Lawmakers alarmed as liberal voters suggest they ‘storm the White House’
Democratic lawmakers say their voters are enraged at the lack of ability to counter President Donald Trump’s agenda, with some saying they could resort to “violence,” Axios reported Monday.
The outlet says it spoke to over two dozen House Democrats to measure the temperature of the Democratic base. What it found was red-hot anger and a burgeoning desire to circumvent the rule of law, where explanations that Democrats simply don’t hold enough power in Washington fall on deaf ears.
“We’ve got people who are desperately wanting us to do something… no matter what we say, they want [more],” Rep. Brad Schneider, D-Ill., told the outlet.
Most of the lawmakers spoke on condition of anonymity. Schneider’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
ELON MUSK SAYS US IS RULED BY ‘PORKY PIG PARTY’ AS TRUMP DEFENDS HIS VISION AGAINST FORMER ALLY’S CRITICISM
“Our own base is telling us that what we’re doing is not good enough… [that] there needs to be blood to grab the attention of the press and the public,” one such lawmaker said.
Another said their constituents are convinced that “civility isn’t working” and that they should prepare for “violence… to fight to protect our democracy.”
A third lawmaker described some of the messages from people online as “crazy ****,” saying that some told them to “storm the White House and stuff like that.”
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
TOP DEMOCRATS ADMIT ‘FAILURE,’ FECKLESSNESS ON BORDER IN SCATHING NY TIMES REPORT
Another lawmaker compared Democratic voters to the “Roman coliseum.”
“People just want more and more of this spectacle,” the lawmaker said.
Other constituents have insisted that lawmakers take on the risk themselves, with one lawmaker saying they were told they should be willing to get “shot.”
“What I have seen is a demand that we get ourselves arrested intentionally or allow ourselves to be victims of violence, and… a lot of times that’s coming from economically very secure White people,” another lawmaker said.
‘CHAOS,’ ‘UNACCEPTABLE’: FETTERMAN RIPS DEMOCRATIC HANDLING OF BORDER IN BIPARTISAN DISCUSSION
A seventh lawmaker recounted a meeting they had with constituents that laid bare the desire for escalation.
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“I actually said in a meeting, ‘When they light a fire, my thought is to grab an extinguisher,'” the lawmaker detailed.
“And someone at the table said, ‘Have you tried gasoline?'” they added.
Elon Musk takes bold Second Amendment stance with new political party
Billionaire business tycoon turned political power player Elon Musk indicated in posts on X that the America Party will stake out pro-Second Amendment, pro-bitcoin positions.
“The Second Amendment is sacred,” Musk declared in a post on X in response to a post that suggested firearm owners would like to know about the party’s position on guns.
Musk also responded to a question about whether the party will “embrace Bitcoin.”
“Fiat is hopeless, so yes,” he wrote.
ELON MUSK LAUNCHES ‘AMERICA PARTY’ AFTER TRUMP SIGNS HISTORIC SPENDING BILL: ‘WASTE & GRAFT’
The party will also stand for free speech and reduced regulations, Musk has indicated.
“Is this the America Party platform?” someone asked in a post on X, writing out a list that included the following: “reduce debt, responsible spending only,” “modernize military with ai/robotics,” “pro tech, accelerate to win in ai,” “less regulation across board but especially in energy,” “free speech,” “pro natalist,” and “centrist policies everywhere else.”
“Yeah!” Musk replied.
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While the American political landscape is dominated by the two major political parties, Musk is looking to shake things up with the America Party.
“When it comes to bankrupting our country with waste & graft, we live in a one-party system, not a democracy. Today, the America Party is formed to give you back your freedom,” Musk declared in part of a post on X.
TRUMP DISMISSES MUSK’S POLITICAL AMBITIONS AS ‘RIDICULOUS’ IN SHARP REBUKE
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Musk noted in another post, “Backing a candidate for president is not out of the question, but the focus for the next 12 months is on the House and the Senate.”
Dangerous ‘tire traps’ scattered on popular city roads impacting drivers, bikers
A popular city has locals taking to the streets to help crack down on the “tire traps” that are scattered across busy roads.
Volunteers in Jakarta, Indonesia, have been picking up nails, threaded bolts and scraps of umbrella frames, according to The Associated Press (AP).
It is thought the mysterious sharp metal pieces are intentionally left by vandals to damage the tires of vehicles on main roads.
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What started as a few community members involved in addressing the issue has grown into a movement of locals cleaning the streets called “Sapu Bersih,” or the Clean Sweep.
Siswanto, a Jakarta resident, told AP he has been picking up metal for five years after his own encounters with the tire traps.
“From 2010 to 2016, we collected four tons of nail traps from Jakarta and other areas, like Bekasi,” said Siswanto.
“We collected them from the volunteers.”
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Siswanto said many volunteers take turns picking up metal before or after work. This apparently occurs all over the city.
There were over 10 million people living in Jakarta in 2010, according to Jakarta Investment Center.
Jakarta Traffic Police Chief Komarudin told the AP he believes the metal is intended to force bikers to the side of a road with a flat — making riders more vulnerable to serious crimes like robbery.
Some locals suspect the traps may have been set by tire repair shops, as metal was found in close proximity.
Motorbike taxi driver Pandu Dewanata told the AP he’s had at least three tires hit the traps in the past year.
“It is suspicious after hitting a nail trap — 100 meters from where we hit there was a tire patchier,” said Dewanata.
“That is suspicious. But I am not accusing, no.”
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Police have found, while investigating the traps, that there are some nuts or bolts that could accidentally fall from passing vehicles — but many objects appear to be deliberately bent.
White House faces blowback after DOJ doc douses fiery talk on Epstein files
Fox News Digital has obtained a two-page internal Department of Justice (DOJ) and FBI memo that says deceased pedophile Jeffrey Epstein died by suicide, and that there is no list of clients whom Epstein may have procured for exploitation by third parties.
“This systemic review revealed no incriminating ‘client list,’” a portion of the memo says. “There was also no credible evidence found that Epstein blackmailed prominent individuals as part of his actions. We did not uncover evidence that could predicate an investigation against uncharged third parties.”
Axios first reported on the memo Sunday night.
FBI DEPUTY DIRECTOR CONFIRMS JEFFREY EPSTEIN DIED BY SUICIDE BASED ON AGENCY’S FILES
On Feb. 21, Attorney General Pamela Bondi told “America Reports” host John Roberts that she was in possession of the “client list.”
“It’s sitting on my desk right now to review,” she said at the time. “That’s been a directive by President Trump.”
In an exchange with White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt on Monday, Fox News’ Peter Doocy asked about the apparent contradiction.
“So, the FBI looks at the circumstance surrounding the death of Jeffrey Epstein,” Doocy said. “According to the report, ‘this systematic review revealed no incriminating client list.’ So what happened to the Epstein client list that the attorney general said she had on her desk?”
“Well I think that if you go back and look at what the attorney general said, in that interview which was on your network, on Fox News— ” Leavitt said.
“I’ve got the quote,” Doocy said. “John Roberts said, ‘DOJ may be releasing the list of Jeffrey Espstein’s clients. Will that really happen?’ And she said, ‘It’s sitting on my desk right now for review.'”
“Yes, she was saying the entirety of all of the paperwork, of all of the papers in relation to Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes,” Leavitt said. “That’s what the attorney general was referring to, and I’ll let her speak for that. But again, when it comes to the FBI and the Department of Justice, they are more than committed to ensuring that bad people are put behind bars.”
The memo also says that Epstein died by suicide in 2019 in the Metropolitan Correctional Facility in New York City.
FBI BOSSES INSIST JEFFREY EPSTEIN KILLED HIMSELF AFTER REVIEWING HIS FILE
“After a thorough investigation, FBI investigators concluded that Jeffrey Epstein committed suicide in his cell at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York City on August 10, 2019,” the memo says.
“This conclusion is consistent with previous findings, including the August 19, 2019 autopsy findings of the New York City Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, the November 2019 position of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York in connection with the investigation of federal correctional officers responsible for guarding Epstein, and the June 2023 conclusions of DOJ’s Office of the Inspector General.”
Two weeks prior to his death, Epstein had been placed on suicide watch after he was found barely conscious in his cell with injuries to his neck. He had been taken off suicide watch just days before hanging himself.
The DOJ released a grainy security video purportedly showing the common area of the Special Housing Unit where Epstein was housed on the night of his death.
The memo says he entered his cell at around 10:40 p.m., which does not appear to be captured by the security footage.
EPSTEIN ACCUSER VIRGINIA GIUFFRE ENCOURAGED ABUSE SURVIVORS TO ‘KEEP FIGHTING’ IN JOURNAL ENTRY
“As DOJ’s Inspector General explained in 2023, anyone entering or attempting to enter the tier where Epstein’s cell was located from the SHU common area would have been captured by this footage,” according to the memo. “The FBI’s independent review of this footage confirmed that from the time Epstein was locked in his cell at around 10:40 pm on August 9, 2019, until around 6:30 am the next morning, nobody entered any of the tiers in the SHU.”
The powerful and wealthy sexual predator, who was connected to high-level American politicians and British royalty, pleaded guilty to soliciting a minor for prostitution charges in Florida in 2008.
He was accused of sexual exploitation of over 250 underage girls in his 2019 arrest.
In 2022, Epstein’s partner in crime, Ghislaine Maxwell, was sentenced to 20 years in prison after being convicted of conspiracy to entice minors to travel to engage in illegal sex acts, conspiracy to transport minors to participate in illegal sex acts, transporting a minor to participate in illegal sex acts, sex trafficking conspiracy, and sex trafficking of a minor.
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The DOJ release announcing Maxwell’s sentencing says she procured underage girls for Epstein to sexually exploit. It makes no mention of a broader sex trafficking operation by Epstein himself.
READ THE FULL MEMO:
The DOJ did not immediately return follow-up comment requests.
The FBI did not return comment requests.
Former friends of Idaho student murderer reveal theory behind his actions
Idaho student killer Bryan Kohberger’s former friends from Pennsylvania and a classmate at Washington State University are baffled that the man they knew to be quiet and awkward pleaded guilty in the mass murder case that rocked the nation.
Kohberger, a former WSU criminology Ph.D. student, pleaded guilty on July 2 to killing four University of Idaho students on Nov. 13, 2022, as part of a deal with prosecutors to escape the death penalty. Kohberger faces four consecutive life sentences for fatally stabbing 21-year-olds Madison Mogen and Kaylee Goncalves, as well as 20-year-olds Xana Kernolde and Ethan Chapin at their off-campus house in the early morning hours of Nov. 13.
Kohberger’s former childhood friend from his home state of Pennsylvania, 31-year-old Jack Baylis, told The Idaho Statesman his idea that Kohberger developed a fixation on people who commit murder and wanted to see if he could get away with committing the perfect crime.
“I think he did it to see what it felt like, to experience it. If he wanted to write a paper about what killers feel and why they kill, to be accurate, you have to experience it yourself to truly understand it,” Baylis told the Statesman. “To get into the mind of a killer, you have to be a killer, would be my guess.”
BRYAN KOHBERGER PLEADS GUILTY TO IDAHO MURDERS
Ben Roberts, 33, a former criminology graduate school colleague of Kohberger’s at WSU, told the Statesman that Kohberger was “kind of nonexistent” in school.
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“I noticed that unless he was deliberately trying to put on an appearance – if he didn’t have the mask – he was kind of nonexistent, or hollow, I guess,” Roberts said. “It’s kind of like you’re staring into an abyss. There’s something human supposed to be there, and it isn’t.”
IDAHO MURDERS TIMELINE: BRYAN KOHBERGER PLEA CAPS YEARSLONG QUEST FOR JUSTICE
He added that Kohberger’s actions after the murders he has since admitted to committing baffle him.
“I just can’t even begin to get inside the head of somebody who could do something like that, and then attend class like it’s business as usual,” Roberts said. “That’s just completely alien to me.”
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Another former childhood friend from Pennsylvania, where Kohberger grew up in the Poconos, told the Statesman she feels “disgusted that he could actually do something so heinous.”
BRYAN KOHBERGER EXPECTED TO OFFICIALLY PLEAD GUILTY: WHAT’S NEXT
Kohberger, now 30, did drugs in high school and eventually overcame a heroin addiction. His friends described him as chubby, awkward and quick-witted to the Statesman.
“I won’t lie, I kind of spiraled yesterday,” Casey Arntz, 32, told the newspaper. “Did he ever have thoughts like that before? Did he ever think that he wanted to kill me or my friends? Were we spared because we were friends with him?”
He’s locked up for life. Let the inside deal with him.
Arntz added later that while she wasn’t as close with Kohberger as her brother or her other friends were, he still spent time in her parents’ house, and she had spent time alone with him, which makes her wonder why he did what he did.
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“I guess the one thing I would say to him is what everyone wants to say to him: ‘Why would you do this? Why would you take the innocent lives of four beautiful people?’ I can’t even begin to imagine what he would say. How does someone justify their actions when they’re so morbid?” she said.
BRYAN KOHBERGER ACCEPTS PLEA DEAL IN IDAHO STUDENT MURDERS CASE
Her brother, 29-year-old Thomas Arntz, told the Statesman that he felt relieved that Kohberger pleaded guilty.
“I am deeply sorry that Bryan’s parents have to live with this as well.… I’ve always thought they were kind people, and they didn’t deserve this. And for Bryan, God have mercy on his soul,” he said.
Goncalves’ family has expressed their disappointment in the plea deal, saying in a July 3 Facebook post on The Goncalves Family Page that the state is showing their daughter’s killer “mercy” by allowing him to serve life in prison rather than be sentenced to death, where he could have been executed by firing squad in Idaho.
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“He deserved life on death row. Also people say that the Goncalves don’t want justice, they want vengeance. Well let me ask you a question about that… if your 21yr old daughter was sleeping in her bed and BK went into her house with the intention to kill her and he did, by stabbing her MANY times, as well as beating her in the face and head while it was clear that she fought for her life… what would you want? Justice or vengeance?” the family wrote.
Kohberger is set to be sentenced on July 23 at 9 a.m. to four consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole.
Trump’s $5 trillion debt ceiling strategy could force Democrats to the negotiating table
President Donald Trump’s hallmark legislation includes a staggering $5 trillion hike to the debt ceiling — a move that gives Republicans added leverage in bipartisan negotiations. With control of both chambers of Congress, Republicans are well-positioned to use the debt limit as a tool in a classic display of political brinkmanship.
As the U.S. government nears a fiscal cliff, Republicans could potentially use the looming deadline to pressure Democrats into making policy concessions. In other words, Democrats would have to decide between default or compromise.
FIVE MAJOR POLICIES TO KNOW FROM THE ‘BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL’
The debt limit — also referred to as the debt ceiling — is a cap set by Congress on the total amount of money the federal government can borrow to pay its existing bills. A few examples of these financial obligations include Social Security payments, tax refunds and salaries for the U.S. military.
Failing to raise the debt limit before the Treasury runs out of cash could trigger further credit downgrades and roil financial markets. In short, Republicans and Democrats want to avoid a U.S. government default because it undermines U.S. economic credibility.
As a result, talks concerning the debt ceiling are a powerful bargaining tool on Capitol Hill.
“The way these negotiations typically go is, in exchange for increasing the debt ceiling, spending cuts are made,” explained E.J. Antoni, chief economist at the conservative-leaning Heritage Foundation. “It could look something like we agree to increase the debt ceiling by $1 trillion in exchange for cutting $1 trillion or so in spending over the next decade. Obviously, those numbers might be higher or lower, but that’s the typical calculus.”
Antoni told FOX Business that the spending cuts largely depend on which party is in power.
“I think this time around you’ll see a particular emphasis on reducing things like abuse, corruption, fraud and waste because of the impact of DOGE (the Department of Government Efficiency). There has been so much exposure to those types of abuses in the federal budget that I think that will be low-hanging fruit when we come to the next debt ceiling talk,” Antoni said.
INSIDE THE CBO SCORE THAT BECAME AMMO FOR BOTH SIDES AND NEARLY BLEW UP THE GOP’S FLAGSHIP BILL
Michael Strain, director of economic policy studies at the American Enterprise Institute, commended the debt ceiling hike in Trump’s massive tax and spending bill.
“Increasing the debt ceiling should be a routine function of the government, so tucking the increase into a must-pass bill is smart,” Strain, who is also the Arthur F. Burns Scholar in political economy at AEI, told FOX Business. “Doing so will spare a potentially harmful and damaging fight over increasing the debt ceiling.”
“It’s certainly possible that both parties will have to make concessions the next time around,” Strain added.
TREASURY SAYS US IS ‘NEVER GOING TO DEFAULT’ AS DEBT LIMIT DEADLINE LOOMS
Trump has previously called on Republicans to resolve the debt ceiling and avert a national default and Antoni predicts this will remain central to the president’s economic agenda.
“When we look at these future debt ceiling negotiations down the road, don’t underestimate President Trump’s ability to negotiate,” Antoni said. “Repeatedly, analysts and political pundits and even economists have thought that he was not going to be able to get as good of a deal as he has gotten in the past,” he added.
Critics of raising the debt limit argue that it postpones an inevitable reckoning with unsustainable government spending. In other words, Congress is pushing the much-needed debate over runaway spending and mounting debt down the road.
What’s more, Trump’s landmark legislation is expected to increase the national debt by more than $3 trillion in the next 10 years — a burden that’s already approaching $37 trillion.
In May, credit rating agency Moody’s lowered the U.S. rating to one notch below its top-tier Triple-A status, citing concerns over surging debt levels.
MOODY’S DOWNGRADES US CREDIT RATING OVER RISING DEBT
Romina Boccia, director of budget and entitlement policy at the Cato Institute, called the $5 trillion debt ceiling increase a “striking display of fiscal hypocrisy.”
“Republicans have long argued that the debt ceiling is one of the few leverage points to enact spending reductions. But this debt ceiling increase flips that script—it’s nearly a dollar-for-dollar increase in debt for new deficits, with far more modest spending reductions that are delayed, increasing the risk that they could be overturned,” Boccia told FOX Business.
Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, has emerged as one of the loudest critics of Trump’s massive tax and spending measure, calling it a “debt slavery” bill.
ELON MUSK LAUNCHES ‘AMERICA PARTY’ AFTER TRUMP SIGNS HISTORIC SPENDING BILL: ‘WASTE & GRAFT’
“Hitting the debt ceiling is the only thing that will actually force the government to cut waste and fraud. That’s why the debt ceiling legislation exists!” Musk wrote in a string of posts on X.
“What’s the point of a debt ceiling if we keep raising it?” asked Musk, who formerly led a crusade against wasteful government spending at DOGE.
The billionaire, who spent nearly $300 million backing Trump and other 2024 Republican campaigns, also called for a “new political party.” Over the weekend, Musk announced the formation of the “America Party.” Musk said the party will target key seats in Congress.
Representatives for Musk did not immediately respond to FOX Business’s request for comment for purposes of this story.
Democrats go all in pushing leftist agenda in wake of Texas flood tragedy
Democrats and media outlets across the country have been quick to politicize the devastating flooding in Texas that killed at least 91 people by blaming climate change, President Trump, race and government cuts.
“It is hard to make the Texas flood tragedy worse, except to know that on the same day Trump signed a bill cratering solar and wind energy that is vital in the battle against the climate change making these torrential rains more frequent,” former Washington Gov. Jay Inslee posted on X on Saturday as bodies were still being recovered in Texas.
“I think climate change is obviously a part of it,” Dem. Rep. Joaquin Castro told CNN. “These floods are happening more often.”
“’Waste, fraud & abuse’ is a handy mantra,” Former Obama aide David Axelrod posted on X on Sunday. “And they surely exist, in & out of government. But cutting vital services like the weather service has predictable, hazardous consequences – especially when catastrophic weather events are becoming more frequent!”
TEXAS SUMMER CAMP EVACUATED 70 STAYING NEAR RIVER AHEAD OF FLOODING: ‘SAW IT COMING’
“Accurate weather forecasting helps avoid fatal disasters,” Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., posted on X in response to reports that a specific meteorologist position in the area was unfilled at the time of the flood. “There are consequences to Trump’s brainless attacks on public workers, like meteorologists.”
Murphy was one of several critics on the left to invoke Trump’s name.
“It only took 9 days for Trump’s cuts to the [National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration] to kill dozens of children in Texas when Tropical Storm Barry landed this week,” Grant Stern, the executive editor of Occupy Democrats, wrote on X.
“The people in Texas voted for government services controlled by Donald Trump and Greg Abbott,” added Ron Filipkowski, former federal prosecutor and the editor-in-chief of MediasTouchNews. “That is exactly what they (sic) getting.”
Isaiah Martin, a Democratic candidate for Texas’s 18th Congressional District, called for an immediate congressional investigation into “the Republican DOGE cuts to NOAA and the National Weather Service.”
TEXAS FLOOD SURVIVORS SHARE HARROWING STORIES, SEARCH CONTINUES FOR THOSE STILL MISSING
“We saw the affects (sic) this weekend,” Martin wrote on X. “Trump defunded these agencies and we DEMAND answers. There MUST be *swift* accountability!”
“Trump & Musk gutted the National Weather Service. The result was predictable: A bad forecast leading to the death of children in a horrific flood,” added California state Sen. Scott Wiener.
Additionally, several media outlets joined Democrats in placing blame on budget cuts and suggesting the National Weather Service was understaffed at the time of the flooding despite an Associated Press report that said the NWS office in the area had extra staff on duty at the time of the flooding.
“Reminder: The staffing shortages at the National Weather Service’s San Angelo and San Antonio offices doubled under the Trump administration,” the official X account of the Democratic Party wrote on X in a post that was lambasted by conservatives on social media. “These jobs are meant to coordinate disaster response and save lives.”
“The Big Ugly Bill’s elimination of climate action laws and cutbacks in the National Weather Service couldn’t come at a worse time as the deadly flooding in Texas has shown,” Rep. Frank Pallone, D-N.J., posted on X. “Those incidents are likely to get worse as Republicans ignore the reality of climate change.”
Some incorporated race into the equation, including Sade Perkins, a former member of the Houston Food Insecurity Board, who suggested in a heavily criticized video the intense media coverage of the event was because the young girls who were killed at a summer camp in the flood’s path were White.
Several meteorologists have pushed back in recent days on Democratic claims that Trump administration cuts to NOAA, NWS and other government agencies directly contributed to the tragedy.
“The event has nothing to do with climate change,” meteorologist Chris Martz posted on X. “And, the tragedy had nothing to do with DOGE cuts.If you are someone who has exploited this catastrophe because you just don’t like Trump, you need to take a serious look in the mirror.”
Tom Fahy, legislative director for the National Weather Service Employees Organization, told NBC News that weather forecasting offices were adequately staffed, and “they issued timely forecasts and warnings leading up to the storm,” but he added that unfilled leadership positions were “clearly a concern.”
“All I’ll say is this. The National Weather Service issued a flood watch for Kerr County more than 12 hours ahead of the catastrophic flood. A flash flood warning was issued for Hunt & Ingram 3 HOURS before the Guadalupe started to climb,” said Texas-based meteorologist Avery Tomasco. “They did their job and they did it well.”
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White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson called it “shameful and disgusting” to see that, in the wake of this tragedy, people are politicizing what took place.
”It’s shameful and disgusting that in the wake of tragedy, the left’s first instinct is to lie and politicize a disaster to target their political opponents. False claims about the NWS have been repeatedly debunked by meteorologists, experts and other public reporting,” Jackson said. “The NWS did their job, even issuing a flood watch more than 12 hours in advance. The Trump administration is grateful to the first responders who sprung into action to save hundreds of lives during this catastrophe, and will continue to help the great state of Texas in their recovery efforts.”
In a lengthy thread on X outlining the timing of the government’s response, the Department of Homeland Security said “the mainstream media is deliberately lying about the events leading up to the catastrophic flooding in Texas.”
‘Fridge cigarettes’ sweep TikTok as experts warn popular Gen Z habit isn’t harmless
The mid-afternoon cigarette break has taken a new form for Gen Z with a sweet, bubbly twist.
Videos about “fridge cigarettes” have garnered hundreds of thousands of likes on TikTok this summer as scores of young adults have raved about the pick-me-up.
The fix is diet soda, particularly Diet Coke — chilled to perfection.
EXPERTS SAY QUITTING DIET COKE CAN IMPROVE HEART HEALTH AND GUT BALANCE
“Just a little something to take the edge off,” one TikTok video of a Diet Coke can read.
“Time for my afternoon fridge cigarette,” another said of the same soda brand.
A third video caption reads, “Fridge cigarette after a long day.”
What’s the appeal behind the TikTok trend?
Jonathan Alpert, a psychotherapist based in New York City, said the trend works because Diet Coke can act as an “emotional stand-in.”
COCA-COLA ANNOUNCES NEW ORANGE CREAM FLAVOR: ‘ICONIC AND NOSTALGIC TASTE’
“It becomes a way [for people] to pause, reset or reward themselves,” the expert told Fox News Digital.
“[It’s] a small ritual that offers structure or comfort in the middle of a hectic day. It can be grounding for some people.”
The psychology expert also noted that cracking open an ice-cold Diet Coke is a sensory experience, much like smoking.
“The crisp sound, the carbonation and the cold hit all offer a quick, reliable burst of stimulation or relief, especially during stressful or transitional moments in the day,” Alpert said.
“I see this trend as less about the drink itself and more about the ritual.”
“I see this trend as less about the drink itself and more about the ritual.”
VIRAL ‘MCMIGRAINE’ REMEDY HAS SOME RUSHING TO MCDONALD’S FOR HEADACHE RELIEF
While opting for soda is “certainly a healthier choice than cigarettes,” Alpert warned that the trend is not totally harmless.
“When Diet Coke becomes a daily emotional crutch, it can reinforce dependency patterns, particularly if it is being used to manage anxiety, suppress appetite or avoid discomfort,” he shared.
Fox News Digital reached out to the Coca-Cola Co. for comment but did not immediately hear back.
Debra Muth, a naturopathic doctor (ND) based in Wisconsin, echoed Alpert’s concerns.
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The trend is “really trading one bad habit for another,” said the medical expert.
“The Diet Coke break works because of the ritual itself of stepping away and having something in your hands. That pause triggers stress relief,” Muth told Fox News Digital.
“But here’s what people don’t realize: your brain isn’t asking for aspartame or nicotine. It’s asking for dopamine.”
“But here’s what people don’t realize: Your brain isn’t asking for aspartame or nicotine. It’s asking for dopamine. That artificial sweetener crosses your blood-brain barrier and actually makes the neurotransmitter depletion worse. You’re literally borrowing from tomorrow’s brain chemistry.”
Muth also does not recommend the trend when it comes to cigarette smokers looking to quit.
“Both nicotine and Diet Coke hijack your dopamine pathways,” the family physician said.
“Your brain gets the same temporary ‘reward’ hit, but it’s a false sense of satisfaction.”
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Instead, she said, it’s better to “give your brain what it actually needs, such as amino acids like L-tyrosine for natural dopamine production, balanced blood sugar and real stress management that restores your brain’s reward system.”
Obama-appointed judge clashes with Trump admin over Salvadoran deportee’s fate
Justice Department lawyers and attorneys for Salvadoran migrant Kilmar Abrego Garcia will square off in court Monday as a federal judge in Maryland weighs a flurry of motions over his U.S. custody – and the Trump administration pushes to dismiss the civil case entirely – in a closely watched legal battle that’s become a flashpoint in President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown.
U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis scheduled the hearing last week to consider recent motions from both sides, after Abrego Garcia was wrongfully deported to El Salvador in March and returned three months later to face criminal charges in a different state.
The hearing is all but certain to reignite a high-profile fight over Abrego Garcia’s legal status in the U.S., which is currently playing out in two separate federal courts.
Ahead of the 11 a.m. hearing, here’s what to know about the civil case – and potential next steps from Judge Xinis.
FEDERAL JUDGE JAMES BOASBERG FINDS PROBABLE CAUSE TO HOLD TRUMP IN CONTEMPT OVER DEPORTATION FLIGHTS
Case history
The hearing in Maryland comes after Salvadorian migrant Kilmar Abrego Garcia was summarily deported by Trump officials to El Salvador in March in violation of an existing court order. His family sued the Trump administration over his removal almost immediately, and later that month, U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis, an Obama appointee, ordered the Trump administration to “facilitate” Abrego Garica’s return to the U.S.
The ruling was later upheld by the Supreme Court, though it took three months – and many discovery hearings before Xinis – for Trump officials to eventually comply with the court’s order and return him to the U.S. in June.
On return, Abrego Garcia was immediately taken into custody in Tennessee for federal charges stemming from a 2022 traffic stop. Court documents show the charges were brought in late May, prompting questions as to when the investigation, and the impaneling of a grand jury, would have taken place.
US JUDGE BLASTS TRUMP LAWYERS FOR 11TH-HOUR TACTICS IN MS-13 DEPORTATION CASE
Monday’s motions hearing
It’s unclear how far Xinis will go in addressing the competing requests filed by both sides, though she signaled last week that the hearing will remain narrowly focused on the government’s motion to dismiss the civil case and the plaintiffs’ bid to transfer Abrego Garcia into U.S. custody in Maryland.
Abrego Garcia’s lawyers had asked Xinis to issue an order blocking his possible removal from the U.S. without prior notification, pointing to statements from the Trump administration as evidence that they could try to remove him to a possible third country other than El Salvador.
“Defendants have repeatedly stated their intent to remove Mr. Abrego Garcia to a third country,” his lawyers said last week in a filing, adding that he could face “persecution or torture if removed directly to various other countries,” including Libya, South Sudan and Eritrea, which are notorious for human rights abuses.
Meanwhile, new allegations made in court filings days earlier could prove difficult for the court to distinguish in its consideration of the other issues.
Last week, Abrego Garcia alleged in a filing that he was severely beaten and psychologically tortured in El Salvador’s maximum-security prison, CECOT, when he was detained there earlier this year.
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Adding to the complexity of the matter is the separate criminal case playing out in Tennessee.
The federal judge overseeing that case on Thursday ordered the Trump administration to comply with rules prohibiting Justice Department and DHS officials from making any public statements about Abrego Garcia that could potentially prejudice a jury or impact the integrity of the court proceedings, after his attorneys accused administration officials of months of “extensive and inflammatory extrajudicial comments” against their client that threatened to prejudice his right to a fair trial.
“Thus far, the government’s unabated public disparagement of [Abrego] has far outpaced its ability to muster actual evidence, notwithstanding its extraordinary efforts to conjure up such evidence,” they wrote, warning that such statements could complicate efforts to seat an impartial jury in the Middle District of Tennessee, where his trial is set to take place.
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Next steps
It remains to be seen what Xinis will do in Abrego Garcia’s civil case, especially as the criminal case in Tennessee proceeds.
But her frustration with the Trump administration has been clear in earlier proceedings. For months, Xinis struggled to obtain answers from Trump administration officials on Abrego Garcia’s status in El Salvador, as well as what, if any, efforts the Trump government had taken to comply with her order to facilitate his return to the U.S., and at one time suggested she could move to open possible contempt proceedings against the administration.
In May, Xinis sparred with the Justice Department lawyers for more than two hours over their lack of candor and compliance with the discovery process and the deadlines set by the court. It was the last public status hearing she presided over before the administration returned Abrego Garcia to U.S. soil.
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During that hearing, Judge Xinis rebuked the Justice Department for attempting to invoke the state secrets privilege via a footnote that referenced a filing in a separate federal court case, before a different federal judge.
She also excoriated the lack of compliance from Trump administration officials, and attempts to press the administration for answers, which she described as beating a “frustrated and dead horse.”