All eyes turn to California on Tuesday as voters weigh the political future of Los Angeles Democratic Mayor Karen Bass and choose two finalists who will compete to succeed Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom, a potential 2028 presidential candidate.  Election Day marks the end of a rollercoaster primary season defined by wild twists and turns, scandals, and viral fumbles.  The contest started with an unusually crowded and wide-open field after former Vice President Kamala Harris turned down the opportunity to lead the Golden State. Political analysts believed Democrats would have cleared the field as a goodwill gesture following her wipeout defeat against President Donald Trump.   One by one, Republicans and Democrats threw their hats into the ring, including Republicans Steve Hilton and Chad Bianco, plus Democrats Tom Steyer, Eric Swalwell, Katie Porter, Xavier Becerra, Matt Mahan, Antonio Villaraigosa, Betty Yee, Tony Thurmond, and several others.  The first major shakeup came when a leaked viral video showed former Rep. Porter (D-CA) berating a congressional staffer, a controversy that has significantly set back her campaign. “Get out of my f*cking shot,” Porter shouted at a staff member when making a video message for the Biden administration. The leftist, who made a name for herself by grilling billionaires with her whiteboard in Congress, has failed to catch any momentum since.  “GET OUT OF MY FUCKING SHOT!” Video shows Rep. Katie Porter (D-CA) chastising staffer in newly leaked video pic.twitter.com/COKJSv3yQ7 — Breaking911 (@Breaking911) October 8, 2025 Eric Swalwell, the former Bay Area congressman, capitalized on Porter’s collapse in the polls. He quickly amassed key Democratic endorsements and was widely viewed as the race’s frontrunner. But his hopes to lead California came crashing down following explosive allegations of sexual harassment and assault. Multiple campaign staffers accused their boss of sending sexually explicit social media messages and inappropriate behavior beyond the halls of Congress. Days later, he dropped his gubernatorial bid and resigned from Congress ahead of an expected expulsion vote. A fifth woman then accused Swalwell of rape in 2018, alleging the lawmaker drugged and raped her in Southern California.  I am suspending my campaign for Governor. To my family, staff, friends, and supporters, I am deeply sorry for mistakes in judgment I’ve made in my past. I will fight the serious, false allegations that have been made — but that’s my fight, not a campaign’s. — Eric Swalwell (@ericswalwell) April 13, 2026 As polling showed Republicans could lock out Democrats, blue voters have appeared to consolidate behind two candidates: Former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra and billionaire Tom Steyer, who has poured nearly $200 million of his own money into the race, according to the Associated Press.  Dan Schnur, who teaches political communications at USC and UC Berkeley, said Left-leaning voters appear spooked by the Swalwell scandal.  “Becerra is this year’s version of the Biden 2020 campaign. He is a stable, reassuring presence, and that seems to have attracted voters, Democratic voters who are worried about less familiar objects,” Schnur told The Daily Wire. “Eric Swalwell was, it was a near-death experience for California Democrats.” Biden’s former HHS chief went viral for demanding a glowing profile from a local television reporter. Awkward moment kicks off KTLA interview with Xavier Becerra. @CaliforniaICP Full report: https://t.co/UcMXzidzrf pic.twitter.com/OViYkfTg3t — KTLA (@KTLA) May 12, 2026 Trump-endorsed Steve Hilton, a businessman and former Fox News host, has consolidated much of the Republican vote. However, Republican Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco still has a durable base of about 9-12%, according to most polls.  Under California’s “jungle primary” system, the top two vote-getters advance to the general election in November regardless of party. “What he means more than anything else is for Bianco voters to decide they should not let their perfect be the enemy of the good,” Schnur said. “There are a finite number of Republicans in California. The more they split their vote, the less likely either one of their candidates moves on to the general election.”  In the Los Angeles mayoral race that has captured national attention, former reality television star and community advocate Spencer Pratt is challenging incumbent Mayor Bass and far-Left Councilmember Nithya Raman. Pratt, a victim of the devastating January 2025 wildfires, has tapped into his savvy social media background to drive a message of change in a city plagued by chronic challenges, including homelessness, crime, and skyrocketing prices.  They not like us pic.twitter.com/78hducHDUE — Spencer Pratt (@spencerpratt) April 29, 2026 Republicans make up only 15% of registered voters in Los Angeles, but most polls suggest Pratt is exceeding that share.  The top two will also advance to the November election. For months, Bass has stalled at or below 30% in most polls, putting the incumbent mayor in an “extraordinarily vulnerable place.”  “It wouldn’t be that surprising to see her finish third and get left out,” Schnur said. “Angelenos made up their minds about her after the wildfires. Fairly or not, they decided that she wasn’t up to the job.”  Polls in the Golden State close at 8 p.m. local time. Given the state’s notoriously slow vote-counting process, it remains unclear whether races with national implications will be called Tuesday night. “California has become the leader of the resistance. In a deeply divided country, so for voters in other parts of the country who want a sense of how the Democratic party will move forward in a post-Trump era, this could be very valuable of early indicators,” Schnur said.

A Sikh man who stabbed an innocent teen to death in the United Kingdom over a bogus racism claim was convicted on Monday and sentenced to life in prison with a minimum term of 21 years. Vickrum Digwa killed 18-year-old Henry Nowak on December 3, 2025, as Nowak was walking back to his dorm in Southampton — a city about 80 miles southwest of London. Nowak was handcuffed by authorities as he lay dying on the ground over a bogus racism claim made by his murderer. While Britain has strict laws on carrying knives in public, Digwa was permitted to carry his “ceremonial blade” because of his Sikh heritage. When police first arrived on scene that December night, Digwa told authorities Nowak racially abused him and Digwa acted in self-defense. Incredibly, authorities arrested the bloodied, dying teen as he was bleeding on the ground even though Nowak reportedly told them he had been stabbed and couldn’t breathe. Nowak was told he was under arrest for assault just before he died.

The Texas man who authorities say threatened to bomb an upcoming Turning Point USA event left behind an extensive online footprint filled with anti-MAGA rhetoric and months of fixation on Erika Kirk. Jacob Wenske, a 26-year-old San Antonio-area resident, was arrested last week on felony terroristic threat charges after threatening Erika Kirk and TPUSA’s upcoming Women’s Leadership Summit in San Antonio, including an April post that read: “I know exactly where to bomb,” according to authorities. Investigators also believe he sent a January email directly to TPUSA that threatened Erika Kirk and “every single speaker” at TPUSA events. Wenske was a politically active left-wing social media user whose online activity became increasingly saturated with anti-MAGA and anti-TPUSA content in the months before his arrest. He devoted growing attention to Erika Kirk ahead of the attack, according to an open-source intelligence report from the Network Contagion Research Institute, which analyzes online activity. The NCRI researchers describe Wenske as having an unusually large and exposed digital footprint centered on Facebook — a platform they noted is increasingly uncommon for someone his age to use so heavily. A review of a 170-page archive of his public posts showed a near-constant stream of political content, particularly following the September 2025 assassination of Charlie Kirk. Jacob Wenske/Facebook Researchers said Wenske’s account posted multiple times daily following the TPUSA founder’s assassination, with content frequently focused on “Christian nationalism,” Trump supporters, ICE, and right-wing politics before activity slowed somewhat in December. Wenske repeatedly used and amplified the phrase “Christian nationalism” online — the same language later referenced in the alleged threats sent to TPUSA. According to official documents, Wenske called for the deaths of “Christian nationalists” in a bombing he claimed would occur at every TPUSA rally or event. Researchers also found extensive engagement with online creators known for anti-conservative content, including Sammy Obeid, Harry Sisson, Cameron McCloud, April Ajoy, Isaiah Martin, Dean Withers, and The Butterfaces. Wenske frequently reposted their videos that mocked Charlie and Erika Kirk, often using hashtags such as #erikakirk, #charliekirk, and #jdvance. Wenske repeatedly shared posts that mocked Erika Kirk, portrayed her as a grifter, circulated conspiracy-themed content about her public profile, and reposted videos speculating about a relationship with Vice President JD Vance.   Jacob Wenske/Facebook In November, Wenske shared two Halloween costume memes depicting Erika Kirk. One portrayed her as a “fake grieving widow grifter,” and another described her as a “right wing grifter” with “questionable motives,” “unwavering support of Israel,” and a “dead husband.” Wenske added the caption: “And standing on the coffin of your dead husband while having the VP snuggled up on your tits.” He also shared a conspiracy-themed comedy clip about Erika Kirk with the caption: “If it’s not a conspiracy, why’s it conspiracy-shaped?” Another meme depicted Kirk and Vance as the star-crossed lovers from The Notebook, embracing in a dramatic rain-soaked kiss.   Jacob Wenske/Facebook For broader anti-Trump and anti-conservative content, the report documented posts comparing Trump supporters to Nazis and President Donald Trump to genocidal dictator Adolf Hitler.  Researchers also documented anti-ICE posts. In one October post, Wenske shared an ABC News article claiming Mexican cartels were offering bounties for hits against ICE and U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers, adding the caption: “Drug Cartels where do I sign up!!!!!”  His archived Facebook feed shows he used the same caption again in another post about the alleged bounties that day. Jacob Wenske/Facebook The investigation into Wenske began after a local newspaper shared a Facebook post promoting the TPUSA event, scheduled for June 5–7 at the San Antonio Marriott Rivercenter, according to KSAT-TV. “I know exactly where to bomb,” Wenske replied. Authorities say Wenske also wrote in the same thread, “I can’t wait to be the valet for her escort.” According to the affidavit, Wenske previously worked as a valet for hotels and special events through a parking management company. Public Venmo transactions reviewed by researchers appeared to corroborate that employment history, showing multiple payments labeled “valet tip,” “valet,” and other similar descriptions. Authorities say Wenske later escalated the threats in an email that read: “Death to Erika Kirk and every single speaker there!! America will live on without those scum on this earth. Every Christian nationalist shall perish in the bombing that will take place at every single Turning Point rally and event,” according to the arrest warrant. Wenske was charged with a third-degree felony count of making a terroristic threat. His bond was set at $120,000. The affidavit states that the threats resulted in a “substantial alteration of security operations” for the TPUSA event, including deploying additional uniformed police officers, bomb-sniffing dogs, increasing private security staffing, and other measures that caused “operational disruption and significant monetary expense to the victim venue.”

Somewhere today in America, erstwhile CBS anchorman Scott Pelley is chewing the living hell out of the arm of his glasses in a bout of uncontained fury at the way his bosses are fixing 60 Minutes. Pelley, infamously the most anti-Trump anchor in television history (quite the accomplishment, considering George Stephanopoulos exists), went on a loud, unprofessional rant during a meeting. This memorable moment, sure to be enshrined with a shiny plaque, was reported with glee by reporters at The New York Times, The Guardian, and Puck – who had to work hard to get audio Pelley clearly wanted leaked. Pelley’s spittle-flecked invective against CBS boss Bari Weiss and new 60 Minutes executive producer Nick Bilton included referring to a list of recent firings as “Black Thursday,” as if letting go a list of hacks on a show that survives only based on the fact that it follows the National Football League was a date to be noted in the annals of history. “She’s murdering 60 Minutes! … She does not love this place. She was brought in to kill it and is doing exactly that,” Pelley reportedly said, telling his new boss he “would never be welcomed” at the show. “[Weiss] has no qualifications for her job; you have slender qualifications for this job. The changes that she’s made at the ‘Evening News’ have been catastrophic, so why should we expect that any of this is going to be any better?” As a former CBS employee for several years, Pelley was infamous for asking the stupidest questions in production meetings, and now he clearly wants the award for “big loud speech that establishes exactly why you’re not a newsman and hopefully gets you a severance package that can help stand up your new Substack.” What inquiring minds want to know is: Did Pelley walk in already twirling his glasses, or did he wait til he got rolling? Scott Pelley rolling into that Bari meeting so hyped he drops his glasses pic.twitter.com/jjkjLQHtBC — Benjamin Domenech (@bdomenech) June 1, 2026 Here’s the real thing that bothers Scott Pelley: the era of the pompous Democrat television anchor is over. That role is filled by John Oliver and Jimmy Kimmel, and was formerly filled in his own house by Stephen Colbert. People don’t want a newsreader who lectures them simply by virtue of their ability to read a prompter. And they certainly don’t want that type of lecture from people who clearly hate half the country they’re reporting on every night. I don’t know if what Bari Weiss is doing to CBS is going to work. Television is hard – I’ve been in it just as a commentator and contributor for a decade and a half, and I’m still learning. But CBS is a network institution with a wealth of internal value if it can be brought out of the dusty corners of decrepit leftism into the present day, and not just because of Jane Pauley’s CBS Sunday Morning segments on the history of the Erie Canal. The people that won’t be part of it are the Scott Pelleys of the world – people who don’t report, research, or find the news for themselves, but read it on a camera and feel like that gives them oracular authority over the direction of the world behind the little red light. Chew on that, Scott.

This article is part of Upstream, The Daily Wire’s new home for culture and lifestyle. Real human insight and human stories — from our featured writers to you. *** Celebrations are so engrained in the history and culture of baseball that the first ever recorded high five came after a Dusty Baker home run in 1977. Joy is baked right into the soil of the diamond. Great traditions and celebrations also include the likes of the “Bash Brothers” — Mark McGwire and Jose Canseco — smashing meaty forearms after a homer, players spraying champagne on teammates after clinching a playoff berth, and even Ozzie Smith’s beautiful backflip. But as the modern game embraces a louder, more expressive era, a critical line is beginning to blur. There is a fundamental difference between celebrating with your teammates and hotdogging at your opponent. One builds the game up; the other tears sportsmanship down. Look no further than the viral antics of the San Francisco Giants’ outfield. After clinching victories, Harrison Bader, Drew Gilbert, and a hilariously enthusiastic Jung Hoo Lee have huddled in center field to unleash a bizarre, Key & Peele-inspired communal hip-thrusting routine. Old-head former players like Will Clark grumbled about it, especially with the team grinding through a tough season under Tony Vitello, and MLB’s front office eventually sent a subtle “keep it family-friendly” warning. But at its core it’s completely harmless. It is goofy, insular, and entirely about the bonds of the clubhouse. It’s simple fun between teammates. Giants postgame celebrations have escalated pic.twitter.com/ctJ6oTdueq — Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) May 12, 2026 The same can be said for the beautiful art of the bat flip. While American critics historically decried it as “showing up the pitcher,” we only have to look to the high-respect, intensely competitive baseball cultures of South Korea’s KBO and Japan’s NPB to see its true context.  There, a bat flip isn’t a personalized insult; it’s a release of pure kinetic energy and personal triumph. The focus remains on the accomplishment, not the loser. When done right, a bat flip can encapsulate the raw theater of sports. Consider the 2015 American League Division Series, when Toronto’s Jose Bautista launched a tie-breaking, sky-scraping three-run home run into the Rogers Centre sky. His subsequent bat flip — a defiant, majestic hurl of lumber — stands as one of the single greatest moments of modern baseball history. It was the organic climax of an incredibly tense, emotionally draining inning. Yet, the next year it led to an ugly, benches-clearing brawl when the Rangers hit Bautista with a pitch and second baseman Rougned Odor took exception to a slide into second base.   Photo by Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images That fight never should have happened. Bautista wasn’t staring down the pitcher or showing up the Texas Rangers; he was reacting to a city-shaking moment. This is where baseball’s infamous “unwritten rules” require a heavy dose of contemporary prudence. Those rules exist for a reason: to prevent chaos and preserve a baseline of dignity. But they must be tempered with situational awareness. A game-winning postseason blast or slam-the-door strikeout warrants a theatrical release; an unprompted ego trip does not. The unwritten rules are meant to guard the respect of the game, not act as a fragile ego-saving mechanism for a pitcher who just gave up a 450-foot bomb to dead-center. But then we cross the line into the unsportsmanlike. Just last week, Milwaukee Brewers reliever Abner Uribe struck out a St. Louis Cardinals batter and immediately turned toward the opposing dugout to fire off a series of aggressive, WWE-style crotch chops. MLB swiftly handed down a one-game suspension, and rightly so.  Abner Uribe with a triple chop toward the Cardinals dugout and Pat Murphy wasn’t happy about it pic.twitter.com/tutsuCvSTq — Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) May 27, 2026 Uribe wasn’t celebrating with his catcher; he was actively taunting his peers. Even his own manager, Pat Murphy, pulled no punches, calling the behavior entirely “unacceptable” and “embarrassing.” When a celebration transforms from an internal burst of team camaraderie into an outward display of playground antagonism, something has gone wrong. Baseball is a game built on the tension of failure. If you fail seven out of ten times at the plate, you’re probably a Hall of Famer. Because the game is inherently humbling, it demands a baseline of mutual respect between the lines. If you want to thrust with your buddies in the outfield, mimic a sketch comedy show, or throw a high-five that alters pop culture history, go for it. Let the clubhouse chemistry spill onto the field. But the moment you turn your joy into a middle finger aimed at the guy holding the bat or standing on the mound, it isn’t pageantry anymore. It’s just cheap.