Pro-Palestinian protesters demand Drexel ‘terminate’ Jewish groups Hillel, Chabad
Anti-Israel protesters have set up an encampment at Drexel University and refused to leave despite repeated requests, prompting campus leaders to lockdown the campus earlier this week and move classes online.
The private Philadelphia institution remains quasi-locked down, and campus officials did not respond to requests from The College Fix asking about the status of June 14’s commencement ceremony.
Campus leaders announced a “phased return to normal operations” for the school that includes labs and studio classes returning to in-person while lecture classes remain virtual.
Ian Smith, the co-owner of Atilis Gym in New Jersey, made headlines during the pandemic for keeping his doors open despite orders from Gov. Phil Murphy to close all non-essential businesses. Everything the state threw at him—fines, arrests, revoking business licenses, doors closed, bank accounts wiped—none of it worked.
“No government official will ever tell me that I am not able to provide for my family,” he said in 2020. “I do not answer to public servants – no matter what threats or punishments they impose. I am a free man. I do not ask for permission. I do not ask for forgiveness. You work for us. The only way you’ll ever close these doors is when you close my casket.”
It took four years, but Smith has now been cleared of more than 80 charges related to his refusal to close the gym’s doors.
Several of the charges — which included violating a governor’s orders, operating without a mercantile license, creating a public nuisance and disturbing the peace — could have landed the duo in jail for six months, according to their attorney, John McCann of Oakland, New Jersey.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken faced fire from both senators and pro-Hamas protesters during a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on Tuesday. But one could argue the rough actions of the Capitol Police stole at least part of the show.
The committee hearing was supposed to be centered around the Biden regime’s budget request for the 2025 fiscal year. But as Blinken entered the room, the protesters led by Code Pink greeted him with cries of “war criminal,” “Secretary of Genocide,” and other unfriendly names.
WATCH:
NOW: As @SecBlinken enters a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing, this is how we greeted him:
“SECRETARY OF GENOCIDE!”
“WAR CRIMINAL!”
“THE BLOOD OF 40,000 PALESTINIANS IS ON YOUR HANDS!”
“EMBARASSMENT TO INTERNATIONAL LAW!” pic.twitter.com/CGRUtwqT7a
WASHINGTON, D.C. (LifeSiteNews) — The secretary of the U.S. Navy told senators that he has “no regrets” about the firing of thousands of sailors and Marines who declined to take the COVID-19 shots.
During a Capitol Hill hearing, Senator Eric Schmitt (R-Missouri) pressed Secretary Carlos Del Toro on the impact that both DEI (“Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion”) training courses and COVID jab mandates have had on Navy recruitment and pushed back against the Navy’s prioritization of “climate change” over keeping pace with America’s adversaries.
Schmitt asked del Toro about the 1,878 sailors and the 3,746 Marines who were fired for not taking the COVID shot: “Do you regret that?”
The High Court of Justice in London granted WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange the right to appeal his extradition after a two-hour hearing. It was the first positive decision in the case since District Judge Vanessa Baraitser barred his extradition on mental health grounds in January 2021.
Mr. Justice Johnson and Dame Victoria Sharp explained that having carefully considered the written and oral submissions presented by both parties they “decided to give” the right to appeal on two grounds related to all charges brought by the United States Department of Justice.
This means that Assange will be allowed to present more detailed arguments as to why his extradition to face 18 criminal charges—17 of which are Espionage Act charges—must be blocked. Or else Assange will have his rights to freedom of expression violated since the First Amendment does not cover him as an Australian citizen.
Journalist says objectors ‘grossly distorted’ quotes from his 9/11 book
Graduates of Dickinson College celebrated commencement Sunday without a speaker after the private institution rescinded its invitation to CNN host Michael Smerconish due to complaints from pro-Palestinian students, according to local news reports.
Administrators at the private Pennsylvania college cited “overwhelming opposition” to Smerconish (pictured) from faculty and students in a recent statement.
“As a result, with the support of our Board of Trustees, I have decided to rescind the honorary degree and invitation to speak at Commencement,” President John Jones said in the statement.
An illegal immigrant from Nicaragua was arrested on Monday in Wisconsin‘s Fond du Lac County in connection with the alleged trafficking and sexual assault of a 12-year-old girl. The man was previously apprehended by Border Patrol in 2021 while crossing illegally and then released into the interior of the US with instruction to follow immigration law.
The victim’s mother, who knew the suspect, has also been taken into custody for allegedly providing her daughter to him in exchange for money. Charges were not immediately brought against the mother and suspect in the case.
David Morens, top aide to Fauci who is slated to give his first public testimony before Congress on Wednesday, has been at the heart of investigations from the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic since June 2023 when the panel uncovered emails indicating that he used his personal Gmail account to conduct official business about COVID-19 to avoid Freedom of Information Act requests.
Morens was called to testify before the subcommittee publicly because of discrepancies between uncovered documents and his transcribed interview testimony from January.
“At the very least, he misled Congress through his transcribed interview,” subcommittee Chairman Brad Wenstrup (R-OH) told the Washington Examiner in an exclusive interview ahead of the hearing. “Lying to Congress is a felony.”
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Federal prosecutors sought to put conservative media personality Brent Bozell III’s son in prison for nearly 12 years for participating in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol incursion.
In a sentencing memorandum submitted to the trial federal court in the District of Columbia earlier this month, Biden Justice Department prosecutors cited a terrorism sentencing enhancement to argue that Leo Brent Bozell IV, 44, should be incarcerated for 140 months.
Bozell was not convicted of terrorism, but rather in a non-jury trial last September a judge found him guilty of obstructing an official proceeding, destruction of government property, civil disorder, and assaulting an officer, along with some misdemeanors, according to a DOJ news release.
Former President Donald Trump managed to send MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough into a tailspin during Tuesday’s segment of “Morning Joe.” Trump’s statements about potential actions should he return to the Oval Office in 2024 left the liberal host Scarborough floundering for words.
“You’re actually going to support a guy that has promised you he’s going to be a dictator on day one?” Scarborough asked his viewers.
“You know, are sitting around talking about you know, like this is some sort of college football game, and they’re just picking sides. Do they not see that this guy is promising, he’s promising to be an authoritarian? He’s talking about, you know, getting elected again after 2024, and I just—we know who Trump is.”
The Kansas City Star published an essay demanding that the Kansas City Chiefs drop kicker Harrison Butker and hire a woman as his replacement.
Butker, a three-time Super Bowl champion, is one of the best kickers in the NFL. But he’s now facing down the barrel of cancel culture for giving a pro-Catholic speech that affirmed traditional values.
‘They could trade him for a solid kicker, or they could make a statement by signing a woman to kick.’
There will be no charges for the Idaho teenager who shouted a racial slur and then a vulgar comment toward the University of Utah women’s basketball team.
Furthermore, the city report on the incident undermines at least some of the claims of racial slurs.
Even though there is no indication the teenager or his friends are affiliated with extremist or racist groups, the Associated Press and National Public Radio both found it necessary to imply there was a link.
In a hit piece skeptical of the Republican-led Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, which would require proof of citizenship to vote, the Associated Press (AP) acknowledged that foreign nationals have been caught “illegally registering and even casting ballots.” But that fact doesn’t stop Democrats and their media allies from opposing safeguards like the SAVE Act that threaten the advantages Democrats gain from loose election laws.
“The specter of immigrants voting illegally in the U.S. has erupted into a leading election-year talking point for Republicans. They argue that legislation is necessary to protect the sanctity of the vote as the country faces unprecedented levels of illegal immigration at the U.S.-Mexico border,” the AP’s Ali Swenson wrote.
Comedian Bill Maher stated on Monday during an appearance on CNN’s “AC360” that Republicans are “natural-born cultists,” and former President Donald Trump is their “American Caesar.”
“The Republican Party is unrecognizable, especially the congresspeople. They’re just there to do performative nonsense,” he said.
The Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Kansas City–Saint Joseph has issued a statement voicing support for Kansas City Chief’s kicker Harrison Butker and his “right to share his faith and express his opinions.”
Since his commencement speech, Butker has seen his words get distorted in the media and has faced enraged calls for his dismissal from the team. The NFL put out a statement distancing itself from player, and espousing a “commitment to inclusion.”
The official X account of the city of Kansas City even went so far as to partially doxx Butker, prompting Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey to launch an investigation into the Mayor’s office.
In a statement to the Catholic News Agency (CNA) Thursday, Bishop James V. Johnston defended the devout KC kicker.
“Harrison Butker’s passion for his Catholic faith and his family are beautiful and well known,” Johnston said. “And like most people, he also has strong opinions on where we are as a Church and as a nation.”
Johnston continued: “The Catholic Church believes that God calls everyone to pursue holiness no matter what path they take. As St. Paul notes, that diversity of callings and vocations is essential to the life and mission of the Church.”
The bishop ended his statement by saying he supports “Butker’s right to share his faith and express his opinions—including those that are critical of bishops.”
Check out the conversation between Judge Merchan and Robert Costello:
Merchan becomes angry and starts harshly criticizing Robert Costello on the witness stand for making some casual remarks and rolling his eyes during the testimony.
Merchan:Are you staring me down right now?
Costello: I’m not.
Merchan: GET OUT OF THE COURTROOM, NOW! GET OUT OF THE COURTROOM!
The trial resumed after a delay caused by a heated argument between Judge Merchan and Bob Costello.
“Merchan is absolutely seething over Costello’s damning testimony. The type of treatment Costello, an experienced prosecutor who once worked for the US Attorney’s Office for New York in the 1970s and early 1980s, is receiving on the witness stand from the judge is disgusting,” Paul Ingrassia said.
The number of homeless people in San Francisco jumped compared to two years ago, despite the city spending hundreds of millions of dollars to address the issue, city data shows.
The total number of homeless people in San Francisco rose 7% to 8,328 in a one-night measurement in January 2024 compared to the same in 2022, reversing the 3.5% decline recorded from 2019 to 2022, according to the city’s Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing. Funding for homelessness from the city increased to $676 million in the 2022–23 fiscal year, up from $284 million in 2018–19, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
Despite the total number of homeless people rising, the number of unsheltered people fell 1% in January compared to the same time in 2022 as the city prioritizes providing housing, increasing the number of beds available by 28% since 2019, according to the department. The number of people living in their vehicles in January has jumped 37% since 2022, and the number of people living in shelters has spiked 39%.
“We are working every day to move people off our streets and into shelter, housing, and care,” San Francisco Mayor London Breed said in a press release following the survey. “This is safer and healthier for people on our streets, and it is better for all of us that want a cleaner and safer San Francisco. Our City workforce is dedicated to making a difference, and we will keep working to get tents off our streets, bring people indoors, and change the conditions in our neighborhoods.”
Special counsel Jack Smith finds himself under intense scrutiny from U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon in the case surrounding former President Donald Trump’s alleged mishandling of classified documents. Judge Cannon, appointed by Trump, expressed her concerns over Smith’s handling of sealed materials in a fiery directive.
Smith, who is spearheading the prosecution against Trump in the case, is at odds with Cannon over his request to keep certain information under wraps. Cannon’s criticisms came to light following Sunday’s court filing, where she relayed her reservations about Smith’s approach to maintaining secrecy over grand jury proceedings and witness protections.
“The Court deems it necessary to express concern over the Special Counsel’s treatment of certain sealed materials in this case,” Cannon stated. Central to the controversy is the Special Counsel’s request for redactions in the public filings, aimed at protecting sensitive details and safeguarding the interests of the justice system. However, Cannon’s recent rulings have pushed back against these requests.
“In response to those inquiries, counsel explained that the Special Counsel took the position on unsealing in order to publicly and transparently refute defense allegations of prosecutorial misconduct raised. In addition, subject to further unsealing as becomes necessary, this Order marks the resolution of the limited disclosure issues transferred to this Court by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia,” the filing stated. “The Court also notes that the Superseding Indictment contains numerous quotes from grand jury testimony, the balance of which the Special Counsel continues to maintain require sealing.”
Some schools are defying public opinion on DEI policies and are even doubling down.
Stanford now has 177 DEI employees, research finds
Stanford University now employs at least 177 people — a mix of scholars and staffers — dedicated to advancing diversity, equity and inclusion, a tally that does not even include employees working in the elite institution’s Title IX office.
The latest tally represents an increase of nearly 100 employees in the span of three years, as research by the Heritage Foundation put the number of Stanford DEI staffers at 80 in 2021.
The list of 177 employees was compiled by an anonymous researcher and first reported on by conservative education activist Christopher Rufo, who provided the data to The College Fix upon request.
South Carolina 5th Circuit Court Judge Daniel Coble upheld the Fetal Heartbeat and Protection from Abortion Act, dealing Planned Parenthood, the state’s largest abortion business, a solid defeat.
“This Court,” he wrote, “will never supplement the will of the General Assembly with its own interpretation because it would be a direct violation of the Constitution and the sacrosanct doctrine of the separation of powers.”
“[I]t is clear beyond a shadow of a doubt,” Judge Coble wrote, “that the General Assembly intended, and the public understood, that the time frame of the Act would begin around the six-week mark.” Planned Parenthood argued in its latest lawsuit that its abortion business has declined by 75 percent in South Carolina as a result of the Fetal Heartbeat Act. It argued that the fetal heart is not developed until the ninth week of the baby’s life and therefore the killing of unborn children should be legal until that point.
D.C. resident Alex Kelinsky blasted Bowser’s luxury vacations during a Monday appearance on “Fox & Friends First.”
“When you think about how neglectful she’s been to D.C. and the D.C. residents – she hasn’t tackled any of the stuff she set out to do – and the fact that she’s going off on these wonderful boondoggles, spending taxpayer dollars to go on these lavish trips with folks that clearly haven’t delivered for us, is frustrating. It’s infuriating,” Kelinsky stated.
The Supreme Court declined Monday to consider a case challenging a Maryland school district policy that hides information from parents about their child’s “gender identity.”
Under the Montgomery County Board of Education’s guidelines, parents deemed “unsupportive” will not be told if their child is undergoing a “gender transition” at school, according to court filings. The justices declined to hear an appeal by three parents who challenged the plan, leaving in place a lower court ruling that found they did not have standing to challenge the policy.
The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled last August that the parents did not have standing because their own children were not undergoing or considering a gender transition.
“Absent an injury that creates standing, federal courts lack the power to address the parents’ objections to the Guidelines,” the majority held. “That does not mean their objections are invalid.”
President Joe Biden pitched himself as our uniter-in-chief, but he spends his time sewing racial division to try and solidify his political support.
Biden turned his speech at Morehouse College’s graduation ceremony into a racial grievance session. He told students at the historically black university that they have to be “10 times better than anyone else to get a fair shot” and that, even if they love their country, the country does not love them back. He also revived his lies about Georgia’s voting laws (Morehouse is in Georgia), which he said were worse than Jim Crow voting restrictions, despite the fact that black voters in Georgia experienced no problems voting under the new law.
Imagine working hard for years to graduate from college and Joe Biden shows up on your day of celebration to remind you that you’re a victim and America doesn’t love you because you’re black.pic.twitter.com/h3nEnN9q0l
— Adam B. Coleman, Proud Father (@wrong_speak) May 19, 2024
There are three things certain in life: death, taxes, and self-styled fact-checkers defending Democrats on late-term abortion. The latest example came on Friday from D.L. Davis, who gave Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson a “false” label for claiming “Every Senate Democrat has voted to support unlimited abortions up to the moment of birth.”
Johnson’s office cited the Democrats’ 2022 Women’s Health Protection Act and Davis took exception to the use of the word “every,” writing “[Sen. Joe] Manchin, R-W.Va. [sic], voted no along with Republican senators on the measure. The vote was 49 Yes and 51 No.”
It’s ironic that Davis tried to shame Johnson for saying “every” Democrat voted for it when the truth is everyone, but one did and Davis and his editors couldn’t even get Manchin’s party letter label correct.
Regardless, Davis also cited Johnson’s office for claiming “the measure ‘would enshrine abortion into law up until the moment of birth and block state laws with protections against late-term abortions.’”
The American Seaford restaurant icon, Red Lobster, has announced plans to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in an effort to overcome over $1 billion in debt. It is expected that the majority of restaurants will close over the coming weeks, but no clear closure plan has been yet released.
Red Lobster CEO Jonathan Tibus said of the decision, “This restructuring is the best path forward for Red Lobster. It allows us to address several financial and operational challenges and emerge stronger and re-focused on our growth. The support we’ve received from our lenders and vendors will help ensure that we can complete the sale process quickly and efficiently while remaining focused on our employees and guests.”
On Sunday, Red Lobster announced that it had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and secured $100 million in debtor-in-possession financing commitments from existing lenders. The company was over $1 billion in debt.
The seafood chain noted that while remaining restaurants will continue operating during the proceedings, the number of locations is set to be drastically reduced in the coming weeks.
In a press release, Red Lobster explained that it had entered into a “stalking horse purchase agreement,” meaning the company “will sell its business to an entity formed and controlled by its existing term lenders.”
The House Judiciary Committee has launched an investigation into the 2022 assault of J6er Ronald McAbee at the D.C. Central Detention Facility, better known as the D.C. Gulag.
On September 5, 2022, an altercation occurred at the facility, resulting in the discharge of chemical munitions in McAbee’s face. The incident is one among many cases of abuse against J6ers at the facility, and one that D.C. authorities appear to be working hard to cover up.
McAbee, who was a Deputy at the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office on January 6, 2021, was convicted in October of five felonies, including, “assaulting, resisting, or impeding an officer; civil disorder; entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds with a deadly or dangerous weapon; disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds with a deadly or dangerous weapon” (reinforced knuckle gloves).
The trial of former President Donald Trump is set to reach its final phase on Monday, as the prosecution’s beleaguered “star witness” Michael Cohen gets ready to testify for the last time.
Last week, Trump’s defense team banged up Cohen’s credibility by casting doubt on whether the former fixer actually spoke to Trump on the night of October 26, 2017, as he had previously stated.
Cohen asserted that during the call, Trump had given the green light to a hush-money agreement with Stormy Daniels. However, Trump’s lawyer Todd Blanche presented evidence showing that Cohen had talked with Trump’s bodyguard that evening regarding a prank call from a 14-year-old.
Once the defense concludes its cross-examination of Cohen on Monday, both the prosecution and defense will have a chance to question Cohen again, but the prosecution is expected to rest. While the defense might opt to call additional witnesses or potentially have Trump testify, such a move isn’t anticipated. The defense could conclude its case as early as this week. Closing arguments might be presented as soon as Tuesday.
