'This s**t shouldn't happen': Trump-hating brewer weeps after apparently doxxing federal agent



Kirk Bangstad, the twice-failed Democratic candidate who owns the Minocqua Brewing Company in Wisconsin, turned his fantasizing about President Donald Trump's death into a marketing strategy.

That strategy appears to have been short-sighted in light of federal law enforcement's recent interest in the blubbering brewer and his incendiary remarks.

How it started

Bangstad vowed in January to give fellow travelers "free beer, all day long, the day he dies," then made clear in remarks to reporters and subsequent posts that he was referring to Trump, whom he unsuccessfully attempted to block from the 2024 presidential ballot in Wisconsin.

'The FBI and Secret Service together followed up on information received.'

In the months since, the brewer has hyped his proposed Trump-death celebration, selling voodoo dolls bearing the faces of Trump administration officials and "I wish it was free beer day" T-shirts.

Bangstad — who derided Charlie Kirk immediately after the Turning Point USA founder's assassination, circulated a wanted poster for a federal agent, and called for "regime change" in the U.S. — appears to have crossed a line on April 25 where federal law enforcement is concerned.

Less than an hour after an attempt was made on the president's life at the White House Correspondents' Dinner, Bangstad wrote, "Well, we almost got #freebeerday. Either a brother or sister in the Resistance needs to work on their marksmanship or he faked another assassination to get a a [sic] positive news cycle. We'll never know. Regardless, we stand at the ready to pour free beer the day it happens."

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Nathan Howard/Getty Images (L); Apu Gomes/Getty Images (Center); President Trump via Truth Social/Anadolu/Getty Images (R)

The Democratic Party of Wisconsin and Democratic candidates apparently keen to distance themselves from this particular fellow traveler rushed to condemn Bangstad's rhetoric as "dangerous and unacceptable." They were, however, far from the only people paying attention.

How it's going

On Thursday, Bangstad claimed that he had been contacted both by the U.S. Secret Service and the FBI, then shared a transcript of an alleged voicemail from a USSS agent on Facebook, including the agent's alleged name and phone number. Bangstad proceeded to tell his followers, "Call this number and ask this secret service agent to stand down and honor his oath to his country."

In a video the woke brewer uploaded hours later regarding an alleged in-person visit from law enforcement officials, Bangstad again instructed his followers, this time with tears streaming down his cheeks, to inundate the alleged USSS agent with calls.

Bangstad — who was ordered to pay a six-figure sum for defamation in 2023 — reassures his followers in the video that if he should disappear, "it's because these guys did it, not because I did it."

He also reiterates through tears that he had apparently doxxed an agent: "And then I copy-and-pasted the voicemail that I was left by the Secret Service, and I pasted that guy's phone number, and I said, 'Call this phone number, everybody, and remind this federal agent, remind this federal agent that he has an oath that he took to his country and that he shouldn't break his oath.'"

He adds, crying, that "this s**t shouldn't happen to anybody," that the "federal government shouldn't be coming after anybody," and that he wasn't detained on Thursday but likely only because he's white.

In closing, he tells his followers that "everyone has to fight their own way."

In a statement on Friday afternoon, Bangstad continued playing the victim and accused federal agents of trying to intimidate him. He added, "Under no circumstances was the post I made last Saturday, which had me trending nationally on X by Monday, threatening to Trump (notice I didn't say President Trump)."

As of Friday afternoon, the post with the alleged name and phone number of a USSS agent remains available on the Minocqua Brewing Company Facebook page.

An attorney for Bangstad did not respond to a request for comment from Blaze News.

The U.S. Secret Service and the FBI said in a joint statement to Blaze News, "The U.S. Secret Service follows up on perceived threats against the President of the United States or any one of our protectees. The FBI and Secret Service together followed up on information received and conducted further investigative steps, which included a voluntary interview with the individual. This is an ongoing matter, and we do not have further comment."

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'Bye': Seattle mayor laughs off wealth exodus from her flagging, crime-ridden city



Katie Wilson, the 43-year-old leftist blogger elected mayor of Seattle last year, apparently finds it amusing that deep-pocketed residents and businesses are fleeing her crime-ridden city.

During a recent event at Seattle University, lecturer Joni Balter raised the matter of downtown Seattle's apparent inability to "grow job these days," noting that "the city has lost 25,000 jobs over four years, and the thinking is — the data folks say — that if you extend that out five years, it could be as high as 37,000 jobs."

'We still have the very regressive tax system.'

According to a recent report from the the Downtown Seattle Association, the Emerald City's downtown has seen a 14% decrease in brick-and-mortar retail jobs since 2010 and lost an estimated 13,000 jobs just last year, amounting to the biggest decrease in jobs since the pandemic.

The report noted further that Seattle's downtown office vacancy remained at a post-pandemic high of 25%; the central business district experienced an office vacancy rate of 32% last year, nearly double the previous high point during the Great Recession in 2009; and the combined taxable value of the 20 highest-valued properties in Seattle's downtown has declined from over $10 billion in 2021 to roughly $5.1 billion this year.

When asked about her plan to "turn that around," Wilson — who appeared on stage alongside fellow radical Girmay Zahilay, the newly elected King County executive — attributed Seattle's exodus of jobs and businesses to a number of factors including potential workers' apparent inability to afford living in or near the downtown; homelessness and public safety issues; and the "tax environment."

While apparently interested in tackling the affordability, homelessness, and public safety issues, Wilson signaled that her city's crushing taxes won't soon be changed.

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David Ryder/Bloomberg/Getty Images

Wilson, who co-founded the Transit Riders Union in 2011 and endeavored in years past to "Trump-proof Seattle," was later asked about the "taxing climate" and whether progressive taxes were an "easy and promising solution."

After noting that she found it "very exciting" that state Democrats passed a 9.9% tax on annual taxable income exceeding $1 million for individuals or households and recalling her efforts to push similar taxes in Seattle, Wilson said that claims that wealthy residents will flee the state are "super overblown."

But to those beleaguered residents who have chosen to leave or might do so in the near future, the mayor waved, said, "Bye," and laughed in concert with fellow travelers in the sparsely populated audience.

"In general, we still have the very regressive tax system, and my office is doing a lot of work to look at what our options are in terms of progressive taxation," continued Wilson. "We do have more flexibility at the city than the county, in terms of our taxing authority."

Despite Wilson's casual dismissal, high taxes in Seattle appear to be chasing jobs to cities like Bellevue.

Jon Scholes, president of the Downtown Seattle Association, suggested that Amazon's decision to relocate thousands of employees from Seattle to other King County locations was the direct result of Seattle's overwhelming tax burden, reported the Center Square. Starbucks, which is headquartered in Seattle, also appears to be angling for greener pastures.

Among the taxes the city has implemented is the Social Housing Tax, a 5% levy on employee compensation exceeding $1 million, and the JumpStart Payroll Expense Tax, which the city slapped on companies with employees making more than $150,000 annually.

"What we need is more businesses in Seattle paying taxes," said Scholes. "That's how we strengthen the tax base."

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How Much Taxpayer Money Did Democrats Spend Trying To Gerrymander Virginia?

'A big waste of money'

Suspected WHCD shooter and another would-be Trump assassin have a lot in common — and it's not just Ukraine



Nine weeks after Thomas Matthew Crooks' attempt on Donald Trump's life at a July 13, 2024, rally in Pennsylvania, Ryan Routh tried his hand at assassinating then-candidate Trump at the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida.

Cole Allen, identified as the suspect who opened fire at the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner on Saturday night, appears to share much in common with Routh.

'I'm a random Californian guy.'

Besides making donations to the same party and obsessing over the same foreign power, both Routh — who was sentenced in February to life in prison over his attempted assassination of Trump — and Allen were apparently radicalized in recent years with the help of Democrats' incendiary rhetoric.

Donations and slogans

Although not a registered member of a political party for decades, Routh, a 60-year-old North Carolina native, made multiple donations to support Democrats beginning in 2019 and voted in North Carolina's Democratic primary in March 2024.

In addition to supporting Democrats monetarily and at the ballot box, Routh supported their divisive narrative.

Former Vice President Kamala Harris and other Democrats not only characterized Trump and other Republicans as fascists and imminent threats to the republic ahead of the 2024 election but repeatedly claimed that "democracy is on the ballot in November."

In some instances, Harris — who joked in 2018 about Trump dying — coupled this claim with combative language, stating that democracy "is only as strong as our willingness to fight for it" and painting a target on Trump by referring to him as a would-be "dictator."

Then-President Joe Biden was far less subtle, stating on a July 8, 2024, phone call with donors, "We're done talking about the debate. It's time to put Trump in a bull's-eye."

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FBI outside a home associated with the suspected WHCAD shooter in Torrance, California. Patrick T. Fallon/AFP/Getty Images

Routh accepted this alarmist view, sometimes repeating Democrats' slogan verbatim.

On April 22, 2024, for instance, Routh tweeted to then-President Joe Biden, writing, "@POTUS Your campaign should be called something like KADAF. Keep America democratic and free. Trumps should be MASA ... make Americans slave again master. DEMOCRACY is on the ballot and we cannot lose. We cannot afford to fail. The world is counting on us to show the way."

Allen, like Routh, contributed a modest donation to at least one Democratic cause, a Harris-supporting Democratic PAC in October 2024, reported the Associated Press.

The suspected WHCAD shooter, who was reportedly engaged in political activism in recent years and a member of the leftist group "the Wide Awakes," also amplified unhinged anti-Trump messaging from Democrats online.

The investigative journalist behind the Substack Kanekoa News reported that ahead of the 2024 election, a X user believed to be Allen repeatedly shared alarmist social media posts on X from Kamala Harris, Democratic lawmakers, liberal media personalities, and the anti-Trump propaganda outfit MeidasTouch and amplified liberal characterizations of Trump as a fascist or Nazi.

Allen's alleged manifesto and the Bluesky account ascribed to Allen are replete with evidence suggesting that he continued to stew in alarmist Democratic propaganda in the time since the 2024 election.

For instance, the Bluesky user believed to be Allen — the handle is @coldforce.bsky.social, and Cole allegedly signed his manifesto "Cole 'coldForce' 'Friendly Federal Assassin' Allen" — shared a post from Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas) earlier this month claiming that Trump "is deranged, unstable, and unfit to lead," as well as a post from Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden (D) that stated Trump "must be impeached and removed from office" and "Republicans who don't stop him will have blood on their hands."

Ukraine obsession

Routh was unmistakably a Ukraine obsessive.

The would-be assassin:

  • ran a website called "Fight for Ukraine," which details various ways — including unlawful ways — people could supposedly go to fight as mercenaries in Ukraine;
  • pleaded online with Western defense officials and organizations to allow Afghan mercenaries into Ukraine;
  • demonstrated in support of Ukraine's infamous Azov Brigade;
  • self-published a book in 2023 titled "Ukraine's Unwinnable War" detailing his unsuccessful attempts to aid Ukraine's war effort; and
  • asserted on X that he was "going to fight and die for Ukraine."

The social media accounts ascribed to Allen — who allegedly stated in the manifesto, "I am no longer willing to permit a pedophile, rapist, and traitor to coat my hands with his crimes" — provide evidence of a similar obsession with Ukraine and its efforts to repel Russian forces.

For starters, the bio for Allen's alleged Bluesky account states, "I'm a random Californian guy with posts about American politics, support for Ukraine, and observations of small creatures."

The Bluesky user believed to be Allen also shared Ukrainian military fundraiser posts, updates on Russian attacks, and multiple posts insinuating that Trump is in league with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

While highly critical of Trump, the user also directed Ukraine-related ire toward Vice President JD Vance.

At a Turning Point USA event on April 14, Vance recalled how his advocacy for ending funding for the Ukraine war ruffled feathers, then noted he was proud of the Trump administration's refusal to continue "buying weapons and sending them to Ukraine anymore."

This evidently enraged the Bluesky user believed to be Cole, who wrote, "He's proud that we don't uphold our commitments[;] what a piece of s**t."

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GOP bill would squeeze Democratic hives out of Virginia — and back into DC



Georgia Rep. Rich McCormick (R) introduced legislation on Wednesday aimed at turning Virginia red by offloading liberal jurisdictions back onto the District of Columbia.

D.C. was established in 1790 through the Residence Act on 100 square miles of land ceded by Virginia and Maryland to the federal government. In 1846, however, Congress passed a law retroceding "and forever relinquish[ing]" present-day Arlington County and the City of Alexandria to Old Dominion, thereby limiting D.C. to the Maryland side of the Potomac.

'Democrats have spent years manipulating maps and boundaries to rig elections.'

McCormick cast doubt on the legality of the 1846 retrocession, noting in a release that "Article I, Section 8, Clause 17 of the U.S. Constitution, commonly referred to as the Enclave Clause, grants Congress authority over a federal district 'not exceeding ten miles square' made up of territory ceded by state governments to serve as the seat of government. The Constitution does not enumerate any power to retrocede such territories back to state governments."

The congressman is hardly the first to question the legality of the retrocession.

Radical Republican Sen. Benjamin Wade of Ohio introduced a bill in April 1866 that would have nullified the retrocession. Wade asserted that all jurisdiction over the once-ceded territory was "vested in Congress, whose duty it was then, and forever after, to preserve unviolated and free from all control whatsoever, save that of Congress."

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Win McNamee/Getty Images

Nearly a decade later, the U.S. Supreme Court broached the question of the retrocession's legality in Phillips v. Payne without, however, ruling on its validity.

McCormick maintains that the retrocession of Arlington and Alexandria "has warped the system since then" as evidenced by the recent Virginia redistricting referendum.

Virginia voted on Tuesday in favor of adopting gerrymandered congressional maps.

If the gerrymandering campaign ultimately proves successful — a Tazewell Circuit Court judge blocked the state on Wednesday from certifying the results of the vote, and the Virginia Supreme Court is set to weigh in on the referendum's legality next week — then 10 out of the state's 11 congressional seats are all but guaranteed to go to Democrats.

McCormick noted, however, that by dumping Arlington County and Alexandria inside D.C.'s borders — along with their estimated 250,000 "votes that belong to Washington DC" — the political dynamic will dramatically shift in Virginia.

The City of Alexandria voted overwhelmingly in favor on Tuesday — 78.89% to 21.11% — of allowing the General Assembly to adopt the gerrymandered congressional maps. It was the same story in Arlington County, where 79.9% of voters supported the proposed constitutional amendment to adopt the gerrymandered maps.

"Democrats have spent years manipulating maps and boundaries to rig elections," said the congressman. "The Make DC Square Again Act restores the original ten-mile-square District and ends the artificial advantage Virginia Democrats have recently gained from all the federal bureaucrats moving into Virginia."

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Democrat congressman dies amid age concerns



A longtime Democrat congressman from Georgia has passed away.

Rep. David Scott died on Wednesday at the age of 80, his office confirmed, according to the New York Post. The South Carolina native was first elected to the Georgia Assembly in 1974, to the state Senate in 1982, and then to Congress in 2002.

Scott is the fifth member of the 119th Congress to die since they took office in January 2025.

During his re-election campaign in 2024, some Democrats called on Scott to step aside and make way for younger candidates.

"David Scott is Exhibit A for term limits," said an unnamed Democrat lawmaker who spoke with Politico at the time. "He was a respected, talented member who has become diminished. And it’s painful for people to watch."

Despite the naysayers, Scott won re-election that year and was running for re-election this year as well. A cause of death has not been released.

"Congressman Scott’s passing is deeply sad," said Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), NBC News reported.

"David Scott was a trailblazer who served the district that he represented admirably, rose up from humble beginnings to become the first African American ever to chair the House [Agriculture] Committee. He cared about the people that he represented. He was fiercely committed to getting things done for the people of the great state of Georgia, and he’ll be deeply missed."

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) also honored Scott in a statement: "We are all deeply saddened by the news of Rep. David Scott’s passing. For more than two decades, David faithfully served the people of Georgia’s [13th] Congressional District and spent the majority of his life in service to others. We are lifting up David’s wife Alfredia, his two daughters, and his grandchildren in prayer as they mourn."

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Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-Calif.) died suddenly in January. Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call Inc/Getty Images

Of note, Scott is the fifth member of the 119th Congress to die since they took office in January 2025. Reps. Sylvester Turner (D-Texas) and Raúl Grijalva (D-Ariz.) died in March 2025, Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) died in May, and Doug LaMalfa (R-Calif.) died suddenly in January.

Then, just in the last few weeks, Reps. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.), Tony Gonzales (R-Texas), and Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-Fla.) resigned from the House in disgrace.

For now, Republicans maintain a 217-212 majority, plus independent Rep. Kevin Kiley of California, who caucuses with them.

Republican Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp now has 10 days to declare a special election, though six other Democrats were already challenging Scott in the primary race scheduled for May 19. Politico characterized the district as "deep blue."

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Eric Swalwell Suspends Campaign Amid Sexual Assault Accusations

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Democrats promised to quickly rebuild after Los Angeles fires destroyed homes and lives — they aren't delivering



California's deadly 2025 Palisades and Eaton fires in and around Los Angeles together torched over 37,000 acres, destroyed over 16,000 structures, damaged nearly 2,000 additional structures, and displaced hundreds of thousands of residents.

State and local leaders have since pledged to help property owners rebuild. California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D), for instance, said, "We’re committed to seeing this through and ensuring this community comes back stronger than before."

'Significant barriers remain.'

City and county officials even made noise about cutting red tape and costs to expedite the process. Unfortunately, it appears that the purportedly expedited process isn't as swift as advertised.

For instance, of the 242 rebuild applications received from property owners affected by the Palisades fire northeast of Malibu, only 80 building permits had been issued as of April 9, according to the permitting progress dashboard for Los Angeles County. Construction is under way on 39 homes, and only one rebuild has reportedly been completed.

Of the 3,125 rebuild applications submitted by individuals affected by the Eaton fire in and around the Altadena area, 2,142 permits have been issued. Construction on rebuilds is under way on 1,138 homes, and 31 have been completed.

The dashboard suggested that the average time spent in county review was 32 business days.

Thousands of people in Los Angeles County haven't even bothered to apply to rebuild what they lost.

Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger said last week that while the county has received over 3,000 rebuild applications, that represents roughly only half of the total number of impacted households, reported the Pasadena Star-News.

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Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times/Getty Images

"The fact that only half of wildfire survivors have submitted applications makes clear that significant barriers remain, especially financial ones," said Barger.

The Star-News noted that uncertainty over the future of litigation, high rebuild costs, and "underinsurance" are among the factors that have slowed recovery.

Barger credited the Trump administration, however, with helping out.

"I’ve appreciated the opportunity to meet with U.S. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin and SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler over the course of these past few months to have solutions-oriented conversations focused on recovery," said Barger. "Both administrators remain engaged and attentive to our local Eaton Fire recovery work. I remain thankful that President Trump has an interest in supporting wildfire recovery efforts, and I welcome opportunities to work collaboratively with his administration to deliver meaningful relief for our residents."

While some Californians haven't bothered applying to rebuild, many of those who have in nearby municipalities — like those in L.A. County — remain stuck waiting.

Mayor Karen Bass — the Democrat who slashed her city's fire department budget months ahead of the fires in January 2025, then, breaking a pledge not to "travel internationally," absconded to Africa, where she attended a cocktail party as her city burned — has issued multiple executive orders aimed at expediting the rebuilding process.

L.A. has received 4,276 rebuilding permit applications and issued 2,504 permits to date. Presently, 1,261 applications are in review.

The City of Pasadena has received 94 rebuild permit applications but issued 44 to date. Thirty are presently under review.

The City of Malibu's rebuild dashboard says that 192 planning applications for single-family residence rebuilds have been approved and 57 are under review; 42 building permits have been issued and approved for construction; and zero certificates of occupancy have been issued.

Blaze News reached out for comment to the offices of Pasadena Mayor Victor Gordo, Malibu Mayor Bruce Silverstein, and L.A. Mayor Bass but did not receive responses.

H/T Washington Examiner's Sarah Bedford.

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Democrat fraudster begs to keep $800,000 state pension funded by taxpayers



A disgraced former lawmaker in Massachusetts is still hoping that taxpayers will help keep him comfortable in his retirement years, despite his criminal convictions.

In February 2021, Democratic ex-state Rep. David Nangle, who represented the Lowell area for two decades and even sat as vice chair of the House Ethics Committee for a time, pled guilty to nearly two dozen charges related to stealing money from his campaign for personal expenses, defrauding banks, and failing to report income to the IRS.

It was 'only because he had been a member of the House of Representatives at the relevant time that he was in a position to illegally withdraw funds from his campaign account.'

According to the Boston Globe, Nangle stole $70,000 from his campaign and defrauded banks of over $300,000 in ill-begotten loans. Nangle has admitted that he has a gambling addiction, but prosecutors claimed that in addition to blowing money at the casino, he also spent money on luxury items and other personal expenses.

Nangle was sentenced to 15 months but served only about five months of that sentence behind bars.

The scandal also cost him his political career. Nangle was successfully primaried in September 2020 after 22 years in the seat.

After his conviction, the Massachusetts State Retirement Board decided to revoke the state pension he had accrued during his time in office, valued at over $800,000. A district court judge later upheld that decision.

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Barry Chin/The Boston Globe/Getty Images

Nangle filed an appeal in Suffolk County Superior Court last week, requesting a review of "a judgment entered by the Lowell District Court, which affirmed the Defendant State Board of Retirement's forfeiture of David M. Nangle's vested state retirement allowance."

Nangle has argued that his crimes were in "no way" related to his work in public office and that the stolen money did not involve "governmental funds or property," the Globe said.

The retirement board and Lowell District Court Judge Pacinco DeCapua don't seem to be buying it. According to the Globe, DeCapua even noted it was "only because he had been a member of the House of Representatives at the relevant time that he was in a position to illegally withdraw funds from his campaign account."

Nangle, 65, has also claimed that he will be "destitute" without the pension, but the Globe, citing DeCapua's ruling in January, reported that Nangle was working three jobs, collecting $6,000 a month for just one of them.

DeCapua, who acknowledged Nangle's "road of redemption" regarding addiction, nonetheless determined that his actions "dishonored his title as a State Representative."

Paul Craney of the Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance seems to agree. He told Blaze News in a statement: "A bank robber doesn't get to keep his steal after he is convicted, and a state lawmaker shouldn't be able to keep their pension after being convicted of fraud. If it were allowed, every bad impulse would be acted upon by our legislature."

Nangle's attorney did not respond to a request for comment from Blaze News.

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Russia Hoaxer And CCP Patsy Eric Swalwell Accused Of Sexual Harassment, Misusing Funds

The Russia collusion hoaxer congressman and Dem candidate for California governor is accused of inappropriate sexual conduct with interns.