Latest news with #politicalcriticism
Wall Street Journal
8 hours ago
- Politics
- Wall Street Journal
Out of Business but a Winner in Court
For all the political criticism they take, the federal courts keep delivering good outcomes more often than not. On Tuesday the Third Circuit Court of Appeals handed a victory to another victim of the punitive administrative state. In 2016 the Labor Department accused Sun Valley Orchards, a fourth generation farm in New Jersey, of breaching an employment agreement on H-2A visas. Labor imposed hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines through an in-house administrative proceeding. The agency requested penalties and then approved them, serving as prosecutor, judge and jury.
Fox News
5 days ago
- Politics
- Fox News
Former Dem advisor admits the Democratic Party has ‘a ton of problems'
Former Democratic advisor Dan Turrentine critiques the Democratic Party's lack of direction, says they have 'no agenda' on 'Jesse Watters Primetime.'
Daily Mail
22-07-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Dave Portnoy burns comedian who called him out by revealing their private Mamdani texts
Comedian and podcaster Andrew Schulz objects to Dave Portnoy's criticism of New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani, not for political reasons, but because he sees the Barstool Sports founder as a non-New Yorker. 'If you're not spending 51 percent [of your time in the city], you're not pot committed,' Schulz, 41, told internet show Breaking Points with the help of a poker term. 'So just shut the f*** up about it.' Many conservatives have criticized the Democratic primary winner as unfit for City Hall because he's a socialist. Some, including President Donald Trump, have taken the criticism a step further by falsely claiming Mamdani is a 'communist' – something the 33-year-old candidate has denied. Schulz, though, didn't buy that criticism from Portnoy, saying the Barstool Sports Presidente and staunch defender of Israel is more upset about Mamdani's public support for Palestinians amid the war in Gaza. 'It's like, Portnoy, just say you're upset about the Israel s***,' Schulz said. 'You don't live in New York. Stop acting like you care. Stop acting like you care if a socialist, communist runs New York. You're upset because he said 'globalize the intifada,' just make it about that. You're allowed to make it about that.' Portnoy has now responded online by revealing private text messages that purportedly show Schulz attacking the 'New York-first' candidate for his economic views. Portnoy shared a text exchange between himself and Schulz in which the comedian criticized Mamdani's economic views. Schulz and Portnoy have been bickering over the candidate In response to Schulz saying Portnoy should 'stop acting,' the Barstool boss wrote: 'If anybody is acting it ain't me.' Portnoy's post included two grabs from a text exchange with someone identified as 'Andrew.' 'I hate his policies,' Schulz purportedly wrote Portnoy in the exchange, seemingly referring to Mamdani. 'Hate his logic. 'I think he wants to help he's just wrong in the way he's trying to help.' Daily Mail has reached out to a Schulz spokesperson for a response. Schulz and Portnoy both proved to be key allies for Donald Trump as he won the 2024 Presidential Election. But while both interviewed Trump along his return route to the White House, Schulz has become more critical of a President in recent months. Specifically, Schulz has accused Trump of failing to uphold campaign promises to reduce spending, end foreign wars and release the case files related to Jeffrey Epstein, the deceased financier and convicted pedophile.
Daily Mail
13-07-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
JD Vance brushes off Gavin Newsom's taunting after liberal tried to bash his family vacation to Disney
JD Vance has hit out at California 's Governor Gavin Newsom after the Democrat tried to criticize him for taking a family vacation to Disneyland. Footage went viral on Saturday of the Vice President strolling through the park hand-in-hand with his two of his children, Vivek and Mirabel, along with his wife Usha. The family was all smiles as they made their way through Bayou Country in the park alongside a Secret Service security detail. Newsom shared video of the outing on his own X, writing: 'Hope you enjoy your family time, JD Vance. The families you're tearing apar t certainly won't.' Protesters were also railing against Vance's visit to the Golden State amid the Trump administration's continued efforts to round up and deport migrants in California. None of that deterred Vance, who hit back at Newsom on Sunday with an X post of his own, writing: 'Had a great time, thanks.' Newsom wrote: 'JD is back in California. He won't take the time to debate and defend gutting our Medicaid system, taking away kids school meals, militarizing America's streets, or adding trillions to the debt. 'Instead, he's off to Disneyland. Probably to detain Mickey Mouse at this rate.' Vance was seen holding his two youngest children, Mirabel (left) and Vivek (Right) at different stages throughout the Disney day Pictures showed the happy family as they made their way through the park wearing baseball caps to shield from the summer sun. Little Vivek, who at one point Vance carried in his arms, wore a Mickey Mouse t-shirt. The park reportedly shut down several rides to to the public to allow the second family to ride them privately, causing lengthy delays for other guests. '35% of Anaheim's residents are immigrants. Disneyland doesn't run without them. Enjoy their labor, @JDVance,' Newsom's official press office account wrote. 'D Vance on Tom Sawyer Island looking for the next Alligator Alcatraz. Too many happy families for him in one place,' the same account later wrote. Up to 150 protesters had gathered at the park and at a hotel adjacent where Vance and his family were believed to be staying to vent their frustrations against the administration. A day earlier, ICE agents rounded up and arrested about 200 immigrants suspected of being in the country illegally. They conducted coordinated raids across two cannabis farms in Carpinteria and Camarillo, where they located at least 10 immigrant children on site, the Department of Homeland Security said. Four US citizens were arrested for 'assaulting or resisting officers,' the department said. Authorities were offering a $50,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of one person suspected of firing a gun at federal agents. One worker who called family to say he was hiding from authorities was on life support after falling and suffering significant injuries. During the raid, crowds of people gathered outside Glass House Farms in Camarillo to seek information about their relatives and protest immigration enforcement. Authorities clad in military-style helmets and uniforms faced off with the demonstrators. Glass House, a licensed California cannabis grower, said in a statement that immigration agents had valid warrants. Vance and Newsom engaged in a tit-for-tat on X about the family vacation The company said workers were detained, and it is helping provide them with legal representation. The farm also grows tomatoes and cucumbers. 'Glass House has never knowingly violated applicable hiring practices and does not and has never employed minors,' the statement said. It is legal to grow and sell cannabis in California with proper licensing.
BBC News
12-07-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Is William Ruto the most disliked Kenyan president in history?
Kenya's William Ruto rode into office on a wave of enthusiasm among ordinary people who hoped he would live up to his promises to improve their lives. Instead, he is facing unrelenting criticism – seen as unmatched in the country's frustrated by the intensity of the backlash, he on Wednesday asked why such public outrage was never directed at his predecessors, including Daniel arap Moi, who ruled with an iron fist for over two decades marked by political repression and human rights abuses, and others who departed under clouds of Wednesday Ruto posed: "All this chaos, why wasn't it directed at [former presidents] Moi, Mwai Kibaki, Uhuru Kenyatta…Why the contempt and arrogance?" Analysts describe the current wave of public anger toward President Ruto, which has seen 10 people killed over the past year, as "unprecedented", uniting Kenyans across ethnic, religious, and class divisions. Protests against his administration began barely a year after he came into power. Three years in, many aggrieved Kenyans now want him gone – amid unrelenting protests with rallying calls of "Ruto must go" and "Ruto Wantam" (Ruto for one term). When Ruto was vying for the presidency, he portrayed himself as a common man, who came from a childhood marked by poverty and resilience. He appealed to the ordinary folk as a person they could draw inspiration from - having risen from chicken seller to that to earlier this year, when a newspaper splashed a headline asking whether Ruto was "Kenya's most hated president", a sentiment that has often echoed across social media platforms and public marks an extraordinary change in Kenyan politics, often shaped by ethnic allegiances and class divisions. Just as Ruto was seen as transcending those barriers to clinch the presidency, the same dynamics now appear to be working against week the phrase "We are all Kikuyus," trended on social media as young people rejected attempts to reintroduce the ethnic divisions that have long plagued Kenyan politics. A counter narrative of "We are all Kenyans" emerged but failed to gain similar traction – with some seeing it as an attempt to dilute the expression of solidarity in the first Kikuyu, Kenya's largest ethnic group from the Mt Kenya region, overwhelmingly backed Ruto in the 2022 elections, together with Rigathi Gachagua, who hails from the region, as his Gachagua's hounding from office last year through a dramatic impeachment process, which he described as a betrayal, sparked discontent in the region. In the aftermath, some politicians allied to Ruto have accused Kikuyu elites of fuelling opposition against the analyst Mark Bichachi says the opposition to the president is not ethnically driven, but is happening across diverse communities in urban and rural terms the "public outcry against a president and a regime" both "unprecedented" and "historical", even surpassing the political upheavals of the 1980s and 1990s when Moi led a one-party period was marked by brutal crackdowns and a bloody fight for multiparty democracy, but Mr Bichachi tells the BBC that this did not generate the kind of pressure now bearing down on Ruto, adding that the tensions then were linked to the Cold War and were felt across the mourns 'beautiful' 12-year-old shot while watching TV during Kenya protestsWhy the death of a blogger has put Kenya's police on trial'Shoot in the leg' - Kenyan leader orders police to curb violent protestsBut academic Dr Njoki Wamai says the criticism levelled at the president is nothing unusual, but part of a political tradition during moments of crisis."All presidents, when they've gone against the constitution, against the will of the Kenyan people, have always faced a lot of criticism," she tells the points to past leaders such as the founding president Jomo Kenyatta and his successor Moi - who both faced an intense backlash and loss of public trust during critical moments - including after the assassination of key political leaders and the coup attempt against Moi in 1982. "What is different [this time] is that the scale of spread of information is higher," she says, noting the impact of Kenya's digitally savvy youth, whose widespread access to social media and digital tools has amplified public also describes Ruto as always having been "very conservative," suggesting that his political outlook clashes with the more liberal values embraced by many Kenyans - particularly young people. This ideological mismatch, she argues, has contributed to growing current resistance campaigns are largely youth-led, online-based, decentralised and seen as leaderless, mostly unfolding outside the established political class. Since last year, they have been driven by anger over the high cost of living, aggressive taxation, corruption and police pointing to ethnic politics and incitement as fuelling the latest unrest, the president said on Wednesday: Let's stop ethnic division, hatred, pride and contempt. We are all Kenyans".He vowed to use "whatever means necessary" to maintain peace and stability. He called on the police to shoot in the legs protesters who were targeting businesses, rather than killing them. His remarks sparked more outrage and last year, the Kenyan government has responded to protests and dissent with brutal crackdowns, including mass arrests and alleged abductions by security operatives. It is a strategy that rights groups say has only deepened public outrage and alienated the citizens from the state, with the police accused of using excessive force to quell the than 100 people have been killed in successive waves of anti-government protests since June last year. The latest one on Monday claimed 38 lives, marking the deadliest day of unrest than serve as a catalyst for police reform or push efforts to pacify the demonstrators, the deaths have often served as a spark for subsequent protests, turning grief into government has blamed the violence on protesters, accusing them of attacking police stations and even trying to stage a communication expert Hesbon Owilla calls the unrest "probably the most intense outrage against a regime" in Kenya's history. He says it has brought people from all walks of life to unite in puts it down to how the president communicates to the people. He says Ruto's promises to uplift the fortunes of ordinary people were "real, extremely real" and shifted the campaign from ethnic mobilisation toward issue-based politics."Then he became president. We are still waiting. What Kenyans are experiencing is worse," he tells the BBC, capturing the deep sense of disappointment among many says that unlike past governments that made cautious promises, Ruto made, and continues to make, sweeping pledges leading to broken expectations."The disillusionment is creating the rage," he says. Citing the example of the order to shoot protesters, he also says that the president often speaks when silence might serve him better - overexposing himself and inadvertently making serious national issues feel personal. As a result, when there is criticism, it tends to be directed squarely at him, rather than being attributed to a failure of governance so, Ruto has repeatedly highlighted his administration's efforts to better the lives of all Kenyans, pointing to the government's flagship affordable housing project, a universal health scheme, digital jobs, and an overseas employment programme as key inspecting one of the housing sites this week, he acknowledged the severity of youth unemployment but emphasised that the problem predates his insisted that his government was the first to take deliberate steps to tackle the crisis, citing state initiatives such as the housing project that he says has created hundreds of thousands of president appealed for patience, as the problem would take time to patience, especially amid the high cost of living, unmet expectations, and growing frustration, is not something that most Kenyans feel they can of those flagship programmes have come at a steep cost to Kenyans, who now have 1.5% housing levy and a 2.75% health insurance tax deducted from their monthly incomes. The pain of paying some of these higher taxes has dominated everyday conversations, especially with a perception that higher taxes have not resulted in better public the government's credit, Mr Owilla says some of the initiatives, like the universal healthcare project, have had a great impact, and others may eventually deliver for Mr Bichachi argues that the government has "lost touch with how people feel", and its tone has remained unchanged despite rising public says the issue is unlikely to change based on how the government performs – describing it as a "love-hate relationship" between the people and the is "how we find ourselves where we are", he concludes, referring to the intense resentment that is now faced by the president, who was once one of the "the most applauded and lauded leaders to come onto the Kenyan state". You may also be interested in: Are East African governments uniting to silence dissent?BBC identifies security forces who shot Kenya anti-tax protestersEl Chapo & Deputy Jesus - why Kenya's president has so many nicknamesNew faces of protest - Kenya's Gen Z anti-tax revolutionaries'We live in fear' - forced expulsions taint Kenya's safe haven image Go to for more news from the African us on Twitter @BBCAfrica, on Facebook at BBC Africa or on Instagram at bbcafrica
