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Wednesday, December 3, 2025

Category: Politics
November 21, 2025
Politics

Dem Rep Under Investigation for Fraud Enters CA Governor Race.

PULSE POINTS

âť“WHAT HAPPENED: Representative Eric Swalwell (D-CA) announced his candidacy for California governor, entering a crowded race to replace Governor Gavin Newsom (D-CA).

👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: Eric Swalwell, a seven-term congressman, and several other candidates, including Katie Porter, Xavier Becerra, and billionaire green agenda enthusiast Tom Steyer.

đź“ŤWHEN & WHERE: Swalwell launched his campaign late Thursday night during an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live!

💬KEY QUOTE: “I’m running for Governor because prices are too high and people are scared,” Swalwell wrote on his campaign website.

🎯IMPACT: Swalwell’s campaign launch comes amid allegations of mortgage and tax fraud, which have been referred to the Department of Justice (DOJ) for investigation.

IN FULL

Congressman Eric Swalwell (D-CA) has officially entered the California governor’s race, joining a growing list of far-left Democrats vying to win their party’s nomination and replace Governor Gavin Newsom (D-CA). Swalwell, who represents part of the San Francisco Bay Area, initially announced his campaign on his website, stating he is running with “fresh ideas and tremendous heart.”

“I’m running for Governor because prices are too high and people are scared,” Swalwell wrote. The far-left Democrat lawmaker also appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! Thursday night, where he said, “I’ve been in these fights as a city council member up in Dublin, my hometown, as a prosecutor in Oakland, and taking on the most corrupt president ever in the U.S. Congress, but I’m ready to bring this fight home.”

Swalwell joins a crowded field of candidates that includes former Rep. Katie Porter (D-CA), former Biden government Health Secretary Xavier Becerra, and radical green agenda billionaire Tom Steyer, among others. The congressman, who has served seven terms in the House, previously ran as an afterthought for president during the 2020 election.

Notably, Swalwell’s campaign launch comes amid allegations of mortgage and tax fraud. Last week, Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Bill Pulte criminally referred Swalwell to the Department of Justice (DOJ), citing evidence that the congressman declared his primary residence as Washington, D.C., rather than California, to secure several million dollars in loans and refinancing. The referral recommends an investigation into whether Swalwell committed mortgage fraud, state and local tax fraud, and insurance fraud.

The National Pulse reported in December 2024 that a Department of Justice (DOJ) Inspector General (IG) report named then Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Swalwell as the two primary leakers of classified materials to corporate media outlets during the Democrats’ Russiagate hoax. Swalwell’s mishandling of classified information and the allegations of financial fraud are likely to be major hurdles for his campaign.

Image by Gage Skidmore.

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November 20, 2025
Politics

Jasmine Crockett Defends Smearing GOP Over Some Random Guy Named Jeffrey Epstein.

PULSE POINTS

❓WHAT HAPPENED: Representative Jasmine Crockett (D-TX) has found herself in hot water over a series of flubs trying to pin her Republican colleagues to deceased pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: Jasmine Crockett, Delegate Stacey Plaskett (D-VI), Jeffrey Epstein, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator Lee Zeldin, House Republicans, and CNN.

đź“ŤWHEN & WHERE: Crockett’s initial comments came on Tuesday, November 18, 2025, with her interview on CNN occurring late Wednesday, November 19.

đź’¬KEY QUOTE: “Listen, I never said that it was Jeffrey Epstein. Just so that people understand, when you make a donation, your picture is not there. And because they decided to spring this on us, in real time, I wanted the Republicans to think about what could potentially happen, because I knew that they didn’t even try to go through the [Federal Election Commission].” — Rep. Crockett

🎯IMPACT: Crockett took to the House floor and accused numerous lawmakers of having taken campaign cash from an “Jeffrey Epstein,” although the man in question was not the late convicted sex offender.

IN FULL

Representative Jasmine Crockett (D-TX) has found herself in hot water over a series of flubs trying to pin her Republican colleagues to deceased pedophile Jeffrey Epstein. In the most egregious incident, Crockett took to the House floor and accused numerous lawmakers of having taken campaign cash from “Jeffrey Epstein“, although the man in question was not the infamous sex offender.

Additionally, during an appearance late Wednesday on CNN, Crockett bizarrely defended her Democrat colleague, Delegate Stacey Plaskett (D-VI), and her relationship with the real Epstein, including texts exchanged between the two during a 2019 congressional hearing, arguing that it wasn’t like they were “sexting.”

On Tuesday evening, Crockett began listing Republican lawmakers and campaign committees that received contributions from “Jeffrey Epstein,” including current Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator Lee Zeldin. The problem with Crockett’s line of attack, however, is that the donor she conflated with the deceased pedophile is not the same person. In fact, Zeldin, in a post on X (formerly Twitter) later that night, wrote, “Yes Crockett, a physician named Dr. Jeffrey Epstein (who is a totally different person than the other Jeffrey Epstein) donated to a prior campaign of mine. No freaking relation you genius.”

None of the contributions listed by Crockett—which she claimed her staff prepared for her—were from the deceased pedophile, but were rather from other individuals who happened to have the same name. Despite this, Crockett has continued to defend her attack on the House floor. Late Wednesday, she told CNN, “Listen, I never said that it was Jeffrey Epstein. Just so that people understand, when you make a donation, your picture is not there. And because they decided to spring this on us, in real time, I wanted the Republicans to think about what could potentially happen, because I knew that they didn’t even try to go through the [Federal Election Commission].”

While Crockett is correct that the Federal Election Commission (FEC) does not provide pictures of donors, the commission does provide addresses, professions, and the dates of the donations. A number of those contributions listed by Crockett came well after Epstein’s death on August 10, 2019.

If that were not bad enough, in the same CNN interview, Crockett went on to defend her Democrat colleague, Delegate Statecy Plaskett, over an exchange of text messages where Epstein coached her on questions to ask during an early 2019 hearing with disgraced attorney Michael Cohen. Crockett dismissed criticism of Plaskett’s close relationship and friendly demeanor with Epstein—who had already been convicted as a sex offender for soliciting an underage girl in 2008—stating that it wasn’t like the two were “sexting.”

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November 19, 2025
News
Politics

Islamic Non-Profit Funded University Gaza Camp Protesters: Report.

PULSE POINTS

âť“WHAT HAPPENED: A Muslim nonprofit awarded $1,000 checks to student activists disciplined for anti-Israel protests, as part of a fund that raised over $100,000 to support such individuals.

👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: The California chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-CA), student activists, and organizations like the Tides Foundation and Weingart Foundation.

đź“ŤWHEN & WHERE: The fund awarded $20,000 to students in October 2024, with incidents spanning multiple universities like Columbia, Penn, and Harvard.

💬KEY QUOTE: “CAIR’s financial support for disciplined protesters creates a reward structure for increasingly militant activism.” – Network Contagion Research Institute

🎯IMPACT: CAIR faces federal and state scrutiny, with calls for investigations into its ties to Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood, and recent actions by Texas Governor Greg Abbott (R) designating CAIR as a foreign terrorist organization.

IN FULL

The California chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-CA) has been thrust into renewed controversy after reports that it created a “Champions of Justice Fund” that collected more than $100,000 to support students disciplined for participating in anti-Israel protests. The Network Contagion Research Institute (NCRI) and the Intelligent Advocacy Network (IAN) state that the fund was designed to assist students who lost housing, scholarships, or university backing as a result of their activism.

In October 2024, $20,000 was distributed to 20 students from institutions including Columbia, the University of Pennsylvania, and Harvard. Among the highlighted beneficiaries was former Harvard student Ibrahim Bharmal, who had been convicted of assaulting a Jewish peer during a 2023 protest. Following the incident, Bharmal secured a $65,000 fellowship and later joined CAIR’s Los Angeles office.

NCRI argued that the organization’s financial support for sanctioned protesters “creates a reward structure” that could encourage more radical activism. At the same time, CAIR-CA has faced federal and state inquiries into alleged financial irregularities, compounding longstanding criticism directed at CAIR for its historical ties to Hamas. During the Holy Land Foundation trial, the group was listed as an unindicted co-conspirator, and prosecutors presented evidence linking CAIR’s early leadership to Hamas-connected networks.

The organization’s national leadership drew further scrutiny in November 2023 when CAIR Executive Director Nihad Awad publicly praised Hamas’s October 7 assault on Israel, in which more than 1,200 people, nearly all civilians, were killed. The remarks prompted the former Biden regime to cut off formal engagement with CAIR. Despite intensifying criticism, CAIR honored Columbia activist Mahmoud Khalil as its 2025 “Champion of Justice,” even as critics accused him of involvement in Hamas-aligned activity.

Political pressure on CAIR escalated in Texas on November 18, 2025, when Governor Greg Abbott (R-TX) designated both CAIR and the Muslim Brotherhood as foreign terrorist organizations and transnational criminal groups, barring them from purchasing land in the state. National Republicans have also targeted the organization: Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) introduced legislation aimed at revoking the tax-exempt status of groups he says have ties to extremist movements, specifically naming CAIR, and Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) has urged the IRS to investigate the group for potential violations related to alleged connections with Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood.

CAIR’s growing influence in electoral politics has also drawn attention. Activist Linda Sarsour claimed that a CAIR-funded political committee, the Unity and Justice Fund PAC, was the largest institutional contributor to a super PAC supporting New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani, asserting that more than 80 percent of its donors were Muslim Americans.

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November 19, 2025
Politics

Democrat Stacey Plaskett Defends Texts With Epstein.

PULSE POINTS

âť“WHAT HAPPENED: House Delegate Stacey Plaskett (D-VI) was found to have exchanged text messages with Jeffrey Epstein during a 2018 congressional hearing involving President Donald J. Trump.

👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: Stacey Plaskett, Jeffrey Epstein, Michael Cohen, and Representative Jamie Raskin (D-MD).

đź“ŤWHEN & WHERE: The text exchanges occurred in 2019 during a live committee hearing where Michael Cohen testified against President Trump.

đź’¬KEY QUOTE: “I got a text from Jeffrey Epstein, who at the time was my constituent, who was not public knowledge at that time [sic], that he was under federal investigation.” – Stacey Plaskett

🎯IMPACT: A Republican-led vote to censure Plaskett failed, leaving her committee assignments intact despite the controversy.

IN FULL

House Delegate Stacey Plaskett (D-VI) is attempting to explain away her text message exchange with convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein during a 2019 congressional hearing with disgraced former Trump Organization attorney Michael Cohen. The exchange shows Plaskett having not just a friendly demeanor with Epstein—who had already been convicted of being a sex offender—but also seeking his advice on Trump Organization figures’ testimony and how she should press Cohen.

Plaskett, who represents the U.S. Virgin Islands territory, where Epstein’s Little Saint James island—dubbed “Pedo Island”—is located, defended the text exchange, claiming she was unaware of Epstein’s criminal sexual history or that he was under federal investigation for sex trafficking. Further, Plaskett argued on the House floor on Tuesday that she had received many texts because of her shouting down Representative Jim Jordan (R-OH) over remarks he made toward the late Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-MD), who was chairing the February 2019 hearing.

“I got a text from Jeffrey Epstein, who at the time was my constituent, who was not public knowledge at that time, that he was under federal investigation,” Plaskett argued on Tuesday. Despite her assertion, Epstein was convicted in 2008 of being a sex offender after being caught soliciting sex from a minor. In 2018, the Miami Herald published a detailed investigation into Epstein in which the newspaper detailed at least 60 women who alleged the pedophile financier had abused them when they were minors.

During her defense of communicating with Epstein, Plaskett did not reveal how either she or Epstein had obtained each other’s phone numbers, nor whether she had ever met with Epstein in person. Notably, Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) is also under fire for defending Plaskett’s communications with Epstein. “They want to give them another headline! Which is, that they’ve arraigned a Democratic member for taking a phone call from her constituent, Jeffrey Epstein, in the middle of a hearing. And, of course, I don’t think there are any rules here against taking phone calls in a hearing,” Raskin said on Tuesday.

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November 19, 2025
William Upton
Politics

Trump Expected to Sign Bill Releasing Epstein Files Today.

PULSE POINTS

âť“WHAT HAPPENED: President Donald J. Trump will sign legislation ordering the release of the remaining federal government files regarding deceased pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: President Trump, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), Representative Clay Higgins (R-LA), House Republicans, House Democrats, Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), the U.S. Senate, and Jeffrey Epstein.

đź“ŤWHEN & WHERE: The bill is expected to be signed on Wednesday, November 19, 2025.

🎯IMPACT: The Department of Justice (DOJ) will be forced to release the remaining documents in its possession pertaining to Jeffrey Epstein.

IN FULL

President Donald J. Trump is expected to sign legislation ordering the release of the remaining federal government files regarding deceased pedophile Jeffrey Epstein. This comes after a discharge petition was passed near-unanimously by the House of Representatives and adopted by the United States Senate through unanimous consent.

Notably, alterations to the legislation, pushed by House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and other Republican leaders in the lower chamber, were not adopted by the Senate. The upper chamber instead opted to adopt the legislation in a unanimous consent motion before it even reached the Senate floor. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) made a unanimous consent motion, meaning that the bill was effectively adopted as soon as it was transferred to the Senate and would be sent to the White House for President Donald J. Trump’s signature.

The National Pulse reported on Tuesday that House leaders were concerned over the lack of specific protections for victims’ identities and the lack of a prohibition on the release of Child Sexual Abuse Materials (CSAM) in the legislation. Earlier on Tuesday, House Speaker Mike Johnson held a press conference, urging his U.S. Senate colleagues to amend the legislation to ensure such protections were in place.

Additionally, Representative Clay Higgins (R-A) was the sole vote against the House discharge petition and legislation, arguing it recklessly “abandons 250 years of criminal justice procedure in America.” Higgins echoed the concerns raised by Speaker Johnson and other House leaders, stating: “As written, this bill reveals and injures thousands of innocent people—witnesses, people who provided alibis, family members, etc. If enacted in its current form, this type of broad reveal of criminal investigative files, released to a rabid media, will absolutely result in innocent people being hurt.”

Despite the pleas from Johnson, Higgins, and others, the Senate left the legislation unchanged. Due to its near-unanimous support, the bill is expected to be signed into law by President Trump on Wednesday.

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November 18, 2025
William Upton
Politics

Trump Says Dem Mega Donor Reid Hoffman Should be Investigated… As We’ve Said for YEARS.

PULSE POINTS

âť“WHAT HAPPENED: President Donald J. Trump on Tuesday called on LinkedIn co-founder and billionaire Democrat donor Reid Hoffman to be investigated over his ties to Jeffrey Epstein and travels to the latter’s Little Saint James island—dubbed “Pedo Island.”

👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: Reid Hoffman, President Donald J. Trump, and The National Pulse.

📍WHEN & WHERE: Tuesday, November 18, 2025, at the White House in Washington, D.C.

đź’¬KEY QUOTE: “That creep fund guy was with him all the time. What’s his name? Reid Hoffman. I don’t know Reid Hoffman, but I know he spends a lot of money on the radical left. Reid Hoffman, in my opinion, should be under investigation.” — Donald Trump

🎯IMPACT: The National Pulse has long documented Hoffman’s ties to Epstein and called for the billionaire’s investigation by federal prosecutors.

IN FULL

President Donald J. Trump on Tuesday called on LinkedIn co-founder and billionaire Democrat donor Reid Hoffman to be investigated over his ties to Jeffrey Epstein and travels to the latter’s Little Saint James island—dubbed “Pedo Island.” The President’s remarks came during a White House Oval Office event with Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, also known as MBS. Notably, Hoffman was a key donor and advisor to Kamala Harris’s failed presidential campaign.

Responding to a press question about deceased pedophile Jeffrey Epstein and a House vote ordering the release of the federal government’s Epstein Files, Trump made reference to Hoffman—at first calling him a “creep fund guy.” The National Pulse has long pushed for a federal investigation into Hoffman and his ties to Epstein, along with his financial network benefiting Democratic Party candidates for years.

“That creep fund guy was with him all the time. What’s his name? Reid Hoffman. I don’t know Reid Hoffman, but I know he spends a lot of money on the radical left. Reid Hoffman, in my opinion, should be under investigation,” President Trump said. “He’s a sleaze bag, and those are the people, but they don’t get any press, they don’t get any news, and you’re not after the radical left because you’re a radical left network,” he added, before telling the questioner to “go back and learn how to be a reporter.”


Hoffman, who in recent years has become a sort of “mini” George Soros for the Democrats, was a key financial backer of fabulist E. Jean Carroll’s defamation lawsuits against President Trump. Additionally, Hoffman crossed party lines to back former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley in the 2024 Republican presidential primary, in the hope that she could defeat or at least damage Trump. Hoffman has also funded numerous lawfare efforts against right-leaning entities, including underwriting Smartmatic’s defamation lawsuits against Fox News and Newsmax.

In addition to his lawfare and election efforts, Hoffman has also been exposed as one of the key donors behind the far-left website and social media influencer group, MeidasTouch Network. The National Pulse previously reported on how MeidasTouch—founded by the three Meiselas brothers, Ben, Brett, and Jordy—helped popularize the “bloodbath hoax” against President Trump in 2024.

Image by JD Lasica.

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November 18, 2025
Immigration
Politics

Trump Rule May Limit Immigrants’ Use of Public Benefits.

PULSE POINTS

âť“WHAT HAPPENED: The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) proposed a new regulation expanding the public charge policy, potentially limiting immigrants’ use of public benefits.

👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), migrants, and the Protecting Immigrant Families Coalition.

đź“ŤWHEN & WHERE: The proposed regulation was released this week and will be published in the Federal Register on Wednesday.

đź’¬KEY QUOTE: “Rescission would restore broader discretion to evaluate all pertinent facts and align with long-standing policy that aliens in the United States should be self-reliant and government benefits should not incentivize immigration,” the proposal states.

🎯IMPACT: The rule may discourage immigrants from accessing public benefits.

IN FULL

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has proposed a regulation that would expand the public charge policy, potentially limiting immigrants’ access to public benefits. The suggested changes mean that programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) or Medicare could be considered when determining an immigrant’s eligibility for legal status, including green cards.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) unveiled the proposal, which will be published in the Federal Register on Wednesday. It seeks to rescind the Joe Biden-era public charge rule and broaden the scope of public benefits that immigration officers may evaluate, extending it to include health or social services used by applicants.

“Rescission would restore broader discretion to evaluate all pertinent facts and align with long-standing policy that aliens in the United States should be self-reliant and government benefits should not incentivize immigration,” the proposal outlines. However, immigration advocates criticized the move, with Adriana Cadenas, executive director of the Protecting Immigrant Families Coalition, complaining that it “deters lawfully present immigrants and U.S. citizens from seeking health care and help they need and qualify for under federal law.”

The regulation follows debates over immigrants’ access to social safety net programs. While immigrants without legal status are already technically barred from accessing programs like SNAP or Medicaid, Congress has recently imposed additional restrictions on legal immigrants. Some state-funded benefits may also now be considered in immigration reviews under the new rule.

During his first term, President Donald J. Trump expanded the definition of public charge, making it more difficult for immigrants to obtain permanent status if they used certain public benefits. The Biden government later reversed this policy in 2022, narrowing the scope of benefits considered. The latest proposal, however, signals a return to a broader approach.

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November 18, 2025
William Upton
Politics

Dems Now Try to Dox Epstein Victims, Release Child P*rn.

PULSE POINTS

âť“WHAT HAPPENED: House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) explained Tuesday that there remain significant issues with the Democrat-led discharge petition that would force the release of the Epstein Files held by the federal government.

👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: Speaker Mike Johnson, House Republicans, House Democrats, Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD), and files pertaining to deceased pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

đź“ŤWHEN & WHERE: Tuesday, November 18, 2025, in Washington, D.C.

đź’¬KEY QUOTE: “I am very confident that when this moves forward in the process, if and when it is processed in the Senate—which it is no certainty that it will be—that they will take the time, methodically, to do what we have not been allowed to do in the House, to amend this discharge petition and to make sure these protections are there.” — Mike Johnson

🎯IMPACT: The comments indicate the Epstein Files will take some time to be released as the Senate is likely to change the parameters of how the federal government is to go about making the documents public—which will require a second House vote as well.

IN FULL

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) explained Tuesday that there remain significant issues with the Democrat-led discharge petition that would force the release of the Epstein Files held by the federal government. While the Republican House leader acknowledged that he lacks the votes to block the measure, he also made clear that Republican efforts to amend the discharge petition to ensure the privacy rights of victims and those with no criminal ties to Epstein were rejected by Democrats. Additionally, Johnson raised concerns that the petition lacks language preventing the release of Child Sex Abuse Material (CSAM) and sealed grand jury testimony—the latter of which has had no adversarial challenge.

“Our side has been insistent that this matter must be handled very carefully,” the Republican Speaker explained before detailing that the language used in the Democrat-led discharge petition is so vague that it provides no protections for Jeffrey Epstein’s victims or even provisions to bar the release of CSAM materials collected from Epstein’s properties. Speaker Johnson continued: “We want maximum transparency,” though he warned that as currently written, the discharge petition is likely to muddy the waters further.

“So what am I to do as a leader in a situation like this?” Johnson posed during his morning press conference on Tuesday, ahead of the vote. He continued: “I called my counterpart in the Senate, Leader Thune, and I talked through this with him and I shared our deep concerns. And of course they share those concerns as well.”

“So I am very confident that when this moves forward in the process, if and when it is processed in the Senate—which it is no certainty that it will be—that they will take the time, methodically, to do what we have not been allowed to do in the House, to amend this discharge petition and to make sure these protections are there,” Johnson stated.

Overall, House Republicans presented five key objections to the Democrat-led discharge petition as it is written. Namely, that it fails to protect the right to privacy of Epstein’s victims. While a number of the women preyed upon by the deceased pedophile financier have come forward, there are still many who have chosen not to go public with their allegations or horrific experiences. In addition, Speaker Johnson and House Republicans note that the release of sealed grand jury materials—which have not undergone adversarial challenges—risks implicating potentially innocent individuals in Epstein’s crimes, effectively creating a new class of victim.

Thirdly, they note that the petition fails to create adequate guardrails preventing the release of CSAM or child pornography that may be contained within the files, especially from materials seized from Epstein’s properties. Their fourth objection pertains to the impact the petition could have on future investigations, as it provides no protections for the identities of whistleblowers, informants, or undercover law enforcement involved in gathering evidence against Epstein, and who may be involved in current and ongoing investigations.

Lastly, Speaker Johnson notes the language lacks any reference to a proper declassification process. This could result in the unwanted disclosure of information and intelligence gathering practices.

Image by Maryland GovPics.

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November 14, 2025
NatSec
Politics

Trump Reverses Biden’s Alaska Drilling Restrictions.

PULSE POINTS

âť“WHAT HAPPENED: The Trump administration finalized a rule revoking Biden-era restrictions on oil and gas drilling in Alaska.

👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: The Department of the Interior (DOI), President Donald J. Trump, and North Slope community leaders in Alaska

đź“ŤWHEN & WHERE: Announced on November 13, 2025, impacting the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska.

💬KEY QUOTE: “By rescinding the 2024 rule, we are following the direction set by President Trump to unlock Alaska’s energy potential, create jobs for North Slope communities and strengthen American energy security.” – Doug Burgum

🎯IMPACT: The move restores energy development opportunities, creates local jobs, and reduces U.S. reliance on foreign energy sources.

IN FULL

The Trump administration announced on Thursday, November 13 that it is moving to rescind a former Biden government rule restricting oil and gas drilling in Alaska. According to the Department of the Interior (DOI), the finalized rule—set to be published in the Federal Register on November 17—will reverse limits on drilling in the National Petroleum Reserve on Alaska’s North Slope.

The National Petroleum Reserve, which spans approximately 23 million acres, has been designated for energy development since 1923. However, Biden-era policies restricted drilling on over 13 million acres of this area, citing perceived environmental concerns.

Conversely, the DOI now aims to restore drilling to enhance U.S. energy security and reduce dependence on foreign sources. This, the department argues, will bring federal energy policy further into alignment with President Donald J. Trump’s Executive Order to expand natural resource development on federal and state lands in Alaska.

“By rescinding the 2024 rule, we are following the direction set by President Trump to unlock Alaska’s energy potential, create jobs for North Slope communities, and strengthen American energy security,” said Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum. He added that the action promotes responsible development while benefiting both Alaska and the nation.

Local support for the decision came from the Voice of the Arctic Inupiat, a nonprofit representing North Slope communities, which highlighted the benefits of tax revenue for essential services. North Slope Borough Mayor Josiah Patkotak called the move a “meaningful step toward restoring a federal process” that respects local leadership. “Good policy comes from good process, which requires hearing directly from the people who live, work, and hunt here,” Patkotak stated.

Far-left green agenda groups, such as the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), have criticized the rollback. Bobby McEnaney, NRDC director of land conservation, said, “This rollback is nothing more than a giveaway to the oil and gas industry. Weakening protections is reckless, and it threatens to erase the very landscapes Congress sought to safeguard.”

Image by Richard Martin.

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November 14, 2025
Politics

Now the Indiana GOP Is Throwing in the Towel on Redistricting?

PULSE POINTS

âť“WHAT HAPPENED: Indiana’s GOP state senate leader announced the chamber will not reconvene in December to redraw congressional maps, dealing a setback to President Donald J. Trump’s redistricting push.

👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: President Donald Trump, Indiana Senate President Pro Tempore Rodric Bray (R), Vice President J.D. Vance, and Indiana lawmakers.

đź“ŤWHEN & WHERE: Announcement made on Friday in Indianapolis, Indiana.

đź’¬KEY QUOTE: “Today, I’m announcing there are not enough votes to move that idea forward, and the Senate will not reconvene in December.” – Rodric Bray

🎯IMPACT: The decision weakens the GOP’s efforts to secure a stronger House majority through redistricting, while Democrats ramp up similar efforts in other states.

IN FULL

Indiana state Republican lawmakers announced Friday that the state Senate will no longer convene in December to redraw congressional maps, delivering a significant blow to President Donald J. Trump‘s push for mid-decade redistricting to preserve his Republican House of Representatives majority. State Senate President Pro Tempore Rodric Bray (R) made the decision to forego the December special session after determining the effort lacked the support to be successful after a failed test vote.

“Today, I’m announcing there are not enough votes to move that idea forward, and the Senate will not reconvene in December,” Bray said in a statement. The decision comes despite efforts by Vice President J.D. Vance, who visited Indiana multiple times to lobby lawmakers, and President Trump, who had hosted Bray and other state leaders in the Oval Office to discuss the matter in August.

The announcement has drawn sharp criticism from Trump’s allies. Alex Bruesewitz, a supporter of the America First leader, took to X (formerly Twitter) to call out Bray and other Republicans, saying, “Our party can no longer afford to harbor these gutless, self-serving traitors who stab us in the back while accomplishing absolutely nothing.” Meanwhile, Governor Mike Braun (R-IN) urged the Senate to “do the right thing and show up to vote for fair maps.”

Democrats, on the other hand, celebrated the decision. Representative Andre Carson (D-IN), whose seat was likely to be redrawn, praised the move, stating, “Prayer, people, and partnerships power change. Hoosiers do things differently. We’re about collaboration, not division.” Carson commended Bray and other lawmakers for sticking to “Hoosier values.”

The setback in Indiana is part of a broader struggle for Republican-led redistricting efforts, which have also stalled in Kansas, Nebraska, and New Hampshire. Meanwhile, Democrats are advancing their own redistricting plans in states like California and Virginia, which could potentially result in the gain of several seats.

Image by Ted Eytan.

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