Thwarted Plot to Attack White House Fight Involved Drones and Snipers, Officials Say
Multiple people were arrested in connection with an alleged plan to target the UFC match with thousands in attendance, including Trump.

A new report links anti-Christian extremism and assassination culture to the alleged bomb threat against Erika Kirk at a Turning Point USA event.
Multiple people were arrested in connection with an alleged plan to target the UFC match with thousands in attendance, including Trump.
An individual allegedly involved in a thwarted terrorist attack aimed at Sunday’s UFC Freedom 250 event at the White House parroted Democrat conspiracy theories about President Trump protecting child predators connected to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, according to federal court documents. The revelation came on Tuesday, when Fox News reported on how the FBI and […]
At the urging of one of the largest and most notorious contractors running detention centers used to detain immigrants who have been taken into custody by ICE agents, the agency posted new rules that will make it easier for contractors to avoid lawsuits and be held accountable under state and local laws.According to Washington Post reporting, Geo Group — which operates more than 20 ICE detention centers and faces lawsuits in three states for allegedly violating minimum-wage laws by paying immigrant detainees $1 a day for work — privately lobbied ICE to revise federal detention standards in its favor.The Post's Douglas MacMillan wrote that the company's requests were very specific. Geo asked ICE to remove language requiring contractors to follow state and local laws governing detainee treatment. The company also demanded that ICE insert language specifying that detainees are not employees of detention facilities, with ICE complying. The new national detention standards, posted to the agency's website late Monday, incorporate Geo's requested language. The document now states that detainees are not employees "and are not entitled to wages or benefits under applicable wage laws or labor regulations."The revised standards no longer require detainees to be paid at least $1 per day, and no longer include references to contractors having to comply with state or local laws—effectively gutting protections designed to ensure basic labor standards in detention facilities.The report notes that two of the Trump administration's top immigration officials—border czar Tom Homan and ICE acting director David Venturella—previously worked for Geo Group, which, in turn, prompted Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) to ask in a letter last month "whether ICE enforcement priorities are being driven by the financial interests of politically connected detention contractors." "Geo Group and [fellow detention contractor] CoreCivic each donated $500,000 to Donald Trump’s presidential inaugural fund in December 2024, election spending data shows. A Geo Group subsidiary, Geo Reentry Services, has contributed $2 million to MAGA Inc., a Trump-aligned super-PAC, since October 2025, the records show," according to the Post report.DHS defended the changes through a statement claiming ICE "consulted with a variety of stakeholders, including facility operators" when revising standards. But the agency conspicuously avoided mentioning whether immigration advocates, detainee rights groups, or labor organizations were similarly consulted.Steve Schooner, a professor of government procurement law at George Washington University, highlighted the contrast. While federal agencies routinely seek input from industries they regulate, he told the Post, "ICE's contractors are probably not the best voice to represent the people who are being detained."
Secret Service officials were angry after FBI Director Kash Patel blindsided them and publicly announced details of a sealed, ongoing investigation into an alleged plot to attack a UFC fight event at the White House.Patel's announcement Tuesday morning potentially compromised roughly 10 arrests that had not yet been made, according to three people familiar with the matter, and his social media post disrupted plans by Secret Service and FBI officials to unseal the case later that afternoon and issue a joint public statement, reported NBC News correspondent Ken Dilanian."We all woke up this morning to see this on Twitter," one administration official said, speaking anonymously to discuss sensitive matters.The investigation began last week when a relative of one of the suspects contacted local police in the Cincinnati area to report that their family member was discussing a vague plot in Washington. A Secret Service advanced threat interdiction team, working with the FBI, obtained a subpoena for an encrypted Signal chat thread that revealed plans for the drone attack. One suspect was arrested June 13, and the case was immediately sealed to allow investigators to identify and arrest additional suspects.Secret Service Deputy Director Matt Quinn publicly rebuked the premature disclosure at a news conference Tuesday without naming Patel directly. "Don't choke on your own smoke," Quinn said, invoking a phrase learned early in his career. "The Secret Service led that investigation from the beginning. In order to maintain the integrity of the investigation and the security plan, we chose not to leak it."Quinn declined to discuss further details, noting the case remained sealed and active.The Secret Service has since dramatically expanded security around the weekend event and issued alerts to law enforcement partners to watch for drones in downtown Washington.
Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman is in Belfast, where several days of racist riots have targeted immigrants and ethnic minorities with violence, threats and property destruction. It is the third consecutive summer of organized mob violence against immigrants in Northern Ireland, with roots in the extant paramilitary structures that remain there after decades of sectarian warfare. Our broadcast from the Northern Ireland capital features guests Sinéad Marmion, an immigration lawyer, and Patrick Corrigan, the Northern Ireland director of Amnesty International UK. Both were among the tens of thousands who attended a recent rally in Belfast condemning racism and standing in solidarity with immigrants. “The vast majority of people in Belfast, as across Northern Ireland, are antiracist and very welcoming to the people who have come here to make their lives from around the world,” says Corrigan. “We wanted to send, most importantly, a message to them, to say, 'You are welcome. This is your city. This is your home, just as much as it is ours.'” As mob violence drives residents from their homes and leaves many fearing for their lives, “it’s the community that has picked up the pieces. It’s women in the community, it’s migrant women in the community, that have organized and mobilized the response. And our authorities have been left wanting,” says Marmion. “We have political parties that are stoking the flames and encouraging what they call a 'legitimate concern on immigration,' … and the conversation, resultingly, is always toxic.”
A federal prosecutor unveiled indictments against 15 Antifa-linked defendants in Minneapolis Tuesday — then got corrected by reporters who knew his own track record better than he did.U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen for the District of Minnesota announced the indictment alongside Homeland Security Investigations Special Agent in Charge Michael McCarthy. The defendants — members and associates of Direct Action Minnesota — face charges including conspiracy to impede or injure a federal officer, interstate stalking, and assault on a federal officer. Twelve were arrested Tuesday morning; two remain fugitives.Minnesota Reformer reporter Madison McVan went first."More than one-third of prosecutors' cases against people charged with protesting or stalking federal officers during Operation Metro Surge have already been dismissed or failed in some way," McVan said. "Why is this case different?""I don't think any cases have failed in any way," Rosen replied."It's actually half now," a second reporter fired back, identifying himself as tracking the § 111 cases independently. "36 — 18 have been dropped entirely, three with prejudice. There are non-prosecution agreements in at least 11 others."He also flagged that U.S. District Judge David T. Schultz had called affidavits signed by Homeland Security Investigations Special Agent Richard Berger "a fake affidavit" — saying Berger lacked personal knowledge of the events described."You watch how this case plays out," Rosen said. "The evidence will prove it all out."The charges were brought under Joint Task Force Vanguard, which was stood up after President Donald Trump signed National Security Presidential Memorandum 7, directing the Justice Department to prioritize politically motivated violence. The Brennan Center for Justice warns that the administration's Antifa prosecutions risk criminalizing constitutionally protected protests.
A mother’s call to police about her 19-year-old son’s growing stockpile of weapons, tactical gear, and online associates helped federal authorities uncover an alleged plot to attack President Donald Trump’s White House UFC event, according to newly unsealed affidavits identifying five suspects arrested in the case. The filings identify California residents Michael Alan Thomas and […]
Charging documents outlined an ambitious plan involving explosive-laden drones and rifles, but left less clear that the conspirators had the means to carry it out.