Friday, July 11, 2025

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Trump Trial Day 17: Closing Arguments & Phantom Crimes.

Former President Donald J. Trump’s lead counsel, Todd Blanche, handled the defense team’s closing arguments on Tuesday. For over two weeks, a Manhattan jury has heard evidence from prosecutors and the defense alike regarding allegations that former President Trump allegedly made hush money payments to Stormy Daniels as part of an effort to influence the 2016 presidential election.

After long days of testimony and some fairly explosive moments in the courtroom, Blanche’s summation began much like his opening argument a little over two weeks ago, stressing that the prosecution cannot meet the burden of proof. 

‘THE BURDEN OF PROOF.’

“I started out by saying something that I’m going to repeat to you right now. It’s as true right now as it was on April 22. And that is President Trump is innocent,” Blanche told jurors. He added: “He did not commit any crimes, and the district attorney has not met their burden of proof — period. The evidence is all in.”

The Trump defense attorney stressed the weakness of District Attorney Alvin Bragg‘s case. Blanche told the jury, “The evidence should leave you wanting more. You should want and expect more than the testimony of Michael Cohen.”

“You should demand more than the testimony of Keith Davidson, an attorney who really was just trying to extort money from President Trump in the lead-up to the 2016 election,” the defense attorney added.

ALL ABOUT THE DOCUMENTS.

As he continued his closing argument, Blanche reiterated that at its core, District Attorney Bragg‘s case is one about documents and nothing else. He stressed that the testimony of Stormy Daniels has no bearing on the case or charges. “This case is about documents. It’s a paper case. This case is not about an encounter with Stormy Daniels 18 years ago,” he told the jury.

Blanche also stressed that the alleged encounter, according to former President Trump, never even occurred in the manner that Daniels claims.

Shifting back to Cohen, Blanche told the jury they must determine if the former President “had anything to do with how payments to Michael Cohen” were recorded or “booked on his personal ledger for his personal account at Trump Tower.” He reiterated to the jury that at the time, Trump wasn’t even living at Trump Tower but was instead serving as President of the United States and living in the White House in Washington, D.C.

“The invoices were all submitted by Michael Cohen,” Blanche argued. He continued: “You’re going to hear me talk a lot about Michael Cohen today, and that should not surprise you. You cannot convict President Trump of any crime beyond a reasonable doubt on the words of Michael Cohen.”

‘COHEN LIED TO YOU.’

While the defense’s closing began with a plodding start, Blanche finally delivered blows to Michael Cohen as the prosecution‘s star witness. “They were lies. Pure and simple,” he said of Cohen’s testimony. Blanche stressed that no evidence was presented that backed up Cohen’s assertions, and even more damning, there were no credible witnesses presented who could corroborate what Cohen claimed.

“There were key conversations, key interactions that he claimed he had with Dylan Howard, with Keith Schiller, Allen Weisselberg. Those are important,” Blanche told the jury before hamming home: “Keith Schiller, Dylan Howard, Allen Weisselberg were not witnesses in this trial.”

The defense attorney continued, explaining to jurors that to convict, the prosecution would have needed to demonstrate that there were false entries on the payment paperwork and that Trump had intended to defraud. “The records were not false, and there was no intent to defraud,” Blanche stressed.

“Cohen typically wrote ‘for services rendered.’ But here’s the thing, and I don’t even think there’s a dispute about this, Cohen was rendering services to Trump as his personal attorney,” Blanche contended. While acknowledging that invoices were at times stapled to checks presented to Trump to sign, the lead defense counsel added: “General practice is not proof beyond a reasonable doubt.”

“Cohen lied to you,” Blanche emphasized to the jury, pausing on each word before repeating: “Cohen lied to you.”

CATCH, KILL, & ELECTION INFLUENCE.

Blanche stressed that the alleged “catch and kill” plot with David Pecker and American Media, Inc. (AMI) was anything but. “This is the same thing AMI has been doing for decades. They had been doing it for President Trump since the 90s,” Blanche argued. He added: “This was good business for them — a mutually beneficial relationship with celebrities.”

Noting that AMI’s flagship publication is little more than a supermarket tabloid, Blanche said: “The idea, even if there was something wrong with it, the idea that sophisticated people like President Trump and David Pecker believed that positive stories in the National Enquirer could influence the 2016 election is preposterous.” He emphasized that the total circulation of the National Enquirer in 2016 was just 350,000.

“Millions and millions of people voted in the 2016 election, so the idea that they really thought that this meeting in 2015 at Trump Tower would ultimately influence the election makes no sense,” Trump’s lead counsel contented before continuing: “The idea that the National Enquirer could criminally influence the election by republishing stories that had already been out there in other forms should make you shake your head. It makes no sense.”

Blanche, now showing the jury a PowerPoint presentation, outlined how the alleged “catch and kill” scheme was never discussed during the August 2015 meeting with David Pecker. “It wasn’t even discussed at the time the conspiracy was formed. No financial discussion. No discussion about catch and kill. Think about that,” he said.

‘AN AXE TO GRIND.’

Closing out his summation, Blanche took full aim at Michael Cohen‘s credibility. The defense attorney argued that Cohen had made the payments to Stormy Daniels of his own accord in a scheme to ingratiate himself with Trump in the hopes he’d receive a high-ranking position in the White House. Hitting on Cohen’s motivation to lie to a court again, Blanche argued: “He told you he didn’t want a job in the administration. But that was a lie, another lie.”

“Mr. Cohen had an axe to grind because he didn’t appreciate what President Trump did and did not do for him,” he added. After reviewing the testimony of Cohen’s former legal adviser, Robert Costello, Blanche told the jury: “I don’t know how many lies is enough lies to reject Mr. Cohen’s testimony.”

Next, Blanche reminded the jury of the pivotal moment where he exposed Cohen for having lied regarding his alleged phone call with Trump regarding the Daniels payment. “That was his sworn testimony. It was a lie… This isn’t a little lie. This was a lie about the charged conduct involving Ms. Daniels,” Blanche said, adding: “He told you he talked to President Trump on October 24 at 8:02 PM, updating him about the Daniels situation. That was a lie, and he got caught red-handed.”

“He’s repeatedly lied under oath. He’s lied to his family. He lied to his wife about the home equity line of credit … he lied to his banker,” Blanche said of Cohen, concluding: “He’s literally like an MVP of liars.”

TEN REASONS FOR REASONABLE DOUBT. 

In the conclusion of his summation, Blanche laid out ten reasons for reasonable doubt to the jury that he had covered throughout his closing arguments. The list included:

  • Cohen created the allegedly fraudulent invoices, not Trump;
  • There’s no evidence Trump knew the invoices were sent;
  • There is “absolutely” no evidence that Trump had any intent to defraud;
  • The prosecution has not shown an attempt to commit or conceal another crime;
  • There is “absolutely” evidence of an agreement to influence the 2016 election;
  • AMI would have run the doorman’s story no matter what if it was true;
  • Karen McDougal did not want her story published. Thus, it was not a “catch and kill” plot;
  • Stormy Daniels‘s allegations were already public well before the 2016 election;
  • Prosecutors never present anything showing manipulation of evidence;
  • Cohen cannot be trusted: “He’s the human embodiment of reasonable doubt.”

MERCHAN INTEVENES. 

Democrat-aligned Judge Juan Merchan, for the most part, gave the defense enough room to make its case in its closing arguments. However, when Blanche, at the end of his summation, told the jury, “You cannot send someone to prison, you cannot convict somebody, based upon the words of Michael Cohen,” the prosecution was quick to object with an irate Merchan sustaining the objection.

“You know that making a comment like that is highly inappropriate. It is simply not allowed. Period. It’s hard for me to imagine that was accidental in any way,” Merchan said, scolding Blanche for making the “outrageous” comment at the end of his summation.

Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass told the judge he believed Blanche’s comments were “a blatant and wholly inappropriate” effort to influence the jury and gain sympathy for former President Trump. Judge Merchan told the court that he’d give a curative instruction to the jury regarding Blanche’s prison comments.

After lunch, Judge Merchan released the instruction: “In the defense summation, Mr. (Todd) Blanche asked in substance that you not send the defendant to prison. That comment was improper, and you must disregard it. In your deliberations, you may not discuss, consider, or even speculate as to matters related to sentence or punishment.”

THE PROSECUTION AT BAT. 

Following Blanche’s summation, prosecutor Joshua Steinglass made his closing arguments before the jury. Unlike the defense’s closing, which lasted around two and a half hours, the prosecution announced that its summation would take four to four and a half hours. In reality, it went on for six, with much exasperation felt across the entire court, from jury to journalists, judge to stenographer.

“In his opening, Mr. Colangelo told you that this case, at its core, is about a conspiracy and a cover-up,” Steinglass told the jurors, adding: “We asked you to remember to tune out the noise and to ignore the sideshows. And if you’ve done that, you will see the people have presented powerful evidence of the defendant’s guilt.”

Steinglass’s opening was even slower and plodding than Blanche’s. His summation began with an extensive review of phone records and recall of alleged conversations that Michael Cohen had testified to. “Some of the conversations in this case took place in person, so there wouldn’t be a phone call or recording. The fact that there isn’t a record of a particular phone call does not mean a particular conversation did not take place,” the lead prosecutor told the jury.

THE COHEN PROBLEM.

Steinglass tried to patch some of the holes in the prosecution‘s case that had been exposed in Blanche’s closing. He told the jury that the District Attorney’s case wasn’t reliant on the testimony of disgraced attorney Michael Cohen. “The conspiracy to unlawfully influence the 2016 election — you don’t need Michael Cohen to prove that one bit,” Steinglass insisted.

Instead, the prosecutor told jurors that David Pecker‘s testimony — which was by no stretch a slam dunk for Bragg‘s team — was the truly “utterly damning” evidence. “Mr. Pecker has absolutely no reason to lie here; he still considers Mr. Trump a friend and mentor, and yet his testimony was utterly devastating,” Steinglass continued, claiming that Pecker’s words “eliminates the whole notion that this was politics as usual.”

STORMY DAMAGE CONTROL. 

Shoring up another weakness in the prosecution’s case, Steinglass next addressed the testimony of Stormy Daniels. “To be sure, some witnesses want to see Donald Trump convicted,” he told jurors before excusing their motivation, stating: “They’ve been attacked by the defendant on social media.”

Continuing, Steinglass defended Daniels‘s credibility, telling the court: “They’ve shamed her. They’ve tried to suggest her story has changed over the years. It has not, at least not in any way that’s significant.” However, Steinglass conceded: “To be sure, there were parts of her testimony that were cringeworthy.”

Steinglass told jurors that some aspects of Daniels‘s story ring too true to have been fabricated. He pointed to the layout of the hotel room and alleged contents of former President Trump‘s toiletry bag.

THE UNDERLYING CRIME?

Once Steinglass believed he had done enough to put out the fires in the prosecution‘s case set by defense attorney Todd Blanche’s closing, he pressed into the core of Bragg‘s case against Trump.

For over two weeks, the prosecution has avoided describing the underlying crime allegedly committed by former President Trump. Steinglass finally broached the subject in his closing, though he still never exactly stated what federal infraction was committed.

Michael Cohen is understandably angry. That to date, he’s the one who’s paid the price for his role in this conspiracy,” the prosecutor said. In this simple statement, Steinglass insinuated to the jury that former President Trump is guilty of the same crimes as Michael Cohen. However, while Cohen did plead guilty to a campaign finance infraction, his federal prison stint was due to tax fraud crimes he had committed in an unrelated case.

In essence, Steinglasss hoped to confuse the jury into believing the federal tax charges against Cohen were actually regarding the hush money payments to Stormy Daniels. “Anyone in Cohen’s shoes would want the defendant to be held accountable,” he told the jury, adding: “and when it went bad, the defendant cut him loose, dropped him like a hot potato and tweeted out to the world that Mr. Cohen was a scumbag.”

THE THIEF.

Shifting back to damage control, Steinglass addressed the shocking revelations that Michael Cohen had stolen upwards of $60,000 from the Trump Organization. “It’s true he was never charged with that. He’s also the one who brought it to everyone’s attention,” the prosecutor told jurors.

“Blanche said Cohen stole $60,000 because it was grossed up. So that means the defendant is trying to have it both ways, right? They’re denying the $420,000 was a reimbursement at all,” Steinglass argued. He continued: “Claiming payment for legal services rendered in 2016. But if that’s true, then there was no theft. He’s getting paid for legal services in 2017. They can call him a thief and claim this wasn’t really reimbursement, but not both.”

MAKING UP A CRIME.

Referring to the August 15 Trump Tower meeting, Steinglass said before the court: “The real game changer of this meeting was the catch-and-kill component. And that’s the illegal part. Because once money starts changing hands on behalf of a campaign, that’s federal election campaign finance violations.”

“Blanche said there is nothing wrong with trying to influence an election. It’s called democracy,” Steinglass said before contending: “In reality, this agreement at Trump Tower was the exact opposite. It was the subversion of democracy.”

“Once AMI purchased stories on the candidate’s behalf, those purchases became unlawful campaign contributions,” Bragg’s lead prosecutor said. In an incredibly bizarre moment, Steinglass insisted that the payment made by AMI for the Trump doorman’s false story “was overt election fraud.”

The prosecutor’s assertion mimics that which the American people have already seen with the Congressional Democrats‘ witch hunt against former President Trump over the Russia collusion hoax. They insinuate a crime where there is none and call it election interference. When in reality, the actual election interference is their frivolous prosecution of the former President.

COHEN’S CRIMES OR TRUMP’S? 

The next phase of Steinglass’s closing returned to Cohen. Again, the prosecution deployed the strategy of arguing Cohen’s crimes were former President Trump‘s crimes despite never offering convincing evidence that the former President knew of Cohen’s activities.

Steinglass presented the jury with the false paperwork that Cohen had submitted to his bank in creating Resolution Consultants, LLC. The prosecutor told the jury that Cohen had used false business records to open the account. It is important to note that Blanche, in his closing, emphasized that the jury only had Cohen’s word, a serial perjurer, that former President Trump knew of Cohen’s actions.

Pressing further, Steinglass moved through a list of phone calls between Cohen and former Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg. The prosecutor claimed before the court that these calls were evidence enough of the scheme unfolding — though again, Steinglass did not provide evidence connecting Trump to the calls.

Pointing to a single call between Trump and Cohen that occurred before Cohen opened the business account, Steinglass told jurors, “This is damning right here.”

‘BORING!’

When the court took a short break at 5:00PM, former President Trump took to Truth Social to give his review of the prosecution’s closing argument against him. “BORING!” he posted.

NO CRIME? NO PROBLEM!

Following the brief evening break, Steinglass returned to his closing arguments. He asserted the prosecution did not have to prove former President Trump himself knowingly created false business record entries.

“We don’t have to prove that the defendant made and created the false entries himself,” the prosecutor contended before adding that Trump is guilty of creating false business records by virtue of being a part of the “reimbursement scheme. That is causing false entries.”

He next moved to the defense’s claim that the handwritten notes between Weisselberg and Trump Organization controller Jeffrey McConney did not simply address legal services rendered by Cohen. Instead, Steinglass contended: “They are the smoking guns. They completely blow out of the water the defense claim that the payments [are for] legal services rendered. I’m almost speechless that they’re trying to make this argument.”

Again, the prosecution tried to flip the U.S. legal system on its head. Steinglass told jurors it was the defense who had to prove the notes weren’t regarding reimbursement for Cohen‘s hush money payments to Daniels. It is important to note that in U.S. courts, the burden of proof is on the prosecution, not the defense.

PROSECUTION LOSES THE PLOT.

Pushing past 6PM, Steinglass’s summation continued to meander, almost taking the form of a filibuster. He read extensively from books published by Donald Trump, citing quotes about loyalty. From there, the prosecutor then began reading Trump’s social media posts in an effort to highlight how the former President treats those he views as disloyal.

The prosecution has used the loyalty argument on several occasions to insinuate that Trump didn’t need to direct his employees to commit crimes but rather that he created an environment where they understood they needed to, at times, act illegally on his behalf without his direct guidance. Again, this line of argument does not meet the burden of proof required for a conviction in a conventional criminal trial.

Hitting the final stretch, Steinglass, for the third time in his summation, walked the jury through a timeline of events — perhaps this final time not simply to reiterate his point but to remind them of key points of the prosecution’s case in the event they forgot after nearly five hours of testimony. It is honestly impressive the jury was even awake at this point.

After a series of unwelcome jokes about the length of his closing arguments and almost another hour rehashing the prosecution’s case, Steinglass’s summation ended.

You can read The National Pulse’s Day Sixteen trial coverage here, and if you find our work worthwhile, consider joining as a supporter.

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More From The Pulse

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The Corporate Media Is Trying to Whitewash an Illegal Immigrant’s Terror Ties.

PULSE POINTS

WHAT HAPPENED: The corporate media is again attempting to portray an illegal immigrant with a concerning background in a positive light, seemingly to undermine public sentiment toward President Donald J. Trump’s nationwide immigration enforcement actions.

👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: Ayman Soliman, the Cincinnati Enquirer, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and the former Biden government.

📍WHEN & WHERE: Soliman was recently detained by ICE after his asylum status was revoked by the former Biden government in 2024.

💬KEY QUOTE: “What my hometown paper [the Enquirer] doesn’t want to tell you is this Egyptian national was flagged on the FBI terror watchlist. He had his asylum status revoked by the *checks notes* BIDEN Administration.” — DHS Assistant Secretary of Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin

🎯IMPACT: The situation mirrors a similar attempt by the corporate media to paint illegal immigrant and alleged MS-13 gang member Kilmar Abrego Garcia as a ‘Maryland man’ and ‘Maryland father.’

IN FULL

The corporate media have once again been caught attempting to whitewash an illegal immigrant‘s concerning background in an attempt to portray them in a sympathetic light and undermine President Donald J. Trump’s nationwide immigration enforcement actions. In this instance, Ayman Soliman—an Egyptian imam—who was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), is being presented by the Cincinnati Enquirer as a “children’s chaplain” despite having had his asylum status revoked by the former Biden government in 2024 over his name being flagged on the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) terrorism watchlist.

Soliman’s portrayal by the corporate media is reminiscent of a similar attempt to paint illegal immigrant and alleged MS-13 gang member Kilmar Abrego Garcia as a ‘Maryland man’ or ‘Maryland father.’ Abrego Garcia is currently facing criminal charges related to human trafficking. In addition, Attorney General Pam Bondi alleges that Abrego Garcia was involved in drug smuggling, gun running, and abusing women and children.

Soliman, who did serve as a chaplain at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, was imprisoned several times for agitating in Egypt against the country’s government. Notably, opposition to the al-Sisi government is rife with Islamist elements tied to the radical Muslim Brotherhood.

“What my hometown paper [the Enquirer] doesn’t want to tell you is this Egyptian national was flagged on the FBI terror watchlist. He had his asylum status revoked by the *checks notes* BIDEN Administration,” Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Assistant Secretary of Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin wrote in a post on X (formerly Twitter), blasting the newspaper’s framing of Soliman and his detention. The Cincinnati Enquirer has subsequently updated their story on Soliman, briefly noting the FBI terrorism flag but still attempting to portray the imam’s activities in Egypt in a positive light.

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Feds Offer $50k Reward After Man Opens Fire on ICE Agents During Raid.

PULSE POINTS

WHAT HAPPENED: A suspect reportedly fired a handgun at federal agents during an immigration raid in California.

👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: Federal law enforcement officers and an unknown gunman.

📍WHEN & WHERE: July 10 at approximately 2:26 PM, near Camarillo, California, on Laguna Road.

💬KEY QUOTE: “Make no mistake: anyone who targets our agents will face the full force of federal prosecution.” – U.S. Customs and Border Protection

🎯IMPACT: The Federal Bureau of Investigation is offering a $50,000 reward for information leading to a conviction.

IN FULL

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is offering a $50,000 reward for a man who was filmed firing on federal agents with a handgun during a July 10 immigration raid at a California marijuana farm. The incident occurred at approximately 2:26 PM on Laguna Road, near Camarillo, California.

The identity of the gunman remains unknown as of the time of publication, prompting an urgent call for information. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) emphasized the seriousness of the shooting, stating, “Make no mistake: anyone who targets our agents will face the full force of federal prosecution.”

The raid saw federal agents deploy rubber bullets and tear gas as pro-illegal immigrant agitators attempted to disrupt the raid, which was heavily criticized by Governor Gavin Newsom. “Kids running from tear gas, crying on the phone because their mother was just taken from the fields. Trump calls me ‘Newscum’—but he’s the real scum,” the Democrat railed on social media.

Trump’s Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shot back, “Why are there children working at a marijuana facility, Gavin?” U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) subsequently confirmed that the raid uncovered ten illegal alien children, eight of them unaccompanied, at the farm, which is now under investigation for potentially exploiting child labor.

The Trump administration has blamed anti-ICE rhetoric from senior Democrats for increasingly violent attacks in recent days, including a sniper ambush at a Texas ICE facility that left a policeman with a gunshot to the neck, and an attempted mass shooting at a Border Patrol base elsewhere in the same state.

In California, one Democratic vice mayor has gone so far as to publicly berate the violent Latino gangs 18th Street and Florencia 13 for failing to confront ICE, suggesting they are not defending their “turf” against “the biggest gang there is.”

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By Popular Demand.
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Mamdani

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Mamdani’s NYC Mayoral Campaign Backed by Democrat Dark Money: Report.

PULSE POINTS

WHAT HAPPENED: Campaign finance records suggest that an extensive dark money political action committee (PAC) operation financed by Democratic Party elites and Silicon Valley billionaires bolstered socialist Zohran Kwame Mamdani’s supposedly grassroots New York City mayoral campaign.

👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: Zohran Mamdani, Mamdani’s campaign finance chief Victoria Perrone, rival candidate Andrew Cuomo, New York City voters, Democrat donors, Silicon Valley billionaires, and forensic accountant Sam Antar.

📍WHEN & WHERE: Mamdani won the Democratic Party’s mayoral primary last month, with the dark money PAC operation revealed earlier this week.

💬KEY QUOTE: “What’s nonprofit dark money? We didn’t accept any of that on the campaign. Where are you getting this info?” — Victoria Perrone

🎯IMPACT: The dark money reports call into question claims by Mamdani that his campaign is a grassroots effort independent of the Democratic Party’s wealthy political elite.

IN FULL

Far-left socialist, Muslim extremist, and Democrat mayoral nominee for New York City Zohran Kwame Mamdani, has repeatedly claimed to be running a grassroots campaign free of political elite interests and billionaires. However, campaign finance data suggests an extensive dark money operation behind the Mamdani campaign, backed by progressive and Silicon Valley billionaires.

During the Democratic Party’s New York City mayoral primary, Mamdani frequently touted his allegedly grassroots campaign operation. However, the Democratic Socialist neglected to acknowledge the even larger campaign support network of political action committees (PACs) backing his campaign, whose funding primarily came from outside New York.

In total, Mamdani raised $1,708,494 in direct campaign funds while receiving $7,050,417 in public matching funds from the city. However, Mamdani’s campaign was bolstered even more by over $2 million in PAC spending, which an investigation by forensic accountant Sam Antar reveals came mostly from Silicon Valley billionaires and a cadre of elite Democratic Party donors. This calls into question the framing of the Mamdani campaign by supporters and the corporate media as a grassroots effort.

Finance records show that the Working Families Party National PAC served as the Mamdani campaign’s primary attack vehicle, spending $539,616 of its $701,792 expenditure on attacks against Mamdani’s primary opponent, former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. Similarly, New Yorkers for Lower Costs—an independent expenditure PAC—which raised money off of Mamdadni’s message and image—served as a key positive messaging vehicle behind the socialist candidate. In total, the PAC spent $893,877 of its $1,320,446 expendire promoting Mamdani, with the remainder used to attack Cuomo.

Notably, the total PAC spending on behalf of Mamdani runs about $300,000 more than his campaign committee was able to raise, calling into question just how ‘grassroots’ the political operation really was.

When Sam Antar raised the PAC funding issue on social media, Mamdani’s campaign finance chief, Victoria Perrone, responded, “What’s nonprofit dark money? We didn’t accept any of that on the campaign. Where are you getting this info?” The National Pulse Editor-in-Chief Raheem Kassam later intervened, responding to Perrone by posting campaign finance records for the two pro-Mamdani PACs: “You’re a campaign finance person pretending not to know what dark money is? Ok, sure.”

Perrone, continuing to play dumb, replied, “That’s a PAC…”—the insinuation being that dark money allegations somehow do not apply to pro-Mamdani PACs, despite Democrats continually insisting that most Republican PAC dollars are dark money.

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ICE Discovers Illegal Alien Child Laborers During CA Weed Farm Raid.

PULSE POINTS

WHAT HAPPENED: U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Commissioner Rodney Scott says that at least 10 illegal alien children were being used as child labour at a California marijuana farm.

👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: Commissioner Scott, Governor Gavin Newsom (D), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), illegal aliens.

📍WHEN & WHERE: The ICE raid on the marijuana facility took place on July 10.

💬KEY QUOTE: “Here’s some breaking news: 10 juveniles were found at this marijuana facility – all illegal aliens, 8 of them unaccompanied. It’s now under investigation for child labor violations,” said Commissioner Scott.

🎯IMPACT: The discovery at the farm and the clash between Governor Newsom and federal immigration officials over the raid highlight the continued tensions between the Trump administration and California Democrats over immigration policy.

IN FULL

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Commissioner Rodney Scott reports that at least ten juveniles, all illegal aliens, were found working at a marijuana farm during an immigration raid in Governor Gavin Newsom’s California.

“Here’s some breaking news: 10 juveniles were found at this marijuana facility – all illegal aliens, 8 of them unaccompanied. It’s now under investigation for child labor violations,” Commissioner Scott said. He was replying to a post on X by Governor Newsom, who was complaining about the immigration raid.

The incident in Camarillo, owned by Glass House Brands Inc., saw U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents forced to use rubber bullets and smoke grenades after pro-illegal immigrant agitators attempted to disrupt the raid.

In reaction to Commissioner Scott’s comments, Governor Newsom’s office released a statement saying, “There’s a real cost to these inhumane immigration actions on hardworking families and communities, including farmworker communities, across America.” Notably, he did not address the human cost of illegal alien children being exploited as a source of labor.

The exchange underscores the tensions between Newsom and the Trump administration, which previously flared during riots in Los Angeles against ICE, which soon spread to other cities. President Trump sent both the National Guard and the U.S. Marines to help ICE and Los Angeles law enforcement during the riots, with Newsom attempting to stop this by filing lawsuits.

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Trump Tells Republican Lawmakers to Defund PBS and NPR or Lose His Support.

PULSE POINTS

WHAT HAPPENED: President Donald J. Trump issued a statement urging Republicans to support his Recissions Bill.

👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: Donald Trump and Republican lawmakers.

📍WHEN & WHERE: The statement was made on Truth Social.

💬KEY QUOTE: “DEFUND THE CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING (PBS and NPR), which is worse than CNN & MSDNC put together.” – Donald Trump

🎯IMPACT: Trump warned that Republicans supporting the continued funding of PBS and NPR would lose his endorsement.

IN FULL

In a recent post on Truth Social, President Donald J. Trump urged Republicans to back cut funding to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which encompasses PBS and NPR, in an administration-backed Recissions Bill. Defunding federally funded media outlets with a partisan bias has been an early priority for the America First leader, with Kari Lake spearheading budget and staffing cuts at the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM).

“It is very important that all Republicans adhere to my Recissions Bill and, in particular, DEFUND THE CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING (PBS and NPR), which is worse than CNN & MSDNC put together. Any Republican that votes to allow this monstrosity to continue broadcasting will not have my support or Endorsement. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” he wrote.

President Trump previously signed an executive order aimed at restricting funding to NPR and PBS, describing them as “entities that receive tens of millions of dollars in taxpayer funds each year to spread radical, woke propaganda disguised as ‘news.’”

“No media outlet has a constitutional right to taxpayer subsidies, and the Government is entitled to determine which categories of activities to subsidize,” he added.

Both outlets have been embroiled in anti-Trump controversies, with NPR’s CEO admitting it failed to cover the Hunter Biden laptop story adequately ahead of the 2020 election, and PBS alleging Trump planned to “purge” LGBT Americans in 2024, for instance.

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Biden Judge Halts Illegal Immigration Raids Across Southern California.

PULSE POINTS

WHAT HAPPENED: A far-left federal judge appointed by former President Joe Biden is set to impose an order effectively ending Trump administration immigration enforcement actions across southern California, including in Los Angeles.

👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: U.S. District Court Judge Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Trump administration, Southern California businesses, and illegal immigrants.

📍WHEN & WHERE: The tentative order comes after a hearing on Thursday, July 10, in Los Angeles.

🎯IMPACT: The tentative order appears far-reaching and will effectively end most federal immigration enforcement actions across seven counties in southern California.

IN FULL

A radical, far-left federal judge appointed by former President Joe Biden is set to impose an order that would bar the Trump administration from conducting most illegal immigration enforcement actions in Los Angeles and the surrounding area. U.S. District Court Judge Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong has reportedly written a tentative order that would largely prevent U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) from conducting raids at L.A.-area Home Depots, car washes, warehouses, and other commercial facilities without demonstrating probable cause to do so.

The order stems from a lawsuit brought by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which contends that ICE is conducting what it characterizes as “deportation dragnets” in Los Angeles. According to the ACLU, the ICE raids are only predicated on the race and language of the targets, essentially constituting illegal profiling and discrimination. However, the Trump administration contends that the ICE raids are in accordance with federal law and are based on intelligence gathered by federal law enforcement, including the location of business establishments where illegal immigrants are known to have been hired.

Judge Frimpong’s order effectively restricts federal immigration officials from using race, the presence of Spanish speakers, and the type of business establishment to determine where to conduct raids. In addition, ICE agents will be barred from detaining suspected illegal immigrants unless they can show a reasonable cause of belief that an individual has broken U.S. immigration laws.

The ruling impacts the entire jurisdiction of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, which includes seven southern California counties.

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By Popular Demand.
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Admiral Responsible for Drag Shows on Navy Carrier Loses Promotion Nomination.

PULSE POINTS

WHAT HAPPENED: The Defense Department has withdrawn the nomination of Rear Adm. Michael “Buzz” Donnelly for promotion to vice admiral following scrutiny over drag performances aboard the USS Ronald Reagan during his command.

👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: Rear Adm. Michael “Buzz” Donnelly, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Yeoman 2nd Class Joshua Kelley, and Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL).

📍WHEN & WHERE: The drag events occurred aboard the USS Ronald Reagan from 2016 to 2018. The nomination withdrawal was reported in July 2025.

💬KEY QUOTE: “Every military officer takes command of units large and small with the understanding they are responsible for everything that does and does not happen under their command.” – William Thibeau, The American Military Project

🎯IMPACT: The withdrawal highlights ongoing efforts to drive woke ideology and its enablers out of the U.S. military under the Trump administration.

IN FULL

The Defense Department has withdrawn the nomination of a rear admiral for promotion to vice admiral, following inquiries into drag performances that took place aboard the USS Ronald Reagan during his tenure as commanding officer. Rear Adm. Michael “Buzz” Donnelly led the aircraft carrier from April 2016 to September 2018, during which time Yeoman 2nd Class Joshua Kelley, under the drag name “Harpy Daniels,” performed at department-sanctioned events.

The nomination, announced on June 18, was for Donnelly to lead the Navy’s 7th Fleet, its most significant overseas force. However, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has since decided to withdraw the nomination and is seeking a new candidate, according to a Defense Department source. The decision followed scrutiny from Sen. Tommy Tuberville, who had previously blocked Donnelly’s promotion as part of a broader effort to challenge Pentagon policies, including taxpayer-funded abortions.

Tuberville, in a May 2023 letter, called on Navy leadership to disclose the officers responsible for funding and promoting drag queen performances, arguing such programs were unrelated to the military’s mission of national defense. “This is a fight worth having,” Tuberville remarked on social media, referencing Donnelly’s role in allowing the USS Ronald Reagan drag shows.

William Thibeau, director of The American Military Project at The Claremont Institute, noted that the drag performances were not isolated occurrences but part of official Navy programs. “The USS Ronald Reagan drag shows of 2017 and 2018 were not random acts of entertainment for sailors, but were sanctioned Navy programs,” Thibeau stated.

“Every military officer takes command of units large and small with the understanding they are responsible for everything that does and does not happen under their command,” he added.

Donnelly’s nomination withdrawal is part of a larger effort by Secretary Hegseth to eliminate woke ideology and its enablers in the military and return to a traditional “warrior ethos.” So far, that policy has led to a surge of new recruits, with military branches exceeding recruitment targets months ahead of schedule.

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Fetterman Blasts NYC’s Zohran Mamdani: ‘He’s Not Even a Democrat.’

PULSE POINTS

WHAT HAPPENED: Senator John Fetterman (D-PA) criticized Democratic mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani, calling his nomination for New York City Mayor “Christmas in July for the GOP.”

👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: Sen. John Fetterman and Zohran Mamdani.

📍WHEN & WHERE: Fetterman’s remarks came on Thursday, July 10, as he spoke with the media.

💬KEY QUOTE: “He’s not even a Democrat, honestly.” – Sen. Fetterman

🎯IMPACT: The comments highlight internal divisions within the Democratic Party and raise questions about its direction.

IN FULL

Senator John Fetterman (D-PA) on Thursday lamented the Democratic Party’s nomination of far-left socialist immigrant Zohran Kwame Mamdani for New York City Mayor. The Pennsylvania Senator, who has positioned himself as a foil to the Democrats’ increasingly radical leftist base, called Mamdani’s primary victory last month “Christmas in July for the GOP.”

“I’m not a voter in New York City, and so I have no dog in that fight, and everything that I’ve read on him, I don’t really agree with virtually any of it politically. So that’s just where I’m at as a Democrat. I mean, so he’s not even a Democrat, honestly,” Fetterman said while speaking with the media on Thursday, referencing Mamdani’s alignment with the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) organization.

Notably, DSA-affiliated politicians like Mamdani, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT)—who caucuses with the Senate Democrats—have gained significant influence within the party. Ocasio-Cortez, specifically, has seen a surge in polling numbers suggesting she is among the frontrunners for the Democratic Party’s 2028 presidential nomination.

Since winning his party’s New York City mayoral nomination, Mamdani has experienced a series of setbacks in his campaign, as some of his more radical ideas have been scrutinized. For instance, his plan to establish socialist, city-run grocery stores was revealed to be predicated on a faulty understanding of current New York City law. Under his plan, Mamdani claimed that the city-owned and run stores would be funded by redirecting an alleged $140 million subsidy that New York provides to private grocers. However, no direct $140 million subsidy actually exists to be redirected, with the figure actually being an estimate of the total tax breaks, exemptions, and regulatory relief provided to grocery stores operating in underserved neighborhoods.

Mamdani’s campaign has also been criticized for radical policies like increasing property taxes on predominantly white neighborhoods and abolishing prisons. Additionally, the Democratic mayoral candidate has drawn backlash for insisting that violent race riots, like those in Minnesota following the death of George Floyd, “has to happen” in order to achieve racial justice.

The Uganda-born leftist also holds extreme religious views, being a member of Shia Islam’s “Twelver” sect, which believes a final prophet born in 868 A.D. has been living in hiding for over a thousand years, awaiting his opportunity to spread Islam worldwide.

Image by Bingjiefu He.

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Trump Admin Catches MS-13 Leaders Released Into U.S. Under Biden.

PULSE POINTS

WHAT HAPPENED: Federal law enforcement arrested two illegal immigrant MS-13 gang leaders during a raid in Omaha, Nebraska, on Wednesday. Both men are wanted by El Salvador’s government for numerous violent crimes.

👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: Melvin Alejandro Varela Pérez, a.k.a. Payaso, Rene Escobar-Ochoa, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), other federal law enforcement agencies, MS-13, the government of El Salvador, INTERPOL, and the former Biden government.

📍WHEN & WHERE: The two MS-13 gang leaders were arrested on Wednesday, July 9, 2025; both were detained and paroled into the United States by the former Biden government.

💬KEY QUOTE: “The Biden Administration allowed two ringleaders of MS-13, one of the most violent gangs in the world, straight into our country. One of these depraved aliens is on El Salvador’s 100 Most Wanted Fugitives list and is wanted for five counts of murder. The other has an INTERPOL notice for drug trafficking.” — DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin.

🎯IMPACT: Both men are now in ICE custody while the agency coordinates for them to be returned to El Salvador.

IN FULL

Two illegal immigrant MS-13 gang kingpins were arrested during a federal raid in Omaha, Nebraska, on Wednesday, according to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Melvin Alejandro Varela Pérez—also known as Payaso—and Rene Escobar-Ochoa are both wanted by the Salvadoran government and are accused of numerous murders, conspiracy to commit murder, and drug trafficking. Pérez is listed on El Salvador’s 100 Most Wanted, and Escobar-Ochoa is the subject of an INTERPOL Red Notice. Concerningly, DHS states that despite the warrants and Red Notice, both men were paroled by the former Biden government into the United States after being detained while illegally crossing the U.S. southern border.

“The Biden Administration allowed two ringleaders of MS-13, one of the most violent gangs in the world, straight into our country,” said Tricia McLaughlin, DHS’s Assistant Secretary of Public Affairs. “One of these depraved aliens is on El Salvador’s 100 Most Wanted Fugitives list and is wanted for five counts of murder. The other has an INTERPOL notice for drug trafficking.”

“These are the kinds of scum-bags sanctuary politicians are protecting and letting walk free on America’s streets,” she added.

Both men are now in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody after being captured in the raid, which was led by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and included other federal and international law enforcement partners. DHS says that ICE will continue to hold both MS-13 leaders as it coordinates with the Salvadoran government on returning them to the Central American nation to face justice.

The arrests are being highlighted as a shocking example of the lack of adequate vetting of illegal immigrants detained and subsequently released into the interior of the U.S. under former President Joe Biden.

Speaking on the matter on Thursday, President Donald J. Trump’s Border Czar, Tom Homan, blasted the Biden-Harris era, noting that former DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas had directed U.S. immigration officials to only proceed with immediate deportations when the detainee had prior violent criminal convictions and not merely warrants for violent crimes.

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WATCH: Bannon Urges Trump to Appoint a Special Prosecutor to Release Epstein Files.

PULSE POINTS

WHAT HAPPENED: WarRoom host and former White House Chief Strategist Stephen K. Bannon has urged President Donald J. Trump to appoint a special prosecutor to release all government files related to deceased pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: Stephen K. Bannon, Donald Trump, Attorney General Pam Bondi, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Kash Patel.

📍WHEN & WHERE: Comments were made on Bannon’s WarRoom podcast on Thursday after the Department of Justice (DOJ) said Epstein’s 2019 death in jail was a suicide and no “client list” of people he trafficked victims to exists.

💬KEY QUOTE: “If DOJ can’t move off the dime, and FBI can’t move off the dime, [there] should be a special counsel to go through everything and release it all.” – Stephen K. Bannon

🎯IMPACT: Bannon’s statements have reignited scrutiny of Epstein’s case and raised questions about transparency within the DOJ and FBI.

IN FULL

WarRoom host and former White House chief strategist Stephen K. Bannon has called on President Donald J. Trump to appoint a special prosecutor to release all government files related to deceased pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein. This comes after the Department of Justice (DOJ) released a memo reiterating that Epstein’s 2019 death in a Manhattan jail cell was a suicide, and that there is no “client list” of people he trafficked victims to—despite Attorney General Pam Bondi implying such a list was “sitting on [her] desk right now” in February.

On his WarRoom podcast, Bannon stated, “They have to go to the court and demand and unseal the sealed evidence in Epstein. It starts there.”

“Bundle everything together… release it all. Or, which I called for yesterday, appoint a special prosecutor—he should appoint a special prosecutor, a special counsel now, for the 2020 election and everything after that, and include Russiagate and all this. You have to do that. That should be done immediately, and that should report to the President,” he added.

The Justice Department’s attempt to essentially close the book on the Epstein case comes as Jay Lefkowitz, the lawyer who helped secure his “sweetheart” deal connected to his 2008 conviction for soliciting a minor, is negotiating with the Trump administration to help Columbia University escape financial consequences for fostering radical politics.

Sources tell The National Pulse that Lefkowitz is outplaying federal negotiators, with the timing of the DOJ’s Epstein memo appearing suspicious to many legal and political insiders.

Image by Gage Skidmore.

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