Update (2020ET): President Trump has just issued a statement via his social media feed that he will order the release of any and all files related to UFOs and aliens…

“Based on the tremendous interest shown, I will be directing the Secretary of War, and other relevant Departments and Agencies, to begin the process of identifying and releasing Government files related to alien and extraterrestrial life, unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP), and unidentified flying objects (UFOs), and any and all other information connected to these highly complex, but extremely interesting and important, matters.

GOD BLESS AMERICA!

And cue the crazy…

*  *  *

Documentary filmmaker Dan Farah appeared on Joe Rogan’s podcast in November to promote his new documentary, The Age of Disclosure, and predicted that his film might force Trump to become the first world leader to confirm the existence of extraterrestrial life publicly.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if it happens soon after the film comes out — the sitting president has to step to the microphone and say: humanity is not alone in the universe,” Farah told Rogan. “We have recovered technology of non-human origin. So have other nations. There is a high-stakes, secret cold war race to reverse engineer this technology. We need to win this race.” 

“I think Trump might be the only guy that’s willing to do something that crazy,” Rogan replied.

Well, now Lara Trump, the president’s daughter-in-law, let it slip during an appearance on the New York Post’s Pod Force One podcast that Trump has a speech prepared confirming extraterrestrial life exists.

“Do you think that he’s about to make an announcement about UFOs?” host Miranda Devine asked.

“Because President Obama was just on a podcast talking about how he believes in UFOs and hinting that he saw something when he was president.”

“Well, I said this in my podcast, too,” Lara Trump began.

“What’s funny is we’ve kind of asked my father-in-law about this, ’cause we’re like, ‘Well, what do you know?’ ‘Cause, Miranda, we all wanna know about the UFOs, or we all wanna know what’s going on and he played a little coy with us. And so that, of course, led us to believe, Eric and I, were like, ‘Oh, my gosh, if he won’t even, like, fully tell us, maybe there’s more to it.’ And then I have just heard kind of around that… I think he’s actually said it, I think my father-in-law has actually said it, that there is some speech that he has that, I guess, at, at the right time, and I don’t know when the right time is, he’s gonna break out and, and talk about, and it has to do with maybe some sort of extraterrestrial life, so to speak.”

Lara Trump suggests that President Trump is ready to make an announcement to the world about the existence of aliens, with his script already prepared for the “right time.”

“He’s going to talk about maybe some sort of extraterrestrial life.”

“I don’t know when the right time… pic.twitter.com/D3Cp4zTjFV

— Shadow of Ezra (@ShadowofEzra) February 18, 2026

The White House offered exactly the kind of answer you’d expect. 

“I’ll have to check in with our speech writing team,” White House Press Secretary Karoline said.

”That would be of great interest to me personally, and I’m sure all of you in this room and apparently former President Obama, too.”

A clip from Obama’s recent appearance on Brian Tyler Cohen’s podcast went viral over the weekend after he was asked point-blank whether aliens exist.

“They’re real, but I haven’t seen them, and they’re not being kept in … Area 51 … There’s no underground facility, unless there’s this enormous conspiracy and they hid it from the president of the United States,” Obama said. 

Barack Obama on aliens: “They’re real”

“But I haven’t seen them. They’re not being kept at Area 51. There’s no underground facility — unless there’s this enormous conspiracy and they hid it from the President of the United States.” pic.twitter.com/c6t0DYxewU

— UAP James (@UAPJames) February 14, 2026

By Sunday, Obama was on Instagram trying to walk it back.

“Statistically, the universe is so vast that the odds are good there’s life out there. But the distances between solar systems are so great that the chances aliens have visited us is low, and I saw no evidence during my presidency that extraterrestrials have made contact with us. Really!” Obama wrote.

 

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A post shared by Barack Obama (@barackobama)

Washington’s relationship with UFOs — or, in the preferred bureaucratic phrasing, Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAPs) — has shifted considerably in recent years. A House hearing in July 2023 featured testimony from former military intelligence officer David Grusch, who told lawmakers under oath that he “was informed in the course of my official duties of a multi-decade UAP crash retrieval and reverse-engineering program to which I was denied access.” Grusch further alleged the government had retrieved what he called “non-human biologics” from recovered craft, citing accounts from dozens of witnesses he interviewed over four years.

The Pentagon, of course, pushed back. A March 2024 report rejected the core claims — no reverse-engineered alien spacecraft, no hidden extraterrestrial biological material, no off-world technology stashed in some classified warehouse. The agency stood by its denials even as lawmakers held classified briefings.

Lara Trump’s comment adds new intrigue to the discussion. Whether Trump eventually delivers that address — or whether this is one more piece of carefully managed intrigue from a president who has never met a story he didn’t know how to control — is a question that, for now, has no answer. But Trump sure does seem like the president who would do so.

Authored by Naveen Athrappully via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

Federal officials are investigating Portland Public Schools in Oregon for alleged racial discrimination in the district’s Center for Black Student Excellence (CBSE) program, the U.S. Department of Education stated on Feb. 17.

“CBSE’s guiding principles pledge to ‘center Blackness unapologetically’ by offering black students year-round academic interventions in math and literacy, tutoring, food assistance, and transportation support,” the department’s Office of Civil Rights (OCR) said in a statement.

“According to a complaint filed with OCR, a recent $1.2 billion bond includes tens of millions allocated for academic interventions, wraparound support, facilities, and family programs exclusively for black students, despite PPS [Portland Public Schools] data showing other student groups face similar or greater challenges.”

According to the department, PPS data from 2021–2022 showed “widespread academic struggles” among various racial groups.

Among black students at PPS, only 17 percent met third-grade reading proficiency levels, with Native American students at 17.6 percent and Pacific Islanders at 16.7 percent.

As for graduation rates, 79.4 percent of PPS black students got high school diplomas, while 73.7 percent of Latino students and 61.5 percent of Native American students graduated.

“Despite these disparities, the PPS school board rejected a proposal to allocate $40 million to a Native Student Success Center,” the federal department stated.

The PPS actions may violate Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which bans discrimination on the basis of race, national origin, or color in education programs and activities that receive funding from the federal government, according to the department.

“Civil rights law—and basic fairness—demand that every student, regardless of race, has equal access to educational programs and support,” Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Kimberly Richey said.

“Although students of many races are falling behind, PPS is reserving academic interventions and essential resources exclusively for Black students. Discrimination disguised as ‘equity’ is still discrimination. OCR is committed to vigorously enforcing Title VI to ensure that excellence—not exclusion—defines schools so every child has an opportunity to succeed.”

The Epoch Times reached out to Portland Public Schools for comment but did not receive a response by publication time.

The CBSE webpage states that the center’s mission is to advance a culture of “Black excellence” and to “unify and elevate the Black educational experience.”

“Decades of underinvestment, systemic racism, lack of coordinated systems of support, and discriminatory practices have resulted in an enduring opportunity and achievement gap for Black students in Portland,” the center stated.

“The Center for Black Student Excellence comprises a constellation of academic programs, strategies, supports, and experiences reinforced by physical infrastructure … to create a transformational Approach to Black student learning.”

The civil complaint against PPS was filed with the Education Department on Dec. 17, 2025, by the nonprofit group Defending Education, according to a Feb. 17 release from the group.

On Dec. 2, 2025, the PPS board unanimously voted to purchase a commercial building for $16 million to house the CBSE.

“The building’s sky-high purchase price is only the beginning, however, as the structure needs another $20 [million] to $25 million in renovations and an estimated 24 to 30 months of construction,” the nonprofit group stated.

“For the foreseeable future, PPS will own an empty building dedicated to segregated education that will not educate a single Portland child, all while facing a $50 million budgetary shortfall next year.”

Louisiana Investigation

The Education Department recently raised concerns about Title VI violations in Louisiana’s higher education system.

On Feb. 13, the department’s Office for Civil Rights launched an investigation of the Louisiana Board of Regents, which coordinates all public higher education in the state, regarding whether its Master Plan for Higher Education violates Title VI.

The plan authorizes “racially-exclusionary practices and initiatives,” the department said. For instance, during fiscal years 2021–2022 and 2025–2026, the board’s budget included performance objectives that required schools to prioritize students from “all races other than white [and] Asian.”

“[The policy] appears to blatantly violate not only America’s antidiscrimination laws, but our nation’s core principles. Title VI guarantees all students equal access to educational programs and opportunities regardless of race, and OCR is committed to preserving these rights,” the department stated.

The Epoch Times has reached out to the Louisiana Board of Regents for comment.

The previously reported Iran-Russia-China joint naval drills have kicked off Thursday in Iran’s increasingly crowded southern waters, as the United States continues expanding its military presence in the Arabian Sea.

Iranian Navy Rear Admiral Hassan Maqsudlu has made it clear that part of the purpose of the exercise is to “prevent any unilateral action in the region” – a clear challenge to Washington and the Trump-ordered ongoing Pentagon build-up of aerial and naval assets in the region. Iranian state TV has made it a point to widely publicize the drills, given it has Russia in its corner. Watch:

The joint Iranian-Russian naval exercise in the Northern Indian Ocean has entered its main phase, including counter-terrorism and tactical formations, according to Iranian State TV. https://t.co/rKoxUFP0Zx pic.twitter.com/3HyhW0lSlN

— Ariel Oseran أريئل أوسيران (@ariel_oseran) February 19, 2026

The drills are primarily taking place in the the key oil transit chokepoint Strait of Hormuz, as well as the Gulf of Oman, and the northern Indian Ocean.

The joint exercise been long planned, held annually since 2019, and usually also include China – but by appearances Beijing is taking a far backseat in this one, with little reported presence.

More footage of elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commandos deploying as part of the games:

Iranian State TV aired footage of the joint Iran-Russia naval drill in the Northern Indian Ocean. The exercise, including forces from the IRGC, Russian, and Iranian Navy commandos, exhibited vessel raids and seizures. pic.twitter.com/9ywzyIZQhG

— Ariel Oseran أريئل أوسيران (@ariel_oseran) February 19, 2026

There have also been reports of missile preparedness drills in some parts of Iran, a continuation of similar activity from earlier this month, amid the standoff with the US.

Reuters detailed the notice to airmen went to effect starting Wednesday: “Iran issued a notice to airmen (NOTAM) that it plans rocket launches in areas across its south on Thursday from 330 GMT to 1330 GMT, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration website showed on Wednesday.”

A NOTAM is currently in effect over Iran. If you’re a pilot, it’s best to steer clear of this area between ground level and FL100, as rockets may be launched. Thanks @notamify! pic.twitter.com/MTszL2G8AU

— Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) February 19, 2026

“The Islamic Republic of Iran has faced threats, noise, propaganda and the presence of extra-regional fleets in West Asia for 47 years,” Iran’s Navy Commander Rear Adm. Shahram Irani warned. “The presence of extra-regional fleets in West Asia is unjustified.”

“If the extra-regional fleet feels it has come with power, it should know that the Iranian people will confront them with greater power,” he added. “The faith of the people and missiles are the Islamic Republic of Iran’s deterrent weapons against the enemy.”

The War Zone publication gives some further details:

As Iranian and Russian officials gathered Wednesday aboard the Russian corvette Stoiky, a top Iranian official issued a new threat against the growing U.S. Navy presence in the region, which includes the Abraham Lincoln CSG and at least eight other surface combatants. The Ford could arrive in the region in the next four or five days given its location posted by the MarineTraffic ship tracking website. The Navy said only that the ship is now in the Atlantic Ocean.

If the US were to launch a ‘surprise’ attack on Iran, it remains unlikely that either Russia or China would come to Tehran’s direct aid and engage militarily with Washington. However, it’s possible more Chinese and Russian ships would be sent to patrol flashpoint waters, making things more delicate and difficult in terms of US Navy maneuvering and firing. 

At the very least, Moscow and Beijing would team up to issue a UN Security Council condemnation, and would seek to rally the globe against another Iraq-style war in the Middle East, with likely disastrous consequences for the whole region.

When the Twitter files hit in December of 2022, they revealed that the Biden administration had paid Twitter at least $3.4 million between October 2019 and February 2021 to reimburse the pre-Musk, left-leaning social media giant for a flood of requests. 

During this period, the Biden DOJ was going after vaccine skeptics, lab-leak proponents, 2020 election ‘deniers,’ Catholic parents, Hunter Biden laptop / Burisma content, and conservative news outlets. We also learned that the FBI’s Elvis Chan and crew were holding weekly meeting with Twitter on “misinformation,” and flagged thousands of accounts for the above. 

Days after the Twitter files were released, watchdog group Judicial Watch sued the Biden DOJ, which oversees the FBI, over a FOIA request demanding to know how much the FBI paid Twitter from 2016 onward. The FBI initially refused, but eventually released 44-pages of documents with the key payment details redacted – claiming the data was protected under FOIA’s “Exemption 7(E),” which lets agencies hide info about law enforcement methods if releasing it could help criminals or enemies dodge detection.

Judicial Watch then narrowed their claims to just those redacted payment amounts (JW dropped other issues such as vendor names), however in December of 2025, the Trump DOJ asked Judge James Boasberg for a Motion for Summary Judgement to deny Judicial Watch’s request – effectively concealing the extent to which the FBI, under Trump and Biden, was going after Americans. 

In its request for summary judgement, US Attorney Jeanine Pirro’s office (say it ain’t so!) argued that revealing payments that are tied to real investigations could reveal super secret investigative methods – such as how much the FBI is “engaging” with Twitter vs. other platforms, which could lead to ‘bad guys’ (criminals, hackers, foreign spies) to switch to platforms with less FBI activity, and that it might reveal shifts in FBI priorities over time.

Revealing the quarterly totals could also betray “mosaic theory,” where seemingly harmless info (like one quarter’s payment) can be pieced together with public data (e.g., Twitter’s transparency reports) to form a big picture of FBI strategies.

Earlier this month, Boasberg agreed – ruling that revealing the payments could expose FBI “techniques and procedures” (how they monitor online threats) and help bad actors figure out what the FBI is focused on, allowing them to adapt and change strategies. 

Boasberg wrote in his opinion that the 7(E) exemption is valid because it could “risk circumvention of the law.” 

So @JudicialWatch sued to find out how much the Deep State/Biden FBI was paying Twitter (now @X) to censor and spy on Americans. Kash Patel’s FBI and Pam Bondi’s Justice Department told a federal court we shouldn’t get even summary quarterly totals of the payments because it… https://t.co/6P6oqQDxDj

— Tom Fitton (@TomFitton) February 18, 2026

What the actual…

.@FBIDirectorKash this was probably handled by lower-levels — a personal intervention on this one, which impacts 100 million voters & is critically important for Americans to restore trust in the bureau, at zero cost to FBI time or resources, would be greatly appreciated https://t.co/aHwXCi9h55

— Mike Benz (@MikeBenzCyber) February 19, 2026

Maybe Elon can just give Tom Fitton the deets? 

The filings for your reading pleasure…

DOJ request to deny Judicial Watch:

Judicial Watch Inc v Us Department of Justice Dcdce-23-03004 0024.0 by Zerohedge Janitor

Boasberg’s opinion granting the DOJ request:

Judicial Watch Inc v Us Department of Justice Dcdce-23-03004 0027.0 by Zerohedge Janitor

Authored by Jon Fleetwood,

The Hawaii Legislature is advancing companion legislation that would formally codify sweeping emergency powers for the governor and county officials—including authority to quarantine individuals, enter private property without consent, suspend laws, and seize control of infrastructure—under the justification of preparing for future disasters and disease outbreaks.

House Bill 2236 and Senate Bill 2151, both titled “Relating to Emergency Management,” were introduced in January and February 2026 and are now moving forward through both chambers.

Legislative records show the bills are formally linked, with each designated as “Same As/Similar To” the other, confirming that Hawaii’s full legislature—not just one chamber—is advancing the emergency powers framework.

The legislation explicitly cites COVID-19 as justification for strengthening emergency authority, stating:

“The COVID-19 pandemic highlights the importance of clear legal frameworks for state and county emergency management to ensure that the State and counties are ready for any type of emergency.”

You can see which state legislators are backing these bills further down in this article.

Governor Authorized to Quarantine Residents & Enter Private Property Without Permission

One of the most consequential provisions would formally authorize forced quarantine and government entry onto private property.

The bill states that Hawaii Governor Josh Green (D) may:

“Require the quarantine or segregation of persons who are affected with or believed to have been exposed to any infectious, communicable, or other disease…”

It further grants authority to:

“Authorize without the permission of the owners or occupants, entry on private premises for any of these purposes.”

This authority applies not only to confirmed infections but also to individuals merely “believed to have been exposed.”

The legislation also allows the government to order the destruction of property deemed hazardous:

“Authorize that public nuisances be summarily abated and, if need be, that the property be destroyed by any police officer or authorized person.”

Governor Can Suspend Laws, Licensing Requirements, & Regulatory Protections

The bills explicitly empower the governor to suspend existing laws during an emergency, including medical, licensing, and regulatory protections.

The legislation states the governor may:

“[Suspend] the laws, in whole or in part… including licensing laws, quarantine laws, and laws relating to labels, grades, and standards.”

It also authorizes suspension of any law deemed to impede emergency operations:

“Suspend any law that impedes or tends to impede… emergency functions.”

Crucially, the legislation allows such suspensions to continue beyond the official emergency period:

“Any suspension of law… may continue beyond the emergency period…”

Government Authorized to Take Control of Private Infrastructure & Utilities

The legislation further empowers the governor to assume control of critical infrastructure, including privately owned facilities.

The bill states the governor may:

“Assure the continuity of service by critical infrastructure facilities, both publicly and privately owned… by taking over and operating the same.”

Additional provisions allow the government to:

• Shut off utilities

• Control distribution of goods

• Regulate or prohibit commerce

• Impose rationing

Specifically, the governor may:

“Regulate or prohibit… the storage, transportation, use, possession, maintenance, furnishing, sale, or distribution thereof, and any business or any transaction related thereto.”

Authority to Regulate Firearms & Seize Property

The legislation also grants authority to regulate firearms and confiscate property during emergencies.

It authorizes the governor to prohibit firearm possession during emergencies, meaning firearms that are normally legal could become unlawful to possess under emergency orders and subject to seizure.

The bill states the governor may

“Regulate or prohibit the storage, transportation, use, possession… of firearms, and ammunition… and authorize the seizure and forfeiture.”

Governor Retains Sole Authority to Declare Emergencies

Under the proposed framework, Governor Green retains broad discretion to declare emergencies, including based on perceived threats.

The bill states:

“The governor… shall be the sole judge of the existence of the danger, threat, or circumstances giving rise to a declaration.”

Emergencies may be declared based on “Imminent danger or threat of an emergency or a disaster.”

This allows activation of emergency powers before an actual disaster occurs.

Legislature Adds New Definition of Disaster Including Disease Outbreaks & Bioterrorism

The Senate version expands the legal definition of “disaster” to explicitly include:

“Disease or contagion outbreaks, bioterrorism, terrorism, or incidents involving weapons of mass destruction.”

This codifies infectious disease emergencies as triggers for the expanded powers.

The move comes as President Donald Trump and Congress have already committed $5.5 billion toward preparing for a future influenza pandemic, while the World Health Organization vows such a pandemic is inevitable, U.S. scientists continue gain-of-function influenza experiments, and the administration launches its $500 million Operation Gold Standard influenza vaccine initiative.

Legislature Advances Bills Through Both Chambers

Legislative tracking records show both bills are progressing simultaneously:

• HB2236 was introduced January 28, 2026, and has already passed committee review in the House.

• SB2151 was introduced January 21, 2026, and is scheduled for further committee action February 24, 2026.

The bills are formally cross-linked, confirming coordinated legislative advancement.

Legislature Frames Bills as Clarification of Emergency Authority

Lawmakers describe the purpose of the legislation as clarifying and strengthening emergency management authority.

The bill states its purpose is to:

“Clarify state and county emergency management authority, ensure effective and adaptable emergency responses…”

The measures also allow the legislature to terminate emergency declarations by a two-thirds vote.

Which Legislators Are Backing the Bills

You can see which Representatives are backing HB2236 here.

You can see which Senators are backing SB2151 here.

Bottom Line

HB2236 and SB2151 would lock into permanent Hawaii law the authority to quarantine residents based on suspected exposure, enter private property without permission, suspend existing laws, prohibit firearm possession under emergency orders, and take control of private infrastructure and economic activity—all under an emergency declaration the governor has broad discretion to issue, including based on a perceived “threat.”

The legislation is advancing as the federal government pours billions into influenza pandemic programs, conducts gain-of-function experiments designed to alter influenza viruses, and builds out large-scale vaccine deployment initiatives intended for rapid rollout once a pandemic is declared.

At the same time, Congress, the White House, the Department of Energy, the FBI, the CIA, and Germany’s Federal Intelligence Service (BND) have confirmed that the COVID-19 pandemic was likely the result of lab-engineered pathogen manipulation.

That overlap creates a profound conflict-of-interest question: the same government and scientific establishment involved in creating and manipulating pandemic-capable pathogens is also expanding the legal authority to impose quarantines, override constitutional protections, restrict property rights, and control economic life if one of those pathogens triggers the next declared emergency.

If passed, Hawaii’s bills would ensure those powers are not improvised in the moment, but already written into law—allowing sweeping restrictions on residents to be activated immediately, the moment the next pandemic or declared threat emerges.

Support John by subscribing at Substack and following at Instagram / X / Facebook.

Meteorologists on X are posting new weather models showing a setup for a potentially serious winter storm threat that could blanket parts of the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast with wintry precipitation from Sunday into Monday. The elevated risk of a major snow threat is notable because the peak of Northern Hemisphere winter in the Lower 48 has already passed and temperatures have been trending higher.

A major storm threat from Sunday into Monday could bring significant winter precipitation from Washington, DC, to Philadelphia, to New York City, and to Boston.

Meteorologist Ben Noll wrote on X, “Just a few hundred miles could make the difference between heavy snow in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast on Sunday and Monday — or none at all.”

“As the forecast comes into focus, the latest probabilities show a medium chance for 3+ inches in a stretch from D.C. to Boston,” Noll said.

An excerpt from meteorologist Ryan Maue’s weather note outlined the increasing chances that a nor’easter/coastal storm will develop and impact the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast by late weekend.

Maue wrote:

East Coast Storm System — Mid-Atlantic + Nor’easter Watch

Updated ECMWF 06z shows the low-pressure center waiting to rapidly intensify or “bomb out” until late Sunday into Monday, missing the opportunity for the backside of the circulation to dump snowfall on the coast. The northeast track keeps the low-pressure center away from New England as well.

Ensembles: The ECMWF EPS at 06z (median) still NOT interested in the coastal storm having major impacts to the Mid-Atlantic or the Northeast.

Ensemble Probability of 3 inches of snow: about a coin flip from Washington, D.C., to Philly and New York City

The question is whether cold air will be in place as the storm arrives in the Mid-Atlantic region by late weekend. If so, plan accordingly for any travel disruptions. 

Authored by Adam Temple via RealClearPolitics,

Families aren’t the only ones who’ve been struggling with affordability for years. So have the small businesses that power the American economy and create the majority of new jobs. There’s no shortage of commonsense ideas to give job creators relief, but President Trump just highlighted one of the most important: Stop credit-card companies from ripping off Main Street.

This month, the president announced his support for the Credit Card Competition Act. At its core, this bipartisan bill would give small businesses the right to choose between multiple credit card processing networks. That’s a huge difference from the status quo, because right now, Main Street is stuck with networks that charge huge swipe fees. This leaves small businesses with a real dilemma: Stop accepting credit cards or pass the costs on to consumers. That’s an impossible choice in today’s economy. 

This crisis can be laid at the feet of Visa, Mastercard, and the big banks that create the unfair and uncompetitive payment systems. The two powerful credit card companies and their banking partners decide what swipe fees every small business in America pays. They charge 2%-4% on each transaction, which adds up quickly. In 2024, the swipe fees totaled a record $187.2 billion, and they were most merchants’ highest operating cost after labor. And as credit card companies have raised their swipe fees in recent years, many small business margins have come to the breaking point.

Visa and Mastercard fees disproportionately impact small businesses more than larger competitors. But there’s no good reason for small merchants to pay higher rates. The transaction process and equipment costs are the same for everyone. Visa and Mastercard’s higher prices for smaller merchants seem designed to maximize their own Wall Street profits while punishing Main Street. 

Every American suffers from this broken system. When small businesses lose money, they can’t hire more employees or invest in higher wages and better benefits. They also struggle to keep prices low, which matters at a time when consumers are cutting back and looking for deals. In the direst cases, swipe fees threaten the ability of small businesses to remain open at all. 

As long as this anti-competitive, rate-setting regime remains in place, small businesses and their communities will suffer. That’s why Main Street is counting on Congress to pass the Credit Card Competition Act.

Authored by Sens. Marshall and Durbin and Reps. Gooden and Lofgren, the bill would end the current broken system by requiring banks to let small businesses choose more than one credit card network. Instead of being forced to go with only Visa and Mastercard, small businesses could simultaneously use well-established, secure, and independent networks like Star, NYCE, Pulse, and Shazam.

Under this bill, there would be no more take-it-or-leave-it, no more one-size-fits-all fee structure. Instead, there would be real competition among credit card networks. And as every small business can attest, competition lowers costs. Credit card networks would cut their fees to keep their customers, and small businesses would pass the savings on to families. Small businesses already have to compete every day. Why shouldn’t credit card companies?

Main Street is desperate to see reform. Ninety-two percent of NFIB’s small and independent business owner members?¯believe they should be able to pick the credit card networks that process their transactions. Now it’s time for our leaders in Washington, D.C., to pass the Credit Card Competition Act. President Trump is on board. So are lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. They need to give small business relief fast – for the sake of Main Street and all the families who depend on it.

Adam Temple is senior vice president for advocacy at the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB). 

The 2026 midterms are (as always) shaping up to be the most consequential off-year election in a generation, and the people closest to Donald Trump know it. 

If Republicans lose the House or Senate, Trump’s second-term agenda will be stopped dead in its tracks. That reality brought Trump administration officials, pollsters, and House Republicans together Tuesday night on Capitol Hill for a closed-door strategy session with one goal: don’t blow it. Journalist Mark Halperin posted the details on X, and what emerged from the briefing was a picture of a party that knows exactly what’s at stake.

Whether they understand how to win is another question entirely.

Political czar James Blair opened with historical data, making the case that midterm losses for the president’s party aren’t just common, they’re nearly inevitable. Decades of precedent suggest the party in power will lose seats. The lone exemption over the past 25 years was the 2002 midterms, when Republicans gained seats in the House and Senate, while George W. Bush was still president. But that was no ordinary election; it was the first midterm election after the 9/11 terror attacks.

Blair walked through the numbers on how rare it is for a sitting president’s party to avoid significant seat losses, framing the whole operation as a race against historical precedent.

Pollster and strategist Tony Fabrizio followed with roughly 25 slides of voter data, including demographics, issue rankings, and which messages cut through the noise. His bottom line was blunt: “The economy will be THE issue in the election.” But even that comes with some caveats. 

“Trying to argue about wages being up will not help,” Blair warned. “Voters have to feel it.” 

One only needs to look at Joe Biden for proof of this. He infamously tried to sell the idea that “Bidenomics” had delivered an economic recovery even as inflation reached historic highs. The messaging backfired big time. 

Fabrizio found that the messages that actually resonate with persuadable voters include banning stock trading for members of Congress, transparency on health insurance pricing and claims reimbursement, lowering prescription drug costs, and Trump’s tax cuts. Housing affordability is also a huge issue, particularly for younger voters. Meanwhile, taking credit for closing the border, one of Trump’s strongest issues, “does not resonate much.”

According to Sophia Cai of Politico, Fabrizio told the audience “that the biggest takeaway is to focus on Trump’s efforts to lower prescription drug pricing.”

Trump pollster Tony Fabrizio is telling the audience that the biggest takeaway is to focus on Trump’s efforts to lower prescription drug pricing, per person in the room.

— Sophia Cai (@SophiaCai99) February 17, 2026

Democrats, in contrast, are running on “We hate Trump” and little else. That might energize a base, but it’s historically weak as a closing argument for voters who are deciding whether their lives are better.

Men, moderates, true independents, and Hispanic voters are the true persuadable voters, according to Fabrizio.

Then came the most candid moment of the briefing. Blair acknowledged outright that regardless of what came out of the meeting, “Donald Trump will do what he wants to do, say what he wants to say, not be data driven.”

He added, “Everyone else has to stay on message and be driven by the data. In effect, two separate but related campaigns.“

In short, Republicans must run a disciplined, data-driven operation as the president runs his own show. The goal is to make those two tracks complement each other rather than collide.

Perhaps the good news for the GOP is that most voters don’t begin paying serious attention until after Labor Day, which will give plenty of time for Trump’s economic policies to show results that voters feel.

The next day… The House Oversight Committee has released the full 5-hour deposition with Wexner, where he made a ton of hilarious faces and couldn’t recall lots of things. 

🚨 BREAKING: The House Oversight Committee is releasing the FULL deposition video of Les Wexner from our Epstein investigation.

No spin. The American people deserve to see the testimony for themselves—transparency matters.

Link to full deposition below 👇🏻 pic.twitter.com/TeJ50JAFnl

— Oversight Committee (@GOPoversight) February 19, 2026

Check back for highlights…

Les Wexner tells low IQ Jasmine Crockett that Epstein island was just a pile of rocks. pic.twitter.com/KSFOO3etoK

— 🇺🇲Salty Texan (@texan_maga) February 19, 2026

Watch:

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After what must have been quite the prep session with lawyers, billionaire Les Wexner – who gave Jeffrey Epstein “about a billion dollars” in cash and assets – testified to the House Oversight Committee on Wednesday that he was “conned” by Epstein, and denied any wrongdoing.

In a prepared statement, the 88-year-old former L Brands (which owned Victoria’s Secret) CEO said: 

Let me state from the start: I was naïve, foolish, and gullible to put any trust in Jeffrey Epstein. He was a con man. And while I was conned, I have done nothing wrong and have nothing to hide. I completely and irrevocably cut ties with Epstein nearly twenty years ago when I learned that he was an abuser, a crook, and a liar.

…

And, let me be crystal clear: I never witnessed nor had any knowledge of Epstein’s criminal activity. I was never a participant nor coconspirator in any of Epstein’s illegal activities. To my enormous embarrassment and regret, like many others, I was duped by a world-class con man. I cannot undo that part of my personal history even as I regret ever having met him.

350 attorneys charging $2000/hour drafted this. https://t.co/eT6TSa4PID

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) February 18, 2026

Yet many aren’t buying it – including the FBI in 2019, which listed Wexner as a potential co-conspirator. 

Meanwhile Epstein wrote to Wexner in a draft email: “You and I had ‘gang stuff’ for over 15 years,” adding “I owe a great debt to you, as frankly you owe to me” and that he had “no intention of divulging any confidence of ours.”

Also strange:

Epstein’s note: “never ever did anything without informing Les [Wexner]”, “would never give him up”. Dershowitz: “don’t take deal”. Made around the time of victims’ discovery requests. Recall that Wexner began funding Epstein in ‘91, same year he founded pro-Israel “Mega Group”. https://t.co/ESzEQbck81 pic.twitter.com/wDF1Eit3Cl

— Good Pyre (@GoodPyre) February 6, 2026

After launching a business relationship in the 1980s, Wexner and Epstein formed ‘a financial and personal bond that baffled longtime associates,’ according to the New York Times. 

“I think we both possess the skill of seeing patterns,” Wexner told Vanity Fair in 2003. “But Jeffrey sees patterns in politics and financial markets, and I see patterns in lifestyle and fashion trends.” 

Wexner would go on to open doors for Epstein – who managed “many aspects of his financial life.” 

By 1995, Epstein was a director of the Wexner Foundation and Wexner Heritage Foundation and president of Wexner’s N.A. Property Inc., which developed the Ohio town of New Albany, where Wexner lives. Epstein also was involved in Wexner’s superyacht, “Limitless,” attending meetings at the London studios of the firm that designed the vessel. –Bloomberg

Meanwhile, Epstein allegedly ran a ‘casting couch’ operation for aspiring Victoria’s Secret models out of his Manhattan townhome whereby he would promise young girls jobs with the fashion company. 

Epstein “relied on …[the] modeling business to source underage girls for sex,” according to investigative reporter Conchita Sarnoff’s new book “Trafficking.” 

According to an account by Italian model Elisabetta Tai, Epstein tried to take advantage of the 21-year-old aspiring Victoria’s Secret model in 2004 after she was promised that a meeting with a ‘very important’ man could land her a gig with the apparel company. 

Accuser Holds Wexner Responsible

In late 2019, a woman who says Jeffrey Epstein and his ‘madam’ Gislaine Maxwell sexually assaulted her holds Victoria’s Secret billionaire Leslie Wexner “responsible for what happened to me,” because she was staying on a property monitored by Wexner and his wife, and guarded by their security team, according to the Washington Post. 

Maria Farmer, now in her mid-50s, spoke with the Post in a series of interviews, telling the paper that she never met Leslie, and only spoke with Abigail via phone while at the property in New Albany, Ohio. 

In the summer of 1996, Farmer stayed at the country house that Wexner had deeded to Epstein four years earlier. While staying staying there, she was discouraged from going outside by Wexner’s security, and that she was forced to jog inside the 10,600 square-foot house. 

“Where I stayed that summer, in that house and working in that garage, all of it was within view of the Wexner house,” said Farmer. 

The house, although owned by Epstein at the time, was “effectively the guesthouse” for the main Wexner estate, and it was guarded only by Wexner personnel, according to a security officer involved with Wexner family security at the time, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he did not want to discuss clients publicly. The two homes are a half-mile apart. The grounds were monitored closely by guard dogs and their armed minders, this officer said. It was surrounded by Wexner’s land, according to property records.

“Anybody that was going to be coming on property had to be announced and allowed in by the Wexners,” added the officer. “Nobody had carte blanche to go in and off the property.”

…

Farmer, then 26, had just been invited to create two large-scale paintings for the upcoming film “As Good As It Gets,” starring Jack Nicholson. Epstein offered Farmer an unexpected location to do the work in the summer of 1996: an expansive country home in New Albany, Ohio, located amid 336 acres of land owned by Wexner and guarded in part by sheriff’s deputies employed by the longtime chief executive of Victoria’s Secret and The Limited.

It was there, Farmer said in an affidavit she submitted as part of an Epstein-related lawsuit, that she was molested by Epstein and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell. –Washington Post

“They asked me to come into a bedroom with them and then proceeded to sexually assault me against my will,” said Farmer in her affidavit. 

In the affidavit, she says she “pleaded with” the security staff but was held against her wishes for 12 hours while waiting for her father to arrive. In the interview, she elaborated.

The morning of the day after the alleged assault, she said, Farmer spoke with Maxwell and Epstein. She told them she wanted to leave and hung up. Soon after, a Wexner security guard appeared at the house. “He said, ‘You aren’t leaving,’ ” Farmer recalled, “ ‘You’re not going anywhere.’ ” –Washington Post

Farmer’s mother, father, sister and a friend have all separately stated that they recall a similar account from Maria in 1996. 

As the Post notes, “While Farmer’s allegations against Epstein have been widely documented, her experience in New Albany and the questions it raises about the Wexner family’s relationship with Epstein have been little explored.” 

Stay tuned for updates…

Authored by Ciaran Lyons via CoinTelegraph.com,

The Ethereum Foundation has announced it is targeting faster transactions, smarter wallets, better cross-chain interoperability, and quantum-resistant security as its “protocol priorities” in 2026.

In a statement published on Wednesday, the Ethereum Foundation outlined several goals, including continuing to scale the gas limit — the maximum amount of computational work a block can handle — “toward and beyond” 100 million, a major topic of discussion among the Ethereum community in 2025. 

Source: Ethereum Foundation

Some members of the Ethereum community anticipate that the gas limit will increase significantly this year. In November, Ethereum educator Anthony Sassano said that the goal of significantly increasing Ethereum’s gas limit to 180 million in 2026 is a baseline, not a best-case scenario. 

“Post-quantum readiness” is a focus for Ethereum

The foundation highlighted the Glamsterdam network upgrade, scheduled for the first half of 2026, as a major priority. It also emphasized long-term post-quantum readiness as part of its broader security initiative.

On Jan. 24, Ethereum researcher Justin Drake said in an X post that the foundation had “formed a new Post-Quantum (PQ) team.” 

“Today marks an inflection in the Ethereum Foundation’s long-term quantum strategy,” Drake said.

The Ethereum Foundation said it will also focus on improving user experience in 2026, with an emphasis on enhancing smart wallets through native account abstraction and enabling smoother interactions between blockchains via interoperability.

“The goal remains seamless, trust-minimized cross-L2 interactions, and we’re getting closer day by day. Continued progress on faster L1 confirmations and shorter L2 settlement times directly supports this.”

The foundation said that 2025 was one of the “most productive years,” citing two major network upgrades, Pectra and Fusaka, and the community raising the gas limit from 30 million to 60 million between the upgrades, for the first time since 2021.

Buterin’s big plans for Ethereum and AI

Ethereum Foundation’s Mario Havel said in an X post on Wednesday: “It took us a while to push out the announcement because we were preparing the biggest curriculum so far.” 

It comes just days after Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin shared his latest vision for Ethereum’s intersection with artificial intelligence on Feb. 10. Buterin explained that he sees the two working together to improve markets, financial safety and human agency.  

Buterin said his broader vision for the future of AI is to empower humans rather than replace them, though he said the short term involves much more “ordinary” ideas.