Category: blaze media

Earlier this month, the Department of Justice announced the sentencing of U.S. Army soldier Pfc. Cole Bridges. He pleaded guilty to terrorism charges in 2023 and received a 14-year federal prison sentence for attempting to assist ISIS.

To the lay reader, the Justice Department’s statement appears to be another example of the FBI’s steadfast commitment to combat terrorism. But a deeper look into the bureau’s history of counterterrorism investigations reveals patterns of entrapment, presenting this case as another instance in which the federal government’s actions could be seen as questionable under the guise of national security.

Rather than simple outreach, the FBI encouraged Bridges’ radicalization as part of its six-year ISIS investigation.

The FBI “playbook” for its counterterrorism investigations is straightforward and rarely contravened.

First, identify a vulnerable person. The individual may be emotionally disturbed, financially indigent, lonely, low-intelligence, or (increasingly) juvenile. The FBI uses confidential human sources to identify these targets. CHSs serve as paid informants for the bureau and are only compensated for contributing to successful counterterrorism cases and arrests.

Second, foster a relationship with the newly acquired terrorism subject. Confidential human sources learn the subject’s vulnerabilities and groom him to embrace his worst ideas — regardless of his ability to act on them.

Third, introduce the subject to an FBI undercover employee or online covert employee and encourage him to engage in a violent act he is neither predisposed toward nor capable of achieving.

Fourth, arrest the subject for providing material support to terrorism or another federal crime that could be construed as violent.

The public’s view of the FBI as a bastion of objectivity in America’s domestic anti-terrorism efforts is increasingly at odds with reality. Notably, a May 2014 study by Project SALAM highlighted that between 2001 and 2010, an overwhelming 94.2% of all Department of Justice terrorism-related convictions were categorized as “pre-emptive prosecutions.” These cases often centered on the defendants’ perceived ideologies rather than any concrete criminal activity, suggesting a troubling reliance on unconstitutional “pre-crime” investigations by the FBI. This raises significant concerns, to say the least, about the validity and fairness of the bureau’s counterterrorism tactics.

Perverse incentives

The FBI playbook sometimes backfires. But by the time these schemes are exposed, the FBI has already benefited from promoting its “successful” operations. Its employees advance their careers, and the wrongly accused endure long, unjustified prison sentences.

Let’s reconsider Cole Bridges’ story. In 2019, Bridges expressed support for ISIS on social media. At 19 years old, he was too young to recall more prominent terrorist organizations like al-Qaeda or Boko Haram. Instead, he latched onto the latest ideology promoted in popular culture.

By 2019, ISIS no longer posed a significant threat to the American homeland. Bridges’ actions point to his immaturity, low intelligence, and possible emotional instability. His online behavior made him a prime target for recruitment by an FBI informant.

Bridges’ enlistment in the military raises additional concerns. The U.S. Army performs background checks on new recruits, looking at social media activity and criminal records. Yet no red flags appeared that would have disqualified Bridges from joining. Did the Army overlook crucial details during its vetting process? Did the FBI and Department of Justice fail to disclose an ongoing counterterrorism investigation? Or worse, did the FBI and the Army collaborate to ensure Bridges’ successful enlistment to build a case against him?

If the answer to either of the latter two questions is yes, it raises another question: Did an FBI informant encourage Bridges to enlist?

The FBI stuck with its standard playbook when Bridges was assigned to the Third Infantry Division. An undercover FBI agent posing as an ISIS supporter began communicating with him online. Bridges fell for the trap. Despite being from Ohio, living in Georgia, and having no clear knowledge of New York City’s vulnerabilities, he provided the agent with guidance for a potential attack on the city.

Later, he offered the undercover agent advice on military maneuvers, fortifying encampments, and ambush techniques against U.S. Special Forces. Bridges, a cavalry scout, had no expertise related to U.S. Special Forces operations.

When re-examining Bridges’ story through the lens of the FBI’s approach, the narrative shifts significantly from the one presented in the Department of Justice press release. Bridges is undoubtedly troubled. He is possibly emotionally disturbed, with delusions of grandeur. He even may have sympathized with violent jihadist ideology. But his susceptibility to a basic government entrapment strategy casts serious doubt on whether he was ever a legitimate or capable national security threat.

A troubling trend

The FBI, constrained by the U.S. Constitution and committed to upholding civil liberties, cannot focus on First Amendment-protected speech, association, ideology, or religion. The critical factors are individuals’ capabilities, intentions, and legitimate opportunities to commit illegal acts.

The bureau identified Cole Bridges as vulnerable and conditioned him to engage in activities with undercover assets that would never result in real harm. Instead, the bureau manufactured a plot that led to his inevitable arrest. Worse, the FBI jeopardized the safety of U.S. Army personnel by allowing Bridges to work and train with live firearms and ammunition for over a year, putting innocent service members at risk.

Rather than simple outreach, the FBI encouraged Bridges’ radicalization as part of its six-year ISIS investigation. Upon discovering his online activities in 2019, the reasonable response would have been for an FBI special agent to warn Bridges about his path toward radicalization.

Unfortunately, today’s FBI shows little thoughtful consideration. Instead, the agency focuses on identifying vulnerable targets for easy arrests, regardless of the collateral damage.

This isn’t a defense of Bridges’ online statements, associations, or ideology. The fact is that America guarantees citizens the right to hold and express even abhorrent beliefs. A nation dedicated to these liberties cannot abide government-manufactured terrorism schemes. Sadly, as long as the FBI sticks with the playbook, it will continue the troubling trend of entrapping vulnerable Americans. And we all suffer the consequences.

​Isis, Fbi, Terrorism, Homegrown violent extremist, Army, Entrapment, Justice department, Playbook, Opinion & analysis 

Donald Trump’s shift at a Pennsylvania McDonald’s caused a McFlurry of excitement online — with fans playfully naming him the leader destined to solve the country’s most vexing fast-food frustration.

“He’s gonna fix America’s ice cream machine,” went one typical post on X, alluding to the oft out-of-order frozen treat dispensers — which a recent $900 million lawsuit places at the center of a vast corporate conspiracy.

The chain has long been infamous for the frequency with which its soft-serve makers are on the fritz — so much so that in 2020, enterprising ice cream-lover Rashiq Zahid created McBroken, a website that tracks the status of McFlurry mixers in all 13,509 McDonald’s in the United States.

Shakes down

At this writing, 14.72% of McDonald’s ice cream machines across the country are broken. That includes 14.29% of all Dallas locations, 18.75% of Seattle’s, and a chilling 32% of New York’s.

Many disgruntled franchise owners place the blame squarely on McDonald’s — and the company that makes most of the machines.

Until 2017, all McDonald’s franchises were required to buy an ice cream maker made by the Illinois-based Taylor company; today, they have a few other options, but Taylor still controls most of the market.

While Taylor makes soft-serve machines for other chains, the $18,000 C602 model it sells to McDonald’s is made specifically for the Golden Arches — and requires a nightly four-hour cleaning cycle.

PC load vanilla

If anything goes wrong with that cycle, operators of the machine receive a vague error message and are forced to try the cycle again. If they can’t get the machine working, they must order an expensive repair from an official Taylor technician.

In 2018, food services conglomerate Middleby acquired Taylor. Its financial statements from that year reveal that 25% of its revenue comes from service calls and repairs — leading many disgruntled franchise owners to speculate that the company makes its machines breakdown-prone on purpose.

In 2020, two entrepreneurs formed the startup Kytch in an attempt to put maintenance back in the hands of franchises. Kytch sold a small computer that attached to Taylor ice cream machines and “translated” confusing error messages into detailed and user-friendly troubleshooting information — often allowing the operators to fix the machine themselves.

Franchises loved it, but soon, executives at Taylor intervened. In late 2020, they sent an email to franchises telling them not to use the device, claiming it could maim an employee by starting the machine remotely during cleaning. Kytch denied this.

Sales dropped, however, and Kytch soon closed up shop.

Iced out

Kytch founders then served Taylor with a $900 million lawsuit, claiming the company employed corporate espionage to obtain a Kytch unit, then reversed-engineered it to make its own competing product — with an eye on driving Kytch out of business rather than solving McDonald’s ice cream woes.

While Kytch and Taylor have apparently reached a settlement, the case remains tied up in a dispute between Kytch’s former law firm and its current one.

Meanwhile, website iFixit did a teardown of one of the soft-serve units — and has teamed up with nonprofit Public Knowledge to file for an exemption with the U.S. Copyright Office allowing people to repair the Taylor machines — as well as other consumer and commercial devices — on their own.

The case also brought renewed attention to iFixit’s advocacy for state “right to repair” laws, which secure the right of the consumer to repair products he or she has purchased without restriction.

As the media continues to cope and seethe over Trump’s viral stint as a fast-food worker, it seems to have reopened discussion about our essential property rights — and the efforts of corporations to take them away.

Not bad for 15 minutes spent slinging fries.

​Donald trump, Mcdonald’s, Fast food, Business, Right to repair, Presidential race, Kamala harris, Kytch, Taylor company, Corporate espionage, Franchise player, Politics, Lifestyle, Align 

Joe Rogan might be the most popular podcaster on the planet. He might be filthy rich and have connections in all the best places. He might be a certified bada** due to his long history of practicing martial arts and his heavy involvement in the UFC.

But that doesn’t mean he’s not afraid of anything.

On a recent episode of “The Joe Rogan Experience,” Rogan admitted that he’s actually terrified of something.

Dave Rubin plays the clip.

“The world scares the s**t out of me right now,” Rogan told his guest, retired mixed martial artist and Olympic wrestler Dan Henderson.

Any person with the slightest inkling of what’s going on in the world surely agrees with that, but then, Rogan got more specific.

“All it takes is one person to f***ing launch a nuke, and the world changes forever,” he said, pointing to the chaos in the Middle East and the ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia.

However, when Trump was in office, Rogan insinuated that he didn’t have the same fear.

Not only was Trump this “wheeling, dealing billionaire character that everybody enjoyed,” his regulations “certainly helped the economy.”

“I feel like we were in a lot better spot then than now, for sure,” added Henderson.

“Without a doubt,” Rogan agreed.

“That’s just one of the many examples where [Rogan] basically is like, ‘Trump would be better about that stuff,’” says Dave, adding that Rogan is indirectly pointing out that “we had peace in the Middle East under Donald Trump” largely because “he scared Iran a little bit and dropped the mother of all bombs.”

But under the Biden regime, “Iran has been at it, the Middle East is hot, [and] Russia went into Ukraine.”

To see the footage of Rogan and hear more of Dave’s commentary, watch the clip above.

Want more from Dave Rubin?

To enjoy more honest conversations, free speech, and big ideas with Dave Rubin, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

​The rubin report, Dave rubin, Blazetv, Blaze media, Middle east, Joe rogan, The joe rogan experience, Dan henderson, Ufc 

Accusations from a former Trump chief of staff meant to derail his presidential campaign were defused by a vehement denial from the former chief of staff to Mike Pence.

Retired Marine General John Kelly said that former President Donald Trump had praised Adolf Hitler’s military and wished that he had the same. He also said Trump met the definition of a fascist and would govern as a dictator if elected a second time. The media ran wild with the claims in an attempt to damage the Trump presidential campaign.

‘There were no secrets at that White House related to what the president was saying or thinking.’

“He certainly prefers the dictator approach to government,” Kelly said.

But according to Nick Ayers, Kelly’s accusation is false.

“I’ve avoided commenting on intra-staff leaks or rumors or even lies as it relates to my time at the White House but General Kelly’s comments regarding President Trump are too egregious to ignore,” wrote Ayers on social media. “I was with each of them more than most, and his commentary is *patently false.*”

Ayers went on Fox News to directly address the accusations.

“I’m responding to one general who made egregious comments that are simply not true, that are manufactured, if they were true, obviously the American people would have known about it before then,” Ayers said. “You all know how the White House was covered, there were no secrets at that White House related to what the president was saying or thinking.”

He went on to identify Kelly as a member of the “military-industrial complex” in the segment.

Kelly’s accusations were picked up by Vice President Kamala Harris, who cited him in a brief speech on Wednesday.

“Donald Trump said that because he does not want a military that is loyal to the United States Constitution; he wants a military that is loyal to him,” Harris said.

The Trump campaign lambasted Harris in a fiery response.

“Kamala Harris is a stone-cold loser who is increasingly desperate because she is flailing, and her campaign is in shambles. That is why she continues to peddle outright lies and falsehoods that are easily disproven,” the statement read.

“The fact is that Kamala’s dangerous rhetoric is directly to blame for the multiple assassination attempts against President Trump and she continues to stoke the flames of violence all in the name of politics,” the statement continued. “She is despicable and her grotesque behavior proves she is wholly unfit for office.”

Kelly, who left the Trump administration in 2019, had previously called Trump “dishonest,” “pathetic,” and the “most flawed person” he had ever met in his life.

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

​Nick ayers vs john kelly, John kelly vs donald trump, John kelly trump fascist, Trump likes hitler, Politics 

Draining the swamp requires hard work. You can’t do it casually or haphazardly. The bureaucracy has spent more than 125 years building the administrative state, and it won’t go quietly.

During President Trump’s first term, we learned that bureaucrats holding power have largely insulated themselves from the electorate and elected officials. Long-term structural change will need legislative reform, starting with the Administrative Procedure Act, the key law governing the relationship between Congress, agencies, and the courts.

A regulation can only change the rational thinking of those who know and understand it. Yet we are all subject to countless regulations we neither know nor understand.

Executive action will only have a lasting impact if it’s taken consistently and coherently. Railing for a return to the pre-progressive era of William McKinley serves no purpose. Modern life is complex and interconnected. The trust and sense of community that once stabilized interactions between neighbors are inadequate in today’s world of global supply chains, faceless corporations, and weakened communities. While the administrative state can be reduced, it can’t be eliminated.

Reform must start with a simple, clear, and explainable theory of regulation, then adjust the massive regulatory code accordingly. Fortunately, such a theory exists, and leading bureaucrats have already adopted it. Recent high-profile actions by bureaucrats also provide clues for reform. The key is to use these insights strategically.

Barack Obama’s regulatory czar, University of Chicago law professor Cass Sunstein, popularized the essential theory: Regulations “nudge” people toward making socially desirable decisions. Merrick Garland’s Justice Department and several big-city district attorneys have shown the key reform tool: enforcement discretion. When used effectively, this combination can achieve more swamp draining in one presidential term than has occurred since the New Deal.

Start with the theory of regulation — or, more broadly, of law. The basic premise, drawn from economics, is that people generally make rational decisions. In other words, when facing multiple options, I will choose the one I believe provides the greatest benefit to me. But if society decides that my self-serving choice imposes unacceptable costs on others, a regulation can change my decision-making by making that option more expensive, perhaps through criminal penalties or civil fines. Regulatory subsidies favoring “more socially desirable” options can have the same effect.

Take, for example, a manufacturing company choosing between two industrial processes: Process A costs $80 per unit but adds $40 in pollution costs. Process B costs $100 per unit with no pollution. Without regulation, a rational company would choose process A and leave taxpayers to pay for cleanup. A regulation that forces the company to clean up its own pollution changes this calculation. The company would likely spend the extra $20 for process B, save taxpayers from footing the bill, and generate an overall societal saving of $20. This is an example of an environmental regulation worth preserving.

Essential executive action

During the Obama years, Sunstein and his fellow progressives used this theory to encourage progressive behavior. We can improve on this approach by reversing the script. Instead of starting with the behavior we want to promote, real reform must begin from the decision-maker’s perspective.

A regulation can only change the rational thinking of those who know and understand it. Yet we are all subject to countless regulations we neither know nor understand.

One of the great tragedies of modern life is that we face so many rules, on so many topics, that we have no idea what’s expected of us. Who among us could withstand the scrutiny of a special prosecutor? If the government randomly subjected Americans to such investigations, nearly anyone could be incarcerated or ruined. Besides the obvious violation of civil liberties, this situation points to a larger regulatory failure. If a successful regulation redirects behavior toward socially beneficial actions, then any unknown or poorly understood regulation fails by default.

Enforcement discretion can have a similar effect. When a district attorney announces that she won’t prosecute shoplifting, for example, it effectively nullifies theft laws. Those of us with a basic moral code may still pay for the items we take because it’s the right thing to do. However, those with a weaker moral compass may revise their thinking and conclude that simply taking what they want best serves their (at least short-term) interests.

Draining the swamp requires aligning enforcement discretion with the theory of regulation: Only enforce regulations that people know and understand. How can an agency determine which of its regulations are known and understood? That’s where executive action comes in. An executive order can direct agencies to explain their regulations before enforcing them.

Consider an announcement and order along the following lines:

The purpose of regulation is to encourage behavior that benefits local communities and the nation. But many Americans, both individuals and corporations, don’t know which laws apply to them or how the law expects them to behave. These laws can’t promote the behavior they claim to encourage; instead, they act as “gotchas” that allow enforcement agencies to punish innocent Americans who didn’t know they were doing anything wrong.

We are giving every agency 90 days to review everything within its enforcement jurisdiction. For each regulation, the agency must publish a simple statement explaining whom the regulation affects and the behavior it aims to deter or promote.

These new explanations are not legal statements. They describe enforcement discretion. Moving forward, agencies will only enforce regulations against those they have informed, in line with the behaviors they have identified. No agency will bring a new enforcement action under any regulation unless it has been publicly explained and available for at least 30 days.

That’s it. Officially, this approach doesn’t eliminate any regulations or change the scope of agency power. Practically, it disciplines all agency actions. It requires our government to tell people how we expect them to behave, promoting both government transparency and socially beneficial behavior.

This approach also reduces the need for expensive compliance professionals and replaces technical, legalistic disclosure with real disclosure — placing necessary information front and center, rather than hiding it in a footnote that only a legal team would notice.

Redirect the flows

Entire swaths of the federal government and the compliance and lobbying industries would suddenly lose power. Opposition would be fierce, but difficult to justify. Opponents would be left arguing against fair notice and warning before enforcement. Even better, this approach would shift the balance of power in the swamp. Bureaucrats have grown so powerful because the regulatory code is both sprawling and opaque. Enforced clarity would strip them of one of the biggest weapons in their arsenal.

Long-term benefits are also likely. By forcing agencies to choose between clarifying their authority or ceasing to use it, such an order would force them to prioritize. Presumably, each agency would clarify the regulations it most wants to enforce first. Low-priority regulations left unenforced for extended periods would become increasingly hard to defend. A collection of these long-unenforced regulations would make an excellent case for an omnibus deregulation bill. A significant reduction in the regulatory code, in turn, would justify a corresponding reduction in the federal workforce.

Restructuring the federal government is tough work. Progressives aimed to do it in the 1890s under William Jennings Bryan and in the 1910s under Woodrow Wilson. However, they saw only marginal success until the 1930s. Faced with a true crisis and a theory of the administrative state, FDR fundamentally changed the American system of governance.

We’ve reached another crisis point. Regulatory sprawl and vast enforcement discretion have undermined every remaining republican virtue. No living American can possibly understand the entire regulatory code, which means everyone is arguably in violation of something. This vast enforcement discretion allows the government to target and harass anyone deemed objectionable for any reason. Constitutional norms that haven’t yet been discarded are under constant threat.

The only way to rein in the bureaucracy and restore republicanism is with a coherent theory of regulation and a realignment of enforcement discretion. I’ve presented a plan that’s simple to explain and easy to sell. Maybe there are other options.

Ultimately, the only way to drain a swamp is to redirect the flows that feed it. Opaqueness and discretion are two of the main feeders. Redirect them, and we can reclaim the American constitutional order.

​Donald trump, Regulation, Cass sunstein, Drain the swamp, 2024 presidential election, Nudge, Opinion & analysis 

Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) appears willing to kneecap his party before stepping down as Republican leader at year’s end.

The 82-year-old, who figures he has a shot at re-election in 2026, reportedly lashed out against the increasingly diverse, populist, and anti-war GOP in an upcoming biography, claiming the “MAGA movement is completely wrong.”

In an excerpt from the biography
obtained by CNN, McConnell told the Associated Press’ Michael Tackett, “I think Trump was the biggest factor in changing the Republican Party from what Ronald Reagan viewed and he wouldn’t recognize today.”

‘We are all on the same team now.’

The book, which reportedly draws on an “oral history” that McConnell has been recording for the past 30 years, is apparently replete with anti-Trump barbs that Democrats will likely liberate from context and utilize in the final stretch before Election Day.

McConnell told CNN in a statement that despite the anti-Trump venom that lines the pages of the book, things between him and Trump are now copacetic.

“Whatever I may have said about President Trump pales in comparison to what JD Vance, Lindsey Graham, and others have said about him, but we are all on the same team now,” said McConnell.

Prior to endorsing Trump in June, the nominal Republican clearly had plenty to get off his chest.

“Unfortunately, about half the Republicans in the country believe whatever [Trump] says,” McConnell complained sometime before the end of Trump’s first term. “I think I’m pretty safe in saying it’s not just the Democrats who are counting the days until he leaves on January 20, but the Republicans as well.”

In addition to suggesting that Trump should have been impeached, McConnell called the 45th president a “sleazeball” and a “narcissist” and accused him of being “stupid as well as being ill-tempered.”

According to McConnell, President Donald Trump — who recently
overtook Kamala Harris in four national polls and beat the odds in 2016 — has “done a lot of damage to our party’s image and our ability to compete.”

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) recently accused McConnell of adversely impacting his compatriots’ ability to compete,
telling BlazeTV host Mark Levin, “McConnell runs the largest Republican super PAC in the country and has $400 million, but that super PAC is used to reward the Republican senators who obey him and to punish those who dare to stand up to him.”

Cruz, referring to the
Senate Leadership Fund, which is run by McConnell’s former chief of staff, noted that he had not received a penny from the fund. The McConnell-aligned fundraising group also starved Florida Sen. Rick Scott of funding this cycle.

‘The Senate Republican leader is supposed to help Republicans, not undermine them.’

Extra to complaining about Trump, McConnell criticized Florida Sen. Rick Scott, who unsuccessfully challenged him in 2022.

“I don’t think Rick makes a very good victim,” said the nominal Republican. “I think he did a poor job of running the [Senate campaign] committee. His plan was used by the Democrats against our candidates as late as the last weekend [before the election]. He promoted the fiction that we were in the middle of a big sweep when there was no tangible evidence of it. And I think his campaign against me was some kind of ill-fated effort to turn the attention away from him and on to somebody else.”

Scott said earlier this year that McConnell effectively neutralizes Republican voters’ representation in the U.S. Senate, lording over one part of a two-person dictatorship.

“In the Senate, there’s two dictatorships,” said Scott. “There’s a McConnell dictatorship on the Republican side, and then there’s the [Chuck] Schumer dictatorship.”

McConnell’s biography reportedly also highlights the trouble he had with Trump calling his wife, former Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, the senator’s “China loving wife, Coco Chow,” and details how he wept during the Jan. 6, 2021, protests.

Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) responded to McConnell’s quotes, calling his attacks on Trump and Scott “indefensible.”

“Those running for Senate GOP leadership posts need to weigh in on this & commit never to sabotage Republican candidates & colleagues — particularly those who are less than two weeks away from a close election,”
tweeted Lee. “We must have clarity from the candidates running to replace McConnell on where they stand on these attacks. They must be clear on how they plan to lead the conference, and on the role of its members.”

Lee
added that “the Senate Republican leader is supposed to help Republicans, not undermine them. Sadly, we’ve had too much of the latter.”

Responding to McConnell’s indication that he plans on “arguing more with [Republicans] probably than the Democrats” in the months to come, Blaze News senior editor for politics Christopher Bedford
wrote, “McConnell has been at odds with Republican voters for years. He doesn’t care, and it’s becoming increasingly obvious.”

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

​Mitch mcconnell, Kentucky, Rino, Republican, Gop, Senate, Mcconnell, Maga, Trump, Election, Turncoat, Politics 

Barry Wernick, a Republican running for Texas House District 108, reported Tuesday that he filed a complaint with the Texas secretary of state against the Dallas County Elections Department after he claimed he found his actual ballot posted online.

Wernick, endorsed by former President Donald Trump, shared the news on X, explaining how he made the shocking discovery.

‘Irreparable damage may have already been done.’

According to Wernick, he went to the DCED’s website to view his sample ballot and was redirected to the Clarity Elections portal.

Clarity Elections is an election night reporting portal that is operated by SOE Software.

“After clicking on the link & being transferred to the Clarity Elections portal, instead of seeing a sample ballot, I viewed a downloadable & printable .pdf file of my actual die-cut mail-in ballot with a colored stamp of the initials (HG) of Election Administrator Heider Garcia,” Wernick stated.

Wernick shared a screenshot of Garcia’s initials at the bottom of the ballot. He noted that the online ballot’s markings were consistent with an actual ballot and not a sample.

The images of the online ballot were “not locked, encrypted, or watermarked in any way,” Wernick added.

He called for the DCED to immediately take the ballots offline.

“Because there is no law against publishing an actual mail-in ballot, anyone with access to a registered voter’s legal first name and last name and the same voter’s birth date could easily and legally print out or digitally manipulate that voter’s ballot,” he continued. “Then that person could illegally and potentially surreptitiously inject it into the system thereby disenfranchising and diluting my vote, in this instance, and any other registered voter’s vote without getting caught.”

Wernick added, “Irreparable damage may have already been done. But enjoining Dallas County Elections Department from publishing this information could mitigate any future potential damage to our election system.”

Blaze News replicated the process Wernick used to access his ballot by using another Texas voter’s information. The results were identical: The ballot displayed online lacked a “sample” watermark, included timing marks, and featured Garcia’s initials at the bottom, just like Wernick’s.

Rick Weible, who appeared in Dinesh D’Souza’s documentary “Vindicating Trump” and has repeatedly attempted to expose the vulnerabilities of the Election Systems & Software accumulator, said, “This ballot can be printed and used for swaps and injections … no timing marks or initials should be on any sample ballot.”

In a statement to Blaze News, the Texas secretary of state said, “I cannot speak to any formal election complaints because that information is considered private.”

“I can point out that printing a sample ballot does not provide a means for it to be inserted into the election process as there are checks for ballots both for in-person voting and voting by mail. There is not a way for voters to use a sample ballot in place of a regular ballot,” the secretary of state added.

The Dallas County Elections Department and SOE Software did not respond to a request for comment.

— (@)

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

​News, Presidential election 2024, Presidential election, Election 2024, Election, Texas, Dallas texas, Dallas county, Dallas, Barry wernick, Voter fraud, Election integrity, Politics 

As Election Day approaches, former President Donald Trump told voters that he believes he could pave the way for the elimination of federal income taxes.

On Monday, Trump participated in a town hall segment with Fox News at a barbershop in the Bronx, where he answered questions from the business’ owner, employees, and patrons.

‘There is a way if what I’m planning comes out.’

One individual told Trump that his biggest concern is that his two children and future generations will not be able to obtain the American dream because of oppressive over-taxation.

“When it comes to federal taxes, I’m sure you’re going to start back up the pipeline, the Keystone Pipeline, which is going to generate an abundance of revenue. Also, with the tariffs that you’ve spoken of,” he told Trump.

He asked, “With all this extra revenue that we’re going to be bringing into the country, do you believe that at some point in time, we could find a way — once the country’s back on its feet and getting enough revenue and pays off our debt — do you think it’s possible to find a way to eliminate federal taxes?”

Trump replied emphatically, “There is a way.”

He stated that in the 1890s, the United States relied on tariffs and did not have a federal income tax.

“Now we have income taxes, and we have people that are dying, they’re paying tax, and they don’t have the money to pay the tax,” Trump continued. “In the old days, 1890, 1880, we had so much money they had to set up committees, blue-ribbon committees, how to spend our wealth. We had no idea how to spend it; it was so much money. Then we went to the income tax system, and the rest is sort of history.”

“No, there is a way if what I’m planning comes out,” Trump added.

The former president has already stated that he supports abolishing the federal income tax on tips, overtime pay, and Social Security.

The United States, for the first time, briefly imposed a 3%-5 income tax from 1862 to 1872 to cover the cost of the Civil War.

W. Elliot Brownlee, a historian of tax policy at the University of California, Santa Barbara, told the New York Times that the U.S. adopted “a mass-based income tax for the first time during World War II.”

From 1868 to 1913, approximately 90% of all revenue was generated from liquor, beer, wine, and tobacco taxes. Currently, income taxes generate 94% of the federal government’s revenue, while tariffs make up just 2%.

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

​Donald trump, Economy, Election, Election 2024, Federal income tax, Federal taxes, Income tax, Internal revenue service, Irs, News, Presidential election, Presidential election 2024, Taxation, Taxes, Trump, Politics 

An Iowa man used an American flag to strangle his own mother, then beat up her boyfriend, fled the scene, and led police on a car chase, according to a criminal complaint.

According to Johnson County Jail records, Adam Sotzen of Cedar Rapids was booked at 3:35 a.m. Monday and charged with assault with intent to cause pain or injury, first-degree harassment, operating while intoxicated, and eluding while exceeding the speed limit by 25 mph or more. Sotzen is being held on a $30,000 bond.

‘You need to die.’

According to the criminal complaint, Sotzen went to his victim’s home in North Liberty early Monday morning upset over a prior dispute. The 39-year-old allegedly got into a verbal altercation and then began destroying property.

The Daily Iowan reported that Sotzen shoved his mother to the ground. He allegedly stole an American flag from a nearby home, twisted it into a rope, and then strangled her.

According to KCRG-TV, Sotzen told her multiple times, “You need to die.”

The criminal complaint said his mother fell from her chair, but Sotzen continued to choke her as she lay face down. His mother allegedly told police she feared for her life because she believed Sotzen was capable of killing her.

The mother’s boyfriend reportedly intervened and pulled Sotzen off the woman. Sotzen then allegedly attacked his mother’s boyfriend, punching him in the face and the ribcage.

Following the reported strangulation and assault, Sotzen fled the scene in his vehicle before police could respond.

A police officer identified Sotzen’s vehicle by the license plate after reports of the assault circulated. The officer turned on the cruiser’s emergency lights and attempted to pull over the suspect, but Sotzen allegedly ignored the cop and led police on a drunken police car chase.

Cops said Sotzen sped 55 mph in a 30 mph zone during the chase.

Sotzen finally pulled over, exited his vehicle, and dropped to his knees in the middle of the road, according to the complaint.

Police described Sotzen as being uncooperative and combative with law enforcement. Authorities also noted that Sotzen appeared unbalanced and smelled strongly of alcohol. The complaint said Sotzen continued to be physically aggressive while being transported to jail and reportedly struck the partition inside the police cruiser.

According to state prison records, Sotzen was incarcerated in 2013 for committing a “serious misdemeanor.”

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

​Iowa, Iowa crime, Drunk driving, Strangulation, Mother attacked, Assault, Crime 

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced massive changes to the country’s immigration policies after members of his own party called on him to step down in a private letter leaked to the media.

‘This is temporary — to pause our population growth and let our economy catch up.’

Trudeau made the announcements on social media Thursday after his party lost two parliamentary elections that are making his colleagues panic.

“We’re going to significantly reduce the number of immigrants coming to Canada for the next two years. This is temporary — to pause our population growth and let our economy catch up. We have to get the system working right for all Canadians,” said Trudeau from his social media account.

He went on to say that they would allow fewer temporary foreign workers in Canada and tighten rules for companies to prove why they cannot hire Canadians before hiring foreigners.

The turnabout is likely in response to a leaked letter from a closed-door meeting of the liberal party on Wednesday. The letter criticizing Trudeau was read aloud at the meeting and cited polling that showed conservatives in a double-digit lead as they head into national elections, according to the New York Times.

After the meeting, Trudeau only said, “The Liberal Party is strong and united,” as he walked past reporters lined up outside.

Trudeau’s announcement on immigration might be a last-ditch effort to appease his critics on the right.

“Immigration is central to the story of Canada. Our decision to temporarily reduce the number of immigrants is a pragmatic one that addresses the needs of our economy right now,” he added in a second post.

The party has no official mechanism to force Trudeau out of his office, but if liberals lose the election, he would likely be voted out by the next Parliament.

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

​Trudeau on immigration, Trudeau party losing, Liberals lose in canada, Immigration canada, Politics 

Less than two weeks from the presidential election, Republicans are breaking turnout records for early voting and mail-in ballots across several key states.

In previous election cycles, Democrats have overwhelmingly outperformed Republicans when it comes to voting early. In 2020, over 22 million Democrats voted early, while just 15 million Republicans and nearly 12 million independents did the same.

Although more Democrats have voted early, Republicans are actually outperforming them in some crucial swing states.

Early voting was notably higher in 2020 due to the pandemic, but the trend remains true for previous election cycles. In 2016, just eight million Republicans voted in advance, as well as nearly 10 million Democrats and five million independents.

This time around, Republicans are narrowing the gap. With over 26 million early votes counted, 11 million have been from Democrats, over 10 million have been from Republicans, and nearly five million have been from independents.

Historically, the Republican Party has been averse to the idea of early voting. This time around, Trump has made the change to embrace it, and Democrats are beginning to panic.

“A few more days like this, though, and the Democratic bedwetting will reach epic proportions,” Jon Ralston, CEO of the Nevada Independent, told The Hill about early voting in Clark County, home of Las Vegas.

“I think it comes solely down to the fact that last cycle, Donald Trump told Republicans not to vote early, and this time, the party is telling them to vote early,” Jon McHenry, a GOP polling analyst and vice president at North Star Opinion Research, told Blaze News. “Pretty simple.”

Although more Democrats have voted early, Republicans are actually outperforming them in some crucial swing states.

In Georgia, 48% of the early votes have been cast by Republicans, while 46% have been from Democrats. Similarly, in Arizona, Republicans are outperforming Democrats 42% to 36%, as well as 40% to 36% in Nevada.

The two parties are nearly tied in North Carolina, with 35% of early votes coming from Democrats and 34% from Republicans.

“The large mail ballot lead enjoyed by Dems has been erased and more by the GOP lead in in-person early voting,” Ralston told The Hill.

While Republicans are making strides in the Sun Belt, Democrats have held onto their lead in the Rust Belt states.

In Michigan, 52% of early votes were cast by Democrats, while just 38% came from Republicans. In Pennsylvania, the swing state with the highest electoral vote count, 62% of early votes came from Democrats and 29% came from Republicans. In Wisconsin, 37% of early votes were cast by Democrats and 21% of Republicans did the same.

“It doesn’t matter a whole lot, whether you get them early or you get them late, as long as they get there,” McHenry told Blaze News. “The advantage of getting them early is that you know that they’re already banked. You won’t have to sweat Election Day quite as much.”

Notably, nearly half of early votes in Wisconsin and a third of votes in North Carolina came from independents. Roughly a quarter of early votes in Nevada and Arizona also came from independents. Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Georgia have had the lowest independent turnout, bringing in 10%, 9%, and 6%, respectively.

“Just because you’re registered as a Democrat doesn’t mean you voted for Kamala Harris,” McHenry told Blaze News. “You might be registered as a Democrat, but you’ve gotten sick to death of the Democrats over the last four years and just didn’t bother to change your registration. You might just vote for Trump.”

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

​Kamala harris, Donald trump, Swing states, Arizona, Nevada, Georgia, North carolina, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Michigan, 2024 presidential election, Early voting, Mail in voting, Politics 

Earlier this week, leaked documents from Britain’s nonprofit Center for Countering Digital Hate sparked a massive scandal when it was discovered that the organization’s top priority is to “kill Musk’s Twitter.” In other words, its top priority is to eliminate the only social media platform left that acknowledges free speech.

The founder of CCDH, Morgan Sweeney, not only helped install current Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who he now serves under as chief of staff, he also has close ties to the Biden-Harris administration. The Labour Party, which has been destroyed by socialism, even paid to send Sweeney to the DNC this year. The leaked documents also revealed the nonprofit’s intentions to strengthen its ties to America’s Democratic Party.

And it certainly seems that’s happening. In addition to the CCDH meeting with U.S. lawmakers to influence legislation regarding platform regulation and censorship, nearly 100 Labour Party staffers are currently in the United States campaigning for Kamala Harris.

That certainly seems like foreign election interference.

However, it’s “apparently legal here in the United States as long as there’s no money changing hands,” says Glenn Beck.

Former U.K. Prime Minister Liz Truss, however, suspects that whatever is going on is far from legal.

— (@)

“These people who are coming over. Who’s paying for their airfare? Who’s paying for their accommodation? Has that been properly accounted for? Have the receipts been produced?” she asks.

Under U.S. Federal law, “contributions, donations, expenditures (including independent expenditures) and disbursements solicited, directed, received or made directly or indirectly by or from foreign nationals in connection with any federal, state or local election” are strictly prohibited.

England’s Electoral Law states the same — that only British citizens can donate to U.K. campaigns.

Truss says that if the situation were reversed and Americans were flown to the U.K. to campaign in a British election, “that would count towards election expenses, and it would be classed as a foreign donation, which is illegal.”

To hear more of the conversation, watch the clip above.

​The glenn beck program, Glenn beck, Blazetv, Blaze media, Censorship, Uk censorship, Us censorship, Ccdh, Leaked douments, Keir starmer, Morgan mcsweeney, Liz truss 

Depending where you are in the western hemisphere, freedom of speech is either all but gone or it’s precariously hanging in the balance, as governments try to crush the very right that has differentiated the West from other more draconian regions.

In America, Elon Musk has become the face of the movement to preserve our First Amendment. As the owner of X, a global company, Musk would like to champion free speech overseas by keeping the X platform free of government censorship.

But he’s been met with hostility from would-be totalitarians all over the world who despise him for fighting for the rights of the people.

The latest example of this is Great Britain, where leaked plans from the Center for Countering Digital Hate, a British nonprofit, reveal the company’s top priority — “kill Musk’s Twitter.”

What’s even more disturbing is the reality that the CCDH has strong ties to Keir Starmer, the current prime minister of the United Kingdom, and the Biden-Harris administration. The founder of the organization, Morgan McSweeney, not only played a major role in Starmer’s rise to power, he also serves as Starmer’s chief of staff. Further, McSweeney is currently meddling in American politics by gunning for Harris and Walz to win the election. The Labour Party even paid for him to attend this year’s DNC. In the United States, McSweeney’s CCDH has been meeting with lawmakers to urge legislation aimed at increasing platform regulation and censorship.

Former Prime Minister Liz Truss recently met with Glenn Beck and shared her thoughts on the leaked documents and the overall state of both the U.K. and U.S.

— (@)

“Our governments are in cahoots doing really bad things to the public,” said Glenn.

“There have been numerous public attacks on X by the prime minister. Now, I don’t believe that he will succeed if he takes on Elon Musk, but the mentality isn’t to have an honest discussion about what’s happening in Britain. The mentality is to try and quash any dissent and stop people talking about the very real issues that are affecting us,” said Truss, noting that one of the most glaring issues is “the sheer scale of illegal immigration into [the U.K.].”

Truss, who’s been following the U.S. election, says that comments from the likes of Hillary Clinton and other “members of the Democrat campaign” reveal that the United States and England are on the same path.

“Not only are [Democrats] putting in place these disastrous policies; they’re also trying to stop anybody from talking about them,” she said.

“This is not about left versus right, Democrats versus Republicans. This is about elites against the people,” added Glenn.

To hear more of the conversation, watch the clip 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.

​The glenn beck program, Glenn beck, Uk, Censorship, Ccdh, Leaked documents, Blazetv, Blaze media, Liz truss 

Progressive journalists and politicians have endlessly accused Donald Trump of colluding with Russia to influence U.S. elections. But a new bombshell report reveals that the Kamala Harris campaign is working with the British Labour Party to censor social media and news outlets within the United States, hoping to sway the 2024 presidential election.

Many Republicans had already raised concerns when reports emerged this month that more than 100 Labour staffers traveled to the United States to campaign for Harris in North Carolina and Pennsylvania. Journalist Paul Thacker and Matt Taibbi’s report revealed a deeper relationship between the Harris campaign and foreign political agents, with a shared agenda that includes destroying Elon Musk’s X (formerly Twitter).

Americans’ free-speech rights must be protected from all enemies, foreign and domestic.

After eight years of accusing Donald Trump of treasonous foreign collusion, it’s now clear that the Democratic Party is comfortable working with elements of the British government to manipulate U.S. politics.

Thacker and Taibbi show how foreign political operatives are not only advising the Harris campaign but also directing critical aspects of it. The highly partisan nonprofit Center for Countering Digital Hate has served as a vehicle for foreign influence. CCDH, a subsidiary of British think tank Labour Together, is led by progressive strategist Morgan McSweeney, who also advises Harris.

In the U.K., CCDH has championed censorship under the guise of fighting “misinformation.” Its U.S.-based office has helped organize advertiser boycotts of right-leaning news outlets like the Federalist and Zero Hedge.

McSweeney, credited with Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s rise, has pushed for extreme measures to suppress free speech in Britain. After riots erupted in response to the mass knifing of several children earlier this summer, Starmer emptied prisons of violent criminals to make room for political dissidents. His government has cracked down on social media posts, even arresting people for sharing content critical of immigration policy. Additionally, Starmer’s government has been arresting Christians for silently praying in public. This is the level of censorship the Democrats wish to enforce, First Amendment be damned.

The ruling classes of the U.S. and U.K. share more in common with each other than with their citizens. Both the Labour and Democratic Parties are trying to suppress populist movements while demographically transforming their nations to secure permanent political power. Both parties’ leaders view themselves as part of a global order with a duty to establish a unified political consensus. That’s why Harris’ campaign did not hesitate to work with a foreign government to manipulate the U.S. political process.

Thacker and Taibbi also uncovered an internal CCDH document outlining annual priorities. It reads like a cartoon villain’s to-do list. It calls for regulatory action in the EU, U.K., and United States, with the top priority being the destruction of Twitter. The fact that they used the phrase “kill Musk’s Twitter” in a professional document shows how sinister this operation truly is. Foreign agents are working with Harris’ campaign to undermine Americans’ free speech, using the oppressive tactics they’ve employed in their own countries as the model.

Other disclosed documents suggest coordination between the CCDH and U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.). An invitation-only conference hosted by the foreign influence group included White House advisers, Democratic Party staffers, and members of influential progressive NGOs.

The Labour Party’s influence extends far beyond the Harris campaign. It is deeply intertwined with the broader progressive sphere. If China or Russia engaged in political infiltration of this magnitude, it would be seen as a dangerous threat to U.S. sovereignty and security. Yet, the Democratic Party has facilitated this foreign interference at every turn.

Just weeks ago, I wrote about former Biden-Harris administration climate envoy John Kerry’s remarks to the World Economic Forum, where he lamented how the First Amendment protects American citizens from the censorship regimes installed in other Western nations. It’s clear that the global elite is working to unify control over communication in Western countries. Starmer, McSweeney, and the British Labour Party have created a model based on partnerships with advocacy groups targeting “disinformation,” which the Democratic Party now seeks to import to America.

American progressives have already built an entire NGO complex focused on this goal, and they are now turning it against Elon Musk’s X, which has declared itself a haven for free speech. Musk recognizes the profound danger of this attack and has vowed to take on not just the CCDH but also its donors. It’s a start.

Kamala and her foreign friends are engaging in criminal, deceitful actions that threaten U.S. national security. Those responsible must face consequences, and this foreign influence must be expelled. The free-speech rights of the American people must be protected from all enemies, foreign and domestic.

​Opinion & analysis, Ccdh, Opinion & analysis 

Vice President Kamala Harris’ less-than-stellar performance at her town hall with CNN on Wednesday was filled with awkward answers and nonanswers to basic questions on her stance on several important topics.

One such example was when an audience member asked her to name one of her weaknesses.

Starting off by saying she would actually consider it to be a strength, Harris said she surrounds herself with a team of people with different viewpoints.

‘Her habit is to kind of go to word salad city.’

“My team will tell you, I am constantly saying, ‘Let‘s kick the tire on that. Let‘s kick the tires on it,’ because, listen, I — as I mentioned earlier, I started my career as a prosecutor. I was a courtroom prosecutor. I‘ve tried everything, from low-level offenses to homicides, and I learned at a very early stage of my career and adult life that my actions have a direct impact on real people in a very fundamental way,” Harris explained.

Because of that supposed self-awareness, Harris said she oftentimes does not have a quick answer to a question in settings like interviews because she needs to consult with that team.

“So I may not be quick to have the answer as soon as you ask it about a specific policy issue sometimes because I‘m going to want to research it. I‘m going to want to study it — I‘m kind of a nerd sometimes, I confess — and some might call that a weakness, especially if you‘re, you know, in an interview or just kind of, you know, being asked a certain question and you’re expected to have the right answer right away, but that‘s how I — that‘s how I work,” Harris said as she laughed.

Word salad answers like that did not impress even longtime Democrats on CNN. Former Obama adviser David Axelrod said, “The thing that would concern me is when she doesn’t want to answer a question, her habit is to kind of go to word salad city, and she did that on a couple of answers.”

CNN host Dana Bash said she had been hearing from Democrats that “if her goal was to close the deal, they’re not sure she did that.”

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

​Politics, Harris, Word salad 

Arizona election officials in Maricopa County — the fourth most populous county in the U.S. — are apparently planning to take their sweet time tabulating the votes in the 2024 election.

Whereas elsewhere in the country and
the Western world, election results are frequently tallied within hours of polls closing, Maricopa County deputy elections director Jennifer Liewer indicated at a press conference Tuesday that it could take nearly two weeks to count the votes.

“We do expect that it will take between 10 and 13 days to complete tabulation of all of the ballots that come in, but we ask for the community’s patience,” said Liewer. “We want to make sure that this is a secure process, but we also want to make sure that it is an accurate process.”

Over 2.1 million votes are expected in the county this year, where over 400,000 ballots have already been cast.

‘We are being scammed.’

The high volume of votes is anticipated to retard the tabulation process along with the fact that the ballot this year is atypically long — two pages with an average of 79 contests per ballot.

Liewer further indicated that the county anticipates that the two-paged ballots will generate some confusion when processing advance votes:

We will have some voters who might return page one and page two. We might have voters who only return page one or page two. In both of those scenarios, it is easy for us to continue with the work. But we will have some voters who, maybe their partner or their husband or wife returns two page ones or two page twos. That will create issues because we don’t know which ballot is tied to that voter in that early voting process.

Election officials suggested that these factors won’t just mean a longer wait for results, but longer lines on Election Day.

“If I have one message for voters here today, it is this: that the longer ballots and higher interest in this 2024 general election will create longer lines on Election Day, and that’s OK,” said assistant Maricopa County manager Zach Schira. “But if you want to save time and you want to avoid those lines vote early, either in person or by mail, that’ll save you time, and it’ll help us report more results on election night.”

Liewer indicated the county is planning on onboarding more staff for ballot processing, adding additional night shifts, and taking other steps to ensure the tabulation process goes “as smoothly as possible.”

The possibility that the Arizona county could drag out the election for over a week did not sit well with some critics.

BlazeTV host Steve Deace told “Blaze News Tonight,” “I don’t know what the margins of cheating are anymore. To be fair to Maricopa County, Trump is polling way ahead of where he was the last two times he ran, and so they clearly don’t know how many votes they’re going to need to — ah, I’m sorry —
count. It’s going to take a little bit longer to come up with that number.”

New York City Councilwoman Vickie Paladino
noted, “There is absolutely no legitimate reason for this. None whatsoever. We are being scammed.”

Geiger Capital signaled the delay was far from normal,
highlighting how in the recent Taiwanese election, where voters were required to show photo ID and use paper ballots, “It’s all done in 6 hours.”

“Taiwan has a population of ~24 million,”
continued Geiger Capital. “Meaning … every US state could easily do this and count every single vote in a couple hours. We would know every state’s exact results by midnight of Election Day. No security worries, no controversies, no waiting for days or even weeks.”

“Our system is broken,”
tweeted Elon Musk.

Wall Street Silver
responded, “Our system is working great[,] exactly as they want it to work in certain blue counties.”

Maricopa County supervisor Bill Gates went on the defensive,
writing, “Our system isn’t broken. @maricopacounty is counting ballots faster than ever and on pace with every other state. Arizona law requires processes that dictate the timing by which we count the ballots. More importantly: I’ll take accuracy and security over speed every time.”

The Arizona Republic’s Laurie Roberts
branded concerns over the delay as the stuff of conspiracy theorists, suggesting it was no big deal as Maricopa County has historically been a laggard — with two-week delays in 2012 and 2018 and a 17-day delay in 2008.

Roberts added that Arizona law permits early ballots to be dropped off at the polls until the polls close on Election Day but prohibits their counting on election night.

Unlike Maricopa County, Pennsylvania’s Allegheny County is attempting to reverse the trend of delayed results. KDKA-TV
reported that whereas it took Allegheny County several days to count ballots in the 2020 election, this time around officials intend to have the results in on Election Day, by midnight.

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

​Voting, Ballot, Voter fraud, Election 2024, Election, Maricopa county, Arizona, Election officials, Fraud, Politics 

Actor Frankie Muniz announced he’s putting his acting career on hold indefinitely as he prepares to race full-time starting in 2025.

After 20 years of racing, the former “Malcolm in the Middle” star is making a huge leap forward as he’s set to become a full-time driver in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series for Reaume Brothers Racing.

‘I can’t be part-time, you can’t act on the side.’

In an interview with Fox News, Muniz called his new gig “a dream come true.”

“It’s something that I’ve always wanted to do, and the fact that I actually get to announce that I’m doing it full-time next year, I’m thrilled,” he said.

Muniz continued, “Making the leap up to the Truck Series is a whole other level.”

Muniz practices at the Nashville Superspeedway in June.Photo by James Gilbert/Getty Images

When asked if he was ready to give up acting to be a full-time driver, Muniz said he has been working toward being a professional driver for decades.

“I wouldn’t say it was a hard decision. This is something I’ve been working for for literally 20 years,” he told Fox News’ Brian Kilmeade.

Muniz gave a candid interview in April during which he expressed similar sentiments about leaving Hollywood, explaining his disconnect with the acting world.

“I never felt like I fully fit in the Hollywood world, even though I was in the world,” he recalled. “I was nominated for Emmys and Golden Globes, and I was going to all this stuff, and I was there, and I was like, ‘How am I here?'”

Muniz added, “I hated L.A., so I kind of stayed in my own little world, my own little bubble. And moving to Arizona, I did it on a whim, and I realized immediately that I started looking up. I started enjoying looking at trees and birds in the sky. Going to the grocery store was a fun thing. You don’t get that in L.A. It’s a miserable experience.”

Muniz added that he wanted to keep his children out of Hollywood. Despite saying he had a positive experience, he noted that he knew a number of people who had “insanely negative” experiences.

For racing, Muniz said he has been chasing the “incredible feeling” of coming in first, and that comes with training and competing just as hard as the other drivers — not acting.

“I can’t be part-time, you can’t act on the side,” he reiterated.

Muniz already has made two starts with Reaume Brothers Racing in 2024, first at the Rackley Roofing 200 in Nashville on June 28 and then the Kubota Tractor 200 in Kansas City, Kansas, on Sept. 27. He finished 31st out of 36 drivers in Nashville and 29th out of 34 in Kansas City, Kansas.

According to NASCAR, the 38-year-old hopes to continue “building chemistry with the team and developing his notebook for the upcoming year.”

Muniz will drive the No. 33 Ford next season.

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

​Fearless, Nascar, Frankie muniz, Hollywood, Elite, Sports, Left-wing hollywood, Entertainment, Leaving hollywood, Racing 

An Arizona teenager plotted an ISIS-inspired terror attack on the Phoenix Pride Festival, according to authorities. The alleged terror plot reportedly involved an explosive remote-controlled drone, but local authorities and the FBI said they thwarted the purported attack.

Marvin Aneer Jalo, 17, was arrested Friday — which coincided with the first day of LGBTQ events in the annual Phoenix Pride Festival, which culminated with the annual parade Sunday.

‘Bomb 2024 Pride Parade and take over USA.’

A grand jury indicted Jalo, of Peoria, on two class 2 felonies: one count of terrorism and one count of conspiracy to commit terrorism. Jalo will be tried as an adult. He was being held on a $1 million cash-only bond.

According to a press release from the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office, Jalo “participated in online chat rooms discussing the supplies necessary to make an improvised explosive device and then had those supplies shipped to him” between Nov. 1, 2023, and May 31, 2024.

“He discussed his intent to make TATP (triacetone triperoxide), an unstable explosive that can propel shrapnel and other dangerous items outward, causing serious injury or death to people in the area,” according to the attorney’s office.

A search warrant on Jalo’s phone reportedly revealed an instructional video of an ISIS fighter making the TATP.

Officials said Jalo “posted various videos of himself making the TATP” after the ingredients for the explosives were delivered to him in November 2023. Months after receiving the explosive ingredients, Jalo allegedly was “continuing to reference a desire to use those explosives.”

Prosecutors claimed Jalo had “expressed his plan to attack the Phoenix Pride Festival” that took place this month.

KTVK-TV reported that Jalo befriended alleged extremists online and wrote in one post that they could “bomb 2024 Pride Parade and take over USA.”

Jalo’s mother reportedly told police that she got into an argument with her son after she discovered him “in chat rooms, with the use of his cell phone, speaking with other subjects whom she described as terrorists, who had been conspiring to conduct a possible attack.”

The indictment claims that Jalo “intentionally or knowingly did provide advice, assistance, direction or management of an act of terrorism to further the goals, desires, aims, public pronouncements, manifestos or political objective of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.”

The station noted that investigators discovered chat messages in which Jalo allegedly planned to create a “bomb drone” by using a remote-controlled flying vehicle armed with explosives.

‘I can tell you that this is an individual who does indicate that he does have some very radical ideas.’

According to prosecutors, Jalo was on Telegram where he had “conversations about making an RC-controlled bomb and attacking various targets, including in New York City.”

“[Jalo] told police that he needed to gather more knowledge and better prepare himself before taking part in a terrorist event,” according to KSAZ-TV.

The Phoenix Pride Festival is self-described as “an annual celebratory and educational event commemorating the ‘Stonewall Riots,’ acknowledged as the beginning of the modern gay rights movement. The Festival & Parade Celebration brings the entire local LGBT community together to celebrate openly and proudly with the greater public.”

Phoenix Pride spokesperson Jeremy Helfgot said, “It was stopped. It was stopped safely. It was stopped in time, and our events were able to proceed safely and without incident, and that’s something important to the confidence of the community to know that we have partners who are watching our back. We have to continue to fight for the rights that don’t yet exist to protect all of the most vulnerable among our community, and to continue to ward off the kinds of threats that we saw this weekend, born out of hatred, born out of ignorance, born out of spite.”

Arizona Democrat Gov. Katie Hobbs was the grand marshal of this year’s Phoenix Pride Parade and told KTVK, “I’m shocked and horrified at the alleged plot to attack innocent Arizonans and members of the LGBTQ community who attended the Phoenix Pride festival, and I’m grateful for the swift actions taken by law enforcement to prevent a potential tragedy.”

The investigation that led to the teen’s arrest was conducted by the Investigations Unit of the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office, the FBI Phoenix Field Office, and the Buckeye and Glendale Police Departments.

“I can tell you that this is an individual who does indicate that he does have some very radical ideas. He is homophobic in his philosophy. He definitely took steps in the process of putting together something that would act as an explosive,” said Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell.

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

​Terrorism, Terrorist attack, Terror attack, Phoenix pride festival, Crime, Crime thwarted, Politics, Terror attack thwarted, Isis, Arizona 

“We cannot go to church and pray like Christians, then vote like atheists,” Florida Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nunez told a crowd of rally-goers on Monday.

She was referring to Amendments 3 and 4 in Florida. A University of North Florida poll released this week shows that a ballot measure to legalize weed and a constitutional amendment to ratify baby killing on demand are on track to pass, even with a 60% threshold.

The once-dominant voting bloc in the Republican Party has become an ineffective presence, much like churches that fail to emphasize true discipleship.

The national implications of this are huge. We’re talking about a state that is a must-win for the presidency and that until recently was maddeningly purple. Democrats aren’t even campaigning in the Sunshine State, thanks to the dominance Republicans have built under Gov. Ron DeSantis. It’s incredible to think about. After DeSantis narrowly beat a candidate caught in a scandal involving cocaine and a male escort, who would have believed such dominance was possible?

Yet, here we are.

Remember how DeSantis embarrassed California Gov. Gavin Newsom in a debate last November, highlighting the infamous “poop maps” in San Francisco? Just 11 months later, the same Florida voters who witnessed that are now essentially supporting Newsom’s policies, even after they overwhelmingly re-elected DeSantis in 2022.

Houston, we have a problem — a people problem.

Even Disney opposes Amendment 3, a.k.a. the Stoner Amendment, aligning with DeSantis. Together, Florida’s most influential corporate brand and its most popular politician warn that turning “It’s a High World After All” into a theme park ride is a terrible idea. Despite this, the amendment might still pass with 60% of the vote or better.

If these two amendments pass, they will have massive repercussions for social conservatism. The number of politicians willing to advocate our causes will likely dwindle, and we may need to entirely rethink our approach to activism.

The once-dominant voting bloc in the Republican Party for generations has become just the type of ineffective and inconsequential presence not unlike churches that fail to emphasize true discipleship. Our influence has diminished, and making stupid excuses like “it’s all because Roe was overturned” will make things worse.

Decades of grifty, rudderless, gutless leadership in the Republican Party, the church, and the pro-life movement are coming home to roost. And I’m not sure what to do about that no matter who wins next month. We might need to redefine our role as a prophetic witness in a negative world where we no longer hold influence and GOP politicians can secure wins without us.

Trump, of all people, seems to be trying harder than many in the church to help us avoid such a fate as he called on Christians this week to lead the way in taking their country back. Meanwhile, the seeker-sensitive pastor who refuses to acknowledge the drag queen story hour molesting kids across the street won’t cut it anymore. And that also goes for the anon master of piety on X who will happily watch the world burn as he gives himself a helmet sticker for never getting his hands dirty in something called “reality.”

So many of us have sold our birthright for the cheapest of lies and comforts. Will our culture’s fate truly be no different in the end than one founded by atheists? May it not be too late to redeem the time for our children after so many opportunities were left wasted and so many idols were polished until they blinded us from who we are called to be as citizens.

Alexis de Tocqueville said America “is great because it is good.” Our forefathers held up their end of the bargain on that front in the face of great hardship and evil in the past. But is he finally wrong about us?

Pray not.

​Florida, Amendment 4, Abortion ban, Abortion rights, Ron desantis, 2024 presidential election, Social conservatism, Church, Marijuana legalization, Jeanette nunez, Opinion & analysis 

Jeffrey Goldberg, the Atlantic’s editor in chief, attacked the family of Vanessa Guillen after they came out against his latest story, which alleged that former President Donald Trump reacted poorly to the cost of Guillen’s funeral after offering to cover the expenses.

When the story was first published, Vanessa’s sister Mayra Guillen blasted the Atlantic for “exploiting [Vanessa’s] death for politics.” Mayra added that she had already voted for Trump.

Vanessa Guillen was killed by a soldier she worked with at Fort Hood in 2020. Her death sparked immense outcry because the military severely mishandled the investigation, giving the murder suspect the opportunity to take his own life before he could be taken into custody.

‘So, again, I understand the sensitivities around this, but …’

Mark Meadows, Trump’s chief of staff at the time, insisted that Trump never said, “It doesn’t cost 60,000 bucks to bury a f***ing Mexican!” as Goldberg claimed.

When asked about the denials and criticisms of his story during an interview on CNN, Goldberg brushed aside the Guillen family’s statements.

“In terms of the — the sister, I understand why they’re hurt by — by this story, and I — I obviously feel very sorry, as we all do, for this family, but the fact remains when the family visited Donald Trump, as I note in the story, he said kind words and offered to pay for the funeral. Five months later, when the subject came up, he had very unkind things to say about the funeral, and I would note that he didn’t pay for the funeral,” Goldberg said.

“So, again, I understand the sensitivities around this, but the truth is the truth, and people in the meeting — getting people who had become somewhat inured to Donald Trump’s method of speaking were shocked by what was said, and — and that’s how I learned about it,” he continued.

“Yeah. And the detail about how, ultimately, he did not pay for the funeral is a story unto itself, even without the comments,” host Jake Tapper added.

“Not only did he misrepresent our conversation but he outright LIED in HIS sensational story. More importantly, he used and exploited my clients, and Vanessa Guillen’s murder … for cheap political gain,” Guillen family lawyer Natalie Khawam said about Goldberg. “I would like to also point out that the timing of this ‘story’ is quite suspicious, as this supposed conversation that Trump had would have occurred over 4 years ago! Why a story about it now?!”

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

​Politics