Kansas City Plans to Defy State Law Restricting Life-Altering Transgender Procedures

(Headline USA) Officials in Missouri’s largest city approved a resolution Thursday to declare it a “sanctuary” for people seeking or providing life-altering gender-transition surgeries, defying state lawmakers who voted a day earlier to ban such care for minors and restrict it for some adults.

Democrat Mayor Quinton Lucas praised the 12 to 1 vote, saying the city is committed to being a “welcoming, inclusive, and safe place for everyone, including our transgender and LGBTQ+ community.”

Kansas City’s new, so-called sanctuary status sets it apart as a Democrat-leaning city in a state with a Republican governor and GOP-controlled Legislature.

Similar actions have been taken in cities such as Austin, Texas, following the same template used during the Trump administration to refuse to cooperate with federal immigration authorities.

Meanwhile, in conservative enclaves in blue states that have sought to respond in kind on matters such as abortion and gun rights, leftist leaders have lashed out indignantly and accused them of undermining the rule of law while threatening to bring the full force of government down upon them.

Missouri GOP Gov. Mike Parson, a Republican, is expected to sign into law the ban on the transgender surgeries, joining at least 16 other states that have enacted similar laws restricting or banning such procedures for minors.

They argue that children may not fully understand the implications of permanent sterilization and genital mutilation while under the influence of peer pressure and indoctrination from social media and other institutions—sometimes including teachers and parents.

The resolution also comes as a judge considers a proposed emergency rule from Republican state Attorney General Andrew Bailey that would require adults and children to undergo more than a year of therapy—and fulfill other requirements before they could receive transgender treatment.

A committee signed off Wednesday on the resolution, which says the city will not prosecute or fine any person or organization that seeks, provides, receives or helps someone to undergo procedures such as as puberty blockers, hormones or surgery.

It also says that if the state passes a law or resolution that imposes criminal or civil punishments, fines, or professional sanctions in such cases, personnel in Missouri’s largest city will make enforcing those requirements “their lowest priority.”

“This is an important first step in Kansas City’s commitment to trans and nonbinary people,” Merrique Jenson, founder of Transformations KC, said in a written statement after the vote.

“I look forward to trans leaders and Kansas City working together to address the health disparities in our communities and ways we can have sustainable funding & programming reaching all trans people,” Jenson added.

Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press

Intelligence Firms Spying on Teenage Gamers

(Ken Silva, Headline USA) Independent journalist Lee Fang published a story this week about how the U.S. government is partnering with private intelligence firms to spy on gaming chatrooms—revealing that the online spooks are particularly interested in conducting surveillance on teenagers.

Fang interviewed representatives of at least six online cyber firms at the RSA Conference 2023. They reportedly told him about their partnerships with the FBI and other agencies to monitor online chat platforms such as Discord, WhatsApp, Reddit and others.

“Having already gained access to traditional social media platforms, the federal government now has its sights set on private online communities where terrorist groups, radical political activists, and hackers can operate with relative freedom,” Fang wrote.

One of the more shocking revelations from Fang’s reporting was one intelligence firm’s open admission that it spies on teenagers.

“I prefer to detect threat actors when they’re young or starting out at 14 or 15. That’s when I start observing and documenting their malicious activities,” said an unnamed official from the Israeli threat intelligence firm CyberInt.

“Because when they’re at that age or stage in their career, they’re a lot more careless and open. They tend to show off more.”

Fang also revealed that intelligence firms are keen on surveilling constitutionally protected activity. DarkOwl President Russel Cohen reportedly told the reporter that his firm spies on people who talk about guns.

“We have algorithms about what information we find interesting. So if somebody is talking about guns, that would be something we find interesting,” Cohen reportedly said. “We’re not looking for things that are not commercially interesting, such as pornography.”

Fang’s report comes at a time when the U.S. government is looking to drastically increase its presence in chatrooms. Officials say this is necessary in the wake of the Discord Leaks, which allegedly entailed a Massachusetts Air National Guardsman leaking highly sensitive Pentagon documents on a Discord server just to impress his gamer friends.

Citing an anonymous administration official and a congressional official who was briefed on the matter, NBC News reported last month that the Biden White House is “looking at expanding the universe of online sites that intelligence agencies and law enforcement authorities track.”

NBC News also quoted former NSA top lawyer Glenn Gerstell, who claimed that “we do not have nor do we want a system where the United States government monitors private internet chats.”

Fang also talked to privacy advocates who expressed concern about this development.

“There’s a disturbing trend toward government agencies contracting out surveillance, paying the likes of data brokers to spy on people even when agents wouldn’t be allowed to,” Sean Vitka, senior policy counsel of Demand Progress, told Fang.

“It’s becoming frighteningly apparent that a similar privatized spying cottage industry targeting private chat rooms also exists.”

Ken Silva is a staff writer at Headline USA. Follow him at twitter.com/jd_cashless.

Target Releases ‘Pride’ Collection w/ Kids Books and Baby Toys

(Molly Bruns, Headline USA) As June swiftly approaches, the LGBT lobby and their corporate allies, including Target, are starting to launch their vice-themed merchandise, including books and toys for young children and babies.

According to the Daily Wire, the children’s collection features onesies and small shirts with phrases like “Just Be You And Feel The Love,” and “Bien Proud.” The store also features rainbow leggings, tutus and sweaters, and bibs emblazoned with phrases such as “I Am Proud of You Always.”

The adult collection features several graphic tees, swimwear and merchandise promoting different drag queens. Sandals, socks and accessories for pets such as chew toys and leashes are also available.

Backlash to Target peddling groomer material for young kids was swift with many calls for the company to be boycotted.

“We hope there are enough parents out there that understand how wrong this is and show them that this garbage will not sell,” wrote the group Gays Against Groomers. “The only thing these people understand is money. Target deserves the Bud Light treatment. We will work to put the pressure on them.”

Target is one of many companies to pander to “Pride” month festivals, with their previous collections featuring trans-friendly underwear and shirts with activist slogans for children.

The company also chose to offer books to teach radical gender theory to children in their collection this year.

One book called Bye Bye Binary focuses on transgender activism and tells the story of a “joyful baby” who “refuses to conform to the gender binary and instead chooses toys, colors, and clothes that make them happy.” The book, written by groomer Eric Geron, markets itself as a “great baby shower gift for all soon-to-be-parents.”

The Pronoun Book, meanwhile, introduces children to “a diverse cast of people and simple text that introduces their pronouns.”

Books promoting the LGBT lifestyle incurred a great deal of criticism over the last few months, particularly as activist teachers and librarians insisted on making them available to children in schools and libraries. Many of these books are pornographic in nature.

Requests to remove these books from institutions where children can access them with ease spiked between 2021 and 2022, according to a report from the American Library Association.

Conservative parents and community leaders continue to win seats on school and library boards as they work to remove groomer books from local institutions.

Headline USA’s Mark Pellin contributed to this report

Good Samaritan Marine Who Subdued Violent Subway Rider Surrenders to NYPD

(Headline USA) Daniel Penny, the U.S. Marine veteran who used a fatal chokehold to neutralize a violent and mentally deranged homeless man on the New York City subway, turned himself in Friday as authorities charged him with manslaughter nearly two weeks after the encounter.

Penny, 24, arrived at a police station and was later taken to a courthouse where he is expected to answer to criminal charges in the May 1 death of Jordan Neely.

The decision by woke Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg to file the charge came after days of public protest by George-Soros-backed activist groups who sought to turn Neely into the next George Floyd after video of the incident surfaced online.

But Penny’s arrest was unlikely to placate the protesters, according to Jawanza Williams, organizing director of the group Voices of Community Activists and Leaders New York.

“Just arresting this person—though I think accountability is absolutely necessary—it will not solve the critical structural failings that lead to the 70,000+ people experiencing homelessness every single night in our city, and it will not have saved this person’s life,” Williams said.

Penny didn’t speak to reporters as he arrived at a Manhattan police station with his lawyers Friday morning, nor did he respond to questions shouted by reporters as he was led from the police precinct house in handcuffs several hours later.

Penny’s lawyers have said he was acting in self-defense when he pinned Neely to the floor of the subway car with the help of two other passengers and held him in a chokehold for several minutes.

A freelance journalist who recorded Neely struggling to free himself, then lapsing into unconsciousness, said he had been shouting at passengers and begging for money aboard the train but had not gotten physical with anyone.

However, it was later revealed that Neely had a history of violent encounters with innocent bystanders, including footage that showed him aggressively threatening an elderly man and violently shoving a woman into a subway train.

Neely also allegedly attempted to kidnap a young girl and had been arrested 44 times.

 

Penny’s lawyers have said he was “threatening” passengers but haven’t elaborated.

Thomas Kenniff, one of Penny’s attorneys, said the veteran didn’t mean to harm Neely and “is dealing with the situation, like I said, with the sort of integrity and honor that is characteristic of who he is and characteristic of his honorable service in the United States Marine Corps.”

Donte Mills, a lawyer for Neely’s family, said that even before he was subdued, Neely was a victim of bystanders’ callous indifference toward his struggles.

“No one on that train asked Jordan: ‘What’s wrong, how can I help you?’” Mills said.

The Manhattan district attorney’s office had investigated the case for several days before deciding to file charges, in part to try to learn what happened aboard the train in the moments before Penny moved to restrain Neely. Prosecutors did not immediately explain why they decided criminal charges were warranted.

A second-degree manslaughter charge in New York will require the jury to find that a person has engaged in reckless conduct that creates an unjustifiable risk of death, and then consciously disregards that risk.

The law also requires that conduct to be a gross deviation from how a reasonable person would act in a similar situation.

The charges could carry a maximum penalty of 15 years imprisonment, though any jail term could also be far shorter.

Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press

As Meltdown Looms, Biden Continues to Prioritize DEI in New Fed Nominations

(Headline USA) Even as rising interest rates and subsequent bank failures heralded the possible coming of a total collapse of the U.S. economy in coming months, the Biden administration touted the ethnic diversity of new Federal Reserve appointments as being among its top criteria.

President Joe Biden has nominated Philip Jefferson, one of two recently appointed African–American members on the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors, to serve as vice chair of the board, the White House announced Friday.

Along with fellow board member Lisa Cook, Biden raised eyebrows last year in nominating the two, not based on their qualifications, per se, but on their skin tone.

He also nominated Sarah Bloom Raskin, a far-left extremist with radical views that would effectively have introduced Marxism into the central bank. Despite being the wife of Democrat Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., she failed to secure enough votes in the evenly-split Senate, with Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., refusing to back her.

Biden has also now chosen Adriana Kugler, a Georgetown University economist, to join the Fed’s board. If confirmed by the Senate, she would become the first Hispanic American on the Fed’s interest-rate-setting committee.

Biden’s choice of Kugler follows long-standing demands by Sen. Robert Menendez, a New Jersey Democrat, that a Latino be chosen for the rate-setting committee for the first time in the Fed’s 109-year history. Menendez voted last year against Biden’s nomination of Powell for a second four-year term to protest the lack of Latino officials at the Fed.

The two nominations arrive as the Fed is grappling with an increasingly fraught economy marked by rising interest rates, still-high inflation and a shaky banking system.

Since March 2022, the Fed has raised its benchmark interest rate 10 times, to the highest level in 16 years, to combat high inflation. After a policy meeting last week, Chair Jerome Powell signaled that the Fed may now pause its rate increases.

In the coming months, the Fed will face tough decisions about whether to keep rates unchanged for the rest of this year or resume raising them. The policymakers might even consider cutting rates should a recession occur later this year, as many economists expect.

Jefferson, 61, who first joined the Fed’s board barely a year ago, would become the second black man to serve as the Fed’s No. 2 official if confirmed by the Senate. He would replace Lael Brainard, who left in February to become Biden’s top economic adviser.

As vice chair, Jefferson would join an inner circle of policymakers that includes Powell and the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, John Williams.

Kugler, 53, who has a background in international and labor economics, is on leave from Georgetown to serve as the United States’ representative on the board of the World Bank. During the Obama administration, she was the Labor Department’s chief economist, from September 2011 to January 2013.

Biden also announced that he plans to re-nominate Cook to a full 14-year term on the Fed’s board. Cook, 58, who was narrowly confirmed by the Senate, joined the board last May to fill an unexpired term that will end on Jan. 31, 2024.

“These nominees understand that this job is not a partisan one, but one that plays a critical role in pursuing maximum employment, maintaining price stability and supervising many of our nation’s financial institutions,” Biden said in a statement.

After the Fed’s policy meeting last week, Powell said that while inflation remains far above the Fed’s 2% target, turmoil in the banking sector could lead to tighter credit for businesses and households and weaken the economy. That could allow the Fed to end its rate-hiking campaign.

Jefferson and Kugler have won Senate approval before. Jefferson sailed through the Senate on a 91-7 vote last May. Kugler was confirmed to her World Bank position by a unanimous voice vote last April.

Both Jefferson and Kugler would vote on financial regulatory policy, an area that has assumed a higher profile after the collapse of three large banks, as well as on interest rate decisions.

As a Fed governor, Jefferson has voted in favor of all the rate hikes the central bank has imposed since joining the central bank in May 2022. He has also echoed Powell’s concerns that unemployment will likely have to rise, at least modestly, to bring inflation down to the Fed’s 2% target.

Jefferson has also emphasized the need to keep Americans’ inflation expectations in check. Like many economists, Jefferson has expressed concern that such expectations can become self-fulfilling: If businesses and workers start to expect high inflation to persist, both will seek to offset rising costs by either charging higher prices or demanding higher pay. Both trends can then further intensify inflation.

Given such concerns, some analysts consider Jefferson to lean slightly “hawkish” in his policy views. Hawks typically prefer higher interest rates to ward off inflation, while “doves” generally support lower rates to boost hiring.

In recent remarks, Jefferson expressed confidence in the U.S. banking system and said that data showing that banks are tightening credit are consistent with the Fed’s efforts to slow the economy. He added that inflation is declining and that the “economy has started to slow in an orderly fashion.”

Jefferson, who grew up in a working-class family in Washington, D.C., according to an interview with the American Economic Association, has focused his economic research on poverty and monetary policy. Before joining the Fed, he was an economist and administrator at Davidson College in North Carolina.

Kugler has conducted extensive research on worker training in the United States and Colombia. One of her recent papers studied the effects of extended U.S. unemployment benefits during two pre-pandemic recessions. Her study found that the additional aid helped people take more time to find jobs that fit their skills and qualifications.

Kugler earned a Ph.D. in economics from the University of California, Berkeley. Jefferson obtained his doctorate in economics from the University of Virginia.

Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press

Conservative-Friendly Hit ‘Yellowstone’ Having Surprise Impact on U.S. Baby Names

(Headline USA) Dutton and Wrenlee are on the rise but they’re no match for champs Liam and Olivia as the top baby names in the U.S. last year.

The Social Security Administration released the annual list Friday. The agency tracks baby names in each state based on applications for Social Security cards, with names dating to 1880.

It’s Liam’s sixth straight year as No. 1. Olivia has reigned since the name unseated Emma four years ago. Emma is No. 2.

Coming in third for girls’ names is Charlotte, followed by Amelia, Sophia, Isabella, Ava, Mia, Evelyn and Luna. For boys’ names, Liam is followed by Noah, Oliver, James, Elijah, William, Henry, Lucas, Benjamin and Theodore.

Luna is the only newcomer in the Top 10, booting Harper.

The agency has been compiling the list since 1997, often revealing the impact pop culture has on baby naming trends.

The smash hit Yellowstone has clearly influenced new parents. The neo-Western starring Kevin Costner debuted in 2018, with characters surfacing among baby names ever since.

The show’s success has been attributed, at least in part, to its conservative-friendly traditional values, although it did challenge them last year by featuring a lesbian kiss scene.

Dutton moved up the Social Security list to 835, a change of 986 spots from 2021. It’s the last name of the fictional family featured on the series, and it counts Costner’s John Dutton in its ranks. Dutton is the fastest rising name in the Social Security rankings.

Another Dutton name follows actual Dutton as a star with a bullet among baby names. Kayce, as in Kayce John Dutton on the show, moved to the 587th most popular name, up from 1,077 the year before. Luke Grimes plays Kayce.

Rip, also from Yellowstone, has grabbed some naming attention, but it didn’t crack Social Security’s top 1,000. Cole Hauser’s Rip Wheeler is Dutton adjacent as the son-in-law of John.

Other names rising fast for boys: Chosen, Khaza, Eithan. For girls, Wrenlee is followed by Neriah, Arlet, Georgina and Amiri.

The Social Security Administration’s latest data shows 3.64 million babies in the U.S. were issued Social Security cards last year, up slightly from 2021.

Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press

BREAKING: Biden’s Scheme to Release Illegals Blocked by Federal Judge, as Title 42 Expires

(Mark Pellin, Headline USA) As the southern border stands on the cusp of what is predicted to be a chaotic onslaught of illegal immigrants rushing to gain entry into the United States as Title 42 expired, a federal judge late Thursday night blocked the Biden administration’s plan to release illegals into the country without court dates.

The ruling to issue a temporary restraining order preventing Biden policy’s implementation was in response to a lawsuit filed by the state of Florida. The ruling imposed a two-week block on the Biden regime’s scheme.

In his ruling, Judge T. Kent Wetherell II wrote that, “DHS is enjoined from implementing or enforcing the parole policy contained in the May 10, 2023, Memorandum from US Border Patrol Chief Raul Ortiz, titled ‘Policy on Parole with Conditions in Limited Circumstances Prior to Issuance of a Charging Document (Parole with Conditions).’ This TRO will take effect at 11:59 p.m. Eastern time to correspond with the expiration of the Title 42 Order and to give Defendants an opportunity to seek an emergency stay from a higher court.”

The Biden administration reportedly argued into the late hours Thursday, claiming “that without the release policy and other measures there could be 45,000 migrants in custody by the end of the month.”

On Wednesday, there were more than 28,000 in custody, already well over capacity, tweeted Hamed Aleaziz, immigration policy reporter with the L.A. Times.

The judge was unsympathetic, ruling that “this problem is largely one of Defendants’ own making through the adoption an implementation of policies that have encouraged the so-called ‘irregular migration’ that has become fairly regular over the past 2 years,” Aleaziz reported.

“It is inconceivable that [the Biden administration] waited until yesterday to formulate this policy, particularly since they have known for quite some time that the Title 42 Order was going to expire tonight,” the judge wrote.

“@govrondesantis & @AshleyMoodyFL beat Biden, again!” tweeted Taryn Fenske, comms director for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’s executive office.

Dems Shamelessly Fundraise Off Santos Indictment, Attack Trump

(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., a freshman lawmaker, found himself embroiled in a federal indictment on charges of unemployment benefits fraud, campaign funds embezzlement and submitting false statements on finance disclosure forms.

House Democrats are shamelessly seizing the federal indictment of Santos by taking to Twitter to beg donations and invoking comparisons to former President Donald Trump. 

Rep. Ritchie Torres, D-N.Y., said on Twitter that Santos is an outgrowth of Trump.

“George Santos is not an accident,” Torres said. “He is the natural outgrowth of a MAGA extremist party whose standard bearer, Donald Trump, was found liable for sexual abuse against E. Jean Carroll.”

Echoing Torres’s anti-Trump comments, Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Texas, criticized Republicans for planning to advance legislation to fight unemployment payout fraud. 

“A true follower of Trump by relying on lie after lie, George Santos truly epitomizes the hypocrisy of today’s Republican Party,” Doggett claimed. “Now, Republicans are insisting on a bill, which Santos sponsored, purportedly to prevent the very type of fraud for which he has just been indicted.”

The Democrat Party previously attempted to downplay allegations that their focus against Santos was merely aimed at decreasing Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s slim majority in the House through a special election in New York.

But Democrats are now fundraising off the Santos indictment and calling for a Democrat replacement, with Rep. Grace Meng, D-N.Y., actively supporting the election of a Democrat to replace Santos. 

“Everyone tweeting about George Santos yesterday is going to join me to elect a Democrat to his seat and take back the House… right?,” said Meng on Thursday. 

Squad member Rep. Cori Bush, R-Mo., expressed her opinion against Santos, declaring “Santos gotta go,” and providing a link to her leftist campaign’s fundraising scheme with the message “REMOVE GEORGE SANTOS NOW.”

Santos said he has no intention of stepping down from Congress and is actively seeking re-election. He pleaded not guilty to all federal charges, which he called “witch hunt.”

GOP Preps Contempt Charges against Sec. of State Antony Blinken

(Molly Bruns, Headline USA) The House Foreign Affairs Committee is preparing to bring down the legal hammer on Secretary of State Antony Blinken, as the State Department refused to release key documents related to the withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021.

According to Daily Mail, the committee sought a specific, classified dissenting cable sent by the department before the Taliban took over the country. The cable contained a warning to the Biden administration, telling them about the “deteriorating” security situation and begging for the evacuation of allies.

The required deadline for the sending of the document was 6 p.m. on May 11. Committee members acknowledged that the agency is “now in violation of its legal obligation to produce these documents.”

“The Committee is prepared to take the necessary steps to enforce its subpoena, including holding you in contempt of Congress and/or initiating a civil enforcement proceeding,” a letter from the committee to Blinken read.

Legal proceedings against Blinken would immediately begin. Committee Chairman Michael McCaul, R-Texas, said the committee plans to meet on May 24 to kickstart the affair.

“We’ve given them ample time,” McCaul explained. “Three extensions of time we tried to work this out, but unfortunately, it doesn’t appear that that’s going to work and the next step will be to move to contempt proceedings.”

Initially, the committee will vote to hold the secretary in contempt, and if passed, the matter will move to a full vote by the House of Representatives.

If the vote passed, it would be the first time that the secretary of state’s position was held in contempt. Blinken did not make a statement regarding the document, the deadline or the possible legal ramifications of his inaction.

The committee investigated the Biden administration’s hand in the Afghanistan withdrawal, which took the lives of 13 in the U.S. military and 170 others after a suicide bomber attacked a Kabul airport.

“American people and the veterans and the Gold Star families are right to know what the thinking was in the embassy at the time to take the extraordinary measure to dissent from the policy,” McCaul said.

‘Total Mayhem’: Biden Border Chaos Ensues as Title 42 Ends

(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) The Biden administration is ordering Customs and Border Patrol facilities to release illegal immigrants into the United States as a response to the border chaos and influx of crossings stemming from the end of Title 42. 

The Trump-era policy allowed border agents to swiftly remove unlawful migrants from the U.S. on grounds of the COVID-19 emergency. This policy successfully deterred certain migrants from attempting to enter the country, as they believed they would not be granted entry. However, as the policy is scheduled to expire on May 11, a surge of migrants is now converging at the border.

Trump took to Truth Social to slam the Biden administration for overhauling his immigration policies that effectively secured the southern border.

“Joe Biden is preparing to remove the last remnants of my Title 42 policy just a few weeks from now wiping out the few remaining shreds of our southern border. Hundreds of thousands of people will pour in that day and the judge already said that’s what’s going to happen,” the former president said in a video.

“This will mean complete and total mayhem and utter lawlessness and unlimited numbers of fraudulent asylum seekers flooding into the United States unchecked. They are unchecked. Nobody has any idea where they come from,” Trump continued.

“We’re already breaking and we haven’t hit the starting line,” a DHS official told NBC News in reaction to a memo ordering the facilities to release the apprehended migrants. 

Homeland Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas held a press conference from the White House on Thursday, where he warned potential immigrants from entering the U.S. claiming the border was not open.

Mayorkas’s claims, however, are directly contradicted by a memo obtained by the Daily Caller that mandated facilities that reached 125% capacity to swiftly release the undocumented immigrants. Border Patrol reported that 28,000 migrants are currently under DHS detention, the New York Post reported Thursday.

The embattled Homeland secretary, currently facing impeachment threats, has recently received intense scrutiny from House Republicans, who accuse him of neglecting the southern border and not preparing for Title 42’s end.

In defiance of the Biden administration’s open border policies, the Republican-led House of Representatives passed the “Secure the Border Act,” which would order DHS to rebuild the border wall started by Biden’s predecessor, Donald Trump. Under the legislation, border agents would be equipped with better technology and incentives to increase morale among them.

Biden has vowed to veto the bill if it reaches his desk.