What 153 years of uninterrupted Democrat control can do. The post New Orleans, Louisiana Prison Break: A Product of Progressivism appeared first on Frontpage Mag.

Leftist German Chancellor Friedrich Merz greenlighted Ukraine launching long-range Taurus cruise missiles directly into Russia. He removed restrictions on them. This is another very serious escalation. Russia has warned of direct war if the Taurus missiles are launched. This is why Putin has been expanding the ‘buffer zone’ between Russian held territory and NATO within Ukraine. […] The post Chancellor Merz OKs Ukraine’s Use of Taurus Missiles Deep Into Russia appeared first on www.independentsentinel.com.

WASHINGTON—A group of senior State Department officials will head to France and Ireland this week to push both countries to respect citizens’ rights, The Daily Wire has learned. The trip is part of a State Department effort to fight “egregious examples of democratic backsliding” and “violations of basic natural rights” in Europe, a senior State Department official shared with The Daily Wire. The initiative, launched by the department’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, is especially focused on defending freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and the right to privacy. The countries in question “claim to be bastions of democracy,” the senior State Department official explained, “they’re so-called liberal democracies that preach inclusivity and tolerance and progress, and the reality on the ground just simply shows that isn’t the case.” In France, the State Department delegation will meet with government officials to discuss the recent arrest of French politician Marine Le Pen. In Ireland, their discussion will focus on concerns that a new European Union law could be used to censor free speech. Under President Donald Trump, the State Department is working to push American allies to respect the rights of their citizens and the rights of American citizens. Foggy Bottom sees trips like this as opportunities to battle the global political apparatus that has been weaponized against both European and American people, an apparatus that wants to silence individuals who stand up for traditional values like faith, freedom, and family. As Vice President JD Vance highlighted at the Munich Security Conference earlier this year, President Donald Trump’s administration sees real threats facing its allies in Europe “from within” — particularly cases of governments targeting their own citizens and particular forms of political and religious speech. Those targeted are disproportionately Christian, conservative, or nationalist. “It’s not a coincidence that these kinds of global forces are using similar tactics to those that were used on this side of the Atlantic against President Trump and his supporters over the past eight years,” the State Department official shared. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has repeatedly emphasized that everything the State Department is doing must be done in the “national interest.” Increasingly, the State Department is noticing that the measures taken by the European Union are not only affecting European citizens, but also affecting American individuals and companies. “In the spirit of our common culture or common Western heritage, that champions natural rights and free speech, we think we can speak frankly with our European allies about these real concerns,” that official noted. “If we’re not on the same page civilizationally, if we’re not on the same page politically, if we’re not on the same page values-wise, it makes those very important relationships much harder to guarantee.” In March 2025, French authorities charged Marine Le Pen — a conservative and  presumptive presidential candidate for the “National Rally” — with embezzlement. A court quickly found her guilty, placed her on house arrest, and banned her from seeking elected office for five years. The State Department is taking her stature as a political leader and the disproportionate speed at which the French government proceeded with the ban into consideration. They find her case “unique and concerning,” The Daily Wire has learned. In Ireland, the officials will focus on the Digital Services Act, European Union legislation that will impact American companies based in Ireland, particularly technology companies. The legislation ostensibly aims to protect children by moderating online content and harmful practices like child pornography. But in practice, a State Department official told the Daily Wire, it has been used to target political speech deemed to be hateful or offensive by European governments. American social media companies face heavy fines if they do not conform to the censorship rules. “It’s obviously being weaponized, for political purposes,” the State Department official said. State Department officials traveled to the United Kingdom earlier this year, where they met with Livia Tossici-Bolt, a woman prosecuted for holding a sign near a Bournemouth abortion clinic that read: “Here to talk if you want.” The State Department issued a statement at the time announcing that it was monitoring Tossici-Bolt’s case and that it was important to the United States that the United Kingdom “respect and protect freedom of expression.” Tossici-Bolt was convicted in April and ordered to pay a fine of £20,000, The Guardian reports. The State Department trip comes amid an ongoing trade war between the United States and European nations. Pressed by The Daily Wire earlier this month as to whether a newly-signed trade deal with the United Kingdom included any assurances from Britain to protect free speech and freedom of religion, Trump and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said the agreement was solely focused on the economy.

Liberal activists and their fellow travelers in business, government, and media frequently cite the Southern Poverty Law Center as an authority on what qualifies as a hate group or an extremist organization.That's despite — or because of — the SPLC's heavy left-wing bias, the frequency with which it smears law-abiding conservatives as "extremists," and its link to alleged domestic terrorism. 'First, they wanted you to affirm, and then they wanted you to celebrate, and then they wanted you to participate.' Exuding liberal sanctimony with an air of legitimacy helps keep the SPLC — a nonprofit sued numerous times for defamation, accused by one former staffer of exaggerating hate to "bilk" donors, and given an F-rating by Charity Watch — awash in cash. After all, what's not to like when the SPLC largely fundraises on the premise that it is "exposing hate and injustice"? True to form, the SPLC smeared agential conservatives in its latest annual hate and extremism report. This time around, the smear merchants focused their attack on Charlie Kirk's Turning Point USA, characterizing it as a pro-Christian extremist group with an "authoritarian vision for the country that threatens the foundation of our democracy." But Kirk wasn't having it, responding in a statement that "the SPLC has added Turning Point to their ridiculous 'hate group' list, right next to the KKK and neo-Nazis, a cheap smear from a washed-up org that's been fleecing scared grandmas for decades." "Their game plan? Scare financial institutions into debanking us, pressure schools to cancel us, and demonize us so some unhinged lunatic feels justified targeting us," continued Kirk. "But it's 2025, and nobody with a functioning brain buys their garbage anymore. The SPLC is a laughingstock, a hollowed-out husk of an organization that's been exposed as a grift time and time again." According to the SPLC — whose recent top targets include Chaya Raichik of Libs of TikTok fame and the parental rights advocacy group Moms for Liberty — TPUSA is "emblematic" of the American political right's supposed embrace of "aggressive state and federal power to enforce a social order rooted in white supremacy" against a backdrop of "patriarchal Christian supremacy dedicated to eroding the value of inclusive democracy and public institutions." RELATED: Own the hate: Why patriots should wear the 'hate group' smear with pride RomoloTavani/iStock/Getty Images Plus When trying to make the case that TPUSA somehow is an extremist outfit or at the very least extremist-adjacent, SPLC contributor Rachael Fugardi, aided by a pair of DEI-credentialed researchers, noted that Kirk: dared to link the health of liberty in America to the religiosity of its people; suggested that Democrats love what God hates; championed motherhood and suggested women should get married and start having children at a younger age; highlighted that in the case of non-straight activism, "First, they wanted you to affirm, and then they wanted you to celebrate, and then they wanted you to participate. And if you don't, they are willing to destroy your life"; suggested that Americans should buy weapons and ammunition; and warned that "native born Americans are being replaced by foreigners." The report also clutched pearls over TPUSA's supposed encouragement of "parents to be fearful the government was harming their children in schools" and its criticism of critical race theory and LGBT propaganda in the classroom. 'DEI narratives can engender a hostile attribution bias and heighten racial suspicion, prejudicial attitudes, authoritarian policing, and support for punitive behaviors.' This desperate attempt on the part of the SPLC to paint Kirk and TPUSA as extreme might have less to do with the conservatives' views and more to do with their political effectiveness in changing minds and curbing the abuses of the left — as well as their alignment with President Donald Trump. TPUSA videos notched billions of views in the lead-up to the 2024 election — and it was at this precise time that its members were engaging young Americans on college campuses across the country and promoting Trump. That momentum and engagement still have not tapered off. Kirk stressed on X, "Being on their list is a badge of honor. It means they're terrified that we're so effective. Keep crying, SPLC — America’s done with your scam." While evidently worried about TPUSA, the SPLC also warned of the "merging of anti-immigration and anti-LGBTQ+ activism with fear of demographic displacement" and framed efforts to dismantle the racist DEI regime as a campaign to "whitewash American society and protect white supremacy." Yet, a study published late last year by the Network Contagion Research Institute and Rutgers University concluded that "DEI narratives can engender a hostile attribution bias and heighten racial suspicion, prejudicial attitudes, authoritarian policing, and support for punitive behaviors in the absence of evidence for a transgression deserving punishment." RELATED: Damning study reveals what DEI does to people — and unsurprisingly, it's really bad Race-obsessive activist Ibram Kendi, originally Ibram Henry Rogers. Photo by Tommaso Boddi/Getty Images for Netflix Having evidently missed or ignored this damning insight into the divisive and dangerous nature of DEI, the SPLC claimed that DEI initiatives "are essential in ensuring pluralism, reducing inequities that spur division, and promoting democracy." Working off the basis that DEI is necessary — and necessarily good — the leftist outfit attacked those attempting to eliminate it, including Moms for Liberty, normalcy advocate Robby Starbuck, Republican states and officials, and Manhattan Institute senior fellow Christopher Rufo. The SPLC also conducted a number of drive-by hits in its annual report, deeming, for instance, the Christian legal advocacy group Alliance Defending Freedom a "hate group" and suggesting that reports indicating the Obama administration worked to debank conservative clients was somehow a "false narrative." Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. 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Since the passing of Phil Robertson, an outpouring of love — and stories — have surfaced that show just how truly fascinating the entrepreneur's life was.For instance, the patriarch of the "Duck Dynasty" family was a college football star with the potential for a pro career. That's right. According to CBS Sports, Robertson started at quarterback for two years at Louisiana Tech University in 1966 and 1967.'He quit because he knew his passion was duck hunting, and he knew my passion was football.'But perhaps even more interesting is that Robertson in college actually started over Terry Bradshaw, who would go on to become a legendary, four-time Super Bowl-winning signal caller for the Pittsburgh Steelers.In fact, Bradshaw told a Fox Sports panel years ago that if it were not for Robinson quitting football with a year of NCAA eligibility left, he never would have gotten the starting role at Louisiana Tech."If he hadn't — I hate to say quit, but that's what he did. He quit because he knew his passion was duck hunting, and he knew my passion was football. And he left, and that's how I got the starting job," Bradshaw said. "I did not beat him out."Bradshaw has told stories over the years about how Robertson would emerge from the woods before practice wearing "Levi jeans and a T-shirt.""On [those clothes] was either duck feathers, guts from a squirrel, [or] blood from some varmints somewhere," Bradshaw recalled.RELATED: 'A living example of what God can do': Phil Robertson remembered Phil Robertson participates in pre-game ceremonies for the Duck Commander Independence Bowl between the South Carolina Gamecocks and the Miami Hurricanes at Independence Stadium, Dec. 27, 2014, in Shreveport, Louisiana. Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty ImagesBradshaw and Robertson reunited for an interview in 2013, nearly 50 years after playing together. During the sit down, Robertson remarked that it was the first time he had seen Bradshaw since he quit football."This is my first return trip to Louisiana Tech," Robertson said. "Literally, since I saw you in the locker room saying, 'Go be an NFL star, I'm going out to the ducks.'"The captivating discussion had Bradshaw asking the outdoorsman why he decided to leave a sport he was so good at. Despite Robertson totaling 12 touchdowns and 34 interceptions in college, he also threw for 2,237 yards and had the potential to go pro, according to CBS Sports."Why did you leave? Why did you not come back?" Bradshaw asked."You had something that I did not have," Robertson explained. "You had the desire to excel in the game of football. And I really had the passion for the old mallard ducks."After again recalling Robertson being covered in duck feathers and squirrel guts, Bradshaw laughed at how the future "Duck Dynasty" star's departure benefited both men.Robertson then concluded, "[This] proves the point, Bradshaw. A man will do a lot for a duck. Ducks are doing great."RELATED: Whitlock: ESPN broadcaster Ryan Clark symbolizes the end of the Charles Barkley-Terry Bradshaw era Jimmy Johnson coaches the Dallas Cowboys on 17th January 1993. Photo by Otto Greule Jr/Allsport/Getty ImagesDuring the Fox Sports panel discussion, former NFL head coach Jimmy Johnson — also a Super Bowl winner at the helm of the Dallas Cowboys — recalled he had the benefit of coaching at Louisiana Tech when both quarterbacks were there. Johnson noted how talented and impressive both players were, joining Bradshaw in his admiration for Robertson.Bradshaw added regarding Robertson: "He's such a sweet guy, such a really sweet guy. We had so much fun laughing and talking about old times."RELATED: Phil Robertson’s 79th birthday request might be the funniest thing that’s happened this year Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Former Capitol Police Officer Dismayed a Lot of Marylanders ‘Didn’t Care That Much’ About Jan. 6

While HBO's The Last of Us TV series was an instant hi in its first season, it seems the show is already losing steam in just its second season on the network.

The Trump administration unveiled a new military recruitment advertisement that zeroes in on the Armed Forces' mission of "war fighting" and a return to "peace through strength," also the title of the ad.

Reps. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., Rob Menendez, D-N.J., and Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., introduced legislation earlier this month that would ban helicopter tours around New York City, a month after a sightseeing tour crashed into the Hudson River, killing a family of five and the pilot.

Israeli Ambassador to the United States Yechiel 'Michael' Leiter met with the family of Sarah Milgrim in Kansas City, Missouri, over the weekend following her death in a shooting at the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C., last week, The Hill reported.