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Category: blaze media
Epstein-funded MIT lab hosted panel that discussed ‘child-size sex robots’
A lengthy MIT Media Lab panel on “Forbidden Research” featured a segment on studying pedophiles and whether or not “child-size sex robots” should be provided to them.
The discussion lasted about nine hours when it was webcast in 2016, with the after-lunch portion of the event dedicated to a discussion on the study of pedophilia.
The discussion was uncovered as the saga surrounding deceased child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein is ongoing, with the public clamoring for more information about the shadowy elite financier’s life. The topic of the panel was revealed to be even more disturbing considering the lab’s financial ties to Epstein.
‘Courts don’t know what to do with these because no child has been harmed in making them.’
Around the five-hour mark of the event, Dr. Kate Darling took the stage to start the off-putting discussion.
“Once child-size sex robots hit the market, which they will, is the use of these robots going to be a healthy outlet for people to express these sexual urges and thus protect children and reduce child abuse? Or is the use of these robots going to encourage, normalize, propagate that behavior and endanger children in these people’s environments?” Darling asked.
The Swiss doctor works in robotics and is a research scientist at MIT. She also holds the position of lead for ethics and society at the Boston Dynamics AI Institute, per her website.
Darling went on to say that “we just don’t know the answer” to whether or not to let pedophiles use the “sex robots,” mostly due to the restrictions around what that research might look like.
“I understand why people want reporting requirements,” Darling continued. “But I do wonder whether they’re doing more harm than good in these cases. Because as much as people want these sexual urges — the urges, not the act — to be a moral failing, they are a psychological issue, and if we really care about helping children, we might need to be a little bit more pre-emptive about this.”
While the panel seemed to recognize the discomfort their discussion would cause, it cannot be ignored that the MIT lab had received funding from Epstein during the same years it took place.
In 2019, Joi Ito, former director of the MIT Media Lab, admitted that the lab had “received money through some of the foundations” that Epstein controlled.
Ito resigned following a blockbuster New Yorker report detailing internal evidence that Ito and staff members accepted Epstein’s funds and worked to hide their source even though Epstein had been blacklisted by MIT. Epstein was also alleged to have been consulted about the use of funds and utilized as an intermediary between the lab and other wealthy donors.
Ito said he had taken $525,000 in funding from Epstein for the media lab, with MIT receiving $800,000 in total from Epstein over a period of 20 years.
“I vow to raise an amount equivalent to the donations the Media Lab received from Epstein and will direct those funds to nonprofits that focus on supporting survivors of trafficking,” Ito added at the time.
RELATED: Wikipedia co-founder: Epstein, elite rings, and occult portals — what they don’t want you to know
The Media Lab on the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts, 2023. Simon Simard/Bloomberg via Getty Images
MIT responded to a request for comment from the Daily Caller and said it did not wish to comment on “the individually held and freely expressed views of any particular community member. The views of any individual community member are their own.”
The school said it has also taken a “number of steps” to change its gift acceptance and donation processes and has been donating to “four nonprofits supporting survivors of sexual abuse.”
Dr. Darling did not respond to Blaze News’ request for comment.
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Return, Robots, Epstein, Mit, Lab, Pedophiles, Tech
Tulsi Gabbard orders ‘unprecedented’ release of MLK assassination files
As the Trump administration continues to grapple with the botched Epstein file release, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard has stepped up to the plate.
On Monday, Gabbard released over 230,000 pages of documents related to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination in accordance with President Donald Trump’s executive order. This “unprecedented” release includes information about the FBI’s investigation, the “discussion of potential leads,” internal memos, documents from James Earl Ray’s former cellmate, as well as “never-before-seen” CIA records pertaining to the case.
‘The declassification and release of these documents are a historic step towards the truth.’
“The American people have waited nearly sixty years to see the full scope of the federal government’s investigation into Dr. King’s assassination,” Gabbard said in a joint statement. “Under President Trump’s leadership, we are ensuring that no stone is left unturned in our mission to deliver complete transparency on this pivotal and tragic event in our nation’s history. I extend my deepest appreciation to the King family for their support.”
“The American people deserve answers decades after the horrific assassination of one of our nation’s great leaders,” Attorney General Pam Bondi said in the statement. “The Department of Justice is proud to partner with Director Gabbard and the ODNI at President Trump’s direction for this latest disclosure.”
RELATED: FBI, DOJ Epstein memo sparks right-wing outrage: ‘Nobody is believing this’
Although some documents were previously made public, the ODNI will for the first time digitize and publish the records online “with minimal redactions for privacy reasons.” In accordance with Trump’s executive order, the only documents to have previously been digitized were those related to former President John F. Kennedy’s assassination.
RELATED: Bongino and Bondi clash over botched handling of Epstein files
Photo by Stephen F. Somerstein/Getty Images
“I am grateful to President Trump and DNI Gabbard for delivering on their pledge of transparency in the release of these documents on the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.,” Dr. Alveda King said in the statement. “My uncle lived boldly in pursuit of truth and justice, and his enduring legacy of faith continues to inspire Americans to this day. While we continue to mourn his death, the declassification and release of these documents are a historic step towards the truth that the American people deserve.”
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Dni, Tulsi gabbard, Pam bondi, Donald trump, Epstein, Mlk, Mlk assassination, Jfk, Jfk assassination, Jfk files, Mlk files, Epstein files, Doj, Trump administration, Politics
From Obama to CNN: How the liberal media helped facilitate the ‘treasonous conspiracy’ about Russian collusion
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard has released a treasure trove of evidence revealing how former President Barack Obama and his national security Cabinet members had, as many long suspected, apparently “manufactured and politicized intelligence to lay the groundwork for what was essentially a years-long coup against President Trump.”
Both before and after the 2016 election, the understanding among intelligence officials appears to have been that Russia had likely not interfered, particularly by using cyber means, to influence the outcome.
Gabbard revealed, however, that before this conclusion could be delivered to the American public, the Obama White House seemingly intervened to set an alternative narrative — a narrative largely based on the Steele dossier, a political opposition research report paid for in part by the Clinton campaign, which the intelligence community knew to be devoid of credibility.
‘They weren’t in Russia; they never made a phone call to Russia; they never received a phone call.’
This false narrative, which was initially fed piecemeal through leaks to the liberal media and then officially advanced through a reworked intelligence assessment published on Jan. 6, 2017, served “as the basis for countless smears seeking to delegitimize President Trump’s victory, the years-long Mueller investigation, two Congressional impeachments, high-level officials being investigated, arrested, and thrown in jail, heightened U.S.-Russia tensions, and more,” Gabbard said.
The success of what Gabbard characterized as a “treasonous conspiracy” was largely reliant on the participation of the liberal media, whose assistance took on various forms but in some cases was as simple as framing unnamed partisan sources from the previous administration not only as credible but noble.
For instance, in March 2017, the New York Times explained away Obama officials’ eagerness to push the Russian collusion narrative before President Donald Trump took office not as an attempt to “make an excuse for their own defeat in the election,” as then-White House spokesman Sean Spicer put it, but rather as a heroic effort to protect legitimate intelligence from obfuscation or destruction:
Mr. Trump has denied that his campaign had any contact with Russian officials, and at one point he openly suggested that American spy agencies had cooked up intelligence suggesting that the Russian government had tried to meddle in the presidential election. Mr. Trump has accused the Obama administration of hyping the Russia story line as a way to discredit his new administration. At the Obama White House, Mr. Trump’s statements stoked fears among some that intelligence could be covered up or destroyed — or its sources exposed — once power changed hands. What followed was a push to preserve the intelligence that underscored the deep anxiety with which the White House and American intelligence agencies had come to view the threat from Moscow.
This explanation was followed paragraphs later by the claim that Obama directed none of the efforts.
Photo by Saul Loeb – Pool/Getty Images
One month prior, Trump — whose transition team emphasized early on that the intelligence agencies alleging Russian interference were “the same people that said Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction” — called the Russia narrative a “scam.”
“You can talk all you want about Russia, which was all a, you know, fake news, fabricated deal, to try and make up for the loss of the Democrats, and the press plays right into it,” Trump said during a Feb. 16, 2017, press conference. “In fact, I saw a couple of the people that were supposedly involved with all of this — that they know nothing about it; they weren’t in Russia; they never made a phone call to Russia; they never received a phone call.”
The Poynter Institute’s PolitiFact, among the publications that made good use of the reworked intelligence assessment, leaned on the apparently Obama-skewed document when insinuating that Trump’s remarks at the press conference were false.
The Washington Post, which was among the biggest media proponents of the hoax, readily and routinely leaned on the input and framing of fierce Trump critics, including those apparently involved in the manufacture of the Russian collusion hoax, such as ex-CIA Director John Brennan.
In its long-standing effort to portray Trump as guilty and defensive, the paper also tracked how many times the president and those in the White House denied Russian collusion.
‘The integrity of our democratic republic demands that every person involved be investigated and brought to justice to prevent this from ever happening again.’
Unhinged Trump critics such as Anne Applebaum, the writer who smeared as propagandists early proponents of the pandemic lab-leak theory and wasted ink last year imagining parallels between Trump and various 20th-century dictators, kept Washington Post readers’ hope alive that they were getting closer to “direct evidence” of collusion, while over at CNN commentators worked as if it there were proof that Russia interfered to get Trump elected.
Photographer: Will Oliver/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Former CNN editor at large Chris Cillizza suggested in a 2018 piece that Trump’s refusal to play along with the hoax was a likely sign that Moscow had compromising information on the president. This, for Cillizza, made more sense than the notion “in Trump’s mind [that] any talk of Russian interference in the election is an attempt to undermine the ‘brilliant campaign’ (his words) he ran in 2016 and somehow invalidate his victory.”
Days later, CNN’s Marshall Cohen identified “10 ways Trump has strayed from his own intelligence agencies on Russian meddling” — a piece that now serves to memorialize the media’s misplaced faith in the intelligence community and to vindicate Trump’s skepticism.
While the newly released documents from the DNI both salt the remains of the Russian collusion hoax and justify Trump’s use of the term “fake news” in reference to numerous publications, the documents could prove far more impactful for those who constructed the false narrative. After all, Gabbard referred the documents to the Department of Justice for potential prosecution.
“These documents detail a treasonous conspiracy by officials at the highest levels of the Obama White House to subvert the will of the American people and try to usurp the President from fulfilling his mandate,” Gabbard wrote.
The director of national intelligence added, “The integrity of our democratic republic demands that every person involved be investigated and brought to justice to prevent this from ever happening again.”
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Coup, Conspiracy, Barack obama, Obama, Hillary clinton, Donald trump, Tulsi gabbard, Dni, Odni, Fake news, Leftism, Democrat, Lies, Narrative, Russiagate, Russian collusion, Russia, Russia hoax, Politics
‘F**k you!’ Hunter Biden explodes over deportations in interview about his dad, immigration, and George Clooney
Former first son Hunter Biden went on several expletive-laden rants about issues ranging from illegal immigration to the treatment of his father by the media.
Biden spoke to “Channel 5 with Andrew Callaghan,” a left-wing YouTube channel that has long covered Donald Trump rallies and interviewed strange characters.
The former president’s son gave a whopping three-hour interview highlighted by comments he made about President Biden’s cognitive capabilities, coupled with a vehement condemnation of the deportation of illegal immigrants.
‘By the numbers, what influence does Jake Tapper have over anything? He has the smallest audience on cable news.’
Clips of Biden were seen by millions in mere hours, including the 55-year-old disagreeing with Democrats who have pointed out that American citizens are upset with illegal immigration.
“All these Democrats say, ‘You have to talk about and realize that people are really upset about illegal immigration,'” Biden told the host before quickly escalating his rhetoric.
“F**k you! How do you think your hotel room gets cleaned? How do you think you have food on your f**king table? Who do you think washes your dishes? Who do you think does your f**king garden?” Biden ranted.
After listing a series of job categories frequently filled by illegal labor, Biden claimed that illegal immigrants have admirable determination.
RELATED: How the Biden regime went from ‘scamdemic’ to sympathy tour
“Who do you think is here by the f**king, sheer f**king just grit and will that they figured out a way to get here because they thought that they could give theirselves and their family a better chance?” Biden said of the illegal aliens.
Biden also stated that he did not believe illegal immigrants are criminals, but his comments later on about his father’s obvious cognitive decline on the 2024 campaign trail made for more fiery television.
Biden lashed out at celebrities and commentators who pointed out his father’s decline, and he frequently used curse words to describe the ethics of President Biden’s detractors.
First, Biden unleashed on actor George Clooney, who penned a New York Times op-ed suggesting that Joe Biden resign as nominee for the Democratic Party.
“F**k him. F**k him. F**k him and everybody around him. I don’t have to be f**king nice,” Biden unloaded.
The Delaware native also discredited political analysts like James Carville and David Axelrod for what he described as their lack of accomplishments. Biden then decided it was CNN host Jake Tapper’s turn. Tapper released a book in May, an exposé citing insider reports about President Biden’s brain functions.
Biden criticized Tapper for doing “a two-week informercial” to promote the book, even though Tapper’s “ratings just went to s**t after he put the book out.”
“I mean, it was such a money grab, such a disservice to everybody that he serves with,” Biden continued, while also mocking the size of Tapper’s audience.
“By the numbers, what influence does Jake Tapper have over anything? He has the smallest audience on cable news.”
Biden was also asked about his father’s debate performance against President Trump, which, by most accounts, was the spiritual end to his campaign.
RELATED: Jill Biden’s ‘shadowy’ chief of staff clams up during autopen probe
US President Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden hug on stage at the Democratic National Convention on August 19, 2024. Photo by Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP) (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)
Biden chalked up his father’s appearance to globe-trotting jet lag.
“I know exactly what happened in that debate. He flew around the world basically. … He’s 81 years old. He’s tired as s**t. [They] give him Ambien to be able to sleep. He gets up on the stage, and he looks like he’s a deer in the headlights.”
Other topics in the discussion included Biden admitting to drinking “almost a handle of vodka a day” and the physical toll crack cocaine takes on the body. However, he insisted that alcoholism is far worse than crack addiction.
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News, Jake tapper, Cnn, President biden, Trump, Debate, Illegal immigration, Hunter biden, George clooney, Politics
Liberals really want to believe Colbert’s show was canceled for political reasons
Many on the left continue to insist CBS canceled Stephen Colbert’s show due to political pressure from the Trump administration, despite the fact that the show simply cost more money than it produced.
Progressive writer Molly Jong-Fast told MSNBC on Monday that Colbert’s show ending is “simply not funny, but also really scary.”
‘Do you not see all the observers who are expressing huge doubts?’
She further indicated that it was yet another incident of “self-censorship” prompted by the federal government. “Our government has done this before,” she said, adding that “history is very much filled with moments like this.”
Former NPR CEO Vivian Schiller said the recent events at CBS prove that “this has not been a great week for free speech and speaking truth to power, without a doubt.” After calling the financial reasons given by CBS “circumstantial,” Schiller went on to say they do not make sense because the parent company “has spent money on other things.”
CNN’s chief media analyst, Brian Stelter, even talked with insiders at CBS, who told him “even when speaking frankly on condition of anonymity, that the move was financially driven, not politically motivated.”
Despite hearing that information directly from those at the company, Stelter went on to write, “Many observers have huge doubts about that, given that Colbert has been an outspoken critic of President Trump.”
RELATED: Farewell to Stephen Colbert, fake laughs, and lame late-night bias
Photo by CBS Photo Archive / Contributor via Getty Images
When an X user pointed out how ridiculous it looked to continue blaming a political motivation for the show’s end, Stelter defended his framing.
“Do you not see all the observers who are expressing huge doubts?” Stelter said.
RELATED: Brian Stelter suggests media partly to blame for ‘warning fatigue’ amid tragic flood deaths
“In other words, people not involved in this and don’t know what’s going on. Meanwhile, the people who are involved and do know what’s going on are telling you why it happened even with the safety of anonymity. Explain to me why you give equal weight to these two groups,” user @neontaster replied.
It appears that being unable to turn a profit was not the only issue plaguing Colbert’s show. When “The Daily Show” alum took over after David Letterman retired, the average age of viewers was 60. In the 10 years since, the show’s average age has increased to 68.
Although the show is ending, it is not going away anytime soon. The show will officially end in 2026.
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Politics
Trump admin pulls troops from Los Angeles after being accused of ‘militarization’ by California lawmakers
After histrionic accusations from Democratic lawmakers in California about the “militarization” of Los Angeles by the Trump administration, the Pentagon said all of the troops were being pulled.
President Donald Trump had ordered the troops into L.A. after protests against immigration enforcement efforts turned into violent rioting in the days after June 7. Mayor Karen Bass (D) and Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) both downplayed the violence in order to oppose what they claimed was “illegal militarization” ordered by the president.
‘The federal government is turning the military against American citizens. This is unprecedented and threatens the very core of our democracy.’
On Monday, military officials said 700 active-duty Marines were leaving Los Angeles after ordering 2,000 federalized California National Guardsmen the week prior to leave the city.
Pentagon chief spokesperson Sean Parnell released a statement about the decision to ABC News.
“With stability returning to Los Angeles, [Sec. of Defense Pete Hegseth] has directed the redeployment of the 700 Marines whose presence sent a clear message: Lawlessness will not be tolerated,” said Parnell. “Their rapid response, unwavering discipline, and unmistakable presence were instrumental in restoring order and upholding the rule of law. We’re deeply grateful for their service, and for the strength and professionalism they brought to this mission.”
However, 2,000 guardsmen will stay in Los Angeles to defend federal buildings.
Newsom and Bass had accused the president of inciting the rioting by ramping up deportation efforts in Los Angeles and of taking advantage of the rioting to militarize the streets.
“This was provoked by the White House,” said Bass to reporters in June. “The reason why, we don’t know. I posit that we are part of a national experiment to determine how far the federal government can go in reaching in and taking over power from a governor, power from a jurisdiction, and frankly leaving our city and our citizens, our residents, in fear.”
RELATED: Los Angeles Mayor Bass sues Trump admin to protect illegal aliens from mass deportations
“I just filed an emergency motion in court to immediately block the ongoing and unnecessary militarization of Los Angeles,” wrote Newsom on June 10. “The federal government is turning the military against American citizens. This is unprecedented and threatens the very core of our democracy.”
The governor was initially successful, but the Trump administration very quickly won in appeals court and was allowed to maintain the troop presence in Los Angeles.
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Troops in los angeles, Marines sent to la, National guard sent to la, La ice riots, Politics
Quick Fix: Why are there so many uninsured drivers — and how can I protect myself?
Hi, I’m Lauren Fix, longtime automotive journalist and a member of the Society of Automotive Engineers. Welcome back to “Quick Fix,” where I answer car-related questions you submit to me.
Today’s question comes from Bob in California:
Hi Lauren,
What is the current rate of uninsured motorists? I live in California, and it seems like 1 out every 6 drivers has no insurance. That has to have an enormous impact on insurance costs.
Furthermore, it doesn’t seem like in CA they are impounding these cars or attempting to get people to pony up for insurance.
What are your thoughts?
You are correct, Bob: California has a significant issue with uninsured drivers.
According to estimates from the California Department of Motor Vehicles and the Insurance Information Institute, approximately 17% of California drivers are uninsured as of 2025. This translates to roughly 4.7 million uninsured motorists out of the state’s 27.65 million licensed drivers.
So your estimate that “1 out of every 6 drivers” lack insurance is spot-on.
It’s a big mess, and it’s hitting insured drivers hard, inflating premiums and leaving responsible drivers to foot the bill for others’ negligence. California’s new 2025 liability minimums are a step toward better protection, but they’re also pushing premiums up, which could ironically increase the uninsured rate as low-income drivers get priced out. It’s a tough cycle to break.
Fines and impoundment are on the books, but they’re not aggressively enforced enough to deter the sheer volume of uninsured drivers.
Impounding vehicles sounds effective, but it’s costly for authorities and politically sensitive, especially in poor communities. Electronic verification systems could help, but they’re only as good as the follow-through — random checks or sting operations might catch more violators.
What can you do to protect yourself as a law-abiding California driver? Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage, or UM/UIM, is a must. I’d recommend boosting your UM/UIM limits to at least $100,000/$300,000 or higher if affordable, as medical and repair costs can skyrocket.
To solve this problem, California needs a multipronged approach: tougher enforcement, more impoundments, stricter DMV checks, better access to affordable insurance, and public campaigns to stress the risks of driving uninsured.
Until then, insured drivers like you are stuck subsidizing the system. It’s frustrating, but arming yourself with solid coverage and staying vocal about enforcement gaps can make a difference.
And unfortunately, it’s not just a problem in California. Across the U.S., about 14% of drivers — roughly 1 in 7 — are uninsured, with states like Washington, D.C. (25%) and New Mexico (25%) leading the pack, driving up premiums for everyone else. Check your state’s uninsured motorist rate and consider adding UM/UIM coverage to protect yourself on the road.
Got a car-related question? Email me at getquickfix@pm.me.
Align cars, Quick fix, Lauren fix, Lifestyle, How to, Cars, Uninsured motorists, Car insurance, Liabilty, California, Uninsured motorist coverage
Is this how we beat China? Trump’s AI dream guts small-town USA
Imagine Arab sheik-funded AI supercenters dotting rural America, staffed by foreign labor, draining local water and power, and hollowing out small-town life — all so Big Tech can build its digital technocracy. Sounds like the globalist Agenda 2030 schemes we’ve warned about for years. But shockingly, it’s now become the Trump administration’s top priority.
President Trump’s team is pushing to override red-state zoning laws and fast-track thousands of these massive data centers. The losers? Small-town Americans. The winners? The “rich men north of Richmond.”
Who is looking out for the people when Trump and the globalists are on the same side? “We have to beat China” is the rallying cry — a lazy excuse to silence questions and crush local regulations. But we need AI that serves productivity, not a technocracy that rules over us.
Noise levels hit 96 decibels. Imagine a leaf blower that never turns off. Would you want that in your backyard? It may be coming sooner than you think.
Trump’s “Stargate” plan would spend a staggering half-trillion dollars — public and private — to build thousands of AI data centers. It’s like rushing to amputate a limb. Sometimes it’s necessary, but any sane person would demand second and third opinions first.
Yet, instead of debate, we got betrayal. Tucked quietly into the One Big Beautiful Bill Act was a provision from AI czar David Sacks banning all state regulation of AI systems for 10 years. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) gaslit us, claiming this would stop California’s tech tyranny. In truth, it targets Trump’s own base: farmers, ranchers, and rural voters. Just like eminent domain carve-outs for green energy, it strips local power to benefit Big Tech.
Even before Stargate breaks ground, rural Trump country is already grappling with AI data centers draining water, electricity, and property values. Telling locals to shut up because “we must beat China” is pure demagoguery.
Copying China’s playbook
Meanwhile, the same administration opening the floodgates for these projects is also welcoming hundreds of thousands of Chinese tech students. This is déjà vu from the post-9/11 security state. Back then, we cracked down on Americans while doubling immigration from the very regions funding terror. It was never about safety — it was always about the grift.
Across Trump country, protests are swelling against these land and energy grabs. You can almost hear Oliver Anthony’s lyrics echoing over the farmland: “These rich men north of Richmond … wanna know what you think, wanna know what you do.”
The point of AI should be to improve our lives — not force us to sacrifice local resources and freedoms so it can exist as a modern Baal.
Troubling open-ended questions about what this “data god” will be used for lay heavily on these conversations, and it’s quite hard not to envision it being used for control. We’re told we must become like China to beat China, yet what we’re building is arguably worse. And the more immediate consequence will be irreparable damage to our rural landscapes and national power grid.
Rural communities bear the cost
Is it any wonder rural communities want to use local zoning laws to at least slow this stampede? These areas have land, fewer regulations, and desperate politicians eager for new investment. Big Tech knows exactly who to target.
Virginia’s Loudoun and Prince William Counties were early victims. Now, the industry is setting sights on Northwest Georgia, rural Oklahoma, Texas, and Arizona. What these projects promise is anything but rural tranquility.
RELATED: Trump bets big on AI to make America dominant again
Photo by Alvarez via Getty Images
A single proposed project in American Township, Ohio, for example, was slated to cover nearly 170 acres. Consider that 4,750 of these leviathans were expected to break ground just this year. What’s going to happen to America’s countryside once the thousands of data centers scheduled for this year alone are built, in addition to the subsequent thousands we can expect in the coming years?
According to the Institute for Energy Research, by 2030, data centers’ electricity consumption is on track to surpass the entire electricity consumption of Japan today. In the United States, that number will account for almost half of the growth in electricity demand between now and 2030. In short, in just a few years, data centers will consume more energy than what is currently required for manufacturing all energy-intensive goods — such as aluminum, steel, and cement — combined.
The strain on water is even more concerning. A single large data center can consume upwards of five million gallons of water per day to cool the vast arrays of servers — the equivalent of a small city. Much of the water use is consumptive, meaning it evaporates and is not returned to the local watershed.
In water-scarce regions, such as Arizona — one of the primary locations targeted for these water centers — this can put a tremendous strain on already limited resources, creating a new and powerful competitor for a resource that is essential for farming, ranching, and residential life.
The daily toll of these data centers in rural America is already steep. Backup generators and cooling fans roar day and night. Locals near Virginia sites compare it to “a lawnmower in your living room 24/7.” Noise levels hit 96 decibels. Imagine a leaf blower that never turns off. Would you want that in your backyard?
It may be coming sooner than you think.
Moreover, thousands of AI data centers would destroy much of America’s rural landscapes — rolling hills replaced by giant, windowless warehouses. Yes, ugly infrastructure like power plants is sometimes essential — but at least they provide energy to the community. These data centers take energy away. A handful would be one thing. Thousands amount to a dystopia.
A better AI future
The United States could secure its lead in the AI era not by copying foreign actors’ brute-force, centralized strategy — which imposes staggering burdens on local communities — but by fostering an agile, resilient, and open ecosystem. Instead of merely stockpiling raw processing power, we should prioritize building AI systems that are accurate, reliable, globally accessible, and seamlessly integrate with existing technology.
Decentralized AI infrastructure, often pairing AI with blockchain, offers a smarter path. It keeps data under local control, bolsters privacy, complies with local laws, and dramatically cuts the risk of catastrophic breaches tied to massive single points of failure. It also encourages flexibility, allowing open-source models to flourish and adapt more quickly than bureaucratic mega-projects ever could.
If we truly want an AI future that serves American families — not Big Tech oligarchs or foreign monarchs — we must champion technology that empowers people, protects communities, and respects the land. Anything less isn’t just bad policy. It’s a betrayal of the very America these rural voters fight to preserve.
Opinion & analysis, Opinion, Ai, Artificial intelligence, Big beautiful bill, Ai data center, Environment, China, David sacks, Agenda 2030, Globalism, Gulf states, Stargate, Land grab, Eminent domain, Loudoun county, Prince william county, Virginia, Ohio, American township, Institute for energy research, Water, Landscape, Nature, Local control, Ecosystem, Blockchain, Privacy, Big tech
Campaign office for Ocasio-Cortez vandalized with far-left message
Vandals who struck a campaign office for far-left Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York wrote a left-wing message on a sign at the site.
New York City police said they responded to a call directing them to the campaign office on Herschell Street in the Bronx at 12:45 a.m. Monday.
‘We see a lot of this stuff. We’re going to review our cameras and that of the building too.’
Vandals had splashed red paint at the office and left a sign that read, “AOC Funds Genocide in Gaza.”
Ocasio-Cortez has been accused by the right of flirting with anti-Semitism, but she has also been excoriated by many on the left for not being sufficiently anti-Israel for their tastes. She has been actively campaigning for socialist Zohran Mamdani, who won the Democratic nomination for the New York City mayoral election.
Police said no arrests were made, and their investigation is ongoing.
“We see a lot of this stuff. We’re going to review our cameras and that of the building too,” campaign manager Oliver Hidalgo told WABC-TV. Hidalgo likewise mentioned getting in touch with the landlord.
“We have a lot of folks who have been reaching out, volunteers who want to come help and clean up, so they’ll be doing that,” he added. “I just got here, so I don’t know if there’s anything additional beyond this, but the number one priority is making sure people are OK.”
WCBS-TV reported that Ocasio-Cortez has two other campaign offices, one at Hunts Point and another in Astoria, Queens.
In November, Ocasio-Cortez blamed the pro-Israel lobbying group American Israel Public Affairs Committee for the devastating losses the Democrats suffered in the last election, leading some to accuse her of anti-Semitism.
In October, the New York City chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America said members were considering a vote to censure Ocasio-Cortez over her votes in Congress related to Israel. The DSA had worked to help Ocasio-Cortez defeat a Democratic Party boss and first win her seat in NYC in 2018, shocking the establishment.
Ocasio-Cortez is enthusiastically backing socialist Mamdani, who is trying to appear as a moderate but has had various past comments resurface that demonstrate he is a radical extremist.
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Aoc offices vandalism, Left-wing vs aoc, Aoc antisemitism, Aoc vs the jews, Politics
WNBA players stage protest, get ridiculed for outrageous demands
Both teams at the WNBA All-Star Game wore T-shirts that read “Pay Us What You Owe Us” in response to ongoing labor disputes with the league.
Players wore the shirts during warm-ups and later held “Pay the Players” signs as, once again, the WNBA basketball action was overshadowed by activism taking center stage.
Caitlin Clark, the league’s biggest star by far, was absent from the game due to a groin injury but still took part in the protest as one of the coaches. What was most perplexing about the protest, however, was the set of demands the Women’s National Basketball Players Association was making, which have become the subject of much ridicule.
‘Like we asked for something, they came back with something totally different.’
Napheesa Collier, forward for the Minnesota Lynx and vice president of the WNBPA, said players were “disappointed” with the WNBA’s response to their demands.
“What they came back with is just nowhere near what we asked for. Or even in the same conversation,” she said, according to Outkick. “Like we asked for something, they came back with something totally different.”
Although Collier did not specify exact numbers, the demands were clear that players want salary increases and revenue sharing.
“That was what we had first sent them even back in February,” Collier reportedly said. “These are our two main points. And we’ve been really clear on that from the beginning.”
The idea of increased revenue sharing, while the league loses money each year, is exactly what has WNBA players at the butt end of online mockery.
RELATED: ‘Sorry about that’: WNBA announcer apologizes for sounding too pro-Trump
Video of the player protest garnered reactions on X like, “Pushing for a pay cut in an irrelevant league seems like a weird marketing move,” and, “They are right, it is time. League lost 25m last year so you gals actually owe $160,256.14 each.”
The critics are not wrong. Even with Caitlin Clark’s monumental 2024 season bringing in record viewership and attendance for the WNBA, the league still lost a reported $40-$50 million, depending on the source.
The simple fact that the WNBA loses money every year did not come up in a players’ association press release regarding their negotiations with the league. The union demanded a “rightful share of the business that we’ve built,” improved working conditions, and a requirement that the league “ensures the success we create lifts both today’s players and the generations that follow.”
The letter continues, “This business is booming — media rights, ratings, revenue, team valuations, expansion fees, attendance, and ticket sales — are all up in historic fashion. But short-changing the working women who make this business possible stalls growth.”
According to Outkick’s Amber Harding, WNBA players want an increase on their 20-25% share of basketball-related income and are even willing to go on strike over it.
“I mean, we’re on a time crunch, right? Like, no one wants a walkout. That is not what anybody wants. But at the end of the day, we have to stand firm, and we’re not going to be moving on certain topics,” Collier reportedly stated.
WNBA players are a year removed from their successful demand for chartered flights, which came with an estimated $25 million price tag when the league had 12 teams. That price tag could be around $27 million now that there are 13 teams.
As for the player salary increases, the average WNBA player makes more than some may think.
RELATED: Comedian Shane Gillis shocks ESPN crowd with Epstein and illegal alien jokes: ‘This is Disney’
Brittney Sykes, #15 of the Washington Mystics, holds a “Pay the Players” sign after the 2025 WNBA All-Star Game in Indianapolis, Indiana. Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images
WNBA players got a 53% raise in 2020 — the league did not make money that year, either — which increased the league minimum salary to $70,103.
According to DIRECTV, the average WNBA salary in 2025 is $147,745. In comparison, the average salary of a minor league baseball player is $62,000 per year, despite the MiLB generating $1.2-$1.5 billion per year (according to Grok AI) — and those players take the bus.
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Fearless, Wnba, Basketball, Women’s sports, Woke, Equal pay, Sports
What Tom Homan is ‘sick and tired’ of hearing in the media about ICE arrests
White House border czar Tom Homan laid into the mainstream media for pushing a narrative about the type of people being arrested by federal immigration officers.
Homan was part of the Department of Homeland Security’s press conference in New York City after one of the agency’s officers was shot, allegedly by an illegal alien. While the officer survived, he was shot in the face and arm. He was able to return fire and wound one of the suspects.
‘A federal judge ordered them removed, so ICE’s job is to remove them.’
Homan said the recent shooting in the Big Apple proves the immigration enforcement operations are necessary and that it is shameful that sanctuary cities are not doing more to help remove criminal illegal aliens from the country.
“One more thing. I’m sick and tired of reading in the media how ICE is not doing what the Trump administration has promised, that we’re not arresting criminals, that most of the people we arrest are not criminals. I look at the numbers every day. The numbers I looked at the other day — 130,000 arrests and 90,000 criminals. Do the math. That’s 70 percent,” Homan said.
RELATED: Off-duty border officer shot in face allegedly by ‘Illegal Alien Monster’ with multiple arrests
Miguel Francisco Mora Nunez. Image Source: Department of Homeland Security
Homan continued that other people who do not have criminal records but have been arrested are those who have final orders for removal. In other words, these individuals “had due process at great taxpayer expense,” and “a federal judge ordered them removed, so ICE’s job is to remove them.”
He further pointed to recent stories that just 1% of ICE arrestees have been convicted of murder. “Are you kidding me? Being in the country illegally is not illegal anymore, and you gotta commit a murder to be deported?” Homan said.
Homan promised in the wake of the shooting that DHS is going to “flood the zone” in New York City with federal agents to ensure that illegal aliens like the two suspects from the Dominican Republic are removed from the country.
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Politics
‘Eddington’: Portrait of COVID-era craziness wrings laughs from peak wokeness
Did anyone want to revisit America circa May 2020? BLM. COVID-19. Mask mandates. Peak cancel culture. Social distancing.
No, thank you.
A throwaway scene finds a white teen describing his privilege to his gobsmacked parents. Their reaction is guaranteed to draw howls.
Somehow director Ari Aster makes it an invitation worth considering.
2020 vision
The director behind “Hereditary,” “Midsommar,” and “Beau Is Afraid” jumps into that awful, no-good chapter in U.S. history with “Eddington.” Those expecting another progressive screed from La La Land will be happily disappointed.
Nor is Aster gunning for a MAGA cocktail party invite. His tale pulls nary a punch, belittling both hard-right conspiracists and BLM types.
What’s maddening is the lack of discipline in the film’s third act. If you thought 2020’s Summer of Love protests proved chaotic, perhaps “Eddington’s” finale feels appropriate.
Otherwise, a potentially great film loses its way.
Mask off
Joaquin Phoenix stars as Sheriff Joe Cross, an earnest lawman flustered by his state’s new mask mandates. It’s May 2020, and the country has already fallen for pandemic hysteria.
He tries to bring sanity to his New Mexico hamlet with few results. The locals have already adopted a mask-at-all-cost approach, including Eddington’s Mayor Ted Garcia (Pedro Pascal).
Mostly.
That drives Joe to impulsively declare his candidacy for mayor, much to the chagrin of his troubled wife, Louise (Emma Stone). She spends her days ducking his carnal advances and devouring conspiracy theories along with her hard-charging Ma (Deirdre O’Connell).
Progressive Mad Libs
Meanwhile, the death of George Floyd sparks sympathetic protests across Eddington, straining the town’s wafer-thin resources. It’s neighbor against neighbor, and some of the young protesters barely know what they’re shouting about.
White privilege. Colonization. Racist cops. It’s a Mad Libs dash through progressive slogans, and it’s even sillier than what we remembered. The protests are a blindingly white affair, with BLM sympathizers torn between acknowledging their privilege and barking land acknowledgements.
One teen wants to get lucky, so he Googles “Angela Davis” just to break the ice with a pretty protester.
We can laugh about it now, but it wasn’t funny at the time. And sadly, remnants of that thinking refuse to slink away.
Aster isn’t sugarcoating far-left absurdism, although his hard-right conspiracies feel too cartoonish. The writer/director’s sense of editorial balance is shocking and smart. It’s a culture war movie that doesn’t look or sound like one.
Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images
Too soon?
The director leans into TikTok videos, YouTube confessionals, and cancel culture attacks — 2020 distractions that kept our attention during lockdowns.
The only thing missing? Netflix’s “Tiger King” series.
Sheriff Joe wants to have it both ways. He’s disgusted by residents trying to capture him in an unflattering light on their smartphones. He still turns to his phone to record campaign videos.
His political instincts, or lack thereof, are the film’s funniest running gags.
Aster’s setup is bracing and uncomfortable. Is it too soon to dissect this societal breakdown? The answer quickly becomes “no,” especially given how much we’ve learned about COVID-19, vaccines, and BLM-style activism since then.
Hackneyed slogans
“Eddington” isn’t a traditional comedy, but its satirical swipes leave a mark. A throwaway scene finds a white teen describing his privilege to his gobsmacked parents. Their reaction is guaranteed to draw howls.
Man, it feels good to laugh at that.
Eddington teens want to do something, anything, other than stay locked in their homes. So they join BLM and recite hackneyed slogans without actually understanding what they mean.
They look miserable.
The overstuffed story includes Austin Butler as an oily conspiracy theorist (is there any other kind?), a plot thread that adds a few chuckles to the story. Butler is a charismatic presence, but he’s not fully unleashed.
Laugh riot
Aster never knows how to leave well enough alone — his 2019 misfire “Midsommar” felt longer than the Summer Olympics. That means “Eddington” overstays its welcome by at least 20 minutes (the film is just shy of two-and-a-half hours long).
The film takes a violent turn mid-movie but lacks the urgency of the best screen thrillers. Instead, we watch a key character scramble for his life while we wonder what, exactly, is happening on screen.
Little of it makes sense, and the film’s coal black humor takes a knee.
Phoenix gets the meatiest role as a troubled sheriff. Poor Joe is earnest but overwhelmed, trying to process our 24/7 digital age without much luck. Pascal’s mayor should have our sympathy, from his pro-masking stances to having “he/him” on his Zoom profile.
Overdue relief
That’s how Hollywood movies work in 2025 … right?
Instead, the actor makes sure to show his character’s smarmy side, and Aster refuses to deify a Hispanic leader.
“Eddington” is neither a lecture nor a cautionary tale. Aster serves up no solutions, only the potential for more misery. We already lived through the worst of what’s seen on screen, and laughing at it now offers a delicious, overdue sense of relief following those over-reactions.
We wouldn’t do that again. Would we?
It’s why the final, chaotic moments prove so dispiriting. “Eddington” eventually loses its way, and a bitter coda puts an exclamation point on that fact.
It’s high past time Hollywood grappled with the worst year in recent memory. Aster’s willingness to call out all sides makes “Eddington” a bracing, almost necessary watch.
Eddington, Ari aster, Culture, 2020, Mask mandates, Movies, Movie review, Black lives matter, Joaquin phoenix, Pedro pascal, Hollywood, Align review
Liberals take to the sea, target Chief Justice Roberts’ island home
Chief Justice John Roberts noted in his 2024 year-end report that the independence and legitimacy of federal courts were under attack. While recognizing passionate reactions to judicial rulings as inevitable and strong criticism as occasionally warranted, Roberts underscored that “not all actors engage in ‘informed criticism’ or anything remotely resembling it.”
The chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court noted that types of “illegitimate activity” exist which “threaten the independence of judges on which the rule of law depends: (1) violence, (2) intimidation, (3) disinformation, and (4) threats to defy lawfully entered judgments.”
‘The media’s coverage of events like these are hypocritical to say the least.’
Roberts stressed that “attempts to intimidate need not physically harm judges to threaten judicial independence” and can take the form of visits to judges’ homes.
Over the weekend, a flotilla comprising leftist demonstrators paddled to Roberts’ summer home on Hupper Island, just off Port Clyde, Maine, to protest the high court’s recent rulings.
While the maritime demonstration was relatively unremarkable — mainland geriatrics reportedly griping about the Supreme Court’s rulings in Dobbs, President Donald Trump’s immunity case, and cases of interest to non-straight activists — it signaled leftists’ continued willingness to apply political pressure to justices where they live.
The protest was reportedly organized by Susan MacNeil-Densmore of the Audacity, a leftist group that claims to oppose “fascism, bigotry, and violence in the second age of Trump.”
RELATED: July shows strong signs of a coming and violent Democratic implosion
Win McNamee/Getty Images
MacNeil-Densmore told the Midcoast Villager ahead of the maritime demonstration that a federal and local police presence was expected on the island and that protesters were instructed to keep their messaging nonviolent.
However, the statement provided by the kayak crew to the paper engaged in the kind of rhetoric that helped set the stage for the attempts on President Donald Trump’s life last year.
‘What next, serve him an improperly seasoned lobster roll to underscore your incoherent point?’
“United States Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts presides over the most right-wing Supreme Court in almost 100 years,” the statement reads. “Roberts has delivered the majority vote for President Trump’s every dictate, even granting him immunity from prosecution for any crimes he commits while he is the president. The Roberts Court is historically unpopular with the public and violated the United States Constitution; Roberts has been the deciding member of the six justices supporting a far-right political agenda. Now is the time to demand resistance to tyranny from people in positions of power, as we move closer to a dictatorship.”
Marie Follayttar Smith, a leftist with the Mainers for Accountable Leadership PAC, characterized the protest as a success and suggested that in addition to protesting outside Roberts’ home, fellow leftists could purchase property on the island to establish “a resistance head quarters [sic] by the Chief Justice.”
Others mocked the elitism and uselessness of the exercise.
Harmeet Dhillon, the assistant attorney general for civil rights at the Department of Justice, tweeted, “Lol talk about privilege — kayak-based resort protest. What next, serve him an improperly seasoned lobster roll to underscore your incoherent point?”
John Malcolm, vice president of the Heritage Foundation’s Institute for Constitutional Government and director of the Meese Center for Legal and Judicial Studies, told Blaze News that the protests “are terrible, likely counterproductive, potentially illegal, and highly dangerous, and the media’s coverage of events like these are hypocritical to say the least.”
“I say they are terrible because they undermine a sense of civility and respect for the judiciary and the rule of law,” Malcolm said. “I say they are likely counterproductive because I seriously doubt it will impact how the justices rule in any case or how they conduct their business. I say it is potentially illegal because, for example, 18 U.S.C. § 1503(a) makes it a crime for anyone who, by means of ‘any threatening … communication, endeavors to influence, intimidate, or impede any … officer in or of any court of the United States … in the discharge of his duty.'”
Title 18, Section 1507, of the U.S. Code could also come into play with regard to protests outside justices’ homes, as it states that it is illegal to picket or parade in or near a building housing a U.S. court or occupied by a judge, juror, witness, or court officer “with the intent of interfering with, obstructing, or impeding the administration of justice, or with the intent of influencing any judge, juror, witness, or court officer, in the discharge of his duty.”
RELATED: Justice Alito issues reminder of what SCOTUS must do, even if unpopular
Photo by JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images
Malcolm added that “it is highly dangerous because there are unbalanced people out there who will resort to violence if their more-tame forms of protest are ignored, and, shockingly, there are those who will applaud when that happens.”
Malcom referenced the case of Nicholas John Roske, the California man who pleaded guilty on April 8 to traveling from Los Angeles to Montgomery County, Maryland, with the aim of killing Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
When police took Roske into custody and searched his belongings outside Kavanaugh’s home on June 8, 2022, they reportedly found a firearm; a tactical knife; two magazines, each containing 10 rounds of ammunition; 17 additional rounds of ammunition; pepper spray; zip ties; and a hammer, a crowbar, and other tools evidently intended for use in the thwarted murder plot.
Whereas the media has largely downplayed, excused, or ignored protests outside the homes of Republican appointees to the high court, Malcolm indicated he had “no doubt if such protests occurred outside the homes of Justices Kagan, Sotomayor, or Jackson, stories covering that would blanket the airwaves, and there would be howls of outrage and self-righteous indignation on the left about the threats to judicial independence that such protests pose.”
Roberts, who had protests outside his primary residence last year, emphasized in his annual report, “Attempts to intimidate judges for their rulings in cases are inappropriate and should be vigorously opposed.”
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John roberts, Supreme court, Intimidation, Maine, Kayak, Leftism, Protest, Justice, Court, Marshals, Malcolm, Politics
Video: Over 20 thugs try breaking into jewelry store. But gun-toting store owner isn’t about to let them get away with it.
It was around closing time Thursday at a jewelry store in Anaheim, California, when the store owner told KTTV-TV five cars pulled up to the front of the store.
Indeed, security camera video shows over 20 individuals quickly exiting vehicles and gathering at the entrance of Al-Amira Jewelry, the station reported.
The owner told the station he heard a loud noise, and when he looked at the door, he saw ‘many people. I can’t count it.’
It appears to be a coordinated operation, as video shows the similarly dressed crew trying to break into the store; they use pickaxes and sledgehammers to smash the door, KTTV said.
Suddenly, though, video shows the entire gang turning tail and running back into the cars — scattering in unison as if their lives depended on it.
Well, it turns out that their lives were very much at stake.
That’s because the store owner fired at the would-be robbers, KTTV said.
The station said video from inside the store shows people running behind the counter — and then several of them coming back out with guns.
KTTV said the store owner fired one shot.
In the aftermath, the store owner spoke to the station about the incident, though his face was blurred and his identity wasn’t revealed.
He noted to KTTV that he believes the crooks had been watching the store — as they attempted their break-in several minutes after one of the last customers departed the business — and that some of his family members were in the store at the time.
The owner told the station he heard a loud noise, and when he looked at the door, he saw “many people. I can’t count it.”
“Then I have to defend myself and my store and my employees. I take my gun, I shoot one bullet, I scare [the person at the door], he moved, and the problem is done,” the store owner added to KTTV.
Photo by: Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
Mohammad Abuershaid, an attorney for the jewelry store, added to the station that “every single one of them was covered in black, head to toe.”
Mahmud Salem, who has owned Sahara Falafel — a popular restaurant near the jewelry store — for 30 years, told KTTV he’s never seen anything like it.
“It was like a movie,” Salem added to the station.
The jewelry store owner also told KTTV that his business endured one similar incident prior to Thursday’s attempted break-in, but the crooks weren’t able to enter the store that time, either.
Anaheim police on Monday told Blaze News there are “no updates as of this morning” and “no arrests have been made,” but “detectives are still working the case.” Blaze News also asked police if the store owner is in the clear after firing a gun in the incident, and police said “that will be up to the District Attorney’s office. We document all aspects of the incident for filing considerations.”
Thieves about a month ago targeted a jewelry store across the street from Al-Amira Jewelry, the station said, noting that the crooks drove a vehicle through the front of Besan Jewelry and made off with items worth more than $3 million.
Police in Glendale said foreign nationals got away with a jewelry store heist in May — but a month later they got caught amid a theft attempt since cops were ready for them.
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Crime thwarted, California, Jewelry store, Self-defense, 2nd amend., Guns, Gun rights, Store owner shoots at crooks, Would-be robbers, Anaheim, Attempted theft, Crime
Trump celebrates 6 months with bold MAGA victory video featuring Charlie Kirk
Since President Trump took office on January 20, 2025, his administration has been working nonstop to fulfill his campaign promises. To celebrate the six-month milestone of his administration, the White House posted a video boasting the progress of the Make America Great Again movement.
The video showed Trump’s work with world leaders, foreign policy, tariffs, spending, immigration, and border enforcement. In many ways, he has made headway in reversing the policies of previous administrations: “President Trump comes in and immediately begins taking action to fix each and every one of these fires that the Democrats started.”
‘This movement that President Trump has started for America is only getting bigger.’
The video, entitled “6 months of Power: President Trump’s Comeback. America’s Revival,” showcases a laundry list of Trump’s accomplishments. One voice on the video can be heard saying, “Promises made, promises kept.”
The caption underneath the video reads: “Six months in, President Trump took command — launched an all-out offensive to crush the left’s mess and bring American power roaring back. The border is fortified. The economy is unleashed. The One Big Beautiful Bill is law. This is unapologetic, America-first leadership.”
RELATED: Read it and weep: Tariffs work, and the numbers prove it
The president recently celebrated the signing of his historic legislation, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act on Independence Day earlier this month. This is just one of his major accomplishments. “Donald Trump immediately getting to work with a remarkable show of the use of executive power,” one voice on the video says.
Charlie Kirk can be heard saying, “This movement that President Trump has started for America is only getting bigger. [It] has more energy, more enthusiasm.”
“The days of ripping off America and Americans are officially over,” says Sean Hannity of Fox News.
“Trump could resign tomorrow and still point to an enduring legacy,” adds another voice.
“You’re watching history. So buckle up, because the next three and a half years will probably be just as busy.”
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Politics, Trump, One big beautiful bill, July 4, Immigration, Democrats, Maga, Make america great again, Charlie kirk
Human trafficking is up, prosecutions are down. Here’s how to change that.
The American court system currently struggles with an overwhelming volume of human trafficking cases — which is why BlazeTV contributor Jaco Booyens has a plan to help them better adjudicate these horrific crimes.
“Congress has really done a great job codifying the law, criminalizing trafficking, writing great policies, 41 task forces funded through Congress awareness campaigns,” Booyens tells BlazeTV host Sara Gonzales on “Sara Gonzales Unfiltered,” “but we’ve never touched the judiciary, the Justice Department.”
“And if you look at where human trafficking is falling apart, it’s in the Justice Department,” he continues, noting that many human traffickers are released to commit the same crimes again.
That’s why Booyens set up Jaco Booyens Ministries, an anti-trafficking organization led by the Holy Spirit to help those affected by human trafficking. And an actionable idea Booyens had for his organization could make the difference these victims need to truly be helped.
“We are asking Congress to go with us and institute an Article 3 constitutional specialized human trafficking court, a federal court where if it’s a human trafficking case in your county, in your city, that the judges, the current judges are cross designated, where that case goes to a specialized human trafficking court where the judges know what they’re doing,” Booyens explains.
“You don’t have Comey’s daughter representing or building the case. You have an actual prosecutor that understands human trafficking. They get monitored. They’re appointed and confirmed,” he continues.
And a change is needed, as many traffickers plea down to other charges and don’t face repercussions for their crimes.
“Tens of thousands of people are trafficked in America every year. We’ve only had 148 federal prosecutions in the last five years,” he says, adding, “Prosecutions are going down, trafficking is going up.”
“Every other felony,” he continues, “outside of human trafficking on a federal level and a state level, guess what the number is of prosecutions?”
“92%.”
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Upload, Free, Video phone, Camera phone, Sharing, Video, Youtube.com, Sara gonzales unfiltered, Sara gonzales, The blaze, Blazetv, Blaze news, Blaze podcasts, Blaze podcast network, Blaze media, Blaze online, Blaze originals, Human trafficking, Jaco booyens, P diddy, Traffickers, Sex traffickers, The justice system, The justice department
Victory for faith: Catholic defiance of Democratic law pays off in Washington state — but battle isn’t over
Bob Ferguson, the Democratic governor of Washington state and a self-identifying Catholic, ratified a bill in May that would have compelled Catholic priests to break the seal of confession or face up to 364 days in jail and a $5,000 fine.
As it would invite the government into the confessional and put priests at risk of automatic excommunication, Catholic bishops in the Evergreen State vowed to defy the law, reassured Catholics in their dioceses that the seal of the confession would remain unbroken, and filed suit on May 18, asking a federal court to block Senate Bill 5375.
The Trump Department of Justice joined the fight last month, intervening in the bishops’ case against the State of Washington and emphasizing that SB 5375 “deprives Catholic priests of their fundamental right to freely exercise their religious beliefs, as guaranteed under the First Amendment.”
‘Here, clergy were explicitly singled out.’
A Biden judge broke from custom on Friday, issuing an injunction that hurt rather than aided the Democratic cause.
U.S. District Judge David Estudillo temporarily blocked the law, noting that “there is no question that SB 5375 burdens Plaintiffs’ free exercise of religion” by placing clergymen “in the position of either complying with the requirements of their faith or violating the law.”
The Catechism of the Catholic Church maintains 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” and “can make no use of knowledge that confession gives him about penitents’ lives.”
RELATED: Wake-up call: This is what happens when Christians are afraid to offend
Washington State Gov. Bob Ferguson (D). Photo by JASON REDMOND/AFP via Getty Images
The Code of Canon Law cited in the bishops’ complaint similarly underscores the inviolability of the sacramental seal, noting further that a “confessor who directly violates the sacramental seal incurs a latae sententiae — automatic — excommunication reserved to the Apostolic See.”
In the amicus brief it filed last week, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops noted that by driving priests into Washington jails or out of the church, Democrats’ law “would also be catastrophic for parishioners, who will be left with fewer clergy to administer the Sacrament of Confession to them.”
Estudillo appeared to agree with the argument raised by both the bishops and the Justice Department that the law is not neutral and generally applicable.
SB 5375 will require any person operating in an official supervisory capacity with a nonprofit or a for-profit organization 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.
However, as acknowledged in the final bill report, 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.
“SB 5375 modifies existing law solely to make members of the clergy mandatory reporters with respect to child abuse or neglect,” wrote Estudillo. “However, other groups of adults who may learn about child abuse are not required to report. Parents and caregivers, for example, are not mandatory reporters.”
The judge noted that another piece of legislation set to go into effect with SB 5375 on July 27 will also exempt university attorneys from divulging child abuse information if it has something to do with their clients.
“A law is not neutral if the government ‘proceeds in a manner intolerant of religious beliefs or restricts practices because of their religious nature,'” Estudillo noted. “Here, clergy were explicitly singled out.”
The judge indicated there were likely less restrictive and more effective means of helping protect children and highlighted Catholic Church efforts already underway that go further in the protection of children than required by state law.
As a result of the Supreme Court’s ruling in Trump v. CASA Inc., which severely restricted the reach of judicial injunctions, Estudillo indicated he had to limit relief to the individual plaintiffs in the case. There was, however, a catch.
‘In a nation where anti-Catholic bigotry is on the rise, this ruling is a hopeful reminder.’
Estudillo noted that the bishops — Archbishop Paul Etienne of the Archdiocese of Seattle, Bishop Joseph Tyson of the Diocese of Yakima, and Bishop Thomas Daly of the Diocese of Spokane — have a responsibility for the administration of the sacraments and the discipline of the priests across their dioceses, and that absent an injunction that applies across all three dioceses, “they — as individuals — cannot fulfill their religious responsibility by ensuring that the priests within their dioceses maintain the sacramental seal.”
Accordingly, the judge determined that complete relief in this case must apply to all Catholic priests who fall under the administration of Etienne, Daly, and Tyson. As those bishops run the only three dioceses in the state, Estudillo’s injunction effectively protects all priests in the state while the lawsuit proceeds.
Kelsey Reinhardt, president of CatholicVote, called the ruling a “major victory for religious freedom” in a statement obtained by Blaze News.
RELATED: Justice Alito issues reminder of what SCOTUS must do, even if unpopular
Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images
“The Seal of Confession is not only a vital tenet of the Catholic faith, it is a safeguard for the penitent — who must be free to seek God’s forgiveness without fear of exposure,” continued Reinhardt. “In a nation where anti-Catholic bigotry is on the rise, this ruling is a hopeful reminder: no American should face criminal penalties for living out their faith. We are grateful for today’s ruling and hope that the final outcome of the case similarly reflects our nation’s commitment to the First Amendment of all Americans — especially Catholics.”
The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, which represented the lead plaintiffs with the First Liberty Institute and WilmerHale, similarly celebrated the ruling.
“This ruling confirms what has always been true: In America, government officials have no business prying into the confessional,” said Becket CEO Mark Rienzi. “By protecting the seal of confession, the court has also safeguarded the basic principle that people of all faiths should be free to practice their beliefs without government interference.”
“For centuries, Catholic faithful around the world have sought reconciliation with God through the sacrament of confession,” said Jean Hill, executive director of the Washington State Catholic Conference. “This ruling protects that sacred space and ensures that Washingtonians of all religious stripes can live out their beliefs in peace.”
The Trump DOJ has separately requested a preliminary injunction, which will be taken up this week.
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‘Highly offensive’ slur sparks meltdown as rugby league declares words are worse than violence
An Australian rugby player triggered a league-wide meltdown after self-reporting that he used a “slur.”
Australian Football League midfielder Jack Graham has been suspended before, receiving a one-match ban in 2018 for throwing an elbow during a game against Brisbane when he played for Richmond.
Now playing for the West Coast Eagles, Graham violated league rules during a July 4 game against the Greater Western Sydney Giants and received a four-match suspension. This time, the league’s punishment has made it clear that it considers words to be more harmful than violence.
‘I am very remorseful for the word I used and know such language has no place in our community or our game.’
To make matters worse, Graham actually told on himself before league officials even had a chance to investigate. Graham admitted to his club that he had committed a violation, with his team then reporting to the league about the infraction.
7AFL reported that Graham used a “single-word homophobic slur” toward a Giants player during the recent match, with the seemingly devastating remark evoking a lengthy apology from Graham.
“I am very remorseful for the word I used and know such language has no place in our community or our game,” Graham said in a club statement, per Daily Mail. “I have offered my unreserved apology to the Giants player and Greater Western Sydney and would also like to publicly apologize for my comment,” he continued.
Graham added that his remark did not reflect his values and noted he needs to “be better” and plans to prove that through his actions.
Despite the sincere apology, the AFL had a complete and total meltdown over the unspecified word, with subsequent woke directives and platitudes being issued.
Graham’s self-snitch not only sparked an AFL integrity unit investigation, but the athlete gave a private apology to his opponent and also called the AFL CEO to apologize.
Still, Graham will have to be re-educated on the matter and will be placed in the Pride in Sport education program, according to the Daily Mail.
According to the AFL’s head of integrity and security, Tony Keane, it could have been even worse for Graham had he not confessed his sins.
“The AFL is very clear that homophobia has no place in our game, nor in the community,” Keane said in an AFL press release. “Graham’s sanction would have been higher if he hadn’t self-reported and understood his comment was totally inappropriate.”
The league official said there is “much more to be done” on the issue in order to make the AFL a “safe and inclusive environment for all.”
The AFL itself also stated that Graham used “a highly offensive homophobic slur” but did not reveal what word he said. They did, however, say the unknown term “demeans and denigrates persons regardless of their sexuality.”
Eagles coach Andrew McQualter continued the apology tour last week, telling reporters during a press conference that the team’s priority had shifted to “look after [Graham] and his well-being,” in addition to continuing to “educate our players as much as we can.”
Graham’s teammate Liam Duggan said the 27-year-old simply had a “slip of the tongue” but has “learnt his lesson well and truly.”
“It was a mistake made and one that Jack was on the front foot (for), he handled everything the right way from the get-go,” Duggan told the West.
RELATED: NFL charged players over $12M in fines in 2024, including 27 fines for ‘obscene gestures’
Photo by Daniel Pockett/Getty Images
The fiasco displays a glaring difference in how the AFL handles its incidents, particularly when it comes to words versus violence.
In addition to Graham receiving just a one-game ban for an elbow in the past, a more recent incident involving direct threats by a player saw a similar punishment.
In May, Port Adelaide player Willie Rioli was caught sending a text message to an opposing player warning him not to leave his hotel because Rioli has friends and family in the area; the message followed an on-field tussle between the players.
According to Nine, Riolo allegedly made other threats to different opponents as well. It was only after the second incident was revealed that the player was suspended, but only for one game.
Rioli had to undergo education on respectful/nonviolent language and conduct.
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Off-duty border officer shot in face allegedly by ‘Illegal Alien Monster’ with multiple arrests
A robbery over the weekend in a New York City park turned violent when one of the alleged culprits, an illegal alien, shot an off-duty Customs and Border Protection officer.
On Saturday, the officer and a female companion were sitting alongside the Hudson River in Fort Washington Park in Manhattan when they were ambushed by two men riding a moped around 11:50 p.m., the New York Post reported.
‘He was apprehended at the Border in April 2023 but, instead of being deported, was RELEASED.’
A video of the incident showed one of the suspects approaching the two by the riverside. After a brief scuffle and an exchange of gunfire, the suspects fled the scene on their moped.
One of the alleged culprits shot the officer in his face and left forearm. The off-duty officer responded by drawing his firearm and shooting the suspect multiple times.
The wounded suspect was identified as Miguel Francisco Mora Nunez, a 21-year-old Dominican national, after he walked into a hospital to receive care for the gunshot wounds and was subsequently arrested.
Nunez illegally entered the U.S. in April 2023. He was apprehended and processed by border officials who released him due to a lack of detention space. A judge ordered his removal that same year, sources told the Post.
The suspect has been accused of many other violent crimes in the U.S. At the time of his arrest, Nunez was reportedly wanted on kidnapping and weapons charges in Massachusetts. Law enforcement in New York City previously arrested him four times, but he was released without bail on each occasion, the Post stated. He was previously accused of assaulting a pregnant woman, threatening to kill another foreign national with a machete, and violating a protection order.
The Post reported that none of the alleged offenses were eligible for bail.
Image Source: Department of Homeland Security
The accomplice in the shooting remains at large.
Police officers, who quickly responded to the shootout, were already near the scene after reports that the same two suspects had mugged a woman minutes before, stealing her cell phone.
The Department of Homeland Security stated that the off-duty CBP agent is in stable condition after undergoing surgery on Sunday.
DHS Secretary Kristi Noem visited the wounded officer in the hospital on Monday.
“Suspect Miguel Francisco Mora Nunez is a national and citizen of the Dominican Republic,” Noem wrote in a post on X. “RE ENTERED and RELEASED under Biden — on April 4, 2023, the United States Border Patrol apprehended him at/near San Luis, AZ.”
RELATED: ICE accuses Democratic congressman of joining ‘violent mob,’ doxxing agent
Photo by CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP via Getty Images
President Donald Trump also weighed in on the recent attack, slamming Democrats for allowing illegal aliens into the country.
“Last night, in New York City, an incredible CBP Officer was shot in the face by an Illegal Alien Monster freed into the Country under Joe Biden,” Trump wrote on social media. “He was apprehended at the Border in April 2023 but, instead of being deported, was RELEASED.”
“The CBP Officer bravely fought off his attacker, despite his wounds, demonstrating enormous Skill and Courage,” Trump continued. “The Democrats have flooded our Nation with Criminal Invaders, and now, they must all be thrown out or, in some cases, immediately prosecuted in that we cannot take a chance that they are able to come back. That’s how evil and dangerous they are!”
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‘MAKE INDIANS GREAT AGAIN’: Trump threatens Washington Commanders’ stadium deal over woke name change
President Donald Trump may have just put the new Washington Commanders stadium on ice before construction has even started.
On Sunday, Trump referred to the NFL team as the Washington “Whatever’s” in a Truth Social post that has billions of dollars’ worth of implications.
The Commanders have plans to bring the team back to D.C. with a new $2.7 billion venue that Trump, the NFL, and D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser (D) gushed over in May when they announced the city would also host the 2027 NFL Draft. Now, the president has threatened to upend the whole deal if the Commanders refuse a key change.
‘I may put a restriction on them that if they don’t change the name back.’
As fans may recall, in 2020, Washington’s NFL franchise got rid of the Redskins moniker and logo in favor of the bland interim name the Washington Football Team. The team then rebranded as the Washington Commanders in 2022.
The president now says it is time to go back to the Redskins, or bad things could happen.
“The Washington ‘Whatever’s’ should IMMEDIATELY change their name back to the Washington Redskins Football Team. There is a big clamoring for this,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Defending the “great Indian people,” the president said that Native Americans are massively in favor of going back to the old name.
“Their heritage and prestige is systematically being taken away from them. Times are different now than they were three or four years ago. We are a Country of passion and common sense,” Trump added.
Even though Washington ownership thought the Redskins name was offensive, countless Native groups have openly supported changing the name back to Redskins, including the family of the man the logo is modeled after, John Two Guns White Calf.
Trump’s critiques of the Washington team name were not done there, though, and he later made direct threats about the Commanders’ future home field.
RELATED: Washington just inched one step closer to bringing the Redskins back
Boasting that his previous post was received very positively, Trump pondered whether he should make a name change part of the requirements for the Commanders to get their new stadium.
“I may put a restriction on them that if they don’t change the name back to the original ‘Washington Redskins,’ and get rid of the ridiculous moniker, ‘Washington Commanders,’ I won’t make a deal for them to build a Stadium in Washington,” POTUS wrote on Truth Social.
The president then claimed that an announcement of the name change would make the stadium deal “more exciting for everyone.”
At the same time, the MLB’s Cleveland Guardians got equal treatment in Trump’s posts; the team dropped their beloved Indians name and logo after 2021, following more than 100 years with the name.
Trump first noted that the “Cleveland Indians [are] one of the six original baseball teams, with a storied past,” before hammering former Ohio state Sen. Matt Dolan (R) — whose family owns the Guardians franchise — claiming his election losses were due to the name change.
“Cleveland should do the same with the Cleveland Indians. The Owner of the Cleveland Baseball Team, Matt Dolan, who is very political, has lost three Elections in a row because of that ridiculous name change.”
Trump said Nolan might win his seat back if he went back to the Indians moniker, writing, “Indians are being treated very unfairly. MAKE INDIANS GREAT AGAIN (MIGA)!”
Not only has there been increased pressure on the Washington franchise to bring the Redskins name back, but the team has been happy to flirt with their history without using the name or old logo directly.
Just three weeks ago, the Commanders announced they would wear their old Redskins uniforms without the logo for three games in the upcoming season to help fans relive their Super Bowl years in the late 1980s and early 1990s; so long as no one says the name.
Owner Josh Harris has stated that the old Redskins name “can’t come back,” while his wife has similarly stated that the name was not paramount for the team, rather success on the field was.
A 2024 poll by the Washington Post revealed that just 32% of Commanders fans specifically liked or loved their team name, while 57% of the team’s fans said they dislike or hate the name.
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