THE NEWS

A boater in Norway was hit with a hefty fine after intentionally using a ship’s horn to wake a sleeping polar bear.The incident happened this month while a boat was traveling in Lomfjorden in the Svalbard archipelago, according to a statement from the Governor of Svalbard.Those aboard the vessel spotted a polar bear sleeping on land before one person sounded the ship’s horn — causing the animal to awaken and move elsewhere, officials said.YELLOWSTONE BISON ATTACK WITNESS BELIEVES MAN SAVED HIS GRANDSON BY TAKING BRUNT OF ATTACKOther people aboard the vessel later reported the incident to the governor.Authorities determined that the person had intentionally disturbed the polar bear and issued a fine of 50,000 Norwegian kroner, or roughly $5,300, for violating the Svalbard Environmental Act.The fine was accepted and paid, according to the statement.Polar bears in Svalbard are subject to strict protections aimed at preventing visitors from disturbing or getting too close to the animals.CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR OUR LIFESTYLE NEWSLETTERNorway strengthened those protections in January 2025, requiring people to remain at least 300 meters, or about 984 feet, away from polar bears, according to an update to Svalbard environmental regulations.The required distance increases to 500 meters, or roughly 1,640 feet, from March 1 through June 30, when the animals are considered particularly vulnerable.Anyone who encounters a polar bear at a closer distance is required to move away until the minimum distance is restored, according to the government.Norwegian regulations also prohibit people from unnecessarily disturbing, attracting or pursuing polar bears.CLICK HERE FOR MORE LIFESTYLE STORIESThe rules are particularly relevant in Svalbard, where encounters with the Arctic animals can be a major draw for visitors but are tightly regulated to protect both wildlife and people.In 2024, another visitor was fined after getting too close to a walrus in Svalbard, according to a statement from the governor.The man walked onto a floating sheet of ice in Adventbukta and approached a walrus that was resting nearby. Members of the public contacted authorities, and several governor’s employees also witnessed parts of the incident.Authorities later fined the man 12,500 Norwegian kroner, or roughly $1,300, for violating a provision of the Svalbard Environmental Act requiring visitors to avoid unnecessarily disturbing wildlife.Following the incident, thegGovernor urged visitors to keep their distance from walruses, both to avoid disturbing the animals and to prevent potentially dangerous encounters.

California Democrats Becerra and Padilla identified 2016 election issues, then ignored and hid evidence that issues were addressed.
Attorney General Todd Blanche is carrying the fight for California’s statewide voter-registration records into 2026. Xavier Becerra’s signed 2018 warning places the gubernatorial candidate inside California’s unanswered election-security timeline.
By Christine Bish | A continuation of my three-part investigation of U.S. Senator Alex Padilla, California’s former secretary of state
Washington just blew open the election-security file.
The White House released declassified intelligence and government reports covering vulnerable voting systems, China’s acquisition of American voter data, voter-registration investigations and noncitizens on state voter rolls. The files identify centralized repositories—voter-registration databases, pollbooks and official election websites—as the systems most vulnerable to exploitation.
In its latest addition, the White House Transparency Task Force released a March 2020 email alleging that a senior National Security Agency official resisted sharing election intelligence involving 2016 and 2020 because disclosure could invite accusations of politicization and brand the NSA part of the “deep state.”
At the same time, Attorney General Todd Blanche is carrying forward the Justice Department’s fight for unredacted statewide voter-registration records, including California’s. DOJ sought the full electronic list—including names, birth dates, residential addresses and state driver’s-license numbers or the last four digits of Social Security numbers—to test California’s compliance with federal voter-list maintenance laws. California refused, and DOJ sued. A federal judge dismissed the California case in January 2026. DOJ appealed to the Ninth Circuit, and Blanche now says Supreme Court review remains a possibility in the broader voter-roll fight. The national question is no longer whether the warnings existed. They did. The question is who knew, who acted—and why the complete public record is still missing.
California’s answer begins with a signature.
On July 23, 2018, Xavier Becerra—then California’s attorney general—joined 20 other state attorneys general in warning Congress that hackers had targeted state and local election boards, invaded a state election website, stolen the personal information of approximately 500,000 voters and infiltrated a company that supplied voting software. The letter described “technologically vulnerable election infrastructures” and demanded comprehensive security risk assessments.
Becerra signed it.
Signatures are stubborn things. They tend to outlive campaign talking points.
By then, California had already documented an attack in the same threat family: abuse of a state election website using voters’ identifying information.
The White House election-integrity release includes a federal report that places Riverside County in its history of voter-registration-system breaches. The report says a bad actor used California’s voter-registration website and voters’ personal identifying information to change their party affiliations without their knowledge or consent.
That is the break: the new federal file places Riverside in the history of voter-registration-system breaches; Xavier Becerra’s signature proves he personally acknowledged the same threat categories; Alex Padilla’s record shows what California did next; and Sacramento shows what remained unfinished as 2020 arrived. California’s record tracks several of those warnings: an abused state registration portal in Riverside, contractor-built statewide infrastructure in VoteCal, administrative change orders and delayed security assessments.
THE SIGNED LETTER
The letter is four pages: two text pages and two additional signature pages. The two text pages—including the page bearing Xavier Becerra’s signature—appear below. The complete four-page original is linked in the source list.
PAGE ONE
Page one of the July 23, 2018 election-security letter.

PAGE TWO — XAVIER BECERRA’S SIGNATURE
Page two of the July 23, 2018 election-security letter, with Xavier Becerra’s signature highlighted.

The red box and arrow identify Xavier Becerra’s signature. The underlying letter is unchanged.
Source: California Department of Justice, Election Security Letter, July 23, 2018.
Riverside ended at Padilla’s office
During California’s June 7, 2016, presidential primary, voters in Riverside County discovered that their party affiliations had been changed through the state’s online registration portal. Riverside District Attorney Michael Hestrin said 20 formal complaints were filed and believed more voters were affected.
Investigators could not identify the actor because the state did not collect the visitors’ IP addresses. KQED reported that the investigation ended at the office of then–California Secretary of State Alex Padilla.
California did not pause the statewide rollout. On September 26, 2016—111 days after the primary—Padilla certified VoteCal as California’s official voter-registration system and connected all 58 counties to it. Padilla announced that VoteCal had passed security audits, accuracy testing and simulated-election performance review.
Then produce those audits.
Produce the exceptions. Produce the failed tests. Produce the remediation records. Produce the portal and transaction logs that investigators needed and California did not retain.
Padilla’s office denied evidence of a breach of the voter-registration database. That defense answers a narrower question than Hestrin raised. His investigation found that someone used the state’s legitimate online workflow and voters’ identity information to change official party affiliations. Whether the database itself was penetrated or the public portal was abused, official records were changed and the state lacked the IP logs needed to identify who did it.
Change Request #14
An official VoteCal specification reveals another decision the public has never received a full explanation for.
The document’s revision history states that on May 15, 2015, the project “removed voter activity from the synch check process as per Change Request #14.” The underlying change request is not included. The public document does not identify the complete effect of the change or explain who authorized it. Later sections still identify voter registration, voter participation history and images as synchronization categories.
That does not make Change Request #14 disappear. It makes the missing document more important.
The same final specification says county service-account passwords were initially set not to expire. It permitted the project team to conditionally accept the specification with outstanding deficiencies it considered non-material. The public approval page names the VoteCal project sponsor but displays a blank signature line.
The Legislature did not vote on Change Request #14. It did not vote to use non-expiring service-account passwords. It did not decide which deficiencies were “non-material.” Those were administrative and project decisions handled within Padilla’s department and its contractor structure.
The Motor Voter rush
The Legislature passed AB 1461 and authorized Motor Voter. It did not order then–Secretary of State Alex Padilla, the DMV and the Brown administration to launch it in April 2018 before the June primary.
County election officials said they warned Padilla personally that the system was not ready. Los Angeles County Registrar Dean Logan said he raised the concern directly with Padilla. California moved forward anyway.
A Los Angeles Times investigation based on approximately 1,300 pages of state records found that:

Six days before launch, state security officials saw the DMV network attempting to connect to servers in Croatia.
A senior programmer warned of a possible “international incident and major security and launch failures.”
Three months of testing had been compressed into six weeks.
Design and testing were occurring at the same time.
Personal information sometimes remained visible on DMV touchscreens between customers.

Then the errors hit the voter file.
An official Los Angeles County report summarized letters sent by the DMV and California Department of Technology to Padilla’s office. Approximately 23,000 customers may have had records mixed together, transmitting incorrect political-party, language and vote-by-mail preferences. Approximately 1,500 additional customers may have been registered in error. Some people who chose to opt out still had their information sent to the Secretary of State.
Padilla called the failures “completely unacceptable.” Yet the transfers continued.
That was an administrative decision, not a vote of the Legislature.
Xavier Becerra’s escape route ends with his signature
Xavier Becerra was serving as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives during the Riverside incident and Secretary of State Alex Padilla’s 2016 VoteCal certification. Becerra became California attorney general in January 2017.
That is where his escape route ends.
In July 2018, as California attorney general, Becerra signed a warning identifying stolen voter data, penetrated state election websites and compromised software suppliers as direct threats to election integrity. In November 2019, the DMV notified approximately 3,200 Californians that seven outside government entities had improperly accessed information about whether a license holder had a Social Security number or verified Social Security card over four years.
California Civil Code §1798.29 requires a state agency that must notify more than 500 California residents because of a single breach to submit a sample notice electronically to the Attorney General.
DMV described one four-year access-control failure and mailed notices to approximately 3,200 people. If DMV treated that failure as the single breach described in its public notice, Becerra’s Department of Justice should have received the sample. The public file should show whether it did.
As of August 19, 2026, a search of DOJ’s public breach-notice database under the agency’s name did not reveal a 2019 DMV entry. That search result does not prove that no notice was submitted. It is a reason to demand the receipt, review record and investigative file. When did DOJ receive the notice? Who reviewed it? Was the improper access compared with the identity information used to manipulate voter records in Riverside? Was Padilla’s office contacted?
Those are no longer speculative political questions. They are document questions created by Becerra’s signature and California’s own notice statute.
Sacramento was the warning made local
My three-part series documented how then–Secretary of State Alex Padilla’s pre-COVID architecture landed in Sacramento County: VoteCal, Motor Voter, the Voter’s Choice Act, centralized mail voting, outside vendors, private election grants and an oversight system that was still unfinished.
The State Auditor warned Padilla’s office in October 2017 that it was conducting insufficient monitoring of county election practices. The Secretary of State’s chief counsel acknowledged that the office did not monitor county election materials for compliance and relied on the public to report criminal violations.
The Auditor recommended annual risk-based county reviews beginning in December 2018. Padilla’s office still described those reviews as something it was “exploring” in October 2020. The recommendation remained pending under his successor in September 2023, when the office listed a 2024 target.
Then came the Sacramento County Grand Jury.
Its 2019–2020 report found that the county Department of Technology was not regularly performing vulnerability scans and penetration tests. The Grand Jury could not determine when the last external election-system audit had occurred or who had conducted the penetration testing. Multi-factor authentication was still being rolled out. A Department of Homeland Security assessment was still on the roadmap.
After the election, Sacramento Registrar Courtney Bailey-Kanelos acknowledged that USB drives “should not have been left out” during a December 15 tour and said procedures were changed to secure them immediately after use. She disputed that the voting system had been connected to the internet and said a VoIP phone photographed in the room had been used only for a post-election safety test.
Her denials do not erase the admission: the USB drives were left outside their designated storage procedure, and the procedure changed only after the condition was documented.
They knew how to investigate—when they wanted to
California’s Constitution made then–Attorney General Xavier Becerra the chief law officer of the state. It gave him supervisory authority over district attorneys and the power to require reports concerning criminal investigations. Then–Secretary of State Alex Padilla had authority to examine election records and vote-counting programs and to refer violations to a district attorney or the Attorney General.
They knew how to use that power.
In October 2020, then–Attorney General Xavier Becerra and then–Secretary of State Alex Padilla announced a joint election-integrity investigation into unofficial Republican ballot boxes. Becerra said DOJ was monitoring election-related activity statewide and issuing subpoenas.
I found no comparable public investigative file for Riverside, VoteCal’s Change Request #14, the Motor Voter security warnings, the DMV breach notice or Sacramento’s unfinished security assessments. If one exists, California can produce it.
California has never suffered from a shortage of press releases. The investigative file is another matter.
That is the scandal.
Padilla’s office knew the operational failures. Becerra signed the warning and headed the department positioned to investigate them. Sacramento entered the 2020 election with several recommended reviews and security measures unfinished.
The Legislature authorized the voter-registration programs. That does not answer for rushed implementation, compressed testing, missing transaction logs, unexplained change requests or assurances offered without the underlying audit trail.
Becerra signed the warning. Padilla certified and expanded the system. Now they should be required to produce every record showing what they knew, when they knew it and what they did about it.
Now they want the public to move on
This is not history. It is the 2026 race for governor.
Xavier Becerra, who served in Congress during the Riverside episode and later served as California attorney general, is now a Democratic candidate for governor in California’s November 2026 general election. His campaign prominently emphasizes fighting the Trump administration. On July 16, 2026, he declared that California’s elections are “safe, secure, and accurate” and promised that, as governor, he would use “every tool at its disposal” to resist the President and protect the state’s election system.
That declaration collides with Becerra’s own signature.
The man now asking Californians to trust him with the governor’s office personally signed a warning about penetrated state election websites, stolen voter information, compromised software suppliers and technologically vulnerable election infrastructure. His own state had already experienced the Riverside abuse of its registration portal. His own Department of Justice was positioned to receive California’s DMV breach notice. His office had the power to demand investigative reports and pursue election violations.
Where is that file?
U.S. Senator Alex Padilla—California’s secretary of state from 2015 to 2021—is now the ranking Democrat on the Senate committee overseeing federal elections. He has opposed the Trump administration’s citizenship-verification order, federal access to state voter-registration data, voter-roll reviews and restrictions on vote-by-mail. He introduced legislation to repeal the executive order and block federal access to state voter records. He condemned the Justice Department’s attempts to obtain voter lists.
The direction of the demand matters. Attorney General Todd Blanche’s Justice Department is demanding California’s voter-registration records. California is refusing to produce them. Padilla is using his Senate post to defend that resistance.
Apparently, transparency depends on which direction the records are traveling.
Read that again.
Washington is demanding California’s statewide voter-registration records while the California public is still waiting for records from Padilla’s own system:

Change Request #14.
The security audits Padilla invoked when he certified VoteCal.
The exceptions, failed tests and remediation records behind that certification.
The portal and transaction logs Riverside investigators needed and California did not retain.
The full record of the Motor Voter launch warnings and the decision to keep the pipeline running.
The investigative file—if one exists—connecting Riverside, the DMV failures and Sacramento’s unfinished safeguards.

Gubernatorial candidate Xavier Becerra says California’s elections are secure. U.S. Senator Alex Padilla says federal scrutiny is an attempted takeover. Both have opposed central pieces of the administration’s election agenda. Neither has produced the complete California record that would allow the public to judge the system Padilla administered and Becerra later defended.
That is not oversight. It is containment.
They investigated Republican ballot boxes. They issued subpoenas when the target was outside their own administration. On Riverside, VoteCal, Motor Voter, the DMV and Sacramento, the public file remains fragments, assurances and missing documents.
Xavier Becerra is now asking Californians to elect him governor. Alex Padilla is using his U.S. Senate post to oppose the federal response. Before Californians decide whether to put Becerra in the governor’s office—or accept Padilla’s use of Senate authority to resist federal review—both should produce the California record beneath their “safe and secure” declarations.
Then–Attorney General Xavier Becerra signed the warning. Then–Secretary of State Alex Padilla expanded the system after the warning signs were already visible. Sacramento entered the 2020 election with several recommended reviews and security measures unfinished. Now both are opposing central parts of the federal election agenda while the evidence trail from their own tenure remains incomplete.
This record does not prove that California vote totals were altered. It proves documented notice, administrative expansion, delayed oversight and missing accountability records. That is enough to demand the file. Release the California file.
Continue the investigation
Part I — The 2020 Election Steal Was Built Before COVID.
Part II — The 2020 Election Steal Was Built Before COVID.
Part III — The 2020 Election Steal Was Built Before COVID.
Core documents
White House election-integrity release.
White House summary of the July 2026 declassified election-security release.
Newly released March 2020 NSA election-threat email.
Catherine Herridge report on the newly declassified NSA record.
Todd Blanche says the voter-roll dispute may reach the Supreme Court.
Justice Department lawsuit demanding California’s statewide voter-registration list.
United States v. Weber complaint detailing the records demanded from California.
Becerra’s signed July 23, 2018 letter.
Riverside investigation and Padilla connection.
Padilla’s VoteCal certification.
VoteCal specification recording Change Request #14.
Official Los Angeles County Motor Voter error report.
Motor Voter launch investigation.
California State Auditor findings.
State Auditor follow-up record.
Sacramento County Grand Jury election-security report.
Courtney Bailey-Kanelos response.
California Constitution, Article V, §13.
Civil Code §1798.29.
Becerra–Padilla 2020 election-integrity investigation.
Becerra for Governor 2026.
California’s official June 2026 primary Statement of Vote.
Becerra’s July 16, 2026 election statement.
U.S. Senator Alex Padilla’s official biography.
Padilla’s bill to repeal the election executive order and block access to state voter data.
Padilla’s opposition to DOJ access to state voter-registration lists.
DMV’s 2019 notice to approximately 3,200 customers.
California DOJ breach-notice database.
Official biography of Attorney General Todd Blanche.
Justice Department opening brief in the California voter-records appeal

The post EXCLUSIVE: California Democrats Becerra and Padilla Identifed 2016 Election Issues, Then Ignored and Hid Evidence appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

In a video posted to X on Tuesday, Trump lawyer Alina Habba gave a short 30-second tour of the fake Oval Office set that was constructed in the Old Executive Office Building where most of the press events were hosted during former President Joe Biden’s tenure. (@AlinaHabba / X screen shot)
One of the rumored frontrunners to replace Karoline Leavitt has spoken out regarding reports that she could succeed her.
As The Gateway Pundit previously reported, Trump on August 12 announced that Leavitt will be departing her role as White House Press Secretary to spend more time with her young children.
Two prominent loyal defenders of Trump quickly emerged as frontrunners to succeed Leavitt as the next White House Press Secretary, and TGP readers would likely be happy with either.
According to the New York Post, Trump is looking at Alina Habba, who served as a defense lawyer for Trump and as a former acting attorney for New Jersey, and Breitbart Washington Bureau Chief Matthew Boyle.
If one thought the White House press briefings were fiery under Leavitt, Habba and Boyle would take it up another notch. Both have firebrand personalities, particularly when it comes to the left and their corporate media allies.
Oddsmakers are betting on Habba as the next press secretary. But the former Trump defense lawyer is trying to tamp down the rumors.
“Flattered by the Kalshi odds, but I’m not in the running for any job,” Habba wrote on X. “However, if I’m getting a new one, I’d love for one of these anonymous sources to let me know first.”
“Fake news remains the undefeated champ…well…until I come at them,” she added.

Flattered by the Kalshi odds, but I’m not in the running for any job. However, if I’m getting a new one, I’d love for one of these anonymous sources to let me know first.
Fake news remains the undefeated champ…well…until I come at them
— Alina Habba (@AlinaHabba) August 19, 2026

Despite this response, other media outlets speculate that she will take the position if asked by Trump.
The far-left Daily Beast reported that Habba attended Trump’s Bedminster golf course for a dinner, and other candidates for the press secretary position were in attendance.
Other names rumored for the role include former White House deputy chief of staff for communications and personnel Taylor Budowich, Katie Miller, a former aide to Elon Musk at DOGE and the wife of deputy chief of staff for policy Stephen Miller, principal deputy press secretary Anna Kelly, and US chief of protocol Monica Crowley.
Conservative CNN pundit Scott Jennings is also reportedly in the running.
It’s not clear if they were at the dinner.

The post Alina Habba Breaks Silence Regarding Reports that She’s a Frontrunner to Replace Karoline Leavitt as White House Press Secretary appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

FBI Seizes Eric Swalwell’s Electronic Devices At San Francisco Airport Amid Sexual Misconduct Investigation

The FBI executed a search warrant against former congressman Eric Swalwell on Saturday after he landed at San Francisco Airport – seizing his electronic devices, including his cell phone, as part of a federal investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct, the Daily Mail reports.

According to the report:

The agents, armed with additional court-approved search warrants, then entered his house in Washington, D.C. on Sunday, seizing additional undisclosed potential evidence,  well-placed sources tell the Daily Mail.

Sources say Swalwell started his day Saturday in Washington, where he still maintains a residence with his wife and three children.

He headed to the airport later in the day and flew to his home state of California. The feds were waiting for him when he stepped off the plane.

According to sources, Swalwell was cooperative.

The following day, neither he nor his wife Brittany Watts were home when the feds rolled up to their property in Northeast DC.

The DOJ launched a criminal investigation into multiple sexual assault and misconduct allegations lodged against the California democrat. Meanwhile, the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office is investigating an alleged 2024 sexual assault in a New York City hotel room involving a former staffer, while the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and District Attorney’s Office have opened inquiries into a separate 2018 claim. Prosecutors have been assigned to review evidence in the LA case.
Agents, armed with additional court-approved search warrants, also entered his house in Washington, DC on Sunday

Swalwell stepped down from congress in April amid bipartisan pressure and a House Ethics Committee probe into the claims, after the San Francisco Chronicle and CNN reported claims from a former staffer and three other women. The former aide accused Swalwell of sexually assaulting her on two occasions: once in 2019 while she was employed by him, and again in April 2024 after a gala event in New York, where she said she was too intoxicated to consent and attempted to refuse. Three additional women described unwanted explicit messages, unsolicited nude photos, and harassment, some occurring during his gubernatorial campaign.

Then a fifth woman, Lonna Drewes – a Beverly Hills-based former model and fashion software entrepreneur – held a news conference to detail her accusations. Drewes alleged that in July 2018, after meeting Swalwell socially and believing they were developing a friendship, he invited her to his West Hollywood hotel room under the pretense of picking up papers. She claimed he drugged her drink, raped her, and choked her until she lost consciousness. Drewes said she had only one glass of wine that evening and provided authorities with journal entries, texts, and photos as evidence. She has since reported the incident to law enforcement and stands with the other accusers.

Swalwell has denied all allegations. 

The incident comes on the heels of new evidence that Swalwell admitted to having sex with a suspected Chinese spy, who the FBI assessed was likely operating on behalf of China’s Ministry of State Security.

Memos describe Christine Fang, known as Fang Fang (FBI codename ‘Rusty Thumbs’) cultivating Swalwell through sexual encounters, intern referrals into his congressional offices, and campaign contributions routed through American conduits to conceal her status as a prohibited foreign national. Investigators cleared Swalwell of criminal wrongdoing in 2017. Fang was never charged. 

During FBI interviews in 2015 and 2016, Swalwell acknowledged meeting Fang during his initial 2012 congressional campaign and admitted to multiple sexual encounters with her. He confirmed that Fang referred several interns to his campaign and congressional offices, explaining that he treated her referrals as coming from the Asian Pacific Islander American Public Affairs (APAPA) organization.

Tyler Durden
Thu, 08/20/2026 – 10:25

“_mg_11925.jpg” by Tabercil, CC BY-SA 2.0
The Drug Enforcement Administration has reportedly joined the widening investigation into the sudden death of actress Hayden Panettiere.
Panettiere, known for her roles in “Heroes,” “Nashville,” “Remember the Titans,” and the “Scream” franchise, died Sunday at a private residence in Greenville, South Carolina. She was only 36 years old.
TMZ reported Wednesday that DEA agents are now assisting with the parallel investigations already being conducted by the Greenville City Police Department and the Greenville County Coroner’s Office.
ABC News separately reported that Greenville police remain the lead investigative agency while the DEA provides assistance.
The precise reason for the federal agency’s involvement has not been disclosed.
When contacted by TMZ, a DEA spokesperson responded, “The DEA does not confirm or comment on active investigations.”
The major development comes after emergency dispatch audio reportedly referenced a possible overdose while paramedics desperately attempted to revive Panettiere.
Narcan, an emergency medication used to reverse suspected opioid overdoses, was also reportedly discovered inside the residence. However, authorities have not established that narcotics caused or contributed to Panettiere’s death.
Toxicology testing remains pending.
According to a Greenville police report, Panettiere was with her on-again, off-again boyfriend, Brian Hickerson, and his brother, Zack Hickerson, when she died.
The report reportedly states that it was unknown whether Panettiere had consumed drugs or alcohol. Hickerson showed responding officers a bag containing medication Panettiere had allegedly been taking.
Panettiere was reportedly found unresponsive and in cardiac arrest. First responders administered advanced life-support measures, but they were unable to revive her. She was pronounced dead shortly after 2:30 p.m.
As The Gateway Pundit previously reported, a preliminary autopsy found no signs of trauma that contributed to the actress’s death.
“The cause and manner of death remain pending further investigation and the completion of additional studies,” the Greenville County Coroner’s Office announced.
Officials have also said the preliminary investigation uncovered no signs of foul play or suspicious circumstances.
The Gateway Pundit first reported Panettiere’s shocking death on Sunday before additional details surrounding the tragedy became public.
The Gateway Pundit later reported on the disturbing emergency-dispatch audio, which documented the frantic response to an “unresponsive female” suffering cardiac arrest.

The post DEA Joins Investigation Into Actress Hayden Panettiere’s Mysterious Death — Toxicology Results Still Pending appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

North Korea Fires Barrage Of Missiles As Kim Plays Hard To Get, After Trump Overture

The South Korean government has observed an alarming new launch of a missile barrage by North Korea on Thursday, announcing that an unidentified projectile was fired off the peninsula’s east coast on Thursday.

“The Joint Chiefs of Staff said the launches of about 10 short-range ballistic missiles happened from North Korea’s capital region around 5 p.m. (0800 GMT) on Thursday,” the Associated Press details. “The military said the missiles flew about 300 kilometers (185 miles) each toward North Korea’s eastern waters.”
via Reuters

“The military said South Korea has bolstered its surveillance posture and was closely coordinating information on the launches with the U.S. and Japan,” AP adds based on the statement. “South Korea’s presidential national security council issued a statement urging North Korea to halt ballistic missile launches.”

The new test is obviously meant to send a strong message, given it follows Pyongyang’s dismissal of President Trump’s decision to scale back US military exercises with South Korea this week.

Without doubt, Kim Jong-Un is welcoming the sudden attention from Trump, but if there’s hope of rekindling the ‘bromance’ – this is basically Kim playing hard to get.

North Korea’s stance is that simply scaling back the exercises doesn’t make them any less provocative and less of a threat to its national security.

The North Korean strongman’s influential sister has weighed in: “We think it’s not worth making comments on that and we have no interest in it at all,” she said, as cited in state media. “The provocative, aggressive nature of the drills won’t change even though their duration and size were reduced,” she added.

President Trump has been questioned by reporters on if there is currently an exchange of letters or any level of dialogue between Pyongyang and Washington. 

Kim Yo Jong as part of her statement denied that there’s any communication: “If the U.S. calculates that it can propagate its recent measure as the one of so-called good faith, they will not get the desired answer,” she also said.

However, there was this key caveat and positive remark in passing:

Kim Yo Jong’s statement did not contain North Korea’s typically harsh rhetoric. She briefly said relations between her brother and Trump are “still excellent,” mentioning her brother’s past comments that he still has “good memories” of Trump.

So there it is… Kim is playing hard to get while recalling all the fond memories. 

As for the White House, it probably needs a new distraction on the foreign policy front, given how much the Iran war has turned against Washington’s favor. If another face-to-face Trump-Kim meeting actually materialized down the line, it would certainly take over the headlines, at least temporarily.

Q: You said North Korea has 57 nuclear weapons, is your goal denuclearization?
Trump: I don’t want to talk about that but I have a good relationship with Kim Jong Un. I like him. I didn’t like doing these exercises against North Korea pic.twitter.com/9q74leMwpZ
— Headquarters (@HQNewsNow) August 19, 2026
On Kim, Trump said this week: “The fact that I get along with him, that’s a good thing.” He explained: “You can’t let Iran have a nuclear weapon. And I know Kim Jong Un very well, and he’s going to be fine as long as we have a smart president.”

Suddenly everyone gains immediate respect when they achieve nukes – even the ‘rogue’ actors – which is something Tehran has no doubt long observed.

Tyler Durden
Thu, 08/20/2026 – 10:15

The latest preview for “Whalefall” might be one of the most absurd trailers cinema fans see all year.Basic info:Source material: Novel written by Daniel Kraus.NEW TRAILER RELEASED FOR UPCOMING POST-APOCALYPTIC THRILLER ‘THE DOG STARS’ WITH JACOB ELORDII’m always going to click on a movie preview whenever Josh Brolin is involved. The man is a true A-list talent, and pretty much everything he touches turns into gold.That’s why I rushed to watch the new trailer for “Whalefall,” which was released on Wednesday.Little did I know what I was getting myself into. The film is about a young man swallowed by a sperm whale and has to fight his way out.No, that is not a joke. That is 100% the plot of the film.Give the preview a watch below, and let me know your thoughts at David.Hookstead@outkick.com.I am able to suspend reality for just about any film genre, but being swallowed by a sperm whale with an hour of oxygen left might be too much.CLICK HERE FOR MORE OUTKICK CULTURE COVERAGEThe fact of the matter is that there’s no proof such a thing has ever happened in human history. There were claims a man named James Bartley survived being swallowed by a sperm whale in the 1800s, but the story has been thoroughly debunked as not true.People in the comments were also having plenty of fun with the new trailer starring Brolin and Austin Abrams.One viewer wrote, “This film has the potential to be the best comedy of the year.”Another added, “Yeah, same thing happened to me. Luckily, I had some pepper with me and got the whale to sneeze me out. I also found my dad in there, we all lived happily ever after.”What do you think about the preview? Let me know at David.Hookstead@outkick.com.

Bodycam footage shows a Marine F-18 pilot bloodied from facial lacerations after a June crash in Washington state.”I’m a little frazzled,” Marine Corps Maj. Jackson Simon admitted to a Yakima County Sheriff’s deputy wearing a bodycam after the June 13, 2026 crash. Despite that, Simon appeared unfazed by the wreck.The newly released footage captured the moments after the Marine Corps pilot ejected from his F-18 Hornet before the fighter jet slammed into a mountainside near Rimrock Lake. The crash sent flames and a thick column of black smoke rising above the surrounding trees.Despite blood covering parts of his face, Simon could be seen casually walking toward the deputy with a phone in his hand and appearing strikingly composed after coming down through the trees.DEADLY B-52 CRASH PUTS FOCUS ON ENGINES, CONTROLLABILITY AS INVESTIGATORS HUNT FOR ANSWERSAsked by a responder what kind of aircraft had crashed, the pilot began to answer, “That’s an F-18,” before quickly correcting himself.”Well, that was–,” he began, before the responder said, “An F-18?” and the pilot confirmed.The pilot told deputies he had been conducting low-level training over the lake when something went wrong.”We were doing some circles over the lake,” he told the officer. “I tucked in, and I’m not sure exactly. Honestly, I’m a little frazzled.”COAST GUARD HELICOPTER CRASHES DURING ALASKA TRAINING MISSION, INJURING FOUR CREW MEMBERSWhen told by a bystander that “you hit the trees bad, bud,” he responded: “I went through the trees.”When the bystander noticed the pilot was “shaking,” he admitted: “I have some adrenaline going.”The footage also captured the pilot calmly making calls in the aftermath. In one conversation, he matter-of-factly tells someone, “Hey, buddy, this is Major Simon, I just crashed.”After finishing his calls to his reports, he turned to the officer to say: “Without exaggeration: That’s about as close as you come.”DEADLY MILITARY HELICOPTER CRASH IN TEXAS KILLS 2, SPARKS WILDFIRE AND FORCES EVACUATIONS: OFFICIALSLater footage showed his parachute on the mountainside and the officer helping him gather his gear and cut the parachute from the ropes tangled in the trees.The responding deputy wrote in the incident report that he found Simon standing on a hillside, “taking off his flight harness” and stacking his gear in a pile. Simon then slid down the embankment to meet the deputy, who performed a “buddy check” for injuries.Witnesses had watched the military aircraft circling near Rimrock Lake shortly before the crash. Several people called 911 after seeing the pilot eject and the jet plunge into the mountainside, where the impact ignited a fire in the wooded area.The first report came at 12:18 p.m. local time, according to the incident report. Less than a minute later dispatch was logging “JET CRASH” and “PILOT PARACHUTED OUT.” Multiple callers reported the ejection and fire; one entry says a witness was “crying saying she saw the crash.”EIGHT BELIEVED DEAD AFTER B-52 CRASHES SHORTLY AFTER TAKEOFF FROM EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASEThe Marine Corps said the F-18 was assigned to Marine Aircraft Group 11, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing. It was conducting routine training about 55 miles southeast of Seattle when the “non-fatal aviation mishap” occurred at approximately noon Pacific time June 13. The pilot ejected and was recovered by the local sheriff’s department.A military spokesperson valued the destroyed aircraft at close to $67 million. The cause of the crash remains under investigation.The 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, headquartered at MCAS Miramar in San Diego, California, has said it is withholding additional details while that investigation continues and noted that military aviation mishap investigations can take several months to complete.

Longtime “Dancing with the Stars” judge Carrie Ann Inaba is opening up about her “debilitating” pain.During a recent interview with Fox News Digital at Televerse 26, a festival by the Television Academy, the 58-year-old TV personality discussed her experience with Sjögren’s disease.”It’s debilitating. And so I am always in pain,” she said. “And most of the time, when I’m not on camera, I’m in sweatpants. Maybe I haven’t showered in three days, and I’m just kind of like roaming my little neighborhood, walking my dogs. My life is very unglamorous for the most part.”Inaba said it is “really an important message in this day and age” for people to hear what life is actually like behind closed doors because everyone is “being shown these very hyper-realistic versions of people, and it’s not true.”DOLLY PARTON’S ONGOING HEALTH BATTLE FORCES COUNTRY LEGEND TO MISS MAJOR DOLLYWOOD EVENT”I think we need to know that people, we’re all people, we are all going through something,” she added. “And I’m grateful to have Sjögren’s disease because it has given me even more compassion for people and I think it makes me a better judge because I really can feel people when they’re going through stuff, and it’s given me more empathy, and I’m grateful.”WATCH: CARRIE ANN INABA IS ‘ALWAYS IN PAIN’ LIVING WITH SJÖGREN’S DISEASEAccording to the Mayo Clinic, Sjögren’s disease is an autoimmune disease that “most often affects the glands that make moisture in the eyes and mouth.” The lack of moisture leads to “fewer tears and less saliva.”Inaba symptoms started with dry eyes, but the ballroom judge said, “I also had a lot of pain, and I think people don’t know this.””A lot of people think Sjögren’s disease is just dry eyes and your moisture glands, but it’s actually a whole systemic condition and can affect your organs as well, and I’ve had some organ interactions,” she explained. “It’s been a rough road.”CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR THE ENTERTAINMENT NEWSLETTERWhile at Televerse 26 — a three-day conference celebrating all things television with access to insider secrets, craft expertise and innovations propelling television forward — Inaba told Fox News Digital it took doctors 10 years to diagnose her, admitting that even after learning her diagnosis, it took her around 10 to 15 years before she was able to “come to peace” with the idea that this is “something I’m gonna live with forever.”She said managing her energy has become “a key factor in how I plan my day and what I can take on,” adding that while she hasn’t “been able to do as much lately,” she has “learned we don’t always have to do so much.”The dancer and TV personality shared with her Instagram followers that she suffered a “medical emergency” while en route to New York in April after she “suddenly felt quite ill.”WATCH: ‘DWTS’ JUDGE CARRIE ANN INABA WAS DIAGNOSED WITH AN AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE AFTER 10 YEARS OF SYMPTOMS”While it seemed like food poisoning, I also suddenly broke out into a cold sweat, got dizzy and my arms went numb,” she wrote. “Normally I handle most of my health things on my own. Like many people who live with autoimmune disease, I travel with a health tool kit and am prepared for the worst, but this scared me.”LIKE WHAT YOU’RE READING? CLICK HERE FOR MORE ENTERTAINMENT NEWSShe added that she knew “it was time to ask for help” when her arms went numb during the flight.Inaba later told USA Today that a flight attendant and a doctor on board helped her before paramedics took her to a hospital after the plane landed. She received fluids and was later released, continuing her recovery at her hotel.

By Wayne Allyn Root
The funniest story of the year is the WNBA not being able to answer the question, “What is a woman?”
The entire leadership of the WNBA is paralyzed by this question.
They have no idea what to say because A) The clueless far-left morons who play basketball in the WNBA are a bunch of feminist and largely lesbian liberal women whose whole life is built around gay and transgender rights.
And

B) The clueless far left morons who run the WNBA are a bunch of feminist and largely lesbian liberal women whose whole life is built around gay and transgender rights.

And for the WNBA to admit that “only a woman is a woman” would destroy their whole reason for being. It would destroy the liberal lies of the far-left…it would embarrass and humiliate their far-left and mostly lesbian players…and it would turn off their far-left fan base.
To ban biological men from playing in the WNBA would be akin to finally admitting the whole far-left radical, insane fantasy about there being more than two genders is a lie, and this admission would collapse their whole league.
But to actually come out and say “men can be women,” so it’s okay for biological men to apply for the WNBA draft…will also destroy their league. Because in a matter of a year or two, the WNBA players will all be men.
 
The WNBA will become a women’s sports league that has no women playing ever again!
 
Talk about “man power.” If the WNBA lets biological men play in the women’s league, that will be the end of women’s sports. Men who couldn’t make a pro men’s team in any sport will suddenly become the Babe Ruths of women’s sports.
Name the women’s pro sport- basketball, soccer, golf, tennis, track, gymnastics- you name it- men will take over.
Weak men.
The weakest men in sports will become champions of women’s sports. There will be no more women in women’s sports. There will be no more women getting scholarships to college. There will be no more women in the Olympics.
That’s why the WNBA is paralyzed. That’s why a women’s pro sports league can’t, or won’t answer the question, “What is a woman?”
They’re dead either way. They can’t win. The WNBA has been caught in its own idiotic, far-left fraud and gaslighting.
FACT: There are only two genders in this world.
But instead of asking the absurd question, “What is a woman,” the real question we should all be asking is…
“What is a Democrat?” 
Because our nation’s future depends on that life-or-death question. That answer is so important to all Americans because the midterms are coming up in a matter of weeks. And if we can answer that question correctly, we can make America great again.
So, here goes. I’m going to define clearly, “What is a Democrat.”
A Democrat is an evil scumbag brainwashed by, and doing the bidding of, Satan.
A Democrat cares more about illegal alien murderers and rapists and pedophiles than American citizens.
A Democrat cares more about MS-13 drug traffickers and savages than American citizens.
A Democrat cares more about keeping illegal alien commercial truck drivers who don’t speak English, on the road, than protecting American drivers and their families on those roads.
A Democrat is an open borders freak who wants to invite in the entire world of criminals, murderers, rapists, drug traffickers, pedophiles, mentally deranged psychos, not to mention billions of the world’s helpless unskilled, poverty-stricken welfare queens- all of whom will bankrupt, loot and destroy the greatest country in world history…all to achieve one thing…to out-vote real Americans- so Democrats can control U.S. government, and all the power, and all the money, forever more.
A Democrat is someone willing to take bribes from China, and the CCP, and the Mexican Drug Cartels in order to keep the border open, and the drugs and human trafficking, and child sex trafficking, going and thriving.
A Democrat is someone rooting for America to lose the Iran war, and for more US soldiers to be killed, and for the US economy to be damaged, and for the US to be humiliated on the world stage, in order to defeat President Trump and the GOP in the midterms.
A Democrat is a radical communist SUICIDE BOMBER who wants to destroy America, and capitalism, and the US economy, and the great American middle class, in order to make us just another socialist/communist country that enslaves its citizens into misery and poverty.
A Democrat is a mindless, clueless Stepford Wife who wants to defund the police, defund ICE and eliminate prisons.
A Democrat is someone who wants to let every criminal- even murderers and rapists- even career criminals with hundreds of arrests- walk out of prison without any bail required…and give them all the right to vote…
But wants to put peaceful pro-Life grandmas in prison for saying prayers outside abortion clinics…and wants to put PTA parents in prison for disagreeing with communist brainwashing being taught in classrooms.
A Democrat is someone who wants to put American patriots in prison for “treason” for daring to ask for honest elections with Voter ID, proof of citizenship and in-person voting.
I know this because a far-left Green Energy CEO from Las Vegas just sent me hate mail vowing to see me tried for “treason” for urging President Trump to declare a National Security Emergency for Elections.
A Democrat is someone who wants to brainwash your little children in school to change from boys to girls, and girls to boys…and if you disagree, they want to take your children away from you.
A Democrat wants to punish you for being successful; and take away the money you earned from sacrificing and working 16-hour days your whole life; while redistributing your money to reward lazy bums who want welfare, food stamps, free housing, free college, and free healthcare- from cradle to grave.
A Democrat is someone who is gay, but marches in support of Gaza and Hamas, even though if they ever stepped one foot in Gaza, Hamas would instantly throw them off a 10-story building, or stone them to death, or hang them in a public square.
 
That’s the definition of a Democrat that every American voter needs to hear before the midterms.
They’re envious, evil, radical, ignorant, mentally ill, self-hating, and suicidal. And they want to take you and America down with them!
Understanding that definition is life-or-death for America, and the future of your children.
Spread this definition, and we can win the midterms and make America great again.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Wayne Allyn Root is a CEO, businessman, best-selling author, and national conservative TV and radio host, who has interviewed President Trump 16 times. Watch Wayne’s TV shows on Real Americas Voice TV- “America Speaks” weeknights and “America’s Top Ten Countdown” on weekends, and his daily video podcast “WAR Zone Live presented by The Gateway Pundit” daily at 4 PM ET/1 PM Pacific at TheGatewayPundit.com. His website is ROOTforAmerica.com. Read Wayne’s latest fun book, “How Illegal Immigrants Have Made America Great.” It’s 100+ blank pages. The joke is on Democrats!

The post WAYNE ROOT: The WNBA Women’s Basketball League Doesn’t Know What a Woman is. But the More Important Question to Ask- “WHAT IS A DEMOCRAT?” appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.