Flotsam and Jetsam - Another Death in Minneapolis

Well, so far, for us, Snowmaggedopacolypse 2026 (aka Winter Storm Fern) is going about as expected. It began snowing late last night, and by this morning we had about 3 inches of powdery snow, so loose it slide down between the deck boards. Around daybreak, it turned to sleet, and it is beating down the snow, but not as yet, contributing a whole lot of mass. The birds are going nuts at the feeder, and one Junco even figured out how to use it (they much prefer to take the food off a flat surface like the deck.) We're hoping it stays as sleet, and doesn't turn to freezing rain.

Yesterday was another tragic day in Minneapolis. An anti-ICE 'protester' tried to interfere with the arrest of an illegal alien criminal, got into a scuffle with Border Patrol agents, and ended up shot to death. He was apparently carrying a semi-auto pistol with two full magazines. It turns out, that he was a legal concealed carry license holder, but was not carrying ID. Agents claim they tried to disarm him, but in the brawl, he was shot. Videos exist, of course, but to me, they don't show much. One theory is that his gun fell to the ground, discharged, and started the shooting. I dunno. Dave Strom at Hat Hair, Another Shooting in Minneapolis at ICE Arrest; Clashes Begin; Rioting. Virginian-Pilot, Police chief calls for calm after a man is shot and killed during Minneapolis immigration crackdown. Jen O'Connell at RedState, Minneapolis ICU Nurse Identified As the Man Shot Saturday by Border Patrol Agents. CBS News @CBSNews, "The 37-year-old Minnesota resident, who was shot by federal authorities in Minneapolis Saturday morning, was identified as Alex Pretti, who worked as an ICU nurse. CBS News Minnesota reporter Jonah Kaplan reports Pretti worked for Veteran Affairs." Matt Vespa at TownHall The Anti-ICE Signal Chat in Minneapolis Has Reportedly Been Infiltrated...and *That* Name Looks Familiar (Alex Pretti) and hears Border Patrol Does Not Mince Words With Their Statement About the Recent Shooting in Minneapolis. Sundance at CTH hosts Border Patrol Commander Greg Bovino Holds a Press Conference to Discuss a Shooting During ICE Operations and DHS Secretary Kristi Noem Holds a Press Conference to Discuss Ongoing Minnesota Insurrection. Dave Strom, The Narrative™ Is Being Set on Minneapolis Shooting; Trump: INSURRECTION; Sheriff: National Guard. Gov. Walz, Mayor Fry and other Democrats wasted no time in politicizing it: Greg Price @greg_price11, "Tim Walz: "I want everyone to get in the faces of ICE agents and resist them." Leftist: *gets into the faces of ICE agents with a gun... gets shot* Tim Walz: "This is Donald Trump's fault! Get ICE out of here now."" Quote Governor Tim Walz @GovTimWalz, "I just spoke with the White House after another horrific shooting by federal agents this morning. Minnesota has had it. This is sickening. The President must end this operation. Pull the thousands of violent, untrained officers out of Minnesota. Now." Gina Milan @ginamilan_, "Mayor Frey on the shooting: “I’m done being told we are the problem!” This guy is an absolute clown and a disgrace." Steve Guest @SteveGuest, "OFFICIAL statement from the Senate Judiciary Democrats: Federal law-enforcement officers are “undisciplined, overweight, low IQ rent-a-cops.” Twitchy, 'We Dodged Such a Massive Bullet': Kamala's Alex Pretti Tweet Proves That Trump Saved America From Her: Kamala Harris @KamalaHarris, "Alex Jeffrey Pretti was an ICU nurse at a VA hospital. His life, through his profession, was dedicated to serving his community and our country. As so many have now seen on video, his final act before he was killed by federal agents was doing everything in his power to protect his community. Alex and tens of thousands of Minnesotans have boldly defended their neighbors against the murderous occupation of an American city by the federal government. I am enraged and heartbroken for Alex, his family, Minneapolis, and America." From News Wax, Trump: Gov. Walz, Mayor Frey Are 'Inciting Insurrection'. Matt Margolis at PJM, Did Trump Just Signal That He’s Going to Invoke the Insurrection Act?. GregGutfeld @greggutfeld, "Responsibility for the deliberately engineered chaos is on Walz and Frey. None of this happens in cities where cooperation and following the law exists. Debating this with agitators is a waste of your time, for this is exactly that they desire. Every tragedy is a win." Cynical Publius @CynicalPublius, "There are two ways the violence can stop in Minnesota: 1. ICE/Border Patrol can withdraw from Minnesota, abandon the rule of law, and thereby make Minnesota a haven nationally for millions of illegal aliens while also signaling that violence against civil authorities in the conduct of their lawful duties will be successful. -or- 2. Minnesota state and local officials can agree to assist ICE/BP in the lawful conduct of their missions like most other states, can stop inciting their citizens to violence and can stop cooperating with domestic terrorism organizers. Choose."

Valid reasons for getting shot according to the libs

✅Running for president
✅Speaking at a college campus
❌Trying run over an officer
❌Pulling a gun on an officer

— Carpe Donktum🔹 (@CarpeDonktum) January 24, 2026

UPI, 100 clergy arrested at Minneapolis-St. Paul airport during ICE protest. 6 News, Contractors accused of disrupting ICE raid at Hardin Valley construction site. Gateway Pundit has a GRAPHIC WARNING: Insane Leftist BITES FINGER OFF OF FEDERAL AGENT During Minneapolis Chaos. From Da Mail, Woke Karen, 63, lets VERY embarrassing detail slip to the Daily Mail after she mistook cops rushing to school for ICE ‘and tried to obstruct them’ just local police investigating a threat at a school. Twitchy, Not Even San Diego's Mayor Was Having Anti-ICE Protesters Barricade Themselves in His Office. From the Free Bacon, Nationwide Anti-ICE Protests Reveal How Unions and Organized Leftist Groups Aim To Rekindle the Anger and Disorder of Black Lives Matter. "Labor unions, which once helped coordinate BLM protests, have assumed a new role in organizing anti-ICE disruptions." NewsAlert, Chicago's Ruling Class Meet Up With Minnesota's Ruling Class : Chicago Teachers Union Go To Minnesota to Show Support "Chicago's ruling class went to Minnesota to help out their comrades in Minnesota. Chicago's government schools were closed because of cold weather but comrades travelled north to plot socialist strategy. Your taxes are for taking." From NYPo, DHS officials debunk viral claims ICE used 5-year-old boy as ‘bait’ — here’s what they say really happened. Teri Christoph at RedState hears JD Vance Schools Media After Reporter Pushes Debunked ‘5-Year-Old Arrested by ICE’ Hoax. Tony Kinnett @TheTonus, "Funny how right after the video of Democrats terrorizing children at a church went viral, these fake stories about "ICE arresting children" started going up on every Democrat account." Matt Margolis, Sen. Kennedy Schools Bill Maher, and I Bet He Hated That. 

Stacy McCain approves of The St. Paul Three  Anti-ICE Terrorists Now Facing Federal Felony Charges for the church invasion. From Da Caller, Gregg Jarrett Explains Why Don Lemon Could Still Face Charges and Harmeet Dhillon Tells Megyn Kelly DOJ Will Pursue Don Lemon Charges To ‘Ends Of The Earth’ After Judge Balks. Verbal Riot @verbalriotshow, "Don Lemon: "Being here illegally is not a crime, it's a misdemeanor." Ordinary Citizen: "Isn't a misdemeanor a crime?"" Trent Telenko @TrentTelenko, "This happened because the Chief Judge of the Federal District Court assigned it to this guy so none of the Federal District judges would take the heat for doing this. Chief Justice Roberts has got an "appearance of two-tier justice" credibility problem for the Federal judiciary." Quote Bill Melugin @BillMelugin_ "NEW: Multiple sources tell me & colleague @davidspunt that the federal magistrate in Minnesota who refused to sign off on an arrest warrant for Don Lemon is Douglas L. Micko and that his wife works as an Assistant Attorney General in Minnesota AG Keith Ellison's office." From Twitchy, Church-Invader Nekima Levy Armstrong Rushes to Democrat-Friendly CNN After Release by Activist Judge.

From the Orange County Register, DUI driver who killed 2 OC teens sentenced for illegally reentering U.S. Bo French @BoFrenchTX, "You get to pay this so 47 illegal aliens can have kids for free. It's racist to do otherwise." Quote BladeoftheSun @BladeoftheS "$9,114.99 in the USA to give birth, with full insurance. No wonder no one is having children."

Beege Welborn at Hat Hair Randall Flagg Lite Went to Davos and He Got Pwned, Uh-Huh. At Da Fed, Chuck Devore thinks ‘Sparkle Beach Ken’ Is Too Kind To Gavin Newsom. Sundance hears President Trump Threaten to Hit Canada with 100% Tariff if they Become a Transshipping Hub for Chinese Imports and Ukraine, Russia and U.S. Negotiators Assemble with Military Leaders from Each Nation. "The bad news is that nothing much visible has changed in language or action from the negotiations. The good news is that for the first time military leadership from Russia, Ukraine and the USA joined with the diplomatic negotiators. This could indicate they are trying to work out the details on just how a ceasefire could be executed." TNP calls it the Trump Effect: UK PM Starmer Suspends Surrender of Strategic Islands. Matt Vespa reports Venezuela's Acting President Pretty Much Confirms the US Said Play Ball With Us or Die. At NYPo, Trump reveals to The Post secret ‘discombobulator’ weapon was crucial to Venezuelan raid on Maduro. I love the name, they should keep it. Also, Trump says FEMA is ‘fully prepared’ for Winter Storm Fern as over 9,000 flights are canceled.

From NYPo, Ben Domenech says New govs expose ‘moderate’ Democrats’ true colors. "As her first official act this week, Spanberger rolled back former Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s order instructing state and local officials to cooperate with federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement and border patrol. In New Jersey, Sherrill compared current days to the Revolutionary War’s revolt against the king of England, argued that the duly elected President Donald Trump is “illegally usurping power,” and claimed ICE officers represent Trump’s “militia.”" I&I thinks Democrats Apparently Hate Western Civilization.

Da Caller hears Jack Smith Makes Four Big Admissions In Fiery Public Hearing "1. Cassidy Hutchinson wasn’t ruled out as a witness. . . 2. Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy posed no risk that warranted hiding subpoenas for his phone records. . . 3. Smith doesn’t know how much money went to confidential human sources. . . 4. Smith doesn’t remember who swore him in." Also, Trump believed and still believes the election was stolen, which undercuts his whole prosecution.

At ET, Federal Judge Rules Virginia’s Felony Voting Ban Violated Law "The ruling blocks Virginia from denying voting rights for most felony convictions and comes as lawmakers advance a separate amendment for automatic restoration."

Dave Bernstein at Insty, I EXPECT A LAWSUIT FOR VIOLATING CALIFORNIA’S DRACONIAN PUBLIC ACCOMMODATIONS LAW IS COMING: "You can’t make this stuff up: “we aren’t political, and we don’t ask our performers their political views, but we won’t let an Israeli Jew perform unless he denies absurd libels against Israel. But that’s not political, and we don’t ask our performers their political views.”"

Matt Margolis is in disbelief as The New York Times Wonders Why Americans Are ‘Turning Against Gay People.’ Isn’t It Obvious? "Before 2020, they note, everything seemed to be moving forward together. Bigger Pride parades. Rainbow-lit landmarks. Federal legalization of same-sex marriage. Americans' bias against gay people was dropping so fast, faster than any other tracked prejudice, that the researchers even predicted that anti-gay bias would hit zero by 2022. That's possibly the dumbest prediction anyone could make about human nature and social attitudes. Bias hitting zero? Really? Heck, those who preach tolerance are some of the most biased people I’ve ever met. And these are supposed to be serious academics. . . they say they can rule out the idea that backlash against transgender rights spilled over into anti-gay sentiment, because their research shows no meaningful correlation. That second claim is laughable. The transgender movement is absolutely the reason for the shift, and anyone paying attention knows it. When the Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage in 2015, conservatives warned it was a slippery slope, and we were right. Trans ideology got shoved down everyone's throats at warp speed. Children started getting butchered with hormones and surgeries in the name of "gender-affirming care.” Males invaded women's sports. Preferred pronouns exploded everywhere. Activists tried to redefine basic biology and erase the meaning of sex and gender. Schools began socially transitioning kids behind parents' backs. Parental rights got trampled. We literally have a Supreme Court Justice who, during her confirmation hearings, couldn’t define what a woman was, because, as she said, she’s “not a biologist.”"

The Wombat has FMJRA 2.0: One Big Crunch ready for your clicks at The Other McCain.

Flotsam and Jetsam - Much to Liberals Chagrin Trump Not Dead Yet

After 3 days of his not overtly bothering them, liberals and their media arm began to spread rumors of President Trump's demise. At NYPo, President Trump is alive and well after bizarre, false online speculation suggested he died. Sister Toldja at RedState sees 'Haters Hopes Dashed': Lincoln Project-Fueled Rumor That Trump Is Unwell or Dead Gets Nuked From Orbit. Matt Vespa at TownHall on Why Libs Are Devastated That Trump Played Golf Today. Brent Scher @BrentScher "BREAKING: Trump isn’t dead, he’s playing golf. You’re all idiots and I hope you have a bad day." Althouse finds "Vice President JD Vance's... comments about being prepared to assume the presidency in case of a 'terrible tragedy' befalling President Trump set tongues wagging." ""The timing of these remarks drew attention within the political landscape as keyboard warriors started connecting dots to the prominent bruise on Trump's right hand that went viral.... The story has generated substantial engagement on social media platforms, particularly on X. Below are some tweets...." From "'Trump is Dead' trends on X: J D Vance's remark over US president sparks frenzy; Simpsons prediction adds fuel" (Times of India)."

From Da Blaze, DC Dems are furious at Mayor Bowser for admitting Trump's troops are lowering crime. Sarah Arnold at TownHall, Maryland’s Democrat Governor Invites President Trump to Help Clean Up Baltimore. Eric Daugherty @EricLDaugh, " JUST IN: The Democrat governor of Maryland INVITES PRESIDENT TRUMP to send in federal support to clean up Baltimore and MD. TRUMP WON. "I would ABSOLUTELY welcome federal support." Get on the phone with 47! He wants Maryland to have what DC got." Nick Ballasy at JTN hears Trump attacks Illinois governor on Chicago crime: 'Straighten it out, fast, or we’re coming.'

Sundance at CTH, Mexico Is Doing What Canada Is Ignoring – Preparing for 2026 USMCA Renegotiation and Federal Appeals Court Rules 7-4 IEEPA Tariffs Unlawful, Decision Qualifiers and Narrow Application – Tariffs Remain Pending SCOTUS Review "Notice that no foreign nation is challenging these tariffs as applied. The legal challenges are all coming from inside the U.S.A, as multinational corporations fight to retain the status quo." 404Media whines Trump Tariffs Cause Chaos on Ebay as Every Hobby Becomes Logistical Minefield. Sarah Hoyt at Insty comments REMOVING THE DE MINIMIS LOOPHOLE IS UPSETTING PEOPLE. SEEMS TO ME THAT MEANS IT’S WORKING.

At ET, Noem Fires 24 FEMA Employees After Data Breach, "An investigation revealed security failures in the agency’s operations and IT systems." WaPoo, echoed at MSN, whines Trump officials fire EPA employees for signing dissent letter. Drew Berquitst reports RFK Jr.’s HHS Axes $122 Million in DEI, LGBT Research. Will Chamberlain @willchamberlain, "Think about this for a second The CDC is utterly useless if it is not seen as credible by the majority of the country, and yet they employed a guy with massive satanic tattoos who wore bondage gear during a photo shoot as their point person on immunization."

Real Clear Defense proposes Here’s How to Force Moscow’s Hand If Trump–Putin Talks Fail. More missiles for Ukraine, and stronger sanctions. How novel. From Da Caller, Vance Torches Politico Reporter For Deep State Smear Job "Schwartz included quotes from all anonymous sources who criticized Witkoff’s handling of peace talks with Russia in the article, “‘His inexperience shines through’: Steve Witkoff struggles to manage Russia as Trump peace envoy.” The outlet did not include Vance’s full on the record statement, and completely left out on the record quotes from Secretary of State Marco Rubio and former White House adviser Jared Kushner, who all defended the special envoy." Obviously, they disputed his agenda. At Am Mil News, SECDEF Hegseth blocks Chinese coders’ access to Pentagon cloud systems. "In a video message shared Wednesday on X, formerly Twitter, Hegseth explained that the Pentagon was notified last month of an “Obama-Biden era legacy program” known as “Digital Escorts.” The secretary of defense noted that Microsoft used Chinese coders who were remotely supervised by contractors in the United States to maintain sensitive cloud systems for the Department of Defense for almost 10 years." It seems rather obvious not to farm out defense work to China.

Matt Vespa says It's Happening: Missouri to Hold Special Session to Redraw Congressional Districts. One more Republican seat, maybe. Matt Margolis at PJM hears Scott Presler Warns Republicans Could Lose Everything in November. Democrats are mad, to the point of insanity, but it makes for good turnout. Republicans are mostly satisfied, which makes for lousy turnout. At Mediaite, NEW POLL: Literally 0% of Democrats Are Satisfied With How Things Are Going in the US. They hate that the economy is doing fine, illegal immigration is being curbed, crime is being fought, by someone they have been trained to despise. WT has a different take, The Democratic Party is disintegrating before our very eyes, "As things stand, the Democrats might never win another presidential election." Tim Graham finds The Democrats Display Their Flaws in Minneapolis. Andy Klavan at DaWire hears Democrats Wonder Why So Many Men Are Abandoning The Party, "Why are Donald Trump’s anti-crime measures so popular with people who don’t want to be killed?" LA Times, Newsom offers clemency to 5 inmates serving life without parole. Driscoll at Insty, has another page from the ANNALS OF LEFTIST AUTOPHAGY: "Matt Mahan, San Jose’s mayor, knocks Gov. Gavin Newsom for choosing online antics over sensible policies: How about less time breaking the Internet and more time fixing California?" Twitchy says Sit This One Out, Blimpy: X ENDS J.B. Pritzker for Scolding Trump to Be More Like Illinois Students. Governor JB Pritzker @GovPritzker, "Our leaders in Washington could learn a thing or two from some of the best elementary school students here in Illinois" Rebecca Tucker @RebeccaTucker85, "Only 30% of your 4th graders can read at a 4th grade level."

At Hat Hair John Sexton cites the School Shooter: 'Gender and weed f***ed up my head' and Dave Strom argues Minnesota Government Helped Create Annunciation School Shooter. Jeff Charles at TownHall, Police Say This Is What the Minneapolis Shooter Wanted Most "Law enforcement explained that Westman’s primary motive was fame and notoriety, according to Fox News. . . . The shooter expressed hate towards almost every group unmanageable. The shooter expressed hate towards Black people. The shooter expressed hate towards Mexican people. The shooter expressed hate towards Christian people. The shooter expressed hate towards Jewish people," Thompson continued. "In short, the shooter appeared to hate all of us."" Matt Vespa explains Why the Libs' Red Flag Law Narrative Doesn't Work With the Minneapolis Shooter. You can't call a trans person crazy. NYPo's Divine Ms. Devine thinks the Deadly Minnesota school shooting reflects tragic cost of a disordered society — including Dem leaders who lost the plot. Scott McKay at Am Spec asserts The Demons Have Taken Hold of Minneapolis. From Fox, Tulsi Gabbard accuses Jen Psaki of 'hatred of God' after Minneapolis school shooting remarks. "National Intelligence director responds to former press secretary's viral post dismissing prayer after Minneapolis school shooting "We’ve seen the demonic advance throughout our culture over the past decade and more."" Joy Pullman at Da Fed argues Minneapolis Shooting Reveals Democrat Party’s Comfort With Satanic Talking Points. Victory Girls, Bishop Barron Defends Prayer After Minnesota Shooting. How dare a bishop defend prayer. Mitch Berg at Hat Hair VIP, Minnesota Left: Not Wasting The Crisis. At Breitbart, Rosie O’Donnell Falsely Claims the Anti-Catholic Trans Minneapolis School Shooter ‘Was a Republican MAGA Person’. Trump broke her. Karol Markowicz at NYPo, After the deadly Minneapolis school shooting, it’s time to stop indulging delusions – and talk truth about transgenderism. News Wax suggests Minneapolis Confirms We Need to Help, Not Humor 'Trans' Kids. WokeSpy, Trans Activist Arrested After Fatal Shooting of Dad Who Dropped Son Off Moments Before. "The suspect was identified as Snehal Ansh Srivastava, who also goes by the name “Sasha Shakur” on social media. SWAT officers and a K-9 unit entered the property minutes after the arrest. Investigators said the home was covered in graffiti bearing slogans such as “Free Palestine,” “Free Congo,” “BLM,” “GLM,” and “Ganga Gardens.”"

Hat Hair's Capt. Ed says Of Course: Media Freaks Out Over Normal Secret Service Provision for Kamala. "Trump simply canceled the illegitimate extension and restored the normal post-office benefit limitations to which all VPs are subject." Found at Insty, The Babylon Bee @TheBabylonBee, "Kamala Harris Last Seen Fleeing Dozens Of International Assassins After Trump Cancels Her Secret Service Protection."

At the Peacock, Fate of Fed Gov. Lisa Cook still up in the air after court hearing on Trump firing bid. "A court hearing in Washington, D.C., ended without a judge ruling on a request by Federal Reserve Board Governor Lisa Cook to temporarily bar President Donald Trump from firing her. . . Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte made a second criminal referral to the Justice Department against Cook, the first Black woman to serve on the board." At News Wax, Josh Hammer opines Yes, Trump Can Fire Lisa Cook. "Trump has acted appropriately; he is fully within his constitutional and statutorily delegated authority to remove Cook — whether for "cause" or not." Sundance at CTH notices Lawfare Operative Norm Eisen Is Lawyer for Embattled Fed Governor Lisa Cook. "However, the appearance of Norm Eisen as her lawyer certainly highlights the political nature of the defense effort. Norm Eisen is a well-known Lawfare operative, second only to Mary McCord in his high visibility and connections to all of the anti-Trump efforts. Eisen, like McCord, is at the center of the leftist effort to stop the Trump agenda through the manipulation of the courts, ie. ‘Lawfare.’" Sundance goes on to explain the difference between Spygate -vs- Russiagate.

From Da Blaze, Tom Homan says Trump administration has located 23,000 of the 300,000 migrant children lost under Biden administration. A start. The Tampa Freep reports ICE, Border Patrol Apprehend Over 5,000 Illegal Criminal Immigrants In California: “Worst Of The Worst.” Twitchy, Tow Truck Drivers Are Walking on Thin ICE If They Think They'll Get Away With Impeding Federal LEOs. Mike Solana @micsolana "amazing to receive this immediate, public response to press reports online. how much of "news" before the internet was real? to what degree did largely invented stories shape our politics? god, the 20th century was insane." Quote Homeland Security @DHSgov "The two illegal aliens apprehended were NOT firefighters. The two contracted work crews questioned on the day of their arrests were not even assigned to actively fight the fire; they were there in a support role, cutting logs into firewood. The firefighting response remained uninterrupted the entire time. No active firefighters were even questioned, and U.S. Border Patrol’s actions did not prevent or interfere with any personnel actively engaged in firefighting efforts. The mainstream media is once again spreading fake news about federal law enforcement efforts." Sundance hears European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen Blames Russia for EU Immigration Crisis.

Stacy McCain reports KiwiFarms Sues U.K. and It’s Awesome "So the United Kingdom’s Office of Communications (Ofcom) wants to enforce their Online Safety Act’s age-verification requirements. KiwiFarms and 4chan hired lawyers to sue the U.K. over this, and one of the lawyers they hired is my friend Ron Coleman. The filing begins thus: "The Internet is a global system of communication between computer servers, located in data centers around the world. Despite the Internet’s global reach, it is more or less universally acknowledged that the Internet is, predominantly, an American innovation, built by American citizens, residents, and companies, and that the United States has the largest and most thriving technology sector of any G7 member state. . . " Eric S. Raymond @esrtweet, "Undoubtedly, the funniest thing about the current political scene is hearing people scream about fascism descending on the US in one breath, then advocating censorship and disarmament of civilians in the next. Do they even listen to themselves?" Steven Moore at Hat Hair thinks Europe Is Dying -- Are We Next?

John Sexton is scandalized that Everyone at Harvard Gets an A. "Claybaugh recalled a recent talk with an experienced science professor who told her that some students get A’s for excellent work. Others get the mark because they’re from less-privileged backgrounds and demonstrated improvement throughout the semester. And still others get A’s because they were doing strong work before a mental-health crisis derailed their progress. “So pretty much everyone gets A’s,” Claybaugh told me. “That’s where we’ve ended up.”" That makes doing class rankings pretty hard. At ET, Half of American Schools Require ‘Equitable’ Grading and Most Teachers Are Opposed: Survey. "The report identifies five equitable grading practices: unlimited retakes, no late penalties, no zeroes, no homework, and no required participation." Boston.com, Feds investigating Mass. school district over student survey that referenced gender identity, sexual activity in middle school. "U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon called the survey “graphic, and downright inappropriate in nature.”"

At Da Fed, Shawn Fleetwood, Christian Baker Pleads For SCOTUS To End California’s Lawfare Against Her Religious Beliefs. I thought we were past this.

The Wombat has FMJRA 2.0: Morning Glory Milking Farm up and garnering clicks at The Other McCain.

DOGE Hits the Chesapeake Bay

 Bay Journal, FEMA cancels $1 billion for flood prevention projects in Chesapeake Bay region

As Crisfield Mayor Darlene Taylor sees it, the low-lying Maryland town has no future unless it can hold back rising water. Computer models suggest that the adjacent Chesapeake Bay could get high enough by 2050 to trigger daily floods that are deep enough to stall cars on roads.

"Could" is doing some heavy lifting here. At the current rate of sea level rise/ground subsidence of about 3 mm per year, which shows no sign of increasing, it should be a long time before the water reaches the engines of cars. But they always reference the wildest, least realistic estimates of future sea level rise.

Hope arrived in the form of a federal grant program under the Federal Emergency Management Agency, created during the first Trump administration. The Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program helped rural communities like hers to invest in massive projects to fight disaster threats, ranging from wildfires to floods.

Crisfield officially got word from FEMA last July that it had secured $36 million from the program to launch the first phase of its massive flood-protection initiative. “Everything had lined up and everything was in place for this to be a highly successful project,” Taylor said.

A lot has changed since then. Trump returned to office in January, vowing to drastically shrink the size of the federal government. In a terse April 4 press statement, FEMA announced it was pulling the plug on the disaster-preparedness funding, not just for Crisfield but for all applicants and grantees, calling it “wasteful and ineffective,” though without citing evidence to support those claims.

The administration announced that any undistributed funds from the program’s inaugural year, 2020, through 2023 would be returned to the Disaster Relief Fund or the U.S. Treasury. The agency also canceled the 2024 funding opportunity, just days before the application deadline for that year’s $750 million allocation.

If Crisfield want's to stay where it is, maybe they should look into what it would take to prepare for floods. 

At the Capital Gazette,  Maryland lawmakers fear deep EPA cuts could cripple Chesapeake Bay restoration

Maryland lawmakers are waiting warily for an Environmental Protection Agency budget that they fear could cut staff so deeply that the Chesapeake Bay restoration program could not adequately proceed. The full budget release, expected in the coming weeks, will follow the agency’s “skinny budget”—essentially a broad budget outline — unveiled in early May and proposed cutting more than half of the agency’s $9.1 billion budget. The Trump administration’s EPA budget request for the 2026 federal fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1, was for $4.2 billion.

“I don’t know how we actually implement the Bay program — even it’s fully funded, which I have no reason to believe it will be when we get the final details — when we’ve taken a chainsaw to staffing,” Rep. Sarah Elfreth, a Maryland Democrat, said in an interview Tuesday.

EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin told Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen during a Senate Appropriations hearing last week that he supported the bay program, which is currently funded at $92 million a year. “The Chesapeake Bay Program is an amazing program. Our team takes great pride in running it,” Zeldin said in response to Van Hollen’s questions.

There's no government program that couldn't benefit from a 20% cut, some much more, and some should be eliminated entirely. 

Flotsam and Jetsam - Trump Looks at Suspending Habeas for Illegal Aliens

A bit more on the new Pope, before we get on with the business of forgetting him. From Althouse, "Robert Francis Prevost, the Chicago-born cardinal selected on Thursday as the new pope, is descended from Creole people of color from New Orleans." ""The pope’s maternal grandparents, both of whom are described as Black or mulatto in various historical records, lived in the city’s Seventh Ward, an area that is traditionally Catholic and a melting pot of people with African, Caribbean and European roots . . . It’s unclear whether the new pope has ever addressed his Creole ancestry in public, and his brother said that the family did not identify as Black...." I dunno, He looks pretty White to me. Vatican News, cited by Hat Hair, Pope Leo XIV Begins His First Homily in English. From Da Mail, Pope Leo XIV 'looked the other way' when confronted with child sex abuse allegations against priest in his Chicago church. Pretty much like schools around the US during the same era. From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 05.09.25, EBL, Robert Francis Prevost now Pope Leo XIV, Animal Magnetism: Rule Five Papal Election Friday, Da Tech Guy: Pro Tip on the Catholic Faith, Gates Of Vienna: Nature Provided a Not-So-Auspicious Omen About the New Pope, STUMP: Habemus Papam! On Retirement Planning And Pope Leo XIV, Mark Steyn, Conclave Watch: We Have A Pope!

Sundance hosts White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett Giving Updates on “Two Dozen” Trade Deals. Conflicting reports, PJM's Cathy Salgado hears Trump Wants 80% Tariffs on U.S.-Hating China and NYPo claims US weighs plan to slash China tariffs to as low as 50% — down from 145% — as soon as next week: sources. I'm sure we'll hear a new number soon. Eric Daugherty @EricLDaugh, "I’m sorry, but I just can’t stress this enough. Prices are down, the stock market has sustained no damage from Liberation Day, a breakthrough trade deal has been made with the UK, Scott Bessent is meeting with China this weekend, and more deals are on the way. THE MEDIA DRAGGED US THROUGH PANICAN PROPAGANDA for a MONTH STRAIGHT!! IT WAS ALL LIES!!"

Camryn Kinsey

At Althouse, "The problem with even a 'TINY' tax increase for the RICH, which I and all others would graciously accept..." ""... in order to help the lower and middle income workers, is that the Radical Left Democrat Lunatics would go around screaming, 'Read my lips,' the fabled Quote by George Bush the Elder that is said to have cost him the Election. NO, Ross Perot cost him the Election! In any event, Republicans should probably not do it, but I'm OK if they do!!!" Writes Trump, on Truth Social." From Twitchy a BOOM: Karoline Leavitt Drops a Mic on WH Journos Suggesting Trump's Profiting From His Position. Sara Rose @saras76, "@karolineleavitt slams reporter for eluding Trump is profiting from his position: "I don’t remember these questions being asked of my predecessor about a career politician who was profiting off this office." Mic drop." Also at Twitchy, Breaking: Former White House Official Camryn Kinsey Collapses On-Air on Fox News. Another cheerleader turned politician, not much of a switch. I saw that. Georgia has had several fainting spells down through the years. While scary looking, no harm ever really happened, and no apparent cause was ever found, other than congenitally borderline low blood pressure. 

From John Sexton at Hat Hair, Stephen Miller: 'Habeas Corpus Can Be Suspended in a Time of Invasion.' “The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus can be suspended in a time of invasion,” Miller told reporters Friday. “So it’s an option we’re actively looking at. Look, a lot of it depends on whether the courts do the right thing or not.” Driscoll at Insty has a GREAT MOMENTIN BRAND RECOGNITION: The Lincoln Project @ProjectLincoln "Suspending habeas corpus. Let that sink in." Mark Hemingway @Heminator "Nobody tell “The Lincoln Project” which American is most famous for suspending habeas corpus." GW@Whynotgord "@grok what other Presidents have suspended habeas corpus and include if they were democrat or republican." Grok@grok "Historically, two U.S. presidents suspended habeas corpus within the continental United States, both Republicans. - Abraham Lincoln suspended it during the Civil War, first in Maryland in 1861 to secure Union rail lines, later nationwide to manage wartime dissent. His unilateral action was controversial but later ratified by Congress. - Ulysses S. Grant suspended it in 1871 in nine South Carolina counties under the Ku Klux Klan Act to combat racial violence during Reconstruction, with congressional approval." I don't think it's likely.

Sauron's Eye whines Trump fires longtime Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden and WaPoo groans Trump fires Library of Congress chief Carla Hayden, citing DEI. Balmer Sun, Trump’s firing of Hayden brings culture wars to the Library of Congress. From Da Fetched, Trump Fires Democrat Librarian of Congress Over ‘Sexual Identity’ Push on Kids. At Da Wire, Top FEMA Official Fired After Saying He Doesn’t Think Agency Should Be Dismantled.

Fox, Newark mayor arrested as Dem Congress members storm New Jersey ICE prison to conduct 'oversight visit.' ABC 7 Amarillo , Democratic Congress members storm ICE facility gates, clash with federal officials in NJ.Rapid Response 47 @RapidResponse47, "Democrats are screaming at ICE agents simply because they're working to get vicious criminal illegal immigrants off our streets." Driscoll at Insty, SOUNDS AWFULLY INSURRECTION-Y TO ME: Democratic Congress members storm ICE facility gates, clash with federal officials in NJ. George@BehizyTweets "BREAKING: Alina Habba just announced that the Mayor of Newark, New Jersey, has been arrested for interfering with ICE's deportation operation. "The Mayor of Newark, Ras Baraka, committed trespass and ignored multiple warnings from Homeland Security Investigations to remove himself from the ICE detention center in Newark, New Jersey this afternoon. He has willingly chosen to disregard the law. That will not stand in this state. He has been taken into custody. NO ONE IS ABOVE THE LAW." That's so AMAZING!" Sundance, Newark New Jersey Mayor Arrested for Criminal Trespass During Political ‘Resistance’ Stunt at ICE Detention Facility.

ABC grumbles Trump appoints Fox News host Jeanine Pirro as top prosecutor in DC. Ace, Trump Nominates Former Prosecutor and Judge Jeanine Pirro as Interim US Attorney for DC, "She hasn't served as a judge or prosecutor for a long time, but she has performed those jobs for long periods. And she's loyal to Trump. She'll do." Sundance at CTH, President Trump Announces the Appointment of Judge Jeanine Pirro to be U.S. Attorney for Washington, DC and waste not want not, President Trump Announces Move of Ed Martin to DOJ Weaponization Investigation Working Group. From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 05.09.25, American Greatness: Trump Appoints Fox News Host Judge Jeanine Pirro as Interim US Attorney, Justice Department Launches Criminal Investigation Into New York AG Letitia James, FBI Reportedly Reassigns Agents Who Took a Knee at George Floyd-BLM Tributes, and AG Bondi Says FBI Is Reviewing Tens of Thousands of Epstein Videos With Hundreds of Child Victims, The Geller Reports President Trump Appoints Judge Jeanine Pirro interim Head of the DC US Attorney’s Office, FBI Opens Formal Criminal Probe into Corrupt New York AG Letitia James, and Trump Appoints Ed Martin As Special Counsel to Root Out Political Corruption in D.C., This Ain’t Hell: Baseball shooting report “butchered” by FBI, The Federalist: Whistleblower Documents Implicate NARA In Second Get-Trump Criminal Case, NY Court Greenlights Even-Year Voting Law That Republicans Say Rigs Elections Against Them, Texas Indicts 5 County Officials In Voter Fraud Investigation, Dear Justice Sotomayor, Your Left-Wing Partisanship Is Showing.

At PJM, Matt Margolis says Poetic Justice Came for Letitia James, and It's Glorious and Stephen Kruiser thinks You Know, a Letitia James Perp Walk Sure Would Be Fun to See. 

Sundance at CTH revels in DNI Tulsi Gabbard Discussing Ongoing Internal Investigations into Intel Community Leaks to Media Allies.

Althouse says Goodbye to Justice Souter. Carrie Severino@JCNSeverino, "Justice Sotomayor just told an ABA audience that “Our job is to stand up” and that “we can’t lose the battles we are facing.” Also: “We need trained and passionate and committed lawyers to fight this fight.” That makes a mockery of any appearance of objectivity in cases challenging the administration or involving the ABA." Or a lot of other things for that matter. 

From Da Mail, Jill Biden gives Joe 'SECRET SIGNAL' to stop answering dangerous question on The View...as he sports mysterious hand wound. Ace, Did Jill Biden Signal Her Puppet Husk Husband to Stop Talking on The View? "Almost certainly. She illegally puppeted an invalid four for years of his "presidency."" Well, someone has to. Duane Patterson at Hat Hair hears Joe Biden: I Don't Want To Go On the Cart. NYPo ed board, Joe & Kam’s comeback mainly reminds the world the Dems have no bench. 'Becca Downs at TownHall sees Scott Jennings Calls Out Ana Navarro Over What Just May Be Her Most Laughable Point Yet About Biden, a high bar indeed. Nick Arama at RedState, Scott Jennings Cracks Up at Ana Navarro's Claim About Biden, Implies Something Big About to Drop on Dems. Matt Margolis predicts A ‘Nuclear Bomb’ of Damaging Revelations Is Coming for Biden and Democrats. LifeZette thinks Tim Walz Goes Off the Deep End on MSNBC with Weird Trump Military Uniform Claims. He was born off the deep end. From the Pop Times, “Get Out!” — Dem Strategist James Carville Nukes Rep. Ilhan Omar, Tells Her to Leave the Party.

Hat Hair's Dave Strom sees The Left's Piling On Continues; They Want Fetterman GONE. Matt Whitlock@mattdizwhitlock, "You know who else was "uninterested in the day-to-day duties of a Senator?" Kamala Harris. Who never passed a bill and skipped about 50% of the votes. And they tried to make her President." Quote Axios@axios, "NEW: Sen. John Fetterman has unnerved aides with his performance in office, with both current and former staff telling @stephen_neukam that the Pennsylvania Democrat seems uninterested in the day-to-day duties of a senator." And that worked out well. 

Brianna Lyman at Da Fed reports on a Filing: Smartmatic Hid Meeting With Dem Megadonor Who Financed Its Suit Against 2020 Election Reporting

Sundance hosts Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller Discusses Ongoing Immigration Enforcement with Assembled Press Pool. NewsMax reports Trump Asks Supreme Court to Allow Him to End Humanitarian Parole for 500,000 Migrants. Bonchie at RedState hears the Press Wail Over 'Undocumented Grandmother' Facing Deportation, Then the Rest of the Story Comes Out. Bill Melugin @BillMelugin_ "Some context you don’t get in the headline: She had been living in the U.S. illegally for 20 years, has no drivers license (but was still driving), has no identification of any kind, and drove onto a military base where she was stopped and unable to ID herself." Quote Los Angeles Times @latimes "Undocumented grandmother faces deportation after wrong turn in San Diego." From Breitbart, Suspected Tren de Aragua Gang Member Arrested in in Texas Alien Smuggling Sting. Insty cites the Great Victor Davis Hanson, VDH: Would the Left Finally Explain the Inexplicable? "Somewhere between 10 and 12 million illegal aliens were invited into the United States by the Biden administration. . . .But why did Biden or his puppeteers do something so anarchic, so injurious to their fellow Americans? Why cost the nation hundreds of billions of dollars in massive new entitlements? Why swamp the social services of our own poor citizens? Why turn loose half a million criminal aliens and gang members to prey on our own weak and defenseless? Was the idea to alter the demography in one fell swoop? To grow the dependent class, thereby expanding government? Was it pure spite born of hatred of half the country?"

Sundance announces Texas AG Ken Paxton Announces $1.375 Billion Settlement from Google for Privacy Violations.

Stacy McCain celebrates God and Man at UW-Madison. "Today is the big day for son Jefferson and, because of what’s called “diploma privilege,” his graduation from the University of Wisconsin Law School means he automatically qualifies for the state bar, without having to pass a bar exam. However, he plans to practice in another state, so he’ll still be going through the bar-exam ordeal there. Yet, qualifying for the Wisconsin bar means that he gets to call himself an attorney right away, which counts for something as these things are reckoned." Congratulations! Somebody to support you in your old age!

Vicky Taft at PJM reports a College President Flunks Test on Whether It’s Wrong to Celebrate Hamas Murders of Jews. Sundance, Columbia University Lays-Off Nearly 180 Research Staff Following Removal of Federal Grants. Insty reads JIM TREACHER: Kuck Fanye — Antisemitism Is Going Mainstream. "Ever since Hamas butchered over 1,000 Jews on October 7, 2023, there has been an explosion of antisemitism all over the world. That cowardly massacre of innocent people was like a starter’s pistol, and now the antisemites are sprinting their asses off. A few examples from just this week…" Driscoll, LOSING THE PLOT: NYT: West Point Is to Educate, Not Indoctrinate, Says Professor Who’s Quitting. Cynical Publius @CynicalPublius "Here is the subtle point that seems to be getting missed here. This is a school to train US Army officers. YOU ARE DAMNED RIGHT IT’S “INDOCTRINATION.” This is a school that indoctrinates young Americans into the traditions, practices and doctrines of a military formation that is in the business of killing. I want lieutenants who are indoctrinated in the ways of “This we’ll defend,” selfless service, and closing with and destroying the enemy, all in defense of the Constitution. If this “professor” never got this, he had no business teaching at West Point. Good riddance."

WokeSpy reports ‘TRANS Is Out at the DOD’: Hegseth to Begin Purging Transgender Servicemembers in June. Oh dear, how shall we fight the Chinese without them? Well, anyway . . . Breitbart hears ‘Wonder Woman’ Star Lynda Carter: DEI Is ‘Fundamentally American’ From OutKick, Charles Barkley On Nike Trans Youth Study 'Have To Be Very Careful' With Kids and USA Fencing Gives New Excuse For Allowing Males In Female Competitions.

I left a few unlinked at the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 05.09.25. Linked at The Pirate's Cove in the weekly Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup and links. The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Head On and FMJRA 2.0: Hanging In There ready and willing to accept your clicks.

/2025-05-08/grandmother-deportation-wrong-turn-san-diego

rman-health-votes-pennsylvania-senate

Flotsam and Jetsam - 50 Wins in 50 Days!

Paula Bolyard at PJM helps the Trump Administration Celebrate a Whopping 50 Wins in 50 Days! Da Signal, Trump Job Approval Wins Majority Backing, Poll Finds. At Da Caller's Larry Elder notes Trump is Blowing Dems Out Of Water On Every Issue That Matters Most To Americans and Hailey Gomez sees Adam Schiff Self-Own Dems In Attempt To Bash Trump On Economy. Don Surber explains How Trump thwarted Democrats. Breitbart, Gavin Newsom to Charlie Kirk on Men in Women’s Sports: ‘Democratic Party Brand Has Just Been Crushed’. Hat Hair's Capt. Ed thinks  Axios Report of Trump's 'Secret Power Protection Plan' Sounds ... Familiar. At Am Great, the Great Victor Davis Hanson looks at Trump’s Democratic ‘Allies’, "Democrats’ obsessive Trump hatred blinds them to their own unpopularity, making his counter-revolution seem inevitable—and even normal."

Change in the Nuisance to the North. Hat Hair's Beege Welborn says Adieu to Weepy Fidelito - Blarney Carney Is Canada's New Prime Minister. OTP, New Canadian PM Mark Carney Blasts ‘Bully’ Trump. Fox, Mark Carney wins Liberal Party nomination to replace Trudeau as Canada's next PM, "Carney expected to call election in coming days where he will face Conservative challenger Pierre Poilievre." Sundance at CTH, Canada’s Next Leftist Prime Minister Vows to Defeat President Trump and Win Trade War. OTP,  55 Things To Know About Carney: Greta Thunberg Fan, Net Zero Alarmist. At Politico, 55 Things to Know About Canada’s Next Prime Minister, Mark Carney. 

At Hat Hair VIP, Capt. Ed asks What Will It Take For Zelensky? UPDATE: An Apology? Ben Whedon at JTN hears Zelensky apologized to Trump in private letter: Witkoff "The news came as Ukrainian and American diplomats were set to meet in Saudi Arabia to discuss a revised minerals agreement, which Zelensky had been set to sign at the White House before the spat." Nick Ballasy at JTN reports a Congressman says Trump's rare earth minerals plans could spur manufacturing boom in Rust Belt. Sundance at CTH, Ukraine Officials Meet with U.K Officials to Plan Strategy Against USA Delegation for Tuesday Talks in Saudi Arabia, Secretary Rubio: Minerals Deal Not Important, Finding Out if Ukraine Truly wants Peace is Goal of Saudi Meeting and UK, EU and NATO Partners Launch Massive Wave of Drone Attacks Against Moscow. "Each time President Trump’s diplomatic team are scheduled to meet with Russia or Ukraine officials in their quest to stop the bloodshed, the intelligence apparatus in control of the NATO proxy war triggers an escalating disruption targeting Russia. Hitting Moscow with a wave of 60 drones is a major escalation, because face-to-face meetings with U.S and Ukraine officials are at a critical inflection point. Each uptick in the offensive action from Ukraine is directly proportional to the increased seriousness of the peace talks." At Am Mil News, Pentagon denies report of halt in cyber operations versus Russia. Jeff Charles at Town Hall hears Trump Demands More Than Access to Minerals From Ukrainian President, elections. At Breitbart, Trump: Under Biden, Zelensky Took Money Out of U.S. ‘Like Candy from a Baby’. 10% for the "Big Guy."

Hat Hair's Dave Strom sees Another Win for EU 'Democracy:' Leading Presidential Candidate Kicked Off Romanian Ballot /sarc. Sundance, Romania Has Barred Leading Candidate Calin Georgescu from Postponed Presidential Election. Matt Taibbi at Racket, After Romanian Election Mess, The West's Foundation is Crumbling "The populist-antipopulist controversy boils over in Romania, where frontrunner Calin Georgescu has been barred from running for a presidential election." 

Capt. Ed, Lights Out in -- and for -- Gaza? Israel pulls the plug. "Energy Minister Eli Cohen on Sunday instructed the Israel Electric Corporation to immediately cut off the supply of electricity to the Gaza Strip, in an apparent bid to pile pressure on the enclave, where 24 hostages presumed to be alive, and the bodies of 35 more, are still held. “We will employ all the tools available to us so that all the hostages will return, and we will ensure that Hamas won’t be in Gaza on the ‘day after,’” said Cohen in a short video statement." Sarah Arnold at TownHall, Trump Proposes Pathway to Citizenship for South African Farmers After Controversial Law.

Beege Welborn reports Energy Secretary Wright says the US Moving Away From 'Quasi-Religious' Climate Cult Policies. At Energy Transition Absurdities, Chris Wright Moves to Refill The Strategic Petroleum Reserve. Beege, The reason I linked to it is that there's a tremendous amount of information in these five or so public paragraphs alone for folks who may not realize: 1) what goes into refilling the SPR, 2) the damage done by Biden's despicable draining of it to keep his regime afloat. At WaEx, Trump Transportation Department to prioritize birth rates in doling out projects amid declining fertility "The Trump administration will prioritize birth rates in doling out transportation projects, testing out a rising philosophy of conservative politics, and punishing blue cities in the process. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, the father of nine children, released an undated memo saying the department will act on “sound economic principles” while maximizing benefits for families, representing a new direction for the agency and a new way of thinking about federal projects." Democrats whined, even though this would mostly mean black and brown.

Da Caller, House GOP Unveils ‘Clean’ Text To Fund Government While Democrats Threaten Shutdown. “Whatever you do,” cried Brer Rabbit, “Don’t throw me into the briar patch.” But at The Center Square, Everyday Economics: Stagflationary winds? Will latest inflation data confirm worst fears?

Matt Margolis at PJM reports DOGE Makes Another Bombshell Discovery "The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) just dropped a bombshell that exposes the mind-boggling incompetence of Biden's administration. It has uncovered nearly $2 billion in "misplaced" funds at HUD, but that's just the appetizer in this feast of government waste. Here's the shocking truth: During 2020-2021, the Small Business Administration handed out 5,593 loans totaling $312 million to "business owners" who were 11 years old or younger. That's right — while our kids were stuck in Zoom school, we’re supposed to believe that a bunch of their classmates were apparently running multimillion-dollar enterprises. Even better, these pint-sized entrepreneurs all used Social Security numbers that didn't match their names. . . . But wait; there's more! The SBA wasn't content just funding kindergarten startups — they also approved 3,095 loans worth $333 million to borrowers over 115 years old. One particularly industrious 157-year-old scored a cool $36,000." Gunther Eagleman™ @GuntherEagleman, "DOGE has uncovered $312,000,000.00 million in loans to borrowers who are 11-years old or younger. The corruption is real. People need to be prosecuted or it will not stop." From OTP, Child’s Play: DOGE Finds $312M In Pandemic Loans To Kids Under 11YO  At Da Signal, ‘Thank You DOGE’: Rubio Cancels 83% of USAID Contracts. Ace, After a Six Week Review, SecState Marco Rubio Cancels 83% of USAID Grifter Spending "Only 83%? Do better, Marco. #DoBetter. . . The rest of the programs are being taken away from USAID and will be administered by the State Department. This leaves USAID in control of nothing, and presumably, it will be shut down." TNP want you to Meet Amir Ali: The Far-Left, Anti-Cop, BLM Supporting Biden Judge Forcing Trump to Fund USAID Grants.  Fred Lucas at Da Signal, As DOGE Targets Spending, 2 State Attorneys General Groups Seek to Protect Foreign Grants. Cathy Salgado at PJM notes the USDA Cancels Grant to Study ‘Trans Men’s’ Menstrual Cycles. Bonchie at RedState thinks Stacey Abrams Just Dug the Hole to China With Explanation of Fishy $2 Billion Biden-Era Grant. Ace, Stacey Abrams Goes on Allahpundit-Favorite Chris Hayes to Explain Why She Totally Deserved $2 Billion in Taxpayer Dollars, "Some say the plot was intended to buy Democrat votes in swing state Georgia by buying Democrat voters new refrigerators. All on the taxpayer dime, of course."

Driscoll at Insty has another GREAT MOMENTS IN SELF-AWARENESS: "Randi Weingarten: People Are Really Angry, Trump Is Taking Away Opportunities From Disadvantaged Kids. Definite points for chutzpah, as the deliberate amnesia here is astonishing to behold: Never forget: It was Randi Weingarten and the Bidens who sacrificed a generation of kids." Duane Patterson at Hat Hair thinks AFT's Randi Weingarten Flips Out...Over Nothing Corey A. DeAngelis, school choice evangelist @DeAngelisCorey "BREAKING: Randi Weingarten REVEALS why she doesn't want to abolish the Department of Education and send the money back to the states She's AFRAID states will decide to give the money to PARENTS for school choice. "We know what Texas would do: THEY'LL USE IT FOR VOUCHERS!"" Jonathan Turley @JonathanTurley "Revenge is a dish best served cold. For years, academics and reporters have portrayed Florida as a state plunging rushing toward illiteracy and bankruptcy. It was just ranked as the number one state for education and the economy."

Libs of TikTok @libsoftiktok "Elon is obviously over the target. That’s why they keep attacking him with paid protests against DOGE, Tesla dealership terrorist attacks, and X cyberattacks. These attacks will backfire like they always do. We will all support Elon, X, and DOGE even harder now." Dave Strom reports ActBlue Funding Terrorist Campaign Against Tesla. At LifeZette, Elon Unmasks Soros-Backed ActBlue-Funded Radical Groups Fueling Tesla Attacks [WATCH] Dave Catron at Am Spec, ActBlue Probes May Shut Down DNC Money Laundry. "The fundraising platform is suspected of identity theft, credit card fraud, and various other financial crimes." PJM's VodkaPundit reports a Hit Piece on Data Republican (Small r) Snares Her Husband and Vicky Taft hears Elon Musk Dishes About the Darker Side of a Tech Billionaire With Epstein Ties. Ace, Democrat Fundraising Organization "ActBlue" Is Coordinating Violent Protests Against Elon Musk and Tesla "Gentlemen -- start your lawsuits." Tyler O'Neil at Da Signal, Amid DOGE, Most Say Washington Is Corrupt, Doesn’t Listen to Voters Enough, Poll Finds. At Napolitan News Service, 69% Believe There Is A Lot Of Corruption In The Federal Government. From The Balmer Sun, DOGE’s work is what government ‘should be doing,’ former federal financial manager says. Pirate's Cove finds the NY Times Is Concerned IRS Won’t Have The Staff To Audit The Peasants.  

From Fox, Trump to sign disaster relief order putting states, localities in the driver's seat of catastrophe response "The order will establish the National Resilience Strategy, Fox News Digital learned." Matt Vespa, Journalist Summed Up His Reaction to the Dems' Antics After Trump's Address to Congress in Three Words.  "Michael Shellenberger summed up this issue in three words: they got nothing." Althouse, "Is the Democrat message pure Jacobin hatred for anything pro-American and anything that could be considered pro-President Donald Trump?".  "I'm also seeing "Why Democrats Are Losing My Generation/Hint: It’s not because they didn’t go on Joe Rogan" by Joshua A. Cohen (at The Nation)" At Da Fetched, Van Jones Sounds the Alarm: ‘Democratic Party Is Screwed.’ Da Caller's Josh Hammer, Dems Still Can’t Figure Out Why Americans Don’t Like Them. 

Hoyt at Insty, DEPORTATION MIGHT BE TOO EASY ON HIM: Columbia anti-Israel agitator Mahmoud Khalil was probed as national security threat, source says — as judge holds up deportation.
CHASER: Mahmoud Khalil, Columbia University anti-Israel agitator detained by ICE for deportation, claims feds acted ‘unlawfully’ as he makes bid for release. Da Signal, Trump Is Draining the Higher Ed Swamp. NYPo, ICE arrests Palestinian leader of Columbia’s anti-Israel protests, revoking student visa and green card. OTP, Trump Says Arrest Of Anti-Israel Columbia Graduate First Of ‘Many To Come.’ Beege Welborn, Senate Democrats Come Down Solidly on the Side of Columbia's Hamas Supporter and Other Khalil News. John Sexton at Hat Hair has Scenes From the 'Emergency Mobilization' in New York on behalf of Mahmoud Khalil. Kamel Amin Thaabet @K_AminThaabet, "On their current trajectory Dems are like @ 6 weeks from kidnapping some Jews to exchange for Khalil." Eyal Yakoby @EYakoby, "The Democrats have spoken out more for Syrian national Mahmoud Khalil than for Laken Riley. Let that sink in." CNN, Judge temporarily blocks effort to deport Palestinian activist who helped lead Columbia student protests. From Politico, Judge halts deportation of Palestinian activist whose arrest was celebrated by Trump Bonchie at RedState, It Sure Looks Like the Trump Admin Just Outfoxed the Judge Trying to Block Pro-Hamas Leader's Deportation, by holding him in Louisiana. Shipwreckedcrew @shipwreckedcrew, "A petition for writ of habeas corpus has been filed in SDNY. The Judge assigned to the case just ordered that Khalil not be removed from the country pending further order. The first named defendant is "William P. Joyce." Joyce is the Acting Field Office Director for ICE in New York. The problem that the judge is going to run into -- if Khalil has been moved to Louisiana -- is that there is no jurisdiction for the petition in SDNY. Venue/Jurisdiction for Sec. 2241 petitions for habeas corpus lie in the federal district where the individual is physically located because the Order goes to the Official restraining the person's liberty. A Judge in SDNY only has jurisdiction over matters arising in SDNY. If Khalil is being held there, he the SDNY judge has no jurisdiction -- Joyce, in New York, isn't the Official restraining Khalil if Khalil is in Louisiana."

Capt. Ed had Today's Deep Question: Was the Autopen Mightier Than Biden's Gourd? and finds the LA Times Wonders: Why Does Mayor Bass Delete All Her Text Messages?  At TownHall 'Becca Downs says Just Wait Until You Hear How Hunter Biden Is Trying to Get His Laptop Lawsuit Dismissed. 

Tara McGowan

Ace is shocked, shocked to hear that Hyperpartisan Senator and All-Around Scumbag Chris Murphy Abandons His Wife For His Much Younger Side-Piece, a Millennial Who Runs a Leftwing Propaganda Mill That Posts Democrat Talking Points Disguised as "Local News Reports" "Mollie @MZHemingway, Semafor reports Democrat Chris Murphy has left his wife for Tara McGowan, who runs large Democrat propaganda sites purporting to be local news."
"He was spotted canoodling with the infant. Actually the NY Post says "cuddling" but I prefer the retro insinuation term "canoodling."

Misty Severi at JTN reports Gabbard pulls security clearances for Blinken, Jake Sullivan and other prominent Democrats, "I have revoked security clearances and barred access to classified information for ... Blinken, Jake Sullivan ... along with the 51 signers of the Hunter Biden 'disinformation' letter," Gabbard posted on X." Dave Strom, This Is Stupid: Justice Department Investigating Big Egg Over Price Increases. Big Chicken! WSj, What Trump Meant by ‘Illegal Protests’ "‘NO MASKS!’ is a reference to the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871."

The Babylon Bee snarks Trump Demands Investigation Into Whoever Nominated Amy Coney Barrett.  At Hat Hair, Salena Zito warns Pennsylvania Supreme Court and GOP Cannot Be Complacent.

Bill Melugin@BillMelugin_ "SCOOP: The Trump admin has repurposed the controversial Biden era CBP One cell phone app into a self deportation app called CBP Home that launches today. DHS tells me any migrants who had the prior CBP One app will have it auto update to this new app, & DHS can use data from prior CBP One registrations to track migrants for removal. The new app allows illegal aliens and migrants in the US to register with CBP to self deport. They fill out biographical information, including their countries of citizenship, which country they plan to return to, their alien registration numbers, contact information, and it allows them to upload photos of themselves to confirm their identity. All of it is then submitted to CBP, and they leave the country. You may be asking yourself – why would an illegal alien want to self deport? In a statement to FOX News – DHS Secretary Kristi Noem answers that question. “The CBP Home app gives aliens to option to leave now and self-deport, so they may still have the opportunity to return legally in the future and live the American dream. If they don’t, we will find them, we will deport them, and they will never return,” Noem said. “The Biden administration exploited the CBP One app to allow more than one million aliens to enter the United States. With the launching of the CBP Home app, we are restoring integrity to our immigration system . . .”" At Fox, 'Leave now': Trump admin repurposes controversial CBP One app to encourage self-deportations "The Trump administration ended the parole function of the CBP One app." Ace, Trump Repurposes Biden's Illegal Immigration-Enabling App to Turn It Into an App That Urges Illegals to Go Home.

At Da Fetched, More Illegal Aliens Prosecuted in Trump’s First Two Months Than Biden’s Entire Term and Insider Confirms AOC Manipulated Federal Law to Shield Illegal Campaign Hire. From Fox, Jasmine Crockett insists 'it's not a crime' to illegally cross the border "Illegal entry into the United States violates Title 8 USC 1325 and can be punishable with up to six months in prison." Da Signal reports Illegal Immigration Worsens Housing Crisis, Vance Tells Cities’ Leaders. Good point. Nicole Silvero at Da Caller hears JD Vance Fires Back At Hecklers Shouting At Him For Wanting To Secure Border. “I see one of our nice representatives out here actually wants to actually, I guess, continue to flood the country with illegal immigrants, making your communities and citizens unaffordable,” Vance said in response to the heckler. “But ma’am, with all respect, one of the reasons why we’re doing what we’re doing is we want to make [the country] more affordable for Americans to live. That is one of the reasons why we’re doing what we’re doing.”

NPR whines A top 'Washington Post' columnist resigns, accusing publisher of killing piece, Ruth Marcus. Dave Strom, Another WaPo Columnist Bites the Dust "Ruth Marcus is leaving the Washington Post. What a loss. What a loss." Mike Miller at RedState, NPR Interviews, Fights With 'Mean' Greg Gutfeld — Any Guesses How THAT Turned Out? 

The Peacock crows Elon Musk’s X suffers multiple outages. I noticed that yesterday. VodkaPundit at Insty, BECAUSE OF COURSE: https://twitter.com/Osint613/status/1899155552317661375. UPDATE: Here’s a screencap, since the attack seems to have disabled embeds for the time being:  Charlie Martin atInsty, AN ATTACK OF THIS SIZE NEEDS SUPPORT. WHO MIGHT WANT TO DO MUSK DIRT? " X Under Massive Cyber Attack. Pro-Palestinian doesn’t mean they are Palestinian." TCW, Vance’s real message to Europe – halt this secret war against America. Yes, it's related.

Fox, New study reveals 'staggering' scope of how much DEI was infused into government under Biden, "The study shows that over $1 trillion has been spent promoting DEI." From the Center Square a Report: $128 million in federal grants spent on gender ideology. At the Free Bacon, Biden EPA Officials Spent Time 'De-Gendering' Bathrooms and Policing Pronoun Use, Internal Docs Show, "The staffers targeted colleagues who misgendered others with increased 'trainings.'"  Restoration News says Trans Ideology Could Cost Blue State Schools $10 Billion. At Da Caller, Teacher Fired For Not Using Student’s Trans Pronouns Wins Settlement. Cook County Record records Appeals panel: Ex-IL State football coach can sue university for allegedly demoting, removing him over 'All Lives Matter' religious message. RVM, Trans Activists Hijack NYC School Meeting, Do the Macarena to Protest Fair Sports. At the Babylon Bee, Transgender Mouse Obliterates Female Mouse In Laboratory MMA Event. Outkick sees a Democrat Senator Passes the Buck On Males In Women's Sports: 'Let Local Communities Decide'. OTP, ‘Bernie Has Gone Full Satan’: Sanders Rally Features God-Mocking Trans Singer. Dave Strom at Hat Hair VIP fears Degenerates Are Gaining Political Power. John Sexton, Supreme Court Agrees to Hear Colorado Case on Conversion Therapy. Clearly a 1st Amendment violation. 

Toby Young@toadmeister, "The RAF has launched a desperate search for pilots after a secret unlawful bid to discriminate against white men backfired and left the air force with an acute shortage of combat-ready flyers."