‘The Suicide Squad’: How Democrats keep blowing themselves up



Donald Trump, now in his second term, has executed a political masterstroke — cornering Democrats into the unpopular side of nearly every 80/20 issue. From transgender athletes in women’s sports and the DOGE to the airstrike on Iran’s nuclear sites, he’s boxed them in. But Trump isn’t the Democrats’ biggest threat. Their worst enemy is themselves — and the radical candidates they continue to put forward.

The truth is that the left has always flirted with the absurd. Leftists rant that the rich must “pay their fair share,” but can’t define what “fair” means. They champion equity over equality and preach that government handouts — not markets — will lift the poor and working class. This worldview teeters between naivete and madness.

The Democratic Party isn’t just drifting — it’s accelerating toward the cliff. And no one pushed the Democrats. They drove themselves.

Then came 2018, when “the Squad” stormed Congress and dragged the party from the edge of absurdity into full-blown lunacy.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez — raised in a comfortable New York suburb — rebranded herself as “Alex from the block” in the Bronx. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota dismissed 9/11 as “some people did something” and still won a seat in Congress. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan was censured — by both parties — for chanting “from the river to the sea” after Hamas massacred Jews on Oct. 7, 2023. In 2020, Jamaal Bowman of New York joined their ranks and was later caught on video pulling a Capitol fire alarm to delay a budget vote. His excuse? He thought it would “unlock a door.”

Some Squad members have lost re-election bids, but the core group marches on, peddling the Green New Deal, defunding police, and attending Fighting Oligarchy rallies via private jet.

Meanwhile, Soros-backed prosecutors decriminalize shoplifting, eliminate cash bail, and release repeat offenders. These are not policy missteps — they are self-inflicted wounds. And Republicans couldn’t ask for better material.

Enter Zohran Mamdani — the 33-year-old Democratic Socialist running for New York City mayor. His platform makes Bernie Sanders look centrist.

Mamdani wants to defund police, make New York a sanctuary city, and jack up the minimum wage to $30 an hour. He calls for rent freezes, free buses, and city-run grocery stores — as if the Soviet model didn’t already prove that government-run markets lead to scarcity and dysfunction.

RELATED: Vance on Mamdani: ‘Who the hell does he think that he is?’

  Photo by Kenny Holston/The New York Times/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Even more alarming is his plan to “shift the tax burden” from homeowners in the outer boroughs to “richer and whiter neighborhoods.” That’s not policy — that’s race-based redistribution.

And his foreign policy? Mamdani wants to “globalize the intifada.” That’s a genocidal rallying cry, and New York’s Jewish community should treat it like the five-alarm fire it is.

So can the Democrats still correct course? Can the party of JFK and FDR find its footing again?

One glimmer of sanity remains: Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania. Despite his hoodie-and-shorts aesthetic, to say nothing of the stroke that nearly killed him in 2022, he has emerged as a lonely voice of reason. He has called out the party’s excesses. But will anyone listen? Or will the Democrats toss him aside for failing the purity test?

The Democratic Party isn’t just drifting — it’s accelerating toward the cliff. And no one pushed the Democrats. They drove themselves.

Former Obama Staffer Who Wished Death on Trump Finds New Work for Zohran Mamdani

A former Obama administration staffer who once publicly wished death on President Donald Trump has found new work as a communications consultant for Zohran Mamdani.

The post Former Obama Staffer Who Wished Death on Trump Finds New Work for Zohran Mamdani appeared first on .

Voters loved the socialist slogans. Now comes the fine print.



Zohran Mamdani’s surprise victory over Andrew Cuomo in last week’s New York City Democratic mayoral primary catapulted a full-bodied Democratic Socialist program onto the national marquee. In his midnight speech, he claimed, “A life of dignity should not be reserved for a fortunate few.” His win marks Gotham’s sharpest left turn in a generation — and that’s saying something.

The recipients of his promise are slated to receive an economic makeover that treats prices as political failures. His platform freezes rents on more than 1 million apartments, builds 200,000 publicly financed “social housing” units, rolls out city-owned grocery stores, makes buses fare-free, and lifts the minimum wage to $30 by 2030, all bankrolled by roughly $10 billion in new corporate and millionaire taxes.

If Mamdani’s program collapses under its own weight, the case for limited government will write itself in boarded-up windows and outbound moving vans.

A week later, reality is beginning to set in.

Mamdani means what he says. On his watch, public safety would become a piggy bank. During the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests, Mamdani posted, “No, we want to defund the police.” He wasn’t being metaphorical. His current blueprint would shift billions from the NYPD into a new “Department of Community Safety” — even as felony assaults on seniors have doubled since 2019.

Mamdani’s program may feel aspirational to affluent progressives, yet to many New Yorkers it lands like an ultimatum.

Forty-two percent of renter households already spend more than 30% of their income on shelter; now they are told higher business taxes and a slimmer police presence are the price of utopia, which helps explain why tens of thousands of households making between $32,000 and $65,000 — the city’s economic backbone — have left for other states in just the past few years.

Picture a deli cashier in the Bronx. She’s not reading City Hall memos, but she feels the squeeze when rent rises and her boss mutters about new taxes. She doesn’t frame her frustration as a debate about “big government” — but she knows when it’s harder to get by and when it’s less safe walking home. The politics of the city aren’t abstract to her. They’re personal.

Adding insult to injury, the job Mamdani wants comes with a salary of roughly $258,750 a year — more than three times the median city household income — plus the chauffeurs, security details, and gilt-edged benefits package that accompany the office. Telling overtaxed commuters that their groceries will now be “public options” while banking a quarter-million dollars in guaranteed pay is the policy equivalent of riding past them in a limousine and rolling down the window just long enough to raise their rent.

Layer onto that record a set of statements many Jewish New Yorkers regard as outright hostility. Mamdani is one of the loudest champions of the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement; last year he pushed a bill to bar certain New York charities from sending money to Israeli causes and defended the chant “globalize the intifada,” drawing sharp rebukes from city rabbis. The day after Hamas massacred 1,200 Israelis on October 7, 2023, he blamed the bloodshed on “apartheid” and “occupation.”

All this lands in a metropolis with the world’s largest Jewish community outside Israel — about 1.4 million residents — whose synagogues, schools, and small businesses have weathered a steady rise in hate crimes. For them, a would-be mayor who treats Israel as a pariah and shrugs at chants of intifada isn’t dabbling in foreign policy; he’s telegraphing contempt for their safety and identity at home.

Republicans see an inadvertent gift. Mamdani’s New York will soon be measured against the lower-tax, police-friendly model many red states — especially my home, Florida — have advertised for years.

Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis’ Law Enforcement Recruitment Bonus Program has mailed more than 7,800 after-tax checks of $5,000 to officers relocating from 49 states, including hundreds from New York precincts, while Florida touts a 50-year low in index-crime reports and unemployment below the national average. IRS data shows Florida netted 33,019 New York households in the latest year, with average adjusted gross income near $185,000.

Project those trend lines a few years and Mamdani’s New York grows grim: a shrunken police force responding to more 911 calls; fare-free buses draining MTA dollars and stranding riders; municipal groceries undercutting bodegas until subsidies vanish; office-tower vacancies sapping property tax receipts just as social housing bills come due. The skyline still gleams, but plywood fronts and “For Lease” placards scar street level. Meanwhile states that fund cops, respect paychecks, and let entrepreneurs stock the shelves siphon away residents and revenue.

RELATED: Don’t let rural America become the next New York City

  Terraxplorer via iStock/Getty Images

Republicans running in 2026 scarcely need to draft the attack ads, yet they must pair fiscal sobriety with moral urgency — protecting the vulnerable, rewarding work, and defending faith. Mamdani’s primary victory shows romantic egalitarianism still electrifies young voters; statistics alone won’t counter a pledge of universal child care and rent freezes. This indeed won’t be a case of “promises made, promises kept.”

If his program collapses under its own weight, the case for limited government will write itself in boarded-up windows and outbound moving vans.

Should the city somehow thrive — safer streets, balanced books, real wage gains — progressives will demand that Congress replicate Mamdani’s policies nationwide. That is federalism at its most honest: two competing philosophies running side by side under the same national sky, with citizens free to relocate from one laboratory to the other.

For now, the lab results favor the model that backs the blue, protects the paycheck, and keeps the ladder of opportunity in good repair. Voters — and U-Hauls — are already keeping score. By decade’s end, the scoreboard will show which vision truly loved New York’s working families and which merely loved the sound of its own ideals.

Meet the 'Radical' Abortion Activist and 'Defund the Police' Advocate Behind the Democratic Party's $20 Million Campaign to 'Understand Men'

The Democratic Party's widely ridiculed campaign to spend $20 million on a "strategic plan" to "study young men" was spearheaded by the former president of a left-wing activist group that supported efforts to "defund the police," denounced the Supreme Court nomination of "frat boy" Brett Kavanaugh, and attacked "white women" for upholding "the patriarchy."

The post Meet the 'Radical' Abortion Activist and 'Defund the Police' Advocate Behind the Democratic Party's $20 Million Campaign to 'Understand Men' appeared first on .

Jake Tapper Finally Notices His Beloved Democrats Are Woke Scolds Who Hate Men and Think Everything Is Racist

Jake Tapper, the CNN host who promoted false Democratic talking points about Joe Biden's mental acuity before writing a best-selling book about the "cover-up," slammed his beloved political party this week for behaving like a bunch of woke scolds who are obsessed with racism and routinely denigrate normal men. Tapper discussed his belated epiphany—many years after the Democratic Party started hating men and denouncing everything as racist—on a podcast with tech baron Scott Galloway, recounting his appearance on a "left-leaning podcast" where one the hosts made a "joke" about how his teenage son might be racist because he wants to be a police officer.

The post Jake Tapper Finally Notices His Beloved Democrats Are Woke Scolds Who Hate Men and Think Everything Is Racist appeared first on .

Austin Metcalf’s death sparks outrage — and opportunism



The death of 17-year-old Austin Metcalf at a track meet in Frisco, Texas, is every parent’s nightmare. The circumstances make the loss even more devastating. Metcalf, a student at Memorial High School, was stabbed in the chest by another teen, Karmelo Anthony, after a brief argument.

Anthony, a student at Centennial High School, was reportedly sitting under the tent reserved for Memorial High. A witness told police that Metcalf asked Anthony to move. When Anthony refused, Metcalf reportedly grabbed him. At that point, according to the witness, Anthony pulled out a knife, stabbed Metcalf once in the chest, and fled the scene.

The people pushing identity politics are long on hubris and short on wisdom.

Police later arrested Anthony and charged him with first-degree murder. His bail was set at $1 million.

Austin’s twin brother, Hunter Metcalf, held him during his final moments, making the situation even more tragic.

As often happens — especially online — the story of Austin Metcalf’s death quickly shifted from a tragedy about a young life lost and a grieving family to a debate about race.

Metcalf was white. The accused, Karmelo Anthony, is black. Social media users, particularly on X, widely claimed that the case would have drawn national headlines and sparked protests if their races were reversed.

But the facts don’t support claims of media silence. NBC News, ABC News, and Fox News all covered the incident.

Still, accusations of selective coverage illustrate a broader frustration with “outrage inequity” — the notion that moral outrage and condemnation often hinge on the racial identities of both the victim and the accused. The primary indication of this phenomenon is the uneven application of moral indignation and condemnation based on particular victim-perpetrator color combinations.

Critics argue that progressives frequently engage in this pattern, particularly when racially motivated hate crimes make headlines.

In 2022, for example, Payton Gendron drove three hours to a supermarket in Buffalo, New York, where he fatally shot 10 black people. That attack allowed liberal commentators to reinforce a familiar narrative: White violence against black Americans stems from “whiteness” and “white supremacy.”

Progressives often cite slavery, Jim Crow-era lynchings, and even verbal altercations between people of different races as proof of a persistent hatred embedded in white identity.

Rise of the ‘woke right’

A growing number of conservatives use incidents like Austin Metcalf’s killing to support their preferred narratives. They see Karmelo Anthony’s actions as a reflection of a much broader pathology among blacks and cite violent crime statistics to prove their point.

Some attribute these outcomes to culture, specifically the breakdown of the nuclear family and fatherlessness. Others believe the dysfunction is a matter of blood and bone, citing lower IQ scores and genetics as the main culprit.

The increasing prevalence of this rhetoric among conservatives is a microcosm of a much bigger phenomenon: the rise of the race-conscious right. Some people use “woke right” to describe this ascendant ideology, but the specific terminology is less important than the reality it describes.

The political left is notorious for making everything about race. Any incident that involves a white person doing something negative to a black person is strained through a racial prism. Police shootings and incarceration statistics are the clearest examples. Disparities in education outcomes and household income are another.

The left’s overarching narrative is that black people in America face unique obstacles because our institutions are infected with anti-black racism. No amount of evidence to the contrary moves them from that position.

Conservatives historically responded to this narrative by promoting “colorblindness,” treating people as individuals, cautioning blacks to resist self-pity, and encouraging them to embrace personal responsibility. In fact, the right regularly chastises liberals for painting police with a broad brush based on the actions of a few “bad apples.” Their message was always clear and consistent: Don’t engage in hasty judgments or sweeping generalizations that tempt you into seeing entire groups as villains or yourself as a victim.

Animus without evidence

That is no longer the case, and the parallels between the race-obsessed left and right are becoming increasingly clear.

One is assuming racial animus is at play — often without sufficient evidence — when you feel attacked by public institutions. For instance, activists on the left saw George Floyd as the living embodiment of the historical oppression black men have faced in America at the hands of racist police. That idea persists to this day, even though prosecutors stated there was no evidence Derek Chauvin’s actions were racially motivated.

The right’s rhetoric during much of Daniel Penny’s criminal trial made it clear that for some, he was the embodiment of the current persecution of white males in American society. It wasn’t just that Penny was being punished for standing up to a mentally ill homeless man. They believed that Penny was being prosecuted because the black District Attorney Alvin Bragg was bent on weaponizing the justice system against a straight white male in New York City.

Another example of conservative race-consciousness is the tendency to individualize in-group misdeeds while collectivizing the sins of out-groups. This explains why conservative commentators would never think to insert a racial descriptor when discussing teachers who have sex with students, even though it feels like every week brings another incident involving white women engaging in inappropriate conduct with teens.

Likewise, for all their time spent fighting against trans ideology, influencers on the right don’t make a habit of describing its most vocal proponents in racial terms. White abusers and perverts only have to answer for their own behavior, while black people who misbehave in public are seen as representatives of a larger group.

Both sides also make a habit of turning isolated tragedies into existential crises. Progressive pundits stoking the flames of race explain why a black man living in Brooklyn comes to feel “white supremacists” are the real threat to his life even though every shooter in his neighborhood shares his complexion. Likewise, conservatives who live in all-white neighborhoods repost old videos of black criminals halfway across the country with captions claiming their children are under attack.

From Robin DiAngelo to David Duke

Even the quick expressions of forgiveness from Austin Metcalf’s father were ridiculed by some conservatives online. This mirrors the frustration black commentators expressed after family members of Dylann Roof’s victims forgave him two days after he shot nine black churchgoers at a church in South Carolina.

One of the worst parts about the rise in right-wing race consciousness is that it was completely predictable. Progressives spent years arguing that white people are the cause of all the country’s problems. Pundits who love to lecture conservatives about embracing Ibram X. Kendi-style “antiracism” regularly said the vilest things on TV about white people. Over the past few decades, the left went from fighting against racism to publicly waging war against “whiteness.”

The fact that most of the people running the institutions — from universities to Fortune 500 companies — are white doesn’t lessen the damage. Only a complete fool would think you can demonize the largest ethnic group in your country without some type of blowback.

Unfortunately, the people pushing identity politics are long on hubris and short on wisdom. Not only do they reduce Americans down to their immutable traits, but they also create the perfect breeding ground for extremist views. Simply put, when you “sow” Robin DiAngelo, you will “reap” David Duke. This is not unique to white people. Rejection of moderation almost always leads to radicalism.

It’s not entirely clear where we go from here as a nation, but I wish both liberals and conservatives alike would turn down the racial rhetoric. This is one reason Austin Metcalf’s father pleaded with people not to make his son’s death about race or politics. Through his grief, he intuitively understands that seeing victims of crime as pieces to be moved around a cultural chessboard is a sign of a sick society that places a higher value on political narratives than on preserving life. This applies equally to the left and right.

Murder is wrong because every person is made in the image of God. It shouldn’t be hard for pundits on either side of the aisle to say.

Blaze News original: LA sheriff threw deputy to federal wolves to appease liberal mob, union rep says



As Blaze News reported last week, a Los Angeles County deputy with a stellar record is staring down hard time in federal prison after a suspect accused him of using excessive force during a 2023 arrest. Evidence now indicates that L.A. County Sheriff Robert Luna may have prompted a federal investigation into the incident, leaving deputies and other personnel feeling betrayed.

Blaze News caught up with the deputy's attorney, Tom Yu, as well as a spokesman for the Los Angeles Sheriff's Professional Association, Nick Wilson, to better understand the prevailing sentiment among L.A. County deputies about this case and to learn why they hope Deputy Trevor Kirk may yet avoid time behind bars.

'Safely handcuff the suspect': Deputy Kirk and a fateful detainment

On June 24, 2023, Deputy Trevor Kirk and another deputy drove to the WinCo supermarket in Lancaster, California, in response to a report of a possible robbery in progress involving a man and a woman. A source affiliated with LASPA told Blaze News that the woman had been "caught in the act."

When loss prevention officers confronted the suspects in the case — Damon Barnes and Jacy Houseton — the suspects allegedly assaulted the officers. According to reports, Houseton even pulled down her face mask and spat on one of security guards.

Kirk and the other deputy encountered Barnes and Houseton in the parking lot outside the store, identifying them as individuals who matched the suspects' description.

Though Barnes ran his mouth a bit, he was otherwise detained without incident. Houseton was a different story.

'She took a swing at him, backed off, and then continued to actively resist arrest.'

While deputies placed Barnes in handcuffs, Houseton stood nearby filming with her cell phone. Having already identified her as the other suspect in the alleged robbery and possible assault, Kirk then reached for her cell phone.

After a brief scuffle, Kirk brought Houseton to the ground, at which point she began accusing him of "manhandling" her. She also repeatedly threatened to sue Kirk and hollered phrases often associated with George Floyd and Eric Garner, who both died during encounters with law enforcement: "Get your neck [sic] off my … off my … I can’t breathe."

Houseton continued to yell and flail about. She also appeared to disobey orders to put her hands behind her back, so Kirk pepper-sprayed her in the face on two separate occasions.

Houseton later received treatment for injuries.

Bodycam video of the incident can be seen below:

— (@)  
 

A summary of the incident from the Department of Justice painted a grim picture of Kirk's actions. "Kirk grabbed J.H. by her arm, hooked his left hand behind her neck, and violently threw her face-first to the ground," it said. It also accused him of pressing his knee into Houseton's neck and failing to issue her the proper commands.

In February, Kirk, a 32-year-old Army veteran and father of two, was convicted by a federal jury of one felony count of deprivation of rights under color of law, an offense that carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. According to court records, it took jurors just two hours to render their verdict.

In reporting on Kirk's conviction, KCAL described the incident as a "vicious assault" involving a "disgraced deputy."

Attorney Tom Yu and LASPA representative Nick Wilson are frustrated with the way the incident has been framed by federal investigators and critics.

For one thing, by all accounts, Kirk has an "outstanding" record, Yu said. Kirk is well liked in the department and has no other allegations of misconduct against him or any poor performance reviews.

With regard to the incident with Houseton, Wilson told Blaze News that Kirk used only "minimal force" that qualified as a low-level, "category 1" use of force, as listed in the policies of the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department.

Wilson also claimed that Houseton had been "resistive" and "violent" during the encounter with Kirk. "She took a swing at Trevor Kirk when he first went to detain her and put hands on," he said. "She took a swing at him, backed off, and then continued to actively resist arrest."

"Deputies are trained to take suspects who resist to the ground in order to gain compliance and to safely handcuff the suspect," Yu said in a statement in the days following the incident.

What's more, both Barnes and Houseton have a criminal history. Barnes has a string of arrests dating back to 1987, including convictions for arson, weapons and drug offenses, and resisting an officer. He was also accused of robbery in 1995. Houseton was convicted of assault with a deadly weapon in 2005 but had that conviction effectively dismissed from her record three years later, presumably after satisfying the terms of her probation.

To be fair, Yu noted, Kirk did not know about those prior convictions when he met the pair in the parking lot that day. However, Kirk also did not know whether they were armed, though it turns out they were not.

Neither Barnes nor Houseton was ever charged in connection with the alleged robbery of the WinCo store, which KCAL-TV later downplayed as merely a possible "shoplifting," or the alleged assault on the loss prevention officers.

Houseton did follow through on her promise to sue the department and was reportedly awarded $1 million. At a press conference about the lawsuit, Houseton claimed Kirk "tried to kill" her and implied that the excessive force was racially motivated.

Her attorney, Caree Harper, added, "It doesn't happen to white folks like this, and we're not gonna have it happening to black folks like this."

WinCo did not respond to a request for comment from Blaze News.

'Hanging deputies out to dry': Sheriff Luna gets involved

An internal affairs investigation was initiated almost immediately following the detainment at WinCo, and the fallout might have been kept in house but for one problem: Video of the encounter between Kirk and Houseton had already been made public. Activist groups — including Cancel the Contract Antelope Valley, a far-left "social justice" organization — quickly planned demonstrations denouncing what they viewed as another racially charged instance of police brutality.

"As black residents of this community, we are tired of living in fear of the police," said group co-founder Waunette Cullors.

'The sheriff buckled under political pressure.'

About a week after the incident, Sheriff Robert Luna addressed the controversy publicly, describing the video footage as "disturbing." "It's disturbing. There's no ifs, ands, buts about it," he said at a press conference.

Wilson believes that in the summer of 2023 — a time when BLM riots and "defund the police" movements continued to reverberate three years after George Floyd's death — Luna was sensitive to external pressure. "After this use of force, the civil rights community, the activist movements raised hell within the sheriff's department," Wilson told Blaze News.

Even though Kirk was reportedly "cleared at a station level," Luna decided to invite federal agencies to investigate Kirk's actions as well, Wilson claimed.

"The sheriff buckled under political pressure and made sure that this case was handed over to the DOJ for prosecution," Wilson continued, thereby "hanging deputies out to dry."

Both Wilson and Yu told Blaze News they were "certain" that Luna's office initiated federal involvement, though Luna denies it.

In a statement to Blaze News, Deputy Miesha McClendon of the Sheriff's Information Bureau claimed, "Despite allegations to the contrary, this case was not referred to the FBI nor the U.S Attorney’s Office by anyone within the Department as indicated in the official court transcript."

McClendon also added:

The Department recognizes that having one of our employees convicted by a federal jury is a significant matter, and we understand the frustration it has caused among our personnel. ... The Department will be conducting a thorough review of the case to identify any specific issues to determine if modifications to training are needed.

 Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

L.A. deputies were so outraged at the treatment of one of their own — a colleague some believe was "politically" persecuted after simply following department protocol — that upon Kirk's conviction in February, Luna held a private meeting with personnel from the Lancaster sheriff's station.

During that two-hour meeting, which was secretly recorded, Luna expressed regret for characterizing the footage as "disturbing."

He also suggested that he had nothing to do with contacting the feds about the incident. "I can tell you this with confidence that what I said that day," Luna appeared to say, referring to his "disturbing" remark, "did not have anything to do with the FBI.

"The FBI received this case from the plaintiff's attorney," Luna explained. The "plaintiff" in this case was presumably Houseton, who filed a lawsuit.

During the clips of the conversation reviewed by Blaze News, the voice identified as Luna's admits to having "failed" his team members. He also indicates that he had not personally reviewed the incident footage, which others in the room characterize as "innocuous" and not too "grievous."

Deputies also repeatedly ask Luna to use the power of his office to stand with Kirk and publicly oppose his conviction. Luna promised he would consider it.

Luna's history with law enforcement in general is rather mixed, even though he has spent his entire career as a cop, first with the Long Beach Police Department and now as the head of the largest sheriff's department in America.

Though Luna wanted to be a police officer from the time he was little, he indicated to the L.A. Times that he grew up in a community that was generally distrustful of law enforcement.

Luna also recalled to the Times an incident in which he was apparently the victim of unnecessary police aggression. "At age 13, he said, he was slammed face-first against the hood of a sheriff’s deputy’s car for crossing against a red light on his bicycle," the outlet summarized for a profile piece in October 2022, shortly before Luna was elected sheriff.

Luna also campaigned for sheriff on the promise of breaking up so-called "deputy gangs." While he has since managed to ban such gangs, he has yet to name a single deputy gang member, Wilson told Blaze News.

Additionally, Luna has a track record of handling possible instances of excessive force within his department.

During one of the occasionally violent demonstrations in the wake of George Floyd's death, an officer with the Long Beach Police Department shot a journalist with a "foam projectile," the LAist reported in 2020. LBPD — then helmed by Police Chief Luna — ultimately determined that the shooting "was within policy," the outlet said.

'To show unity': Deputies make their voices heard

The deputies of L.A. County have not taken the conviction of Kirk or Luna's alleged capitulation to leftist pressure lying down.

For example, a handful, including a sergeant, have reportedly refused to accept medals and other accolades awarded by the department. They even "refused to actually go to the awards ceremony," Wilson insisted.

'The magnitude of this boycott ... makes Luna look terrible in the law enforcement community nationwide.'

In a more widespread show of solidarity with Kirk, hundreds of L.A. deputies and other staff members have decided to boycott one of their favorite annual events: the Baker to Vegas relay. While the L.A. Sheriff's Department regularly fields two dozen or so relay teams, this year, at least 20 sheriff's stations — including Santa Clarita, West Hollywood, two detention centers, the Training Bureau, and, of course, Kirk's home station in Lancaster — are refusing to participate.

Protesting the Baker to Vegas relay is no minor demonstration. Billed as "the world’s most prestigious and unique law enforcement foot race," the event draws teams from across the country and across the globe.

"There's folks flying in from Brazil. There's folks from Australia, from Germany," Yu told Blaze News. "This is a big thing."

Yu would know. Now an attorney, Yu spent 15 years as a deputy with the LASD. The deputies who race are very "competitive," he said, often averaging five and a half minutes per mile.

"I tried out for a county-wide team," Yu recalled. "I ran a six-minute mile, and I did not make the team."

"It's to show unity," Yu explained. "It's to run for your fallen brothers and sisters, for mental health. There's a lot of suicides in law enforcement, so it's a huge race."

Wilson confirmed to Blaze News that Sheriff Luna has participated in the event and understands its importance to department staff.

"The magnitude of this boycott ... makes Luna look terrible in the law enforcement community nationwide," Wilson said.

"To have the deputies not show up, it makes Luna look terrible."

This year, the Baker to Vegas race is scheduled for April 5 and 6. Instead, many L.A. deputies are opting to participate in a 5K race to raise money for Kirk and his family.

While Yu and Wilson are expecting a good turnout for the alternative race, they claimed that Luna may be trying to spoil or otherwise interfere with the event by attempting to ascertain the individuals orchestrating it.

Wilson shared with Blaze News a screenshot of one such message, allegedly from a Luna ally:

 Screenshot shared with Blaze News. Used with permission.

Yu and Wilson believe the purpose behind these probing questions is to intimidate would-be participants and convince them not to join the Kirk race.

"We've had multiple deputies tell us and send us screenshots of friend requests and questions from Luna's staff asking who's boycotting, who is drumming this up, and applying pressure to deputies ... as a form of retaliation," Wilson said.

In the statement given to Blaze News, Officer McClendon of the information bureau addressed the accusations of intimidation:

The Department issued an internal global email on March 5, 2025, to personnel after it had received several reports from personnel who have stated they have been targeted with actions of harassment, threats of retaliation, and bullying related to participating in the Baker to Vegas race. We want to emphasize that whether or not personnel choose to participate, any form of harassment, retaliation, or misconduct will not be tolerated under any circumstances.

'No-brainer': Trump, Dhillon, and righting a wrong

Despite what Wilson calls the "cloud" hanging over the department, he, Yu, and others hold out hope that Kirk can still avoid prison time.

The clearest way for him to do so would be for the judge, a long-serving Reagan appointee, to vacate the verdict. While such an outcome may sound like a long shot, there are encouraging signs. For example, following the guilty verdict, the judge did not remand Kirk to custody, a decision which Yu described as "very rare."

'They were laughing, smiling, high-fiving each other, giving each other hugs.'

Moreover, the federal investigation into Kirk and his federal prosecution began under the Biden administration. During the trial, Wilson and Yu claimed that in a show of force, federal agencies packed the courtroom with young agency newcomers who enthusiastically supported the prosecution.

After the guilty verdict was announced, these agency supporters cheered loudly, Wilson claimed. "They were laughing, smiling, high-fiving each other, giving each other hugs," he said. "It was shocking."

With President Trump now in office, the DOJ has new leadership who may view the prosecution of Kirk in a different light. One individual with some influence in the Trump administration with strong ties to California is Harmeet Dhillon, now the assistant attorney general for the Civil Rights Division of the DOJ. Wilson, Yu, and others are hoping she will intervene on Kirk's behalf.

Dhillon's office and the DOJ did not respond to a request for comment from Blaze News.

 Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

While Dhillon is aware of Kirk's case, she likely does not know "the extent of the miscarriage of justice," Yu said. Wilson believes that if the right people in the administration get wind of Kirk's situation, they will act.

"If they understood the extent of this, this would be a no-brainer," he said.

"It's just getting the information to them."

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Seattle to ditch anti-cop initiatives that transformed city into crime haven



Seattle, Washington, one of the most liberal cities in America, has decided to honor all first responders once again and ditch the "defund the police" initiatives that have divided residents and decimated morale at the Seattle Police Department.

On March 25, council member Robert Saka introduced Resolution 32167, which recognized the vital work done by all first responders. In particular, it affirmed "the essential services provided by the Police Department."

A news release from the city council added that the resolution explicitly "reverses any prior commitment or pledge by past Councils to defund or abolish SPD," describing such efforts as a "failure."

It also noted that anti-cop measures "were routinely cited by departing police personnel as a reason for leaving." Since the city first embraced "defund the police" in the wake of George Floyd's death in 2020, more than 700 officers separated from the SPD, resulting in record-low staffing, MyNorthwest reported.

The "defund" measures also took a toll on public safety as violent crime soared. In 2017, the city recorded 27 homicides, 255 rapes, and 2,474 aggravated assaults. By 2022, the number of homicides had jumped to 54, rapes to 347, and aggravated assaults to 3,516.

In addition to ending the "defund" initiatives, the resolution reiterated the importance of holding police accountable and of providing a "diversified public safety response," which includes social workers and other "trauma-informed" personnel. It also celebrated the city's diminishing need for federal oversight.

'We acknowledge the critical role that police and fire fighters have in our community.'

Saka — who once wore a "Black Lawyers Matter" T-shirt to a Floyd-related protest and boasted of his belief "in the principles of BOTH the American Flag and the Black Lives Matter movement" — has apparently had a change of heart on the importance of police. He says he now sees anti-cop rhetoric as "very divisive."

Council member Maritza Rivera claimed her constituents have voiced concerns about "defund the police" measures for some time. Some have even asked her and other council members to "take a stance against the defund rhetoric that we’ve seen in the past in this city," she said.

For his part, Mayor Bruce Harrell seems pleased with the current trajectory of the police department. "We have created one of the most robust police accountability systems in the country. We hired more police officers last year than we lost for the first time in years, and applications are soaring," he said.

"Seattle’s first responders do amazing and heroic work every day to save lives, stop and solve crimes, and ensure people in crisis get the help and support they need. I join the City Council in celebrating the dedication and hard work of our public safety professionals and in recognizing the importance of a diversified emergency response system."

Resolution 32167 initially passed with four council members voting for it, none opposing it, and one absence. The final resolution was adopted by the full council on Tuesday.

"This resolution is about the future of public safety in Seattle," Saka said in a statement. "I’m grateful to my colleagues for their support as we continue to partner together with the mayor and the Seattle Police Department, Seattle Fire Department, and CARE Department in ensuring that everyone in Seattle feels safe and supported."

Lieutenant Kenny Stuart, president of the Seattle Fire Fighters Union, IAFF Local 27, likewise cheered the passing of the resolution. "Firefighters work hard day and night to keep our city and residents safe," he said.

"This resolution announces that Seattle has moved away from the divisions of the past and we acknowledge the critical role that police and fire fighters have in our community."

H/T: The Post Millennial

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