NYC: Socialist Lawmaker Claims Stealing for ‘Biological Need’ Should Not Be Illegal

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A socialist lawmaker in New York City has claimed “biological need” gives shoplifters the right to steal from store shelves.

State Assemblywoman Emily Gallagher, who describes herself as a “neighborhood organizer” and “democratic socialist,” made her comments on Thursday outside Manhattan Criminal Court, the New York Post reported Saturday.

She was joined by members of Court Watch NYC, which claimed they monitored hundreds of arraignments for several days and found half of those cases were misdemeanors.

Gallagher said:

Most of what we saw were crimes of poverty-people who are stealing things like toothpaste, people who were stealing things like, you know, soap. And that means if you’re stealing those things, you need them. And we are choosing to protect billion-dollar companies, like CVS and Walgreens, over the people who are struggling to get by. So I would say that the true crime is that there is such incredible wealth disparity in this city that there are people who can be thrown in jail simply for having a biological need.

Gallagher said she is fighting to “pass things like treatment not jail and that we hold the line on the incredible criminal justice reforms that we have done over the last 10 and 20 years that are constantly being threatened by right-wing media who are looking to fear monger about people who are actually just in absolute dire straits.” (Read more from “NYC: Socialist Lawmaker Claims Stealing for ‘Biological Need’ Should Not Be Illegal” HERE)

Iran Army Chief Offers $30,000 Bounty for Killing or Capturing U.S. Soldiers

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Iran’s army chief announced a $30,000 bounty Sunday for anyone who kills or captures an American service member, as Tehran’s armed forces escalated threats against U.S. personnel and separately vowed to continue confronting the United States until its enemies are “completely” defeated and forced to “surrender.”

“Anyone who kills or captures and hands over an invading American military personnel will receive a reward equivalent to $30,000 or 5 billion tomans from the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Army,” Maj. Gen. Amir Hatami said at a ceremony honoring journalists.

“Courageous Iranian women who carry out such an action will receive double the reward,” he added.

Hatami said the initiative was created following a “large number of requests” from Iranians seeking to financially support attacks against American forces. Under the plan, he said, the weapon used to kill an American would also be purchased at twice its value, replaced with a new weapon, and preserved in a museum.

The army chief did not specify where or under what circumstances Americans were expected to be targeted. No U.S. ground forces are known to be deployed inside Iran, outside of combat search-and-rescue operations in April after an American F-15E Strike Eagle was shot down over Iranian territory. (Read more from “Iran Army Chief Offers $30,000 Bounty for Killing or Capturing U.S. Soldiers” HERE)

Rep. Nancy Mace Reveals New Tattoos as She Launches YouTube Show after Losing Political Career

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Outgoing firebrand Rep. Nancy Mace used her new YouTube talk show to debut spicy tattoos on both arms — as she went sleeveless in public for the first time in months.

Mace (R-SC) broke out her inked-up gun show while promoting “Get Maced,” a program where she will apparently address news of the day.

The 48-year-old South Carolina Republican revealed in February that she got several tattoos, which provided her “the pain that I need to feel.”

However, she had kept them almost entirely covered up in public until she took to social media late last week to tease her future plans.

Back in February, she said she got nine tattoos in rapid succession to mark the exodus of staffers from her office who badmouthed her to the press and the breakup with her fiancé — among other bad experiences.

The 48-year-old also described it as a way to “reclaim” her identity and body. (Read more from “Rep. Nancy Mace Reveals New Tattoos as She Launches YouTube Show after Losing Political Career” HERE)

Photo credit: Nancy Mace / YouTube Screenshot

Man Who Carried Clinton Nuclear ‘Football’ Reveals What ‘Scares the Hell out of Me’ about Trump’s Air Force One Story

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A retired Air Force lieutenant colonel who carried the nuclear “football” for former President Bill Clinton says the extraordinary Air Force One shell game departing Ankara, Turkey, last month to protect President Donald Trump from a potential attack was hardly unprecedented.

“It was brilliant,” retired Lt. Col. Robert “Buzz” Patterson told Fox News Digital. “I wish I had been a part of it. That’s how well done it was.”

But Patterson is warning that exposing the vital national security secrets behind such operations could put presidents, military personnel and the White House press corps in danger for years to come.

Patterson served as Clinton’s senior military aide for a period of two years and was responsible for the president’s emergency satchel, and in a 20-minute interview Wednesday, he explained how presidential decoys, aircraft swaps and other acts of deception are longstanding tools used to protect the commander in chief, his senior officials and the “privileged” Air Force One press corps.

What alarms him, Patterson said, is not that Trump’s security team used the tactic — including the catering truck sleight of hand he was intimately a part of during the Clinton administration — but that details of how it was done are now spilling into public view.

“I hope that they prosecute this to the fullest,” Patterson said. “Whoever leaked that, in my opinion, and having been involved in this, was highly placed in that process.” (Read more from “Man Who Carried Clinton Nuclear ‘Football’ Reveals What ‘Scares the Hell out of Me’ about Trump’s Air Force One Story” HERE)

Democrat Charged In Alleged $1,500,000 Pandemic-Era Fraud Scheme

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The Democratic mayor of Lawrence, Mass. has been arrested and faces charges for allegedly fraudulently obtaining more than $1.5 million in pandemic-era small-business loans and misusing the money, the Department of Justice said Friday.

Brian DePeña, 61, was charged with one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering and is set to make an initial appearance in a Boston federal court on Friday, the DOJ said in a news release. DePeña used the funds from the pandemic relief loans to fund his campaign account, pay personal taxes, and pay off more than $880,000 in high-interest mortgages, the department alleges.

“Mayor [DePeña] was elected to be a leader for the City of Lawrence. He was looked up to and trusted by his constituents, but he betrayed that trust through his alleged corruption and lies,” U.S. Attorney Leah Foley said in a statement. “Today’s arrest is just another example of our determination to root out fraud by anyone, even public officials and holding elected officials accountable.”

In 2020 and 2021, DePeña applied for Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) for Tenares Tire Services Inc., a Lawrence-based tire sales and automotive services business that he owned, the DOJ alleged, citing charging documents. The EIDL program provided loans and advances aiming to “help businesses recover from the economic impacts of the pandemic,” according to the U.S. Small Business Administration.

Working capital did not include financing a political campaign, paying personal taxes, or paying off mortgages, according to the DOJ. (Read more from “Democrat Charged In Alleged $1,500,000 Pandemic-Era Fraud Scheme” HERE)

Retail Sales Suffer Biggest Drop In More Than A Year As Iran War Casts Shadow Over Economy

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Americans sharply pulled back on retail spending in July even as inflation remained elevated, raising fresh questions about whether the U.S. economy is weakening beneath the surface of the Iran war’s supply-driven price shock.

Retail sales fell 0.6% in July from the previous month, the Commerce Department reported Friday, marking the largest monthly decline since May 2025 and missing economists’ expectations for a modest increase. The Federal Reserve acknowledged that the conflict in the Middle East produced supply shocks, particularly in energy, contributing to elevated inflation.

The central bank simultaneously warned that household consumption had been growing only modestly.

For American households, the problem is more straightforward: they face higher prices while the economy shows signs of weakening demand. The result is less purchasing power and fewer opportunities to absorb another round of higher costs.

The headline figure is nominal, meaning it is not adjusted for inflation. Consumer prices increased another 0.1% in July, according to government data, meaning the underlying volume of goods purchased fell by more than the headline retail figure suggests. A rough adjustment for consumer-price growth would put the July decline in real terms at around 0.7%, though the precise figure depends on the deflator used for retail sales. (Read more from “Retail Sales Suffer Biggest Drop In More Than A Year As Iran War Casts Shadow Over Economy” HERE)

CBP Says ‘Limited’ Barriers Going Up Amid Backlash For National Park Construction

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U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) clarified Thursday that infrastructure being constructed to prevent border crossings at Big Bend National Park will be “limited.”

“Big Bend belongs to the American people, and our job is to keep it safe. So, let’s be clear about what is — and is not — happening there,” a CBP statement reads.

The agency will not be building a 30-foot wall or stadium lighting through the local state and national park, according to the statement. They plan on adding one new access road, improving existing roads, installing detection technology and placing barriers for vehicles in some strategic locations.

Republican Texas Sen. John Cornyn sent a letter to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on Aug. 7, highlighting the concerns of Texans that the department had plans to construct a border wall through the parks.

Protesters gathered at Santa Elena Canyon earlier in August, chanting, “No road. No wall. No wire. No way,” in the belief that DHS would be “bulldozing” Big Bend National Park for border construction.

(Read more from “CBP Says ‘Limited’ Barriers Going Up Amid Backlash For National Park Construction” HERE)

Could AI Hallucinations Be The Downfall Of The Pentagon?

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The Pentagon is moving to revolutionize its wargaming capabilities with artificial intelligence, opening vulnerabilities to what is being dubbed “AI hallucinations.”

Code Metal, a Boston-based AI firm, received an $80 million contract to implement AI into WarMatrix, the Department of War’s wargaming program, Fortune reported on Friday. Experts warned the Daily Caller News Foundation that implementing AI into military technologies such as wargaming could make the U.S. military a victim of “AI hallucinations,” or falsely generated information.

“Hallucinations are associated with large language models [such as ChatGPT] and refer to outputs that seem plausible, or coherent, but are factually incorrect, inconsistent or outright non-sensical,” professor of political theory at Queen Mary University London Elke Schwarz told the DCNF. “Hallucinations are inevitable, they can perhaps be minimised but never be eradicated.”

As AI hallucinations are “inevitable,” the use of this technology in military applications could have serious consequences. Some analysts have speculated that AI could have been involved in the bombing of an Iranian girls’ school at the onset of the Iran War, which killed 168 children, mostly girls, according to Iranian officials cited by Reuters.

The strike was still under investigation as of March 11, but the U.S. does not deliberately target civilians, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told CBS News’ “60 Minutes” in an interview that aired March 8. (Read more from “Could AI Hallucinations Be The Downfall Of The Pentagon?” HERE)

Hugh Hefner Tipped FBI about Epstein after Playboy Playmate ‘Raped’

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Playboy founder Hugh Hefner repeatedly called the FBI to report Jeffrey Epstein for sexual abuse in 2005, after a Playboy Playmate told him she was raped and trafficked by the disgraced financier, according to new details in a lawsuit.

Audra Lynn Christiansen — Miss October 2003 — turned to Hef for help when she was 23 and living at his Beverly Hills mansion, prompting the late magazine publisher to call the agency “multiple times” for assistance, according to the suit, filed by 32 Epstein victims against the United States.

In addition to the rape allegations, Christiansen said she confided in Hefner that she also was trafficked to one of his rich friends — Macau casino billionaire Stanley Ho, China’s “Godfather of gambling” who died in 2020, according to the filing.

She asked Hefner to call on her behalf in 2005, because she felt he had law enforcement connections and the “clout” to her allegations were taken seriously.

“Mr. Hefner called the FBI multiple times on behalf of Ms. Christiansen to report Jeffrey Epstein,” the complaint states. (Read more from “Hugh Hefner Tipped FBI about Epstein after Playboy Playmate ‘Raped’” HERE)

Egg Recall Upgraded to FDA’s Highest Risk Level: ‘Serious Adverse Health Consequences or Death’

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The FDA is upgrading an egg recall issued last month to its highest risk level, warning the public that exposure to the eggs could pose serious health risks.

On Wednesday, the FDA classified the recall as a Class I, indicating “a situation in which there is a reasonable probability that the use of or exposure to a violative product will cause serious adverse health consequences or death.”

Midwest Poultry Services first issued the recall of 1.6 million brown and white eggs in late July.

According to Midwest Poultry’s recall announcement, the eggs were produced and distributed from farms in Texas between June 6, 2026 and July 3, 2026, and have sell-by or best-by dates between July 20, 2026 and August 17, 2026.

The eggs were shipped to foodservice and retail customers in Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana, ere available to consumers at Kroger stores in Texas and Louisiana, Brookshire Grocery stores in Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, and Mississippi.

The recalled eggs can be identified by codes P-1950 or 0840962 with a Julian date between 157 and 184 printed on the side of the cartons. For a full list of examples, check the FDA recall site or call 574-405-9531. (Read more from “Egg Recall Upgraded to FDA’s Highest Risk Level: ‘Serious Adverse Health Consequences or Death’” HERE)