MMN Editor

Yankees broadcaster Michael Kay doesn’t believe that having military speakers or having Team USA athletes preach “patriotism” is the way to go.
The post Yankees Broadcaster Uncomfortable with ‘Wrapping Sports in the Flag and Preaching Patriotism’ appeared first on Breitbart.

The people of New York City who voted for Zohran Mamdani hold high hopes that his socialist policies will make the Big Apple appealing again. However, his first couple of months in office have already shown how leftist politics and Islamic ideology are not compatible for the American people. (READ MORE: The ‘Warmth of Collectivism’ Comes to New York) 
The Spectacle Podcast host Scott McKay is joined by special guest Drew Allen, host of The Drew Allen Show, to discuss Mamdani’s horrid leadership and how it is ruining New York City. Scott and Drew point out recent events and controversies surrounding Mamdani, such as the recent terrorist attack in front of Gracie Mansion, his wife’s social media activity, and his comments supporting Palestine at a party celebrating St. Patrick’s Day. They also explain how the Islamic religion is violent and anti-Christian, which goes against Western culture and America’s foundational values. (WATCH: The Spectator P.M. Ep. 197: Zohran Mamdani’s Problem: His Wife) 
Tune in to hear their discussion!

Listen to The Spectacle with Melissa Mackenzie and Scott McKay on Spotify.
Watch The Spectacle with Melissa Mackenzie and Scott McKay on Rumble.

TheStreet aims to feature only the best products and services. If you buy something via one of our links, we may earn a commission.Why we love this dealWhen it comes to mastering DIY projects, there’s probably only one thing more impressive than being able to fix things that break in your home, and that’s being able to fix your own car. Car repairs are notoriously expensive, so getting the job done yourself will save you serious money. In order to do that, you’re going to need a reliable set of tools to get started, and we recommend the Craftsman 189-Piece Mechanic’s Tool Set, which is on sale at Amazon for $149.Not only is this set perfect for beginners, but you’ll get everything you need from sockets and ratchets to wrenches and specialty bits. It all comes in a blow-mold case with a carrying handle so you can take it wherever you need to go. You could probably spend less on a set, but the Craftsman brand is known for its quality and durability, so why not grab one that will last you a lifetime?Craftsman 189-Piece Mechanic’s Tool Set, $149 (was $189) at Amazon

Courtesy of Amazon

Shop at AmazonWhy do shoppers love it?The set covers all three standard drive sizes — 1/4-inch, 3/8-inch, and 1/2-inch — and comes packed with 6-point and 12-point sockets in both SAE and metric, combination wrenches, and a full assortment of drive tools. Craftsman specialty bits are also included, making this genuinely useful whether you’re swapping spark plugs, changing brake pads, or tackling suspension work.The standout feature here is the ratchet design. The low-profile 72-tooth ratchets have a 5-degree arc swing and heads that are up to 25% thinner than older Craftsman models. This matters enormously when you’re trying to break loose a fastener buried deep in an engine bay or behind a wheel arch where a standard ratchet simply won’t fit.All this comes in a durable blow-mold case with metal hinges, and the case is designed to fit directly into Craftsman metal storage boxes, so this set will fit right in if you’re already building out a Craftsman garage setup. The organizational layout keeps every piece in a labeled slot, meaning no more rattling loose tools at the bottom of a drawer.Craftsman backs the entire set with a full lifetime warranty, which means if a ratchet fails or a socket cracks under load, the company will replace it. That’s not a limited guarantee — it’s a genuine no-questions commitment that few brands at this price point can match.Related: DeWalt’s 71-piece tool set is on sale for just $25, and it’s backed by over 5,000 5-star ratingsPros and cons of the $149 Craftsman 189-Piece Mechanic’s Tool Set Pros:An excellent price point: This sale saves you $40 off the retail price.Comprehensive set: It comes with everything you need to do basic automotive maintenance and repairs.Lifetime warranty: Craftsman will replace any tool if it breaks.Cons:You’ll need a bigger set for advanced repairs: Some vehicles may require specialized tools that the kit doesn’t include.Some reviews say the case isn’t well-made: A small percentage of shoppers say the tools fall out when you open the case.More than 700 shoppers rated this tool set five stars, with many saying they love it. “Got this as a gift for a Christmas party for my employees,” one shopper wrote. “This tool set was the envy of the raffle prizes. I initially bought one for my son and realized how good it was, so I gave one away.”A second shopper wrote, “I’ve been using this Craftsman 189-piece mechanics tool set for several months now, and it’s been a fantastic addition to my workshop. Overall, this set is extremely functional, user-friendly, and built to last. Great value and performance — I’d definitely recommend it to both beginners and experienced DIYers alike!”Shop more deals Craftsman 298-Piece Mechanic’s Tool Set, $279 (was $349) at AmazonCraftsman 32-Piece Wrench Set, $80 (was $99) at AmazonCraftsman V20 1.5-Inch Drill/Driver Kit With Two Batteries and Charger, $119 (was $139) at AmazonTake care of your own car repairs with the Craftsman 189-Piece Mechanic’s Tool Set. Grab it from Amazon while it’s on sale and save $40.

Sources have informed multiple publications that the FBI is investigating combat veteran Joe Kent over an alleged leak of classified information. Four individuals with direct knowledge of the probe told Semafor that it predates Kent’s resignation on Tuesday as director of the National Counterterrorism Center.A source familiar with the case told Axios that Kent was suspected of leaking information to Tucker Carlson and another conservative podcaster and that the bureau is looking into whether the allegedly leaked information pertained to Israel and Iran.’Israelis drove the decision.’When asked for comment, the White House referred Blaze News to the FBI. The FBI declined to comment. Blaze News reached out to Kent for comment but did not immediately receive a response.Kent — a retired Green Beret and former CIA officer whom President Donald Trump nominated to be NCTC director in February 2025 and the U.S. Senate confirmed in a 52-44 vote in July — wrote in a post accompanying his resignation letter addressed to Trump and published Tuesday that Iran “posed no imminent threat to our nation” and that “it is clear that we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby.”The ex-intel official said further in the letter:Early in this administration, high-ranking Israeli officials and influential members of the American media deployed a misinformation campaign that wholly undermined your America First platform and sowed pro-war sentiments to encourage a war with Iran. This echo chamber was used to deceive you into believing that Iran posed an imminent threat to the United States, and that should you strike now, there was a clear path to victory. This was a lie and is the same tactic the Israelis used to draw us into the Iraq war that cost our nation the lives of thousands of our best men and women.The president told reporters on Tuesday, “I read his statement — and I always thought he was a nice guy — but I always thought he was weak on security, very weak on security.”RELATED: If Congress can’t oversee the FBI, who can? Photographer: Daniel Heuer/Bloomberg via Getty Images”When I read his statement, I realized that it’s a good thing that he’s out, because he said that Iran was not a threat. Iran was a threat — every country realized what a threat Iran was. The question is whether they wanted to do something about it,” said Trump.Trump later shared an image of a tweet that Kent posted in January 2020, imploring Trump, then in his first term, to “wipe Iran’s ballistic capability out and get our troops out of Iraq — they are only targets now.”White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt claimed on Tuesday that Kent’s resignation letter was replete with “false claims” and noted that “the absurd allegation that President Trump made this decision based on the influence of others, even foreign countries, is both insulting and laughable.”On Wednesday, Kent appeared with Tucker Carlson, who said about the Iran strikes: “Joe Kent was right. Therefore, Joe Kent must be destroyed. And there is, of course, this ongoing effort to do that — to dismiss Joe Kent as a tool of the Islamists or a leaker.”During the interview, Kent explained to Carlson his reasons for leaving the administration, his misgivings about the conflict with Iran, and his support for the president and Trump’s previous policies.Referring to remarks made earlier this month by House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Kent told Carlson — who was denounced on March 5 by the president following months of criticism — that the “Israelis drove the decision” to attack Iran. Intelligence showed that Iran was neither on the verge of obtaining a nuclear weapon nor planning “to launch this big sneak attack,” Kent added.He further claimed that Trump was siloed when it came to the issue of Iran, stating that “a good deal of key decision-makers were not allowed to come express their opinion to the president.”‘He quit because he’s under investigation.’Kent also claimed that when it came to Charlie Kirk’s assassination, “we’re not really even allowed to look into that at all.” Kent even intimated that the assassination might have something to do with Kirk’s vocal opposition to a possible regime-change war in Iran.”One of President Trump’s closest advisers who is vocally advocating for us to not go to war with Iran and for us to rethink, at least, our relationship with the Israelis, and then he’s suddenly publicly assassinated, and we’re not allowed to ask any questions about that — it’s a data point,” said Kent. “It’s a data point that we need to look into.”‘One of the sources reportedly familiar with the FBI investigation into Kent told Axios, “He left quite an online paper trail and he has been monitored for months.””He’s going to try to say this was in retaliation for his resignation,” continued the source, “but it’s the other way around: He quit because he’s under investigation — and he knew it.”Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus fired off a social media screed at President Donald Trump over his executive order, restarting offshore oil drilling along California’s coastline, telling her nearly two million Instagram followers “This won’t lower your gas prices.”
The post Julia Louis-Dreyfus Called ‘Out of Touch’ for Slamming Trump’s California Oil Pipeline Order: ‘Stick to Acting’ appeared first on Breitbart.

A federal judge ruled Wednesday a New York City Council staffer who is an illegal alien must be deported, a decision that has enraged Democrat socialist Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
The post Judge Orders Criminal Illegal Who Was NYC Council Staffer to Be Deported: ‘Victory for the Rule of Law’ appeared first on Breitbart.

Kent Tells Tucker: ‘Imminent Threat’ Was From Israel, Not Iran; Ordered To Halt Charlie Kirk Investigation

Joe Kent, former Director of the National Counterterrorism Center who was President Trump’s principal counterterrorism advisor, appeared on Tucker Carlson’s show to explain his side of the story after stepping down from the administration.

Kent announced his resignation Tuesday, citing his opposition to the ongoing U.S. war with Iran, and his belief that Iran posed “no imminent threat” to America – while asserting in his resignation letter that his wife died in “a war manufactured by Israel” in a 2019 suicide bombing in Manjbi, Syria.

In this first public interview since resigning, Kent elaborated on his reasons amid reports emerging Wednesday that the FBI is investigating him for allegedly leaking or improperly sharing classified information (a probe that sources say predates his resignation and is being handled by the FBI’s Criminal Division, per several outlets).

Early on in the interview, Carlson referenced Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s justification for the strikes – that Iran posed an imminent threat because Israel was preparing to attack Iranian targets, likely prompting Iranian retaliation against U.S. forces. Carlson reframed it bluntly:

Carlson: “So, the imminent threat that the secretary of state is describing is not from Iran. It’s from Israel.”

Kent: “Exactly. And I think this speaks to the broader issue: who is in charge of our policy in the Middle East?”

Kent elaborated that Israel was preparing to strike, which would trigger retaliation endangering U.S. personnel – creating the cited “imminent” risk. He stated:

Kent: “The Israelis drove the decision to take this action, which we knew would set off a series of events because the Iranians would retaliate.”

Kent insisted there was zero U.S. intelligence of Iran planning a direct attack, nearing a nuclear weapon, or posing an immediate homeland threat. He cited Iran’s religious fatwa against nuclear weapons (since 2004) and said the assassinated Supreme Leader Khamenei had moderated the program:

Kent: “There was no intelligence that said, hey… the Iranians are going to launch this big sneak attack… There was none of that intelligence.” On nukes: “No, they weren’t [on the verge of a bomb]. They weren’t in June either. The Iranians have had a fatwa – a religious ruling – against the development of a nuclear weapon since 2004… We had no intelligence that it was being disobeyed.”

JUST IN: 🇺🇸🇮🇷 Former US Counterterrorism Chief Joe Kent tells Tucker Carlson the “imminent threat” was not from Iran, it was from Israel. pic.twitter.com/UwkNe3ZQFl
— Remarks (@remarks) March 18, 2026
Internal Dissent Suppressed

Kent described how dissenting views were sidelined in the lead-up to strikes. Key officials, including himself, were reportedly barred from direct briefings with Trump. He said he spoke personally with the president before resigning – a conversation he described as “very respectful” – but felt staying would mean silencing his warnings.

“A good deal of key decision-makers were not allowed to come and express their opinion to the president,” Kent said, adding “There wasn’t a robust debate.”

Joe Kent says Operation Midnight Hammer allowed Key-decision makers to have robust debate about the mission, but when it came to this new war, no debate was allowed, and President Trump was basically kept in an Information Silo with Israeli-fed Intelligence
He reiterates what… https://t.co/FegSMJGajB pic.twitter.com/6udeyrh1WH
— MJTruthUltra (@MJTruthUltra) March 19, 2026
The Charlie Kirk Assassination and Blocked Investigation

In an emotionally charged segment, Kent discussed the September 2025 assassination of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk, whom he knew personally. Kent recounted Kirk’s last words to him in the West Wing in June:

Kent (recalling Kirk): “Joe, stop us from getting into a war with Iran.”

Kent said Kirk had opposed escalation and faced pressure from pro-Israel donors. He revealed the NCTC had leads on potential foreign involvement but was ordered to halt:

Kent: “The investigation that the National Counterterrorism Center was a part of, we were stopped from continuing to investigate… There was still a lot for us to look into… there were still linkages for us to investigate that we needed to run down.”

Tucker Carlson gets visibly upset as Joe Kent explains to him that the Counterterrorism Center had more leads to investigate foreign ties to Charlie Kirk’s assassination, but were shut down from pursuing them. pic.twitter.com/0IU0jEC2cY
— Zach Costello (@ZachCostello_) March 19, 2026
The official narrative focused on lone gunman Ryan Robinson, but Kent insisted unresolved questions remained.

Other Notable Revelations

Kent spent significant time discussing his own warnings from a January 2024 appearance on Carlson’s show, where he had predicted a U.S. war with Iran would become “very bloody very quickly,” rally the Iranian people around the regime, activate deadly proxy networks across the region (Hamas, Hezbollah, Houthis), overstretch American military and economic resources amid other global commitments, and ultimately hand strategic victories to China. He stated that those predictions had proven prescient, as Tehran’s proxies were already conducting attacks and that the conflict was draining U.S. attention and treasure at precisely the wrong moment.

A major theme was the strategic windfall for China. Kent warned that deep U.S. entanglement in Iran would play directly into Beijing’s hands:

Kent: “If we get deeply involved and deeply entangled with Iran, we are playing right into China’s hands, because China would like nothing more than for us to be committing our military industrial base to a war in Eastern Europe and Ukraine, and then to be committing our conventional military power, our blood, and our treasure back in the Middle East. That will make the Pacific, our actual border, extremely vulnerable to Chinese aggression, or China will simply just watch us bleed out economically as we bleed out on the battlefield on these couple different theaters.”

He described China as “sitting on the sidelines… silently nodding along with a slowly spreading grin,” benefiting from America’s distraction and resource depletion without firing a shot.

Kent also offered a detailed explanation of Iran’s nuclear calculus, describing Tehran’s strategy as “actually pretty pragmatic.” He pointed to the cautionary tale of Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi:

Kent: “The Iranian strategy, it’s actually pretty pragmatic … because they saw what happened to Gaddafi in Libya when he said ‘I’ll give up my nukes.’”

Kent argued that the regime views nuclear weapons as an insurance policy against regime change, and that the current war – rather than deterring them – would likely empower hardliners in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) while rallying the broader Iranian population behind the government. He noted that the assassinated Supreme Leader Khamenei had been a moderating influence and that his successor could prove far more radical.

“The Iranian strategy, it’s actually pretty pragmatic … because they saw what happened to Gaddafi in Libya when he said ‘I’ll give up my nukes.’”
Joe Kent said during an interview with Tucker Carlson following his resignation as director of the National Counterterrorism… pic.twitter.com/Rt0X3BwPiE
— TRT World (@trtworld) March 19, 2026
On the declassification of sensitive historical files, Kent addressed Trump’s orders to release documents related to the JFK, RFK, and MLK assassinations (as well as Epstein files). He said no “earth-shattering” revelations were expected, but that the bureaucracy was deliberately slow-walking the process:

Joe Kent (on the files): “The same government that told us a magic bullet killed JFK… bureaucracy slows declassification deliberately.”

Kent suggested that full transparency would never occur without sustained pressure from the top.

Full interview here:

Joe Kent on why we actually went to war with Iran. pic.twitter.com/ghoSEW6fLy
— Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) March 19, 2026

Tyler Durden
Thu, 03/19/2026 – 13:25

A small group of New Yorkers lined candles beneath a portrait of Iran’s late leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, at a recent “vigil” in Manhattan’s Washington Square Park, and within minutes, a confrontation turned violent, then viral.As Jewish rapper Rami Even-Esh approached the March 6 vigil, he noticed something was missing in the pro-regime gathering, which drew only a few dozen people from five far-left groups, including the socialist “Workers World Party.””I looked around for images of the regime’s victims,” Even-Esh told Fox News Digital, referring to tens of thousands of protesters the Iranian regime reportedly killed earlier this year. “I looked for Iranians who supported the regime, and I didn’t see any.”Slowly, Even-Esh, who performs under the moniker “Kosha Dillz,” picked up the Khamenei photo, video footage shows, prompting several vigil organizers to quickly tackle him, punch him in the head and kick him as he fell to the ground. He emerged bloodied, and New York Police Department officers arrested both him and one of his assailants.Video of the confrontation quickly spread online, generating widespread attention, with pro-regime groups framing the event far beyond the park as a symbol of widespread “resistance” to the war in Iran. The incident also offered a telling glimpse into a wider influence campaign now drawing scrutiny.WITH DOGS, DANCE AND UNCOVERED HAIR, IRANIANS DEFY ‘UNHOLY ALLIANCE’ OF SOCIALISTS, RADICALS: ‘HYPOCRITES!’A new report by the Network Contagion Research Institute, a think tank based in Princeton, N.J., finds that the vigil — along with a follow-up “Al-Quds Day” protest a week later on March 13 — was organized, promoted and amplified by a well-connected network of far-left U.S. activist groups with documented ties to Iranian state media. Earlier this week, President Donald Trump warned that Iran is pursuing an aggressive disinformation campaign, accusing the regime of using artificial intelligence and coordinated narratives to shape perception beyond traditional battlefields.Drawing on leaked internal records, dating from 2019 to 2022, from Iran’s state-owned Press TV propaganda network, researchers identified repeated direct contact between Press TV officials and organizers of recent pro-regime protests, as well as patterns of coordination and amplification that helped transform small local gatherings into widely circulated global flashpoints.The report identifies a structured ecosystem linking U.S. activist groups, intermediary media platforms and Iranian state outlets to a campaign of malign foreign influence, which is defined by the Directorate of National Intelligence as “subversive, undeclared, coercive, or criminal activities by foreign governments, non-state actors or their proxies to affect another nation’s popular or political attitudes, perceptions or behaviors to advance their interests.”Organizers tied to the New York vigil also coordinated follow-up protests for Al-Quds Day, the Arabic name for “Jerusalem Day,” promoted through the same network of social media accounts, organizations and leadership.IRANIAN REGIME SPREADING ANTI-ISRAEL PROPAGANDA ACROSS DOZENS OF SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS: REPORTFox News Digital has identified at least 75 organizations that have protested in support of Iran’s regime since the conflict began, including 50 that identify as far-left, Marxist, socialist or communist groups, and 22 that are Muslim organizations aligned with forms of political Islam, or Islamism. The remaining organizations fall into overlapping ideological categories.Many of these groups are connected through a broader activist network linked to American-born tech tycoon Neville Roy Singham, who is based in Shanghai. Lawmakers on the House Ways and Means Committee and House Oversight Committee have launched investigations, probing whether Singham and the organizations he funds should register as foreign agents, promoting the interests of the Chinese Communist Party.Fox News Digital has reached out to Singham and the groups organizing the pro-regime protests. Organizations associated with Singham’s network include the People’s Forum, the ANSWER Coalition, the Party for Socialism and Liberation, CodePink Women for Peace and the Palestinian Youth Movement, and while they didn’t organize the Khamenei vigil, they participated in Al-Quds Day protests.IRAN’S SUPREME LEADER MOJTABA KHAMENEI ‘MISFUNCTIONING,’ NOT CONTROLLING REGIME: SOURCESThe scene at the vigil reflected the mix of political messaging and symbolism that has defined “intersectional” activism of far-left politics in recent years. Organizers draped the table with Khamenei’s image with Palestinian checkered keffiyeh scarves and stocked it with pamphlets framing global conflicts — from Gaza to Haiti and apartheid South Africa — as part of a shared “anti-imperialist” struggle. A copy of the Qur’an sat alongside revolutionary communist literature, blending the kind of ideological and theological messaging that defines the so-called “red-green” alliance of socialists, represented by red, and Muslim theocrats, represented by the color of green for Islam.Organizers and affiliated groups include a coalition of activist organizations connected to the “United National Antiwar Coalition,” the Workers World Party, the “Bronx Anti-War Coalition” and the ANSWER Coalition, networks of socialists and communists who have organized protests across the United States on foreign policy and domestic issues.The report’s strongest evidence centers on a history of direct contact between Iranian state media and activists from the groups.The leaked internal records from Press TV, which is sanctioned by the U.S. government, showed hundreds of communications with the small group of organizers tied to the recent protests, including 83 calls to one senior figure. Researchers found that outreach far exceeded contact with other individuals based in the U.S., suggesting sustained engagement rather than routine media interaction.TRUMP VOWS TO HIT IRAN ‘VERY HARD’ AFTER OBLITERATING NEARLY ’90 PERCENT’ OF REGIME MISSILESThe analysis also identified a pattern in which that outreach appeared to happen before protests from 2019 to 2022. According to the report, spikes in contact from Press TV personnel often occurred in the weeks leading up to increased protest activity in the United States, indicating a level of synchronization that researchers say is unlikely to be coincidental.The report also documents a broader amplification loop: activists appear on Iranian state broadcasts, sharing and reposting state media content and promoting protest activity later picked up by outlets aligned with Iran’s messaging ecosystem.A separate media platform, “Vox Ummah,” is identified as an intermediary linking U.S.-based activists with Iran-aligned narratives in the “ummah,” an Arabic term for the global community of Muslims, promoting the vigil and Al-Quds protests while republishing content from Iranian state outlets.The report stops short of asserting direct operational coordination, but it concludes that the overlap of communication and messaging reflects a “repeatable influence pipeline” capable of turning local protest activity into widely distributed political narratives of malign foreign influence.”A strain of moral confusion has taken hold where a growing number of people in our communities protest America while excusing regimes that jail, torture and silence their own people,” Adam Sohn, co-founder of the Network Contagion Research Institute, told Fox News Digital. “That’s not justice. It’s a psychological contagion causing these people to lose sight of what evil actually looks like.”The report also notes that messaging tied to the vigil, such as references to Khamenei’s “martyrdom,” opposition to U.S. and Israeli policy and alignment with the “Axis of Resistance,” a term invented to describe opposition to U.S. foreign policy, mirrors themes promoted by Iranian state media following Khamenei’s death.IRAN WAGING EXTENSIVE AI MISINFORMATION WARFARE AGAINST US, ALLIESOn the edge of the Khamenei vigil, Iranian American Reza Ebrahimi, founder of a group called Lion Sun NY, watched the scene unfold with Even-Esh emerging bloodied and handcuffed.Ebrahimi told Fox News Digital he is immune to pro-regime disinformation and propaganda. He was emboldened to see that Even-Esh also didn’t succumb to the intimidation. He later told him, “I’m proud of you that you’re supporting us.”Azziana Solomon contributed to this report.

As San Jose State University approaches a critical deadline in its Title IX conflict against President Donald Trump’s administration, another woman who was affected by the school’s 2024 volleyball scandal has come forward. Former University of Wyoming volleyball star Macey Boggs said her team was “torn apart” over a decision whether or not to forfeit two matches to SJSU in 2024. The Spartans were embroiled in a national controversy at that time due to the presence of a biological male transgender athlete on the roster. Boggs said in a recent interview the players found out about the trans player, who they competed against two years prior, in the spring of 2024. When the fall rolled around, the locker room became a hive of tension and nerves due to the two scheduled matches between Wyoming and SJSU, and disagreements on whether to forfeit or not. CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM”You could tell that things got a little bit hostile,” Boggs told Fox News Digital.”In between the whispering between each other’s back, and then we were no longer one team, one unit, it was like these two separate islands.” Friendships were permanently ruined for Boggs and the rest of the Cowgirls, she said. “Yeah,” Boggs said when asked if the situation “permanently ruined friendships.” “There were some of the girls who I really enjoyed and we got along great and then this situation came up, some conflict came up, and ultimately we went in separate directions because of that … as soon as we played in our last game, we all went in separate directions… it was hard to maintain those relationships.” The first Mountain West team to forfeit to SJSU that year was Utah State, becoming the first of five conference teams to do so. Former Utah State star Kaylie Ray previously told Fox News Digital that the decision was left up to a player poll, and the majority of players voted to forfeit. Wyoming also left the decision up to a player vote, per Boggs. But that vote had troubling outcome for her. “It was said that it was up to the players. So we took an anonymous vote, it ended up we were going to play because most of the girls on my team wanted to play,” Boggs said. But she and others weren’t going to play anyway, regardless of the vote.FORMER SJSU VOLLEYBALL STAR OPENS UP ON LIVING WITH TRANS TEAMMATE WITHOUT KNOWING ATHLETE’S BIOLOGICAL SEX”There were a few of us who were like, ‘We’re not gonna play.’ So we decided we’re not gonna play… There was a lot of conflict within the team… and it was not something you should have to deal with on your team… It just seems so silly and something that tore apart the team.” The divide came with several difficult conversations for Boggs. But most of the conversations weren’t necessarily ideological, over whether males should be able to play in women’s sports. Boggs said the conversations were mostly about the pain of taking two losses on their record, when they were all working so hard to make the playoffs.It was especially hard for the seniors. “One of the hardest conversations, there were two, one of them was a fellow senior and she said ‘this is my fellow senior year, I don’t want it to be ruined by this. And I fully resonated with that because it was also my senior year and it was ruined by that,” Boggs said. “One girl was doing really well statistically in the Mountain West and the NCAA and she mentioned, ‘how is this going to affect my stats?’ And that didn’t settle well for me because I was like, ‘ok that’s kind of selfish.'”I understood where she was coming from … but ultimately it’s a bigger issue.” Boggs and the players who were determined not to play the game were preparing to tell the coaches of their intent. But just then, prior to the first match between Wyoming and SJSU on Oct. 5 of that year, the players were called into another meeting, Boggs said.’HORRIBLE’ MOMENTS EXPOSED FOR UNR VOLLEYBALL PLAYERS WHEN THEY WERE ROPED INTO THE SJSU TITLE IX SCANDALBoggs claims that Wyoming Athletic Director Tom Burman told them they were instructed by the Wyoming state government to forfeit the game.”By the time it was time to tell the coaches, we had another meeting, and ultimately the government decided that ‘hey, you’re not gonna play,’ which was awesome. Boggs said. “It was told to us by our AD Tom Burman, so he was the one who said, ‘this is the decision that has been made, it’s been taken out of your guys’ hands. And I’m so grateful for that.” Fox News Digital has reached out to University of Wyoming Athletics and Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon’s office for a response. Public records show the university faced “outside pressure” to forfeit the match, according to WyoFile.Gordon commended the forfeit in a statement at the time. “I am in full support of the decision by Wyoming Athletics to forego playing its volleyball match against San Jose State. It is important we stand for integrity and fairness in female athletics,” Gordon said. Wyoming went on to finish the season 17-13, losing six of their last nine games. They finished two games out of the final spot in the conference tournament, and would have made the tournament had they won their two games against SJSU. It was Boggs and other seniors’ last chance to make the tournament in their Wyoming careers. Within the locker room, the disagreements over initial vote left rifts. Boggs and the women on her side dug their heels in deeper. In November of that year, Boggs and teammates Sierra Grizzle and Jordan Sandy joined former SJSU volleyball star Brooke Slusser’s lawsuit against the Mountain West Conference. Slusser initially brought the scandal into the national spotlight that September, when she joined Riley Gaines’ lawsuit against the NCAA, with Slusser citing her experience playing with and rooming with trans teammate Blaire Fleming without ever being officially told of Fleming’s birth sex. Boggs, Grizzle and Sandy joined Slusser and seven other conference players in suing the Mountain West and representative of SJSU and the California State University (CSU) system.Boggs said the decision to take things that far earned the respect of teammates who initially voted to play the game. Once they joined, Boggs said she told her other teammates, “‘Hey, can we talk to you guys. We’ve decided to join this lawsuit and this is why.””And after that, they like totally understood … I think that standing up for something can be extremely scary, and something you need to be very brave and bold in.”FORMER COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL STAR KAYLIE RAY OPENS UP ON VIRAL CLASH WITH ARIZONA DEMOCRAT SENATORThe Slusser v Mountain West lawsuit was partially dismissed by federal judge Kato Crews earlier in March, with all charges being dismissed against the Mountain West. However, Title IX claims and representatives of SJSU and CSU were not dismissed. Crews is reserving a ruling on those charges until after the ruling in the ongoing B.P.J. v West Virginia Supreme Court case over trans athletes in women’s sports, and the Title IX implications. At the same time, SJSU and CSU are waging a legal war of resistance to the Trump administration’s efforts to get SJSU to resolve its alleged Title IX violations for how it handled Fleming.After the U.S. Department of Education announced an investigation determined that SJSU violated Title IX, and offered a series of compliance points to resolve it, SJSU and CSU sued the federal government to challenge the findings. “I laughed,” Boggs said when she heard the news of SJSU’s lawsuit. “That seems like something that is a little bit silly. I truly believe that we even shouldn’t be having lawsuits centered around men in women’s sports.” U.S. Education Secretary Linda McMahon responded to the lawsuits on March 11, giving the institutions a deadline of 10 days to come to an agreement or risk federal funding cuts and a referral to the U.S. Department of Justice.With that deadline coming up within a week, Boggs is the latest woman to have been impacted by the scandal to speak out about the experience, joining Slusser and Ray. Both Slusser and Ray have gone viral on social media in recent weeks after speaking out, prompting criticism and even online insults from people with pro-transgender views.Boggs said she’s faced online attacks from the other side ever since her decision to forfeit and join the lawsuit in 2024, and she is prepared to face more, if necessary. “I will bare the weight all day, I will take any hate that has to come, because I truly believe in this. If you have to say these crazy things, I would rather you say them to me than those girls that I am fighting with.” Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.

Ben Saul, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights and counterterrorism, condemned Trump and praised Somalia’s record on human rights and counterterrorism, even as the country faces widespread human rights abuses and ongoing terrorist activity. Photo courtesy of the UN.
Ben Saul, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights and counterterrorism, told the UN Human Rights Council that the United States was “raining death,” while describing Somalia as a model “responsible state” committed to strengthening human rights.
He argued that counterterrorism has been used to justify what he called “naked aggression” and “renewed imperialism” against countries such as Iran and Venezuela, actions he said were “raining death” and making the world less safe.
At the same time, he said that some states facing serious terrorist threats continue to prioritize human rights. Referring to his visit to Somalia, he said his report showed that the country is attempting to strengthen, rather than sacrifice, human rights while confronting terrorism.
As of January 1, 2025, Somalia joined the UN Security Council as a non-permanent member for the 2025–2026 term. In January 2026, Somalia assumed the rotating one-month presidency of the Security Council, chairing meetings, setting the agenda, and overseeing discussions on peacekeeping, counterterrorism, regional stability, and humanitarian challenges. That presidency has now concluded, but Somalia remains on the Council through the end of 2026.
U.S. Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz publicly criticized the UN for assigning senior international positions to unstable countries like Somalia.
Despite Saul’s claims that Somalia was improving, Human Rights Watch reported that the country’s human rights situation deteriorated further in 2025. Al-Shabaab not only continued its campaign of bombings, IED attacks, and targeted killings against civilians, but also recaptured territory the government had regained in 2022, advancing to areas south of Mogadishu.
These findings undermine Saul’s assertions that Somalia is performing well in its counterterrorism efforts.
Repeated cycles of clan conflict in the Gedo and Hiraan regions added to civilian casualties and displacement. Over half of the 300,000 people newly displaced between February and September fled conflict. An estimated 4.4 million people faced urgent food needs by late 2025.
Military courts continued to sentence people to death in terrorism-related cases without meeting basic fair-trial standards. The UN’s own Special Rapporteur on counterterrorism raised due-process concerns about the legal framework and the broad powers granted to the National Security Agency. Key legislation on sexual violence, female genital mutilation, and juvenile justice remained stalled in parliament.
Press freedom worsened measurably. In March, the information minister banned reporting on anything deemed a security threat. Following a bombing targeting the presidential convoy, police detained at least 22 journalists and shut down a media outlet. In Somaliland, 16 journalists were unlawfully detained in the first six months of the year alone. The government also arrested individuals over a social media dance video deemed insulting to the president.
Women’s rights remained severely constrained by legal barriers, early marriage, limited education, and pervasive gender-based violence. Somalia has still not ratified the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. Somalia remains one of the highest-ranking countries globally for grave violations against children. Consensual same-sex conduct remains criminalized.
This is the 2025 record of Ben Saul’s model “responsible state.”
Questions have been raised about whether Saul may have been co-opted by China. UN Watch claims that Saul’s office received $150,000 from China in 2025. According to the OHCHR’s official 2025 voluntary contributions table, China donated $200,000 to OHCHR that year. This suggests there is some verifiable basis to the claim, but the connection is not clearly established.
UN Special Rapporteurs serve under the OHCHR, which is partly funded by voluntary contributions from member states, including governments whose counterterrorism practices fall directly within Saul’s oversight mandate. There is no evidence that China paid Saul personally, as he serves without a salary as a Special Procedures expert. However, the institutional funding relationship creates a potential conflict of interest documented in OHCHR’s own records.
So, if he was not paid by China, the question arises: why did he make such claims, particularly when his own report confirms Somalia’s lack of progress in counterterrorism and the extent of its human rights abuses?
UN Special Rapporteurs are appointed through the Human Rights Council, a body whose membership has repeatedly included states with poor human rights records. Among the current and recent members are some of the world’s most systematic human rights abusers. China, which holds over a million Uyghurs in detention camps, was appointed to the body that selects top UN human rights officials. Iran, which executes citizens for social media posts, was appointed to chair the Council’s forum on technology and human rights.
Saudi Arabia, whose government murdered journalist Jamal Khashoggi and has imprisoned women’s rights activists, sought a Council seat in 2024. Qatar, which subjected migrant workers to widespread wage theft and unexplained deaths during World Cup construction, secured reelection in 2024.
Egypt and Vietnam, both rated as serial rights violators by Human Rights Watch, won seats in 2025. Eritrea, Burundi, and Sudan, states associated with mass atrocities, indefinite detention without trial, and government-sponsored torture, have all held Council seats, secured through a regional bloc system that eliminates competitive elections and guarantees membership regardless of record.
The HRC has a documented pattern of applying scrutiny selectively, targeting Western democracies and Israel while shielding authoritarian blocs. Rapporteurs operate within that political environment and are not accountable to any independent standard.
Saul’s March 2026 HRC statement was not an anomaly. He has consistently framed U.S. and Israeli counterterrorism operations as the primary global human rights threat while treating adversarial or failed states more charitably. His statements across multiple U.S. extraterritorial operations follow a similar pattern: Western action is described as “naked aggression,” while states aligned against the West are presented as examples of restraint or good practice.
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