https://rhttps://redstate.com/smoosieq/2025/03/20/whoops-cori-bushs-husband-just-got-indicted-by-the-doj-for-covid-fraud-n2186911edstate.com/smoosieq/2025/03/20/whoops-cori-bushs-husband-just-got-indicted-by-the-doj-for-covid-fraud-n2186911

Whoops! Cori Bush's Husband Just Got Indicted by the DOJ for COVID Fraud

We haven't heard a whole lot from former Congresswoman Cori Bush (D-MO) since she left office at the end of the 118th Congress (having been defeated in the Democratic primary last August by former St. Louis County Prosecutor Wesley Bell). But that doesn't mean all's been quiet in her world.

In fact, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced on Thursday that her husband, Cortney Merritts, has been indicted for allegedly committing COVID fraud.

District of Columbia | Indictment Charges St. Louis Man with COVID Fraud | United States Department of Justice https://t.co/cOKuNZDE4p

— Gregg Keller (@RGreggKeller) March 20, 2025

In a press release regarding the indictment, the DOJ stated:

WASHINGTON – Cortney Merritts, 46, of St. Louis, Missouri, was charged today by federal indictment with two counts of wire fraud for allegedly filing fraudulent applications with the Small Business Administration in 2020 and 2021 that allowed him to collect more than $20,000 in government funds under the Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program (EIDL) and Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).

The indictment was announced by U.S. Attorney Edward Martin Jr., Special Agent in Charge Amaleka McCall Brathwaite of the Eastern Region for the Small Business Administration (SBA) Office of the Inspector General, and FBI Special Agent in Charge Sean Ryan of the Washington Field Office Criminal and Cyber Division.

Further details of the indictment:

According to the indictment, on July 7, 2020, Merritts received an $8,500 EIDL loan from the SBA for a moving business he operated that he called Vetted Couriers. In the application he submitted for Vetted Couriers, Merritts certified that his business had six employees and had generated $32,000 in gross revenue between January 30, 2019 and January 30, 2020.

On July 8, 2020, Merritts submitted another application to the SBA for an EIDL loan in the name of a sole proprietorship he called “Courtney Merritts.” In this EIDL application, Merritts fraudulently claimed to have a business that employed ten people and generated $53,000 in gross revenue between January 30, 2019 and January 30, 2020. In addition to an EIDL loan, Merritts also requested an EIDL advance of up to $10,000 based on his false claim that he had 10 employees. The SBA rejected Merritts’ attempt to obtain additional EIDL funds after determining that his July 2020 application was nearly identical to the prior one he submitted.

The indictment further alleges that on April 22, 2021, Merritts applied for a PPP loan in the name of a sole proprietorship he called “Cortney Merritts.” Merritts fraudulently claimed in this application that he had created this business in 2020 and that it had generated $128,000 in gross income that year. Based on Merritts’ representations about his gross income, Merritts received a $20,832 PPP loan. Merritts used the proceeds for his personal benefit and enjoyment. In July 2022, Merritts submitted a loan forgiveness application in which he falsely claimed that this business had 10 employees at the time of the PPP loan, and that he spent the $20,832 on payroll costs. Based on Merritts’ alleged fraudulent representations, the SBA forgave the PPP loan in the amount of $20,832 and the $254.03 in interest.

There was already controversy surrounding Bush and Merritts after it came to light that Bush was under investigation for using campaign funds to pay Merritts roughly $60,000 for "security services." Bush justified the expenditure by saying she'd had difficulty finding competent staff. But Merritts, it turns out, did not have a security license.

Now, it appears that may just have been the tip of the iceberg.

https://thelibertydaily.com/u-s-government-used-sanctioned-chinese-supercomputers-research/

U.S. Government Used Sanctioned Chinese Supercomputers for Research, Including Nuclear Projects

The Department of Defense (DOD) and Department of Energy (DOE) have funded more than 100 research projects using Chinese government supercomputers sanctioned by the U.S. for collaborating with China’s military, a Daily Caller News Foundation investigation found.

The DCNF compared federally-funded research project reports against entities sanctioned by the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC). The DCNF identified 102 projects, primarily conducted through U.S. national labs, involving at least one of five sanctioned Chinese supercomputer centers in Beijing, Changsha, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Tianjin.

While it’s unclear what information may have been shared with the sanctioned supercomputers, intelligence analysts and lawmakers say the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is committed to weaponizing research with dual civilian and military applications.

“It is unacceptable that federally-funded researchers continue to use Chinese supercomputing centers that have been blacklisted for supporting China’s military buildup,” Michigan Republican Rep. John Moolenaar, chairman of the House Select Committee on the CCP, told the DCNF. “These systems have been instrumental in China’s hypersonic missile research, nuclear weapons development, and other strategic capabilities that directly threaten U.S. national security. The use of these centers by American researchers poses serious risks of U.S. technology transfer and cyber exploitation.”

Additionally, some research projects included China-based co-authors belonging to other sanctioned institutes serving the Chinese military, such as universities subordinate to China’s Central Military Commission.

Spokesmen for Argonne, Los Alamos, and Oak Ridge national laboratories told the DCNF their personnel had not used the sanctioned CCP supercomputers. Yet, when asked directly if the research projects involved China-based co-authors who had used the sanctioned Chinese supercomputers, the spokesmen did not respond.

DOD and DOE did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

The DOC sanctioned the Chinese supercomputing centers in question for “activities contrary to the national security and foreign policy interests of the United States” related to China’s weapons of mass destruction programs. The sanctions prohibit items of U.S. origin from being exported to the listed entities.

However, L.J. Eads, a former U.S. Air Force intelligence analyst, said there’s a major loophole in U.S. export control regulations that national labs seem to be exploiting.

“One major loophole is that while U.S. export controls restrict direct access, Chinese researchers can still exploit U.S. research by having China-based collaborators run simulations on sanctioned supercomputers,” Eads told the DCNF. “This loophole also allows DOD and DOE researchers to circumvent restrictions by outsourcing computations to China, which poses serious national security risks.”

‘Military-Civil Fusion’

After reviewing the DCNF’s findings, Eads said the majority of identified research projects relying on sanctioned Chinese supercomputers have both civilian and military applications, such as space weather modeling, which impacts satellite communications as well as “ballistic-missile early warning radar systems,” according to the U.S. Space Force.

Supercomputers are orders of magnitude faster than conventional computing technology, and, thus, are used to perform complex calculations, such as rapidly modeling advanced ballistics and nuclear reactions, Eads said.

‘No Such Thing As Harmless Cooperation’

Since October 2015, the DOD has funded at least 25 research projects using sanctioned CCP supercomputers, according to a DCNF review of U.S. government websites and scholarly databases.

In one instance, federal records show several Pentagon grants supported an October 2020 report conducted by a team of Chinese government personnel and a U.S. university professor researching “high-entropy alloys,” which have both aerospace and advanced nuclear applications. The team’s 2020 report thanks the “computational resource provided by the TianHe-1 supercomputer at the National Supercomputer Center in Changsha,” which the DOC sanctioned five years prior in February 2015 for activities contrary to U.S. “national security or foreign policy interests” and its use in “nuclear explosive activities.”

1

moar..

https://thelibertydaily.com/u-s-government-used-sanctioned-chinese-supercomputers-research/

The DOD also funded a September 2024 report conducted by U.S. and China-based university professors, as well as Chinese government personnel, concerning hydrogen production. Eads noted the research may benefit the development of nuclear energy. The 2024 research report expressed gratitude for “the computational resources provided by the TianHe-1A, TianHe II supercomputer,” both of which were sanctioned by the DOC in 2015.

A third Pentagon-funded report from October 2018 conducted by U.S. and Chinese university professors, as well as DOD researchers, investigated atomic interactions, which Eads said could have dual-use applications related to developing nuclear weapon systems.

The 2018 research report thanked the “National Supercomputer Center in Guangzhou,” which houses the sanctioned TianHe-2 supercomputer, according to the U.S. government. Guangzhou’s National Supercomputer Center was involved in 68 of the 102 research reports identified by the DCNF, the most of any of the sanctioned Chinese supercomputers.

“The CCP’s comparative advantage is surveillance, not science or fundamental research,” Jacqueline Deal, an advisory board member at State Armor, a nonprofit focused on countering the CCP, told the DCNF. “The Party has wired its universities and overseas research institutions in order to sense and detect work with military or intelligence applications. There’s no such thing as harmless cooperation on dual-use topics with people subject to the reach of China’s surveillance apparatus.”

‘Loopholes’

The DOE and U.S. national laboratories have also supported at least 77 research projects using sanctioned CCP supercomputers, according to a review of government websites and scholarly databases.

Illinois’ Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), known for its work on the Manhattan Project to develop the atom bomb, has been involved in at least 29 research projects using sanctioned CCP supercomputers.

One DOE-funded ANL research project published in December 2020, titled “Memory-Efficient and Skew-Tolerant MapReduce Over MPI for Supercomputing Systems,” used Guangzhou’s TianHe-2 supercomputer and focused on optimizing memory storage for supercomputers.

In addition, ANL and U.S. university researchers collaborated with personnel from China’s National University of Defense Technology (NUDT), which the Commerce Department sanctioned in February 2015.

An ANL spokesperson told the DCNF by email that its researchers had “not used any of the sanctioned Chinese national supercomputing centers or their associated supercomputers,” and said that compliance with federal regulations was “a top priority.”

Yet, ANL did not respond to questions about whether or not it had supported research projects relying on China-based researchers using sanctioned CCP supercomputing centers.

New Mexico’s Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), which was established in 1943 to build the atomic bomb, has been involved in at least 22 research projects using sanctioned Chinese supercomputers, 15 of which involved collaboration with personnel from sanctioned Chinese universities.

Among other examples, in August 2022, LANL published a DOE-funded research project concerning spacecraft physics that leveraged simulations from Guangzhou’s TianHe-2 supercomputer.

The project also included personnel from Beihang University, which the Department of Commerce sanctioned in May 2001 under its former name, Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics. Beihang University is one of China’s so-called “Seven Sons of National Defense,” which serve as “defense science, technology and industry work units” subordinate to the main driver of the CCP’s Military-Civil Fusion strategy, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, according to the House Select Committee on the CCP.

A LANL spokesperson told the DCNF by email that “no LANL researchers worked on Chinese supercomputers, and there was no violation of export controls or Department of Commerce sanctions.”

However, the LANL spokesperson said certain research projects involving sanctioned Chinese supercomputers included LANL personnel who had participated in “scientific interpretation” or had “collaborated on the fundamental science.”

A LANL “code expert” who has allegedly developed a “large, open-source code” that was “used by the space physics community” and the sanctioned CCP supercomputers was also a research project co-author to “ensure that the code is working properly,” the LANL spokesperson told the DCNF.

“It’s disconcerting that esteemed DOE scientists, who are fully aware of the department’s critical national security role, persist in engaging with these sanctioned platforms,” Eads said. “Their actions contradict the very mission they are supposed to uphold.”

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https://thelibertydaily.com/u-s-government-used-sanctioned-chinese-supercomputers-research/

Tennessee’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), another Manhattan Project landmark, has likewise participated in 26 research projects using sanctioned CCP supercomputers.

In November 2018, ORNL published a DOE-funded research project investigating the production of an exotic material called graphane, which may have applications in solar cells, and is related, but not to be confused with graphene. The research acknowledged that “calculations were performed on the TianheII supercomputer at the Chinese National Supercomputer Center in Guangzhou.”

“ORNL has not violated Department of Commerce rules related to foreign entities,” an ORNL spokesperson told the DCNF by email. “No U.S. researchers performed work on Chinese supercomputers, and no government resources were used to support Chinese research conducted at the Chinese supercomputing centers.”

However, the spokesperson acknowledged that Chinese personnel involved in ORNL research projects had “used an ORNL instrument for non-sensitive, open science experiments” and had “used Chinese computers to analyze data.”

“Loopholes in current regulations and enforcement have allowed this dangerous practice to persist, exposing sensitive U.S. research to potential exploitation by Beijing,” Rep. Moolenaar told the DCNF. “Congress must act swiftly to close these gaps and ensure that taxpayer-funded research does not, in any form, contribute to strengthening our top geopolitical adversary.”

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>>22797304

oops! copy pasta link fail

https://redstate.com/smoosieq/2025/03/20/whoops-cori-bushs-husband-just-got-indicted-by-the-doj-for-covid-fraud-n2186911

>>22797348

KEK

soon - two moar weeks

IYKYK

https://www.theblaze.com/news/trump-water-mexico-treaty-cruz

Trump admin cuts off water to Mexico over failure to comply with 1944 treaty

Mexico's president said the water commission is looking into the issue.

The Trump administration has nailed Mexico over the country's failure to comply with a water treaty made in 1944, according to Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas.

Cruz has been demanding that Mexico meet its water supply obligations, but it took the Trump administration to finally take action to protect the rights of farmers near the Rio Grande.

'Texas farmers are in crisis because of Mexico's noncompliance.'

A statement from the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs on Thursday said that the U.S. was responding to Mexico's failure to comply by cutting off water to Tijuana, a city bordering California

"Mexico's continued shortfalls in its water deliveries under the 1944 water-sharing treaty are decimating American agriculture — particularly farmers in the Rio Grande valley," the bureau said. "As a result, today for the first time, the U.S. will deny Mexico's non-treaty request for a special delivery channel for Colorado River water to be delivered to Tijuana."

Cruz applauded the decision in a statement on social media.

"Excellent. As I said yesterday, this option is absolutely what the Trump administration needs to pressure Mexico to fulfill its obligations under the 1944 Water Treaty," he replied.

The decision is likely a part of the trade war initiated by tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump, who said he wanted Mexico to stop the illegal immigration crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border, as well as fentanyl smuggling.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has responded by warning Trump and Americans that a trade war would cost jobs in both countries and raise the cost of goods and services.

Prior to the water announcement from the bureau, Sheinbaum had said that Mexico's national water agency and the International Boundary and Water Commission are actively looking to address the issue.

"It is being addressed by Conagua and CILA, which is in charge of reviewing this treaty," she said.

Cruz had raised the issue of the water treaty in a meeting with farmers, ranchers, and representatives from the Trump administration. He said the noncompliance from Mexico had led to devastating consequences for farmers in Texas who had been deprived of water resources.

"Texas farmers are in crisis because of Mexico's noncompliance," Cruz continued. "I will work with the Trump administration to pressure Mexico into complying and to get water to Texas farmers."

https://redstate.com/wardclark/2025/03/20/sectrans-sean-duffy-takes-new-yorks-governor-hochul-to-task-over-tolls-cordon-pricing-and-more-n2186905

SecTrans Sean Duffy Takes New York's Governor Hochul to Task Over Tolls, Cordon Pricing and More

We are daily reminded of the massive upgrades, from the Biden administration to the Trump administration, from the very top on down. It would not be a surprise to learn that the Trump White House's janitors are superior to those of the Biden administration.

The members of the cabinet stand out as well, and few as much so as Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy, who replaced the hapless (and clueless) "Pothole Pete" Buttigieg. And Secretary of Transportation Duffy, on Thursday, took to his official X account to give New York Governor Kathy Hochul what my grandfather would have described as a "dad-gum good piece of his mind."

.@GovKathyHochul — the federal government and @POTUS are putting New York on notice.

Your refusal to end cordon pricing and your open disrespect towards the federal government is unacceptable.

Just as your high tolls and no free road option are a slap in the face to hard…

— Secretary Sean Duffy (@SecDuffy) March 20, 2025

Secretary Duffy's post continues:

Just as your high tolls and no free road option are a slap in the face to hard working Americans, your refusal to approve two vital pipelines that will lower fuel costs by 50% are against the public’s best interests.

Your unlawful pricing scheme charges working-class citizens to use roads their federal tax dollars already paid to build.

We will provide New York with a 30-day extension as discussions continue.

Know that the billions of dollars the federal government sends to New York are not a blank check. Continued noncompliance will not be taken lightly.

Cordon pricing, or congestion pricing, is a toll scheme where (in the case of New York) people driving into the city are charged a high toll to enter the city - specifically, Manhattan below 60th street. It places a considerable burden on people who work in the city, a city many of them can't afford to live in - and now can't afford to drive into.

There is always the subway system, but it's understandable why that option would make many people uneasy.

A press release from the Department of Transportation on Wednesday listed DOT's reasons for yanking New York's waiver that allowed cordon pricing:

…the Secretary is terminating the pilot for two reasons. First, the scope of the CBDTP is unprecedented and provides no toll-free option for many drivers who want or need to travel by vehicle in this major urbanized area. Second, the toll rate was set primarily to raise revenue for transit, rather than at an amount needed to reduce congestion. By doing so, the pilot runs contrary to the purpose of the VPPP, which is to impose tolls for congestion reduction – not transit revenue generation.

In other words, New York disregarded the purpose and the intent of the Value Pricing Pilot Program which was originally established by Congress as the Congestion Pricing Pilot Program in 1991.

If there's one thing that the Trump administration's cabinet members seem to have in common, it's the attitude "We're not taking any crap from anyone." New York will, no doubt, continue to be an annoyance, at least as long as Kathy Hochul sits in the governor's chair in Albany. But in any contest of wills, my money's on the Trump people.

https://trendingpoliticsnews.com/just-in-trump-gets-big-news-from-the-federal-courts-mace/

JUST IN: Trump Gets Big News From The Federal Courts

Chief Judge Diane Sykes of the Seventh U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has announced her decision to assume senior status effective October 1. The transition to semi-retirement opens a pivotal vacancy for President Donald Trump to appoint a new judge to the Chicago-based court, which holds jurisdiction over Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin.

Judge Sykes, 67, has had a distinguished 33-year tenure in both state and federal judiciaries. She began her legal career after graduating from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism in 1980 and initially worked as a reporter for The Milwaukee Journal.

She later earned her law degree from Marquette University Law School in 1984. Following a clerkship with Judge Terence T. Evans of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, Sykes entered private practice before being elected as a Milwaukee County circuit judge in 1992.

In 1999, she was appointed to the Wisconsin Supreme Court by Governor Tommy G. Thompson and subsequently elected to a full term in 2000. Her federal judicial service commenced in 2004 when President George W. Bush appointed her to the Seventh Circuit, where she became chief judge in 2020. ​

Throughout her tenure on the Seventh Circuit, Judge Sykes has been recognized for her conservative judicial philosophy, often aligning with originalist and textualist interpretations of the law. Notably, in 2017, she dissented in an 8-3 decision where the court held that Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation.

Sykes argued that the court was overstepping its role by redefining statutory terms, stating, “We are not authorized to infuse the text with a new or unconventional meaning or to update it to respond to changed social, economic or political conditions,” according to Bloomberg Law. ​

Her decision to assume senior status is influenced by a desire to spend more time with her family, including her children and grandchildren. In an interview, Sykes said, “I want to be more present for them.”

She also reflected on her career, stating, “It’s really been just an honor to serve, and I will continue to do so, just in a reduced capacity.” ​

The move provides President Trump with his first opportunity in his second term to appoint a judge to the Seventh Circuit, maintaining the court’s current 6-5 majority of Republican-appointed judges. The appointment process will involve the President nominating a candidate, who must then be confirmed by the Senate.

Traditionally, a bipartisan commission created by Wisconsin’s U.S. senators selects candidates for federal judgeships and forwards them to the White House. ​

Judge Sykes has been considered for the U.S. Supreme Court in the past, appearing on shortlists for both President George W. Bush and President Trump. Her judicial philosophy and extensive experience have made her a notable figure in conservative legal circles. ​

As she transitions to senior status, Judge Sykes will continue to serve on the bench but with a reduced caseload, allowing her to balance her professional commitments with personal interests. Her departure from active service marks the end of a significant chapter in the Seventh Circuit’s history, and her successor’s appointment will undoubtedly impact the court’s future decisions.​

The legal community and court observers will be closely monitoring the nomination and confirmation process for her replacement, recognizing the substantial influence federal appellate courts hold in shaping American jurisprudence.​

https://trendingpoliticsnews.com/doge-committee-investigates-threat-to-national-security-at-government-media-agency-cmc/

NEW: DOGE Committee Investigates ‘Threat To National Security’ At Government Media Agency

DOGE subcommittee chairwoman Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) is investigating “gross negligence” and “rampant cronyism” at the U.S. Agency for Global Media, a supposedly neutral taxpayer-funded media outlet that has come under the microscope in recent weeks.

Trump signed an executive order on Friday ordering the dismantling of seven federal agencies and offices, including the United States Agency for Global Media, which is the parent company of Voice of America (VOA) and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.

“The non-statutory components and functions of the following governmental entities shall be eliminated to the maximum extent consistent with applicable law, and such entities shall reduce the performance of their statutory functions and associated personnel to the minimum presence and function required by law,” the president’s executive order reads.

As the administration discloses hundreds of millions of dollars in federal waste stemming from the agencies, Rep. Greene is commissioning a separate investigation into what she described as a “direct threat to national security” within the U.S. Agency For Global Media.

In a letter addressed to Kari Lake, the Trump Administration’s senior advisor overseeing USAGM, Greene said that over the past decade, the Office of Personnel Management and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence have uncovered “gross negligence and intentional defiance of national security protocols, resulting in unfettered and unauthorized access of sensitive information by federal employees.” The letter was first obtained and reviewed by Fox News.

Greene pointed to a separate investigation launched by the law firm McGuireWoods in 2020, which confirmed whistleblower testimonies about widespread corruption and mismanagement within the agency. According to the report, abuses included the unlawfully granting J-1 visas and awarding millions of dollars in contracts through the Open Technology Fund to friends and individuals with whom there were conflicts of interest.

The congresswoman further highlighted additional “egregious abuses” uncovered by McGuireWoods, including evidence that senior agency officials wiped laptops clean before turning them over to investigators. While individuals implicated in the scandal were fired during Trump’s first term in the White House, Greene noted that “nearly all” of those involved were rehired during the Biden administration, “allowing them to resume their previous activities with zero consequences.”

As part of the investigation, Greene is demanding access to information regarding all grant agreements awarded through the Open Technology Fund, all settlement agreements for individuals implicated in the McGuireWoods report and any additional communications or information that Lake deems relevant, Fox News reported.

“For years, USAGM engaged in rampant cronyism, issuing corrupt contracts to friends and family through the Open Technology Fund (OTF), while senior officials bypassed security protocols, mishandled sensitive information, and obstructed investigations,” Greene’s office announced in a statement.

In a separate statement to Fox News, Greene described the Biden Administration’s decision to rehire those involved in the wrongdoing not only an “insult to taxpayers” but also a “direct threat to national security.”

“We will not allow the former Biden regime to cover up illegal activity and shield bad actors from accountability,” she added.

>>22797259

OH THE POOR VICTIM

and she only made five dollars a day extra in overtime for her troubles!

https://www.xatakaon.com/space/being-an-astronaut-isnt-about-money-heres-how-much-nasa-pays-for-overtime-in-space

Being an Astronaut Isn’t About Money. Here’s How Much NASA Pays for Overtime in Space

For astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, their extended stay in space wasn’t a setback but an opportunity to do what they love most.

Economic sacrifice. Despite the extreme challenges they faced, NASA astronauts receive no additional compensation for the dangers of their missions or the long hours they spend in space. According to current NASA rates, Williams and Wilmore earn an annual salary of $152,258. However, this salary doesn’t include overtime pay, holiday pay, and hazard pay—a stark contrast to many high-paying professions on Earth.

Former NASA astronaut Mike Massimino explained, “[There’s] no hazard pay, there’s no overtime, there’s no comp time.” This means that despite spending nine months in orbit instead of one week, astronauts receive no extra pay. The closest thing to “extra” compensation they get is a small daily stipend of $5 for being in space—a modest and almost symbolic amount, totaling just $1,430 for the 286 days they spent on the ISS.

>>22796965

processing…

o7

>>22796955

tyb

https://headlineusa.com/doj-rethinks-suppressor-regulations-in-second-amendment-shift/

DOJ Rethinks Suppressor Regulations in Second Amendment Shift

The DOJ reopens the discussion on whether suppressors fall under constitutional protections.

The Trump Department of Justice appears to be changing its controversial position of the Second Amendment not protecting firearms suppressors.

After Gun Owners of America and Gun Owners Foundation revealed that the U.S. Attorney Michael Simpson filed a brief this Monday arguing that firearm suppressors are not protected by the Second Amendment, the DOJ is now requesting 30 days to reconsider its brief.

🚨BREAKING🚨

The Department of Justice will reconsider its incorrect position that suppressors are not arms and are not protected by the Second Amendment. https://t.co/mQ8aNkuwnC pic.twitter.com/USL40YFvp7

— Gun Owners Foundation (@GunFoundation) March 20, 2025

After GOA & @gunfoundation broke the news that a Biden-era holdover acting U.S. Attorney argued that suppressors were NOT arms & were NOT protected by the Second Amendment, @thejusticedept is requesting 30 days to reconsider its anti-gun brief.

This is HUGE! 🔥🔥🔥 https://t.co/edhoChRNSk

— Gun Owners of America (@GunOwners) March 20, 2025

The case here is concerned with George Peterson, a firearm business owner who was indicted for possessing an unregistered suppressor under the National Firearms Act (NFA) after law enforcement raided his home. Peterson subsequently challenged the constitutionality of the NFA’s suppressor registration requirement.

The Fifth Circuit then ruled that suppressors do not constitute “arms” as enshrined in Second Amendment. Chief Judge Jennifer Walker Elrod opined that a suppressor “by itself, is not a weapon” and without being attached to a gun, “it would not be of much use for self-defense.”

Simpson’s recent contention aligns with the Fifth Circuit’s earlier decision on Feb. 6, 2025, which held that suppressors are not protected “arms” under the Second Amendment. Simpson claimed that the National Firearms Act’s regulation of suppressors is consistent with historical firearm regulations and does not infringe on constitutional rights.

However, pressure from pro-gun organizations such as GOA have prompted the government to request “this Court [to] delay its ruling on Peterson’s petition for 30 days to allow it an opportunity to further consider its position.”

The topic of firearms suppressors has become a controversial facet of the gun control debate following Luigi Mangione’s assassination of UnitedHealthCare CEO Brian Thompson, where he allegedly used a 3D-printed firearm and 3D-printed suppressor.