Commentary Culture Investigations

Minnesota Democrat Peggy Flanagan held off former NFL sideline reporter Michele Tafoya in a closely watched Senate race Tuesday, overcoming questions about her handling of multiple fraud scandals while serving as lieutenant governor in the administration of Governor Tim Walz.
Flanagan led Tafoya by a 10-point margin when the race was called at at 12:20 a.m.
She will become the first Native American woman to be elected to the Senate. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D., Mass.), who campaigned with Flanagan, claimed during her senatorial campaigns a decade ago to be of Cherokee heritage, but DNA tests showed she was at most 1/1,056th Cherokee ancestry.
The race proved uncomfortably close for Democrats, thanks largely to scrutiny of the Walz-Flanagan administration’s handling of the Feeding Our Future fraud scandal, in which state agencies doled out hundreds of millions of dollars to a network of Somali-American nonprofit groups as part of a federally funded food program for schoolchildren.
The groups stole at least $250 million by submitting falsified invoices for tens of thousands of meals that were never served. The scandal stoked scrutiny of Minnesota’s large Somali population, and sparked a Trump administration crackdown on potential visa and immigration fraud by sending thousands of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to the state.
That proved a rallying cry for Democrats, especially in the wake of the fatal shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, who were shot during physical altercations with ICE agents conducting enforcement raids. Flanagan said after the shootings that ICE should be “ripped apart.”
Flanagan, whose administration has given $7.9 million in state funds to a group that provides “booty bumping” kits to allow addicts to take drugs through the rectum, has also gone to bat on the transgender rights issue, especially regarding so-called gender affirming care for children.
In 2023, she sported a controversial T-shirt adorned with a large hunting knife with “Protect Trans Kids” scrawled across the chest. The attire drew scrutiny after Robin Westman, a 23-year-old biological male, shot up the Church of the Annunciation in Minneapolis in August 2025.
The post Walz’s Wingwoman Peggy Flanagan Prevails in Minnesota Senate Race appeared first on .

MS NOW/SnapStream

Amid Democratic election wins in the midterm elections, there were two firsts with “historic” wins for Black candidates in both the GOP and Democratic Party, with Republican Byron Donalds becoming Florida’s first Black governor, and Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms becoming the first Black governor in the country’s history, leading to a celebratory MS NOW reaction. But the channel had a bit of a different tone for Donalds, as Symone Sanders Townsend noted noting the history but remarked “all kinfolk ain’t skinfolk.”Election night host and premier liberal opinion host Rachel Maddow reported the news of Donalds’ win just after 9 PM Eastern:We have a call to make, actually, and this is an important one in the Florida governor’s race. The Associated Press has projected a winner. The Associated Press has called this race. Florida governor’s race will be won by Republican Congressman Byron Donalds. He has defeated former Congressman David Jolly in the Florida Governor’s race. MS NOW’s Rachel Maddow did not note the historical nature of Byron Donalds being elected as Florida’s first black governor in her announcement of his victory… https://t.co/Nf66JhBuvz pic.twitter.com/LgICM0wFkA— Nick (@nspin310) November 4, 2026 She later remarked that “David Jolly kept it close,” but gave no initial mention to Donalds, who became Florida’s first black governor.Around five minutes later, Sanders Townsend joined in to first note the history: Can I also just note, I know this happened earlier and you said this, but we talk about the history that’s being made tonight. And to be clear, Byron Donalds is now the governor of Florida. It is a historic win. It is the first time Florida has elected a black governor. But then, turned to berate and insult Donalds’ “historic win” because of his policies were alike to current Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis: However, minutes after Maddow’s Donalds announcement, Symone Sanders noted the “historic win,” but then minimized him and said, “all kinfolk ain’t skinfolk.” https://t.co/jFX1oB6G2y pic.twitter.com/NKgRqwcoKQ— Nick (@nspin310) November 4, 2026 Will say, though, you know, as you say in my community, all kinfolk ain’t skinfolk. And whatI mean by that is Byron Donalds is making history, but he is going to continue the political direction that Ron DeSantis is going to continue in Florida.After Symone Sanders then praised Julianna Stratton, a Black Democrat, and said “History is being made all over this country tonight in crazy ways,” Maddow eventually noted the historic nature of Donalds’ win: “Yeah. And it’s being made both on the Republican side and the democratic side, which is an important thing.”Just 10 minutes later, Maddow gleefully joined in to project a Lance Bottoms win in Georgia:  MS NOW celebrates Keisha Lance Bottoms win in the Georgia governor’s race, noting she will be the first black female governor ever.Symone Sanders said her victory was about “Black people being under attack in this country politically,” and said Bottoms will be “the governor of… pic.twitter.com/ji9EDHIBgi— Nick (@nspin310) November 4, 2026 We have a big call. In the state of Georgia. We have a call in the governor’s race. This has just happened in the last three seconds. Associated Press has called this. Keisha Lance Bottoms, Democrat, will be the next governor of the state of Georgia. This is a flip in the Georgia governor’s race. She has defeated Republican Rick Jackson. The only person who said that this would happen, who I believe is someone Sanders Townsend, and I only half believed her, if we’re being honest. But Keisha Lance Bottoms, former mayor of Atlanta, an incredible political talent in Georgia, among so many incredibly talented Black women and Democratic politicians in Georgia. Keisha Lance Bottoms is now – has been called the winner in this Georgia governor’s race.In a completely different tone compared to her Donalds talk, Sanders Townsend invoked Stacey Abrams and emotionally celebrated Lance Bottoms’ victory, while claiming it happened amid “Black people being under attack in this country politically”:“And today, America has elected its first Black woman as governor in this country. Keisha Lance Bottoms made history tonight, but she didn’t run on making history, she ran on the issues. And I think that resonated with folks in the state. As I was texting and talking with people, they all kept saying Black voters all across this country right now, but specifically across the South, they understand the assignment. And earlier this year, we have been talking about, Rachel did a whole segment about it. I said, “This is what an ally look like,” about Black political power and Black people being under attack in this country politically.”In more celebration, she said, “It is no small thing that Keisha Lance Bottoms will be the governor of Georgia during the next presidential election. That is right. It is Keisha Lance Bottoms who will make sure that the election is certified for whoever the winner is. It is Keisha Lance Bottoms. It will be on the other side of the phone. If Donald Trump picks up the phone and calls. It is remarkable. Remarkable!”Sanders Townsend closed, “So whatever else happens tonight, this is a reminder that in America, the people have the power. And Georgia has a governor named Keisha. Give me a T-shirt.”The transcript is below. Click “expand”:MS NOW’s We The People: Election NightNovember 3, 20269:11:13 PM Eastern(…)RACHEL MADDOW: Okay we have a new – We have a call to make, actually, and this is an important one in the Florida governor’s race. The Associated Press has projected a winner. The Associated Press has called this race. Florida governor’s race will be won by Republican Congressman Byron Donalds. He has defeated former Congressman David Jolly in the Florida Governor’s race. This follows the call that we had earlier this hour, excuse me, from last hour, in the Florida senate race in which the Republican candidate for Florida Senate also defeated the democratic candidate for Florida Senate. But in both cases, in a state that Republicans have supposedly slammed the door on all Democratic chances, we see with 98% of the vote in, David Jolly kept it close. But Byron Donalds is the winner of the governor’s race in Florida.That’s fascinating stuff.(…)9:16:22 PM EasternSYMONE SANDERS TOWNSEND: Can I also just note, I know this happened earlier and you said this, but we talk about the history that’s being made tonight. And to be clear, Byron Donalds is now the governor of Florida. It is a historic win. It is the first time Florida has elected a black governor. I will say, though, you know, as you say in my community, all kinfolk ain’t skinfolk. And whatI mean by that is Byron Donalds is making history, but he is going to continue the political direction that Ron DeSantis is going to continue in Florida. And so he was on the Breakfast Club this morning, was being asked about all kinds of policies and whatnot. And he, you know, sounded similar to Ron DeSantis. And so I think it’s very interesting what voters decided to do in Florida today, but also in Illinois because of Juliana Stratton, the sixth black woman ever in the history of our country, in the 230-year history of the Senate, is going to the United States Senate. For the first time ever in our history, three black women will consecutively be serving at the same time. For the first time in our history in America, Illinois has simultaneously elected the first – Two women of color will lead the Senate delegation. History is being made all over this country tonight in crazy ways.MADDOW: Yeah. And it’s being made both on the Republican side and the democratic side, which is an important thing.(…)9:24:53 PM EasternMADDOW: We have a big call. In the state of Georgia. We have a call in the governor’s race. This has just happened in the last three seconds. Associated Press has called this. Keisha Lance Bottoms, Democrat, will be the next governor of the state of Georgia. This is a flip in the Georgia governor’s race. She has defeated Republican Rick Jackson. The only person who said that this would happen, who I believe is someone Sanders Townsend, and I only half believed her, if we’re being honest. But Keisha Lance Bottoms, former mayor of Atlanta, an incredible political talent in Georgia, among so many incredibly talented Black women, Democratic politicians in Georgia. Keisha Lance Bottoms is now – has been called the winner in this Georgia governor’s race. Before we understand exactly how that happened, Symone Sanders Townsend, I want you to tell us why you knew that was going to happen before it happened.SANDERS TOWNSEND: I mean, well, one, because I know Keisha Lance Bottoms, but two, because the people in Georgia have been organizing. And to be very clear, if we just take it all the way back to the new Georgia project, way back when, and Stacey Abrams when they in Georgia, Stacey Abrams set out and said, there are voters in Georgia to be organized. There are people who have yet to be touched. And if you just speak to them, if you just talk to them, if you just talk to voters about their power, they will participate. And cycle after cycle, we saw some gains and some moves. And today, America has elected its first black woman as governor in this country. Keisha Lance Bottoms made history tonight, but she didn’t run on making history, she ran on the issues. And I think that resonated with folks in the state. As I was texting and talking with people, they all kept saying Black voters all across this country right now, but specifically across the South, they understand the assignment. And earlier this year, we have been talking about, Rachel did a whole segment about it. I said, “This is what an ally look like,” about Black political power and Black people being under attack in this country politically.People, you saw that. We all see it. We talked about it. The voters across this country saw that and they are taking their power back. It is no small thing that Keisha Lance Bottoms will be the governor of Georgia during the next presidential election. That is right. It is Keisha Lance Bottoms who will make sure that the election is certified for whoever the winner is. It is Keisha Lance Bottoms. It will be on the other side of the phone. If Donald Trump picks up the phone and calls. It is remarkable. Remarkable. So whatever else happens tonight, this is a reminder that in America, the people have the power. And Georgia has a governor named Keisha. Give me a T-shirt.(…)

Image

ABC News, CNN

When Senator Jon Ossoff (D-GA) insisted in October that he had “zero interest in running for president,” nobody took him all that seriously — after all, that’s the standard line for any incumbent up for re-election in a must-win state. But even before the Senator had successfully defended his seat on election night, the news media were already so enamored with his campaign that they were already comparing him to Barack Obama. 
After his performance tonight, the media are all in on Jon Ossoff for 2028.In just the last few hours they’ve compared him to Barack Obama, practically declared on his behalf, and placed bets about how soon he’ll go back on his claim that he’s not interested. pic.twitter.com/G6VI4lrzGt— Bill D’Agostino (@Banned_Bill) November 4, 2026

After his performance tonight, the media are all in on Jon Ossoff for 2028.In just the last few hours they’ve compared him to Barack Obama, practically declared on his behalf, and placed bets about how soon he’ll go back on his claim that he’s not interested. pic.twitter.com/G6VI4lrzGt— Bill D’Agostino (@Banned_Bill) November 4, 2026

CNN’s live election coverage was abuzz with Osoff 2028 talk within minutes of the polls in Georgia closing. At 7:05 p.m. ET, CNN chief political analyst David Axelrod predicted:“There’s going to be a parade down to Atlanta after this to talk to Jon Ossoff, who said … during the campaign [that] he wasn’t going to run for president. There’s going to be a lot of interest in him because of the numbers that he’s putting up here in a state that wasn’t easy. He was considered vulnerable at the beginning of this cycle.”Political correspondent Kasie Hunt chimed in: “You know who else said they weren’t going to run for president when they were running for Senate, was Barack Obama.”She added: “The Ossoff for President campaign starts tonight, basically.”On ABC, anchor David Muir excitedly (and repeatedly) brought up the prospect of an Ossoff presidential run. Within ten minutes of the polls closing, and before even seeing any of the results coming out of Georgia, Muir was already asking ABC News Washington bureau chief Rick Klein for his thoughts on a 2028 run:“If you can, show us what you’ve got so far on the Jon Ossoff race. And I know he says he is not going to run for president… we don’t want to get ahead of ourselves, but we have heard that before.”The live election analysis on the other two major broadcast networks, CBS and NBC, also featured a healthy dose of Ossoff 2028 wishcasting. During the 9:00 p.m. ET hour, NBC News senior Washington correspondent remarked of Ossoff’s victory: “We’re keeping the focus on 2026, but there are real — and I’ve heard this from credible sources — 2028 implications here.”Both Jackson and the CNN panel were particularly excited that Democratic gubernatorial candidate Keisha Lance Bottoms had won her seat as well, because, as Jackson explained: “If Senator Jon Ossoff decided to run for president in 2028, it would be a Democratic governor who’d pick his replacement.”Ossoff has been something of a media darling for months now, especially when it became clear he essentially had turned his Senate campaign into a referendum on President Trump. The freshman Senator won quite a few hearts in both New York and D.C. newsrooms by repeatedly referring to Trump as a “draft-dodging crook president.”But what the corporate media love even more than anti-Trump rhetoric is seeing Democrats win, and Ossoff is indisputably an effective campaigner. Whether that’s enough to secure him the 2028 nomination is anyone’s guess, but it certainly has been enough to win him the adoration of TV journalists.

Screenshot via ABC/Snapstream

On election night 2026, Disney-owned ABC News was just shy of suffering thrills up their legs in celebrating Georgia going blue across the ticket, celebrating it as “a new chapter in America history,” proof that “a barrier falls,” and a night “for the history books,” between Keisha Lance Bottoms winning the governorship and Jon Ossoff’s Senate reelection triggering “googly eyes” among the masses for a possible 2028 presidential bid.Just after 9:30 p.m. Eastern, Sunday World News Tonight anchor and ABC News Live host Linsey Davis gushed to weekday anchor David Muir that Lance Bottoms’s victory “really speaks to how long this took and at the same time, how far this country has come that you now have the first black female governor of any state in this country.”Davis could barely contain her open support for Lance Bottoms, calling the win “a barrier fall[ing]” in the Deep South that “really writes a new chapter in American history.”
WATCH: ABC’s Linsey Davis gushes over Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms winning the Georgia governor’s race as “a new chapter in American history” and proof we’ll remember tonight as an election “for the milestones” and “history books”…“It really speaks to how long this took and… pic.twitter.com/HdDTPn3kCt— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) November 4, 2026

WATCH: ABC’s Linsey Davis gushes over Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms winning the Georgia governor’s race as “a new chapter in American history” and proof we’ll remember tonight as an election “for the milestones” and “history books”…“It really speaks to how long this took and… pic.twitter.com/HdDTPn3kCt— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) November 4, 2026

“There are those election nights, David, that you remember for the margins and those for the milestones, and this is one certainly for the history books,” Davis added.The ABC News Live host also fawned over Lance Bottoms’s move to spend time on election eve at her great-great-grandmother’s grave:When I was in Georgia with her last month, I had the opportunity to ask her what this moment would mean if she became the first black female governor, and she said, for me, ‘it’s much more personal. My family goes back at least five generations in Georgia. For me, it speaks to the possibility of this state and this country only in America.’ She is a descendant of the enslaved on both sides, and one thing that I found that was really poignant was on election eve — so yesterday, she went and visited the gravestone of her great-great-grandmother who was born enslaved in this country, and now, generations later, she becomes the first black female governor of any state.Muir obviously agreed: “Yeah, it’s a remarkable story tonight. A milestone met in Georgia.”Atlanta-based correspondent Steve Osunsami spent much of the night grinning from ear to ear and openly giggling with excitement about his team’s victories.Osunsami swooned to Muir that “I don’t think it could be overstated what’s happening in Georgia tonight,” with Ossoff being “the vehicle who lifted the waters for all of these candidates, including Keisha Lance Bottoms.”
ABC’s Steve Osunsami can barely speak he’s so excited Georgia has gone full blue, giggly that people will now look at Jon Ossoff “with googly eyes about…running for president”…“I don’t think it could be overstated what’s happening in Georgia tonight. Jon Ossoff, who is… pic.twitter.com/d9NIFL2Nsl— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) November 4, 2026

ABC’s Steve Osunsami can barely speak he’s so excited Georgia has gone full blue, giggly that people will now look at Jon Ossoff “with googly eyes about…running for president”…“I don’t think it could be overstated what’s happening in Georgia tonight. Jon Ossoff, who is… pic.twitter.com/d9NIFL2Nsl— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) November 4, 2026

“I keep looking at my phone and refreshing the numbers, and I’m having trouble believing it…I have a prop that I have been saving for this moment. These are the fliers that have come to my home, and like 80 percent of them are from Rick Jackson. I have got very few of these from Keisha Lance Bottoms. He ran an incredible campaign, and she still won,” he continued.He then made the embarrassing boast of Ossoff that it’s left people with “googly eyes” about 2028 (click “expand”):OSUNSAMI: When you — when you look at what happened here and what’s happening in Georgia, we have Republicans now who control all levers of state government here who are telling me that this is now a blue state, and this is significant because, as we have been talking about, the man speaking directly behind me, lots of people are looking at him with googly eyes about possibly running for president in a couple of years. This is the first step. Keisha Lance Bottoms winning helps him with that. This is something I’ve never seen. It’s hard for me to even accept that this is a blue state, as people are saying, but that appears to be what is happening tonight in Georgia.MUIR: So, let’s ask you about that. In addition to the history made by Keisha Lance Bottoms, the former mayor of Atlanta. Of course, people remember her. She had a role in the Biden administration. She was also in Atlanta during the time of Covid. People got to know her around the country as a national figure through all of that. She makes history tonight. Jon Ossoff, who repeatedly, Steve said on the trail, I have no interest in running for president. We’ve heard that from candidates before who then had a significant victory, and then it propels them to the national stage. And, of course, I don’t want to get ahead of ourselves, but at the same time, you have to state the obvious here, that he is a name that has been widely talked about this campaign cycle. Not only, and that was before the victory tonight. This is a sizable victory for really both of these candidates. Jon Ossoff and Keisha Lance Bottoms. But when it comes to Jon Ossoff, people are immediately going to say, a Democrat from the South, a sizable victory, and they’re going to look to his campaign he stayed on message. He was not afraid to take on the current president and talked what he thought about the issues that were important to the people, the economy, gas prices, the health care. But also, one of the first candidates to really make corruption, as he saw it, a significant issue for his campaign and people are going to ask, is he going to quietly be considering a run for president?OSUNAMI: So, I have asked people that tonight, I’ve asked his people directly — I keep asking and the response I keep getting is that Jon Ossoff is going to remain senator, that he’s going to do that job. And then I follow that with, you know, we’ve heard that before. You know, have to sort of look at the conditions and look at what’s happening. And sort of believe that that’s a real possibility, and they have to be thinking about that. There is also a second senator who is here tonight, Senator Warnock, who is also being talked about as potentially a candidate in a couple of years for president. So, that conversation is only going to get louder and louder and louder because it will be fair to say that he, Jon Ossoff, who again, who is speaking right now, led what many people see right now as a blue, and I hate to say wave, but wave in Georgia.MUIR: Steve Osunsami witnessing what is a significant night in the state of Georgia.Throughout the night leading up to that live shot, Osunsami was already bursting at the seams.At 6:07 p.m. Eastern, Osunsami smiled at the “momentous” possibility Lance Bottoms would win the governorship even though she faced “criticisms for how she ran” Atlanta during the Black Lives Matter riots:
ABC’s Steve Osunsami gushes over the possibility of Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms winning the governor’s race…”If she wins tonight…she would become the first black woman governor in the history of these United States, and she would be the first democratic governor in the… pic.twitter.com/F969HXN8O4— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) November 3, 2026

ABC’s Steve Osunsami gushes over the possibility of Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms winning the governor’s race…”If she wins tonight…she would become the first black woman governor in the history of these United States, and she would be the first democratic governor in the… pic.twitter.com/F969HXN8O4— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) November 3, 2026

Fast-forward to 7:50 p.m. Eastern, Osunsami openly chuckled his way through his report as though he were on a roller coaster or watching a funny movie:
ABC’s Steve Osunsami is literally giggly over Democrats sweeping the gubernatorial and Senate races in Georgia pic.twitter.com/g22usiiWSG— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) November 4, 2026

ABC’s Steve Osunsami is literally giggly over Democrats sweeping the gubernatorial and Senate races in Georgia pic.twitter.com/g22usiiWSG— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) November 4, 2026

Osunsami resurfaced at the bottom of the following hour and, when asked to describe “the vibe of the room” at the Georgia Democratic election night party, he proclaimed: “The vibe is ecstatic; the vibe is cautiously optimistic for the other candidates. You know, I’ve got to tell you, they have been cheering all night here.”
ABC’s Steve Osunsami resurfaced back at 825pm Eastern.She’s still grinning from ear to ear over Democrats in Georgia pic.twitter.com/lLzmvjXUgw— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) November 4, 2026

ABC’s Steve Osunsami resurfaced back at 825pm Eastern.She’s still grinning from ear to ear over Democrats in Georgia pic.twitter.com/lLzmvjXUgw— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) November 4, 2026

To see the relevant ABC transcript from November 3, click here.

Perhaps you missed the news of the attack by an illegal immigrant who took a sledgehammer to the Iwo Jima monument that stands near the entrance at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia, not far from the full-sized memorial in Arlington.
I know I did.
I found out about it two days later in Dan Flynn’s Spectator A.M. newsletter, which he writes daily for The American Spectator. Flynn, who served in the Marine Corps, had it front and center. Ironically, Flynn’s report coincided with the 43rd anniversary of the truck bomb that leveled the Marine barracks at Beirut’s International Airport. (RELATED: The War Iran Chose: Remembering the Beirut Bombing)
The Iwo Jima sculpture depicts the flag raising on Mount Suribachi on Feb. 23, 1945. That moment did not mark the end of the fighting. The battle continued for another month. Those raised arms represent courage amid unfinished danger, not a victory easily won.
Besides the Marine Memorial at Arlington and the original model sculpture at Quantico, various reproductions of this famous American icon can be found in several venues around the country, including one at Knoebels Amusement Park in Elysburg, PA.
As we approach Veterans Day, I keep coming back to that scarred Marine monument meant to preserve the memory of courage and sacrifice on that fateful 23rd day of February of 1945.
Disgust is the most appropriate word I can use for a family publication.
On a day when I cannot help but think of those who never came home from either Beirut or Iwo Jima, I was confronted with this senseless attack on a tribute to the courageous service of young men spanning two separate generations.
The connection was not merely symbolic.
Beirut was the Marine Corps’ deadliest day since Iwo Jima.
On a quiet Sunday morning at 0622 hours on another 23rd day of the month, this one in October of 1983, a suicide truck bomb killed 241 American service members, including 220 Marines on a peacekeeping mission.
“Peacekeeping” was a term that quickly devolved into a four-letter word throughout the Corps.
Looking at the Iwo Jima monument, this aged Jarhead remains in disbelief at what could possibly possess someone to take a sledgehammer to destroy it. Those Marines stand for lives given on the altar of freedom, families left grieving, and an obligation to contemplate their heroic sacrifices.
The phrase “the enemy inside the gate” underscores that what we honor and respect can be attacked and destroyed right here at home.  It certainly does not have to be on a distant battlefield.
A monument cannot defend itself.
Neither can the dead whose heroic sacrifice it memorializes.
Troubling is how we have become so accustomed to such outrages and how easily we lose touch with their meaning. The act itself becomes just one big shrug as we continue on with our day. We discuss what it will cost to repair and file criminal charges, as we must, but something this noble deserves defending and how such remembrance and sacrifice belongs to each and every American.
Protecting America means protecting its people, its freedoms and its memorials.
That is what made the damage difficult to comprehend.
A Marine lifting the American flag was decapitated. Another sustained gouges across his helmet and face, while a third suffered damage to a bayonetted rifle slung across his back. Damages were estimated to be in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.
A tribute to men who endured so much had itself become defenseless against destruction.
The Marine Corps Heritage Foundation is campaigning to raise funds to restore the memorial.
Felix de Weldon’s famous sculpture of the flag raising on Iwo Jima is a symbol not only of the strength of the Marine Corps but the strength of the United States. Vandals are free to act because Marine courage and blood preserve their freedoms.
Memorials are how we keep faith with people we can no longer thank who carried the burden of freedom that as Ronald Reagan was known to have said is always one generation from extinction.
Surely, we can accept the responsibility of protecting their sacrificial memory.
READ MORE from Greg Maresca:
The NFL Wants to Conquer the World — and the Afterlife
NFL Games Are Getting Longer. Will More Instant Replay Make Things Worse?
Penn State Football: A ‘Krafted’ Fumble
When a terrorist attacked the iconic Iwo Jima memorial at Quantico with a sledgehammer, the damage went far beyond bronze and stone, striking at America’s obligation to honor those who sacrificed everything for freedom.

Texas Democrat James Talarico, the 37-year-old state lawmaker who shares his only disclosed checking account with his mother, defeated Republican attorney general Ken Paxton, breaking his party’s long losing streak in the Lone Star State.
Talarico led Paxton by a 20-point margin when the race was called at 11:15 p.m., flipping the seat held by Paxton’s primary opponent, Republican incumbent John Cornyn, and marking the first time Texas elected a Democrat to the Senate since 1988.
The victory came eight years after a similarly high-profile Democratic Senate run in Texas fell short. In that race, Beto O’Rourke raised more than $80 million and became a national media darling while running against Ted Cruz. O’Rourke, however, embraced left-wing positions like an assault weapons ban in a bid to turn out Democratic voters rather than appeal to independents.
Talarico matched O’Rourke’s fundraising prowess—his campaign raised at least $160 million—but took a different approach to strategy.
He presented himself as a man of the cloth willing to moderate on issues, particularly those central to Texas’s economy. Early on in his campaign, Talarico scrubbed his website of statements supporting “trans kids” and “bold, progressive ideas,” the Washington Free Beacon reported. He went on to present himself as a supporter of Texas’s oil and gas industry and an opponent of sex-change surgeries for minors, though as a state lawmaker, Talarico introduced “Green New Deal”-style legislation calling for sweeping greenhouse gas reductions and voted against a bill banning those surgeries.
Talarico also backed away from some of his craziest statements, declaring that “God is non-binary” and that there are six genders. He told CBS News that the “cringey” statements “missed the mark” and suggested he had moderated in recent years.
“Well, you know, I think I was being intentionally provocative with that statement, but what it means is that God can’t be defined by human categories,” Talarico said about his “God is non-binary” remark. “What I meant is that there are two sexes, and then there’s a small percentage of people with genetic abnormalities,” he said of his six genders claim.
Talarico is unmarried, but he may still need extra space when picking out a place to live in Washington, D.C. The minister of his Presbyterian church, Babs Miller, said in an undercover video that Talarico’s mother could move with her son to the nation’s capital should he win.
“She’ll be right there,” Miller said. “She’ll move to D.C. if she has to.”
The post Momma, We Made It: James Talarico Wins Texas Senate Race appeared first on .