Politics

TikTok’s CEO Got Blasted By Both Sides During An Intense Congressional Hearing
Shou Zi Chew was forced to defend the Chinese-owned app, which some US lawmakers want to ban.

“Emily In Paris” May Be Trashy, But This TikTok Showed How The Streets Of Paris Are Worse Right Now
🎵Baby it feels like heaven, mon cheri 🎵

Congress Wanted Me To Turn Over A Document About TikTok’s Links To China. Here’s Why I Refused.
I don’t have high hopes for Thursday’s congressional hearing about the app.

Donald Trump Is Not Immune From A Lawsuit About The Jan. 6 Riot
Former president Donald Trump can be sued by members of Congress and Capitol police for injuries they sustained during the Jan. 6 insurrection, the Department of Justice said Thursday.

The US Shot Down The Chinese Spy Balloon And The Memes Are Gold
“Hey, did anyone lose a big white balloon?” tweeted the city of Myrtle Beach's tourism account after the US military shot down the Chinese spy balloon over the Atlantic Ocean.

Family And Friends Remember Tyre Nichols As A “Free Spirit” Who “Was Just His Own Person”
“He has a tattoo of my name on his arm,” Nichols’s mother RowVaughn Wells said in a press conference on Friday. “My son loved me to death and I loved him to death.”

“Question…?”: Why’d These Senators Drop So Many Taylor Swift Lyrics During Ticketmaster's Senate Hearing?
“You can’t have too much consolidation — something that unfortunately for this country, as an ode to Taylor Swift, I will say, we know all too well.”

Lynnette Hardaway, Better Known As Diamond Of The Pro-Trump Duo Diamond And Silk, Has Died
"Diamond's death was totally unexpected, probably her big and precious HEART just plain gave out," Trump wrote.

Dr. Dre Blasted Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene As “Hateful And Divisive” After She Used His Music In A Twitter Video
"I don’t license my music to politicians, especially someone as divisive and hateful as this one," Dr. Dre said.

Kevin McCarthy's Bid For Speaker Of The House Was A Hot Mess. But After 15 Votes, The California Republican Finally Won The Gavel
The inability of Republicans to coalesce around a candidate for House speaker was the longest bid in 164 years — and the butt of jokes on social media.

The Men Who Plotted To Kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer Have Been Sentenced To Over 15 Years In Federal Prison
Adam Fox and Barry Croft Jr. were found guilty of conspiring to abduct the governor and planning to use a weapon of mass destruction.

Sen. Kyrsten Sinema Of Arizona Said She's No Longer A Democrat And People On Twitter Had A Lot To Say About It
“Sinema has always had an independent streak. I don’t think I’m telling you anything that’s a surprise,” Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar said.

Raphael Warnock Has Defeated Herschel Walker In The Georgia Runoff, Giving Democrats 51 Seats In The Senate
The Senate race in Georgia went to a runoff after neither candidate won more than 50% of the vote in the November midterm election.

A Threat Against Justice For Emmett Till Protesters Led To The Cancellation Of A Christmas Parade
In spite of the threat, protesters still showed up to call for accountability in the brutal 1955 lynching of the 14-year-old.

Oath Keepers Founder Stewart Rhodes Was Convicted Of Seditious Conspiracy For His Role In The Jan. 6 Attack On The Capitol
Rhodes and another Oath Keeper are the first people since 1995 to be found guilty by a jury of the Civil War-era charge of seditious conspiracy.

Trump Admitted To Dining With An Antisemite (Kanye) And A White Nationalist At Mar-A-Lago
Judge a man by the company he keeps.

How The “Don’t Say Gay” Law Is Affecting Florida LGBTQ Students And Teachers
“You feel the sense of danger — like, school does not feel safe.”

That Viral Post About 15,000 Protesters In Iran Being Sentenced To Death Is Misleading, But Activists Warn Executions Are A Strong "Possibility"
Several high-profile figures, including Viola Davis, Sophie Turner, and Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, shared the post about protesters in Iran being executed.

Donald Trump Says He Will Run For President In 2024
Trump has spent most of the last two years undermining American democracy. Now he wants another chance at power.

Arizona Rejected MAGA Candidates For Senate And Governor
The critical swing state went for former president Donald Trump in 2016 and then President Joe Biden in 2020.

“We Have A Broken Healthcare System”: An Ohio County Is Trying To Erase Up To $240 Million In Medical Debt
“Washington might not have a plan for medical debt relief, but Toledo, Ohio does.”

Newly Elected Gen Z Congress Member Maxwell Frost Told Us He Was OK With Getting His Stan History Uncovered On Twitter
The 25-year-old Florida new member of Congress told us about the time he met Harry Styles and how political campaigns are similar to standoms.

Gen Z Showed That Young Voters Are A Force To Be Reckoned With
“We’ve grown up in unprecedented circumstances from economic turmoil to the pandemic, to climate change, to school shootings.”

I Can’t Tell If Trump Is Panicking About Ron DeSantis. Oh, Wait. Yes I Can.
After right-wing media appeared to rally behind Ron DeSantis, Trump went into meltdown mode.

Here's Where Abortion Rights Won At The Midterms
In Michigan and Kentucky and California and Vermont and Wisconsin, abortion access was supported at the polls.

The “Red Wave” Was More Of A Meme Opportunity Than Any Big Political Swing
The force of the red wave became more of a meme than a descriptor for how the midterms went.

Wisconsin Voters Have Reelected A Governor And Attorney General Who Support Abortion Rights And Say They Won’t Enforce A Near-Total Abortion Ban
Democratic Gov. Tony Evers and Attorney General Josh Kaul have pledged not to enforce the state’s near-total abortion ban, which took effect after Roe v. Wade was overturned.

Republican Ron Johnson, Who Said Jan. 6 Was Not An Armed Insurrection, Has Been Reelected Senator Of Wisconsin
Through the summer, polls showed the incumbent Republican and 35-year-old progressive challenger neck and neck.

Voters Turned Out To Protect Abortion Rights In Michigan, California, And Kentucky, Just Months After Roe Was Overturned
“This is a really big step in preventing any more degradation of democracy,” a Michigan woman who voted in favor of the amendment told BuzzFeed News.

A Rundown Of Critical Midterm Election Victories So Far
Here’s why these winners are such a big deal.