Comrade Mamdani addresses terror attempt

New York City's shiny new socialist Mayor Zohran "Smiley" Mamdani finally found a moment in his busy schedule to address the little incident outside his official digs. It only took him a full day after protesters were yelling "Allahu Akbar" and chucking a couple of homemade devices into a crowd. Devices that the NYPD bomb squad later confirmed were, surprise, actually lethal.

NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch dropped the official word on Sunday: "The NYPD Bomb Squad has conducted a preliminary analysis of a device that was ignited and deployed at a protest yesterday and has determined that it is not a hoax device or a smoke bomb. It is, in fact, an improvised explosive device that could have caused serious injury or death."

So it turns out that this jihadist and his buddy were seriously trying to kill people.

Tisch added that the second one was still getting the full lab treatment with "further analysis" needed.

Then came the gratitude portion of the program: "Emir Balat and Ibrahim Kayumi were arrested on scene yesterday and are in custody in connection with this matter. The NYPD is working on this investigation with our partners at the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York and the FBI through our Joint Terrorism Task Force. I want to again thank the brave members of the NYPD who ran towards the danger without hesitation and quickly apprehended the suspects."

Meanwhile, Comrade Mamdani released his own statement, which managed the impressive feat of moral equivalencing the guys who threw bombs at people with the people they were throwing bombs at.

"Yesterday, white supremacist Jake Lang organized a protest outside Gracie Mansion rooted in bigotry and racism," Mamdani complained. "Such hate has no place in New York City. It is an affront to our city’s values and the unity that defines who we are."

The leftist mayor kept going: "What followed was even more disturbing. Violence at a protest is never acceptable. The attempt to use an explosive device and hurt others is not only criminal, it is reprehensible and the antithesis of who we are. I want to thank the brave men and women of the NYPD who acted quickly to keep New Yorkers safe. Our officers ran toward danger without hesitation, demonstrating once again the courage and dedication it takes to protect this city every single day. My administration is closely monitoring the situation and I remain in close contact with our Police Commissioner."

Yeah, sure.

For context, there were two dueling protests in front of Gracie Mansion. One was a tiny gathering of less than two dozen folks led by January 6 defendant Jake Lang, billed as "Stop the Islamic Takeover of New York City, Stop New York City Public Muslim Prayer." The other side pulled in over 100 people under the banner "Run the Nazis out of New York City, Stand Against Hate." [They forgot to add: Death to Israel; death to America.]

Cops kept them separated, but things still got ugly. Someone from Lang's group hit counter-protesters with pepper spray and got arrested. Then tensions boiled over further when Balat and Kayumi got nabbed for the homemade bombs.

In the grand tradition of progressive mayors who love to lecture about unity while carefully avoiding any mention of who actually tried to blow people up, Mamdani's response was a master class in deflection. The bombs were bad, sure, but let's not forget to lead with the real villain: the guy with the offensive protest sign. Classic gas lighting.

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Mojtaba Khamenei better not shop at Target because that's what he has become: next Supreme Leader in the crosshairs

Ali Khamenei's kid popped into the world back in 1969 and the U.S. has had him on the sanctions naughty list since 2019 for playing mini-dad and representing the old man in official regime business.

President Donald Trump confirmed that the mullahs' new brain trust has already reached out to talk turkey following the death of bushy bearded Ayatollah Khamenei, because nothing says "we're serious about change" like begging the guy who just helped turn your supreme leader into handy bite-size pieces.

Iran's Assembly of Experts, an oxymoron if there ever was one, has now crowned Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as the country's shiny new supreme leader, per Iranian state television. He better not go shopping at Target. Actually, he'd be smart to have his flunkies go shopping for him rather than being out in fresh air, 

Mojtaba, 56, is the second-eldest spawn of Ali Khamenei. His toddler years lined up perfectly with his father's glow-up from dissident cleric to anti-Shah revolutionary rock star.

After the 1979 Islamic Revolution flipped the script, Ali Khamenei traded protest signs for power suits, grabbing plum gigs like deputy defense minister. The family packed up from Mashhad and headed to Tehran, where young Mojtaba enrolled at Alavi High School where he starred in the stone toss. That's the go-to academy for Iran's future political and religious VIPs, aka terrorists.

Mojit, as his mom calls him, got the full package there: regular classes plus heavy religious indoctrination, and he walked the stage in 1987. Then, in 1989, after Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini checked out to the great goat pastures, Ali Khamenei scored the supreme leader job.

That same year, Mojtaba kicked off his official clerical training in Tehran, studying under his dad and Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi, who would go on to become Iran's chief justice.

Over time, Mojtaba was glued to his father's side and built a reputation as the shadowy power broker pulling strings from behind the curtain.

In an Axios interview last week, when pressed on chatter that Mojtaba was about to take the throne, President Donald Trump said: "Khamenei's son is unacceptable to me. We want someone who will bring harmony and peace to Iran." He doubled down with, "They are wasting their time. Khamenei's son is a lightweight. I have to be involved in the appointment, like with Delcy [Rodriguez] in Venezuela."

Back in 2019, the U.S. slapped sanctions on Mojtaba under Executive Order 13867. The Treasury Department explained that he had been "representing the supreme leader in an official capacity despite never being elected or appointed to a government position aside from work in the office of his father."

They also noted that dear old dad had handed off chunks of his leadership duties to the boy wonder. Mojtaba worked hand-in-glove with IRGC Quds Force commanders and the Basij thugs, making him a major player in Iran's domestic crackdowns and overseas mischief.

So there you have it: another generation of Khamenei family rule locked in, complete with U.S. sanctions and Trump basically saying, "Not on my watch, pal." The regime's idea of progress is apparently just handing the keys to the same dynasty. Color me unsurprised.

THIS JUST IN: Mojtaba Kamenei has been eliminated by the IDF.

Just kidding. He hasn't left his confines yet, but Israel has him in their crosshairs.

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Chicago area store owner given 4-year sentence in WIC fraud sceme

A federal judge just slammed the door on yet another welfare fraud scheme that preyed on the very people the program was meant to help.

Hassan Abdellatif, the owner of several Chicago-area convenience stores, has been sentenced to four years in federal prison for his role in ripping off the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program. This federally funded initiative is supposed to deliver nutritious food to low-income kids, pregnant women, breastfeeding moms, and those in the post-partum phase. Instead, Abdellatif and his crew turned it into a cash cow.

From 2010 to 2018, Abdellatif allegedly teamed up with eight other convenience store owners or workers across the Chicago area to fraudulently redeem WIC checks. They knowingly let customers use those checks to buy ineligible items, often jacking up the prices in the process. In total, the ten stores wrapped up in this racket redeemed more than $19 million in WIC benefits.

A federal jury convicted the 37-year-old Chicago resident on all five counts last year: two counts of wire fraud, one count of fraudulently obtaining government benefits, and two counts of willfully failing to file corporate tax returns. 

On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Jorge L. Alonso handed down the four-year prison term and ordered Abdellatif to cough up more than $8.8 million in restitution to the government.

As Assistant U.S. Attorney Raman laid out in the government's sentencing memorandum, "Hassan Abdellatif and his co-schemers engaged in conduct that was extremely serious, complex, and wide-ranging in scope." Raman added, "Vulnerable communities are impacted when individuals steal from those programs."

This is the kind of brazen abuse that hits hardest at the people who can least afford it. Programs like WIC exist to support families in need, not to line the pockets of schemers who game the system for years. Four years behind bars and millions in restitution might be a start toward justice, but it won't undo the damage done to those vulnerable communities.

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LA "Marathon" allows runners to get medals for identifying as finishing

Everyone gets a medal: you get a medal, and you get a medal . . .

In the grand tradition of human achievement, where men and women once pushed their bodies to the very edge of endurance to claim the honor of finishing a full 26.2 miles, the organizers of the Los Angeles Marathon have decided to introduce a touch of modern compassion, or, depending on your perspective, a gentle surrender to the elements.

They've made the head-scratching decision to reward runners "who have had a tough day" after a mere 18 miles of the course.

Yes, you read that correctly. Participants in this noble test of will and endurance now have the option to receive their finisher medals at the 18-mile marker, sparing themselves the final 8.2 miles without ever having to cross the actual finish line. In other words, they don't need to be marathoners, but can identify as marathoners.

"If you're having a tough day and want to end your race before 26.2, you can choose to take the turn at Mile 18 and head into the finish line early," The McCourt Foundation says on its website. "You do not need to notify anyone of your decision and can opt to take this route at any time."

The organization hastens to add that this generous provision is only for this year, because apparently next year the sun might behave itself.

The decision has drawn some predictable mocking on social media, as one might expect when the ancient rite of the marathon gets a participation-trophy upgrade.

The race was set to begin on Sunday with temperatures climbing as high as 88 degrees in the Los Angeles area, conditions that, in saner times, have prompted marathon organizers to cancel events outright or shift start times to spare runners from turning into human jerky. But not the City of Angels--if Pheidippides could do it, anyone could do it, although the first Greek marathoner died at the end because he had inferior training and running shoes.

"You will still receive your finisher medal and any challenge medal you’ve earned, and your official race results will be updated at a later date to reflect your time and mileage," The McCourt Foundation added. "There is no shame in making a smart decision for your body."

Smart, perhaps. But one wonders if the word "finisher" loses a little something when the finishing part has been quietly abbreviated.

Meg Treat, owner of Treat Public Relations (which is handling the race's PR, naturally), explained to Runner’s World that the weather was very much on their minds.

So cancel the race for better weather.

"Our weather conversations have been ongoing… We start actively monitoring it with the LA Fire Department who partners with the National Weather Service 10 days before the race," she told the outlet.

"This was earlier this week that the team was alerted about the warmer temperatures . . . [and] we communicated to our runners about how they could have a safe race day."

Safety is paramount, of course, no one disputes that. But in a world already awash in diluted meanings and softened edges, it's hard not to feel a pang for the old, harder truths: that a marathon finisher medal meant you had finished the marathon, every punishing step of it, heat or no heat.

Call me old-fashioned, but there's something almost poignant about the idea that true victory might still require going the full distance, even when the sun is trying to cook you alive.

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Unrelenting Trump critic says why he was wrong to eliminate the bushy bearded, now dead guy and his pals in Iran

Chennai, India-born Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) attacked President Donald J. Trump's decision to attack and quickly eliminate the bushy-bearded Shi'a cleric and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, along with other Islamic Republic Guard Corps (the 's' is silent) in Iran.

"Trump killed the religious and spiritual leader of Iran," Rep. Jayapal said, carefully leaving out the President's title. "He seemed nice with his cute hat and bushy beard. I don't understand why Trump had him eliminated."

The congresswoman defended her Iran War Powers vote:  "Congress alone has power to declare war," warning of long-term consequences and adding it "shouldn’t be partisan." 

The last time Congress formally declared war was on June 4, 1942 and Jayapal asked, "Isn't it about time Congress did again? We do so little during the year it's about time we earned our money legally."

Since the United States was formed back in 1776, Congress has formally declared war 11 times across five conflicts since the Constitution adoption in 1789:

War of 1812: Great Britain (1812)
Mexican-American War: Mexico (1846)
Spanish-American War: Spain (1898)
World War I: Germany (1917) and Austria-Hungary (1917)
World War II: Japan (1941), Germany (1941), Italy (1941), and Bulgaria/Hungary/Romania (1942)

The House voted on a Democrat-led Iran War Powers Resolution designed to limit President Trump's  [aka The Commander-in-Chief] military authority in Tehran. This brings to the forefront once again, the issue over executive powers and what level a president must consult with the loose-lips of members of Congress before waging military strikes. 

If passed, Trump would have to end the use of U.S. troops against Iran and thus allow the regime to continue killing Iranian civilians, as it currently appears to be the case.

Republicans, meanwhile, maintain that the White House is acting within its authority in the best interests of the country and of the remaining Iranian people who have not been killed for protesting the theocratic dictatorship they live under.

And while Jayapal is consistent in her efforts to give Congress the power that Commanders-in-Chief had in the past, others like Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Adam Schiff (D-CA) supported former President Joe Biden's attack on Syria.

For those keeping score, here is a short list by Grok of past presidents who bypassed Congress to use military force: 

Harry S. Truman (1945–1953): Korean War (1950–1953) — Truman committed US troops under UN auspices to repel North Korea's invasion of South Korea, without a declaration of war (often called a "police action").

Lyndon B. Johnson (1963–1969) and Richard Nixon (1969–1974): Vietnam War escalation (major US combat from 1965–1973) — Johnson used the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution (1964) as authorization to deploy hundreds of thousands of troops; combat continued under Nixon.

Ronald Reagan (1981–1989): Invasion of Grenada (1983, Operation Urgent Fury) — Troops deployed to restore order and protect US citizens after a coup.

George H.W. Bush (1989–1993): Invasion of Panama (1989, Operation Just Cause) — Troops sent to depose Manuel Noriega and protect US interests. Also initiated Operation Desert Shield/Storm (1990–1991 Gulf War) — Large-scale deployment to liberate Kuwait from Iraq, authorized by Congress and UN.

Bill Clinton (1993–2001): Interventions in Somalia (ongoing from Bush era but combat under Clinton), Haiti (1994, Operation Uphold Democracy), Bosnia (1995 NATO bombing/air campaign), and Kosovo (1999 NATO bombing campaign) — US forces engaged in combat roles, often under NATO/UN frameworks without new congressional war declarations.

George W. Bush (2001–2009): War in Afghanistan (2001–2021, Operation Enduring Freedom) — Invasion to oust Taliban and pursue al-Qaeda post-9/11, authorized by 2001 AUMF. Iraq War (2003–2011, Operation Iraqi Freedom) — Invasion to remove Saddam Hussein, authorized by 2002 AUMF.

Barack Obama (2009–2017): Escalated drone strikes and special operations in multiple countries; 2011 Libya intervention (NATO-led air campaign with US combat role); expanded operations against ISIS in Iraq/Syria (2014 onward, under 2001 AUMF).

Other presidents (e.g., Eisenhower, Kennedy, Ford, Carter, Biden) authorized combat in limited contexts (e.g., Lebanon 1958/1982–1983 under Eisenhower/Reagan, or ongoing counterterrorism under Biden), but often smaller-scale or continuations of prior conflicts. 

None of them asked for permission.

So there you have it--hypocrisy on the Hill. 

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IDF's surgical strike takes out IRGC Quds Force leaders at Beirut hotel

The Israel Defense Forces carried out a surgical strike that targeted Quds Force's Lebanese Corps commanders, part of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC ) operating in a Ramada ["You do your thing. Leave the rest to us"] hotel in formerly beautiful Beirut.

The IDF reported that the commanders [aka terrorists] were planning to advance terror plots against, you know, the Jews in Israel from Lebanese territory.

The military said the Quds Force’s Lebanon Corps acts as a liaison between Iran’s IRGC and the Hezbollah terror organization, supporting Hezbollah's military buildup.

As is their practice, the IDF took calculated steps to minimize civilian casualties, unlike the IRGC who take calculated steps to maximize civilian casualties. They used precision munitions and aerial surveillance prior to the strike.

“Prior to the strike, steps were taken to minimize the chance of harm to civilians,” the military said, and added that it will continue targeting Iranian regime commanders operating in the region.

Rumor has it that US forces in the region are considering naming the next operation "Operation Fafo."

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Tucker Carlson keeps flaunting his anti-Semitism

In yet another episode of his show loaded with attacks on Judaism, newly-minted, anti-Israel/anti-Semitic podcaster Tucker Carlson is now pinning the ancient Jewish hope of rebuilding the Temple in Jerusalem squarely on the Chabad Hasidic movement.

Carlson, with his bizarre giggle and high-pitched voice, went full throttle Thursday in ripping into core traditional Jewish beliefs, zeroing in on the concept of the Third Temple in Jerusalem.

On the latest installment of "The Tucker Carlson Show," the 56-year-old ex-Fox News host dove into what he insisted were "Israel’s true motives" in the ongoing war with Iran.

With no references given, nor how he concluded his delusional "facts," Carlson flat-out predicted that Iran won't fold under joint Israeli-American strikes. Unless President Donald Trump pulls the plug on U.S. involvement in the next 48 hours, he warned, the whole thing spirals wildly out of control.

"This thing takes a life of its own," Carlson said. "The Iranians are not going to surrender. They are not going to stop popping off missiles."

But Carlson didn't stop there. He argued that Israel has every incentive to keep the war raging, purely as cover for bigger plans: blowing up the Dome of the Rock and Al Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount.

"So, in that environment when you can’t really know what’s going on, it’s thousands of miles from here, all of a sudden the Al Aqsa complex is just vaporized. 'Oops, the Iranians did it'," Carlson pontificated without a scrap of evidence other than his hatred of Israel.

His theory is straight out of the debunked playbook that's floated around Arab and Muslim circles for decades, ever since Israel reclaimed the Old City of Jerusalem in 1967.

To back it up, Carlson pointed to a viral clip of an IDF soldier flashing a patch tied to the Third Temple.

"Beit HaMikdash," Carlson said, with a slight Middle East accent. "That's the Hebrew term for the Temple, the Third Temple." He claimed the soldier's words and that patch prove the IDF and Israeli government are dead set on razing the Dome of the Rock and Al Aqsa Mosque.

"We are doing this so we can rebuild the Temple," Carlson continued. "Now, you'll notice he's pulling off patches from his IDF uniform. These are not civilian clothes. This is the uniform of the government of Israel, of its military."

Look, belief in eventually rebuilding the Temple in Jerusalem sits at the heart of traditional Judaism. It's right there in the Book of Ezekiel and got locked in as a fundamental principle in the Babylonian Talmud some 1,600 years ago.

But Carlson spun it differently. He insisted this push comes largely from the Chabad movement. Chabad, a Hasidic dynasty that ramped up global outreach to secular Jews after the Holocaust, has long promoted classic Orthodox teachings, including faith in the future rebuilding of the Temple in Jerusalem.

"This has been going on a long time in public through, in part, the efforts of a group called Chabad. And you may know people who give money to Chabad or run Chabad. Super nice people engaged in all kinds of charitable activities . . . "

"But what is Chabad exactly? Well, Chabad, you can look it up, is a very old organization, about 250 years old, and it's a branch of Hasidic Judaism. It's an organization that was overseen for many years by a guy [how disrespectful Carlson is--his Jew hatred is obvious] called Rabbi Menachem Schneerson, who was famously in Brooklyn, considered the Messiah by some of his followers, who was a friend of presidents or certainly someone presidents visited, a very powerful man in the Orthodox and his Hasidic community. Chabad has been pushing in a pretty subtle way, unless you look carefully, for the reconstruction of the Third Temple. And it seems like from the reading we did recently, that those patches actually came from Chabad. Well, in any case, Chabad is pushing for the building of the Third Temple."

"But it's not just Hasidic groups from Brooklyn, and it’s not just IDF soldiers. There are amazingly a lot of American evangelical leaders, Christian Zionists, whose main point is rebuilding the Third Temple."

Christian perspectives on the Third Temple and related biblical prophecies differ wildly, but Carlson branded those who buy into it as outright heretics.

"That’s more than apostasy," Carlson said.

Just days earlier, Carlson dropped a video rant calling Jews and Christians who hold to the Third Temple idea "deranged and demonic." You can see his videos on YouTube but I refuse to plug them here.

"I'm not going to go into the theology of it, which is deranged and demonic, actually. But it is a fact that people want this. And that is the beginning of really the end of the world as we know it."

Tucker Carlson is a disgusting sellout.

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Tehran's top cop airstruck and is out of luck

According to multiple reports exploding across X and other platforms today (March 7, 2026), Brigadier General Abbas-Ali Mohammadian, commander of Tehran's police force (فرمانده انتظامی تهران بزرگ), has reportedly been blown to smithereens in joint U.S.-Israeli airstrikes hammering Iran.

These claims are blasting out from pro-Israel accounts, anti-regime voices, and freedom-loving patriots on X, Facebook, Instagram, and Reddit, complete with those glorious "ELIMINATED" graphics and zero sympathy for a guy accused of ordering the slaughter of protesters. 

We're talking the 2022 Mahsa Amini uprising and the fresh waves of unrest where his forces allegedly racked up hundreds (some say thousands) of dead and injured Iranians just trying to breathe free.

The man was already sanctioned up the wazoo by the U.S., EU, and others for human rights abuses tied to crushing demonstrations. Before Tehran, he ran the show in Alborz province, overseeing more of the same violent crackdowns that left bodies in the streets.

This fits the bigger picture of escalating U.S. and Israeli operations targeting Iranian military brass, security heavies, and command structure, IRGC bigwigs, defense minister-level figures, and higher have been in the crosshairs too.

Posts are framing it as straight-up justice or good riddance, with a lot of folks tying it to the regime's collapsing grip after massive leadership losses. 

But here's the latest skivvy: As of this moment, nothing confirmed from major Western outlets, Iranian state media, or official channels on Mohammadian specifically. 

Tehran has admitted heavy hits from the strikes and big casualties among top ranks, but they're mum on this one. In hot war zones like this, social media moves at warp speed, sometimes with fog-of-war misinformation, so treat these reports as preliminary and explosive until rock-solid independent verification drops.

If official word or more details break (and in this fast-moving chaos, it could happen any minute), the picture will sharpen quick. Stay sharp, folks.

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