Tag: Trump News

Trump announces Gaza breakthrough but uncertainty remains

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Shattered rifles overtaken by green plants desert

US President Donald Trump on Thursday announced what he described as a historic agreement to secure the disarmament of Hamas and all other armed groups in Gaza – months after he first announced a US-brokered ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel. “Today, the Board of Peace reached a HISTORIC agreement for the COMPLETE DISARMAMENT of Hamas and all other armed groups in Gaza,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post. “This is a monumental step toward lasting PEACE and SECURITY.” An official from the Board of Peace, a Trump-led international body overseeing Gaza’s transitional governance, said Hamas and other armed factions would ultimately hand over their weapons to the committee, with police weapons transferred first and personal weapons last.

While Hamas didn’t formally respond to Trump’s announcement, senior official Ghazi Hamad confirmed to CNN that the group has reached an agreement with the Board of Peace to surrender its weapons, contingent on the deployment of an International Stabilization Force to Gaza and Israel upholding its obligations under the October ceasefire agreement. “The agreement is a package,” Hamad said. “We will not begin any weapons-related steps until Israel implements these commitments. Frankly, if Israel does not implement them, we will not proceed.” Hamad said Israel must first cease fire, stop all targeted killings in Gaza, withdraw its troops to the Yellow Line and allow for a surge of humanitarian aid consistent with the October ceasefire agreement. The Yellow Line is a demarcation line that Israeli troops withdrew to under the October 2025 ceasefire agreement. It encompassed roughly 53% of Gaza, but the line has been shifting towards the Mediterranean Sea as Israel expands its control, cramming Gaza’s population into a shrinking strip of land. Hamad told CNN that the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG), a Palestinian technocratic committee appointed by the Board of Peace, must also enter Gaza and take over governance of the strip.

The NCAG would assume control of weapons belonging to Hamas’s police force in Gaza, he said. The Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement, another militant group in Gaza, said early Friday that reports of the agreement were “inaccurate.” The group was party to the ceasefire along with Hamas. Trump would be ‘very disappointed’ if Israel fails to comply Disarming Hamas is a critical step in implementing Trump’s multi-phase peace plan to end the war in Gaza and moving to set up a technocratic government for the strip. Mediators have been trying to negotiate with Hamas for months on implementing the plan, but there is skepticism in the region that Hamas will hold up its end of the bargain. “If this is implemented, if gathered demilitarized weapons are handed over, the transitional authority takes control. Hamas steps away from government, governance, all of these things are done that actually reignite the prospect for a political horizon for the Palestinian people,” the official said. Earlier this month, Hamas announced that it would dissolve its government in Gaza, a move that experts say put pressure on Israel as progress from the US-brokered ceasefire plan stalled.

Their statement on the move made no mention of disarmament. For this disarmament agreement, Washington coordinated with Israel “every step of the way,” a US official said, later acknowledging that Israel remains skeptical Hamas will disarm while arguing that “this isn’t really a trust deal.” Trump would be “very, very disappointed” if Israel doesn’t adhere to its end of the peace plan, the official said. “With all the different issues they have going on, it seems like they’re, you know, this is not something I think (Israel wants) to escalate as an issue right now. So we believe that they’ll continue to be a good partner in this and comply.” CNN has reached out to the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office for comment. ‘A negotiation conducted over our heads’ An Israeli official told CNN Thursday that the issue of Gaza did not come up during Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s meeting with Trump at the White House this week. The official said that, before Trump’s announcement Friday, Israel was demanding the complete disarmament of Hamas, including the removal of weapons from Gaza and the full demilitarization of the strip, as a precondition for any process.

A reported 15-point document currently under discussion does not provide an adequate response to these demands, the official said. There has been no official comment from the Israeli government on the deal but on Friday, Israeli minister Orit Strouk, a member of far-right minister Bezalel Smotrich’s Religious Zionist party, strongly rejected Trump’s announced agreement. “This is a negotiation conducted over our heads, in complete contradiction to our position, and it is being signed with strange ceremony while expecting it to be binding on us as well. Well, absolutely not,” Strouk, who is also the settlements minister, wrote on Facebook. The Board of Peace, however, presented the agreement as a historic breakthrough offering security to Israelis and a better future for Palestinians in Gaza. “For the first time, Hamas officially has committed to an actionable plan for relinquishing all its weapons, which will be followed by Israeli withdrawal from Gaza. It holds the promise of delivering significant benefits to the people of Gaza, who have waited for too long for a better future, and security to the people of Israel,” the Board of Peace said in a post on X after Trump’s announcement. Trump said the agreement would pave the way for Gaza to be governed by “a new Palestinian government” working alongside his Board of Peace, while ensuring “Israel will have the security it deserves, with Gaza no longer used as a base for terror attacks.”

The US president asserted that the agreement would be implemented in phases. As armed groups are disarmed, he wrote, Israeli forces will withdraw and an International Stabilization Force, working alongside a new Palestinian police force, will assume responsibility for security in Gaza. Asked about the timing of Hamas’ disarmament, the US official noted the complexity of the issue and the importance of getting it right, rather than sticking to a strict timeline. “I think over the next couple weeks we’ll continue to refine the the details of everything, and I think we can see progress in the next month or two,” the official said. US and Board of Peace officials on Thursday described the agreement as the result of months of “very delicate negotiations” that produced a “breakthrough,” where there is an understanding of “what needs to be done,” while cautioning it remains “a conditions-based deal.” Trump in his post thanked mediators from Egypt, Qatar and Turkey, as well as his administration, for helping broker the agreement. “The threat that emerged from Gaza on October 7 will NOT be allowed to rebuild!” Trump wrote, adding,

“Under this agreement, Gaza will finally be in the hands of a new Palestinian government that serves its PEOPLE.” “CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL ON THIS AMAZING DEVELOPMENT, THAT EVERYBODY SAID COULD NEVER BE ACHIEVED!” Trump concluded. Officials said implementation will take time, with detailed conditions expected to be published within two weeks, adding that movement between phases will occur only after “verified completion of the previous” approved by an implementation verification committee.

Source: Trump announces Gaza breakthrough but uncertainty remains | CNN Politics

Thoughts to Ponder

The announcement of a proposed agreement for Hamas and other armed groups in Gaza to surrender their weapons represents a significant development in the ongoing effort to bring peace to one of the world’s longest-running conflicts. While many details remain contingent upon both Hamas and Israel fulfilling their respective commitments, the possibility of disarmament offers a glimpse of hope for countless civilians who have endured years of violence, loss, and uncertainty. Scripture reminds believers that peace is a gift from God and that peacemakers reflect His character (Matthew 5:9). Christians should pray that any agreement reached would protect innocent lives, encourage justice, and create opportunities for lasting reconciliation rather than simply providing a temporary pause in hostilities.

At the same time, followers of Christ recognize that true and lasting peace cannot be achieved through political agreements alone. The Bible teaches that lasting peace begins with transformed hearts through Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6), and extends outward into relationships, communities, and nations. As leaders negotiate and difficult conditions are weighed by all sides, Christians are called to pray for wisdom for government officials, compassion for those suffering on every side of the conflict, and a spirit of forgiveness that can overcome hatred. While diplomatic progress is encouraging, believers ultimately place their hope in God’s sovereign plan and look forward to the day when Christ establishes His perfect and everlasting peace (Isaiah 2:4).

And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.
Ephesians 4:32

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Supreme Court expands presidential firing power, overturning 90-year-old ruling

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US Supreme Court building with columns and American flag at sunrise

The Supreme Court on Monday ruled that removal protections for members of the Federal Trade Commission are unconstitutional and overturned a 90-year-old decision that allowed Congress to shield members of certain independent agencies from being fired by the president at will. The decision from the high court expands the president’s power over many independent boards and commissions, which Congress had insulated from political pressure by saying their members could only be removed by the president for cause. In a 1935 decision in a case known as Humphrey’s Executor v. United States, which involved removal protections for the FTC, the Supreme Court said Congress could restrict the president’s ability to fire officials from multi-member agencies at will.  But the ruling from the high court’s conservative majority in the case Trump v. Slaughter overturns that 90-year-old decision and marks the culmination of a years-long weakening of the New Deal-era precedent. 

The court’s ruling The ruling was 6 to 3, with Chief Justice John Roberts writing for the majority, joined by the other conservative justices. The three liberals dissented, and Justice Sonia Sotomayor read a summary of her dissent from the bench, a rare occurrence that signals strong disagreement with a decision. Roberts wrote that limits on the president’s ability to fire those who wield executive power on his behalf infringe on his constitutional authority. The FTC of today, the court’s majority found, “unquestionably” exercises executive powers and therefore must be under the president’s control. “Although it is up to the Senate to decide whether to confirm those with whom the President would prefer to work, neither Congress nor the courts may saddle him with those with whom he cannot work,” Roberts wrote. “Subordinates who exercise the President’s power are subject to removal by him. Then, and only then, can they remain accountable to the President, and the President to the people.”

The decision is likely to have ramifications beyond the FTC. Congress has created more than two dozen multi-member agencies led by officials who can be removed by the president only for cause, which typically means instances of inefficiency, neglect of duty or malfeasance in office. Among those agencies likely to be affected by the Supreme Court’s ruling are the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the National Labor Relations Board. In a dissenting opinion joined by Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson, Sotomayor warned that while those agencies remain, they now take on a new form that differs from what Congress intended when they were created. “Put simply, today the majority reshapes our Government. Dozens of independent commissions are now likely to become purely executive agencies, shifting tremendous power over broad swaths of American life into the President’s hands,” she wrote. President Trump cheered the decision as the “Greatest Increase in Presidential Power in the last 100 years. Such a Monumental Ruling at such an important time!”

The Slaughter case Mr. Trump has sought to test the bounds of his executive power since returning to the White House for his second term in January 2025, including by firing a slew of officials appointed by Democratic presidents at multi-member boards and commissions without cause. Among those was Rebecca Slaughter, whom Mr. Trump appointed to the FTC during his first term. She was reappointed to the trade commission by President Joe Biden.  Slaughter was informed in March 2025 that her service on the FTC was “inconsistent” with the Trump administration’s priorities and was fired from her post without cause. That clashed with the law that established the FTC in 1914, when Congress said commissioners could only be removed for inefficiency, neglect of duty or malfeasance in office. Slaughter filed a lawsuit challenging her removal and argued Mr. Trump broke the law when he fired her. A federal district court ruled in her favor and ordered Slaughter to be reinstated to her post. The U.S. appeals court in Washington, D.C., eventually agreed that she could continue in her job at the trade commission, but last September, the Supreme Court allowed Mr. Trump to fire her while it considered the legality of removal protections for FTC members.

Before agreeing to decide Slaughter’s case, the Supreme Court had also cleared the way for Mr. Trump to oust members of the National Labor Relations Board, Merit Systems Protection Board and Consumer Product Safety Commission. But the high court has so far spared two other officials from removal while litigation continues: Lisa Cook, a member of the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors, and Shira Perlmutter, the register of copyrights. The justices heard arguments in January over whether to allow Mr. Trump to fire Cook from the Fed Board. The Supreme Court has indicated before that it views the Fed differently than other independent agencies, calling it a “uniquely structured, quasi-private entity that follows in the distinct historical tradition of the First and Second Banks.” In an opinion also authored by Roberts, the high court rejected Mr. Trump’s attempt to fire Cook while the challenge to her removal moved forward.  The Supreme Court reiterated in its ruling involving the FTC that it does not implicate the constitutionality of the Fed’s removal restrictions. It also stressed that the decision does not address tenure protections for judges on the U.S. Tax Court or the Court of Federal Claims, with Roberts writing that the justices are leaving “those questions for another day.”

“All we do today is recognize what has been clear for a century — that those who fall within the President’s ‘general administrative control’ must be removable by the President at will,” he wrote. The high court’s decision in Slaughter’s case is the latest in a line of recent decisions that chipped away at Humphrey’s Executor and expanded the president’s power over independent agencies. The Supreme Court invalidated removal protections for the director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in 2020 and the head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency in 2021.

Source: Supreme Court expands presidential firing power, overturning 90-year-old ruling – CBS News

Let no one seek his own, but each one the other’s well-being.
1 Corinthians 10:24

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Associated Press Dislikes Trump Remarks on Communism at Mount Rushmore

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Donald Trump speaking at a podium with Mount Rushmore and a crowd holding American flags behind him

Communism is an evil philosophy. Communist regimes have killed hundreds of millions of people, and made millions more live in a police state. But somehow, speaking ill of communism alarms the same journalists that constantly suggest democracy is in peril under Donald Trump. Authoritarianism is bad – unless it’s communist. Trump denounced communism in a July 3 speech underneath Mount Rushmore in South Dakota. A three-person team at Associated Press — Steven Stone, Steve Peoples, and Michelle Price — penned a story headlined: “Trump hails US exceptionalism before veering into darkly political speech to usher in America 250.”

AP began by claiming Trump offered “soaring rhetoric about American exceptionalism before veering into a darkly political speech with warnings about a sinister threat of communism that evoked one of the country’s ugliest chapters.” Trump said communism was a “mortal threat to American liberty.” That’s considered “darkly political,” even if it’s factual. American liberty and Soviet communism were polar opposites in the Cold War, democracy and tyranny. Somehow, reporters don’t like “dark” words about Stalin and Mao and Castro and Pol Pot. They were somehow never a “sinister threat” to anyone. As for the ugliest chapter? The AP trio lectured: “Indeed, Trump’s language evoked the Red Scare of the 1950s, when alleged communists were persecuted and blacklisted from jobs across America, from Washington to Hollywood.” This is a mind-boggling sentence.

They’re still saying “alleged communists”? Every journalist should have taken the time to learn that there were communist spies in the federal government and there were communists in powerful positions in Hollywood. Leftist journalists spent decades claiming Alger Hiss wasn’t a Soviet spy, but post-Soviet records clearly established he was. There are a shelf of books underlining the evidence, including Blacklisted by History by M. Stanton Evans. As for the entertainment world, Allan Ryskind, whose father was a Hollywood screenwriter, wrote an engrossing book that came out in 2015 called Hollywood Traitors about the communists that infiltrated the movie business. Sen. Joseph McCarthy might have gotten the number of Soviet spies wrong, but journalists have spent decades ridiculously pretending the number was zero.

It’s a little humorous that this anti-anti-communist story was picked up online by both NPR and PBS. NPR’s headline was “In Mount Rushmore speech, Trump veers from U.S. exceptionalism to warnings about communism.” The PBS headline put communist “threat” in quote marks, like it was crazy talk. Right after their “Red Scare” laments, the AP scribes uncritically added “Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a democratic socialist, delivered his own address that cast America as a nation of contradictions ‘working each day towards the perfection in which it was conceived.’” That’s their only Mamdani speech quote in this piece. Mamdani has openly spoken of seizing the “means of production,” but that would only make him an “alleged communist.”

Graham Platner identified himself as a communist on Reddit, and Darializa Avila Chevalier spoke warmly of Marx and communist dictators on her X account “Darializabonet,” until she took it down. But an AP Fact Check genius wrote an article objecting to anyone claiming there are communists in the Democratic Party, because none of them were actually members of the Communist Party. They missed the obvious point: They’re pro-communist members of the Democratic Party. Journalists who constantly smear President Trump and his supporters as “fascists” (with no fuss from the “fact checkers”) find it “darkly political” when someone does a version of what they do – except conservatives have the actual facts on their side. 

Source: Associated Press Dislikes Trump Remarks on Communism at Mount Rushmore

When pride comes, then comes shame; But with the humble is wisdom.
Proverbs 11:2

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Cuba hit with nationwide blackout as US pressure continues

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Coastal city skyline at night with lit windows and waterfront road

Cuba suffered a nationwide blackout on Monday as it faces an ongoing energy crisis, worsened by an effective US blockade on fuel shipments. Cuba’s energy ministry said the national electrical grid had suffered a total collapse. The country’s grid operator said it is investigating the cause. Energy Minister Vicente de la O Levy said officials were working to restore energy and that they’ve already activated emergency “microsystems” that power vital services. Cuba has experienced several nationwide blackouts over the past few years, as the country’s aging electricity infrastructure struggles to meet demand. The country’s power crisis worsened this year after the US forced Cuba’s main suppliers to stop oil shipments. In March, it had at least two total blackouts within a week. On Monday, Cuba’s President Miguel Díaz-Canel criticized the US for blocking fuel imports on X, claiming Washington is trying to induce “a social explosion through asphyxiation.”

The island’s energy crunch has strained essential services, including education, transportation and medicine. Fresh sanctions by the US have also further deteriorated the Cuban economy and prevented many tourists from visiting the island. The US says the economic stranglehold is meant to force the Cuban government to pry open the island’s hermetic political system and allow direct foreign investment. Last month, Cuba’s National Assembly approved a broad set of reforms aimed at opening its economy. The foreign trade minister told CNN that the measures were not passed in response to external pressure. A spokesperson for the US State Department described the reforms as “modest, long overdue and ultimately superficial smoke signals” from the government. US and Cuban officials have held multiple talks over the past few weeks. In May, CIA Director John Ratcliffe met Cuba’s spy chiefs in Havana, and the commander of US Southern Command met with senior Cuban military officials on the perimeter of Naval Station Guantanamo Bay.

The US has accused Cuban officials of hosting Russian and Chinese listening posts on the island and thwarting US interests in the region. Cuba denies the claims and has pushed back against the US. When CNN asked Cuba’s Minister of Foreign Trade and Investment Oscar Pérez-Oliva Fraga about the island’s humanitarian crisis, he accused the US of collective punishment, saying: “What is happening today against our people is a genocide.”

Source: Cuba hit with nationwide blackout as US pressure continues | CNN

For the word of the LORD is right, And all His work is done in truth.
Psalm 33:4

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President Trump Delivers Remarks at Mount Rushmore, Jul. 3, 2026

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Political rally at Mount Rushmore with a speaker at podium and American flags

President Donald Trump delivers speech at Mount Rushmore before Americas 250th birthday. A celebration of the Greatest civilization and country that has ever been created.

Source: (630) President Trump Delivers Remarks at Mount Rushmore, Jul. 3, 2026 – YouTube

Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?
Matthew 6:26

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‘Second-class citizens’: Angel Families describe two-tiered justice system for illegal immigrants

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Roadside memorial with crosses, flowers, candles, and photos at dusk by a winding road

President Donald Trump has made fighting illegal immigration the centerpiece of his second administration, but for too many families across the country, finding justice has been elusive. Many illegal immigrants who have committed crimes have escaped justice under the Biden administration, while the families of the victims faced ineffective investigations, protracted legal cases, and, in some cases, saw the perpetrators receive light prison sentences. “These people are shown so many privileges in this country and American citizens are really considered, in my opinion, second-class citizens when it comes to crimes committed against them by illegals,” says Mary Ann Mendoza, whose police officer son was killed in 2014 in a head-on collision by an illegal immigrant.

Families torn apart by illegal immigrants who were never caught Mendoza, who founded Angel Families, spoke to Just the News about the Inman family, who were irreparably broken after a fishing trip in 2000 in which an illegal immigrant crashed into their car, killing 16-year-old Dustin and the family dog. Dustin’s mother, Kathy, was in a coma for weeks following the crash, and remained in a wheelchair until she died in 2021 from complications caused by the car accident. The Inman family says that Dustin’s father, Billy, was in the hospital so long he wasn’t able to attend his son’s funeral. He died of a heart attack in 2019, which Mendoza believes was caused by the stress he faced in the decades following the crash and death of his son.

The illegal immigrant who caused the crash, Gonzalo Harrell-Gonzalez, fled to Mexico after the crash but continued to cross between the U.S. and Mexico for several years without being arrested. He was indicted by a grand jury in January 2001 and was placed on ICE’s “Most Wanted” list before being removed during the Biden administration, as noted by the Center for Immigration Studies. He is still a fugitive. The Inmans are not alone when it comes to a lack of justice. Joe Storie, 51, was killed on October 5, 2011, when Luis Alberto Rodriguez-Castro ran a flashing red light and hit Joe, his sister, and his wife. Joe’s sister and wife survived the crash but were critically injured.

Rodriguez-Castro was also injured in the crash and taken to a nearby hospital, where he escaped from police supervision but was later recaptured. Even though Rodriguez-Castro was deemed a flight risk by the prosecution, a Georgia superior court judge granted him a bond reduction, and he was allowed to remain out of prison. He subsequently missed a court date and vanished. Rodriguez-Castro remains on ICE’s “Most Wanted” list. Blake Zieto, 20, was killed in a 2006 head-on crash by Mexican national Jesus Maltos-Chacon, who fled and has remained a fugitive for the past 20 years.

President Joe Biden sitting at the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office, signing papers.

Maltos-Chacon’s name was removed from the ICE “Most Wanted” list under the Biden administration but re-added on April 27, 2026. He remains at large. The high emotional cost to Angel Families in sanctuary states Hailey King was just 18 years old when she was riding on the back of her friend’s scooter on November 7, 2016. According to a crash reconstructionist hired by her mother, King and her friend were hit by an illegal immigrant driving 71 miles per hour in a 35mph zone. Hailey ended up on the hood of Sergio Rodriguez-Larios’ truck, while her friend, David, was pinned underneath.

David lost both of his legs in the accident and died a few years later. Hailey died at the scene. Her mother, Kathy Hall, tells Just the News that the black box was never recovered from Rodriguez-Larios’ truck, and no autopsy was performed on Hailey. Rodriguez-Larios was initially charged with second-degree murder and faced 58 years in prison, but was allowed to plead guilty to manslaughter and received just 17 years – 10 years for killing Hailey, 5 for injuring David, and 2 for fleeing the scene of the crash. Rodriguez-Larios was one-and-a-half years into his sentence when he first came up for parole.

Now Hailey’s family has to go to a new parole hearing every other year to ensure he actually remains in prison for his crimes. “There is no justice in that,” Kathy tells Just the News. “We have not been able to heal because we can’t stop reliving it.” In a similar case, Patti Fox’s daughter Carissa was riding on the back of her friend’s motorcycle in 2025 when they were hit by an illegal immigrant who had run a stop sign and crossed three lanes of traffic. The illegal, Valeria De Los Angeles Bermudez Marcano, and the passengers in her car got out after the crash and quickly fled, abandoning the vehicle, according to Fox.

Carissa was flung into a concrete barrier, which “obliterated” the left hemisphere of her brain, Fox tells Just the News. The grieving mother also says that the driver of the motorcycle Carissa was on was given a breathalyzer test, but when Marcano turned herself in the next day, she refused to take a breathalyzer and was never tested. She was released within days without the district attorney’s or victim’s advocate’s knowledge, Fox says.  Fox also says she was told initially that the occupants of the other vehicle were U.S. citizens, but after months of not hearing about any advancements in the case, she learned that ICE was involved. 

Over many months, Marcano would receive seven continuances, have five charges reduced to one, and only be required to pay restitution to the driver of the motorcycle, not Carissa, who remains in a wheelchair, is non-verbal, and requires a feeding tube. During Marcano’s eighth arraignment, Fox says she brought Carissa to the court so that they could see her daughter’s condition. At that time, Marcano took a plea deal, which was not discussed with the victim’s families, according to Fox. “I don’t think Americans realize how different the experiences are between citizens and when they’re charged versus illegal aliens and when they’re charged,” Fox says. She also says that she and her husband had been in a car accident shortly before Carissa, but the U.S. citizen in that case had “the book thrown” at him.

He received multiple charges and the case was resolved in a matter of weeks, unlike her daughter’s case with an illegal immigrant. Fox realized that, in a sanctuary state like Colorado, Marcano likely wouldn’t see any serious prison time for her crime, so she says she reached out to the Trump administration’s hotline for families impacted by illegal immigrants and “within days,” Marcano was deported. Chrishia Odette was 13 years old when she was hit by an illegal immigrant with outstanding warrants. Her father, Chris, tells Just the News that the only charge Ramiro Guevara received for killing his daughter was a ticket for driving without a license, for which he was already wanted.

Man entering county correctional facility through open gates carrying a backpack and blanket

He reportedly spent a mere 35 minutes in jail and posted a cash bond. He remained free for years and became a fugitive from ICE. “Court system like a revolving door” for illegal immigrants, Angel Mom says “I grew up believing the justice system was meant to put killers behind bars. I served the country believing in law and justice,” Chris tells Just the News. Lacey Marie Ferguson was fatally shot on August 24, 2003, outside a convenience store in Modesto, California, by an illegal immigrant gang member. Her case went cold but was reopened in 2014 following pressure from her mother, Boni Driskill. The suspect, David Aguilar, had been arrested around a dozen times prior to Lacey’s murder. He was convicted in 2018 and sentenced to 61 years to life, plus life, Boni tells Just the News.

“He went through the court system like a revolving door, being repetitive with another crime, another crime, another crime, and I found twelve times where they could have at any point, you know, saved my daughter’s life,” Boni tells Just the News. “And they failed to do it.” I understand something will fall through the cracks once, twice, maybe even three times, but 12 times is wanton disregard.” Fentanyl poisonings part of border security but not investigated Fentanyl and other synthetic opioids account for nearly 70% of all overdose deaths in the U.S., according to the National Center for Drug Abuse Statistics. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) says that Mexico and China are the primary source countries trafficking fentanyl into the U.S., yet so many fentanyl deaths are not fully investigated.

Families of those who have died due to fentanyl poisoning are included in the Angel Families definition because it is a trafficked substance and thus part of border security. Laura Woody lost her son Jimmy in 2021, telling Just the News that his death wasn’t investigated because her son was a drug addict. She found evidence that the coroner called her son “just a druggie,” and the people who sold him the substance were never found. “Having a substance use disorder does not void a person’s right to justice,” Laura says, adding that the judicial system treats drug addicts as “less than human.”

She says that a police report wasn’t even written for her son until a week after he was found dead when she asked for the report. She also says it was full of incorrect information that was written from memory, and questions why these deaths aren’t investigated to find the dealers and those above them responsible for trafficking fentanyl. “Every death could have been prevented if the previous one had been investigated,” she tells Just the News. Debbie Santini also lost her son to fentanyl, but says the circumstances surrounding his death are suspicious, yet police didn’t conduct a full investigation. Her son, Jesse, died on February 16, 2022, just five days after entering a recovery house.

Even though there were 10 people in the house besides Jesse, only four were interviewed, and Jesse’s name was spelled incorrectly throughout the police report. “They did not even care to spell my child’s name right,” Debbie tells Just the News. Debbie dealt with rotating investigators and never found the answers to how her son died in a house full of people without any drugs around him. She also says her son was shy and wouldn’t have used drugs in such a crowded house, that he would have gone to his vehicle or another private place, yet her suspicions were never answered.

“Living with a permanent hole in our lives” The men and women who make up the Angel Families have previously written to Congress seeking a border fence, more Border Patrol agents and deportations, detention expansion, and screening of unaccompanied minors for gang ties. “Every single one of us is living with a permanent hole in our lives because an illegal immigrant, who never should have been in this country, was allowed to stay and take an innocent life,” the families wrote through the American Border Story, a conservative-leaning 501(c)(4) nonprofit that tells their stories. “These were preventable tragedies.”

Source: ‘Second-class citizens’: Angel Families describe two-tiered justice system for illegal immigrants | Just The News

We who are Jews by nature, and not sinners of the Gentiles, knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law but by faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law; for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified.
Galatians 2:15-16

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Supreme Court Backs Trump on Asylum Policy, TPS Deportations

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The U.S. Supreme Court handed the Trump administration two major victories on immigration Thursday, allowing stricter asylum enforcement and clearing the way for the removal of temporary protected status from hundreds of thousands of migrants. In a 6-3 ruling, the court found the administration can end Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for roughly 300,000 Haitians and 6,000 Syrian refugees. The decision means many people who have legally lived and worked in the United States for years after fleeing war or natural disasters could now face deportation. The court’s conservative majority ruled that lower courts exceeded their authority by blocking the Department of Homeland Security’s decision and rejected claims that ending protections for Haitians was discriminatory.

In a separate 6-3 decision, the Supreme Court ruled that migrants who present themselves for asylum while still in Mexico are not entitled to seek asylum because they have not yet entered the United States. Justice Sonia Sotomayor dissented, arguing the ruling could encourage more dangerous illegal border crossings. Justice Samuel Alito, writing for the majority, said the decision reflects a straightforward reading of federal law. The rulings come as advocacy groups representing DACA recipients, also known as Dreamers, have filed a new lawsuit accusing the Trump administration of delaying renewals that allow recipients to legally work and study in the United States. The Department of Homeland Security said DACA recipients are not automatically protected from deportation.

Source: Supreme Court Backs Trump on Asylum Policy, TPS Deportations

Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.
1 John 4:11

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Climbing Your Mountain

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Trump’s religious liberty report calls for building ‘bridges’ between church and state

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A draft final report from President Trump’s Religious Liberty Commission released Friday calls for “building bridges between church and state,” a reversal of a long-standing U.S. legal principle.  “Americans must know their rights and stand with courage when those rights are challenged,” the commission’s report read. “To preserve this freedom, we must build bridges, not walls, between the City of God and the City of Man. If we do so, we will pass on a free and prosperous nation to the next generation,” it continues. The argument is a stark reversal of the legal principle that calls for the separation of church and state.

The phrase “separation of church and state” does not explicitly appear in the Constitution, but the Constitution states “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick (R), who is a vice chair on the president’s commission, argued on Friday that the political left has used the phrase “to batter and hammer people of faith for the last 70 to 80 years.”  “This report will speak very clearly that Americans understand that they can not be attacked by that phrase any longer,” Patrick said, speaking alongside Trump, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche and members of the commission.  In addition to calling for “bridges” between church and state, the commission’s report also calls for the scrapping of the tax code provision known as the Johnson Amendment, which prohibits nonprofit groups, including religious organizations, from endorsing or opposing political candidates. 

Trump created his Religious Liberty Commission last year, appointing Patrick and Dr. Ben Carson to serve as vice chairs. Phil McGraw was also tapped by the president to be a part of the commission. 

Source: Trump’s religious liberty report calls for building ‘bridges’ between church and state

For we all stumble in many things. If anyone does not stumble in word, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle the whole body.
James 3:2

Peace in the Storm

God does not always remove the storm immediately, but He promises peace in the middle of it. His presence calms fearful hearts.  Bible Verse: “Peace I leave with…

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The event that made the rest of the world realize how Awesome the USA is!

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Torn newspaper headlines about global crisis and stock market falls over illuminated city skyline at twilight

As Americans have been told over and over again how bad we suck by celebrities and the media, and so many more. We have had an awesome invasion people from around the world that are discovering just how great of a country we are. I has been such a uplifting a welcoming gift for 250th birthday.

Source: World Cup Fans Discover America, FIFA 2026 Tourists Were Lied To? Youtube

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
2 Timothy 1:7

The Brave New Age of Trust-Fund Socialism

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Trump kicks off Great American State Fair celebrating America’s 250th anniversary

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President Trump declared “the best is yet to come” for America at a rally Tuesday night kicking off festivities commemorating the nation’s 250th anniversary. “We are the ones who are carrying forward the light of Western civilization,” Trump said at the Freedom 250 event on the National Mall, describing the US as “young by comparison some but superior to any nation that’s ever been built, no matter how many years it took.”  “This is the very beginning of the Golden Age of America.

We’re in the Golden Age,” the president continued. “There has never been an age like this.  4 President Trump headlined a rally to kick off the Great American State Fair in celebration of the nation’s 250th anniversary on the National Mall in Washington, DC. REUTERS “This anniversary is a time to be proud of our past. But it is also a time to lift our sights, expand our ambitions, and raise our expectations of what America can be … the best is yet to come.” The event near the Washington Monument marked the opening of the 16-day “Great American State Fair.”

Source: Trump kicks off Great American State Fair celebrating America’s 250th anniversary

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.
Philemon 1:25

Prayer for Boldness; Acts 4:24-31

When opposition rises against God’s people, the natural response is often fear. Yet the early church teaches us that the answer to intimidation is not retreat, but prayer to have…

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Judge bans Trump from enforcing proof of citizenship requirement to vote

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Hand placing ballot into official ballot box at polling station with voters in line

A federal judge has permanently banned President Donald Trump from implementing most of his executive order on elections, specifically a portion of it which sought to require people to show proof of citizenship when they register to vote. U.S. District Court Judge Denise Caper’s ruling on Wednesday replaces a preliminary injunction she imposed in 2025, in which she temporarily blocked most of Trump’s efforts to revamp elections, into a permanent ban.  The Associated Press reported that Casper spurned the Trump administration’s argument that the lawsuit to block the changes brought by Democratic state attorneys general was premature since the rules hadn’t yet taken effect.  Casper noted in her ruling that the Constitution gives states and Congress the power to regulate elections, and that Trump’s requirements violated the separation of powers.

Trump pushing for SAVE America Act

Dig deeper: The SAVE America Act has passed the House but has stalled in the Senate, leading President Donald Trump to push for eliminating the filibuster that is blocking the legislation. Trump’s order would have required people to provide documented proof of citizenship when registering to vote, preventing mail ballots from being counted if they arrive after Election Day, while penalizing states that failed to comply by withholding certain federal funds.

Trump signed an elections executive order, months after returning to the White House for his second term.  Since then, Trump signed another executive order on elections to create a national voter list and restrict mail balloting.  Trump canceled the signing of a bipartisan housing bill on Wednesday, saying in a social media post that he won’t sign legislation until Congress passes his proof of citizenship requirement for voting.

Source: Judge bans Trump from enforcing proof of citizenship requirement to vote | FOX 5 New York

I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, My soul shall be joyful in my God; For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, As a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments, And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
Isaiah 61:10

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ICE Deports MS-13 Member With Cartel Ties

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The celebrity escape plan backfires as 2 iconic Trump haters just slunk back home

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Open suitcase packed with folded clothes, shoes, passport, and boarding passes

Rosie O’Donnell and Ellen DeGeneres are finding reasons to return to the United States despite fleeing after Trump’s election. When Trump won the presidency in 2024, several celebrities made good on their promise to evacuate the United States — but that’s not stopping them from coming back. Rosie O’Donnell famously fled to Ireland with her 13-year-old child, Clay, immediately after Trump’s win, and returned this June for the Tony Awards.

While O’Donnell had no issues getting back into the States, she made it clear that she was “worried” that it would be “problematic” the first time she returned on a secret trip in February. “I worried the first time I came back, whether that would be problematic, and I came alone without my child, who is 13 and has autism. She’s my youngest of five,” she told Page Six in an interview. “I wanted to make sure that if anything happened, it didn’t happen in her presence, so it was fine — as it should be.”

Source: The celebrity escape plan backfires as 2 iconic Trump haters just slunk back home | Blaze Media

And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.
Ephesians 5:2

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Sen. Rick Scott Rallies Senate Republicans to Advance Trump’s Priorities

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Man in suit speaking at Senate podium in legislative chamber

Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) called on Senate Republicans to work with President Donald Trump and advance the SAVE America Act, urging lawmakers in a Monday social media post to “hit the ground running” as Congress returns to Washington. “Let’s hit the ground running this week,” Scott wrote in a message posted on social media. “The Senate needs to come together, have conversations, work with President Trump, and get the SAVE America Act done.” According to Scott’s proposal, Republicans should focus on preventing another government shutdown and passing the SAVE America Act, legislation that would require proof of citizenship when registering to vote.

“I hope we can continue to have robust conversations as a conference this week as to how we should spend our time between now and the November elections. President Trump is scheduled to be at our Wednesday lunch. I hope everyone will be vocal as to what they think is the best path forward, but here is mine,” Scott wrote in his letter obtained by the Hill. Scott said Republicans should make clear distinctions between the two parties on government funding and election security as lawmakers prepare for upcoming spending battles and the midterm elections. Scott said he does not expect Democrats to support passage of all 12 annual appropriations bills before the Sept. 30 funding deadline, saying that Republicans should instead pursue a continuing resolution to avert a shutdown. “We need to make it clear to all Americans that Democrats want to shut down government and don’t care how it impacts federal workers or the economy and Republicans want to fund the government,” he wrote.

“We need to make it clear Republicans want election security and Democrats want fraud.” President Donald Trump is expected to meet with Senate Republicans on Wednesday as lawmakers continue discussions on spending, government funding, and election-related legislation.

Source: Sen. Rick Scott Rallies Senate Republicans to Advance Trump’s Priorities

Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path.
Psalm 119:105

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States That Allow Bible in the Classroom

Texas public schools will now require students to read Bible passages and stories as part of the latest conservative push to expand the role of religion in public education—a move bound to escalate wrangling over the…

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Judge PROTECTS ILLEGAL Immigrant Voting

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County courthouse building with classical columns and a dome at sunset

Judge Sparkle says you cannot remove illegal immigrant from voter rolls because maybe it removes citizens blocking Trump from securing US elections

Source: (604) Judge PROTECTS ILLEGAL Immigrant Voting | Tim Pool – YouTube

For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?
Matthew 16:26

Judge PROTECTS ILLEGAL Immigrant Voting

Judge Sparkle says you cannot remove illegal immigrant from voter rolls because maybe it removes citizens blocking Trump from securing US elections Source: (604) Judge PROTECTS ILLEGAL Immigrant Voting |…

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Matthew 4:7; It is Written

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A Father Who Stands Strong in Faith

The world continually challenges fathers to compromise their values and convictions. God calls fathers to stand firm in faith and lead their families with courage. “Be on your guard; stand…

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A Father Who Leads with Wisdom

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Every father leaves a legacy. The question is not whether we will leave one, but what kind of legacy it will be.  Bible Verse:”A good person leaves an inheritance for…

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Trump says U.S. killed Tren de Aragua leader in airstrike in Venezuela

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dramatic fireball explosion in outdoor setting

The U.S. military has killed the alleged leader of Venezuela-based gang Tren de Aragua, President Trump announced Friday. The president said on Truth Social that U.S. Southern Command carried out a “swift and lethal kinetic strike” to “successfully execute” Hector Rusthenford Guerrero Flores, also known as Niño Guerrero. The mission was “closely coordinated” with the Venezuelan government, the president said, highligting the U.S.’s shifting relationship with Venezuela since its former leader was removed in an American military operation earlier this year. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on X the strike took place earlier this week on a Tren de Aragua compound in Venezuela.

Venezuela’s communications ministry confirmed in a statement that Guerrero Flores was killed in a “combined operation” between U.S. forces and Venezuelan security services to target organized crime in the country’s Bolívar state. Mr. Trump’s social media post included a video that showed a projectile hitting a building, causing it to erupt in flames. “Tren de Aragua terrorists no longer have safe haven in Venezuela or anywhere else and, under my leadership, we will find these vicious murderers and drugs lords anytime, anyplace, and send them to the depths of hell where they belong,” he wrote.

A video posted to Truth Social by President Trump on June 12, 2026, in connection with the killing of Tren de Aragua leader Niño Guerrero. President Trump / Truth Social In a statement on the strikes, U.S. Southern Command described Guerrero Flores, 43, as a “wanted fugitive.” He was indicted late last year in New York federal court on charges that included racketeering, conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists and cocaine conspiracy. The State Department offered up to $5 million for information leading to his capture. Also known as “The Unspeakable” or “The Big Eyebrow,” Guerrero Flores ran Tren de Aragua for more than a decade, helping to grow it from a Venezuelan prison gang to a transnational organization with a presence throughout the Americas, including in the United States, federal prosecutors say.

The indictment accused him of leading a criminal enterprise that trafficked drugs and people, extorted local populations and committed acts of violence. Hector Rusthenford Guerrero Flores U.S. Department of State Prosecutors allege that Guerrero Flores initially operated Tren de Aragua out of Tocorón Prison, directing gang members on the outside and collecting a fee from their activities. CBS News’ partner network, BBC News, reported that Guerrero Flores was in and out of Tocorón Prison for years: He escaped in 2012 and was rearrested a year later. He was sentenced to a 17-year prison term in 2018, but escaped again in 2023, remaining at large after that. Guerrero Flores lived “like a king” during part of his time in prison, BBC News reported. He occupied an entire floor monitored by bodyguards, and the prison had a swimming pool, a zoo and a nightclub. Last year’s indictment alleged the Venezuelan government allowed him to “control the day-to-day operations of the prison.”

The apparent collaboration between the American and Venezuelan governments to kill Guerrero Flores came five months after the U.S. military removed Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro from power in a daring nighttime raid.  Maduro was flown to New York, where federal prosecutors accused him of scheming to import cocaine into the United States, in part by allegedly partnering with Tren de Aragua and other cartels. The indictment against Maduro also charged Guerrero Flores as a co-conspirator. Maduro has pleaded not guilty. Since then, Venezuela has been led by Maduro’s former deputy, Delcy Rodriguez. The Trump administration has sought to work with Rodriguez’s government, lifting sanctions on her and pushing to collaborate on oil extraction.

Tren de Aragua has been in Mr. Trump’s crosshairs since he returned to the White House last year. He won a second term after frequently highlighting the gang’s violent presence in the United States — and, critics allege, exaggerating their power within some American communities — on the campaign trail in 2024. Mr. Trump argued the gang was fueled by a massive influx of Venezuelan nationals who traveled to the U.S.-Mexico border during the Biden administration, amid political and economic turmoil in Maduro’s Venezuela. Early last year, the Trump administration designated Tren de Aragua and other Latin American gangs as foreign terrorist organizations. The administration later cited those designations in its legal justification for striking dozens of alleged drug-carrying boats in the Caribbean and the Eastern Pacific last fall, arguing the U.S. is engaged in an “armed conflict” with the groups. Some of those boats were allegedly operated by Tren de Aragua.

The administration also invoked the wartime Alien Enemies Act of 1798 on Tren de Aragua in March 2025, accusing the group of working with the Maduro government to perpetrate an “invasion” of the United States. It drew controversy for using that law to summarily deport hundreds of Venezuelan men, many of whom were sent to a maximum-security prison in El Salvador. Some of the deportees denied that they were gang members, and some judges found the men were denied due process.

Source: Trump says U.S. killed Tren de Aragua leader in airstrike in Venezuela – CBS Minnesota

But the angel answered and said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay.”
Matthew 28:5-6

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The Reflecting Pool Controversy Is Absurd: Not Everything Trump Does Has to Be a Crisis

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washington monument in lincoln memorial reflecting pool at dusk

One must wonder whether President Trump’s least discriminating critics have ever read the fable of “The Boy Who Cried Wolf” — or at least whether, if they have, they understood that it was not an advertisement in favor of unyielding panic. There are many, many things to criticize about our 45th and 47th president, but it cannot be the case that literally everything the man does is wrong. That even his decision to clear up the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in Washington, D.C., became an occasion for condemnation, anger, and charges of presidential impropriety suggests that, eleven years into his domination of American life, some among us have yet to internalize this fact.

Before Trump decided to clean it up, the Reflecting Pool was a mess. This was not unique in recent American history. Under President Obama, the federal government spent $30 million renovating the Reflecting Pool and then, almost immediately, spent yet more money to deal with an algae outbreak. Between 2015 and 2016, further repairs were made after the eastern end was damaged during construction. And, in 2017, the pool was completely drained in response to an outbreak of parasites that proved harmful to ducks. Nine years later, when Trump announced his more substantial makeover, the Reflecting Pool needed attention once again. It was full of algae; it had several leaks that needed attention; and, in the estimation of Trump’s advisers, the basin required repainting to enhance the water’s reflective effect.

As part of a broader attempt to beautify Washington, D.C., Trump signaled his intention to take on the project and, in so doing, provoked some wild reactions. A near-endless supply of “preservationists” told the newspapers that Trump’s planned changes to the basin-coating would make the pool look like a residential swimming pool, and thereby deprive us of our “our shared cultural landscape heritage”; a series of reflexive partisans insisted wildly that the attraction was fine as it was, despite the presence of algae that had turned the pool a ghastly greenish brown; and Gavin Newsom, the governor of California, took to sharing photographs of the in-progress project, alongside captions that implied that the mere existence of a temporary construction site represented a terminal failure of planning. (Quite how Newsom squares this position with California’s ongoing high-speed rail debacle, he has never explained.) The opposition was breathless, fevered, and typically extremely silly.

The best argument made was that Trump had bypassed the usual channels before moving ahead with his plan. But, in this case, that was likely a net plus. It is not at all clear that there were any legal obstacles to the White House’s decision to ignore the usual review process, and, given that the usual reviewers are a bunch of pretentious naysayers, their involvement would most likely have served no purpose beyond slowing the restoration down. Clearly, President Trump wanted the pool to be presentable in time for America’s 250th anniversary celebrations, and, clearly, the only way to achieve this was to cut out the network of groups, societies, fellowships, and other self-appointed arbiters of taste whose implacable opposition to him was foreordained. Absent those encumbrances, Trump put himself back into his old real estate developer mode, and got the thing done posthaste.

And it looks good! Which is why, despite the predictions of disaster, the new criticism of the cavilers is that the pool now looks exactly like it used to when it was working as designed. “The Reflecting Pool is full again — and looks almost the same,” the Washington Post declared this week. Which is exactly what one would want to say about a successful restoration project, is it not? (The “nearly” in that sentence, of course, is a grudging substitute for “better.”) A monument needed fixing, and it was fixed, quickly and competently. Not every development has to be a crisis. Not every moment calls for extended debate. Not all features of American life require interrogation by postmodernist bores. Sometimes, a pool is just a pool. 

Source: The Reflecting Pool Controversy Is Absurd: Not Everything Trump Does Has to Be a Crisis | National Review

A soft answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger.
Proverbs 15:1

Faith And Scripture; Podcast Episode 3

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1 Peter 1:6–7

In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may…

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Trump tells ‘Pod Force One’ Graham Platner is a ‘major sleaze bag,’ but James Talarico is worse

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Man in suit and red striped tie speaking during a news interview

President Trump blasted the Democrats’ scandal-plagued Senate candidate Graham Platner as a “major sleaze bag” in an interview with The Post’s “Pod Force One,” but said Texas Senate candidate James Talarico is worse.  The president gave a blunt assessment of the Democrats’ top Senate contenders in an interview with The Post’s Miranda Devine in the latest episode, which is out Wednesday.

“They don’t appeal to anybody,” he said of Democratic candidates, calling them by his new nickname: “The Dumocrats.”  He expressed astonishment that Platner is beating Republican Sen. Susan Collins in the polls in their Maine Senate matchup. The embattled Democrat holds a 7.8% edge over Collins, according to the latest RealClearPolitics polling average.

“He’s a major sleaze bag. I mean, you look at him, you can’t imagine that, but yet he’s up in the polls against Susan Collins,” Trump said. Still, he expressed optimism about Collins, whom he’s clashed with in the past. “But she’s always down in the polls, and she survives.”

Democrats, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, are standing by Platner even after a deluge of recent reports on the candidate’s racy text messages with other women while he was married.

Platner met with party officials behind closed doors in Washington, DC, on Tuesday, slipping in and out of a back entrance to avoid questions from the media.

Meanwhile, Trump has even harsher words for Talarico, who is running against state Attorney General Ken Paxton for John Cornyn’s Texas Senate seat. Paxton beat Cornyn for the GOP nomination after receiving Trump’s endorsement.

Source: Exclusive | Trump tells ‘Pod Force One’ Graham Platner is a ‘major sleaze bag,’ but James Talarico is worse

To do righteousness and justice Is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice.
Proverbs 21:3

1 Timothy 1:13-15

Though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that…

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Psalm 1:1–3

Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;  but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on…

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James 1:14–15

But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings…

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Galatians 6:7

Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. This reminds us that our choices have consequences. God is not fooled by outward…

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Proverbs 13:20

Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm. This reminds us that the people we spend time with have a powerful influence on…

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1 Corinthians 15:33

Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals. We can see here that Paul gives a powerful warning: the people and influences we allow into our lives can shape our…

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Ephesians 4:29

Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.…

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Proverbs 18:21

Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits. This verse reminds us that our words carry tremendous power. That…

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Proverbs 23:7

For he is like one who is inwardly calculating. “Eat and drink!” he says to you, but his heart is not with you. This verse reminds us that our thoughts shape…

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Matthew 6:22

“The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light, In this verse Jesus teaches that what we…

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Luke 6:45

The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart…

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Christian persecution published between May 28 and June 4, 2026. These come primarily from specialized monitoring organizations like International Christian Concern (ICC) and Global Christian Relief. No large-scale violent incidents…

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Because They Are Above us All: Jill Biden on Hunter pardon: “We just could not let our son go to jail” under Trump’s DOJ

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Middle-aged man in a blue blazer and light gray shirt standing outside with autumn trees in the background

Jill Biden said she supported Joe Biden’s decision to pardon their son, Hunter, because they couldn’t let him go to jail under President Trump.  Joe Biden had repeatedly pledged not to pardon his son, but reversed course at the end of his presidency.  “And then the Justice Department changed. And I think that the process was not fair to Hunter,” Jill Biden told CBS News Sunday Morning’s Rita Braver in an interview airing Sunday on CBS. “When Trump was elected, things changed, and we knew that he would target Hunter. And we just could not let our son go to jail on a charge that no one would go, I mean, no one has ever gone to jail for.” Joe Biden repeatedly said he wouldn’t pardon his son, who was convicted in June 2024 of three separate felony charges related to his purchase of a revolver in 2018 when he was battling a drug addiction, which he lied about on paperwork to obtain the gun.

Hunter Biden also pleaded guilty to nine tax evasion charges in a separate case in September 2024. The elder Biden’s decision to pardon his son drew bipartisan criticism. When asked by Braver if she urged her husband to pardon Hunter Biden, Jill Biden said: “I truly supported it. I wanted him to pardon Hunter at that point, and I agreed with Joe.” Asked why Biden also preemptively pardoned several other family members before he left office, Jill Biden said: “I suppose for the same reason that he felt that they would be targeted.”  Jill Biden talked to Braver about the election, her husband’s 2024 debate performance, and her new book, “View from the East Wing: A Memoir.” 

Source: Jill Biden on Hunter pardon: “We just could not let our son go to jail” under Trump’s DOJ – CBS Atlanta

But, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ.
Ephesians 4:15

Michigan City Zoo animal care workers attacked by wolves

Two animal care workers were attacked by wolves at the Michigan City Zoo in Indiana. According to the Department of Parks and Recreation, a wolf at the zoo died Tuesday night of natural causes. After that death, two of the animal care workers at the zoo were attacked by other wolves in the zoo’s enclosure.…

Bear found in Mt. Pleasant relocated by wildlife officials, police said

A young male bear that was spotted up a tree in a mid-Michigan city has been safely relocated to Houghton Lake, local authorities said.  The bear was spotted on Tuesday morning near Francher Avenue and Mosher Street, west of M-127, and was in a tree by the time local authorities arrived on scene. The Mt.…

Baltimore County 5-year-old, 10-year-old honored for saving grandmother’s life

A Baltimore County 5-year-old boy and his big brother have been deemed heroes in Perry Hall for saving their grandmother’s life, not just once, but twice.  If it wasn’t for their brave actions, their mother said that things could have been much worse.  For his bravery, Liam was presented with a certificate, a Baltimore County…

SCOTUS Allows Alabama’s New Congressional Map to Stay in Place

SCOTUS allows Alabama’s new congressional map, boosting GOP seats for the 2026 midterm elections.Alabama’s map would grant Republicans an additional seat for the upcoming midterm elections. The move to redistrict came after the Supreme Court struck down portions of the Voting Rights Act that allowed for racial gerrymanders that had long benefited Democrats in deep-red…

God Sees Your Unseen Efforts

God has not overlooked a single act of your faithfulness, not one prayer, not one quiet sacrifice. Even when no one else sees, He remembers, and your labor in love is never wasted. God Sees What Others Don’t.  Bible Verse: “God is not unjust; He will not forget your work and the love you have shown…

Child safe after carjacking on Chicago’s South Side

A car was found after it was stolen with a 1-year-old inside on Chicago’s South Side early Wednesday morning.  Chicago police said a 36-year-old man was standing next to the car in the 9100 block of South Urban Avenue just before 2:15 a.m. when a person got in the car and drove off with the…

Why Graham Platner Had to Return to Maine Quickly Last Night

Graham Platner looked as if he was about to walk into a scene from Intervention, as new scandals emerge about the Maine Democrat who is trying to unseat Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME). Instead, we heard the tired ‘we’re going to win Maine’ pep rally lines from Senate Democrats in Washington after they met with Platner.…

17,000 Baptized in Historic Worldwide Event: ‘Saying Yes to Jesus’

17,000 Baptized in Historic Worldwide Event: ‘Saying Yes to Jesus’, Michael Foust – Read breaking news headlies with a Christian perspective and commentary from Michael Foust. A gathering at the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C., served as the focal point for the May 24 global event, featuring worship, personal testimonies, and live updates…

Shakopee man charged in deadly shooting at Twin Cities Eid prayer service

A Shakopee, Minnesota, man is accused of shooting and killing 26-year-old Khalid Ibrahim Abdi outside of a Twin Cities Eid al-Adha prayer service on Wednesday. Mohamed Rage, 28, is facing one count of second-degree murder as well as an illegal weapons charge, according to the criminal complaint filed in Scott County on Monday. Charges say…

Sacramento man found with explosive during airport security check charged in federal court

A man has been charged with bringing an explosive device into Sacramento International Airport (SMF), federal prosecutors announced Tuesday. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of California, a criminal complaint was filed against 49-year-old Sacramento resident Kimani Osayande Jones, also known as Kimani Osayande Jackson, accusing him of unlawfully possessing explosive…

Two researchers charged with allegedly trying to smuggle mpox through Detroit Metro Airport

Two foreign nationals working at the National Institutes of Health are facing charges for allegedly trying to smuggle mpox into the United States through the Detroit Metro Airport. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Vincent Munster, 53, a citizen of the Netherlands, and Claude Kwe, 38, a citizen of Cameroon, are accused of providing federal…

Pastor Shane Idleman Diagnosed with Head and Neck Cancer

California pastor Shane Idleman recently broke the silence about his battle with head and neck cancer following his diagnosis earlier this year.  Idleman, who pastors Westside Christian Fellowship in Leona Valley, California, told Billy Hallowell of CBN News, spoke about his cancer diagnosis despite being a longtime health advocate.    “The first 30 years of…

ER Visits Surge and Experts Urge Caution amid Record Tick Season

The current tick season is reported to be the worst in decades, with emergency room visits for bites and cases of Lyme disease increasing. According to the CDC, 71 out of every 100,000 emergency room visits were for tick bites, which is a 25% increase over last year. This figure excludes visits to urgent care…

Understanding the Value of Your Labor in God

In your most tired moments, it’s easy to wonder if any of this really matters. But what if every small act of faithfulness is echoing into eternity in ways you can’t yet imagine? “It’s All Worth It in the End”  Bible Verse:Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the Lord’s work, because…

Northern Minnesota wildfire prompts evacuations near Burntside Lake

Officials ordered residents to evacuate Monday afternoon as crews work to extinguish a wildfire in northern Minnesota. The U.S. Forest Service says the fire is located in the Superior National Forest northwest of the North Arm of the Burntside Lake area, approximately eight miles northwest of Ely. The St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office said agencies…

Raccoon tests positive for rabies after attacking dog in metro Atlanta

Gwinnett County officials are warning residents to use caution after a raccoon tested positive for rabies over the weekend. Officials say the raccoon attacked a dog near Biltmore Oaks Drive in the Bethlehem area on May 26. Testing revealed that the animal was infected with the potentially deadly virus. The disease, which can be transmitted…

Bright meteor gets attention Monday night across Great Lakes region

If you missed the meteor sighting over Southeast Michigan early on May 27, perhaps you saw the latest one on Monday night.  A fireball, which is a bright meteor, was seen about 10:42 p.m. Eastern Time on Monday in a wider geographic area around Lake Erie than the one that was seen last week. The American…

Bear rampages through 2 factories and a residential area in Japan, injuring 4 people

A bear attack left four people injured in two factories and a residential area in northern Japan’s Fukushima on Tuesday, police and media reports said. A record 13 people were killed by bears in Japan last year, and there has been a jump in sightings as the animals emerge hungry from hibernation. “A bear-related human…

Fireball sightings reported in at least 8 states including Illinois

Sightings of a fireball were reported across Illinois and at least eight other states on Monday night.  The American Meteor Society received nearly 200 reports of a fireball seen over Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, New York, Ohio, and Wisconsin around 10 p.m. Some of the reports out of Illinois came from Chicago, Aurora, Carpentersville, Warrenville, Addison, Waukegan,…

Pastor Convicted for Preaching John 3:16 Outside Hospital

Retired Pastor Clive Johnston plans to file an appeal after he was convicted in Northern Ireland for preaching John 3:16 outside the buffer zone of a local hospital. Johnston, 78, was fined $604 and convicted of two charges of “influencing” people on abortion under the Abortion Services (Safe Access Zones) Act while standing within 328…

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China fueling anti-data center sentiment across US: Trump admin

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server rack in modern data center

The Trump administration and “Shark Tank” star Kevin O’Leary claimed anti-data center sentiments across the US are being fueled by a Chinese propaganda campaign. O’Leary — whose 40,000-acre data center plans outside Salt Lake City have been met with protests — claimed in a Monday video that “nefarious accounts out of the country” tied to China were spreading misinformation about his project as part of a coordinated attack on American AI infrastructure. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum agreed during a Tuesday appearance on Fox Business.

Source: China fueling anti-data center sentiment across US: Trump admin

There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.
Romans 8:1-2

US has eliminated hundreds of ISIS militants in Nigeria: Hegseth

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said U.S. forces have killed “hundreds” of Islamic State militants in Nigeria, crediting President Donald Trump’s directive to protect Christians in the country from Islamist violence. During a Cabinet meeting at the White House on Wednesday, Hegseth said Trump charged the military with taking steps to protect Nigerian Christians roughly…

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Finding Refuge in God During Life’s Storms

When life feels like it’s falling apart, God remains your safest place. Even when everything shakes, His strength never does.  Bible Verse:God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;…

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Calls for an end to the sexualisation of children in schools

The Coalition for Marriage (C4M) has called for an end to the sexualisation of children in schools and has denounced plans for a “summer of sex” at Westminster. C4M pointed to official guidelines on sex education as well as some concerning cases that suggest many children are being exposed to inappropriate material and are being…

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A House Divided

Division within the church is one of the enemy’s greatest tools because it weakens unity, damages witness, and distracts believers from the mission of Christ. I personally believe that all of the denominations and interpretations are a disease that the devil created to separate Gods children. If you look around it works pretty good. Jesus…

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5 Sneaky Lies Your Anxiety Tells You Are True

In The Lord of the Rings, King Theoden becomes enfeebled by listening to the words of Wormtongue, his advisor. These lies poison the mind of the King of Rohan and keep him from being a threat to the evil wizard Saruman. Only when the lies of Wormtongue are exposed by Gandalf the White is Theoden…

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Ecclesiastes 3:1

For everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven: In the Book of Ecclesiastes verse 3:1, we’re reminded that life moves in seasons, every moment has a divine purpose under heaven. This verse emphasizes timing, patience, and trusting God’s plan, even when life feels uncertain or out of control. It…

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Video Footage of Five and Half Months in the Yukon in Five Minutes

From spring through summer and into fall, enjoy the variety of wildlife that pass by this single camera location in the Yukon wilderness from 2021. Highlights include both grizzly and black bears showing interest in a scent marking tree, a pair of lynx at night, a few big bull moose in fall, several wolf visits,…

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Lynx Caught on Video in Northern Minnesota

They captured a lot of really neat lynx footage this past fall and winter! They are just such ethereal looking creatures, and its always a highlight when they get footage of them, especially in the daylight. They were going to make a video sharing their best lynx footage from the fall and winter but the…

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Wildlife officials track mountain lion through Santa Monica neighborhood

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife tracked a mountain lion through a Santa Monica neighborhood on Friday.  CDFW staff said residents first spotted the mountain lion at 714 14th Street in the morning. State biologists, local animal control officers and law enforcement coordinated to locate it in the neighborhood. After assessing the scene and…

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Faith Through Fear And Hurt; Podcast Episode 2

Today Pip and Mara discuss Faith through fear and hurt. Sharing insight about the direction of Gods love. Pip: If you have ever wondered whether anything in the universe could outlast, outrun, or outmaneuver God’s love for you — Drink of Jesus has been writing answers to that question from several directions at once. Mara:…

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Extremely rare Guatemalan bearded lizards hatch at Zoo Atlanta

Zoo Atlanta has two new additions, and they are members of one of the rarest reptile species on Earth. The zoo announced that two Guatemalan beaded lizards hatched on May 14 and 17 and are reportedly “healthy and feisty.” The Guatemalan beaded lizard is only found in the wild in the country’s Motagua Valley. It’s…

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China fueling anti-data center sentiment across US: Trump admin

The Trump administration and “Shark Tank” star Kevin O’Leary claimed anti-data center sentiments across the US are being fueled by a Chinese propaganda campaign. O’Leary — whose 40,000-acre data center plans outside Salt Lake City have been met with protests — claimed in a Monday video that “nefarious accounts out of the country” tied to…

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“Rare” harpy eagle arrives at National Aviary

There’s a new “rare” raptor at the National Aviary, one that can’t be seen anywhere else in the Northeast.  The aviary on Wednesday introduced its new female juvenile harpy eagle named Dariéna, who hails from the Miami Zoo. She’s part of the aviary’s new summer theme, Remarkable Raptors.  Like most eagles, the aviary says the…

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Dead gray whale found in water off San Leandro

Officials in San Leandro are urging residents to avoid a portion of the Bay Trail after a dead gray whale washed ashore. On Thursday, the city said the whale was found along the shoreline south of Marina Park. Experts said the whale is an adult male, measuring about 12 meters (39.3 feet) in length. In…

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Gov Walz Pardons Convicted Illegal Aliens Blocking Deportation in Minnesota

On Wednesday, Democrat Minnesota Governor Tim Walz pardoned a criminal illegal alien convicted of armed robbery – preventing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) from being able to use the conviction as grounds for deportation. Jai Vang, an illegal alien from Laos, who was convicted of aiding and abetting and armed robbery in Hennepin County…

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Hosea 4:6

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I will also reject you, that you may be no priest to me. Because you have forgotten your God’s law, I will also forget your children. This is a sobering warning about the danger of rejecting God’s truth. The verse says, “My…

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1 miner rescued after more than a week trapped in flooded Laos cave

At least one Laos gold miner has been brought out of a flooded cave where monsoon rains trapped a group for over a week, according to a Laotian rescue organization.  Rescue Volunteer for People said on social media that a person, who was not named, was brought out safely at 8:37 p.m. local time on Friday. It…

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Florida troopers net 249 in multi-agency immigration sweep

Florida Highway Patrol teamed up with five federal, state and local agencies this month for a three-day immigration enforcement operation along South Florida highways that resulted in 249 arrests and transfers to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, according to Fox News Digital, which rode along during the sweep.The operation, dubbed Operation 9 by FHP, assembled more…

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Suspect in killings of 3 elderly men in Hawaii arrested after massive manhunt

A man wanted in connection with the killings of three men was apprehended Thursday after a massive search of Hawaii’s Big Island that had left residents on edge. Police said Jacob Baker, 36, of Pahoa, Hawaii, was arrested on suspicion of murder, burglary and other charges following a search that involved “significant resources,” including help…

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Bat found in Irvine Regional Park tests positive for rabies

The Orange County Healthcare Agency said a bat found in Irvine Regional Park has tested positive for rabies. Public health officials said the bat was found at the park at 9:30 a.m. on Sunday, May 24. They urged anyone who may have physically contacted the bat or seen someone else touch it to call the…

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Blue Origin New Glenn rocket explodes on launch pad in Florida

A powerful New Glenn rocket owned by Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin exploded in a spectacular fireball Thursday, sending billowing clouds of fire, smoke and flaming debris into the night sky in a tremendous conflagration visible for miles around. The explosion occurred around 9 p.m. EDT as engineers were counting down to a brief test firing…

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Why we need to read the Bible; With a 30 day reading plan

Reading the Bible, What the Bible Says Reading the Bible is essential for every Christian because it is the primary way God reveals His character, truth, wisdom, and will to humanity. The Bible is not simply a historical book or a collection of religious writings, it is the living Word of God that teaches, corrects,…

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California veteran known for pro-Trump display outside his home dies after assault

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man in blue crew neck t shirt standing near american flags

A southern California man has died after an assault last week in front of his San Diego area home, which was well known for its extensive collection of US flags and signs supporting Donald Trump. Authorities confirmed on Monday that Kerry Sheron, a 69-year-old US army veteran, died days after he was attacked on Wednesday outside his home in Escondido. Police have arrested Thomas Butler, a 32-year-old who media outlets have identified as a navy veteran, on multiple charges including attempted murder, elder abuse and battery.

Officers were called to the street where Sheron lived for a reported assault on the afternoon of 20 May and came upon a badly injured Sheron as well as a bystander who was injured after intervening, according to a report from Military.com. Police arrested Butler a short time later after searching the area. Ross Garcia, a deputy district attorney, said the violence against Sheron was unprovoked, CBS8 reported. “It was a single punch to the jaw. The victim then falls to the floor, and there are subsequent hits to the victim’s head area, requiring the victim to be transported to the hospital,” Garcia said. Law enforcement officials have told media the motive is still under investigation but that investigators do not yet have information suggesting the incident was politically motivated. Sheron’s family has described it as a “brutal and unprovoked attack”.

The incident has sparked outrage, and Sheron’s wife and some public officials have suggested it was a result of his political beliefs. Brian Jones, California’s senate minority leader from San Diego, called Sheron’s death “unconscionable” and said he was “ruthlessly murdered” because of his support “freedom, patriotism, and our president”. “It was callous and it was evil. To kill an elderly man over his political beliefs is not only heartbreaking, it is un-American to its core,” Jones said in a statement. The San Diego district attorney’s office said that Butler will return to court on 3 June and is currently in custody without bail.

Source: California veteran known for pro-Trump display outside his home dies after assault | California | The Guardian

For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it.
Luke 9:24

The News Part 2

Dear Heavenly Father, as I enter this day please give me the words that I need to share who you are and help me present your love to all that seriously need…

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Trump says U.S. has killed Islamic State leader in Nigeria

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four soldiers carrying rifles near helicopter under blue sky

President Trump announced Friday evening that U.S. and Nigerian military forces had killed Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, a leader of the Islamic State group, in a “meticulously planned and very complex mission.” Mr. Trump described al-Minuki as the Islamic State’s second-in-command globally and “the most active terrorist in the world.”  “He will no longer terrorize the people of Africa, or help plan operations to target Americans,” Mr. Trump wrote on Truth Social. “With his removal, ISIS’s global operation is greatly diminished.” The Nigerian president’s office also confirmed the operation, and said that “early assessments confirm the elimination” of al-Minuki.

“Several of his lieutenants” were also killed, the office said.  The operation took place at al-Minuki’s compound on Lake Chad Basin, the Nigerian president’s office said. Nigeria’s defense department described it as a “meticulously planned and highly coordinated counterterrorism operation.”   A native of Nigeria, al-Minuki was described by the U.S. State Department in 2023 as a leader of the Islamic State, or ISIS, in Africa’s Sahel region. At the time, he served as a senior official in one of the Islamic State’s General Directorate of Provinces offices, which “provide operational guidance and funding around the world,” according to the State Department.

Source: Trump says U.S. has killed Islamic State leader in Nigeria – CBS News

Whom have I in heaven but You? And there is none upon earth that I desire besides You.
Psalm 73:25

Daily Bread; Psalm 91:4

Daily Verse He will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler. Psalm 91:4 ESV Refuge: shelter…

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The News Part 1

Dear Heavenly Father, as this is read give understanding and conviction to those reading this. May there be understanding where there needs to be understanding and conviction where there…

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🇺🇸 Memorial Day 🇺🇸

“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” John 15:13 Today, we honor and remember the brave men and women…

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Amos 3:7

 “For the Lord God does nothing without revealing his secret to his servants the prophets. This verse reveals that God does not act without warning His people first. The verse teaches…

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Isaiah 11:2

And the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of…

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The Outlook for Immigration Policy

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travelers with luggage at paros ferry port

The Administration has taken sweeping actions to reduce both legal and illegal entry into the US, driving sharp declines in encounters at the US border and inflows of authorized immigrants. However, labor shortages in key sectors may influence the direction of policy moving forward.

Trusted Insights for What’s Ahead®

  • The Administration’s actions have faced significant legal uncertainty, but courts have generally allowed many core elements of the Administration’s agenda to proceed while the challenges are adjudicated.
  • Data indicate that both legal and illegal immigration decreased in 2025. Many stakeholders have raised concerns about labor shortages in key sectors and enrollment of international students at US universities.
  • These trends may influence policy at the margins, but in response the Administration may pursue targeted changes rather than broad reforms of its approach.
  • Compliance risk and operational uncertainty will remain elevated for employers amid shifting regulatory requirements, court decisions, and changing labor force needs.
  • The direction of policy may be increasingly tied to broader economic conditions amid slowing job growth and global economic uncertainty.

Uncertain Expectations

The President made reshaping US immigration policy a core pillar of his first Administration, focusing on limiting both legal and illegal immigration. However, as the President prepared to start his second term in 2025, significant uncertainty surrounded policy the Administration would pursue and what impacts it would have on immigration flows. Analyzing the Administration’s actions since the start of President Trump’s second term provides insights into how this administration approaches immigration policy and what actions it may take in the future.

Pillars of the Administration’s Immigration Policy

On Inauguration Day in 2025, the President issued more than a dozen Executive Orders and Presidential Memoranda related to immigration, some restoring policies from his first term or rescinding Biden Administration orders and others introducing new policies.

Border Security & Enforcement

The President declared a national emergency at the southern border and directed the Defense Department to assign the US Northern Command to “seal the borders and maintain [US] sovereignty, territorial integrity, and security.” The Administration also began transporting some deportees to countries other than their countries of origin, so called “third country deportations.”

An Inauguration Day Executive Order directed DHS to expand the use of expedited removal processes for those entering the US unlawfully “to the fullest extent authorized by Congress,” which allows the individual to be removed without a hearing or other review of the determination that they should be removed. Litigation challenging this action is ongoing. The President also issued a Proclamation in March 2025 invoking the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 to fast-track the deportation of individuals allegedly affiliated with the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua. Litigation regarding this use of the Alien Enemies Act is ongoing. In January 2025 the President signed the Laken Riley Act, which mandates the detention of undocumented immigrants arrested or charged with theft-related crimes, including burglary, larceny, and shoplifting or any crime that results in the death or serious bodily injury of another person.

In June 2025, the President issued an Executive Order restricting nationals from 19 countries from entering the US, echoing a similar policy pursued in the President’s first term. In January 2026, the Administration additionally suspended the approval of immigrant visas (but not other types of visas) for people from 75 countries, arguing that it aims to ensure individuals from “high-risk countries do not utilize welfare in the United States.” By some estimates, the measure will block about half of all legal immigration to the US. This latest measure is currently being challenged in the Southern District of New York.

The Administration has also launched large-scale and controversial immigration law enforcement operations in several US cities. These deployments have spawned lawsuits from a range of parties, including state and local officials, advocacy organizations, and individuals. Proposed reforms to ICE and its operations have also led to the ongoing partial government shutdown. In February, an Executive Order directed agencies to identify Federally-funded programs that may provide public benefits to unlawfully present individuals and strengthen eligibility verification. The Administration has also targeted “sanctuary cities,” which limit cooperation between local law enforcement and Federal immigration authorities. In addition, the President has sought to end birthright citizenship for those born to parents who are present in the US illegally. The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in the case April 1.

Source: Policy Backgrounder: The Outlook for Immigration Policy

For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.
Romans 11:36

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Judge Apologizes to Alleged WHCD Attacker for Treatment in Jail

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Judge in black robe reviewing paperwork in a courtroom with observers behind

Judge Apologizes to Alleged WHCD Attacker for Treatment in Jail Craig Hudson for The Washington Post via Getty Images ELIZABETH WEIBEL4 May 20261,670 2:03 A judge issued an apology to Cole Tomas Allen, the alleged White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner attacker, for how he has been treated while being held in jail. During a hearing on Monday, U.S. Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui expressed his apologies to Allen, who has been “held in the safe cell,” according to ABC7 News. Faruqui reportedly said the safe cell was “tantamount to solitary confinement.”

The judge also gave the Washington, DC, Department of Corrections a deadline of Tuesday “to notify when the jail’s housing board will” make a decision regarding “which section of the jail” Allen will be placed in, according to the outlet. Faruqui’s apology to Allen comes after Allen’s attorneys said in court filings that Allen “was placed on suicide watch shortly after arriving at the D.C. jail.” Due to Allen being placed on suicide watch, he was put in “what’s known as a ‘safe cell,’ a padded room with constant lighting and 24-hour lockdown conditions,” according to the outlet.

Source: Judge Apologizes to Alleged WHCD Attacker for Treatment in Jail

Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.
2 Corinthians 7:1

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Secret Service shoots armed man near White House; as Trump holds business event inside

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the white house in autumn

Secret Service officers engaged an armed man near the White House on Monday in what turned into a shootout that left the suspect and a juvenile bystander injured, according to the agency. The incident unfolded a few blocks south of the White House, along the National Mall and near the Washington Monument, when plainclothes agents on patrol “identified a suspicious individual that appeared to have a firearm,” Secret Service Deputy Director Matthew Quinn said during a press briefing.

After spotting the “visual print of a firearm” on the suspect, the plainclothes agents called in support from uniformed Secret Service police. 

“Upon making contact, that individual fled briefly on foot, withdrew a firearm and fired in the direction of our agents and officers,” Quinn said. 

Secret Service officers returned fire and struck the suspect, who was transported to a local hospital.  

Source: Secret Service shoots armed man near White House — as Trump holds business event inside

And the LORD shall be King over all the earth. In that day it shall be— “The LORD is one,” And His name one.
Zechariah 14:9

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Man arrested at Trump’s Miami golf club for disorderly conduct, Secret Service says

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aerial view of golf course in hilton head

A man was arrested Saturday at President Trump’s Doral National Golf Club just outside of Miami after an alleged disturbance, the U.S. Secret Service said. Mr. Trump was not at the club at the time, Secret Service said. According to Secret Service Miami acting special agent in charge Michael Townsend, a man approached a security area at the golf club at around 4:15 p.m. He then became “disruptive and failed to comply with lawful orders,” Townsend said in a statement. 

The man “made physical contact with a member of the Secret Service and was taken into custody without further incident,” he said. The man, who was not immediately identified, was arrested by the Doral Police Department and charged with disorderly conduct and resisting without violence, Townsend said. “At no point did this situation impact the established security posture for the President’s visit to Trump Doral National Golf Club by Secret Service,” Townsend said. The alleged incident occurred one week after shots were fired during the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in Washington, D.C., and Mr. Trump was rushed off the dais. A Secret Service agent was hit by a round but was protected by a bulletproof vest. The suspect, Cole Tomas Allen, has been charged with attempting to assassinate the president. 

Source: Man arrested at Trump’s Miami golf club for disorderly conduct, Secret Service says – CBS News

And above all things have fervent love for one another, for “love will cover a multitude of sins.”
1 Peter 4:8

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Obama is slammed for by X commentators while speaking out on WHCD shooting

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President Obama speaking at a podium with presidential seal and audience behind

Former US President Barack Obama has spoken out on X about the shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, condemning “political violence”. He said, “Although we don’t yet have the details about the motives behind last night’s shooting at the White House Correspondents Dinner, it’s incumbent upon all us to reject the idea that violence has any place in our democracy.” Obama continued in his post to praise the Secret Service Agents for their “courage and sacrifice.” “It’s also a sobering reminder of the courage and sacrifice that U.S. Secret Service Agents show every day. I’m grateful to them – and thankful that the agent who was shot is going to be okay.”

Source: Obama is slammed for by X commentators while speaking out on WHCD shooting | Sky News Australia

In God is my salvation and my glory; The rock of my strength, And my refuge, is in God.
Psalm 62:7

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Shots fired at White House Correspondents’ Dinner, Trump evacuated

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Newsroom control room with multiple monitors showing breaking news about shots fired near White House

Gunfire erupted at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner Saturday night — with President Trump and first lady Melania dramatically evacuated less than 30 minutes after making their grand entrance. Harrowing footage from the annual glitzy gala showed at least five shots ringing out from the lobby of the Washington Hilton, as more than 2,000 guests — including journalists and Trump officials — scrambled under tables for cover. Eyewitnesses told The Post at least four shots went off inside the Washington Hilton.

Source: Shots fired at White House Correspondents’ Dinner, Trump evacuated

Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.
Romans 3:20

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Trump DOJ report reveals Biden targeted pro-life Americans unfairly

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mysterious man in black coat with hat and sunglasses

I founded and built the largest grassroots movement in the history of the pro-life cause: 40 Days for Life. During its first decade, I mobilized more than 2,000 leaders and 750,000 volunteers in peaceful prayer outside abortion facilities across all 50 states and dozens of other countries. These, and others like them, are exactly the people the Biden Justice Department decided to hunt and criminalize. In early April, President Donald Trump DOJ’s Weaponization Working Group released an explosive 882-page report built on more than 700,000 internal records.

It confirms what pro-life Americans suspected all along: The Justice Department of the United States worked hand-in-hand with the National Abortion Federation, Planned Parenthood, and the Feminist Majority Foundation to spy on, build secret files against and prosecute peaceful pro-life citizens. Here is the stark reality the report lays out. When pro-life Americans were charged under the law, the Biden DOJ asked judges to send them to prison for more than twice as long as the people who firebombed and vandalized pregnancy centers and churches. Fifteen pro-lifers were prosecuted for every pro-abortion offender. A grandmother praying her rosary on a sidewalk was treated as more dangerous to the country than an arsonist throwing a firebomb through the window of a pregnancy center.

Source: Trump DOJ report reveals Biden targeted pro-life Americans unfairly | Fox News

A man’s gift makes room for him, And brings him before great men.
Proverbs 18:16

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All The Ways China and Russia May Be Aiding Iran Against The U.S.

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Two men in suits, embracing in front of Chinese and Russian flags, smiling at each other

KEY FACTS:

  • Both the New York Times and CNN reported in the last week that China was preparing to ship new air defense systems to Iran, citing sources familiar with U.S. intelligence assessments.
  • These would include new shoulder-fired antiaircraft missiles, according to both reports, similar to the device President Donald Trump said Iranians used to shoot down an F-15 fighter jet earlier in April.
  • When asked by reporters about reports of China sending the weapons, the president said Saturday that “if China does that, China will have big problems, OK?” The Chinese government denied to CNN and the Times it intends to send weapons to Iran.
  • Russia, meanwhile, has reportedly supplied Iran with military intelligence, including satellite images of U.S. bases in the Middle East before they were targeted by strikes, according to Ukrainian intelligence assessments reported by Reuters last week.
  • Speaking to a British podcast after the Ukrainian intelligence was made public, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he did not receive a reaction from the U.S., adding, “the problem is they trust Putin.”

POSSIBLE PAYMENTS FOR MOVING THROUGH THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ

There have been unverified reports that Iran has been charging fees to allow ships to pass through the strait since mid-March. Among the slow trickle of foreign ships have been able to travel safely through it: Those owned by China and Russia. China, India, Pakistan and the Philippines, according to the BBC, have gone through the passage, and on Friday a Russian-flagged oil tanker made it through apparently without any difficulty. Iran has signalled it wants to charge ships tolls using cryptocurrency to use the strait in the future, with a spokesperson for the country’s Oil, Gas and Petrochemical Products Exporters’ Union telling the Wall Street Journal last week this could be a tariff of $1 per barrel. On Sunday, Trump threatened to interdict any ships in international waters that paid a toll to Iran, raging in a Truth Social post “no one who pays an illegal toll will have safe passage on the high seas.”

Source: All The Ways China and Russia May Be Aiding Iran Against The U.S.

Trump says U.S. will blockade Strait of Hormuz and intercept ships that paid tolls to Iran

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scenic maritime traffic on bosporus at sunset

President Trump said on Sunday that the U.S. Navy will begin blockading ships from entering or exiting the Strait of Hormuz and intercept vessels that have paid tolls to Iran, after marathon talks in Pakistan failed to yield an agreement to end the war. “Effective immediately, the United States Navy, the Finest in the World, will begin the process of BLOCKADING any and all Ships trying to enter, or leave, the Strait of Hormuz,” the president said in a post on Truth Social on Sunday morning.  Mr. Trump also said he has instructed the Navy to “seek and interdict every vessel in International Waters that has paid a toll to Iran,” and that the U.S. would begin “destroying the mines the Iranians laid in the Straits.” 

“Any Iranian who fires at us, or at peaceful vessels, will be BLOWN TO HELL!” he added.  At least two vessels that have traversed the strait have paid Iran fees in Chinese yuan to guarantee safe passage, analysts from Lloyd’s List Intelligence said in a recent report. Analysts wrote that Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps “has imposed a de facto ‘toll booth’ regime in the Strait of Hormuz, requiring vessels to submit full documentation, obtain clearance codes and accept IRGC-escorted passage through a single controlled corridor.” Iran has indicated that it might seek to impose a toll on all ships passing through the strait under a long-term peace deal.

Source: Trump says U.S. will blockade Strait of Hormuz and intercept ships that paid tolls to Iran – CBS News

And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him.
1 John 4:16