The U.S. Supreme Court issued a unanimous ruling deciding how persecution claims can be handled in asylum cases.

The unanimous decision in Urias-Orellana v. Bondi found that federal courts must defer to immigration agencies about facts being claimed by asylum seekers.

The unanimous decision says courts must accept findings from the immigration agencies unless they meet a ‘substantial evidence’ standard.

Douglas Humberto Urias-Orellana is an immigrant from El Salvador who fled to the U.S. in 2021 with his wife and his minor child after allegedly facing death threats from a drug cartel. The family’s claims were deemed by an immigration judge not to meet the persecution standard and ordered them to be deported.

Urias-Orellana sued against the deportation and called on the Supreme Court to accept his persecution claims.

Instead, the unanimous decision says courts must accept findings from the immigration agencies unless they meet a “substantial evidence” standard.

The bottom line is that asylum seekers will find it harder to challenge orders of deportation if their persecution claims are denied.

The ruling was written by Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson.

RELATED: US Catholic bishops call on SCOTUS to shut down Trump birthright citizenship order and protect ‘human dignity’

The Alliance for Justice issued a statement prior to the ruling supporting the asylum seeker’s cause.

“In Urias-Orellana vs. Bondi, the Court could raise the bar as to how much deference courts of appeals should give to a determination by the Board of Immigration Appeals on whether an asylum seeker has been persecuted in their home country,” their statement read. “A ruling that raises the bar could mean that individuals with credible fears for their safety may be denied refuge simply because they cannot meet a higher procedural threshold.”

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Weeks after Don Lemon and dozens more agitators allegedly stormed a church service in Minnesota, Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon made a much-anticipated announcement.

On Wednesday, Dhillon announced that all 39 individuals suspected of disrupting the church service had been arrested as of Monday, adding an intriguing detail about a couple of the arrests.

‘Outstanding work by DOJ. You don’t get to terrorize churchgoers in America.’

“As of Monday, all 39 individuals indicted in the attack on Cities Church in MN had been arrested, two of them while abroad,” Dhillon wrote on X.

“We @CivilRights look forward to bringing justice to the victims of this attack and demonstrating our commitment to justice for all!” she continued.

RELATED: Don Lemon enters plea following January arrest in connection with Minnesota church disruption

Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images

Activists stormed Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota, on January 18.

Apparently among them was ex-CNN talking head Don Lemon, who previously pleaded not guilty to charges of conspiring to violate someone’s constitutional rights and violating the FACE Act.

Senator Mike Lee (R-Utah) praised the DOJ’s persistence in this case: “Outstanding work by DOJ. You don’t get to terrorize churchgoers in America.”

Likewise, BlazeTV host Auron MacIntyre lauded the arrests, noting how easily the case could have disappeared in the news cycle.

“I appreciate the follow-through on this. Many people predicted that the administration would do nothing and with all of the other news it would have been easy to let this quietly drop out of the cycle. But they didn’t, they charged them all,” MacIntyre said.

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Before telling employees they do not get a say in how the government uses OpenAI services, CEO Sam Altman said intelligence agencies are no longer allowed to use OpenAI as they see fit.

On Monday, Altman cited the Fourth Amendment as a reason to change OpenAI’s contract with the federal government.

‘The Department also affirmed that our services will not be used by Department of War intelligence agencies.’

Altman said the company would amend its deal to include the following text: “Consistent with applicable laws, including the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution … the AI system shall not be intentionally used for domestic surveillance of U.S. persons and nationals.”

The text added, “For the avoidance of doubt, the Department understands this limitation to prohibit deliberate tracking, surveillance, or monitoring of U.S. persons or nationals, including through the procurement or use of commercially acquired personal or identifiable information.”

Altman expressed a desire for a “democratic process” that could protect the civil liberties of Americans, while adding that the Department of War agreed to the new terms that keep his product out of the hands of the intelligence community.

“The Department also affirmed that our services will not be used by Department of War intelligence agencies (for example, the NSA). Any services to those agencies would require a follow-on modification to our contract.”

Unfortunately for Altman, his post was hit with a hard community note that claimed this was “the opposite” of what he told employees the next day.

RELATED: Gamers REVOLT over age-verify scheme subjecting users to ‘suspicious entity detection’

Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

As CNBC reported, Altman told staff at an internal meeting that the company does not get a say in how the government uses OpenAI for operations.

“So maybe you think the Iran strike was good and the Venezuela invasion was bad,” Altman reportedly said on Tuesday. “You don’t get to weigh in on that.”

OpenAI does not “get to make operational decisions” regarding how its AI is used by the Department of War, the CEO added.

Altman also reportedly told his team that while the Pentagon respects his company’s expertise, the agency made it clear that the final decisions rest solely with Secretary Pete Hegseth.

RELATED: Sam Altman slams ICE in message to OpenAI employees: ‘What’s happening … is going too far’

The about-face seems even more bizarre when considering Altman’s follow-up post on X from Monday evening. In it, he described “alignment, democratization, empowerment, and individual agency” as the principles he cares most about.

At the same time he explained how AI needs to be “democratized” for the world as an open product, he wondered how he would feel if his product could have prevented an attack on U.S. soil but was not used by the government.

“I think there are real dangers coming to the world, and maybe pretty soon; I tried to put myself in the mindset of how I’d feel the day after an attack on the US or a new bioweapon we could have helped prevent.”

This is more in tune with what he told his employees on Tuesday, which also included that he hoped the government would be “willing to work with us, even if our safety stack annoys them.”

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Since the commencement of Operation Epic Fury, six United States service members have been killed in the Middle East. Four of the six have now been identified.

On Tuesday, the Department of War released the identities of four Army Reserve soldiers who died on Sunday in support of the operation against Iran.

‘We will remember their names, their service, and their sacrifice.’

The soldiers died in Kuwait at the Port of Shuaiba during an unmanned aircraft system attack, according to the U.S. Army’s press release. All four were assigned to the 103rd Sustainment Command, Des Moines, Iowa.

RELATED: US service member death toll continues to rise amid Operation Epic Fury

The deceased were identified as: Capt. Cody Khork, 35, of Lakeland, Florida; Sgt. 1st Class Nicole Amor, 39, of White Bear Lake, Minnesota; Sgt. 1st Class Noah Tietjens, 42, of Bellevue, Nebraska; and Sgt. Declan Coady, 20, of Des Moines, Iowa.

“We honor our fallen Heroes, who served fearlessly and selflessly in defense of our nation. Their sacrifice, and the sacrifices of their families, will never be forgotten,” said Lt. Gen. Robert Harter, chief of Army Reserve and commanding general U.S. Army Reserve Command.

“On behalf of the Army Reserve, we express our heartfelt condolences to their families and loved ones. We remain steadfast in our commitment to honoring the legacy of our fallen and supporting their teammates and families during this difficult time,” said Harter.

“Our nation is kept safe by folks like these — brave men and women who put it all on the line every single day. They represent the heart of America. We will remember their names, their service, and their sacrifice,” said Maj. Gen. Todd Erskine, commanding general, 79th Theater Sustainment Command.

ABC News reported that the other two service members’ identities are being withheld until after next of kin have been notified. They were reportedly killed in the same strike. Eighteen others were reportedly injured in the strike as well.

The incident is currently under investigation.

Capt. Cody Khork, a resident of Lakeland, Fla., enlisted as a 13P, Multiple Launch Rocket System/fire direction specialist in the National Guard in 2009. He commissioned as a military police officer in the Army Reserve in 2014. He deployed to Saudi Arabia in 2018; Guantanamo Bay, Cuba in 2021; and Poland in 2024. U.S. Army

Sgt. 1st Class Nicole Amor, a resident of White Bear Lake, Minnesota, enlisted in the National Guard as a 92A, automated logistics specialist in 2005. She transferred to the Army Reserve in 2006 and deployed to Kuwait and Iraq in 2019. U.S. Army

Sgt. 1st Class Noah Tietjens, a resident of Bellevue, Nebraska, enlisted in the Army Reserve in 2006 as a 91B, wheeled vehicle mechanic. He had two deployments to Kuwait in 2009 and 2019. U.S. Army

Sgt. Declan Coady, posthumously promoted from specialist, a resident of Des Moines, Iowa, enlisted in the Army Reserve in 2023 as a 25B, Army information technology specialist. U.S. Army

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Amazon MGM Studios and Sony Pictures Television are so confident in their upcoming “God of War” adaptation that they’ve already ordered two seasons.

But their initial marketing push has drawn sharp criticism from the man who created the video game franchise.

‘It’s just a dumb f**king image.’

Bathroom break

Last week, Amazon unveiled the first image of Kratos — the Spartan warrior at the center of the massively popular games. In it, Kratos crouches in the woods, leaning on his haunches as he watches his son Atreus draw an arrow.

The photo was meant to stoke excitement for the live-action take on one of gaming’s most iconic characters.

For God of War creator David Jaffe, however, it caused an entirely different reaction.

RELATED: Comic calls out Peter Dinklage: ‘You were in the most offensive movie to little people ever made’

“Could you find a picture that doesn’t look like he’s s***ting in the woods?” asked Jaffe. “Because that’s what the picture looks like.”

Potty mouth

Jaffe made the comments in a video posted to his YouTube channel. In the clip, he says he’s “a little worried” about the first impression the show was making. “What the f**k is this?” he said. “It’s just a dumb f**king image.”

While Jaffe stressed that he was still confident in the show’s creative team — saying he had “absolutely no doubt it is going to be a good show” — he refused to soften his stance on the squatting Spartan.

RELATED: Robert Duvall: Hollywood ‘Apostle’ who took Jesus seriously

“Two things can be true [at once],” he said. “This can be a terrible image — and it is. It’s so bad in so many ways.”

Photo by Michael Loccisano/Getty Images for Tribeca Film Festival

Flush with success

God of War is not the first of Jaffe’s properties to make the jump to television. Paramount+ recently renewed its “Twisted Metal” adaptation for a third season. As co-creator of the game (with Scott Campbell), Jaffe directed four Twisted Metal games between 1995 and 2012.

Amazon has increasingly bet on video game adaptations in the streaming arms race. That strategy has delivered at least one breakout hit — “Fallout” — while several other high-profile projects remain in development.

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White House senior adviser Calley Means is on a mission — and he’s been leading this mission alongside Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and the MAHA movement.

“So you and RFK Jr. came in with this singular mission to make America healthy again, which — I don’t think, you know, it’s like it’s not a crazy mission. Overhauling the food system is the key tenet of this, and I think — you correct me if I’m wrong — kind of your key focus,” Gonzales says.

“We’re at HHS right now. This is the largest budget of any government department in human history. We have a $2 trillion budget, and you look at that — 90% of that is chronic diseases tied to food. We in America have the highest rates of diabetes, obesity, heart disease, cancer, Alzheimer’s,” Means tells Gonzales.

“This is what’s costing lives. It’s what’s shortening lives. It’s what’s causing issues for day-to-day Americans. And it’s bankrupting our budget. And it’s a multitude of factors, but these are external factors that are causing this increasing rate of chronic disease, which is devastating the country, particularly our kids,” he continues.

And he points out that this chronic disease epidemic has nothing to do with a lack of pharmaceuticals, as we are “the most drugged country in the world.”

Means also explains that this is why it’s so important that RFK Jr. has such an important role in the Trump administration.

“He’s the most important person. He’ll go down as the most important person in the history of modern public health, because he’s brought light to these simple things,” Means tells Gonzales.

“I don’t disagree with you. I mean, he is one of my own personal heroes,” Gonzales agrees.

However, while Gonzales and Means both see the importance of shining a light on the chronic disease epidemic in America and how it relates to our environment and food supply, others appear to be blinded by politics.

“Why do you think that we can’t be bipartisan about something as simple as keeping America healthy?” Gonzales asks Means.

“Trump derangement syndrome, I think, is the most pernicious and incurable condition impacting much of the American populace. It’s defining American politics,” Means answers.

“And the simple reality is Trump derangement syndrome has led Democrats to passionately defend artificial food dyes. It’s led Democrats to now be the party of ultra-processed food. It’s led Democrats to — I couldn’t believe this — passionately argue that we should maintain government funding for soda on food stamps,” he continues.

“My hope and our prayer here at HHS is this does become bipartisan,” he adds.

Want more from Sara Gonzales?

To enjoy more of Sara’s no-holds-barred takes on news and culture, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

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Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) joined his Democrat colleagues on the Senate Judiciary Committee in castigating Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on Tuesday, not only for her past treatment of animals but for her treatment of illegal aliens.

After characterizing the Jan. 6 protesters whom President Donald Trump pardoned as “thugs” and stressing his support for law enforcement, Tillis suggested in his self-described “performance evaluation” that he is “disappointed” with Noem because she is allegedly “running numbers that Stephen Miller wants out of the White House.”

‘Those are bad decisions made in the heat of the moment, not unlike what happened up in Minneapolis.’

“We just want numbers! We want a thousand a day, 6,000 a day, 9,000 a day, because numbers matter, right? No, they don’t matter,” added Tillis, who is not running for re-election. “Quality matters, not quantity — quality.”

Although the senator did not afford Noem an opportunity to respond at length at any point during his tirade, the secretary later noted on X that “thanks to President Trump’s leadership and the dedicated work of DHS personnel, our department has achieved historic results and made communities safer.”

Noem indicated:

Nearly 3 million illegal aliens have left the United States. [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] has arrested over 1,500 Known or Suspected Terrorists (KSTs) and more than 7,700 gang members. Fentanyl trafficking at the southern border has dropped by more than half compared to the same period in 2024. Of the more than 450,000 unaccompanied alien children lost under the Biden administration, 145,000 have been located under President Trump.

The DHS indicated in January that there were over 675,000 deportations and an estimated 2.2 million self-deportations in Trump’s first year back in office.

RELATED: Government-paid traffickers? Noem testifies Biden administration funded abuse of migrant kids

Kristi Noem. Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

Tillis, adopting a tone he did not previously employ when addressing Noem’s predecessor, Alejandro Mayorkas, suggested that the immigration crackdown overseen by the secretary — in which some American citizens have been detained — has been a “disaster” and that the way she has been “going about deporting [migrants] is wrong.”

The senator cast doubt on whether the fatal shootings of anti-ICE radicals Alex Pretti and Renee Good were justifiable, then turned his attention to Noem’s admissions in her memoir, “No Going Back,” specifically her decisions to kill an “untrainable” dog and an unruly goat.

“You decided to kill that dog because you had not invested the appropriate time and training, and then you have the audacity to go into a book and say it’s a leadership lesson about tough choices!” said Tillis.

“At that same lunch hour, you killed a goat, and you killed the goat because you said it was behaving badly.”

“My point is those are bad decisions made in the heat of the moment, not unlike what happened up in Minneapolis,” said Tillis.

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A World Series champion looks primed to become a member a Congress from Texas.

With popular Republican Rep. Chip Roy running for state attorney general, Texas’ 21st Congressional District is open for a new candidate to take what could be a long and pivotal role within the Republican Party.

‘This is a huge victory.’

Generational talent and Maryland native Mark Teixeira on Tuesday took home the Republican bid for the district, which encompasses northwest San Antonio.

According to KTBC, Teixeira was the only candidate to receive more than 9,000 votes, collecting almost 58,000, or 61%, among a large field of GOP hopefuls.

The 45-year-old benefited from a massive endorsement last week, though, when President Trump called Teixeira a “TOTAL WINNER, on and off the field.”

“Mark has a great wife, Leigh, and three beautiful children,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, before promoting some of the former ballplayer’s platform.

“Cut Taxes and Regulations, Promote MADE IN THE U.S.A., Unleash American Energy DOMINANCE, Keep our Border SECURE, [and] Stop Migrant Crime” were just some of the agenda items the president listed.

RELATED: Chip Roy’s political future uncertain after nail-biting Texas AG race

“This is a huge victory, and I’m truly honored to have such strong support from the people of TX-21. Thank you!” Teixeira wrote on X after his win.

“My amazing family has been by my side every step of the way. … We’re going to run a strong race and win big in November, then hit the ground running to fight for Texas families.”

The Texas district has been run by Republicans since 1979, with only three different representatives over that 47-year span: Tom Loeffler (1979-1987), Lamar Smith (1987-2019), and Roy (2019-2026).

Republicans have historically dominated the vote, too, and while the gap narrowed between 2018 and 2020, Roy increased his margin of victory each time he ran.

After winning by about 3% of the vote in 2018, he expanded that gap to about seven points in 2020. In 2022, he won by more than 25 points (+84,000 votes) and by almost 26 points in 2024 (+110,000 votes).

RELATED: Former MLB All-Star calls out Disney Cruise Line for having a ‘man dressed as woman’

Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images

Teixeira, a first baseman, entered the major leagues with the Texas Rangers in 2003 and finished with the New York Yankees in 2016. Upon joining the Yankees in 2009, he signed a massive $180 million contract. His tenure with the team was plagued by injuries.

Teixeira was a three-time All-Star, a five-time Gold Glove Award winner, and a World Series champion in 2009.

Rep. Roy is now in a runoff after coming in second place with 32% of the vote in the Republican primary for Texas attorney general. He will go head-to-head against Mayes Middleton — who had 39% of the vote — in May, since neither won a majority.

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On Tuesday at a press conference held at the Sugar Hill Children’s Museum of Art & Storytelling, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani (D) covered the advancement of the universal child care program 2-K.

The conference was opened by a lesbian mother and member of New Yorkers United for Childcare, who said, “We want to stay in New York City, and 2-K will make the difference. We want to raise our kids in a city that looks like us, that has the values that we share.” She emphasized, “We see diversity as the greatest strength of New York City”

‘We’re just getting started!’

Mamdani thanked Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) for her foundational role in the program’s progress.

The program will provide free child care for 2-year-olds in New York City to any family, regardless of “immigration status,” a press release from Mamdani’s office said.

RELATED: Founder of Minneapolis autism center admits to paying kickbacks to Somali families in $6 million scam

Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

Taxpayers will reportedly fork out more than $36,000 per tot for Mamdani’s free 2-K pilot program, which is around $13,000 more than the average cost of private child care, city officials acknowledged Tuesday.

Earlier this year, Hochul committed more than $1.2 billion to support early childhood care and education in New York City, including $73 million to fund the first set of free 2-K seats. That investment will grow to $425 million next year. By fall 2027, 2-K is expected to serve approximately 12,000 children across all five boroughs, with the goal of reaching every 2-year-old in the city at full implementation.

RELATED: Iranian state TV hijacked with Trump, Netanyahu message urging citizens to ‘seize control’

The governor evinced excitement about the advancement of 2-K.

“2-K is coming, NYC! Proud to work with @NYCMayor to make this a reality. And we’re just getting started!” Hochul said on X.

Critics warn of the gates that could be unlocked to fraud. Nick Sortor reposted a video on X criticizing Mamdani, which accumulated over 1 million views.

“This is going to be freaking LOADED with fraud,” Sortor said. “REFUSE TO SEND FEDERAL DOLLARS, 47! We do NOT want to fund Mamdani’s fraud!”.

However, Mamdani shows no signs of slowing down. “This is just the beginning. Universal child care is within reach — and we’re making it happen,” he said.

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