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Marijuana can stunt or even kill babies in the womb: Study

A systematic review published Monday in JAMA Pediatrics concluded with moderate confidence on the basis of 51 studies with over 21.1 million participants that cannabis use during pregnancy can result in early births, low birth weights, and unusually small babies. The review also indicated significantly increased odds of miscarriages.

The study’s authors, all but one of whom are based out of the Oregon Health and Science University in Portland, noted at the outset that the self-reported use of medical and nonmedical marijuana among pregnant women in the U.S. has more than doubled over the past two decades and continues to increase, despite warnings from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecology.

According to the ACOG’s Committee on Obstetric Practice, “self-reported prevalence of marijuana use during pregnancy ranges from 2% to 5% in most studies but increases to 15–28% among young, urban, socioeconomically disadvantaged women.”

The OHSU researchers behind the new study noted further that marijuana is now reportedly the most commonly used federally illicit drug in pregnancy.

“This is cause for concern,” wrote the researchers, because the main psychoactive component of cannabis, tetrahydrocannabinol, can cross the placenta and bind to endocannabinoid receptors on preborn babies’ major organs.

The existing scientific literature already associates maternal marijuana use with numerous dire consequences, including stillbirth and fetal growth restriction as well as impaired cognition, decreased attention span, behavioral problems, and compromised visual-motor coordination in prenatally exposed children.

The researchers noted, however, that “clinicians are not consistently counseling patients regarding prenatal cannabis use, partly because of the limited and mixed available evidence.”

‘Ideally, it’s best not to be exposed to THC.’

“Patients are coming to me in their prenatal visits saying, ‘I quit smoking and drinking, but is it safe to still use cannabis?'” said lead author Jamie Lo, associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology in the OHSU School of Medicine. “Until direct harms have been proven, they perceive it to be safe to use.”

“As the prevalence of prenatal cannabis use is rising, there is an urgent need for evidence-driven recommendations on the safety of use during pregnancy and while breastfeeding,” Lo said in March.

Keen to furnish clinicians with a better understanding of the associated risks so that they can confidently counsel mothers regarding prenatal cannabis use, the researchers analyzed 51 observational studies including eight new studies, and raised the certainty of evidence for various potential adverse effects.

The researchers found that prenatal cannabis was linked to a 52% higher risk of premature birth and a 75% higher risk of low birth weight. They also found a 29% higher risk of infant death associated with the use of cannabis during pregnancy.

OHSU researchers revealed in another study recently published in the American Journal of Physiology-Lung Cellular and Molecular Physiology that a mother’s use of cannabis while pregnant could adversely impact her baby’s lung development and function, potentially resulting in asthma and other chronic respiratory health conditions.

In addition to jeopardizing the health of babies, marijuana has also been linked to various medical problems in adults, including cancer.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, cannabis use can lead to increased risk of stroke, heart disease, and other vascular diseases; can harm lung tissues and cause scarring and damage to small blood vessels; and has been linked to depression, schizophrenia, and other mental illnesses.

Lo told CNN, “Ideally, it’s best not to be exposed to THC, which is the psychoactive ingredient of cannabis, no matter what form you’re using.”

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​Science, Health, Marijuana, Cancer, Mental illness, Thc, Weed, Cannabis, Babies, Miscarriage, Mothers, Prenatal, Womb, Pregnancy, Politics 

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Venezuela’s regime enables Tren de Aragua’s border crime spree while corrupt officials likely profit: Intel memo

Venezuela’s regime has been enabling Tren de Aragua’s U.S. border invasion and criminal activity, according to a National Intelligence Council memo released Monday by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

The memo explained that when the Venezuelan government booted TDA from the Tocoran Prison in 2023, some of the gang’s leaders were allowed to escape because they were “possibly assisted by low-level Venezuelan military and political leaders.”

‘FBI analysts … assess some Venezuelan government officials facilitate TDA members’ migration from Venezuela to the United States and use members as proxies in … the United States to advance what they see as the Maduro regime’s goal of destabilizing governments and undermining public safety …’

According to Department of Homeland Security findings, Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro may have removed them from the prison “to undercut regional press” that alleged his ties to TDA.

However, the NIC’s memo stopped short of confirming President Donald Trump’s allegations that Maduro directs TDA’s activities. Trump has argued that his regime intentionally allowed TDA to invade the U.S. in an effort to destabilize the country.

While the memo disputed such claims, it admitted that some regime officials “may cooperate with TDA for financial gain,” stating that such instances are “ad hoc” and not an organized effort. Still, the findings supported claims that Maduro’s leadership has enabled TDA and other criminal groups to operate.

According to the memo, Maduro’s regime “generally does not impede” illegal groups, adding that Venezuela’s “permissive environment enables TDA to operate.”

“Some mid- to low-level Venezuelan officials probably profit from TDA’s illicit activities,” the memo added. However, the Venezuelan government “probably does not have a policy of cooperating with TDA and is not directing TDA movement to and operations in the United States.”

“Some regime officials are probably willing to capitalize on migration flows for personal financial or other benefits, even though the Maduro regime probably is not systematically directing Venezuelan outflows, such as to sow chaos in receiving countries,” it said.

Maduro’s “illegitimate and autocratic grip on power” has enabled “widespread corruption and for regime officials to benefit from a variety of illicit activities,” the memo continued.

The intelligence community argued that Maduro is probably not directing TDA because it would require “extensive” coordination.

“While FBI analysts agree with the above assessment, they assess some Venezuelan government officials facilitate TDA members’ migration from Venezuela to the United States and use members as proxies in Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and the United States to advance what they see as the Maduro regime’s goal of destabilizing governments and undermining public safety in these countries, based on DHS and FBI reporting as of February 2024,” it read.

The migration of Venezuelan nationals was attributed to “a variety of push and pull factors including socioeconomic conditions, family ties to the United States, and migrants’ perceptions of U.S. and regional enforcement.”

The NIC findings noted that Maduro’s inaction toward TDA’s criminal activity has benefited his regime, allowing him to “retain power” while dissidents flee Venezuela.

An estimated 7.8 million Venezuelans have fled since 2024.

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Supreme Court hands Trump major victory on transgender military ban despite liberal dissent

The U.S. Supreme Court issued a temporary victory for the Trump administration on Tuesday on the president’s policy of banning transgender members of the military.

The court found that a lower court was likely wrong in its finding against the Trump administration and blocking the ban on transgender members. The one-page order from SCOTUS said that the three liberal justices dissented against the majority.

The lawsuit claimed that the ban violated the 14th Amendment, which guarantees equal protection of the law for all persons.

Neither the majority nor the dissent provided their reasoning for their opinions.

The ruling is not a final opinion on the issue but allows the administration to implement the ban as litigation continues.

The president had issued a ban on transgender members of the military in his previous term as well, but former President Joe Biden had rescinded that order when he won office. The ban depends on a report from the Pentagon that found transgender members were a threat to “military effectiveness and lethality.”

The seven plaintiffs in the lawsuit against the ban include current members of the military as well as aspiring members who identify as transgender.

Lambda Legal and Human Rights Campaign Foundation, which represent the plaintiffs, issued a joint statement decrying the ruling.

“Today’s Supreme Court ruling is a devastating blow to transgender service members who have demonstrated their capabilities and commitment to our nation’s defense,” the statement read.

They added that the lawsuit “has nothing to do with military readiness and everything to do with prejudice.”

The lawsuit claimed that the ban violated the 14th Amendment, which guarantees equal protection of the law for all persons.

Attorneys also accused the administration of claiming transgender people do not exist.

“An unprecedented degree of animus towards transgender people animates and permeates the ban: it is based on the shocking proposition that transgender people do not exist,” lawyers wrote.

The ban has also been blocked by a judge in Washington, D.C., but that has been appealed and is being considered by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

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Arizona Democrat senator offers this suggestion instead of stipend for illegal aliens to self-deport

Senator Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) suggested that instead of providing $1,000 to illegal aliens who decide to self-deport through the CBP Home app, they can pay a fine and be given work visas while their cases are handled in immigration courts.

Gallego said there would be background checks and that the work visas would be renewable with good behavior.

‘If we have to go through the process of formally deporting you, there are mandatory bars against you for up to 20 years — sometimes forever.’

— (@)

When faced with criticism of his idea, Gallego insisted this would not be a pathway to citizenship because work visas do not mean someone is able to become a citizen.

Gallego made the offer in response to the Department of Homeland Security announcing the new stipend on Monday. The DHS says the incentive to have illegal aliens leave before being arrested by agencies like U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement will save taxpayers money in the long run because “the average cost to arrest, detain, and remove an illegal alien is $17,121.”

“If you are here illegally, self-deportation is the best, safest, and most cost-effective way to leave the United States to avoid arrest. DHS is now offering illegal aliens financial travel assistance and a stipend to return to their home country through the CBP Home app,” said DHS Secretary Kristi Noem. “This is the safest option for our law enforcement [and] aliens and is a 70% savings for U.S. taxpayers. Download the CBP Home app TODAY and self-deport.”

The DHS reported that a Honduran national who went back to the Central American country from Chicago was one of the first people to take advantage of the program, and plane tickets for other interested illegal immigrants have already been booked for this week and next week.

Border czar Tom Homan said illegal immigrants should self-deport because doing so gives them a chance to come back to the United States legally. However, he warned that “if we have to go through the process of formally deporting you, there are mandatory bars against you for up to 20 years — sometimes forever.”

It remains to be seen whether the new monetary incentive will boost the number of illegal aliens using CBP Home app to leave the United States, as only a few thousand people have registered their intent to leave since the redesign of the app was rolled out in March.

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​Politics 

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Boise leftists consider extreme measure so city can legally fly LGBTQ+ flag

Leftist leaders in Boise are considering an extreme measure to circumvent a new Idaho law and keep a sex- and race-themed flag flying at city hall.

On Tuesday evening, the Boise City Council will consider a measure that would make the Progress Pride flag — emblazoned with colors paying homage to non-heterosexual identities and non-white racial groups — as well as the Donate Life flag official city flags.

The measure comes in response to H.B. 96, a new state law that severely restricts the flags local governments can fly. Should the city declare the Pride and organ-donation flags to be “official” city flags, flying them would no longer run afoul of H.B. 96.

McLean basically admitted … she can continue to fly the flag without serious consequence since ‘the legislature knowingly failed to include any civil or criminal penalties’ in H.B. 96.

Thus far, Mayor Lauren McLean has had no compunction about flying the flags despite the new Idaho law and a warning from Idaho Attorney General Raul Labrador (R). On Easter Sunday, she and an assistant even went so far as to tear down an Appeal to Heaven flag and toss it aside like trash in their efforts to restore the Pride flag on the flagpole outside city hall, as Blaze News previously reported.

In fact, McLean basically admitted in a letter to Labrador that she can continue to fly the flag without serious consequence since “the legislature knowingly failed to include any civil or criminal penalties” in H.B. 96. She also made herself out to be the victim of a supposedly dangerous pressure campaign simply because Labrador encouraged people to voice their opposition to McLean’s legally dubious stunts regarding the LGBTQ+ flag.

“As leaders, our actions — and our words — matter. They have weight for our constituents. Praising outrage and encouraging people to come directly to me is taken by some … as encouragement — even approval — of actions that put city employees, City Council members, and even me and my family at risk,” she scolded in true schoolmarm fashion.

However, if the city council vote goes her way, McLean won’t have to worry about pulling anymore such stunts. At least one council member seems inclined to make the gay flag an official representative of the city of Boise.

“The flags the city flies are an expression of our values and responsibilities, which include a commitment to equality, inclusion, and civic pride,” said a statement from Council President Colin Nash. “This is our lawful expression of our dedication to ensuring all members of our community feel seen, respected, and welcome.”

McLean’s office also indicated that local attorneys have volunteered to represent Boise pro bono in the event “any legal action is taken” about the Pride and Donate Life flags.

The meeting to vote on the measure will begin on Tuesday at 6 p.m.

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​Lauren mclean, Boise, Pride, Progressive pride, Donate life, Hb 96, Raul labrador, Politics 

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Racial firestorm brewing? New, bold voice fuels ‘Karmelo Anthony grift’

Dr. Umar Johnson — a black activist, psychologist, and motivational speaker widely known as the “Prince of Pan-Africanism” — has weighed in on the “Karmelo Anthony grift.”

On a recent episode of “The Art of Dialogue,” Johnson painted Anthony as the sole victim. Jason Whitlock plays the clip.

“Hunter is a 225-pound football player. Hunter is nearly 60 to 70 pounds heavier than Karmelo by himself, but he was not by himself. Hunter was with his brother Austin. Austin is around Hunter’s size as well,” Johnson said.

He argued that as a “160-pound black boy” facing “two white boys in racist Texas, both of whom are 60 to 70 pounds heavier,” with intentions to “accost [him] physically,” Karmelo had every right to defend himself.

“I have received text messages from eyewitnesses, and you know what they told me? They said both brothers tried to jump Karmelo. In the state of Texas, you have the right to stand your ground,” Johnson snapped. “If you feel that your life or safety is in imminent danger, you have a right to defend yourself to include using deadly force.”

As for the knife Anthony was allegedly carrying at a school-sponsored event, Johnson justified it by saying, “He’s a black man in Texas. Why wouldn’t he have a knife?”

From the get-go, Jason’s take on the Karmelo Anthony/Austin Metcalf incident has been that “this is cold-blooded murder … a simple case of someone overreacting to a verbal conflict.” However, watching the fallout as groups rally to support both boys has led him to believe that the incident is being used as a “stick of dynamite … to spark violent racial conflict.”

“Umar Johnson is part of lighting the fuse,” he says. “Maybe his inside information is right. … I don’t believe that’s the actual narrative.”

Granted “we live in a cell phone society,” there’s a good possibility that a video recording will soon reveal the truth.

“Dominique Alexander of the Next Generation Action Network said that he was told there’s video evidence of what transpired,” says Jason.

“At some point, they’re going to release the video of what happened to Austin Metcalf. … When that video is released, it’s going to be so one-sided and look so bad for Karmelo Anthony and the people that supported Karmelo Anthony,” he predicts, adding that its aim is to be “as triggering as the George Floyd video was in 2020.”

“I believe this video is intended to trigger white people and to so repulse them that they just say, ‘Man, all these black people that supported Karmelo Anthony, this media that wouldn’t tell us the truth … this media that has imposed this racist double standard — this is the line in the sand.”’

“What we just heard from Dr. Umar Johnson was just another piece to the puzzle of stirring this Karmelo Anthony/Austin Metcalf pot to a point that it bubbles over and explodes and there’s some sort of racial conflict that happens in the Dallas and the Frisco, Texas, area,” Jason hypothesizes. “They’re hoping that it spreads and that it so hardens the hearts of white America that the entire desire to achieve any type of racial harmony in America disappears.”

To hear Whitlock’s take on the dark, racially divided future the radical left is conspiring to facilitate, watch the episode above.

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​Fearless, Fearless with jason whitlock, Jason whitlock, Blazetv, Blaze media, Karmelo anthony, Austin metcalf, Umar johnson, Race war 

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Woke Virginia school district investigates boys uncomfortable with girl in their locker room: Report

The woke public school district in Loudoun County, Virginia, has for years been a key battleground in the war over gender ideology, the primary victims of which have been children. For instance, a skirt-wearing male who identified as “non-binary” took advantage of Loudoun County Public Schools’ ideological capture in 2021, entered the girls’ restroom, and
raped a 15-year-old female student.

While
students and parents have spoken out against the invasion of female spaces by opportunistic boys, gender-bending incursions in the district are not unidirectional.

A female transvestite has reportedly been using the boys’ locker room at Stone Bridge High. Following a gym class in March, she allegedly videotaped three boys in the locker room who were discussing their discomfort over her presence.

In a bizarre twist, LCPS has launched a Title IX investigation into the boys for supposed sexual harassment,
reported WJLA-TV.

‘They’re expressing their opinions, and now they’re being targeted for expressing those opinions.’

“We’re concerned,” a father of one of the boys under investigation for supposed sexual harassment told WJLA. “He was questioning why there was a female in the males’ locker room.”

“And other boys were uncomfortable [with a female in the boys’ locker room],” continued the father. “There were other boys asking the same question. They [LCPS] created a very uncomfortable situation. They’re young; they’re 15 years old. They’re expressing their opinions, and now they’re being targeted for expressing those opinions.”

According to the father, the boys weren’t directly interacting with the female student but were rather “having a conversation with their peer group.”

“I don’t think my son should be punished for expressing his First Amendment right and being able to ask questions,” said the father. “If you were to get a sexual harassment charge on your record, even at a young age, I’m sure that’s going to follow you around.”

The father also questioned why the transvestic student isn’t facing serious consequences for allegedly filming minors in a locker room, especially when
LCPS policy explicitly prohibits photography, audio, or video recording in bathrooms, locker rooms, changing areas, and clinics.

“I have a daughter that’s in high school as well, and if there was a male in there videotaping her in the locker room, I would have issues,” the father told WJLA. “If it’s my son and there’s a female in the locker room videotaping, I have issues. Even if it was somebody of the same sex, I believe that this is an invasion of their privacy.”

The father wants the woke district to drop its Title IX complaint against the boys and suggested it should also axe “Policy 8040: Rights of Transgender and Gender-Expansive Students,” which the Loudoun County School Board approved on Aug. 11, 2021.

‘Their policies run afoul of President Trump’s January 29, 2025, executive order.’

“I think the policy itself creates an unsafe environment for all kids at all levels, from the elementary schools and middle school to the high school,” said the father. “I think it creates an unsafe and unclear message for them. I think by not having clear policies in line with the presidential mandates that it has actually created these hostile environments and environments that these young boys and young girls do not feel comfortable in.”

The district’s
policy not only requires schools to allow “gender-expansive or transgender students to use their chosen name and gender pronouns that reflect their consistently asserted gender identity without any substantiating evidence,” but to also allow students to “use the facility that corresponds to their consistently asserted gender identity.”

LCPS may not ultimately have a choice in whether it drops the policy.

On Feb. 3, America First Legal submitted a
Title IX complaint to the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights alleging that the “transgender” policies embraced by LCPS and other districts in Virginia “provide greater rights to students whose ‘gender identity’ does not match their biological sex than it does to students whose ‘gender identity’ matches their biological sex.'”

Ian Prior, senior adviser at AFL, added, “The policies of the five Northern Virginia public school systems have eliminated the protections that Title IX requires of K-12 institutions that accept federal funding, and their policies run afoul of President Trump’s January 29, 2025, executive order.”

The OCR
responded a week later, indicating it would investigate the schools for possible Title IX violations.

This is not the only fight with the federal government the district has on its hands.

Loudoun County Superintendent Aaron Spence
notified the Trump administration last month that LCPS would not submit a certification affirming that the district follows federal anti-discrimination law and regulations prohibiting discrimination based on race.

WJLA indicated that neither Spence nor any of the school board members have responded to its requests for comment regarding the investigation into the boys’ apparent discomfort over the transvestite in their locker room.

‘So open-minded their brain falls out.’

Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares (R)
said in response to the woke district’s investigation, “This is exactly why these schools should be adopting Governor Youngkin’s model policies.”

In July 2023, the Virginia Department of Education released its final
Model Policies for the Treatment of Transgender Students in Virginia’s Public Schools, which not only emphasize parents’ rights “to make decisions with respect to their children,” but require schools to use students’ real names; refer to students with the pronouns in accordance with the sex indicated on their official record unless given a formal written request by parents; and require that students use sex-segregated school facilities that correspond with their biological sex.

“What you reported I find to be outrageous — that these young boys presumably felt uncomfortable,” Miyares told WJLA. “They’re 15 years old. We all were teenagers at one point. I can’t imagine how uncomfortable it would be to have a member of the opposite sex in the locker room where people were obviously changing clothes and then later, on top of that, recording it.”

“Even though they’re the victims in this, somehow, they’re being treated as perpetrators. I think this is an example, yet again, [of] a school district that tries to be so open-minded their brain falls out,” added the state AG, borrowing a quote from the English author G.K. Chesterton.

“If this was 20 years ago, nobody in their right mind would think this was a smart policy. Yet here we are today,” added Miyares.

The Virginia AG hinted there was little that either his or Governor Glenn Youngkin’s offices presently could do about the matter — especially given the Virginia Human Rights Act’s carve-out for educational institutions — and stressed that the Trump administration’s investigation will be “critically important.”

Miyares noted further that the
new Loudoun County School Board should take a vote on Policy 8040 so that parents know where members stand when it comes to letting transvestites slip into the opposite sex’s locker rooms and bathrooms.

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​Loudon county, Loudon county public schools, Policy 8040, Leftism, Transgender, Trans, Transvestite, Bizarre, Miyares, Youngkin, Schools, Education, Bathrooms, Title ix, Aaron spence, Politics 

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Republican senator turns against key Trump nominee, potentially empowering activist Judge Boasberg

Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina said he will not be supporting Ed Martin, President Donald Trump’s nominee for U.S. attorney for Washington, D.C., which could lead to some unintended consequences.

After meeting with Martin Monday night, Tillis told reporters that he opposed Martin’s nomination due to “concerns related to January 6.” Notably, Martin was a defense attorney for January 6 protesters and has long advocated for those who he says were wrongly prosecuted in the aftermath of the riot for political purposes.

With Tillis acting as a roadblock to Trump’s agenda, it’s possible that Boasberg will be able to tilt the scales in his favor.

“I met with Mr. Martin; he seems like a good man,” Tillis said. “Most of my concerns related to January 6, and he built a compelling case on some of the 15 or 12 prosecutions that were probably ‘heat of the moment’ bad decisions. But where we probably have a difference is I think anybody that breached the perimeter should have been in prison for some period of time. Whether it’s 30 days or three years is debatable, but I have no tolerance for anybody who entered the building on January 6.”

“If Mr. Martin were being put forth as a U.S. attorney for any district except the district where January 6 happened, the protest happened, I’d probably support him,” Tillis added. “But not in this district.”

Martin has been serving as interim U.S. attorney for the district since Trump’s inauguration, but his interim term is set to expire on May 19. If the Senate fails to confirm Martin before then, his replacement will be chosen by activist judge and MAGA combatant Judge James Boasberg.

Boasberg has been a thorn in Trump’s side for several weeks now, primarily for issuing rulings that have halted and disrupted the administration’s efforts to carry out mass deportations.

With Tillis acting as a roadblock to Trump’s agenda, it’s possible that Boasberg will be able to tilt the scales in his favor.

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Media cries ‘tragic’ as student loan pause ends

For the first time in five years, federal student loan repayments resumed on May 5 — and the media is calling it “tragic” for borrowers.

“American taxpayers will no longer be forced to serve as collateral for irresponsible student loan policies,” U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said. “The Biden administration misled borrowers: The executive branch does not have the constitutional authority to wipe debt away, nor do the loan balances simply disappear.”

McMahon also noted that “hundreds of billions have already been transferred to taxpayers” and “for the sake of their own financial health and our nation’s economic outlook,” borrowers will now be forced to return to paying their student loans.

“We all know that this justification for a student loan pause is a drawn out relic that should not be around anymore. The problem is, when you’re trying to win a presidential election, it’s really difficult to say to people, ‘Hey, we’re going to start turning on your payments again.’ Joe Biden didn’t want to say that, so he didn’t say it,” Stu Burguiere of “Stu Does America” says.

“Now, the media treatment of this, of course, has been exactly what you’d expect. It has been the typical situation where they try to scare everyone and say that Donald Trump is mean,” he continues.

On ABC News’ the “Start Here Podcast,” Brad Mielke made the case against student loan borrowers repaying their loans.

“It’s important to note that student loan borrowers who couldn’t pay their debts typically don’t pay them not because they don’t want to, but it’s because they simply can’t. So this has been a hardship on them over the last five years, and now for the first, they’re going to have to repay the government in which the Department of Education says they willingly took these loans,” Mielke said on the podcast.

“I love the spin here,” Stu says. “They entered into loans that they agreed to go into, number one. Number two, they received the money and utilized that to get a college education.”

“It’s not a hardship when everyone’s telling you you don’t have to pay,” he adds.

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​Video phone, Upload, Camera phone, Sharing, Free, Video, Youtube.com, Stu does america, Stu burgiere, Student loans, The blaze, Blazetv, Blaze news, Blaze podcasts, Blaze podcast network, Blaze media, Blaze online, Blaze originals, President donald trump, President joe biden, Student loan pause, Student debt forgiveness 

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President Trump says he would ‘love’ to see Stephen A. Smith run for president: ‘He’s a good guy’

President Donald Trump said sports broadcaster Stephen A. Smith would be one of the better candidates the Democrats could run if he were to enter the primaries.

Trump called in to a live town hall show on NewsNation hosted by former CNN anchor Chris Cuomo, who was joined by legendary host Bill O’Reilly as well as Smith.

During the segment, the president was asked about dismantling diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, funding historically black colleges and universities, trade deals, and more. After Smith finished asking the president about HBCUs, O’Reilly decided to sneak in a question about Trump’s thoughts on Smith as a presidential candidate.

“Stephen A. Smith may run for president, as you know,” O’Reilly said, as the panel groaned. “Do you have any advice for Stephen A., you know, if he launches the run?”

“No. Stephen A., he’s a good guy,” Trump replied.

Rather than give the broadcaster advice, the president decided to praise Smith as a captivating entertainer.

“He’s a smart guy. I love watching him. He’s got great entertainment skills, which is very important. People watch him,” Trump continued.

Perhaps handing him the biggest compliment of all, in Trump-esque fashion, the president said Smith was likely the Democrats’ best chance because their other candidates are so poor.

“You know, a lot of these Democrats I watch, I say they have no chance. I’ve been pretty good at picking people and picking candidates, and I will tell you, I’d love to see him run.”

Host Cuomo then joked that he did not want Smith to run because he liked him too much.

‘What I have to do is save the country.’

The segment closed with Cuomo telling the president he tried to reach out to him following the attempted assassination in Butler, Pennsylvania. Cuomo said he wanted to tell the president he was embarrassed by news coverage that alleged he never actually got shot.

Cuomo then asked Trump how he planned to unify the country.

The president stated that the number of votes he garnered from the Hispanic population along border states was evidence that he had unifying support, but overall he explained that he needed to simply make America great again.

“What I have to do is save the country,” Trump explained.

As for Smith, his endorsements are often equaled by condemnations, even from assumed allies like fellow NBA broadcaster Charles Barkley.

In April, Barkley said on a podcast that at first he thought the idea of Smith running for president was a joke. As the idea gained more traction, he felt his friend Smith needed to “knock it off.”

“Come on, man. Stop it. Come on,” Barkley said about Smith. “It had to start out as a joke, and he started taking it serious. Come on, man. All I would say is, ‘Knock it off.’ And that’s the best way to phrase it.”

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Dave Portnoy trashes ABC reporter over ‘ambush’ interview: ‘I forgot how much I hate f**king journalists’

Barstool Sports owner Dave Portnoy clashed with an ABC affiliate during an interview about an incident at his bar in Philadelphia.

A video from inside Barstool Sansom Street went viral and showed employees displaying a sign that read “F**k the Jews,” which was brought out for customers who had purchased bottle service. This means the sign was requested by a customer and fulfilled by members of the bar staff.

Portnoy responded to the incident in disgust, which should have been expected by employees given that he himself is Jewish. After contemplating whether or not to expose his employees and others involved publicly, Portnoy decided to fire two waitresses and send the customers on a paid trip to Auschwitz in exchange for not condemning them by name.

On Monday morning, Portnoy said he decided to speak with an ABC affiliate from Philadelphia, WPVI, after the outlet allegedly “begged” him to do an interview on the incident. Portnoy said he agreed and, among other claims, alleged that the outlet switched reporters on him and subsequently tried to blame Barstool Sports, and white men in general, for the anti-Jewish sign.

“The reporter tried to say Barstool and I and white men were responsible for the incident,” Portnoy wrote on X, alongside a video.

The entrepreneur then included a portion of the interview from his side of the camera, which seemingly picked up after the alleged accusation.

‘I’m the journalist. I’m asking you.’

“Here’s what I would say is causing that type of environment,” Portnoy told the reporter. “All these colleges would let Jewish kids get harassed on campus 24/7. I’ve been speaking out about this since it started.”

Portnoy then asked the ABC reporter where her claim came from.

“First of all, that sounds like a made-up thing. I don’t know what that quote is. The society of school. Where are the professors from?”

“I [could] go back and see, if you want to waste time,” the unnamed reported replied.

The reporter soon revealed that her claim came from a source at the University of Virginia.

“I totally disagree for what you just said,” Portnoy replied. “Who’s creating more hate right now in in the world? Would you say Barstool Sports and white men or college campuses?” he asked.

The journalist, seemingly not happy with the role reversal, refused to answer any questions.

“I’m the journalist. I’m asking you,” she said.

Portnoy retorted, “Well, I don’t play by those rules. What does that mean? You’re a journalist? I’m a journalist. I run a big media organization. I just asked you a question. Answer the question.”

“You’re not running this interview,” the ABC reporter replied.

Portnoy then declared the interview was over and closed his laptop.

The video clip then went back to Portnoy in present time, who then said, “F**k ABC. It makes me mad. I forgot how much I hate f**king journalists, this f**king piece of shit.”

It is unclear where the journalist’s claim originated, exactly.

In 2022, a University of Virginia publication called Iris published an article titled, “5 Things You Should Know About Barstool Sports if You Care About Being a Good Person.”

The article referred to Portnoy as sexist and racist and said Barstool Sports published “repugnant” articles.

The post was written by Eryn Rhodes, a student who described herself as “she/her/hers” while studying “History and Women, Gender, & Sexuality Studies.”

In the piece, Rhodes referred to a book called “Sidelined.” A Kirkus review of the book stated, “[The author] aims much of her anger at Barstool Sports, the online media company that ‘definitely engages in advanced-level trolling.’ Some may assume the author is just settling scores, but Barstool has a long reputation of harassment.”

Furthermore, an NBC News article from 2019 included quotes from a professor named Lisa Nakamura, who said that Barstool Sports related to young, white men because it casts them as “persecuted ones” who feel disadvantaged and therefore see the platform as a safe space to voice offensive opinions.

However, Nakamura was a professor at the University of Michigan, Portnoy’s alma mater, not the University of Virginia.

As well, a student from Temple University was reportedly suspended as a result of the sign incident at the bar.

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​Fearless, Dave portnoy, Anti-semitism, Jewish, Philadelphia, Barstool sports, Woke, Abc news, Gender studies, Sports 

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Letitia James screeches, gesticulates wildly in piercing rant about Trump admin amid fraud accusations

Attendees at the National Action Network rally in Harlem on Saturday may have left holding their ears after New York Attorney General Letitia James went on a rant about the Trump administration that reached a shrill pitch.

In her speech, James mainly took aim at efforts by the Trump administration to reduce waste, fraud, and abuse in the Department of Health and Human Services, a department James referred to on at least one occasion as the “Health and Hospitals Association.” She claimed that the Trump team wants to starve essential programs like Head Start, Meals on Wheels, and the World Trade Center Healthcare Program for 9/11 first responders.

“And you want me to sit in my seat and stand idly by and allow this craziness to happen?” she screeched, pointing strangely with her thumb and index finger about an inch apart.

James said she instead would sue the federal government — including HHS Sec. Robert Kennedy Jr., whom she called “the guy with a worm in his head” — over these cuts and that other Democrat attorneys general would join her.

‘You elected me to continue fighting on, AND I WILL FIGHT ON!’

James did not provide further details about the lawsuit, the New York Post said, presumably including the names of other interested AGs. Fox News host Aishah Hasnie noted that, considering the accusations against James swirling about, “I’m not sure who’s going to want to jump in on that.”

Hasnie was alluding to allegations from the U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency that James repeatedly committed mortgage fraud. According to FHFA Director William Pulte, James:

falsely claimed in August 2023 she would make a home in Norfolk, Virginia, her “principal residence,” even though she never lived there full-time and New York law requires statewide officeholders to reside in New York.misrepresented the number of units at her Brooklyn property to secure a conforming loan from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.even listed her father as her husband on a real estate purchase in 1983 to obtain a better mortgage rate. Other documents from May 2000 listed James, who has never been married, as “husband and wife,” though whether her father was likewise mentioned in those documents is unclear.

Last month, Pulte referred James to the Department of Justice for a criminal investigation into possible wire, mail, and bank fraud and making false statements to a financial institution. James has since claimed the allegations are “baseless.”

Nevertheless, James made veiled reference to those allegations in her speech to the National Action Network on Saturday, railing, “You can come after me if you want,” as she pounded her chest.

“But you elected me to stand up! You elected me to use the law! You elected me to go to court! You elected me to continue to challenge this administration,” she continued, her voice growing increasingly louder.

Others on stage, including race activist Al Sharpton and NYC Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, whom James supports in the upcoming NYC mayoral election, rose to their feet as James’ rant reached a piercing crescendo.

“You elected me to stand up for the least of God’s children. You elected me to continue fighting on, AND I WILL FIGHT ON!” she yelled.

You can hear a 30-second clip of her speech here. Gothamist described the speech as “fiery.” The Post claimed James “barked.”

The White House and HHS did not respond to a request for comment from the Post.

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‘They look a certain way’: Comedian DL Hughley accuses black Philadelphia Eagles players of not caring about black people

Comedian D.L. Hughley said black Philadelphia Eagles players who visited President Trump at the White House are obviously the type of men who do not care about issues that affect other black people.

Hughley launched attacks at the president and called him a racist who is “eroding black history” and rolling black people back to a point of being “nonexistent.”

The Philadelphia Eagles recently visited the White House to celebrate their Super Bowl win in February, and media members and commentators were quick to attack running back Saquon Barkley for golfing with the president ahead of the visit.

Hughley, while speaking to TMZ, rejected the idea that the event was a historical formality and criticized Barkley and other Eagles players for honoring a president “who assaults black people” and “insults [black] history on a daily basis.”

“I think that it’s not just political. What Donald Trump has done and is doing to black history is unsavory and is undeniable. Donald Trump is deliberately trying to erase black people’s history, for whatever quest.”

‘He seems like the type of guy who would do that and be indifferent to what’s happening to black people.’

Hughley then launched into a diatribe and claimed he is able to tell that certain black people, simply by observing them, are the type of people who do not care about other black people.

“Any black man that [goes to the White House] is going to obviously catch some level of heat. When a black person does it, when it’s a black person, I can always tell what kind of black person. I can always tell what they are.”

Hughley continued and claimed that Barkley had a white girlfriend who used the “N-word” in reference to a song, which served as evidence for him that he is the “kind of guy that is indifferent to what black people go through.”

“It’s just true,” Hughley continued. “And I think I’ve noticed that to be consistent with a lot of black people who show up [to Trump events]. So to me, he seems like the type of guy who would do that and be indifferent to what’s happening to black people.”

TMZ’s Harvey Levin challenged Hughley, saying that in his experience, the president is willing to listen to “the last person in the room” and said surely it is worth it to try to have a conversation with the president on policy rather than not engage him due to his perceived beliefs.

“If you’re just out of the game, good luck to you for the next four years,” Levin said.

Hughley persisted, though, and said Trump has a “lack of respect for black people” and draws in black people like Barkley.

Barkley recently responded to criticisms by saying, “Maybe I just respect the office,” and that he had also recently golfed with President Barack Obama, proving his impartiality on the matter.

However, those remarks sparked even more backlash, particularly from Philadelphia-area sports writer Les Bowen, who took to his X account to say Barkley did not grasp the politics he was getting himself involved in.

“Saquon is a good person & a wonderful player. It’s tricky when people in sports, with huge platforms & good intentions, blunder into stuff they don’t fully grasp,” Bowen wrote. “To me, this is ‘Reggie White at the Wisconsin legislature’ level cluelessness. Not a bad guy, but out of his depth.”

— (@)

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​Hughley, Fearless, Football, White house, Nfl, Trump, Philadelphia eagles, Sports 

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A baby got high on cocaine — shocking report on tax-funded KinderCare

One of the nation’s largest day-care providers, KinderCare, is not the rosy, child-friendly company it purports to be — and independent investigative journalist Edwin Dorsey has the receipts.

“One thing that I’m very good at is using FOIA, the Freedom of Information Act, to get copies of complaints people are sending to regulators. So one common thing I’ll do in my research is I’ll go to the FTC, and see what complaints people are submitting to the FTC, and go to local state attorney offices and see what complaints people are submitting to state AGs,” Dorsey tells Allie Beth Stuckey on “Relatable.”

When he did this for KinderCare, he found that the company has “a lot of child safety issues.”

“And not the type of stuff you’d normally expect, where maybe a kid fights with another kid or somebody has allergies. There was issues where kids were escaping from the KinderCare locations, kids were getting locked in rooms with no supervision, kids were overdosing on drugs brought by the staff,” he tells Stuckey.

In one case, a woman dropped her child off at KinderCare, only to be called six hours later and told that her child was throwing up and needed to be picked up.

“She took him home and she knew right away something was wrong, and so she went back to KinderCare and said ‘What happened? My kid was fine this morning and now he’s very, very sick and has all these bruises, and clearly, something’s wrong,’” Dorsey explains.

“KinderCare denied anything was wrong, but the mother knew something was wrong, so she took her kid to the hospital, and the hospital did a drug test and this 2-year-old tested positive for cocaine,” he continues.

The police got involved and searched the mother’s house, but they didn’t find anything. That’s when they looked into KinderCare, where it turned out one of the staff members brought cocaine to work in a bag.

“This is the type of pattern of misconduct you’ll see at KinderCare locations. There’s about 70 in the state of Texas; there’s hundreds nationwide,” Dorsey says. “And the common theme I see in all these KinderCare cases is the company is never transparent with the parents about what happened.”

Not only are there more stories like this child’s, but KinderCare is receiving hundreds of millions of dollars in government subsidies.

“KinderCare largely caters to working families. They also have a program to watch kids whose parents are in the military, so service members, and about 35% of their revenue comes from the U.S. taxpayer, which is their largest source of revenue, through the child care development block grant,” Dorsey tells Stuckey.

This grant was started in 1990 under President George H.W. Bush.

“The idea being that early childhood education, having kids in information day-cares, is so beneficial to early childhood education and to kids’ development that the government should be subsidizing it. And the reality is, it’s kind of the opposite,” Dorsey says.

“In addition to all these safety issues and ingesting cocaine and roaming the streets, it does not seem like it’s beneficial for your development to have 20 kids in a room supervised by someone earning $12 an hour in a corporate environment that just doesn’t care about these kids,” he adds.

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Exclusive: Safe House Project ramps up fight against human trafficking, launches first-of-its-kind app

The nonprofit organization Safe House Project launched an innovative anti-trafficking app Simply Report on Tuesday, empowering users to safely, anonymously, and effectively report instances of suspected human trafficking, Blaze News learned.

Lawmakers and law enforcement alike have backed Simply Report, pointing to features that help streamline the reporting process and bridge the gap between “community awareness” and “actionable intervention,” according to a press release obtained exclusively by Blaze News. The app combines AI filters and human oversight to properly vet and direct tips to appropriate authorities as well as connect trafficking survivors to the organization’s expansive national network of safe houses.

‘Simply Report is a game-changer.’

“We are at a turning point in America’s fight against human trafficking,” Kristi Wells, co-founder and CEO of Safe House Project, said in a statement. “While the current hotline was a valid solution at the turn of the century, trafficking criminals have evolved, leveraging modern-day tools and technology — and so must we.”

“This app is about removing barriers,” Brittany Dunn, co-founder and COO of Safe House Project, said. “For too long, human trafficking has been shrouded in darkness. Simply Report will increase reporting, which will drive clarity, accountability, and care. It’s not just a tool — it’s a lifeline.”

Both legislators and law enforcement agencies have praised the app as a “game-changer” that has modernized the long-standing but outdated human trafficking hotline. With innovations like Simply Report, Safe House Project is hopeful that human trafficking will be eradicated altogether.

“The failure of the national human trafficking hotline has left too many victims without help, and Congress needs to step up,” Republican Rep. Pat Harrigan of North Carolina said in a statement. “We need to pass stronger laws, invest in frontline organizations, and make sure law enforcement has real-time tools to find and support victims faster. I am proud to stand with the men and women leading this fight, and I urge my colleagues to work together to bring real solutions to every community.”

“What law enforcement agencies need most are accurate, timely leads that we can pursue with the urgency warranted by these horrific crimes,” Chief Jarryd Rauhoff of the Biscoe Police Department said in a statement. “Simply Report is a game-changer. It strengthens the bridge between local communities and law enforcement while ensuring survivor anonymity and safety remain front and center.”

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​Safe house project, Human trafficking, Child trafficking, Anti-trafficking, Artificial intelligence, Congress, House republicans, Pat harrigan, Simply report, Law enforcement, Safe houses, Victim hotline, Politics 

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The truth about Atlantis — Jimmy Corsetti blows Alex Stein’s mind

Atlantis is a legendary island in the Atlantic Ocean, which was once believed to be a rich island ruled by powerful princes who had conquered many lands of the Mediterranean until they were finally defeated by the Athenians and their allies.

While many people don’t believe the island was real, Jimmy Corsetti of “Bright Insight” has done some digging of his own, and he’s fairly convinced it was not only real, but the truth is being hidden.

“11,600 years ago, there was a sudden rapid rise in global sea levels, which means that we should be searching off the coastline for hundreds of miles,” Corsetti tells Alex Stein of “Prime Time with Alex Stein.”

“And here’s something that’s unbelievably fascinating,” Corsetti explains. “We’ve all heard of Atlantis from Plato. Well, Plato got the legend from his distant relative, who was Solon, who was said to be the wisest of the seven sages.”

“So, he went there 2,600 years ago, or 600 B.C.,” Corsetti says, referring to when Solon went to Egypt.

“The priests in Egypt had said that it had happened exactly 9,000 years earlier. Well, 600 B.C. or 2,600 years ago minus 9,000, is precisely 11,600 years ago — the precise time of when we have scientific evidence that shows there was a sudden and rapid rise in global sea levels,” he continues.

“This is not just some Disney movie or some casino in the Caribbean. There’s actual scientific evidence that corroborates that this was possible,” he adds.

Corsetti also believes he may know the location of the lost city of Atlantis.

“I don’t know if you’re familiar with the Richat Structure in the Western Sahara Desert, which I’ve been putting on blast as being the most likely location of Atlantis,” he explains. “It just so happens to match more than a dozen striking similarities of what Plato had described of Atlantis.”

“The topic of Atlantis is not far-fetched. It’s actually incredibly reasonable to suggest that humans would have been doing interesting things at that period of time and were wiped out by global events,” he adds.

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Bishops vow defiance, DOJ launches probe over Washington state’s new ‘anti-Catholic’ law

Washington state Gov. Bob Ferguson (D) ratified a bill on Friday requiring priests to break the seal of confession if informed of abuse.

As this law invites the government into the confessional, likely violates the Constitution’s Establishment Clause, and puts priests at risk of automatic excommunication, Catholic bishops in Washington state have vowed defiance and the Department of Justice has launched a civil rights investigation.

Senate Bill 5375, which passed the state Senate in a 28-20 vote and the state House in a 64-31 vote, requires any person operating in an official supervisory capacity with a nonprofit or a for-profit organization — including priests, ordained ministers, and rabbis — who has “reasonable cause to believe that a child has suffered abuse or neglect” to notify law enforcement or the Department of Children, Youth and Families.

Unlike a
previous version of the legislation, SB 5375 offers no carve-out for allegations learned as a result of a confession.

The final bill report actually
clarifies that the Democratic law mandates no one except for members of the clergy to report abuse when that information is obtained solely as a result of a privileged communication.

‘He can make no use of knowledge that confession gives him about penitents’ lives.’

By mandating priests to divulge information gleaned in the confessional, the Democratic law puts priests at risk of excommunication.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church states:

Given the delicacy and greatness of this ministry and the respect due to persons, the Church declares that every priest who hears confessions is bound under very severe penalties to keep absolute secrecy regarding the sins that his penitents have confessed to him. He can make no use of knowledge that confession gives him about penitents’ lives. This secret, which admits of no exceptions, is called the “sacramental seal,” because what the penitent has made known to the priest remains “sealed” by the sacrament.

The Code of Canon Law
cited by the Washington State Catholic Conference in its oppositional statements is similarly clear on the issue: “The sacramental seal is inviolable; therefore it is absolutely forbidden for a confessor to betray in any way a penitent in words or in any manner and for any reason.”

Canon Law notes further that a “confessor who directly violates the sacramental seal incurs a latae sententiae — automatic — excommunication reserved to the Apostolic See.”

Democratic state Sen. Noel Frame, a prime sponsor of the bill, did not appear to be concerned about such consequences, stating, “There are some things that it doesn’t matter what religion you are in; you never put somebody’s conscience over the protection of a child,”
reported KXLY-TV.

During debate in February, Republican state Sen. Leonard Christian noted that the legislation would force “somebody who’s given their entire life — raised their hand, made an oath with God almighty — to choose between God’s law and man’s law.”

‘After the apostles were arrested and thrown into jail for preaching the name of Jesus Christ, St. Peter responds to the Sanhedrin: “We must obey God rather than men.”‘

Catholic bishops in the state have made clear which law takes precedence.

The Most Rev. Thomas Daly, Bishop of Spokane,
reassured Catholics in his diocese Friday that their priests and bishop “are committed to keeping the seal of the confession — even to the point of going to jail.

“For those legislators who question our commitment to the safety of your children, simply speak with any mom who volunteers with a parish youth group, any Catholic school teacher, any dad who coaches a parochial school basketball team or any priest, deacon, or seminarian, and you will learn firsthand about our solid protocols and procedures,” said Bishop Daly. “The Diocese of Spokane maintains an entire department at the Chancery, the Office of Child and Youth protection, staffed by professional laypeople. We have a zero-tolerance policy regarding child sexual abuse.”

Seattle Archbishop Paul Etienne
underscored in a statement Sunday that while the Church “agrees with the goal of protecting children and preventing child abuse” and already has policies requiring priests to be mandatory reporters, the seal of confession will not be broken.

“This weekend at Mass, the first reading was from the Acts of the Apostles. After the apostles were arrested and thrown into jail for preaching the name of Jesus Christ, St. Peter responds to the Sanhedrin: ‘We must obey God rather than men’ (Acts 5:29),” wrote the archbishop. “This is our stance now in the face of this new law. Catholic clergy may not violate the seal of confession — or they will be excommunicated from the Church.”

‘The law appears to single out clergy as not entitled to assert applicable privileges.’

“All Catholics must know and be assured that their confessions remain sacred, secure, confidential, and protected by the law of the Church,” added Archbishop Etienne.

The archbishop also raised the question of why privileged communications between priest and penitent were singled out but not the communications between attorney and client, doctor and patient, and spouses.

“This new law singles out religion and is clearly both government overreach and a double standard,” wrote Archbishop Etienne.

The Justice Department announced a First Amendment investigation into the Washington state law on Monday, calling SB 5375 an “anti-Catholic law.”

Like Archbishop Etienne, the DOJ also expressed interest in why Washington Democrats singled out members of the clergy as the only “supervisors” who may not rely on applicable legal privileges as a defense to mandatory reporting.

“SB 5375 demands that Catholic priests violate their deeply held faith in order to obey the law, a violation of the Constitution and a breach of the free exercise of religion cannot [sic] stand under our constitutional system of government,” Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon of the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division
said in a statement.

“Worse, the law appears to single out clergy as not entitled to assert applicable privileges, as compared to other reporting professionals,” continued Dhillon. “We take this matter very seriously and look forward to Washington State’s cooperation with our investigation.”

Gov. Ferguson, who identifies as a Catholic,
said in a statement obtained by the Seattle Times, “We look forward to protecting Washington kids from sexual abuse in the face of this ‘investigation’ from the Trump administration.”

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​Faith, Abide, Department of justice, Justice, Anti-catholic, Catholic, Religion, Confession, Sacrament, Washington state, Democratic, Leftism, Intolerance, Discrimination, First amendment, Roman catholic, Sacramental, Politics 

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Blaze News original: When fed-up teachers fight back against students who cross the line and physically attack them

Quite a few Blaze News readers reacted with interest to a recent story of ours about a Georgia high school student who was caught on cellphone video punching a teacher in the face.

Sadly, that’s not exactly a new phenomenon in our society any more, as more and more students appear emboldened not only to talk back to their teachers and verbally abuse them — but also to physically attack them.

‘The sad part about it is that teachers are being treated like that every day. They’re being assaulted, abused, and something needs to be said about it.’

Meanwhile, teachers have their hands tied. What can they do? Do the victimized teachers simply allow students to pummel them to pieces as they suffer busted-up faces, broken bones, and missed work time as well as ongoing mental and emotional trauma?

Or do they — literally — fight back?

That’s what the teacher did in the recent Blaze News story noted above. As onlookers in the hallway in Martin Luther King Jr. High School let out an approving holler in unison after the student let the punch fly, the irate teacher was seen on video hitting his attacker with a punch of his own. Two of them, actually.

With that, two other males — one wearing a gray hoodie and the other wearing a white hoodie — go after the teacher and knock him to the floor. By this point, the frenzied students are behaving as if they’re watching a UFC match. The teacher gets up again, and there’s a little bit of pushing and shoving, but that’s where the 45-second clip ends.

The DeKalb County School District said in a statement that several students reportedly initiated the physical fight with the teacher, and WXIA-TV reported that three students were charged with battery and disrupting public school while the teacher in question was placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of an investigation.

In the aftermath, Superintendent Devon Horton said the trio of brawling students should not be “criminalized.”

But what about the teacher? At present, his fate has not been made pubic.

The following are some examples of what happens when fed-up teachers fight back against students who cross the line and physically attack them.

14-year-old student hits 64-year-old teacher with basketball amid argument — and hits him with racial slurs, too. Teacher arrested after punching, beating on student. But a year later, DA has change of heart.

Marston Riley’s last day teaching at Maywood Academy High School in the Los Angeles area was Nov. 2, 2018 — but Riley, then 64 years old, didn’t depart by choice.

On that day, Riley — a music teacher — asked a 14-year-old male student to leave the classroom for not wearing a proper uniform. The student in question allegedly refused, KTLA-TV reported. Cellphone video shows the boy swearing at the teacher and repeatedly calling Riley, who is black, the N-word.

The student also is seen throwing a basketball at Riley, after which the station said Riley pulled out his cellphone to call for backup.

“C’mon, bro,” the student is heard saying. “Walk the f**k back [N-word].” Riley does walk back, and video shows the student continue the verbal barrage, including calling Riley a “bitch” and challenging him: “I’m right here, bro. Everybody watching, my [N-word]. What’s up?”

Riley warns the student several times, “You better leave” — and a minute and a half after video of the confrontation started, the teacher is seen suddenly punching the boy in the face. The student attempts to defend himself and moves backward to the far edge of the classroom as Riley delivers another blow and knocks him down. The student gets up, drops his backpack, and squares off. Riley then delivers what appear to be at least another dozen or so punches and goes after the kid again after others attempt to intervene.

Staff dragged away the boy who started the confrontation, and he was taken to a hospital, where he was treated for moderate injuries and released, the Los Angeles Times reported, citing the sheriff’s department.

Riley was arrested Nov. 2 on suspicion of child abuse and causing great bodily injury on a child, KTLA reported, and he was released the next morning after posting $50,000 bail, the Times said. But all the students who spoke to the station hours after the fight were sympathetic to Riley and said the student in the video pushed him too far. In fact, one student told the station it was a setup: “Everything was planned out. There were students there who were already taking out their phones to record the incident. I don’t think it’s completely fair that they’re just putting the blame all on [Riley], when I personally know that he’s a good guy.”

What’s more, a GoFundMe page a fellow school district employee set up for Riley to assist with legal fees eventually topped $190,000.

In a 2020 interview, Riley told KCAL-TV he retired before the district handed down a punishment; the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office a year after the fight dismissed the case against Riley, NBC News said.

In the TV interview, Riley said people have to know about the continuous abuse teachers endure: “The sad part about it is that teachers are being treated like that every day. They’re being assaulted, abused, and something needs to be said about it.”

You can view a video report here that includes clips of Riley’s fight with the student as well as the 2020 follow-up interview with Riley.

Angry student bumps teacher, steps on her foot. Teacher explodes, punches student — and gets charged and jailed. Not long after, however, authorities are singing a very different tune.

A Maryland high school teacher was charged and jailed in November 2019 after cellphone video recorded a fight between the teacher and an angry 17-year-old female student, who started things by bumping Vivian Noirie and stepping on her foot in a Largo High School classroom.

With that, Noirie started punching the student, who police said was angry at the teacher for contacting the student’s parents the night before. Other school employees separated the teacher and the student, after which the student struck Noirie.

Noirie, 36, was charged with physical child abuse and second-degree assault and was locked up in the Prince George’s County jail from Nov. 15 until Nov. 18. However, a lawyer for Noirie said students had assaulted the teacher three times already.

Prince George’s County Education Association President Theresa Mitchell Dudley defended Noirie, saying that “what response comes from administration when you call the office and ask somebody to come up because a student is stalking you in your classroom, that’s a whole other conversation that we need to have.”

Dudley added in a later statement that “there is an issue of a lack of respect for educators. Verbal and physical assaults on educators are too common. There is a sense that as an educator we should continue to keep taking abuse, threats, and assaults from students, parents, and administrators because we are the adults in the room. … Educators are human and need the same emotional and mental supports as students to ensure that situations are appropriately addressed. …”

But by the following January, charges were dropped against Noirie, the Associated Press said. Dudley told the AP that cellphone video of the altercation shows the student was “clearly the aggressor” and that Noirie never should have been charged.

You can view a video report here about the incident, which includes blurred clips of the fight; the video report was published before charges against Noirie were dropped.

Substitute teacher’s head left bloody in chair-throwing fight with middle schoolers caught on video. Official says students attacked first in classroom fracas.

A substitute teacher at a Dallas-area school was left bloody and required medical assistance after a chair-throwing fight with students caught on video in March 2022. The fight occurred at DeSoto West Middle School, police said, and a DeSoto ISD representative told WFAA-TV students attacked the teacher first.

Craig Miller — a school safety consultant and former Dallas ISD police chief — told KDFW-TV that legal action likely will be taken in this incident. “[The student will] face serious assault charges based upon the angle that I saw in the video,” Miller added to the station. “It could very well be an aggravated assault, which also then could be enhanced, possibly because it happened to an educator in a school environment.”

Miller also told KDFW the teacher in this case likely has the right to defend himself but that the video doesn’t tell the entire story of what took place, particularly what led to the incident. You can view video of the fight here.

Battery warrants obtained for 3 high schoolers after video shows teacher getting physically attacked. Student actually throws chair at teacher, who fights back against student who repeatedly shoves him.

A fight between a Warren Easton Charter High School teacher and three students in early October 2023 was caught on video and soon went viral, WWL-TV reported. The teacher first approaches a student, after which the student pushes the teacher away three times, the station says.

With that, the teacher grabs the student, and the pair begin to fight. Then a second student hits the teacher with a chair and then throws the chair at the teacher.

Arrest warrants were obtained for three juveniles on charges of simple battery, the station said. You can view a report about the incident here.

Entitled student gets physical with substitute teacher who took her phone. But teacher fights back — and a knock-down, drag-out brawl ensues.

Video sent to WRAL-TV shows a North Carolina substitute teacher and a juvenile student arguing over the phone in a Rocky Mount High School classroom in April 2023. The student appeared to attempt to grab the phone from the teacher’s hand, after which the teacher shoved the student away. With that, the student took a swing at the teacher with her right arm — and then the brawl began.

The teacher soon brought the student to the floor, threw a few punches, and pinned the screaming student while hollering for someone to get another teacher into the classroom. Soon after, the teacher and student both were charged with simple assault, WTVD-TV reported.

The teacher reportedly quit the profession in the aftermath and defended her actions; months later she reportedly was found guilty of misdemeanor simple assault. It isn’t clear what happened to the student.

HS student who apparently believes he’s invincible challenges substitute teacher, ‘What’s up, boy?’ — and even gets in teacher’s face while bumping, shoving him. Furious teacher finally has enough.

Cellphone video was rolling when a student began fighting a substitute teacher in a classroom at Golden Valley High School in Merced, California, in March 2023, KMPH-TV reported.

The station said video shows a student approaching the teacher and asking him, “What’s up, boy?” and getting in the teacher’s face and shoving him. Soon the teacher throws a clipboard at the student, the station said, after which the student begins throwing punches at the teacher. KMPH said it appears the teacher tried to hold the student in a headlock until the student surrendered.

Merced Union High School District told the station it has investigated the incident and can’t provide further details due to privacy laws. You can view cellphone video here that shows the altercation.

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​Education, Physical attack, Teachers fighting students, Students fighting teachers, Violence in schools, Self-defense, Fighting back, T3, When students physically attack teachers, Arrests, Crime 

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Reconciliation or capitulation: Trump’s final go-for-broke play

“Sovereignty” may have won the Kentucky Derby. But if it’s going to win in Washington, Republicans need to stop stalling and start delivering.

Many of us backed Donald Trump in 2024 with a clear, urgent checklist of national priorities. None matter more than mass deportations. Only one real legislative vehicle remains to force the issue: budget reconciliation.

If Republicans won’t use the reconciliation bill to cut inflation, they should at least use it to shut down the invasion.

Let’s be blunt. Republicans have no plan to cut spending. The only debate is how much debt they’ll add. That leaves mass deportations as the last major policy goal still backed by both the White House and much of the GOP.

Yet under current judicial norms, each of the 20 million deportations could require a court fight. At this pace, Trump would remove fewer than 1 million people by the end of his term — only to be followed by a radical Democrat ready to usher in 20 million more.

What’s the solution?

The House Judiciary Committee earmarked $81.4 billion for ICE and deportation-related activities in its reconciliation bill. But that money means nothing — worse, it only inflates the debt — if we don’t fix the lawfare loopholes and end the legal incentives that fuel this invasion.

This isn’t just about funding. It’s a matter of policy. The final reconciliation bill must include structural legal reforms. Otherwise, the invasion continues — with billions wasted in the process.

According to sources, congressional allies plan to attach an amendment to upcoming legislation that would put an end to immigration-related lawfare once and for all.

The proposal would bar anyone who isn’t a green card holder — including all illegal aliens and temporary visa holders — from gaining standing in Article III courts to challenge their deportation. In other words, rulings by immigration judges would be final. Unless the government seeks to imprison someone on criminal charges, no foreign national has a due-process right to remain in the country against the national will. The bill simply reaffirms long-standing principles that activist judges have chipped away at for years.

The amendment also tackles lawfare targeting red states trying to enforce immigration laws. Once Trump leaves office, a legal backstop must be in place to prevent a fresh wave of illegal immigration from overrunning states like Florida, Texas, Oklahoma, Iowa, and Idaho.

Federal judges have repeatedly blocked these states from criminalizing illegal presence. This bill would strip federal courts of jurisdiction in such cases. Any legal challenge would go through state courts instead, making state supreme court rulings final and beyond the reach of federal review.

Unless Trump starts ignoring rogue judicial rulings, this legislation is his only realistic path to carrying out mass deportations.

He must go all in and make it clear to Congress that he won’t accept procedural excuses about the Byrd Rule or Senate parliamentarian objections. The Senate majority can overrule the parliamentarian — something they already plan to do to pass tax cuts.

This is Trump’s moment to force the issue. No more delays. No more legal sabotage. No more excuses.

The House Judiciary Committee’s draft of the major spending bill includes a provision aimed at curbing judicial abuse — but it doesn’t go far enough.

The measure would require judges to collect a bond from plaintiffs seeking injunctions against the federal government. If they fail to collect it, their rulings would be void under Rule 65 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.

But the reform is too narrow to matter. The NGOs suing to block immigration enforcement have deep pockets. Judges can easily set token bond amounts that do nothing to deter meritless lawsuits.

Still, the provision proves a vital point: Republican leadership is willing to include policy-related language in a reconciliation bill when it suits them. That means nothing prevents them from going further and defunding litigation aimed at sabotaging deportations.

This is Trump’s last real chance to salvage his immigration agenda. Reconciliation offers his clearest shot at using party control to pursue an objective he can’t afford to lose.

If Republicans won’t use the reconciliation bill to cut inflation, they should at least use it to shut down the invasion.

​Opinion & analysis, Donald trump, Immigration, Mass deportations, Judges, Federal courts, Nationwide injunction, Due process, Congress, Budget reconciliation 

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Bill Belichick’s fortune ‘sucked dry’ by 24-year-old girlfriend

Former NFL head coach Bill Belichick is all over the news once again, but this time it’s not for a Super Bowl win. Rather, it’s because Belichicks’s 24-year-old girlfriend appeared controlling in an interview with CBS News — which the pair are now trying to downplay.

“I agreed to speak with CBS Sunday morning to promote my new book, ‘The Art of Winning; Lessons from My Life in Football.’ Prior to this interview, I clearly communicated with my publicist at Simon and Schuster that any promotional interviews I participated in would agree to focus solely on the contents of the book,” Belichick said in a statement.

“Unfortunately, that expectation was not honored during the interview. I was surprised when unrelated topics were introduced,” he continued. “After this occurred several times, Jordon, with whom I share both a personal and professional relationship, stepped in to reiterate that point to help refocus the discussion.”

“She was not deflecting any specific question or topic but simply doing her job to ensure the interview stayed on track. Some of the clips make it appear as though we were avoiding the question of how we met, but we have been open about the fact that Jordon and I met on a flight to Palm Beach in 2021,” he added.

Belichick went on to say the clips had been “selectively edited” to “suggest a false narrative that Jordon was attempting to control the conversation.”

Jason Whitlock of “Fearless” believes that Belichick really did agree to a conversation about his book, but CBS saw a more lucrative opportunity with Belichick’s “sugar baby there.”

However, he doesn’t believe Belichick’s decision to date the 24-year-old is a wise one.

“I look at Bill Belichick’s lack of wisdom, and it’s amazing,” Whitlock says, noting that a recent New York Post article details Hudson’s $8 million real estate portfolio that she put together since meeting Belichick.

“She just started buying property in 2023 and getting loans for property, and this is all spelled out in the New York Post. And Bill Belichick saying they met in 2021. My math is right — that’s four years ago, and that makes her, if my math is correct, 20 at that time,” he continues.

“Bill Belichick would have been 69, and he met a 20-year-old on a plane, and by 2023 she started acquiring real estate property,” he adds.

Basically, Whitlock believes Belichick has fallen for Hudson’s scheme.

“I don’t know if Jordon Hudson is an escort, a pro. I do know she’s a young woman that is taking advantage of a 73-year-old man who’s in a full-blown life crisis because of his failure with dealing with the aftermath of Tom Brady leaving the New England Patriots,” Whitlock says.

“This man is incredibly insecure, and this woman is taking advantage of it,” he adds.

Want more from Jason Whitlock?

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