NBC News gave viewers a trigger warning on Tuesday before quoting the phrases &#8220;biological male&#8221; and &#8220;biological female&#8221; from the Supreme Court&#8217;s landmark transgender athlete ruling.
A majority of the justices ruled that states have the constitutional power to ban men from women’s sports, dealing another blow to the transgender movement. 
“Just a quick note here. The terms that we’re using here during our reporting, biological male, biological female, the high court put those terms in quotations in their decision and their dissent,” NBC News anchor Craig Melvin said.
“But just so you know, we’re using those terms from the decision itself, biological male, biological female,” he added. 
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Liberal media corporation NBC warns its viewers that they are reading quotes from the Supreme Court majority ruling that states can ban male participation in competitive female sports in schools and universities. Leftists find “biological male” triggering. <a href="https://t.co/lx1j7cA7L4">pic.twitter.com/lx1j7cA7L4</a>
— Andy Ngo (@MrAndyNgo) <a href="https://x.com/MrAndyNgo/status/2072003498158309814?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 30, 2026</a></blockquote>
The network’s White House correspondent, Kelly O’Donnell, downplayed the political salience of the issue, <a href="https://x.com/CurtisHouck/status/2071988378023731485?s=20">saying</a>, “the numbers of transgender athletes &#8230; is a very small pool, in many ways.” 
NBC was not the only network to frame the ruling sympathetically toward transgender-identifying athletes. Over on ABC, the network&#8217;s Supreme Court reporter, <a href="https://x.com/CurtisHouck/status/2071973340399407287?s=20">Devin Dwyer</a>, praised the transgender-identifying plaintiffs, saying they “bravely brought this case” and said the high court’s ruling reflected  “a blow” to transgender-identifying people everywhere &#8220;on this last day of Pride Month.&#8221; 
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WATCH: ABC News is very sad about the Supreme Court keeping biological men out of women’s sports, denying trans kids who “bravely brought this case” and “a blow” to trans people everywhere “on this last day of Pride Month”&#8230; <a href="https://t.co/CRIsKmOIvM">pic.twitter.com/CRIsKmOIvM</a>
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) <a href="https://x.com/CurtisHouck/status/2071973340399407287?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 30, 2026</a></blockquote>
ABC’s Mary Bruce shifted the focus to President Donald Trump, <a href="https://x.com/CurtisHouck/status/2071973644155150824?s=20">saying</a>, “rarely does a day go by here at the White House when the president doesn’t rail against the participation of transgender female athletes in girls and women’s sports.”
In a <a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/25pdf/24-43_2b35.pdf">ruling</a> authored by Justice Brett Kavanaugh and joined by the other conservative justices, the Supreme Court held that Title IX  allows schools to determine eligibility for women’s and girls’ sports teams based on biological sex. Liberal Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ketanji Brown Jackson agreed with parts of the majority opinion and dissented on other parts.
“They may determine eligibility for women’s and girls’ sports based on biological sex,” Justice Kavanaugh wrote. “The Constitution and Title IX do not require an overhaul of women’s and girls’ sports throughout America.”
In a solo concurrence, Justice Clarence Thomas went a step further.
&#8220;Men and boys with gender dysphoria are not women or girls, even if they believe they are,&#8221; he wrote.
The landmark decision centered on laws passed by Idaho and West Virginia restricting transgender-identifying athletes from competing in female athletics. <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/13/us/politics/state-restrictions-trans-athletes-school-sports.html">More than half the states</a> have enacted similar laws to protect female sports and locker rooms. The justices upheld those bans and left for another day the question of whether Title IX requires states to prohibit transgender-identifying athletes from competing against women.
Beyond the screens of mainstream media, Tuesday’s ruling did not sit well with leftist politicians, including California state Sen. Scott Wiener, who is running to succeed Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) in November. 
“In upholding trans sports bans, the Supreme Court has once again fueled the campaign to erase and dehumanize trans people,” Weiner said on social media. “And the way the Court wrote the decision opens the door for other efforts to eliminate trans people from public life.”
Back in DC, Tuesday’s ruling represents a momentous victory for the Trump administration, which issued an <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/02/keeping-men-out-of-womens-sports/">executive order</a> in February 2025 directing the federal government to strip funding from schools that allow transgender-identifying students to compete in female athletics, calling the practice “demeaning, unfair, and dangerous to women and girls.”
“BIG WIN: The United States Supreme Court just RULED AGAINST MEN PLAYING IN WOMEN’S SPORTS,” Trump celebrated on <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/116839596876971289">Truth Social.</a> “Wow! That takes that ridiculous situation off the table!!!

Transgender Rights Advocates Rally Against The Supreme Court’s Ban On Gender-Affirming Youth Care

NBC News Issues Trigger Warning Before Quoting ‘Biological Male’ In Trans Ruling

ABC News

Legacy Media

Media

NBC News

Politics

Supreme Court

Transgender

NBC News White House correspondent Peter Alexander announced on Saturday that he was leaving the network after 22 years, explaining that the long workweeks were keeping him away from his family. But that might not be the whole story.
A <a href="https://pagesix.com/2026/03/28/entertainment/peter-alexander-is-leaving-nbc-after-years-of-being-passed-over-for-top-anchor-jobs-source/?utm_campaign=pagesix&amp;utm_source=twitter&amp;utm_medium=social">report</a> from Page Six suggested that Alexander, who was often double-booked as NBC&#8217;s White House correspondent and co-anchor of &#8220;Saturday Today,&#8221; was also feeling the strain after being repeatedly passed over for several of the hottest anchor gigs in the legacy network&#8217;s lineup.
Alexander made the announcement during Saturday morning&#8217;s &#8220;Today&#8221; broadcast, explaining that he was ready for the next challenge and describing the rigorous schedule that often had him in Washington, D.C., during the week and in New York City every weekend.
&#8220;I’ve been away from home more than 80 nights in the last seven months. More than 200 Friday nights away from my family in the last seven years,&#8221; Alexander explained during Saturday morning&#8217;s broadcast. &#8220;So, in this limited window before my daughters lose interest in hanging out with me … I’m eager to carve out a better balance between my personal and professional lives.&#8221;
Alexander&#8217;s final appearance on NBC News was Saturday.
But sources told Page Six that Alexander was also likely looking at the network lineup and realizing that his chances for moving up had all but evaporated.
His former partner on the White House beat, Kristen Welker, had made the transition to hosting the network&#8217;s flagship Sunday show, &#8220;Meet the Press.&#8221; His former co-anchor on &#8220;Saturday Today,&#8221; Craig Melvin, was moved to weekdays and has cemented himself as the top male voice on &#8220;The Today Show.&#8221; With Tom Llamas holding down the fort at &#8220;NBC Nightly News,&#8221; the opportunities for internal advancement have steadily dried up.
&#8220;He’d be the first to say he’s had ambitions for the top anchor jobs, and with all of those spots recently filled, he’s going to try something new,&#8221; one source told Page Six.
In a memo to staff, NBC News Washington Bureau Chief Chloe Arensberg, and Matt Carluccio, executive producer of weekend broadcasts of &#8220;Today,&#8221; hailed Alexander as &#8220;a trusted presence with great range across NBC News, and a friend to so many across the Washington Bureau, ‘Today’ and the broader NBC News team.&#8221;
It&#8217;s unclear where Alexander will go next. Variety <a href="https://variety.com/2026/tv/news/peter-alexander-exit-nbc-news-1236701929/">reported</a> that Alexander has not revealed any potential future plans, but the Los Angeles Times <a href="https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/story/2026-03-28/peter-alexander-is-leaving-nbc-news-to-join-ms-now-as-anchor">reports</a> that Alexander is leaving to join MS NOW, the recently rebranded MSNBC, where he &#8220;will serve as an anchor and chief national reporter,&#8221; host &#8220;a weekday program&#8221; and &#8220;handle breaking news coverage throughout the day.&#8221;
Neither Alexander nor MS NOW have officially announced the move, but MS NOW host Joe Scarborough — who just signed a four-year contract alongside &#8220;Morning Joe&#8221; co-host and wife Mika Brzezinski — <a href="https://x.com/ScarboroughNow/status/2037895480273686886">congratulated</a> Alexander for the move on X, perhaps signaling that the transition is a done deal.

Meet the Press – Season 78

NBC’s White House Correspondent Leaves Network After 22 Years. What Happened?

Joe Scarborough

In a bombshell interview with Hoda Kotb Thursday on the <a href="https://www.today.com/news/savannah-guthrie-nancy-guthrie-moment-mom-missing-rcna265248">Today Show</a>, Savannah Guthrie took us through the nightmare she&#8217;s been living for the last 54 days since her 84-year-old mother, Nancy Guthrie, was kidnapped from her bed in the middle of the night.
Savannah said her mother was abducted in her pajamas, with no shoes, leaving behind everything. After Savannah&#8217;s sister called 911 on February 1, the Today Show host said it didn&#8217;t take long for the siblings to know something was very wrong.
&#8220;My brother, you know, he spent his career in the military and worked in intelligence and is a fighter pilot and is brilliant,&#8221; Savannah said. &#8220;He saw very clearly right away what this was. Even on the phone when I called him, he knew. And he said I think she&#8217;s been kidnapped for ransom.&#8221;
It&#8217;s a theory the family has held on to throughout the ongoing investigation. Ransom notes flooded news outlets and other avenues following Nancy&#8217;s mysterious disappearance. Savannah and her siblings, Annie and Cameron, addressed two notes that specifically demanded payment in Bitcoin.
&#8220;I believe the two notes that we responded to, I tend to believe those are real,&#8221; Savannah said.
Savannah admits she knows it is a possibility because of her public prominence. She could be the reason her mother was targeted to make a quick buck, but it&#8217;s a thought she can barely say out loud. The family remains uncertain of a motive, seven weeks in.
&#8220;It&#8217;s too much to bear to think I brought this to her bedside, that it&#8217;s because of me,&#8221; Savannah told her former co-anchor. &#8220;If it is me &#8230; I&#8217;m so sorry.&#8221;
The family was the center of scrutiny early on in the investigation, with rumors swirling that the kidnapping could have been an inside job. Savannah finally addressed those rumors, describing how it affected her already grieving family.
&#8220;It piles pain upon pain. There are no words,&#8221; Savannah said. &#8220;I don&#8217;t understand, and I&#8217;ll never understand. No one took better care of my mom than my sister and brother-in-law. No one protected my mom more than my brother. We love her. She is our shining light, our matriarch, she&#8217;s all we have.&#8221;
The rumors started to quiet down after the FBI, with the help of Google, released <a href="https://youtube.com/shorts/phuBCMSiXuo?si=mquv4c06TNPkqhil">images</a> of an armed, masked man with a backpack on Nancy&#8217;s front steps. The images are chilling, but Savannah said she&#8217;s thankful the public can see who was at her mom&#8217;s door so the focus can be on finding out who it is.
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Savannah Guthrie opened up to Hoda Kotb about her reaction to seeing footage of an armed and masked person outside of mom Nancy Guthrie’s home on the night she disappeared. <a href="https://t.co/CI7WhyJfw7">https://t.co/CI7WhyJfw7</a>
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) <a href="https://twitter.com/TODAYshow/status/2037182857060257954?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 26, 2026</a></blockquote>
&#8220;I mean, it&#8217;s just absolutely terrifying, it&#8217;s totally terrifying,&#8221; Savannah said of the images. &#8220;And I can&#8217;t imagine that&#8217;s who she saw standing over her bed. I can&#8217;t. That&#8217;s too much.&#8221;
The agony and desperation for answers were painted all over the news anchor&#8217;s face. While Savannah acknowledged the tireless work investigators are doing, she is again asking for answers.
&#8220;We cannot be at peace without knowing, and someone can do the right thing. It is never too late to do the right thing, and our hearts are focused on that.&#8221;
The second part of the two-part interview airs Friday on the Today Show.

Credit: Joe Raedle/Nathan Congleton/NBC via Getty Images

Savannah Guthrie Reveals Theory She Can’t Shake In Mother’s Kidnapping Case

'I Think She's Been Kidnapped For Ransom': Savannah Guthrie Takes Us Inside Her Living Nightmare

kidnapping

Nancy Guthrie

News

Savannah Guthrie

True Crime

Democrats and the legacy media have been spinning since the very beginning of President Donald Trump&#8217;s military actions against the Iranian regime. Over the span of two weeks, they have pulled out all the stops to win the battle of narratives and convince the world that it was wrong to strike Iran — or if it was right to strike Iran, this was the wrong time. And if it was the right time to strike Iran, then Trump is doing it wrong.
For those who don&#8217;t spend their Sunday mornings glued to the television — and their Sunday afternoons attempting to dig through a week&#8217;s worth of network and cable news media spin — The Daily Wire has compiled a short summary of what you may have missed.
On ABC News, for example, Martha Raddatz spoke with Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA). He agreed that Iran was &#8220;a problem,&#8221; but immediately pivoted to argue that &#8220;war&#8221; was not the proper response to every problem. He then went on to draw a comparison between Iran and previous military actions in Libya, Iraq, and Afghanistan — and he argued that they were all essentially the same.
&#8220;Yes, Iran is a problem. A problem that needs to be contained. But what we should have learned from Muammar Gaddafi and Saddam Hussein and the Taliban is, you can have a threat and not have a military solution that’s going to make it better.&#8221;
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BREAKING: Rep. Adam Smith tells Martha Raddatz that “war is not always the answer to a problem.”
“Yes, Iran is a problem. A problem that needs to be contained. But what we should have learned from Muammar Gaddafi and Saddam Hussein and the Taliban… <a href="https://t.co/C5oi0rvSQy">pic.twitter.com/C5oi0rvSQy</a>
— Axel Vesa (@AxelVesa1) <a href="https://twitter.com/AxelVesa1/status/2033209072921481404?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 15, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Smith also offered a comparison to Venezuela and the recent operation to extract former President Nicolás Maduro, adding, &#8220;Iran is not Venezuela. We can’t just fly in, snatch the president and make things change.&#8221;
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Rep. Adam Smith on President Trump’s foreign policy: “Iran is not Venezuela. We can’t just fly in, snatch the president and make things change.” <a href="https://t.co/LLgvsyy61S">https://t.co/LLgvsyy61S</a> <a href="https://t.co/ns5XiVOxU0">pic.twitter.com/ns5XiVOxU0</a>
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC/status/2033191028044271657?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 15, 2026</a></blockquote>
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On CNN&#8217;s &#8220;State of the Union,&#8221; anchor Jake Tapper brought in former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who promptly declared that the action in Iran was proof that &#8220;this is clearly amateur hour at the Pentagon and in the White House.&#8221;
Buttigieg, after claiming that former Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden had secured nuclear deals that prevented Iran from gaining access to nuclear weapons, argued that President Trump had rushed into war because he was unable to get &#8220;a better deal&#8221; and had done so without any kind of planning or preparation.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Pete Buttigieg on the war with Iran: &#8220;This is clearly amateur hour at the Pentagon and in the White House&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/liOQlGQ50w">pic.twitter.com/liOQlGQ50w</a>
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) <a href="https://twitter.com/CNNSOTU/status/2033192256820121841?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 15, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Tapper took a pause to defend the media&#8217;s oppositional stance, arguing that he and others doing the same were not being critical because they wanted the United States to lose, but because they were just doing their jobs.
&#8220;Every reporter that I know wants the United States to succeed in every way, and the way that reporters help that happen is by asking questions of people in power and not blindly cheering on leaders who take the nation to war,&#8221; he claimed.
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TAPPER: “Every reporter that I know wants the United States to succeed in every way, and the way that reporters help that happen is by asking questions of people in power and not blindly cheering on leaders who take the nation to war.” <a href="https://t.co/KtfZYSnBJU">pic.twitter.com/KtfZYSnBJU</a>
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) <a href="https://twitter.com/CNNSOTU/status/2033185159428591690?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 15, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Margaret Brennan, on &#8220;Face the Nation,&#8221; spoke to several who reinforced the Democrat-driven narrative that the Trump administration was in over its head in Iran.
Former CIA operative Joey Gannon told her that Iran had moved to keep supreme leadership in the Khamenei family because it sent a signal to the world that the regime still had complete control.
&#8220;So, he was a gatekeeper for the supreme leader&#8217;s office in the past. He has strong ties to the IRGC and the Basij, he knows how power actually operates, and he is, effectively, a symbol of continuity right now,&#8221; he explained.
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Former CIA operative Jonny Gannon says the decision to appoint Motjaba Khameini as the new supreme leader “is the message from the regime that they are still in control.”
Mojtaba Khamenei is clearly not a charming public face; what he is is a systems operator,” he says. “So, he… <a href="https://t.co/oP6zveXtvO">pic.twitter.com/oP6zveXtvO</a>
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation/status/2033222131090084297?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 15, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Samantha Vinograd, an Obama administration alum, took the same posture when she argued that Iran was essentially outwitting the United States strategically.
&#8220;The Iranian regime has demonstrated an incredible capacity to be flexible and adaptive,&#8221; she said, adding, &#8220;They played a long game here. They have invested in propaganda and tools in this country, as well as hiring people to do their dirty work for them, to such an extent that I am concerned that they have the intent and capability to, if not direct attacks here in the homeland, to inspire them .&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Former Homeland Security official Samantha Vinograd says “the Iranian regime has demonstrated an incredible capacity to be flexible and adaptive” in the way they carry out attacks.
“They played a long game here. They have invested in propaganda and tools in this country, as… <a href="https://t.co/GgKqrE9CEG">pic.twitter.com/GgKqrE9CEG</a>
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation/status/2033219553694503149?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 15, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) told Brennan that he did not believe the Iranian regime — despite a 47-year record of Iran and its proxies killing over 1,000 American service members and civilians and a recent boast that the regime had nearly enough enriched uranium for almost a dozen nuclear bombs — posed an &#8220;imminent threat&#8221; to the United States. What&#8217;s more, Warner argued that Iran did not pose an immediate threat to Israel — despite Iranian proxies in Hamas and Hezbollah striking Israeli targets on a regular basis.
&#8220;There was no imminent threat to the United States, and I don&#8217;t believe there was even an imminent threat to Israel from Iran,&#8221; Warner declared. &#8220;Over a period of time, particularly with the ballistic missile capability, Israel would be more under threat. The decision to go to war in this case was a choice by President Trump.&#8221;
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Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) says he stands by the 2025 Annual Threat Assessment by U.S. intelligence leaders who testified at the time that Iran had not reauthorized their nuclear weapons program.
“There was no imminent threat to the United States, and I don&#8217;t believe there was… <a href="https://t.co/MLJA4YT5Gc">pic.twitter.com/MLJA4YT5Gc</a>
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation/status/2033215927228002331?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 15, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Jake Tapper

Spin Cycle: Dems, Media Wage War Over Who Controls The Narrative In Iran

CBS News

Democrats

Donald Trump

Iran

Israel

Middle East

American military action in Iran has entered its second week — and the political war at home is in full swing. Democrats and legacy media are racing to brand President Donald Trump the architect of yet another “forever war,” accusing him of violating the Constitution and demanding he seek congressional approval if he wants to continue bombing Iran.
For those who don&#8217;t spend their weekends glued to the television — and their Sunday afternoons attempting to dig through a week&#8217;s worth of network and cable news media spin — The Daily Wire has compiled a short summary of what you may have missed.
In addition to complaining about Trump taking action without first getting the support of Congress, the key note struck by legacy media outlets was the notion that war with Iran — which has thus far lasted just over a week — will necessarily snowball into the same kind of long, drawn-out affair the United States saw in Iraq and Afghanistan: a &#8220;forever war.&#8221;
To kick off the weekend, Senator Adam Schiff (D-CA) sat down with HBO host and comedian <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/watch-bill-maher-tricks-adam-schiff-who-thought-he-was-criticizing-donald-trump">Bill Maher</a>, where he repeated the same refrain being sung by most Democrats: Trump must first go to Congress.
Maher quickly laid a rhetorical trap for the lawmaker: &#8220;This statement from the administration: ‘The president had the constitutional authority to direct the use of military force because he could reasonably determine that such use of force was in the national interest.’ That’s too vague for you?”
“Totally vague,” Schiff agreed.
Maher dropped the other shoe then, saying, “OK. Because that’s from Obama about Libya.”
Schiff scrambled, saying that then-President Barack Obama had taken the issue to Congress when he wanted to take action in Syria in 2013. He ignored Obama&#8217;s 2011 actions in Libya entirely, largely because the Obama administration continued those actions for months without ever getting congressional approval.
By Sunday morning, the narrative had shifted to focus on whether or not Iran would be another &#8220;forever war.&#8221;
On ABC&#8217;s &#8220;This Week,&#8221; anchor Martha Raddatz spoke with correspondent Ian Pannell about the objectives — which they said were thus far unclear — and suggested that it would be difficult to evaluate whether the U.S. and Israeli coalition had &#8220;won,&#8221; and if so, when.
&#8220;The president tells us we’re winning. How do we know that we’re winning, and if we don’t know that, how do we know when it ends?&#8221;
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ABC News’ Ian Pannell joins Martha Raddatz in Jerusalem as the UAE joins the U.S. and Israel in firing shots into Iran: “The president tells us we’re winning. How do we know that we’re winning, and if we don’t know that, how do we know when it ends?” <a href="https://t.co/zjSQAcbPh6">https://t.co/zjSQAcbPh6</a> <a href="https://t.co/1XV7irvDGi">pic.twitter.com/1XV7irvDGi</a>
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC/status/2030643012712235099?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 8, 2026</a></blockquote>
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U.S. Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz pushed back on Raddatz later in the show, explaining that the objectives in Iran were fairly straightforward. The Trump administration, he says, is &#8220;focused on an Iran that can no longer pose a threat to Americans, in an American-first foreign policy, but also no longer pose a threat to our allies in the region.&#8221;
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U.S. ambassador to the U.N. Mike Waltz tells Martha Raddatz that President Trump “is focused on an Iran that can no longer pose a threat to Americans, in an American-first foreign policy, but also no longer pose a threat to our allies in the region.” <a href="https://t.co/FIig18PSLv">https://t.co/FIig18PSLv</a> <a href="https://t.co/wHxMAznCAY">pic.twitter.com/wHxMAznCAY</a>
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC/status/2030646528130380055?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 8, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Admiral (Ret.) Mike Mullen, who served as chairman of the Joint Chiefs at the end of former President George W. Bush&#8217;s last term and the beginning of former President Barack Obama&#8217;s first, warned that wars can start small and grow quickly, especially if the declared objectives change in any way.
&#8220;Wars expand, objectives change, circumstances come up that you didn&#8217;t expect,&#8221; he said.
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Retired Adm. Mike Mullen, former chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that he worries the current war with Iran could drag on for years: “Wars expand, objectives change, circumstances come up that you didn&#8217;t expect.” <a href="https://t.co/6dNhTiUoMP">https://t.co/6dNhTiUoMP</a> <a href="https://t.co/UG2pVmwtjy">pic.twitter.com/UG2pVmwtjy</a>
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC/status/2030656131920507184?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 8, 2026</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;Yes, the [Iranian] supreme leader is dead, but I don&#8217;t think the regime change that we&#8217;re talking about is represented just by that,&#8221; Mullen added, saying that &#8220;the regime is embedded, deep, dedicated, and sees this war as a war of survival for Iran.&#8221;
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“Yes, the [Iranian] supreme leader is dead, but I don&#8217;t think the regime change that we&#8217;re talking about is represented just by that.” Ret. Admiral Mike Mullen says that he thinks “the regime is embedded, deep, dedicated, and sees this war as a war of survival for Iran.” <a href="https://t.co/F5yMWOLhcf">pic.twitter.com/F5yMWOLhcf</a>
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC/status/2030656639414460636?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 8, 2026</a></blockquote>
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On CNN&#8217;s &#8220;State of the Union,&#8221; anchor Jake Tapper pressed Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) on his vow to vote against funding for any military action in Iran.
&#8220;You have said you&#8217;re a &#8216;hell no&#8217; on funding the war. We have seen this movie before. We know that vote will be cast as — especially if you run for higher office — you voting against the troops,&#8221; Tapper prompted.
&#8220;Oh come on I mean, the American people don&#8217;t want this war,&#8221; Murphy scoffed. &#8220;They don&#8217;t want this war. They have seen what happens when American troops go into places like Iraq, places like Afghanistan. Ultimately we get a lot of people killed, we waste a lot of dollars, the one thing the American people are clear about is they do not want the United States dragged into another long term war in the Middle East.&#8221;
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TAPPER: &#8220;You have said you&#8217;re a &#8216;hell no&#8217; on funding the war. We have seen this movie before. We know that vote will be cast as &#8211; especially if you run for higher office &#8211; you voting against the troops.&#8221;
MURPHY: &#8220;Oh come on I mean, the American people don&#8217;t want this war.&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/lTB5isM8I7">pic.twitter.com/lTB5isM8I7</a>
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) <a href="https://twitter.com/CNNSOTU/status/2030640466153107679?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 8, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Although President Trump has said that he is willing to continue military action in Iran as long as it takes to achieve his objectives, his initial assessment was that the entire thing could be handled in a matter of weeks.

Chris Murphy

Spin Cycle: Media, Dems Dub Iran ‘Forever War’ As Conflict Expands To Second Week

Spin Cycle: Media, Dems Dub Iran 'Forever War' As Conflict Expands To Second Week

Today Show host Savannah Guthrie is asking everyone to pray for her mother&#8217;s return as the search for Nancy Guthrie continues.
Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said he believes Nancy Guthrie was taken from her home over the weekend in a &#8220;possible kidnapping or abduction&#8221; just outside of Tucson, Arizona. Nanos told <a href="https://www.today.com/news/savannah-guthrie-mom-missing-arizona-rcna257021">NBC News</a> on Monday that Nancy was taken from her bed, but he later clarified he meant figuratively.
Information remains limited during the active investigation, which Nanos is calling a crime. Sources told <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/savannah-guthrie-mother-nancy-blood-home/">CBS News</a> on Tuesday that blood was found in Nancy&#8217;s home. It&#8217;s not clear whose blood it is, but CBS reports it is being tested.
Nanos confirmed that possible DNA is being tested as well.
&#8220;We took some samples that we hope will have enough profile of a DNA profile that gives us some identification of what we’re looking at,&#8221; Nanos told NBC News.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/dwn-260204"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone wp-image-1039207 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Guthriebannerfinal-1024x243.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="243" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Guthriebannerfinal-1024x243.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Guthriebannerfinal-300x71.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Guthriebannerfinal-768x182.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Guthriebannerfinal-1536x365.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/Guthriebannerfinal-2048x487.jpg 2048w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></a>
The sheriff added it could be days before there is any conclusive evidence from the DNA samples.
In another development, the <a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2026-02-03/blood-inside-home-nancy-guthrie-today-host-savannah-guthrie-mother">Los Angeles Times</a> is reporting signs of forced entry into Nancy&#8217;s house.
Meanwhile, Savannah Guthrie spoke out on Instagram late Monday, asking for prayers to bring her mom home, as this troubling case unfolds.
&#8220;We believe in prayer. We believe in voices raised in unison, in love, in hope. We believe in goodness. We believe in humanity. Above all, we believe in Him,&#8221; Savannah wrote.
&#8220;Thank you for lifting your prayers with ours for our beloved mom, our dearest Nancy, a woman of deep conviction, a good and faithful servant. Raise your prayers with us and believe with us that she will be lifted by them in this very moment. We need you.&#8221;
The Today Show host added the following Bible verse, &#8220;He will keep in perfect peace those whose hearts are steadfast, trusting in the Lord,&#8221; before concluding, &#8220;Bring her home.&#8221;
Savannah&#8217;s mother was reported missing on Sunday, around noon, after a church friend called Nancy&#8217;s family, letting them know she didn&#8217;t show up for service.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/today-show-hosts-mom-missing-her-home-now-an-active-crime-scene">RELATED: Today Show Host’s Mom Missing, Her Home Now An Active Crime Scene</a>
Nancy&#8217;s belongings, including her phone, wallet, and car, were all still at the house in the Catalina Foothills just north of Tucson.
The sheriff added that Nancy isn’t in good physical health but has &#8220;no cognitive issues,&#8221; is &#8220;very alert,&#8221; and is &#8220;very sound of mind.&#8221;
Police do not know at this time if Nancy was targeted because she is Savannah’s mother, and added they aren&#8217;t aware of threats aimed at Savannah after speaking with her, per NBC.
Nanos said in a press conference on Monday that he doesn&#8217;t think the public is in danger.
&#8220;So we make a plea to anyone who knows anything about this, who has seen something, heard something, to contact us,&#8221; Nanos said. &#8220;Call 911. We don’t need another bad, tragic ending. We need some help.&#8221;
Pima County Sheriff&#8217;s Office officials are holding a press conference on Tuesday at 1:30 p.m. ET to give an update on this case.

Credit: Nathan Congleton/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images

‘Bring Her Home’: Savannah Guthrie Pleads For Mother’s Return After ‘Abduction’

Crime

TODAY Show

While Democrats move to potentially trigger yet another government shutdown over the Trump&#8217;s administration insistence in allowing Immigration and Customs Enforcement to enforce federal immigration law, former CNN host Don Lemon says he &#8220;ain&#8217;t worried&#8221; that his connection to a church-disrupting protest could land him behind bars.
For those who don&#8217;t spend their Sunday mornings glued to the television — and their Sunday afternoons attempting to dig through a week&#8217;s worth of network and cable news media spin — The Daily Wire has compiled a short summary of what you may have missed.
Across multiple media outlets, the Trump administration&#8217;s continued efforts to apprehend and deport criminal illegal aliens are still front page, above-the-fold news. Flashpoints in areas facing major crackdowns — such as Minneapolis — have resulted in a series of viral narratives that all too often have beaten the truth to the punch.
On Sunday, a week after Alex Pretti was killed by Border Patrol agents in Minneapolis and just days after Lemon was arrested in connection with a protest at Cities Church, much of the commentary was focused on the Democrats in Congress and whether they would leverage the threat of another government shutdown against funding for the Department of Homeland Security — specifically: ICE.
On ABC&#8217;s &#8220;This Week,&#8221; House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries called for extensive reforms within the Department of Homeland Security — including a measure that requires federal agents to not wear masks despite exponential increases in assaults against federal agents and threats against them and their families.
Jeffries also called for <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/heres-how-democrats-could-cripple-ice-without-defunding-dhs">judicial warrants</a> to be required for immigration arrests — a move that, by most accounts, would cripple efforts to arrest and deport criminal illegal aliens in a timely fashion.
&#8220;There would be no more immigration arrests,” a source within Immigration and Customs Enforcement told The Daily Wire. “It’s the functional equivalent of getting a warrant before issuing a speeding ticket. It’s the entire reason why ‘administrative’ arrests exist in the first place. If every single illegal alien who is charged with ‘Entry without Inspection’ was treated like a criminal arrest then they would have, among other things, right to counsel provided by the United States would be impossible.”
Senator Ron Johnson (R-WI) echoed that sentiment on CNN&#8217;s &#8220;State of the Union, telling CNN anchor Dana Bash, &#8220;Demanding judicial warrants is [Democrats&#8217;] sneaky way of basically neutering our ability to enforce any immigration laws.&#8221;
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GOP Sen. Ron Johnson: &#8220;Demanding judicial warrants is [Democrats&#8217;] sneaky way of basically neutering our ability to enforce any immigration laws.&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/SQjQjavb16">pic.twitter.com/SQjQjavb16</a>
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) <a href="https://twitter.com/CNNSOTU/status/2017994421996834826?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 1, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Credit: @CNNSOTU/X.com
But Jeffries was adamant: &#8220;ICE agents should conduct themselves like every other law enforcement agency in the country as opposed to running around — masked thugs, in many instances unleashing brutality on law-abiding American citizens.&#8221;
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Rep. Hakeem Jeffries calls the Senate-passed funding deal “a meaningful step in the right direction,” but adds that “we need a robust path toward dramatic reform. The administration can&#8217;t just talk the talk. They need to walk the walk.” <a href="https://t.co/ewJ2fbuHm5">pic.twitter.com/ewJ2fbuHm5</a>
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC/status/2017999655968121137?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 1, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Credit: @ThisWeekABC/X.com
Democrat operative-turned ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos also spoke with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche during Sunday&#8217;s broadcast, asking him to defend Don Lemon&#8217;s arrest. Stephanopoulos asked Blanche if perhaps the Justice Department was in the wrong by suggesting Lemon had crossed the line between reporting on the protest and becoming a part of it.
Blanche pushed back, saying that Lemon&#8217;s indictment was public and anyone who chose to do so could read the charges for themselves.
&#8220;Nobody in this country should feel comfortable storming into a church while it&#8217;s ongoing and disrupting that church service and thinking that we&#8217;re just going to stand by and let that happen,&#8221; Blanche added.
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Deputy AG Todd Blanche on the arrest of journalist Don Lemon: “Nobody in this country should feel comfortable storming into a church while it&#8217;s ongoing and disrupting that church service and thinking that we&#8217;re just going to stand by and let that happen.” <a href="https://t.co/3BFEBVPRR2">https://t.co/3BFEBVPRR2</a> <a href="https://t.co/AaRU7EuApD">pic.twitter.com/AaRU7EuApD</a>
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC/status/2017983385147212029?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 1, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Credit: @ThisWeekABC/X.com
Lemon also took to the airwaves to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/don-lemon-aint-even-worried-about-getting-locked-up-after-arrest">address his arrest</a>, telling his audience that his arrest had only helped him to see things more clearly — and that he was only going to be more outspoken in the future.
&#8220;So I know that there are people who think like oh, you know, do this, and I’m going to be locked up or whatever. I ain’t worried about that. You heard the truth, and the truth shall make you free. I ain’t even worried about that. Like not. Don’t even think about it,&#8221; Lemon said.
CNN anchor Dana Bash pressed Blanche on Lemon&#8217;s arrest as well, asking whether it might have been done because Lemon and Trump have often been at odds rather than because Lemon had done anything that warranted such a response.
&#8220;Was it about trying to make an example out of somebody who the President has sparred with?&#8221; Bash asked.
&#8220;I don&#8217;t even know that the President has even ever thought of Don Lemon,&#8221; Blanche replied.
Trump, aboard Air Force One on Saturday, made it clear that he did not care for Lemon — but he also said that he&#8217;d had no advance knowledge that the former CNN host was going to be arrested.
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Dana Bash pushes Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche on the arrest of former CNN journalist Don Lemon:
BASH: &#8220;Was it about trying to make an example out of somebody who the President has sparred with?&#8221;
BLANCHE: &#8220;I don&#8217;t even know that the President has even ever thought of… <a href="https://t.co/pA2bCGgVjC">pic.twitter.com/pA2bCGgVjC</a>
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) <a href="https://twitter.com/CNNSOTU/status/2017970465508122635?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 1, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Credit: @CNNSOTU/X.com
On &#8220;Face the Nation,&#8221; CBS News anchor Margaret Brennan hosted a roundtable discussion with several mayors from around the United States to talk about the tensions between federal and local authorities with regard to immigration enforcement.
&#8220;Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt, a Republican, said that “mayors are certainly caught in a little bit of an impossible situation &#8230; When the federal government and federal law enforcement comes into your city, we are fully subservient to that in the eyes of the law, and we also believe in the rule of law. So, we get caught kind of in the middle of these tensions, and we need a federal government who will use discretion and restraint with that power.&#8221;
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Republican Oklahoma City, OK, Mayor David Holt said that “mayors are certainly caught in a little bit of an impossible situation” with federal law enforcement in cities.
“When the federal government and federal law enforcement comes into your city, we are fully subservient to… <a href="https://t.co/xB4nk6oOPj">pic.twitter.com/xB4nk6oOPj</a>
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation/status/2018016343803445466?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 1, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Credit: @FaceTheNation/X.com
In the last week, Trump has shaken up the personnel on the ground in Minneapolis, sending border czar Tom Homan in to oversee the efforts.
And if we know Tom Homan, we know he &#8220;ain&#8217;t worried.&#8221;

MixCollage-30-Jan-2026-03-55-PM-1994

Spin Cycle: Don Lemon ‘Ain’t Worried’ And DOJ Takes The Heat On ICE

Spin Cycle: Don Lemon, On ICE

Don Lemon

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)

The Today Show&#8217;s Savannah Guthrie delivers the news to millions every morning, but her own life became the headline when her mother, Nancy Guthrie, was reported missing on Sunday from her Arizona home outside of Tucson, Arizona.
Local authorities called off the search and rescue mission Monday morning and are now investigating Nancy&#8217;s house as a crime scene.
&#8220;We do in fact have a crime scene, we do in fact have a crime,&#8221; Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said at the press conference Monday.
Evidence gathered during the ongoing investigation in the 84-year-old&#8217;s home suggests Nancy did not leave on her own. Authorities are reviewing camera footage at her house.
&#8220;So we make a plea to anyone who knows anything about this, who has seen something, heard something, to contact us,&#8221; Nanos said. &#8220;Call 911. We don&#8217;t need another bad, tragic ending. We need some help.&#8221;
Nanos said the community needs to check their cameras and see if they have seen anything that at first didn&#8217;t look suspicious, but now the Sheriff said you should know it is suspicious.
Authorities have Nancy&#8217;s cell phone, and officials added that her family, including Savannah, are in Arizona and fully cooperating with authorities.
The Sheriff added that Nancy isn&#8217;t in good physical health but has &#8220;no cognitive issues&#8221; and is &#8220;very alert&#8221; and &#8220;very sound of mind.&#8221;
Savannah released this statement on The Today Show on Monday.
“On behalf of our family, I want to thank everyone for the thoughts, prayers and messages of support,” she said. “Right now, our focus remains on the safe return of our dear mom. We thank law enforcement for their hard work on this case and encourage anyone with information to contact the Pima County Sheriff’s Department at (520) 351-4900.”
Nanos described Nancy as 5 feet, 5 inches tall, weighing 150 pounds. The 84-year-old has brown hair and blue eyes. The last time her family saw her was at 9:30 p.m. Saturday.
Nanos said the family was alerted that Nancy wasn&#8217;t at church Sunday morning, and after a brief search for her, the family alerted authorities.
Nanos said the public is not in danger.
According to The Today Show, Savannah has often described her close relationship with her mother, and Nancy would make appearances on the national morning show from time to time. Per the outlet, her father, Charles, died when Savannah was 16 years old, leaving Nancy as a single mother of Savannah and her two siblings.
Nanos said when they get more information, they will let the public know.

Credit: Nathan Congleton/NBC via Getty Images

Today Show Host’s Mom Missing, Her Home Now An Active Crime Scene

Arizona

Missing Person

While Winter Storm Fern blanketed much of the southeastern United States with snow — and, of course, ice — media outlets continued to foment panic over President Donald Trump&#8217;s use of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (the other kind of ICE) and Border Patrol in major cities like Minneapolis.
For those who don&#8217;t spend their Sunday mornings glued to the television — and their Sunday afternoons attempting to dig through a week&#8217;s worth of network and cable news media spin — The Daily Wire has compiled a short summary of what you may have missed.
Tensions ramped up over the weekend after a fatal shooting involving Border Patrol agents in Minneapolis, where federal immigration officials continue their efforts to apprehend and remove criminal illegal aliens. Sanctuary policies — promoted both by Mayor Jacob Frey and by failed vice presidential candidate and Governor Tim Walz (D-MN) — have left federal agents working not only without the coordination and cooperation of local law enforcement, but sometimes directly in opposition to them.
The end result is the impasse that made a surge of federal resources and personnel necessary in the first place: local officials claim that having federal agents in the streets make the people less safe, while federal officials maintain that if state and local police would honor ICE detainers and allow federal officers to apprehend criminal illegals in jails and courthouses, federal officers would not need to be on the streets.
By Sunday, the lines in the snow had been drawn and reinforced — and the legacy media outlets brought in Democrats (and a few Republicans) who would question the Trump administration, at least in light of the latest fatal confrontation.
ABC News anchor Jonathan Karl began his broadcast of &#8220;This Week&#8221; with a brief profile of Alex Pretti, 37, who was shot by Border Patrol agents — and quoted Pretti&#8217;s mother as saying, &#8220;He loved his country, but he hated what people were doing to it.&#8221;
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“He loved his country, but he hated what people were doing to it,” Alex Pretti’s mother told the AP.
ABC News’ <a href="https://twitter.com/jonkarl?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JonKarl</a> reports on what we know about the 37‑year‑old, who was shot and killed by federal agents Saturday in Minneapolis. <a href="https://t.co/nzQJ9tYzE4">pic.twitter.com/nzQJ9tYzE4</a>
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC/status/2015456870299742298?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 25, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Karl then brought in Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) — who is expected to jump into the gubernatorial race in the coming months — to discuss the situation. Klobuchar claimed she would have supported efforts to root out fraud and to apprehend the worst of the worst when it came to criminal illegal aliens — but she believed it was clear that was not what the Trump administration had been doing.
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“If your goal was to go after fraud, that’s a righteous goal. But that’s not what this is. If your goal was to apprehend violent offenders — good. But that’s not what you’re doing anymore.”
Sen. Klobuchar’s message to federal officials after escalating tensions in Minneapolis. <a href="https://t.co/FRz5VoRNvy">pic.twitter.com/FRz5VoRNvy</a>
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC/status/2015457301939802182?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 25, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Klobuchar addressed the Pretti shooting directly, saying that some Republicans had spoken to her quietly about their concerns regarding the actions of federal agents but that was not enough. &#8220;At this point, silence is complicity,&#8221; she said, claiming that federal agents were violating constitutional rights at every turn.
Klobuchar argued, among other things, that the agents cracking down on violent protests were violating First Amendment rights to assemble — and then claimed that Border Patrol agents were violating the Second Amendment because Pretti had been a legally-permitted gun-owner.
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Sen. Amy Klobuchar criticizes her Republican colleagues who she says have not spoken about the federal actions in Minneapolis: “At this point, silence is complicity.” <a href="https://t.co/Q4LlxAFJW9">https://t.co/Q4LlxAFJW9</a> <a href="https://t.co/Jmda2AVYSx">pic.twitter.com/Jmda2AVYSx</a>
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC/status/2015466555245498871?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 25, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Karl wrapped up the broadcast by giving New York City&#8217;s democratic socialist Mayor Zohran Mamdani a chance to double down on his calls to defund ICE. &#8220;ICE is an organization that cares little for the rules. It&#8217;s an organization that operates with reckless impunity and seems to revel in the flouting of those kinds of rules. And that&#8217;s what gives people a real sense of fear,&#8221; Mamdani claimed.
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NYC Mayor Mamdani on his calls to abolish ICE: “ICE is an organization that cares little for the rules. It&#8217;s an organization that operates with reckless impunity and seems to revel in the flouting of those kinds of rules. And that&#8217;s what gives people a real sense of fear.” <a href="https://t.co/i3n9c6Np6N">pic.twitter.com/i3n9c6Np6N</a>
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC/status/2015483794371789101?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 25, 2026</a></blockquote>
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On CBS News, &#8220;Face the Nation&#8221; host Margaret Brennan brought in Senator Angus King (I-ME) to discuss the surge of agents coming to his state in the same way they&#8217;d dispatched to Minnesota, and he drew a hard line: &#8220;I believe what we&#8217;re seeing is an attempt to intimidate the American people. Again, armed people with masks and telling people they can&#8217;t photograph what they are doing and intimidating protesters, that&#8217;s not American.&#8221;
King joined Democrats making noise about another possible government shutdown as he said that he couldn&#8217;t possibly vote for a bill that funded ICE.
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Sen. Angus King (I-ME) says he “can&#8217;t vote for a bill that includes ICE funding in these circumstances, what they are doing in my state, what we saw yesterday in Minneapolis.”
“I believe what we&#8217;re seeing is an attempt to intimidate the American people,” King says. “Again, armed… <a href="https://t.co/ESbH4QMwzX">pic.twitter.com/ESbH4QMwzX</a>
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation/status/2015470479973216473?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 25, 2026</a></blockquote>
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King claimed that there was a way for federal authorities to enforce immigration law without &#8220;ransacking our cities and terrorizing our residents,&#8221; but he did not say how he expected that to happen while local and state authorities were refusing to cooperate with the feds – and while Democrat leaders were actively encouraging civilians to obstruct and push back on the federal agents attempting to do their jobs.
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When asked how the state and federal government can work together on immigration, Sen. Angus King (I-ME) says federal authorities “can enforce the laws against illegal immigration and people that are criminals without ransacking our cities and terrorizing our residents.”
“There… <a href="https://t.co/yH2uHNj1sf">pic.twitter.com/yH2uHNj1sf</a>
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation/status/2015469864622731720?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 25, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Brennan also spoke with Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O&#8217;Hara, who suggested that the federal agents were going about things the wrong way.
&#8220;The Minneapolis Police Department went the entire year last year recovering about 900 guns from the street, arresting hundreds and hundreds of violent offenders, and we didn&#8217;t shoot anyone,&#8221; he claimed, but he failed to address the fact that the city was still awash in criminal illegal aliens that he and his department had done nothing about.
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After two U.S. citizens were killed by federal agents in Minneapolis in recent weeks, the city’s police chief, Brian O’Hara, says the people of Minneapolis “have had enough” of ICE’s Operation Metro Surge.
“The Minneapolis Police Department went the entire year last year… <a href="https://t.co/dX3DKVtHbe">pic.twitter.com/dX3DKVtHbe</a>
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation/status/2015458221582852432?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 25, 2026</a></blockquote>
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And on CNN, anchor Dana Bash discussed the situation with newly-elected Governor Mikie Sherrill (D-NJ). Asking Sherrill about the fact that her state was home to numerous &#8220;sanctuary&#8221; jurisdictions — and was likely to face surges of federal agents as well, Bash asked how she planned to handle such actions.
Sherrill&#8217;s response was to compare ICE to the communist STASI, East Germany&#8217;s brutal secret police.
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Sherrill on ICE: &#8220;This is about a basically Stasi-type force of secret police that wear masks, that are unidentifiable, that are unaccountable, that have leadership in the Trump administration blatantly lying about what&#8217;s going on, when the American people can see the videos… <a href="https://t.co/oRnMsIUEDE">pic.twitter.com/oRnMsIUEDE</a>
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) <a href="https://twitter.com/CNNSOTU/status/2015475979393593555?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 25, 2026</a></blockquote>
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ICE Protest

Spin Cycle: Forecast Calls For More Snow And ICE In Minneapolis

President Donald Trump has made no secret of his desire to acquire Greenland for the United States, and while his administration has insisted the goal is a negotiated purchase of the strategically-located island from Denmark, critics in the media and the Democratic Party have nonetheless suggested he will use the military to take the island by force.
For those who don&#8217;t spend their Sunday mornings glued to the television — and their Sunday afternoons attempting to dig through a week&#8217;s worth of network and cable news media spin — The Daily Wire has compiled a short summary of what you may have missed.
The renewed furor over Greenland began with a Saturday <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/115911344443637897">Truth Social post</a> from the president leveraging tariffs against a number of European nations until an agreement is reached for the United States to purchase it.
&#8220;The United States of America is immediately open to negotiation with Denmark and/or any of these Countries that have put so much at risk, despite all that we have done for them, including maximum protection, over so many decades,&#8221; Trump said.
Following a week of military buildup in Greenland — as European nations attempt to help Denmark shore up defenses against a U.S. invasion that the Trump administration has repeatedly stated is not coming — anchors and guests across the legacy networks discussed the fate of the island nation as if an invasion was imminent.
Anchor Jonathan Karl raised the question with Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX) on ABC&#8217;s &#8220;This Week,&#8221; asking what he made of the president&#8217;s rhetoric regarding gaining control of Greenland.
&#8220;I want to put your foreign affairs hat on — what do you make of what&#8217;s going on with the president and Greenland? And how he&#8217;s slapped tariffs on eight of our allies in Europe? He&#8217;s not rolling out military force to get Greenland?&#8221; he asked, his tone almost one of disbelief.
McCaul quickly pointed out the fact that American presidents had considered Greenland to be a strategic purchase since the United States acquired Alaska, adding, &#8220;It is very strategic right now from a national security standpoint against China and Russia. But in 1951 we signed a treaty with Denmark that allows us full access to Greenland — to protect Greenland, and this was after World War II — President Truman initially was involved and then President Eisenhower.&#8221;
&#8220;The fact is, the president has full military access to Greenland to protect us from any threats,&#8221; McCaul added, noting that Trump could increase the American military presence in Greenland without the United States officially taking ownership of the territory. &#8220;If he wants to purchase Greenland, that&#8217;s one thing. But for him to militarily invade would turn Article 5 of NATO on its very head, in essence, put us at war with NATO itself.&#8221;
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GOP Rep. Michael McCaul on President Trump’s proposed action in Greenland: “If we want to put more military in there, we can, we don&#8217;t have to invade it. If you want to buy it, that&#8217;s fine. But I don&#8217;t see a willing seller right now.&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/XjdJpMxs7P">https://t.co/XjdJpMxs7P</a> <a href="https://t.co/VuenM5BGQA">pic.twitter.com/VuenM5BGQA</a>
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC/status/2012910723244888229?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 18, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Karl also brought in Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) to discuss the situation, and he immediately accused the president of an attempted land grab with regard to Greenland.
&#8220;Donald Trump wants to get his hands on the minerals and other resources of Greenland, just like the real reason he went into Venezuela had nothing to do with stopping drugs from coming,&#8221; he claimed.
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Sen. Chris Van Hollen calls President Trump’s pursuit of Greenland a “land grab.”
“Donald Trump wants to get his hands on the minerals and other resources of Greenland, just like the real reason he went into Venezuela had nothing to do with stopping drugs from coming.” <a href="https://t.co/c1JOw3UudA">pic.twitter.com/c1JOw3UudA</a>
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC/status/2012916694298079330?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 18, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Governor-elect Mikie Sherrill (D-NJ) also joined Karl on Sunday morning, and she argued that it would be unfair to the people of New Jersey for Trump to spend federal funds — some of which come out of her state — on a strategic purchase like Greenland.
&#8220;There is not one person in New Jersey that wakes up in the morning and says, ‘Gee, I hope today&#8217;s the day that the president dumps billions of dollars into buying Greenland,&#8221; she added.
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“There is not one person in New Jersey that wakes up in the morning and says, ‘Gee, I hope today&#8217;s the day that the president dumps billions of dollars into buying Greenland.”
NJ Governor-elect Mikie Sherrill criticizes President Trump’s use of federal funds. <a href="https://t.co/jWAURz3lDw">pic.twitter.com/jWAURz3lDw</a>
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC/status/2012931291994350023?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 18, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) threatened a vote on a bill that would prevent Trump from using federal funds to exert control over Greenland — and claimed that there was no threat to Greenland from Russia or China. Ignoring the fact that the Trump administration&#8217;s assertion is that the three is not to Greenland but to the United States – and that Greenland, protected solely by Denmark, is the weak link in the security chain — Warner claimed that the only actual threat to Greenland was coming from Donald Trump.
&#8220;There is no current security threat from Russia or China to Greenland. The only security threat to Greenland right now is the United States,&#8221; he told &#8220;Face the Nation&#8221; anchor Margaret Brennan on CBS News.
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Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, says he would “of course” vote in support of a bill proposed by Sens. Shaheen and Murkowski that would prohibit the use of federal funds to assert control over the territory of a NATO state. But Warner tells… <a href="https://t.co/bzXWVgwf23">pic.twitter.com/bzXWVgwf23</a>
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation/status/2012934974203199978?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 18, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Brennan also ran with a new CBS News poll that showed Americans were largely opposed to possible U.S. military action in Greenland, and worried that such action would likely &#8220;create more instability in the world.&#8221;
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There’s widespread bipartisan opposition to the prospect of U.S. military action in Greenland, with many Americans saying the implications would create more instability in the world, a new CBS News poll finds. <a href="https://t.co/a6pikO0swy">https://t.co/a6pikO0swy</a> <a href="https://t.co/EnQZgoFnpP">pic.twitter.com/EnQZgoFnpP</a>
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation/status/2012942648055566729?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 18, 2026</a></blockquote>
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On CNN, anchor Jake Tapper brought in former Vice President Mike Pence to push back on Trump&#8217;s apparent plan. Pence argued that while it was perfectly reasonable to look at Greenland as a strategic objective, the issue was how President Trump might go about bringing Denmark to heel.
&#8220;Well, look, I think it&#8217;s a question right now, Jake, not of what the president&#8217;s trying to accomplish, but how? And I have concerns about using what I think is a questionable constitutional authority, imposing unilateral tariffs on NATO allies to achieve this objective,&#8221; he explained.
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Former Vice President Mike Pence questions President Trump threatening new tariffs on allies over Greenland:
&#8220;Well, look, I think it&#8217;s a question right now, Jake, not of what the president&#8217;s trying to accomplish, but how? And I have concerns about using what I think is a… <a href="https://t.co/2MYQrcpZTb">pic.twitter.com/2MYQrcpZTb</a>
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) <a href="https://twitter.com/CNNSOTU/status/2012896195752968501?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 18, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Senator Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) rounded out the conversation with Tapper by complaining about the use of federal funds to gain a strategic foothold in the Arctic.
&#8220;The idea that we&#8217;re going to waste money for everything we want is the dumbest decision we can make. The only person who can make a decision this dumb is someone who could let a casino go under, and guess who is President right now?&#8221; he said.
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Democratic Senator Ruben Gallego on Trump&#8217;s push to acquire Greenland:
&#8220;The idea that we&#8217;re going to waste money for everything we want is the dumbest decision we can make. The only person who can make a decision this dumb is someone who could let a casino go under, and guess… <a href="https://t.co/uubEY1KMMC">pic.twitter.com/uubEY1KMMC</a>
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) <a href="https://twitter.com/CNNSOTU/status/2012901242503127129?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 18, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD)

Spin Cycle: As Trump Escalates On Greenland, Media Speculates

Greenland

A shooting involving an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent and an anti-ICE activist Renee Good left the former injured and the latter dead. Despite evidence to the contrary provided in multiple videos — from several different angles — media outlets were quick to assist Democrats in their claims that the ICE agents were nothing more than aggressors, carrying out the whims of President Donald Trump.
For those who don&#8217;t spend their Sunday mornings glued to the television — and their Sunday afternoons attempting to dig through a week&#8217;s worth of network and cable news media spin — The Daily Wire has compiled a short summary of what you may have missed.
Even after videos emerged showing Good intentionally blocking federal agents with her car and taunting them — and then accelerating and striking the agent before he began firing his weapon — Democrats and the legacy media persisted in pushing several distinct narratives. While their coverage varied, the common thread was a simple one: the ICE agents had done something wrong.
ABC News anchor Martha Raddatz brought in Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) to discuss the situation, and Smith complained that the Department of Homeland Security had referred to Good&#8217;s behavior as &#8220;domestic terrorism&#8221; before details had been released. Of course, by the time Smith joined the broadcast, it had become apparent that Good was part of an anti-ICE activist group and had been trained to obstruct federal agents as they worked to enforce immigration law.
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Minnesota Sen. Tina Smith criticizes the Trump administration’s response to the fatal shooting of Renee Good by an ICE officer: “They were calling her a domestic terrorist before they even knew what her name was.” <a href="https://t.co/kfto0xsFHL">https://t.co/kfto0xsFHL</a> <a href="https://t.co/EFdfteguUD">pic.twitter.com/EFdfteguUD</a>
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC/status/2010362541239574960?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 11, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Credit: @ThisWeekABC/X.com
Smith claimed the ICE agents suddenly snapped after a friendly exchange with protesters, arguing that better training would have prevented the incident.
&#8220;No professional law enforcement would exchange words or banter with somebody who is engaged in their legal right to protest and then lose control, which looks to me like what happened here,&#8221; she said.
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Sen. Smith reacts to the new video of the moments leading to the shooting of Renee Good: “No professional law enforcement would exchange words or banter with somebody who is engaged in their legal right to protest and then lose control, which looks to me like what happened here.” <a href="https://t.co/Q9UTCVAASj">pic.twitter.com/Q9UTCVAASj</a>
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC/status/2010362945818005597?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 11, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Credit: @ThisWeekABC/X.com
Raddatz also spoke with former acting ICE Director John Sandweg about the shooting, asking how the landscape had changed in recent years. Marching straight through the door Raddatz had opened for him, Sandweg said that ICE had adopted new &#8220;tactics&#8221; — and that those tactics were the real reason agents were facing dramatic increases in assaults against them as well as confrontations that ended in violence.
&#8220;This is a new environment for ICE and it’s not one that’s part of their core mission,&#8221; he said, suggesting with no pushback from Raddatz that the ICE agents stepping outside of their &#8220;core mission&#8221; was the root cause of the problem.
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Former acting ICE Director John Sandweg on how the shooting of Renee Good compares to what he has seen historically: “This is a new environment for ICE and it’s not one that’s part of their core mission.” <a href="https://t.co/zeciQhyQ95">https://t.co/zeciQhyQ95</a> <a href="https://t.co/5SKI8qfw7Q">pic.twitter.com/5SKI8qfw7Q</a>
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC/status/2010375127393780180?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 11, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Credit: @ThisWeekABC/X.com
On CBS News, &#8220;Face the Nation&#8221; anchor Margaret Brennan spoke with Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) about the shooting — and she too made the claim that the ICE agent in question had not been properly trained.
&#8220;Renee Nicole Good, as you hear her say, she&#8217;s not mad, she&#8217;s sitting in her car, peacefully waving cars to get by,&#8221; Omar said, leaving out the fact that Good had positioned her vehicle so that it created a choke point that would only let one car, moving slowly, to get around her. She then immediately identified the ICE officer as the aggressor, describing his actions as wholly unnecessary and suggesting that Good was attempting to flee the scene because he&#8217;d scared her.
&#8220;And then you see the other officer, who can clearly see the car is moving, move toward the front of the car, which if they are saying that he has ten years on service and is trained, he should know that you shouldn&#8217;t be trying to get in front of a moving car,&#8221; Omar claimed, despite multiple video angles that show the officer standing in front of the vehicle prior to Good&#8217;s acceleration.
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Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) tells <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@FaceTheNation</a> it is “not acceptable” for DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, President Trump and Vice President Vance to make judgements about the moments surrounding the shooting of Renee Macklin Good by an ICE agent in Minneapolis “without there being a… <a href="https://t.co/neMjx6SoET">pic.twitter.com/neMjx6SoET</a>
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation/status/2010391818811134214?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 11, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Credit: @FaceTheNation/X.com
Although Brennan offered no challenge to Omar&#8217;s narrative — despite the video evidence that contradicted it — she did push back slightly when she asked whether it was reasonable to have citizens effectively stalking federal agents while they were attempting to do their jobs.
Omar insisted that it was &#8220;very important&#8221; for Americans to record ICE agents while they work &#8220;to create the level of accountability and transparency,&#8221; adding, &#8220;I think it is fair for citizens to document what law enforcement is doing in their communities.&#8221;
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Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN), speaking to <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@FaceTheNation</a>, says “it is really important for Americans to record” ICE agents “to create the level of accountability and transparency.”
Asked to clarify further, as the Trump administration claims its ICE officers are being stalked and… <a href="https://t.co/ahi8gEa0Jy">pic.twitter.com/ahi8gEa0Jy</a>
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation/status/2010392392277332260?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 11, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Credit: @FaceTheNation/X.com
On CNN&#8217;s &#8220;State of the Union,&#8221; anchor Jake Tapper spoke with Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey (D), who claimed that the ICE presence in his city was not doing anything to help people.
&#8220;ICE and Kristi Noem and everything they&#8217;re doing is making [Minneapolis] far less safe,&#8221; he said, despite the growing list of violent offenders who have been apprehended in his city since the surge began.
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&#8220;That was some wild and crazy stuff.&#8221; Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey responds to Jake Tapper’s interview with Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, saying that, &#8220;ICE and Kristi Noem and everything they&#8217;re doing is making [Minneapolis] far less safe.&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/4d8vLWxpZY">pic.twitter.com/4d8vLWxpZY</a>
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) <a href="https://twitter.com/CNNSOTU/status/2010388954483454260?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 11, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Credit: @CNNSOTU/X.com
Frey took things a bit further, also attempting to spin Renee Good&#8217;s clearly intentional blockage of traffic as her simply not being very good at turning around. &#8220;(Renee Good) was doing a three or a four or five-point turn&#8230; if doing a three point turn or a four point turn is a domestic terrorist and my wife is a criminal every single day,&#8221; he said.
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MAYOR JACOB FREY: &#8220;(Renee Good) was doing a three or a four or five-point turn&#8230; if doing a three point turn or a four point turn is a domestic terrorist and my wife is a criminal every single day,&#8221;
Mayor Frey doesn&#8217;t know what a three-point turn is. 
🤡🌎 <a href="https://t.co/OfIm19O0PU">pic.twitter.com/OfIm19O0PU</a>
— Andrew @ Don’t Walk, RUN! (@DontWalkRUN) <a href="https://twitter.com/DontWalkRUN/status/2010377694937018486?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 11, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Credit: @Don&#8217;tWalkRUN/X.com

Shooting At Annunciation School Church In Minneapolis Leaves Multiple Children Dead And Many Injured

Spin Cycle: In Wake Of ICE Shooting, The Gaslights Are On — But Is Anyone Home?

Shooting

On Saturday, elite American military operators descended upon an indicted narco-terrorist and extracted him from Venezuela, delivering him to New York to face the charges. That indicted narco-terrorist just happened to be Nicolás Maduro, the dictator who calls himself &#8220;president.&#8221;
With Maduro gone, Democrats who once called for his ouster are suddenly up in arms, simply because President Donald Trump is the one who made it happen.
For those who don&#8217;t spend their Sunday mornings glued to the television — and their Sunday afternoons attempting to dig through a week&#8217;s worth of network and cable news media spin — The Daily Wire has compiled a short summary of what you may have missed.
Across the major legacy networks, Democrats complained about the fact that the Trump administration had sent military operators in to extract Maduro — and media personalities quickly joined them in questioning whether or not the Trump administration had the authority to take that action without first getting congressional approval.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer — who <a href="https://x.com/mazemoore/status/2007868827355484611">criticized Trump</a> in 2020 for not ending Maduro&#8217;s regime — led the charge on ABC&#8217;s &#8220;This Week,&#8221; speaking with Democratic strategist-turned-ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos, Schumer conceded that Maduro was a bad actor but claimed that the Trump administration had still been coloring outside the lines in going to get him.
&#8220;Look, Maduro is a horrible, horrible person,&#8221; Schumer said. &#8220;But you don&#8217;t treat lawlessness with other lawlessness. And that&#8217;s what&#8217;s happened here. The American people, this morning, are scratching their heads in wonderment and in fear of what the president has proposed: &#8216;The United States will run Venezuela.&#8217; We have learned through the years [that] when America tries to do regime change and nation-building in this way, the American people pay the price in both blood and dollars.&#8221;
Stephanopoulos pointed out the fact that Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the Trump administration had the authority to move on Maduro, and Schumer protested: &#8220;It&#8217;s a violation of the law to do what they did without getting the authorization of Congress.&#8221;
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Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer criticizes the U.S strike in Venezuela and capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro: “It&#8217;s a violation of the law to do what they did without getting the authorization of Congress.” <a href="https://t.co/jbZuHwZD9A">https://t.co/jbZuHwZD9A</a> <a href="https://t.co/nNEQWg1d7V">pic.twitter.com/nNEQWg1d7V</a>
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC/status/2007838874295287924?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 4, 2026</a></blockquote>
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CBS News anchor Margaret Brennan brought in Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), who became a household name when he traveled to El Salvador to retrieve MS-13 gang member Kilmar Abrego Garcia. Van Hollen also complained that the Trump administration had overstepped its authority in taking action in Venezuela without asking Congress first.
He predicted that in reaction, Congress &#8220;will have a vote on a war powers resolution probably as early as this week, if not next.&#8221;
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Sen. Chris Van Hollen says President Trump does not have the legal authority to attack Venezuela and says he’s sure that Congress “will have a vote on a war powers resolution probably as early as this week, if not next.”
“For the most part, Republicans are happy to give Donald… <a href="https://t.co/J4kq7RraNC">pic.twitter.com/J4kq7RraNC</a>
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation/status/2007863051152679414?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 4, 2026</a></blockquote>
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On &#8220;The Sunday Briefing,&#8221; Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) said much the same to Fox News host Jacqui Heinrich, after first claiming that more traditional avenues like sanctions hadn&#8217;t worked on Maduro because American allies hated Trump too much to join the United States in enforcing them. Then he, too, argued that Trump should have come to Congress for approval before sending military operators into Venezuela.
Kaine, as recently as 2024, had called Maduro an <a href="https://x.com/SenTimKaine/status/1836398711837974976">illegitimate leader</a> and demanded a &#8220;peaceful transfer of power.&#8221;
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🚨 WOW. Democrat Sen. Tim Kaine just got UTTERLY EMBARRASSED on national television!
&#8220;If Dems cared SO MUCH about process, why didn&#8217;t THEY do anything to bring Maduro to justice when THEY were in charge? The guy&#8217;s been under indictment since 2020!&#8221; 🔥💯<a href="https://t.co/aoPkS0qMlC">pic.twitter.com/aoPkS0qMlC</a>
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) <a href="https://twitter.com/EricLDaugh/status/2007878745403912679?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 4, 2026</a></blockquote>
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More of the same came from Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT), who <a href="https://x.com/TimMurtaugh/status/2007864277823107222">said in 2019</a> that Trump would move to topple Maduro because &#8220;getting rid of Maduro is good for the United States.&#8221;
On CNN&#8217;s &#8220;State of the Union,&#8221; however, he said Trump&#8217;s actions had been &#8220;wildly illegal&#8221; and claimed that he was only moving on Venezuela to gain control of natural resources for his own personal financial gain.
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Sen. Chris Murphy tells Dana Bash that Trump’s attack on Venezuela “seems to be mostly about oil and natural resources” and is “all about making money for his friends.” <a href="https://t.co/EvylbRzl5B">pic.twitter.com/EvylbRzl5B</a>
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) <a href="https://twitter.com/CNNSOTU/status/2007847037501329477?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 4, 2026</a></blockquote>
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But Rubio explained in several interviews on Sunday why the Trump administration had not asked Congress for permission to act — or even notified Congress prior to doing so — and why they hadn&#8217;t been bound to do so.
&#8220;This was not an action that required congressional approval. In fact, it couldn’t require congressional approval because this was not an invasion. This is not an extended military operation,&#8221; he told NBC News anchor Kristen Welker on &#8220;Meet the Press.&#8221;
&#8220;We will seek congressional approval for actions that require congressional approval. Otherwise, they’ll get congressional notification.&#8221;
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&#8220;This was not an action that required congressional approval&#8230; This was not an invasion,&#8221; says <a href="https://twitter.com/SecRubio?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SecRubio</a>.
&#8220;We will seek congressional approval for actions that require congressional approval. Otherwise, they&#8217;ll get congressional notification.&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/up6ZEJtmXd">pic.twitter.com/up6ZEJtmXd</a>
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/2007831235091910730?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 4, 2026</a></blockquote>
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On ABC&#8217;s &#8220;This Week,&#8221; he added, &#8220;You can&#8217;t congressionally notify something like this for two reasons. Number one, it will leak. It&#8217;s as simple as that. And number two, it&#8217;s an exigent circumstance,&#8221; Rubio explained.
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Sec. Rubio responds to criticism of the lack of congressional authorization in the U.S. operation in Venezuela: “You can&#8217;t congressionally notify something like this for two reasons. Number one, it will leak. It&#8217;s as simple as that. And number two, it&#8217;s an exigent circumstance.” <a href="https://t.co/qIBPiRuDYk">pic.twitter.com/qIBPiRuDYk</a>
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC/status/2007837470977581424?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 4, 2026</a></blockquote>
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George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley addressed that point as well, responding specifically to the comments made by Tim Kaine, and argued that not only was the Trump administration&#8217;s action legal, it was no different than actions taken by previous Democratic presidents.
&#8220;Sen. Tim Kaine (D., Va) told Fox that &#8220;the Constitution does not give the President the right to initiate military action.&#8221; That is entirely incorrect. The Constitution does not give a president the right to declare war. However, presidents are allowed to use military forces without such a declaration&#8230;&#8221; <a href="https://x.com/JonathanTurley/status/2007884771209187539">Turley stated</a>, adding, &#8220;Democratic presidents routinely launched attacks in other countries without any objection from Sen. Kaine. Obama not only killed an American citizen not charge with any crime but attacked Libya&#8217;s capital and attacked its military to cause a regime change without consulting with Congress.&#8221;

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