This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
In a time when the world is on fire and a crucial American presidential election is fast approaching, what do members of Congress actually do?
Apparently, their own do.
As in hairdo.
Case in point is U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., who spent a full 26 seconds on the air Tuesday night fussing with her coiffure during a live interview about the election with CNN's Abby Phillip.
"Like a moth drawn to a flame, she seemed unable to resist the allure of fixing her 'mostly peaceful' wig," Hoft added.
"She wasn't even paying attention to the question. The result? A comedy of errors that could give any 'SNL' skit a run for its money."
This is not the first time Waters' hairstyle has made national headlines.
As WND reported in 2017, then-Fox News anchor Bill O'Reilly mocked Waters' bob during an appearance on "Fox & Friends," saying she was wearing a "James Brown wig."
He later apologized, calling the remark "dumb."
O'Reilly was commenting on a Waters' speech on the House floor in which she questioned the patriotism of President Trump's supporters.
"I love her. Maxine Waters should have her own sitcom," O'Reilly clowned. "People get angry with Maxine Waters. I want more of it."
O'Reilly was shown a clip of Waters saying Trump supporters "turned a blind eye to the destruction" the president was "about to cause the country."
African-Americans "fight against this president, and we point out how dangerous he is for this society and for this country, we're fighting for the democracy," Waters stated. "We're saying to those who say they're patriotic but they've turned a blind eye to the destruction that he's about to cause this country, 'You're not nearly as patriotic as we are.'"
"I didn't hear a word she said," O'Reilly said of Waters. "I was looking at the James Brown wig. If we have a picture of James Brown, it's the same wig!"
Watch the video:
"It's the same one," co-host Brian Kilmeade interjected. "And he's not using it anymore. They just, they finally buried him."
Brown, the legendary singer known as the "Godfather of Soul," died on Christmas Day in 2006.
There was some instant pushback, as Ainsley Earhardt, the lone female on the set, noted: "I have to defend her on that. You can't go after a woman's looks. I think she's very attractive."
"I didn't say she wasn't attractive," O'Reilly responded. "I love James Brown. But it's the same hair!"
O'Reilly also called Waters a "sincere individual," explaining she should be praised for speaking her mind.
"Whatever she says she believes," he said. "She's not a phony, and that's old school."
Later the same day, O'Reilly issued an apology for his remarks.
"As I have said many times, I respect Congresswoman Maxine Waters for being sincere in her beliefs," he said. "I said that again today on 'Fox & Friends' calling her 'old school.' Unfortunately, I also made a jest about her hair, which was dumb. I apologize."
During an interview on MSNBC, Waters refused to accept O'Reilly's apology.
"I'm a strong black woman," she said. "I cannot be intimidated. I cannot be undermined. I cannot be thought to be afraid of Bill O'Reilly or anybody. I'd like to say to women out there everywhere: Don't allow these right-wing talking heads, these dishonorable people, to intimidate you or scare you. Be who you are! Do what you do! And let us get on with discussing the real issues of this country!"
Waters said O'Reilly and former Fox News Chairman and CEO Roger Ailes "have no credibility" because they've been sued by women "for harassment and other kinds of things."
"When a woman stands up and speaks truth to power, there will be an attempt to put her down," Waters said. "I'm not going to be put down. I'm not going to go anywhere. I'm going to stay on the issues."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
The assaults on President Trump by Democrats, especially those attacks led by ex-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, were legend.
She orchestrated an impeachment vote, which failed to remove him from office, over a telephone call. When he left office she still orchestrated another, failed, campaign to impeach and "remove."
Then there was her followup, a special partisan committee run by Democrats and two Trump-hating members of the GOP that essential orchestrated testimony, witnesses and evidence to make it appear Trump urged protesters to violence on Jan. 6, 2021, when he in fact told them to protest peacefully.
Now the final report from that committee has been condemned for its "flat out lies."
U.S. Rep. Barry Loudermilk, chief of the House Admission Subcommittee on Oversight, explained his investigation of the committee, and its politically skewed results, continues.
"But at the same time, we have uncovered enough to where it really invalidates the select committee's report," he said during an interview with John Solomon Reports.
"We do need to take some type of action because this report should never be used as a historical fact, much less used in any legal proceeding. The evidence that they have is so tainted. It is cherry picked. And in some cases, it's flat out lies."
A report at Just the News explained the investigation so far shows the final report from the Democrat-run Select Committee on the January 6 Capitol Attack is so mistake-filled it could be invalidated.
That committee, commanded by Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., spent millions of dollars summoning witnesses who would bring blame against Trump, claiming in its final report that Trump repeated "invalid" claims of vote fraud and did nothing to stop his supporters from rioting.
In fact, that election was tainted by interference by the CIA and FBI, which knew of a false statement assembled by leftists formerly in the intelligence agencies that claimed the Biden family scandal sheet uncovered in Hunter Biden's abandoned laptop was Russian disinformation, when in fact it was the truth.
A followup survey showed that interference likely handed the White House to Biden. Further, voters were influenced by $400 million plus Mark Zuckerberg handed out to election officials who largely used it to recruit voters in Democrat districts.
House members already have begun moving to nullify Pelosi's entire committee work, declaring its results void and canceling subpoenas it issued.
The committee was partisan because Pelosi allowed only committee members she wanted to be a part. The nominees from the then-GOP minority were refused. And the committee essentially edited and orchestrated witnesses and testimony to try to pin blame on President Donald Trump for that day.
Democrats claimed the events were an actual "insurrection" against the United States, where by definition protesters would have been intending to take over the government's economy, military, foreign policy and much, much more. They've even tried to keep Trump off the 2024 ballot on the basis of their claims. The events actually were a protest that got out of hand.
Pelosi refused to follow the resolution creating the committee, and never appointed the five members required "after consulting the minority leader." Further, the committee had no "ranking member" from the GOP, another violation of House rules. And the committee also ignored House rules requiring committees provide equal time for majority and minority members asking questions.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
JERUSALEM – Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said his organization's attack on Israel will cease if Hamas and Israel conclude a ceasefire agreement.
The statement came as both Israeli and Hamas negotiators headed to Doha, Qatar, to try and thrash out a deal to draw a close to nine months of fighting.
Nasrallah boasted the almost daily attacks since Oct. 8 have achieved their aim, namely to "exhaust the enemy materially, financially and mentally."
He was speaking at a memorial service for slain official Mohammed Nasser, whom Israel eliminated in a strike in Lebanon last week. The terrorist leader claimed Israel had been sufficiently distracted from its war with Hamas in Gaza because of the rocket fire across the Lebanon-Israel border.
"We made them understand that if they want it to stop, they must stop the aggression in Gaza," he added.
He said, "Hamas is negotiating on behalf of the entire Axis of Resistance. If there was a breakthrough in the Doha talks, which "results in a ceasefire in Gaza," Hezbollah will also "cease its attacks on Israel without any discussion or negotiation."
If the negotiations did not result in a cessation of hostilities between Israel and Hamas, Nasrallah warned Hezbollah was ready for and did not fear a war, and pointed to the ever-larger salvos of rockets and drones the group has fired at Israel as evidence.
Meanwhile, senior Hamas official Hossam Badran claimed Israel is "intensifying" its military operations in the Gaza Strip in an attempt to pressure the terror group into a deal. He argued it would fail, and would have the opposite effect of the one intended. Ironically, the threat came on a day when the IDF said it had wrapped up its operations in the eastern Shejaiya neighborhood of Gaza City. Although Israel's military did also warn it would re-enter the area if Hamas – as could be expected – filled the vacuum the withdrawing soldiers would leave. The IDF claimed to have eliminated some 150 terrorists in its operational sweep.
Long-stalled diplomatic efforts have clicked into a higher gear over the last week or so – and certainly the families of the hostages assess a deal for the return of their loved ones could be on the table. Badran's statement highlights the mixed messaging emanating from Hamas.
While he argued only a complete ceasefire and a total withdrawal of Israeli troops would be acceptable, especially due to the "continuation of massacres," on Sunday, another Hamas official on condition of anonymity told Agence France-Presse the group was ready to discuss a hostage deal even without a "complete" ceasefire.
Any ceasefire, or course, would not be lasting, since according to Hamas' own charter: "The Day of Judgment will not come about until Moslems fight Jews and kill them. Israel will exist and will continue to exist until Islam will obliterate it, just as it obliterated others before it."
IDF activity in Lebanon, Syria
Talk of a halt to fighting between Israel and the enemies surrounding it was definitely not on the agenda Wednesday. In southern Lebanon around 9:30 p.m. local time, several Hezbollah operatives were spotted entering a building in Tayr Harfa. A drone belonging to the 228th "Alon" Brigade identified the terrorists, and a short time later a fighter jet struck the target.
Earlier on Wednesday, IDF tanks and artillery shelled Syrian army military infrastructure after they were spotted in a demilitarized zone, which formed part of the 1974 ceasefire agreement concluding the Yom Kippur War.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and U.S. Treasury Department are forcing Jan. 6 political prisoner Zachary Rehl, who was convicted of "seditious conspiracy," to pay back every dollar of military benefits he received after the Capitol riot.
Zach's wife Amanda thought she had endured the worst of the government's abuse and humiliation of her husband and family.
But Zach, a Marine Corps veteran, was stripped of his military benefits after he and his co-defendants were found guilty of "seditious conspiracy" on May 4 by an overwhelmingly left-wing, pro-Biden, Washington, D.C. jury.
On Jan. 6, 2021, after Rehl was hit with rubber bullets, tear gas and flash grenades that police indiscriminately fired into the crowd, he walked through the Capitol building for approximately 12 minutes and took a few selfies.
A few weeks later, on March 17, 2021, Rehl was apprehended by the FBI in a predawn raid, when his wife was six months pregnant with her first child.
He and his co-defendants Ethan Nordean, Enrique Tarrio, Joseph Biggs and Dominic Pezzola were practically starved for the 17 months they were detained in a 6-by-8-foot, windowless, freezing-cold jail cell in solitary confinement.
Zach's brief stroll through "The People's House" resulted in U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly handing him a stunning 15-year prison sentence for his role in the Capitol riot. Government prosecutors had sought a 30-year sentence.
Judge Kelly also added so-called "terror enhancements" to Rehl's sentence, prompting Rehl to compare his trial and sentencing to something that would happen in communist China.
The government then appealed the sentences Rehl and the other Proud Boy J6 prisoners had received, asking the judge for still more prison time.
Nevertheless, Joe Biden's Justice Department is not done making an example out of the Proud Boys leaders. Days after Zach was sentenced, his wife Amanda received a notice from the V.A. warning that he must immediately repay approximately $70,000 of military benefits he had received since Jan. 6, 2021.
The Rehls had already, understandably, spent their life savings and tens of thousands of dollars in donations provided by the American public on Zach's criminal case, and simply do not have $70,000 to pay back.
Concerned that the government may retaliate against Zach with even more cruel and unusual treatment, or hefty fines they can't afford for speaking out, Amanda initially avoided divulging to media the government's attempt to further ruin their lives.
She retained another attorney to fight back.
But then she received a letter from the U.S. Treasury Department and decided enough was enough. The notice from Treasury demanded that Zach repay an additional $20,000 to the V.A. following the "seditious conspiracy" conviction.
Thus, according to the U.S. Treasury, Zach now owes $100,0000 to the V.A for his "sedition."
"They want all of the benefits he received from Jan. 6, 2021 until they cut him off in September of 2022, when they denied me for hardship when I was unable to pay it back," Amanda Rehl told WND in an exclusive interview. "They've since sent it to another collection agency, the U.S. Treasury, and they've added their own amount on. We have no idea why."
The amount the Treasury Department is demanding exceeds the amount in benefits Zach received following the Capitol riot.
"They are asking for about $90,000, which is about $20,000 more than we were informed the V.A. wanted us to give back," Amanda told WND. "They've added on an amount of money that doesn't even add up. They never gave us that much. Even the amount they initially asked for was too high. They never gave us that amount of money and the fact that they are asking for it is crazy.
"This is just another big ‘F you.' They are basically just trying to do whatever they can to screw him," said Amanda Rehl. "Zach doesn't have another $100,000 to throw away to the federal government for crimes he did not commit."
Yet the government is demanding payment be made – in full, and immediately.
"They want it all back in one lump sum. They keep sending me letters saying, ‘Can you write a check' for this," Amanda continued. "I'm sorry. I don't believe I have that to just give immediately give it you."
"Instead of cutting off his benefits from the time of his conviction on May 4, they're cutting them off from the time the crime was committed, which is unheard of. I have no idea what they are going to do next. They said they would garnish wages and taxes, but obviously they wouldn't be able to do that for me."
When Amanda initially received notice demanding the payments, her attorney applied for hardship, demonstrating neither she nor Zach has the funds.
"I showed them all of our assets," she explained to WND. "I showed them the money I don't have, the job I don't have, and they still denied it."
Zach and Amanda are grateful to still have their sanity, a roof over their head for their family, and a healthy three-year-old daughter after the trauma they have been subjected to by the federal government over the past three-and-a-half years.
But finding a job has been impossible. Employers who catch wind that she is married to a "domestic terrorist" who is guilty of "sedition" toss her resume aside.
"It's been a struggle to get a job," Amanda stressed. "I can't even get an interview. I don't know if they're not seeing experience that they want, or if they're Googling my name and seeing my husband. I have been pinching pennies. I don't do anything or go anywhere when it's impossible to find a job with a daycare-aged child. I can't afford to put her in daycare, it costs about $30,000 a year.
"We had an entire future planned out that we were working toward. We were putting our house up for sale. We were having a baby. We were buying a bigger house. We had so much planned, and with his arrest and everything that's happened, I had to give up that future. I've become a single mom. My little girl just turned three. She has only been held by her dad three times in her entire life.
"It's so crazy to think that this has happened to us when we've lived our lives to never be put in this situation. My husband's not a criminal. He's never gotten in trouble with the law to any capacity … to [now] be incarcerated for 15 years! He's a good person."
Regarding prison life, Amanda told WND: "They really don't keep edible food in there, so you must purchase commissary. They also have to have basics, deodorant, toothpaste, clothes."
Maintaining commissary for inmates in an understaffed prison costs at least $5,000 a year.
As the government demands Zach pay back every red cent of the military benefits he earned, Congress has dramatically cut funding for the Bureau of Prisons, causing the cost of living to increase for inmates.
In fiscal year 2024, Congress sharply cut infrastructure funding for the federal prison system. An Office of Inspector General audit found that the BOP's budget requests have been significantly below its own estimates of resource needs. For instance, in FY 2022, the Bureau of Prisons requested about $200 million for infrastructure needs, but Congress appropriated only $59 million. These funding limitations impact the BOP's ability to address deteriorating infrastructure and adequately staff dangerous correctional facilities.
Democrats' spending cuts to the Bureau of Prisons has made prison life even more miserable for J6ers, Zach Rehl explained in an email to WND from FCI Petersburg.
"The Democrats have been since 2020 reducing the funding for the BOP. Basically, the moment they started planning for the scam-demic, they started planning for J6 and the outcome of it," he wrote. "They are reducing funding in the BOP while simultaneously increasing arrests, so they are doing it to make us more miserable in here.
"The right always wants to reduce funding for things, but now they [the left] are doing it, right under our noses, to antagonize all the J6 hostages. Unreal! While blue cities release criminals without bail to just go prey on people repeatedly. It's a sick joke. They are taunting us."
"Is there any lawyers trying to actually get us out of prison? Because the end of the tunnel looks black, and I don't see any light! Help me!"
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Joe Biden's administration, which long has made a political talking point out of its claims that President Donald Trump doesn't support "democracy," now stands accused of exactly that offense, according to a new report.
It is U.S. Rep. Lisa McClain, R-Mich., who said, "The United States is built upon the principle of free and fair elections, but the Biden administration seems to not care about upholding our democracy."
Her comments, according to a Fox News report, came as a letter from the entire Michigan House GOP delegation was sent to a top state official demanding answers about the possible use of federal tax dollars to promote the Democratic Party.
The letter, organized by Rep. Roger Williams, R-Texas, went to Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, long a leftist activist, calling for an investigation into the use of public funds for a voter registration "push" that was "weaponized" to help Biden's re-election bid.
The report said it was an agreement between the Small Business Administration and Benson's agency that Williams' subpoenaed in May that used Biden's 2021 executive order to promote "access" to voting that triggered the inquiries.
At issue is the charge from Williams, head of the House Small Business Committee, that there is documentation that shows that voter recruitment efforts were set up to favor Democrats.
For example, the letter explains 39 of 52 "scheduled small business outreach events in Michigan" were in counties with demographics specifically targeted by the Democratic National Committee, the report said.
"Additionally, 100 percent of the visits to Michigan from the SBA administrator and deputy administrator have taken place in counties with the highest populations of DNC target demographics," it continues.
The letter insists on an explanation about why so much of the federal outreach is focusing on Democrat priorities.
"It is curious that the SBA administrator, appointed to help all small businesses thrive, has concentrated her efforts in areas key to the Biden campaign securing re-election," the charge states.
McClain said the coordination between the federal agency and a Democrat activist is an "abuse of power" that undermines election integrity.
Williams said the Democrat scheme is "a ridiculous — and likely illegal — use of taxpayer resources."
The letter also cited a video from April by undercover journalist James O'Keefe that shows an SBA official stating SBA administrator Isabel Guzman's travel is being "purposefully targeted to 'indirectly campaign' for Biden," the report said.
The letter also insists on details about events in Republican House districts, and whether that GOP member was invited along with Sens. Gary Peters and Deborah Stabenow, both Democrats.
"If either of the two senators were invited but a Republican member of Congress was not, please detail the reasoning behind the lack of invitation," Williams wrote.
The letter to Benson was blunt, stating, "We write today as members of both the Michigan congressional delegation and the House Committee on Small Business (the Committee) with great concern over the apparent and blatant weaponization of taxpayer resources to aid and abet President Biden’s re-election campaign in the state of Michigan. It appears the Biden Administration and your office have diverted funding away from supporting small businesses and used it for election purposes. This is unacceptable."
Michigan, of course, is one of several swing states considered required for a victory in this fall's presidential election.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
JERUSALEM – People say the worst thing imaginable for a parent is the loss of a child. The parents of the Israeli hostages languishing in Hamas captivity – particularly of late teenage and early-twenties women – seem to take this maxim and increase the pain and suffering, as little is known about what exact condition they are in.
A specially convened virtual press conference – titled "Nine Months in Captivity: Sexual Violence and the Fear of Forced Pregnancies" – between the Hostages Families Forum and Media Central, explored this vexed issue Tuesday evening.
Gilboa added she tries not to dwell on what might be, even expressing a feeling of optimism because there is a deal on the table, where there has been an assumption that humanitarian hostages – some women, the elderly or infirm, and children would be released first.
"We hope both sides want this deal -– but sometimes in negotiations, there are parties who try to make it hard for both sides. I call on [Prime Minister] Mr. [Benjamin] Netanyahu and the whole Israeli government to not give up – and make this deal. After 9 months it's too much. And to the international community, I call on them to do everything they can to get this deal signed."
Steinbrecher, whose now 31-year-old daughter Doron, which means "a gift" and is a veterinary nurse, was snatched by Hamas terrorists mere meters away from her home in Kibbutz Kfar Azza. She said she wished she could switch places with her daughter, and most of all she wanted her and all the other hostages to come home.
"It was terrible to see the Hamas surrounding our houses; I know she's alone there and I can't help her. We are afraid for the young women there. We must do everything we can to ensure there is a deal. We feel this might be the last opportunity to make one."
Berger, whose daughter Agam will turn 20 on Aug. 6, and who was kidnapped from Nahal Oz said it was important to talk to journalists: "I feel you are my voice to the world. Most people don't understand what is happening here."
His initial remarks centered around the assessment that several parties – the international community, a plurality at least of Palestinian society, and the majority of Israelis – want the war to end.
"The only way to stop this is to make Hamas give back all the hostages – both the living and the dead. We have to pressure Qatar; they could have stopped it by now if they had wanted. We continue to pressure the Israeli government and we call on Netanyahu to conclude the deal, before he goes to the United States to speak to Congress."
Leshem-Gonen was the final hostage parent to speak. Her daughter, Romi, who will turn 24 in August, is one of five children. She attended the Nova Music Festival and was shot in the hand while she was trying to escape with her friends in her car.
"I was on the phone with her for 45 minutes, and I could hear the terrorists' voices as they approached the car and said something about her still being alive. They dragged her by her hair – her beautiful hair, hurting her. She lifted her head for a moment and was instantly punched in the face."
Leshem-Gonen then had a moment that hundreds of parents of the dead and the missing have felt, namely the dissonance between being unsure of whether it was better for her daughter to have been killed or to have been taken alive. She said "It was joyful when we understood she was alive. And we have fought since Oct. 7 to bring her, the other girls, and everyone else back."
"The world is confused," she added. "It needs to be reminded of what is right and what is wrong. We are fighting the pure evil Hamas represents."
Dr. Yehene outlined key points regarding the psychological support and adaptation needed for potentially pregnant returning hostage: "The trauma of captivity coupled with the sexual abuse can have a profound, long-lasting impact on both physical and mental wellbeing. This may include symptoms of PTSD, anxiety, and depression among others."
"The addition of potential pregnancy on top of the trauma of captivity can add layers of complexity to the recovery process. Not only for the returning hostages but also for the families who accompany them. The discovery of pregnancy can induce shock, confusion, fear, and conflicting emotions regarding the pregnancy itself. It's important to create a safe and non-judgmental environment to deal with their various needs. Lack of exposure to light, poor nutrition, and lack of access to medical care, their pregnancies are at greater risk. Pregnancy is a visible thing, something that can make them feel exposed; their trauma might feel like it is on public display, and we are approaching this topic with delicacy and care."
"The journey toward rehabilitation and recovery is expected to be a long-term one, and nonlinear. The public's investment in the hostages' return, getting attached to their stories without really knowing them before Oct. 7, naturally raises a lot of anticipation, hope, concern, curiosity, and more. Ensuring their privacy and keeping their dignity can be significantly important in their healing process."
In response to questions from journalists, the parents addressed two main issues; the international community's ignominious failure to take the accounts of rape and sexual assault seriously, and also whether Netanyahu's government was doing enough to secure the hostages' release.
On the former, Leshem-Gonen answered it was inconceivable "Israeli women were paraded around Gaza as trophies ... but they were not touched."
Meanwhile, there was a widespread belief "Israeli soldiers committed systematic acts of rape and sexual assault. The U.N. has some countries that just lie and use propaganda against Israel to deflect from the acts Hamas committed. It's too easy to lie today on social media."
Of the latter question, Berger answered very simply, "Our girls are not here, so can I say everyone is doing their best? We hope it will happen, we want our kids home and for our families to be reunited."
He added one of the most difficult thoughts to contend with, and one which is hard to forget.
"We can speak and we are trying to be strong for all our captives in Gaza, but many of the families are just too broken by this experience to say anything. Even if my daughter is returned, I don't want to stop the fight until the last hostage comes back from Gaza."
Leshem-Gonen concluded, "This is also the responsibility of the international community. Everyone is tied to everybody else. Where is the U.S. president? There are eight U.S. citizens held, and they don't seem to be doing very much. As the civilians of Israel, we have to make sure our leadership will do what we need them to do."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
JERUSALEM – Lebanese-based Iranian Shi'ite proxy terrorist group Hezbollah fired dozens of rockets at Israel's Golan Heights Tuesday night – killing a married couple with a direct hit on their car – following the IDF's alleged elimination earlier in the day of an operative on the Beirut-Damascus highway in Syria.
The couple, named Noa and Nir Barnes, both 46 from Kibbutz Ortal, were driving on Route 91 – a relatively short stretch of road connecting the Jordan Valley and the Golan Heights – and are survived by their three children, aged 13, 16, and 18.
The number of Israeli civilians killed in the ongoing rocket and missile fire over the Lebanese border and into northern Israel has now risen to 12. An additional 16 IDF troops have been killed in the skirmishes since Oct. 8, when Hezbollah started firing rockets, missiles, and drones into Israel.
While many communities and kibbutzim have been evacuated in the north, the area in which the Baranes' were killed has not. This has drawn the ire of local politicians according to Ynet, which reported Katzrin Mayor Yehuda Dua telling political leaders his region is at war. Katzrin, known as the unofficial capital of the Golan, has a population of about 7,000.
"I looked the decision-makers in the eyes and told them I came there to demand compensation for businesses lost and returned home to the horrors of sirens and interceptions in the ongoing war," he said.
"This is our reality, our routine, and the government is being negligent in the face of this brutal enemy. The only option to beat terror is by force."
The rockets have caused brush fires, which have decimated hundreds of acres of grassland, as well as destroyed buildings, and caused untold damage to wildlife.
In response, the IDF attacked several sites late Tuesday and overnight Wednesday. It released footage of a missile from an IAF jet striking Hezbollah infrastructure in southern Lebanon's Qabrikha, from which an estimated 30 rockets were launched.
Hezbollah releases drone footage of military sites in northern Israel
Earlier Tuesday, Hezbollah released previously unseen drone footage of several highly sensitive military sites in northern Israel, as it ramps up its propaganda campaign against the Jewish state.
The almost 10-minute-long video is the second part of drone footage the Iranian-backed militia group has released. The first one was published last month.
The video opened with a map highlighting Mount Dov, the Golan Heights, Nahariya, Safed, Haifa, and Afula.
It showed what Hezbollah described as military intelligence bases, strategic electronic intelligence stations, and facilities capable of conducting electronic attacks, which Hezbollah dubs the "eyes of the state," according to Ynet.
This version differed from the earlier one in that it exclusively highlights military sites, including military outposts, buses reportedly carrying troops, Iron Dome batteries, as well as concentrations of tanks. The terrorist group also claimed it had located a base, which the IDF's vaunted Military Intelligence Unit 8200 purportedly uses.
Hezbollah claimed an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) entered Israeli airspace, captured the footage, and returned to Lebanon undetected. Israel has not commented on the claim.
If Hezbollah's contention is true, it suggests – like on Oct. 7 – that sometimes low-tech solutions to supposedly high-tech problems can work in terrorist groups' favor.
Following the video's release, Hezbollah media relations officer Muhammad Afif said it sent "a clear message to the enemy and its army," the Times of Israel reported.
"The importance stems from demonstrating our technical and technological capabilities in the field of surveillance and obtaining necessary information we need in times of war," he added.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Joe Arpaio, who for years was known as "America's toughest sheriff" for having the inmates in his Maricopa, Arizona, County jails do community betterment projects while behind bars, is suing Joe Biden for falsely characterizing him as a convicted "felon."
The case is being handled by Larry Klayman in the Circuit Court of the 13th Judicial Circuit in Hillsborough County, Florida.
The false characterization came in an ad that Biden's campaign for the White House created and released to the public.
"I will not stand by and allow my great friend and client, Sheriff Joe Arpaio, to be smeared and defamed by a dishonest president and his Democrat henchmen simply to harm Trump’s presidential election prospects," explained Klayman, who has founded watchdog organizations Judicial Watch and FreedomWatchUSA.
"By equating the two men as 'felons,' the desperate Joe Biden, who not only is alleged to have taken bribes, laundered through his drug addict and true 'convicted felon' Hunter Biden, but who is now seen as essentially braindead with severe cognitive issues, I will not stand idly by to allow this falsehood to be perpetrated on the American public. Joe Biden and his evil clowns at Biden for President, Inc., will be held to legally account and to pay for their defamation of a good and patriotic man, which has contributed to serious threats against him," Klayman said.
Arpaio's reputation during his two decades plus as the Maricopa sheriff was enhanced by his decision to have inmates wear pink underwear after he found they were stealing the clothing when it was white. He also set up what essentially were chain gangs to perform public service projects.
The case explains, "The motive for this publication, which was alleged to be published with actual malice, was to tar Sheriff Arpaio and thus Trump, who Arpaio strongly supports, and thus Trump’s election prospects in Florida, the third largest state and a key one in any presidential contest."
Arpaio was found liable for a misdemeanor, contempt of court, during a years-long case over the county's handling of illegal aliens who were criminals. He then was pardoned by President Trump.
The Barack Obama administration had claimed the department overstepped the bounds set by the courts in pursuit of criminals.
Arpaio had served in the Army, as a police officer in Washington and Las Vegas, and with the Drug Enforcement Administration. He essentially came out of retirement to help Maricopa County in its fight against crime.
But he had been at odds with Obama because of the administration's tolerance for illegal immigration, a move that has reached a point of near-perfection under Joe Biden's open borders agenda.
His novel approach to law enforcement won him many elections. For example, he established chain gangs for inmates to contribute thousands of dollars of free labor to communities, painting over graffiti and cleaning streets.
He banned smoking, coffee, movies, pornographic magazines, and unrestricted TV in jails. His costs per meal for inmates ran between 15 cents and 40 cents. He provided pink underwear for inmates to wear, after learning that inmates were stealing white jailhouse boxers.
Subsequent reports confirmed that Arpaio's successor, a Democrat, also was looking at a possible contempt charge over the same issue involving the enforcement of the law against illegal aliens.
The case began in 2007 with the arrest of Manuel de Jesus Ortega Melendres, a Mexican immigrant. He later sued the agency and Arpaio, alleging he was racially profiled.
The case, against Biden and Biden for President, seeks millions of dollars in damages.
The complaint charges that last month, the Biden campaign's "Official Rapid Response Page" on Twitter, @BidenHQ, posted a video with the caption "Trump trae al escenario a Joe Arpaio, un criminal convicto que fue perdonado por Trump después de que perfiló racialmente y abusó de inmigrantes."
The complaint notes, "This is translated into the following: Trump brings to the stage Joe Arpaio, a convicted felon who was pardoned by Trump after he racially profiled and abused immigrants."
"In this post, the defamatory caption was accompanied by a video of Donald Trump at a campaign event where he introduced plaintiff Arpaio to the crowd. This defamatory post was posted on the Campaign’s Twitter page, at the direction of the defendants. As of the time of writing, this defamatory post was viewed nearly 26,000 times, including by an individual located in Hillsborough County, Florida. Thus, the intent behind this post was to (1) try to affect the 2024 presidential election, and specifically to try to win Florida, by falsely associating Trump with a 'convicted felon' and (2) to harm plaintiff Arpaio’s reputation."
It points out that the post was "directed at Florida voters as a form of election interference, and in particular at voters in Hillsborough County, which is one of the most important counties in deciding whether Florida’s electoral votes will go to Biden or Trump in the 2024 Presidential election."
But the post is "false, malicious, and defamatory because (1) Plaintiff Arpaio has never been convicted of a felony and (2) Plaintiff Arpaio has never been found to have 'abused immigrants.'"
The counts include defamation, defamation per se, and defamation by implication.
A receptionist at the White House switchboard, 202-456-1414, contacted by WND for a comment from a media officer, first grilled the reporter on what WND meant, and where it was located. Then she instructed that she had no one available to comment.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
A new report from the Heritage Foundation shows the addition of Finland and Sweden into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, is a win for the U.S. and will provide a strategic advantage.
The report states both Finland and Sweden have "demonstrated significant capacity and will as NATO members by investing in their militaries and by providing substantial amounts of aid to Ukraine," further noting the membership enhances the alliance and adds critical assets – Finland provides substantial reserve forces, while Sweden has a robust defense industry.
NATO has a 2% defense budget GDP guideline for its members. Both countries have exceeded this and are now participating in NATO military exercises, according to the report.
"Finland demonstrates a steadfast commitment to enhancing its defense capabilities by substantially increasing its defense budget. Finland's fiscal year 2024 defense budget increased by $6.6 billion, constituting 2.3 percent of its gross domestic product.
"This exceeds NATO's 2 percent of GDP investment guideline, an indicator of political resolve to contribute to NATO's common defense," the report states.
The report points out Finland gains significant strength from manpower, despite its relatively small population of 5.5 million people. It has one of the largest fully mobilized armies in NATO with 280,000 troops.
Finland's army, navy, and air force are also heavily equipped with tanks, heavy and light rocket launchers, anti-aircraft weapons, command vessels, minesweepers, jets, and long-range surveillance radars.
Sweden has an extensive domestic defense industry and submarines, and Sweden's Air Force is the largest in Scandinavia and one of the largest in Europe.
"Like Finland, Sweden demonstrates a steadfast commitment to enhancing its defense capabilities by substantially increasing its defense budget. Sweden's FY 2024 defense budget increased by $2.44 billion, constituting 2.1 percent of its GDP. This budget is double that of its FY 2020 defense budget," the report states.
Finland and Sweden as members of NATO also present two distinct strategic advantages for the U.S. – the ability to dominate the Baltic Sea, while contributing to the defense of Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania; and the extensive border Finland shares with Russia, which presents a challenge to the Kremlin because of Finland's large military reserves.
Finland shares an 830-mile border with Russia, adjacent to the Kola Peninsula, a critical region known to be home to Russia's Northern Fleet, which includes attack submarines, ballistic missile submarines, and other surface ships.
The report notes Finland and Sweden's proximity to Russian naval forces in the Baltic will pose a significant threat to Russia, and will likely force Russia to move in more conventional military assets into the region it previously considered secure.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., long known for his intolerance of U.S. Supreme Court decisions, now has announced a scheme to subvert its recent ruling on presidential immunity.
Schumer says he wants Congress simply to designate actions by President Donald Trump as "unofficial" so he could face whatever charges Democrat prosecutors would want to bring.
The immunity fight was prompted by Democrats' lawfare against Trump, and their multiple civil and criminal legal cases that often are based on the flimsiest of grounds.
The high court's ruling was fundamental. It said that for official acts that are part of his constitutional duties, the president has absolute immunity, for some other acts he has presumed immunity, and for private actions, no immunity.
Not good enough for Schumer, who once took a microphone during an abortion rally outside the Supreme Court and personally threatened several of the justices and recently appeared the fool by posting online images of him grilling hamburgers, and putting a slice of cheese on uncooked meat.
Schumer plans to hold a vote and with that, reverse the court's decision.
Legal expert Jonathan Turley pointed out that the plan is "more politically than legally compelling." And he noted, "The decision is based on constitutional law and simply declaring whole areas 'unofficial' will not negate the ruling."
Schumer, from the Senate floor, attacked the Supreme Court, stating, "They incorrectly declared that former President Trump enjoys broad immunity from criminal prosecution for actions he took while in office. They incorrectly declared that all future presidents are entitled to a breathtaking level of immunity so long as their conduct is ostensibly carried out in their official capacity as president."
He claimed the court effectively "placed a crown on Donald Trump's head."
He said he would declare Trump's "election subversion acts" as unofficial so they would not involve any immunity.
He also said he'd continue to work to put limits on what courts can do.