Tag: news

Authored by Sam Dorman via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

The federal court system returned some landmark rulings for the American people in 2025, but many legal questions remain unanswered as judges absorb the flood of litigation challenging President Donald Trump’s policies.

In his second term, Trump has pursued an ambitious agenda on spending, diversity, gender, federal workforce reductions, and immigration, among other things.

With those moves towards change came major constitutional questions that have, or are likely to result in, landmark precedents.

Within months of Trump’s second term, hundreds of court cases led to a spike in roadblocks to executive action and a wave of emergency docket decisions that have led many to question the Supreme Court’s discretion.

So far, the justices have considered more than 20 emergency appeals and held three oral arguments over major challenges to Trump’s policies, including tariffs, firing employees, and nationwide injunctions.

Meanwhile, the ensuing court battles have prompted tense confrontations with federal judges and reinvigorated debate about how much the third branch of government can restrain the second.

Immigration

Perhaps Trump’s top policy priority, immigration, has been the focal point of these tensions—testing not only the parameters set up by Congress but how the judiciary can enforce those as well.

By June, Trump’s birthright citizenship restrictions had led the Supreme Court to weaken judges’ longstanding but controversial practice of issuing sweeping blocks—otherwise known as nationwide injunctions—on presidents’ policies.

That decision and others involving Trump amplified tensions judges had with each other and the president; each side accusing the other of overstepping their authority and disrupting the nation’s separation of powers.

A particularly tense exchange saw Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson accusing Justice Amy Coney Barrett and the other conservatives of undermining the rule of law.

In a biting response, the majority said Jackson was advancing a view of injunctions that was “at odds with more than two centuries’ worth of precedent, not to mention the Constitution itself.”

Barrett, who released a book in September, maintained that she respected Jackson.

Charged rhetoric also emerged from cases challenging Trump’s attempt to deport Venezuelan gang members under the Alien Enemies Act.

After U.S. District Judge James Boasberg blocked those deportations in March, Trump called for his and other judges’ impeachment.

That appeared to prompt a rare response from Chief Justice John Roberts, who admonished impeachment over legal rulings.

The following months saw tense exchanges between federal judges and the Justice Department, which faced potential contempt from Boasberg and U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis.

Xinis was the Maryland judge who ordered the return of a deportee, Kilmar Abrego Garcia, despite the administration’s contention that she was intruding on its authority over foreign affairs.

Meanwhile, the administration has filed a formal complaint against Boasberg in the D.C. Circuit, which is also reviewing whether he overstepped his authority in the way he probed potential contempt.

Social Issues

In a February hearing, U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes pressed the administration on its attempt to ban military troops with gender dysphoria.

That led the Justice Department to file a formal complaint, which was dismissed in September.

Regardless, Reyes’s conflicts with the administration appear far from over.

After she blocked the troop ban, the administration was able to win some temporary relief through a ruling from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.

Writing for the majority, U.S. Circuit Judge Gregory Katsas indicated that Reyes’s block conflicted with at least two recent Supreme Court decisions.

Among Trump’s many wins on the Supreme Court’s emergency docket was a temporary stay on another judge’s decision to block his troop policy.

Although the court has been working out its approach to gender issues, that decision and another—in U.S. v. Skrmetti—cited by Katsas provided legal support for Republicans’ position.

In June, the Supreme Court delivered a win for social conservatives when it upheld Tennessee’s ban on certain gender-related medical interventions for minors.

Other decisions allowed states greater flexibility in regulating pornography and defunding Planned Parenthood.

The high court has yet to provide final rulings on Trump’s policies targeting “gender-affirming care,” Planned Parenthood funding, and diversity, equity, and inclusion programs.

However, its decisions on the emergency docket have indicated Trump faces an advantage on at least some of those issues.

Executive Authority

One of the primary ways Trump has put forth socially conservative values is through attempts to defund organizations that engage in certain activities.

Those defunding efforts extended to other issues, such as National Institutes of Health (NIH) grants, as well.

While lower courts questioned whether Trump is intruding on Congress’s power of the purse, the Supreme Court has indicated that many of the legal challenges weren’t even brought in the right court.

A majority of the court did allow a lower court’s order requiring the disbursal of billions in foreign assistance.

That prompted a fiery dissent from Justice Samuel Alito, who, with Justice Clarence Thomas, issued criticisms of their colleagues’ decisions to block some of Trump’s deportations.

More tension was revealed in dissents by the three liberal justices when the court halted blocks on some of Trump’s policies.

Justice Elena Kagan, for example, suggested the Supreme Court was abusing the emergency docket by disregarding precedent at a more preliminary stage of litigation.

One of those cases involved Trump’s decision to fire Rebecca Slaughter, a member of the Federal Trade Commission, without following Congressional limits that a 90-year-old Supreme Court precedent had upheld.

Slaughter’s case underwent oral argument in December when the justices appeared poised to overturn that landmark precedent, known as Humphrey’s Executor v. United States.

Just ahead of President Zelensky arriving in Florida where he hopes that talks with President Trump on the US-proposed Ukraine peace plan can achieve something favorable for Ukrainians, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov once again blasted European leadership as the main obstacle to peace.

“After the change of administration in the U.S., Europe and the European Union have become the main obstacle to peace,” Lavrov told TASS. “They are making no secret of their plans to prepare for war with Russia,” he continued, and underscored that the ambitions of European politicians are “literally blinding them.”

“Not only do they not care about Ukrainians, but they also don’t seem to care about their own population,” he added.

However, he did also say that Moscow plans to continue its “engagement with American negotiators” and “address the root causes of the conflict.”

Just the day prior, starting Saturday morning,  Russia carried out one of the biggest attacks on the Ukrainian capital in months, involving powerful Kinzhal missiles along with over 500 drones. Kiev was pounded, and several buildings were on fire.

Zelensky has in the meantime been seeking as much leverage from the European corner as possible, before getting face to face with Trump. Russia demands territorial concessions, but Zelensky seems only willing to talk about a temporary freeze to the war, and not necessarily the kind of full, permanent political recognition of Russia’s hold over most of the Donbass.

Ahead of the Mar-a-Lago meeting, Zelensky commented that his capital is on fire as winter temperatures freeze:

The meeting, to be hosted by Trump at his Mar-a-Lago residence at 1:00 p.m. (18:00 GMT) according to the White House, will be their first in-person encounter since October, when the U.S. president refused to grant Zelensky’s request for long-range Tomahawk missiles.

Zelensky said during a stopover in Canada on Saturday he hoped the talks would be “very constructive,” adding that Russian leader Vladimir Putin had shown his hand with the latest assault on the Ukrainian capital.

“This attack is again Russia’s answer [to] our peace efforts. And this really showed that Putin doesn’t want peace,” he said.

Things aren’t looking ideal for a finalized peace plan, also given that Zelensky during a Christmas Day message essentially wished for Putin’s death. 

Zelensky will push for NATO ‘Article 5-style’ security guarantees for Ukraine in his Sunday meeting with Trump:

Zelensky said the US has proposed 15-year security guarantees for Ukraine as part of the peace plan.

In his view, Ukraine needs guarantees for a longer period and added that he would consider it a major success if Trump agrees during their meeting at Mar-a-Lago this Sunday. pic.twitter.com/ZYI1oeYGY9

— KyivPost (@KyivPost) December 26, 2025

As the The Hill reviews of the message:

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky acknowledged in his Christmas Eve message that many Ukrainians want to see Russian President Vladimir Putin dead.

“‘May he perish,’ each of us may think to ourselves,” Zelensky said in the broadcast. “But when we turn to God, of course, we ask for something greater.”

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov responded soon after the message by blasting it as “uncultured, embittered, and coming from a seemingly unhinged person” – while further questioning whether “he’s capable of making any rational decisions.”

PUTIN UNPLUGGED.

Pay VERY close attention. pic.twitter.com/ExFH5V3NHP

— Pepe Escobar (@RealPepeEscobar) December 28, 2025

This latter reference to his decision-making ability is another card Moscow might play if the US and Ukrainian sides come out of the Florida meetings with a less than optimal peace deal. President Putin has long said that because Zelensky canceled elections, he has no legal mandate, and is thus ‘illegitimate’ and lacks authority to sign a binding peace settlement.

2025 became a record year for restaurant closures in D.C., according to the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington (RAMW): 92 closures, up from 73 in 2024 and 48 in 2022, according to Fox 5 DC.

Owners cite multiple pressures — federal layoffs, the August federal takeover, a fall government shutdown, higher wages under Initiative 82, rising rents, and food costs — but uncertainty has been the biggest drag.

Diane Gross, RAMW Chair and co-owner of Cork Wine Bar, said business has slowed and customers are cutting back.“They’re spending less per person, whether it’s one less drink or ordering less food. They’re just spending less,” she said.

She added that the federal takeover discouraged dining out: “People were less likely to come out… maybe. And I think people either stayed home or went out to our neighbors in Maryland, in Virginia…”

Fox 5 DC writes that many closures — from Haikan to Sticky Rice and dozens more — have been blamed on Initiative 82’s tipped-wage increase. RAMW says mid-priced, mid-sized restaurants ($20–$40 per person) were hit hardest.

Phil Coppage, owner of Cynthia’s Bar and Bistro, said survival depends on community ties: “We feel like little survivors… Really ingratiate yourself to the people who live around you… Hospitality is our differentiator.”

Immigration enforcement also hurt staffing: one-third of restaurants saw workers detained, and nearly 60% reported employees staying away out of fear.

Despite closures, 109 restaurants opened by November — more than closed — though still 30% fewer openings than last year. Cork plans a smaller new location in Cleveland Park, and Gross remains optimistic: “I think we always have hope because we love what we do…”

Authored by Jonathan Turley,

The Washington Post shocked many of its Democratic readers this week by telling the truth about the growing disaster in the UK’s National Health Service — a cautionary tale as a few Republicans plan to join Democrats to extend the failed Obamacare subsidies rather than reform our own broken health care system.

Socialism is in vogue in America. Various socialists are assuming greater power in the Democratic Party and mayors such as Zohran Mamdani (New York) and  Katie Wilson (Seattle) are taking over the leadership of major cities.

I discuss the rising class of American socialists in my new book, Rage and the Republic: The Unfinished Story of the American Revolution. The young voters fueling this shift have never experienced life under socialism and have no memories of the meltdowns in prior such systems. As former socialist and communist countries move toward capitalism, many Americans are embracing socialism, according to polls.

The Washington Post editorial board exposed the myth of nationalized systems in its scathing column on the UK’s National Health Service, which is asking sick people to stay away from hospitals as the system struggles to offer basic care.

The NHS has existed for years in a perpetual state of emergency. This was the case before the pandemic hit, and it has only gotten worse. Hospital corridors overflow and routine procedures get canceled due to a catastrophic event commonly known as “winter.” It comes around every year, yet the system, despite annual funding increases, still somehow remains unable to cope.

A campaign to keep people away from hospitals during the holidays is underway, which includes begging the public to seek out other forms of treatment for “less serious” injuries and ailments. The British press compares the messaging to “Covid-era stay-at-home pleas,” which included asking patients who needed care to avoid medical facilities in order to “protect the NHS.”

With strikes and shortages, UK hospitals have turned into a nightmare:

In November, some 50,468 people waited 12 hours or more in emergency departments, often on trolleys in corridors. This is the highest on record for that time of year. Some 2.35 million people went to A&E in November, the highest on record for that month.

What is troubling in the debate over Obamacare is that some Democrats admit that it has failed. Democrats touted the law with an enabling class of academic experts as promising lower health care costs in a system that would pay for itself. Obama himself spread the false claim that you could keep your doctor under Obamacare. (later called the “lie of the year.”)

It proved to be a disaster. Health care costs soared under Obamacare and Democrats stepped in to pass massive subsidies that pay a fortune to insurance companies without doing anything to correct the underlying problems.

The shocking increase in costs under Obamacare should galvanize a nation in seeking a major overhaul without delay.

Health care is now unaffordable for many. Yet, that desperation is political gold for many in dangling subsidies before voters as an inducement to return them to power.

With the midterm elections approaching, Congress is about to repeat the same pay-now-worry-later approach.

For some, the directions may even be reassuring. As Obamacare craters, it will become increasingly difficult to return to a market-driven system. Instead, many Democratic members want a single national health care system or a Medicaid-like system for all.

It does not matter that the UK is struggling with its own system to provide basic care, and NBC is describing the UK system as “broken.”

With the threat of the Democrats taking over the House in the midterms and producing gridlock in Washington, it is unlikely that the GOP can remain firm and unified on creating an alternative. Some will join Democratic members admitting that Obamacare failed, but this is not the time to correct the problem. Instead, we will pour more money into a broken system and kick the can down the road.

China continues to signal, through overt public-facing propaganda, its readiness to challenge the U.S directly.

Recent state media have published footage showing simulated naval conflict operations in the Caribbean, followed by the release of a video showcasing a hypersonic anti-ship missile capability.

On Sunday, Chinese media outlet Global Times published a video on X featuring the YJ-20 hypersonic anti-ship missile.

“An official Chinese media account, China Military Bugle, on Sunday unveiled the moment when a YJ-20 hypersonic anti-ship missile was launched from a Type 055 large destroyer of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy,” Global Times said.

The outlet added, “It shows the finalization test of a ship-to-ship missile aboard the 10,000-ton-class large destroyer Wuxi. This is the first time an official media report has shown a live YJ-20 hypersonic anti-ship missile being fired from a warship.”

An official Chinese media account China Military Bugle on Sunday unveiled the moment when a YJ-20 hypersonic anti-ship missile was launched from a Type 055 large destroyer of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy. It shows the finalization test of a ship-to-ship missile… pic.twitter.com/Iq00Ek1kS3

— Global Times (@globaltimesnews) December 28, 2025

The YJ-20 hypersonic anti-ship missile (“carrier killer“) can travel at speeds exceeding Mach 5, complicating the world’s most advanced missile defense systems and posing a direct threat to U.S. carrier strike groups. The weapon’s flight profile combines a high-speed boost phase with a maneuvering terminal phase designed to evade interceptor missiles, such as those from the U.S.’ Patriot Missile System.

Our assessment is that the public release of YJ-20 footage serves as further signaling, reinforcing Beijing’s message that U.S. naval power in the Pacific is increasingly contested. 

Earlier this month, we noted that China could be on the verge of a “DeepSeek moment” in hypersonic weapons, following a report claiming that a Mach 7 hypersonic glide weapon could be produced for as little as $100,000.

With both China and Russia deploying hypersonic missiles, the U.S., as far as is publicly known, does not currently have these next-generation weapons operational. That could change with President Trump’s new warships.

Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,

In a chilling display of ideological censorship, a veteran teacher in Britain has been referred to the government’s Prevent counter-terrorism program simply for showing videos of President Trump to his A-level students during a lesson on U.S. politics.

The incident unfolded at Henley College in Oxfordshire, where the teacher—a qualified educator since the mid-1990s and —introduced clips from Trump’s inauguration and campaign to illustrate the recent U.S. election.

Just days after Trump’s victory, two students complained, claiming the material was “biased” and left them “emotionally disturbed,” with one even alleging nightmares. The college swiftly escalated the matter to the Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO), who prioritized a Prevent referral, warning that the teacher’s views “could be perceived as radical,” potentially amounting to a hate crime or radicalisation.

Imagine showing students the U.S. President in a class about U.S. politics. https://t.co/3spGX1xuM5 Pure terrorism.

— m o d e r n i t y (@ModernityNews) December 25, 2025

The teacher, speaking out against this farce, described the ordeal as “completely jarring. It’s dystopian, like something from a George Orwell novel.”

He added, “It was just terrifying; just mind-boggling. We were discussing the US election, Trump had just won and I showed a couple of videos from the Trump campaign. Next thing, I was accused of bias. One of the students said they were emotionally disturbed and claimed to have had nightmares.”

Firmly rejecting the extremist label, the teacher, a self described “mainstream Republican,” stated “I am not an extremist,” and accused the college of “complete Left-wing bias,” noting, “They don’t tolerate anything about Donald Trump.”

The college’s official communication hammered the point, alleging the teacher had “shown your students videos of Donald Trump, his campaign, propaganda and other videos which are unrelated to what is being taught.”

Meanwhile, the LADO’s report escalated the hysteria: “There is concern that this behaviour could cause harm to a child, there could be a criminal offence from the views which could constitute a hate crime and it’s possible that his promoting of views could be radicalisation.”

In the end, the teacher settled for a modest £2,000 payoff and resigned from his role, effectively driven out for daring to present balanced political discourse.

This case exposes a grotesque reality in British education. How is it that showing footage of the duly elected U.S. President in a class explicitly about American politics gets you flagged as a potential terrorist?

There is also a horrible double standard where schools freely indoctrinate kids with outright fabrications, such as pushing “non-fiction” books claiming Black people built Stonehenge, and were integral in other historical developments, part of a “decolonizing” push that insists Britain was “a black country for more than 7,000 years before white people came.”

The hypocrisy deepens with radical gender ideology flooding classrooms. Trans lobbyists from Stonewall are demanding over 300 schools scrap terms like “boys and girls,” opting for neutral language, gender-neutral bathrooms, and identical uniforms—all under the guise of “inclusion.” Schools paying into Stonewall’s scheme must embed LGBTQ+ propaganda across the curriculum, ignoring government guidance against promoting “gender identity ideology.”

This teacher-shaming fits into a broader, sinister trend: the UK government’s push to teach children how to “spot extremist content and misinformation” in schools, embedding “critical thinking” that suspiciously aligns with establishment narratives.

Under the Labour government, kids are being indoctrinated to analyse articles and websites and weed out “putrid conspiracy theories,” grooming the next generation to police thought.

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has warned: “If the parameters that are set are to say to every kid, if you read a post that questions net zero and global warming, it will be extreme content, and a lie, if you read a post that even dares to question levels of immigration, legal or illegal into Britain, that that’s extremist, then you start to set a narrative for a future generation that is fundamentally undemocratic.” He labeled Prime Minister Keir Starmer the “biggest threat to free speech” in British history.

The Free Speech Union charges that child safeguarding is being twisted to muzzle “unfashionable opinions,” especially those leaning right. In an era where globalist agendas prioritise control over truth, this episode serves as a stark warning. If discussing a world leader like Trump lands you in the crosshairs of counter-terror watchdogs, what’s next for parents, educators, or anyone challenging the narrative?

True freedom demands we dismantle this censorship machine before it silences us all—starting with reclaiming our schools for honest, unbiased education.

Your support is crucial in helping us defeat mass censorship. Please consider donating via Locals or check out our unique merch. Follow us on X @ModernityNews.

With a two-month “quarantine” placed on Venezuelan oil by the Trump administration in a foreign policy move called “gunboat diplomacy,” new data estimate that roughly $900 million worth of crude is currently loaded on tankers, unable to depart Venezuela due to the U.S. blockade.

“Based on our visual analysis from both shore and space, we estimate that there are around 17.5 million barrels of crude oil floating onboard tankers in Venezuela which are unable to depart due to the ongoing US blockade,” independent research Tanker Trackers wrote on X. “That’s around $900M of oil.”

Based on our visual analysis from both shore and space, we estimate that there are around 17.5 million barrels of crude oil floating onboard tankers in Venezuela which are unable to depart due to the ongoing US blockade.

That’s around $900M of oil.#OOTT #Tankers #Venezuela pic.twitter.com/MpTYsU3xKi

— TankerTrackers.com, Inc. (@TankerTrackers) December 27, 2025

Tanker Trackers responded to a question on X about how long it would take for land-based oil and gas operations in Venezuela to become “clogged” due to the blockade. The research firm noted, “Chevron is still importing from Venezuela, and it doesn’t appear that will stop anytime soon, given they are granted a waiver.”

Here’s the conversation:

Current tankers sailing in the Caribbean with destinations to the U.S. and/or China.

Last week, the Trump administration directed U.S. military forces to enforce a two-month “quarantine” on Venezuelan oil exports, signaling ramped-up sanctions enforcement.

According to a U.S. military official cited by Reuters, while military options remain available, the near-term strategy prioritizes economic pressure through strict enforcement of sanctions to pressure Venezuela.

Operationally, the U.S. Coast Guard has intercepted two Venezuelan dark fleet tankers and forced a third to retreat into the Atlantic Basin.

Our assessment: The gunboat diplomacy posture is designed to disrupt Venezuela-Cuba-China oil flows, tighten financial pressure, and accelerate regime instability in both Caracas and Havana.

China is furious and has wargamed a potential conflict with the U.S. in the Caribbean. Okay Beijing …

A rupture of a high-pressure 34-inch natural gas transmission line late Saturday afternoon forced the temporary closure of Interstate 5 north of Los Angeles for several hours and led to a shelter-in-place order for thousands of residents in Castaic.

Capt. Brian Knight, a spokesman for L.A. County Fire, told ABC News that a loud blast was reported around 4:20 p.m. local time. Knight said there were no reports of any injuries.

BREAKING: A massive 36-inch underground natural gas pipeline rupture sent high-pressure gas spewing into the air across the Santa Clarita Valley moments ago, prompting emergency evacuations and shelter-in-place orders in the Castaic area.

The rupture was reported shortly before… pic.twitter.com/37GsIfx9fI

— Austin Dave (@AustinDave_) December 28, 2025

WATCH: Loud booms heard as major gas line explosion triggers shelter-in-place in Castaic, California https://t.co/7pHnuSxNVu pic.twitter.com/0Xf8jcviAe

— Rapid Report (@RapidReport2025) December 28, 2025

The damaged line was identified as a 34-inch, 600-psi transmission pipeline that released NatGas into the air and led to a shelter-in-place order for 14,900 people across the Charley Canyon, Hillcrest, and Wayside communities.

The northbound and southbound lanes of Interstate 5 were closed due to the leak, sparking traffic mayhem across the area.

Drivers were stranded on the 5 Freeway on Saturday night after a natural gas leak in Castaic left all northbound and southbound lanes shut down. The gas has since been shut off, but a shelter-in-place was issued for nearby residences, including the Charley Canyon, Hilcrest and… pic.twitter.com/05KVc81fU1

— ABC7 Eyewitness News (@ABC7) December 28, 2025

It is unclear what caused the NatGas line to rupture. Officials believe a mudslide could be the cause.

A SoCalGas spokesperson told CBS LA that “the cause of the break has not been determined. However, significant land movement has been observed near the break,” adding there were “no indications” of an ignition or explosion.

The transmission line is used for transportation and will not affect service to homes or businesses in the Los Angeles area.