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Judge Questions White House Media Ban but Holds Off on Order
U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly, a Trump appointee, heard arguments Wednesday on President Trump’s ban of CNN, Politico and MS NOW from the White House. Kelly said required due process “wasn’t followed here” and questioned letters sent after credentials were pulled. The outlets sued, arguing the ban punishes coverage. The Justice Department said access is a privilege and cited national security and professionalism standards. Kelly did not restore access from the bench and said he will rule soon. Trump has said he expects to lose and will appeal.
Editor’s Note: If the court reinstates these outlets, it would be tantamount to creating a constitutional right of access. The “Free Press” provision is not a guarantee of access. It is a guarantee against censorship. Denial of access is not censorship.
🏛️ News & Politics
Progressive Poll Finds Majority of Democrats Open to Military Coup Against Trump
A survey of 683 Democrat voters conducted by the Center for Strategic Politics with the progressive publication Liberal Currents found 59 percent would feel positive if U.S. military leaders removed President Trump from office and assumed control to safeguard the Constitution, with another 13 percent expressing no opinion. Only 28 percent said they would react negatively. The same poll showed 86 percent would feel positive about impeachment and conviction by Congress, 84 percent about a 25th Amendment removal, and 56 percent about Trump dying in his sleep. Thirty-one percent said they would feel positive about an assassination at a rally. Large majorities also favored a future Democrat administration prosecuting Trump officials over immigration enforcement, drug-boat strikes, and the war in Iran.
Editor’s Note: 17% of Democrats, per a YouGov poll, identify as progressive. An estimate of the core readership for Liberal Currents found that the publication appeals to only 1% of that 17%.
Missouri Map Fight Returns to Supreme Court a Third Time
Opponents of Missouri’s 2025 congressional map asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review the case again after the 8th Circuit said using the 2022 lines in November would be unconstitutional because the 2025 map was used in the August primaries. The appeals court ordered a permanent injunction requiring the 2025 map and stayed that order until Sept. 28. People Not Politicians said the ruling clashes with the Supreme Court’s Sept. 10 stay blocking that map. The 2022 map gives Republicans a 6-2 edge. The 2025 map, backed by President Trump, aims for a 7-1 split. Justices gave map supporters until Wednesday midday to respond.
Hackers Claim Theft of FBI Employee Records, Deface Jobs Site
The group ShinyHunters said it stole data on FBI employees and applicants, including names, home addresses, phone numbers, and spouse information. It provided a sample that appeared to cover about 5,000 people and said it took 2 to 3 terabytes after exploiting a zero-day in Oracle PeopleSoft and moving into AWS GovCloud. The group defaced the FBI jobs site with a fake seizure banner. It said it is not seeking a ransom and instead wants the bureau to retract a May bulletin on its tactics. The FBI said it is investigating claims of unauthorized activity affecting FBIJobs.gov. The jobs portal was taken offline.
Trump Caps 2027 Refugee Admissions at 17,500, Mostly Afrikaners
The State Department told Congress the fiscal 2027 refugee ceiling will be 17,500 people, primarily Afrikaners from South Africa. That is down from the 125,000 target set in President Joe Biden’s last year and matches the emergency level set after the administration first posted a 7,500 cap. The notice cites land seizures without compensation, race-based job and school policies, and rhetoric tied to violence. It says the arrivals are expected to assimilate in a way that preserves taxpayer resources. Resettlement is projected to cost about $500 million. Nearly all of the roughly 3,000 refugees admitted so far this fiscal year have been South African. HIAS called the focus a distortion of the program.
Ocasio-Cortez Says She Won’t Defer to Harris on 2028
US Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (DS-NY) said her 2028 plans will not rest on deference to other Democrats, including former Vice President Kamala Harris. She told interviewers she is weighing a presidential bid, a House reelection or a challenge to Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY). She said a losing White House run would likely end her time in office and that she is not opposed to that outcome if the race is worth it. She plans to decide after the midterms. California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) has said he would not run if Harris does. A BGSU/YouGov poll put Ocasio-Cortez at 14 percent, tied with Newsom and behind Harris and Pete Buttigieg.
Editor’s Note: Clowns to the Left and, well, clowns to the Left…
FEATURED ARTICLE:
⭐⭐⭐ White House Access Remains a Privilege, Not a Press Entitlement
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📢 The American Fifth Column
Johnson Ties AIPAC and Donor Sacks to Chicago Mayor Race
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson (D) used his Sept. 13 reelection launch to say that a rival who takes money from AIPAC and financier Michael Sacks is not serving working people. Sacks is backing Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias (D). AIPAC has not spent in the local race. The Jewish United Fund of Chicago said singling out Jewish people or groups as symbols of control carries a dangerous history. The Chicago Tribune editorial board said inserting AIPAC into a race it is not in was unseemly. A University of Chicago poll found 14 percent of Chicagoans want Johnson to run again.
Editor’s Note: Johnson is exposing his antisemitism to pander to the antisemitic demographic.
Socialist and Communist Groups Mobilize Austin Anti-ICE Rally Hours After Shooting
An ICE officer shot Wilber Rafael Garcés Pérez, a 28-year-old Venezuelan national with a final order of removal, during a targeted stop in North Austin on Sept. 20. Agents conducting license-plate checks found his vehicle tied to the deportation order while he was making DoorDash deliveries. Officials said Pérez fled after officers tried to detain him. Within about four hours, the Party for Socialism and Liberation, the Austin chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America, and the Freedom Road Socialist Organization posted calls to gather at the scene. PSL’s national account declared “ICE OUT OF AUSTIN NOW,” while Austin DSA advertised an “Emergency Vigil” it labeled spontaneous. FRSO, which describes itself as part of the communist movement and seeks a revolutionary communist party, issued graphics calling the shooting part of a pattern of ICE violence. The groups circulated matching locations and language before federal investigators released a full account of the use of force. Pérez was hospitalized in serious but stable condition and later placed in federal custody.
Harris Calls DEI Cuts an Attack on Maternal Care While Backing El-Sayed
Former Vice President Kamala Harris (D), looking for relevance as the 2028 field takes shape, said “the attack on DEI is an attack on maternal care,” including protections for Black women in pregnancy, childbirth and postpartum care, at a Detroit roundtable with Michigan Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed (DS). She tied the midterms and Senate control to the issue and accused the Trump administration of cutting NIH research it labeled DEI-related, including fibroid studies. The event aimed to shore up El-Sayed with Black voters after a soft primary showing. He had backed the 2024 “uncommitted” protest against Joe Biden (D). Michigan’s Senate race is tight against Republican Mike Rogers (R-MI).
Gates-Funded Fellowship Pushes Campaign to Separate Meat From Masculinity
The School for Moral Ambition, which lists the Gates Foundation among its donors and received a $75,000 Gates grant in February 2025, has matched fellow Alexandra Perry with People for Better Food. Perry’s pitch targets males ages 16 to 24 and aims to break the link between meat and masculinity through fitness influencers and podcasters. The group says changing those young men would affect “their diets, their children’s diets, and the generations to follow.” People for Better Food’s Plants for the Win campaign already uses gym-culture language and tofu ads to sell plant protein as performance food. Another fellow, Laura Picot, has proposed adding soy milk to school schemes and considering protein crops in European defense catering.
Editor’s Note: Gate also pushes population control, so factor that in, too.
Phoenix Church Accused of Wiring Medicaid Millions to Rwanda
Prosecutors allege Desire Rusingizwa and Fabrice Mvuyekure used Happy House Behavioral Health LLC to collect more than $60 million from Arizona’s Medicaid program for false or inflated addiction and mental-health claims, including billing for patients who were dead, incarcerated or hospitalized. A 51-count indictment says Happy House paid $5.5 million to Hope of Life International Church. Pastor Theodore Mucuranyana is accused of helping wire more than $2 million from the church to an unnamed entity in Rwanda in December 2023. Mucuranyana has pleaded not guilty to money-laundering counts. More than 20 defendants, the company and the church are charged. A trial assignment is set for January 2027.
ON THIS DAY IN 1779:
Naval Commander John Paul Jones led the USS Bonhomme Richard to victory against the British frigate HMS Serapis at the Battle of Flamborough Head. When asked to surrender during the brutal engagement, Jones famously uttered, "I have not yet begun to fight!"
🌐 International
US Delegation Walks Out During Iranian President’s UN Speech
A U.S. delegate walked out of the U.N. General Assembly as Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told the hall that Iran was a “victim of terrorism” and that the United States and Israel had attacked civilians. Pezeshkian held up photos and said a school had been bombed. He said Iran had only defended itself and “cannot be made to surrender.” The walkout came a day after President Trump used the same podium and said he might “annihilate” Iran if no deal is reached. Trump later said U.S. envoys met Iranian officials for about three hours on the sidelines. Tehran called the talks nothing new and demanded an end to the port blockade and the release of frozen assets.
Venezuelan Opposition Leader Blocked From Returning Home Again
Maria Corina Machado, the Venezuelan opposition leader and 2025 Nobel Peace Prize recipient, was blocked from entering Venezuela three times in 24 hours, her team said. She has lived in exile in Panama since leaving the country in December 2025 to accept the prize. Advisers said a planned sea departure was canceled over mechanical problems after her passport was stamped. Separate flights from Panama toward Aruba and Curaçao were not allowed to proceed. Associates put the total at seven failed return attempts. The latest effort came as interim President Delcy Rodriguez met President Trump in New York during the U.N. General Assembly.
Saudis Restart Hormuz Bypass Pipeline After Drone Hits
Saudi Arabia has restarted its East-West pipeline after drone attacks shut it earlier in September and halted crude loadings at the Red Sea port of Yanbu. Sources said the line was pumping at a low rate on Tuesday and that Aramco wants to restore it to about 4 million barrels a day, roughly 4% of global supply, used to move oil through the Strait of Hormuz. Full flow could take weeks. A tanker was set to load at Yanbu for China. Brent crude fell more than $2 a barrel. Iran said it could reopen Hormuz within seven days if Washington eases pressure on its ports.
Gunmen Kill 11 at House Party in South African Township
Three armed men opened fire on a house party in KwaMakhutha township, south of Durban, late Tuesday, killing at least 11 people and wounding three. Police said 13 men and a woman believed to be pregnant were gathered inside when the gunmen arrived. Ten died at the scene, and one later died in hospital. Authorities said some victims were already known to crime intelligence over alleged illegal activity. A feud between rival groups has not been ruled out. A manhunt is underway. Provincial premier Thami Ntuli called the killings disturbing and cited drug dealing and illegal firearms in the area.
Ex-Sri Lanka Security Chiefs to Appeal Easter Bombing Death Sentences
Former Defence Ministry secretary Hemasiri Fernando and former police chief Pujith Jayasundara will appeal death sentences for failing to prevent the 2019 Easter bombings, their lawyer said. A Colombo High Court bench imposed the sentences in a 2-1 ruling on July 31. The attacks killed 279 people, including 45 foreigners, and wounded more than 500. An Indian warning on April 4, 2019, went unused. The pair had been discharged in 2022 before a Supreme Court-ordered retrial. Sri Lanka has not executed anyone since 1976. A dissenting opinion said they had no motive and no link to the bombers.
Subject: Thinking of you / A note from Joe's goddaughter
Dear Frank,
I hope this message finds you well. I recently read your latest book, The American Fifth Column, and it brought back so many wonderful memories of our families that I wanted to reach out.
Reading it made me look back fondly on the years when we were younger—especially the fun times we shared playing in the pool together and when we all went to see Bozo.
In case the years have made it a bit distant, I wanted to reintroduce myself as Joe’s godchild from the Yucis family (Ed and Elves). Your parents, Joe and Joan, were such an important part of my life, and I still hold those connections very close to my heart.
I am so incredibly proud of everything you have accomplished with your writing and your work with Underground USA, as I'm sure your mother Joan is and I know your father would be. I wanted to send this quick note just to say hello, share those fond memories, and let you know I am thinking of you.
Please give my love to your mother.
Warmly,
Madeline Ward
madeoday@gmail.com