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Texas Rep. Virdell to Newsmax: Paxton Will Win Runoff, General Election

Texas state Rep. Wesley Virdell, R-Texas, 

 

told Newsmax on Tuesday that he expects Republicans to post major victories in the state's primary runoff elections, predicting Attorney General Ken Paxton will prevail in the Senate race and again in the general election this fall. 

"I think we'll have a big win," Virdell said on Newsmax's "Wake Up America Early," adding that he thinks Paxton will also defeat Democrat contender James Talarico this fall.

"James Talarico

 

 has said enough crazy things in interviews and on the internet and everything else that people will be in shock," said Virdell.

He also praised President Donald Trump's endorsement of Paxton, and the president's comments about Talarico. 

"I worked with Talarico in the House, and he's a nice guy. But when he starts telling you what he believes, it just shocks people," said Virdell. 

But, Virdell said, Talarico has a "slick tongue," and he does not think voters will choose him because of that. 

"If you listen to him, in some ways, people are like, 'Oh man, that guy sounds like a very good preacher.' And then you listen to his actual ideology, and it's just completely shocking. I hope nobody falls for that," he said.

 

Virdell also weighed in on Gov. Greg Abbott's

 

 reelection campaign against Democratic challenger Gina Hinojosa, 

 

a current state representative.

"I really want to see Governor Abbott pull a victory off there, but we need voters to turn out," Virdell said. "That's the big thing, including today. We can't just sit at home today."

On the Democratic runoff for lieutenant governor between state Rep. Vikki Goodwin and labor organizer Marcus Velez, Virdell said he had not heard much about the contest.

"I actually worked with Vikki Goodwin also in the Texas House," he said. "Vikki also comes across as a very nice person. She's very quiet. I don't know the other opponent, but she's a nice person, but she's also very quiet. So I don't know how much she's actually been out there and campaigning."

He added, "I haven't heard anything about that race, so I assume it's kind of a sleeper race going on there."

 

Sleepless in Seattle: Residents Forced to Take Crimefighting Into Their Own Hands As Police Do Nothing

Democrats will tell you crime is getting better in blue cities around the country. Does anyone actually believe that? Just ask residents of Los Angeles, where Mayor Karen Bass touts statistics showing that crime rates have lowered when, in reality, there’s been a home invasion wave, and street takeovers are as regular as the sunshine.

Or you could ask the beleaguered residents of Seattle, where some residents feel forced to put up barricades to keep the perps out.

 They argued that they were getting no help from the police in the rainy leftist enclave where a Democratic socialist with virtually no résumé, Katie Wilson,

 

 was elected mayor in November 2025.

These folks had to take matters into their own hands:

In the above video, residents tell reporters about the constant fear of living under these conditions:

• "There's been a shooting almost every night in the last couple of weeks," explained one woman.
• A male said the situation was unacceptable. "It's terrifying to live here, and it's even more terrifying that the city is absolutely doing nothing to protect the citizens in this neighborhood."
• Reporter: "Which is why they're taking matters into their own hands. They put up these makeshift barriers.”
• Another man: "It was a game-changer. We, you know, it made it feel much more safe there."

I’m glad they feel safer, but it’s beyond ridiculous that they felt forced into this position in the first place.

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INSOMNIA: Seattle Succumbs to Socialist Doom Loop

Seattle's Homelessness and Open-Air Drug Use Crisis Now Exploding Under Socialism

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What led to their feeling that such a bold move was the only way forward? Bullets flying seemingly every night:

Frustrated by recurring gunfire tied to Aurora Avenue’s long-running and increasingly deadly crime problems, some North Seattle residents have begun barricading neighborhood streets themselves.

Supporters call it a safety measure, though it is also raising concerns that the makeshift barricades could delay ambulances and fire crews responding to emergencies.

In recent days, neighbors near North 97th, 98th, and 102nd streets hauled in large metal planter boxes, dirt, and gravel to partially block residential roads feeding into Aurora Avenue North, one of Seattle’s busiest corridors.

The barriers are intended to stop gunmen from speeding through side streets during shootings connected to turf disputes among people involved in prostitution and human trafficking activity along Aurora.

The barriers have their critics, however. Watch this wokester in the required Seattle ponytail trying to tell one of the builders that “I just don’t know that I feel like this is the right fix.” What’s your solution, pal?

Contrast that with the footage of the shootings in the same video, which is from a KING 5 Seattle report, that regularly plague the area.

"It's not a fix for sure," says one of the builders. "It's a Band-Aid. This is Tylenol for Stage 4 cancer."

This cancer has a name: progressivism. Leftist policies have failed in Los Angeles, Minneapolis, San Francisco, and, of course, Seattle. Ponytail dude undoubtedly voted for them every single step of the way. The progressive policy in cities like these seems to be “managed decline” — and barely managed at that. People seem to be waking up to the massive failures, proven by the fact that LA Mayoral candidate Spencer Pratt

 

 has gone so viral, and Steve Hilton is leading gubernatorial polls in the Golden State.

It may just be too late for Seattle, though. It would be a long, long road back to normalcy for the Emerald City.

Good luck to these residents — at least they’re trying to take a stand.

 

Things Do Not Go Well for Dem Senator When He Shows Up at Detention Center Amid Anti-ICE Action

Most Americans are spending time with their families this weekend for Memorial Day, remembering and honoring those who gave their lives for our country. 

But some were busy doing other things. For example, there were activists at the ICE detention center in Newark, N.J., over the weekend. Democratic politicians also made an appearance. Sen. Andy Kim (D-NJ) 

 

was trying to get into the facility on Sunday. 

Kim was back on Monday. Gov. Mikie Sherrill also showed up. 

 

A Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokesperson said Kim personally called Secretary Markwayne Mullin,

 

and that he was allowed in the facility to conduct his congressional oversight responsibilities. However, the spokesperson criticized Sherrill over the appearance at the detention center. 

"Governor Sherrill’s visit to Delaney Hall is nothing more than a political stunt on Memorial Day when visitation is currently suspended due to riots outside the facility," the spokesperson told Fox News Digital. "Yesterday, approximately 125 agitators surrounded Delaney Hall Detention Facility, many carrying anti-ICE signs and Antifa flags. They formed a human chain around entrances to the facility and set up barricades, blocking all entries and exits."

 The activists were at it again on Monday. Here's one digging up large blocks to help add to their blockade of an exit from the facility. 

Here's the blockade they assembled, with all the random garbage they were able to grab. 

They were chanting, "Quit your job," and "Why are you hiding your face?" at the federal agents — even though some of the activists were wearing masks. The hypocrisy seemed to escape them. 

Kim was telling the activists to let the agents through the blockades, saying he would make sure there were no detainees in the vehicles. Here on X.

Police reportedly had to deploy pepper spray, and carted away some of the agitators. Here on X. 

And it looks like Kim may have been affected.

This was the same facility where Democrats created a scene last year. Rep. LaMonica McIver (NJ-10) was later indicted on charges related to that incident. 

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READ MORE: New: Dem Rep. LaMonica McIver Criminally Charged 

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DHS denied there were any bad conditions in the facility, 

All detainees are provided with 3 meals a day, clean water, clothing, bedding, showers, soap, and toiletries, "DHS said. 

"Illegal aliens also have access to phones to communicate with their family members and lawyers," the agency said. "Certified dieticians evaluate meals. In fact, ICE has higher detention standards than most U.S. prisons that hold actual U.S. citizens."

 

Well, Look Who Addressed That Unite the Kingdom Rally Last Week

We need to revisit this because I have to hope that our cousins across the pond are not lost, even though more and more evidence suggests they might be. The nation is suffering under Prime Minister Keir Starmer,

 

who could be on political life support as Labour suffered a heavy defeat in the local elections earlier this month. Immigration has finally come to a head, but how do you combat the narrative when there is no codified freedom of speech?

You hold rallies anyway. Tommy Robinson 

 held a Unite the Kingdom rally last week that was smeared as some right-wing hate rally. Of course, the media framed it as such (via CNN):

When some 150,000 people descended on London in September for a rally organized by Tommy Robinson – an agitator who spreads anti-Muslim bigotry and has several criminal convictions – it felt like a watershed moment in British politics.

“Something in our country changed,” Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London,

 

said at the time. “This felt different.”

And so when at least tens of thousands gathered again in the British capital on Saturday for the latest “Unite the Kingdom” march, it felt less out of the ordinary. Views that would once not have been expressed in public are becoming commonplace. Marches organized by Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, are becoming a regular outlet for them.

“Millions have got to go,” said Pete, 64, from Derbyshire, in the English midlands. He was referring to unauthorized immigrants. “They shouldn’t be in this country,” he told CNN. “They’re claiming benefits. ‘Benefit Britain’ has got to end.”

At September’s mass rally, the mood was militant. “Whether you choose violence or not, violence is coming to you,” Elon Musk told the crowd via video link. “You either fight back or die.”

Oh, please. I almost forgot who was there: Nick Shirley, the independent reporter and YouTuber who uncovered the Somali fraud network and derailed Tim Walz’s plans for a third term as governor of Minnesota.

Nick Shirley spoke powerfully today at the Unite the Kingdom rally in London.

He told the crowd:

“Your media will call you far right, and your prime minister will call you guys dangerous, but the ideas of freedom of speech aren’t dangerous. The idea that you want to know who… pic.twitter.com/CjmaeBUTwT

— Paul A. Szypula 🇺🇸 (@Bubblebathgirl) May 16, 2026

“Your media will call you far right, and your prime minister will call you guys dangerous, but the ideas of freedom of speech aren’t dangerous. The idea that you want to know who your neighbor is doesn’t make you dangerous… It means that you have common sense,” Shirley said to the attendees last week.

 He’s not wrong. Over at Public, Michael Shellenberger did a deep dive on how politicians like Starmer, the atypical globalist bureaucrat, who also infest the Conservative Party, have given rise to movements that fueled the Unite the Kingdom rally in London and elsewhere:

The United Kingdom’s globalist Conservative governments allowed net migration to rise to a record 906,000 in the year ending June 2023, more than four times pre-Brexit levels. Those same Conservatives passed a “net zero” emissions by 2050 into law in 2019, accelerated subsidies for offshore wind, and failed to tap North Sea oil and gas, even as energy bills climbed. And conservative ministers adopted World Health Organization guidance for Covid lockdowns, masking, and vaccination, and they expanded gender self-identification guidance in English schools.

German and French establishment parties enforced a cordon sanitaire or firewall against the “far-right” Alternative for Germany (AfD) and the Rassemblement National (RN) parties, denying them coalition partners and most mainstream coverage, and American voters in 2020 elected Joe Biden, who reversed Trump’s border policies and rejoined the Paris climate accord on his first day in office. Biden restored Obama-era diversity, equity, and inclusion frameworks across the federal bureaucracy and revived federal pressure on social media companies to remove disfavored speech.

But then, the reelection of Donald Trump in November 2024 dashed those hopes. Trump returned to power on promises to seal the southern border, deport illegal immigrants, end the electric vehicle mandate, withdraw from the Paris accord, and dismantle federal censorship of social media.

[…]

…the globalists are fighting back in Europe. European Commission officials in Brussels are tightening their censorial grip on the digital public square through the Digital Services Act and a “Democracy Shield” program to demand censorship of the Right ahead of upcoming elections. In Britain, Labor leadership challengers Andy Burnham and Wes Streeting have openly called for the United Kingdom to rejoin the European Union. Streeting formally launched his leadership bid in May 2026 by calling Brexit “a catastrophic mistake” and saying “Britain’s future lies with Europe, and one day back in the European Union.” And France’s Marine Le Pen lost her right to run for the 2027 presidency on March 31, 2025, when a Paris court convicted her of embezzling EU funds and immediately barred her from public office for five years.

But right-wing nationalists are not far from taking power in major European capitals.

In Britain, the right-wing Reform UK party gained more than 1,400 seats in the May 7, 2026, local elections, while Labor lost more than 1,300 seats and the Conservatives lost over 500. Ninety-seven Labor MPs last week called on Prime Minister Keir Starmer to resign. Seventy percent of British respondents told YouGov in May 2026 that Starmer was performing “poorly.”

[…]

The Atlanticist establishment has responded to nationalist victories by escalating its persecution rather than reconsidering its policies. Last December, the European Commission fined X $140 million for so-called deceptive practices and insufficient transparency. The Commission demanded that X end user anonymity and grant the Commission full access to American user data.

But that persecution is driving much of the surge in support for the populist right. Seventy-one percent of Europeans now tell pollsters that the EU should give member nations greater control of their own borders. Majorities in Germany, France, and Italy favor a large decrease in new arrivals, with roughly half of voters surveyed supporting a complete freeze and the departure of large numbers of recent migrants.

Sorry, left-wingers, but censorship will not kill us or our ideas. They should know these tactics do the opposite. 

“The more aggressively the establishment defends itself through procedural and legal means, the more support flows to the parties and candidates the obsessive globalist PMC [professional-managerial class] wants to silence,” wrote Shellenberger. 

 

U.S. Forces Launch Self-Defense Strikes Against Iran

U.S. forces have reportedly conducted self-defense strikes against Iranian mine-laying ships and missile launch sites.

Following reports of explosions in the vicinity of Bandar Abbas, Iran, Howard Altman has said that a U.S. Central Command spokesperson has told them that U.S. self-defense strikes were conducted against Iranian fast boats attempting to lay mines and missile launch sites. https://t.co/uegRx8Q66S

— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) May 25, 2026

🚨 BREAKING: The United States has carried out "SELF-DEFENSE STRIKES" in Bandar Abbas, Iran, per US Central Command

The strikes targeted missile launch strikes and fast boars attempting to lay mines, CENTCOM said pic.twitter.com/0AIHQjn6h3

— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) May 25, 2026

🚨 BREAKING: The US military has just launched "SELF DEFENSE STRIKES" in southern Iran to protect our troops from Iranian threats, CENTCOM says per Fox

Pray for the troops! 🙏🏻

"U.S. forces conducted self-defense strikes in southern Iran today to protect our troops from threats… pic.twitter.com/fzJA852V2s

— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) May 25, 2026

MORE details on US strikes vs Iranian targets today:

2 Iranian boats were caught laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz, senior US official tells me. The US military eliminated both IRGC vessels and also struck at a SAM (surface to air missile) site in Bandar Abbas that was… https://t.co/ew89rCfL5J

— Jennifer Griffin (@JenGriffinFNC) May 25, 2026

I am told the US strikes are over for now. Again these were defensive in nature not offensive and not an effort to break the ceasefire. The US military says it reacted when they saw 2 IRGC boats laying mines and then also when a SAM missile site targeted its warplanes. https://t.co/lJNPKp94kM

— Jennifer Griffin (@JenGriffinFNC) May 25, 2026

Two Iranian ships were struck in the Strait of Hormuz, which CENTCOM has considered to be eliminated. Surface-to-air missile batteries that targeted American aircraft were also reportedly destroyed. Officials were quick to announce that this was not an end to the on-going ceasefire, but merely acts of self-defense.

Explosions and fires had been observed in a number of locations across Iranian territory, including in the large port city of Bandar Abbas and the vital economic location of Kharg Island.

 

#BREAKING: Large fires on Iran’s Kharg Island.

— Insider Wire (@InsiderWire) May 25, 2026

Following reports of explosions on the Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas, Iran’s Mehr News Agency has said that the situation is normal and that the sounds heard were from the east of the city.
More to come. pic.twitter.com/VZav8Oiz6r

— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) May 25, 2026

The strikes come as the United States and Iran were on the cusp of coming to an agreement to end the three-month-long conflict that began after Operation Epic Fury,

 

Why the Woman Initially Identified as the J6 Pipe Bomber Will Remain the Subject of Intrigue

Look, a lot has happened over the past few weeks, with Operation Epic Fury being the least of it—particularly the fiasco involving the January 6 pipe bomber who evaded the FBI for years. The Blaze probably jumped the gun in its story, identifying former Capitol Police Officer Shauni Kerkhoff, 31, 

 

as a potential suspect. This has led to a lawsuit since she had an alibi, and another suspect, Brian Cole, was arrested and charged in December 2025. 

 Still, conspiracy theories and palace intrigue will likely surround Ms. Kerkhoff since she reportedly failed an FBI polygraph. She was cleared as a suspect, but in this era, that will continue to fan the flames. 

That aspect is also mentioned in The New York Times’ lengthy April piece about her ordeal, though only at the end. It will likely be dredged up, as Cole’s defense team is likely to cite that as part of their defense:

Mr. Cole, the man now charged as the pipe bomber, pleaded not guilty and awaits trial. His lawyers recently filed court documents that hinted at plans for a possible defense: that it was Ms. Kerkhoff, not Mr. Cole, who planted the bombs even though the F.B.I. had cleared her of doing so.

The filings claimed that Ms. Kerkhoff failed her polygraph test.

 (Mr. Bunnell, who represented Ms. Kerkhoff during the investigation, said that lie detector tests are a tool, not a truth machine, and pointed out that they are not admissible as evidence in court because their accuracy is unreliable.)

The same day Mr. Cole’s lawyers filed the court documents, Ms. Kerkhoff’s lawyers received an email from someone who threatened to shoot their client in the face.

Kerkhoff was home when the bombs were placed at the headquarters of the DNC and RNC before the riot. As for Cole, he’s been slapped with two more charges (via CBS News):

The man accused of planting pipe bombs outside of the Republican and Democratic National Committee headquarters on the eve of the Jan. 6 Capitol riot now faces two additional felony charges, according to a superseding indictment made public…

Brian Cole Jr. was arrested and charged in December with transporting and planting the two IEDs at the DNC and RNC headquarters. The new indictment adds charges of attempting to use weapons of mass destruction and committing an act of terrorism while armed.

The bombs did not detonate, but the FBI has said they were viable. The case had gone cold for years, and Trump administration officials described solving it as a top priority.

Cole pleaded not guilty to the initial charges against him but has not been arraigned on the new indictment. In January, Cole was ordered to be detained in jail in the run-up to his criminal trial. 

That indictment was filed on Tax Day. 

 

Mexican President Sheinbaum: Mexico will host Iran's nat'l soccer team during 2026 FIFA World Cup

 

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum announced that Mexico has agreed to host Iran’s national soccer team during the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup, after the United States refused to accommodate the squad for overnight stays for obvious national security reasons pertaining to the ongoing conflict.

Speaking during her daily press conference, Sheinbaum revealed that football’s global governing body, FIFA, directly approached the Mexican government to secure lodging and training facilities for the Iranian team once Washington made its restrictions clear.

According to surfacing reports, the logistical shakeup has even prompted the Iranian Football Federation to abandon its original plans to establish a World Cup base camp in Tucson, Arizona.

Instead, federation president Mehdi Taj announced that the team will relocate its headquarters to the Mexican border city of Tijuana, situated in Baja California along the Pacific coast. According to Iranian soccer officials, the shift to Tijuana not only circumvents the overnight visa denials imposed by the U.S., but it also allows the team to fly directly into Mexico via Iran Air.

 

Despite the diplomatic hurdle, Taj noted that Tijuana offers an alternative, keeping the squad just a 55-minute flight away from their opening match venues in Los Angeles. Geopolitical tensions between Washington and Tehran have cast a long shadow over the expanded 48-team tournament, which is being co-hosted by the United States, Mexico, and Canada from June 11^th to July 19^th.

While the White House and the U.S. State Department did not immediately comment on the lodging ban, Sheinbaum emphasized that Mexico maintains a “neutral” stance and views the situation purely through the lens of “international hospitality.” 

 She reiterated to reporters that Mexico has no political or legal basis to deny the sports delegation entry, describing the agreement as a seamless solution coordinated in tandem with FIFA.

 

“We have no reason to deny the possibility of them staying in Mexico,” Sheinbaum said.

Iran is scheduled to make its World Cup debut on June 15^th against New Zealand in Los Angeles, followed by a June 21^st match against Belgium in the same city, before traveling further north to face Egypt in Seattle on June 26^th. Under the current arrangement, the players and technical staff will commute from Tijuana into the United States strictly for their matches and mandated pre-game sessions, returning to Mexican soil immediately afterward.

FIFA emphasized that it has endorsed the cross-border operational plan to ensure the Iranian team can compete fully without violating the parameters established by U.S. immigration authorities.

Trump’s Abraham Accords offer exposes Iran and Qatar’s bad faith

President Donald Trump’s call for Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Iran to sign the Abraham Accords is a bold move. It sounds hopeful and even brave. But hope needs a plan, and a plan needs facts. Two of the three countries he named are active sponsors of groups that openly seek Israel’s destruction. Asking them to sign a peace deal is not just optimistic; it might be a test to see who really wants peace and who only pretends to.

 A risky invitation: Can Iran and Qatar be trusted?

Asking Iran and Qatar to join the Abraham Accords is like inviting arsonists to a campfire safety meeting. Iran backs Hezbollah and other militant groups and has long been a foe of the United States and Israel. Qatar hosts and bankrolls factions linked to Hamas. That doesn’t make them neighbors ready for handshakes and song. It makes them players with a long record of funding violence and spreading influence where it suits them.

What the Accords were meant to do

The Abraham Accords were supposed to change the map of the Middle East. They were meant to turn old grudges into new trade deals and security pacts. That work is valuable. But success requires partners who want to build, not burn. If a country’s leadership funds terror groups, buys influence in foreign universities, or quietly supports anti-Israel campaigns, a peace treaty is only paper—easy to sign, easy to tear up.

Use the offer as a litmus test, not a surrender

If President Trump really wants more countries to join the accords, he should make the offer a smart test. Let nations show their cards. Will they cut off funding for terror? Will they stop supporting proxies that rain rockets on civilians and undermine regional stability? If the answer is no, then the United States should treat them as adversaries, not partners. That means keeping pressure on regimes that fund extremists and protecting American forces and allies.

We should cheer for peace—and we must push for it—but not at the cost of common sense. The Accords can be a tool to sort friends from foes. If some countries want peace, great. If others want to keep funding terror while smiling in public, we should call them out and act accordingly. In the end, peace is worth pursuing, but only with partners who actually want to make peace.

 

Higbie Challenges Dems: What Does Their "Perfect Country" Look Like?

Carl Higbie’s recent provocation — asking what Democrats imagine as their “perfect country” — landed like a cold bucket of reality for millions of Americans tired of lectures from elites who live in gated bubbles. Higbie, now the host of a primetime show on Newsmax, made the point bluntly: too many on the left are pushing a vision of America that substitutes government control for individual responsibility.

Look at the policy playbook most prominent Democrats favor and you see the outline of that “perfect country”: massive tax hikes on the wealthy, expanded entitlement programs, and a bigger, more intrusive federal state. Washington’s appetite for higher rates on capital gains and steeper top income taxes has been on the table for years as a way to fund this transformation, and conservatives rightly warn that those proposals punish success and choke economic growth.

Climate crusades like the Green New Deal are another example of utopian thinking dressed up as policy, calling for sweeping economic re-engineering while promising outcomes no bureaucracy can reliably deliver. Proponents tout it as moral and necessary, but the playbook reads like a wish list for centralized planning and industrial policy that will raise costs and limit choice for ordinary Americans.

On education and economic redistribution, leading Democrats have floated student debt cancellation and free public college plans that sound compassionate until you do the math and ask who pays the bill. These proposals shift trillions of dollars of responsibility onto taxpayers, eroding fairness for people who worked and sacrificed to pay for their kids’ educations and rewarding borrowing over prudence.

Hardworking Americans deserve a patriot’s answer: we will not trade liberty for government guarantees, nor will we accept a version of the country that treats citizens as mere units to be managed by technocrats. Conservatives believe in opportunity, not entitlement; in rule of law, not rule by commissars; and in flourishing communities bound by faith, family, and freedom rather than by the dictates of distant bureaucrats.

 This isn’t idle partisan sniping — it’s a sober warning about what happens when a ruling class pursues its image of perfection at the expense of ordinary lives. Big-government schemes have real costs: higher taxes, more debt, and incentives that warp behavior and punish productivity, and the people who bear the brunt are the middle class and the next generation.

I tried to track down a full transcript of the specific Newsmax segment Higbie referenced, but could not find the exact clip or transcript hosted on Newsmax’s public pages or elsewhere; what is clear from his platform is that Higbie is using his Newsmax show to press this argument and to challenge the left’s vision for America. Conservatives should keep answering that challenge with plain talk and concrete alternatives that defend liberty, common sense, and the dignity of work.