Most history geeks struggle to turn historical facts into headlines. After all, you can’t exactly write “Man Sails to India. Finds New Continent Instead” and be taken seriously in the modern age. We’ve all known that Christopher Columbus’s trip to the East Indies was interrupted by the placement of an inconvenient mass of land since our third-grade teacher drilled that handy little piece of poetry into our heads. That hasn’t stopped anyone from trying, of course. Usually, sometime in mid-October, a bunch of talking heads and history-enthused journalists discuss the merits of keeping Columbus Day on the calendar or of renaming it. (Even ideologues like long weekends). Usually, that’s when we’re all told how very awful the man who discovered this continent was. Columbus, you see, was a scheming tyrant. When he set sail with three tiny boats to cross a vast ocean, he was planning on bringing Western sins and disease to the innocent natives on the other side of it. He planned the mass extinction of peoples he didn’t know existed. Spices were a side quest. Spreading the good news of the gospel? Definitely not something he was concerned about. (READ MORE: God in the Age of Pronouns: Father, Mother, or Neither?) This is the simplified moral fable that has dominated the narrative both in the media and leftist academic scholarship for decades. When the Washington Post learned earlier this week that President Donald Trump is likely planning to install a statue of this personification of evil outside the White House, it appropriately made headlines. To make matters worse, the statue is allegedly supposed to be the same statue Ronald Reagan unveiled in the 1980s and which Baltimore rioters dumped into the city’s harbor in 2020. Italian-American businessman Bill Martin, who was involved in the statue’s rescue and restoration, confirmed that it’ll be transferred to the Trump administration at some point in the next few weeks. Yes, this is Trump thumbing his nose at leftist rioters. Celebrating the heroic actions of the man who got into a 100-ton boat, braved the Atlantic and a potentially mutinous crew for three months, and discovered the continent we now live on is certainly justified. The fact that it’ll make the right people mad is a nice bonus. The fact is, while Columbus may not be a saint (and none of us are calling for his canonization), he was also not the Disney-esque villain leftist academics have made him out to be. Rather, he was a complex man trying to navigate a complex situation and who probably did a lot better given the circumstances than many of us would. (READ MORE: A Nation That Can’t Explain 1776 Urgently Needs a Civic Education Revival) See, what we’re not told when we’re assured that the arrival of the Spaniards ushered in an “American holocaust” is that, when Natives decided to burn down a Spanish settlement and kill everyone in it, Columbus urged that “restrain and mercy” be shown to them. That seems a commendable response given that it was coming from a man dealing with tribes like the Kalinago peoples in the Caribbean Islands, who may or may not have been into eating roasted humans. In one diary entry, Columbus wrote, “[I]n the world there are no better people or a better land. They love their neighbors as themselves, and they have the sweetest speech in the world and [they are] gentle and always laughing.” A rather odd opinion to have of a people you plan on exterminating. On his third voyage to the new world, Columbus even hanged a Spaniard who disobeyed his explicit orders not to harm Native peoples. Does all this excuse him for sanctioning the exploitation of Native labor in a political concession he made to the mayor of La Isabela on Santo Domingo after the latter staged a revolt against Columbus’s brother? No. Would any of us have done it differently? Probably not. Then, of course, there are the colorful allegations made by his contemporary, Francisco de Bobadilla, which include things like chopping off the ears and noses of corn thieves, or parading women around naked for the crime of suggesting that Columbus and his brother were “of lowly birth.” Those, of course, seem a bit doubtful when you realize that de Bobadilla and Columbus were longtime political enemies, and the former was very interested in supplanting Columbus as the governor of the so-called West Indies. Unsurprisingly, de Bobadilla’s allegations conspicuously lack corroboration. (READ MORE: When Common Sense Went Viral) It’s usually worth keeping a man’s motives in mind when using his slander as evidence. What we do know is that, for all his faults, Columbus was far more interested in using his discoveries and their fruits in service of his faith than for any personal gain. He urged King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain to use the profits of his discovery to finance a crusade to retake Jerusalem from the Muslims (a conquest he believed would help usher in the Second Coming of Christ). His first words to the natives (albeit in a language they didn’t understand) were reportedly, “The monarchs of Castile have sent us not to subjugate you but to teach you the true religion.” So yes, Columbus may not be a saint, but he is a hero. Erecting his statue outside the White House, if the reports are true, is a great move by the Trump administration. And if your problem with it is that Columbus isn’t even the first European to land on these shores, then please, erect statues of Leif Erikson and St. Brendan alongside him. He’ll be in good company. READ MORE by Aubrey Harris: Dear Globalists, AI Won’t Defeat Christianity

What happens when you vote for a socialist to govern New York City? Piles of garbage at your doorstep and no one to plow off the snow from the streets. Michael Rapaport goes off on Mayor Mamdani over the current state of his NYC neighborhood, calling him out for cars that are still covered or stuck under snow. He says the mayor isn’t doing anything right. pic.twitter.com/G832TlUt7I — Rain Drops Media (@Raindropsmedia1) February 2, 2026 The Spectacle Podcast hosts Melissa Mackenzie and Scott McKay highlight the best of communism’s worst this week — kicking off with New York City and its newly elected mayor, Zohran Mamdani. Melissa and Scott discuss the current rotten state of the Big Apple and contrast its governance with that of Mamdani’s predecessor, Bill de Blasio. They discuss the implications of Mamdani’s socialist policies, which could usher in black markets, increasing crime and the cost of living. Also, is Mamdani the son of Jeffrey Epstein? Tune in and find out! Listen to The Spectacle with Melissa Mackenzie and Scott McKay on Spotify. Watch The Spectacle with Melissa Mackenzie and Scott McKay on Rumble.   Image licensed under Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International

In the last weeks of January, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) released his $70.8 billion proposed operating budget for fiscal year 2027. Moore’s budget proposal eliminates a projected shortfall of $1.5 billion, but it does little to address long-term structural issues at the root of Maryland’s fiscal problems. Thanks to a lack of fiscal responsibility dating back to previous administrations, budget deficits have become part and parcel of Maryland’s governing process.  Last year, Maryland faced a $3.3 billion budget deficit. To close the gap, the state’s lawmakers approved $1.6 billion in new taxes and fees. Even as the governor’s proposal eliminates the $1.5 billion shortfall, Maryland will still face a $2.3 billion shortfall in the next term, according to a report by the Department of Legislative Services Office of Policy Analysis. By 2029, the shortfall will be about $3 billion, increasing to $4.1 billion by 2031. For years, state auditors have warned lawmakers of the consequences of unaddressed financial mismanagement. Christine Timanus, deputy auditor, told the Maryland General Assembly’s Joint Audit and Evaluation Committee that the Office of Legislative Audits had not “seen repeat percentages this high since just prior to 2010,” according to Maryland Matters. Each year, state auditors compile reports detailing mismanagement and potential abuse. Last August, an audit by the Maryland General Assembly identified $400 million in questionable office leases that should have raised alarms about possible misuse of funds. In a report issued last December, the Office of Legislative Audits tried once again to draw attention to “underlying systemic deficiencies” in the accounting methods of eight state agencies. These agencies “collectively accounted for approximately $18.1 billion,” or 91 percent of the state’s $20 billion in federal fund expenditures in fiscal year 2025. Notably, auditors identified $3.44 billion in federal funds owed to the state. The Office of Legislative Audits reports that the agencies “either had not received” or “could not document receipt” of the funds owed, potentially shifting the cost burden to the state’s taxpayers. In a statement to The American Spectator, Rhyan Lake, a senior communications strategist in the governor’s office, said Moore is “acting without delay to address structural issues within this state’s longstanding accounting processes.” Lake described the risk of not recovering anticipated funds as “low.” The American Spectator had not received a response from state Sen. Shelly Hettleman (D-Baltimore County) and Delegate Jared Solomon (D-Montgomery County), the Senate and House chairs of the Joint Audit and Evaluation Committee, at the time of publication. The Office of Legislative Audits declined to respond to our questions, stating it does not “conduct media interviews as our audit reports stand on their own.” Look through the deluge of reports released by state auditors last fall, and a pattern emerges. With little oversight of agency accounting methods and even less accountability for mismanagement, state agencies have all but abandoned fiscal responsibility. In August of last year, a report on the State Highway Administration found the agency “knowingly charged” $358 million in federal funds on “unauthorized expenses” in an attempt to hide a deficit in the State’s Transportation Trust Fund. In one case, they charged an additional $3.1 million for a project fully funded at $2.7 million. A report on 42 state agencies exempt from state procurement law, released last November, found $8.5 billion in spending by those offices last year that lacked proper documentation and raised questions about procurement practices. In January, the Office of Legislative Audits released its fiscal compliance audit on the Maryland State Department of Education. As in other cases, auditors were unable to substantiate nearly $879 million in accrued federal revenue. The Department of Education was unable to “provide documentation to support the propriety of accrued federal fund revenue entries or the subsequent recovery of the funds.” According to Fox 45 News, in a November briefing to the Joint Audit and Evaluation Committee, state auditors noted that “34 percent of audits had repeated findings appear in the next probe.”  Perhaps prompted by the continuing stream of failed audits, Gov. Moore told FOX45 News, “The directive that I have to my agency heads, the directive to my cabinet secretaries is: I don’t care. Fix them.” He added, “We are going to make sure that these systemic or structural problems are not problems anymore, regardless of their origin.” A spokesman within the governor’s office told The American Spectator that Moore’s fiscal year 2027 budget also includes “$24 million in targeted investments” towards “fiscal management of the State” to “extend the Government Modernization Initiative” and “find cost efficiencies.” Yet, legislative analysts identified potential issues with the “long-term sustainability” of Moore’s budget, including a “significant structural gap” in the fiscal years ahead.  The analysis also raises questions about the relationship between Maryland and the federal government. Owing to its proximity to Washington, D.C., Maryland’s budget relies heavily on federal employment and federal aid to the state. According to budget analysts, “[O]ngoing federal policy changes create substantial uncertainty.” That is the result of relying on federal funds that may never materialize. To become financially solvent, lawmakers must find a way to decouple the Maryland economy from the federal budget. Across all states, Maryland ranks ninth in long-term debt per capita at $17,418, according to the Reason Foundation’s GovFinance Dashboard. In a statement to Maryland Matters, Delegate Jefferson Ghrist (R-Upper Shore) said he had “seen nothing in the governor’s budget proposal that addresses the long-term issues that have created these giant budget holes.” He added, “We are just setting Marylanders up for another round of tax increases after the election. It is disappointing.”

When government grows to dominate ever-larger shares of the economy, and when politicians refuse to be responsible about what they spend, there’s a predictable next move: Insist that the problem is “the rich” not paying enough. Never mind that high earners already shoulder a disproportionate share of the tax burden. Never mind that relying on a small and mobile group of people for the bulk of your revenue makes public finances more volatile, not more stable. No, once spending is treated as untouchable and restraint as politically impossible, it’s only a matter of time before politics demands more, more, more. More taxes and more distortion. This helps explain why wild new forms of wealth taxes are popping up. California voters are heading toward a November ballot fight over a so-called one-time 5 percent tax on billionaires’ net worth, tied to residency on a date that’s already passed. Illinois lawmakers recently flirted with a tax on unrealized gains — think of stocks yet to be sold at fluctuating prices that only exist on paper — before retreating. And New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani wants a wealth tax to help close the city’s roughly $12 billion budget gap. Prominent progressive Democrats have explicitly endorsed national wealth taxes (e.g., proposals from Sen. Elizabeth Warren). Different places, same impulse: Avoid hard fiscal decisions by squeezing a narrow group harder. A wealth tax is not like the income or consumption taxes we’re used to. In theory, it’s a cut of a person’s entire stock of assets (less their liabilities). In its classic form, a wealth tax is assessed annually. Newer examples in the U.S. appear as onetime levies or use a “mark-to-market” system to tax unrealized gains, treating appreciation as income. However it’s packaged, the economic logic is the same. Wealth taxes are also a uniquely blunt and damaging instrument. Across advanced economies, they have repeatedly been narrowed or even repealed after delivering disappointing revenue, tax avoidance, capital flight, and costly administrative battles. The international record is decisively negative no matter what convoluted arguments their supporters want to use in America. Start with the claim that “the rich have the money to pay it.” Most large fortunes are not sitting in piles of idle cash. They are ownership stakes in operating businesses and other productive investments already taxed through income, capital gains, and corporate taxes. Wealth taxes layer in additional levies, which, among other things, function like highly confiscatory effective tax rates on normal investment returns. This is especially true in low-growth environments and when stacked on top of already high federal, state, and local taxes. Therefore, claims that wealth taxes “only hit billionaires” don’t hold water, either. That’s not how economics works. Reducing returns on saving and investment means that over time, the wealthy invest less — and we need them to invest. The harm, including slower productivity and wage growth, may be spread out in myriad ways across the economy. But it’s real. In other words, a policy that makes it more expensive to build, scale, and keep businesses in a jurisdiction does not stop with the people writing the checks. Rich people and their money are mobile. Workers are not, and they ultimately pay a high price through fewer opportunities and lower pay. Then there are the claims that taxes like the one proposed in California are a “onetime” thing. This misleading framing solves nothing. A tax hinging on residency at a particular moment creates a coordination problem for the state by encouraging the wealthy to leave — perhaps permanently — and business decisions to be made based on tax strategy rather than consumer needs. In a system already dependent on a small number of taxpayers, losing even a handful can wipe out projected revenue. The effect is magnified because billionaire wealth is often illiquid. Paying the tax typically requires selling assets or borrowing against them, triggering capital gains taxes, leverage risks, and further distortions. It helps explain why some high-net-worth individuals have already left states like California while others openly posture to exit if these proposals pass. What comes next is predictable. When wealth tax revenue falls short — and it will — policymakers will expand the taxes rather than cut spending. A “onetime” levy applied to billionaires or millionaires makes its way to far lower net worths. Rates rise. What begins as a narrow, exceptional measure becomes more permanent for more people, justified at each step by the same fiscal desperation that produced a proven failure of a policy in the first place. Only then will the taxman relent. Europe’s wealth taxes proved long-term failures, and only a handful remain. Californians, consider yourselves warned. Wealth taxes are not a solution to a broken fiscal culture; they’re a symptom that treats spending growth as inevitable and responsibility as optional. Policymakers calling for more durable finances and real upward mobility can fecklessly blame the rich or do the real, hard work: Control spending growth, broaden tax bases, and foster stable, pro-investment environments. Veronique de Rugy is the George Gibbs Chair in Political Economy and a senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. To find out more about Veronique de Rugy and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate webpage at www.creators.com. COPYRIGHT 2026 CREATORS.COM

from PressForTruth: TRUTH LIVES on at https://sgtreport.tv/

from SGT Report: The US federal ‘government’ in Washington DC is a con job, a ruse, a corporate entity designed specifically to extract the maximum amount of wealth from its unknowing ‘citizens’. With the new Epstein emails being completely IGNORED by the mainstream whore media AND the FBI it has never been more clear: YOU […]

by Martin Armstrong, Armstrong Economics: I have often received emails asking why I did not want to become a lawyer. The rule of law has no true validity. It is applied without reason and often technically. The law is NEVER applied with reason. A high-profile case that mirrors this scenario is that of Genarlow Wilson in Georgia. In 2003, at […]

This is just hilarious. A Los Angeles law firm is now trolling liberal pop star Billie Eilish by offering to evict her from her $3 million mansion, which is situated on the ancestral lands of the Tongva tribe. Take a look at this: LA law firm offers to evict Billie Eilish from her mansion on behalf of the Tongva tribe. “Eilish’s admission that she lives on stolen land gives the tribe a rightful action for possession as the true owner of the property. The 30-day notice is already written and ready to be… pic.twitter.com/GKITE42yqa — Oli London (@OliLondonTV) February 4, 2026 LA law firm offers to evict Billie Eilish from her mansion on behalf of the Tongva tribe. “Eilish’s admission that she lives on stolen land gives the tribe a rightful action for possession as the true owner of the property. The 30-day notice is already written and ready to be served. Sinai Law Firm says that Eilish has admitted that she’s living on “stolen land.” So, it’s only fair to return it to the rightful owners! Here’s the original post: Eilish’s admission that she lives on stolen land gives the tribe a rightful action for possession as the true owner of the property. The 30-day notice is already written and ready to be served. — Real Estate Lawyer (@SinaiLawFirm) February 4, 2026 In a follow-up post, Sinai Law Firm confirmed that it is a troll post meant to point out Eilish’s virtue-signalling and hypocrisy: On a more serious note, using a phrase like “stolen land” has meaning and actual implications in the real world. Both Santa Monica and W Hollywood city council meetings each start with land acknowledgements that they are sitting on stolen land. We have county supervisors reciting… https://t.co/tM3b9yOTro — Real Estate Lawyer (@SinaiLawFirm) February 4, 2026 On a more serious note, using a phrase like “stolen land” has meaning and actual implications in the real world. Both Santa Monica and W Hollywood city council meetings each start with land acknowledgements that they are sitting on stolen land. We have county supervisors reciting those lines too. It’s both empty virtue signaling and used as a weapon at the same time. It’s empty because no elected official is giving the land back to the tongva just like Billie eilish is not going to get evicted nor will she give her house back. It’s used as a political weapon to attack ‘things one side doesn’t like’ in both local and international politics, and worse, justifying political violence. No land is stolen, just taken. I don’t make the rules, that’s the way history works. For some background, Billie Eilish won Song of the Year at this year’s Grammys. Instead of gracefully accepting the award, she went off on a nonsense speech about how illegal aliens don’t really exist because we are all living on “stolen land.” For reference, here’s that clip: BREAKING – LA law firm Sinai Law, the top eviction firm in the county, is now offering its services pro bono to the Tongva Tribe to evict Billie Eilish from her $14 million LA home, stating her admission that she lives on stolen land gives the tribe the right to the property. pic.twitter.com/7wdNC4tOTu — Right Angle News Network (@Rightanglenews) February 4, 2026 But, Eilish’s words are now coming back to bite her. As it turns out, her luxurious mansion was built on land belonging to the indigenous natives of the greater Los Angeles Basin. In a statement, the Tongva tribe confirmed that Eilish’s home is, indeed, situated on their “ancestral land.” Per Daily Mail: Political commentator Eric Daugherty, along with others, quickly uncovered that Eilish’s lavish mansion is located on land that belongs to the Tongva tribe – the indigenous people of the greater Los Angeles Basin. ‘She could also graciously host illegal aliens in her mansion. After all, she has the moral high ground. Put up or shut the F up,’ he said on X. When contacted by the Daily Mail, a spokesperson for the Tongva tribe confirmed the singer’s home does in fact sit on its ‘ancestral land.’ ‘We appreciate the opportunity to provide clarity regarding the recent comments made by Billie Eilish. ‘As the First People of the greater Los Angeles basin, we do understand that her home is situated in our ancestral land,’ they stated, adding that the A-lister has not reached out to the tribe herself. ‘Eilish has not contacted our tribe directly regarding her property, we do value the instance when Public Figures provide visibility to the true history of this country,’ the spokesperson continued. Additionally, the tribe said they have contacted Eilish’s team ‘to express our appreciation for her comments.’ ‘It is our hope that in future discussions, the tribe can explicitly be referenced to ensure the public understands that the greater Los Angeles basin remains Gabrieleno Tongva territory,’ they added. If she was authentic and actually believed what she was saying, then Eilish should give away her home and the land it was built on back to those it was “stolen” from. But, of course, she won’t do that. She won’t even implement “open border” policies at her own home. Hilariously, a reporter went to Eilish’s mansion to see if he would be let in. He was greeted with tons of security measures, including tall gates and cameras. Watch this: LMFAO A reporter just rolled up to Billie Eilish’s LA mansion, the one SHE says is built on “stolen land” and it’s pure gold! Massive gates, security cameras, tall fences, thick hedges, all keeping people OUT. Reporter: “I thought Billie didn’t believe in borders… but… pic.twitter.com/nRxTwXkfUa — Gunther Eagleman (@GuntherEagleman) February 4, 2026 LMFAO A reporter just rolled up to Billie Eilish’s LA mansion, the one SHE says is built on “stolen land” and it’s pure gold! Massive gates, security cameras, tall fences, thick hedges, all keeping people OUT. Reporter: “I thought Billie didn’t believe in borders… but according to the driveway, Billie DOES believe in borders!” “Let us in, Billie! This is stolen land, we think we should be given access to your quite lovely mansion.” Lights are on, someone’s home, but the “open borders” queen has Fort Knox-level security. Hypocrisy level: MAXIMUM! Rules for me, and not for thee… What a hypocrite!

The trial of the man who attempted to assassinate President Trump is now over. On Wednesday afternoon, Ryan Routh, the man who was convicted of attempting to assassinate President Trump, was given a life sentence. Routh was previously convicted of attempting to assassinate President Trump in 2024. Axios reported further details on the judge’s ruling: Ryan Routh, the man found guilty of trying to assassinate President Trump at his Florida golf course ahead of the 2024 election, was sentenced to life in prison Wednesday, according to multiple reports. Routh’s attempt on Trump’s life — the second in the span of months — was a part of a series of high-profile incidents of political violence that rocked the country. Prosecutors asked U.S. District Court Judge Aileen Cannon for a life sentence. “Routh’s crimes undeniably warrant a life sentence—he took steps over the course of months to assassinate a major Presidential candidate, demonstrated the will to kill anybody in the way, and has since expressed neither regret nor remorse to his victims,” the government argued. Catch up quick: A jury convicted Routh last September, roughly a year after a Secret Service agent spotted him pointing a gun through the tree line at one of the president’s golf courses. Prosecutors said he “plotted painstakingly” to kill Trump but was thwarted by an agent who noticed him before he could fire a shot. At trial, they cited Routh’s lengthy travel to South Florida, research about Trump’s whereabouts and a handwritten letter that stated “this was an assassination attempt on Donald Trump,” among other evidence. Fox News broke the story: BREAKING: Wannabe Trump assassin Ryan Routh has officially been sentenced to LIFE IN PRISON Enjoying rotting in solitary, scumbag. Trump is your President, and you’ll spend the rest of your miserable life in a cage. pic.twitter.com/S06PQqfNUJ — Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) February 4, 2026 Last year, when Routh was found guilty, ABC News reported Routh attempted to stab himself in the neck: Ryan Routh, the man accused of trying to assassinate Donald Trump on Trump’s West Palm Beach golf course last year, was found guilty Tuesday on all five counts he faced. He was forcibly removed from the courtroom in a chaotic scene following the reading of the verdict after he tried to stab himself in the neck with a pen. A source said the pen Routh had access to is specially designed not to injure, so it only left bruises or marks on his neck and he was not injured. Friend of Ryan Routh who testified in his defense says Routh did what he ‘thought was right’ Four armed marshals surrounded Routh, who appeared to stand once the jury left the courtroom. Routh was then walked out of the courtroom. Sara Routh, his daughter seated in the courtroom, shouted, “Dad, I love you. Don’t do anything. I will get you out.”