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February 12, 2025
Raheem J. Kassam
Breaking

EXC: VP J.D. Vance Visits Rebuilt Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris.

PARIS, France — Vice President J.D. Vance took part in a special visit to Notre Dame this evening, with The National Pulse present to witness the occasion.

Vance, hot off his AI summit speech in the French capital, marveled at the recently rebuilt cathedral alongside his wife Usha and three children.

Notre Dame famously burned down in  April 2019 after a suspicious fire that ravaged the 12th-century building, which was first established as a Catholic cathedral dedicated to the Virgin Mary.

The National Pulse is currently on location with the Vice President, who is expected to deliver remarks at the Munich Security Forum on Friday, as well as attending a meeting with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky.

By Popular Demand.
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12 minutes ago
Corruption
Crime

Former Minnesota Trooper Says Walz Admin Tried to Cover Up Fraud.

A former Minnesota state trooper has accused state officials of obstructing fraud investigations involving daycares, alleging the system’s widespread exploitation by scammers was knowingly ignored by state leadership.

PULSE POINTS
❓ WHAT HAPPENED: Former Minnesota state trooper and state Department of Human Services investigator Jay Swanson testified that state officials pressured him to suppress findings of widespread fraud in the state’s child care assistance program. Swanson told the Minnesota House Fraud Prevention and State Agency Oversight Policy Committee on Tuesday that Somali refugees were exploiting the program, and that Minnesota had become known internationally as the easiest state to commit such fraud.
📺 DETAIL: Swanson revealed that he was ordered by supervisors to delete evidence of fraud and was later harassed when he refused, stating such actions were illegal. The fraud, which dates back to at least 2009, involved day care centers billing for services not provided, with federal prosecutors estimating losses of $9 billion to taxpayers. Despite these findings, Swanson’s investigative unit was dismantled under Governor Tim Walz (D).
💬 KEY QUOTE: “They had heard you could run the scam in a number of different states, but it was easiest and you could make the most money doing it in Minnesota.” – Jay Swanson
🎯 IMPACT: Around 98 people have been charged and 64 convicted in relation to Minnesota fraud in recent months, including many from the Somali community. Governor Walz, who abandoned a reelection bid as coverage of the scandal escalated online, recently claimed credit for cracking down on fraud, despite Swanson and other whistleblowers indicating that his administration was actively suppressing earlier investigations. Vice President J.D. Vance, in his role as the Trump administration’s anti-fraud czar, warned, “We’re not going to let anybody who committed a crime off the hook, and in fact, if you are a senior officer [in Minnesota], if you’re the Attorney General or the Governor, or any other elected official, we’re going to look extra hard at what you knew and when you knew it and how connected your actions were to this fraud scheme.”

Image by Gage Skidmore.

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A former Minnesota state trooper has accused state officials of obstructing fraud investigations involving daycares, alleging the system's widespread exploitation by scammers was knowingly ignored by state leadership.

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By Popular Demand.
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46 minutes ago
Economy
News

Oil Prices Surge as Trump Warns of Prolonged Blockade.

Oil prices hit a four-year high following reports of an extended blockade against Iranian ports, roiling global energy markets.

PULSE POINTS
❓ WHAT HAPPENED: Oil prices have surged by over seven percent, reaching a four-year high above $126 per barrel on Thursday, amid reports that President Donald J. Trump has indicated that the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports could extend for months. This follows reports suggesting Trump is considering launching fresh military strikes against Iran.
📰 DETAIL: President Trump has reportedly instructed national security officials to prepare for a prolonged blockade to pressure Iran into abandoning its nuclear program. Tehran is believed to have made a proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, but Trump believes their outreach is in bad faith. Iran’s disruption of the crucial waterway, through which a fifth of the world’s oil and gas and much of global fertilizer supplies flow, is having a profound impact on energy prices and markets, and has already triggered a jet fuel crisis.
💬 KEY QUOTE: “Iran can’t get their act together. They don’t know how to sign a nonnuclear deal. They better get smart soon!” – Donald Trump on Truth Social.
🎯 IMPACT: In Asian trading, Brent crude for June delivery jumped 7.1 percent to $126.41 a barrel overnight, before dropping back to $114.70. West Texas Intermediate rose 3.4 percent to $110.31 before dropping back to $105.12. Stock markets declined, with Tokyo, Hong Kong, Seoul, and Mumbai each falling more than one percent; Sydney, Taipei, Bangkok, Manila, and Jakarta also closed lower. However, the U.S. dollar, viewed as a safe-haven currency amid the crisis, strengthened against other major currencies.

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Oil prices hit a four-year high following reports of an extended blockade against Iranian ports, roiling global energy markets.

show more
By Popular Demand.
The National Pulse Now has an on-site comments section for members. Sign up today and be part of the conversation in our community of almost 15,000.
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2 hours ago
Immigration
News

Judge Blocks Deportation of Indian Trucker Who Killed 16 People.

A Canadian judge has temporarily blocked the deportation of Jaskirat Singh Sidhu, convicted of killing 16 people in a 2018 hockey team bus crash, citing concerns over his mental health.

PULSE POINTS
❓ WHAT HAPPENED: A Canadian federal judge, Jocelyne Gagné, granted a temporary stay of deportation for Jaskirat Singh Sidhu, the truck driver responsible for the 2018 Humboldt Broncos bus crash that killed 16 and injured 13 others. The judge cited concerns over Sidhu’s mental health, including high suicidal ideation, as a factor in her decision.
📺 DETAIL: Sidhu, who pleaded guilty to dangerous driving and was sentenced to eight years in prison before being released early on parole, had been facing removal from Canada following an immigration ruling. However, the court granted a stay after arguments that deportation could worsen his psychological condition and potentially lead to self-harm.
💬 KEY QUOTE: “Being deported back to India, although not anybody’s favorite choice, is not a death sentence. What we have is a death sentence.” – Chris Joseph, father of one of the crash victims.
🎯 IMPACT: The case is one of the worst examples of an Indian immigrant trucker killing innocents on the road in North America. In the United States, there have been multiple cases of Indian nationals crashing semi-trucks into cars, killing innocent people. The issue has raised questions about the ease with which migrants gain access to commercial driving licenses, including illegal immigrants.
📺 FLASHBACK: The Humboldt Broncos bus crash remains one of the worst tragedies in Canada’s recent history. Sidhu violated multiple safety regulations leading up to the crash. The mass casualty crash drew national attention and led to calls for stricter trucking safety standards.

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A Canadian judge has temporarily blocked the deportation of Jaskirat Singh Sidhu, convicted of killing 16 people in a 2018 hockey team bus crash, citing concerns over his mental health.

show more
By Popular Demand.
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3 hours ago
Corruption
Crime

Trump DOJ Indicts Sitting Mexican Governor in Cartel Crackdown.

United States prosecutors have charged 10 Mexican officials, including a state governor, with helping a major drug cartel to ship narcotics into the country.

PULSE POINTS
❓ WHAT HAPPENED: Prosecutors have unsealed an indictment against 10 current and former officials from Sinaloa, one of Mexico’s federal states, including the state’s governor, Rubén Rocha Moya. The indictment accuses the officials of conspiring to traffic drugs into the United States.
📺 DETAIL: On Wednesday, a case was brought forward by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, along with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), against 10 current and former officials from Sinaloa, one of Mexico’s 31 federal states, including the governor. The charges include bribery, kidnapping, and cooperating with the Sinaloa Cartel, a major drug trafficking and money laundering organization. The cartel is designated as a terrorist group by the United States. The indictment alleges that the accused used their positions to protect the cartel’s interests, provide sensitive information, and facilitate drug trafficking into the United States in exchange for political support.
💬 KEY QUOTE: “As the indictment lays bare, the Sinaloa Cartel, and other drug trafficking organizations like it, would not operate as freely or successfully without corrupt politicians and law enforcement officials on their payroll.” – Jay Clayton, United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York.
🎯 IMPACT: The indictment highlights the deep corruption within parts of Mexico’s government and law enforcement, and the extent to which drug cartels have infiltrated Mexico’s political institutions. The charges may place strain on U.S.-Mexico relations, already made tense by ongoing problems with drug trafficking and illegal immigration, among other issues. This indictment comes roughly a month after Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers seized over 120 pounds of methamphetamine at the southern border.

Image by EneasMx.

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United States prosecutors have charged 10 Mexican officials, including a state governor, with helping a major drug cartel to ship narcotics into the country.

show more
By Popular Demand.
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16 hours ago
Corruption
Crime
News

Vance Confirms Walz, AG Ellison Being Investigated in Somali Fraud Probe.

Vice President J.D. Vance is leading a federal investigation into potential criminal activities linked to fraud in Minnesota, potentially implicating high-ranking state officials.

PULSE POINTS
❓ WHAT HAPPENED: Vice President J.D. Vance has confirmed that the federal government is investigating Minnesota officials, including Governor Tim Walz (D) and Attorney General Keith Ellison (D), for potential liability in the state’s welfare fraud scandal.
📰 DETAIL: In his capacity as anti-fraud czar, Vice President Vance has confirmed that the federal government is investigating Minnesota officials, including outgoing Governor Tim Walz and state Attorney General Keith Ellison, for potential liability in connection with the state’s ongoing fraud scandal. Following allegations of widespread welfare and daycare fraud, particularly among Minnesota’s large Somali population, questions have been raised about the extent to which those in positions of political and legal authority turned a blind eye to criminal activities. “You have people that came into this country, many of them illegal, [and] six months later they are driving a Mercedes, despite the fact they don’t have a job. That does not happen without some defrauding of the American taxpayer. The fact that they turned a blind eye for so long is a scandal,” Vance said in an interview on Wednesday.
💬 KEY QUOTE: “We’re not going to let anybody who committed a crime off the hook, and in fact, if you are a senior officer, if you’re the Attorney General or the Governor, or any other elected official, we’re going to look extra hard at what you knew and when you knew it and how connected your actions were to this fraud scheme.” – Vice President J.D. Vance
🎯 IMPACT: The investigation could lead to significant legal consequences for Minnesota’s top officials if they are found complicit. Tim Walz already abandoned a reelection bid earlier this year as coverage of Somali fraud in the state on his watch ramped up.
📺 FLASHBACK: In late February, in response to fraud allegations made in late December and January, the Trump administration announced it was temporarily halting specific forms of Medicaid funding to Minnesota.

Image by Gage Skidmore.

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Vice President J.D. Vance is leading a federal investigation into potential criminal activities linked to fraud in Minnesota, potentially implicating high-ranking state officials.

show more
By Popular Demand.
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16 hours ago
News

Florida Redistricting Effort Passes State Senate, Heads to Governor’s Desk.

Florida’s new congressional map, passed by the Republican-controlled state legislature, is heading to the desk of Governor Ron DeSantis, who proposed it just days ago.

PULSE POINTS
❓ WHAT HAPPENED: Florida’s state legislature has passed a new congressional map in a special session, potentially increasing GOP representation in the U.S. House of Representatives by four seats. The map was approved shortly after a significant U.S. Supreme Court redistricting ruling in Louisiana.
📰 DETAIL: The map, put forward by Governor Ron DeSantis (R) just days ago, passed the state Senate on Wednesday, after being passed by the state House earlier the same day. The approval came after a brief delay for state lawmakers to review the Supreme Court’s decision overturning the creation of a new black-majority district in Louisiana, which heralds changes to the Voting Rights Act that could cost the Democrats a number of racially gerrymandered majority-minority districts nationwide.
🎯 IMPACT: The new map is expected to face legal challenges from Democrat-aligned groups, potentially affecting its implementation ahead of the November midterms. However, if upheld, it could shift the political landscape in Florida, netting the GOP four or five additional House seats and canceling out a redistricting effort likely to hand the Democrats multiple new seats in Virginia.

Image by Gage Skidmore.

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Florida's new congressional map, passed by the Republican-controlled state legislature, is heading to the desk of Governor Ron DeSantis, who proposed it just days ago.

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By Popular Demand.
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17 hours ago
Lawfare
News

Emails Show Biden DOJ Wanted to Target Pro-Trump Nuns.

Text messages reveal Biden-era DOJ prosecutors joked about prosecuting Catholic nuns who attended a pro-Trump rally.

PULSE POINTS
❓ WHAT HAPPENED: Prosecutors Joseph Cooney and Molly Gaston, both of whom served in the Department of Justice (DOJ) under former President Joe Biden, apparently targeted Catholic nuns for attending the “Stop the Steal” rally on January 6, 2021, according to recently released text messages.
📺 DETAIL: Text messages shared on Wednesday by Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA)—who is investigating Arctic Frost, a Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) probe into Republicans and conservatives—reveal that Biden DOJ prosecutors Cooney and Gaston seemingly targeted Catholic nuns attending the “Stop the Steal” rally. Grassley said the texts demonstrated a “total disdain for equal justice” and an apparent willingness to target people based on their religion. In February 2021, after spotting the protesting nuns in media coverage of the rally, Gaston messaged Cooney: “I would like to take a special assignment of finding and prosecuting them,” to which Cooney responded, “I’m with you. Although I’d like to prosecute any nun who still wears the head habit.” Both served as top deputies to Jack Smith, then a special counsel tasked with prosecuting President Donald J. Trump and his supporters. The nuns in question were wearing traditional veils and pro-Trump scarves.
💬 KEY QUOTE: “Freedom of religion is a cherished First Amendment right enshrined in our Constitution by the Founding Fathers… I was appalled, but sadly not surprised, to discover evidence of Biden DOJ prosecutors threatening to use the power of the federal justice system to target people of faith.” – Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA).
🎯 IMPACT: This revelation raises questions about the impartiality of the Department of Justice under the Biden government. Earlier this year, Cooney announced his intention to run as a Democrat for Virginia’s 7th district, which is part of one of the most traditional Catholic dioceses in the United States.
📺 FLASHBACK: Last year, internal FBI emails revealed that the Biden DOJ targeted President Trump over a January 6 defendant choir as part of a broader “obsession with piling on Trump charges.” 

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Text messages reveal Biden-era DOJ prosecutors joked about prosecuting Catholic nuns who attended a pro-Trump rally.

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By Popular Demand.
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18 hours ago
News
War

Iran War Has Cost $25 Billion So Far, Pentagon Confirms.

The United States has already spent $25 billion on the Iran war, according to high-ranking Pentagon officials.

PULSE POINTS
❓ WHAT HAPPENED: The United States has spent approximately $25 billion on the Iran war thus far, according to Acting Pentagon Comptroller Jules Hurst III. As the war nears its 60-day mark, the bulk of its costs have reportedly come from munitions, operations, and equipment replacements and maintenance.
📺 DETAIL: The figure, announced during a House Armed Services Committee on Wednesday, is the first cost update since Operation Epic Fury began in late February. Acting Pentagon Comptroller Jules Hurst III indicated that a request for supplemental funding would be submitted after a full cost assessment. Previous estimates indicated that roughly $11.3 billion had been spent in the first six days of the war alone.
🎯 IMPACT: The cost update comes as the war nears the 60-day mark. Under the 1973 War Powers Resolution, military operations lasting more than 60 days require congressional approval, with leeway for the President to request a 30-day extension. At present, the House has failed to pass a war powers resolution, while the Senate has consistently blocked measures to end the war.
💬 KEY QUOTE: “We will formulate a supplemental, through the White House, that will come to Congress once we have a full assessment of the cost of the conflict.” — Jules Hurst III, acting Pentagon Comptroller.
📺 FLASHBACK: Earlier this month, research from the American Enterprise Institute estimated that the Iran war was costing the United States between $22.3 billion and $31 billion. Over a five-week period, the cost of the war was analyzed as totaling roughly $500 million per day.

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The United States has already spent $25 billion on the Iran war, according to high-ranking Pentagon officials.

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By Popular Demand.
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18 hours ago
News
UK

NY Priorities: Mamdani Said He’d Use King Charles Meet to Lobby for a Diamond to be Returned to India… Then He Chickened Out.

During a 9/11 memorial event in New York City, New York Mayor Zorhan Mamdani claimed he would ask King Charles III to return the Koh-i-Noor diamond to India—but failed to follow through.

PULSE POINTS
❓ WHAT HAPPENED: New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani (D) claimed he would ask King Charles III to transfer the Koh-i-Noor diamond to India during a 9/11 memorial event in New York City on Wednesday. However, video footage of the Uganda-born ethnic Indian interacting with the British monarch at the memorial suggests he made no such request when given the opportunity.
📺 DETAIL: Mamdani made the remarks while taking questions from reporters, noting that, rather than discussing British-American trade and investment or other priorities relevant to New Yorkers, he would use any meeting with the King to “encourage” him to send the diamond to his ancestral homeland. The Koh-i-Noor diamond, now part of the British Crown Jewels, has long been a source of international dispute due to its origins in India and its transfer to Britain during the 19th century under colonial rule. India, Pakistan, Iran, and Afghanistan have previously laid claim to the diamond, though the British government has given no indication that it will be sent anywhere. Mamdani’s comments came ahead of a scheduled meeting with the King during his U.S. visit, which includes events commemorating the upcoming 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. However, video of that meeting shows Mamdani smiling, bowing, and shaking hands with the King, with no indication that he pressed India’s claims to the Koh-i-Noor.
💬 KEY QUOTE: “You know, if I was to speak to the King separately from that, I would probably encourage him to return the Koh-i-Noor diamond.” – Zohran Mamdani.
📺 FLASHBACK: The diamond, known as the ‘Mountain of Light,’ became part of the British Crown Jewels after the Treaty of Lahore in 1849, which required the young ruler of Punjab to cede sovereignty and the diamond to Britain, having already changed hands multiple times. It has since been worn by several British queens, most recently being set in the crown of the King’s late grandmother. In addition to India, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iran have claimed it.

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During a 9/11 memorial event in New York City, New York Mayor Zorhan Mamdani claimed he would ask King Charles III to return the Koh-i-Noor diamond to India—but failed to follow through.

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By Popular Demand.
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19 hours ago
Crime
News

Two Charged for Assault on Conservative Journalist Covering Anti-ICE Protest.

A federal grand jury has indicted two people over an assault on Turning Point USA reporter Savanah Hernandez, while she was covering a protest outside an ICE facility in Minneapolis.

PULSE POINTS
❓ WHAT HAPPENED: A federal grand jury has indicted two people for their involvement in the assault of Turning Point USA (TPUSA) reporter Savannah Hernandez during an anti-ICE protest in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The incident occurred on April 11 outside the Whipple Federal Building, where protesters had gathered near a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) office that also serves as a detention facility.
📺 DETAIL: Video from the scene previously showed multiple people striking Hernandez, with one person shoving her to the ground as she filmed. The assault prompted a federal investigation, with authorities examining potential civil rights violations related attacks on journalists. Officials have not released full details about the defendants or the specific charges as of the time of publication.
💬 KEY QUOTE: “Leave me, I am trying to leave!” – Savanah Hernandez, during the altercation.
🎯 IMPACT: Minneapolis was the center of far-left protests during ICE operations in Minnesota, with two leftists being killed while interfering with federal agents or, in one case, trying to run down an agent with a vehicle. The far left agitators are believed to have been funded by a massive underground fraud network. Over 10,000 illegals were arrested in the Minneapolis before the operation was wound down.

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A federal grand jury has indicted two people over an assault on Turning Point USA reporter Savanah Hernandez, while she was covering a protest outside an ICE facility in Minneapolis.

show more
By Popular Demand.
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