It’s far from the most important effect of a hotter world, but rising temperatures are slowing the Earth’s rotation, making the days longer. The effect is certainly small, but new research predicts that in a high emissions scenario the knock-on consequences of human activity will exert a greater influence over the rate the Earth turns than the tidal effects of the Moon. The same human activities are even moving the location of the North Pole slightly.The rate at which a body spins is affected by the distribution of its mass. Physics teachers have been demonstrating the concept for decades by putting students on swivel chairs and having them control their speed by holding weights out or pulling them to their chests. It’s only recently, however, we have realized we’re doing the same thing the entire planet.It takes more rotational energy to turn mass at the planet’s equator than its poles. The Earth formed with a great deal of rotational energy, a little of which it is losing to the Moon, without gaining much in compensation, so when mass moves from the polar regions to the tropics, it has to translate to slower spin.The icecaps are melting and tropical seas rising, so it is not a surprise that temperature changes are accelerating the rate at which the days are getting longer, something that was identified recently. However, the distribution of water and ice at the Earth’s surface is just one of many factors that influence the speed of the Earth’s rotation. For example, the Sun and Moon have opposing effects through the tides, although usually the Moon’s dominates. There are also changes in the rotation rate of the Earth’s core, which can be partially transferred to the surface.Calculating the strength of these effects is challenging, so the Earth can surprise us slightly in whether the days get longer or shorter, and by how much, over a period of months or years. However, Professor Benedikt Soja of ETH Zurich and colleagues argue a hotter planet is already contributing to lengthening the days, and this effect has accelerated this century. If greenhouse gas emissions continue to increase the strength of this effect will double by 2100, they conclude, in the process overtaking that of the Moon."We humans have a greater impact on our planet than we realize," Soja said in a statement. "And this naturally places great responsibility on us for the future of our planet." Polar ice has melted before, most recently about 10,000 years ago, which would also have led to longer days. However, the process then was a great deal slower than what is occurring today, so the effects were probably smaller than the steady lunar influence.If the melt was occurring symmetrically across both Arctic and Antarctic then that might be the only effect on the Earth’s rotation. However, we know there is a great deal more ice to melt in some directions than others, and the most vulnerable areas are concentrated in specific locations. A related study from the same team explains that as a result, the Earth’s axis of rotation is shifting slightly. The movement is small – a matter of a meter a decade or so in the poles' location. Here again shifts are taking place for other reasons. Continental drift caused by plate tectonics plays a role, as well as thermal movements in the planet’s core and even the slow rebound of crust once pushed down by ancient ice sheets.Geophysicists have been tracking these movements, finding the North Pole has been migrating roughly in the direction of Hudson Bay for a century, although more recently the direction has turned. Including ice melt has allowed the team to produce a model that matches what has been observed."For the first time, we present a complete explanation for the causes of long-period polar motion," said lead author of both studies Mostafa Kiani Shahvandi, one of Soja's doctoral students. "In other words, we now know why and how the Earth's axis of rotation moves relative to the Earth's crust."Melting caused by human-induced climate change is an increasing contributing factor to the movement of the poles.Image credit: Shahyandi et al, Nature Geoscience 2024 (CC BY 4.0)The Gaia hypothesis proposes the Earth is a self-regulating system, and if so it seems this extends deep within the planet. "Climate change is causing the Earth's axis of rotation to move, and it appears that the feedback from the conservation of angular momentum is also changing the dynamics of the Earth's core," Soja said.Soja, Shahvandi and co-authors are not being alarmist about these effects, noting that they are too small and too slow to worry about, unlike many other aspects of human-induced climate change. Nevertheless, such matters do sometimes need to be taken into account. Soja gives the example of the need to know the Earth’s precise speed when launching certain space probes, not the speed as it was decades ago. The work also supply two further ways of checking that the planet is in fact heating up, where the evidence from other sources not already so overwhelming as to make it unnecessary.The research into the slowing day is published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The exploration of the wandering pole is published open access in Nature Geoscience. 

Hidden within your neck, its two lobes sandwiching your trachea, is a gland that’s only a little longer than a paperclip but has an outsized impact on the whole of your body. It’s your thyroid, and chances are you’ve never really stopped to think about it – unless you’ve experienced it going wrong, that is. So, let’s introduce you to this unassuming organ, the two hormones it produces, and how they affect the body.What is the thyroid?The thyroid is a gland, a type of organ that’s responsible for producing a substance – in this case, hormones, making it part of the endocrine system.Situated towards the front of the neck below the larynx, the thyroid is divided into left and right lobes that sit on either side of the trachea or windpipe, linked by a connecting strip of tissue called the isthmus. Ordinarily, you can’t see it or feel it.The thyroid responds to signals from the pituitary gland at the base of the brain. Throughout the day, the pituitary secretes thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), which sends a chemical message to the thyroid to ensure that it, in turn, is producing the right levels of two different hormones to meet the body’s changing needs.The hormones produced by the thyroid are thyroxine, often called T4, and triiodothyronine, or T3. As well as these, a small subset of cells within the thyroid produces calcitonin.What do the thyroid hormones do?T4 is the main hormone secreted by the thyroid, but also the least active. It travels to various different tissues within the body where the bulk of it is then converted to T3. About 80 percent of T3 is produced in this way, with the remaining 20 percent being directly secreted from the thyroid into the bloodstream.Both T3 and T4 are essential for the correct functioning of the body’s metabolism, and also play roles in digestion, brain development, bone and muscle health, and the heart.    Calcitonin helps to regulate calcium and phosphate in the blood. It works in two different ways to control calcium levels: by inhibiting the breakdown of bone by osteoclasts, thus preventing extra calcium from being released; and by decreasing the reabsorption of calcium in the kidneys.However, it’s not completely clear how important this function is – people with very high or very low calcitonin don’t seem to show any adverse effects.What happens when the thyroid doesn’t work correctly?Keeping the balance of T3 and T4 just right is essential for lots of bodily systems to work properly. But what happens when things go wrong?HypothyroidismHypothyroidism, or an underactive thyroid, is the most common disorder affecting the organ. It’s not considered preventable – most cases are caused by an autoimmune reaction (Hashimoto’s disease) or are a side effect of treatment for other disorders. Sometimes the condition is inherited, but babies born in many countries (including the US and UK) are screened for this shortly after birth.The symptoms tend to come on slowly, sometimes over a period of years, so it can be tricky to spot the problem. The major signs include:FatigueWeight gainDepressionMuscle achesDry skin and hairIncreased sensitivity to the coldHypothyroidism is more common in women than men. Treatment involves taking a synthetic form of thyroxine hormone to bring levels back up to where they should be. While treatment is generally required to continue for life, bringing the hormone levels back into balance generally relieves the symptoms.HyperthyroidismThe opposite condition is hyperthyroidism, an overactive thyroid. The symptoms typically include:Increased appetiteWeight lossRapid or irregular heartbeatIrritabilitySweatingShaky handsFrequent bowel movementsWith either an under or overactive thyroid, some people also develop a goiter, which is where the thyroid swells and becomes visible in the neck. This doesn't necessarily cause a major problem, but it may interfere with swallowing and breathing. Sometimes, hyperthyroidism can result when too much synthetic thyroxine is prescribed to treat hypothyroidism – it can take a bit of trial and error to get the dosage just right. Other causes include an autoimmune condition called Graves’ disease, inflammation of the thyroid, or consuming excessive iodine in your diet.        A common treatment option for hyperthyroidism is radioiodine therapy. This involves taking a capsule or liquid containing the radioactive isotope iodine-131, which selectively destroys the cells in the thyroid that produce thyroxine. This doesn’t damage other tissues in the body, but in almost everyone, it does have the effect of reducing thyroxine production enough that they later develop hypothyroidism.Since hypothyroidism can be treated with synthetic hormones and doesn’t cause as many long-term health problems, it’s considered preferable to treat hyperthyroidism in this way, even if it goes too far.Another option that’s sometimes used is surgery to remove part or most of the thyroid, which can again result in hypothyroidism afterward.Thyroid cancerVarious types of cancer can arise in the thyroid gland. The most common is papillary thyroid cancer, which usually affects people between the ages of 30 and 50. Most papillary thyroid tumors are small, develop very slowly, and respond well to treatment. Often, surgery will be needed to remove the thyroid. As we’ve seen, that will cause hypothyroidism, which will then need to be treated with medication. Radiotherapy or radioactive iodine treatment may also be used, but chemotherapy is not commonly required unless the cancer recurs. Researchers still aren’t totally sure what causes thyroid cancer. One major risk factor is radiation exposure, which is why cases of this cancer have been observed to increase in populations exposed to nuclear disasters like Chernobyl. Postpartum thyroiditisPostpartum thyroiditis is a complication affecting about 5-10 percent of pregnant people in which the immune system attacks the thyroid shortly after childbirth, causing inflammation. It’s more common in people who already have an autoimmune thyroid condition.The condition starts with a hyperthyroid phase, where excess thyroid hormone leaks into the bloodstream, and then swings to a hypothyroid phase that can persist for several months or even become permanent. Treatment depends on the severity of the symptoms, and whether your hormone levels eventually normalize.The bottom lineKeeping the myriad hormones that the human body produces in just the right delicate balance is a full-time job. Even when things are thrown off just a little, it can have far-reaching consequences. For a small organ, the thyroid has a huge role to play in that – so if you haven’t before, maybe now you’ll spare it a thought once in a while.  

Lake San Antonio in Monterey County, California, has been closed to the public amid investigations into the vast numbers of dead fish washing up on the lake’s shores over the course of several days.Monterey County officials first announced a “large fish death event” in a July 6 social media post, noting that the California Department of Fish and Wildlife had been notified. At that time, the cause of death was believed to be the result of “extreme temperature change, causing oxygen depletion in the water” with California recently having been hit by a record-breaking heatwave.The lake remained open, with officials stating they did not believe there was any risk to humans or their pets, but visitors were cautioned to leave the dead fish alone.But on July 10, Lake San Antonio was forced to shut to visitors.“The fish die off we alerted you to last Friday has gotten worse,” said county officials in a Facebook post, “and the lake is being closed as a public health precaution while testing and clean up is being done.” IFLScience is not responsible for content shared from external sites.Fish ranging in size from small baitfish through to larger catfish, bass, and trout could be seen floating in the lake’s waters and washing ashore, attracting scavenging birds and maggots. “It seems like every fish species in the lake is being impacted,” Chief of Parks Bryan Flores told SFGATE. “We have never seen this type of multi-species die-off, especially on this scale.”While previously suspected as having something to do with the sweltering temperatures, the cause of the mass die-off is now being treated as unknown until investigations provide further information. “We’re waiting on reports back from the Department of Fish and Wildlife, Water Resources Agency, and Health Department to determine what the cause of this massive fish die-off is,” said Flores in a video posted to Facebook.But the official does have some ideas of what may or may not be behind the event, which he believes could have been spontaneous and unlikely to have a more nefarious source.“If it was a poison, you’d think it would be impacting the other species,” Flores explained to KRON4. “More than likely, it is some kind of biological process that’s occurring, whether or not it’s algae or protozoa.”Until that theory is or isn’t confirmed, however, the lake remains closed indefinitely.In a statement seen by the San Francisco Chronicle, Flores said: “While this may be a natural occurrence, until it is known that this is not being caused by a biological vector or pollutant that could cause harm to the public, we must keep the public safe by closing the park.”

Our high school years were, many of us may have been told, the best days of our lives. But that’s no longer the case, according to a new working paper from Dartmouth University Professor David Blanchflower and colleagues – and the formerly inescapable “U curve” of well-being is now more of an uphill struggle towards happiness.“There is a literature of at least 600 published papers suggesting that happiness is U-shaped in age and, conversely, that unhappiness is hump-shaped in age,” Blanchflower wrote last month in an article regarding the findings. “Across a variety of datasets and measures, the finding of a midlife low has been consistently replicated.”“But not anymore,” he continued. “Now, young adults (on average) are the least happy people. Unhappiness now declines with age, and happiness now rises with age – and this change seems to have started around 2017. The prime-age are happier than the young.”It’s hard to overstate how universal the U-shape happiness curve was. It had been evidenced in just about every human society tested, from advanced and wealthy countries to developing nations; it was seen in the English-speaking and non-English-speaking world; in places with high and low life expectancies, high and low levels of democracy, irrespective of average earnings or GDP or Gini ratio. “I found evidence of the nadir in happiness in one hundred and forty-five countries, including one hundred and nine developing and thirty-six developed,” Blanchflower wrote in 2020, in one of his many papers on the phenomenon. “I found it in Europe, Asia, North and South America, Australasia, and Africa […] I have a well-being U-shape for every one of the thirty-five member countries of the OECD. I have it for 138/193 member countries of the United Nations.”So fundamental is the U-shape pattern that you don’t even need to restrict yourself to human societies to see it – the trend has even been seen in populations of great apes. It was, it appeared, an inescapable part of being not just human, but hominin: to be destined, seemingly by biology, to be happy when we’re young and old, and grumpiest in the middle.Until now. Thanks to an unprecedented downturn in the wellbeing of young people, the U-shaped happiness curve is now closer to a straight line, with life satisfaction highest at the end and lowest at the beginning of adulthood. “[It] sort of shocked us,” Blanchflower said in a lecture on his findings earlier this year. “All of a sudden, [...] [we] started to actually observe something going on, which was a rapid decline in the wellbeing of young people – particularly for young women, but the trends for young men were the same.”“There were changes in the data that we really had never seen before,” he added.Today, he explained, around one in nine young women in America report every day of their lives as being a bad mental health day. For young men, the figure is lower – but at around one in 14, it’s still very concerning. The team found huge rises in young people visiting mental health services, being hospitalized for self-harm, and even attempting suicide.And while the phenomenon was first seen in data from the US, subsequent studies by Blanchflower and colleagues showed the problem to be far more widespread than just one country. So far, in fact, this new negative relationship has been found in more than 80 countries across the world, from Australia to Zimbabwe. “I have exactly the same pattern in 43 countries that I’ve looked at already,” Blanchflower said. “This is kind of scary […] we should have been doing something about this years ago.”So what’s behind the global downturn in youth happiness? Here’s the kicker: we don’t know. None of the easy answers seem to fit. The change is “not caused by COVID,” Blanchflower stressed; “COVID simply extends trends that had started in 2011.” It’s probably not the labor market either, since wellbeing in the young seems to start decreasing right around the time the job market picked up. “What you need here is something that starts around 2014 or so, is global and disproportionately impacts the young – especially young women,” Blanchflower told Scientific American. “Anybody that comes up with an explanation has got to have something that fits that.” “Other than cell phones, I don’t have anything.”The paper, which has not been peer-reviewed, is available on the SSRN server.If you or someone you know is struggling, help and support are available in the US at the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on1-800-273-8255. In the UK and Ireland, the Samaritans can be contacted on 116 123. International helplines can be found at SuicideStop.com.  

Gravitational waves are perfectly suited to be turned to sound. The little chirp, the moment the collisions happen, it has already turned into little sounds. My ringtone, on the rare occasions my phone has sound, is one of those chirps. Now, the team at Audio Universe has taken the gravitational wave data to a whole new level.Making things accessible actually makes them better for everyone.Rose ShepherdThe visualization and sonification are brilliant in a 3D video where the sounds of gravitational waves hit you from the direction in the sky it is estimated that they have come from. As you move around with your mouse, phone, or VR headset, you can be pelted with the tiny vibrations in space-time. Similar to other sonification projects, it provides a way for blind and vision-impaired people to participate in astronomy, complementing other approaches such as the Tactile Universe. But there are more motivations than just that.     “There are three reasons why we want to do this. It helps researchers to explore complex multi-dimensional datasets. It could be used to create immersive and engaging educational resources. And it can make astronomy more accessible, which is obviously really important,” Rose Shepherd, from Newcastle University, told IFLScience. “Making things accessible actually makes them better for everyone.”A particularly interesting aspect of sonification for research is being able to listen to the emission lines of celestial objects. The peaks in the light spectrum of a particular body spread out as the object moves, and sonification can turn something so visually subtle into something blatantly obvious to the ear.But it’s not just useful in astronomy. The team has looked at how different datasets can be improved by adding an audio element. One interesting example is Warming Stripes. This is a minimalist graphic that use a series of colored stripes – blue to red - to represent temperature anomalies over the years. The left side represents decades ago, and as we get to the right side, the stripes get redder and redder. Great to visualize the unfolding climate crisis, and now audio adds a bit more to it.        “Using sounds, it can add an emotional interpretation to your data. You can use that to convey certain feelings to the data,” Shepherd explained. “ With [the Warming Stripes sonification], we were not trying to make people feel stressed but it was interesting to see people’s reactions compared to just looking at the video.”Audio Universe is designing a Sonification Toolkit that can be used by many to create bespoke resources.Shepherd presented the work of Audio Universe at this week’s National Astronomy Meeting at the University of Hull.

Seth Meyers, NBC’s host of Late Night, solemnly reacted on Monday to the Saturday attempted assassination attempt of former President Donald Trump by appropriately denouncing political violence, but inappropriately blaming the situation on the lack of gun control in America and accusing Republicans of making things worse in the aftermath of the shooting. During a monologue, Meyers urged gun control as a solution, “An attack that thankfully spared him but tragically, tragically killed one spectator and injured two others. I think it's important to say that the easy availability of dangerous weapons has made tragedies like this all too common. Schools, shopping malls, grocery stores, movie theaters, houses of worship, and now political rallies have all been infected by this scourge of everyday violence. We cannot accept that. There are too many guns. They're too easy to get. We must work to change that.”     After the shooting, some Republicans blamed Democrats for Saturday’s events, which deeply upset Meyers, “At a time when things are bad, you are choosing to make things worse. You are choosing to inflame the national mood at a dangerous moment rather than show the leadership and basic decency it would take to calm things down. You should be ashamed. Please stop.” While it is true that the shooter’s motive remains unknown, Meyers did not want to look inward: You’re also wrong. Engaging in the work of democracy and peaceful persuasion is the opposite of inciting violence. It's what we need more of, not less. Accurately describing the dangers of autocracy and warning of attempts to dismantle our democracy have nothing to do with political violence. Speaking plainly about the specter of authoritarianism is not only our democratic right, it's our civic duty. We must all continue to do it. That's where we will continue to do here on this show. We will keep talking about protecting democracy. Elsewhere on the late night circuit, ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live! guest of the week, Anthony Anderson, recalled that, “a lot has been written about the attack, but the award for worst article about it goes to Forbes, who retracted this dumbass story: "Will surviving gunfire be Donald Trump's next appeal to black voters?" What? Getting shot at doesn't make you popular in the black community. If it did, then the most famous man in the hood would be Liam Neeson.”   Jimmy Kimmel guest host Anthony Anderson recalls "the award for worst article about it goes to Forbes, who retracted this dumbass story: 'Will surviving gunfire be Donald Trump's next appeal to black voters?' Unfortunately, he cropped out the fact the author was a "DEI expert" pic.twitter.com/mGRDUj87RD — Alex Christy (@alexchristy17) July 16, 2024   That would have been an even better joke if Anderson and ABC had not cropped out the information that the author of that article, Shaun Harper, did not have “I am a diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) expert” written underneath his byline. Anderson moved on to add, “Today [Trump] chose Ohio Senator J.D. Vance. Vance has everything Trump is looking for in a running mate. He's white, he's—well, that's pretty much it. He also looks like Eric and Don Jr. had a baby.” CBS’s Stephen Colbert was more appropriate than Meyers, at least initially, “I'm old enough that one of my earliest memories is sitting in a dark room with my sister watching my parents' little black and white TV, and seeing Bobby Kennedy's coffin on that slow train from New York down to Washington. And whether the result of extremist politics or mental illness, that violence is with us still.”   After the assassination attempt on Trump, Colbert reflects on his memory of RFK's assassination and mourns "whether the result of extremist politics or mental illness, that violence is with us still" pic.twitter.com/ZVKnWbQYwP — Alex Christy (@alexchristy17) July 16, 2024   He added, “Our job, as American citizens, is to reject violence and violent rhetoric in this time of crisis, however hard we fight for our ideas. And in that regard, not only is violence evil, it is useless. As I quoted when Representative Scalise was shot, "Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent." Violence or even calls for violence invalidate any ideas.”  Unfortunately, Colbert would later welcome former Rep. Adam Kinzinger to suggest Trump could help turn down the temperature by stepping down and that January 6 means any talk of left-wing violence is nonsense. NBC’s Jimmy Fallon, somehow, did not even mention the assassination attempt. Fallon was scheduled to have MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow on Tuesday’s edition of The Tonight Show, but that appears to have changed. Such a move looks especially odd after MSNBC’s decision to yank Morning Joe off the air on Monday out of fear someone would say something stupid. Finally, Comedy Central’s The Daily Show did not air on Monday after ultimately deciding to return to New York, citing "logistical issues and the evolving situation in Milwaukee." Here are transcripts for the July-15 taped shows: NBC Late Night with Seth Meyers 7/16/2024 12:38 AM ET SETH MEYERS: An attack that thankfully spared him but tragically, tragically killed one spectator and injured two others. I think it's important to say that the easy availability of dangerous weapons has made tragedies like this all too common. Schools, shopping malls, grocery stores, movie theaters, houses of worship, and now political rallies have all been infected by this scourge of everyday violence. We cannot accept that. There are too many guns. They're too easy to get. We must work to change that. … At a time when things are bad, you are choosing to make things worse. You are choosing to inflame the national mood at a dangerous moment rather than show the leadership and basic decency it would take to calm things down. You should be ashamed. Please stop. You’re also wrong. Engaging in the work of democracy and peaceful persuasion is the opposite of inciting violence.  It's what we need more of, not less. Accurately describing the dangers of autocracy and warning of attempts to dismantle our democracy have nothing to do with political violence. Speaking plainly about the specter of authoritarianism is not only our democratic right, it's our civic duty. We must all continue to do it. That's where we will continue to do here on this show. We will keep talking about protecting democracy. We will keep telling jokes if for no other reason than we already paid the license this picture of Rudy Giuliani for the rest of the year. *** ABC Jimmy Kimmel Live! 7/15/2024 11:38 PM ET ANTHONY ANDERSON: Now, a lot has been written about the attack, but the award for worst article about it goes to Forbes, who retracted this dumbass story: "Will surviving gunfire be Donald Trump's next appeal to black voters?" What? Getting shot at doesn't make you popular in the black community. If it did, then the most famous man in the hood would be Liam Neeson.  I mean, no one gets shot at more than that dude. He's the Irish 50 Cent. Speaking of 50, 50 would have been a good running mate for Trump, but instead, today he chose Ohio Senator J.D. Vance. Vance has everything Trump is looking for in a running mate. He's white, he's—  well, that's pretty much it. He also looks like Eric and Don Jr. had a baby. *** CBS The Late Show with Stephen Colbert 7/15/2024 11:36 PM ET STEPHEN COLBERT: My immediate reaction when I saw this on Saturday were horror at what was unfolding, relief that Donald Trump had lived, and frankly grief for my beautiful country, and then fresh horror as we learned that attendees had also been shot, one of whom died at the rally. So, as we've done many times in the past when some tragic event has shocked the nation, I'm starting the show tonight talking at the desk, though I just could easily start the show moaning on the floor, because how many times do we need to learn the lesson that violence has no role in our politics, that the entire objective of a democracy is to fight out our differences with, as the saying goes, "Ballot, not a bullet"? Now, right after the attack, a young friend of mine, he texted me, saying "How is this happening in America in 2024?" And I understood his shock, but I'm old enough that one of my earliest memories is sitting in a dark room with my sister watching my parents' little black and white TV, and seeing Bobby Kennedy's coffin on that slow train from New York down to Washington. And whether the result of extremist politics or mental illness, that violence is with us still, from the shooting of a GOP baseball practice that seriously injured Steve Scalise, to the plot to kidnap and kill governor Gretchen Whitmer, to the hammer attack that nearly killed Paul Pelosi, to the horrors of January 6th, to this most recent attack.  And the man who fired the shots seems to have conflicted and confusing motivations, by the standards of today's stark left and right divide: someone barely out of boyhood who reportedly donated to a Democratic group in 2021, then registered as a Republican that same year. So, we may never understand his motivation, nor is that necessarily our job. Our job, as American citizens, is to reject violence and violent rhetoric in this time of crisis, however hard we fight for our ideas. And in that regard, not only is violence evil, it is useless. As I quoted when Representative Scalise was shot, "Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent." Violence or even calls for violence invalidate any ideas.

If there’s one thing we know about the failed assassination attempt against Donald Trump, it’s that the Secret Service did not appear up to the challenge in footage of the incident. In a recently resurfaced clip of the head of the Secret Service, Kimberly Cheatle, it becomes increasingly apparent why that is. “As I sit in this chair now, of making sure that we need to attract diverse candidates and ensure that we are developing and giving opportunities to everybody in our workforce, and particularly women,” Cheatle told a CBS News reporter. “We will always ensure the safety of all the protectees that we have,” she added. Dave Rubin is not impressed. “It’s deeply connected to everything that’s been wrong with our politics and our culture and everything else,” Rubin explains, adding, “The head of the Secret Service saying we need more diversity, we need more women.” “How about just more qualified people? Wouldn’t that be good? And we wouldn’t care about their genitals or their skin color or anything else,” he continues. But the left does care, which is why in one clip from the shooting, a female Secret Service agent struggles to holster her gun under the pressure. “That woman being unable to holster her gun, and the other one fiddling around, and that she has time to put on her sunglasses," Rubin scoffs. "It's all the big, jacked guys that are basically doing the work." Want more from Dave Rubin?To enjoy more honest conversations, free speech, and big ideas with Dave Rubin, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

Iconic sports announcer and vocal Democrat Bob Costas accused the Democratic Party of "gaslighting" its voters by pretending that President Biden was not going through an obvious mental decline.Costas has been adamantly anti-Trump in recent years but has also called out some of the more obvious flaws of the Democrats. Keeping with that theme, the announcer spoke to CNN's Michael Smerconish and reflected on Biden's infamous presidential debate performance that had Democrats calling for him to step out of the race."That one atrocious night was simply writ-large what could be seen for years and years, that he is in serious decline," Costas told Smerconish. "Nobody should be president when they're 85 or 86, including the ghost of Abraham Lincoln, but this guy is clearly in decline at this point," he continued."And part of the job, leaving aside whether he can do it for the next four years, is winning the job. And as you just laid out, that seems to be nearly impossible at this point."'It makes you wonder whether we've been gaslit by the Democrats.'Costas then explained that Democrats have continued to defend Biden despite the obvious cognitive issues he has had."Many Democrats are still saying this ... they lay out all the reasons why Donald Trump is loathsome and a threat to democracy and an existential threat, and they say that's why we have to get behind Joe Biden. No, that's exactly why Joe Biden must be ushered out," he clarified, per Awful Announcing."Biden had a chance to be seen by history as a statesman and a patriot. He spared the nation a second Trump term, he could have gone out in a gracious fashion. Now, we can no longer indulge his delusions," Costas said firmly.The sports broadcaster was definitely ahead of the curve in terms of Democrats who have called for Biden's replacement. Costas came out in February 2024 and said that the president was too frail to complete a second term.He said at the time that "at best" President Joe Biden could "squeak by" to beat Trump in 2024, but even if he was re-elected, "It's very likely that he cannot complete his second term." "He'd be 86 at the end of it," he added.The announcer has made sure, however, to include a jab at Republicans whenever he criticizes his own party. When he first said Biden was too old to continue, he added that MAGA supporters were in a "toxic cult" and under a "toxic delusion" to think that Trump was ever "emotionally, psychologically, intellectually, or ethically fit" to serve as America's president.Weeks earlier, he called it "crazy" for men to compete in women's sports but also said Trump supporters are in a "cult" and a "coalition of the brainless and ... the spineless."Costas indeed took a shot at Republicans in his most recent appearance on CNN, as well, when he accused Democrats of gaslighting their voters:"It makes you wonder whether we've been gaslit by the Democrats," he said. "The Republicans major in gaslighting everybody with Trump as their standard-bearer, but this had to have been obvious to people surrounding the president, people who observed the president. Wouldn't it have been an act of patriotism, if that's not too overblown a word in this case, to lay that out before the American public?"Blaze News contributor T.J. Moe responded to Costas' comments by saying that the announcer's views will soon be a thing of the past."Thank God the attitude of the country is leaving guys like Costas behind," Moe wrote on X.Thank God the attitude of the country is leaving guys like Costas behind.— T.J. Moe (@TJMoe28) July 15, 2024 Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Former President Donald Trump and independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had a private phone conversation — captured on video — during which the two discuss vaccines, Joe Biden, and Trump's prospects in the November election.On Tuesday morning, a video emerged of RFK Jr. standing in a hotel room and talking to Trump on speakerphone, though in the clip, Kennedy says almost nothing.The clip never clarifies what 'it' is, but since the video went viral, some on social media have speculated that Trump and RFK may have previously discussed some sort of alliance.In the first 45 seconds or so of the 1:40 video, Trump speaks about childhood vaccinations, particularly combination vaccinations. Based on his statements, Trump is troubled by the amount and the effectiveness of the synthetic chemicals injected into America's babies.Trump claimed these vaccinations attempt to address "38" different illnesses but in reality provide little inoculation against infectious disease. "It doesn't have an impact," he said.Even worse, the vaccinations sometimes even cause harm, Trump asserted. Babies injected with chemicals seemingly fit for "a horse ... all of a sudden ... change radically," Trump claimed. "I've seen it too many times."Instead of these high-volume injections, Trump claimed he has always favored "small doses."After shifting away from vaccinations, Trump then shared with RFK Jr. some details about his recent phone call with Biden. On Saturday night, hours after Trump had been shot and nearly killed at a rally in Pennsylvania, Biden called Trump to extend his best wishes.According to Trump, Biden was amazed that Trump managed to turn his head just enough to avoid a kill shot to the head. "How did you choose to move to the right?" Biden reportedly asked Trump.Trump described the phone call as "very nice" but also claimed Biden has almost no chance of prevailing in the election this November. "We're gonna win. We're gonna win," Trump reiterated, "and we're way ahead of the guy."Just before this point in the conversation, though, Trump tells RFK Jr., "I would love you to do so. I think it'll be so good for you and so big for you."The clip never clarifies what "it" is, but since the video went viral, some on social media have speculated that Trump and RFK Jr. may have previously discussed some sort of alliance as Trump openly states on the video that his relationship with RFK Jr. extends back "a long time."Blaze News reached out to the Trump and RFK Jr. campaigns for comment but did not receive a response.After the video of the conversation leaked, RFK Jr. took to social media to give a statement that implied that the video is authentic and apologized for its release. "When President Trump called me I was taping with an in-house videographer. I should have ordered the videographer to stop recording immediately," he wrote on X around 9 a.m. on Tuesday."I am mortified that this was posted. I apologize to the president."The phone call between the two presidential candidates comes on the heels of the news that RFK Jr. will now have Secret Service protections. Biden had reportedly denied him such protections on five separate occasions, but Trump advocated strongly that RFK Jr. be given them in the wake of the assassination attempt on Saturday.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

J. D. Vance will be an effective spokesman for Trump, but other choices would have had a better chance of marginally helping the ticket.