The devastating wildfires raging across Los Angeles have drawn sharp criticism over years of mismanagement and budgetary neglect under Democrat leadership. The crisis has exposed a severely underfunded Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD), leaving firefighters and residents to face unprecedented challenges.
L.A. Times columnist Sammy Roth has attributed the recent Palisades Fire and other devastating wildfires in Los Angeles to climate change, framing the issue as a result of fossil fuel dependence and global warming. In his column titled “Los Angeles is a climate disaster. The fires will change nothing,” Roth called for systemic changes, such as reducing fossil fuel use, supporting green businesses, and prioritizing climate action in public policy and personal decisions.
UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer made a surprise visit to Kyiv on Thursday, where he announced a landmark 100-year military and economic alliance with Ukraine. Starmer described the agreement as a symbol of the “unbreakable bond” between the two nations, aimed at fostering long-term support for Ukraine and enhancing bilateral cooperation in defense, trade, and cultural initiatives.
Holly K. Talley, a former colleague of Defense Secretary nominee Pete Hegseth, criticized Senate Democrats for perpetuating false allegations during Hegseth's confirmation hearing. Talley, who worked with Hegseth at Concerned Veterans for America (CVA) from 2013 to 2015, directly refuted claims that Hegseth engaged in inappropriate conduct during a trip to Louisiana.
Edwin Castro, the historic $2.04 billion Powerball winner, has reportedly lost one of his multimillion-dollar homes in the recent Los Angeles-area wildfires.
During a contentious Senate confirmation hearing on Tuesday, U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) faced criticism for her questioning of Secretary of Defense nominee Pete Hegseth. Duckworth repeatedly pressed Hegseth with demands for a "yes or no" answer regarding his experience leading audits, a line of questioning some found overly aggressive.
The Giffords gun control group, led by former Rep. Gabby Giffords, suggested Tuesday that the Palisades fire, which has claimed at least eight lives, should compel Republican lawmakers to abandon their efforts to defund or dismantle the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF).
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) criticized a Republican-backed bill seeking to prohibit biological men from participating in federally funded K-12 women’s sports. Jeffries argued on MSNBC’s All In that the legislation could lead to harmful outcomes for children, claiming it risks enabling predators under the guise of enforcing the law.
France’s birthrate fell to its lowest level since the end of World War I, with only 663,000 babies born in 2024, according to the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (INSEE). This marks a 2.2% decline from the previous year and the lowest recorded births since 1946. The fertility rate also dropped to 1.62 children per woman, well below the 2.1 replacement level needed to maintain population stability.
