Just one day after the first New York City mayoral debate, Democratic candidate Zohran Mamdani shared a smiling photo with a Brooklyn imam who had been named an unindicted co-conspirator in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing — a terrorist attack that killed six people, including a pregnant woman, and wounded more than 1,000 others.
Mamdani grinned while standing arm-in-arm with Imam Siraj Wahhaj at his Bedford-Stuyvesant mosque.
“Today at Masjid At-Taqwa, I had the pleasure of meeting with Imam Siraj Wahhaj, one of the nation’s foremost Muslim leaders and a pillar of the Bed-Stuy community for nearly half a century. A beautiful Jummah,” Mamdani wrote on X.
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Today at Masjid At-Taqwa, I had the pleasure of meeting with Imam Siraj Wahhaj, one of the nation’s foremost Muslim leaders and a pillar of the Bed-Stuy community for nearly half a century. I was also joined by CM <a href="https://twitter.com/dr_yusefsalaam?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@dr_yusefsalaam</a> of Harlem. A beautiful Jummah. <a href="https://t.co/4kcN4CGlUk">pic.twitter.com/4kcN4CGlUk</a>
&mdash; Zohran Kwame Mamdani (@ZohranKMamdani) <a href="https://twitter.com/ZohranKMamdani/status/1979353018589237717?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 18, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Wahhaj took the stand in defense of the notorious “blind sheikh” Omar Abdel Rahman, the radical cleric convicted of conspiring in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. “After the bombing, the U.S. government recorded the sheikh encouraging further violence against targets in New York and New Jersey,” ABC News <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/US/blind-sheikh-linked-1993-world-trade-center-bombing/story?id=45582741">reported</a>.
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Some statements Wahhaj has made in the past:
“I <a href="https://www.meforum.org/islamist-watch/siraj-wahhaj-on-jihad">pray</a> one day Allah will bless us to raise an army, and I’m serious about this. We were very close, recently. We had made intention to raise an army of 10,000 men in New York City.”
“I’m not telling you, no, don’t pick up a gun, no. Just march. March through the city of New York. Let them hear your voice. Let them hear it at night. Let them hear it 24 hours, until the whole city can’t sleep.”
As Daniel Pipes <a href="https://www.danielpipes.org/77/the-danger-within-militant-islam-in-america">reported</a>, in 1992, Wahhaj stated, “If we were united and strong, we&#8217;d elect our own emir [leader] and give allegiance to him. &#8230; Take my word, if 6-8 million Muslims unite in America, the country will come to us.”
In a September 1991 speech in Toronto, titled “The Afghanistan Jihad,” Wahhaj <a href="https://pjmedia.com/matt-margolis/2025/10/18/this-photo-should-end-zohran-mamdanis-campaign-n4944999">stated</a>, “Those who struggle for Allah, it doesn’t matter what kind of weapons [you use], I’m telling you it doesn’t matter! You don’t need nuclear weapons or even guns! If you have faith in Allah and a knife! If Allah wants you to win, you will win! Because Allah is the only one who fights. And when his hand is over your hand, whoever is at war against my friends, I declare war on them…. The Americans are not your friends … The Canadians are not your friends … The Europeans are not your friends. Your friend is Allah.”
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Here&#39;s Mamdani&#39;s Imam, Siraj Wahhaj, calling America &quot;filthy&quot; and &quot;sick&quot;, saying it&#39;s an honor to die in Jihad and saying that getting involved in &quot;politics is a weapon in the cause of Islam&quot; <a href="https://t.co/eBR4SoI7X6">pic.twitter.com/eBR4SoI7X6</a>
&mdash; Daniel Greenfield &#8211; &quot;Hang Together or Separately&quot; (@Sultanknish) <a href="https://twitter.com/Sultanknish/status/1979996171759141120?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 19, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Conservative political figures blasted Mamdani:
Florida GOP Governor Ron DeSantis stated on X: “If you had told people after the 9/11 attacks on the WTC that, within a quarter century, NYC would elect a mayoral candidate who campaigns with an unindicted co-conspirator in the bombing of the WTC, you would have been considered to have a few screws loose. Yet, here it is. From fighting jihad to embracing it. What a slap in the face to the memories of those killed in both the 1993 and 2001 jihadist attacks on the World Trade Center.”
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If you had told people after the 9/11 attacks on the WTC that, within a quarter century, NYC would elect a mayoral candidate who campaigns with an unindicted co-conspirator in the bombing of the WTC, you would have been considered to have a few screws loose.
Yet, here it is.… <a href="https://t.co/RHp8FmCzoi">https://t.co/RHp8FmCzoi</a>
&mdash; Ron DeSantis (@RonDeSantis) <a href="https://twitter.com/RonDeSantis/status/1979981822667960541?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 19, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) posted: “&#8217;I am not a jihadist.’  [poses arm-in-arm with an indisputable jihadist  💋👨‍❤️‍💋‍👨🔥]  You are being LIED TO, and let’s be honest—you know you’re being lied to.”
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“I am not a jihadist.”
[poses arm-in-arm with an indisputable jihadist 💋👨‍❤️‍💋‍👨🔥]
You are being LIED TO, and let’s be honest—you know you’re being lied to. <a href="https://t.co/aJQc1BxRKG">https://t.co/aJQc1BxRKG</a>
&mdash; Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) <a href="https://twitter.com/tedcruz/status/1979654209873256675?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 18, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Former CBS correspondent Lara Logan chimed in: “Imagine being a New Yorker who lived through 9/11 and voting for this?”
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Imagine being a New Yorker who lived through 9/11 and voting for this? <a href="https://t.co/Pk5HwVR268">https://t.co/Pk5HwVR268</a>
&mdash; Lara Logan (@laralogan) <a href="https://twitter.com/laralogan/status/1980078068292268457?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 20, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Zohran Mamdani Visits “The Story With Martha MacCallum”

Mamdani Poses With America-Hating Imam Who Defended Terrorists

Elections

New York

New York City

Politics

Radical Islamic Terror

World Trade Center bombing

Zohran Mamdani

President Donald Trump awards Charlie Kirk the Presidential Medal of Freedom, New York Attorney General Letitia James&#8217; grandniece may be a fugitive from the law, and the U.K.&#8217;s Labour Party turns to digital ID to curb illegal immigration.
It’s Wednesday, October 15, 2025, and this is the news you need to know to start your day.
Morning Wire is available on video! You can watch today’s episode here:
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<h2 style="text-align: center;">Trump Awards Charlie Kirk The Highest Civilian Honor</h2>
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Topline: President Trump posthumously honored Charlie Kirk on Tuesday, on what would have been Kirk’s 32nd birthday, with the country’s highest civilian award: the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
In front of a large audience in the Rose Garden, the president presented the award to Kirk’s widow, Erika Kirk. The event was attended by many family members, friends, and acquaintances of Kirk from within the administration, Kirk’s conservative youth organization Turning Point USA, and elsewhere.
“Five weeks ago, our nation was robbed of this extraordinary champion. He was a champion in every way — I got to know him so well,” said Trump. “It was a horrible, heinous, demonic act of murder. He was assassinated in the prime of his life for boldly speaking the truth, for living his faith, and relentlessly fighting for a better and stronger America. He loved this country, and that’s why this afternoon, it’s my privilege to posthumously award Charles James Kirk our nation’s highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom.”
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Erika Kirk also spoke at the event.
“Today, we’re gathered not only to celebrate Charlie’s birthday, but to honor a truth that he gave his entire life to defend, and that’s freedom. The very existence of the Presidential Medal of Freedom reminds us that the national interest of the United States has always been freedom,” she said.
“Our founders etched it into the preamble of our Constitution, and those words are not relics on parchment; they are a living covenant. The blessings of liberty are not man’s invention, they are God’s endowment. Charlie lived for those blessings, not as abstract words, but as sacred promises,” she added.
<h2 style="text-align: center;">Letitia James’s Fugitive Family Member</h2>
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Topline: New York Attorney General Letitia James may have sheltered a fugitive in her Virginia home for the past five years. 
James was charged with bank fraud last week for allegedly lying on mortgage papers to get a lower interest rate on a house in Virginia. While James owns the home, the current tenant is her grandniece, Nakia Thompson, and her three children, who have lived in the house since 2020. 
Thompson is officially listed as an “absconder” in the database of North Carolina’s Department of Adult Correction, according to the <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-15187603/letitia-james-niece-virginia-home-fugitive.html">Daily Mail</a>. She’s wanted by authorities in Forsyth County for skipping out on her probation.
A spokesman for the North Carolina Department of Corrections said Thompson was “sentenced to probation for misdemeanor convictions for assault and battery and trespassing.” He confirmed that she is considered a fugitive from the state, but he added that because her crimes are considered low-level, she is “non-extraditable.”
Won’t stay silent: In opposition to the standard legal advice to keep quiet after being charged with a crime, James is loudly speaking out against the Department of Justice, claiming to be a victim of a political prosecution.
“We see powerful voices trying to silence truth and punish dissent and, yes, weaponize justice for political gain. We are witnessing the fraying of our democracy, the erosion of our system of government,” said James at a rally for New York City mayoral hopeful Zohran Mamdani on Monday evening.
Limiting her ability to attract supporters to her cause, James is perceived widely on the right to be guilty of pushing the same kind of political prosecutions she is now denouncing. James campaigned for New York attorney general on a platform of investigating President Trump.
After winning her election, James eventually pursued Trump on a civil charge related to defrauding banks, though no banks claimed to have ever been defrauded by Trump. James won the case in a bench trial, and Trump was hit with a civil penalty of nearly half a billion dollars. That penalty was later thrown out by an appeals court in a major victory for the president.
<h2 style="text-align: center;">U.K.’s Labour Turns To Digital ID To Curb Illegal Immigration</h2>
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Topline: The U.K. recently approved a controversial new law that mandates a digital ID as a way to curb illegal immigration. Morning Wire spoke with Guy Dampier, senior researcher on nationhood at the Prosperity Institute, about the new law. (The following transcript has been lightly edited for clarity.)
Morning Wire: So, Guy, a lot of frustration boiling over in the U.K. right now over immigration, and now we have this heated debate over digital ID. Let’s start with Prime Minister Starmer – he’s defending his party’s immigration policies and accusing the conservative Reform party of pushing supposedly “racist” policies. Catch us up, what’s the story here?
Dampier: The issue is Reform’s policy on residency for immigrants. &#8220;Indefinite Leave to Remain&#8221; means that an immigrant can, after five years, get access to the same welfare benefits as a British citizen. The vast majority of people who get ILR will stay forever. That matters because in the last few years, there was an immigration wave of around 4 million people. Most of those were low-skilled and will be a drain on the taxpayer. One estimate said that it would cost around £80 billion, another said over £200 billion. Whatever the true figure is, it will be a huge cost at a time when the British economy is doing very badly. Reform have announced that they will abolish ILR, forcing those who have come to apply for new visas, which will include new checks on their qualifications and language skills. That also matters because the current rules are incredibly lax. The language test only requires that you have B1 English, which is enough to struggle through a book for small children, but nowhere near enough what you need just to read a newspaper. As most of these 4 million migrants come from Africa and the Indian subcontinent, Labour have branded it “racist.” 
Morning Wire: Now, the Labour Party has actually also admitted that this &#8220;Indefinite Leave to Remain&#8221; law needs to be reformed. What are they suggesting?
Dampier: This is why it is so incoherent. They were calling Nigel Farage racist. On Monday, they announced policies that were not a million miles away. The Home Secretary, Shababa Mahmood, has said that immigrants who want residency will now need better English skills, no criminal record, and evidence that they have volunteered in the community to show that they are integrating. The problem for Labour is that while they want to win over voters who are upset about immigration, they don’t really believe in reducing immigration. So they end up promising things they won’t deliver, and then when they get called out, they lash out. The problem for Britain is very simple: the country has become rapidly more foreign, with over 16% of people born overseas. Most of those came in the last few decades or even the last few years. This is changing the face of the country: around 38% of school children are now from an ethnic minority group. At the same time the economy has ground to a halt. And there is increasing evidence that migrants are overrepresented when it comes to accessing welfare and committing crime. So people are asking a simple question: if we want fewer immigrants, and if immigration isn’t good for the economy, then why are politicians refusing to seriously reduce the numbers?
Morning Wire: As we mentioned at the top, we also have this new digital ID that’s supposed to help crack down on illegal workers. But that has been very controversial. How would that work?
Dampier: This is the so-called Brit card. Labour have long been advocates for digital ID. In fact, the last Labour government, over a decade ago actually introduced ID cards. But they were immediately scrapped by the conservative government which followed them. Labour are now arguing that it would stop illegal immigrants from being able to work and rent. But there is already a digital Visa verification system which is supposed to do this. It just isn’t adhered to. There’s no reason to think that this would be any different. In fact, there are many European countries which already have ID cards and still have a major problem with illegal immigration. In Germany, for example, you are supposed to carry your ID card with you everywhere. But the country has one of the highest numbers of illegal immigrants in all of Europe. This won’t really fix the problem. What it will do is add on another layer of bureaucracy and further reduce the freedom of native British people. There is also another potential danger. Paul Mason, a well-known Labour activist who is close to the senior leadership of the party, suggested that digital ID could be used to help regularise the illegal immigrants who are already here. That is somewhere between 3/4 of 1 million and 2 million people. Instead of discouraging illegal immigration, it could end up being used to reward it.

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Morning Brief: Trump Honors Kirk, Letitia James Accused Of Housing Fugitive, UK Advances Digital ID

Morning Brief: Trump Honors Charlie Kirk, Letitia James’ Crime Family, And UK Digital ID

Charlie Kirk

Donald Trump

Keir Starmer

Letitia James

Media

Morning Wire

United Kingdom

Virginia

White House

Actor Alec Baldwin was involved in a car accident on Monday alongside his younger brother, Stephen Baldwin.
The 67-year-old confirmed that he crashed his wife Hilaria’s Range Rover in East Hampton, New York, on Monday morning, as he posted an update on social media.
“This morning, I was in this car accident. The guy cut me off in a truck, big garbage truck — I mean a garbage truck the size of a whale … it was the biggest garbage truck I’ve ever seen,” Baldwin said in the video update. “To avoid hitting him, I hit a tree. I hit a big fat tree and crushed my car, my wife’s car.”
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The actor said he felt “bad” for totaling his wife’s car and thanked first responders for their help following the accident. Neither Alec nor Stephen was injured.
“My wife’s car is pretty smashed up. Big tree, big fat tree,” he repeated.
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The celebrity brothers were in town for the Hamptons International Film Festival, which began on October 5 and wrapped up on Monday. 
Baldwin also mentioned his wife, saying, “Hilaria, I love you more than anything. I’m very proud of you.”
He ended the video by saying, “I’m going to LA to see my family, can’t wait. I’m going out to California to gather my family, to spend a few days there and then I’m home,” and joked that he was “fine” other than being crazy, which he indicated by pointing at his head making a circular motion.
Photos of the aftermath obtained by TMZ show the Baldwin brothers standing beside the smashed vehicle. There are also images of the white Range Rover smashed up against the tree.
Hilaria has also been making headlines after being eliminated from “Dancing With the Stars,” which she <a href="https://www.the-sun.com/tv/15344993/hilaria-baldwin-claims-bullying-got-her-eliminated-dwts/">claimed</a> was due to “very coordinated, very strategic bullying.”

Alec Baldwin

Alec Baldwin Crashes Wife’s Range Rover Into A ‘Big Fat Tree’

Alec Baldwin Confirms He Crashed Range Rover Into A 'Big Fat Tree'

Celebrities

Entertainment

U.S.

Federal prosecutors reportedly indicted New York Attorney General Letitia James on Thursday after a months-long investigation into potential mortgage fraud.
Lindsey Halligan, Trump’s former personal lawyer who the president installed as the interim U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia last month, presented the case for the indictment to the grand jury, according to <a href="https://www.wsj.com/politics/justice-department-secures-indictment-of-new-york-attorney-general-letitia-james-0cc2ce4f?gaa_at=eafs&amp;gaa_n=ASWzDAjz3_xVxqjqGd7DOAjeW9OF_fgoGbzqZNeWtCjLpTn-BtEnWes9wDcj_m33JUg%3D&amp;gaa_ts=68e822e1&amp;gaa_sig=8uhDExWB_EYX_l_bkm5ln2OOTBmY2wZMaB-DdqgJDjcxIxhcKe5QqAAS2ER6wvES1alU0eaHvP7KW_UXYdeMtA%3D%3D">The Wall Street Journal</a>. The Justice Department has <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/payback-trump-admin-targets-new-york-ag-letitia-james-over-housing-fraud">investigated</a> James since May over a mortgage she took out in 2023.
The indictment against James accused her of bank fraud, according to WSJ.
In a statement on Thursday, James <a href="https://x.com/EricLDaugh/status/1976404730038391230">said</a> that the charges against her are a result of the “weaponization” of a justice system directed at her “all because I did my job as New York state attorney general.”
“These charges are baseless, and the president’s own public statements make clear that his only goal is political retribution at any cost,” said James.
To ascend to the office of state attorney general, James campaigned on investigating and prosecuting Trump. She won a civil penalty against the president of $450 million. In the case, James accused Trump of inflating his worth to defraud lenders, though no lenders had claimed that they were defrauded. An appeals court in August <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/US/appeals-court-throws-trumps-454-million-civil-fraud/story?id=124848691">tossed</a> the nearly-half billion dollar penalty dropped on Trump in James&#8217; civil suit.
The investigation into James stemmed from an April <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/documents/1ffb28b3-31d0-4df6-9694-7e970c059050.pdf?itid=lk_inline_manual_9">referral</a> to the Department of Justice made by federal housing regulator Bill Pulte, who said James “falsified records” to get more favorable loan terms on a Virginia property.
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“Based on media reports, Ms. Letitia James has, in multiple instances, falsified bank documents and property records to acquire government backed assistance and loans and more favorable loan terms. This has potentially included 1) falsifying residence status for a Norfolk, Virginia-based home in order to secure a lower mortgage rate and 2) misrepresenting property descriptions to meet stringent requirements for government backed loans and government assistance,” said Pulte’s letter.
Trump appointed Halligan as interim U.S. attorney last month after <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/115239044548033727">expressing</a> frustration over the pace of investigations into some of his top political and legal foes, including James and former FBI chief James Comey. Halligan brought charges against Comey last month of allegedly making a false statement and obstructing a congressional hearing.

Letitia James Indicted Following DOJ Probe Into 2023 Sweetheart Home Loan

Crime

Department of Justice

Puerto Rican recording artist Bad Bunny is getting slammed for a video clip that appears to show him remaining seated during the singing of “God Bless America” at the New York Yankees game Tuesday night.
The <a href="https://www.tmz.com/2025/10/08/bad-bunny-remains-seated-during-god-bless-america/?adid=social-tw">short clip</a>, first shared with TMZ, reported as not having any common indicators of AI generation, includes the crowd singing “guide her,” which is part of the line “stand beside her and guide her.”
The U.S. Flag Code recommends standing, placing your hand over your heart, and facing the flag when “The Star-Spangled Banner” is sung, but it makes no similar recommendations for “God Bless America.” However, it is seen as a sign of respect to stand for the song during sporting events, and most individuals seated near Bad Bunny at the Yankees game are seen standing in the clip. The custom started after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, when MLB started playing “God Bless America” during the seventh-inning stretch to honor first responders, victims, and the military.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/EXCLUSIVE?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#EXCLUSIVE</a> 🚨 Bad Bunny remained seated during &#8216;God Bless America&#8217; at a Yankees Game, video shows. <a href="https://t.co/jKOfQ4Qj3G">https://t.co/jKOfQ4Qj3G</a> <a href="https://t.co/rkP9NnGgdH">pic.twitter.com/rkP9NnGgdH</a>
— TMZ (@TMZ) <a href="https://twitter.com/TMZ/status/1976005408708763998?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 8, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The recording artist, whose legal name is Benito Ocasio, has already frustrated many Americans who believe he has disrespected the United States. Ocasio was selected to perform at Super Bowl LX in February despite previously refusing to tour in the United States due to his anti-ICE stance.
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Ocasio referred to ICE agents as “motherf***ers” and “sons of b****es” in a video he posted to Instagram.
The three-time Grammy Award-winner said during a recent interview that he didn’t book any tour stops in the United States because he was worried ICE agents would target concert attendees.
“There was the issue of — like, f***ing ICE could be outside. And it’s something that we were talking about and very concerned about.”
Social media users also pointed out that none of Bad Bunny’s songs are in English.
He later addressed the backlash he and the NFL received following the Super Bowl halftime announcement, advising viewers to learn Spanish if they didn’t like it.
Bad Bunny did part of his monologue in Spanish during a recent appearance on “Saturday Night Live.” The singer then switched to English, saying, “If you didn’t understand what I just said, you have four months to learn.”
There have been calls to boycott the NFL and replace Bad Bunny as the halftime performer ever since the announcement was made. 
President Trump <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-absolutely-ridiculous-that-nfl-chose-bad-bunny-for-super-bowl-halftime-show" target="_blank" rel="noopener">weighed in</a> on Bad Bunny being chosen as the Super Bowl halftime performer, saying, “I never heard of him. I don’t know who he is, I don’t know why they’re doing it, it’s crazy, and then they blame it on some promoter that they hired to pick up entertainment, I think it’s absolutely ridiculous.”

Bad Bunny

Super Bowl Halftime Performer Bad Bunny Refuses To Stand For ‘God Bless America’

Super Bowl Halftime Performer Bad Bunny Refuses To Stand For 'God Bless America'

Major League Baseball

New York Yankees

Patriotism

singer

Super Bowl

WASHINGTON—As the government shutdown rolls into the weekend, Republicans are making something very clear: this may be the &#8220;Schumer Shutdown,&#8221; but it&#8217;s a different New Yorker who&#8217;s really to blame.
It started on Wednesday, when Vice President JD Vance surprised the White House press corps at the day&#8217;s briefing.
&#8220;The reality here, and let&#8217;s be honest about the politics, is that Chuck Schumer is terrified he’s going to get a primary challenge from Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez,&#8221; Vance <a href="https://x.com/bennyjohnson/status/1973442899892191464">said.</a>
From there, it was off to the races. House Speaker Mike Johnson took the talking point and ran with it, highlighting an alleged rift between New York&#8217;s senior senator and the congresswoman from Queens in several interviews and <a href="https://x.com/SpeakerJohnson/status/1973501784909029810">on X,</a> where he proclaimed &#8220;Chuck Schumer is driving his party OFF A CLIFF because he’s TERRIFIED of AOC and the far left. That’s not leadership.&#8221;
All manner of prominent Republicans have invoked the looming Schumer-AOC contest as the reason for the shutdown, including Treasury Secretary <a href="https://x.com/EricLDaugh/status/1973727982280663179">Scott Bessent,</a> Senators <a href="https://x.com/SenBillCassidy/status/1973756759904039089">Bill Cassidy</a> (LA), <a href="https://x.com/TomCottonAR/status/1973024614487056463">Tom Cotton</a> (AR), and <a href="https://www.marshall.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/senator-marshall-chuck-schumer-is-afraid-that-aoc-will-primary-him/">Roger Marshall</a> (Kansas), as well as <a href="https://x.com/RepDonaldsPress/status/1973172460943274034">Reps. Byron Donalds (FL)</a>, and <a href="https://x.com/NancyMace/status/1973223980036501796">Nancy Mace</a> (SC).
Congressman Mike Lawler (R-NY) told The Daily Wire that the &#8220;Schumer Shutdown&#8221; has &#8220;nothing to do with policy and everything to do with politics.&#8221;
&#8220;Chuck is so consumed by the threat of a primary challenge from Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez that he’s willing to put his own job security ahead of the American people,&#8221; Lawler said.
He slammed Schumer for &#8220;cowardice&#8221; and said his actions only &#8220;hurt hardworking New York taxpayers.&#8221;
This is hardly the first time lawmakers have blamed the opposing party and their policies for shutting the government down. In 2013 it was Harry Reid and Obamacare; in 2017, Donald Trump and the border wall. But this time around, Republicans are going beyond blaming Democrats or even Democratic leaders. Notably absent from these conversations is House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) who has been as active on the issue as Schumer.
The attempt to drive a wedge between Schumer and AOC — whether to alienate the moderate and radical wings of the Democratic Party, or signal that there&#8217;s no daylight between them — seems to be as much about defining the post-shutdown conversation as it is about assigning blame. Like President Donald Trump, who is leveraging the shutdown to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-meeting-set-to-axe-democrat-agencies">curtail the federal government</a>, congressional Republicans seem intent on using this shutdown to their advantage.
On Friday afternoon, Senate Democrats for the fourth time <a href="https://www.senate.gov/legislative/votes_new.htm">blocked</a> a continuing resolution that would reopen the government. Republicans&#8217; rhetorical strategy continued apace.
NRSC spokeswoman Joanna Rodriguez pointed The Daily Wire an <a href="https://www.axios.com/2025/09/26/schumer-government-shutdown-democrats-strategy">Axios report</a> that indicates Schumer &#8220;has been plotting this government shutdown with far-Left radical activists for months.&#8221;
She said she believes Democrats&#8217; low approval ratings are &#8220;only going to keep getting worse&#8221; because Schumer and &#8220;rank-and-file Democrats&#8221; including Georgia Senator John Ossoff are &#8220;more focused on appeasing the deranged rage of their liberal base that wants illegal aliens to have free healthcare.&#8221;
&#8220;There are two very big reasons why Chuck Schumer would make a toxically-leftist policy like free healthcare for illegals as his &#8216;why&#8217; for this shutdown: crazy Democrat primary voters love it, so it could help in an AOC primary. And he is desperate to win over this radical group of openly socialist Senate candidates leading in Democrat primaries across the country that want to end Schumer’s reign as Senate Democrats’ leader if any of them win in the midterms next year,&#8221; Rodriguez said.
Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL) <a href="https://mariodiazbalart.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/rep-diaz-balart-schumers-shutdown-shows-democrats-are-disarray">observed</a> that the continuing resolution, already passed by the House, is the &#8220;same clean bill Senate Democrats — including Schumer — voted for in March.&#8221;
So, what changed?
Sources with knowledge of the issue told The Daily Wire it all began after Schumer voted to fund the government until Sept. 30, <a href="https://www.npr.org/2025/03/13/nx-s1-5327600/house-democrats-outrage-spending#:~:text='Deep%20sense%20of%20outrage%20and%20betrayal':,Democrats%20react%20to%20Schumer%20announcement&amp;text=When%20Senate%20Minority%20Leader%20Chuck,the%20face%2C%22%20she%20said.">reportedly</a> receiving backlash from Democrats.
A month later, a <a href="https://www.dataforprogress.org/blog/2025/4/4/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-leads-chuck-schumer-in-hypothetical-2028-matchup-by-19-points">poll</a> showed AOC leading Schumer in a hypothetical 2028 matchup by 19 points.
“Because Schumer allowed the government to be funded several months ago, the Left wing rose up against him,&#8221; Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) said on his <a href="https://x.com/tedcruz/status/1973513750926991502">podcast</a> this week. &#8220;You want to understand why we have a shutdown? It’s one thing: Schumer is looking over his left shoulder and he sees AOC running up behind him — and he is terrified he is going to lose his job,” Cruz said.
Perhaps the surest sign Republicans&#8217; strategy is working is that AOC keeps responding. On Tuesday, she told <a href="https://x.com/BreitbartNews/status/1973186304205865213">MSNBC</a> that the shutdown is &#8220;so not about me.&#8221; Two days later, she and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) — the leaders of the Democrat Party&#8217;s radical wing — released a <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/5535687-sanders-ocasio-cortez-aca-subsidies-shutdown/">three-minute video</a> on the shutdown.
The next day, <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-says-schumer-jeffries-are-leading-democrats-s-rcna235300">NBC</a> pressed AOC again about a possible Senate run. The congresswoman equivocated, saying “I think the answer is that people are sick of politics being determined by these horse races.&#8221;
Schumer&#8217;s office did not respond to a request for comment.

Untitled design (50)

Republicans Are Calling It The ‘Schumer Shutdown.’ Why Are They Making It All About AOC?

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

Chuck Schumer

Democratic Party

JD Vance

Leftism

The Trump administration froze around $18 billion in infrastructure projects for New York City on Wednesday, citing &#8220;unconstitutional&#8221; diversity, equity, and inclusion &#8220;principles.&#8221;
Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought <a href="https://x.com/russvought/status/1973386129320665329">announced</a> the move on Wednesday, <a href="https://x.com/russvought/status/1973388530215735570">adding</a> that the billions of dollars in now-frozen funding were earmarked for the Hudson Tunnel and the Second Avenue Subway.
&#8220;Roughly $18 billion in New York City infrastructure projects have been put on hold to ensure funding is not flowing based on unconstitutional DEI principles,&#8221; Vought wrote on X. &#8220;More info to come soon from [the U.S. Department of Transportation].&#8221;
The Hudson Tunnel project seeks to build a new passenger rail tunnel under the Hudson River and fix the existing North River Tunnels for Amtrak and NJ Transit traffic, CBS News <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/government-shutdown-new-york-infrastructure-funding-trump-schumer-jeffries/">reported</a>. The project focusing on the Second Avenue Subway aims to extend the Q line into Harlem and add new stations.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) has <a href="https://www.schumer.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/schumer-announces-gateway-tunnel_nations-largest-infrastructure-project--will-receive-massive-688-billion-in-fed-funds-largest-federal-transportation-grant-in-history-the-money-for-gateway-is-now-allocated-and-all-systems-go-marks-long-effort-by-senator">made</a> the Hudson Tunnel project a top priority in recent years, securing billions of dollars in federal funding for what he called &#8220;the nation’s largest public works project.&#8221; Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), who represents parts of Brooklyn, have spearheaded Democratic resistance to Trump’s government funding proposal.
Jeffries told Vought to &#8220;get lost.&#8221;
&#8220;Again with this guy (and his baseless threats),&#8221; Jeffries <a href="https://x.com/RepJeffries/status/1973413881549631872">said</a>. &#8220;Russ, you are the poster child for privilege and mediocrity. Get lost.&#8221;
Schumer and Jeffries are getting ripped by the Trump administration after their party refused to agree to a deal with Republicans to keep the government funded.
The Trump administration&#8217;s decision to hold funding also comes shortly after the president threatened to withhold federal funding from New York City if socialist candidate Zohran Mamdani wins the mayoral election in November. Mamdani is currently leading by a significant margin in the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/polls/nyc-mayoral-election-polls-2025.html">polls</a>.
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&#8220;He is going to have problems with Washington like no Mayor in the history of our once great City. Remember, he needs the money from me, as President, in order to fulfill all of his FAKE Communist promises,&#8221; Trump <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/115287641147640374">wrote</a> on Truth Social on Monday. &#8220;He won’t be getting any of it, so what’s the point of voting for him? This ideology has failed, always, for thousands of years. It will fail again, and that’s guaranteed!&#8221;
The administration&#8217;s freeze, however, does not appear to be tied to the mayor&#8217;s race, and it remains unclear which &#8220;DEI principles&#8221; the White House is concerned about.
New York Democratic leaders have been in the crosshairs of the Trump administration this week. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy blasted New York Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul on Tuesday over allegations that the state is handing out commercial driver licenses (CDLs) to illegal immigrants with no name given on the CDL.
&#8220;Kathy Hochul continues her campaign to make New York one of the most lawless states in the country. &#8230; ALL illegally issued CDLs endanger American families on the road. My recent emergency action to restrict CDLs will work to counteract these disastrous, America-Last policies,&#8221; Duffy <a href="https://x.com/SecDuffy/status/1973190834926584160">wrote</a> on X.

Donald Trump/Chuck Schumer

Trump Freezes $18 Billion For NYC Infrastructure Over ‘Unconstitutional DEI Principles’

Executive

Russ Vought

Trump Administration

As climate alarmists gather in New York City for “Climate Week,” a new mobile billboard has popped up that chips away at the alliance between Democrat Governor Kathy Hochul and radical environmental groups.
The mobile billboard features images of Hochul wearing a MAGA-style hat saying “Make Nuclear Great Again,” photos of the vehicle obtained by The Daily Wire show. The mobile billboard highlights Hochul’s recent promise to bring a new nuclear power plant to New York.
The billboard features a quote from Hochul describing plans for the new plant as “a model of 21st century nuclear design.” The mobile first started driving around New York City on Monday and will continue until Wednesday.
<div id="attachment_976045" style="width: 1290px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-976045" class="size-full wp-image-976045" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MBB_6.jpeg" alt="" width="1280" height="960" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MBB_6.jpeg 1280w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MBB_6-300x225.jpeg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MBB_6-768x576.jpeg 768w" sizes=" (max-width: 1280px) 100vw, 1280px" />Mobile billboard drives through NYC: Daily Wire.</div>
Nuclear power is a form of energy frequently opposed by environmentalist groups who prefer things like wind or solar power. The Daily Wire reached out to multiple environmentalist groups like the Sierra Club, the Natural Resources Defense Council, and Greenpeace that have previously expressed support for Hochul, yet also oppose nuclear energy.
The Sierra Club <a href="https://www.sierraclub.org/nuclear-free" target="_blank" rel="noopener">says</a> that it is “unequivocally opposed to nuclear energy” and wants to work to “phase out nuclear as quickly as possible.” The Natural Resource Defense Council has also <a href="https://www.nrdc.org/stories/nuclear-power-101" target="_blank" rel="noopener">expressed</a> skepticism about nuclear energy.
Both those organizations <a href="https://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/making-oil-companies-pay" target="_blank" rel="noopener">praised</a> Hochul’s <a href="https://www.nrdc.org/press-releases/governor-hochul-signs-bill-make-polluters-pay" target="_blank" rel="noopener">establishment</a> in December of a “Climate Superfund” that her office claimed <a href="https://www.governor.ny.gov/news/governor-hochul-signs-landmark-legislation-creating-new-climate-superfund" target="_blank" rel="noopener">shifted</a> “the cost of climate adaptation from everyday New Yorkers to the fossil fuel companies most responsible for the pollution.&#8221;
Additionally, Greenpeace <a href="https://www.greenpeace.org/usa/climate/issues/nuclear/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">says</a> that nuclear energy is “dirty, expensive, and dangerous” and argues that it’s “bad for the economy.” The organization previously <a href="https://www.greenpeace.org/usa/greenpeace-usa-applauds-new-york-governor-hochuls-moratorium-on-crypto-mining/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">applauded</a> Hochul after she signed a moratorium on crypto mining.
President Donald Trump, who ripped into solar and wind power on Tuesday during his speech to the United Nations, took executive action in May “to modernize nuclear regulation, streamline nuclear reactor testing, deploy nuclear reactors for national security, and reinvigorate the nuclear industrial base.”
Shortly after Trump’s announcement, Hochul <a href="https://www.governor.ny.gov/news/governor-hochul-directs-new-york-power-authority-develop-zero-emission-advanced-nuclear-energy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">directed</a> the New York Power Authority “to develop and construct a zero-emission advanced nuclear power plant.”
That decision was met with criticism from some environmentalists who accused her of adopting Trump policies. The group Public Power NY <a href="https://publicpowerny.org/press-releases/public-power-ny-responds-to-hochuls-order-for-new-york-power-authority-to-build-nuclear-energy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> the decision was “based on promises from Donald Trump&#8221; that &#8220;shows just how unserious she is about New Yorkers&#8217; energy bills and climate future.”
Hochul, who is running for re-election, is viewed favorably by fewer than 50% of New Yorkers, <a href="https://sri.siena.edu/2025/09/16/hochul-approval-favorability-ratings-up-a-little-favorability-best-since-jan-24-majority-hochul-works-hard-demonstrates-honesty-integrity-plurality-gets-things-done-provides-dec/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to recent polling.

MixCollage-23-Sep-2025-04-07-PM-3120

Mobile Billboard Trolls Kathy Hochul In NYC As She Faces Criticism From Climate Activists

Climate Change

Environmentalists

Greenpeace

Kathy Hochul

Nuclear Power

A New York judge on Tuesday threw out two state charges of murder related to terrorism against Luigi Mangione, the man accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in December.
Judge Gregory Carro tossed charges of murder in furtherance of an act of terrorism and murder in the second degree as a crime of terrorism, saying that the evidence presented to the grand jury did not support terrorism charges, ABC News <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/US/luigi-mangione-returns-court-1st-time-5-months/story?id=125617908">reported</a>. A second-degree murder charge against the 27-year-old suspect remains in place.
Mangione made his first court appearance in five months on Tuesday after he was arrested in December and accused of killing Thompson, a 50-year-old husband and father of two, in Midtown Manhattan. Thompson was shot from behind on the morning of December 4, 2024, as he was walking near the Hilton hotel in Midtown, which was hosting an annual investor&#8217;s conference.
Mangione also faces federal charges and other state charges in Pennsylvania, where he was arrested five days after Thompson was gunned down. The suspect&#8217;s defense team argued that the New York state charges should be dismissed, claiming that Mangione faces double jeopardy due to the overlap between the federal and state charges, according to <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/new-york-judge-dismisses-state-terrorism-charges-luigi-mangione-keeps-rcna231594">NBC News</a>. The judge called the defense&#8217;s argument &#8220;premature.&#8221;
In April, Mangione was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/luigi-mangione-indicted-on-federal-charge-of-murder-making-him-eligible-for-death-penalty">indicted</a> by a federal grand jury on multiple charges, including murder through the use of a firearm, a count that makes him eligible for the death penalty. Attorney General Pam Bondi said that the DOJ would pursue the death penalty for Mangione, arguing that Thompson&#8217;s killing &#8220;was an act of political violence.&#8221;
Police arrested Mangione at a McDonald&#8217;s in Altoona, Pennsylvania, after a five-day manhunt. Investigators said that a backpack that Mangione was carrying when he was arrested contained the alleged murder weapon, a fake ID, and a diary. Mangione&#8217;s defense team has argued that the evidence seized during Mangione&#8217;s arrest should be suppressed, claiming that police conducted a warrantless search of Mangione&#8217;s belongings.
One entry in the diary found in Mangione&#8217;s backpack discusses how someone should &#8220;wack the CEO at the annual parasitic bean-counter convention,&#8221; according to a court filing.
&#8220;It’s targeted, precise, and doesn’t risk innocents. Most importantly, the point is self-evident,&#8221; the entry added.
&#8220;I finally feel confident about what I will do,&#8221; another entry states, according to authorities. &#8220;The target is insurance. It checks every box.&#8221;
Hearings for Mangione&#8217;s case are set to begin on December 1, but a trial date has not been scheduled. Mangione pleaded not guilty to the state charges in New York and Pennsylvania as well as to the federal charges.

Luigi Mangione

Judge Tosses Two Terrorism Charges Against Luigi Mangione

Courts

Judge

Just days ago, Rudy Giuliani <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/rudy-giuliani-hospitalized-after-vehicle-struck-from-behind-at-high-speed?author=Tim+Pearce&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Rudy+Giuliani+Hospitalized+After+Vehicle+%E2%80%98Struck+From+Behind+At+High+Speed%E2%80%99">made headlines</a> for surviving a car accident after stopping on the side of a highway to help a woman reporting domestic violence.
This recent act of public service from &#8220;America’s Mayor&#8221; reflects a lifetime of public service, from taking down the Mafia in the Southern District of New York’s famed 1980s &#8220;Commission Trial,&#8221; to prosecuting high-profile terrorism cases that were tied to the first World Trade Center bombing in the 1990s with Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew McCarthy.
Unfortunately, that history of fearless, nonpartisan justice stands in sharp contrast to the SDNY’s posture today, where partisan lawfare seems to dominate.
That’s why it’s so encouraging that a group of judges <a href="https://nypost.com/2025/08/18/us-news/judges-approve-trump-pick-jay-clayton-to-remain-interim-us-attorney-for-southern-district-of-new-york/">ruled</a> in late August that Trump appointee Jay Clayton can remain in place as U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York.
Clayton has the potential to restore the SDNY back to its former glory during the Giuliani years.
He is a longtime Republican who clerked for a Reagan-appointed judge and served as head of the Securities and Exchange Commission during the first Trump administration.
For far too long, the SDNY has seemed to specialize in partisan lawfare.
For example, SDNY Judge Lewis Kaplan presided over journalist E. Jean Carroll’s 2019 civil <a href="https://www.npr.org/2024/01/26/1226626397/trump-defamation-trial#:~:text=What%20this%20case%20is%20about,former%20president%20was%20also%20liable.">lawsuit</a> against Trump, which accused the sitting president of rape and defamation.
Carroll <a href="https://dailydodge.com/e-jean-carroll-testifying-in-civil-case-says-she-cant-recall-date-of-alleged-trump-attack/">couldn’t remember</a> what year the alleged assault took place, never mentioned it in her diary, and claimed that the numerous similarities between her account and a 2012 &#8220;Law and Order&#8221; episode were an “astonishing” coincidence.
But despite all these holes in Carroll’s story, the Left saw a chance to undermine Trump and leaped at it. Democrat billionaire megadonor Reid Hoffman <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/anafaguy/2023/05/10/what-was-reid-hoffmans-role-in-funding-e-jean-carrolls-case/">funded</a> the entire lawsuit through his nonprofit American Future Republic, and it was anti-Trump commentator George Conway who <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=usxxlZosnNs">urged</a> Carroll to sue in the first place.
Kaplan not only oversaw this farce but also put his thumb on the scale for Carroll. He <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-rape-case-lawyers-banned-from-speaking-about-dna-judge-rules-2023-3">ruled</a> male DNA found on Carroll’s dress inadmissible, even after Trump offered to provide a sample. He <a href="https://www.reuters.com/legal/trump-fails-narrow-rape-accusers-case-trial-looms-2023-03-28/">admitted</a> additional defamation charges that punished Trump for defending himself on social media. He even <a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/23793781-tacopina-mistrial-filing/">interrupted</a> a line of questioning from Trump’s lawyer in a way that signaled clearly to the jury where his sympathies lay.
<div id="attachment_968215" style="width: 875px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-968215" class="size-large wp-image-968215" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/GettyImages-2173736897-865x576.jpg" alt="Jocelyn Strauber, commissioner of New York City's Department of Investigation, speaks during a new conference at the US Attorney's Office-Southern District of New York (SDNY) in New York, US, on Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024. New York City Mayor Eric Adams was indicted on bribery and fraud charges following a federal corruption investigation, calling into question the political future of the man in charge of running the biggest US city. Photographer: Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg via Getty Images" width="865" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/GettyImages-2173736897-865x576.jpg 865w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/GettyImages-2173736897-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/GettyImages-2173736897-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/GettyImages-2173736897.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 865px) 100vw, 865px" />Photographer: Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg via Getty Images</div>
The SDNY also conveniently <a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/new-york-city-mayor-eric-adams-charged-bribery-and-campaign-finance-offenses">charged</a> New York City Mayor Eric Adams with bribery shortly after he started <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/15/nyregion/eric-adams-mexico-border-migrants.html">speaking out</a> against the Biden administration’s open border policies.
When the Trump administration ordered the charges dropped, multiple prosecutors <a href="https://www.npr.org/2025/02/13/nx-s1-5297120/eric-adams-federal-prosecutors-resignations">resigned</a> in outrage after failing to make a single peep about the lawfare campaign against Trump.
These partisan prosecutions even extend to the realm of antitrust enforcement. 
 
The SDNY is currently <a href="https://www.justice.gov/archives/opa/video/justice-department-sues-visa-monopolizing-debit-markets#:~:text=Description:%20Today%2C%20the%20Justice%20Department,developing%20new%20and%20innovative%20alternatives.&amp;text=Review%20the%20YouTube%20Terms%20of%20Service%20and%20the%20Google%20Privacy%20Policy%20.">playing host</a> to a Biden-era Justice Department lawsuit against Visa. Biden Attorney General Merrick Garland accused the company of driving up “the price of nearly everything” by monopolizing the debit transaction market.
In fact, it was Biden’s own inflationary policies that were driving up prices. Visa, which has a high market share because of its popularity but nothing close to a monopoly, just provided a handy scapegoat.
Meanwhile, the district always seems to drop the ball when it comes to getting actual justice for actual victims.
They <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/27/business/sam-bankman-fried-campaign-finance-charge.html#:~:text=Federal%20prosecutors%20pursuing%20the%20criminal,The%20authorities%20have%20said%20Mr.">failed</a> to charge crypto fraudster Sam Bankman-Fried until his whole fraudulent empire was collapsing around him, even though the writing was on the wall long before the crash.
By that point, it was already too late. Bankman-Fried was the <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/ftx-sam-bankman-fried-political-donations-2022/">largest single donor</a> to Democrats in the 2022 midterms, ploughing <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2022/12/14/sbf-ftx-political-donations/">over $40 million</a> into PACs that helped Democrats keep the Senate and hold Republican gains in the House to historic lows.
Damian Williams, then the U.S. attorney for the SDNY, <a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/united-states-attorney-announces-charges-against-ftx-founder-samuel-bankman-fried#:~:text=BANKMAN%2DFRIED%20was%20arrested%20yesterday,fraud%2C%20plain%20and%20simple.%E2%80%9D">made it clear</a> that these donations from SBF and his cronies were funded with “stolen customer money.” The people SBF defrauded might get their money back, but voters have no such remedy. There’s no way to un-air the ads his ill-gotten gains bankrolled.
The sex trafficking case against rapper Sean “Diddy” Combs provides another example of the SDNY’s failure. Maurene Comey, the lead prosecutor on the case, botched it so badly that the Justice Department <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrxDE8izOUc">fired</a> her just weeks after the verdict came down.
Although Combs was <a href="https://www.npr.org/2025/07/03/nx-s1-5454769/sean-combs-found-guilty-on-2-counts-but-acquitted-on-most-serious-charges">convicted</a> of prostitution offenses and faces up to 20 years in prison, the jury <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/jury-reaches-verdict-sean-diddy-combs-sex-trafficking-trial-rcna214785">found</a> him not guilty on the more serious charges of sex trafficking and racketeering.
Incidentally, Comey also <a href="https://apnews.com/article/justice-department-james-comey-maurene-trump-dda5d1f40f08346bd97696ce4791e8ec">worked</a> on district’s prosecution of Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell. That case <a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/ghislaine-maxwell-sentenced-20-years-prison-conspiring-jeffrey-epstein-sexually-abuse">ended</a> with a conviction and a 20-year prison sentence but left so many unanswered questions that it’s difficult to call it an unqualified win.
During her confirmation hearings, Attorney General Pam Bondi <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/pam-bondi-senate-confirmation-hearing-attorney-general-nominee-planned-remarks/">promised</a> to end “partisan weaponization” and “restore confidence and integrity to the Department of Justice – and each of its components.”
The SDNY is a particularly dysfunctional component that’s been fouling the gears of our justice system for far too long.
By ending the disastrous tradition of “blue slips,” the administration can take a major step toward the restoration of truly impartial justice.
There is no better way to honor the now recovering “America’s Mayor” than by restoring one of his top legacies back to its former glory.
* * *
James Skyles is a legal policy analyst and the principal of Skyles Law Group. He has written for some of the largest legal publications in the United States, including Law.com and Law360.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

MixCollage-03-Sep-2025-10-30-AM-275

Giuliani’s DAs Tackled The Mob. Now The Same Office Targets Political Enemies.

Andrew McCarthy

Conservatives

Court

Democrats

E. Jean Carroll

Eric Adams

Leftists

Rudy Giuliani

Sam Bankman-Fried

Sean 'Diddy' Combs

Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), 78, has declared that he will not seek reelection next year — and that he plans to step aside in an effort to allow for younger Democrats to step into leadership positions.
As reported on Monday by The New York Times, Nadler said that watching former President Joe Biden over the last several years had moved him to consider making way for the next generation of leaders.
“Watching the Biden thing really said something about the necessity for generational change in the party, and I think I want to respect that,” Nadler explained, saying that he hoped the next person to fill his seat “can maybe do better, can maybe help us more.”
With 34 years in Congress, Nadler is both the longest-serving New Yorker and the longest-serving Jewish member of the U.S. House — and he claimed that he was a bit uncertain about bowing out at first because he believed he still needed to fight against President Donald Trump — but the writing may have been on the wall long before Nadler was willing to read it.
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The New York Rep. recently lost his leadership position in the House Judiciary Committee at the beginning of the current Congress when the party shifted its focus toward younger leaders — and he was expected to face a primary in his home district, likely from a number of candidates who are younger and more progressive than he is.
Nadler was involved in both Trump impeachment attempts &#8212; in 2019 and 2021 &#8212; <a href="https://time.com/5743613/jerry-nadler-trump-impeachment-probe/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">helping to lead</a> the former.
The news of Nadler’s retirement comes in the wake of a new congressional map in Texas that may net Republicans as many as five additional seats — and as several other states move to change their maps as well, either in retaliation to or in an effort to supplement Texas’ actions.
Nadler’s exit will not likely change the balance in Congress, however, since his district covers a large swath of Manhattan and is considered to be a safely blue district.

Representative Jerry Nadler

Dem Who Led Trump Impeachment Effort To Bow Out Of Congress

Congress

Jerrold Nadler

Joe Biden

BROOKLYN, NY — Surrounded by law enforcement personnel, Attorney General Pam Bondi sternly told the world that a notorious drug lord who had finally pleaded guilty to U.S. drug trafficking charges would die in prison.
“This guy, ‘El Mayo,’ was living like a king,” Bondi said of Ismael &#8220;El Mayo&#8221; Zambada, the co-founder of the Sinaloa Cartel, as cameras flashed around her. ”Now he’s living like a criminal for the rest of his life.”
&#8220;Thanks to the relentless work of our prosecutors and our federal agents, El Mayo will spend the rest of his life behind bars. He will die in a U.S. federal prison where he belongs,&#8221; Bondi told reporters. &#8220;His guilty plea brings us one step closer to achieving our goal of the elimination of the drug cartels and the transnational criminal organizations throughout this world that are flooding our country with drugs and human traffickers and homicides.&#8221;
Her rhetoric and demeanor clearly spelled out the message that President Donald Trump&#8217;s Justice Department intends to send to those involved in the violent drug trade hurting so many Americans: they should be afraid, and any one of them might be next.
<div id="attachment_965195" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/bondi-cartel-kingpin-will-die-in-a-u-s-federal-prison-where-he-belongs/attorney-general-pam-bondi-announces-sinaloa-cartel-co-founder-ismael-el-mayo-zambada-garcia-guilty-plea-2" rel="attachment wp-att-965195"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-965195" class="wp-image-965195 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/GettyImages-2232068243-864x576.jpg" alt="" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/GettyImages-2232068243-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/GettyImages-2232068243-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/GettyImages-2232068243-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/GettyImages-2232068243.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" /></a>U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi (R) speaks during a press conference at the U.S. Attorney’s Office on August 25, 2025, in the Brooklyn Heights neighborhood of the Brooklyn borough in New York City. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)</div>
The attorney general had traveled to Brooklyn straight from a two-hour Oval Office meeting with the president to make the announcement at the U.S. Attorney&#8217;s Office for the Eastern District of New York. The trip made clear that stopping the threat of drug cartels remains a top priority for the Trump administration.
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Zambada, for example, pleaded guilty on Monday to being one of the top leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel, described by the Justice Department as &#8220;one of the most violent and powerful drug trafficking organizations in the world.&#8221; He made billions of dollars importing dangerous drugs into the United States. The DOJ said he &#8220;operated with impunity at the highest levels of the Mexican drug trafficking world while being assured of his continued success and safety from arrest through his payment of bribes to Mexican government officials and law enforcement officers.&#8221; &#8220;El Mayo&#8221; controlled those corrupt officials, who in turn protected his cartel members and the shipments of his drugs smuggled into America.
&#8220;Numerous witnesses have testified, including at the trials of El Chapo and corrupt former Mexican Secretary of Public Security Genaro García Luna, that corruption at all levels was necessary to allow the Zambada Garcia’s criminal enterprise to function so effectively at such a large scale: from local police officers who escorted the drugs through Mexico, to corrupt officials who informed the Cartel of military actions, thwarted capture operations, and consulted with the Cartel about proceedings and investigations against it,&#8221; the DOJ release notes.
&#8220;El Mayo’s crimes have been so prolific that in the past two decades, he&#8217;s been indicted in no fewer than 16 federal courts across our country, 16 from the Western District of Texas to Chicago to here in the Eastern District of New York. He escaped justice for decades,&#8221; the attorney general noted. &#8220;But under President Trump&#8217;s leadership, he has finally been brought to justice.&#8221;
<div id="attachment_965225" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/bondi-cartel-kingpin-will-die-in-a-u-s-federal-prison-where-he-belongs/attorney-general-pam-bondi-announces-sinaloa-cartel-co-founder-ismael-el-mayo-zambada-garcia-guilty-plea-3" rel="attachment wp-att-965225"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-965225" class="wp-image-965225 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/GettyImages-2232068319-864x576.jpg" alt="" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/GettyImages-2232068319-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/GettyImages-2232068319-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/GettyImages-2232068319-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/GettyImages-2232068319.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" /></a>Members of the NYPD listen as U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi speaks during a press conference at the U.S. Attorney’s Office on August 25, 2025, in the Brooklyn Heights neighborhood of the Brooklyn borough in New York City. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)</div>
In a statement on Tuesday, family members of U.S. citizens <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-judge-orders-mexican-cartel-pay-billions-for-killings-nine-women-children/">killed by the Juárez Cartel</a> in 2019 thanked Bondi and Trump for going after the cartels.
&#8220;We are deeply grateful to President Trump, Attorney General Bondi, and the entire Trump administration for their commitment to holding cartels accountable,” said Adriana Jones, the president of &#8220;American Families Against Cartel Terrorism.&#8221; Jones is the sister of Maria &#8220;Rhonita&#8221; Le Baron and the aunt of Howard Miller Jr., Krystal Miller, and Titus and Tiana Miller — all of whom were killed in the 2019 massacre. “The Sinaloa Cartel and Juárez Cartel both represent a clear and present danger, and their actions have caused immense loss, pain, and suffering. Thanks to the efforts of this administration, our nation is safer.&#8221;

Attorney General Pam Bondi Announces Sinaloa Cartel Co-Founder Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada Garcia Guilty Plea

Bondi’s Promise: Cartel Bosses Will ‘Will Die In A U.S. Federal Prison’ Where They Belong

Drug Cartels

Pam Bondi

Sinaloa Cartel

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