Abdul El Sayyed is Exposing the Democrats' Failures of the past Several Decades

In his style as well as in his substance, Abdul El Sayyed is doing exactly what the Democrats have failed to do in decades. Always worried about saying the right thing or doing the right thing, Democrats have fallen into what macho Americans see as neutered tasteless odorless choir boys and girls waiting to grow up one day. Democrats have the substance but they lack the style.

Who has shown the correct style that works with a dumb violence-prone machismo-imbibed American people? Sadly, Trump himself. He has seduced a large swath of independents, and maybe even Democrats, purely on style - the man says what he thinks - as if saying rotten racist crap in a brash manner is golden. That is the problem with an American electorate whose votes can be purchased with expensive but stupid commercials. Americans do not vote on the substance, on the character, on the integrity of the candidate.... they are only charmed by a silly combative style, something that harkens back to the American past of pioneers, cowboys, wild west, bad-boys, athletes and criminals as heroes and the like. 

El Sayyed has adopted Trump's pushy style while being ten thousand times smarter and subtle than the Moron-in-Chief, and that is a winning formula as we face the midterms. In an ironic way, Trump has shown Democrats, whose message is by far more substantive than the neanderthal conservatives, what to do to win on style too. El-Sayyed has captured that formula.

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Abdul El-Sayed’s fighting style terrifies MAGA
Amanda Marcotte
Mon, October 19, 2026


TRAVERSE CITY, MICHIGAN - OCTOBER 10: Democratic Senate Candidate Abdul El-Sayed speaks from the stage during a campaign event at the State Theater on October 10, 2026 in Traverse City, Michigan. A former public health director and firebrand progressive, El-Sayed has been polling ahead of his Republican opponent and former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, but the lead remains within the margin of error. Al-Sayed could become the first Muslim elected to the U.S. Senate from a state that has not elected a GOP senator in 32 years. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images


Jesse Watters can't seem to stop admiring Dr. Abdul El-Sayed. The Fox News host loves to talk about how Michigan's Democratic nominee for the Senate is "in great shape" and how "Abdul . . . beat the machine" — meaning the party establishment's candidate, Rep. Haley Stevens — in a hard-fought primary. During an interview in August, Watters clearly enjoyed El-Sayed's jokes and blunt speech, which included calling his opponent, former Rep. Mike Rogers, a "beta," and asking the host if he was circumcised when Watters tried to corner him on gender-affirming surgery for minors. The next day, Watters made no bones about El-Sayed's appeal. "I like him," he said. "I don't want to like him. I like him for some stupid reason."

But the reason was obvious. The doctor-turned-politician has an aggressive bro style that appeals to someone like Watters. Quick-witted with bulldog energy, El-Sayed never backs down from a fight. But despite Watters' admiration, Fox News has become obsessed with taking El-Sayed down. It's not because he's Muslim, though Republicans are ratcheting up the racism in their efforts to derail his campaign. It's because he is a model for how Democrats can escape their reputations for being weak and feckless.

El-Sayed has a lot going for him. He spent years running public health services in the Detroit area and speaks eloquently and with authority about people's struggles to afford healthcare, even writing a book about Medicare for All. Most importantly, he's an excellent communicator who can boil down complex policy ideas into easily digestible concepts without dumbing them down. A video of him explaining to Trump voters why universal healthcare is cheaper than the insurance system went viral for good reason. One can see that, for these voters, it's likely the first time someone plainly explained how removing executive salaries and profit incentives from healthcare makes it cheaper.

Other politicians, like Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., or Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., are good at explaining progressive policy. But what really seems to scare Republicans about El-Sayed is his political persona as a brawler — and for good reason. Vice President JD Vance learned this last week when he lobbed a strange insult at El-Sayed during a rally in Michigan for Rogers. The Democrat, Vance said, is "a little weasel who should shut his mouth and show a little gratitude."

This is a common and deeply racist attack from Vance, who portrays non-white progressives as undeserving recipients of white people's largesse — a caricature that has no relation to reality. El-Sayed left a position as an assistant professor at Columbia University to work in public health, where he won awards for his success in protecting children's health from environmental pollution. During this same period, Vance worked as a venture capitalist who was close with tech billionaire Peter Thiel.

El-Sayed resisted the temptation to "well, actually" Vance, and instead hit back by calling the vice president and those around him "carnival barkers" who "are small and want to make us small like them." His response was smooth. "JD Vance called me a little weasel today," El-Sayed said. "I'm like, 'No, no, no. What you're talking about is a Wolverine,'" a reference to the mascot for the University of Michigan, where the Democrat got his undergraduate degree.

As Salon's Sophia Tesfaye recently wrote, El-Sayed has been courting Fox News viewers by appearing on the channel and running endless ads on it, all without softening his left-leaning message. He clearly hopes his bravado will woo some of the network's audience, just as it won over Watters.

For his part, President Donald Trump is worried that El-Sayed is right. He's been openly complaining at rallies and on Truth Social about how charming the candidate is in his Fox appearances. In early October, Axios reported that the White House contacted the network to complain about El-Sayed's coverage. Trump was especially miffed at the Democrat's interview with Martha McCallum, during which the host's efforts to bait him into saying something that could be spun as "radical" failed. Instead, MacCallum embarrassed herself by defending billionaires hoarding wealth, to which El-Sayed said that he'd rather pay for schools than be so "focused on allowing a billionaire to make another billion."

Since then, it seems that Fox producers got the White House's message that they have to do something to dirty up El-Sayed. But they've learned the hard way that it won't work to come at him directly, because he ends up dominating interviews and beguiling those who, like Watters, love his commanding and clever style. MacCallum later tried to redeem herself by interviewing progressive activist Corbin Trent and pretending he was a stand-in for El-Sayed.

At first glance, Trent performed as Fox producers no doubt hoped he might. He took MacCallum's bait by defending the Muslim Brotherhood, something that the host could not get El-Sayed to do. The problem, though, is that Trent has no discernible relationship to the candidate. While he has worked for other progressives, including Sanders, I found no evidence that he has even met El-Sayed, much less is qualified to speak for him.

This attempt to hobble El-Sayed was revealing; it's clearly all Fox News has. If the network tries to bring El-Sayed on again to ask him the same questions, they know from experience that he'll probably just win over even more of their viewers. This isn't idle speculation. MS NOW recently conducted a focus group with regretful Trump voters in Michigan and found that five out of the six are voting for El-Sayed. Republicans should be worried about the young male demographic in particular. Trump won male voters under 30 by a narrow margin in 2024, but they are jumping ship and now strongly favor Democrats.

El-Sayed is a compelling model for a new kind of Democrat. Polling by Strength In Numbers/Verasight shows that even Democratic voters take a negative view of the party, but not because they think their leaders are too progressive. "[T]he single most common complaint about their own party is that it is too weak, too cautious, or not fighting hard enough," writes G. Elliott Morris in an analysis of the poll.

The Democratic base wants the party to take a more aggressive stance toward their GOP opponents, which will be key to building a more lasting coalition — especially one that includes younger and more male voters. El-Sayed is doing just that, and it has the right scared.

The post Abdul El-Sayed's fighting style terrifies MAGA appeared first on Salon.com.

Evangelical Crook Pastor Accuses his Victims of Being "Demonically Possessed"

It is with similar tactics of swindling dumb Americans out of their savings that Evangelical pastors, reverends, preachers and assorted crooks not only rip off their faithful followers but convince them that Israel was re-created by God to bring Jesus back to earth and usher the end of times. 

No wonder it was so easy for a mega-crook like Donald Dumb managed to get elected twice by a largely moronic American electorate that is easily swayed by television advertisements. That is why they believed that Donald Dumb was a Christian who is saving America from its immigrants.





Pastor Accused of $13M Tech Investment Fraud Called Skeptical Investors ‘Demonically Possessed’
Milos Komnenovic
Sun, October 18, 2026 

A Washington pastor allegedly raised at least $13 million for a technology investment whose online marketplace could not complete a single customer purchase, according to a federal indictment.

Cristian Popescu, 46, of Bothell, led the Passion for Christ congregation in Kirkland while promoting Followone Inc., a Bellevue venture. Prosecutors say he used his position at the church to win investors' trust while making misleading claims about the business.

More than 30 people provided investments and loans, according to the filing. Prosecutors allege that money intended for Followone was diverted for personal spending and stock trading, while some investors struggled to recover their funds.

Popescu pleaded not guilty on Oct. 13, 2026, to ten counts of wire fraud and five counts of money laundering, the U.S. Attorney's Office announced. The indictment was filed in federal court in Seattle on Oct. 7.

He Said God Chose the Investors and Urged Them to Use Their Savings

In the 13-page indictment, prosecutors allege that Popescu presented Followone as a global marketplace and social network built around secret technology. Prosecutors also allege that Popescu told investors God had chosen them to invest in Followone and that doing so would advance the church's mission. He claimed buyers and sellers could transact in fields ranging from cars and real estate to travel and health care. He also said prospective buyers had offered hundreds of millions of dollars for the company, but that God had directed him to keep it and use future earnings to help children, older residents and the church.

Popescu encouraged supporters to draw on savings, take out personal or home equity loans and liquidate college and retirement funds, according to the filing. Some were directed to move retirement assets into self-directed IRAs and then send the proceeds to a Followone account he controlled. He told investors they could withdraw their money whenever they wanted.

Large contributions were supposed to confer influence. Investors who reached thresholds such as $1 million were named to Followone's board, but prosecutors say they received neither real oversight authority nor the financial information needed to govern the business. Participants were also required to sign nondisclosure agreements, use encrypted messaging services and turn off phones and recording devices during meetings.

Six Million Car Listings Could Not Produce an Online Sale

Prosecutors say programmers populated Followone's website with data that made it appear to have a working marketplace. Popescu bought access to vehicle listings from Marketcheck, a supplier of automobile inventory information, and promoted access to more than six million cars. The indictment says no cars were bought or sold through Followone and the site lacked the ability to execute those transactions.

A real estate broker supplied property listings from a multiple listing service, creating a similar impression that homes could be purchased through the platform. Investigators allege those pages could not process property transactions either. Popescu also assigned impressive executive titles to people who did not perform the corresponding duties.

He leased and furnished expensive offices in downtown Bellevue and announced staffing plans suggesting a substantial operation. Prosecutors say approximately three people worked there, mainly on the nonfunctional webpages. In 2019, he allegedly told an investment bank Followone had earned $4.1 million in the year's first three quarters and could generate $61 million to $84 million in 2020 with financing. The indictment says the company had generated no revenue.

Fake Invoices Made Money Circulate as Supposed Revenue

The indictment describes shell companies with names suggesting genuine online businesses. Followone allegedly issued invoices for software-development services it had not provided, then routed money through an intermediary called ADSB2B into those companies. Their operators sent the same funds back to Followone as purported payment for the invoices.

Rather than establishing outside customer sales, those transactions allegedly recycled Followone's own money to make its books appear more active.

A $1.4 Billion Valuation Inflated Investors' Holdings as Rent Went Unpaid

Followone provided investors with an online portal showing purported growth in the value of their shares. At one point, according to the indictment, Popescu assigned the company a $1.4 billion valuation, making some holdings appear to be worth millions or tens of millions of dollars.

Prosecutors say the company had little or no underlying value, and its financial problems were not disclosed to investors. Followone eventually lost its Bellevue office lease with more than $350,000 in overdue rent. Employees also stopped receiving wages when the company ran short of cash.

He Called Questioning Investors 'Demonically Possessed'

When investors asked to withdraw their money, Popescu allegedly told them repayment could jeopardize an audit or the company's expected Nasdaq listing. Those who pressed for financial information or expressed doubts encountered angry responses invoking his position as a pastor. The indictment says he told some of them they were "demonically possessed."

The Roys Report separately located a church-posted video of a 2024 sermon in which Popescu described a vision of demons plotting against him, with his company among their targets. The sermon was not footage of the later conversations with investors described in the indictment.

SEC Filings Documented New Offerings, Not Government Approval

Followone also filed notices of proposed securities offerings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. A December 2024 Form D described an intended $50.4 million equity offering under Rule 506(c), reporting no sales under that particular offering at the filing date.

A separate October 2025 filing reported a $30 million proposed equity offering under Rule 506(b), with $25,000 sold to one investor at that time. Those figures refer to the specific offerings described in the notices, not all investments and loans alleged in the criminal case. A Form D is an issuer-submitted notice, not an SEC endorsement of a business or confirmation that its projections are true.

Prosecutors Say More Than $4.5 Million Went to Personal Accounts

According to the indictment, Popescu moved more than $4.5 million of Followone funds into personal bank accounts, including an account held with his wife. Prosecutors also describe nearly $900,000 sent to his personal stock-trading account and about $1 million used to pay his credit card debt.

He was paid more than $1 million in Followone wages between 2017 and 2024, while his wife allegedly received more than $300,000 in wages without being a genuine employee.

Fifteen Federal Counts Include a Nearly $1 Million Investor Wire

The ten wire fraud counts identify particular transfers and messages, including a $999,998.69 investor wire into Followone's Bank of America account on Dec. 29, 2022. The five money laundering counts address separate specified financial transactions, including a $1 million transfer from a Followone account into Popescu's personal account in January 2023 and a later $100,000 transfer to an E*Trade account.

Each wire fraud count carries a statutory maximum of 20 years in prison; the charged money laundering offenses carry up to ten years per count. Those are maximum penalties, not a prediction or a combined sentence. The Department of Justice says Popescu was released under electronic monitoring over prosecutors' objections, with trial scheduled for Dec. 21, 2026. The FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation are investigating. Popescu is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

How to Check an Investment Offered by Someone You Trust

The Securities and Exchange Commission warns that investment fraud can exploit trusted relationships within religious communities. Prospective investors should independently check a promoter's credentials, request verifiable financial statements and ask for evidence of actual customers and revenue rather than relying on a polished website, claimed valuation or future stock-listing promise.

Before borrowing against a home or moving retirement savings, verify the specific offering and the people selling it through official Investor.gov resources. An SEC filing alone is not proof that an investment is safe. Preserve agreements, transfer confirmations and communications if concerns arise, and report suspected securities fraud through the SEC's complaint portal.

Free Market Corporate Rip-offs are Everyday Life in the United Scams of America

One of the scammers of dumb American "shoppers" below is a friendly Israeli "enterprise", most likely from an illegal settlement in illegally-occupied Palestine that was given preferential entry to Trump's United Scams of America.

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Mall skincare stores accused of turning free samples into $50,000 bills for vulnerable shoppers
Wyatt Fischer
Sun, October 18, 2026 


Photo Credit: iStock

What starts as a seemingly innocent free skincare sample at the mall can quickly spiral into thousands of dollars in charges and inadvertently fund an international scam network.

According to an NPR investigation into a network of stores accused of using hard-sell tactics that left some shoppers, particularly older adults and people with disabilities, with bills as high as $50,000.
Here's what to know

For an NPR investigation, journalists spoke with hundreds of customers who said they were pushed into buying expensive skincare products and services they didn't want, couldn't afford, or tried to refuse.

The reporting linked store names like Beauty Essentials, Beauty Revive and Mia's to brands such as Voupre, Orogold, Avinichi, Introstem and CBGardN. In those stores, items were sold without posted prices, and sales were final.

In Ann Arbor, Michigan, shopper Suzann Roberts said a salesperson intercepted her outside an Apple store and handed her a face cream sample. She said an eye cream purchase turned into a $475 sale, and then a pitch for an LED light therapy wand pushed the total to $5,000.

"And I said, wow, no. I kept thinking, you're going to bring this back, I just want to get out of here, I'm going to bring it back," Roberts said.

Mary Lee said she went through something similar in Santa Fe, New Mexico, where accepting a sample on the sidewalk led to a backroom pitch and a $19,000 transaction.

When she checked the receipt, she found "in a big red stamp, no exchanges, no returns, final sale," adding, "I just about lost my cookies."

More background

According to the investigation, the beauty products sold at these stores are all licensed by a California-based family business. Mazal Group is the family-run distributor connected to the brands and stores. Daphna Oded Weingarten leads the company, and her husband, brother, and his ex-wife also work in the business.

The family's business network included dozens of beauty brands across several companies, with Mazal Group serving as the operational hub.

Matt Grimm, a special agent who headed a task force made up of multiple agencies, said a federal probe looked at Israeli-owned mall skincare stores tied to brands launched by the same family.

He said that the investigation centered on visa fraud and illegal employment.

Authorities carried out searches after months of surveillance, detained a dozen Israeli workers, and eventually saw the local owner sentenced to two years in prison.

In other words, people working in these mall beauty stores may be told stories about making lots of money in America, then brought over on a tourist visa and made to work in these stores without the proper visa or worker protections.

The products usually have no price tag, and the workers are told to set the price themselves. They are usually paid only a commission on the products sold, so they are incentivized to set prices high.

Internal order forms reviewed by NPR showed that stores paid about $20 for one product and sold it for $1,300, while salespeople were paid commission.

What's being done?

Some consumers have taken legal action. In 2026, consumers in Hawaii filed a class action naming Mazal Group, the Odeds and Weingartens, and two storeowners as defendants; the case ended with a $650,000 settlement before trial.

Mazal Group said it was not responsible for what happened in the stores because each location was independently owned and operated.

After months without a response, NPR reporters traveled to California to seek an interview.

The company's lawyer told NPR its reporting was inaccurate, but did not identify any specific errors.

Mazal Group terminated its business license. Former employees said the family had a history of shutting down companies when complaints or media scrutiny hurt a brand's reputation.

Daphna Weingarten and her husband now operate a new beauty business, INV, short for Innovation Brands.

Matt Grimm said the pattern persists because "There's too much money at play. You know, wherever there are proceeds to be had and easily made, they're going to keep doing it."

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Alberta Secession Looks a lot Like Brexit: A Lot of Bull Now and Crocodile Tears Later

Alberta independence: Winners and losers if province leaves Canada
Jordan King
Sun, October 18, 2026 

Albertans are just one day away from deciding whether to take a first step towards independence, something that would have widespread repercussions for the province, Canada, the United States and much of the Western world.

Independence advocates argue that a break from Canada would free the oil-rich province from regulations—namely environmental ones—that they contend hamper its energy industry and economic growth. They see Alberta's oil and gas producers, farmers and taxpayers as the winners of an independence scenario.

Ottawa, which would lose a province responsible for nearly a quarter of Canada's merchandise exports, if independence was achieved, is vehemently against it. Prime Minister Mark Carney has argued that Albertan independence would be dangerous for the Canada that remains, and for Alberta itself, saying it would "lead to years of deep uncertainty and lost opportunities" for the province.

The U.S. would also be affected. Although independence advocates have rejected the idea of becoming part of the U.S., an independent Alberta, and its energy resources, could reshape its economic and political relationship with Washington.

Monday's referendum, announced by Alberta Premier Danielle Smith in May, will not automatically trigger secession, it will ask Albertans whether to begin the process by holding a binding referendum.

But even a positive result on a non-binding referendum will have far-reaching consequences, three experts told Newsweek.

It would "create enormous investor uncertainty, as many energy companies would face regulatory uncertainty about the outcome of separation, and it would raise many concerns about existing and planned new energy infrastructure," Werner Antweiler, an associate professor specializing in international trade and finance at the University of British Columbia, said.

Competing referendum signs line a boulevard in Calgary, Canada, on October 15.

Possible Winners of Albertan Independence

Oil And Gas Producers

The Alberta Prosperity Project (APP), a leading separatist group that helped drive the campaign for a referendum, argues that oil and gas producers in the province would benefit from less restrictive environmental rules and project approval requirements, a major gripe separatists have with Ottawa.

Its draft fiscal plan speculates that Alberta could expand oil and gas production through simplified regulation.

University of Calgary professor Jennifer Winter told Newsweek that an independent Alberta could indeed choose not to replace existing federal environmental protections while allowing projects to proceed.

"This would reduce the burden on firms, and so that might create a temporary or even permanent situation where industry benefitted and is able to expand," she said.

Albertan Farmers And Ranchers

Similarly, independence advocates argue that farmers and ranchers would reap the rewards of control over regulation and research funding, with agricultural policies designed specifically for Alberta.

In the APP's farmer's booklet, the group argues independence would increase investment, improve export routes by "encouraging new rail capacity and competition" and allow Alberta to negotiate trade agreements aimed at reducing tariffs on its agricultural exports.
Albertan Taxpayers

The APP argues that retaining revenue currently collected by Ottawa would allow an independent Alberta to cut taxes and improve services—its draft fiscal plan proposes eliminating personal income tax and setting corporate income tax at 10 percent, alongside a 5 percent Alberta sales tax.

However, it's important to note these are campaign proposals, not guaranteed policies.

The U.S.

If Alberta became more dependent on America's markets and export routes, Washington could gain more leverage.

"Economic benefits would hinge on U.S. cooperation," Antweiler said, who argued that Washington may use this power to "oppose shipping Albertan crude to certain Asian markets, notably China" and to "demand that Alberta becomes the 51st state," something the APP has repeatedly said it is not interested in.

Albertan Separatists

Albertan separatists stand to benefit from Monday's referendum even if they do not achieve independence.

The APP says its strategy includes securing greater provincial control over taxation, pensions, immigration and resource development, strengthening Alberta's negotiating position whether it remains in Canada or leaves.

"Even if the pro-independence camp loses, higher support for its option than expected would be encouraging for those who support it," Daniel Béland, director of the McGill Institute for the Study of Canada, told Newsweek.

Mitch Sylvestre, who leads the Alberta Prosperity Project, prepares to submit signatures for a separation referendum to Elections Alberta in Edmonton on May 4.

Possible Losers of Albertan Independence

Albertan Households

If independence goes ahead, the disruption it would cause to investment and trade could hit Albertans' employment rates and incomes, opponents argue.

The University of Calgary's modeling estimates that the province's gross domestic product (GDP) could be 2.2 percent smaller in the first five years under a smooth separation scenario, or 10.1 percent smaller under a difficult one, compared with remaining in Canada

"The research that I and my colleagues at the School of Public Policy completed suggests that there will be major short-term and long-term disruptions to Alberta's economy, which will also affect the energy sector," Winter told Newsweek. "The more positive scenarios for Alberta and the energy sector rely on changes to global oil markets that work in Alberta's favor and are not tied to separation."

Alberta's Taxpayers

Despite advocates' promises of lower taxes, the University of Calgary report warns of the substantial costs that would come with establishing a new country, as Alberta would have to take responsibility for services and institutions currently provided by Ottawa.

The report estimates these could total between 50 billion and 170 billion Canadian dollars in the first five years.

"A likely effect is that Alberta would need to borrow money, which could drive up interest rates along with a new risk premium," Antweiler told Newsweek.

Oil And Gas Producers

Even though energy producers could benefit from Albertan independence, they also face risks from higher financing costs and uncertainty over access to markets, depending on the type of regulation Alberta enforced after independence.

"Important negative disruptions will be access to capital and banking services, and we can expect higher interest rates from uncertainty," Winter told Newsweek. "This makes incremental investment in an independent Alberta more challenging."

While Alberta exports most of its oil and gas to the U.S., it also sells to other Canadian provinces.

This "loss of market access and trade integration would come at high and predictable economic costs," Antweiler said.

Corporate Sector

Alberta could lose corporate headquarters and skilled workers to other Canadian provinces if businesses think it would be more beneficial to remain in Canada.

"Corporate head offices may move if the core of their business operations is across all of Canada rather than just Alberta," Antweiler told Newsweek.

Canada's Federal Government

Although this would depend on the final separation agreement, Ottawa would lose part of its tax base. The Calgary Chamber estimates that the federal government collected around 19 billion Canadian dollars more from Alberta annually than it spends in the province in 2024.

"Canadians should be aware that Alberta's separation will undoubtedly harm Canada as well," Jack Mintz, chair of the expert panel that reviewed the Calgary study, said in a statement accompanying its release.

Carney said on Friday that those voting in Monday's referendum should "vote like Canada depends on it, because it does."

Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney attends a Forever Canadian rally in Edmonton on October 16.

First Nations

First Nations leaders have long warned that separation threatens treaties their nations signed with the British Crown, before Alberta became a province.

Alberta lies on territory covered by Treaties 6, 7 and 8, which predate the province's creation in 1905. Treaty 8 First Nations says those agreements allowed settlement under specific conditions and that Alberta has no authority to unilaterally revoke it.

"Alberta came after Treaty 8, that matters," Grand Chief Trevor Mercredi said in a statement earlier this year. "The province is a tenant on this land, not the landlord. Any talk of separation or so-called provincial sovereignty is not just political theatre; let me be clear: it's also a proposal to break Treaty. Alberta does not have the authority to ask that question, let alone act on any answer."

Alberta's Referendum: What to Know

The independence referendum will be a 10th question to a ballot covering immigration and constitutional issues.

It will ask: "Should Alberta remain a province of Canada, or should the Government of Alberta commence the legal process required under the Canadian Constitution to hold a binding provincial referendum on whether or not Alberta should separate from Canada?"

Some Albertan separatists have spoken out against the referendum who called it a "question to ask a question" and accused Smith of trying to delay timelines for her political benefit.

"That means if we win the so-called referendum vote in October, that kicks it over into 2027," lawyer for the APP Jeff Rath said. As Alberta's next fixed provincial election is set for next year, Smith's announcement "forces everybody on the independence side to campaign for Danielle Smith for premier in 2027," Rath said.

Smith has frequently voiced frustrations with Ottawa but has long said she is in favor of Alberta remaining in Canada and intends to vote that way. She has stood by her decision to hold Monday's referendum so as not to "silence the voices of hundreds of thousands of Albertans."

Newsweek's reporters and editors used Martyn, our AI assistant, to produce this story. Learn more about Martyn here. Contact Newsweek editors for this story: Ben Kelly and Anthony Murray.

High Utility Bills in Texas? Dumbass Texans Should Give Paxton and Abbot the Boot

Paxton and Abbot are Trump bootlickers, the very Trump whose war in Iran has rattled the world energy markets. Dumbass redneck Texans now see their utility bills skyrocket but don't see the connection between supporting Trump for his hateful racism on one hand, and getting shafted economically on the other while Trump makes billions illegally while in office.

In Texas, to be a dumbass racist is more important than ensuring one's livelihood.
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In Texas, utility bills hit 'well over $300,' and residents say complaints are 'everywhere'
Leslie Sattler
Sun, October 18, 2026


Photo Credit: iStock

For some households in Tulia, Texas, the monthly utility statement has become a financial headache. Residents say electricity and gas charges are squeezing already tight budgets, and one person said her total was "well over $300."
Here's what to know

KVII reported that Tulia residents have been pressing city leaders for answers as power and gas bills climb. Among them is Tulia resident Amanda Patterson, who said a charge of "well over 300 just for utilities" felt unusually high.

"It's everywhere. It's in the grocery store. It's the lady that came today and I cut my yard. She was complaining about hers to," she said.

Mayor Dusty George said bills can rise for several reasons, including swings between heat and cold, weak insulation in older homes, and electrical systems and appliances that haven't been updated in years. He also said the City Council knows residents are concerned, even though it cannot directly change an individual bill.

George's comments suggest the problem is tied to both how much energy households use during very hot or cold stretches and the limitations of older housing. He said monthly consumption can climb in either kind of extreme, especially where insulation is poor.

In George's view, part of the expense comes from conditions inside the home. He singled out inefficient appliances and older electrical systems, and in homes that use both electric and gas service, those kinds of inefficiencies can add up quickly. In other words, some of the burden is tied to the condition of homes and equipment, not just the rate on the bill.

People still need to cool and heat their homes, and they may not have the money upfront to replace appliances or improve insulation, even if those upgrades could lower future costs.

High utility bills can make it harder for households to stabilize their finances and invest in changes that would reduce energy waste.

What can be done?

City officials have acknowledged the complaints, but they have not offered immediate relief. George underscored the council's limited role, saying, "As a city council, we're very, well, very aware of high city bills. As we're conscious because we are part of the city as well and have the same city bills, as the city. We can't actually, change your bill."

City Electrical Director Brian West, by contrast, emphasized what residents receive for those charges. He said the bills support a locally run system and quicker responses when the power goes out.

"We serve our customers. And I think we do it well, our response time to power outages is way minimum than what a normal city would be," West said.

City leaders described the issue in terms of service quality and home conditions, but they did not identify a specific new subsidy, rate change, or emergency assistance plan.

That leaves a gap between the pressure residents say they are under and the tools local government says it can offer.

Patterson's experience remains the clearest example of the frustration residents are describing: "I've never opened my power bill this time of year with utilities that are partly electric and partly gas, to find the utility bill worse than that imaginable, well over 300 just for utilities."

Where can I learn more?

The pressure Tulia residents describe is playing out elsewhere, too.

• Across Texas, more people need help as electricity costs keep straining household budgets.

• In Texas, residents faced a $4,500 meter demand amid threats to shut off water.

• Nationwide, many are losing sleep as confusing power bills deepen financial stress.

• Utilities drew scrutiny for funding regional transmission lines that customers may not clearly need.

• A homeowner responded to higher monthly charges with suspicions that spiraled into scam theories.

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"Jewish-Only" Israel's Conundrum: What to Do with the Palestinians?

Zionists never say what they want to do with the Palestinians. Zionists want the land but not the people. So what gives? The most simplistic explanation is that the Zionists "somehow" want the Palestinians OUT. Out of the picture, out of the land, out....

But that is a mere illusion. For one, the Palestinians will NEVER leave on their own. The silly "Voluntary Removal" that the Zionist terrorists in power (Netanyahu, Ben-Gvir, Smotrich...) promote will not happen. So there is only one solution to the Jewish-only Israeli conundrum that remains on the table, and that is EXPULSION, a pure and simple ethnic cleansing on a gigantic scale. 

One can also envision in-between solutions. For example, the Zionists could annex the West Bank and Gaza and absorb it into Israel, but only if they manage to "reduce" the overall Palestinian population (Israel's own Palestinian citizens plus those of the West Bank and Gaza) to a level of a manageable minority. But that is also extremely difficult to accomplish and requires several generations of mayhem, killings, uprootings, home and village demolitions, etc. 

Right now, there are about 6 million Palestinians between Gaza and the West Bank, and about 6 million citizens in Israel, 17% of whom are Palestinian Israeli citizens (those who stayed and did not flee the Zionist terror of the 1940s). Seventeen percent of 6 million is 1 million. If the Zionists manage to cull the Palestinian populations of the West Bank and Gaza by half (i.e. by somehow make 3 million Palestinians disappear), an expanded Israel would include these 3 million new Palestinian Israeli citizens and the 1 million already there, for a total of 4 million Palestinian citizens next to the 5 million Jewish citizens. That is not such a compelling Jewish majority.

But if Netanyahu, Ben-Gvir and Smotrich's ethnic cleansing does not eliminate the 3 million Palestinians we assumed in our above argument, then an expanded Israel that includes the current Israeli territory and the West Bank and Gaza would have 5 million Jews next to 1 million current Palestinian Israelis plus the new 6 millions from Gaza and the West Bank, i.e. 7 million Palestinian Israelis and 5 million Jewish Israelis. A worse case for a Jewish-only Israel, since there will be a more compelling Palestinian majority for a one binational state.

Therefore, the current Zionist ethnic cleansing and genocide of Palestinians is a far-fetched illusory ambition UNLESS the Zionists manage to cull or deport or evict or displace the entire Palestinian population out of the country and out of occupied Palestine. An unlikely scenario since it would be tantamount to a worse Holocaust than the one perpetrated by the Germans and their European allies during WWI against their Jewish populations.

Bottom line: This is the standard scenario of any colonial invasion and occupation in which the invader does not have the demographic advantage over the invaded and colonized indigenous population. Sooner or later, the colonizing invader will fall under its own demographic weakness vis-a-vis the indigenous people. It happened in most historic invasions and colonizations: Babylonians, Assyrians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Crusaders, Moors (in Spain), Turkish ottoman empire, British, French, Ducth, Spanish.... all of them ended up losing and retreating. There are a few successful ones, like the Central Asians (Turks) who invaded and overwhelmed the Greco-Roman Byzantines and have taken permanent control of the current state of Turkiye. 

As the article below discusses, if the two-state solution is dying or has died, what are the Israelis going to do with a Palestinian population it seeks to control despite that population's demographic advantage? A Palestinian leader below says he may accept a one-state solution, on condition that Palestinians have the same exact rights as Jews in a bi-national state similar to the ones like Canada, Belgium, Lebanon etc. Will the Jewish Israelis agree to cede governance to a majority Palestinian population? Given the racism and supremacy embedded in the Jewish Zionist narrative, this is also highly unlikely.

Can someone please ask Zionist leaders what their plans for the Palestinian majority are? 

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We’re ready to ditch two-state solution, says Arab-Israeli election kingmaker
Henry Bodkin
Sun, October 18, 2026


The West Bank has nearly 600,000 Israelis after decades of settlement - Getty Images/ZAIN JAAFAR

Yousef Jabareen has the air of a man who knows exactly what he wants, yet does not quite know where he is.

He arrives in the modish Arab restaurant in Haifa 35 minutes late, speaking quickly and quietly into his phone, before sitting down with a sigh and gesturing for coffee.

He has just driven the width of northern Israel, he explains, having stopped for a pre-breakfast interview with local media in Nazareth en route.

After speaking to The Telegraph, he will record a podcast, "somewhere else, I'm not sure where", then it's on to an open-air public meeting near his home town of Umm al-Fahm, next to the West Bank, followed by two weddings in the evening.

"I like weddings," he says with the faintest of smiles. "They are not formal campaign events. But look ... it's an election. You can reach so many people."

Such is the hectic daily schedule of one of Israel's most prominent Arab politicians in the run-up to arguably the most consequential general election in a generation.

A legal scholar who trained and lectured in the US, Mr Jabareen is head of the Joint List, one of two formal groupings of Arab-Israeli parties standing on Oct 27.

Yousef Jabareen at a Hebrew campaign launch event in Tel Aviv - Eyal Warshavsky for The Telegraph

The 54-year-old could well hold Israel's future in his hands, despite hailing from a community which, in his view, has never been so marginalised by the state.

Mr Jabareen could find himself kingmaker because polls predict that neither Benjamin Netanyahu's governing coalition nor the opposition bloc will win a majority in the Knesset.

"We feel we have a lot of power here, an influential power," Mr Jabareen says.

It is a power he intends to wield to push bread-and-butter issues for his community, but also far broader questions such as the establishment of a future Palestinian state, whether independent of Israel or not.

In an interview, Mr Jabareen said the Palestinian people were not wedded to a two-state solution and would accept full Israeli sovereignty over the West Bank if they received full voting rights in return.

He said the West Bank could function like Belgium, Switzerland or Canada, bi-national states that formally recognise two different peoples and give them equal rights.

Before that, turnout is the big challenge. There are more than 1.1 million Arab-Israeli voters, 17 per cent of the electorate, a powerful demographic in a system of proportional representation.

But at the last election, nearly half stayed at home.

"We must work very hard in the coming days to raise [turnout]," he says. "Hopefully to something around 65 per cent, maybe 70."

So, what messages is he putting out to galvanise his community to vote?

"The messages that reflect the reality," he answers bluntly. "The reality is that this has been a very harsh period under the Netanyahu, Ben-Gvir, Smotrich government," he adds, naming the ultra-nationalist national security and finance ministers since 2022.

Polls predict that Benjamin Netanyahu's governing coalition will not win a majority in the Knesset - REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

Under the current administration, public funding for Arab-majority towns has been cut, he says, while policing of those communities has effectively been withdrawn by Itamar Ben-Gvir.

This has correlated with a surge in murder rates, which Mr Jabareen describes as a far-Right "tool of control".

Meanwhile, having achieved, in his own words, a revolution in the West Bank because of the many settlements, Bezalel Smotrich recently published a plan to "Judaise" the parts of Israel that have significant Arab populations, by boosting Jewish development and restricting building by Arabs.

All of this has taken place in the aftermath of the Oct 7 massacre of more than 1,200 Israelis led by Hamas, an atrocity which reawoke deep distrust between communities and, on the part of Jewish Israelis, scepticism over the chances of peace.

Asked about the prospects that Mr Netanyahu could cling on, perhaps as a caretaker prime minister before repeat elections, Mr Jabareen seems to blanch.

"I don't want to think about it," he says. "Our top priority is to get rid of the current government."

But how? Would he add his Joint List members of Knesset, predicted to number between eight and 10, to those of the "change" coalition, probably headed by Gadi Eisenkot, the former Israel Defense Forces (IDF) chief of staff, to help it cross the majority threshold?

Given Mr Jabareen's despair with the current administration, that would seem to be a no-brainer.

But the reality, he explains, is more complicated.

As with most Arab citizens of Israel – that is, those who live within the country's internationally recognised 1967 borders – the Joint List leader also considers himself to be a Palestinian, the designation for Arabs who live in the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza.

As such, formally taking part in a government which, in their view and that of much of the international community, illegally occupies those territories is politically sensitive.

The United Arab List, the other principal grouping, also known as Ra'am, joined the brief Bennett-Lapid government of 2021-22 before it collapsed, allowing Mr Netanyahu back into power.

By contrast, Mr Jabareen's Joint List, which may emerge with twice the Knesset seats as Ra'am, is more nationalist in character.

"I find difficulty in seeing ourselves part of a coalition that will continue control over Gaza and the West Bank," he says.

However, he is open to the possibility of helping Mr Eisenkot into the prime minister's office by supporting a minority government "from the outside", as Arab parties did for Yitzhak Rabin, the former Labour prime minister, in the 1990s.

But he will demand a price.

"We want to get rid of the government, but not to give a bank cheque. We need to believe there is a real alternative," he said.

Better government funding for Arab-Israeli towns is at the top of his demands, as well as a fundamental overhaul of policing.

On the bigger question of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the Joint List would demand a commitment from Mr Eisenkot to at least express willingness to discuss "ending the occupation" and restarting negotiations with the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah.

"It doesn't mean we will ask Eisenkot to sign the recognition of Palestine the day after the election, but we want to start talking," he says.

Mr Eisenkot may need Mr Jabareen's Joint List to win a majority - Getty Images/ILIA YEFIMOVICH

Official party policy is the fabled two-state solution: an independent Palestine in what are now the occupied territories.

It is the formal policy of the Arab League and most European countries, including Britain, which imposed highly controversial sanctions on Israeli settlements last month in the name of preserving that goal. It is also, technically, still the policy of the US.

However, decades of settlement, which has accelerated since 2022, mean there are now nearly 600,000 Israelis in the West Bank spread across around 150 conurbations linked by IDF-controlled arterial roads from which, following Oct 7, Palestinian towns and villages are often blocked.

In the view of critics, the West Bank is turning into a series of isolated Arab enclaves, rather than a contiguous body of territory that could form the heartland of a Palestinian state.

In practical terms, is the two-state solution still possible?

Mr Jabareen pauses, then he says something unexpected: "We don't insist on the two-state solution. We are saying we accept a two-state solution. There is a difference between the ideas."
'One-state solution'

For a moment, it seems as if he is giving up on the idea of Palestinian self-determination.

But then his real meaning becomes clear; and it is arguably far more radical for the future of Israel.

It is a "one-state solution", in which all the occupied Palestinian territories are formally and legally absorbed into the state of Israel – however, with full civil and voting rights given to Palestinians in return.

Mr Jabareen envisages a bi-national state, which operates as a single political entity but formally recognises the different national groups within it.

It would mean the end of the dream of living independently from Israel – still formal party policy – but he thinks most Palestinians would accept it.

"These ideas are definitely better than this current bloody reality, when they are denied basic voting rights and people can't move from one village to another," he says.

"I think they would welcome any idea that would give them full equality with Jews."

Israeli settlers have clashed with Palestinians in Abu Falah near Ramallah - REUTERS/Ammar Awad

Taken to its logical conclusion, the ramifications for the rest of Israel would be enormous.

On the one hand, the country could with international consent expand to include the territories that many Israelis in their hearts believe are rightfully theirs anyway, particularly when it comes to the West Bank, the area widely known as Judea, and Samaria. These are some of the most important biblical lands for Jews.

However, Israel would risk almost immediately losing its Jewish majority, given that there are already marginally more Arabs in Israel and the occupied territories than Jews, about 7.4 million compared to 7.35 million, according to some measures.

In short, Israel would no longer be the "Jewish" state.

It would be fanciful to imagine this being accepted by any part of the Israeli political spectrum other than the hard-Left in the current climate.

Ultra-nationalists such as Mr Smotrich have publicly discussed annexing the West Bank without giving Palestinians there the vote when it comes to the national government of Israel.

Meanwhile Mr Eisenkot, who presents himself as a security-focused centrist, has given little indication that he favours a change to the status quo in the West Bank other than curbing rampant illegal activity by violent settlers.

Mr Jabareen smiles ruefully. "I think the main objection wouldn't come from the Palestinians," he says.

The significance of his comments is what they suggest about the shifting Palestinian mindset – an emerging pragmatism at the expense of nationalism – rather than as a realistic scenario any time soon.

As evening approaches, Mr Jabareen addresses a neighbourhood meeting in a small village outside Umm al-Fahm, about a mile away over the hills from the "green line" separating Israel from the West Bank.

Yousef Jabareen speaking to potential supporters in Umm al-Fahm - Eyal Warshavsky for The Telegraph

About 60 of the village men sit in inward-facing rectangles of plastic seats, many smoking prodigiously, as teenage boys pass round coffee and dates.

This is the Jabareen stronghold.

Indeed, a sizeable minority of the people who are listening intently as the sun goes down are directly related to the Joint List leader.

One by one, the older men stand up to make their points – this is a public meeting, after all, not a rally.

When Mr Jabareen answers, he does so with the precision of the legal career he left behind. But he combines this with a quiet warmth and the odd joke which seems to draw the crowd towards him, a politician to his fingertips.

Afterwards, the village elders talk about construction, about how hard it is to get a permit out of the current Israeli government and, of course, policing.

"Kids are murdered in Umm al-Fahm all the time," says Yousef Majujni. "Parents are so afraid. We call our children all the time to make sure they're okay.

"The police will come for half an hour and put some tape up, but that's it."

In reality, it is issues such as this, not the Palestinian question, that Mr Jabareen could have the power to address in the Knesset – if, that is, he can encourage Arab-Israelis to the polls.

Having served in the Knesset between 2015 and 2021, he knows what to expect.

"I find it tough – it's full of Zionist symbols and pictures. I have a sense of alienation," he says. "But I'm not there to enjoy the food and the atmosphere. I'm there to represent the causes I'm struggling for."

With that, he is off, the formal campaigning over for another day. Just two more weddings, then bed.

Rundown on The Great Moron's pre-Midterms Posture

Axios concludes its rundown below with this:" Trump is treating a moment of maximum political vulnerability like business as usual, betting that the instincts that carried him this far won't fail him now."

But I disagree. It was not his "instincts" that carried him. It was his "lies" and his Roy Cohn's tactics that worked during the campaign for Trump 2.0. Now, however, business is not as usual because the American people - especially the independents - now understand his tactic: Lie by making promises you know you can't keep just to get elected, then renege on promises. They're not likely to believe his lies and false promises this time around.

This moment of maximum vulnerability is coming to fruition. Americans have tired of the chaos, the lies, the incompetence, the cruelty, the corruption, the smearing of America's reputation around the world, the subservience to other dictators like the Zionists who bamboozled him into an unwinnable war etc. by an aging imbecile and his MAGA gangsters. Trump's slime doesn't stick anymore.

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Trump ratchets up the chaos in an October barrage
Zachary Basu
Sat, October 17, 2026 


Photo illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Photos: Getty Images

President Trump is carrying his insatiable appetite for controversy into the most unforgiving stretch of the electoral calendar, fortified by a decade of political survival.

"Bottom line, it's gonna all work out. You know why? It always does," Trump told reporters this week.

Why it matters: Gone are the days of a single "October surprise," swallowed by a familiar barrage of scandals, provocations and shattered conventions that have persisted in the closing weeks of Trump's final midterm election.

The big picture: Axios has documented Trump's steady demolition of presidential norms in his second term, from the transition through his first 100 days and first year in office.

This year, even the threat of losing Congress — and with it, much of his ability to pursue his agenda over the next two years — has done little to temper the pace or audacity of Trump's presidency.

Consider the first 15 days of October alone, and the succession of controversies that might have shaken the foundation of a more conventional presidency:

Raid on a political opponent: Federal agents searched Rep. Ilhan Omar's (D-Minn.) home and seized her phone as part of an investigation aimed at stripping the sitting member of Congress of her U.S. citizenship and ultimately deporting her, the Wall Street Journal reports. Omar denies wrongdoing.

Calls to shoot leakers: Trump declared at an Arizona campaign rally that officials who leak sensitive military information "should be shot," invoking an earlier era when he claimed the government routinely executed leakers.

Concessions to Vladimir Putin: Trump eased sanctions⁠ on Russian diesel, demanded the ouster of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and pressured Kyiv to stop attacking Russian refineries. Late Friday night, Trump waived sweeping new Russia sanctions⁠ under a bipartisan law named for the late Sen. Lindsey Graham that he signed just last month.

Taxpayer-funded political ads: Trump spent millions in taxpayer dollars on campaign-style ads promoting his presidency, until a federal judge ordered them halted. He then directed his MAGA Inc. super PAC to finance future spots, drawing a separate complaint alleging violations of campaign-finance law.

Federal crackdown on the press: The Justice Department launched an antitrust investigation into ABC, CBS, CNN, Fox News and NBC after the networks suspended White House pool coverage to protest Trump's ban on three news organizations.

$5,000 election promise: Trump pledged to send every adult American a $5,000 check if Republicans retain control of Congress, explicitly tying more than $1 trillion in proposed federal payments to the outcome of the midterms.

DOJ intervention in the midterms: With voting already underway, the Justice Department sued California to block 20,000 ballots from suspected noncitizens — the latest escalation in a sweeping campaign to affect American elections.

Grisly social-media posts: Trump posted footage of a man being fatally mauled by a tiger, followed by a montage of animal attacks set to upbeat music and an AI-generated video of himself wrestling and embracing a tiger.

$333 million in ballroom donations: Secret records obtained by the Washington Post revealed the corporations and billionaires bankrolling Trump's White House ballroom, including donors who benefited from government contracts, regulatory decisions and a presidential pardon involving a family member.

The other side: Three October episodes forced Trump into rare retreats — largely of other people's making.

A televised execution: Trump scrapped Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's plan to livestream a convicted mass murderer's execution by firing squad after bipartisan outrage.

An ambassador's downfall: Trump forced Kimberly Guilfoyle — who was engaged to his son for four years until 2024 — to resign as ambassador to Greece after reports that she solicited $100,000 from a political donor to cover personal credit-card bills. Guilfoyle denies wrongdoing.

A five-day press secretary: Trump ousted Katie Zacharia amid scrutiny of her legal credentials and a widely criticized debut. Axios reports Trump was blindsided to learn that Zacharia — whom he had introduced as an attorney — had never passed the bar exam.

What they're saying: Far from seeing October as a month of political peril, the administration is celebrating it as a continuation of Trump's record.

"Since Day One of his administration, President Trump has boldly and consistently fulfilled on his campaign promises to protect national security, make America beautiful, secure the border, crack down on crime, ensure free and fair elections, and make life more affordable," White House spokesperson Allison Schuster told Axios.

"October is shaping up to be another incredible month," she added.

Between the lines: Trump has spent a decade defying political gravity. But the economic strength that helped insulate him during his first term has given way to a deepening crisis of public confidence.

A Fox News poll released Wednesday put Trump's approval at 36% — his lowest in either presidency — including a devastating 22% for his handling of inflation.

In the same Fox poll, government corruption narrowly surpassed inflation as the issue drawing the most extreme concern from voters.

The bottom line: Trump is treating a moment of maximum political vulnerability like business as usual, betting that the instincts that carried him this far won't fail him now.

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[Updated] The Killing Olive Orchards of Palestine: They Shoot Americans Too, Don't They?

Check: https://visualizingpalestine.org/visual/olive-harvest/

The ethnic cleansing and genocide continue in earnest by the Zionist Fascist gangs of foreign settlers. They, for one and one reason only, hate olive trees. Can you guess what it is?

Olive trees, often centenarians and millennials, are the best evidence for how deeply rooted is the indigenous Palestinian population in its ancestral land that the Zionists are trying to rape and steal. By uprooting entire olive orchards from around the Palestinian villages they are plundering and ethnically cleansing, Netanyahu's "teenagers" are trying to erase the historic connections that the Palestinians have with their land because it stands in stark contrast to the Zionist lies and propaganda. 

In the process, the Fascist Zionazis of Netanyahu and Ben Gvir kill Americans. But that is OK for Trump. Many Americans in the Great American Moron's mind are disposable, as long as the American pimp that he keeps pimping his Arab Gulf working girls (Saudi, UAE, Kuwait etc.) and obeys his Zionist masters.

Never forget that places where Palestinians live are called VILLAGES, whereas places that foreign Zionist rapists are stealing are known as SETTLEMENTS. Can you now see who is the native indigenous owner of the land and who is the foreign rapist and intruder?

Note also how the southern Arkansas moron US ambassador Mike Huckabee explains his reaction to the ongoing genocide he wholeheartedly endorses as follows: "... the US is in regular dialogue with partners about improving stability and security in the West Bank." 

Latest update:

The Arkansas moron US ambassador to the Zionist colony in Palestine speaks from both sides of his filthy mouth. After strongly supporting the theft of Palestinian lands by Zionist terrorist settlers on biblical Bronze Age grounds, he is now demanding Israel prosecute and jail those responsible for the attack on Washington Post journalist Heidi Levine in illegally-occupied Palestine.

"Attacking a female photographer is a despicable act of terror carried out by masked cowards," the Arkansas moron wrote on X on Saturday.

"Those who attacked unarmed reporter should spend YRS in prison," he added. "We have called for a full investigation, arrest, and prosecution to the fullest extent of the law to whoever participated in this." What better bigot and hypocrite can one find elsewhere than in an inbred ultrareligious Christian Zionist from the backward ignorant and poorest state of Arkansas? He defends a harmless American journalist against Zionist terrorists but urges those same terrorists to ethnically cleanse and murder innocent Palestinian villagers.

War criminal Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who wants to shore up his pro-settlement right-wing base ahead of closely fought October 27 elections, is pulling a Trump lie by claiming on Friday that Palestinians or "far-left" activists are responsible for the attack on Levine and other Palestinians. I don't think Israelis are as dumb as Americans to believe Netanyahu's lies.

The ambassador, appointed by US President Donald Trump, met Palestinian-Americans in the occupied West Bank town of Turmus Aya in September to hear locals' testimony about their experiences with pogroms. In August, Huckabee called a days-long Israeli settler siege an "act of terror".

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Washington Post journalist hospitalized after Israeli settler attack on Palestinian olive harvest in West Bank
Abeer Salman, Ibrahim Dahman and Oren Liebermann, CNN
Fri, October 16, 2026


American photojournalist Heidi Levine lies on a gurney in the emergency room of the government hospital in the Israeli-occupied city of Ramallah, as she is treated after being attacked by Israeli settlers in the Palestinian village of Abu Falah on Friday. - Ahmad Gharabli/AFP/Getty Images

A Washington Post photojournalist was hospitalized after Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank attacked her and a group of Palestinians during the annual olive harvest.

Veteran photojournalist Heidi Levine, who was on assignment for The Washington Post, said the group of Palestinians she was with began to retreat when they saw dozens of settlers running toward them.

In a video statement, Levine said settlers kicked her while she was on the ground. "I had my camera bag and my pouch with my passport, and my telephone was on a rope around my neck and they broke that off me, and they broke my cameras off me, and they broke my bag, and they kept kicking me," said Levine, who estimated the attack lasted 10 minutes. "Just absolute craziness, and I didn't see anybody trying to stop it."

"I don't know how a parent can raise such a monster. They're not even humans, and yes, they are Jewish terrorists," Levine added. "And you know what? Sadly, none of them will be prosecuted. I am sure of it."

The Washington Post said Levine was wearing "visible markings clearly identifying her as a journalist" during the attack. "We are outraged by this unwarranted attack on a journalist doing her job and urge a thorough investigation and follow-through from authorities."

Video of the attack showed a group of masked settlers, some armed with clubs, hurling stones at a group of Palestinians, some of whom are also throwing stones. In the background, at least five settlers surround Levine and throw her to the ground, beating her as she covers her face with her hands. The settlers appear to rip away Levine's bag.

Journalist Jasper Nathaniel, who witnessed the attack and helped Levine, told CNN's Jim Sciutto on Friday that they had watched settlers on a hilltop put on masks and pick up clubs as Palestinians harvested olives below. "I mean, we watched them prepare for this attack," he said. About an hour into the harvest, he said, the settlers charged down the hill, throwing stones.

Nathaniel said Israeli soldiers then arrived and fired tear gas at Palestinians, forcing him and Levine to retreat. He also described settlers firing guns from the back of a white pickup truck as it raced down the hill.

Levine was caught during the retreat, Nathaniel said. He described seeing five or six settlers surround her and repeatedly beat her with clubs.

At one point, Nathaniel said, an attacker pulled Levine up by her vest while another kicked her back to the ground.

"I was worried that she was going to be killed," Nathaniel said.

He credited young Palestinian men with helping him reach Levine, saying they "stepped up and provided cover."

"If those young Palestinian men had not thrown those rocks, Heidi could be dead," he said. "And I would I would not have been able to get to her."

Nathaniel, who visited Levine in the hospital after the attack, said she had a broken rib, a broken vertebra and a severe finger injury requiring surgery.

The Palestine Red Crescent Society said it was treating two people after they were beaten by settlers: a 63-year-old woman and a 40-year-old man. The assault is part of a wave of settler attacks at the start of the Palestinian olive harvest that residents reported across the area. Last year's olive harvest saw a surge of such incidents across the West Bank as settlers attacked Palestinians and prevented them from accessing their land.

Levine was rushed to the Ramallah Government Hospital after the attack, where she was in stable condition, according to the Foreign Press Association (FPA). Photos show Levine's hand and leg wrapped in bandages as she rests in a hospital bed.

The FPA condemned the attack and called on the head of the Israeli military's Central Command, which governs operations in the West Bank, to "stop making excuses and do its job of protecting civilians from these violent mobs."

Israeli settlers attacked Levine in Abu Falah on Friday. - Andrey X/Reuters

Levine was helped to safety after the attack. - Andrey X/Reuters

In a statement, the FPA said, "This is the latest in a long line of violent attacks by Israeli settlers against journalists and other civilians in the occupied West Bank. Yet our repeated calls for action to confront this lawlessness have been ignored by Israeli authorities."

Additional videos from the scene show a man with a bloodied face after the attack, as well as flame pouring out of a burning car with Palestinian license plates. Another video shows Israeli soldiers blocking the road. One soldier films with his phone; a second hurls what appears to be a smoke grenade as a man begs him, "Please don't do it!"

Israel Police opened an investigation after receiving reports of the attack. In a statement, police said they "view any act of violence with great severity, particularly when it involves members of the media carrying out their work."

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said they would examine "all circumstances" around the incident. "Attempts to incite friction between populations undermine security in the area," the IDF said. "Attacks and violence against innocent civilians are grave and unacceptable acts."

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has repeatedly downplayed settler violence as the actions of a rogue group, tried to cast doubt on the attack, saying in a statement on X that "serious questions remain." He said that Israel "unequivocally condemns violence against anyone," without issuing any censure of the masked and armed settlers who carried out the attack.

In sharp contrast to Netanyahu, his main rival in the upcoming elections, Gadi Eisenkot, called the attack on Levine "unacceptable" and said these acts "stain an entire nation."

A US Embassy spokesperson said the US was in regular dialogue with partners about improving stability and security in the West Bank.

"We condemn criminal violence by any party in the West Bank and call for investigations, arrests, and convictions of those responsible," the spokesperson said.

Meanwhile, the US State Department said it had reached out to The Washington Post to offer consular assistance.

Mustafa Barghouti, head of the Palestinian National Initiative, said on X that "gangs of Israeli terrorist settlers" launched an attack on the village of Abu Falah, where Palestinians were preparing to harvest their olives.

"In full view of the cameras, the settlers set olive trees on fire, pelt Palestinian farmers with stones, and fired live ammunition, resorting to every possible form of terror and intimidation to prevent Palestinians from harvesting their own olive trees," said Barghouti.

CNN's Jim Sciutto contributed to this story.

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[Fanatic ultra-religious extremist] Israeli rabbi ruling on stolen Palestinian olives prompts uproar
Mohammad Mansour
Sat, October 17, 2026 

Prominent Israeli Rabbi Dov Lior issued a Jewish religious ruling [equivalent to a radical Muslim imam's fatwa] on Friday permitting settlers to steal olives from Palestinian orchards in the occupied West Bank.

Lior's ruling claims that Palestinian landowners who could not access their olives during the harvest season due to Israeli restrictions have been sufficiently compensated in the years they had access to the fruit. According to the ruling, Jews are permitted to pick these olives to claim ownership of the Palestinian land.

Lior, born in Poland in 1933, went as far as classifying the theft of olives from Palestinian farms as an "additional virtue", as settler pogroms and Israeli occupation continue in the West Bank. [The man is an illegal Polish migrant terrorist and criminal. He should go back to Poland. He doesn't belong to Palestine, nor does Palestine belong to him.]

He added that settlers should "conquer the land" far from Jewish communities in order to publicly "demonstrate our ownership" and follow biblical commandment.

"The Jewish people have never given up on the Land of Israel, as we express in our prayers every single day," the ruling continues. "The Arabs never purchased the land from the Jewish people or from any individual Jew, and therefore it is stolen land in their hands… They never bought it in any way and it remained under the ownership of the Jewish people."

The olive press in the town of Qusra operates on the first day of the olive harvest season on October 9, 2026 in Nablus, West Bank [Faiz Abu Rmeleh/Getty Images]

Harvest violence

The ruling coincides with another wave of settler pogroms against Palestinian farmers during the olive harvest season. On Friday. at least 19 people were injured in 34 attacks by the Israeli military and settlers on Palestinians harvesting their crops across the West Bank.

An American photojournalist working for The Washington Post was assaulted by settlers while covering the daily violence, and five vehicles were torched.

Many Palestinian farmers have been unable to access their crops due to Israeli restrictions and the dangers from the settlers.

While settler pogroms are not exceptional, they come weeks before Israeli elections, with a push by far-right parties to gain the support of settlers and their supporters. But not all Jewish religious leaders backed the call to steal Palestinian olives.
Religious backlash

Rabbis from the religious council of the Gush Etzion settlements published a letter calling the illegal harvesting of Palestinian crops theft, blasphemy, and a moral defect.

Tzohar, an organisation of 800 orthodox rabbis, said in a statement that only the state has the authority to confiscate property. As long as the state recognises Arab ownership of the olives, they belong to them, it added.

Mamoun Abu Amer, an analyst on Israeli politics, told Al Jazeera that there could be political reasons behind the religious groups' rejection of Rabbi Dov Lior's comments.

"The position of the other rabbis who rejected this call might be a move driven by political motive and pressure from entities within the government to give the impression that these are anomalous voices that do not represent the general opinion of the settlers.

"The Israeli government is trying to portray that those who carry out these riots are a limited-number group that does not represent public opinion in the settlements, and that the settlers are peaceful, good, and law-abiding, and that the issue is confined to the 'Hilltop Youth' boys who commit these crimes," he explained.

Rabbi Dov Lior holds immense influence among hardline settler groups, such as the Hilltop Youth, who fiercely back his hardline religious decrees that oppose any territorial compromise with Palestinians.

He is also a prominent figure within Israel's Religious Zionist movement and serves as the spiritual guide for the far-right Otzma Yehudit (Jewish Power) party, led by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.

"Ben-Gvir relies on the religious rulings of Rabbi Dov Lior, which rely on biblical texts and the Book of Deuteronomy," Abu Amer noted. He claimed that Rabbi Lior adopts the most extreme interpretations in the Jewish religion.

"There is an important matter, which is that Ben-Gvir competes via the TikTok platform, propaganda, and populist rhetoric, and this is a rhetoric that serves him and brings him votes, given the environment and general atmosphere in Israel after the events of October 7, as there is a 'market for extremism' in the Israeli society," Abu Amer added.

Knesset member Gilad Kariv of the left-wing Democrats Party criticised Lior, accusing him and his followers of dragging Israel into a flood of moral vice.

"Whoever stands on the sidelines in this issue joins the camp of Rabbi Dov Lior and his criminals," Kariv said.