Representative Jamie Raskin (D-MD) made waves by making the insane claim that Trump administration officials should be arrested for "kidnapping."
During an appearance Friday on MSNBC’s “The Rachel Maddow Show,” Raskin argued that because rogue leftist judges are being arrested for aiding and abetting illegal immigrants, Trump officials should also be arrested for “interfering with a legal proceeding” or “kidnapping.”
Raskin's statements come after federal authorities arrested Judge Hannah Dugan in Wisconsin for aiding illegal immigrants avoid immigration officers who had a warrant for their arrest.
Raskin stated, "Now they’re arresting judges, and the first felony criminal charge brought against Judge Hannah Dugan in Wisconsin is interfering with a legal proceeding, which is essentially what they’ve been doing all along. What Judge Boasberg is about to hold them in criminal contempt for and has found that there is probable cause for criminal contempt is that they deliberately ignored and defied his order not to take off in those airplanes headed for El Salvador and not turning the airplanes around."
On the face of it, this statement makes no sense, but it is very likely that Democrats are going to press this issue heavily as they attempt to thwart President Donald Trump's bold immigration agenda.
Raskin's assertion that Trump officials are guilty of "interfering with a legal proceeding” or “kidnapping" is entirely baseless and draws from the doomed movement to hold Trump officials in contempt of court for deporting illegal immigrants.
Raskin claimed in his interview with Maddow that, "They have been disobeying federal court orders systematically. They have incurred criminal contempt findings in the courtroom of Judge Boasberg, a conservative Republican, a judge. They have been demanding the impeachment of judges who rule against the lawlessness of the Trump administration."
For the record, Judge Boasberg was appointed by former President Barack Obama, which immediately throws Raskin's assertion that he is a conservative into a dubious light.
Furthermore, Judge Boasberg's attempts to hold Trump officials in contempt of court for failing to abide by an order they could never uphold show that he is an ideological opponent of the conservative movement.
Judge Boasberg attempted to order flights to El Salvador carrying violent illegal immigrants to turn around, but this was simply impossible. His attempt to push contempt of court charges was quickly shut down by a higher court.
Raskin ignored this higher order in arguing that the Trump administration should be held in criminal contempt. It's no surprise to see a Democrat ignoring evidence in order to push an absurd narrative against the Trump administration.
Trump's immigration agenda and deportation of violent illegal immigrants are massively popular with regular Americans, but that hasn't stopped activist judges from stonewalling and slowing down Trump's agenda at every turn.
So far, two judges have been arrested for openly thwarting a legal arrest of illegal immigrants and have already been canonized by the left for their valiant efforts in protecting illegal immigrants, who often are a threat to the American people.
Thankfully, the Trump administration is working to hold those rogue judges accountable, and the Supreme Court will likely have a large role to play in reining in these activist judges who care more about illegal immigrants than the safety of the American people.
Ukraine is engaged in peace talks with Russia mediated by the Trump administration, and the latest reports indicate that pressure on Ukraine is building.
Kyiv's Mayor Vitali Klitschko reportedly stated that achieving a peace deal with Russia may require President Volodymyr Zelensky to give up some areas that Russia has taken since the beginning of the brutal war.
The BBC reported on Friday that Klitschko stated, "One of the scenarios is...to give up territory. It's not fair. But for the peace, temporary peace, maybe it can be a solution, temporary."
In Ukraine's situation, fairness isn't even being considered. With the United States bled dry and European nations balking at funding Ukraine to the tune of hundreds of billions a year, Ukraine must make a peace deal sooner rather than later.
Russia also has a strong motivation to sue for peace as it has been brutalized by the war, losing thousands of men and untold amounts of equipment that Russia is struggling to replace due to its failing economy.
Both sides must make concessions to end the war, but both sides are being predictably difficult. Russia holds more cards than Ukraine, but it is Ukraine that is refusing to give up a single square mile of the territory conquered by Russia, which is arguably an insignificant area.
Russia had hopes of seizing major areas quickly at the beginning of the war, but failed horrifically, and the war became a grinding war of attrition, with many of Russia's gains coming at immense cost in lives and equipment.
President Zelensky's refusal to make any concessions is bogging down peace talks, which have frustrated U.S. President Donald Trump, who wanted the war to end within weeks of assuming office back in January.
While both sides continue to make no concessions, people continue to die. On Thursday, Kyiv was hit by missiles and drones from Russia, killing at least 12 people in the biggest attack on the capital this year.
For Ukraine, the question is will it be worth it to continue fighting in this brutal war or would it be better to concede a small amount of territory that wasn't worth the cost of conquering?
With the U.S. scaling back financial and military support for Ukraine, the clock is ticking. It's up to Zelensky and Vladimir Putin to make the right decision for their people and end the war that has caused over one million killed or injured.
Trump and Zelenskyy met this past week ahead of Pope Francis's funeral, and the sentiment seems to be that a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia is "very close."
This happened as Steve Witkoff met with Putin in Moscow on Friday to discuss Washington’s peace plan, although details of that meeting weren't being made readily available.
According to a Truth Social post, Trump claimed that "most of the major points are agreed to” between Russia and Ukraine. The White House is now working on a meeting between Ukrainian and Russian representatives to settle the remaining issues and finally sign a deal.
Despite loud demands from Ukraine that Crimea be returned after being annexed in 2014, hopes are high that the end is finally here.
Politico reported on Wednesday that sources said Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) will announce on May 5 that she will not seek re-election in 2026.
Schakowsky, 80, plans to retire when her current term ends, the sources told Politico.
She said that she would discuss her plans on May 5, but did not say anything publicly about retiring.
When the Politico report came out, she again refused to announce a decision, asking those interested to wait until May 5 for the decision.
Reportedly, she has begun talking to colleagues about her plans to retire, however.
Schakowsky was a leader of progressives in the House. I guess she has decided not to hang around to see if Democrats can retake the majority in 2026.
Many of the oldest members of Congress from both parties are retiring, particularly given that this is the oldest Congress anyone can remember.
Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin also announced his retirement on Wednesday. Durbin is also 80.
Politico called the current state of affairs among Democrats in Congress a "reckoning," with a number of young challengers attempting to displace some of the older members there.
Democratic National Committee vice chair David Hogg is one of those young Progressives. He said he would use the committee's funds to back challengers to older Democrats, but exempted Schakowsky and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (CA).
Maybe they got passes because they are women? It's hard to say.
It could be that Pelosi is still wielding her considerable power over the party and told Hogg not to go after Schakowsky. Every power move has its limits, after all.
Schakowsky was a major part of drafting Obamacare, and Pelosi appointed her in 2010 to Obama's Bowles-Simpson reform committee.
She also supports J Street, a radical anti-Israel group. She recently voted with 77 other Democrats to embargo Israel.
The nation's high court appears to be leaning in favor of some parents from the state of Maryland who are asking for a change in some of the materials taught to their kids.
The Tuesday hearing before the Supreme Court seemed to show the majority of conservative judges offering questions that supported the parents who object to books with gay and transgender characters for primary school kids, as Breitbart News reported.
The 2½-hour oral argument centered around the parents' religious beliefs. Given that the conservative justices are in favor of religious liberty, the parents' case against the Montgomery County Board of Education was strong.
The parents are not requesting that the materials not be present in their children's school, just that they have an opt-out option for those whose religious beliefs preclude the materials' morals.
Some justices expressed concern that the board's refusal to provide an opt-out was due to religious bias.
A debate has been ongoing in Montgomery County, English language arts textbooks, since 2022, when the school board in the diverse region outside of Washington requested additional LGBTQ storybooks to more accurately represent its residents.
Muslims and Orthodox Christians objected to the content on religious grounds, citing the First Amendment, contending that their children should have the right to opt out.
Justice Neil Gorsuch, one of the more conservative members of the bench, was one of several who offered his concern about statements about the school board in question.
The school representative stated in a media interview that a student who objected to the books was "parroting dogma" from her parents, as per court documents.
She also compared their complaints to those of white supremacists who opposed civil rights laws.
“Does that suggest a hostility toward religion?” Gorsuch asked in his questioning, harkening back to a 2018 ruling in which the court ruled in favor of JackPhillips, a Christian baker who refused to make a wedding cake to celebrate a gay couple.
Several conservative justices seemed surprised by the school board's decision to make providing an opt-out too difficult for most parents to effectively do for their children, as well as the wisdom of the curriculum at all.
“Why isn’t that feasible?” Justice Samuel Alito asked.
Similarly, Justice Brett Kavanaugh questioned, “I’m not understanding why it’s not feasible."
Although the school board maintained that the policy did not mandate that students affirm or support the books' content, Chief Justice John Roberts appeared doubtful: "Is that a realistic concept when you are talking about a 5-year-old?" he asked.
Protesting what they saw as pressure from the Justice Department to express remorse for pursuing the corruption case against Mayor Eric Adams, three federal prosecutors from Manhattan resigned on Tuesday.
Celia Cohen, Andrew Rohrbach, and Derek Wikstrom all accused DOJ Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche of trying to get the to lie and "express regret" to re-establish their employment in relation to the case that accused Adams of accepting bribes from Turks in exchange for travel perks, the New York Post reported.
“We will not confess wrongdoing when there was none,” the three prosecutors, who had been placed on “administrative leave,” wrote in a scathing one-page letter obtained by The Post.
The DOJ under President Trump “has decided that obedience supersedes all else, requiring us to abdicate our legal and ethical obligations in favor of directions from Washington,” the prosecutors claimed.
Dale Ho, the judge presiding over Adams' case, recently ruled that the prosecutors involved were only acting within the bounds of legality, which led to the departures.
“The record before the Court indicates that the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York prosecutors who worked on this case followed all appropriate Justice Department guidelines. There is no evidence — zero — that they had any improper motives,” the judge wrote.
During their time working for the SDNY office, Rohrbach, Cohen, and Wikstrom mentioned that they had experience working under both Republican and Democrat presidents.
This is the office is responsible for supervising high-profile trials, such as the Sean "Diddy" Combs case. According to the outgoing employees, they’d been allowed to do their jobs “without fear or favor."
Both Rohrbach and Cohen were heavily involved in the prosecution of Ghislaine Maxwell, who was a client of Jeffrey Epstein, and Cohen was in charge of a number of local mob prosecutions.
The resignations occurred on the very first day that Jay Clayton, who was appointed by Trump to serve as an interim leader of SDNY, assumed office. The Department of Justice's February campaign to dismiss Adams' case led to the resignation of five SDNY prosecutors.
In her resignation letter, the then-interim head of the SDNY, Danielle Sassoon, accused the White House of arranging a corrupt "quid pro quo" arrangement in which Adams consented to meet Trump's demands over immigration policy in return for the dismissal of his case.
Hagan Scotten, who was the primary prosecutor in the Adams case, has also stepped down.
Danielle Sassoon was part of the turnover, tendering her resignation in February in protest of the Justice Department's order to drop corruption charges against New York Mayor Eric Adams. Because of that change, Matthew Podolsky agreed to step down and took over for Sassoon.
Following Trump's firing of Edward Kim, who had served as U.S. attorney throughout the transition in administrations, Sassoon was appointed to the position.
Until federal judges in Manhattan confirm or appoint him, Trump's choice Jay Clayton will serve as an interim for a maximum of four months. Throughout Trump's inaugural year in office, Clayton oversaw the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Prior to becoming head of the SEC, Clayton advised Wall Street firms and other corporations on complying with federal regulations while working as a partner at the New York law firm Sullivan & Cromwell.
U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts intervened Monday in a case involving President Donald Trump's firings of two federal agency board members, preventing their reinstatement until the full case can be heard.
An appeals court ruled 7-4 that Cathy Harris and Gwynne Wilcox should be reinstated to their positions on the Merit Systems Protection Board and National Labor Relations Board respectively, arguing that Trump did not have constitutional authority to fire them without cause because their agencies were independent.
The full court ruling overturned the initial three-judge panel, which upheld the firings 2-1.
The appeals court said in its decision, “The Supreme Court has repeatedly told the courts of appeals to follow extant Supreme Court precedent unless and until that court itself changes it or overturns it.”
Judge Karen Henderson wrote, “Only the Supreme Court can decide the dispute and, in my opinion, the sooner, the better.”
Seems like that has now happened with Roberts' ruling, at least on the temporary stay.
A previous Supreme Court precedent said that agency heads independent agency heads could not be fired without cause, but opponents of that precedent say that it limits executive authority more than the Constitution allows.
Government attorneys said, “Reinstatement works a grave harm to the separation of powers and undermines the President’s ability to exercise his authority under the Constitution.”
Both Wilcox and Harris were appointed by the Biden administration to specific terms, and Wilcox's term was just renewed recently.
Due to court decisions, Wilcox and Harris have been fired and reinstated five times since Trump took office.
Without Wilcox, the NLRB does not have a quorum to make certain decisions.
Without Harris, the MSPB only has one board member.
This is not Trump's fault; if the courts would let him do his job, he would be able to fill the vacant positions and resolve these issues in a timely manner.
If the powers that be really wanted these agencies to be independent, then it seems like they should not give presidents the power to appoint members at all.
Democrat Judge Jose "Joel" Cano resigned from his bench last month after an illegal immigrant with alleged ties to the Tren de Aragua gang was arrested in his New Mexico home, where the migrant was living.
Federal prosecutors arrested 23-year-old Cristhian Ortega-Lopez on February 28 during a search of Cano's home that occurred after a detention hearing where evidence was presented that he was a member of Tren de Aragua.
Ortega-Lopez entered the country at Eagle Pass, Texas in December 2023 and was released on a parole program due to overcrowding.
He lived in El Paso, Texas for a while after his release and eventually met the judge's wife Nancy Cano while doing handyman jobs. She offered him a place to live on her property.
Prosecutors showed images of Ortega-Lopez with other migrants at a shooting range with multiple weapons including AR-15s.
He also has tattoos consistent with Tren de Aragua membership. Images of dead and mutilated bodies were found on his phone.
Police found additional weapons at the home of Nancy Cano's daughter, and images showed Ortega-Lopez with several of the firearms.
Ortega-Lopez is charged with being an illegal alien in possession of firearms. He is being held in the Dona Ana County Detention Center.
Jose Cano had been a local magistrate judge in Dona Ana County since 2011.
It was not clear whether the judge or his wife would be charged with harboring an illegal immigrant.
Cano apparently allowed Ortega-Lopez to file for immigration relief using his address.
Social media posts show the two posing together in photos.
With their lives having intertwined in this way, it is unclear whether Cano or his wife knew that Ortega-Lopez had alleged gang ties or participated in gang activities.
President Donald Trump designated Tren de Aragua and other foreign gangs as terrorist organizations, which make the consequences of the Canos' actions more serious.
President Donald Trump is making good on promises made to voters in the last election that he would unleash American energy after four years of stagnation under former President Joe Biden.
Trump has signed multiple executive orders taking a sledgehammer to burdensome regulations on the coal industry created by the previous administration, which waged a "war on coal" in the name of the climate change agenda.
An executive order signed earlier this month exempted several coal plants from Biden-era regulations while slashing regulations to allow the industry to surge and lower the price of energy, which was squeezing Americans' already strained budgets.
Amy Cooke, the director of the Energy and Environmental Policy Center, told The Daily Caller that, "When utility bills are skyrocketing or blackouts are happening in winter, people are going to want reliable power back. The beauty of coal is that it allows for affordable, reliable power, which is absolutely crucial to economic prosperity, and in particular, innovation."
The previous administration didn't care about the economic impact of shutting down coal power and as a result millions of Americans suffered. However, those days are over, and under Trump, the coal industry is set to flourish.
Under Trump's new orders, over 70 coal power plants are no longer required to meet extreme air quality regulations created by the Biden administration.
A statement from the EPA explained that the new order would "bolster coal-fired electricity generation, ensuring that our nation’s grid is reliable, that electricity is affordable for the American people, and that EPA is helping to promote our nation’s energy security."
While critics pointed out that coal doesn't provide a majority of energy, Cooke was quick to point out that, because of extreme demand, Americans need maximum supply, especially from cheaper and more stable sources like coal.
Cooke stated, "We can lead the world in innovation,” Cook told the DCNF, referencing developments in natural gas and nuclear power as beneficial. “But you have to have coal. It has to be part of the mix. It’s insane that we would shut down any base load power right now, when the demand for power is so high."
The increasing demand for energy has not been matched with an increasing supply, heightening the possibility of rolling blackouts, a situation that is unthinkable for Americans who only experience rolling blackouts in third-world countries.
The Biden administration could have moved to increase American energy supply, but due to harmful leftist ideology, the Biden administration instead went to war with American energy.
For many states, Trump's cessation of hostilities against the coal industry is a much-needed relief. The coal industry provides thousands of stable and well-paying jobs to average Americans.
Furthermore, Department of Energy Secretary Chris Wright stated, "The American people need more energy, and the Department of Energy is helping to meet this demand by unleashing supply of affordable, reliable, secure energy sources – including coal."
Lowering the cost of energy will have a domino effect on the economy, spurring economic growth as Americans have more discretionary spending power.
While there is a lot of work to be done to undo the damage caused by Joe Biden, the Trump administration is wasting no time in unleashing the American energy industry and empowering regular Americans.
Kevin Hassett, chair of the White House National Economic Council, has confirmed that the Trump administration is looking to replace Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.
Speaking to reporters on Friday at the White House, Hassett confirmed that the Trump administration is exploring their options to remove Powell despite the legal obstacles preventing President Donald Trump from outright dismissing him.
Trump has been unhappy with Powell and wants him gone to complete the removal of elements from former President Joe Biden's time in the White House.
Powell is not in alignment with Trump's goals and has refused to cooperate with the White House on economic policy.
Speaking to reporters, Hassett stated that, “The president and his team will continue to study" the options available to give Powell the boot and replace him with someone who will support Trump's agenda.
The Federal Reserve and the White House have been bound for conflict ever since President Donald Trump's confirmation as President back in January.
The Federal Reserve's independence from the executive branch means that Trump has less power to unilaterally effect change.
Trump has gone on a firing spree, removing executive officials appointed by Joe Biden by the dozen. The Trump administration has made it a priority to purge former Biden officials, and that includes Powell, who was the architect of many of Biden's disastrous economic policies.
In a post on Truth Social on Thursday, President Trump tore into Powell, saying he couldn't wait for his "termination" after Powell refused to cut interest rates, which are still holding back economic activity.
Powell is protected by a Supreme Court precedent that has existed nearly as long as the Federal Reserve has. Trump can't dismiss Powell unless he's found to have committed misconduct or severe neglect of office.
But that isn't stopping the White House from exploring their options to get rid of the defiant Powell, who shows no signs of stepping down from his position.
The Federal Reserve has enjoyed a level of unearned independence and weilds an incredible amount of power for not being either elected by the people or under the rule of the president elected by the American people.
Powell himself has shown himself to be a political actor, as many of his stances have changed since the election of Donald Trump. After years of acting like massive spending wasn't an issue, Powell suddenly decided to criticize Trump's tariff plans that will supposedly cost too much, unlike Biden's insane and reckless spending.
Hassett called Powell out on this by saying, "Having everybody that refused to warn about the runaway spending out there, saying, ‘Oh, this is going to be a catastrophe for inflation because of the tariffs,’ means that people need to improve their models and improve their messaging."
Powell is an actor of the establishment and will fight Trump's attempts to effect genuine reform, and as such, must be removed, even if it means overturning decades of legal precedent.
As President Donald Trump brags to friendly media about his recent physical and claims his health is great, the more unfriendly media outlets are speculating about a persistent bruise on his right hand that has appeared in images spanning from October to earlier this week.
The Daily Mail showed several close-up photos of the bruise, which looks like it has been covered with makeup to make it less noticeable.
Trump, who is 78, has not mentioned the bruise, but it was last seen on Tuesday as he presented the Commander-in-Chief trophy to the Navy Midshipmen football team.
Back in February, a White House official asked about the bruise and said it was from shaking hands with hundreds of people during the campaign and as Trump has completed his duties as president.
A British doctor told Daily Mail online that the bruise could be a minor contusion from bumping the hand or from a blood draw.
This type of bruising is "more prominent" in older adults because of "thinning skin" and "more fragile blood vessels," Dr Ola Otulana said.
That was the most generous explanation given, though it was probably the most likely.
On the left, many would love to catch Trump trying to hide negative health information, such as a chronic illness, since it would derail similar criticisms of former President Joe Biden and put them on an even footing--even if it was too late to affect the election.
Other speculation was that it could be from an IV, suggesting that Trump might have undergone chemotherapy or other infusions because of a chronic illness.
A vitamin deficiency was also mentioned, given the president's propensity for fast food and diet soda.
Finally, some said that Trump might have been dehydrated and needed fluids by IV, which could have caused the bruise.
Some of these explanations sound plausible, and it makes sense that Trump wouldn't want the public to know if he had a chronic illness.
There is no evidence that anything is seriously wrong with Trump; sadly, it is wishful thinking on the part of his haters that this would be the case.
The official word on Trump's health according to his physician, Capt. Sean Barbabella, is as follows: "President Trump exhibits excellent cognitive and physical health and is fully fit to execute the duties of the Commander-in-Chief and Head of State."