This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
After the third day of U.S.-Iran nuclear negotiations concluded last Saturday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi described the discussions as "serious," though marked by significant obstacles. He cautiously expressed hope for progress.
The Iranian regime continues to assert its "inalienable right" to enrich uranium on its own soil and refuses to export its enriched stockpiles. In contrast, the United States insists on limiting Iran's enrichment activities and including the country's missile program in the negotiations – a demand Tehran has declared a non-negotiable red line.
As the Iranian daily Etemad, known for its proximity to the regime, reported: "Evidence suggests that the United States has stepped back from its original demand for the complete dismantling of Iran's enrichment program and is now prepared to settle for restrictions. According to observers, this could pave the way for a new deal – a so-called JCPOA 2."
Any perceived change in the regime's behavior is an illusion
While a genuine shift in the regime's behavior would be a welcome step toward peace, such expectations are more illusion than reality.
After all, just weeks ago, on Feb. 3, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei declared: "Negotiation is neither wise, nor dignified, nor intelligent."
Despite that, he reluctantly agreed to the talks – not from a position of strength, but after commanders of the pro-regime Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, or IRGC, as well as senior security officials warned him that a military strike on nuclear facilities could trigger a national uprising. Such an event, they cautioned, could be seized upon by the Resistance Units, who are prepared to lead such a movement toward the regime's overthrow.
In short, the regime was driven to the negotiating table not by choice, but by fear.
A half century of broken promises
Over the past 46 years, the Iranian regime has consistently failed to uphold its international obligations. After the Iranian Resistance revealed the existence of secret nuclear sites in 2002, Khamenei reluctantly agreed to suspend enrichment and seal certain nuclear facilities. However, just one year later, the seals were broken, and nuclear activity resumed – and even expanded.
Hassan Rouhani, who would later serve two terms as president, recalled the events of that time:
"In 2004, IAEA inspectors took samples at several of our sites and reported enrichment levels as high as 80 percent. That's when the nuclear file was handed over to me."
Negotiations as a tool of deception
For more than four decades, the Iranian regime has used negotiations as a tool to buy time – all while quietly advancing its weapons program and executing destabilizing policies across the region.
The only true solution to the crisis in Iran – and to lasting peace in the Middle East – is the overthrow of the regime by the Iranian people themselves, a goal supported by a broad segment of society.
But this change will not happen on its own. International pressure, while important, is not enough. What is also required is an organized resistance and a network of forces on the ground.
That role today is fulfilled by the Resistance Units, affiliated with the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran or PMOI – a courageous and defiant movement in which women play a leading role, standing up to one of the world's most misogynistic regimes.
The theocracy at its weakest point
Today, the Iranian regime is at its most vulnerable point in history, a convergence of factors pushing it to the edge:
In response, the regime has intensified its use of repression – including widespread political executions – to maintain control.
Over the last four decades, more than 120,000 political prisoners have been executed – an unparalleled crime in the modern era.
A democratic alternative
The National Council of Resistance of Iran, or NCRI, has laid out a vision for the country's future through its Ten-Point Plan. This vision includes:
Crucially, the NCRI is not seeking power for itself. Its mission is to return sovereignty to the people of Iran through free and fair elections.
The urgency of a firm policy
The root cause of many Western policy failures in dealing with Iran over the past four decades has been the systematic dismissal of Iran's organized, internal democratic resistance.
A firm and realistic strategy, therefore, must now include:
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Federal judges have imposed virtually no limits on themselves in taking over control of America's foreign policy regarding illegal aliens since President Donald Trump took office.
Protect illegals from deportation? Sure. Bring back illegals already deported? Of course. Turn deportation flights around in mid-air? Why not.
But in Florida, a case has developed where a judge issued her orders to people who were not party to the underlying lawsuit, and the state attorney general says that's too far.
James Uthmeier, the state's AG, explained the state law "does nothing more than exercise Florida's inherent sovereign authority to protect its citizens by aiding the enforcement of federal immigration law."
It was his memo to state law enforcement officials that triggered the judge.
The AG said Kathleen Williams, a judge, was just wrong to claim that all Florida law enforcement agencies are barred from enforcing a state law because "no law enforcement are party to the lawsuit."
The ACLU had sued on behalf of illegals, prompting the judge to intervene in the state's law enforcement.
A report at Fox News said Uthmeier explained, "I explained that I believed her after-the-fact expansion of her order to nonparties was wrong, and that my office would be arguing as much in short order. Today, my office filed a brief explaining why her order cannot possibly restrain Florida's law enforcement agencies from enforcing Florida Statutes Sections 811.102 and 811.103. We will continue to argue that position—including on appeal as soon as possible."
The law in question allows for misdemeanor charges against illegal immigrants who enter Florida and hope to avoid federal immigration officials.
"The judge wants me to put my stamp of approval on an order prohibiting all state law enforcement from enforcing Florida's immigration laws when no law enforcement are party to the lawsuit," he said. "I'm just not going to do that. We believe the court has overstepped and lacks jurisdiction there, and I will not tell law enforcement to stop fulfilling their constitutional duties."
The judge is using the power of her office to threaten Uthmeier with contempt, the report said.
"I do not believe an AG should be held in contempt for respecting the rule of law and appropriate separation of powers. The ACLU is dead set on obstructing President Donald Trump's efforts to detain and deport illegals, and we are going to fight back. We will vigorously defend our laws and advance President Trump's agenda on illegal immigration," he said.
The ACLU has complained that state officials tried to make it a crime "simply to exist as an immigrant in this state."
However, under federal law, those who enter the nation illegally, are, in fact, criminals.
Williams said she was "offended" that her orders would not be followed.
Law enforcement officers apparently were not expressly included in the case, because of a decision by the plaintiffs.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Kamala Harris returned to the speaker's podium this week, and perhaps her word salads were better.
She's known for unleashing long strings of words that often are held together only tenuously and actually don't respond to the question she was asked, as Joe Biden's vice president and then as the Democrats' 2024 presidential nominee.
She essentially disappeared from the platform for a time after President Donald Trump's landslide victories in the popular vote and the Electoral College in November.
But she's back.
A report at Fox News revealed how she "urged Democrats across the country to act like elephants in an awkward digression during her speech Wednesday night."
She offered an "angry and negative" view of Trump's first 100 days in office.
Speaking to Emerge's "gala" for the elite in San Francisco, she said, "Okay, it's kind of dark in here, but I am going to ask for a show of hands. Who saw that video from a couple of weeks ago? The one of the elephants at the San Diego Zoo during the earthquake. Google it if you have not seen it. So that scene has been on my mind. Everybody has been asking what are you thinking about these days. For those who haven't seen it, here those elephants were, and as soon as they felt the earth shaking beneath their feet, they got in a circle and stood next to each other to protect the most vulnerable. Think about it. What a powerful metaphor."
She continued, "Because we know those who try to incite fear are most effective when they divide and conquer. When they separate the herd, when they try to make everyone think they are alone. But in the face of crisis, the lesson is don't, don't scatter."
Her sobriety was questioned online, with one informing that the speech was brought to you by "boxed wine."
One on social media said, "It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt."
She did not address rumors she now wants to be governor in California, a campaign that California voters, in polling, have rejected.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Under Joe Biden, the federal government was weaponized against Christians and other people of faith.
A SWAT team was dispatched to arrest a father who protested the killing of the unborn.
Traditional Catholics were described as domestic terrorists.
Law-abiding pro-life organizations were described with the same defamatory claim.
Multiple incidents of violence against pro-life organizations were ignored.
President Donald Trump, on taking office for his second term, made clear that would change. He issued pardons and established new priorities for prosecutions.
And now he's gone further, setting up and appointing prominent faith leaders to a new Religious Liberty Commission.
Religious freedom, after all, was part of why the United States was founded.
"The principle of religious liberty was enshrined in American law with the First Amendment to the Constitution in 1791. Since that time, the Constitution has protected the fundamental right to religious liberty as Americans' first freedom," he noted.
He explained in the past few years, "some Federal, State, and local policies have threatened America's unique and beautiful tradition of religious liberty. These policies attempt to infringe upon longstanding conscience protections, prevent parents from sending their children to religious schools, threaten loss of funding or denial of non-profit tax status for faith-based entities, and single out religious groups and institutions for exclusion from governmental programs. Some opponents of religious liberty would remove religion entirely from public life. Others characterize religious liberty as inconsistent with civil rights, despite religions' vital roles in the abolition of slavery; the passage of Federal civil rights laws; and the provision of indispensable social, educational, and health services."
He said the new commission shall report on the "foundations of religious liberty in America, the impact of religious liberty on American society, current threats to domestic religious liberty, strategies to preserve and enhance religious liberty protections for future generations, and programs to increase awareness of and celebrate America's peaceful religious pluralism."
Focal points will be "First Amendment rights of pastors, religious leaders, houses of worship, faith-based institutions, and religious speakers; attacks across America on houses of worship of many religions; debanking of religious entities; the First Amendment rights of teachers, students, military chaplains, service members, employers, and employees; conscience protections in the health care field and concerning vaccine mandates; parents' authority to direct the care, upbringing, and education of their children, including the right to choose a religious education; permitting time for voluntary prayer and religious instruction at public schools; Government displays with religious imagery; and the right of all Americans to freely exercise their faith without fear or Government censorship or retaliation."
Several officials, such as the attorney general, will be ex officio members, but the chairman is Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who has battled critical race theory, DEI practices and worked to place "In God We Trust" in the state senate.
Several members who have high profiles include Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the archbishop of New York; Franklin Graham, president of Samaritan's Purse; and Ben Carson, a pediatric neurosurgeon who was secretary of Housing during the first Trump administration.
Others include Ryan T. Anderson, president of the Ethics and Public Policy Center; Bishop Robert Barron, of Word on Fire ministry; Carrie Prejean Boller, former Miss California USA and author of "Still Standing: The Untold Story of My Fight Against Gossip, Hate, and Political Attacks;" Allyson Ho, an appellate lawyer. Phil McGraw, host of Dr. Phil; Eric Metaxas, speaker, radio host and author of many books; Kelly Shackelford of First Liberty Institute; Rabbi Meir Soloveichik, of Congregation Shearith Israel; and Paul White, founder of Paula White Ministries.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
It's the great mystery of our time.
On the one hand, it's been rabidly undermining America's culture, government, morality, religious faith and core sanity for decades – from championing the mass amputation of healthy body parts of children, to justifying the importation of vast armies of convicted murderers, rapists, drug dealers, sex traffickers and terrorists, to insisting everyone from surgeons to airplane pilots to vice presidents be hired not based on their merit or experience, but on their skin pigment, gender or sexual preferences.
Insane, yes. But when attempting to justify these catastrophic, civilization-destroying forces – and why skin color and sex/gender should trump common sense and reality – virtually all defenders speaks in strange, largely indecipherable code.
You see, they continually assure Americans, it's all because of the absolute necessity of "Diversity, Equity and Inclusion" or "DEI," along with "Intersectionality," based on "Critical Race Theory" – which achieves "Social Justice" for "Marginalized Communities," because "Trans Lives Matter." All championed by "The Left" and "Progressives," who are "Woke." Oh, and who champion "Democracy!"
What on earth do these and other intentionally opaque terms actually mean? Almost never are they stripped down to their core reality. Let's find out why.
By now, most Americans realize an increasingly dark and destructive transformation has been ripping their beloved country apart in a thousand different ways.
For example, after a shocking string of plane crashes, Americans recently learned that the Federal Aviation Administration, tasked with the profoundly vital job of safeguarding all civilian air travel within the United States, announced during the "woke," "DEI"-obsessed Biden administration its brand-new "special emphasis in recruitment and hiring." Incredibly, the FAA – which hires virtually all U.S. air traffic controllers, who in turn single-handedly prevent, or fail to prevent, deadly aircraft catastrophes – initiated a hiring mandate with a strong preference for people with disabilities, specifically to include "hearing, vision, missing extremities, partial paralysis, complete paralysis, epilepsy, severe intellectual disability, psychiatric disability and dwarfism."
As the saying goes: What could possibly go wrong?
Obviously, such a policy is both deranged and suicidal. One could even argue homicidal.
In light of all the nation-corrupting, soul-destroying insanity already ravaging so much that Americans hold dear, it's time to leave behind the comfortable, familiar and intentionally evasive code words and phrases designed to anesthetize everyone to the total revolution that has taken place in America, and instead to dive directly into the nuclear core of the matter.
A full-blown religious cult
"Wokeism" is quite literally a cult. Not "cult-like" – but the full-blown, mandatory, heretics-will-be-destroyed, exalted religion of "The Left."
And what is "The Left"? In contrast to traditional liberals, "The Left" is code for today's full-blown Marxists and communists (Marxism being the ideology and communism its implementation).
Since most cults have an "outer circle" for the unwashed masses and one or two inner circles populated by the power-obsessed elites, where the cult's true but hidden agenda becomes apparent, let's start with the outer realm of the Cult of Wokeism and then delve inward.
On the surface, Wokeism worships "Diversity," the first element of the DEI trinity.
"Diverse" literally means … "different." That's it – check your dictionary. But how, you ask, can being "different" become the basis for hiring an air traffic controller, doctor, policeman or president? What if the candidate is different ("diverse") because he or she is insane, or a total idiot, or a criminal sex maniac, or perhaps just totally unfit for the job? Don't laugh: This is precisely what "diversity" has come to mean in today's "Woke" America.
A few recent, high-profile, real-life examples:
* What if a "nonbinary," "they-them"-pronoun-using, dress-wearing, lipstick-using, mustache-and-goatee-sporting "biological man" who specializes in repeatedly stealing women's luggage at airports so he can revel in their underwear – yes, really – suppose that person were elevated to a critical position in the federal government's Office of Nuclear Energy?
That's Sam Brinton, the disgraced Biden-appointed executive who was chosen for this sensitive and important federal leadership role because of, not in spite of, his obviously deranged appearance, activities and personality. That's "diversity."
* Or what about Admiral Rachel Levine, the biological male (born Richard Levine) who was chosen by Joe Biden to be U.S. assistant secretary for Health after being promoted to the rank of admiral, and put in charge of the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps? Why choose a ridiculous-looking "transgender" person whose very appearance and speech are profoundly off-putting, disturbing – and to the vast majority of Americans, laughter-inducing? Because of "diversity."
* And just recently, the Hollywood Bowl announced that in its upcoming new stage production of "Jesus Christ Superstar," Jesus, the Savior of the world, will be portrayed by Cynthia Erivo, a bald, black, hyper-radical, "queer and bisexual" woman with a nose ring. How "diverse" of Hollywood.
Yet these examples barely scratch the surface of how the Woke religious tenet of "diversity" plays out every day in American society.
Communism, American-style
One of the most prominent "diversity hires" in American history was Kamala Harris – whom Joe Biden chose as his vice presidential running mate (and who later became the Democrats' 2024 presidential candidate) specifically because she is a so-called "woman of color."
In late April 2020, as National Public Radio reported at the time, "more than 200 black women who are leaders and activists within the Democratic party signed an open letter to the presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden calling on him to select a black woman as his running mate."
"It is a fact," said the letter, "that the road to the White House is powered by Black women and Black women are the key to a Democratic victory in 2020."
Biden had already vowed the previous month to choose a woman as his running mate – so that was set in stone – but the pressure to pick a woman "of color" was mounting throughout the Democratic Party. Indeed, a Politico/Morning Consult survey taken in June 2020 found that nearly half of all Democrats – 46% – insisted it was "important for Biden to choose a candidate of color as his running mate." So that's how America got Kamala Harris, widely viewed today as both the most radical and least competent major-party presidential candidate in U.S. history.
All of which brings us to "Equity," the second member of the Woke cult trinity. Harris herself explained – repeatedly and with crystal clarity – exactly what "equity" is really all about.
It's about communism.
Indeed, as Elon Musk asserted explicitly during 2024's presidential campaign season, "Kamala is quite literally a communist. She wants not merely equal opportunity, but equal outcomes." Musk posted a brief video compilation on X, in which Harris, daughter of prominent Marxist economist Donald J. Harris, repeatedly offers a textbook communist explanation of "equity" – not equality of opportunity, as Americans might think, but equality of "results." "Everybody should end up in the same place," Harris repeatedly insists. That's communism.
What about "Inclusion," the third member of Wokeism's trinity? Most definitions, at least in the context of DEI, describe "Inclusion" as "diversity in practice. It's the act of welcoming, supporting, respecting and valuing all individuals and groups." All individuals and groups – which, judging by four years of Biden-Harris immigration policy, includes illegal-alien rape gangs like the Satan-worshipping MS-13, and radical Islamists and terrorists, as well as just plain home-grown Antifa-type, America-detesting communist radicals who live to riot. They all need "Inclusion" too, because their "Diversity" from the norm requires they reach "Equity."
Any questions?
Meanwhile, anyone who disagrees with the DEI agenda is routinely characterized by the Democratic elites and their propaganda ministry (the "mainstream media") as a "bigot," "racist," "white supremacist" or possibly worse. (Biden publicly referred to tens of millions of Trump voters as "semi-fascists" and "garbage.")
But remember, Wokeism is not merely crazy – it's a full-blown cult, which explains, among other things, why so many millions of people at least appear to believe in it: For though most "believers" don't actually buy the sacred doctrine that, for example, men can menstruate, get pregnant and give birth to babies, they pretend to believe it out of self-preservation. In short, they wish to escape persecution, so they go along with the state's official religion out of fear. As with all merciless false faiths, intimidation and bullying constitute the Woke Cult's primary evangelists.
As famed Stanford historian Victor Davis Hanson puts it, "Wokeism is a cruel cult – created by and for the careerist benefit of the privileged."
Religion, real and false
The essence of true religion – or at least, of the truest of all religions, Christianity – is the miraculous cleansing of a person's sin and guilt by means of genuine heartfelt repentance and the grateful embrace of God's redeeming gift of grace and eternal life, all made possible by the sacrificial death – and resurrection – of His beloved Son Jesus.
But in the religion of Wokeism, newfound innocence and redemption – or rather, their illusion – are attained simply by identifying with, and championing, any of an ever-expanding kaleidoscope of "oppressed" classes of people – "people of color," Muslims, illegal aliens, transgenders, homosexuals, the disabled, the homeless – basically, anyone and everyone other than middle-class heterosexual white people. But here's where the merciful and expansive "grace" of Woke religion manifests: Even a member of the cursed oppressor class can attain "imputed righteousness" and absolution – in other words, innocence – by identifying as an "ally" of any of the many oppressed classes, which mercifully allows them into the tent of redemption as well.
This, of course, is classic Marxism/communism, wherein society is divided into the evil "oppressors" and the righteous "oppressed." There is no god in communism: Oppressors represent evil, while the oppressed constitute the good, and government – well, government is the god of communism, charged with meting out justice and mercy … and retribution and death.
Thus, the secular religion that has long been infecting American culture, education, business and government has not merely been insane. It has been a modern variant of 20th century communism, which from the Russian revolution of 1917 through China's Cultural Revolution led by Mao Zedong and the Cambodian "Killing Fields" of Pol Pot and dozens of other communist revolutions, has brought about more human suffering and death than any other factor in human history.
Today, only the identities of the "oppressors" and "oppressed" have changed with the times. Everything else is essentially the same. The Religion of Wokeism, a modern retread of cruel and inhuman Marxism, is a reliable formula for the total destruction of a once-great nation.
Fortunately, thanks in large part to the bold efforts of the new Trump administration, the spell is starting to break. But there is still a very long and difficult road ahead before everyone truly wakes up, forsakes Wokeism as the bizarre and destructive cult it really is, and embraces once again the Judeo-Christian values that once formed the very foundation and substance of American society.
The insane cult of Wokeism is explored – and clearly exposed as perhaps never before – in the May 2025 edition of WND's acclaimed Whistleblower magazine, in an issue headlined "DEFEATING THE WOKE MIND VIRUS: Why Americans are finally rejecting Marxist 'DEI' madness."
Highlights of "DEFEATING THE WOKE MIND VIRUS" include:
* "Freeing America from the destructive and utterly insane Cult of Wokeism" by David Kupelian
* "'Killed by the woke mind virus': Elon Musk opens up about his eldest son coming out as trans
"It's incredibly evil, and the people promoting this should go to prison. So I was tricked into doing this" by Hailey Gomez
* "On Day 1, Trump orders total and rapid end to all forms of 'illegal and immoral' government DEI programs"
* "Here's why Obama created DEI: 'These people are trying to divide us into a Marxist binary between victimizers and victims'" by Victor Davis Hanson
* "Secret Service agent confirms DEI contributed to near-killing of Trump: 'What I've seen with the United States is a different set of standards based on gender'" by Susan Crabtree
* "JD Vance unloads on Obama/Biden's denial of white air-traffic controllers 'because of the color of their skin': 'It means we don't have the best and the brightest sometimes in these positions. But even more importantly than that, even when we do get really good people, they're going to be way overstressed'" by Joe Kovacs
* "Under Biden, FAA demanded 'special emphasis in recruitment and hiring' of people with disabilities, including 'hearing, vision, missing extremities, partial paralysis, complete paralysis, epilepsy, severe intellectual disability, psychiatric disability and dwarfism': Trump orders immediate review of perverse FAA diversity hiring agenda and demands problems be corrected now" by Bob Unruh
* "FAA turned away 1,000 job applicants because of its DEI rules despite staff shortages, claims lawsuit"
* "DEI recruiting nightmare: 'We spent $1 million to get 1 kid in the Army': 'If you're a white male, you're not really a welcome person in the Army right now'" by J.M. Phelps
* "The history of DEI in the military: 'Blacks and women are advantaged by DEI policies only if they happen to be LGBT'" by Scott Lively
* "To stop wildfires, burn wokeism and manage the forests! 'Leftist politicians are trying to distract the public from their own incompetence'" by Victor Joecks
* "DEI must DIE for students to succeed: Leadership's 'priorities' to blame for today's system being is 'so poor' at teaching children" by Rhyen Staley
* "Trump goes to war with the education mafia: 'Harvard, through affirmative action, has denied some of the brightest minds in the land an entrance into its hallowed halls because they had white skin'" by Carole Hornsby Haynes
* "Walmart abandons trans products for kids as corporate world sheds 'woke mind virus': Likewise with Bud Light, Ford, Stanley Black & Decker, Lowe's, Target and others, amid widespread boycotts and plunging stock values" by Ireland Owens
* "A SIGN OF THE TIMES: In surprise move, Google cuts Pride Month from calendar app" by Jim Hoft
* "DEI goes underground: Rooting out woke Marxist madness in education, corporations and government requires more than executive orders" by Ed Thompson
* "How Donald Trump is defeating a communist revolution … right here in America: 'The counterrevolution to the American Revolution is in full force. And it can no longer be dismissed or ignored, for it is devouring our society and culture'" by David Kupelian.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Factory workers across China are responding to U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs program with what essentially amounts to rioting.
It's because the tariffs have cut so deeply into China's exports to the United States factories are being shut down without notice and workers laid off without pay.
A report from Reuters documents that China's factory activity plunged "at the fastest pace in 16 months" in April.
Chinese officials repeatedly have claimed that their economy can withstand any shocks that may develop from Trump's tariffs, which are intended to equalize international trade.
As part of that move, Trump imposed a long list of tariffs on countries that export to the United States, with the intention of reaching fair trade agreements with them. Dozens of nations already have contacted the administration about just that, and several dozen have agreements in the works.
Reuters reported, "China's official purchasing managers' index (PMI) fell to 49.0 in April versus 50.5 in March, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the lowest reading since December 2023 and missing a median forecast of 49.8 in a Reuters poll."
The result "suggests that China's economy is coming under pressure as external demand cools," explained, Zichun Huang, who is the China economist for Capital Economics.
"Although the government is stepping up fiscal support, this is unlikely to fully offset the drag, and we expect the economy to expand just 3.5% this year."
The "export orders index" has plunged, too, the report said.
"Beijing has largely relied on exports to shore up the fragile economic recovery since the end of the pandemic and only began to take steps to boost domestic demand more earnestly late last year," the report said.
A report from Daily Caller News Foundation said the results of Trump's tariffs have left "workers throughout China … flooding the streets in revolt."
"From the cramped streets of Sichuan in the southwest to the cold outskirts of Inner Mongolia in the northeast, furious workers are demanding back pay and protesting mass layoffs as factories shutter under pressure from Trump's tariffs," the report said.
Workers at a Shanghai LED plan were shouting at managers over unpaid wages and there was a "similar scene" at a sporting goods store in Dao County, the report said.
Some circumstances were getting extreme: "In the northeast city of Tongliao, construction workers climbed onto rooftops and threatened to jump if their wages were not paid."
Goldman Sachs estimated that up to 16 million Chinese jobs could be erased because of the pressure from the tariffs.
Trump's comment? "They were making from us a trillion dollars a year. They were ripping us off like nobody's ever ripped us off. They're not doing that anymore."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Officials in an Illinois town have been accused of adopting an "unwritten policy: Pro-life voices are not welcome in public spaces."
And they'll face a court judgment for their "unconstitutional viewpoint discrimination," according to the American Center for Law and Justice.
The lawsuit against Carbondale, Illinois, alleges the city has gone into unconstitutional territory by censoring residents' speech in their signs.
"We argue that the city's ordinance is unconstitutionally vague and arbitrarily enforced. Worse still, the city is applying the law in a discriminatory fashion to silence religious and pro-life speech," the ACLJ explained.
Their client "wasn't just threatened with enforcement – he was outright denied the ability to even apply for a permit that the ordinance specifically allows for nonprofits like his. This is a textbook case of unconstitutional viewpoint discrimination, enforcing a policy in one way for some people and another way for others."
The legal team said the dispute arose over efforts by a pastor and his parishioners who were being targeted with criminal citations by police "just for having pro-life signs."
The ACLJ said it de-escalated that, and followed up with a letter, which the city "completely ignored."
"That is why we have now filed a federal lawsuit to protect the constitutional rights of Brandon – a sidewalk counselor who believes his mission field is to proclaim the Gospel and minister to women in crisis pregnancies – who was threatened with a citation and possible arrest for having pro-life signs on public property outside of an abortion clinic."
The situation happened when the founder of a pro-life sidewalk counseling ministry "was peacefully advocating for life outside an abortion clinic in Carbondale. He was joined by other pro-life advocates. They carried small yard signs offering free baby supplies and life-affirming messages such as 'We will adopt your baby' and 'Love your preborn neighbor as yourself.'
That's when the trouble began."
The city's lawyer ordered another city official to tell Brandon that "all signs" were prohibited.
That's even though the city's own ordinance allows them.
"Brandon was informed that unless he removed the signs immediately, the police would be called, and he could face a citation and the confiscation of his property. When Brandon asserted that he had the right to demonstrate against abortion under the First Amendment, the city's representative flippantly told him, 'No, you don't.'"
When Brandon applied for a permit, under the city's own requirements, he was refused again.
The demand letter, the ACLJ said, "made it clear that Brandon's speech was constitutionally protected, the city's ordinance was unconstitutionally vague and chilled First Amendment speech when applied, and the city's treatment of our client amounted to viewpoint discrimination."
From the city? Nothing.
"Their silence speaks volumes. Carbondale's officials have effectively adopted an unwritten policy: Pro-life voices are not welcome in public spaces," the ACLJ said.
So it has filed a federal lawsuit against the city, its lawyer and others, seeking to protect Brandon's constitutional rights.
"This is a textbook case of unconstitutional viewpoint discrimination, enforcing a policy in one way for some people and another way for others," the legal team said.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
The "rights" ideology for the LGBT community started out with homosexuals demanding they be left alone to live their chosen lifestyle.
Soon that was expanded to demand that they be treated as a privileged part of society, and their "rights" protected.
It expanded quickly to encompass lesbians, bisexuals and more, even transgenders, and the requirements for the rest of society soon were that those outside the community had to not just tolerate and respect them, but promote their ideologies.
Words were created, like "homophobia," for those who didn't accept the same-sex beliefs.
Even "minor-attracted" individuals, or pedophiles, have been demanding recognition and rights.
Now it's moved to the next level, according to a report in the Daily Mail.
It's because of a ruling from a Quebec Superior Court that found that it would be "unconstitutional" not to provide "legal rights" to so-called multi-parent families.
Sometimes they are called "throuples," where three people are in a "relationship."
Polygamy and polyamory are the defining ideas.
Involved in the case were several groups of people: a man and two women who share children, a lesbian duo and a male sperm donor, and a trio where the husband had a baby with his wife's friend.
"In these times when the right to equality is savagely attacked, it feels good," said Marc-Andre Landry, a lawyer who fought for the change.
The report noted the law only applies to parental "units" that were set up before the conception of a child, not residences occupied by step-parents or others.
The movement so far has had a limited impact in the United States, where most states allow recognition of only one or two parents.
The report noted that the Quebec government now will have to amend its law to reflect the change, although an appeal still could develop.
Technically, polyamory and bigamy still remain illegal in Canada, following a 2011 court ruling that affirmed the limits. That was based on the fact the potential harm to women and children outweighed concerns over "personal freedom."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Fentanyl, methamphetamine and heroin supplies are being shipped into the United States … on drones.
A new report from Judicial Watch reveals that confirmation has come in 14 pages of records the government watchdog obtained from U.S. Customers and Border Protection.
The lethal drugs are coming in across both the southern and northern borders.
Judicial Watch launched a Freedom of Information documents request that sought all details of "drones recovered or seized along the United States and Mexico Border" as well as information on the type and quantity of any illegal drugs seized, the locations and any arrests or convictions that resulted.
The results include confirmation of criminal activity in New York. There, the government confirmed, "At approximately 0200hrs on 09/21/22, Agents of [redacted] Station in conjunction with [redacted] were notified that [redacted] identified a DJI M300 drone originating in the United States had entered Canada. The drone landed and spent approximately 10 minutes in Canada. The drone returned to the United States to [redacted] NY where agents were waiting and observed the drone and an attached package, land in the back yard."
Federal agents contacted the pilot and others on the scene, who fled into a home.
"Agents in hot pursuit, entered the house and took the pilot into custody. An unknown number of subjects absconded from the house into the surrounding neighborhood and 2 additional subjects were later taken into custody."
All the suspects were Chinese nationals who claimed they held U.S. citizenship.
In that case, nearly seven pounds of MDMA was found, and the case was continuing.
Another situation, in California, was described to include a drone "incursion" in which a "white powder substance" was dropped.
"The white powder was tested and determined to be methamphetamine with a weight of .26 kilograms [over ½ lb] and a street value of $1500."
Another situation was in Arizona, where Border Patrol agents found a downed drone from which more than a pound and a half of meth was recovered.
Another Arizona incident saw agents recover nearly seven pounds of heroin from a drone that was forced down.
"These documents dramatically confirm that the Biden administration allowed the drug cartels, which the Trump administration has correctly identified as terrorist threats, to engage military-like drone campaigns against the United States from abroad," said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton.
Judicial Watch earlier had reported in its Corruption Chronicles how Mexican drug cartels conducted more than 9,000 drone flights in U.S. airspace in a single year. Some of those flights were to spy on police operations, others were to "gain intelligence information."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
A federal judge has claimed that President Donald Trump didn't meet the requirements to cite the Alien Enemies Act to deport members of a violent criminal gang that has been linked to the Venezuelan government.
The judge, Fernando Rodriquez, said, among other things, that Trump did not show that Tren de Aragua members were moving into the U.S. at the behest of the Venezuelan government, a needed condition.
Yet published reports have documented that, "The FBI assesses that some Venezuelan government officials 'likely facilitate' the migration of members of the violent gang Tren de Aragua from Venezuela to the United States to advance the Maduro regime's objective of undermining public safety in the U.S."
The Fox News report confirmed, "A senior administration official exclusively shared with Fox News Digital Wednesday unclassified portions of the FBI's classified intelligence assessment of the Venezuelan government's relationship with Tren de Aragua."
Trump already has designated TdA and other gangs as foreign terrorist organizations.
He cited the AEA in order to start deporting members of that gang.
Fox reported, "Fox News Digital has learned that the FBI assesses that some Venezuelan government officials are likely using Tren de Aragua members as proxies for the Maduro regime in an effort to destabilize Chile, Ecuador, Peru, Colombia and the United States."
However, the judge claimed, "Allowing the president to unilaterally define the conditions when he may invoke the AEA and then summarily declare that those conditions exist, would remove all limitations to the Executive Branch's authority under the AEA, and would strip the courts of their traditional role of interpreting congressional statutes to determine whether a government official has exceeded the statute's scope."
The Washington Examiner reported that the judge's ruling likely will be appealed, and likely will be overturned.
It may be of little import, ultimately, however.
It's because the judge ruled, "Trump could still deport Venezuelan migrants detained in southern Texas using other, more routine authorities."
The Trump administration has explained that the courts actually don't have the authority to weigh in on the president's decision to use the AEA.
The ruling came in a lawsuit from three Venezuelan nationals who are being protected by the American Civil Liberties Union, which said the three were wrongly accused of being gang members.
The fight is one of several that leftists have brought against Trump in his agenda to secure the nation's borders and remove illegal aliens, especially criminal illegal aliens, from within its borders.
The Examiner reported Art Arthur, resident fellow in law and policy at the Center for Immigration Studies, noted courts generally have given deference to executive decisions "when an invasion or threat exists."
"Most American press outlets don't really understand Tren de Aragua, or they put it in the same bucket as MS-13," Arthur said, noting the gang already has established strongholds in Colombia, Chile, and Brazil.