A longtime Democratic political insider secretly served as an informant for the FBI while working for California Gov. Gavin Newsom. Alexis Podesta, who was appointed by Gov. […]
This column grimly spent a spring predicting a dark summer of possible chaos and violence, an administration on the move, power grabs at every turn, one preparing for an unpredictable but authoritarian fall season. We would endure a lot of hot weather, late nights, some dangerous dynamics, and Kalshi had odds at 40% that Portland would be ashes by June 15th. This worry followed protests in Minnesota, the fear of troops coming to Chicago, and everything else you surely remember. Well, the heat came to the East Coast. But nothing else, not yet.Indeed, so far, if one had to pick a theme or feel for what's happening, it would be a catchy viral meme about what's not happening. "The summer that wasn't."We are passing through the nation's 250th birthday, the biggest annual summer holiday, made infinitely bigger by the incredible number, and yet it looks like it'll go by largely unnoticed, except for skipping work on Friday, maybe hearing some booms late at night Saturday. One would have expected baited anticipation, pride, and massive celebrations planned everywhere, or at least that would have been the expectation back 10 years ago, "normal America."I went to a big gathering in my city's central park to watch the U.S. play in the World Cup on big screens with a big crowd — nice weather. Yes, people supported the American team, but not with the passion, anticipation, or hypertension otherwise expected. Everyone's support seemed a bit muted, as if we weren't sure "which" America this team represented. They wore white, not red or blue. If one said, "It's actually the whole country's team," most would reply, "Right. But, again, which country?"Everyone knows the cause.Instead of a celebration of the good that this country has done in its years (while acknowledging the horrific), as per usual, the President of the United States made the entire thing, everything official, at least, not about America but about him. Yes, of course, your city park will still have the earnest city band or orchestra playing in the evening and then fireworks. But the tone is set by the institutions functioning as the nation's cerebellum: the White House, Capitol Hill, the Supreme Court, the Mall. Trump took it all over and made it a MAGA rally. About him.Well that will blow a tire for the 60% of the nation that is exhausted by this man, consumed with disdain and fury. Interestingly, though, there's some evidence that even Trump supporters don't like having the Fourth of July a personal celebration of Donald Trump, as if they, too, have actually found a line in the sand upon which even they won't cross. He cannot take over everything. Kinda like if he named every NFL team "Trump," like the Buffalo Trump, the Dallas Trump, Seattle Trump, all of them. That would be too far, guaranteed. Perhaps this is, too.No, no one is fooled. He damn sure can try to take over elections, has taken over the Department of Justice, the military, and planted his face on banners in a Stalinesque way throughout Washington. He can take over most things, and most of those things are the really important ones, as opposed to the "Great National State Fair" that invisibly passed us by and the big celebration planned for the actual Fourth of July — a rally, about him, always, his greatness, a nation relegated to nothing but a stage.Is it possible that even MAGAs never wanted at least this part?There are other factors. Yes, there is the heat. Yes, you better believe gas prices play a role. Lots more. And yet the number of artists who checked out after hearing the agenda, the lagging ticket requests before the weather report, the bizarre claw of the UFC fight on the White House lawn, a "Fair" no one asked for, and the fact that Washington is empty, all point to something deeper. Kind of like the U.S. soccer team, it's possible everyone agreed we'd have official "Safe Spots," areas relied on to rest from politics — a "timeout." Is it possible that people from the furthest left, to the most extreme 15% of MAGA muckers, all just want to eat a cheeseburger in a backyard, enjoy a day off, maybe even read in the AC? Sick of it all? Not sure which America we're celebrating, only knowing it's not Donald Trump personally?Well, something is happening because nothing is happening!It appears that our kids are out of school, mine seems to be home a lot — which normally indicates something "summery." That weirdly fascinating soccer stuff is on television, and we get to see some kinda cool costumes and customs from around the world. Hollywood released a handful of massive budget movies. Most people have Friday off. There is some evidence that it's summer's big holiday and a lot saying it's not supposed to be like this.All of this might be an important development; it is possible it is an important element, and it's certainly better than an extreme alternative. But there's also the chance that we're seeing a delay of the dangers to which this column previously pointed.
As the FBI's widening public corruption probe has expanded to scrutinize Gov. Gavin Newsom and his wife, Jennifer Siebel Newsom, a bombshell new revelation is exposing how investigators quietly penetrated the governor's political inner circle from the inside.
A transgender person has gone viral for threatening to unleash a "trans jihad" against MAGA nation and the GOP in a pair of sickening social media videos.
The post Transgender Activist and Former Dem Campaigner Vows to Unleash a “Trans Jihad” Against the GOP: “Kill Your Local Republican” (VIDEOS) appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
FBI Director Kash Patel failed to properly disclose a six-figure stock purchase in a company that’s been contracted by the Justice Department, NOTUS reported Wednesday.Federal financial records first reviewed by NOTUS showed that on November 21, Patel purchased between $100,000 and $250,000 worth of stock in MicroStrategy, a “bitcoin treasury company” that has done millions of dollars in business with the DOJ over the past decade.Patel failed to disclose the purchase within 45 days of the trade, in violation of the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act, also known as the STOCK Act.In a letter to the Office of Government Ethics on May 26, Patel said the purchase had been “inadvertently omitted” from his financial disclosure. Two days later, in a letter to the Office of Government Ethics, Deputy Assistant Attorney General William Taylor said the purchase had been omitted due to a miscommunication. “I continue to believe that Director Patel is in compliance with applicable laws and regulations governing conflicts of interest,” he wrote.An FBI official told NOTUS that Patel’s late reporting was “not realized and unintentional.” However, Dylan Hedtler-Gaudette, acting vice president of the Project on Government Oversight, told the outlet that Patel’s stock purchase disclosure is “absolutely” late under the letter of the STOCK Act.“That’s violating the law—no other way to put it,” Hedtler-Gaudette said.Patel has yet to face the customary $200 fine for his breach of conduct—and he probably won’t.
Director Kash Patel's FBI has ordered every field office to immediately send analysts to support its investigation into the 2020 election in Georgia, according to a new report.MS NOW obtained an unclassified memo showing Patel is mobilizing 260 intelligence analysts — from every field office in the country — as part of what the bureau calls a "priority effort" in Atlanta."In support of the Director's Office priority effort, the Directorate of Intelligence (DI) and Criminal Division are requesting all FBI field offices to immediately surge support to an FBI Atlanta priority investigation," the memo said.Each analyst must complete 708 records checks by July 17, MS NOW said."Overtime (including weekends and holidays) has been authorized," the memo added."Looking for derogatory information is the short answer," one official told MS NOW. "The idea is to build a case. Look at associations between people, look into their social media, their business activity, travel, contact with other investigative subjects."In January, Patel's FBI raided the Fulton County Elections and Operations Hub, seizing more than 600 boxes of records. The warrant relied largely on claims previously debunked by Republican-led investigations in Georgia. Then-Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard accompanied the FBI during the search and arranged for President Donald Trump to speak by phone with agents on-site.The Department of Justice issued subpoenas in April for the personal information of thousands of 2020 election workers in the state. The FBI has also targeted 2020 records in Arizona and Wisconsin. Patel predicted arrests in April, though none have come.Democratic Fulton County Commission Chairman Robb Pitts said the county has been targeted for years because it rejected Trump's "big lie" that the 2020 election was stolen."These ongoing efforts are about intimidation and distraction, not facts," Pitts said.Former President Joe Biden beat Trump in Georgia in 2020 by 11,779 votes. Trump has long pushed for ongoing investigations into his loss to Biden.
