Wealthy business magnate Elon Musk is sounding the alarm about America's massive national debt, warning that unless action is taken to tackle the problem, the U.S. dollar will become worthless."We need to do something about our national debt or the dollar will be worth nothing," Musk tweeted. The country's national debt is more than $34 trillion, according to fiscaldata.treasury.gov.Responding to Musk, Ed Krassenstein wrote, "The problem is that no administration wants to take on the National Debt issue because the longterm fix is likely a short term detriment to the economy.""Well, something's gotta give. We should at least slow down the debt growth," Musk replied. — (@) GOP Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky has suggested that the national debt is "greatest threat" to America's national security and warned that "we are threatening the very existence of our currency, and perhaps our country, by this crazy profligate spending.""The national debt is the greatest threat our country faces — and we are rapidly approaching the crisis point," Republican Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah, Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, GOP Rep. Bill Huizenga of Michigan, and Democratic Rep. Scott Peters of California declared in a joint opinion piece posted on The Hill. "It is time for Congress to put the interests of the country ahead of political expediency and get us on sound fiscal footing before it is too late."Republican Sen. Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming has also expressed the view that "our debt is the greatest threat our country faces today." — (@) Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

A 13-year-old girl says she was attacked by adults related to a bull at a Texas school, but the district decided to suspend the victim after she fought back. The girl, who didn't want to be identified, told KTVT-TV that she had heard rumors that a new girl at Bettye Myers Middle School in Denton wanted to fight with her. She said she went to school officials, including a counselor and an assistant principal. She said they told her that they had spoken to the other girl, but it didn't help the situation. She says that when she got on the school bus to go home, the girl attacked her. Then she realized the girl's mother had also joined the fight when she called her "mom" during the fight. "I was scared," she said to KTVT with tears in her eyes. Video shows the assault on the school bus with other students standing around recording the incident and not intervening at all. "I guess one of the women came and put me in a choke hold on the bus," she added. She says that the women followed the bus to her stop and attacked her again. Video from the second altercation shows her being knocked to the ground and beaten. The girl says she was able to call her mother during the attack. "I heard my baby scream out," said her mother to KTVT. "And no one did anything." She's upset at the actions of the bus driver, who appeared to do nothing to prevent the fight and drove away while the girl was being attacked the second time. "Had he locked the door, called for help, waited for the police to arrive. Those grown adults wouldn't have been able to get on a bus, assault my child, and they wouldn't been able to follow the bus and continue assaulting her," she said. The girl says she is traumatized because of the attacks. "I can't walk to the store anymore. I have to look and watch every time when I see a white car," she said. "And I have to be on watch everywhere I go. Because of you."She also says that school officials suspended her for three days for her response, but she says she was simply defending herself. A spokesperson for the Denton police told KTVT that they are taking the incident seriously and expect an update about the case soon. The victim and her mother said that they are leaning on their faith to deal with the aftermath of the violence. "I had to sit up at night crying about it, asking God why. But I also pray for them cause my mom taught me, just because they did you wrong, it's all for a reason. It's all for purpose," said the 13-year-old girl. "The other night when she said, 'Mom, let's pray.' And she grabbed my hand and began to pray for them, I'm like, 'Okay, you know... she's going to be all right,'" said the mother. Here's the news report about the incident: Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Actor Mark Hamill of "Star Wars" fame, who has been an outspoken supporter of President Joe Biden, met with the president on Friday before appearing at the White House press briefing.Hamill said that he called Biden "Mr. President," but Biden said Hamill could call him Joe. Hamill said he asked if he could call the president "Joebi-Wan Kenobi." Hamill has previously posted the eyebrow-raising claim on social media that "Joe Biden is the best president we've ever had." But while he has high praise for Biden, he has called it the "understatement of the century," to describe Donald Trump as the nation's worst president ever. — (@) "May The First Not Quench Your Thirst For Biden's Re-election!" Hamill tweeted on Wednesday, May 1, adding the hashtag "#BidenHarris2024." "May The Second Biden Administration Be As Productive and Successful As The 1st," he wrote on Thursday May 2. — (@) On Friday, May 3rd, Hamill tweeted, "May The Third Be Absurd That The Guy Who Tried To Steal A Fair Election Is Allowed To Run Again."Earlier this year, on March 5, he tweeted, "I voted for four more years of an orange-free Oval Office." — (@) In an apparent play on Hamill's Friday White House visit and press briefing appearance, the Babylon Bee, a satire site, posted a piece titled, "Mark Hamill Joins Death Star Press Conference To Say What A Good Job He Thinks The Emperor Is Doing." — (@) Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

The family of an elderly woman with dementia released video of her sexual assault in order to help police identify the suspect and arrest him. The horrendous abuse unfolded on Monday at about 6:45 p.m. at the woman's apartment in Pacoima in southern California. The video shows the man entering the home of the 81-year-old woman after she answered the door, according to the family. He then went and checked the other rooms before returning and assaulting the woman, and making her perform sex acts on him. The victim's son-in-law spoke to KABC-TV about the execrable incident but wanted his face blurred to protect his identity and that of the victim. "The video catches him doing things that I wouldn't wish on anyone," said the victim's relative. "There's a lot of elderly people in the community. This guy needs to be off the streets. It's probably not the first time and it won't be the last time he's done this, or will do this." He said that the family had set up the camera so that no one could see it. "The camera in the living room is pretty hidden and we hid it from her," the son-in-law explained. "To avoid her from trying to turn it off. And he never saw that camera in the living room." On Friday afternoon, Los Angeles Police detectives told KABC they were able to identify and arrest a suspect. They said he was still in the area near the apartment complex where the woman lived. The son-in-law told KTTV-TV that the woman had been diagnosed with early onset dementia. "We think it’s pretty much progressed to Alzheimer’s already," he added. The son-in-law said they were alerted to the incident when his wife noticed her mother was up later than usual. When they rewound the recording, they were stunned by seeing the assault. The son-in-law told KTTV that he had a suspicion about who the attacker was. "He’s known to be a lurker. He lurks around the area," he said.He added that without the recording, they would have never known what happened because the woman doesn't remember the incident due to her medical illness. Police said that they are investigating the incident as attempted rape. Here's the report of the assault: Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

President Joe Biden honored multiple figures with the Presidential Medal of Freedom during a ceremony on Friday, including Democratic Rep. Nancy Pelosi of California, who previously served as speaker of the House and was the first and only woman ever to serve in that role. Biden predicted that Pelosi will go down in history as the greatest House speaker."It is with great appreciation that I accept the Presidential Medal of Freedom from our great and patriotic President of the United States Joe Biden," Pelosi said in a statement. "Freedom was the vision of our founders, has been the goal of our men and women in uniform, and is our promise to our children. It is with reverence for freedom and respect for all who have received it that I am deeply honored and forever grateful. Thank you, President Biden."Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff of California congratulated Pelosi in a tweet, calling the award "a fitting honor for the greatest Speaker of all time." — (@) Former Vice President Al Gore, who is known for promoting climate alarmism ideology, also received the Presidential Medal of Freedom on Friday. Gore, a Democrat, lost the 2000 presidential election to Republican candidate George W. Bush. John Kerry, who has previously served as special presidential envoy for climate under Biden, secretary of state under Barack Obama, and as a U.S. senator, also received the medal. Kerry, a Democrat, lost the 2004 presidential election to Bush.Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg was also one of the award recipients.In all, there were 19 people honored with the award on Friday, though the medal was being posthumously awarded in some cases. Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Austin law enforcement says that a mass overdose incident is to blame for nine deaths and nearly 80 suspected overdoses over the last week in downtown Austin. The Austin Police Department said that officers and the Austin-Travis County EMS began to respond to numerous reports of overdoses on Monday. The wave subsided after several days but ended up taking the lives of nine people and leading to dozens overdosing. Law enforcement officials and non-profit organizations tried to battle the mass overdose incident by distributing Narcan and informing at-risk residents of the bad batch of drugs. Emergency responders said they attended to 36 suspected overdoses on Monday and 27 on Tuesday, with 7 more on Wednesday. Christa Stedman, the public information officer for Austin-Travis County EMS, said in a media briefing that the distribution of Narcan had unquestionably saved lives. "We've seen in just a couple of days the numbers dramatically decline, that's a great thing, and I think that speaks to the incredible work that both our community help paramedic team and our partners have done in essentially flooding the city with Narcan." Lily Hughs of the Texas Harm Reduction Alliance said that her team of volunteers had been out in the community trying to get the word out about the bad batch of drugs so that users could avoid the threat. Hughes said they also offered training for drug users who wanted to learn how to use Narcan. “We took extra time to do training and talk them through, and made sure every single person we talked to knew what was going on," she said. EMS said they had handed out about 400 doses of Narcan while the THRA said they had handed out about 100 doses. Austin police later said that they had detained two persons of interest related to the overdoses. One of those suspects was identified as 55-year-old Johnny Lee Wright, who was charged with unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon. A second person who was unidentified was arrested on a charge of possession of a controlled substance. Investigators said they identified Wright and another person through the use of high resolution cameras that recorded Wright allegedly handing off narcotics to users after having received them from the unidentified suspect. Police said that Wright and the second person were “known by officers who regularly worked the downtown area as narcotics dealers." Here's a news report about the incident: Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Actor, comedian, and podcaster Russell Brand posted to social media after he was baptized into the Christian faith. He described the experience as "incredible and profound," which has left him feeling "changed" and "surrendered in Christ," according to the Christian Post.Brand, 48, recently posted a short video to social media, explaining how he felt after being baptized. "Many of you will have had your own experiences of baptism and will therefore know what I'm talking about.""Many aspects of it were very intimate and personal." — (@) Brand's announcement that he planned to get baptized into the Christian faith comes after four women accused him of various modes of sexual assault, including rape. Consequently, there was a joint investigation by The Times, Sunday Times, and Channel 4's Dispatches.However, Brand has denied that any sexual assault took place. He conceded that he was "very, very promiscuous" in the past, but he noted that all of his sexual relationships were "always consensual."In his recent video, Brand said that while he feels the pressures of life still looming each day, there is a "resource" within him that he did not have before he got baptized."The truth is this: as a person that has in the past taken many, many substances and always been disappointed with their inability to deliver the kind of tranquility and peace and even transcendence I always felt I've been looking for, something occurred in the process of baptism that was incredible, overwhelming.""Literally overwhelming because I was obviously underwater, and it was the River Thames — at some points," he added. "So I felt changed, transitioned.""Now, of course, even though it's been less than 24 hours in the interim period, I've already felt irritation," he said. "I got three children, I got a job, I've got challenges. I still live in the world, but I feel a new resource in me has switched on."Brand was sure to express his appreciation for those who have been kind to him on social media, but he also mentioned that he understood some people's "cynicism" about getting baptized just a year after the sexual assault allegations surfaced."Even some of the cynicism, I understand because some people will just see me as a celebrity," the comedian said. "But I don't see me as a celebrity because I was me when I was a little boy. I was me when I was a junkie. I was me when I was poor. I've been me in all of the different phases.""I can't tell you how happy I feel and how relieved I feel, but as you know, if you know, my resources are coming from somewhere else and someone else now," he continued. "Thank you so much for your support. Let's keep doing this together — or certainly I'm just going to do what I'm doing. I love you so much. I'm so grateful to be surrendered in Christ. See you all soon."Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

The wife of the California doctor who has been accused of deliberately driving a Tesla off a cliff with his family inside has pleaded with prosecutors to drop his attempted murder charges. The development unfolded during a courtroom testimony on Thursday, according to the New York Post. Dharmesh Patel reportedly became emotional as he listened to his wife, Neha Patel, reflect on the car crash that took place in early 2023. Dharmesh also had to sit and listen to his wife tell the court that their young son has asked, "When's Daddy coming home?""We need him in our lives and it has been over a year and a half since my children or I have seen or spoken to Dharmesh," Neha said.“We are not a family without him," she continued.The San Francisco Chronicle reported that Dharmesh faces three counts of attempted murder after he drove his family's Tesla off a 250-foot cliff in an attempted murder-suicide. The horrific event took place on January 2, 2023, around a part of the Pacific Coast Highway commonly known as Devil's Slide. Reports mentioned that Dharmesh, Neha, and their then-seven-year-old daughter suffered serious injuries following the plunge. Their then-four-year-old son was also treated for minor injuries in the crash.Dharmesh pleaded not guilty to three counts of attempted murder and two enhancements. Additionally, he said his Tesla Model Y experienced tire issues when he drove off Devil's Slide, according to reports.However, witnesses who saw the event said Dharmesh did not show any signs of slowing down before launching the vehicle off the cliff. But this has not stopped Neha from pleading with the prosecution to free her husband, emphasizing that their children miss their father.“When is Daddy coming home? He’s taking so long and I miss him,” Neha recalled her now-five-year-old son telling her.The Post reported that a psychologist testified last week, saying Dharmesh suffered from a form of psychosis that resulted in him having delusions about his children being kidnapped and molested. The delusions were also reportedly sparked by the ongoing fentanyl crisis throughout the country, and also the conflict in Ukraine.Neha said that her husband of 25 years had never had an episode before the crash. “Now that we understand and know he has a treatable condition, things will be different,” she said. “I want members of the court to know the health and safety of my family is of paramount importance.”The Patel family hopes that Dharmesh — a radiologist at Providence Holy Cross Medical Center in Los Angeles — qualifies for a two-year mental health diversion program instead of facing trial. If Dharmesh is found guilty of the charges, he could face life in prison.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

A deadly outbreak of tuberculosis inside a California hotel acting as a homeless shelter has led to at least one death. Health officials in Long Beach have consequently declared a public health emergency, according to Fox News Digital.The sudden outbreak at an unnamed hotel has reportedly infected 14 people, resulting in nine people having to be hospitalized. The Department of Health and Human Services for Long Beach made the announcement on Thursday. The identity of the individual who died has not been revealed.City officials announced that [t]he outbreak is currently isolated to a distinct population and the risk to the general public is low.""The population at risk in this outbreak has significant barriers to care including homelessness and housing insecurity, mental illness, substance use and serious medical comorbidities."Officials stated that the reason they declared a health emergency was to strengthen the city's ability to respond to the outbreak, per the report. Despite the low number of people who have been hospitalized, the report noted that around 170 people have likely been exposed to tuberculosis. The Health Department is currently in the process of screening contacts for the illness by way of blood or skin tests, chest X-rays, and symptom review. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stated that tuberculosis is a serious illness that primarily affects the lungs. The bacteria can easily be spread through the air by an infected person coughing, sneezing, or even just speaking.“Tuberculosis spreads easily where people gather in crowds or where people live in crowded conditions,” Long Beach health officials said. “People with HIV/AIDS and other people with weakened immune systems have a higher risk of catching tuberculosis than people with typical immune systems.”While tuberculosis is typically treatable with antibiotics, those who take the medication may need to do so for around six to nine months, according to KTLA.“People who have been infected but are not yet sick have what’s called latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI),” health officials said. “People with LTBI can take medication so that they do not later get sick with active TB disease.”“The risk of TB for people who live, work, study or visit in Long Beach remains very low,” city official stated. “The Health Department will continue to screen individuals associated with this outbreak and expects the number of cases and contacts to increase.” Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Elon Musk recently announced that X's AI chatbot Grok will power a feature that essentially summarizes personalized trending stories under the platform's "Explore" section. X's engineering team posted the announcement on Friday, writing: "Now available: Stories on X, powered by Grok AI.""See what the world is talking about with Stories on X, curated by @grok. now available for Premium subscribers in the Explore tab! web & iOS only for now-- let us know your feedback." — (@) Tech Crunch reported that X's Premium subscribers will now have the ability to read a summary of posts on the platform that are associated with each trending story. All of which will be displayed on the "For You" tab.The "For You" tab acts as a one-stop shop for users to catch up on the news and stories circulating on the platform that are popular within their network. Instead of a user having to endlessly scroll to find out what is trending, they can just go to the "For You" tab to get filled in.The report mentioned that concerning the AI burnout story, the Grok-powered summary says: “AI engineers are facing burnout and rushed rollouts due to the competitive race in the tech industry, as companies prioritize investor satisfaction over solving actual problems.”While some may be optimistic about Grok's ability, it is not a perfect piece of AI. The chatbot has made the humorous statement, "Grok can make mistakes, verify its outputs."Tech Crunch reported:Access to xAI’s chatbot Grok is meant to be a selling point to push users to buy premium subscriptions. With the Premium and top-tier Premium+ plans, users can access Grok by tapping on the bottom middle button of the app. A snarky and “rebellious” AI, Grok’s differentiator from other AI chatbots like ChatGPT is its exclusive and real-time access to X data.Tech journalist Alex Kantrowitz reportedly received an email from Musk, who laid out the bigger picture for AI-powered news on the platform. Kantrowitz wrote: "Musk said better citations are coming, but shared a deeper vision for the product, which he wants to build into a real-time synthesizer of news and social media reaction. Effectively, his plan is to use AI to combine breaking news and social commentary around big stories, present the compilation live, and allow you to go deeper via chat." — (@) Musk responded, saying that "[a]s more information becomes available, the news summary will update to include that information," adding that "[t]he goal is simple: to provide maximally accurate and timely information, citing the most significant sources."Kantrowitz added that Musk's goal will not be an easy one, but "the bot [Grok] might become a novel news product given its access to the X firehose."Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!