Kerry Picket
Articles by Kerry Picket
NYC students forced out of school building after officials move in nearly 2,000 migrants
New York City high school students' classes went remote Wednesday after nearly 2,000 migrants moved into their school building in Brooklyn following an evacuation from a tent shelter Tuesday to avoid a massive rainstorm. Published January 10, 2024
Robert Menendez makes the case that he is the victim of political payback
Sen. Robert Menendez called the federal criminal corruption case against him "outrageous" and "unprecedented" and suggested Tuesday that it was an attempt to remove a key voice blocking some of President Biden's initiatives. Published January 9, 2024
DOJ says it could have targeted nonviolent Jan. 6 protesters who did not enter Capitol
The Justice Department says its prosecutors could have but did not target all Jan. 6 protesters who gathered in "restricted" areas around the Capitol three years ago, regardless of whether they participated in violent acts or entered the Capitol building. Published January 7, 2024
GOP lawmaker wants government shut down over illegal immigration flood
A Republican lawmaker who visited the southern border with other GOP members in Texas called for a government shutdown over the surge of illegal migrants entering the U.S. Published January 5, 2024
Republicans at border insist on security; Speaker Johnson raps Biden team for ‘unmitigated disaster’
House Speaker Mike Johnson led dozens of Republicans to the border in Texas on Wednesday, saying they got a first-hand look at the devastation of unprecedented illegal immigration and calling the situation "heartbreaking and infuriating." Published January 3, 2024
House chairman leading impeachment calls Mayorkas ‘greatest domestic threat’
The House on Wednesday announced its first hearing on impeaching Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, officially kicking off the quest to oust the man who's overseen the most chaotic border in modern history. Published January 3, 2024
Maine Secretary of State Bellows says home targeted in swatting incident
Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows said on her Facebook page Saturday that her house was swatted. Published December 30, 2023
GOP lawmakers say strategy to kick Trump off ballot is 2020 COVID election laws all over again
Republicans say legal maneuvers to remove former President Donald Trump from several states' GOP primary ballot are no different from when liberal activists successfully used the courts to change election laws during the COVID pandemic before the 2020 presidential campaign. Published December 30, 2023
Swatting hits law professor Jonathan Turley
George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley says he's the latest victim of swatting, an action of fake calls for police response. Published December 30, 2023
Only 3.4% of U.S. journalists are Republicans: Survey
The number of full-time American journalists who say they're Republicans plummeted in the past decade, while Democrats in that profession rose. Published December 30, 2023
Chinese spy balloon communicated with Beijing through U.S. internet provider, claims news report
The Chinese surveillance vessel that floated across the U.S. at the start of 2023 fed information to China through an American internet service provider. Published December 30, 2023
Law enforcement increasingly enlists artificial intelligence to fight crime
It's not yet to the point of science fiction's "Minority Report," where police can arrest someone for "precrime" before they ever commit the act, but police across the country are turning to artificial intelligence to do their jobs. Published December 27, 2023
Judge blocks California law banning handgun carry in most public places
California's Democratic lawmakers were unchastened by Wednesday's federal-court ruling putting a hold on their latest gun control laws before they were to take effect Jan. 1. Published December 21, 2023
House Judiciary Committee subpoenas AG Garland over DOJ’s attempted surveillance of Congress
The House Judiciary Committee subpoenaed Attorney General Merrick Garland on Tuesday for information about the Justice Department's attempts to spy on members of Congress and congressional staff. Published December 19, 2023
New York GOP-backed candidate for Santos seat says she won’t back abortion ban
Mazi Melesa Pilip, the New York GOP-backed candidate chosen to run in an upcoming special election to fill the vacated seat left open by expelled former Rep. George Santos, has revealed she does not support a federal ban on abortion. Published December 19, 2023
GOP House member touts bill that would ban colleges forcing students to sign ‘diversity’ pledges
Rep. Dan Crenshaw wants to end the practice of forcing students to sign "diversity, equity and inclusion" DEI statements at higher education institutions. Published December 19, 2023
Former Jan. 6 committee chair confirms probe records sent to prosecutors investigating Trump
Rep. Bennie G. Thompson, chairman of the now-defunct House Jan. 6 Select Committee, has confirmed to Republican lawmakers that the panel sent records to prosecutors who have filed charges against former President Donald Trump, after initially saying he had not preserved such material. Published December 18, 2023
Dem staffer out from Senate job after revelation of sex video shot in Capitol Hill hearing room
A Capitol Hill staffer accused of filming himself having gay sex in a congressional hearing room has been separated from his job in Senator Ben Cardin's office. Published December 16, 2023
‘Messy’ democracy: Speaker Johnson has same difficulties as McCarthy but more loyal allies
It's been a rough seven weeks for new House Speaker Mike Johnson, but despite Mr. Johnson's inexperience and initial stumbles, Republicans are in no hurry to replace him. Published December 15, 2023
Bipartisan group of senators fail to stop FISA spying provision in year-end Pentagon bill
Sen. Rand Paul failed to strip the reauthorization of the government's chief surveillance power from the annual Pentagon policy spending bill Wednesday night as a bipartisan group of lawmakers fell six votes short. Published December 13, 2023
