Democrats are pushing reparations again. It goes hand-in-hand with the racist DEI programs. It would eventually lead to the same mentality we see in South Africa. Summer Lee, the representative in the clip, thinks she is a victim as she sits in Congress screaming nonsense for a $200,000 a year salary. One thing is for […] The post Oppression News: Dems Demand Trillions for Reparations Again appeared first on www.independentsentinel.com.

Employees at 15 Bahama Breeze Island Grille restaurants reportedly showed up to work this week and no longer had jobs. The chain’s parent company, Darden Restaurants, abruptly closed locations across the country in a move that blindsided many. The Caribbean-inspired restaurant is known for its fruity cocktails and tropical fare. But it appears Bahama Breeze is the latest restaurant chain to feel the pain of tough economic times. Darden Restaurants spokesperson Kara Buckner confirmed closures to USA Today. “We continually evaluate the performance of all our restaurants,” she said. “Closing a restaurant is a difficult choice because it impacts our team members and guests. However, we believe this is the right decision because it will allow Bahama Breeze to focus on its highest performing restaurants and strengthen the brand’s overall performance.” View this post on Instagram A post shared by Bahama Breeze (@bahamabreezeislandgrille) Bahama Breeze Closed 11 Locations in Eight States Bahama Breeze permanently shuttered these locations 3989 Plaza Blvd, Gainesville, Florida 2088 9th St N, Naples, Florida 1786 W International Speedway Blvd, Daytona Beach, Florida 2750 Sawgrass Mills Cir, Sunrise, Florida 3339 N Federal Hwy, Oakland Park, Florida 406 E Golf Rd, Schaumburg, Illinois 413 Middlesex Rd, Tyngsborough, Massachusetts 539 E Big Beaver Rd, Troy, Michigan 375 Hughes Center Dr, Las Vegas, Nevada 520 Woodbridge Center Dr, Woodbridge, New Jersey 1201 Hooper Ave, Toms River, New Jersey 101 NJ-23, Wayne, New Jersey 1600 Bergen Town Center, Paramus, New Jersey 612 Smith Haven Mall, Lake Grove, New York 2830 N Germantown Pkwy, Memphis, Tennessee The chain continues to operate 29 locations across Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, New Jersey, North Carolina Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Virginia, and Washington. According to the company’s website, “Bahama Breeze offers all your favorites: burgers, salads, seafood, chicken—all with our island flair. From trying jicama or plantains to jerk chicken pasta, you can enjoy the islands one taste at a time, discovering new flavors and favorites along the way. If our Caribbean-inspired recipes sound delicious but you’re not sure you’re ready to explore, ask us about the ingredients or preparation. We’re always happy to share our knowledge of Caribbean cuisine. Most importantly, we want you to enjoy whatever you choose from our flavorful menu.” This story’s featured image is by Jaimieandkyleshootstock via Shutterstock. The post Bahama Breeze Suddenly Closed 15 Locations Without Warning appeared first on InspireMore.

'What bothered me — I hated to see the way it was, you know, excuse me, pissed away'

'That sh*t is happening every day'

'Essentially no upsides to any of these policies'

'Will send a literal cold, hard lesson'

In an effort to stop the “bloodbath” in the war between Russia and Ukraine, President Donald Trump will have separate phone calls with Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday.   Trump will first speak with the Russian leader and the “subjects of the call will be, stopping the ‘bloodbath’ that is killing, on average, more than 5,000 Russian and Ukrainian soldiers a week, and trade,” Trump wrote on Truth Social Saturday morning.   “I will then be speaking to President Zelenskyy of Ukraine and then, with President Zelenskyy, various members of NATO,” Trump wrote. “Hopefully it will be a productive day, a ceasefire will take place, and this very violent war, a war that should have never happened, will end. God bless us all!!!”   ?President Trump will have separate phone calls with Putin and Zelenskyy on Monday. pic.twitter.com/V8eiBtegp4— Virginia Allen (@Virginia_Allen5) May 17, 2025 Russia invaded Ukraine over three years ago, a move Trump says would not have happened had he been president at the time. Trump has made ending the war between the two countries a key priority of his administration.   Since returning to the White House in January, Trump and Putin have spoken by phone but have not met in person. Trump has met twice with Zelenskyy, first in a contentious meeting at the White House in February. The two leaders met alone at the Vatican on the sidelines of Pope Francis’ funeral in April.  The announcement of the Monday phone calls comes one day after delegations from Russia and Ukraine met in Istanbul for the first direct talks between the two nations since March 2022.    Putin proposed the direct peace talks but chose not to attend the meeting in Istanbul. Trump encouraged Zelenskyy to meet with Putin after the Russian leader suggested the talks and Zelenskyy flew to Turkey, but ultimately did not attend the meeting.    Secretary of State Marco Rubio was present for the talks on Friday, but acknowledged beforehand that he did not expect a breakthrough without key leaders in the room.    Following the less than two-hour meeting in Istanbul, Ukrainian official familiar with the talks told Reuters that Russia is demanding Ukraine pull all its troops out of the regions Russia has claimed before a ceasefire is agreed upon.   While no clear results toward peace were reached during Friday’s meeting, the two nations did agree to a large prisoner swap of 1,000 prisoners of war on each side.   Vladimir Medinsky, a top Kremlin aide who led the Russian delegation, said each delegation did agree for both sides to present a ceasefire plan in detail and that talks will continue.     “Ukraine is ready to take all realistic steps to end this war,” Zelenskyy wrote on X Friday.   “President Trump wants to end this war,” Zelenskyy continued in a series of posts on X. “We need to keep working closely with him and stay as coordinated as possible. Long-term U.S. support is also essential. An American backstop is needed. It’s important that we all work together, on every level, to make that happen.”   The post Trump to Have Phone Calls with Putin and Zelenskyy Aimed at Ending ‘Bloodbath’ appeared first on The Daily Signal.

Everybody Pretends to Be Shocked By Biden-Hur Tapes. Nobody Actually Is, Though

Audio of Joe Biden’s 2023 interview with special counsel Robert Hur, long hidden from the public, has finally been released, confirming, in the ears of many conservatives, what the media and Biden allies have long denied: that the president’s cognitive decline was severe. On Friday, Axios’ Alex Thompson published the tapes just days before the release of his new book with Jake Tapper, sparking fresh scrutiny of the Biden presidency — and the media’s role in shielding it. Hur interviewed Biden as part of his investigation into the alleged storage of classified materials at Biden’s Delaware home in the period between his vice presidency and inauguration as the nation’s 46th president. Hur cited Biden’s mental decline in his decision not to prosecute, writing, “Biden would likely present himself to a jury, as he did during our interview of him, as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.” 'The illegal withholding of this audio tape was election interference meant to protect a failing Biden and then Harris campaign.' At the time, an unnamed Democratic operative called Hur’s characterization of Biden “beyond devastating,” adding, “It confirms every doubt and concern that voters have. If the only reason they didn't charge him is because he’s too old to be charged, then how can he be president of the United States?” The sentiment was short-lived as Democrats and allies in the mainstream media quickly shifted to defense of Biden after then-Attorney General Merrick Garland refused to release either the audio recording or transcript of the interview. Later in 2024, the Department of Justice relented and released the transcript after House Republicans took action. The recording of the interview had never been released until Friday. RELATED: Turley identifies special counsel's 'shocking' admission about evidence against Biden: 'As good of a case I could imagine' Win McNamee/Getty Images Earlier in May, a federal court gave the Trump administration until May 20 to explain how it would respond to plaintiffs seeking the full Biden-Hur audio recordings. That legal deadline just happens to coincide with the release of “Original Sin,” the new book by Axios’ Alex Thompson and CNN’s Jake Tapper. In an emergency late-night court filing obtained by Blaze News, the Oversight Project — a key plaintiff in the lawsuit — highlighted this timing: Full disclosure is necessary now. One of the two journalists who (apparently) has the full tape is Alex Thompson of Axios, the man with a clear financial interest in how the audio is portrayed given his forthcoming book with Jake Tapper in which Tapper undergoes a remarkable conversion from having favorably covered President Biden when President Biden was in office to now critically reporting on President Biden. The filing emphasized that Thompson had reportedly obtained the complete recording but, as of Friday, had released only selected clips — those most favorable to the thesis of his upcoming book. On Saturday, Axios released what it described as the full recording of the interview. Oversight Project President Mike Howell told Blaze News, “The media and Biden administration embarrassed themselves trying to deceive the public about Biden's health.” He added, “The illegal withholding of this audio tape was election interference meant to protect a failing Biden and then Harris campaign. While we are happy we have fulfilled our promise to deliver the tape to the American people, they deserved it long ago. They now deserve accountability and to answer the fundamental question of who was the president the last four years.” In 2024, the media defenders of the Biden administration, including CNN senior legal analyst Elie Honig, argued that withholding the recording was appropriate to protect prosecutorial integrity. In a piece entitled “The Secret Biden Tape We Shouldn’t Hear,” Honig argued, “As a current member of the media (and of the voting public), I’d like to cast scorn on Garland for his decision to withhold the Hur-Biden audio recording. But as a former prosecutor, I applaud him. We probably won’t ever hear the tape. And that’s for the best.” Following the unexpected release of the recording, Honig did not respond when contacted by Blaze News for comment. But other media figures, including Honig’s CNN colleague Jake Tapper — Thompson’s co-author — appear to be working to rehabilitate their credibility in light of the tape’s contents. That response has drawn sharp criticism from conservative media watchdogs. Curtis Houck, managing editor of MRC’s NewsBusters, accused the mainstream press of hypocrisy and opportunism. “All of these liberal journalists expressing shock or dismay at the audio being released need to be lambasted and mocked,” Houck told Blaze News. “This is a blatant covering of one's behind and hoping the public isn't old enough to remember the scorn they heaped at Robert Hur when his report came out.” Houck further lambasted the mainstream media, “The sadness and/or anger at Joe Biden over hearing him struggle with basic facts about his family is really about that he screwed them out of power in the year of our Lord 2025. This has nothing to do with contrition, and the public shouldn't fall victim to their sorrow now. Sudden distrust in the last four years shouldn't be confused with genuine contrition and apologies for participating in a generational cover-up.” RELATED: Justice is coming for Biden's 'autopen' pardons — and Trump's DOJ just put everyone on notice Evan Vucci-Pool/Getty Images As more is being learned about the operations of the Biden presidency and the institutional cover-up of Biden’s mental decline, Howell told Blaze News that his organization’s fight to uncover what happened will continue: “Transparency and accountability are how our nation will heal. There is no other path.” Editor’s note: Mike Howell is a contributor to Blaze News. Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

May 31, 1997. I was 9 years old and had just hit my first home run for Tampa Bay Little League. After the game, a parent handed me the ball, and I wrote the date on it. Today, that ball still rests on a shelf in my den — a small monument to childhood and a boyhood milestone.Last week, my 7-year-old son earned the game ball after his own baseball game. He plays in the same league and on the same field where I hit that home run. Naturally, I placed his ball right next to mine.After our last game, my fellow coaches and I said what we all knew to be true: We’re not just teaching a sport. We’re raising boys into men — through baseball.As I set his ball on the shelf, I picked mine up. The handwriting made me laugh — so innocent, with a crossed-out word where I had misspelled something. Suddenly, the memories came rushing back: the smell of the concession stand, the taste of my glove laces from chewing them in the outfield, and the voice of that one dad in the bleachers who never liked an umpire.Then, something else caught my attention. The two baseballs, separated by 32 years, looked exactly the same. Same color. Same stitching. Same weight. Indistinguishable.For a few minutes, I just stood there, staring at the two baseballs. In that quiet moment, something struck me: In a world where nearly everything feels up for grabs — values, definitions, identities, expectations, even truth — a baseball almost feels like an act of rebellion.In a culture obsessed with chasing the next big thing, those two identical balls offered a much-needed reminder: Not everything needs to be reinvented or improved. Some things are worth preserving.If you’re familiar with my work, you know I take pride in celebrating the things that never go out of style — faith, family, and freedom. I cast shade on what’s trendy and shine a bright light on what’s true, good, and beautiful. When the world wobbles, these values steady the ground beneath us. They hold together not just our personal lives but the country itself.And let’s be honest. The world feels very wobbly right now.RELATED: ‘The Man in the Arena’ wears red, white, blue — and wins Photo by Hunter Martin/Getty ImagesOur institutions keep demanding that we reconsider basic truths: that men can become women, that state ideology trumps parental authority, that patriotism poses a threat, that faith offends, and that masculinity is somehow toxic.Every tradition gets questioned. Every boundary, blurred. Every norm, up for debate.And yet — there sits the baseball. Quiet. Unchanged. Still exactly where I left it.That’s not an accident. It points to something deeper, something God has written into the human heart: a longing for the eternal. For stability. For order. For truth that doesn’t shift with the culture.When I coach my son on the same diamond I played on as a boy, I don’t think about preparing him for the chaos of the world. My job is to anchor him in the things that aren’t chaotic. After our last game, my fellow coaches and I said what we all knew to be true: We’re not just teaching a sport. We’re raising boys into men — through baseball.We’re teaching them that manhood isn’t a moving target. That marriage is a covenant, not a contract. That freedom comes with responsibility.Tradition isn’t something to escape. It’s something to inherit, to steward, and to pass on. That’s what fatherhood demands. It’s what citizenship requires. It’s what faith commands.Despite what modern culture preaches, tradition isn’t about control — it’s about continuity. It’s the through line that links generations, so we don’t get swept away by every cultural trend. Headlines change. They don’t define you.You’re defined by how you love your family; how you serve your neighbors; how you show up when it’s inconvenient; how you choose courage when convenience would be easier; how you pray when no one’s watching; how you toss the ball around with your kid in the backyard.The stitching on that baseball never changed; neither did the role of a father; neither did the moral clarity of the gospel; neither did the beauty of a shared meal or the dignity of honest work.It’s time we return to those things.In a culture obsessed with change, maybe the wiser path is to focus on what doesn’t. Maybe the real challenge isn’t keeping up with the world — it’s keeping faith with the people and principles that mattered before the world got so loud.In 1776, North Carolina’s constitution echoed that truth. American founder George Mason wrote, “A frequent recurrence to fundamental principles is absolutely necessary to preserve the blessing of liberty.”That baseball on the shelf hasn’t changed — neither have the things that matter most.And I’m holding on tight.