New York Governor Kathy Hochul is under fire for refusing to disclose how much taxpayer money is being spent on a fuzzy, cartoon-like mascot dubbed “Frankie Focus.” The character, part of a campaign to promote cellphone bans in public schools, debuted last week at a Brooklyn middle school. Critics across the political spectrum are blasting the initiative as wasteful and “tone-deaf.”
Powell’s City of Books, the well-known Portland bookstore that previously banned journalist Andy Ngo’s best-selling book on Antifa, has begun laying off staff as financial struggles deepen. According to an internal email obtained by the Portland Business Journal, 18 positions across departments were cut in July, with more layoffs expected in the coming months.
Senior officials at the U.S. Department of Justice are actively discussing the possibility of banning transgender individuals from owning firearms, following a deadly shooting at a Catholic school in Minneapolis allegedly carried out by a transgender individual. Multiple DOJ sources confirmed to Breitbart News that the Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) has held several meetings on the matter in recent days.
Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) called for a national ban on assault weapons during an appearance Sunday on CNN’s State of the Union, citing a recent school shooting in Minnesota as evidence of urgent need for reform. The Democrat lawmaker argued that taking firearms off the streets is essential to preventing further mass tragedies.
A senior official from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is expected to arrive in Tehran Monday for talks with the Iranian regime, despite the country’s recent law banning all cooperation with the U.N. nuclear watchdog. Iranian state media confirmed the visit, noting the official is not a nuclear inspector and will be barred from visiting any of the regime’s nuclear facilities. The visit comes less than two months after Iran formally outlawed IAEA inspections and access to its enrichment sites.
Calls to ban Germany’s Alternative for Germany (AfD) party — now the second-largest in the country — are escalating, sparking alarm from legal experts and historians who warn such a move could tear apart the nation’s democratic fabric. Despite receiving over ten million votes and securing official opposition status, the AfD continues to face aggressive attempts by the German left to remove it from public life.
Germany’s Charité University of Medicine in Berlin has barred an Islamic student group, the Medislam Collective, from holding further events on campus. The decision follows accusations of gender-segregated seating during lectures and sex-specific student activities, which the university says violate its anti-discrimination policies.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams unlawfully used emergency powers to override a City Council ban on prolonged solitary confinement in local jails, a state judge ruled Monday. The court sided with the City Council, declaring Adams had exceeded his authority in issuing an executive order to suspend the law after his veto was overridden.
France is implementing one of its most sweeping anti-smoking measures in decades, banning smoking in nearly all outdoor public areas starting July 1. A new public health decree published Saturday will prohibit smoking at parks, beaches, sports venues, bus stops, and within perimeters around schools—anywhere children might gather.
Rhode Island’s Democrat-controlled legislature passed a bill Friday banning the in-state sale and manufacture of so-called “assault weapons.” The legislation now awaits the signature of Gov. Dan McKee (D), who signaled strong support for the measure following its passage.
