President Donald Trump confirmed Friday that he will not attend his eldest son&#8217;s wedding, opting instead to remain at the White House to focus on official duties.
Donald Trump Jr. is set to wed Palm Beach socialite Bettina Anderson in a small ceremony on a private island in the Bahamas this weekend.
&#8220;While I very much wanted to be with my son, Don Jr., and the newest member of the Trump Family, his soon to be wife, Bettina, circumstances pertaining to Government, and my love for the United States of America, do not allow me to do so,&#8221; Trump <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/116619340468924220">posted</a> on Truth Social.
&#8220;I feel it is important for me to remain in Washington, D.C., at the White House during this important time. Congratulations to Don and Bettina!&#8221;
The couple is already legally married, Reuters reported, citing a marriage license filed Thursday in Palm Beach County, Florida. Trump Jr., 48, and Anderson, 39, became engaged in December and had reportedly considered holding the ceremony at the White House before choosing a more low-key venue.
President Trump told reporters on Thursday that he would &#8220;try and make it,&#8221; but acknowledged, &#8220;this is not good timing for me.&#8221;
&#8220;I have a thing called Iran and other things,&#8221; Trump said, referring to ongoing tensions and diplomatic discussions involving the Middle East.
&#8220;That&#8217;s one I can&#8217;t win on. If I do attend, I get killed. If I don&#8217;t attend, I get killed,&#8221; he added, suggesting the media would criticize him regardless of his decision.
&#8220;Hopefully they&#8217;re going to have a great marriage,&#8221; the president continued.
Trump Jr. was previously married to former model and actress Vanessa Trump for 12 years before they divorced in 2018. They share five children together. Vanessa recently <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/vanessa-trump-reveals-breast-cancer-diagnosis">revealed</a> she has been diagnosed with breast cancer.
He later became engaged to Kimberly Guilfoyle, who was previously married to California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom from 2001 to 2006. Trump Jr. and Guilfoyle broke up in 2024.
Virginia Kruta contributed to this report.
&nbsp;

President Trump Returns To White House From Florida

Trump Makes Tough Call On Don Jr.’s Bahamas Wedding

Bahamas

Donald Trump

Donald Trump Jr.

Executive

Kimberly Guilfoyle

Politics

Wedding

Ross Barkan, the reporter who wrote a hit piece on The Daily Wire and then came under investigation for plagiarism, hired Zohran Mamdani to manage his failed state Senate campaign in 2018.
The left-wing writer appears torn between journalism and political activism, drawing ideological inspiration from democratic socialist Mayor Mamdani.
“I met him at the end of 2017 when I was <a href="https://medium.com/@RossBarkan/why-im-running-for-office-f7593c2a1615">running for state Senate</a> in New York City, in Brooklyn, where I grew up. I was strongly contemplating pivoting from journalism to running for office,” <a href="https://www.currentaffairs.org/news/ross-barkan-on-zohran-mamdani-arresting-netanyahu-and-where-dsa-goes-from-here">Barkan told Current Events,</a> a magazine about politics and culture. 
Barkan, who unsuccessfully ran for a New York state office in 2018, highlighted the influence Mamdani had as his campaign manager.
“It was a progressive campaign. It was one that was proudly pro-Palestine, certainly — and I was willing to campaign in mosques and court the neighborhood’s Arab community, which few politicians were willing to do. And so for all those reasons, he hopped on board, and the rest, in its own way, was history,” Barkan said. 
“We got to know each other quite well that summer,” he said.   
Despite receiving the endorsement of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), Barkan <a href="https://ballotpedia.org/Ross_Barkan">lost the September 13th Democratic primary</a> by double digits. 
New York Magazine is investigating writer Barkan for plagiarism after he seemingly copied his lede paragraph from another publication, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/ross-barkan-new-york-magazine-npr-plagiarism-investigation?author=The+Daily+Wire&amp;category=undefined&amp;elementPosition=161&amp;row=3&amp;rowHeadline=Latest+News&amp;rowType=Vertical+Carousel&amp;title=Reporter+Behind+Anti-Daily+Wire+Hit+Piece+Now+Facing+Plagiarism+Investigation">The Daily Wire previously reported.</a> 
Following publication of the story, Drew Harwell took to social media to complain that Barkan’s lede was strikingly similar to one he had written days earlier.
Following the backlash, New York Magazine updated Barkan’s story to credit Drew Harwell, a move that appeared to concede the overlap. NPR later reported at least two other cases in which Barkan allegedly stole paragraphs from The Intercept and Compact Magazine.
New York Magazine spokesperson Lauren Starke <a href="https://www.npr.org/2026/05/17/nx-s1-5824503/new-york-magazine-review-ross-barkan">told NPR</a> that the magazine is “conducting a review of the writer’s prior work.”
Instead of disputing the plagiarism accusations, Barkan argued online that attribution justified his use of others’ material.
“I am allowed, as a columnist building on *his* reporting, to cite facts. Especially when he’s credited,” Barkan said of the Compact Magazine incident.
“I have written hundreds upon hundreds of columns, essays, and pieces of journalism in my career. I stand by my record,” he said in a statement to NPR, adding that this is “all quite ridiculous.”

“Trump – Year One” Presidential Panel

Scandal-Plagued Journo Who Wrote Hit Piece On Daily Wire Has Old Ties To Mamdani

News

Ross Barkan

The Daily Wire

New York Magazine is investigating writer Ross Barkan for plagiarism after he seemingly ripped off his lede paragraph in a recent hit piece against The Daily Wire.
Barkan recently joined the new liberal media trend of writing rumor-laden attacks on The Daily Wire. After his story was published, Washington Post reporter Drew Harwell took to X to complain that Barkan&#8217;s lede was almost identical to the one he had published days earlier.
After Barkan was called out, New York Magazine updated his story to credit Harwell, seemingly acknowledging that it was a direct rip-off. NPR then identified at least two other instances where Barkan ripped off entire paragraphs, this time from The Intercept and Compact Magazine.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
The lede of our Shapiro story on Saturday and the lede of the <a href="https://twitter.com/NYMag?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NYMag</a> story today<a href="https://t.co/P20BkpGhqW">https://t.co/P20BkpGhqW</a><a href="https://t.co/Ha03RLE3qs">https://t.co/Ha03RLE3qs</a> <a href="https://t.co/64OzrvFcRS">pic.twitter.com/64OzrvFcRS</a>
— Drew Harwell (@drewharwell) <a href="https://twitter.com/drewharwell/status/2054927246788304931?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 14, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
New York Magazine spokesperson Lauren Starke <a href="https://www.npr.org/2026/05/17/nx-s1-5824503/new-york-magazine-review-ross-barkan">told NPR</a> that the magazine is &#8220;conducting a review of the writer&#8217;s prior work.&#8221;
Rather than deny that he is a plagiarist, Barkan argued online that it&#8217;s okay because he credited the people he was stealing from.
&#8220;I am allowed, as a columnist building on *his* reporting, to cite facts. Especially when he&#8217;s credited,&#8221; Barkan said of the Compact Magazine incident.
He further attempted to brush the issue under the rug in a statement to NPR: &#8220;I have written hundreds upon hundreds of columns, essays, and pieces of journalism in my career. I stand by my record.&#8221;
He added that this is &#8220;all quite ridiculous.&#8221;
Barkan has been a prolific writer, and liberal, in the New York scene. In addition to New York Magazine, he has also written for The New York Times, and in 2018 ran for state senate (but lost) as a Democrat.

Reporter Behind Anti-Daily Wire Hit Piece Now Facing Plagiarism Investigation

Media

New York Magazine

An American intelligence assessment leaked to Axios Sunday claims the communist regime in Cuba is plotting an attack against Guantanamo Bay, American ships, and maybe even Key West, Florida.
The Cuban government has amassed more than 300 drones and has since started discussing using them to attack those sites, <a href="https://www.axios.com/2026/05/17/us-military-drones-cuba">Axios reported</a>, citing the intelligence. Axios did not provide any further specifics on the nature of the intelligence or where it came from.
Momentum toward a U.S. military action in Cuba appears to be surging, with the Axios report serving as the latest piece of the puzzle. Thursday, CIA Director John Ratcliffe traveled to Cuba to warn them against attacking the United States, and told government officials that they must abandon their authoritarian system to receive sanctions relief.
The day before, it was reported the Department of Justice plans to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/doj-plans-to-drop-the-hammer-on-former-cuban-president-as-trump-pressures-communist-nation?author=Brecca+Stoll&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=DOJ+Plans+To+Drop+The+Hammer+On+Former+Cuban+President+As+Trump+Pressures+Communist+Nation">unseal an indictment</a> against Cuban leader Raúl Castro for his alleged role in the 1996 shootdown of two humanitarian planes from Miami. The legal tactic mirrors that which was used against deposed Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro, who the U.S. captured in January after indicting him for his role in narcotics trafficking.
U.S. officials say Cuba has been amassing drones for several years from Russia and Iran, with an increased number coming from Russia in the last month. An estimated 5,000 Cuban soldiers have fought for Russia in its invasion of Ukraine, with the Russian government paying Cuba a reported $25,000 per soldier. An official told Axios that the U.S. had intercepted communications that indicate the Cubans are trying to learn from Iran&#8217;s tactics in their ongoing war with the United States.
&#8220;When we think about those types of technologies being that close, and a range of bad actors from terror groups to drug cartels to Iranians to the Russians, it&#8217;s concerning,&#8221; a U.S. official told Axios.

Cuba Celebrates 65th Anniversary Of Fidel Castro’s Attack On The Moncada Barracks

US Intel Claims Cuba Is Plotting Attack Against American Homeland

Cuba

Military

Turning Point USA CEO Erika Kirk marked her fifth wedding anniversary Friday with a touching tribute to her late husband, Charlie Kirk, who was assassinated during a speaking event in September.
In a social media post, the widow reflected on their relationship and how she hopes to share their legacy with their daughter and son.
&#8220;Even though our kids won&#8217;t see our love &#8216;grow old together&#8217; from an earthly stand point; they&#8217;ll see it from a Heavenly one,&#8221; she posted on X. &#8220;Happy Anniversary to the love of my life.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Even though our kids won’t see our love “grow old together” from an earthly stand point; they’ll see it from a Heavenly one. And I’ll tell them of our love story any moment I can.
Happy Anniversary to the love of my life. <a href="https://t.co/PAXTyxm7ly">pic.twitter.com/PAXTyxm7ly</a>
— Erika Kirk (@MrsErikaKirk) <a href="https://twitter.com/MrsErikaKirk/status/2052823537329770691?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 8, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
An emotional video accompanying the post features a montage of the couple in romantic settings and family photos, set to voiceovers from Charlie, Erika, and their daughter, Gigi, who was born in 2022.
The video begins with Erika saying, &#8220;I want to show you some pictures of mommy and daddy, and I want to tell you a story.&#8221;
A child&#8217;s voice later says, &#8220;I love you so much, daddy. I miss you, Dada.&#8221;
The montage ends with Charlie and Erika expressing their love for one another.
After Charlie was fatally shot on September 10, 2025, Erika, as her husband wished, took over Turning Point USA. She has since urged Americans to live according to the values her husband promoted, including a focus on faith.
Tyler Robinson, 23, has been charged in connection with the killing. During a memorial service in September, Erika publicly forgave him.
&#8220;That young man, that young man,&#8221; she said. &#8220;On the cross, our savior said, &#8216;Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.&#8217; That man, that young man, I forgive him. I forgive him because it was what Christ did, and is what Charlie would do.&#8221;
Since taking over Turning Point USA, Erika has become a more visible public figure, continuing to promote her husband&#8217;s political and religious values on the world stage despite aggressive smear campaigns from online commentators.
&nbsp;

Turning Point Inaugural-Eve Ball Held In Washington, D.C.

Erika Kirk Reflects On Love And Loss In Anniversary Tribute To Charlie

Charlie Kirk

Erika Kirk

Turning Point USA

A suicide note possibly written by the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein was unsealed by a federal judge on Wednesday.
The handwritten note, which is unsigned, undated, and unverified, was found by Epstein’s former cellmate, Nicholas Tartaglione. It had been sealed as part of Tartaglione’s case. The former police officer faces charges related to multiple murders.
Parts of the message are indecipherable.
“They investigated me for month – found NOTHING!!!” the note reads in part.
“It is a treat to be able to choose ones time to say goodbye.”
“Watcha want me to do – bust out cryin!!”
“NO FUN – NOT WORTH IT!!”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
A federal judge has released a suicide note purportedly written by Jeffrey Epstein that was sealed for years as part of the criminal case of his cellmate
“They investigated me for months — FOUND NOTHING!!!” the note begins, adding that the result was charges going back many… <a href="https://t.co/rNOOzErXDw">pic.twitter.com/rNOOzErXDw</a>
— Ian Miles Cheong (@ianmiles) <a href="https://twitter.com/ianmiles/status/2052165868176748812?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 6, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
U.S. District Judge Kenneth Karas of the Southern District of New York ordered the document unsealed, siding with a request from The New York Times.
The Department of Justice said in court filings that it did not know whether the note is authentic.
“There appears to be a strong public interest in the circumstances surrounding Epstein’s death as described in the unsealing motion,” the DOJ said, <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2026/05/06/politics/jeffrey-epstein-purported-suicide-note">according</a> to CNN.
The unsealing comes after the release of batches of the &#8220;Epstein files&#8221; connected to Epstein&#8217;s sex trafficking case. Large batches of records have been released in stages over the past year due to legal and congressional pressure, but many remain redacted and disputed.
The rollout has been controversial, and no verified &#8220;client list&#8221; has been revealed. The disclosures have drawn attention to Epstein&#8217;s past associations with prominent figures. President Donald Trump, who was photographed with Epstein years before his arrest, has said the two had a falling out and that Epstein was later barred from Mar-a-Lago.

Possible Epstein Suicide Note Emerges After Years Under Seal

Speaking at the White House Easter lunch today, President Trump told Erika Kirk, the widow of TPUSA founder Charlie Kirk, to sue those who have been defaming her.
Seeing her at a table, Trump declared, “Hello, darling! Wow. There’s a good table. I like that table. You’re doing well, right? I think you should sue ‘em. I told her, ‘You oughta sue some of these’ — They’re so jealous of Erika. I said, ‘You oughta sue their —’ I can say it; you’re not allowed to say this; you have to be nicer. Sue their ass off.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
🚨 BREAKING: President Trump just said Erika Kirk should SUE the people who keep defaming her
&quot;Sue their A*S OFF!&quot;
&quot;I think you should SUE &#39;EM! I told her, you ought to SUE some of these people.&quot;
&quot;They&#39;re so JEALOUS of Erika.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/AFrmcrLqd9">pic.twitter.com/AFrmcrLqd9</a>
&mdash; Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) <a href="https://twitter.com/EricLDaugh/status/2039457369269194825?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 1, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Erika Kirk has been under assault on social media since her husband was murdered on September 10, 2025. Last December, The Daily Wire <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/erika-kirk-rebukes-the-mind-virus-conspiracy-theories-about-her-and-turning-point-usa?utm_source=chatgpt.com">reported</a>:
<blockquote>
Turning Point USA CEO Erika Kirk has reached her “breaking point” over the conspiracy theories circulating about the assassination of her husband, TPUSA founder Charlie Kirk.
Kirk torched conspiracy theorists on Wednesday in an appearance on Fox News while promoting her late husband’s posthumously published <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Stop-Name-God-Honoring-Transform/dp/B0FPPV48PB">book</a>, “Stop In The Name Of God.” She addressed rumors about her, her friends, and her organization, saying that empty hypothesizing has led to a torrent of death threats and harassment against them.
“Call me what you want, go down that rabbit hole, whatever. But when you go after my family, my Turning Point USA family, my ‘Charlie Kirk Show’ family, when you go after the people that I love and you’re making hundreds and thousands of dollars every single episode going after the people that I love, because somehow they’re in on this? No,” said Kirk.
“This is righteous anger, because this is not okay. It’s not healthy. This is a mind virus,” she added. &#8230;
“You know what I thought? I thought, these people are human, we’re all grieving in our own way, and they are trying to find the answer to something that happened that was so evil. They are trying so hard, and I get that. We’re doing the same.”
“My team are not machines and they’re not robots. They are human. We have more death threats on our team and our side than I have ever seen. I have kidnapping threats. You name it, we have it, and my poor team is exhausted,” she added. “Every time they bring this back up, what are we supposed to do? Relive that trauma all over again? They watched my husband get murdered.”
</blockquote>

Trump Assails Violence From Left, Awards Kirk Medal Of Freedom

‘Sue Their Ass Off’: Trump Urges Erika Kirk To Fire Back At Critics Defaming Her

A top intelligence official is stepping down over opposition to strikes on Iran, claiming the United States was pressured into the war by &#8220;Israel and its powerful American lobby.&#8221;
Joe Kent, the Director of the National Counterterrorism Center, announced he was leaving his position because President Trump was waging war against Iran at the behest of Israel. He said he &#8220;cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran.&#8221;
“Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation, and it is clear that we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby,” he insisted in a letter to the president, parroting claims that Trump and his top officials have denied.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
After much reflection, I have decided to resign from my position as Director of the National Counterterrorism Center, effective today.
I cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran. Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation, and it is clear that we started this… <a href="https://t.co/prtu86DpEr">pic.twitter.com/prtu86DpEr</a>
&mdash; Joe Kent (@joekent16jan19) <a href="https://twitter.com/joekent16jan19/status/2033897242986209689?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 17, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Former Trump officials immediately responded to Kent, a military veteran who was given an administration post after losing a congressional election, labeling him a &#8220;crazed egomaniac.&#8221;
“Joe Kent is a crazed egomaniac who was often at the center of national security leaks, while rarely (never?) producing any actual work,&#8221; said Taylor Budowich, the former deputy White House chief of staff. &#8220;He spent all of his time working to subvert the chain of command and undermine the President of the United States.&#8221;
&#8220;This isn’t some principled resignation—he just wanted to make a splash before getting canned. What a loser.”
The Trump administration has clearly laid out its decision-making process, revealing the Iranian statements during negotiations that led it to strike.
Two weeks ago, Trump&#8217;s top negotiator Steve Witkoff laid out the sheer proximity of Iran to a nuclear breakout — a reality the Iranians bragged about during the talks. Witkoff outlined what he described as Iran&#8217;s breakout capacity.
According to Witkoff, Iran currently possesses roughly 10,000 kilograms of enriched material, including approximately 460 kilograms enriched to 60% purity and another 1,000 kilograms at 20%. He argued that the 60% stockpile could be further enriched to weapons-grade levels within days.
Witkoff said Iranian negotiators “said to us directly with no shame that they controlled 460 kilograms&#8221; enriched to 60%, and they were aware that such material could theoretically be converted into enough weapons-grade uranium for as many as 11 bombs.
&#8220;They were proud of it,&#8221; he said. &#8220;They were proud that they had evaded all sorts of oversight protocols to get to a place where they could deliver 11 nuclear bombs.&#8221;
Dan Bongino, the former deputy director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, also released an apparent response to Kent&#8217;s claims, though it did not directly name him.
&#8220;The Iranian theocracy was an imminent threat,&#8221; Bongino said. &#8220;They were committed to our destruction and anyone telling you otherwise is misleading you.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
The Iranian theocracy was an imminent threat. They were committed to our destruction and anyone telling you otherwise is misleading you. Between their lethal plotting against US targets, their continued efforts to shield their attempt to reconstitute their nuclear program using…
&mdash; Dan Bongino (@dbongino) <a href="https://twitter.com/dbongino/status/2033912867146056046?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 17, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
On social media, a Gold Star wife who says her husband was killed by an Iranian strike responded forcefully to Kent&#8217;s claims.
&#8220;Gold Star wife here. My husband didn’t die for Israel,&#8221; said Sharrell Anne, who says her husband was killed by an Iranian strike in 2007. &#8220;We didn’t suddenly stumble into this because of Israel. Our service members have been in the crosshairs of Iranian-backed terror networks for years. That’s the reality families like mine have lived with. So spare me the talking point that this is &#8216;Israel’s war.&#8217; Some of us have already paid for it in American blood.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Gold Star wife here.
My husband didn’t die for Israel. He died because this war has been targeting Americans for decades. Long before most people ever started paying attention.
We didn’t suddenly stumble into this because of Israel. Our service members have been in the…
— SharrellAnne (@SharrellAnne2) <a href="https://twitter.com/SharrellAnne2/status/2033904245083128229?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 17, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&nbsp;
Kent’s resignation should not be surprising, as he has long been on the record in opposition to military action against Iran. In 2024, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2YomjmWIF7U">appearing</a> with Tucker Carlson, he predicted that the Iranian people would rally around the regime and made clear that he thought striking Iran would be a disaster.
“If we start taking strikes inside of Iran itself, that is exactly what the Iranian regime wants,&#8221; Kent said. &#8220;They will benefit from that. If we start attacking Iran the way that we attacked Iraq, the way we attacked Afghanistan, then the Iranian government, the Iranian mullahs, the Ayatollah, the people will rally around them in support.”
“We can&#8217;t just let the Iranians attack and kill our people,” he declared. “But at the same time, we know if we go to war with Iran, this is going to be a disaster.”
Asked what the long-term effects of a war with Iran would be on the United States, he answered, “Immediately, it would be very bloody. I have no doubt that we could probably defeat some of their air defense and go in there and have another shock and awe campaign. But again, like we saw how the shock and awe campaign in Iraq really didn&#8217;t actually work in the long run. &#8230; if we start conducting strikes in Iran, everyone in Iran will rally around their leader. This will make them even more revolutionary &#8230; and then we will have Iranian proxies throughout the entire region that will be conducting attacks.”
Kent has been closely tied to Trump&#8217;s Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, previously serving as her chief of staff. Gabbard is set to testify to the Senate tomorrow.

House Homeland 12/11/25

Top Intel Official Joe Kent Quits Over Iran Strikes, Claims Israel Controls Trump

Iran

Israel

Joe Kent

In a suspected cyberattack, a shadowy hacking collective has reportedly published the personal information of hundreds of U.S. federal employees, including agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Department of Justice (DOJ), and the FBI.
The leak, first reported by <a href="https://www.404media.co/hackers-dox-hundreds-of-dhs-ice-fbi-and-doj-officials/">404 Media</a>, allegedly includes sensitive personal data such as full names, office addresses, and in some cases, home addresses. More than 680 DHS officials, 190 DOJ staff, and 170 FBI employees were affected. Some of the data was shared via encrypted messaging apps like Telegram, where hackers openly mocked their targets and even referenced bounties allegedly offered by Mexican cartels for information on federal agents.
“Mexican Cartels hmu we dropping all the doxes,” one hacker posted, appearing to demand “1m” dollars in exchange for the data. Another post provocatively asked, “U guys want IRS next?” suggesting further leaks may be forthcoming.
The perpetrators behind this breach are believed to be part of a larger, loosely affiliated cybercrime community referred to as “The Com.” This sprawling collective includes members of several groups, such as Scattered Spider, 0ktapus, and LAPSUS$, which have been behind major ransomware and data theft campaigns targeting companies like MGM Resorts, Coinbase, and Twilio.
These groups are “some of the most infamous English-speaking hacking groups operating today,” <a href="https://mashable.com/article/hacker-group-doxxes-ice-fbi-doj-agents">according</a> to Mashable.
The Com has become known for recruiting minors and young adults — often English-speaking teens — and leveraging their knowledge of Western systems and social engineering tactics. This group operates in digital subcultures that glorify online crime, where members boast about scams and violent tactics, including swatting, “brickings” (hiring people to vandalize homes), and robberies.
Join us now during our exclusive Deal of the Decade. Get everything for $7 a month. Not as fans. As fighters. Go to <a href="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">DailyWire.com/Subscribe</a> to join now.
Scattered Spider, one of the arms of The Com, has reportedly <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2024/11/23/the-rise-and-fall-of-the-scattered-spider-hackers/">collaborated</a> with Russian ransomware gangs like ALPHV/BlackCat. These partnerships blend Western hackers’ fluency in English and social manipulation with the Russians’ technical tools and experience in laundering ransom payments. Their alliance was behind the devastating $100 million <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/scattered-spider-blackcat-hackers-ransomware-team-up-60-minutes/">ransomware attack</a> on MGM Resorts in 2023.
According to experts, this doxing incident marks a shift from financially motivated ransomware to direct, politically charged attacks on U.S. government personnel. It also comes amid ongoing concerns from cybersecurity officials that groups like the Com represent an escalating national security threat, especially when working with foreign adversaries.
Authorities have arrested several individuals connected to the Com and its subgroups, including a 17-year-old in the UK and several Americans in their early 20s. However, many remain at large, and experts warn that the decentralized nature of these groups — operating across encrypted apps and online gaming platforms — makes them exceptionally difficult to dismantle.
As investigations continue, cybersecurity experts caution that this leak could lead to real-world harm against federal employees and may signal a broader trend of hackers weaponizing personal data for political, ideological, or financial gain.

Male Hacker Working On The Laptop And Computer

Hackers Dox Hundreds Of Federal Agents In Suspected Cyberattack

Hackers

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)

Daily Wire hosts discussed Generation Z’s apparent rejection of radical gender theories during the premiere of &#8220;Friendly Fire&#8221; on DailyWire+ Thursday night, debating whether the young generation is headed in a positive direction.
Daily Wire host Michael Knowles kicked off the segment on transgenderism by citing a recent study from the University of Buckingham on &#8220;The Decline of Trans and Queer Identity among Young Americans.&#8221; The study showed that in the past two years, there has been a steady decline among undergrad students who identify as &#8220;nonbinary.&#8221;
Knowles kicked it over to the newest Daily Wire host, Isabel Brown, asking, &#8220;Isabel, I need to know: is your generation not gay anymore?&#8221;
Twenty-eight-year-old Brown, who wrote the book, &#8220;The End of the Alphabet: How Gen Z Can Save America,&#8221; replied, saying, “I have been trying to warn the world that Gen Z, the kids, were alright for a very long time. Literally a year and a half ago, I was laughed off set at every TV station, every radio station, every podcast when I presented my book that Gen Z was going to save America — that no one wanted to be a lame gay chick that Disney wanted us to be.&#8221;
&#8220;None of the information out of this new study shocks me,&#8221; she added. &#8220;The idea of the cultural fad of the transgender cult … has already been disillusioned thanks to people boldly speaking the truth.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/michaeljknowles?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@michaeljknowles</a>: “Isabel, I need to know, is your generation not gay anymore?”<a href="https://twitter.com/theisabelb?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@theisabelb</a>: “I have been trying to warn the world that Gen Z , the kids, were alright for a very long time…The idea of the cultural fad of the transgender cult…has already been disillusioned.” <a href="https://t.co/kXrLovagw4">pic.twitter.com/kXrLovagw4</a>
— Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDailyWire/status/1978978239725899866?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 17, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Daily Wire host Matt Walsh, whose documentary &#8220;<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/videos/what-is-a-woman">What is a Woman?</a>&#8221; helped spark the nationwide pushback on radical gender theory, warned people not to put too much stock in the University of Buckingham, adding that radical gender identities are still more popular among Gen Z than any other generation. Walsh, however, said that he does believe studies and anecdotal observations show &#8220;the trans and &#8216;nonbinary&#8217; thing is declining, it&#8217;s losing steam.&#8221;
&#8220;And that was inevitable and the reason why is because no one ever really believed it to begin with,&#8221; Walsh added.
Join us now during our exclusive Deal of the Decade. Get everything for $7 a month. Not as fans. As fighters. Go to <a href="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/">DailyWire.com/Subscribe</a> to join now.
He argued that the culture has shifted in recent years, and people are no longer afraid to speak out about the insanity of the transgender identity.
&#8220;I&#8217;m not surprised that we&#8217;re seeing this trend. I don&#8217;t know that we&#8217;re going to see it extend over to homosexuality, but I do think that with trans and &#8216;nonbinary&#8217; that it&#8217;s on its way out,&#8221; Walsh said.
Daily Wire host Andrew Klavan said that he agrees with Brown that Gen Z &#8220;will actually save the world.&#8221;
&#8220;They are not the way the two generations between the Boomers and them are,&#8221; Klavan said. &#8220;They aren&#8217;t hostile, women dress like women, the men look perfectly comfortable being men, they don&#8217;t radiate the same kind of hostility that I get from the people who are around like 50. Somehow feminism seems to have lost its grip on them, and they seem just much more comfortable in their skins, so I&#8217;m hopeful.&#8221;
Daily Wire Editor Emeritus Ben Shapiro chimed in, saying that transgenderism became the &#8220;ultimate victimhood status,&#8221; but now that victimhood status is going out of vogue.
&#8220;The victimhood status went away because of things like what Matt did and what we did, obviously, here at The Daily Wire over the course of the last ten years, and sanity reasserted itself,&#8221; Shapiro said. &#8220;And you&#8217;re no longer considered an inherent victim because you&#8217;re a man who claims to be a woman, or the opposite. In fact, in some cases, you may in fact be an aggressor as we have seen from time to time.&#8221;
Shapiro, however, was not optimistic about the future of Gen Z and warned that many young Americans would move on from radical gender theory and adopt full-blown Marxism, finding their identity in their perceived economic disadvantages. After finding victimhood status in race and sex, Gen Z will move to financial situation, Shapiro argued.
&#8220;I&#8217;m optimistic that people are going to move away from crazier, &#8216;I&#8217;m sexually identifying as a cat&#8217; routine, but I think they are going to increasingly identify as somehow economically dispossessed and then call for massive government interventionism, which is mostly what the [Zohran] Mamdani moment is about,&#8221; Shapiro continued.
&#8220;And that, by the way, is what you&#8217;re seeing mostly in the polls for young people,&#8221; he said. &#8220;Young people are increasingly hot on socialism and communism, they&#8217;re increasingly hot on massive government interventionism, they don&#8217;t really like capitalism very much, so I think that the next victimhood status is going to go back to classic Marx victimhood status.&#8221;

Friendly Fire

Daily Wire Hosts Unpack The Death Of Radical Gender Theory, Whether There’s Hope For Gen Z

Andrew Klavan

Ben Shapiro

Daily Wire

Isabel Brown

Matt Walsh

Michael Knowles

In the digital age, censorship is the central tool of authoritarianism.
Sadly, that became the story in the United States, where an unholy alliance of government, social media platforms, and corporations conspired to control what information reached the American public.
That’s the story laid out in <a href="https://bigpicturestream.com/god-complex">God Complex</a>, a new documentary from Big Picture Originals that sheds light on the extent to which the censorship machine took hold of society.
The film, set to premiere on Thursday night, features testimony from experts such as Mike Benz, one of the leading crusaders against censorship, top journalists like John Solomon and Peter Schweizer, and Xi Van Fleet, who warns of the parallels between our current moment and the censorship effort in Mao’s China.
The film traces the beginning of the censorship effort to President Donald Trump’s first election in 2016, in which he won by dominating social media and the digital space in a way that had never been seen before in politics. The response to his triumph was to control information in a way that had never been attempted before, by creating labels like “disinformation” and “misinformation.”
Those labels, the same labels used by despots like Joseph Stalin, would be leveled against political commentators and news outlets — including The Daily Wire — to control information. It was irresponsible, for example, to let Americans hear information about COVID-19 that may have been counter to what the government wanted them to believe. Or to let Big Tech companies serve Americans with news stories from outlets that were challenging these government narratives.
The Daily Wire has been at the forefront of the fight against what Benz calls the Censorship Industrial Complex. On many fronts, that complex is being torn down — at least temporarily.
In the wake of the 2024 election, Facebook <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/massive-maga-win-facebook-reverses-its-censorship">announced</a> that it would end all its censorship practices, which were pushed on it by the Biden administration and were leveled against The Daily Wire harder than anyone.
“In 2021, our impressions from my personal page, which was likely the most prominent page on Facebook, went from a whopping one billion impressions a month to less than 100 million impressions a month — a 90% reduction in impressions in reach,” Daily Wire editor emeritus Ben Shapiro explained this year. “That was a deliberate move by Facebook to crush political content on the platform in 2021.”
YouTube, which not only suppressed videos but also kicked many off its platform entirely for misinformation, said it would <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/jim-jordan-celebrates-youtube-ending-conservative-censorship-a-win-for-free-expression">no longer censor conservatives</a>. Like Facebook, it said it was pressured to do so by the Biden administration. Twitter’s censorship became so bad that billionaire<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/breaking-elon-musk-officially-takes-over-twitter-as-sale-is-now-final-top-execs-fired-report-says"> Elon Musk had to buy the platform</a> and rebrand it as X.
The censorship regime also extended into the advertising industry, which colluded to keep ad dollars away from companies spreading so-called disinformation. It created the label “brand safety” and used it as another way to control speech.
Shapiro <a href="https://www.congress.gov/118/meeting/house/117518/witnesses/HHRG-118-JU00-Wstate-ShapiroB-20240710-U9.pdf">testified</a> about the practice before Congress, and now that effort is <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/leftist-censorship-cartel-garm-disbands-following-musk-lawsuit-ben-shapiro-testimony">on its deathbed</a> as well.
The film argues that the book on the censorship industrial complex will never be closed. We are always one election away from another round of backdoor censorship attempts. We didn’t know Facebook was being pushed to censor conservatives, it’s worth mentioning, until years after it happened.
“Once you get into the business of having a government tell people what they can&#8217;t say, there&#8217;s almost never a case where that turns back,” Mike Benz said in an interview after the premiere.
The film premieres at 8 p.m. on Thursday.

Censorship

GOD COMPLEX: New Film Digs Into Origins Of Censorship Industrial Complex

US-POLITICS-TRUMP

LIVE UPDATES: Charlie Kirk’s College Campus Tour Lives On, With Michael Knowles

Menu

Daily Wire News