Obama Center Finally Delivers on Promise of Transformative Change by Bankrupting Local Plumber and Firing His Union Crew

In a stunning display of hope and change that somehow skipped over the people who actually built the thing, a Chicago plumbing subcontractor has suspended operations and laid off 25 union workers after getting stiffed for nearly $4 million on the Obama Presidential Center.

Adamson Plumbing owner Mike Owen says his company suspended operations, laid off 25 union workers amid a nearly $4 million payment dispute tied to the Obama Presidential Center.

Weeks after the Obama Presidential Center’s star-studded opening in Chicago, a subcontractor who previously claimed his company was stiffed for nearly $4 million has shut down operations and laid off 25 union workers. Mike Owen, the owner of Chicago-based Adamson Plumbing Contractors, told Fox News Digital that the financial fallout forced the company to abandon about half a dozen other construction jobs and left it on the verge of collapse.

Owen described the shutdown as a painful decision he believed was necessary to save the company from bankruptcy. "Laying off close to 30 people is something that no owner in our industry wants to do," he said. "It’s a hard thing to do, especially when you know you can finish them and the company can still make money. But we were put in a pretty bad corner."

Adamson, which performed its work on the center under the name Marsh-Adamson, has since filed a $1.72 million mechanic’s lien against the property, escalating the payment dispute into a legal fight.The company is one of several subcontractors to report financial trouble after working on the center, which was promoted as a transformative economic opportunity for small and minority-owned businesses.

A previous investigation by Fox News Digital identified several subcontractors including Black-owned firms the project was specifically intended to support that said they were owed money or had absorbed losses ranging from hundreds of thousands of dollars to millions. The largest dispute involves the Concrete Collective, which is seeking more than $40 million in additional payment.

Before the center opened, Owen said the project had left his company with $3.9 million in losses tied to delays, rework, labor overruns and changing project demands. He said he spent months negotiating with Lakeside Alliance, the project’s construction manager, before going public after failing to reach a resolution. Against the backdrop of that larger dispute, Owen said the breaking point came around the time of the Obama Presidential Center’s opening celebration.

Owen said Adamson and Lakeside Alliance reached an agreement under which Adamson would provide two journeyman plumbers to perform last-minute "housekeeping" work on campus at premium nighttime rates. In return, Owen said, Adamson was supposed to receive part of its outstanding payment days before the center opened on June 19.

An email shows a Lakeside representative telling Owen that $100,000 would be released through Adamson’s May payment application. Adamson completed the requested work, but the payment did not arrive on time, according to Owen, who said it was the company's breaking point and left him with no choice but to suspend operations on June 25.

"We negotiated it in good faith," he said. "Against my better judgment, I agreed [to do the work]. Not getting that large sum of money just kind of pulled the brakes on the train. It was just the final death blow to the company," he added.

"Rather than try to stretch it out and go bankrupt, I just decided the responsible thing was to shut it down. We’ll regroup, and we’ll see where we’re at come September." Owen said that the promised $100,000 retainage payment and around $35,000 for change orders payments have since arrived from Lakeside Alliance more than two weeks after he suspended operations and laid off 25 workers. Owen said the money helped reduce the company’s debt to one supplier but did not reverse the shutdown."It’s almost like too little, too late."

"It probably would have just prolonged the inevitable at this point," he said. "We’re still deep in the hole of what they owe us." Owen said Adamson has now moved out of its building and that he is working from home while turning the dispute over to his attorneys and determining whether the company has a future.

Owen has escalated his nearly $4 million payment fight.Documents reviewed by Fox News Digital show that Marsh-Adamson filed a $1.72 million mechanic’s lien against the Obama Presidential Center property, alleging it remains owed money for plumbing work performed on campus.

A mechanic’s lien is a legal claim filed against a property by a contractor or supplier alleging that it has not been fully paid for completed work. The lien is considerably lower than the approximately $3.9 million Owen says Adamson lost over the course of the project. Owen said the lien covers the amounts he believes are most readily documented, including unpaid fees, logged change orders and labor overruns supported by company records. "It doesn’t mean that I’m not going to pursue the $3.9 million in change that we lost overall," Owen said. "I’m still working with my legal team on that $3.9 million figure because I feel that it’s only right that we still hold ownership at the presidential center accountable."

Owen said he had initially avoided filing a lawsuit or lien while attempting to negotiate a resolution."I’m not a litigious person, but at the same time, our legal system is there to protect the small guy," he said. "I’m just going to have to fight this out legally from here on out, and these aren’t cheap costs."

Last week’s payment will be deducted from the $1.72 million, he said. Lakeside Alliance, a joint venture led by Turner Construction and four Black-owned Chicago construction firms, served as the project’s construction manager. The other firms are UJAMAA Construction, Powers & Sons Construction, Brown & Momen and Safeway Construction.In a previous statement, Lakeside said approximately 475 contractors worked on the center.

In its latest response, the alliance pointed to the project’s scale and said "contractual closeout continues long after the doors have opened" on major projects of such complexity." Lakeside Alliance remains committed to working through all outstanding matters to successfully close out the project," a spokesperson said.

Lakeside Alliance did not directly address Owen’s allegations, the layoffs or the $1.72 million lien. The Obama Foundation, former President Barack Obama’s private nonprofit organization that oversees the construction, said Lakeside was responsible for managing and paying subcontractors and that the foundation had no outstanding disputed charges with the alliance.

While it did not directly address Adamson’s allegations, the foundation said its financial support for firms working on the project exceeded industry standards. "Our commitment began with a 15-day payment cycle, which is largely unheard of in major construction projects," the foundation said in a statement, adding that it sometimes accelerated payment timelines or advanced payments months before work was completed.

The center has also faced scrutiny over its soaring price tag and promised taxpayer protections. Construction costs, initially projected at approximately $350 million, had climbed to $830 million by 2021 and have since reportedly surpassed $1 billion.Meanwhile, just $1 million has been deposited into a promised $470 million reserve intended to protect Chicago taxpayers if the center encounters financial trouble.

Those questions have drawn added scrutiny because the Obama Foundation secured the 19.3-acre Jackson Park site through a 99-year lease requiring a one-time $10 payment. Owen said the ordeal has left him financially and emotionally drained and uncertain whether he will ever restart Adamson Plumbing.

"This entire process really drained me out financially and emotionally," Owen said. "So that’s where I’m at — just kind of in a holding pattern." Owen said the opening ceremony which featured performances by Bruce Springsteen, Christina Aguilera, John Legend and U2’s Bono and The Edge, among others only sharpened his anger. Against that celebratory backdrop, he said, the struggles of the workers who built the center went largely unrecognized.

Owen argued that Chicago’s proud protest culture had been conspicuously absent and that the reaction would have been markedly different if the project were associated with figures such as Elon Musk or Ken Griffin, the Chicago billionaire whose name adorns the neighboring Griffin Museum of Science and Industry."There would be holy hell to pay," Owen said. "They would be picketing. They would be storming the castle."

Owen also singled out Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, questioning why the pro-union governor had not addressed the layoffs or payment disputes. "But he hasn’t said anything publicly about the union companies at the presidential center getting stiffed," Owen said. "And it bothers me."

Owen said he was not accusing former President Barack Obama of personal responsibility but believes the foundation should publicly acknowledge the subcontractors’ complaints and help seek a resolution. "It’s become perfectly obvious to me that the ownership group there — they truthfully just don’t care," he said. "I don’t know any other way to say it." Owen said contractors had held out hope that their disputes would be resolved once construction ended. "But I think a lot of us out there, the main subcontractors, all still had this feeling that it was going to be worked out in the end — until it wasn’t," he said.

Now, with Adamson’s future uncertain, Owen said the project has left him facing a personal turn he never saw coming."I mean, the only leverage I have now is just to continue speaking out and see where it goes," he said. "But my career, it’s funny, I’m going to have to go find a job, which is fine. It’s just that I did not anticipate the completion of this project would take this turn."

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Israel Announces Plan To Surround Hamas Prisoners With Crocodiles In What Experts Call The Most Humane Form Of Deterrence Yet

Israeli Environmental Protection Minister Idit Silman reclassified crocodiles from wild animals to “cultivated wild animals,” opening the door for them to be used to guard the country’s prisons holding Hamas operatives, a decision that has already sent progressive animal rights activists into a frenzy of pearl clutching over the welfare of the reptiles rather than the terrorists.

The regulation implemented Wednesday allowed crocodiles to be bred by government officials as long as they are held “in conditions determined by the [Nature and Parks Authority] director, to prevent their interference with nature,” the Times of Israel reported.

Finally, a government agency doing something useful with the environment instead of just lecturing people about plastic straws. Israel’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who pitched the idea last year, celebrated the change online.

“Ministers Ben-Gvir and Silman are collaborating and surrounding the prisons with crocodiles!” Ben-Gvir posted on Facebook Thursday, adding an AI-generated image of himself with a pet crocodile and the caption, “You filthy terrorist, thinking about making a run for it? Think twice.”

Ben-Gvir and Silman have taken inspiration from Trump’s “Alligator Alcatraz” that used the Everglades’s natural alligator population to deter its inmates from escaping, according to NewsNation. Because nothing says justice like borrowing a page from the most successful border security innovator in recent history.

Ben-Gvir hopes that Nile crocodiles will be placed at Ketziot Prison, which hosts many prisoners from Hamas. Nile crocodiles are one of the most dangerous animals in the world, the other is jihad.

SeaWorld notes that Nile crocodiles can grow up to 20 feet long, half the length of a typical school bus, and can weigh over 1,500 pounds. Not only do Nile crocodiles prey on hippos, zebras, or wildebeest, and they are one of the only known reptile species to actively hunt humans. In other words, the perfect match for a group that has demonstrated a similar enthusiasm for hunting humans.

Neta Drori, the Environmental Protection Ministry’s legal adviser, wrote to Silman in June that there is no known precedent of using crocodiles to protect prisons, and noted that crocodile breeding in the past has led to the animals escaping and terrorizing local populations. As if the real terror were the crocodiles and not the people they would be guarding.

“With regard to the use in the United States, it was noted that this was a short-lived trial that was discontinued. It apparently took place in an area where crocodiles already occur in the wild, and there is therefore no basis for comparison,” Drori wrote. “Although Prison Service officials said they are aware of and prepared to ensure the animals’ physical welfare, among other things based on their experience with dogs, the organization apparently has no expertise in raising dangerous wild animals such as crocodiles,” Drori added, concluding that despite the reclassification of the crocodile, Israeli law requires legislative approval of the decision to add crocodiles to the country’s prisons.

Silman has rejected Drori’s opinion, citing testimony from senior officials that the bureaucratic framework allows her and Ben-Gvir to implement the crocodile plan. A rare moment of government officials actually cutting through red tape to do something effective.

The Nature and Parks Authority is expected to meet soon and discuss the legality of Silman and Ben-Gvir’s plan. “The minister is acting contrary to her own legal adviser, contrary to the legal opinion of the Israel Nature and Parks Authority, contrary to the authority’s plenum, and contrary to the law. In other words, there is no legal basis for this,” an official told the Jerusalem Post.

Sources confirm the official then returned to worrying about the emotional trauma the crocodiles might experience while staring down hardened terrorists, however they also agree that Middle East food is delicious.

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AOC Warns America Could Be Invaded By Reading Section She Didn't Read

On Tuesday, Rep. Alexandria Obviously-Commie (Comrade-NY) once again reminded Americans that confidence and comprehension are not necessarily traveling companions.

The latest episode began after the Bronx-born, Yorktown Heights raised, socialist took to social media to denounce the pending National Defense Authorization Act. She declared that one provision in the bill was an “existential threat to American sovereignty and democracy” that would “merge parts of our military with the IDF.”

Unfortunately, she is a dolt. The actual legislation refused to cooperate with her interpretation.

Within hours, critics, lawmakers, and legal experts pointed out that Section 219 has nothing to do with AOC's verbiage.

Rather than placing American troops under Israeli command or having Marines report to Tel Aviv before breakfast, the provision simply formalizes ongoing cooperation between the United States and Israel on research, technology development, missile defense, artificial intelligence, and counter drone systems. Let me say that important word again: COOPERATION.

In other words, it describes the sort of defense partnership Washington has maintained with allies for years, making it a rather disappointing script for those hoping for an international military takeover.

EPA Chief Lee Zeldin suggested the New York Democrat spend less time inventing geopolitical thrillers and more time brushing up on reading comprehension and critical thinking.

Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) was even less charitable. “Good grief, you are either obtuse or intentionally lying,” he wrote on X.

Legal scholars also struggled to locate the imaginary constitutional apocalypse AOC described. They noted that joint defense projects such as Iron Dome and David's Sling have been staples of U.S. policy for decades under bipartisan administrations, including laws signed by former President Barack Obama. As constitutional crises go, Congress passing legislation through Congress ranked surprisingly low on their list.

For longtime observers, the episode felt less like breaking news and more like a rerun. AOC has repeatedly delivered sweeping pronouncements about Israel before discovering that the facts stubbornly refuse to endorse them.

Her most memorable performance came during a 2018 appearance on Firing Line, where she labeled Israel "occupiers" before admitting she was “not the expert on geopolitics” after being asked to explain the issue.

Since then, she has continued courting her activist base with increasingly uncompromising positions, including promising at a Democratic Socialists of America forum never to support military aid to Israel, even defensive systems like Iron Dome that exist to intercept rockets aimed at civilians.

By week's end, Americans were once again left wondering whether AOC's greatest legislative talent is transforming routine defense cooperation into an Avengers crossover event. The only thing that actually merged was another social media panic with another elementary misunderstanding of the bill she was criticizing.

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Trump Warns Iran That Every Attacked Ship Means One Destroyed Bridge Or Power Plant

In a clear and direct ultimatum President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that the United States will respond to every Iranian attack on ships in the Strait of Hormuz by bombing one Iranian bridge or power plant.

Targets near or inside Tehran itself are now on the table according to the president.

Trump’s post read: “From this point forward, any time the Islamic Republic of Iran shoots at a ship in the Strait of Hormuz, whether it be by Missile, Rocket, Drone, or any other device or weapon, the United States will bomb and destroy ONE BRIDGE OR POWER PLANT, including those located next to, or in, the Capital City of Tehran,”

The warning came after the United States finished its eleventh straight night of strikes against Iranian military sites and facilities.

Diplomatic efforts have produced no visible progress while Iran keeps attacking ships and keeps the crucial waterway largely closed. Those of us who know about taqiyya are not at all surprised. Iran has been stalling for time and have no intentions of curtailing their nuclear ambitions.

That strait once carried a fifth of the world’s traded oil and gas during normal times. Iranian leaders may soon find themselves short on bridges to cross rivers and short on power plants to keep the lights on.

Trump has simply spelled out the price of continued aggression in terms even the regime in Tehran should understand. This approach marks a sharp break from the endless talks and empty warnings that achieved nothing in the past.

Unfortunately, I believe it's highly unlikely Iran will end the hostilities. Terrorists in suits are still terrorists and will never change.

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Joshua Kerry Charged With Brutally Murdering Ann Widdecombe; Leftists Already Blaming Society Instead Of The Monster Who Did It

"If an offender has committed murder, he must die. In this case, no possible substitute can satisfy justice. For there is no parallel between death and even the most miserable life, so that there is no equality of crime and retribution unless the perpetrator is judicially put to death." Immanuel Kant [The Metaphysics of Morals, 1797]

British prosecutors charged a leftist cretin, Joshua Kerry, 28, with the murder of ex-politician and reality TV contestant Ann Widdecombe. I don't often write about UK news, but this one is no different than the incidents we are seeing in the United States and all over Western nations.

"We have charged Joshua Kerry, a 28-year-old British national, of Burley Road, Rotherham, South Yorkshire," officials announced after the former lift company [they call elevators 'lifts' in merry old England] worker drove more than 260 miles to the elderly conservative icon's home in Devon, drooling into his crotch the entire journey.

Court details revealed Kerry allegedly arrived in a red Vauxhall Corsa on July 8 and proceeded to attack Widdecombe while she ate lunch. Prosecutors told the court she was hit on the head repeatedly with a hammer, with reports specifying as many as 21 strikes.

The suspect, described as a white British national [which is incredibly more accurate in description than UK news describes Muslim perpetrators as "Asians"] living alone in a council house in Rotherham, was initially held on suspicion of murder before additional charges related to the commission, preparation, or instigation of acts of terrorism were considered.

Counter-terrorism police confirmed the investigation into his motivations continues, but he is, after all, a leftist and we all know how violent they've become when people have different opinions.

The real outrage is not just the crime but the predictable circus that follows. Here is a man who apparently could not build a life worth living, so he chose to destroy one instead.

A 78-year-old woman, a former government minister known for her unapologetic conservative views and plain speaking, targeted in her own kitchen. Kerry did not debate her because he doesn't have the capacity to do so. He did not write a strongly worded letter because writing is for losers. Instead, he picked up a hammer and used it like a coward who had run out of arguments and ideas if he even ever had one of those things.

Progressive voices will no doubt rush to blame "toxic masculinity," "austerity," "Brexit trauma," or whatever flavor of societal excuse is trending this week in the UK. They will demand we "understand his pain" and "address root causes."

Meanwhile, the actual root cause sits in custody: a grown man who traveled across England specifically to cave in the skull of a defenseless grandmother because he could not handle the fact that she existed and disagreed with him.

Ann Widdecombe spent decades fighting for traditional values, exposing nonsense, and refusing to bow to the cultural mob. Joshua Kerry spent his time likely picking his nose while apparently plotting the perfect hammer-based solution to political disagreement. One built a career. The other destroyed a life and now faces the consequences.

Sadly, there is no death sentence in the UK as it has been totally abolished.

The quotes remain unchanged because the facts do not need softening. Kerry is charged with murder. The victim was hit repeatedly with a hammer as she ate lunch. No amount of hand-wringing about "mental health" or "systemic failures" erases the simple truth that one man chose evil and acted on it.May justice be swift.

And may the rest of the left stop pretending every act of barbarism is society's fault instead of the fault of the barbarian who committed it.

Woke/leftism, is a mental illness.


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AOC Opposes Abolishing Senate Because She Still Needs Somewhere To Call Everything 'Jim Crow': here's some facts of which she is oblivious

Not our brightest or best

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez clarified Thursday that she does not support her fellow Democratic Socialists' plan to abolish the U.S. Senate, explaining that it would be far too difficult to eliminate an institution before first accusing it of every historical crime ever committed.

Speaking with reporters on Capitol Hill, the New York congresswoman declined to endorse the Democratic Socialists of America's latest wish list, which includes abolishing the Senate, replacing the presidency with a prime minister, restructuring the judiciary, and apparently seeing how many pages of the Constitution can be fed into a paper shredder before lunch.

"That is, of course, a constitutional question," Ms. Ocasio-Cortez told reporters, acknowledging that even revolutionary manifestos occasionally run into inconvenient details like the Constitution.

While stopping short of supporting the Senate's elimination, Ocasio-Cortez made it clear she still considers the chamber historically suspect.

"We've all got our complaints," she said. "I don't support the filibuster. I don't support elements of this institution that we know were founded on Jim Crow."

[The term 'Jim Crow' comes from a 19th century minstrel show character, Thomas Dartmouth "Daddy" Rice. He performed in blackface [see also Jimmy Kimmel, and Justin Trudeau] singing to "Jump Jim Crow," where he portrayed a stereotypical buffoonish Black man. Thus, the name "Jim Crow" became a derogatory slur for Black people, and by the end of the 19th century it was even applied to the segregation laws. 

After the Civil War and the 13th Amendment ended slavery (1865) Democratic Southern states continued to limit the freedoms of Black people by passing Jim Crow laws (1870s - 1960s). 

When federal troops withdrew from the South in 1877 (as part of the Compromise of 1877 that ended Reconstruction), Southern Democrats regained full control and systematically rolled back Black political and civil rights gained during Reconstruction. By the 1880s to the 1890s the South went nuclear with Jim Crow laws. Public transportation, restaurants, schools, parks, hospitals and restrooms, were segregated. Interracial marriages were outlawed and there were poll taxes, literacy tests, grandfather clauses, and additional roadblocks to disenfranchise Black voters [until they started voting for Democrats].

But by the mid-20th  century, Jim Crow laws began crumbling. In 1954 Brown v. Board of Education was the start, followed by the Montgomery Bus Boycott ignited by Rosa Parks, the sit-ins of the 1960s; the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which banned public segregation and employment discrimination; and finally the 1965 Voting Rights Act that outlawed discriminatory voting practices.

During the entire Jim Crow era, (approximately 1877 to the mid-1960s) it was the Democratic Party's Southern wing that was responsible for creating, passing, defending and enforcing Jim Crow laws.

For example, President Wilson, a Democrat, segregated the federal workforce in 1913. And the Southern Democrats dominated Congress for decades and used seniority and the filibuster to block civil rights legislation; not the Republicans who fought against it. By 1948, Southern Democrats broke away from the Dixiecrat party in order to defend segregation. 

Meanwhile, Republicans were generally supportive of civil rights at this period. So Black voters in the South overwhelmingly supported the GOP in the late 19th and early 20th centuries as national Republicans overwhelmingly opposed Jim Crow measures. 

When the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Voting Rights Act of 1965 were signed by Democrat Lyndon B. Johnson, it faced strong opposition from Southern Democrats in Congress and it was the Republicans that provided the crucial votes to overcome filibusters. However, this realigned the two parties as the Democrats took credit for both Acts and Black voters in the South, began voting Democratic. 

Bottom line: Jim Crow was a Southern Democratic project. While not every Democrat supported it (especially many Northern ones later on), the political machinery that built and maintained the system was overwhelmingly in Democratic hands in the South for nearly a century.]

Historians reportedly spent several hours trying to determine exactly how Congress, an institution created in 1789 managed to be "founded on Jim Crow," which emerged nearly a century later, before concluding that modern political rhetoric no longer observes the constraints of linear time.

The Democratic Socialists' platform also calls for replacing the presidency with a parliamentary system, making the judiciary subordinate to Congress, ending American support for Israel, and prosecuting U.S. and Israeli leaders for what it describes as "genocide in Gaza." Political observers noted that the platform appears to have been assembled by asking, "What if Reddit moderated the Federalist Papers?"

Constitutional scholars pointed out that abolishing the Senate would require an amendment approved by two thirds of Congress and ratified by three quarters of the states, making the proposal only slightly more realistic than getting every member of Congress to voluntarily delete their social media accounts.

Although Ocasio-Cortez has been floated as a potential 2028 presidential candidate with support from the DSA, she insisted she is not currently running for another office.

"I could run for dog catcher," she said with a chuckle. "So I think any situation is hypothetical."

Sources confirmed that within minutes, several progressive activists demanded the office of dog catcher also be abolished because golden retrievers have historically benefited from systemic privilege.

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Prosecutor Mistakenly Believes "Conflict Of Interest" Is a Dating App Feature

Apparently someone interpreted the phrase "get involved in the case" far more literally than the law intended.

A Missouri prosecutor was removed from office after allegedly carrying on an affair with an illegal immigrant that her own office was investigating for sexual assault. I guess this proves that some public officials hear the phrase "equal justice under the law" and think it means equal opportunity dating.

Ray County Prosecutor Camille Johnston allegedly entered into a romantic relationship with a Mexican national who had been living in the United States illegally since 2019. According to court documents, the man even lived with Johnston for a time. Authorities say this was just one of three alleged affairs that created conflicts of interest, which is an impressive achievement considering most prosecutors try to avoid even one.

Court documents allege Johnston failed to disclose the relationship to the alleged sexual assault victim, law enforcement, or members of her own office. She also allegedly "failed to bring any criminal charges because of her relationship with" the Mexican national [aka illegal alien]. Legal experts confirmed this is generally considered an unconventional prosecutorial strategy.

According to court documents, the illegal alien later fled to Mississippi, where Johnston allegedly visited him before the pair vacationed together in Florida. This really gives "active criminal investigations" a bad name.

The documents also allege Johnston drove to Mississippi in 2023 and gave the fugitive the title to her vehicle. Authorities eventually arrested him in Ohio in 2024, apparently after concluding that law enforcement, rather than romantic gestures, remained the preferred method of locating fugitives.

KSHB reported that the alleged sexual assault occurred while Johnston and the suspect were involved in bumping boots, a detail that somehow makes the story even more astonishing.

The affair was reportedly only one entry in what court documents portray as an unusually active social calendar. Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway alleged Johnston also engaged "in an intimate and romantic relationship with a criminal defense attorney representing numerous criminal defendants" whose cases were being prosecuted by Johnston's own office.

Johnston was eventually disqualified from handling the sexual assault case, ending what may have been the least objective prosecution since someone decided Lady Justice should peek under the blindfold.

Hanaway accused Johnston of treating her office like her "personal playground."

"When an elected official treats public office like their personal playground, betraying the public trust, ignoring legal obligations, and putting self interest first, removal isn’t a suggestion, it’s a necessity," Hanaway said.

"Johnston’s record reflects a sustained pattern of misconduct and willful neglect that has undermined the integrity of the prosecutor’s office and poses a serious threat to public safety. In Missouri, public office is public trust, not a personal entitlement, and no one is above accountability," she said.

In other words, the "Show Me" state doesn't mean "I'll show you mine if you show me yours."  

Court documents also allege Johnston entered "another romantic relationship" with a married domestic violence suspect, suggesting her office may have been operating under a bold new legal philosophy in which prosecutors personally interview defendants over candlelit dinners.

When an employee discovered the alleged affair, Johnston reportedly fired her. Police later requested that a special prosecutor take over the domestic violence case, presumably because "dating the defendant" had not yet been added to Missouri's list of recommended prosecutorial best practices.

Johnston was ultimately disqualified from prosecuting that case as well, leaving legal scholars to wonder whether the next edition of ethics training should simply begin with the words, "No, seriously. Don't date the suspects."

The bigger question is, why is she still working as a lawyer, much less a prosecutor?

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Anti ICE Protester Brings "Peaceful" Fire, Axes, Machete, And Manifesto To Federal Building

The modern activist has become remarkably efficient. Why settle for chanting slogans when you can arrive with fireworks, gasoline, axes, a machete, multiple knives, pellet guns, and a manifesto? Somewhere along the way, "mostly peaceful protest" apparently became an Olympic event.

The suspect accused of setting off an incendiary device outside New York City's federal immigration office has been identified by multiple news outlets as 43 year old military veteran Andrew Arrabaca. Witnesses reportedly saw him pushing a cart bearing the familiar activist slogan, "ICE off our streets." Apparently he interpreted that message less as a policy preference and more as an item on his daily to do list. In any case, he and his cart blended right in with the city's homeless so nobody paid much attention to him at first.

Authorities say Arrabaca poured what is believed to be gasoline outside 26 Federal Plaza, stacked fireworks on top of it, and lit the whole thing. The resulting incendiary device sparked a fire outside the building.

"At approximately 8:20 AM, an anti ICE rioter launched fireworks outside of 26 Federal Plaza, grazing a bystander and poured what is believed to be gasoline on the stairs of the entrance of the building and set it on fire," the Department of Homeland Security said Monday.

"Officers quickly recovered the suspect's bag, which contained what appeared to be two pellet guns and a manifesto," the agency added.

Nothing says "my argument is well reasoned" quite like carrying a manifesto. History has been unkind to people who decide to publish their political philosophy one explosive device at a time.

According to authorities, the suspect was also carrying two axes, a hammer, a machete, and multiple knives. At this point the only thing missing was a partridge in a pear tree.

"When he was being arrested, he yelled derogatory terms to ICE, used bad words, obviously. He is an anti American, anti government extremist. We know that from what he said, we know that from what he has said post arrest, and we know that from his actions that he tried to take today," FBI New York Assistant Director in Charge James Barnacle Jr. said.

The New York Post reported that Arrabaca is a former U.S. Army and National Guardsman from Poughkeepsie, NY, home of the CIA [Culinary Institute of America]. 

Two federal employees and one civilian suffered minor injuries during the attack and were treated and released, according to Barnacle.

A Federal Protective Service officer "swiftly tackled and detained" the suspect while sustaining minor injuries, according to DHS.

The Jacob K. Javits Federal Office Building houses ICE's New York field office and an immigration court. During the Trump administration it has become a frequent destination for anti ICE demonstrations. Most protesters, of course, limit themselves to signs and slogans. This suspect apparently felt that wasn't dramatic enough.

The FBI's New York Joint Terrorism Task Force is investigating the incident. Which seems appropriate, because when your political statement involves gasoline, fireworks, edged weapons, and a manifesto, you've wandered a very long way from civic engagement.

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