GET THE APP
Wednesday, May 6, 2026

Category: Politics

desantis trolls
August 31, 2023
William Upton
News
Politics

DeSantis Camp Used Hurricane Idalia to Smear MAGA Congressmen, Trump.

Ron DeSantis’s presidential campaign ‘troll army’ on X (formerly Twitter) attempted to weaponize Hurricane Idalia for political purposes, falsely claiming former President Donald Trump instructed his supporters — including a new mother in Congress — to not appear with the Florida Governor or promote the state’s response to the storm.

One of the claims made by the anonymous “MaxTwain24” account is that Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) sent her staff to a press conference with Governor DeSantis addressing the emergency response to Hurricane Idalia – instead of appearing herself – because of the fictitious directive from former President Trump. In reality, Rep. Luna was unable to attend in person because she is recovering after having given birth several days prior to the press conference.

Several high profile trolls – who appear to regularly communicate with DeSantis campaign staffers Christina Pushaw and Bryan Griffin – amplified the demonstrably false accusations made by the MaxTwain24 account including oddball Chris Nelson, the troll account CryptidPolitics, and grifter and con-artist Bill Mitchell.

The Florida Congressional delegation targeted by the DeSantis campaign trolls for not posting about Hurricane Idalia had, in reality, addressed the storm on multiple occasions prior to the MaxTwain24 posts.

Rep. Luna had dedicated most of August 28th, a full day prior to the accusations, to keeping her constituents informed about the State of Florida’s emergency response. Cory Mills also began posting about the storm and relevant emergency information on August 28th. Rep. Greg Steube’s earliest post was at mid-day on August 27th. Rep. Matt Gaetz has retweeted emergency information from Gov. DeSantis several times on both his personal X account and his Congressional office X account.

All of these Members of Congress are backing Donald Trump for the Republican presidential nomination and have been targted by pro-DeSantis trolls following the MaxTwain24 posts smearing.

The DeSantis campaign trolls didn’t just stop with lying about Members of Congress. Nelson, specifically, has taken to targeting conservative activists on X as well, including The National Pulse editor-in-chief Raheem Kassam, claiming that these individuals have also been complicit in a ‘conspiracy’ to ignore Hurricane Idalia. The National Pulse published its first story on the storm on August 28th, over 24 hours prior to Nelson’s post.

Nelson, for his part, was ratioed in his replies. But his DeSantis-campaign handler, Christina Pushaw, spent the day doing yoga in Miami instead of aiding with the hurricane communications effort.

show less
Ron DeSantis’s presidential campaign 'troll army' on X (formerly Twitter) attempted to weaponize Hurricane Idalia for political purposes, falsely claiming former President Donald Trump instructed his supporters — including a new mother in Congress — to not appear with the Florida Governor or promote the state's response to the storm. show more

Editor’s Notes

Behind-the-scenes political intrigue exclusively for Pulse+ subscribers.

RAHEEM J. KASSAM Editor-in-Chief
Perhaps the most enlightening part of incidents such as these is knowing that people like Chris Nelson are, well, let’s say… listless vessels for the DeSantis campaign
for exclusive members-only insights
Perhaps the most enlightening part of incidents such as these is knowing that people like Chris Nelson are, well, let’s say… listless vessels for the DeSantis campaign show more
for exclusive members-only insights
christina pushaw
August 30, 2023
William Upton
News
Politics

WATCH: DeSantis Comms Chief Christina Pushaw Caught Doing Yoga During Hurricane, Runs from Camera.

Christina Pushaw – the pro-Ukraine, immigration amnesty “Rapid Response Director” for Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’s 2024 presidential campaign – ran away on camera when confronted by activist Grant Stern in Miami, Florida, who also caught her appearing to get home from a yoga class just as a major storm was making landfall on the Sunshine State.

Stern quizzed Pushaw, 32, about rumors that DeSantis plans to drop out of the presidential primary. Instead of simply answering, Pushaw – by now a public figure –abruptly retreated back into the building she had just exited, clutching her yoga mat.

The National Pulse previously reported on the rumor that DeSantis – whose campaign has struggled to gain any traction against former President Donald Trump – was considering dropping out of the 2024 Republican presidential primary to instead challenge Florida’s incumbent Republican Senator Rick Scott. DeSantis press secretary Bryan Griffin called the rumor “fake news.”

show less
Christina Pushaw – the pro-Ukraine, immigration amnesty "Rapid Response Director" for Florida Governor Ron DeSantis's 2024 presidential campaign – ran away on camera when confronted by activist Grant Stern in Miami, Florida, who also caught her appearing to get home from a yoga class just as a major storm was making landfall on the Sunshine State. show more

Editor’s Notes

Behind-the-scenes political intrigue exclusively for Pulse+ subscribers.

RAHEEM J. KASSAM Editor-in-Chief
It’s not really the rapid response you’d expect from a rapid response director
for exclusive members-only insights
It’s not really the rapid response you’d expect from a rapid response director show more
for exclusive members-only insights
assassinating trump
August 30, 2023
William Upton
Culture
News
Politics

Tucker: Democrats Are ‘Speeding Towards Assassinating’ Trump.

Former Fox News host Tucker Carlson said the escalating partisan attacks on former President Trump have left him believing that Democrats are “speeding towards assassination” as a final resort to stop the Republican presidential frontrunner from retaking the White House.

Carlson laid out, during an interview with Adam Carolla, his logic regarding the escalating political conflict between Democrats and Trump:

They protested him. They called him names. He won anyway. They impeached him, twice, on ridiculous pretenses. They fabricated a lot about what happened on January 6th in order to impeach him again. It didn’t work. He came back, then they indicted him. It didn’t work, he became more popular. Then they indicted him three more times. And every single time his popularity rose. So if you begin with criticism, then you go to protest, then you go to impeachment, now you go to indictment – and none of them work, what’s next? I mean, graph it out man. We’re speeding towards assassination, obviously. And no one will say that but I don’t know how you can’t reach that conclusion.

This isn’t the first time that Carlson has broached the possibility that Democrats might foment violence against former President Trump. While the other 2024 Republican presidential candidates debated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on August 23rd, Trump sat down for an interview with Carlson.

The former Fox News host pointedly asked Trump about the possibility of Left-wing inspired assassination plot against him, “Are you worried they’re going to try and kill you? Why wouldn’t they try and kill you?” Trump responded calling his persecutors “…savage animals, they’re people that are sick…” adding, “I’ve seen the lengths that they go to… I think they hate our country.”

Trump brushed off the concern for his life – emphasizing that not all of his partisan opponents are bad people – telling Tucker: “You have great people in the Democrat Party, you have great people that are Democrats. Most of the people in our country are fantastic and I’m representing everybody. Not just Republicans or conservatives. I represent everybody, I’m the president of everybody.

show less
Former Fox News host Tucker Carlson said the escalating partisan attacks on former President Trump have left him believing that Democrats are "speeding towards assassination" as a final resort to stop the Republican presidential frontrunner from retaking the White House. show more

Editor’s Notes

Behind-the-scenes political intrigue exclusively for Pulse+ subscribers.

RAHEEM J. KASSAM Editor-in-Chief
I keep thinking about this, too
for exclusive members-only insights
I keep thinking about this, too show more
for exclusive members-only insights
orban trump
August 30, 2023
Jake Welch
News
Politics
World

Hungary’s Orban: ‘Trump Can Save the West.’

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has argued that Donald Trump is the man who can save the Western world and that the former President had the greatest foreign policy he has seen over the past several decades from any United States President. The endorsement from yet another leading populist-nationalist figure on the world stage is likely to deal a hammer blow to Trump’s presidential contenders, with “Mr. Brexit” Nigel Farage having offered his support to the 45th President in May.

Orban made the comments in an interview with Tucker Carlson on X (formerly Twitter). Carlson asked the Prime Minister of Hungary ten minutes into the interview, what his next move would be if he were in Joe Biden’s position or the head of NATO, whereupon Orban quickly responded, “peace immediately [and] call back Trump.”

“You can criticise him for many reasons I understand all the discussions, but you know the best foreign policy of the recent several decades belonged to him. He did not initiate any new war, he treated nicely the North Koreans and Russia, and even the Chinese. He delivered the policy which was the best one for [the] Middle East, Abraham Accords: So that was a very good foreign policy.”

“He’s criticized that he’s not educated enough to understand the world, this into the case… if he would’ve been the President at the moment of the Russian invasion… it would be not possible… So Trump is the man who can save the Western World and probably the human beings in the globe as well,” Orban added.

Orban’s arguments are particularly poignant as last month he claimed that world is heading for a major clash due to the declining power and influence of the United States.

WATCH:

show less
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has argued that Donald Trump is the man who can save the Western world and that the former President had the greatest foreign policy he has seen over the past several decades from any United States President. The endorsement from yet another leading populist-nationalist figure on the world stage is likely to deal a hammer blow to Trump's presidential contenders, with "Mr. Brexit" Nigel Farage having offered his support to the 45th President in May. show more
bryan metzger
August 29, 2023
Jake Welch
Culture
News
Politics

Blacks Who Back Trump Are Racist Against Themselves, Says Lefty ‘Journo’.

A senior political reporter for Insider has suggested that black voters are being racist against themselves for increasing their support for Donald J. Trump after the former President’s mugshot was released last week.

Bryan Metzger – a former Democrat political staffer turned Capitol Hill hack – posted on Monday, “[I]’m sorry but the argument that The Mugshot will increasing [sic] Black voters’ support for Trump is so insanely racist that i can’t believe people are saying it out loud.”

The post was viewed just under 600,000 times on X yet received just 284 reposts and under 3,500 likes. Metzger swiftly locked the replies to his post after being ratioed by just about everyone.

The Washington D.C. Young Republicans responded to the post with a video of a black voter declaring his support for the 45th President, arguing, “Ya’ll know what time it is, ya’ll know who were rocking with, man.”

Another black Donald Trump supporter, wearing a “N*ggas for Trump” T-shirt outside the Fulton County jail last week, told the media last week, “You wanna know why I’m here to support President Trump? Because they done did a black man like this for decades. Making up charges. I know Trump is innocent.”

Metzger’s comments echo those made by Joe Biden, who told Charlemagne Tha God, “You ain’t black,” if you don’t vote Democrat.

show less
A senior political reporter for Insider has suggested that black voters are being racist against themselves for increasing their support for Donald J. Trump after the former President's mugshot was released last week. show more
trump georgia
August 29, 2023
Jack Montgomery
News
Politics

Georgia Indictment Bounces Off Trump, Who Leads by 42 Points in Peach State.

Donald Trump’s indictment at the hands of District Attorney (DA) Fani Willis in Georgia has done less than nothing to aid the former president’s GOP rivals, with his lead over Ron DeSantis in the state now standing at 42 points.

A poll taken days after the Democrat official indicted Trump puts him at 57 percent, with the Florida Governor a distant second on just 15 percent.

The also-rans in the race for the Republican noimination barely register in the Peach State, with Mike Pence having the best showing on a mere four percent. The most vocally anti-Trump candidates, Chris Christie and WEF-linked Miami mayor Francis Suarez, sit at the bottom of the table – with only candidates who did not even manage to scrape together one percent, like the equally anti-Trump Asa Hutchinson, beneath them.

A plurality of Georgians also say the Jan 6 indictments brought against Trump by Willis and federal prosecutor Jack Smith are “not serious at all”.

show less
Donald Trump's indictment at the hands of District Attorney (DA) Fani Willis in Georgia has done less than nothing to aid the former president's GOP rivals, with his lead over Ron DeSantis in the state now standing at 42 points. show more
mark meadows
August 29, 2023
William Upton
News
Politics

Here’s Why Mark Meadows Wants His Case Moved.

Mark Meadows, who served as Chief of Staff in former President Donald Trump’s White House, took the witness stand during a pre-trial hearing in Fulton County, Georgia on Monday. Meadows asked U.S. District Judge Steve Jones that his case be severed from the state-level RICO prosecution against Trump and 18 others brought by District Attorney Fani Willis and instead that it be moved to federal court.

After the hearing, Judge Jones did not rule right away but told Meadows he would try and issue a ruling “as fast as possible.”

The Fulton County District Attorney has charged Meadows with two felony counts – racketeering and solicitation of violation of oath by a public officer. It is Meadows’s contention that during former President Trump’s efforts to find evidence of election fraud in Georgia, he was acting in his capacity as a federal officer and is entitled to immunity from prosecution in a state-level court. Four other co-defendants in the sprawling RICO case have asked that Judge Jones move their case to federal court – former President Trump is expected to do the same.

Lisa Rubin, a legal analyst for MSNBC fretted that Meadows’s attempt to get his case moved to federal court could result in him getting “off the hook”:

“He is arguing that because he was a federal officer acting as the direction of the president or in cahoots with the president, it’d be improper or unconstitutional for [Fulton County district attorney] Fani Willis to prosecute him in state court… That’s a vehicle to get rid of the case entirely.”

Moving the venue from a Georgia state court to a federal court could be advantageous for Meadows, Trump, and their co-defendants. The jury pool would be expanded outside the immediate Atlanta area and the case would be overseen by a federal judge. Asking that their cases be severed and moved to federal court by the co-defendants has the added benefit for former President Trump as it slows down the prosecution and could potentially push the trail date in Georgia past the 2024 presidential election.

show less
Mark Meadows, who served as Chief of Staff in former President Donald Trump's White House, took the witness stand during a pre-trial hearing in Fulton County, Georgia on Monday. Meadows asked U.S. District Judge Steve Jones that his case be severed from the state-level RICO prosecution against Trump and 18 others brought by District Attorney Fani Willis and instead that it be moved to federal court. show more
suarez
August 29, 2023
Breaking
News
Politics

Suarez Out! Miami Mayor Suspends 2024 Campaign.

Miami Mayor Francis Suarez announced on Tuesday that he is suspending his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination, having failed to qualify for the first GOP nomination debate.

The World Economic Forum-linked Republican candidate is the first to drop out of the 2024 race, at least sticking to his own advice which he issued ahead of the debate, that those who do not qualify should exit.

“I have decided to suspend my campaign for President,” Suarez said in a statement, emphasizing his “commitment to making this a better nation for every American remains.”

show less
Miami Mayor Francis Suarez announced on Tuesday that he is suspending his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination, having failed to qualify for the first GOP nomination debate. show more
gop budget
August 29, 2023
William Upton
News
Politics

GOP Budget Changes Could Push Trump Prosecutions to Post-2024.

Two budget amendments introduced by Rep. Andrew Clyde (R-Ga.) aim to push the two federal and two state prosecutions of former President Donald Trump until after the 2024 presidential election. Clyde says he plans to amend the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies 2024 appropriations bill with language that would “…prohibit the use of federal funding for the prosecution of any major presidential candidate prior to the upcoming presidential election on November 5th, 2024.”

The Georgia Congressman called the four pending prosecutions of Trump “sham indictments”, adding they are “… intended to smear and take down President Trump, as well as hinder his ability to campaign effectively.” Clyde stated that, “One amendment would prevent taxpayer dollars from funding federal prosecutions, while a second would prohibit funding for state prosecutions.”

The upcoming Fall appropriations process will include 12 ‘must pass’ budget bills necessary for funding the functions of the U.S. federal government. Some members of the House Republican Conference view the budget appropriations process as an opportunity to secure the passage of legislative agenda items that would otherwise not pass as stand alone legislation.

Last week the House Freedom Caucus announced their list of demands for House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to include in a government funding stop-gap measure when Congress resumes its legislative session after Labor Day. The legislative items include further reductions in federal spending levels, a House Republican border security bill that would fund border wall construction and place additional limits on asylum seekers, and a vague ask to address the weaponization of the DOJ.

The stop-gap funding bill, in the form of a Continuing Resolution, will be needed to fund the government as Congress is unlikely to pass the twelve appropriations bills to fund the government before the start of the new fiscal year on October 1st.

show less
Two budget amendments introduced by Rep. Andrew Clyde (R-Ga.) aim to push the two federal and two state prosecutions of former President Donald Trump until after the 2024 presidential election. Clyde says he plans to amend the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies 2024 appropriations bill with language that would "...prohibit the use of federal funding for the prosecution of any major presidential candidate prior to the upcoming presidential election on November 5th, 2024." show more
republican accountability project
August 29, 2023
William Upton
Media
News
Politics

NeverTrumpers Target 45 With New Fox News Ads.

Neoconservative Bill Kristol’s Republican Accountability Project has launched a six-figure ad campaign against former President Donald Trump with a 60-second ad spot running on Rupert Murdoch’s Fox News in the Phoenix, Milwaukee, and Atlanta media markets. The ‘NeverTrump’ group has also purchased a ‘virtual’ billboard in New York City’s Times Square featuring the former President’s mugshot and a list of the charges filed against him in the four separate federal and state prosecutions.

Gunner Ramer, political director of Republican Accountability Project said the purpose of the ad campaign was to “…[remind] the American people that no one in this country is above the law—not even a former president.”

The 60-second ad spot features a voice-over stating: “When Donald Trump was president, he thought it didn’t matter how many laws and norms he broke … Many of us even started saying ‘nothing matters’ … But in America the rule of law still matters. And that’s why Donald Trump has been charged with 91 felonies in four separate cases … This is America, and no one is above the law.”

The anti-Trump ad campaign is just the latest political stunt by Kristol and his associate Sarah Longwell.

The National Pulse previously reported that the two have also launched an advocacy group to push for further U.S. involvement in support of Ukraine in their war with Russia. The organization, Republicans for Ukraine, will use an initial $2 million budget to target Republican voters and lawmakers with a pro-war message in an attempt to revive flagging Republican support for additional military aid for the Eastern European nation.

show less
Neoconservative Bill Kristol's Republican Accountability Project has launched a six-figure ad campaign against former President Donald Trump with a 60-second ad spot running on Rupert Murdoch's Fox News in the Phoenix, Milwaukee, and Atlanta media markets. The 'NeverTrump' group has also purchased a 'virtual' billboard in New York City's Times Square featuring the former President's mugshot and a list of the charges filed against him in the four separate federal and state prosecutions. show more

Editor’s Notes

Behind-the-scenes political intrigue exclusively for Pulse+ subscribers.

RAHEEM J. KASSAM Editor-in-Chief
You know, Bill Kristol keeps referring to himself as an “ex” or “former” Republican – as recently as a few days ago in fact – but keeps setting up these groups with “Republican” in the title
for exclusive members-only insights
You know, Bill Kristol keeps referring to himself as an “ex” or “former” Republican – as recently as a few days ago in fact – but keeps setting up these groups with “Republican” in the title show more
for exclusive members-only insights