State Department issues stunning report detailing full history of Cuban espionage and subversion in the US; Nicaraguan dictator Daniel Ortega declares no more elections anytime soon; 80-year-old Nicaraguan bishop now missing for 19 days; Darline Graham Nordone to run for US Senate in North Carolina, says Trump encouraged her: ‘Run, Darline, Run’; James Talarico shouted down during Houston town hall event; Minnesota AG confronted with shouts of ‘Keith Ellison, shame on you!’ for role in pardon of convicted child sex offender; Leftist charged with murder of Pro-Life [UK] MP Anne Widdecombe; Rumors swirl about conviction status of accused sexual predator Jesuit Marco Rupnik; Catholics celebrate Capuchin saint little known today but considered a rockstar in the 16th century – he wrote: ‘At every Mass, heaven is opened, the angels descend in adoration, and graces flow in abundance upon the Church and the entire world’; and more —
Cuba: A New State Department Report Reveals Decades of Cuban Regime Penetration and Influence Operations in the United States
For more than sixty years, the Cuban regime has operated as one of the United States’ most persistent and sophisticated adversaries—not through conventional military force, but through a sustained campaign of espionage, ideological infiltration, and the export of revolutionary radicalism.
Now, the US Department of State is bringing this hidden history to light through a detailed report that, according to its authors, provides American citizens with a more complete understanding of the influence and espionage operations developed by Havana over decades.
In a 70-page report titled “Cuba: The Capital of 21st-Century Communism,” the Department of State describes decades-long efforts by the Cuban government to penetrate high-level US institutions and influence political and social debates within the United States.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has identified Cuba as one of the leading promoters of radical left-wing ideology and political Third Worldism in the United States , portraying the regime’s activities as both an ideological and intelligence challenge to American interests.
Read more at the Gateway Hispanic
Marco Rubio on the State department’s new report
See @SecRubio; Read full report – ‘Cuba: The Capital of 21st Century Communism’ at US Department of State
Journalist digs into State Department’s report on Cuba – Antifa’s legal arm tied to Cuba
See @MrAndyNgo
Nicaragua’s President Ortega moves to extend his 20-year rule and says no elections anytime soon
Nicaragua’s President Daniel Ortega said his country won’t be holding elections anytime soon, a statement underscoring the strongman’s efforts to extend his nearly 20-year rule and dashing hopes by the opposition that he might heed their demands for a democratic vote.
The announcement effectively canceled Nicaragua’s next elections, originally scheduled for November 2027 after the government-controlled Congress voted in January 2025 to extend the five-year presidential term by one year.
Ortega spoke on Sunday at the anniversary of the Sandinista Revolution that toppled the Somoza dictatorship in 1979 and first brought him to power. He returned to the presidency in 2007 and has since rewritten the constitution, crushed political opposition and solidified his control over virtually all branches of the Nicaraguan government.
Since mass protests in 2018, which led to a bloody government crackdown that killed hundreds, Ortega and his wife and co-President Rosario Murillo have been holding on to power.
Read more at Associated Press
Nicaraguan dictator making the announcement (in Spanish)
Watch @robbystarbuck
Nicaraguan lawyer laments ‘disappearance’ of Nicaraguan bishop
See @cnalive; read also ‘Nicaragua trying to silence the church’ at The Washington Times
Leftist Joshua Kerry Charged With Murder of Pro-Life [UK] MP Anne Widdecombe
Joshua Kerry, a 28-year-old from Rotherham, South Yorkshire, has been charged with the murder of Ann Widdecombe, the 78-year-old pro-life former Conservative MP and Reform UK spokesperson.
Widdecombe’s body found with serious injuries at her home in Haytor, Dartmoor, Devon.
Kerry, who is a political leftist, will appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, the Crown Prosecution Service announced Monday.
Widdecombe, a longtime champion of the pro-life cause and devout Catholic known for her steadfast defense of unborn children and traditional values, was discovered at approximately 11:40 a.m. on July 9. Police believe the attack occurred around 12:30 p.m. the previous day.
Read more at LifeNews
Sen. Darline Graham Nordone Jumps into South Carolina U.S. Senate Race After Being Endorsed by Trump: ‘I’m In’
Sen. Darline Graham Nordone (R-SC) threw her hat into the race for South Carolina’s U.S. Senate seat, days after President Donald Trump gave her his “Complete and Total Endorsement.”
During an interview with Fox News’s Sean Hannity, Graham Nordone was asked where she stood on entering the race to replace her late brother, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) for a full term. Graham Nordone’s brother, the late Lindsey Graham died on July 11, at the age of 71 “from a brief and sudden illness.”
“I’ve been praying a lot, talking to my family, but with the love of my family, with the support of his staff — I know I’m a hard worker, I learned that from Lindsey,” Graham Nordone explained. “He cared about the people of this state. I’ve worked for almost 30 years for the people of this state, I feel like I can do it. I feel an inner peace about it. Will it be difficult? Yes, absolutely.”
“So, you’re inclined to get in or have you even made a final decision?” Hannity questioned.
“I’ve made a decision,” Graham Nordone responded. When Hannity asked if she was in, Graham Nordone responded with, “I’m in.”
Read more at Breitbart
President Trump told me, ‘Run, Darline, Run’
Watch @DarleneGrahamSC
‘The Alaska Republican has turned her back on the critical election integrity bill’
See @FDRLST
James Talarico Shouted Down During Houston Town Hall Event
Texas U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico (D) was shouted at by an angry voter over the weekend in a heated moment that was caught on video. …
In it, the unidentified woman is heard yelling at Talarico: “You stay here! You answer our questions, or you suffer the consequences!”
“I’m happy to engage,” Talarico responded before the woman demanded to speak to his staffers.
“We’ll come to her in just a second.”
He added: “I appreciate you being here. And I appreciate you traveling in, and I appreciate-”
“I did it for my people, not for you!” the woman interjected as gasps were heard in the audience.
“That’s wonderful,” Talarico said, stammering while chatter grew among audience members. “It’s all right, it’s all right, it’s all right. This is what this conversation’s supposed to be about.”
Talarico is running against Republican candidate Ken Paxton for the seat currently occupied by incumbent John Cornyn (R-TX).
Read more at Mediaite
Ellison interrupted at “Many Over the Money” rally in Minneapolis
Protestors: ‘Keith Ellison, shame on you!’ for his role in pardon of convicted child sex offender
Watch @ElectionWiz
Judge rules against Trump in Minnesota sanctuary city lawsuit
A federal judge blocked the Trump administration on Monday from overruling state immigration regulations in Minnesota, marking a blow for federal power.
The Trump administration filed a lawsuit in September against the Twin Cities, Hennepin County, and the state over “sanctuary city policies” that limit local law enforcement’s collaboration with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. U.S. District Judge Eric C. Tostrud, who was appointed by President Donald Trump, dismissed the complaint this week, describing the government’s attempt to preempt local regulation as a violation of the 10th Amendment. He said the disputed policies merely “regulate how state and local officials perform their duties.”
“They do not command the federal government or its contractors to act. They do not forbid the federal government or its contractors from acting,” Tostrud wrote in court filings. They do not control how the federal government or its contractors undertake their work. Rather, they regulate how state and local officials perform their duties.”
Read more at the Washington Examiner (behind a partial paywall)
Anti-ICE operative sets gasoline fire outside immigration court
NBC called this ‘fireworks go off in NY‘
Watch @WSJ; watch also @EndWokeness
Trump vows Netanyahu ‘will not be arrested’ in US after Mamdani floats acting on ICC warrant
The President’s categorical defense of the Israeli prime minister comes as Netanyahu’s standing among American voters deteriorates and Trump administration officials accuse some Israeli officials of obstructing U.S. peace efforts.
President Donald Trump said July 20 that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “will not be arrested” anywhere in the U.S. after New York City Democratic Mayor Zohran Mamdani said city lawyers were exploring whether Netanyahu could be detained if he visits New York.
“Benjamin Netanyahu will not be arrested, in any way, shape, or form, while in the United States of America,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Trump’s post, which did not mention Mamdani by name, defended Netanyahu as an ally in the war against Iran and argued that “the only ones that should be arrested are the people that led Iran into this unprecedented spiral of death and destruction.”
Mamdani recently reiterated his belief that Netanyahu should be brought before the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague. …
Mamdani said he was in “an active conversation” with the New York City Law Department about whether he has the legal authority to detain Netanyahu. The mayor stopped short of repeating his earlier categorical campaign promise to order the New York Police Department to make the arrest.
Read more at Zeale; watch ‘Arresting Netanyahu? Zohran Mamdani’s comment draws backlash’ at The National Desk
Nuns sue New York for religious freedom
Watch @TheFP; see ‘The Nuns Suing New York to Keep Caring for the Dying’ at The Free Press (behind partial paywall); read ‘Bishop Barres, Catholic sisters sue New York over assisted suicide mandates’ at EWTN News
Rupnik rumors – and what might come next
What happens when the disgraced priest’s trial comes to an end?
Rumors began circulating in Rome Monday that the canonical trial of former Jesuit Fr. Marko Rupnik had come to a conclusion, without a conviction on the unspecified canonical crimes now being litigated through the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith.
Those rumors are exactly that — unconfirmed and not specific, suggesting ambiguity about what precisely has happened in Rupnik’s canonical trial, and how much is known about the details.
The rumors have not been confirmed by The Pillar. But they have garnered a great deal of attention, in line with the fierce global interest among Catholics in the Rupnik story, and foreshadowing the magnitude of attention that will come with his eventual verdict.
And whatever comes of the rumored resolution in the Rupnik case, the case will inevitably close. When it does, the Apostolic See will have to be prepared for the unique double helix of a case like Rupnik’s — with institutional attention focused on both ensuring a just legal outcome, and managing the wave of expectations attached to the high-profile case with a difficult history.
Read more at The Pillar
Today is the Feast of St. Lawrence of Brindisi
‘St. Lawrence of Brindisi (1559–1619) was a Capuchin friar, brilliant preacher, and gifted linguist. He defended the Catholic faith with wisdom and charity, served as a papal diplomat, and was proclaimed a Doctor of the Church for his outstanding teaching.‘
See @TempusFugit4016; see also @FriarMario
More about St. Lawrence of Brindisi
St. Lawrence of Brindisi (1559-1619) was one of the early Capuchins, the first Capuchin to be named a Doctor of the Church, and the third Franciscan so named, after St. Anthony of Padua, and St. Bonaventure. Just as the Discalced Carmelites were reformers within the Carmelite order, the Capuchins were reformers within the Franciscan order. St. Lawrence was also a popular preacher, a genius scholar, with a command of at least 10 languages, and the leading Catholic apologist of his day.
Watch at Catholic Culture
