'Barack Hussein Obama'

'I'm definitely rusty’

Senate Majority Leader John Thune announced a shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is likely when the clock strikes midnight on Friday, due to a lack of agreement with Democrats on funding the agency. “We don’t have a solution yet,” Thune, R-S.D., told reporters outside the Senate floor Thursday afternoon. “The Democrats, at least at the moment … have no interest in funding the Department of Homeland Security.” Thune said leadership had been seeking unanimous consent to pass yet another funding extension for the department, but Democrats would not provide the votes. At the end of the week, funding from the current short-term stopgap funding extension will expire, leaving the Coast Guard, national disaster response teams, and cybersecurity infrastructure unfunded. The budget reconciliation bill passed in July 2025 has already provided billions in funding for border security and deportation operations under DHS’ umbrella. Democrats have demanded restrictions on immigration law enforcement officers in the wake of the shooting deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis, Minnesota.  The White House and Senate Republicans have engaged with Senate Democrats’ demands for concessions such as prohibiting mask-use and requiring judicial warrants for deportations. “The White House made, I think, what was a good faith effort … to try to get to an answer here … that will allow the government to stay open, and that was rejected by Democrats today,” said Thune.  “The idea of not even allowing us to have an extended amount of time to negotiate this suggests to me, at least, that there isn’t a high level of interest in actually solving this issue.” Thune added that the White House had provided legislative text the night before to Democrats that attempted to address their concerns, but “so far they’re not getting any kind of response from Democrats, even allowing us to continue this and allow the government to stay open.” The Senate will recess next week, but Thune says he has told senators to “be available to get back here if there’s some sort of a deal they strike.” On an optimistic note, Thune added, “I’m encouraged to hear that they [Democrats] are actually going to put together … a counterproposal” for DHS funding. The post THUNE: DHS Shutdown Very Likely appeared first on The Daily Signal.

It is a journalist’s duty to report the truth, yet so many news outlets covered themselves in shame by bowing and scraping to honor the “transgender identity” of the man who carried out one of the deadliest mass shootings in Canadian history. Jesse Van Rootselaar, 18, was born a man and he died a man. He spent his last day on Earth killing his 39-year-old mother, his 11-year-old stepbrother, a 39-year-old teacher, three 12-year-old girls, and two boys, 12 and 13, before taking the coward’s way out and turning the gun on himself. He reportedly wounded about 25 others at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School, and critically injured two more. Initial reports on the shooting described Van Rootselaar as appearing female, but the Royal Canadian Mounted Police erased all doubt Wednesday at a press conference. “I can say that Jesse was born as a biological male who approximately six years ago began to transition to female and identified as female, both socially and publicly,” Deputy Commissioner Dwayne McDonald said. ?ANOTHER TRANS SHOOTERPolice just confirmed that 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar, who killed 6 people in the Tumbler Ridge school shooting after killing his mother, identified as transgender.They're using the killer's preferred pronouns?https://t.co/04TUv6Wn6x pic.twitter.com/zRJAQ9aAyh— Tyler O'Neil (@Tyler2ONeil) February 11, 2026 I understand the impulse to treat people with respect when they claim to identify as the gender opposite their sex. Many consider it common courtesy to refer to a person by preferred pronouns, rather than insisting on biological truth. In some circles, it is a faux pas—if not sacrilege—to state the naked truth that a man is still a man, regardless of what gender he claims to adopt. But, if ever there were a situation where common courtesy need not apply, it would be here. Do you really want to extend “common courtesy” to a school shooter? Do you really want to say, “I know he slaughtered children, and his own mother, but we’ve got to be nice and call him a girl, now”? For crying out loud, let’s stop this insane charade. The vast majority of mass shooters are male, so the initial news reports that the shooter was a woman immediately invited skepticism. When the RCMP’s update clarified that the shooter was really a man dressed up as a woman, every journalist following the story learned the truth. There is no excuse, at that point, for calling the shooter a woman or using female pronouns for him. Yet, outlet after outlet did it. News Outlets Gaslight Readers CNN “reported” that “the suspect is an 18-year-old woman.” The very next sentence? “She was born biologically male and transitioned about six years ago, police said.” CNN also referred to the shooter as “an 18-year-old female resident of the town.” The New York Times used female pronouns for the shooter, stating that “she killed her mother and stepbrother before fatally shooting several others, and later herself.” The Associated Press merely referred to the shooter using female pronouns, without even disclosing to readers that police identified him as male. Reuters’s headline ran, “Canadian police identify 18-year-old woman as suspect in mass school shooting.” Reuters did acknowledge that the shooter had been “born male,” but not until the eleventh paragraph, and only after describing Van Rootselaar as a “woman” and using female pronouns for him throughout. USA Today acknowledged the transgender identity in the second paragraph of the story, but still used female pronouns for the shooter throughout. Why the Pervasive Bias in Favor of the Shooter’s ‘Identity?’ Why did news outlets do this? First, Deputy Commissioner McDonald set the stage for it by saying that police would refer to the shooter as a woman because the shooter had presented himself that way. Apparently, accuracy about biological sex takes a backseat to political correctness, even when it means honoring the ravings of a mass murderer. Second, the Associated Press Stylebook, which many outlets use as a benchmark for how to report the news, has taken an aggressively pro-transgender activist position. The stylebook urges journalists to “identify people as transgender only when relevant, and use the name by which they live publicly.” It recommends avoiding “mention of a person’s gender transition or gender-affirmation surgery in news coverage” unless “it is central to the story.” Why? Because this might be “intrusive and insensitive.” This guidance helps explain why the Associated Press appears to have considered the shooter’s transgender identity irrelevant enough to be excised from the coverage entirely. The AP, you see, didn’t want to be “insensitive” to Mr. Van Rootselaar. Forgive me if I don’t care about being insensitive toward a mass murderer. The AP Stylebook goes out of its way to silence dissent against transgender orthodoxy. While the “guidance” on transgender issues is steeped in transgender ideology, it flatly declares that journalists should “not use the term transgenderism, which frames transgender identity as an ideology.” The Daily Signal appreciates the clarity of the AP Stylebook on matters such as spelling protester with an “er,” but we emphatically reject its “guidance” on issues like this where it takes a leftist partisan stance. A Reckoning on Transgender Insanity This horrific shooting comes shortly after a jury ordered doctors to pay $2 million to a detransitioner who regretted having her breasts removed. It comes after the American Society of Plastic Surgeons recommended against transgender surgeries for minors, and even said the data doesn’t support hormones for minors. The tide is turning against transgender orthodoxy, and this moment should shame news outlets into reconsidering their near-religious devotion to it. The post Canadian Mass Shooting Shows It’s High Time for News Outlets to Stop Bending the Knee to Transgender Orthodoxy appeared first on The Daily Signal.

Axios: Insiders Are in a Panic About the Dangers AI Poses

“I have to tell you something. I’m all about the Epstein Files,” proclaimed NewsNation host Chris Cuomo to his colleague Elizabeth Vargas during the Tuesday night hand off to his show. Cuomo blustered about the files were “our best chance to see and expose and maybe change the two-tiered reality that we all know we live in.” But while Cuomo would go on to talk about the six names that were called out by House Democrats in the files, there was one name in the files he didn’t want to talk about: his. A NewsBusters investigation of the Epstein Files released last week covered that not only was Cuomo discussed in the emails, he was on the short list of different dinner parties and events for Epstein. Epstein’s fixer Peggy Siegel also spent a weekend with Cuomo and his family. For the rest of the hand off, he and Vargas made allusions to President Trump being in the files and suggested he was getting away with something (Click “expand”): CUOMO: So, if you can finally get a window into who would ever can ever met – Forget about Elizabeth Vargas. This is easy. She wears white for a reason. But anybody at home. Can you imagine? Casually joking with someone that you have every reason to believe likes to assault young women. VARGAS: No. CUOMO: Can you imagine who that person is? VARGAS: Or has been convicted and has been labeled a sex offender? Adjudicated as such. “And now we've got names. And now we've got names and I believe it's not for the DOJ, but I believe it's very much for us,” he boasted.   WATCH: “I’m all about the Epstein Files,” proclaimed NewsNation host Chris Cuomo. He then said the files were “our best chance to see and expose and maybe change the two-tiered reality that we all know we live in.” But his name is them, and he hasn't explained why. pic.twitter.com/6VPtiDPuri — Nicholas Fondacaro (@NickFondacaro) February 12, 2026   If Cuomo’s righteous indignation over the release of names couldn’t get any more ironic, he would go on to declare: “Remember, this isn't just about what can be prosecuted, but we do have to figure that out. But it's not some gotcha game about people’s sex lives, okay? This is a far lower bar of humanity. Alright? Who participated and/or knew about assaulting females may be as young as nine years old.” Reacting to a soundbite of a British journalist defending her name being in the files because she was someone important who had written about the Epstein case, Cuomo put himself on the high ground: “Listen, if you're in the files because you covered this story, it's not what we're talking about. And to casually dismiss it like that, shows exactly why this matter so much. They know they'll get away with it.” Again, Cuomo was in the files and not because he was covering Epstein. In an e-mail sent on March 31, 2012, Siegal was whining to Epstein about how he never went to the theater with her. She was also giving him an update about happenings in her life. One of which was how she was heading out to Long Island to spend the weekend with the Cuomo family. “Going to Southampton today to visit Cristina and Chris Cuomo and the 3 kids...till Sunday,” she wrote.     Siegal seemed to like the Cuomo’s quite a bit since she included them in a short list for some sort of two-day “spring break” bash in March of 2013. In an e-mail to Epstein, she asked: Do you want film makers or media elite? Tory Burch Steve haft Katie Couric Chris Cuomo/Cristina Cuomo Writers Danny Strong Chris Terrio- wrote Argo Beau Willimon- wrote Ides of march/House of Cards Bennett Miller- directed Moneyball and a new one not out yet about dupont and wrestlers Lena Dunham- but Woody did not want to meet her a year ago Rita wilson- tom is on stage in Nora's Lucky Guy Martha stewart Barry levinson Zac Posen Charlie Rose I am still thinking. Have to see who is in town.     She also included the Cuomos on a guest list to a birthday party she was throwing for herself in July of that same year. “Are you in town? Would love for you to attend my birthday party next Tuesday, July 16'" at La Grenouille. Please see updated guest list below,” she wrote to Epstein. Now, what was that saying about people who lived in glass houses? The transcript is below. Click "expand" to read: NewsNation’s Cuomo February 10, 2026 8:00:04 p.m. Eastern CHRIS CUOMO: I have to tell you something. I am all about the Epstein files. We've always covered here. Okay? So, then what's new? I believe it is our best chance to see and expose and maybe change the two-tiered reality that we all know we live in because – ELIZABETH VARGAS: Where the rich get away with everything and get everything. CUOMO: What happens in corporate America is the same thing that happens in the administration of justice is the same thing that happens in the halls of power is the same thing that goes into the alchemy of the two-party. They're all the same people. VARGAS: Mm-hm. CUOMO: So, if you can finally get a window into who would ever can ever met – Forget about Elizabeth Vargas. This is easy. She wears white for a reason. But anybody at home. Can you imagine? Casually joking with someone that you have every reason to believe likes to assault young women. VARGAS: No. CUOMO: Can you imagine who that person is? VARGAS: Or has been convicted and has been labeled a sex offender? Adjudicated as such. CUOMO: And now we've got names. And now we've got names and I believe it's not for the DOJ, but I believe it's very much for us. (…) 8:03:14 p.m. Eastern CUOMO: Remember, this isn't just about what can be prosecuted, but we do have to figure that out. But it's not some gotcha game about people’s sex lives, okay? This is a far lower bar of humanity. Alright? Who participated and/or knew about assaulting females may be as young as nine years old. It's about why people think it is okay to say anything like this. [Cuts to video of Leading Britain’s Conversation] UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: Everybody that was very powerful. So like, if you're on the scene and you were powerful - a like to be honest, like if you’re not in those files, it would be an insult because it just means that you a bit of loser. UNIDENTIFIED MAN: Right. So the people who aren’t in the files are losers. UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: Yes! UNIDENTIFIED MAN: Are you in the files? UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: Well, of course I am. Because it's any journalist that wrote about it. [Cuts back to live] CUOMO: [Shakes his head] I don't know what the Hell she's talking about. [Mocks her accent] Listen, if you're in the files because you covered this story, it's not what we're talking about. And to casually dismiss it like that, shows exactly why this matter so much. They know they'll get away with it. (…)

On Sunday, CNN’s Dana Bash interviewed Maryland Governor Wes Moore (D-Md.) on State of the Union for nearly nine minutes, but she failed to ask about the Washington Free Beacon's new report on how Moore has lied for many years about his own life story. Instead, Bash began by asking about the video of the Obamas cartooned as monkeys posted (and then taken down) by Trump. There were several firm questions about more gerrymandering in Maryland, and then it turned back to a supportive direction. She asked Moore several questions about why he thought that he and Governor Jared Polis (D-Colo.) were not invited to the annual meeting of governors at the White House, why he was "being called out and excluded" by Trump.  Moore replied that “you can uninvite, you can un-tweet, but you can never erase.” He then claimed that he is “not interested in being able to go to fancy dinners with the president if he [Trump] wants to exclude certain members.” Moore continued to declare that “since the president decided that I’m not going to be invited, this will not be an NGA event.” Bash asked if he had a “commitment from Republican governors on that” to which he replied that they had a “commitment from the organization.” Governor Moore Declares Racial Undertones Amid White House Dinner Exclusion#cnn #mrc #moore #maryland #whitehouse pic.twitter.com/KRoAYtqDIu — Sarah (@scbpoli) February 12, 2026   Bash pressed Moore thought he was being “excluded from this dinner.” Moore responded “It's not lost to me that I'm the only black governor in this country. And I find that to be particularly painful.” Moore’s emphasis on race comes just weeks after he was caught falsely claiming that the Ku Klux Klan chased his great-grandfather out of South Carolina. In his Free Beacon story, Andrew Kerr, a former MRC Bulldog Award winner, reported that historical church records indicate that Moore’s great-grandfather made a “orderly and public transfer” out of South Carolina after being “appointed to succeed a prominent Jamaican pastor” who had passed away. At the end of the interview, Bash asked if he was certain that race was the president’s motive for excluding him. Moore replied “I can't speak to the president's intent. It's not lost on me, but I can't speak to the president's intent.”   Click "Expand" to view the transcript: State of the Union with Jake Tapper and Dana Bash 2/8/2026 9:35:56-9:39:14 DANA BASH: Governor, later this month, the president, President Trump will host an annual meeting of governors at the White House. He's only inviting Republican governors to that, which is traditionally a bipartisan event. And he's specifically excluding you and Democratic Governor Jared Polis from a separate dinner. You're the vice chair of the National Governors Association. Do you know why you are being called out and excluded? GOVERNOR WES MOORE (D-MD): It's particularly confusing, because, just a few weeks ago, I led a group of Democratic and Republican governors to the White House. And we had a meeting with the White House where we signed a memorandum of understanding around energy and trying to increase energy supply and bring down energy costs. And so one thing I know is this, is that you can uninvite, you can un- tweet, but you can never erase. And so if I was selected by my peers, both Democratic and Republican governors, to serve as the vice chair of the National Governors Association. We focused on getting things done for our people. And we're not interested in being able to go to fancy dinners with the president if he wants to exclude certain members. BASH: Well, he's... MOORE: So, since the president decided that I'm not going to be invited, this will not be an NGA event. BASH: Meaning what? MOORE: Meaning the NGA will not support this dinner. If the president wants to have a dinner with his friends and have a black-tie dinner with his friends on that night, that is perfectly fine. It will not be an NGA event. BASH: And you have a commitment from Republican governors on that? MOORE: Oh, we have a commitment from the organization. This is a bipartisan organization, where Democratic and Republican governors come together to work on addressing the needs of our people. And I'm honored that my peers selected me to be the vice chair of it. I am thankful for the leadership of Kevin Stitt, a Republican, the Republican governor for Oklahoma, who serves as the chair. And we know that, in this time, the president cannot use this time to divide our organization. Our organization stands firm that, if you exclude one, you exclude us all, and this will not be an NGA event. BASH: Governor, before I let you go, I just want to understand what you think the reason is that you are being singled out and Jared Polis, but, from your perspective, why are you being excluded from this dinner? MOORE: Well, I have long learned that I'm not trying to get inside of the president's psyche. It's not a good use of my time. It's not lost to me that I'm the only black governor in this country. And I find that to be particularly painful, considering the fact that the president is trying to exclude me from an organization that not only my peers have asked me to help to lead, but then also a place where I know I belong in. And so I have long learned and I have talked to the people and the children of my state is that I'm never in a room because of someone's benevolence nor kindness. I'm not in a room because of a social experiment. I'm in the room because I belong there and the room was incomplete until I got there. BASH: You're saying that he's excluding you because of the color of your skin? MOORE: Well, I don't know. I can't speak to the president's intent. It's not lost on me, but I can't speak to the president's intent. BASH: Ok. Governor Wes Moore, thank you so much.  

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) sharply criticized a Minnesota Democrat during a Senate Homeland Security hearing Thursday, blaming him for encouraging protests that the Republican lawmaker said helped set the stage for the deaths of two activists amid a high-profile federal immigration enforcement operation.Johnson accused Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison of creating conditions that, he said, contributed to the fatal shootings of Renée Nicole Good and Alex Pretti.'Yeah, sit there and smirk. Smirk. It's sick. It's despicable.'"Two people are dead because you encouraged them to put themselves into harm's way," Johnson told Ellison during the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing. "A tragedy was going to happen, and you encouraged it. And you ought to feel damn guilty about it."Johnson's criticism continued when Ellison appeared to smirk, stating: "Yeah, sit there and smirk. Smirk. It's sick. It is despicable." Ellison fired back, labeling Johnson's remarks "all lies" and a "nice theatrical performance."RELATED: Olympic skier who wrote 'F**k ICE' in snow now says he is victim of 'hate and vitriol' Alex Wroblewski/Bloomberg via Getty Images Johnson went on to detail incidents of protester violence and interference that he said escalated the danger for federal agents. "These law enforcement officials have been shot at. Their vehicles have been rammed by some of these 'peaceful protesters,' probably the trained activists. They've had rocks thrown at their vehicles," Johnson said.RELATED: Skier Hunter Hess changes tune after saying he has 'mixed emotions' about representing USA: 'I love my country' Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images "You've got all these trained activists behind you," Johnson said, "Is it any wonder they're at hair-trigger alert? A tragedy was going to happen, and you encouraged it!"Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

In yet another sign of a reverse in cultural trends, the organizers of the annual "GayDays" at Disney World announced the event has been put on "pause" this year after several sponsors dropped out.The event usually lasts for several days and occurs in June during LGBTQ+ Pride Month. This year's event would have been the 35th anniversary at the Orlando resort in Florida.Another post promotes 'glory holes,' 'dark corners,' and adult film stars at a 'carnal adventure.'"After careful consideration, we have made the difficult decision to pause the GayDays Orlando event scheduled for June 2026," the statement reads."Changes to our host hotel agreement, the loss of key sponsorship support, and broader challenges currently impacting LGBTQIA+ events nationwide made it impossible to deliver the experience our community deserves," the organizers added.However, the company added that it was only a "pause" and not completely ended."For more than 30 years, GayDays has been built by and for our community. Our focus now is on reimagining the future and returning with a stronger, more sustainable event," they added. "We will share updates in the coming months as we shape the next chapter together. Thank you for your support, your patience, and for being part of the GayDays family."The event is not officially recognized by Disney but was rather a fan-organized independent meetup that was supported by local hotels and other businesses."Gay Days is just really a vacation gathering of gays and lesbians from around the world, and straight people," said Chris Alexander-Manley, an organizer of the event, in an interview from 2002.Critics of the event have opposed it based on anecdotal reports of excessive displays of public affection at the park, inappropriately revealing attire worn by LGBTQ+ members, and other related events that do not align with the family theme of Disney parks.RELATED: 'Go f*** yourself!' Elon Musk rips into Disney and other advertisers dropping from X platform On social media, GayDays promotes "Drag Bingo" as well as "Porn Star Bingo" among its events at a pool party. Another post promotes "glory holes," "dark corners," and adult film stars at a "carnal adventure" for those "who seek uninhibited freedom, raw connection, and pulse-pounding thrills.""You will get laid!" reads a sign from a mostly undressed man in the media image.Prominent sponsors of the event in the past included Showtime and Bud Light.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

A white-majority Chicago suburb is preparing to distribute hefty cash payments to dozens of black residents as part of the city's $10 million reparations pledge.Black residents and descendants of black residents who lived in Evanston, Illinois, between 1919 and 1969 are eligible to receive the payments. Evanston plans to pay $25,000 to 44 qualifying black residents.'They are just entirely giving money, usually to black residents solely on the basis of race.'The City's Reparations Committee previously pledged $10 million over a decade as part of its Reparations Program, which was established in 2019 and approved by the city council in 2021. The government-funded program is the first of its kind in the U.S.Cynthia Vargas, Evanston's communications and community engagement manager, told the Chicago Tribune that payments to the 44 individuals are intended to cover housing expenses.The city has allocated over $270,000 to its Reparations Program, funds that it collected from the real estate transfer tax. The program also receives funding from the city's 3% Cannabis Retailers Occupation Tax, though it is unclear how much.The Reparations Committee has proposed providing additional funding to the program through a potential tax on Delta-8 THC products, a psychoactive substance found in cannabis that is sold in vapes and gummies.RELATED: Chicago suburb starts disbursing $10 million reparations package to black residents Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images"Delta-8 products tend to be rather inexpensive, so the tax on them, it likely won't be a huge revenue stream, but it is revenue," Alexandra Ruggie, the city's corporation counsel, stated. "The other thing that we will have to work out with our finance team is how to go about collecting those taxes, whether we tax it when there's a point of sale at an Evanston business, or whether or not we tax it when those businesses buy it from the supplier."RELATED: Trump pulls US out of 'racist' UN forum pushing 'global reparations agendas' Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times via Getty ImagesJudicial Watch, a conservative watchdog, filed a lawsuit against Evanston last year, arguing that the Reparations Program used race as an eligibility requirement and therefore violates the 14th Amendment's Equal Protection clause."There's a right way and a wrong way to do them," Michael Bekesha, a senior attorney at Judicial Watch, told Fox News Digital. "So reparations are to repair. And so we have provided in this country reparations in the past when somebody has been wronged by the government, and we try to make that person whole.""The reparations programs that you're seeing around the country that are being talked about aren't that. They are just entirely giving money, usually to black residents solely on the basis of race. And I mean, that's just problematic," Bekesha added.A spokesperson for the city told Fox News Digital that it cannot respond to ongoing litigation.According to 2020 census data, more than 46,000 of Evanston's 78,000 residents identify as "white alone." Just 12,500 identify as "black or African-American alone."Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!