VIDEO: NASA astronauts stranded in space by the Biden admin splash down in SpaceX capsule



Two astronauts stranded at the International Space Station were successfully rescued by SpaceX on Tuesday afternoon.

Astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore were originally meant to be at the space station for a week-long mission but that turned into a nine-month ordeal after problems were detected with the return capsule.

'This rescue embodies America at its best—we can still achieve great things.'

President Donald Trump tasked Elon Musk's aerospace company with bringing back the pair, who rode in the SpaceX Dragon capsule alongside NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov.

Video showed the space capsule splashing down into the newly renamed Gulf of America off the coast of Tallahassee, Florida.

NASA posted video of the four astronauts after they arrived back to Earth.

"Recovery teams will now help the crew out of Dragon, a standard process for all crew members after returning from long-duration missions," the post read.

Musk had claimed in February that he had offered to Biden and his administration to bring back the astronauts, but they refused the proposal. Two former NASA officials denied the allegation.

"President Trump pledged to rescue the astronauts stranded in space for nine months. Today, they safely splashed down in the Gulf of America," read a message from the White House.

"This is what the Golden Age of Space Transportation looks like!" said Transportation Sec. Sean Duffy. "They were forgotten for nine months in space, but thanks to @POTUS' leadership no American gets left behind."

"Welcome home, astronauts Wilmore, Williams, and Crew-9," said Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. "This rescue embodies America at its best—we can still achieve great things. I'm proud of the role Florida plays in the space industry and that we were the launching and landing point for this impressive mission."

Some noted on social media that dolphins could be seen jumping near the capsule in the gulf.

Here's video of the splash down:

The astronauts who were stranded in space by the Biden administration have been brought back by Trump and Elon

🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/2wUHmrv5d1
— TheBlaze (@theblaze) March 18, 2025

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Anna Paulina Luna forcefully rejects ‘s**t hit piece’ implying ‘something distasteful’ between her and Trump



Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida denied the hints in a Daily Beast report that President Donald Trump had acted inappropriately toward her on his personal jet.

The Daily Beast claimed Trump reportedly offered "a MAGA newcomer his bed," as long as she kept it a secret from his wife, in 2023. Luna was pregnant at the time and had been experiencing some discomfort.

'If people in POTUS orbit are talking to this author, they need to be cut off immediately. This is gross.'

The report implied that Trump might have been flirting with the congresswoman, who is 35 years old. The allegations come from an upcoming book that also claims first lady Melania Trump dislikes the president intensely.

“If you need a bed to lay down in, there’s one here on the plane. If you feel sick and you need to lay there, you can lay on it,” Trump reportedly said to Luna. "Just don’t tell Melania. She doesn’t like other women on my bed."

Luna posted on social media that the news outlet did not reach out to her for comment, and she vehemently denied the suggestion while offering more details about her version of the story.

"I seldom respond to nasty headlines because I don’t like giving trash credibility, however, being that there is allegedly a book coming out with me named and attacking @POTUS , his marriage, our first lady, and frankly implying something distasteful about me, I am responding," she wrote.

She went on to say she had been suffering from undiagnosed pre-eclampsia but that Trump was being a gentleman when he offered the back room to her.

"He did this in a respectful way and in front of my husband, of which we thanked him. He also assured me that they had a medical team on board in case anything happened and they were aware of how pregnant I was," she added.

She called the author of the book "disgusting" for not recognizing Trump's act of compassion to her.

"The author of this book never reached out to me for comment," Luna concluded. "Which means that this book is likely going to be a s**t hit piece. If people in POTUS orbit are talking to this author, they need to be cut off immediately. This is gross."

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'This is war': Trump signals he's playing hardball with invocation of Alien Enemies Act, disappointment of Obama judge



The Trump administration made clear with two decisions over the weekend that it is now playing hardball when it comes to throwing terroristic illegal aliens out of the country and dealing with apparent judicial overreach.

Wartime measure

On his first day in office, President Donald Trump issued an executive order directing his secretary of state to ready foreign terrorist organization designations for Tren de Aragua and Mara Salvatrucha, better known as MS-13, gangsters as well as other international organizations that "threaten the safety of the American people, the security of the United States, and the stability of the international order in the Western Hemisphere."

Trump also directed his attorney general and the secretary of homeland security to:

take all appropriate action, in consultation with the Secretary of State, to make operation preparations regarding the implementation of any decision I make to invoke the Alien Enemies Act ... in relation to the existence of any qualifying invasion or predatory incursion against the territory of the United States by a qualifying actor, and to prepare such facilities as necessary to expedite the removal of those who may be designated under this order.

Last month, Secretary of State Marco Rubio named nine gangs and cartel organizations, including TDA and MS-13, to be designated as terror groups.

On Saturday, the president similarly went the distance, invoking the Alien Enemies Act of 1798.

'TdA is perpetrating, attempting, and threatening an invasion or predatory incursion against the territory of the United States.'

In the event of a declared war with a foreign nation or "any invasion or predatory incursion" perpetrated or attempted against the U.S., the president is enabled under this law to order the apprehension, restraint, detention, and removal of "all natives, citizens, denizens, or subjects of the hostile nature or government, being males of the age of fourteen years and upwards, who shall be within the United States, and not actually naturalized."

The Congressional Research Service noted that this particular law was enacted as part of a broader set of controversial national security measures known as the Alien and Sedition Acts.

Unlike the Alien Act and the Sedition Act, which did not ultimately survive, the Alien Enemies Act found no objection from either James Madison or Thomas Jefferson. The Supreme Court held that the absence of objection to the law by the generation that drafted the Constitution evidenced its constitutionality.

The first time the law was invoked was during the War of 1812. It was last used during World War II.

Citing his duty to protect the American people and his constitutional authority to do so, Trump declared that "TdA is perpetrating, attempting, and threatening an invasion or predatory incursion against the territory of the United States. TdA is undertaking hostile actions and conducting irregular warfare against the territory of the United States both directly and at the direction, clandestine or otherwise, of the Maduro regime in Venezuela."

"I proclaim that all Venezuelan citizens 14 years of age or older who are members of TdA, are within the United States, and are not actually naturalized or lawful permanent residents of the United States are liable to be apprehended, restrained, secured, and removed as Alien Enemies," added Trump.

When asked aboard Air Force One on Sunday evening whether he feels he is using the law appropriately, given that it was previously used only during times of war, Trump said, "Well, this is a time of war."

"Biden allowed millions of people, many of them criminals, many of them at the highest level. They emptied jails out — other nations emptied their jails into the United States. It's an invasion, and these are criminals," said Trump. "They invaded our country. In that sense, this is war."

Slow on the draw, Obama judge

Hours after Trump invoked the Alien Enemies Act, an Obama judge responding to a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union and Democracy Forward ordered a pause to deportations under the 227-year-old law. U.S. District Judge James Boasberg was, however, not fast enough.

Two planes loaded with apparent Tren de Aragua terrorists were apparently already airborne, one plane taking deportees to El Salvador and the other taking deportees to Honduras.

Rubio indicated that the Trump administration "sent 2 dangerous top MS-13 leaders plus 21 of its most wanted back to face justice in El Salvador. Also, as promised by @POTUS, we sent over 250 alien enemy members of Tren de Aragua which El Salvador has agreed to hold in their very good jails at a fair price that will also save our taxpayer dollars."

Upon learning that they had already left the nation, U.S. District Judge James Boasberg impotently ordered that the planes be sent back to the U.S., reported ABC News.

'If the Democrats want to argue in favor of turning a plane full of rapists, murderers, and gangsters back to the United States, that's a fight we are more than happy to take.'

"You shall inform your clients of this immediately: Any plane containing these folks that is going to take off or is in the air needs to be returned to the United States," Boasberg said during a hearing on Saturday. "However that's accomplished, turning around the plane, or not embarking anyone on the plane. … This is something that you need to make sure is complied with immediately."

El Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele tweeted on Sunday morning, "Oopsie... Too late."

Bukele later shared footage to X Sunday showing alleged terrorists being hauled off airplanes, indicating that they were "immediately transferred to CECOT, the Terrorism Confinement Center."

— (@)

Critics clutched pearls over the Trump administration's deportation of alleged terrorists, claiming the president had flouted the Obama judge's orders.

Mark Zaid, a liberal attorney whose security clearance Trump revoked last month, wrote, "Court order defied. First of many as I've been warning and start of true constitutional crisis. Ultimately will lead to Trump impeachment proceedings."

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt indicated that the "administration did not 'refuse to comply' with a court order. The order, which had no lawful basis, was issued after terrorist TdA aliens had already been removed from U.S. territory."

"Moreover, as the Supreme Court has repeatedly made clear — federal courts generally have no jurisdiction over the President's conduct of foreign affairs, his authorities under the Alien Enemies Act, and his core Article II powers to remove foreign alien terrorists from U.S. soil and repel a declared invasion," continued Leavitt. "A single judge in a single city cannot direct the movements of an aircraft carrying foreign alien terrorists who were expelled from U.S. soil."

Leavitt told Axios, which originally reported that the White House "defied a judge's order," that "if the Democrats want to argue in favor of turning a plane full of rapists, murderers, and gangsters back to the United States, that's a fight we are more than happy to take."

In a Sunday court filing, government attorneys indicated that gang members subject to removal under the Alien Enemies Act were ejected from the country before Boasberg issued his order and further noted that "going forward, and in the absence of appellate relief, Federal Defendants will continue to protect the United States using authorities other than the Proclamation."

Even though the initial narrative pushed by Axios and seized upon by Trump critics turned out to be wrong, the whining continued.

Steve Vladeck, a professor at Georgetown University Law Center, told the Associated Press that while Boasberg's verbal directive to turn around the planes was not part of his formal order, the Trump administration had still violated the "spirit" of the order, incentivizing "future courts to be hyper specific in their orders and not give the government any wiggle room."

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Sister of slain Army soldier decides to run for Rep. Al Green's seat after seeing him interrupt Trump's congressional address



Democrat Rep. Al Green of Texas is going to face a stout challenge to maintaining his congressional seat from the sister of slain Army soldier Vanessa Guillen.

Mayra Guillen says she made the decision to run after watching Green interrupt President Donald Trump during his address to a joint session of Congress last week.

'I believe it’s time for me to get into the fight like I did for my sister. ... Al Green I’m coming for your seat.'

Green yelled at Trump at the start of his address and continued shouting until Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana ordered that he be removed from the House chamber.

Guillen wrote on social media that the moment spurred her to action.

"After watching @RepAlGreen disrespect not only @POTUS last night, but our district, state and country, I believe it’s time for me to get into the fight like I did for my sister Vanessa Guillen!" she wrote. "It’s time to end the propaganda displayed by these politicians, and time to help support @POTUS and his amazing Admiration to Make America Great Again! Al Green I’m coming for your seat."

She posted a photo of herself and the president in the Oval Office along with her announcement.

Guillen has never held public office before but became politically active after the tragic murder of her sister.

Vanessa Guillen went missing from Fort Hood military base in 2020, and her body was found two months later in a shallow grave. Another soldier was suspected of murdering her, but he committed suicide as investigators closed in on him. Her family has since revealed that Guillen had been sexually assaulted but was afraid of reporting the abuse out of fear of retaliation.

Congress passed new laws about sexual harassment reporting in the military because of Mayra Guillen's efforts.

Green has represented the 9th Congressional District in Texas for two decades. He was later censured for his actions during Trump's address.

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Panama to ditch communist China's Belt and Road Initiative after Rubio's visit



Secretary of State Marco Rubio laid down the law in Panama over the weekend, making expressly clear to President José Mulino that the Trump administration will not tolerate the influence of the Chinese communist regime over the Panama Canal as it now stands.

It appears the Panamanian leader heeded the American's warning.

Within hours of their meeting, Mulino announced that Panama will not be renewing its memorandum of understanding with China concerning its Belt and Road Initiative.

State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce indicated in a statement Sunday that Rubio impressed upon Mulino and Panama's foreign minister, Javier Martínez-Acha, "that President Trump has made a preliminary determination that the current position of influence and control of the Chinese Communist Party over the Panama Canal area is a threat to the canal and represents a violation of the Treaty Concerning the Permanent Neutrality and Operation of the Panama Canal."

'Absent immediate changes, it would require the United States to take measures necessary to protect its rights.'

According to the Panama Canal Treaty and Neutrality Treaty signed in 1977 by former President Jimmy Carter and Panama's then-chief of government, Omar Torrijos, the canal "shall be permanently neutral" and in time of both peace and war "shall remain secure and open to peaceful transit by the vessels of all nations on terms of entire equality."

Rubio reportedly told the Panamanian leaders that the current level of Chinese influence over the canal was "unacceptable and that absent immediate changes, it would require the United States to take measures necessary to protect its rights under the Treaty."

Evidently keen to avoid consequences — which Rubio apparently did not spell out in detail — Mulino announced that he will not only let Panama's Belt and Road Initiative partnership expire but will look into the possibility of terminating it early, as it was not set to be renewed for at least another year.

Mulino also expressed a willingness to review a number of Chinese businesses in Panama, including the 25-year concession to the Chinese company that operates ports at both ends of the canal, reported Reuters.

Mulino's announcement "that Panama will allow its participation in the CCP's Belt and Road Initiative to expire is a great step forward for U.S.-Panama relations, a free Panama Canal, and another example of @POTUS leadership to protect our national security and deliver prosperity for the American people," Rubio stated Monday.

Through its BRI, the Chinese Communist Party helps poorer nations build ports, rail lines, and telecommunications networks, as well as secure financing. Since this assistance is usually unaffordable by design, the BRI effectively transforms countries into vassal states.

The State Department noted during the first Trump administration that the Belt and Road Initiative "preys on other countries via unsustainable and corrupt lending while ignoring global labor and environmental standards." The department stated further that the Chinese military utilizes BRI to establish a presence in partner nations and to "challenge the United States globally."

Panama was the first country in Latin America to partner with China on the BRI, signing a memorandum of understanding to that effect in 2017.

Since 2017, China's influence in Panama has grown considerably, raising concerns stateside that America's ability to transit the canal it built in the early 20th century for a price tag of $375 million and thousands of lives could soon be strategically hindered.

'We gave the Panama Canal to Panama. We didn't give it to China.'

A Congressional Research Service report updated on Dec. 17, 2024, noted that some U.S. military leaders are concerned that Beijing-linked companies along the canal "may present a security vulnerability for the United States." China presently controls ports at both ends of the canal through Hutchinson Ports PPC, a Hong Kong-based company closely linked to the regime in Beijing.

Trump said on Truth Social in December that the canal and its independence from communist Chinese interference were "crucial for U.S. commerce, and rapid deployment of the Navy, from the Atlantic to the Pacific, and drastically cuts shipping times to U.S. ports."

Weeks ahead of taking office, Trump stated at a press conference that the "Panama Canal is vital to our country. It's being operated by China. China. And we gave the Panama Canal to Panama. We didn't give it to China, and they've abused it. They've abused that gift. It should have never been made, by the way. Giving the Panama Canal is why Jimmy Carter lost the election, in my opinion."

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Schumer and fellow Democrats ignore the facts when trying to pin American oligarchy on Republicans



President Joe Biden's farewell address Wednesday was replete with oddities and falsehoods. Evidently convinced that they could use it against their political foes and hurt President-elect Donald Trump's appeal with working-class voters, affluent Democrats and fellow travelers seized on one of Biden's statements in particular, namely his suggestion that "an oligarchy is taking shape in America of extreme wealth, power, and influence that literally threatens our entire democracy, our basic rights and freedoms, and a fair shot for everyone to get ahead."

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), for instance, tried to use the outgoing president's claim to concern-monger during his Thursday grilling of Scott Bessent, Trump's pick to run the Treasury Department, suggesting that the presence of billionaire Elon Musk in the Trump administration was troubling. Bessent responded by noting the hollowness of Biden's rhetoric, highlighting the president's decision to award billionaire and Democratic megadonor George Soros with the Presidential Medal of Freedom earlier this month.

Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) similarly embraced Biden's 11th-hour concern about American oligarchy, noting on X, "Every American should listen to the warning @POTUS left us with: An oligarchy is taking shape in America that could threaten the progress we've made. He's right."

"Instead of helping working families, the GOP is intent on rigging the system even further in favor of the ultra-rich," added Schumer, who has received donations from Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and various other billionaires.

Tiffany Muller, president of the pro-Democrat activist group End Citizens United, apparently also got the memo on the new talking point, stating Thursday, "Donald Trump's inauguration next week is the beginning of an oligarchy that's been 15 years in the making."

'Most people who are paying attention know that most elites and billionaires have shoveled money into the coffers of one party in this country for a long time.'

While Biden, Schumer, and others are keen to credit their political rivals with the supposed growth of an American oligarchy — meaning rule by a small group of people, in contrast to plutocracy, which specifically refers to rule by the wealthiest — they are throwing rocks from an expensive glass house.

Bloomberg reported that Biden's time in office proved a golden age for the wealthiest of Americans. The wealth of the 100 richest individuals in the country increased by over $1.5 trillion over the past four years. According to Federal Reserve estimates through September, the top 0.1% gained over $6 trillion while Democrats controlled the White House and Senate.

It certainly didn't hurt that the Democratic-controlled 117th Congress approved Biden's so-called Build Back Better Act, which included enormous federal tax cuts for the ultra-rich, or that Biden championed unprecedented inflationary spending benefiting the wealthy.

Many of the nation's wealthiest individuals, in many cases beneficiaries of Democratic policies, have backed the campaigns of Democratic lawmakers and worked to keep them in power in recent years.

USA Today reported in November that 83 billionaires, including two with a net worth of over $100 billion each, supported Kamala Harris' doomed presidential campaign. Trump had 31 fewer billionaires back him and only one supporting centibillionaire, Elon Musk.

Those now clutching pearls about Musk serving in the incoming administration have not only glossed over this detail but previously proved unwilling to condemn billionaire Mark Zuckerberg for helping swing the 2020 election for Democrats.

"Most people who are paying attention know that most elites and billionaires have shoveled money into the coffers of one party in this country for a long time. Every wealthy bank, everyone in finance, everyone in every industry has basically — except for one or two — has funneled their money into the Democratic Party," said Blaze News editor in chief Matthew Peterson on the Thursday episode of "Blaze News Tonight."

— (@)

A 2023 paper published in the peer-reviewed journal Perspectives on Politics noted that up until 1992, affluent voters preferred Republican candidates. However, "it is increasingly the case that the income groups that most prefer Democratic candidates are the lowest and highest income categories — hence, a 'U-shape.' For example, in 2016 and 2020, [Cooperative Election Study] data shows that the top two income quintiles (i.e., 80%-100% and 60%-80%) preferred the Democrat (i.e., Hillary Clinton or Joe Biden) over the Republican (i.e., Donald Trump) more than the twentieth through sixtieth percentiles did."

Exit polls revealed that in the 2024 presidential election, the majority of voters whose total family income exceeded $200,000 voted for Harris.

Nina Turner, the national co-chair for Sanders' last presidential campaign, blasted Biden over his oligarchy comments, telling the Associated Press, "It's cowardly that after representing the oligarchs for 50 years in office, he calls out this threat to our nation with just days left in his presidency."

"[Biden] enabled, benefited from, and emboldened the system that threatens us all, while he will ride off into the sunset and won't feel the harms of what's been built," added Turner.

Before his ouster from the presidential race, Biden and groups supporting his re-election campaign received oodles of cash from a group of billionaires worth roughly $170 billion, including former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, whose net worth is around $104.7 billion.

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Joe Biden pats himself on the back for drop in illegal border crossings and faces ferocious backlash on social media



Democratic President Joe Biden took credit for a report of decreased illegal immigration and faced fierce backlash on social media.

The post on X attributed to Biden claimed that "unlawful" border crossings had dropped by 60%. The Biden administration has been heavily criticized over lax border policies that led to a historic surge of illegal immigration. Some blame the results of the election on concerns over illegal alien crime.

'His apathy has ruined lives and left our nation open to attack from our adversaries.'

"Following the executive actions we took to secure our border, unlawful crossings have dropped over 60%. They’re lower than the last several months of the previous administration," read the Biden statement.

"Republicans in Congress wanted to play politics with the border. We fought to fix it," he added.

Many on social media saw the statement as an attempt to rewrite history and gloss over the failed policies of the Biden administration.

"Only the profoundly mentally disabled could possibly believe this horse s***," replied comedian Anthony Cumia.

"Biden waited until an election year before he even paid lip service to securing our border. The Biden era will forever be marked by the worst border crisis in US history. His apathy has ruined lives and left our nation open to attack from our adversaries," responded Rep. Pat Fallon (R-Texas).

"He waited 3.5 years to implement these policies, and only did so reluctantly because of pressure from the electorate to do something about the border crisis," said Chuck Ross of the Free Beacon.

"I don’t know which blue-haired lesbian intern at the whitehouse has the X login today, but it’s wayyyy too late to improve the legacy of the worst president in American history. Stop the lies," responded Pastor Ryan Visconti.

"There’s no amount of revisionist history that will make anyone believe @POTUS on border security. Truth is since February of 2021, well over 9 million people illegally crossed the southern border," replied Kent Strang of Americans for Prosperity.

Trump has promised to institute mass deportations to alleviate the crisis of illegal immigration.

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Are political assassination attempts the new normal?



President Trump survived a second assassination attempt.

If you told Americans a few months ago that this is where we would be today, few would have believed you. Why would they? Prior to Trump’s fateful July 13 rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, the idea that either candidate would face a serious attempt on his or her life seemed unthinkable. Yet it has happened not once, but twice since then. This raises a dreadful question: Are assassination attempts are becoming the new normal for American politics?

The second attempt on Trump’s life occurred on Sunday, September 15, at Trump’s West Palm Beach golf course. As Trump played a few rounds, Secret Service agents scanned the area for potential threats, eventually noticing the muzzle of a rifle protruding from the bushes at the outskirts of the course. An agent fired a few shots at the suspect, who hopped into a vehicle and fled, leaving behind the weapon, equipment, and a GoPro camera. He was later apprehended by law enforcement and identified as Ryan Wesley Routh.

Liberal radicalization is real, and it shows no sign of stopping — even after two assassination attempts.

While Thomas Crooks, the Butler shooter, remains a mystery with an unclear background, beliefs, and motives, more is known about Routh. He appears to be a die-hard liberal, driven by the same anti-Trump complaints frequently heard from the corporate left-wing media.

Curiously, Routh was profiled by the New York Times in 2023 alongside other American volunteers in Ukraine. The article named Routh as a former construction worker from Greensboro, North Carolina, who spent a few months in Ukraine in 2022 and was “seeking recruits from among Afghan soldiers who fled the Taliban.” Routh’s sketchy scheme involved illegally moving these Afghan soldiers from Pakistan and Iran to Ukraine.

Although Routh’s social media accounts have been suspended, conservative sleuths were able to preserve some of his posts. In an X post from April, Routh tagged @POTUS and wrote:

Your campaign should be called something like KADAF. Keep America democratic and free. Trumps should be MASA… make Americans slaves 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.

Routh also donated to Democratic candidates 19 times during the 2020 election.

The press has tried to obscure Routh’s political leanings, noting that he is not registered with any political party and that he reportedly voted for Trump in 2016. But this isn’t difficult. We can say without exaggeration that the man responsible for the second attempt on Trump’s life is an ideologically committed liberal terrified that Trump intends to end American democracy for good.

Of course, that is a ridiculous fear. Trump doesn’t intend to become a fascist dictator. His enemy isn’t “democracy” — it’s the deep state, those unelected bureaucrats responsible for steering our country off course. But through the power of the media, that very deep state has succeeded at convincing a large number of Americans that its stranglehold on our country and “democracy” are synonymous. Ryan Routh’s attempt on Trump’s life is a direct consequence of this.

After the events of September 15, we cannot dismiss the Butler assassination attempt as a one-off. It wasn’t just a freak occurrence — it was the first of who knows how many attempts on Trump’s life. The corporate media and political establishment in this country had the opportunity after Butler to lower the temperature, moderate their rhetoric, and cease to act as if Trump was on the verge of dissolving the Reichstag. But they didn’t, and we now find ourselves in a dark place, a new normal where assassination attempts on anti-establishment candidates (and in this case, former presidents) have become commonplace.

The powers that be have no intention of turning down the temperature. For hysterically promulgating dangerous falsehoods about President Trump and his supporters, they are to blame for the shift toward political violence in America. Liberal radicalization is real, and it shows no sign of stopping — even after two assassination attempts.

Don’t hold your breath waiting for the left to change its ways. Its concern is power, not maintaining once-sacred norms in America like “don’t assassinate your political rivals.” Only by achieving lasting political victory over these ghouls will the nightmarish new normal they have birthed be undone.

That, admittedly, is a tall order. But it is all the more reason to vote for Trump this November.

Here are the facts about the latest known attempt on Trump's life



Exactly 50 days before the November election and 64 days after the previous assassination attempt, President Donald Trump was allegedly targeted for murder by a Democratic donor with an impotent interest in Ukraine's war effort.

Unlike Thomas Matthew Crooks' July 13 assassination attempt, which left Trump bleeding, two individuals critically wounded, and heroic former firefighter Corey Comperatore dead in the stands, it appears there may be far more clarity around suspected would-be assassin Ryan Routh and his Sept. 15 plot.

For starters, Routh is still alive to speak to his alleged crimes. There's also the matter of Routh's significant online footprint and his apparent affinity in recent years for doing interviews with virtually anyone who would stick a microphone in his face.

What follows is a summary of the facts as they are presently understood.

Incident and arrest

According to the FBI's affidavit in support of the criminal complaint filed Monday, President Donald Trump was golfing at the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Sunday. Unbeknownst to him or his Secret Service detail, a deranged gunman lay ahead in ambush.

Just after 1:30 p.m., a U.S. Secret Service agent on Trump's detail, who had been walking the perimeter of the course — one hole ahead of the president — spotted what appeared to be a rifle "poking out of the tree line" and through a chain-link fence, roughly 400 yards away from Trump.

The USSS agent reportedly opened fire but failed to land a shot. The suspect apparently never got a shot off.

'Nothing will slow me down.'

Suspected gunman Ryan Routh apparently fled the tree line, jumped into a Nissan SUV with license plates belonging to a stolen white 2012 Ford truck, then sped out of the area.

The gunman left behind a GoPro digital camera, two bags including a backpack, a black plastic bag containing food, and an SKS-style 7.62x39 caliber rifle with a long-range scope and an "obliterated" serial number.

Blaze News previously noted that geolocation data from Routh's T-Mobile cell phone apparently placed him along the fence line at 1:59 a.m. Sunday morning. He remained there until the Secret Service agent opened fire.

The FBI affidavit indicated that after fleeing the scene, Routh traveled northbound on I-95 — where officers from the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office and Martin County Sheriff's Office made their move, afforded insights about the driver and vehicle by a witness who spotted Routh getting away.

Roughly 45 minutes after the USSS agent opened fire and 40 miles away from the course, MCSO managed to stop Routh's vehicle and place him under arrest without incident.

Routh is now facing charges of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession and receipt of a firearm with an obliterated serial number. If slapped with the maximum penalty for both charges, then Routh is looking at 20 years' imprisonment. He may face additional charges.

'The people deserve the truth about the would be assassin.'

Shortly after the incident, President Trump stated, "There were gunshots in my vicinity, but before rumors start spiraling out of control, I wanted you to hear this first: I AM SAFE AND WELL! Nothing will slow me down. I will NEVER SURRENDER! I will always love you for supporting me. Unity. Peace. Make America Great Again."

While the FBI announced it was leading the ongoing investigation, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) announced Sunday that the Sunshine State will be conducting its own investigation.

"The people deserve the truth about the would be assassin and how he was able to get within 500 yards of the former president and current GOP nominee," wrote DeSantis.

Who is Ryan Routh?

Felon known to FBI

Ryan Wesley Routh is a 58-year-old North Carolina native who has lived in Hawaii for at least six years, where he owns a small construction company. While still a Hawaii resident, Routh reportedly voted in North Carolina's Democratic primary this past March.

According to his LinkedIn, he received a degree in mechanical engineering from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University.

Routh was known to law enforcement prior to Sunday and has a significant criminal record, charged with at least 100 criminal counts in North Carolina alone.

The suspected would-be assassin reportedly wielded a fully automatic machine gun in a three-hour standoff with police in North Carolina in 2002.

According a decades-old Greensboro News & Record report, Routh was charged at the time with carrying a concealed weapon and possession of a weapon of mass destruction. He was also charged with resisting, delaying, and obstructing a law enforcement officer as well as driving with a revoked license and hit-and-run.

The North Carolina Department of Adult Correction offender database indicates Routh was convicted in 2010 for possession of stolen goods. The corresponding police affidavit used to get a search warrant claimed Routh was selling stolen building supplies to buy crack cocaine, reported the Associated Press.

Routh has also reportedly been in and out of court on numerous occasions for various civil suits, for several of which he was ultimately ordered to pay tens of thousands of dollars to plaintiffs.

Blaze News previously reported that Jeffrey Veltri, the FBI's special agent in charge of the Miami field office, revealed that the FBI received a complaint in 2019 that Routh had a firearm, despite being a convicted felon.

According to Veltri, the FBI passed the information on to local law enforcement in Honolulu. It's unclear whether anything came of the referral.

Trump critic, Democratic booster

Sleuths online had ample time before Facebook and X scrubbed his profiles to screenshot and archive damning comments indicating his political views and possible motivations. It quickly became clear that he had thrown in his lot with the Democrats and bought into their rhetoric about Trump.

Blaze News previously highlighted how Routh recycled a go-to Democratic slogan in this election cycle in an April 22 post on X, 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 in us to show the way.

His final two posts on X prior to the incident were messages to President Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, recommending in mid-July that they should "visit the injured people in the hospital from the Trump rally and attend the funeral of the murdered fireman. Trump will never do anything for them....show the world what compassion and humanity is all about. 8084648342."

Apart from his consistent fixation on committing civilians to the Ukrainian war effort, Routh's politics have been all over the place. He has indicated, for instance, that he voted for Trump in 2016 but that he deeply regrets it. Prior to throwing his support behind Biden, Routh also admitted to having a soft spot for Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.).

It's clear from his social media posts that he also supported the Black Lives Matter movement and has adopted anti-Israel talking points, such as the suggestion that Israel has no claim to the land within its borders.

In his self-published 2023 book, "Ukraine's Unwinnable War," Routh echoes various establishment Democrat talking points, including the suggestion that the Jan. 6 riot was a "catastrophe ... perpetrated by Donald Trump and his undemocratic posse."

As was the case with Crooks, Routh has made political contributions to Democrats. In Routh's case, he made around 20 small donations to Democrats through ActBlue between 2019 and 2020.

In his book, the suspected would-be assassin apologizes to Iranians for Trump dismantling the nuclear deal and noted, "You are free to assassinate Trump as well as me for that error in judgment," reported the New York Post.

The Democratic donor added, "No one here in the US seems to have the balls to put natural selection to work or even unnatural selection."

Wannabe Ukraine mercenary

Routh appears to be a zealous advocate for Ukraine and its defensive war against Russia. He appears to have run the website "Fight for Ukraine," where he figures prominently in the About section and provides links to his now-deleted webpages.

The page states:

We need thousands of fighters and humanitarian aid workers and supplies to win this war and no one should ever let paperwork or red tape hinder their desire to fight for freedom, humanity and basic human rights. It is the most honorable and dignified sacrifice anyone can make to support their fellowman. Please encourage every age and gender from around the world to come and join the fight.

On the site, Routh details various ways — including unlawful ways — people could supposedly go to fight as mercenaries in Ukraine. For those who simply cross the border into Ukraine, he recommended they give him a call once in Kiev.

The New York Times' Thomas Gibbons-Neff recalled an interview he had in 2023 with individuals who were "not qualified to be allowed anywhere near the battlefield in a U.S.-led war and yet were fighting on the front against Russia, with access to weapons and military equipment."

Gibbons-Neff indicated he heard of Routh through a former Afghan special operations soldier in Iran.

"Like many foreign volunteers who showed up at Ukraine's border in the war's early months, he was eager to cast aside his former life for something far more exciting and make a name for himself," wrote the Times reporter.

Routh, who told the Financial Times in 2022 that the Ukrainian Foreign Legion rejected him on account of his age, apparently spent some time in Ukraine attempting to recruit Afghans who had fled the Taliban. His X timeline was crowded with failed pleas to various defense officials and organizations to allow Afghan fighters into Ukraine.

Ukraine's foreign legion has characterized Routh as a charlatan.

The legion said in an official statement, "American citizen Ryan Routh has never served in the International Legion of the Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, has no relation to the unit. Rumors disseminated in certain media are not true."

"There's a streak of zealotry in him," Evelyn Aschenbrenner, an American who was in the legion's administration until June, told the Washington Post. "In November of last year, I began sending out a [message] to all foreign soldiers saying, 'This guy is not a real recruiter. He's not legit. I don't know what he's up to. Just stay away from him — block and ignore and move on.'"

"The cats and dogs on the military bases did more than he did," added Aschenbrenner.

Despite begging others to do so and claiming he had in a December 2023 Facebook post, the New York Times indicated Routh never fought in Ukraine.

Routh was, however, a cheerleader for the Ukrainian brigade associated with neo-Nazis since its inception. He appears at the 1:50-minute mark in a 2022 video of a Ukrainian demonstration in support of the Azov Brigade.

He also tweeted to Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelenskyy on March 13, 2022, informing him "I am an American coming to fight with you in Ukraine; I am flying into Krokow and will take any transport to Kyiv to meet you and fight to the death. We must get every civilian in the world to come and join the fight; I will be the example. Attack moscow now."

USA Today indicated it tried calling a number associated with Ryan and was greeted by a voicemail message identifying the number's owner as "Ryan in Hawaii," working with the "National Volunteer Center, sending soldiers to Ukraine, as well as Taiwan."

The International Volunteer Center in Ukraine made clear it hasn't worked with Ryan.

Routh told the Times that he had also been scheduled to meet with the U.S. Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (the Helsinki Commission) "for two hours" to increase support for Ukraine. It's unclear if they ever went through with the meeting.

The Helsinki Commission is an independent commission of the federal government that has among its current commissioners Reps. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) and Mike Lawler (R-N.Y) and Sens. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.).

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