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Trump’s ‘revenge’ meltdown plans leak for White House Correspondents’ Dinner: report
President Donald Trump is preparing to throw a scripted tantrum at the White House Correspondents' Dinner this year, reported The Daily Beast on Wednesday.
"Donald Trump will launch a 'revenge' attack on the White House media when he confronts them in person at a Washington dinner on Saturday night — then flee before there can be revenge," said the report. "He is expected to target publications that he has accused of writing negatively about his administration and his war with Iran, in particular, according to sources."
This would track with his recent rants on Truth Social, where he has accused of the media of rigging reports about the Iran war to make it look like it's going worse than it actually is.
After he is done with his speech, said the report, he is skipping on the rest of the ceremony — in large part because he doesn't want to stick around for an award being given to a story that revealed his closeness to deceased financier and accused child trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.
"Trump will leave the White House Correspondents’ Association event after making his speech, so he will miss the presentation of press awards — one of which would be certain to embarrass him," said the report. "He has told aides he has no intention of still being in the International Ballroom at the Washington Hilton when the Wall Street Journal is honored with the Katherine Graham award for its scoop about a bawdy letter Trump allegedly wrote for Jeffrey Epstein’s 50th birthday card."
The president sued WSJ over that reporting, alleging that the birthday letter was not authentic. This month, a federal judge tossed out that suit.
‘Massive cover up’ fears raised as House panel splits on clemency for Ghislaine Maxwell
Ghislaine Maxwell's condition to testify under oath — but only under the condition of clemency — has split House Oversight and Government Reform Committee members over whether President Donald Trump should grant her that pardon, Rep. James Comer (R-KY) told Politico on Wednesday.
Maxwell, Jeffrey Epstein's co-conspirator, was deposed by the committee and invoked her Fifth Amendment right to decline to answer the group's questions. Trump is the only one with the power to pardon her, something he has not yet ruled out.
Comer told Politico that he did not favor a pardon for Maxwell, a former confidant to the late financier and convicted child sex offender. When asked whether striking a deal with Maxwell could provide useful testimony, Comer did not share who on the panel supported granting her clemency.
"A lot of people do," Comer said.
"My committee’s split on that," Comer said. "I don’t speak for my committee."
"I think it looks bad," he added. "Honestly, other than Epstein, the worst person in this whole investigation is Maxwell."
Rep. Robert Garcia (D-CA) said that Democrats on the committee collectively oppose a pardon for Maxwell.
"That would be a huge step backwards, and, quite frankly, so disrespectful to the survivors," he said in an interview. "She is a known abuser. She is a known liar."
"If the DOJ or Oversight Republicans are out there trying to negotiate some sort of pardon that is... not only a huge slap in the face to this investigation, to anyone, to the American public," Garcia said. "It’s a part of a massive cover up."
‘Wah, wah, wah:’ AOC scoffs at GOP whining over gerrymandering
WASHINGTON — Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-NY, had strong words for Republicans complaining about the gerrymandering in Virginia that voters approved on Tuesday, with strong support from her party.
"Wah, wah, wah," Ocasio-Cortez told Raw Story on Wednesday, mimicking a whining baby and laughing in response to a question from reporter Matt Laslo. "Democrats have attempted and asked Republicans for 10 years to ban partisan gerrymandering, and for 10 years, Republicans have said, 'no.'"
Laslo was asking Ocasio-Cortez to respond to complaints from the GOP that it would be unconstitutional for Democrats to have a 10-1 congressional majority in Virginia, which the gerrymandering ballot measure would make possible. A Virginia circuit court judge blocked the vote-approved redistricting on Wednesday, however.
Still, Ocasio-Cortez saw no problem with Democrats supporting gerrymandering after years of opposing it when done on the Republican side. For AOC, the GOP "wanted to start this," and the Democrats are just fighting back.
"What they're mad at is they're accustomed to a Democrat Party that rolls over, doesn't fight and takes everything sitting down," Ocasio-Cortez said. "What they're mad at right now is that we are here in a new day."
She mentioned Republican gerrymandering in North Carolina and Texas, where Democrats lost seats. Trump's call for Texas Republicans to gerrymander arguably kicked off what's now seen as a redistricting arms race.
"We have been asking the Democratic Party to stand up and fight, and now they did," AOC continued. "Now the Republican Party doesn't like the fact that they are fighting against someone who actually will stand up for the American people."
Ocasio-Cortez said she would "welcome" working with the Republicans to pass a ban on partisan gerrymandering.
"We have the bill right here to end this all today," she said, smiling. "But they don't want to because they like pursuing and continuing to enact an unfair electoral landscape."
MTG’s reporter boyfriend claims ‘1000s of death threats’ after Zelensky wardrobe question
Pro-MAGA reporter Brian Glenn, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene's (R-GA) boyfriend, claimed he received "thousands of death threats" after asking Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky about his wardrobe at an Oval Office meeting last week.
On Monday, Glenn reflected on the meaning behind Zelensky's decision not to wear a suit in his meeting with President Donald Trump.
"Why does this man continue to go see heads of nations get hundreds of billions of dollars, be in the highest offices around the world, and absolutely wear that silly little green jumpsuit, which you're not currently in the war in that country," Glenn said on Real America's Voice. "Why can't you show some respect and dress up and be in the highest level?"
"Sometimes you can judge a book by its cover and by him not showing respect," he continued. "And obviously, the wardrobe reflected his attitude, which we later found out about six and a half minutes after that question."
"That's when things got heated up. So it was a reflection of his genuine disrespect he has for this country."
ALSO READ: 'Absolutely unconscionable': Ex-Republican demands Trump removed from office after fight
Glenn said the question had taken a toll on his personal life.
"The feedback that I have personally gotten from, I would consider, America first people, the base, has been huge," he revealed. "But I've received thousands of death threats."
"I currently have a police unit at my house in Texas because they're saying that they're going to find me and harm me and things like that," he added. "So it has been a very serious issue."
‘Vilified as boogeyman’: Disinformation ensnares US trans pilot
by Anuj CHOPRA
Gingerly placing a gun on her kitchen counter, American trans pilot Jo Ellis said she no longer leaves her apartment without a firearm after false online claims about her involvement in a fatal air crash triggered a deluge of threats.
The career of the Black Hawk pilot in the Virginia Army National Guard hangs in limbo after a Pentagon memo last week revealed that transgender troops will be purged from the military unless they obtain a waiver on a case-by-case basis.
President Donald Trump has signed a series of executive orders targeting the trans community -- a flash point in the so-called culture wars roiling the United States -- including barring them from women's sports and instructing the government to recognize only two sexes, male and female.
Tens of thousands of social media posts falsely identified Ellis, 35, as one of the pilots of the army helicopter that collided with a passenger plane in Washington in late January, killing everyone aboard both aircrafts.
Without offering any evidence, Trump suggested the aviation authority's diversity hiring practices could partly be to blame for the crash, making trans personnel such as Ellis a ripe target for online rumors.
Her friends alerted her to a random Facebook account asking around if people knew Ellis, calling her the one who "killed those people in the crash" and other posts that questioned whether it was a "trans terror attack."
Others sent her screenshots of two news sites, including a Pakistani outlet, which suggested that Ellis was piloting the ill-fated helicopter.
As the rumors reached a fever pitch, with Ellis's name trending on the Elon Musk-owned platform X, a British newspaper reporter called her cellphone asking if she was alive.
"When I noticed how big the issue was, and I saw some of the comments, my first thought was: 'Is my family safe?'" Ellis told AFP at her apartment in the city of Richmond.
- 'We're a target' -
"I arranged armed private security for my house and packed my bags," Ellis said, displaying her personal firearms, including a gun the size of her hand that she carries in her purse.
Worried that someone might track down her home using public records, she temporarily moved her family to a new location.
Ellis posted a "proof of life" video on Facebook, which quelled only some of the rumors.
The threats facing Ellis, who has served in the National Guard since 2009 and has deployed to Iraq and Kuwait, highlight the real-life impact of disinformation for transgender people at a time when there has been a sharp uptick in the political rhetoric against them.
"I believe we're a target right now," Ellis said.
"We're being vilified as this kind of boogeyman," she added.
Online posts suggested that her hatred for Trump had motivated her to kill herself and dozens of others, an accusation she found strange for someone who had voted "red more than blue."
"I'm actually from a family that voted for Trump, so it's very strange to see that."
- 'Upsetting' -
Adding to that was job insecurity prompted by the Pentagon memo, which became public as part of a court filing in a case challenging Trump's recent executive order aimed at barring military service for transgender personnel.
Ellis said her supervisors, who reached out to offer support after the disinformation campaign, had informed her that the memo had not yet trickled down to them and encouraged her to continue for now.
"It's upsetting, but I will continue to place the mission first and do my job," Ellis said of the memo.
"I'm not sure I meet the criteria for a waiver, but I will try to exhaust all options that allow me to continue serving."
In a personal essay for the website Smerconish published just before the air crash, Ellis wrote she noticed symptoms of gender dysphoria from the age of five but learned to hide them from her family.
Growing up in a religious and conservative home with a history of military service, she tried to be "more manly" in hopes it would "cure" her.
She received "overwhelming support" when she notified her command in 2023 that she would begin transitioning. Ellis came out to her unit the following year.
"If I was serving today and was not out, I would consider not coming out, or I would consider leaving the military," she said.
"Because it doesn't seem like it's an environment where you can serve effectively with the current policies coming down."
ac/sw
© Agence France-Presse
Trump begs Americans to ‘spend less time worrying about Putin’ while attacking his ex-aide
Donald Trump on Sunday attacked his former adviser, and asked Americans to "spend less time worrying about Putin."
Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, who served as Mr. Trump's national security adviser during his first administration, said over the weekend that Russian President Vladimir Putin was cheering after Trump and his number two, J.D. Vance, yelled at Ukraine's leader while in the Oval Office.
That news apparently didn't sit well with the President, who struck out against his former adviser on social media.
ALSO READ: 'Absolutely unconscionable': Ex-Republican demands Trump removed from office after fight
"H.R. MCMASTER IS A WEAK AND TOTALLY INEFFECTIVE LOSER!" Trump wrote in an all-caps rant on Truth Social on Sunday.
In a separate post, Trump added, "We should spend less time worrying about Putin, and more time worrying about migrant rape gangs, drug lords, murderers, and people from mental institutions entering our Country - So that we don’t end up like Europe!"
‘One Trump supporter still faces sentencing’ in case tied to Jan. 6 riot: report
Donald Trump pardoned Jan. 6 rioters after taking office, but there is still one of the President's supporters facing time in prison, according to a reporter on Sunday.
CBS News Justice Correspondent Scott MacFarlane took to social media over the weekend to announce, "Yes … one Trump supporter still faces sentencing and potential prison time in a case with connections to Jan 6."
In a new article entitled, "Trump supporter faces possible prison time in case associated with Jan. 6," MacFarlane and Jacob Rosen reported that "one case with a connection to the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the Capitol remains, and the Texas woman involved still faces the prospect of prison time."
ALSO READ: 'Absolutely unconscionable': Ex-Republican demands Trump removed from office after fight
"A federal judge in Texas has scheduled sentencing for Abigail Shry, 44, for May 5 at the federal courthouse in Houston. Shry pleaded guilty in November to a threat charge — for making a vulgar, racist and violent threat in 2023 against the judge handling Mr. Trump's Jan. 6 criminal case in Washington," according to the CBS report. "Prosecutors alleged Shry made the threatening phone call to U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan just hours after Chutkan was assigned to handle Trump's election subversion criminal case."
The report states, "Shry's sentencing has been postponed multiple times, but carries the prospect of a prison term."
‘Never in the history’: World famous journalist staggered by Trump and Zelensky meltdown
A world famous international journalist was left agape Friday as she watched President Donald Trump berate Ukraine’s leader in an unprecedented Oval Office meltdown.
“Never in the history of modern diplomacy, war, peace, whatever, have I ever, ever, ever seen anything like it,” a gobsmacked Christiane Amanpour said on CNN as she held her head, mouth wide open.
The network’s chief international anchor is famed for her extensive coverage of major international events and conflicts, earning her a reputation as one of the most respected foreign correspondents.
“We just have to hope that for the safety of the free world and for the American people, for the European people, for the Ukrainian people, that these two presidents run out of breath and try to iron out their differences.
“This was an entirely personal go-to with so many mistruths and mis-facts.”
The press conference between Trump and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky came after the two met with the intention of ironing out a peace deal for the Eastern European country, which has been at war after being invaded by Russia three years ago.
Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance each took turns publicly shouting at Zelenskyy with Trump accusing him of hating Russian President Vladimir Putin and Vance calling him ungrateful for America’s assistance.
After the meeting, Trump wrote on Truth Social, "I have determined that President Zelenskyy is not ready for Peace if America is involved, because he feels our involvement gives him a big advantage in negotiations.
"I don’t want advantage, I want PEACE. He disrespected the United States of America in its cherished Oval Office. He can come back when he is ready for Peace."
‘Zelenskyy is not ready for Peace’: Trump signals he is ready to abandon Ukraine
Shortly after his tumultuous meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday, President Donald Trump issued a statement indicating that he would abandon Ukraine, which he accused of not wanting to make "peace" with Russia.
"I have determined that President Zelenskyy is not ready for Peace if America is involved, because he feels our involvement gives him a big advantage in negotiations," Trump wrote on his Truth Social page Friday. "I don’t want advantage, I want PEACE. He disrespected the United States of America in its cherished Oval Office. He can come back when he is ready for Peace."
ALSO READ: 'Gotta be kidding': Jim Jordan scrambles as he's confronted over Musk 'double standard'
Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance each took turns berating Zelenskyy to his face on Friday, with Vance calling the Ukrainian leader ungrateful for the assistance America has given and Trump accusing Zelenskyy of having a supposedly irrational hatred of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has been bombing and invading his country for more than three years now.
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Trump’s ‘revenge’ meltdown plans leak for White House Correspondents’ Dinner: report
President Donald Trump is preparing to throw a scripted tantrum at the White House Correspondents' Dinner this year, reported The Daily Beast on Wednesday.
"Donald Trump will launch a 'revenge' attack on the White House media when he confronts them in person at a Washington dinner on Saturday night — then flee before there can be revenge," said the report. "He is expected to target publications that he has accused of writing negatively about his administration and his war with Iran, in particular, according to sources."
This would track with his recent rants on Truth Social, where he has accused of the media of rigging reports about the Iran war to make it look like it's going worse than it actually is.
After he is done with his speech, said the report, he is skipping on the rest of the ceremony — in large part because he doesn't want to stick around for an award being given to a story that revealed his closeness to deceased financier and accused child trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.
"Trump will leave the White House Correspondents’ Association event after making his speech, so he will miss the presentation of press awards — one of which would be certain to embarrass him," said the report. "He has told aides he has no intention of still being in the International Ballroom at the Washington Hilton when the Wall Street Journal is honored with the Katherine Graham award for its scoop about a bawdy letter Trump allegedly wrote for Jeffrey Epstein’s 50th birthday card."
The president sued WSJ over that reporting, alleging that the birthday letter was not authentic. This month, a federal judge tossed out that suit.
‘Massive cover up’ fears raised as House panel splits on clemency for Ghislaine Maxwell
Ghislaine Maxwell's condition to testify under oath — but only under the condition of clemency — has split House Oversight and Government Reform Committee members over whether President Donald Trump should grant her that pardon, Rep. James Comer (R-KY) told Politico on Wednesday.
Maxwell, Jeffrey Epstein's co-conspirator, was deposed by the committee and invoked her Fifth Amendment right to decline to answer the group's questions. Trump is the only one with the power to pardon her, something he has not yet ruled out.
Comer told Politico that he did not favor a pardon for Maxwell, a former confidant to the late financier and convicted child sex offender. When asked whether striking a deal with Maxwell could provide useful testimony, Comer did not share who on the panel supported granting her clemency.
"A lot of people do," Comer said.
"My committee’s split on that," Comer said. "I don’t speak for my committee."
"I think it looks bad," he added. "Honestly, other than Epstein, the worst person in this whole investigation is Maxwell."
Rep. Robert Garcia (D-CA) said that Democrats on the committee collectively oppose a pardon for Maxwell.
"That would be a huge step backwards, and, quite frankly, so disrespectful to the survivors," he said in an interview. "She is a known abuser. She is a known liar."
"If the DOJ or Oversight Republicans are out there trying to negotiate some sort of pardon that is... not only a huge slap in the face to this investigation, to anyone, to the American public," Garcia said. "It’s a part of a massive cover up."
‘Wah, wah, wah:’ AOC scoffs at GOP whining over gerrymandering
WASHINGTON — Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-NY, had strong words for Republicans complaining about the gerrymandering in Virginia that voters approved on Tuesday, with strong support from her party.
"Wah, wah, wah," Ocasio-Cortez told Raw Story on Wednesday, mimicking a whining baby and laughing in response to a question from reporter Matt Laslo. "Democrats have attempted and asked Republicans for 10 years to ban partisan gerrymandering, and for 10 years, Republicans have said, 'no.'"
Laslo was asking Ocasio-Cortez to respond to complaints from the GOP that it would be unconstitutional for Democrats to have a 10-1 congressional majority in Virginia, which the gerrymandering ballot measure would make possible. A Virginia circuit court judge blocked the vote-approved redistricting on Wednesday, however.
Still, Ocasio-Cortez saw no problem with Democrats supporting gerrymandering after years of opposing it when done on the Republican side. For AOC, the GOP "wanted to start this," and the Democrats are just fighting back.
"What they're mad at is they're accustomed to a Democrat Party that rolls over, doesn't fight and takes everything sitting down," Ocasio-Cortez said. "What they're mad at right now is that we are here in a new day."
She mentioned Republican gerrymandering in North Carolina and Texas, where Democrats lost seats. Trump's call for Texas Republicans to gerrymander arguably kicked off what's now seen as a redistricting arms race.
"We have been asking the Democratic Party to stand up and fight, and now they did," AOC continued. "Now the Republican Party doesn't like the fact that they are fighting against someone who actually will stand up for the American people."
Ocasio-Cortez said she would "welcome" working with the Republicans to pass a ban on partisan gerrymandering.
"We have the bill right here to end this all today," she said, smiling. "But they don't want to because they like pursuing and continuing to enact an unfair electoral landscape."
