homicide investigation," the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department said, per ABC News. "We will have no further comment at this time."

The search warrant was conducted at a local Henderson home after homicide detectives gathered enough evidence to proceed, investigators told ABC. It is unclear what police were looking for, or how the home involved may have been connected to the case.

The Morning Joe panel discusses former President Trump receiving a target letter from Jack Smith and how Republicans including Speaker Kevin McCarthy's response.
Story by Igor Derysh

Judge Aileen Cannon, the Trump appointee overseeing his Mar-a-Lago documents case, on Tuesday appeared skeptical of special counsel Jack Smith's request for a December trial but also seemed disinclined to push the trial schedule beyond the 2024 election as the former president's legal team had asked. Smith's team urged Cannon to schedule a trial before the end of the year while Trump's lawyers asked her to delay the trial indefinitely, citing his presidential campaign.

Cannon on Tuesday directly asked Trump attorney Christopher Kise whether he wanted to delay the trial after the election, according to The New York Times. Kise acknowledged that he did and fellow Trump lawyer Todd Blanche later said that if Cannon must schedule a trial date, it should be in mid-November 2024. David Harbach, a top Smith deputy, told Cannon that the rule of law should apply to Trump as it would to any defendant.
BY JOEY CAPPELLETTI

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan’s attorney general filed felony charges Tuesday against 16 Republicans who acted as fake electors for then-President Donald Trump in 2020, accusing them of submitting false certificates confirming they were legitimate electors despite Joe Biden’s victory in the state.

Attorney General Dana Nessel, a Democrat, announced Tuesday that all 16 people would face eight criminal charges, including forgery and conspiracy to commit election forgery, which range from a potential five to 14 years in prison each.

The group includes the head of the Republican National Committee’s chapter in Michigan, Kathy Berden, as well as the former co-chair of the Michigan Republican Party, Meshawn Maddock, and Shelby Township Clerk Stan Grot.
Story by By ERIC TUCKER, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Former President Donald Trump said Tuesday that he has received a letter informing him that he is a target of the Justice Department's investigation into efforts to undo the results of the 2020 presidential election.

Trump made the claim in a post on his Truth Social platform, saying he received the target letter on Sunday night. Such a letter can precede an indictment; Trump got one ahead of being charged last month in a separate investigation into the mishandling of classified documents.
Story by aharoun@insider.com (Azmi Haroun)

Billionaire GOP donor Harlan Crow's lavish yacht trips with Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas may have been facilitated by questionable tax practices, according to a new report.

Crow's relationship with Thomas has been scrutinized since ProPublica reported that Crow funded years of vacations for Thomas, who failed to disclose the outings. Some of those were trips aboard Crow's yacht, the Michaela Rose, and were organized through Rochelle Charter, a company registered to charter the yacht.

But the trips on the yacht — registered as a charter vessel — were actually limited to Crow's inner circle, according to ProPublica. Crow paid his own company for private trips on the yacht and was able to secure tax breaks and lower his tax bill, according to tax data from 2003 through 2015 reviewed by ProPublica.
Story by Milla

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill allowing the death penalty in child rape convictions, despite a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that banned capital punishment in such cases. The law relies on jury votes of 8-4 rather than unanimously. This puts Florida on the map as the most extreme death penalty state, and people are unhappy about it.

DeSantis has been pushing for this bill since the Parkland shooting
In Stoneman Douglas high school shooting in 2018, Nikolas Cruz shot 14 students and three staff members. Cruz, who was 19 then, received 34 consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole. The case was closed in November 2022, and since then, DeSantis has been pushing for a death sentence without a unanimous jury.

Glenn Kirschner renamed DeSantis “DeathSantis”
Legal analyst Glenn Kirschner said that the Florida governor is working hard on “earning the name “DeathSantis.” Kirschner tweeted, “Why not just make it a coin toss, Ron?”
Story by Mike Lillis

Republican efforts to enhance their appeal with minority voters suffered a series of setbacks this week when a pair of GOP lawmakers made racially explosive comments, stirring immediate condemnation from civil rights groups and threatening to muddy the party’s message of big-tent inclusivity.

House Republican leaders have spent much of the year highlighting the party’s advances in recruiting women and minorities, linking a diverse slate of candidates to their success in flipping control of the lower chamber last year. And they retain high hopes of expanding on those gains in the 2024 elections.

But that image-shaping campaign was dealt a hard blow this week when Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) and Rep. Eli Crane (R-Ariz.) gave voice to bigoted sentiments, prompting rebukes from Republican leaders and sparking warnings from some rank-and-file members that the party’s efforts to attract more minorities just got more difficult.
by Aurora DeStefano in Daily Edition

The identification and indictment of Gal Luft, the whistleblower whose testimony Republicans in the House Oversight Committee relied on to pursue charges against the so-called “Biden crime family,” continues to reverberate. Oversight Committee Ranking Member Jamie Raskin and Rep. Dan Goldman are using the Luft revelation to demand further accountability from Raskin’s own Committee.

In a letter to Oversight Committee Chair James Comer, Raskin and Goldman present the alarming possibility that Luft, operating as an unregistered foreign agent, sought to manipulate Comer and the House Committee on behalf of the Chinese Communist Party, seeking to undermine U.S. national security. Comer and Raskin, demanding more information about their own Committee’s machinations, write:
By Robin Milling

For better or worse, it’s hard to argue that religion is big business these days. From films to books to radio programs to TV shows, it’s never been easier to spread gospel around the world — and it’s never been more lucrative. How much money are we talking about, exactly? We’ve rounded up the 20 wealthiest pastors in the world to give you some idea. These religious figures from every corner of the globe are filthy rich, and their net worths are sure to make your jaw drop. How do you feel about pastors making this much money? Let us know on Facebook, and make sure to SHARE this compilation with your friends.
Story by Milla

David Jolly, a former representative from Florida, gave his insight into growing white nationalism and explained the vital difference between Trump’s and DeSantis’s perspectives.

White supremacy in the military
Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville recently spoke about white nationalists, declaring, “I call them Americans,” AL.com reported.

Senator blamed the Democrats, Biden
He continued, “We are losing in the military so fast,” adding, “The Democrats are attacking our military, saying we need to get out the white extremists, the white nationalists, people that don’t believe in our agenda, as Joe Biden’s agenda.”
Story by Milla

E. Jean Carroll’s case against Donald Trump ended with the jury finding the former president liable for assault and defamation. The civil lawsuit brought up another alleged story on the surface. Carroll, in her lawsuit, alleged that Trump raped her in a New York City department store in the 90s. However, she sued over calling her “a liar.”

One lawsuit never got enough attention and was quickly dropped since the alleged victim was a 13-year-old virgin. The charges were dropped in 2016, and the woman remained Jane Doe or Katie Johnson, likely her real name. However, the severity of this case was never truly examined since the elections occupied the media.

Wild and Graphic Accusations
The initial allegations, brought by attorney Lisa Bloom claimed Johnson was violently raped in 1994. The assault allegedly happened when the 13-year-old attended org..s organized by Jeffrey Epstein. Epstein allegedly lured Johnson by promising her a modeling career. In the withdrawn lawsuit, Johnson claimed she met Trump four times.

One encounter was described as a “savage sexual attack.” Allegedly, Johnson “loudly pleaded” for the former president to stop when he started “violently striking Plaintiff in the face with his open hand and screaming that he would do whatever he wanted.”
Story by Thom Hartmann

Kentucky MAGA Republican James Comer, Chair of the House Oversight Committee, has been exposed as basically a con man with his phony Hunter Biden bribe witness. Now he is trying to rewrite the history of Trump and Covid.

Comer’s latest stunt to try to whitewash Trump’s role in the unnecessary death of at least a half-million Americans is to argue — nonsensically — that the virus came out of the Wuhan virology lab and therefore something, something, something Trump is not responsible. He’s doing this with House Oversight Committee hearings this week.

The reason Comer and other MAGA Republicans are working so hard to push this perennial theory (which may be true, but so what?) is that they think directing the nation’s attention to the Wuhan lab — which got collaboration and minor funding from Anthony Fauci’s realm of the government — will point us at Fauci and thus distract us all from how many Americans Trump let die and why.
Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert

A missing witness into the investigation of Hunter Biden's business dealings who claims he has proof of the President's son's corrupt connections to the Chinese government has reappeared after he himself was accused of being a Chinese agent and fled custody. Days after Gal Luft publicly dared the DOJ to unseal the indictment against him — alleging the charges he's facing are a political attempt to cover up his claims of Hunter Biden's corruption — officials did just that.

The US Attorney's Office on Monday released the indictment against the US-Israeli dual citizen, who was arrested in Cyprus in February on charges of willfully failing to register under the Foreign Agents Registration Act ("FARA"), arms trafficking, Iranian sanctions violations, and making false statements to federal agents. Luft and the US Attorney's Office in the Southern District of New York, where the charges were filed, did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.
Story by Nick Robins

A federal judge in Louisiana ruled last week that a wide range of Biden administration officials could not communicate with social media companies about content moderation issues, and in a lengthy opinion described the White House’s outreach to platforms as “almost dystopian” and reminiscent of “an Orwellian ministry of truth”.

The ruling, which was delivered by the Trump-appointed judge Terry Doughty, was a significant milestone in a case that Republicans have pushed as proof that the Biden administration is attempting to silence conservative voices. It is also the latest in a wider rightwing campaign to weaken attempts at stopping false information and conspiracy theories from proliferating online, one that has included framing disinformation researchers and their efforts as part of a wide-reaching censorship regime.
The program, known as the Electronic Registration Information Center, was arguably the best nationwide tool states had to catch people trying to vote twice.
By Zach Montellaro

Over the past year and a half, eight Republican-led states quit a nonpartisan program designed to keep voter rolls accurate and up to date.

Top Republican election officials in those states publicly argued the program was mismanaged. The conspiracy theorists who cheered them on falsely insisted it was a front for liberals to take control of elections.

But experts say the program, known as the Electronic Registration Information Center, was among the best nationwide tool states had to catch people trying to vote twice in the same election. Now, those Republican-led states who left — and other states who lost access to their data — are scrambling to police so-called “double voters” ahead of the presidential election in 2024.
Story by Jake Beardslee

In a major setback for President Biden’s student debt relief plan, the Supreme Court, led by an ultra-conservative majority, blocked the initiative aimed at canceling up to $20,000 in individual loans. The court’s 6 to 3 decision dealt a blow to the hopes of 40 million qualified borrowers and left them grappling with mounting federal student debt, which surpasses a staggering $400 billion. However, the ruling has sparked a renewed push for alternative measures to alleviate the burden of student debt.

In an interview with Democracy Now!, Astra Taylor, an organizer with the Debt Collective and director of the film You are Not a Loan, criticized the court’s decision as baseless, stating:
Story by Mara Lafontaine

White-collar criminal defense attorney Michael Bauchner shed light on the severity of the charges against former President Trump aide Waltine “Walt” Nauta. Nauta’s charges include obstruction and unlawful retention of defense information, which are linked to the alleged handling of classified documents at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort.

Michael Bauchner elaborated on the seriousness of the situation during a recent interview on Fox News. Bauchner explained, “The Espionage Act also just punishes people who retain documents that are confidential, that belong to the United States of America and haven’t returned them upon appropriate request.”
Story by Milla

The 44th President Barack Obama is not known for using profanities to go after his political opponents, but Donald Trump reportedly changed that.

Allegations come from a senior reporter for CNN
A book by Edward-Isaac Dovere, a senior reporter for CNN, titled “Battle for the Soul: Inside the Democrats’ Campaigns to Defeat Donald Trump,” revealed some astonishing moments and comments, including Obama’s quite clear opinions on former President Trump. Trump used Obama, in a way, to launch his political career after repeating that the 44th President was born outside the USA, which, even Trump admitted, was not valid.
Story by Tom Boggioni

Clarence Thomas' elevation to the Supreme Court in 1991 immediately brought with it entry into another exclusive club where he has hobnobbed and been feted by an assortment of wealthy conservatives.

According to a report from the New York Times' Abbie Van Sickle and Steve Eder, the controversial jurist who is being scrutinized after being lavished with expensive gifts and trips by conservative billionaire Harlan Crow, became a member of the Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans, with the Times report adding that he "entered a world whose defining ethos of meritocratic success."

As the report states, after being awarded membership, Thomas "... moved into the inner circle, a cluster of extraordinarily wealthy, largely conservative members who lionized him and all that he had achieved."
Story by David McAfee

The legal strategist who created the group that toppled affirmative action at academic institutions is reportedly looking to his next target at the Supreme Court.

Edward Blum, who first challenged affirmative action before the country's top court in 2012, founded Students for Fair Admissions, which prevailed against Harvard and the University of Carolina, according to the New York Times. Blum now has his sights set on corporate America, according to an interview with the Times.

"Now, with a legal victory in hand, Mr. Blum is thinking about what’s next in his work to remove the consideration of race from other parts of American life and law," according to the article published on Saturday. "In a wide-ranging discussion, he told me about how he’ll be watching to make sure elite institutions of higher learning abide by the court’s recent decision, and why he thinks corporate America will be facing scrutiny next."
Story by Alexandra Stone

Former President Barack Obama was known and respected for his calm demeanor and his ability to stay cool under pressure, but that doesn't mean he hasn't made his strong opinions about controversial ex-prez Donald Trump loud and clear.

According to Edward-Isaac Dovere's book, Battle for the Soul: Inside the Democrats’ Campaigns to Defeat Donald Trump, Obama told foundation donors that Trump was a "madman", a "racist, sexist pig", a "lunatic" and all-in-all a "corrupt motherf*****."

The night prior to the 2016 election, he called the now-77-year-old "uniquely unqualified" and "temperamentally unfit to be commander-in-chief" while speaking at a rally in Ohio. “Don’t take my word for it," he said at the time. "Take the word of a lot of the Republicans who were saying this before they decided, politically, that it was convenient to support him."
Story by Brandon Gage

Former United States Congressman David Jolly (R-Florida) on Saturday tore into Florida First Lady Casey DeSantis for championing the right-wing culture wars that her husband, Governor Ron DeSantis, has exploited while he seeks the 2024 Republican presidential nomination.

"Casey DeSantis is a fairly compelling political figure in Florida and now nationally. For many, she's the brighter side to Florida's angry governor. For others, she's become America's Karen. And I think that's the ultimate disconnect here with a campaign that needs to embrace more constituencies to get to the White House," Jolly quipped to MSNBC's Saturday/Sunday Show host Jonathan Capehart.
Story by David McAfee

Donald Trump is a danger to every single American citizen because of the way he mishandles classified misinformation, according to former New Hampshire Republican Party Chairwoman Jennifer Horn.

Horn, who previously wrote an op-ed excoriating her party for its loyalty to Trump, appeared on MSNBC on Saturday. The host was asking Horn about reports that Trump allegedly mishandled classified information while he was president, in addition to after he lost the 2020 election.

"Just how big of a threat of a dangerous that this country?" the host asked. Horn replied: "Well, it's an extraordinary danger," she said, adding that she thinks it's "really important that were very direct and clear that Donald trump is dangerous."
Story by David McAfee

A publishing company that puts out white nationalist literature and is run by a man who praises Hitler reportedly saw its data leaked, resulting in the world getting a glimpse into how the hateful ideology is spread online.

Self-described white nationalist Greg Johnson is the head of Counter-Currents Publishing, which insists white people are "under attack" and encourages white people to promote their white "heritage." Data from that website was leaked, providing additional details about the highly secretive publisher, according to the Guardian's report.

"A data leak from the website of a white nationalist publisher has revealed recordings, published and unpublished documents, and hitherto private interview recordings that shed light on the way in which the organization promotes its ideology online," the outlet reported on Saturday. "The internal data from Counter-Currents, a publishing house co-founded and run by notoriously secretive far-right ideologue Greg Johnson, was exposed in an Amazon cloud storage container that was left unlocked on the open internet."
Story by Malik Graystone

Former aide to Melania Trump, Stephanie Grisham, unveils a jaw-dropping revelation about ex-president Donald Trump’s alleged exhibition of classified documents without proper security clearances. In an exclusive interview with MSNBC’s Alex Witt, Grisham divulged a separate incident that sheds light on Trump’s disregard for protocols and respect for classified information. Get ready for an eye-opening account of a dining room spectacle at Mar-a-Lago that exposes Trump’s audacious behavior.

Breaching the Boundaries: Trump’s Reckless Display of Classified Material
Grisham, who served as the Communications Director and Press Secretary for the Trump administration, did not hold back when questioned about Trump’s handling of classified documents. Revealing her personal experience, she recounted witnessing Trump showcasing classified material to individuals at Mar-a-Lago’s dining patio. This shocking display of carelessness raises serious concerns about the ex-president’s commitment to national security.
Story by Milla

The tourism promotion group Visit Lauderdale reported that over half a dozen organizations planning conventions in Broward County changed their minds citing ” what the Governor is doing in the education/schools.”

The loss is more significant than you think
One canceled convention by the Supreme Council of America Inc., Ancient & Accepted Scottish Rite Masons, led to the cancellation of 885 rooms. Another, the 2024 National Family and Community Engagement and Community Schools Conference, led to the cancelation of over 2000 rooms. But, it is not only about hotels. Attendees spend money in restaurants, shops, theme parks, etc.
Opinion by Joe Patrice - Above the Law • Yesterday 12:00 PM

In 303 Creative, the Supreme Court ruled that a website designer — who had never even been asked to design a website for a same-sex wedding — could legally discriminate against same-sex couples based on her assertion that she doesn’t want to serve gay people. And, while she cited a religious objection, the majority pegged the case on free expression so a plaintiff merely has to not like the idea of serving a minority group to cast off anti-discrimination laws. Happy Pride Month, everyone! How is there standing? Great question! The Court doesn’t care. To clarify her rights, Ms. Smith filed a lawsuit in federal district court.
Story by Milla

Trump’s federal trial is set for August
While the trial date was revealed to be August 14, the delay is almost inevitable, experts claim, and the conclusion of the trial should not be expected well after the 2024 elections. Regardless, Trump vowed to stay in the race even if convicted, as he told Politico, “I’ll never leave.”

Trump also called for lengthy sentences for mishandling classified documents
CNN’s KFile reminded last September that the former president tweeted that former FBI Director James Comey should be “prosecuted” for allegedly leaking disclosed classified information. in April 2018, Trump tweeted, “He leaked CLASSIFIED information, for which he should be prosecuted.” In another tweet, he claimed Comey should be jailed.
Story by Milla

The coin toss
Jarvis claims, “If he gets one of these crazy policies passed, and they’re challenged, and the court upholds him… he can say to the press and the public, ‘I was right, and the proof is in the pudding because the courts agreed with me.’”

Win-win for DeSantis
Even when he loses, “DeSantis can stand up and say, ‘These crazy judges want our children to watch drag shows, they want our children to be taught to be gay, they want Disney to be this terrible company. That’s why you need a strong governor and why you will benefit from having me as president because I will make sure to get rid of these judges and replace them with judges that have traditional American morals.’”
Story by James Factora

On July 1, Florida’s bathroom bill, which punishes trans people for using gendered public restrooms, went into effect. Signed by Governor Ron DeSantis in May, Republican lawmakers have dubbed the law the Safety in Private Spaces Act, claiming that it “is not about targeting any particular group of people,” as the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Rachel Plakon, told local outlet WFLA. However, DeSantis made his intent clear in a press conference regarding the bill, stating, “A woman should not be in a locker room having to worry about someone from the opposite sex being in their locker room” — an obvious dog whistle about transgender people in public facilities.
Story by Matthew Chapman

Florida is renowned for having some of the strongest public records laws in the United States — some experts believe the "Florida Man" meme came about, in fact, largely because it's one of the easiest states to make public records requests and learn the details of sensational crimes. But Gov. Ron DeSantis has been using his powers to tear a hole in Florida's transparency laws, reports NBC News — at least, when it comes to himself.

"In the four years since DeSantis took office, his administration has routinely stonewalled the release of public records, approved a slew of new legal exceptions aimed at keeping more information out of the public eye, and waged legal battles against open government advocates, the press and other watchdogs," reported Lewis Kamb. "DeSantis, a Harvard-educated lawyer and former U.S. attorney, is the only Florida governor known to use 'executive privilege' to keep records hidden, transparency advocates and experts said."
Opinion by Theotis Robinson Jr.

Ron DeSantis, Florida’s Republican governor and presidential candidate, is obsessed with the word “woke.” He rails against his twisted definition of the word anytime there is a microphone or a camera within eye or earshot of him. Don’t get between him and a bank of microphones. You might get trampled. This obsession of the governor begs exploration of what is behind his addiction to the word woke.

Where does 'woke' come from?
According to Kiara Alfonseca, a race and culture reporter for ABC News, “One of (woke’s) earliest uses was in a historical recording of the protest song 'Scottsboro Boys' by Lead Belly,” an American blues singer. “In that recording, it was used as a term about staying aware of the potential for racist violence as a Black person in America.”
Story by Areeba Shah

Special Counsel Jack Smith's team has shown an increasing interest in examining the involvement of former Donald Trump's attorneys and other individuals, who plotted to overturn the 2020 election, The Wall Street Journal reported on Monday.

Prosecutors issued subpoenas focusing on several prominent individuals involved in the post-election efforts, according to the WSJ. These figures include conspiracy theorist and lawyer Sidney Powell, who propagated unsubstantiated allegations of extensive voter fraud. The subpoenas have also sought communications involving Emily Newman, a lawyer who collaborated with Powell, as well as Mike Roman, a Republican operative responsible for overseeing Election Day operations for the Trump campaign and deploying lawyers to key battleground states prior to November 2020.
Story by Alex Griffing

Robert F Kennedy Jr. recently spoke with Reason magazine for a lengthy interview about his 2024 presidential campaign and was asked directly about the myriad of widely debunked conspiracy theories he has peddled in the past in a brutal line of questioning.

Reason editor at large Nick Gillespie asked the question an hour into the interview from late last week, noting “One of the critiques of your candidacy or even your public profile is that you traffic routinely in conspiracies and that kind of conspiracist mindset where almost everything that we take for granted is bad.”

“So it’s, you know, the Covid vaccines, you know, not only don’t work, but they’re more dangerous than Covid itself,” Gillespie continued, adding:
Story by cdavis@insider.com (Charles R. Davis)

Calling it Florida's "latest assault on the right to vote," a federal judge on Monday put a temporary hold on a new election law that would have imposed more limits on voter registration efforts.

In May, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed SB 7050, a package of Republican-sponsored reforms to Florida's election system, including a ban on non-citizen immigrants helping register voters. Groups that retained certain voter registration information, such as for get-out-the-vote operations, could under the law also face felony prosecution.

In a blistering decision, US Judge Mark Walker of the Northern District of Florida, agreed with plaintiffs that such provisions are likely illegal.
Story by hgetahun@insider.com (Hannah Getahun)

The Bohemian Club, an all-men's private society in California that counts former presidents among its members, faces a class action lawsuit from servers for alleged labor violations.

The exclusive club occasionally pops up in the news, primarily for its association with elite and wealthy men. Most recently, a ProPublica report detailing Justice Clarence Thomas' relationship with Harlan Crow mentioned the club.

Thomas, who went on luxurious vacations with the billionaire real estate magnate and GOP megadonor, accompanied him to Bohemian Grove — a hidden woodland retreat often associated with the club that hosts events like a 14-day summer camp.

Former valets who used to work at Monastery Camp in Monte Rio, California, which they described as one of the "most prestigious and well-known camps at Bohemian Grove," filed the complaint on June 5.
Story by Pretty Honore

The internet is proof that Karens come a dime a dozen. Whether it’s at a park, sauna, or even your own home, there’s sure to be a middle-class white woman who wants it her way.

But today, we’re giving the Karens a break; Instead, we’d like to talk about the Kyles of the world — one of which went viral in a video posted by a social media user by the name of @tr0n_almighty.

In the clip, which has since made its rounds on TikTok and Instagram, Tron called out the Dallas bar after he was refused entry. According to the security guard at the door, Tron was in violation of the bar’s dress code policy, but the viral video tells a different story.
Story by Matthew Chapman

Former Harvard Law professor Laurence Tribe is not happy with the Supreme Court's decision to block the enforcement of Colorado's anti-discrimination law against anti-gay web designer Lorie Smith.

Smith's case rested on her argument that she shouldn't be forced against her religious beliefs to design a wedding website for a same-sex couple – though it now seems nobody had ever asked her to do that.

Just days before the court's decision came down, reporters discovered that a man listed in a court filing as a potential same-sex wedding client was actually straight, married, and hadn't been involved in the case at all — sparking questions about whether the far-right Alliance Defending Freedom's attorneys lied to federal courts.
Story by Rhonna Morala

In a bold and controversial move, former President Donald Trump has announced his intention to dismantle all “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion” (DEI) programs across the federal government. This announcement comes in the wake of the Supreme Court’s ruling that struck down affirmative action in college admissions, citing violations of the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause. Trump’s remarks, obtained exclusively by Breitbart News, reveal his determination to enforce the Court’s decision rigorously. Brace yourself as we delve into the details of Trump’s pledge to eliminate DEI initiatives and pursue civil rights claims against institutions engaging in what he deems as “unlawful racial discrimination.”
Opinion by Brandon Gage

Former United States Secretary of Labor Robert Reich on Monday blasted Republicans for actively pursuing policies that make citizens' lives worse. "Republicans claim they love America," Reich began, which segued into clips of various GOP politicians claiming just that. "But they sure don't seem to like the American people. They consistently oppose reforms that a majority of Americans believe would make their lives better, like raising the minimum wage, paid family leave and student debt relief, and these supposedly America-loving Republicans also seem to hate American cities, which is where eighty percent of Americans live."
Story by Stephen Silver

Donald Trump says he might appoint nine more Supreme Court justices: Trump’s appointment of three Supreme Court justices in his single term has led to a series of landmark conservative decisions. Trump said this week that he has even bigger plans if he gets a second term.

What Did Donald Trump Say Now?
After several presidents in a row, including those who served two terms, appointed exactly two Supreme Court justices each, Donald Trump managed to put three justices on the court in his four years as president. It wasn’t quite under traditional circumstances, as Senate Republicans kept one seat open for a year, and Trump was able to make a third appointment in his final weeks as president, following the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

The court, with Trump’s three appointments, has issued a series of landmark conservative decisions, on affirmative action and other issues. And now, Trump is proposing even more, should he gain another term as president.
Story by Yasmin Radjy

In just the last two years, the U.S Supreme Court has made life harder for millions of Americans—harder to get health care, harder to get and afford a college education, harder to protect ourselves from gun violence, and harder for LGBTQ+ Americans to live free of discrimination.

While it pursues this unrelenting assault on everyday Americans' basic freedoms, the Court's conservative supermajority routinely rules in favor of the very billionaires who put them on the bench, fly them around on private jets, and offer them secret luxury vacations and real estate deals.

It's no wonder the legitimacy of the court is now in question: The Supreme Court's activist majority is delegitimizing itself.

But the story of what's happened to our Supreme Court isn't just one of corruption. Republicans played the long game to build the political infrastructure that secured today's Supreme Court. As painful as it is to admit, Democrats must learn from their patience and long-term focus—and learn fast.
Story by Ethan Baron, Silicon Valley, San Jose, Calif.

Jul. 2—Complaint after complaint alleging anti-Black racism at Tesla's factory in Fremont has not stopped such abuse and discrimination, with Black workers segregated into the hardest, most dangerous, lowest-paid jobs and subjected to a barrage of racist treatment, language and images, according to claims in recent court filings and employee interviews.

Black workers at the plant — Tesla's biggest California facility, which employs thousands to build its four electric car models — alleged such abuse often began soon after they started, excited at landing a job at the famed automotive pioneer. In declarations filed by more than 200 current and former workers at the factory in connection with an Alameda County lawsuit against Tesla that now seeks class-action status, workers said they quickly learned that working for Tesla meant facing rampant, extreme racism.
Story by Taylor Norton

Protesters came after Donald Trump before his recent speech for a Moms For Liberty event. As the former president arrived at the Marriott in Philadelphia Friday, June 30, he was bombarded with swarms of people chanting at him.

According to clips tweeted from the event, the crowds yelled "LOCK HIM UP!" refencing Trumps recent indictments, and "F*** YOU TRAITOR!" as he made his way into the event space.

However, the protesters were not only there to object to the Republican politician, they also screamed in opposition of Moms For Liberty, a group that was labeled an "extremist organization" by the Southern Poverty Law Center.
Story by insider@insider.com (John L. Dorman)

Sen. Lindsey Graham on Saturday tried earnestly to rev up the crowd at a South Carolina rally featuring former President Donald Trump. But the conservative crowd simply wasn't having it, given the chorus of boos and the shouts of "traitor" that came from many attendees even as Graham — who's backing Trump's 2024 campaign — sought to introduce the ex-president.

Before Graham even reached the podium, the sounds of disapproval roared among the attendees in his home state, with the senator thanking the crowd for their attendance. "Welcome to Pickens. Thank y'all for coming. Thank you very much. Thank you," he said amid the boos. "Thank y'all," he added, with seemingly nervous laughter.
Story by Colby Hall

Stephanie Grisham revealed that she witnessed her former boss, former President Donald Trump, show classified documents to people at his Florida residence Mar-a-Lago. Grisham served as both Communications Director and Press Secretary under the Trump administration and appeared Saturday on MSNBC’s Alex Witt Reports, and was asked to comment on Trump’s second indictment surrounding his alleged mishandling of classified documents.

Witt: Look, you know, Donald Trump, is it plausible Trump was showing classified documents to people in private meetings? Grisham: The short answer is yes. I watched him show documents to people at Mar a Lago on the dining room patio. So he has no respect for classified information. Never did. You know, listening to that exchange every time, it just makes me so angry. He he talks specifically that he should have declassified it, but he didn’t. So there, I think, is proof. I believe also there’s a portion of that audio where he says, you know, this is off the record.
Story by Maya Boddie

Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis is proud to run his "War on Woke" 2024 presidential campaign that includes advocating for book bans, anti-LGBTQ+ laws, as well as anti-diversity, equity, and inclusion programs both in schools and the workplace. On Sunday, the 2024 GOP hopeful shared a clip of himself speaking and signing legislation via Twitter, writing, "As of July 1st, DEI is over in the state of Florida."

The governor's tweet comes less than two months after CBS reported he introduced House Bill 999 in May, which would "ban state colleges and universities from using funds to 'promote, support, or maintain any programs or campus activities that espouse diversity, equity, or inclusion [DEI] or Critical Race Theory rhetoric.'
Story by Graig Graziosi

Members of the far-right organization, the Proud Boys, have been ordered to pay more than $1million damages for their role in destroying property at a predominantly Black church in 2020.

DC Superior Court Judge Neal Kravitz approved the judgement on Friday against Proud Boys members Joseph Biggs, Enrique Tarrio, Jeremy Bertino, and John Turano, as well as the group's LLC.

Judge Kravitz described the incident as "hateful and overtly racist conduct," according to CNN.

The hate group tore down the Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church's Black Lives Matter sign while rallying in Washington DC in 2020.

On 12 December, 2020, individuals dressed in Proud Boys clothing had "leaped over Metropolitan AME's fence, entered the church's property, and went directly to the Black Lives Matter sign," according to Judge Kravitz's order.
Opinion by Martha S. Jones

When my Google Alerts sounded this past week, I knew that birthright citizenship was again lighting up in the news. My interest in debates over birthright is professional and abiding: I’m a historian who in 2018 published a book, Birthright Citizens, that traced this approach to national belonging from its origins in debates among Black Americans at the start of the 19th century to 1868, when the ratification of the Fourteenth Amendment established that, with a few exceptions, anyone born on U.S. soil is a citizen.

On Monday, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, looking to advance his presidential campaign, promised to reverse more than a century and a half of law and policy and, as he put it in a statement, “end the idea that children of illegal aliens are entitled to birthright citizenship if they are born in the United States.” A few days later, a spokesperson for another GOP presidential candidate, Nikki Haley, said she “opposes birthright citizenship for those who enter the country illegally,” and the entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy’s campaign said he would reform birthright by adding new citizenship requirements. Having lived through more than one such outburst in recent years—the first in 2018, when then-President Donald Trump proposed to do away with birthright—I know that any promise to transform our citizenship scheme is sure to set off a debate.
Story by Aaron Johnson

Apersonal aide to Donald Trump — who faces prison for allegedly helping him conceal boxes and lying to investigators — remains firmly in the former president’s orbit despite a court order barring him from talking about the landmark case, photos obtained by RadarOnline.com reveal.

Walt Nauta, a personal aide to Trump indicted over the alleged mishandling of classified documents alongside the former president, was snapped in South Philadelphia on Friday, where the pair grabbed a cheesesteak at legendary eatery Pat's King of Steaks.

Trump was in town for the Moms for Liberty Summit in Center City, attended by other Republican presidential hopefuls, including Ron DeSantis, Nikki Haley, Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy.
Story by Tom Boggioni

Reacting to a video of Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) being harshly booed and taunted by Republican voters in his own state attending a Donald Trump appearance, longtime journalist Lynn Sweet stated a comment made later by the former president calls into question whether Graham will ever be effective again as a Trump defender.

On Saturday Graham attempted to give a brief 6-minute speech at an early July 4th celebration in Pickens, South Carolina as attendees called him "traitor" when he wasn't being drowned out with boos.

"Putting aside the one-way loyalty we know drives only towards former president Trump, no candidate wants a surrogate to go out at their event and get that reception," CNN host Victor Blackwell prompted. "Is there any political value that Lindsey Graham can offer to Donald Trump now? "
Story by Joshua Wilburn

The Colorado web designer who the U.S. Supreme Court ruled Friday could refuse to make wedding websites for gay couples cited a request from a "flabbergasted" straight man who says he never even asked to work with her, RadarOnline.com has learned.

The U.S. Supreme Court recently handed down a ruling in a case involving a Christian graphic artist who refused to design wedding websites for same-sex couples. The court ruled 6-to-3 in favor of the artist, Lorie Smith, who argued that her actions were protected under the First Amendment's right to freedom of speech. The case began in 2016 when Smith filed a lawsuit against the state of Colorado, claiming that the state's anti-discrimination law violated her rights.
Story by Jennifer Bowers Bahney

Colorado’s Attorney General Phillip Weiser took on the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling that a web designer couldn’t be compelled to create wedding websites for LGBTQ couples, calling the decision a “license to discriminate.” MSNBC’s Simone Boyce asked Weiser what Justice Gorsuch meant when he wrote, “Under Colorado’s logic, the government may compel anyone who speaks for pay on a particular topic to accept all commissions on that same topic.” “What he is trying to say is that here is someone that had a free speech interest that was being implicated in a negative way,” Weiser said. He continued:
By Sarah K. Burris

MSNBC's Nicolle Wallace noted that one of President Donald Trump's biggest problems in the coronavirus crisis is that he's spent the entirety of his presidency lying to the American people. During a panel discussion mere hours before Trump's address, Wallace explained that it was the Trump administration that said he had the largest inauguration crowd size when it was clear from photos that it was a lie.
Story by Tom Boggioni

During an appearance on MSNBC on Sunday morning, former Donald Trump attorney Micheal Cohen pointed to a "mess-up" by a high-ranking Trump Organization executive that has ended up helping out investigators in Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's office.

Speaking with host Katie Phang, the former Trump "fixer" agreed with the host that exec Alan Garten didn't do the former president any favors when he confirmed payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels which is at the center of the Manhattan tax fraud indictments.

"A federal judge heard testimony from Alan Garten, who you know, the chief legal officer of the Trump Organization," Phang began. "Alan testified that there's no evidence that you worked on anything other than the hush money in exchange for the payments from Donald Trump, so there is no link to any official act of the presidency for Donald."
Maggie Bell , Lead Organizer, C.L.E.A.R Campaign, New Georgia Project

I grew up in the South, raised by generations of strong, Black women who always told me I'd go to college. I am the first college grad in my family, but to pay for my education, I'm now in so much debt that I can barely imagine the life my degree was supposed to get me. And the Supreme Court just shattered whatever dreams my family and I had about the life I could lead if I graduated college.

Just days after Juneteenth—a holiday celebrating Black liberation from literal bondage—six people I've never met decided that my economic freedom, and the economic freedom of millions of Americans, especially Black folks, is not worth it. Those people had the power to secure Black futures by allowing President Biden's student loan forgiveness plan to stand, and they failed.
When republicans point a finger at democrats three are pointing back at republicans.

By Matthew Impelli

Photos of homeless encampments in Florida have gone viral on Twitter after Governor Ron DeSantis criticized California Governor Gavin Newsom and "leftist policies" for the homeless situation in San Francisco. On Thursday, Wayne DuPree, a conservative media personality and supporter of former President Donald Trump, shared several photos of homeless encampments in Florida and tweeted, "Hey Jesse @JesseBWatters! You said there were no pictures of homeless people in Florida like in California. I guess you were protecting the Governor. Either way you asked for pics."

According to his tweet, which has been viewed over 194,000 times as of early Friday afternoon, the photos show different homeless encampments in Gainesville, Jacksonville, Pensacola and Orlando. Local media reports in Florida show that many of the homeless encampments shown in DuPree's tweet have been removed by officials. In 2022, WALA-TV reported that Pensacola removed at least 100 homeless people from encampments located under Interstate-110. Similarly in March 2021, WJAX-TV reported that officials in Jacksonville also removed dozens of homeless people from their encampments.
Story by Maureen Meehan

Ron DeSantis signed a bill prohibiting sober living facilities from allowing residents to use or possess medical marijuana even if the individual has a recommendation from a physician. Florida legalized medical marijuana in 2016 when voters passed a constitutional amendment.

DeSantis, who is in a volatile primary race for the Republican presidential nomination with Donald Trump, signed the legislation this week, reported Marijuana Moment.

Under the new bill, applicants seeking to operate drug recovery residences under the Florida Department of Children and Families need to declare that they do not permit the use of cannabis, which “includes marijuana that has been certified by a qualified physician for medical use.” Residents will be permitted to use other pharmaceutical drugs prescribed by doctors, “so the law explicitly singles out medical marijuana,” noted Marijuana Moment.
DeSantis wants to abolish four federal agencies, what will he replace them with? How much damage will he do if he has no plans to replace them?

Story by Milla

DeSantis spoke to Fox News and proclaimed that, if elected, he would close four federal agencies because they became too woke.

DeSantis talks to Fox News host
“We would do education, we would do commerce, we’d do energy, and we would do IRS,” DeSantis told Fox News host Martha MacCallum. He continued, “If Congress will work with me on doing that, we’ll be able to reduce the size and scope of government.” In short, DeSantis would eliminate the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the Department of Commerce, the Department of Energy, and the Department of Education.
Story by Maya Carlin

This week, sailors aboard the U.S. Navy aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) extinguished an electrical fire that broke out in the compartment of an emergency generator. While crewmembers successfully put out the fire in a short time frame, non-essential sailors were temporarily evacuated.

According to the U.S. Naval Institute, zero injuries were reported. The USS Abraham Lincoln is currently docked at Naval Air Station North Island in San Diego, California for a scheduled maintenance availability. The U.S. Navy’s fifth Nimitz-class aircraft carrier was named to honor the 16thpresident of the United States. Part of the Carrier Strike Group Three (CSG-3) with Carrier Air Wing Nine (CVW-9), the USS Abraham Lincoln is the flagship of the strike group.
Jacob Knutson

Poor planning among senior officials during both the Trump and Biden administrations contributed to the chaotic and deadly U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in the summer of 2021, according to a report released Friday. Driving the news: The State Department's long awaited after action report found that under both presidents, "there was insufficient senior-level consideration of worst-case scenarios and how quickly those might follow." The State Department, which released the critical report on Friday afternoon before a holiday weekend, told CNN it would not answer "process" questions.
You have to hit certain polling metrics to qualify. But what happens if there aren’t enough polls conducted?
By Steven Shepard

Even if you’re the longest of long-shot presidential candidates, it’s pretty easy to register at 1 percent in a poll. In a survey of, say, 800 voters, all you need is 4 to say they’ll vote for you to hit that mark. The doctrine that we must round up remains a huge political gift.

But actually meeting the Republican National Committee’s polling requirements — which holds that a candidate must earn 1 percent in three polls to participate in the party’s first primary debate next month — might be a lot harder than it looked at first blush.

That’s because the RNC’s criteria exclude virtually all of the public surveys conducted these days, meaning there may not be many opportunities for the lower-polling candidates to even hit that 1 percent.
By Joe Battenfeld | joe.battenfeld@bostonherald.com | Boston Herald

With the Supreme Court blowing up key pillars of the Democratic Party agenda, President Biden and other party leaders are doubling down and blaming Donald Trump and Republicans for the recent high court rulings. Defeated Democrats like Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Ayanna Pressley are vowing to plow ahead with debt relief despite the fact the law of the land is now against it.

“I think the court misinterpreted the Constitution,” Biden said after the ruling on student loans Friday. Biden’s student loan forgiveness program was always sketchy and it was not a surprise the conservative high court ruled the president didn’t have the authority to implement it.

Biden, running as a moderate during the 2020 campaign, himself even questioned whether he had the power to invalidate thousands of loans. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the same thing. Now it turns out they were right.
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