DAN HODGES: This one line in Donald Trump's squalid birthday letter to Epstein could end him. No wonder he's claiming it's a scam
Trump is threatening to sue. And his allies have already been despatched to angrily defend the President. 'Forgive my language but this story is complete and utter b******t,' Vice President JD Vance raged. 'Does anyone honestly believe this sounds like Donald Trump?'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
21 minutes ago
- The Independent
EXCLUSIVE: NYC shooter fixated on NFL with CTE claims took ‘big hits' in high school, former teammate says
The NYC mass shooter who blamed the NFL for his apparent CTE brain injury did regularly take 'some big hits' on the field that left him 'looking empty,' a former high school teammate told The Independent. Shane Devon Tamura, 27, sprayed bullets from a M4 assault weapon at a Park Avenue office building Monday evening, killing four people including a cop before turning the gun on himself. Police found Tamura's body with a suicide note in his pocket that claimed he was suffering from chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a degenerative brain condition that has been linked to the head trauma regularly endured by those who participate in contact sports, such as football players. Tobenna Okunna, 28, a onetime defensive end who played with Tamura in high school in Santa Clarita, California, told The Independent that he remembered the player, who was 5'7' and 140 lbs at the time, taking regular blows to the head. 'It's hard to convey, but Shane was really fast, and ran really hard, and he was really small. So, all that speed and energy running into these massive people… I do remember Shane taking some big hits,' Okunna said in a phone call from his home in North Carolina on Tuesday morning. Tamura 'had occasional moments of looking 'empty,' or spaced-out,' Okunna continued. 'We would commiserate about how high school is hard and stuff like that, [so] I just figured that whenever he had that look, he was just lost in thought… He did hit his head a lot, for sure.' Okunna – who went on to play Division 1-A college football at the University of San Diego and now works in the software industry – described the killer as someone who could sometimes appear distracted, almost dazed, but was, all in all, 'a very normal guy, very kind and well-liked by a lot of people.' Okunna said he remembered a period of time in high school during which Tamura's parents were having relationship issues, leading to 'some stress around that in his life.' About seven or eight years ago, another member of the Golden Valley football squad posted an appeal on social media, requesting information about Tamura's whereabouts. 'I do remember people were worried about him, because he did sort of fall off the face of the earth for a few years,' Okunna said. 'I followed Shane on Instagram, he would post sparingly, maybe once a year or so. I knew he was alive and I knew he was doing something, somewhere.' Tamura was a standout running back for the Golden Valley Grizzlies during the 2014-2015 academic year. In 2015, Tamura transferred to Granada Hills Charter School in Los Angeles, where he played his senior year. The gunman, who held a Nevada private investigator's license that expired last year and had lately been working in casino security, had 'a documented mental health history,' New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said Monday. New York City Mayor Eric Adams said Tuesday that Tamura 'appeared to have gone to the wrong floor,' and had in fact intended to attack the offices of the NFL located lower down in the 44-story high-rise. 'We're still going through the suicide note to zero on in the exact reason but at this time it appears as if it's something attached to his belief he experienced CTE from the NFL,' Adams said in an interview. Despite the lofty claim, Tamura never played beyond the high school level. 'Terry Long football gave me CTE and it caused me to drink a gallon of antifreeze,' the disjointed note found in Tamura's pocket reportedly read. 'Study my brain please I'm sorry Rick I'm sorry for everything... You can't go against the NFL, they'll squash you.' In 2005, former Pittsburgh Steelers offensive lineman Terry Long took his own life by drinking a gallon of antifreeze. It was later discovered that he had been suffering from CTE. In the period leading up to Monday's bloodshed, Tamura was living with his mother and father, Michelle and Terence, in Las Vegas. His older brother, Terence Jr., also played football at Golden Valley HS and is now a petty officer in the U.S. Navy. Cops said Tamura drove his black BMW cross-country to Manhattan, arriving late Monday afternoon, then double-parked and strode into 345 Park Avenue, carrying an assault-style rifle in plain view, shortly before 6:30 p.m. In addition to the NFL offices, the office tower counts investment giant Blackstone, consulting powerhouse KPMG, and Rudin Management, a venerable local real estate firm which also owns the building, among its tenants. Tamura opened fire immediately upon entering the lobby, killing 36-year-old NYPD officer Didarul Islam, who was working off-duty, but in his police uniform, as a security guard. Blackstone identified one of its senior executives, Wesley LePatner, as among the dead. The other victims were identified as Rudin Management associate Julia Hyman, a 2020 Cornell University graduate, and Aland Etienne, a 'beloved' 46-year-old security guard. A fifth person – reportedly an NFL executive – was shot and injured, but survived. Tamura shot himself in the chest with the M4 rifle, authorities said. Investigators searched Tamura's car following the attack, and discovered two cellphones, medication, a loaded Colt Python .357 caliber revolver, and ammunition. Although Tamura had documented psychological issues, he was able to obtain a concealed carry permit in 2022 from the Las Vegas Metro Police Department. That same year, he was taken into custody on a mental health crisis hold; another would occur in 2024, law enforcement sources told ABC News. In June, a tipster at a gun show in Las Vegas notified law enforcement that Tamura had bought a suspiciously large amount of ammunition, along with an aftermarket trigger, the outlet reported. The Las Vegas Metro PD said Tuesday it was assisting the NYPD with its investigation. Tamura, who was arrested in Nevada in 2022 for trespassing, does not have a significant criminal record, authorities said. Public records show his father was a member of the LAPD, which was confirmed later on Tuesday by the Los Angeles Times. According to a department roster reviewed by the outlet, Terence Sr. became an officer in 1967 and worked primarily in the San Fernando Valley, with later stints in the Foothill and Devonshire patrol divisions. Tamura's mom is a licensed vocational nurse, according to the California Department of Consumer Affairs, which lists her residence as being in Las Vegas. 'It's very sad, really tragic, and I'm also just sad for the victims and Shane's family also,' Okunna told The Independent. '... It was a real surprise, it's very odd. I don't know what would compel a person to do that.' The NYPD is leading the ongoing investigation, with assistance also coming from the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.
The Independent
21 minutes ago
- The Independent
White House uses Jet2 meme to promote ICE deportations
The White House has posted a controversial tweet on X using a viral British airline advert meme to seemingly mock migrants being deported. The tweet featured handcuffed undocumented individuals being escorted onto an ICE-contracted flight, captioned with a sarcastic reference to a " Jet2 holiday to deportation." The post sparked widespread outrage among social media users, who condemned it as "disgusting" and "mind blowing." Singer Jess Glynne, whose song is part of the meme, expressed her disgust, stating her music promotes "love, unity, and spreading positivity," not "division or hate." The incident aligns with President Donald Trump 's recent signing of a law allocating significant funds for border enforcement and his pledge to deport millions of undocumented immigrants.
The Independent
21 minutes ago
- The Independent
As Trump's tariff deadline looms, a clothing factory in the tiny African nation of Lesotho goes dark
The deafening roar of hundreds of sewing machines has gone silent. Spools of thread in every color are covered in dust. The warehouse is dark and empty. In the tiny African nation of Lesotho, clothing manufacturer Tzicc's business has dried up in the face of tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump 's administration. A few months ago, work was steady. The factory's 1,300 employees has made and exported sportswear to American stores, including JCPenney, Walmart and Costco. But when Trump announced sweeping new tariffs on nearly all U.S. trading partners in April, Lesotho found itself topping the list, with a rate of 50% — higher even than that of China, where the economy is 8,000 times larger. Officials here and economic experts said they were baffled. Since then, Trump backed off — temporarily. During a monthslong pause for trade talks, the U.S. has charged a baseline 10% tariff and announced new rates for dozens of countries starting Friday. Lesotho's rate will be set at Trump's whim, with aides suggesting that tariffs charged on goods from smaller African countries could top 10%. Many nations have received letters laying out a new tariff. With the pause set to expire Friday, Lesotho officials say they've not received one and they find themselves among the countries where Trump says officials simply don't have time for one-on-one negotiations. Leaders — and the 12,000 people employed by garment factories exporting to the U.S. market — are still waiting. The damage has already rippled through Lesotho's economy, where textile manufacturing comprises the largest private industry with more than 30,000 workers in 2024. For Tzicc and its customers, the threat and apparent singling out of Lesotho were enough. Management decided to rush to deliver preexisting orders before tariffs resumed. But American buyers stopped placing new orders. With no work left, virtually all the factory's employees were sent home — potentially permanently. 'Well, unfortunately, we finished,' factory compliance manager Rahila Omar said, pointing out the irony of the strategy as she walked among rows of silenced and covered machines. 'That is why now we don't have any work.' Omar is one of a handful of employees left in the eerily quiet factory. A few remain in the accounting department; others empty leftover stock to a warehouse elsewhere. Officials and workers fear this may be a sign of what's to come for other factories in Lesotho, where poverty is widespread among the population of 2 million and most textile workers single-handedly support their families. Lesotho's tiny economy was threatened with giant tariffs In March, a month before slapping Lesotho with the 50% tariff, Trump described it as a place 'nobody has ever heard of," struggling to pronounce the nation's name in a speech criticizing U.S. foreign aid. It's true Lesotho is a 'very minuscule economy," as its own trade minister, Mokhethi Shelile, described it. But its relationship with Washington dates back decades. The U.S. was the first country to open an embassy in the capital, Maseru, after Lesotho declared independence from the United Kingdom in 1966. The military received U.S. training, and hundreds of millions in U.S. funds were sent to Lesotho to fight the HIV/AIDS epidemic via the now defunctUSAID office and the PEPFAR program. As textiles grew to become Lesotho's main export, some 75% of its product went to the U.S. Lesotho became known as Africa's denim capital. If an American purchased jeans from a U.S. brand such as Wrangler or Levi's, they may have been 'Made in Lesotho,' as tags still note. In 2000, the U.S. signed the African Growth and Opportunity Act, allowing Lesotho and other African nations to export goods to the U.S. duty free. Shelile said he was in the process of negotiating AGOA's September renewal when he was awakened in the middle of the night by texts from aides bearing news of the 50% U.S. tariffs. 'No, this cannot be real,' Shelile remembers thinking. 'What did we do to deserve this?' According to the Trump administration, Lesotho charges a 99% tariff on U.S. goods. The government here said it doesn't know how the U.S. calculated that. In theory, the tariff decision was based on trade deficit: Lesotho's exports to the U.S. were around $240 million last year — mainly clothing and diamonds — and imports from the U.S. were only $2.8 million. But in practice, the math is more complicated than that. And in reality, Lesotho simply cannot afford to import more U.S. products. Nearly half the population lives below the poverty line. 'The trade deficit that exists between Lesotho and the U.S. is a natural trade deficit that can happen when you have these types of disparities between two economies," Shelile said. "It cannot be breached and certainly cannot be breached by imposing tariffs.' Lesotho declared a state of emergency over unemployment Last year, Lesotho's overall unemployment rate was about 30%, national data shows. For those 35 and younger, it was nearly 50%. The threat of tariffs has exacerbated the national unemployment troubles, prompting the government to declare a state of disaster this month. 'No matter how we slice it, we've already had a lot of losses," Shelile said. "People have lost quite a lot money. And to claw back and come back to where we were before this is going to take time.' Most of the 12,000 people hired by Lesotho's 11 factories exporting to the U.S. are women with children to feed and school fees to pay. Of those, 9,000 jobs are directly in the line of fire and an additional 40,000 will suffer indirectly from the U.S.-imposed tariffs, Shelile said. 'We're talking people in real estate that are leasing some rooms,' he said. 'We're talking people in transport, whether it's long-distance haulage to the port, or it is a taxi driver taking people to work in the morning. They are going be affected.' Mapontso Mathunya used to work on Tzicc's cutting room floor and is now unemployed. Her husband also is out of a steady job. With two young children, Mathunya was the family's breadwinner. She now tries to sell snacks and cigarettes on the street but finds it a daily struggle to bring home even a few cents. 'Our financial burden has been heavy," she said. 'Things are bad.' The future of this factory and others remains in limbo The future of the Tzicc factory depends on what happens Friday, compliance manager Omar said. Owned by a Taiwanese national, the factory has been open since mid-1999. In a peak month, it made up to 1.5 million pieces of clothing for JCPenney. Key U.S. customers for Tzicc — JCPenney, Walmart and Costco — did not reply to AP to comment. Pivoting to the neighboring South African market, one of the solutions proposed by the trade minister and industry consultants, wouldn't be enough to even cover the employees' payroll, Omar said. And even if American buyers return, it's unlikely the factory could rehire all its 1,300 workers, she added. Today, just a few blocks away, former employees try their luck looking for work at other factories that are still operating. Most are turned away. 'Life is difficult,' former worker Mathunya said. 'There is nothing, nothing at all. People don't have money.' __ Pascalinah Kabi in Maseru, Josh Boak in Washington and Anne D'Innocenzio in New York contributed. ___ For more on Africa and development: The Associated Press receives financial support for global health and development coverage in Africa from the Gates Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at
