5 former colleagues of Rep. Cory Mills say he told them he became a Muslim — as girlfriend claims Blaze News report 'entirely untrue'



Five former associates of Florida Rep. Cory Mills (R) have now confirmed to Blaze News that Mills converted to Islam around the time he was married in 2014. Meanwhile, Mills' girlfriend, in an apparent attempt to reassert control over the narrative, has attacked Blaze News' previous reporting on the matter.

Her rebuttal doesn't square with the testimony of Cory Mills' former associates.

Mills has recently come under intense scrutiny. A Feb. 19 domestic disturbance at Mills' luxury penthouse not only prompted a police response but brought to light the Republican congressman's apparent misrepresentations about his new romantic relationship and unfinished divorce.

This in turn prompted Blaze News to dig deeper into Mills' situation — an exploration that has yielded a number of strange insights into the Republican who rose to power on a pro-Christian, America First platform. Among them: Mills was married by Mohammed Al-Hanooti, an unindicted co-conspirator in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing and a Hamas fundraiser; the marriage was reportedly conducted in a mosque that likely would have required the groom to be Muslim; and at least one associate of Mills indicated that the congressman became a practicing Muslim after marrying Iraq native Rana Al Saadi — a conversion he emphatically denied in a conversation.

Here is an Instagram post with Raviani and Mills.

Iranian-American activist Sarah Raviani suggested to the Daily Mail "that the claims made in the Blaze article are entirely untrue." This was the first time since her domestic disturbance call that Mills' 27-year-old girlfriend has publicly announced their relationship.

According to the Daily Mail, the police report on the incident claims officers heard Mills “instruct her to lie about the origin of her bruises.” In addition to confirming she was in a relationship with Mills — who is married to Al Saadi — and asserting that "no assault took place" in February, Raviani told the Daily Mail that Mills' faith should not be up for debate, claiming that they attend Christian services together and pray in private.

'He said, "We need to go over there and take care of it."'

"He has not only attended church with my family and me, but we also pray together privately — just the two of us — where there would be no reason to pretend or perform for others," said Raviani. "Additionally, we pray together publicly before meals. Any assertion that he is a Muslim is false, and I can personally attest to his Christian faith."

The Daily Mail appeared to insinuate that the couple's Easter travels together served as evidence of her claims. As Blaze News has already reported, Mills, who owns an international weapons company, traveled to Turkey and Syria over Easter, where Mills also met with foreign government officials from both countries,

RELATED: GOP Rep. Cory Mills explains why he was married by a radical Islamic cleric

Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images

Since the first Blaze News report was written, more former associates of Mills have confirmed to Blaze News that Mills converted to Islam around the time he was married. Four of them spoke to Blaze News on background for fear of reprisal, but one was willing to go on the record. Max Woodside, CEO at Paladin LLC, is among those not buying what Mills and his proxies are selling.

Woodside, who at one point served as Mills' team leader while with the American private military contractor DynCorp and had multiple run-ins with the future congressman in the Middle East, recently went on the record with Blaze News, noting, "I'm not afraid of him. He knows we're done."

Woodside indicated that "sometime around 2013," after he returned from Afghanistan, he received a call "out of the blue" from Mills.

"He mentioned that he had a friend — I guess it's his current wife that he's divorcing, whatever the hell she is," said Woodside. "I guess she was having problems with somebody over there. He said, 'We need to go over there and take care of it.' I said, 'Brother, whatever we do is going to come back to you.' ... I said, 'You're always going to have problems because she's a Muslim and you're a Christian.'"

According to Woodside, Mills said, "No, I converted. I'm a Muslim."

This alleged admission stood out to Woodside, who told Blaze News, "They're my sworn enemy."

Woodside noted, however, "As far as the Muslim stuff [goes], I only heard him say it one time. I never saw him convert. I never saw him put any head rags on. He just told me he converted to Islam. I said, 'All right, whatever, dude. We're done.'"

Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images

Robert Spencer, the founder and editor of Jihad Watch, cast doubt on whether Mills could have been married at the notoriously extreme Dar Al-Hijrah mosque in Virginia without converting.

"It doesn’t sound plausible. Al-Hanooti had multiple ties to the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas. … Any imam who had their approval, and who approved of the Brotherhood, had to be well versed in Sharia and loyal to its provisions," Spencer previously told Blaze News. "Sharia stipulates that a Muslim woman may not marry a Christian or any other non-Muslim man. This is based on the Qur'an. ... A Muslim man may marry a Christian woman … but a Muslim woman cannot marry a Christian man.”

Spencer speculated that maybe "the whole thing was quick and involved Mills… at the mosque with little understanding of what he was saying … so he can dismiss it now and may not have even realized what he was doing, but he wouldn’t have been able to marry Al Saadi otherwise."

Mills’ former team leader’s interpretation of the conversion is that Mills “said that to get the freaking girl.” Woodside told Blaze News that “he’s not a Muslim or a Christian as far as I’m concerned. He just said what he wanted to get what he wanted, which is what he always does.” Others who knew Mills at the time, however, told Blaze News that Mills seemed to have truly converted and remained Muslim after his wedding.

When pressed about the unlikelihood that a radical mufti like Al-Hanooti would officiate the marriage of a non-Muslim, Mills told Blaze News that the situation was complicated.

His then-fiancée needed to visit a dying relative in Iraq, Mills said, but "would've been arrested" if she entered Iraq without a marriage certificate because her first husband in Iraq "wasn't a good man" and "all he had to do was say she wasn’t divorced within Iraq, therefore the marriage is still valid."

According to Mills, Al-Hanooti was "the only Iraqi imam that her mom [could] get in contact with who would do this for us.

"I will do anything to protect my family. So if having her mother find someone who is willing to just sign something so she doesn't get arrested when she goes to visit her dying uncle, who's her last remaining male Al Saadi," said Mills. "Yeah, you're damn right, I have no problem whatsoever, because it didn't change my faith, it didn't change who I am, it didn't change the church that I went to. So yeah, enjoy your hit piece."

Blaze Media editor in chief Matthew Peterson noted that "we merely asked Mills what religion he was and who married him. If Mills had simply admitted that, yes, he converted to Islam to marry a Muslim woman or help her visit her family or whatever, that would be one thing. Instead, he threatened Blaze Media with libel, defamation, malice, and slander before we published a word. I find that odd."

Woodside, along with many other former associates of Mills who spoke to Blaze News, had some harsh words for the congressman: "He's always going to say [whatever he needs] to get him whatever he wants, which makes him a good politician because that’s what they do."

"He's a die-hard conservative on the face of it," Woodside told Blaze News, but "Cory's out for himself. That's all he's ever been."

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GOP lawmakers back bill to lock illegal aliens out of path to citizenship



House Republicans are backing a bill that would prevent illegal aliens from seeking a pathway to citizenship.

Rep. Cory Mills (R-Fla.) introduced the No Citizenship for Alien Invaders Act on Thursday, which would “prohibit immigrants, of any nationality, who have illegally entered the United States from ever obtaining legal citizenship.”

'There can be NO citizenship for the nearly 20 MILLION people who live here illegally.'

If passed, Mills’ bill would amend the existing Immigration and Nationality Act to state, “No alien who enters the United States unlawfully shall be eligible for naturalization, notwithstanding any other provision of the immigration laws.”

Mills said, “Under the Biden administration, we saw more than 10 million encounters at our borders, a crisis exacerbated by reckless catch-and-release policies that allowed criminals who broke our laws to remain in the United States.”

“President Trump has made it clear that anyone that tries to unlawfully undermine, exploit, or bypass our immigration system is a criminal,” he continued. “The No Citizenship for Alien Invaders Act will ensure these criminals will never be granted U.S. citizenship; that privilege will be reserved for those who respect our laws.”

The proposed legislation already has several co-sponsors, including Republican Reps. Josh Brecheen (Okla.), Andy Harris (Md.), and Anna Paulina Luna (Fla.).

Brecheen explained that the bill would prevent illegal immigrants from “being rewarded with citizenship after breaking our laws.”

“America is a nation of laws, and if we allow those laws to be subverted by illegal aliens who have no constitutional right to be here in the first place, then we will cease to be a nation,” he said. “It’s time we get back to common-sense policies that restore law and order to America.”

Luna stated, “Time and time again, Congress refuses to enforce our immigration laws, complains about it being broken, promises to ‘fix it for good’ in exchange for amnesty programs, and then never actually enforces the law like they promised.”

“We need to draw a line in the sand for the sake of the American people: There can be NO citizenship for the nearly 20 MILLION people who live here illegally,” she added.

Earlier this week, Mills also introduced the Prohibiting Automatic Rights to Enter National Territory Act, which would close birthright citizenship loopholes.

This bill would also amend the INA, adding language that would ensure that only those born to at least one parent who is a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident would receive birthright citizenship.

Mills noted that the proposed legislation adds to President Donald Trump’s executive order that similarly sought to close birthright citizenship loopholes.

“For decades, criminal migrants have exploited loopholes in our immigration system, undermining our nation’s sovereignty, straining taxpayer resources, and ignoring the rule of law,” Mills said. “By amending the Immigration and Nationality Act, the PARENT Act seeks to end the abuse and reaffirm the principles of American citizenship and our constitutional republic.”

“Building on President Trump’s efforts to protect American sovereignty, this bill ensures birthright citizenship is reserved for those with a legal right to be here. It’s past time to restore integrity to our laws and put American citizens first,” he added.

Harris also co-sponsored Mills’ PARENT Act.

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GOP lawmakers move to codify DOGE to block left's lawfare



A group of Republican lawmakers plans to introduce legislation that would codify President Donald Trump's executive order that established the Department of Government Efficiency.

If passed, the legislation would help to block the DOGE from the left's lawfare over the next year and a half.

'It's critical that we codify this consequential endeavor.'

Fox News Digital reported that Rep. Cory Mills (R-Fla.) is leading the bill alongside Reps. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.), Barry Moore (R-Ala.), and Michael Rulli (R-Ohio). House DOGE Caucus co-chair Aaron Bean (R-Fla.) is co-sponsoring the legislation.

Mills told the news outlet that the DOGE has provided "a new IT software that has the interoperability to work between all governments and agencies," allowing the Trump administration to perform more analysis and data mining, updating outdated federal government software.

"It's already found over $100-plus billion in cost savings," Mills said, highlighting the cancellation of more than 200,000 unused credit cards.

"I think that codifying this into law, not just having it as an executive order, is really the right thing to do for government transparency and efficiency," he continued.

While enshrining the DOGE would help to protect it from Democratic lawfare, it would also enable the federal government to implement a "reporting structure" between the department and Congress to ensure lawmakers are "good stewards of the taxpayers' funding," Mills said. He noted that this would especially be helpful for programs that failed to meet their intended purposes and, therefore, need to be cut.

Mills also discussed how the United States Digital Services, a technology unit formed by President Barack Obama in 2014 to update and simplify the federal government's technology, has utilized "outdated software programs that didn't look at certain government efficiencies."

He credited Elon Musk for modernizing the USDS program by creating an "algorithm" that "sifts through all these different programs, 24 hours a day, to look at anomalies." This process has allowed the Trump administration to determine which government programs need a more thorough review for waste and abuse, Mills explained.

He called the DOGE "one of the most transparent government agencies or departments that you're going to find."

Mills believes the DOGE's frequent website and X updates will help to rebuild the public's trust in the federal government.

Many of the department's actions have come under legal scrutiny from the left, which has filed a flurry of restraining orders to block the Trump administration's efforts to trim government waste.

On Tuesday, a federal judge accused the Trump administration of violating the Constitution by attempting to shut down the U.S. Agency for International Development. The judge argued that the administration illegally circumvented Congress.

Last week, U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan ordered Musk and the DOGE to turn over records regarding their plans to downsize the federal government in response to a lawsuit filed by 14 Democratic state attorneys general.

Rep. Donalds stated, "Now more than ever, it's critical that we codify this consequential endeavor into federal law."

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Trump tears into Thomas Massie over CR opposition: 'HE SHOULD BE PRIMARIED'



President Donald Trump lashed out at Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, who said on Monday that he would vote against the GOP-led continuing resolution.

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) can afford to lose only one Republican vote on the CR given his party's historically narrow House majority. Democrats have also vowed to vote against the CR, leaving Johnson with the challenge of rallying every Republican behind the bill.

Massie, arguably the most principled fiscal conservative in Congress, already claimed the sole "no" vote the conference can spare, adding to the mounting pressure on Republicans. Trump, in turn, took to Truth Social to air his grievances.

'Someone thinks they can control my voting card by threatening my re-election. Guess what? Doesn’t work on me.'

"Congressman Thomas Massie, of beautiful Kentucky, is an automatic 'NO' vote on just about everything, despite the fact that he has always voted for Continuing Resolutions in the past," Trump said. "HE SHOULD BE PRIMARIED, and I will lead the charge against him."

"He's just another GRANDSTANDER, who's too much trouble, and not worth the fight," Trump added. "He reminds me of Liz Cheney before her historic, record breaking fall (loss!). The people of Kentucky won't stand for it, just watch."

While Trump's condemnation would have worked on most Republicans, Massie has been famously immune to the political pressures of GOP leadership, and that includes the president.

Behind the scenes, Republican leadership has been hustling to get the CR passed.

"Someone thinks they can control my voting card by threatening my re-election," Massie said. "Guess what? Doesn’t work on me. Three times I’ve had a challenger who tried to be more MAGA than me. None busted 25% because my constituents prefer transparency and principles over blind allegiance."

Massie is always considered an immovable "no" vote in every spending fight, leaving the rest of the Republican conference to sink or swim. Apart from Massie, several Republicans are still on the fence about Tuesday's CR vote, including Reps. Tim Burchett of Tennessee, Cory Mills of Florida, Tony Gonzales of Texas, Rich McCormick of Georgia, Beth Van Duyne of Texas, Kat Cammack of Florida, Andy Ogles of Tennessee, and Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania.

Despite some holdouts, Johnson is gunning for a repeat of February's reconciliation vote, where Republicans voted in lockstep to get the budget blueprint passed, with Massie as the only exception.

Behind the scenes, Republican leadership has been hustling to get the CR passed.

OMB Director Russ Vought met with members of the House Freedom Caucus and adjacent fiscal conservatives in early March to pitch the Trump-backed funding bill ahead of the vote, as Blaze News first reported. Trump also met with the same group 48 hours later in order to rally remaining Republican holdouts. As a result, the HFC officially endorsed the CR despite historically opposing CRs generally.

It's clear that Republicans are putting in the work. Now we will have to wait and see if it pays off.

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Deep state in ‘survival mode’: Can Trump stop Russia from going to WAR with Biden?



Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has fired American-made long-range missiles to attack Russia — which Vladimir Putin had previously said would be a red line.

“Whoever is president of the United States, let’s just use air quotes and say ‘Joe Biden,’ told Ukraine that they could use those long-range missiles,” Glenn Beck of “The Glenn Beck Program” tells Rep. Cory Mills, disturbed.

Putin has declared that an action like this will be “treated as a joint assault on Russia.”

“For four years, Ukraine had been asking for long-range capabilities, have been asking to be able to hit within the outlying areas inside of Russia in an effort to try and prevent continual assaults, and it was denied, denied, denied,” Mills comments, noting that as Trump’s presidency nears, they’re “continuing to try and spiral things further out of control.”


However, while he’s admittedly concerned, he also believes that Trump is the right man to get America through this unscathed.

“The benefit we have, however, is that we have an exceptionally strong president coming in, and every one of the world leaders knows that President Trump does not suffer fools and that he does not have the weakness, which invites aggression,” he says.

“I think that both Putin and Zelenskyy understand that President Trump coming in is not going to necessarily say, ‘It’s OK for you guys to continue this back and forth, it’s OK to continue the atrocious events that are occurring.’ He’s going to come with an actual solution and say, ‘What kind of sanctioning, what kind of imposement,’ because remember, it was President Trump who actually removed America from the INF Treaty, which had been violated by Russia time and time again,” he continues.

“So people know this. They’re taking notice. But it’s disturbing to me that President Biden is doing everything he can to leave president Trump with the biggest mess possible, to stop him from actually getting onto the America First agenda,” he says, adding, “It also strikes me as the deep state going into survival mode.”

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'People need help': Cory Mills helps locals with Hurricane Helene relief efforts in North Carolina



SWANNANOA, N.C. — The site right outside of Asheville being used by military veterans and volunteers to distribute supplies and dispatch rescue teams used to be a Harley-Davidson dealer. Though the inside of the store is damaged from the historic flooding from Hurricane Helene, that has not stopped the effort to help people farther up the mountains.

The Harley-Davidson store is a prime location to be a supply hub, with the owner's permission. Not only is the parking lot big enough to store supplies, but there is a field next to it that is big enough to serve as an impromptu airport for the helicopters constantly flying in and out. The dealership has the feeling of a forward operating base, with so many veterans organizing communications, supply deliveries, and personnel allocation while being armed.

Blaze Media got a firsthand look at how people are working together to help the western part of the state as the federal response has been, at best, extremely slow. Congressman Cory Mills (R-Fla.) has been on the ground for the past week in collaboration with Mercury One, a nonprofit started by Blaze co-founder Glenn Beck for disaster response.

An Army veteran, Mills has made it a personal mission to help U.S. citizens when it seems the federal government that he is a part of is not doing enough, he says. This is why he helped organized rescue operations for U.S. citizens in Afghanistan, Haiti, and Israel.

"It's simple: People need help. People's lives matter. I could be sitting on a beach right now, but helping people is more important," Mills said while on a supply flight from Florida.

What makes the disaster response to Hurricane Helene victims in western North Carolina difficult is how entire communities have been cut off by washed-out roads, making them only accessible by air or hours-long treks on foot or pack animal.

This is why there were problems when President Joe Biden visited the region on Wednesday, and a no-fly zone with a 30-mile radius was implemented. Supply runs and rescue operations were put on hold for hours until the restriction was finally lifted. Biden had previously promised his visit would not disrupt missions.

'This is going to go on for months. This is going to go on for a long time.'

Mills called the visit "irresponsible" at a moment when time is of the essence for places that have been isolated for days. The helicopter flight Blaze Media was on with Mills had finished a supply run to Elk River Airport before the no-fly zone was put in place, and we sat on the tarmac for two hours.

— (@)

Locals and volunteers who have been conducting their own relief operations had similarly expressed frustrations with the Federal Emergency Management Agency because now after arriving in force days since the storm has passed, its bureaucracy is now getting in the way.

— (@)

While cities like Asheville have been stabilized, the pressing concern is for people up in the mountains who have no power with fall and winter approaching. In Pensacola, North Carolina, officials are now mainly asking for generators, fuel, portable stoves, and tools to fix the roads themselves.

"This is going to go on for months. This is going to go on for a long time," Pensacola's medical officer Mark Harrison told Blaze Media regarding the town's recovery.

The last supply drop to Pensacola on Thursday included a generator, chainsaws, oil for the chainsaws, and fuel.

On Friday, Mills announced the new shipment from Florida that will be arriving to North Carolina includes over 60 generators.

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EXCLUSIVE: Emergency responders share harrowing accounts of Hurricane Helene’s devastation: 'Never seen anything like it'



Blaze Media national correspondent Julio Rosas joined Rep. Cory Mills (R-Fla.) in North Carolina this week to assess the aftermath of Hurricane Helene and distribute supplies to those in need in small communities outside Asheville.

Aerial footage showed destroyed buildings, fallen trees, washed-out roads, and severe flooding in some areas.

'These people have taken a serious hit.'

On the ground, Blaze News spoke with individuals at Broad River Fire & Rescue.

“Probably about two inches of water in here,” one individual on the fire rescue team told Rosas, referring to inside the fire station. “And in two minutes, it was to my knees. And I looked outside, and it was chest-deep.”

The man explained that as the water rose, he retreated up the stairs to the second floor of the fire station. “The doors buckled, and the water came through,” he explained.

The rush of water moved a pickup parked at the front of the department halfway down the building, the emergency responder explained. He stated that one of the fire trucks was totaled by the flood.

“It was unbelievable,” he continued. “I’ve been here my whole life, and I’ve never seen anything like it. My grandmother talked about the 1916 flood, and from what she told me, this is on the order of that.”

Another individual on the fire rescue team stated that there was nearly six feet of water in the fire department bay.

“You can see the water mark on the wall,” he remarked.

When asked what he would like Americans to know about what is going on in the area, he told Rosas, “Just communities planning together, helping each other. Families helping families.”

“These smaller communities, a lot of the families will band together. They share their food, their water,” he added.

Another volunteer, Mike Cannon, who has 40 years of rescue experience, told Rosas that he arrived on Sunday morning.

“Words can’t describe it,” he stated. “This is the worst one I’ve been to. We’ve been to Harvey and Hurricane Florence, Tropical Storm Irene in Vermont. And those are our benchmarks, but I’ve never seen devastation like there is here in North Carolina.”

“They’ve got a lot of resources both in state and out of state and federal,” Cannon said. “But I guess my thought process on this is that there are lots of areas that are completely cut off that are gonna take a long time for help to get into them. And the power grid does not look good around here. I would imagine that that’s going to take some time to repair and these people are going to need a lot of help.”

“I know they’re probably resilient, like a lot of people are, but these people have taken a serious hit here in their personal lives and their property,” he added.

He noted that the landslides in the area were like none he had ever seen before.

“Just a recon flight in this one fire district that we’re in, I counted over 125 landslides yesterday and I stopped counting,” Cannon said.

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'Bull****. This is systemic': Army won't identify consequences for briefing that designated pro-life groups as terrorists



Members of the House Armed Services Committee grilled the U.S. Army's deputy chief of staff for operations, plans, and training this week over the recent revelation that nearly 10,000 soldiers at North Carolina's Fort Liberty — called Fort Bragg prior to the Biden-Harris administration — were trained to believe that pro-life organizations qualify as "terrorist groups."

Lt. Gen. Patrick Matlock suggested during the Thursday hearing that corrective action has been taken, though he was altogether light on details, refusing to indicate whether someone had actually been fired, suspended, and/or demoted for likening champions of the unborn to mass-killing jihadists.

Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.), chairman of the subcommittee on military personnel, and members from both parties did not appear to be buying what Matlock was selling — especially his piece about accountability.

"I think the reason that you can't answer the question is because you know and we know that no one has ever been held accountable for this training that started in 2017 and occurred until a few months ago," said Banks. "I think that's a big embarrassment for the U.S. Army."

"It's dangerous; it's a bad pattern," added Banks, who stressed at the outset that the Biden-Harris Pentagon and the U.S. Army are undermining the First Amendment and "targeting conservative speech and values."

Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) suggested that letting this happen for nearly seven years and then remaining mum on what the consequences are when finally called out serve only to "increase the recidivism of this type of behavior."

"He's literally saying that we have no idea whether or not it's going on in other locations in the Army," said Florida Rep. Cory Mills (R). "We have no idea whether or not this is continuing as it has for seven-plus years."

'Peaceful pro-life Americans are labeled "terrorists."'

Blaze News previously reported that a slide from the Fort Liberty anti-terrorism awareness training session was posted on social media on July 10 by DOD whistleblower Samuel Shoemate.

Shoemate received the image from a U.S. Army soldier who sat through the training meeting.

That same soldier told Blaze News, "The briefing was simply a class on how to be a gate guard and what to look for when on duty."

"Gate guard duty is something all of us have to do from time to time. It was presented by a DOD civilian, not an anti-terrorism officer," added the soldier.

The offending slide, which appeared immediately after a section on the mass-raping, mass-killing jihadist group ISIS, was labeled "Terrorist Groups" and featured the logos of National Right to Life and Operation Rescue.

It also featured an image of a customized "Choose Life" license plate — the kind sold in at least 33 states and the District of Columbia to help raise money for crisis pregnancy centers.

The slide noted that extra to opposing "Row [sic] v Wade," these supposed terrorist groups engage in picketing, demonstrations and protest, and mass sidewalk counseling.

"Only under the Biden administration can peaceful law-abiding citizens and their peaceful activities be considered 'terrorism,'" NRL president Carol Tobias responded at the time. "The Biden administration promotes the deaths of preborn babies and advocates for unlimited abortion, but peaceful pro-life Americans are labeled 'terrorists.'"

Blaze News' Steve Baker, the investigative journalist who originally spoke to the soldier who first exposed the pro-life group's misleading characterization in the Army briefing, said, "That slide is devastating."

"Can you imagine a soldier's wife with one of these pro-life bumper stickers, of which there are millions across the country, pulling up to a guard gate at Fort Liberty or Fort Wherever, and all of a sudden, the guard who sat through that training where that slide was showed ... immediately figures the soldier's wife and the two kids in the back seat for terrorists on the level of ISIS?" said Baker.

Despite the appearance that the Army has an issue with Americans harboring pro-life views, Matlock alleged Thursday that the Army is unbiased, that there was "no political motivation behind the training," and that the issue was localized.

'Bull****. This is systemic.'

Baker cast doubt on Matlock's claims.

The Army initially implied in July that the slide was an aberration, stating that "the slides presented on social media were not vetted by the appropriate approval authorities" and that they "do not reflect the views of the XVIII Airborne Corps and Fort Liberty, the U.S. Army, or the Department of Defense."

However, Baker noted that military whistleblower Samuel Shoemate of Terminal CWO was soon inundated with calls and messages from all over the country "saying, basically, 'bull****. This is systemic. We've seen it in our own bases and in our own briefings.'"

Baker underscored that the systemic antipathy for Americans with pro-life views at the Pentagon has made its way down to the lowest rungs but that this ideological capture has been years in the making.

"The decapitation and replacement of the military's leadership began in earnest during the Obama administration," said Baker. The bulk of the top brass were "dismissed and replaced for nothing more than philosophical and political reasons."

Now, the senior leadership is largely made up of political activists, said Baker.

Baker's recent exclusive report about how the Pentagon dropped the ball on the Jan. 6, 2021, riot highlighted the fallout in the military of the prioritization of politics over strategy and effectiveness.

Baker and Joseph M. Hanneman detailed various indications that career officials at the Pentagon interfered with the deployment of the National Guard on Jan. 6 over fear of bad "optics."

"This can only be solved by the next commander in chief," said Baker. "He's the only one that can solve it. He's the only one that will have the authority to go in and replace those political activist generals, admirals, and the rest of the leadership within the Pentagon, both enlisted and civilian."

It's clear which commander in chief Baker has in mind.

"It's not going to be fixed under a Harris-Walz administration, because this activism falls in line with their ideals, their values, their desire to use the military as a social engineering playground," said the investigative journalist.

Subcommittee Chairman Banks noted in his prepared remarks, "The Army is using an overly broad policy to police the speech of conservative service members, quiet dissent, and require service members who believe in conservative ideals to hide their identities for fear of retaliation from their commands."

Danielle Runyan, senior counsel at First Liberty Institute, the legal outfit representing the whistleblower, said in a statement Thursday, "Once again, the Army was caught exercising clear viewpoint discrimination in their training slides — offering that some views and religious exercise are worthy of punishment."

"We are thankful the House Armed Services Committee and the 88 members who sent a letter to the Army are committed to holding their feet to the fire. The flagrant lack of political neutrality in our military must be rectified immediately," added Runyan.

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