Didn’t Take Too Long: European Leader Admits What Conservatives Have Been Saying For Years

German Chancellor Freidrich Merz told the World Economic Forum (WEF) that Germany and the European Union (EU) have “wasted incredible potential” during his speech Thursday.

Merz, a member of the center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU), said the EU has wasted its potential for growth by curtailing freedom and responsibility.

“Both Germany and Europe have wasted incredible potential for growth in recent years by dragging feet on reforms and unnecessarily and excessively curtailing entrepreneurial freedoms and personal responsibility,” the Chancellor stated in his remarks to the WEF in Davos, Switzerland. “We are going to change that now.”

“We must reduce bureaucracy substantially in Europe,” Merz continued. “The single market was once created to form the most competitive economic area in the world. Instead, we have become the world champion of over-regulation. That has to end.”

“Security and predictability take precedence over excessive regulation and misplaced perfection,” he added.

(Read more from “Didn’t Take Too Long: European Leader Admits What Conservatives Have Been Saying For Years” HERE)

‘It Was Terrible Judgment’: Famous Singer Says He Regrets Vile Comment About Trump

Tenacious D’s Kyle Gass expressed deep regret after joking about the attempted assassination of President Donald Trump at a concert in 2024.

He admitted to causing a “shitstorm” after making an ill-timed comment on stage soon after a bullet grazed Trump and left him bloodied.

On July 14, 2024, Tenacious D, the comedy rock group Gass co-founded with Jack Black, performed at the ICC Sydney Theatre. It also happened to be Gass’ birthday.

Gass said he had heard the news of the attempted assassination, but he admitted the reality of the situation didn’t sink in, according to an interview with Rolling Stone published Wednesday.

A cake was brought to the stage during the concert and when asked to make a wish, Gass said, “Don’t miss Trump next time!”

“It was a very low moment for me,” Gass admitted.

(Read more from “‘It Was Terrible Judgment’: Famous Singer Says He Regrets Vile Comment About Trump” HERE)

Marine Vet Fatally Shot at FB Marketplace Meetup Called His Mom: ‘I’m Dying’

A decorated Marine veteran was fatally shot at his home during a Facebook Marketplace sale — and he spent his final moments describing his attackers to police over the phone before heartbreakingly texting his family goodbye.

Michael Ryan Burke, 42, was gunned down during a sale-turned-robbery involving a cellphone at his home in Columbia, Missouri, on Sunday, according to the Columbia Police Department. . .

Burke’s college pal and fraternity brother, Jerry Reifeiss, described the veteran’s final moments in an interview with KRCG13. . .

He said Burke held on long enough to call 911 and describe his attackers. He also managed to text his mother and sister, “I’m dying and I love you,” before he was rushed to a local hospital, where he died.

“That was just Ryan. He always put people in front of him and wanted to make sure people know how he felt. He didn’t want to go on to the next life and pass away without providing some information to us that would bring justice to these people and let people know he always loves them,” Reifeiss told the outlet. (Read more from “Marine Vet Fatally Shot at FB Marketplace Meetup Called His Mom: ‘I’m Dying’” HERE)

Trump Says a ‘Massive’ Armada Is Heading Toward Iran

President Trump said Thursday that the US has an “armada” headed toward Iran — but that “maybe we won’t have to use it” — as he remained coy about his intentions after authorities slaughtered protesters this month.

“We have a lot of ships going that direction just in case. We have a big flotilla going in that direction. And we’ll see what happens,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One as he returned from the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

On Tuesday, the USS Abraham Lincoln, which had been in the South China Sea in recent days, was spotted making its way to the region, according to ship-tracking data.

The aircraft carrier and three accompanying destroyers were all confirmed to be heading west, a US Navy official told the Associated Press.

The USS George H.W. Bush is also at sea in the Atlantic Ocean – bound for Europe – after departing from Virginia’s Naval Station Norfolk last week.

The aircraft carrier is conducting “live-fire exercises” and other training activities, per a post on the ship’s official Facebook page. (Read more from “Trump Says a ‘Massive’ Armada Is Heading Toward Iran” HERE)

Arizona AG Suggests Residents Can Shoot Masked ICE Agents Under State’s Self-Defense Laws: ‘Recipe for Disaster’

Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes wildly suggested that residents can open fire on masked ICE agents if they feel their life is in danger under the state’s self-defense laws.

The Democrat, in a sit-down with 12 News anchor Brahm Resnik, warned that Arizona’s “Stand Your Ground” law, which allows citizens to use deadly force if they believe they’re in imminent danger, could become a “recipe for disaster” if protesters clash with immigration officers.

“It’s kind of a recipe for disaster because you have these masked federal officers with very little identification, sometimes no identification, wearing plain clothes and masks,” Mayes said in the Monday interview, calling ICE “very poorly trained.”

“And we have a Stand Your Ground law that says that if you reasonably believe that your life is in danger and you’re in your house or your car or on your property, that you can defend yourself with lethal force.”

A flabbergasted Resnik repeatedly challenged Mayes, cautioning that her remarks could be interpreted as a “license” to residents to shoot a federal agent.

She shot back that she was merely stating a “fact,” not encouraging violence. (Read more from “Arizona AG Suggests Residents Can Shoot Masked ICE Agents Under State’s Self-Defense Laws: ‘Recipe for Disaster’” HERE)

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Study: Murders in U.S. Plummeted During First Year of Trump’s Second Term

A study conducted by the Council on Criminal Justice (CCJ) shows that murders in the U.S. plummeted during 2025, the first year of President Trump’s second term.

According to the study, “The rate of reported homicides was 21% lower in 2025 than in 2024 in the 35 study cities providing data for that crime.” In raw numbers, this means approximately 922 fewer homicides in 2025 versus 2024.

The CCJ believe that FBI data, which will be released later this year, may show 2025 had “the lowest…[homicide] rate ever recorded in law enforcement or public health data going back to 1900.”

The researchers behind the study also looked at violent crime and found “violent crime overall in 2025 was at or below levels in 2019.”

The CCJ suggests the lower numbers are “likely the result of a complex tangle of broad social and technological changes and direct policy interventions.” (Read more from “Study: Murders in U.S. Plummeted During First Year of Trump’s Second Term” HERE)

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Trump Administration Reviews $88M in Pandemic Loans to Abortion Giant Planned Parenthood

The Small Business Administration (SBA) is probing whether affiliates of abortion giant Planned Parenthood illegally received $88 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“At the height of the pandemic, affiliates of Planned Parenthood took $88 million in taxpayer dollars to fund their abortion-on-demand agenda—and the Biden administration made sure they got nearly every cent forgiven, even after the first Trump administration protested,” SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler told The Daily Signal.

“Six years later, the Trump SBA holds the same conviction: Planned Parenthood Federation of America was never eligible to receive a dime in pandemic-era relief from taxpayers,” she added.

The SBA’s review comes the week of the March for Life, where thousands of pro-life advocates travel to Washington, DC, to advocate for the unborn.

According to The Daily Signal’s Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell, the SBA sent letters to 38 affiliates of Planned Parenthood Federation of America asking them to prove they were eligible for the millions they obtained in COVID-era relief. The report notes that the Biden administration also forgave 34 loans to Planned Parenthood affiliates under the PPP program. (Read more from “Trump Administration Reviews $88M in Pandemic Loans to Abortion Giant Planned Parenthood” HERE)

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Judge Rejects Bid for Independent Oversight of DOJ’s Epstein Files Release

A federal judge has rejected an effort by two lawmakers to place independent oversight on the Justice Department’s release of records related to the late financier Jeffrey Epstein, even as he acknowledged ongoing concerns about whether the department is complying with federal law.

U.S. District Judge Paul Engelmayer of the Southern District of New York ruled Wednesday that he lacks the authority to appoint an independent monitor to oversee the release of the Epstein files, as requested by Reps. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) and Thomas Massie (R-Ky.). In a seven-page opinion, Engelmayer said his judicial role is limited to supervising the criminal case involving Epstein’s associate Ghislaine Maxwell and does not extend to monitoring the Justice Department’s compliance with disclosure requirements under the Epstein Files Transparency Act.

“I do not have any charter to supervise whether DOJ is meeting its legal obligations” under the law, Engelmayer wrote.

However, the judge made clear that his decision does not close the door on further legal action. He noted that Khanna, Massie, and Epstein’s victims “raise legitimate concerns about whether DOJ is faithfully complying with federal law” and said the lawmakers are free to pursue a separate lawsuit over the matter.

The Epstein Files Transparency Act, authored by Khanna and Massie, became law late last year and required the Justice Department to release its unclassified Epstein-related files by Dec. 19. The DOJ has since acknowledged that it is reviewing millions of documents connected to Epstein and his associates, but only a small portion of material has been released so far.

The lawmakers have accused the department of slow-walking the process and excessively redacting information. They have also alleged that DOJ has withdrawn documents it previously made public and has improperly blamed the courts for delays and redactions.

According to their court filings, Khanna and Massie argue that the Justice Department has cited judicial requirements as the reason for withholding information, when courts have merely instructed DOJ to ensure that released materials do not improperly identify victims. They contend the department has repeatedly failed to meet the law’s disclosure requirements.

Gabbard Blasts Her Former Party After Mob Attack On Baptist Church

When Tulsi Gabbard announced in 2022 that she was leaving the Democratic Party, she made her departure, in part, a matter of faith.

“The Democrats of today are hostile to people of faith and spirituality,” the former Hawaii congresswoman said in a video statement at the time.

More than three years later, Gabbard, who now serves as President Donald Trump’s Director of National Security and as a thorn in the side of the deep state, suggests things haven’t improved any on the leftist front.

Gabbard blasted her old party on X Tuesday, doing what so many of its members have refused to do: condemn the radical, anti-ICE agitators who on Sunday stormed into a St. Paul Baptist church to fix their rabid rage for Trump on the congregation.

“One of the main reasons I left the Democratic Party is its leaders’ attempts to undermine religious freedom, erase God’s presence from every aspect of public life, and their open hostility toward people of faith and spirituality.” Gabbard wrote. “The anti‑ICE mob staging a so‑called ‘protest’ inside this Minneapolis church during a service is the latest example of their disrespect for religious freedom and rejection of our right to worship as we choose.” (Read more from “Gabbard Blasts Her Former Party After Mob Attack On Baptist Church” HERE)

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Frantic Grocery Shoppers Empty Shelves Before Arctic Blast, Snow Barrels Across US

. . .Grocery stores are quickly running out of supplies as frantic customers stock up ahead of the Arctic blast and subsequent snowstorm expected to barrel across the country.

Forecasters warned that the weather system, dubbed Winter Storm Fern, will send many cities’ temperatures plummeting well below zero — and could dump anywhere from one to two feet of snow in some parts of the eastern US.

Megan Monroe-Evans, an Alabama resident, shared a startling video on TikTok showing her local grocery store’s barren refrigerators.

“The weather man mentioned a possibility of ice and snow and this is what we here in the south do… buy all the milk, bread and eggs. Like WTF,” she wrote in the caption.

She hoped that the “panic buying” was “just a south thing” — which, so far, seems to be ringing true.

@kym.adams Do you panic buy? #groceryshopping #grocerystore #momlife #TikTokCreatorSearchInsightsIncentive ♬ As It Was (Instrumental) – KPH

Similar videos were posted by fretful customers at stores in Texas, Oklahoma, and Virginia, but very few from states in the Northeast that could be buried under up to a foot of snow over the weekend. (Read more from “Frantic Grocery Shoppers Empty Shelves Before Arctic Blast, Snow Barrels Across US” HERE)

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