Tag: politics

President Trump Issues the First Vetoes of His Second Term

It took about 11 months, but President Donald Trump has finally issued the first vetoes of his second term.

And like most things involving the president, the moves aren’t without their critics — including some you might not normally expect pushback from.

The “Miccosukee Reserved Area Amendments Act” is a bill aimed at expanding the land set aside for the Miccosukee Tribe inside Everglades National Park by officially including a section known as Osceola Camp.

Trump had a couple of issues with this.

The residential community in that area “was constructed in 1935, without authorization, in a low area that was raised with fill material,” Trump’s explanation read.

“None of the current structures in the Osceola Camp are over 50 years old, nor do they meet the other criteria to be considered for listing in the National Register of Historic Places,” Trump wrote to the House.

He added that, “the Miccosukee Tribe has actively sought to obstruct reasonable immigration policies that the American people decisively voted for when I was elected.” That appears to be a direct reference to the tribe’s publicized opposition — including a lawsuit against the Trump administration — to the “Alligator Alcatraz” detention center in Florida, as noted by The Associated Press.

The “Finish the Arkansas Valley Conduit Act,” meanwhile, is a bill designed to make it easier for rural Colorado communities to complete a long‑planned water pipeline project that will facilitate drinking water to people in the Arkansas River Valley.

Trump appeared to take specific issue with the price tag and repayment plans for this project.

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This Line From Zohran Mamdani’s Inauguration Speech Should Terrify Freedom Loving Americans

Zohran Mamdani had a second swearing in ceremony in New York City today, in which he gave a speech that contained a shocking line.

The new mayor of New York City actually said these words out loud:

“We will replace the frigidity of rugged individualism with the warmth of collectivism.”

Here is the line in full context, via Real Clear Politics:

NEW YORK CITY MAYOR ZOHRAN MAMDANI: I welcome the change. For too long, those fluent in the good grammar of civility have deployed decorum to mask agendas of cruelty. Many of these people have been betrayed but in our administration their needs will be met. Their hopes and dreams and interests will be reflected transparently in government.

They will shape our future and if for too long these communities have existed as distinct from one another, we will draw this city closer together. We will replace the frigidity of rugged individualism with the warmth of collectivism. If our campaign demonstrated that we yearn for solidarity then let this government foster it. Because no matter what you eat, how you pray or where you come from, the words that most define us are the two we all share, New Yorkers.

First of all, ‘rugged individualism’ is Americanism. It’s what built this country. A rejection of this idea by the mayor of New York City is unsettling enough, but the second part of that sentence is even worse.

The warmth of collectivism? He is coming right out and admitting that he is a communist. Collectivism is a central tenet of the communism that destroyed the Soviet Union and starved millions of people in China under Mao.

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IDIOTS: Zohran Mamdani Supporters Chant ‘Tax the Rich’ as Bernie ‘Three Houses’ Sanders Speaks

As Bernie Sanders was speaking at Zohran Mamdani’s inauguration on Thursday, a number of people in the crowd broke into a chant of ‘tax the rich.’

The stupidity on display here is appalling. Do these people really believe that their lives will improve if the government forcefully takes more money away from other people? Do they think the New York City government is going to take money from others and give it to them? Do they honestly believe that if ‘the rich’ are forced to pay more in taxes, it is going to fund programs that will benefit them?

This is the politics of envy, plain and simple.

The New York Post reports:

‘Tax the rich’ chant breaks out as Bernie Sanders swears in NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani

A raucous chant of “tax the rich” broke out as Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders blasted the wealthy and called out “hatred and divisiveness” before swearing in fellow democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani as New York City mayor.

“At a time in our country’s history when we are seeing too much hatred, too much divisiveness and too much injustice, thank you for electing Zohran Mamdani as your mayor,” Sanders said outside City Hall.

He then argued that Mamdani’s socialist agenda, including free buses and taxing the rich was not “radical,” sparking the chant.

After Sanders administered the ceremonial oath of office to Mamdani, the new mayor addressed the crowd, saying he planned to govern “expansively and audaciously.”

For too long, he argued, New York belonged to the “wealthy and well connected,” but no longer, Mamdani vowed.

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Mamdani Names Lawyer Who Defended al-Qaeda Terrorist As City’s Top Attorney

On Tuesday, Socialist New York Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani announced the appointment of Ramzi Kassem as the city’s top attorney.

Kassem gained notoriety for defending al-Qaeda terrorist Ahmed al-Darbi when he served as lead counsel.

In 2014, al-Darbi pled guilty in connection with an al-Qaeda terrorist plot to bomb a French oil tanker near Yemen in 2002, leaving a civilian dead and several others injured. He was convicted in 2017 and ultimately transferred to Saudi Arabia in 2018.

Al-Darbi’s brother-in-law was Khalid al-Mihdhar, one of the five hijackers on American Airlines Flight 77, which crashed into the Pentagon during the September 11, 2001 attacks.

The New York Post reports that in 2009, “Kassem founded a legal clinic at CUNY, which offers free legal representation to Muslims and other communities in New York City.”

The nonprofit, Creating Law Enforcement Accountability and Responsibility (CLEAR) is largely funded by progressive philanthropist George Soros’ Open Society Foundations, which have given the clinic more than $3 million, public records show.

The Associated Press and The New York Times reported at the time that Kassem said, “While it may not make him whole, my hope is that repatriation at least marks the end of injustice for Ahmed… He had 16 long and painful years in captivity.”

Kassem is also part of the legal team representing radical Islamist Mahmoud Khalil.

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Hardworking boy, 17, died mysteriously while working at Nebraska hog farm owned by governor and run by his daughter… then officials frustrated his mom’s efforts to find out why

A teenager in Nebraska died under mysterious circumstances while working at a hog farm founded by the state’s governor and run by his daughter, with officials accused of neglecting a thorough investigation for his grieving mother.

Zach Panther, 17, was found dead six weeks after starting a job at Beaver Valley Pork farms in St. Edward, Nebraska – a tiny town with about 700 residents roughly two hours west of Omaha – last April 1.

The teen had been sealing cracks in a barn with chemical-laden spray foam before his supervisor found him on the floor, according to The New York Times.

Panther’s death was not seen by any other farm employees, and there were no signs of foul play.

Beaver Valley Pork is one of the hog operations linked to Pillen Family Farms, a family business that has owned or operated more than 100 farms across Nebraska.

The company was founded by state governor Jim Pillen in 1993. His daughter Sarah has been the co-chief executive of the business since January 2020, per her public LinkedIn profile.

Investigations by government agencies couldn’t determine how the 17-year-old died and were allegedly slowed down by mistakes and poor information sharing.

‘My son is dead,’ Justy Riggs-Panther, Zach’s mom, told the outlet. ‘There ought to be answers.’

After her son’s death, the sheriff and deputies from the Boone County Sheriff’s Office only allegedly examined the room where he died, and not much else.

The Nebraska farm allegedly blocked timely testing from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), while a recommended blood test for spray foam chemicals was also disrupted when the lab accidentally destroyed the usable sample.

Sarah Pillen, the co-CEO of Pillen Family Farms, said the company had ‘fully cooperated’ with the investigation into Zach’s death.

She told OSHA of Zach’s death when it happened, which was marked down in the call log by an agency employee with notes including ‘had been foaming’, ‘insulation’, ‘head injury’ and ‘poss[ible] medical episode.’

‘While we share the frustration that some of the issues which led to his passing remain unanswered, we understand those investigations have been closed, and there have been no safety violations attributable to the workplace,’ she told The New York Times.

However, Sarah Pillen was accused of refusing entry to an OSHA industrial hygienist who came to inspect the farm.

‘We simply requested that OSHA follow our established biosecurity protocols,’ she said.

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Heiress sparks new turn in Somali fraud scandal by speculating link to MURDER of Minnesota Democrat lawmaker

A Minnesota state senator has slammed actress and socialite Sara Foster after she linked the murder of Democrat lawmaker Melissa Hortman to the erupting Somali fraud probe. 

Hortman and her husband Mark were fatally shot in their Brooklyn Park home by suspect Vance Luther Boelter earlier this year.

Boelter allegedly planned to target 45 liberal lawmakers and abortion providers, according to police.

But Foster, the 44-year-old daughter of Canadian record producer David Foster, took to X on Saturday to suggest Hortman’s death is linked to investigations into alleged fraud in the Somali community in Minnesota.

Scrutiny over the state’s spending intensified this week after a viral video emerged showing an apparently empty daycare in Hennepin County which has allegedly received $4 million in taxpayers’ money. 

‘So are we just planning on pretending like her murder isn’t connected to the multi billion fraud scandal just uncovered? Mmmmkay,’ Foster wrote.

Foster wrote the comment alongside a video showing Hortman weeping after she had cast the lone Democratic vote in favor of repealing eligibility for undocumented adults to access MinnesotaCare just days before she was killed. 

Foster’s remarks were panned by Republican State Senator Julia Coleman, who shut down the ‘conspiracy theory’, stating ‘the fraud had nothing to do with the assassinations’.

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This Is How the DC Pipe Bomb Suspect Felt About Republicans and Democrats

The individual accused of setting pipe bombs at the RNC and DNC headquarters in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 5, 2021, confessed to the crime and said he despised both political parties.

The FBI apprehended Brian Cole, 30, earlier this month after years of investigating the pipe bombs.

From NBC News:

The man suspected of placing pipe bombs near the headquarters of the Democratic and Republican parties in 2021 felt “extreme acts of violence” were justified because “they were in charge,” federal prosecutors said Sunday.

In a request filed Sunday to keep him behind bars while he awaits trial, the Justice Department unveiled new allegations about the potential motive and actions of defendant Brian Cole, accused of planting the bombs on Jan. 5, 2021.

Cole, 30, who lives with his mother and other family members in Virginia about 25 miles southwest of Capitol Hill, was arrested Dec. 4 and charged with transporting an explosive device and attempted malicious destruction by means of explosive materials, according to charging documents.

Cole has yet to enter pleas. His lead defense counsel did not immediately respond to a request for comment Sunday night.

Sunday’s court filing alleges Cole had animosity for both political parties at a time when, he told investigators, he was “watching everything, just everything getting worse.”

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Burma Election Phase 1: No Hope for Federal Democracy With Opposition Banned

The Burma (Myanmar) election leaves observers asking whether it can truly be called a legitimate election when opposition parties and much of the population are prohibited from participating.

Burma’s military junta held the first round of its 2025 election on December 28, marking the first vote since overthrowing the country’s democratically elected government in 2021. Participation was sharply limited, with only about one-third of eligible voters casting ballots. Voting took place only in areas under military control, effectively disenfranchising large segments of the population living in conflict zones that comprise roughly 70 percent of the country’s territory.

As voting began, the Union Election Commission announced that nine additional townships had been added to the list where voting could not take place due to ongoing armed conflict. The newly excluded areas included three townships in Chin State, two in Sagaing Division, and four in Rakhine State, bringing the total number of townships entirely excluded from elections to 65, up from 56.

The UEC also confirmed that Phases 1 and 2 could not be held in 51 village tracts in Karenni State, and that Phase 3 elections scheduled for January 25 would not take place in 10 village tracts in Pekhon Township. In total, 134 townships are now affected either fully or partially, setting a record for the highest number of areas where elections could not be conducted in Burma’s history.

The election is being held in three phases across 265 of 330 townships, with the second round on January 11 and third round on January 25. Final results are expected to be announced by the end of January 2026.

One Yangon polling station recorded turnout of just under 37 percent, well below participation levels in the 2020 election won by Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy. In Karenni State and other areas controlled by revolutionary forces, residents rejected the process, saying the election is neither free nor fair and excludes large portions of the population displaced by war.

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Far-left billionaire George Soros and family donated $71,000 to Trump-hating NY AG Letitia James

Far-left billionaire kingmaker George Soros and his family members have poured more than $71,000 into state Attorney General Letitia James’ campaign coffers since 2019 — including $31,000 to help the longtime adversary of President Trump get re-elected next year. 

The contributions include $18,000 from Soros in July 2024 and another $13,000 from his daughter-in-law, Jennifer Soros, in May, records show. Soros and his clan also gave James another $40,000 dating back to 2019 for previous campaigns.

And the windfall doesn’t even include indirect support James receives through far-left organizations Soros helps bankroll, including millions to the Working Families Party.

Soros’ ultra-woke grant-making network Open Society Foundation has doled out $23.7 million to the WFP since 2016 through its fundraising arm Working Families Organization Inc., and he and his family members showered the New York branch with another $865,000 in direct donations since 2018, records show.

James’ relationship with the WFP is all but unprecedented in New York.

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‘Eat the Rich’ Activist Married to $34M Mets Star Joins NYC Socialist Mayor-Elect Zohran Mamdani’s Inaugural Committee

Katia Reguero Lindor, wife of New York Mets superstar shortstop Francisco Lindor, has been named to the inaugural committee of incoming Mayor Zohran Mamdani.

Lindor, a vocal social justice advocate who has publicly railed against the wealthy elite, is married to an athlete pulling in a staggering $34.1 million annual salary.

Elite hypocrisy like this is often seen in far-left circles, where champagne socialists preach equality while enjoying the fruits of capitalism.

Katia Lindor, a classically trained violinist and host of “The Unaparent Podcast,” describes herself as a “breastfeeding + home birth + social justice advocate.” She has used her platform to push progressive causes, including sharp criticisms of the rich.

In a November Instagram post during the mayoral election, she declared, “Your enemies aren’t the immigrants — they’re the one-percenters hoarding the wealth while leaving you without basic needs.”

She further emphasized that supporting politicians like Mamdani, who fight for immigrants, artists, workers, and “everyone who deserves a dignified life,” isn’t against her interests, “even if I’m in a different economic position.”

This rhetoric echoes the “Eat the Rich” mantra popular among anti-capitalist activists, including The Squad, yet it comes from someone whose household wealth is firmly in the top 1%.

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