Contributing Writers

The White House released a list of names of the 39 people whom President Biden pardoned, as well as a list of the nearly 1,500 whose sentences he commuted, on Thursday. The move from Biden set a new, single-day record for clemency under any president, and it comes after he pardoned his son, Hunter, earlier this month. The controversial pardon of his son put pressure on Biden from others in the Democratic Party to issue additional pardons.

President-elect Donald Trump described Richard “Ric” Grenell, his former acting director of National Intelligence, as a “fabulous person” and “A STAR” in response to a news report about him potentially serving as a special envoy for Iran.Reuters reported that Trump is considering appointing Grenell to the position, citing “two people familiar with the transition plans.

The House voted to pass its yearly defense bill Wednesday, adding about another $1 trillion to the $36 trillion national debt.The 1,800-page bill known as the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), details how $895.2 billion allocated toward defense and national security will be spent.On Wednesday, the bill passed 281-140, with 16 Republicans voting no. Only 81 Democrats voted yes, while 124 voted no.

President-elect Donald Trump nominated a few more candidates on Wednesday night to serve in various positions during his second term.He tapped Kari Lake as the next director of the Voice of America, a state-funded U.S. government broadcaster. Lake was a longtime Arizona broadcaster who ran unsuccessfully for public office in 2022 and 2024.”I am pleased to announce that Kari Lake will serve as our next Director of the Voice of America.

Reparations activists in California hope their snubbed bills that were shelved in September will be re-introduced by a legislator during the next special session that Gov. Gavin Newsom called in January.

Republicans and conservatives on social media are taking a victory lap after Senate Democrats failed in a last-minute attempt to keep control of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) on Wednesday after narrowly losing a vote to end debate on re-appointing the board’s chair, Lauren McFerran.

Former U.S. ambassador to El Salvador Ronald Johnson has been tapped by President-elect Trump to serve as ambassador to Mexico in his upcoming administration.Like many of his picks, Trump announced the news on his Truth Social network. “Ron will work closely with our great Secretary of State Nominee, Marco Rubio, to promote our Nation’s security and prosperity through strong America First Foreign Policies,” he wrote.

Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., said she was physically accosted on Capitol grounds Tuesday night, and the suspect has since been arrested.The U.S. Capitol Police said that just before 6 p.m. the office of a member of Congress, later identified as Mace, reported an incident in the Rayburn House Office Building.House division officers and agents with the Threat Assessment Section of the police department tracked down the suspect, identified as 33-year-old James McIntyre of Illinois.

President-elect Trump has tapped Andrew Ferguson to serve as chair of the Federal Trade Commission, the anti-trust agency of which he already serves as a commissioner. “Andrew has a proven record of standing up to Big Tech censorship, and protecting Freedom of Speech in our Great Country,” Trump said in a Tuesday statement posted to his Truth Social network. “Andrew will be the most America First, and pro-innovation FTC Chair in our Country’s History.

President-elect Trump on Tuesday announced several picks to join his incoming administration, including tapping Jacob Helberg to serve as his Under Secretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment and Kimberly Guilfoyle to serve as ambassador to GreeceTrump announced the picks on his Truth Social platform.”In this role Jacob will be a champion of our America First Foreign Policy,” he wrote.

San Diego County has voted to further block county cooperation with federal immigration authorities ahead of an expected deportation push by the incoming Trump administration next year – a move quickly slammed by a top local Republican.The resolution goes further than California’s existing ‘sanctuary’ law, which generally limits law enforcement’s cooperation with ICE. The vote was approved in a 3-1 vote by San Diego County’s board of supervisors.

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, a Democrat, signed a bill into law on Monday to prohibit public libraries and school libraries from banning books in the state.The law will also implement protections for librarians who follow the law against civil and criminal charges, according to The Associated Press.This makes New Jersey the latest state to enact a law prohibiting book bans, joining other Democrat-led states, including Illinois and Minnesota.

An apparent swatting call at the north Georgia home of Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., left a woman dead following a car accident involving local police.Greene took to social media on Monday to report that she was the subject of a bomb threat directed at her home. The congresswoman said the Rome Police Department’s assistant chief received the threat via email, prompting a bomb squad to be dispatched to her home.

Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Pentagon, praised women in the military as some of the “greatest warriors” after critics took issue with comments he made about women not being fit to serve in combat roles.

President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for secretary of defense, Pete Hegseth, celebrated that he had a “great meeting” with Sen. Joni Ernst after the Iowa Republican slow-walked an endorsement of the Cabinet nominee. “It was a great meeting. People don’t really know this. I’ve known Sen. Ernst for over 10 years.

President-elect Trump on Sunday nominated Harmeet K. Dhillon as the assistant attorney general for civil rights in the Justice Department.Trump said Dhillon has consistently protected civil liberties throughout her career, including taking on Big Tech for censoring free speech, representing Christians who were not allowed to pray together during the COVID-19 pandemic, and suing corporations who use woke policies to discriminate against their employees.

Lara Trump announced via X that she would be stepping down as co-chair of the Republican National Committee (RNC) citing that during her time the RNC had three distinct goals, and they had all been accomplished.She started her journey as co-chair of the RNC in March 2024, but it has been widely discussed that she is considering her potential options as father-in-law, President-elect Donald Trump once again takes the reins at the White House.

President-elect Trump announced that Alina Habba would be joining his White House team as the counselor to the President on Sunday evening.”Alina has been a tireless advocate for Justice, a fierce Defender of the Rule of Law, and an invaluable Advisor to my Campaign and Transition Team,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.

President-elect Donald Trump has released a new fragrance line for men and women to commemorate his historic election victory, and he found an unwitting model to help sell it.An online ad for the fragrance features a viral photo of Trump and Jill Biden, with the first lady seemingly smiling at him at the reopening ceremony of the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris on Saturday.

President Biden said during a Sunday afternoon press conference that the U.S. will support Syria’s neighboring nations and help bolster stability in the region after dictator Bashar al-Assad fled the country amid an ongoing civil war. “At long last, the Assad regime has fallen. This regime brutalized and tortured and killed literally hundreds of thousands of innocent Syrians. A fall of the regime is a fundamental act of justice.

Islamist leader Abu Mohammed al-Golani, who led a lightning offensive through Syria, has a long history of extremism despite a recent appeal to moderate policies.”Golani is a specially designated global terrorist,” Bill Roggio, managing editor of Long War Journal, told Fox News Digital. “He was a member of al Qaeda… the U.S. keeps him on the list for a reason.

The Biden administration on Saturday announced a $988 million aid package to Ukraine to ensure it “has the tools it needs to prevail in its fight against Russian aggression.” “This administration has made its choice. And so has a bipartisan coalition in Congress. The next administration must make its own choice,” Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Saturday at the Reagan National Defense Forum in California.

Congressional leaders have agreed to terms for this year’s defense policy bill, with nearly $900 billion in spending, new limits on transgender-related medical care and a significant raise for young U.S. service members.Roughly 1,800 pages detailing the new National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), legislation that outlines U.S. defense and national security priorities each fiscal year, were released Saturday evening.The bill details policy for $895.2 billion in federal spending.

President-elect Trump and Prince William shook hands at the re-opening ceremony of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris on Saturday, and afterward held a sit-down meeting at the British Embassy ahead of Trump’s inauguration. Trump and William also separately met with world leaders at Notre Dame, including French President Emmanuel Macron and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

President-elect Trump attended the reopening ceremony of the Notre Dame Cathedral alongside First Lady Jill Biden and several other prominent world leaders.Notre Dame was reopened on Saturday, five years after a fire caused serious damage to the landmark Gothic cathedral.Trump was seated between French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte Macron, during the ceremony, which was also attended by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Prince William.

Social media users erupted over President-elect Trump’s “dominating” handshake with French President Emmanuel Macron at their meeting in Paris Saturday.Trump traveled to France to attend the reopening of the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, his first international trip since winning the 2024 presidential election. Ahead of the event, Trump met Macron, and the two shook hands in a gesture that quickly went viral online.