President Donald Trump could be seen on video flipping the bird and saying the phrase &#8220;f*ck you&#8221; in the direction of a heckler during his Tuesday visit to the Ford F-150 plant in Dearborn, Michigan.
The president, in town for a speech at the Detroit Economic Club, toured the F-150 plant as well — and responded in the moment as someone in the crowd shouted at him, apparently accusing the president of &#8220;protecting&#8221; the late convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
Entertainment site TMZ first reported the news, sharing video of the brief exchange that quickly made its way across social media.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/EXCLUSIVE?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#EXCLUSIVE</a> 😳 President Trump was filmed flipping off a Ford worker who yelled &#8220;pedophile protector&#8221; at him. <a href="https://t.co/m5nLYtWxxT">https://t.co/m5nLYtWxxT</a> <a href="https://t.co/512zEYV6WC">pic.twitter.com/512zEYV6WC</a>
— TMZ (@TMZ) <a href="https://twitter.com/TMZ/status/2011193178263605453?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 13, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;It’s hard to make out the full sentence shouted at Trump, but it seems to have included the words ‘pedophile protector,'&#8221; the outlet reported. Trump could be seen turning to look at the person who had shouted at him before apparently saying, &#8220;f*ck you,&#8221; and flipping him a middle finger for good measure.
White House Communications Director Steven Cheung addressed the video as it circulated, explaining, &#8220;A lunatic was wildly screaming expletives in a complete fit of rage, and the President gave an appropriate and unambiguous response.&#8221;
Throughout most of the president&#8217;s tour, the plant workers crowded around him as they shook his hand and posed for photos.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
🇺🇸 <a href="https://t.co/OFqEPVD9LY">pic.twitter.com/OFqEPVD9LY</a>
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) <a href="https://twitter.com/WhiteHouse/status/2011174073091670360?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 13, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
While he was at the Detroit automotive plant, Trump also sat for an interview with new &#8220;CBS Evening News&#8221; anchor Tony Dokoupil.
In that interview, among a number of other topics, Trump talked about what was going on in the auto industry – particularly since he&#8217;d put a stop to imminent electric vehicle mandates set in motion by former President Joe Biden&#8217;s administration.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a>: &#8220;I want electric, and I want gasoline, and I want hybrids — I want everything. But you were going to be forced, under the mandate, to buy an electric car in a very short period of time. I didn&#8217;t want that, and I ended that.&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/jTU4v6bMev">pic.twitter.com/jTU4v6bMev</a>
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/2011224265983738344?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 13, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;I want electric, and I want gasoline, and I want hybrids — I want everything. But you were going to be forced, under the mandate, to buy an electric car in a very short period of time. I didn&#8217;t want that, and I ended that,&#8221; Trump explained.

US-VENEZUELA-POLITICS-CONFLICT-OIL

Trump Flips Off Auto Worker During Ford Plant Visit

Donald Trump

Executive

Ford Motor Co.

Jeffrey Epstein

Michigan

Politics

Michigan state Senator Mallory McMorrow, a Democrat who&#8217;s running for U.S. Senate in 2026, said in a video posted to social media on Thursday that she &#8220;would not be able to control&#8221; herself if she saw conservative Supreme Court Justices Amy Coney Barrett and Brett Kavanaugh in public.
The undated video, posted on X by Townhall, shows McMorrow answering a question from someone about the conservative majority on the Supreme Court. McMorrow, a Notre Dame grad and one of the Democratic leaders in the Michigan Senate, said that it makes her &#8220;furious&#8221; that Coney Barrett also graduated from Notre Dame.
&#8220;I talked to somebody yesterday who said they saw her with Brett Kavanaugh at a tailgate last weekend. I was like, &#8216;I would not be able to control myself,'&#8221; McMorrow said. &#8220;That would be a bad— there would be beers thrown in people&#8217;s faces.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
🚨WATCH: Democrat Candidate for Senate in Michigan Mallory McMorrow says that she would not be able to stop herself from hurling cans of beer at Amy Coney Barrett &amp; Brett Kavanaugh if she saw them in public.
Despicable! <a href="https://t.co/aQTsPBnvQC">pic.twitter.com/aQTsPBnvQC</a>
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) <a href="https://twitter.com/townhallcom/status/2001727745919680652?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 18, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The Daily Wire reached out to McMorrow&#8217;s Senate office and her campaign team to ask about her comments, but they did not respond.
Conservative Supreme Court justices have been the target of intense criticism from Democratic leaders in recent years. In 2020, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/03/05/chuck-schumer-supreme-court-comments-121960">called out</a> Kavanaugh and Justice Neil Gorsuch by name and warned that they would &#8220;pay the price&#8221; if they voted to overturn Roe v. Wade.
<a class="c-link" href="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=christmas&amp;utm_content=christmassale25" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=christmas&amp;utm_content=christmassale25" data-sk="tooltip_parent" aria-describedby="sk-tooltip-33447">Christmas Sale – Get 40% off New DailyWire+ Annual Memberships</a>
&#8220;You won’t know what hit you if you go forward with these awful decisions,&#8221; Schumer added at the time. The Democratic leader was rebuked by many of his colleagues and by Chief Justice John Roberts, who wrote, “Justices know that criticism comes with the territory, but threatening statements of this sort from the highest levels of government are not only inappropriate, they are dangerous.”
Then, in 2022, shortly after the court overturned Roe v. Wade, a trans-identifying male traveled to the home of Kavanaugh with plans to assassinate the conservative justice.
McMorrow is one of three Democrats who are seeking to replace retiring Democratic Senator Gary Peters. The 2026 election in Michigan will be one of the most closely watched contests in the country, as Republicans hope to capitalize on the open seat. McMorrow, 39, has served in the Michigan Senate since 2019 and became the Senate majority whip in 2023, where she has focused on advocating for abortion, especially after the Supreme Court&#8217;s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in 2022.
Earlier this year, McMorrow rubbed shoulders with a radical leftist blogger who mocked Charlie Kirk after he was assassinated. In late September, McMorrow <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/michigan-democrat-teams-up-with-leftist-blogger-who-mocked-charlie-kirk-after-assassination">attended a fundraiser</a> alongside Rebecca Schoenkopf, who, a day after Kirk was killed, published an article titled “Second Amendment Comes for Charlie Kirk.”

Mallory McMorrow/Brett Kavanaugh/Amy Coney Barrett

Dem Senate Hopeful Says She’d Throw Beer At Conservative Justices, Lacks Self-Control

2026 Midterms

Amy Coney Barrett

Brett Kavanaugh

Democrats

Elections

Supreme Court

U.S. Senate

The city council in Ann Arbor, Michigan, the home of the University of Michigan, voted unanimously earlier this week to remove hundreds of neighborhood crime watch signs, arguing that the crime watch program promotes &#8220;race-based hyper-vigilance.&#8221;
The Ann Arbor City Council voted 10-0 to direct city employees to begin removing all neighborhood crime watch signs by July 15 in an effort to become more &#8220;welcoming and inclusive,&#8221; according to <a href="https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/2025/12/heres-why-neighborhood-crime-watch-signs-in-ann-arbor-are-going-away.html">MLive</a>. Neighborhood crime watch programs have been commonplace in American towns for decades, organizing residents to be on constant alert, and warning potential criminals that any suspicious activity will be reported to the police.
According to the all-Democrat Ann Arbor city council, however, the signs reinforce &#8220;race-based hyper-vigilance and suspicion particularly toward Black, Brown, and other marginalized residents and visitors.&#8221;
“These programs were often rooted in assumptions about who did and did not ‘belong’ in a neighborhood,&#8221; the city council stated, adding, “This dynamic encouraged informal surveillance practices that disproportionately targeted people of color and contributed to patterns of exclusion under the guise of public safety.”
Overall, the city&#8217;s crime rate has dropped in 2025 compared to last year, but in downtown Ann Arbor, authorities have seen a 9% <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0QhC2uTG-E">increase</a> in total crime in 2025 and an 11% jump in violent crime.
City officials said that the neighborhood watch programs in Ann Arbor are already defunct, arguing that removing the 600-plus signs throughout the city is the next logical step.
“The neighborhood watch signs that still stand across Ann Arbor really come from a different era,” said Councilwoman Jen Eyer. “They’ve become furniture, just part of the background. I drive past one every day entering my neighborhood and barely registered it until this issue was raised to me.”
But Eyer argued that a major reason for removing is that &#8220;evidence suggests that signs and practices rooted in constant vigilance can actually reinforce fear and erode neighborly trust, promoting a myth of safety rather than safety itself.&#8221;
<a class="c-link" href="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=christmas&amp;utm_content=christmassale25" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=christmas&amp;utm_content=christmassale25" data-sk="tooltip_parent">Christmas Sale – Get 40% off New DailyWire+ Annual Memberships</a>
Councilwoman Cynthia Harrison criticized the &#8220;culture&#8221; of neighborhood watch programs, bringing up the case of Trayvon Martin, a black teenager who was shot and killed in Florida in 2012 by George Zimmerman, who was a volunteer for his neighborhood watch program.
“Many of us could not talk about this culture without remembering Trayvon Martin, a young black teenager walking through a neighborhood he had every right to be in, yet perceived as a threat simply for being there,” said Harrison.
Zimmerman confronted Martin and accused him of suspicious activity in the neighborhood before Martin attacked him. Following a trial that gained national attention, Zimmerman was acquitted by a Florida jury on all charges, including second-degree murder and manslaughter.
Harrison argued that Martin was killed because neighborhood watch programs focus on surveillance over building relationships, according to MLive.
“Neighborhood watch was built on an old idea that heterogeneous neighborhoods create danger,” she said. “Ann Arbor is built on the understanding that diversity creates strength.”
Ann Arbor and the surrounding Washtenaw County are one of the most liberal places in Michigan. Recently, the Trump administration accused Ann Arbor authorities of obstructing federal immigration operations. Ann Arbor leaders rejected the Trump administration&#8217;s labeling of Ann Arbor as a sanctuary city.
“While Ann Arbor is not a sanctuary city, we are proud to be an inclusive and welcoming city,” Mayor Pro Tem Travis Radina said earlier this year. “We know diversity is a strength and believe in protecting the constitutionally granted rights of all our residents.”
Washtenaw County also elected a new sheriff last year who wants to focus on &#8220;environmental justice.&#8221; In a phone interview with <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/new-sheriff-in-major-michigan-county-wants-to-fight-violent-crime-through-environmental-justice">The Daily Wire</a> earlier this year, Sheriff Alyshia Dyer, a Democrat, said that she wanted to drastically change the department&#8217;s outlook on environmental issues. She also discussed her plans to implement an “Environmental Crimes Unit” in her first term, which would focus on looking into “air pollution, water contamination, and hazardous waste management.”
“The sheriff’s office historically hasn’t been necessarily a strong champion in this work, but there’s no reason we can’t be,” Dyer added.

Ann Arbor

Liberal Michigan City Cites Racism In Decision To Remove Neighborhood Crime Watch Signs

Liberal Michigan City To Remove Neighborhood Crime Watch Signs, Argues Program Promotes Racism

Crime

Leftism

President Donald Trump sues the BBC for billions of dollars as the White House rebuffs a controversial exposé, newly declassified documents cast suspicion on the Mar-a-Lago raid, and the University of Michigan launches an investigation as the Sherrone Moore scandal deepens.
It’s Wednesday, December 17, 2025, and this is the news you need to know to start your day. Today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below, and the video version can be <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/mrn-251217-member-exclusive?elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+Show+Episodes+Carousel">seen on The Daily Wire</a>:
<iframe style="width: 100%; max-width: 660px; overflow: hidden; border-radius: 10px;" src="https://embed.podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/trump-sues-bbc-michigan-athletics-probed-12-17-25/id1576594336?i=1000741658046" height="175" frameborder="0" sandbox="allow-forms allow-popups allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-storage-access-by-user-activation allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation"></iframe>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">Trump Vs. The BBC</h2>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone wp-image-1016197 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Trump-Battles-BBC-1024x576.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Trump-Battles-BBC-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Trump-Battles-BBC-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Trump-Battles-BBC-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Trump-Battles-BBC-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Trump-Battles-BBC.jpg 1920w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />
President Trump has <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-files-5-billion-lawsuit-against-bbc-over-malicious-documentary">launched</a> a multi-billion dollar lawsuit against the BBC as he continues to clash with media outlets at home and abroad. This week, the president filed a 46-page lawsuit in a federal court in Miami, accusing the BBC of defamation and violation of Florida’s Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act. He is looking for $10 billion from the broadcaster. The suit stems from a documentary the BBC released ahead of the 2024 election titled, “Trump: A Second Chance.” The film spliced together two quotes from Trump&#8217;s speech that were said about an hour apart, making it appear as if the president called for violence at the U.S. Capitol and leaving out Trump’s request to protest &#8220;peacefully and patriotically.&#8221; The lawsuit accused the BBC of “intentionally, maliciously and deceptively doctoring [Trump’s] speech in a brazen attempt to interfere in the 2024 presidential election.”
<h2 style="text-align: center;">Messages Reveal DOJ Pushed For Mar-a-Lago Raid Over FBI Objections</h2>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone wp-image-1016199 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Mar-A-Lago-Misgivings-1024x576.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Mar-A-Lago-Misgivings-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Mar-A-Lago-Misgivings-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Mar-A-Lago-Misgivings-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Mar-A-Lago-Misgivings-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Mar-A-Lago-Misgivings.jpg 1920w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />
The FBI did not believe it had the proper justification to raid Mar-a-Lago in August 2022, but the Biden Justice Department pushed for it anyway. Messages <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/fbi-agents-worried-there-was-no-cause-to-raid-mar-a-lago-biden-doj-made-them-do-it-anyway?author=Virginia+Kruta&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=2&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=FBI+Agents+Worried+There+Was+No+Cause+To+Raid+Mar-a-Lago%3B+Biden+DOJ+Made+Them+Do+It+Anyway">released</a> by the FBI detail that agents involved in the investigation into classified documents kept at President Trump’s Florida home believed that search warrants obtained for the raid lacked proper predicate. FBI agents also discussed a combative relationship the Biden Justice Department had started with Trump’s legal team, and expressed concern about FBI agents standing in the crossfire between the DOJ and Trump’s team.
<a class="c-link c-link--focus-visible c-link--underline" href="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=christmas&amp;utm_content=christmassale25" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=christmas&amp;utm_content=christmassale25" data-sk="tooltip_parent">Christmas Sale – Get 40% off New DailyWire+ Annual Memberships</a>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">Michigan Probes Athletics Department After Moore Ouster</h2>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone wp-image-1016201 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Michigan-Scandal-Deepens-1024x576.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Michigan-Scandal-Deepens-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Michigan-Scandal-Deepens-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Michigan-Scandal-Deepens-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Michigan-Scandal-Deepens-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Michigan-Scandal-Deepens.jpg 1920w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />
The University of Michigan is looking into its athletics department following the firing of head football coach Sherrone Moore and his subsequent arrest. Moore was fired last week after an inappropriate relationship with a staffer was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/moore-comes-to-light-after-michigan-head-football-coach-arrested-following-surprise-firing">revealed</a>. Now, the University of Michigan has commissioned an investigation into the practices and culture of its entire athletics department. The investigation will be handled by the same Chicago-based law firm that opened an inquiry earlier this fall into Moore’s affair.

MRN_251217_V1

Morning Brief: Trump Sues BBC, More Revelations On Mar-a-Lago Raid, And Michigan’s Sweeping Athletics Probe

Morning Brief: Trump Sues BBC, FBI Objected To MAL Raid, And UM’s Sweeping Probe After Moore Ouster

Department of Justice

Joe Biden

Morning Wire

University of Michigan

The Michigan Republican-controlled House used a little-known provision in state law to cut $645 million in government funding, including slashing multiple left-wing causes, last week.
The cuts were a major move for Republicans who are up against a Democrat-controlled state Senate and a Democratic governor that have pushed for bigger state budgets and a more expansive state government. Republican House Speaker Matt Hall told The Daily Wire that the cuts came after Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer asked for an extension on $2.7 billion that had been earmarked under a previous budget, but had not been spent by the end of the fiscal year.
&#8220;We had the opportunity using this law to cut more spending before Whitmer was able to put it into her slush funds,&#8221; Hall said.
The State Budget Office, which is controlled by Whitmer, sent letters to the House and Senate budget committees, requesting an extension on the $2.7 billion in funding that was not used, Bridge Michigan <a href="https://bridgemi.com/michigan-government/michigan-house-cancels-645m-in-state-spending-without-senate-ok/">reported</a>. The GOP-controlled House budget committee opposed many of the programs in the Whitmer administration&#8217;s funding request and decided to send $645 million back to the state&#8217;s general fund.
Hall accused Whitmer and Democrats of requesting &#8220;a lot more money than they need&#8221; for the budget extension, adding, &#8220;And then they keep the money and they work-project it into their slush fund, so they have it for years.&#8221;
The <a href="https://wwmt.com/news/local/645-million-programs-cut-michigan-house-republicans-work-projects-appropriations-money-politics-wwmt">biggest cut</a> was $159 million to Whitmer&#8217;s Make It in Michigan Competitiveness Fund. The fund, which Whitmer created with the approval of the state legislature in 2024, matches federal grants with the state&#8217;s job creation goals. Another target of the Republican cuts was the Community Enhancement Grants, which were denied nearly $103 million. Some of the money from the grants has gone toward a festival in Detroit to celebrate diversity, according to WWMT <a href="https://wwmt.com/news/local/645-million-programs-cut-michigan-house-republicans-work-projects-appropriations-money-politics-wwmt">News Channel 3</a>. The Community Enhancement Grants were combined under one line item, meaning Republicans had to cut all of them to slash funding for the grants that promoted diversity, equity, and inclusion goals.
<a class="c-link c-link--focus-visible c-link--underline" href="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=christmas&amp;utm_content=christmassale25" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=christmas&amp;utm_content=christmassale25" data-sk="tooltip_parent">Christmas Sale – Get 40% off New DailyWire+ Annual Memberships</a>
Other priorities that were among the Republican cuts included over $1.2 million for a program aimed at stocking public bathrooms with feminine hygiene products. Hall told The Daily Wire that the program also requires boys&#8217; bathrooms to be stocked with tampons. Republicans also slashed funding for some of Whitmer&#8217;s green energy projects, such as her goal to build electric vehicle chargers along the coast of Lake Michigan.
Another department that took a hit from the cuts was the Office of Global Michigan, which housed a program that Whitmer used to make government handouts <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/michigan-republicans-sound-alarm-on-state-program-potentially-giving-illegal-immigrants-up-to-500-per-month-in-rental-assistance">available to illegal immigrants</a>. The Office of Global Michigan, which lost around $1.3 million in the cuts, is also riddled with diversity, equity, and inclusion goals.
Michigan Democrats blasted Republicans over the cuts, calling them &#8220;cruel&#8221; and &#8220;disgusting.&#8221; Democrats specifically called out cuts to the RxKids program, which helps some parents pay for their children&#8217;s prescriptions. Democrats also blasted Republicans for making cuts to &#8220;Wigs for Kids,&#8221; which provides wigs and other services for children going through cancer treatments. Democratic state Rep. Will Snyder said the GOP cuts were one of the most “unprecedented displays of cruelty that I’ve ever seen during my time here in Lansing,” according to <a href="https://michiganadvance.com/2025/12/11/michigan-dems-say-645m-work-project-cuts-are-cruel-gops-rylee-linting-also-calls-foul/">Michigan Advance</a>.
“This budget instrument was never intended for this purpose, and using it with such haste and scale proves the dangerous nature of crossing pre-existing and long standing-lines, even if (it was) potentially legally permissible,” Snyder said. “We are just now beginning to understand the full scope of these disgusting actions.”
“There’s a special place in hell for someone willing to yank money away from moms and babies 15 days before Christmas,” said Senate Democratic Majority Leader Winnie Brinks. “I hope Matt Hall takes this holiday season to look within himself and reevaluate what exactly he’s doing here.”
Democratic leaders also suggested that they could pursue legal action to prevent the massive cuts.
Hall brushed off the criticism from Democrats, arguing that the state could still use some of the other government funding in its &#8220;slush fund&#8221; to put toward charities, such as Wigs for Kids.
&#8220;We can reappropriate funds that have a good purpose. We can come back through a supplemental budget, and we can put it back to use,&#8221; Hall said. &#8220;But I think the Whitmer administration should come in and they should explain to us where every one of these dollars is going. Something they wouldn&#8217;t do when they were trying to prevent us from making the cuts.&#8221;

Michigan State Capitol

Michigan Republicans Slash Funding For Leftist Causes With Massive Government Spending Cuts

Michigan Republicans Slash Funding For Leftist Priorities With Massive Government Spending Cuts

Gretchen Whitmer

spending

American forces seize an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, the Senate shoots down competing bills on the future of health care, and a prominent college football coach is fired—then arrested.
It’s Friday, December 12, 2025, and this is the news you need to know to start your day. Today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below, and the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/mrn-251212-member-exclusive">video version can be seen on The Daily Wire</a>:
<iframe style="width: 100%; max-width: 660px; overflow: hidden; border-radius: 10px;" src="https://embed.podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/u-s-defends-tanker-seizure-senate-subsidy-standoff-12-12-25/id1576594336?i=1000740979487" height="175" frameborder="0" sandbox="allow-forms allow-popups allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-storage-access-by-user-activation allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation"></iframe>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">U.S. Seizes Oil Tanker Off Venezuela Coast</h2>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1013813" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Tanker-Seizure-Shock-300x169.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="169" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Tanker-Seizure-Shock-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Tanker-Seizure-Shock-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Tanker-Seizure-Shock-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Tanker-Seizure-Shock-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Tanker-Seizure-Shock.jpg 1920w" sizes=" (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />
Topline: The United States seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela on Wednesday in an escalation of President Donald Trump’s pressure campaign against dictator Nicolás Maduro.
Bloomberg was the first to report that a tanker had been seized earlier Wednesday, and President Trump confirmed the news later in the day at a roundtable with business leaders.
“An interesting day from the standpoint of news. As you probably know, we’ve just seized a tanker on the coast of Venezuela, a large tanker, very large–largest one ever seized, actually,” <a href="https://x.com/nicksortor/status/1998847332616421875">said</a> Trump.
<a class="c-link c-link--focus-visible" href="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=christmas&amp;utm_content=christmassale25" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=christmas&amp;utm_content=christmassale25" data-sk="tooltip_parent" aria-describedby="sk-tooltip-10695">Christmas Sale &#8211; Get 40% off New DailyWire+ Annual Memberships</a>
Some administration officials posted a video of the operation that showed American forces dropping onto the tanker and taking control of it. Attorney General Pam Bondi explained that the United States “executed a seizure warrant for a crude oil tanker used to transport sanctioned oil from Venezuela and Iran.” She added that the oil tanker had been sanctioned because of “its involvement in an illicit oil shipping network supporting foreign terrorist organizations.”
Maduro’s response: The Venezuelan government condemned the seizure in a statement that said Venezuela “strongly denounces and repudiates what constitutes blatant theft and an act of international piracy.”
This development has to be concerning to Maduro. Venezuela is a petrostate, with petroleum accounting for nearly the entire economy. The money the Maduro regime receives from oil sales is the key to its stability. Because the United States has sanctions on Venezuelan oil, Maduro has been forced to do business with regimes that typically are opposed to American interests, such as China. And then at deep discounts to offset the risk of violating American sanctions. If Venezuela is no longer able to sell its oil, that’s a huge blow to Maduro’s revenue.
<h2 style="text-align: center;">The Battle Over Obamacare Continues</h2>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1013815" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Senate-Subsidies-Split-300x169.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="169" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Senate-Subsidies-Split-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Senate-Subsidies-Split-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Senate-Subsidies-Split-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Senate-Subsidies-Split-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Senate-Subsidies-Split.jpg 1920w" sizes=" (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />
Topline: The battle over Obamacare is in full swing, with Democrats advocating for extended subsidies and Republicans offering alternative healthcare options.
Two votes took place in the Senate on Thursday regarding the looming Obamacare deadline. Neither of the bills passed, but it’s important to break down what Democrats and Republicans are pushing forward, because this deadline is coming up in a matter of weeks.
The Democrat bill: The Democrat-backed bill, called the “Lower Health Care Costs Act,” would extend Obamacare subsidies, which are technically tax credits, for another three years. These started back in 2021 and were only supposed to be in place for two years, but Democrats extended them until December 31.
The plan is pricey; it’s expected to cost taxpayers about $83 billion. But Democrats argue that the extension is necessary, otherwise more than 20 million Americans will see their healthcare costs more than double, on average. Republicans dispute that.
“Twenty-two million of the 24 million people will still get their subsidies, the original Obamacare subsidies, which subsidize the insurance at 91% of the premiums. So, their premiums won’t double,” GOP Sen. Ron Johnson told Morning Wire last month. “Going from zero to a negligible amount is an infinite increase. You can’t put that as ‘doubling premiums.’ The people we’re talking about, the 1.6 million people whose subsidies completely go away—I’m willing to work with Democrats on that.”
Republicans also argue that Obamacare, and specifically these subsidies, are creating massive fraud–another burden on the American taxpayer.
The GOP bill: The GOP-backed bill, called the “Health Care Freedom for Patients Act of 2025,” does let the Obamacare subsidies expire on the timeline Democrats set. But it also offers Americans direct payments to help cover healthcare costs. This was an idea floated by President Trump last month.
The health savings accounts created by the bill would be available to Americans earning up to 700% of the federal poverty limit, and the funds would range from $1,000 to $1,500 for 2026 and 2027. The accounts would restrict use for abortion and certain gender-transition coverage.
Republicans needed 60 votes, which would have to include a handful of Democrats, but that didn’t happen.
<h2 style="text-align: center;">Michigan Head Coach Arrested</h2>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1013817" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Sherrone-Moore-Saga-300x169.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="169" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Sherrone-Moore-Saga-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Sherrone-Moore-Saga-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Sherrone-Moore-Saga-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Sherrone-Moore-Saga-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/Sherrone-Moore-Saga.jpg 1920w" sizes=" (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />
Topline: The University of Michigan finds itself engulfed in controversy after administrators abruptly <a href="https://www.wsj.com/sports/football/michigan-fires-football-coach-sherrone-moore-621eb019?mod=hp_lead_pos9">fired</a> head football coach Sherrone Moore with cause. Now, he’s in custody on suspicion of assault. Morning Wire spoke to former Michigan quarterback and Daily Wire Crain &amp; Company co-host David Cone about the Moore saga. (This interview has been lightly edited.)
Morning Wire: I&#8217;ve been, honestly, kind of shocked by this story. We looked at it initially and thought, oh, this will be an Evening Wire. And then it turned into a full-blown story that we felt like was worth covering here. What exactly is happening in this case?
Cone: A sad day for Michigan football. A sad day for this country. I just want to say that first and again, I&#8217;m praying for this man because there&#8217;s some very serious allegations here. I&#8217;ll just say to you now that I heard as far back as September, following Michigan&#8217;s loss to Oklahoma, I had a very reliable source closely associated with Michigan football call me and just say it&#8217;s widely known that Sherrone Moore has engaged in inappropriate sexual conduct with a staff member, and that conduct likely resulted in a pregnancy that was terminated. I heard this in September. I did some due diligence, but every time I would hear something that corroborated that, I would hear something else that says, that&#8217;s just rumor. Come to find out, throughout the fall, many other people and former players close to the program have been hearing something very similar. Wednesday, Warde Manuel, the athletic director, decided to fire head coach Sherrone Moore. … The reports out of Ann Arbor are that Sherrone Moore did not take that news very well, and that allegedly threatened to take his own life. I don&#8217;t know if this was directly with his wife or with the staff member. There is a question here, possibly threatening to even take her life, and he was arrested. I do want to go to as reliable of a source as it gets with the University of Michigan. This is John Bacon, and this is directly from <a href="https://x.com/Johnubacon/status/1998978431154008380">him</a>: “The UM employee presented irrefutable documentation about Moore&#8217;s conduct to UM leaders this morning (Wednesday). The president and regents had seen enough, and Manuel fired him (Wednesday) afternoon. Moore is now detained in protective custody in a mental health institution.”
Morning Wire: One of the big questions here is who knew what when. You say you have the source, it&#8217;s pretty shocking you heard this all the way back in September. Do you feel that this is a cover-up situation by the administration? And that&#8217;s a major allegation to make, but is that possibly the case?
Cone: That is a critical question that you&#8217;re asking, particularly since we are a week now removed from National Signing Day. You have national recruits here who, in good faith, signed their name to a national letter of intent because they thought Sherrone Moore was going to be the head football coach–how does that impact their decision? I lived through this as a recruit at this very place. This was my alma mater. But again, this is way bigger than football. We&#8217;re talking about someone&#8217;s life or family at stake here. So again, I can&#8217;t answer what board members will do when I just know that if I&#8217;m hearing about something in September, the athletic director certainly must have heard about this sooner. At the same time, how does he separate rumors that he must hear on a daily basis versus something that is credible and he must investigate?

MRN_251212_V1

Morning Brief: Oil Tanker Tango, Obamacare Subsidy Standoff, & Major College Football Coach Arrested

Morning Brief: Oil Tanker Tango, Obamacare Battle Continues, And UM Football Coach Arrested

Nicolas Maduro

Obamacare

Venezuela

The phrase &#8220;there is more to the story&#8221; is an understatement when it comes to what is currently unfolding in Michigan.
The University of Michigan fired head coach Sherrone Moore Wednesday, citing an inappropriate relationship with a staffer. That itself is huge news for one of the nation&#8217;s premier football programs, but buckle up. There&#8217;s more.
In just a few short hours, Moore was terminated from his head coaching position and is now in the custody of the Washtenaw County Sheriff&#8217;s Office, according to booking records, though no charges have been filed at this time.
It appears that Moore was initially taken into custody by the Pittsfield Township Police Department. Pittsfield police said it took an unnamed suspect into custody Wednesday evening as part of an assault investigation. According to the department, a man was taken into custody in the 3000 block of Ann Arbor-Saline Road in Pittsfield Township — this is just a few miles south of the University of Michigan. The suspect was then booked into the Washtenaw County Jail, where he awaits his first court appearance on Friday.
Officials with the department said the incident doesn&#8217;t appear to be random in nature, and there is no ongoing threat to the community. The Daily Wire reached out to Pittsfield Police Thursday morning in reference to Moore&#8217;s case and was told no further details on this case are being shared at this time. The police department directed The Daily Wire to a press release involving an assault investigation.
The university said that it fired the 39-year-old coach following an investigation into Moore&#8217;s improper relationship with a staff member.
&#8220;U-M head football coach Sherrone Moore has been terminated, with cause, effective immediately,&#8221; Michigan Athletic Director Warde Manuel said on Wednesday. &#8220;Following a University investigation, credible evidence was found that Coach Moore engaged in an inappropriate relationship with a staff member. This conduct constitutes a clear violation of University policy, and U-M maintains zero tolerance for such behavior.&#8221;
An author who has covered Michigan Football for decades said in an interview Thursday morning with Fox 2 Detroit that Moore and his staffer were investigated this summer and both denied any relationship. John Bacon said Wednesday that the story changed when the staffer reported the relationship to the university.
&#8220;She went on the &#8216;hill&#8217; (where administration offices are) with the receipts, the text messages, the emails, the documents and so on laying out the details of the relationship,&#8221; Bacon said on Fox 2.
Bacon then opened up about what allegedly led to Moore being taken into custody.
&#8220;He broke into the employee&#8217;s home in Pittsfield Township&#8230;grabbed a knife apparently and threatened to harm her and harm himself,&#8221; Bacon said.
Per the <a href="https://nypost.com/2025/12/11/sports/fired-michigan-coach-sherrone-moore-reportedly-attacked-woman-had-stalked-her-for-months-911-call/">New York Post</a>, a University of Michigan employee called 911 on December 10 to report an alleged attack by Moore. The caller said he had been stalking the victim for months, per the 911 call audio, which was obtained by the Post.
Bacon said since Moore&#8217;s arrest he is being monitored by mental health professionals while in custody.
<a class="c-link c-link--focus-visible c-link--underline" href="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=christmas&amp;utm_content=christmassale25" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=christmas&amp;utm_content=christmassale25" data-sk="tooltip_parent">Christmas Sale – Get 40% off New DailyWire+ Annual Memberships</a>
ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported Wednesday after the firing that Michigan investigated Moore this fall after receiving a tip about the situation with the staffer, but the university didn&#8217;t find credible evidence. On Wednesday, however, university officials presented &#8220;overwhelming&#8221; evidence against Moore, and he was quickly dismissed.
ESPN&#8217;s Adam Schefter said on Thursday morning, &#8220;What we haven&#8217;t heard yet is Sherrone Moore&#8217;s side of this, and he gets his say in this particular situation as well. I do know that he felt like people had it in for him for an awful long time there while he was at Michigan. He felt like there were people who are out to get him. So all these things can all be true.&#8221;
<blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF;border: 0;border-radius: 3px;margin: 1px;max-width: 540px;min-width: 326px;padding: 0;width: calc(100% - 2px)" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/DSI6UgODz91/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14">
<div style="padding: 16px">
&nbsp;
<div style="flex-direction: row;align-items: center">
<div style="background-color: #f4f4f4;border-radius: 50%;flex-grow: 0;height: 40px;margin-right: 14px;width: 40px"></div>
<div style="flex-direction: column;flex-grow: 1;justify-content: center">
<div style="background-color: #f4f4f4;border-radius: 4px;flex-grow: 0;height: 14px;margin-bottom: 6px;width: 100px"></div>
<div style="background-color: #f4f4f4;border-radius: 4px;flex-grow: 0;height: 14px;width: 60px"></div>
</div>
</div>
<div style="padding: 19% 0"></div>
<div style="height: 50px;margin: 0 auto 12px;width: 50px"></div>
<div style="padding-top: 8px">
<div style="color: #3897f0;font-family: Arial,sans-serif;font-size: 14px;font-style: normal;font-weight: 550;line-height: 18px">View this post on Instagram</div>
</div>
<div style="padding: 12.5% 0"></div>
<div style="flex-direction: row;margin-bottom: 14px;align-items: center">
<div>
<div style="background-color: #f4f4f4;border-radius: 50%;height: 12.5px;width: 12.5px"></div>
<div style="background-color: #f4f4f4;height: 12.5px;width: 12.5px;flex-grow: 0;margin-right: 14px;margin-left: 2px"></div>
<div style="background-color: #f4f4f4;border-radius: 50%;height: 12.5px;width: 12.5px"></div>
</div>
<div style="margin-left: 8px">
<div style="background-color: #f4f4f4;border-radius: 50%;flex-grow: 0;height: 20px;width: 20px"></div>
<div style="width: 0;height: 0;border-top: 2px solid transparent;border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4;border-bottom: 2px solid transparent"></div>
</div>
<div style="margin-left: auto">
<div style="width: 0px;border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4;border-right: 8px solid transparent"></div>
<div style="background-color: #f4f4f4;flex-grow: 0;height: 12px;width: 16px"></div>
<div style="width: 0;height: 0;border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4;border-left: 8px solid transparent"></div>
</div>
</div>
<div style="flex-direction: column;flex-grow: 1;justify-content: center;margin-bottom: 24px">
<div style="background-color: #f4f4f4;border-radius: 4px;flex-grow: 0;height: 14px;margin-bottom: 6px;width: 224px"></div>
<div style="background-color: #f4f4f4;border-radius: 4px;flex-grow: 0;height: 14px;width: 144px"></div>
</div>
&nbsp;
<a style="color: #c9c8cd;font-family: Arial,sans-serif;font-size: 14px;font-style: normal;font-weight: normal;line-height: 17px;text-decoration: none" href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/DSI6UgODz91/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Lynden Blake Balyo (@lyndenblake)</a>
</div>
</blockquote>
The firing comes days after National Signing Day, when Moore landed a No. 12-ranked recruiting class.
Before the drama unfolded on Wednesday, Moore was part of another controversy. Earlier this season, he served a two-game suspension for the illegal advanced scouting scheme involving former Michigan Football staffer, Connor Stalions.
Moore leaves Michigan with a 17-8 overall record. His final loss was against rival Ohio State.
Biff Poggi will serve as Michigan&#8217;s interim head coach in the Citrus Bowl against Texas on December 31.

Sherrone Moore

‘Moore’ Comes To Light After Michigan Head Football Coach Arrested Following Surprise Firing

College Football

Comedian David Spade is calling out a mall in Michigan for hosting a Christmas tree lighting ceremony that intentionally omitted the word “Christmas.”
Spade described what happened during a recent episode of his podcast, “Fly on the Wall,” which he hosts alongside fellow comedian and “SNL” alum Dana Carvey. 
&#8220;I will say that Christmas is taking a little bit of a beating lately. It is December and I saw the other day there was a tree lighting ceremony for the Christmas tree in some dopey mall… but it said tree lighting ceremony, and they were careful not to say the word Christmas during the whole ceremony,&#8221; Spade said during the episode.
The “Joe Dirt” star did not identify which mall he was referring to, only claiming it was in Michigan.
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Christmas Prep Episode???" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/f0rCtfRjeso?start=196&#038;feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
&#8220;Why?&#8221; Spade went on. &#8220;So it&#8217;s just a tree? And you go, I would understand if you said, &#8216;They&#8217;re doing the tree lighting at [the mall] or whatever. You go, ‘OK.’ But to consciously avoid that, then what is the tree for?&#8221; he continued. &#8220;A December to Remember? Is it a Lexus dealership? Why do we have… for the whole month? Isn&#8217;t it for Christmas?&#8221;
Carvey chimed in to say plenty of non-Christians he knew were not offended by Christmas despite it being a Christian holiday.
“I’d say stop that bullsh*t,” Spade went on. “They like all things about it, [just] don’t say that word.”
Spade said it was ridiculous that establishments were willing to dance around the word without stating it. The podcast hosts also claimed Christmas has been commandeered by the secular crowd anyway.
&#8220;If you&#8217;re of faith, it&#8217;s about Christianity,&#8221; Carvey said. &#8220;But I think at this point in America, it&#8217;s just Christmas. It&#8217;s a fun holiday. I don’t like the thought police. I don’t like to have words I can’t use.”
Spade identified himself as a Christian, but also said he was “more spiritual” when Carvey described him as “lapsed.” The comedian further referenced the current persecution of Christians in African countries such as Nigeria.
&#8220;We&#8217;re taking a beating down in Africa,&#8221; he said. &#8220;It&#8217;s like this is not the year to be Christian. I will tell you that.&#8221;

David Spade

David Spade Slams Mall For Omitting ‘Christmas’ From Tree Lighting Ceremony

David Spade Slams Mall For Omitting 'Christmas' From Tree Lighting Ceremony

Celebrities

Christmas

comedian

Entertainment

U.S.

An illegal immigrant sex offender was working as a college professor in Michigan before he was swept up in the Trump administration&#8217;s mass deportation raids.
Sumith Gunasekera of Sri Lanka first entered the United States in February 1998, before leaving for Canada. He returned later that year on a student visa and with a rap sheet, <a href="https://www.dhs.gov/news/2025/11/25/ice-detroit-arrests-criminal-illegal-alien-history-sex-crimes-working-college" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to Immigration and Customs Enforcement. He told officers during his latest arrest that he was an associate professor at Ferris State University in Big Rapids, Michigan.
When he tried to apply for a different form of immigration status in 2012, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services discovered that he had been convicted of crimes in Canada.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement nabbed him in Detroit earlier this month.
“It&#8217;s sickening that a sex offender was working as a professor on an American college campus and was given access to vulnerable students to potentially victimize them,” Assistant Homeland Security Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a Tuesday statement.
“Thanks to the brave ICE law enforcement officers, this sicko is behind bars and no longer able to prey on Americans. His days of exploiting the immigration system are OVER. Under President Trump and Secretary Noem, criminals are not welcome in the U.S.,&#8221; she said.
<div class="c-message_kit__blocks c-message_kit__blocks--rich_text">
<div class="c-message__message_blocks c-message__message_blocks--rich_text" data-qa="message-text">
<div class="p-block_kit_renderer" data-qa="block-kit-renderer">
<div class="p-block_kit_renderer__block_wrapper p-block_kit_renderer__block_wrapper--first">
<div class="p-rich_text_block" dir="auto">
<div class="p-rich_text_section">Right now, DailyWire+ annual memberships are fifty percent off during our Black Friday sale. Join now at <a class="c-link" href="http://dailywire.com/blackfriday" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="http://dailywire.com/blackfriday" data-sk="tooltip_parent">dailywire.com/blackfriday</a>.</div>
Authorities in Ontario arrested Gunasekera in August 1998 for uttering death threats, according to Immigration and Customs Enforcement. He was rearrested three days later for invitation to sexual touching and sexual interference against a victim he admitted was a minor.
In November 1998, a court in Brampton, Ontario, convicted Gunasekera of uttering a threat to cause death or bodily harm and sexual interference, sentencing him to one month of incarceration and one year of probation.
The illegal immigrant then found himself back in cuffs in Las Vegas in 2003 for open and gross lewdness, according to the feds.
A Las Vegas court convicted Gunasekera in 2004 of disorderly conduct, sentencing him to fines.
The school has since placed Gunasekera on leave, they said in a statement.
“Ferris State University leaders on Tuesday became aware of accusations regarding Professor Sumith Gunasekera. He has been placed on administrative leave while the university gathers more information,” FSU Associate Vice President for Marketing and Communications Dave Murray said, <a href="https://upnorthlive.com/news/local/ferris-state-professor-arrested-by-ice-placed-on-leave-by-university-big-rapids" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to local reports.
“This is a personnel issue and it would be inappropriate for the university to further discuss the matter,&#8221; Murray added.
The Trump administration&#8217;s immigration sweeps have yielded the arrests of several educators.
Federal <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/illegal-immigrant-superintendent-wasnt-checked-through-federal-e-verify-system">immigration agents nabbed</a> the then-superintendent of Des Moines Public Schools, Ian Andre Roberts, who turned out to be an illegal immigrant from Guyana with a deportation order he ignored.
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>

Untitled design – 2025-11-26T091040.678

ICE Nabs Illegal Immigrant Sex Offender Employed As Professor At Michigan University

Illegal Immigrant Sex Offender Employed As Professor At Michigan University

illegal immigrant

Immigration and Customs Enforcement

university professors

March mich

Unsettling Footage Out Of Dearborn Shows How Bad The Islamic Takeover Really Is

Dearborn

Islamization

Matt Walsh

Muslims

Opinion

Protests

Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett raised eyebrows with a rap video she made for TikTok with Michigan Lieutenant Governor Garlin Gilchrist after endorsing him in his campaign for governor.
The <a href="https://x.com/garlin/status/1990443888046424553">video</a> begins with Gilchrist facing the camera — back-to-back with Crockett, who is barely visible behind him — lip-syncing to &#8220;What&#8217;s Up,&#8221; the 1993 smash hit by the 4 Non Blondes. Text on the screen reads, &#8220;POV you&#8217;re about to elect Michigan&#8217;s first Black governor.&#8221;
&#8220;And so I wake in the morning and I step outside. And I take a deep breath and I get real high. And I scream from the top of my lungs,&#8221; he mouths the words, and then the camera swings around to Crockett.
<blockquote class="tiktok-embed" cite="https://www.tiktok.com/@garlingilchristmi/video/7573480169638350093" data-video-id="7573480169638350093" data-embed-from="oembed" style="max-width:605px; min-width:325px;">
<section> <a target="_blank" title="@garlingilchristmi" href="https://www.tiktok.com/@garlingilchristmi?refer=embed">@garlingilchristmi</a> 
POV you’re about to elect Michigan’s first Black Governor @Jasmine Crockett <a title="mi" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/mi?refer=embed">#mi</a> <a title="politics" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/politics?refer=embed">#politics</a> <a title="blacktiktok" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/blacktiktok?refer=embed">#blacktiktok</a> <a title="dance" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/dance?refer=embed">#dance</a> <a title="jasminecrockett" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/jasminecrockett?refer=embed">#jasminecrockett</a> 
 <a target="_blank" title="♬ original sound - Garlin Gilchrist" href="https://www.tiktok.com/music/original-sound-7573480236921326349?refer=embed">♬ original sound &#8211; Garlin Gilchrist</a> </section>
</blockquote>
 <script async src="https://www.tiktok.com/embed.js"></script>
Crockett dives right into her impression of rapper Nicki Minaj, dancing as she lip-syncs, &#8220;Bit**es ain’t sh** and they ain’t sayin&#8217; nothin&#8217;, A hundred mothafu**ers can’t tell me nothin&#8217;, I beez in the trap, be-beez in the trap, I beez in the trap, be-beez in the trap.&#8221;
&#8220;Idiocracy was a documentary,&#8221; <a href="https://x.com/VickieforNYC/status/1990595198465028592">observed</a> New York City Councilwoman Vickie Paladino.
&#8220;Can you imagine our founders watching this …&#8221; Robby Starbuck <a href="https://x.com/robbystarbuck/status/1990604192046809477">mused</a>.
Radio host Justin Barclay <a href="https://x.com/MrJustinBarclay/status/1990541102731178124">added</a>, &#8220;If one were seriously running for governor in Michigan, Jasmine Crockett wouldn&#8217;t be on your list to work with.&#8221;
&#8220;Michigan Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist just released this ridiculous gubernatorial campaign video featuring a sitting member of Congress. Gilchrist says: &#8216;Take it from Jasmine Crockett, Trump can’t tell me nothin’,'&#8221; Newsmax&#8217;s David Harris Jr. <a href="https://x.com/DavidJHarrisJr/status/1990818816465735847">said</a>.
The Gilchrist and Crockett video came just over two weeks after the White House posted a TikTok video using the same musical mashup.
<blockquote class="tiktok-embed" cite="https://www.tiktok.com/@whitehouse/video/7568669729519389966" data-video-id="7568669729519389966" data-embed-from="oembed" style="max-width:605px; min-width:325px;">
<section> <a target="_blank" title="@whitehouse" href="https://www.tiktok.com/@whitehouse?refer=embed">@whitehouse</a> 
The best to ever do it 🇺🇸
 <a target="_blank" title="♬ original sound - The White House" href="https://www.tiktok.com/music/original-sound-7568669763774909197?refer=embed">♬ original sound &#8211; The White House</a> </section>
</blockquote>
 <script async src="https://www.tiktok.com/embed.js"></script>
Gilchrist hosted a fundraising event featuring the Texas Democrat in Detroit over the weekend, and has also been endorsed by Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI). He is the first Democrat in a crowded primary field to state that the situation in Gaza is an active &#8220;<a href="https://www.wlns.com/capital-rundown/gilchrist-calls-situation-in-gaza-a-genocide-at-dearborn-convention/">genocide</a>.&#8221;

US Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX)

Jasmine Crockett Mocked For Bizarre Rap Promoting Michigan Democrat

Jasmine Crockett

Media

Social Media

Three Chinese researchers at the University of Michigan were charged Wednesday in connection with a conspiracy to smuggle biological materials into the United States, the Justice Department announced.
Those charged <a href="https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/three-chinese-national-scholars-university-michigan-laboratory-charged-conspiring-smuggle">include</a> 28-year-old Xu Bai, 27-year-old Fengfan Zhang, and 30-year-old Zhiyong Zhang. The arrests are the latest in a “long <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/alarming-pattern-another-chinese-national-arrested-for-smuggling-biological-materials-into-u-s">string of cases</a>” involving Chinese nationals and the University of Michigan, the Justice Department said.
“Allegedly attempting to smuggle biological materials under the guise of ‘research’ is a serious crime that threatens America’s national and agricultural security,” said Attorney General Pam Bondi. “We will remain vigilant to threats like these from foreign nationals who would take advantage of America’s generosity to advance a malicious agenda.”
Each of the suspects held a J-1 visa and was conducting research at the University of Michigan’s Xianzhong Xu laboratory, also known as the Shawn Xu laboratory. The <a href="https://www.lsi.umich.edu/science/our-labs/s-xu-lab/research">lab</a> is a “sensory biology” research center that focuses on how animals experience their internal and external world through their senses.
In 2024 and 2025, Bai and F. Zhang allegedly received shipments of concealed biological materials related to roundworms sent from a Chinese national, the DOJ said. The Chinese national who sent them the worms was Chengxuan Han, who was recently deported from the United States after pleading no contest to three counts of smuggling and one count of making false statements.
The defendants were fired from their positions at the university after refusing to attend a mandatory meeting to discuss the investigation into their practices, the DOJ said. They later tried to fly out of the country from Detroit and then New York City before they were apprehended by federal law enforcement.
“At some point, pattern becomes practice. And, apparently, these three men are part of a long and alarming pattern of criminal activities committed by Chinese Nationals under the cover of the University of Michigan,” said United States Attorney Jerome Gorgon, Jr.
Agencies involved in the investigation included Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the FBI, and Customs and Border Protection.
“This case underscores the vital importance of safeguarding the American people and addressing vulnerabilities within foreign student and exchange visitor programs,” said acting ICE Director Todd M. Lyons. “Educational institutions must enhance their admissions procedures to prevent exploitation, which can pose risks to national security, as demonstrated in this instance. I commend the ICE HSI agents and officers who work tirelessly to protect our nation and uphold the rule of law every day.”
In June, FBI Director Kash Patel <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/feds-arrest-chinese-scholar-for-attempting-to-smuggle-pathogen-used-for-agroterrorism-into-u-s">revealed</a> that a Chinese scholar at the University of Michigan was arrested and charged with attempting to smuggle a biological pathogen into the United States that could be used for agricultural terrorism.

Ann Arbor Cityscapes And City Views

Feds Makes More Arrests As ‘Alarming Pattern’ Of Chinese Smuggling Continues

Communist China

Smuggling

Menu