U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright has deleted a social media post claiming that the United States Navy successfully escorted an oil tanker through the Strait of Hormuz, raising fresh questions about whether naval convoy operations have begun in the region as Washington moves to restore energy flows disrupted by the escalating conflict with Iran.
Jenny O'Connell-Nowain was ready to go to jail. She had been prepared to spend six months in the custody of the Shasta county sheriff's office. One of the top prosecutors in this part of far northern California had presented the evidence against her in a weeklong trial, and a jury had delivered a guilty verdict. A judge offered probation, but O'Connell-Nowain did not agree to the terms. Her crime? Sitting on the floor in front of the dais of the board of supervisors with a sign, silently protesting an official who had criticized the county elections office. The case of a former preschool teacher with no criminal history tried and convicted for a peaceful demonstration was shocking even for Shasta county, which has drawn international attention for its rowdy and radical brand of conservative politics.
President Trump has deployed military might to fight drug cartels, blowing up dozens of alleged smugglers at sea and helping Ecuador bomb an apparent criminal training camps. ... On Monday, Mexico's leader suggested Washington should focus on other steps: Containing the voracious American appetite for illicit drugs, and combating illegal arms trafficking.
Minutes later, Rep. Dave Pinto, DFL-St. Paul, the committee co-chair, compared blaming higher work pay for causing higher prices to the impact shoplifting has on higher prices. He started by mentioning a presentation on the impact of organized retail theft he'd heard in a public safety committee the day before. "There was a presentation of a group seeking to change how we address organized retail theft," he said. "And it actually had not occurred to me to ask, it probably would have been good, to make sure that they would study the benefit of shoplifting and of retail theft. Because perhaps people are relying on that and using that, and maybe it's assisting them in some way." Read more
Recent retiree Reinaldo Jesus Lefonts was charging his EV in a Downey library parking lot when he was attacked in a stabbing that severed both carotid arteries and both jugular veins. He was alive when an ambulance arrived at the parking lot " but that emergency vehicle was then stolen. The driver of the ambulance, according to police, led officers on a pursuit that ended in a crash miles away. "In that moment, every second mattered," Lefonts' family says in a legal claim against the city. "The City's paramedics and rescue vehicle were Reinaldo's only realistic chance of survival. Read more
RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) " Virginia is one step closer to enacting an assault weapons ban. The Senate is sending a bill to Gov. Abigail Spanberger's (D) desk on Monday that would make it illegal to sell, purchase, import, manufacture or transfer assault weapons in Virginia starting on July 1, 2026, with some exceptions. "The overall goal of this bill is to ensure that we have less weapons of war on the streets," Democratic Senator Saddam Salim (D-Fairfax), who helped write the bill, told 8News. "It's really one of the more extreme bills that is gonna pass this year," Senator Mark Obenshain (R-Rockingham) said. Read more
SACRAMENTO " Gov. Gavin Newsom plans to spend $19 million promoting California and dispelling "myths driven by misinformation and political rhetoric" in a marketing campaign that would run through the final months of his administration as he weighs a potential run for president. The new contract, which is in the bidding process, comes as Newsom's political future and national standing are closely tied to how voters view California's economy, crime and quality of life " issues that have become central to attacks from President Trump and conservative media outlets. Read more
Jello Biafra, the outspoken co-founder and former frontman of the seminal San Francisco punk band Dead Kennedys, was hospitalized over the weekend after suffering a stroke.
The Pentagon spent more money in September"the end of the 2025 fiscal year"than it had in any other year since 2008. But a good chunk of the budget wasn't used for anything that could be considered a pertinent military expense. The Defense Department burned through $93 billion that month alone, signing checks left and right in order to dry up its congressionally allocated budget, according to a recent analysis by the government watchdog Open the Books. Some of the frivolous September purchases made under Secretary Pete Hegseth's stewardship include a $98,329 Steinway & Sons grand piano for the Air Force chief of staff's home, $5.3 million for Apple devices such as the new iPad, and an astronomical amount of shellfish, including $2 million for Alaskan king crab and $6.9 million worth of lobster tail. (Lobster tail is apparently a favorite of Hegseth's Pentagon"the department spent more than $7.4 million total on the luxury item in March, May, June, and October.)
President Donald Trump held a press conference at his Doral ballroom in Florida on Monday amid the ongoing war in Iran and across the Middle East, during which he referred to people that have been killed by "roadside bombs" who are now "walking around with no legs." "All of the people that died through the roadside bombs. Died and are, right now, walking around with no legs, no arms," Trump said during the news conference, following remarks to Republicans. The oxymoronic comment came after Trump had offered oscillating statements on the projected length of the joint U.S.-Israeli war against Iran and its stated objectives. Trump also erroneously claimed that Iran has access to the American Tomahawk cruise missile, the weapon likely used to strike a girls school in Iran, killing 165 people.
"Nearly seven months ago, Ukrainian officials tried to sell the U.S. their battle-proven technology for downing Iranian-made attack drones."
"On 8 March, at the direction of the Commander of US Southern Command, USMC Gen. Francis L. Donovan, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations. Intelligence confirmed the vessel was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific and was engaged in narco-trafficking operations." Six male narco-terrorists were killed during this action. No US military forces were harmed.
Amnesty Intl Calls US Airstrikes Pure Murder
China's exports surged in the first two months of this year despite trade tensions with the US. Official figures show exports jumped by more than 20% in January and February, which is almost three times the rate predicted by economists. It puts the country on track to top the record-breaking annual trade surplus it saw in 2025. Read more
The Center on Conscience and War has been deluged with calls from US Servicemembers amid concerns the Trump administration was preparing to deploy them against the people of Iran. Opposition to the illegal war is much more widespread than has been reported and many callers were 'disgusted at the US massacre of the girls' school.'
Phones Ringing off the HookServicemembers who became Conscientious Objectors after enlisting may call 1-800-379-2679 or 202-483-2220 for help.
For decades the Chinese government has been accused of implementing repressive policies designed to subjugate ethnic minorities, forcing them to assimilate into the dominant Han culture. Now a new law set to be rubber-stamped through the country's annual parliamentary session later this week will solidify, expand and even speed up this process, further threatening the rights of minority groups and their way of life, academics and human rights activists say.
The bitter debate between Democrats and Republicans over the SAVE Act " which would require voters to provide a valid ID to cast a ballot " has roiled political waters as both major parties gird themselves for the 2026 midterms. But do voters care? They sure do, and it's not good news for the Democrats, the latest I&I/TIPP Poll results indicate.
