Dem House hopeful exposed as far-left activist pushing to abolish police
FIRST ON FOX: The Democratic Party’s candidate seeking to win a House seat in Tennessee’s upcoming special election has a lengthy record of anti-police rhetoric, which she espoused repeatedly on a now-deleted social media account and in interviews prior to becoming a state legislator in 2023.
Aftyn Behn, who is running against Republican Matt Van Epps in Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District special election, also worked as a regional organizing director for the nonprofit activist group Indivisible prior to becoming a state legislator. The radical left-wing entity was also a frequent advocate for stripping funding from police departments, calling it “critical” at the height of the defund movement.
“Where’s the proposal that dissolves @MNPDNashville?” Behn asked on an old social media account, which has since been deleted, in response to a separate social media post from a Nashville City Council member indicating local officials had submitted a “substitute budget proposal” aiming to strip Nashville police of $2.6 million in funding.
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“If it’s been difficult for all of you to imagine a world without police … we can do it and there is a world,” Behn subsequently said during an interview with a local Nashville advocacy group.
Behn posted most of her comments at the height of the “defund the police” movement in 2020 and 2021 after the death of George Floyd at the hands of police in Minneapolis. Amid violent protests that often devolved into dangerous rioting and looting after Floyd’s death, Behn also downplayed the violence and ridiculed White people for criticizing the looting, stating it was simply how minority communities were expressing their grief over Floyd’s death.
“Looks like Aftyn is getting a visit from the Ghost of Wokeness Past,” quipped Republican strategist Matt Gorman. “Democrats over and over have been haunted by their past positions they thought they could hide from. Ask Kamala Harris about her advocacy of taxpayer-funded sex change surgeries for illegal immigrant convicts on how that goes.”
Behn did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment. However, Democrat strategist Eric Koch argued that attacks on Behn have been surging because “Republicans are getting worried in a district that Trump won by over 20 points,” adding that Democrats making this race competitive shows they are in good shape to take back the House in the midterms next year. The special election is scheduled for Dec. 2.
While popular in the immediate aftermath of Floyd’s death, the push to “defund the police” has become a political liability for many Democrats running in recent elections. New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani faced criticism in the lead-up to his victory for his past anti-police rhetoric and went on Fox News to apologize. Earlier this month, a progressive candidate for U.S. Senate in Michigan was reported to have quietly deleted old social media posts in support of defunding the police.
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“I’m currently involved in a transformative justice seminar, and so it’s how to imagine a world without police and what that looks like and what community mechanisms look like. How people cannot police themselves,” Behn said during an interview with Nashville Musicians For Change in July 2020.
“If it’s been difficult for all of you to imagine a world without police, please tune in to, maybe not this episode, but the next one. Because I’ll talk about things I’m learning and growing as an organizer. Because I think, especially for those of us that are young, and talking to our parents about what police abolition looks like, that we can do it and there is a world.”
Behn made her comments as she worked with the left-wing nonprofit Indivisible, which also has a record of pushing to defund the police, calling the effort “critical … to keep everyone safe,” in a Facebook post in 2020. The same year, the group called on people to phone their local, state and federal lawmakers to demand policies and budgets that steer money away from police departments and toward “Black communities.”
“Good morning, especially to the 54% of Americans that believe burning down a police station is justified,” Behn said in another post in response to polling about who saw the destruction of a Minneapolis police precinct as justified. The precinct burned to the ground, and police were forced to abandon the precinct.
Amid the chaos spurred by the death of Floyd that resulted in billions of dollars in damage and multiple lives lost, Behn was also co-hosting a podcast at the time. During one of the episodes, “Black Lives Matter,” Behn argued it “is not for us to decide as privileged White people how marginalized communities express their suffering and their pain and their grieving.”
She was referring to the looting and rioting taking place, calling it “a trope” for White people to say the looting was bad.
“I would really challenge all of you when you see these stories of looting, and you revert to this law and order type of response, I really challenge you to step back from that and think about what’s driving that,” Behn added of the rioting. “You should not condemn it because you don’t know the first thing about being where they come from and what their generational trauma that has been inflicted upon them by the police, by institutional racism.”
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During the same podcast episode, Behn suggested police don’t actually serve to guard and protect Americans.
“You think calling the cops is going to save you?” Behn asked her listeners. “Black men are being killed when White women call cops.”
Behn also came under fire this week for other comments on her podcast, during which she said she hated her city of Nashville and all the southern-style elements that come with it, like country music.
In addition to Behn’s remarks in interviews and on podcasts, the Democratic House hopeful also repeatedly espoused defund the police rhetoric on a now-deleted X account, which was Twitter at the time.
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For example, Behn responded to a post, claiming “the Los Angeles teachers union” was demanding a commitment to “defund the police” before it would commit to returning to in-person learning for students, with a response that called on teachers in her state to do the same. The post Behn was responding to also called for more similar demands across the country.
“Let’s go Tennessee teachers! We have your back!!!!,” Behn wrote in response to the post.
“Your individual positive experiences with cops do not outweigh the fact that the entire criminal justice system was built on institutionalized racism,” another post Behn shared on her now-deleted Twitter account stated.
Deputy with 25 years of service gunned down during ‘standard call’ in gated community
A Florida sheriff’s deputy was killed in the line of duty while serving an eviction notice Friday morning, officials said.
“It is with profound sadness and heavy hearts that we announce the passing of Deputy Terri Sweeting-Mashkow, who was killed in the line of duty on November 21st, 2025 while faithfully serving our community,” the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office in Vero Beach wrote on its social media Friday afternoon.
“Her loss is felt deeply by every member of our agency, as well as by the community she served with pride.”
Sweeting-Mashkow, 47, served with the sheriff’s department for 25 years and 16 days, Sheriff Eric Flowers said at a news conference.
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Sweeting-Mashkow had reported to a home at Bermuda Club, a gated community in Vero Beach where a mother was evicting her son, identified as Michael Halberstam.
“What an awful day. Six days before Thanksgiving,” Flowers told reporters.
Once Sweeting-Mashkow, other deputies and a locksmith arrived in the entryway to the home, Halberstam allegedly grabbed a gun and began “indiscriminately firing at our deputies on scene.”
Another deputy was shot in the shoulder and is recovering, and the locksmith is in surgery in critical condition, Flowers said. The suspect is also in critical condition after deputies fired back at him.
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Flowers noted Sweeting-Mashkow’s death was only the second in the line of duty for the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office in its 100 years.
Sweeting-Mashkow started her career 25 years ago as a dispatcher, worked for 20 years on patrol and was moved to the legal process civil unit in 2023.
Halberstam has a 2006 narcotics charge and a 2015 misdemeanor assault charge out of Virginia, Flowers said.
He said the department had seven calls this month, mostly from Halberstam’s mother, about him at the residence, leading her to eventually decide to evict him.
The suspect was not on the department’s radar, Flowers said, adding that the eviction duty was a “standard call to service.”
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“The regular duties that our deputies bravely do every day in and out, and today Deputy Terri Sweeting-Mashkow, 25 years of service, 47 years old, gave her life for this community,” he said at the end of the news conference.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis earlier Friday said his office was monitoring the situation after the deputies were shot.
Lions coach delivers grim update on Pro Bowl star’s future after back surgery
The Detroit Lions might have lost one of their top offensive weapons for the season.
Lions star tight end Sam LaPorta is unlikely to return this season after undergoing back surgery, head coach Dan Campbell said during his news conference Friday.
“I think we would be fortunate to have a chance to get him back for the rest of the season,” Campbell said. “I think that’s very, very slim.
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“The good news is the procedure went really well, long term.”
The loss of LaPorta is a massive one for a potent Lions offense. The 24-year-old was in the midst of another strong season with 40 catches for 489 yards and three touchdowns in nine games.
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The Pro Bowl tight end is second on the team in receptions — Amon-Ra St. Brown leads with 66 — and is third on the team in receiving yards behind St. Brown’s 735 and Jameson Williams’ 562. Backup tight end Brock Wright will be thrust into a more prominent role in LaPorta’s absence.
LaPorta became an instant contributor since being drafted in the second round of the 2023 NFL Draft out of Iowa. In 42 games over three seasons, LaPorta has 186 receptions for 889 yards and 20 touchdowns and is a trusted option for quarterback Jared Goff.
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The Lions dropped to 6-4 after a 16-9 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, a game LaPorta did not play in, and are outside the playoff picture.
They will look to get back on track when they play the lowly New York Giants (2-9) Sunday at 1 p.m. ET.
Trump proposes $2,000 tariff checks for most Americans — but it comes with a catch
President Donald Trump’s proposal to give Americans $2,000 tariff dividends could carry a hefty price tag, according to a new analysis by a budget watchdog.
Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Monday that the federal government is looking to pay out the dividends by mid-2026, which would fall ahead of the midterm elections. The timing could depend on Congress, as Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent recently said legislation would be needed to authorize the dividends.
“We’re going to be issuing dividends later on, somewhere prior to, you know, probably the middle of next year, a little bit later than that,” Trump said. “Thousands of dollars for individuals of moderate income, middle income.”
The president announced the proposal in a post last week on his Truth Social platform, saying that “We are taking in Trillions of Dollars and will soon begin paying down our ENORMOUS DEBT, $37 Trillion. Record Investment in the USA, plants and factories going up all over the place. A dividend of at least $2000 a person (not including high income people!) will be paid to everyone.”
The nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB) estimated that if Trump’s tariff dividends are structured like the COVID-19 era stimulus payments that went to adults and children after accounting for income levels, each round of tariff payments would cost about $600 billion on an annual basis.
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The CRFB noted that the tariffs the Trump administration has put in place have raised about $100 billion so far this year, including tariffs that were ruled illegal by federal courts and are pending an appeal before the Supreme Court.
On an annual basis, the Trump administration’s tariffs – including those that may be struck down by the Supreme Court – are projected to raise about $300 billion per year. By contrast, the net new tariff revenue that isn’t subject to the Supreme Court ruling raises a little less than $100 billion per year.
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It’s unclear whether the president intends for tariff dividends to be paid annually or at less frequent intervals, or the amount of the dividend given that he stipulated “at least $2000 a person” in his social media post.
The CRFB said that if $2,000 dividends were paid annually, they would increase deficits by $6 trillion over 10 years, adding that the cost is “roughly twice as much as President Trump’s are estimated to raise over the same time period.”
If the administration were to pay the tariff dividends on a revenue-neutral basis, if current tariffs remain in effect, those $2,000 dividends could be paid every other year starting in 2027, according to the analysis.
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However, if lower court rulings are upheld by the Supreme Court and much of the Trump administration’s tariffs are ruled illegal, the remaining tariff income would be sufficient to pay $2,000 dividends after seven years.
“Using income from tariffs to pay dividends would mean that income could not be used to reduce deficits or offset borrowing from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” CRFB wrote.
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The analysis also found that using tariff revenue for rebates or dividends, rather than to pay down the national debt, would push the debt as a share of gross domestic product (GDP) to 127% by 2035, higher than the 120% projected under current law. If $2,000 dividends are paid annually, that would push debt to 134% of GDP.
Former detective reveals what FBI is testing after teen found dead on cruise
They’re supposed to be lifesavers — but in this case, the best they may do is point investigators toward a killer.
The life jackets found covering 18-year-old Anna Kepner’s body on the Carnival Horizon cruise ship when staff discovered her dead two weeks ago may be key, according to a veteran detective who is following the case. They are stored in the closet, not under the bed, so someone moved them.
“They’re gonna test the life jackets, blankets, whatever else they found in the room, plus Anna’s body,” said Pat Diaz, a former Miami-Dade County homicide detective and now a private investigator.
And everything could contain important clues.
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A preliminary investigation found evidence Anna had been asphyxiated in a chokehold, ABC News reported Friday.
Fox News Digital has not independently verified the report. An official cause and manner of death have not yet been determined, according to the medical examiner’s office. But a source with knowledge of the case said toxicology and other lab testing had not yet been completed but said bruises had been found on the body.
But if someone worked up a sweat during a murder, they would have left DNA all over the room, the victim and anything they used to cover the body, according to Diaz.
As the FBI continues its investigation into Kepner’s mysterious death aboard a cruise ship, forensic experts are likely still analyzing DNA and other evidence for clues that could determine whether foul play was involved, experts say.
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Friday marked two weeks since the aspiring Navy sailor was discovered dead in her cabin around 11 a.m. on Nov. 7.
Her remains were transferred to the Miami-Dade County Medical Examiner’s Office after the vessel returned to port the following day. But the forensic pathologist on her case has not yet revealed a cause and manner of death.
Diaz said that at this point, it’s too early for results from toxicology and other lab testing.
“Not only are they doing DNA to try and match the 16-year-old, they’re probably also trying to rule out the 14-year-old,” he told Fox News Digital. “And nothing’s happening fast because they’ll show what they get to a grand jury.”
Kepner came from a large blended family with eight siblings.
No one has been charged with a crime in connection to Kepner’s death, but her 16-year-old stepbrother’s parents have both said in court filings that he is being eyed as a “suspect” by the FBI.
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The FBI declined to comment, citing the active investigation.
But others close to Anna have accused the 16-year-old of inappropriate behavior, ranging from climbing “on top of her” in the middle of the night as she slept to reportedly scaring her with a knife.
Her ex-boyfriend, speaking to reporters outside her memorial service Thursday night, said he was on a 3 a.m. FaceTime call with her when she fell asleep. Then he claims he caught her stepbrother slide into the frame.
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“I was like, what the hell are you doing in her room?” he said. “Then he got scared and ran away, and I heard his footsteps running through the house ’cause he got caught.”
If investigators are really eying him as a suspect as his parents suggested, then they’re going to focus on the evidence in the cabin, Diaz said.
The stepsiblings were staying in the room together, Anna’s stepgrandfather, Chris Donohue, told Fox News Digital previously.
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“They’re not going to rush this one,” said Nicole Parker, a former Miami-based FBI agent who worked in the same office that is now investigating Kepner’s death.
And they don’t need to, because if the juvenile is indeed the suspect, as his parents have claimed in court filings in a bitter custody battle, minors are less of a flight risk, Parker said.
“[Juveniles] can absolutely be charged, but the federal Bureau of Prisons, they can’t house minors,” she said. “So if I’m gonna charge a juvenile, they have to be put in a special housing system. For that reason, sometimes the feds will give it to the locals.”
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That’s unlikely in a case of this magnitude, however, she said.
“They could charge him federally, and they could potentially charge him as an adult,” she said.
Top GOP chair issues stark warning to Clintons if they defy depositions in Epstein probe
House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., is urging former president Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to comply with subpoenas requiring them to appear for in-person deposition for the committee’s probe looking into late financier Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking case.
Comer first ordered the Clintons in August to appear before the committee for an in-person deposition. However, the Clintons’ attorney, David Kendall, said Nov. 3 his clients could instead provide written answers because it is “the most efficient and equitable way to proceed.”
But Comer said such an arrangement was unacceptable.
“Given their history with Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, any attempt by the Clintons to avoid sitting for a deposition would be in defiance of lawful subpoenas and grounds to initiate contempt of Congress proceedings,” Comer said in a statement Friday that accompanied a letter to Kendall.
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“The Committee looks forward to confirming their appearance and remains committed to delivering transparency and accountability for the survivors of Epstein’s heinous crimes and for the American people.”
In Kendall’s previous letter, he told Comer the Clintons had little to provide the committee. So, an in-person testimony was unnecessary.
“The public’s demand for transparency from its government about their criminality is both understandable and warranted,” Kendall said in a letter on Nov. 3.
“Former President Clinton and former Secretary Clinton welcome legitimate oversight in this matter that is grounded in fact. In that regard, former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary Hillary Clinton have little to contribute to that legitimate goal, all of which can be readily submitted on paper.”
However, Comer pushed back on that assertion and said Friday that future delays would amount to defying a lawful subpoena. Comer said Bill Clinton’s deposition is scheduled for Dec. 17, and Hillary Clinton’s is scheduled for Dec. 18.
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Although Bill Clinton admitted he traveled on a jet with Epstein, he has said he has never visited Epstein’s island and wrote in his 2024 memoir “Citizen” that he wished he’d never even met Epstein. The former president also does not face any accusations of wrongdoing with respect to his relationship with Epstein.
The Clinton Foundation did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
Comer issued his letter after President Donald Trump signed legislation ordering the Justice Department to release files related to Epstein.
Under The Epstein Files Transparency Act, the Justice Department must release all unclassified records and investigative materials related to Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Additionally, it must share files related to individuals who were referenced in Epstein’s previous legal cases, details surrounding trafficking allegations, internal DOJ communications as they relate to Epstein and any details surrounding the investigation into his death.
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The push to sign the legislation came after Democrats released three emails on Nov. 12 that Epstein’s estate provided to them that mentioned Trump. In turn, Republicans released their own stash of more than 20,000 pages of Epstein documents that same day.
While the documents themselves are authentic, Epstein’s statements in the emails remain unverified and uncorroborated. The documents do not claim that Trump committed any wrongdoing and only portray Epstein mentioning the president.
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Bill Clinton is also mentioned in some of the new, unearthed documents. For example, Epstein said in a 2015 email that Bill Clinton “NEVER EVER” visited his so-called Epstein island.
Judge who wore wigs and played Elvis music agrees to resign after bizarre behavior
A Missouri judge who often wore Elvis Presley wigs in his courtroom and played the late rock star’s music, has agreed to step down from the bench.
Judge Matthew Thornhill said that he wanted to “add levity at times when I thought it would help relax litigants,” but also recognized “that this could affect the integrity and solemnity of the proceedings.”
Thornhill, who serves in St. Louis, has agreed to take a six-month leave of unpaid absence before returning to the bench for 18 months, then resigning early following a deal with a state board that will help him avoid a disciplinary hearing.
The state’s Commission on Retirement, Removal and Discipline mentioned Thornhill’s predilection to dress like the king of rock ‘n’ roll, including photos of him dressed in a wig and sunglasses with staff in its report.
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The report also mentions Thornhill bringing up politics while on the bench, including saying his party affiliation and which candidates he prefers.
It says that Thornhill regularly wore the wig around Halloween, sometimes walked into the courtroom while playing Elvis’ music and sometimes offered litigants the option to be sworn in while he played his music on his phone.
He would also allegedly make random references to Elvis during court proceedings at times.
The commission found his Elvis antics violated rules for “order and decorum” and to “promote confidence in the integrity of the judiciary” while in the courtroom.
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The agreement is pending before the Missouri Supreme Court, which has accepted 35 character references for Thornhill.
Thornhill was elected associate circuit judge in 2006, where he served for 18 years, and in 2024 he was elected Circuit Judge in Division 4, and is the longest serving judge in the county, according to the St. Charles County Circuit Court website.
He’s presided over 25 jury trials and thousands of bench trials during his career.
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His biography adds that he “loves Elvis, surfing, gardening, watching soccer, golfing with his children, and running with his dog on the Katy Trail.”
Thornhill was also reprimanded and fined $750 in 2008, after he reduced the charges for a woman after she offered him a baseball signed by Pro Football Hall of Famer Terry Bradshaw that turned out to be fake, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
He denies taking the ball.
‘Hammer blow to her future’: Sarah Ferguson’s royal exile deepens, expert says
Sarah Ferguson’s latest business blow casts a dark shadow over her future in the U.K., as the fallout from her ex-husband’s scandals refuses to fade.
The ex-Duchess of York’s new children’s book, which had already been delayed, has now been withdrawn from sale, the BBC reported. “Flora and Fern: Along the Way” was supposed to be published on Oct. 9 but was then scheduled for a Nov. 20 release. It is no longer listed, and the book is not scheduled to be published in the U.S.
Nielsen IQ BookData confirmed to the BBC that the title had been marked as “withdrawn from sale” at the request of the publisher. Fox News Digital reached out to the U.K.’s New Frontier Publishing and a spokesperson for Ferguson, 66, for comment.
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“This is yet another indication that she is now considered a toxic brand,” British royals expert Hilary Fordwich told Fox News Digital. “Charities have dropped her, and friends are distancing themselves. She has a bleak future in England.”
Royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams agreed.
“The axing of her children’s book shows she has no future as a children’s author,” he said. “It is highly unlikely she’ll find a way back from this.”
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On Oct. 30, King Charles III stripped his disgraced brother, Prince Andrew, of his royal titles. He also evicted him from Royal Lodge after weeks of pressure to act over the former Duke of York’s friendship with late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The ex-prince shared the 30-room mansion near Windsor Castle with Ferguson, making it their longtime home. She is no longer styled as the Duchess of York and must now find a new home.
The mother of two has not escaped controversy herself, with questions lingering over her association with Epstein.
In September, Ferguson was dropped as a patron for multiple charities after leaked emails revealed she had referred to Epstein as a “steadfast, generous and supreme friend.”
According to the Daily Mail, Ferguson, who divorced Andrew in 1996, reached out to Epstein in 2011 after publicly denouncing their friendship during an interview with the Evening Standard.
During that interview, Ferguson expressed her “deep regret” and promised to “have nothing ever to do with Jeffrey Epstein ever again,” three years after he had been imprisoned for soliciting prostitution from a minor.
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In a statement to The Guardian, a representative for Ferguson said she stood by her public condemnation of Epstein.
“Like many people, she was taken in by [Epstein’s] lies. As soon as she was aware of the extent of the allegations against him, she not only cut off contact but condemned him publicly, to the extent that he then threatened to sue her for defamation for associating him with pedophilia,” the statement read.
“She does not resile from anything she said then. This email was sent in the context of advice the duchess was given to try to assuage Epstein and his threats.”
Ferguson has admitted to accepting money from Epstein in the past.
The ex-duchess began writing children’s books in 1989. Her titles aligned with her charitable work and desire to encourage literacy. The BBC reported that HarperCollins, which published Ferguson’s 2023 historical novel “A Most Intriguing Lady,” declined to comment on whether it plans to sever ties with Ferguson but noted that her books remain in print.
“This is obviously very significant for Sarah and another hammer blow to her future and her sanity,” royal expert Ian Pelham Turner told Fox News Digital. “The amount of stress being heaped onto her has really affected her personally. She is living on the edge of a precipice, looking down into the darkness below.”
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“Although Sarah succumbed to the rich benefits of a high life, she brought many values too,” said Turner. “I believe her heart was always there to support people less fortunate than herself.”
British broadcaster and photographer Helena Chard previously told Fox News Digital that Ferguson has been attempting to keep a low profile since she and Andrew were exiled.
“She is leaning on trusted staff members,” Chard claimed. “Her nerves are frayed. She is shaken to the core by the loss of her royal safety net. She fears further humiliation and worries that the serious allegations will affect her girls’ standing. The couple’s daughters, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, have distanced themselves from their parents’ scandals.”
“Sarah has made it well known among her staff and others that she no longer believes in Andrew and is preparing to go her own way after years of loyalty and public defense of her ex-husband,” Fordwich also claimed. “She’s described as ‘massively on edge’ and ‘panicking’ about her own future.”
“While Sarah and Andrew are currently both still residing in Windsor, they are reportedly sleeping at different ends of the sprawling Royal Lodge. They do get together to discuss their respective uncertain futures.”
“While their relationship had long been described as unusually close for divorced exes — cohabiting and supporting one another through public crises — there is now a real rupture,” Fordwich said.
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Chard and Fordwich’s comments came shortly after royal biographer Robert Jobson appeared on Hello! Magazine’s “A Right Royal Podcast.” He told the outlet that Ferguson is “not great.”
“I’ve known her for many years, and I’m not saying that she hasn’t done anything wrong — because it has been documented what she did wrong,” Jobson said. “What I’m saying is, is it the same? Should she be in the same boat as Andrew? I don’t necessarily think so.”
“I think we should all be aware of people’s mental health, whether they’re ex-prince, princess, ex-duchess, whatever,” he added.
Multiple royal experts told Fox News Digital it’s likely Ferguson is considering a move to Portugal. Eugenie, a married mother of two, lives in the country part-time.
Andrew is expected to move to a property on the king’s Sandringham estate and receive private financial support from his brother.
“Many have observed the reclusive Andrew to be increasingly paranoid, ‘ranting and muttering’ around Royal Lodge,” Fordwich claimed. “He’s totally secluded. But both are said to be particularly concerned about further revelations from the Epstein scandal.”
Scientists unveil daily pill that cuts bad cholesterol by more than half
A new daily pill could reduce bad cholesterol levels by 60%, according to a new study.
Enlicitide, which was developed by Merck, lowered “bad” LDL cholesterol by more than half in a global study published this week in JAMA, the journal of the American Medical Association.
The trial, led by Dr. Christie M. Ballantyne of the Texas Heart Institute, spanned 59 medical sites across 17 countries.
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It involved 303 adults who had been diagnosed with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia (HeFH), a genetic condition that elevates LDL cholesterol and raises the risk of early heart disease.
All participants were already taking other medications or lipid-lowering therapies, but their cholesterol levels remained above target, according to a press release from the researchers.
Researchers randomly assigned participants to receive either 20 mg of Enlicitide once a day or a placebo pill.
The trial ran for 52 weeks. By week 24, people taking Enlicitide saw their LDL levels plunge by an average of 58%. Those taking the placebo saw virtually no change.
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The difference between groups, nearly 60%, was statistically significant, and the effect held steady through the one-year mark.
After 52 weeks, the Enlicitide group maintained about a 55% reduction, while the placebo group’s cholesterol rose slightly, the release stated.
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Other measures of harmful fats also improved, the researchers found. Non-HDL cholesterol dropped by 52%, apolipoprotein B fell by 48% and lipoprotein(a) lessened by nearly 25%.
Nearly 97% of participants finished the study, and side effect rates were nearly identical between the two groups. The most common issues were mild and temporary, such as headache or cold-like symptoms, the researchers shared.
HeFH affects about one in 250 people worldwide, and many struggle to control their cholesterol even with intensive therapy, according to the study.
Current PCSK9-blocking drugs (also called PCSK9 inhibitors) that achieve similar results are injections given every few weeks. Enlicitide could offer a simpler, once-daily oral option.
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Researchers cautioned that the results come with caveats. The study focused on cholesterol numbers and not on whether the pill actually prevents heart attacks, strokes or deaths. Those larger outcome studies are still ongoing.
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The research also only included people with HeFH who were already on other treatments, so it’s unclear how the drug will perform in people with more common types of high cholesterol.
Also, because the study lasted just a year, long-term safety remains to be proven.
Fox News Digital reached out to Merck for comment.