Vance Will Campaign at the Ohio Steel Plant Where His Grandfather Once Worked

Vice President JD Vance will return to his hometown Friday to campaign for Republican candidates at the same steel plant where his grandfather used to work.

Vance is set to speak at the Cleveland-Cliffs Middletown Works facility, which was known as Armco Steel when his grandfather James Vance worked there for nearly 40 years.

 

Vance has highlighted his Rust Belt rootswhile trying to boost GOP candidates ahead of the November midterm elections and to promote the Trump administration's economic policies and efforts to try to expand U.S. manufacturing.

The Middleton event comes as he's expected to ramp up his travel schedule with more public events and fundraisers, according to a person familiar with the plans who was not authorized to speak publicly and discussed it on condition of anonymity.

In a radio interview Thursday on the "Clay Travis & Buck Sexton Show," Vance said Friday's stop will be "personally very meaningful" because of his family connection. He said it was "an amazing opportunity for me to go talk about, frankly, plants like this wouldn't exist were it not for some of the Trump administration's economic policies."

Vance, who will be joined by Energy Secretary Chris Wright, said he will also use the visit to stop by some Cincinnati chili restaurants.

In his bestselling memoir "Hillbilly Elegy," Vance described the steel plant as an economic savior for his family that brought his grandparents from Kentucky's hills into the American middle class. He described how his grandfather, known to his grandchildren as Papaw, would boast when he saw an old Ford or Chevy that its steel was made by his company.

His grandson's election as vice president of the United States spurred pride in the Midwestern city, though Vance has faced some pushback to his portrayal of it in the book.

 

He said kids "derisively called it 'Middletucky'" when he was a child because it had so many transplants like his family. He said they brought problems with them from Kentucky such as drug addiction, "Mountain Dew mouth," and problematic fathers.

In the 2024 election, Trump and Vance won about 62% of the vote in the city's precincts. His mother, Beverly Aikins, and his sister still live in Middletown.

Ohio has lost its political bellwether status and turned red during the Trump era, but Democrats see a chance to win both the governor's office and a U.S. Senate seat from Republican hands this year as anti-Trump sentiment buoys their party.

Republican Sen. Jon Husted, who was appointed to replace Vance in the Senate, is trying to hold on to his seat against a challenge from former Sen. Sherrod Brown, a longtime Ohio politician with a pro-working class message who lost his reelection bid to Republican Bernie Moreno two years ago.

Brown has capitalized on public opposition to data centers in the campaign and aired ads calling Husted the "face of data centers in Ohio." The National Republican Senatorial Committee, the GOP's Senate campaign arm, warned in a memo this week that backlash to the centers has left Husted vulnerable.

Vivek Ramaswamy, a Vance ally, is the party's nominee for governor in a race against Democrat Amy Acton. Democrats have not won the Ohio governor's office in two decades.

Vance, whose family still keeps a home in Cincinnati where they sometimes spend weekends, is making his first public visit since his fourth child was born in July.

As part of his plans for ramping up his travel schedule, his office announced a trip Monday to Brewer, Maine, where former Republican Gov. Paul LePage is running against Democrat Matt Dunlap, the state auditor, in a competitive House district.

 

NYTimes Loses Defamation Case for First Time in Over 50 Years, Must Pay Slimed B'ball Player $9M+

Defamation lawsuits: they’re every journalist’s nightmare. You either intentionally or unintentionally misrepresent the facts, causing your company to fork over millions of dollars, and all of a sudden you are greeted with a lot of silence around the water cooler. Or maybe you're looking for a new job.

As a strong First Amendment advocate, I am always cautious about punishing news outlets or individuals for expressing their opinions. That being said, I have exactly zero sympathy for the New York Times, which just lost its first defamation case in over half a century and has to pay a maligned college basketball player close to 10 million bucks.

They have been so slanted and so biased for so long now that it’s a wonder this hasn’t happened before.

So many of their stories rely on “unnamed sources” and “people close to the situation.” That came back to bite them in the posterior this time around:

The New York Times was defeated in a defamation lawsuit Thursday brought by a former college basketball player and ordered to pay millions in damages.

An Alabama jury ruled the Times defamed Kai Spears, then an 18-year-old freshman walk-on basketball player for the University of Alabama's Crimson Tide, who was swept up in a 2023 report linking him to a fatal shooting.

After a nine-day trial, the eight-person jury determined that Spears was owed $9.25 million in damages.

The story was great — but it wasn’t true:

An Alabama jury just ordered The New York Times to pay $9.25 million to former University of Alabama basketball player Kai Spears after the paper falsely identified him as being at the scene of a fatal shooting.

Spears was an 18-year-old freshman walk-on when a 2023 Times report linked him to a January 2023 shooting that killed 23-year-old Jamea Harris. The reporter relied on a single anonymous source. The Times corrected the story months later — after Spears filed his defamation lawsuit.

The paper hadn't lost a defamation case brought in the United States over one of its articles in more than 50 years.

They corrected it after Spears filed his defamation lawsuit. But hey, everybody makes mistakes, right? Just own up to it right away and apologize. That’s not how the Slimes rolls, though, and now they're on the hook for almost 10 mil. Sorry not sorry.

As a Duke graduate (don’t hate me; it was awesome back in the day), I watched with increasing alarm as I read the breathless reporting in 2006 about the school’s racist lacrosse team raping an exotic dancer at a party. After I recovered from my shock, I thought to myself, something about this smells. As the media frothed at the mouth and obsessed about race, class, and privilege, Duke suspended the team and canceled the entire season.

Turns out, the woman was a murderous psycho, the entire story was bogus, and the players were innocent. Watch this flashback from 2007, and hint: it's not Bill O'Reilly the post is referring to; it's someone who's a key player in the Trump administration today:

White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy Stephen Miller showed in the above clip that he's always been ahead of the curve. 

The vindication for the players came after almost a full year, however, a year in which the media and the university's own professors relentlessly raked them over the coals for many agonizing months.

It’s satisfying seeing the left-wing rag that is the Bible for so many progressives facing accountability. However, it doesn’t fix the Glaring Media Hypocrisy Story of the Modern Age: the Grey Lady also took home a Pulitzer in 2018 for its exhaustive, wall-to-wall coverage of the Trump Russia collusion story.

The only problem? The whole thing was a Deep State hoax, and the Times pushed it as hard as anyone. My recommendation: pay the $10 million to the young basketball player you defamed, then return that fraudulent Pulitzer. 

Until then, you will remain in the eyes of so many as exactly what you so often are: “fake news.”

 

Which Way, American Man? The UK's Guide for Asylum Seekers Shows How Far Gone We Are

The horrific revelation about the decades-long enslavement and sex trafficking of at least 250,000 British girls at the hands of Pakistani Muslim rape gangs has become an open wound for the United Kingdom. This is a country that welcomed unchecked immigration, and this is just one of many festering wounds that the UK is dealing with. The fallout, such as former Prime Minister Keir Starmer being shown the door, and the efforts to course-correct from these, are not a pretty sight. Part of that course correction is the British government's creation of a 9-page guide for asylum seekers that gives instructions on public behavior and how to treat women. 

This is reflective of how much the UK, and Western society for that matter, is circling the drain. 

"Understanding Behaviours and Expectations in the UK: A Guide for Asylum Seekers" opens with this directive:

You are in the United Kingdom (UK) because you are seeking asylum.

We understand that coming to a new country can be diffi cult, and that laws and customs here may be different from your home country.

In the UK, there are laws that protect everyone’s safety, dignity and rights. It is important that you understand them, because not following UK law can have serious consequences. You could get in trouble with the police, lose your asylum support, or it could affect your asylum claim.

This booklet will help you understand what is expected of you when living in the UK.

These rules and expectations are not just for people seeking asylum, they apply to everyone living here.

If only they had led with this years ago, before entire communities and lives were destroyed. Much of the guide focuses on the concept of gender equality and treatment of the opposite sex. That would be women, who have suffered the most at the hands of Britain's failed social experiment.  

 

Gender equality

In the UK, men and women have equal rights. This is an important part of UK culture and is protected by law.

Women can:

• work and earn their own money
• study and go to school or university
• travel freely
• choose who they marry, or choose not to marry
• make their own decisions about their lives
• Women do not need permission from a husband, father, brother or any other man to do any of these things.

Men and women are treated equally by the law, by employers, by schools and by services like hospitals and the police. It is against the law to treat someone unfairly because of their gender.

Here's another concept that should not be novel. Consent is required when interacting with women sexually. 

Sex and consent

Consent means both people freely agree to sex or sexual contact. In the UK, the law is clear and strict: both people must agree to sex or sexual contact of any kind. This means:

• both people must say yes freely, without threat or pressure
• someone can change their mind at any time, even if they said yes before
• if someone is asleep, drunk, or unable to respond, they cannot consent

Consent is needed in every situation. This means even if you are married or in a relationship with someone, they must consent to sex every time.

If you have sex with someone without their consent, this is called rape. Rape is a serious crime in the UK. You could go to prison, lose your support and accommodation, and it will affect your asylum claim.

Under each instructional section is a gray box which lets the asylum seeker know what is expected of him.

What is expected of you

You are expected to:

• always make sure the other person freely and clearly agrees to sex or sexual contact
• never use threat, force or pressure to make someone have sex
• never try to have sex with someone who is asleep, drunk, or unable to consent clearly
• stop if they say no or change their mind

While this effort by the UK government meets the requirement of doing something to address the cultural and interpersonal disregard and disconnect exhibited by prior hordes of asylees, it does not address the desperate need for assimilation and inculturation. No matter how much some places in the Western world have rejected the Christian ethos, the instructions, laws, and diktats the Western mind takes for granted are all rooted in the Judeo-Christian teachings. Teachings that are at odds with Islam. For the Islamist, the horrendous treatment of women is embedded in the asylees' behaviors, beliefs, and thought patterns; so, the assumption that asylum seekers will receive these foreign concepts through osmosis and alter their behaviors accordingly is a bridge too far. 

As one analysis of the Report on the UK rape gangs asserts: 

No crime takes place in a vacuum. The Report presents convincing evidence that the people who committed the organized rape of white girls across Britain — primarily Pakistani Muslims — appear to be influenced and driven by Islam.

That’s a major finding. It suggests immigrants often transport value systems from their countries of origin to their new country. It also illustrates that the act of moving from one country to another doesn’t guarantee cultural assimilation.

Though many rape gang perpetrators came from second-, third- or fourth-generation immigrant families, the Report found the cultural systems that clashed so harshly with British values had not softened with time — they had only become more entrenched.

It may be lights out for Britain; however, in America, the lights have just begun to flicker. From battles in Texas over Islamic Centers and Sharia law, to domestic terrorists screaming, "Allahu Akbar" right before they commit their heinous acts, the enemy is now inside the gates. Like Britain, legal and particularly illegal immigration has created the environment for what is occurring in Britain and other EU countries to happen here.     

America offers its citizens robust religious liberties. It also has a rich history of offering immigrants a chance at the American dream. But does that mean America must allow the free practice of religion, no matter the ritual? Or allow anyone to cross our borders, regardless of the traditions and value systems they espouse?

Absolutely not.

Common values are not guaranteed. They require common understanding and buy-in from citizens.

The question is, what must America and Americans do to reverse this course?

 

So What’s It Gonna Be?

The U.S. had better decide what it wants to be 50 years from now.

When I took Mike Sandel’s “Justice” course at Harvard, he was quite young and not yet the professorial rock star that he is today. We learned about Kant’s categorical imperative: an unconditional moral command that dictates how we must act through reason, regardless of our personal desires or the outcomes. We learned of such things as children through Star Trek. Kirk and friends often found themselves with two competing imperatives. The “Prime Directive” stated that the Enterprise crew could not interfere with the culture or natural development of the lifeforms on planets they visited. But they also had an imperative not to die. What happens when such obligations cannot both be fulfilled?

The U.S. actually faced such a situation after the Second Gulf War. In areas under U.S. administration, courts were created. The U.S. had two major imperatives that ended up being totally incompatible:

• Respect the local culture; ours is not superior.
• All people are equal, men and women included.
•  

So, the U.S. set up courts, and some of the judges were women — trained as lawyers in Saddam’s more permissive Muslim Iraqi society. Well, some men brought before the courts absolutely refused to listen to a word that the female judges said. Islamic courts do not have lady jurists, and the locals were not going to have some woman tell them to pay a fine or go to jail. So they openly stated that they would not respect the courts and even at times threatened the new judges. What should the U.S. have done: continue its Western women-equal-men policy or bow to Islamic local tradition and make judges men only? There was a similar event during Desert Storm when a Saudi pilot refused to receive instructions from a female American air traffic controller.

I bring up these TV and real-world examples because the U.S. is facing a similar collision between two pillars of American society:

1. Welcome everyone and respect other cultures; and,
2. Keep the U.S. a pluralistic democratic Republic.
3.  

We are soon approaching a situation where we can no longer do both of the above. It’s one thing to welcome South African families fleeing anti-white persecution. They are grateful to move to the U.S., and they seem motivated to fit in with their new, welcoming home. But what of the numerous Muslims who come to the U.S. and western Europe? Many of the newcomers and even their offspring have stated that their ultimate goal and purpose is to make their new homes Sharia states, with Islamic laws superseding all previous laws and customs. If Sharia law allows a man to have multiple wives and also perform an honor killing of a flirtatious daughter, when Sharia becomes the law of the fruited plains, then there would be no legal basis for disallowing polygamy or throwing a guy into jail for killing his daughter over her date with a Christian classmate. So which way will the U.S. go? I know which way I want, and I know which way it will probably go through inertia. You can go back and read my article “Buy Guns and Lots of Ammo” for a hint on the subject.

If the U.S. wants to remain a free republic where the laws are made by the representatives of We the People, based heavily on America’s Christian founding, then some things are going to have to change. Some examples:

1. An end to immigration from Muslim countries (as self-defined or by population profiles).
2. An ejection of immigrants from Muslim countries. It doesn’t only have to be criminals or visa overstayers; if we want to preserve the flavor of the U.S., then Muslims who are not U.S. citizens simply need to be ejected.
3. Monitor all U.S. Muslims and Muslim institutions. I doubt that the U.S. could institute some type of fealty oath. For a while, there was a push for such a thing here in Israel for the 20 percent Arab population. One may be a practicing American Muslim, but he cannot undertake any activity or spread any material suggesting or encouraging replacing federal, state, or local law with Sharia law or Islamic customs. It’s a draconian ask, but again there are only two outcomes: the U.S. remains the U.S. or the U.S. becomes the Islamic Republic of America.

People can warble on about “Islamophobia,” but that is simply a term to shut people up from pointing out the obvious. No other religious group in the U.S. or world makes it a point of religious significance to convert a new home into a theocratic country. Whether it be Egypt of yore or Lebanon from a few decades past, countries that were Christian became Islamic by virtue of war, conquest, immigration, high birth rates, or a combination thereof. There are those folks who like to show swinging Lebanon, Afghanistan, Iran, and Iraq from around the 1960s. The pictures are real, and the folks seem happy and quite Western in their dress and behavior. Obviously, a religious Muslim would see the past and call it decadent and would say that those countries are far better today since they are ruled according to Sharia principles. Muslims in the U.S. would say the same thing. In a second, they would end the gay and trans arguments by throwing the proponents off tall buildings. The Ayatollah’s folks killed the businessmen and communists who made his rise to power possible after the Shah's fall.

 

This report may sound like a person warning of a flash flood when only three drops of rain have fallen. But as I wrote in the previously mentioned article, the U.S. does not have the mechanism to stop entry and expedite egress. The Muslim Brotherhood and Qatari thugs know this and take advantage of immigration and other laws that simply grease the wheels for their arrival, growth, and eventual control. Look at Dearborn, Michigan, and expect the same in Chicago, LA, and New York, with its new pro-Hamas mayor. It seems un-American to throw people out and monitor others. But the U.S. understood during World War II that, yes, however unpleasant, immigrants from Axis countries needed to be monitored and at times put in camps. We like to beat our breasts about our doing these things, but there are those who do the same over the atomic bombs over Japan. The latter saved both American and Japanese lives by ending the war before a planned massive invasion of the Japanese home islands. It would not be pleasant denying immigration or throwing out students and workers. I agree. But I will say it again: if you don’t take drastic action today against a rising tide of Islamic growth, then you can write off the U.S. as the country we know — in 50 or 100 years.

My mother wanted me to be a doctor, though I am happy with my Ph.D. in biochemistry. I do feel here like the doctor who comes in to tell the patient that we can either amputate his leg and save his life or do nothing, and he will die. The U.S. is precious. We just take it for granted, but there is nothing like it anywhere in the world. Europe is apathetic and is approaching its destruction with typical ennui and apathy. The U.S. has given millions upon millions hope and better futures. It can continue to be a beacon of hope or one more country covered from head to toe. There is no way it can be both. Either the U.S. stops Sharia growth and lets Muslims practice their faith without aspirations of conquest, or the U.S. invites its own destruction and an end of “One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”

 

Lisa Murkowski Was Not Amused by James O'Keefe's Latest Video

Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) was not happy with James O’Keefe’s latest video exposing voter fraud in America. If the Alaska Republican doesn’t like this video, then pass the SAVE America Act, a bill that’s comprised of election integrity provisions that Murkowski supports, but also doesn’t.

O’Keefe was voting in the state under Murkowski’s brother, who now lives in Texas. When he said he left his wallet in the car, they allowed him to obtain Brian Murkowski’s ballot. He now lives in Texas, but his name is still on the rolls, and election workers here said it wasn’t a problem that O’Keefe had no identification. 

 

BREAKING NEWS: O'Keefe Offered Senator Lisa Murkowski's Brother Ballot at Alaskan Polling Location With No ID Required

Anchorage Polling Worker Also Offers Lisa Murkowski’s State Director, Karina Waller's Ballot Without ID on August 18th, Primary Election Day

Murkowski Opposes… pic.twitter.com/ewC7LdTM9R

— James O'Keefe (@JamesOKeefeIII) August 20, 2026

Murkowski’s office issued a statement later, adding that voter impersonation is a crime. 

Official Statement From Senator @lisamurkowski Press Secretary https://t.co/UpcMh7VknP pic.twitter.com/rEDYTbxKQl

— James O'Keefe (@JamesOKeefeIII) August 20, 2026

Recommended

Wait, Ms. Murkowski, you’re more upset about the staged election interference than actual illegal aliens voting. 

Figures for someone who’s part of the problem child caucus in the Senate. 

 

'Here I Am': Melania Trump secures $2M partnership to champion America’s foster youth

(L-R) Indiana University President Pamela Whitten, first lady Melania Trump, Fox Sports CEO Eric Shanks pose with a check during an event announcing the expansion of a foster care initiative in the Rose Garden of the White House on August 20, 2026 in Washington, DC. The event focused on the first lady’s “Foster the Future” initiative, with plans to expand opportunities for individuals transitioning from foster care.

First Lady Melania Trump stepped back into the spotlight at the Rose Garden—greeting the crowd with “I heard you missed me, here I am”—to announce a new “Fostering the Future” partnership with IndyCar, Fox Corporation, Indiana University and Purdue University aimed at helping foster youth.

 

Joined at the White House by organizational leaders on Thursday, the first lady revealed a new $2 million partnership with Fox Corporation and IndyCar. The funds will provide educational opportunities and scholarships for children and teens transitioning out of foster care at a growing list of institutions, including new partners Indiana University and Purdue University.

“Today, Indiana University and Purdue University join fostering the future’s growing coast to coast alliance of leading academic institutions,” the first lady stated. “Congratulations and thank you. Together they expand a national network of 26 universities that prepare our foster youth to shape America’s growth. I’m very proud to share this last spring, fostering the future scholarships supported the education of our first doctor, he will change the lives of so many people.”

 

“Fostering the Future Graduates Will Build New Companies, Launch New Industries”

Indiana University and Purdue University are joining Fostering the Future’s growing national alliance of leading academic institutions.

For more updates, watch OAN on OAN Live. pic.twitter.com/lvMI37nJRA

 — One America News (@OANN) August 20, 2026

Beyond academic access, the initiative provides support with housing assistance, career training, and financial resources to help young adults transition out of the system. Melania emphasized that the most valuable investment America can make isn’t in technology or infrastructure, but rather America’s children.

“Fostering the Future elevates America’s youth based on merit and talent, lifting them beyond economic circumstances and every other condition that may limit opportunity,” she explained. “Fostering the Future graduates will build new companies, launch new industries, and redefine what is possible for all Americans. Fostering the Future is more than an educational initiative—it is a generational investment in America’s talent pipeline.”

.@FLOTUS: "Fostering the Future is more than an educational initiative; it is generational investment in America's talent pipeline. Every student who graduates strengthens our workforce, accelerates innovation, expands economic opportunity, and reduces long-term dependence on… https://t.co/uxgCNE90Xw pic.twitter.com/aILk0xw5qg

 — Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) August 20, 2026

 

California's Privacy Bill: A Shield for Fraudsters?

 

California Democrats quietly pushed through Assembly Bill 2624 — derisively labeled the “Stop Nick Shirley Act” by critics — in a move that should alarm every American who believes in accountability. What began as a proposal to expand privacy protections for certain immigration service providers has been portrayed by Republican lawmakers and conservative media as a blatant effort to shield fraud and silence watchdogs. This fight is not academic; it puts ordinary citizens and citizen journalists who expose corruption squarely in the crosshairs of a politicized state apparatus.

Supporters of the bill say it simply extends existing confidentiality protections for organizations that assist immigrants, arguing the goal is to prevent harassment and doxxing of vulnerable service providers. Assemblymember Mia Bonta’s 

 

office insists AB 2624 preserves shield laws and targets bad actors who exploit sensitive programs, not legitimate journalism. But the language and scope of the bill are broad enough that reasonable people worry it will be weaponized against anyone who documents wrongdoing at the locations taking taxpayer money.

Conservative reporters and independent investigators who traveled to Sacramento to press lawmakers for clarity were met with evasions, and the GOP’s characterization — that the bill is designed to stop people like Nick Shirley from exposing fraud — stuck. Independent journalist Nick Shirley has publicly confronted Democrats and questioned whether the bill would penalize people who film and post video of allegedly fraudulent operations, sparking a national backlash. This is exactly the kind of heavy-handed response that should make free-speech defenders from both parties uneasy.

Despite the outrage, AB 2624 cleared the California Assembly by a decisive margin, a result that tells you how out of touch Sacramento’s leadership has become with everyday Californians worried about corruption. The legislation was later amended in ways supporters say limit its impact, including removing some social-media language, but critics rightly point out that amendment doesn’t erase the chilling effect on investigative work. When the halls of power rush to pass laws under pressure, it’s ordinary citizens and the truth that usually lose.

 

The whole controversy traces back to reporting that exposed alleged hospice and daycare fraud and other abuses tied to state programs — work that drew attention because it involved taxpayer funds and vulnerable populations. Shirley and other independent investigators say their work uncovered patterns that mainstream outlets had not, and that instead of fixing the problems, Sacramento lawmakers moved to protect the very providers under scrutiny. If exposing waste leads to punishments rather than prosecutions, then politicians have made their priorities clear: protect insiders, not taxpayers.

Conservative commentators and constitutional advocates have warned that AB 2624, whatever its stated intent, creates a dangerous precedent where the state can insulate people from accountability by invoking privacy protections. Critics call it an almost textbook example of how a well-intentioned law can be twisted into a shield for corruption, and several Republican lawmakers have described the measure as unconstitutional and an attack on free speech. Americans who value transparency should see this for what it is: a power play that favors political allies over the public interest.

Now is the moment for patriots who care about clean government to push back — not with hashtags, but with calls, votes, and relentless coverage that refuses to be bullied into silence. Lawmakers in Sacramento must be reminded that their first duty is to the citizens who pay the bills, not to the special interests looking for cover. If Democrats want to protect privacy, they can draft narrowly tailored protections that do not trample the First Amendment; until then, conservatives will keep shining a light on every corner the left would rather keep dark.

 

Justice Served: Teen Murderer Sentenced to 35 Years in Track Meet Stabbing

A Collin County jury has convicted 19-year-old Karmelo Anthony of murder and handed down a 35-year prison sentence for the fatal stabbing of 17-year-old Austin Metcalf at a Frisco high school track meet, a verdict that finally puts a violent act where it belongs — behind bars. This was not a garden-variety juvenile scuffle; a jury examined the evidence and concluded the killing was not justified, and the community deserves that accountability.

 

The confrontation unfolded during a district track meet in April 2025, when Anthony and Metcalf — both teenagers at the time — were involved in an argument under a tent in the bleachers that tragically escalated. Witnesses and surveillance shown at trial painted a picture far different from the self-defense narrative advanced by the defense, and the loss of a promising young life cannot be minimized.

Newly released surveillance and body-worn camera footage played a pivotal role in dismantling the claim that this was a justified act of self-preservation; in one piece of bodycam audio Anthony can be heard making blunt admissions after the stabbing. Those recordings undercut the “surrounded and jumped” story and reminded everyone that video evidence often tells a truer tale than headline-grabbing sympathy campaigns.

The jury also rejected pleas for reduced sentencing under sudden passion, and prosecutors celebrated the outcome as justice for Austin Metcalf and his grieving family. Even as Anthony’s lawyers announced an appeal, the verdict stands as the community’s insistence that violent behavior — especially when it ends a life — must be met with serious consequences.

Yet while the courtroom did its work, too many on the left and in elite media reflexively reached for racial narratives and fundraising drives before the facts were fully aired, creating a circus around a grave criminal matter. Patriots who believe in the rule of law should be clear: empathy for defendants does not mean weaponizing charity or rushing to judgment; victims deserve dignity and a sober accounting of what happened.

This case is a wake-up call for parents, schools, and civic leaders who must make clear that bravado and violence at youth events will not be tolerated or romanticized. Law-and-order conservatives should not hesitate to demand both fair trials and firm sentences that protect innocent kids and preserve safe spaces for competition and community.

If America values its families and neighborhoods, we must let the legal process proceed, support victims’ families, and refuse to let ideological narratives overshadow the simple truth that one young man is dead and another will now serve decades behind bars. That is accountability, and hardworking Americans should applaud a system that, when it does its job, keeps violent offenders off the streets.

 

CartoonDems

 

Trump: Iran Will Face 'Most Crushing Economic Operation' Ever

President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced what he called the “most crushing economic operation ever taken against any country,” warning that nations, financial institutions, and businesses that help Iran could face severe economic consequences.

“I AM ANNOUNCING THE MOST CRUSHING ECONOMIC OPERATION EVER TAKEN AGAINST ANY COUNTRY,” Trump said in a Truth Social post, according to Reuters.

Trump said the effort would amount to an “ECONOMIC D-DAY” and warned countries against providing Iran with a financial lifeline.

“I am also announcing that any country that allows its financial institutions, businesses, etc. to provide any lifeline to Iran will itself face TREMENDOUS Economic Consequences,” Trump said, according to Reuters.

Trump did not immediately provide details about the measures he was announcing.

The administration said it was prepared to intensify its economic pressure campaign against Tehran.

Newsmax reported on Wednesday, citing CNN, that Trump was moving away from seeking a quick resolution to the war and toward a more deliberate strategy of sustained economic pressure on Iran.

That strategy could include additional sanctions on Iranian oil networks and financial channels, as well as pressure on foreign companies and banks that continue doing business with Tehran.

Reuters reported Sunday that Trump had vowed to hit Iran hard economically after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Washington would impose measures against Tehran that had “never been seen” as soon as the following week.

Reuters reported that the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control has imposed sanctions on more than 1,000 people, vessels, and aircraft since Trump began his second term.

Recent U.S. measures have targeted Iran's oil network, shipping insurers, entities involved in weapons procurement, and digital exchanges, according to Reuters.

Reuters also reported that the administration could impose additional sanctions on Chinese “teapot” refineries that buy Iranian oil or on Chinese financial institutions involved in processing Iranian funds.

China buys more than 80% of Iran's shipped oil, according to 2025 data from analytics firm Kpler cited by Reuters, making Chinese companies a potentially important target for any expanded pressure campaign.

Trump has previously said he could either allow Iran's economy to deteriorate or “hit them really, really hard,” according to Reuters.

In an Aug. 11 interview, Trump said Iran was already suffering economically and that the United States had control over Iranian assets that had been frozen.

The administration's economic pressure comes as Iran faces significant domestic economic difficulties.

Reuters reported Monday that Iran entered the war with high inflation, a weakening currency, energy shortages and structural economic problems and is now dealing with damaged infrastructure, disrupted trade, and lost production.

Iran's annual inflation rate reached 66% in July, while consumer prices were 87.9% higher than a year earlier, according to Iran's Statistical Centre, Reuters reported.

Trump has repeatedly made preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon a central objective of his policy toward Tehran.

His latest announcement indicates that economic pressure is likely to remain a major component of the administration's strategy, with the potential for U.S. action to extend beyond Iran to foreign banks, businesses and governments that help keep Tehran's economy functioning.

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