Conservative Twitter users have finally been vindicated.
Thursday night, former New York Times columnist Bari Weiss released the second installment of the “Twitter files,” Elon Musk’s purging of Twitter’s private failures in hopes of rebuilding trust in the platforms.
Throughout the Twitter thread, Weiss revealed how the platform previously sought to silence and suppress some conservative users and accounts by placing them on “blacklists” and flagging particular information.
Images appeared to show that several of the accounts had been flagged with “Recent Abuse Strike” and that more basic information, such as when the accounts were “Twitter Blue Verified” or “High Profile,” had also been noted.
Jay Bhattacharya, a health policy professor from Stanford University who opposed COVID-19 lockdowns, appeared to have been placed on a “Trends Blacklist,” as was the right-wing Libs of TikTok account, according to the photos.
4. Or consider the popular right-wing talk show host, Dan Bongino (@dbongino), who at one point was slapped with a “Search Blacklist.” pic.twitter.com/AdOK8xLu9v
The account of conservative commentator Dan Bongino was placed on a “Search Blacklist,” while the photos showed Turning Point USA President Charlie Kirk had his account marked as “Do Not Amplify.”
Weiss also noted that Twitter previously denied depressing particular accounts. In 2018, Twitter’s then-Head of Legal Policy and Trust, Vijaya Gadde, along with then-Head of Product, Kayvon Beykpour said, “We do not shadow ban.” They added: “And we certainly don’t shadow ban based on political viewpoints or ideology.”
Thursday evening, Musk responded to users’ concerns and said he plans to release a new feature to combat “shadowban” concerns.
“Twitter is working on a software update that will show your true account status, so you know clearly if you’ve been shadowbanned, the reason why and how to appeal,” Musk tweeted.
“Most engineers don’t feel strongly about politics, but do want to work with other great engineers,” Musk added. “Silicon Valley has world’s best engineering talent, but is co-located with San Francisco, which is far left. Thus, far left gained control of an incredibly powerful info weapon.”
Musk also responded to a question about whether “any political candidates — either in the US or elsewhere — [were] subject to shadowbanning while they were running for office or seeking re-election” by answering, “Yes.”
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy delivers remarks at the 2021 Capitol Christmas Tree lighting ceremony in Washington DC, December 1, 2021. USDA Forest Service photo by Tanya E. Flores.
Current House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy is facing unexpected pushback as he seeks to become House Speaker when Republicans officially re-take control of Congress in January.
So far, five Republican lawmakers have publicly announced they do not plan to support McCarthy’s campaign to become Speaker and he will need every vote he can get with Republicans holding a smaller-than-expected majority.
The GOP is expected to wind up with a 222-seat majority in January, compared to an estimated 213 seats for Democrats. If all 435 members of the House are present and voting for speaker in January, McCarthy can lose no more than four Republican votes.
These are the 5 Republicans jeopardizing McCarthy’s rise to the Speaker’s podium:
Rep. Matt Gaetz
Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz via Gage Skidmore Flickr
“House Republicans need a leader with credibility across every spectrum of the GOP conference in order to be a capable fighting force for the American people,” said Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL). “That person is not Kevin McCarthy.”
Rep. Andy Biggs
Gage Skidmore from Surprise, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Arizona Rep. Andy Biggs initially cast doubt on McCarthy’s bid for Speaker after Republicans saw lackluster midterm results. The House Freedom Caucus chairman is now directly challenging McCarthy to become Speaker himself.
“I think we need to have a real discussion about whether he should be the speaker or not,” Biggs told reporters the Thursday after Election Day.
“I think that his statement recently that we shouldn’t impeach Secretary Mayorkas indicates that maybe we’re not going to be as aggressive going forward as we should be. I think we need to have a very positive statement of what we’re going to accomplish and do, and I haven’t seen that yet,” he added. “That’s — those are things that I think we should have a very frank discussion internally about, where we’re going to be going forward.”
Rep. Matt Rosendale
Montana Rep. Matt Rosendale has also expressed his doubts over McCarthy’s potential Speakership but hasn’t ruled out voting for him or for Rep. Biggs.
“Each member of Congress has earned and deserves equal participation in the legislative process,” said Rosendale.
Rep. Matt Rosendale
The White House from Washington, DC, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
South Carolina Rep. Ralph Norman has also made it clear he won’t be casting his vote for McCarthy regardless of any concession the California lawmaker plans to make.
“I’m not going to support Kevin McCarthy,” Norman toldJust the News. “Washington is broken. There’s a cancer in this country, and it can’t be fixed with aspirin. It’s called overspending. When you’re bankrupt, you can’t function as a country.”
Rep. Bob Good
House Creative Committee, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Virginia Rep. Bob Good also signaled he will take a hard stance against McCarthy this January.
“I believe we have at least a dozen or so that are strong, courageous, that will do what needs to be done on the House floor to ensure that we get an improvement in the speaker situation,” Rep. Good said to the “John Fredericks Show.”
CNN host Don Lemon left “The Late Show” host Stephen Colbert visibly stunned when he said he never believed the network is “liberal.”
Despite the network commonly being regarded as a major left-of-center network, especially throughout the Trump administration, Lemon says CNN is just practicing “good journalism.”
“Word on the street is that you guys aren’t allowed to be liberal anymore. Is that the case?” Colbert asked.
“I don’t think we ever were liberal,” Lemon responded.
“Well listen, I think what Chris is saying is that he wants Republicans – sensible Republicans, he wants us to hold people to account, but he wants people to come on and feel comfortable with coming on and talking on CNN and appearing on CNN,” Lemon said. “So if you invite someone to your house, you want to make them comfortable but also by the nature of what we do, we have to hold people to account.”
“And so that doesn’t necessarily mean we’re going liberal or conservative or whatever, it just means that we are doing what we do and that’s good journalism,” Lemon added.
“So accountable but not confrontational,” Colbert said.
“I think sometimes one must be confrontational,” the CNN host pushed back. “Look, I don’t think that a conversation on television should be any different than a conversation in person. Listen, I have confrontational conversations with people I love and I have unconformable conversations with people I love and I think it’s necessary. And I think it’s also necessary to do that on television, on CNN, but you can do that without being vitriolic. I think not being vitriolic is maybe a better way of putting it, but you can do that and not have vitriol. As people say, you can disagree without being disagreeable. And so I think that’s what our mission is.”
Since taking the reigns from disgraced ex-CNN president Jeff Zucker, Christ Licht has made it his mission to re-vamp the network.
MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell is planning to challenge Ronna McDaniel to become the next chairman of the Republican National Committee (RNC).
Despite midterm election losses, McDaniel recently announced her plans to seek re-election to the position.
In a livestream this week, Lindell called for new RNC leadership and suggested he would be up to the job.
“We need someone everybody, and I would step into that, if God willing,” he said, according to Mediaite.
Mike Lindell announces that he has been drafted by his fans and supporters to run against Ronna McDaniel for RNC Chair, but he has to pray on it first. pic.twitter.com/JPNBCoX6uk
“Ronna McDaniel has failed in her leadership,” he said. “We need a new input to get a different output.”
“We need someone who knows how to run a business to lead one of the most important organizations in our country,” Lindell said.
The MyPillow CEO continues to claim he has evidence of mass v*ter fr*ud, though no actual proof has been found to back up his claims. Lindell claimed he would “drop everything” to present his supposed evidence to Elon Musk so he could get his Twitter account back.
“I would fly to him, do whatever it takes. I would hand- deliver it on a silver platter and say, ‘here you go, look at it,” Lindell toldSteve Bannon this week. “You’re a very smart man. Look at this and do whatever you want to do with my Twitter account. But for sure I would like you to say, ‘hey, this guy got banned and he’s banned right now for no reason.’”
Every year as families and friends gather to give Thanks a coalition of left-wing woke harpies descend on the holiday to remind you to make sure to politicize every aspect of your life. In recent years liberals have targeted the controversial story of Thanksgiving as a way to attack White colonizers and sing a song of sympathy for Native Americans.
Watch Amanda de-dunk the biggest lies peddled by the left about Thanksgiving.
Opinions expressed by contributors do not necessarily reflect the views of Great America News Desk.
Law schools across the country are abandoning their decades-long principles going woke and the move could prove disastrous for attorneys, current law students, and prospective law students across the nation.
Let Amanda break down the situation in the video below.
Opinions expressed by contributors do not necessarily reflect the views of Great America News Desk.
The Georgia Senate runoff election is going to be a heated battle and neither candidate is giving up ground. Trump-endorsed candidate and former University of Georgia football legend Herschel Walker (R) is nearly tied against incumbent Senator Raphael Warnock as they continue campaigning for the Dec. 6th election.
Watch Amanda break it down below.
Opinions expressed by contributors do not necessarily reflect the views of Great America News Desk.
FBI Headquarters Washington DC [Photo Credit: I, Aude, CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons]
ANALYSIS – Following Joe Biden’s new rule restricting feds from investigating or arresting journalists and the ongoing outcry against FBI agents using ‘storm-trooper’ SWAT-style raids against peaceful American pro-life activists, the Bureau goes and does it again.
Most recently, Joerg Arnu, owner of www.Dreamlandresort.com, a popular Area 51 website issued a statement after heavily armed federal agents reportedly raided his homes at gunpoint several weeks ago.
Dreamlandresort.com was founded in 1999 and has long hosted information about the restricted military base widely known as Area 51, but also called Homey Airport or Groom Lake.
The extremely well-guarded Area 51 is classified as a ‘Military Operating Area’ by the Pentagon, but for most in the military, it’s simply known as the Nevada Test and Training Range, part of Edwards Air Force Base.
“The base itself is fairly small, but the restricted area around it is over 90,000 acres — partly to prevent prying eyes and partly because they need to test classified aircraft,” Benjamin Radford, a writer on the subject, told Space.com earlier.
The raid of Arnu’s Nevada home, conducted jointly between the FBI and U.S. Air Force, was first reported by the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
In his statement on Nov. 3, Arnu said that an FBI search warrant was executed and his “laptops, phones, backup drives, camera gear and my drone were seized.”
Arnu told Business Insider (BI) that he had “not been charged with a crime,” adding that since the Nov. 3 search, he has “not heard from the FBI agent in charge at all, despite numerous attempts to reach him to discuss the damages and return of my items.”
In response to an inquiry from BI, Lt. Col. Bryon McGarry, with the U.S. Air Force stated minimally that: “Nellis Air Force Base is aware of the joint-AFOSI (Department of the Air Force Office of Special Investigations), FBI investigation involving Mr. Arnu.”
However, as non-informative as the Air Force was, the FBI declined to comment at all.
The Epoch Times reported further on the seemingly outrageous incident:
Elaborating to news outlets, Arnu said that some 15 to 20 federal agents arrived at his home in “full riot gear.” He said the search pertained to photos that were posted on his website.
“The doors were broken open and I in [sic] Rachel and my girlfriend in our Las Vegas home were detained and treated in the most disrespectful way,” he told Insider. “My girlfriend was led out into the street barefoot and only in her underwear in full view of our neighbors; I was led outside, handcuffed and only in t-shirt and sweats in sub-freezing temperatures.”
Arnu added: “I am not sharing anything on my web site that cannot be found on dozens of other web sites and news outlet publications. Considering how this went down I have no intention of removing any more material unless ordered to do so by a federal judge.”
In his interview with Insider and Fox News, Arnu said he will now pursue legal action against the federal government.
“The federal government has the right to harass and traumatize random citizens that are not accused of any crime,” Arnu told Fox on Saturday. “Kick in their doors, manhandle them and take whatever they want from them. Said citizens have no rights whatsoever to reimbursement of their damages, return of their property or compensation for the trauma they were subjected to.”
Arnu added to Fox that “this is America … land of the free.” But now, it’s “not so much from where I am standing right now. Everyone should know about this injustice. It could be your door that is kicked in next!”
The seizure of Arnu’s aerial video drone may hint at a potential motive for the raid, as there are signs all around the military installation warning that photography in the area is prohibited and that drones cannot be flown in its vicinity.
However, if that is the case, then the FBI and AF-OSI should tell Mr. Arnu this and make a public statement to that effect.
Either way, the storm-trooper-type armed raid used against a well-known, elderly amateur journalist is outrageous and just the latest example of the FBI’s increasingly heavy-handed tactics being employed against peaceful American citizens.
Add this to the long list of FBI abuses the new, GOP-led Congress must investigate in 2023.
Opinions expressed by contributors do not necessarily reflect the views of Great America News Desk.
Daniel Ramirez from Honolulu, USA, CC BY 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
With Thanksgiving less than one week away, some of America’s greatest patriots are still questioning whether they’ll be able to put food on the table for their families.
While President Joe Biden seems content ignoring America’s heroes the Coalition to Support America’s Heroes is stepping in to pick up the slack.
In 2004, the Coalition to Salute America’s Heroes was established to ensure that in return for the sacrifices they made for us during the war on terror, wounded veterans and their families would receive all the support needed to restore their hope and rebuild their lives. Now, the Coalition is working to make sure every veteran has a Thanksgiving feast of their own. However, as one of the sole nonprofits providing direct emergency relief funds for veterans, they work overtime with limited resources as the organization experiences a downturn in charitable giving.
Out of more than 40,000 veteran service organizations (VSO) the Coalition to Support Americas Heroes is the only nonprofit organization that provides direct emergency relief funds, veterans are often directed to the Coalition by VSOs, Veterans Affairs, or other non-profits like the Wounded Warrior Project.
This Thanksgiving is already facing roadblocks due to sky-high inflation but coupled with a record amount of requests for help from veterans means the Coalition is struggling to keep up with demand. Each year, the Coalition gives hundreds, or even thousands of veterans funds to help alleviate the financial pressure that inevitably comes around the holidays.
However, according to the American Farm Bureau Association, the costs for holiday staples such as turkey, sweet potatoes, and stuffing have surged since the same time last year.
The price of a 16-pound turkey has risen from $23.99 last year to $28.96, marking a 21% increase as an outbreak of the avian flu impacts poultry flocks across the country. The costs for cubed stuffing mix, one dozen dinner rolls, and a 30-ounce can of pumpkin pie mix have surged 69%, 22%, and 18%, respectively.
Coalition president and CEO David Walker says that the organization is now seeing an unprecedented need from struggling veterans as the country rebounds from a years-long COVID-19 pandemic which also exacerbated mental health issues and suicidal urges in veterans. With Thanksgiving around the corner, more than 240 calls have come into the Coalition in the past week, which is three times the number of calls from the first two weeks in October.
“The need that the Coalition provides is as essential now, if not more so than when we started because the battlefront has moved into the home,” Walker said. “Veterans call in using words like ‘evict’ or ‘repossess’ and the Coalition steps in to prevent them from using words like homelessness, divorce, or suicide.”
A Marine, identified as C.T. for privacy purposes, served in Iraq where he suffered a serious spinal injury during his tour. After C.T. returned home from his tour he found that Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) hindered his ability to find a reliable job and he found himself in debt and facing eviction. The Coalition to Support America’s Heroes immediately intervened and paid C.T.’s debt and is currently working to place him in a job where he feels at ease and where his PTSD won’t be a problem.
“This was one of the most amazing surprises, the dollar amount is awesome my kids and I would like to Thank you!! But the thought of you guys not leaving me and my dependents BEHIND means more than anything,” another veteran wrote to the Coalition.
“Every year is hard being away from my children, this act of kindness from your organization is more than thoughtful it’s priceless. Not just saying you care but showing it. My Goal is to help Veterans once I address some Mental and physical issues. This has relieved some pressure financially and giving some motivation. I SALUTE you guys!” J.D. continued.
A.K, another Coalition recipient, was awarded a purple heart after being struck by a mortar while serving in the Army in Iraq while her husband and child waited for her to return home. A.K. sustained severe injuries, a traumatic brain injury, and suffers from PTSD due to her brave service in Iraq. However, sky-high inflation coupled with unexpected home repairs caused A.K. to fall behind on mortgage payments, putting her family at risk of eviction. Thanks to the Coalition’s tremendous work A.K. and her family managed to catch up on their bills and will get to spend the holiday together giving thanks.
One veteran living in southern California expressed gratitude to the organization, “I just want you to know how happy this organization has made me; you have given me a sense of relief and joy during a very difficult year. I am so thankful for everything this organization has done for me and for all me fellow brothers and sisters in and out of uniform. Thank you for thinking of me when I didn’t think anyone was.”
With only days until Thanksgiving and Christmas on the horizon, America’s heroes deserve support and comfort, and now is the time to say “thank you” to those to have sacrificed so much.
Follow the link HERE to contribute and give a veteran a Thanksgiving meal!
