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Republicans Move to Impeach Pritzker

Pritzker
(Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

The Illinois Freedom Caucus filed articles of impeachment against Governor J.B. Pritzker for what they argue is engaging in conduct and incites violence.

According to the impeachment resolution, Pritzker has “issued inflammatory statements that incite violence against elected officials, citizens, and persons located in the United States and has failed to uphold the constitutional requirement to faithfully execute the laws of the State of Illinois.”

The resolution quotes Pritzker’s questionable comments, such as those comparing Republicans to German Nazis. “The authoritarian playbook is laid bare here: They point to a group of people who don’t look like you and tell you to blame them for your problems. . . . If you think I’m overreacting and sounding the alarm too soon, consider this: It took the Nazis one month, three weeks, two days, eight hours and 40 minutes to dismantle a constitutional republic,” the filing says.

It also cites Pritzker as saying Republicans “cannot know a moment of peace.”

“Statements that advocate for the physical and mental harm of an individual, that compare political opponents to a violent and hateful political party from world history, and that normalize violence against another person due to political differences constitute a failure to uphold his constitutional duties,” the resolution reads, declaring that the comments “warrant his impeachment and trial, removal from office as Governor, and disqualification to hold any public office of this State in the future.”

One of the lawmakers behind the resolution, State Rep. Adam Niemerg, told NBC 5 Chicago that the governor’s statements “deeply concern me, and they do not fall on deaf ears. This political rhetoric has consequences.” 

‘Ghost Ship’ Discovery: F.J. King Found After 140 Years

A spare anchor sits in its well on the forepeek of the shipwrecked Titanic.

The ghost ship discovery of the long-lost schooner F.J. King has brought closure to a 140-year-old Lake Michigan mystery. Researcher Brandon Baillod and his team located the wreck on June 28, confirmed Monday by the Wisconsin Historical Society and the Wisconsin Underwater Archaeology Association.

The F.J. King, a 144-foot cargo schooner built in Toledo in 1867, sank during a violent storm on September 15, 1886, while carrying iron ore from Escanaba, Michigan, to Chicago. Waves as high as 10 feet ruptured the vessel’s seams. Despite desperate efforts by Captain William Griffin and his crew to pump water from the ship, it slipped beneath the waves around 2 a.m. Another schooner later rescued the men and brought them safely to Bailey’s Harbor.

For decades, conflicting reports about the wreck’s location frustrated searches, earning the vessel its reputation as a “ghost ship.” Since the 1970s, shipwreck hunters scoured the waters near Wisconsin’s Door Peninsula without success.

Baillod shifted focus after reconsidering accounts from a lighthouse keeper. His team ultimately found the wreck half a mile from that original report. “A few of us had to pinch each other,” Baillod said of the discovery. “After all the previous searches, we couldn’t believe we had actually found it, and so quickly.”

The hull remains largely intact, surprising experts who expected the weight of the iron ore to have broken the vessel apart. The find adds to a growing list of wrecks discovered in Wisconsin waters, including the steamer L.W. Crane and schooner Trinidad.

Federal Reserve Cuts Interest Rates

(Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

The Federal Reserve cut interest rates on Wednesday for the first time in 2025.

The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) said in a statement, “Recent indicators suggest that growth of economic activity moderated in the first half of the year. Job gains have slowed, and the unemployment rate has edged up but remains low. Inflation has moved up and remains somewhat elevated.”

“In support of its goals and in light of the shift in the balance of risks, the Committee decided to lower the target range for the federal funds rate by 1/4 percentage point to 4 to 4‑1/4 percent,” the statement added, noting that the Committee’s goal is to achieve a 2 percent inflation rate.

“Voting against this action was Stephen I. Miran, who preferred to lower the target range for the federal funds rate by 1/2 percentage point at this meeting,” the statement read.

Peter Navarro, President Trump’s senior counselor for trade and manufacturing, told Fox News’ “Mornings with Maria” that the rate cut should be “50 [basis points cut] today, and it should be another 50 at the next meeting. That’s where it should be.”

Last month, the Federal Reserve ended its 2020-era policy that allowed inflation to run above 2 percent, a move intended to restore credibility and simplify its economic framework.

The updated policy statement returned to a traditional 2 percent inflation target and adjusted language around employment, no longer framing deviations from maximum employment as “shortfalls.” Instead, it acknowledges that job growth above perceived sustainable levels does not automatically trigger inflation, allowing more flexibility in labor market responses.

Michigan Professor Attacks Charlie Kirk in Death, Sparks Outrage

Alex Mertz/Unsplash

The Charlie Kirk assassination has sparked heated reactions across academia, with the chairman of the University of Michigan’s faculty senate using Kirk’s death to launch new attacks. Derek Peterson, a history and African studies professor, told colleagues in a faculty-wide email that Kirk was “no friend of academic freedom” and claimed his “demagoguery has endangered a great many people.”

Peterson cited Turning Point USA’s Professor Watchlist, which lists professors accused of discriminating against conservative students. “Twenty members of the faculty are included on his ‘Professor Watchlist,'” he wrote, accusing Kirk of promoting “anti-American values.” While Peterson added that “violence has no place on a university campus,” his remarks raised questions about whether his framing could be seen as justifying political violence.

When pressed by the Washington Free Beacon about this tension, Peterson doubled down. “Thirty members of the Michigan faculty are on the Professor Watchlist,” he said, noting that “many of them are Black.” He argued that Kirk’s activism “coarsened public discourse, encouraged name-calling, and made it possible for ill-intentioned people to find and intimidate well-meaning folks.”

The reaction from other educators across the country has been even harsher. One New York City physics teacher called Kirk an “aspiring Goebbels” and celebrated that he “became a good Nazi.” At East Tennessee State University, a professor allegedly wrote, “This isn’t a tragedy. It’s a victory.”

Investigators say such rhetoric mirrors the motive of Tyler Robinson, the accused assassin, who told his roommate, “I had enough of [Kirk’s] hatred” and added, “Some hate can’t be negotiated out.”

Rand Paul Calls Out Childhood Vaccines in Heated Exchange

Sen. Rand Paul (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) clashed with former CDC Director Susan Monarez over childhood vaccines on Wednesday.

“Does the COVID vaccine reduce hospitalization for children under 18?” Paul asked.

Monarez said, “It can,” prompting Paul to assert, “It doesn’t.”

“The statistics are inconclusive, and the reason you can’t prove that it does is there’s so few people under 18 that go to the hospital,” he explained.

“When we’re discussing the science here, we have to discuss what is the science in favor of giving the vaccine to a 6-month-old, and what are the benefits from that? And there is no benefit of hospitalization or death. And then what would the risks of that vaccine be?” Paul added. “We have large population studies of the risks of the vaccine in younger people.”

Paul went on to declare that “we should” change the childhood vaccine schedule. “What is the medical reason to give a Hepatitis B vaccine to a newborn whose mom has no hepatitis?”

“What is the medical, scientific reason and proof for giving a newborn a Hepatitis-B vaccine if the mom is Hep-B negative?” the senator pressed.

Monarez said she would “not precommit to approving all the ACIP recommendations without the science.”

FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary has also suggested that the agency will revisit whether infants should receive the Hepatitis B vaccine.

“If a woman was having a baby today in New York City and the doctor is about to give her the Hep B vaccine, what would you advise that mother?” Martha MacCallum of Fox News asked Makary.

“I personally don’t believe that the evidence is solid to say the Hep B shot needs to be given at birth,” the FDA commissioner said. “It’s a sexually transmitted infection you’re trying to prevent. Kids are not sexually active until they’re of sexual age. So, a lot of parents say we’re going to wait until they’re 10, or 11, or 12.”

Media Spins Texts of Charlie Kirk’s Alleged Assassin’s Confession

(Photo by Rebecca Noble/Getty Images)

The Charlie Kirk assassin case took another turn this week as liberal media outlets appeared more focused on the killer’s personal text messages than on his political motive. Tyler Robinson, accused of assassinating conservative activist Charlie Kirk, confessed in texts to his transgender partner that he carried out the attack.

According to the charging documents, Robinson wrote, “I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk and I’m going to take it.” When his partner asked if he was responsible, Robinson admitted, “I am, I’m sorry.” Prosecutors charged Robinson with seven counts, including aggravated murder and obstruction for urging his partner to delete incriminating texts.

But several reporters framed Robinson’s messages as tender rather than damning. ABC’s Matt Gutman told viewers, “It was very touching in a way that I think many of us didn’t expect … with him repeatedly calling his roommate … ‘my love’ and ‘I want to protect you, my love.’” MSNBC’s Katy Tur added, “You can see even in the exchanges … there was affection there.”

Meanwhile, prosecutors highlighted Robinson’s own words pointing to political motivation. In one exchange, Robinson wrote, “I had enough of his hatred. Some hate can’t be negotiated out.” He even joked about the alleged murder weapon, saying, “judging from today I’d say grandpas gun does just fine idk. I think that was a $2k scope.”

Despite Robinson’s clear admissions, some reporters claimed his motive remained unclear. The New York Times’ Glenn Thrush said, “I don’t know why this young man did this.” Yet, as Robinson’s texts reveal, the crime was not random.

Joe Biden Struggles After Presidency as Democrats Distance

(Photo by Samuel Corum/Getty Images)

Joe Biden continues to struggle as new reports reveal the former president’s post-White House years look far leaner than those of his predecessors. According to the Wall Street Journal, Biden is “struggling to cash in on his presidency,” with organizations “reluctant” to pay his speaking fees and Democratic allies keeping their distance.

“Biden, 82 years old, is charting a postpresidency that is less lucrative than what he’d expected when he left office,” the Journal reported Monday. His speaking requests, which can cost $300,000 to $500,000, have been sparse. Unlike Barack Obama and Bill Clinton, who built lucrative foundations and commanded global stages, Biden “spent his first Independence Day out of the White House at a high-end trailer park” in Malibu.

The report adds that Biden has been spotted on Amtrak and commercial flights, while “options for big jobs are limited by his advanced age, his unpopularity in Democratic circles and companies—concerned about retribution from President Trump—that aren’t offering speaking gigs.”

Biden’s memoir also failed to draw the massive advances seen by Obama and Clinton, netting him around $10 million. Fundraising for a presidential library has stalled, as even longtime Democratic bundlers hesitate to back him. Journalist Mark Halperin summed up Biden’s financial challenges in May: “The trough is empty, the spigot has shut down. They need a way to get back in the game to make big money to have the grandchildren fed and clothed and flown first-class.”

Even his former running mate has joined critics. Kamala Harris’s new book claims Democrats were reckless to let Biden run for a second term.

Obama Suggests Trump Admin Partly Responsible for Assassination

obama
Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Former President Barack Obama insinuated that President Donald Trump is in part to blame for the death of Charlie Kirk.

Speaking during the Jefferson Educational Society’s global summit, Obama declared the nation was an “inflection point, not just around political violence, but there are a host of larger trends that we have to be concerned about.”

“Regardless of where you are on the political spectrum, what happened to Charlie Kirk was horrific and a tragedy,” he said, later adding, “And so, when I hear not just our current president, but his aides, who have a history of calling political opponents ‘vermin’, enemies who need to be ‘targeted,’ that speaks to a broader problem that we have right now and something that we’re going to have to grapple with, all of us.”

“Whether we’re Democrats, Republicans, Independents, we have to recognize that on both sides, undoubtedly, there are people who are extremists and who say things that are contrary to what I believe are America’s core values,” Obama continued.

The statement suggests that Trump’s comments have fueled the country’s violent behavior.

“But I will say that those extreme views were not in my White House. I wasn’t embracing them. I wasn’t empowering them,” he stated. “I wasn’t putting the weight of the United States government behind extremist views. And that…when we have the weight of the United States government behind extremist views, we’ve got a problem.”

Obama noted that “part of the role of the presidency is to constantly remind us of the ties that bind us together.”

President Trump asserted that the “problem we have is on the left, if you look at the problem. The problem is on the left. It’s not on the right like some people like to say is on the right.”

“The problem we have is on the left,” he reiterated. “When you look at the agitators, when you look at the scum that speaks so badly of our country, the American flag burnings all over the place, that’s the left, that’s not the right.”

CBS News Under Fire After Deleted Post on Motive Behind Charlie Kirk Assassination

60 minutes
CBS News (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello, File)

CBS News is facing backlash after quietly deleting a social media post that downplayed the political motive behind the Charlie Kirk assassination. The now-removed clip featured CBS Evening News Plus anchor John Dickerson suggesting that the alleged assassin’s reasoning “remains elusive,” despite public statements from Utah’s Republican governor Spencer Cox.

“Five days after Charlie Kirk’s murder, the shooter’s motive remains elusive—no writings left behind, vague, secondhand testimony,” Dickerson said in the broadcast. He went on to speculate that the assassination “may share similarities with recent violence not driven by an obvious political ideology.”

That framing directly contradicted Cox, who told NBC: “There clearly was a leftist ideology with this—with this assassin.” FBI director Kash Patel echoed that assessment on Fox News, revealing investigators discovered explicit evidence of intent. “A text message exchange where [Robinson] specifically stated that he had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk and he was going to do that,” Patel said.

Police say the suspect, Tyler Robinson, carried bullets engraved with the words “Hey fascist! Catch!” and lived with a transgender partner. Authorities are also investigating possible ties between Robinson and local left-wing and pro-transgender organizations, according to the New York Post.

Dickerson’s guest, Matthew Kriner of the Institute for Countering Digital Extremism, argued that Robinson’s actions might reflect “nihilistic violent extremism.” Still, Dickerson told Kriner to exclude Kirk’s murder from analysis, claiming, “we just don’t have enough data.”

For critics, the deleted CBS post underscores why many Americans question media bias.

Dearborn Mayor Sparks Outrage Telling Resident He’s ‘Not Welcome’

Getty Images/Dee Liu

Controversy over Dearborn Mayor Abdullah Hammoud intensified after he told a Christian resident he was “not welcome” in the city during a heated council meeting last week. The clash erupted when Edward “Ted” Barham raised objections to new street signs honoring Arab American News publisher Osama Siblani.

Barham introduced himself as a Dearborn resident and voiced concern that Siblani had previously expressed support for extremist groups. “He’s a promoter of Hezbollah and Hamas,” Barham said, quoting past remarks attributed to Siblani, including: “They will fight with stones, others will fight with guns, others fight with planes, drones, and rockets.”

Comparing the tribute to naming a road “Hezbollah Street or Hamas Street,” Barham stressed that his intent was to encourage peace, closing with a biblical reference: “Blessed are the peacemakers.”

City council members interjected, reminding Barham the signs were placed by Wayne County, not the city itself. Hammoud, however, escalated the exchange. “The best suggestion I have for you is to not drive on Warren Avenue or to close your eyes while you’re doing it. His name is up there and I spoke at a ceremony celebrating it because he’s done a lot for this community,” the mayor said.

Hammoud then accused Barham of bigotry before declaring: “Although you live here, I want you to know as mayor, you are not welcome here. And the day you move out of the city will be the day that I launch a parade celebrating the fact that you moved out of this city.”

For many Dearborn residents, the confrontation raised concerns about whether city leaders are willing to hear dissenting voices.

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