Tiffany Henyard formerly served as the Democratic mayor of Dolton, Illinois, where she faced accusations in 2024 of misusing taxpayer dollars. (@EndWokeness / X screen shot)
After a tenure mired in controversy, former Dalton, Illinois, Mayor Tiffany Henyward is back in the news.
This time, she is urging Governor JB Pritzker (D) and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson to accept President Trump’s help in tackling rampant crime in the state.
The plea comes after her father was shot in the neck.
The shooting happened around 5:54 p.m. Wednesday in the 1300 block South Kedzie Avenue in North Lawndale, Chicago police said.
A 65-year-old man was in an alley when he was shot in the neck, CPD said. He was taken to a hospital in serious condition.
Henyard confirmed to ABC7 Thursday that her father was the victim in the shooting.
Henyard shared a statement on Facebook, noting, “Although I am deeply saddened to have to address this issue, I want to begin by sincerely thanking everyone for the calls, messages, and prayers. During this incredibly difficult time, your support has meant more than words can express.”
“Yes, it is true, my family has been directly affected by the senseless gun violence that continues to plague Illinois. Yesterday, my father, my hero was an innocent victim of this random and heartbreaking violence. This tragedy has shaken my family to its core, and unfortunately, it reflects a reality that far too many families across our state are facing.”
“This devastating moment only further highlights what many of us already know, and shouldn’t be ignored: the ongoing gun violence in the City of Chicago has made too many of our communities feel unsafe. It reinforces the urgent need for stronger action and meaningful solutions.”
“I urge Governor JB Pritzker and Mayor Brandon Johnson to seriously reconsider federal assistance from President Donald J. Trump to help address this crisis and better protect the residents of Illinois, particularly in Chicago. Across the country, communities that have welcomed federal support have experienced measurable reductions in crime. Cities such as Memphis, Tennessee, Washington, D.C., and New Orleans, Louisiana during the 2026 Mardi Gras period have all seen positive outcomes through collaborative efforts.”
“The difference between Illinois and those other states is simple, their leadership chose collaboration, and that collaboration produced results.”
“I respectfully urge Governor Pritzker to reconsider working in partnership with President Donald J. Trump to ensure the safety and well-being of the people you were elected to serve. Once again, thank you for your prayers, your support, and your compassion. Please continue to keep my family lifted in prayer during this extremely difficult time.”
The Gateway Pundit has reported extensively on allegations and investigations into Henyard,including an FBI investigation for abusing her power after she shut down businesses that didn’t donate to her campaign.
Do Americans still believe in the importance of the Persian Gulf region?
After the Soviets invaded Afghanistan in 1979, the United States under President Jimmy Carter decided to take a more active role in the region. This manifested in numerous ways, among them the birth of the Rapid Deployment Joint Task Force, which later evolved into CENTCOM. This led to the establishment of the Carter Doctrine: Carter’s National Security Advisor, Zbigniew Brzezinski, helped draft Carter’s State of the Union address that stated “An attempt by any outside force to gain control of the Persian Gulf region will be regarded as an assault on the vital interests of the United States of America, and such an assault will be repelled by any means necessary, including military force.”
When Ronald Reagan was elected, he reversed a number of Carter’s initiatives, but this was one area where he instead doubled down. The Reagan corollary to the Carter Doctrine expanded it: Whereas Carter pledged to defend the Gulf against outside forces, Reagan pledged to defend it against regional threats to oil fields along with an active commitment to Saudi Arabia. This in some sense set the stage for the next several decades of increased U.S. involvement in the region.
The defense against regional threats has loomed large in America’s involvement in the Middle East since the Reagan years, from the first Gulf War through the more recent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to the rise of ISIS and the ongoing Iran War. Yet the American public’s support for it has drastically decreased. The first Gulf War was fought to liberate Kuwait and was remarkably popular, in large part due to that well-defined and well-prosecuted mission. George W. Bush’s wars started off very popular as well. Yet by 2008, the public was getting sick of it. Obama won his campaign based on two key issues: first, the economic meltdown, but also a desire to pull back from the Middle East, reflecting a recognition that people’s interest in the region was waning. Almost a decade later, the Republican primary electorate endorsed the same message when they voted for the one person who got on stage and said the war in Iraq was a mistake. (This makes his decision to invade Iran another decade later especially ironic.)
The American population has consistently been far less hawkish than those who represent it in Washington, DC. At the same time, there has been a willingness to tolerate that hawkishness—but as previous campaigns have shown, this has a limit. Bush’s 2005 inaugural address defined a muscular freedom agenda; two years later, Nancy Pelosi claimed the speaker’s gavel running a campaign in large part against the war in Iraq.
The recent invasion of Iran has less support than Iraq or Afghanistan did at the outset, and it seems unlikely to go up in light of historical precedents. Despite a goal of shock and awe, it seems far more probable that this will be a long, costly grind that will cost billions of dollars and drive oil prices sky high for Americans who are already unsatisfied with the economy. The rest of the world is unlikely to escape the economic consequences, which will probably extend well past the formal end of hostilities. Oil capacity cannot be turned off and on like a light switch, and it takes time to rebuild bombed-out refineries and reestablish global supply lines. The longer the war goes, the longer it will take to get back to stable energy markets and sustained oil production and output.
America entered this war to prevent the domination of the Persian Gulf, and the broader Middle East, by an opponent, and thus far has succeeded in part by inflicting a significant amount of economic pain upon its own citizens and allies. If this is the cost of defending the Gulf, it’s worth considering whether it’s worth it—since, in addition to the usual blood and treasure expended in Middle Eastern campaigns, this time the cost includes sacrificing the future of American defense in Asia.
Israel’s military leadership has issued one of its starkest warnings in years, raising serious questions about the sustainability of the country’s defense posture amid growing internal strain and mounting operational demands.
At the center of the alarm is Eyal Zamir—the highest-ranking military officer in Israel and the commander of the entire IDF—who told ministers behind closed doors that the army is approaching a breaking point.
According to reports from multiple Israeli outlets, Zamir warned the cabinet that the Israel Defense Forces could “collapse in on itself” if urgent reforms are not implemented. His remarks, delivered during a high-level security meeting, were described as a direct and unusually blunt appeal to political leadership.
“I am raising 10 red flags in front of you,” Zamir reportedly told ministers. He stressed that without immediate legislative action on conscription, reserve duty, and service length, the military’s ability to function will deteriorate rapidly.
The warning comes as Israel faces a complex security environment, with operations spanning multiple fronts. From Gaza to Lebanon, Syria to the West Bank, the demands placed on the military have expanded significantly in recent years.
Military officials say the strain is no longer theoretical. Reserve units are being stretched thin, with repeated deployments placing growing pressure on soldiers and their families.
“The reserves will not hold,” Zamir warned, emphasizing that the current system is reaching its limits. Without reinforcement, he suggested, even routine missions could soon become difficult to sustain. At the heart of the crisis is a manpower shortage that has been building for years. Estimates suggest the IDF is short tens of thousands of troops, particularly in combat roles.
Even in peacetime, officials argue, the current force structure would be insufficient. In a multi-front environment, the gap becomes even more pronounced.
A key factor in this shortage is the ongoing controversy over conscription. Large segments of Israel’s ultra-Orthodox population have long been exempt from military service, a policy that critics say is no longer viable under current conditions.
Zamir has called for new laws to address the issue directly. These include measures to increase enlistment, extend mandatory service, and reform reserve duty obligations. Yet political hesitation has slowed progress. Governments reliant on coalition partners have struggled to push through reforms that would likely provoke public backlash.
This tension highlights a broader challenge facing many Western-aligned societies: how to balance internal political considerations with hard security realities. In an time of seemingly ever-increasing global instability, such trade-offs are becoming increasingly difficult to manage.
During the same cabinet meeting, Avi Bluth reportedly warned that government policies in the West Bank are adding further strain. The expansion of settlements, he said, requires additional security resources that the army does not currently have.
“This is your policy,” Bluth told ministers, “but it requires security and a full protection package.” His comments underscored the gap between political decisions and military capacity. The situation on the ground has also become more volatile. Reports indicate a rise in violence in the West Bank, forcing the military to divert units originally assigned to other fronts.
In one recent case, an infantry battalion intended for deployment elsewhere was reassigned to the West Bank to manage escalating tensions. Commanders have warned that further reinforcements may soon be necessary.
Opposition figures have seized on Zamir’s warning as evidence of deeper systemic failures. Yair Lapid accused the government of pushing the army into a “multi-front war without a strategy, without sufficient resources, and with too few soldiers.”
Lapid added that the government would no longer be able to claim ignorance. “This time, they will not be able to say, ‘I didn’t know,’” he said, pointing directly to the chief of staff’s warnings.
Other political leaders echoed similar concerns. Former prime minister Naftali Bennett argued that the solution lies in expanding the pool of eligible recruits. “The IDF is 20,000 soldiers short,” Bennett said. “There are 100,000 young Haredim of military age… if they recruited even a fifth, there would be no problem.”
Former military leaders entering politics have also weighed in. Gadi Eisenkot described universal service as a “moral imperative,” warning that continued exemptions undermine both readiness and fairness.
At the same time, some members of the governing coalition have pushed back against the criticism. Allies of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu argue that legislative delays are due to legal obstacles rather than political inaction.
The Prime Minister’s Office has stated that efforts are underway to pass the necessary laws. Officials have also accused opponents of distorting the military’s warnings for political gain.
Within the ruling party itself, however, divisions are emerging. Some lawmakers have acknowledged the seriousness of the manpower crisis and called for immediate action.
“Being right-wing means, first and foremost, security,” said Likud lawmaker Dan Illouz. “You can’t demand victory and expansion, and then let the army collapse due to lack of soldiers.”
Others have taken a different tone, criticizing Zamir’s remarks as overly alarmist. Some coalition figures have described his warnings as “irresponsible” and potentially damaging to national morale.
From a strategic perspective, the situation underscores the risks of overextension. Expanding commitments—whether territorial, political, or military—require corresponding resources to sustain them.
Without those resources, even the most well-intentioned policies can create vulnerabilities. Zamir’s warning, in that sense, is not just about manpower, but about the limits of capacity.
The episode serves as a reminder that national security cannot be separated from internal cohesion. A strong state requires both external readiness and internal alignment. As the government weighs its next steps, the stakes are clear. Failure to address the manpower shortage could have long-term consequences for Israel’s ability to defend itself in an increasingly unstable region.
Whether Israel’s leadership can translate warnings into action remains to be seen. What is certain is that the current trajectory, as described by its own military chief, is not sustainable.
In that sense, the crisis is not just a military issue—it is a test of political will. And as the pressure builds, the decisions made now will shape the country’s security for years to come.
The Department of Justice has confirmed that Iran-linked hackers breached the personal email account of FBI Director Kash Patel and leaked personal photos along with other documents online.
The hacking group known as the “Handala Hack Team” claimed responsibility, posting the materials to its website and Telegram channel.
“Soon you’ll realize the FBI’s security was nothing more than a joke,” the group wrote on Telegram, along with photos from Patel’s account.
JUST IN – FBI director Kash Patel’s personal email address hacked, says DOJ. This comes only a day after Iran-linked Handala hacking group claims it breached the FBI: “Soon you will realize that the FBI’s security was nothing more than a joke.” pic.twitter.com/XeuogL8I0Y
The group stated that Patel “will now find his name among the list of successfully hacked victims.”
A DOJ official told Reuters that the materials posted online “appeared to be authentic.” The leaked files reportedly include a purported resume and a mix of personal and work-related correspondence dating from 2010 to 2019.
A Justice Department official confirmed that Patel’s email had been breached and said the material published online appeared authentic. The FBI did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The hackers did not immediately respond to messages.
Handala, which calls itself a group of pro-Palestinian vigilante hackers, is considered by Western researchers to be one of several personas used by Iranian government cyberintelligence units. Handala recently claimed the hack of Michigan-based medical devices and services provider Strykeron March 11, claiming to have deleted a massive trove of company data.
Reuters was not able to independently authenticate the Patel emails, but the personal Gmail address that Handala claims to have broken into matches the address linked to Patel in previous data breaches preserved by the dark web intelligence firm District 4 Labs. Alphabet-owned Google, which runs Gmail, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Gmail address targeted by the hackers matches one previously linked to Patel in older data breaches, according to reports.
The Handala Hack Team is believed to be connected to Iran’s cyberintelligence operations.
FBI Director Kash Patel’s personal email has reportedly been hacked, just a day after the Iran-linked Handala group claimed it breached the FBI, warning: “Soon you’ll realize the FBI’s security was nothing more than a joke.” pic.twitter.com/QUzrhJflig
The breach was reported just days after the Justice Department and FBI disrupted several Iranian-linked cyber operations and seized multiple domains used by the group.
Newsweek reports, “Handala posted on its website that after the FBI had seized its domain names and announced $10 million rewards for its members, the group decided to fight back with the hack.”
“The so-called ‘impenetrable’ systems of the FBI were brought to their knees within hours by our team,” Handala’s website states. “All personal and confidential information of Kash Patel, including emails, conversations, documents, and even classified files, is now available for public download.”
The FBI has not issued a public comment on the incident as of the time of publishing.
Chicago Democratic Mayor Brandon Johnson is among the worst in the country to occupy that office.
Only one week removed from the alleged murder of Loyola University Chicago student Sheridan Gorman by a Venezuelan illegal alien released under the Biden administration in 2023, Johnson announced the winners of the city’s “You Name a Plow” contest on Wednesday.
WTTW reports the top entry was the “Abolish ICE” snowplow with other winners Pope Frío XIV, Stephen Coldbert, The Blizzard of Oz, Caleb Chilliams, and Svencoolie.
“This name derives from our city’s legacy of standing up for justice, dignity, and the rights of all people, no matter where they come from,” he said at a press conference. “I’m going to continue to use every single tool that’s available to me to protect the residents of the city of Chicago.”
CBS News reported this year’s contest was record-breaking with 13,000 submissions and 39,000 residents casting their vote.
Fox News relayed comments by the mayor about Gorman’s passing, seemingly shrugging it off.
“This is a terrible tragedy,” he said. “This tragedy is not going to deter us from our work.”
“In fact, it’s going to challenge us all to double down on our efforts to ensure that we are protecting every single individual across neighborhoods.”
Even Johnson’s fellow Democrats aren’t happy with them on this issue.
Alderman Raymond Lopez called Gorman’s death, “100% avoidable,” adding, “The culmination of the choices made here in the city of Chicago and the state of Illinois to protect noncitizens even when they choose to engage in dangerous criminal behavior, that mindset has to change.”
“That mindset has to stop because Sheridan and the other 1,200 other individuals across this country who’ve been victims … victimized by noncitizens deserved to be honored in a change in mindset and law,” he said.
While the public put the “Abolish ICE” entry forward and voted it the winner, the city could have disqualified this entry for the sake of decency after the death of one of its residents.
Johnson’s efforts about doubling-down are confusing at best, but more accurately put, they’re atrocious.
A student was allegedly murdered by an illegal alien so Chicago plans to double down and protect illegal aliens?
What about the safety of Chicagoans?
The significance of Chicago’s sanctuary status cannot be ignored. These are effectively nullification zones: spaces in which state and city officials have declared federal law does not apply.
Invocations of nullification date back notably to 1832 when South Carolina defied federal tariff laws. Nullifiers made their intentions clear: Should the government try to enforce the law and collect the tariff in that state, they would secede.
Johnson and blue state officials are playing a deadly game as evidenced by the violence and loss of life when federal officers attempt to enforce immigration laws without the support of local officials.
The communist government of Laos follows China’s model of ethnic and religious repression, viewing minorities and religious beliefs as a threat to the party.
The communist government of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic continues its decades-long repression of ethnic minorities and Christians. Chinese investment has further exacerbated the problem, with the Lao government displacing indigenous communities to make room for Chinese-funded projects. Analysts have noted that each time the PRC enters a new phase of religious and ethnic repression, Laos follows suit, restricting ethnic and religious freedom that the ruling party perceives as a threat to national unity and party control.
Laos is the most ethnically diverse country in mainland Southeast Asia, with a population of about 7 million spread across dozens of ethnic groups. The government officially recognizes 49 ethnic groups and 160 subgroups, categorized into three geographic tiers: Lao Loum in the lowlands, Lao Theung in midland regions, and Lao Sung in the highlands.
Ethnic Lao make up just over half the population, are concentrated in lowland areas, and practice Theravada Buddhism. Lao Theung groups, roughly a quarter of the population, live in midland regions and follow animist traditions. Lao Sung groups, including the Hmong and Yao, inhabit mountainous regions and belong mainly to Hmong-Mien and Sino-Tibetan language families.
Although the constitution guarantees equal status for all ethnic groups and protects religious freedom, the gap between formal legal rights and actual practice is well-documented. Political life is dominated by the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party and its ethnic Lao elite. The government does not recognize the concept of indigenous peoples, despite having voted in favor of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
Ethnic minority communities in Laos face significant and measurable disadvantages relative to the dominant Lao-Tai population across every economic indicator. According to IWGIA’s Indigenous World reports, which draw on Lao government social indicator survey data, indigenous peoples relying on unimproved or surface water range from 20% to 32.5% of the population, compared to just 8.5% among Lao-Tai.
Lack of sanitation and access to toilets is another issue. While 13.9% of Lao-Tai practice open defecation, that figure rises to between 30.3 and 46.3% among indigenous communities. These disparities are corroborated by UNICEF data showing that 32.6% of the rural population overall practices open defecation compared to 4.25% in urban areas, with the burden falling disproportionately on poor ethnic minority groups in rural areas.
The education gap is similarly documented. Analysis of LSIS-II data indicated that 20%–30% of children in rural, poorer, or non-Lao-Tai ethnic households do not attend Early Childhood Education (ECE).
IWGIA has reported that children from indigenous groups have lower school-attendance rates than Lao-Tai children, with the Mon-Khmer ethnic group recording the lowest attendance and highest dropout rates in the country, alongside the lowest overall socioeconomic status.
A 2025 peer-reviewed study published in Cogent Education found that out-of-school children in Laos are disproportionately drawn from poor communities, ethnic minorities, and girls. The share of out-of-school children reaches approximately 30% in Phongsaly Province in the north and 28.4% in Savannakhet Province in the south, compared to 13.4% in Vientiane Capital.
Language is a compounding factor. Ethnic minority children are required to switch to the official Lao language upon entering school, creating an immediate barrier to comprehension and continuity.
Underlying the disparities between ethnic minorities and the Lao-Tai majority is a Chinese-driven development model, with investment from the PRC increasingly disadvantaging indigenous communities. Land and natural resources belonging to ethnic minorities are under growing pressure from government investment-promotion policies and commercial resource extraction, including large-scale hydropower development and logging concessions.
Chinese state-owned companies have invested $3.2 billion in Laos’s energy sector over five years, constructing hydroelectric dams that have forced ethnic minorities, including the indigenous Khmou people along the Mekong, off ancestral lands, often with broken or delayed compensation promises.
The Laos-China Railway, financed by China’s Export-Import Bank and completed in 2021, permanently displaced more than 4,400 families along its route through the country’s most ethnically diverse northern regions. The railway has also accelerated a boom in Chinese-owned agricultural plantations, with satellite data confirming that Chinese banana and durian operations have cleared protected forests in ethnic minority provinces, including Attapeu and Luang Prabang.
Laos has ratified several major international human rights instruments, including the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (1974), the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (1981), the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1991), and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (2009).
In practice, however, the government severely restricts freedom of speech, association, assembly, and religion, and civil society operates under close state control. Organizations that openly focus on indigenous peoples’ rights, or that use indigenous peoples’ terminology in the Lao language, are not permitted to operate. According to IWGIA, open discussion of indigenous peoples’ issues with government officials remains sensitive, as the government views such framing as implying claims to special rights outside the official multiethnic national framework.
Christian identity and ethnic minority identity in Laos are deeply intertwined. Practitioners of Protestant Christianity are drawn predominantly from the ethnic minorities, particularly the Khmou and Brou in the north and the Hmong and Yao in the highlands. Protestantism has expanded rapidly in these communities, meaning that when the government targets Christians, it is also targeting highland and midland ethnic minorities while leaving lowland ethnic Lao Buddhists largely undisturbed.
The World Evangelical Alliance has reported that Protestant Christianity, and the Hmong community in particular, is viewed by Lao authorities as an American or imperialist import and a threat to Communist rule. This political framing, Christianity as foreign subversion, compounds the ethnic suspicion already directed at the Hmong because of their alliance with the United States during the Vietnam War.
After the Communist takeover in 1975, the regime’s official newspaper announced that the Hmong would be “exterminated to the last root.” Since the late 1970s, military offensives have targeted Hmong communities in Phou Bia and Xaisomboun, where residents have faced attacks, arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, and military blockades. Reports indicate the use of heavy artillery, chemical weapons, and starvation tactics.
Hmong who surrendered to authorities have been placed in camps rather than allowed to return to their villages, and access by independent humanitarian monitors is routinely denied.
Though many Hmong were traditionally animists, large numbers converted to Christianity in the 20th century, adding a religious dimension to their persecution. The Hmong Christian community, concentrated in central and southern Laos, faces pressure to conform to Buddhist or animist rituals. Village mediation units push Christians to compromise their beliefs, and Christian burials have been obstructed in public cemeteries.
At the 60th session of the UN Human Rights Council, the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization highlighted ongoing violations against the Hmong, including military operations, enforced disappearances, forced relocations, and extrajudicial killings. The Lao government declined to accept UN recommendations to grant humanitarian access to Xaisomboun Province or recognize the rights of Hmong communities such as the ChaoFa, whose existence it denies.
Decree 315, passed in 2016, codifies this control by requiring state approval to print religious literature, build religious facilities, and travel abroad for religious meetings. All religious organizations must register with the government. In practice, enforcement falls far more heavily on Christians than on Buddhists.
Despite a constitutional guarantee of religious freedom, authorities heavily monitor Christian religious activities. Churches are required to report all gatherings to the administration, driving many believers into unregistered house churches. About 75 percent of government-approved Lao Evangelical Church congregations lack permanent structures and hold services in homes. Many Christians who have been expelled from their homes have taken refuge in forests without access to food, shelter, or medical care.
Open Doors International documented, in its 2024 reporting period, at least four Christians killed, 159 expelled from their communities, 60 arrested, and 25 churches attacked. Christians also face economic retaliation and are routinely denied education and government employment. In January 2024, six Christian families in one village were summoned and ordered to stop practicing their religion or have their meeting place demolished.
In February 2024, Radio Free Asia reported that village authorities destroyed a house used for Sunday worship. In 2020, a pastor arrested for refusing to renounce his faith was convicted of causing social disorder and breaking village unity, sentenced to one year in prison, and fined $200. That same year, authorities in Salavan Province expelled seven Christians from their homes.
Persecution of Christians in rural areas is more severe than in cities, where the government maintains a degree of tolerance in provincial capitals. Certain provinces are particularly dangerous for Christians, especially in the north where the Hmong are concentrated. Pastors in northern Laos have also raised concern over the trafficking of young women from ethnic minority groups, including Hmong Christians, across the border into China, where they are coerced into forced marriages or sex work.
The UN Special Rapporteur for cultural rights, following a 2024 visit, raised concerns about policies assimilating ethnic minorities into the dominant Lao ethnic group, prejudice against non-dominant cultural practices labeled as “backward,” and village relocations carried out without free, prior, and informed consent. Indigenous peoples lag behind the ethnic Lao-Tai majority at all economic levels, and their land is under increasing pressure from government development policies and foreign investment, notably from Chinese state-owned firms operating in autonomous Special Economic Zones. Authorities generally do not investigate or prosecute abuses committed within these zones.
Genocide Watch classifies Laos at Stage 8: Persecution, noting that ethnic and religious minorities are branded as enemies of the state, government propaganda fuels societal divisions, and the state carries out forced displacement, arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances, and military attacks targeting minority communities.
Senators approved a funding package early Friday morning for most of the Department of Homeland Security, a major step toward ending a 42-day partial shutdown, while leaving Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and parts of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) outside the bill after Republicans refused to agree to the list of reforms Democrats proposed to limit the behavior of officers engaged in immigration enforcement.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York said Democrats had “held the line” against funding ICE and CBP without reforms, while Majority Leader John Thune of South Dakota accused Democrats of choosing “politics over policy.”Although the package excludes ICE and parts of CBP, those agencies will continue operating with money from the “One Big Beautiful Bill.” Republicans said they will pursue additional border funding later this year.
The bill now heads to the House, where it must pass and be signed by President Donald Trump to end the shutdown.
Let’s just admit the truth: The GOP Senate is filled with RINO frauds. They don’t want to pass the SAVE Act to secure elections. Some of them are bribed and playing for the other side- whether that be China, DC Swamp, Deep State, Democrats, or the Mexican Drug Cartels.
Other GOP Senators are simply afraid the GOP might actually win. They would much rather lose and continue to raise campaign cash as the “out-of-power party.”
Losing serves their purpose better.
If they can’t pass Voter ID- this one simple thing that virtually every American voter supports- white, black, Latino, Republican, Democrat, independent- literally 70% to 80% of everyone- what good are they?
The answer is the GOP Senate is good for nothing.
The GOP Senate should be labeled by President Trump as the “Do-Nothing Senate”- except it’s his own party! How pathetic. How disgraceful.
So, it’s time for Trump to take matters into his own hands.
But all is not lost. There is a plan. And it will work. Here it is…
First, President Trump needs to sign his own Executive Order that mimics most aspects of the SAVE Act. Get it signed now- as in yesterday. Thereby giving Democrats time to sue to stop it, appeal multiple times, and eventually put it in front of the Supreme Court (with an expedited ruling). All of this must get done before the midterms.
If the SAVE Act isn’t in place by the midterms, we don’t win. PERIOD.
My favorite sayings both apply here…
“If it is to be, it is up to me.”
and…
“God helps those who help themselves.”
It’s up to you, President Trump. Make it happen. Help yourself, help us, help America. My election expert John Goodman tells me your EO is far better than the Senate version of the SAVE America Act anyway. And Goodman is certain it will be upheld by the Supreme Court- based on 3 planks of the U.S. Constitution, and a 1995 Supreme Court ruling (U.S. Term Limits vs. Thornton). That ruling by the Supreme Court makes it impossible for the Supremes to overturn the EO.
Secondly, Mr. President, be sure that your EO is far stricter than the Senate SAVE Act regarding mail-in ballots. They are not legal. There is no right in election law anywhere that makes it legal for anyone to vote by mail. Mail-in ballots should be completely banned forever.
Make it clear the only legal form of voting by mail is “Absentee Voting”- and it’s strictly reserved only for people too sick, or disabled to vote, and active duty military overseas.
Third, add in a separate EO just dealing with illegal aliens who are voting- and we know they are- by the millions.
Take my home state of Nevada. Illegal aliens get driver’s licenses in Nevada. Once at the DMV for their driver’s license, they are automatically registered to vote. That’s it. They can’t opt out. It’s automatic. And the DMV clerk, by law, can’t stop them from registering to vote, or ask them if they’re a citizen.
Now, they’re legal to vote- even though they’re illegally in this country. And you don’t think they’re voting- when their vote can make the difference in who wins? Which is exactly what happens in Nevada all the time.
Keep in mind, if they elect Democrats, the illegal aliens get to stay in the country, and collect a hundred different forms of welfare, and free healthcare. Of course they’re voting- wouldn’t you?
It’s in their best interest to vote, and always vote Democrat.
OF COURSE they’re voting. Democrats made it easy for them! And once Democrats win, they protect illegals 24/7- these are the voters who elected them!
Now let’s look at how the illegal aliens vote in Nevada (and elsewhere). They vote via mail-in ballot- with no Voter ID required.
Now they never have to go to the polling place to vote- and risk being arrested and deported by ICE. They don’t have to talk to anyone. They never speak to any government official. They never see a member of law enforcement. It’s all done through the mail (or ballot harvesting).
So, to prevent them from voting, President Trump needs to scare the bejesus out of them.
We need a separate EO that says any illegal alien who votes will be immediately arrested and deported after serving 3 years in federal prison.
Get that EO in place immediately, so once again, there is time for Democrat lawsuits, appeals, and a Supreme Court final decision.
And to reinforce that EO, President Trump, at every media opportunity, needs to say, “All NONCITIZENS WHO VOTE WILL BE ARRESTED, IMPRISONED AND DEPORTED.”
And throw in a P.S. Whether you do it in person, or mail-in, or ballot drop box, or ballot harvesting. If you’re illegally in this country, and you vote, you will be our #1 priority for arrest and deportation.”
One sentence, stated nonstop by the President everywhere he goes, in every media appearance, at every press conference, in every press release, can scare, intimidate and stop cold all Illegals from voting. Simple.
The national media covers President Trump for hours daily. He often says the same things, over and over, in every appearance.
From now on, add this one sentence, President Trump, “All NONCITIZENS WHO VOTE WILL BE ARRESTED, IMPRISONED AND DEPORTED.”
Repeat it nonstop from now to the midterms wherever you go, and we win- as long as we get these two EO’s upheld by the Supreme Court before the election.
Plus, of course, we need a Supreme Court ruling that bans the counting of ballots after Election Day. And that one appears very highly likely to happen.
So, Mr. President…get moving N-O-W! There is no time to waste.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Wayne Allyn Root is a CEO, businessman, best-selling author, and national conservative TV and radio host, who has interviewed President Trump 16 times. Watch Wayne’s TV show “America’s Top Ten Countdown” on Real America’s Voice TV Saturdays at Noon ET/9 AM PT, and his 2-hour daily video podcast “WAR Zone Live presented by The Gateway Pundit” daily from 6 PM to 8 PM ET at TheGatewayPundit.com. His website is ROOTforAmerica.com. Read Wayne’s latest fun book, “How Democrats Have Made America Great.” It’s 140 blank pages. The joke is on Democrats!
WATCH: Airport Chaos Meets ICE—Americans Are Loving the Results (VIDEO)
On the latest episode of The Patriot Perspective, the focus turned to two defining issues shaping the current political moment: the breakdown of airport security amid the Department of Homeland Security funding standoff and the continued gridlock surrounding the SAVE America Act.
The discussion began with a reality millions of Americans are now experiencing firsthand—TSA dysfunction on a scale rarely seen before. Travelers across the country are facing multi-hour wait times, missed flights, and overcrowded terminals.
In Lyakhov’s own experience, lines stretched to extremes, exposing a deeper issue than mere inconvenience. This is a structural failure in organization and staffing, in which airports are no longer able to process passengers efficiently or safely.
What makes this situation different from past government shutdowns is its direct impact on DHS operations. TSA agents, many of whom have gone extended periods without pay, are now showing up in reduced numbers or not at all.
The result is predictable: fewer agents, longer lines, and a system that begins to collapse under its own weight. The episode emphasized that the remaining TSA workers deserve recognition, but the system itself is not built to withstand this level of strain.
That breakdown has forced the Trump administration to respond, including deploying ICE agents to assist at airports.
As discussed on the show, ICE is not a replacement for TSA when it comes to specialized screening. However, their presence serves a practical purpose.
Crowd control, document verification, and general order are essential in chaotic environments, and additional manpower can significantly reduce disorder.
The episode also addressed a point that has become politically controversial but operationally straightforward. Airports are one of the primary locations where identification is required.
If an individual is unlawfully present or has an active deportation order, enforcement at that location is consistent with existing law. This is not an expansion of authority; it is the application of it in a setting where documentation is already central.
At the same time, relying on ICE is not a long-term solution. It represents a temporary response to a broader failure.
If conditions continue to deteriorate, additional support, including potential National Guard involvement, may be necessary to stabilize operations.
The conversation then shifted to the SAVE America Act, which has become a central piece of the domestic policy debate.
The legislation’s requirement for proof of citizenship in federal elections reflects a basic principle: elections are intended for citizens. However, as discussed on the episode, the challenge is not the legitimacy of the idea but the political reality surrounding its passage.
Senate procedure, particularly the filibuster, allows Democrats to stall the legislation indefinitely. Without a supermajority, Republicans lack the ability to force a vote. This creates a situation where even widely supported concepts remain trapped in procedural limbo.
The TSA crisis and the SAVE America Act are ultimately connected by a single question: whether the federal government can maintain order and enforce basic standards. Right now, both remain unresolved.
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President Donald Trump just dropped a bombshell during Thursday’s Cabinet meeting, finally revealing what the mysterious “very big present” from Iran actually was.
According to Trump, Iran initially offered access for eight tankers before increasing the number to ten, signaling what he described as a gesture of “good faith” during ongoing negotiations.
According to reports, the gesture was intended to demonstrate that Iranian negotiators are “real and solid” and capable of delivering results, something Trump indicated he sees as validation that the U.S. is dealing with the “right people.”
Trump:
“They said, “To show you the fact that we’re real and solid and we’re there, we’re going to let you have eight boats of oil. Eight boats. Eight big boats of oil.”
This was two days ago.
“And they’ll sail up tomorrow.” That was three days ago.
And I didn’t think much about it. Then I watched the news, and they said— a very good anchor, actually, happened to be Fox— but I watched it, and he said, “Something unusual is happening. There are eight boats that are going right up the middle of the Hormuz Strait. Eight big tankers are going, loaded up with oil, right through.”
And I said, “Well, I guess— I guess they were right, and they were real.”
And I think they were Pakistani-flagged.
And I said, “Well, I guess we’re dealing with the right people.”
And actually, they then apologized for something they said, and they said, “We’re going to send two more boats.”
And it ended up being ten boats.
I hope I haven’t screwed up your negotiations, but I thought it was appropriate to say, because I did taunt you the other day by saying they’re going to give us a present.”
WATCH:
HOLY CRAP. President Trump just revealed the present Iran’s leaders gifted him was 8 boats of OIL through the Strait of Hormuz!
“Then they apologized for something, and SENT 2 MORE BOATS. It was 10 boats!”
As The Gateway Pundit has reported, this comes after weeks of President Trump’s iron-fisted ultimatums following U.S. and Israeli strikes that left Iran’s military and naval capabilities in ruins.
The regime had brazenly tried to choke off the Strait of Hormuz, the artery carrying roughly 20% of the world’s oil supply, sending global prices skyrocketing.
On Monday morning, President Trump wrote on Truth Social that the U.S. had “very good and productive conversations” with Iran.
However, several Iranian state media outlets have since denied having any talks with the Trump administration and cited quotes from the Foreign Ministry in Tehran.
In response to Iranian media reports denying that the talks took place, Trump told Fox News’ Maria Bartiromo that he was unsure what Iran’s media was talking about, and that conversations did take place between Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner with Iranian representatives.
Pressed on who Steve Witkoff is engaging with inside Iran amid ongoing diplomatic efforts, President Trump declined to name the Iranian contact, citing concerns about potential retaliation
WATCH:
Trump Says U.S. Envoy Is in Contact With “Top Person” in Iran but Won’t Name Them to Protect Their Life
Pressed on who Steve Witkoff is speaking with inside Iran amid ongoing diplomatic engagement, President Trump declined to identify the Iranian interlocutor, saying he won’t… pic.twitter.com/cdj9RVnzbq
“As per Iranian Government request, please let this statement serve to represent that I am pausing the period of Energy Plant destruction by 10 Days to Monday, April 6, 2026, at 8 P.M., Eastern Time,” Trump said.
“Talks are ongoing and, despite erroneous statements to the contrary by the Fake News Media, and others, they are going very well. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” Trump said on Thursday.
FBI Director Kash Patel’s personal email has reportedly been hacked, just a day after the Iran-linked Handala group claimed it breached the FBI, warning: “Soon you’ll realize the FBI’s security was nothing more than a joke.” 
