Kimmel faces fierce backlash after tearful clarification about Kirk’s alleged killer
“Jimmy Kimmel Live!” host Jimmy Kimmel is facing backlash from conservatives on social media after attempting to clarify his remarks about the assassination of Turning Point USA (TPUSA) founder Charlie Kirk.
Tuesday night was the first show Kimmel hosted since Disney announced his return on Monday after nearly a week off the air. The late-night host addressed, but did not apologize for, his comments that led to the show’s suspension.
“I’ve been hearing a lot about what I need to say and do tonight, and the truth is, I don’t think what I have to say is going to make much of a difference,” Kimmel said. “If you like me, you like me. If you don’t, you don’t. I have no illusions about changing anyone’s mind. But I want to make something clear, because it’s important to me as a human, and that is – you understand that it was never my intention to make light of the murder of a young man.”
JIMMY KIMMEL CHOKES UP AS HE EXPLAINS KIRK COMMENTS, SAYS HE ‘NEVER’ INTENDED TO MOCK ASSASSINATION
Kimmel began tearing up as he said he posted a message to Instagram sending love to Kirk’s family the day of his death.
“Nor was it my intention to blame any specific group for the actions,” he continued. “It was a deeply disturbed individual. That was really the opposite of the point I was trying to make, but I understand that, to some, it felt either ill-timed or unclear or maybe both, and for those who think I did point a finger, I get why you’re upset. If the situation was reversed, there’s a good chance I would have felt the same way.”
Last Monday, Kimmel appeared to falsely suggest the alleged assassin was a MAGA supporter, saying, “We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it.”
Kimmel said Tuesday, however, that he didn’t feel the alleged killer “represents anyone. This was a sick person who believed violence was a solution, and it isn’t, ever.”
Kimmel’s attempt to clarify his previous comments did not sit well with many prominent conservatives, especially those in the TPUSA founder’s close orbit.
CHARLIE KIRK ALLY RESPONDS TO DISNEY’S DECISION TO LIFT JIMMY KIMMEL’S SUSPENSION
Andrew Kolvet, a close friend and executive producer of Kirk’s show, slammed the late-night host’s clarifying remarks as “not good enough” and offered Kimmel some help on how to issue an apology.
Another close friend of Kirk’s, independent journalist Jack Posobiec, ripped “Jimmy ‘The Martyr’ Kimmel” for “fake crying” during his remarks on Tuesday and accused him of being manipulative in his response to the controversy.
Benny Johnson, host of “The Benny Show” and founder of TPUSA Productions, called Kimmel a “sick liar” for his remarks.
CHARLIE KIRK ALLY DEFENDS JIMMY KIMMEL SUSPENSION OVER ‘VILE LIE’ AMID FIRST AMENDMENT CRITICISM
In a lengthy and passionate post on X, actor Rob Schneider hammered Kimmel’s “semi-apology” Tuesday and claimed that the late-night host “lied again” while attempting to clarify his comments on Kirk’s assassination.
“The suspension you justly received last week was for FALSELY ACCUSING, MAGA and Republicans ‘one of their own’ you said, for the murder of our friend Charlie Kirk when it was in fact just another in the long line of Murderous Leftist Lunatics who killed Charlie, who get their inspiration to kill from YOUR DANGEROUS LEFTIST RHETORIC,” he railed.
Chief investigative correspondent for Just the News, Jerry Dunleavy, insisted that Kimmel was being disingenuous in his explanation of his controversial remarks about Kirk’s alleged killer.
Dunleavy claimed that the late-night host “absolutely falsely insinuated that Charlie Kirk’s assassin” was conservative and that he is now attempting to cover his tracks by suggesting that the shooter’s ideology is irrelevant.
HOLDING ABC’S JIMMY KIMMEL ACCOUNTABLE ISN’T ‘CANCEL CULTURE’ — IT’S BASIC FAIRNESS
Actor James Woods also chimed in with his take on Kimmel’s remarks, slamming the late-night host for labeling conservatives fascists “until somebody believed you enough to kill a man better than you’ll ever be.”
“How dare you even say his name,” Woods added.
Fox News Digital has reached out to Disney for comment.
Disney previously told Fox News, “Last Wednesday, we made the decision to suspend production on the show to avoid further inflaming a tense situation at an emotional moment for our country. It is a decision we made because we felt some of the comments were ill-timed and thus insensitive. We have spent the last days having thoughtful conversations with Jimmy, and after those conversations, we reached the decision to return the show on Tuesday.”
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Hillary Clinton reacts to Trump’s hardline stance on Putin during UN remarks
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
told MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” on Wednesday that she “welcomed what the president said yesterday” on the conflict between Ukraine and Russia.
President Donald Trump met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, and Trump then posted to Truth Social afterward that Ukraine “is in a position to fight and WIN all of Ukraine back in its original form.”
“He only responds to strength,” Clinton said of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“He poses a clear and present danger to all of Europe, and therefore, to the United States,” Clinton added.
Clinton previously said she would nominate Trump for a Nobel Peace Prize if he could broker a peace deal between the two countries that would give Ukraine back all of its territory occupied by the Russians.
“You know, look, if we could pull that off, if President Trump were the architect of that, I’d nominate him for a Nobel Peace Prize,” she said during an interview on the “Raging Moderates” podcast last month.
Violet Affleck, the 19-year-old daughter of actors Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner, delivered an impassioned speech at the U.N., calling for mask mandates and the human right to have filtered air.
Violet spoke during the “Healthy Indoor Air: A Global Call to Action” at the UN Headquarters in New York on Tuesday.
“We are told by leaders across the board that we are the future,” said Violet, who was wearing a KN95 mask. “But when it comes to the ongoing pandemic, our present is being stolen right in front of our eyes.”
She blamed adults for “ignoring, downplaying and concealing both the prevalence of airborne transmission and the threat of long COVID.”
“I am terrified for the children who do not or soon will not know a world without debilitating pain and exhaustion, who cannot trust their bodies to build, explore and imagine and who will not know the potential of their own minds unfettered by the cognitive damage from a COVID-19 infection,” she said.
Pointing to her mask, she said “we have access to a technology to prevent airborne disease” that millions around the world “would kill for, and we refuse to use it.”
“We can and we must do that again,” Violet said. “We can recognize filtered air as a human right, intuitively as we recognize filtered water.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy criticized the effectiveness of international law in his address to the United Nations on Wednesday morning.
“If a nation wants peace, it still has to work on weapons. It’s sick. But that’s the reality, not international law, not cooperation. Weapons decide who survives,” he said.
“Excellencies, you know perfectly well international law doesn’t work fully unless you have powerful friends who are truly willing to stand up for it. And even that doesn’t work without weapons. It’s terrible, but without it, things would be even worse. There are no security guarantees except friends and weapons,” Zelenskyy continued.
“That’s why we invest in defense for many nations. There is simply no other way left. Nations can speak about the pain from stages like this. But even during bloodshed, there’s isn’t a single international institution that can truly stop it. That’s how weak these institutions have become,” he added.
The Ukrainian leader’s overall pitch to the United Nations General Assembly is to help stop the conflict with Russia before it’s too late, arguing it is cheaper to invest in ending the war then dealing with the risk of Ukraine losing.
“Stopping Russia now is cheaper than wondering who will be the first to create a simple drone carrying a nuclear warhead,” he said.
President Donald Trump and Zelenskyy met on Tuesday, with the president later sending out a Truth Social post indicating confidence that Ukraine can win back territory from Russia.
Nuclear threats from North Korea are top of mind for less public conversations at the United Nations General Assembly this week.
It’s an issue that is being “continuously brought up,” according to a senior State Department official.
It was a particular concern in Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s meetings with his Japanese and South Korean counterparts and in President Donald Trump’s recent meeting with South Korean President Lee Jae-myung.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un and Trump held two summits during the president’s first term, but there is no other summit on the horizon.
“Our policy remains a complete denuclearization of North Korea,” the official said. Kim has said he’s only open to talks if the U.S. drops the denuclearization demand.
Kim has reportedly slammed the United States push for denuclearization.
“If the United States drops the absurd obsession with denuclearizing us and accepts reality, and wants genuine peaceful coexistence, there is no reason for us not to sit down with the United States,” Kim was quoted as saying by state news agency KCNA.
Fox News Digital’s Morgan Phillips contributed to this report.
Iran’s president repeated Tehran’s claims that it does not seek to build a nuclear weapon as possible sanctions loom, and blamed Israel for disturbing stability in the region while speaking at the U.N. on Wednesday.
President Masoud Pezeshkian spoke at the General Assembly, the first time he has spoken in a global forum since the 12-day Israel-Iran war over the summer that saw the assassination of many of the Islamic Republic’s highest military and political leaders.
“I hereby declare once more before this assembly that Iran has never sought and will never seek to build a nuclear bomb,” Pezeshkian said. “We do not seek nuclear weapons.”
He then blamed Israel as “those who disturb the peace and stability in the region,” while claiming “Iran is the one being punished for those actions” by Israel.
The president also criticized the Britain, German and France’s efforts to trigger the so-called “snapback” mechanism to reinstate sanctions — barring a last-minute accord — over Iran’s failure to comply with conditions of a 2015 nuclear deal aimed at preventing Tehran from developing nuclear weapons.
He said that the countries — known as the E3 — have operated in “bad faith” for years to dictate Iranian compliance with a deal that the U.S. abandoned in 2018.
“They falsely presented themselves as parties of good standing to the agreement and they disparaged Iran’s sincere efforts as insufficient,” he said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made his pitch to the United Nations to continue international support for his country in the war with Russia.
“Stopping this war now and with it, the global arms race, is cheaper than building underground kindergartens or massive bunkers for critical infrastructure later. Stopping Putin now is cheaper than trying to protect every port and every ship from terrorists with sea drones,” he said.
“Stopping Russia now is cheaper than wondering who will be the first to create a simple drone carrying a nuclear warhead. So we must use everything we have together to force the aggressor to stop. And only then do we have a real chance that these arms race will not end in catastrophe for all of us,” Zelenskyy added.
The Ukrainian leader noted that he had a “good meeting” with President Donald Trump
on Tuesday, following his remarks to the United Nations. Trump later posted to Truth Social indicated that he believes Ukraine “is in a position to fight and WIN all of Ukraine back in its original form” with the backing of the European Union.
“But in the end, peace depends on all of us, on the United Nations. So don’t stay silent while Russia keeps dragging this war on. Please speak out and condemn it. Please join us in defending life and international law and order. People are waiting for action,” the Ukrainian leader concluded.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived at the United Nations General Assembly just before 9 a.m. on Wednesday ahead of his address.
Zelenskyy and President Donald Trump met at the UN on Tuesday, following the Trump’s remarks to the body. The meeting seemed to be a major development for the role of the United States in the war in Ukraine.
“After getting to know and fully understand the Ukraine/Russia Military and Economic situation and, after seeing the Economic trouble it is causing Russia, I think Ukraine, with the support of the European Union, is in a position to fight and WIN all of Ukraine back in its original form,” Trump posted to Truth Social on Tuesday night, saying Russia has been “fighting aimlessly” for years.
“Putin and Russia are in BIG Economic trouble, and this is the time for Ukraine to act. In any event, I wish both Countries well. We will continue to supply weapons to NATO for NATO to do what they want with them. Good luck to all!” Trump later added.
President Donald Trump’s United Nations General Assembly
address on Tuesday morning drew some laughs, while world leaders squirmed as he took aim at the body’s priorities such as climate change, Ukraine, refugee resettlement and Palestinian statehood.
“What is the purpose of the United Nations?” Trump asked, after recounting how he — not the U.N. — had ended seven wars, quipping that he never got a phone call from the body asking for help.
Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braže told Fox News Digital world leaders took note of Trump’s blunt style and sweeping agenda. She emphasized that his remarks spanned “a whole set of international issues,” from Ukraine to Gaza.
She highlighted his criticism of Russia, saying it was clear he wanted the war to end and was openly disappointed in President Vladimir Putin. When Trump met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the president said he agreed that NATO countries should be allowed to shoot down Russian aircraft in their airspace.”
As for U.N. reform and criticizing and guiding it through financial crises and endemic dysfunctionality, surprisingly he left a vacuum instead of a narrative,” former U.S. diplomat Hugh Dugan said. “He neither validated nor criticized the U.N. as expected, except pointing out the obvious views of its administrative and diplomatic passivity shared widely.”
Fox News Digital’s Morgan Phillips and Efrat Lachter contributed to this report.
When President Donald Trump took the stage at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), the teleprompter didn’t work. But no matter — he was about to deliver a series of points he knew well, and one that shattered the typical U.N. script.
At times, world leaders shifted uncomfortably in their seats, particularly when he charged that the U.N. had failed to help the U.S. end wars and joked that all he ever got from the institution was being stuck on an escalator and a broken teleprompter. Yet in his trademark style, Trump also drew laughter from the room, managing to be both affable and scolding at the same time.
“What is the purpose of the United Nations?” Trump asked, after recounting how he — not the U.N. — had ended seven wars.
From there, he launched into a wide-ranging address that touched on every one of the U.N.’s modern priorities — climate change, Ukraine, refugee resettlement and Palestinian statehood—and rejected each of them outright, unsettling many in attendance.
Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braže told Fox News Digital world leaders took note of Trump’s blunt style and sweeping agenda. She emphasized that his remarks spanned “a whole set of international issues,” from Ukraine to Gaza. She highlighted his criticism of Russia, saying it was clear he wanted the war to end and was openly disappointed in President Vladimir Putin.
Former U.S. diplomat Hugh Dugan noted that while Trump hammered the U.N., he did not press the case for reform as forcefully as expected.
“As for U.N. reform and criticizing and guiding it through financial crises and endemic dysfunctionality, surprisingly he left a vacuum instead of a narrative,” Dugan said. “He neither validated nor criticized the U.N. as expected, except pointing out the obvious views of its administrative and diplomatic passivity shared widely.”
This is an excerpt from an article by Fox News’ Morgan Phillips
This is an excerpt from an opinion article by former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.
For decades, Israel has tried, sometimes against our better instincts, to work with the United Nations. I have personally sat in numerous meetings with U.N. officials, painstakingly negotiating frameworks to ensure humanitarian aid reached civilians in Gaza. I oversaw budgets, coordinated secure passageways for convoys, and approved daily discussions with U.N. representatives about food, medicine, and fuel. We made these efforts not for Hamas’s sake, but because, as Israelis, we recognize the sanctity of human life, even beyond our own side of the battlefield.
Despite these efforts, the very organization we enabled to deliver aid has repeatedly turned against us. Instead of acknowledging Israel’s unprecedented humanitarian measures, the U.N. issued routine condemnations. Their resolutions read less like acts of diplomacy and more like indictments prepared in advance. This is not neutrality. It is hostility, dressed in the language of international law.
It is difficult to ignore the hypocrisy. Iran,
North Korea, and Syria hold seats on U.N. councils, while Israel is dragged before panels that masquerade as courts of justice. At the same time, another arm of the United Nations, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), operates facilities in Gaza. These buildings were built for education and healthcare, but instead have become arsenals for Hamas rockets and serve as infrastructure for terror.
The fact that U.N.-run schools and clinics have been weaponized in this way is almost always overlooked by those so quick to condemn Israel. The Human Rights Council spends more time singling out Israel than addressing any other crisis on the planet. This is not a coincidence. It is the result of an institution co-opted by regimes determined to undermine the Jewish state.
Last week, the U.N. released a report that accuses me personally, by name, of war crimes and, by extension, accuses Israel of genocide.
I am proud to have stood in the position to defend the State of Israel. Given the choice, I would do so again without hesitation. As minister of defense, I led the IDF as it set standards for proportionality and distinction [not] seen in any modern military conflict. No other army has put greater effort into warning civilians in every possible way: leaflets, calls, texts, and warning shots, before targeting terrorist infrastructure. These are not the acts of an indifferent military; they are the actions of a nation of conscience and responsibility.
Hamas, in contrast, hides rockets in schools, launches missiles from hospital courtyards, forces civilians to serve as shields, and still holds dozens of Israelis hostage. It manufactures civilian suffering and uses it for propaganda.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt called for the firing and investigation of those responsible for a stalled escalator that carried President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump at Tuesday’s United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).
The escalator malfunction occurred before Trump addressed the General Assembly in New York, and he and the first lady were forced to walk up the stalled machine before making his remarks to other world leaders.
“If someone at the UN intentionally stopped the escalator as the President and First Lady were stepping on, they need to be fired and investigated immediately,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt posted on X in response to a Times of London article published Sunday.
The Times reported that U.N. staffers joked that they may switch off the escalator.
When asked on “Jesse Watters Primetime” Tuesday evening whether the malfunction might be an act of sabotage, Leavitt was blunt.
“That’s definitely what it appears to be to me,” she said. “There’s was some concerning reporting over the weekend from the London Times… that U.N. globalist staffers were basically plotting to set up the President of the United States.”
Leavitt said the U.S. Secret Service was looking into the matter.
“If we find that these were U.N. staffers who were purposefully trying to trip up, literally trip up the president and the first lady of the United States, well there better be accountability for those people,” she added.
A United Nations spokesperson later told Fox News that someone from the U.S. delegation or security detail ran up the escalator and then back down again before the Trumps were off the escalator. The act of running down the up-moving escalator triggered an alarm, halting it.
Once a member of al Qaeda and the Islamic State and now leading Syria’s fragile transition since toppling the Bashar Assad regime,
Ahmed al-Sharaa is ready to take to the global center stage at the United Nations General Assembly Wednesday and make his case for a new path forward for his war-torn nation.
“This marks the first participation in high-level meetings of a Syrian president at the United Nations General Assembly since 1967, so this is a very big deal,” Natasha Hall, senior associate at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told Fox News Digital.
“On such a historic occasion, what he will try to emphasize and underline is that this is a new day for Syria. They have overthrown the brutal dictatorship of the Assad regime. He will talk about the progress that’s been made and what more progress needs to happen in terms of recognition and the lifting of U.N. sanctions to help Syria move forward,” Hall added.
A high-ranking Syrian government official confirmed to Fox News Digital that al-Sharaa will use the opportunity at the U.N. to present Syria’s vision for stability, reconstruction, and reconciliation.
“The most important issues he will raise include the need to lift all forms of unilateral sanctions that continue to hinder Syria’s recovery, the importance of combating terrorism in all its forms, the return of displaced Syrians and refugees, and the advancement of a genuinely inclusive political process rooted in the will of the Syrian people,” the Syrian official said.
Al-Sharaa, who led the Islamist rebel group Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham
(HTS) to victory over Assad, ditched his military fatigues for a Western-style suit and has been on a charm offensive, hosting European and Western diplomats and politicians in hopes of bringing Syria out from its international pariah status.
The new Syrian leader received an unprecedented endorsement from President Donald Trump when the two met in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in May.
Though the United Nations’
Charter claims to support fundamental human rights and aims for “larger freedom” in a world liberated from the scourge of war, most of its 193 Member States are not fully democratic.
According to research conducted by Freedom House, which ranks the level of civil liberties and political freedom in countries around the world, only 84 U.N. member states, or 43.5%, are considered “free.”
President Donald Trump
is also concerned that U.N. entities “act contrary to the interests of the United States while attacking our allies.” Trump announced in a February executive order that he would reevaluate commitments to the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), the U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, and U.N. Human Rights Council.
In July, the administration said that it would depart from UNESCO. A White House spokesperson explained that the organization “supports woke, divisive cultural and social causes that are totally out-of-step with the common-sense policies that Americans voted for.”
The United Nations has a long history of anti-Israel bias, but since Hamas terrorists attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, critics charge the world body has gotten worse.
Employees of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) were found to have participated in Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack. U.N. Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese and members of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory (COI) have been accused of propelling anti-Semitic conspiracy theories and releasing biased attacks on Israel.
Even the U.N. Department of Global Communications, the U.N. media support wing, has come under fire for spreading anti-Israel hate.
Director of the Touro Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust and president of Human Rights Voices Anne Bayefsky told Fox News Digital in April that the U.N. has become an “assembly line of lies, hate speech, incitement to violence, and antisemitism.”
Despite the criticism, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres pushed for the continuation of UNRWA’s work and has refused to censure those voices including Francesca Albanese.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro used his UN General Assembly speech Tuesday to blast President Donald Trump’s
anti-drug policy as violent, ineffective, and rooted in domination rather than public health.
Petro argued that Colombia has achieved record cocaine seizures and extraditions under his government, yet Trump “decertified” the country, a move he called unjust and politically motivated.
Petro denounced U.S. missile strikes in the Caribbean that he said killed unarmed Colombian youths under the false pretense of stopping traffickers. He insisted his approach—voluntary crop substitution and anti-trafficker enforcement—was more humane and effective than militarized crackdowns.
He also alleged that Trump’s foreign policy toward Colombia, Venezuela, and the Caribbean was influenced by Colombian politicians connected to drug mafias and paramilitaries.
“This is why I speak to you as a decertified president — I’ve been decertified by President Trump without him having any right to do this, a human right or a divine right or any sensible reason,” Petro said.
He continued, saying the anti-drug policy was not meant to stop cocaine going into the U.S.
“The anti-drug policy is to dominate the people of the south as a whole,” Petro said. “You shouldn’t look at the drugs. You should look at who has the power and who dominates.”
Former FBI official who sent anti-Trump texts loses battle in federal court
A federal judge rejected former FBI agent Peter Strzok’s claims that his termination from the federal law enforcement agency ran afoul of the U.S. Constitution.
Strzok was fired during President Donald Trump’s first term.
He sent anti-Trump text messages while leading the Crossfire Hurricane investigation into Trump’s campaign and Russia.
DOJ SETTLES WITH FORMER FBI OFFICIALS OVER RELEASE OF ANTI-TRUMP TEXTS
“At this point, only two issues remain to be resolved: did plaintiff’s termination violate the First Amendment, and did his termination violate the Fifth Amendment guarantee against the deprivation of property without due process of law?” an order signed by Judge Amy Berman Jackson explained.
Jackson was nominated to the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia by President Barack Obama.
The court found that Strzok’s “interest in expressing his opinions about political candidates on his FBI phone at that time was outweighed by the FBI’s interest in avoiding the appearance of bias in its ongoing investigations of those very people, and in protecting against the disruption of its law enforcement operations under then-Director Wray’s leadership.”
TRUMP SAYS BRENNAN, COMEY ‘CROOKED AS HELL’ AMID FBI PROBE, MAY HAVE TO ‘PAY THE PRICE’
“As to Count Two, the due process claim is predicated on a misrepresentation of the facts and distortion of the chronology,” the document declares.
“Once one gets past the rhetoric and considers the undisputed factual record, it becomes clear that there is no evidence to support a finding that plaintiff entered into a contract … that gave him a property interest in his tenure before the Deputy Director exercised his authority to terminate him, or that plaintiff lacked notice and an opportunity to be heard before his fate was decided,” the document notes.
PATEL FOUND THOUSANDS OF SENSITIVE TRUMP–RUSSIA PROBE DOCS INSIDE ‘BURN BAGS’ IN SECRET ROOM AT FBI
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“The full Memorandum Opinion has been docketed under seal,” the order notes, adding that in the court’s perspective, “nothing in the Memorandum Opinion needs to remain sealed, and therefore, the parties must inform the Court by September 30, 2025 of whether they have any objection to the Court’s unsealing the Memorandum Opinion in its entirety, and if so, specifying what portions they believe should remain under seal and why.”
Mets announcer slams Cubs player for attending Kirk funeral as rookie defends faith
New York Mets broadcaster Gary Cohen criticized Chicago Cubs player Matt Shaw for missing one of the team’s games this past weekend to attend Charlie Kirk’s funeral.
Cohen’s comments came during SNY’s broadcast of the Mets’ game against the Cubs on Tuesday night, while Shaw was up to bat in the fourth inning, calling the decision “weird.”
“I don’t want to talk about any of the politics of it, but the thought of leaving your team in the middle of a race for any reason other than a family emergency, really strikes me as weird,” Cohen said.
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Fellow Mets broadcaster Todd Zeile called Shaw’s absence “unprecedented.”
“It’s unusual, I think it’s unprecedented at least from my experience as a player, and I think it made it a little more unusual that it was not revealed until after it came to issue because he was thought to be in the dugout and maybe available, and was not, and that’s how it was revealed,” Zeile said.
Cohen and Zeile were criticized on social media for their comments about Shaw’s absence.
Shaw missed the Cubs’ 1-0 loss to the Cincinnati Reds on Sunday to attend the memorial service in Glendale, though manager Craig Counsell mentioned to the media that Shaw wasn’t available for the game because he was at a funeral for a friend.
Shaw explained why he made it a point to attend the memorial despite his team’s schedule.
“My connection with Charlie was through our [Christian] faith,” Shaw said before the Cubs opened a new series with the New York Mets on Tuesday, per the Chicago Sun-Times. “And that’s something that drives me every day, the reason why I’m able to do what I do every day, and that’s something I’m extremely thankful for.
“I know without my faith and without the many blessings I’ve been given in my life, that I wouldn’t be here, be able to talk to you guys, able to help this team eventually go and win championships.
CUBS’ MATT SHAW LEAVES TEAM TO ATTEND CHARLIE KIRK MEMORIAL SERVICE
“That’s something I feel really, really blessed about, so whatever backlash comes is OK. I feel strong about my faith and that what was meant to be happened.”
Shaw added that he and Kirk became friends last offseason as they lived in the same apartment complex in Arizona. The two stayed in contact throughout the MLB season, Shaw said.
Shaw said he was emotional when he found out Kirk was assassinated while at a speaking event at Utah Valley University Sept. 10.
“When that happened, a lot of emotions came over me,” he explained. “I didn’t foresee that happening. I don’t know how to describe everything that happened, how I was feeling, But I will say I was tearing up pretty good. I had a lot of [teammates] supporting me, and that will be something I’ll remember for my entire life.”
Shaw had been scratched from the Cubs’ lineup that night before a game against the Atlanta Braves.
Kirk, a native of Arlington Heights, a northern suburb of Chicago, was “one of the biggest Cubs fans I ever Met,” according to Shaw. In fact, Shaw said it was Erika Kirk, his widow, who asked him to attend the memorial. After a conversation with Counsell and some teammates, Shaw felt his decision to attend was accepted.
“The reason Charlie and I connected so close was because of our faith,” Shaw added. “That’s something that drives me every single day, something that I think about all the time. So, if people are wondering who I am and what I stand for, I’d say that my faith and the many blessings I’ve been given are why I’m able to be here, and I just want to make sure that I can give that back to people, that I can support people around me, that I can love people around me the same way that I’ve been blessed.”
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The Cubs were among the MLB teams to pay tribute to Kirk, calling for an end to “all political violence.”
Repeat offender strikes again in another blue city after Charlotte train murder
Seattle police have charged a 44-year-old ex-con with the stabbing of another man in the stomach from behind in a “seemingly unprovoked attack” in the city’s Chinatown-International District, authorities said, the latest in a string of violent crimes across the U.S. linked to repeat-offender suspects.
Surveillance video appears to show a man on a bicycle approach another man and stab him without warning before running off. The victim, who was pulling a cart along the sidewalk at the time, falls to the ground but eventually gets up and tries to run after the suspect while holding his side.
He couldn’t keep up, but police arrested 44-year-old Jose Francisco Garcia nearby. Court records show he has a rap sheet dating back to at least 1997, when he was convicted of third-degree assault, and he had pending drug charges from November.
VICTIM IN VIRAL CINCINNATI STREET BRAWL NOW CHARGED IN CASE, POLICE SAY
He allegedly fled the scene on a bicycle before officers arrived. Police told Fox News Digital that responding officers captured him within 9 minutes of the 911 call — and police dash and bodycam videos show he tried to escape from marked police cruisers on his bicycle before they surrounded and tackled him.
Bodycam video shows police recovered a knife tucked into his waistband when they captured him. It appears to be a small, fixed-blade weapon with Paracord wrapped around the handle.
WATCH: Unprovoked broad daylight Seattle stabbing caught on video
Francisco Garcia was charged with first-degree assault, a felony that carries up to life in prison as a maximum sentence if convicted, and detectives were still investigating.
KNIFE-WIELDING ILLEGAL MIGRANT ACCUSED OF THREATENING US ATTORNEY ON ALBANY, NY STREETS
His most recent prior charge was possession of a controlled substance in November. Before that, he was convicted of fourth-degree assault, harassment and obstructing law enforcement.
Mike Solan, president of the Seattle Police Officers Guild, said the city’s propensity to keep letting suspects like Francisco Garcia walk is due to pressure from “unreasonable activists.” And that hurts morale, he said, with the department staffing down by about 700 officers over the past 10 years.
“It’s an absolute detriment to our entire nation’s public safety,” he said.
Read the rap sheet:
“This is another example of soft-on-crime policies and laws that impact the community at large,” Solan said. “And then, as a trickle-down effect to police officers on the street, normal citizens are fed up with the crime and the blight, and they want to take their cities back.”
The rap sheet includes multiple other assault charges, including drunken driving, unlawful possession of a firearm, attempting to disarm a law enforcement officer, resisting arrest, theft and more. Juvenile cases were not included in the documentation.
AMERICA’S COMMUTERS UNDER SIEGE AS VIOLENT TRANSIT CRIMES ENDANGER BLUE CITIES
In Oregon, he was also convicted of aggravated harassment, criminal mischief, disorderly conduct and other charges.
Firefighters rushed the victim, identified only as a 40-year-old man, to Harborview Medical Center in serious condition.
The stabbing is just one in a string of violent crimes in the Chinatown-International District area, FOX 13 Seattle reported. A man and woman were injured in two separate shootings in the past month.
Then on Monday night, police responded to another shooting in the same neighborhood that left a man dead and another injured.
But Seattle isn’t the only city facing a rash of violence linked to repeat offenders.
In Charlotte last month, Decarlos Brown Jr., a 34-year-old with a history of mental illness and more than a dozen prior charges, allegedly stabbed 23-year-old Iryna Zarutska in the neck from behind in an unprovoked attack on a light rail train on Aug. 22, according to authorities.
Before the attack, he’d been released without bail for a prior misdemeanor charge of allegedly misusing the 911 system.
Zarutska bled to death on a train car full of bystanders. Brown faces first-degree murder in Charlotte, North Carolina, as well as a federal charge of committing an act causing death on a mass transportation system.
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“It’s an unreasonable activist push to reform the criminal justice system that put most of blue cities in this predicament that, to me, is sad and needs to be corrected, really quick,” Solan said.
Trump allies fire back at Democrats’ ‘laughable’ First Amendment outrage
Senate Republicans and Democrats alike are concerned over the Trump administration’s overtures that critics, political enemies and people engaging in hate speech will be targeted.
Last week, President Donald Trump and top officials in his administration sparked a wave of criticism and concern over the fate of free speech in remarks that suggested possibly targeting people for hate speech, revoking broadcasting licenses and prosecuting political enemies.
The sidelining of late-night host Jimmy Kimmel from his show by ABC over comments he made related to slain conservative activist Charlie Kirk further stoked fears on Capitol Hill.
CNN REPORTER SAYS LIBERALS SHOULD ‘ACTIVELY ACKNOWLEDGE’ THEIR ROLE IN CANCEL CULTURE
White House allies in the Senate argued that under former President Joe Biden, Democrats engaged in the same behavior. But some in the GOP believe that it may be the return of cancel culture, this time pushed by the right.
“What I’ve told my Democrat friends, I said, ‘guys, this is act two of cancel culture,’” Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., told Fox News Digital. “I mean, we are here because you made people rightfully very angry by doing the same thing, you just didn’t take it to this level.”
“But if we don’t get it under control, this becomes the floor for how government overreaches, and this just becomes a more empowered, imperial president,” he continued. “And again, as a lifelong conservative, it never occurred to me, even if it was for an end that you agree with, it never occurred to me that any true conservative would consider this a justifiable means.”
Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., argued that Democrats had already taken censorship that far.
During his tenure as Missouri attorney general, he filed a lawsuit, Missouri v. Biden, that alleged a “vast censorship enterprise” between the federal government and social media companies during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Supreme Court ultimately ruled in the administration’s favor.
CRUZ WARNS CONSERVATIVES ‘WILL REGRET’ FCC CENSORSHIP PUSH AGAINST ABC, OTHER MEDIA OUTLETS
He contended that the administration officials were talking directly about violent conduct and not targeting the First Amendment.
“I believe in free speech, people have a right to have their opinion, but I do think the Left has to do some self-reflection, when 85% of Democrats think President Trump is a fascist, and 55% of the Left believe that assassinating Trump would be at least somewhat justified,” he said. “I think it’s time to look in the mirror.”
While Kimmel was reinstated by ABC on Monday, his dismissal still struck a chord on Capitol Hill.
Some of the concern among lawmakers stemmed from Federal Communications Chair Brendan Carr, who said last week: “Frankly, when you see stuff like this, I mean, look, we can do this the easy way or the hard way.”
Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, called his comments “dangerous as hell” and likened them to tactics ripped from a mob movie.
Carr has since clarified his comments and panned criticisms as “distortion” and “projection” by Democrats.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., told Fox News Digital that the Trump administration was using FCC “license revocation to pressure broadcast companies to take in effect censoring.”
“What we’re seeing is in effect, the censorship that is the mark of the authoritarian regime, and that’s very different from anything in recent history, maybe in any history of the United States,” he said.
SCHUMER ACCUSES TRUMP OF EXPLOITING CHARLIE KIRK’S DEATH TO LAUNCH POLITICAL ‘WITCH HUNT’
Attorney General Pam Bondi also said last week that the administration would “go after you if you are targeting anyone with hate speech.”
She has since clarified her remarks, too, and instead noted that her remarks were geared toward violent conduct and that “when you cross the line from First Amendment to a crime … we will prosecute you.”
Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, countered that Democratic lawmakers were being hypocritical and had “zero credibility even having a First Amendment conversation.”
“This has nothing to do with silencing free speech, and the fact that the Democrats are even talking about it is literally the most laughable thing I’ve seen in D.C. since I’ve been here,” he said.
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And Trump weighed in on the issue last week, pushing back against the press and suggesting that government-controlled airwaves aren’t free.
“They’ll take a great story, and they’ll make it bad,” he said. “See, I think that’s really illegal.”
Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., introduced the “No Political Enemies Act” last week to counter the administration’s overtures. He told Fox News Digital: “Why would we not take the president seriously?”
“He literally is using his communication channels to make clear he’s going to lock up his political enemies.”
White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson fired back directly at Murphy in a statement, where she asked: “Where was Chris Murphy when Joe Biden was demanding Meta censor average Americans for sharing facts about COVID? Or when Joe Biden’s FBI investigated parents for expressing concerns at school board meetings.”
“The Fake News Media has spent years attacking the President and lying about his tremendous record of success,” Jackson said. “As someone who actually knows what it’s like to be censored, President Trump is a strong supporter of free speech, and he is right — FCC licensed stations have long been required to follow basic standards.”
Street artist describes blue city reaction to writing Kirk’s name on sidewalks
NEW YORK CITY – New York City street artist who chalks circles on sidewalks has sparked both outrage and fascination with a new series of Charlie Kirk-themed “spots” following the conservative activist’s assassination earlier this month.
Felix Morelo, a Colombian-American artist born in the U.S., is best known for colorful chalk circles labeled with phrases such as “Good Luck Spot” or “Hugging Spot,” along with more controversial iterations like the “Suicide Spot” and the “Israel and Palestine Spot.”
Passersby are invited to interact with the pieces by stepping into the circles — or avoiding them altogether.
Since Kirk’s death, Morelo has been drawing circles marked “Charlie Kirk spot,” prompting mixed responses. Some passersby have defaced the chalk art writing “Nazi” next to his creations, he said, or drawn competing circles of their own, underscoring the country’s broader political polarization.
After the assassination, Morelo said he was disturbed by those who mocked or celebrated the conservative activist’s killing.
“I couldn’t find a reason for somebody to be executed, you know? It’s like, even hardcore criminals get… their due [process],” Morelo told Fox News Digital in Washington Square Park in Manhattan.
YOUNG PEOPLE RESTORE CHARLIE KIRK MEMORIAL MURAL WITH BIBLE VERSES AFTER VANDALS DEFACE TRIBUTE
While Morelo doesn’t agree with everything Kirk said, he liked the conservative influencer and even considered reaching out to participate in a debate.
“This is where I was going to try to debate Kirk, but somebody took him away,” Morelo said. “I think it reflects the politics of where we are right now, you know?”
Morelo prefers to let his artwork speak for itself, but he shared some of his inspiration with Fox News Digital.
“I felt like by writing his name over and over, we will keep his message alive. But I also did it out of anger toward those people that were celebrating,” he said.
“But after some time, I realized that – I decided not to judge or feel bad about the people being happy for his death because I realized that I felt the same feelings.”
Morelo described coming to terms with these feelings of hate, an experience which went on to shape the intent behind creating the spots. He wanted to open a dialogue and try to understand the people he viewed as his enemies.
Morelo recounted hateful reactions to his art, including people smudging out and scribbling over his spots.
I’M A DEMOCRAT, AND CHARLIE KIRK’S MURDER MUST UNITE ALL AMERICANS AGAINST VIOLENCE
He has received vitriolic social media DMs and been approached threateningly on the street, he said. But this social experiment, as he thinks of it, has also taught him something about people.
“I’ve noticed that they spill their hate or whatever they want to say and then they take off,” Morelo said. “And for me, I’m like, OK, you said that but tell me more. Exactly why do you hate this person, and why are you afraid? So it’s been pretty fascinating.”
Still, Morelo himself is afraid at times, but he gives his haters the benefit of the doubt, believing that explosive reactions can come from “any human going through like their good days and bad days, when you’re just pissed off or you didn’t sleep.”
“But I’ve also been approached by people that bless me. I think one of them said that for every one hater that you get, you’re gonna get three people that love you. People hug me, and I feel like they’re getting it,” said Morelo. “It’s like, ‘oh, we’re talking here.’ So, I feel as an artist, I have to be brave and do my work. And just hope for the best.”
He said that he doesn’t have the answers for polarization — but still believes in forgiveness, tolerance and dialogue.
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“Take citizens living in New York, or living anywhere. It’s like having roommates, you know? You got to learn how to live with each other,” he said.
He stressed perspective, saying that despite the hostility, he reminds himself that “most people are all right.”
“For the people out there that hate me, I mean, it’s just chalk.”
Republican launches gubernatorial bid, says he knows ‘how to clean up the bull’
U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, a Wisconsin Republican, has announced a Badger State gubernatorial bid.
“Madison politics may smell like the barn, but I know how to clean up the bull. I will roll up my sleeves and deliver results for every Wisconsinite,” he says in a campaign video.
“I will freeze property taxes, protect our farmland from Communist China, and I’ll preserve our Wisconsin values, just like my mom does with her pickles,” he says in the video.
MILWAUKEE COUNTY EXECUTIVE MOUNTS WISCONSIN GUBERNATORIAL BID, ACCUSING TRUMP OF ‘CHAOS AND CRUELTY’
Tiffany began serving in the U.S. House of Representatives in May 2020 after winning a special election that month to fill the House seat vacated in 2019 by Republican Sean Duffy.
Duffy is currently serving as secretary of the U.S. Department of Transportation.
President Donald Trump won Wisconsin in 2024 and 2016 but lost it in 2020.
SWING STATE DEM GOV BOWS OUT OF 2026 RACE, INSISTS HE’D WIN IF HE RAN: ‘NO QUESTION’
The governor’s race will be an open contest since current Gov. Tony Evers, a Democrat, announced earlier this year that he will not run for a third term.
Washington County Executive Josh Schoemann, who is also vying for the governorship, said in a post on X, “Welcome to the race, @TomTiffanyWI! Looking forward to a Republican primary focused on ideas and winning back the governor’s office.”
FORMER NAVY SEAL AND ‘POLITICAL OUTSIDER’ ANNOUNCES GOP CAMPAIGN FOR WISCONSIN GOVERNOR
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Manufacturer and former Navy SEAL Bill Berrien, another gubernatorial hopeful, declared in a post, “After years of bureaucratic leadership in Madison, the last thing we need is another career politician at the helm. Instead, we need builders who will create prosperity for all through work, revitalize the manufacturing infrastructure that lies dormant in our state, and jumpstart our economy. As the only builder in this race, I’m the strongest general election candidate Democrats will face — and they know it!”
Bessent warns city against begging for a bailout under far-left mayoral candidate’s plan
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent warned on Wednesday that if Zohran Mamdani carries out his socialist economic plans as mayor, New York City will come begging Washington for a bailout – and he won’t give them one.
“I guarantee you, and there’re not a lot of things in life that are sure, but New York City will be coming to the federal government for a bailout if Mamdani’s plans are implemented,” Bessent told FOX Business’ Maria Bartiromo.
EJ ANTONI WARNS NYC OF MAMDANI’S ‘ECONOMICALLY ILLITERATE’ POLICIES
“And are you going to give them that bailout?” asked Bartiromo.
“It will be the same thing that Gerald Ford said. Drop dead,” Bessent said during his interview on “Mornings with Maria.”
MAMDANI’S PUBLIC GROCERY STORES MAY HAVE DEVASTATING EFFECTS ON CITY’S FOOD SUPPLY
Bessent, a Wall Street veteran, doubled down on his warning, saying: “You can’t enact policies like this and expect to be bailed out.”
Mamdani’s campaign did not respond to FOX Business’ request for comment.
Bessent added that New York risks losing its tax base if Mamdani’s plans take effect: “All the high earners, all the businesses. If you look back over the past five years, we’ve already seen the greatest transfer of wealth in U.S. history from Manhattan County to Palm Beach County.”
MAMDANI’S RISE IN NYC MIRRORS ECONOMIC FLIGHT TO THE SOUTH, STUDY SHOWS
His comments come as New York City eyes the potential election of 33-year-old democratic socialist upstart Mamdani.
Mamdani has placed affordability at the forefront of his campaign to helm America’s largest city. But his proposals have rattled Wall Street, where executives have emerged as some of the loudest critics of an agenda that includes free buses, city-owned grocery stores and rent freezes for rent-stabilized tenants.
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Following Mamdani’s underdog win in the Democratic mayoral primary, billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman vowed to finance a rival candidate.
He also warned that Mamdani’s financial plan would “destroy jobs and cause businesses and wealthy taxpayers” to leave New York.
“Socialism has no place in the economic capital of our country,” the Pershing Square chief wrote in a post on X.