Biden Judge Cites Trans Identity in Giving Kavanaugh’s Attacker Light Sentence

Luis Cornelio
-
0
Biden Judge Cites Trans Identity in Giving Kavanaugh’s Attacker Light Sentence

(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) The transgender identity of the man who plotted to assassinate Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh played a role in the lenient sentence he received, according to the judge in the case.

U.S. Judge Deborah Boardman, a Biden appointee, sentenced Nicholas John Roske on Friday to just eight years in federal prison. The DOJ had sought at least 30 years following his guilty plea.

Boardman said during sentencing that she considered multiple factors, including Roske’s newly-declared transgender identity.

Roske came out as transgender after being arrested and now goes by “Sophie,” according to court documents filed by his defense team.

Boardman also said she took into account President Donald Trump’s executive order mandating that federal inmates be held in facilities matching their biological sex.

At Roske’s sentencing, Boardman went further, delving into his personal background, according to the Daily Wire.

“Ms. Roske came out to herself as transgender in 2020 but kept it secret,” Boardman said, using female pronouns. “Ms. Roske’s sister came out as gay two years prior but Ms. Roske saw that their parents struggled to reconcile her sexuality with their religious beliefs.”

Boardman added: “I am heartened that this terrible infraction has helped the Roske family… accept their daughter for who she is.”

Roske had pleaded guilty to attempting to kill Kavanaugh at his Maryland home. He flew from Los Angeles to Virginia before taking a taxi to Kavanaugh’s neighborhood.

Roske’s plan was thwarted after he was stopped by U.S. Marshals protecting the justice’s house.

According to the DOJ, law enforcement found a stockpile of tactical gear in Roske’s suitcase and backpack. Items included a firearm, black tactical chest rig, a tactical knife and two magazines each containing 10 rounds of ammunition.

He also carried an extra 17 rounds of ammunition, pepper spray, zip ties, a hammer, screwdrivers, nail punch, crowbar, pistol light, duct tape, hiking boots with padding on the outside of the soles and lock-pick tools.

Netflix Loses Billions after Elon Musk Calls for Boycott over Tranny Indoctrination

Editor 1
-
0
Netflix Loses Billions after Elon Musk Calls for Boycott over Tranny Indoctrination

(Headline USA) Billionaire super-genius Elon Musk’s recent calls to cancel Netflix have cost the streaming company billions of dollars in dropped subscriptions, according to recent estimates.

Following Musk’s Oct. 1 post protesting the promotion of transgender ideology in children’s shows, the company saw its total value drop by around 5%, which according to estimates was somewhere between $15 million and $25 million.

“They f**ked around and found out,” said a viral post from the “Inevitable West” account on X.

Musk, who lost his own son Xavier to transgender ideology, called for his followers to drop the woke, Obama-linked entertainment giant with a picture depicting the company as a Trojan horse using cartoons to infiltrate and infect the minds of impressionable children.

The boycott appeared specifically to come in reaction to a new show marketed to 7-year-olds called Dead End Paranormal Park.

Its creator, Hamish Steele, was revealed to be a notorious LGBT activist who had recently mocked the assassination of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk, according to Libs of TikTok.

But the show is hardly alone in pushing the trans agenda on unwitting viewers—indeed, the brazen attempt at social engineering through propaganda has become something of a self-parody due to the sheer number of transgender characters being shoehorned into shows apropos of nothing.

Among the recent children’s shows to push the gender-bending ideology are remakes of beloved 1980s franchises like Strawberry Shortcake, CareBears, The Baby-Sitters Club and My Little Pony.

Netflix is no stranger to conservative backlash and boycotts. In a high-profile protest from 2020, company bosses faced the threat of indictments after pushing programming that many felt crossed the line into child pornography.

The case was dismissed by a federal judge in 2022.

Musk also has a history of mocking and criticizing Netflix’s over-the-top alignment with a woke agenda, including the cultural appropriation of white-oriented period pieces with anachronistically “diverse” casting.

Netflix, however, is not alone in facing criticism for its controversial indoctrination efforts. Disney also saw its value plummet after it controversially incorporated LGBT issues into beloved children’s shows, movies and even characters in its theme parks.

The outrage led Florida’s Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis to remove Disney World’s autonomous governing status and replace it with a board that included parental-rights advocates.

Man Who Murdered 6-Year-Old Boy During Break-In Freed for ‘Good Behavior’ after 7 Years

Editor 1
-
0
Man Who Murdered 6-Year-Old Boy During Break-In Freed for ‘Good Behavior’ after 7 Years

(Headline USA) Outrage was brewing after a Kentucky parole board voted to release a cold-blooded child killer after only seven years in prison, citing his “good behavior.”

Some influential social-media accounts were now promoting an effort to force the parole board itself to resign—or face charges—over the decision to free Ronald Exantus for the 2015 stabbing death of 6-year-old Logan Tipton.

Exantus fatally stabbed the boy with a kitchen knife as he slept in his bedroom during a December 2015 break-in of the family’s home in Versailles, Ky.

Although a jury in 2018 found him not guilty of the murder by reason of insanity, he was convicted on related assault charges and received a 20-year prison sentence.

But the 42-year-old former dialysis nurse was paroled on Oct. 1 and is expected to walk fully free by next June, People magazine reported.

According to the popular conservative news account “Unlimited L’s,” after Exantus entered the Tipton household through an unlocked door, Logan “was st*bbed repeatedly in the head so forcefully that the knife blade bent.”

The boy’s father and two young sisters also were seriously injured during the attack.

“He stabbed me in the back. And then stomped on my head,” Logan’s sister, Dakota, told WLKY, as reported by the New York Post. “And I remember waking up across the room, not where I was at, and I looked and he was killing Logan and Logan was screaming.”

Logan’s dad, Dean Tipton, said he, too, was stabbed and thrown at least 10 feet while trying to protect his children.

Afterward, his life lost all meaning.

“I laid in bed. I gave up. I gave up on life. I gave up on my family. I gave up on everybody. I just wanted to die,” he told WLKY.

The father said he would avenge his son and ensure the safety of his surviving family members if he ever encountered Exantus again.

“I’ve had my talks with God, ’cause I’m not afraid to tell you all—I told the court—if I ever cross paths with him, I will kill the man,” Dean Tipton told WKYT. “I will kill him where he stands.”

Among those championing justice for the Tipton family was Daily Wire commentator Matt Walsh, who helped to amplify the case and called on President Donald Trump to intervene.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed Saturday morning that officials were “looking into” it.

“It’s wholly unacceptable for a child killer to walk free after just several years in prison,” she wrote in a response to Walsh’s post on X.

The story breaks amid a national reckoning over woke criminal-justice policies that have led to dangerous and mentally unstable individuals repeatedly gaming the system.

Among the most notable cases is that of DeCarlos Brown Jr., a mentally ill Charlotte man who was arrested and released at least 14 times on charges—including several violent crimes—before fatally stabbing Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska in an unprovoked Aug. 22 attack while riding on the city’s public-transit system.

Jordan Peterson’s Daughter Posts Grim Update on Health Status

Editor 1
-
0
Jordan Peterson’s Daughter Posts Grim Update on Health Status

(Headline USA) The daughter of psychologist and Daily Wire commentator Jordan Peterson said Saturday that the popular anti-woke cultural critic remained in dire condition after several months of severe illness that had resulted in a monthlong hospitalization for pneumonia and sepsis.

“He’s recovering slowly, day by day, but I won’t lie, it’s slow and scary,” Mikhaila Peterson said in a post on social media. “He won’t be back for another few months at least, probably longer.”

She said her father’s official prognosis appeared to be Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS), a condition in the immune system sometimes brought about by exposure to mold or biotoxins.

However, she hinted that darker forces could be at work.

“We’re not entirely sure what’s going on but it looks like possibly severe CIRS and a LOT of bad luck. Or we’re getting spiritually attacked,” she said.

In addition to her dad’s health issues, Mikhaila’s own newborn child, Audrey, was suffering serious health conditions.

“It’s been one thing after another in an otherworldly type of way,” she said.

She closed the message referencing St. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, chapter 6, verse 12: “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”

Fellow Daily Wire pundit Andrew Klavan joined many others in prayer for the Peterson family, concurring with Mikhaila’s opinion that there may be a spiritual component.

The recent illnesses are among several that have plagued the Petersons—and, in some cases, helped to define the Canadian guru’s broader philosophy on life.

Tammy Peterson, Jordan’s wife and Mikhaila’s mother, is currently in remission after a 2019 kidney cancer diagnosis that initially gave her just 10 months to live.

She now has her own podcast and speaking engagements—advocating, among other things, for her Christian faith.

Jordan Peterson has publicly grappled with his own faith—even authoring a book titled We Who Wrestle with God—while also endorsing an all-meat “carnivore diet.”

The diet and his wife’s cancer diagnosis helped to fuel his addiction to the anti-anxiety drug clonazepam, for which he sought treatment in early 2020 after suffering severe withdrawal effects.

Reaction to Peterson’s latest medical ordeal was mixed.

Some blamed his unusal diet, citing anecdotal evidence of similar issues—including Mikhaila’s past health problems.

Others suggested that the issues might be linked to Peterson’s decision to take the experimental mRNA vaccine during the COVID-19 pandemic—a decision he later regretted and disavowed.

Some leftist trolls also celebrated Peterson’s illness, saying they were praying for him to join recently assassinated conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

If Peterson does return to public life, it is unclear whether he will be able to maintain the level of ubiquity that he has enjoyed in the past, participating regularly in podcasts, interviews and sold-out speaking engagements, while also authoring four best-selling books and running his own online “academy.”

The 63-year-old former University of Toronto professor already has suffered diminished motor skills and other adverse health effects from his past addiction, and his new diagnosis may exacerbate those symptoms further.

Israel Says No Gaza Ceasefire in Place Despite Trump’s Call for a Stop to the Bombing

Headline USA Editor
-
0
Israel Says No Gaza Ceasefire in Place Despite Trump’s Call for a Stop to the Bombing

(Dave DeCamp, Antiwar.com) The Israeli government said on Sunday that there is no ceasefire in place in Gaza despite President Trump’s calls for Israel to “immediately stop the bombing of Gaza” as the IDF continues to slaughter Palestinians across the Strip.

“While certain bombings have actually stopped inside of the Gaza Strip, there’s no ceasefire in place at this point in time,” said Israeli government spokeswoman Shosh Badrosian, according to The Associated Press.

Badrosian added that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in “regular contact” with Trump and that the upcoming negotiations in Egypt aimed at securing the release of Israelis held by Hamas and implementing a ceasefire will “be confined to a few days maximum, with no tolerance for maneuvers that will delay talks by Hamas.”

Trump first made the call for Israel to stop bombing Gaza on Friday after Hamas issued its response to the US-Israeli ceasefire proposal. On Saturday, Trump said that he appreciated that “Israel has temporarily stopped the bombing,’ but on the same day, the IDF killed at least 70 Palestinians in Gaza, according to medical sources speaking to Al Jazeera.

The IDF killed at least 129 Palestinians in Gaza over the past few days, according to daily updates released by Gaza’s Health Ministry. The Health Ministry said in its latest release on Sunday that it recorded the deaths of 63 Palestinians and the injury of 153 over the previous 24-hour period.

Medical sources have told the Palestinian news agency WAFA that Israeli attacks so far on Sunday killed at least 19 Palestinians, including 11 who were killed in Gaza City. According to Israeli media, the IDF was ordered to halt its operation to conquer Gaza City, but it has continued to bomb the area.

One Israeli strike in Gaza City on Saturday killed 18 people, including seven children between the ages of two months and eight years, according to a statement from Gaza’s Civil Defense.

The IDF also continues to kill desperate Palestinians attempting to get food. According to the AP, at least four Palestinians were killed near an aid site in southern Gaza on Sunday.

On top of the violent deaths, Palestinians continue to starve to death amid the famine caused by the Israeli siege. According to releases from the Health Ministry, at least three Palestinians, including two children, died of starvation over the past two days.

The ministry said on Sunday that its violent death toll since October 7, 2023, has reached 67,139, and the number of wounded has climbed to 169,583. Studies have found that the ministry’s numbers are likely a significant undercount.

This article originally appeared at Antiwar.com.

Ex-NFL Quarterback Mark Sanchez Stabbed Multiple Times in Altercation Leading to Charges Against Him

Headline USA Editor
-
0
Ex-NFL Quarterback Mark Sanchez Stabbed Multiple Times in Altercation Leading to Charges Against Him

(Headline USA)  Former NFL quarterback Mark Sanchez was pepper-sprayed and stabbed multiple times during a late-night altercation with a 69-year-old truck driver in a downtown Indianapolis alley, which resulted in criminal charges against the Fox Sports analyst, according to court records filed Sunday.

Based on hotel video footage of the altercation early Saturday and the driver’s statement to police, a police affidavit alleges that Sanchez, smelling of alcohol, accosted the driver of a box truck that backed into a hotel’s loading docks, leading to a confrontation outside the vehicle that prompted the driver to defensively pull out a knife.

Sanchez was hospitalized with stab wounds to his upper right torso, the affidavit signed by a police detective said. Sanchez remained hospitalized early Sunday, according to police. The truck driver, identified as P.T., had a cut to his left cheek, it said.

Sanchez was in stable condition, Fox Sports said Saturday. There was no immediate update Sunday.

His initial court hearing was set for Tuesday in a Marion County courtroom.

As the altercation escalated, the driver feared “’this guy is trying to kill me’” and pulled his knife as Sanchez came at him, the affidavit said. Sanchez was initially stabbed two or three times, then stabbed again when he went at the driver again, it said.

“The next thing P.T. knew was Mr. Sanchez looked at him with a look of shock, he slowly turned around, and Mr. Sanchez took off northbound in the alley,” the document said.

Sanchez was in Indianapolis to call Sunday’s Raiders-Colts game. Instead, he was charged with battery resulting in injury, unauthorized entry of a motor vehicle and public intoxication — all misdemeanors. Police got a warrant to obtain Sanchez’s phone and clothes from the hospital, the document said.

There were no immediate court records indicating whether Sanchez had legal representation yet.

Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears said Sunday that his office would “follow the facts and the law wherever they lead.”

“What began as a disagreement between a 38-year-old former professional athlete and a 69-year-old man should not have escalated into violence or left anyone seriously injured,” Mears said in a statement.

Sanchez told police at the hospital that all he could remember was grabbing for a window, the court document said. Sanchez said he didn’t know who else was involved or where the altercation happened.

“Friday night in Indianapolis, one of our team members, Mark Sanchez, was involved in an incident that, to be honest, we are still trying to wrap our heads around,” Curt Menefee said Sunday on Fox’s primary NFL pregame show. “At this time our thoughts and prayers are with Mark and his family and all of those involved.”

Fox Sports play-by-play announcer Chris Myers also acknowledged Sanchez’s absence on Sunday before introducing Sanchez’s replacement, Brady Quinn. Myers said he wanted to send thoughts and prayers to Sanchez and everyone involved in the incident.

Police officers found Sanchez with the stab wounds when they were dispatched to a downtown pub about 12:35 a.m. Saturday. The truck driver was found in the alley.

Details of the confrontation were disclosed in the affidavit, based on video footage and the truck driver’s statement to police.

The video showed a man believed to be Sanchez running in the alley toward the truck, the affidavit said. The driver works for a company that specializes in commercial cooking oil recycling and disposal, and he was performed his work duties, it said.

Sanchez opened the truck door and began talking to the driver, the affidavit said. Sanchez told the driver he couldn’t be at the loading dock and that Sanchez had spoken to the hotel manager, the document said. Sanchez smelled of alcohol and his speech was slurred, the driver told police.

Sanchez followed the driver from side to side of the truck, the court document said. When the driver darted toward the driver’s door, video showed Sanchez “grabbing and throwing” the driver toward a hotel wall, it said. The fight continued against a dumpster and Sanchez threw the driver to the ground, it said.

Sanchez climbed into the truck but got out when told by the driver he wasn’t allowed in, it said. Sanchez repeated that he spoke to a manager and didn’t want the driver to replace fryer oil, the document said. Sanchez tried again to get into the truck and blocked the driver from calling his manager, it said.

Believing he was in danger, the driver grabbed pepper spray from his pocket and sprayed Sanchez’s face, it said. Sanchez wiped his face and advanced toward the driver again, it said.

The driver then pulled his knife and stabbed Sanchez as the ex-quarterback came at him, it said. The driver fell onto pallets on the ground, he told police.

“While P.T. was on the ground, he could only see the feet of Mr. Sanchez coming at him, making P.T. realize that he was in a life-or-death situation,” the affidavit said.

The driver made it to his feet and stabbed Sanchez the last time as Sanchez came at him, it said.

Sanchez had a 10-year NFL career before retiring in 2019. He appeared on ABC and ESPN for two years before joining Fox Sports as a game analyst in 2021. The Long Beach, California, native starred at Southern California before he was selected by the New York Jets with the fifth pick in the 2009 NFL draft. Sanchez also appeared in games with Philadelphia, Dallas and Washington.

Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press. 

Muslims Who Vandalized Texas Church Claimed First Amendment Right, Jury Disagreed

Headline USA Editor
-
0
Muslims Who Vandalized Texas Church Claimed First Amendment Right, Jury Disagreed

(Bethany Blankley, The Center Square) Three Muslims who vandalized a church in Euless, Texas, argue doing so was their First Amendment right. 

So far, jurors have disagreed, convicting one man, Raunaq Alam, of vandalism but not of a hate crime. 

Alam was one of three charged in the vandalization of a nondenominational church, Uncommon Church in Euless, in Tarrant County last March. They are accused of spray-painting “expletive Israel” and affixing pro-Palestinian/Hamas stickers on the exterior of the church building, among other actions recorded on a church security camera. 

District Attorney Phil Sorrells initially charged them with felony criminal mischief; the case was originally filed in County Criminal Court No. 5. The charges were later increased to a third-degree felony hate crime, which carries a sentence of two to 10 years in prison. It was increased to a hate crime because the perpetrators allegedly targeted a church because of religion, the prosecution argued. The case was also transferred to County Criminal Court No. 9 under Judge Brian Bolton.

Alam was the first to go to trial in mid-September and was found guilty on the criminal mischief charge. Bolton issued a sentence of five years probation. Alam was ordered to pay a $10,000 fine and $1,700 in restitution to the church. His probation terms include serving 180 days in jail, conducting 180 hours of community service, undergoing regular drug and alcohol testing, wearing a GPS monitor and issuing an apology to the church. 

Alam was next indicted on a charge of committing perjury and he faces a drug possession charge. His attorney argues he is being targeted, she told KERA News at a news conference.

Co-defendant Afsheen Khan was also charged with felony criminal mischief; her trial was Sept. 30. A third defendant, Julia Venzor, agreed to testify against Alam and Khan as part of a plea deal. She pleaded guilty in exchange for the deal, also receiving five years-probation, WFAA News reported.

The vandalism occurred after the church put up an Israeli flag to express solidarity with Israel after the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terrorist attack, Uncommon Church’s pastor, Brad Carignan, testified in court.

The case highlights a pattern in Texas where Christians, churches, Jews, synagogues and pro-Israel Americans have been targeted with unprovoked violence by Muslims. 

In January 2022, a Pakistani Islamist held hostage Jewish parishioners at a Colleyville synagogue. 

In 2023, two Hispanic Republicans in Texas’ congressional delegation were targeted by Hamas supporters, Republicans U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz and U.S. Rep. Monica De La Cruz, The Center Square reported. 

At least three public schools in Texas were identified by the Biden administration’s Department of Education last year for civil rights violations due to religious discrimination targeting Jewish students, The Center Square reported.

As antisemitic incidents escalated nationwide, pro-Palestinian/Hamas rioters called for the annihilation of Israel and protested Israel on college campuses, including in Texas. 

In response, Gov. Greg Abbott directed Texas Department of Public Safety troopers to arrest them. Pro-Palestinian/Hamas rioters argue their actions are protected by the First Amendment, Abbott maintains that calling for the death of Jews is not protected speech. He also maintains that college rioters should be arrested and expelled and faculty espousing antisemitism should be fired.

Muslim groups sued Abbott last year, arguing his directive violated the First Amendment, The Center Square reported. Abbott, a former Texas Supreme Court justice and former Texas attorney general, maintains it does not.

Jewish groups also sued Muslim groups arguing they were knowingly providing “continuous, systematic, and substantial assistance to Hamas and its affiliates’ acts of international terrorism,” The Center Square reported.

In the wake of increased targeted violence against religious institutions and ahead of the second anniversary of the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks, Abbott this week directed enhanced security measures to be taken around places of worship, The Center Square reported. He and the Texas legislature have also advanced numerous efforts to combat antisemitism, including in Texas public schools and universities.

ICE Agents Shoot Armed Woman in Suburban Chicago During Attack

Headline USA Editor
-
0
ICE Agents Shoot Armed Woman in Suburban Chicago During Attack

(Dan McCaleb, The Center Square) Border Patrol agents near Chicago shot an armed woman Saturday who was part of a group of motorists who attacked the agents with their cars, the Department of Homeland Security said.

“This morning, Border Patrol agents were conducting a routine patrol, near the intersection of 39th Place and S. Kedzie Avenue, when they were attacked and rammed by vehicles and boxed in by 10 cars,” DHS said in a news release “The officers exited their trapped vehicle, when a suspect tried to run them over, forcing the officers to fire defensively. This is an evolving situation. FBI is on the scene.”

The incident occurred in the western suburb of Broadview, where an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility is located and where clashes between ICE agents and sometimes violent protesters have occurred in recent weeks.

“While conducting routine patrolling in Broadview, in the same area of Chicago that law enforcement were assaulted yesterday, our brave law enforcement officers were rammed by vehicles and boxed in by 10 cars this morning,” Assistant DHS Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement. “Agents were unable to move their vehicle and exited the car. One of the drivers who rammed the law enforcement vehicle was armed with a semi-automatic weapon. Law enforcement was forced to deploy their weapons and fired defensive shots at an armed US citizen who drove herself to the hospital to get care for wounds.”

Two vehicles also were used as weapons against ICE officers on Thursday, DHS said.

The separate incidents happened in suburban Bensenville and Norridge. DHS said that two illegal aliens deliberately tried to ram and injure officers enforcing federal immigration law in the Thursday incidents. The suspects are in custody with removal proceedings pending.

The woman’s identity and condition from Saturday’s attack were not immediately released. DHS said, though, that she had been “named in a CBP intelligence bulletin last week for doxing agents online.

“Just last week, an internal threat intelligence bulletin was circulated about the armed woman for doxing law enforcement officers online,” DHS said.

No law enforcement officers were seriously injured, DHS said.

Saturday’s attack occurred the same day Gov. J.B. Pritzker said he was notified that President Donald Trump plans to federalize 300 hundred members of the Illinois National Guard for public safety measures in Chicago.

“Unfortunately, JB Pritzker’s Chicago Police Department is leaving the shooting scene and refuses to assist us in securing the area. There is a crowd growing and we are deploying special operations to control a growing crowd,” DHS said of the Broadview attack. CPD does not have jurisdiction in Broadview.    

Apple and Google Block Apps that Crowdsource ICE Sightings

Headline USA Editor
-
0
Apple and Google Block Apps that Crowdsource ICE Sightings

(Headline USA)  Apple and Google blocked downloads of phone apps that flag sightings of U.S. immigration agents, just hours after the Trump administration demanded that one particularly popular iPhone app be taken down.

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said such tracking puts Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers at risk. But users and developers of the apps say it’s their Firstf Amendment right to capture what ICE is doing in their neighborhoods — and maintain that most users turn to these platforms in an effort to protect their own safety as President Donald Trump steps up aggressive immigration enforcement across the country.

ICEBlock, the most widely used of the ICE-tracking apps in Apple’s app store, is among the apps that have been taken down. Bondi said her office reached out to Apple on Thursday “demanding that they remove ICEBlock” and claiming that it “is designed to put ICE agents at risk just for doing their jobs.”

Apple soon complied, sending an email Thursday to the app’s creator, Joshua Aaron, that said it would block further downloads of the app because new information “provided to Apple by law enforcement” showed the app broke the app store rules.

According to the email, which Aaron shared with The Associated Press, Apple said the app violated the company’s policies “because its purpose is to provide location information about law enforcement officers that can be used to harm such officers individually or as a group.”

In a Friday interview, Aaron decried the company for bending to what he described as “an authoritarian regime.” And immigration rights advocates like Kica Matos, president of the National Immigration Law Center, added that these actions marked “a disturbing example of how tech companies are capitulating to Trump.”

“These apps are a lifeline for communities living in uncertainty and fear of when ICE might show up to tear their families apart,” Matos said in a statement.

Downloads of apps like ICEBlock have surged since Trump took office for his second term earlier this year. Aaron said he launched the app in April as a way to help immigrant communities protect themselves from surprise raids or potential harassment. It had more than 1 million users, he said.

While not specifying details on the total number of platforms removed, Apple confirmed to the AP on Friday that they removed “similar apps” due to potential safety risks that were raised by law enforcement. Google followed their move, saying that several similar apps violated their policies for Android platforms.

Bondi warned over the summer against apps that allow people to communicate about the location of law enforcement officers and specifically called out ICEBlock’s Aaron.

“We are looking at him and he better watch out because that’s not a protected speech,” Bondi said in a July interview on Fox News.

Those warnings escalated last month after a gunman opened fire on an ICE facility in Dallas. Officials including FBI Director Kash Patel said the gunman had searched for apps that tracked the presence of ICE agents, though they haven’t said if he actually used one of the apps or whether any of them played a role in the attack.

Aaron said tying the gunman to the apps made little sense because the app only works if somebody else is reporting ICE activity within a 5-mile radius of another iPhone user.

“You don’t need an app to know that ICE agents are at an ICE detention facility,” he said. “This is just an easy excuse for them to use their power and leverage to take down something that was exposing what they are doing — and that is the terror that they are invoking on the people of this nation every single day.”

Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press.

Lawsuit Seeks to Stop Trump’s $100,000 Fee for H-1B Visas

Headline USA Editor
-
0
Lawsuit Seeks to Stop Trump’s $100,000 Fee for H-1B Visas

(Headline USA)  In what appears to be the first major challenge to the new $100,000 fee required for H-1B visa applications, a coalition of health care providers, religious groups, university professors and others filed a federal lawsuit Friday to stop the plan, saying it has “thrown employers, workers and federal agencies into chaos.”

President Donald Trump signed a proclamation on Sept. 19 requiring the new fee, saying the H-1B visa program “has been deliberately exploited to replace, rather than supplement, American workers with lower-paid, lower-skilled labor.” The changes were slated to go into effect in 36 hours, which caused panic for employers, who instructed their workers to return to the U.S. immediately.

The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in San Francisco, said the H-1B program is a critical pathway to hiring healthcare workers and educators. It drives innovation and economic growth in the U.S., and allows employers to fill jobs in specialized fields, the lawsuit said.

“Without relief, hospitals will lose medical staff, churches will lose pastors, classrooms will lose teachers, and industries across the country risk losing key innovators,” Democracy Forward Foundation and Justice Action Center said in a press release. “The suit asks the court to immediately block the order and restore predictability for employers and workers.”

They called the new fee “Trump’s latest anti-immigration power grab.”

Messages seeking comment from the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Customs and Border Protection, which are named as defendants along with Trump and the State Department, were not immediately returned.

The H-1B visa program was created by Congress to attract high-skilled workers to fill jobs that tech companies find difficult to fill. About a third of H-1B workers are nurses, teachers, physicians, scholars, priests and pastors, according to the lawsuit.

Critics say the program is a pipeline for overseas workers who are often willing to work for as little as $60,000 annually, well below the $100,000-plus salaries typically paid to U.S. technology workers.

Historically, H-1B visas have been doled out through a lottery. This year, Seattle-based Amazon was by far the top recipient of H-1B visas with more than 10,000 awarded, followed by Tata Consultancy, Microsoft, Apple and Google. Geographically, California has the highest number of H-1B workers.

The $100,000 fee will discourage the best and brightest minds from bringing life-saving research to the U.S., said Todd Wolfson, president of the American Association of University Professors.

Mike Miller, Region 6 Director of the United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America, said Trump’s plan “prioritizes wealth and connections over scientific acumen and diligence.”

Skye Perryman, president and CEO of Democracy Forward, contends the “exorbitant fee” invites corruption and is illegal. Congress created the program and Trump can’t rewrite it overnight or levy new taxes by executive order, the groups said.

Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press. 

1...436437438...3,824Page 437 of 3,824