New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker (D) pledged to keep opposing the Trump administration's policies even if President Donald Trump puts him "in jail," a fanciful scenario that came from Booker's own mind.
In an interview with MSNBC's Jen Psaki, Booker taunted Trump to arrest him after he singled out the senator for criticism.
Several Democrats have been arrested or detained while protesting Trump's hardline immigration policies, leading critics to accuse Trump of "authoritarianism."
Sen. Alex Padilla (D-CA) was detained after disrupting a Department of Homeland Security press conference in June. The mayor of Newark -- a city Booker once led -- and New Jersey Congresswoman LaMonica McIver were both arrested over a scuffle outside an ICE facility in Newark.
Many say that Democrats are deliberately instigating these scenes for publicity. But Booker suggested that politicians in New Jersey are being targeted arbitrarily, and he could be next.
"My Congresswoman LaMonica McIver arresting her, my mayor they’ve arrested, they’re picking off, it seems, people that live in Newark that are in elected positions," Booker lamented.
"But I don’t care throw me in jail. Do what you have to do. I’m going to continue to stand up for what’s right," he said.
Booker concluded, “I’m hoping that when one person stands up and calls this out, it ignites the courage of another person and another person and another person. We have to at a time that our fundamental rights and freedoms, that the very democracy that we that we know is precious, is under attack by this president. We’ve got to have more people willing to stand up and fight and take him on.”
Trump did not mention arresting Booker when he criticized the senator this week over an anti-ICE bill.
The bill, which Booker introduced with Padilla, would require ICE agents to identify themselves and prevent them from wearing masks. ICE agents have faced rising threats from the left, with ten people charged with attempted murder over a recent ambush at a detention facility in Texas.
Trump said ICE agents require anonymity to do their jobs safely in the current political climate, which has seen Democrats compare ICE agents to Nazis.
"These officers are doing a tremendous job," Trump said. "They're great patriots. If you expose them because of, you know, statements like have been made by Democrat and others on the left, usually mostly, I think, probably exclusively, you put them in great danger, tremendous danger."
Booker is notorious for engaging in flamboyant political theater, setting a new record for the longest Senate speech in history earlier this year, although the stunt was quickly forgotten.
In his latest bid for publicity, Booker is indulging a fantasy of being arrested by the Trump administration. But we doubt Trump cares enough about Booker to satisfy this desire of his.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
The fallout from the stunning reversal by some key GOP leaders about the Jeffrey Epstein case, highlighted by the DOJ statement that he did commit suicide and there's likely no more information coming out about the convicted sex offender's "business," is far from over.
But one key Republican in the fight, deputy FBI Director Dan Bongino, reportedly has suggested he may walk over the issue.
Newsweek reported Bongino, a former Secret Service agent and talk-show host, is considering such a move because of the dispute between the FBI and the Department of Justice over the release of information about Epstein.
There apparently have been words between Attorney General Pam Bondi, whose agency issued the statement that no more details are coming, and Bongino.
The fight, politically, is over a supposed "client list," of those high-profile personalities Epstein is known to have met. Epstein has been vilified since his 2019 death in a New York jail awaiting more sex charges for allegedly facilitating meetings between his "friends" and underage girls.
Longtime legal activist Alan Dershowitz was caught up in the dispute when he was falsely accused, and has confirmed there is a list of so-called clients. GOP officials long had promised to move to make those names public, until last week's abrupt reversal.
Reports at CNN revealed that "Bongino did not come to work Friday" and that fueled "speculation he had quit over the issue. One source said as of Friday afternoon he had not left his position."
"The whole thing has been a complete mess and no one is happy," a source briefed on the matter told CNN.
A report at the Gateway Pundit pointed out that FBI Director Kash Patel also is reportedly frustrated with Pam Bondi and considering resigning if Dan Bongino leaves.
A further Newsweek report said Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche rebuked the idea there was any "daylight" between the DOJ and FBI on the issue.
"Blanche said that President Donald Trump's DOJ, led by Attorney General Pam Bondi, worked closely with FBI director Kash Patel and his deputy, Dan Bongino, on the unsigned memo that concluded that the convicted sex offender had died by suicide in a New York jail in 2019 and did not have a 'client list,'" claimed the report.
While authorities say there was no evidence of foul play in Epstein's death, theories long have suggested he was killed to prevent a list of names from becoming public, and supporters cite factors including a malfunctioning security camera outside his cell, the absence of a cellmate and the failure of guards to check on him.
Media personality and influencer Laura Loomer said on social media, "@FBIDirectorKash and @dbongino are LIVID with @AGPamBondi over her DOJ Memo and the lack of transparency from her office regarding the Jeffery Epstein files. Source tells me Dan Bongino is taking the day off today from his job as Deputy Director of the FBI, and there's now speculation on whether or not he will return to his job at the @FBI over his disgust with Blondi's lack of transparency and handling of the Epstein files. Pam Blondi has brought total embarrassment to President Trump, @JDVance ,@dbongino and @Kash_Patel."
She continued, "She has also LIED to the American people. I'm told Kash and Bongino are furious with Blondi and the blowback she has caused them with her lack of transparency. Kash Patel and Dan Bongino should call for Blondi's public resignation today to save themselves and to also push for full transparency into the Epstein files. This is an issue the American people care deeply about. Someone needs to be fired for this. Giving Blondi courtesy to resign is more than she deserves. Trump should just FIRE her."
Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., said he thinks those documents regarding Epstein all were destroyed by the Biden administration.
A woman has been charged with a crime after her desire to speak to President Donald Trump got the better of her, and she appeared at his residence with a firearm, as Breitbart News reported.
While the president’s life is far from a quiet one, like anyone, he’s likely looking to minimize the number of people who appear at his door with a firearm and an “urgent message."
But that was not the case earlier this week when Trump’s Beach estate at Mar-a-Lago was swarmed by Secret Service and local police when it was discovered a visitor had brought with her guns and a desire to talk to the Commander in Chief.
What started as a series of trespassing incidents at the presidential residence ended with additional security measures and renewed attention for who might be wandering the facility.
An arrest affidavit from the Palm Beach Police Department revealed it was 49-year-old Caroline Shaw who approached the south side of the property and told agents she needed to speak to Trump.
She was detained at the time, pending further investigation, and agents took a special interest in her car, which they found did, indeed, contain firearms.
Shaw found herself the proud new owner of misdemeanor charges for an expired vehicle registration and a suspended driver's license, seemingly slight infractions for someone who appeared at a presidential residence the way she did. She has, according to Newsweek, pleaded not guilty to both.
The Palm Beach Police Department (PBPD) said shortly after the incident that they responded to Mar-a-Lago due to the Secret Service’s request for assistance with a “suspicious person.”
An assessment of the situation, some review of her more deadly accessories, and it was determined that this was a serious situation, and police took custody of Shaw.
PBPD arrested her and booked her into the Palm Beach County Jail, which, given the circumstances, could have been considerably worse.
Mar-a-Lago is located in South Florida and is where Trump spends the majority of his free time, in addition to his resort in New Jersey. Both places are protected by local law enforcement as well as the Secret Service.
Since his first term, Mar-a-Lago has been host to a number of high-level meetings, and due to the nature of the club’s semi-public venue status, there have been some interesting security challenges.
Thanks to the high-profile nature of the president, not just for his politics, but also his position, there have been an increasing number of individuals arrested for their unauthorised presence at Mar-a-Lago.
This includes Chinese nationals who attempted to trespass on the property after the election late last year. Some have been attempting to enter under false pretenses, some have carried electronic equipment, and some have just said they’d like to speak to Trump.
The former right-wing president of South Korea, Yoon Suk Yeol, has been arrested a second time to face additional charges over his short-lived attempt to declare martial law.
The arrest was approved after a request from a special prosecutor appointed by South Korea's new liberal president, who has moved swiftly to pursue additional charges against Yoon, who was initially indicted for insurrection.
His return to custody comes months after he was released from jail over issues concerning the length of his detention.
South Korea plunged into crisis in December after Yoon declared martial law, supposedly to crack down on North Korean influence in the then-opposition party. Yoon's emergency decree was swiftly overturned by parliament and led to massive protests for and against him.
After barricading himself inside the presidential residence, he was finally taken into custody and charged with insurrection after a weeks-long standoff that ended with police scaling the walls of his compound.
Yoon was removed from office in April after the nation's Constitutional Court upheld his impeachment.
South Korea's new liberal president, Lee Jae-myung, won a snap election in June as a campaigner for democracy and moved quickly to appoint a special prosecutor to look into new charges against Yoon.
Special prosecutor Cho Eun-suk requested Sunday that Yoon be arrested again, warning that Yoon might destroy evidence about his alleged coup attempt, and a court in Seoul approved the warrant Thursday.
It's unclear how long Yoon will stay behind bars, but he could be held for up to six months if he is indicted again.
Yoon's lawyers have condemned the arrest as an extraordinary and excessive measure, but Yoon had appeared in court on Wednesday for a seven-hour hearing, after which he was taken to a nearby detention center.
His attorneys say there is no danger of evidence being tampered with, as Yoon's alleged accomplices are all in custody.
The special counsel accuses Yoon of falsifying documents, abusing power and obstructing justice. Among other acts, he is accused of ignoring the rights of cabinet members who were not invited to a meeting to discuss martial law.
The first South Korean president to be arrested, Yoon faces life in prison or even death if found guilty. He has decried the charges against him as politically motivated.
“The special counsel, who is supposed to guarantee neutrality and fairness, is leading the most politicized and biased investigation,” his lawyers said in a statement.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Six of the U.S. Secret Service agents on duty in Butler, Pennsylvania, a year ago when a gunman shot at and wounded President Donald Trump at a rally have been punished, according to a report.
During an interview with CBS, Matt Quinn, the agency's deputy director, affirmed that the agents were suspended for periods ranging from 10 to 42 days, during which they were not paid.
Then when they returned to duty they were placed on restricted duty, roles with less responsibility.
He defended the decision by the agency not to fire anyone.
"We are laser-focused on fixing the root cause of the problem," Quinn said.
It was July 13, 2024, when a gunman opened fire during a campaign rally. A bullet grazed Trump's ear and the president has credited God with saving his life. The gunman, carrying a rifle, inexplicably, had gained access to the roof of a building near the rally.
One person was killed by the gunman, and two others injured.
The alleged gunman, Thomas Crooks, was killed by a Secret Service sniper.
Quinn said Butler "was an operational failure and we are focused today on ensuring that it never happens again."
One development, he explained, is that the service has introduced a new fleet of military grade drones and mobile command posts that allows agents to communicate over radio directly with local law enforcement – interoperability that didn't exist last year, the report said.
That attack on Trump, as well as a second, failed attack plan in West Palm Beach, Florida, a few weeks later, triggered the resignation of then-Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle and several investigations and confrontational congressional hearings.
A 180-page report released by a bipartisan House panel a few months ago confirmed that the security lapses that led to the first incident were "not isolated to the campaign event itself."
The "leadership and training" allowed for "failures" to happen, the report said.
It was Corey Comperatore, a 50-year-old firefighter, father and husband, who was killed by Crooks' shots.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
An ordinary citizen who would go online with a promotion of the digits "86 47," a reference many understood as a threat to President Donald Trump … to "86" or end the 47th president, they would have come under federal investigation.
And when a former high-ranking federal official, Barack Obama's FBI chief, James Comey, does it, it seems, the treatment is the same, under the Trump administration.
Comey flamboyantly posted the messaging online, and the FBI immediately confirmed it knew all about the apparent threat to Trump from Comey, who quickly canceled his posting.
And it promised an investigation.
Now, according to a report at Just the News, which quoted the New York Times, Comey was, in fact, interviewed, even followed, because of his behavior.
It explained the messaging was a picture of seashells arranged to spell "86 47."
"The first number has roots in the restaurant industry for getting rid of, or no longer having, a certain food. But others say it is a call for an assassination. The second number stands for the 47th president," the report said.
Now three anonymous government officials have confirmed law enforcement in unmarked cars tracked the location of Comey's cellphone the day after he posted online.
Comey, subsequently, had explained, "I posted earlier a picture of some shells I saw today on a beach walk, which I assumed were a political message. I didn't realize some folks associate those numbers with violence. It never occurred to me but I oppose violence of any kind so I took the post down."
The report noted, "Authorities tailed Comey and his wife, Patrice, as they drove from their North Carolina vacation through Virginia to their home in the Washington, D.C., area, the officials said, citing 'exigent' circumstances for the justification. "
Federal agents also were at his home awaiting his return, monitoring the location of his phone, and he also was interviewed both via telephone and in person in a Secret Service office in Washington, the report said.
Anthony Guglielmi, a service spokesman, explained, "The Secret Service will vigorously investigate any individual, regardless of position or status, that may pose or be perceived as a threat to any of our protectees. To preserve operational integrity, we are not able to comment on specific protective intelligence matters."
WND reported when the story first developed on the reaction.
There also, at the time, was a reminder that President Trump has faced two assassination attempts in just the last year, so the threat is serious.
Trump fired Comey in 2017 while Comey was orchestrating one of the many Democrat lawfare investigations of Trump.
A beautiful family of four died tragically in a small plane crash just miles from home in North Carolina.
Travis Buchanan, 35, Candace Buchanan, 35, Aubrey Buchanan, 10, and Walker Buchanan, 9 were returning from a beach holiday when their plane crashed into a field Monday near Raleigh Executive Jetport.
Three of the victims died instantly, while a fourth perished at a hospital. They were the only people on board.
The small plane crashed in a field off Lower Moncure Road north of Sanford, where the family owned a farm. The crash site was well off the road, making it difficult for first responders, WRAL reported.
Abraham Garcia, a Buchanan Farms employee for eight years, said the family was returning from the beach.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) confirmed that the plane departed from Merritt Island, Florida, on Monday around 11:03 a.m. ET.
The family's Cirrus SR22T crashed a little over three hours later around 2:30 p.m. The plane came within five miles of the airport when the pilot reported engine problems and communication issues.
“About 5-6 miles from the airport, the airplane advised a local fixed-base operator about a loss of communications and navigational equipment shortly after they advised the fixed-base operator that they had engine issues,” NTSB aviation accident investigator Ryan Enders said.
The tragedy has shaken the family's community in Sanford, a small city in Lee County located about 40 miles from Raleigh.
"Travis and Candace have worked alongside me from the beginning of my photography business. They were always so generous to offer up farm space for mini-sessions or hosting my mini-session ministry days," wrote Nickie Runyan Photography on Facebook. "It was truly a joy to work alongside them any chance I had, and my entire family loved attending their farm events. They truly were a beacon of light in our community with all that they did."
The school attended by the Buchanans' two young children also shared a heartfelt statement.
"It is with heavy hearts that we share the news of the passing of one of our Crusader Families," Grace Christian Sanford School wrote in a post on Facebook.
"The Buchanan Family; Students Aubrey (rising 5th) and Walker (rising 4th) along with their parents, Travis and Candace, went to be with the Lord today," the statement continued.
"During this incredibly difficult time, we stand together in support of their family and one another," the post reads. "We extend our love, prayers and deepest condolences to their family, friends, classmates, teachers and staff."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
President Donald Trump long has criticized the leftist ideologies and political slants that are contained in the broadcasts of PBS, the Public Broadcast System funded by hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars each year.
He signed an executive order designating that that funding should halt, because of the bias.
The White House, just weeks ago, confirmed the organization was delivering "trash that is passed as news," and cited 24 examples such as its refusal to cover the Hunter Biden laptop scandal, a report linking crime fears with racism and the production of a film supporting "reparations," the idea that whites who never owned slaves have to pay huge amounts of cash to blacks who never were slaves.
Paul Kerger, PBS CEO, said she doesn't understand the claims of bias.
She said, "So that I don't understand the criticism and always when people say we see bias in your programs and by the way we get that on both sides. You know, I get as many calls from people on the more progressive side as on the conservative side that have issues every night with every night's broadcast. You know, I see this or I see that."
She blamed it on listeners: "We're in a difficult time right now in our country around news coverage where people forget that news is news and it is not about hearing information that is reaffirming what you think you know."
Some individual stations have sued, claiming that their First Amendment constitutional rights include a right to be handed tax money to use to promote their own ideologies.
A new report confirms that about the time of the election, about 90% of the coverage of the Trump administration was negative. That anti-Trump rhetoric on PBS now has been ramped up to 93%, according to a report by columnist Paul Bedard in the Washington Examiner.
"The premier weekly news show on PBS increased its negative coverage of President Donald Trump and Republicans to over 90%, a clear demonstration that the taxpayer-funded network has no plans to offer balanced coverage despite the White House's defund threats," the report explained.
"Over the past three months, Washington Week with the Atlantic has provided coverage and commentary on Trump that the conservative watchdog Media Research Center graded 93% negative."
It was just before the 2024 election that the show registered at 90% anti-Trump.
Trump, now in his second term following his defeat of Democrat Kamala Harris in the vote, has made defunding the bias a priority.
"But instead of giving Trump any credit for the Israel-Iran ceasefire, cutting inflation, leveling trade tariffs, or ridding the government of wasteful spending, the show and its stable of MAGA bashers have gone on a hate rampage," the report explained.
The report cited Clay Waters of the MRC's NewsBusters team.
"Even with supposedly bipartisan foreign policy issues on the table like Iran, the coverage only became more slanted, at 93% negative," he confirmed.
The evaluation found panelists spent 83 minutes opining on Republicans, with 87 minutes negative and six minutes positive.
"Show 'intros' by moderator Jeffrey Goldberg often set a mocking anti-Trump tone, not the 'civil discourse' promised," the report said. "In covering Trump's successful immigration agenda, 100% of the coverage was negative."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Convinced that his brother was most likely murdered in his Manhattan jail cell, Mark Epstein called the recent FBI memo dismissing that possibility "stupid."
Fox News reports that Mark Epstein, 70, who has long disputed the suicide narrative, is one of many Americans, including Trump-supporting conservative influencers, who are skeptical of the government's memo claiming there is no "client list" and that no evidence exists that Jeffrey Epstein was murdered.
Mark Epstein told Fox News Digital that when he hounded New York officials for answers, they didn't even provide him with the 9-1-1 call reporting his brother's death at a federal jail in Manhattan in 2019.
He said his brother was looking forward to a bail hearing at the time of his death and that autopsy findings were inconsistent with suicide.
Mark Epstein said he laughed when he first saw the FBI memo.
"Every time they say something or do something to try to quash the fact that he was most likely murdered, they put their foot further down their mouths," he told NewsNation this week.
"When Kash Patel came out with that statement, I laughed at how stupid it was," Epstein said.
Jeffrey Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell was convicted of trafficking in a trial of her own. She is appealing the verdict, and until she exhausts her legal options, neither the FBI nor federal prosecutors are expected to release criminal evidence that hasn't already surfaced in court, Fox pointed out.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
A new report reveals that sources are suggesting that perjury charges may be in the offing for John Brennan, Barack Obama's leftist CIA chief who was part of the team that pushed the lies from the Steele Dossier onto the American public during President Donald Trump's first campaign.
They were trying to stop his campaign, or even put him in jail, and failed, giving America's economy and reputation a chance to surge during his first term, results that now are being implemented again during Trump's second term.
At the heart of the scheme at that point was the fabrications made up in the dossier, done by a former British agent who was paid by the Hillary Clinton campaign through a campaign, a law firm and a campaign research corporation.
The text, "leaked" so that the lies would be reported to the American public as legitimate concerns, made wild and unsubstantiated claims about Trump, including that his campaign was colluding with Russia, claims that since have been debunked.
It is the the Federalist that has reported on the latest details of an investigation into Brennan, then-FBI head James Comey, and others participating in the attacks on Trump.
The report said now a still-classified staff report from the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence reveals the Brennan-led 2016 Intelligence Community Assessment ICA on those Russian interference claims was "significantly worse and significantly more corrupt than conveyed in the memorandum released last week by CIA Director John Ratcliffe.
The report cited sources familiar with the report, who said the HPSCI staff report also reveals more details of the corruption.
The new revelations "suggest" that "Brennan may finally face justice for his role in the Russia-collusion hoax. In fact, sources familiar with closed-door testimony Brennan provided to Congress suggest perjury charges are in the offing.
One circumstance is that Brennan testified behind closed doors he did not advocate for the dossier of lies to be included in the ICA. But that conflicts with the new CIA review that detailed how he specifically included it in the ICA, "over the objections of career intelligence officials."
Brennan apparently worked hands-on with that report, according to the most recent CIA confirmations.
One "conclusion" created at the time was that Russia was interfering in the election to help Trump.
There was lack of an evidence to support Brennan's "high confidence" in that, the report said.
Further, the report confirmed, "Those sources told The Federalist that HPSCI, under the leadership of then-Chair Devin Nunes, 'found the ICA significantly worse and significantly more corrupt than was conveyed in the CIA report.' The staff report also reveals more details related to the ICA's report on Russia's 2016 influence campaign."
The chief of the HPSCI, Rep. Rick Crawford, R-Ark., already has noted that there's strong public interest in making the report public.
The Federalist report concluded, "Given his record, there is no reason to doubt that Director Ratcliffe will ensure the HPSCI staff report will be declassified when the time is right. Here, the public would be well advised to remember that transparency and accountability may sometimes be at cross purposes: It may well be that Director Ratcliffe or the other members of the Trump Administration working to rid D.C. of the Augean-stable levels of corruption have not yet finished investigating the additional details and/or individuals implicated in the HPSCI staff report. And if that is the case, perjury may be the least of Brennan's worries."