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Tag: Vice President JD Vance

  • Milan Cortina Olympics opening ceremony: Follow live updates

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    stadium is 99 years old and has *** capacity of nearly 80,000 people. It is the largest stadium in all of Italy, therefore the perfect place to host the opening ceremony. It has *** really cool design feature spiral staircases that surround the exterior of the building, and as people are walking up and down, it gives off an optical illusion that the staircase itself is rotating. Yes, it should be amazing. England, lots to see. It’s owned by two of the top European soccer clubs, AC Milan and Internazion. Now these two clubs actually bought this building last November. Their plan was to demolish it at some point and build something new and modern. Sansero Stadium did host World Cup matches in 1934 and 1990, but it is going out big, hosting an Olympic opening ceremony at the Milan Cortina Olympics. I’m Deirdre Fitzpatrick.

    Milan Cortina Olympics opening ceremony: Follow live updates

    Updated: 1:04 PM PST Feb 6, 2026

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    Featuring tributes to da Vinci and Dante, Puccini and Pausini, Armani and Fellini, pasta and vino, and other iconic tastes of Italian culture – plus Mariah Carey hitting all the high notes in “Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blu” aka “Volare” – an unprecedented four-site, dual-cauldron opening ceremony got the Milan Cortina Olympics officially started Friday.Video above: San Siro Stadium hosting its final grand event: The Olympics opening ceremonyThe opening ceremony of the Milan Cortina Olympics is centered in Milan’s landmark San Siro stadium, featuring the Parade of Athletes and entertainment over the course of the nearly three-hour spectacle.Pop star Mariah Carey and crossover tenor Andrea Bocelli are among the performers. Some 60,000 people are expected to attend the ceremony live in San Siro, including a U.S. delegation led by U.S. Vice President JD Vance.Because the Games are spread out across Italy, elements of the opening ceremony, including the procession of athletes, will also be conducted in three other locations. Moments will be beamed to the televised audience from Cortina in the heart of the Dolomite mountains, Livigno in the Italian Alps, as well as Predazzo in the autonomous province of Trento.Who will light the Olympic cauldrons? Yes, pluralThere will be two cauldrons — an Olympic first — inspired by Leonardo da Vinci’s geometric studies: one in Milan, at the Arco della Pace, some 2 1/2 miles from San Siro, and the other at Piazza Dibona in Cortina, some five hours and 250 miles away. The cauldrons will be lit simultaneously.Of course, the identities of the final torchbearers won’t be revealed to the world until they step into the spotlight Friday night.What is the theme of the Milan Cortina Olympics opening ceremony?The theme is “Harmony,” an especially potent message with many populations exposed to violence. The concept of an Olympic Truce, originating in ancient Greece and revived by Olympic officials in the 1990s, is even more urgent this year, opening ceremony creative director Marco Balich told The Associated Press recently. The truce aims to promote peace and dialogue through sport by ceasing hostilities for a week before the Olympics and a week after the Paralympics, which close March 15.

    MILAN —

    Featuring tributes to da Vinci and Dante, Puccini and Pausini, Armani and Fellini, pasta and vino, and other iconic tastes of Italian culture – plus Mariah Carey hitting all the high notes in “Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blu” aka “Volare” – an unprecedented four-site, dual-cauldron opening ceremony got the Milan Cortina Olympics officially started Friday.

    Video above: San Siro Stadium hosting its final grand event: The Olympics opening ceremony

    The opening ceremony of the Milan Cortina Olympics is centered in Milan’s landmark San Siro stadium, featuring the Parade of Athletes and entertainment over the course of the nearly three-hour spectacle.

    Pop star Mariah Carey and crossover tenor Andrea Bocelli are among the performers. Some 60,000 people are expected to attend the ceremony live in San Siro, including a U.S. delegation led by U.S. Vice President JD Vance.

    Because the Games are spread out across Italy, elements of the opening ceremony, including the procession of athletes, will also be conducted in three other locations. Moments will be beamed to the televised audience from Cortina in the heart of the Dolomite mountains, Livigno in the Italian Alps, as well as Predazzo in the autonomous province of Trento.

    Who will light the Olympic cauldrons? Yes, plural

    There will be two cauldrons — an Olympic first — inspired by Leonardo da Vinci’s geometric studies: one in Milan, at the Arco della Pace, some 2 1/2 miles from San Siro, and the other at Piazza Dibona in Cortina, some five hours and 250 miles away. The cauldrons will be lit simultaneously.

    Of course, the identities of the final torchbearers won’t be revealed to the world until they step into the spotlight Friday night.

    What is the theme of the Milan Cortina Olympics opening ceremony?

    The theme is “Harmony,” an especially potent message with many populations exposed to violence. The concept of an Olympic Truce, originating in ancient Greece and revived by Olympic officials in the 1990s, is even more urgent this year, opening ceremony creative director Marco Balich told The Associated Press recently. The truce aims to promote peace and dialogue through sport by ceasing hostilities for a week before the Olympics and a week after the Paralympics, which close March 15.

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  • Why is ICE in Minneapolis? JD Vance wrong on reason

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    The U.S. Department of Homeland Security surged 3,000 federal immigration agents to Minnesota — a state more than a thousand miles from the southern border that’s not known for having a sizable population of immigrants in the U.S. illegally — calling it the largest such operation ever. Many people have wondered: Why Minnesota?

    Vice President JD Vance, who visited Minneapolis on Jan. 22 to defend federal immigration enforcement, gave a misleading answer.

    “Right now, we’re focused on Minneapolis because that’s where we have the highest concentration of people who have violated our immigration laws, and that’s also, frankly, where we see the most assault of our law enforcement officers,” Vance said during a press conference.

    The vice president’s visit to Minneapolis came after an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent fatally shot Renee Good on Jan. 7 but before a Border Patrol agent fatally shot Alex Pretti on Jan. 24. Both were U.S. citizens.

    PolitiFact asked spokespersons for the White House and Homeland Security for Vance’s evidence about Minneapolis having the “highest concentration of people who have violated our immigration laws” and received no response. (We did not examine data on assault of officers by jurisdiction.)

    Dozens of other U.S. metro areas have a higher concentration of immigrants in the U.S. illegally compared with the Minneapolis metro area. 

    Immigrant populations by metro area 

    There are about 130,000 immigrants who are in the U.S. illegally in Minnesota, according to 2023 Pew Research Center data, the most recent year available.

    They represent about 2% of the state’s population and about 1% of the unauthorized population nationwide. 

    The Migration Policy Institute, a nonpartisan group, estimated a slightly smaller number for Minnesota of about 100,000 immigrants in the U.S. illegally.

    Government officials and nonpartisan groups that track immigration data do not have data showing the number of immigrants the U.S. illegally exclusively in the city of Minneapolis. Instead, they use metro area data; Pew Research Center uses a 15-county area that includes Minneapolis and St. Paul.

    Jeffrey Passel, a Pew Research Center demographer, said the overall U.S. population of immigrants in the country illegally was probably slightly larger in 2025 than the 2023 data reflects, but there was not a large influx in the Minneapolis metro area.

    Pew estimated about 90,000 unauthorized immigrants in the Minneapolis metro area. Dozens of other metro areas have larger numbers, Passel said.

    Immigrants in the country illegally represent about 2.4% of the Minneapolis metro area’s population. That’s smaller than the 4.1% nationally, Passel said. In major metro areas such as Miami and Houston, the share of immigrants in the U.S. illegally was at least four times as big as the share in Minneapolis. Metro areas such as Provo, Utah; Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Hartford, Connecticut; and Tulsa, Oklahoma, had higher percentages than the Minneapolis metro area.

    Somalis are a small percentage of the Minnesota population

    President Donald Trump has said the Minnesota focus is because of a fraud scandal involving dozens of Somalis. Somalis represent about 2% of Minnesota’s population. Somalis came to Minnesota starting in the 1990s fleeing a civil war, some as refugees while others were sponsored by family members or moved from other states. Most are U.S. citizens, either through naturalization or birth.

    Since 2022, federal prosecutors have charged about 98 people with defrauding the federal government. The majority have been convicted while many cases remain pending.

    Our ruling

    Vance said, “Right now we’re focused on Minneapolis because that’s where we have the highest concentration of people who have violated our immigration laws.” 

    Vance provided no evidence to back up his statement.

    Immigrants in the country illegally represent about 2.4% of the Minneapolis metro area’s population. Dozens of metro areas have larger numbers of immigrants in the U.S. illegally than the Minneapolis metro area, including smaller metro areas across the country. 

    We rate this statement False. 

    Chief Correspondent Louis Jacobson contributed to this fact-check.

    RELATED: In Context: What did Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey say about police fighting ICE?

    RELATED: Fact-check: Trump officials’ statements about Alex Pretti’s fatal shooting by Border Patrol agent

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  • Secret Service: Man arrested, accused of breaking windows at VP JD Vance’s Ohio home

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    A man has been taken into custody by police after officers and Secret Service agents responded to the Cincinnati home of Vice President JD Vance overnight.William DeFoor, 26, has been charged with criminal damaging/endangering, obstructing official business and criminal trespass, all misdemeanors, as well as one count of vandalism, a fifth-degree felony, according to a police report.Cincinnati Police say DeFoor is accused of being seen by a Secret Service agent and on security footage walking onto the property without permission and damaging four windows, as well as a vehicle. Sister station WLWT’s cameras captured what appears to be damage to the windows of the home. Officers were on scene for several hours, going in and out of the house. The Secret Service said the incident happened shortly after midnight early Monday morning. The Secret Service is coordinating with CPD and the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Vance had been in Cincinnati for the last week. He left Sunday afternoon. This is a developing story and will be updated when we learn more.

    CINCINNATI —

    A man has been taken into custody by police after officers and Secret Service agents responded to the Cincinnati home of Vice President JD Vance overnight.

    William DeFoor, 26, has been charged with criminal damaging/endangering, obstructing official business and criminal trespass, all misdemeanors, as well as one count of vandalism, a fifth-degree felony, according to a police report.

    Cincinnati Police say DeFoor is accused of being seen by a Secret Service agent and on security footage walking onto the property without permission and damaging four windows, as well as a vehicle.

    Sister station WLWT’s cameras captured what appears to be damage to the windows of the home. Officers were on scene for several hours, going in and out of the house.

    Hearst Owned

    WLWT’s cameras captured what appears to be damage to the windows of the home. Officers were on scene in the East Walnut Hills area for several hours, going in and out of the house.

    The Secret Service said the incident happened shortly after midnight early Monday morning. The Secret Service is coordinating with CPD and the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

    Vance had been in Cincinnati for the last week. He left Sunday afternoon.

    This is a developing story and will be updated when we learn more.

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  • Police respond to Ohio home of VP JD Vance as part of hours-long investigation

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    Police respond to Ohio home of VP JD Vance as part of hours-long investigation

    PEOPLE LINE UP TO WATCH THE HISTORIC ARRAIGNMENT. THIS IS WLWT NEWS 5 LEADING THE WAY WITH BREAKING NEWS. LET’S GET RIGHT TO THAT BREAKING NEWS. WE ARE STILL WORKING TO GET ANSWERS AFTER CINCINNATI POLICE AND THE U.S. SECRET SERVICE RESPONDED TO THE HOME OF JD VANCE OVERNIGHT. THEY WERE THERE IN EAST WALNUT HILLS FOR SEVERAL HOURS. WLWT NEWS FIVE’S NICOLE APONTE LIVE FOR US THERE THIS MORNING. NICOLE, WHAT CAN YOU TELL US? KELLY, WE’RE IN THE VICINITY OF WHERE JD VANCE HOME IS IN EAST WALNUT HILLS. THERE IS STILL VERY LIMITED INFORMATION RIGHT NOW, BUT WE DO KNOW THAT CINCINNATI POLICE AND SECRET SERVICE AGENTS RESPONDED TO VANCE’S HOME OVERNIGHT. IN THIS VIDEO, RIGHT HERE, OUR PHOTOGRAPHER CAPTURED WHAT APPEARS TO BE DAMAGE TO THE WINDOWS. OFFICERS WERE ON SCENE IN THE AREA FOR SEVERAL HOURS, GOING IN AND OUT OF THIS HOME, BUT POLICE HERE COULD ONLY TELL US THEY, QUOTE, HAVE A SUSPECT. IT’S NOT CLEAR IF THAT PERSON IS IN CUSTODY, WHAT THEY’RE CHARGED WITH, OR IF THEY’RE CONNECTED TO THIS INVESTIGATION. VICE PRESIDENT VANCE WAS IN CINCINNATI FOR THE LAST WEEK AND LEFT YESTERDAY AFTERNOON. WE’VE SPOKEN WITH SECRET SERVICE AGENTS HERE ON THE SCENE. THEY TELL US THAT THERE SHOULD BE A STATEMENT MADE LATER THIS MORNING. MEANTIME, WE’LL STILL MONITOR THE SITUATION HERE IN EAST WALNUT HILLS AND BRING YOU THESE UPDATES AS THE

    Police respond to Ohio home of VP JD Vance as part of hours-long investigation

    Updated: 3:28 AM PST Jan 5, 2026

    Editorial Standards ⓘ

    Police and Secret Service agents responded to the Cincinnati home of Vice President JD Vance overnight.Sister station WLWT’s cameras captured what appears to be damage to the windows of the home. Officers were on scene for several hours, going in and out of the house.Cincinnati police there could say only that they “have a suspect.”It’s not clear if that person is in custody or what they’re charged with.WLWT has spoken with Secret Service agents who say a statement will likely be made later Monday morning.Vance had been in Cincinnati for the last week. He left Sunday afternoon. This is a developing story and will be updated when we learn more.

    CINCINNATI —

    Police and Secret Service agents responded to the Cincinnati home of Vice President JD Vance overnight.

    Sister station WLWT’s cameras captured what appears to be damage to the windows of the home. Officers were on scene for several hours, going in and out of the house.

    WLWT's cameras captured what appears to be damage to the windows of the home. Officers were on scene in the East Walnut Hills area for several hours, going in and out of the house.

    Hearst Owned

    WLWT’s cameras captured what appears to be damage to the windows of the home. Officers were on scene in the East Walnut Hills area for several hours, going in and out of the house.

    Cincinnati police there could say only that they “have a suspect.”

    It’s not clear if that person is in custody or what they’re charged with.

    WLWT has spoken with Secret Service agents who say a statement will likely be made later Monday morning.

    Vance had been in Cincinnati for the last week. He left Sunday afternoon.

    This is a developing story and will be updated when we learn more.

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  • Vance blames left for political violence, omits long trends

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    Following the September assassination of conservative influencer Charlie Kirk, President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance have shaped their political agenda by blaming the left for political violence.

    “Political violence, it’s just a statistical fact that it’s a bigger problem on the left,” Vance said while guest-hosting The Charlie Kirk Show podcast Oct. 15 in the aftermath of Kirk’s killing. About a minute later, he added, “Right now that violent impulse is a bigger problem on the left than the right.”

    A Vance spokesperson did not answer our questions. When referring to left-wing violence, a White House spokesperson recently pointed to a Sept. 28 Axios article about a study by the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a nonprofit policy research organization.

    The study found that “2025 marks the first time in more than 30 years that left-wing terrorist attacks outnumber those from the violent far right.” The study also showed that for the 30 years before 2025, right-wing attacks had outpaced left-wing attacks.

    “The rise in left-wing attacks merits increased attention, but the fall in right-wing attacks is probably temporary, and it too requires a government response,” the study’s authors wrote.

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    Vance’s statement oversimplified political violence and drew from part of one study of a six-month period. The federal government has no single, official definition of “political violence” and ascribing ideologies such as left-wing and right-wing is sometimes complicated. There is no agreed upon number of left- or right-wing politically violent attacks. 

    Research before 2025 largely points to higher levels of right-wing violence over longer periods of time. 

    Trump has used the administration’s statements about rising left-wing violence to designate antifa as a domestic terrorist organization, and administration officials also said they will investigate what they call left-wing groups that fund violence.

    Although political violence is a small subset of violent crime in the U.S., it “has a disproportionate impact because even rare incidents can amplify fear, influence policy and deepen societal polarization,” University of Dayton sociology professors Arthur Jipson and Paul J. Becker wrote in September after Kirk’s assassination.

    In an email interview with PolitiFact, Becker said the report in question, “indicates there MAY be a shift occurring from the Right being more violent but 5 vs. 1 incidents in 6 months isn’t enough to completely erase years of data and reports from multiple sources showing the opposite or to dictate new policies.” 

    Study examined three decades of political violence 

    The Center for Strategic and International Studies, a national security and defense think tank, published a September report examining 750 terrorist attacks and plots in the U.S. between 1994 and July 4, 2025.

    The report defined terrorism as the use or threat of violence “with the intent to achieve political goals by creating a broad psychological impact.” 

    The authors wrote that it is difficult to pinpoint some perpetrators’ ideologies, which in some cases are more of what former FBI director Christopher Wray called a “salad bar of ideologies.” For example, Thomas Crooks, who attempted to assassinate Trump in 2024, searched the internet more than 60 times for Trump and then-President Joe Biden in the month before the attack. 

    The full CSIS report gave a more complete picture of politically motivated violence:

    • Left-wing violence has risen from low levels since 2016. “It has risen from very low levels and remains much lower than historical levels of violence carried out by right-wing and jihadist attackers.”

    • Right-wing attacks sharply declined in 2025, perhaps because right-wing extremist grievances such as opposition to abortion, hostility to immigration and suspicion of government agencies are “embraced by President Trump and his administration.” The report quotes Enrique Tarrio, the former Proud Boys leader pardoned by Trump, who said, “Honestly, what do we have to complain about these days?”

    • Left-wing attacks have been less deadly than right-wing attacks. In the past decade, left-wing attacks have killed 13 victims, compared with 112 for right-wing attackers. The report cited several reasons, including that left-wing attackers often choose targets that are protected such as government or law enforcement facilities, and target specific individuals. 

    • The number of incidents by the left is small. A graphic in the report showing the rise in left-wing attacks in 2025 as of July 4 is visually striking. It is based on a small number of incidents: four attacks and one disrupted plot. 

    Studies have not uniformly agreed on some attackers’ ideological classifications. The libertarian Cato Institute categorized the person charged in the shooting deaths of two Israeli embassy staffers in May 2025 as left-wing, while the CSIS study described the motivation as “ethnonationalist.” (Ethnonationalism is a political ideology based on heritage, such as ethnic identity, which can create clashes with other groups.) The Cato study counted only deaths while the CSIS analysis was not limited to deaths.

    “While Vance’s statement has a factual anchor for that limited timespan, it selectively emphasizes one short-term slice rather than the broader trend,” Jipson, of the University of Dayton, told PolitiFact. “In that sense, it can be misleading: It may give the impression that left-wing violence is generally now more dangerous or prevalent, which is not borne out by the longer view of the data.” 

    A photo of Trump is seen at a growing memorial for Charlie Kirk outside Timpanogos Regional Hospital after Kirk was shot and killed Sept. 10, 2025, in Orem, Utah. (AP)

    The Cato analysis, published after Kirk’s death, said 3,597 people were killed in politically motivated U.S. terrorist attacks from Jan. 1, 1975, through Sept. 10, 2025.

    Cato found right-wing attacks were more common than left-wing. This research has been highlighted by some House Democrats.

    Cato wrote that during that time period, terrorists inspired by Islamist ideology were responsible for 87% of people killed in attacks on U.S. soil, while right-wing attackers accounted for 11% and left-wing terrorists accounted for about 2%. Excluding the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks showed right-wing attackers were responsible for a majority of deaths. Measuring homicides since 2020 also showed a larger number by the right than the left.

    Our ruling

    Vance said, “Political violence, it’s just a statistical fact that it’s a bigger problem on the left.” 

    Vance did not point to a source, but a White House spokesperson separately cited an article about a study that examined political violence from 1994 to July 4, 2025. It found in the first six months of 2025, left-wing terrorist attacks outnumbered those by the right. It is based on a small number of incidents: four attacks and one disrupted plot. 

    The study also showed that for 30 years before 2025, right-wing attacks had outpaced left-wing attacks.

    The study detailed that left-wing “remains much lower than historical levels of violence carried out by right-wing and jihadist attackers.” Research before 2025 largely points to higher levels of right-wing violence over longer periods of time.

    The statement contains an element of truth because left-wing violence rose in the first six months of 2025. However, it ignores that right-wing violence was higher for a much longer period of time. We rate this statement Mostly False.

    Chief Correspondent Louis Jacobson contributed to this fact-check.

    RELATED: Nihilistic violent extremism: What the FBI term means and why experts warn against overuse

    RELATED: ‘Rough road ahead’: Charlie Kirk’s assassination highlights the rise in US political violence

     

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  • Charlie Kirk’s friends praise slain activist’s faith, mark on conservative movement

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    President Donald Trump and prominent members of his “Make America Great Again” movement paid tribute Sunday to Charlie Kirk, praising the slain political conservative activist as a singular force whose work they must now advance.Stream the service in the video player aboveThe memorial service for Kirk, whom Trump credits with playing a pivotal role in his 2024 election victory, drew tens of thousands of mourners, including Vice President JD Vance, other senior administration officials and young conservatives shaped by the 31-year-old firebrand.“For Charlie, we will remember that it is better to stand on our feet defending the United States of America and defending the truth than it is to die on our knees,” Vance said. “My friends, for Charlie, we must remember that he is a hero to the United States of America. And he is a martyr for the Christian faith.”Speakers highlighted Kirk’s profound faith and his strong belief that young conservatives need to get married, build families and pass on their values to keep building their movement. They also repeatedly told conservative activists, sometimes in confrontational tones, that the best way to honor Kirk was doubling down on his mission to move American politics further to the right.Kirk’s assassination at a Sept. 10 appearance on a Utah college campus has become a singular moment for the modern-day conservative movement. It also has set off a fierce debate about violence, decency and free speech in an era of deep political division.High security and a full stadiumThose close to Kirk prayed and the floors shook from the bass of Christian rock bands as the home of the NFL’s Arizona Cardinals took on the feel of a megachurch service.“Charlie looked at politics as an on-ramp to Jesus,” said the Rev. Rob McCoy, Kirk’s pastor.People began lining up before dawn to secure a spot inside State Farm Stadium west of Phoenix, where Kirk’s Turning Point organization is based. Security was tight, similar to the Super Bowl or other high-profile event. The speakers delivered their tributes from behind bullet-proof glass.The 63,400-seat stadium quickly filled with people dressed in red, white and blue, as organizers suggested.Kirk’s widow, Erika, in her own address said in the midst of her grief she was finding comfort that her husband left this world without regrets. She also said she forgives the man who is charged with killing him.“My husband, Charlie, he wanted to save young men, just like the one who took his life,” said Erika Kirk, who is taking over as Turning Point’s leader. She added, “I forgive him.”A 22-year-old Utah man, Tyler Robinson, has been charged with killing Kirk and faces the death penalty if convicted of the most serious charges. Authorities have not revealed a clear motive in the shooting, but prosecutors say Robinson wrote in a text to his partner following the shooting that he “had enough” of Kirk’s hatred.Kirk’s legacy of conservative political influenceTurning Point, the group Kirk founded to mobilize young Christian conservatives, became a multimillion-dollar operation under his leadership with enormous reach.“Charlie’s having some serious heavenly FOMO right now,” Tyler Bower, Turning Point’s chief operating officer, said, likening the moment to bringing “the Holy Spirit into a Trump rally.”The crowd was a testament to the massive influence he accumulated in conservative America with his ability to mobilize young people.His impact on modern-day conservatism went beyond U.S. shores.Kirk “was very effective because he was convinced of his views and knew how to argue them,” Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni said at a political rally Sunday in Rome.Kirk was a MAGA celebrity with a loyal following that turned out to support or argue with him as he traveled the country for the events like the one at Utah Valley University, where he was shot. Kirk grew the organization, in large part, through the force of his personality and debating chops.“He slayed ignorance,” said Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. “He cut through lies. He woke people’s minds, inspired people’s hearts and imparted wisdom every day.”Speaker after speaker, including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, expressed their awe at Kirk’s ability to go into what many conservatives saw as the lion’s den to make the conservative case: college campuses.“Why don’t you start somewhere easier,” Rubio joked when he first heard about Kirk years ago. “Like, for example, communist Cuba?”

    GLENDALE, Ariz. —

    President Donald Trump and prominent members of his “Make America Great Again” movement paid tribute Sunday to Charlie Kirk, praising the slain political conservative activist as a singular force whose work they must now advance.

    Stream the service in the video player above

    The memorial service for Kirk, whom Trump credits with playing a pivotal role in his 2024 election victory, drew tens of thousands of mourners, including Vice President JD Vance, other senior administration officials and young conservatives shaped by the 31-year-old firebrand.

    “For Charlie, we will remember that it is better to stand on our feet defending the United States of America and defending the truth than it is to die on our knees,” Vance said. “My friends, for Charlie, we must remember that he is a hero to the United States of America. And he is a martyr for the Christian faith.”

    Speakers highlighted Kirk’s profound faith and his strong belief that young conservatives need to get married, build families and pass on their values to keep building their movement. They also repeatedly told conservative activists, sometimes in confrontational tones, that the best way to honor Kirk was doubling down on his mission to move American politics further to the right.

    Kirk’s assassination at a Sept. 10 appearance on a Utah college campus has become a singular moment for the modern-day conservative movement. It also has set off a fierce debate about violence, decency and free speech in an era of deep political division.

    High security and a full stadium

    Those close to Kirk prayed and the floors shook from the bass of Christian rock bands as the home of the NFL’s Arizona Cardinals took on the feel of a megachurch service.

    “Charlie looked at politics as an on-ramp to Jesus,” said the Rev. Rob McCoy, Kirk’s pastor.

    People began lining up before dawn to secure a spot inside State Farm Stadium west of Phoenix, where Kirk’s Turning Point organization is based. Security was tight, similar to the Super Bowl or other high-profile event. The speakers delivered their tributes from behind bullet-proof glass.

    The 63,400-seat stadium quickly filled with people dressed in red, white and blue, as organizers suggested.

    Kirk’s widow, Erika, in her own address said in the midst of her grief she was finding comfort that her husband left this world without regrets. She also said she forgives the man who is charged with killing him.

    “My husband, Charlie, he wanted to save young men, just like the one who took his life,” said Erika Kirk, who is taking over as Turning Point’s leader. She added, “I forgive him.”

    A 22-year-old Utah man, Tyler Robinson, has been charged with killing Kirk and faces the death penalty if convicted of the most serious charges. Authorities have not revealed a clear motive in the shooting, but prosecutors say Robinson wrote in a text to his partner following the shooting that he “had enough” of Kirk’s hatred.

    Kirk’s legacy of conservative political influence

    Turning Point, the group Kirk founded to mobilize young Christian conservatives, became a multimillion-dollar operation under his leadership with enormous reach.

    “Charlie’s having some serious heavenly FOMO right now,” Tyler Bower, Turning Point’s chief operating officer, said, likening the moment to bringing “the Holy Spirit into a Trump rally.”

    The crowd was a testament to the massive influence he accumulated in conservative America with his ability to mobilize young people.

    His impact on modern-day conservatism went beyond U.S. shores.

    Kirk “was very effective because he was convinced of his views and knew how to argue them,” Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni said at a political rally Sunday in Rome.

    Kirk was a MAGA celebrity with a loyal following that turned out to support or argue with him as he traveled the country for the events like the one at Utah Valley University, where he was shot. Kirk grew the organization, in large part, through the force of his personality and debating chops.

    “He slayed ignorance,” said Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. “He cut through lies. He woke people’s minds, inspired people’s hearts and imparted wisdom every day.”

    Speaker after speaker, including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, expressed their awe at Kirk’s ability to go into what many conservatives saw as the lion’s den to make the conservative case: college campuses.

    “Why don’t you start somewhere easier,” Rubio joked when he first heard about Kirk years ago. “Like, for example, communist Cuba?”

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  • Contributor: Russia wants what it cannot have

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    Vladimir Putin is on a roll the past few weeks. First President Trump invited him to Anchorage. Then he got a three-way hug with China’s President Xi Jinping and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a summit in China. And an invitation to a grand military parade in Beijing.

    Since the 2014 annexation of Crimea, Putin had been shunted to the fringes of summit group photos. After Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, he had been treated as a pariah by the United States and Europe. Indicted by the International Criminal Court on charges of genocide, he could travel only to countries that wouldn’t arrest him. In short, Moscow was not being treated with the respect it believed it deserved.

    Trump thought that by literally rolling out the red carpet for Putin in Alaska — and clapping as the Russian loped down the red carpet — he could reset the bilateral relationship. And it did. But not the way Trump intended.

    The Alaskan summit convinced the Russians that the current administration is willing to throw the sources of American global power out the window.

    Trade partners, geopolitical allies and alliances — everything is on the table for Trump. The U.S. president believes this shows his power; the Russians see this as a low-cost opportunity to degrade American influence. Putin was trained by the KGB to recognize weakness and exploit it.

    There is no evidence that being friendly to Putin and agreeing with Russian positions are going to make Moscow more willing to stop fighting in Ukraine. Overlooking Russia’s intensifying hybrid attacks on Europe, in February, Vice President JD Vance warned Europe that it should be focusing instead on the threat to democracy “from within.” This followed Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth‘s assurances that Ukraine would never join NATO. Trump has suggested that U.S. support for NATO and Europe is contingent on those countries paying up. In an event that sent Moscow pundits to pop the Champagne, Trump told Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office that he just didn’t “have the cards” and should stop trying to beat Russia.

    Did any of this bring Putin to the negotiating table? No.

    In fact, the Kremlin indicated a readiness to talk with Trump about the war only when Trump threatened “very, very powerful” sanctions in mid-July. This time, he seemed serious about it. The Alaska summit happened a month later. The tougher Trump is with Russia, the more likely he is to get any kind of traction in negotiations. It’s unfortunate that the president has now gone back to vague two-week deadlines for imposing sanctions that never materialize.

    Russia believes it will win the war. China has been a steady friend, willing to sell Russia cars and dual-use technology that ends up in drones that are attacking Ukrainian cities. It has also become Russia’s largest buyer of crude oil and coal. Western sanctions have not been biting the Russian economy, though they have nibbled away at state revenues. Europe and the United States have not been willing to apply the kind of economic pressure that would seriously dent Russia’s ability to carry on the war.

    Putin keeps saying that a resolution to the war requires that the West address the “root causes” of the war. These causes, for Russia, relate to the way it was treated after losing the Cold War. The three Baltic nations joined Europe as fast as they could. Central and Eastern European countries decided that they would rather be part of NATO than the Warsaw Pact. When Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine started asking for membership in the European Union and NATO, Russia realized it wouldn’t be able to convince them to stay with economic appeal or soft power. It had to use force. Unable to demonstrate the attraction of its suffocating embrace, or the value of its Eurasian Economic Union, Russia believed it had to use force to keep Ukraine by its side. It reminds one of a grotesque Russian expression: “If he beats you, it means he loves you.”

    The real “root cause” of the war in Ukraine is Russia’s inability to accept that centuries of empire do not confer the right to dominate former colonies forever. Mongolia learned this. As did the British. And the French. And the Ottomans. The Austro-Hungarians.

    Eventually this war will end. But not soon. Russia is insisting on maximalist demands that Ukraine cannot agree to, which include control over territory it hasn’t managed to occupy. Ukraine will not stop fighting until it is sure that Russia will not attack again. Achieving that degree of certainty with flimsy security guarantees is impossible.

    In the meantime, Ukrainian cities on the frontline will continue being wiped out, citizens in Kherson will continue being subjects of “human safari” for Russian drone operators, people across Ukraine will continue experiencing daily air raids that send them scurrying into shelters. Soldiers, volunteers, civilians and children will continue dying. Trump appears to care about the thousands of daily casualties. Most of these are Russian soldiers who have been sent to their death by a Russian state that doesn’t see their lives as worth preserving.

    Trump is understandably frustrated with his inability to “stop the killing” because he has assumed that satisfying Russian demands is the answer. The opposite is true: Only by showing — proving — to Russia that its demands are unattainable will the U.S. persuade the Kremlin to consider meaningful negotiations. Countries at war come to the negotiating table not because they are convinced to abandon their objectives. They sit down when they realize their goals are unattainable.

    Alexandra Vacroux is the vice president for strategic engagement at the Kyiv School of Economics.

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    Perspectives

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    Ideas expressed in the piece

    • Putin has successfully leveraged recent diplomatic engagements to break out of international isolation, using meetings with Xi Jinping and Modi, along with Trump’s invitation to Alaska, to demonstrate that Western attempts to sideline Russia have failed. These high-profile gatherings signal to the world that Russia remains a significant player on the global stage despite sanctions and international legal proceedings.

    • Trump’s accommodating approach toward Putin represents a fundamental misreading of Russian psychology and strategic thinking, as Putin was trained to recognize and exploit weakness rather than respond to friendship with reciprocal gestures. The president’s willingness to question support for NATO and suggest contingent relationships with allies signals to Moscow that American global influence can be degraded at low cost.

    • Russia only demonstrates willingness to engage in meaningful negotiations when faced with credible threats of severe consequences, as evidenced by the Kremlin’s indication of readiness to talk only after Trump threatened “very, very powerful” sanctions in July. Conversely, accommodating gestures and vague deadlines for sanctions that never materialize encourage Russian intransigence.

    • The fundamental driver of the conflict stems from Russia’s inability to accept the end of its imperial dominance over former territories, not the grievances about post-Cold War treatment that Moscow frequently cites. Russia’s resort to force against Ukraine, Georgia, and Moldova reflects its failure to maintain influence through economic appeal or soft power, revealing an outdated imperial mindset that refuses to acknowledge former colonies’ right to self-determination.

    • Meaningful negotiations will only occur when Russia recognizes that its maximalist territorial and political demands are unattainable through military means, requiring sustained pressure rather than premature concessions. Current Russian demands for control over territory it hasn’t occupied and Ukraine’s complete capitulation demonstrate that Moscow still believes it can achieve total victory.

    Different views on the topic

    • The Russia-China partnership faces significant structural limitations that constrain the depth of their cooperation, despite public declarations of “no limits” friendship. While both nations conduct joint military exercises and maintain substantial trade relationships, their military collaboration remains “carefully managed and circumscribed by each nation’s broader strategic interests,” with no mutual defense agreements or deep operational integration between their armed forces[1].

    • India’s apparent warming toward China and Russia reflects strategic autonomy principles rather than genuine alignment toward an anti-Western axis, as fundamental tensions between New Delhi and Beijing persist over unresolved border disputes and strategic competition in the Indian Ocean region[2]. Recent diplomatic gestures may be tactical responses to trade tensions rather than indicators of a permanent realignment away from partnerships with Australia, Japan, the European Union, and other democratic allies[2].

    • The potential for wedging strategies between Russia and China remains viable due to underlying structural tensions and competing interests, particularly in Central Asia where both powers seek influence. American policymakers increasingly recognize that the “reverse Nixon” approach of driving wedges between Moscow and Beijing could exploit inherent limitations in their partnership, as their relationship represents neither unlimited friendship nor a completely stable alliance[4][5].

    • China’s military cooperation with Russia serves Beijing’s interests in testing tactics and equipment while maintaining careful distance from direct involvement in conflicts that could jeopardize its broader strategic goals[1]. Chinese support for Russian drone production and dual-use technology transfers reflects calculated assistance that stops short of full military alliance, suggesting Beijing prioritizes its own strategic flexibility over unconditional support for Russian objectives[3].

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    Alexandra Vacroux

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  • Trump follows through on first-term promise moving Space Command from Colorado to Alabama

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    President Donald Trump on Tuesday announced the U.S. Space Command headquarters would relocate from Colorado Springs, Colorado, to Huntsville, Alabama.

    In 2018, Trump signed an executive order reestablishing the space command during his first term. In 2023, former President Joe Biden decided to keep the headquarters in Colorado, where it was temporarily located.

    Trump’s announcement Tuesday officially reversed Biden’s decision and is consistent with his original plan.

    “The U.S. Space Command HQ will move to the beautiful locale of a place called Huntsville, Alabama, forever to be known from this point forward as Rocket City,” Trump said in a press conference.

    President Donald Trump speaks about the relocation of U.S. Space Command headquarters from Colorado to Alabama in the Oval Office of the White House, Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2025, in Washington. | Mark Schiefelbein

    The decision was criticized by Democrats, who say it will be costly to relocate the headquarters and puts jobs in jeopardy in Colorado.

    Trump said Tuesday that Colorado’s use of mail-in voting was a “big factor” for why the change was happening. Alabama allows absentee ballots that can be requested and returned by mail.

    Alabama, which voted in favor of Trump in all three of the elections he ran in, celebrated the decision with its congressional delegation joining Trump in the Oval Office for the announcement. The relocation is expected to bring jobs and investment to Huntsville’s Redstone Arsenal.

    “We had a lot of competition for this and Alabama’s getting it,” Trump said, acknowledging the state’s leaders flanking him on either side.

    The Air Force had previously said Redstone was the preferred location for the headquarters, but officials said new construction would have to happen in Alabama to support the operations already underway in Colorado. The Biden administration opted instead to overturn Trump’s decision and keep operations where they were.

    Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser said in a statement Tuesday that Trump was playing “political games” with the military’s readiness and their families.

    “Moving Space Command Headquarters to Alabama is not only wrong for our national defense, but it’s harmful to hundreds of Space Command personnel and their families,” Weiser said.

    Donald Trump

    In this Aug. 29, 2019, file photo, President Donald Trump, left, watches with Vice President Mike Pence and Defense Secretary Mark Esper as the flag for U.S. space Command is unfurled as Trump announces the establishment of the U.S. Space Command in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington. President Joe Biden has decided to keep U.S. Space Command headquarters in Colorado, overturning a last-ditch decision by the Trump administration to move it to Alabama and ending months of politically fueled debate, according to senior U.S. officials | Carolyn Kaster

    Weiser said his office had been preparing for Trump to make this announcement and is ready to challenge it in court.

    Trump’s announcement Tuesday was his first televised remarks in a week, since a three-hour Cabinet meeting last Tuesday.

    After several days with no public appearances, there was speculation online about the president’s health. He noted during the press conference that he had an “active” weekend by golfing, posting online and doing an hourlong interview with an outlet.

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  • Trump administration moves to tighten duration of visas for students and media

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    The latest move would create new hurdles for international students, exchange workers, and foreign journalists who would have to apply to extend their stay in the US.

    The Trump administration aims to tighten the duration of visas for students, cultural exchange visitors, and members of the media, according to a proposed government regulation issued on Wednesday, part of a broader crackdown on legal immigration.

    President Donald Trump, a Republican, kicked off a wide-ranging immigration crackdown after taking office in January. The latest move would create new hurdles for international students, exchange workers, and foreign journalists who would have to apply to extend their stay in the US rather than maintain a more flexible legal status.

    The proposed regulation would create a fixed time period for F visas for international students, J visas that allow visitors on cultural exchange programs to work in the US, and I visas for members of the media. Those visas are currently available for the duration of the program or US-based employment.

    There were about 1.6 million international students on F visas in the US in 2024, according to US government data. The US granted visas to about 355,000 exchange visitors and 13,000 members of the media in fiscal year 2024, which began on October 1, 2023.

    The student and exchange visa periods would be no longer than four years, the proposed regulation said. The visa for journalists – which currently can last years – would be up to 240 days or, in the case of Chinese nationals, 90 days. The visa holders could apply for extensions, the proposal said.

    Members of the National Guard patrol the National Mall past a banner of U.S. President Donald Trump hanging on the Department of Labor building, weeks after President Trump ordered National Guard and law enforcement to patrol the nation’s capital to assist in crime prevention, in Washington, D.C. (credit: BRIAN SNYDER/REUTERS)

    Trump cracks down on student visas

    The Trump administration said in the proposed regulation that the change was needed to better “monitor and oversee” the visa holders while they were in the United States.

    The public will have 30 days to comment on the measure, which mirrors a proposal put forward in 2020 at the end of Trump’s first term in office.

    NAFSA, a non-profit organization representing international educators at more than 4,300 institutions worldwide, opposed the 2020 proposal and called on the Trump administration to scrap it. The Democratic administration of then-President Joe Biden withdrew it in 2021.

    The Trump administration has increased scrutiny of legal immigration, revoking student visas and green cards of university students over their ideological views and stripping legal status from hundreds of thousands of migrants.

    In an August 22 memo, US Citizenship and Immigration Services said it would resume long-dormant visits to citizenship applicants’ neighborhoods to check what it termed residency, moral character, and commitment to American ideals.

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  • 15 of Gavin Newsom’s most brutal roasts of Trump that have the left cackling & MAGA melting down

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    Shiela Fitzgerald/Shutterstock; Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

    California Governor Gavin Newsom and President Donald Trump.

    California Governor Gavin Newsom is setting the internet on fire with his new social media strategy that is not only hilarious but has the added benefit of making MAGA angry.

    Two birds, one stone.

    Newsom has been roasting the Right using memes and dunking President Donald Trump and Republican politicians by imitating Trump’s own all-caps, deranged style of posting on Truth Social.

    Over the course of the last month, the governor and his social media team have become masters at trolling. Camille Zapata is the head of Newsom’s press office and runs his @CAGovernor account, while director of communications Izzy Gardon and other members of the team run @GovPressOffice and @GavinNewsom, and all of them are well-versed in Internet memes and students of the way Trump likes to post.

    The social media posts have been so successful that they’ve managed to anger Republican politicians and even caused a Fox News host to crash out on air. After Newsom’s office posted memes making fun of Vice President JD Vance and Trump supporter Kid Rock, and labeled Kristi Noem “Commander Cosplay” and Tomi Lahren “woke,” The Five host Dana Perino melted down and called on Newsom’s wife to stop him.

    Democrats, on the other hand, have been cheering Newsom on by reposting his greatest hits, creating Trump-like AI memes of Newsom, while the media is busy creating best-of lists.

    The LGBTQ+ community is rightfully sick of Newsom after he called trans athletes competing in women’s sports “deeply unfair” in the debut episode of his podcast, but it’s hard to deny that his tweet storm is having an impact on Republicans and MAGA voters.

    Newsom may be one of the only Democrats willing to fight fire with fire, and the internet is loving him for it!

    x.com

    Newsom’s press office making fun of Trump by mimicking the bizarre all-caps way he posts on Truth Social is a hilarious and clever way to dunk on the president. Calling his hands “tiny” and roasting him for needing “little baby stairs” to get into Air Force One is the icing on the cake.

    x.com

    “Tiny hands” and “beta” are the perfect nicknames for a man obsessed with his own virility and masculinity.

    x.com

    The internet spent a couple of days making fun of the way JD Vance runs, and Newsom joined in on the fun.

    x.com

    Newsom’s press office is getting eerily good at posting like Trump. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson was another target for Newsom’s ire, calling him “little man” while roasting Trump for his obsession with maps and calling him Donald “TACO” J. Trump.

    x.com

    After Texas House Democrats broke quorum and fled the state for Illinois and California, Texas Senator Ted Cruz poked the bear by writing on X that they were probably off having dinner with Newsom “at the French Laundry.” Cruz meant it as a powerful burn, but Newsom shot back by reminding everyone of the time Cruz fled Texas for Cancun while Texans were being devastated by a harsh winter storm.

    x.com

    He has mastered the art of sarcasm.

    x.com

    Either Newsom or his social media manager is as chronically online as the rest of us and is getting in on the FAFO trend.

    x.com

    Sometimes all he needs to do is laugh at Trump.

    x.com

    Newsom has been leading the charge, fighting against the Trump administration’s use of ICE to enact their cruel immigration policies, including dunking on Donald Trump Jr. for being his dad’s mouthpiece and starting a ridiculous wireless phone company.

    x.com

    Newsom’s whole social media team deserves a raise for this one!

    x.com

    Using the “old man yells at clouds” meme to describe Fox News anchor Trace Gallagher will never not be hilarious.

    x.com

    Newsom’s press office posted a video montage of his back and forth with conservative political commentator Tomi Lahren, which included Newsom making fun of her by posting, “Tomi’s account is basically Yelp for toilets now,” with the caption “thoughts and prayers.” Hilarious.

    x.com

    Further proof that Newsom has hired funny, young, and chronically online people to run his press office.

    x.com

    Talking down to Trump and throwing his own book (The Art of the Deal) back in his face will never not be funny.

    x.com

    Superimposing Vance’s face on the meme of Raygun doing a terrible “break dance” at the Olympics is the reason Photoshop was invented.

    x.com

    Calling White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller “Voldemort’s hand” and using Cards Against Humanity to say Newsom is hurting him? Chef’s kiss.

    x.com

    No notes.

    x.com

    This Republican made the mistake of filming his anti-Newsom “rap” — we’re being generous calling it that — with a cutout of the governor behind him so that it looks like Newsom is taking him from behind. Oops.

    This article originally appeared on Pride: 15 of Gavin Newsom’s most brutal roasts of Trump that have the left cackling & MAGA melting down

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