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Ilhan Omar Removed From Foreign Affairs Committee

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U.S. Rep Ilhan Omar, Ayanna Pressley, Rashida Tlaib, and Cori Bush speak at the Mississippi River in Minneapolis asking for President Biden to stop Line 3 pipeline construction.

The U.S. House of Representatives voted to remove Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., from the powerful Foreign Affairs Committee in a Thursday afternoon vote.

The vote came to the floor after Republican Reps. Ken Buck and Victoria Spartz reversed their decision to oppose the resolution to punish Omar for her history of antisemitic comments.

The Washington Times has more:

Ms. Omar, a Minnesota Democrat and member of the far-left “Squad,” was kicked off the committee in a party-line 218-211 vote.

Ms. Omar, who came to the U.S. as a Somali refugee and was one of the first two Muslim women elected to Congress, said she was being targeted by Republicans because she is an immigrant, a Black woman and a Muslim.

“This debate today is about who is going to be an American,” Ms. Omar said in a floor speech before the vote. “There is an idea that you are suspect if you are an immigrant.”

Ms. Omar has been vocal about her opposition to the Israeli government and its supporters, particularly on the issue of Palestinian rights, which led to the allegations of antisemitism.

Omar’s rhetoric in the past has also offended some Democrats, who have on occasion spoken out against her.

Every Democrat voted against today’s resolution.

This is a breaking news story. Click refresh for the latest updates.

Ex-ABC News Producer Arrested on Child Porn Charges

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Federal authorities arrested former ABC News investigative journalist James Gordon Meek on criminal charges related to the alleged transportation of images of child sex abuse.

According to the DOJ, the case against Meek was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the DOJ to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.

According to Fox News, the Justice Department issued a press release Wednesday that finally shed light on the mysterious raid of the journalist’s home last year.

The 15-page affidavit includes extremely disturbing details, including a video found on Meek’s phone of the alleged rape of an infant.

The DOJ announced an investigation into Meek initiated from a lead sent by Dropbox, which was eventually received by the FBI Washington Field Office’s Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force. 

“That lead ultimately led to a court-authorized search of Meek’s residence in April 2022 by members of the task force, where law enforcement seized multiple devices that allegedly contained evidence of the transportation of images of child sexual abuse,” the Justice Department announced. 

“According to court documents, several of Meek’s devices allegedly contained images depicting children engaged in sexually explicit conduct, and multiple chat conversations with users engaged in sexually explicit conversations where the participants expressed enthusiasm for the sexual abuse of children. In two of those conversations, a username allegedly associated with Meek received and distributed child sexual abuse materials through an internet-based messaging platform,” the DOJ continued. 

Meek is charged with transportation of child pornography and faces a mandatory minimum of five years in prison and a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison if convicted.

Amanda Head: More Biden Docs…More Biden Corruption?

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President Joe Biden delivers remarks in National Statuary Hall on the one-year anniversary of the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, Thursday, January 6, 2022, in Washington, D.C. (Official White House Photo by Cameron Smith)

FBI agents descended on Joe Biden’s beach home in Rehoboth Beach, DE on Wednesday as the Justice Department continues its search for classified documents…

Watch Amanda explain the latest developments below:

Opinions expressed by contributors do not necessarily reflect the views of Great America News Desk.

Red State Governor Appoints New ‘Border Czar’

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    Construction continues on new border wall system project near Yuma, AZ. Recently constructed border wall near Yuma, Arizona on June 3, 2020. CBP photo by Jerry Glaser.

    Don’t mess with Texas.

    Texas Governor Greg Abbott (R) is sick and tired of the Biden administration’s lack of action at the U.S.-Mexico border.

    In his strongest move yet to defend the border, Gov. Abbott created a new position in his administration to battle the ongoing illegal immigration crisis.

    “For nearly two years, the State of Texas has taken unprecedented, historic action under Operation Lone Star in response to the Biden Administration’s refusal to secure the border,” said Abbott. “To continue doing what no other state in the history of our country has done to secure the border, I hired Mike Banks as the State of Texas’ first-ever Border Czar.”

    “As an award-winning Border Patrol Agent, with decades of federal law enforcement and border security experience, Mike is the perfect choice to oversee Texas’ fight against the surge of illegal immigration, lethal drugs, and deadly weapons flowing into our state and nation,” Abbott continued. “I have no doubt that Mike’s strong record of leadership and wealth of experience will provide Texans—and Americans—the level of border security expertise they deserve from a proper Border Czar.”

    Banks said, “Protecting our nation’s border is something I have dedicated the last 23 years of my life to, and I am very passionate about it. I look forward to strengthening our relationships with law enforcement partners and the community, leveraging all that we can to further protect our great state of Texas and the United States.”

    According to The Daily Wire, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) had 251,487 encounters with illegal aliens last month, the highest number ever recorded in U.S. history.

    December’s numbers marked ten straight months of 200,000+ illegal alien encounters per month on the southern border.

    Trump Endorses Jim Banks for Indiana Senate Seat

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    It’s never too early for Trump to dole out an endorsement.

    On Wednesday, Trump formally endorsed Rep. Jim Banks’s campaign for the Indiana Senate primary in what is the latest sign the GOP is warming up to his candidacy in the race.

    “Jim Banks is running for the United States Senate from the Great State of Indiana. I know Jim well, have seen him tested at the highest and most difficult levels, and WIN!” Trump wrote on TruthSocial. “Strong on the Border, Crime, our Military and our Vets, Jim will fight for low taxes and regulations, Sanity in Government, and our under siege 2nd Amendment.” 

    “Jim Banks is respected by all, will never let you down, and has my Complete & Total Endorsement!” he added. 

    Trump’s endorsement comes a day after former Indiana governor Mitch Daniels announced he would not pursue a Senate campaign.

    “After what I hope was adequate reflection, I’ve decided not to become a candidate for the U.S. Senate. With full credit and respect for the institution and those serving in it, I conclude that it’s just not the job for me, not the town for me, and not the life I want to live at this point,” Daniels wrote. 

    “I have never imagined that I would be well-suited to legislative office, particularly where seniority remains a significant factor in one’s effectiveness, and I saw nothing in my recent explorations that altered that view,” Daniels said, adding that if he had run, he would only have done so for one term.

    Daniels stressed in his announcement that he would have worked to lower the “personal vitriol” and temperature across the nation’s political sphere.

    “I would have tried to work on these matters in a way that might soften the harshness and personal vitriol that has infected our public square, rendering it not only repulsive to millions of Americans, but also less capable of effective action to meet our threats and seize our opportunities,” he said. 

    Trump Labels DeSantis a ‘RINO Globalist’ in Latest Tirade

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    Donald Trump is escalating his attacks against Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.

    On Wednesday, Trump accused DeSantis of being a “RINO Globalist” as he criticized his response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

    “The real Ron is a RINO GLOBALIST, who closed quickly down Florida and even its beaches,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social. “Loved the Vaccines and wasted big money on ‘Testing.’ How quickly people forget!”

    RINO, one of Trump’s go-to insults for his fellow Republicans, stands for “Republican in Name Only.”

    According to The Hill, Trump’s latest insult comes after a series of weekend campaign stops in New Hampshire and South Carolina where he cautioned against DeSantis’s potential White House bid.

    “If he runs, that’s fine. I’m way up in the polls. He’s going to have to do what he wants to do, but he may run,” Trump said. “I do think it would be a great act of disloyalty because, you know, I got him in. He had no chance. His political life was over.”

    However, despite Trump’s insults, it seems DeSantis is managing to stay above the fray.

    As Great American News Desk previously reported:

    “I roll out of bed. I have people attacking me from all angles,” the Florida governor said at a press conference on Tuesday. “It’s been happening for many, many years.”

    “When you’re an elected executive, you have to make all kinds of decisions. You got to steer that ship,” DeSantis said. “And the good thing is, is that the people are able to render a judgment on that — whether they reelect you or not.”

    “And I’m happy to say, you know, in my case, not only did we win reelection, we won with the highest percentage of the vote that any Republican governor candidate has in the history of the state of Florida,” he added.

    Amanda Head: Biden Has Zero Clue Americans are Hurting Economically

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    Joe Biden via Gage Skidmore Flickr

    It’s difficult for Joe Biden to see down from his ivory tower.

    Biden found himself the target of criticism from both sides of the aisle after a major environmental faux pas…

    Watch Amanda explain the controversy below:

    Opinions expressed by contributors do not necessarily reflect the views of Great America News Desk.

    DeSantis Offers Cheeky Response to Trump Attacks

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    Ron DeSantis via Gage Skidmore Flickr

    Ron DeSantis is cool as a cucumber…

    The Florida governor, who is rumored to be considering a 2024 White House bid, seemed to brush off former President Trump’s latest attacks during a news conference.

    Former President Trump recently raised eyebrows with his criticism of DeSantis’s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic, which has widely been regarded as a major triumph of the DeSantis administration and what propelled him to becoming “America’s governor.”

    However, instead of trading barbs and criticisms with Trump DeSantis opted for the high road, with a reminder that he won reelection last year by the largest margin of any Republican Florida governor in the state’s modern history.

    According to The Hill, DeSantis defeated former Rep. Charlie Crist (D-Fla.) in November by a staggering 19-point margin. It was the largest spread in a Florida gubernatorial race in four decades.

    “When you’re an elected executive, you have to make all kinds of decisions’ you got to steer that ship. And the good thing is, is that the people are able to render a judgment on that – whether they reelect you or not,” DeSantis said. 

    “And I’m happy to say, you know, in my case, not only did we win reelection, we won with the highest percentage of the vote that any Republican governor candidate has in the history of the state of Florida,” he added. “We won by the largest raw vote margin – over 1.5 million votes – than any governor candidate has ever had in Florida history.”

    “I roll out of bed, I have people attacking me from all angles,” he said. “It’s been happening for many, many years.”

    Trump accused DeSantis of “trying to rewrite history” when it came to his early handling of the COVID-19 outbreak, arguing that Florida was “closed for a long period of time” at the outset of the pandemic. 

    In separate remarks to The Associated Press, Trump also took aim at DeSantis’s rumored presidential ambitions, saying that running for the White House would be a “great act of disloyalty.”

    Trump Sues Prominent Journalist Bob Woodward

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    Donald Trump via Gage Skidmore Flickr

    Former President Donald Trump suing journalist Bob Woodward over interview recordings that Trump alleges he didn’t agree could be included in his audiobook, “the Trump Tapes.”

    The lawsuit, filed in the Pensacola division of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida, names Simon & Schuster Inc. and its parent company Paramount Global as defendants along with Woodward. Trump seeks more than $49 million in damages.

    According to The Hill, Trump noted that he consented to Woodward recording their conversations for the purpose of a book, and gave 19 interviews to the veteran journalist in 2019 and 2020, which Woodward included in his 2020 book “Rage” but did not agree to the interviews’ being published via audiobook.

    “This case centers on Mr. Woodward’s systematic usurpation, manipulation, and exploitation of audio of President Trump gathered in connection with a series of interviews conducted by Mr. Woodward,” Trump’s team argues in the filing.

    “The Defendants’ ongoing concerted efforts to profit off the protected audio recordings and the works they have distributed derived from the protected audio recordings have caused President Trump to sustain substantial damage,” the suit continues.

    The former president’s team is pursuing a number of counts against the defendants, including unjust enrichment, violation of Florida trade law and breach of contract. At one point, the filing also alleges that the audiobook misrepresented one of the pair’s interviews through editing. 

    Woodward, 79, is one of the two Post journalists that famously broke the Watergate scandal

    Links to China? FBI Must Search All Biden Homes for Classified Materials

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    Federal Bureau of Investigation, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

    ANALYSIS – While the Donald Trump classified documents saga is embarrassing in its own right, it appears to be more ego related than anything else. 

    Trump thought he could take them, and he did – a lot of them.

    Not so with Joe Biden’s similar saga, which, while it involves less volume, could involve his son Hunter Biden and Communist China.

    While in no way excusing him, Trump doesn’t seem to have had any other motive than ego.

    That doesn’t change the potential damage to national security they may have caused. 

    However, despite unhinged partisan commentary at the saga’s outset speculating that Trump was selling these documents to foreigners, it appears there was absolutely no truth to that nonsense whatsoever.

    While an Intelligence Community (IC) damage assessment is ongoing, as it is with Joe Biden’s unsecured classified documents, and now Mike Pence’s as well, there is no reporting of anything being compromised by Trump.

    At least not yet.

    Meanwhile, Biden’s mishandling of highly classified documents brings more realistic speculation and concerns, especially due to Hunter Biden’s potential access to these documents and his close ties to the Chinese communist regime.

    This is why Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) is now asking that the FBI search all locations, residences and offices Hunter has used or is now using.

    I would add that the same be done for all homes and offices used by Joe Biden as well, especially his Rehoboth beach house. 

    The FBI’s failure to search that beach house borders on criminal negligence and professional malpractice.

    But back to Hunter.

    As Newsmax reported:

    “It seems he [President Biden] leaves classified documents wherever he goes. And we also know that Hunter Biden at times was — declared his residence to be those very same places,” Cruz said on Fox News Channel’s “Sunday Morning Futures.”

    “I also believe it is critical for the FBI to search Hunter Biden’s homes, home and office residences to make sure there are no classified documents there, given all the evidence that’s piling up. We need to ascertain who’s had access to what and when.”

    Cruz also was asked about an email allegedly written by Hunter Biden to a business partner that contained information about Ukraine seemingly taken directly from classified information given to senators before they travel overseas.

    “Well, the one thing we know for sure is Hunter Biden didn’t write that. Hunter Biden is not an expert on Ukraine, he’s not an expert on Eastern Europe, he’s not an expert on Russia, but that email did help get him on the board of Burisma,” Cruz said. “It did help him get paid $83,000 a month because it showed a level of expertise, not coming from him, but he got it somewhere.”

    While the wild speculation aimed at Trump selling secrets to the highest bidder was pure left-wing ranting, and some residual Russia collusion delusion, the concerns about Joe and Hunter, and dangerous liaisons with China appear more grounded in facts and evidence.

    Hunter had intimate business relations with agents of the Chinese regime, and access to all the locations Joe may have stashed highly classified documents. 

    It’s not a stretch to see the links and risk.

    It is time the FBI searches all Biden homes and offices, including everywhere Hunter has been, and Joe Biden’s beach house. 

    Opinions expressed by contributors do not necessarily reflect the views of Great America News Desk.