The 27th Amendment

History 2 Minutes

This amendment, limiting the extent to which Congress could raise their salaries, was nearly 200 years in the making.

FROM: ARCHIVESFOUNDATION.ORG:

(Very) Early Origins

The text of the 27th Amendment reads: “No law, varying the compensation for the services of the Senators and Representatives, shall take effect, until an election of Representatives shall have intervened.”
The issue of lawmakers’ salaries was quite contentious during the Constitutional Convention. The framers held competing visions about the extent to which congressmen should be paid, if at all. One of the most vocal opponents to congressional pay altogether was Benjamin Franklin.

Franklin argued that public servants should work without pay, believing that they should be virtuous in their commitment to governmental service. Ultimately, his view was on the more extreme end and did not make its way into the draft constitution. While representation in the early iterations of Congress was still quite limited to white landowning men, the provision for a salary at least opened the opportunity to more than the wealthy.
While the inclusion of compensation was eventually agreed upon, many framers and the general public still worried that people would greedily enter public office to enrich themselves. James Madison foresaw the complication of allowing Congress to adjust its own salary without some guidelines. He also worried that having the President control congressional salaries could lead to bitter politicking and corruption.

In 1789, Madison and other framers submitted 12 amendments to the U.S. Constitution to the first Congress. The first 10, known as the Bill of Rights, were fully ratified in 1791. The congressional pay provision, however, was only ratified at the time by six states. Because there was no time limit on ratification, what eventually became the 27th Amendment lay dormant for nearly two centuries.

An Unexpected Voice for Change

Gregory Watson was a sophomore studying political science at the University of Texas at Austin in 1982. In a class on constitutional law, students were asked to write about constitutional change and process. Watson’s paper argued that since time limits on ratification were not enumerated anywhere in the Constitution, the congressional pay provision was still “live” and thus could be ratified and implemented.
While Watson received a grade of C for his argument, he did not let that stop his momentum. He initiated a letter-writing campaign to various state legislatures in the hopes of closing the loop on ratification. Starting with Maine and Colorado, states began ratifying the amendment. Watson’s movement gained quite a bit of traction and media attention nationwide.
By 1992, three-quarters of the states reached the necessary consensus as laid out in Article V of the Constitution to legitimize the 27th Amendment. For the first time in history, the Archivist of the United States certified the amendment.

Concerns were raised about the legality of the ratification process after its passage, since the first six states signed on in the 18th century. Some scholars interpret the process of ratification laid out in Article V as needing to be a simultaneous event, with state-by-state ratification taking place within a short time span. This is in sharp contrast to the elongated timeline for the 27th Amendment. The Speaker of the House at the time even proposed litigating its legitimacy until it was clear that the provision had gained widespread popularity among the general public.


The amendment process is an important cornerstone of checks and balances inherent to our democratic system. During every two-year term in the House of Representatives, members of Congress typically propose about 200 amendments, although few ever make it out of committees. Despite its unusual path to ratification, the 27th amendment’s saga is the realization of the framers’ wishes for a participatory and engaged citizenry.

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Published by pat frederick

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151 thoughts on “The 27th Amendment”

  1. Good Morning All!

    well the rain has stopped but it’s 30* out there. When i put the hummer feeders out, one buzzed my head…lol. I still haven’t seen an oriole and they usually are sitting on the railing waiting.

    see what today brings…

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    1. Good morning, Pat! Still no sign of Wheezer and I haven’t seen any hummers but they are easy to miss from a distance. Temp here is rising steadily – 38 when I got up about 1/2 hour ago and up to 42 already. We’ve got a string of 80+ days coming up – crazy weather! It’s too early for it to be that hot!!! From heat in the morning to a/c in the afternoon! SMH

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      1. Good Morning Filly!
        the hummer was waiting again on the railing. the female oriole was pecking at the string that ties the feeder to the railing so yesterday I put out white string –she came to it, but turned her nose at that too…LOL.

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  3. i don’t know what this is about. not many details on a “case” before the judge…??

    Amy Mek
    @AmyMek
    https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/17.0.2/svg/1f6a8.svg HERO JUDGE ALAN D. ALBRIGHT JUST DROPPED THE HAMMER ON CAIR – THANK YOU, SIR!

    One man. One federal judge. One epic order that could finally bring down the jihadi group masquerading as a “civil rights” organization.

    Thank you, Judge Alan D. Albright – the hero who refused to let CAIR hide in the shadows.

    In a stunning ruling today, you just ordered CAIR Foundation (CAIR National) to expose:

    • Foreign donors who funneled $5,000+ into CAIR and its Washington Trust Foundation

    • Nihad Awad’s secret trips to terror hotspots – Egypt, Gaza, Iran, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, UAE – including who he met with about funding, operations, Hamas, and the Muslim Brotherhood

    • Communications on foreign cash flows

    • Hit counts on explosive terms like “Hamas,” “Muslim Brotherhood,” “October 7,” “Jihad,” “Sinwar,” “Haniyeh,” “Holy Land Foundation,” and more

    This is the same CAIR suing Governor Greg Abbott and AG Ken Paxton for daring to call out the Muslim Brotherhood and CAIR as the terrorist-linked threats they are.

    You, Judge Albright, just ripped the veil off their secrets. No more hiding behind “civil rights” while pushing jihadist narratives and October 7 apologetics.

    You might just be the one man who takes CAIR down.

    America owes you a debt of gratitude. Leaders like you are why this country still has a fighting chance.

    God bless you, Judge Albright. 

    Texas – and the entire nation – stands with you.

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    2. CAIR’s fingers are all over things like this👇

      Video from 1989, Muslim Professor Sharifa Alkhateeb explains, “Long Range Process of Making America Muslim, All of America Muslim” – Muslim educator shares ultimate goal of Muslim education in America Ultimate objective of Muslim education in America is to make all of America Muslim. She says: “The long range process of making America Muslim – ALL of America Muslim…and being very calculated about it”

      She died in 2004.

      Clinton connection- Clinton speaking: “I want to thank everyone who has worked on bringing this event together. We have had a wonderful turnout in the past. We had more people this time, so we are actually occupying two rooms here in the Old Executive Office Building. Sharifa Alkhateeb of the North American Council for Muslim Women has been largely responsible for working with the White House staff in bringing us here. As many of you may know, Sharifa was the chair of the Muslim Caucus in Beijing in 1995. And she is also a great friend to me and to my staff for many, many occasions when we call upon her for advice and counsel. And I am pleased that once again she could be so helpful, both on her own behalf and on behalf of the Council in helping us out here.”

      Huma connection: “Afterward, in the corridor, Sharifa greets a young friend, Huma Abedin, office manager for Hillary Rodham Clinton.”

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  6. i think he means “massive fines” not fund…

    Wall Street Apes
    @WallStreetApes
    The Trump Administration has begun sending massive fund to undocumented people in America illegally

    One woman who’s been here for over 20 years illegally and had 3 birthright citizenship babies just received a $1.8 million dollar fine

    Undocumented people are now being charged $998 per day for being in America illegally 

    This ain’t a new law, Trump is just enforcing the law

    The $998 per day fine comes from a 1996 law (8 U.S.C. § 1324d) that allows civil penalties for failing to depart after a final removal and deportation order.

    The law was rarely used before but is now being aggressively enforced under the Trump administration

    Fines can be applied retroactively up to 5 years, leading to bills of $1.8 million or more

    If you’re in America illegally, this is your sign to leave

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  7. Mike Netter

    @nettermike

    https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/svg/1f1fa-1f1f8.svg The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has launched a civil rights investigation into Boston Mayor Michelle Wu’s administration over housing programs that allegedly prioritize minority applicants, discriminating against white residents. HUD alleges that initiatives, such as the “Welcome to Boston” program and city goals to have 65% of city-assisted homeownership opportunities go to BIPOC households, violate the Fair Housing Act.

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  8. Amy Mek
    @AmyMek
    TEXAS, THIS IS A NATIONAL SECURITY EMERGENCY – INVESTIGATE IMMEDIATELY!

    Muslim Brotherhood operative Main Al Qudah – the man Obama-era courts ordered deported in 2013 after he admitted his family’s MB ties and his push for Sharia over secular law — is now openly building an $80 MILLION, 30-acre SHARIA “mini city” in Katy, Texas.

    In his own words from the new video:

    “Inshallah… we’ll be having a masjid… to accommodate 1500 people… main office of Guidance scholars… fully accredited Islamic University… Multi Purpose Hall, Youth Center, gymnasium, swimming pool… full-time Islamic school and healthcare clinic… one-stop Islamic center to serve the whole community.”

    This is NOT a community center. This is the Muslim Brotherhood’s “The Project” (1982) and 1991 Explanatory Memorandum executed in rural Texas heartland: a self-contained parallel society designed to reject assimilation and impose Sharia.

    • Deep terror ties: Replaced the imam at Islamic Society of Arlington — pre-9/11 hub linked to Osama bin Laden’s personal secretary and 1998 embassy bombings.

    • MB royalty: Father & uncle were Muslim Brotherhood members; he advocated replacing Jordanian law with full Sharia.

    • Radical fatwas: On AMJA Fatwa Committee — endorsed “symbolic” wife-beating, hating non-Muslims (kuffar), death for apostasy, and using zakat for “legitimate jihad.”

    • PhD from jihad factory: American Open University (Salafi/MB-linked, tied to al-Qaeda funders and bin Laden’s nephew).

    • Partner in crime: Works hand-in-glove with Hamed Ghazali — explicitly named in the MB’s 1991 Memorandum as architect to “destroy Western civilization from within.” Ghazali ran pre-9/11 jihadi recruitment videos glorifying bin Laden’s mentor.

    • Taxpayer-funded conquest: Positioning Houston Quran Academy, Guidance College & Al-Huda to suck millions in Texas school-choice vouchers for cradle-to-grave Sharia indoctrination.

    Governor Abbott, AG Paxton, Texas Legislature — LAUNCH A FULL INVESTIGATION NOW into Al Qudah, Ghazali, Al-Huda Islamic Center, foreign funding, and voucher abuse.

    Rural Texas farmland is being turned into a strategic no-go zone beachhead.

    This cannot stand.

    Demand transparency and halt the Brotherhood’s plan before it’s too late.

    SEE THE FULL REPORT ON THIS THREAT: https://
    rairfoundation.com/exclusive-dang

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  9. Eric Daugherty
    @EricLDaugh
    https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/17.0.2/svg/1f6a8.svg HOLY SMOKES. California gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton’s DOGE team just found that TAXPAYER DOLLARS are funding illegal aliens to campaign for Democrat candidate Xavier Becerra — “in violation of federal law”

    This is a BOMBSHELL!

    “Taxpayer-funded non-profit CHIRLA endorsed Becerra April 13th. Our investigation reveals payments to illegal immigrants for campaign activity.”

    “CHIRLA, a taxpayer-funded organization, said that it will be working to do everything it can to elect Javier Becerra governor.”

    “In other reports that we have found at CalDoge we have looked in detail at how CHIRLA conducts these political activities.”

    “Listed on their document is the statement that CHIRLA uses illegal immigrants to carry out political activity.”

    “In other words, to be very clear, California taxpayers are funding an organization that uses illegal immigrants to campaign for Javier Becerra.”

    “This is not just unacceptable and unethical and outrageous, a theft of taxpayer money for political purposes. It is illegal.”

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  10. Just The News: “A federal judge has released a suicide note purported to have been written by Jeffrey Epstein prior to his death in 2019. The note was found in a Manhattan jail and has been sealed for seven years. The New York Times last week petitioned the judge to unseal the note. 

    The note was discovered by his cellmate in 2019, after Epstein was found unresponsive after a suicide attempt, which he survived. The note, according to the New York Times, was sealed by a federal judge as part of the cellmate’s criminal case. 

    Weeks later, Epstein, a financier and convicted sex offender, was found dead in August 2019 in the jail cell, awaiting trial on additional sex-offense charges.  The barely legible note, The New York Post reported, released Wednesday says: “They investigated me for month — found nothing!!!” Epstein also wrote, “It is a treat to be able to choose one’s time to say goodbye.”

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      1. Nope – but, then, I don’t buy much about what “they” say about him. He was evil, that’s all I know!

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  11. Just The News: “President Donald Trump on Wednesday unveiled the most significant update to the U.S. counterterrorism strategy since 9/11, creating new tools to fight growing leftist extremists like Antifa that are radicalizing Americans with a unique blend of Islamist and Marxist ideologies.

    Dr. Sebastian Gorka, the White House counterterrorism chief who crafted the 16-page strategy, told Just the News that major additions include anti-propaganda tools and follow-the-money penalties designed to neuter political violence inspired by overseas leftists. 

    “The left has normalized violence or made it a permissible thing to do,” Gorka said. “We’re going to identify and neutralize the left-wing radicals like Antifa, like the anarchists who took the life of my good friend Charlie Kirk, that have tried on multiple occasions to kill President Trump. We will not permit you to use violence against your fellow Americans for political purposes.”

    In addition to left-wing terror groups, Gorka said that the strategy will also target cartels and the “global jihadi movement.” It contains tools to go after terror groups’ funding, which he said would “strangle the lifeblood” out of the movements. Other tools would counter the terrorists’ propaganda campaigns. 

    “You can kill terrorists till the cows come home, but at the end of the day, you have to demoralize and delegitimize the message of global jihad, and that requires very aggressive counter propaganda operations, Information Operations, by the Department of War and by the intelligence community,” Gorka said.”

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  12. EXCERPT: “….From FOX News today:

    Walz hit with local revolt from Minnesota mayor refusing ‘ugly’ new flag: ‘People’s decision’

    Minnesota Democratic Gov. Tim Walz is facing a new challenge from a Minneapolis-area mayor who is refusing to back down from flying the original 1980s state flag. The mayor said the controversial flag redesign has left citizens out of the process and stuck with what consider an “ugly” replacement.

    In an interview with Fox News Digital, Champlin Mayor Ryan Sabas said that “in my nearly 10 years of being on the city council in Champlin and going on four years as mayor of this town, I have never heard from more people on any one issue than I did about the Minnesota state flag.”

    The new flag has become a cultural and political flashpoint in a state already reeling from one of the largest fraud scandals in U.S. history, heavily involving the Somali immigrant community. The flag was approved by a 13-member commission created by the Democratic-controlled legislature in 2023. Critics of the flag say it is overly simplistic and some have even knocked it as bearing a resemblance to Somalia’s national flag.

    It’s impossible not to see the similarities between Minnesota’s new flag and the Somali flag…..”

    This local video report is full of liberals trying to claim that this is all about politics and election season…..”

    https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2026/05/minnesota-mayors-clash-governor-tim-walz-refusing-fly/

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  13. Liked by 1 person

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  15. Just The News: “A Texas Islamic group changed its “Muslim only” event into a more inclusive one at a taxpayer funded waterpark after the state’s GOP Gov. Greg Abbott threatened Wednesday to withhold funding. The Islamic group planned an “Epic Eid” celebration for June 1 at the Epic Waters Indoor Waterpark, which it initially advertised as a “Muslim only event” that required a “modest dress code,” according to Fox News.

    Abbott claimed in a social media post that the advertisement amounted to “religious discrimination,” and ordered the group to cancel the event by May 11th or lose its grants.

    “A city-owned water park in Grand Prairie openly advertised a ‘MUSLIMS ONLY’ event — closed to the general public,” Abbott posted on X. “That’s religious discrimination. It’s unconstitutional. I signed HB 4211 into law — banning Muslim only no-go zones in Texas. The city must cancel the event and commit to never allowing something like it again by May 11th, or lose $530,000 in state grants,” he continued. “Let this be a lesson to local officials: Facilities funded by ALL taxpayers are not just for a subset of Texans.”

    The group has since changed the fliers and advertisements for the event, which now removes “Muslim only event” and says “Modest dress only” and replaces the phrase “For Muslims only” with “All are welcome.”

    Event organizer Aminah Knight said the changes are because of pushback from the public. “In response to feedback, we have updated our materials to clearly reflect that this is a modest dress-only event, centered around a respectful and family-friendly environment,” Knight wrote in a message on the event website.

    It was not clear if the changes will permit the event to go on, or if Abbott will still require the group to cancel it.”

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  17. one of the illegals who got a fine over $1M. video you can hear her voice–strong mexican accent, but she’s been here since she was 13. she now has 3 children in “university” and “is in the process of getting her green card”. she had a FINAL deportation order in 2013 and didn’t leave–it’s an administrative mix up they say…BULLSHIT. trying to gin up sympathy. she had plenty of time to get a green card–she was trying to fly under the radar.

    https://rumble.com/v79hxo2-illegal-aliens-shocked-by-fines-coming-in-from-ice-.-.-.-some-owe-millions-.html?mref=1htl22&mc=e16nv

    Liked by 1 person

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  18. “CNN’s credibility died long before Ted Turner did. In his later years, he often expressed tremendous disappointment in the new channel that he founded – and eventually sold. He felt, as much of the rest of us do, that the channel itself had veered entirely too far to one side of the political spectrum – the looney left – even though his own politics were not rock-solid conservative.”

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  25. he has a final order of removal…walz just pardoned him, does the federal order still stand? his crime? assault with a weapon.

    Homeland Security
    @DHSgov
    MINNESOTA MADNESS: Sanctuary politicians have PARDONED At Xayasounethone Chandee, a Laotian national with THREE assault convictions. 

    Chandee lost his green card due to his convictions in 1995 and 2008 for aggravated assault with a weapon. After his first conviction for assault, an Immigration Judge issued Chandee a final order of removal.

    This INSANE pardon by Minnesota’s sanctuary politicians took away these qualifying convictions that made this violent thug removable from the U.S.

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  26. ustin Grage
    @GrageDustin
    Minnesota Democrats just voted against requiring the Secretary of State to verify that every voter is a U.S. citizen and legally eligible to vote in our elections.

    If you thought the daycare and Medicaid fraud was bad… just imagine how bad the election fraud is.

    Liked by 1 person

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  27. “Bobby Darin’s dream car, 1961. The car was designed by Andrew “Andy” Di Da a well-known clothing designer for famous people. He sketched the car because he wasn’t happy with what he was seeing in the automobile industry in 1953.”

    Out of hibernation in the middle of winter (it looks like) spells trouble.

    That clear water!

    Yep and I’ve used it many times…..

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          1. For years, I used to claim I didn’t like Chinese food when I hadn’t even tried it. A first date happened to be for dinner at a Chinese restaurant and I discovered that I love szechuan beef w/fried rice. Yummy! I also like some Greek dishes, such as lamb shish kabob and escargot. My boss one year took me to a Greek restaurant on Secretaries’ Day.

            When I worked at the museum in Norfolk, I ate Chinese food every Friday – the restaurant automatically got it ready for me! And it was always szechuan beef!

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              1. I’ve learned not to cut off my nose to spite my face, so to speak! Had I told the guy I didn’t like Chinese, I never would have known! LOL

                Liked by 1 person

          1. she called me right after she was done with lunch. the aid told her I called to check up on her–make sure she was ok and that she should call when she has a chance.. her friends were ribbing her about having a worry wart for a daughter–and she said, at least i know she loves and cares about me.

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  31. Matthew Seedorff

    @MattSeedorff

    NEW: LA has installed 450+ “anti-ICE” signs across parks, libraries & transit hubs declaring public property off-limits for federal immigration enforcement under

    @MayorOfLA

    Karen Bass’ directive.

    @USAttyEssayli

    calls them “null and void,” saying agents will enforce the law anywhere, including city property.

    Liked by 1 person

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  32. Just The News: “The FBI on Wednesday raided the office of Virginia Senate President Pro Tempore Louise Lucas in connection with a corruption probe that has ensnared the Democrat power broker and close ally of Gov. Abigail Spanberger, sources told Just the News.

    Officials said FBI agents executed search warrants at multiple locations, including a state Senate office in Portsmouth, Va., and a cannabis business with ties to the state senator.

    Lucas arrived on scene and told Fox News she did not know what the FBI activity involved.

    Lucas has been a powerful figure in Virginia Democrat politics for years, and was an ally of Spanberger who stumped for the future governor during her winning campaign last year. She also has been a driving force for marijuana legalization in the state.”

    Like

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  33. Just The News: “President Donald Trump celebrated two achievements Wednesday, including the market reaching an “all-time high,” and Washington, D.C.’s crime rate being low. The president made two posts on social media about the achievements, which come after the stock market surged amid reports that the conflict in Iran could be ending soon. 

    The Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500 both soared to record highs Wednesday and the Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 600 points. Oil prices have dropped, marking an achievement for the administration after gas prices rose Monday to a national average of nearly $4.50 a gallon.

    “Stock Market hit an ALL-TIME HIGH TODAY. Jobs & 401-K’s are BOOMING!” Trump posted on Truth Social.

    https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/116530650590886544

    Trump also touted a low crime rate in the district, which comes after the Washington Metropolitan Police Department disciplined 13 of its officers for allegedly skewing crime data. The officers have not been terminated so far but have been given termination papers that they can appeal.

    “Washington D.C. CRIME is at its lowest point in 30 years, plus,” Trump said on Truth Social.”

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  34. Hot damn! Rodney just called me – they are a-ok, just incredibly overwhelmed right now with finances! But he’s still fighting!!! Kimi bought one small bag of groceries that cost over $100! Insane!!!

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  35. Just The News: “A New York Police Department captain has found himself in hot water after a viral video showed him criticizing Mayor Zohran Mamdani. Capt. James G. Wilson, 51, said that Mamdani is “not my mayor” and that he’s “temporary” and “expendable” in the video posted on Instagram in which Wilson responds to taunts from protesters. 

    https://www.instagram.com/reels/DX7PQnruu4M/

    Officials told the New York Post that Wilson had been transferred from the 94th Precinct, where he was the second-highest ranking officer in that station, to the NYPD’s 911 call center in the Bronx. 

    The video was taken at a May 2 demonstration, where people were protesting U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement after they took an illegal Nigerian migrant for medical attention. Police who responded to the standoff arrested nine protesters. Wilson was among the officers who responded to the protest. 

    A spokesperson told The Post that Wilson’s disciplinary process is ongoing. Wilson has been with the NYPD since 2006, meaning he’s nearly reached the 20 years required before retirement.” 

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  36. Just The News: “New details have emerged in the shooting Monday on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. U.S. Attorney General Jeanine Pirro announced Wednesday that a Texas man accused of carrying out the shooting was charged in U.S. District Court. 

    Michael Marx, 45, of Midland, Texas, was charged with assaulting federal officers with a dangerous weapon, using and discharging a firearm during a crime of violence, and unlawful possession of a firearm by a convicted felon — all felonies. 

    On Monday, a plainclothes U.S. Secret Service agent noticed a man who appeared to be concealing a firearm at a location south of the White House. The agent alerted the Secret Service and requested backup. At the same time, the motorcade for Vice President J.D. Vance was departing the White House. 

    Uniformed agents located the man, who was later identified as Marx, along the path of Vance’s motorcade and confronted him, according to court documents. As officers pursued the suspect, he drew a firearm from his waistband, turned, and fired at one of the officers that was chasing him. A civilian near the officer was wounded in the leg. 

    Officers returned fire, and Marx was hit in the hand, left arm, and upper abdomen. While being taken to the hospital in an ambulance, Marx allegedly said, “F— the White House.” 

    A Sig Sauer P365 handgun loaded with 9mm ammunition was recovered near where Marx fell.”

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  37. Just The News: “First lady Melania Trump on Wednesday paid tribute to the mothers of military service members during a Mother’s Day event at the White House.

    “This is a time of military conflict for America. And whereby we honor our selfless and valiant Service Members regularly, today is the day we hold their mothers in the highest regard,” she said. “It is these military mothers who find themselves alone, awake in their thoughts, in the darkest hours of the night.”

    “Of course, we must also remember the mothers with a spouse overseas, praying for a safe return so their family can become whole once again,” she added.

    The first lady made the remarks in a relatively rare public appearance. Also in attendance were Vice President JD Vance, second lady Usha Vance, Education Secretary Linda McMahon, and President Donald Trump.

    With Mother’s Day set for Sunday, the event comes amid the ongoing Iran war, which has lasted since late February. Despite technically being in a state of ceasefire, the conflict has seen shots exchanged, including this week. Trump, moreover, has threatened to resume open fighting if Iran does not agree to a deal.”

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  38. EXCERPT: “President Trump shocked the foreign-policy establishment with an announcement late Friday that the United States would be withdrawing roughly 5,000 U.S. troops from Germany. 

    Predictably, Washington’s Europe-Firsters snapped for their fainting couches. Sen. Roger Wicker and Rep. Mike Rogers, the Republican chairs of the Senate and House Armed Services Committees, respectively, pronounced themselves “very concerned” by the move, fretting that it “risks undermining deterrence and sending the wrong signal to Vladimir Putin.”

    President Trump is right to withdraw troops from Germany and from Europe. Neocon Republicans and Democrats are wrong. There is already a template for a rapid withdrawal from Europe: the one that took place after the end of the Cold War — incidentally, also the last era when the U.S. had a balanced budget. Our only criticism is that Trump’s current withdrawal numbers don’t go far enough. (In fairness, the president promised on Saturday that he is “going to cut way down. And we’re cutting a lot further than 5,000.”)

    There is one argument for maintaining U.S. dominance of European security that could hold water: the idea that doing so prevents World War III. As the German scholar Josef Joffe posed it, the U.S. presence serves as a “pacifier” for Europe, which without it would otherwise drift back to security competition or war.

    This view is dated and fails to recognize how profoundly Europe has changed. The United Kingdom and France have nuclear weapons, which they would use to defend themselves if needed. The Bundeswehr does not have anywhere near the size to expand into its wealthy neighbors. And a Russia that cannot defeat Ukraine cannot expand into Europe.

    Beyond the realist argument above, there are two other arguments for trying to sustain U.S. military dominance in Europe. The first is for continuous forward presence and primacy to deter any plausible threat to any NATO member-state.  The second is for “civilizational” allies, and advocates moving troops into the “healthier” countries of Central and Eastern Europe. Both are flawed, and President Trump should reject them…..”

    https://thefederalist.com/2026/05/07/trumps-plan-to-pull-u-s-troops-from-europe-is-good-for-everyone-and-america-most-of-all/

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  40. Liked by 1 person

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      1. He’s good…..REALLY good!!! I like him more every day but that NBC thing remains an issue. But then again, it’s already been done with the MIC (and probably others) so I don’t imagine that will stop them. I do believe I would still vote for him.

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  44. This is fricking ridiculous!!! Charges for THAT and he loses his firefighting job??!!?? What a bunch of crap!!!!

    “VIDEO: New York firefighter faces charges for using water cannon to blast cat out of tree (the cat is dead)”

    Mister Retrops, May 6, 2026

    Image for article: VIDEO: New York firefighter faces charges for using water cannon to blast cat out of tree (the cat is dead)

    “Sometimes what seems like a good idea at the time doesn’t quite work out the way you pictured it.

    For example, when a firefighter in Spencerport, New York, was called in by a frantic owner to rescue a cat from a tree and all the usual methods like ladders drove the cat higher in the tree, he thought, “Wow, that’s really high. There’s got to be a better way.”

    So, he got some people to stand under the tree with a blanket, and then cranked up the water cannon on top of the fire truck to spray the feline out. And it worked, sort of.

    On the video, you can see the utter disappointment on the rescuers’ faces as the cat goes flying out of the tree — in the wrong direction. The cat did not survive, and that’s why the firefighter now faces charges for torturing and injuring an animal under section 353 of New York State Agriculture and Markets law. It did not die on impact, as you can see from the video.

    News10NBC reports,

    ‘The issue was, is that there comes a time sometimes that we’ve done all we can. What is another option? Instead of trying to force an issue,’ said Reno DiDomenico, Vice President for Humane Law Enforcement.

    ‘And that’s one of the biggest things in this. It has to be an unjustifiable act. And that’s why he was charged because of the unjustification. In other words, he didn’t have to spray it with a hose. You have to use common sense and figure out the best way to help something without causing a potential injury,’ DiDomenico continued.

    The investigators asked for a misdemeanor charge since it’s clear the firefighter was trying to help. He’ll likely face a fine, but he also lost his job with the fire department. Maybe he should have used a laser pointer to get the cat down?”

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      1. IKR? And what was the issue with the cat being in the tree anyway? Leave them alone and they’ll find their way down eventually. SMH

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