News From Around the Web
#1 Ex-Police Chief Says Trump Told Him ‘Thank Goodness You’re Stopping’ Epstein in 2000s - James Hill for ABC News, @amuse/Benny Johnson, Maero𝕏, Eric Daugherty, and Mr. Star Spangled MAGA on X
A former Palm Beach, Florida, police chief who investigated Jeffrey Epstein in the mid-2000s told the FBI he had received a call from Donald Trump at the time to say "thank goodness you’re stopping him, everyone has known he’s been doing this," according to an FBI account of an interview with the ex-police chief in 2019. The Miami Herald was the first to report on the document. President Trump has repeatedly denied any knowledge of Epstein’s crimes and has said that he cut off contact with his former friend more than 20 years ago. Trump has claimed that he booted Epstein from Mar-a-Lago after discovering that he was poaching employees from the club’s spa...
#2 Members of Congress start viewing unredacted Epstein files at Justice Department - NBC News, The SCIF, Fade King/Mario Nawfal, Prof. Jayanta K Nanda, Tesla and Doge, JB, and Jim Ferguson on X
Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Ro Khanna, D-Calif., were among the members of Congress viewing unredacted versions of the Justice Department’s files on Jeffrey Epstein today. Lawmakers were allowed to review those files starting this morning. Epstein co-conspirator and convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell invoked her Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination at a House Oversight Committee deposition this morning, which she attended virtually, the committee’s leaders said. Her attorney later said she would speak “honestly” if she were granted clemency by President Donald Trump...#3 Beneath the Headline: US States Are Rejoining the WHO - Tracy Beanz and Michelle Edwards, UncoverDC, The Hill, A Man Of Memes, Canada Free Press, and Lisa I on X
While the majority of Americans have undoubtedly grown weary of unelected global authorities wielding unchecked tyrannical power in the name of “health,” California Governor Gavin Newsom has just rolled out the red carpet for more of the same. In a move that would be laughable if it weren’t so brazenly dangerous, Newsom just announced that California has become the first state (not country, mind you, but state) to formally join the World Health Organization’s (WHO) international disease platform to coordinate international response to emerging public health threats known as the Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network, or GOARN. Newsom’s move isn’t diplomacy. Instead, it’s allegiance to a pre-scripted future that is far from any voter ballot box. And the implications are staggering...#4 Florida’s $1.7 Million Inside Job: Six Arrested in Massive State Fraud Bust - Maria Hernandez for Tampa Free Press, Dr. Charlene Matthews, Under Coverist, and Florida's Voice X
Florida’s Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia dropped the hammer today, announcing that a multi-agency investigation has led to the arrest of six people accused of siphoning $1.7 million from state taxpayers. The alleged scheme didn't come from the outside; instead, it centered on a former state employee who investigators say used her position to greenlight more than 220 fake property damage claims. The Florida Department of Financial Services (DFS) Criminal Investigations Division, or CID, handled the arrests following an extensive look into the Division of Risk Management. At the heart of the case is Briana McCarthy, a former DFS employee...
#5 Trump Threatens to Block Opening of US-Canada Bridge - David Shepardson for Reuters, Al Mayadeen English, Barb McQuade, The Beacon, mistersunshinebaby/Donald J Trump/Barry Tremblay, and The Big Bad Conservative Wolf on X
U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday threatened to bar the new $4.7 billion bridge connecting Detroit and Windsor, Ontario, from opening, in his latest salvo against Canada over trade issues. Trump cited Canada's ownership of the Gordie Howe International Bridge, its refusal to stock some U.S. alcoholic beverages on Canadian store shelves, Canada's tariffs on dairy products, and its trade talks with China. The bridge was financed by Canada because the U.S. refused to pay for it, and is set to open in the coming months. The costs will be financed by tolls over 30 years...
#6 Comer Probes Sudden Wealth Jump Tied to Ilhan Omar’s Husband, Eyes Link to Minnesota Fraud - Leo Briceno and Elizabeth Elkind for Fox News, Sean Hannity, Mike Eagleman, Brigitte Gabriel/Remarks, Bo Loudon, and Eric Daugherty on X
A federal judge on Monday blocked a California law from going into effect that would ban federal immigration agents from covering their faces, but they will still be required to wear clear identification showing their agency and badge number. California became the first state to ban most law enforcement officers from wearing facial coverings under a bill that was signed in September, following the summer of high-profile raids by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in Los Angeles. The Trump administration filed a lawsuit in November challenging the laws, arguing that they would threaten the safety of officers who are facing harassment, doxing, and violence, and that they violated the Constitution because the state is directly regulating the federal government... Entertainer Bad Bunny cleared some of his social media presence after performing in the halftime show of Sunday's Super Bowl LX. The Hill reported that following the appearance, the Puerto Rican rapper and singer deleted all Instagram posts, removed his profile photo, and unfollowed all users on the platform. His account has more than 52 million followers. He also unfollowed accounts on X and removed his profile photo from his @sanbenito account, where he has about 5 million followers...
#7 Judge Blocks California’s Ban on Federal Agents Wearing Masks but Requires Badges Be Clearly Seen - Jaimie Ding for AP News, Nick Sortor, wisemom113, david soul,
D.R. Couric, and Tom Crise on X
#8 Bad Bunny Reduces Online Presence After Halftime Show - Jim Mishler for Newsmax, Jeffrey Cohen, 𝕽 𝕾 𝕬𝖓𝖆𝖓𝖉, Ⱥmerican Trucker, DSisme48 woke and its partners, and Blue & White Grit USMC Style (AKA Tom)/New York Post on X
#9 Members of Congress Are Fleeing the Job at a Historically High Rate - Bridget Bowman for NBC News, Bucky, Lance A Schart, Fred Walker Jr., G.D. Thor, and Brumidi Group on X
Some feel they’ve hit an appropriate retirement age. Others want to tend to their health or their families. Yet more are leaving because they don’t like the workplace. Add it all together, and members of Congress are heading for the exit at a historically high rate ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, with two more House Republicans adding themselves to a growing roster just last week. Rep. Barry Loudermilk, R-Ga., announced Wednesday that he was retiring from Congress, while Rep. Mark Amodei, R-Nev., announced Friday that he wouldn’t run for re-election, either. Loudermilk said he wants “to spend more dedicated time with my family,” while Amodei said it was “the right time for Nevada and myself to pass the torch.”
#10 Florida Testing Finds Triple-Digit Levels of Weed Killer Chemicals in Popular Bread Brands - Dani Travis for CBS12 News, Oasis, Gigi Bowman, The HighWire (community note), Rob Schneider, and Daniel Horowitz on X
The latest round of the state’s "Healthy Florida First" food-testing initiative shows several widely sold bread brands contain high levels of Glyphosate -- the active ingredient in Roundup. People place trust in groceries every day without really knowing the ingredients in the food they're buying. "It's coming to those times in this world now that we don't know actually what we're eating,” said Geraldine Chase, a shopper at a Publix in West Palm Beach. “It’s designed to kill plants. It is not meant to be eaten,” said Florida’s First Lady Casey DeSantis. “These products are not meant for people to touch, not meant to be in the food, and certainly not meant to be consumer and yet here we are today with these findings.”
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