NYT > U.S. > Politics
Storms Could Disrupt U.F.C. Event at the White House on Sunday
Forecasters said the weather around Washington is likely to be hot and stormy.
Center Left
TIME
The White House UFC Event Is Costing $60 Million
Center Left
The event, which will take place on the White House grounds this weekend, has sparked widespread controversy.
Compare Perspectives
Found 8 stories
The Nutty Professor: Socialist in Close House Race Taught Ultra-Woke College Classes on 'Whiteness,' 'Prison Industrial Complex,' and 'Genocidal Practices of the Nationstate'
The socialist who has Zohran Mamdani's endorsement to oust Rep. Adriano Espaillat in a New York City Democratic congressional primary co-created a bizarre, DEI-crazed college course that advocated for abolishing schools, which it accused of fueling "genocide," "white supremacy," and "settler colonialism," among other ills. The post The Nutty Professor: Socialist in Close House Race Taught Ultra-Woke College Classes on 'Whiteness,' 'Prison Industrial Complex,' and 'Genocidal Practices of the Nationstate' appeared first on .
Center Right
Raw Story
Epstein haunts Trump's birthday as nation turns on White House fight: report
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) event slated to be held at the White House on Sunday is underwater with a majority of Americans, many of whom have bombarded its promotional posts with references to Jeffrey Epstein, Axios reported Friday.According to a survey of more than 9,200 adults conducted by YouGov, 51% of Americans either “somewhat” or “strongly” disapprove of the event, officially labeled UFC Freedom 250 and scheduled for Trump's 80th birthday.Only 27% approve, and 22% indicated that they were “not sure.” Fans have peppered UFC posts promoting the event with brutal reminders of some of the Trump administration’s biggest controversies.“Even within the UFC's Trump-friendly fan base, the alliance is showing cracks: Fans have flooded promotional posts with complaints about Israel, the Epstein files and other perceived populist betrayals by Trump,” read Axios’ report.The Justice Department's botched handling of its release of Epstein-related files has continued to plague the Trump administration, with the president's favorability reaching historic lows.The event has already sparked waves of controversy, including fresh legal challenges, in which the complainants allege the event is a “volcano of corruption” that Trump and his allies stand to profit from.Norm Eisen, a former White House ethics lawyer, described the event recently as “ludicrous” and emblematic of “the way [Trump] has defaced Washington, D.C.”
Far Left
Axios
"Tell me a bigger sports story": How the UFC conquered Trump's Washington
Dana White likes to say he sells "holy sh*t moments for a living." Sunday night, the UFC CEO will attempt his magnum opus on the biggest stage in combat sports history.Why it matters: The UFC and President Trump have forged one of the most successful cultural alliances in modern politics, carrying mixed martial arts (MMA) from the fringe of American sports to a starring role in the country's 250th anniversary.Zoom in: For Trump, the UFC was a lifeline after the 2020 election and Jan. 6 left him radioactive to corporate America.White brought Trump cageside — reintroducing him as an anti-establishment icon to the young, male-heavy audience that would help power his 2024 comeback.Trump's instinct at moments of maximum legal vulnerability was to return to the Octagon: days after his first indictment in 2023, he appeared at UFC 287 in Miami; two days after his 2024 guilty verdict, he made his first public appearance at UFC 302 in Newark, N.J.For the UFC, Trump's return has coincided with a cascade of rewards: a $7.7 billion rights deal with Paramount, new partnerships with the FBI and State Department, and now a fight night on the White House's South Lawn.UFC parent company TKO says the event — complete with a massive fan viewing experience on the Ellipse — will cost the UFC more than $60 million and lose money on paper.Still, TKO president Mark Shapiro has called the first professional sporting event ever held at the White House "the greatest earned marketing tool of all time." Photo: Aaron Schwartz/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesThe big picture: UFC Freedom 250 has been cloaked in controversy and curiosity since well before construction began on the 92-foot-tall steel "Claw" now towering over the South Lawn.1. The sport: To fans, MMA is what Joe Rogan calls "high-level problem solving with dire physical consequences" — a full-body chess match that fuses boxing, kickboxing, wrestling, jiu-jitsu and pain tolerance into a brutal test of skill, will and nerve.The champions fighting on Sunday, from Georgian-Spaniard Ilia Topuria to Brazil's Alex Pereira, embody the sport's global rise, technical sophistication and cinematic capacity for sudden, fight-ending violence.To critics, MMA remains a bloody spectacle tied to the ugliest strains of hypermasculinity, making its arrival at the White House feel jarring even as the sport has gone mainstream.2. The promotion: The UFC built a global sports empire by functioning as the ultimate market gatekeeper, yielding immense corporate profits even while weathering antitrust lawsuits and allegations of suppressed wages.Beyond the balance sheets, the UFC's internal fairness is routinely warped by executive favoritism — a system of handpicked title shots and corporate protection that fans openly mock as "Dana White privilege."This transactional playbook has long aligned the UFC with authoritarian regimes that use combat sports for image laundering, adding a sharp layer of irony to a company now wrapped in the flag of American pageantry.3. The event: White insists the card will be patriotic, not political, promising to "tell the story of America" through historical vignettes between fights. But almost every logistical and financial detail points back to one man.The rare Sunday fight, a break from the UFC's patented Saturday rhythm, will fall on Flag Day — which happens to be Trump's 80th birthday.It's branded through Trump's Freedom 250 universe and accompanied by commemorative coins bearing his face, priced up to nearly $12,000. Trump personally controls roughly 1,400 of the 4,300 South Lawn seats.Asked why MMA is the first sport to make it to the White House, White told reporters: "It's one of the president's favorite sports, so that helps." Trump with UFC fighters (from left) Alex Pereira, Ilia Topuria, Justin Gaethje and Cyril Gane. Photo: Scott Taetsch/Zuffa LLCBetween the lines: The public isn't sold: A YouGov poll found 51% of Americans disapprove and just 17% approve of UFC Freedom 250.A watchdog group has sued to stop the event, arguing the administration approved a private spectacle on federal parkland without proper review. Even within the UFC's Trump-friendly fan base, the alliance is showing cracks: Fans have flooded promotional posts with complaints about Israel, the Epstein files and other perceived populist betrayals by Trump.The bottom line: The UFC's journey to the White House lawn mirrors the president's own improbable rise.In 1996, the late Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) urged all 50 U.S. governors to ban the "barbaric" UFC in its infancy, likening the sport to "human cockfighting."At the time, Trump was a casino mogul and tabloid fixture, refining the same instincts for provocation, spectacle and survival that would later vault him to the presidency.White has long cast Trump as one of the few powerful figures who saw value in the UFC when polite America recoiled: "Nobody took us seriously," White often says. "Except Donald Trump."
Center Left
NYT > U.S. > Politics
Trump Unveils UFC ‘Claw’ Ahead of Cage Match at the White House
The towering claw will be the site of an Ultimate Fighting Championship cage match on Sunday, which is President Trump’s 80th birthday.
Center Left
The Gateway Pundit
President Trump Rips Into Mitch McConnell During Oval Office Event (VIDEO)
President Trump ripped RINO Senators, Mitch McConnell and Lisa Murkowski on Thursday during remarks to reporters in the Oval Office. The post President Trump Rips Into Mitch McConnell During Oval Office Event (VIDEO) appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
Far Right
Raw Story
New 60 Minutes head's attempt to rehire fired high-profile editor flops: report
Embattled "60 Minutes" executive editor Nick Bilton attempted to stanch the bleeding at CBS's popular newsmagazine by offering a popular executive editor his job back after he was fired by CBS News head Bari Weiss — only to be turned down.According to media watchdog Status, Bilton — struggling to right the ship after Weiss's catastrophic purge — reached out to Draggan Mihailovich in a bid to heal the wounds from what staffers have dubbed "Black Thursday." The mass firing that day created a front-page firestorm for the network and sparked fears the show might not return in the fall.Bilton initially signaled openness to reconciliation. Last week, he sent a memo praising the show's remaining correspondents —Lesley Stahl, Bill Whitaker, and Jon Wertheim — as "core" to the program's success. He appointed Maria Gavrilovic, a highly respected producer who spent years working closely with Scott Pelley, as his deputy. And he promised a rattled staff, "We will never be instructed by ownership of the company" on which stories to pursue.According to Status founder Oliver Darcy, Bilton was encouraged by Stahl and Wertheim, and asked if Mihailovich would consider returning. The move would require approval from Weiss, but Bilton signaled genuine interest in bringing the well-regarded executive editor back.Mihailovich declined.According to the report, his refusal signals the depth of the institutional damage inflicted by Weiss's purge. Even more troubling, Darcy is reporting, Weiss's meddling appears far from over. Status reported that Weiss this week held a meeting with Bilton to brainstorm story ideas for "60 Minutes" — a clear indication that her interference in editorial decisions continues despite promises of autonomy."60 Minutes" has long operated with unusual independence within CBS, a boundary fiercely protected by correspondents and producers," according to Status."Reportedly former Executive Producer Bill Owens quit when he felt corporate interference under then-boss Shari Redstone had grown intolerable. If Weiss continues inserting herself into editorial decision-making, it directly contradicts assurances CBS owner David Ellison offered to Stahl about the program's autonomy."
Far Left
Raw Story
Former '60 Minutes' correspondent speculates Bari Weiss' days are numbered
Under conservative editor Bari Weiss's eight-month leadership at CBS News, the top-rated "60 Minutes" program has lost seven of its 10 correspondents and seen its editorial independence severely compromised through alleged political interference. On May 28 — dubbed "Black Thursday" by staff — Weiss fired correspondents Sharyn Alfonsi and Cecilia Vega, executive producer Tanya Simon, and executive editor Draggan Mihailovich in a single sweep, reported Variety. Days later, Scott Pelley was also fired after questioning Weiss's leadership publicly. Former correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi alleged Weiss cut a fully vetted report on Venezuelan migrants in El Salvador hours before airtime because the Trump administration declined comment. Among Pelley's accounts of Weiss' leadership style to The New York Times, he reported the controversial Editor-in-Chief demanded he contradict evidence when reporting on Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Instead of saying ICE shot a woman, Weiss demanded Pelley say she drove towards the officer. Critics denounced other problematic patterns, including a CBS Evening News segment stating, "Marco Rubio, we salute you," and allowing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the privilege of selecting his own "60 Minutes" interviewer. Before Weiss's purge and despite ongoing turmoil, the program just completed its 52nd consecutive season as top-rated news programming.“I have a feeling that Bari will not be overseeing ‘60 Minutes’ for very much longer," hoped longtime "60 Minutes" correspondent Steve Kroft, who retired in 2019. Watch the video below. Your browser does not support the video tag.
Far Left