Rhonda Valles is an aspiring California musician who once played in a band with her ex-lover, Monica Salci. In between writing and performing songs, Valles and Salci formed a company that purported to make clothes.
The company never produced a stitch. The federal government paid it $19 million.
The spectacle demonstrates the absurdity of 8(a) contracting law, which requires that that 5% of all federal government contracts be &#8220;set aside&#8221; for minority-, women-owned, and other &#8220;disadvantaged&#8221; businesses. The program — which Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said this month has resulted in $100 million contracts going out the door without competitive bidding <a href="https://x.com/SecWar/status/2012302240594170106">nearly every day</a> — has led to paydays for flagrant middlemen who use their disadvantaged status to win government contracts, only to subcontract the work to larger firms.
Valles and Salci registered a company called <a href="https://www.usaspending.gov/search?hash=c5ea925ba77a354730a50d20bd0a7731">Romo Productions</a> with the Small Business Administration as a Self-Certified Small <a href="https://www.usaspending.gov/award/CONT_IDV_FA700014D0004_9700">Disadvantaged Business</a>, a Woman Owned Business, and a Hispanic American Owned Business. According to her <a href="https://guitarrhonda.com/about-me">music biography</a>, Valles&#8217;s father is &#8220;German/Irish/Spanish.&#8221;
That certification, which gave it a fast-track to government contracts, was the business: its <a href="https://www.romoproductions.com/home.html">website</a> dedicated more space to the Small Business Administration&#8217;s 8(a) logos than to its own name.
&#8220;ROMO Productions offers two advantages; quality, scaled production and woman owned small business. This means Government buyers can meet their small business set aside needs and receive well built products that are delivered on schedule,&#8221; a <a href="https://archive.is/wip/bSzJS">profile</a> said.
<blockquote>
<h1 class="md-end-block md-p">&#8216;I got this government contract, do you know anyone with a factory who can help me perform it?&#8217;</h1>
</blockquote>
Between 2009 and 2017, multiple military branches agreed to pay up to $72 million to the firm, ultimately shelling out just under $19 million to produce physical training outfits, federal spending records show. Some were awarded without competition as an &#8220;8(a) sole source,&#8221; while others were set aside for &#8220;small businesses.&#8221;
But Romo Productions never had the infrastructure to produce clothes. Brad Thompson, a white male to whom Valles subcontracted the work, recalls how she first approached him.
&#8220;She said &#8216;I got this government contract, do you know anyone with a factory who can help me perform it?&#8217; She was literally living in her car,&#8221; he told The Daily Wire. &#8220;I said &#8216;I can help you.'&#8221;
Thompson&#8217;s company, BT Apparel, was one of three factories that produced clothing for Romo Productions. Thompson sent the clothing to a space where Valles&#8217; band practiced, and she forwarded the packages on to the military, he said.
&#8220;She never owned a machine &#8230; I had 100 employees,&#8221; he said. &#8220;The whole 8(a) thing is a farce.&#8221;
During that time, Valles and Salci performed their song &#8220;Token,&#8221; which includes the lyric &#8220;I need a token. Shut up boy, won&#8217;t you be my token&#8221;:​
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​Government inspectors visited Thompson&#8217;s factory to ensure compliance with rules such as the Berry Amendment, which requires military products to be made in the United States. Thompson says he heard Valles giving the impression that she owned it. &#8220;I started to think there was something fraudulent going on,&#8221; he said.
He hired a lawyer to obtain a copy of the government contract using public records laws, and found that Valles was obligated to own the facilities that were performing the work, he said. The military had apparently never verified that she did.
Once Valles realized that Thompson was onto the scheme — a common occurrence in minority contracting, called a &#8220;pass-through&#8221; — she demanded he give her ownership of his business, which would make her more than a middle-woman: &#8220;Sell me 10% of your business for $1 and I&#8217;ll keep giving you work,&#8221; he recalled her saying.
The owners of the other two factories also began to suspect that Valles was simply siphoning government dollars as a middle-woman. Valles used legal threats and the prospect of withholding work to keep them as indentured servants.
She drafted a letter, intended for signature by Thompson, that said &#8220;I, Brad Thompson, have no further interest in obtaining pricing information from the USMC with respect to the above stated contract.&#8221;
Another document reviewed by The Daily Wire, with blank signature lines for the owners of the three factories, read: &#8220;We believe that what is best for Romo, is best for us. We do not now or ever want to make you think that we would try to take anything away from you.&#8221;
Thompson likened the move to extortion, and said when he refused to sign over ownership of his business, Valles abruptly pulled the work from his factory and even cast a curse on him. &#8220;Within three weeks it was all gone because I wouldn&#8217;t play ball,&#8221; he said.
Valles sued the second factory, Paradise Sewing, asking that it &#8220;be permanently restrained and enjoined from using misappropriated confidential information.&#8221; To support her case, she filed a contract that seemed to lay out her intent to commit a set-aside contracting pass-through scheme:
<blockquote>ROMO desires to retain sewing services of Paradise&#8230; to US Gov military apparel, from this day forward but has the following expectations:</blockquote>
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Valles later filed a statement to the judge complaining about her own lawyer, because he &#8220;told me I was not going to win&#8221; and &#8220;that I &#8216;was behaving like a 3yr old.'&#8221; In 2018, a California appeals court <a href="https://www.casemine.com/judgement/us/5b0b8dc6ce869d79ee0c9c4c">ordered</a> her to pay Paradise&#8217;s attorneys fees, and Romo Productions collapsed.
But it&#8217;s unclear that the federal government ever sanctioned it. Romo&#8217;s website says it has an &#8220;<a href="https://www.romoproductions.com/history.html">A+</a> Contract Past Performance Rating&#8221; and <a href="h%20A+%20Contract%20Past%20Performance%20Rating">received</a> a &#8220;certificate of appreciation&#8221; from the Marine Corps.
Valles told The Daily Wire via email that she is &#8220;more interested in the health of the planet, feminine energy (yin) and cooperative kindness rather than male dominated competitive evil war profiteers.&#8221;
&#8220;In a stupid male dominated world especially this world being a woman alone is a disadvantage,&#8221; she added, railing against &#8220;evil feudal lords evil Jews slavery is still here.&#8221;
She said she is &#8220;starting a coalition for women to run the planet. Peace and Light and Love-like the Orca Whales. Raise the frequency of the planet. Male energy is heavy and war like and long overdue for a reduction.&#8221;
A Department of War spokesman declined to discuss Romo Productions. But speaking on 8(a) contracts earlier this month, Hegseth noted that &#8220;In many, many instances, these socially disadvantaged businesses don&#8217;t even do work. They take a 10%, 20%, sometimes 50% fee off the top, then pass the contract off to a giant consulting firm.&#8221;
&#8220;We&#8217;re doing away with these pass-through schemes,&#8221; Hegseth said, vowing that contracts not benefiting &#8220;lethality&#8221; would simply be ended.
After the fallout, Thompson&#8217;s company looked into getting government contracts itself, but he found that bureaucrats seemed to knowingly write contracts that necessitated middlemen in order to meet their &#8220;small&#8221; and &#8220;disadvantaged&#8221; business quotas.
&#8220;It&#8217;s like &#8216;procure apparel with an Under Armour logo.&#8217; Obviously they should just get them from Under Armour,&#8221; he said.
The Romo Productions contract was for the procurement of New Balance clothes — something only New Balance, which is not a small business, had the license to produce. To convince New Balance to allow other factories to produce clothes with its logo, the company had to be paid a licensing fee that gave it the same profit as if the contract had gone directly to it, he said.
With Romo Productions gone, Valles now <a href="https://rhondav.com/bio">markets</a> herself as the &#8220;&#8216;Oz behind the curtain&#8217; of many of the industry’s top Made in USA/Berry Compliant tactical apparel brands from 2008-present.&#8221; She says she consults with other companies that want to do business with the military to help them with <a href="https://rhondav.com/services">&#8220;sourcing/compliance.&#8221;</a>
Valles&#8217;s band also broke up, as did her relationship with Salci. But both women are still seeking fame and fortune. Salci has <a href="https://monicasalci.com/soundtrack-songs/">pivoted</a> to Christian pop. A song she wrote with Valles might well have been about the time the United States government put a California beach bum on a fast track to the military-industrial complex because she had a Spaniard grandparent.
<blockquote>Color me red 
Color me white 
Color me black 
Just color me right</blockquote>
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-just-ordered-beneficiaries-of-the-largest-dei-program-to-turn-over-all-financial-records">Trump Orders All Beneficiaries Of The Largest DEI Program To Turn Over Internal Financial Records</a>
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/usaid-official-three-contractors-plead-guilty-to-half-billion-dollar-bribery-scheme">USAID Official, Three Contractors Plead Guilty To Half-Billion Dollar Bribery Scheme</a>
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Rhonda Valles

How The Military Gave A Homeless Lesbian’s ‘Minority Contracting’ Firm $19 Million

Department of Defense

Minority Contracting

Pete Hegseth

As tensions rise with China, Russia, and other global rivals, the Department of War has unveiled its 2026 National Defense Strategy, mapping a path for the United States to remain the world’s most formidable fighting force.
The <a href="https://media.defense.gov/2026/Jan/23/2003864773/-1/-1/0/2026-NATIONAL-DEFENSE-STRATEGY.PDF">strategy</a> emphasizes strengthened deterrence, homeland protection, and long-term competitive advantage, noting that “President Trump in his first term and since reentering office in January 2025 has rebuilt the American military to be the world’s absolute best—its most formidable fighting force.”
The strategy frames a world of heightened competition and risk, with major state actors driving instability. China is identified as the primary strategic competitor, pursuing military modernization and regional dominance in the Indo-Pacific. 
“Our goal is simple: To prevent anyone, including China, from being able to dominate us or our allies,” the document states. Russia remains an acute threat through aggression in Europe, while Iran and North Korea are advancing missile and nuclear capabilities, and violent extremist organizations continue to pose global risks.
The strategy highlights three integrated priorities: defend the homeland, deter strategic attacks — particularly nuclear — and deter aggression while preparing to win if conflict occurs. It underscores the recent strikes on Venezuela as a return to the historical foreign policy of the U.S. under the &#8220;Trump Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine,&#8221; which is to “actively and fearlessly defend America’s interests throughout the Western Hemisphere… guarantee U.S. military and commercial access to key terrain, especially the Panama Canal, Gulf of America, and Greenland.”
Implementation is guided by four lines of effort, &#8220;prioritizing the missions that matter most for Americans’ security, freedom, and prosperity.&#8221; 
First, strengthening homeland defenses. Protecting the U.S. from multi-domain threats, including drones, cyber intrusions, and attacks on critical infrastructure, is central. The strategy stresses defending “America’s borders and maritime approaches” and countering unmanned aerial threats through initiatives like Golden Dome for America.
Second, deterring China in the Indo-Pacific. The strategy frames deterrence through capability and posture rather than confrontation. “Our goal in doing so is not to dominate China; nor is it to strangle or humiliate them,” it notes.
Third, reinforcing alliances and partnerships. Burden-sharing is emphasized, with allies expected to take the lead against threats less severe to the United States, while the U.S. provides “critical but more limited support” and makes clear the urgent need for allies to do their part.
Fourth, supercharging the defense industrial base. Domestic production and innovation are a priority, and the strategy stresses the need to “return to being the world’s premier arsenal, one that can produce not only for ourselves but also for our allies and partners at scale, rapidly, and at the highest levels of quality.” The document specifies domestic production of semiconductors, rare-earth elements, and munitions.
Over the next 12 months, the U.S. plans to expand its Pacific deterrence efforts, including investments in naval assets in the region, missile systems, and enhanced coordination with allies to counter China&#8217;s activities. 
The strategy also highlights emerging technologies used by our rivals: hypersonics, drones, cyber operations, and space systems. As such, in 2026, homeland security measures will focus on counter-drone technologies, cyber resilience, and border-related defense capabilities.
Allied engagement will push for increased defense spending, particularly contributions from NATO and Indo-Pacific partnerships. Defense industrial initiatives aim to onshore production and streamline acquisition, supporting U.S. manufacturing and job growth. This is paired with a drive for accelerated research and development in artificial intelligence, quantum technologies, and unmanned systems on American soil. 
Nuclear modernization programs will advance, ensuring that deterrence remains robust. 
The strategy concludes that the U.S. must “defend the homeland, deter aggression abroad, and maintain enduring advantages in the technologies, industries, and forces that make victory certain.” 
Overall, the new National Strategy positions the military for a leaner, more focused posture, prioritizing core warfighting readiness over expansive overseas commitments for the coming years.

Hegseth

‘Most Formidable Fighting Force’: 2026 U.S. National Defense Strategy Eyes China, Emerging Threats

U.S. Sets 2026 Military Priorities, Eyes China And Emerging Threats

China

Defense Spending

Department of War

Russia

U.S. Military

War Department Press Secretary Kingsley Wilson says a lot has changed in the United States military over the last year — and that at the end of the day, it all comes down to a shift in the culture.
Wilson sat down with The Daily Wire&#8217;s Mary Margaret Olohan to discuss some of the changes made at the Pentagon and within the ranks since President Donald Trump began his second term and put decorated Army veteran Pete Hegseth in charge of his War Department.
&#8220;The biggest changes have really been the culture,&#8221; she said, adding, &#8220;We&#8217;ve gotten away from the ideology in the military, the politics. No more climate change, no more dudes in dresses, as the Secretary likes to say. We&#8217;re getting back to actual war fighting and the Warrior Ethos — standards, fitness, eating right, merit-based programs.&#8221;
Wilson said that the cultural shift also included a move toward promoting those who earned it through merit rather than those who simply checked the right boxes in pursuit of an ideological agenda.
&#8220;That has refocused the Department on our core mission,&#8221; she said. &#8220;And what that&#8217;s allowed us to do is be more lethal.&#8221;
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Wilson touted several major operations, from the surgical strikes on narcoterrorists in the Caribbean to the more recent arrest and extraction of Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro, and said that effective leadership and a shift toward lethality were behind those successes and many others.
A shift in priorities, Wilson said, was also underway, from &#8220;nation-building&#8221; and toward &#8220;war-fighting.&#8221;
&#8220;We&#8217;re making sure that our missions aren&#8217;t just drawn out with no clear end state,&#8221; she continued. &#8220;We&#8217;re going in with what success looks like, we&#8217;re making sure we attain that, and then we&#8217;re getting out and protecting the homeland and always putting America first.&#8221;
Wilson also addressed the extreme number of attacks directed at War Secretary Pete Hegseth — attacks that began as soon as he was nominated to head the Pentagon.
&#8220;That&#8217;s because, in many ways, he&#8217;s over the target,&#8221; she explained. &#8220;And he&#8217;s somebody who&#8217;s going to be a true change agent at the Department of War, and he, from day one, has gotten to work implementing all of those changes. And I think he gets so much hate, especially from the mainstream media and from the leftwing politicians in D.C. because he is that change agent. He&#8217;s not your typical Secretary of Defense who has maybe contracted for the big defense companies &#8230; he&#8217;s a true soldier&#8217;s soldier.&#8221;
Wilson rounded out the interview with a few details about the recent mission to capture Maduro and the plan to revamp the long-standing military publication Stars and Stripes, along with a promise that the War Department would always continue to put the warfighters first.

Screenshot/The Daily Wire

How The Pentagon Went From ‘Dudes In Dresses’ To ‘Actual War Fighting’

The Culture Has Changed: War Dept. Spox Describes New Direction For U.S. Military

Donald Trump

Military

A professional protester known for harassing worshippers at Secretary of War Pete Hegseth’s church in Washington, D.C., has emerged as a key figure in the disruption of Sunday’s service at Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota.
William Kelly, a <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/DSWQf_PDVsE/?hl=en">self-described</a> combat veteran, was <a href="https://x.com/Rightanglenews/status/2013003075389124755?s=20">captured on video</a> storming into the sanctuary with a mob of other activists associated with Black Lives Matter and the Racial Justice Network. The demonstrators <a href="https://x.com/DennyBurk/status/2013060811669885235?s=20">chanted</a> “Hands Up, Don’t Shoot” and screamed at congregants, labeling them &#8220;fake Christians&#8221; because one of the church’s pastors also serves as an ICE field director. Jonathan Parnell, lead pastor of the Southern Baptist church, called the protestors “shameful” and eventually chose to end the service after some of the children started crying. 
Kevin Ezell, head of the Southern Baptists’ mission board, said <a href="https://x.com/kevezell/status/2013000560388067721?s=20">on X</a> that he had spoken to Cities Church staff members who reported that “the kids in the worship service were terrified.” In a later post he added, “These intimidating tactics are not only illegal but cowardly. No cause justifies traumatizing families as they worship and desecrate a sacred space.”
Many on social media, including Deputy Undersecretary of War Justin Overbaugh, immediately <a href="https://x.com/JustinOverbaugh/status/2013011311584522411?s=20">identified</a> Kelly as the same man regularly posted outside Hegseth’s church in Washington. Joe Rigney, a founding pastor of Cities Church in St. Paul who also helped plant Christ Church in D.C., said Kelly and his fellow protestors have regularly disrupted their D.C. worship services for the past six months.
“They&#8217;ll play music or yell and scream and use bullhorns and loud sound amplification to try to prevent us from singing psalms and hearing the Word preached,” he told The Daily Wire. One member was transported to the hospital after a protester screaming into a bullhorn shattered his eardrum. Rigney said Kelly&#8217;s tactics have also included screaming obscenities at minors as families are entering the sanctuary, forcing a need for police escorts. &#8220;They&#8217;ve sought to disrupt Christian worship gatherings now in multiple places.&#8221; 
Kelly and his fellow activists are allegedly protesting an ICE agent fatally shooting Renee Good during a raid in Minneapolis earlier this month. But Rigney, who pastored Cities Church and lived in Minneapolis for seven years before he joined Christ Church, notes that he has no connection to Kelly’s ostensible reasons for harassing his new congregation, which Kelly has targeted for being “Christian nationalist.” Rigney believes the cause isn’t important to Kelly or his compatriots, who he accuses of being part of a network of paid activists who wait for an opportune opening to wreak havoc.
“I think Minneapolis, because of the George Floyd riots, the Black Lives Matter organizations were already sort of there but had just kind of been latent and inactive,” Rigney said. “And now there&#8217;s a new thing that has kind of triggered them … So I think that the same groups that were agitating about that then have found a kind of a new cause of the moment to allow them to protest.”
Rigney says he hopes the Trump administration will prosecute everyone involved in disrupting these church services to “send a message that that&#8217;s unacceptable.” And the Department of Justice has already announced that it is investigating the protest for violations of federal civil rights laws and the FACE Act, which protects religious worshippers from intimidation or obstruction based on ideological differences. Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon called the protest “UnAmerican and outrageous.”
Local Minneapolis law enforcement does not look likely to act. The police department monitored the service but made no immediate arrests as demonstrators left the building after the service had been stopped. Police officials said they were working to balance respect for both free speech and the right of congregations to worship without disruption.
Asked how he responds to charges from Kelly and the other protestors that it is not Christian to support ICE’s work, Rigney, who published a<a href="https://a.co/d/hJFPLGd"> 2025 book</a> on the misuse of empathy, said he doubts they have much understanding of Christianity.
“I think that kind of rhetoric is an attempt to steer,” he said. “Particularly coming from people who likely aren&#8217;t Christians or at least aren&#8217;t Bible-believing Christians … It is an attempt to steer and sabotage Christians so that they won&#8217;t resist the lawlessness that the left is seeking to impose.”
Rigney believes the Christian response to such attacks is greater boldness. “In the book of Acts, you saw precisely this kind of lawlessness,” he said. “You had mobs, you had shouting false accusations. You had government officials encouraging it in the way that the Democrats are doing right now. And in that day, Christians gathered together, and they prayed for boldness.&#8221;
“That&#8217;s what Christians ought to meet this with.”

Riots

Career Activist Who Disrupted Minneapolis Worship Service Also Targeted Hegseth’s DC Church

Churches

Minneapolis

Protest

WASHINGTON—The Department of War will modernize Stars &amp; Stripes, The Daily Wire has learned, refocusing the military news outlet so it better serves &#8220;a new generation of service members.&#8221;
The independent news outlet authorized by the Department of War is meant to provide news for the military community. The publication has been in continuous circulation since World War II and covers the military, veterans affairs, and world events.
Until now, it has republished content from the Associated Press and Reuters. This will no longer be the case, War Department officials explained to The Daily Wire. They plan to bring the publication &#8220;into the 21st century&#8221; and modernize its operations, refocusing content &#8220;away from woke distractions that siphon morale.&#8221;
“The Department of War is returning Stars &amp; Stripes to its original mission: reporting for our warfighters,&#8221; Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell told The Daily Wire. &#8220;We are bringing Stars &amp; Stripes into the 21st century. We will modernize its operations, refocus its content away from woke distractions that siphon morale, and adapt it to serve a new generation of service members.&#8221;
<div id="attachment_1028217" style="width: 910px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/pentagon-refocuses-stars-stripes-on-reporting-for-our-warfighters/us-news-texas-hegseth-3-ft" rel="attachment wp-att-1028217"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1028217" class="wp-image-1028217 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/01/GettyImages-2255455251-900x576.jpg" alt="" width="900" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/01/GettyImages-2255455251-900x576.jpg 900w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/01/GettyImages-2255455251-300x192.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/01/GettyImages-2255455251-768x491.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/01/GettyImages-2255455251.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px" /></a>Secretary of War Pete Hegseth (Amanda McCoy/Fort Worth Star-Telegram/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)</div>
Parnell said the publication will be &#8220;custom-tailored&#8221; to the War Department&#8217;s soldiers, focused on &#8220;warfighting, weapons systems, fitness, lethality, survivability, and ALL THINGS MILITARY.&#8221;
&#8220;No more repurposed D.C. gossip columns,&#8221; he added, &#8220;no more Associated Press reprints.&#8221;
&#8220;Stars &amp; Stripes has a proud legacy of reporting news that’s important to our service members,&#8221; Parnell said. &#8220;The Department of War is committed to ensuring the outlet continues to reflect that proud legacy.”
It is a move condoned by the White House, which applauded the move as an example of how President Donald Trump&#8217;s administration is modernizing institutions across the country.
“The Department of War, under the leadership of President Trump and Secretary Hegseth, is continuing to revitalize, restore, and modernize,&#8221; White House Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly told The Daily Wire. &#8220;Stars and Stripes is just the latest example of a broader effort to adapt long-standing institutions to how today’s service members live, work, and consume information.&#8221;
Currently, Stars &amp; Stripes has civilian staff who aggregate wire reports and write original stories. Going forward, the War Department officials shared, the publication&#8217;s content will be written by active-duty service members.
Fifty percent of the website&#8217;s content will be composed of War Department-generated materials, including digital or print materials made by War Department writers and images captured by combat cameras.

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Rocket Lab, Long Beach, rocket production

Pentagon Refocuses ‘Stars & Stripes’ On ‘Reporting For Our Warfighters’

Pentagon

War Secretary Pete Hegseth fired back — rhetorically speaking — at Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ) over a lawsuit filed Monday, saying that the Arizona Democrat was only &#8220;worried and cranky&#8221; because he was facing consequences for his own actions.
&#8220;&#8216;Captain&#8217; Kelly knows exactly what he did, and that he will be held to account. Thats why he’s so worried and cranky,&#8221; Hegseth posted.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
“Captain” Kelly knows exactly what he did, and that he will be held to account.
Thats why he’s so worried and cranky. <a href="https://t.co/SSU9jccrx6">https://t.co/SSU9jccrx6</a>
— Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) <a href="https://twitter.com/PeteHegseth/status/2011151451381498107?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 13, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Hegseth’s comment comes one day after Kelly announced his lawsuit — in which he also named Navy Secretary John Phelan, the Department of the Navy, and the Department of War as co-defendants — claiming that Hegseth had stepped outside his Constitutional authority in censuring him and launching a review of his behavior.
“Pete Hegseth is coming after what I earned through my twenty-five years of military service, in violation of my rights as an American, as a retired veteran, and as a United States Senator whose job is to hold him—and this or any administration—accountable,” Kelly claimed. “His unconstitutional crusade against me sends a chilling message to every retired member of the military: if you speak out and say something that the President or Secretary of Defense doesn’t like, you will be censured, threatened with demotion, or even prosecuted.”
Hegseth, one week earlier, announced the censure and a full review of Kelly’s conduct over the Arizona senator’s role in creating a video that encouraged active duty service members to question the legality of their orders in real time.
Referring to Kelly and the other Democratic lawmakers involved as “The Seditious Six,” Hegseth noted that the retired Navy captain was the only one who was still subject to the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ), and announced a review of his conduct that could ultimately result in a reduction in rank and pay, or even see Kelly recalled to active duty to face a Court Martial.

President Trump Holds Cabinet Meeting At The White House

Pete Hegseth Hits Back At ‘Captain’ Mark Kelly: He ‘Knows Exactly What He Did’

Pete Hegseth Hits Back At 'Captain' Mark Kelly: He 'Knows Exactly What He Did'

Mark Kelly

U.S.

Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ) announced on Monday that he&#8217;d filed a lawsuit jointly naming War Secretary Pete Hegseth, Navy Secretary John Phelan, the Department of the Navy, and the War Department as defendants.
In the lawsuit, filed Monday in the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., Kelly claimed that Hegseth had overstepped his constitutional boundaries by ordering a Uniform Code of Military Justice review following his participation in the &#8220;Seditious Six&#8221; video.
&#8220;Pete Hegseth is coming after what I earned through my twenty-five years of military service, in violation of my rights as an American, as a retired veteran, and as a United States Senator whose job is to hold him—and this or any administration—accountable,&#8221; Kelly claimed. &#8220;His unconstitutional crusade against me sends a chilling message to every retired member of the military: if you speak out and say something that the President or Secretary of Defense doesn’t like, you will be censured, threatened with demotion, or even prosecuted.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Pete Hegseth is coming after what I earned through my twenty-five years of military service, in violation of my rights as an American, as a retired veteran, and as a United States Senator whose job is to hold him—and this or any administration—accountable. His unconstitutional…
— Senator Mark Kelly (@SenMarkKelly) <a href="https://twitter.com/SenMarkKelly/status/2010787235549876286?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 12, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Kelly spent the rest of the lengthy post reminding his audience that &#8220;military rank is earned, not given&#8221; and listing his personal accomplishments — particularly those that showcased his willingness to risk his life for those he served.
&#8220;I gave everything I had to this country and I earned my rank of Captain, United States Navy,&#8221; Kelly said, adding, &#8220;Now, Pete Hegseth wants our longest-serving military veterans to live with the constant threat that they could be deprived of their rank and pay years or even decades after they leave the military just because he or another Secretary of Defense doesn’t like what they’ve said. That’s not the way things work in the United States of America, and I won’t stand for it.&#8221;
Kelly went on to recall his oath to defend the Constitution and claimed that his lawsuit was simply the next phase of that mission: &#8220;Our freedom of speech, the separation of powers, and due process are not just words on a page.&#8221;
&#8220;So today, I filed a lawsuit against the Secretary of Defense because there are few things as important as standing up for the rights of the very Americans who fought to defend our freedoms,&#8221; he said.
Hegseth moved to officially censure Kelly in early January, launching a review of Kelly based on his role in creating a video that encouraged active duty service members to question the legality of their orders in real time.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Six weeks ago, Senator Mark Kelly — and five other members of Congress — released a reckless and seditious video that was clearly intended to undermine good order and military discipline. As a retired Navy Captain who is still receiving a military pension, Captain Kelly knows he…
— Secretary of War Pete Hegseth (@SecWar) <a href="https://twitter.com/SecWar/status/2008189258528665898?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 5, 2026</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;Captain Kelly’s status as a sitting United States Senator does not exempt him from accountability, and further violations could result in further action,&#8221; Hegseth said at the time. &#8220;These actions are based on Captain Kelly&#8217;s public statements from June through December 2025 in which he characterized lawful military operations as illegal and counseled members of the Armed Forces to refuse lawful orders. This conduct was seditious in nature and violated Articles 133 and 134 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, to which Captain Kelly remains subject as a retired officer receiving pay.&#8221;

Mark Kelly Files Lawsuit Against War Secretary Over Code Of Conduct Review

Mark Kelly Files Lawsuit Against War Secretary Over UCMJ Review

Justice

narcoterrorists

U.S. Navy

Nicolas Maduro Transported To Court Hearing

Venezuela Has Been Dealt With. Somali Scammers Should Be Next.

Marco Rubio

Matt Walsh

Nicolas Maduro

Opinion

Somalia

Venezuela

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth is making it crystal clear: wearing a suit in the halls of Congress doesn’t give you a free pass to spark a mutiny.
Hegseth announced a major escalation in the Department of War’s investigation into Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ), directing a <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/hegseth-moves-censure-sen-mark-kelly-review-his-retirement-rank-pay-over-seditious-video">formal censure letter</a> to be placed in the retired Navy captain’s permanent file. More importantly for Kelly’s pocketbook, Hegseth has ordered a 45-day review of the senator’s retirement rank and pay. The move follows &#8220;reckless and seditious&#8221; statements by Kelly that the administration says were intended to undermine military discipline.
&#8220;Six weeks ago, Senator Mark Kelly — and five other members of Congress — released a reckless and seditious video that was clearly intended to undermine good order and military discipline,&#8221; Hegseth stated. He reminded the Arizona Democrat that, as a retired officer still drawing a pension, he remains firmly under the thumb of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ).
The controversy stems from a video released in November titled &#8220;Don’t Give Up the Ship,&#8221; in which Kelly and a cohort of left-wing Democrats who are veterans urged service members to &#8220;refuse unlawful orders.&#8221;
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We want to speak directly to members of the Military and the Intelligence Community.
The American people need you to stand up for our laws and our Constitution.
Don’t give up the ship. <a href="https://t.co/N8lW0EpQ7r">pic.twitter.com/N8lW0EpQ7r</a>
&mdash; Sen. Elissa Slotkin (@SenatorSlotkin) <a href="https://twitter.com/SenatorSlotkin/status/1990774492356902948?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 18, 2025</a></blockquote>
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The Department of War points out that Kelly failed to cite a single actual &#8220;illegal&#8221; order, adding that Kelly used his military credentials to baselessly sow seeds of insubordination against the Trump administration’s efforts to secure the border and target suspected narco-terrorists.
Kelly, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/sen-mark-kelly-attacks-trump-and-hegseth-in-heated-rant-says-he-wont-back-down">appearing</a> at a town hall in Tucson in early December, remained defiant — and personal. He mocked President Donald Trump as &#8220;asleep at the wheel&#8221; and dismissed Hegseth as a &#8220;joke,&#8221; boasting that he won’t &#8220;back down.&#8221; Kelly’s wife, former Rep. Gabby Giffords (D-AZ), reportedly &#8220;laughed and laughed&#8221; at the prospect of a UCMJ prosecution.
But Hegseth isn&#8217;t laughing. Federal law prohibits any action intended to interfere with the loyalty or morale of the armed forces, carrying a potential ten-year prison sentence. While Kelly claims he is &#8220;standing up for the Constitution,&#8221; the administration argues he is hiding behind a shield of &#8220;legal gymnastics&#8221; to encourage mutiny. Kelly has 30 days to respond before the Navy decides just how much his &#8220;seditious&#8221; rhetoric will cost him.

MixCollage-05-Jan-2026-01-23-PM-3852

Hegseth Moves To Strip Mark Kelly Of Rank And Pay Over ‘Seditious’ Military Video

Congress

Politics

Daniel DiMartino is a fellow at the Manhattan Institute, one of the best think tanks in the country. But what qualifies him to write this piece is not his Ivy League economics degree, but rather the fact that he grew up in Venezuela, where he had a front-row seat to the brutal consequences of socialism.
DiMartino is just one of the millions of Venezuelans that fled Nicolas Maduro&#8217;s regime and were jubilant this weekend after the world learned that the United States had removed Maduro from power. I mean, just <a href="https://x.com/DanielDiMartino/status/2007460524137562395/video/1">listen to the joy in his voice</a> as he reacted to the news early Saturday morning. After hearing that, we knew we needed him to explain that joy to our audience at The Daily Wire.
For DiMartino, the joy is not about getting revenge on Maduro. it&#8217;s about hope for the future of Venezuela. We hope you enjoy. —Brent Scher
***
Venezuelans throughout the world are celebrating after this weekend’s perfectly executed U.S. military operation which captured narco-terrorist tyrant Nicolas Maduro. The morning I woke up to the news of Maduro’s capture was one that I had been dreaming of for my entire life as a Venezuelan who suffered under his regime.
This move by President Trump and his team provides justice, advances America’s and Venezuela’s interests, and could unleash prosperity like we have never seen before in the Western Hemisphere.
Venezuela has been ruled by Maduro’s socialist regime since I was born in 1999. The regime pillaged what was once the richest nation in Latin America. Millions of Europeans in the 1940s and 1950s sought opportunity in places like Caracas in the aftermath of World War II. Millions of Colombians crossed the border to Venezuela for safety from narco-terrorist Marxist guerrillas from the 1970s until the 1990s. Lebanese and Syrian Christians escaped to Venezuela in the 1960s after the Assad family’s takeover. And Americans routinely traveled to Venezuela for tourism and investment opportunities.
After more than two decades of a socialist regime that started out democratically and gradually took absolute power and rigged elections to remain in charge, Venezuela is starving. The country that once drew immigrants and exported oil bled millions of refugees and imports its own gasoline. The Maduro regime, once it ran out of oil, gold, and companies both foreign and domestic to steal, turned to drug trafficking to profit and fund their repression system.
Venezuela, if governed well with a free market economy, has the potential to be wealthier than nations like the United Arab Emirates or Kuwait. It has more oil and it is better positioned, both culturally and geographically.
That should explain why Venezuelans abroad are celebrating openly on social media and in the streets, with mass gatherings spotted all over the United States, but especially in the heart of the Venezuelan diaspora of Miami. Celebrations were held in Argentina, Peru, Colombia, Spain, and Chile, among other countries. The nine million strong Venezuelan diaspora forced into exile by socialism is celebrating this way because we know who Maduro is. We know what his regime did to our families, our economy, and our future. And we know that this moment, however fragile, represents something we were told we would never see: freedom and justice.
What Venezuelans feel today is not bloodlust or vengeance. It is relief. It is gratitude. And above all, it is hope. Gratitude toward the United States, a country that did not throw in the towel when diplomacy, sanctions, and international pressure all failed. Gratitude toward an America willing to defend its own interests while also standing on the right side of history. Gratitude to President Trump for following through on his promise, to Secretary of State Marco Rubio for standing for his values when it mattered, and to Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and all the U.S. servicemen involved who executed an operation perfectly.
The Trump administration understands something many foreign-policy “experts” refuse to admit: Maduro never would have left power voluntarily. He only understands force. He could have chosen the easy life with all the stolen wealth in Moscow, but instead he opted for a New York City jail. Such is life.
But this victory does not mean the danger is over.
As Secretary Rubio acknowledged in multiple interviews, Maduro’s capture, while historic, does not instantly dismantle a criminal system that has entrenched itself in every institution of the Venezuelan state. His regime was never a one-man dictatorship; it is a narco-state network that includes generals, intelligence officials, judges, governors, and foreign terrorist allies. Tren de Aragua, Cuban spies, and Iranian operatives did not disappear overnight. The Venezuelan people inside Venezuela are happy, but scared of the regime.
The next phase matters just as much as the operation itself. A successful transition in Venezuela must be orderly but also relatively fast. The oligarchs in power: Delcy Rodriguez, the nominal vice president, her brother Jorge Rodriguez, Diosdado Cabello, and Vladimir Padrino Lopez, all participate in drug trafficking, terrorism, and are under sanctions and U.S. Department of Justice indictment.
The remaining Maduro cronies in power have the chance to do the right thing. One sign of a good faith transition in the coming weeks will be the release of hundreds of political prisoners, among them my friend Maria Oropeza, a young woman whose “crime” was observing election fraud and leading the opposition in her state. The other sign would be the puppet Supreme Court declaring an “absolute absence” of the president, which would trigger elections according to the socialist constitution. Such elections would allow the most popular leader in the country, Maria Corina Machado, to run, and she would win them by a landslide.
Only with a government led by Machado and not Maduro stooges can the United States guarantee that private oil companies will fork over the billions in investment required to revitalize the oil, electric, and water infrastructure. Exxon, Conoco Phillips, Shell, and BP won’t invest in a country whose government may take their property as soon as Trump leaves office, which is exactly what will happen if a transition isn’t finished by the time the Trump administration ends.
Economically, the upside of success in Venezuela is extraordinary. A post-Maduro Venezuela could become the greatest growth story in the Western Hemisphere’s history. With secure property rights, a privatized oil sector, and a free-market framework, Venezuela could once again attract global investment. Returning to pre-socialism oil production would mean three million barrels of oil per day in additional global output, lowering energy prices for everyday Americans.
A free and prosperous Venezuela would welcome millions of its people back home, stabilizing an entire region overwhelmed by mass migration. It would also weaken criminal networks like Tren de Aragua, reducing the flow of drugs and gang violence into the United States, saving American lives.
This is why President Trump’s decision was not just moral, it was strategic.
Critics predicted catastrophe, imperialism, and endless war. They have been wrong about Venezuela for 25 years, and about Trump for his entire political career. They were wrong when they excused Chávez. Wrong when they normalized Maduro. Wrong when they claimed sanctions alone would work. And wrong now, as they once again ignore the voices of actual Venezuelans in favor of “international law.”
I pray that history will remember this weekend as the moment the world’s longest-running socialist experiment collapsed under the weight of its crimes. For Venezuelans, it is the first real chance to rebuild a country that once welcomed the world, and can do so again.
Justice is here. Freedom is within reach. For the first time in my life, Venezuela’s future feels brighter than its past. I wish that so many people, including my immigrant grandparents, were alive to see this.
Thank you President Trump.
***
Daniel DiMartino is a fellow at the Manhattan Institute.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

US-VENEZUELA-CONFLICT-MADURO

Why Venezuelans Are Dancing In The Streets

The U.S. military said Tuesday that it killed or captured nearly 25 ISIS operatives during a nine-day counterterrorism operation in Syria following an attack earlier this month that left two American troops dead.
U.S. Central Command said seven terrorists were killed and more than a dozen more were captured during 11 missions in Syria from December 20-29. Those missions were launched a day after the United States and Jordan <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/hegseth-launches-strikes-of-vengeance-in-syria-after-american-troops-killed-by-isis?author=Leif+Le+Mahieu&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=13&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Hegseth+Launches+Strikes+Of+%E2%80%98Vengeance%E2%80%99+In+Syria+After+American+Troops+Killed+By+ISIS">conducted</a> strikes on more than 70 ISIS targets in Syria. 
“We will not relent,” said Admiral Brad Cooper, the head of Central Command. “We are steadfast in commitment to working with regional partners to root out the ISIS threat posed to U.S. and regional security.”
In addition to taking out the ISIS operatives, American and partner forces destroyed four ISIS weapons caches, Central Command said. The strikes conducted on December 19 by fighter jets, attack helicopters, and artillery targeted ISIS infrastructure and weapons sites in central Syria. 
“Continuing to hunt down terrorist operatives, eliminate ISIS networks, and work with partners to prevent an ISIS resurgence makes America, the region, and the world safer,” said Cooper.
The strikes were launched in retaliation for an ISIS attack on December 13 that killed 29-year-old Sgt. Nate Howard and 25-year-old Sgt. Edgar Torres-Tovar. An American interpreter named Ayad Mansoor Sakat was also killed in the attack. Both Howard and Torres were members of the Iowa National Guard. 
“As we said directly following the savage attack, if you target Americans — anywhere in the world — you will spend the rest of your brief, anxious life knowing the United States will hunt you, find you, and ruthlessly kill you,” War Secretary Pete Hegseth said, announcing the strikes. 
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According to Central Command, ISIS inspired at least 11 plots or attacks in the United States in 2025. Over the course of the year, American and partner forces have killed more than 20 terrorists and detained more than 300 in Syria.
On Monday, the Justice Department unsealed records showing that a 21-year-old man named John Michael Garza had been charged in Texas for providing bomb components and money to individuals he believed were affiliated with ISIS. Garza allegedly told law enforcement he believed in ISIS ideology and made several cryptocurrency payments he believed were going to fund weapons for the terrorist group.

MixCollage-30-Dec-2025-09-52-AM-9646

U.S. Forces Kill Or Capture Nearly Two Dozen ISIS Terrorists After Americans Killed

Central Command

ISIS

Syria

Terrorism

The U.S. military destroyed another suspected drug-smuggling vessel in the Eastern Pacific on Monday, continuing a crackdown on transnational crime at sea.
U.S. Southern Command said the strike was authorized by War Secretary Pete Hegseth and targeted a boat operated by a U.S.-designated terrorist organization in international waters.
“Intelligence confirmed the vessel was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific and was engaged in narco-trafficking operations. Two male narco-terrorists were killed. No U.S. military forces were harmed,” Southern Command posted on X, sharing a video of the strike. 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
On Dec. 29, at the direction of <a href="https://twitter.com/SecWar?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SecWar</a> Pete Hegseth, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations in international waters. Intelligence confirmed the vessel was transiting along known… <a href="https://t.co/69ywxXk30N">pic.twitter.com/69ywxXk30N</a>
— U.S. Southern Command (@Southcom) <a href="https://twitter.com/Southcom/status/2005776276100207032?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 29, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The strike was part of Joint Task Force Southern Spear, a counter-narcotics operation to disrupt drug trafficking in the Western Hemisphere. The initiative has so far taken out thirty boats carrying at least 106 suspected narco-terrorists. 
Southern Command’s announcement came as President Donald Trump said American forces had taken out a drug facility at a Venezuelan port allegedly used to load narcotics onto smuggling vessels.
“There was a major explosion in the dock area where they load the boats up with drugs,” Trump said Monday.  “We hit all the boats, and now we hit the area… it’s the implementation area. That’s where they implement, and that is no longer around.&#8221;
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The New York Times <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/29/us/politics/cia-drone-strike-venezuela.html">reported</a> that the CIA conducted the strike and that the port was operated by Tren de Aragua, a violent gang that has been designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization by the Trump administration. No one was killed.  
Last week, the Trump administration began deploying a large number of special operations aircraft, troops, and military equipment to the southern Caribbean as part of its pressure campaign against Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro.
“He can do whatever he wants. We have a massive armada formed, the biggest we’ve ever had – by far the biggest we’ve ever had in South America. He could do whatever he wants. It’s alright. Whatever he wants to do, if he wants to do something. If he plays tough, it’ll be the last time he’s ever able to play tough,” Trump said last week.

MixCollage-30-Dec-2025-08-10-AM-3439

U.S. Military Takes Out Another Terror-Linked Drug Boat In Eastern Pacific

narco-terrorism

Pacific Ocean

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