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Sanders Admits Democrats Failed Working-Class Voters on Economic Issues
US Sen. Bernie Sanders (S-VT) said Democrats have failed working-class Americans economically, leading voters to support Republicans. “The Democratic Party failed working-class people on economic issues,” Sanders said. He noted the party’s record on civil rights and other issues but said it had not done well for workers. “They heard the Democrats say, ‘Oh, we’re going to do this, we’re going to do that, and we’re going to help you.’ And they didn’t,” he said. “Democrats pushed through terrible trade deals, which cost us millions of good-paying manufacturing jobs. They lost faith in the Democratic Party, and not unjustifiably.” Sanders has previously said a party that abandoned the working class found the working class abandoned it.
Editor’s Note: It’s not a one-off failure.
🏛️ News & Politics
Democratic Socialists Seek Concessions From Jeffries for Potential Speakership
A group of candidates backed by the Democratic Socialists of America is organizing to seek policy concessions from House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) if Democrats win a narrow House majority. Demands under consideration include wealth taxes, Medicare for All, abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement, an arms embargo on Israel, raising the federal minimum wage, and expanding union protections. Four of seven DSA-backed candidates contacted either declined to commit to supporting Jeffries for speaker or sought assurances first. DSA national co-chair Ashik Siddique said the group would set negotiating positions together. “If someone needs your votes to make something happen, they should give you something in return,” New York City DSA co-chair Grace Mauser said. Jeffries has distanced himself from the DSA agenda.
Maryland to Deduct Worker Paychecks for Paid Leave Benefits Starting a Year Later
Maryland will begin deducting up to 0.45% of workers’ wages in January 2027 for its Family & Medical Leave Insurance program, with larger employers contributing another 0.45%. Benefits of up to 12 weeks of paid leave will not start until January 2028. The program, created by the Time to Care Act over then-Gov. Larry Hogan’s veto, was originally set for benefits in 2025 but faced delays. Former Del. Dan Cox, the Republican nominee for governor, said the deductions should be suspended. “No, it does not,” he said of building a reserve to justify the gap. The Department of Labor said collections are needed for sustainability, as other states did. The administration budgeted $70.1 million for administrative funding for fiscal 2027.
Trump Administration Continues Debarring USAID-Linked Fraudsters After DOGE Exit
The Trump administration is still debarring organizations and individuals for USAID-related fraud and abuse. In Pakistan, a kickback scheme involving a U.S.-funded power grid project took nearly $100,000. U.K. citizen Stephen Paul Edmund Sutton and Pakistani citizen Atif Hussain Gillani created companies, obtained purchase orders for services, and kept the profits. Both pleaded guilty, received time served, and were sentenced to three-year debarments. In Mali, Association Subaahi Gumo falsified employee contracts, forged signatures, and committed payroll fraud in a conflict prevention program. The organization and two officers were debarred for three years. A senior administration official said investigators “will travel to the ends of the earth to hold fraudsters accountable.”
Troy Jackson Admitted Billionaire Donors After Claiming None Funded His Campaign
Maine Senate candidate Troy Jackson (D) said two days before releasing his campaign finance report, “I know that there’s no billionaires funding me.” The report showed maximum donations from at least four billionaires, including Bain Capital co-chairman Joshua Bekenstein and Getty Oil heiress Anne Earhart. During a Thursday debate, Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) said Jackson “said that you would take no money from billionaires. That’s not accurate.” Jackson replied, “As far as the billionaires that I might have on my campaign, that is accurate.” His campaign website still states, “Troy isn’t backed by corporate PACs or billionaire donors.” Jackson later said he had not made deals with the donors.
Abdul El-Sayed Called for Medicare for All to Cover Sex Changes for Undocumented Immigrants
Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic Senate candidate in Michigan, said in 2021 and 2022 podcasts that a “truly inclusive” Medicare for All should cover “care for transgender people” and “care for immigrants,” including gender reassignment surgery for undocumented persons. “The prime example that conservatives will impose on a conversation about Medicare for All will be ‘Well, what do we do with the undocumented person who comes to this country and wants to get gender reassignment surgery on Medicare for All,’” he said. He called such objections “the original sin of racism” because they target “a group of multiple marginalized people whom they want to cast as being undeserving.” El-Sayed has also said Medicare for All should cover “gender-affirming care.”
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📢 The Fifth Column Watch
Michigan Democrat Slotkin Wants Prosecutions to Scare Young People Away From Trump Administration Jobs
Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) said at a University of Chicago event on Oct. 13 that she wants Democrats to pursue signature cases against people who enabled President Trump. She wants a deterrence message so young people think twice about administration jobs. “I want young people coming out of school to say, should I go work for the Trump administration? Like, that sounds fun. I might get an opportunity. I want them to be like, Lord, that might be buying myself a ton of problems that I don’t want, and so let me avoid participating in that. I want that deterrence message,” Slotkin stated during a Vox podcast recording.
Editor’s Note: Is scaring people away from a political bent the purview of government and the judicial system? I don’t think so…
Judge Who Approved Ilhan Omar Home Search Warrant Previously Donated to Hillary Clinton
Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) has claimed the recent federal raid on her Washington home amounts to political persecution by President Trump. Federal agents searched the residence as part of an investigation into possible immigration fraud involving paperwork filled out by her late father. U.S. Magistrate Judge Matthew Sharbaugh of the DC District Court approved the warrant after limiting Justice Department access to her documents due to constitutional protections for members of Congress. Sharbaugh donated to Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign and clerked twice for Judge Robert Wilkins, an Obama appointee. Mike Davis noted Sharbaugh was the magistrate on duty during the raid period.
Editor’s Note: Hard to make the case for political persecution when a judge from the far-Left is giving the green light.
North Carolina US Senate Candidate Falsely Claimed Officials Removed Early Voting Site From HBCU Campus
Former Gov. Roy Cooper (D), the Democrat Senate candidate in North Carolina, falsely claimed in an August interview that election officials removed a ballot box from North Carolina A&T State University, the state’s largest historically Black university. “I went to North Carolina A&T State University, the largest HBCU in North Carolina. They removed that ballot box from their campus,” Cooper said. Fact-checks confirmed the claim was misleading. The campus has never hosted an early-voting site during a midterm election and was not scheduled to have one in 2026. It did host one during the 2024 presidential election. Guilford County’s elections director said “removed” isn't the right word.
Immigration Advocates Claim California ICE Raids Aim to Discourage Midterm Voter Turnout
The Los Angeles Times reported claims from immigration advocates that a surge in Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids in California aims to discourage voter turnout ahead of the midterm elections. Jeannette Zanipatin of the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles said the timing weeks before the elections “is no accident” and that the tactics “seek to silence immigrant communities.” Angelica Salas of the group said organizations would send legal observers to polling locations. DHS spokesperson Chandler Rebel responded that citizens “who are here legally and are not breaking other laws have nothing to fear.” Rebel added that the message to aliens who vote in American elections is clear: “we will find you, arrest you, and you will face the consequences — including criminal charges and deportation.” Illegal aliens cannot vote legally in federal elections.
Migrant Moped Robbery Crews With Trinitarios Ties Snatch Jewelry Across New York City
Crews of moped-riding thieves, some illegal migrants with ties to the Dominican Trinitarios gang, are snatching jewelry from victims across New York City. A law enforcement officer said hundreds of chain snatchings have occurred and that much of it involves the Trinitarios. In one incident, off-duty NYPD Detective Jose Mercedes was stabbed at least seven times in the neck and leg by two Dominican illegal aliens, D’Angelo Caraballo and Sneider Mejia, who were previously caught and released at the border. Cops say they cannot notify ICE because of policies from Mayor Zohran Mamdani (DSA) and Gov. Kathy Hochul (D), and judges often release the suspects on their own recognizance, so they reoffend.
ON THIS DAY IN 1898:
Under the terms ending the Spanish-American War, the U.S. military raised the American flag in San Juan, marking the formal transfer of Puerto Rico from Spanish rule to U.S. governance.
🌐 International
Police Arrest Dozens After Riots Outside Milan Cathedral During Cost of Living Protest
Italian police arrested dozens after cost-of-living protests outside Milan’s Duomo Cathedral turned into riots Saturday. Youths hurled stones, firecrackers and bottles at officers, looted shops and set fires. About 5,000 joined the Italia in Piazza march, with clashes also in Turin and Bologna. Police detained 197 and arrested 28, including 12 minors and six foreign nationals, many second-generation migrants from the suburbs. Some 141 officers were injured. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said, “Demonstrating is a right. Setting our cities ablaze is not,” and urged the opposition not to be ambiguous. Mayor Giuseppe Sala said grievances were understandable but attacks unjustifiable.
Masked Riots Torch Limoges Town Hall While Palestinian Flags Fly Over Paris Republic Statue
Masked mobs turned nationwide protests into riots Saturday, torching the 143-year-old Limoges town hall and storming buildings while waving Palestinian flags. Demonstrators climbed the Marianne statue at Place de la République in Paris, displaying a Palestinian flag alongside the French tricolor amid reports that the French flag had been replaced. In Marseille, protesters breached city hall, toppling a Marianne bust and spraying an anarchist symbol, some carrying Palestinian flags. Prefect Maurice Barate said, “Two-thirds of the facade is already gone,” after the roof and bell tower collapsed. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu cited 1,200 arrests and 150 injured officers, blaming far-left criminals.
High Winds Drive Deadly Fire Across Alberta Military Base
Several people died, and others suffered injuries after a large fire broke out Saturday afternoon at Canadian Forces Base Wainwright in eastern Alberta. Defense Minister David McGuinty confirmed the fatalities and injuries, calling the situation very active and delicate. He said he could not recall a similar incident in recent memory. High winds gusting up to 100 km/h fanned the flames, and the fire spread rapidly beyond the base boundaries into the surrounding area. The Municipal District of Wainwright warned residents to avoid the scene as emergency crews responded. Prime Minister Mark Carney expressed thoughts for the affected military personnel.
US Transfers MQ-9 Reaper Drones From Africa to Colombia and Ecuador Against Narcoterrorists
The U.S. military is shifting MQ-9 Reaper drones from Africa to Colombia and Ecuador for operations against narcoterrorists. Ecuador’s defense minister Gian Carlo Loffredo said two Reapers are already operating in the country. Colombian officials have outlined plans to receive three of the Group 5 drones. The aircraft will conduct intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance to track cartel leaders and support potential strikes. The transfer follows reported losses of at least 45 Reapers, roughly a quarter of the U.S. fleet, in the Iran conflict. Joint military activity has expanded this year with partner nations under the Trump administration.
Cuba Opens Oil Refineries and Fuel Depots to Private Investment Amid Energy Crisis
Cuba published Decree-Law 135/2026 and Decree 184/2026 last week, expanding private and foreign participation in oil exploration, production, refining, transportation, storage and commercialization. The rules take effect Oct. 19 and allow authorized businesses to engage in refining and fuel storage projects while refineries may sell wholesale or, with approval, directly to the public. The state retains control of strategic assets such as refineries and major depots, and all participation requires official authorization. The measures come as the island faces fuel shortages, electricity blackouts, and limited resources to modernize its aging energy infrastructure. The government has not pursued full privatization of the sector.
