Tag Archives: FBI Director Kash Patel

Daily Beast: Karoline Leavitt Shares Post Blaming ‘Demonic Forces’ for Minneapolis Shooting

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Trump’s press secretary shared the post to her Instagram Stories.

Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt shared a post to Instagram that asked people to pray for the victims following the tragic shooting at a Minneapolis church that claimed the lives of two children. However, not all is what it initially seems.

A look at the full post, originally made by The Conservateur, a conservative lifestyle magazine, reveals a second slide that blames a “demonic force” for the shooting.

The full post reads, “There is a demonic force moving when a transgender maniac sprays bullets at pews of Catholic school children. Shame on the progressive leaders and lawmakers who make this about the man in the White House, the second amendment or so-called trans bigotry.”

“This is a corruption of minds to commit horrific acts of violence. We pray for the victims, their families, and the entire annunciation community during this grueling time. And yes, prayers do count and do work.”

Language similar to that used in the post has been liberally deployed by Trump allies and supporters in the hours since the shooting, which took place at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis on Wednesday.

Following the discovery that the shooter may have been transgender—FBI Director Kash Patel identified the shooter as a male, but legal documents requesting a name change show the shooter identified as female—MAGA was quick to suggest a correlation between their gender identity and the shooting and begin blaming “the trans agenda.”

Commentator Matt Walsh was one such figure, posting on X that “now is precisely the moment when trans militants are the MOST dangerous. They’ve lost. The game is over. Now they’re more desperate than ever,” and that it was “time to have a national conversation about common sense restrictions on transgenders.”

Bo Loudon, Barron Trump’s best friend, tweeted, “America does NOT have a “gun problem.” America HAS a transgender problem. Transgenderism needs to be labeled as a MENTAL ILLNESS!”

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem shared a statement to social media, confirming that the shooter was a 23-year-old “claiming to be transgender”.

The statement continued, “This deranged monster targeted our most vulnerable: young children praying in their first morning Mass of the school year. This deeply sick murderer scrawled the words ‘For the Children’ and ‘Where is your God?’ and ‘Kill Donald Trump’ on a rifle magazine.”

“This level of violence is unthinkable. Our deepest prayers are with the children, parents, families, educators, and Christians everywhere. We mourn with them, we pray for healing, and we will never forget them.”

We have confirmation that the shooter at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis, MN was a 23 year-old man, claiming to be transgender.

This deranged monster targeted our most vulnerable: young children praying in their first morning Mass of the school year. This deeply sick…— Secretary Kristi Noem (@Sec_Noem) August 27, 2025

Despite claims from conservatives that transgender people are overrepresented in mass shooting events, a report from the Violence Prevention Project identified just one trans shooter out of over 200 who carried out mass shootings between 1999 and 2024—Audrey Hale, who killed six people in a 2023 shooting at a Nashville elementary school. 192 of the 200 shooters included in the report were men.

Karoline Leavitt Shares Post Blaming ‘Demonic Forces’ for Minneapolis Shooting
Trump’s press secretary shared the post to her Instagram Stories.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/karoline-leavitt-shares-post-blaming-demonic-forces-for-minneapolis-shooting

Fox News: Democrats are ‘torn’ over their response to Trump’s crime crackdown, White House correspondent says

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Democrats are ‘torn’ over their response to Trump’s crime crackdown, White House correspondent says
‘Special Report’ panelists discuss Democratic governors rejecting possible troop deployment from President Donald Trump.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/democrats-are-torn-over-their-response-to-trump-s-crime-crackdown-white-house-correspondent-says/vi-AA1LcAdv

Daily Beast: Judge Arrested by Trump Administration Fights Back With Trump’s Own Immunity Case

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A Milwaukee judge who was arrested for allegedly shielding an undocumented immigrant from ICE arrest has argued that she can’t be prosecuted based on the same case that granted President Donald Trump broad immunity for “official” acts.

The FBI arrested Hannah Dugan last month after she allegedly told agents with Immigration and Customs Enforcement that they needed a warrant to arrest an undocumented immigrant who had appeared in her courtroom on a misdemeanor charge.

FBI Director Kash Patel accused Dugan in a social media post of “intentionally misdirecting federal agents away” from the man, a Mexican immigrant named Eduardo Flores Ruiz who was nevertheless arrested outside the courthouse.

Dugan was indicted on Tuesday for allegedly concealing a person from arrest and obstruction. A day later, her lawyers argued in a motion to dismiss the case that Dugan is “no ordinary criminal defendant.”

The motion argued that the problems with the prosecution were “legion,” including the fact that they allegedly violated the U.S. Constitution’s fundamental principle of federalism. But “most immediately, the government cannot prosecute Judge Dugan because she is entitled to judicial immunity for her official acts,” it said.

Judge Arrested by Trump Administration Fights Back With Trump’s Own Immunity Case
Judge Hannah Dugan’s lawyers argued that she cannot be prosecuted for her official conduct.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/judge-arrested-by-trump-administration-fights-back-with-trumps-own-immunity-case

Politico: Judges have a warning about Trump’s rapid deportations: Americans could be next

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A fundamental promise by America’s founders — that no one should be punished by the state without a fair hearing — is under threat, a growing chorus of federal judges say.

That concept of “due process under law,” borrowed from the Magna Carta and enshrined in the Bill of Rights, is most clearly imperiled for the immigrants President Donald Trump intends to summarily deport, they say, but U.S. citizens should be wary, too.

Across the country, judges appointed by presidents of both parties — including Trump himself — are escalating warnings about what they see as an erosion of due process caused by the Trump administration’s mass deportation campaign. What started with a focus on people Trump has deemed “terrorists” and “gang members” — despite their fierce denials — could easily expand to other groups, including Americans, these judges warn.

“When the courts say due process is important, we’re not unhinged, we’re not radicals,” U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes, a Washington, D.C.-based appointee of President Joe Biden, said at a recent hearing. “We are literally trying to enforce a process embodied in probably the most significant document with respect to peoples’ rights against tyrannical government oppression. That’s what we’re doing here. Okay?”

It’s a fight that judges are increasingly casting as existential, rooted in the 5th Amendment’s guarantee that “no person shall … be deprived of life, liberty or property, without due process of law.” The word “person,” courts have noted, makes no distinction between citizens or noncitizens. The Supreme Court has long held that this fundamental promise extends to immigrants in deportation proceedings. In a 1993 opinion, Justice Antonin Scalia called that principle “well-established.”

Judges have a warning about Trump’s rapid deportations: Americans could be next
Judges across the country continue to note that if courts don’t protect the rights of the least popular and most vulnerable, everyone is at risk.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/opinion/judges-have-a-warning-about-trump-s-rapid-deportations-americans-could-be-next/ar-AA1EvZfM

UPI: Judge Hannah Dugan’s arrest raises questions about jurisdiction, preserving judicial integrity

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The arrest and charges against Dugan have sparked concerns about intimidation against judges but Russell Wheeler adds that the presence of deportation agents in the courthouse also creates a chilling effect. Wheeler is a non-resident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution.

“The question is whether or not they should be searching in the courthouse in the first place,” Wheeler told UPI. “They don’t want ICE agents in the courthouse because people without status are going to be afraid to testify, be witnesses and cooperate with law enforcement.”

Wheeler’s concerns are not limited to immigration-related arrests, though in the current climate that concern is heightened.

“There’s a host of reasons you want to keep the courthouse open, regardless of status,” he said. “It’s the same reason as having a church as a no-arrest zone. That’s a matter of preserving religious freedom. This is a matter, in my view, of preserving the integrity of the judicial process. You don’t do that by creating a system where people are afraid to go to court. You don’t want to discourage people from reporting crimes or providing evidence.”

Judge Hannah Dugan’s arrest raises questions about jurisdiction, preserving judicial integrity
The arrest of a Wisconsin judge may have a chilling effect on the courts, experts say, even if the charges are justifiable.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/judge-hannah-dugan-s-arrest-raises-questions-about-jurisdiction-preserving-judicial-integrity/ar-AA1E3sSP

Wall Street Journal: Hegseth Comes Under Scrutiny for Texting Strike Details as Fallout Grows

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Republicans react with concern about new details on posts about weapons used and timing of Yemen attack

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth came under increasing scrutiny after more details emerged Wednesday showing that he posted plans of an imminent military strike against Houthi militants, including the timing and weapon systems, on an unclassified group chat used by senior administration officials.

Several Democrats called for his resignation, saying Hegseth had flouted longstanding security procedures for handling sensitive military information. And the chairman and ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee sent a letter Wednesday requesting the Pentagon inspector general to investigate the chat.

It asks for an assessment of Defense Department policies on sharing of sensitive and classified information on nongovernmental networks and messaging services and to examine whether any individuals transferred classified information to unclassified systems.

“The information as published recently appears to me to be of such a sensitive nature that based on my knowledge, I would have wanted it classified,” Sen. Roger Wicker (R., Miss.), who chairs the committee told reporters. “If mistakes were made…they should be acknowledged.”

The new messages made public by the Atlantic magazine Wednesday showed that Hegseth texted details to other senior administration officials about the specific times that F-18s, MQ-9 Reaper drones and Tomahawk cruise missiles would be used in the attack and mentions intelligence that an unnamed target of the strikes was at a “known location.” 

Such information is normally guarded carefully by the Pentagon before imminent strikes to avoid disclosures that could help adversaries. 

…

“The Signal incident is what happens when you have the most unqualified Secretary of Defense we’ve ever seen,” [Sen. Mark] Kelly wrote on X on Wednesday. “We’re lucky it didn’t cost any servicemembers their lives, but for the safety of our military and our country, Secretary Hegseth needs to resign.”

…

Earlier this month, the Pentagon sent an advisory to all military personnel warning that a “vulnerability” had been identified in Signal and warned against using it for classified information.

“It borders on incompetence,” Chuck Hagel, the former Republican senator and defense secretary during the Obama administration, said of Hegseth’s texts. “It’s certainly reckless.”

Pete Hegseth Comes Under Scrutiny for Texting Strike Details as Signal Chat Fallout Grows – WSJ