They say this is 'not meant to provoke' Russia, but I can only assume it will.😉 They will not be using US military technology or equipment, nor will they use Starlink for communications. This doesn't mean they will deploy to Ukraine, but only a training mission at this time. From the article: Among the approximately 2,800 soldiers to be deployed to Poland — which is standing in for Ukraine in the exercise — are troops from Britain, France, Poland, Germany, Belgium, Estonia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and Turkey. While troops practice rapid deployment on the ground, military aircraft including a contribution from Britain of Eurofighter Typhoon interceptors and Voyager air transport-tanker jets will simulate the return of civil aviation to Ukraine’s skies for the first time in years. Per a UK Ministry of Defense statement, the Multinational Force-Ukraine (MNF-U) is “not a peacekeeping or a ceasefire-monitoring force, nor is it connected to NATO”. Its purpose is “reassurance” and helping Ukraine to regenerate its armed forces and economy. The Guardian states an unnamed government source emphasized that the eventual MNF-U deployment would be “defensive in nature” but the rules of engagement wouldn’t leave European troops defenseless. Another key emphasis of the deployment is the lack of U.S. involvement, even down to avoiding American technologies for the “reassurance” force. The Eurofighter Typhoon and Voyager strategic aircraft are both European-made, and it is stated troops will not use Starlink satellites for communication. Link to article in comments

More Dems need to speak up against the radical takeover of their party, like this fmr Clinton and Biden official did. 😉 Hasan Piker has said he wants to jail (or worse) anyone who fights their cause, making most Dems to afraid to speak against them. Vote red to stop the madness! Metzl said, “There is an alignment between what the radical mullahs in Iran are saying, what the terrorists are saying, and what many of these globalize the intifada radicalized students in America and on our college campuses and in Europe are saying. And it’s all part of this same radical insanity.” “It’s just insane. The far left of the Democratic Party and the Democratic Socialists of America have gone nuts." Link to article in comments

Alina Habba shuts down speculation she could replace Karoline Leavitt as White House press secretary We're all anxious to hear who will take Karoline's place as press secretary, but apparently it won't be Alina Habba. She called the speculation of her taking the job 'fake news'. Scott Jennings and deputy Anna Kelly now lead Kalshi prediction market odds for the White House role. Personally I think Stephen Miller would be awesome! 😂 Can you imagine the exchanges in the WH press room with him at the podium? 😅 From the article: Habba, who serves as senior adviser to the attorney general for U.S. attorneys, was previously floated for the position after Trump won re-election. Bettors on Kalshi gave Habba a 35% chance of being named Leavitt's replacement at the time before she publicly dismissed the speculation. Habba, however, threw cold water on that idea. "Flattered by the Kalshi odds, but I'm not in the running for any job," Habba posted on X. "However, if I'm getting a new one, I'd love for one of these anonymous sources to let me know first," she continued. "Fake news remains the undefeated champ…well…until I come at them." When speculation emerged about Habba potentially becoming press secretary following Trump's 2024 election victory, she said she was "flattered" by the consideration but believed she would "be better served in other capacities." Habba went on to serve just over two months as counselor to the president before being appointed interim U.S. attorney for the District of New Jersey. After a federal appeals court upheld a ruling that her subsequent service as acting U.S. attorney was unlawful, she resigned from the position and was later named senior adviser to the attorney general for U.S. attorneys. Habba also previously served as Trump's personal attorney and was a high-profile surrogate during his 2024 presidential campaign. Following Habba's post Wednesday, CNN political commentator Scott Jennings became the new betting favorite on Kalshi, followed by Leavitt's deputy, Anna Kelly. Jennings, a former aide to President George W. Bush, was also reportedly considered for the press secretary role after Trump won the 2024 election before Leavitt was ultimately selected. Trump has touted Jennings' recent book and referred to him as a "patriot" who "gets it." "The next press secretary will undoubtedly be someone who has a strong existing relationship with President Trump," former White House press secretary Sean Spicer previously told Fox News Digital. Link to article in comments

Legal Specialists Preview Upcoming SCOTUS Cases On ‘Assault Weapons’ Bans Blue states try a myriad of ways to go after our 2A rights by... - Limiting the size of magazines - Banning the sale of gun parts - Banning certain guns - Limiting ammunition sales - Demanding costly firearm training - Restricting conceal carry licenses - Restricting where you can carry (gun free zones) - Limiting who you can sell/transfer gun ownership to ...and on and on. Much of this will probably continue even if SCOTUS rules against gun bans. The best defense is to vote in pro 2A candidates to state and local gov't to protect your rights. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ‘But it would be frankly shocking to me if there were not attempts by these states after … a likely, hopeful victory here for AR-15s to get around by just making it difficult.’ Williams opined that “it’s entirely possible you could see these connected in this decision” because “it’s really kind of hard to separate the magazine out from the firearm to the extent that an AR-15 comes with a standard magazine; it’s generally a 30-round magazine.” He furthermore noted these guns’ wide use among the American public. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ From the article: The U.S. Supreme Court is gearing up to weigh another big Second Amendment issue in its upcoming term — a matter legal specialists say will greatly affect Americans’ constitutional rights. During a Tuesday Federalist Society forum, Notre Dame Law School Professor Haley Proctor and American Suppressor Association General Counsel Michael Williams offered viewers a sneak preview into what’s at stake in Viramontes v. Cook County and Grant v. Higgins. The pair of consolidated cases — which deal with the legality of laws banning AR-15s and similar semiautomatic firearms — will be heard by the high court in its October 2026 term. The two panelists began by laying the foundation of the Supreme Court’s existing Second Amendment jurisprudence, which included a discussion of its 2022 NYSRPA v. Bruen decision. In Bruen, the majority (6-3) recognized that Americans have a constitutional right to carry firearms outside the home for purposes of self-defense. The Bruen ruling established a two-step test lower courts are to use when assessing restrictions on firearm possession. The majority said courts must first assess whether the regulated conduct is covered by the Second Amendment’s plain text, and if so, determine if that regulation is consistent with the nation’s “historical tradition of firearm regulation.” Turning to Viramontes and Grant, Williams observed how the 2nd and 7th Courts of Appeals effectively failed to properly adopt Bruen‘s two-step framework when considering the challenges to the respective laws. In Viramontes, Williams noted that the 7th Circuit “essentially stops the argument at step one” by analogizing AR-15s to “automatic weapons” like M-16s, which it found are “presumptively not covered by the Second Amendment” under existing SCOTUS precedent. Meanwhile, in Grant, he said that the 2nd Circuit focused more on the second step by accepting Connecticut’s “historical analogues” regarding bans on “certain types of knives” and “machine guns,” and started “to slip closer and closer” to a framework rejected by the Supreme Court in Bruen. The attorneys also considered the possibility that the Supreme Court may address the lawfulness of restrictions on gun-magazine size in its decision. The sole question agreed to by the justices is whether the Second and 14th Amendments “guarantee the right to possess AR-15 platform and similar semiautomatic rifles.” Williams opined that “it’s entirely possible you could see these connected in this decision” because “it’s really kind of hard to separate the magazine out from the firearm to the extent that an AR-15 comes with a standard magazine; it’s generally a 30-round magazine.” He furthermore noted these guns’ wide use among the American public. Proctor expressed uncertainty on whether the high court will handle the magazine issue in Viramontes and Grant, “especially now that there is a circuit [court] split” on the question. She noted there’s always a chance, however. “One possibility is that they decide Viramontes and send it back to the lower courts to try again with the standard capacity magazine bans,” Proctor said. “What … separates these out is the question of the definition of arms. … [Wolford v. Lopez] shows pretty well that the [Bruen] step-one questions are fairly well-settled. But that is still one area in the magazine cases where lower courts are trying to crack open the step-one analysis. And we see that in the back-and-forth in the 9th Circuit’s decision on large-capacity magazines in the Duncan case.” “So, hopefully we’ll get some sort of clarification in Viramontes even if the court doesn’t take up the magazine issue on how the arms analysis is meant to proceed,” she added. In Wolford, the Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that Hawaii’s “vampire rule” restricting concealed-carry holders’ ability to carry on private property open to the public to be unconstitutional. The majority held that the state’s gun control “regime” — which was adopted to seemingly sidestep Bruen — “hobble[d] what the Second Amendment protects: the right of Americans to carry arms for self-defense as they go about their daily lives.” While signaling the Supreme Court would likely deem the AR-15 restrictions in Viramontes and Grant to be unlawful, Proctor and Williams indicated they wouldn’t be surprised if states with these laws effectively try to circumvent a positive ruling. Williams compared such behavior to the “mass resistance” among Southern states to the high court’s Brown v. Board of Education (1954) decision nuking state-enforced segregation. “There’s a Supreme Court case that comes out; a certain number of states do not like that outcome; and they’re doing everything in their power to get out from under it, with a little bit of help from some lower courts who haven’t quite wrapped their minds around this test and this issue yet. … But it would be frankly shocking to me if there were not attempts by these states after … a likely, hopeful victory here for AR-15s to get around by just making it difficult,” Williams said. Towards the end of the panel, the two participants also flagged several gun-related issues that are likely to come down the Supreme Court’s pipeline in the coming years. Proctor highlighted legal battles over bans on firearm possession for 18 to 20-year-olds and felons, while Williams pointed to existing restrictions on suppressors and remaining commerce clause questions involving gun regulation. A date for oral arguments in Viramontes and Grant has not been announced. Link to article in comments

O’Reilly predicts Fauci will be in court for the next 5 years or so, fighting state charges. IMO, he should be in court for the rest of his life, if not imprisoned before that.

LOVE THE BAGPIPES - THEY WILL DROWN JUST ABOUT ANYTHING OUT. When the politicians won't stand up for the Scottish culture, sometimes the Scots feel they need to take a stand in their own way. Guess this is how they are handling things in Scotland.

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is celebrating a new tax on second homes worth more than $5 million and telling owners they will soon get mail about paying their fair share. This is the same man who has lived off taxpayer dollars for years produces nothing and now wants to pile extra burdens on people who already contribute far more than he ever will. What exactly is your fair share Mr Mayor? See the full article in the comments.👇

Twelve days ago the media showed this brief hospital photo of Mitch McConnell with his wife and then went quiet again. No real updates no proof of recovery and almost zero transparency from his office or the Senate. After more than a month out of public view the silence looks more suspicious by the day. What exactly is going on with Mitch McConnell?

.⁦@GavinNewsom⁩ will deny this too! I’m sure Greasy Gav would never accept bribes….😏 He’s as corrupt as they come! 🙄 He learned from the best though! His “Aunty Nancy” taught him well, no doubt …how to scam the system!