Tuesday August 26th, 2025
- "It Is Not A Question of Who Is Right Or Wrong But What Is Right Or Wrong That Counts."
- --Geoff Metcalf
- Providing an on line Triage of the news since 1998
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World & Nation
Bolton may be in hot water as FBI investigation expands beyond controversial book
Bolton’s book controversy has been at
the forefront since the FBI raided his home and office, but a source
says the investigation is far more expansive
The FBI’s raid on John Bolton’s home and office is tied to an
investigation that reaches beyond his controversial book, a source told
Fox News Digital, fueling speculation that the former Trump adviser
could face criminal charges.
The scope of any potential charges against Bolton, who served under
President Donald Trump before falling out of favor with him in 2019, is
uncertain, but legal experts tend to agree that Bolton has some legal
exposure.
Prominent D.C.-based attorney Mark Zaid, who specializes in national
security, said that while there are many unknowns about the Department
of Justice’s investigation into Bolton, his memoir, "The Room Where It
Happened," could be an area of vulnerability for him.
"With respect to Bolton's book, he is potentially vulnerable if he
maintains any copies of early drafts which were determined to contain
‘voluminous’ amounts of classified information when it was first
submitted to the White House for review," Zaid told Fox New Digital.
"Those drafts were likely disseminated, per normal course of business,
to his literary agent, publisher and lawyer."
Federal Reserve governor digs in as Trump moves to fire her: 'I will not resign'
Cook says she will continue duties despite president's removal letter
Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook is refusing to resign despite
President Donald Trump saying in a letter that she was "removed" from
her position "effective immediately." The president posted the letter
to Cook on Truth Social just five days after he demanded her
resignation in a different post on the same platform.
Trump cited his authority under the Constitution and the Federal
Reserve Act of 1913 as justifications for his decision to remove Cook.
The Federal Reserve Act establishes the president’s ability to remove
governors from the board "for cause." The president said in his letter
that there was "sufficient reason" to think Cook "made false statements
on one or more mortgage agreements."
The president also said he had "determined that faithfully enacting the law requires your immediate removal from office."
The allegations stem from Bill Pulte, a Trump appointee to an agency
that regulates Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Pulte accused Cook of
claiming two primary residences, one in Ann Arbor and another in
Atlanta in 2021 with the goal of getting better mortgage terms.
DNC agreed to pick up the tab for more than $20M of Kamala Harris campaign debt in ‘handshake deal’: report
Former Vice President Kamala Harris and the Democratic National
Committee (DNC) made a “handshake deal” after her massive defeat in the
2024 presidential election, which saw the party cover all of her
outstanding campaign bills, according to a report.
Under the terms of the private agreement, the cash-strapped DNC paid
off about $20.5 million in debts owed by the Harris campaign in
exchange for the failed Democratic presidential nominee’s pledge to
raise money for the Democratic Party to make the entity “whole
financially,” the New York Times reported on Monday.
Federal Election Commission records show several six-figure sums the
DNC has doled out to pollsters, printers, consultants, charter airlines
and numerous event production companies, on behalf of Harris, since the
presidential election.
One event production company, Freeman, has received nine separate
payments from the DNC since last December, totaling about $3.5 million.
US debt set to surge to 120% of GDP as federal deficits spiral over next decade under new projections
The U.S. government's budget deficits are now projected to worsen
throughout the next decade when compared with earlier forecasts this
year, according to a new report by the nonpartisan Committee for a
Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB).
CRFB published an updated budget baseline as of August 2025 that
incorporates the enactment of Republicans' One Big Beautiful Bill Act
(OBBBA) along with the Trump administration's new framework for tariffs
to account for legislative and administrative changes, though it
doesn't include economic changes.
Under the updated baseline, CRFB projects that the national debt held
by the public will rise from about 100% of gross domestic product (GDP)
in 2025 to 120% of GDP by 2035. In dollar terms, that would see the
debt held by the public rise from $30 trillion today to $53 trillion in
2035.
Trump declares Cracker Barrel should bring back old logo
Trump weighs in on uproar over restaurant chain's rebranding.
President Donald Trump believes the Cracker Barrel restaurant chain should bring back their old logo.
"Cracker Barrel should go back to the old logo, admit a mistake based
on customer response (the ultimate Poll), and manage the company better
than ever before," Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.
"They got a Billion Dollars worth of free publicity if they play their
cards right. Very tricky to do, but a great opportunity. Have a major
News Conference today. Make Cracker Barrel a WINNER again," Trump added.
Cracker Barrel has faced backlash since it rolled out a new logo on Aug. 18 that removed the "Uncle Herschel" character.
Harvard Poll: 54% Say Trump's D.C. Moves 'Justified'
More than half of registered voters — including 28% of Democrats — said
President Donald Trump's actions in Washington, D.C., to tackle crime
were "justified and necessary," according to a new Harvard Center for
American Political Studies (CAPS)-Harris poll released Monday.
Overall, 54% said Trump's moves to federalize D.C.'s police force and
deploy the National Guard were necessary to increase safety in the
capital, including 47% of independents.
Further, 51% said the moves would make Washington safer, including 28% of Democrats.
As for the individual moves, 54% said they supported Trump's decision
to declare a crime emergency in D.C.; 54% approved of his order to
deploy National Guard troops; 50% approved of federalizing the police
force; and 47% said they approved of Trump using presidential authority
to take over local police, according to the survey.
IDF Chief Orders Immediate Probe Into Israeli Strike on Gaza Hospital
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir on Monday ordered an urgent
probe after 20 people were reportedly killed in an Israeli strike on
Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, Gaza.
According to the Hamas-controlled Gaza Health Ministry, several
journalists were among the dead. Hospital director Dr. Atef Al-Houth
told Al-Araby television that the hospital's fourth floor was struck
without prior warning. He added that operating rooms stopped
functioning after the attack. Nasser Hospital, with a capacity of 140
beds, is reportedly overcrowded, currently treating about 1,000
patients.
"The IDF regrets any harm to uninvolved [civilians] and in no way
directs strikes at journalists," the Israeli military said in an
official statement. The IDF emphasized that it seeks to "minimize harm
to them while safeguarding the security of our forces."
The IDF initially revealed that the hospital was targeted after a
"credible threat" was identified on the hospital's roof. Hamas
terrorists have systematically embedded themselves in Gaza hospitals
both before and after the Oct. 7, 2023, attack.
Hochul says she spoke to Trump about National Guard threat: ‘I don’t know what he’ll do’
Gov. Kathy Hochul spoke with President Trump about his threat to send the National Guard to New York, she revealed Tuesday.
The phone conversation unfolded “a couple of days ago,” but left Hochul
with little clue whether the Big Apple will see the military on the
streets like in Washington, DC, the governor said during an unrelated
event in Harlem.
Trump deployed the National Guard in the nation’s capital to crackdown
on rampant crime, although many critics have argued his claims are
overblown.
MORNING GLORY: Are President Trump’s tariffs actually working?
If so, will skeptics revise their disdain for them?
A new report released Friday from the Congressional Budget Office is
surprising, even stunning. The "CBO" is not thought to be a friend of
Republican presidents and Congresses. Questions always arise from
"supply-siders" about whether CBO rejects serious "dynamic scoring" of
developments in the law and in major regulatory actions. Whatever the
agency’s methodology, it issued a report on the Trump tariffs at the
close of last week.
"We project that increases in tariffs implemented during the period
from January 6, 2025, to August 19, 2025 will decrease primary deficits
(which exclude net outlays for interest) by $3.3 trillion if the higher
tariffs persist for the 2025‒2035 period," Phillip Swagel, CBO’s
director wrote. "By reducing the need for federal borrowing, those
tariff collections will also reduce federal outlays for interest by an
additional $0.7 trillion. As a result, the changes in tariffs will
reduce total deficits by $4.0 trillion altogether."
Free traders should be scratching their heads as they review all the
data, including that in this CBO "Update." Inflation has not spiked.
Growth has not plummeted. The revenue from tariffs is enormous. An
international trade war has not broken out.
Billions in ‘nonprofit’ peculation now largely fund America’s left
Starting to lift the lid off a far, far larger scam, Commerce Secretary
Howard Lutnick just nixed $7 billion in “advance payments” that Biden
administration staffers aimed to divert to a “nonprofit” controlled by
other Democratic insiders.
The bigger scam being, of course, how the left (and lots of plain-old Dem machines) feeds off government-funded “charities.”
It’s a huge part of the “swamp,” though of course its denizens pretend their motives don’t reek.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick canceled $7 billion in advanced payments made to nonprofits during the Biden administration.
In this case, the Bidenites were in too much of a hurry to make the
theft fully legal: After President Donald Trump’s victory last
November, high-level staff all across the executive branch rushed to
corral cash that hadn’t yet gone out the door, lest the MAGA crew
actually vet where it was going.
