Morning Brief 2023-09-25

BOTTOM OF HOUR 2
GUEST: Ezra Levant
TOPIC: Trudeau Liberals who accused Canadian Freedom Convoy of Nazism give Nazi veteran standing ovation.

TOP OF HOUR 3
GUEST: Spencer Klavan
TOPIC: Will the U.S. fall like the Roman Republic did?

Leviticus 16:30

A note from Glenn...

Thank you for subscribing to my daily newsletter. It is one of the fastest-growing newsletters in the country, and most of it is because of you.

What you get every day is the last thing I see every night before I go to bed. It is then updated through the night by a trusted member of my staff whose job begins when I and all my producers are asleep. It has traditionally been confidential, as some of the stories may not have been fully vetted.

At 4:30 every morning, I spend three hours rereading and looking at all of the updates as well. I whittle it down to the most vital stories that I am considering for that morning's radio show, use some for reference on other stories we are tracking, and begin to design that day's show. Anywhere from 40% to 90% of the briefing does not make it to the air, not because it isn't important, but rather, I simply do not have the air time to share and put into perspective on that day.

All of it is then archived and tracked as groups. I use that archive to track patterns, origins, and speed of any given governmental, political, or cultural changes. Someday, I hope to use this archive to write a series of history books for future generations so they can fully understand what we did and what we fought against and for, to give future generations a deeper understanding of the good and bad of the world and America at this time.

So first, thank you for reading it every day. ONLY a well-informed citizenry can remain free. Please pass it on to your friends and family.

Our first story today is about something that you will never hear in depth anywhere in the MSM. I include it, as it is VITAL information for you and those you love to understand the global plan to destroy everything our founding documents promise. Again, thank you for reading, and please let me know what I and my team can do to better serve you.

—Glenn

News...

G20 meets to plan YOUR future, your resources, your rights, and your land
This is a really important story. The G20 met earlier this month in India. The G20 is one of the biggest, if not the biggest, meeting for global economic superpowers that occurs each year. China’s Xi and Russia’s Putin did not attend, even though they are G20 leaders, so the U.S. and India took an even bigger role than usual.

GOP optimistic about impeaching New Mexico Gov. Grisham over gun order, need 12 Democrat votes
“You either stand with the governor and her radical take that violated the Constitution, or the oath you took to your office," Block said.

Dallas mayor switches party affiliation to Republican: 'American cities need Republicans'
"Unfortunately, many of our cities are in disarray. Mayors and other local elected officials have failed to make public safety a priority or to exercise fiscal restraint," Johnson said. "Most of these local leaders are proud Democrats who view cities as laboratories for liberalism rather than as havens for opportunity and free enterprise."

Report: Biden admin giving crack pipes to Texans
The Biden administration’s “harm reduction” program funds a Texas organization that distributes crack pipes, possibly violating state law.

IRS to target ‘unscrupulous’ tax preparers amid crackdown on small business tax credit
Roughly one year after Congress approved tens of billions in IRS funding, the agency has unveiled plans yet more plans to target small businesses.

IRS to target people reselling concert and sports tickets
People who have made money from reselling tickets to concerts or sporting events this year will face new scrutiny from the IRS.

Flashback: The $80 billion question: What will the IRS do with all its new money?
Republicans say all those people will inevitably mean more audits for average Americans. Democrats scoff, saying they are only interested in high-end tax evasion by the rich and big corporations.

Minnesota's first cannabis regulator resigns after allegations of illegal sales
DuPree was appointed on Thursday and resigned on Friday.

Politics...

Biden disapproval rating hits highest mark of presidency: Poll
The NBC News poll released Sunday continues the trend of showing an overwhelming majority of voters expressing concern about Biden.

ABC/WaPo Poll: Trump edges out Biden 52-42 in head-to-head matchup
Washington Post says the poll is an outlier, which is probably true, as this poll has a history of being wildly inaccurate.

Politico: How to make sense of those new Biden-Trump polls
Polling more than a year before an election is interesting but doesn’t tell us much.

Biden refers to LL Cool J as ‘boy’ while speaking to Congressional Black Caucus
“By the way, that boy’s got — that man’s got biceps bigger than my thighs.”

Worried Democrats fret Trump is more electable than believed
"There’s rising crime around the country, the economy is lousy regardless of what Biden says, Biden is seen as old, and Kamala Harris is not really liked at all,” Sheinkopf added. “If the election was held tomorrow, Trump would win.”

Young Turks' Uygur: Mr. President: You're Going to Lose to Trump. We're Begging You to Step Down
There's almost no chance he's going to win. I've never heard of an incumbent polling under 40 points who went on to win re-election. When it comes to Joe Biden, three in six recent polls had him in the thirties. In one recent poll, President Biden was at an abysmal 32%.

Top Democrat Says Joe Biden Was ‘Being A Father’ To Hunter
Clyburn said Sunday on "Meet the Press" that Republicans opened an impeachment inquiry against Joe Biden because he was “being a father to his son.”

The Democrats socialist agenda will continue with or without doddering Joe
Though Dems fret about Biden's age ahead of 2024, the real concern is that his presidency has fully implemented Bernie Sanders' socialist policies on climate, immigration, election law, and more that the future far-left leaders of the party are sure to continue whether Biden runs again or not.

Newsom panics that his son listens to Joe Rogan, Jordan Peterson, refers to them as a 'micro-cult'
"I say micro-cults because I don't know if there's a better way to describe it. My son is asking me about Andrew Tate, Jordan Petersen [sic]. And then immediately he's talking about Joe Rogan," he explained. "And I'm like, here it is, the pathway."

Newsom vetoes progressives’ bills on transgender children and self-driving trucks
Newsom issued a trio of vetoes late Friday evening that are clearly meant to cast him as a 'moderate' as rumors continue to grow that he'll make a presidential run.

All the Bribes Dem Senator 'Bullion Bob' Menendez Took and What He Did in Exchange, According to Prosecutors
According to the DOJ, Menendez, his wife, and three businessmen were involved in a crooked scheme in which the senator received hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes — including gold bars — in exchange for benefiting his associates and the Egyptian government.

Sen. Bob Menendez hires Hunter Biden lawyer for bribery case
Abbe Lowell was the attorney on Menendez’s first corruption case in 2015, which ended in a mistrial.

Chris Christie Weighs In On Running Against Bob Menendez In The US Senate
When asked if he would run against Menendez if he did not win in the fall, Christie responded: “No, I have no interest in being in the United States Senate.”

Inside the Unfounded Claim That DeSantis Abused Guantánamo Detainees
A former prisoner’s story of mistreatment at the hands of Florida’s governor, Ron DeSantis, made headlines.

Reporter tried eating at NYC's finest restaurants dressed like Sen. John Fetterman
New York Post reporter John Levine decided to see if the new Senate dress code would fly in some of the nicest restaurants in the Big Apple.

Economy / ESG...

Did Bidenomics Kill The American Dream?
Homes and cars are becoming increasingly unaffordable for the middle class.

Rite Aid eyes closing hundreds of stores as it mulls bankruptcy: Report
The pharmacy chain has its headquarters in Philadelphia and operates 2,330 stores in 17 states, according to Fox Business.

Immigration...

Biden makes border history with most encounters in August ever recorded
More than 300,000 illegal aliens attempted to enter the United States unlawfully or were paroled during August, surpassing all national records and spelling a catastrophe for the Biden administration that claimed its sweeping policy reforms were working.

Video: Biden Takes a Victory Lap on the Border Right Before It Explodes
After a surge in border crossings predicted by Republicans in the aftermath of Biden’s May rescinding of Title 42 did not immediately materialize, the White House celebrated its supposedly successful border policy. Last week, however, illegal crossings have come close to hitting record levels.

AOC Blames Rubio For Surge In Illegal Aliens
Marco Rubio's sanctions against the socialist dictatorship in Venezuela caused the surge.

WAR News... 

What US taxpayers are getting for their money in Ukraine
"60 Minutes" discovered the U.S. is financing more than weapons in Ukraine. The government is buying seeds/fertilizer for farmers, paying the salaries of 57,000 first responders, and subsidizing small businesses.

Republicans smell a rat in Biden’s plan to aid Ukraine
Biden’s plan to continue military aid for Ukraine has the makings of a political ambush. “Cynics would say they're not really committed to Ukraine and they're hoping they can extract themselves and blame Republicans for it,” Sen. Marco Rubio said.

McCarthy reverses on Ukraine aid as GOP scrambles on funding bills
The California Republican’s U-turn comes a day after he told reporters he would remove the roughly $300 million from the Pentagon bill and give it a separate vote as he faced GOP pushback on its inclusion.

Biden tells Zelensky that US will send Ukraine ATACMS long-range missiles
Some in Washington had resisted supplying the weapons system, known as “attack-ems,” out of fear that it would widen the war with Russia.

Satellite images show increased activity at nuclear test sites in Russia, China, and US
New satellite images show Russia, China, and the U.S. have all recently expanded their nuclear weapons test sites amid rising tensions, though actual testing remains unlikely for now — but analysts warn the moves could start a new arms race.

Report: Canadian Parliament Honors Nazi During Zelensky Visit
Parliament rose Friday in the House of Commons to praise a Ukrainian "refugee" with ties to an anti-Soviet Nazi SS Division.

Commie Update...

China Is On The Fast Track To Wage War Against Taiwan — And The US, Experts Say
Though it's unclear if Xi Jinping will actually pull the trigger, intelligence suggests China is aggressively accelerating military capabilities to be ready by 2027 to invade Taiwan and wage war on the U.S. in the South China Sea through various "gray zone" operations meant to erode adversaries.

NY Times: China's brazen South China Sea militarization leaves US allies cornered
China has audaciously militarized the South China Sea, fortifying bases on disputed reefs and deploying warships despite having no legal claim, leaving U.S. allies feeling abandoned.

Disney fired hundreds of China staffers right before facing lawmaker probing CCP ties
Just before its CEO met with Rep. Gallagher investigating China influence, Disney abruptly axed 300+ employees there. The conveniently timed mass firing raises alarms over the company's questionable data practices benefiting Beijing.

Entertainment...

Amazon Prime Video to include ads in 2024
You have to pay an extra $2.99 a month to get rid of them.

Hollywood writers and studios reach tentative deal to end strike after nearly 150 days
Writers were concerned about the rise of artificial intelligence and wanted protections to ensure movies and shows are written by humans, not machines.

Trump Slams Woke Howard Stern: ‘A Broken Weirdo, Unattractive Both Inside and Out’
“I did his show many times in the good old days, and then he went woke, and nobody cares about him any longer,” Trump said.

Media...

Glenn Beck Podcast: DeSantis Opposes Ukraine Joining NATO
"I don't think NATO membership is in our interest, to me," DeSantis told Glenn Beck. "All that would do was add more obligations to us, so if you're adding more obligations, then what are benefits that we're getting in return?"

Glenn Beck Podcast: DeSantis re-ups prediction that terror comes from the Mexican border
“There’s Russians coming in across the border, there’s Iranians coming across, there’s Chinese coming across. I look at it and say, ‘Is there any way possible that we don’t have a terrorist attack in the future that can be linked to somebody across the border?'” DeSantis told Glenn Beck.

World...

Pope Francis says Europe is not facing an illegal immigration emergency, says countries should open ports
The pope pushed back against French President Emmanuel Macron and other leaders in Europe on Saturday, challenging them to open their ports to illegal aliens.

Refugees Flee to Armenia as Breakaway Enclave Comes Under Azerbaijan’s Control
Over 1,000 people crossed the border from Nagorno-Karabakh, days after a military offensive returned the ethnic Armenian enclave to Azerbaijan’s control.

Environment...

Judge Slams Biden Admin's 'Political' Move To Restrict Gas Drilling
A federal judge rejected and criticized a move by the Biden administration to restrict oil and gas leases in the Gulf of Mexico, calling it a "political" move and ordering the government to remove the restrictions.

LGBTQIA2S+...

Thousands take to the streets across Canada as part of parental rights protests against LGBT indoctrination in schools
Thousands of protesters carried signs that read, "Leave our kids alone," "Hands off our kids," "Parental choice matters," and "You don't own our kids."

Education...

Education secretary says he doesn't 'respect' parents thinking 'they know what's right for kids'
Back in May he wrote, "Teachers know what is best for their kids because they are with them every day. We must trust teachers."

Baltimore schools can't teach math but sure know how to count taxpayer billions
New state exams showed 40% of Baltimore's public high schools lack even one student proficient in math, even after the district received $1.6 billion in taxpayer funds to improve the failing system.

Fake Porn Account Lawsuit Filed Against Fairfax School Board Candidate
The lawsuit accuses a school board candidate of creating a fake porn account in the name of a mom who's a national figure in the fight against porn in schools.

Religion...

Religious Identification Among Democrats Crashes 20 Points in 20 Years
When Gallup first polled on the topic in 1999, 60% of Democrats identified as religious, as did 62% of Republicans. Since then, the percentage of religious Democrats has fallen 23 points to 37%.

Technology...

Burger King, Hello Fresh pull ads from Rumble as Russell Brand cancellation intensifies
These fresh cancelings come after the News Movement, a TikTok channel, called the advertisers to tell them their content was appearing alongside Brand's videos.

WaPo: Misinformation research is buckling under GOP legal attacks
An escalating campaign, led by Rep. Jim Jordan and other Republicans, has cast a pall over programs that study political disinformation and the quality of medical information online.

Twitter Adds Brutal ‘Context’ Update To WaPo ‘Hit Piece’ After Dave Portnoy Tapes Call With Reporter
"It's surreal we live in a country where activist reporters can openly get caught lying and admitting they are creating a false narrative to generate engagement and controversy AND still publish the article."

Science...

NASA’s first asteroid samples land safely in Utah
The landing marks the end of a seven-year journey since the Osiris-Rex spacecraft was launched in September 2016.

Sports...

Travis Tritt refuses interview over MLB vaccine mandate backlash
Country singer Travis Tritt declined an interview about being a lifelong Braves fan after facing backlash from MLB and media over performing the national anthem unvaccinated at a 2021 playoff game.

Anti-religious group claims Auburn's football coach attending Christian revival on campus is 'unconstitutional'
The Freedom from Religion Foundation claims that the head football coach helping with the baptisms was a violation of the Constitution's Establishment Clause.

Miami Dolphins score 70 points vs. Broncos in record day
The point total is the most points any NFL team has scored since the Washington Redskins scored 72 against the New York Giants in 1966.

Animals...

Popular California beach to close in order to protect sea lions
But the city council wants you to know this is NOT a permanent change; in seven years they'll revisit the issue.

Sept 25, 2012 - Do women care about the last 4 years?... Should Glenn campaign for people who represent his ideas?... Glenn's plans for TheBlaze... Iran meeting with Occupy Wall Street?... Not voting is voting... Obama's words about Islam... NFL replacement refs... US didn't walk out of UN speech by Iran...

Trump's proposal explained: Ukraine's path to peace without NATO expansion

ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / Contributor | Getty Images

Strategic compromise, not absolute victory, often ensures lasting stability.

When has any country been asked to give up land it won in a war? Even if a nation is at fault, the punishment must be measured.

After World War I, Germany, the main aggressor, faced harsh penalties under the Treaty of Versailles. Germans resented the restrictions, and that resentment fueled the rise of Adolf Hitler, ultimately leading to World War II. History teaches that justice for transgressions must avoid creating conditions for future conflict.

Ukraine and Russia must choose to either continue the cycle of bloodshed or make difficult compromises in pursuit of survival and stability.

Russia and Ukraine now stand at a similar crossroads. They can cling to disputed land and prolong a devastating war, or they can make concessions that might secure a lasting peace. The stakes could not be higher: Tens of thousands die each month, and the choice between endless bloodshed and negotiated stability hinges on each side’s willingness to yield.

History offers a guide. In 1967, Israel faced annihilation. Surrounded by hostile armies, the nation fought back and seized large swaths of territory from Jordan, Egypt, and Syria. Yet Israel did not seek an empire. It held only the buffer zones needed for survival and returned most of the land. Security and peace, not conquest, drove its decisions.

Peace requires concessions

Secretary of State Marco Rubio says both Russia and Ukraine will need to “get something” from a peace deal. He’s right. Israel proved that survival outweighs pride. By giving up land in exchange for recognition and an end to hostilities, it stopped the cycle of war. Egypt and Israel have not fought in more than 50 years.

Russia and Ukraine now press opposing security demands. Moscow wants a buffer to block NATO. Kyiv, scarred by invasion, seeks NATO membership — a pledge that any attack would trigger collective defense by the United States and Europe.

President Donald Trump and his allies have floated a middle path: an Article 5-style guarantee without full NATO membership. Article 5, the core of NATO’s charter, declares that an attack on one is an attack on all. For Ukraine, such a pledge would act as a powerful deterrent. For Russia, it might be more palatable than NATO expansion to its border

Andrew Harnik / Staff | Getty Images

Peace requires concessions. The human cost is staggering: U.S. estimates indicate 20,000 Russian soldiers died in a single month — nearly half the total U.S. casualties in Vietnam — and the toll on Ukrainians is also severe. To stop this bloodshed, both sides need to recognize reality on the ground, make difficult choices, and anchor negotiations in security and peace rather than pride.

Peace or bloodshed?

Both Russia and Ukraine claim deep historical grievances. Ukraine arguably has a stronger claim of injustice. But the question is not whose parchment is older or whose deed is more valid. The question is whether either side is willing to trade some land for the lives of thousands of innocent people. True security, not historical vindication, must guide the path forward.

History shows that punitive measures or rigid insistence on territorial claims can perpetuate cycles of war. Germany’s punishment after World War I contributed directly to World War II. By contrast, Israel’s willingness to cede land for security and recognition created enduring peace. Ukraine and Russia now face the same choice: Continue the cycle of bloodshed or make difficult compromises in pursuit of survival and stability.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

The loneliness epidemic: Are machines replacing human connection?

NurPhoto / Contributor | Getty Images

Seniors, children, and the isolated increasingly rely on machines for conversation, risking real relationships and the emotional depth that only humans provide.

Jill Smola is 75 years old. She’s a retiree from Orlando, Florida, and she spent her life caring for the elderly. She played games, assembled puzzles, and offered company to those who otherwise would have sat alone.

Now, she sits alone herself. Her husband has died. She has a lung condition. She can’t drive. She can’t leave her home. Weeks can pass without human interaction.

Loneliness is an epidemic. And AI will not fix it. It will only dull the edges and make a diminished life tolerable.

But CBS News reports that she has a new companion. And she likes this companion more than her own daughter.

The companion? Artificial intelligence.

She spends five hours a day talking to her AI friend. They play games, do trivia, and just talk. She says she even prefers it to real people.

My first thought was simple: Stop this. We are losing our humanity.

But as I sat with the story, I realized something uncomfortable. Maybe we’ve already lost some of our humanity — not to AI, but to ourselves.

Outsourcing presence

How often do we know the right thing to do yet fail to act? We know we should visit the lonely. We know we should sit with someone in pain. We know what Jesus would do: Notice the forgotten, touch the untouchable, offer time and attention without outsourcing compassion.

Yet how often do we just … talk about it? On the radio, online, in lectures, in posts. We pontificate, and then we retreat.

I asked myself: What am I actually doing to close the distance between knowing and doing?

Human connection is messy. It’s inconvenient. It takes patience, humility, and endurance. AI doesn’t challenge you. It doesn’t interrupt your day. It doesn’t ask anything of you. Real people do. Real people make us confront our pride, our discomfort, our loneliness.

We’ve built an economy of convenience. We can have groceries delivered, movies streamed, answers instantly. But friendships — real relationships — are slow, inefficient, unpredictable. They happen in the blank spaces of life that we’ve been trained to ignore.

And now we’re replacing that inefficiency with machines.

AI provides comfort without challenge. It eliminates the risk of real intimacy. It’s an elegant coping mechanism for loneliness, but a poor substitute for life. If we’re not careful, the lonely won’t just be alone — they’ll be alone with an anesthetic, a shadow that never asks for anything, never interrupts, never makes them grow.

Reclaiming our humanity

We need to reclaim our humanity. Presence matters. Not theory. Not outrage. Action.

It starts small. Pull up a chair for someone who eats alone. Call a neighbor you haven’t spoken to in months. Visit a nursing home once a month — then once a week. Ask their names, hear their stories. Teach your children how to be present, to sit with someone in grief, without rushing to fix it.

Turn phones off at dinner. Make Sunday afternoons human time. Listen. Ask questions. Don’t post about it afterward. Make the act itself sacred.

Humility is central. We prefer machines because we can control them. Real people are inconvenient. They interrupt our narratives. They demand patience, forgiveness, and endurance. They make us confront ourselves.

A friend will challenge your self-image. A chatbot won’t.

Our homes are quieter. Our streets are emptier. Loneliness is an epidemic. And AI will not fix it. It will only dull the edges and make a diminished life tolerable.

Before we worry about how AI will reshape humanity, we must first practice humanity. It can start with 15 minutes a day of undivided attention, presence, and listening.

Change usually comes when pain finally wins. Let’s not wait for that. Let’s start now. Because real connection restores faster than any machine ever will.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

Exposed: The radical Left's bloody rampage against America

Spencer Platt / Staff | Getty Images

For years, the media warned of right-wing terror. But the bullets, bombs, and body bags are piling up on the left — with support from Democrat leaders and voters.

For decades, the media and federal agencies have warned Americans that the greatest threat to our homeland is the political right — gun-owning veterans, conservative Christians, anyone who ever voted for President Donald Trump. President Joe Biden once declared that white supremacy is “the single most dangerous terrorist threat” in the nation.

Since Trump’s re-election, the rhetoric has only escalated. Outlets like the Washington Post and the Guardian warned that his second term would trigger a wave of far-right violence.

As Democrats bleed working-class voters and lose control of their base, they’re not moderating. They’re radicalizing.

They were wrong.

The real domestic threat isn’t coming from MAGA grandmas or rifle-toting red-staters. It’s coming from the radical left — the anarchists, the Marxists, the pro-Palestinian militants, and the anti-American agitators who have declared war on law enforcement, elected officials, and civil society.

Willful blindness

On July 4, a group of black-clad terrorists ambushed an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center in Alvarado, Texas. They hurled fireworks at the building, spray-painted graffiti, and then opened fire on responding law enforcement, shooting a local officer in the neck. Journalist Andy Ngo has linked the attackers to an Antifa cell in the Dallas area.

Authorities have so far charged 14 people in the plot and recovered AR-style rifles, body armor, Kevlar vests, helmets, tactical gloves, and radios. According to the Department of Justice, this was a “planned ambush with intent to kill.”

And it wasn’t an isolated incident. It’s part of a growing pattern of continuous violent left-wing incidents since December last year.

Monthly attacks

Most notably, in December 2024, 26-year-old Luigi Mangione allegedly gunned down UnitedHealth Group CEO Brian Thompson in Manhattan. Mangione reportedly left a manifesto raging against the American health care system and was glorified by some on social media as a kind of modern Robin Hood.

One Emerson College poll found that 41% of Americans between the ages of 18 and 29 said the murder was “acceptable” or “somewhat acceptable.”

The next month, a man carrying Molotov cocktails was arrested near the U.S. Capitol. He allegedly planned to assassinate Trump-appointed Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and House Speaker Mike Johnson.

In February, the “Tesla Takedown” attacks on Tesla vehicles and dealerships started picking up traction.

In March, a self-described “queer scientist” was arrested after allegedly firebombing the Republican Party headquarters in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Graffiti on the burned building read “ICE = KKK.”

In April, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro’s (D-Pa.) official residence was firebombed on Passover night. The suspect allegedly set the governor’s mansion on fire because of what Shapiro, who is Jewish, “wants to do to the Palestinian people.”

In May, two young Israeli embassy staffers were shot and killed outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C. Witnesses said the shooter shouted “Free Palestine” as he was being arrested. The suspect told police he acted “for Gaza” and was reportedly linked to the Party for Socialism and Liberation.

In June, an Egyptian national who had entered the U.S. illegally allegedly threw a firebomb at a peaceful pro-Israel rally in Boulder, Colorado. Eight people were hospitalized, and an 82-year-old Holocaust survivor later died from her injuries.

That same month, a pro-Palestinian rioter in New York was arrested for allegedly setting fire to 11 police vehicles. In Los Angeles, anti-ICE rioters smashed cars, set fires, and hurled rocks at law enforcement. House Democrats refused to condemn the violence.

Barbara Davidson / Contributor | Getty Images

In Portland, Oregon, rioters tried to burn down another ICE facility and assaulted police officers before being dispersed with tear gas. Graffiti left behind read: “Kill your masters.”

On July 7, a Michigan man opened fire on a Customs and Border Protection facility in McAllen, Texas, wounding two police officers and an agent. Border agents returned fire, killing the suspect.

Days later in California, ICE officers conducting a raid on an illegal cannabis farm in Ventura County were attacked by left-wing activists. One protester appeared to fire at federal agents.

This is not a series of isolated incidents. It’s a timeline of escalation. Political assassinations, firebombings, arson, ambushes — all carried out in the name of radical leftist ideology.

Democrats are radicalizing

This isn’t just the work of fringe agitators. It’s being enabled — and in many cases encouraged — by elected Democrats.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz routinely calls ICE “Trump’s modern-day Gestapo.” Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass attempted to block an ICE operation in her city. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu compared ICE agents to a neo-Nazi group. Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson referred to them as “secret police terrorizing our communities.”

Apparently, other Democratic lawmakers, according to Axios, are privately troubled by their own base. One unnamed House Democrat admitted that supporters were urging members to escalate further: “Some of them have suggested what we really need to do is be willing to get shot.” Others were demanding blood in the streets to get the media’s attention.

A study from Rutgers University and the National Contagion Research Institute found that 55% of Americans who identify as “left of center” believe that murdering Donald Trump would be at least “somewhat justified.”

As Democrats bleed working-class voters and lose control of their base, they’re not moderating. They’re radicalizing. They don’t want the chaos to stop. They want to harness it, normalize it, and weaponize it.

The truth is, this isn’t just about ICE. It’s not even about Trump. It’s about whether a republic can survive when one major party decides that our institutions no longer apply.

Truth still matters. Law and order still matter. And if the left refuses to defend them, then we must be the ones who do.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

America's comeback: Trump is crushing crime in the Capitol

Andrew Harnik / Staff | Getty Images

Trump’s DC crackdown is about more than controlling crime — it’s about restoring America’s strength and credibility on the world stage.

Donald Trump on Monday invoked Section 740 of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, placing the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department under direct federal control and deploying the National Guard to restore law and order. This move is long overdue.

D.C.’s crime problem has been spiraling for years as local authorities and Democratic leadership have abandoned the nation’s capital to the consequences of their own failed policies. The city’s murder rate is about three times higher than that of Islamabad, Pakistan, and 18 times higher than that of communist-led Havana, Cuba.

When DC is in chaos, it sends a message to the world that America is weak.

Theft, assaults, and carjackings have transformed many of its streets into war zones. D.C. saw a 32% increase in homicides from 2022 to 2023, marking the highest number in two decades and surpassing both New York and Los Angeles. Even if crime rates dropped to 2019 levels, that wouldn’t be good enough.

Local leaders have downplayed the crisis, manipulating crime stats to preserve their image. Felony assault, for example, is no longer considered a “violent crime” in their crime stats. Same with carjacking. But the reality on the streets is different. People in D.C. are living in constant fear.

Trump isn’t waiting for the crime rate to improve on its own. He’s taking action.

Broken windows theory in action

Trump’s takeover of D.C. puts the “broken windows theory” into action — the idea that ignoring minor crimes invites bigger ones. When authorities look the other way on turnstile-jumping or graffiti, they signal that lawbreaking carries no real consequence.

Rudy Giuliani used this approach in the 1990s to clean up New York, cracking down on small offenses before they escalated. Trump is doing the same in the capital, drawing a hard line and declaring enough is enough. Letting crime fester in Washington tells the world that the seat of American power tolerates lawlessness.

What Trump is doing for D.C. isn’t just about law enforcement — it’s about national identity. When D.C. is in chaos, it sends a message to the world that America is weak. The capital city represents the soul of the country. If we can’t even keep our own capital safe, how can we expect anyone to take us seriously?

Bloomberg / Contributor | Getty Images

Reversing the decline

Anyone who has visited D.C. regularly over the past several years has witnessed its rapid decline. Homeless people bathe in the fountains outside Union Station. People are tripping out in Dupont Circle. The left’s negligence is a disgrace, enabling drug use and homelessness to explode on our capital’s streets while depriving these individuals of desperately needed care and help.

Restoring law and order to D.C. is not about politics or scoring points. It’s about doing what’s right for the people. It’s about protecting communities, taking the vulnerable off the streets, and sending the message to both law-abiding and law-breaking citizens alike that the rule of law matters.

D.C. should be a lesson to the rest of America. If we want to take our cities back, we need leadership willing to take bold action. Trump is showing how to do it.

Now, it’s time for other cities to step up and follow his lead. We can restore law and order. We can make our cities something to be proud of again.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.