Category: Blaze Media
Eric Swalwell offers melodramatic response to Trump DOJ probe: ‘I refuse to live in fear’
California Rep. Eric Swalwell is the latest of several Democrats to come under fire from the Trump administration, this time for alleged mortgage fraud.
Swalwell was referred to President Donald Trump’s Department of Justice for allegations of mortgage and tax fraud related to his residence in Washington, D.C.
The California Democrat is just one of four political adversaries the Trump administration has investigated. Democratic Sen. Adam Schiff of California, Federal Reserve Gov. Lisa Cook, and New York Attorney General Letitia James are also facing allegations of mortgage fraud.
‘I will not end my lawsuit against him.’
Because of the Trump administration’s string of legal cases against Democrats, Swalwell argues his referral was motivated purely by political purposes.
“As the most vocal critic of Donald Trump over the last decade and as the only person who still has a surviving lawsuit against him, the only thing I am surprised about is that it took him this long to come after me,” Swalwell said in a statement Thursday.
RELATED: When I brought the truth to Congress, Democrats lost their minds
Photo by Tom Brenner/Getty Images
In a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi, Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency Bill Pulte alleged that there were several million dollars’ worth of loans and refinancing based on Swalwell’s declaration of his D.C. home as his primary residence.
Pulte also alleged that Swalwell may have made inaccurate or misleading statements in certain loan documents, prompting an investigation into potential mortgage fraud, state and local tax fraud, insurance fraud, and any other related crimes.
“Like James Comey and John Bolton, Adam Schiff and Lisa Cook, Letitia James and the dozens more to come — I refuse to live in fear in what was once the freest country in the world,” Swalwell said.
RELATED: Eric Swalwell finally answers Chinese spy allegations: ‘I would hope that would be enough’
Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
“Of course, I will not end my lawsuit against him,” Swalwell added. “And I will not stop speaking out against the president and speaking up for Californians.”
“As Mark Twain said, ‘Patriotism is supporting your country all the time, and your government when it deserves it.’ Mr. President, do better. Be better.”
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Newsom’s Ex-Chief Of Staff Indicted For Fraud Scheme Stealing Campaign Funds With Biden Official
Dana Williamson and others allegedly conspired to steal around $225,000 from Xavier Becerra’s dormant political campaign funds.
Justice Gorsuch: ‘The Greatest Danger America Faces Today’ Is ‘Itself’
‘Thomas Jefferson said an ignorant people will never remain free for long, and he’s right,’ Justice Gorsuch said.
‘You know what really p**ses people off?’ Vance identifies what’s at heart of ‘populist resentment’ in Appalachia
Vice President JD Vance joined Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. at the Make America Healthy Again summit on Wednesday in discussing the Trump administration’s revolution against the unworkable state of affairs and orthodoxies that have left so many Americans sick, censored, poor, and behind.
After the duo discussed President Donald Trump’s penchant for taking “a bulldozer to Overton windows,” Kennedy raised the matter of the dire health and social conditions in Appalachia, noting that Vance’s incredible success serves as a “tragic reminder of the lost potential of almost everybody else in Appalachia.”
‘Their loved ones are dying much sooner than everybody else.’
“It’s got the worst health data of any region in the country — the highest cardiac disease, the highest obesity, the highest diabetes, the highest stroke rates — but also addiction, alcoholism, and suicide,” said Kennedy.
Although dubbed a “golden child of Appalachia” by the HHS secretary, Vance emphasized his firsthand familiarity with the bleak conditions experienced by so many in the region, noting that he was hard-pressed to identify a single important male family figure who lived past the age of 70.
“You want to talk about, like, ‘populism’? And you want to talk about people being pissed off? Well, yeah, people are pissed off when they don’t have good jobs; and people are pissed off when things disappear and move overseas; and people are pissed off when they feel like, you know, other countries are being prioritized over the United States of America,” said Vance. “All of that is part of the populist resentment of the past 20 or 30 years in American politics.”
RELATED: Vance identifies the perfect mascot for the Democrats — then outlines what America actually needs
Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images
“But you know what really pisses people off?” continued the vice president. “When they realize that their loved ones are dying much sooner than everybody else.”
Life expectancy has long been lower and infant mortality higher in Appalachia than in the rest of the country.
Vance noted that while on the one hand, he feels guilty that so many of his fellow Appalachians have not enjoyed the opportunities for economic and familial stability that he has enjoyed, he also feels “a great sense of anger because we never should have gotten to the point that we are today, and the reason that we have is because of failed leadership — and it’s failed leadership over generations.”
The vice president stressed that one of the reasons he strongly supports Kennedy’s health initiatives is because therein lies a major opportunity to do right by Appalachian residents who have been “left behind by this country’s leadership.”
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Bishop raises hell after woke priest allows homosexual ABC broadcaster to receive Eucharist beside his ‘husband’
Bishop Joseph Strickland, the cleric removed from his office in Tyler, Texas, in 2023 by the late Pope Francis, urged his colleagues gathered on Wednesday for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ plenary assembly to address the matter of a woke priest’s apparent willingness to run afoul of the church’s custom and to turn a hallowed Catholic ceremony into a non-straight spectacle.
Gio Benitez, a homosexual ABC News correspondent who is “married” to a man, apparently decided after Pope Francis’ passing last year to make his way back to the Catholic Church. Benitez, who was allegedly baptized in secret at the age of 15, was confirmed at St. Paul the Apostle’s Church in New York City on Nov. 8.
‘Here we are talking about doctrine.’
“My Confirmation Mass was a very small gathering of family and friends who have quietly been with me on this journey,” Benitez wrote on Instagram. “I found the Ark of the Covenant in my heart, stored there by the one who created me… exactly as I am.”
The ABC News correspondent also received holy communion from the church’s woke pastor, Rev. Eric Andrews, at the highly publicized mass where LGBT activist Fr. James Martin was a concelebrant and where Benitez’s “husband” served as his sponsor.
Blaze News reached out to Rev. Andrews for comment, but did not receive a response.
While the Catholic Church holds that homosexual acts are “acts of grave depravity,” “intrinsically disordered,” “contrary to the natural law,” and “can under no circumstances” be approved, the Catechism states that homosexual persons must nevertheless “be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity.”
RELATED: New head of US Catholic Bishops said he would deny communion to pro-abortion politicians
Bishop Joseph Strickland. Photo by Craig F. Walker/Boston Globe via Getty Images
The church has also made clear that Catholics with same-sex attraction who are chaste can “participate fully in the spiritual and sacramental life of the Catholic faith community.”
However, those who regularly engage in sexual activity or are partners in a committed homosexual relationship that includes regular sexual relations are not to receive holy communion or serve in public ministries.
“Receiving the sacrament is the ultimate expression of our Catholic faith, an intensely personal matter between communicant and priest,” wrote the late and posthumously exonerated Cardinal George Pell. “It’s not a question of refusing homosexuals or someone who is homosexually oriented. The rule is basically the same for everyone.”
“If a person is actually engaged in — by public admission, at any given time — a practice contrary to Church teaching in a serious matter, then that person is not entitled to receive Holy Communion,” continued Pell. “This would apply, for example, to a married person openly living in adultery. Similarly, persons who openly declare themselves active homosexuals take a position which makes it impossible for them to receive Holy Communion.”
During a USCCB discussion of doctrine on Wednesday, Bishop Strickland raised the matter of Benitez’s highly publicized reception of holy communion while flanked by his “husband.”
“I don’t know how many of us have seen on the social media priests and others gathered, celebrating the confirmation of a man living with a man openly,” said Strickland. “It just needs to be addressed. Father James Martin once again involved. Great pictures of all of them smiling.”
Bishop Strickland and Martin have traded barbs over the years, largely around Martin’s subversive LGBT activism and apparent efforts to liberalize the Catholic Church’s stance on such matters.
Martin — who shared an article titled “Gio Benitez, Openly Gay ABC Anchor, Joins the Catholic Church” on social media this week with the caption “Happy to be a part of your journey!” — has made no secret of his activism. For instance, he took issue with the Supreme Court’s June 2025 decision to let parents opt their children out of lessons featuring LGBT propaganda and insinuated that homosexual persons aren’t really bound by church teaching.
“Here we are talking about doctrine,” continued Strickland. “I just thought I need to raise that issue. I know it’s not part of any agenda, but this body gathered, we need to address it.”
The panel, focused on updated ethical and religious directives for Catholic health care services, did not take up Strickland’s concern.
The Catholic Herald noted that Strickland’s tenure as bishop of Tyler was “marked by a reputation for directness, a strong emphasis on Eucharistic devotion, and a willingness to challenge trends in the wider Church that he believed risked undermining the clarity of Catholic teaching.”
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Armed carjackers meet their match as gun-toting victim turns the tables, shoots the crooks — among them a 14-year-old male
A crew of carjackers most definitely picked the wrong guy to steal from in Seattle over the weekend.
Officers around 3:30 a.m. Sunday responded to a shooting in the 2200 block of 1st Avenue, police said.
‘Stories like this just warm my heart. I love a happy ending.’
Officers found a suspect suffering from multiple gunshot wounds and detained him, police said, adding that they also detained the victim — a licensed gun owner — for questioning and recovered the firearm.
Firefighters responded with police and provided medical aid to the suspect, police said, adding that medics transported him to Harborview Medical Center in serious condition. Police said the suspect was under armed guard by officers.
Police determined that the victim parked his sports car along 1st Avenue when the driver of a white sedan approached him.
Image source: Seattle Police
Four individuals wearing face masks were in the vehicle, police said, adding that after a short conversation, two males armed with guns tried to steal the victim’s car.
Fearing for his safety, the victim fired multiple rounds, striking one of the suspects, police said.
The remaining suspects fled the area in the sedan before police arrived.
While they were investigating, police said the driver of a white sedan dropped off a second suspect at Harborview Medical Center. The second suspect also had been shot, was in serious condition, and was under armed guard, police said.
The driver of the sedan fled before officers arrived, police said.
One of the wounded suspects is a 14-year-old male, while the other is a 20-year-old male, KING-TV reported, citing police.
Both wounded suspects will be booked into custody when they are released from the hospital, the station noted.
Officers and robbery detectives processed the scene, collected evidence, and spoke to witnesses, police said, adding that officers took the victim to Seattle Police headquarters, where detectives interviewed him; he was then released. KING said the victim is 24 years old.
Police said the case is an open and active investigation assigned to the Robbery Unit.
More than 3,000 comments have flooded KING’s Facebook post about the shooting, and as you might expect, folks seem quite happy about the outcome. The following are a few of their reactions.
- “Not every hero wears a cape,” one commenter said.
- “The vehicle owner doing the Lord’s work,” another user noted.
- “Awesome story,” another commenter wrote before adding “buy that man a beer.”
- “Stories like this just warm my heart,” another user gushed. “I love a happy ending.”
- “FAFO! Whahahaha! I love it!!!” another user exclaimed.
- “When you allow your streets to become the Wild West, sometimes you run into Wyatt Earp,” another commenter observed.
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‘Star Wars’ actor smears Disney and MAGA as fascist
When Disney-owned ABC briefly pulled Jimmy Kimmel off the air over comments he made about the assassination of Charlie Kirk, “Star Wars” actor Oscar Isaac took it personally.
In an interview with GQ magazine, Isaac was asked what his stance was on returning to “Star Wars” — and while he recently claimed to be on board with starring in the franchise again, things changed after Kimmel’s removal from the air.
“Yeah. I mean … I’d be open to it, although right now I’m not so open to working with Disney. But if they can figure it out and not succumb to fascism, that would be great,” Isaac said.
“If that happens, then yeah, I’d be open to having a conversation about a galaxy far away,” he added.
“What universe am I living in that now Hollywood is saying that Disney are fascists because, of course, the ABC thing and suspending Jimmy Kimmel? And so now, Oscar Isaac, who, you know, just made, what, $2 million off of ‘Star Wars,’ $6 million off of ‘Moon Knight,’ I’m told,” BlazeTV host Sara Gonzales says.
“Now he has morals and standards,” she adds.
“The funny thing,” BlazeTV contributor Matthew Marsden says, “is that’s an absolute bait and switch right there, what he was doing, because he knows that the series that he was in was terrible and that ‘Star Wars’ was ruined and nobody likes it.”
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Sen. Fetterman hospitalized after getting injured in a fall
A spokesperson for Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania says that the Democrat has been hospitalized after falling while on a morning walk.
Fetterman was quoted as joking about the injury to his face in the statement released Thursday.
Fetterman is said to be doing well and opted to stay at the hospital so that doctors can ‘fine-tune’ his medicinal regimen.
“During an early-morning walk, Senator Fetterman sustained a fall near his home in Braddock. Out of an abundance of caution, he was transported to a hospital in Pittsburgh,” read the statement.
He is receiving routine observation at the hospital.
“Upon evaluation, it was established he had a ventricular fibrillation flare-up that led to Senator Fetterman feeling light-headed, falling to the ground, and hitting his face, with minor injuries,” the spokesperson added.
Fetterman is said to be doing well and opted to stay at the hospital so that doctors can “fine-tune” his medicinal regimen.
A comment from the senator was included: “If you thought my face looked bad before, wait until you see it now!”
Fetterman is one of the few Democrats who split from the party to vote to reopen the government after a budget impasse shut it down.
This is an developing story, and additional information may be added.
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The railroad that could unite — and revive — America
When America completed its first nationwide railway in 1869, it did more than link two coasts. It united a nation. Railroads carried goods, materials, and people across vast distances at unprecedented speed, sparking an economic boom that forged a stronger, more unified country.
A century and a half later, the United States faces a new test. Globalization, supply-chain fragility, and inflation have exposed how dependent America has become on foreign systems and vulnerable networks. To meet these challenges, the nation must again invest in its own strength — beginning with its railroads.
Trucking currently dominates US freight, providing flexibility but at a steep cost in lives and highway damage. Railroads, by contrast, build and maintain their own infrastructure.
The proposed merger of Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern, announced in July, offers that opportunity. The combined company would create America’s first coast-to-coast rail network under a single U.S. carrier, spanning more than 50,000 route miles and linking 100 ports across 43 states.
A direct line to lower costs
A unified system means fewer handoffs between fragmented regional networks, faster delivery, and lower costs. Streamlined routes would eliminate the bureaucratic friction that slows commerce and adds uncertainty to shipping. For farmers, manufacturers, and consumers, that translates into stronger supply chains, lower prices, and renewed confidence in the American economy.
Trucking currently dominates U.S. freight, providing flexibility but at a steep cost. Federal data show that heavy trucks were involved in more than 150,000 crashes and 4,500 deaths in 2024. A single tractor-trailer inflicts the same highway damage as 9,600 cars — a massive public expense that taxpayers absorb.
Railroads, by contrast, build and maintain their own infrastructure. They reinvest billions each year without federal subsidies, move more goods with less fuel, and emit fewer pollutants. When uninterrupted by carrier transfers, rail shipping can be up to 60% more cost-efficient per ton than trucking.
A transcontinental system would amplify those advantages. Freight could move directly from origin to destination without costly delays. Lower transportation costs in agriculture, manufacturing, housing, and retail would ripple through the economy, easing inflation and boosting competitiveness for U.S. producers.
Strengthening American industry
The merger also complements the Trump administration’s effort to reshore manufacturing and rebuild domestic supply chains. With access to 100 ports and 10 international interchanges, a unified Union Pacific system would give U.S. manufacturers cheaper, more reliable routes for sourcing materials and delivering finished goods.
Expanded rail operations would also protect and grow good-paying union jobs in an industry that has powered America’s growth for more than a century. These are stable careers with benefits — the kind of work that anchors communities and sustains middle-class families.
Critics of rail mergers often warn of reduced competition or service quality. Those concerns deserve review. But in this case, the overlap between Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern is minimal. Rather than suppressing competition, the merger would strengthen it by enabling U.S. carriers to compete more effectively against trucking, air freight, and Canadian railroads — which have enjoyed uninterrupted transcontinental systems for decades.
RELATED: Trucks destroy roads, but railroads — yes, rail! — can save taxpayers billions
Photo by FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images
A historic chance to unite the nation again
When the first cross-country railroad opened in 1869, it helped knit together a divided nation, fueled commerce, and launched America into the industrial age. The proposed Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern merger represents a similar moment of promise.
By creating the first true coast-to-coast rail network in U.S. history, this partnership could help reshore manufacturing, fortify supply chains, and make American transportation safer and more efficient.
Rebuilding American prosperity begins with reconnecting America itself. The next great chapter of that story could once again be written on steel rails.
Europeans want US missiles to defend them, not America — and Rubio’s had enough of their hypocrisy
Secretary of State Marco Rubio called out European officials on Wednesday for criticizing America’s self-defense while expecting the U.S. to provide military support for their own.
The Trump administration has obliterated at least 19 alleged narco-terrorist drug boats since Sept. 2 with the stated aim of “protecting the homeland and killing these cartel terrorists who wish to harm our country and its people.”
‘I don’t think that the European Union gets to determine … how the United States defends its national security.’
President Donald Trump has suggested that each drug boat vaporized by U.S. fighter jets, AC-130J gunships, and drones amounts to 25,000 American lives saved.
A day after War Secretary Pete Hegseth announced that the U.S. had sunk an additional two boats in the Eastern Pacific, altogether killing six alleged narco-terrorists, French foreign minister Jean-Noel Barrot joined the chorus of foreign dignitaries who have been complaining about the strikes.
Barrot reportedly said at the G7 summit on Tuesday, “We have observed with concern the military operations in the Caribbean region, because they violate international law and because France has a presence in this region through its overseas territories, where more than a million of our compatriots reside.”
RELATED: ‘Begin repatriating’: German chancellor admits it’s time to give Syrian migrants the boot
Photo by Omar Zaghloul/Anadolu via Getty Images
When confronted with questions about the U.S. maritime strikes during a meeting with Latin American leaders last week, the European Union’s foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said that the EU upholds international law and “international law is very clear on that. You can use force for two reasons: one is self-defense, the other one is the U.N. Security Council resolution.”
Rubio addressed the European pearl-clutching on Wednesday, politely suggesting to reporters that the continentals should pound sand.
“I don’t think that the European Union gets to determine what international law is, and what they certainly don’t get to determine is how the United States defends its national security,” said Rubio. “The United States is under attack from organized criminal narco-terrorists in our hemisphere, and the president is responding in the defense of our country.”
After indicating that the Europeans are out of their depth, Rubio hammered America’s allies across the Atlantic for their apparent hypocrisy.
“I do find it interesting that all these countries want us to send, you know, and supply, for example, nuclear-capable Tomahawk missiles to defend Europe, but when the United States positions aircraft carriers in our hemisphere where we live, somehow that’s a problem,” said the secretary of state.
Rubio added, “The president ordered it in defense of our country. It continues. It’s ongoing. It can stop tomorrow if [terrorist cartels] stop sending drug boats.”
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