'Are you kidding me?' CNN analyst expresses disbelief over Democrats' loss of critical demographic



Democrats lost the White House and the U.S. Senate in November and were unable to make sufficient headway in the House to make their hysterical opposition to Republican initiatives insurmountable. In the months since, they have continued losing in various ways, especially in the way of public confidence.

The disapproval rating for the party as a whole was 58.3% as of May 25, according to polling by the Economist and YouGov. A new CNN survey conducted by SSRS and published June 1 revealed that only 16% of Americans figure the party's leaders as strong and only 19% of respondents indicated the party was capable of getting things done.

The Democratic Party has apparently lost a lot more than face and confidence — it no longer has a stranglehold on the middle class, a critical demographic that accounts for roughly half the electoral pie.

CNN chief data analyst Harry Enten built up to this revelation on Monday, noting first that when it comes to the economy, Americans just trust Republicans more.

When asked which political party's views were closer to their own on the economy, 38% of respondents said the Republican Party in a CNN survey. Thirty-one percent said the Democrats' views were representative.

RELATED: Scott Jennings drops reality check on CNN — Dems' support for boys in girls' sports, illegal aliens destroying their brand

Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images

"How is that possible, Democrats? How is that possible after all the recession fears? After the stock markets been doing all of this?" said an exasperated Enten, simulating market ups and downs with his hand. "After all the tariffs that Americans are against? And Republicans still hold an eight-point lead on the economy — are you kidding me?"

CNN talking head Kate Bolduan appeared keen for Enten to paint a silver lining on this bad news for Democrats, but he was unable to deliver. Instead, Enten noted that other polling data similarly suggests Americans regard the GOP as the party with the better economic plan.

'Donald Trump and the Republican Party have taken that mantle away.'

"The Republicans still hold an advantage on the all-important key issue of the day," said Enten. "And that is the reason why, even if Donald Trump's approval ratings are a little bit lower than they used to be, Republicans are not out of the ballgame because they still have a clear advantage on the economy."

Enten was not finished burdening Bolduan with bad news for Democrats.

He suggested that Democrats have for decades — since at least 1989 — held a significant, double-digit advantage over Republicans with the middle class. Enten noted, however, that the Democratic Party's advantage had slipped in recent years to a negligible lead, "well within the margin of error."

"Now, in our latest CNN poll, among registered voters, 'which is the party of the middle class?' It is tied," said Enten. "This, I think, speaks to Democratic ills more than anything else. They have traditionally been the party of the middle class. No more. Donald Trump and the Republican Party have taken that mantle away."

'A key advantage for Democrats historically has gone Adios amigos.'

According to a 2024 Gallup poll, 54% of Americans identify as part of the middle class.

There are numerous factors at play here besides former President Joe Biden's disastrous time in the White House, a few of which were highlighted by the New York Times earlier this year.

RELATED: Democrats are just noticing a long, deep-running problem

Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images

The Times noted that while Democrats rushed to pin their estrangement from the working and middle classes on the party's embrace of gender ideology and woke policies, Democratic leaders' prioritization of consumers over workers; promotion of job-killing climate and globalist initiatives; and shift away from unions hurt the relationship.

When asked which was the party of the middle class, 34% of respondents in the CNN survey said the Democratic Party, 32% said the Republican Party, and 33% said neither party.

"A key advantage for Democrats historically has gone adios amigos," said Enten. "And now there is no party that is the party of the middle class. Republicans have completely closed the gap."

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White House finds a clever way to box out the AP



A federal judge granted the Associated Press an injunction on April 8, preventing the Trump administration from excluding the liberal publication from press events at the White House.

The ruling, which an attorney for the government suggested "constitutes an unprecedented intrusion into Executive authority," was celebrated by the liberal publication and others antagonistic of the Trump White House.

The AP and its allies were premature in their celebration.

The White House apparently found a way to minimize its encounters with the AP without running afoul of the injunction.

Days after appealing the decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, the White House changed its policy for the press pool, abolishing the news wire service seat and replacing it with a second print reporter seat.

Previously, the AP shared a guaranteed rotating spot with Reuters and Bloomberg. The three outfits have now been dropped into a much larger group of print media organizations eligible for inclusion in the pool.

The New York Post, which was first to report the changes, indicated that the reassignment of the three wires expands the White House print rotation from 31 to 34 spots and "dramatically" decreases opportunities for each wire service.

'The Court does not order the Government to grant the AP permanent access to the Oval Office, the East Room, or any other media event.'

The White House's new policy eliminating the wire spot states that:

  • "outlets will be eligible for participation in the Pool, irrespective of the substantive viewpoint expressed by an outlet";
  • "eligible outlets will be chosen for the White House Press Pool on a rotating basis";
  • "wire-based outlets will be eligible for selection as part of the Pool's daily print-journalist rotation";
  • "the White House Press Secretary shall retain day-to-day discretion to determine composition of the pool"; and
  • "the President retains absolute discretion over access to the Oval Office, Air Force One, and other comparable sensitive spaces."

"The makeup of the pool is far more reflective of the media habits of the American people in 2025," a senior White House official told the New York Post. "The White House press policy continues to be grounded in fairness for all outlets that wish to cover the White House."

U.S. District Court Judge Trevor McFadden noted in his ruling last week that the AP must be put "on an equal playing field as similarly situated outlets, despite the AP's use of disfavored terminology."

"The Court does not order the Government to grant the AP permanent access to the Oval Office, the East Room, or any other media event," continued McFadden. "It does not bestow special treatment upon the AP. Indeed, the AP is not necessarily entitled to the 'first in line every time' permanent press pool access it enjoyed under the [White House Correspondents' Association]. But it cannot be treated worse than its peer wire services."

The new policy appears to satisfy McFadden's requirement since it deprives all of the wire services of their coveted spot.

Lauren Easton, a spokeswoman for the AP, said in a statement, "The administration's actions continue to disregard the fundamental American freedom to speak without government control or retaliation."

"For decades, the daily presence of the wire services in the press pool has ensured that investors and voters across the United States and around the world can rely on accurate real-time reporting on what the president says and does," said Bloomberg editor in chief John Micklethwait, who was similarly upset over the apparent checkmate. "We deeply regret the decision to remove that permanent level of scrutiny and accountability."

WHCA president Eugene Daniels of MSNBC bemoaned the shake-up in a statement Tuesday night, suggesting the three liberal publications were somehow owed their traditional spots.

"The changes to the press pool today show that the White House is just using a new means to do the same thing: retaliate against news organizations for coverage the White House doesn't like," said Daniels. "The Associated Press, Bloomberg News and Reuters play an integral role in coverage of the presidency and should be allowed their traditional spots in the pool."

The AP filed a court motion Wednesday claiming the White House's press pool shake-up was a violation of McFadden's injunction. The liberal publication asked the judge to enforce his preliminary injunction.

The court has ordered the parties to appear for a hearing on April 18.

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Lead satanist who plotted 'Black Mass' apparently turns violent, gets marched out of Kansas Capitol in handcuffs



Forces of light and darkness converged Friday on the Kansas Capitol in Topeka, where the anti-Christian hate group Satanic Grotto planned to hold a "Black Mass" ceremony.

With Shawnee County sheriff's deputies and members of the Knights of Columbus reportedly posted outside, nearby Catholic churches were packed full of the faithful, engaged in Eucharistic Adoration and prayer for the conversion of the satanists, who detailed in advance their intention to dedicate the statehouse to the devil, destroy Bibles, break crucifixes, denounce Christ, and perform "rites to the black mass."

The steps on the south side of the state Capitol were also crowded by opponents of the diabolic, who prayed the rosary under an American flag and amid Jerusalem Cross flags with a bagpiper occasionally blasting tunes to popular hymns.

As promised, lead satanist and founder of the Satanic Grotto Michael Stewart flouted Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly's directive to keep outside the state Capitol, where he was permitted to engage in provocative displays of anti-Catholic bigotry that were pre-emptively condemned by the Catholic Archdiocese of Kansas City and most state legislators, with the exception of 15 Democrats.

The satanist entered the statehouse, turned violent while dedicating the building to the devil, and was confronted by the only authority he recognizes, video showed.

Footage taken inside on the first floor of the rotunda shows a young onlooker interrupting Stewart's unsanctioned satanic ritual, allegedly grabbing the satanist's mock communion wafer.

Stewart, whose satanic code states that "only might is right and violence is the ultimate source of all authority," appears in the video to viciously attack the individual who interrupted him, throwing at least two punches before law enforcement could tackle him to the ground.

'Approach this situation with all confidence in God's ultimate victory over Satan.'

Video published by KCTV-TV shows police handcuffing the apparently violent satanist, then marching him out of the state Capitol while Stewart repeatedly yelled, "Hail Satan" and "I dedicate this building to Satan."

Blaze News reached out to Kansas Capitol Police but was not immediately provided with details regarding Stewart's arrest and possible charges.

Around the time of Stewart's arrest, CatholicVote — which ran an ad campaign imploring Gov. Kelly to prevent the satanists from conducting their "Black Mass" and invited Christians to protest — reiterated, "OUR GOD WILL NOT BE MOCKED."

Unlike the satanists, Christian protesters appear to have been entirely peaceful, possibly heeding Archbishop Joseph Naumann's recommendation to "approach this situation with all confidence in God's ultimate victory over Satan, sin, and death."

'We want to see these guys come to the Lord.'

Some of the peaceful Christians who gathered in Topeka to protest the planned satanic ritual came from across and even outside Kansas.

Kent Van Amburg, a Catholic from St. Andrew the Apostle Catholic Church in Gladstone, Missouri, told KSNT-TV, "We came here just for this because we feel it's important for us to stand up and show that God is real, Jesus is alive, the powers of evil need to be protested against, and we’re here just to glorify God."

"We want to see these guys come to the Lord," Kelly Lohrke, a pastor at the Cure Church from Kansas City, told the Topeka Capital-Journal. "It's freedom of religion; everybody can be here. But we also have a right to pray."

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'No more ridiculous mumbo jumbo': Vance celebrates Marine Corps' elimination of DEI, then fires some guns



Vice President JD Vance addressed his fellow Marines Wednesday during a visit to Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia. Vance, who served for four years and did a tour in Iraq, spoke of his experience in the Marines, the significance of the service branch now approaching its 250th birthday, and the Trump administration's re-prioritization of lethality over cosmetic diversity.

After delivering his remarks, Vance ate a meal at the mess hall, then hit the gun range, where he fired an M27 infantry rifle, an M107 sniper rifle, an M240B machine gun, and a Howitzer — all with ease and absent any blunders, prompting some supporters online to draw comparisons with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz's humiliating hunting-themed photo op.

Vance quipped at the outset of his speech that he may have been motivated to run for vice president because of a desire for the "colonels and generals to listen to the corporals for a change."

— (@)

Despite this suggestion that he did not like being ordered around and his boast later that there was no one to chastise him for being two hours late, the vice president emphasized that he greatly benefited from Marine Corps discipline.

'We care about excellence, and we care about patriotism.'

"There are a lot of good things the Marine Corps did for me when I joined the Marines back in 2003," said Vance. "I was just a kind of directionless kid. I didn't know what I wanted to do with my life — and as you all know, the Marine Corps is good at giving direction to 18-year-old kids."

After underscoring his pride in and appreciation for the Marines, Vance noted that the Corps is now "headed in the right direction."

"Under President Trump's leadership, we believe in a very simple principle. We don't care who you are, where you came from; we don't care what skin color you are. We care about excellence, and we care about patriotism," said Vance.

— (@)

"No more quotas. No more ridiculous mumbo jumbo. No more diversity trainings," continued the vice president. "We believe the real strength and the real diversity in the United States Marine Corps is that you all come from every walk of life, come from every corner of America, and you have got the strength and the purpose to win the nation's wars — and that is what the Marine Corps is going to do, just like it's done for damn near 250 years."

Although a woke Biden judge has blocked its ban on transvestites in the military, the Trump administration has enjoyed some success with its other efforts to ensure that capability is not sacrificed on the altar of diversity.

After taking office, President Donald Trump signed an executive order terminating "all discriminatory and illegal preferences, mandates, policies, programs, activities, guidance, regulations, enforcement actions, consent orders, and requirements." Days later, he signed another order explicitly eliminating race- and sex-based discrimination in the military.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth subsequently made clear that where the Pentagon was concerned, DEI, gender ideology, critical race theory, and quotas were to be relegated to the dustbin of history.

Hegseth noted in a Jan. 29 memo titled "Restoring America's Fighting Force" that the military "will ensure all decisions related to hiring, promotion, and selection of personnel for assignments are based on merit, the needs of the Department, and lastly, the individual's desire."

'He's proud of you.'

In addition to highlighting the military's rejection of identity politics, Vance indicated in his speech Wednesday that the "new leadership" is going to "invest in the Marine Corps and the entire United States military like we never have before — over a trillion dollars. We're going to invest in building up the manufacturing base of this country so that you guys, when you do go to war, when you have to go to war, you've got the best weapons anywhere in the world."

Vance also passed on a message to the Marines from their commander in chief: "First of all that he loves you. And second of all that he's proud of you."

Kevin Brown, the mayor of Quantico, noted on Facebook, "It was a pleasure listening to a Marine Vice President talk to Marines. Once a Marine Always a Marine."

Brown told Potomac Local News, "It's encouraging to know we have someone in the White House with that pedigree, advising the president."

— (@)

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Education Department takes wrecking ball to DEI on Trump's orders: 'Glorious sight to behold'



President Donald Trump has taken a flamethrower to the racist DEI initiatives and other forms of race-based discrimination that embedded themselves throughout the federal government over the course of decades.

The 47th president began by requiring that the heads of all federal agencies, departments, or commissions eliminate all DEI offices, positions, initiatives, programs, contracts, and performance requirements under their purview; ordering the government to eliminate DEI discrimination in the federal workforce as well as in federal contracting and spending; rescinding numerous race- and identity-centered executive orders issued by Democratic presidents, including Lyndon B. Johnson's 1965 affirmative action Executive Order 11246; and tasking his inbound attorney general with preparing a civil rights-focused campaign against private-sector DEI practitioners.

The Department of Education, which Trump has nominated former World Wrestling Entertainment CEO and America First Policy Institute Chair Linda McMahon to run, recently signaled its compliance with the president's orders, noting in a Jan. 23 statement, "The U.S. Department of Education has taken action to eliminate harmful Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives, including references to them in public-facing communication channels and its associated workforce."

'Not tired of winning.'

"These actions are in line with President Trump's ongoing commitment to end illegal discrimination and wasteful spending across the federal government," continued the statement. "They are the first step in reorienting the agency toward prioritizing meaningful learning ahead of divisive ideology in our schools."

The DOE noted that for starters, it eliminated its Diversity and Inclusion Council, which was established as a consequence of former President Barack Obama's Executive Order 13583 — among the Democratic presidential actions Trump rescinded. The Education Department also closed its Employee Engagement Diversity Equity Inclusion Accessibility Council within the Office for Civil Rights.

In addition to placing DEI apparatchiks on paid leave, the department withdrew its Equity Action Plan; identified for removal over 200 department webpages that "housed DEI resources and encouraged schools and institutions of higher education to promote or endorse harmful ideological programs"; and canceled its race-obsessive training and service contracts, which were valued at over $2.6 million.

The department noted on X that these are the first steps "in reorienting the agency toward prioritizing meaningful learning and implementing President Trump's vision to reform education."

Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) said of the changes, "Not tired of winning."

"DEI was a house of cards since its inception, and it's finally crumbling," tweeted All-American swim star Riley Gaines. "Such a glorious sight to behold."

While the DOE appears to have already excised much of the racist malignancy, it signaled that there's still work left to do, noting, "The Department will continue its comprehensive review of all agency programs and services to identify additional initiatives and working groups that may be advancing a divisive DEI agenda, including programs using coded or imprecise language to disguise their activity."

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Trump tears DEI up at the root, rescinding Lyndon Johnson's affirmative action EO



President Donald Trump evidently means business when it comes to eliminating racist DEI initiatives and other forms of race-based discrimination, both new and old.

On Tuesday, he issued an executive order directing all executive government departments and agencies to eliminate "all discriminatory and illegal preferences, mandates, policies, programs, activities, guidance, regulations, enforcement actions, consent orders, and requirements," as well to combat similarly discriminatory DEI policies and activities.

Trump left virtually no ground for dissenting federal bureaucrats to take a stand on, rescinding President Lyndon B. Johnson's 1965 Executive Order 11246, which required that government contractors take affirmative action, as well as other race-prioritizing executive actions issued by former Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama.

In his order, titled "Ending illegal discrimination and restoring merit-based opportunity," Trump noted that while federal civil rights laws protect Americans from discrimination, roughly 60 years after the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, numerous influential institutions, both private and public, "have adopted and actively use dangerous, demeaning, and immoral race- and sex-based preferences under the guise of so-called 'diversity, equity, and inclusion' (DEI) ... that can violate the civil-rights laws of this Nation."

Trump noted that in addition to violating the text and spirit of American civil rights laws, these DEI policies "undermine our national unity, as they deny, discredit, and undermine the traditional American values of hard work, excellence, and individual achievement in favor of an unlawful, corrosive, and pernicious identity-based spoils system."

'This is an epochal shift, which will be noted in history books.'

A November study published by the Network Contagion Research Institute and Rutgers University supports Trump's concerns about the divisive nature of DEI.

"When DEI initiatives typically affirm the laudable goals of combating bias and promoting inclusivity, an emerging body of research warns that these interventions may foster authoritarian mindsets, particularly when anti-oppressive narratives exist within an ideological and vindictive monoculture," said the study. "The push toward absolute equity can undermine pluralism and engender a (potentially violent) aspiration of ideological purity."

After putting Johnson's EO in the ground, Trump directed the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs to immediately cease promoting "diversity," holding federal contractors and subcontractors responsible for taking affirmative action, and allowing or encouraging federal contractors to "engage in workforce balancing based on race, color, sex, sexual preference, religion, or national origin."

In addition to tasking the director of the Office of Management and Budget nominee to undertake a purge of any DEI jargon, principles, or schemes in federal acquisition, contracting, grants, and financial assistance procedures — and indicating that doing so will "streamline those procedures, improve speed and efficiency, lower costs, and comply with civil-rights laws" — Trump signaled that DEI practitioners in the private sector may soon reap the whirlwind for their discriminatory practices.

The attorney general, working with the head of relevant federal agencies, will draft a list of recommendations for how the Trump administration could crush civil rights-violating DEI practices in the private sector, along with a list of worst offenders and workable strategies.

"Hardworking Americans who deserve a shot at the American Dream should not be stigmatized, demeaned, or shut out of opportunities because of their race or sex," wrote Trump.

Christopher Rufo, a senior Manhattan Institute fellow who has waged a years-long war against DEI, called Trump's EO a "massive shift."

Texas Rep. Chip Roy (R) tweeted, "This is game-changing & we should strive to make it permanent. The @freedomcaucus would all vote to codify this. But many Republicans would not. We have to be willing to be as bold in Congress."

"This is an epochal shift, which will be noted in history books," wrote Eric Kaufmann, a professor of politics at the University of Buckingham. "The fact this did not happen for over half a century despite 2/3 public support is testament to the cultural power of the (inflated) anti-racism taboo over successive Republican elites."

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'We woke up in a body bag': Van Jones makes stunning admission about why Trump steamrolled the establishment



CNN talking head Van Jones spoke at length Friday to his former colleague Chris Cillizza about the American political class' failure to understand which way the wind is blowing and how it knocked them over on Nov. 5.

Jones, a former Obama adviser who had several weeks to get over his election-night despair, was particularly candid about how President-elect Donald Trump was able to electorally crush Kamala Harris and retake the White House, underscoring that Trump outsmarted his critics, particularly those in the media who "misread" his appeal and extra-political strategy.

After suggesting that the liberal political establishment is "all screwed up" and detached from the electorate and its wants and needs, Jones likened the media's predictions in the lead-up to the election to the ancient practice whereby a haruspex would read omens from animal entrails.

"There used to be a time back in the day that they would cut a pig open, and they would throw the pig entrails on the ground to try to read and divine the future, right. It would be like asking, 'Did you think that you misread the pig entrails?' Like we were so off," said Jones. "We weren't reading the actual electorate at all. For instance, we were using completely outdated terms and modes of analysis and concepts like 'swing voter,' 'moderate voter,' 'male voter,' 'female voter.' None of that stuff is what Donald Trump's team was focused on."

Whereas Kamala Harris ran a political campaign largely targeting Americans on the basis of immutable characteristics, Jones suggested that Trump alternatively ran a "masculinist cultural movement," drawing numerous subcultures — including UFC, "the health and wellness people," and the "crypto folks" — into a broader tent by engaging them, talking to them, and taking them seriously.

Cillizza later acknowledged that the coalition that formed around Trump had "a little something for a lot of different people."

Jones indicated that Democrats made matters worse for themselves by thinking in terms of left and right; by failing to understand that Trump was in some cases playing a vertical game, appealing across party lines to low-trust groups as opposed to those still trusting of liberal institutions.

'We look like idiots.'

"We woke up in body bag on Election Day and didn't even know it," continued Jones. "We thought that because CNN, NPR, New York Times, all of the mainstream media was pretty much beating the hell out of Donald Trump that Trump was getting the hell beat out of him. The mainstream media is actually now, by the numbers, the fringe."

Jones underscored that alternative media has far and away eclipsed legacy media such that it's not unheard of for CNN and Fox News to grossly underperform "a Twitch streamer you've never heard of."

"We got beat on platforms I've never heard of," continued Jones. "The problem you're going to have now is when Joe Rogan sits down with Donald Trump, 48 million people watch the YouTube of the podcast. The YouTube! We didn't have that many people watch the debate on CNN. So guys — get out of my face. We had the wrong analysis. We didn't even have the conceptual framework to understand what's happening to us."

'We got beat by something that we don't understand.'

Although Harris avoided interviews for much of her campaign, when she did field questions, it was primarily on friendly mainstream media networks. She only made two prominent podcast appearances and spiked another possible appearance on "The Joe Rogan Experience." Trump, meanwhile, appeared on numerous podcasts, crushing Harris' outreach by even conservative estimates.

"We're playing a different game," said Jones.

Despite signaling agreement with Jones throughout, Cillizza still appeared confused about how Trump was able to pull it off, prompting Jones to once again criticize the mental framework prevalent in the liberal media: "'How can Donald Trump?' 'How can Donald Trump?' Guys, can we cut it out? Donald Trump is not an idiot."

While establishmentarians leaned hard into their characterization of Trump as a Hitlerian figure in recent months, many have suggested over the years that the Republican president was equipped with substandard mental faculties.

Council on Foreign Relations fellow Max Boot, for instance, suggested Trump was "too stupid to be president." Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) reportedly called Trump "stupid as well as being ill-tempered." California Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D) similarly suggested Trump was "stupid" in her memoir. The New Republic tried combining both characterizations, calling Trump "an extremely dumb fascist."

"Let me just be very clear: Donald Trump is smarter than me, you, and all of the critics. You know how I know? Because he has the White House; the Senate; the House; the Supreme Court; the popular vote; he has a massive media system bigger than the mainstream built around him and for him; and a ... religious fervor in a political movement around him; and his best buddy is the richest person in the history of the world; and the most relevant Kennedy is with him," said Jones. "This dude is a phenomenon. He is the most powerful human on Earth and in our lifetime, and we're still staying, 'Well, how is this guy?' We look like idiots."

Jones stressed that the liberal establishment's failure to understand Trump "doesn't mean he's dumb. We don't understand it — that means we're dumb," adding, "We got beat by something that we don't understand."

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Andrew McCabe, other deep state mascots want Mike Rogers for FBI director — but Trump adviser says 'it's not happening'



Andrew McCabe, the former FBI deputy director who shut down investigations into the Clinton Foundation in 2016 then undermined the Trump presidency with Crossfire Hurricane, told CNN Thursday that former Michigan Rep. Mike Rogers would be a "totally reasonable, logical selection" for President-elect Donald Trump's FBI director.

McCabe said that Rogers' "strongest qualification ... is the respect and awareness and knowledge that he has for the intelligence community, for the work they do, for the seriousness of that work, for how those secrets and that sensitive information needs to be protected."

To the likely displeasure of McCabe and other exponents of the Washington security establishment, Trump has apparently joined Michigan voters in rejecting Rogers.

Trump adviser Dan Scavino indicated Friday morning — shortly after Fox News' Brian Kilmeade sung Rogers' praises — that where FBI Director Christopher Wray's replacement is concerned, Rogers is "not happening."

Scavino quoted President-elect Donald Trump as saying, "I have never even given it a thought."

This came as great news to those alternatively keen to see former National Security Council official Kash Patel named Wray's successor.

"Winning," tweeted Donald Trump Jr.

"Boom," wrote Revolver News editor Darren Beattie.

Rumors that Trump was considering Rogers for the position began to circulate last week after the former congressman met with Trump at his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida.

The prospect of a defense lobbyist associated with censorious groups antagonistic to Trump and historically supportive of mass surveillance programs running the FBI rankled Trump loyalists and other critics of the dysfunctional administrative state, particularly those keen to see Patel nominated.

Mike Benz, the executive director of the Foundation for Freedom Online, told former Trump adviser Stephen K. Bannon that Rogers' involvement with the Atlantic Council — "probably the number-one apex predator in the entire censorship industry" — and his help advancing Russiagate were disqualifying.

'There is a lot of damage someone like Kash Patel could do.'

Independent journalist Glenn Greenwald tweeted, "There's literally no worse appointment possible than choosing Mike Rogers for FBI Director, or for any government position. He's the single most devoted loyalist to the US Security State and all of its multi-faceted abuses. It doesn't get worse than Mike Rogers."

Wikileaks highlighted that Rogers, favored by Republican Sens. Susan Collins (Maine) and John Cornyn (Texas), not only pushed for the suppression of a Republican memo critical of the FBI's spying on the Trump campaign but was involved with the German Marshall Fund's Alliance for Securing Democracy initiative and its Hamilton 68 Dashboard. Wikileaks noted that the dashboard's "true purpose appeared to be casting suspicion on Trump supporters and reinforcing claims that his presidency was illegitimate."

McCabe — whom Trump fired in March 2018 after the Justice Department's inspector general concluded McCabe had authorized an information leak to a liberal reporter then lied about it — expressed horror Thursday at the prospect of Patel taking power.

"It's inconceivable to me that an outsider with no experience in the organization, no knowledge of the work and the scope of authority that’s involved there could perform adequately," he told CNN. "If you enter into that position with nothing more than a desire to disrupt and destroy the organization, there is a lot of damage someone like Kash Patel could do."

McCabe is hardly the only establishmentarian fearful of Patel taking over the bureau.

'I'd shut down the FBI Hoover building on Day One.'

Former FBI Special Agent Daniel Brunner told CNN's Jessica Dean on Sunday, "Putting someone like Kash Patel in the position of director of the FBI is, I believe, extremely, extremely dangerous."

"He has clearly stated that he wants to exact revenge upon those that have investigated President Trump and those who have investigated those that are around him. He will conduct a massive amount of damage to the interior of the FBI," added Brunner.

The leftist blog New Republic called Patel an "intellectual lightweight" and warned that "if Trump installs Patel at the FBI, it would certainly further Trump and his MAGA allies' goal of purging the federal workforce of disloyal employees."

Patel wrote in his book "Government Gangsters" that "government tyranny" within the FBI must be eliminated and called for the removal of anyone who "in any way abused their authority for political ends."

"The FBI has become so thoroughly compromised that it will remain a threat to the people unless drastic measures are taken," wrote Patel.

Patel recently told "The Shawn Ryan Show," "I'd shut down the FBI Hoover building on Day One and reopen it the next day as a museum of the deep state."

Blaze News previously reported that despite his characterization as inexperienced, Patel has served as chief of staff to former acting Secretary of Defense Christopher Miller; as deputy assistant to the president and senior director for counterterrorism at the National Security Council; principal deputy to the acting director of national intelligence; as national security adviser for the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence; as a terrorism prosecutor at the Department of Justice; as a public defender; and as a hockey coach.

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Trump signals major media shake-up with FCC chairman pick



Jessica Rosenworcel, the Democrat presently running the Federal Communications Commission, has been antagonistic to President-elect Donald Trump and dismissive of conservatives' concerns in recent years, particularly regarding rogue liberal broadcasters, the foreign-funded takeover of hundreds of American radio stations, and other pressing issues pertaining to the regulation of wire, television, radio, cable, and satellite communications in the homeland.

Trump announced his nominee to replace Rosenworcel Sunday evening: Brendan Carr, currently the senior Republican commissioner on the five-member, Democrat-controlled FCC.

After highlighting that he first nominated Carr to the commission in 2017 and that Carr has been confirmed unanimously by the U.S. Senate thrice, Trump noted, "Commissioner Carr is a warrior for Free Speech, and has fought against the regulatory Lawfare that has stifled Americans' Freedoms, and held back our Economy. He will end the regulatory onslaught that has been crippling America's Job Creators and Innovators, and ensure that the FCC delivers for rural America."

'We must dismantle the censorship cartel.'

Prior to serving the independent federal agency as commissioner, the father of three was the FCC's general counsel, an attorney at Wiley Rein LLP, a clerk for Jude Dennis Shedd on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, and an editor for the Catholic University Law Review.

"Thank you, President Trump!" Carr responded on X. "I am humbled and honored to serve as Chairman of the FCC. Now we get to work."

Carr, a lead-bellied critic of tech censorship and identity politics, immediately made clear that he was ready to make waves.

"We must dismantle the censorship cartel and restore free speech rights for everyday Americans," wrote Carr.

Insinuating that the FCC as currently led and composed has failed in its duties, the commissioner noted further, "Broadcast media have had the privilege of using a scarce and valuable public resource — our airwaves. In turn, they are required by law to operate in the public interest. When the transition is complete, the FCC will enforce this public interest obligation."

A FCC under Carr would likely take another look at leftist billionaire George Soros' takeover of over 200 American radio stations with cash from unvetted foreign nationals. After all, he was a vociferous critic of the takeover while his Democratic peers were virtually silent.

Carr previously told Blaze Media co-founder Glenn Beck, "Foreign company ownership of U.S. radio stations is not supposed to exceed 25%. But Soros took foreign investment to make his bid, and then he asked the FCC to make an exception to the usual review process."

The three Democratic appointees on the FCC signed off on both approving the assignment of licenses under the control of a Texas bankruptcy court to the Soros-controlled company Audacy and to sparing the company from complying with Section 310(b)(4) of the Communications Act, which prohibits foreign owners from having a stake in a radio station license exceeding 25%.

"Never before has the Commission voted to approve the transfer of a broadcast license — let alone the transfer of broadcast licenses for over 200 radio stations across more than 40 markets — without following the requirements and procedures codified in federal law," Carr said in his dissenting statement. "Not once."

A Carr-led FCC might not be so willing to look the other way.

On Sunday, Carr indicated that in addition to fulfilling its obligations to the public, his FCC would give the boot to the racist ideology that has taken hold at the institution in recent years.

"The FCC's most recent budget request said that promoting DEI was the agency's second highest strategic goal," wrote Carr. "Starting next year, the FCC will end its promotion of DEI."

— (@)

Rather than obsessing over Americans' immutable characteristics, Carr indicated in Project 2025's "Mandate for Leadership" what the commission should instead be focused on:

  • "Reining in Big Tech,
  • Promoting national security,
  • Unleashing economic prosperity, and
  • Ensuring FCC accountability and good governance."

According to Carr, reining in Big Tech would require the elimination of its immunities that courts added to Section 230; the imposition of transparency rules on tech giants like Google and Facebook; support for legislation that ensures internet companies "no longer have carte blanche to censor protected speech while maintaining their Section 230 protections"; and Big Tech companies to pay their "fair share" into the Universal Service Fund.

Tackling tech censorship appears to be a matter of critical importance to Carr.

'Carr will be an outstanding FCC Chairman.'

Days prior to Trump's announcement, Carr penned a letter to the top executives at several social media companies, putting them on notice for their collusion with the "Orwellian" organization NewsGuard, which he noted leveraged its partnerships with advertising agencies "to effectively censor targeted outlets" — including Blaze Media.

"Facebook, Google, Apple, Microsoft & others have played central roles in the censorship cartel. The Orwellian named NewsGuard along with 'fact checking' groups & ad agencies helped enforce one-sided narratives. The censorship cartel must be dismantled," tweeted the commissioner.

Where national security is concerned, Carr seeks to curb foreign influence, subterfuge, and sabotage through and on various communications systems and social media platforms, especially TikTok. He appears to be focused primarily on countering the threats posed by communist China.

Carr, who has in recent days and months echoed Argentine President Javier Milei and Trump's proposed Department of Government Efficiency leaders, also stressed the importance of ending the wasteful spending policies pursued by the Biden-Harris administration and of maximizing efficiency.

Following Trump's landslide re-election earlier this month, Patrick Yoes, president of the National Fraternal Order of Police, insisted that Carr was the best choice for the job, writing:

Mr. Carr has more than 20 years of private and public sector expertise in communications and technology policy as well as a deep institutional knowledge of the FCC. As Commissioner, he is known as 'Mr. 5G' for his passionate commitment to cutting through the bureaucratic red tape to get 5G technology into the marketplace. He was instrumental in the FCC's recent action to authorize the use of the 4.9 GHz spectrum within the Nationwide Public Safety Broadband Network (NPSBN) and granting a nationwide license to the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) to administer it.

Yoes added that "Carr will be an outstanding FCC Chairman."

The chairman nominated by the previous president customarily resigns when a new commander in chief of a different political party takes power; however, this is apparently not required by law. Time will see whether Rosenworcel will leave the position kicking and screaming.

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It's official: Trump announces dynamic duo who will go on bureaucrat firing spree — and lefties can't cope



President-elect Donald Trump announced Tuesday that Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Ohio entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy will lead a new federal agency, the Department of Government Efficiency — thereby making an internet meme a government-shrinking reality.

Some liberals are enraged over the proposed agency and appointments, apparently worried that these relative outsiders will lack the sensitivity and restraint necessary to preserve the status quo.

Trump said in a statement that Musk and Ramaswamy will "pave the way for my Administration to dismantle government Bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal Agencies — Essential to the 'Save America' Movement."

The novel agency, which Trump suggested could become "potentially, 'The Manhattan Project' of our time," will provide extra-governmental counsel and partner with both the White House and Office of Management and Budget "to drive large scale structural reform, and create an entrepreneurial approach to Government never seen before."

This initiative has a strict deadline of July 4, 2026.

Trump figures that the maximization of efficiency and minimization of bureaucracy "will be the perfect gift to America on the 250th Anniversary of The Declaration of Independence."

"This will send shockwaves through the system, and anyone involved in Government waste, which is a lot of people," Musk said in the statement shared by Trump.

'Americans voted for drastic government reform.'

Musk indicated that the DOGE will post all of its actions online for "maximum transparency" and suggested that the novel agency will regularly update a leaderboard for the "most insanely dumb spending of your tax dollars."

The tech magnate also shared a clip from his interview with Tucker Carlson, where he said, "Just take a look at all the federal agencies and say, 'Do we really need whatever it is, 428 federal agencies?' There's so many that people never even heard of and that have overlapping areas of responsibility. ... I think we should be able to get away with 99 agencies."

Ramaswamy tweeted, "Afuera!" — a term that more or less means "out" and that Argentine President Javier Milei repeated in a viral video when tearing the names of government ministries off a whiteboard.

Ramaswamy, who indicated Tuesday that he is withdrawing himself from consideration for the pending Senate appointment in Ohio, noted further that the "DOGE will soon begin crowdsourcing examples of government waste, fraud, & ... abuse. Americans voted for drastic government reform & they deserve to be part of fixing it."

While there has long been a desire among fiscal conservatives to rein in and shrink government, this particular initiative appears to have taken shape during a 70-minute conversation in August between Trump and Musk on X Spaces.

"Inflation is caused by government overspending," said Musk. "Would you agree that we need to take a look at government spending and have, perhaps, a government efficiency commission that just ... tries to make the spending sensible and so that the country lives within its means?"

"The waste is incredible, and nobody negotiates prices," said Trump.

Musk stressed that there should be a government efficiency commission "that takes a look at these things and just ensures that the taxpayer money — that taxpayers' hard-earned money — is spent in a good way. And I'd be happy to help out on such a commission."

Trump appeared receptive to the idea, having elsewhere marveled at what Musk had done at X — canning over 80% of the workforce and righting the ship — as well as at the wonders worked in Argentina by Milei, who took a "chainsaw" both to his leftist predecessors' failed policies and to bureaucratic overgrowth.

Shortly after their conversation, Musk posted an AI-generated image of himself standing at a podium emblazoned with the proposed title "Department of Government Efficiency," along with its acronym, which users recognized alluded to another meme: "Doge," the shiba inu dog immortalized in the cryptocurrency Dogecoin.

Trump was evidently unwilling to let the dream remain a meme.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) was among the first in line to complain.

Hours after belittling a two-time Bronze Star-awarded combat veteran, Warren — a senator with a platoon of staffers — wrote sarcastically, "The Office of Government Efficiency is off to a great start with split leadership: two people to do the work of one person. Yeah, this seems REALLY efficient."

Lincoln Project co-founder George Conway III, whose effort to spoil Trump's Madison Square Garden rally failed last month, joined MSNBC talking head Alex Wagner Tuesday night to complain about the proposed new agency.

Wagner, who apparently missed the Biden-Harris administration's short-lived Disinformation Governance Board, said, "Nothing has been more Orwellian in title."

'What are we going to be left with at the end of this?'

Conway cast doubt on whether the DOGE was possible, telling Wagner, "First of all, it's not going to be a governmental department as I understand it. And then there are actually rules and statutes that apply, I think. The Federal Advisory Committee Act talks about regulat[ing] from an ethics standpoint, people who are coming in and, you know, being consulted on how to run the government."

Jeffrey Toobin, the cable news analyst who exposed himself to colleagues on an October 2020 Zoom call, tried to reassure fellow travelers on CNN that the Administrative Procedures Act "requires a lot of hoops to be jumped through," meaning that Musk and Ramaswamy might have trouble slashing through the Washington kakistocracy with ease.

"If you want to get rid of a government department — if you want to change the structure of the Department of Education, the Department of the Interior — you have to go through all these steps, and like it or not, these two entrepreneurs are going to have to start learning that and following it, and it's going to drive them crazy," said Toobin. "We'll see how much they actually do."

New York Times writer Lulu Garcia-Navarro expressed concern on the CNN about what might be left after Musk and Ramaswamy are finished.

"Let's look at his track record. What did he do at Twitter, now X? He completely gutted that organization. It remains to be seen what he does in the federal bureaucracy," Garcia-Navarro told Cooper. "Radical change — it's a good thing, but you know, a lot of these people do not have the experience to know what they should be cutting, what they shouldn't be cutting. These are not people [with] government experience. So it really does beg the question, what are we going to be left with at the end of this?"

While it is presently unclear which federal agencies will be plastered with pink slips by the incoming Trump administration, bureaucrats at the FBI and Pentagon are among those now reportedly updating their resumes.

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