Northern border sector sees 550% increase in migrant apprehensions last fiscal year
One sector on the often-overlooked northern border saw a 550% increase in migrant apprehensions last fiscal year, the latest statistic highlighting the increase in numbers that border officials are seeing. Swanton Sector Chief Patrol Agent Robert Garcia said this week that agents have seen a 550% increase in apprehensions, with 6,925 apprehensions between October 2022 and the end of September. He also said the migrants were arriving from 79 different countries, with the top five countries from which migrants originated being Mexico, India, Venezuela, Haiti and Romania. GOP LAWMAKER SOUNDS ALARM ON ‘DANGEROUS’ THREAT TO US COMING FROM POROUS BORDER, AND IT’S NOT FROM MEXICO The sector, which covers the borders of New York, New Hampshire and Vermont with Canada, saw just over 1,000 Border Patrol apprehensions in all of FY 2022 and just 365 in FY 2021. It’s part of a broader surge in migration at the northern and southern borders, although the numbers at the southern border vastly eclipse those seen at the northern border. In the north, there were 189,402 migrant encounters in FY 23, but that’s a sharp increase from the 27,000 seen in FY 21 and 109,535 in FY22. At the southern border, there were more than 2.4 million. NORTHERN BORDER SEES MIGRANT SURGE FROM DOZENS OF COUNTRIES; MORE THAN LAST 10 YEARS COMBINED However, officials and lawmakers have noted that massive parts of the northern border, which is over 5,000 miles long and has only 115 ports of entry, are largely unstaffed compared to the southern border. Garcia had called for volunteers earlier this year as his sector saw spikes, particularly Mexican migrants with no legal documents. “Due to the increased numbers, stations are task saturated with processing large groups, which has contributed to gotaway events, pedestrian and vehicle incursions,” he said in February. BIDEN ANNOUNCES NEW NORTHERN BORDER DEAL, FENTANYL COALITION WITH CANADA AS IMMIGRATION CRISIS RAGES Republicans in Congress have also called for more attention to the border. Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Pa., who is co-chair of the Northern Border Security Caucus, has noted the risks of drugs and other threats that could come through the border. “You don’t have to worry about coming through a jungle, you just walk across,” he said in an interview with Fox News Digital last month. “There’s not a river that you have to get across, there’s really nothing there to keep people from coming over.” The Biden administration has also acknowledged the northern border in its security plans. It announced a new border deal with Canada in the spring, meaning that migrants who attempt to cross illegally between ports of entry into either country will be returned. It updates a 2004 Safe Third Country Agreement, which did not deal with illegal immigration.
Dark money fund poured millions of dollars into eco activist groups blocking highways, destroying famous art
FIRST ON FOX: A fledgling dark money climate group poured millions of dollars last year into disruptive activist protests that blocked busy highways and destroyed famous artwork in cities across the world, according to tax filings obtained by Fox News Digital. The Beverly Hills, California-based, Climate Emergency Fund (CEF) — which has been funded in large part by Hollywood actors and producers since it was founded in 2019 — raised $6.1 million in 2022, a 165% increase from the $2.3 million it raised in 2021, the tax filings showed. The sharp increase in funding led to CEF sending $5 million to left-wing protest groups, a 274% year-over-year increase. “Climate Emergency Fund is proud to support some of the boldest, bravest climate activists in the world who are not just fighting but are winning,” Margaret Klein Salamon, CEF’s executive director, told Fox News Digital in a statement. “Throughout history, organized, passionate, and dedicated people have awakened the public’s conscience to injustice and achieved change that was once considered impossible.” “That’s why the Climate Emergency Fund supports activist organizations that engage in non-violent protest and civil disobedience worldwide,” she said. “We are experiencing global catastrophic climate events, and they are accelerating – from the months-long summer heat waves in Europe to record-low levels of Antarctic sea ice to ocean temperatures that topped 100 degrees off the coast of Florida.” BIDEN ADMIN QUIETLY DEVELOPING SETTLEMENT WITH GROUPS SEEKING TO TEAR DOWN KEY POWER SOURCE Salamon added the evidence for action is “all around us” and that the world needs to race to zero emissions “as quickly as humanly possible.” In CEF’s tax filings, the group stated that the activist organizations it supported last year “brought new life and vigor” to the climate movement. It further reported that its grantees trained more than 15,000 people, their protests included 47,000 people and their actions were covered by global media outlets 25,000 times. The majority of CEF’s 2022 grants, approximately $4 million, were sent overseas, with the most sizable slice being wired to U.K. climate activists. The largest beneficiary of CEF’s funds appeared to be Just Stop Oil, a British activist group that has repeatedly made headlines for stopping traffic and disrupting public places across the U.K. CLIMATE ACTIVISTS FORCIBLY DRAGGED FROM EVENT WITH BIDEN ENERGY SECRETARY JENNIFER GRANHOLM For example, members of Just Stop Oil made headlines late last year when they hurled tomato soup on a famous Vincent van Gogh painting at London’s National Gallery. Days earlier, dozens of its members blocked emergency service vehicles, including an ambulance, from driving to their destination during a separate protest. “Human creativity and brilliance is on show in this gallery, yet our heritage is being destroyed by our Government’s failure to act on the climate and cost of living crisis,” Just Stop Oil said in a statement after the tomato soup protest. CEF sent an additional $800,000 to other global groups like the France-based Dernière Rénovation, the Canada-based Save Old Growth and the Italy-based Ultima Generazione, all of which staged disruptive protests in 2022. In the U.S., CEF signed grants worth $1 million to domestic groups that have used similar tactics as Just Stop Oil and called for President Biden to declare a “climate emergency.” The largest domestic grant appeared to be a $206,000 wire to the National Institute for Peer Support, which was earmarked for the group Extinction Rebellion. AOC’S PAC FUNNELED THOUSANDS TO ORG FINANCING DISRUPTIVE CLIMATE PROTEST GROUPS While Biden has focused much of his presidency on combating climate change, he has yet to formally declare it a national emergency. A climate emergency declaration would enable Biden to bypass Congress and take a number of regulatory steps not normally authorized to the White House. “The environmental activist left is not an organic movement,” Daniel Turner, the founder and executive director of Power The Future, told Fox News Digital in an interview. “Their activism is well-thought-out and centrally planned, they have signs and T-shirts — someone is paying for all of that, it is orchestrated.” “You may find some young people who are enthusiastic about the cause, but a lot of their authenticity comes into question when you realize it’s being paid for by people who don’t want their fingerprints on the project themselves,” Turner said. “Once you realize that it’s not organic, that it is paid activism and paid indignation and paid anger, well, then you realize the whole thing is just an enormous farce.” According to the tax filing, CEF received more than 50 individual anonymous contributions worth thousands of dollars each. More than 10 were worth more than $100,000, with the largest contribution exceeding $1.2 million and two more exceeding $500,000 each. Since it was created, the group has garnered contributions from high-profile Hollywood figures such as actors Jeremy Strong, Chelsea Handler and Thomas Middleditch, Walt Disney heir and filmmaker Abigail Disney, and director Adam McKay, who serves on the group’s board. Democrat New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s political action committee, Courage to Change, and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s nonprofit, Onward Together, have also donated tens of thousands of dollars to CEF. Nonprofits aren’t legally required to report the identities of their donors, allowing CEF’s contributors to remain anonymous. However, in its annual report, CEF lists numerous donors, including Strong, Handler, Middleditch, Disney and McKay. And, in addition to McKay, CEF’s board of directors includes Aileen Getty, the granddaughter of the Getty Oil founder, and Rory Kennedy, the daughter of former U.S. Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy.
Romanians with organized crime ties among 20 nabbed at US-Canadian border
A group of 20 Romanian nationals — including two with organized crime ties — were nabbed Tuesday after illegally entering the U.S. from the Canadian border, authorities say. Border Patrol agents apprehended the subjects after four vehicles were observed crossing the international boundary from Canada into the United States, according to a press release from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Agents were alerted to the illegal crossing just after 6 a.m., and responded to the area on Lincoln Road in Hodgdon, a rural town in northeastern Maine, along the Canadian border. Border Patrol agents stopped the vehicles using emergency equipment, CBP says. The subjects were transported to Fort Fairfield Station for processing. The processing revealed that the subjects were from Romania. Most of them were family members, including 10 adults and 10 juveniles. Two of the subjects processed were revealed to have ties to transnational organized crime, CBP says. ADAMS WARNS NEW YORKERS THAT ‘WE CANNOT STOP’ MIGRANTS FROM SLEEPING ON THE STREETS Acting Chief Patrol Agent in Charge Dennis Harmon said there has been an overall rise in apprehensions in the Houlton Sector. “In the last three Octobers, Houlton Sector encountered a total of 33 individuals,” Harmon said. “In fiscal year 2024 alone, we’ve encountered 53.” Fox News Digital has reached out to CBP for further details on the apprehension. The apprehension after a Romanian national was indicted last week for attempting to smuggle six Romanian nationals into the U.S. via the Washington-Canadian border. Federal prosecutors say Ionel Niculae was arrested near Lynden, Washington at an accident scene where the car he was driving flipped over, injuring three passengers.
Top DeSantis backer resigns from super PAC amid internal turmoil: ‘Untenable’ environment
The head of Republican presidential candidate and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ super PAC has resigned amid internal turmoil within the organization over its strategy moving forward into 2024. Chris Jankowski, a veteran operative in Republican politics, submitted his resignation letter, effective immediately, to the board of Never Back Down on Wednesday. “Never Back Down’s main goal and sole focus has been to elect Governor Ron DeSantis as President. Given the current environment, it has become untenable for me to deliver on the shared goal and that goes well beyond a difference of strategic opinion. For the future of our country, I support and pray Ron DeSantis is our 47th president,” Jankowski said in a statement shared by Never Back Down. DESANTIS LANDS ENDORSEMENT FROM INFLUENTIAL IOWA EVANGELICAL LEADER IN RACE FOR GOP NOMINATION The group has played a significant role in DeSantis’ bid for the presidency since he launched his campaign in May, including raising nine figures to serve as an attack dog and media juggernaut for the governor. However, the operation has failed to help DeSantis break through the crowded Republican presidential field and be seen as the main challenger to former President Donald Trump’s grip on the GOP. Polls have shown DeSantis consistently in a statistical tie for second place with some of his opponents, fluctuating between former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy. According to one recent NBC News report, frustration had been building in the ranks of Never Back Down, which culminated in a heated meeting last week that nearly broke out into a fist fight. CHRIS CHRISTIE TURNS UP THE HEAT ON HALEY AND DESANTIS AS HE TRIES TO BE THE TRUMP ALTERNATIVE IN GOP 2024 RACE The report said that Never Back Down’s top consultant, Axiom Strategies CEO Jeff Roe, and longtime DeSantis associate Scott Wagner clashed during the board meeting that resulted in them having to be restrained. Despite the turmoil, DeSantis’ campaign did see a bright spot on Tuesday when it won the endorsement of influential Iowa Christian leader Bob Vander Plaats. Fox has reached out to Never Back Down and the DeSantis campaign for comment. Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.
Satanic Temple’s ‘bizarre’ inclusion at Wisconsin Christmas tree festival sparks outrage: ‘No neutral ground’
A Wisconsin museum is facing backlash after its annual Christmas tree festival included some controversial entries this year. Of the 66 trees on display at the National Railroad Museum in Ashwaubenon, Wisconsin, the ones that seemed to draw the most attention belonged to the Satanic Temple of Wisconsin and the Bay Area Council on Gender Diversity. The trees, which will be on display until Dec. 31, included decorations fitting for their causes, and not the typical ornaments depicting images related to Jesus, angels or the Christmas holiday. VIRAL VIDEOS SHOW FORMER OBAMA OFFICIAL LAUNCH RACIST RANTS AGAINST NEW YORK CITY FOOD CART VENDOR The tree belonging to the Satanic Temple was adorned with red lighting and beads, pentagrams, and various ornaments, with one reading, “Hail Santa,” an apparent play off the phrase, “Hail Satan.” The Gender Diversity tree included pink and blue colored trans flags, and ornaments with sayings such as, “Protect Trans Kids.” According to local NBC affiliate WGBA, museum CEO Jacqueline Frank admitted a number of local residents attending the festival had expressed concern over the presence of the trees, but also said some had praised their inclusivity. Others took to social media to air their grievances. “Outrageous! National Railroad Museum features a Satanic worship tree,” Matt Batzel, executive director of conservative grassroots organization American Majority, wrote in a post on X, including photos of the Satanic display. MARYLAND ATTORNEY GENERAL SUSPENDS HATE CRIME TASK FORCE MEMBER CLAIMING BABIES MURDERED BY HAMAS WERE ‘FAKE’ Some users questioned why the trees would be displayed at a “family friendly event,” while another wrote, “Why is WI looking like Commiefornia??? We used to be wholesome and safe…” Fox News Digital also spoke with one local Christian pastor named Luke Farwell in De Pere, Wisconsin, who said he questioned the National Railroad Museum over the decision to include the trees at a Christmas event with children, when it again touted the “inclusivity” and “teaching opportunity” of the trees. “It seemed a little bizarre to me that someone, based on that, would think it was appropriate to have a Satanic temple Christmas tree — or tree, I should say. I won’t dignify it by calling it a Christmas tree,” Farwell said, before expressing disappointment at the “pushback” Christians have received when it comes to the First Amendment, while groups like these are allowed to participate in such a way at a Christmas event. MARYLAND HATE CRIME TASK FORCE MEMBER CLAIMED BABIES MURDERED BY HAMAS WERE ‘FAKE,’ COMPARED ISRAEL TO NAZIS He argued that Christians believed strongly in free speech, including for the Satanic Temple, but questioned the judgment of mixing Christian themes with Satanic ones. “What I think Christians need to do more is exercise their ability to allow these venues to have the freedom — such as the National Railroad Museum — to host different ideologies and different groups that have different viewpoints, but recognize that Christians find these things to be offensive or definitely targeting them in terms of belittling their faith or how they celebrate the holidays,” Farwell said. “Christmas is a time when we celebrate and really rejoice in the fact that God loves this world that we live in and God cares for us. But it also reminds us that we, as adults and parents, remember the Good Shepherd. The shepherd has two voices — one for his sheep and the other for the wolves. And we need to exert that voice,” he said. He closed by referencing a quote from the late Christian author C.S. Lewis, who said, “There is no neutral ground in the universe; every square inch, every split second, is claimed by God and counter-claimed by Satan.” Fox News Digital has reached out to the National Railroad Museum for comment.
How rare earth elements factor into the clean energy transition
The demand for Rare Earth Elements is growing as the world transitions to cleaner energy sources. Rare Earth Magnets are used in electric cars, wind turbines and other evolving technology. Regulations and environmental concerns have slowed production of magnets in the U.S. as China ramped up its manufacturing with fewer workplace standards. “We have a very high standard of ethics that we subscribe to and we maintain within our industry,” Society for Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration president Marc LeVier said. “This is not our grandfather’s mining companies anymore. These companies are high tech and there’s a lot of regulations in place that we comply with.” From the mid-1960s through mid-1980s, the U.S. was largely self-sufficient in manufacturing Rare Earth Elements. When the U.S. began implementing environmental regulations, nearly all domestic rare earth mining operations ended. Other countries – including China – stepped up to fill in the market gap. “When we talk about the carbon intensity of producing something, it starts with the energy used to mine things like minerals or for that matter, any other fuel source, and then how that fuel source is used,” Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., said. “All of it is highly intensive pollution in China and it’s much less intensive in the United States. That gets back to the proven fact and why we want to demonstrate this advantage that the polluters have over us.” BIDEN ADMIN QUIETLY RELEASED STUDY SHOWING GREEN ENERGY RECEIVES FAR MORE SUBSIDIES THAN FOSSIL FUELS U.S. firms relocated their production to other countries, like China. Manufacturers faced less stringent standards and could pay lower wages abroad. “Sometimes we just can’t compete with what the Chinese do. The Chinese don’t have those kinds of standards,” LeVier said. “We have a lot of regulatory rules that we have to abide by. We have prescribed a way of dealing with the environment. We document baseline studies to demonstrate how it is before we come in and disturb the ground. And our goal is to put it back the way we found it or better.” Nearly every part of the process impacts the environment. Mining can pollute ground water and destroy ecosystems. Dangerous metal byproducts are released into the air through refining. China also has less restrictive labor laws. LeVier says his colleagues at the Society for Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration who have visited Chinese mines and manufacturing plants were surprised about the working conditions and safety standards. “I think that some of that’s improving,” LeVier said. “It’s the old adage it can’t improve fast enough and it should have improved yesterday. But we know that we can operate these mines safely. We’re the best in the world at operating safely and responsibly.” The U.S. has several places where large portions of Rare Earth Elements could be mined and refined. Geologists have announced deposits in Idaho and Colorado. Manufacturing companies are examining locations in Montana, Arizona, Nevada and Wyoming. However, government regulations are slowing down any new mining and manufacturing efforts. THE SLOW DEMISE OF GREEN ENERGY? “We need a dramatic increase in our ability to mine and process minerals both here in the United States and around the world, in places that are our friends and our allies,” Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., said. “That’s something that I think we should be doing on a bipartisan basis, permitting reform and investing more in the development of these critical minerals.” American Rare Earths plans to begin operations in about five years at their site in Halleck Creek, Wyoming. U.S. Critical Materials is exploring a location in Southwest Montana called Sheep Creek. However, it could need another five to 10 years of exploration before applying for permits to mine. The company tells fox it is also working to expand rare earth processing in the U.S. alongside the Idaho National Laboratory. After an eight-month study, it hopes to be among the few domestic producers with the technology to separate and refine rare earth elements. “This has exposed other vulnerabilities we need to take care of. We’re in the process of doing it. But of course, you can’t do it with the snap of your fingers,” Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, said. “China is actively trying to sabotage other sources of these rare earth elements because they realize what a competitive advantage it is to have us dependent on them.” Demand for Rare Earth Elements is expected to rise 40% in the next two decades as additional wind turbines power businesses and homes, and more electric cars hit the road. “I think a lot of people in the United States are waking up to that now and realizing, Well, what do you mean we’re going to open more mines in order to have an energy transition?” LeVier said. “We’ve got a great opportunity. And we can we can get it done with the minerals we have here in the United States.”
Court strikes down improperly-numbered Tennessee Senate map
A Republican-drawn map for Tennessee’s Senate seats violates the state Constitution because lawmakers incorrectly numbered the legislative districts in left-leaning Nashville, which affects which years those seats are on the ballot, a panel of judges ruled Wednesday. The ruling centers on maps passed by the Republican-supermajority Legislature in 2022 during the once-a-decade redistricting process. Tennessee’s constitution dictates that districts must be numbered consecutively in counties that have more than one district. The newly drawn redistricting plan does not do that in Davidson County, which encompasses Nashville. Instead, it’s numbered 17, 19, 20 and 21. OHIO REDISTRICTING OVERHAUL PLAN ONCE AGAIN PERMITTED TO GATHER SIGNATURES AFTER SECOND ROUND OF APPROVALS The numbering matters because the four-year Senate terms are staggered, putting some districts on the ballot in presidential election years, others in gubernatorial election cycles. Currently, those four districts are represented by three Democrats and one Republican. There are 27 Republicans and 6 Democrats in the state Senate. According to Wednesday’s ruling, the state’s attorneys “conceded” that they would not defend the Senate map in court and instead focused their attention arguing that the plaintiffs didn’t have standing to sue. Tennessee’s state House map was also challenged in the lawsuit, though the state did defend those boundaries. Ultimately, the three judges panel upheld the House map and ordered the Tennessee Senate to come up with a new district layout by Jan. 31, 2024. A spokesman for Senate Speaker Randy McNally, a Republican who previously defended the Senate map as legally sound, did not immediately return an emailed request for comment. “Today’s court ruling against the gerrymandered state Senate map is a clear win for the Tennessee Constitution,” said Democratic Sens. Raumesh Akbari and London Lamar in a joint statement. “Even when a political party has a supermajority in the legislature, its members must still follow the law.” Akbari and Lamar added that they looked forward to advocating for a “fair map and transparent process” over the following weeks. Separately, Democrats had argued that the House map also divides more counties than needed to create districts with roughly equal populations, and that it dilutes the power of minority voters. The map splits 30 counties, the maximum permitted for the state House. The Tennessee Democratic Party said Wednesday that it would continue fighting the ruling on upholding the House map. “Our fight for a constitutional State House map is not over,” said Hendrell Remus, chairman of the state’s Democratic Party, in a statement. “Composing a constitutional map is like piecing together a complex puzzle because one may not focus on a single factor to the exclusion of other constitutional factors…The nature of constructing a puzzle whose pieces have inherent conflict means that a perfect map will never be constructed by, nor required of the General Assembly,” the judges wrote in their ruling. Three voters filed the lawsuit in 2022, which was backed by the Tennessee Democratic Party. The state had argued that the plaintiffs lacked standing to sue over the maps, but the panel of judges allowed the case to proceed with one plaintiff eligible to challenge the House map, and another allowed to contest the Senate map. FEDERAL COURT SELECTS NEW ALABAMA CONGRESSIONAL MAP, LIKELY HANDING DEMOCRATS A SEAT AT NEXT HOUSE ELECTION In April 2022, the panel of state trial-level judges blocked the Senate map from taking effect. The state appealed, and within a week, the Tennessee Supreme Court overturned that decision and let the maps stand. The justices reasoned that the lower court judges didn’t properly consider how blocking the map and extending the candidate filing deadline would harm elections officials and cause voter confusion. A legal challenge against Tennessee’s redistricting maps is still pending in federal court, as well. The federal lawsuit alleges that the U.S. House districts and those for the state Senate amount to unconstitutional racial gerrymandering under the 14th and 15th amendments. The challenge of the congressional map focuses on how the map split Nashville three ways, turning a Democratic seat there into a Republican pickup in 2022. The Senate challenge focuses on the boundaries in majority-Black Shelby County, including part of Memphis. A Republican represents the seat in question. That lawsuit, however, is not scheduled to make its way to trial until April 2025.
Liberal columnists call for Americans to ‘decolonize Thanksgiving’, promote ‘Truthsgiving’
Several online publications and social media users are urging Americans to reconsider the Thanksgiving holiday while alleging the holiday is a symbol of “colonization” and “racism.” “Let’s drop the lie of Thanksgiving and begin a Truthsgiving,” a social media post from The Nation read this week that linked to an article with the headline: “Should America Keep Celebrating Thanksgiving?” In the article, author Sean Sherman, argues that Americans should “decolonize Thanksgiving.” “For many Americans, the image of Thanksgiving is one of supposed unity: the gathering of ‘Pilgrims and Indians’ in a harmonious feast,” Sherman, a member of the Oglala Lakota Nation, explains. “But this version obscures the harsh truth, one steeped in colonialism, violence, and misrepresentation. By exploring the Indigenous perspective on Thanksgiving, we can not only discern some of the nuances of decolonization but gain a deeper understanding of American history.” 5 COMMON MISTAKES WHEN COOKING A TURKEY ON THANKSGIVING: CHEF LEAH COHEN REVEALS HOW TO AVOID THEM Sherman writes that Americans, in order to avoid the “tremendous distress to those of us who are still reeling from the trauma” of the Pilgrims landing in America, by promoting the “nutritional and culinary diversity” of Native American foods and “centering the Indigenous perspective and challenging the colonial narratives around the holiday.” The Nation’s social media post drew strong pushback on social media from users rejecting that Thanksgiving is a symbol of colonization. INDUSTRY EXPERT WARNS THANKSGIVING FLIGHTS COULD BE ‘UNSAFE’ AS RECORD NUMBER OF TRAVELERS PREPARE FOR TAKEOFF “It’s starting to sound like ‘decolonization’ just means ruining any and every tradition and fun time, to be replaced by the narcissistic, jargon-filled rantings of 20-somethings whose infallible knowledge of the world is informed by TikTok,” writer and podcaster Meghan Murphy responded on X. Other outlets have run similar headlines, including Delish.com, which posted an article in late October titled: “The Dark Truth Behind The Origins Of Thanksgiving.” In the story, the author outlines how the holiday is “not what you learned in school” and provides ways for Americans to celebrate Thanksgiving differently. “For example: Seek out Native American authors, activists, artists, and chefs, and support in their work,” the author writes. “Listen to and uplift their perspectives and make sure your support goes beyond Thanksgiving and holidays like Indigenous Peoples Day.” CRINGEWORTHY THINGS YOUR FAMILY DOESN’T WANT TO TALK ABOUT THIS THANKSGIVING This week, an article by Jason Nichols with the headline “Decolonize Thanksgiving” was published in Newsweek that argued Thanksgiving is an important holiday that should not be lost but “truth should triumph over nationalistic narratives.” “And the truth about Thanksgiving should be learned by all Americans, as it is a part of our complicated history of savage betrayal and removal of indigenous people and the colonization of their land,” Nichols, a full-time lecturer in the African American Studies department at the University of Maryland, College Park, wrote. “Thanksgiving is a wonderful time to spend with family and friends, but we owe it to our indigenous forefathers to know its history,” Nichols wrote while pointing out, “even if the initial feast was dedicated to peace, the settlers decimated the Wampanoag and other New England indigenous groups soon after through war and disease.” Abraham Lincoln, in a stirring call to spiritual unity amid the carnage of the Civil War, issued an emotionally powerful Thanksgiving proclamation on Oct. 3, 1863. The president invited Americans at home and abroad “to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens.” The tradition of Thanksgiving in America dates back to the first Pilgrim and Wampanoag feast of 1621. President George Washington proclaimed a day of Thanksgiving exactly 74 years before Lincoln’s decree on Oct. 3, 1789. Fox News Digital’s Kerry J. Byrne contributed to this report
Gun ownership hits record high with American voters, poll finds
A record high number of American voters say they or someone in their household owns a gun, according to a new survey. An NBC News national poll finds that a majority — 52% — of respondents say that they or someone in their home owns a firearm. It is the highest number since NBC started asking in 1999. Just four years ago, 46% of Americans said they or someone in their household owned a gun in a 2019 NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll. And a decade ago, in 2013, that number was 42%. “In the last 10 years, we’ve grown [10 points] in gun ownership. That’s a very stunning number,” Micah Roberts of Republican firm Public Opinion Strategies, who conducted the poll with Democratic pollster Hart Research, told NBC News. GUN PURCHASES BY JEWISH AMERICANS SURGING SINCE OCT. 7 HAMAS TERROR ATTACK, SAYS STORE OWNER “By and large, things don’t change that dramatically that quickly when it comes to something as fundamental as whether you own a gun,” he said. The poll finds gun ownership remains highly partisan, as it has for years. In November, 66% of Republican voters surveyed said that they or someone in their home owns a gun. Just 45% of independents and 41% of Democrats said the same. Although Republicans have always owned guns at higher rates than Democrats, this year the highest number of Democrats since at least 2004 said they or someone in their home had a firearm. FEDERAL COURT STRIKES DOWN MARYLAND GUN LICENSING LAW Gun sales nationwide spiked last month, which was the third-highest October on record for federal background checks for gun transfers, according to the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), an industry trade group. An NSSF report released Nov. 2 found that more than 1.3 million gun checks were completed in October, which was an 8.4% increase over the same month in 2022. Mark Oliva, an NSSF spokesperson, told The Reload earlier this month that increased sales “demonstrate the value Americans place on their Second Amendment rights.” He observed that the Oct. 7 massacre of innocents by Palestinian terrorists in Israel, followed by the recent mass shooting in Maine, may have influenced some people to buy their first gun. “This is telling, given the stark reminders of the importance of the Second Amendment protecting the right for law-abiding citizens to keep and bear arms and protect themselves and their loved ones,” Oliva told the outlet. “The horrific attacks on Israel followed by the escalating hate speech toward Jewish Americans, coupled with the tragic murders in Maine, are reminders that every American has the right to legally purchase a firearm to provide for their own defense.” ARMED HOMEOWNER WHO DEFENDED FAMILY IN DRIVEWAY SHOOT-OUT SAYS HE’S BEEN STRIPPED OF GUN PERMIT Eric Fletcher, a gun store owner in Burbank, California, previously told Fox News he’s seen a surge in Jews and Israelis buying firearms for the first time. “No one wants to be feeling like they’re helpless, especially not in their own home, especially not in their offices or where they go every day. People want to feel safe,” Fletcher said on “The Faulkner Focus” Nov. 3. His store, Burbank Ammo and Guns, processed 203 firearms safety certificate tests in October 2023 compared to 45 last year, marking a more than 450% increase. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “We see many, many individuals from the Jewish community who are first-time buyers. And not just the men, but women as well, mothers especially. They want to know what they can do and what they are allowed to do to defend themselves,” he said. The same trend has been observed in Georgia, where a gun store owner reported a 30% increase in business fueled mostly by Jewish Americans buying their first guns. Fox News Digital’s Madeline Coggins contributed to this report.
Viral videos show former Obama official launch racist rants against New York City food cart vendor
A former Obama administration official has been captured in a number of viral videos harassing a New York City food cart vendor with racist rants. The videos, originally posted on X by a Columbia University student on Tuesday, show Stuart Seldowitz, who served as acting director for the National Security Council South Asia Directorate from 2009 to 2011, using disturbing language to mock the unnamed Upper East Side halal vendor’s English-speaking skills, citizenship status and Islamic religion. “Did you rape your daughter like Muhammad did?” Seldowitz asks the vendor in the first video, referring to the Prophet Muhammad, the most revered figure in Islam. The video shows the vendor repeatedly saying he doesn’t speak English and asking Seldowitz to leave. MARYLAND ATTORNEY GENERAL SUSPENDS HATE CRIME TASK FORCE MEMBER CLAIMING BABIES MURDERED BY HAMAS WERE ‘FAKE’ Seldowitz then appears to take a photo of the vendor and threatens to send it to his “friends in Immigration” and the Mukhabarat, Egypt’s intelligence agency, before suggesting the organization would torture the vendor’s family by removing their fingernails. It’s unclear if the vendor is Egyptian. He then calls the vendor “ignorant” for presumably not being able to speak English. The second video shows Seldowitz harassing the vendor on a separate occasion by asking if he has a permit to sell food on the street and if he has a visa. MARYLAND HATE CRIME TASK FORCE MEMBER CLAIMED BABIES MURDERED BY HAMAS WERE ‘FAKE,’ COMPARED ISRAEL TO NAZIS The vendor tells Seldowitz that if he doesn’t intend to buy anything, then he needs to leave, but Seldowitz continues to hound him, appearing to accuse him of being a Hamas supporter. “You support killing young children,” Seldowitz said, to which the vendor replied, “You kill children, not me. Go.” “I didn’t kill children,” Seldowitz responded, before saying, “If we killed 4,000 Palestinian kids, it wasn’t enough.” DEMOCRATIC SOCIALIST MEMBERS OF CONGRESS HAVE NOT CONDEMNED VIOLENT ANTI-ISRAEL PROTEST TARGETING OWN PARTY HQ Another video posted by a different X user shows Seldowitz again asking if the vendor is in the country legally, before a bystander jumps in to defend the vendor. After the videos surfaced, Seldowitz told the Daily Beast that they only show one side of the whole story. He admitted to starting up the initial conversation with the vendor but claimed the latter instigated the escalation by expressing support for Hamas. “I regret the whole thing happened, and I’m sorry,” he later told City & State. “But you know, in the heat of the moment, I said things that probably I shouldn’t have said.” WATCH: WHITE HOUSE ISSUES BRUTAL RESPONSE TO BIDEN’S ‘INAPPROPRIATE’ NICKNAME GIVEN BY ANTI-ISRAEL CRITICS “If I had to do it all over again, I would not have raised the religious aspect,” he said. “I don’t think I’m an Islamophobic guy. … I’ve spoken up for equal treatment of Muslims on numerous occasions with numerous different people.” The New York City-based lobbying group Gotham Government Relations, where Seldowitz was a consultant, ended its relationship with the former Obama official Tuesday evening. “Gotham Government Relations has ended all affiliation with Stuart Seldowitz, an individual who hasn’t contributed to our work in years,” a statement on group’s website read. “The video of his actions is vile, racist, and beneath the dignity of the standards we practice at our firm.”