YouTube star Jesse Ridgway doubled down on his and his wife’s decision to end the life of their unborn child because of a Down syndrome diagnosis, lashing out at those who said they should have kept the baby.  “We stand by it. No amount of hate and crazy death threats or calling me a murderer is going to make me change my mind,” he said in a recent video uploaded to social media. “Abortion is legal. We’re in the state of New Jersey, and you can, you’re within your right to do that.” The video came after Ridgway received massive backlash, including from House Speaker Mike Johnson, after he announced to his 350,000 followers on X he and his wife aborted their child because they didn’t want to raise a child with Down syndrome.  “As long as you can live with yourself and you’re happy with the decisions that you’re making and the intention is pure, you’ll be OK,” he said. “If you’re getting angry at random strangers on the Internet, on social media, I would encourage you to take a look at your own life.”   Nobody is coming to save you. pic.twitter.com/qGNEJLqEq4 — Jesse Ridgway (@McJuggerNuggets) June 12, 2026 Ridgway added that he and his wife hoped to have a “clean pregnancy” next time, meaning the child would not have a disability because he so “desperately” wanted to be a parent.  He said people should “stop being so bitter at some couple who’s just had an abortion, and is making the best decision possible for their family. Just because you don’t believe in whatever we believe in, or whatever, doesn’t mean you can’t still be supportive, and people can’t still be sad.” “Think whatever you want,” he added. “I’ll be enjoying my life.” Between 350,000 and 400,000 Americans have Down syndrome, meaning they were born with an extra chromosome. When polled, these individuals consistently say they are satisfied with their lives and are happy they were born.  Studies generally show that at least 67% of babies diagnosed with Down syndrome in the United States are aborted. Very few states have protections against disability-based abortions.  Speaker Johnson criticized Ridgway’s decision, saying it showed a sick culture.  “Because God made us all in His image, it means EVERY SINGLE PERSON has inestimable DIGNITY and VALUE — and our value is not related in any way to the color of our skin, what zip code we live in, what our talents are, our health condition, or any other factor,” Speaker Johnson said. “Our value is inherent, because it is given to us by our loving Heavenly Father.”

Kurt Freudenberg did not fall into gambling as an adult looking for a fun diversion from the dull routine of life. He didn’t even start in college as a way to procrastinate on classwork. He placed his first bet at 11 years old. “I wouldn’t be tired. I wouldn’t be hungry. I wouldn’t want to do basic things like shower because I was gambling so much. So, I would gamble 15 plus hours a day, just in the action,” he said. In today’s society, there is a smorgasbord of distractions offered to young men. Of them, sports gambling is one of the most insidious. It is presented as a harmless way to enhance the already enjoyable pastime of watching sports. A bet on a play here, a gamble on one match’s outcome there. These are advertised simply as ways for people who love sports to be even more involved in what they love. Whereas lawmakers are racing to curb the damage caused by unregulated online spaces, where kids are susceptible to overt sexual content and bad actors, sports gambling remains largely untouched. That is partly because it has become thoroughly intertwined with the cherished pastime of watching sports. Over half of American men aged 18-49 have a sportsbook account. But it is not just adults who are supplementing their sports with gambling. A recent study from Common Sense Media found that more than a third of boys are gambling before the age of 18. Considering the partnership between sports leagues and sportsbook companies, that is not a surprise. Leagues see live betting as a way to increase viewership. Viewers will stay tuned into a game if they have money riding on whether the next pitch will be a ball or a strike, or which team will win the 2nd quarter of an NBA game. This, in turn, increases the price of media rights deals. A recent Washington Post report found that on average, a gambling reference, promotion, or commercial occurred every four minutes during professional or college sports games. These came in the form of gambling company logos behind goalposts, on hockey jerseys, betting promos read on air by sportscasters, and even point spreads scrolling across the bottom of the screen. Sports gambling advertising is impossible to ignore. The more people gamble, the higher the viewership rates. The incentive to keep this partnership going benefits both the gambling industry and the sports leagues. Of course, it is not just advertisements during games that are the issue in our technological age. The four major companies — DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM, and ESPN Bet — post more than 230 ads on social media every day. This explains why 59% of kids under 18 reported seeing gambling-related content in their algorithms without them proactively searching for it. So far, one bill in Congress has been introduced to specifically address the issue of gambling ads targeting minors. Senators Katie Britt (R-AL) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) introduced the Gaming Advertisement to Minors Enforcement (GAME) Act, which would prohibit social media companies and other advertising companies from targeting minors with sports betting ads. This is critical because kids who start gambling before they turn 18 are 50% more likely to develop a gambling addiction. However, this will not address the broader issue of how sports gambling has saturated the industry itself. Though it’s dressed as an easy way to heighten the fun of watching a game, sports gambling comes with all the same risks that gambling has had since time immemorial. Bankruptcy, loss of savings, depleted college funds, and domestic abuse — all have seen an increase since sports gambling’s legalization in 2018. Yet the gambling apps do not have the same negative stigma as driving to a casino to play the slots. And they make it far easier for kids like Kurt Freudenberg to fall into a life-altering vice. So, how to cultivate a love of sports in kids without exposing them to the predation of the gambling industry? Raising children in the way they should go (i.e., enjoying the pleasures of life, like sports, in a responsible manner) is ultimately a parent’s responsibility. But technology is constantly undermining families. Many children, like Kurt, discover online gambling through friends or social media without their parents’ knowledge. Congressional action would help by regulating who gambling apps can target, how many ads can be shown during sports games and at physical stadiums, curbing the addictive qualities of sports betting apps, and putting guardrails around the temptations that come with making a profit. Kids don’t need the temptation to gamble in order to enjoy sports. *** Maggie McKneely is Director of Government Relations for Concerned Women for America Legislative Action Committee, the nation’s largest public policy women’s organization. On X: @CWforA

A 21-year-old leftist college student is in custody after admitting to burning a cross in Chicago’s Grant Park, saying it was a protest against the Trump administration — an act that sparked outrage from Democrats who initially called it the “seeds of racism and fascism.” The incident first flared up on June 9. A disturbing video showed a wooden cross burning at Grant Park in Chicago. Firefighters extinguished the flames and police released photos of a “person of interest” fleeing the scene, per ABC 7. With no suspect in custody, Democratic Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, a potential presidential contender, rushed to judgment.  “The fact that it even occurred at all speaks to what happens when the seeds of racism and fascism grow unchecked in our country,” Pritzker said, appearing to blame the arson on the political Right. “The threats are real. And in times like these, it’s easy to fall prey to despair, to think that the fight for justice is just too costly to engage in, that the mountain is too high to climb and the path is too narrow to navigate.” Then came the twist.  On Monday, NBC Chicago identified University of Illinois Chicago senior Merlin Lu as the suspect in the cross-burning arson, who admitted to constructing and burning the cross and placing a red hat — symbolizing MAGA hats — on top in a protest against the Trump White House. For decades, the Ku Klux Klan (KKK), a white supremacist group, used cross burnings to intimidate black communities.  “How did you land on a burning cross?” reporter Chuck Goudie asked. “Just it came up to my head one day. I wanted to find something that I could do by myself, like no organization, no friends,” Lu said. “I did know about this historical relevance beforehand, but I didn’t know the severity, how racially motivated it may seem from what I did.”  pic.twitter.com/8VGIZPhP4U — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 16, 2026 Last week, Lu sent a scripted video to the local NBC affiliate, claiming responsibility for the cross burning. In his statement, he made alarming comments about President Donald Trump. “I don’t want to wait till his term ends,” he said. “I don’t wanna wait until he may or may not get impeached. I want him gone right now.” “On that video, are you threatening him?” Goudie asked.  “No,” Lu replied.  Goudie said back: “You say that you think he should be brought to an end.” “I think no, I said, I said he deserves to stand trial to the American people,” Lu responded. Goudie pressed again: “You use the word end.” “That’s what I mean. By end, I don’t mean like a civil war, if that’s the imagery that you’re trying to imagine,” Lu said.  The college senior said he was trying to send a message to Trump and what he called “MAGA Christian nationalist supporters.”  “He’s just scamming people,” Lu said. “And I think that’s a great reflection of how this country works right now, where money controls everything. Money has power over health care, money has power over transportation.”  Even with Lu in custody and his intentions known, Mayor Brandon Johnson said the incident is “a painful reminder of how hatred towards black Americans still permeates in our society.”  The FBI is investigating to determine whether the arson amounts to a hate crime. Brandon Johnson is asked about the guy who set up the burning cross in Chicago: “It’s a painful reminder of how hatred towards black Americans still permeates in our society.” It was actually an Asian socialist’s protest against MAGA. Other than all of that, dead on, Mr Mayor. pic.twitter.com/d8gIM4RCJV — Western Lensman (@WesternLensman) June 16, 2026

The Swedish parliament passed a law on Monday that has the power to rescind immigrants’ residency permits based on their behavior. The country’s parliamentarians passed the “good behavior” law, which covers pending and current Swedish residents. The law targets immigrants who are affiliated with extremist groups, have unpaid debts, or are doing undeclared work. “Anyone ‌who doesn’t make the effort to do the right thing shouldn’t be able to count on staying,” Johan Forssell, Sweden’s minister for migration, said when he proposed the “good behavior” bill in March.  The law comes before the parliamentary election in September and is part of the Right-wing government’s crackdown on crime and high levels of immigration, issues that won the Right-wing party the 2022 election.  Human rights advocacy groups criticized the law, calling it arbitrary because residency permits can be revoked for non-criminal behavior. “The good behavior law leaves people in uncertainty about what actions or expressions can be used against ​them,” said the Civil Rights Defenders, a Stockholm-based group. Under the new law, the residency permits are reviewed by the Migration Agency, and their decisions can be appealed by the migration court. The “good behavior” law raises controversy alongside the country’s “snitch law,” which was also passed on Monday. The so-called snitch law requires that workers of certain government agencies report any illegal immigrants they encounter to the police. In recent years, Sweden has greatly tightened its immigration policy, shifting from being very welcoming of foreigners, including Afghans and Syrians, to now only accepting highly skilled workers. In 2016, an all-time high of over 160,000 immigrants entered Sweden, and the number was projected to stay at 100,000 immigrants entering the country annually. As of spring 2026, Sweden’s population is around 10.7 million people and the number of foreign-born inhabitants is 20% of the population.  The country’s crackdown on immigration stands in stark contrast to most of its European neighbors, which have opened their borders to millions of refugees and asylum seekers in recent years. The immigration debate has come to a boiling point in Britain and Ireland after crimes committed by migrants have gained worldwide attention. Sweden is also facing a massive increase in violent crime. According to the Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention, there were reportedly 769 rapes in 1975 and 10,167 rapes in 2024, which is an increase of 1,222%. In recent years, there have been rising numbers of shootings, bombings, and gang violence in Sweden’s suburbs, which have negatively affected the country’s peaceful reputation.

The suspects accused of plotting an attack on the UFC Freedom 250 event at the White House hoped their actions would “jumpstart” a revolution and were upset about the government’s handling of the Epstein files, according to an FBI complaint.  A complaint from FBI task force officer Christopher Betts alleged that 19-year-old Tycen Proper of Knox County, Ohio, joined a group that wanted to unleash mass terror at the UFC event. The group wanted to target Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and other elected officials they said had compromised themselves by taking money from “pro-Israel PACs,” according to the complaint.  In messages plotting the attack, the FBI alleges that Proper wrote, “I got a possible target Marsha Blackburn is senator for Tennessee” because “she’s taken money from the Israel pro Israel lobby and supports them.” The suspects planned to use explosive drones to drive a crowd in the direction of snipers, according to investigators. Betts said that Proper, whom local law enforcement arrested last week, “admitted to planning with others a coordinated attack against the United States government during the UFC event scheduled to take place.” Other elected officials seen as targets were Senator Jim Justice, Senator Shelley Moore Capito, Rep. Carol Miller, and Rep. Riley Moore — all of whom hail from West Virginia — Betts said a review of a chat planning the attack revealed.  “The four images of these members of Congress appear to have been taken from the website ‘TrackAIPAC.com’ and appear to include information about how much money each Congressperson received ‘from pro-Israel PACS,’” Betts said.  Proper joined a TikTok group called “Vanguard of the Old” in March 2026, where members discussed how they believed the United States needed to be destroyed and rebuilt from the ground up, according to the complaint. Proper allegedly told the FBI that he believed “many of the group members had prior military experience.” “The members of that group stated that they wanted to protect the United States, which they believed was headed in the wrong direction,” the complaint said. “Members of that group believed that the United States needed to be torn down so that it could be rebuilt.” “Some expressed a desire that people who were involved with Jeffrey Epstein should not govern the country,” the complaint said.  The FBI said that local law enforcement first detained Proper after his parents flagged behavior they viewed as suspicious. During a subsequent investigation, law enforcement obtained a search warrant for Proper’s phone and interviewed him.  The group was set to rendezvous in Fredericksburg, Virginia, in the days leading up to the UFC event before local law enforcement notified the FBI. Proper is set for a detention hearing June 17 and a preliminary hearing June 29, both in the Southern District of Ohio.