The Huffington Post reports: “The irony is just too much.” “Irony is really and truly dead.” “Beyond parody.” Those were just some of the withering comments posted online in the wake of new remarks from Agricultural Secretary Brooke Rollins on Fox News that were also mocked as “delusional” and spectacularly self-unaware. Rollins appeared on air during the conservative network’s coverage …

“Through the power of sports, America 250 will also host a brand new, first of its kind youth athletes. It’s a competition known as the Patriot Games and it features top high school athletes from all 50 states. It’s gonna be great, and this phenomenal patriotic sporting event will be nationally televised and it’ll be led by our great Secretary …

The Texas Tribune reports: Texas will pay $6.6 million to four former top deputies to Attorney General Ken Paxton who say they were fired after reporting their boss to the FBI. This years-long legal saga reached its conclusion on Wednesday, when Paxton dropped his appeal of the April judgement. The Legislature will still have to appropriate the funds to pay …

CBS News reports: Get ready to see some punches on the White House grounds. President Trump says he will host a UFC mixed martial arts fight at the White House as part of next year’s festivities celebrating 250 years of American independence. The idea came up during a Thursday night speech at the Iowa State Fairgrounds The federal government is …

TMZ reports: Caitlyn Jenner’s longtime friend and manager, Sophia Hutchins, is dead following a tragic ATV accident near Caitlyn’s home, TMZ has learned. Sophia was pronounced dead Wednesday morning in Malibu, according to law enforcement and family sources. We’re told Sophia was riding the ATV on the road where Caitlyn lives when she struck the bumper of a moving car …

The Daily Beast reports: President Donald Trump declared his hatred for his political opponents during a supposedly bipartisan celebration of the 250th anniversary of America’s independence. Taking to the lectern behind thick bulletproof glass in Des Moines, Iowa, on Thursday, Trump immediately started firing off political potshots. “They wouldn’t vote only because they hate Trump, but I hate them, too, …

Variety reports: Legendary former CBS News anchor Dan Rather expressed disappointment Wednesday at Paramount Global‘s decision to pay $16 million to the Trump administration and settle its lawsuit over a “60 Minutes” report. “It’s a sad day for journalism,” Rather told Variety. “It’s a sad day for ’60 Minutes’ and CBS News. I hope people will read the details of …

Gothamist reports: Zohran Mamdani said he wants to “introduce himself once more” to New Yorkers — and now his calendar is full of meetings with VIPs. House Majority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer are on the list of those planning a sit-down. So is Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, who was widely criticized last week for misrepresenting Mamdani and …

The Meidas Touch reports: During a recent White House Faith Office conference call, Donald Trump suggested that disruptions to the call’s audio might have been part of a deliberate effort to sabotage the event. On Monday, Trump posted about the call struggles on Truth Social, calling out AT&T in the process and demanded the “boss of AT&T” get involved. Trump …

Newsweek reports: The chances of a cyclone forming near Florida have again increased, forecasters at the National Hurricane Center (NHC) say. If tropical storm formation occurs, it will become the third named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, taking the name Chantal. Tropical Storms Andrea and Barry formed last week. As of the NHC’s latest update, issued early Thursday morning, …

The New York Times reports: The Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday placed 144 employees on administrative leave and opened an investigation into their decision to sign a letter accusing the Trump administration of politicizing the agency. Current and former E.P.A. employees, lawyers and advocates expressed alarm at the development, saying the agency appeared to be ignoring the employees’ First Amendment …

Indianapolis’s CW affiliate reports: An Indianapolis church is calling for members of the LGBTQ+ community to be put to death or to kill themselves. The call was made during a recent sermon titled “Pray the Gay Away” inside Sure Foundation Baptist Church on the northwest side of the city. “There’s nothing good to be proud about being a faggot. You …

The New York Times reports: The Supreme Court on Thursday allowed the government to deport eight men who have spent more than a month held under guard on an American military base on Djibouti to South Sudan, granting a request from the Trump administration. The order allows the government to immediately send the men, who hail from countries around the …

The Hill reports: Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.) urged Interior Secretary Doug Burgum today to “explore the addition” of President Trump’s likeness to Mount Rushmore in South Dakota, citing “the scale and scope of recent achievements,” including the president’s domestic policy megabill that Congress passed Thursday and his administration’s ongoing border security efforts. In a letter to Burgum on Thursday, Ogles …

The Associated Press reports: In a matter of days, an isolated training airport in the Everglades where endangered Florida panthers roam became a sprawling immigration detention center christened “Alligator Alcatraz,” modeled after the state’s frequent responses to hurricanes and built in part by companies whose owners have donated generously to Republicans. Some GOP donors whose companies helped build and will …

Penn Live reports: A Cumberland County man accused of sexually molesting a 9-year-old girl in a McDonalds will spend less than a year in prison, per a sentence handed down Tuesday afternoon. A judge sentenced Roy Andrews, 77, to four months to a year in prison for touching a 9-year-old girl’s genitals in April 2024 while they sat in a …

The Associated Press reports: The Supreme Court said Thursday it will consider whether to revive a lawsuit from a man barred from evangelizing outside a small-town Mississippi amphitheater after authorities say he shouted insults at people over a loudspeaker. Gabriel Olivier, an evangelical Christian, says restricting him from public property violated his religious and free speech rights. The city of …

The Associated Press reports: North Carolina Democratic Gov. Josh Stein vetoed on Thursday three anti-DEI bills and another measure that in part would target transgender rights. His actions set up more showdowns with Republican lawmakers who pitch the legislation as doing away with structured racial bias in government and public education, protecting women and empowering parents. Stein criticized the Republican-controlled …

Nexstar reports: Within the several hundreds of pages of the megabill is $40 million for a “Garden of Heroes” to help celebrate America’s upcoming 250th birthday. Earlier this year, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to revive plans he outlined during his first term to have a “National Garden of American Heroes” built. Under his 2020 executive order, Trump …

Here’s why the Freedom Caucus caved: Hard-line House conservatives said President Donald Trump assured them his administration would strictly enforce rules for wind or solar projects to qualify for the tax credits under the Inflation Reduction Act — a pledge that persuaded them to back the party’s megabill. “What he’s going to do is use his powers as chief executive …