In typical fashion, the evil Trump administration under Pete Hegsetg has started using a Canadian children's catoon character mostly used to teach positive social values as a prop to promote it's war crimes.
https://www.thestar.com/entertainment/pete-hegseth-franklin-turtle/article_8ef85618-b0c8-4a2c-af5c-a599dcd763ba.html
At least he didn’t strap Franklin to a nuke headed toward Venezuela.
“What is wrong with this guy?” is a question I ask whenever Pete Hegseth runs his Captain Morgan yap or posts unhinged memes. Now he is dragging Canada’s gentle Franklin the Turtle into his narcoterrorism hot mess in the Caribbean?
On Sunday, Hegseth posted a fake book cover: “Franklin Targets Narco Terrorists.”
This is a dramatic mood change from when Franklin fretted about riding a bike without training wheels. Now Franklin is reimagined as a warrior turtle leaning out of a chopper with an RPG on his shelled shoulder as he blows up drug boats
Oh, for Pete’s sake.
Turning Franklin into Rambo jolted Toronto-based Kids Can Press. The publisher released a statement on Monday: “Franklin the Turtle is a beloved Canadian icon who has inspired generations of children and stands for kindness, empathy, and inclusivity. We strongly condemn any denigrating, violent, or unauthorized use of Franklin’s name or image, which directly contradicts these values.”
But why is Hegseth enlisting Franklin?
The SecDef is facing serious trouble. This is markedly different from the woes he once endured when the salon was sold out of Got2b or the bartender shouted, “Last call!”
The Washington Post recently published a story that even Republicans can’t ignore. According to sources with “direct knowledge” of a Sept. 2 military strike on a suspected drug vessel off the coast of Trinidad, Hegseth’s verbal order was to “kill everybody.” Imagine being so cavalier with human life.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed Monday that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth authorized the second, follow-up strike on an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean in September following a bombshell Washington Post report that claimed he ordered the military to “kill everybody.”
Leavitt told reporters at the White House press briefing that Hegseth authorized Adm. Frank Bradley to carry out the second strike, which reportedly killed two people who were hanging onto the burning vessel after an initial strike.
“President Trump and Secretary Hegseth have made it clear that presidentially designated narcoterrorist groups are subject to lethal targeting in accordance with the laws of war. With respect to the strikes in question on Sept. 2, Secretary Hegseth authorized Adm. Bradley to conduct these kinetic strikes,” Leavitt said.
“Adm. Bradley worked well within his authority and the law to ensure the boat was destroyed and the threat to the United States of America was eliminated,” she continued. “This administration has designated these narcoterrorists as foreign terrorist organizations. The president has the right to take them out if they are threatening the United States of America, if they are bringing illegal narcotics that are killing our citizens at a record rate, which is what they are doing.”
The administration has been peppered with questions in the aftermath of the Post report claiming Hegseth issued a verbal order to “kill everybody” onboard before an initial strike.
Some Republican and Democratic lawmakers have expressed concern that the order amounted to a war crime.
According to the Post, an initial strike left two survivors, and Bradley ordered a follow-up strike to comply with Hegseth’s orders to leave no survivors.
>https://thehill.com/homenews/5628447-defense-secretary-authorizes-drug-boat-strike/

https://www.reuters.com/world/us/person-suspected-planting-pipe-bombs-ahead-jan-6-2021-custody-official-says-2025-12-04/
WASHINGTON, Dec 4 (Reuters) - U.S. authorities have arrested a man suspected of planting pipe bombs in Washington the night before the January 6, 2021, assault on the Capitol by supporters of President Donald Trump, two officials briefed on the matter said on Thursday.
The FBI released surveillance video, offered a $500,000 reward and received hundreds of tips in a years-long search for the suspect they believe was involved in the incident that took place nearly five years ago.
The footage, from January 5, 2021, showed a person putting a bomb near a bench outside the Democratic National Committee building. The suspect placed another bomb at the Republican headquarters. Both sites are near the Capitol.
The suspect was in Virginia when he was arrested, according to a law enforcement official.
“We have him,” a Justice Department official told Reuters. He is expected to make an initial court appearance in Washington, according to a source briefed on the matter.
The bombs were discovered on the same day supporters of Trump stormed Congress in an attempt to stop lawmakers from certifying Democrat Joe Biden's 2020 presidential election victory.
Police deactivated the bombs and neither exploded.
In the January 6, 2021, melee at the Capitol, rioters surged past police barricades, assaulting about 140 officers and causing more than $2.8 million in damage. Trump pardoned nearly everyone criminally charged for participating in the riot, some 1,500 people, when he returned to office in January.

Federal officials failed to secure the new indictment against James, whom Trump has targeted, after a judge said the previous one was secured by an unlawfully appointed prosecutor.
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/grand-jury-declines-indict-ny-attorney-general-letitia-james-less-two-rcna247310
The Justice Department on Thursday failed to secure an indictment against New York Attorney General Letitia James, a person familiar with the matter told NBC News.
The presentation to the grand jury came less than two weeks after the original criminal case against her was dismissed.
James, a frequent political target of President Donald Trump’s who had successfully brought a fraud lawsuit against him, had previously been indicted by a grand jury on one charge of bank fraud and another of making false statements to a financial institution.
James has denied any wrongdoing. In a statement Thursday in response to reports that a grand jury did not re-indict her she said, "As I have said from the start, the charges against me are baseless. It is time for this unchecked weaponization of our justice system to stop."
"I am grateful to the members of the grand jury and humbled by the support I have received from across the country. Now, I will continue to do my job standing up for the rule of law and the people of New York," James said.
Lindsey Halligan, the acting U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia and a former personal attorney to Trump with no prior prosecutorial experience, presented the case to a grand jury on her own in the first go-round — and that case was declared void on Nov. 24 when a judge found Halligan’s appointment was unlawful.
The Justice Department initially vowed to appeal the ruling by U.S. District Judge Cameron Currie, but ultimately decided to seek a new, untainted indictment against James, a source familiar with the deliberations told NBC News earlier this week.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2025/11/29/shooting-stockton-california/87533856007/
Four people died after 14 people were shot at a family gathering in Stockton in Northern California on Saturday night, police said.
The shooting took place at a child's birthday party, Stockton's Vice Mayor Jason Lee said in a Facebook post.
"I am in contact with staff and public safety officials to understand exactly what happened, and I will be pushing for answers," he said.
Police said they received reports shortly before 6:00 p.m. local time of a shooting that occurred near the 1900 block of Lucile Avenue in Stockton. Several victims were transported to local hospitals, the Sheriff's office reported.
4 victims confirmed dead in shooting near Stockton
Sheriff's office spokesperson Heather Brent said there was limited information to share with the public on the shooting, but did confirm that four people have died.
The incident was reported at a banquet hall where a family was celebrating inside the building. During the celebrating, gunshots erupted and 14 victims were shot, four of those people died. The victims' ages range from "juvenile and adults," according to Brent.Early indications suggest this maybe a "targeted incident," Brent said during a press conference Saturday night.
"This is a very active and ongoing investigation," Brent said. "Information remains very limited at this time."
Detectives are asking that anyone with information, contact the San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office.
"Our No. 1 priority right now is identifying this suspect," Brent said.
State officials issue statements on fatal San Joaquin County shooting
Gov. Gavin Newsom's Office issued a statement on social media late Saturday night. The governor said he's has been briefed on the "horrific shooting" in Stockton.
"The Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (@Cal_OES) is monitoring this evolving situation and coordinating with local law enforcement," Newsom stated.

>European leaders are considering dumping $2.34 trillion in US debt if Trump abandons Ukraine, potentially triggering an economic crisis worse than 2008
https://www.the-express.com/news/world-news/192200/europe-s-nuclear-option-threatens-trump-midterm-elections-approach
European nations are reportedly weighing the "nuclear option" of destabilizing the American economy should Donald Trump abandon Ukraine and compromise continental security. Discussions between American and Ukrainian representatives resumed Sunday in Miami, with both parties working to hammer out a peace agreement.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Trump's Russia envoy Steve Witkoff participated in the session, alongside the President's son-in-law Jared Kushner. After the "fragile" negotiations, the President informed journalists aboard Air Force One that there was "a good chance we can make a deal".
Yet European leadership remains wary that Trump is hastening toward a geopolitical arrangement with Vladimir Putin while disregarding NATO allies' security interests.
The Wall Street Journal reveals a European intelligence agency has distributed internal evaluations regarding "commercial and economic plans" the Trump administration has been pursuing with Russia in private discussions.
This has allegedly intensified concerns among European officials that the White House is poised to compromise the continent's safety for American economic advantage.
Insiders informed the WSJ that European leaders are weighing severe countermeasures in response, calculated to trigger economic turmoil across the United States. The proposed strategy includes liquidating trillions in American government bonds held by European governments.
A swift sell-off could potentially trigger a crash in the value of the US dollar, instigate a liquidity crisis across the banking system, and cause a significant surge in borrowing costs.

>https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/dec/04/us-supreme-court-texas-congressional-maps
Texas can use a redrawn congressional map that adds as many as five Republican-friendly congressional districts, the supreme court ruled on Thursday, handing Donald Trump a major win in his push to boost Republican seats ahead of next year’s midterm elections.
In an unsigned order, the 6-3 conservative majority court granted a request by Texas to lift a lower court’s ruling that struck down the state’s new map in November. The supreme court’s three liberal justices dissented.
“The district court improperly inserted itself into an active primary campaign, causing much confusion and upsetting the delicate federal-state balance in elections,” the supreme court said in an order explaining its decision.
The lower district court had previously found that Texas had likely sorted voters based on their race – an unlawful practice called racial gerrymandering – when it adopted the new maps, and ordered the state to use the maps it had adopted after the 2020 census for next year’s election.

https://apnews.com/article/national-guard-shooting-dc-c5785dd8920d2d1ac7d71fab769faf5f
WASHINGTON (AP) — A suspect is in custody in the shooting of National Guard members in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, police said.
Two guard soldiers were shot near the White House and their conditions aren’t immediately known, according to two law enforcement officials not authorized to discuss the matter publicly and who spoke to AP on condition of anonymity.
Emergency vehicles were seen responding to the area and at least one helicopter landed on the National Mall.
The Joint DC Task Force confirmed they were responding to an incident in the vicinity of the White House in the movements after reports of the shooting. However, the spokesperson wouldn’t immediately confirm or deny if any National Guard members had been shot.
The Metropolitan Police Department said they were responding to a shooting but didn’t immediately provide more information.