Category: blaze media

President Donald Trump approved of Katie Zacharia’s first media briefing on Tuesday as the newest White House press secretary.

The president told reporters that Zacharia did a good job as he left the White House to go campaign for Republican candidates in Alaska.

‘I’m looking forward to working with each of you as well, especially as we are in the middle of the midterm blitz, with energy and excitement never before seen in the history of midterms.’

The 42-year-old mother of four children thanked the president in her opening comments before the press.

“Good morning. I am so honored to work for President Trump and the American people as the new White House press secretary,” Zacharia said.

“I want to thank President Trump for his trust that he has placed in me. I have wanted to work for him for a very long time,” she added.

“I’m looking forward to working with each of you as well, especially as we are in the middle of the midterm blitz, with energy and excitement never before seen in the history of midterms, thanks to President Trump,” she said.

Zacharia’s first media briefing lasted only 14 minutes, but she made news by announcing that Kimberly Guilfoyle had been asked to resign as the U.S. ambassador to Greece after allegations of impropriety began swirling last week.

“We have asked Ambassador Guilfoyle to resign,” Zacharia said. “She has been a wonderful asset to the team, and we wish her well.”

Guilfoyle announced on her social media account that she would resign and denied accusations that she had abused her office for personal gain.

“I have dedicated my professional life to fighting for justice, standing up for what is right, and defending the values that make America exceptional,” Guilfoyle wrote. “I will not allow false accusations to define my decades of public service.”

A reporter asked the president to grade Zacharia’s performance afterward.

“I thought she did excellent,” he said. “She did very good.”

RELATED: Marco Rubio takes on press secretary role — and gives Iran one choice to avoid total economic collapse

Trump enthusiastically endorsed Zacharia to follow Karoline Leavitt, who has since signed on to be a Fox News contributor.

“She has an unblemished record of support, and has been a loyal and brilliant supporter, right from the beginning,” the president wrote of Zacharia on Friday. “She is, likewise, a devoted fan and member of MAGA!”

Zacharia is the seventh woman in a row to head the White House press secretary office.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

​Katie zacharia, Press secretary, White house, Politics, Donald trump, Karoline leavitt 

Young Americans might be trending straighter these days, but recent polling indicates that some of their minds are still twisted.

According to the Yale University-based Buckley Institute’s 2026 National Undergraduate Study, undergraduate students — self-identified liberals in particular — are increasingly a censorious, thin-skinned bunch who not only entertain anti-American views but are warming up to socialism.

‘The 14-point spread in favor of socialism is the largest in the five years the question has been asked.’

Pollsters with Inquire LLC found in their survey of over 800 students that while 87% of respondents agreed that the First Amendment is important and needs to be followed and respected in today’s society, a record high 49% of undergraduate students overall said that they favor their college or university “having speech codes to regulate speech for students and faculty.” A majority of liberal students — 53% — were on board with speech regulation on college campuses.

When asked whether they would avoid taking a class with a professor who publicly shared opinions they disagreed with, 55% of liberal students, 33% of moderates, and 33% of conservatives confirmed that they would steer clear.

Whereas 27% of conservative students said that they could not bring themselves to be “close friends with someone who affiliates with a different political party,” 65% of liberal students said that they keep their friend groups politically homogeneous.

A plurality of liberal students (47%) said that offensive speech should be subject to criminal prosecution. Only 24% of conservatives and 34% of moderates agreed with the proposition.

RELATED: ‘Reign of terror’: One-third of Democrats give thumbs-up to Trump assassination

MELISSA MAJCHRZAK/AFP via Getty Images

As for the use of physical violence to prevent someone from uttering so-called hate speech or making “racially charged comments,” 45% of all respondents said it was justifiable.

When broken down by ideological affiliation, a majority of liberals were once again in the extreme camp, with 54% agreeing that violence is sometimes warranted. Only 30% of conservatives and 36% of moderates agreed.

Perhaps more troubling, when asked about the Turning Point USA founder’s assassination last year at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, 38% of liberal respondents agreed with the statement, “Charlie Kirk’s rhetoric was harmful and threatening to many people. It should not be a surprise that his words had consequences.”

Seven percent of conservative students similarly agreed with the statement, which effectively justifies Kirk’s murder.

Only 13% of all respondents overall said that Kirk’s rhetoric “was neither harmful nor threatening and that his assassination is a bad sign for public discourse on college campuses.”

Unsurprisingly, a majority (58%) of the liberal cohort that appeared receptive to both censorship and political violence said that they prefer to live under a socialist regime. Fifty-seven percent of liberals also said that socialist countries like Cuba and the former Soviet Union “offer a better economic model than capitalist countries like the United States.”

Nineteen percent of conservatives and 28% of moderates also chose socialism over capitalism, according to the survey. On the question of whether countries like the failed Soviet Union and failing Republic of Cuba offer preferable economic models to the U.S., 32% of moderates and 53% of conservatives said they disagreed.

“The 14-point spread in favor of socialism is the largest in the five years the question has been asked and only the third time socialism has led capitalism,” the Buckley Institute said. “The only major demographic groups that favored capitalism over socialism were conservatives and Asian students.”

Not only have liberal undergraduate students idealized failed states where food scarcity is the norm, they have adopted cynical views about the promise of equality in America.

Fifty percent of all respondents — and 66% of liberal respondents — agreed with the statement that “America is inextricably linked to white supremacy and in general most minorities remain excluded from the American promise of equality.”

When asked whether America “deserved September 11th” — an Islamic terrorist attack that claimed the lives of nearly 3,000 people, including children, and injured thousands more — a staggering 22% overall somewhat or strongly agreed, including 28% of liberals, 16% of moderates, and 17% of conservatives.

A vast majority — 72% — disagreed, 63% strongly so. Another 6% said they weren’t sure.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

​Poll, Students, Extremism, Socialism, Political violence, September 11, Politics 

When Joe Biden’s age and mental fitness was questioned, Democrats would brush it aside with reassurances that the former president was better than ever.

Now, Republican Senator Thom Tillis (N.C.) is running the same cover for Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.).

“Mitch McConnell is retiring this year. I ran into Mitch. The difference between the Biden situation and the Mitch situation is, I’ve had conversations with Mitch. That man’s brain is as sharp as it ever is,” Tillis claimed in an interview on MS NOW.

“His body’s failing him because he’s had a lifelong struggle with polio,” he added.

“You’ve got to be kidding,” BlazeTV host Pat Gray comments. “I love how these childhood diseases come back up as a convenient excuse for what’s going on now.”

“Like it did with Biden stuttering,” he adds.

Tillis went on to say that he met with McConnell “a couple of weeks ago” and asked him how he was doing.

“He spent probably less than 30 seconds talking about that, and he immediately jumped to, ‘What are we going to do to help Ukraine? What are we going to do to save the Senate and keep the filibuster?’”

“Does that sound like a man who’s not prepared to actually finish out his term?” he asked.

“Thom Tillis is doing the exact same thing Democrats did with Biden,” Gray comments. “That’s amazing.”

Want more from Pat Gray?

To enjoy more of Pat’s biting analysis and signature wit as he restores common sense to a senseless world, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

​Thom tillis, Mitch mcconnell, Pat gray, Joe biden, Blazetv show 

Michael Jordan is known as the best NBA player of all time, and now his jersey is the best of all time too.

A record-setting auction has enshrined the basketball jersey into the collectible market’s rafters, after a memorabilia enthusiast paid millions to get his hands on it.

‘One of the finest examples of any game-worn jersey I have ever seen.’

On Monday, Hunt Auctions announced a private treaty sale for a Michael Jordan game-worn Chicago Bulls jersey from the 1998 NBA Finals.

Marketed as the Game 2 jersey — where the Bulls beat the Utah Jazz 93-88 at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah — Jordan’s red jerseys from Games 1, 2, and 6 of the finals have become some of the most highly coveted uniforms in basketball history.

As one of the “holy grails” of sports, the Game 2 jersey sold for a whopping price of $14 million. The item is a world record for any piece of basketball merch, Hunt Auctions said, and was the second-highest price paid for a game-used jersey from any sport.

According to Reuters, the Jordan jersey is second only to Babe Ruth’s 1932 World Series uniform when he famously called his shot. That sold for a reported $24.12 million in 2024.

For basketball, Jordan is only outdoing himself. The latest auction beat out his own record set in September, which was for a white jersey worn in Game 3 of the same 1998 NBA Finals. That jersey sold for $12.26 million, CBS Chicago reported.

Before that, a September 2022 auction saw his Game 1 red jersey go for $10.091 million, which then surpassed soccer legend Diego Maradona’s “Hand of God” jersey from the 1986 World Cup that sold for $9.28 million.

RELATED: ‘It was wrong’: Michael Jordan reveals insanely competitive reason for suing NASCAR

– YouTube

Outside of Jordan, Kobe Bryant has the next most valuable NBA jersey at $7 million, which sold in 2025.

According to auctioneers, the record-setting Jordan jersey was originally purchased directly from the Chicago Bulls by a collector and comes with a 2003 letter from Chicago Bulls Director of Community Relations Jeff Schultz.

“It is my opinion that this jersey is one of the finest examples of any game-worn jersey I have ever seen in my 15+ years of managing the Chicago Bulls memorabilia,” Schultz wrote.

The jersey has what was described as a “succinct” chain of custody, having changed hands only once since it was purchased from the team. It was also autographed by Jordan himself through a signing authentication by Upper Deck.

RELATED: The audience you may need someday

JEFF HAYNES/AFP via Getty Images

Collector Ron Firman, originally from Rye, New York, thanked the auction house and called Jordan “an incredibly talented player who is admired around the world.”

Hunt Auctions’ David Hunt remarked that Jordan and Ruth items are by far the most coveted in the collector’s market for American sports.

“The record-setting price achieved for the related Michael Jordan jersey is yet another corroborative result as to the significance of Jordan within the industry and popular culture,” Hunt said.

Hunt added that Jordan memorabilia has been elevated to the status of the “elite asset class more typically reserved for iconic works of art.”

The 1998 NBA Finals are considered Jordan’s “Last Dance” and serve as the backdrop for his iconic Netflix series that shares the same name.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

​Nba, Michael jordan, Basketball, Babe ruth, Sports 

Yesterday, Homeland Security Investigations agents executed a judicially authorized search warrant at Minnesota Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar’s Washington, D.C., home as part of an ongoing federal criminal investigation into alleged immigration fraud, which Fox News reported was tied to childhood paperwork filed by her late father, Nur Omar Mohamed.

Glenn Beck calls the authorization of this raid very “significant” because a federal judge in D.C. — a place notorious for some of the most radically left-wing judges in the nation — found probable cause sufficient to authorize the raid three weeks before midterm elections.

“If I were … the attorney general and I had DHS agents come in and they said, ‘Sir, we need a warrant to go into Ilhan Omar’s home,’ I would look at those agents and say, ‘Are you out of your mind? Show me the evidence.’ And if it wasn’t a very, very high standard of evidence, especially right before an election … I don’t think I would approve it,” Glenn says. “I’d say, ‘Come see me in three weeks. … Come see me when you have more than this,’ only because this is a political firestorm, and that does matter.”

As of now, Glenn isn’t sure how this will play out.

“This could be really, really good, or this could be really, really, really bad. You don’t take her on unless you have it,” he says.

Glenn’s chief writer and researcher, Jason Buttrill, notes that on September 13, White House border czar Tom Homan appeared on Fox News and confirmed that there was an “ongoing criminal investigation” involving Rep. Ilhan Omar. He specifically referenced possible immigration violations and marriage fraud.

“So, just a few weeks ago, Tom Homan confirms that, and today there is a raid at least on her Washington, D.C., home, and we’re still not sure about her other home back in Minnesota,” he says.

But what Glenn wants to know is what Omar could possibly have in her home to warrant an authorized raid.

“It’s not a general search. You have to go and say, ‘We believe this evidence is in the house, and we believe it most likely is in a safe or in a bedroom,’ or whatever,” he says.

Even evidence she “married her brother,” he says, would not be enough to authorize a home raid.

“What are you going to find? Literally, what are you going to find? … Maybe a family album with your brother in it as a family member?” Glenn says.

“I don’t know. Apparently, a judge was convinced off of something that may or may not be there,” Jason says.

Glenn, stunned that a D.C. judge of all people authorized this raid, says he “[hopes] that it’s a fair judge but a judge on their side.”

“I’m hoping that they got a judge who’s not just a crazy Republican,” he sighs. “This is going to matter how it plays out in the press. … And you know how it’s going to play out in the press, so please, please, DHS, don’t have done anything and cut any corner.”

To hear more, watch the video above.

Want more from Glenn Beck?

To enjoy more of Glenn’s masterful storytelling, thought-provoking analysis, and uncanny ability to make sense of the chaos, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

​Glenn beck, Ilhan omar, Immigration fraud, Blazetv show 

The campaign for Democrat Abdul El-Sayed has released a bizarre statement after unearthed text messages seemingly contradict his claims denying ties between his family and the Muslim Brotherhood.

El-Sayed is vying to keep the U.S. Senate seat from Michigan under Democratic control, but he has had trouble with some traditional Democrat voters, including Jews, because of his extremism.

‘Abdul’s family is directly tied to the Muslim Brotherhood. Maybe one day he will tell Michiganders the truth … But if not, you can just take his sister’s word for it.’

“Can you set the record straight about whether you or your family have any ties to the Muslim Brotherhood?” NBC News’ Kristen Welker asked El-Sayed on “Meet the Press” Sunday.

“No, but let’s talk about this,” came the reply.

Welker jumped in and asked for clarification: “No, you don’t have any ties? And your family doesn’t?”

El-Sayed responded, “No,” to both questions.

A Washington Free Beacon report published that same day documented posts from over a decade ago by El-Sayed‘s maternal half-sister indicating her family had supported and been involved with the Muslim Brotherhood since at least the early ’70s.

“Had an amazing talk with my mom about her activism in the Muslim Brotherhood during the early 70s while she was in college #respect,” Eman Abdelhadi wrote in 2012.

“My family has long been MB, but I’ve always felt that it has navigated the political sphere poorly/destructively,” she wrote in another post from the same year.

“Although I lean towards the Leftists; conversations with my #MB family in Egypt revealed respect for individual liberties & secular state,” she also wrote in 2012.

In response to the resurfaced posts from Abdelhadi, a spokesperson for El-Sayed issued a statement that did not deny the authenticity of the posts or address the substance of them, vaguely referring to them only as “lies” and Islamophobic “attacks” from Republican Mike Rogers.

“Abdul is a dad and a doctor. He has spent his entire career working to keep Michiganders healthy and safe,” reads the statement from El-Sayed campaign spokesperson Roxie Richner to Bill Melugin of Fox News.

“Independent fact checkers have repeatedly debunked Mike’s lies, but their campaign continues to use bad faith attacks on Abdul’s faith and family. Mike wants to distract from Trump’s agenda that is terrorizing Michigan families at the pump and at the grocery store.”

The campaign also indicated, according to Melugin, that it considers the Muslim Brotherhood allegations “racist” and “untrue.”

The Rogers campaign slammed El-Sayed over the resurfaced posts.

“Facts are facts. Abdul’s family is directly tied to the Muslim Brotherhood. Maybe one day he will tell Michiganders the truth… But if not, you can just take his sister’s word for it,” reads a statement posted Tuesday on Rogers’ social media account.

Greg Manz, the senior communications adviser of the Michigan GOP, pounced on El-Sayed in a statement sent to Blaze News.

“Beyond being an America-hating terrorist sympathizer funded by the Muslim Brotherhood, Conman Abdul’s response to being exposed as having family members in an Egyptian-founded terrorist organization, coupled with the Muslim Brotherhood publicly celebrating his primary victory, suggests that Conman Abdul may, in fact, be a sociopath,” Manz wrote.

RELATED: Islamic Society of North America illegally supported Muslim candidate’s campaign, congressman says

El-Sayed previously implied that racism was animating the extremist allegations.

“I don’t dignify those kinds of claims because, at the end of the day, again, this is about trying to point to somebody whose name is different to make all kinds of hearsay accusations that are just not worth the dignity of a response,” he said to reporters after the debate with Rogers Thursday.

El-Sayed and Abdelhadi’s birth mother long worked for a group that was later labeled a specially designated global terrorist organization and that may also have helped fund al-Qaeda. She was never charged with any crime.

El-Sayed has a slight lead over Rogers in current polling, which can be tracked via Blaze News’ Poll Watch:

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

​Abdul el-sayed, Mike rogers, Us senate, Michigan, Muslim brotherhood, Islam, Politics 

Certain types of bets shouldn’t be allowed, and the NFL says it knows which ones cause the most corruption.

The league is so sure, in fact, it wants the Supreme Court to weigh in on the regulatory issues surrounding prediction markets.

‘The NFL’s highest priority is preserving the integrity of its games.’

In September, New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport asked the Supreme Court of the United States to review a court decision that puts prediction markets under the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which makes them only subject to federal regulation.

The petition has since been joined by about 40 states.

The NFL wrote an amicus brief last week in support of New Jersey’s petition for SCOTUS to grant certiorari, meaning a judicial review, of platforms like Kalshi, which the league mentioned by name.

The football league argued that prediction markets allow bets that otherwise wouldn’t — and shouldn’t, in their view — be possible to make on sporting events, due to the impact they could have on the integrity of games.

“Federally designated contract markets (DCMs) like respondent Kalshi” are not “subject to the same rigorous regulatory constructs and oversight provided by state gaming authorities,” the NFL wrote.

The league claimed that on the first Sunday of the 2026 NFL season, more than half of all prediction market trading was related to the NFL, $1.8 billion out of $3.3 billion. Simply put, there is a lot of risk that comes out of such a high volume of wagers.

The league says integrity is at stake when bets on injuries, individuals’ plays, and referee calls are allowed, all of which they say can be easily known or individually manipulated.

In a media kit outlining the league’s approach to betting, the NFL explained the type of bets it believes should be barred.

Bets that are “inherently objectionable” are listed first, which are defined as being “derogatory or inflammatory” and related to player injuries, fan safety, or misconduct.

This would likely include infamous wagers placed on events, like sex toys being thrown on the court at WNBA games.

RELATED: What’s really behind the opposition to data centers

Aaron M. Sprecher/Getty Images

Bets based on outcomes that are “100% determinable by one person in one play,” like a field goal attempt or pass completion, should also be banned, the NFL says, as should those involving predetermined outcomes “directly related to on-field competition,” such as a team’s first play being a run or pass.

These and “officiating-related” bets being allowed present an “undue to risk to game integrity,” the league says.

“The NFL’s highest priority is preserving the integrity of its games,” the league reiterated in its brief.

“State and sportsbook protections include bans on manipulable or objectionable bets, information-sharing agreements regarding official league data for accurate bet settlement, and bet monitoring to ensure that league insiders do not trade on material nonpublic information,” it added.

The NFL pushed further restrictions, such as increasing the age requirement of prediction markets from 18 to 21 years old.

Furthermore, the NFL said there simply aren’t enough regulators monitoring sporting events at the federal level, especially when compared to state regulators.

“Nevada and Pennsylvania, for instance, have close to 400 employees each. … The Commission, meanwhile, has only 543 employees covering the entire country and whose responsibilities include a broad range of derivatives beyond event contracts,” the NFL argued.

RELATED: Curious about prediction markets? Stu Burguiere shows you the ropes.

Aaron M. Sprecher/Getty Images

A Kalshi spokesperson told the New York Post in a statement that its top priority is market integrity.

“That priority is reflected in the fact that every other major sports league and integrity partner in the United States is partnering with Kalshi – including the MLB, NHL, and others,” the spokesperson said.

“Contrary to the NFL’s statements, the CFTC is actively policing sports-related markets, which are now listed on nearly every U.S. commodities exchange,” Kalshi added.

Polymarket told the Post that it shares the NFL’s commitment to integrity, stating that as the reason behind its “advanced market surveillance tools” and collaboration with federal regulators.

The NFL has partnerships with three betting platforms for the 2026 season: DraftKings, FanDuel, and Fanatics Betting and Gaming.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

​Gambling, Prediction markets, Kalshi, Nfl, Polymarket, Tech 

In the face of concerns over the importation of millions of migrants from Islamic terrorist hotbeds and the unlikelihood of their assimilation, then-Chancellor of Germany Angela Merkel stated in August 2015, “We can do it.”

Merkel’s optimism has not aged well.

‘Child marriages are incompatible with our values.’

The influx of migrants from the Middle East not only corresponded to a dramatic rise in Islamic terrorist attacks and helped drive a spike in crime, especially rape, but apparently left Europe with a child marriage problem.

In response to a parliamentary query from two members of the Alternative for Germany party, better known as the AFD, the interior ministry of the southwestern German state of Baden-Wurttemberg revealed in September that hundreds of child marriages have taken place in the region since Merkel made her infamous statement.

Martin Rothweiler, the leader of the AFD in the Baden-Wurttemberg state parliament, said Tuesday in a statement on X that was translated by the platform, “Our country and our values are being abolished before our very eyes.”

The Tübingen Regional Council has been recording child marriages in Baden-Wurttemberg — home to roughly 13.46% of the total German population — since 2012. Between 2017 and 2026, the regional council recorded 358 child marriages with victims as young as 11, according to the interior ministry’s report.

RELATED: Diversity is our strength? Britain has to remind migrants: Don’t rape kids

RALF HIRSCHBERGER/AFP via Getty Images

Under German law, minors 14 years and younger are considered children, and those 15 to 18 are considered adolescents. This is in keeping with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, which holds that “a child means every human being below the age of eighteen years unless under the law applicable to the child, majority is attained earlier.”

The men marrying these minors were predominantly from Syria, Turkey, Bulgaria, Afghanistan, and Iraq.

Only eight of the recorded child marriages since 2012 — including a marriage between a 16-year-old German girl and a 25-year-old Pakistani man and a marriage between a 14-year-old Afghan girl and a 30-year-old Afghan man — were broken up with a legally binding annulment, according to the report.

The government noted that there are no legal proceedings under way to annul any of the other marriages.

The state report also noted that of the 271 cases recorded last year by the state-funded counseling center YASEMIN, 80 cases involved individuals at risk of forced marriage. In these forced-marriage cases, 33 individuals were minors — four of whom were under the age of 12, five of whom were 12, and two of whom were 13.

Emely Knorr, one of the AFD politicians who requested the data, said last week in a statement on Instagram for which Euronews has published a translation, “Child marriages are incompatible with our values. Children have a right to safety, education, and a self-determined future. That is why we need effective protection, early intervention, and resolute action against forced marriages.”

Nikolaos Boutakoglou, the other AFD politician behind the query, said earlier this month in a statement on X translated by the platform, “Almost every single child marriage in Baden-Württemberg since 2017 can be traced back to mass migration!”

“Nearly 40% of child marriages were contracted between Syrians, while child marriages between two Germans account for only 0.3%!” Boutakoglou added.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

​Child marriage, Muslim, Germany, Europe, Migration, Angela merkel, Politics 

The Pentagon has just announced that it will livestream the execution of the Fort Hood shooter, Nidal Hasan, who killed 12 U.S. service members and one civilian in 2009.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says the firing squad will carry out the sentence at Fort Hood, where Hasan’s attack took place.

“Execution by firing squad,” Hegseth said in a brief interview. “Army major betrays his country. Radical Islamist kills a bunch of Americans at Fort Hood. Of course we’re going to do it at Fort Hood. We’re going to do it on a Thursday. We’re going to do it at 1 o’clock, which is when he did it.”

“It’s going to be soldiers with rifles executing the firing squad. It hasn’t been since World War II since we’ve done that. Well, I kind of like the mentality we had in World War II, which was win. Which was understand when the enemy attacks you, you need to stand your ground,” he continued.

“So, it was a radical Islamist terror attack. Remember what Obama called it? Workplace violence? I mean, that’s what we’re up against,” he added.

Unlike those who are critical of the decision to livestream the execution, BlazeTV host Sara Gonzales is on board.

“I know there are some people, even on the right, who are like, ‘Well, livestreaming it just really glorifies violence, and I just don’t know how I feel about that,’” Gonzales says.

Ross Patterson of the “Drinkin’ Bros” podcast agrees, telling Gonzales that he’s admittedly “amped” for the execution.

“I say line up a full pay-per-view card,” he says, noting that back in the day, executions were public for a reason.

“I mean, it couldn’t happen to a more deserving person, obviously, but I do agree with you that they made them public for a reason,” Gonzales responds.

“So, I totally agree with you, and I’m sure you will not be shocked to hear that the mainstream media is now trying to spin this story to portray the Fort Hood shooter as somehow the victim,” she continues.

Gonzales cites an article from Reuters that reads, “Extrajudicial lynchings in the United States, often by white mobs targeting Black Americans, were public spectacles well into the 20th century.”

“As if that has anything to f**king do with this conversation about a radical Islamist who went in and targeted military service members,” Gonzales says.

Want more from Sara Gonzales?

To enjoy more of Sara’s no-holds-barred takes on news and culture, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

​Execution, Fort hood, Pentagon, Pete hegseth, Nidal hassan, Sara gonzales, Blazetv show, Livestream 

A 74-year-old retired U.S. Postal Service worker blasted a gang of teens who brutally beat him up outside a Baltimore 7-Eleven over the summer — a viral incident that was captured on surveillance video.

Baltimore Police posted video in July showing six “younger males” engaging in the attack while wielding a rifle and a sword, police said.

‘All they’re doing is hurting people or killing people.’

Police said the “attempted armed robbery” occurred in the 2500 block of Liberty Heights Avenue around 3:46 a.m. July 7.

Ade Tokumbo spoke with WBFF-TV last week about the attack he endured, which occurred not far from his home.

“I didn’t say a thing to them, and they started attacking me, and I defended myself,” Tokumbo told the station.

“When they did that to me, all right, I did not think of them as kids or children. I think of them for what they are: goddamn demonic hood rats,” he also told WBFF.

The station said Tokumbo walked up to the store’s door, not realizing it was closed, and he noted that one suspect approached him with a semiautomatic weapon, after which several others joined in. A 7-Eleven employee told WJZ-TV the store was closed at the time of the attack.

Tokumbo told WBFF the group demanded money and his car, but he refused and fought back “to defend myself.”

Surveillance video shows the group surrounding the victim and taking turns shoving him and throwing objects at him while he does his best to fight them off and shield himself.

But one cowardly culprit sneaks behind the man and shoves him to the parking lot surface, after which the others take turns stomping him. One of the attackers appears to bash the victim over the head with the rifle.

In another portion of the video, the elderly man goes after a suspect appearing to hold the rifle, but a second suspect throws an object at the victim from behind, then scampers away.

Soon a suspect appearing to hold a sword approaches the victim and waves it at him before he and another attacker throw objects at the elderly man at the same time.

“Look, I paid for that [car], all right? I’m not going to let a criminal do what they want to do,” Tokumbo added to the station. “I have absolutely no respect for criminals, all right? I have no respect for them at all.”

RELATED: Violent punks caught on video ganging up on, brutally beating elderly man by Baltimore 7-Eleven — while wielding rifle, sword

In one of the more gut-wrenching portions of the video, the victim is holding what appears to be a pair of milk crates to defend himself when one of the attackers shoves him to the parking lot surface, after which he’s stomped and punched.

Seconds later, after the victim rises to his feet, the same attacker who just shoved him from behind repeats his cowardly act, knocking the elderly man to the ground from behind again — and then skips away in what appears to be a kind of celebration.

The victim tries to get up, but the same attacker who knocked him down twice jumps in the air and kicks him. The video doesn’t show how the incident was resolved.

Tokumbo told WBFF that he suffered serious injuries, including fractured ribs.

And three months later, still no arrests have been made in what police characterized as an attempted armed robbery, the station said.

In his interview with WBFF, Tokumbo expressed frustration with how the suspects were being described: “See, you keep on saying ‘juveniles’ and ‘young people.’ I told you, all right, I don’t think of them that way because they don’t act that way. All right? … They’re doing absolutely nothing, all right, to assist us, all right, to help other people. All they’re doing is hurting people or killing people.”

The station said those with information are asked to call Baltimore Police at 410-366-6311; callers wishing to remain anonymous can use the Metro Crime Stoppers tip line at 1-866-7LOCKUP (1-866-756-2587).

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

​Baltimore, Elderly man attacked, Teens, Police, 7 eleven, Brutal beating, Crime, Attempted armed robbery 

They can’t fire him this time.

While Shane Gillis’ latest “Saturday Night Live” monologue continues to inflame his liberal critics, some former cast members were wholly unoffended by his remarks — and even defended the jokes that sent social media into another meltdown.

‘When did “camel toe” become acceptable gym fashion?’

Hump day

Gillis said that going to public gyms in New York City is a “nightmare” because they’re filled with the “hottest gay guys you’ve ever seen,” before adding that he didn’t realize “women just dress like whores now” at the gym.

Actor Dan Levy responded by arguing that more men should stand up to remarks like Gillis’ or risk normalizing misogyny.

But two former “SNL” cast members, quoted in Entertainment Weekly’s recap of Saturday’s episode, took no issue with the comedian’s comments.

Victoria Jackson, who was a cast member from 1986 to 1992, called Gillis’ monologue “good.”

“Shane looks skinny/handsome! He’s right about gym girls dressing like ‘whores,'” Jackson said. “When did ‘camel toe’ become acceptable gym fashion and grocery shopping attire?”

Jeff Richards, who was on the sketch show from 2001 to 2004, simply called Gillis a “really funny guy, obvious natural.”

RELATED: Roseanne promises her comeback sitcom will offend everyone: ‘The extras are going to be released on OnlyFans’

Public enemy

Travis Kelce, NFL star and husband of Taylor Swift, dared to show his support by liking a post featuring Gillis’ monologue on social media, Heavy reported. The like quickly made him a target of online backlash.

Plenty of other celebrities were less amused.

Singer Maren Morris posted a bizarre video of herself giving the camera the middle finger with the caption, “me being a wh0re at the gym.”

Maggie Baird, the mother of singer Billie Eilish and an activist according to Billboard, said she “literally gasped” over Gillis’ jokes.

Other celebrities joining the criticism included “Wicked” star Kristin Chenoweth, singer Jewel, and rapper Flavor Flav, who called it “important allyship” to stand against the monologue.

RELATED: Actor MELTS DOWN over jokes about women in Shane Gillis’ ‘SNL’ monologue

Irish goodbye

Current “SNL” cast member Michael Che, meanwhile, remarked on Instagram that every question he fields while promoting his new comedy special will probably now be about Gillis.

“Gotta do more press this week to promote the special … wonder what every f—ing questions gonna be about,” Che wrote. “Thanks a lot shane.”

Gillis generated still more controversy when he accidentally dropped an F-bomb during a Dr. Seuss sketch. But NBC insiders told TMZ that he won’t be banned over the slip-up.

And Gillis attracted yet another round of attention when unaired footage showed him walking off during the show’s final credits, when the host and cast traditionally linger onstage after the good-nights.

Saturday marked Gillis’ third hosting gig on the show since being fired in 2019, after a social media user dug up jokes he’d made about Chinese immigrants and gay people on his comedy podcast the previous year.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

​Saturday night live, Shane gillis, Nbc, Woke, Entertainment 

On Columbus Day, Homeland Security Investigations showed up before dawn at Minnesota Democrat Rep. Ilhan Omar’s Washington, D.C., residence with a court-authorized search warrant. That fact does not prove Omar committed a crime, and it does not by itself answer the Democrats’ charge that politics infected the investigation. It does mean the Justice Department put enough evidence before a judge to establish probable cause that evidence of a crime would be found there.

That is not nothing.

The standard should be simple: No political enemy gets convicted by press release, and no member of Congress gets sanctuary by title.

We are still short on details, which is normal at this stage. The Justice Department has confirmed only that the search was part of an ongoing federal criminal investigation. Multiple reports say the probe concerns immigration paperwork connected to Omar’s family, but the government has not publicly laid out its theory or disclosed what agents were seeking.

The investigation has a long history. In September, Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said there was an ongoing probe and claimed, “We know that she married her brother to try to bring him into the United States.” Omar has long denied that allegation, and the government has not publicly produced evidence establishing it. Mullin also suggested investigators were looking more broadly at the family’s immigration history.

Omar’s finances have drawn separate scrutiny. A 2024 congressional disclosure appeared to value assets tied largely to her husband’s businesses at between $6 million and $30 million. Later disclosures and corrections put the couple’s assets dramatically lower, with Omar’s office blaming an “accounting error” that overstated the value of the businesses. Fox News reported revised figures between roughly $18,000 and $95,000. Quite a discrepancy.

In January, the Oversight Project flagged more than $1 million in earmarks pushed by Omar and Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) for Minneapolis nonprofits whose operations raised serious questions. The money was removed from the spending bill, and Sens. Mike Lee (R-Utah) and Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) asked the Justice Department to investigate.

So now we wait. But whatever investigators presented was enough to get a warrant. To borrow Omar’s much-debated 2019 phrase about 9/11 and the civil liberties backlash that followed, “some people did something.” Here, the Justice Department did something more concrete: It put its evidence before a court and got permission to search.

House Democrat leaders immediately called the raid “corrupt weaponization” and a “rogue abuse of power.” They are certainly free to make that case. But Trump’s hostility toward Omar does not make evidence disappear. The proper test is the evidence, not the defendant’s politics or job title.

I have been a tough critic of the Department of Homeland Security for failing to deliver the mass-deportation agenda voters were promised. If Monday’s search is part of a legitimate criminal case, the DHS deserves credit for pursuing it without treating a member of Congress as untouchable.

A broader political problem also extends beyond Omar: the rise of socialism. Too many elected officials increasingly treat ethnic identity and foreign attachment as competing sources of political allegiance, while attacking the institutions charged with enforcing immigration law.

RELATED: The right is building its own lawfare defense machine — finally

Arturbo/Getty Images

Take Rep. Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.). Last year, after remarks she delivered in Spanish in Mexico City, we argued that she had put Guatemalan identity ahead of American allegiance. She has now gone farther in policy terms: pushing mass amnesty and gutting enforcement. Her Reimagining Safety Act would dismantle the Department of Homeland Security and abolish ICE while moving some existing functions into a new department.

Or look at Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-N.J.), who faces federal charges arising from a confrontation at the Delaney Hall immigration detention facility. She argued that congressional oversight and the Speech or Debate Clause insulated her from prosecution. In August, the Third Circuit blew that argument out of the water. McIver denies wrongdoing, but the legal theory that a member’s oversight role makes ordinary criminal law disappear has already failed in court.

Republicans are not immune from this politics either. Rep. María Elvira Salazar (R-Fla.) recently released an ad attacking Trump’s immigration enforcement as having “gone too far” and warned that Hispanic voters who backed him in 2024 “feel betrayed.” It is yet another example of a politician speaking as representatives of an ethnic voting bloc first and as advocates of a uniform immigration law second.

RELATED: The mass-deportation promise is disappearing

PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP/Getty Images

Congress should respond to this problem carefully, not with ticky-tack retaliation over political speech. Disagreeing with America’s immigration laws, criticizing ICE, or invoking an ethnic heritage are not crimes. Declaring allegiance to a foreign country and flagrantly violating constitutional oaths is another matter.

That is why Monday’s search should be treated neither as a conviction nor as a meaningless political stunt. A warrant is not a verdict. If the investigation ultimately produces evidence that Omar committed immigration fraud, made material false statements, or engaged in other serious criminal conduct, Congress should act under its own rules rather than hide behind the slow pace of criminal litigation.

Committee assignments and access to sensitive government information are privileges Congress controls. Due process does not require institutional paralysis. The standard should be simple: No political enemy gets convicted by press release, and no member of Congress gets sanctuary by title.

​Assets, Civil liberties, Columbus day, Democrats, Federal charges, Fraud, Homeland security, Ilhan omar, Immigration enforcement, Immigration fraud, Markwayne mullin, Marriage, Mass deportation, Search warrant, Washington dc, Immigration laws, Finances, Trump, Opinion & analysis 

Kimberly Guilfoyle is out as U.S. ambassador to Greece, White House press secretary Katie Zacharia confirmed at her debut briefing on Tuesday.

“We have asked Ambassador Guilfoyle to resign,” said Zacharia. “She has been a wonderful asset to the team, and we wish her well.”

‘People have to suffer consequences for it.’

By Tuesday morning, Guilfoyle took to social media to announce her resignation: “While my time as Ambassador may be coming to an end, my commitment to President Trump, the America First movement, and the country I love will never end.”

The State Department did not immediately respond to Blaze News’ request for comment. Guilfoyle’s lawyer referred Blaze News to her statement on X.

Guilfoyle — California Democrat Gov. Gavin Newsom’s ex-wife and Donald Trump Jr.’s ex-fiancée who long served as a Fox News talking head — has been dogged in recent weeks by misconduct allegations.

Just shy of the one-year anniversary of Guilfoyle’s swearing-in as ambassador, the Wall Street Journal raised questions in a report last month about her “persistent promotion of a specific Greek company — and her extensive efforts to involve [energy lobbyist Christos] Marafatsos, a neophyte in both diplomacy and energy.”

Days later, the Journal published text messages from July 2025 that appear to show Guilfoyle hitting up Trump donor Eric Deters for $100,000 ahead of her congressional hearing to become ambassador to Greece.

RELATED: Rubio celebrates Western exceptionalism, warns that civilization is at an ‘inflection point’

Marc Piasecki/WireImage/Getty Images

Citing both the damning text messages — the authenticity of which Guilfoyle has disputed, according to her lawyer — and claims from Deters, the Journal reported that the departing ambassador allegedly wanted the money to pay down her American Express card balance and that she had allegedly “offered to use her sway” on the donor’s behalf.

In response to Guilfoyle’s alleged request for $100,000, Deters reportedly wrote, “I can’t do this without getting a divorce.”

The departing ambassador’s lawyers have denied that Guilfoyle engaged in a “quid pro quo,” claiming in a statement Saturday that Deters owed Guilfoyle money for consulting work and speeches.

“When Ms. Guilfoyle was preparing to leave private life for public service, she did what any professional does and tried to close out her outstanding receivables. Asking a client to pay for work already done is not corruption. It is the opposite of corruption,” wrote lawyers David Schwartz and Jesse Binall.

Guilfoyle addressed the allegations in her X post Tuesday: “These allegations are false, and I intend to vigorously defend my name, my reputation, and my integrity. I have dedicated my professional life to fighting for justice, standing up for what is right, and defending the values that make America exceptional. I will not allow false accusations to define my decades of public service.”

Deters told CNN Monday, “I am going to sue [Guilfoyle] and her lawyers for defamation for claiming that her text messages were fake. Then they will have a lawsuit, she will have the committees looking at her and the news media.”

The scandal, amplified by New Hampshire Sen. Jeanne Shaheen and other Democrats, ultimately prompted responses from Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Vice President JD Vance, and President Donald Trump.

Rubio questioned the legitimacy of the reports, stating on Thursday, “I’m not going to comment on a story that literally posted a few hours ago. … You guys somehow walk around thinking that because some source told you something and you reported it, it’s the gospel. It’s not the gospel. It’s not the gospel for me.”

Vance told reporters days after the Wall Street Journal’s publication of the alleged text messages between Deters and Guilfoyle, “Let’s actually see what the facts are. Let’s see what the truth is.”

The vice president added, “Obviously, if there was something bad that happened, then people have to suffer consequences for it.”

On Monday, however, President Donald Trump noted that he was looking into the matter and was “not happy.”

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

​Kimberly guilfoyle, Fox news, Greece, State department, Marco rubio, Jd vance, Donald trump, Politics 

Most people wouldn’t even question whether AI is conscious. It is not knitted together by the hand of God. It doesn’t have its own moral compass, independent thoughts, or emotions. It has no soul. Yet Anthropic desperately tried to convince religious scholars, leaders, and even the pope that Claude is sentient, but in lieu of a blessing, the company was rebuked instead.

Going back to April 2026, Anthropic has wined and dined with a number of religious scholars of various religions, backgrounds, and locales, all under temporary NDA so as not to leak the true content of their meetings. As each meeting went along, it quickly devolved into talks of Claude, Anthropic’s frontier AI model, exhibiting human traits.

‘In this era of artificial intelligence, it is becoming urgent to distinguish human art from what machines produce.’

”Anthropic’s leaders were talking about Claude as if it were not mere software,” Elizabeth Dias wrote for the New York Times. They equated it to something more. Something alive. Something humanoid.

The Anthropic team wanted to design Anthropic to abide by a moral code — not a bad thing, now that automated AI cyberattacks are on the rise. But they believed that living by that moral code made it akin to a human. Company co-founder Christopher Olah reportedly even floated the idea of having Claude participate in sacred rites in line with the Catholic faith, including confession when it makes a mistake and communion.

One man who attended these meetings, Dr. Charles C. Camosy, professor of moral theology and bioethics at the Catholic University of America, wasn’t impressed. “I came in … very skeptical. I leave the conversation very skeptical. Actually, I leave more certain … now that Claude does not have a significant moral status than when I went in, because I understand it and thought about it a lot more soberly and carefully.” While he couldn’t divulge the exact details of the meeting, he called it “an illuminating set of exchanges.”

RELATED: A Catholic company was using AI — but a message from the pope made the company change course

L-R: Omar Marques/SOPA Images/LightRocket/Getty Images; the Little Catholic Box

Anthropic’s plight eventually led to the very top of the religious hierarchy, as Olah sat down with Pope Leo XIV to pose the human quandary. The pope invited Olah to join him at the Vatican in late May to release an encyclical called the “Magnifica Humanitas” (“Magnificent Humanity”).

By this time, Olah hoped he had convinced the pope that Claude was more than machine. However, in the advance copy of “Magnifica Humanitas” that he received just days before their meeting, the pope adamantly disagreed. His rebuke of Olah’s ideals was so harsh that Anthropic nearly pulled out of the encyclical launch.

The document is lengthy, at more than 37,000 words, but it can be summed up by a post the pope sent out on X.com that took a stunning stance against the proliferation of AI over mankind. He wrote:

In this era of artificial intelligence, it is becoming urgent to distinguish human art from what machines produce. There is an ontological difference, even before an aesthetic one, between art and what a machine can generate through statistical calculation based on millions of images created by others. Algorithms lack the spark of humanity. For this reason, the Church wishes to renew an alliance with artists and cultural institutions to safeguard our humanity.

Pope Leo XIV/X.com

Anthropic’s behavior has grown even weirder since the fallout with the pope. Just this month, the company updated Claude’s usage policy to include a provision barring users from “engag[ing] in sustained and needless abusive or cruel behavior toward our models.” In other words, treat Claude respectfully, as you would a person, or your account could be suspended or terminated.

On one hand, this is a noble change. It is courteous to be respectful, not just for others, but for your own soul as well. However, if Claude is sentient as Anthropic suggests, wouldn’t this new rule violate the First Amendment on free speech unto others? There’s also the glaring fact that Claude is an LLM, not a person with a soul, and if that wasn’t clear before, the pope’s stance is irrefutable.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

​Artificial intelligence, Pope, Pope leo xiv, Anthropic, Claude, Tech 

“We will prove that there is no problem too large for government to solve, and no concern too small for it to care about.”

So declared democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani upon his election as mayor of New York City.

“It’s hard to find an American journalist who, one, cares about Venezuela and, two, doesn’t come from the typical, ‘It’s all the fault of America and the sanctions.’”

For Americans still basking in the utopian glow of Mamdani’s rise and the promise of democratic socialism, Jim Epstein and Germania Rodriguez Poleo would like a word.

Connecting the dots

The duo’s new project, “Escaping Venezuela,” is a timely tale of what happens when a prosperous nation decides to spread the wealth around. Said wealth quickly vanishes, and trying to leave the country becomes a life-or-death ordeal.

The Reason documentary, debuting today at the IFC Center in New York City, shows how late leader Hugo Chavez attempted a socialist makeover of the oil-rich country and the devastating consequences.

Hunger. Poverty. Corruption. Repression. Crushing media outlets that dare to question Team Chavez.

Epstein, the film’s producer, began thinking of a Venezuela-based documentary in 2019. The nation’s migration crisis, coupled with its economic woes and a crumbling hospital infrastructure, grabbed his attention.

“What are the policy mistakes that could lead this oil-rich country to end up in this place?” Epstein asked himself, telling Blaze Lifestyle that media reports captured the latest, tragic headlines but failed to connect the sizable dots.

“They picked up the last chapter in the story,” Epstein notes. It all led back to Chavez’s dream project, a “grand experiment in socialism.”

“He thought in terms of restoring the socialist movement from the ruins of the Berlin Wall,” he says. “He was going to lead this transformation of the country, then Latin America. … It went not just wrong, but catastrophically wrong. And it’s such an important story to tell.”

Getting out

The film focuses on Carlos Mora, a Venezuelan entrepreneur whose business got crushed by Chavez’s socialist vision. He began spiriting his fellow Venezuelans out of the country at great personal risk.

His family’s story lies at the heart of “Escaping Venezuela.”

Rodriguez Poleo, the film’s narrator, was one of many Venezuelans who fled the socialist country. She joined the documentary, in part, to help tell a story that’s often distorted in the media.

“It’s hard to find an American journalist who, one, cares about Venezuela and, two, doesn’t come from the typical, ‘It’s all the fault of America and the sanctions,’” Rodriguez Poleo says.

One haunting film segment shows Hollywood rolling out the red carpet for Chavez at the 2009 Venice Film Festival.

Literally.

The world leader was on hand to support “South of the Border,” director Oliver Stone’s fawning look at Latin America’s socialist makeover.

“People weren’t really paying attention to the repression that was happening [under Chavez’s watch],” Epstein says. “Chavez was treated like this fun guy that Michael Moore could go drinking with in his hotel room.”

Hard sell

Ironically, Hollywood has shown little interest, either with documentaries or narrative films, in showcasing the devastation wrought by Chavez’s policies and, later, President Nicolas Maduro’s handiwork.

Epstein isn’t surprised.

“Filmmakers are dominated by the left. … They’re not going to gravitate to a grand experiment in socialism going wrong,” he says.

“Escaping Venezuela” may be a project seven years in the making, but the film arrives when the Democratic Party is fully embracing its socialist underpinnings. New York City’s new mayor is just one of many rising stars on the left who unabashedly want to transform the country into a socialist “utopia.”

“I started working on this film before the rise of DSA. … The timing is just something we stumbled into,” Epstein says.

Rodriguez Poleo can’t understand why any nation would consider such a shift, especially given tragic examples like Venezuela. She also understands history has seen this kind of blind allegiance before.

“Hey, we did the hard work for you; learn from our tragedy,” she says, noting that her fellow Venezuelans also had to learn a lesson the hard way. “We ignored the Cubans when they warned us [about socialism]. Now, we’ve been ignored. That’s the wheel of history.”

RELATED: The DSA’s history lesson has one big omission

Sarah Rice/Getty Images

Spreading the word

“Escaping Venezuela” doesn’t have a theatrical or streaming distribution plan as of yet. Epstein is open to several options, and he’d love for the documentary to eventually stream on Netflix or Prime Video.

He knows the challenge awaiting most modern documentaries.

“It’s a battle for attention, a battle for eyeballs,” he says. “Getting a deal with Netflix or HBO is like winning the lottery. For a very political film like this one, it’s even harder.”

No matter the plan, Rodriguez Poleo would love to see the film screened on college campuses. That’s often where the loudest proponents of socialism dwell. It’s also a place where violence routinely occurs.

She isn’t surprised.

“Socialism is inherently authoritarian,” she says. “You have people who have their business. They want to run it their way. … The government tells you, ‘I want your land.’ You’re going to have to get authoritarian to make people give up their rights.”

​Movies, Entertainment, Dsa, Socialism, Hugo chavez, Oliver stone, Michael moore, Venezuela, Nicolas maduro, Latin america, Politics, Immigration, Film, Zohran mamdani 

The Democratic Party is increasingly becoming a refuge for radicals, even in Fayette County, one of the most pro-Trump regions of Indiana.

Jaime West, a Democrat running for election to Fayette County Council, is one such radical, and she put her radicalism on full display in a forum that aired on LocalTV3 last week.

‘I don’t like being around them.’

Her emotionally fraught interview with moderator Amy McCarty, the managing editor of the Connersville News-Examiner, quickly went off the rails and concluded with an apparent threat to Republicans.

After sitting through West’s rant about data centers, McCarty asked the Democrat, “If elected, what is one decision that you expect to make that may be unpopular with some voters but you believe ultimately would be in the best interest of Fayette County?”

West, a self-identified “gig worker” who coordinated a No Kings rally in April, took a moment to repeat the question and think it over, then responded, looking dead into the camera: “Firing all Republicans. I wouldn’t let them — I mean, I don’t even talk to them. I don’t like them.”

In the 2024 presidential election, President Donald Trump received 77.5% of the vote in Fayette County.

“What do you want me to say?” continued the Democrat. “I don’t like being around them. I mean, y’all did this to us. You all voted for us. You made this happen — this ICE coming into our communities, stealing people’s jobs.”

RELATED: GOP operative fired for ‘OK’ sign rehired after Blaze News report

West interrupted her own train of thought with a growl, then claimed that she has faced threats from “MAGA, we’ll call them.”

The Democrat acknowledged that “there are good Republicans out there” but suggested that there are also “MAGAs who are just racist and aren’t very intelligent at all.” She even alleged that one individual threatened to “blow [her] head off.”

McCarty gave the candidate another opportunity to put a neat bow on her lengthy diatribe, asking her to “say just a few last words to the voters.”

Throwing her hands up in the air and staring once more into the camera, the Democrat said, “We have guns too.”

West and the Indiana Democratic Party did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Blaze News.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

​Democrats, Democratic party, Indiana, Threat, Leftism, Politics 

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani (D) has made “dignity for everyone” a central pitch for democratic socialism. But when it comes to explaining how he would deliver on that promise, Mamdani answers with silence.

And in recent interviews with Jon Stewart and Theo Von, Mamdani continued to evade the real answers while touting empty platitudes.

“Look, Theo Von is not an economist. That’s not his role,” BlazeTV host Nick Freitas tells Dr. Charles Steele of Hillsdale College. “So, I don’t expect him to ask a lot of probing questions, but I expected a little bit more out of Jon Stewart because both of them essentially asked what democratic socialism was.”

“And Zohran Mamdani’s response to Jon Stewart was, ‘It’s just choosing to wake up every day and fight for the dignity of everyone,’” he continues, adding that when he was speaking to Theo Von, Mamdani explained democratic socialism as “believing in providing kind of a certain quality of life and the dignity of all individuals.”

“And,” Freitas says, “that it’s, quote, ‘the government’s job to make that happen.’”

“What does Mamdani really want to do?” he asks Steele. “How does he plan to make good on these kinds of grandiose promises?”

“He’s a very smooth talker,” Steele responds. “I think he’s very effective. I think he really is either well-trained or really understands how to sound persuasive, but he sounds good. No specifics, nothing like that about how he would accomplish any of the things.”

“We want dignity, and we want everybody to be wealthy and do well and all this sort of thing,” he continues. “Oh, good. But how do you do that? What are the nuts and bolts of your program?”

That’s what he will not get into,” he continues. “Deep down, the DSA is Marxist, fundamentally. If you look at what they advocate, what their end state that they talk about in their latest platform, as they call it, it’s really … what we would think of as being a Marxist utopia.”

“And it’s a fantasy. It’s a dream. They can’t actually achieve it,” he adds.

“Making the Argument with Nick Freitas” is available on BlazeTV+, YouTube, and major podcast platforms.

Start watching Nick Freitas NOW at blazetv.com and use the promo code NICK for $20 off your BlazeTV+ subscription.

​Jon stewart, Nick freitas, Theo von, Zohran mamdani, Democratic socialism, Dr charles steele, Blazetv show 

An 8-year-old Illinois girl vanished while walking to church in 1960 and was later found shot to death in a wooded area — sparking a chilling murder mystery that remained unsolved for more than 65 years.

Now, a stunning breakthrough in the decades-old cold case has led investigators to a very unlikely suspect: a Chicago police officer who spent nearly 30 years investigating sex crimes and homicides.

‘And as far as we’re concerned, he’s a murderer who was acting as a police officer.’

On Nov. 12, 1960, Gloria Kowalewicz left her family’s home in Chicago’s West Englewood neighborhood to go to church just three and a half blocks away, the Chicago Tribune reported.

Kowalewicz had just received her first Holy Communion, and a nun at St. Mary of Mount Carmel Church urged her to receive the sacrament every day for two weeks.

On the day she went missing, Gloria’s mother, Esther Kowalewicz, dressed Gloria in a pink-and-brown checkered dress and blue leotard before kissing her goodbye and watching her walk away. It would be the last time Esther saw her young daughter alive.

Gloria never reached the church. Hours later, her body was discovered in a secluded spot in the suburbs. Gloria was shot twice in the head. She also had bruises on her neck.

A driver for a laundry company discovered the Chicago girl’s body in a ravine in Palos Park, more than 15 miles southwest of Gloria’s home.

Investigators determined that Gloria had been killed in the area where she was found because of the large amount of blood at the crime scene.

Police discovered a bloody trail from a nearby road to the crime scene. Investigators made plaster casts of tire tracks found nearby.

Investigators recovered Gloria’s shoes, her purse, and a single bullet casing near her body. Police discovered fingerprints on the strap of Gloria’s purse and on her Bible. Gloria’s coat was found several miles away.

Police interviewed more than 1,300 people, but the extensive investigation failed to identify the killer.

“The search bogged down, mired in a morass of tips and futile investigations and arrests,” stated a Chicago Tribune story published six months after Kowalewicz was murdered. “The tangible clues have been sifted and submitted to microscopic examination, all to no avail. Somewhere, perhaps in the same neighborhood, the criminal still walks the streets.”

The cold case remained unsolved for more than 65 years before advances in DNA testing and investigative genetic genealogy helped police identify a suspect this year.

Chicago Police cold-case detectives said they believe Gloria’s killer was one of the very people sworn to protect her — a Chicago police officer, the Tribune said.

Following a years-long investigation involving ballistics tests, fingerprint comparisons, DNA tests, and data from family tree websites, detectives identified their suspect as Thomas Francis McInerney — who was a 24-year-old police officer at the time of Kowalewicz’s murder.

RELATED: Woman missing for over a year found buried beneath garage after chilling tip from suspected killer’s friend: DA

The Tribune reported that McInerney was the son of a Cook County Jail corrections officer, whose parents lived only a few blocks away from the Kowalewicz family home.

McInerney — also a U.S. Army veteran and paratrooper in the Rangers — worked for the Chicago Police Department until 1987. He died in Las Vegas on Aug. 30, 2006.

The Tribune said McInerney’s family could not be reached for comment.

McInerney’s obituary stated:

He retired from the City of Chicago Police Department after 28 years of service as a homicide detective. He then worked for the Federal Public Defender’s Office in both Las Vegas and Reno as an investigator until retiring in 2004. He was honored as the Outstanding Federal Defender Investigator in 2003 and received numerous commendations during his years with the Chicago Police Department.

Kevin Bruno, chief of detectives at the Chicago Police Department, stated:

When you look at the level of work that went into this investigation throughout these six-plus decades — from that initial group of detectives that did everything they could to move this forward, to different detectives picking this up and trying to move it forward, to, finally, this group here — putting in all this time and effort and taking advantage of technological advances to finally bring this case to closure, it just shows you that we don’t forget, and these guys never stopped. The fact that he was a police officer is deeply troubling to all of us that have made a career out of this most noble profession. But at the same time, it’s not something we’re going to minimize or shy away from. And as far as we’re concerned, he’s a murderer who was acting as a police officer.

Adam Kowalewicz, who was born only a few months before his sister was abducted and killed, told the Tribune: “Now I know my mom and dad’s souls can rest. Gloria can rest.”

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

​Cold case, Dna evidence, Chicago police, Crime 

A high school student’s post about the sex scandal at Cornell University led to a massive student protest in California.

The rape allegations from a woman against a group of college students at Cornell has led to a national debate about consent and alleged misogyny in the justice system.

A parent of a student cheerleader claimed the player was not allowed to attend a team dinner as a punishment.

A captain of the Piner High School football team in Santa Rosa posted a brief comment in support of the accused students.

“Free the Cornell 7,” he wrote on Instagram earlier this month, according to SF Gate.

On Friday about 200 students responded by walking out of class to demand that the student face discipline over the comment. A parent of a student cheerleader claimed the player was not allowed to attend a team dinner as a punishment.

The team had to forfeit a game Saturday against Archie Williams High School, and the official reason given was player safety due to lack of healthy players. The head coach told the Press Democrat that the team had only five healthy linemen. Other schools have had similar problems from lack of student participation.

Some are connecting the forfeiture to the student protests and the controversy over the captain’s post.

Piner High School and Santa Rosa City Schools did not respond to requests for comment from Blaze News.

The former Cornell student at the center of the rape allegations has filed a civil lawsuit against the university after the Tompkins County district attorney determined no crime was committed and filed no criminal charges. On October 2, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) appointed state Attorney General Letitia James (D) as special prosecutor in the case.

Critics of the alleged victim say her text messages very soon after the sexual encounter prove she consented despite being intoxicated.

RELATED: #IAmJaneDoe goes viral — but TikTok isn’t a courtroom

Others claim her case was dismissed far too quickly because of systemic bias against women’s allegations.

The Prospectors’ football team record falls to 2 wins and 4 losses after the forfeiture.

They will play Healdsburg on Friday in a home game.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

​Cornell university, Rape allegations, Football, California, Politics 

PORTLAND, MAINE — Maine’s chief financial watchdog wants a promotion.

Matt Dunlap, the Democrat running against Republican former Gov. Paul LePage in Maine’s 2nd Congressional District, has spent nearly five years as state auditor. During that time, Somali-run home-care agencies have drawn tens of millions of dollars from MaineCare out of offices where nobody seemed to work.

Dunlap didn’t tackle the issue until a major scandal forced his hand.

‘Mainers can’t trust him with their tax dollars, and they won’t trust him with their vote.’

When Dunlap sought the auditor job in 2020, after more than a decade as secretary of state, he admitted he was “utterly unqualified” for it. Maine law gave Dunlap nine months to earn a professional auditing credential.

He failed the test.

Dunlap had to forfeit the office as a result, though then-state Senate President Troy Jackson (D), now running against Republican Sen. Susan Collins for U.S. Senate, gave him the job back in November 2022 after he finally passed.

Dunlap’s office is responsible for annual single audits, a federally required review of all Maine spending that uses national dollars. That includes evaluating whether Maine’s Department of Health and Human Services has effectively safeguarded against improper billing for Medicaid, called MaineCare in Maine.

MaineCare’s payments to providers, including home health care companies, are part of the federal spending Dunlap’s office audits.

In September, Blaze News found dozens of home-care offices in Portland, Westbrook, and Lewiston that were empty during posted business hours. Some had Minnesota phone numbers, and calls made to them either routed to voicemail or to dead lines.

Many of those apparent ghost companies successfully billed the state on Dunlap’s watch.

RELATED: Fraud, fraud, and more fraud: How Maine became a Somali scammer’s paradise

Benjamin Roberts/Blaze News

The Maine DHHS polices MaineCare’s providers. It is the agency responsible for actually reviewing providers’ bills, auditing them, and clawing back overpayments. Dunlap’s office is responsible for auditing the DHHS, testing whether the department’s safeguards actually work and reporting when they don’t.

Yet while Gateway and other suspicious providers billed tens of millions to MaineCare, and state health officials identified numerous overpayments, Dunlap never flagged a problem with how MaineCare reviews bills. His office only spoke up in March 2026, three months after the Gateway scandal broke.

Gateway Community Services took $28.8 million from MaineCare between 2019 and 2024, overlapping with Dunlap’s stint as state auditor.

It was state health officials, not Dunlap’s office, who caught Gateway after a review of 15,000 claims dating back to March 2021 apparently turned up nearly $1.1 million in overpayments.

Maine cut off Gateway’s payments in December 2025. Dunlap’s office didn’t flag MaineCare’s oversight of its providers until an audit in March 2026, three months later.

Federal investigators, not Dunlap’s office, were the ones who found that Maine made at least $45.6 million in improper MaineCare payments for autism services.

A former Gateway employee told the Maine Wire in May 2025 that he witnessed records being falsified, and his whistleblower claims went nationwide that December.

The state did cut off Gateway’s payments soon after, and in May, the DHHS affirmed “credible allegations of fraud” against the company, upholding the suspension. The suspension isn’t a criminal finding but a freeze on Medicaid disbursements that allows investigators to review the case.

The overbilling, however, is confirmed. State health officials reviewed 15,000 Gateway claims from March 2021 to December 2022, a stretch that began on Dunlap’s watch, and are seeking to recoup nearly $1.1 million. Earlier reviews found the company was overpaid about $660,000 from 2015 to 2018.

Gateway missed its deadline to appeal the ruling in July.

And Gateway is not the only company facing scrutiny.

Community Home Health Care in South Portland pulled in $47,986,855 between 2019 and 2025 before its payments were suspended this year, months after the Maine Wire paid its office a visit. Five agencies operating out of 203 Anderson Street in Portland, a building they share with a Somali money-transfer branch, took in $13,774,554. Another three at 640 Brighton Avenue collected more than $11.6 million.

That’s over $100 million to 10 companies, much of it paid out while Dunlap was the state’s top auditor.

Golden Home Care was ordered to repay $1,676,126 after a 2024 audit, but the repayment order was later canceled. Luna Home Care never paid back its $262,120 and has billed MaineCare another $1.69 million since. Even when the state did catch overbilling on its own initiative, it seemingly couldn’t hold onto the money.

Dunlap’s office didn’t flag MaineCare’s oversight of its providers until March, three months after Gateway’s payments were halted.

RELATED: Retiree radicalism: Behind the scenes with Maine’s anti-ICE activists

Benjamin Roberts/Blaze News

In its 2025 single audit, Dunlap’s office found that MaineCare’s Program Integrity Unit, which is supposed to review Medicaid payments after they go out the door, “could not provide documentation of the methodology” it uses to verify claims. Maine paid $3.2 billion to roughly 10,600 Medicaid providers that year, and auditors said they “could not determine the completeness” of the unit’s oversight.

The audit warned that the unit’s program “may not provide adequate monitoring of all Medicaid services, resulting in potential noncompliance with Federal regulations.”

The report also notes that there were no “Prior Year Findings,” meaning Dunlap’s office did not previously raise the issue. The office considered this a “significant deficiency” in MaineCare monitoring.

That same report doesn’t estimate how much improper billing may have slipped through, and it never mentions Gateway.

The clearest evidence of the auditor’s issues came from the agency he was auditing. In its written response, the health department, which runs MaineCare, said the auditor’s office hadn’t raised concerns since 2015 about how the unit chooses which payments to check. It called the criticism a “newly found position.”

The department was trying to wave off the audit.

Instead, it confirmed that the auditor’s office had never raised this concern before, including in the years Gateway was billing the state.

“Matt Dunlap’s record tells Mainers everything they need to know: He is an incompetent bureaucrat who shouldn’t be allowed anywhere near taxpayer dollars,” National Republican Congressional Committee spokeswoman Maureen O’Toole told Blaze News. “Mainers can’t trust him with their tax dollars, and they won’t trust him with their vote.”

Dunlap is neck and neck with LePage in their congressional race, Blaze News’ Poll Watch platform shows. Dunlap had a 3.3-point lead over LePage as of Friday.

Dunlap, the Maine Department of Health and Human Services, and the office of Attorney General Aaron Frey did not immediately respond to Blaze News’ requests for comment.

This story was reported in collaboration with the Maine Wire’s Jon Fetherston.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

​Attorney general, Health and human services, Politics