World, US, Culture, Market, and Sci-Tech News Aggregation from MSM and Independent News
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President Donald Trump got some good news from a poll that, at least for now, puts the final nail in the coffin for the Democrats’ “buyer’s remorse” narrative. Since the 2024 election, the Democrat Party has attempted to craft a yarn that makes it seem as if Trump voters are regretting their decision to vote the president into office.
But the cold, hard data tells a different story.
According to the poll from Trafalgar Group, conducted between May 30 and June 1, President Trump’s approval rating is 53.7 percent. These findings show an upward trajectory for the President since his election. His disapproval rating is shrinking, sitting currently at 45.6 percent. Trafalgar surveyed 1,098 voters for the poll.
Some on the left are questioning the accuracy of the poll and thus the integrity of Trafalgar Group. The organization currently has a B+ for accuracy from FiveThirtyEight, making them one of the most consistently accurate pollsters in recent election cycles, especially when it comes to capturing the sentiments of voters who are often overlooked by the mainstream media surveys.
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The House Freedom Caucus on Monday called on Speaker Mike Johnson to “immediately” bring the first round of DOGE cut requests to a floor vote for “swift passage.”
The White House’s $9.4 billion rescissions package, which is expected to land in the House of Representatives on Tuesday, slashes funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
“When the White House submits its first rescissions package to enact DOGE spending cuts to Congress, the House of Representatives should immediately move this to the floor for swift passage,” the caucus said in a statement posted on social media.
“The House Freedom Caucus strongly supports these critical rescissions, and we will support as many more rescissions packages the White House can send us in the coming weeks and months. These first DOGE cuts target taxpayer-funded public broadcasters notorious for their liberal bias like NPR and PBS, as well as billions in wasteful foreign aid dollars,” the statement continued.
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Missouri voters may soon revisit the state’s abortion laws, following a new proposal from Republican lawmakers aiming to reverse a 2024 amendment that established a right to abortion in the state constitution.
Pro-abortion Amendment 3, narrowly approved by Missouri voters in the 2024 election, followed the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision, which overturned Roe v. Wade and returned abortion regulation to the states.
On May 14, Missouri lawmakers approved a new ballot measure that seeks to offer a different legal framework, Politico reported. It would only allow abortion in limited cases — such as rape, incest, and medical emergencies — while also requiring parental consent for minors. It would also prohibit “gender transition” procedures for children. Although these surgeries are already banned in Missouri, the measure would enshrine those protections in state law.
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The economy contracted at a 0.2% annual rate in the first quarter of 2025, the Bureau of Economic Analysis said Thursday in a revision to its estimate of GDP.
A preliminary report from the agency found that the economy contracted at a 0.3% rate in the quarter, so Thursday’s report represented an upward revision in the growth rate of a tenth of a percentage point.
While it is a slight improvement, the new report highlights the challenges the economy and President Donald Trump face in the coming months. They also raise concerns about the potential for a recession.
This is the second of three GDP estimates the BEA has published for the first quarter as more data are analyzed. The final report will come in late June.
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President Trump on Thursday pardoned a former Army officer who was court-martialed for refusing the COVID-19 vaccine.
President Trump pardoned former Lt. Mark Bashaw after being convicted by a military court for refusing the COVID-19 vaccine in 2022.
The military also discharged Bashaw after his conviction.
Watch Bashaw here:
🇺🇸 I just received a Presidential Pardon from President Donald J. Trump. I am humbled, grateful, and ready to continue fighting for truth and justice in this great nation.
Thank you, Mr. President @realDonaldTrump and to your incredible team, WRWY🙏
Special shout out to… pic.twitter.com/wxiM3u1YF6
— Mark Charles Bashaw (@MCBashaw) May 29, 2025
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The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has shuttered its diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) office.
According to Fox News, MIT President Sally Kornbluth announced the closing of the Institute Community and Equity Office (ICEO) last week.
“As I’ve said many times, MIT is in the talent business,” Kornbluth’s announcement read.
“Our success depends on attracting exceptionally talented people of every background, from across the country and around the world, and making sure everyone at MIT feels welcome and supported, so they can do their best work and thrive,” it added.
MIT has acknowledged the failure of its DEI programs, is sunsetting the Institute Community and Equity Office (ICEO), and is winding down its Strategic Action Plan for Belonging, Achievement, and Composition. https://t.co/d4pY8p8N9H pic.twitter.com/t7W51Y5s4U
— BabblingBeaver (@Babbling_Beaver) May 22, 2025
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True to his word, FBI Director Kash Patel has released a treasure trove of secrets about the Crossfire Hurricane probe and the intentionally false narratives devised to justify it.
Ten days ago Kash Patel and Dan Bongino promised “give us a few weeks” in their infamous appearance on Fox News, promising that multiple investigations in to government corruption would soon become fruitful.
Here’s a short clip from that interview, which may turn out to age very well after all:
Kash Patel: More Crossfire Hurricane to be released pic.twitter.com/nTVnqbAY6m
— Svetlana Lokhova (@RealSLokhova) May 18, 2025
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President Donald Trump on Wednesday issued several more pardons, including those for his political allies: former U.S. House member Michael Grimm of New York and ex-Connecticut Gov. John Rowland. Trump has largely circumvented the process run through the Department of Justice. Trump’s new pardon attorney Ed Martin last week reviewed commutation applications for the president to consider, a source told CNN.
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America and Argentina will create a new alternative to the pro-abortion WHO after both countries leave the controversial UN agency.
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his Argentine counterpart on Tuesday announced the United States and Argentina are creating an “alternative international health system” to the World Health Organization (WHO). President Donald Trump on his first day in office signed an executive order that began the year-long process of withdrawing from the WHO for multiple reasons, including its abortion advocacy and botched handling of COVID.
Kennedy and Argentine Minister of Health Mario Lugones criticized the WHO in a joint statement saying its poor performance left “devastating global consequences.”
“The absence of meaningful reforms, disproportionate financial demands, and the increasing politicization of the organization have ultimately led the United States and Argentina to withdraw from the WHO,” they said. “Withdrawal marks the beginning of a new path—toward building a modern global health cooperation model grounded in scientific integrity, transparency, sovereignty, and accountability.
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A new poll released Wednesday shows Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton with a commanding lead over incumbent U.S. Sen. John Cornyn in either a two-person race or a three-person race in next year’s Republican primary. But Paxton’s lead in the poll shrinks dramatically against potential Democratic rivals in the 2026 general election.
The poll from Texan Southern University’s Barbara Jordan Public Policy Research and Survey Center shows Paxton leading Cornyn by 9 percentage points in a two-person race and by 7 points if U.S. Rep. Wesley Hunt of Houston enters the primary.
“Right now, if it’s a head-to-head race between Paxton and Cornyn, Paxton is a very strong favorite, and it’s tough to see how, absent, say, a Trump endorsement of Cornyn, Cornyn could effectively flip the table on Paxton,” said Mark Jones, political science fellow at Rice University’s Baker Institute and co-author of the survey with TSU’s Michael O. Adams.
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The US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, has announced that the US will introduce new visa restrictions on “foreign officials and persons who are complicit in censoring Americans”.
In a post on X, Rubio said that “Americans have been fined, harassed, and even charged by foreign authorities for exercising their free speech rights” and foreigners who “undermine” those rights “should not enjoy the privilege of traveling to our country”.
Here’s the full post:
For too long, Americans have been fined, harassed, and even charged by foreign authorities for exercising their free speech rights. Today, I am announcing a new visa restriction policy that will apply to foreign officials and persons who are complicit in censoring Americans. Free speech is essential to the American way of life – a birthright over which foreign governments have no authority.
Foreigners who work to undermine the rights of Americans should not enjoy the privilege of traveling to our country. Whether in Latin America, Europe, or elsewhere, the days of passive treatment for those who work to undermine the rights of Americans are over.
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Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) signed legislation on Tuesday to start the process of allowing Floridians to pay for goods and services with precious metals such as gold and silver.
A report will be given to the state legislature, which has until November 1, 2025, to ratify the rules. The law would take effect on July 1, 2026.
If ratified, the law would establish precious metals as a legal form of tender, but it specifies that accepting them would be optional, except for check cashers and money service businesses. Any business seeking to accept precious metals as payment must obtain a license.
“That means these precious metals can start functioning like real currency again, not just investment vehicles for the wealthy,” DeSantis said.
Purchases of precious metals will be exempt from sales tax.
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Democrats desperately want to control the U.S. House of Representatives after the 2026 midterm elections. However, their plan to wield power will likely doom their political future, but could give Republicans a golden opportunity.
An expert political strategist has issued a stark warning to the Democrats about their midterm prospects. If their plan succeeds, it would mean short-term gain but long-term pain for the embattled party.
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A Democratic mayor is under investigation for allegedly “aiding and abetting” the escape of illegal immigrants from custody, a Republican congressman has confirmed.
Freddie O’Connell, the progressive mayor of Nashville, is reportedly the target of an investigation exploring whether he provided material “aid” to illegal immigrants and obstructed an investigation by U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement.
Tennessee Rep. Andy Ogles (R-TN) announced that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the House Judiciary Committee are investigating a potential “criminal enterprise” involving federal funds.
“We’ve heard it: the individuals that the mayor is standing with are murderers, rapists, drug traffickers, sexual predators, child traffickers…the list goes on,” Ogles said from the Tennesee State Capitol building on Monday.
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A federal judge has sided with the Trump administration, resolving a dispute with New York Attorney General Letitia James about the expansive scope of cost-cutters to examine U.S. Treasury payments that they claim are laden with wasteful spending.
James was among 18 Democratic attorneys general who filed suit to block an investigation by the U.S. Department of Government Efficiency into the Treasury payment system. The coterie was dealt a severe setback on Tuesday when U.S. District Judge Jeannette Vargas, for the Southern District of New York, lifted the last legal hurdle for the four DOGE employees tasked with carrying out the investigation.
An earlier order was also relaxed after the Trump administration showed evidence that it appropriately trained the four employees to safeguard sensitive taxpayer information during the probe. In April, Vargas granted access to one DOGE employee after they completed a similar training program.
Prior to those decisions, the judge, a Biden appointee, was mostly siding with the state prosecutors who argued that Treasury’s processes for granting access were poorly established, a likely violation of law.
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The Texas legislature has passed a bill protecting single sex spaces, such as girls’ locker rooms in schools, and mandating identification by biological sex on government-issued documents, including driver’s licenses and other photo IDs.
House Bill 229 passed in the Texas Senate early Wednesday by an exact party-line vote of 20 to 11, according to the Texas Tribune. The bill, which passed in the Texas House on May 12, defines “female” and “woman” as “an individual whose biological reproductive system is developed to produce ova.”
The bill, sponsored by Republican Texas state Rep. Ellen Troxclair, also defines “male” or “man” as “an individual whose biological reproductive system is developed to fertilize the ova of a female.” The legislation also describes “sex” as “an individual’s biological sex, either male or female.”
Troxclair’s bill states that “there are legitimate reasons to distinguish” between men and women “with respect to athletics, prisons … domestic violence shelters, rape crisis centers, locker rooms, restrooms, and other areas where biology, safety, or privacy are implicated.”
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The Trump administration is implementing visa restrictions on foreign nationals with histories of censoring Americans, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced Wednesday.
“For too long, Americans have been fined, harassed, and even charged by foreign authorities for exercising their free speech rights,” Rubio wrote in an X post. “Free speech is essential to the American way of life — a birthright over which foreign governments have no authority.”
According to the secretary, this new policy “will apply to foreign officials and persons who are complicit in censoring Americans.” Any noncitizen “who work[s] to undermine the rights of Americans should not enjoy the privilege of traveling to our country,” he added.
“Whether in Latin America, Europe, or elsewhere, the days of passive treatment for those who work to undermine the rights of Americans are over,” Rubio wrote.
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Jake Tapper continues to try to gain fans on the right side of the aisle by insulting the Left. It’s a bold strategy, Cotton. President Donald Trump is coming down on Harvard and they definitely deserve it. He has a plan to reroute the money and encourage people to go into business without spending time in school. Is this the new future of America or is college still the road to success?
JUST IN: Trump Admin Pauses All Student Visa Interviews, Will Expand Social Media Vetting | The Gateway Pundit– www.thegatewaypundit.com
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The Trump Administration is expected to halt all student visa interviews and will expand its social media vetting, according to a State Department cable obtained by Politico.
The Trump Administration is escalating its fight against anti-American universities such as Harvard.
Politico reported:
The Trump administration is weighing requiring all foreign students applying to study in the United States to undergo social media vetting — a significant expansion of previous such efforts, according to a cable obtained by POLITICO.
In preparation for such required vetting, the administration is ordering U.S. embassies and consular sections to pause scheduling new interviews for such student visa applicants, according to the cable, dated Tuesday and signed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
If the administration carries out the plan, it could severely slow down student visa processing. It also could hurt many universities who rely heavily on foreign students to boost their financial coffers.
“Effective immediately, in preparation for an expansion of required social media screening and vetting, consular sections should not add any additional student or exchange visitor (F, M, and J) visa appointment capacity until further guidance is issued septel, which we anticipate in the coming days,” the cable states. (“Septel” is State Department shorthand for “separate telegram.”)
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Despite national efforts to make biology a reality again, many states, including California, have not received that memo. This is why Trump said what needed to be said.
Trump has threatened to cut federal funding to the Golden State if officials don’t get their act together and make sports sane again, as a trans track athlete has been allowed to dominate the women’s division and plans to attend CIF finals this weekend.
High school junior AB Hernandez is a trans track athlete. Or, in other words, he’s a man. It’s unclear if he would have been capable of fairly competing against those with the same chromosomes as him, but you do the math. Nonetheless, she (he) had previously vowed to stick to the haters by stealing titles away from girls who had dedicated so much time to the sport. He has since made good on that promise with the help of state athletic officials, who have turned a blind eye to the integrity of the game.
This was all done despite national efforts to make gender great again, which is why Trump is now threatening to cut federal funds from the state if they don’t do what is morally and biologically correct.
According to the New York Post:
Trump also warned that he will order “local authorities, if necessary, to not allow” a transgender athlete to compete in the state finals this weekend. The threat comes ahead of a planned phone call with Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom.
“California, under the leadership of Radical Left Democrat Gavin Newscum, continues to ILLEGALLY allow ‘MEN TO PLAY IN WOMEN’S SPORTS,’” Trump grumbled on Truth Social Tuesday.
“THIS IS NOT FAIR, AND TOTALLY DEMEANING TO WOMEN AND GIRLS. Please be hereby advised that large scale Federal Funding will be held back, maybe permanently, if the Executive Order on this subject matter is not adhered to.”
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On May 20, the Supreme Court granted Maine Rep. Laurel Libby’s application for an injunction pending appeal, which means she will again be allowed to vote in the Maine legislature as her case proceeds.
In February, a male athlete identifying as female won the Maine state championship in girls’ pole vaulting. Libby posted on social media that the athlete had previously competed in the male division and placed fifth.
Libby stated that it was unfair for male athletes to compete against females due to their intrinsic athletic advantages.
House Speaker Ryan Fecteau asked Libby to remove the post, but she refused, saying, “I won’t apologize for speaking the truth and defending our women and girls in Maine that are being discriminated against.”
She was then censured, with a resolution passing by a 75-70 party-line vote to remove both her right to vote and right to speak in the Maine House of Representatives.
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Former Dept. of Ed. official praises action to ensure federal funding helps American students in need, not illegal immigrants
A visiting fellow at the Heritage Foundation praised the U.S. Department of Education’s decision to revoke waivers from California and Oregon universities which allowed them to use federal education funds to assist illegal immigrant college students.
The purpose of the Performance Partnership Pilots for Disconnected Youth program is to help students with disabilities and low-income students obtain a college education. However, the Biden administration allowed universities in California and Oregon to divert the funds to illegal immigrants, according to a department news release. Under the previous administration, TRIO programs could extend benefits to “illegal aliens.”
The waives have since been revoked, drawing praise from Adam Kissel, a visiting fellow at the Heritage Foundation and former deputy assistant for higher education programs in the first Trump administration.
“President Biden’s Department of Education was extremely lawless,” Kissel told The College Fix via email. “The current administration is bringing the rule of law back to federal education policy and programs.”
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Private universities with large endowments are fretting over a provision in the House-passed “big, beautiful” bill that would significantly raise the tax rate on their annual investment income.
House Republicans’ proposal would raise the tax rate on certain universities’ endowment profits from 1.4% to 21%, a move that could add hundreds of millions of dollars to their annual tax liability. Universities whose massive endowments provide billions of dollars of wealth at their disposal are warning that failure to strike the proposal from President Donald Trump’s sweeping tax and spending package would deal a “devastating” blow to their operating budgets. (RELATED: House Republicans Put Ivy League’s Massive Endowments On Chopping Block)
“This is a devastating piece of legislation for us,” Swarthmore College vice president for finance and administration Robert Goldberg told the Wall Street Journal. “It takes something that’s fairly manageable to something that’s not tenable.”
GOP lawmakers have defended placing colleges’ endowments in their crosshairs, arguing that universities are no longer fulfilling their core mission and instead operate more like hedge funds rather than prioritizing the education of students. Additionally, congressional Republicans allege that many of the universities that would be subject to a higher tax on their endowment earnings allowed antisemitism to fester on their campuses during the Biden administration.