Category: blaze media

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 

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 

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 

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.

RELATED: Radio host says Israel is led by ‘white supremacist Jews’ — and Ocasio-Cortez says she ‘absolutely’ agrees

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 

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 

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 

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.

RELATED: New horror movie ‘Midsommar’ makes a clearer call for Christianity to save the culture than many churches do

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 

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 

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.

RELATED: Video: Stick-wielding jewelry store owner lowers the boom on brazen trio of masked, hooded crooks trying smash-and-grab heist

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.

RELATED: Video: Gun-toting jewelry store owner knows just what to do after burglar breaks in — and shocked crook makes hilarious exit

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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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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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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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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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.

RELATED: Boston Red Sox star Jarren Duran suspended 2 games for insulting heckler with ‘a truly horrific word’

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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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.

RELATED: Activists blame Trump for bounty hunter ‘kidnapping’ of mom of 3 for deportation — feds say it was a hoax for cash

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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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)!”

RELATED: ‘The fans want him back’: Family of Blackfeet chief, the inspiration for Redskins’ logo, calls for logo’s return

— (@)

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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Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Calif.) has joined the many Democrats expressing outrage over the deportation of illegal immigrants under President Trump — despite the fact that deportation rates are lower under Trump than they were during the Obama era.

After a lawful ICE raid at a Carpinteria cannabis nursery, Carbajal took the time to record himself airing his grievances from outside the nursery, one of which was that he was denied entry into the raid.

“I came here to do my congressional oversight responsibilities,” Carbajal said in a video posted to social media following the lawful Carpinteria cannabis nursery ICE raid this week.

“When I got here, there was obviously a crowd of protests, and it was overkill. Over 50 ICE agents that were here, and they were conducting this operation. They were creating fear, anxiety, and intimidation,” he continued.

“They were dressed in military garb, clothing, military-grade weapons. They were just creating an untenable, incendiary circumstance where they could have got members of the public and themselves hurt. They were pouring gasoline on the flames of this situation.”

“We don’t do that in America. This is overkill. This was ridiculous. This was a bunch of crap. And I’m here to do our oversight. They didn’t let me through,” he added.

“This is one of the weirdest phenomenons I’ve ever seen,” BlazeTV host Pat Gray comments. “First of all, ICE is not deporting as many people as they have in the past, as Barack Obama did. And B, they should be deporting people at a pretty rapid rate, and they should be getting rid of criminals, and that’s what they’re doing.”

“But for some reason,” he adds, “Trump derangement syndrome — they’re all over this administration.”

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Texans take pride in low taxes. We believe in keeping what we earn. But property taxes undermine that principle — not just in Texas, but across America.

What started as a local way to fund roads and schools has metastasized into a national scandal: a form of government rent on homes we’ve already paid for. Unlike sales taxes, which reflect voluntary spending, property taxes punish ownership itself — a direct affront to freedom and a quiet war on the American dream.

America was built on the promise of land and liberty. Unchecked property taxation makes a mockery of that promise.

It’s not just a Lone Star problem. From New Jersey to Illinois, California to Florida, families are being taxed out of their homes. Soaring appraisals and bloated local budgets trap homeowners on an endless treadmill: Pay off your mortgage, and you’re still stuck with escalating annual bills. That’s not ownership. That’s serfdom cloaked in paperwork.

A rigged system

Local governments dress up this shakedown. They cite needs like schools, roads, and emergency services. But where’s the accountability? Budgets balloon, bureaucracies swell, and taxpayers foot the bill while public trust evaporates. Politicians boast of stable or “lowered” tax rates, yet the truth is plain: When your appraisal jumps, so does your bill. It’s a rigged game of smoke and mirrors.

This system is a bipartisan betrayal. It punishes young families trying to build a future and retirees trying to hang on to what they’ve earned. It squeezes small businesses and destabilizes communities. For those on fixed incomes — especially seniors — it’s a slow-motion eviction notice signed by the state. Even in places like Denton County, Texas, where limited relief exists, it’s just a patch on a broken dam. The broader trend is unmistakable: rising appraisals, rising taxes, and rising resentment.

Who really owns your home?

At the root, property taxes don’t treat citizens as owners. They treat us as permanent tenants of the government. If the state can hike your bill every year based on speculative market guesses, who really owns your land? Not you. The government does. You’re just paying them to stay on it.

RELATED: A tax hike is coming — and it’s not just for the rich

Photo by Douglas Rissing via Getty Images

This is an assault on middle-class stability — and it’s intentional. The ruling class, backed by urban technocrats and local cronies, thrives on an ever-expanding tax base. They want your home to bankroll their pet projects. Can’t afford to keep up? They’ll auction your house on the courthouse steps and call it “revenue recovery.”

Enough.

Time to fight back

The solution isn’t complicated. States need hard caps on tax hikes, not flimsy guidelines. Require automatic rollbacks when appraisals skyrocket. Mandate full transparency on every dollar spent. And no more sneaky tax hikes disguised as “market adjustments.”

If local governments want more revenue, let them make their case to voters in the open — not hide behind bloated Zillow estimates. Critics whine that this would “tie local officials’ hands.” Good. Their hands need tying. We’re not funding empires. We’re protecting homes.

Arthur Laffer’s warnings still ring true: Tax too much, and you kill growth. Over-tax property, and you kill ownership itself. Texas drew families and entrepreneurs by avoiding income taxes and offering stability. If property taxes keep climbing, that magnet will flip — and families will bolt.

Nationwide, it’s already happening. Americans are uprooting from high-tax states, chasing affordability that’s disappearing fast. Census data shows that millions are voting with their feet. But if states don’t overhaul how they fund local government, the problem will follow. The escape hatch is closing.

This isn’t just about economics. It’s about sovereignty. If the government can claim an ever-growing slice of your home’s value, it effectively owns a piece of your life. That’s not freedom — that’s feudalism in a modern shell.

America was built on the promise of land and liberty. Unchecked property taxation makes a mockery of that promise. A nation of owners is becoming a nation of renters — forever indebted to a system that never stops taking.

It’s time for a reckoning.

Texas can lead the way by tightening rollback rules, streamlining protests, and forcing every taxing entity to justify every penny. Other states must follow. Because this isn’t just a local fight. It’s a national crisis.

If we fail, we’re not just losing our homes. We’re losing our country. Put homeowners ahead of bureaucrats. Stop pretending the government owns a stake in our houses. Restore the American dream — not just in speeches, but in law.

​Home ownership, Housing market, Opinion, Opinion & analysis, Property taxes, Texas, Texas property taxes, Arthur laffer 

Just about every influencer, economist, and politician predicted President Trump’s tariffs would unleash an inflation tsunami. Prices would spike and consumers would drown in a rising tide of costs.

Yet here we are, deep into summer, enjoying beach days and backyard barbecues. The price of lawn chairs and beach balls remains well within reach. So where’s the inflation?

Is it worth surrendering political and economic independence just to shave a few cents off the price of some Chinese-made junk?

According to the latest government data, inflation hasn’t surged. In fact, it’s lower than it was this time last year. The experts missed again. Why?

The short answer: Tariffs don’t necessarily drive inflation.

The Walmart effect writ large

Think about how Walmart keeps its prices low. It’s the biggest store in town, so it sets the terms. Producers either cut their costs or lose shelf space. Everyone wants access to Walmart customers, so they play along — and prices fall.

Now scale that logic up. America is the biggest consumer market in the world. In 2024, Americans spent more than $19 trillion on consumer goods, including over $4 trillion on imports.

This gives us leverage. When America slaps tariffs on foreign goods, those producers face a choice: Eat the cost or risk losing access to our market. And they know they’ll get outcompeted if they try to pass the full cost on to American buyers.

That’s exactly what’s happening. Recent surveys show about two-thirds of manufacturers expect their foreign suppliers to eat the tariff costs instead of raising prices on U.S. consumers.

Dodge the tax: Buy American

Here’s the other thing the panic-peddlers don’t say: Tariffs are avoidable. They’re a tax on imports. Buy American, and you don’t pay.

And while $4 trillion in imports sounds massive, it only accounts for about 13% of the U.S. economy. That’s not nothing, of course, but it hardly amounts to the kind of widespread pressure needed to trigger across-the-board inflation.

RELATED: Trump’s latest tariff could tank the very industries he wants to protect

Photo by Andrej Ivanov / Contributor via Getty Images

Instead, tariffs apply pressure in the right places. They force foreign competitors to compete with American producers or lose market share. That creates new opportunities for domestic manufacturers — and when they scale up, costs per unit drop. It’s basic economics — and it just happens to be a win for sovereignty.

Want lower prices? Close the trade gap

The media talk about consumer prices like they’re the only prices that matter. But they ignore the other kind of inflation — the kind tariffs can help tame.

Every year, we import more than we export. That trade deficit doesn’t just disappear. We pay for it by selling off our assets and racking up debt. Foreigners now hold trillions in American real estate, farmland, and commercial property.

In 2024 alone, foreigners bought $42 billion in residential real estate, $8 billion in farmland, and $12 billion in commercial properties. That drives up housing costs and shuts American families out of the market.

Then there’s the debt. Foreign entities hold more than $8.6 trillion in U.S. Treasury securities. We owe them interest. Every year, we ship more than $150 billion abroad just to service that debt. We’re borrowing money from our rivals to buy their products. That’s suicidally stupid.

Cheap isn’t the goal

Even if tariffs raised prices slightly — which the data says they haven’t — so what? Cheap isn’t the mission. National survival is.

That’s the argument I make in my book, “Reshore: How Tariffs Will Bring Our Jobs Home and Revive the American Dream.” America isn’t just an economy. It’s a nation — a people, a language, a culture, a way of life.

We can’t offshore everything and expect to remain free. Tariffs are essential to keep our economy self-sufficient. They secure our borders, protect our workers, and defend our future.

Ask yourself: Is it worth surrendering political and economic independence just to shave a few cents off the price of some Chinese-made junk?

I didn’t think so.

​Opinion & analysis, Opinion, Tariffs, Tariff trade wars, Economy, Trade, Imports, Exports, Prices, Walmart, Deficit, Debt, Reshore, Inflation, National security, Self-sufficient 

Did you know ancient Rome was “sustainable”?

Romans probably didn’t use that exact buzzword, but apparently, they were recycling pioneers. When they weren’t creating a mountain made out of garbage, that is.

In Italy, you don’t have one trash can in your house, you have five. Yes, five separate trash cans for the different kinds of trash you accumulate throughout your day.

As someone who’s been to Italy recently, I can tell you that that legacy of recycling lives on. Frankly, it’s a mixed bag.

If fact, the convoluted waste disposal system in that beautiful Mediterranean peninsula is the perfect embodiment of the current state of Europe.

Garbage in, garbage out

In America, you take your trash, and you throw it in the can underneath the kitchen sink. Then, when that bag is full, you take it out and throw it in the big can that you set out next to your driveway every week. It’s a simple system. Understandable and logical.

In Italy, you can’t just throw your trash — any trash! — in the bin next to the fridge.

No, in Italy you don’t have one trash can in your house, you have five. Yes, five separate trash cans for the different kinds of trash you accumulate throughout your day. You have one for carta (paper), one for umido (organic materials), one for plastica (plastic), one for vetro (glass), and one for barattoli (metals).

Of course, five different trash cans means five different trash days. Better not miss!

But the fun doesn’t stop there: The days aren’t the same every week.

Trash talk

In some towns, they are in a state of continual change. Just when you’ve gotten used to Monday being umido day, they switch it up to vetro. Until they decide it should be plastica.

Not to worry. You can always print out a schedule from the local trash office. Just remember to dispose of it on carta day.

In Italy, managing your garbage is basically a part-time job.

And it’s not only the trash. There are a bunch of other systems and regulations that basically force you to waste time doing pedantic, pointless tasks, filling out some arbitrary paperwork that will be read by no one but you are legally required to file anyway, or going to the doctor to get a note verifying that you are healthy enough to go to the gym (yes, this is a real requirement to sign up for a gym membership in Italy).

All these reasons, and many more, are why they don’t get anything done there.

Come si dice ‘start-up’?

I love Italy. It is, without a doubt, one of my favorite places to visit. But it’s just the truth that Italians don’t really get anything done these days. Their economy is in a perpetual state of struggle, no one has kids, and I am not even sure there is a word for entrepreneur or start-up in Italian.

This isn’t just speculation. A good friend in Italy has informed me that the official position of the government is to, more or less, discourage small business and further entrench the larger established corporations started more than half a century ago.

RELATED: When in Italy: Zipping to Lake Como in an Alfa Romeo Giulia

Athanasios Gioumpasis/Getty Images

Europe today is basically a museum. It’s the most beautiful museum there is, but it’s a museum. It’s not because the people are actually incapable of doing anything. It’s not because Europe as an entity is inherently incapable of seizing its destiny. All our Western history and culture up to a certain point came from Europe. America sprouted from Europe.

But no one in Europe can do anything today because everyone there suffers under an obscene, time-wasting, Kafkaesque bureaucracy perfectly exemplified by the ludicrous trash system in Italy.

One big museum

Yes, of course, many there are content with this system. Quite a few really do believe that separating the trash into five bins is a normal part of life and a sign that a society cares for the environment, the future, the children, and Mother Earth … or something like that.

You might be thinking that separating the trash doesn’t sound like that big of a deal. You might be of the opinion that I’m just a stick-in-the-mud, resisting something just because it’s new. You might imagine that it can’t really take that long. You may say, “So big deal, you just take a little longer with the garbage, you just plan ahead a little more.”

That might sound right if you are doing this whole separating business one time as a fluke, but when you apply this system to everyday life, over and over again, with no escape, it wears people down.

That’s one of the ways European over-regulation turns society into an ossified museum. It’s not just the fact that it is legally difficult to do many things that should not be legally difficult to do. It’s that the pointless inconveniences created by the over-regulation wear people down mentally. At scale, over time, the trash (and every other absurd system similar to the trash) takes a toll on people. The very spirit of a people becomes different.

Move slow and repair stuff

Many of the regulations in Europe are designed to protect something. Sometimes it’s the environment, sometimes it’s the traditional architecture, sometimes it’s the people. Those things are all fine. Most of us care about protecting those things to some degree.

But you can take protection too far, and if you protect too many things too much, society ends up feeling like a museum where you look but don’t touch. That’s kind of how it feels for many Europeans.

You know those speed bumps they put on residential roads so that you slow down? Imagine if those were everywhere, on every road. That’s kind of what all the overbearing regulations feel like. That’s the general kind of system at every level.

If “move fast and break things” is American, “move slow and sometimes repair stuff” is European. It’s good to repair stuff, it’s nice that Europe maintains much of its cultural inheritance. Perhaps, that’s its role in our era, one of a museum curator. And the Italian trash system and its demand that you fastidiously separate your waste is, in some strange way, related to that spirit.

But that’s not our role in America. That’s not our spirit. We aren’t a museum, we look and touch and change. We don’t have time to waste separating the trash. We have things to do, stuff to build, a future to seize. And the truth is, I’m not sure you can do any of those things if you spend all your time and energy separating your trash into five careful little bins.

​Travel, Culture, Lifestyle, Men’s style, Rome, Italy, Garbage, Bureaucracy, Europe, The root of the matter 

Those who still remember what real comedy looks like got some good news last week: CBS announced that it’s canceling Stephen Colbert’s “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.”

I know what you’re thinking — hadn’t that already happened? Spiritually? Emotionally? Creatively? Fair questions. After all, the last time Colbert got a genuine laugh, the Comedy Network still existed, and you could make a joke on TV without it requiring a full apology tour.

Look, I’m not saying no one ever laughed. But if someone did, it probably wasn’t because of his act. More likely, they were laughing at him. People often told him his show was funny — just not his show. Somewhere on television that night, something was funny. That counts, right?

Colbert spent a decade scolding America to sleep, hoping the canned applause would drown out the snoring.

Let’s be serious for a moment (which is more than Colbert’s done in about a decade). Without his show lulling viewers into a state of dull leftist self-congratulation each night, we might see a nationwide spike in melatonin sales. “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” served as a free sleep aid for coastal elites who needed to be reassured — just before bed — that they were smarter than everyone else. No comfort like being tucked in and handed their favorite Squishmallow.

Melatonin for the masses

From the beginning, Colbert built his career on mocking conservatives. His original shtick on Comedy Central was a parody — a pretend conservative who was mocking real conservatives, but with just enough smugness to pass as “clever” in a faculty lounge.

It worked — for a while. But like most one-joke acts, it wore thin fast. When he made the jump to CBS, the parody turned into reality: a genuine leftist, playing the role of a leftist, telling jokes only a leftist could love — while aiming hate at conservatives.

Colbert wasn’t a comedian. He was an actor pretending to be a comedian, which is only slightly more honest than most modern pundits pretending to be journalists.

Bias dressed as truth

But there’s a deeper lesson here. Colbert belongs to the same cultural bubble as NPR’s president, the university diversity officer, and the late-night writers’ room packed with Ivy League graduates who somehow believe their worldview is “neutral.”

They talk a big game about identifying bias — but can’t see the deep blue (or Marxist red) lens that shapes everything they see and say. They honestly believe they’re just “telling the truth” — a truth that, conveniently, always punches right and kisses left.

That’s what made Colbert’s show feel like a parody of itself. You kept waiting for the wink, the nudge, the moment he’d break character and admit the absurdity. But it never came.

Instead, he delivered gentle laughs for Democrats — “Teehee, aren’t they quirky?” — and launched into furious monologues about Trump, DeSantis, or anyone to the right of Mitt Romney. It wasn’t satire. It was seething partisan rage, disguised as applause-sign comedy.

You wanted it to be a bit. But it wasn’t. It was just Colbert. Night after night. Until the ratings finally collapsed and put the whole sad production out of its misery.

RELATED: Stephen Colbert likens WSJ poll of Trump vs. DeSantis to a poll pitting ‘gonorrhea’ against ‘slightly more racist gonorrhea’

Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images

One shining moment

I’ll give credit where it’s due. Colbert did have one moment of brilliance — a genuine philosophical zinger. It happened years ago, back when Colbert still hosted “The Colbert Report.” His guest was none other than Lawrence Krauss — the disgraced ASU physicist who became famous for telling people the universe came from nothing (a philosophical trick so bold it somehow earned him a book deal and a speaking tour).

Krauss was on to promote his book, “A Universe from Nothing,” and Colbert got him to admit that what he’s talking about isn’t nothing, but rather something called “quantum foam.” The book’s title was blatant false advertising.

And then Colbert — clearly out of character for once — did something I still show my philosophy students. He pressed Krauss: “So you believe the universe came from nothing?” Krauss nodded. “And you believe God doesn’t exist, that God is nothing?” Another nod. Colbert paused and delivered the knockout line: “Then aren’t you really saying the universe came from God?”

Boom.

That one line did more to dismantle Krauss’ book than any academic critique ever could. It was sharp, witty, and philosophically devastating. (You can watch my analysis of that clip here.)

If only Colbert had stuck to that kind of comedy — the kind that exposes absurdity rather than reinforces it. Instead, he spent the next decade scolding America to sleep, hoping the canned applause would drown out the snoring.

Make comedy great again

The sad truth is that we haven’t seen real late-night humor in years. I recently caught a rerun of Johnny Carson, and it was like discovering a comedic oasis in the desert. Carson could poke fun at both sides of the aisle without apologizing for loving his country. He didn’t flirt with the virus of multicultural guilt or the blame-America-first bug that has infected entertainment for the last 20 years.

He was funny because he understood something Colbert never did: America, for all her flaws, is still worth laughing with — not just sneering at.

So farewell, Stephen Colbert. I’d say we’ll miss you, but we’ve already had years of practice.

​Opinion & analysis, Opinion, Stephen colbert, Late night, Late show with stephen colbert, Canceled, Comedy, Liberal media, Democrats, Joke, Atheism, God, Lawrence krauss, Universe, Science, Religion