President Donald Trump ripped into the Supreme Court again on Monday over its decision to strike down most of his “Liberation Day” tariffs, saying he would continue to use other tools to implement his economic agenda.  “The supreme court (will be using lower case letters for a while based on a complete lack of respect!) of the United States accidentally and unwittingly gave me, as President of the United States, far more powers and strength than I had prior to their ridiculous, dumb, and very internationally divisive ruling,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.  The Supreme Court on Friday ruled 6-3 that Trump could not use the International Economic Emergency Powers Act (IEEPA) to impose broad-scale tariffs on countries across the globe. On Saturday, Trump signed a global 15% tariff on all countries under the Trade Act of 1974.  Trump suggested Monday that he would impose licensing requirements on foreign goods entering the United States.  “For one thing, I can use Licenses to do absolutely ‘terrible’ things to foreign countries, especially those countries that have been RIPPING US OFF for many decades, but incomprehensibly, according to the ruling, can’t charge them a License fee — BUT ALL LICENSES CHARGE FEES, why can’t the United States do so? You do a license to get a fee! The opinion doesn’t explain that, but I know the answer!” Trump said.  The president added that the Supreme Court should be “ashamed” of the tariff ruling, except for the three justices who dissented. Justice Brett Kavanaugh authored the dissenting opinion, which was joined by conservative Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito.  “Our incompetent supreme court (sic) did a great job for the wrong people, and for that they should be ashamed of themselves (but not the Great Three!),” Trump said.  The president also suggested that the Supreme Court might next strike down his executive actions to prevent the children of illegal immigrants or foreigners with temporary visas from receiving citizenship upon birth in the United States. Trump said that striking down his actions would benefit China.  “This supreme court (sic) will find a way to come to the wrong conclusion, one that again will make China, and various other Nations, happy and rich,” Trump said. “Let our supreme court (sic) keep making decisions that are so bad and deleterious to the future of our Nation – I have a job to do.”

California Gov. Gavin Newsom is facing backlash after attempting to “relate” to a black elected official by pointing to his low SAT score — a moment critics say exposes the casual, patronizing racism Democrats routinely accuse others of harboring. During a Sunday night appearance promoting his forthcoming memoir, “Young Man in a Hurry,” Newsom told Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens that he wasn’t trying to appear superior. “I’m like you. I’m not better than you,” Newsom said. “I’m a 960 SAT guy.” Gov. Newsom to a black crowd in GA: “I am like you. I’m a 960 SAT guy. I can’t read.” pic.twitter.com/4Gk0WKbIYz — End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) February 23, 2026 The remark immediately drew scrutiny for what critics described as an implicit assumption: that academic underperformance is a shared point of identity with black Americans. According to 2024 College Board data, the average SAT score for black test takers is 907, compared with 1083 for white students. Newsom, seemingly aware of the sensitivity of his comments, added, “I’m not trying to offend anyone,” before continuing to emphasize his academic shortcomings. “You’ve never seen me read a speech because I cannot read a speech,” he said. The episode has fueled accusations of what Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) labeled the “soft bigotry of low expectations,” a phrase long used to describe leftist rhetoric that cloaks condescension in empathy. This comes after Cruz and Newsom got into an earlier spat over Newsom’s illiteracy. The irony is difficult to miss. Newsom has built his political brand on elite credentials and progressive moral posturing, yet his own biography is steeped in institutional advantage. He graduated from Santa Clara University in 1989, having received a letter of recommendation from then-Gov. Jerry Brown, who had appointed Newsom’s father to a California appellate judgeship. Newsom has insisted the recommendation played no role in his admission, telling The New York Times earlier this month that his acceptance came through a partial baseball scholarship. Still, critics argue the governor’s attempt to downplay privilege while leaning on racial signaling only underscores the contradiction. As recently as a few weeks ago, Newsom framed himself as the moral referee of American discourse, condemning what he called racist imagery allegedly shared by Donald Trump and aimed at Barack Obama and Michelle Obama.  Newsom insisted the offense should have ended careers, demanded public contrition, and warned that allowing such rhetoric to pass unpunished degraded the country. Now, just weeks later, Newsom himself is actively circulating racially charged tropes, of the President’s video, he said, “It’s disgraceful. It’s racist. It’s abhorrent, the President of the United States sending out a racist trope should disgust every human being in this room.” Public reaction was swift. Rapper Nicki Minaj weighed in, scorching Gavin Newsom in a lengthy post, accusing him of deliberately talking down to a black audience. “His way of bonding with black ppl is to tell them how stupid he is & that he can’t read,” she wrote. “This means my first read on him was correct. He’s been handed so many things & put in high positions he never earned or deserved. “Do you wanna know the craziest part of this footage that will haunt him forever? He’s literally slowing his speech down & talking in a sporadic cadence. “He’s not just TELLING them that they’re all probably stupid & probably can’t read, he’s LITERALLY SLOW-ING-DOWN-HIS-SPEECH to make them understand the words that are coming out of his mouth!!!! As if they’re children!!!! That means he REALLY BELIEVES they’re slow. He’s not just saying it—he didn’t misspeak!!!! He BELIEVES it!!!! “Do ya love it?!?! Do ya just love it, black ppl?!?!?” Representative Randy Fine (R-FL) wrote on X that Newsom “just said he is like a black person because he got a bad SAT score and can’t read,” calling the remark “disgusting.”  Newsom offered a tepid response on Monday, attempting to deflect from the seeming racial implications of his statements by bringing up his dyslexia again. “You didn’t give a sh*t about the President of the United States of America posting an ape video of President Obama or calling African nations sh*tholes,” Newsom wrote in response to Fox News’ Sean Hannity, “but you’re going to call me racist for talking about my lifelong struggle with dyslexia? Spare me your fake f*cking outrage, Sean.” For a party that relentlessly polices language and lectures Americans about implicit bias, Newsom’s remarks offer a revealing glimpse into how Democratic elites often talk when they think they’re being relatable, reducing minority voters to stereotypes, then congratulating themselves for empathy.

Some of the most popular vacation spots for American tourists have been rocked by cartel violence following the weekend killing of a top cartel leader, stranding some travelers. Mexican special forces killed longtime Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) leader Nemesio “El Mencho” Oseguera Cervantes during an operation in the southwestern town of Tapalpa, Jalisco, the Mexican government said. Following the killing, cartel members set buses and cars ablaze and erected roadblocks in certain areas. As a result, the State Department urged American citizens to “shelter in place” if they are in Jalisco State — including Puerto Vallarta, Chapala, and Guadalajara — as well as in Tamaulipas, which borders Texas, parts of Michoacán, Guerrero, and Nuevo León. American and Canadian airlines quickly canceled flights out of Puerto Vallarta and Guadalajara. By Monday, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said flights were expected to resume out of both cities, according to USA Today. Some American tourists have taken to TikTok to share their experiences while stranded during their vacations, describing hotels placed on lockdown amid nearby violence. “Flights are canceled, we couldn’t even get to the airport. So we’re stuck here,” one woman named Kaila posted on social media from her trip in Puerto Vallarta. @kailargibson I wanna go home

Actor Dennis Quaid said his former party has left him behind and that Hollywood has swayed far to the Left, along with the rest of the Democrats. The actor made the remarks during an appearance last week on “The Greg Laurie Show” podcast.  “Things have gone so extremely, so far left right now. I saw a podcast — it was Bill Maher and Dana Carvey, and I’m forgetting the other guy’s name — but anyway, I think it was Dana Carvey [who] said, ‘I’ve told my friends in Hollywood I’m a Clinton Democrat, and some of them are calling me a Nazi now,’” Laurie suggested. “You can’t do that,” Quaid replied, adding that these days, being a Clinton-era Democrat is the “same thing as being a neo-con, on the right side or whatever. What used to be, you can’t be anymore.” The “Reagan” actor doesn’t consider himself a Republican but instead said, “I’m a common-sense independent,” who also leans “more conservative in my head.” “I’m just for common sense, is really what I am,” Quaid added. Laurie said he believed Trump was “very personable, incredibly funny, a good listener, and [a] surprisingly approachable person.” Quaid agreed that the president is “surprisingly approachable and very funny. And really genuine. He wouldn’t be president if he wasn’t genuine. The people who voted for him, they know that he has their best interests at heart, that he is a genuine person.” “I’ve never seen anybody with that kind of energy,” the actor went on. “People say that about me, but he’s really got a lot of energy.” “We’re going through a spiritual revolution,” Quaid said later in the interview. “I’m not talking Republican and Democrat … but I am talking about those two coming together.” Quaid made headlines in 2024 after starring in the biopic “Reagan” about the former Republican president, which was yet another film that had a vast disparity between audience score and critical reviews. When urging fans to see “Reagan,” the actor said, “If you were born before 1985, you’ll be able to remember how great this country was. And if you were born after 1985, you can see how great this country still can be.” “He was also my favorite president,” Quaid said just after the movie premiered.