President Donald Trump called for Jack Smith to be prosecuted after the former special counsel was grilled by lawmakers for hours about his decision to bring charges against the president in the lead-up to the 2024 election.
Smith faced questions on Thursday from the House Judiciary Committee about whether his investigations into Trump were politically motivated. Smith’s investigation included snooping through the president’s phone records and casting a wide net on Republican lawmakers and Trump allies.
“Based on his testimony today, there is no question that Deranged Jack Smith should be prosecuted for his actions,” Trump <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/115940718914667214">posted</a> on Truth Social. “He destroyed the lives of many innocent people, which has been his history as a prosecutor. At a minimum, he committed large scale perjury!”
Smith led investigations into Trump related to the January 6 riot and the president’s handling of classified documents. As part of this investigation, the Biden administration <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/bidens-justice-department-took-unprecedented-action-against-trump-bondi-reveals?author=Leif+Le+Mahieu&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Biden’s+Justice+Department+Took+‘Unprecedented+Action’+Against+Trump%2C+Bondi+Reveals">turned over</a> Trump’s government-issued phone to Smith. Smith also subpoenaed all of Trump’s personal phone records.
Earlier on Thursday, Trump said that Smith was a “deranged animal” who should no longer be allowed to practice law.
“If he were a Republican, his license would be taken away from him, and far worse! Hopefully the Attorney General is looking at what he’s done, including some of the crooked and corrupt witnesses that he was attempting to use in his case against me. The whole thing was a Democrat SCAM — A big price should be paid by them for what they have put our Country through!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
According to the House Judiciary Committee, Smith <a href="https://x.com/JudiciaryGOP/status/2014330081619894394">approved</a> toll record subpoenas for members of Congress “without regard for whether the private communications were constitutionally protected.” Toll records show the length and time of phone calls in addition to who is speaking.
“Smith chose to target President Trump, and only President Trump, in his electors case—setting aside other targets so that he could secure an indictment of President Trump in advance of the election,” the House Judiciary Committee said ahead of the hearing.
Smith had four felony charges related to Trump’s actions following the 2020 election <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/i-persevered-against-all-odds-and-won-trump-celebrates-after-jack-smith-files-to-drop-charges?author=Zach+Jewell&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=‘I+Persevered%2C+Against+All+Odds%2C+And+Won’%3A+Trump+Celebrates+After+Jack+Smith+Files+To+Drop+Charges">dropped</a> in the weeks after the 2024 election, when Trump soundly defeated former Vice President Kamala Harris.
“It was a political hijacking, and a low point in the History of our Country that such a thing could have happened, and yet, I persevered, against all odds, and WON,” Trump said at the time as the charges were dropped.

Jack Smith House Hearing

Trump Calls For ‘Deranged’ Jack Smith To Be Prosecuted After Heated Hearing

Congress

Donald Trump

Executive

House Oversight Committee

Jack Smith

Politics

The House Oversight Committee voted on Monday to hold former President Bill Clinton and his wife, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, in contempt of Congress for refusing to comply with subpoenas — and eight Democrats voted against the measure.
The eight Democrats who voted against — meaning they voted to allow the Clintons to ignore the subpoenas without penalty — were Reps. Wesley Bell (D-MO), Shontel Brown (D-OH), Robert Garcia (D-CA), Ro Khanna (D-CA), Kweisi Mfume (D-MD), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Suhas Subramanyam (D-VA), and James Walkinshaw (D-VA).
George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley laid out his thoughts on the situation, naming the Democrats who voted against efforts to hold the Clintons to account.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
&#8230;Here were the eight Democrats who voted to allow the Clintons to disregard lawfully issued subpoenas from the Committee: Wesley Bell; Shontel Brown; Robert Garcia; Ro Khanna; Kweisi Mfume; Eleanor Holmes Norton; Suhas Subramanyam; and James Walkinsaw.
— Jonathan Turley (@JonathanTurley) <a href="https://twitter.com/JonathanTurley/status/2014315184953668025?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 22, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The Clintons were issued subpoenas after some of the most recent photos and documents released pursuant to the Epstein Files Transparency Act shed a rather unflattering light on former President Clinton&#8217;s associations with the late convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
As some noted, Rep. Ro Khanna has been particularly insistent on getting to the bottom of everything and getting a full release of the Epstein documents — a fact that caused several eyebrows to raise when he was also among the Democrats suggesting it was fine for the Clintons to disregard congressional subpoenas on the matter.
The Clintons <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/republicans-seek-to-hold-bill-clinton-in-contempt-after-he-refuses-to-testify-on-epstein">responded</a> to the subpoenas with a lengthy letter explaining why they should not have to comply with requests to submit to the legal process.
The Clintons said in the letter that they believed the subpoenas to be “invalid” and had already given Congress all the information they had.
“There is no plausible explanation for what you are doing other than partisan politics,” the letter said.
Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-KY) made it clear that he was not impressed, saying, “They have had five months to comply with this … We expect to hear from Bill Clinton, he is not above the law.”

Bill and Hillary Clinton

Here Are The Eight Democrats Who Voted To Allow The Clintons To Evade Justice

Bill Clinton

Epstein Files

Hillary Clinton

Jeffrey Epstein

Jonathan Turley

Media

Special counsel Jack Smith testified in a fiery, hours-long House Judiciary Committee hearing on Thursday, where he faced questions about whether or not the investigations into President Donald Trump were politically motivated.
Smith was the top prosecutor in the indictments of President Donald Trump over his alleged role in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot and a classified documents case. He was appointed to preside over the two investigations in November 2022 by then-Attorney General Merrick Garland during the Biden administration. Republicans questioned Smith on his investigation processes, while Democrats largely praised the work done by the prosecutor.
“Our investigation revealed that Donald Trump is the person who caused Jan 6, that it was foreseeable to him, and that he sought to exploit the violence,” Smith said in response to questions from Rep. Hank Johnson (D-GA).
“We followed the facts and we followed the law. Where that led us was to an indictment of an unprecedented criminal scheme to block the peaceful transition of power,” he added.
Johnson asked if the charges could be resurrected after Trump leaves office, however, Smith said “they were dismissed without prejudice” and said he cannot speak on whether the charges could be brought back.
Republicans took aim at the reported use of phone records of lawmakers, like Kevin McCarthy, in the investigation. For example, Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) said that his phone records were &#8220;indeed targeted&#8221; because of his communications with Rep. Scott Perry, which Smith said happened before he took over the investigation from his understanding. Roy asked if there were any limits to Smith&#8217;s investigation, saying it unfairly targeted conservatives and people who backed the president.
&#8220;To what end, would conversations between the Speaker of the U.S. House, second in line to be the president, and the president, on what basis would it be any of your business other than you believe there was a conspiracy without conspiracy as a basic premise?” Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) said to Smith.
&#8220;You, like the president’s men for Richard Nixon, went after your political enemies. Maybe they’re not your political enemies, but they sure as hell were Joe Biden&#8217;s political enemies, weren’t they? They were Harris&#8217; political enemies. They were the enemies of the president and you were their arm, weren’t you?” he added.
During Thursday&#8217;s hearing, while being questioned by Rep. Becca Balint (D-VT), Smith claimed he believes that the Justice Department will try to indict him in retaliation. Smith later said that the president wanted to &#8220;prey on party loyalty.&#8221;
&#8220;Our investigation involved interviewing and subpoenaing records of Republicans because that&#8217;s who Donald Trump sought to prey on to stay in office,&#8221; Smith said.
When The Daily Wire reached out to the White House for comment on the hearing, they referred to a Truth Social post from the president during the hearing.
“Deranged Jack Smith is being DECIMATED before Congress. It was over when they discussed his past failures and unfair prosecutions. He destroyed many lives under the guise of legitimacy. Jack Smith is a deranged animal, who shouldn’t be allowed to practice Law,” Trump wrote.
“If he were a Republican, his license would be taken away from him, and far worse! Hopefully the Attorney General is looking at what he’s done, including some of the crooked and corrupt witnesses that he was attempting to use in his case against me. The whole thing was a Democrat SCAM — A big price should be paid by them for what they have put our Country through!” he continued.
Other lines of questioning from Republicans also commented on perceived political bias in the investigations.
“You [were] unconstitutionally appointed. You breached the 60-day rule releasing this very partisan attack against the president right before the election. You tampered with evidence in the Mar-a-Lago case that you admitted to in court filings. You subpoenaed members of Congress and their phone records in violation of the Constitution, of current statute, you didn’t even let the court know these were members of Congress. How are we to assume otherwise this wasn’t political? Because it absolutely was,” Rep. Russell Fry (R-SC) said at one point.
Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY) fired back against the use of claims from Trump-appointed Judge Aileen Cannon, calling her “completely lawless.”
In addition, Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) slammed the witness testimony of former White House staffer Cassidy Hutchinson, saying, &#8220;That&#8217;s the degree the Left and Democrats were willing to go to get President Trump. Putting on the witness stand somebody everybody knows is making it up.&#8221; Smith said Hutchinson&#8217;s claims were &#8220;secondhand&#8221; accounts.
Smith spoke with lawmakers last month in a closed-door deposition. At the end of the hearing, Ranking Member Jamie Raskin (D-MD) suggested calling Smith back regarding &#8220;Volume Two&#8221; of his report, saying that the order from Judge Cannon may be lifted, allowing him to answer questions regarding that case.

US Special Counsel Jack Smith Statement

Special Counsel Jack Smith Faces Tough Questions In Fiery Congressional Hearing

justice department

The House Oversight Committee voted to recommend holding Bill and Hillary Clinton in contempt of Congress for not complying with subpoenas related to the Jeffrey Epstein probe.
The committee&#8217;s recommendation now goes to the full House for a vote, where the Republican majority seems inclined to vote yes. It is then up to the Trump Justice Department to decide if it will pursue a grand jury indictment against the Clintons, according to CBS News. The committee subpoenaed both Clintons after several photos of the former president surfaced in the Epstein files already released.
In a January 13 letter to Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, the Clintons said they have reason to believe the subpoenas are “legally invalid” and that they “tried to give [Comer] the little information [they] have.”
“We’ve done so because Mr. Epstein’s crimes were horrific,” the statement read, adding that “There is no plausible explanation for what you are doing other than partisan politics.”
Congress passed the &#8220;Epstein Files Transparency Act&#8221; in November by nearly unanimous margins in both chambers, and it was then signed into law by President Donald Trump. Democrats have argued that the pace of the files&#8217; release has been too slow.
In a lengthy markup hearing on Wednesday, there was a debate about the specifics of “acceptable terms,” as Comer phrased it, including whether or not there should be a recorded transcript of the Clintons&#8217; depositions.
“They have had five months to comply with this,” Comer said, noting the negotiations with the Clintons&#8217; attorneys.
&#8220;We expect to hear from Bill Clinton, he is not above the law,&#8221; he later said.
Prior to the hearing, Comer wrote on social media that “the Clintons’ lawyers made an untenable offer: that I travel to New York for a conversation with President Clinton only. No official transcript would be recorded and other Members of Congress would be barred from participating. I have rejected the Clintons’ ridiculous offer.”
“The Clintons’ latest demands make clear they believe their last name entitles them to special treatment,” the Kentucky congressman added.
Rep. Robert Garcia (D-CA), ranking member of the committee, argued that the “Clintons have not objected to a transcript.”
“Let’s talk to President Clinton, and let’s get a transcript of it, let’s have the committee there and the staff there and move forward,” the California Democrat added.
“They did object to a transcript Mr. Garcia, they did object to a transcript, they’re just now changing because they see that public opinion is not on their side,” Comer responded.
Democrats on the committee said that the decision to hold the possibility of holding the Clintons in contempt is political targeting, arguing that the same standard was not honored for other subpoenas issued.
“Attorney General Pam Bondi has violated the subpoena issued by this committee; we should be holding her in contempt to remain fair and to remain transparent, and so I ask that you do that if you want to be fair and care about justice for the victims here,” Rep. Yassamin Ansari (D-AZ) said during the hearing.
Comer responded, saying that ‘They have turned documents over,” and noted multiple times in the hearing that Bondi is expected to testify before the House Judiciary Committee next month, where she could be asked about the Epstein files process.
Rep. Summer Lee (D-PA) proposed an amendment to hold Bondi in civil contempt, saying she&#8217;s not against the effort to hold the Clintons &#8220;accountable&#8221; but argued that the contempt effort was being &#8220;fast-tracked.&#8221; Rep. Dave Min (D-CA) suggested civil enforcement of the subpoena instead, which Comer pushed back on, citing insight from legal counsel.
&#8220;If this committee wants to be taken seriously, we would be addressing all the bad actors in this investigation, not cherry-picking them for political points. The Justice Department needs to be held accountable for their non-compliance and their lack of transparency,&#8221; Lee said.
The amendments proposed by the Democrats ultimately failed to pass. Nine Democrats voted with Republicans to hold Bill Clinton in contempt. Three voted to hold Hillary Clinton in contempt.
The Clintons did not respond to a request for comment.

Clintons In The Hot Seat As Oversight Committee Recommends Contempt Charges Over Epstein Scandal

James Comer

A new poll indicates that the majority of Americans back President Donald Trump’s proposal to allow people to buy their own health insurance with direct funding from the government, as it is being mulled as a possible alternative to continuing Affordable Care Act subsidies.
OnMessage Public Strategies and the Insurance Watchdog Coalition asked 1,000 likely voters nationally their thoughts on a variety of health care issues from Jan. 15-18, including 59% who said they would back Trump’s health care pitch. A memo from the polling firm described it as a “center-right coalition” with that 59% being made up of 82% of Republicans and 51% of Independents. Twenty-eight percent opposed, 13% did not know or did not have an opinion.
Last week, Trump announced the “Great Healthcare Plan” pitch for Congress, as the president said in a video announcement last week that it “will truly make health care affordable again.”
The webpage for the policy states that it “stops sending big insurance companies billions in extra taxpayer-funded subsidy payments and instead sends that money directly to eligible Americans to allow them to buy the health insurance of their choice.”
Sixty-three percent of those polled said that health insurance companies should be the focus of policymakers “to solve the problems in health care” affecting them, with 13% saying pharmaceutical companies.
There was also 97% consensus on having “more transparency for health insurance companies so they can’t use secret rules or computer programs to decide who gets care and when” and that “health insurance pricing needs to be made more transparent so that patients know the cost for every appointment, procedure or prescription drug, allowing patients to make informed choices, driving down costs overall.”
In addition, 70% of those polled agreed with the premise that “health insurance companies should be forced to cover all drugs offered on the new government website without marking up the price,” in a specific reference to TrumpRx, a government website launched to help people find the lowest drug prices available for specific medications. Only 11% disagreed.
“While many Democrats believe that the issue of health care offers them political inroads, Republicans and the Trump Administration have the chance to go on offense with meaningful policy wins for voters as it relates to health insurance and have begun to do so,” the OnMessage memo stated.
Congress has been at odds over the Affordable Care Act subsidies that expired at the end of 2025, with the House voting to extend the subsidies for three years with the support of a handful of Republicans through a discharge petition. Talks have been murkier in the Senate on the continuation of the subsidies, as ACA plan premiums rose significantly for many, as many conservatives have argued it serves as evidence that Obamacare was not a fiscal sound policy to begin with.
<a href="https://www.politico.com/live-updates/2026/01/20/congress/congress-clinches-health-deal-to-crack-down-on-drug-intermediaries-00736680" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Politico</a> reported Tuesday that a bipartisan health care deal was achieved on some aspects of the debate, but not the subsidies.

President Trump Tours Ford Rouge Complex In Michigan

Exclusive: Majority Of Americans Back Key Element Of Trump’s ‘Great Healthcare Plan’

Health

Healthcare

Obamacare

Trump Administration

Rep. Julia Letlow (R-LA) launched her bid for the United States Senate on Tuesday, which paves the way for a competitive primary battle between her and Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy.
Letlow earned the endorsement of President Donald Trump over the weekend. In 2021, Cassidy voted to impeach Trump in the aftermath of the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. The senator did play a critical role in getting Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. confirmed in 2025.
“Highly Respected America First Congresswoman, Julia Letlow, of the wonderful State of Louisiana, is a Great Star, has been from the very beginning, and only gets better!” Trump <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/115913818366988479">posted</a> to Truth Social on Saturday.
“I know Julia well, have seen her tested at the highest and most difficult levels, and she is a TOTAL WINNER! A Proud Mother of two children, Julia is a wonderful person, has ALWAYS delivered for Louisiana, and would continue doing so in the United States Senate,” he added.
In her launch, Letlow said that in “a state as conservative as ours, we shouldn’t have to wonder how our senator will vote when the pressure’s on. Louisiana deserves conservative champions, leaders who will not flinch.” The congresswoman took office in April 2021 due to a special election triggered by her husband’s death, as Rep.-elect. Luke Letlow died from COVID-19 shortly before his swearing-in, leaving behind Julia and their two children.
Before her announcement, Cassidy <a href="https://x.com/BillCassidy/status/2013640184697344158">responded on X</a> that he’s confident he will come out on top.
“Congresswoman Letlow called me this morning to say she was running. She said she respected me and that I had done a good job. I will continue to do a good job when I win re-election. I am a conservative who wakes up every morning thinking about how to make Louisiana and the United States a better place to live,” he wrote.
When the Trump endorsement dropped, he wrote that he is “proudly running for re-election as a principled conservative who gets things done for the people of Louisiana. If Congresswoman Letlow decides to run I am confident I will win.”
The Cook Political Report currently ranks the general election race as solidly Republican. POLITICO has reported that Cassidy is one of three Republicans running for Senate this cycle without the president’s backing yet, including Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) and Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX).
It’s unknown whether Trump will endorse any candidate in the heated Texas Senate primary between Cornyn, Attorney General Ken Paxton, and Rep. Wesley Hunt. In Maine, Collins has not formally launched her bid yet, but is expected to run without any major primary challengers.
Republicans currently hold a 53-seat majority in the Senate, but Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer believes that his path to Democratic control of the upper chamber runs through North Carolina, Alaska, Maine, and Ohio, according to <a href="https://www.wsj.com/politics/chuck-schumer-senate-interview-838be10d?gaa_at=eafs&amp;gaa_n=AWEtsqfvdxx5brYmJNM0glzRuyCgHDM2Z9cJ5cFLCZNtzMn2_6v2xpGRlb10p7NNKVk%3D&amp;gaa_ts=6968e3ac&amp;gaa_sig=yvmU_TcAoizvyqICDiIoc92fLzKGVeAIRYOGJdsXZDe_lvubrlFTgNgnPGyrSd4LcYd5ECX_WFyIDnpV-Dyn3A%3D%3D" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Wall Street Journal</a>.

Senate HELP Committee Holds Hearing On Steward Health Care Bankruptcy

Senate Slugfest All But Inevitable As Trump-Backed Lawmaker Enters Louisiana Race

Southern Senate Slugfest Likely As Trump-Backed Lawmaker Enters Louisiana Race

2026 election

bill Cassidy

julia letlow

Senate

Without support from a single House Democrat, Republican Wisconsin Representative Bryan Steil’s “Stop Insider Trading Act” passed the House Administration Committee and will move on to the House floor for consideration.
If enacted, the bill would restrict members of Congress from buying individual securities and would require notice seven to 14 days before a sale. Lawmakers would be able to continue to buy index and mutual funds, as well as continue investing dividends in previously purchased securities.
Democrats continue to argue that the bill is not strong enough, with many stating that trading should be banned entirely and that lawmakers should be required to fully divest before taking office.
Throughout the two-hour markup, Democratic House reps proposed amendments. Ranking member Rep. Joe Morelle (D-NY) proposed requiring “Congress and the President and the Vice President” to fully divest. Rep. Julie Johnson (D-TX) offered a similar amendment that would mandate full divestment without providing relief from capital gains taxes.
Steil pushed back, warning that mandatory divestment could discourage qualified candidates from seeking office.
“Under the amendment offered by our colleague from Texas, that [capital gains tax] would obviously continue to apply &#8230; [and] for some people that may be a very significant financial impact,” he said.
He added that the financial burden could lead “some individuals … to not come to Congress — and not because they did anything wrong, but because they had a successful private sector career.”
Chris Josephs, the co-founder of Autopilot, an app that allows average Americans to trade the same stocks Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) trades, previously voiced the same concerns to The Daily Wire about legislation requiring full divestment.
“I think it would demotivate a major class of successful people from running,” Josephs said. “Businesspeople are successful. They know how to run things. They know how to lead. They know how to hire. They know how to create strategies. They know how to execute on those strategies. We should not just say no to those potential candidates just because they own businesses and they&#8217;re not gonna sell.”
Josephs told The Daily Wire he suspected that the 2024 election would have looked drastically different with full divestments in place.
“The 2024 election, you got Trump and Vance. Vance is an ex-venture capitalist, ex-business guy. He owns a lot of individual stocks that are private. And then you’ve got Trump, who owns a lot of stuff. On the other side of the ticket, though, you’ve got Kamala, who&#8217;s a career-long politician. You’ve got Tim Walz, who proudly doesn&#8217;t even own a house. And if that bill were to be passed, just based on how that would work, Trump and Vance wouldn&#8217;t be allowed to run unless they sold their stuff, which I doubt they would have.”
After full-divestment amendments were rejected, Rep. Norma Torres (D-CA) introduced an amendment to prohibit the reinvestment of dividends. Republicans voted it down, keeping dividend reinvestment permissible under the bill.
Steil defended the decision, arguing that dividend payments do not pose the same insider trading risks.
“Those dividends are structured within the company with advanced notice, outside of the control of any given member. It doesn&#8217;t carry the risk of insider trading,” he said. “Because it doesn&#8217;t carry the risk of insider trading, what we allowed for was the reinvestment of dividends.”
He later emphasized the bill’s intent, saying, “The focus here is to prevent members from being able to profit off of insider information — not to make elected officials poor.&#8221;

House Dems Save Healthcare Presser

GOP Advances Bill To Stop Congress From Trading Stocks Without Any Dem Support

Insider Trading

Money In Politics

Nancy Pelosi

In a significant display of bipartisan unity, Texas GOP Congressman Randy Weber led a group of 59 lawmakers in a formal letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, urging the Trump administration to maintain its forceful condemnation of the Iranian regime&#8217;s escalating violence. The letter comes amid harrowing reports that the theocratic government has transitioned from standard riot control to a campaign of lethal force, mass arrests, and systematic intimidation against its own citizens.
The lawmakers highlight an alarming trend: the deliberate targeting of civilian infrastructure. Reports indicate that Iranian security forces have raided hospitals and medical clinics, not only to arrest injured demonstrators but to deny them life-saving care. The letter asserts that these actions constitute &#8220;serious violations of international humanitarian and human rights law.&#8221;
The bipartisan coalition emphasizes that the ongoing protests represent more than just economic frustration; they are a rejection of both the current theocratic system and past monarchical dictatorships. According to the letter, the Iranian people are demanding a:
<ul style="font-weight: 400;">
<li>Secular and democratic republic</li>
<li>Non-nuclear state</li>
<li>System grounded in political pluralism and human dignity</li>
</ul>
Supporting the letter, Rep. Beth Van Duyne (R-TX) noted that the &#8220;Peace Through Strength&#8221; doctrine is already shifting global security, characterizing the current unrest as the &#8220;death spiral of the Ayatollahs.&#8221; Rep. Laurel Lee (R-FL) added that the United States has a moral obligation to ensure that the repression of civilians is not tolerated by the international community, telling the <a href="https://washingtonreporter.news/exclusive-dozens-of-democratic-and-republican-members-of-congress-back-trump-administration-publicly-condemning-the-iranian-regimes-violent-repression-of-protesters/">Washington Reporter</a>, “The Iranian regime is engaging in a deliberate campaign to suppress political dissent through lethal force, mass detentions, and the obstruction of access to medical care—conduct that constitutes clear violations of international human rights and humanitarian law. The United States has an obligation to publicly condemn these actions, maintain sustained diplomatic pressure, and make clear that repression of civilians and abuse of state power will not be tolerated.&#8221;
The letter serves as a strategic nudge to Secretary Rubio, historically one of Washington’s most prominent Iran hawks, to utilize a &#8220;whole-of-government&#8221; approach. As the administration reportedly weighs military and diplomatic options to assist anti-regime demonstrators, this congressional mandate reinforces America&#8217;s commitment to standing in solidarity with those seeking self-determination in the face of what some reports suggest is a death toll exceeding 10,000.

U.S. Congressman  Randy Weber (R-TX), speaks to the Iranians

Both Sides Of The Aisle Want Broader U.S. Action Against Iran’s Repression

Iran

Former Arizona Senator Kyrsten Sinema is being sued under North Carolina’s “Homewrecker Law” over alleged interference in the marriage between a former member of her “security detail” and his now ex-wife.
North Carolina is only one of the handful of states that allows individuals to sue for “alienation of affection,” and the lawsuit accuses Sinema of “intentional and malicious interference” in a “good and loving marriage” between Heather and Matthew Ammel, who separated in November 2024, according to the <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.ncmd.103845/gov.uscourts.ncmd.103845.2.0.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">complaint</a> filed in September 2025 that has recently resurfaced.
Ammel joined Sinema’s security team in 2022, and the lawsuit claims that Sinema&#8217;s head of security left her job in fall 2023 over concern that the senator was &#8220;having sexual relations with other security members.&#8221; Ammel decided to stick around &#8220;due to the financial security of the job,&#8221; despite receiving encouragement from the head of security to also quit, the lawsuit says. Sinema allegedly hired Ammel as a Defense and National Security Fellow for her official Senate office while also working as her &#8220;personal security guard.&#8221;
The lawsuit alleges that Sinema had “numerous lengthy conversations with Mr. Ammel” through multiple platforms, including in-person and over text, that were “emotionally romantic or sexual in nature.&#8221; The lawsuit also alleges that Sinema met with Ammel regularly outside of professional settings, including meetings that were “emotionally or physically romantic or sexual in nature,” and that Sinema was &#8220;encouraging&#8221; Ammel to leave his wife. It says in the spring or early summer of 2024 that Ammel &#8220;stopped wearing his wedding ring,&#8221; and the lawsuit says it is because Ammel said it was to avoid negative &#8220;public optics&#8221; when the then-senator was &#8220;putting her hands on a married man when they were out at concerts and various other public events.&#8221;
Other allegations in the lawsuit detail messages where Sinema was “wrapped in a towel” and suggested that Ammel “bring MDMA drugs on a work trip so that she could guide him through a psychedelic experience,” as Sinema offered assistance with his “mental health challenges.”
The lawsuit said that Ammel was on numerous trips with Sinema, and that starting in 2024, the plaintiff noticed frequent messaging on Signal between the two, alleging that it “exceeded the bounds of a normal working relationship.” One of the messages exchanged included Sinema saying she was not attending the State of the Union address because &#8220;she didn&#8217;t need to listen to some old man, President Biden, talk about the legislation that she wrote.&#8221;
Another message exchange said that Ammel wanted to start a &#8220;F*ck the troops&#8221; chant at a baseball game he attended alone, to which Sinema allegedly replied that &#8220;she would &#8216;f*ck the hot ones.'&#8221;
It also outlines that the duo went to numerous concerts together, including U2 and the Extra Innings Festival. The plaintiff claims that Ammel said that Sinema was &#8220;handsy with him at this event.&#8221; She is asking for damages “in excess of” $25,000 for the allegations outlined in the case.
The lawsuit said that Ammel is an Army veteran with PTSD, and the <a href="https://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/news/why-arizona-sinema-is-pushing-for-psychedelic-drug-research-21386425/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Phoenix New Times</a> reported in March about Sinema’s post-Senate advocacy for more psychedelic research, noting Ammel’s experience with it.
“I saw the difference it was making in his life, his thinking, and his behavior,” Sinema said to the Phoenix New Times in the interview.
The Daily Wire reached out to the former senator, who is now an attorney at Hogan Lovells, for comment. The Daily Wire attempted to reach Matthew Ammel through a publicly available email that appeared to belong to him. A man by the same name appeared to have been arrested in Moore County, North Carolina, for assault charges in November, but The Daily Wire is unable to confirm whether it is the same individual.

Kyrsten Sinema At State Of The Union Address

Kyrsten Sinema Sued By Ex-Wife Of Security Guard, Alleging Affair

kysten sinema

North Carolina

Talks on extending Obamacare subsidies in the Senate appear to be stalling, as President Donald Trump calls for the “Great Healthcare Plan” to go through Congress.
Enrollment for those who use Affordable Care Act plans ends Thursday in most of the country, as expired subsidies have led to higher premium costs. Many conservatives argue that this is evidence that the ACA was not a sustainable program in the first place.
The White House released a <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/2026/01/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-calls-on-congress-to-enact-the-great-healthcare-plan/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">fact sheet</a> on Thursday about Trump’s healthcare plan, which would include “price transparency” reforms and “send money directly to the American people, lower health insurance premiums, and cut kickbacks that raise insurance premiums.” The president’s proposal would also expand the list of “verified safe pharmaceutical drugs” that Americans can buy over the counter and include a “cost-sharing reduction program” for plans.
“The Great Healthcare Plan stops sending big insurance companies billions in extra taxpayer-funded subsidy payments and instead sends that money directly to eligible Americans to allow them to buy the health insurance of their choice,” the webpage states.
President Donald Trump said in a video on Thursday that it “will truly make healthcare affordable again.”
In the Senate, Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-OH) said, “We’re still in the red zone” when it comes to the possibility of extending the subsidies for another two years while a longer-term plan is figured out, according to <a href="https://punchbowl.news/article/senate/senate-obamacare-2/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Punchbowl News</a>. <a href="https://www.politico.com/live-updates/2026/01/13/congress/senators-punt-release-of-health-package-to-end-of-january-00725086" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Politico</a> reported that the actual language of a proposal might not be ready until after the Senate returns from its 10-day recess that began Thursday.
However, there have been serious splits regarding taxpayer dollars for abortions through the Hyde Amendment, along with the generally partisan divide on whether the subsidies should continue in the first place.
In December, Moreno and Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins (R-ME) went public with a two-year extension proposal, while Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) has sought a three-year extension of the COVID-era subsidies.
“Barack Obama and the Democratic Party created this disaster, lining the pockets of massive insurance companies while healthcare costs for everyday Americans skyrocketed,” Moreno said in a statement last month. “But I refuse to let the American people pay the price for the Democrats’ incompetence. I am willing to work with anyone to finally bring down costs for all Americans and hope my colleagues across the aisle will commit to doing the same.”
According to Punchbowl News, the proposal could restore enrollment in March if a deal is reached in Congress.
In the House, a bill to extend ACA subsidies for the next three years passed last week, with Democrats and 17 Republicans passing the legislation in the Republican-led chamber after a successful discharge petition to forced a floor vote — but it seems unlikely to gain traction in the Senate.
“The House just decisively passed legislation that restores the Affordable Care Act tax credits. Over the objection of Donald Trump and Speaker Mike Johnson. If you don’t know, now you know,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) wrote on X after the vote.

Trump Pitches ‘Great Healthcare Plan’ As Senate Stalls On Obamacare Subsidies

Bernie Moreno

Trump

On Tuesday, the House Subcommittee on Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Protection held a hearing titled, “Defense through Offense: Examining U.S. Cyber Capabilities to Deter and Disrupt Malign Foreign Activity Targeting the Homeland.”
Chairman Andy Ogles (R-TN) opened the hearing by declaring that the United States can no longer rely solely on a defensive posture. Citing recent breaches like Salt Typhoon (targeting Congressional staff) and Volt Typhoon (targeting critical infrastructure), Ogles argued that adversaries — primarily China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea — operate with impunity because they face no meaningful consequences.
The consensus among the subcommittee and the witnesses was that the U.S. must shift toward a proactive, &#8220;industrial-scale&#8221; offensive strategy to alter the risk calculus of state-sponsored actors.
Joe Lin, the CEO of Twenty Technologies, Inc., provided a blunt assessment: the United States is currently losing the cyber war because it treats offensive operations as &#8220;bespoke,&#8221; elite activities while adversaries operate at &#8220;machine speed.&#8221;
Lin called for codifying operator tradecraft into automated software systems. He argued that one operator should be able to manage hundreds of targets simultaneously to match the scale of Chinese campaigns. He emphasized that &#8220;patching&#8221; alone will never secure critical infrastructure. Deterrence requires the demonstrated ability to impose asymmetric costs upstream before attacks reach U.S. soil.
Emily Harding, the vice president of the defense and security department at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), focused on the &#8220;escalation ladder,&#8221; noting that adversaries currently control it because U.S. responses have been muted.
CSIS war games revealed that senior U.S. officials often freeze during cyber crises due to a lack of a shared framework for what constitutes an &#8220;act of war.&#8221; Harding proposed several key shifts: treating cyber-attacks that imperil life as kinetic attacks, flipping risk tolerance so that the default answer for an operation is &#8220;yes,&#8221; and creating a dedicated Cyber Force to consolidate talent.
Frank Cilluffo, the director of the McCrary Institute, argued that the U.S. has allowed adversaries to define its strategy. He pushed for &#8220;operational collaboration,&#8221; where the private sector — which owns the vast majority of infrastructure — is treated as a partner in active defense rather than a passive victim. He noted that campaigns like Salt and Volt Typhoon are &#8220;pre-positioning&#8221; efforts designed to be triggered during a future kinetic conflict (e.g., a Pacific contingency).
Drew Bagley, the chief privacy officer at CrowdStrike, offered a nuanced view, reinforcing the necessity of defense while supporting targeted offense. While he cautioned against a &#8220;federated&#8221; or &#8220;vigilante&#8221; hack-back regime due to risks of collateral damage, he supported more persistent disruption of malicious infrastructure. He recommended that CISA and the private sector maintain a prioritized list of threat actors to be dismantled systematically through coordinated law enforcement and military action.
The subcommittee discussed the severe workforce shortage. Witnesses noted that while thousands of personnel were lost during recent agency &#8220;right-sizing&#8221; (DOGE-related shifts), the solution isn&#8217;t just &#8220;more bodies.&#8221; AI is being used by the PRC to automate espionage; the U.S. must adopt &#8220;Agentic AI&#8221; to defend and counter-attack at the same speed. Suggestions included a &#8220;Cyber Reserve&#8221; (similar to the National Guard) and a &#8220;Teach for America&#8221; style program for cyber professionals to serve in rural areas in exchange for loan forgiveness.
Rep. Morgan Luttrell (R-TX) raised the critical issue of undersea cables, through which 95% of global data flows. There is currently no &#8220;single home&#8221; in the government for undersea cable security. Harding and Bagley called for an increase in repair ships and the use of AI-driven maritime surveillance to identify &#8220;anomalous&#8221; ship patterns (like &#8220;fishing&#8221; vessels lingering over cable lines) before they can sabotage infrastructure.
A major takeaway was the need to move past &#8220;tit-for-tat&#8221; cyber responses. Witnesses argued that if China hits a U.S. water plant, the U.S. shouldn&#8217;t necessarily hit a Chinese water plant; it should use diplomatic, economic, or kinetic tools to hit a &#8220;pain point&#8221; that the adversary actually values.
Ogles concluded by signaling a &#8220;forward-leaning&#8221; posture, emphasizing that the Monroe Doctrine now extends into the digital realm. The subcommittee intends to pursue &#8220;operational collaboration&#8221; between the private sector and government to ensure that any breach of American digital boundaries carries a significant, punishing price.
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Faceless hackers and malware hackers use laptops with dangerous digital code on binary code background.

Beyond Defense: Congress Wants To Industrialize U.S. Cyber Offense

China

Cybersecurity

United States

A new House proposal aims to crack down on abuses of the student visa system, including by imposing tougher penalties on administrators and institutions found responsible for visa fraud.
The “Student Visa Integrity Act,” introduced by Rep. Brandon Gill (R-TX), would tighten visa expiration dates and require in-person interviews for visa extensions for applicants from countries considered sponsors of terrorism or that are in programs otherwise deemed high national security risks.
Under the proposal, students from state sponsors of terrorism, nations with an overstay rate of 10% or higher, or institutions that do not use E-Verify would be limited to a maximum student visa term of two years.
“Studying in the United States is a privilege, not a right,” Gill told The Daily Wire. “Unfortunately, a system intended to spread the American dream has been abused by fraudsters and bad actors. My bill restores integrity to a system that has been exploited for decades by protecting national security, enforcing immigration law, and ensuring the student visa program serves America’s interests.”
Gill’s proposal would also require educational institutions and affiliated organizations to disclose any financial links to China. In addition, the bill would set new limits on foreign students wanting to transfer between schools.
The bill also empowers the Department of Homeland Security to reject student visa applicants from “countries of concern” if the applicant could pose a future national security risk to the United States. That includes individuals seeking to work in “the energy sector of Iran” or to “participate in coursework or training relating to or otherwise engage in flight training, aviation maintenance, or flight operations.”
Under President Donald Trump, the State Department revoked roughly 100,000 visas in 2025, according to <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-administration-revokes-more-than-100000-visas-first-year-back" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Fox News</a>. The outlet noted that 8,000 of those were student visas.
According to a 2024 <a href="https://www.ice.gov/doclib/sevis/btn/25_0605_2024-sevis-btn.pdf#:~:text=The%20total%20number%20of%20SEVIS%20records%20for,of%205.3%20percent%20from%20calendar%20year%202023." target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a> from Immigration and Customs Enforcement, just under 1.6 million individuals were “active” students in the Student and Exchange Visitor Program. The report noted a 5.3% increase from 2023, with Asia as the most common “continent of origin.”
Roughly 50,000 people may have overstayed their student and exchange visa as of fiscal year 2023, a DHS <a href="https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/2024-10/24_1011_CBP-Entry-Exit-Overstay-Report-FY23-Data.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a> at the time revealed.

Widener Memorial Library with Huge Veritas Banners Harvard University Cambridge MA

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