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Trump Administration Weighs Sanctions on Foreign Funders of Pro-Hamas Campus Protests

The Trump administration is mulling plans to sanction the international funders behind pro-Hamas protests, including prominent Qatari nationals who have vast financial holdings inside the United States, current and former U.S. officials familiar with the internal discussions told the Washington Free Beacon.

The effort seeks to build upon President Donald Trump’s January executive order authorizing the deportation of foreign students engaged in often illegal anti-Semitic demonstrations on college campuses across the country. Instead of targeting the protests’ participants, it would target their funders. The administration could, for example, slap sanctions on foreign individuals who provide groups like Students for Justice in Palestine with significant funding. In cases where those individuals enjoy U.S. visas, it could revoke them.

“President Trump has made it a priority to ensure that Jewish students, indeed all students, feel safe and free from harassment on college campuses,” one senior U.S. official, who spoke on background to discuss the ongoing deliberations, told the Free Beacon. “To that end, his administration is taking a comprehensive approach, not just looking at the visas and green cards of student instigators, but also, for example, going after the people funding the protests, wherever they may be.”

The plans reflect a growing appetite inside the administration to hamstring Hamas’s allies in the United States by penalizing their most prolific funders, including several former Qatari officials known to maintain relations with the Iran-backed group. Iranian government actors have also funded anti-Israel protests in the United States, former director of national intelligence Avril Haines revealed last summer.

Some officials within the Biden administration discussed similar plans to cut off foreign funding or the protests, according to a former U.S. diplomat involved in the efforts both then and now, who said the administration shelved the plans so as not to upset Doha’s government as it mediated peace talks between Israel and Hamas.

“This was on the menu when I was there, but the previous administration was a bit squeamish about taking extreme measures, like revoking visas,” said the diplomat. “But that’s not a problem in this administration, and we’re hearing they’re looking at all options—from sanctions on individuals to the revocation of visas.”

“You can’t get rid of anti-Semitism on campus without getting rid of the funding, and the funders are Qatar.”

The Trump administration has already taken similar action when it comes to America’s southern border. In early March, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced visa restrictions on “foreign government officials, including immigration and customs officials, airport and port authority officials, and others believed to be responsible for knowingly facilitating illegal immigration to the United States.” Less than two weeks later, Rubio restricted visas for current and former government officials complicit in China’s genocide of the Uyghur minority population.

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US Recession Risks Not As High As The Media Suggests

U.S. recession risks have been a headline over the last few weeks as the markets sold off.

“Goldman Sachs and Moody’s Analytics in recent days joined forecasters raising alarm about the increased likelihood of an economic downturn. The warnings coincided with a market plunge touched off by U.S. tariffs against Canada, Mexico, and China, some of which were delayed. Retaliatory tariffs issued by China on Monday deepened a trade war between the world’s two largest economies.” – ABC News

That concern is interesting as there was no such concern in January.

“As of January, the risk of a U.S. recession was considered small. A low unemployment rate and rising wages meant consumers were continuing to spend, inflation was drifting down towards the Federal Reserve’s 2% target, and the U.S. central bank had cut interest rates by a full percentage point since September. Fed officials considered it a stable foundation for continued growth, and many economists thought the central bank had nailed a “soft landing” from the high inflation of 2021 and 2022.” – Reuters.

Over the last couple of weeks, the market sell-off eclipsed 10% on an intraday basis, sending investor sentiment plummeting to levels usually seen during more significant declines and previous bear markets. While the markets have had a phenomenal run over the past two years, investors seemed to have forgotten that markets tend to correct now and then.

The one thing you can always count on during a sell-off is the media trying to formulate a headline to rationalize investor actions. During this particular decline, it was the return of a U.S. recession.

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Taxpayer-Funded Immigration Group Chaired by DOJ Employee Wants To Abolish ICE, Defund Police

A left-wing group battling the Trump administration to maintain lucrative taxpayer-funded immigration contracts has called to defund police departments and abolish the federal agency that deports illegal aliens.

Immigrant Defenders Law Center (ImmDef), a nonprofit chaired by Department of Justice employee Marisa Arrona, has received $17 million in federal funding since last year to provide legal services to illegal aliens facing deportation, according to federal records. ImmDef is a subcontractor for a $769 million program to provide services to minors apprehended at the border without parents.

ImmDef and its allies are desperately fighting against the Trump administration in an attempt to maintain funding for that program and others that provide services to illegal immigrants. ImmDef has accused the Trump administration of “playing games with children’s rights and their safety” and says the program is needed to “protect due process” rights for illegal immigrants facing deportation.

But ImmDef has gone far beyond merely providing legal services to illegal immigrants facing deportation. The group, founded in 2015, has called for the government to “dismantle the systems that seek to deport our clients.” During the height of the Black Lives Matter movement, ImmDef called for dismantling “the police state by defunding and decreasing police budgets.”

ImmDef says it is “high time we abolish the immigration prison system and abolish ICE” and sold “Abolish ICE” face masks during the height of the coronavirus pandemic. In September 2020, ImmDef circulated the since-debunked MSNBC report that a doctor at an ICE facility in Georgia performed unnecessary hysterectomies on female detainees. “#AbolishICE,” ImmDef wrote on a social media post at the time.

According to former federal immigration judge Matt O’Brien, funding for groups like ImmDef highlights Democrats’ efforts to “funnel taxpayer funds into the coffers of these radical groups” in support of an “anti-borders agenda.”

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Non-Citizen Former USPS Worker Convicted in $1.7 Million Mail Theft and Bank Fraud Scheme, Lying on Citizenship Papers

A former U.S. Postal Service (USPS) employee, Hachikosela Muchimba, has been convicted of masterminding a $1.7 million mail theft and bank fraud scheme and falsifying his citizenship application.

Muchimba, 44, worked as a letter carrier at the Friendship Post Office in D.C.

During his tenure, Muchimba stole 98 checks, primarily from the U.S. Treasury, valued at over $1.6 million, by altering payee names or forging endorsements to deposit them into seven bank accounts he controlled.

Surveillance footage from banks showed him often making transactions in his USPS uniform.

“Muchimba used the proceeds of the stolen checks to fund a lavish lifestyle that included international travel, stays at luxury hotels, and purchases at gentlemen’s clubs,” the Department of Justice said in a press release.

The press release added, “During the scheme, Muchimba applied to become a naturalized U.S. citizen and provided false information to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services officers by telling them that he had not committed any crimes for which he had not been arrested. That offense carries a maximum penalty of ten years of incarceration and possible administrative denaturalization.”

In September 2023, Muchimba was arrested at Dulles International Airport. He was carrying $2,000 in cash, a Zambian passport, and a ticket to Zambia.

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Congressional Hearing Reveals Stablecoins And CBDCs Share The Same Financial Control Risks

A congressional hearing on digital currencies rarely makes headlines. Yet, this week’s debate over stablecoins and central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) revealed more than technical disagreements; it exposed deeper anxiety about financial power, privacy, and control in an increasingly digital world.

The conversation unfolded along predictable lines. Those skeptical of CBDCs warned of creeping surveillance and government overreach. Advocates, meanwhile, framed it as a necessity, a matter of American competitiveness in a world where China and Europe are already moving ahead. Yet what emerged, almost inadvertently, was a realization that the supposedly safer alternative, privately issued stablecoins, carries many of the same risks.

While CBDC opponents championed stablecoins as the free-market alternative, testimony from industry leaders revealed that stablecoins — despite their branding as decentralized, private-sector solutions — already carry many of the same risks. The ability to freeze assets, enforce government mandates, and track transactions is a present reality, especially when combined with Know Your Customer (KYC) laws which eradicate privacy.

The core argument against CBDCs is simple: they give the federal government unprecedented control over personal finances. Randall Guynn, Chairman of the Financial Institutions Group at Davis Polk & Wardwell, issued a stark warning.

“A CBDC would give the Federal Reserve staff a direct window into virtually every transaction every person in America makes,” he said. “And at least one of them won’t be able to resist the temptation to use that information to promote what they consider to be worthy political goals.”

His comments echoed a broader concern: a US CBDC could function as a financial surveillance tool, much like China’s digital yuan. In China, authorities can track purchases in real-time and even restrict how certain funds are spent. Many fear the US government could use a CBDC to implement similar controls — whether to enforce political objectives, regulate behavior, or even deplatform individuals from the financial system.

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Israel In Turmoil After Netanyahu Sacks Security Chief In Historic First

Political turmoil has engulfed the Israeli government, and spilled into the streets as anti-Netanyahu protesters are once again outraged. But this time it’s over the unprecedented firing of the head of Israel’s domestic intelligence agency, Shin Bet. It marks the first time in history that a government has fired the Shin Bet’s leader.

Starting a week ago Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had lost confidence in Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar. And then by week’s end his shock firing with the following statement: “The Israeli government, which is in charge of the Shin Bet, has lost all confidence in Ronen Bar, who continues to cling to his seat while cynically using the families of the kidnapped and politically incorrect use of his position to fabricate futile, unfounded investigations.”

“Ronen had the opportunity to retire with honor after his searing failure on October 7 … But [he] preferred not to attend the government meeting dealing with his case,” the statement continued.

Bar’s supporters, who are demonstrating against his sacking in the thousands, believe he’s serving as a scapegoat for Netanyahu’s own policy failures.

But the prime minister’s office has followed with on Friday, “The government unanimously approved prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s proposal to end ISA [Israeli Security Agency] director Ronen Bar’s term of office.” Over all the PM’s office is citing lack of trust in Bar.

Bar too has described his dismissal as ultimately motivated by Netanyahu’s “personal interests”. In a letter he strongly suggested the problems which led to the security failures of Oct.7 originated from the top: “a policy of quiet had enabled Hamas to undergo massive military buildup” – he said of the lead-up to the terror attack on southern Israel.

He added: “The dismissal of the head of the service at this time at the initiative of the Prime Minister sends a message to all those involved, a message that could put the optimal outcome of the investigation at risk. This is a direct danger to the security of the State of Israel.”

Bar’s tenure was supposed to extend and end next year, and has been investigating Netanyahu’s close aides for alleged breaches of national security. This includes allegations of selective leaks given to the media in order to improve the Netanyahu government’s image.

Bar is charging that Netanyahu’s firing him is about covering up serious problems in the administration, including “prevent investigations into the events leading up to October 7 and other serious matters.”

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Depression and Anxiety Affect Millions of People. For Big Pharma, It’s a Big Profit Opportunity

According to the World Health Organization, mental health conditions are one of the biggest health challenges globally, affecting over 450 million people worldwide.

Depression and anxiety are the most common, impacting nearly 30% of adolescents worldwide and ranking as the 13th and 24th leading causes of disability respectively.

In today’s medical system, antidepressants are still the primary treatment for depression and anxiety, making up 75% of all prescriptions for these conditions.

While antidepressant dispensing was already on the rise, the COVID-19 pandemic brought about an even greater increase. Between January 2016 and December 2022, research shows a 66.3% increase in monthly antidepressant dispensing rates.

Today, despite growing concerns about their safety, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and serotonin and norepinephrine (noradrenaline) reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) — such as Citalopram, Fluoxetine, Sertraline and Mirtazapine — continue to be widely prescribed across all age groups.

This raises important questions about their long-term impact and whether the medical model that prioritizes medication is truly the best approach.

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UK Judges Rule That Docs Revealing Close Ties Between Disgraced Prince Andrew and Alleged Chinese Spy Yang Tengbo Must Be Released in Two Weeks

Another week, another damaging report brought Prince Andrew’s alleged corruption to the forefront of British public opinion.

A London tribunal has ruled that private documents of the correspondence between Andrew’s top adviser and an alleged Chinese spy must be made public in a fortnight.

Dominic Hampshire, an aide and close friend of the Duke, had to submit a witness statement after Chinese businessman Yang Tengbo was expelled and banned from the UK.

The Telegraph reported:

“Mr. Yang was forced to leave the country on national security grounds in March 2023 and unsuccessfully challenged the decision at the Special Immigration Appeals Commission last year. UK authorities have alleged that he formed an ‘unusual degree of trust’ with the Duke and developed relationships with politicians to be ‘leveraged’ by China.”

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Burgum Orders Nearly 20 Million Acres In Alaska Opened For Oil, Gas Development

Interior Secretary Doug Burgum has directed the Bureau of Land Management to “pursue steps to expand opportunities for exploration and development” of oil, gas, and mineral resources across nearly 20 million previously off-limits acres within Alaska’s National Petroleum Reserve (NPR) and Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR).

The move was not unexpected after President Donald Trump issued a Jan. 20 ‘Unleashing Alaska’s Extraordinary Resource Potential’ executive actions package mandating federal agencies “expedite permitting and leasing of energy and natural resource projects,” prioritize “development of Alaska’s liquified natural gas (LNG) potential,” and expand fossil fuel development in the 23-million-acre NPR and 19.6-million acre ANWR.

Burgum followed through with a Feb. 3 order requiring the Bureau of Land Management to “exercise all lawful authority” in developing a plan to implement the president’s policy.

“It’s time for the U.S. to embrace Alaska’s abundant and largely untapped resources as a pathway to prosperity for the nation, including Alaskans,” Burgum said in a March 20 press release announcing the directive.

The sweeping actions by Trump and Burgum, who also chairs the National Energy Dominance Council, rescind “all regulations, orders, guidance documents, policies, and any other similar agency actions … promulgated, issued, or adopted between Jan. 20, 2021, and Jan. 20, 2025,” essentially erasing dozens of actions related to Alaska by President Joe Biden and his administration.

During Trump’s first term, Congress directed the Department of Interior (DOI) to open a 1.56-million acre coastal plain area within ANWR’s Section 1002 to oil and gas drilling for the first time when it adopted the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA). The U.S. Geological Survey estimates the area could hold up to 11.8 billion barrels of oil.

However, the Biden administration auctioned only 400,000 acres in January 2025, drawing no bidders because “new severe restrictions” imposed in November 2024 made “any development economically and practically impossible,” Alaska argued in a Jan. 5 lawsuit that alleged DOI and the Bureau of Land Management were in violation of the TCJA.

Under the executive actions and Burgum’s directive, the bureau must now make the entire 1.56-million-acre ANWR coastal plain and 82 percent of NPR available for oil and gas leasing. More than 13 million of NPR’s 23 million acres had been off-limits to development for decades since at least 1980.

“For far too long, the federal government has created too many barriers to capitalizing on the state’s energy potential,” Burgum said.

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Democrats in Congress Drive Luxury Cars on Taxpayer Dime

Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D., Texas) declared in February that the government is “not in the business of giving out money” to taxpayers. But when it comes to the simple luxuries in her own life, the firebrand lawmaker is happy to let the public foot the bill.

That includes her taxpayer-funded car. Crockett has billed the public $999.96 every month since she assumed office in January 2023 to pay for a “vehicle lease,” according to House disbursement records reviewed by the Washington Free Beacon. It’s unclear the make and model of Crockett’s publicly financed whip—lawmakers are not required to disclose that information and her office did not return a request for comment—but it’s enough to pay for a Tesla Model S, Elon Musk’s luxury sports sedan, which leases for $998 per month.

Crockett obtained her taxpayer-funded vehicle through a little-known fringe benefit that allows representatives to bill the public for a fresh set of EPA-approved wheels to traverse their congressional districts. Some 42 lawmakers participated in the program in 2024, including 15 Republican participants who represent geographically expansive districts that average 18,100 square miles each. The Republican participants primarily leased economy vehicles from American manufacturers, with several of their offices telling the Free Beacon that leasing a vehicle is a far more cost-effective way for the lawmakers to traverse their massive districts as opposed to paying for airfare or using their personal vehicle at the IRS reimbursement rate of 67 cents per mile.

But the same can’t be said for many of the 27 Democratic participants in the program, several of whom used taxpayer funds to lease vehicles from luxury brands including Tesla, Lexus, and Volvo. And 15 of those Democrats, including Crockett, represent dense urban districts that are smaller than 500 square miles.

Crockett’s district in Dallas, Texas, for example, is only 335 square miles in total. The firebrand Democrat could have used public transportation or her personal vehicle to traverse her district in 2024, but she instead billed taxpayers $11,996 for “vehicle lease” payments to Credit Union Services. Crockett didn’t have to worry about paying for her Washington, D.C., living expenses either, thanks to another little-known fringe benefit available to members of the House. Crockett billed taxpayers $20,301 in 2024 to cover her “lodging” expenses, and an additional $2,670 to pay for her meals when Congress was in session, House disbursement records show.

Crockett’s reliance on the taxpayer to finance her everyday living expenses could come back to bite her as Democrats maneuver to make her a leading figure in the party. In February, Crockett scoffed at Musk’s proposal to redistribute a portion of DOGE savings to American taxpayers, saying: “We are not in the business of giving out money, and honestly, I don’t know what $5,000 will do for you.”

Details about the make and model of the vehicles leased by members of the House in 2024 are hazy at best, and the offices of most participating members did not respond to Free Beacon requests for comment. Caitlin Sutherland, the executive director of the ethics watchdog Americans for Public Trust, said it was “disturbing” that members of Congress chose not to disclose details of their publicly financed leases.

“Riding around in a taxpayer-funded Lexus and not being forthcoming with constituents raises ethical questions and is unacceptable, particularly in our current era of rising accountability over government spending,” Sutherland told the Free Beacon. “Taxpayers have the right to know what type of vehicle they’re subsidizing to ensure this program is not being abused.”

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