President Trump To Attend Funeral Of Pope Francis In Rome

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President Donald Trump announced on Monday that he will attend the funeral of Pope Francis, which will likely take place in Rome this month.

“Melania and I will be going to the funeral of Pope Francis, in Rome,” the president shared in a Truth Social post on Monday afternoon. “We look forward to being there!”

It’s not immediately clear when the funeral will be: a pope is typically mourned for nine days while the College of Cardinals comes together to pray. After the pope’s funeral takes place, the conclave of cardinals will elect a new pope.

His announcement came after he ordered federal and state flags to fly at half-staff in memory of Pope Francis.

“As a mark of respect for the memory of His Holiness Pope Francis, by the authority vested in me as President of the United States by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, I hereby order that the flag of the United States shall be flown at half-staff at the White House and upon all public buildings and grounds, at all military posts and naval stations, and on all naval vessels of the Federal Government in the District of Columbia and throughout the United States and its Territories and possessions until sunset, on the day of interment,” Trump wrote in a separate post. (Read more from “President Trump To Attend Funeral Of Pope Francis In Rome” HERE)

Jury Rules New York Times Did Not Libel Sarah Palin in Defamation Case

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A federal jury ruled that the New York Times did not libel former Alaskan Republican Gov. Sarah Palin in a 2017 editorial in the latest update to the years-long lawsuit.

The jury reached its decision after deliberating for about two hours following both sides delivering their closing arguments to the Manhattan federal court civil trial. The trial was in its second week.

In a comment to Fox News Digital, NYT spokesperson Danielle Rhoades said, “We want to thank the jurors for their careful deliberations. The decision reaffirms an important tenet of American law: publishers are not liable for honest mistakes.”

Fox News Digital reached out to Palin’s legal team for comment. It is unclear yet whether she plans to appeal the decision.

Palin, who became a national figure as the 2008 Republican vice presidential pick of the late Sen. John McCain, first sued the paper in 2017 for defamation after claiming an editorial falsely linked her to the deadly 2011 mass shooting that wounded then-Rep. Gabby Giffords, D-Ariz., and killed six people. The editorial was published in response to the 2017 mass shooting at a Republican congressional baseball practice that severely wounded Rep. Steve Scalise, R-La. (Read more from “Jury Rules New York Times Did Not Libel Sarah Palin in Defamation Case” HERE)

Photo credit: Gage Skidmore via Flickr

Anthony Fauci’s Fortune Doubled to $15 Million Between Early 2019 and 2023, Watchdog Finds: ‘During Worst of COVID Lockdowns’

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Dr. Anthony Fauci’s fortune doubled — hitting about $15 million — between early 2019 and the end of 2023 over the course of the pandemic, including “during the worst of the draconian COVID lockdowns,’’ according to records obtained by a watchdog group.

Fauci’s net worth was about $7.6 million in January 2019 before COVID-19 hit and surged to about $15 million by the end of 2023, 141 pages of financial-disclosure forms obtained by watchdog group Open The Books revealed.

The doctor, who previously helmed the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, officially left the government at the start of 2023, later than previously known.

His first year of retirement was especially lucrative — when he earned more than $3.5 million alone, the records show.

“Dr. Fauci’s assets soared during the worst of the draconian Covid lockdowns while families and small businesses struggled through school closures and lost income,” Open the Books CEO John Hart said in a statement. (Read more from “Anthony Fauci’s Fortune Doubled to $15 Million Between Early 2019 and 2023, Watchdog Finds: ‘During Worst of COVID Lockdowns’” HERE)

Trump Admin Freezes Additional $1 Billion In NIH Grants To Harvard University

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The Trump administration is pausing more than 500 grants worth an additional $1 billion from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to Harvard University, senior HHS officials told the Daily Caller.

Senior Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) officials told the Caller that the decision to pause the funds is because the institution has been “intransigent with respect to obligations to protect students on this campus from the effects of insidious antisemitism.” The grants include those that were funding the institution’s training of its scientists and other non-clinical trial grants, the officials told the Caller. The frozen grants will not effect the care of any children, the officials added.

“Harvard needs to fully come into compliance with Title IV of the 1964 Civil Rights Act,” a senior HHS official told the Caller regarding what the university needs to do to have the funds unfrozen. “They need to remedy the violations of Title IV with respect to Jewish students on campus, they need to make sure that the not violating title six with respect to their admissions practices, and they need to provide sufficient guarantees that this conduct is not going to repeat itself.”

The Trump administration previously sent a list of demands to the institution, asking for several audits on their response to anti-Israel protests on campus and their admissions process. The institution released a public letter defying the administration’s requests. From there, the Trump administration moved to freeze $2.2 billion to the university. Monday’s action, shared with the Caller by senior HHS officials, is in addition to the $2.2 billion frozen.

“[Harvard’s public letter] clearly demonstrates that the university can, when motivated, respond quickly, but we’ve seen them go 18 months without apparently being sufficiently motivated to address the rampant antisemitism on this campus,” one senior HHS official told the Caller. (Read more from “Trump Admin Freezes Additional $1 Billion In NIH Grants To Harvard University” HERE)

EPA Administrator Confronts New York Times Reporter for Claiming He Had ‘No Evidence’ of Waste, Fraud, Abuse

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Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin confronted a New York Times reporter during a press conference Monday for claiming that he presented “no evidence” to back up his claims of waste, fraud, and abuse from the previous Biden administration.

“I have a duty to make sure that we don’t light on fire billions of dollars of tax dollars,” Zeldin said. “And I’m not going to stand before any member of the media and get bullied into lighting billions of dollars on fire.”

Zeldin hosted the news conference Monday morning at the EPA headquarters, announcing his forthcoming Earth Day trip to San Diego to investigate the crisis of Mexico pouring five million gallons of wastewater daily into the Tijuana River.

At the end of the conference, Zeldin mentioned the media bias against his claims of waste, fraud, and abuse in the Biden EPA.

The waste and self-dealing

He mentioned a video unearthed by Project Veritas in December 2024 in which a Biden administration political appointee at EPA said that bureaucrats were rushing to get billions of dollars out the door like “throwing gold bars off the Titanic.” Zeldin pledged to Congress that he would investigate the matter. (Read more from “EPA Administrator Confronts New York Times Reporter for Claiming He Had ‘No Evidence’ of Waste, Fraud, Abuse” HERE)

EPA’s Zeldin Demands End to Mexican Sewage Flooding Across Border: ‘It’s Been Going on for Too Long’

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The Trump administration is tackling a different border flow after illegal crossings plunged to record lows.

Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin embarked Monday on a mission to halt the flow of Mexican sewage into the US from Tijuana.

“EPA is going to be on the border with Mexico,” Zeldin told reporters Monday before flying to San Diego.

“There, for decades, has been raw sewage that’s been traveling across the border, and Americans are very concerned with regards to beach closures, degradation of the Tijuana River Valley and concerns of public health, air quality,” Zeldin said.

“It’s been going on for too long, and we have to urgently and deliberately pursue and implement a solution that permanently ends this, and that is an important focus of ours.”

Zeldin will meet Tuesday with Mexican Environmental Secretary Alicia Bárcena before highlighting the impact on local military operations. (Read more from “EPA’s Zeldin Demands End to Mexican Sewage Flooding Across Border: ‘It’s Been Going on for Too Long’” HERE)

RFK Jr. To Ban Petroleum-Based Food Dyes

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Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. plans to direct food manufacturers to phase out eight petroleum-based food dyes from cereals, sports drinks, and other grocery staples by the end of 2026.

The directive, expected to be announced in full detail on Tuesday, affects hundreds of thousands of grocery store items containing eight petroleum-based dyes, which health experts have long criticized for potentially causing hyperactivity and other neurobehavioral problems in children, according to a New York Times report.

The eight dyes being targeted include Red No. 40, Yellow No. 5, Yellow No. 6, Blue No. 1, Blue No. 2, Green No. 3, Red No. 3, and Orange B, according to details provided by HHS officials to the Times.

Food industry experts estimate that the reformulation costs could reach into the billions, though many companies have already developed alternative formulations for their European and Canadian products.

FDA Commissioner Martin Makary signaled the move as being in line with President Trump’s “Make America Healthy Again” initiative, stating last week to the Times, “My feeling is, why gamble with the health of our children?” (Read more from “RFK Jr. To Ban Petroleum-Based Food Dyes” HERE)

U.S. Congressman Backtracks On Social Media Post Claiming He Fired Weapons At Nuclear-Armed Russia

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U.S. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., wants you to know that while “a lot of people talk a big game about supporting Ukraine,” he cares enough to take a taxpayer-funded trip there to make a series of potentially dangerous political blunders.

Fitzpatrick is a former federal prosecutor and was stationed in Ukraine when he worked as an FBI special agent. Now in Congress, he is chairman of the CIA Subcommittee of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, and he is a delegate to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly.

In a social media post, Fitzpatrick assured Ukraine, “We will always have their back.” It is a view President Donald Trump’s Administration does not necessarily hold.

Trump has been in negotiations with Russia and Ukraine, and it seems unlikely that the administration asked Fitzpatrick for help with negotiations.

Yet last week Fitzpatrick met for talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. He let him know that the voting margins are “tight” in Congress, as if he were discussing strategy with a teammate.

[This] post leaves little room for interpretation. It sure looks like a sitting U.S. congressman fired shots into Russia, ratcheting up tensions. That is what he communicated, and it is how the shocked responses to his post understood it:

(Read more from “U.S. Congressman Backtracks On Social Media Post Claiming He Fired Weapons At Nuclear-Armed Russia” HERE)

How No-Consequence Schooling Turns Kids Like Karmelo Anthony Into Killers

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Earlier this month, 17-year-old high school student Austin Metcalf was stabbed to death at a track meet in Frisco, Texas. Metcalf died in his twin brother’s arms.

As an educator who lives just down the road, I know too well how our system failed to keep Metcalf out of harm’s way.

Karmelo Anthony, also 17, has been charged with first-degree murder in the fatal stabbing. They had never met before the track meet, according a witness. Anthony brought a knife to the track meet and sat under another team’s tent. When asked to move, he reportedly refused and became aggressive. Metcalf stepped in to ask him to move again, to which Anthony responded, “Make me move,” according to Metcalf’s twin, who watched the events. Then Austin Metcalf grabbed Anthony’s backpack and Anthony stabbed him in the chest, his brother said.

Some have tried to make this about race — Metcalf was white, Anthony was black. But let’s not make this about race. This is about human decency and the culture that has eroded it.

A dangerous mindset has won over many young men today. It tells them that nothing really matters — burn it all down and take what you can. It demands respect while offering none in return. It scoffs at authority, mocks standards, and justifies any action that serves one’s immediate desires. I have seen this mindset spread in my years working at a relatively well-off suburban high school down the road from Metcalf’s school. Countless examples come to mind. (Read more from “How No-Consequence Schooling Turns Kids Like Karmelo Anthony Into Killers” HERE)

Francis Critics, Conservatives Among the Top Candidates to Be Next Pope

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In the wake of Pope Francis’ passing on Easter Monday, the Catholic Church will begin the process of selecting the next Bishop of Rome, thereby setting the future course of the Church and its 1.3 billion followers.

Within 15 to 20 days of the death of the Pope, a conclave of the College of Cardinals will be convened within the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican, where they will hold a secret ballot vote to elect the next Pontifex Maximus of the Church.

During his 12 years at the helm of the Church, Pope Francis placed a heavy focus on social justice issues, such as tolerance towards the so-called LGBTQ community, climate change, and mass migration, in what some regarded as a split from Church doctrine.

Francis also had a significant impact on the makeup of the College of Cardinals, having selected approximately 80 per cent of the cardinals who will be eligible to vote for the next Pope.

Rather than selecting from large archdioceses such as those in cities like Los Angeles and Milan, Pope Francis focused on selecting cardinals from the periphery of the church, particularly in Africa and Asia, with a focus on those with a “pastoral” background. (Read more from “Francis Critics, Conservatives Among the Top Candidates to Be Next Pope” HERE)