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Somali pirates. Dead people “billing” taxpayers. Foreign terror networks thriving on Medicaid scams. Hackers stealing identities to collect benefits.

That lineup sounds like an over-the-top Hollywood heist movie. Americans now read versions of it on the front page.

Americans should treat this caper as a wake-up call. Elected leaders should treat it as an emergency.

Federal prosecutors charged 78 Somali immigrants with allegedly stealing more than $1 billion from taxpayers. National outlets noticed, including the see-no-immigrant-evil New York Times. Prosecutors also say suspected Medicaid fraud in Minnesota may top $9 billion, with new allegations and evidence surfacing by the day.

Hollywood can’t compete with numbers like that. In “Die Hard,” the crooks chased $640 million. Danny Ocean’s crew in “Ocean’s 11” made off with a mere $160 million. Minnesota’s real-life scammers allegedly went after far more, and they exploited programs meant to help the vulnerable.

Americans should treat this caper as a wake-up call. Elected leaders should treat it as an emergency: Prosecute the thieves, close the loopholes, and change the incentives that let fraudsters treat public benefits like an ATM.

For perspective, the fraud under investigation approaches the size of Somalia’s entire government budget and equals roughly 12% of Somalia’s economy, based on recent estimates. Minnesota’s Somali population equals about 0.5% of Somalia’s population and about 2.5% of the Twin Cities metro. Yet prosecutors say a small number of people allegedly moved sums that rival major industries back home.

Worse, investigators say some stolen money went overseas. In the Feeding Our Future case and related investigations, federal prosecutors have alleged that some proceeds flowed to al-Shabaab, a terrorist group the United States has targeted for years. If those allegations hold, taxpayers didn’t just fund fraud. They helped bankroll an enemy.

Minnesota’s scandal also exposes a national contradiction. Washington wages war abroad, welcomes refugees at home, and writes checks through the same federal programs that criminals can exploit — while the national debt nears $39 trillion.

Minnesota’s political class added its own layer of absurdity. Rep. Ilhan Omar (D) built a profitable career calling America racist. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey (D) delivered his re-election victory speech in Somali just days before the scope of these cases made headlines. Symbolic gestures came easy. Basic oversight did not.

Gov. Tim Walz (D) still owes voters answers. Did incompetence drive this disaster, or did indifference do the work? Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem argues both played a role. Reports now suggest state employees blew the whistle years ago about lax controls and sloppy management. Voters heard little of it when elections still hung in the balance.

RELATED: Trump has the chance to end the welfare free-for-all Minnesota exposed

Photo by: Michael Siluk/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

Walz reportedly knew about major fraud risks as early as 2020. His administration later resumed funding after recipients sued, accusing the state of racism. The Walz administration also handed an “outstanding refugee award” in 2021 to a woman now charged in connection with fraud — facts that undercut today’s alibis.

Federal investigators deserve credit. The Departments of Justice and Treasury have pursued these cases aggressively. House Oversight Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) has opened another congressional probe. Prosecutions matter, but prevention matters more.

A new law President Trump signed this summer aims to make fraud more difficult to pull off. It requires states to recheck eligibility for able-bodied adults on Medicaid every six months instead of annually. For the first time, it also forces states to absorb more of the cost when they let fraud run rampant.

Those reforms should move quickly from paper to practice. States, red and blue, should implement them immediately. Fraudsters thrive on delay, confusion, and political excuses.

Taxpayer fraud deserves full prosecution. Political leaders who enable it deserve accountability too — whether they turned a blind eye, ignored whistleblowers, or refused to enforce the law. Every state in the Union should move now, or Minnesota’s scandal will spread.

​Opinion & analysis, Minnesota fraud, Somali fraud, Tim walz, Jacob frey, Ilhan omar, Somalia, Feeding our future, Al-shabaab, Racism accusation, Hollywood, Die hard, Ocean’s 11, New york times, Corruption, Welfare, Medicaid, Scam, Kristi noem, Refugees 

If you want to see where contemporary speech regulation leads, look to Britain.

My country, the birthplace of the common law tradition and parliamentary liberty, now arrests thousands of its citizens each year for “offensive” speech. Much of what Americans still debate as hypothetical has already hardened into policy here.

While commentators work to enforce elite consensus, perceptions of two-tier policing have fueled public anger.

This did not happen overnight, nor did it require a dramatic constitutional rupture. It emerged gradually, through well-intentioned laws, bureaucratic definitions, and institutional habits that now govern what may be said, by whom and about whom. For Americans who assume such restrictions could never survive contact with the First Amendment, Britain offers a sobering corrective.

Catalog of grievance

The roots of this crisis can be traced to the Equality Act 2010, which laid the groundwork for today’s restrictions on speech. The act provides a legal definition of “protected characteristics,” making it unlawful to discriminate against individuals on the basis of attributes such as sex or race.

The act outlines core areas — race, religion, sexual orientation, disability, and gender reassignment — which form the foundation of modern hate-crime legislation. Crimes deemed to be motivated by prejudice or hostility toward individuals with these characteristics can result in longer prison sentences. Yet because prejudice and discrimination are inherently subjective and difficult to quantify, hate-crime legislation erodes the principle of equality before the law.

In total, there are nine protected characteristics: age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation. Although not all meet the legal threshold for hate crime, these categories are embedded across workplace training, education, and public services.

Institutionalizing them frames certain groups as uniquely vulnerable to harm, encouraging institutions to treat speech as a risk to be managed rather than a liberty to be protected, and confers a durable victim identity. Through the lens of identity politics, victimhood becomes a proxy for moral authority. Unsurprisingly this logic expands rather than contracts. Campaigns to add further protected traits — such as menopause, misogyny, or afro hair — reflect a constantly growing catalog of grievance.

12,000 arrests a year

This mindset has enabled some of the most restrictive internet-speech enforcement in the Western world. Each year, roughly 12,000 Britons are arrested for online communications deemed “offensive.” In widely reported cases, individuals have received custodial sentences for social-media posts seen by only a handful of people, or have been arrested for deliberately provocative but nonviolent acts. In another case, a man received a lengthy prison sentence for possessing music classified by authorities as “right-wing.” The cumulative effect has been chilling: Free expression now exists largely at the discretion of the state.

Even when not explicitly codified, the logic of victimhood drives these censorious impulses. Nowhere is this clearer than in the evolving concept of Islamophobia — a concept that Sir Keir Starmer, the Labour leader, has pledged to “reform.”

With opinion polls faltering, Starmer finds himself electorally dependent on a sizable Muslim voting bloc. He must reassure the public that Britain remains a liberal democracy — one in which citizens are free to criticize, offend, and mock religion. The state’s response has been semantic rather than substantive. Islamophobia is now being reframed as “anti-Muslim hatred,” defined in draft guidance as:

Engaging in or encouraging criminal acts, including violence, vandalism, harassment, or intimidation — whether physical, verbal, written, or electronic — directed at Muslims or those perceived to be Muslim because of their religion, ethnicity, or appearance.

Although this definition is non-statutory and not legally binding, it is likely to encourage further self-censorship around legitimate discussion of Islam. A similar effect followed the adoption of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims’ definition of Islamophobia. The Labour Party and numerous public bodies — including more than 50 local councils, some governing Muslim-majority areas such as Bradford, Birmingham, Rochdale, and Leicester — have adopted it.

RELATED: Pakistani cousin marriage has no place in UK

Bloomberg/Getty Images

Hiding behind ‘Islamophobia’

These same regions have long faced serious criminal scandals, including the sexual abuse of young girls by grooming gangs disproportionately composed of men of Pakistani origin. Official inquiries have documented how institutional reluctance to address these crimes — often citing fear of being perceived as “Islamophobic” — contributed to prolonged failures of safeguarding.

As someone who has written extensively about the cultural practice of cousin marriage, I must ask: Does pointing out the well-documented link between consanguinity and elevated risk of congenital disorders now qualify as “hostility”?

Rather than encouraging honest debate, further definitional expansion risks reinforcing institutional silence. In recent years, National Health Service materials have presented first-cousin marriage in notably neutral or positive terms, while academic journals have warned that criticism of female genital mutilation can shade into racism — sometimes proposing euphemistic language in place of the word “mutilation” itself.

This kind of top-down enforcement rarely sits well with voters. Public frustration grows when large numbers of young male asylum seekers are housed in already strained cities, while criticism of immigration policy is constrained by speech codes. No amount of central planning can engineer a harmonious multicultural society. Rebranding Islamophobia as “anti-Muslim hostility” will not resolve these tensions. It instead grants the state wider discretion to interpret — and restrict — speech.

Expansion of civil claims

The revised guidance goes further, characterizing anti-Muslim hostility as “the prejudicial stereotyping and racialization of Muslims as a collective group with set characteristics.” Like all attempts to police expression, the language is subjective and elastic. What happens if one agrees with MI5 that Islamist terrorism represents the most significant national-security threat? Or if one cites court data showing disproportionate Muslim representation in grooming-gang convictions?

The guidance also gestures toward institutional liability, warning against the “creation or use of practices and biases within institutions.” This invites an expansion of HR enforcement and civil claims based on indirect discrimination. Recent employment-tribunal cases — some involving substantial settlements for “injury to feelings” — illustrate how these standards already operate in practice.

Britain already restricts expression where Islam is concerned. Although blasphemy laws were formally repealed in England and Wales in 2008, they continue to function de facto. In one recent case, a man who burned a Quran was charged with “offending the religious institution of Islam” — an offense unknown to statute. (He later won on appeal.) When prosecution proceeds on improvised grounds, it is not difficult to imagine future cases brought under the banner of “anti-Muslim hostility.”

This is the endpoint of multiculturalism: ad hoc speech regulations shaped by cultural sensitivities and sustained by mass immigration. While commentators work to enforce elite consensus, perceptions of two-tier policing have fueled public anger.

There should be no such thing as a hate crime — only crime. Conditions are likely to worsen before they improve. Open borders and cultural relativism have become default assumptions across much of the West, yet they sit uneasily with the rule of law and freedom of expression.

If you want to see where contemporary speech regulation leads, look to Britain. Americans would be wise to do so while these questions are still debated in theory — rather than enforced in practice.

​Uk, Great britain, Free speech, Kier starmer, Lifestyle, Islam, Letter from the uk 

Residents of a previously serene Albuquerque neighborhood are criticizing city officials’ response to the surge in crime allegedly related to renters that built an underground bunker.

The neighbors say there was a rise in stolen cars, stolen packages, and other nuisances after the newest renters moved in. Some of the incidents have been caught on video.

‘There was concrete. There were bricks inside. It was pretty large. That was built into the backyard of the house that led into the joining arroyo.’

The Esquibels have been in the neighborhood for several years but noticed the change in the last year.

“We moved here originally because we loved it,” Alandra Esquibel said to KOAT-TV. “We thought the location was great.”

The couple caught one person urinating near their property through surveillance video.

“You could see them coming in with bags, thuggish and homeless people,” Joshua Esquibel said.

Police records show that there were nearly 50 calls to the neighborhood in the last year before code enforcement discovered a tunnel leading to an underground bunker.

“It was a large dug-in tunnel network. It had support structures,” said Commander Chris Patterson of the Albuquerque Police Department. “There was concrete. There were bricks inside. It was pretty large. That was built into the backyard of the house that led into the joining arroyo.”

Police believe the bunker was being used by criminals as a hideout.

“There’s definitely some auto thefts that we’ve been able to track back to it,” Patterson continued. “Some property crimes, porch packages being stolen from porches, luggage items taken from people’s cars, so some auto break-ins. And then obviously we think there’s probably also a drug nexus as well.”

Despite all of the incidents, the renters were allowed to stay at the home.

The Esquibels and others question why city officials haven’t used a provision that allows them to condemn a property that has three criminal acts in the span of three months.

RELATED: Transient man pleads guilty to sex crimes against 16-year-old with special needs who was found in his camper after going missing

A code enforcement official said the division did not trigger the nuisance ordinance because it did not know about the police calls.

The tunnel has been filled in, but the residents worry there will be more crime if the renters aren’t moved out.

“This community is super scared because of the fact that they’re still there,” Alandra Esquibel said. “Maybe they’re renting out the bunker? I have no idea.”

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​Albuquerque police, Tunnel and underground bunker, New mexico crime surge, City officials ignore crime, Crime 

Anti-ICE rebels aren’t simply “protesters.” Protest is public dissent: signs, slogans, marches, chants, petitions. It aims to persuade. It does not ram police with cars, swing fists at agents, loot businesses, or try to provoke violence.

When anti-ICE activists get detained or arrested, many shout “First Amendment” as if those two words erase everything that happened before the cuffs went on. The First Amendment protects speech, publication, and peaceful assembly. It does not give anyone a license to threaten people, incite lawless action, commit assault, trespass, vandalize property, or participate in criminal conspiracy and intimidation.

Clinical language can clarify motives, but it should not excuse crimes.

That distinction matters because many of today’s mobs don’t merely “speak.” They physically interfere with law enforcement. They obstruct operations. They harass officers and targets. They try to create fear.

We used to teach children to respect the rule of law and the people tasked with enforcing it. Today, many activists treat authority as the enemy by definition, and they feel entitled — sometimes obligated — to attack it.

Not every person in a crowd acts from the same motive. Still, the behavior patterns repeat often enough that clinical language can help explain what we’re seeing. I have divided these anti-ICE “rebels” into seven categories — not as formal diagnoses for individuals I have not examined, but as recurring profiles that show up in chaotic group behavior.

Trump derangement syndrome

Some rebels treat ICE as an extension of President Trump and react accordingly. In my view, this presents as an irrational, disproportionate fixation that can resemble “quasi-psychotic” hostility toward anything associated with Trump — spilling over to people and institutions that have little to do with him, including federal agents doing their jobs.

Celebrity worship syndrome

Some activists take cues from entertainers and influencers and translate slogans into action. This is an obsessive-addictive disorder more than mere fandom. Celebrity messaging can nudge fans from passive agreement to performative activism, especially when the cultural reward system prizes outrage. Public denunciations from stars can energize followers who want to prove loyalty through escalating conduct.

Mad hatters

Some participants display the impulsivity, defiance, and hostility toward authority that clinicians associate with oppositional-defiant disorder or conduct disorder. In its more destructive form, the behavior resembles conduct-disorder traits: aggression, property destruction, and contempt for basic social rules.

Lost souls

Some people arrive lonely, purposeless, or adrift. A mob offers identity, belonging, and a mission. The cause becomes a substitute for meaning, and the group’s adrenaline becomes a substitute for inner stability.

Regressed rioters

Some adults regress under stress and excitement into adolescent defiance — or younger. Think “terrible twos.” They seek confrontation, throw verbal tantrums, and act on impulse, not reason. They perform outrage as if outrage itself justifies whatever follows.

Mr. and Mrs. Personality

Certain personality disorders show up frequently in chaotic movements: paranoia, grandiosity, emotional volatility, hostility, and disregard for others’ rights. These traits can thrive in crowds because the crowd rewards extremity and dilutes individual accountability.

Substance abusers

Alcohol and drugs lower inhibition and increase risk-taking. For some, a riot becomes a party with a political soundtrack — an excuse to seek thrills while claiming a moral cause.

RELATED: ‘How low can they go?’ Maryland Democrat seeks to punish Trump-era ICE agents for doing their job

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These categories help explain how a crowd can form so quickly, swing into panic, and turn predatory. People mirror each other. They feed on fear and moral fervor. They swarm, then strike.

Clinical language can clarify motives, but it should not excuse crimes. Anyone who assaults officers, obstructs enforcement, destroys property, or threatens people should face arrest, prosecution, and due process. Speech receives protection; violence does not.

ICE agents enforce federal law. They face danger, hostility, and organized intimidation. A society that treats mob coercion as “protest” abandons the rule of law — and endangers everyone.

​Opinion & analysis, Mental health, Mental illness, Trump derangement syndrome, Neurosis, Anti-ice protests, First amendment, Freedom of speech, Intimidation, Law and order, Obstruction, Celebrity worship, Obsessive compulsive disorder, Addiction, Oppositional defiant disorder, Rules, Social norms, Personality disorders 

A leaked undercover recording has exposed one State Department official saying the quiet part out loud: Demographics determine elections, which is why the powers that be are so focused on changing America’s.

“We actually have a guy from the State Department on tape saying, ‘Yeah, this is the purpose of this. This is the Democrats. This is what they’re doing. They’re using the Great Replacement to rig elections. They want the country to be less white because white people vote Republican. White people are conservatives,’” BlazeTV host Auron MacIntyre says on “The Auron MacIntyre Show,” before sharing the clip from Project Veritas.

In the clip, the State Department official claims that “they want to change the demographics of the United States.”

“Project Veritas has an undercover guy speaking with a State Department official, and he comes out and says, ‘Look, it’s really simple. White guys in Nebraska, they’re not leftists. They’re conservatives. They’re naturally conservative,’” MacIntyre explains.

“And they’re not going to vote for radical leftist policies. They don’t want it. So, what do you do in a liberal democracy? What do you do if you’re the Democrats and you need to push this radical progressive agenda, but the native population isn’t really interested? And the answer is, you replace them,” he says.

“And by the way, this has been the policy of the left for basically ever. They’ve recognized this dynamic for a long time. Leftism cannot win in America. It is not sustainable in America without replacing the population,” he continues.

“They want to replace you because of your race,” he adds. “They want to replace you because of the color of your skin.”

Want more from Auron MacIntyre?

To enjoy more of this YouTuber and recovering journalist’s commentary on culture and politics, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

​Video, Free, Sharing, Camera phone, Upload, Video phone, Youtube.com, The auron macintyre show, Auron macintyre, The blaze, Blazetv, Blaze news, Blaze podcasts, Blaze podcast network, Blaze originals, Blaze online, State department, Demographics, Voting, Politics, Leftists, Rig elections, Rigged election, The great replacement theory 

What do you call an official who claims the final say over the limits of his own power — and everyone else’s? Someone who can slap a “yes” on anything the elected branches do, or a “no” on anything they attempt, and treat his decree as the last word? That kind of power would have shocked America’s founders. In practice, it can exceed anything King George III exercised over the American colonies. Yet we keep granting it to federal judges by treating their overreach as binding even when Congress has said otherwise.

The founders worried most about the branches that wield force and money. The president commands the sword. Congress holds the purse. Both stand for election. Judges do not. Life tenure exists to protect judges while they decide cases, not to hand them an independent mandate to run the country. Judges possess no army and control no appropriations. Their influence depends on the political branches giving lawful effect to their rulings.

No individual right exists to use the courts as a substitute legislature to remain in the country. Judges cannot confer amnesty by injunction.

Those lawful bounds are not mysterious. Congress established the lower federal courts, and Congress defines their jurisdiction. Even the Supreme Court’s appellate jurisdiction is subject to congressional regulation. Article III, Section 2 makes it subject to “such Exceptions, and under such Regulations as the Congress shall make.”

Justice Clarence Thomas put it plainly in Patchak v. Zinke: “When Congress strips federal courts of jurisdiction, it exercises a valid legislative power no less than when it lays taxes, coins money, declares war, or invokes any other power that the Constitution grants it.”

Immigration offers the clearest test case because it sits at the heart of sovereignty. Over no issue do the political branches hold more constitutional authority than determining which foreigners may enter and remain.

As Justice Felix Frankfurter wrote in Galvan v. Press (1954), policies on entry and removal are “peculiarly concerned with the political conduct of government,” and Congress’ exclusive control over them has become “about as firmly imbedded in the legislative and judicial tissues of our body politic as any aspect of our government.”

Congress, then, holds plenary authority over immigration policy and sweeping authority over federal court jurisdiction — especially the lower courts. Yet now, every loser district judge routinely grants standing to illegal aliens to challenge detention and removal, even when Congress has restricted review.

RELATED: The courts are running the country — and Trump is letting it happen

cherezoff via iStock/Getty Images

Take Temporary Protected Status. The Ninth Circuit ordered the Trump administration to continue TPS for Venezuelans, despite the Supreme Court staying the original injunction. Another district judge issued a similar mandate for Haitians — 16 years after Haitians received that “temporary” status under President Obama. What often goes unsaid: Congress barred judicial review over TPS determinations. Federal law states, without qualification: “No court shall have jurisdiction to review any determination” of DHS “in granting or withdrawing TPS.” Other provisions restrict review of many deportation-related challenges — limits judges often treat as suggestions.

Over the past year, judges who view themselves as latter-day Martin Luther Kings have used legal fog to hear cases Congress barred, even after signals from the Supreme Court. That brings the Trump administration to its decision point.

Administration officials argue — correctly — that courts lack authority to issue certain orders. But judges have neither force nor will beyond what the executive supplies. The executive’s job includes enforcing the jurisdictional limits Congress enacted. A court that lacks jurisdiction cannot establish it by decree.

If this judicial coup runs to its logical end, any district judge becomes the final arbiter of any political question: grant standing to any plaintiff, announce standing rules that override statutes, take jurisdiction Congress withheld, then command the elected branches to act. That is not the Supreme Court’s role, let alone a trial judge’s.

It also outstrips anything King George could do at the founding. He needed Parliament for matters like citizenship. We are now told a judge can dictate immigration policy regardless of the law.

Waiting on the Supreme Court to clean up the mess is a fool’s errand. District judges return with a slightly modified case and restart the process. During Trump’s first term, an immigration lawyer summed up the strategy: “May a thousand litigation flowers bloom.”

The numbers tell the story. In Minnesota alone, federal court sees an average of one habeas petition filed every hour. A judge even ordered a previously deported alien brought back. These petitions do not claim Immigration and Customs Enforcement mistakenly detained U.S. citizens. They aim to use courts to stall enforcement in bulk.

RELATED: The imperial judiciary strikes back

Moor Studio via iStock/Getty Images

Finality binds parties in cases; it does not bind the political branches into permanent policy submission. Lincoln drew that distinction in his 1858 debates with Stephen Douglas. Courts may decide individual cases. But if courts try to turn those decisions into national political rules, elected officials should not treat them as binding “political rules” that forbid any measure that does not “concur” with a judicial decision.

Lincoln practiced that view as president. His attorney general, Edward Bates, explained the judiciary’s proper scope: Judicial power is ample for justice “among individual parties,” but “powerless to impose rules of action and of judgment upon the other departments.”

Applied to immigration, the point is simple: No individual right exists to use the courts as a substitute legislature to remain in the country. Judges cannot confer amnesty by injunction. Congress has not passed a legislative amnesty in four decades for a reason: It requires majorities in both houses and the president’s signature, and the politicians who vote for it must face the voters. Yet the current judicial pattern grants amnesty through procedure — without hearings, without votes, and without accountability. Life tenure was designed for the opposite purpose.

No shortcut exists. The political branches must stop treating lawless judicial opinions as if they carry the force of law — especially when those opinions ignore statutes, exceed jurisdiction, and attempt to seize control of core sovereign functions.

​Opinion & analysis, Article iii, Constitution, Immigration, Immigration and customs enforcement, Deportations, The courts, Rogue judges, President, Congress, King george iii, Imperial judiciary, Judicial overreach, Abuse of power, Jurisdiction, Amnesty, Clarence thomas, Patchak v. zinke, Temporary protected status, Citizenship, Supreme court, Abraham lincoln, Edward bates, Sovereignty 

Turning Point USA’s “All-American Halftime Show” drew millions of viewers Sunday night as a digital alternative to the official Super Bowl LX halftime performance, drawing a sharp contrast with the Apple Music show headlined by Bad Bunny.

The TPUSA event streamed across YouTube, Rumble, and partner networks including the Trinity Broadcasting Network. According to the New York Times, the livestream peaked at 6.1 million concurrent viewers on YouTube.

‘At least 20 million people tuned in.’

By Monday afternoon, the uploaded replay had surpassed 20 million views on YouTube, with Turning Point USA officials saying total viewership across platforms exceeded that figure and continued to climb.

The performance featured Kid Rock alongside Brantley Gilbert, Lee Brice, and Gabby Barrett.

RELATED: ‘Holy racism you dumb f**k’: Left-wing influencer peddles false narrative about Bad Bunny halftime show — and gets obliterated

Photo by Jason Howard/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images

The roughly 40-minute pre-recorded concert opened with a dedication reading, “This one’s for you, Charlie,” followed by an electric-guitar rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner.” The show included a tribute to Charlie Kirk, the organization’s founder who was assassinated in September 2025.

Kid Rock closed the performance with a cover of Cody Johnson’s “’Til You Can’t.”

TPUSA spokesman Andrew Kolvet described the event as a success, citing viewership numbers and engagement across platforms.

“At least 20 million people tuned in,” Kolvet said, adding that the organization plans to repeat the event next year.

Reaction from conservative audiences was largely positive. Social media users highlighted the livestream’s audience size and praised the show’s patriotic and faith-focused themes.

“The best moments in broadcast so far this year? Jelly Roll at the Grammys & Kid Rock at the @TPUSA’s All-American Halftime Show!” House Speaker Mike Johnson raved.

“I was incredibly skeptical about the @TPUSA Halftime Show. … but I have to say, they crushed it. Over 5 MILLION people streaming it, just on YouTube. Excellent artists, insanely good vocals and amazing talent. 10/10,” Matt Von Swol added.

By contrast, Bad Bunny’s halftime show drew widespread criticism online, with viewers describing it as low-energy, unengaging, and disconnected. Donald Trump criticized the performance on Truth Social, calling it “absolutely terrible” and “one of the worst.”

TPUSA’s event relied exclusively on digital platforms rather than traditional television, underscoring the growing role of online counter-programming during major cultural events.

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​Politics, Tpusa, Badbunny, Nfl, Superbowl 

A federal judge ruled against the ban on masks for federal agents passed by Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom after finding it to be unconstitutional.

Newsom signed the “No Secret Police Act” in September after rioting broke out from protesters against Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in Los Angeles.

‘These federal agents are harassed, doxxed, obstructed, and attacked on a regular basis just for doing their jobs. We have no tolerance for it.’

U.S. District Judge Christina Snyder said the law discriminated against federal agents by excluding state police from the ban.

However, she upheld the similar “No Vigilantes Act,” which requires all law enforcement officers operating in California to display identification, including their name or badge number as well as their agency. It was signed at the same time as the secret police act.

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi praised the ruling in a post on social media.

“ANOTHER key court victory thanks to our outstanding @TheJusticeDept attorneys,” Bondi said.

“Following our arguments, a district court in California BLOCKED the enforcement of a law that would have banned federal agents from wearing masks to protect their identities,” she added. “These federal agents are harassed, doxxed, obstructed, and attacked on a regular basis just for doing their jobs. We have no tolerance for it.”

Snyder’s ruling allows for the possibility of rewriting the law without the exemption for state police.

RELATED: Gavin Newsom says California is overwhelmed with migrants after funding social programs for illegal immigrants

“We will continue fighting and winning in court for President Trump’s law-and-order agenda — and we will ALWAYS have the backs of our great federal law enforcement officers,” concluded the statement from Bondi.

Snyder was appointed to the court by former President Bill Clinton.

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​Judge strikes down newsom ban, Newsom ban on masks, Mask ban for ice agents, Newsom fails in court, Politics 

The Department of Homeland Security lashed out at an “absurd” report claiming that a majority of the illegal aliens being deported by the administration were nonviolent cases.

The CBS News report cites an internal DHS document it obtained that showed only 14% of nearly 400,000 immigrants arrested in the first year of the Trump administration had charges or convictions for violent criminal offenses.

‘We will stop at nothing to remove these public safety threats and Make America Safe Again.’

In a post on the X platform, the official DHS account argued that many technically nonviolent illegal immigrants had criminal and violent pasts.

“Horrendous crimes such as the distribution of child pornography, drug trafficking, burglary, fraud, human smuggling, even being in a gang like MS13 or Tren de Aragua or being a known or suspected terrorist are considered ‘non-violent crimes’ by the media,” reads the statement from the agency.

DHS cited Antonio Israel Lazo-Quintanilla, an illegal alien whose only crime in the U.S. was driving without a license but is wanted in El Salvador for aggravated homicide, extortion, possession of drugs, and other felonies.

The point is emphasized by the thug’s booking photo, which shows him sporting a large “666” tattoo on his forehead.

“It is absurd to quantify Lazo-Quintanilla as ‘nonviolent’ when he is a confirmed member of the 18th Street Gang, a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO), and was on El Salvador’s most wanted gang members list,” the agency continued. “He was a public safety threat that we were fortunate to apprehend BEFORE he could victimize Americans.”

DHS gives another example of brothers from Mexico who are “cold-blooded killers” wanted for multiple murders in their native country but are categorized as “non-criminals” in the U.S.

RELATED: ‘Proud to be a sanctuary city’: Mamdani announces another handout for illegal aliens in NYC

“No one can reasonably consider MS-13 member Edward Hernandez a non-criminal just because, despite his FIVE savage murders back in El Salvador, he has no convictions in the U.S.,” the agency said in a third example.

“We will stop at nothing to remove these public safety threats and Make America Safe Again,” it added.

The CBS report also claims that President Donald Trump is losing support on immigration from Americans. One poll found that support on immigration fell from 59% at the start of the president’s second term down to 46%.

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​Dhs vs cbs news, Nonviolent illegal alien arrests, Gang member with 666 face tattoo, Violent criminal illegal aliens, Politics 

A North Carolina state probe into the horrific murder of Iryna Zarutska led to a stunning video displaying the ignorance of an embattled sheriff.

Mecklenburg County Sheriff Garry McFadden was being questioned by Republican state Rep. Allen Chesser when he appeared confused about which branch of the government he serves. He also couldn’t answer how many branches of government there are.

‘This was not where I was anticipating getting stuck. … For the sake of debate, I will move on.’

Chesser was trying to establish some common points in his questioning when he asked McFadden to name the branch his job is associated with.

“What branch of government do you operate under?” Chesser asked.

“Mecklenburg County,” McFadden replied.

“What branch of government do you operate under, Sheriff?” Chesser asked again.

“Constitution of the United States,” the sheriff responded.

“Correct, that is what establishes the branches of government. I’m asking which branch you fall under,” Chesser asked a third time.

“Mecklenburg County, duly sworn Mecklenburg County sheriff. We answer to the people of Mecklenburg County,” McFadden responded.

“This was not where I was anticipating getting stuck. Are you aware of how many branches of government there are?” Chesser asked.

“No,” the sheriff admitted.

“OK. For the sake of debate, I will move on and say there are three branches of government: legislative, executive, judicial. Of those three, which do you believe you fall under?” Chesser asked a fourth time.

“I believe I fall under the last one,” McFadden said.

‘Would you say it to me?” Chesser asked.

“Judicial,” he replied.

“OK. You are incorrect, sir. You fall under the executive,” Chesser responded.

The sheriff previously criticized the Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations of the Trump administration.

RELATED: Elon Musk pledges $1 million to honor the memory of Iryna Zarutska — and bring down the media blackout

The sheriff was “eviscerated” at the hearing, according to a description by Axios. Lawmakers criticized him for refusing to take responsibility for failures that included numerous deaths at county jails and accusations of incompetence, misconduct, and abuse.

Chesser posted video of the interaction about the three branches of government to his account.

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When 22-year-old Jabez Chakraborty was shot by NYPD officers in Queens for allegedly charging them with a large kitchen knife, the newly elected mayor, Zohran Mamdani, claimed that the suspect needs mental health treatment instead of criminal prosecution.

“I spoke with the Chakraborty family, and I visited Jabez in the hospital, and no family should have to endure this kind of pain. Jabez has lived with schizophrenia for many years, and this situation underscores just how urgently we need a different and more effective mental health response system that will be safer for New Yorkers who struggle with mental health concerns, for their families, and for police officers,” Mamdani said following the incident.

“Jabez needs mental health treatment, not criminal prosecution by a district attorney,” he added.

“Who would have thought that coming in and bringing a Muslim commie as your mayor in New York City would have its flaws?” BlazeTV host Sara Gonzales jokes, before playing the bodycam footage from the incident.

In the footage, Chakraborty continues charging police officers with the knife after being asked several times to put the knife down. As he gets closer, an officer fires his weapon.

“I would say they gave him quite a bit of warning to put the shiny, very sharp object in his hands down while they were holding a firearm at him. I would say they gave him way more chances than I would have. They retreated. He continued engaging and moving forward,” Gonzales comments.

“Clear-cut case of attempted murder, which prosecutors are looking at potentially charging him with. I don’t know why potentially. It’s right there on camera,” she continues.

“They did everything right, and still, instead of Mamdani congratulating the NYPD, instead of using this as a moment where he’s like, ‘Our officers are very brave, and they are under attack right now; these guys were almost stabbed in the line of duty,’ this is how your new Muslim communist mayor of New York City reacts,” she adds.

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A law enforcement operation found that more than 50 fugitives with felony warrants were taking advantage of taxpayer-funded housing in Columbus, Ohio.

U.S. Marshals partnered with agents from the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office on “Operation Clean House,” targeting suspects living in HUD housing.

The warrants issued in the operation included rape, drug trafficking, endangering children, strangulation, and failure to register as a sex offender.

U.S. Marshal Michael Black with the Southern District of Ohio said that HUD reached out to him to cooperate on the operation, which lasted six days.

“Every time we do this, we’re making our community safer, one arrest at a time,” Black said.

The warrants issued in the operation included rape, drug trafficking, endangering children, strangulation, and failure to register as a sex offender.

“One of the houses, we recovered an AK-47. There were some drugs recovered,” Black said. “You know, one individual that’s wanted for felony strangulation, sex offenders, child abandonment, and numerous other violations.”

WCMH-TV was present at two arrests. One was a woman with felony warrants for weapons charges, and the other was a woman with a warrant for probation violation for aggravated burglary, assault, and ID fraud.

RELATED: ‘This is where ICE has come to die’: Self-identified Antifa member arrested for threats against federal agents, DOJ says

Thirty HUD agents were involved, and all the arrests were conducted without any critical incidents.

“Criminals are on notice — we will not tolerate crime in HUD-funded housing,” HUD Sec. Scott Turner said on social media. “The Trump Administration will ensure public housing is safe housing and taxpayer funds do not support criminal activity.”

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The 2026 Grammy Awards were supposed to celebrate music, creativity, and artistic diversity, but instead they became a showcase for Hollywood elites pushing the same political narratives.

“The pack mentality is strong,” film critic Christian Toto tells BlazeTV host Stu Burguiere on “Stu Does America.”

“The rhetoric is pretty familiar. It’s often ugly. It’s often ill-informed. And you know, for a while there, these award shows were political. There were a lot of lectures, a lot of woke asides, and then it seemed like they tapped the breaks on that. They’ve been a little bit less so in recent years,” he continues.

However that’s changing, yet again.

“I think we’re veering back into it, it’s all full-steam ahead at this point. And I can’t imagine what the Oscars will be, because last night was ugly at times, and even Trevor Noah, you know, not only his crack against President Trump, which could be litigious, but basically calling out Nicki Minaj just because she supports Trump,” Toto says.

“Aren’t we allowed to do that?” he asks.

And of course, one of the most culturally important voices — at least to the left — was this year’s Super Bowl halftime performer Bad Bunny.

When Bad Bunny accepted his Grammy, the first thing he said was, “Before I say thanks to God, I’m going to say ICE out.” He went on to say that immigrants are not “savages,” “aliens,” or “animals,” but rather “humans” and “Americans.”

“If you’re a citizen you are, but those aren’t the people we’re talking about removing. We’re talking about removing people that are not Americans. That is the difference. And they just have no concept of this,” Stu comments.

Sticking to the liberal talking points, Billie Eilish also decided to bash Immigration and Customs Enforcement in her acceptance speech at the Grammys, telling the wealthy audience that “no one is illegal on stolen land.”

“I have to credit Matt Walsh for a great point, which is like if there’s no one that’s illegal, then you can’t steal land,” Stu says.

“There’s a point where Sabrina Carpenter is out in the audience,” he continues, “she’s this little, you know, pop star, and she’s just looking up and clapping with these, like, just innocent, dullard eyes, just this, like, ‘Oh my gosh, what you’re saying is so important,’ just this moronic nonsense, and it just summarizes everything in Hollywood.”

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British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is facing calls from lawmakers and critics to resign over his appointment of Peter Mandelson, a known associate and possible informant of sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, as the United Kingdom’s ambassador to the United States.

While Starmer’s right-hand man, Morgan McSweeney, resigned on Sunday over his involvement with Mandelson’s appointment, the prime minister doesn’t appear keen to meaningfully accept any responsibility himself — a reluctance now supported by many of his liberal allies in the British government.

A short-lived appointment

Starmer appointed Mandelson — known in British political circles as the “Prince of Darkness” — as ambassador to the U.S. in December 2024, claiming he would “bring unrivaled experience to the role.”

Starmer’s choice was controversial at the time.

‘The game’s up, mate, and it’s time you recognized it.’

After all, Mandelson had not only publicly described the recently re-elected Donald Trump as a “danger to the world” and “little short of a white nationalist and racist,” but was an associate of Epstein long after Epstein pleaded to soliciting sex from girls as young as 14.

A source told the BBC that when Starmer made the decision, “The Epstein stuff in broad terms was definitely known and discussed in detail before his appointment.”

RELATED: Why are so many people all of a sudden saying Epstein is alive?

Peter Mandelson. Photo by Brook Mitchell/Getty Images

Emails released last year revealed that the Starmer pick was not only chummy with Epstein, but had grown close enough with the sex offender to apparently regard him as his “best pal.”

The Foreign Office announced on Sept. 11 that Mandelson had been withdrawn as ambassador, noting that the “emails show that the depth and extent of Peter Mandelson’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein is materially different from that known at the time of his appointment.”

“In particular Peter Mandelson’s suggestion that Jeffrey Epstein’s first conviction was wrongful and should be challenged is new information,” added the Foreign Office.

It gets worse

Any hopes that Starmer’s office may have had of putting the Mandelson appointment in the rearview mirror were dashed by the Department of Justice’s latest release of the Epstein files, which contains emails showing that Mandelson was not only tight with Epstein but possibly furnished him with confidential government information.

The New York Times noted, for instance, that newly released emails appear to reveal that Mandelson provided Epstein with a confidential economic memorandum that had been sent to former Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

The documents also reportedly indicate that Epstein paid Mandelson $75,000 across three separate transactions in the early 2000s.

Mandelson announced earlier this month that he was leaving Starmer’s Labour Party to spare it from “further embarrassment.”

In a Feb. 1 letter to the party’s general secretary, Mandelson claimed that he had no record or recollection of financial payments from Epstein; he regretted “ever having known Epstein”; and had dedicated his “life to the values and success of the Labour Party.”

Mandelson is presently under investigation for possible misconduct in public office.

Starmer digs in heels

Days after his appointee left the Labour Party, Starmer gave a speech, stating, “Sorry that so many people with power failed you. Sorry for having believed Mandelson’s lies and appointed him.”

After insinuating that he was deceived by Mandelson, Starmer suggested that he will remain in the role of prime minister to “ensure accountability is delivered.”

Apparently, accountability for Starmer meant letting Chief of Staff Morgan McSweeney fall on his sword.

In a statement obtained by the Spectator concerning his resignation on Sunday, McSweeney wrote, “The decision to appoint Peter Mandelson was wrong. He has damaged our party, our country, and trust in politics itself.”

McSweeney, an apparent protégé of Mandelson, claimed that he advised Starmer to make the appointment and that the “only honorable course is to step aside.”

On Monday, Starmer’s director of communications, Tim Allan, also quit “to allow a new No. 10 team to be built.”

Neither resignation appears to have placated those in the British Parliament keen to see Starmer shoulder some blame.

Calls to resign

Anas Sarwar, the leader of the Scottish Labour Party, said on Monday, “The leadership from Downing Street has to change,” reported ITVX.

“We cannot allow the failures at the heart of Downing Street to mean the failures continue here in Scotland,” continued Sarwar. “They promised they were going to be different, but too much has happened. It cannot continue.”

Clive Lewis, a member of Starmer’s party, suggested that upon reflection, it’s clear the Labour Party is “ruined” and needs to be rebuilt without its current leadership.

Nigel Farage, leader of the Reform UK Party, told GB News, “It’s over; it’s done. The game’s up, mate, and it’s time you recognized it.”

“He’s lost legitimacy, he’s lost authority, events have moved way beyond his control, and I’m afraid it’s all down to his own grievous misjudgment,” continued Farage. “But remember, even before the Peter Mandelson case, he was already the most unpopular prime minister in living memory.”

On Monday, Starmer stated, “After having fought so hard for the chance to change our country, I’m not prepared to walk away from my mandate and my responsibility to my country, or to plunge us into chaos, as others have done,” reported the Guardian.

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The Department of Justice’s publication last month of over 3 million additional pages, 2,000 videos, and 180,000 images from the Jeffrey Epstein files provided the public with new insights into the child sex offender, his degeneracy, his business dealings, and his international network of affluent friends.

The files, which are replete with odd and in many cases damning communications — already triggering at least one criminal investigation in the United Kingdom — have prompted renewed interest in a number of theories about Epstein.

While many sleuths poring over the files have zeroed in on references to cannibalism and accusations of Epstein and his inner circle allegedly engaging in “ritualistic sacrifice,” others appear more focused on what the files have to say about the sex offender’s reported death at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York City.

Citing discrepancies in the official narrative, admissions about falsified records, and viral claims on social media, skeptics have long theorized that Epstein did not kill himself but was murdered or possibly even secreted away in August 2019.

Despite the newly available autopsy photos and details, these theories are enjoying a second life due in part to certain details in the new files, a viral image of a bearded look-alike, and signs of activity on a video game account name associated with the sex offender.

Epstein in Tel Aviv

An image went viral earlier this month purportedly showing a bearded Jeffrey Epstein alive and well in Israel. On closer examination, however, the image — which was popularized in part by a self-described “unapologetic Muslim Palestinian” and by a Middle Eastern-based news account — showed signs of AI manipulation and/or generation.

For starters, the wording on the street signs is reportedly “gibberish,” providing not only incorrect Hebrew and Arabic lettering but in one case referencing a road that doesn’t appear to exist.

RELATED: Bill Clinton accuses GOP of setting up ‘kangaroo court’ over Epstein testimony — and demands public hearing

The Metropolitan Correctional Center. Photo by Don Emmert / AFP via Getty Images.

The supposed photograph of Epstein in Tel Aviv also appears to be a cropped version of an image that appeared days earlier bearing a Gemini AI watermark on the subreddit r/hardaiimages — a destination for AI-generated images designed to give viewers pause.

The pre-emptive death notice

In line with the official narrative, the newly released FBI New York Field Office report regarding Epstein’s death — which includes images of paramedics apparently attempting to revive the sex offender, an image of his corpse without his arm tattoo visible, images of his broken hyoid bone and breaks in his thyroid cartilage, and images of his apparent scene of death — asserts that Epstein was found unresponsive and died as the result of an apparent suicide on the morning of Aug. 10, 2019.

However, one of the other newly released files suggested that Epstein died a day earlier.

In the document, which is dated Aug. 9, 2019, then-U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Geoffrey Berman stated, “Earlier this morning, the Manhattan Correctional Center confirmed that Jeffrey Epstein, who faced charges brought by this Office of engaging in the sex trafficking of minors, had been found unresponsive in his cell and pronounced dead shortly thereafter.”

‘Someone’s been having fun renaming their Fortnite account.’

“Today’s events are disturbing, and we are deeply aware of their potential to present yet another hurdle to giving Epstein’s many victims their day in Court,” Berman added.

The date on the release as it appears now with an “updated” note on the Justice Department website is Aug. 10, 2019.

The DOJ did not respond to a request for comment from Blaze News.

While the incorrect date might simply be a typo in a draft release, many online have speculated it is an indication of foreknowledge of Epstein’s real or faked death.

Gaming from beyond the grave

Some sleuths who dug into the new trove of Epstein files found mention of the child sex offender’s YouTube username, “littlestjeff1.” They also found possible evidence that Epstein was active in the video gaming ecosystem after his permanent ban from Xbox live in the form of a May 7, 2019, email highlighting a $25.95 charge for the virtual currency in the game Fortnite.

Justice Department.

In a massively viral and widely shared tweet, the X user @Truthpole noted that some individuals “matched this exact username to a Fortnite profile on Fortnite Tracker … which showed stats like Silver 1 rank in Chapter 5 Season 1 (post-2019), wins into 2025, and past activity flagged in Israel.”

The suggestion that Epstein may have been active on Fortnite after his supposed death was not only advanced in viral posts by other accounts on X but on other social media platforms, including Instagram.

The claim was all the more provocative after littlestjeff1’s stats were set to private earlier this month, according to archived page captures highlighted by Snopes.

Tim Sweeney, the CEO of Fornite’s developer and publisher Epic Games, weighed in on Feb. 6 to pour cold water on this particular theory, writing, “Someone’s been having fun renaming their Fortnite account, but it’s recent and not connected to the email addresses in the archive.”

The official Fortnite Status account similarly piped up, stating, “This was a ruse by a Fortnite player.”

“A few days ago, an existing Fortnite account owner changed their username from something totally unrelated to littlestjeff1, following the revelation of littlestjeff1 as a name on YouTube,” the official Fortnite account said. “These Fortnite trackers only display your current name, not any prior changes to it.”

The Fortnite Status account noted further, “We have no record of the subject’s email addresses referenced in the public document existing in the Epic account system. Since the public document releases, people have created Fortnite accounts with similar-looking email addresses and user names.”

When challenged on this explanation and prompted to account for why the apparent Epstein handle appeared to be associated with the game user in a third-party, year-end recap detailing player results in 2025, Fornite Status noted, “Fortnite gg Wrapped shows the account’s current name with stats from 2025.”

Skepticism still abounds about the explanation from Epic Games, given the mention of the digital Fortnite currency purchase in the Epstein emails; however, in that email, both the sender and the recipient’s addresses were redacted. Snopes suggested that other correspondences in the files indicate the game currency purchase pertained to a mother and her child.

Besides eyebrow-raising video game activity, fake sightings, and a questionable DOJ memo, skeptics have also raised questions about other findings in the files, including the mention in an FBI memorandum of a “flash of orange” spotted on surveillance footage heading toward the isolated prison tier where Epstein was housed the night before his body was reportedly found.

A 2023 report on Epstein’s death released by the Department of Justice’s Office of the Inspector General identified the “orange shape” as a corrections officer carrying linen or inmate clothing.

Video forensic experts expressed to CBS News in August that they were “skeptical about that interpretation and suggested that the shape could be a person dressed in an orange prison jumpsuit climbing the stairs.”

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While many are debating the meaning of the Bad Bunny Super Bowl halftime show on Sunday, at least one left-wing influencer was caught trying to peddle misinformation to rile up both sides.

Ed Krassenstein posted that a little boy included in the show was Liam Ramos, the 5-year-old who was abandoned by his father during an Immigration and Customs Enforcement operation and became a left-wing cause célèbre.

‘Holy racism you dumb f**k. … Nice self-own.’

“Many of you may have missed this, but the little boy who Bad Bunny handed his Grammy to at the Super Bowl was Liam Ramos! Amazing!” Krassenstein wrote.

The claim was immediately contradicted online, and Krassenstein was mocked and ridiculed for what many saw as a racist suggestion.

“It’s not Liam Ramos. This is a child actor named Lincoln Fox,” read a community note attached to the post on the X platform. The note linked to an Instagram account for the child actor confirming his presence at the game.

“Leftist thinks all Hispanic kids look the same,” podcaster Brittany Hughes joked.

“Pretty racist … to assume that all brown people are the same and that one kid is the same as another without even checking,” one critic said.

“Not only is this wrong, but it’s racist. And instead of deleting and posting an update, you’re keeping it up because you’re desperate for a few bucks,” another user said.

“Pretty racist of you to see a little Hispanic boy and assume it’s the one little Hispanic boy whose name you know,” another popular response reads.

“Holy racism you dumb f**k. All Hispanic kids look the same to you? They’re not even the same age or complexion you dips**t. Nice self-own. … Don’t ever preach from your pulpit again, d**khead,” another detractor responded.

“It’s not the same kid you absolute buffoon. Kid is about 4 inches taller than you though,” one user joked.

Krassenstein added a second message saying there were conflicting reports about the child. He eventually admitted the child was an actor but did not delete the first post, which got over 11 million impressions.

RELATED: ‘State-of-the-art’: GOP congressman pre-empts Crockett’s ‘grandstanding’ with glimpse inside ICE facility in Texas

A publicist for Bad Bunny rejected the claim to NPR Music and confirmed the boy was an actor.

The halftime show was also criticized by many who were angered that the music artist rapped almost entirely in Spanish, and one brief shot showed two men dancing suggestively with each other.

Turning Point USA’s alternative halftime show starring Kid Rock had more than 6.1 million viewers tune in on its YouTube livestream, according to the New York Times.

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Hollywood celebrities love nothing more than lecturing everyday Americans on morality, politics, and how we should live — but of course, their hypocrisy is hard to ignore.

“We’ve got all the hypocrisy in the world coming from Hollywood. These are not our moral exemplars, and they really don’t have as much influence over our elections as they think they do,” BlazeTV host Allie Beth Stuckey says.

“Thank the Lord. Otherwise, Donald Trump wouldn’t have won in 2016. He wouldn’t have won in 2024. So, we can continue to highlight their hypocrisy just as a good reminder that we shouldn’t be looking to them in any way,” she continues, noting that there are some exceptions — like Jelly Roll’s recent Grammys speech about Jesus Christ.

“There was a time in my life, y’all, that I was broken. That’s why I wrote this album. I didn’t think I had a chance, y’all. There was days that I thought the darkest things. I was a horrible human. There was a moment in my life that all I had was a Bible this big and a radio the same size in a 6-by-8-foot cell,” he said at the Grammys.

“And I believed that those two things could change my life. I believed that music had the power to change my life, and God had the power to change my life. And I want to tell y’all right now, Jesus is for everybody. Jesus is not owned by one political party. Jesus is not owned by no music label. Jesus is Jesus, and anybody can have a relationship with him. I love you, Lord,” he continued.

“Yes and amen,” Stuckey responds. “That is absolutely true. Love people giving glory to God in moments like that instead of saying stupid things about politics.”

“There’s no better news than the news that Jelly Roll just told us of the gospel,” she adds.

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Despite overwhelming support from the American electorate, over the past month Democrats have ratcheted up attacks on Republican-led nationwide voter ID legislation. On Sunday, Sen. John Fetterman (D-Penn.) slammed the attacks from his party in an appearance on Fox News Channel’s “Sunday Morning Futures.”

During the wide-ranging interview, the conversation turned toward the SAVE Act, a bill that would require voters to show government-issued identification to register to vote in federal elections. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, 36 states currently have voter identification laws.

‘As a Democrat, I do not believe it’s radical or extreme to just produce ID to vote.’

Host Maria Bartiromo asked Fetterman, “Why it is so difficult to get the SAVE Act into the portfolio and onto the floor? What’s wrong with having an ID to vote?”

The senator responded, “As a Democrat, I do not believe that it’s unreasonable to show ID just to vote. And I remind everybody that less than a year ago in Wisconsin, they added that to the constitution by a 63%, you know, passing to put that in the constitution, that you have to show ID to vote.”

Fetterman’s statement stands in stark contrast to his fellow Democratic senators, such as Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), who went on ABC News’ “This Week” to fearmonger about voter ID laws by saying people “don’t have the proper Real ID, driver’s license, don’t have the ID necessary to vote, even though they are citizens. This is another way to simply try to suppress the vote.”

RELATED: ‘Vast majority’ of Americans of all races agree with Nicki Minaj about voter ID, says CNN analyst

Fetterman responded to those sorts of attacks from members of his party by highlighting the results of a recent Wisconsin election. He said, “They also elected a very, very liberal justice into their supreme court. So it’s not a radical idea for regular Americans to show your ID to vote.”

On February 2, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) labeled the SAVE Act “Jim Crow 2.0” in a Senate floor speech. The minority leader said, “Now as for the SAVE Act itself: It has nothing to do with protecting our elections and everything to do with federalizing voter suppression. The SAVE Act is nothing more than Jim Crow 2.0.”

Fetterman is not buying that characterization: “Those things are not Jim Crow or anything.”

The senator from Pennsylvania’s position is in line with a large majority of American voters. CNN polling analyst Harry Enten recently told his audience, “A photo ID to vote is not controversial in this country. It is not controversial by party — and it is not controversial by race. The vast majority of Americans agree with Nicki Minaj.”

Minaj has also expressed support for voter ID laws.

Enten’s data showed that over 75% of Americans favor a photo ID to vote, including the highest support on record in 2025 at 83%.

In closing, Fetterman said, “As a Democrat, I do not believe it’s radical or extreme to just produce ID to vote.”

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According to a February 6 CBS News article, “Newly released Department of Justice documents show that investigators reviewing surveillance footage from the night of Jeffrey Epstein’s death observed an orange-colored shape moving up a staircase toward the isolated, locked tier where his cell was located at approximately 10:39 p.m” — an observation, CBS says, that has gone “previously unreported by authorities.”

In addition, the CBS reports that an “FBI memorandum” suggests that video footage reviews conducted by the FBI and other examiners “led to disparate conclusions” — the FBI logged the mysterious orange shape as “possibly an inmate,” while the inspector general’s report recorded it as “an unidentified [corrections officer]” carrying orange “linen or bedding.”

Glenn Beck is sincerely puzzled by these FBI reports. “Inmates at 10:39 are not going around in that area, outside of their cell, so FBI, that doesn’t make sense,” he says.

Further, “we now know … [the FBI] knew that bedding is delivered the shift before this. … No one is allowed on that floor at 10:39,” he adds.

Even more shocking to Glenn is that then-Attorney General Bill Barr publicly stated that “no one entered” Epstein’s housing tier the night of his death, which was then reiterated by former FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino last summer during a “Fox & Friends” interview. These statements are seemingly called into question by the revelations made by CBS.

However, the most jaw-dropping revelation in the article, says Glenn, centers on shocking new details from corrections officers Tova Noel and Michael Thomas about the noose — or rather the lack of one — on the night Epstein reportedly took his own life.

According to the article, records of Thomas’ interview, which were released in the latest Epstein document dump, indicate that he told investigators he discovered Epstein in his cell early on August 10 and that he “ripped” him down from the hanging position. However, when asked about the noose, Thomas could not recall taking off a noose. Noel, who was reportedly standing at the entrance of Epstein’s cell at the time, told investigators that she did not see a noose either.

The noose, reported CBS, has “never been definitively identified,” and the one collected at the scene was later determined “not to be the ligature used in Epstein’s death.”

“All right: First, you had us believe that it was a paper noose. Now you’re saying the paper noose that was found was not the noose that killed him. In fact, you can’t find the noose — the paper noose — and this one was later added to the scene. By whom?” asks Glenn.

He is astounded that Epstein’s death was ruled a suicide by the chief medical examiner just six days later despite failure to identify the actual instrument that caused his death.

“You don’t have the … suicide weapon. The weapon that you do have, the noose, is not the noose that killed him. No explanation on how that arrived later at the scene. … You have a blurry figure going up in the middle of the night, and you can’t identify that individual … and yet you rule this a suicide?” he asks in disbelief. “That is fascinating to me.”

“I mean, there’s just no way to square this circle. There’s no way to do it. You cannot, with any credibility, say, ‘Yeah, this guy committed suicide,”’ he scoffs.

“There’s a reason why we don’t believe the government. There is a reason, and it’s this kind of crap.”

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While James Fishback, a Florida Republican gubernatorial candidate, has seen a good deal of campaign success since the launch of his campaign in late November, he has also seen a great deal of resistance — and potentially intimidation.

On Sunday night, Fishback’s campaign alleged that a fire was “intentionally set” near his house, where he and his team were working.

‘I’ll be hosting a rally in my own backyard tomorrow night.’

Emma Wright, Fishback’s campaign manager, posted an official statement less than an hour after the alleged incident.

“Shortly after 5:50 p.m. on Sunday, a fire was intentionally set in his side yard and began spreading toward his home, where Mr. Fishback and members of his staff were working. We are grateful to the Madison County Fire Rescue for their swift response and for containing the fire before it damaged his home,” the statement read.

RELATED: Young GOP outsider takes aim at Trump-endorsed candidate in campaign launch to replace Gov. DeSantis in Florida

Photo by Al Drago/Getty Images

Fishback’s campaign also condemned political violence of any kind, stressing that it has “no place in America.”

Fishback quote-tweeted the statement from his campaign manager, adding, “My team and I are okay.”

In a post that has since received 560,000 views, Fishback provided some photos of the scene, including what appears to be a burned area of a yard with the fire department on the scene.

Fishback followed up with a few more posts in the hours following the alleged attack, including an invitation to an unconventional rally.

“I’ll be hosting a rally in my own backyard tomorrow night,” he wrote just hours after the alleged incident on Sunday. “We will not be intimidated.”

Shortly thereafter, he added an invitation to his house for a “backyard rally.” The invitation included what appears to be his home address in Madison, Florida. The rally will be held on Monday night.

Blaze News reached out to Madison County Fire Rescue for comment. The Fishback campaign did not respond to a request for comment.

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