🚨 Iran Suspected of Transmitting Trigger to Activate Sleeper Cells Abroad
US intelligence intercepted an encrypted message likely from Iran that appears designed as an operational trigger to activate or instruct sleeper assets positioned outside the country, according to a federal alert shared with law enforcement; the coded transmission, showing international rebroadcast traits and meant for recipients with the matching key, surfaced shortly after the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in a US-Israeli strike, fueling concerns over potential retaliation via covert operatives or embedded cells in the West amid the ongoing conflict, though no specific imminent threat or location has been pinned down yet.
Sources: The Daily Mail, The New York Post
⚖️ 7th Circuit Tosses Obama-Appointed Judge’s Overreach in Chicago Immigration Case
An Obama-appointed federal judge in Chicago, Sara Ellis, issued a sweeping preliminary injunction against the Trump administration’s Operation Midway Blitz, an immigration enforcement push in the city that involved clashes with protesters and prompted complaints about agent conduct. The order demanded compliance with use-of-force policies, body cameras, warnings before certain weapons, and even judicial review of internal executive guidance, which critics saw as judicial micromanagement of law enforcement. A three-judge panel on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit, including two Trump appointees, reversed this in a 2-1 ruling, declaring the injunction overbroad and an improper intrusion that positioned the district court as overseer of all executive activity in Chicago; they vacated the order and dismissed the appeal, handing the administration a clear win on separation of powers grounds as the operation had largely wrapped up anyway.
Sources: FOX News, The Chicago Tribune
🗳️ FBI Subpoenas Arizona Senate for 2020 Maricopa County Election Audit Records
The FBI issued a grand jury subpoena in recent days to the Arizona State Senate, securing records related to the 2020 election audit of Maricopa County, Arizona’s largest county and home to Phoenix. Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen confirmed compliance with the subpoena late last week, stating the FBI now possesses those materials as part of an expanding criminal probe into suspected election irregularities, which includes terabytes of electronic data potentially covering the 2020 and 2024 elections. This action follows a January 2026 FBI raid in Fulton County, Georgia, and draws from prior concerns like the Arizona Senate’s 2020 audit findings and a 2024 congressional observer report noting issues such as commingled blank and filled absentee ballots. Maricopa County officials have stated they received no direct subpoena or seizure from the FBI for their own election records, and the probe appears focused on reviewing past audit materials amid ongoing debates over election integrity.
Sources: Just The News, The Daily Wire
🪙 U.S. Interior Secretary Confirms Arrival of $100 Million in Venezuelan Gold
U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum announced that $100 million worth of gold from Venezuela arrived in the United States on March 7, following the Treasury Department’s issuance of a license on March 6 authorizing dealings with Venezuela’s state-owned gold mining company, Minerven. The gold, intended for industrial and commercial uses, marks an early step in the Trump administration’s push to access Venezuela’s vast mineral resources—including gold estimated at $500 billion in value, plus bauxite, aluminum, and coal—amid renewed diplomatic ties and efforts to counter Chinese influence after Maduro’s capture. Burgum highlighted security assurances from Venezuela’s acting government and the potential for billions in U.S. investment and high-paying jobs through partnerships with American mining firms.
Sources: The Epoch Times, News18 India
💸 New York’s Medicaid Program Faces Federal Scrutiny Over Alleged Fraud and Waste
The Trump administration, through Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz, has launched an investigation into New York’s Medicaid program due to concerns over explosive spending growth, potential fraud, waste, and abuse. In a March 3 letter to Governor Kathy Hochul, Oz highlighted alarming trends like New York’s annual Medicaid spending exceeding $90 billion (second-highest nationally), per-beneficiary costs 36% above the national average, and massive outlays on personal care services—$18.5 billion in fiscal year 2024, nearly 70% more than all other states combined. He described the program as having morphed into a taxpayer-funded jobs engine, particularly in home-based care, with lax eligibility (such as “easily distracted” qualifying for services) leading to unheard-of utilization rates. Oz demanded detailed responses within 30 days on fraud prevention, provider oversight, and integrity measures, warning of possible deferred federal payments if unmet. Hochul pushed back, calling it politically motivated while pledging cooperation against real fraud.
💀 Two Pennsylvania Men Charged in ISIS-Inspired Explosives Attack at New York Protest
Two men from Pennsylvania, Emir Balat (18) and Ibrahim Kayumi (19), were arrested Saturday after allegedly throwing improvised explosive devices toward participants in an anti-Islamic protest outside Gracie Mansion, the official residence of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, on Manhattan’s Upper East Side. One device ignited but failed to fully detonate, producing smoke without causing injuries or significant damage, while a second was dropped; a third inert device was later recovered from a related vehicle. Authorities, including the NYPD and FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force, classified the incident as an act of ISIS-inspired terrorism, noting the suspects admitted to watching ISIS videos and made statements aligning with the group upon arrest. They now face federal charges including attempting to provide material support to a designated terrorist organization, using a weapon of mass destruction, and related offenses. Mayor Mamdani condemned the violence while defending the right to peaceful protest, and officials emphasized that the devices, containing homemade explosive material like TATP along with fragmentation such as nuts and bolts, had the potential for serious harm or fatalities.
Sources: The Wall Street Journal, US Justice Dept
🏫 Pentagon’s K-12 Schools Still Paying DEI-Linked Contractors Despite Federal Ban
The Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA), which operates 161 K-12 schools for children of military personnel worldwide, embedded diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) principles during the prior administration, with former director Thomas M. Brady declaring DEI a foundational element in 2020. Recent payments in 2025 total $171,175 to contractors like SHAPE America ($30,175 for gym teacher memberships promoting equity-focused standards that address systemic disparities) and thinkLaw ($141,000 for curriculum development), even after President Trump’s executive orders banned federal funding for DEI initiatives. ThinkLaw’s CEO has advocated subtly continuing certain teachings, such as on gender beyond binary norms, through “defiance disguised as compliance” to evade restrictions, while SHAPE America materials have included guidance against treating heterosexuality as the default norm. These ongoing contracts raise questions about full compliance with the new directives aimed at eliminating such programs in federally run military schools.
Sources: ZeroHedge, RealClearInvestigations
💰 Liberal Dark Money Floods Virginia Redistricting Push to Favor Democrats
Out-of-state liberal groups have poured over $21.3 million in untraceable dark money into Virginians for Fair Elections, a committee backing a spring ballot initiative to redraw Virginia’s congressional maps in a way that would deliver Democrats a major partisan edge, possibly flipping several Republican-held seats. This funding, funneled through 501(c)(4) organizations like the League of Conservation Voters, Fairness Project, House Majority Forward, and others tied to networks such as Arabella Advisors and the Tides Foundation, has massively outpaced the roughly $2.8 million raised by the opposing GOP-aligned Virginians for Fair Maps in a similar period. The effort, endorsed by Gov. Abigail Spanberger despite her past criticisms of dark money, aims to counter Republican redistricting moves in other states, though opponents argue it undermines Virginia’s 2020 voter-approved anti-gerrymandering reforms.
Sources: The Washington Examiner, The Washington Times
💸 $270 Million Charity Fund for Veterans and Abused Children Allegedly Diverted in Fraud Scheme
A Dallas-based tax consultant named Mark Eric Patrick stands accused in court filings of orchestrating a scheme to divert roughly $270 million from a charity fund meant to support veterans, military families, and abused children. Patrick, who served as a consultant to the fund for years and helped design its safeguards, allegedly gained control through the DAF Charitable Foundation he operated from his home, used masked transactions, altered the fund’s valuation to slash it from $270 million to about $500,000, and then shifted majority control to his entity without proper notification to the original charitable organizations involved in Dallas, Kansas City, and Santa Barbara. No criminal charges have been filed against Patrick yet, but the allegations have drawn attention from former congressman Matt Gaetz, who discussed the case on OAN, and Texas congressman Lance Gooden, who labeled it potentially one of the largest charity frauds in U.S. history and called for federal investigation into how promised aid vanished while insiders benefited.
Sources: The Post Millennial, Lance Gooden on Facebook
⚧️ Texas Democrat Talarico Praises Trans Kids Protesting at Capitol
A resurfaced clip from an August 2023 podcast interview shows Texas state Rep. James Talarico, who recently won the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate on March 5, 2026, saying he loves seeing “trans children” show up at the Texas state Capitol to advocate for their humanity. When asked on the “A SuperBloom Podcast” to name something he loves besides family or friends, Talarico referenced trans kids who protested the previous day, calling their presence inspirational even though they shouldn’t have to fight in that way. The comment gained attention again amid his primary victory and ongoing scrutiny of his progressive stances on gender issues.
Sources: The Post Millennial, The Daily Wire
💥 Israeli Strike Takes Out Head of Supreme Leader’s Military Office in Tehran
The Israel Defense Forces conducted a targeted airstrike in Tehran on Saturday that eliminated Abu al-Qassem Baba’iyan, who served as the head of the military office of Iran’s Supreme Leader and chief of staff of the Khatam-al Anbiya Central Headquarters’ emergency command; Baba’iyan had assumed the role after predecessors were taken out earlier in the ongoing Operation Rising Lion, and the IDF described him as key in coordinating Iranian military efforts and proxy operations against Israel. In a related overnight action in Beirut, the Israeli Navy struck a hotel meeting of five senior IRGC-Quds Force commanders from the Lebanon and Palestine Corps, killing three, including figures responsible for funding and intelligence ties to Hezbollah and other groups, dealing what the IDF called a meaningful setback to Iran’s influence in Lebanon and its terror networks.
Sources: Legal Insurrection, FOX News
🩸 Chinese Military Flights Near Taiwan See Sharp Decline Amid US Strikes on Iran
Chinese People’s Liberation Army aircraft incursions into Taiwan’s Air Defense Identification Zone dropped noticeably in early 2026, with no entries reported from February 27 onward for about a week—the longest such pause in recent years—before resuming at low levels. Overall year-to-date flights stood at around 460, down 46.5% from the prior year, and February saw the lowest monthly total since detailed tracking began, with many days showing zero activity. Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense and independent trackers noted this unusual lull coincided with US and Israeli military operations against Iran, though experts attribute the reduction more to seasonal winter patterns seen since 2023, potential diplomatic signaling ahead of a Trump-Xi summit, or internal PLA factors rather than a direct causal link to the Middle East conflict. Naval activity around Taiwan continued, and the pause ended with a small number of incursions reported shortly after.
Sources: The Epoch Times, Reuters
⚠️ Turkey on Heightened Alert After NATO Downs Second Iranian Missile
NATO forces intercepted and shot down a second Iranian ballistic missile that entered Turkish airspace on Monday, with Turkey’s defense ministry confirming no casualties from the incident and placing the country on heightened alert amid the ongoing U.S.-Israeli war against Iran that began on February 28. This marks the second such interception in five days after a similar event last Wednesday, raising tensions as Iran has launched missiles in retaliation, though Turkey has emphasized it will take all necessary measures to protect its territory without invoking NATO’s full collective defense clause. The U.S. has bases in Turkey, including Incirlik Air Base, and the State Department raised its travel advisory for southeast Turkey to the highest level of “do not travel” shortly after the event.
Sources: The Washington Examiner, Reuters
💥 Peru Police Nab Three in Trujillo Nightclub Bombing as Injured Climb to 44
Peruvian authorities arrested three individuals following an early Saturday explosion at the Dalí nightclub in Trujillo, La Libertad region, with the tally of injured rising to 44 overnight, including three minors aged 16 and 17. At least 10 victims have been discharged from hospitals, while four remain in serious condition. The blast, part of a broader pattern of violence in the gold-rich area plagued by extortion and illegal mining—where 286 explosions occurred in 2025 alone—prompted officials to shutter the club for 30 days over violations including operating past permitted hours and allowing minors entry. Police provided no further details on the suspects or motive, but the incident underscores the ongoing crime woes in northern Peru.
⚽ Trump Urges Asylum for Iranian Women’s Soccer Team Amid Defection Fears
President Donald Trump has publicly pressed Australia to grant asylum to members of Iran’s women’s national soccer team, warning that forcing them back home could lead to deadly consequences from the regime, especially after some players reportedly defected during the Asian Cup tournament in Australia and amid ongoing U.S.-Israel military actions against Iran. The players faced backlash in Iran for not singing the national anthem in an early match, with state media labeling them “wartime traitors,” prompting five named individuals to leave their camp and seek protection under Australian authorities, while Trump offered U.S. asylum as a backup and later claimed progress after speaking with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, noting that five had been “taken care of” and others were in process.
Sources: FOX News, The New York Post