The most-recognized acts at the 2024 People's Choice Country Awards are those bringing a fresh perspective to country music. Continue reading…

The Olympics may be over, but Imane Khelif's war against the truth and those who told it continues unabated. According to a Wednesday report from the U.K. Telegraph, Khelif -- the Algerian gold medalist whose participation drew outrage from many online due to her having failed a chromosomal test at...

Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) won her primary Tuesday night in one of the most closely watched races. Omar defeated former Minneapolis City Council member Don Samuels in Minnesota’s deep-blue 5th Congressional District. The third-term legislator avoided the fate of two Squad members in previous primaries. “I am honored that my community voted to *send me back to Congress*. Tonight’s victory shows that the Fifth District believes in the collective values we are fighting for in Washington,” Omar said. I am honored that my community voted to *send me back to Congress*. Tonight’s victory shows that the Fifth District believes in the collective values we are fighting for in Washington. pic.twitter.com/DwcRVI55fQ — Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) August 14, 2024 Fox News reports: The race featured a rematch between Omar and Samuels, who the incumbent representative narrowly escaped losing to in a 2022 primary challenge, inching out a win over Samuels by just under two percentage points before easily coasting to re-election in November. The Democrat primary in Minnesota’s 5th Congressional District, which the Cook Political Report rates as “solid” Democrat, came amid a backdrop of primary defeats for Omar’s colleagues in the Squad, with Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., losing a primary challenge in June and Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo., losing her primary earlier this month. This time around, Omar’s camp felt more confident, with the incumbent not facing the onslaught of advertising by United Democracy Project, a super PAC affiliated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. (AIPAC) According to FOX 9 Minneapolis-St. Paul, Omar defeated Samuels 56 percent to 43 percent. Multiple X users raised suspicions of a lengthy wait for the election’s results. Let's take a look at how the Squad member Ilhan Omar "won" her primary election tonight. Oh. Perfectly normal stuff, gang. pic.twitter.com/Zoqf1zZCQU — Kyle Becker (@kylenabecker) August 14, 2024 FRAUD? At 9:22 p.m. only 5 percent of the vote had been counted in Ilhan Omar's race. Just 15 minutes later, 99.5 percent of the votes had been counted — and Omar surged ahead. Nothing to see here, folks. Just keep on walking… — toddstarnes (@toddstarnes) August 14, 2024 Rigged Election… Ilhan Omar If you don’t want this to happen in November-it is time to get involved Magically it went from 5% to 99% in under 7 minutes…wow This is a test run for November… we need the machines banned- paper ballots, hand counting. This is not a drill. pic.twitter.com/s9eQbDoYRj — ????? ???????? ?????? (@nomandatesco) August 14, 2024 Per USA TODAY: Samuels narrowly lost to Omar by just over 2,400 votes in what was a closer-than-expected primary challenge in 2022. United Democracy Project, a super PAC affiliated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, poured $350,000 into Samuels’ bid that year in a last-minute push to defeat Omar. But this year, the PAC has largely steered clear of investing into Omar’s race – unlike in other recent primaries. The group targeted Reps. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y. and Cori Bush, D-Mo., for their public positions against Israel’s government and actions in Gaza after spending at least $14.5 million and almost $9 million in their respective races. Both lost to more moderate challengers, and progressives have criticized the heavy role outside spending played in both Bowman and Bush’s losses. While also a vocal critic of Israel’s conduct in the war in Gaza, Omar was on significantly different footing compared to her progressive colleagues, who were also dogged by their own scandals. Bowman infamously pulled a fire alarm during a high-stakes vote to avert a government shutdown last year, and Bush is currently under federal investigation over the use of campaign funds for her personal security. Heading into Tuesday’s race, the Minnesota Democratic lawmaker boasted a significant fundraising advantage over Samuels. Omar’s campaign spent $2.6 million on ads compared to Samuel’s campaign which spent just $32,000, according to AdImpact.

Norwegian prog metal quintet Leprous will release new album Melodies Of Atonement in August

Republican National Committee (RNC) Chairman Michael Whatley said on Tuesday that the RNC has had tremendous success laying the groundwork for Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump to win the upcoming election this fall. Whatley made the remarks during an interview with Just The News’s John Solomon while discussing the aggressive strategy that the RNC has deployed to stave off any problems it encountered in 2020, ranging from having election monitors to filing lawsuits well in advance to ensure that laws are enforced. “First off, we want to make sure that the rules of the road are the right rules of the road, and it is absolutely critical for us to ensure that every state is going to enforce the law that only American citizens can vote,” he said. “That is the law of the land in federal elections, and we need every single state to enforce it. We also look at states like Arizona, where they say that only US citizens can vote in the state election. That’s critical, and that’s why we want to make sure that we’re working to protect that.” He said that the RNC is also working to make voter ID the law of the land and forcing states to clean up their voter rolls so that there is no question about the legitimacy of the election. WATCH THE TRAILER FOR ‘AM I RACIST?’ — A MATT WALSH COMEDY ON DEI “The other critical aspect is that we want to make sure that we’re in the room,” he added. “We were very excited to announce earlier this week that we have already recruited over 157,000 volunteers all across the country to our Protect The Vote Campaign.” “We had set an initial goal of 100,000 when Lara Trump and I took over the RNC just four months ago, and the response has been completely overwhelming,” he said. “People are going to protectthevote.com signing up. We are getting them registered, we are getting them into training, and we’re going to have them in a position where we can deploy them as poll workers and poll observers on election day, and frankly, throughout all of the election period.” WATCH: RNC Chair Michael Whatley announces the recruitment of over 157,000 election integrity volunteers and stresses the importance of cleaning up voter rolls. “We want to make sure that we’re in the room. We were very excited to announce earlier this week that we have already… pic.twitter.com/aHaKlhL5JN — KanekoaTheGreat (@KanekoaTheGreat) August 14, 2024

The Home Depot issued a warning about the direction of the U.S. economy as consumers pulled back spending at the home improvement store during the second quarter of fiscal year 2024. The company said its sales decreased by 3.6% during the second quarter and it expects sales overall for the year to drop 3-4% compared to last year. “During the quarter, higher interest rates and greater macro-economic uncertainty pressured consumer demand more broadly, resulting in weaker spend across home improvement projects,” said Ted Decker, chair, president and CEO. “However, the team continued to navigate this unique environment while executing at a high level.” CNN noted that consumer spending at Home Depot is considered a bellwether of consumers’ moods about the economy and the housing market in general, as its business is closely tied to the housing market. WATCH THE TRAILER FOR ‘AM I RACIST?’ — A MATT WALSH COMEDY ON DEI The demand for housing far outpaces the supply of available homes in the U.S., thus leading to a housing shortage and exorbitantly priced homes. The situation is made even worse by high interest rates triggered by the inflation crisis that the Biden-Harris administration accelerated with reckless government spending during their first weeks in office. “Interest rate decisions matter more to Home Depot than they do to an average retailer, if only because a large chunk of home improvement demand is tied to the housing market,” said Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobalData. “High interest rates have, and still are, acting as a brake on house moves.” Saunders added that Home Depot’s revised outlook for the year “suggests more negative sentiment around the consumer economy from management and reflects a more cautious rate cutting stance from the Fed than was expected earlier in the year.”

Far-Left Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) survived her Democratic primary race on Tuesday, winning by a more comfortable margin than her 2022 race when she was nearly upset.  Omar, who was seen as vulnerable after two of her fellow “Squad” members lost primary races earlier this year, won the Democratic nomination for Minnesota’s 5th Congressional District with 56% of the vote. Challenger Don Samuels received 42.9% after almost pulling off an upset two years ago when he lost to Omar by just 2,500 votes.  In a statement on X, Omar claimed that her win was a defeat for “special interests” and a win for “our movement.”  “Whether it’s universal school meals, student debt cancellation, climate action, or a just foreign policy that reflects our values – the Fifth District showed tonight that we want to drive the nation toward a better future,” she said. “And our work is far from over. From protecting reproductive healthcare to reforming the Supreme Court to ending the genocide in Gaza to combatting the climate crisis–we will continue to fight for a more just world.” Omar built a substantial fundraising advantage over Samuels, reportedly raising around $6.2 million compared to Samuels’ $1.4 million. Polling before the race also indicated that Omar would win, with one poll from July showing her with a 27-point lead.  Earlier this year, Omar’s fellow “Squad” members Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) and Rep. Cori Bush (D-MO) lost widely watched primaries. Those members, along with Omar, have come under sharp criticism for their opposition to Israel. The United Democracy Project, a super PAC affiliated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), targeted Bowman and Bush with $24 million in spending. The super PAC did not spend money against Omar this cycle.  During the race, Samuels tried to highlight his more pro-Israel views in contrast to Omar, who he called a “pawn for Hamas.” WATCH THE TRAILER FOR ‘AM I RACIST?’ — A MATT WALSH COMEDY ON DEI Omar, whose district is solidly Democratic, said she would now focus on backing Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign. She previously praised Harris’s decision to add Minnesota Governor Tim Walz to the ticket, citing his support to legalize recreational marijuana and “protections for reproductive rights.”