Month: May 2025

Worcester City Councilor Etel Haxhiaj

The Worcester Police Patrol Officers’ Union is calling for an ethics investigation into City Councilor Etel Haxhiaj following a chaotic incident during an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operation last Thursday.

The union alleges that Haxhiaj incited a crowd and assaulted both local and federal law enforcement officers attempting to detain Ferreira de Oliveira, an illegal immigrant accused of violent crimes, including assault with a dangerous weapon and assault on a pregnant woman, Boston 25 News reported.

According to reports, approximately 25 individuals gathered in a Worcester neighborhood to protest the arrest and attempted to block the unmarked ICE vehicle. Haxhiaj is accused of participating in the protest and physically confronting officers on the scene.

More from FOX 11:

Immigrant advocates told Boston.com it all started when neighbors saw federal agents interacting with a Brazilian mother who was with her 16-year-old daughter and a newborn baby. Local reports say the family had been targeted by ICE and the father was detained a day earlier.

Neighbors formed a circle around the family to try and prevent ICE from detaining them as others chanted, “Don’t take the mother!” and “They don’t have a warrant!”

When police arrived, federal agents had already handcuffed the mother and placed her in the back of a vehicle. The agents were trying to leave, but the “crowd was unruly” and people were putting their hands on federal agents, police said.

The detained mother’s 16-year-old daughter was holding a newborn baby and standing in front of the ICE vehicle. When officers told her she was endangering the baby, she handed the infant to someone else and then went after the SUV. Police said she kicked the vehicle, and officers believed she was going to try to jump in front of it.

The 16-year-old was arrested for reckless endangerment of a child, disturbing the peace, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. Video from NBC Boston shows the teen briefly escape from police, as officers chase her and slam her face on the ground. The infant was not injured, and immigrant advocates say the baby’s mother was not detained.

WATCH:

OBSTRUCTION? Extended version of Worcester City Councilor Haxhiaj holding the hands of “violent criminal illegal alien” around her waist to prevent ICE arrest Thurs from now deleted IG post. The illegal, Ferreira de Oliveira facing charges of A&B on a pregnant woman. #mapoli pic.twitter.com/u78Qe2ZGZf

— JohnFGately (@johnfgately) May 11, 2025

Full statement from the police union:

“On Thursday, May 8, 2025, at approximately 11:15 am, the Worcester Police were dispatched to Eureka Street for a call that came in for federal law enforcement officers needing assistance due to a hostile and uncooperative crowd surrounding them.

Officers arriving on scene continued to call for more officers as the scene continued to escalate rapidly. Police officers respond to a variety of highly emotional calls daily and there is nothing that can be more emotional or difficult to deal with than a call that involves times when families are separated or arrested or taken into custody in front of other family members.

These types of calls for assistance can be extremely dangerous and place officers at a high risk of injury due to the high emotions people feel at the time. Our officers always strive to be as compassionate as we can daily. We as fathers, mothers, brothers and sisters understand human emotions and try to be as empathetic as we can while still doing the job we are required to do daily.

Here, all available Worcester police officers were dispatched to Eureka Street to protect the public and ensure the safety of federal and Worcester police officers on scene.

For obvious reasons, officers became concerned for their safety and that of the federal agents based on the actions of the crowd. They tried to deescalate the situation and prevent injury to all present.

Despite those efforts, Worcester police officers and federal agents were threatened, abused and even assaulted on scene. Such conduct cannot be tolerated or condoned.

Because some protesters threatened officers’ safety, police had to make additional arrests. Of particular concern in this case, one of our elected policy makers and someone who has created this difficult task for the police, District 5 City Councilor, Etel Haxhiaj, incited aggression towards the police during the incident.

This councilor participated in the conduct of the unruly crowd and eventually assaulted both Worcester police and federal law enforcement officers on scene. Her behavior also emboldened others to act in this manner.

The conduct of this anti-police activist councilor is deplorable and unacceptable. Regardless of political opinions or views, city officials should never condone the assault of an officer and flat-out disregard to the point of violent opposition, the authority of police to maintain safety and public order.

The Worcester Police Patrolman’s Union Local 911 will not stand silently in the face of such outrageous conduct or allow the safety of our officers to be put at risk by any individual.

Any official, particularly a sitting councilor, who acts in such a manner is, in the opinions of those of us ordered to keep the peace during such hostilities, unfit to serve.

This councilor’s egregious actions were not limited to physical interference, as she attempted to use her official position several times to interfere with the police on scene. This type of conduct is controlled by the state’s ethical laws and our own city charter. Councilor Haxhiaj, in our opinion, broke her oath and these ethical laws, and in doing so put the safety of our officers and our citizens at great risk.

The members of the Worcester Police Patrolman’s Union Local 911 condemn this councilor’s disrespectful and dangerous behavior.

We will take the necessary steps to hold her and anyone who assaults our officers accountable and call upon those state and local policy makers to do the same. We demand that the city conduct an ethics investigation into her conduct.

No doubt, federal authorities will also review the incident and determine whether federal charges may be coming for those involved. No one has the right to act in such a reckless manner towards police officers, and we demand accountability for all criminal and ethically deplorable behavior.”

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) also criticized Haxhiaj’s conduct, stating she “pulled a political stunt and incited chaos by trying to obstruct law enforcement.”

“ICE officers and local police regained control of the situation and ICE arrested Ferreira de Oliveira. The previous administration’s open border policies allowed this criminal to illegally enter our country in August of 2022. Thanks to President Trump and Secretary Noem this criminal is off our streets.” DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said.

“Parents, who are here illegally, can take control of their departure. Through the CBP Home App— the Trump Administration is giving parents illegally in the country a chance to take full control of their departure and self-deport, with the potential ability to return the legal, right way and come back to live the American dream.”

The post Worcester Police Union Demands Investigation Into City Councilwoman for Assaulting Officers, Inciting Mob to Block Arrest of Illegal Alien Accused of Attacking Pregnant Woman (VIDEO) appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa has intensified his international agenda with a tour across Europe in April and May 2025, focused on strengthening security cooperation and attracting investments to boost his country’s economy.

His itinerary, which includes visits to Spain, Italy, and the United Kingdom, reflects his commitment to diplomacy in addressing the security and economic challenges Ecuador is currently facing.

Noboa’s tour began in late April 2025, when he arrived in Spain after attending the Pope’s funeral at the Vatican—an event that marked the beginning of his journey through Europe and the Middle East.

In Madrid, Noboa had scheduled a meeting with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez to discuss bilateral cooperation and propose the creation of a joint investment fund for infrastructure projects in Ecuador, particularly in renewable energy—a sector he considers key to diversifying the country’s economy.

However, the meeting was canceled due to a massive blackout in Ecuador, which forced Noboa to prioritize managing the energy crisis remotely. Despite the cancellation, Noboa met with business leaders from the energy and technology sectors in Madrid, where he promoted incentives to invest in solar and wind energy projects in Ecuador.

The meeting scheduled for Tuesday, April 29, between Pedro Sánchez and Ecuador’s President-elect Daniel Noboa was canceled. The reason? The Spanish leader decided to focus on managing the consequences of the power outage that affected Spain and Portugal.

The final leg of his tour brought him to the United Kingdom, where he arrived in early May 2025 and was received with military honors—a gesture that underscored the significance of his visit.

In London, Noboa met with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to seek support for his anti-crime strategy, proposing a training program for Ecuadorian police with British experts in intelligence and anti-drug operations. He also negotiated with representatives from the UK financial sector to encourage investments in Ecuador’s oil and mining industries, offering tax incentives to promote local job creation.

#AHORA | El presidente Daniel Noboa, arriba a Reino Unido para cumplir con su agenda internacional. pic.twitter.com/VnG76kWQLB

— NotiMundo (@notimundoec) May 6, 2025

A central theme of Noboa’s tour was his call for international cooperation in the fight against drug trafficking, a problem that has escalated in Ecuador in recent years.

Noboa expressed his desire for countries like the United States, Brazil, and European powers to join his efforts against criminal gangs, emphasizing that 70% of the world’s cocaine passes through Ecuadorian ports.

As part of his international tour, President Daniel Noboa met with Sir Lindsay Hoyle, Speaker of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom Parliament.

In the United Kingdom, he reiterated this request, proposing a multinational force to patrol maritime routes in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans—an idea aimed at bolstering regional security.

President Daniel Noboa also held a meeting with Ecuadorian youth living in the United Kingdom and presented an award to footballer Moisés Caicedo, highlighting his career as a symbol of perseverance and talent for the nation’s youth.

This event, held in London, sought to inspire the Ecuadorian diaspora and strengthen cultural ties, while Noboa emphasized the importance of supporting the younger generation to build a better future for Ecuador.

En el marco de su gira por Europa, el presidente Daniel Noboa compartió un encuentro con jóvenes ecuatorianos en el Reino Unido y entregó un reconocimiento al futbolista Moisés Caicedo.

Más detalles aquí https://t.co/CBZHLmWFt7 pic.twitter.com/cprSiuHfdh

— TC Televisión (@tctelevision) May 8, 2025

Due to its geographic location, Ecuador has become a strategic point for drug trafficking, serving as a transit route between Colombia, Peru, and markets such as the United States and Europe.

Beyond security, Noboa has worked to position Ecuador as an attractive destination for foreign investment.

In Europe, Noboa held talks with Spanish and British companies to explore joint ventures, especially in technology and energy, with the goal of diversifying Ecuador’s economy and reducing its dependence on raw material exports.

Throughout his tour, Noboa has demonstrated a pragmatic approach, seeking concrete solutions to Ecuador’s structural problems.

His ability to negotiate with European leaders and propose initiatives such as the multinational anti-drug force and investment funds reflects a strategic vision that integrates security and economic development.

The impact of these proposals will depend on effective implementation, but his effort to position Ecuador on the global stage marks a step forward.

If these initiatives translate into concrete actions, Noboa could be laying the groundwork for a more prosperous future—one where security and economic progress become a reality for all Ecuadorians.

The post Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa in Europe 2025: Alliances with the United Kingdom, Fight Against Drug Trafficking, and Investment Attraction for Ecuador. appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

The Royal Navy suspended its leader after he faced accusations of having an affair with a subordinate officer.

Admiral Sir Ben Key, first sea lord of the Royal Navy, was ordered to step back from his role while the investigation was underway, the U.K.’s The Times reported Friday.

Key, a 59-year-old husband and a father of three, was appointed to the top position in 2021, but he has served in the fleet for 40 years.

The first sea lord is the professional head of the Royal Navy and a member of the Defence Council, according to Gov.UK.

In the five centuries of the navy’s history, a first sea lord has never undergone a misconduct inquiry.

“It is shocking, really shocking because of who he is,” a top navy source said, according to the U.K.’s The Sun. “Not just because he is First Sea Lord, but his reputation is a man of principles and morals.

“He is a popular First Sea Lord,” the source said.

In the real world:
The head of the Royal Navy Adm Sir Ben Key has been removed from his duties over allegations of misconduct
Meanwhile in every TV police series I now see, the starring senior female officer is having an affair with a junior officer – why include this rubbish? pic.twitter.com/5adGOw1brK

— Man in the High Castle (@mcelderrytruth) May 10, 2025

Key declined to comment during the ongoing investigation, according to The Times.

Vice-Admiral Sir Martin Connell — the second sea lord — will take Key’s place temporarily, until General Sir Gwyn Jenkins is expected to permanently take his place.

This marks another historic moment because Jenkins is a Royal Marine, making him the first amphibious troop member to become first sea lord, rather than a sailor, according to The Times.

The woman involved in the alleged affair was reportedly a senior military officer, according to The Sun.

“I wouldn’t have called him a swordsman or a sniffer. He wasn’t known as a player, and nothing stays secret in the Navy,” a navy source said about Key.

Key likely won’t be court-martialed because the alleged affair isn’t a crime, but he would have broken the “service test,” which forbids sexual interactions between superiors and their subordinates, according to The Times.

“In theory Ben could still be court martialed for bringing the Navy into disrepute, but that seems very unlikely at this point,” an unnamed source told The Sun. “He has served his commendably for over 40 years. The investigation is still ongoing. There is no whiff of anything criminal.”

The controversy forced the Royal Navy to cancel its annual Sea Power Conference this upcoming Monday. Military guests from across the globe were supposed to attend.

“I am completely surprised,” a friend of Key’s said. “In terms of integrity, operational record and the genuine affection and respect he has from the navy, he is the best first sea lord in years. If he has made a mistake then it’s tragic but he deserves to be remembered for his ­operational record and not for this.”

Key joined the Royal Navy in 1984, according to Gov.UK.

Since that time, he has commanded four ships: the mine hunter HMS Sandown, the frigates HMS Iron Duke and HMS Lancaster, and the aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious.

 

This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.

The post Head of UK Royal Navy Suspended, Investigation Underway appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

Julian Foulkes will sue UK police for his wrongful imprisonment.

The United Kingdom continues its decent into authoritarianism and censorship of social media content.

Now, a retired constable is getting ready to sue Kent Police after being arrested back in 2023 for posting a social media reply warning about rising anti-Semitism.

The Telegraph reported:

“Julian Foulkes, from Gillingham in Kent, was handcuffed at his home by six officers from the force he had served for a decade after replying to a pro-Palestinian activist on X.

The 71-year-old was detained for eight hours, interrogated and ultimately issued with a caution after officers visited his home on November 2 2023.”

The case of Julian Foulkes sounds like a joke, but it exposes something shocking. The UK police need to be reformed, urgently.

Weeks after October 7, Foulkes, a retired police officer, had his home searched, was handcuffed, and taken to the police station. They found nothing… pic.twitter.com/fRjL6uJI5q

— Saul Sadka (@Saul_Sadka) May 11, 2025

Last week, Kent Police sent out a statement saying that the caution was a mistake and has been deleted from Foulkes’s record.

The local law enforcement agency admitted that it was ‘not appropriate in the circumstances and should not have been issued’.

“On Sunday, Mr. Foulkes accepted an offer from the Free Speech Union (FSU) to fund a legal challenge against the force for wrongful arrest and detention.

‘The FSU and Lord [Toby] Young have generously agreed to fully fund a lawsuit against Kent Police’, he said. ‘I’m extremely grateful for such excellent support and would urge anyone concerned about the sustained attack on free speech to please join the FSU. They’re fighting hard every day for all of us’.”

UK’s censorship push is worsening.

The Chief Constable phoned Foulkes yesterday (12) to offer a ‘personal apology’ for the ordeal’ and to tell him the incident would be ‘thoroughly’ investigated.

“Though he had committed no offence, he accepted the caution in a state of shock, fearing that any further escalation could affect his ability to visit his surviving daughter in Australia. ‘I didn’t agree, but I felt I had no choice’, he said. ‘In hindsight, it would never have gone to court. The CPS wouldn’t touch it with no evidence. But I wasn’t thinking logically at the time’.”

Foulkes was left with ‘post-traumatic stress-type’ symptoms.

“’It’s like PTSD. You push it to the back of your mind, but it comes back and you relive it’, he said.”

The police haven’t just been arresting citizens over memes—they’ve gone after their own former officers.

You probably didn’t hear about this case, but in November 2023, Kent Police arrested retired special constable Julian Foulkes.

His so-called crime?

Posting a warning about… pic.twitter.com/Zb8oIyJNxH

— The Stark Naked Brief. (@StarkNakedBrief) May 10, 2025

Read more:

French “Great Replacement” Philosopher Renaud Camus Banned From Entering UK

The post CENSORSHIP KINGDOM: Retired Constable to Sue UK Police After Arrest Over a Social Media Post Denouncing Anti-Semitism appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

A few months ago, President Donald Trump made passing reference in a long address before Congress to Lesotho—“a country nobody has ever heard of.” His remark stuck in my mind, not just because I have heard of Lesotho, but because I have been there.

Well, sort of. I have never actually traveled to the landlocked country completely encircled by South Africa and recognized as a sovereign state by the United States since 1966. But I have visited its embassy on Massachusetts Avenue. In fact, over the last few years I have visited a whole slew of embassies representing countries nobody has ever heard of—Azerbaijan, Gabon, Kosovo, Togo—and many other well-known ones besides. If you live in the D.C. area, you can too, every year on Embassy Day, an annual two-week festival in May designed to remind Washingtonians that a world beyond our borders exists—and desperately wants our attention.

And oh how that world performs! Habitués of the festival know the iron law of Embassy Day: The more autocratic the country, the more lavish the display. Saudi Arabia, one of our empire’s wealthiest client states, understands quite well that, for its general comfort, whenever an American considers the kingdom, his thoughts must be rosy and essentially ignorant. Hence the annual song and dance: free lunch, a tourism expo, sword dances, and a petting zoo for the kids (or at the very least, a camel tied to a telephone pole). Last year, the special attraction was balloons emblazoned with the Shahada. They made for quite a sight in the days following—there is no no god but Allah, and Mohammed is his prophet deflating in every street.   

This year, the big attraction was China, a country which in recent years has become to the American mind less a rival and more an enemy. Perhaps for that reason, the Chinese laid it on thick, emphasizing in many of their displays the “partnerships” the two countries have pursued in medicine, manufacturing, and technology since Deng Xiaoping opened the country to the world. The embassy also hired a troupe of performers dressed as giant pandas to roam its marble halls, much to the delight of the children—and, I’m afraid, to some adults, too. And just in case visitors didn’t get the message: At the very end of the embassy tour were portraits of every panda ever to have been loaned to the Smithsonian National Zoo, a reminder that what China produces, the United States greedily consumes.

Some nations pursue a different strategy. The big dogs need to maintain cordial (even if cordially hateful) relationships with the United States. Others, usually smaller countries, would prefer Uncle Sam forget all about them. Azerbaijan was for years a mainstay of Embassy Day—Baku, oasis on the Caspian! the ads proclaimed—but after the Muslim-majority country effectively cleansed an autonomous region within its borders of its Armenian Christian majority, Azerbaijan disappeared. I don’t expect to see it again anytime soon. Of course, some states simply spurn the whole affair: Russia has never participated for as long as I can remember.  

I haven’t even got started on the European Union, which distinguishes itself from le tiers-monde—which in effect includes the United Kingdom—by holding an Embassy Day separate from that of the rest of the world. Europe is in a strange position with regard to the United States. Many Americans reflexively admire the continent (the food, the churches, etc.) while holding its people in contempt. There is no overcoming this hurdle, alas, so the Europeans don’t even try. Instead, they compete among themselves. France and Germany, for example, every year hold a joint event, and it may as well be the Franco–Prussian War all over again. The show is amusing for a disinterested spectator, but it leaves you with the sense that, were it not for the 35,000 American troops stationed in Germany, all of Europe would be in chaos.  

All of this is to say that it is not without a tinge of regret that I have received the current administration’s curtailing of American overseas commitments. Even now, much of the world contorts itself in strange shapes for the pleasure of the United States. There is little honor in the act, either for the performer or the audience. And yet, sometimes it is hard to resist the glitter of the show.

The post My Visits to Countries Nobody Has Ever Heard of appeared first on The American Conservative.

There are no tears for Ammar al-Baluchi, aka Ali Abdul Aziz Ali, as there are for Kilmar Abrego Garcia. They both languish in prisons abroad, but only for one does the left weep.

Garcia, the Maryland father (as “his” senator insists on calling him), is an illegal alien who lived illegally in the United States for over a decade. He is a Salvadoran citizen who has been deported from America back to his home country. While in the U.S., Garcia was charged with domestic abuse. He threatened and repeatedly abused his wife, Jennifer Vasquez Sura, according to a protective order she filed in August 2020. The document includes claims that Garcia dragged her out of a vehicle by her hair and left her on the street, smashed her son’s tablet, broke down doors in their house, and pushed her against a wall while breaking TVs and phones.

Garcia also appears to have worked as a human trafficker, driving other illegals from Texas to the Northeast. The left’s immigration martyr either used a fraudulent Social Security number or paid no taxes while illegally in the U.S. He received his due process in 2019, when an immigration judge concluded he was probably a member of the MS-13 gang (based in part on his tattoos and information from a confidential informant) and ordered him deported to anywhere but El Salvador, where he was supposedly under threat from a rival gang. This is the root of his current situation.

The deportation was not effected until 2025, under the Trump administration, which in error sent him back to his home country. There, he was quickly moved from a maximum security facility to a work-based prison with better living circumstances. He has since been visited by a succession of Democratic lawmakers seeking his release back to the U.S. Even his most adamant supporters do not claim he has been tortured or abused in custody. He looked good, dressed in civilian clothes, on national TV.

Protests continue around the U.S. seeking his release, and the Trump administration is under a mild court admonition to get Garcia back. Because of the Garcia case and others like him, many Americans think Donald Trump is a dangerous dictator. They worry pointlessly he will not stop with aliens, and soon will ship American citizens off to offshore gulags. Garcia and others are routinely referred to as “disappeared,” even though a large number of Americans, due to incessant media coverage, know his name and recognize his face.

But no one knows the name Ali Abdul Aziz Ali or can picture his face. Ali has been held in Guantanamo for over 20 years for allegedly aiding in the 9/11 attacks (sending money and providing other support to some of the hijackers.) He has not been found guilty of any crime. In the latest attempt to convict him of something after two decades of confinement, the military judge deciding the case instead ruled that none of Ali’s confessions could be admitted as evidence. One reason was the prisoner’s statements were obtained through the CIA’s use of torture, including beatings and sleep deprivation. “However,” he added, “the three and a half years of uncharged, incommunicado detention and essentially solitary confinement—all while being continually questioned and conditioned—is just as egregious” as the physical torture.

Judges in two capital cases at Guantanamo rejected confessions taken from prisoners after they were in CIA detention, illustrating the “enduring stain” of a Bush administration decision to hide suspected members of Al Qaeda in black sites rather than use the court-monitored system in the U.S. From his capture in Pakistan in 2003 to his transfer to Guantanamo in 2006, Ali was kept out of the reach of lawyers, the courts, the media, and the International Red Cross. He was afforded no due process. His confinement began under George W. Bush’s presidency and continued through the presidencies of Obama, Trump, Biden, and now Trump again. Throughout that time, despite the overt torture and utter lack of due process, no Democratic lawmaker sought to visit Ali, and the only minimal, generic protests over Gitmo took place years ago. (Gitmo has garnered some attention recently when President Trump proposed its use to house deported illegal aliens from the U.S., however.)

Ali was deprived of sleep for 82 hours. He was shackled at the ankles and the wrists and forced to stand, naked, and hooded. He was made to fear he would be drowned via waterboarding. He was shuttled between five overseas prisons, including in Eastern Europe. Food and clothing were given only as rewards for his cooperation with the CIA. He was interrogated over 1,000 times.

“The goal of the program was to condition him through torture and other inhumane and coercive methods to become compliant during any government questioning,” the judge wrote. “The program worked.”

Why is one man, allegedly deprived of full due process and held abroad, the subject of the left’s anguish, while they remain silent over the same situation, a lack of due process and being held abroad—never mind the torture—for another? Why is one a constitutional crisis driven by an authoritarian, a dictator, and the other an embarrassing bit of forgotten history?

It shows the hypocrisy and emptiness of the left and Democrats. They chose one criminal to glorify and ignored another, the victim of much more heinous treatment. They weep for Garcia because he was sent away by Donald Trump, and ignore Ali. They screech about the rule of law, but then show how easily they will abandon it when it fits with the short-term political needs of hatred for anything Trump does.

None of this is to excuse or downplay the horror of Ali’s alleged crimes. But neither is it to downplay the fact that Garcia also committed crimes against the United States. To say the severity of a crime justifies ignoring torture in one case is simply to say there is no rule of law, and that the rules of a moral society apply only flexibly as partisan politics demand.

Oh wait, that is what the left is saying—efforts to release Garcia have reached the Supreme Court, but Ali’s only hope is for an early death to end the nightmares.

The post Where Are the Left’s Tears Over Gitmo? appeared first on The American Conservative.

Because of our strong Christian heritage, most Americans innately believe in being generous to their neighbors. Good neighborliness was central to our country’s founding ethos. Locally and nationally, there are a myriad of groups and organizations that provide support and assistance to people in need. This tradition is an important component of our culture. Consequently, much of our populace believes the United States government is a force for good around the world and an important contributor to world stability. This is a myth.

For decades, this traditional national embrace of generosity towards others has been used by our political and cultural elites to gull the American population into supporting many activities that are anything but generous, and often turn out to be extremely destructive. Over the years, there has been a continuous chorus from the leading elites supporting the false narrative that the United States is doing good around the world—the myth of the “indispensable nation”.

Since the Second World War, American ruling elites have called for numerous military interventions to “save democracy,” protecting some nation from communists, terrorists, fascists, or various reincarnations of Hitler. (Or worse.) The accusations are usually accompanied by shrill calls for the great and indispensable nation to act, to hold the line, or mete out harsh justice to the latest designated evildoer. This nonsense is cheered on by mainstream media outlets. Until recently, average Americans have not had access to any information which would expose the lies and hidden malfeasance behind these claims. Fortunately, thanks to alternative media, that ignorance is rapidly receding.

Americans are now beginning to grasp the fact that most of what we have been told about American foreign policy is materially not true, and that this policy is not benevolent. Contrary to popular imagination, the U.S. has spent decades directly supporting jihadi groups or condoning the support of terrorist groups by our “friends.” The Global War on Terror serves as a convenient excuse for interventions. It has been particularly useful in the Middle East to destroy obstacles to an expansionist Israel.

If we truly wanted to stop terrorism, one of our first priorities should have been to stop funding and arming such groups and inducing our “friends” to stop funding and arming them.

The recent collapse of Syria was a result of the support of the United States, Israel, and fellow NATO member, Turkey, for anti-government jihadi groups. The new leadership of Syria is drawn from the ranks of Al Qaeda. How is that benevolent or “acting as the world’s policeman”? We have been told for decades that Al Qaeda is bad and must be eliminated, and now in Syria we have direct proof of Al Qaeda and related groups being employed as proxies for U.S. “interests.” How is creating another failed state in the Middle East good or in U.S. interests?

It is time to stop allowing ourselves to be duped by deceptive claims of generosity and good intentions, and start to acknowledge and learn from the many disasters our country’s leadership has authored. Jesus told us “you will know them by their fruits.” The list of tragic disasters is quite long, but the following is a sample of the most egregious examples.

During the fighting portion of the  Korean War from 1950 to 1953, we killed millions of civilians, and after seven decades, have not officially ended the war. We still have thousands of troops in Korea hindering normal relations between the North and the South. Our troops enforce the blockade which contributes to the starvation of North Korean civilians.

The CIA’s role in the 1953 overthrow of Iran’s duly elected President Mohammad Mosaddegh was the initial cause of strife with Iran before Israel’s Likud government and its cheerleaders decided to start an ever-intensifying campaign vilifying 3000-year old society. (That same campaign has been successful in the destruction of the Palestinians, Iraqis, Afghans, Libyans, Syrians, and other disobedient peoples.)

In the Pacific, the Vietnam War from 1955 to 1975 killed millions in Vietnam and neighboring Cambodia. Cambodia was so destabilized by U.S. bombing that the Khmer Rouge managed to seize control of the ravaged country and killed over one third of their population, on top of the people killed by the U.S. military. Most of what we were told about that war was untrue from the beginning.

Our bad behavior has not been exclusive to the Eastern Hemisphere. Closer to home, numerous American-backed coups and interventions in Central and South America caused instability that continues to trouble those regions today.

In April 1961 the CIA engineered and supported the Bay of Pigs Invasion of Cuba. It was a complete catastrophe and cemented the Castros’ control, ensuring they ruled until their deaths six decades later. The inexplicable U.S. blockade still causes suffering for the Cuban people.

The Somalian Civil War has been ebbing and flowing since the 1980s, thanks to U.S. money and weapons.

The First Persian Gulf War (1990–1992) was followed by crushing sanctions which caused many deaths and destruction in Iraq, and turned out to be a prelude for the 2003 Iraq invasion.

U.S. intervention in the Kosovo War (1998–1999) killed many civilians. What the military leaders promoting that cruel bombing campaign claimed would last a week at most turned out to be 16 months of death and destruction. It is hard to tell what was accomplished except proving to the Russians that NATO was not a defensive organization, as promised by the George H. W. Bush and Clinton administrations. This is one of the early provocations that eventually led to the present Russo–Ukrainian War.

The 2001 Afghanistan War was the result of America’s decision in 1979 to support Sunni Jihadists’ entry into Afghanistan as a means of destabilizing the Afghan government. Zbigniew Brzezinski, Carter’s national security advisor, wrote that year, “We now have the opportunity of giving to the USSR its Vietnam War.” The plan was designed to force Soviet intervention to protect their southern flank. To the applause of the neocons, the Reagan administration decided to arm and finance the same organizations to fight the Soviets. When the Soviets departed, the freedom fighters—the Taliban—took over. So of course, after September 11, 2001, the U.S. couldn’t resist the allure of another intervention and fought them for 20 years. After years of dishonest claims of success, the U.S. retreated in defeat, leaving death and destruction for the unfortunate Afghans who aided us during the occupation. Sadly, as Scott Horton has pointed out in Fool’s Errand, beginning in 2001 and 2002, the Taliban offered many times to surrender but was continuously rebuffed by Washington.

The Iraq War of 2003 started with the standard-issue vilification campaign. After much death and destruction, there was no evidence of weapons of mass destruction or of support for Al Qaeda terrorists. The many neocon assertions made to justify the war turned out to be false. Nearly a quarter of a century later, we still have troops in Iraq, and the region has yet to recover.

After the U.S. invaded Iraq in 2003, Libya signed a cooperation treaty with the George W. Bush administration agreeing to give up their nascent nuclear program and vowed to stop their support for terrorists. The neocons gave victory whoops. Just a few years later the same crowd cranked up the familiar demonization campaign and bombed the Libyan government into oblivion. The remains of the country are now fiercely disputed by rival warlords. The Libyan double-cross is a big reason that Iran will not give up its missiles. Most of the American public is not aware of this betrayal, but the rest of the world is—especially the Iranians.

The Syrian Civil War that started in 2011 was fueled by covert American support. The U.S. claimed to support “moderate freedom fighters” who turned out to include Al Qaeda–allied jihadists. That war appears to have ended, due to the recent collapse of the Syria government; the country is now ruled by former terrorists—but there will be more war coming from this sad example of U.S. cruelty. The American War Party will not let a good tragedy go to waste. 

The Russo–Ukrainian War is a continuation of the conflict that arose from the 2014 U.S.-backed coup in Ukraine and is the result of decades of American provocation. These provocations have been carefully documented by Scott Horton in his book Provoked, which shows how decades of policy choices in Washington led to the war in Ukraine; the former CIA analyst Larry Johnson has listed the more recent provocations. After failed treaties and ceasefire agreements, in 2022 Russia invaded. Millions have been killed, wounded, and driven from their homes. The country is being wrecked. To this day, the U.S. is still sending weapons, money, and other assistance to encourage the continuation of that war.

In Yemen, the U.S. is still bombing Houthis after all these years. In 2015, we aided the Saudi bombing campaign. Now the Houthis’ crime is to protest the starvation and killing of the Gazans. The U.S. has spent billions on this project killing civilians. The past year of the failed U.S. military bombing campaign is proof that attacks on much larger Iran would be a complete disaster.

Finally, the Israeli genocide in Gaza escalated intensely in 2023. To this day the U.S. is sending weapons and money to Israel which add to the starvation, destruction, and death. This is in no way generous and benevolent.

How is this generosity? Where is the benevolence? The beneficiaries are special interest groups and military contractors. Certainly not the suffering citizens of the debilitated countries, nor the average Americans saddled with trillions of dollars of ever-increasing war debt. None of these countries are functioning democracies as promised. None of the interventions turned out as promised. As usual, the result is death and destruction.

Our leaders talk about credibility and honor. The rest of the world sees a heartless bully that breaks its agreements and spreads devastation and suffering. We as a nation have allowed ourselves to be fooled.

The truth is many of our leaders are completely indifferent to the suffering they have caused. For example, United States Secretary of State Madeleine Albright thought that the deaths of perhaps as many as 500,000 Iraqi children—starved by a U.S. blockade—was “worth it.” Our leaders are also indifferent to the starvation and death we support in Gaza. Lindsey Graham believes the deaths in Ukraine are a “great deal for America.” Almost none of America’s political leaders will make a genuine effort to stop enabling this daily slaughter.

This is not what our country should be. It is not what our founders intended. It is not what we should support.

The post The Illusion of American Generosity appeared first on The American Conservative.

Screenshot: This Week / ABC News

President Trump unloaded on ABC’s Martha Raddatz Sunday after the longtime network anchor took a bizarre detour during her interview with Cardinal Blase Cupich, insisting that the recent historic election of Pope Leo XIV had “nothing to do with Donald Trump.”

ABC’s Sunday morning show, often hosted by George Stephanopoulos, was immediately dubbed “The Slopadopolus Show” by Trump in his post, a play on its reputation for biased, sycophantic coverage of Democrats and manufactured outrage over anything Trump says or does.

Trump took to Truth Social and torched Raddatz in signature fashion, calling her a Trump-deranged “old timer” during what was supposed to be a reverent post-conclave discussion.

Trump wrote:

“So funny to watch old timer Martha Raditz on ABC Fake News (the Slopadopolus show!) this morning, blurt out that, effectively, Pope Leo’s selection had nothing to do with Donald Trump. It came out of nowhere, but it was on her Trump Deranged Mind.

Remember, I did WIN the Catholic Vote, by a lot! Bob Iger should do something about the losers and haters he’s got on his low rated shows. It’s time for change. MAGA!!!”

Screenshot

The moment came during an interview on ABC’s This Week, where Raddatz welcomed Chicago’s ultra-liberal Cardinal Blase Cupich to reflect on the elevation of America’s first pope. But rather than focus on the religious and global significance of the moment, Raddatz couldn’t help but inject politics — specifically Trump — into the conversation.

With a sudden pivot that even Cupich seemed unsure how to navigate, Raddatz threw in a loaded remark suggesting the Pope’s selection was totally unrelated to Trump — a statement that, oddly, no one had even claimed in the first place.

RADDATZ: And, of course, Pope Francis cared so much about the poor and migrants. Pope Leo does as well. In some ways, will he be a counterbalance for what’s happening in American politics right now and President Trump?

CUPICH: I think he’s going to help complete and complement our political agenda. He’ll talk a lot about the immigrants as well because he knows about the sufferings of people and the real needs that they have for a better life.

And he knows too that people in Oceania, for instance, where the — the rising sea levels are just — getting — overwhelming those islands, where people are trying to escape, he sees the drug trade that’s happening in Central and South America where there are weapons form the United States going there. He knows that those people need an option.

And he’ll call for, I think, as the bishops have in the United States, fixing this broken immigration system.

The post “The Slopadopolus Show” — Trump Rips ABC’s Martha Raddatz for Dragging Him into Papal Coverage appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

Hamas announced Sunday that it would free the sole surviving Israeli-American hostage, Edan Alexander, as part of a push to stop the war in Gaza.

Alexander, now 21, was captured on October 7, 2023 during Hamas’s attack that day on Israel. Around 250 people were abducted. Fifty-nine remain in the strip, and dozens are presumed dead, including four Americans. 

Alexander’s parents, alongside the U.S. Special Envoy for Hostage Response Adam Boehler, will travel to Israel early this week for their son’s release.

Hamas said that it is “ready to immediately begin intensive negotiations and invest serious efforts to reach a final agreement to end the war, reach an agreed-upon exchange of prisoners and a solution for governance in the Gaza Strip by independent professional individuals.”

The news comes amid increasing U.S.–Israel tensions. The U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff, speaking to families of Israeli hostages held by Hamas, recently criticized their government’s refusal to end the war to secure a hostage release, according to Israeli media. “Israel is prolonging the war, even though we do not see where further progress can be made,” Witkoff said.

Israel plans to escalate the Gaza war, conquer the strip, and displace Palestinians living there to the south of the enclave if no hostage deal is reached by the end of President Donald Trump’s trip this week to the Middle East.

Trump, in announcing the release of Alexander on Truth Social, thanked Qatar and Egypt for mediating talks with Hamas. He did not mention Israel.

The post Hamas Agrees to Release Last American Hostage appeared first on The American Conservative.

President Trump won the 2024 election in a landslide winning the US Presidency, all of the battleground states, the US House of Representatives, The US Senate and 2750 counties across the country.

Americans overwhelmingly voted for President Donald Trump and his agenda.

Unfortunately, this means nothing to the US GOP-controlled House and US GOP-controlled Senate.

According to Amuse and Leading Report on X the current GOP-controlled Congress sent fewer bills to President Trump to sign into law than any Congress in 70 years!

That is quite a record!

DO NOTHING CONGRESS: There are so many RINOs and NeverTrumpers in Congress that almost nothing can pass. This Congress has sent fewer bills to Trump than and Congress in 70 years. Would better leadership help or are the anti-Trump Republicans just too powerful?

h/t… pic.twitter.com/ws6SJDG0VH

— @amuse (@amuse) May 11, 2025

According to Punchbowl News, Trump has actually signed fewer bills into law at this point than any new president for seven decades.

At the same time President Trump has signed 124 executive orders.

Consider this:

By this point in 2017, Trump had signed 24 bills into law.

By this point in Biden’s presidency, he’d signed seven bills into law.

In 2009, Barack Obama had signed 11 bills into law by now.

In 2001, George W. Bush had signed seven bills into law.

In 1993, Bill Clinton had signed 21 bills into law.

At this point in 1989, George H.W. Bush had signed 13 bills into law.

In 1981, Ronald Reagan had signed nine bills into law by now.

Jimmy Carter had signed 19 bills into law by now in 1977.

Richard Nixon had signed eight bills into law by this time in 1969.

John F. Kennedy signed 20 bills into law by the end of March 1961.

Dwight D. Eisenhower had also signed 20 bills into law by this time in 1953.

There are many reasons this Congress has been historically unproductive on the legislative front.

If Republicans lose the US House in 2026, it won’t be because of President Trump or his agenda. It will be because of the do-nothing Congress who cannot be trusted. Enough is enough.

The post TOTALLY WORTHLESS: GOP Controlled House and Senate Sent Fewer Bills to GOP President Than Any Congress in 70 Years appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.