This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
As Bryan Kohberger prepares for sentencing Wednesday for the murders of four University of Idaho students, President Donald Trump is hoping the judge in the case makes the admitted killer "explain why he did these horrible murders."
Trump posted on Truth Social Monday: "Bryan Kohberger, who was responsible, in Idaho, for the deaths of four wonderful young souls, has made a plea bargain deal in order to avoid the Death Penalty.
"These were vicious murders, with so many questions left unanswered. While Life Imprisonment is tough, it's certainly better than receiving the Death Penalty but, before Sentencing, I hope the Judge makes Kohberger, at a minimum, explain why he did these horrible murders.
"There are no explanations, there is no NOTHING. People were shocked that he was able to plea bargain, but the Judge should make him explain what happened. Thank you for your attention to this matter!"
In a stunning plea deal that shocked even the judge in the case, Kohberger pleaded guilty to all charges on July 2, some two months before his trial was slated to commence in Boise, Idaho.
The victims were 21-year-olds Madison Mogen and Kaylee Goncalves, as well as 20-year-olds Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Newly declassified documents about the supposed FBI "investigation" into Hillary Clinton's email scandal, which developed while she was running her second failed campaign for the Oval Office, reveal that the FBI declined to follow even the most basic procedures, like "due diligence."
Clinton's email scandal involved her decision to set up a private email server in her home and then run national secrets through the unsecured machine. Then-FBI head James Comey abruptly announced during the campaign that the investigation was being shut down.
Now released are details from a previously classified appendix to DOJ inspector General Michale Horowitz's 2018 report criticizing the FBI's conduct.
It was just days after Comey's announcement about Clinton came that the FBI launched its probe, now documented as based on fraud, into now-President Donald Trump and his campaign, an investigation called Crossfire Hurricane.
"This document shows an extreme lack of effort and due diligence in the FBI's investigation of former Secretary Clinton's email usage and mishandling of highly classified information," Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said as the appendix was released.
"Under Comey's leadership, the FBI failed to perform fundamental investigative work and left key pieces of evidence on the cutting room floor. The Comey FBI's negligent approach and perhaps intentional lack of effort in the Clinton investigation is a stark contrast to its full-throated investigation of the Trump-Russia collusion hoax, which was based on the uncorroborated and now discredited Steele dossier. Comey's decision-making process smacks of political infection," he said.
A report at Just the News said Comey was "swayed" to preemptively announce the end of the Clinton investigation, "and that the FBI failed to investigate thumbdrives containing potentially key information about use of an illicit private email server."
Grassley confirmed in 2016 the FBI had "intelligence reports discussing purported communications" involving Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a Florida Democrat who led the Democratic National Convention and others who worked for the Sorors Open Society Foundations.
Grassley suggested the intelligence reports alleged "the Obama administration took efforts to scuttle the investigation into Clinton and protect her candidacy" and there were no "serious" investigative efforts under the leadership of Comey, then-FBI deputy director Andrew McCabe, Peter Strzok, an FBI agent later removed, and others.
The declassified documents confirm the FBI got various reports "purporting to discuss efforts to influence" that investigation.
The accusations included that Barack Obama's attorney general, Loretta Lynch and Comey were interfering with the investigation.
In the new documents, it shows Horowitz wrote that Lynch had been in contact with a member of Clinton's campaign to provide information and Comey, even though various reports were "not credible," insisted on ending the investigation in that July.
Those 'not credible" reports involved claims Russia was influencing the election in favor of Trump.
Comey handed Clinton a pass for her apparently chargeable violations of rules for handling classified information by claiming, "No reasonable prosecutor would bring such a case."
Horowitz already had explained Comey's comments were "insubordinate,"
The documents show Sally Yates, then a deputy attorney general, claimed to not recall the dispute as the FBI documented.
She recalled, the documents show, some information as "fake intel" or lacking credibility.
The report said the FBI also failed to review key information about Clinton's email scandal.
Grassley noted "the FBI obtained thumb drives from a source during the Clinton investigation" but that Comey, McCabe, Strzok, and others "failed to perform additional, targeted searches of the drives, even though they contained information relevant to the inquiry."
Actor Malcolm-Jamal Warner, best known for his role as Theo Huxtable on The Cosby Show, has tragically passed away. The 54-year-0ld actor reportedly drowned while vacationing in Costa Rica with his family.
The drowning occurred while Warner was swimming in the ocean on Sunday off the coast of Costa Rica. His body was recovered from the ocean later that day, and police say he died of asphyxia, which is a lack of oxygen, presumably from drowning.
The actor left behind a wife and a daughter. Warner was just 14 when he got his big acting break as the affable teenage son of Cliff Huxtable, played by the disgraced Bill Cosby.
The family-friendly hit sitcom ran from 1984 to 1992 and remains a beloved part of American culture. Unfortunately, the show's legacy has been tarnished because of accusations against Cosby that surfaced more than a decade after the final episode aired.
For television viewers in the 1980s, Warner's Theo was relatable as a wholesome teenager in a loving family. He felt like he could be their friend, brother, or son, especially during the iconic sitcom moment when he donned the shirt that will live forever in television history.
After The Cosby Show wrapped for good, Warner later starred as Comedian Eddie Griffin in the sitcom Malcolm and Eddie, which aired from 1996 to 2000. Most recently, Warner appeared in Fox's drama The Resident, which aired from 2018 to 2023.
He was remembered by his co-star Morris Chestnut in a post on Facebook on Monday. "Heartbroken to hear about the passing of Malcolm-Jamal Warner. Working alongside him on The Resident was an honor," Chestnut continued.
"He brought so much depth, warmth, and wisdom to every scene and every conversation. One of the nicest in the business. Rest easy, brother. Your legacy lives on," he added, echoing the sentiments of many others in the business.
Warner remains beloved despite the shadow cast by the Cosby scandal. According to Fox News, Cosby was convicted of sexual assault in 2018, though it was later overturned in 2021. However, five more alleged victims have come forward since then.
Nevertheless, Cosby's representative, Andrew Wyatt, said that the 88-year-old was heartbroken upon hearing the news of his former co-star's passing. "He had just done a concert in Minnesota and called Mr. Cosby and talked about it," Wyatt said.
"They spoke all the time. He said, ‘Malcolm was changing humanity,’" Wyatt added. He likened Cosby's hearing about Maclom's death to the moment when the comedian found out his 27-year-old son, Ennis William Cosby, was murdered during an attempted robbery in 1997.
Warner's character was loosely based on Ennis, which made the actor's death particularly painful for Cosby. "It felt the same way -- extremely devastating," Wyatt said.
The death of an actor like Warner stirs feelings of sadness, not only for the passing of a wonderful person but also for the end of an era. There will never be another sitcom experience like The Cosby Show, where generations could watch and laugh together, and Warner's death is a stark reminder of that fact.
The National Economic Council's data reveals that President Donald Trump's first six months in office have created a strong economy, Breitbart reported. Indicators, including low inflation and increased manufacturer output, have quelled fears of a recession.
White House Deputy Press Secretary Kush Desai told Breitbart that this should silence naysayers. "During his first six months in office, President Trump has repeatedly embarrassed the panicans who predicted doom and gloom, from inflation to recession," Desai said.
In June, the Consumer Price Index recorded its fifth consecutive month of inflation rates below expectations. The Federal Reserve sets a 2 percent target, and Trump's economy has remained right in line with an annualized rate of 2.1 percent, which the Council of Economic Advisers touted on X, formerly Twitter, last week.
Core CPI rose 0.2% in June, beating market expectations 0f 0.3%.
Since President Trump took office, core CPI is tracking 2.1% annualized, consistent with low & stable inflation.
(Headline CPI is tracking 1.8% annualized)
— Council of Economic Advisers (@CEA47) July 15, 2025
One indicator of Trump's economic success is the increase in manufacturing output since he took office for his second term as president. From January when he took office through June, manufacturing increased by 1.8 percent.
While this doesn't seem significant on the surface, it is a great success compared to Trump's predecessor, former President Joe Biden. Manufacturing output between August 2024 and January 2025 decreased by .7 percent under Biden, meaning Trump's economy overcame his deficit pluse another increase.
The labor market also remains robust for job seekers, especially native-born Americans. According to Breitbart News economics editor John Carney, that cohort saw an additional 830,000 people employed.
Meanwhile, the number of foreign-born workers declined by 348,000, marking the third consecutive month of decrease. "More Americans stepping up to take jobs," Carney said of the news.
"Employers, used to drawing from a bottomless global pool, are now facing a domestic labor market and are adjusting accordingly. American workers, seeing that employers are now turning to them to fill jobs, are stepping up," Carney added.
Notably, this good news comes before Trump's policies are fully reflected, suggesting that just the promise of those is enough to give the economy a jolt. The president's One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed on July 4, will allow Americans to keep more of their money.
By eliminating taxes on overtime and tips, and offering additional tax cuts, the economic outlook may only improve as the effects of the legislation are felt. Even Trump's tariffs, which caused panic among conservatives and liberals alike, have added $120 billion in revenue.
Desai touted this news. "Under President Trump, Americans have seen an end to Joe Biden’s inflation crisis, multiple expectation-beating jobs reports, record tariff revenue collection, bond and stock market rallies, and historic investment commitments worth trillions that will cement America’s dominance in cutting-edge sectors," the deputy press secretary said.
"And the best is yet to come – as the pro-growth policies of The One Big Beautiful Bill and new trade deals kick in, America’s economic resurgence under President Trump will only accelerate," Desai added. The latest data points suggest that it's already happening.
Trump is doing a great job, despite facing pushback from both sides of the aisle. If these economic trends continue, America could indeed be great again with a resurgence of prosperity and stability for all.
President Donald Trump said on Sunday that Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA) should go to jail because he falsified loan documents, which is a crime.
Trump is understandably angry at Schiff for leading impeachment proceedings against him and for saying that his son would go to jail for defying a supboena in the Russia collusion investigation, which turned out to be a hoax.
“Adam ‘Shifty’ Schiff is in BIG TROUBLE! He falsified Loan Documents. He once said my son would go to prison on a SCAM that Schiff, along with other Crooked Dems, illegally ‘manufactured’ in order to stage an actual coup,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“My son did nothing wrong, knew nothing about the fictional story. It was an American Tragedy! Now Shifty should pay the price of prison for a real crime, not one made up by the corrupt accusers!” Trump added.
Trump first brought the DOJ investigation into Schiff's mortgage up on July 15 in another post on Truth Social.
"I have always suspected Shifty Adam Schiff was a scam artist," he wrote. "And now I learn that Fannie Mae’s Financial Crimes Division have concluded that Adam Schiff has engaged in a sustained pattern of possible Mortgage Fraud. Adam Schiff said that his primary residence was in MARYLAND to get a cheaper mortgage and rip off America, when he must LIVE in CALIFORNIA because he was a Congressman from CALIFORNIA. I always knew Adam Schiff was a Crook. The FRAUD began with the refinance of his Maryland property on February 6, 2009, and continued through multiple transactions until the Maryland property was correctly designated as a second home on October 13, 2020. Mortgage Fraud is very serious, and CROOKED Adam Schiff (now a Senator) needs to be brought to justice."
Schiff responded to the initial post by defending himself and saying that the accusations weren't true.
He said they were a "baseless attempt at political retribution."
He also accused Trump of trying to use the accusations against him to avoid the pushback over not releasing the Jeffrey Epstein files.
Schiff hasn't commented on Trump's latest post.
Schiff's offense seems like a relatively minor one and not worthy of sending anyone to jail, let alone a Senator.
If anything ever comes of the investigation, he will probably just have to pay a fine.
Can't really blame Trump for harping on it, though, because the charges he faced were just as specious.
He probably figures what's good for the goose should be good for the gander, and he's right--but does he really want to stoop to Schiff's level? That's the question.
In a striking critique, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass voiced significant concerns over federal officers conducting raids while disguised and unmarked, which she argued sows confusion and fear within the community, Breitbart reported.
During a national interview, Mayor Bass questioned the legality of masked officials detaining individuals without clear identification, comparing it unfavorably with local police protocols.
Appearing on ABC's "This Week," Mayor Bass discussed the startling scenes witnessed in Los Angeles, where officers, faces concealed and devoid of any identifiable markings, detained people. This action, she noted, was particularly alarming in a city like Los Angeles, with its large immigrant population.
About half of Los Angeles's 3.8 million residents are Latino, which makes the manner of these raids even more disconcerting. The use of unmarked vehicles and the absence of identifiable uniforms or license plates led many to fear that kidnappings, not lawful arrests, were occurring.
Mayor Bass specifically criticized the anonymity of the officers involved in the operations. She underscored the difference between the local law enforcement handled by the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), where officers do not wear masks and are recognizable to the people they serve.
These methods, according to Mayor Bass, contribute to a climate of fear and confusion, undermining trust between law enforcement and the community.
In her interview, Bass highlighted the stark contrast between the methods used by masked federal agents and the everyday operations of the LAPD, which engages with the community transparently and without anonymity. Her concern was underscored by the fact that these federal agents are not only masked but also arrived in unmarked cars, staying temporarily in the city to conduct their operations before leaving.
Raising a fundamental question about rights and professional duty, Mayor Bass contested the notion that law enforcement officers have an inherent right to mask their identity while engaging in actions such as detaining individuals off the streets.
She posed a poignant question about the necessity of masks, emphasizing the LAPD's ability to operate effectively without such anonymity.
The show's host, Martha Raddatz, brought up possible justifications for the raids, mentioning that the use of masks could be due to safety concerns for the officers, such as threats or doxing. This stance suggests a defensive strategy aimed at protecting officers from possible retaliation.
However, Bass was resolute in her response, emphasizing that officers who choose careers in law enforcement should be prepared to face these risks visibly, without the need for disguises that could undermine public trust and transparency.
Bass asserted that maintaining officer safety should not come at the expense of community transparency and trust, which are crucial for effective law enforcement.
The implications of such federal actions are particularly profound in a sanctuary city like Los Angeles, where policies and local governance aim to protect immigrants. The fear instigated by these disguised, unmarked engagements could contribute to a climate of distrust and anxiety among an already vulnerable population.
In conclusion, Mayor Bass’s stark critique not only questions the legality and morality of masked law enforcement operations but also invites a dialogue on the balance between the necessary protections for officers and the imperative transparency owed to the community. Her comments have sparked conversations on national and local levels regarding the best approach to law enforcement in diverse, densely populated urban settings.
This story illustrates not just a local issue but a significant discussion point on national security tactics and their effects on local governance and community trust. As the situation unfolds, further responses from federal authorities and additional community reactions will likely continue to shape the ongoing narrative around these controversial law enforcement strategies.
President Trump's Justice Department is firing dozens of career prosecutors, sparking alarm among his critics.
Critics have accused Trump of a troubling departure from established norms with his sweeping shakeup of the DOJ, which has played a central role in Trump's political career, mainly as an antagonist, until now.
Trump's rise as a politician led Democrats to embrace the justice system as a defense of "our democracy," as Democrats welcomed criminal investigations into Trump in an effort to derail his political ambitions.
Attorney general Pam Bondi has fired several prosecutors who were involved in Special Counsel Jack Smith's politically explosive investigations of Trump in 2024.
Smith's efforts divided the nation, with some cheering Smith as a warrior for justice and others condemning him as a political hatchet man.
Trump recently quipped about his reversal of fortunes since becoming president again, remarking, "I was the hunted, and now I'm the hunter."
After the FBI spent years pursuing Trump, the agency has turned to targeting his critics, such as James Comey and John Brennan, and the DOJ is purging employees with little explanation.
Justice Connection, a new group formed to protect career employees who feel threatened by the new administration, estimates that over 200 have been fired.
"The senseless terminations at the Justice Department are growing exponentially. The very institution created to enforce the law is trampling over the civil service laws enacted by Congress. It’s shameful, and it’s devastating the workforce,” Stacey Young, executive director and founder of the group, said in a statement to The Hill.
One of the prosecutors who was fired without explanation, Maureen Comey, is the daughter of FBI director James Comey, a notorious Trump critic.
In a letter to her colleagues, Maureen Comey cast her firing as an arbitrary act of revenge and cast Trump as a "tyrant" who is threatening the rule of law. Comey urged her colleagues to do their jobs "without fear of favor."
“Our focus was really on acting ‘without favor.’ That is, making sure people with access, money, and power were not treated differently than anyone else; and making sure this office remained separate from politics and focused only on the facts and the law,” Comey said in the memo.
Skepticism of impartial justice has long animated Trump's movement, with many seeing Trump as the victim of a witch hunt spurred on by critics including Maureen's father, who notoriously declined to pursue criminal charges against Hillary Clinton despite her illegal use of an e-mail server to send top secret information.
The Trump administration has also fired immigration judges, and at least one state judge in Wisconsin is facing criminal charges for helping an illegal alien evade the law.
President Obama was the central figure in an effort to discredit the 2016 election results by politicizing the intelligence community against its unexpected winner, President Trump, according to newly declassified documents.
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard filed a criminal referral to the Justice Department, citing Obama's role in a "treasonous conspiracy."
"These documents detail a treasonous conspiracy by officials at the highest levels of the Obama White House to subvert the will of the American people and try to usurp the President from fulfilling his mandate,” she wrote on X.
The intelligence community was initially skeptical that Russia interfered in the election, but those findings apparently changed after Trump's upset victory against Hillary Clinton.
A declassified intelligence brief that was prepared for Obama, dated December 8, 2016, had concluded that Russia did not make any impact on election infrastructure beyond hacking a voter registration database in Illinois.
The brief was not published as expected after the FBI, which was investigating Trump at the time, registered a "dissent."
President Obama ordered a new, "comprehensive" assessment of Russian interference following a December 9 White House meeting, where top national security officials, including James Clapper, John Brennan, Andrew McCabe, and Susan Rice, met to discuss Russia.
"The IC is prepared to produce an assessment per the President’s request," Clapper's assistant wrote, "that pulls together the information we have on the tools Moscow used and the actions it took to influence the 2016 election."
The final intelligence community assessment published weeks later on January 7 "directly contradicted the IC assessments that were made throughout the previous six months,” Gabbard said.
The IC assessment concluded in no uncertain language that Vladimir Putin directed an interference campaign with the goal of getting Trump elected.
The claim that Russia interfered in the election to help Trump would fuel a years-long investigation of "Russian collusion" that came up empty.
The FBI's Trump-Russia probe began in July 2016 and involved spying on Trump's campaign using bogus opposition research procured by the Clinton camp. The investigation would eventually come to cast a cloud over Trump's first term.
The individuals involved in the January 2017 IC assessment included FBI director James Comey and CIA director John Brennan, both notorious critics of Trump who are currently under investigation by the FBI.
“Their goal was to subvert the will of the American people and enact what was essentially a years-long coup with the objective of trying to usurp the President from fulfilling the mandate bestowed upon him by the American people," Gabbard said.
President Trump hosted a calendar girl competition at Mar-A-Lago where Jeffrey Epstein was a guest, the New York Times reported.
The detail was first reported in 2019 by the New York Times and the outlet shared it again in a recent article about Trump's past friendship with Epstein.
Trump does not stand accused of any wrongdoing with Epstein, and Trump has always denied knowledge of Epstein's crimes. The former neighbors in Palm Beach, Florida socialized together for more than a decade before they grew estranged in 2004.
Their past friendship has fallen under scrutiny again as Trump confronts anger and skepticism over his administration's handling of the Epstein files.
Trump has dismissed the persistent interest in the story among MAGA supporters as a distraction and a "hoax" being pushed by Democrats.
That Trump led a playboy lifestyle in his younger days is no secret. A 1992 video filmed by NBC News shows Trump dancing with glamorous young women at a Mar-A-Lago party where Epstein was also present. At one point in the footage, which was released in 2019, Epstein doubles over with laughter from something Trump says to him.
That same year, Trump hosted a calendar girl competition where Epstein was reportedly the only guest.
"Months later, when Mr. Trump hosted a party at Mar-a-Lago for young women in a so-called calendar girl competition, Mr. Epstein was the only other guest, according to George Houraney, a Florida-based businessman who arranged the event," the New York Times reported.
Trump's rupture with Epstein came after Trump beat his friend's bid for a beachfront mansion in Palm Beach. But Trump later told people that he felt obligated to bar Epstein from Mar-A-Lago after learning that he acted inappropriately with the daughter of a club member.
"Brad Edwards, a lawyer who has represented many of Mr. Epstein’s victims, said. Mr. Trump told him a similar story in 2009," the Times noted.
Trump's relationship with Epstein unraveled around 2004, before Epstein's first arrest, which led to a notoriously lenient plea deal. In 2019, Epstein was charged a second time with sex trafficking.
“I knew him like everybody in Palm Beach knew him,” Trump told reporters at the time. “I mean, people in Palm Beach knew him. He was a fixture in Palm Beach. I had a falling out with him a long time ago. I don’t think I’ve spoken to him in 15 years. I wasn’t a fan.”
Trump is suing the Wall Street Journal for defamation after the newspaper published a bawdy letter that Trump allegedly sent to Epstein on his 50th birthday in 2003. The letter features an imagined conversation between the two men written inside a sketch of a naked woman.
In an effort to calm his base, Trump has ordered attorney general Pam Bondi to request the release of grand jury materials in the Epstein case from a court in New York. But Trump predicted that "troublemakers" will never be satisfied with the government's answers.
"Even if the Court gave its full and unwavering approval, nothing will be good enough for the troublemakers and radical left lunatics making the request. It will always be more, more, more," Trump said.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
President Donald Trump on Sunday pushed forcefully for the Washington Commanders NFL team to switch back to the original franchise name of "Redskins," and floated the notion of tying the name change to the new stadium deal.
"The Washington 'Whatever's' should IMMEDIATELY change their name back to the Washington Redskins Football Team. There is a big clamoring for this," Trump wrote on Truth Social.
"Likewise, the Cleveland Indians, one of the six original baseball teams, with a storied past. Our great Indian people, in massive numbers, want this to happen. Their heritage and prestige is systematically being taken away from them. Times are different now than they were three or four years ago. We are a Country of passion and common sense. OWNERS, GET IT DONE!!!"
In a follow-up post, Trump noted: "My statement on the Washington Redskins has totally blown up, but only in a very positive way.
"I may put a restriction on them that if they don't change the name back to the original 'Washington Redskins,' and get rid of the ridiculous moniker, 'Washington Commanders,' I won't make a deal for them to build a Stadium in Washington. The Team would be much more valuable, and the Deal would be more exciting for everyone.
"Cleveland should do the same with the Cleveland Indians. The Owner of the Cleveland Baseball Team, Matt Dolan, who is very political, has lost three Elections in a row because of that ridiculous name change. What he doesn't understand is that if he changed the name back to the Cleveland Indians, he might actually win an Election. Indians are being treated very unfairly. MAKE INDIANS GREAT AGAIN (MIGA)!"
The Major League Baseball franchise in Cleveland is now known as the Cleveland Guardians, after having been the Indians for more than a century from 1915 through 2021. Controversy over its politically incorrect mascot, Chief Wahoo, sparked the change.
On July 6 in Morristown, New Jersey, Trump was asked by reporters if he would like to change the Commanders' name back to Redskins.
"I would," Trump responded. "I wouldn't have changed the name."
The president explained that the current name "doesn't have the same ring to me. But, you know, winning can make everything sound good. So if they win, all of a sudden the Commanders sounds good. But I wouldn't have changed the name."