Biden pardons son Hunter Biden ahead of exit from Oval Office
President Biden pardoned his son, Hunter Biden, after the first son was convicted in two separate federal cases earlier this year. The announcement was made by the White House on Sunday night. The pardon applies to offenses against the U.S. that Hunter Biden “has committed or may have committed” from Jan. 1, 2014 to Dec. 1, 2024. “Today, I signed a pardon for my son Hunter,” Biden wrote in a statement. “From the day I took office, I said I would not interfere with the Justice Department’s decision-making, and I kept my word even as I have watched my son being selectively, and unfairly, prosecuted.” The president went on to claim that his son was “treated differently” by prosecutors. BIDEN WON’T PARDON HUNTER, WHITE HOUSE REAFFIRMS, BUT CRITICS AREN’T SO SURE “Without aggravating factors like use in a crime, multiple purchases, or buying a weapon as a straw purchaser, people are almost never brought to trial on felony charges solely for how they filled out a gun form,” Biden added. “Those who were late paying their taxes because of serious addictions, but paid them back subsequently with interest and penalties, are typically given non-criminal resolutions. It is clear that Hunter was treated differently.” Biden also referenced his son’s battle with addiction and blamed “raw politics” for the unraveling of Hunter’s plea deal. “There has been an effort to break Hunter – who has been five and a half years sober, even in the face of unrelenting attacks and selective prosecution,” the 82-year-old father wrote. “In trying to break Hunter, they’ve tried to break me – and there’s no reason to believe it will stop here. Enough is enough.” “I hope Americans will understand why a father and a President would come to this decision,” Biden’s statement concluded. TRUMP NOMINATES KASH PATEL TO SERVE AS FBI DIRECTOR: ‘ADVOCATE FOR TRUTH’ Hunter Biden, 54, has had a busy year in court, kicking off his first trial in Delaware in June, when he faced three felony firearm offenses, before he pleaded guilty in a separate felony tax case in September. President Biden pardoning his son is a departure from his previous remarks to the media over the summer, declaring he would not pardon the first son. “Yes,” President Biden told ABC News when asked if he would rule out pardoning Hunter ahead of his guilty verdict in the gun case. Days later, following a jury of Hunter’s peers finding him guilty of three felony firearm offenses, the president again said he would not pardon his son. “I am not going to do anything,” Biden said after Hunter was convicted. “I will abide by the jury’s decision.” In the gun case, Hunter was found guilty of making a false statement in the purchase of a gun, making a false statement related to information required to be kept by a federally licensed gun dealer, and possession of a gun by a person who is an unlawful user of or addicted to a controlled substance. HUNTER BIDEN FOUND GUILTY ON ALL COUNTS IN GUN TRIAL Prosecutors specifically worked to prove that Biden lied on a federal firearm form, known as ATF Form 4473, in October 2018, when he ticked a box labeled “No” when asked if he is an unlawful user of substances or addicted to controlled substances. Hunter has a well-documented history of drug abuse, which was most notably documented in his 2021 memoir, “Beautiful Things,” which walked readers through his previous need to smoke crack cocaine every 20 minutes, how his addiction was so prolific that he referred to himself as a “crack daddy” to drug dealers, and anecdotes revolving around drug deals, such as a Washington, D.C., crack dealer Biden nicknamed “Bicycles.” HUNTER BIDEN TRIAL ENTERS DAY 5 AFTER TESTIMONY FROM SISTER-IN-LAW-TURNED-GIRLFRIEND: ‘PANICKED’ Hunter’s attorneys did not dispute the first son’s long history with substance abuse amid the trial, which also included an addiction to alcohol. The defense instead argued that on the day Biden bought the Cobra Colt .38, he did not consider himself an active drug addict, citing the first son’s stint in rehab ahead of the October 2018 purchase. Prosecutors, however, argued Biden was addicted to crack cocaine before, during and after he bought the handgun. Just one day after the gun purchase, prosecutors showed the court that Biden texted Hallie Biden, his sister-in-law-turned-girlfriend, to say he was “waiting for a dealer named Mookie.” A day after that text, he texted that he was “sleeping on a car smoking crack on 4th Street and Rodney” in Wilmington. A jury deliberated for roughly three hours across two days before they found Hunter guilty on each charge. Hunter was scheduled for sentencing on Nov. 13, which was delayed until December before his dad intervened. After President Biden dropped out of the presidential race in July amid mounting concerns over his mental acuity and age, Hunter faced another trial regarding three felony tax offenses and six misdemeanor tax offenses regarding the failure to pay at least $1.4 million in taxes. As jury selection was about to kick off in Los Angeles federal court, Hunter entered a surprise guilty plea. HUNTER BIDEN PLEADS GUILTY TO ALL NINE FEDERAL TAX CHARGES BROUGHT BY SPECIAL COUNSEL DAVID WEISS “I will not subject my family to more pain, more invasions of privacy and needless embarrassment,” Hunter said in an emailed statement at the time. “For all I have put them through over the years, I can spare them this, and so I have decided to plead guilty.” The charges carried up to 17 years behind bars, but the first son would likely have faced a much shorter sentence under federal sentencing guidelines. His sentencing was scheduled for Dec. 16. Ahead of the president’s decision to pardon his son, President-elect Donald Trump said on the campaign trail that he would consider pardoning Hunter if victorious on Nov. 5. “I wouldn’t take it off the books,” Trump told radio host Hugh Hewitt in October. “See, unlike Joe Biden, despite what they’ve done to me, where they’ve gone
Bernie Sanders admits ‘Elon Musk is right’ to slash Pentagon with DOGE: ‘Lost track of billions’
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., appears to be in favor of the newly-established Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), after slamming the Pentagon’s budget and failed audits on social media and admitting, “Elon Musk is right.” President-elect Trump tapped Musk and former GOP presidential primary candidate Vivek Ramaswamy to lead DOGE in an effort to stop the government’s wasteful spending. Sanders addressed the wasteful spending on Sunday in a post on X. “Elon Musk is right,” he wrote. “The Pentagon, with a budget of $886 billion, just failed its 7th audit in a row. It’s lost track of billions. Last year, only 13 senators voted against the Military Industrial Complex and a defense budget full of waste and fraud. That must change.” ELON MUSK SAYS THERE’S SUBSTANTIAL IGNORANCE ABOUT AMERICA’S NATIONAL DEBT Musk responded to Sanders’ post with two American flags. Sanders did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment. The post comes as Musk continues to bash government spending on social media. For example, he shared a post from DOGE’s X account about the California High Speed Rail Project, which was projected in 2008 to cost $33 billion, and now is projected to be between $88.5 and $127.9 billion. The post also said the estimated completion date was 2020 and, as of 2024, nobody has been transported and the majority of the railway has not been designed. The project received $6.8 billion in federal funding. The project team is now requesting another $8 billion in federal funds. ELON MUSK WANTS TO MEET ALEX SOROS — AND SOROS SAYS HE’S OPEN TO IT Musk wrote in a repost, “The government needs to stop wasting your hard-earned money!” In another post shared by Musk, he is seen speaking in front of an American flag. “The interest that we owe on our national debt is now higher than the defense budget. Over a trillion dollars and growing. The country is going to go bankrupt,” he said. “That’s why we need the department of Government Efficiency, D.O.G.E., on a brass plaque on a desk.” Even last week, Musk said a significant percentage of people do not even know there is such a thing as a national debt. US NATIONAL DEBT HITS A NEW RECORD: $36 TRILLION “Those that do often don’t know how big it is or that our interest payments now exceed what we spend on our military. Only a small % understand that government overspending causes inflation,” he said on X. The national debt has soared past $36 trillion. “America is going bankrupt fast,” Musk warned in another post. “The excess government spending is what causes inflation! ALL government spending is taxation. This is a very important concept to appreciate. It is either direct taxation, like income tax, or indirect via inflation due to increasing the money supply,” he asserted in a tweet earlier this month. Trump said in a statement that DOGE “will provide advice and guidance from outside of government and will partner with the White House and Office of Management & Budget to drive large-scale structural reform and create an entrepreneurial approach to government never seen before.” In a Wall Street Journal opinion piece, Musk and Ramaswamy noted that they will work “as outside volunteers, not federal officials or employees.” Fox News Digital’s Alex Nitzberg contributed to this report.
John Bolton compares Kash Patel to Stalin’s right-hand man after Trump’s FBI nomination
Former national security adviser John Bolton called for the Senate to reject President-elect Trump’s nomination of Kash Patel for FBI director, even comparing the move to Josef Stalin’s reign of terror. Bolton, who served during the first Trump administration, provided a statement about the pick to NBC News. “Meet the Press” anchor Kristin Welker shared the comment in a post on X Sunday morning. “Trump has nominated Kash Patel to be his Lavrenty [sic] Beria,” the statement read. “Fortunately, the FBI is not the NKVD [People’s Commissariat for Internal Affairs].” “The Senate should reject this nomination 100-0,” Bolton added. TRUMP NOMINATES KASH PATEL TO SERVE AS FBI DIRECTOR: ‘ADVOCATE FOR TRUTH’ Bolton’s statement referenced Lavrentiy Beria, who was the head of the Soviet secret police under Stalin. Beria is one of the most infamous figures in Russian history, having organized and implemented widespread surveillance, repression, ethnic purges and terror during Stalin’s rule. The prospect of an outsider being placed in charge of the FBI sent shockwaves across Washington over the weekend. The nomination was announced on Saturday night by Trump, who called Patel a “brilliant lawyer, investigator, and ‘America First’ fighter.” During the first Trump administration, Patel was the senior director for counterterrorism at the National Security Council. He is seen as a Trump loyalist who will implement drastic reforms within the FBI if confirmed. NEW YORK JUDGE GRANTS TRUMP REQUEST TO FILE MOTION TO DISMISS CHARGES, CANCELS SENTENCING INDEFINITELY Patel said in a September interview with “The Shawn Ryan Show,” that he would “shut down the FBI Hoover Building on day one and reopen the next day as a museum of the deep state.” He also penned a book called “Government Gangsters: The Deep State, the Truth, and the Battle for Our Democracy.” Patel is not the first Trump pick that Bolton has blasted. During a “Meet the Press NOW” episode in November, Bolton said Trump’s now-withdrawn nomination of Matt Gaetz to U.S. attorney general was “the worst nomination for a Cabinet position in American history.” “The Senate’s new leadership should tell the president-elect that he is endangering Republican senators by forcing a vote in favor of Gaetz’s nomination. The leadership should insist that this nomination be withdrawn,” Bolton said at the time.
US sees surge in Indian immigrants at border with Canada
Attempted border crossings by illegal immigrants from Indian nationals have surged at the U.S. border with Canada in recent years. Nearly 44,000 Indian nationals attempted to cross the U.S.-Canadian border illegally in fiscal 2024, up from about 30,000 in fiscal 2023 and 17,331 in fiscal 2022, according to the most recent numbers from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection data portal. Indian nationals were the most commonly encountered nationality at the northern border among those tracked last fiscal year, representing roughly 22% of the 198,929 total land border encounters at the U.S.-Canada border in fiscal 2024. TRUMP BOASTS OF ‘VERY PRODUCTIVE MEETING’ WITH CANADIAN PM TRUDEAU AT MAR-A-LAGO The latest numbers come as President-elect Trump prepares to take office for a second time, with renewed promises of border security being one of the former president’s favorite selling points on the campaign trail. Trump met with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida on Friday, with Trump saying the two leaders had a “very productive” conversation, including talks about border security. “We discussed many important topics that will require both countries to work together to address, like the fentanyl and drug crisis that has decimated so many lives as a result of illegal immigration, fair trade deals that do not jeopardize American workers and the massive trade deficit the U.S. has with Canada,” Trump wrote on Truth Social Saturday. “I made it very clear that the United States will no longer sit idly by as our citizens become victims to the scourge of this drug epidemic, caused mainly by the drug cartels, and fentanyl pouring in from China. Too much death and hardship!” MEXICAN PRESIDENT MIGHT BE CHANGING VIEW ON US AS TRUMP WIN SENDS WARNING TO RULING SOCIALISTS The Canadian government has already moved to stiffen its border policies amid strained relations with the U.S., according to a September Financial Times report, starting with a rollback of its permissive worker visa program. “U.S. lawmakers are calling to harden the northern border with Canada because of the fears of illegal migration from Canada,” Glenn Cowan, the founder and chief executive of the security company One9, told the Financial Times. “Stemming the flow of these visas will bolster U.S. relations.” That work could become more important as the Canadian government prepares to once again work with Trump, who in the past has threatened to impose tariffs on both Canada and Mexico. Trump did not say on Saturday whether such tariffs were still on the table after his talks with Trudeau, though he made clear the two leaders also discussed energy, trade and relations in the Arctic. “All are vital issues that I will be addressing on my first days back in office, and before,” Trump said.
Who is Kash Patel? Trump’s pick to lead the FBI has long history vowing to bust up ‘deep state’
President-elect Trump tapped longtime ally and crusader against the “deep state,” Kashyap “Kash” Patel to lead the FBI, where he will work to snuff out America’s “crime epidemic,” bust up migrant gangs, and stymie drug and human trafficking, the upcoming president declared in his announcement. “Kash did an incredible job during my First Term, where he served as Chief of Staff at the Department of Defense, Deputy Director of National Intelligence, and Senior Director for Counterterrorism at the National Security Council. Kash has also tried over 60 jury trials,” Trump posted to Truth Social on Sunday evening. “This FBI will end the growing crime epidemic in America, dismantle the migrant criminal gangs, and stop the evil scourge of human and drug trafficking across the Border. Kash will work under our great Attorney General, Pam Bondi, to bring back Fidelity, Bravery, and Integrity to the FBI.” Following Trump’s massive win over Vice President Kamala Harris at the ballot boxes last month, speculation mounted that Patel was a top contender to serve as the FBI chief – an agency Trump and conservatives have repeatedly slammed as “weaponized” against Republicans. TRUMP’S SPEEDY CABINET PICKS SHOW HIS ‘PRIORITY TO PUT AMERICA FIRST,’ TRANSITION TEAM SAYS Patel, 44, is a New York native who grew up on Long Island in Garden City, and was raised by Indian immigrant parents. He earned his law degree in 2005 from Pace University, before serving as a public defender in Florida’s Miami-Dade area, where he tried “scores of complex cases ranging from murder, to narco-trafficking, to complex financial crimes in jury trials in state and federal courts,” according to his Defense Department biography. Patel hit the national radar during Trump’s first administration, including when he worked as the national security adviser and senior counsel for the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence under the leadership of then-Committee Chair Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif. KASH PATEL’S NOMINATION SPARKS ENTHUSIASM, ANXIETY; FUTURE OF THE FBI APPEARS UNCERTAIN “Kash is a brilliant lawyer, investigator, and ‘America First’ fighter who has spent his career exposing corruption, defending Justice, and protecting the American People. He played a pivotal role in uncovering the Russia, Russia, Russia Hoax, standing as an advocate for truth, accountability, and the Constitution,” Trump continued in his announcement of Patel as FBI chief. Patel’s name spread across news reports as he became known as the man behind the “Nunes Memo,” a four-page document released in 2018 that revealed improper use of surveillance by the FBI and the Justice Department in the Russia investigation into Trump. “If they had gotten it right in the first place, when Devin and I and so many others were actually putting out the truth, instead of serving as a disinformation machine for the left-wing agenda, there would be no reassessment,” Patel told Fox News Digital of the memo last year. “They could not have done their work in the deep state without their partners in the mainstream media, who are part of that deep state.” Patel’s role in the investigation and memo elevated his career status in the Trump orbit, and he was named senior director for counterterrorism at the National Security Council in 2019 under the first Trump administration. In that role, he assisted the White House in eliminating foreign terrorist leadership, such as ISIS chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdad in 2019 and al-Qaeda militant Qasim al-Raymi in 2020, according to his biography. In November 2020, as Trump squared off against Joe Biden at the ballot boxes, the 45th president named Patel chief of staff to acting Secretary of Defense Christopher Miller. The administration shake-up followed Trump firing Secretary of Defense Mark Esper after the Cabinet member said he did not support invoking the Insurrection Act in order to send the U.S. military to quell violent protests that rocked cities nationwide in 2020. Patel has been a staunch Trump ally, including joining the 45th president during his trial in Manhattan in the spring, and echoing that the United States’ security and law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, need to be overhauled. Patel published a book last year called “Government Gangsters,” where he railed against the “deep state,” the weaponization of the federal government and the Russia investigation into Trump. Trump called the book a “roadmap” to exposing bad actors in the federal government and said it is a “blueprint to help us take back the White House and remove these Gangsters from all of Government.”’ In his book, Patel explicitly called for the revamp of the FBI in a chapter dubbed “Overhauling the FBI,” where he did not mince words about the state of the law enforcement agency. TRUMP NOMINATES KASH PATEL TO SERVE AS FBI DIRECTOR: ‘ADVOCATE FOR TRUTH’ “Things are bad. There’s no denying it. The FBI has gravely abused its power, threatening not only the rule of law, but the very foundations of self-government at the root of our democracy. But this isn’t the end of the story. Change is possible at the FBI and desperately needed,” he wrote. “The fact is we need a federal agency that investigates federal crimes, and that agency will always be at risk of having its powers abused,” he continued, advocating the firing of “corrupt actors,” “aggressive” congressional oversight over the agency, complete overhauls to special counsels, and moving the FBI out of Washington, D.C., “Most importantly, we need to get the FBI the hell out of Washington, D.C. There is no reason for the nation’s law enforcement agency to be centralized in the swamp. Keeping the FBI in its behemoth Washington HQ building only allows for institutional capture and incentivizes senior leadership in the FBI to lose focus on their mission and learn how to play political games instead, currying favor with politicians and cultivating relationships with the press to advance their career.” KASH PATEL SAYS DOJ PUT HIM AT PERSONAL RISK BY INCLUDING NAME IN TRUMP AFFIDAVIT: ‘THEY’RE SHAMELESS’ Following the 2020 election, Patel has spoken out against a number of high-profile investigations and issues he sees within the DOJ, potentially previewing what voters
Trump taps daughter Tiffany’s father-in-law Massad Boulos as senior adviser on Arab and Middle Eastern affairs
President-elect Trump tapped his daughter Tiffany Trump’s father-in-law, Lebanese-American businessman Dr. Massad Boulos, to join his Cabinet as senior adviser on Arab and Middle Eastern affairs. “I am proud to announce that Massad Boulos will serve as Senior Advisor to the President on Arab and Middle Eastern affairs,” the president-elect wrote on TRUTHSocial. “Massad is an accomplished lawyer and a highly respected leader in the business world, with extensive experience on the International scene. He has been a longtime proponent of Republican and Conservative values, an asset to my Campaign, and was instrumental in building tremendous new coalitions with the Arab American Community. Massad is a dealmaker, and an unwavering supporter of PEACE in the Middle East. He will be a strong advocate for the United States, and its interests, and I am pleased to have him on our team!” Boulos led efforts to engage the Arab American community, organizing dozens of meetings across Michigan and other areas with large Arab populations. BIDEN ANNOUNCES CEASE-FIRE PLAN BETWEEN ISRAEL AND HEZBOLLAH ENDING 14 MONTHS OF FIGHTING Some sessions also featured Richard Grenell, former acting director of national intelligence, who was well-regarded by those who met with him. Trump campaign officials and supporters told Reuters that Boulos helped flip some of the 300,000 Arab Americans and Muslims in Michigan who largely backed Biden in 2020 but later grew frustrated with Biden’s policies in Israel, Gaza and Lebanon. ISRAELI MILITARY SAYS HEZBOLLAH IS SMUGGLING WEAPONS INTO LEBANON DURING CEASEFIRE Boulos’ son, Michael, and Tiffany Trump were married in November 2022 at Mar-a-Lago. Trump revealed during a speech to the Detroit Economic Club in October that Tiffany is pregnant. Boulos is a billionaire with extensive business connections to Nigeria. He was born in Lebanon but moved to Texas as a teenager. He attended the University of Houston and later became a U.S. citizen. According to Reuters, Boulos’ father and grandfather were involved in Lebanese politics, and his father-in-law backed the Free Patriotic Movement, a Christian party affiliated with Hezbollah. Three sources told Reuters that Boulos’ appeal centers on his ability to engage with different factions within Lebanese politics, as he’s even maintained relations with Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed Shi’ite Muslim party and terrorist group that largely controls the parliament. Boulos is friends with Suleiman Frangieh, a Christian politician backed by Hezbollah for the presidency, and has been in communication with the Lebanese Forces Party, a Christian faction that staunchly opposes Hezbollah. This is a developing story. Check back for updates. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Ted Cruz predicts illegal immigration will ‘plummet’ immediately after Trump’s inauguration
Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, predicted that illegal immigration will begin to “plummet” immediately after President-elect Trump is inaugurated early next year. Cruz made the statement during a Sunday morning appearance on CBS’ “Face the Nation” with host Margaret Brennan. Cruz argued that the decrease will begin in the weeks after Trump takes office, citing Trump’s plan to reinstate the “remain in Mexico” policy. “I expect we will once again enter into ‘remain in Mexico,’ and we are going to see – I’m going to make a prediction right now: We will see the numbers plummet of illegal immigration coming into this country,” Cruz said. “Not in a year, not in six months, but in January and February, because we will have a president who will vigorously enforce the law.” Cruz also addressed Trump’s efforts to use tariffs as leverage to encourage Mexico’s government to assist in halting border traffic. Trump spoke with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum last month and said she proved willing to assist his administration. MEXICAN PRESIDENT MIGHT BE CHANGING VIEW ON US AS TRUMP WIN SENDS WARNING TO RULING SOCIALISTS “I’ll tell you what hasn’t changed is the importance of leverage. And I got to say, you look at the threat of tariffs against Mexico and Canada. [It] immediately has produced action. We’ve seen the president of Mexico stand up and promise that she is going to work hand in hand with the President of the United States, President Trump, to secure the border,” Cruz said. MUSK, STALLONE AMONG STAR-STUDDED NAMES PARTYING AT TRUMP’S MAR-A-LAGO CLUB FOR THANKSGIVING Trump says he also had a “very productive meeting” with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at his Mar-a-Lago club in West Palm Beach, Florida. Trudeau jetted into Mar-a-Lago unannounced on Friday just days after Trump threatened to impose sweeping tariffs on Canadian products. Trump is threatening to impose 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico over failures by both nations to curb the flow of illegal immigrants and illicit drugs from those countries into the U.S. “We discussed many important topics that will require both countries to work together to address, like the fentanyl and drug crisis that has decimated so many lives as a result of illegal immigration, fair trade deals that do not jeopardize American workers and the massive trade deficit the U.S. has with Canada,” Trump wrote on Truth Social Saturday. “I made it very clear that the United States will no longer sit idly by as our citizens become victims to the scourge of this drug epidemic, caused mainly by the drug cartels, and fentanyl pouring in from China. Too much death and hardship!” Trump wrote that Trudeau, who has been serving as prime minister of Canada since 2015, made a commitment to work with the U.S. to “end this terrible devastation of U.S. families.” Fox News’ Michael Dorgan contributed to this report
Biden WH adviser dodges whether he’s concerned Trump FBI pick labeled him ‘deep state’ member
Biden administration national security adviser Jake Sullivan dodged answering whether he’s concerned over President-elect Trump naming Kash Patel as his pick to lead the FBI after Patel listed Sullivan as a member of the “deep state” in a book published last year. “Kash Patel also published a book where he listed people who are part of the deep state. Your name is on that list. Would it concern you to have him have all the powers of federal investigations. And would you fear personal retribution?” CNN’s Kasie Hunt asked Sullivan Sunday during an interview on “State of the Union.” Sullivan brushed off being listed in Patel’s book, “Government Gangsters,” and instead said he’s focused on his final days in office before Trump is sworn in as president on Jan. 20. TRUMP NOMINATES KASH PATEL TO SERVE AS FBI DIRECTOR: ‘ADVOCATE FOR TRUTH’ “Look, I wake up every day to try to defend this country and protect the national interest. I got 50 days left. I’m going to stay totally focused on every single one of those days to make sure that we have a smooth handoff to the next team, and we put them in the best strategic position possible. And I can’t spend my time worrying about other things at this point,” Sullivan said. Patel published “Government Gangsters: The Deep State, the Truth, and the Battle for Our Democracy” last year, which Trump lauded as a “roadmap” to exposing bad actors in the government and a “blueprint to help us take back the White House and remove these Gangsters from all of Government.” KASH PATEL’S NOMINATION SPARKS ENTHUSIASM, ANXIETY; FUTURE OF THE FBI APPEARS UNCERTAIN “Things are bad. There’s no denying it. The FBI has gravely abused its power, threatening not only the rule of law, but the very foundations of self-government at the root of our democracy. But this isn’t the end of the story. Change is possible at the FBI and desperately needed,” Patel wrote in the book, detailing the state of the FBI. Within the book, Patel provided an alphabetical list of alleged “deep state” members who are either currently or formerly employed in the executive branch. Sullivan is included on the long list, as are other Biden officials such as Attorney General Merrick Garland, Vice President Kamala Harris and FBI Director Christopher Wray. Wray served under both the Trump and Biden administrations. Trump named Patel as his pick for FBI chief on Saturday. Hunt asked Sullivan for his reaction the following morning while noting that Patel is a “fierce Trump loyalist” who has vowed to target the deep states. Sullivan brushed off the question by focusing on Wray’s work as FBI chief. “I’m not going to speak to President-elect Trump’s nominees. I’ll let him speak for his own rationale. What I will say is how the Biden administration has approached the position of FBI director. We inherited Director Chris Wray, who has done a very good job in the role, from President-elect Trump, who appointed him to a 10-year term. And what makes the FBI director different from most other nominees, is they’re not just appointed for one term of a president,” he said. DAVID MARCUS: KASH PATEL IS THE FUMIGATOR THE FBI NEEDS “They’re appointed for enough time to last past two terms of a president, because they’re supposed to be insulated from politics. President Biden scrupulously adhered to that long-standing bipartisan tradition and for a good reason, because the FBI director should not be subject to the whims of the tos and fros of politics,” he continued. Wray would need to resign or be fired from the FBI in order for Patel to actually assume the position. The Senate would also need to confirm Patel before he could move into the new role.
Canadian town fined for refusing to celebrate Pride Month, fly rainbow flag
A Canadian town is facing a fine of $10,000 for refusing to participate in Pride Month and fly the “LGBTQ2 rainbow flag” outside its municipal building. The town of Emo, Ontario, which has a population of about 1,300 and is situated near the border with Minnesota, was found to have violated the Ontario Human Rights Code by the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario for refusing to proclaim June as Pride Month, according to a report from the National Post. The town was also issued a citation for its failure to fly “an LGBTQ2 rainbow flag,” the report notes, despite Emo not having an official flag pole. MUSLIMS, CHRISTIANS JOIN FORCES TO PROTEST LGBTQ+ PRIDE IN CANADA: ‘LET KIDS BE KIDS’ In addition to the $10,000 fine, officials from the town were ordered to complete mandatory “human rights” training. According to the report, the decision to cite Emo began with a 2020 incident in which the town was approached by a group called Borderland Pride, which issued a written request asking that Emo declare June Pride Month. The group’s request also included a draft proclamation, containing clauses such as “pride is necessary to show community support and belonging for LGBTQ2 individuals” and “the diversity of sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression represents a positive contribution to society.” Borderland Pride also asked the city to fly an “LGBTQ2 rainbow flag for a week of your choosing.” MUSLIM ACTIVIST GIVES POWERFUL SPEECH AGAINST FORCED LGBTQ CURRICULUM: ‘OUR PEOPLE ARE NOT BACKWARD’ The request was defeated by a 3-2 vote at a later Emo township council meeting, where Mayor Harold McQuaker argued there was “no flag being flown for the other side of the coin… there’s no flags being flown for the straight people.” The line was seen as particularly offensive to Human Rights Tribunal vice-chair Karen Dawson, who said she found the remark “demeaning and disparaging of the LGBTQ2 community of which Borderland Pride is a member and therefore constituted discrimination under the Code.” Dawson further argued that the remark was made in “close proximity” to McQuaker’s no vote on the Borderland Pride request, meaning it “constituted discrimination under the Code.” Borderland Pride sought a $15,000 fine for the Township as well as a $10,000 fine for each of the three council members who voted no on the group’s request, according to the report, though the tribunal eventually settled on the $10,000 fine for the township and a $5,000 for McQuaker. McQuaker and Emo’s chief administrative officer were also ordered to complete an online course offered by the Ontario Human Rights Commission called “Human Rights 101” and “provide proof of completion… to Borderland Pride within 30 days.”
China promises ‘countermeasures’ to US arms sale to Taiwan
China’s foreign ministry lashed out at the U.S. and Taiwan on Sunday after the U.S. State Department approved a $385 million arms sale to the island. Chinese officials also criticized the U.S. for approving Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te to visit Hawaii and Guam, a U.S. territory. China considers Taiwan to be its sovereign territory and routinely objects to any validation of the island’s democratically-elected government. The arms deal approved late last week sees Taiwan purchasing hundreds of millions of dollars worth of spare parts for F-16 fighter jets as well as components for radars. Chinese officials said the deal sent the “wrong signal” about relations in the Indo-Pacific. A separate statement said China “strongly condemns” Lai’s travel to the U.S. CHINA OFFICIALLY ‘DOESN’T CARE’ ABOUT TRUMP WIN; UNOFFICIALLY, EXPERTS SAY BEIJING IS RATTLED The U.S. has repeatedly signaled its support for Taiwan through military deals, operations and diplomatic interactions with Taiwanese officials. Recent years have found a cadence of U.S. officials, such as former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, meeting with Taiwanese officials only for Beijing to react with saber-rattling. Pelosi made a rare trip to the island in 2021, and China reacted by holding live-fire military drills surrounding Taiwan. Those drills occurred again in 2023 when then-Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen met with former Speaker Kevin McCarthy in California. President-elect Trump has signaled that his administration will continue America’s strong relationship with Taiwan. Trump’s nominees to serve as United Nations ambassador, national security adviser, and most importantly, secretary of state are regarded by many as “China Hawks.” TRUMP’S PICKS SO FAR: HERE’S WHO WILL BE ADVISING THE NEW PRESIDENT Trump nominated Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., to be secretary of state last month. Rubio has been a leading voice in the Senate for cracking down on China and imposing sanctions. Rubio has said he will work with Trump to “continue to support Taiwan.” He is also allied with Trump on insisting Taiwan increase defense spending, a view shared by security experts, but not necessarily the majority of Taiwanese people. Reuters contributed to this report.