Category: blaze media

A viral interaction between Fort Worth police and a Christian street preacher has caught the attention of the civil rights division of the U.S. Attorney’s office.

David Grisham and another member of his evangelical preaching team were confronted by a female police officer for their outreach to participants of a Pride event in Texas.

‘The Fort Worth Police Department responded, not by protecting his constitutional rights, but by threatening him with arrest and ultimately issuing a citation.’

Many objected to the officer’s actions on the basis that she appeared to be infringing on the evangelists’ free speech rights and right to religious expression. Video of the interaction was posted by the popular Libs of TikTok account.

“If someone is offended by your talking, then we have a problem,” the unidentified officer said.

“If they are offended by your speech … I will write you a ticket, and we’ll go from there,” she continued.

A second video shows other officers confronting Grisham.

Grisham was ultimately given a citation for “unreasonable noise,” which is intended to apply to noise from construction or animals, but is not limited to those sources.

Attorney C.J. Grisham, who has no known familial relation to the plaintiff, told the Christian Post that the officer failed to follow the ordinance.

“This ordinance was not followed because no officer performed a decibel check,” he said.

He also argued that the city’s decibel limit was unlawfully set beneath that set by Texas.

“Mr. Grisham was exercising his right to express his views on matters of significant public concern,” the attorney said. “The Fort Worth Police Department responded, not by protecting his constitutional rights, but by threatening him with arrest and ultimately issuing a citation.”

On Wednesday, Fort Worth Police spokesman Officer Buddy Calzada released a statement saying the issue began when the group “was using a bullhorn to amplify their voice.”

Calzada claimed police received complaints from business owners, told the group to stop using the bullhorn, and said the group refused to stop. He said the bullhorn was seized as evidence after the citation was issued.

“At no time did officers prevent any individuals from expressing their views,” Calzada added in a statement to the Christian Post. “Officers told the individuals they could continue exercising their rights without using an amplification device. However, the individuals willingly ceased protesting after the bullhorn was seized as part of the enforcement action.”

He went on to say the viral video did not accurately represent the entire interaction but also admitted the police officer made statements that “were not accurate.”

RELATED: Court victory for Christian mom banned from adopting foster children over religious beliefs on LGBTQ agenda

On Friday, Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon responded on social media that the Justice Department would look into the incident.

“Troubling,” she wrote. “Our [civil rights] team is on it.”

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​Christian street preacher, Free speech rights, Libs of tiktok, Pride event, Fort worth police, Religious freedom, Politics 

Graham Platner officially filed to leave the race for one of Maine’s seats in the U.S. Senate on Friday after facing intense criticism for numerous scandals.

Democrats now have only 17 days under Maine law to find his replacement and take on the campaign to replace incumbent Republican Maine Sen. Susan Collins.

‘My name may have been on the ballot, but that ballot line belongs to the people of Maine.’

On Wednesday, Platner had posted a video excoriating the leaders of his own party and accusing them of betraying him in order to derail his far-left political agenda.

He continued that message in the statement he issued Friday.

“I write to formally withdraw my candidacy for United States Senate,” Platner wrote.

“People are desperate for change. For this broken system to be righted. For the American experiment to be furthered. Over the past eleven months, thousands and thousands of Mainers poured their hearts, time, and talent into a movement to deliver that vision. I will be forever grateful to them,” he added.

“And in submitting this letter today, I seek to further the movement we have built together and the future we believe in,” he said. “My name may have been on the ballot, but that ballot line belongs to the people of Maine.”

Platner had been accused of sexually assaulting a woman he dated about five years ago, which appeared to be the final straw for many Democrats who pulled their endorsements. He has vehemently denied the allegations.

RELATED: Donna Brazile gets CRUSHED online over bizarre reply to allegations against Graham Platner

Half a dozen Democrats have already announced their willingness to replace Platner as the Democratic nominee for an election that could decide the partisan control of the Senate after the midterm elections.

“F**k ICE. Free Palestine. Up the Hearts,” Platner concluded.

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​Democrats, Graham platner, Midterm elections, Sexual assault, Susan collins, Us senate, Politics 

Socialism is no longer knocking at the door of American politics — it’s winning elections.

And New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is leading the charge.

“We raise taxes on the wealthiest New Yorkers instead of taking more from those with the least. Throughout this process, I have been reminded of the words of the Austrian economist Friedrich Hayek: ‘If socialists understood economics, they wouldn’t be socialists,’” he said in a recent speech.

“If these past months have shown us anything, it is that socialists not only understand economics just as well as the capitalists who came before, but that we can solve their years of mismanagement through an embrace of our principles,” he added.

Blaze Media co-founder Glenn Beck can’t believe how far their movement has come, pointing out that while “every single socialist experiment fails,” democratic socialists like Melat Kiros — who just won the primary in Colorado — continue to gain ground.

“She says, ‘We’re taking our system back, and we’re taking our country back,’” he says. “What do you mean you’re taking your country back?”

“When you’re talking about getting rid of capitalism, you’re not taking it back,” he continues. “So, the question is, is this just the edges of the party, or … is this a death knell for the next election?”

And while those who want to shrink the government’s power over American citizens are the ones being called extremists, democratic socialists want to expand it.

“And here’s something else that nobody seems to notice,” Glenn says. “Every successful socialist movement in history claimed to represent the workers. … Where are the workers today? Where are they?”

“Today’s movement represents the graduates. Look where all the energy comes from. The elite universities, the prestigious media, the nonprofits, the government bureaucracy, the professional advocates, the activists, the commanding height of culture,” he continues.

“Karl Marx predicted the revolution would come from the factory floor. Instead, it seems to be coming from the faculty lounge,” he adds.

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​Capitalism, Communism, Democratic socialists, Friedrich hayek, Glenn beck, Karl marx, Melat kiros, New york city, Revolution, Socialism, Zohran mamdani, The glenn beck program 

The socialist movement that is making inroads into the Democratic Party will reportedly release far-left extremist goals that would completely remake the federal government.

The Democratic Socialists of America has been behind the success of extremists like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), other members of “the Squad” in Congress, and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani (D).

The once-fringe group has gained prominence in recent weeks after several DSA-endorsed candidates defeated centrist establishment Democrats.

The DSA is working on updating its platform to reportedly include the elimination of the U.S. Senate as well as the Department of Defense, according to a Fox News report.

Even further, the new platform would advocate for Congress to choose a new executive branch and judiciary that would be subordinate to Congress.

The new platform would also call for full amnesty for all illegal aliens in the U.S. The current DSA platform calls for all deportations to end, for zero restrictions on travel between countries, and full voting rights for noncitizens.

The once-fringe group has gained prominence in recent weeks after several DSA-endorsed candidates defeated establishment Democrats in elections in New York City and other locations.

Darializa Avila Chevalier is running for New York’s 13th Congressional District after advocating for the abolition of borders, police, and prisons. She also posted, “F**k Kamala Harris” and expressed her deep disdain for the Democratic Party leadership. Chevalier has since said she has “grown considerably” since those posts on social media.

Claire Valdez won the primary for New York’s 7th Congressional District and ran on demilitarizing the border, amnesty for illegal aliens, and ramping up the “Green New Deal” of global warming regulations.

Melat Kiros is running for Colorado’s 1st Congressional District and has said she wants to abolish U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and also expressed anti-Israel sentiments.

RELATED: ‘They’re animals’: Trump UNLOADS on ‘godless Communists’ taking over the Democratic Party

Despite recent victories by the DSA, some centrist Democrats have formed an alliance to push back and empower the faction of the party that is not socialist and defends the free market.

The DSA has since revoked its endorsement for Ocasio-Cortez because she has not been virulently anti-Israel enough for its tastes.

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​Democratic party, Democratic socialists of america, Department of defense, Federal government, Politics 

LifeWise Academy is a nonprofit Christian organization founded in 2018 that provides off-site, Bible-based religious instruction to public school students during the regular school day. The program is fully compliant with the three criteria of released time laws (affirmed by the 1952 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Zorach v. Clauson): classes are held off school property, it’s privately funded, and participation is voluntary with parental consent.

But LifeWise is nonetheless being attacked at some schools — often by those who welcome progressive initiatives, like Pride Month, in the classroom.

On a recent episode of “Relatable,” Allie Beth Stuckey sat down with LifeWise Academy founder and CEO Joel Penton to discuss the program and its ongoing battles with progressive schools.

Serving tens of thousands of students across hundreds of schools in over 30 states, LifeWise Academy Bible lessons are designed to take students through the entire Bible in just five years.

“So a child will start Genesis 1 in first grade, and by the time they finish elementary school and fifth grade, they’ve been through the entire Bible,” says Penton, noting that lessons have a three-part focus: head (knowing the Scripture), heart (gospel connection), and hands (living it out).

The result is not only that kids from Christian homes become more educated on Scripture, but children who do not come from Christian homes hear and accept the gospel.

Penton tells a sweet story of a young girl who joined LifeWise Academy and brought the gospel home to her entire family.

“[She] came home, and she said, ‘Why aren’t we talking about God here?’ And so they started going to church, and by the end of the story, there’s a family of nine that have all been baptized, and they’re members of the church,” he says.

The heartwarming stories of how LifeWise classes impact children and their families roll in every single day, Penton tells Allie.

And yet some schools are resistant to allowing LifeWise to impact their school community.

While 90% of schools say yes to LifeWise programs, there is “a very vocal minority,” says Penton, that go to great lengths to prevent campus startups.

These people “do not like the Bible; they see it as regressive … and they don’t want anybody to have access,” he explains, “and even though it’s optional, and they don’t have to sign their own child up, they don’t like that anyone can sign their child up.”

These community members protest LifeWise programs at school board meetings and engage in hashtag activism, but most of the time, Penton says, they end up unintentionally helping the cause.

He gives the example of a school district in Ohio ending its LifeWise program after two years, which sparked such intense backlash, Gov. Mike DeWine (R) signed House Bill 8, requiring all public school districts to adopt a religious released-time policy. This led to roughly 80 additional school districts starting LifeWise programs.

But in deep-blue places like the state of Washington, the resistance is intense.

Allie plays a clip of Charles Adkins, a member of the Everett Public Schools Board of Directors in Washington state. At a board meeting, he said, “I want to make it very, extremely, abundantly clear that yes, I do in fact hold animus towards LifeWise Academy.”

Everett Public Schools, says Penton, have policies that are “transparently discriminatory and aimed at LifeWise Academy.” Compared to other secular programs, which require a one-time parent permission slip, parents of students in LifeWise Academy must “walk in a permission slip each and every week.”

“They’re just trying to create more obstacles to make it more difficult,” says Allie.

But weekly permission slips aren’t the only barriers facing LifeWise students.

“If we give a child a worksheet, maybe they colored a picture of Moses or something … when they go back to school, it has to be in a sealed envelope,” says Penton, noting that other programs do not have this requirement.

When LifeWise attempted to resolve the district’s policies internally with the school board, they reportedly received no response. First Liberty Institute then filed a federal lawsuit against Everett Public Schools on behalf of LifeWise Academy and families, alleging unconstitutional viewpoint discrimination and hostile treatment of the religious released-time program.

“What’s wild is that the letter we sent said, ‘We believe you hold animus,’ which, you know, they’re supposed to say, ‘No, we don’t.’ And then [Adkins] said at a school board meeting into a microphone that he does hold animus,” says Penton, joking that First Liberty “really appreciated” his convenient candor.

While the lawsuit is still ongoing, Penton notes all he wants is for “policies to go back to normal” and for LifeWise Academy “to be treated as anybody else would.”

To hear more of the conversation, watch the full episode above.

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​Allie beth stuckey, First liberty institute, Relatable, Lifewise academy 

State Sec. Marco Rubio said that the horrific pedophile pardoned by Democratic Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz will no longer threaten U.S. citizens after he took action.

Tou Lue Vang of Laos admitted to committing horrible and disgusting sexual abuse of a 10-year-old in 2005 and accepted a sentence of 30 years probation to avoid prison time, as previously reported by Blaze News.

‘Americans must never be forced by their elected leaders to live alongside foreign sex criminals who have no right to begin with to reside in our country.’

Vang was allowed to finish probation early, and then a commission that included Walz voted to pardon him in June. That would have possibly allowed Vang to stay in the country, until Rubio stepped in.

“Just days before this foreign sex offender was scheduled to be deported, Tim Walz the governor issued him a pardon, setting him free to once again endanger the children of America,” said Rubio in a video on social media.

He then said he revoked Vang’s legal status.

“As a result, federal agents took him into custody, and as of today, he has been removed from the United States,” Rubio added. “Because of our actions, this foreign criminal will never pose a threat to any American ever again.”

Far-left Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, who is also on the board of pardons, attempted to justify the pedophile pardon in a statement to KSTP-TV.

“The Minnesota Board of Pardons made a unanimous decision to grant Tou Vang this pardon after an exhaustive process, which included a statement of support for the pardon from the victim, a recommendation to grant the pardon from the Clemency Review Commission, and a large number of community support letters,” he wrote.

He went on to accuse the Department of Homeland Security of “lying through their teeth” about the pardon shielding Vang from deportation.

The victim in the case did release a statement supporting the pardon.

“What happened to me was wrong, but I have had many years to think about this. I have made my peace with it. I forgive him,” she wrote. “I want his family to stay together here. His children need their father. He and his wife have built a life. I believe that he has learned and grown since the abuse and that the family has suffered enough.”

RELATED: Illegal alien coach who murdered boy committed sex crimes against 2 underage boys: Cops

A New York Times report said that the plea deal was offered because the victim had been pressured against testifying by her family members, according to the Ramsey County Attorney’s Office.

“Americans must never be forced by their elected leaders to live alongside foreign sex criminals who have no right to begin with to reside in our country,” Rubio concluded. “This administration will always stand with the American people and defend them from violent criminals.”

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​Keith ellison, Tim walz, Deportation, Illegal alien crime, Pedophile, Marco rubio, Politics 

The preliminary hearing regarding whether to try Tyler Robinson for his alleged assassination of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk drew to close on Friday with state District Judge Tony Graf now in the possession of a wealth of damning evidence.

Over the course of the five-day hearing, the court heard or saw:

surveillance camera footage showing the suspected assassin skulking around campus on the day of the shooting, developing a stiff leg after an apparent costume change, climbing onto a rooftop, running to a “sniper pad” on the rooftop overlooking the site where Kirk was shot, and dropping down from the roof immediately after the shooting, then fleeing the scene with “some kind of object” in his hand;that Robinson ate a Chick-fil-A on campus, where he was not a student, and allegedly interacted with TPUSA staff at the scene;a video of Robinson’s homosexual lover Lance Twiggs’ deposition, where he claimed that the individual seen in the surveillance footage “definitely” looked like Robinson;Twiggs’ testimony that Robinson left their shared apartment unusually early on the day of the shooting, had “started crying a bit” when he came back the morning after, and had told Twiggs “he wishes he hadn’t done it”;Twiggs’ testimony that he lent Robinson a tool to engrave some ammunition, especially relevant because the suspected murder weapon contained ammunition with engravings that included “Hey fascist! Catch” and “If you read this, you are gay, LMAO”;text messages between the gay lovers in which Robinson allegedly referred to one of the engravings on the ammunition, allegedly writing, “If I see ‘uwu notices bulge’ on fox new [sic] I might have a stroke”;text messages between Robinson and Twiggs in which the suspected killer allegedly admitted to killing Kirk, told his boyfriend that he “had enough of [Kirk’s] hatred,” and discussed retrieving his rifle from a “drop point” and leaving behind “no evidence”;testimony from Utah Department of Public Safety Sgt. Jennifer Faumuina indicating that the two sets of male DNA discovered on the towel wrapped around the suspected murder weapon were a match to Twiggs and very likely to Robinson; testimony from David Hull, a former Utah State Bureau of Investigation special agent who led the probe in the assassination, that a male was spotted by a Spanish Forks police officer in a car registered to Robinson near Campus Drive early on Sept. 11, the day after the assassination; andtestimony on Friday from Caitlin Oliver, a forensic biologist at the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, that testing on swabs taken from several parts of the suspected murder weapon and the ammunition supports the conclusion that the DNA found was primarily contributed by Robinson.

On Friday, a zoomed-in version of the footage allegedly showing Robinson crawling out to a “sniper’s perch” was also shown in the courtroom.

The footage was not, however, broadcast for public consumption in part because a media cameraman had violated a court order on Thursday, accidentally showing an exhibit that was not allowed to be published — a handwritten note allegedly from Robinson to Twiggs in which the author wrote,

If you are reading this per my text, then I am so sorry. I left the house this morning on a mission, and set an auto text. I am likely dead, or facing a lengthy prison sentence. I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk, and I took it. I don’t know if I will/have succeeded, but I had hoped to make it home to you.

While the evidence was already public, having previously appeared in the search warrant released in March, the defense made a fuss such that the violation dominated the discussion for the early portion of Friday’s hearing.

Robinson chose not to testify during the pretrial hearing and has not entered a plea.

RELATED: Hearing bombshell as gay lover ties Tyler Robinson to damning evidence in Kirk assassination

L-R: Trent Nelson/Salt Lake Tribune/Getty Images; Bethany Baker-Pool/Getty Images

Robinson faces charges of aggravated murder, a capital first-degree felony; felony discharge of a firearm causing serious bodily injury; committing a violent offense in the presence of a child; two counts of obstruction of justice — a second-degree felony; and two counts of witness tampering for allegedly telling his boyfriend to delete his text messages and to stay quiet if questioned by police.

The hearing will resume on Sept. 1, when both the prosecution and the defense will be afforded one last opportunity to make their final arguments to Graf about whether Robinson should stand trial.

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​Tyler robinson, Charlie kirk, Assassination, Murder, Utah, Tony graf, Trans, Gay, Turning point usa, Politics 

Yet another violent attack in the U.K. involving a migrant suspect has occurred, this time leaving an American woman dead.

Irish police and emergency services responded on Tuesday to a rented home in the southwestern town of Killarney, where the bloody body of 43-year-old New York native Jamey Carney had been discovered by her 13-year-old daughter.

‘Do not use this to become bigoted or racist or prejudiced in any way.’

Following a postmortem examination by state pathologist Linda Mulligan, police launched a murder investigation into Carney’s death — an investigation aided by the Garda National Bureau of Criminal Investigation and the Garda National Immigration Bureau.

While Carney suffered a brutal assault and significant head injuries, Mulligan concluded that suffocation was the ultimate cause of death, reported the Irish Times. Carney had moved to Ireland with her daughter in 2021.

Early in their investigation, authorities determined that “a person of interest” had “left the jurisdiction in the early hours of Tuesday 7th July prior to the body of the deceased female being discovered.”

The suspect, who has been identified as 28-year-old Ahmad Al-Saqar, is believed to have successfully boarded a flight at Dublin Airport bound for Istanbul, Turkey, just prior to the discovery of the body.

Irish police are reportedly working with Europol and Interpol in hopes of establishing whether Al-Saqar is still in Turkey or has traveled to another Middle Eastern location.

RELATED: Not again: British cops arrest another white victim of violence rather than minority assailant suspects

Pro-Palestinian protesters march in the streets of Ireland in 2024. Huzeyfe Tastan/Anadolu/Getty Images

Al-Saqar, who features in Carney’s profile picture on Facebook, is originally from Jordan and apparently has contacts in Syria and Turkey. He reportedly launched an asylum bid in Ireland after arriving there in 2024.

According to Extra.ie, while asylum-seekers must surrender their passports to the International Protection Office at the time of making their applications, Irish authorities gave Al-Saqar his passport back because he had been granted subsidiary protection — status given to someone who doesn’t qualify as a refugee but would supposedly face “serious” harm if sent back to his home country.

A police source told the Irish Times that the suspect was not only known to Carney but regularly stayed at her home. Their apparent 18-month romantic relationship complicates the investigation because if ultimately questioned, he could explain away his DNA on the premises.

According to the Irish Sun, Carney and Al-Saqar are believed to have met at an anti-war protest. Carney had “Free Palestine” and “Fk Ice” in her Facebook bio.

In a recent social media post, Al-Saqar reportedly referred to the American mother as “my bride and my princess.”

Al-Saqar was seen with Carney on Sunday and Monday, reported the Irish Independent.

The U.S. State Department told Newsweek that the agency has provided consular assistance to Carney’s family.

“The Trump administration has no higher priority than the safety and security of Americans,” said a State Department spokesperson. “We offer our sincerest condolences to the family and loved ones on their loss.”

A big concern for the Irish police is presently the possibility of American political figures on the right “stirring tensions in the Republic,” reported the Times.

This concern was echoed by Ryan Fox, a cousin of Carney, who told Irish state media that he didn’t want her death to become “some kind of martyrdom or some kind of political cause.”

“Do not use this to become bigoted or racist or prejudiced in any way. Bad people are in every group, and it is not the people who look like them who deserve to be blamed,” said Fox.

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​Murder, Ireland, Muslim, Asylum seeker, Europe, Palestine, Politics 

Friday is the final day of the preliminary hearing to determine whether there is enough probable cause to bind Tyler Robinson over for trial in the murder of Charlie Kirk.

Thursday, day four, was an absolute bombshell for the prosecution, as Lance Twiggs, Robinson’s trans-identifying gay lover, admitted that the individual seen on surveillance footage did “look like Tyler Robinson.”

Twiggs also told the court that the day after Kirk’s murder, Robinson returned to their apartment, cried, “and said he wishes he hadn’t done it.”

Tune in for Day 5 below:

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​Charlie kirk assassination, Lance twiggs, Murder, Tyler robinson, Politics 

Mark Zuckerberg has spent over 20 years building the Facebook brand, but it could all come to an end in one fell swoop.

Parent company Meta used words like “outlandish” and argued there was no historical precedent for its proposed punishment in recent legal filings for a lawsuit that could completely wipe out the company.

‘A sanction of that size has no analog in the history of consumer protection enforcement.’

Twenty-nine states are currently engaged in a lawsuit against Meta that accuses the company of violating child privacy laws that bar the collection of data from underage users.

The online company is facing court battles from almost every cardinal direction, but four particular states are threatening Meta with penalties of $1.4 trillion, which nearly equals its entire valuation; according to Yahoo Finance, Meta’s market cap is $1.48 trillion.

Meta responded to the sum in documents from the case in California, saying the “sheer magnitude” of the demands from the attorneys general “offends constitutional and ethical limits.”

“In just a single one of their ‘Remedy Chart’ calculations, the AGs seek over one trillion dollars in penalties and disgorgement, and they then layer on various other double-counting charts,” Meta wrote.

The massive sum comes from the AGs in California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey, who reportedly came up with the figure by estimating every under-13 user in each state that could have been affected by Meta’s policies.

“Each of these charts applies the maximum statutory penalty to every teen and purported under-13 user and every monthly instance of time spent at certain arbitrarily-selected thresholds,” Meta claimed.

Meta argued, “A sanction of that size has no analog in the history of consumer protection enforcement. Indeed, the Federal Trade Commission recently described a ‘$1 billion penalty’ as ‘the largest ever in a case involving an FTC rule violation.”

RELATED: New Senate bill punishes chilling of online speech — if it passes

HECTOR GUERRERO/AFP/GettyImages

Meta further argued that the demands made were in “gross disproportion” to the alleged violations, and are “unsubstantiated” and “outlandish.”

The defense went on, calling the trillion-dollar figure a “construct of lawyers” that counts the same individuals “many times over.”

The aforementioned jurisdictions are also looking to pin claims of misleading the public on Meta, which they say “prioritized profits over the safety of kids.”

A spokesperson for the California attorney general’s office told the New York Post that Meta helped fuel the mental health crisis that is “impacting a generation of American children.”

“The California Department of Justice looks forward to holding Meta fully accountable at trial in August,” the spokesperson added. The two sides will meet in court on August 18 in Oakland, California.

RELATED: Meta had 17-STRIKE policy for sex traffickers, ex-employee says

Christian Ender/Getty Images

Another parallel claim Meta is battling accuses the company of being aware of the harm its platforms can cause.

A former employee alleged that Meta stopped internal research that would have shown that ceasing use of Facebook saw users become less depressed or anxious. Blaze News reported on this portion of the lawsuit in November, which allegedly included a study called Project Mercury.

Project Mercury was allegedly initiated in 2019 to “explore the impact” of Meta apps and how they can affect “polarization, news consumption, well-being, and daily social interactions.”

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​Meta, Facebook, News, Mark zuckerberg, Social media, California, Tech 

Taylor Sheridan is the undisputed king of modern TV.

“Yellowstone.” “Tulsa King.” “Landman.” “Dutton Ranch.” “The Madison.” “1923.”

What, is Willy gender fluid this time around?

He’s prolific and popular, drawing the biggest names to his shows. Think Billy Bob Thornton, Michelle Pfeiffer, Kurt Russell, and Kevin Costner.

He just can’t buy himself an Emmy. The mega-producer got shut out, again, this week while Stephen Colbert’s canceled “Late Show” earned a record nine nominations. Could it have something to do with Sheridan’s embrace of heartland stories and Colbert’s failed war against a certain president?

Forget about it, Taylor. It’s Hollywood town …

‘Moana’ lost at sea

Let’s give Dwayne Johnson credit. He’s no Rachel Zegler (or Milly Alcock, for that matter). Those stars hurt their respective films (“Snow White” and “Supergirl”) with their disastrous press interviews.

Johnson knows better. He’s generally positive, and after he stepped on a banana peel by endorsing Joe Biden, Johnson announced he’s steering clear of politics.

Smart.

Yet his newest Disney venture, a live-action “Moana,” looks like another blockbuster dud. The film could earn as little as $40 million in its opening weekend, a fine haul for most movies but not an expensive Disney romp.

We can smell what the Rock is cooking, and it might be another “Baywatch” …

#OscarsSoWhat?

Are we heading toward #OscarsSoWhite: the sequel? A new report reveals interesting data points regarding “representation” within the industry. Never mind that said diversity measures never include Christians, conservatives, or gasp, Christian conservatives.

We’ll set that on a shelf for now.

Those Emmy nominations indicate diminishing DEI. TheWrap.com reports that “representation for actors of color at the 2026 Emmys continued to decline sharply, with only 18 performers from Asian, black. and Latino communities represented among the 91 nominees.”

That’s down from last year, when 24 of the 92 nominees were “POCs.”

How do we even know this? It’s simple: Entertainment news outlets like far-left TheWrap.com pore over every award nomination list looking for the slightest insinuation of bias.

Kevin Sorbo, canceled by the industry for being a Christian conservative, couldn’t be reached for comment …

RELATED: ‘Landman’: Is Taylor Sheridan’s gritty oil drama the last honest show about America?

Taylor Hill/Getty Images

Save the whale

What’s the one word that sets a movie lover’s teeth on edge? “Reimagining.” Yes, it’s happening, again, and the victim this time is a poor, innocent whale.

“Free Willy,” the 1993 charmer, is heading back to captivity. And naturally, the folks behind the project aren’t settling for a mere “remake” … or even “reboot.”

No, they used the other “R” word, or at least the Hollywood Reporter used it twice in the story tied to the new version of the classic, feel-good flick. What, is Willy gender fluid this time around?

Why change what isn’t broken? The original film spawned two sequels and an animated series. Now, this.

Keiko the whale deserves better.

‘Ghostbusters’ helmer gets ‘Detention’

“Bridesmaids” director Paul Feig is directing his first horror movie.

Or second, if you count his “Ghostbusters” reboot. That high-profile flop may have been light on scares — or laughs, for that matter — but it was certainly a nightmare for Sony. As well as for anyone who managed to sit through it.

Should we expect another cinematic atrocity?

His recent action-comedy “Jackpot” would seem to suggest we should. That Prime Video original went bust as one of the worst movies of 2024.

Or any year, really.

But let’s not forget that Feig has fought his way out of director’s jail before — by helming “A Simple Favor” and its 2025 straight-to-video sequel, plus last year’s surprise hit “The Housemaid” with Sydney Sweeney.

Now, Feig is teaming with horror maven Jason Blum to direct “Detention.” Literally nothing is known about the project for now — except that Feig expects to go “darker” than ever before.

Let’s hope that refers to the story — and the mood of innocent moviegoers after wasting two hours …

Sheen settles

We wouldn’t call this “winning.” Not even close.

Troubled actor Charlie Sheen has agreed to pay ex-wife Brooke Mueller $500,000 in back child support. The move means the former couple won’t have to litigate the matter in court. That’s probably wise, but skimping out on child support is terrible, period.

Sheen has seemingly cleaned up his life, apologized for his manic “tiger blood” phase, and opened up via his 2025 autobiography “The Book of Sheen.”

Let’s hope this ends up being one of the last vestiges of his chaotic bad-boy phase.

​Hollywood, Charlie sheen, Paul feig, Movies, Dwayne johnson, Stephen colbert, Yellowstone, Emmys, Toto recall, Donald trump, Taylor sheridan 

More than 75 years after Joseph McCarthy delivered one of his most controversial warnings, BlazeTV host Steve Deace believes history is proving him right.

In a 1950 speech, McCarthy drew a distinction between everyday Democratic voters and what he described as a small faction of communist-influenced operatives steering the party from within.

“There are definitely two groups of Democrats as of today,” McCarthy began. “Number one, there are the millions of loyal Americans who have voted the Democrat tickets. Individuals who are just as loyal, who hate communism just as much and love America just as much as the average Republican.”

“On the other hand, there is that small, closely knit group of administration Democrats who are now the complete prisoners and under the complete domination of the bureaucratic communistic Frankenstein, which they themselves have created,” he continued.

“To call them Democrats is an insult to the millions of loyal American Democrats. They shouldn’t be called Democrats.They should be referred to properly as the Commie-crat Party,” he added.

“Joseph McCarthy wasn’t wrong. He was just early,” Deace says after listening to McCarthy’s warning.

“Absolutely, he was right. And essentially what he’s saying in that clip is that not all Democrats are communists, but all communists are Democrats, which is something that for the last 15, 20 years that you’ve been on the air, Steve, you could have said every day that ends in ‘y’ and twice on Sundays,” Aaron McIntire agrees.

“I don’t really know how much clearer it could be at this point, because … not only are they out of the shadows, they are loud and proud about it at this point,” he says, pointing out that they call themselves “socialists” to soften what they stand for.

“They want to call themselves ‘those who stand in solidarity’ like that moron from New York said, ‘Solidarity means abolishing ICE,’” he continues, adding, “They want to cloak themselves in a lot of euphemisms, but at the heart of it, they are communists. So he was right on the money, just ahead of his time.”

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​Communists, Joseph mccarthy, Socialists, Steve deace, Aaron mcintire, Steve deace show 

Singer Olivia Rodrigo says her upcoming all-female music festival is dedicated to “advancing and advocating for women and girls.”

Strangely, this seems to mostly translate to donating money to pro-abortion and race-based advocacy groups.

‘I’ve had a dream of doing this festival for years.’

Dream theater

Rodrigo made headlines more than two years ago when she partnered with a national abortion network to give out emergency contraceptives — the morning-after pill — to concert attendees on her tour. After the story made the rounds, Rodrigo’s publicity team put a stop to it and asked the group to cease handing out its packages that included two boxes of the pills and promotional codes that linked to an abortion fund.

Now, the 23-year-old has taken things a step further by hosting her own music festival to promote “meaningful change.”

“Truly never felt more excited to share a piece of news with you all,” Rodrigo wrote on X. “I’ve had a dream of doing this festival for years and i am so ecstatic its finally coming true!!”

The singer noted that “100 percent of the net proceeds will go to charities dedicated to advancing and advocating for women and girls.”

These organizations include abortion clinic Planned Parenthood as well as several other abortion advocacy groups.

Other partners featured are the Center for Reproductive Rights and the National Institute for Reproductive Health, which says it is invested in the “fight” to “expand access to abortion and contraception and advance health equity.”

RELATED: Abortion promoters told to stop handing out morning-after pills at Olivia Rodrigo concerts due to the presence of children

Immigrant song

Race-centric advocacy groups are also getting support, including the Black Mamas Matter Alliance and the Johns Hopkins Center for Indigenous Health.

Another partner, the National Domestic Workers Alliance, notes that while it supports domestic workers, the women they back are “mostly women of color [and] immigrants” as well as “mothers and low-wage workers.”

The company also has a directive dedicated to “black domestic workers,” with the title “We Dream in Black.”

The upcoming music festival takes place in August in Irvine, California, featuring artists like Doechii, Chappell Roan, and Sarah McLachlan and Stevie Nicks as special guests.

Outlet Young Hollywood described the festival as a way to “bring women together,” while creating a “safe and welcoming space” that will support “queer and female communities by donating profits to charities focused on social justice and helping women.”

RELATED: ‘I’m really excited’: Pop star Olivia Rodrigo gives out morning-after pills at concerts for ‘reproductive health freedom’

Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images

Vaxxin’ and relaxin’

In 2021, Rodrigo visited President Joe Biden at the White House to promote COVID-19 vaccination among American youth, with the president claiming it was of the utmost importance for those ages 16 to 25 to get vaccinated.

At the time, Rodrigo said she was “beyond honored and humbled” to “help spread the message about the importance of youth vaccinations.”

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​News, Olivia rodrigo, Planned parenthood, Entertainment 

Eight months after federal officials destroyed more than 300 ostriches at Universal Ostrich Farms in Edgewood, British Columbia, the property remains under quarantine, with owners saying they still have no clear timeline for when they’ll be allowed to reopen.

Katie Pasitney, daughter of farm co-owner Karen Espersen, says the Canadian Food Inspection Agency has prevented the family from cleaning up the property while citing an ongoing “fallow period,” intended to allow any remaining H5N1 virus in the environment to naturally become inactive, as the reason the quarantine remains in place.

‘They continue down this anti-science avenue, which is destroying the credibility of the CFIA internationally.’

No reprieve

The ongoing restrictions come months after the CFIA ordered the destruction of the farm’s ostriches following an outbreak of H5N1 avian influenza. The owners fought the order through the courts, ultimately losing their final appeal when the Supreme Court of Canada declined to hear the case. The CFIA has maintained that culling infected poultry is required under Canada’s disease-control protocols to limit the spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza.

Pasitney recently joined former Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz for an interview to discuss the continuing fallout from the cull and what she says are unanswered questions about the government’s handling of the farm.

‘The Ostrich Con’

Following the cull, CBC news program “The Fifth Estate” approached Pasitney about participating in a documentary on the controversy surrounding Universal Ostrich Farms. She says she and her mother initially declined but ultimately agreed after producers indicated the program would proceed with or without them.

“We have nothing to hide,” Pasitney says she thought at the time. “We have everything to show, and we’re going to answer the hard questions.”

It wasn’t until the documentary aired that Pasitney learned the CBC had titled it “The Ostrich Con.” She says the title immediately told her how the broadcaster had chosen to frame the story.

“The only con that was happening here was the Canadian Food Inspection Agency … trying to blindfold the public, saying, ‘This is a virus, this is a virus,'” she said. “We were not the con.”

Pasitney says she was also disappointed that key portions of her interview did not appear in the finished program.

She says CBC reporter Mark Kelley asked whether she was embarrassed to seek support from Americans, including U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

“I said, ‘If our country would have listened, and we would have had any true leadership that would have taken the time to understand what we were trying to fight for, I wouldn’t have had to go out of country,'” she said.

Her response, she says, did not make the final cut.

Ongoing damage

Pasitney says the most frustrating aspect of the ordeal is that the CFIA has not returned to conduct further testing while continuing to prevent the family from restoring the property.

“They have not been on our farm since [the cull],” she said. “There has been no more testing.”

If the agency believes the virus remains a concern, she argues, it should be testing the soil, water, and surrounding environment rather than simply extending the quarantine.

Pasitney says the impact extends far beyond the financial loss of the birds.

“When your animals are destroyed and the damage is done, it doesn’t just end in our fields, and it doesn’t end in our barns, and it doesn’t end in our pastures. It follows into our homes,” she said, calling it “generational trauma.”

She worries the episode has permanently damaged public confidence in government institutions.

“The generations that are watching this are learning not to trust our government,” she said. “They’re learning not to trust our RCMP.”

RELATED: Massacre at Universal Ostrich Farms: Canada kills hundreds of birds despite no evidence of avian flu

Universal Ostrich Farms

‘The antithesis of science’

Ritz, who served as Canada’s agriculture minister under former Prime Minister Stephen Harper from 2007 to 2015, said he finds the continuing quarantine difficult to justify.

“The whole mandate of CFIA is one based on science. It is to support food safety and trade corridors,” he said.

He argued that the agency has moved well beyond that mission in its handling of Universal Ostrich Farms, later describing what he called the “egregious behavior” of CFIA “thugs.”

“I can’t, for the life of me, understand the powers that be allowing this to happen,” he said. “We’ve got a rogue element within CFIA. There’s still some really good people there.”

Ritz said he knows current CFIA President Dr. Harpreet Kochhar from his time in government and pledged to contact him regarding the ongoing quarantine.

He also questioned the agency’s use of a “fallow period” while simultaneously preventing the farm from cleaning the property.

“What you guys wanted to do was clean up … and actually extend that containment,” Ritz told Pasitney during the interview.

“They’re not allowing you to do that. That, to me, is the … antithesis of science.”

‘No containment’

Ritz also questioned the agency’s public statements regarding the disposal of the birds.

“There’s no containment,” he said. “We saw that when they hauled the birds away. There was no containment. They sat in yards in Surrey and rotted on the spot. It was just heartbreaking to see that go on. And they continue down this anti-science avenue, which is destroying the credibility of CFIA internationally.”

The CFIA did not respond to written questions asking when the quarantine will be lifted, what scientific criteria must be met before it ends, and why the agency did not remove spent cartridges, blood-soaked hay, and other debris that remained on the property following the cull.

For Pasitney, however, the central question remains unanswered.

Eight months after the cull, she says her family members are still waiting to learn when they will be allowed to begin putting the farm — and their lives — back together.

​Canada, Canadian food inspection agency, Cbc news program, Cfia, H5n1 avian influenza, Interview, Ostrich farm quarantine, Universal ostrich farms, Letter from canada 

Rupert Lowe, the Restore Britain leader who unveiled the stomach-churning “Rape Gang Inquiry Report” last month, spoke to podcaster Joe Rogan in an interview released on Wednesday about the mass rape of young white girls in the United Kingdom by predominantly Muslim Pakistani gangs.

Lowe also highlighted the U.K.’s problem with parallel Islamic legal systems operating in the U.K. and their apparent tolerance by British authorities who are sensitive to the “Muslim bloc vote.”

‘They will all be banned on day one.’

Afzal Khan, a Pakistan-born Labour member of parliament who previously served as parliamentary chair for the Labour Muslim Network, melted down publicly over this illuminating interview.

Rather than engage with Lowe’s commentary, Khan sought the regulation and possible punishment of his colleague’s free speech by submitting a complaint to the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, which is responsible for investigating alleged breaches of House of Commons Code of Conduct and Registers.

Khan wrote in a Thursday letter to Commissioner Daniel Greenberg that “on 8th July, Rupert Lowe MP appeared on ‘The Joe Rogan Experience’ podcast, in which he claimed that parallel Sharia courts are tolerated within the U.K. judicial system. This is not only a flagrant lie but is deeply inflammatory and fuels Islamophobia.”

RELATED: ‘Rape of Britain’ ignored because of the Muslim vote, UK lawmaker tells Joe Rogan

L-R: Mary Turner/Bloomberg/Getty Images; Carmen Mandato/Getty Images (R)

While the British government officially rejects the idea that Sharia law and Sharia councils have any legal authority in the isles, lawmakers have for years expressed concerns that the councils are forming a parallel legal system.

According to a 2019 parliamentary brief, Sharia courts have existed in the United Kingdom since the 1980s. By 2012, there were at least 30 major Sharia courts in England. According to a 2018 independent review commissioned by the Home Office, the number of Sharia courts in England and Wales is as high as 85.

The 2018 review found that many Muslims couples were not civilly registering their marriages with the appropriate authorities and were therefore reliant on this parallel legal system for resolving marital disputes and securing religious divorces.

The report also found that these Islamic courts engaged in discriminatory practices and that some of the councils inappropriately questioned women, pressured individuals into making financial concessions to obtain a divorce, and in some cases failed to refer domestic violence or child abuse to the police or real courts.

Despite identifying various problems with the parallel legal system, the report effectively recommended tolerance, stating, “We consider the closure of Sharia councils is not a viable option.”

Khan — who recognized in his letter that Sharia councils exist in the U.K. and that they adjudicate religious divorces and “may also give verdicts on other aspects of day-to-day life for Muslims” — made clear that he resents more than just Lowe’s remarks about the Sharia court system.

The Pakistani native complained to the commissioner that the “Rape Gang Inquiry Report” commissioned by Lowe claimed “that ‘Muslim’ gangs are to blame for child sexual abuse in Britain” and “that ‘at the very least, 250,000 young white girls have been subjected to repeated rape, gang rape, trafficking, torture’ primarily by Pakistani Muslim men since mass immigration began in the 1950s.”

Khan suggested that such claims were unfounded and were “Islamophobic.”

RELATED: ‘Beyond evil’: Nightmarish report reveals full scale of mass Islamic rapes of ‘250,000’ white British girls

L-R: OLI SCARFF/AFP/Getty Images; Finnbarr Webster/Getty Images

After leaning on an Al Jazeera commentator’s characterization of Lowe as a neo-Nazi, Khan returned to the matter at hand, claiming that Lowe’s appearance on Rogan’s podcast was “extremely problematic” — especially since Rogan previously “failed to counter [Vice President JD] Vance’s ‘sort of joke’ that the U.K. is heading towards being ‘the first Islamist country with nuclear weapons.'”

‘These are barbaric, medieval and backward Islamic practices that have no place in our country.’

Khan closed his complaint by suggesting his Oxford-born colleague’s “words and actions create a hostile working environment, particularly for Muslim MPs,” and that Lowe’s supposed “rampant racism” warrants an investigation.

Lowe responded to Khan on Friday by sardonically thanking Khan for reporting him to the parliamentary authorities over his appearance on Rogan’s show, the rape gang inquiry, and his criticism of Sharia courts, the burqa, and halal slaughter.

The Englishman claimed that “these are barbaric, medieval and backward Islamic practices that have no place in our country. When Restore Britain gains power, they will all be banned on day one. It will be glorious.”

In addition to forwarding the report and Restore Britain’s mass deportation plan to Khan, Lowe told the Pakistani native, “If you have an issue with my politics — please come directly to me for an adult discussion, rather than running to the authorities in an attempt to censor my views which are held by a large majority of the British complaint.”

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​Afzal khan, Britain, Islam, Joe rogan, Manchester, Muslim, Pakistan, Parliament, Rape, Rape crisis, Rape gang inquiry, Rupert lowe, Uk, United kingdom, Politics 

A former high school counselor in North Carolina is facing serious charges after she allegedly sent sexual content to multiple teens, police said.

The Orange County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement that 37-year-old Lesli Bryant turned herself in to authorities at the magistrate’s office on July 2, one day after she was charged with two counts of indecent liberties with students and one count of sexual exploitation of a minor.

‘It is a felony under NC law for a school employee to engage in sexual activities with a student.’

North Carolina law states that indecent liberties with students is a felony charge:

If a defendant, who is a teacher, school administrator, student teacher, school safety officer, or coach, at any age, or who is other school personnel and is at least four years older than the victim, takes indecent liberties with a victim who is a student, at any time during or after the time the defendant and victim were present together in the same school but before the victim ceases to be a student, the defendant is guilty of a Class G felony, unless the conduct is covered under some other provision of law providing for greater punishment.

A Class G felony is punishable by 10 to 31 months in prison.

Bryant posted a $50,000 secured bond.

WRAL-TV reported that a judge ordered her to have no contact with two alleged victims and to be restricted from entering Orange County Schools property.

The sheriff’s office noted that Bryant resigned from her counselor job at Orange High School on June 12.

A school system spokesperson told the Raleigh News & Observer that Bryant resigned after the district suspended her with pay.

Bryant is not listed in the staff directory for Orange High School or on the website for Orange County Schools.

Police said, “After school administrators notified a school resource officer of allegations of misconduct by Bryant with multiple students, deputies opened an investigation.”

The Raleigh News & Observer obtained the police report that said a teacher notified school administrators about “a possible student-teacher relationship” after a student informed them that Bryant was sending nude photos to another student.

The assistant principal of Orange High School alerted a school resource officer of the allegations on June 4, according to police.

WRAL obtained the arrest warrant stating that Bryant was using the Snapchat app to send nude photos and videos with sexual content.

Bryant, of Hillsborough, asked three teens to send her nude photos of themselves, court documents stated.

The Raleigh News & Observer reported that Bryant at least once allegedly convinced a minor student to send her a nude photo of himself.

A sheriff’s deputy wrote in a supplemental report obtained by the Raleigh News & Observer, “During the process of examining the Snapchat search warrants, it was observed that Lesli had distributed illicit material to at least three different males outside of the victims discussed in this case.”

The officer added, “It should be noted that of these males in question, they appeared to be younger adult males.”

“The situation created by these events brought to light that Lesli was abusing her position within the school to create inappropriate relationships with both current and former students,” according to the supplemental report.

Prosecutors said the alleged incidents began in November 2025 and were as recent as April 2026, and the involved teens were ages 17 and 18 at the time.

RELATED: Video allegedly shows female HS teacher wearing ‘Jesus Loves You’ shirt while having sex with student: Warrants

The North Carolina School Boards Association previously released a guide titled: “Boundary Invasions and Sexual Grooming: What Every School Employee Must Know About Avoiding Inappropriate Staff-Student Relationships.”

“It is a felony under N.C. law for a school employee to engage in sexual activities with a student,” the guide warns. “Consent is not a defense.”

“Sexual misconduct/sexual harassment is a violation of the Code of Ethics and the Standards of Professional Conduct for North Carolina Educators,” the guide reads.

The guide also points out that federal law forbids school systems from assisting any school employee who is convicted of sexual misconduct with a minor in finding another job.

The New York Post reported that Bryant is married with two children.

Police said the investigation is ongoing.

Anyone with information is urged to contact Orange County Sheriff’s Office investigator C. Tapp at 919-245-2964.

Bryant is scheduled to appear in court on July 20.

Neither the Orange County Sheriff’s Office nor Orange County Schools immediately responded to Blaze News‘ requests for comment.

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​Lesli bryant, Teacher student sex scandal, North carolina, Child sex crimes, High school counselor, Crime 

The battle over digital money is one of the most important financial fights happening in Washington today — and chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission Michael Selig is sounding the alarm.

“We saw the crackdown under the Biden administration, all the de-banking and the attacks really on the crypto industry, and Bitcoin’s continued to survive and thrive. And of course, it’s been volatile, but it’s held up as a decentralized currency,” Selig tells Blaze Media co-founder Glenn Beck.

“It’s something that is censorship-resistant, something that the government can’t confiscate,” he adds.

“Are we passing anything that’s saying that cryptocurrency can never become a central bank digital currency? Are you concerned about that at all?” Glenn asks.

“I’m very concerned about central bank digital currencies, and we in the Trump administration have been very clear that that’s not going to happen under our watch,” Selig answers, noting that the president even put out an executive order in January of last year that prohibits central bank digital currencies.

“We put out a report that I was part of on the president’s working group on digital assets that specifically states that it is a policy of this administration to prevent a central bank digital currency from coming to fruition,” he explains.

“But of course, the prior administration was pushing that, and we had to withdraw some of their actions on them,” he adds.

“Is there anybody in Congress — I mean, is there any way to get this passed before this president leaves office?” Glenn asks.

“Well, that’s our concern,” Selig says. “We want things to be future-proof. We need to make sure that a central bank digital currency is never possible, and legislation is the most important and future-proof thing in Washington.”

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​The glenn beck program 

Over the Fourth of July weekend, a soccer coach was killed in Minneapolis, a young man was shot and left fighting for his life, and a 300-person gathering broke into gunfire in northeast Minneapolis two hours after police had already broken it up once, according to police.

Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher says it all traces back to a Somali gang problem that barely existed three years ago and now spans the metro.

‘Great kids.’

The numbers are stark. According to Fletcher, there have been 14 Somali homicides and more than 100 gang-related shootings in the last two years, across roughly a dozen gangs. One Minneapolis officer told Fletcher 20% of Minneapolis homicides are now tied to Somali gangs.

Fletcher is careful to scope it though: Out of roughly 100,000 Somalis in Minnesota, only about 300 young people are actually involved in gangs, and 97% of Somali youth are, in his words, “great kids.” But he warns that 300 could grow to 900 without intervention.

Investigators say it isn’t drug turf or cash driving the gang growth — the gangs haven’t moved into heavy trafficking. It’s status, flexed for an audience — stunts at graduations and the State Fair, posted on social media, with weapons increasingly fitted with switches that make them fully automatic. Kids as young as 12 are reportedly out until 1 or 2 a.m. with no one tracking where they are.

“It’s all about showboating. It’s all about ego for 99% of it,” said Benjamin Seidl, an investigator with the sheriff’s office.

RELATED: JD Vance calls for CRIMINAL investigation into Tim Walz and Keith Ellison over fraud

Michael Siluk/UCG/Universal Images Group/Getty Images

The July 4 weekend itself, which police call their busiest weekend of the year, was unusually violent even by Minneapolis standards — one dead, four injured overnight Saturday into Sunday. Alpha News counted a half-dozen more shootings and assaults within hours, plus fatal violence in the suburbs.

Minneapolis City Council Member Jamal Osman — “the first Somali-American council vice president in Minneapolis history,” according to his bio — said he was “dismayed and deeply disappointed” by Fletcher’s remarks, arguing Somali youth deserve investment and dignity, not a talking point. Fletcher, who’s worked in the Somali community since 2010, has stood by the message.

A community meeting is scheduled for July 21 at the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office patrol station in Arden Hills.

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​Fourth of july, Gang activity, Minneapolis, Somali, Tim walz, Immigrants, Politics 

The case of flight attendants Marli Brown and Lacey Smith is a cautionary tale for corporate America about what happens when ideological conformity takes precedence over religious liberty.

In February 2021, Alaska Airlines announced its support for the Equality Act on the company’s internal communications platform, Alaska’s World. The airline invited employees to comment, promoting the forum as a place where “our differences make us better when we support and respect each other, allowing each of us to be who we are.”

Companies have a legitimate interest in maintaining productive workplaces. They do not have the right to demand ideological uniformity on disputed questions.

Brown and Smith took the company at its word.

Both raised concerns about the proposed legislation rooted in their Christian faith. Brown warned that the Equality Act would “endanger the Church” and “eliminate conscience protections.” Smith asked: “As a company, do you think it’s possible to regulate morality?”

Alaska Airlines investigated and fired both women on the same day, citing violations of its anti-discrimination and anti-harassment policies.

In other words, the airline treated modest and widely held religious concerns about pending federal legislation as fireable harassment — in a forum the company itself created for open discussion.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently rejected that reasoning.

The court noted that Brown’s post “on its face reflected the expression of religious belief” and that both Alaska Airlines and the flight attendants’ union understood it that way.

Internal company emails revealed the attitude behind the terminations. One employee in Alaska Airlines’ legal department wrote, “Employees actually do not have the right to believe that LGBTQ rights are ‘immoral.’” A vice president replied, “I 100% agree.”

That exchange goes to the heart of the case.

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits employers from discriminating against employees because of religion. The law defines religion broadly to include “all aspects of religious observance and practice, as well as belief.”

Employers cannot escape that command by relabeling disfavored religious beliefs as harassment.

RELATED: MLB’s Pride police strike out against Christian players

Blaze Media Illustration

Yet some corporations increasingly treat religious objections to progressive social policies as inherently discriminatory. That turns civil rights law on its head. Protections meant to guard employees against religious discrimination become tools for punishing the religious convictions themselves.

The facts here are especially striking because Alaska Airlines created the very forum in which Brown and Smith spoke.

The company encouraged employees to share their views and promised a “safe space culture where employees feel empowered to have open and critical dialogue.” Alaska Airlines also acknowledged internally that the issue raised religious freedom concerns.

The company knew religious objections were likely. Then it fired the employees who expressed them.

Judge Daniel Bress, writing for the Ninth Circuit majority, put the problem plainly: “Alaska created a forum for employee discussion on controversial issues, then fired Brown after she made religious objections of the kind Alaska anticipated.”

The court concluded that a reasonable jury could find Alaska Airlines’ stated reasons for the firing pretextual and determine that the company “used the cover of its employee policies to fire Brown because of her religious beliefs.”

The union’s conduct adds another troubling layer.

The Association of Flight Attendants was supposed to represent Brown and Smith. Instead, union officials criticized and mocked their religious concerns.

The union president texted Alaska Airlines executives, “I wish fewer people would struggle so much with unifying their faith with inclusivity.” The court found that remark could reasonably be interpreted as disparaging religious belief.

Another union representative suggested that someone should “put Marli and Lacey in a burlap bag and drop them in a well.”

Those are not the words of neutral representatives. They reveal contempt for religious belief — precisely the kind of animus Title VII forbids.

The Ninth Circuit’s decision draws an important line.

Employers may protect employees from genuine harassment. But they must distinguish between expression intended to demean co-workers and an employee’s opposition to company policy or advocacy on a contested public issue.

RELATED: Trump 2.0 puts religious liberty back on offense

Joebelanger/Getty Images

Brown and Smith did not threaten or demean anyone. They raised concerns about legislation affecting religious liberty.

Companies have a legitimate interest in maintaining productive workplaces. They do not have the right to demand ideological uniformity on disputed questions of law, morality, and public policy.

When employers invite diverse views and then punish employees for expressing religious ones, they betray their own promises and risk violating federal law.

Religious freedom is not a privilege granted at an employer’s discretion. It is a fundamental civil right.

That protection is especially important in the workplace, where most Americans spend much of their waking lives.

Employers that genuinely value diversity and inclusion must make room for religious employees.

The Ninth Circuit has now held that Brown and Smith presented enough evidence for a jury to conclude that Alaska Airlines and the union discriminated against them because of their faith.

When this case goes to trial, we are confident that is exactly what the jury will find.

​Alaska airlines, Christian faith, Civil rights act, Inclusivity, Religious liberty, Diversity and inclusion, Dei, Pride, Lgbtq agenda, Opinion & analysis 

I do not believe the actual deportation and self-deportation numbers are anywhere near the roughly 3 million claimed in Department of Homeland Security press releases.

This is more than a hunch. The published figures appear mathematically impossible.

If a population roughly equal to that of New Mexico left the United States, there should be visible statistical evidence.

That is a serious problem, which is why the Oversight Project has announced a lawsuit to force the DHS to release the underlying data.

Some people will be surprised that a Trump-aligned legal and investigative organization, best known for exposing the autopen scandal, is suing the administration’s Department of Homeland Security.

Here is why.

Trump’s central promise

Immigration enforcement has been the central thesis of President Trump’s political career.

It began with “build the wall” after he descended the golden escalator in 2015. He returned to office with 77 million votes after promising mass deportation.

Agenda 47 contained only 20 major promises. The first was to secure the border, and the administration deserves enormous credit for doing so — even as House Republicans refuse to codify those gains without attaching amnesty for illegal farmworkers.

The second promise was to conduct the largest deportation operation in American history.

Trump repeatedly indicated that this meant surpassing President Dwight Eisenhower’s 1954 operation, which some estimates say reduced the illegal population by 31% in a single year.

With two and a half years remaining in office, Trump is entering the period when presidents begin thinking seriously about legacy.

If “promises made, promises kept” is to mean anything, the deportation machinery must begin operating at full capacity now. Only then can removals reach the millions during the administration’s final years and surpass Eisenhower’s record.

Trump has the resources to do it. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is better funded and equipped than ever.

The administration should direct ICE toward high-density workplaces where illegal labor is concentrated — factories, farms, hotels, restaurants, warehouses, and meatpacking facilities — while imposing serious penalties on employers who knowingly hire illegal aliens.

That is how the numbers begin rising rapidly.

Surpassing Eisenhower would be the natural culmination of Trump’s political career. It would fulfill the promise at the center of his movement and provide the necessary answer to the Biden years, when roughly 10 million illegal aliens were allowed into the country and dispersed throughout American communities.

Those illegal aliens are still here. Trump can still remove them.

RELATED: The birthright ruling leaves Trump one clear move

Samuel Corum/Sipa/Bloomberg/Getty Images

The amnesty lobby needs inflated numbers

The second reason for demanding transparency is that the amnesty lobby does not care what Trump promised.

Many Republicans rolled their eyes when he pledged mass deportation. They quickly began trying to narrow enforcement to a small category of the “worst of the worst” criminals.

The reason is obvious: The amnesty lobby, especially its Republican wing, is in love with cheap illegal labor. Its members fiercely oppose worksite enforcement, even though worksite enforcement is the only realistic way to generate removals on the scale Trump promised.

They are already preparing their next push for what they will call “comprehensive immigration reform,” the familiar euphemism for mass amnesty.

The Dignidad Act has roughly 20 Republican co-sponsors. The Securing Agriculture’s Workforce Act of 2026, another amnesty proposal for illegal farm laborers, has attracted more than 40.

Congress is also considering reauthorization of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act. Over time, that law has encouraged migration from noncontiguous countries and fed migrants into labor- and sex-trafficking networks.

It has also created a funding stream for left-wing nongovernmental organizations now suing the Trump administration, undermining both the war on fraud and the work once associated with the DOGE.

The House and Senate are full of pro-amnesty Republicans financed by industries that profit from cheap labor. Most are not going anywhere soon.

Their preferred argument is predictable: Enough people have already been deported. Now it is time to make a deal.

We will not allow them to make that case using inflated numbers.

The amnesty lobby used the same tactic during the Obama administration. It combined border returns with formal removals to portray Barack Obama as the “deporter in chief.”

The goal was to make Obama look tough enough to create political space for amnesty. That strategy produced the Gang of Eight amnesty bill, which collapsed after a national populist revolt, and the unlawful Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.

That revolt also helped create the conditions for Trump’s rise.

I was born at night, but not last night.

The amnesty lobby is preparing to run the same play again.

The numbers don’t add up

The third reason for the lawsuit is simple: The public deserves the real figures.

The DHS recently gave several media outlets the following statement:

In President Trump’s first year back in office, more than 3 million illegal aliens have left the U.S. because of the Trump administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration, including an estimated 2.2 million self-deportations. As of June 24, we have now deported over 948,000 illegal aliens and arrested over 981,000 illegal aliens.

Consider the first sentence.

It refers specifically to Trump’s first year back in office, from January 20, 2025, through January 20 of this year. The same claim appeared on the DHS website.

If 3 million people left and 2.2 million supposedly self-deported, that leaves approximately 800,000 formal deportations or removals.

But DHS has provided no evidence supporting the claim that 2.2 million people self-deported.

The administration has pointed to the CBP Home app, yet only about 72,000 people reportedly used it to leave as of March. I have reason to believe even that number may be overstated.

That leaves a gulf of more than 2 million people.

RELATED: A real nation knows who is in and who is out

Blaze Media Illustration

If a population roughly equal to that of New Mexico left the United States, there should be visible statistical evidence. School enrollments, rental markets, remittance flows, employment records, border crossings, airline bookings, and foreign-government data should all reflect it.

The DHS should be able to produce that evidence.

Now consider the claimed 800,000 deportations during Trump’s first year.

The department’s fiscal year 2027 Congressional Budget Justification states that the DHS and ICE removed or returned 442,637 illegal aliens during fiscal year 2025, which included several months of the Biden administration.

That figure combines removals, which are closer to formal deportations, with returns, which often occur at the border.

Even with those categories combined, the official budget figure is little more than half the number implied by the press release.

The second sentence creates an even larger problem. If 800,000 people were deported during Trump’s first year, how could the cumulative total be only 948,000 seven months into 2026?

That would mean the administration deported only 148,000 people during those seven months.

The numbers do not add up.

Anyone who travels the country, follows social media, or watches television knows skepticism about these claims is now widespread. That is creating a political problem, especially among young Republican men who rank immigration enforcement and national sovereignty among their highest priorities.

Fortunately, the problem is fixable.

The administration can expand full-scale worksite enforcement and produce real, rapidly increasing removal numbers. It can then release those figures transparently, every month, with the same attention given to the jobs report.

Mass deportation is part of the glue holding Trump’s coalition together.

Regular, verifiable reporting would generate enthusiasm and demonstrate that the administration has not retreated from its defining promise.

The Oversight Project does not want Trump to fail. We want him to succeed.

That begins with knowing the real numbers.

​Dhs, Ice, Immigration, Mass deportations, Trump, Dignity act, Congress, Republicans, Gop, Eisenhower, Opinion & analysis