After refusing to call on Virginia attorney general candidate Jay Jones to drop out of the race over a text message scandal, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Abigail Spanberger is hoping to boost her odds with a Tuesday campaign event featuring two familiar names.

Bill Nye “the Science Guy” and Biden Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg were scheduled to join Spanberger on Tuesday for her rally in Charlottesville, according to Fox News Digital. Buttigieg and Spanberger will host a “Virtual Coalitions All Call” on Tuesday evening.

‘I made clear to Jay that he must fully take responsibility for his words.’

Former President Barack Obama, who endorsed Spanberger last week, will attend her Norfolk rally on November 1, her campaign website states.

“Virginia’s elections are some of the most important in the country this year, and I am proud to endorse Abigail Spanberger for governor. Republican policies are raising costs on working families so billionaires can get massive tax cuts,” Obama stated. “As governor, Abigail will stand up for Virginia families. She’ll work to build an economy that works for everyone, not just big corporations and the wealthy.”

Nye attended a No Kings event in D.C. over the weekend. During his speech, he criticized President Donald Trump.

“We are here to tell our lawmakers that what’s going on in our government is wrong. They must stop the abuses of this petulant president and his circle of sycophants,” Nye said.

“This president and his associates cannot tolerate dissent. To them, our free speech is frightening. They are arresting people and denying due process in courts,” he continued.

RELATED: Democrat Jay Jones cancels fundraiser amid growing backlash over violent texts about GOP rival and his kids

Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images

Spanberger’s high-profile endorsements follow a public relations scandal that Virginia Democrats have attempted to downplay. In a leaked text message exchange from 2022, Jones, a former Virginia delegate, wished death upon a Republican lawmaker and his children.

In the texts, Jones presented a hypothetical scenario in which he would choose to use “two bullets” to shoot then-House Speaker Todd Gilbert (R), if given the choice between Gilbert, Adolf Hitler, and Pol Pot. He also accused Gilbert and his wife of “breeding little fascists” and wished harm on their children.

RELATED: VIDEO: Earle-Sears crushes Democratic candidate over death-wish texts during gubernatorial debate

Abigail Spanberger. Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Spanberger released a statement condemning Jones’ violent comments but stopped short of calling for him to end his campaign. Instead, Spanberger continues to host events sponsored by her campaign and those of Jones and Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor Ghazala Hashmi.

“After learning of these comments earlier today, I spoke frankly with Jay about my disgust with what he had said and texted,” Spanberger stated. “I made clear to Jay that he must fully take responsibility for his words. What I have also made clear is that as a candidate — and the next governor of our commonwealth — I will always condemn violent language in our politics.”

As of Tuesday evening, no Democrats have called on Jones to step out of the race.

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Republican Rep. Marlin Stutzman of Indiana is leading the charge alongside Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas to protect Nigerian Christians who are being persecuted and slain by jihadist groups.

Stutzman introduced the Nigeria Religious Freedom Accountability Act on Tuesday in the House, an identical companion bill to Cruz’s legislation, Blaze News learned. This legislation is in response to the “rapidly deteriorating” conditions for Christians in Nigeria, who are being abducted, targeted, and murdered by the tens of thousands.

‘We must use the targeted tools we have at our disposal.’

Stutzman’s bill would protect Christians by placing targeted sanctions on Nigerian officials who facilitate violence and enforce Sharia law against religious minorities, according to the bill text obtained exclusively by Blaze News. The bill would also designate Nigeria as a country of particular concern and ensure that the jihadist militant groups Boko Haram and ISIS-West Africa remain designated as entities of particular concern.

“It is the responsibility of the United States to protect religious freedom worldwide,” Stutzman told Blaze News. “Implementing Sharia law and condoning the murder of innocent people is barbaric.”

RELATED: Nigerian Christians face latest massacre by militant Muslims

Photo By Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call

“We must use the targeted tools we have at our disposal to combat religious violence in all its forms,” Stutzman told Blaze News. “I am proud to partner with Senator Cruz to introduce this important legislation, which will create real consequences for those responsible for violence and save the lives of thousands of Christians who are facing persecution.”

Since the jihadist group Boko Haram launched its insurgency in 2009, over 125,000 Christians in Nigeria have been murdered. In just 2025 alone, these jihadists have reportedly murdered over 7,000 Christians and abducted an additional 7,800, destroying roughly 100 churches every month.

“Nigerian Christians are being targeted and executed for their faith by Islamist terrorist groups, and are being forced to submit to Sharia law and blasphemy laws across Nigeria,” Cruz said in a statement.

RELATED: Blaze News investigates: Why are Islamists targeting Catholic priests?

Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

“It is long past time to impose real costs on the Nigerian officials who facilitate these activities, and my Nigeria Religious Freedom Accountability Act uses new and existing tools to do exactly that,” Cruz added. “I urge my colleagues to advance this critical legislation expeditiously.”

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The White House has denied a TMZ report saying that President Donald Trump is considering commuting the sentence of rap mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs, who was convicted of sex crimes.

The president was considering commuting Diddy’s sentence “as early as this week,” TMZ said, citing “a high-ranking White House official.” The official also claimed that Trump is “vacillating” on the decision and will ultimately “do what he wants.”

‘The president, not anonymous sources, is the final decider on pardons and commutations.’

On Tuesday the White House denied the report and accused TMZ of neglecting to ask the administration to comment on the story.

“There is zero truth to the TMZ report, which we would’ve gladly explained had they reached out before running their fake news,” read the statement. “The president, not anonymous sources, is the final decider on pardons and commutations.”

TMZ said it stands by the story.

When previously pressed by a CNN reporter to answer questions about the possibility of a pardon for Jeffrey Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell, the president said that the rapper had asked him for a pardon.

“I have a lot of people [who] have asked me for pardons,” Trump said. “I call him Puff Daddy, has asked me for a pardon.”

Trump also said that he had been friends with Combs but they had a falling-out after the rapper criticized him when he became president.

Combs was convicted by a jury in July of two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution, but he was acquitted of more serious charges of sex trafficking and racketeering. He has been imprisoned since his arrest in Sept. 2024 and was sentenced earlier this month to four years and two months.

RELATED: Blaze News exclusive: ‘I’ve attended these parties’: Former Diddy protégé recalls ‘dark hours’ with ‘extra activities’

“You abused the power and control with women you professed to love,” said the judge at his sentencing. “You abused them physically, emotionally, and psychologically.”

Combs had admitted to the court in a statement asking for clemency that he was “sick from the drugs.”

“I can’t change the past but can change the future,” the wealthy celebrity said. “I ask your honor for mercy. I beg your honor for mercy, to be a father again, a son again and be a leader in my community again and get the help I desperately need.”

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The House Judiciary Committee officially referred former CIA Director John Brennan to the Department of Justice for allegedly lying to Congress about his involvement in the Russia collusion hoax.

Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) referred Brennan to the DOJ on Tuesday for allegedly making “false statements” during his transcribed testimony before the Judiciary Committee in 2023. During his testimony, Brennan made “numerous willfully and intentionally false statements,” including that the CIA was not “involved at all” with the Steele dossier, according to Jordan.

‘It indicates a pattern of Brennan’s willingness to lie.’

“Congress cannot perform its oversight function if witnesses who appear before its committees do not provide truthful testimony,” a letter from Jordan to Attorney General Pam Bondi reads. “Making false statements before Congress is a crime that undermines the integrity of the Committee’s constitutional duty to conduct oversight.”

In the letter, Jordan outlined every falsehood he claims Brennan stated during his 2023 testimony, testimony that Jordan said directly contradicted the Intelligence Community Assessment.

RELATED: ‘Ultimate hypocrisy’: Murkowski, now whining about Comey indictment, sang a different tune when Dems went after Trump

Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images

In 2017, several intelligence agencies published a report alleging that Russia had meddled in America’s elections to elect President Donald Trump to his first term in 2016. This report, which was later debunked, was based on the Steele dossier, which was funded by the Clinton campaign and the Democratic National Committee through the law firm Perkins Coie and other opposition research firms like Fusion GPS.

After the Trump administration declassified documents showing that the report’s claims were apparently fabricated by former President Barack Obama’s administration, Brennan’s testimony was called into question.

Brennan initially claimed in May 2023 that the “CIA was not involved at all with the [Steele] dossier,” a statement that contradicted the findings “jointly made by the Directors of CIA and FBI,” according to Jordan’s letter. Jordan also claimed that Brennan “overruled senior CIA officers” who had objections about including the dossier material in the report.

“Brennan’s assertion that the CIA was not ‘involved at all’ with the Steele dossier cannot be reconciled with the facts,” the letter reads. “As the newly declassified documents show, a CIA officer drafted the annex containing a summary of the dossier; Brennan made the ultimate decision, along with then-FBI Director James Comey, to include information from the dossier in the ICA.”

RELATED: Released FBI docs reveal Comey allegedly used media mole to plant info at New York Times for Russian collusion investigation

Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images

Brennan similarly testified that the CIA “very much opposed” including the Steele dossier in the report, despite declassified documents claiming he “refused to remove it” from the report regardless of its “many flaws.”

Durin separate testimony in 2017, Brennan said the Steele dossier “was not in any way used as a basis for the Intelligence Community Assessment,” despite contrary evidence found after the Trump administration declassified documents. Notably, this testimony was made beyond the five-year statute of limitations, but Jordan said that “it indicates a pattern of Brennan’s willingness to lie to Congress about the Steele dossier.”

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A review of the voter rolls in Texas has led officials to find that thousands of possible illegal aliens have been unlawfully registered to vote.

Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson said in a press release Monday that 2,724 noncitizens were found to be registered to vote after officials cross-referenced the voter rolls with a federal citizenship database.

‘Noncitizens must not be allowed to influence American elections, and I will use the full weight of my office to investigate all voter fraud.’

“Only eligible United States citizens may participate in our elections,” wrote Nelson in the release.

“The Trump administration’s decision to give states free and direct access to this data set for the first time has been a game changer, and we appreciate the partnership with the federal government to verify the citizenship of those on our voter rolls and maintain accurate voter lists.”

About 18 million voter profiles were compared to the SAVE database of citizens managed by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

The 2,724 cases are to be referred to county officials, who will determine if any of those should be purged from the voter rolls. Noncitizens can refer to illegal aliens as well as resident aliens who are legally in the U.S. but not allowed to vote.

Nelson said that any noncitizen who is found to have voted in an election would be referred to the attorney general’s office for possible criminal prosecution.

She included a file with a list of those cases found for each county. Forty-eight potential noncitizen registrations were found in Brazoria County, 68 cases were found in Cameron County, 277 cases were found in Dallas County, and 165 cases were found in El Paso County.

In June Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced that Nelson had referred 33 cases of potential illegal voting in the 2024 election to his office.

RELATED: Trump order leads to investigation of 33 potential incidents of noncitizen voting, AG Paxton says

“Noncitizens must not be allowed to influence American elections, and I will use the full weight of my office to investigate all voter fraud,” Paxton said at the time.

Nelson added that President Donald Trump had opened up access to the SAVE database in order to root out possible cases of voter fraud.

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An Indiana man died in a head-on collision on Wednesday involving an unlicensed semitruck driver who is allegedly in the country illegally.

The crash occurred amid national scrutiny in the trucking industry over an increase in non-domiciled commercial driver’s licenses issued to foreign nationals, some of whom do not meet required English language proficiency standards, raising concerns about road safety and national security.

‘Immigration and Customs Enforcement Chicago lodged an immigration detainer with the Porter County Jail against criminal illegal alien Borko Stankovic following his arrest on Oct. 15 for reckless homicide and criminal recklessness.’

Borko Stankovic, 41, an alleged illegal alien from Serbia and Montenegro living in Lyons, Illinois, was driving his truck eastbound along U.S. 20 in Portage, Indiana, when he failed to slow down for a stopped van in his lane waiting to make a left turn, according to authorities. In a last-minute maneuver to avoid a collision with the van, Stankovic made a hard left turn, crossing into oncoming traffic and striking a Subaru Crosstrek heading westbound, police told WFLD-TV.

Stankovic’s truck jackknifed, causing the trailer to collide with the rear of the van, which then was forced into a road sign. While the driver and passenger of the van were treated at the scene and released, Jeffrey Eberly, the 54-year-old driver of the Subaru, died at the scene.

Stankovic reportedly did not have a valid CDL. According to WFLD, his carrier was not registered with the Department of Transportation. Blaze News contacted the DOT to confirm whether Stankovic’s trucking operation was legally registered with the department.

RELATED: Exclusive: DOT withholds $40M from blue state for flouting English requirements for truckers

Photo by Kevin Carter/Getty Images

While Stankovic reportedly did not have a driver’s license or a CDL, WFLD stated that he was in possession of a suspended Illinois CDL belonging to a family member.

The Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles stated that it does not have a record of Stankovic. Blaze News contacted the Illinois secretary of state to determine whether he holds any licenses with the state.

DOT Secretary Sean Duffy stated that Stankovic “spoke broken English.”

“This is EXACTLY why President Trump and I are working so hard to get dangerous foreign drivers OFF our roads. More to come,” Duffy said.

An Indiana case summary revealed that Stankovic is facing two felony charges: reckless homicide and criminal recklessness.

RELATED: ICE nabs alleged illegal alien truck driver with ‘NO NAME GIVEN’ license

Photographer: David Peinado/Bloomberg via Getty Images

According to the Porter County Sheriff’s Office, Stankovic was arrested by state police and booked on October 15 around 6:30 p.m. When reached for comment, the Indiana State Police directed Blaze News to contact the Portage Police Department, noting that the local police were handling the investigation.

The Department of Homeland Security stated that Immigration and Customs Enforcement has placed a detainer against Stankovic. The department told Blaze News that he has been in the U.S. illegally since February 2011, which is when his nonimmigrant visa status expired.

Nassau County Police Department in New York previously arrested Stankovic in 2018 for resisting arrest and obstructing governmental administration. New York also ordered Stankovic to pay $3,400 after he was accused of damaging a guide rail in 2018, according to court records.

Blaze News reached out to the New York DMV to verify whether Stankovic has ever been licensed there.

Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin stated, “U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Chicago lodged an immigration detainer with the Porter County Jail against criminal illegal alien Borko Stankovic following his arrest on Oct. 15 for reckless homicide and criminal recklessness.”

“Stankovic, a 41-year-old illegal alien from Serbia and Montenegro, was driving a semitruck and caused a multi-vehicle accident in Portage, Indiana, that tragically claimed the life of Jeffrey Eberly,” McLaughlin continued. “This criminal illegal alien didn’t even have a valid commercial driver’s license (CDL). DHS is working with our state and local partners to get illegal alien truck drivers who often don’t know basic traffic laws off our highways.”

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The Department of Homeland Security announced on Tuesday that the illegal alien target of an immigration operation was shot during an arrest attempt by federal agents in Los Angeles after he allegedly used his vehicle as a weapon against the agents.

In a statement to Blaze News, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said the information was preliminary and the targeted suspect had previously evaded apprehension.

‘Fearing for the safety of the public and law enforcement, our officers followed their training and fired defensive shots.’

“ICE law enforcement officers, assisted by U.S. Marshals, pulled the illegal alien over in a standard law enforcement procedure. The illegal alien weaponized his vehicle and began ramming the law enforcement vehicle in an attempt to flee. Fearing for the safety of the public and law enforcement, our officers followed their training and fired defensive shots. The illegal alien was shot in the elbow and one law enforcement officer was shot in the hand by a ricochet bullet. Both are in the hospital,” McLaughlin explained.

McLaughlin placed blame for the increased attacks against federal agents on Democrats, who have been calling the immigration raids immoral and illegal.

“Our law enforcement officers are facing a more than 1,000% increase in assaults against them, including vehicle rammings by illegal aliens. We are once again calling on sanctuary politicians, agitators, and the media to turn the temperature down and stop calling for violence and resistance against ICE law enforcement,” she said.

Tensions in Los Angeles remain high as the Trump administration has doubled down on its efforts to deport illegal aliens who are residing in sanctuary cities. During the No Kings protests over the weekend, anti-ICE crowds formed near the federal building in downtown Los Angeles but were unable to reach the driveway because it was blocked by the city’s police.

RELATED: Anti-ICE agitator acts hurt after being ‘ran over’ by LAPD — but video shows the real story

@AnthonyCabassa_/X

This is a developing story.

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A new video shows a female beating up a male Metro bus driver in Madison, Wisconsin, earlier this year before the bus crashed into a restaurant — and somehow the female continued the beatdown after the crash.

Prosecutors said 26-year-old Raeven Johnson attacked the bus driver on Feb. 25 after he said her desired destination wasn’t part of the bus route, according to Channel3000.com, which recently obtained the video.

Opting for a different mode of transportation that night would’ve been a much better — and much less costly — idea for Johnson.

The clip shows Johnson attempting to insert a ticket, and the bus driver attempting to prevent the ticket from going into the slot.

With that, Johnson begins hitting the bus driver, who is seated — and the bus begins moving as the driver attempts to defend himself against Johnson’s relentless attack.

Soon the out-of-control bus veered to the right and smashed into the Asian House restaurant, Channel3000.com reported.

While the collision momentarily interrupted her beatdown and threw her to the door of the bus, Johnson — who appeared to lose her wig during the altercation — quickly went right back to attacking the bus driver, as she appeared to pull him backward from his seat.

RELATED: ‘Drivers are gonna start fighting back … somebody’s gonna get knocked out’: Bus drivers’ union rep warns violent passengers

Two people, including the driver, were injured in the crash, Channel3000.com said, and one of them had to be hospitalized.

According to WMTV-TV, the back office of QPS Employment Group was crushed as a result of the crash, and Asian House’s kitchen appliances were damaged as well.

Opting for a different mode of transportation that night would’ve been a much better — and much less costly — idea for Johnson.

She pleaded guilty in August to second-degree recklessly endangering safety and attempted battery to a public transit officer, WMTV said, adding that a judge earlier this month ordered her to serve three years in prison.

Conditions of her sentence include a ban from all Madison Metro property and buses, and she’s prohibited from having alcohol, the station said.

Her sentence will be followed by three years of extended supervision, WMTV said, adding that online court documents indicate a restitution hearing is scheduled for Dec. 5.

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Tensions over the legacy of Charlie Kirk reached a boiling point at the No Kings protests that took place over the weekend, where furious demonstrators hurled slurs at the late conservative leader and cheered his death.

“Charlie Kirk is a piece of garbage. Of course, we were mean. I am so tired of people saying, ‘Oh, but you know it’s a terrible thing.’ No. Hitler is dead. I’m glad Hitler’s dead. Evil people have no place in my world. He was a hateful human being. It was disgusting the things that he said and did,” one woman told the Daily Signal at a No Kings protest.

“This could be someone’s grandmother. Probably not. Probably not. And this is actually a consequence of the childlessness epidemic that we have in society, that you have all of these just, like, listless people who don’t know where to direct their energy,” BlazeTV host Allie Beth Stuckey says.

Stuckey calls it a phenomenon of “misplaced mothering” that’s common among older white women.

“And because they are not channeling their God-given mothering instincts into people, into their own children, into the next generation in some way, they are channeling it in directions that are not actually healthy,” she explains.

“And so they believe that they are mothering the migrant, that they are mothering the criminal, that they are mothering the people who are on the margins of society. And so this makes them feel better, but it’s actually a lazy way to demonstrate that you’re a good person, which means you’re not a good person at all,” she continues.

“In the same way that socialism is like outsourcing your compassion to the government, this social justice is outsourcing your virtue to the government,” she adds.

In another clip from the protest, Nathan Hughes was conducting man-on-the-street-style interviews with some of the protesters. His interaction with two of the protesters, who were upset that he was wearing a “for Charlie” shirt, has gone viral — and for good reason.

“You get triggered because it has ‘Charlie’ on there, right?” Hughes asked the protesters.

“Because he was a racist! Because he was a misogynist! And that means that you are, too, because you support him,” she screamed. “Get out!”

Another protester chimed in: “He hated anyone that wasn’t white, that wasn’t male, that wasn’t straight.”

“Okay, well, as someone who is not male, I can say that Charlie didn’t hate me, didn’t hate his wife, didn’t hate his daughter,” Stuckey comments.

“These people in these videos are very, very unwell. That is true,” she continues, noting that she doesn’t believe it’s just a “mental health crisis.”

“I actually think that’s just an excuse for evil, because evil really exists, and it’s evil that can make you very stupid. Sin makes you stupid, and iniquity makes you insane. We can use those alliterations,” she says.

And Stuckey points out that while the protesters believe they’re protesting tyranny, they’re the ones who have made it clear that they love tyranny the most.

“These are the very people who wanted to force kids to wear masks, who wanted you to be fired from your job if you didn’t get an experimental vaccine. These are the very same people that support taking children out of their parents’ homes if their parents don’t affirm the stated gender identity of a person,” she says.

“You know which side the Democrats would have been on in 1776,” she adds.

Want more from Allie Beth Stuckey?

To enjoy more of Allie’s upbeat and in-depth coverage of culture, news, and theology from a Christian, conservative perspective, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

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