Progress toward Zelensky-Putin Peace Meeting; Pirro announces arrest of woman who traveled to DC to assassinate President Trump; Hamas reportedly accepts proposed ceasefire, hostage deal with Israel; Trump says he’ll ‘get rid’ of mail-in ballots for elections; Journalist to launch ‘Anti-Communist Film Festival’ in DC; Pope advises mother to ‘keep Virgin Mary as firm point of reference amid difficulties‘; and more —
Trump Calls Putin During Talks With Europeans, Makes Plan for Zelensky-Putin Peace Meeting … Predicts Deal Within Weeks
U.S. President Donald J. Trump confirmed reports that he called Russian President Putin during his meeting with European leaders and said that a sit down between Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to end the war is being arranged.
During a day full of crunch peace talks with leaders from the United Kingdom, the European Union, NATO, and Ukraine, President Trump broke off to personally call Moscow, arrange a bilateral meeting between Putin and Zelensky, and ultimately set up a “trilat” three-way meeting in which he will act as mediator for a final peace agreement.
Read more at Breitbart; see @TheWhite House on X
What an amazing day at the White House!
CNN and “MSNOW” don’t want to have to admit that President Trump ended the Ukraine War
Watch @Jack Poso on X
President Trump welcomes President Zelenskyy to the White House
President Trump Participates in a Bilateral Meeting with the President of Ukraine (on Monday, August 18)
Watch at The White House on YouTube (29 minutes)
President Trump Participates in a Multilateral Meeting with European Leaders (on Monday, August 18)
Watch at The White House on YouTube (29 minutes)
Pirro Announces Arrest of Woman Who Traveled to DC to Assassinate President Trump
US Attorney For DC Jeanine Pirro on Monday announced the arrest of a woman who traveled from New York to DC to assassinate President Trump.
According to the DOJ, 50-year-old Nathalie Rose Jones was charged with threatening to take the life of, kidnap, or inflict bodily harm upon the President of the United States, and transmitting in interstate commerce communications containing threats to kidnap any person or any threat to injure the person of another.
“She was working to have [Trump] eliminated. She’s now in custody, she will be prosecuted to the fullest extent to the law,” Pirro said.
Read more at the Gateway Pundit
Hamas reportedly accepts proposed ceasefire, hostage deal with Israel
Hamas has reportedly accepted a Qatari- and Egyptian-brokered ceasefire and hostage exchange with Israel that would halt fighting in Gaza for 60 days and secure the release of dozens of hostages.
According to Axios, the plan calls for Hamas to free 10 living hostages along with the remains of 18 others who died in captivity. In return, Israel would release an unspecified number of Palestinian prisoners.
A diplomatic source told Axios the deal is “98% similar” to a US-backed framework that Israel had already accepted but Hamas previously rejected.
Read more at Catholic Vote
Texas Democrats Returning Home After Redistricting Protest
Texas Democrats are returning home Monday after fleeing the state in protest over Texas Republicans’ plan to redistrict the Lone Star State.
Democrats had left Texas to thwart a quorum to proceed with the GOP-led redistricting of the state. The state legislators drew hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines for preventing a quorum, and their moves have garnered retaliatory efforts by Republican officials.
Read more at The Daily Signal
Trump Says He Will ‘Get Rid’ Of Mail-In Ballots For Elections
President Donald Trump said Monday that he was going to lead a charge against the use of mail-in ballots for elections.
In a Truth Social post, Trump said that he would be signing an executive order to restructure the American election system and called for Republicans to take action to implement new election integrity measures.
Read more at the Daily Wire
Changing Names Won’t Fix MSNBC’s Reputation As A Left-Wing Propaganda Machine
MSNBC may be undergoing a major rebranding, but its role as a left-wing propaganda operation is here to stay.
On Monday, the network announced that it will be transitioning to “My Source News Opinion World,” or “MS NOW” later this year. The name change comes as part of the outlet’s move to Versant, a new media company separate from NBCUniversal and NBC News that is expected to include the Golf Channel, CNBC, GolfNow, and SportsEngine.
Read more at The Federalist
Illegal migrant with California driver’s license kills 3 in Florida crash
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier reacts after an illegal migrant truck driver licensed in the state of California caused a fatal crash on the Florida Turnpike that left three people dead.
Watch at Fox News; see also @Anthony Brian Logan on X
DHS spokesperson open to ICE enforcement at Truck stops and DOT Weigh Stations
The Department of Homeland Security has just confirmed to [Benny Johnson] that ICE is seriously considering immigration enforcement at Truck Weigh Stations across America.
This follows a criminal alien truck driver killing three Americans in Florida when he executed an illegal u-turn.
Harjinder Singh entered the country illegally and was handed a Commercial Driver’s License from California. He’s being charged with manslaughter after killing three American Citizens.
Read more @Benny Johnson on X
Northern Virginia school districts defy Education Department request to change bathroom policies
Several Northern Virginia school districts said Friday they aren’t making plans to change their bathroom policies, defying a U.S. Department of Education request that accused existing practices of violating Title IX. …
The move comes after the DOE’s Office for Civil Rights found policies letting students using facilities such as bathrooms and locker rooms based on their gender identity rather than biological sex violated Title IX.
Read more at wtopnews
NFL PLATFORMS ‘Child-Friendly’ Drag Queen Cheerleaders
The NFL’s push for male cheerleaders, like those with the Minnesota Vikings and Baltimore Ravens, undermines its family-friendly image, prioritizing trendy diversity over traditional values. Critics argue this shift alienates fans who expect wholesome entertainment suitable for all ages.
Watch at Jason Whitlock on YouTube
Supporters hope for deportation as trial of Jimmy Lai nears end
A Hong Kong court heard final arguments Monday in the trial against the jailed Catholic publisher Jimmy Lai, with prosecutors saying Lai’s international connections proved his “unwavering intent” to bring international sanctions against China and Hong Kong.
Lai, who has been in prison since 2020, is accused of colluding with foreign powers and publishing seditious materials under Beijing’s controversial National Security Law, imposed in Hong Kong in 2020.
If convicted, Lai faces life in prison. However, the publisher’s former senior executive … told The Pillar that a conviction seems inevitable, and those close to Lai hope it could clear the way for his eventual release from prison [on humanitarian grounds] …
Read more at The Pillar
Prosecutors [in Scotland] Drop Charges Against 75-Year-Old Pro-Life Grandma for Protesting Abortion
Scottish prosecutors have dropped a free speech case against a 75-year-old woman who was targeted earlier this year for offering peaceful conversation to pregnant women outside an abortion facility in Glasgow.
CatholicVote previously reported that Rose Docherty was arrested for holding a sign that read “Coercion is a crime, here to talk, only if you want” in a “buffer zone” around an abortion facility. A public prosecutor then sent her a warning letter requiring her to state that her actions were illegal, and she refused.
Read more at Life News; see also @ActionforLife on X
Another Little Life Saved by a ‘Baby Box,’ This Time in Missouri
On a recent sweltering Sunday afternoon in suburban Mehlville, Missouri, a group of firefighters were jolted into action by an alarm. Rushing to the metal box built into the station’s wall, the firefighters looked inside … and found a tiny baby girl.
Within minutes, the men had the newborn in their arms. The child’s mother was nowhere to be seen.
The newborn baby girl recovered safely from the baby box at a fire station in suburban St. Louis earlier this month marked the second instance of a child being surrendered and rescued there since that box was installed in 2023.
Read more at the National Catholic Register
Pope Leo writes to a mother: Entrust yourself to Mary to face every uncertainty
In the latest issue of the magazine Piazza San Pietro, Pope Leo XIV responds to a letter from Laura, a mother who shared some of her struggles with faith, and invites her to keep the Virgin Mary as a firm point of reference amid difficulties.
“If your point of reference is Mary, you will be able to face every uncertainty,” the pope emphasized.
Read more at Vatican News
Detroit ICE meets with Catholic aid group, Democrat lawmaker to discuss deportations
Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Detroit Field Office recently met with a Catholic migrant aid group and a Democratic lawmaker to discuss questions about whether ICE is prioritizing deporting violent criminals and concerns about agents wearing masks during raids.
Acting field office director for Detroit ICE, Kevin Raycraft, and other ICE officials invited Catholics — including leaders of the nonprofit Strangers No Longer — to the Detroit headquarters on Aug. 12 after Rep. Shri Thanedar, D-Michigan, intervened to secure a meeting.
Read more at the Catholic News Agency
Journalist to Launch ‘Anti-Communist Film Festival’ in D.C.: ‘Fits the Moment’
Journalist Mark Judge, whose book The Devil’s Triangle chronicled his life’s derailment at the hands of Christine Blasey Ford during the Brett Kavanaugh confirmation hearing, will be launching an anti-communist film festival in Washington, D.C., as the nation faces a resurgence of socialism with the sudden rise of Democrat Mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani in New York.
“It’s time for an an anti-communist film festival,” said Mark Judge in the festival’s GoFundMe page. “Conservatives have been complaining about Hollywood for decades, yet the right has struggled, through lack of will or lack of money, to make movies promoting freedom and revealing the evils of socialism. The answer? Hold an anti-Communist film festival.”
Read more at Breitbart
Introducing Pillars of Faith: The Launch of My New Apostolate by Bishop J. Strickland
Today, August 15th, the Church celebrates the glorious Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary – the moment Our Lady was taken body and soul into heaven. This feast elevates our hearts to eternity and reminds us that Christ’s victory is certain. It’s a feast of hope, of fulfillment, and of the promise that if we remain faithful, heaven is our home.
And by God’s providence, this Friday is also the day we launch a new apostolate very close to my heart – Pillars of Faith. This name comes from one of the most striking prophetic visions given to St. John Bosco, and it’s a vision I believe speaks directly to our times.
Read more at Bishop Joseph Strickland substack
