Month: May 2025

A hysterical protester yelling about the “genocide” in Gaza interrupted a district town hall event being held by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., shortly after it began Friday night.

Shortly after, Ocasio-Cortez began speaking she pulled up a PowerPoint presentation for the night’s event. She was interrupted before even getting through her first slide discussing the Trump administration’s budget cuts, including alleged cuts to local healthcare systems.

“I am a healthcare worker and I want to know what youre doing about the genocide in Gaza!” the protester stood up and started shouting at the congresswoman.

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“Shame! Shame! Shame!” the audience began shouting at the disruptor. Audible “boos” could be heard as well.

Ocasio-Cortez attempted to appease the disruptor, but nothing she could say calmed the person down. Staff at the event allowed the disruptor to continue yelling until they approached her and eventually pushed her out voluntarily.

“Shame on you, I used to support you,” the woman shouted as she exited. “You’re a war criminal! War criminal! War Criminal!”

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Ocasio-Cortez responded to the protester after things quited down:

“I more than welcome people who disagree, or are super pissed off at me for any issue to come, but we have some ground rules here,” she told the town hall’s attendees. “Please wait for the Q&A, because we don’t want to deprive all of our neighbors of the ability to have information and hearing them respond to it … We need to be able to have this conversation.”

As rumors swirl over Ocasio-Cortez’s ambition for higher office, the congresswoman raked in a massive $9.6 million over the past three months. The record-breaking fundraising haul was one of the biggest ever for any House lawmaker. Ocasio-Cortez’s team highlighted that the fundraising came from 266,000 individual donors, with an average contribution of just $21.

“I cannot convey enough how grateful I am to the millions of people supporting us with your time, resources, & energy. Your support has allowed us to rally people together at record scale to organize their communities,” Ocasio-Cortez emphasized in a social media post.

WNBA phenom Caitlin Clark is dealing with an apparent leg issue, her team announced on Friday.

The Indiana Fever listed Clark as questionable with the leg issue for Saturday’s pre-season opener.

No further details are available about the star’s ailment at this time.

Last season, Clark averaged 19.2 points, 5.7 rebounds and 8.4 assists per game. She topped all rookies in scoring and led the WNBA in average assists, helping the Fever get back to the playoffs for the first time in eight years.

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But even more than her team depends on Clark, the league and the sport as a whole have leaned on the star to elevate its popularity.

Clark made the Fever the most-watched team in the WNBA by a landslide in her rookie year, as the 14 most-watched games of the season all involved the Fever. On top of that, she broke the record for most All-Star votes for any player in WNBA history.

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In early September 2024, Clark’s Indiana Fever played before a TV audience of 1.26 million viewers in a game against the Minnesota Lynx that occurred at the same time as a Week-1 Friday night NFL game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Green Bay Packers.

In Clark’s first regular-season finale against the Washington Mystics on Sept. 19, the 20,711 fans that showed up at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C., set a record for the highest-attended WNBA regular-season contest.

Clark and the Fever drew a WNBA record 1.84 million TV viewers on ABC to her first playoff game against the Connecticut Sun on Sept. 22, while competing with an NFL Sunday. She followed it up with another record audience of 2.54 million viewers for Game 2.

But after the Fever’s season ended, the WNBA playoffs saw a steep drop-off in viewers.

The first semifinal game between the Las Vegas Aces and the New York Liberty, a rematch of last year’s WNBA finals between two of the league’s most popular and successful teams, drew an audience of just 929,000, which was 50% less than the Fever’s Game 1 against the Sun.

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Mariano Rivera, who spent his entire storied MLB career with the New York Yankees, has been added as a defendant in a lawsuit. Rivera’s wife, Clara Rivera, was also listed as a defendant in an amended sexual abuse suit filed by an unnamed girl and her mother.

USA Today Sports obtained a copy of the new complaint after it was filed in Westchester County Court April 25.

The original lawsuit, filed in January, alleged the young girl was victimized by an older individual during events linked to the church the Riveras co-founded.

The church is located in Westchester County, New York, and Clara was listed as a senior pastor.

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The Riveras were not named defendants in the initial filing. Instead, the church, Refuge of Hope, and Brook View Rye, LLC were listed as defendants. The limited liability company lists the address of the Riveras’ former home, which they sold in 2022.

MARIANO RIVERA, WIFE BREAK SILENCE AFTER BEING ACCUSED OF COVERING UP CHILD SEX ABUSE

In the previous filing, the Riveras were accused of taking inadequate measures to protect the girl listed as Jane Doe in the complaint. The complaint alleges an assault occurred in “approximately summer 2018” at a New York home the Riveras’ owned at the time.

According to the lawsuit, the alleged abuse happened at a barbecue that children who attended the church were invited to. However, the attending children’s parents did not receive invitations, according to the suit.

The amended suit’s details were consistent with the initial filing. In both filings, the Riveras allegedly disregarded the girl’s claims of sexual abuse and “isolated and intimidated” her in an effort to ensure she remained quiet about the alleged incident.

“Rather than take sufficient action to end the sexual abuse of JANE A DOE, the Riveras each separately isolated and intimidated JANE A DOE to remain silent about her abuse to avoid causing trouble for REFUGIO and the Ignite Life Summer Internship,”  the lawsuit states.

“In order to avoid the potential scandal of child sexual abuse in its programs and otherwise protect DEFENDANTS above all else, the Riveras, in their capacities as agents and/or employees of DEFENDANTS, assured MOTHER A DOE that JANE A DOE was safe and in no danger at Ignite Life Center, despite actual or constructive knowledge that JANE A DOE remained vulnerable to additional acts of sexual abuse.”

Joseph A. Ruta, an attorney representing the Riveras, said the allegations against his clients are “completely false.”

The plaintiff is seeking a jury trial and compensatory and punitive damages.

Rivera, 55, is a five-time World Series champion and a 13-time MLB All-Star. He was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2019.

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MSNBC host and former White House press secretary Jen Psaki insisted in a new interview that she never saw signs that former President Joe Biden had declined while she worked for him.

“I never saw that person —not a single time, and I was in the Oval Office every day, that was on that debate stage,” Psaki said on the “Mixed Signals” podcast about Biden’s performance during the June 2024 presidential debate which raised alarms about his fitness to serve another term. He dropped out the following month and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to replace him as the Democratic nominee.

“I’m not a doctor. Aging happens quite quickly,” Psaki added on the Semafor podcast that was published Friday.

The former Biden aide, who left the White House in May 2022, said she hadn’t seen him in person in the two-and-a-half years afterward leading up to the November election.

JEN PSAKI RECALLS REACTION TO BIDEN’S DEBATE, ‘HEARTBREAKING’ SUMMER BEFORE 2024 EXIT: ‘I WAS LIKE, IS HE OK?’

But she warned against people using the term “cover-up” to describe how the White House responded to questions about the president’s age during that time.

“‘Cover-up’ is a very loaded term,” Psaki said, adding that people typically use that expression when talking about a crime.

“People use that term as related to Watergate. Or the covering up of not sharing public information about a war,” she continued. “I think it’s a bit of a dangerous term.”

Psaki was also hesitant to criticize the media when asked if the press should’ve been “more aggressive” in covering the “pretty big story” about the president’s health.

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“Maybe the media missed a lot,” she said, while arguing that it was easier to be critical of press coverage in retrospect. “There were major stories and moments missed.”

Axios reporter Alex Thompson used a speech at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on Saturday to say the assembled media “should have done better” at covering Biden’s decline.

Psaki suggested one reason there may have been a reluctance to report on these concerns.

“While we know there were problematic things behind-the-scenes now in 2023 and 2024, there was an aggressive all-out pitching operation from the right-wing and from the Republicans about Joe Biden’s age and how he was in decline….the majority of which wasn’t true, in 2019-2022,” Psaki claimed.

That effort by the right “worked,” she said.

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Psaki lamented that Biden’s legacy would be tainted by how the 2024 race played out and brought questions about his fitness to the forefront. Her successor as press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, routinely dismissed questions about Biden’s age and criticized videos of him appearing confused as “cheap fakes.”

Psaki is set to take on a more prominent role at MSNBC, getting the coveted 9 p.m. ET slot Tuesdays through Fridays beginning next week on a program called “The Briefing.” Top-rated MSNBC host Rachel Maddow, who had been hosting five nights a week at 9 p.m. during the first 100 days of the Trump administration, will return to only broadcasting on Monday nights.

Psaki’s comments follow the release of several bombshell books giving an insider look at the 2024 presidential race.

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In author Chris Whipple’s book, “Uncharted,” he argued that Biden’s inner circle “convinced themselves in spite of the evidence” that Biden was capable of serving another term.

A new report warns that NATO is unprepared for modern digital warfare. Without stronger leadership, especially from the U.S., the alliance could face serious security risks.

The Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA) released a study showing that many NATO members are failing to modernize their military data systems.

Although NATO leaders talk about the importance of secure and shared cloud infrastructure, most countries still store critical military information in local servers that are vulnerable to cyberattacks.

The report calls data the “currency of warfare” and urges NATO to improve how it stores and shares military information.

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At the moment, most NATO countries are building separate national cloud systems. France uses Thales, Germany uses Arvato, and Italy is working with Leonardo to develop sovereign defense cloud services, according to the CEPA report Defend in the Cloud: Boost NATO Data Resilience.

The U.S. has its own approach, using Amazon, Google, Microsoft and Oracle to build a sovereign cloud for the Department of Defense, as noted in the same CEPA report.

This fragmented setup is creating major problems. The CEPA report explains that many of these national systems are not interoperable, which makes it difficult for NATO allies to share intelligence or respond rapidly in times of crisis.

Although 22 NATO members have pledged to build shared cloud capabilities, progress has been slow. CEPA describes a gap between what leaders promise and what is actually getting done, and the process remains slow and overly bureaucratic.

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Some of the hesitation stems from political tensions.

Since returning to office, President Donald Trump has reinforced his long-standing position that NATO members must meet their defense spending commitments.

In early 2025, Trump proposed raising the target above the current 2% benchmark and stated publicly that the U.S. would only defend NATO allies who meet what he considers their “fair share” of the burden.

TRUMP PRAISED FOR GETTING NATO ALLIES TO BOLSTER DEFENSE SPENDING: ‘REALLY STAGGERING’

At the same time, Trump has taken credit for strengthening the alliance by pushing European governments to boost their defense budgets.

In March, he pointed to what he called “hundreds of billions of dollars” in new allied defense spending as proof that his pressure was effective. His administration continues to engage in high-level NATO meetings and has publicly affirmed support for the alliance’s core mission.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has worked to reassure European partners. During an April meeting with NATO foreign ministers in Brussels, he stated that the U.S. is “as active in NATO as it has ever been,” pushing back on claims that the administration is disengaging.

According to statements published by the State Department and reported by Reuters, Rubio emphasized that Trump is not opposed to NATO itself, but to an alliance that is under-prepared or underfunded.

Rubio is also playing a central role in U.S. efforts to broker peace in Ukraine. In early 2025, he led direct talks with Russian officials in Saudi Arabia and presented Trump’s terms for a possible ceasefire, according to official State Department readouts and contemporaneous reporting by Reuters and other outlets.

Rubio has emphasized that Ukraine and European allies will remain closely involved in the process. After a pause in U.S. aid earlier this year, he announced that military support would resume once Kyiv signaled agreement with the proposed framework for peace.

Meanwhile, NATO continues to provide assistance to Ukraine through a trust fund valued at nearly $1 billion. This figure is based on NATO’s own reporting on its Comprehensive Assistance Package, as cited in CEPA’s April report.

The alliance is also coordinating training and equipment donations, but the CEPA report makes it clear that efforts are being slowed by a lack of secure data sharing.

The report points to Estonia as a model for digital resilience. Estonia backs up its government data in Luxembourg through a “data embassy” system, ensuring it remains protected even if local systems are attacked. NATO, according to CEPA, should encourage similar strategies across the alliance.

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According to CEPA, the U.S. is best positioned to lead the way, with Trump and Rubio already taking the necessary steps to push NATO in the right direction.

The White House did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

CEPA’s report can be reviewed here.

Shedeur Sanders took some flak from reporters in Cleveland after he made a trip to a local high school.

Sanders spoke at John Marshall High School in Cleveland, where he said he was determined to win Cleveland its first Super Bowl.

The visit was highlighted on social media, which radio host Aaron Goldhammer did not love.

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“I would have preferred that he was going to go talk to a bunch of high school kids that he didn’t post it on social media five seconds after the thing was over,” Goldhammer said on Thursday’s edition of “The Really Big Show,” via Awful Announcing.

“I felt like it was him screaming, ‘See, look at how good of a person I am. I went to a school, then I worked out. I’m doing all the right things.”

One of Sanders’ associates, Hellion “Boog” Knight, who also co-hosts a podcast with Travis Hunter, caught wind of Goldhammer’s comments and wasn’t pleased.

“Shedeur did NOT post anything! I posted it,” Knight wrote. “He didnt ask me, or anyone else to post anything. Nor did he ask for a hundred cameras to be on him upon his entrance into the school. This isnt his first school visit. He’s done MANY, in various cities & states. This is just spewed hate.”

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Knight then posted about several of Sanders’ other visits to different high schools.

Sanders had a stunning fall in the NFL Draft, dropping to the 144th selection in the fifth round after once being considered a top five overall selection.

Sanders has been the center of controversy since his college days, and reports leading up to the draft were not too kind to him.

One coach said Sanders’ formal interview was “the worst,” adding he is “entitled” and “not that good.”

The Browns selected Sanders despite taking Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel in the third round. The Browns’ quarterback depth chart also includes Deshaun Watson, Kenny Pickett and Joe Flacco.

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A plane landed abruptly at a famed golf course Friday due to apparent engine issues.

The single-engine aircraft made an emergency landing in the middle of Riviera Country Club, but no injuries were reported.

According to Traffic News Los Angeles, three passengers were aboard the aircraft that landed at around 1 p.m.

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“The pilot, facing apparent engine issues, skillfully maneuvered the plane to avoid hazards, landing safely on the golf course,” TNLA said.

TNLA added that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) are investigating the accident.

The course will host the Olympic Games in 2028 and has hosted a U.S. Open in 1948 and two PGA Championships (1983 and 1995).

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Golf was “temporarily disrupted” at the course, which annually hosts the Genesis Invitational hosted by Tiger Woods.

The 2025 edition of the tournament was played at Torrey Pines because Riviera Country Club was damaged by wildfires earlier this year.

Ludvig Aberg took home the title.

Riviera opened in 1926, and it will host the U.S. Open in 2031.

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Dolly Parton reflected on life without her late husband Carl Dean after their 60-year romance.

During a Friday appearance on “Today,” the 79-year-old country music icon opened up about how she is coping with the loss of Dean, who died in March at the age of 82.

“Oh, you know what, I get very emotional when people bring it up,” Parton shared as she teared up. “But we were together 60 years. I’ve loved him since I was 18 years old.”

“It’s a big adjustment just trying to change patterns and habits,” she continued. “I’ll do fine, and I’m very involved in my work and that’s been the best thing that could happen to me.”

DOLLY PARTON’S HUSBAND, CARL DEAN, DEAD AT 82

“But I’ll always miss him, of course, and always love him. He was a great partner to me,” she added.

The 10-time Grammy winner went on to express her gratitude for the love and support that she had received in the wake of Dean’s death.

“I’m so thankful. I’ve gotten so many cards, letters, flowers, from all over the world,” Parton said.

“I had no idea Carl Dean was so famous,” she joked of her spouse.

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Despite being married to the internationally famous singer-songwriter for almost six decades, Dean was a very private man who steered clear of the spotlight, though he played a strong supporting role in Parton’s life.

In a 1977 interview with Country Music magazine, Parton explained that it was “good” that Dean was a “mystery person to the public.”

“My career being separate from my marriage is perfectly natural for us,” she said. “We like it that way. It’s too right and too natural and too comfortable and too secure for it to ever be anything else.”

Parton first met Dean at a laundromat in Nashville, Tennessee, in 1964 when she was 18 and he was 21, and the couple tied the knot two years later.

During his lifetime, Dean rarely gave interviews. However, in 2016, he spoke lovingly of Parton while the couple were celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary.

“My first thought was, ‘I’m going to marry that girl,'” Dean told Entertainment Tonight about meeting Parton for the first time. “My second thought was, ‘Lord, she’s good-looking.’ And that was the day my life began. I wouldn’t trade the last 50 years for nothing on this Earth.”

While appearing on “Today,” Parton recalled an interaction between herself and a young fan during this year’s opening-day parade at her Dollywood theme park in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, on March 14.

In a viral clip, a little boy was seen appearing shocked and overjoyed when he spotted Parton, who smiled and pointed at him as she rode by in a carriage.

“I remember him in the parade. I was thinking, ‘Honey, are you gonna have a heart attack right here in front of everybody?’” Parton said. “It was the sweetest thing. I just wanted to get off of that cart and run down and just squeeze him. It was just great.”

The moment took place while Parton was making her first public appearance following Dean’s death. The “Jolene” singer surprised fans when she attended the opening-day celebrations in honor of Dollywood’s 40th anniversary.

During her appearance on the show, Parton admitted that taking part in the parade amid her grief over Dean’s death had been challenging.

“I got very emotional that day after the parade because there was just so much love like that,” she said. “Right after I had lost Carl and I was just so bottled up with emotion, and I got in the van and just boo-hooed for the longest time, just feeling all that love and emotion.”

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Parton announced Dean’s death in a heartfelt statement that she shared on Instagram on March 3.

“Carl and I spent many wonderful years together,” the “9 to 5” singer wrote. “Words can’t do justice to the love we shared for over 60 years. Thank you for your prayers and sympathy.”

On March 7, Parton took to Instagram to reveal a new song that she had dedicated to Dean, titled “If You Hadn’t Been There.”

“I fell in love with Carl Dean when I was 18 years old,” she wrote along with a throwback photo of herself with her spouse.

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“We have spent 60 precious and meaningful years together,” Parton continued in her caption. “Like all great love stories, they never end. They live on in memory and song. He will always be the star of my life story, and I dedicate this song to him.”

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Two weeks after Dean’s death, Parton opened up about how she was carrying on after his passing.

“I’m doing better than I thought I would,” Parton told Knox News. “I’ve been with him 60 years. So, I’m going to have to relearn some of the things that we’ve done. But I’ll keep him always close.”

“I’m at peace that he’s at peace, but that don’t keep me from missing him and loving him,” the entertainer said, adding that her husband had “suffered a great deal.”

“It’s a hole in my heart, you know, but we’ll fill that up with good stuff and he’ll still always be with me,” she said.

Name, image and likeness is taking college sports by storm, and it might take the government to slow it down.

After meeting with Alabama head coach Nick Saban Thursday, President Donald Trump is reportedly considering an executive order to regulate NIL deals in college athletics.

According to The Wall Street Journal, Saban told Trump the influx of money has hurt college sports. Saban does not want to halt NIL payments but wants them “reformed.”

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In an appearance on Fox News Channel last year, Saban urged Congress to step in and make NIL “equal across the board.”

“And I think that should still exist for all players, but not just a pay-for-play system like we have now where whoever raises the most money in their collective can pay the most for the players, which is not a level playing field. I think in any competitive venue, you want to have some guidelines that gives everyone an equal opportunity to have a chance to be successful,” he said.

Saban said the NCAA “can handle” NIL and whatever changes are necessary, but Congress “needs to” add “national legislation.”

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“Now, we just have the state legislation — and every state is different — that would protect the NCAA from litigation once we establish guidelines for the future of college athletics. But the litigation is what got us to this point right now,” Saban said. “We have to have some protection from litigation. I don’t know if it’s antitrust laws or whatever.

“I’m not versed enough on all that to really make a recommendation. But I know we need some kind of federal standard and guidelines that allows people to enforce their own rules.”

The NCAA last week passed rules by which colleges would be allowed to pay athletes as a result of a multibillion-dollar lawsuit settlement expected to go into effect this summer.

Earlier this week, Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., said “if anyone” can help regulate NIL, “it’s President Trump.”

Saban introduced Trump Thursday at an event for Alabama’s graduating students, where Trump gave a speech.

In the speech, Trump raved about Alabama’s athletic programs, saying the school is a place “where legends are made.”

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A transgender swimmer won five women’s races at the U.S. Masters Swimming Spring National Championship last weekend.

The swimmer, 47-year-old Ana Caldas, dominated all five races the athlete competed in, taking gold in the women’s age 45-49 category in five races, including the 50- and 100-yard breaststroke, freestyle and the 100-yard individual medley.

The controversy prompted backlash on social media.

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U.S. Masters Swimming has provided a statement to Fox News Digital addressing the controversy.

“USMS is aware of allegations regarding the eligibility of a swimmer who competed at our Spring National Championship. We have received an eligibility review request and will follow our formal process to make a determination,” the statement read.

“USMS exists to empower adults to improve their lives through swimming. The health and fitness benefits of swimming are the primary focus of that mission, but we also strive to create a community that values fairness, competition, and inclusion. In that spirit, USMS has had a longstanding policy on transgender swimmers that was created, and periodically reviewed and updated, by relevant member committees with input from subject matter experts. The policy includes procedures to address questions of eligibility.”

U.S. Masters Swimming’s gender eligibility policy allows transgender swimmers to participate in the gender competition category in which they identify, and they may also be recognized for accomplishments, granted certain conditions are met.

One of those conditions requires that a “hormonal therapy appropriate for the female gender has been administered continuously and uninterrupted in a verifiable manner for a sufficient length of time, no less than one year, to minimize gender-related advantages in sport competitions” and subsequent proof of low enough testosterone levels.

In June 2023, Texas passed the Save Women’s Sports Act, which bans trans athletes from competing in girls and women’s sports and only allows students to compete in the gender category listed on their birth certificate. The law only allows schools to recognize changes made to birth certificates that were made to correct a clerical error.

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And just last week, the Texas Senate voted to pass the Texas Women’s Privacy Act by a vote of 20-11. The bill ensures women are safe in their bathrooms, locker rooms, showers and domestic abuse shelters.

President Donald Trump has had an executive order in place since Feb. 5 that requires publicly funded institutions to ban trans athletes from women’s and girls sports.

The topic of trans competitors in women’s swimming specifically became a national controversy in 2022 when former University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas, who previously competed for the school’s men’s swimming team, represented the school at the NCAA championships after transitioning to the women’s category.

UPenn and the NCAA are facing lawsuits over Thomas’ participation in women’s swimming, and the Trump administration has frozen funding to UPenn and declared it has violated Title IX.

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