John Ashcroft BURIES Adam Schiff During Blanche Confirmation Hearing

by Cristina Laila Jul. 16, 2026

Various witnesses were called in to testify on the second day of Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s confirmation hearing.

Former Attorney General John Ashcroft was one of the witnesses who testified on Thursday morning on the second day of confirmation hearings for Trump’s nominee for attorney general, Todd Blanche.

John Ashcroft served as the US Attorney General under George W. Bush from 2001 to 2005. Ashcroft also had a distinguished career in Missouri politics that spanned decades.

Democrat Senator AdamSchiff tried to bait Ashcroft into attacking Todd Blanche, but it failed miserably.

“Mr. Blanche has said he believes that the president has both the right and the duty to use the Justice Department to go after his enemies. Do you subscribe to that view?” Schiff asked Ashcroft.

84-year-old John Ashcroft buried Adam Schiff.

“I believe that the Attorney General of the United States has the right and responsibility to enforce the law uniformly, and if the law has been broken by the President’s ‘enemies,’ he has a duty,” Ashcroft said.

“They do not become exempt from following the law merely by their enmity to the president of the United States. As a matter of fact, the people who break the law are in enmity with the people of the United States, whose expression of what is the law has been developed in this body and the Congress of the United States, so we used to call people who break the law, ‘public enemies,'” Ashcroft added.

“So my view is that whether a person has been a political supporter or not of the President of the United States is NOT the determining factor regarding prosecution,” he said.

“It’s whether a person has violated the law and in enforcing the law, the Attorney General is carrying out the will expressed in the Congress,” he added.

Todd Blanche sparred with Adam Schiff on Wednesdayafter the Democrat senator accused him of violating ethics rules.

Former AG John Ashcroft Buries Adam Schiff

1:30

https://rumble.com/embed/v7an3k8/?pub=4

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2026/07/former-attorney-general-john-ashcroft-runs-circles-around/

Officials probe whether White House teleprompter operator profited off Trump's words

NPR1/2

Published July 16, 2026

Federal regulators are in settlement talks with President Trump'slongtime teleprompter operator, who is alleged to have made nearly $100,000 on the prediction market site Kalshi, according to two people with knowledge of the probe who were not authorized to speak publicly.

He is suspected of profiting off of his access to the president's prepared remarks on a type ofbetting on Kalshi known as "mention markets," where people wager on words and expressions the president will or will not say during public events.

Prediction markets allow people to bet on elections, global policy or even what color tie the president will wear. The markets have exploded in growthin recent months, leading to several instances of high-profile insider trading. But thismarks the first time someone inside the White House has been investigated for allegedly abusing that access for prediction market profits.

Gabriel Perez, who has worked for the president since 2016, is now negotiating with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission over his alleged lucrative betting activity on the "mention markets."

Ahead of Trump's address to the nation later on Thursday, Kalshi traders have already wagered more than $800,000 on whether the president will say words like "Hormuz," or "rigged election," or "fake news."

=•In the case of Perez, Kalshi's surveillance systems detected unusual betting on "mention" markets involving the president that did not follow typical behavior, and when the company examined the accounts behind it, investigators saw that he was a federal employee, according to a source with direct knowledge of the inquiry.==

Records show that as a deputy assistant to the president,Perez was paid $175,000 a year. Trump would sometimes make references to him during appearances, like he did during a 2024 campaign stop in Reno, Nevada in 2024.

"I have a guy, Gabe, he's excellent. I've had some real bad ones, but I have Gabe, some of the bad ones, they go so fast. I will go and I say, slow the damn thing," Trump said. "No, a good one is really like gold."

Perez is currently onunpaid administrative leave, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Thursday, calling the actions "a disgrace."

In a statement, Kalshi credited its detection tools with catching Perez.

"Our surveillance team promptly flagged and referred these trades to the CFTC after an exchange investigation. We have been assisting regulators on this matter and provided evidence we collected, as we do in any referral," said Robert DeNault, who heads enforcement at Kalshi.

Kalshi froze about $90,000 of Perez's profits and he has been banned from betting on the site, one of the sources not authorized to speak publicly said.

https://www.nprillinois.org/2026-07-16/officials-probe-whether-white-house-teleprompter-operator-profited-off-trumps-words

>>24833370

2/2

Perez did not return a request for comment. ABC News first reported on the investigation into Perez.

The president's unpredictable and digressive speaking style can make for highly volatile trading on the site's "mention markets," where the odds of Trump uttering a particular word or phrases fluctuate drastically, with traders trying to forecast what subject he may veer to next.

Some traders who consider "mention" marketssomething of a full time job have installed TV antennas to get a tiny fraction-of-a-second advantage during live events.

Using non-public information to win big or manipulate markets on Kalshi is prohibited by the platform's rules. Such behavior could also be criminally prosecuted as wire fraud, commodities fraud and money laundering.

It is not clear if the Department of Justice is examining the case of Perez.

In March,White House staff received a memo warning against using nonpublic government information to place bets on Kalshi and its biggest competitor, Polymarket.

The memo, which was reviewed by NPR, stated that it is a criminal offense for anyone inside the White House to "buy" or "sell" on the sites. Prediction markets offer "yes" or "no" contracts that change in price based on the speculation of bettors.Aides in the White House were told in the memo that misusing government information "is a very serious offence and will not be tolerated."

In April, federal prosecutors charged a U.S.Army special forces soldier for making $400,000 on Polymarket ahead of the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro.

The following month, a Google software engineerwas charged with using confidential company information to make $1.2 million on Polymarket,for correctly guessing on Google search trends.

Others have been under investigation, too, including former Republican congressman George Santos who investigators say pumped up a Kalshi market by claiming he would attend Trump's 2026 State of the Union address, only to cash out on a "no" trade when he skipped it.

https://www.nprillinois.org/2026-07-16/officials-probe-whether-white-house-teleprompter-operator-profited-off-trumps-words

Trump Administration Announces Investigation of 75 Truck Driver Schools Suspected of Helping Non-Citizens Obtain CDLs

by Margaret Flavin Jul. 16, 2026

The Department of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Department of Transportation (DOT)have announced an investigation into at 75 entry-level truck driver Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) schoolsacross the country suspected of fraudulently helping non-citizen drivers qualify.

Safety experts estimate that as many as 130,000 illegal-alien truck drivers may be operating in the United States, with tens of thousands believed to have obtained licenses through illegitimate means.

The Gateway Pundit has reported on the deadly consequences of illegal alien truckers.

Fox News’ Bill Melugin reports, “NEW: DHS and DOT have announcedthey’ve identified 75 entry level truck driver CDL schools across the US that are suspected of fraudulently helping non-citizen drivers qualify for CDLs, and the agencies are partnering to investigate them, with HSI and DOT already visiting some of the schools to probe them.”

“Some of the schools are suspected of falsifying training records, providing improper certifications, and failing to properly train the drivers.”

Statements via DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin noted, “Too many American lives have been lost in completely avoidable accidents because illegal aliens have been granted commercial driver’s licenses to drive trucks and 18-wheelers on America’s roadways.”

“DHS law enforcement is partnering with the Department of Transportation to eliminate CDL fraud, strengthen the integrity of the CDL system, and investigate commercial driver’s license schools throughout the country. This is a whole of government approach, to keep America’s roads safe.”

U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy. added, “USDOT has spent the last year rooting out bad actors from our trucking industry.”

“We’ve knocked over 24,000 drivers off our roads for failing to speak English, forced states to cancel over 28,000 licenses illegally issued to foreign drivers, and purged over 9,500 unqualified training schools from our FMCSA registry. DHS will be a force multiplier of our efforts to clean up America’s roads. President Trump is using every lever at his disposal to ensure the safety of American families.”

Secretary Duffy followed up on his statement, sharing on X, “FRAUDSTERS CAN RUN, BUT THEY CAN’T DRIVE.”

“If you cheat the system by giving illegal aliens commercial driver’s licenses: WE WILL FIND YOU, AND YOU WILL PAY A HEAVY PRICE Our@DHSgov partnership is a massive force multiplier as we shut down these corrupt operations. President Trump is using every lever to clean up our roads and keep Americans safe.”

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2026/07/trump-administration-announces-investigation-75-truck-driver-schools/

JUST IN: Trump Administration Revives Federal Rule to Prevent Welfare Leeches from Obtaining Green Cards

Jordan Conradson Jul. 16, 2026

US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has rescinded a Biden-era rule, which prevented immigration officials from considering an alien’s risk of becoming reliant on welfare services such as food stamps, Medicaid, and housing assistance.

“The now-rescinded Biden-era regulation restricted which public benefits DHS could consider, limiting officers’ ability to review all relevant factors as intended by Congress. With this final rule, USCIS officers are empowered to assess all pertinent facts on a case-by-case basis for each applicant,” USCIS said in a press release.

“The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has issued a final rule rescinding the 2022 Biden-era regulation regarding public charge determinations, further aligning immigration law with Congressional intent that aliens in the United States be self-reliant and not dependent on taxpayer-funded government benefits,” USCIS said.

”Under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), an individual applying for a visa, admission, or adjustment of status is inadmissible to the United States if deemed likely at any time to become a public charge.”

USCIS spokesperson Zach Kahler said in a statement, “The Trump administration is upholding the rule of law and protecting American taxpayers from subsidizing aliens who may become dependent on public benefits. USCIS is committed to safeguarding the safety, security, and financial well-being of Americans.”

The move could reportedly impact hundreds of thousands of green card applicants inside the US.

Per CBS:

Under existing federal immigration law, some individuals applying for a visa, admission to the U.S. or green cards can be deemed inadmissible if the government determines they are likely “at any time” to become a public charge.

The Biden-era rule, issued in 2022, limited the benefits DHS could consider to primarily cash welfare payments meant to cover basic living expenses and long-term institutional care paid for by the federal government.

The new final rule restores the broader discretion USCIS had during the first Trump administration,so that officers can conduct case-by-case reviews that consider an applicant’s age, health, family status, assets, financial resources, education, skills and whether the person has received means-tested taxpayer-funded benefits.==

Those benefits can include food stamps, Medicaid and even housing assistance, according to USCIS officials.

“The federal government is reaffirming the requirement of self-reliance, protecting public resources and ending policies that encouraged dependency on the backs of hard-working American taxpayers,” Director Joseph Edlow said.

“Under President Trump, USCIS is restoring the basic principle that immigrants must be able to support themselves.”

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2026/07/just-trump-administration-revives-federal-rule-prevent-welfare/

Zelensky Fires ‘Reformist’ Defense Minister Fedorov, and Now There’s Reported Turmoil in the Ukrainian Military

by Paul Serran Jul. 16, 2026

Fedorov reportedly had a troublesome relationship with Top General Syrsky.

Kiev regime leader Volodymyr Zelensky continues with his latest government reshuffle,this time dismissing the popular defense minister Mykhailo Fedorov, generating turmoil and even calls for protests.

Fedorov brought a technology overhaul to Ukraine’s military but was also known for clashing with top generals.

“The government resigned earlier this week, andZelensky will not submit Fedorov’s name as the next defense minister, an MP from the ruling Servant of the People partytold POLITICO after a faction meeting on Wednesday.

‘The reasons are obvious: conflict with army command and failed military mobilization reform’, theMP said on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive internal political issues. They added that they supported Zelensky’s decision, saying: ‘Fedorov did only an imitation of reforms, just slides’.”

In the meantime, Ukrainian press reports thatZelensky’s dismissal of Fedorov is drawing a ‘wave of criticism from soldiers, veterans, and civil society figures.’

The Kiev Independent reported:

“Dmytro Koziatynskyi, a war veteran who was a leading organizer of last summer’s mass protests against a law curbing the independence of Ukraine’s anti-corruption agencies,called for a new demonstration.

‘The defense minister is being removed in the middle of effective —finally effective! — reforms, replaced by someone under whom any hope of reform can be forgotten’, he wrote on Facebook.

He urged Ukrainians to gather at Ivan Franka Square at 9:01 a.m. — after Ukraine’s daily minute of silence to honor fallen soldiers and civilians killed in the war —to protest what he called a pattern of ‘replacing effective ministers with convenient yes-men’, adding: ‘We will never defeat Russia as long as the same total stagnation and corruption rule our army and our ministries’.”

UPDATE: large protests in Ukraine against the firing of Fedorov.

(https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2026/07/zelensky-fires-reformist-defense-minister-fedorov-now-theres/

)Zelensky is getting rid of him because he is young, effective and well liked and honorable to the country. This might be the end of Zelensky. The people had had enough of the corruption, he does and he’s never kicked out. His end is coming. The young guy should protect himself, they have a habit of disappearing by Z’s hand.)

Ukrainian parliament picks new PM linked to ‘Zelensky’s wallet’ Mindich

Sergey Koretsky was reportedly a close associate of the disgraced businessman, who fled to Israel amid a massive corruption scandal

Published 16 Jul, 2026 19:08 | U

Ukraine’s parliament on Thursday approved former Naftogaz CEO Sergey Koretsky as prime minister. Koretsky has been linked to disgraced businessman Timur Mindich, a close associate of Vladimir Zelensky who fled to Israel amid a major corruption scandal.

Koretsky’s appointment comes as Zelensky presses ahead with a sweeping government reshuffle less than a year after the previous overhaul, while Ukrainian forces face mounting battlefield pressure and authorities continue to grapple with large-scale corruption in the energy sector.

The investigation centers on an alleged $100 million embezzlement scheme involving state nuclear operator Energoatom. Western-backed anti-corruption agencies have tied the affair to Mindich, who has long been regarded as one of Zelensky’s closest associates and dubbed “Zelensky’s wallet” by Ukrainian media.

Koretsky was “100% Mindich’s man,Ukrainian lawmaker Aleksey Goncharenko claimed last August, citing the so-called ‘Mindich tapes’ – leaked surveillance recordings from the corruption investigation published by the media.

According to Goncharenko, Koretsky was placed in charge of Ukrnaftoburinnya, a private energy company previously owned by Zelensky’s former patron, oligarch Igor Kolomoysky, after it was seized by the state.

“The idea: to take control of cash flows, withdraw billions, and install your own people. This plan was discussed and implemented right in Mindich’s apartment. Everything is recorded on the tapes,”Goncharenko said.

“The main executor is Sergey Koretsky,” the lawmaker added, alleging that the executive coordinated all key decisions with Mindich and, by extension, with Zelensky.

The Energoatom affair has deepened tensions between Zelensky’s administration and the Western-backed National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO).

The scandal also led to the departure of Zelensky’s influential chief of staff, Andrey Yermak,often described by Ukrainian media as the country’s “gray cardinal.”

In May, NABU and SAPO named Yermak as a suspect in a separate money laundering investigation.

(The whole Admin and parliament except a very few, are stealing the governments money, probably 85%+ are in on the take. The EU knows it but they don’t care, because they take their cut before they give the rest to Ukraine.)

(https://www.rt.com/russia/643147-ukraine-pm-koretsky-mindich-linked/

French MPs seal fate of controversial assisted dying bill

The legislation, which has faced fierce opposition from the clergy and right-wing parties,will now be reviewed by the Constitutional Council

Published 16 Jul, 2026 09:06 |

France’s lower chamber of parliament has given final approval to a controversial bill legalizing euthanasia and assisted suicide. The legislation, which has been criticized by the clergy and was rejected three times by the conservative Senate, is now in the hands of the country’s top constitutional body.

The left-leaning National Assembly greenlit the bill on Wednesday 291 votes to 241, capping what its author, former lawmaker Olivier Falorni, called a legislative “marathon with hurdles.”

Support for the bill in the chamber has steadily eroded with each reading: The Assembly passed the text 305-199 in May 2025, 299-226 in February 2026, and 295-232 on June 30.

The Senate, which is dominated by conservatives, rejected the bill several times, and with no compromise reached in a joint committee,the government invoked the National Assembly’s constitutional right to have the final word on the matter.

The bill grants adults who are French citizens or legal residents and suffer from a serious, incurable, and life-threatening illness in an advanced or terminal stage the right to request lethal medication if their pain is unbearable or resistant to treatment

Psychological suffering alone does not qualify and should be linked to the disease. Applicants must also be capable of expressing their will “freely and in an informed manner,” and their discernment cannot be “seriously impaired.” The patient is also subject to a mandatory reflection period.

On the day the substance is administered, a doctor must verify that the patient still wants to proceed; if any pressure on the patient is detected, the procedure must be suspended and reported to the state prosecutor. Patients would normally self-administer the drug, with a doctor or nurse stepping in – subject to a conscience clause – only if they are physically unable.

French President Emmanuel Macron, who has backed the reform for years, wrote on X: “In 2022,I committed to opening this path with the French people. With seriousness, with humility, and with full respect for our democracy, that commitment has been fulfilled.”

The Association for the Right to Die With Dignity said the legislation would allow people “to choose to end unbearable suffering, freely and with full awareness.” Its president, Jonathan Denis, said the law “creates a new right [but] never forces anyone to exercise it,” while ensuring that every person can “have their wishes respected.”

Hanane Mansouri, an MP from the right-wing UDR group,warned that the legislation “is gradually reversing our scale of values.”The Bishops’ Conference of France said the bill “marks a grave rupture in the history of our country,” adding that“in choosing to legalize euthanasia and assisted suicide, deputies have written into French law the possibility of causing death.”

The law cannot take effect yet, as Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu referred it to the Constitutional Council. The council is now expected to rule on whether the two-day reflection period before administering the lethal substance respects personal freedom and human dignity, whether adults under legal guardianship can give free and informed consent, and how doctors’ right to refuse participation squares with hospitals that opt out of offering assisted dying.

The council has up to one month to rule if the government does not require urgency, and has the right to strike down individual provisions, forcing parliament to rewrite and revote on them, or annul the law.Only after the council’s say can the legislation be enacted by Macron.

(https://www.rt.com/news/643121-french-mps-seal-fate-euthanisia-bill/

Canada and France have approved this, many more will consider this soon.God is being eliminated from human life, so their countries save money and now be the arbiters of when a human is to die!

Zambia’s first white leader dies at 82

Guy Scott guided the African country through a difficult transition with a “steady hand” and a commitment to constitutional order, President Hakainde Hichilema said

Published 16 Jul, 2026 13:18

Former acting Zambian President Guy Scott, the first white head of state in sub-Saharan Africa since the end of apartheid, has died aged 82, the government announced.

Scott died on Wednesday after an illness at his farm in Lusaka, the southern African nation’s capital, according to a statement signed by Cabinet Secretary Patrick Kangwa.

Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema has accorded Scott a state funeral “in recognition of distinguished professional and political contribution to the nation,”Kangwa said, adding that burial arrangements will be announced later.

In a separate statement, Hichilema described Scott as a “true Zambian patriot”who devoted many years to public service. He said the former leader guided Zambia through a difficult transition “with a steady hand and a commitment to constitutional order” after the death of President Michael Sata.

Scott served as vice president under Sata from 2011 until the leader died in office in October 2014. He assumed the presidency under Zambia’s constitutional succession rules and served as acting head of state for around three months, until Edgar Lungu was inaugurated following a special election in January 2015. Lungu died in South Africa in June 2025, but remains unburied amid a dispute between his family and the Zambian government over his funeral arrangements.

Scott’s appointment made him the first white head of state in Africa since South Africa’s F.W. de Klerk, the last leader under apartheid, left office after the country’s first multiracial elections brought Nelson Mandela to power in 1994.

Born in Zambia to Scottish and English parents, he was also the country’s first white leader since independence from Britain in 1964. He could not contest the 2015 election because Zambia’s constitution at the time barred candidates whose parents were not Zambian by birth or descent from running for the presidency.

His brief presidency was marked by a power struggle within the ruling Patriotic Front. Scott dismissed Lungu as the party’s secretary-general in November 2014 but reversed the decision a day later after the move triggered protests and clashes in Lusaka.

A Cambridge-educated economist, Scott entered parliament in 1991 and later served as agriculture minister, earning praise for helping manage a severe regional drought and food shortage. He subsequently broke with the Patriotic Front and supported the United Party for National Development, led by current President Hakainde Hichilema.

(https://www.rt.com/africa/643133-zambian-former-white-leader-guy-scott-dies/

New York mayor blasted over justifying rising rape numbers(VIDEO)

The 6.6% surge in sexual assault complaints camelargely because of a broadened legal definition of the crime, Zohran Mamdani has claimed

Published 15 Jul, 2026

“Expanding the legal definition of rape was an important step… but it should never be used to deflect from the responsibility to reduce sexual violence. Survivors deserve leadership, action, accountability, and justice. They don’t deserve deflection,” she wrote on X in response to a clip of the interview.

Mamdani, an openly socialist political outsider, campaigned on a platform focused on affordable housing, public ownership of utilities, and wealth taxation. He was elected last year despite little enthusiasm from fellow Democrats and fierce opposition from Republicans, including US President Donald Trump.

Trump initially described Mamdani as a “communist” and warned that New Yorkers will soon flee the city under his leadership, but moderated his rhetoric after meeting the Democrat in person last November.

READ MORE: Trump warns of ‘communist menace’ in 250th US anniversary speech (VIDEO)

However, in his July 4 speech at Mount Rushmore, Trump warned about what he called “a resurgence of the communist menace” in the US. Communism is “a mortal threat to American liberty,” he said.

(https://www.rt.com/news/643093-mamdani-nyc-rape-statistics/

https://x.com/DanMannarino/status/2076767914019991882

Zelensky’s sacking defense minister triggers nationwide protests (VIDEO)

Hundreds of people have taken to the streets of Kiev and other cities demanding that Mikhail Fedorov keep his position

Published 16 Jul, 2026 18:34 |

Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky’s decision to fire Defense Minister Mikhail Fedorov has sparked nationwide protests. Hundreds of people have taken to the streets of Kiev and other cities to demand that the minister be brought back.Some of the protesters also called for Ukraine’s top military commander, General Aleksandr Syrsky, to be dismissed instead.

Fedorov was Ukraine’s youngest-ever defense minister. The 35-year-old technocrat took over from his predecessor in January and held the office for around six months. During that time, hedeepened Ukraine’s ties with Palantir, a controversial US data-mining and military technology company.He still failed to reform the corruption-prone ministry in accordance with “NATO standards,” as Fedorov himself admitted while confirming his departure.

Photos and videos that surfaced on social media showed people flooding the streets of Kiev and other cities like Dnepropetrovsk, holding Ukrainian flags, as well as placards and bannerscalling on Zelensky to reverse his decision. Crowds could also be heard chanting “shame!” in some videos. More than 1,000 demonstrators rallied outside of Zelensky’s office in the Ukrainian capital. Some protesters were also seen holding placards demanding Syrsky be sacked.

Zelensky later justified his decision by pointing to a conflict between the defense minister and the military chief.Fedorov and Syrsky had failed to find common ground and were not even communicating properly without his oversight, Zelensky claimed in a statement on Thursday.

The Ukrainian leader also stated that Ukrainians can do whatever they want. “If they wanted to take [to the streets in protest], good for them,” he said.

Fedorov himself accused Syrsky of “splitting the country” and called for his dismissal. Syrskydid not mention the conflict in his own statement on Telegram on Thursday and “thanked” Fedorov for his work instead and expressed his hope that he would “remain” in the government team.

The Ukrainian outlet Strana claimed that Zelensky had becomeincreasingly dissatisfied with Fedorov’s “independent political game” and histies to circles close to the Western-backed National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO), agenciesthat have investigated a string of high-profile corruption cases involving senior Ukrainian officials.

(https://www.rt.com/russia/643150-zelensky-sacks-defense-minister-protests/

This might be the beginning of the end of Zelensky!

Guys we’ve had in GA, since at least the beginning of June, rain storms daily; not all day but some part of day, almost every day. I’ve lived here since 1990 and it’s not normal.Are any of your states having a similar pattern?

Russia strikes Ukrainian drone and missile production sites – MOD

Military industrial plants in Kiev and port infrastructure in Odessa were targeted in the latest overnight attack, Moscow has said

Published 14 Jul, 2026 17:00 |

Russian forces have carried out high-precision strikes on drone and missile production facilities in Kiev, as well as military-related port infrastructure in Odessa, the Defense Ministry in Moscow has said.

Among the targets was the state-owned enterprise Radioizmeritel,which the ministry described as a key supplier of electronic components for Neptun-MD guided missiles and FP-7 and FP-9 ballistic missiles produced by Fire Point. The company was promoted internationally by Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky and has been linked to his former business associate Timur Mindich, who has been accused of running a large-scale corruption scheme.

The ministry also said it struck the Kiev-79 enterprise, which assembles warheads for Ukrainian drones and missiles and serves as a logistics hub for military equipment.

In Odessa, Russian missile and drone strikes targeted fuel storage facilities supplying the Ukrainian military, the ministry said. It added that a cargo vessel carrying military equipment and a tanker were also hit.

Last week, the MOD said that its long-range strike campaign had demonstrated thatRussian weapons can “reliably penetrate any anti-aircraft air or missile defense systems provided to Zelensky by Western sponsors.” It added that Kiev had deployed virtually all available Western air defense systems to protect the capital but failed to prevent Russian strikes from reaching their targets.

Moscow has intensified long-range attacks on Ukraine’s military-industrial and dual-use infrastructure in recent weeks. The Defense Ministry has described the campaign as retaliation for Ukrainian terrorist attacks on Russian civilian infrastructure, which it says have increased as Kiev’s forces have suffered setbacks on the battlefield.

Earlier this month, Russia announced that it had captured Konstantinovka, a major Donbass city on the southern edge of the Slavyansk-Kramatorsk agglomeration, the last major urban stronghold under Kiev’s control in the region.

https://www.rt.com/russia/643045-russia-strike-ukrainian-drone-missile-production/

Mediaite

JUST IN: NBC and ABC Will Not Air Trump’s Primetime Address Live

Stephanie Kaloi

Thu, July 16, 2026 at 4:21 PM

NBC and ABC will not be airing President Donald Trump's planned national address this evening, multiple reporters shared Thursday and Mediaite has confirmed. Instead, both networks will show the speech on their streaming platforms. There is precedent for the move — networks previously declined to air certain speeches given by President Barack Obama and President Joe Biden in real time.

Brian Stelter posted the news via a series of threaded posts on X.

"In sum: Trump will not be getting the wall-to-wall airtime he wants from everyone, but the speech will be widely streamed and available," he explained.

"NBC says 'we will provide live coverage of the president's remarks at 9 pm ET tonight on NBC News NOW. We plan to air a special report on the network following the remarks,'" Stelter continued.

A spokesperson for NBC confirmed Stelter's reporting to Mediaite.

A spokesperson for ABC said in a statement shared with Mediaite, "ABC News will run President Trump's speech on ABC News Live and ABC News Radio with comprehensive, anchored coverage. We will also cover the speech in our regular network newscasts and, as always, our Special Report team is fully prepared to break into network programming to deliver live updates and reporting should significant developments occur."

The decision to air the speech, which is expected to largely center around the president's persistent belief in the widely debunked conspiracy theory that the 2020 presidential election was stolen by Democrats, has been a hotly debated topic this week. Networks did not indicate a decision until approximately 3:30 p.m. ET today, only hours before the planned 9 p.m. ET address.

Mediaite has reached out to NBC and CBS for comment and will update this article if we receive a reply.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/politics/articles/just-nbc-abc-not-air-202148696.html

Benny Johnson

The Benny Show

@bennyjohnson

Marco Rubio Just Went OFF On Left-Wing Terrorism

He just called out:

-Transgender shooter that shot up a Catholic school.

-The far left radical that murdered Charlie Kirk

-Multiple deranged assassination attempts on President Trump

“More than 80% of radical violence is now driven by far-left and anarchist actors.

These are not abstract statistics. Americans have seen what those numbers mean.

An all-out assault on our immigration officers, sniper attacks, explosives, armed ambushes, a transgender shooter opening fire on Catholic elementary school students as they pray, his gun marked with slogans like, "Where is your God now?", a healthcare executive executed in cold blood in the streets, multiple assassination attempts on a sitting president, and the murder of the greatest conservative activist of a generation, a man who happened to also be a husband and the father of two young children, shot and killed while speaking to a crowd of students.

This is a distinctive and unique evil. It has always been driven by a hatred, above all else, a hatred for civilization itself.

It is a revolt of the worst against the best, a revolt of the weak and the cowardly against the strong and the good. It is perpetrated by those who cannot build, who cannot create, who cannot achieve great things, and take their revenge upon the world for their own inadequacy by seeking to destroy those who can.

This is what radical leftism is.

It may wear various different slogans and ideologies across place and time. They can call themselves anti-capitalist, or anti-imperialist, or communist, or anarchist, or Marxist, but the fundamental character is always the same. It's always the same.

It is a poisonous resentment cloaked in the language of equality and justice, liberation, and an overwhelming need to tear down what greater men have built, to wreck what is beautiful and what is right, on behalf of people who are only filled with ugliness and have nothing else to offer the world.

Through violence and through terror, they once again seek to impose their ugliness on all of us.”

THIS is the speech that Americans needed to hear.

https://x.com/bennyjohnson/status/2077752579778372063

BREAKING: House Budget Committee ADVANCES the SAVE America Act in Reconciliation Which Needs Just 50 Votes + JD Vance in Senate

by Jim Hᴏft Jul. 16, 2026

House Republicans scored another major victory Thursday after the House Budget Committee advanced the SAVE and Protect America Act through the budget reconciliation process.

The House Budget Committeeadvanced a framework for a third reconciliation bill.

Speaker Mike Johnson announced the committee’s approval,calling it a critical milestone in the Republican effort to enact the SAVE America Actdespite months of Democrat obstruction and Senate procedural roadblocks.

The reconciliation strategy is designed to allow the measure to pass the Senate with a simple majority rather than the traditional 60 votes required to overcome a filibuster,although Senate rules will ultimately determine which provisions qualify.

“Today, the Budget Committeeadvanced the SAVE and Protect America Act. This is the next step toward advancing the SAVE America Act — our party’s top legislative priority,” Johnson wrote.

He also blasted Democrats for refusing to participate in the effort.

“Democrats have chosen not to engage on these important issues. Ultimately, they’ll have to answer to the American people.”

Today, the Budget Committee advanced the SAVE and Protect America Act.

This is the next step toward advancing the SAVE America Act — our party’s top legislative priority.

Democrats have chosen not to engage on these important issues. Ultimately, they’ll have to answer to the… pic.twitter.com/1JfW5VKSjX

— Speaker Mike Johnson (@SpeakerJohnson) July 16, 2026

The next step after the House Budget Committee advances a budget resolution containing reconciliation instructions is for the full House of Representatives to debate and vote on the resolution, which is expected to occur as early as the week of July 20, 2026.

The House has already passed versions of this bill multiple times.Each time, Senate Democrats and a handful of RINOs have blocked it, hiding behind the filibuster while refusing to explain to voterswhy they oppose basic safeguards against non-citizen voting.

It can be recalled that on Wednesday, the House ==Republicans delivered a major victory for election integrity after passing the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) with the SAVE America Act language included•=, sending the combined legislation to the Senate in a 217-209 vote.

Now the path is clearer. Because this is moving through reconciliation,it only needs a simple majority in the Senate, 50 votes plus Vice President JD Vance to break any ties.

Vance blasted Senate Republicans over what he called “procedural bullsh*t,” arguing there is no constitutional requirement for the Senate’s 60-vote legislative thresholdand insisting Republicans should use the reconciliation process to enact election integrity reforms.

Speaking alongside Vice President Vance on Wednesday, Johnson called the reconciliation package “our best shot” at passing the legislation.

“It’s our best shot at enacting our party’s top priority legislation, the SAVE America Act. It is important to the American people and it’s important to the future.And there is nothing in this bill that every Republican in Congress cannot proudly get behind.”

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2026/07/breaking-house-budget-committee-advances-save-america-act/

If Thune fucks this up, everyone will know.

Leavitt Signals Major Reveal Ahead as CNN’s Kaitlan Collins Questions Why No One Has Been Charged Over Election Interference

By Jim Hᴏft Jul. 16, 2026 2:15

CNN’s Kaitlan Collins attempted to corner the Trump White House during Thursday’s press briefing, questioning why no criminal charges have been filed if the evidence President Donald Trump is expected to discuss in his speech is as significant as the administration has suggested.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt fired a clear warning shot, telling CNN’s Kaitlan Collins that the evidence has not even been fully declassified yet and that Americans will see it for themselves tonight.

CNN’s Kaitlan Collins: “Regarding the president’s speech tonight, he’s been in office over 540 days now. If what he says tonight is backed up by evidence, why hasn’t anyone been charged?”

Press Sec. Karoline Leavitt: “He hasn’t revealed it yet. He hasn’t declassified the documents yet and you will see what he says tonight and then we’ll move forward appropriately from there.”

As The Gateway Pundit previously reported,President Trump is expected to drop major revelations tonight about Chinese Communist Party meddling in U.S. elections, including evidence that Beijing compromised American voter data and that the CIA knew about it during Trump’s first term and deliberately withheld the information from him.

The president will be joined by CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Acting DNI Bill Pulte, DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin, and FBI Director Kash Patel. A White House task force is also preparing to release newly declassified intelligence documents related to the 2020 election.

President Trump has repeatedly said free and fair elections are the foundation of the country. Tonight, he is expected to show the nation exactly what foreign adversaries, and those inside the government who enabled or ignored them, were willing to do to undermine that foundation.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2026/07/leavitt-signals-major-reveal-ahead-as-cnns-kaitlan/

I wonder is Serbia whistleblowers will come up?

House Shelves Vets Bill After GOP Reps Have ‘Unhinged’ Argument In Mike Johnson’s Office

The House of Representatives postponed a vote on a veterans bill Thursday after afew Republicans clashed with supporters of the measure and voted with Democrats to make major revisions to the bill.

Republican Reps. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida, Max Miller of Ohio and Jeff Van Drew of New Jerseyvoted with Democrats on a motion to recommit, which would have sent the legislation back to committee with instructions and allowed for another vote at a later date. House Speaker Mike Johnson and otherHouse Republicans reportedly had a heated discussion in Johnson’s ceremonial office with Luna and other holdouts as leadership tried to whip their support, according to Politico.

The measure would expand benefits for hundreds of thousands of veterans, but includes cuts to some future disability claims such as tinnitus and sleep apnea cases. Many Republicans, such as Luna, expressed concerns about cutting some benefits to fund others included in the legislation.

The speaker told holdouts they were misinformed about the bill, and Republican Iowa Rep. Zach Nunn reportedly snapped at Luna, demanding she listen to their arguments.Johnson said the measure would be delayed for several weeks while leadership considered next steps.

Johnson’s and Miller’s offices did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.

https://dailycaller.com/2026/07/16/house-shelves-vets-bill-gop-reps-argument-mike-johnsons-office/