Tag: republicans

Top GOP official is arrested over claims he ‘WATERBOARDED’ his terrified 16-year-old daughter

A GOP leader in Utah was arrested on Tuesday after his 16-year-old daughter accused him of ‘waterboarding’ her as a punishment for not cleaning her room.

David Nephi Johnson, the chair of the Republican Party in Wasatch County, has been charged with aggravated child abuse for the alleged drowning incident in January.

The vice chair of county GOP, Patty Sprunt, told KSL News Radio that she had only ever observed a healthy relationship between Johnson and his family. She said people should not jump to conclusions.

The investigation into Johnson, 54, began on January 21, when the Herber City Police Department was informed that a teenager had been interviewed by the Utah Division of Child and Family Services.

The girl told authorities that her father, Johnson, got upset with her about two weeks earlier because she went out with her friends before making sure her bedroom was ‘spotless to his expectations’, according to a police affidavit.

When she got home, Johnson allegedly grabbed her by the back of her neck and ‘took her into the bathroom while the sink was filling with water,’ the affidavit stated.

Johnson ‘dunked her head under, brought it out, splashed water in her face, then dunked the victim’s head under again,’ the affidavit stated.

The girl couldn’t recall how long she had been under water but claimed she wasn’t able to breathe for ’20 to 30 seconds,’ according to the affidavit.

Though the girl described what her father allegedly did to her as waterboarding, there was no claim that her father carried out waterboarding in the strict sense of the torture method, which involves covering someone’s mouth with a cloth and pouring water through the cloth and into the mouth.

The teen said that after she was allegedly attacked, her immediate thought was that she was at fault and that she should have cleaned her room, according to the affidavit. She also reported having trouble breathing afterwards and feeling sick.

She told investigators that Johnson abused her and her siblings on other occasions, according to police.

‘The victim described one incident a few years prior involving her now 8-year-old brother, stating that after a minor argument, David became upset, grabbed her brother by the neck, took him into the bathroom, and forced his head under the water,’ the affidavit stated. 

‘The victim stated that David removed her brother from the water, splashed water on his face and nose, knocked him down, and repeated the act multiple times. Following the incident, the now 8-year-old sibling ran upstairs to his bedroom, crying,’ it continued.

Additionally, the girl recalled a time when Johnson allegedly ‘backhanded her on the torso because she wasn’t compliant to do something’, according to the affidavit.

Johson was then accused of making fun of her for crying,’ the affidavit alleged.

‘I don’t feel very safe. When I go to bed, I feel like I can’t sleep because I don’t feel safe. When my dad’s not home, I feel fine. But when he’s home, I never feel safe because I feel like something is going to happen,’ the girl said to investigators.

Keep reading

This GOP Governor Just Shot Down a Bill That Would Have Banned Biological Males From Womens’ Spaces

New Hampshire Gov. Kelly Ayotte has once again vetoed a bill that would prevent biological males from using women’s restrooms and locker rooms.

Ayotte refused to sign the bill, arguing that it would be too hard to enforce, according to the New Hampshire Bulletin.

Gov. Kelly Ayotte vetoed Senate Bill 268 Friday, a bill to allow transgender people to be excluded from restrooms, locker rooms, jails, and other spaces that don’t match their sex at birth.

“I vetoed a nearly identical bill to this one last year,” Ayotte, a Republican, said in a statement announcing the veto. “I made it clear this issue needed to be addressed in a thoughtful, narrow way that protects the privacy, safety, and rights of all Granite Staters. Unfortunately, there is minimal difference between Senate Bill 268 and the bill I vetoed last year, which Governor Sununu vetoed the year prior.”

Like 2025’s House Bill 148 and 2024’s House Bill 396, the Republican-backed SB 268 sought to create exceptions to the state’s antidiscrimination law, which was enacted in 2018 and protects people from discrimination on the basis of “gender identity” and other characteristics. In addition to allowing businesses and organizations to separate restrooms, locker rooms, and jails by sex at birth rather than self-expressed gender identity, the bills would’ve allowed schools to keep transgender girls off boys sports teams and vice versa.

In 2025, Ayotte endorsed some of the conservative lawmakers’ goals, but ultimately vetoed the legislation on the grounds that it was impractical.

“I believe there are important and legitimate privacy and safety concerns raised by biological males using places such as female locker rooms and being placed in female correctional facilities,” Ayotte wrote at the time. “At the same time, I see that House Bill 148 is overly broad and impractical to enforce, potentially creating an exclusionary environment for some of our citizens.”

Keep reading

Republicans Introduce OMAR Act to Deal With Corruption in Congress

Republican members of Congress introduced legislation at the end of last month meant to target colleagues suspected of using campaign funds for personal and familial benefit.

The bill is known as the Oversight for Members And Relatives Act — also known as the OMAR Act — and was filed by Reps. Tom Tiffany and Tony Wied, both Republicans from Wisconsin.

The OMAR Act would prevent campaign funds from benefiting spouses of lawmakers and require that candidates disclose any payments made to immediate family.

Blaze Media, which broke the news of the bill, noted that Rep. Ilhan Omar, a Democrat from Minnesota, reportedly shelled out $2.8 million to a political consulting firm owned by her husband during the 2019-2020 campaign season.

That payment was almost 70 percent of her disbursement for the quarter.

“Public office should never be used to pad a family’s bank account,” Tiffany told Blaze Media.

“For years, members of both parties have blurred ethical lines by paying their spouses with campaign funds and labeling it ‘campaign work.’”

The OMAR Act would meanwhile end the practice and return “integrity to a system that’s been abused for far too long.”

Wied added to Blaze Media that “members of Congress are sent to Washington to represent the interests of their constituents — not to line their spouses’ pockets with campaign funds.”

“We’ve seen far too many egregious examples of politicians exploiting loopholes for personal gain, and the American people are sick of it,” he continued.

“I’m proud to stand with Rep. Tiffany to introduce the OMAR Act and put a stop to these shady practices once and for all.”

Omar has provoked controversy for her net worth surging while in office — a development related to her husband’s private-sector work, according to a report from Fox News.

eStCru LLC, a winery in California, surged from between $15,000 and $50,000 in 2023 to between $1 million and $5 million in 2024.

Keep reading

Republican bill aims to give Americans in Israeli military same benefits as US soldiers

Two Republican congressmen have introduced legislation that would provide the same employment and economic protections to Americans serving in the Israeli military as US citizens who get deployed to serve in the US military.

The protections sought by the two lawmakers, Guy Reschenthaler and Max Miller, come in stark contrast to how other countries have been called upon to treat their citizens who have gone to serve in Israel’s military.

“Over 20,000 American citizens are currently defending Israel from Hamas terrorists, risking their lives for the betterment of our ally,” Reschenthaler said in a statement.

“This legislation will ensure we do everything possible to support these heroes who are standing with Israel, fighting for freedom, and combating terrorism in the Middle East.”

By introducing this legislation last Friday, the lawmakers want Americans serving in a foreign military to be treated in the “same manner as service in the uniformed services”.

Keep reading

GOP senator excoriates NY Times for bad reporting on Arctic Frost, IDs reporters by name

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley on Thursday slammed the New York Times over its reporting on whistleblowers, which he claimed intended to discredit real whistleblowers who were shedding light on misconduct.

Grassley said the series of reports, which were done by New York Times reporters Glenn Thrush, Alan Feuer and Adam Goldman, date back to 2023 when Goldman wrote a report that was “designed to undermine my exposure of former FBI agent [Timothy] Thibault’s political conduct.”

“Goldman wrote his article before knowing all the facts,” Grassley claimed during floor remarks. “For one, Thibault was found to have violated the Hatch Act for anti-Trump political conduct at work. Second, Goldman’s article didn’t account for emails I released last year showing Thibault violated the FBI’s rules in opening and advancing Arctic Frost.”

Grassley said another article from last year attempted to dismiss Arctic Frost concerns by stating the FBI “took normal bureaucratic steps and precautions” when looking into the case. 

“Was this supposed to be an opinion piece on behalf of terminated FBI agents or a real news article?” Grassley questioned. “Normal steps weren’t taken.”

The senator admitted that the House and Senate are now receiving oversight documents they requested years ago, but that the production was because of cooperation from the Trump administration.

“To Attorney General [Pam] Bondi and [FBI] Director [Kash] Patel’s credit, they’ve done better in that regard than any of their predecessors,” Grassley said. “Am I fully satisfied? Of course not. But Bondi and Patel deserve credit, and if the Biden administration had done the same, I’d give them credit, too.”

Grassley also slammed the New York Times for its coverage of the Mar-a-Lago raid, accusing the outlet of mischaracterizing his post that the raid was a “miscarriage of justice,” because it did not include his full comment.

The senator additionally claimed the outlet accused his trusted whistleblowers of violating the law by disclosing subpoenas from Jack Smith, which they shared with Congress and not the media. 

Keep reading

Collins says China-linked Drug Networks are Expanding in Maine as Crackdown Language Heads to Trump’s Desk

Sen. Susan Collins (R) says she secured new funding and legislative language aimed at combating Chinese-linked illicit drug operations in Maine as the Fiscal Year 2026 National Security, Department of State, and Related Programs (NSRP) Appropriations Act heads to President Donald Trump’s desk to be signed into law.

The bill passed the Senate last week and was approved by the House of Representatives today, according to Collins’ office. Collins, the chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, said the measure is intended to support efforts to disrupt drug and money laundering operations tied to PRC-linked criminal syndicates.

“PRC-linked criminal syndicates continue to expand their illegal marijuana grow operations in Maine while contributing to the flow of fentanyl and its precursor chemicals that threaten communities in our state and across the country,” Collins said. “This legislation strengthens our ongoing efforts to expose and disrupt these networks and provide law enforcement with the information and tools they need to protect public safety.”

Among the provisions highlighted by Collins: the bill includes language directing the Secretary of State, in consultation with the heads of other relevant federal agencies, to submit a report to the appropriate congressional committees on PRC-linked criminal syndicates or nationals who may be directly or indirectly involved in illegal drug and money laundering operations in the United States, including in Maine, California, and Oregon.

The legislation also includes $150 million to counter the flow of fentanyl, fentanyl precursors, and other synthetic drugs into the United States.

Keep reading

Senate Armed Service Committee Member Profited From Venezuela Invasion

Senator Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) has cultivated an image as a Rambo-type hero, which was burnished in August 2021 when he took an unauthorized trip to Afghanistan to try to help rescue people fleeing the Taliban after they returned to power in Afghanistan.

A former mixed martial arts fighter and wrestler who champions the Trump administration’s trillion-dollar-plus military budget, Mullin is a super-hawk sitting on the Senate Armed Services Committee who criticized President Joe Biden for supposedly “appeasing” countries like Iran.

In 2022, Mullin introduced a bill in Congress that would allow U.S. citizens to volunteer to fight Russia on behalf of Ukraine, claiming that thousands of Americans were ready to fight communism. (Lacking even a bachelor’s degree, Mullin does not seem to realize that Russia under Vladimir Putin is not a communist country.)[1]

While Mullin may genuinely subscribe to reactionary political views,[2] his opportunism was disclosed in an article in The Oklahoman in late January, which revealed that he had bought Chevron and RTX (formerly Raytheon) stock just days before U.S. forces captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in an illegal Special Forces raid, Operation Absolute Resolve.

A spokesperson for Mullin told The Oklahoman that the purchases were made without Mullin’s input by a firm that manages his stock trading. This excuse seems to be disingenuous since Mullin had to have green-lighted the stock trades and did not demand their cancelation or say that he sold back the RTX and Chevron stock shares after they were disclosed.

Keep reading

Senate Republicans push for House GOP rebellion against funding package, voter ID legislation

A pair of Senate Republicans are pushing their House counterparts to reject the Trump-backed shutdown deal unless it includes Homeland Security funding and election integrity legislation. 

Sens. Rick Scott, R-Fla., and Mike Lee, R-Utah, are calling on House Republicans to push back against the Senate-passed funding package, which includes bills to fund five agencies, including the Pentagon, as a partial government shutdown continues. 

They contended that the package needs to be retooled, and must include a modified version of the Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility Act, dubbed the SAVE America Act, and the Homeland Security (DHS) funding bill, which was stripped out after Senate Democrats threatened to blow up the government funding process. 

Doing so could extend what was expected to be a short-term shutdown.

Scott said congressional Democrats would “NEVER fund DHS” and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). He voted against the package twice, arguing that the spending levels would further bloat the nation’s eye-popping $38 trillion national debt, and that the billions in earmarks betrayed Republicans’ previous vows of fiscal restraint.

“If House Republicans don’t put the DHS bill back in, add the SAVE America Act and remove the wasteful earmarks, Democrats win,” Scott said. “We must protect our homeland, secure our elections and end the reckless spending NOW!”

Keep reading

Deranged RINO Commentator Rick Wilson Calls For EXECUTION Of Stephen Miller BY HANGING

As President Trump’s promised mass deportations gain steam, radicals are spiraling into outright calls for violence against those enforcing America’s borders. In a shocking video clip, anti-Trump operative Rick Wilson demanded the execution of Stephen Miller, the architect behind the administration’s tough immigration policies.

Wilson’s meltdown comes amid backlash over recent ICE actions, including two fatal encounters that have fueled leftist outrage. But while open-borders advocates cry foul, the reality exposes their organized efforts to sabotage law enforcement and shield illegal aliens from accountability.

In a recent video, Wilson rails against Miller for labeling the agitator who was killed in the ICE-related incident this past weekend as a “domestic terrorist.” Wilson states: “When Stephen Miller goes out and calls a guy who was by every account so far, he never had an illegal problem. Had to conceal carry permit. Had gun permit in Minnesota. He’s was a nurse. He was nice to his neighbors.”

Keep reading

GOP Congressman Backs Effort To Roll Back Marijuana Legalization In Arizona—But Says Trump Holds ‘Power’ With Rescheduling Push

A GOP congressional lawmaker says he’d like to see his state of Arizona roll back its voter-approved marijuana legalization law with an initiative that could be on the November ballot—but he acknowledged that President Donald Trump’s recent federal rescheduling order could complicate that prohibitionist push.

Two Republican members of Arizona’s U.S. House delegation spoke with Marijuana Moment about the proposed ballot measure to eliminate commercial cannabis sales in the state, voicing opposition to legalization while recognizing that pending federal reform represents an obstacle for the anti-marijuana campaign.

Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ)—who was among a handful of GOP lawmakers who urged the Trump administration to reject rescheduling last year—said he would like to see voters approve an initiative to repeal the adult-use marijuana market in Arizona. That measure was filed with the secretary of state’s office last month, but it hasn’t been certified for ballot placement at this point.

“We need to really take a comprehensive look at cannabis all the way across the board. Science tries to commit one way or another to us, and we’re not getting the full background on it,” he said, adding that he still regards marijuana as a “gateway drug” to other illicit substances and arguing that the cannabis industry has “resisted every which way with the regulations.”

Asked about Trump’s recent executive order directing the attorney general to expeditiously finalize a rule moving cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), the congressman conceded that could hamper the state-level repeal effort.

“He’s got power,” Gosar said. “But a lot of us want to know who was it that actually turned his ear” to support rescheduling.

The lawmaker said the president has historically been receptive to his input, and he’d like to have a discussion about the rescheduling move—but that’s yet to materialize.

Another congressional Republican representing Arizona, Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ), also weighed in on the rescheduling push in an interview with Marijuana Moment last week.

While there’s a libertarian perspective on the issue he appreciates when it comes to letting adults make their own choices about personal marijuana use, he said the fiscal conservative in him says prohibition can help prevent the use of taxpayer dollars to deal with what he characterized as the consequences of cannabis use.

“I’ve always taken the position that you need to keep marijuana where it was because the social safety network is in place, causing taxpayers to have to fund rehabilitation for those things,” he said.

Keep reading