National and international media news & headlines compiled by CLG

Trump announces 30,000 criminal illegal immigrants will be sent to Guantanamo Bay | 29 Jan 2025 | President Donald Trump announced Wednesday that he would sign an executive order for the Pentagon to prepare Guantanamo Bay to detain 30,000 “criminal illegal aliens.” “Today, I’m also signing an executive order to instruct the Departments of Defense and Homeland Security to begin preparing the 30,000 person migrant facility at Guantanamo Bay,” Trump said. “Most people don’t even know about it.” He said they have 30,000 beds in Guantanamo to house the detainees who pose a threat to the American public, adding that putting them there will ensure they do not come back. “Some of them are so bad, we don’t even trust their countries to hold them because we don’t want them coming back,” Trump said.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Confronts ‘Chuckling’ Democrats During Hearing for Wasting Taxpayers’ Money Just to Make Americans Less Healthy | 29 Jan 2025 | Robert F. Kennedy Jr., nominated for Secretary of Health and Human Services, boldly challenged the effectiveness of current healthcare policies before a panel of mostly skeptical Democrats. RFK Jr. appeared before the Senate Finance Committee on Wednesday to kick off his confirmation hearings. RFK Jr.’s second hearing, orchestrated by Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy, chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, will take place on Thursday.

Scorched-earth Shanahan: RFK Jr’s former running mate threatens political war against confirmation opponents | 29 Jan 2025 | Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s former presidential running mate Nicole Shanahan called out various senators by name, warning that she will fund primary challenges against them if they oppose confirming Kennedy to serve as secretary of Health and Human Services. “Dear U.S. Senators, Bobby may play nice; I won’t,” she wrote in a post on X. In a video, Shanahan said that in 2020 she “cut large checks to Chuck Schumer to help Democrats flip two Senate seats in Georgia from red to blue.” Peach State Democratic Sens. Raphael Warnock and John Ossoff both initially took office after winning runoff contests in early 2021. Shanahan bluntly warned the two senators, “Please know I will be watching your votes very closely. I will make it my personal mission that you lose your seats in the Senate if you vote against the future health of America’s children.” She then proceeded to call out Sens.

Bird flu poses growing pandemic threat as virus evolves | 29 Jan 2025 | Bird flu poses an increasing pandemic threat as it becomes more adaptive, jumping to humans, pets and zoo animals, Europe’s disease and food agencies warned on Wednesday. They are urging countries to step up their surveillance and containment measures to prevent the virus from continuing to evolve and become more dangerous to people. The risk of infection for the general European population remains low… But the situation would change if there was any “confirmed human-to-human transmission,” said Edoardo Colzani, head of respiratory viruses at the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC). The ECDC and EFSA have identified 34 key genetic mutations that make the virus more likely to jump from animals to humans but also to replicate to allow human-to-human transmission.

Bird flu warnings posted, parks closed in some Massachusetts communities | 29 Jan 2025 | Several Massachusetts communities are posting warnings or closing public spaces over concerns about bird flu and the recent deaths of several groups of birds. Signs are posted along Boston’s Emerald Necklace, a network of parks running through the city, reminding people not to feed or touch birds. According to the Boston Public Health Commission, the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza has been present among wild bird populations in Massachusetts since 2022. In Brockton, city officials announced Tuesday that four locations were closed because of bird flu concerns: D.W. Field Park, Flagg Pond at Brockton High School, Trout Brook Pond on North Montello Street, and Cross Pond on Montaulk Road.

Trump ordering review to identify, punish and deport ‘antisemites’ — including students on visas | 29 Jan 2025 | President Trump is expected to sign an executive order Wednesday instructing all federal agencies to identify civil and criminal authorities available to combat antisemitism — including finding ways to deport anti-Jewish Israel activists who violated laws, The Post has learned. The order requires agency and department leaders to provide the White House with recommendations within 60 days and outlines plans for the Justice Department to investigate pro-Hamas graffiti and intimidation, including on college campuses, according to a document describing the order. The executive order calls for the deportation of resident aliens — including students with visas — who broke laws as part of anti-Israel protests following the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks that sparked the invasion of Gaza, the document reviewed by The Post says.

Pentagon pulling Gen. Milley’s security detail and clearance ‘immediately,’ may face demotion in retirement | 28 Jan 2025 | Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will announce he is “immediately pulling” retired Gen. Mark Milley’s personal security detail and security clearance, multiple senior administration officials tell Fox News. The secretary is also directing the new acting Inspector General to conduct a review board to determine if enough evidence exists for Gen. Milley to be stripped of a star in retirement based on his actions to “undermine the chain of command” during President Donald Trump’s first term, officials say. The Pentagon will also be removing a second portrait of Gen. Milley inside the Pentagon.

Trump to Fire the 88,000 IRS Agents Biden Hired to Harass Americans or Reassign Them to Border Patrol Duty | 27 Jan 2025 | On Saturday, President Donald Trump said during his post-inauguration rally that he will either fire the 88,000 Internal Revenue Service (IRS) agents that Joe Biden hired to harass middle-class American taxpayers, or reassign them to border patrol duties. “They hired, were trying to hire 88,000 new workers to go after you, and we’re in the process of developing a plan to either terminate all of them or maybe we move them to the border,” Trump said. “I think we’re going to move them to the border where they are allowed to carry guns. You know, they’re so strong on guns. But these people are allowed to carry guns. So we will probably move them to the border.”

Trump inks five new executive orders, including ones banning transgender service members, military DEI programs | 27 Jan 2025 | President Trump signed five executive orders Monday, including edicts prohibiting “gender radicalism in the military” and eliminating Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programs from the military. Trump, 78, told reporters aboard Air Force One that he also signed orders reinstating military members forced out by vaccine mandates and mandating a process to develop an “American Iron Dome…” The president had signed an order on his first day in office revoking the Biden regime’s 2021 directive that allowed trans people to serve openly in the military, but the new EO goes further. The Monday order, first previewed by The Post, will directly prohibit any service member who identifies as a gender other than their birth sex from serving or enlisting, on grounds of mental unfitness.

Vicious Tren de Aragua ‘ringleader’ busted in NYC immigration raids on kidnapping warrant from Aurora, Colorado | 28 Jan 2025 | A violent Tren de Aragua ringleader sought in an infamous, caught-on-camera break-in in Aurora, Colo., was nabbed Tuesday in a dramatic pre-dawn raid in New York City — across from an elementary school, sources said. Anderson Zambrano-Pacheco, 25, was taken into custody as part of the Trump administration’s first promised immigration raids in the Big Apple, law-enforcement sources told The Post. He was caught by heavily armed Homeland Security Investigations officers who stormed an Ogden Avenue apartment building in The Bronx in the early hours, the sources said. The building is across the street from PS 11 aka the The Highbridge School.

Mexican Cartels Plant Explosive Devices Near U.S. Border as Trump Admin Ramps Up Deportations | 27 Jan 2025 | Mexican drug cartels are placing explosives on roads leading into America near the Texas border, according to several local news outlets and officials from both countries. WOAI San Antonio reports cartel members near Brownsville, Texas, have been caught putting deadly devices near streets used by individuals commuting to and from Tamaulipas, Mexico. While some experts assume the explosives are linked to ongoing wars between rivaling cartels, others point out they could be threats or warnings directed at President Donald Trump’s escalating deportation efforts.

Colombia Agrees to Trump’s Terms on Taking Back Illegal Migrants, U.S. Pauses Sanctions, Tariffs | 26 Jan 2025 | The Colombian government “agreed to all” of President Donald Trump’s terms regarding the “unrestricted acceptance of all illegal aliens from Colombia” who are being deported from the United States. In a press release, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt explained that based on the agreement, “fully drafted IEEPA tariffs and sanctions” would be “held in reserve” and not signed unless the Colombia government failed to honor the agreement. Leavitt added that “visa sanctions” issued by the State Department would remain in place “until the first planeload of Colombian deportees is successfully returned.”

Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro buckles under Trump’s trade war threat – offers presidential plane for deportation flights | 26 Jan 2025 | Colombian President Gustavo Petro quickly reversed course about accepting flights of deported migrants from the US after President Donald Trump threatened emergency tariffs of up to 50% on the South American country for refusing to cooperate. Petro not only acquiesced to Trump’s demands, he even offered up the official Colombian presidential plane to help shuttle migrants back to the country, calling it a response to “the Government’s commitment to guarantee decent conditions.” “The Government of Colombia, under the direction of President Gustavo Petro, has arranged the presidential plane to facilitate the dignified return of the compatriots who were going to arrive in the country today in the morning, coming from deportation flights,” a translated official statement read in part.

Feds raid makeshift nightclub in Colorado and discover nearly 50 illegal migrants including dozens connected to notorious Tren de Aragua gang | 26 Jan 2025 | At least 41 illegal immigrants have been arrested during a raid on a Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang party in Colorado. Drug Enforcement Administration officials found 49 people inside a makeshift nightclub in Adams County on Sunday morning — 41 of which were undocumented migrants. Federal officials said some of those detained were associated with the violent Tren de Aragua which has been terrorizing the neighborhood. The early morning raid was conducted alongside officers from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). “Drugs, weapons, and c-sh were seized in Adams County,” officials said on X. “Nearly 50 illegal aliens were taken into custody.”

Trump ramps up dramatic daybreak immigration raids in sanctuary city LA | 25 Jan 2025 | The Trump administration’s mass-deportation offensive expanded into Los Angeles Saturday with pre-dawn roundups, part of a West Coast operation expected to run seven days a week, sources told The Post. Immigration agents avoided sections of the city suffering the most damage from the devastating wildfires burning through parts of Southern California, the sources noted. The effort was part of the major crackdown in large cities across America that President Trump promised on the campaign trail and has focused on booting criminal migrants, sources added. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and other federal agencies involved in the raids are expected to rack up plenty of overtime to speed up efforts.

Trump signs Laken Riley Act, marking first legislative win of second term | 29 Jan 2025 | President Trump on Wednesday signed the Laken Riley Act into law, marking his first legislative victory since he returned to the White House after he campaigned on immigration and the border during his 2024 campaign. The bill passed the House last week in a 263-156 vote, with 46 Democrats supporting it after the Senate approved the measure in a bipartisan 64-35 vote. “This is a very important law, this is something that has brought Democrats and Republicans together. That’s not something that’s easy to do — Laken did it. Laken did it. America will never, ever forget Laken Hope Riley,” Trump said at the bill signing. The bill requires the detention of a broad swath of migrants without legal status, including those permitted to enter the U.S. to seek asylum, if they have been accused of theft, burglary or shoplifting.

Trump to federal workers: Return to office ‘or be terminated’ | 29 Jan 2025 | President Trump on Wednesday warned that federal workers will have to show up to the office “or be terminated,” framing his administration’s so-called buyout offers to 2 million employees as an effort to shrink the government. “We’re requiring them to show up to work or be terminated,” Trump said in remarks from the East Room before signing an immigration bill into law. “We think a very substantial number of people will not show up to work, and therefore our government will get smaller and more efficient,” Trump added. “And that’s what we’ve been looking to do for many, many decades, frankly.”

USDA inspector general escorted out of her office after defying White House | 29 Jan 2025 | Security agents escorted the inspector general of the U.S. Department of Agriculture out of her office on Monday after she refused to comply with her firing by the Trump administration, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. Phyllis Fong, a 22-year veteran of the department, had earlier told colleagues that she intended to stay after the White House terminated her Friday, saying that she didn’t believe the administration had followed proper protocols, the sources said. The White House defended the firing of Fong and the other inspectors general, saying “these rogue, partisan bureaucrats…have been relieved of their duties in order to make room for qualified individuals who will uphold the rule of law and protect Democracy.”

Trump allies win Republican special election primaries to replace Waltz, Gaetz | 28 Jan 2025 | Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis on Tuesday won a special election primary to replace former Florida GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz, and President Donald Trump ally Randy Fine became the Republican nominee to replace former GOP Rep. Mike Waltz. Gaetz resigned his post last year after he was nominated to be Trump’s attorney general, and before he withdrew his name from consideration. Waltz resigned his post last week to serve as Trump’s national security adviser, but he has not been confirmed by the Senate. Trump endorsed both Fine and Patronis in their respective races, and both are running in Republican districts.

Senator Bob Menendez gets 11 years in prison for gold bar bribery scheme | 29 Jan 2025 | Former New Jersey senator Bob Menendez has been sentenced to 11 years in prison for taking part in a bribery scheme that netted him gold bars, thousands in c-sh, a car, and more. The plan, which involved the ex-senator’s wife Nadine and multiple businessmen, saw the Democrat handing out favors for those who could pay his price. Formerly the powerful chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Menendez, 71, in July was found guilty on all 16 felony counts he faced for crimes related to the illegal favors he doled out. He was bribed by New Jersey businessmen and did the bidding of Egypt and Qatar, U.S. federal prosecutors claimed. It is the first time a senator has been found guilty of acting as a “foreign agent.”