‘Karen’ dodges charges; Trump eyes library agency; W.Va. vaccine fight

No charges in Calvert County ’Karen’ case

Turning Point USA will not face a Child Protective Services probe after all, “Seen, Heard & Whispered” can report.

“There is no investigation going on. Everything has been handled already,” a sheriff’s deputy in Calvert County, Maryland, said.

He was responding after a woman at a county school board meeting said she had reported TPUSA, the organization for young conservatives founded by the late Charlie Kirk, to Child Protective Services for taking advantage of impressionable students.

“Students are widely recognized as a vulnerable population in critical, developmental stages and especially susceptible to influence,” Nancy Krause said. “All board of education members in this room are mandated reporters under state law, as I am. … Based on the circumstances surrounding this event, a report was made to Child Protective Services.”

But that’s not how it works, officials said.

CPS investigates only where there are allegations of abuse or neglect.

“The situation presented does not appear to be indicative of any allegations of abuse or neglect,” the state Department of Human Services told “Seen, Heard & Whispered.”

Ms. Krause quickly went viral as the Calvert County “Karen.”

She also drew the eye of the Trump Justice Department.

“I’m looking into this,” Harmeet Dhillon, assistant attorney general for civil rights, posted on X.

A department insider cautioned that it’s too early to tell whether Ms. Krause will face charges.

Library smackdown

President Trump had tried to kill the Institute of Museum and Library Services, zeroing it out in his budget proposal for fiscal 2026. Congress had other plans, giving it a fresh infusion of nearly $300 million.

So the administration now figures it can make use of the little-known federal agency.

An insider tells “Seen, Heard & Whispered” that the Trump team sees the institute as a way to help reshape how American history and Western civilization are taught, particularly this year as the country celebrates the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.

As part of the remake, the agency is seeking to approve grants that align with Mr. Trump’s goals of delivering positive messages about America’s history rather than negative ideological narratives.

Look out for IMLS’ Freedom Trucks, which will take that pro-America lesson on the road.

But the insider said serious pushback could come from Big Library.

That’s the American Library Association, which leans politically to the left and will be in Washington next week to lobby for its own goals.

“No one wants to have a fight with a librarian, but the American Library Association is something else. It is a radical association determined to push an extreme social agenda onto children and families. Accurately telling America’s story is important,” the insider said.

“It is also important that our libraries are safe sanctuaries for children to read and learn. Unfortunately, the ALA is more interested in fighting parents who want pornography out of the libraries, and X-rated books out of the children’s section, than working toward solving the problem of collapsing literacy rates that threaten America’s future.”

What’s up with West Virginia’s school vaccines?

After the Feb. 5 “Seen, Heard & Whispered” item on a congressman asking the Justice Department to investigate Democrat-led states that don’t let parents cite religious reasons to opt out of school vaccine mandates, a reader wrote and wondered what’s going on in West Virginia.

The Mountaineer State is the only one led by Republicans that doesn’t allow for a religious exemption to school vaccine mandates, the reader said.

Mississippi had been in the same boat, but a court ordered changes several years back.

“It’s us and four liberal states; it’s crazy,” the reader told “Seen, Heard & Whispered.”

Republican Gov. Patrick Morrisey signed an executive order permitting religious exemptions to school-mandated vaccines, but that order has been blocked by state courts. The West Virginia Supreme Court is set to consider the issue this year.

Rep. Greg Steube, Florida Republican, asked Attorney General Pam Bondi and Ms. Dhillon to probe Maine, California, New York and Connecticut.

The issue is also playing out in the federal courts.

The Supreme Court late last year ordered an appeals court to go back and revisit its decision upholding New York’s law against a challenge from Amish families. The justices told the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to study the high court’s ruling finding that a school system violated parents’ rights by refusing to let them opt out of pro-LGBT lessons.

The Supreme Court late last year ordered an appeals court to go back and revisit its decision upholding New York’s law against a challenge from Amish families. The justices told the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to study the high court’s ruling finding that a school system violated parents’ rights by refusing to let them opt out of pro-LGBT lessons.