Republican Governor Orders National Guard Deployed to No Kings Protest

Texas Republican Governor Greg Abbott joined his party’s fearmongering about upcoming nationwide “No Kings” protests, promising to use the National Guard to crack down on hypothetical violence at the peaceful demonstration planned for Austin.

“Today, I directed the Dept. of Public Safety and National Guard to surge forces into Austin ahead of an Antifa-linked protest,” Abbott wrote on X Thursday, referring to the No Kings event scheduled for Saturday. “Texas will NOT tolerate chaos.”

“DPS law enforcement personnel, including state troopers, Special Agents, and Texas Rangers, along with Texas National Guard soldiers, will be surged to the Austin area to maintain law and order,” the governor specified in a statement. “This is in addition to the thousands of DPS troopers already stationed throughout the state. These law enforcement officers and soldiers will be supported by aircraft and other tactical assets.”

Abbott also said the homeland security division of the public safety department will be “actively monitoring” the protest and will “investigate any links to known terrorist organizations.”

Texas Democrats have condemned Abbott’s escalation against a demonstration that, notably, names “peaceful, lawful action” as its “core principle.”

Texas Democratic Party Chairman Kendall Scudder accused Abbott of “suck[ing] up to Donald Trump,” saying, “We do not need an unnecessary display of force at the expense of taxpayers on a peaceful protest.” Texas House of Representatives Minority Leader Gene Wu said Abbott’s plan to send “armed soldiers to suppress peaceful protests is what kings and dictators do.”

In response—and stark contrast—to the governor’s announcement, Sophia Mirto, one of the No Kings organizers, told a local news outlet: “We hope that any additional law enforcement agencies deployed by the governor will enjoy our event, live music from local Austin artists, and the hard-working Americans who are joining together in solidarity, celebration and to discover more than 50 organizations working together to make Texas a better place to live.

“We are disappointed that the governor is choosing to spend Texans’ tax money on deploying additional resources to police a nonviolent, First Amendment event,” Mirto continued, “when there are so many Texans in need of housing, transportation, health care, quality education and there are still victims of the devastating July 4 flood right here in Central Texas that need the governor to sign an executive order providing aid.”

After the previous No Kings demonstration in Austin in June, which was circus-themed, the mayor applauded its peaceful nature, saying participants “made their voices heard—and did it in the right way.” The Austin Police Department said it was “largely peaceful,” despite a “small number of agitators”—the most noteworthy incident seemingly being a threat of violence made against lawmakers who participated in the protest.

Ahead of the June event, Abbott also deployed state troopers and Texas National Guardsmen “across the state.” But this time, his actions and rhetoric reflect a broader, preposterous GOP campaign to demonize the benign protests as a dangerous antifa- and terrorist-linked rally.

House Speaker Mike Johnson is not only dragging out Democratic Representative-elect Adelita Grijalva’s long awaited swearing-in ceremony—he’s also treating it as entertainment value.

Republican leadership has refused to swear in Grijalva until Congress returns to its regular session, despite the fact the party swore in a pair of Florida Republicans during a pro forma session just earlier this year.

Johnson brushed off concern about the ongoing delays during an interview with CNBC Thursday, accusing Arizona’s elected officials of simply seeking attention as they fight to instate Grijalva and obtain constitutionally required representation for the Grand Canyon state’s 7th congressional district.

“I’m shocked that another Democrat politician from Arizona is seeking publicity right now,” Johnson snarked to CNBC. “Now the state [attorney general] is involved and she’s going to sue me.”

Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes warned Johnson Tuesday that he was leaving her with “no other choice” than to take him to court for refusing to swear in Grijalva.

“It’s all a farce,” Johnson continued. “Let me tell you what’s happening here. Rep-elect Grijalva was elected after the House went out of session. So I have said this repeatedly: I am delighted to administer the oath to her, as soon as we get back to legislative session.”

The Louisiana Republican then attempted to extort Grijalva’s seat, claiming that the representative-elect could assume her duty as soon as Arizona’s two Democratic senators vote to reopen the government.

“If [Senators Ruben] Gallegos and [Mark] Kelly would vote to reopen the government, we’ll get this thing done quickly,” Johnson said, mispronouncing Gallego’s name.

Grijalva became the first Latina that Arizona has sent to Congress when she won an election to determine the replacement for her late father, Raul Grijalva. She’s also the last signature that the House needs on a petition to force a vote on releasing government documents related to the investigation of deceased pedophilic sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.

Grijalva’s swearing-in appears to be background noise for Republican House leadership, which is floundering to muster solutions to a gridlock over continuous funding for Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful” budget and its seismic cuts to Obamacare subsidies and Medicaid.

But there’s plenty of precedent for Grijalva to be sworn in even in such complicated circumstances. For instance, the entire House was sworn in during a shutdown in 2019, during Trump’s first term.

Grijalva has already vowed to sign the bipartisan petition advancing the immediate release of the Epstein files. Just four Republicans have penned their signatures on the petition, demanding more transparency from the Trump administration regarding the investigation into Epstein and his potential associates. Those conservative lawmakers include Representatives Thomas Massie, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Nancy Mace, and Lauren Boebert.

Republican Senator Mitch McConnell tripped and fell in the Senate building Thursday, adding another worrying incident to his long list of public health issues.

McConnell, with the help of an aide, can be seen on video walking through the Senate halls while a woman asks him about ICE. 

“Do you support ICE taking working people off the streets and kidnapping them?” the woman asks. Then McConnell abruptly falls to the ground as if he tripped over something. His aide and a police officer help him to his feet, as he turns and waves sheepishly to the woman while saying something inaudible. He then walks away. 

McConnell’s age has long been a catalyst for conversations about gerontocracy and congressional term limits in the U.S. In 2023, he had his infamous freezing moment during a press conference, and colleagues have long noted that he often appears checked out and hard of hearing. 

McConnell is not the first active politician to experience symptoms of age publicly. The late Senator Dianne Feinstein had issues with memory and processing while she was still in office. Senator John Kennedy had a McConnell-like freeze-up just this summer. And of course, former President Joe Biden had countless moments of mental incapacity. That is what happens when you age. But the issue is that all of these folks refused to admit it, and hold onto power for far too long.  

In justifying U.S. escalations against Venezuela and describing its regime as “illegitimate,” a top Trump diplomat on Thursday—in the height of irony—cited a New York criminal case against the country’s president.

Mike Waltz, President Donald Trump’s U.N. ambassador, was asked Thursday on Fox News about the administration’s plans for Venezuela. Trump recently authorized covert CIA operations against Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, and has publicly considered conducting land strikes on the country.

Waltz told Fox News that Maduro is an “illegitimate leader, convicted in the Southern District of New York,” adding that the U.S. will “do whatever it takes” to dismantle Venezuelan “terrorist gangs.”

Notably, Maduro was not convicted, but rather charged with narcoterrorism and other offenses, in New York’s Southern District in 2020. He has not been apprehended nor stood trial, and the Trump administration has a $50 million bounty out on information leading to his arrest. (Venezuela’s foreign minister at the time called the charges against Maduro “miserable, vulgar, and unfounded,” and consistent with a U.S. “policy of forced regime change in Venezuela.”)

And of course, if a conviction in New York is such a stigma, as Waltz suggests, then Trump is in deep trouble. Trump became the first felonious president in May 2024, convicted on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records by a New York State Supreme Court jury—whose verdict he is appealing.

Waltz, a congressman at the time, cried election interference.

The Arizona Young Republicans clearly don’t understand what was wrong with its members’ frolicsome participation in a racist, Nazi-loving text chain exposed in a gangbusters report by Politico.

The local chapter released a statement Wednesday night in which the organization firmly rejected “any involvement in the ongoing political witch hunt targeting fellow Young Republican members” over the Telegram group chat reported on Wednesday, which was filled to the brim with racism, antisemitism, rape jokes, and other filth.

The statement said that their organization would not stand for “mob-style condemnation driven by political opportunism or personal agendas.”

But it seems members of the Arizona chapter were prolific in the infamous group chat. Luke Mosiman, the chair of the Arizona Young Republicans, appears multiple times in the texts. In July, he suggested linking a political opponent to white supremacist groups, by “releasing Nazi edits with her” and “pro Nazi” propaganda.

Rachel Hope, the events chair for the Arizona Young Republicans, replied: “Omg I love this plan.”

“The only problem is we will lose the Kansas delegation,” Mosiman wrote, to which Hope and the two other Kansas Young Republicans laugh-reacted.

Mosiman also made racist jokes, saying that the “Spanish came to America and had sex with every single woman,” and later added, “Sex? It was rape.”

In the statement Wednesday, the group accused critics of “selective outrage” over their leaders’ horrific remarks.

“It is disheartening to see the double standard applied by so many critics,” the statement said, “While certain voices within our own movement have been quick to condemn, many of these same individuals have overlooked or ignored deeply concerning rhetoric and actions on the political left.”

The Arizona Young Republicans seemed particularly pissed that they’d been hung out to dry by the Young Republicans National Federation, which had released a statement “without so much as a single call” to their Arizonan membership. “This lack of communication reflects a troubling disregard for unity and due process, and raises serious concerns about loyalty and leadership within our movement,” the statement said.

In that Wednesday statement, the Young Republicans National Federation called the language “vile and inexcusable,” and said that the behavior of group chat members was “disgraceful, unbecoming of any Republican.”

“Those involved must immediately resign from all positions within their state and local Young Republican organizations,” the statement said.

But this wasn’t the beginning of beef between Arizona and national leadership—and the group chat provided receipts. In June, Mosiman jokingly called for the Young Republicans Federation Chair Hayden Padgett to be raped. Ah, well: nevertheless.