July 18, 2025
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Leading the News . . .
The House Delivers: Trump's $9B Cut To Global Aid And Public Broadcasting Gets Final Approval . . . The GOP-led House sent a $9 billion rescissions package to President Donald Trump's desk just after midnight on Friday, a victory for the Department of Government Efficiency drive to defund programs that many Republicans deem wasteful and ideologically driven. Lawmakers in the lower chamber voted 216-213, largely along party lines, in favor of the rescissions measure, which claws back funds allocated to foreign aid projects and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a funding source for NPR and PBS. Daily Wire
It is absolutely incomprehensible that American taxpayers are forking over their hard-earned dollars to subsidize leftist high-brow programming for people who can easily pay for this kind of thing themselves from among the multitude of media options available today.
To Celebrate NPR Losing Federal Funds, Here Are Seven Of Its Worst Stories
Politics
Jeffrey Epstein's Friends Sent Him Bawdy Letters for a 50th Birthday Album. One Was From Donald Trump . . . The letter bearing Trump's name, which was reviewed by the Journal, is bawdy—like others in the album. It contains several lines of typewritten text framed by the outline of a naked woman, which appears to be hand-drawn with a heavy marker. A pair of small arcs denotes the woman's breasts, and the future president's signature is a squiggly "Donald" below her waist, mimicking pubic hair. The letter concludes: "Happy Birthday — and may every day be another wonderful secret." Trump denied writing the letter or drawing the picture. "This is not me. This is a fake thing. It's a fake Wall Street Journal story," he said. Wall Street Journal
MAGA erupts after Trump's move to unseal Epstein testimony and sue Rupert Murdoch's 'a** off' . . . MAGA allies who turned their backs on Trump for failing to release Jeffrey Epstein's client list are reinvigorated over his call for Attorney General Pam Bondi to release 'any and all' grand jury testimony about Epstein's crimes on Thursday after The Wall Street Journal published a salacious 50th birthday card Trump allegedly sent him in 2003. Trump denied he wrote the letter while threatening to sue the newspaper and its owner Rupert Murdoch. Daily Mail
Republicans to tee up House vote on Epstein resolution . . . Republicans on the House Rules Committee, after negotiations with GOP leaders, will tee up a vote on a resolution calling for the release of information related to the late Jeffrey Epstein, two sources tell The Hill, as the conference grapples with GOP frustrations over the Trump administration's handling of the saga. The Hill
GOP Rep. Luna Referring Jerome Powell For Criminal Charges Related To Fed Renovation . . . Republican Florida Rep. Anna Paulina Luna announced Thursday on X that she is officially referring Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell to the Department of Justice (DOJ) to investigate alleged perjury related to its over $2 billion headquarters renovation project. In September 2021, the National Capital Planning Commission approved the Fed's design for its new headquarters renovation project, racking up its cost to a total of about $2.5 billion. Daily Caller
Trump is checked for lower leg swelling and diagnosed with a common condition in older adults . . . President Donald Trump recently had a medical checkup after noticing "mild swelling" in his lower legs and was found to have a condition common in older adults that causes blood to pool in his veins, the White House said Thursday. Press secretary Karoline Leavitt said tests by the White House medical unit showed that Trump has chronic venous insufficiency, which occurs when little valves inside the veins that normally help move blood against gravity gradually lose the ability to work properly. Associated Press
Controversy-Plagued Penn Biden Center Now Buried by University . . . About a year after citizen Joe Biden was out of the vice presidency, his new endeavor was a Washington think tank called the Penn Biden Center for Diplomacy and Global Engagement. That organization would end up becoming the focus of investigations for what federal sources said was hundreds of millions in foreign donations and for housing classified government documents. Now, the think tank seems almost nonexistent, with no publicly available information on staffing or initiatives. Daily Signal
Biden? Biden who? Oh, that guy!
Criminal referral against Adam Schiff details possible violations of federal laws . . . The referral, sent to Attorney General Pam Bondi by Director William Pulte, alleges that Schiff may have violated several statutes—including government wire fraud, mail fraud, bank fraud, and false statements to a financial institution—by claiming two homes, one in Maryland and the other in California, as primary residences. Just the News
But should he get jail time? Would it be cruel and unusual punishment if perfectly nice criminals have to listen to Schiff's incessant sanctimony?
Republican Candidate for Virginia Governor Shakes Up Campaign . . . Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, the Republican candidate in Virginia's gubernatorial race, has reportedly asked her campaign manager to step down after falling behind her Democrat opponent in polling and fundraising. The news comes amid mounting GOP pressure for Earle-Sears to shake up her campaign with November's election just months away. A recent poll from the Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs found Democrat Abigail Spanberger leading by 12 points. Daily Signal
Zohran Mamdani blowing away the competition in Democrats' free-for-all . . . Zohran Mamdani's earthshaking political rise continues to pick up speed as the mayoral candidate racks up endorsements from New York City's most powerful labor unions and woos party bosses in Washington. Asked whether Mr. Mamdani could be stopped, Hank Sheinkopf, a New York-based Democratic strategist who has been highly critical of Mr. Mamdani, joked that he "was just talking to President Harris about that." Washington Times
NYC Socialist Mamdani Is 'Where the Democrat Party Is Headed,' Leavitt Warns
Culture
Shane Gillis Destroys The ESPYs … And Wokeness . . . Shane Gillis — who was on SNL and canceled on SNL before he ever did an episode, then was rehabbed because we now live in the post-cancel culture era — has become one of the most famous comedians in the country. Somehow, some way, Shane Gillis, who is incredibly politically incorrect, who is willing to go all the way to the edge on his jokes, and who probably has some rather conservative leanings, was hired to be the host at the ESPYs. Daily Wire
International
Israel apologizes for deadly strike on Gaza Catholic church after Trump call . . . Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu apologized on Thursday for a strike on Gaza's only Catholic church – which killed three people – following criticism he received from President Donald Trump. On Thursday morning, an Israeli shell hit the besieged enclave's Holy Family Church, killing three and injuring several others, according to the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem. Gaza has a tiny Christian community, many of whom have lived and sheltered inside the church since the outbreak of the war. Politico
Kill Russian soldiers, win points: Is Ukraine's new drone scheme gamifying war? . . . Under a scheme first trialled last year and dubbed "Army of Drones: Bonus" (also known as "e-points"), units can earn points for each Russian soldier killed or piece of equipment destroyed. And like a killstreak in Call of Duty, or a 1970s TV game show, points mean prizes. "The more strategically important and large-scale the target, the more points a unit receives," reads a statement from the team at Brave 1, which brings together experts from government and the military. BBC
Air India captain's eerie words to first officer 'could support theory pilot is to blame for deadly crash' . . . 'The plane is in your hands,' Captain Sumeet Sabharwal told First Officer Clive Kunder. Before the crash, Mr Kunder asked the captain why he had moved the fuel switches into a position that starved the engines of fuel. Mr Kunder was heard asking the senior pilot: 'Why did you shut off the engines?' Another microphone recorded a 'vague' denial: 'I didn't do it'. Mr Kunder was 'unconvinced' and asked the same question 'several more times' over a further six seconds. Daily Mail
Money
Fed Governor Waller Backs Trump's Calls for Immediate Rate Cut . . . Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller on Wednesday called for an immediate interest-rate cut, bolstering the Trump administration's case that the economy needs looser monetary policy despite recent tariff hikes. Waller said he supports a 25 basis point reduction in the federal funds rate at the central bank's meeting later this month. He cited slowing economic growth, weakening private-sector job creation, and inflation readings that he described as close to target once the effects of tariffs are stripped out. Breitbart
You should also know
CBS to end Stephen Colbert's "Late Night" in 2026 . . . Some conservatives did not seem surprised by the news, which came just days after Colbert - an outspoken critic of President Donald Trump - slammed his network's $16 million settlement with the commander-in-chief as a 'big fat bribe.' 'Colbert abandoned the precious gift of making everyone laugh in favor of nasty pandering to deranged leftists,' wrote Buck Sexton, the co-host of The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show. Daily Mail
Well, given that Colbert was making $15M a year, that more than pays for Trump. You really shouldn't bite the hand that feeds you too hard, you know?
Felix Baumgartner, first skydiver to fall faster than the speed of sound, dies in a paraglider crash . . . Extreme athlete Felix Baumgartner, the first skydiver to fall faster than the speed of sound during a 24-mile leap through the stratosphere more than a decade ago, died in a crash Thursday along the eastern coast of Italy. He was 56. Italian firefighters who responded said a paraglider crashed into the side of a swimming pool in the city of Porto Sant Elpidio. Associated Press
Mexican woman in US illegally charged with faking her own ICE 'kidnapping' . . . A Mexican illegal alien living in Los Angeles was charged with orchestrating her own fake ICE "kidnapping" to generate sympathy and solicit donations, the Justice Department announced Thursday. Yuriana Julia Pelaez Calderon, 41, a resident of South Los Angeles, was charged with conspiracy and making false statements to federal officers, the DOJ said. Fox News
I dunno. Does she not get points for ingenuity and chutzpah?
Guilty Pleasures
Coldplay's 'kiss cam' zeroes in on mortified tech CEO Andy Byron and alleged HR-chief mistress Kristin Cabot . . . A "kiss cam" moment broadcast at a Coldplay concert struck a scandalous note when it apparently exposed a cheating tech tycoon and his head-of-HR mistress — as the band's frontman, Chris Martin, mused that they must be "having an affair." The couple — identified as Astronomer CEO Andy Byron and the firm's chief human resources officer, Kristin Cabot — scrambled to hide their faces when they were caught on the jumbotron canoodling at Gillette Stadium near Boston on Wednesday night. New York Post
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