Vigilant News

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Gavin Newsom Challenges Ron DeSantis to Debate on CNN After Months of Attacks, Political Ads

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This article contains the author’s opinion.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) on Friday challenged Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) to a debate after months of accusations and name calling. 

When he’s not busy masterminding new ways to make California as unappealing as possible, Gavin Newsome has taken to a new hobby: publicly criticizing Ron Desantis. Instead of working to address the myriad issues in his own state, the California Governor has been paying for anti-Desantis political ads in Florida and has even gone so far as to slander the Florida Governor as “bigoted”, an altogether unsurprising and unoriginal tactic. 

The most recent episode of this weird publicity production saw Newsome asking the feds on Thursday to intervene and investigate DeSantis for “kidnapping” after DeSantis sent 50 illegal immigrants to Martha’s Vineyard, an elite vacation spot where former President Barack Obama owns a $15 million home.

Newsom wrote a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland, saying:  

“In particular, I urge US DOJ to investigate whether the alleged fraudulent inducement would support charges of kidnapping under relevant state laws, which could serve as a predicate offense for charges under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization (RICO) provisions of the Organized Crime Control Act of 1970,”

DeSantis fired back Friday against Newsom’s letter to Garland, saying, “I think his hair gel is interfering with his brain function.”

“So the governor of California sent a letter to the Department of Justice saying, ‘You need to prosecute Texas and Florida governors.’ And all I can say is, I think his hair gel is interfering with his brain function,”

Later that day, Newsome responded to Desantis’s quip by proposing that the two Governors debate each other before the midterm elections in November.  

Newsome also recently agreed to debate his Republican challenger in California’s gubernatorial election, state Sen. Brian Dahle.

“Yeah, happy to do it and we’ll do it just as we did the last time I ran for office,” Newsom said when asked about the possibility of a debate with Dahle. “So, I look forward to it.”

It is unclear whether or not Desantis is interested in the proposed public spectacle.

Trump Slams FOX, Vows to Help CNN Become a “Gold Mine” if it Veers More Conservative

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FOX News has a strained relationship with Trump supporters. Since the election, many MAGA republicans who feel misrepresented by the network have tuned out altogether. A recent statement by Donald Trump could suggest that those lost viewers may never return.

Former President Donald Trump criticized the network on Sunday for continually aiding the “democrat agenda”, going so far as to suggest that CNN of all places could become the next conservative media “gold mine” if the network’s politics were to shift.

As per his post on Truth Social:

Wow! Fox News is really pushing the Democrats and the Democrat agenda. Gets worse every single day. So many Dems interviewed with only softball questions, then Republican counterparts get creamed. RINO Karl Rove is unwatchable, very negative, and on all the time – Has a big record of losing! Not an easy place to be as a Republican, especially with all of the “pervert” purchased ads. If “low ratings” CNN ever went Conservative, they would be an absolute gold mine, and I would help them to do so

One of the most recent examples of FOX’s fall from favor with the MAGA crowd was an article featured on Fox News insisting the FBI raid on President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate was “justified,” . Many pro-MAGA outlets, including the Gateway Pundit, believe the article contributes to an establishment push to derail Donald Trump’s presumed 2024 campaign. 

An interview from June between Bret Baier and Arizona Gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake also caused many America First conservatives to further criticize the network.

At CPAC last month, Lake told Steve Bannon that the ambush interview was the only time FOX reached out to have her on in over 7 months, during what many believe was the most important primary in the country.

The most interesting thing that Donald Trump mentioned in his post was the possibility that CNN, which in recent years has veered far to the left, could somehow be salvaged by leaning more conservative, an effort Trump sounds eager to help with. 

Chris Licht, the new boss over at CNN, has now reportedly told anchors to cease use of the term “the big lie” when talking about 2020 election fraud – Licht pointed out that this line is the same one used by Democrats.

Claire Atkinson, the chief media correspondent for the Insider, recently warned that “there’s going to be the possibility of people leaving CNN, and the possibility that ratings go down” as a result of the network’s efforts to become more neutral. 

Steve Bannon to Testify Before the J6 Committee This Week

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The Jan. 6th committee is set to resume hearings this Tuesday and Thursday. Tuesday’s hearing will specifically focus on “extremist groups” and their activities leading up to the event at the capitol.

Committee member Zoe Lofgren, a Democrat from California, told CNN:

“We are going to be connecting the dots during these hearings between these groups and those who were trying – in government circles – to overturn the election,”

The goal is to “connect the dots” between these civilian “extremist groups” and those in Trump’s circle (Bannon) who questioned the integrity of the election, something a large percent of the country is also questioning.

The committee hopes to demonstrate a clear link between Bannon and others from the Trump administration and such groups, particularly the Oath Keepers and the Proud Boys. 

Former Proud Boys spokesperson Jason Van Tatenhove is expected to testify, as he claims to have knowledge of the inner workings of the organization.

Most notable will be the testimony of former Whitehouse Strategist Steven K. Bannon, who notified the committee that he was willing to testify after President Trump waived executive privilege.

Bannon had previously refused to comply with committee subpoenas and was last year charged with two counts of contempt of Congress.

Bannon’s attorney Robert Costello said in a letter to the committee: 

“President Trump has decided that it would be in the best interests of the American people to waive executive privilege for Stephen K. Bannon, to allow Mr. Bannon to comply with the subpoena issued by your Committee,”

Bannon’s testimony is yet to be scheduled. The Justice Department lawyers who are litigating Bannon’s contempt of Congress charges seem to be skeptical of Bannon’s Motives. 

DOJ lawyers said in a court filing:

“His continued failure to comply with the subpoena’s document demand while claiming he now will testify suggests his actions are little more than an attempt to change the optics of his contempt,”

Bannon had previously argued that he did not have to comply with subpoenas after Trump invoked executive privilege, but federal prosecutors say that because Bannon was a private citizen at the time of the capitol riot, such privilege did not apply.