Wednesday, May 13, 2026
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We haven’t seen or heard much from former California Rep. Eric Swalwell (CA-14) since he abandoned his gubernatorial run and resigned from Congress in disgrace in April amid allegations of sexual abuse and rape.
For a few days after the scandal broke, he holed up in the mansion of his buddy, billionaire Stephen Cloobeck — but then lefty timeshare titan turned on him, kicked him out of his house, and demanded that he return $1 million in donations.
Now it’s Cloobeck’s turn to feel the heat, as he was arrested in West Hollywood Tuesday and charged with a felony for attempting to prevent or dissuade a victim or witness from testifying.
A Democratic Fantasy World
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A new poll suggests that a sizable number of Democrats -- more than 40% in some cases -- believe the attempts on President Donald Trump's life were fake.
The poll, which surveyed 1,000 Americans over the age of 18, was conducted by NewsGuard and YouGov. It asked people to respond to three statements:
"The assassination attempt against Donald Trump at the White House Correspondents Dinner in April 2026 was staged."
"The assassination attempt against Donald Trump at a Trump presidential campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, in July 2024 was staged."
"The assassination attempt against Donald Trump at Trump International Golf Club in September 2024 was staged."
Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Marty Makary resigned Tuesday after a 13-month tenure that included criticism from various groups, including anti-abortionists and pharmaceutical companies, and culminated with weeks of conflict with the Trump Administration.
For Makary, the final straw was the FDA's approval last week of fruit-flavored e-cigarettes, a move that he opposed. The New York Times reported that Makary told several confidants that his conscience would not allow him to approve the vapes due to their appeal among young people. (snip)The FDA is charged with ensuring the safety of food, medication and medical devices, as well as with regulating tobacco and veterinary products.
We Just Learned More About the Man Hit
by a Frontier Airlines Plane, and It's
Raising Eyebrows replies
by a Frontier Airlines Plane, and It's
Raising Eyebrows replies
Several Frontier Airlines passengers suffered minor injuries over the weekend when their plane, departing from the Denver airport, struck a person trespassing on the runway. That person was killed after being hit by the plane's engine, which caused an explosion and fire that aborted the takeoff.
That man has now been identified, which is raising questions about whether this was a sinister act, given his extensive criminal history.
Authorities said Michael Mott, 41, was the man hit by the plane on May 9. Mott has been arrested 20 times previously, including for attempted murder. He was most recently arrested about a month before he trespassed at the Denver airport.
History is rife with examples of tyrannical movements that never end their hunt for their ideological enemies.
In 1989, Iran's then-Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, issued a fatwa against The Satanic Verses author Salman Rushdie. Rushdie was forced to remain under police protection or in hiding after that. (Snip) Thus, the blinding pathological hatred the left has cultivated against Donald Trump will not simply dissipate once the man retires from office. So long as he lives, they will try to jail, bankrupt, destroy, and/or literally murder him.
Dr. Marty Makary is no longer the commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, according to a resignation notice posted on social media by President Donald Trump on May 12.
Makary wrote in a text to Trump that he was resigning, effective Tuesday. Makary did not provide a reason for the resignation. (snip)“So much was accomplished under his leadership. He was a hard worker, who was respected by all, and will go on to have an outstanding career in Medicine,” the president added in another social media post.
Kyle Diamantas, the FDA’s deputy commissioner for food, will be the acting FDA commissioner, according to Trump.
There's big news about the new Trump-class battleship, but there's even bigger and more important news about what's going on in the Pentagon under reform-minded Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth. But first — some things never change — I must nerd out on the battleship news.
The Navy says it will now do what I said it should do.
When the Trump-class was announced late last year, initial reaction from naval enthusiasts ranged from an almost childlike enthusiasm to deep skepticism. I had a lot of the former and a little of the latter —
There are only two reasons why I even know who Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) is.
The first is that ridiculous trip he made to El Salvador to have margaritas with MS-13 gang banger Kilmar Abrego Garcia.
The second is that every time he's a part of a Senate hearing with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, he says something stupid and Rubio completely owns him. (Snip) Well, on Tuesday, it was FBI Director Kash Patel's turn. During a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing, Van Hollen, who never has anything of substance to say, resorted to bringing up tabloid rumors from The Atlantic about Patel's "excessive drinking."
The Virginia Supreme Court handed Democrats a stinging defeat — and instead of accepting it, they're floating the idea of blowing up the government entirely.
Last week, the court struck down Democrats' rushed redistricting referendum, ruling it unconstitutional (Snip) Marc Elias, the left's go-to power lawyer for all things election-related, took the rhetoric to a genuinely alarming place. Elias responded to the ruling by invoking language from the Virginia Constitution itself. Not to make a legal argument, but to suggest that the current Virginia government has lost its legitimacy and therefore can and should be abolished.
Not long ago, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul told New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani to handle his own mess. Now she's writing him a $4 billion check to bail him out.
Mamdani had barely settled into Gracie Mansion before he discovered what socialists always find out: Eventually, you run out of other people's money. His grand campaign promises — you know: free this, universal that — ran headlong into the reality that New York City couldn’t afford all the things Mamdani had campaigned on.
So, Mamdani went looking to Albany for a bailout.
And, originally, Hochul said no.
"The mayor and City Council need to work together, identify savings,
A mob grows in Brooklyn
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Jews are under assault in Mayor Madman’s New York City. Would you have the temerity to wear a mezuzah around your neck or a kipot on your head in public? Would you have the gall to gather for services at a local congregation? The New York Post reports “An anti-Israel mob clashed with counter-protesters near a Brooklyn synagogue on Monday night — less than a week after a similar demonstration rocked Manhattan.”
The current Post headline refers to last week’s mob that materialized outside a Manhattan synagogue. The Post reported that story in “Hateful anti-Israel mob descends on historic NYC synagogue, clashes with cops in rowdy protest.” How rowdy
On May 5, Megyn Kelly said something revealing during an appearance on Next Up with Mark Halperin, while defending Tucker Carlson’s recent posture toward Islam and criticism of Israel.
“I’ve noticed just since I’ve gotten sort of more clear-eyed on Israel that a lot of the anti-Muslim rhetoric that’s put out there originates with people who are very, very pro-Israel who kind of need us to demonize them (Muslims). (Snip)
Megyn, your statement deserves an answer because there is a limit to how much you can gaslight those who have suffered under Islam and Sharia in the service of your anti-Israel rhetoric. And yours truly has reached her limit with
As President Donald Trump and hundreds of aides, security personnel and officials prepare to travel to China, many will leave behind one of the most basic tools of modern government: their everyday cellphones.
Instead, officials entering China often travel with stripped-down "clean" devices, temporary laptops and tightly controlled communications systems designed to minimize the risk of surveillance, hacking or data collection in what U.S. officials consider one of the world’s most aggressive cyber environments.
The precautions can transform even routine tasks into logistical headaches. Messages that would normally travel instantly through encrypted apps or synced devices are instead routed through controlled channels, temporary accounts or relayed in person.
Voters Lukewarm On U.S.-Iran War, As Majority
Oppose Use Of Ground Troops In Iran: I&I/TIPP Poll replies
Oppose Use Of Ground Troops In Iran: I&I/TIPP Poll replies
President Donald Trump has worked hard to forge a deal to end the U.S.-Iran war and avoid a wider conflict. But, as the latest I&I/TIPP Poll shows, Americans remain sharply split over the U.S. military action, and strongly oppose sending ground troops into Iran.
The national online I&I/TIPP Poll, taken by 1,464 adults from April 28 to May 1, asked: “Do you support or oppose the United States military action against Iran?” The poll’s margin of error is +/-2.9 percentage points.
Among all those responding, 43% said they support the U.S.-Iran war either strongly (23%) or somewhat (20%), while 47% said they oppose the war either strongly (30%) or
, As epidemiologists race to find more answers to the origin of the hantavirus outbreak on a cruise, they have ruled out some theories circulating online. (Snip) He said he doesn't believe the virus came from the Argentinian region where the MV Hondius left from, but rather all signs point to it originating in the Andes Cordillera region in northern Argentina and Chile, where the specific carrier, the long-tailed rice rat, is common. "There's absolutely every reason to believe that this came from rodents," Pavlin said. He said WHO has confirmed the first hantavirus cases on board the MV Hondius stemmed
Democrats warn a third of the Congressional
Black Caucus could be wiped out by redistricting wars replies
Black Caucus could be wiped out by redistricting wars replies
WASHINGTON — The Congressional Black Caucus, a power center in the Democratic Party for decades, saw its membership rise this Congress to an all-time high of 58 House members. Now, thanks to a Supreme Court redistricting ruling that’s expected to dramatically diminish Black representation on Capitol Hill, the CBC is fighting a five-alarm fire that could devastate its membership. CBC Chair Yvette Clarke, D-N.Y., said as many as 19 of the caucus’ members could be affected by the redistricting wars in a worst-case scenario, though she noted it’s still fluid given that states are still drawing new maps in the
Not a Good Look: 'Flagrantly Racist' Post
From Charlotte-Meck NAACP Prompts Long
Overdue Backlash replies
From Charlotte-Meck NAACP Prompts Long
Overdue Backlash replies
Last Thursday, RedState reported on the abrupt resignation of Charlotte, North Carolina, Mayor Vi Lyles (pictured above), effective June 30th, where she indicated it was time to spend more time with family. It was news that surprised many of the locals here because Lyles, a Democrat who has held the office since December 2017, is only six months into a two-year term.
Health issues were floated by political observers as the reason for the decision. The 73-year-old Lyles had been notably absent from many official public functions, including zoning meetings, since her reelection and had also appeared confused, forgetful, and repetitive at the ones she did attend.
Lies and Computer Ensembles
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A recent study by Portmann and colleagues (Observational constraints project a ~50% AMOC weakening by the end of this century - PMC) warns of yet another impending “climate disaster.” The study predicts that the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), a key component of thermohaline circulation, will weaken approximately 50 percent by the end of the century.
If true or grounded in solid evidence, it would be quite alarming because the AMOC drives warm water from the tropics and subtropics into the North Atlantic and Arctic. This immense “heat pump” moderates the climates of western Europe to a large degree, keeping it much warmer than inland counterparts at comparable latitudes.
Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton (R-Crossville) announced Tuesday that Democratic lawmakers will be removed from all current House standing committee and subcommittee assignments following disruptions to last week’s special legislative session on congressional redistricting.
The disciplinary action comes after the Tennessee General Assembly approved a new congressional redistricting plan expected to produce a 9-0 Republican congressional delegation. Governor Bill Lee has since signed the map into law.
During the three-day legislative session, chaos erupted inside the Tennessee Capitol as Democratic lawmakers and protesters staged loud demonstrations against the proposed redistricting maps.
Videos from the House floor showed tense confrontations
Tennessee State Representative Justin Pearson (D-Memphis) was accused of using “race baiting” in his campaign advertisement announcing the relaunch of his campaign for the Democratic nomination for the 9th Congressional District, where first launched his campaign to unseat U.S. Representative Steve Cohen (D-TN-09) before the Governor Bill Lee signed the newly redrawn districts into law.
As part of the redistricting legislation, candidates must refile or file a notice that they no longer intend to run by Friday. In his video, Pearson confirmed he intends to run in the same district, despite most analysts saying it now leans overwhelmingly Republican.
Last Friday night at Camden Yards, the Baltimore Orioles had a Tupac Shakur bobblehead night. You remember Tupac? The notorious “gangsta” rapper who was killed in a 1996 drive-by in Las Vegas? Yes, that Tupac, whose life involved gangs, guns, killing, and hard time for sexual abuse. So much for family-friendly nights at the old ballpark. Wholesomeness doesn’t put butts in seats like honoring a dead thug -- not in gang-plagued Baltimore, anyway.
Paying homage to Tupac seems fitting for Baltimore, a dilapidating city scarred by all sorts of crime. Kudos to Orioles’ execs who dreamt up the promo. They certainly know their market. The giveaway was wildly successful. Expected demand
The point of a republic isn’t to enforce all the most brilliant ideas. It’s to not let one arrogant and selfish group bulldoze all the others. It’s the belief that if any group oversteps its boundaries, the pain itself (and the ensuing anger) should lead the other people to fix it.
In other words, the real question, today, in our republic, is whether stupid people should be allowed to cheat.
Gerrymandering is cheating. And our states have been gerrymandered badly for a long time — most usually to benefit Democrats. But when Texas accused Democrats of leaving the border open, thus flooding Texas with illegal aliens
Annals of Dog Rape
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The Twitchy post “Kristof screws the pooch” takes up the matter of Nicholas Kristof and the alleged Israeli rape dogs at the heart of Kristof’s long New York Times column. Kristof’s column was published the day before the appearance of the report of Israel’s specially appointed Civil Commission on Crimes by Hamas against Women and Children. Silenced No More set forth the commission’s findings of Hamas’s systematic use of sexual violence, rape, and “kinocide” (systematic targeting and destruction of families) during and after 10/7 attack.
Kristof purported to report a scandal shaming Israeli authorities. The scandal appears to be of the backfiring kind.
Despite being newly empowered by the Callais v. Louisiana Supreme Court ruling, South Carolina’s Republican-controlled Senate rejected moving ahead with a redistricting plan that would have likely unseated the state’s sole Democrat in Congress, Rep. Jim Clyburn.
On Tuesday, the state Senate voted by a 29-17 margin to allow for the General Assembly to work on redistricting ahead of the 2026 elections. This was short of the necessary two-thirds threshold, with five Republican senators defecting.