SPLC Targeted TPUSA 4 Months Before Kirk Assassinated
Source: RealClearPolitics - Homepage · Bias: Center Right
Summary
TPUSA's Andrew Kolvet appeared on "Jesse Watters Primetime" to discuss the DOJ indicting the Southern Poverty Law Center, a group that claims it tracks hate and extremist activity in the nation. Kolvet told FOX News host Jesse Watters that the group put Turning Point USA on their "hate map" and less than 4 months later, Charlie Kirk was assassinated.
SPLC Targeted TPUSA 4 Months Before Kirk Assassinated
Center Right
TPUSA's Andrew Kolvet appeared on "Jesse Watters Primetime" to discuss the DOJ indicting the Southern Poverty Law Center, a group that claims it tracks hate and extremist activity in the nation. Kolvet told FOX News host Jesse Watters that the group put Turning Point USA on their "hate map" and less than 4 months later, Charlie Kirk was assassinated.
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) on Friday criticized President Trump’s decision to hold a July Fourth rally on the National Mall during a heat wave in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. “I think that we should never ask our people to sacrifice in order to hear a speech,” he told The Hill’s Judy Kurtz and Hillary…
Mamdani mentions he’s an immigrant himself, but completely ignores the fact that this country, which he says is so unwelcoming, made him the youngest mayor in the history of its largest city.
Record-breaking heat is having an impact on one of the biggest celebrations for the United States’ 250th birthday, with organizers of the Freedom 250 Salute to America are delaying the event’s start time from 1pm to 5pm because of the expect triple-digit heat in Washington. It comes as President Donald Trump prepares to visit Mount Rushmore ahead of July 4 celebrations. NBC’s Gabe Gutierrez reports for TODAY.
Trump administration officials reportedly believed that the Israeli government intended to assassinate Iran’s top negotiators—including the country’s foreign minister—during peace talks with the US in an effort to sabotage diplomatic progress.The New York Times reported Thursday that “American concerns about the targeting of two particular Iranian officials—Abbas Araghchi, Iran’s foreign minister, and Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the speaker of the Parliament—spiked during delicate ceasefire negotiations that began in April.” In response, the US “went so far as to ask other countries in the region to warn Iran about the possibility Israel could target the two officials,” according to the Times, which cited unnamed current and former American officials.The US and Israel have killed dozens of top Iranian officials since launching their illegal joint war in late February. But the allied countries reportedly removed Araghchi and Ghalibaf from their target list in late March, opening the possibility of high-level negotiations to end the war.But Israel remained bent on targeting the negotiators, according to the Times, whose reporting was later corroborated by The Washington Post.The Times detailed one dramatic incident in April, when Ghalibaf was planning to travel to Pakistan’s capital to meet with US Vice President JD Vance:Pakistani fighter jets escorted the Iranian airplanes carrying a delegation of more than 70 Iranians from the border of Iran to Islamabad and back again when the session was over.But on the way back to Tehran, an Israeli security threat emerged.Iran’s security forces notified the plane carrying Mr. Ghalibaf back to Tehran that they had picked up intelligence that Israel planned to attack the plane and that two Israeli fighter jets had entered Iran’s airspace from its western border near Iraq, the two officials said.Mahdi Mohammadi, a senior adviser for Mr. Ghalibaf, who accompanied him to Islamabad, confirmed this account on his social media page. The plane made an emergency landing in the city of Mashhad, Iran’s closest airport to the Pakistani border, and the Iranian delegation traveled some eight hours by land back to Tehran, Mr. Mohammadi and the two officials said.The Post reported that “cracks emerged” between the US and Israeli approaches to the war following Israel’s assassination of top Iranian national security official Ali Larijani in March.“They’ve wiped out everybody,” Trump told reporters in late March, suggesting Israel’s assassination campaign was making it difficult to find potential negotiating partners.Trita Parsi, executive vice president of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, wrote in response to the new reporting that “Israel is a state that, on paper, is a US partner, but in reality is so extreme in its obsession to undermine US diplomacy that it even tries to assassinate those the US engages with in crucial negotiations.”“I can’t recall a government as terrified of peace as the one running Israel,” Parsi added.At present, the Israeli government—led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu—is endangering tenuous US-Iran peace talks with its continued occupation of and assault on Lebanon, which Iran has highlighted as a key factor in the negotiations.Visiting occupied southern Lebanon earlier this week, Netanyahu declared to Israeli troops that “our insistence is that we will not leave... until the threat is removed.”Parsi wrote earlier this week that “beyond his long-standing desire to use American force to subjugate Iran to Israeli domination and achieve a regional balance favorable to Israel,” Netanyahu “now also has stark political and personal reasons to restart the war” with Iran.“The [US and Iran’s memorandum of understanding] has come at a steep political cost for Netanyahu,” wrote Parsi. “His prospects for reelection in October are weaker than they have been in months. Once seen as the Israeli leader uniquely capable of delivering President Trump, he now confronts the prospect that both the war and the ensuing diplomacy will leave Israel in a strategically weaker position—undermining the very case he has made for his leadership.”“And of course,” Parsi added, “if he loses the elections, he will likely spend the next few years in jail, as he will lose his immunity as prime minister and face trial over corruption charges.”The story was published in partnership with Common Dreams, read the original here.
Extreme heat, drought and dangerous fire weather are raising wildfire risks across the U.S. West heading into the July 4 weekend.Why it matters: Millions of Americans celebrating Independence Day face fireworks restrictions as officials warn that a single spark could ignite fast-moving wildfires in areas already strained by extreme heat and drought.Mandatory evacuation orders are in effect in parts of Utah and Colorado due to massive blazes in those states.Driving the news: "Dangerous, record-breaking heat" continues across the central and eastern U.S., with the most intense heat shifting east through Independence Day weekend, the National Weather Service warns. Heat indexes of up to 115°F are possible, and temperatures are set to hit 105°F or higher in Washington, D.C., this weekend.Widespread drought conditions have fueled an unusually active wildfire season in Florida.Several areas of the West and Great Plains are in extreme or exceptional drought, which, combined with recent heat waves, has increased the likelihood of wildfires.Case in point: Utah officials report that more than 300,000 acres have burned this season.The Cottonwood Fire alone has burned more than 92,000 acres. Two other major fires near Eureka have burned about 70,000 acres combined.Fire threat level elevatedState of play: Counties nationwide have issued fireworks bans to reduce the risk of fires during July 4 celebrations.Fire danger is elevated nationwide, with at least 49 large fires burning across 13 states as of Thursday, per the National Interagency Fire Center.Conditions are particularly dangerous across the Four Corners and the Great Basin.Zoom in: Gusty winds, low humidity, dry thunderstorms and near-record- to record-dry fuels have ignited new fire starts and rapid fire spread across the eastern Great Basin and Four Corners. Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, Nevada and Oregon have major topsoil moisture deficits, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.Red flag warnings were in effect Friday across the interior West, including parts of Utah, Colorado and New Mexico.By the numbers: Wildfire activity is well above average this year. Through June 30, acreage burned was 157% of the 10-year average, while 36,262 wildfires had been reported — 133% of average, according to the National Interagency Fire Center's July outlook.Between the lines: "Climate change, including increased heat, extended drought, and a thirsty atmosphere, has been a key driver in increasing the risk and extent of wildfires in the western United States during the last two decades," NOAA notes.The congressionally mandated National Climate Assessment notes that Western wildfires have become larger, hotter, more destructive and deadlier due to multiple factors, including climate change.How wildfire danger is affecting July 4 fireworksSome U.S. counties and cities have issued fireworks bans amid extreme heat or drought, including parts of the Nebraska Panhandle, New Mexico and Colorado Springs.Multiple Florida counties remain under burn bans that limit bonfires, trash burning and fireworks.Utah has implemented statewide fireworks restrictions. Gov. Spencer Cox said the ban was in response to "the reality that is with us, not the one that we wish we had."What we're watching: More wildfire activity is possible if prolonged extreme heat worsens drought conditions.Fireworks safety tips for July 4 weekendWhat they're saying: The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission advises Americans to never use homemade fireworks and always keep water nearby "in case of fire or to safely soak used fireworks."The CPSC recommends that you "leave fireworks to the professionals and enjoy public fireworks displays in your community." Go deeper: America's 250th fireworks party collides with burn bans
As Americans prepare to celebrate the country’s 250th birthday this holiday weekend, organizers of Freedom 250 events in Washington are scrambling to deal with the extreme heat. Some 200,000 people have attended the Great American State Fair and FIFA Fan Fest so far, according to a Freedom 250 spokesperson, and even more are expected to…
