Dakota Andrade 2, 242 Greene St, New York, NY 10003, USA, New York, NY (2026)

07/05/2026

An Israeli cabinet minister has now canceled two separate trips to the United States in the span of a month — and the legal pressure building against him in New York may be why.

Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel's far-right National Security Minister, was scheduled to lead a delegation to the United Nations Chiefs of Police Summit in New York on July 7-8. On Friday, sources in his ministry confirmed the trip was canceled. His office gave no official reason.

The cancellation follows a coordinated legal push by human rights organizations. The Hind Rajab Foundation, in partnership with the Center for Constitutional Rights, filed a formal complaint with the U.S. Department of Justice requesting that federal prosecutors arrest and prosecute Ben-Gvir upon arrival. They also sent a letter to New York Attorney General Letitia James, arguing she has jurisdiction to investigate Ben-Gvir because at least 11 New York residents — including one Palestinian-American and 10 activists detained during the Global Sumud Flotilla interception — were allegedly harmed by policies under his authority.

A planned coalition of protesters — including more than a dozen progressive Jewish organizations alongside pro-Palestinian groups — had organized rallies at UN headquarters for the duration of his scheduled visit.

This is the second cancellation in a month. In June, Ben-Gvir had planned a personal trip to the United States — reportedly partly financed by a Miami-based Israeli businessman — and canceled that trip after the U.S. embassy required him to appear in person and provide fingerprints as a condition for a visa. The requirement was tied to his prior criminal convictions in Israel, which include incitement to racism and supporting a designated terrorist organization. Under U.S. visa law, Israelis with criminal convictions are not eligible for the standard visa waiver program.

Important context: there is no ICC arrest warrant for Ben-Gvir specifically — that warrant exists for Prime Minister Netanyahu. New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani has said publicly he would enforce Netanyahu's ICC warrant if the prime minister entered New York. Mamdani's office made no specific statement about Ben-Gvir.

Ben-Gvir has previously described Mamdani's mayoral election as "a moment when antisemitism triumphed over common sense."

A cabinet minister sanctioned by multiple Western governments. Two canceled U.S. trips. A visa fingerprint requirement. And a city that's made clear he is not welcome.

Should human rights groups have the power to block foreign officials from entering the United States?

👍 YES — If there is credible evidence of war crimes, international accountability should have teeth

👎 NO — A foreign minister attending a UN summit is diplomacy. Letting activist groups veto it sets a dangerous precedent

07/05/2026

The pardon erased his felony. It also erased $21.7 million he owed to his victims. And there is no indication he ever paid a single dollar for it.

Adam Kidan pleaded guilty in 2005 to fraud and conspiracy in connection with the fraudulent purchase of SunCruz Casinos — a fleet of gambling boats — alongside disgraced super-lobbyist Jack Abramoff, who went to prison for mail fraud, conspiracy to bribe public officials, and tax evasion. Kidan was sentenced in 2006 to nearly six years in federal prison. A court ordered him to pay $21.7 million in restitution, plus interest that has been accumulating since his conviction.

Court records reviewed by reporters show no indication that Kidan paid any portion of that restitution to his victims — who include Aristotle and Alexander Hren-Boulis, the now-grown sons of SunCruz founder Konstantinos "Gus" Boulis. Boulis was murdered in 2001, before the fraud case concluded.

With Trump's pardon, Kidan's felony conviction is wiped clean. So is his obligation to pay the $21.7 million.

Here is the relationship between Kidan and Trump, documented in public records.

Beginning in 2017, Kidan began donating heavily to Trump's campaign, Trump political committees, the Republican National Committee, and Republican congressional candidates across the country. During Trump's 2024 campaign alone, Kidan contributed more than $1.13 million. In the current 2025-26 election cycle, through June 30, Kidan and his wife have given just under $1 million more — all to Republican House and Senate candidates. In February 2023, Kidan got married at Mar-a-Lago, with Trump and Melania in attendance and Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli performing. The initiation fee to host a wedding at Mar-a-Lago was $700,000 that year. In March 2026, Kidan co-hosted a fundraiser at Mar-a-Lago for a Long Island Republican congressional candidate.

The White House, in announcing the pardon, cited Kidan's post-prison work founding a staffing company that has placed more than 250,000 people in entry-level jobs.

Two sons of a murdered man are owed $21.7 million. That debt no longer exists.

Was this pardon justice — or pay-to-play?

👍 HE REBUILT HIS LIFE — Served his time, built companies, employed 250,000 people. Redemption is supposed to mean something.

👎 THIS IS TEXTBOOK CORRUPTION — $1.1 million donated, Mar-a-Lago wedding, pardon issued, $21.7 million in victim restitution wiped out. You do the math.

07/05/2026

He made the call. He just didn't tell anyone he made it.

Three people familiar with the conversation told the New York Times that President Trump personally called FIFA President Gianni Infantino on Wednesday night — the same night the United States beat Bosnia-Herzegovina 2-0 — and asked him to review the red card suspension of Folarin Balogun, America's top scorer at the World Cup.

On Sunday, FIFA reversed the suspension. Balogun is eligible to play Monday against Belgium.

When FIFA announced the reversal, Trump posted on Truth Social: "Thank you to FIFA for doing what was right and reversing a great injustice." He did not mention the phone call. He did not take credit for the decision. The White House, when asked, directed reporters to that Truth Social post.

Here's why this is a historic moment in soccer — and not in a small way. The last time FIFA allowed a player to appear in a World Cup match when they would otherwise have served a suspension following a red card was 1962. This is the first reversal of its kind in 64 years.

It also comes in a context that raises significant questions about FIFA's independence. Infantino has spent years building a personal relationship with Trump. Last year, FIFA created a brand-new award — the FIFA Peace Prize — and gave it to Trump while he was publicly campaigning to win the Nobel Peace Prize, which he did not win. FIFA awarded the 2026 World Cup to the United States, Canada, and Mexico. The tournament is generating an estimated $5 billion in revenue. Infantino attended Trump's inauguration.

FIFA has faced similar scrutiny before. Cristiano Ronaldo was cleared to play the opening matches of this same World Cup despite a red card before the tournament began that should have made him ineligible.

The U.S. plays Belgium on Monday at 8 PM Eastern in Seattle. Balogun — the man whose suspension was reversed after a presidential phone call — will start.

Is a sitting U.S. president calling FIFA to get a player's suspension lifted appropriate — or is this just smart use of presidential relationships?

👍 SMART MOVE — The president used his relationships to help the American team. That's his job.

👎 THIS SETS A DANGEROUS PRECEDENT — World Cup suspensions should not be reversible by a phone call to a soccer official who owes the president political favors.

07/05/2026

On America's 250th birthday, the mayor of New York and the world's richest man went to war. In public. On the internet. With the whole country watching.

It started with Mamdani's July 4th address at George Washington's desk in City Hall, where the mayor said: "We see the wealthiest nation in the history of the world — one where children go to sleep hungry while the world's first trillionaire hungers for more."

He didn't name Elon Musk. He didn't need to. Musk became the world's first trillionaire in June 2026, following SpaceX's IPO.

Musk responded on X within hours. Nine words.

"Mamdani has built nothing. He is a taker, never a maker."

The internet exploded. Conservatives shared it as the definitive takedown of the socialist mayor who had never run a company or created a job. Progressives fired back with a screenshot of a headline noting that Musk's business empire has received an estimated $38 billion in U.S. government subsidies, loans, and contracts — making the "maker vs. taker" framing considerably more complicated.

Both sides had a point. And both knew it.

Mamdani, 35, came to the U.S. from Uganda as a child, graduated from Bowdoin College, worked as a housing counselor and community organizer, and was elected to the State Assembly before becoming mayor of America's largest city. He has never founded a company or built a private enterprise. He has, by any measure, dedicated his career to public service and political organizing.

Musk co-founded PayPal, Tesla, SpaceX, Neuralink, and The Boring Company — building some of the most transformative technology companies of the past two decades. He has also received billions in federal contracts, tax credits, government loans, and subsidies across those companies.

One man built companies with government support. One man built a political career in government. Both called the other a taker.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis also weighed in, calling Mamdani's ideas "regressive" and saying the founders themselves "rejected" them.

Who do you think won this exchange?

👍 MUSK — Building companies, creating jobs, and reaching space is not the same as giving speeches. Results matter.

👎 MAMDANI — A man whose empire runs on $38 billion in government money calling someone else a "taker" is a rich irony.

07/05/2026

Michigan just became the most important Democratic primary in the country. And the choice it forces could define the party's future.

State Senator Mallory McMorrow dropped out of the Michigan Democratic Senate primary Sunday, ending a 15-month campaign and narrowing the August 4th race to two candidates with sharply different visions for the Democratic Party.

What's left is a direct confrontation between two wings of the party that have been battling each other all cycle.

On one side: Representative Haley Stevens, a four-term congresswoman backed by Democratic leadership in Washington, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, and the party establishment. Stevens is the candidate Democratic leaders believe can win a general election in a competitive state.

On the other: Abdul El-Sayed, a physician and former Detroit mayoral candidate running from the Bernie Sanders wing of the party, endorsed by progressive groups and riding momentum from a cycle in which left-wing challengers have knocked out incumbents in New York, Colorado, and across the country.

The stakes could not be higher. This is the seat of retiring Senator Gary Peters. Virtually no national Democrat believes the party has a path to retaking the Senate majority without holding this seat. Republican nominee Mike Rogers — who came within a hair's breadth of winning Michigan's other Senate seat in 2024 — is already waiting.

McMorrow's exit reflects the core tension dividing the party right now. She was the first candidate in the race to call for a new Senate Democratic leader, replacing Chuck Schumer. She endorsed neither Stevens nor El-Sayed in her withdrawal video, saying only: "Whoever wins on August 4 will have my full support."

Democrats who fear El-Sayed will lose to Rogers in November are rallying behind Stevens. Progressives argue that a candidate who inspires the base — not an establishment figure — is what the party needs after 2024. McMorrow herself said it plainly on her way out: "The energy is there. People are crying out for change. And we owe it to them to listen."

A debate between Stevens and El-Sayed is nowadays.

Which Democrat gives the party the best shot at holding Michigan?

👍 STEVENS — A competitive state needs a centrist who can win independents in November. This isn't the year for idealism.

👎 EL-SAYED — The establishment has been losing. New energy, new direction. That's the only path forward.

07/05/2026

Twenty-four hours ago, America's best striker was banned from the biggest game of the tournament. Now he's playing.

FIFA announced Sunday that Folarin Balogun's one-game red card suspension has been suspended for a one-year probationary period — meaning the U.S. team's leading scorer is fully cleared to start Monday's World Cup Round of 16 match against Belgium in Seattle.

The red card came during the second half of the U.S. victory over Bosnia-Herzegovina on July 1, when Balogun's foot clashed with an opposing player during a challenge. The referee ejected him on the spot. Under standard FIFA rules, that automatically triggered a one-game suspension — and FIFA initially told the media that the call was final and could not be appealed or overturned.

Then FIFA reversed course.

The governing body said Sunday that if Balogun "commits another infringement of a similar nature and gravity during the probationary period, the suspension shall be revoked and the sanction enforced." In plain terms: stay clean for a year, and the red card disappears entirely.

U.S. Soccer accepted the decision and said it was "pleased" with the outcome. Coach Mauricio Pochettino had argued after the match that the challenge was not intentional and that Balogun was genuinely "disappointed" by the call. Trump weighed in on Truth Social: "Thank you to FIFA for doing what was right, and reversing a great injustice!"

Balogun scored in the Bosnia match before being sent off. The U.S. won 2-0 and now faces Belgium — one of the most technically gifted squads remaining in the tournament — Monday at 8 PM Eastern from Seattle Stadium.

America's striker is back. The Round of 16 is on.

Is the USMNT going all the way to this World Cup?

👍 USA ALL THE WAY — Home soil, Balogun back, and a nation watching. Let's go.

👎 Belgium is a different level — This is where the real test begins.

07/05/2026

He was trying to defend his children. And in doing so, he said something that lawyers across America immediately stopped rereading.

In a live interview on CNBC Thursday, President Trump was asked about the growing scrutiny over his family's finances — following the release of a 927-page financial disclosure showing he made $2.2 billion in 2025 alone, more than across all four years of his first term combined.

Trump said he felt bad for his kids.

"I feel badly, in a way, for my kids," he said. "Because every time my kids do — if they invest in a stock, or if they go and do a building — anything they do, because the presidency is so powerful, so big, everything — if they buy a cupcake company, well, the energy to make the cupcakes is, you know, sort of like, 'How's my energy policy?' So therefore you have a conflict."

Then he said it.

"Almost anything they do — if they want to buy a truck, if they buy an energy-efficient truck — they have inside information. So, it's pretty tough in that sense. I tell my kids, 'Stay away from as much as you can stay away from.'"

His point — read charitably — was that the presidency creates unavoidable conflicts, not that his children are actually trading on classified or non-public government information. He was making a philosophical argument about the reach of presidential power into everyday life.

But the phrase he used to make that argument — "they have inside information" — is the legal term for one of the most serious securities crimes in the United States. Inside information, in federal law, means material non-public information used to make investment decisions. Trading on it is a federal felony.

In the same interview, Trump said he doesn't speak to Eric Trump about finances, that "big institutions" manage his money, and that there is "nothing illegal, nothing wrong" with how his family operates.

Eric Trump runs the Trump Organization. Trump's disclosure shows 21,000 securities trades were executed in his accounts in 2025 alone — more trades than Joe Biden made across his entire four-year presidency.

The White House has maintained that Trump's assets are managed independently and that the family has no involvement in individual investment decisions.

The president said it himself. What you believe it means is up to you.

Was this a dangerous admission — or a poorly worded defense that means nothing legally?

👍 JUST BAD WORDING — He meant the presidency creates unavoidable conflicts. Not a legal confession.

👎 HE SAID WHAT HE SAID — "Inside information" has a specific legal meaning. You don't accidentally say that on financial television.

07/05/2026

He says $17 trillion. His own White House website says $8.8 trillion. And independent economists say even that number doesn't hold up.

Since returning to office, President Trump has repeatedly claimed he has secured trillions of dollars in new investments for America — at various points saying "$17 trillion," "$18 trillion," and more. The White House's own investment announcements page puts the figure at $8.8 trillion. A detailed review of the top items on that list reveals a significant gap between the numbers being announced and what has actually been committed.

Here is what the fact-checkers found, item by item.

The European Union's $600 billion: Not a commitment. The EU's own statement says European companies are "expected to invest" — a projection, not a pledge. "There is no commitment," a University of Michigan economics professor noted. "'Expected to' is not a commitment."

Saudi Arabia's $600 billion: Described by Saudi Arabia itself as an "intention" to engage in unspecified "investments and trade" — not purely U.S. investment. Experts say $150 billion a year from Saudi Arabia would equal 14% of the kingdom's entire GDP annually — a figure most analysts call unrealistic.

India's $500 billion: The joint U.S.-India statement explicitly says this is a goal for "bilateral trade" — meaning American exports to India count toward the number, not just Indian investment here.

Qatar's $1.2 trillion: The White House's own announcement described it as an "economic exchange," not an investment pledge. Qatar's sovereign wealth fund CEO said they planned $500 billion over a decade — which independent analysts called "unrealistic" based on the fund's actual size.

UAE's $1.4 trillion: The biggest item on the list — and the vaguest. The figure is more than double the UAE's entire annual GDP. As of 2023, the UAE had $35 billion in total U.S. investment.

Japan's $1 trillion: Japan's actual pledge was $550 billion — and Japan says just 1–2% of that will be actual equity investment, with the rest in loans and loan guarantees.

Corporate pledges: Analysts say Apple's $600 billion and similar announcements largely reflect existing planned spending, not new Trump-era commitments. "Most of which was already reflected in Apple's long-range financial planning," one portfolio manager noted.

The White House, when asked why Trump says $17 trillion when his own website says $8.8 trillion, declined to explain the discrepancy. A spokesperson called the questions "pointless and pedantic nitpicking."

To be clear: real investment is happening. Factories are being announced. Companies are onshoring production. The AI investment boom is real. The question is not whether investment is occurring — it's whether the numbers being cited by the president reflect actual committed dollars or aspirational projections being counted as cash.

Are Trump's investment figures a real economic achievement — or inflated numbers designed to impress?

👍 REAL PROGRESS — Even half of $8.8 trillion is an enormous number. Investment is happening and America is winning.

👎 MISLEADING — Calling a trade goal an "investment," or counting loan guarantees as cash, isn't economic achievement. It's math tricks.

07/05/2026

On July 3rd, Nancy Pelosi's husband drove his convertible into a parked car in Napa Valley wine country — and kept going.

Paul Pelosi, 86, is facing a misdemeanor hit-and-run charge after Napa County Sheriff's deputies responded to a 911 call on Yount Street in Yountville at approximately 2:30 PM Thursday. A witness reported watching a northbound vehicle collide with the rear of a parked car on the shoulder, causing major damage and pushing the parked car's right tire up onto the curb. The driver briefly stopped — then drove away.

Deputies tracked Pelosi down and found him partially blocking the roadway in his brown convertible on Yountville Cross Road. The car had significant damage to its front right side. When questioned, Pelosi admitted he had hit something — but said he didn't know what he had struck, and kept driving until the car's damage stopped the vehicle from going further.

Police administered a preliminary alcohol screening test on the scene. The result was 0.00 blood alcohol content. Driving under the influence was officially ruled out.

Pelosi was not arrested — which deputies noted is standard procedure for misdemeanor hit-and-run under California law. The case has been forwarded to the Napa County District Attorney's office for formal review. A California DMV re-evaluation referral was also filed, which is standard protocol for drivers involved in incidents at this age.

A spokesperson for the Pelosi family confirmed the incident and said Paul Pelosi "has personally apologized to the owner of the vehicle and assured them that he would take responsibility for the damage."

"Speaker Pelosi will not be commenting further on this private matter," the statement added.

This is not Paul Pelosi's first serious incident. In 2022, he was convicted of a misdemeanor DUI after a Porsche crash in Napa County in which his blood alcohol content was measured at 0.082% and he was found slurring his words and unsteady on his feet. That same year, an intruder broke into his San Francisco home looking for Nancy Pelosi — and beat him with a hammer, fracturing his skull.

The Pelosi family owns a 16-acre vineyard property in St. Helena, approximately 10 miles from the scene of Thursday's incident.

Should Paul Pelosi face more serious consequences given his prior DUI conviction?

👍 YES — A prior DUI conviction and now a hit-and-run. Age is not a legal defense.

👎 NO — Zero alcohol, no injuries, he admitted fault immediately. This is a misdemeanor — treat it like one.

07/05/2026

They stood in security lines for an hour in 100-degree heat. They made it through the metal detectors. And then, minutes before it was all supposed to begin, officers told them to leave.

Thousands of people who had gathered on the National Mall in Washington D.C. for America's 250th birthday celebration were ordered to evacuate Saturday evening as a line of severe thunderstorms moved toward the city. Park Police and Secret Service began clearing crowds at approximately 7 PM — the exact moment the festivities were scheduled to start — after lightning was spotted in the area.

The scene that followed was chaos.

People who had spent hours in blistering heat waiting in security lines were suddenly told to find shelter in nearby buildings — Smithsonian museums, the Jefferson Memorial, federal department buildings. But some of those buildings were locked. Crowds gathered at the Commerce Department entrance and couldn't get inside. An officer nearby shrugged when people asked how to get in.

A Secret Service spokesman confirmed shortly after 7:30 PM that no additional people would be admitted to the mall and that the event was "postponed until weather passes." He gave no estimate for when screening might resume.

Not everyone left.

Several hundred people refused to go. They stood their ground on the National Mall, arguing with Secret Service agents, chanting — "USA! USA!" — as the storm approached. A federal law enforcement officer tried to assure the crowd the event had not been cancelled. Many didn't believe him.

A severe thunderstorm watch remained in effect for the Washington region until 10 PM.

President Trump was scheduled to deliver an address from the Mall as part of the America 250 celebrations — the capstone event of the nation's 250th anniversary weekend. It was unclear as of early evening whether the speech and fireworks would go forward later in the night or be rescheduled.

The day had already tested the crowd: temperatures in Washington hit triple digits, the DC parade was shortened due to extreme heat, and multiple outdoor events across the city had been scaled back before the storms even arrived.

America's biggest birthday party — and the weather had other plans.

Did you make it to the mall today? Drop your experience below 👇

👍 STILL WORTH IT — Storms can't stop patriotism. USA all the way.

👎 THEY SHOULD HAVE PLANNED BETTER — Triple-digit heat + storm season + 250,000 people with no shelter plan is a serious failure.

Dakota Andrade 2

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