Rep. Julia Letlow (R-LA) is officially challenging incumbent Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy. According to Fox News, the 44-year-old House Republican declared her candidacy at a “closed-door business breakfast in Baton Rouge” on Tuesday. Letlow’s candidacy follows President Trump endorsing her over Cassidy. “Today, I am announcing my candidacy for the United States Senate to ensure the nation we leave our children is safer and stronger. Louisiana deserves a conservative Senator who will not waver. I am honored to have President Trump’s endorsement and trust. Let’s Geaux!” Letlow wrote on social media Tuesday. Watch her campaign announcement video below: Today, I am announcing my candidacy for the United States Senate to ensure the nation we leave our children is safer and stronger. Louisiana deserves a conservative Senator who will not waver. I am honored to have President Trump’s endorsement and trust. Let’s Geaux! pic.twitter.com/4Xm7hzdro7 — Julia B Letlow, Ph.D. (@jbletlow) January 20, 2026 Fox News has more: Trump’s support of Letlow, who was elected in 2021 after her husband Luke died from COVID shortly before taking office in the House, is a serious setback for Cassidy, a physician and chair of the powerful Senate Health committee who is running for a third six-year term in the solidly red state. “Congresswoman Letlow called me this morning to say she was running. She said she respected me and that I had done a good job,” Cassidy said in a statement after Letlow’s announcement. “I will continue to do a good job when I win re-election. I am a conservative who wakes up every morning thinking about how to make Louisiana and the United States a better place to live.” Trump’s endorsement of Cassidy’s challenger creates a major political headache for Senate Majority Leader John Thune, who is backing Cassidy and teamed up with the senator last week in Louisiana. Trump upended an already crowded GOP Senate primary in Louisiana on Saturday night, with a social media post making it clear that if the 44-year-old Letlow launched a Senate campaign, she’d have his backing. “I’m honored to have President Trump’s endorsement and trust. My mission is clear: to ensure the nation our children inherit is safer and stronger. This United States Senate seat belongs to the people of Louisiana, because we deserve conservative leadership that will not waver,” Letlow said after receiving Trump’s endorsement. I’m honored to have President Trump’s endorsement and trust. My mission is clear: to ensure the nation our children inherit is safer and stronger. ⁰This United States Senate seat belongs to the people of Louisiana, because we deserve conservative leadership that will not waver. pic.twitter.com/851hQkXhIN — Julia B Letlow, Ph.D. (@jbletlow) January 18, 2026 The New York Post shared further: Cassidy, who chairs the influential Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, had been spared a tough challenge from popular ex-Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards, a Democrat, last year. He still has supported the president on critical votes concerning executive war powers resolutions and measures to rein in tariffs. But his opposition at times to Trump’s appointees — like Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — and record of voting against the president has rankled some in the GOP. After the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot, Cassidy was one of seven Senate Republicans who voted to convict Trump after he was impeached by House Democrats. The Louisiana Republican had also called on the 45th president to drop out of the 2024 election following the unsealing of the classified documents indictment.

If you’ve ever wished you could be a fly on the wall when world leaders meet with President Trump, I’ve got the next best thing for you. President Trump has just posted private text messages from French President Emmanuel Macron and NATO Chief Mark Rutte. And they are fascinating to read! JUST IN – President Trump shares text messages of President Macron and NATO chief Rutte on Greenland pic.twitter.com/OTgjRkuJrh — Insider Paper (@TheInsiderPaper) January 20, 2026 Here’s a closer look at the messages from Macron: FULL TEXT HERE IF THAT’S HARD TO READ: From président Macronto President Trump My friend, We are totally in line onSyriaWe can do great thingson IranI do not understandwhat you are doing onGreenlandLet us try to build greatthings : i can set up a g7meeting after Davos inParis on thursdayafternoon. I can invitethe ukrainians, thedanish, the syrians andthe russians in themargins let us have a dinnertogether in Paristogether on thursdaybefore you go back tothe usEmmanuel And from NATO Chief Mark Rutte: FULL TEXT HERE IF THAT’S HARD TO READ: MRMark Rutte Mr. President, dear Donald – what you accomplished in Syria today is incredible. I will use my media engagements in Davos to highlight your work there, in Gaza, and in Ukraine. I am committed to finding a way forward on Greenland. Can’t wait to see you. Yours, Mark Meanwhile, here’s how Macron showed up to Davos: DORK: President Macron Shows Up In Davos Wearing “Top Gun” Sunglasses During Speech This is pretty hilarious.... Things are going so badly for French President Emmanuel Macron that he just took the stage in Davos speaking to the crowd wearing "Top Gun" sunglasses. Watch here: ? LOL!!! Macron is crying on the world stage because President Trump turned the U.S. into the hottest economy on Earth in record time. pic.twitter.com/DmeWRwlM1D — Gunther Eagleman™ (@GuntherEagleman) January 20, 2026 Is it just to try and look cool? Another entry for him into the Black Eye Club? Ok … Macron is sporting the Top Gun look at WEF… Place your bets, who punched him? Could it get weirder? pic.twitter.com/m7YaRjgOwb — Bernie (@Artemisfornow) January 20, 2026 Officially, reports are that Macron is claiming he has a burst eye vessel and is wearing the sunglasses to cover it up: OMG. Emmanuel Macron is now telling people that he has a burst eye vessel and must therefore wear these sunglasses inside. Public speculation is that Brigitte whooped his ass again. What do you guys think? https://t.co/Y6MXLTPskD — Candace Owens (@RealCandaceO) January 20, 2026 You buying that? I know one thing....listening to him speak he sounds VERY rattled and unsure of himself. I am hearing a lot of stammering and uneasiness in his voice. In related news, President Macron will reportedly NOT be joining President Trump's "Board of Peace" and there are conflicting reports about whether he was not asked to join or whether he said he did not want to join. Listen to President Trump here: Reporter: Have you invited Putin to be a member of the board of peace? Trump: Yes Reporter: Can you respond to Macron saying he will not join the board of peace? Trump: Nobody wants him… I’ll put a 200% tariff on his wines and he’ll join pic.twitter.com/A3a1fXybks — Acyn (@Acyn) January 20, 2026 Back to the sunglasses.... Remember when this happened? Did he get punched in the face again by the wife? BREAKING: Emmanuel Macron Manhandled In The Face By “Wife” — Gen-Z Shocked! There is almost too much to unpack here, but I'll do my best.... And some of it has to do with this (but I'll get to that in a moment): It all started early this morning when French President Emmanuel Macron once again had an embarrassing "caught on camera" moment. Last time it was his little baggie of cocaine he was enjoying with his buddies on a train. This time it's a hand to the face on a plane. Plains, Trains and Automobiles, Macron is having a bad couple of weeks! The hand to the face came courtesy of his "wife" -- Brigitte. Watch here: French President Emmanuel Macron responds after he apparently got assaulted in the face by his wife Brigitte while stepping off of a plane in Vietnam. Macron was seen getting shoved in the face before getting off the plane as if nothing happened. Macron has since responded to… pic.twitter.com/YeEAwdLcxF — Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) May 26, 2025 Wow, that's bad! I've watched that probably 10 times and it just gets worse each time.... If you did that in the NFL, you'd get a 15-yard penalty, and "she" straight up hit the President of France right in the kisser! Macron has since come out and said they were just joking and teasing: NEW: Macron now says the video where his wife basically attacked him was just them “joking.” “[I was] teasing my wife and somehow that becomes a geo-planetary catastrophe.” Does anyone believe him? pic.twitter.com/piiIfoSicH — Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) May 26, 2025 Because come on folks, let's be real, which one of us hasn't thrown hands to the face when we're just joking and teasing? Happens all the time! [massive sarcasm alert] Do they really think we're that dumb to buy that? Or how about the fake face he puts on after he realizes the door is open and everyone just saw him get punched in the face? So funny, he looks like a total clown! Ok, now should we go deeper? I told you there are a lot of layers to this onion..... Layer #2:  Gen-Z (and I would say many people in general) and learning that President Macron met his wife when he was only 15.   Big deal, right? Just high school love? Except she was 39 and his teacher.  A 24-year age gap. CREEPY! Shocked Gen-Z is only just finding out how Emmanuel Macron met his wife after shock 'shoving' video emerges https://t.co/TWbzDFGi7i — Daily Mail US (@Daily_MailUS) May 26, 2025 Here are more details on the torrid relationship, from The Daily Mail: Members of Gen Z have been left shocked to learn how Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte first met - following the now-viral video of her 'shoving him in the face.' The Macrons shocked the world on Sunday evening after footage emerged of his wife of 18 years appearing to push him as they touched down in Hanoi, Vietnam. The act has left many speechless but it sparked discussion among others about how the couple, who have a 24-year age gap, first met. 'I just read the comments and found out that they were teacher and student, and that [they met] when he was 15?!' one astounded user wrote. 'When you learn about how old Macron was when he met his future wife, everything else makes perfect sense,' one user posted to X, formerly known as Twitter. 'Not just the age gap. More than that the fact that she was his teacher when he was just a kid is disturbing,' declared another. 'According to the reactions of those plane attendance it's clear it was a physical altercation. She was once his teacher and that some role that never ends. It doesn't bother that she's 24 years older than him but the story of their romance will surely do,' wrote someone else. The now French President was just 15 years old when he met Madame Auziere, a teacher who was 24 years his senior, at Lycee La Providence in Amiens. The teacher and her pupil had collaborated on the play The Art Of Comedy, by the Italian writer Eduardo De Filippo, every Friday night for months at the school, adapting it for all the students who wanted to take part. As the audience clapped before the curtain came down, the teenager took a bow and kissed his teacher on each cheek as she smiled with obvious delight, with the start of a love affair between Macron and Brigitte emerging. At the time, 39-year-old Brigitte was married to banker André-Louis Auzière, with whom she shares three children, with her eldest daughter Laurence, even in the same class as Macron. When their romance blossomed and caused a scandal in the province. Macron's parents then sent him to Paris to attend another school, but his desire to be with his teacher and pursuit of her remained. The teacher finally wed Macron - a civil servant in his late twenties at the time - in Le Touquet on 20 October 2007, after divorcing her estranged husband André-Louis Auzière the year before. On Monday, Macron's office admitted that his wife hit him during an argument, after footage showed the First Lady appearing to push his face away as their plane touched down in Vietnam. Ok, that's bad. But now should we go even deeper? Layer #3:  The "wife" is not a wife at all, but a man? Look, I'm not claiming Brigitte is a man or a transgender or whatever the case may be, but many people online are. Like this: Why is Brigitte beating his husband up? pic.twitter.com/d9N1bxXrOD — Joey Mannarino (@JoeyMannarino) May 26, 2025 And this: Is Brigitte Macron a Woman or a Dude ?? pic.twitter.com/tBM4lQvED9 — Val (@TrumpsHurricane) May 26, 2025 I think there's one thing I can safely say for certain without getting into trouble....she is definitely a very UGLY woman if she's a woman. This is not a racial statement so don't bring that garbage around here, but her face almost looks "ape-ish" doesn't it? Very very odd. And why does she have broader shoulders than he does? We've reported on this before. Again, I'm not claiming I know for certain, I'm just saying a lot of things look very "off". See for yourself: French President Macron FURIOUS Over Rumors His Wife Is a Transgender French President Macron FURIOUS Over Rumors His Wife Is a Transgender We've all heard the rumors about "Biiiiiig Mike" but move over Michelle -- there's a new contender in the "First Lady Transgender conversation.... And French President Macron is NOT happy about it. We make absolutely no claims here either way, we're just reporting. And the report is that Macron is furious about these rumors continuing to persist: Macron Furious Over Persistent Rumors His Wife Is Transgender https://t.co/LL0oBVfHAg #breaking #news — Off The Press (@OffThePress1) March 9, 2024 French President Emmanuel Macron finally addressed transphobic rumors circulating about his wife Brigitte on Friday, dismissing conspiracies that she was assigned male at birth, according to The Daily Mail.https://t.co/t5RRz6eLJB — The Daily Beast (@thedailybeast) March 9, 2024 Here's what MAGA Kitty writes: It’s very INTERESTING that this news about Macron’s wife allegedly being transgender is breaking now Who knows if she indeed is but, we DO know that she was Macron’s drama teacher in school and they started a “relationship” when he was JUST 15, and she was 40 BUT… look at this From August 2022 in Newsweek quote “Information about France's President Emmanuel Macron is among the documents the FBI seized from Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate , according to reports. During the seizure of the Florida residence, the FBI is said to have recovered handwritten notes, photos and top-secret materials the former president should have turned over to authorities when leaving the White House. According to a story in Rolling Stone, the federal investigators' inventory contained items related to Macron listed as "info re: President of France."” #Macron It’s very INTERESTING that this news about Macron’s wife allegedly being transgender is breaking now Who knows if she indeed is but, we DO know that she was Macron’s drama teacher in school and they started a “relationship” when he was JUST 15, and she was 40 BUT… look… pic.twitter.com/7CfEm3gP3L — MAGA Kitty (@SaveUSAKitty) March 9, 2024 And from Collin Rugg: NEW: French President Emmanuel Macron lashes out after two women came forward accusing his wife of being transgender. The women claim they were intimidated “by the authorities” who allegedly covered up the “state secret.” Macron was only 15 years old when he started dating 40-year-old Brigitte Auzière who was a mother and his teacher. Macron says the allegations that his wife is transgender are false and fabricated. “The worst thing is the false information and fabricated scenarios. People eventually believe them and disturb you, even in your intimacy.” The accusers, 52-year old Amandine Roy and journalist Natacha Rey, claim Brigitte was born a boy named Jean-Michel Trogneux in 1953. NEW: French President Emmanuel Macron lashes out after two women came forward accusing his wife of being transgender. The women claim they were intimidated “by the authorities” who allegedly covered up the “state secret.” Macron was only 15 years old when he started… pic.twitter.com/lXhHeRTQdX — Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) March 9, 2024 Here's more, from The Daily Mail: French President Emmanuel Macron has spoken out for the first time against claims that his wife was born a man – saying the rumours were 'false and fabricated'. Mr Macron, 47, expressed his anger and frustration about continual speculation about Brigitte Macron, 70, whom he married in 2007. 'The worst thing is the false information and fabricated scenarios,' said Mr Macron. 'People eventually believe them and disturb you, even in your intimacy.' The president was speaking on International Women's Day on Friday, after inscribing the guaranteed right to abortion into France's constitution. He said the transgender claims about Ms Macron were typical of misogynisitic online attacks that women have to put up with every day. Two women who claimed the première dame was born a man were punished with 'symbolic fines' reduced on appeal last June. In turn, both claimed they were subjected to 'intimidation by the authorities' as 'ultra protected' members of the Paris establishment tried to cover up a 'state secret'. Details of the bizarre case were revived after her own daughter talked publicly about the accusations for the first time. Tiphaine Auzière, 40, told Paris Match magazine: 'I have concerns about the level of society when I hear what is circulating on social networks about my mother being a man.' Ms Auzière also discussed how wounded she remained after discovering as a 10-year-old child that her teacher mother was seeing the teenage Emmanuel Macron. The future politician was just 15 when he began a relationship with the then married mother-of-three Brigitte Auzière, who was 40 at the time, and teaching drama at La Providence high school in Amiens, northern France. Those spreading the transgender rumours were Amandine Roy, a 52-year-old clairvoyant, and Natacha Rey, 48, who styled herself as a freelance journalist. Both had appeared on a four-hour YouTube video in December 2021 in which they claimed that Brigitte was in fact born as a baby boy called Jean-Michel Trogneux in 1953. This is the name of Brigitte's brother, and Ms Macron was called Brigitte Trogneux before her first marriage. The defendants also claimed that Brigitte's first husband, André-Louis Auzière, had never actually existed before his reported death in 2020, aged 68. A judge sitting at Lisieux, in Normandy, originally fined the two women the equivalent of £1700 each, after finding them both guilty of libel. DEVELOPING: Is French President Emmanuel Macron's wife transgender? You be the Judge. pic.twitter.com/b7hf4fiOk6 — Politics On ? (@PoliticsOnX) March 9, 2024

Keep the family of Rep. Steve Womack in your prayers this week. Rep. Steve Womack has announced his wife, Terri Womack, has died at the age of 68. Rep. Womack was married to his wife for over 40 years at the time of her passing. The Hill reported on Rep. Womack’s announcement of his wife’s death: Rep. Steve Womack is mourning the death of his 68-year-old wife, Terri, after more than four decades of marriage. The Arkansas Republican said Tuesday that Terri Lynn Williams Womack died Sunday following a brief illness. “Heaven welcomed an angel,” Womack wrote in a social media post, saying his wife “went to live in eternity with Jesus.” “My heart is broken and that space remains without her presence,” Womack said of his spouse, who spent her career working for various courts in Arkansas. Read Rep. Womack’s announcement below: Sunday afternoon, Heaven welcomed an angel. My wife of 41 years, Terri Womack, went to live in eternity with Jesus. My heart is broken and that space remains without her presence. I take comfort in knowing she is no longer suffering in pain and is at peace evermore. Her legacy of… pic.twitter.com/ns9rgRZDv3 — Rep. Steve Womack (@rep_stevewomack) January 20, 2026 Full text: Sunday afternoon, Heaven welcomed an angel. My wife of 41 years, Terri Womack, went to live in eternity with Jesus. My heart is broken and that space remains without her presence. I take comfort in knowing she is no longer suffering in pain and is at peace evermore. Her legacy of love will live in the hearts of all who knew her. Our family appreciates the outpouring of prayers and support. You have all honored her in such a special way, and we are eternally grateful. The announcement of Terri’s death comes days after President Trump granted clemency to Rep. Womack’s son, per USA Today: President Donald Trump has granted clemency to a Republican congressman’s son who was in prison for distributing methamphetamine. Trump commuted the federal sentence of James Phillip Womack, the son of Arkansas Rep. Steve Womack, on Thursday, Jan. 15, according to the official Executive Grant of Clemency signed by Trump and issued by the U.S. Department of Justice. A White House official told USA TODAY that coupled with James Womack’s record of good behavior in prison, the family has had several recent health issues, including his mother being diagnosed with abdominal cancer and his brother suffering from a seizure disorder and having difficulty living by himself. The congressman’s son was sentenced in federal court in May 2024 to a $1,900 fine and eight years in prison for distributing more than five grams of methamphetamine, according to court records. He had been arrested multiple times on drug charges before. The congressman didn’t immediately respond to a USA TODAY request for comment. He expressed gratitude to Trump in statements to Arkansas television stations KTHV and KNWA. “I am grateful to President Trump for this gracious and thoughtful action. The commutation has allowed my son to be with his family during a profoundly difficult time, and the President’s phone conversation with my wife and her care team made an impression that I’ll cherish forever,” the congressman said in the statement. Womack is a member of the powerful House Appropriations Committee and is the former chairman of the House Budget Committee.

As the WLT Report previously reported, an Indiana judge and his wife, who reside in Lafayette, were shot inside their home on Sunday. According to the Lafayette Police Department, a shooter opened fire on Judge Steven Meyer and his wife on Sunday afternoon. Currently, both Judge Meyer and his wife are expected to recover. Fox News has now obtained a 911 call and revealed the four words the suspected shooter, who is still on the run, said before entering Judge Meyer’s home: The gunman who wounded a judge and his wife in a shooting Sunday afternoon in Lafayette, Indiana, spoke to the victims before opening fire, according to dispatch audio obtained by Fox News Digital. The gunman, who remains at large, knocked on the door to the home of Judge Steven Meyer and his wife, Kimberly Meyer, before saying, “We have your dog,” and then firing a gunshot through the door, a dispatcher says in the audio. Steven Meyer was shot in the arm, and Kimberly Meyer was shot in the hip at their home on Mill Pond Lane at about 2:15 p.m. Both victims received medical treatment and were listed in stable condition following the shooting. It was unclear how many shots were fired, though police said shell casings were recovered at the scene. No arrests have been announced, and police have yet to release a description of a suspect. The shooting remains an active investigation involving multiple agencies, including the Lafayette Police Department, Indiana State Police, the Tippecanoe County Sheriff’s Office, the West Lafayette Police Department, the Tippecanoe County Prosecutor’s Office and the FBI. ABC News reported more on the shooting: An urgent manhunt is underway after Indiana Judge Steven Meyer and his wife were shot inside their Lafayette home. Both are in stable condition. The shooting comes amid a rise in threats against judges and elected officials. @AaronKatersky has the latest. https://t.co/hmCNetSnQO pic.twitter.com/1tuDY77yx4 — World News Tonight (@ABCWorldNews) January 20, 2026 PBS reported Meyer’s wife has released a statement on the shooting: Kimberly Meyer said in a statement Monday that she has “great confidence” in investigators and is grateful to the officers and medical professionals who helped her and her husband. The shooting had other Indiana judges worried for their safety, with state Supreme Court Chief Justice Loretta H. Rush urging them to “please remain vigilant in your own security.” “I worry about the safety of all our judges,” she wrote in a letter to the state’s judges. “As you work to peacefully resolve more than 1 million cases a year, you must not only feel safe, you must also be safe. Any violence against a judge or a judge’s family is completely unacceptable.”

President Trump’s new Board of Peace is gaining momentum. Last week, President Trump announced the creation of the Board of Peace, which is a new committee to oversee the Gaza Strip to ensure Trump’s peace plan between Israel and Palestine is completely fulfilled. As of Tuesday, over 60 countries have been invited to join the new committee. So far, 10 countries have publicly agreed to join the new board, and five of those have publicly confirmed their membership. CBS revealed which five countries have already expressed support to join: More than 10 countries have signed on to join President Trump’s “Board of Peace” for Gaza, sources familiar with the discussions told CBS News, though only five — United Arab Emirates, Belarus, Morocco, Hungary and Canada — have publicly accepted his invitation to join. As the president envisions it, the group would comprise world leaders, with him as its chairman. Countries can contribute $1 billion to become permanent members, rather than holding a typical three-year membership, the White House said, although Canada has said it won’t pay to join. Some countries will contribute far less, possibly around $20 million, one of the sources said. A White House official told CBS News over the weekend that “virtually every dollar” raised would be spent on the board’s mandate in Gaza. Fundraising to rebuild Gaza will be a separate effort, one U.S. official said. Another U.S. official told CBS News that the president wants a signing ceremony for the board at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Thursday, and has been contemplating whether the board’s work should extend beyond Gaza, and perhaps be a rival to the United Nations. Read Trump’s announcement of the creation of the Board of Peace: BREAKING: Trump forms Board of Peace, members to be announced shortly #MAGA pic.twitter.com/NGADUcwglc — Sam Smith – Army Ranger Vet (@beachbattranger) January 15, 2026 CNN reported Russia has received an invitation to join the Board of Peace: Russian President Vladimir Putin has been invited to join US President Donald Trump’s “Board of Peace,” the committee that will oversee the reconstruction of Gaza, his spokesman said Monday. Speaking to reporters during a regular media briefing, Dmitry Peskov said: “President Putin also received through diplomatic channels an invitation to join this Board of Peace.” He said the Kremlin is now reviewing the invitation and “hoping to get more details from the US side.” Later Monday, the Belarusian Foreign Ministry said President Alexander Lukashenko also received an invitation to join the board. The ministry’s press service said Minsk “highly appreciates that the American side sees Belarus — and this is clearly stated in the text of the address — as a country ready to take on the noble responsibility of building a lasting peace and leading by example, investing in a secure and prosperous future for future generations.” On Tuesday morning, Trump confirmed Russia was invited: Reporter: Have you invited Putin to be a member of the board of peace? Trump: Yes Reporter: Can you respond to Macron saying he will not join the board of peace? Trump: Nobody wants him… I’ll put a 200% tariff on his wines and he’ll join pic.twitter.com/A3a1fXybks — Acyn (@Acyn) January 20, 2026

Julie Kelly believes the justice system in Washington, D.C., is broken, irretrievably so. The juries are so tainted with partisanship that they can’t find criminals guilty. She pointed to the acquittal of a homeless man who was accused of pointing a laser at Marine One. A jury found Jacob Samuel Winkler not guilty after just […] The post Our D.C. Justice System Could Be Irretrievably Broken appeared first on www.independentsentinel.com.