News From Around the Web
#1 Gaza Border Crossing Buzzes With Activity After Years of Near-Complete Closure - Associated Press/npr, Dr. Alaa in Gaza, Betar Worldwide, Amit Segal, Middle East Monitor, and Reuters on X
Gaza's Rafah border crossing with Egypt was busy with activity Sunday as Israel said that limited travel to and from the territory is set to resume after years of near-complete isolation. Reopening the border crossing is a key step as the Israel-Hamas ceasefire moves ahead. Israel announced Sunday that the crossing has opened in a test. COGAT, the Israeli military agency that controls aid to Gaza, said in a statement that the crossing was actively being prepared for fuller operation, adding that residents of Gaza would begin to pass through the crossing once preparations were complete...#2 Democrat Flips GOP Senate Seat, Sparking Celebration and Republican Pushback - Philip Jankowski for The Dallas Morning News, AffairsX, SwiftieQ/Brian Allen, Capital Politics, Meet the Press, and Owen Gregorian on X
Democrats cheered Sunday after flipping a North Texas state Senate seat long seen as safely Republican, while GOP leaders scrambled to brush off the upset. Taylor Rehmet’s victory Saturday shocked expectations, as the 33-year-old Air Force veteran and union leader pulled off a double-digit victory in a district that favored President Donald Trump by 17 percentage points in 2024. “Tonight, this win goes to everyday working people,” he said at a watch party in Fort Worth after topping Republican conservative activist Leigh Wambsganss by more than 14 points, according to unofficial results. The upset rippled quickly beyond Texas, drawing praise from national Democratic leaders who cast the result as a sign of trouble for Republicans as midterms campaigns heat up...
#3 Bondi Announces $1M Reward for Whistleblower Who Reported Antitrust Crime - Jonathan Carter for The Hill, Leonard C Glynn, Sr., GA Surety Bonds, ShadowBanned, Artur Nadolny, and P a u l ◉
Attorney General Pam Bondi announced in a press release Thursday that the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the United States Postal Service had given its first-ever reward to a whistleblower under a new policy launched in July.“This enabled us to dismantle a $16 million fraud scheme that was cheating American consumers,” Bondi said in a post on the social platform X. The $1 million reward was given in conjunction with the Postal Service because the whistleblower’s intelligence included an alleged scheme that involved sending documents through the mail. The whistleblower, unnamed by the DOJ, gave information leading to criminal and antitrust charges being levied against EBlock Corporation, an online auction company for vehicles...
#4 California Gov. Newsom Files Civil Rights Complaint Against Dr. Oz - Eduardo Cuevas for USA TODAY/MSN, Chief Nerd, DrOzCMS, Mike Netter, Kevin Dalton/Gov. Gavin Newsom and Bill Mitchell on X
California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office has filed a civil rights complaint against Dr. Mehmet Oz for allegedly discriminating against Armenian Americans in Los Angeles. In a recent social media video, Oz, administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, who was a former TV talk show host, said Los Angeles County had “become an epicenter for health care fraud in America.” Oz highlighted Armenian businesses in Los Angeles’ Van Nuys neighborhood in the short video posted Jan. 27...
#5 Trump Slams ‘Virtually Unwatchable’ Grammys and Threatens to Sue ‘Total Loser’ Trevor Noah Over Epstein Joke - Stephen M. Lepore for The Daily Mail, MAGA Voice, Remarks, Pop Base, Trump War Room/Breaking 911, and Bo Loudon on X
Donald Trump threatened to sue 'total loser' Trevor Noah after the Grammys host cracked a joke suggesting Trump and Bill Clinton spent time on Epstein's island. The president trashed Noah for saying Trump wants Greenland because 'with Epstein's island gone, he needs a new one to hang out with Bill Clinton'. Trump unleashed on the 'virtually unwatchable' ceremony in a screed on Truth Social early Monday morning.'The host, Trevor Noah, whoever he may be, is almost as bad as Jimmy Kimmel at the Low Ratings Academy Awards,' Trump fumed. 'Noah said, INCORRECTLY, about me, that Donald Trump and Bill Clinton spent time on Epstein Island. WRONG!!!'
#6 Anti-Ice Protesters Swarm Trump Tower in NYC, Chant Names of Crackdown’s Victims - The New York Daily News, Nick Sortor/Originallisa, Ruby Arun, Mr. Gerald Wayne, and Eric Daugherty/The Grok Reports on X
Anti-ICE protesters swarmed into the Trump Tower atrium in Manhattan Saturday afternoon, chanting names of people who have lost their lives amid the government’s immigration crackdown. The occupation on January 30 was part of the 'ICE Out of Everywhere' national mobilization by groups like the Party for Socialism and Liberation, Democratic Socialists of America, and the 50501 movement, protesting President Trump's mass deportations and at least eight confirmed ICE-linked deaths in 2026. Similar demonstrations hit Chicago's City Hall in snow and a student march in Bakersfield, where footage of protesters loading gear into unmarked vans led critics like journalist David Khait to call the events coordinated by 'loose communist organizations' rather than organic outrage. While organizers cite rising fatalities amid aggressive enforcement, opponents view the professional logistics and radical chants as signs of funded agitation, highlighting America's split over immigration policy...
#7 “Helen Of Troy Was Blonde”: Elon Musk Slams the Odyssey’s Casting - Tasos Kokkinidis for Greek Reporter, Drew Pavlou/Corey Walker/Elon Musk, Dr. Jebra Faushay, FERMOR, Yisan, and Nwammiri
Elon Musk has sparked a firestorm on social media, launching a scathing critique of Oscar-winning director Christopher Nolan over his casting choices for the upcoming epic, The Odyssey. Musk accused the filmmaker of sacrificing “artistic integrity” in favor of identity politics, specifically targeting the reported casting of a Black actress in a historically European role. The film, which has already generated massive buzz for its A-list ensemble, including Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Zendaya, and Robert Pattinson, has become the latest center of the “blackwashing” debate. The controversy ignited after Academy Award-winner Lupita Nyong’o was cast as Helen of Troy, the legendary figure of Greek mythology...
#8 Florida Limits Driver’s License Exams to English Only Starting February 6 - Skyler Shepard for CBS 12 News, Andy Slater, Eric Daugherty, Ron DeSantis, SaltyGoat, and The Constitutionalist/Leading Report on X
Florida will soon administer every driver license exam — written, oral, and skills — exclusively in English and without interpreters, a sweeping shift that arrives as federal regulators sideline nearly 9,500 commercial truck drivers nationwide for failing English-language proficiency requirements, underscoring how language enforcement is tightening across the transportation system. The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV) announced that beginning February 6, all driver license classifications will fall under the English only rule. The update removes printed exams in other languages and bans all translation services during testing...
#9 Trump: Trump Kennedy Center to Close July 4 for 2 Years - Eric Mack for Newsmax, CBS 2 News, Richard Grenell, speedy jerry, Ron Filipowski, and Governor Newsom Press Office (parody) on X
President Donald Trump announced plans to temporarily close the Trump Kennedy Center for two years for an extensive revitalization and rebuilding project, saying a full shutdown is necessary to achieve higher construction quality and faster completion. "After a one year review of The Trump Kennedy Center, that has taken place with Contractors, Musical Experts, Art Institutions, and other Advisors and Consultants, deciding between either Construction with Closure and Re-Opening or, Partial Construction while continuing Entertainment Operations through a much longer period of time, working in and around the Performances, I have determined that The Trump Kennedy Center, if temporarily closed for Construction, Revitalization, and Complete Rebuilding, can be, without question, the finest Performing Arts Facility of its kind, anywhere in the World," Trump wrote Sunday on Truth Social, while he was attending Dan Scavino and Erin Elmore's wedding at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida...
#10 ‘Melania’ Doc Beats Box Office Expectations Despite Criticism, Poor Reviews - Isabel Yip for NBC News, Dezi Bartök, HJ (Hank) Ellison, Brian Krassenstein/James Thogersen, MJ Muehl, and deplorablehomo on X
“Melania: Twenty Days to History” won over fans of the first lady at the box office this weekend, surpassing the initial opening weekend expectations to generate $7 million. The Amazon MGM Studios film, which rolled out in over 1,500 theaters in North America, was estimated to make $5 million, which would have made it a relatively solid opening by documentary standards. But after beating expectations, it’s now the strongest start for a nonmusic documentary in over a decade, according to box office analysts...And Now for Something Special 
It's Groundhog Day!
Groundhog Day 2026: Punxsutawney Phil Sees His Shadow, Says Six More Weeks of Winter
Punxsutawney Phil made his prognostication from Gobbler's Knob on Feb. 2, 2026.
