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FBI warns New Jersey residents not to shoot down drones or point lasers at aircraft

FBI warns New Jersey residents not to shoot down drones or point lasers at aircraft

The FBI field office in Newark urged New Jersey residents this week not to shoot down drones or point lasers at manned aircraft, taking to social media to warn against the dangerous — and possibly deadly — activity, which comes amid an uptick in reported drone sightings along the U.S. East Coast. The drone sightings have prompted a collective sense of panic among residents, who have taken to social media to share photos and videos of believed drones captured in the darkened U.S. skies. The shared sense of fear-mongering has also prompted some vigilante-like responses, with some social media users documenting efforts to take matters into their own hands, including via laser beam.  In the statement, released by the FBI and New Jersey State Police, authorities expressly warned against such activities, citing an increase in pilots of manned aircraft in the area who have been hit in the eyes with lasers after being misidentified as a drone by someone on the ground.  ‘DRONE’ SIGHTINGS IN THE NORTHEAST SPARK ‘UNFOUNDED’ PANIC, SAYS EXPERT Officials said there is also a concern that people on the ground could also mistakenly fire weapons at what they believe to be an Unmanned Aircraft Systems, or UAS, but is in fact a manned aircraft. “FBI Newark, NJSP, and dozens of other agencies and law enforcement partners have been out every night for several weeks to legally track down operators acting illegally or with nefarious intent and using every available tool and piece of equipment to find the answers the public is seeking,” the authorities said in the statement. “However, there could be dangerous and possibly deadly consequences if manned aircraft are targeted mistakenly as UAS.” They also noted how easy it can be for an individual on the ground to mistake a manned aircraft for a UAS.  “Misidentification often occurs when UAS are mistaken for more familiar objects such as manned aircraft, low-orbit satellites, or celestial bodies like planets or stars,” they said.  “To improve accuracy and prevent false sightings, a variety of tools and techniques can be used to assist with the visual identification of suspected UAS. Accurate identification is critical for maintaining safety and ensuring appropriate responses to UAS activity.” MORE THAN 20 DAYS INTO PHENOMENON, PENTAGON STILL HAS NO ANSWERS ABOUT ORIGINS OF MYSTERIOUS NJ DRONES The statement from the FBI field office and state police comes as New Jersey residents and lawmakers have voiced frustrations about the uptick in drone sightings and what they view as a lack of answers they have been given by the federal government in response. Still, U.S. officials have sought to emphasize that the aircraft in question are not, in fact, a national security threat. Maj. Gen. Patrick S. Ryder, the Pentagon press secretary, stressed to reporters during a briefing Tuesday that the drones are any sort of government asset, and ruled out the notion that they were any part of “experimental program” being tested by the U.S. In a joint statement Monday, the Department of Homeland Security, the FBI, the Federal Aviation Administration and the Department of Defense said that, while they “recognize the concern” from the general public, there is no evidence that the drones are “anomalous” or a threat to public safety or to U.S. national security. Separately, senior officials from the CIA, FBI, and DOD traveled to Capitol Hill Tuesday afternoon to brief lawmakers on the House Intelligence Committee on the uptick in drone sightings. It is unclear, however, how far these efforts have gone to thwart the rise in public concerns. The FBI said Monday that it has received more than 5,000 reports of alleged drone sightings in the last “few weeks” — reflecting the rise in panic from some residents, including many who have taken to social media to document their sightings on social media.  Connecticut Rep. Jim Himes, R-Conn., used an interview on “Fox News Sunday” to call on more federal agencies — including the Federal Aviation Administration — to share more information about the drone sightings with the public. “The FAA in particular, which is the agency of jurisdiction through the domestic skies, ought to be out Saturday morning saying, ‘Let’s show you a picture at the number of aircraft, commercial and private and military, that go over New Jersey in any 24-hour period,’” Himes said. “Just putting information out there to fill that vacuum would be helpful,” he added.

Mike Lee looks to halt welfare for illegals going on under Biden with key budget process

Mike Lee looks to halt welfare for illegals going on under Biden with key budget process

FIRST ON FOX: Republicans are looking to stop welfare and other benefits from going to illegal immigrants paroled into the U.S. — and they are angling to pass it through the budget reconciliation process, bypassing the Senate’s 60-vote legislative filibuster. Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) is introducing the “America First Act” on Wednesday, which would change the requirements outlined in the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act to explicitly exclude people in the country illegally, including those granted asylum, those who are paroled into the country or people being withheld from deportation.  FARM STATE REPUBLICANS APPEAR SKEPTICAL ABOUT RFK JR AMID HIS QUEST FOR HHS CONFIRMATION These individuals would not be eligible to receive welfare benefits, including participation in programs such as Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Medicaid, Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) or certain housing benefits.  The bill is also being introduced in the House of Representatives by Reps. Chip Roy, R-Texas and Jodey Arrington, R-Texas.  RFK JR. SAYS HE PLANS TO ALSO MEET WITH DEMS IN BID TO GET CONFIRMED AS TRUMP HHS HEAD Many bills have met their doom in the Senate as a result of the legislative filibuster, which can block measures that fail to reach 60 votes on a cloture motion. However, when a policy is passed through budget reconciliation, which Republicans are set to use in the new Congress to pass key priorities of President-elect Donald Trump, it can be advanced with just a simple majority.  ELIZABETH WARREN WANTS ANSWERS FROM TRUMP OVER ELON MUSK ‘CONFLICTS OF INTEREST’ This is how Lee, Roy and Arrington are hoping to get their legislation over the finish line. The Utah senator is currently negotiating to have the policy included in the upcoming budget reconciliation package, where it would act as a “pay-for” for other items, such as border security.  Lee’s office pointed to the Congressional Budget Office’s (CBO) July report on the “Effects of the Immigration Surge on the Federal Budget and the Economy.” As the senator’s team highlighted, the CBO revealed, “The immigration surge adds $0.3 trillion to outlays for federal mandatory programs and net spending for interest on the debt over the 2024–2034 period in CBO’s projections.”  DOGE CAUCUS FOUNDING MEMBER DEBUTS 2 BILLS TO KICK-START WASTE CUTS IN TRUMP TERM The Republican bill would additionally remove eligibility of these outlined non-citizens for various educational, healthcare and housing benefits, disaster aid or tax credits.  The White House did not provide comment to Fox News Digital in time for publication. 

Democratic Party chair frontrunner acknowledges ‘we’re getting our butts kicked right now’

Democratic Party chair frontrunner acknowledges ‘we’re getting our butts kicked right now’

A top contender in the race to become the next Democratic National Committee chair acknowledged after last month’s elections that “we’re getting our butts kicked right now.” Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party chair Ken Martin, a DNC vice chair who has led the association of state Democratic Party chairs, says the marching order for his party is “win the U.S. House back, win the Senate back and, of course, win the presidency in ’28.” But Martin, considered a DNC frontrunner, emphasized that equally important is “making sure that we are growing our party and contesting in every public policy arena throughout this nation, from school boards to the mayorships, to country boards, to city councils to state legislative races.” Democrats suffered major setbacks up and down the ballot in the 2024 elections  as former President Trump recaptured the White House and the GOP flipped the Senate and held onto its fragile majority in the House.  KAMALA HARRIS POLLSTER SAYS DEMOCRATS NEED NEW PLAYBOOK TO CONFRONT TRUMP The aggressive strategy of President-elect Trump’s campaign and Republicans up and down the ballot of appearances on podcasts and other non-traditional media is credited, in part, for the gains they made in winning the support of working class, minority, younger and low-propensity voters. Current DNC chair Jaime Harrison is not seeking another four-year term steering the national party committee. The next chair will be chosen by the roughly 450 voting members of the national party committee when they meet Feb. 1 at National Harbor in Maryland for the DNC’s winter meeting. REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE CHAIR SPELLS OUT THE PARTY’S 2026 GAME PLAN Another top contender is Ben Wikler, who has steered the state Democratic Party in battleground Wisconsin since 2019 and, like Martin, is well known by the voting members. Also considered competitive is Martin O’Malley, the former two-term Maryland governor and 2016 Democratic presidential candidate who served as commissioner of the Social Security Administration the past year,  Also running are James Skoufis, a New York state senator who launched his long shot bid last month, and former Department of Homeland Security official Nate Snyder, who announced his uphill climb for chair last week. Fox News Digital interviewed Martin, Wikler and O’Malley ahead of last week’s meeting of the DNC’s executive committee, which was the first time the panel had gathered since November’s election. TRUMP ALLIES TURN UP THE HEAT ON HOLDOUT GOP SENATORS  Martin said if he becomes chair, the first thing he would do is “figure out a plan to win. And we need to start writing that plan, making sure we’re looking underneath the hood. How much money do we have at the party? What are the contracts? What contracts do we need to get rid of? And, frankly, bringing all of our stakeholder groups together, that’s the biggest thing. “We don’t have a lot of time,” Martin emphasized. “There’s elections bearing down on us in New Jersey and Virginia in just 10 months, so we’ve got a lot of work to do.” Martin has repeatedly pledged he’ll “contest every race in every zip code.” “It absolutely is realistic,” he told Fox News Digital. “I’m not going to take a scarcity mindset when we just spent close to $2 billion on a presidential election. … There’s enough resources around for the DNC to actually start contesting races up and down the ballot.” Even though he says he’s won commitments of support from nearly half the voting members he needs to become the chair, Martin said, “I’m not taking anything for granted. I certainly am proud of the support I’ve seen so far. But I’ve got a long ways to go.” But, he added, “I’m clearly ahead right now. I like where we’re at.” Wikler, in his interview, highlighted that “the goal for the Democratic Party should not be to win 47 seats or 51 seats in the Senate. We should be aiming bigger because we know the values of the Democratic Party around a country that works for working people and around freedom and dignity and respect for everyone. Those are deeply shared values across the country. “I think a lot of change is needed in order to grow stronger, get our message to everyone and enlist support from everyone who thinks that this country should work for folks who have to work to keep a roof over their heads and put food on the table.” Wikler said the party needs to show voters “that we’re fighting for them against those who would try to rig the economy for those at the very top and deliver that message in places where people aren’t paying attention to politics much, but they know what they’re struggling with in their own lives. “That means communicating in clear language in a way that shows people that we see them. And with our actions showing that we’re fighting for them to bring costs down and make sure that working people have a fair shot in this country,” he added. Wikler pointed to the success of Democrats in his home state, a crucial battleground, as a reason he’ll be competitive in the chair race. He said the party is “united in its desire to win elections. And, in Wisconsin, we have some of the most closely fought, intense elections. We’ve had to learn to deal with everything that Republican candidates and campaigns throw our way. And I think the energy around it, figuring out how to get stronger and bigger and reach more people in more places, will give me a path to winning the DNC chair’s race and then working to unite this party to fight and win up and down the ballot.” O’Malley, who turns 62 next month, is the oldest of the candidates running for chair. He said he’s running for DNC chair “because I love my country, and the only way we’re going to save the Republic is if the Democratic Party gets itself battle ready as quickly as possible.” “I have had the

Trump sues Des Moines Register newspaper, claiming ‘election interference’

Trump sues Des Moines Register newspaper, claiming ‘election interference’

US president-elect’s lawsuit comes days after reaching defamation settlement with ABC News. United States President-elect Donald Trump has filed a lawsuit accusing a newspaper and a polling firm of engaging in “brazen election interference” by publishing a pre-election survey that underestimated his popularity. The lawsuit filed late on Monday accuses The Des Moines Register newspaper, its parent company Gannett and pollster Ann Selzer of intentionally downplaying Trump’s support in a poll that showed him trailing Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris. The November 2 poll, which showed Harris ahead by three percentage points in Iowa, generated widespread attention as Trump easily carried the midwestern state in the 2016 and 2020 elections. Trump won Iowa in last month’s presidential election by more than 13 percentage points. “Selzer’s polling ‘miss’ was not an astonishing coincidence – it was intentional,” the lawsuit filed in Iowa’s Polk County said. “As President Trump observed: ‘She knew exactly what she was doing.’” The lawsuit, which bases its claims on alleged breaches of Iowa consumer fraud law, seeks triple the damages incurred as determined by a jury. Advertisement Lark-Marie Anton, a spokeswoman for The Des Moines Register, said the newspaper stood behind its reporting and viewed the lawsuit as without merit. “We have acknowledged that the Selzer/Des Moines Register pre-election poll did not reflect the ultimate margin of President Trump’s Election Day victory in Iowa by releasing the poll’s full demographics, cross-tabs, weighted and unweighted data, as well as a technical explanation from pollster Ann Selzer,” Anton said. Selzer did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but said in an interview with PBS last week that she was mystified why anyone would think she had designed the poll to generate a particular result. Trump’s lawsuit comes just days after ABC News agreed to settle a defamation case he brought over anchor George Stephanopoulos’s inaccurate assertion that he had been found civilly liable for rape. The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, a civil liberties organisation, condemned the lawsuit as a “direct assault” on the First Amendment of the US Constitution, which guarantees the right to freedom of speech. “If newspapers and polling firms are sued for ‘deceptive practices’ because they publish stories and poll results politicians don’t like, every media outlet’s First Amendment rights are threatened. Getting a poll wrong is not election interference or fraud,” the group said. Trump, who is also suing CBS News over an interview with Harris that he claims was deceptively edited, faces steep legal hurdles to victory in his lawsuits due to the US’s speech protections, which rank among the strongest in the world. Advertisement Still, the suits could create difficulties for news organisations by exposing potentially embarrassing internal communications and subjecting journalists and executives to depositions. Adblock test (Why?)

India’s Ashwin retires from international cricket after Brisbane Test draw

India’s Ashwin retires from international cricket after Brisbane Test draw

Veteran spinner calls time on 106-Test career after rain forces an early end to the third Test, with the five-match series tied 1-1. India’s spin spearhead Ravichandran Ashwin has announced his retirement from international cricket in all formats after his team’s third Test against Australia ended in a draw in Brisbane. “This will be my last day as an Indian cricketer in all formats in the international level,” the 38-year-old told reporters at the Gabba ground on Wednesday. “I do feel there’s a bit of punch left in me as a cricketer, but I would like to showcase that in club-level cricket.” Ashwin played only one of the three matches of the five-Test series as he took one wicket in the Adelaide Test. The 38-year-old took 537 wickets in his 106 Tests at an average of 24.00, leaving him seventh on the all-time list and second only to Anil Kumble (619) for his country. He also played 116 one-day and 65 Twenty20 internationals. Ashwin made his Test debut in 2011 against the West Indies and was also handy with the bat, scoring 3,503 runs with six centuries and 14 fifties. The third match ended in a draw after rain cut short Australia’s push for victory on the final day, raising the stakes for Melbourne where the series shifts for the traditional Boxing Day clash. Advertisement India were eight for no loss when tea was called early due to failing light, with the tourists needing 267 runs for victory. With a heavy downpour preventing the resumption of play after the break, the match was abandoned and the series remains locked at 1-1. Rain and bad light led to an early end to the third Test between Australia and India at the Gabba in Brisbane [David Gray/AFP] “We’ll take that, obviously,” India’s captain Rohit Sharma said at the post-match presentation. “We head to Melbourne with the confidence that we can try to pull things toward us.” Pat Cummins had declared Australia’s second innings closed at 89 for seven to give India an improbable 275-run victory target as dark clouds gathered near the ground. Cummins and fellow pacer Mitchell Starc bowled only 2.1 overs at the Indian openers before play was halted. Yashasvi Jaiswal was four not out, with KL Rahul also on four. “Unfortunately a lot of rain, which you can’t do anything about … I’m really proud of how the guys played,” said Cummins. “We were right ahead of the game … We just about ticked off every box we could.” Australia bowled out India for 260 after scoring a first innings 445, with rain blighting the match throughout. After capturing India’s final wicket in the first hour on day five, Australia led by 185 runs, but rain denied them the chance to bat until after lunch. In search of quick runs, Australia crashed to 33 for five as Akash Deep and Jasprit Bumrah removed the top four for single-digit scores, a day after the pacemen combined in a brave 10th-wicket partnership to ensure India would avoid the follow-on. Advertisement Travis Head and Alex Carey (19 not out) briefly stemmed the bleeding with a 27-run partnership before Head top-edged Mohammed Siraj to be out for 17. Cummins slogged 22 off 10 balls before becoming Bumrah’s third wicket and declared five balls later. Australia’s hopes of forcing a result were always hostage to the weather but their chances of victory were already wafer-thin given their attack was a man down. Pace stalwart Josh Hazlewood was out of action after succumbing to a calf injury, while there were also concerns about all-rounder Mitchell Marsh’s fitness after he bowled only two overs in the match. Head was named player of the match after scoring 152 in Australia’s first innings, having also scored a big hundred in the hosts’ second Test win in Adelaide. Adblock test (Why?)

Mary Jane Veloso, Filipina nearly executed in Indonesia, arrives home

Mary Jane Veloso, Filipina nearly executed in Indonesia, arrives home

A Filipina who spent nearly 15 years on death row in Indonesia and was almost executed by firing squad has returned home, where she now awaits a potential pardon in a women’s prison. Mary Jane Veloso, 39, landed at Manila airport early on Wednesday following a repatriation deal between the two countries that eliminated the threat of her execution, as the Philippines has long abolished the death penalty. The mother of two was arrested and sentenced to death in 2010 after a suitcase she was carrying was found to be lined with 2.6 kilogrammes (5.7 pounds) of heroin. She flew home without handcuffs alongside Filipino correctional officials on an overnight commercial flight after a Jakarta ceremony marking “the end of a harrowing chapter in Veloso’s life”, the corrections bureau said in a statement. Veloso was flanked by heavy security upon her arrival at the airport and was transported straight to a prison facility for women. Her family and dozens of supporters chanting slogans such as “Clemency for Mary Jane” and “Free, free Mary Jane” who were waiting outside the terminal failed to greet Veloso on her arrival. Advertisement Prison guards later allowed Veloso’s family to spend time with her. Veloso’s two sons ran towards her and hugged her tightly as they met inside the prison compound. “I hope our president [Ferdinand Marcos] will give me clemency so I can go back to my family. I had been in jail in Indonesia for 15 years over something I did not commit,” an emotional Veloso, who is technically still serving a life sentence, told reporters after undergoing a medical examination at the Manila prison. Trafficking victim The conviction and death sentence for the single mother of two sons caused an outcry in the Philippines. She had travelled to Indonesia where a recruiter, Maria Kristina Sergio, reportedly told her a job as a domestic worker awaited her. Sergio also allegedly provided the suitcase where the drugs were found. In 2015, Indonesia moved Veloso to an island prison where she and eight other drug convicts were scheduled to be executed despite objections from their home countries Australia, Brazil, France, Ghana and Nigeria. Indonesia executed the others but Veloso was granted a stay of execution because Sergio had been arrested in the Philippines two days earlier. She faces human trafficking charges, and Veloso was named as a prosecution witness in the case. Veloso became a poster child for her country’s 10 million-strong economic diaspora, many of whom take jobs as domestic workers abroad to escape poverty at home. Marcos said last month that Veloso’s story resonated in the Philippines as “a mother trapped by the grip of poverty, who made one desperate choice that altered the course of her life”. Advertisement In a statement on Wednesday, Marcos thanked Indonesia for turning over custody of Veloso, but made no mention of a pardon or clemency. Under the agreement, Veloso’s life sentence now falls under the Philippines’ purview, “including the authority to grant clemency, remission, amnesty and similar measures”. “Definitely, that’s on the table,” Justice Undersecretary Raul Vasquez told reporters on Wednesday, adding Veloso’s clemency bid would be “seriously studied”. She will serve out her life sentence if not pardoned, Vasquez added. Indonesia’s government has said it will respect any decision made by Manila. The Veloso deal includes a “reciprocity” provision. “If Indonesia requests similar assistance in the future, the Philippines shall fulfil such a request,” the agreement states. There has been intense press speculation that Indonesia would seek custody of Gregor Johann Haas, an Australian detained on drug charges in the Philippines earlier this year. He is also being sought by Jakarta over drug smuggling, which could land him the death penalty. About 530 people are on death row in Indonesia, mostly for drug-related crimes, including 96 foreigners, Ministry of Immigration and Corrections data showed last month. Indonesia’s last executions, of a citizen and three foreigners, were carried out in July 2016. Five Australians who spent almost 20 years in Indonesian prisons for heroin trafficking returned to Australia on Sunday under a deal struck between the governments. Adblock test (Why?)

Trump makes a blizzard of news, shows restraint at presser, even while slamming the media

Trump makes a blizzard of news, shows restraint at presser, even while slamming the media

I’m not thrilled that Donald Trump has renewed his attack on the “corrupt media.” Fresh off his $15-million victory over ABC and George Stephanopoulos, Trump yesterday sued the Des Moines Register and gold-standard pollster Ann Selzer over a bad survey. She projected him losing by 4 points, and he won the state by 13 points. He called this “brazen election interference.” Trump is also pursuing legal action against CBS for the “60 Minutes” blunder in substituting a crisper Kamala Harris response to a different question than was asked. But the network can argue that this was normal television editing. Trump is unlikely to win those suits, but he doesn’t care. Just putting his perceived opponents through the ordeal and considerable expense of defending themselves is reward enough. A KINDER, GENTLER TRUMP? PRESIDENT-ELECT TAKING A MORE MODERATE STANCE Most legal experts say ABC could have won its suit, involving Stephanopoulos’ repeatedly saying Trump was found liable for “rape,” as opposed to “sexual abuse,” in the E. Jean Carroll suit, because of the malice standard for a public figure. Trump would have to prove the network knowingly showed reckless disregard for the truth. But ABC would have endured the embarrassment of turning over emails, texts and cell-phone records. What surprised me, though, was that the president-elect shifted to attack mode just days after saying he had “tamed” the press and was getting better coverage. So much for the cease-fire. But some of Trump’s more positive aspects were on display during the hourlong presser, a seriousness of purpose that I saw in our New York interview two weeks before the election. I’ve known Donald Trump for more than three decades, interviewed him twice this year, and now that we’re done with the sometimes incendiary rhetoric of the campaign, he sounds different. With apparently boundless energy at 78, he deliberately speaks a bit more slowly and softly, while moderating his positions on a number of divisive issues. He knows how to deflect questions he shouldn’t answer, such as “Will you retaliate against Iran.” He threw in phrases like “maybe it was my fault,” deflating any superhuman image. He recently admitted it would be hard to get grocery prices down. The incoming president was asked whether Republican senators who oppose his nominees should be primaried. His response was carefully composed. TRUMP THREATENS MORE LAWSUITS AGAINST MEDIA AS ABC TO PAY $15 MILLION TO SETTLE CASE “If they are unreasonable, I’ll give you a different answer. An answer that you’ll be shocked to hear. If they’re unreasonable, if they’re opposing somebody for political reasons or stupid reasons, I would say it has nothing to do with me. I would say they probably would be primaried, but, if they’re reasonable, fair, and really disagree with something or somebody, I could see that happening.” Of course it’s Trump who determines what’s reasonable or fair. Asked about the parade of Silicon Valley executives who have come or are coming to Mar-a-Lago – the leaders of Meta, Amazon, Google, Apple and others – Trump noted they were “very hostile” in his first term (“and maybe that was my fault, but I don’t really think so”). It doesn’t hurt that Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos are kicking in a million bucks for his inauguration. “One of the big differences” is that “everybody was fighting me” in the first term. Now, “everybody wants to be my friend. I don’t know, my personality changed or something.” That was tongue in cheek. What was striking about the press conference was how much news Trump made on a wide range of subjects, some of which barely got mentioned.  He weighed in on the bogus Duke rape accuser, who finally admitted that she lied back in 2006, saying life would never be the same for the lacrosse players who did nothing wrong. He talked about how the Biden team was not leveling with the public about the drones. He described the “sickness” of those who positively view the alleged murderer of the UnitedHealthcare CEO. He backed the polio vaccine. He defended Pete Hegseth. He talked Venezuela and Syria and Turkey and North Korea and Bibi. He ruminated about TikTok.  There was a sense of deja vu, a stark reminder of how Trump was a round-the-clock source of news in the first term, even when he was talking to reporters he disliked, sometimes denigrating them or counterpunching against their coverage. The contrast with the soon-to-be Former Guy, who made no news on the weekends that he usually spent in Delaware or at Camp David, could hardly be greater. So beyond the full-throated attack on the media, long his favorite foil, the Incoming Guy actually showed restraint and nuance and was clearly enjoying himself. Now maybe Trump has just been in a bad mood the last couple of days. After Judge Juan Merchan refused to toss out the hush money conviction on grounds that his private actions were not covered by the recent Supreme Court ruling on official acts, the incoming president yesterday posted this: SUBSCRIBE TO HOWIE’S MEDIA BUZZMETER PODCAST, A RIFF ON THE DAY’S HOTTEST STORIES “Merchan, who is far worse and even more corrupt than [Jack] Smith in his fight for my hopeless political opponents, just cannot let go of this charade. Is it because of his conflicts and relations that he keeps breaking the Law? This has to stop!…  “In a completely illegal, psychotic order, the deeply conflicted, corrupt, biased, and incompetent Acting Justice Juan Merchan has completely disrespected the United States Supreme Court, and its Historic Decision on Immunity. But even without Immunity, this illegitimate case is nothing but a Rigged Hoax.” Now there’s the Donald we all came to know during the trial.