Six weeks later, McConnell’s latest 'proof of life' photo only fuels more conspiracy theories



Six weeks after Mitch McConnell was hospitalized for a fall and pneumonia, he has yet to be cleared to return to work — but his office did share a brand-new proof-of-life photo of him.

In the statement accompanying the photo, McConnell claimed to be going through “intense physical therapy” and said he would not be making an appearance at any events in the near future.

“That's the same picture,” “Pat Gray Unleashed" co-host Jeff Fisher comments.

“We don’t even know that that’s recent. We don’t know if it’s real. Could be AI,” Gray says.


The photo, Gray points out, is eerily similar to the first photo released of McConnell. He’s sitting while his wife has her hand on his arm.

“The only difference is sitting in a different chair,” he says.

While the walls in both photos appear to look exactly the same, in the first photo he’s holding a newspaper, and in the second he’s not.

“What kind of game are they playing with the American people?” Gray asks.

“We’re obviously being scammed and played for fools,” he adds.

“We don’t understand why,” Fisher chimes in.

“No. What is it accomplishing?” Gray asks. “If he’s incapacitated-slash-dead, what is this doing for you to not tell the American people?”

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'Something has gone terribly wrong': Marriage is in 'disastrous' decline — perhaps because of women



The marriage rate has been in decline for decades, dropping from 10.6 per 1,000 people in 1980 to 6.1 in 2023. Last year, American adults were less likely to be married than at nearly any other time since the Census Bureau began logging marital status in 1940, with married couples heading only 47.1% of U.S. households.

The apparent aversion to marriage is bad news for American children, who perform better in school and are far less likely to end up in prison or depressed when raised by married parents, as well as for American adults who tend to see better health outcomes, be happier, and live longer when espoused.

'Devaluing marriage and motherhood has consequences.'

Recent Pew Research Center analysis of survey data from the University of Michigan suggests that this decline may continue — especially if young women's growing resistance to marriage goes unremedied.

Whereas 20 years prior, 80% of 12th graders said that they were most likely to choose marriage in the long run, only 67% of 12th graders polled in 2023 indicated that they want to get married someday. Another 24% said they don't know if they'll get married, up from 16% in 1993.

This drop appears to have been largely driven by shifting views among girls.

In 1993, 83% of girls and 76% of boys said that they wanted to get married. In 2023, only 61% of girls said they wanted to get married — a drop of 22% — while 74% of boys indicated they wanted to ultimately tie the knot.

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Photo by STRINGER/AFP via Getty Images

Pew indicated that there was also a precipitous drop in the percentage of 12th graders who indicated they wanted to have kids if they marry.

Whereas in 1993, 82% said they wanted to have kids, in 2023, only 73% indicated they wanted to welcome new life into this world. Even more dramatically, the percentage of those who said they would "very likely" want to have kids if married dropped from 64% in 1993 to 48% in 2023.

"It's almost like decades of devaluing marriage and motherhood has consequences," wrote the Alabama Policy Institute.

Katy Faust, founder of the children's advocacy group Them Before Us, stated, "More than almost anything else trending, this terrifies me. Because of the nature of our bodies women have historically pursued marriage more. What kind of disastrous, antihuman messaging are young women being flooded with to return these kinds of results?"

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Photo by Lambert/Getty Images

Dr. Brad Wilcox, professor of sociology at the University of Virginia and director of the National Marriage Project, said the anti-nuptial trend among young women and adolescent girls was "disastrous."

Wilcox underscored that this trend reflects a particularly raw deal for women, highlighting a recent YouGov survey of U.S. women, ages 25 to 55, fielded by the Institute for Family Studies and the Wheatley Institute, which found that married women with children are:

  • more likely (19%) to report being "very happy" than both unmarried women with children (13%) and unmarried women without children (10%);
  • more likely (47%) to report that life has felt enjoyable most or all of the time in the past 30 days than both unmarried women with children (40%) and unmarried women without children (34%);
  • less likely (11%) to report being lonely most or all of the time in the past 30 days than both unmarried women with children (23%) and unmarried women without children (20%);
  • more likely (51%) to receive physical affection than both unmarried women with children (29%) and unmarried women without children (17%); and
  • more likely (28%) to report their lives have a clear sense of purpose than both unmarried women with children (25%) and unmarried women without children (16%).

Turning Point USA spokesman Andrew Kolvet said of the Pew report, "Something has gone terribly wrong."

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Bullet reportedly pierces wall of Oakland home, hits father of 2 in head while he's asleep, exits through his eye



A bullet reportedly pierced the wall of an Oakland home last week, hit a father of two young daughters in the head while he was asleep, and exited through his eye.

Citing a GoFundMe page from the family of victim Run Hua Kuang, KTVU-TV reported that he was taking a nap Thursday afternoon after finishing his shift as a delivery truck driver when a bullet penetrated a headboard, went through his head, and came out his left eye.

'This shocking incident has left the entire family traumatized and in deep distress.'

Kuang was on life support in an intensive care united after a seven-hour surgery, the station said.

KTVU said the 33-year-old victim and his family live in a housing project, and he was the sole breadwinner for his wife of seven years and his two young daughters, ages 7 and just 3 months.

The East Bay Times said Oakland Housing Authority police are investigating what prompted the shooting in the 2200 block of East 19th Street, and no arrests were announced, and no suspect information has been released.

"This shocking incident has left the entire family traumatized and in deep distress. This tragedy has created a severe financial burden for our family," the fundraiser read, the station said.

Kuang's sister put together the GoFundMe page and said he's also the person in his household who speaks English, and he takes care of family responsibilities and communications.

The fundraiser says he immigrated to the U.S. from Taishan, China, in 2005 "searching for the American Dream for his family."

The campaign has raised nearly $111,000 of a $200,000 goal as of Monday afternoon.

Those with information about the shooting can call OHA police at 510-535-3100 or its tip line at 510-535-3155, the Times said, adding that an OHA communications representative said the agency has been in contact with the family and “is providing support and services.”

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Woman admits her husband was stealing from truck, questions why owner fatally shot him



A woman has admitted that her husband was stealing from a truck in the middle of the night last week — but she's questioning why the owner fatally shot him.

Police in Tulsa, Oklahoma, are investigating what went down around 2:15 a.m. Wednesday in the area of the 9200 block of East 90th Street, the Broken Arrow Sentinel reported. A report from KOTV-DT indicates the fatal shooting happened near 91st and Mingo.

'He was stealing, and he was getting stuff out of the back of the truck, and me and him had gotten into an argument because I don't do that.'

Blane Hambrick, 39, was seen breaking into a truck and trying to steal items from inside it when two residents of the home came outside to confront him, police told KOTV.

Police said an argument ensued after which the owner of the vehicle shot Hambrick, the station reported.

Police responded to the area and found a black sedan which had been driven upon the curb and come to a stop, the Sentinel said, adding that officers found a male with a gunshot wound to the chest and an unknown female doing chest compressions on him.

The male died after emergency personnel took him to a hospital in critical condition, the paper added.

Detectives took all witnesses and those involved in the incident to headquarters for questioning, the Sentinel said. KOTV said detectives released the two aforementioned residents of the home after questioning them.

'I don't understand why he was shot because there were two men and just him. Why not hold him at gunpoint? Or why not beat him up?'

In the meantime, Hambrick's wife, Rosie Lawson, is mourning her loss and asking questions, KJRH-TV reported. You can view the interview with Lawson here.

"He was stealing, and he was getting stuff out of the back of the truck, and me and him had gotten into an argument because I don't do that," Lawson told KJRH, adding that she wanted nothing to do with it and started to walk away.

Lawson added to the station that "Blane was trying to get into the car, and that's when I saw the shot go off, and I saw the spark of the bullet, and Blane was able to start the car and speed down to me, and he was able to stop for me to get in."

She also told KJRH, "I don't understand why he was shot because there were two men and just him. Why not hold him at gunpoint? Or why not beat him up? Why shoot him and take my kid's dad away?"

Police added to KJRH that they're still putting the pieces of the case together.

"It's a tough investigation, I guess, initially for detectives and DAs," Officer Danny Bean told the station. "They've got to work through this, review all of their statements that they get, and they've got to review video that they have [and] put ... together exactly what happened before they make their decision."

Bean added to KJRH that it will be up to the district attorney's office if any charges are filed in this case.

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'Reacher' star says he imitated his crime-fighting character while on date with his wife and seeing crook breaking into car



"Reacher" star Alan Ritchson said during an interview that he actually imitated his show's crime-fighting character, Jack Reacher, while on date with his wife when they saw a crook breaking into car.

What are the details?

Ritchson broke it all down in a clip posted last week from "etalk," a celebrity program that's part of Canada's CTV network.

“We were on a date in Montreal walking to a very nice dinner all dressed up, and we saw somebody breaking into a car. And, like, she put it together before I did," Ritcher recalled to the program, noting that there was "glass everywhere" and a crook was "rooting through somebody’s stuff and came out with all these bags."

He added that his wife said, "I think he’s breaking into that car." Richter's response? "By gosh, I think you’re right."

Apparently, Richter's wife had an inkling of what might happen next.

"And she goes, ‘Don’t do it!’ And I was like, ‘Instant Reacher Mode,’ and I was like, ‘Some justice has to be done here.’ And I chased that dude like four blocks until I tossed him into a building and the cops came,” Richter added.

In the end, he said his wife was "very mad at me for not just, like, taking her on our date," but Richter noted that "we got there eventually."

@etalkctv Turns out Alan Ritchson is the real-life version of Jack Reacher! 🫢 The star of 'Reacher' told us about stopping a real-life robbery in Montréal while on a date with his wife. 👏 #Reacher #AlanRitchson #JackReacher #storytime #interview #DateNight #Montreal ♬ original sound - etalk

Anything else?

According to the Internet Movie Database, the hit Amazon series "Reacher" focuses on a retired Military Police officer who's arrested for a murder he didn't commit — and who "finds himself in the middle of a deadly conspiracy full of dirty cops, shady businessmen, and scheming politicians. With nothing but his wits, he must figure out what is happening in Margrave, Georgia."

Tom Cruise played the same character in two movies released in 2012 and 2016.

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