Vindman Brothers, Who Helped Impeach Trump in 2020, Are Now Under Investigation

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Vindman Brothers, Who Helped Impeach Trump in 2020, Are Now Under Investigation

(Ken Silva, Headline USA) Rep. Eugene Vindman, D-Va., and his twin brother Alexander are reportedly under investigation for illegally acting as “paid brokers” for U.S. defense firms seeking business in Ukraine.

“Pentagon General Counsel Earl Matthews alleges that Vindman and his twin brother Alex did not have approval from the U.S. government before seeking to act as ‘paid brokers’ for American defense firms pursuing contracts with Ukraine after Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion,” the Washington Post revealed over the weekend, citing a Nov. 19 letter for War Secretary Pete Hegseth.

“The letter does not explicitly allege the Vindmans received money from the Ukrainian government, arguing only that they “did not insulate themselves from the requirements of federal law,” the Post added.

Eugene Vindman confirmed the investigation Friday on Twitter/X. He claimed it’s politically motivated in response to his calls for the White house to release the transcript of a recent call between President Donald Trump and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

“Instead of transparency, I was met with retaliation,” Vindman claimed.

However, the Trump administration has signaled that it may investigate since before Trump took office. Last November, billionaire Elon Musk accused Alexander Vindman of treason.

“Vindman is on the payroll of Ukrainian oligarchs and has committed treason against the United States, for which he will pay the appropriate penalty,” Musk said in November on his platform, Twitter/X.

Politico revealed in 2023 that that Alex Vindman is heading a group called Trident Support, which wants to send American military contractors to Ukraine. According to the documents, Vindman, who is of Ukrainian origin, is seeking $12 million for his project—$2 million for “initial operating capability” and another $10 million for “full operating.”

While such a scheme may not be illegal, it demonstrates that the Vindman brothers are war profiteers who benefit from an escalation in Ukraine.

Before President Joe Biden left office, Alexander’s wife vented about the administration not pardoning her husband.

“Whatever happens to my family, know this: No pardons were offered or discussed,” said the wife, Rachel Vindman, in January. “I cannot begin to describe the level of betrayal and hurt I feel.”

Ken Silva is the editor of Headline USA. Follow him at x.com/jd_cashless.

Jeffries Melts Down When Host Challenges Obamacare Talking Points

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Jeffries Melts Down When Host Challenges Obamacare Talking Points

(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., grew visibly agitated Friday during a CNBC interview when co-host Becky Quick pushed back on his refusal to compromise with Republicans on extending Obamacare subsidies. 

The exchange, which quickly went viral on X, began when Quick asked why Jeffries would not consider a one- or two-year extension, rather than three years, to win enough Republican support for a vote. 

In response, Jeffries tried to pivot, citing Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s prior offer of a similar extension during earlier government shutdown negotiations.  

Quick interrupted, saying, “Let’s not go back to what’s done in the past and what has not been extended.” 

Jeffries snapped back, breaking down a long explanation on the Schumer context:  

“You can ask me the question. I’ll provide the answer. … I’m providing an answer in order to provide context. Republicans have repeatedly refused to take yes for an answer. It was a very reasonable, multiyear extension that was offered. It was a one-year extension, plus a multi-year process to a bipartisan commission to more permanently resolve the Affordable Care Act issue. So having that context is absolutely important, regardless of what you may think.”

Quick, clearly frustrated, accused him of obstructing bipartisan legislation. 

“It’s important context to make me realize that I don’t think you want to get a deal done. I think this is something where you’d like to see the rates go higher and allow the Republicans to hang themselves with that. Is that the answer?” 

Jeffries fired back: “That’s absolutely a ridiculous assertion. Shame on you for saying that. It’s not a partisan issue for us!’ 

Quick rolled her eyes, but the heated exchange continued for several more minutes. 

‘Just Say Yes’: Trump Jokes with Mamdani Over ‘Fascist’ Question

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‘Just Say Yes’: Trump Jokes with Mamdani Over ‘Fascist’ Question

(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) President Donald Trump interjected with humor during a press gaggle in the Oval Office Friday after a reporter asked New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani whether he still believed Trump was a “fascist.” 

The moment drew laughter from reporters and viewers online as Trump shut down the question and pushed Mamdani to answer directly. 

“Are you affirming that you think President Trump is a fascist?” a journalist asked Mamdani. 

As the self-described democratic socialist began to respond, Trump jumped in, saying: “That’s okay. You can just say yes. That’s easier. It’s easier than explaining. I don’t mind.” 

Mamdani nodded his head affirmatively to answer the question.

Days later, Mamdani repeated the claim on NBC News’s Meet the Press with host Kristen Welker. 

“Mr. Mayor-Elect, just to be very clear, do you think that President Trump is a fascist?” Welker asked. 

Mamdani quickly responded, “And after President Trump said that, I said, ‘yes.’” 

The meeting between the two Queens natives surprised many, given the stark differences in their political views. 

In his NBC interview, Mamdani called the meeting “productive.” 

He added that the conversation with Trump signaled “an opportunity to now start to deliver so that people can do more than just aspire to struggle in New York City, but actually to be able to live there.” 

Ghislaine Maxwell Vows to Plead the 5th in House Epstein Probe

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Ghislaine Maxwell Vows to Plead the 5th in House Epstein Probe

(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) Convicted sex offender Ghislaine Maxwell said through attorneys that she will refuse to answer any questions from the House Oversight Committee after Republicans subpoenaed her, the committee’s chairman said Friday. 

Maxwell vowed to invoke her Fifth Amendment rights if House Republicans traveled to interview her as part of their investigation into Jeffrey Epstein’s circles and related records. 

House Oversight Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., told Politico his investigators are unlikely to proceed with the interview to avoid wasting taxpayer dollars. 

“Her lawyers have replied that she’s not going to answer any questions,” Comer stated. “She’s only going to plead the Fifth. I mean, I could spend a bunch of taxpayer dollars to send staff and members down there, and if she’s going to plead the Fifth, I don’t know that that’s a good investment.” 

Maxwell, subpoenaed in July, initially claimed she would testify only after her Supreme Court appeal is resolved. The high court declined to hear her case earlier this month. 

She also demanded immunity for any criminal exposure resulting from the congressional probe, in addition to access to the committee’s questions in advance. Comer rejected both demands. 

Maxwell is serving a 20-year sentence for her role in Epstein’s long-running sex trafficking scheme. 

In 2021, a jury convicted her of conspiracy to entice minors to travel to engage in illegal sex acts, conspiracy to transport minors to participate in illegal sex acts, transporting a minor to participate in illegal sex acts and other related charges. 

JFK’s Granddaughter Has Cancer, Still Supports MNRA Jab

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JFK’s Granddaughter Has Cancer, Still Supports MNRA Jab

(Headline USA) John F. Kennedy’s granddaughter disclosed Saturday that she has terminal cancer, writing in an essay in “The New Yorker” that one of her doctors said she might live for about another year and criticizing policies pushed by her cousin, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Tatiana Schlossberg, the daughter of Kennedy’s daughter, Caroline Kennedy, and Edwin Schlossberg, said she was diagnosed in May 2024 at 34. After the birth of her second child, her doctor noticed her white blood cell count was high. It turned out to be acute myeloid leukemia with a rare mutation, mostly seen in older people.

Her essay was published on the 62nd anniversary of her grandfather’s assassination.

Schlossberg, an environmental journalist, wrote she has undergone rounds of chemotherapy and two stem cell transplants, the first using cells from her sister and the next from an unrelated donor, and participated in clinical trials. During the latest trial, she wrote, her doctor told her “he could keep me alive for a year, maybe.”

Schlossberg also said policies backed by RFK could hurt cancer patients like her. Caroline Kennedy urged senators to reject his confirmation.

“As I spent more and more of my life under the care of doctors, nurses, and researchers striving to improve the lives of others, I watched as Bobby cut nearly a half billion dollars for research into mRNA vaccines, technology that could be used against certain cancers,” the essay reads.

Schlossberg wrote about her fears that her daughter and son won’t remember her. She feels cheated and sad that she won’t get to keep living “the wonderful life” she had with her husband, George Moran. While her parents and siblings try to hide their pain from her, she said she feels it every day.

“For my whole life, I have tried to be good, to be a good student and a good sister and a good daughter, and to protect my mother and never make her upset or angry,” she said. “Now I have added a new tragedy to her life, to our family’s life, and there’s nothing I can do to stop it.”

Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press

 

Daughter of George Bush’s National Intelligence Director Convicted of Murder

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Daughter of George Bush’s National Intelligence Director Convicted of Murder

(Headline USA) The daughter of former U.S. intelligence director John Negroponte was convicted Thursday for a second time in the fatal stabbing of a friend after a drunken argument at a Maryland home, prosecutors announced.

Sophia Negroponte, 32, of Washington, D.C., was found guilty of second-degree murder in the 2020 death of 24-year-old Yousuf Rasmussen, according to the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office. She faces up to 35 years in prison at sentencing, which is scheduled for Feb. 19.

Negroponte was convicted of second-degree murder in the case in 2023 and sentenced to 35 years in prison, but the conviction was overturned last year. An appeals court sent the case back to Montgomery County Circuit Court because the jury had been allowed to hear contested portions of a police interrogation of Sophia Negroponte and testimony from a prosecution witness questioning her credibility, news outlets reported.

Sophia Negroponte was one of five abandoned or orphaned Honduran children adopted by John Negroponte and his wife after he was appointed as U.S. ambassador to the Central American country in the 1980s, according to The Washington Post.

Former President George W. Bush appointed John Negroponte as the nation’s first intelligence director in 2005. He later served as deputy secretary of state. He also served as ambassador to Mexico, the Philippines, the United Nations and Iraq.

Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press

 

SCOTUS Shuts Down Activist Judges over Texas Redistricting Injunction

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SCOTUS Shuts Down Activist Judges over Texas Redistricting Injunction

(Ben Sellers, Headline USA) The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday overturned a circuit court injunction that prevented Texas from implementing its newly redrawn legislative maps while the case is adjudicated.

Justice Samuel Alito temporarily halted the measure after a three-judge panel on Tuesday declared the new Texas maps to be racist, sending the case to the high court for emergency appeal ahead of a Dec. 8 deadline for candidates planning to run in next year’s races.

The case garnered nationwide attention after California Gov. Gavin Newsom threatened an in-kind response to temporarily suspend its own constitution in order to further gerrymander Republicans out of the far-left state.

While Newsom and other already-gerrymandered blue states have continued to double down, they have deployed longstanding “sue till blue” tactics, using activist judges to derail Republicans, who hold the House of Representatives by a razor-thin majority of five—soon to be four—seats.

Critics have pointed out that California’s passage of Proposition 50 to ignore its own constitution ironically will allow them to do exactly what they have accused Texas of doing.

The Justice Department is suing the state to block its illegal race-based gerrymandering.

Meanwhile, in Texas, a dissenting judge in the circuit-court panel issued a scathing response that accused his two colleagues of “outrageous conduct” for bending the law to block Gov. Greg Abbott’s constitutional use of his authority.

“Any pretense of judicial restraint, good faith, or trust by these two judges is gone,” wrote Judge Jerry Smith, who accused his two fellow panel members—Judge Jeffrey Brown and Judge David Guaderrama of colluding to issue the anti-Republican injunction without him.

“It’s all politics, on both sides of the partisan aisle,” said Smith. “George and Alex Soros have their hands all over this.”

Whatever the court decides in the Texas and California redistricting cases to determine the outcome of next year’s midterm elections, the justices may also soon consider overturning a section of the 1964 Voting Rights Act that forces many Southern states to actively factor race into their maps.

In October, they heard oral arguments for Louisiana v. Callais, which challenges an earlier mandate that required Louisiana to carve out congressional seats for black-majority constituents—generally those who favor Democrats in what is otherwise a deep-red region.

A ruling to reverse the antiquated segregation-era law would yield Republicans the opportunity to secure an estimated 19 additional House seats, per Politico.

Eric Holder—the former U.S. attorney general and Obama “wingman” who has overseen the “sue till blue” efforts at the National Democratic Redistricting Committee—delivered a speech Saturday slamming the Supreme Court for considering the elimination of the race-based rules that have allowed blue states to dominate the redistricting battle.

“It’s the issue of race that exposes perhaps the deepest hypocrisy and most shocking incoherence,” Holder said at the Minnesota Association of Black Lawyers Foundation Gala, according to Politico.

“After all, the very same Court that has barred even indirect consideration of race in college admissions … then endorsed the use of race and racial profiling in violent ICE raids, detentions, and deportations without due process,” he said.

Ben Sellers is a freelance writer and former editor of Headline USA. Follow him at x.com/realbensellers.

State Officials Urge Trump, Congress to Address National Debt

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State Officials Urge Trump, Congress to Address National Debt

(, The Center Square) Indiana Gov. Mike Braun and a coalition of state financial officers and lawmakers are urging Congress and President Donald Trump to address the national debt crisis before the nation’s 250th birthday.

The group sent a letter to Congress and the president pushing for action on the federal government’s $38 trillion in debt.

“The national debt represents one of the most urgent and consequential challenges facing our nation,” the letter said. “We ask that this matter be given top priority due to the threat it poses to the financial stability of the United States, the dollar as the reserve currency and our position of global leadership.”

The letter requests that Congress and the president develop a plan before the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 2026.

The State Financial Officers Foundation letter noted that the cost of interest on the nation’s debt is constraining spending on other programs.

“Our ability to service the debt is waning,” according to the letter. “Annual interest payments now surpass each of the annual budgets of the United States Military and Medicare. Without decisive action, the cost of debt service is projected to surpass the annual expenditures for Social Security.”

The group further noted that the national Social Security trust funds are expected to become insolvent in 2033, and financial challenges loom for both Medicare and Medicaid.

“We must come together so our children and grandchildren do not go off the fiscal cliff with debt we cannot pay,” according to the letter. “A long-term plan for debt reduction is essential, and our states stand firmly behind you in setting the vision to restore the financial strength of our nation.”

Indiana State Comptroller Elise Nieshalla, among more than 30 state financial officers who signed the letter, told The Center Square that the group wants to start a broader coalition at the state level.

“We are actively working to build a movement and really a mandate from the states to restore our country’s financial solvency,” she said.

Indiana is one of fewer than 20 U.S. states that holds a AAA credit rating, or what credit-rating agencies see as the lowest risk of default.

The federal government lost its last AAA rating in May when Moody’s downgraded the U.S. credit rating to AA1, projecting that Congress will be unable to reduce the nation’s growing debt. Moody’s was the last credit rating agency to maintain the U.S. at a top AAA rating. Fitch Ratings downgraded the U.S. in 2023, and S&P Global Ratings did so 2011. Moody’s said it didn’t see any budget proposals that would address the country’s more than two decades of deficit spending.

Despite Indiana’s strong financial position, the state relies heavily on federal spending, nearly all of which is funded with borrowed money, Nieshalla said.

“We are in a rock-solid financial position, but we can’t help but see the pending problem of the national debt and how that makes us as a state … very vulnerable,” she told The Center Square.

Nieshalla said one step that federal lawmakers can take is to pass a balanced budget, something that has eluded Congress for more than two decades.

“We’ve got to stop the bleeding, because with the deficit spending that we are doing every year, it’s absolutely unsustainable, reckless and dangerous,” she told The Center Square. “So getting us back to a balanced budget is a very necessary step to deal with the growing debt problem.”

The fiscal year 2025 deficit was approximately $1.8 trillion, marking the sixth consecutive year that the deficit exceeded $1 trillion. The growing national debt is largely the result of Congress spending more money than it collects, along with increasing costs for Medicare and Social Security as the U.S. population ages and healthcare costs rise. The federal government has to pay more in interest as it accumulates debt.

In March, Trump said he wanted Congress to approve a balanced budget. That didn’t happen. Republicans and Democrats in Congress failed to pass spending bills on time and the government was shut down for a record 43 days. Congress has until Jan. 30 to approve those spending bills before the next funding lapse.

Envelopes with White Powder Sent to Two Texas ICE Offices, No Public Threat

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Envelopes with White Powder Sent to Two Texas ICE Offices, No Public Threat

(Bethany Blankley, The Center Square) Texas remains ground zero for targeted attacks against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers. In the past few months,  ICE facilities in Texas have been the target of shootings, bomb threats and, now, mail with powder substances.

Federal officials are investigating two incidents in north Texas after two ICE field offices received envelopes with white powdery substances this week.

No threat to the public exists at this time, the Department of Homeland Security said.

One envelope was sent to the ICE Dallas Field Office, which has been the target of recent domestic terrorist attacks. The facility was targeted by a sniper in September and a bomb threat in August, The Center Square reported.

The other envelope was found at an ICE field office in Irving where the Office of Principal Legal Advisor is located.

“On Friday morning, an ICE officer at the Dallas facility opened an envelope addressed to ‘Dallas Field Office,’ containing a white powdery substance,” DHS said. “Out of precaution, a hazardous materials (hazmat) team was called to the facility. The Federal Protective Service (FPS) and Dallas Fire Department also responded. Following a shelter in place and inspection, the facility is returning to normal operations. A second envelope was also discovered at the ICE offices in Irving, Texas.”

“There is no threat to the public and the matter is under investigation,” DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said.

The incidents occurred after a coordinated Antifa July 4 attack against another north Texas ICE facility in Alvarado, roughly 27 miles south of Ft. Worth. Sixteen people were charged; guilty plea hearings have already been scheduled after defendants were indicted on terrorism-related charges, The Center Square reported.

Also in July, a Border Patrol annex located next to the McAllen Airport was targeted by a gunman from Michigan. After he opened fire and shot a police officer, Border Patrol agents returned fire, killing him, The Center Square reported.

The incidents also occurred after death threats against ICE officers have increased by 8,000% and assaults against ICE officers are up by 1,000% compared to the same timeframe last year, The Center Square reported. Threats include bounties placed for their murders, threats to their families, stalking, doxxing, among other threats.

A record surge of vehicular attacks against ICE and Border Patrol agents have also occurred in recent months. Vehicular attacks against ICE officers are up by 1,300% and up by 58% against U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers, including Border Patrol, over the year, The Center Square reported.

This is as ICE officers continue to arrest violent felons, including sex offenders, members of gang and terrorist organizations and offenders who’ve been previously deported nationwide.

In Texas, ICE-Houston officers recently arrested 3,600 illegal foreign nationals with extensive criminal histories,  including sex offenders, child predators, murderers, wanted fugitives, and those with convictions for aggravated assault, burglary or theft, weapons offenses, aggravated kidnapping, drug and human trafficking and smuggling, making terroristic threats, among other violent crimes.

In San Antonio, a Homeland Security Task Force just arrested 27 suspected Tren de Aragua members, including two who were already under investigation for human smuggling and money laundering, and one for cocaine trafficking.

Texas authorities are also arresting men after they’ve committed violent sexual crimes against women. They’ve been living illegally in the U.S. for years after they first illegal entered as a minor, The Center Square exclusively reported.

DHS has blamed Democrats for increased violence perpetrated against federal law enforcement. Those attacking, threatening and doxxing federal agents are being arrested and prosecuted nationwide, The Center Square reported.

McLaughlin is calling on “politicians and activists to tone down their rhetoric before a law enforcement officer is killed.

“Every day, America’s brave ICE officers put their lives on the line to defend our homeland and keep Americans safe.”

Study: K-12 Public Spending Nears $1 Trillion in U.S.

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Study: K-12 Public Spending Nears $1 Trillion in U.S.

(, The Center Square) School districts across the country have significantly increased spending since 2020, even as they face steep declines in student enrollment and academic performance, according to a new analysis from the Reason Foundation.

The report finds American public schools are nearing $1 trillion in annual spending, almost a 35% increase between 2002 and 2023. During that period, the average per-student spending rose from $14,969 to $20,322.

California stands out as one of the highest-spending states. According to the study, the state now spends $25,941 per student, placing it among the top eight nationally. The sharpest growth has occurred in just the past few years.

Since the pandemic, California’s per-student spending has surged 31.5%, rising from $19,724 in 2020 to its current level.

Since 2020, California public schools have lost 318,532 students, a trend that education experts say raises serious questions about how resources are being used.

Lance Izumi, senior director of education studies, told The Center Square in an exclusive interview that the disconnect between spending and academic outcomes is troubling.

“It’s very difficult to look at these cries for more funding as anything more than just funding the adults in the system and not helping the students,” Izumi said.

He added that public schools are facing increased competition from alternatives such as charter schools, private schools and homeschooling. “Public schools are hurting because there’s competition, and people are deciding the alternatives are better.”

Izumi also pointed to longstanding educational issues.

“We’ve condemned a generation of students to poor reading and illiteracy because California moved away from phonics-based reading despite decades of evidence that the science of reading works,” he said. “Evidently, the spending had no impact and was unable to overcome the poor teaching methodologies and curriculum the state was forcing on teachers and students.”

Izumi described the system as increasingly focused on equity at the expense of academic rigor.

“Too many schools emphasize equity over merit … they want the same outcomes regardless of effort,” Izumi said. “You’re seeing elimination of D’s and F’s, lowering the bar for an A, massive grade inflation … These kids were lied to and told they were doing great when they weren’t.”

Izumi highlights that these clearly declining standards have impacted the decline in academic results.

“California needs to go back to emphasizing merit, hard work, high standards, phonics, traditional math, real consequences for misbehavior and actual excellence instead of engineered equal outcomes,” Izumi said.

Aaron Smith, director of education reform at the Reason Foundation, told The Center Square that teacher pension costs are a driver of increased spending.

Employee benefit costs have jumped 134.9% since 2002, and the California State Teachers’ Retirement System reported $85.5 billion in debt in 2024.

“Research shows that teacher pension debt is driving this trend, the state failed to set aside enough money to cover teacher pension promises, and now the bill is coming due,” Smith said.

Smith also emphasized that academic challenges remain severe despite higher spending. “Nearly 44% of fourth graders can’t read at a basic level, yet public schools have taken on other responsibilities that have little to do with academics.”

To reverse California’s downward trajectory, Smith argued lawmakers must confront the structural issues in K–12 finance.

 “Policymakers need to address structural problems in K-12 finance, like paying down pension debt, focusing resources on academics, and closing under-enrolled schools that spread resources thin,” Smith said. “It’s really simple stuff, but public schools have drifted too far from their academic mission.”

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