DOJ Investigating Allegations Around UAW President Shawn Fain

The Department of Justice is probing allegations that United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain took actions to improperly benefit his fiancée and retaliated against another senior union member who objected to the actions, according to internal union documents reviewed by Reuters.

The lead counsel for the federal watchdog appointed to oversee union activities informed Fain and the ‌senior union member, Rich Boyer,

 

 last month that the DOJ had initiated a grand jury investigation into matters detailed in ​the monitor's reports, including those involving Fain and his fiancée.

The monitor's office, led by New York attorney Neil Barofsky, issues periodic reports about the union's inner workings. Fain, who has denied the monitor's findings and ⁠called the allegations outlined by the monitor "bogus," is campaigning for a second four-year term as the leader of the union, and ​an election is scheduled for later this year.

 

Boyer is one of a handful of candidates opposing Fain.

The monitor issued a report ⁠last month finding that Fain had retaliated against Boyer and improperly used his authority, including in ways that would benefit his fiancée, but deferred a decision on disciplinary action pending further review without citing the federal probe.

"We are not publishing the details of our factual findings on this issue at this time out of ‌deference to a Grand Jury investigation DOJ has initiated into that issue," the monitor's lead counsel wrote in a ​June 18 email reviewed ‌by Reuters. "We do not intend to publicly disclose the existence of that investigation at this time," he continued.

Bloomberg earlier reported that the DOJ was probing allegations around Fain. It is unclear how ‌the investigation affects Fain's candidacy. The UAW declined to comment. A lawyer representing the union said it is not the subject of a grand jury investigation. Boyer and his attorney didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.

In a statement responding to the DOJ ⁠investigation, Fain said that Boyer had "fed the monitor false allegations," ‌and that the monitor himself had a "political grudge ⁠against me because the UAW took an anti-war stance about what was happening in Gaza."

The union president last month said that Barofsky's reports were politically motivated, citing ⁠what he ⁠said was a heated and highly personal disagreement with the monitor in 2024 regarding a call by the union's executive board for a ceasefire in Gaza.

"What the Monitor is doing is ‌wrong, it's unfair to the UAW and to you as members, and my lawyers are looking at any and all legal options I can pursue to make it stop," Fain said in a statement, adding that he retained a law firm to fight the allegations.

The Department of ‌Justice didn't immediately ​respond to a request for comment.

The UAW ‌has been under federal oversight since a 2020 settlement to resolve a corruption scandal. The offense involved more than a dozen union officials, some of whom pleaded guilty to embezzling millions of dollars for their personal benefit, using the funds ​to purchase expensive liquor and cigars and to pay for golfing outings and related equipment, and expensive hotel stays. Two former union presidents were sentenced to prison time. 

 

Israeli Ambassador Drops the Boom on Ro Khanna Over His 'Detention' Story

We reported on the story that Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna (CA-17) told of being "detained" in the West Bank. 

As we noted, the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) disputed Khanna's claim that they were involved in any "detention" of Khanna's group, and said they helped resolve the situation when they arrived. The Israeli police also said that this was a "closed military zone" (CMZ) area where civilians weren't allowed. 

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READ MORE: After Imploding on Platner, Ro Khanna Claims He Was 'Detained' by Israeli Settlers in West Bank

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Now the Israeli Ambassador to the U.S., Michael Leiter, has weighed in and leveled Rep. Khanna. 

Leiter explained how they reached out to Khanna when they found out he was coming, offering to have him meet with survivors of the October 7 attack, as well as see the issues Israel had to deal with at the borders. Leiter said Khanna blew them off. "He ignored that, and he decided to coordinate his trip, not with Israel, but with Palestinian activists," Leiter declared. Maybe this wouldn't have happened had he coordinated with the Israeli government, Leiter asserted. 

Khanna has claimed they did alert the government. Leiter said all they did was ask a question about visas, and that they did not coordinate anything. 

Leiter really laid Khanna out on the timing of this story. 

"You know to have this incident on Wednesday and wait to release it until Saturday. Maybe this had more something to do with his support of Graham Platner beforehand, and the difficulties he had with that? Trying to shift the focus to something else, perhaps? I'm asking a question."  

Leiter also took a jab at Khanna, seeming to use this as a way to "declare a presidential run." That made even Margaret Brennan laugh. But that's what we have here, with all the media and Khanna making sure to talk about 2028. 

It doesn't sound like Leiter or Israel is very worried about the "threat" Khanna made to Israel. Khanna opined that "it wasn't a good idea to detain long-shot presidential candidates,” and “not how you’re going to build good will with the next American president, whoever that is.” Doesn't look like that cowed Leiter in the slightest. 

But Khanna decided to throw in a response to Leiter and that clip, when he just should have stopped digging. 

If a US Congressman & American citizens were detained illegally by settlers & the military of any other nation, the Ambassador would beg the American people for forgiveness and take action against the perpetrators. The height of arrogance.

If what Leiter is saying is true and you're wandering around in a restricted area without having alerted anyone, especially in the wake of October 7th, yeah, that's not a good thing. And the IDF is claiming they actually resolved the situation, yet Khanna is blaming them. 

No, "the height of arrogance" was trying to palm off Platner on us. And calling yourself a "longshot presidential candidate." And comparing yourself to Teddy Roosevelt. 

 

You Can Run but You Just Die Tired. Secretive Israeli Unit Kills Over 2,500 October 7 Hamas Terrorists

In the aftermath of the 1972 Munich Olympics massacre that left 11 Israeli coaches and athletes dead at the hands of Black September terrorists (bonus question: the Palestinians and which other nation were involved in "Black September?"), Israeli Prime Minister unleashed Operation Spring of Youth, a raid on Palestine Liberation Organization camps in Lebanon that killed over 50 terrorists. She also went after the Munich massacre organizers. Operation Wrath of God unleashed Mossad hit squads on Black September terrorists cowering in Europe, under the illusion they were safe there. This operation continued until its final hit on February 14, 1988, in Cyprus. Between 9 and 11 key Munich planners and facilitators were ultimately killed, with slop-over from the targeted hits bringing the score to around 20. The operation was marred by the Lillehammer Affair where the wrong guy was killed, but as Napoleon said, you can't make an omelet without whacking Arabs...I mean breaking eggs.

If you're on social media, you've been seeing a string of announcements like this appear.

The common thread is these are terrorists who were involved in the October 7 jihadi rampage and who thought they'd evaded the consequences of their barbarism.

According to Israeli media, Israel has killed no fewer than 2,561 of the around 3,000 terrorists who crossed from Gaza into Israel on October 7. About 1,000 of these were killed in traditional combat with the IDF. The remainder got their one-way trip to Hell courtesy of a secretive unit called Nili. Nili was formed shortly after the October 7 attack and given the mission of tracking down every single terrorist who invaded Israel on October 7. The name Nili is an acronym for a biblical phrase (1 Samuel 15:29) that translates as “the Eternal One of Israel will not lie.” It is composed of elements of Shin Bet, Israel's internal security and counterintelligence service, which operates directly under the Prime Minister, and the Israel Defense Forces. 

According to reports, the unit uses facial recognition software to identify terrorists captured on film inside Israel. It also uses electronic surveillance and, probably the most important element: prisoner interrogations. Hamas (and Hezbollah) are not drawn from a warrior culture. They turn on each other at the first sliver of self-interest. That's why Israeli intelligence has deeply penetrated its enemies. To better understand this, consider the following from one of war correspondent Michael Yon's dispatches from Mosul in 2005, while embedded with a unit commanded by now-retired, former CENTCOM commander General Michael Kurilla.

Moving on hot intelligence, Deuce Four conducted nine simultaneous raids on May 19th. One insurgent in particular was believed to know the locations of others. If the Deuce Four had gone in and just shot the man, he would be dead and useless, but instead LTC Kurilla asked him about the locations of two predominant terrorists. The insurgent answered, “For me to give the locations of these two men would be treason. However, in Iraq we have a saying: if death comes to greet you at your door, introduce him to your brother.” The soldiers loaded the Strykers and headed to that location. 

The hunt continues. Several hundred of the rabid beasts who killed and raped with glee on October 7 and the following days and who held innocent people hostage still roam the earth. And as long as they do. they'll be looking over their shoulder and ignoring their pager.

 

Mitch McConnell Reveals What Caused His Extended Hospital Stay

Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has been missing for weeks. We know he’s dealing with health issues, having been hospitalized since June. The elder Kentucky Republican, at his age and with no updates on his condition, has been the subject of much speculation on social media. Well, he emerged from the bunker on Sunday, saying his hospital stay was due to a fall and that he later contracted pneumonia. He is set to return to the Senate, but didn’t provide a date in a lengthy statement on Twitter:

“To my fellow Kentuckians – 

“When you elected me to a seventh term and made me our Commonwealth’s longest serving Senator, you did so trusting that I’d keep showing up to fight for you every day. And over the past several weeks, Elaine and I have appreciated both your well wishes and your honest questions about what was keeping me away from the Senate.

“You all know how folks of my generation often hesitate to share the vulnerability that comes with growing older. Even in the public eye, I feel that same instinct – I can’t help it.

“But at the same time, I’ve had more than my share of experience with physical vulnerabilities. Surviving childhood polio meant spending my entire life with mobility challenges. They haven’t exactly gotten easier to manage with age. And last month, I took a fall which landed me in the hospital.

“My doctors have confirmed that I didn’t break any bones or suffer a concussion. I didn’t have a heart attack or a stroke. I don’t have any tumors or hemorrhages. But I was briefly unconscious and was taken to the hospital. While receiving excellent care over the past several weeks, I’ve also had to deal with a mild case of pneumonia.

“I can assure you that I’ve been a good patient. At my age, I tend to do what my doctors tell me to do. I’ve submitted to every test they can think of to help figure out what caused this incident. And I’m continuing to do everything they ask to speed my recovery. In fact, with signs of continued progress, I’ve been able to move from hospital care to a rehabilitation center where I’ll keep regaining my strength.

“As much as it frustrates me, this process takes time. And on the advice of my doctors, I won’t be able to return to the Senate floor to vote quite yet. But rest assured that, in the meantime, I’m not taking a break from the Senate business that matters to you. I’ve been working closely with my legislative staff on current issues, and with my Kentucky team who help me provide timely constituent services across our Commonwealth. I’ve also been keeping in touch with my Senate colleagues on the appropriations process, midterm politics, and everything in between.

“You’re right to expect your representatives to work hard for you. And part of my decision to retire at the end of my term this coming January was being honest about the demands of Senate work. But I still have unfinished business to complete on your behalf, and I have every intention of finishing the job you elected me to do.

“I’ll keep working hard to get back on the Senate floor as soon as possible. And I’ll keep you posted on the progress of my recovery. Until then, I’m so grateful for your prayers and well wishes.”

Look, people will say what they want here, but let’s be honest: Mitch hasn’t been healthy for quite some time, even before his recent fall. He’s also frozen at the podium several times. 

 

Maine Democrats Promise 'Fair' and 'Inclusive' Process to Replace Platner After Cutting Voters Out

Maine Democrats, who are undertaking an effort to unilaterally handpick a U.S. Senate candidate without input from their voters, claim that they will make the process to replace scandal-plagued nominee Graham Platner “fair, transparent, and inclusive.”

Platner’s early withdrawal from one of the most high-profile races of the cycle means that Maine Democrat party officials are able to maneuver their way into choosing their favored candidate by July 27. The odd election regulation has been the talk of national politics since Platner soundly secured the Democrat nomination following the party primary weeks ago, signaling that ideas of a replacement has likely been in the works long before Platner officially stepped down.

Despite their insistence of the process being “fair” and “inclusive,” voters will have absolutely no ability to influence their party’s decision for the race’s nominee. The move is a replay of Democrats’ 2024 presidential marionetting that saw then-nominee President Joe Biden step aside after a disastrous campaign season to elevate Vice President Kamala Harris to the top of the ticket by high-level party officials.

Whoever Democrats crown as the new nominee for the U.S. Senate race in Maine will take on long-time moderate Republican Sen. Susan Collins for control of the seat during November’s midterm elections.

 

Report: N.Y. GOP gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman says Manhattan ‘looks like a third-world country’

 

 

New York GOP gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman referred to Manhattan as a “third-world country” and a “disaster” when he appeared on 77 WABC Radio’s “Cats Roundtable.”

“The place is just a disaster,” Blakeman (R-N.Y.) told host John Catsimatidis on Sunday. “I talked to store owners in Manhattan, and they are very, very upset about … homeless people all over the place. Litter all over our streets. It just looks like a third-world country.”

The gubernatorial candidate’s comments come amid significant criticism of Mayor Zohran Mamdani (D-N.Y.) for the city’s handling of the massive homeless encampments accumulating on streets immediately outside the Intrepid Museum in Manhattan, according to the report.

Blakeman, who is currently serving as the elected Nassau County executive, also condemned Mamdani for cancelling the planned hiring of hundreds of New York City police officers in the upcoming city budget, according to a separate report from the New York Post.

“You saw the multiple shootings in New York City just over (the 4th of July) weekend,” Blakeman said.

“It’s like gunfights from the Wild West,” he added. “When you have a mayor that has a budget larger than the State of Florida, and he couldn’t find money to hire cops and not fill vacancies of all the people who retired over the last year — you know that his heart is not into protecting our communities.”

Blakeman also criticized Governor Kathy Hochul (D-N.Y.), claiming that the Big Apple ranks last in economic outlook under her leadership and asserting that “common sense” Democrats want him to win the upcoming election.

 Meanwhile, Manhattan Borough President Brad Hoylman-Sigal bashed Blakeman for the harsh claims, saying they were completely false.

“What’s he bloviating on about? This is the fun summer of Manhattan!” Hoylman-Sigal proclaimed.

“The Knicks! The World Cup! America 250! Taylor and Travis! Plus, with crime at all-time lows in Manhattan, it’s safe enough even for precious-minded suburbanites like Bruce to enjoy all that’s happening here,” he added.

 The sharp exchange highlights the deep political divide between city leaders and suburban officials over New York’s safety and economy.

After Hoylman-Sigal criticized the remarks, Blakeman stood by his statements, citing the city’s prominent homelessness issues as a core reason for his stance.

Lindsey Graham's Legacy: A True Patriot and Conservative Champion

The sudden passing of Senator Lindsey Graham on the evening of July 11, 2026 shocked conservatives across the country and left a void in the Senate that will not be easily filled. Graham’s office called his death “brief and sudden,” and the outpouring of tributes underscored the respect he commanded from allies and rivals alike. For millions of Americans who watched him fight for a strong military and a robust America-first foreign policy, this is a personal loss as much as a political one.

On Newsmax’s Sunday Agenda, Ambassador Mike Huckabee — now serving in Jerusalem — captured the mood perfectly when he said he was “going to miss Lindsey’s outrageous humor,” a line that felt like both a fond personal memory and a recognition of what Graham brought to the country. Huckabee, speaking from the perspective of a proud conservative and friend, reminded viewers that Graham’s wit never softened his willingness to take hard stands when America’s interests were on the line. In a moment when the left will rush to rewrite legacies, Huckabee’s simple, human tribute cut through the noise and honored a man who loved his country.

Make no mistake: Lindsey Graham was a fighter for the West and for free nations abroad, not a Washington squish. He traveled to the frontlines of conflict, argued for sanctions and strength, and even visited Kyiv days before his death to press for tougher measures against Russian aggression — actions that earned him the ire of the establishment press and the gratitude of patriots who understand the stakes. Conservatives will remember him as a senator who backed the men and women in uniform and refused to let America shrink from its responsibilities in a dangerous world.

President Trump’s early public remembrance and the swift condolences from governors and lawmakers reflected how central Graham was to the Republican coalition, especially the national-security wing of the party. Now is not the time for partisan point-scoring or cheap shots from the media; it is the time to honor service, learn from conviction, and carry forward the policies that kept America secure. Those who loved this country will continue Lindsey’s fight rather than let his voice be silenced by the predictable left-wing chorus.

Ambassador Huckabee’s presence in Jerusalem and his heartfelt words show the depth of the ties Lindsey championed between the United States and Israel — ties based on shared values, shared interests, and a stubborn insistence that America stand with its friends. Huckabee, who has made his role in Israel a point of pride for evangelicals and patriots alike, spoke not just as a diplomat but as a conservative who understands that character and humor matter in public life. His tribute was a reminder that conservatism is about loyalty: loyalty to friends, to allies, and to the principles that make this nation strong.

Grief is real, but so is resolve. Conservatives should take Lindsey Graham’s passing as a call to action: defend the nation he loved, uphold the military he championed, and refuse to surrender our foreign-policy backbone to the whim of isolationists and appeasers. We should laugh when appropriate, mourn when necessary, and, above all, keep fighting for an America that is free, strong, and unbowed — the America Lindsey believed in and served until the end.

 

Chaos Erupts in North Charleston as Law and Order Breakdown Shocks Nation

The Fourth of July should have been a night of family, faith, and fireworks — instead it turned into a test of whether our cities will defend law and order. Video out of North Charleston shows officers trying to break up a permitted block party as gunfire and chaos erupted, and a young female officer was swarmed and badly assaulted while bystanders recorded instead of helping. This is the dangerous breakdown of public safety that conservatives have warned about for years.

Police say they responded to reports of fireworks and multiple shots fired before the scene devolved into a mob, with officers finding firearms and even a makeshift spear amid the crowd. Authorities recovered several guns — police allege two were automatic — and arrested six people so far, including four juveniles, on charges ranging from assault by mob to possession of a machine gun. This wasn’t a spontaneous scuffle; it was organized lawlessness on a scale that should terrify any parent.

The footage is damning: one officer is tackled to the ground, held, and pummeled while others struggle to pull the attackers off. Two female officers suffered injuries and were able to return to duty, officials said, but the physical and moral assault on our sworn protectors is the real story. Local authorities have already named adult suspects — including a 19-year-old charged with machine-gun possession and an 18-year-old charged with assault on police — and more arrests are promised as bodycam footage is reviewed.

 

Newly released 911 calls paint the scene even darker: neighbors pleaded for help, warning dispatchers of armed teens and a “full-out war” as shots rang out. That kind of raw panic in American neighborhoods is the predictable result when politicians shrug at crime and prosecutors treat offenders like victims. The people calling 911 were not exaggerating; they were begging for the one thing that keeps civilization from collapsing — a government that enforces the law.

What happened in North Charleston is not an isolated spectacle to be explained away by excuses or systemic talking points. Young people who assault police and bring military-grade weapons to civic celebrations must be prosecuted, and parents and community leaders who look the other way should be held to account. Conservatives believe in justice, personal responsibility, and consequences — not coddling criminals because they fit some narrative.

America is not a place where citizens should fear celebrating a national holiday or where officers should be hunted for doing their jobs. The answer is simple: restore order, support law enforcement, and stop romanticizing chaos. If city leaders and prosecutors want safe neighborhoods, they will stop treating arrests like inconveniences and start enforcing the law the way hardworking Americans deserve.

 

CartoonDems

 

Barbara Ruling Exposes Deep Originalist Rift on High Court

The Supreme Court's 6-3 decision in Trump v. Barbara struck down President Donald Trump's executive order ending birthright citizenship. But a closer read of the 194-page opinion shows the court's self-identified originalists sharply divided over what the 14th Amendment's framers actually meant, with only Justice Amy Coney Barrett joining Chief Justice John Roberts on the constitutional rationale and Justice Brett Kavanaugh voting to void the order on statutory grounds alone.

Roberts, writing for a five-justice bloc that included Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, Barrett, and Ketanji Brown Jackson, traced an unbroken line from English common law through the antebellum era to the Reconstruction Congress, concluding that the Citizenship Clause "incorporated the common law and granted citizenship to nearly all children born in the United States."

The majority held that children born to parents unlawfully or temporarily in the country are "subject to the jurisdiction" of the United States and thus citizens at birth.

Kavanaugh concurred in the judgment but departed from the constitutional reasoning, basing his vote on 8 U.S.C. Section 1401(a), the Immigration and Nationality Act provision that mirrors the Citizenship Clause.

He wrote that Trump's order "does not violate the Fourteenth Amendment" but does contravene federal statute and suggested Congress could amend the law to establish new exceptions.

The principal dissent, authored by Justice Clarence Thomas and joined by Justice Neil Gorsuch, ran 91 pages and called the majority's account "not historically accurate."

Thomas argued the 14th Amendment's framers meant to secure citizenship for the freed slaves, not for children of parents merely sojourning in the country, and said the ruling "adds to the sad history" of an amendment he views as repurposed beyond what its Reconstruction-era authors intended.

Justice Samuel Alito, in a separate 39-page dissent, called the ruling a "mistake" that "preserves a powerful incentive to enter or remain in this country illegally."

Gorsuch added a three-page solo dissent questioning the majority's reliance on the 1898 Wong Kim Ark precedent, though he acknowledged doubt that the executive order could lawfully reach children of long-settled undocumented parents.

The split leaves the constitutional holding resting on five votes rather than six, a distinction Trump seized on when he said on Truth Social that Congress could "make it up" through legislation without a constitutional amendment.

Kavanaugh's opinion supplies some support for that view; the majority's does not.

Any statutory rewrite would still face the five justices who ruled the Constitution itself compels birthright citizenship for nearly all children born on U.S. soil.

Executive Order 14160, signed Jan. 20, 2025, directed federal agencies to withhold citizenship documentation from certain children of noncitizen parents.

The Migration Policy Institute estimated that roughly 255,000 children born each year stood to lose recognized citizenship had the order taken effect.

Jim Thomas ✉

Jim Thomas is a writer based in Indiana. He holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science, a law degree from U.I.C. Law School, and has practiced law for more than 20 years.

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